Achronum

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

Today was finally the day!! Casper had been waiting for all of sixteen hours and he was bursting at the seams, ready to go. He had even woken up early for this - at exactly ten thirteen in the morning, without prompting. He didn’t even demand for his sweet, doting husband to carry him into the shower and wake him up as he did every morning. He even went and fetched James, telling him that he was getting dressed for the day - clad in his fuzzy pink bathrobe and bootie shorts, per the house rules - and that he needed to know what accessories to pick. Of course, the piercer didn’t open until two in the afternoon but that didn’t matter. He was hyper! He’d forgotten he used to have his navel pierced and now, he was desperate to have it back! So when it had finally been time to go, he was bouncing up and down on his feet, so incredibly eager as he threw open the door to the piercer’s studio.

Unlike his Papa, Danni had no qualms catching every bit of sleep he could. It'd been a long night of whining and crying and pleading and begging and then offering up extra chores and anything else that came to his, or his Papa's mind to try and get his Pop's approval. Because if Pops put his foot down with the Pops voice, he knew even Papa wouldn't be able to get him too budge. Thankfully, it hadn't gotten to that point but the mental work took its toll nevertheless. Danni happily slept in, curled around his favorite little dragon, and snored right up until his alarm at 11:27 woke him up. And then he'd screamed, gotten a little huffed of smoke for his efforts, screamed again, and bolted to get ready. He'd nearly run to Casper in tears trying to figure out what to wear. He'd never had a piercing and it was so exciting, he didn't want to look stupid because he wore a sundress to go swimming or something. But, as always, his Papa was a genius and he stole that worry right and got him all tidied up in some punky clothes.

It was a small, cramped space. There was a tiny waiting area at the front, where magazines and books of flash tattoo samples were covering almost every available seat. The walls were covered with even more flash art, and photographs of tattoos done by the artists currently in residence. Every bare spot was covered with graffiti, including the floors. A little beyond the lobby was the front counter, where a short girl with frosted tips and lip piercings was scrolling through her phone. The glass counter doubled as a display case, with a variety of different jewelry options on display - from hoops and studs to industrials and septum piercings and more. A small binder kept on the counter showed a catalog of the different piercing options. Beyond the counter were a variety of workstations, set up for the tattoo artists - and lastly, a curtained off area in the very back held the piercing studio.

“Ahhhh, Danni, this is so exciting!!! Your first piercing!!!” Casper squealed, kicking up one leg into the air behind him, and shooting his arms out. “I remember my first piercing - I was out with this girl, Slutty Suzy, from the foster home. We’d stolen $100 from our foster mom’s purse and taken three buses to get there. I wanted to get my tongue pierced, but they wouldn’t do it at Claires. I don’t actually remember this that well - BUT Suzy got her lobes pierced and when they went to pierce her, they were using a gun instead of a needle - which is why you never get pierced at a mall, btws - and IT GOT FUCKING CAUGHT IN HER EAR! Ahh! Super painful. But it looked so cute when it was done!”

Danni looked around the shop eagerly, bouncing from the display case to flipping through the binder to hiding behind his parents nervously. Danni cheered with Casper as he got excited, but then his eyes grew really wide at the ending of Casper's story. “Omg, is t'at gunna ‘appen ta me?! Is it gonna get stuck in my tummy?!” Danni stage-whispered, eyes darting to the lady at the counter. James laughed under his breath and tucked his husband into his shoulder.

“No, no. I won't let that happen. Do you want to go talk to her about the process? That'll help you feel a little better, kiddo.” James nudged Danni into his favorite activity, talking, and kept Casper wrapped up in a one armed hug. “Maybe, we don't talk about the bad experiences people've had with piercing until Danni's done? You can laugh about them with him then, sweetheart.” James tilted Casper's head down and gave him a chaste kiss.

Danni had taken the advice to heart and shed his nerves as he honed in on the girl at the counter. James shot her an apologetic look from behind his son's back. “‘i, ‘ello, ‘eyo! So tell me all ‘bout t'is? Did ya do your ‘air yourself or did ya ‘ave a studio do it? Do you like t'e frosted tips look? Kinda makes me t'ink of like, anime people or like, old boy bands ya know? Do you listen ta boy band music? Is t'at why you frosted your tips? I'm ‘ere for my first piercin’ and I t'ought ‘bout it ‘cause Spicy needed ‘elp and t'en I was tryin’ on ‘is clothes and I was myself and I was like Damn, I look good, but I need somet'in’ for my tummy ‘cause it's in good shape but a little borin’ ya know?”

“Oh hi!! This is your first piercing? And your belly? That’s so exciting!! Bold choice, but you’re going to love it!!” She then pulled out a little tray with different options for a new piercing, and set it out in front of Danni. “Take a look at these, let me know if any of them interest you - they’re all surgical grade titanium, so no need to worry about any metal allergies if you have those. I think this one here would look really cute on you - and no, I need to get into boy band music though!! I only listen to Swedish folk pop from the distant future. It’s really good!! I have a CD if you wanna take a listen. The hair I also do myself, if you believe it or not I actually use a special mixture of Elmer’s glue and bleach and it comes out PERF every time!!”

Casper’s eyes widened. “Shit, I didn’t think about that - my bad, babe!” He wasn’t quiet at all. “I’m so sorry, Danni, I didn’t want to scare you!! It’s going to be great!! I’ll go first if you want so you can see it happen!!”

Danni's excitement came to a grinding halt and he tilted his head in confusion and then realization dawned on his face. “Glue?! Bleach?!” Danni whispered in horror, hands flying to his hair protectively. “Your poor hair. I just…” For once, Danni was speechless.

Thankfully, his Pa broke the moment and his excitement from earlier returned in full force. “Yeah, no, yeah. T'ats def happenin’, Papa! And yeah, I tots want t'at CD, futrizist swedish pop sounds rad AF! T'ough, ‘ow easy is it ta change one of t'ese? Like do I ‘ave ta come back ta put a new piercin’ in if I wanna change up t’e fit or can I do it at ‘ome? I guess Pops could just fix me up if I ‘ave ta tear it out or somet'in’, t'at just ‘urt t'ough. My Papa is doin’ it too; am I allowed ta watch? Can t'ey be t'ere when I get t'e piercin’? Its kinda scary. Like, I probs won't burn anyt'in’ down, I'm waaaaaaay better at ‘oldin’ t'at stuff back now, but my ‘rents make me feel safe and all t'at, ya know?”

James held back a sigh as Danni's nervous rambling brought up fire. He walked over with Casper and bopped his son gently on the head. "It's gunna be fine, kiddo. Remember, you can change your mind at any time and that'll be okay. Before you make any decisions, let your Papa pick out what he wants and then go through it all and then come back and pick our yours if you still want to.” James rubbed Danni's back reassuringly before he turned a soft smile to the girl. “If that's okay? And does your shop do custom naval jewelry or do you just have a base stock?”

Hearing that there was a chance the client could catch on fire didn’t phase her one bit. Almost everyone who came to this shop was a mutant or had powers in some shape or form. Nessa was one too - she had a set of gils underneath her concert tee. “Mm, super good questions!! You can always come back here for us to look at it, usually you’ll want to let it heal for a bit before you change it out, your piercer will say how long - but if your dad is a healer, just let the piercer take a look at it before you leave today. They can show you how to swap out the jewelry if you want to at home. And yes!! Your dads can def be in there with you, and you can watch, we just ask no photography or filming! And the answer to that is it’s actually all custom made here in house! The owner makes the jewelry - we actually kept running out of pieces and it took too long to get new stuff in, so we started making it here! I’m apprenticing under her for it, so if there’s something specific you want just let me know and we can def help out - otherwise these are some pieces we made that we already have on hand!”

Casper raised an eyebrow. “Did you have something in mind, baby? Ooo! Ooo! What if we got one that somehow had little flames on it? Or HS for HotShot?” He slung an arm around Danni’s shoulder and pulled him in for a squeeze, before his eyes started to water. “My baby boy is growing up so fast!!! It feels like just yesterday your Pops and I were bringing you home from the hospital, with that really weird doctor with the exposed brain, and the poor lady your Pops kept having to ask for things from. It was like three trips back to bother Bee, it was so many.”

James nodded at Nessa's explanation. “Just a set of initials for my husband's piercing: JK. Just let me know how to place the order and I'll get it submitted. Danni here,” James ruffled his son's hair affectionately, “Can pick from the box for now and if he likes the piercing for longer than a few months, we can explore some custom ideas.”

Danni squeaked in protest as his Pops messed with his hair, batted away his hand, and then rolled his eyes as he fixed his hair in the counters reflection. “Omg, Pops. ‘e already ‘as your name inked on ‘im. ‘ow many more times ya gunna do t'is?” Danni asked exasperatedly. “Papa, do ya even want t'at? Or do you want somet'in’ else.”

“Sounds perf!!” Nessa grabbed a form from a scattered pile behind her and a pen, and slid it across to James. “Just leave that with me when you’re all done and we’ll get it going! Should be about a week or so on our end to have it made. And if there’s any other jewelry you’re interested in, you can also add in that there - we’ve started doing permanent stuff which is super exciting!!!”

“Danni, my sweet baby boy, love of my life, apple of my eye… Your father can write his name on me as many times as he wishes,” he then cupped his hands over Danni’s ears. “Please do it more,” he then begged slightly, his eyes softening.

James looked at Casper, full of adoration and affection. When he'd first seen Casper, he'd been just out of rehab, on his way to find his next high, running from Purifiers on the street, and James had barely gotten a hello from him before Casper was running his mouth about something absurd and talking to a ghost. James, despite everyone's concerns and everyone's warnings and everyone's confusion, fell in love at first sight. Because he knew who Casper could be if someone loved him the right way, if someone bothered to peer past the carefully crafted apathy and hedonism and James was in awe every single day that he managed to find someone as amazing as his husband. If Casper wanted the sun and the moon, James would give it to him. If Casper wanted the entirety of the federal reserve, James would steal it for him. If Casper wanted James's name on him, over and over and over until he couldn't even remember his own name…

James took a steadying breath, put his hand over Danni's eyes, and kissed Casper much fiercer, pouring the love and care and affection boiling over in him into the kiss. “As many times as you want, darling. I love you and you're mine, forever, and I'll carve my name into your bones so everyone knows that's true.” James murmured softly to Casper.

Casper growled quietly, pressing into his husband slightly as their son’s eyes and ears were both covered. It didn’t take much to get him in the mood. And the thought of having James’ name in his bones sent him quivering. “Then do it,” he urged. “I want you to own me, James. I want every person in this world to look at me and know that I belong to you. I want you to collar me and—“

Nessa politely looked away.

“‘ey! Don't just ignore me! Whatcha talkin’ ‘bout? Why can't I ‘ear? I wanna be involved!” Danni whined and stomped his foot. “Come on! T'is is supposed ta be us time!” Danni's voice quivered as he got worked up.

James had covered Casper's mouth with his other hand, couldn't down from five in his head, and put a quick kiss on his husband's cheek. “We are absolutely revisiting that at home.” James murmured and took his hands away from Casper and Danni, and apologetic smile already on his face as Danni batted away Casper's hands. “Sorry kiddo. You're right; Papa and I had to discuss an adult question real quick and you wouldn't have like it, but now we're done and we can get you and your Papa in there together, okay?”

Danni's resolve to be upset wavered a little and he looked at Casper.

Casper struck suddenly, his arms wrapping around Danni as he hoisted him up into the air and started to spin. “Are you readdddyyyyyyyyyyyyyy???” he trilled, refusing to stop spinning until he heard a yes and a giggle come from his darling boy. “I love youuuuuuu and you’re going to look so cuuuuuute and you’ll be so grown uuuuuuuuup and all your friends will be jeeeeeaaaaalooooous!”

Danni screamed as he was lifted and whirled around, laughing as he clung to his Papa. “Papaaaaa! Stoooop!l I wanna get the piercing! I wanna look goooood!” Danni protested weakly, breaking out in little snorts of laughter. “You gotta go first tho! I wanna see it!”

James laughed and quickly took a photo of the pair, pocketing the phone and writing down his ideas on the form Nessa provided. “Thank you. And when we're done, I have some questions on proper care and changing them. Do you have any info pamphlets or supplies we can get as well?”

Casper spun Danni around a few extra times for good measure, before setting his son down. He then peppered the top of his head in kisses. “Have you picked out which one you want?” he then asked, turning Danni so that way they were looking at the box of jewelry again. He then lowered his voice to a whisper. “If you want something custom, let me know and we’ll convince your Pops, okay kiddo?” he added with a wink.

“Yes, you actually will go away with one of these!” Nessa ducked behind the counter, before reemerging with a navy blue paper bag. She handed it on over to James so he could look through. “It includes care instructions for your piercing, info on what to expect and when to call us or a doc, healing times and when you’re ready to downsize, and a saline cleaning spray.”

“Oh, thank you. That's perfect.” James accepted the bag, going through it and pulling out the information on what to expect.

Danni giggled mischievously. “I def need ta get a custom ‘otShot one. But maybe we get it first ta see if it looks good?” Danni said, uncharacteristically shy as he looked at the piercings in the box. “Which one do ya t'ink I should get? Maybe I should get an easy one? Is t'ere an easy versus a advanced one? Idk, I think t'at's t'e one I want? Ugh, I shoulda talked ta Dee but I was so worried about gettin’ Pops on board, idk what even ta pick. Is t'is one fine?” Danni picked up a little curved one with two balls on the end.

“So you’ll want to get something simple to start with - the ones with more shapes and features are really cool, and I love them, but they hurt more during the healing process. They also can poke into you some. Now your Pops is going to take care of the healing for for you, so we don’t have to worry about that. But it’ll still be good for while you’re getting used to it,” Casper said, perusing the options in the case. “How about this one?” he suggested, pointing at a plain silver one. “It’ll go with your skin tone really well, and I can give you some more of my silver jewelry to match it. And when you’re ready, maybe we spice it up some with a gold, maybe some rubies on it - and I can help you swap it out so no need to worry about that! I used to change mine every day.”

Danni listened to his Papa seriously, putting away the little curved one and picking up the one Casper suggested. He turned it over and scrunched up his nose. “It's is kinda borin’ but… Papa knows best!” Danni decided and offered it to Nessa. “Can I do t'is one please? I t'ink we'll probs be back a lot ‘cause I like to accessorize but Papa made a good point. I def need ta try flyin’ ‘round wit’ t'is before I get anyt'in’ fancy ‘eroin’ comes first! Do you know if people who can fly ‘ave issues wit’ t'ese piercin's?”

James glanced up between his husband and his son. Not only were they on task, they were making serious and valid points about more than how it looked. James blinked in surprise. Who knew it just took a piercing to get them there?

Nessa blinked, trying to comprehend what Danni had said so proudly in front of his dads. “Heroin comes first…?” she muttered under her breath. And then her eyes widened. “Oh. OH. Heroing comes first!! Sorry, sorry - yes! This one should def work out for you. It’ll be great! I started with one like this myself, and tbh, I still wear it from time to time - well the downsized version of it, once it healed - but same diff! Okay perf, I’m going to take this on back to the piercer, I have some forms for you to sign, and then you can go on back! Yay! Exciting! Wait - did you pick one to start with too?”

Ordinarily, Casper wouldn’t have followed his own advice - he’d had one before and he mostly remembered how it would feel to have in. But he didn’t want Danni to feel jealous or unsure, so he pointed at the gold version of the one Danni had selected. “This one would be perf, thank youuuuu!”

Nessa nodded, taking the other piece of jewelry. “Awesome choice, I’ll be right back!!” She handed over a clipboard with some standard waivers, before taking the jewelry and going on to the back room.

Casper stared at the form. And then he stared at James. And hit him with the signature puppy dog eyes. “Pweeeease?”

Danni did exactly the same, picking up the forms, and holding them out to his Pops with wide eyes threatening tears and a trembling lip. “Pretty pwease wit’ ice cream on top?” Danni begged almost in tandem.

James looked up from the slim booklet at the whining and glanced between the pair of them. He didn't bother hiding his amusement. “Glad to know your acting classes went to good use. Manipulating your poor, helpless father. Whatever will I do?” James laughed, happily taking both their forms. “I didn't expect anything; turn off those weapons before I drop dead.”

“Yayyyy!!! Thank you baby!!!! I love you!!!” Casper pressed a kiss to James’ cheek, before holding his hand out to Danni for a high five. It was way easier to get out of responsibilities when he had a partner in crime. “I’m so proud of you, you’re growing up to be such a menace,” he sniffled, looking at his son with complete adoration.

Danni beamed, wiping the tears out of his eyes, and high fiving his Papa before hugging him excitedly. “I am t'e best menance!” Danni puffed out his chest proudly. “Soon, t'ey'll want my photos instead of Spidermans! Muwhahahaha!”

James accepted the kiss and rolled his eyes fondly, settling in to read and fill out the forms. Mostly just waivers, authorizations, liability clauses. Really just the usual. He held the pen out to Casper. “Sweetheart, sign here and you're good. Danni, if anyone asks you for photos, please tell me so I can bury them in litigation. You're a minor and I'm not having weirdos get their hands on your photos.”

“Danni boy is famous, people already want his photos!” Casper argued. “Ooo wait Danni Danni Danni - have you decided what your autograph signature is going to look like? We should workshop it. It’s very important hmm maybe something with hearts?? Or ooo could you draw a little fire? No, HotShot with hearts for one or both o’s would be good! Do you like that? I can come up with more ideas, it took me a while to come up with a good one for Cassie Caskets. Your Pops didn’t like my first idea of just kissing and putting a lipstick stain.” He signed his name neatly in cursive where indicated.

Danni frowned from where he was hanging off Casper. “Idk, I ‘aven't t'ought ‘bout it all. I guess I shoula but t'ere's so much ta t'ink ‘bout and my ‘ead is so full already!” Danni whinned. “Oh, oh. What if I I do little fire for t'e o's and t'en after t'e tea is a little ‘eart wit’ a ‘appy mark? And t'e maybe little smokey bits around it? I feel like that'll be fun! Do you t'ink I could get a stamp wit’ it on it? Save .y ‘ands or would it be mean? Like, people wait in line and t'en just blap. No, yeah t'ats kinda mean. I'd be kinda upsetti if I waited in line for merch and t'ey just stamped it instead of signin’ it.” Danni let go of his Papa and tilted his head at Pops. “Why can't Papa do t'at? T'at sounds kinda cute, like you're tellin’ each of t'em you love t'em!”

James finished filling out Danni's paperwork, Casper's already settled back on the counter, but he paused and looked up at Danni with mild amusement. “I know. But how can anyone prove it was your Papa who left the kiss mark on whatever… stuff they brought to be signed? Easier with a name you know?” Danni could have sworn he saw a little green in James's eyes but waived it away as the trick of the light.

Casper didn’t miss that though, as he reached out and took James’ hand, and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. “Hmm. What if you signed your name and then got a stamp for the art?” he mused. “You’ve seen mine - it’s just Cassie with a heart over the i and a tiny coffin for the a. But you can change it too if you want to! It just dates when the signature happened but that can be a fun keepsake! And tbh, all signatures are gonna change a little when you’re hours deep into a signing.”

Nessa then poked her head around the corner. “We’re ready for you guys now!!!”

James smiled appreciatively at the affection Casper showed him, jealousy settling down for now. “Okay, kiddo. Let's get going and you can see how it goes with your Papa.” Danni turned on his heels and James brought Capser's hand to his face, pressed his cheek against it, and took a moment to enjoy the contact. He pressed a kiss back to Casper's palm and then tangled his fingers in Casper's, following Danni's energetic lead.

“A'ight! T'is is gunna ne great! ‘ow much does it ‘urt? Like, is it like Dee or Rillie ounchin’ me in trainin’ or like, Leah punchin’ me in trainin’?” Danni asked over his shoulder as he whipped around the corner. He bounced up to Nessa when he saw her. “Do a lotta people cry when t'ey get a peircin’? Ngl, cryin’ is like my instinct when I'm stressed so I might cry even if it doesn't ‘urt. Ooooh do people pass out? What ‘appenels when people pass out like mid-pierce or like mid-tattoo? Do you keep goin’ or do ya gotta stop?”

Nessa was about to answer Danni’s questions, but instead Casper cut in. “Hmm. Tbh, I don’t remember most of my piercings. I was - well as you said earlier, heroin first. But! The ones I do remember were my lobes - it hurt, but only for a second. And I used to have my nostril done - that one I didn’t even feel, although it might have been the cocaine… but it doesn’t hurt as much as getting shot! Bullets are worse. And it doesn’t hurt as much as when I…” he realized what he was about to say wasn’t appropriate for Danni. “when I sat on something sharp by accident. It’s kinda like a pinch, but with a needle! And they’ll stop if you pass out, or at least, I think they do? I cried for all of these, btw. You get your crying from me.” Casper did not, in fact, cry at any of these piercings.

“…. Yeah, so if you pass out we will stop! It doesn’t happen much with piercings but it does happen with tattoos, particularly in long sessions when people haven’t hydrated or eaten beforehand. Some people cry, but most are surprised by how quickly it’s over with!”

Danni nodded along with his Papa's notes, grimacing a little at some of it. “Papa, why are you sittin’ on sharp t'in's?! T'at's dangerous! Do we ‘ave tissues? If Imma cry, we need ta be prepared.” Danni informed Nessa. “I don't t'ink I'll pass out but if I do, Pops you'll be ‘ere when I wake up right? I'd be real spooked ta wake up wit’ bot’ ya. Omg, is titanium ‘eat resistant? Is t'is gunna burn me when I go flamey?!”

James sent a prayer up as Casper brought up hard drugs and pain. “I'm not walking out of here without both of my favorite people so don't stress, Danni. Your clothes don't burn with your own fire, so the piercing will be fine. Just stay focused on how you're going to look and how many new outfit combinations you can try out.” As prepared as this place may be, a panicked Danni was a burny Danni and he did not want to have to cover the insurance premiums after that.

Casper didn’t know the answer to Danni’s question there. But Danni already wore jewelry and it seemed fine, so he figured it would be okay! Metals and their heat capacities seemed more like a James topic. “Your necklaces and rings and stuff don’t hurt you when you flame on, right?” Casper confirmed. “Hmm. Maybe Maxie can put some sort of magic sparkle on your piercing, make it so it doesn’t get too hot? I’ve never run into fires with mine on - at least, I don’t… wait there was that one time in Vegas… with Ricky… hmm. Yeah, idk baby boy, but it’s gonna be fine!!! Your Pops is right, think of all the cute fits!!!”

The curtain to the piercing area opened up, revealing an old timer with thinning white hair, arms covered in intricate tattoo sleeves, large gauges in his ears, and a smile that was strangely reminiscent of Santa Claus. “Who’s first? Oh, pardon - name’s Jean-Claude, nice ta meet ya,” he said, taking off a latex glove to shake the hand of each Kingston-Gray. “Navel piercings, eh? Any special reason or just cause?”

“Okay, well, t'at's cause I was ‘elpin’ my friend wit’ Fred - we named ‘is zit t'at cause it basically ‘ad it's own zip code - and I ‘ad ta borrow a shirt but he's like… teeny tiny. Pocket sized. I t'ink Dee said bite sized once but I didn't really get t'at but Spicy got real red, so it was funny. Anyways, I ‘ad ta borrow a shirt which was more like a crop top and after I finished gettin’ dressed, I realized t'e fit was kinda borin’ cause it didn't ‘ave anyt'in’ sparkly on it and didn't really ‘ave a way ta work on t'at so I t'ought what would make my tummy pop? and I decided that t'is was t'e best option! T'en if I get kidnapped from my ‘ouse again, I won't ‘ave an issue wit’ t'at no matter t'e fit!” Danni explained, latching onto the piercer's hand as he spoke. “And t'en when I ask t'e rents, Pops originally told me no but t'en Papa also wanted ta get is and Pops is weka for ‘is family and t'at's why we love ‘im so much! Cause ‘e just wants ta make us ‘appy, and now we're ‘ere! Papa is gunna do it first so I can watch and t'en its me but I’m real nervous ‘cause its my first piercin’ but it can't ‘urt any worse t'an gettin’ floored by a giantess, right?”

James very gently took Danni's hands away from Jean-Claude's and shook it in return. “Just because.” James offered a more succinct response. “I can heal them up after. Just let me know when they're ready.”

“Hell yeah, brother - I’m gonna be honest, I only processed like ten percent of what you just said - but I love the energy!” Jean-Claude clapped his hands together, before gesturing at the table behind him. “Let’s do ya first then, dad.”

Casper hopped up onto the table, and immediately assumed the position, laying on his back. He was wearing a crop top so his belly was already exposed, and Jean-Claude set about cleaning the area, before putting the jewelry gently onto his skin. “How’s this look, dad?”

Casper tilted his head. “Perf!!! Jamesy what’re your thoughts? You good with that placement?”

James clicked his tongue quietly, a simmering annoyance making itself known, but he looked at it as objectively possible. “I think that's great” He wasn't gritting his teeth, no white knuckles - James was quite proud of how well he was keeping his cool.

Danni scampered around James's other side and watched with wide eyes, holding onto his Pop's arm tightly.

Casper knew his husband. He knew him incredibly well. He loved how adorably possessive and jealous he could be - it just made him want to melt. It also made it all too easy to rile him up and get him ready for the activities Casper had in mind. So while James was fooling the piercer, and maybe even Danni, he wasn’t fooling Casper. “Sweetheart, can you come hold my hand while he does it? I’m a little scared,” Casper lied, pouting a bit as he held his hands out for James.

“Scared?” James snorted, reaching out and claiming Casper's hands and tangling their fingers together. “Anything for you, my love.”

Danni grabbed Casper's other hand, trembling a little and going teary eyed. “Papa, I'll hold your ot'er one! We're ‘ere for you!”

Casper gave James’ hand a reassuring squeeze, before grinning up at Danni. “Awww, thank you, my two precious boys,” he said softly. He didn’t want to scare Danni - but he’d wanted the pretense to give James some skin-to-skin contact. “I feel so much braver with both of you here, I’m not scared at all anymore!” Was he a good actor? Maybe. Probably not. But he just needed to sell it enough for Danni, and he could do that. Hopefully.

“Alright, take a deep breath for me,” Jean-Claude instructed. “On the count of three - one… two… three!”

The pain honestly wasn’t that bad - Casper hadn’t been lying when he said he had had worse. It was just a bit of a pinch, really, in the grand scheme of things. And as Jean-Claude finished and pulled away, Casper beamed as he looked down at his belly. “Ahhh, it looks so good!!! I can’t wait to put in some bling!!!”

Danni had shut his eyes instinctively as the count down happened and he peaked one eye open as his Papa hadn't winced or flinched, and started talking. Seeing no pain, Danni squealed at the piercing. “Omg, t'at looks so good! I def gotta ‘ave one! T'at wasn't t'at spooky and I was def right; I'mma look craaazy ‘ot wit’ t'is. ‘ow does it feel, does it feel weird? Does it feel like a really ‘ard worm in your tummy? It kinda looks like t'at ya know? Deeeef gettin’ a custom piece. Pops, just start gettin’ ready ‘cause Imma do it, okay? Don't answer t'at now, I'm not ready for t'e convincin’ yet.”

“You're waiting at least three months. Then, we can talk about it, kiddo.” James sighed, activating his power to soothe the sting away from the piercing and eliminate the swelling and redness. James let his gaze linger on the piercing, imagining a very different piece of jewelry there and then trailed his eyes further up. Something to consider in the future. James ran his finger down Casper's stomach and hugged gently at the edge of the piercing. “Danni, you ready to swap out?”

Danni nodded eagerly. “Yes, please! Let's get t'is rollin’! Ready for t'is glow up!”

Casper twitched slightly from the finger moving down his stomach, and he hoisted himself up, hopping off of the table. Once Danni was up, Jean-Claude disinfected the same area, picking up the silver piercing this time instead. He held it above the spot that looked good to him. “Well, dads? Kiddo? What do we think? We like this or nah?”

“It looks good to me, Danni boy!!” Casper affirmed, taking one of his son’s hands to hold. He didn’t wait to be asked, and he gave Danni another squeeze. It was all going to be over soon, the anxiety and the dread could go away to excitement - and a whole new world of fashion options and possibilities! He wouldn’t be shocked if this became the first of many piercings - his son would look so great with an eyebrow piercing, with some lip piercings - a tongue piercing would be fun! And his lobes, maybe some cartilage, an industrial or a helix would be great - and nose rings, how could he forget nose rings! He squealed a bit in excitement.

Danni squeezed his Papa's hand and reached for his Pop's hand as well, making a little happy noise at having both his dad's there for him in this incredibly stressful time. He knew it would look great - he really, really did - but volunteering to have someone shove a really sharp thing in him was still nerve wrecking. Danni took a few steady breaths. “Yeah, it looks great!” Danni's voice was higher than usual.

James made a sympathetic noise at Danni's voice. He squeezed Danni's hand tight and got a nervous smile for his efforts. “I'm right here. It'll just be the pinch and it'll be fine. And if you don't want to do it, that's okay too. You still up for this?” James wished he could reach in and soothe Danni, calm his heart beat and relax the tension, but that would make a piercing impossible. Danni nodded quickly and repetitively. “Use your words kiddo. We need to hear it just to be safe.”

Danni took a few calming breaths, eyes closed and focused.He'd taken on a villain, he'd taken on the Contest of Champions, he could take a little piercing! He was HotShot and a little needle or whatever wasn't going to hold him back. Danni opened his eyes, calmer and more focused. “Yeah, let's do t'is!

“Okay, kiddo - deep breath - in three… two… one!”

Jean-Claude pierced Danni’s navel. “And we’re done!” He sat back, beaming as he looked at his work.

Danni squeaked, eyes shut and hand squeezing his parents hands hard, and took a deep breath when told to. It was just a pinch and Danni had experienced far worse in training. Heck, Nemo's training accidents were worse. But offering himself up to be hurt made it seem so much worse in the moment and he let out a pathetic little sob when the needle passed through, but almost immediately cracked his eye open. “T'at's it? Not'in’ else?” Danni whimpered.

“It's all done, kiddo.” James promised, his healing reaching out and soothing away the lingering bite.

Casper’s heart broke when he heard the tiny sob escape from Danni. He was a reactive crier when it came to his son. But he managed to steady himself, wiping away the tears that threatened to form on the back of his arm. “You did so good!!! So brave!!! My sweet precious boy!!!” he gushed. And then he dropped his voice. “Let me know what you want for custom pieces, I’ll get it through your Pops,” he promised, before putting a kiss on Danni’s forehead. “Wait, do you want a picture for your socials? I can take one!! Wait, fuck, they said no pictures - we can find somewhere cool and aesthetic to do it elsewhere? Really show off your new bling?”

Danni preened under his parents' attention and beamed at his piercing. He pushed up off the table and beeline it across the room, framing his new piercing with his hands as he admired it. “OMG IT'S SO COOOL! I LOOK AMAZIN’! I WAS RIGHT! WE DEF HAVE TO DO A PHOTOSHOOT! I HAFTA UPDATE MY SOCIALS, KINGSTON KITCHEN, EVERYTHING!” Danni was practically vibrating with excitement as he swooped over his piercing.

James, meanwhile, took Casper by the chin and gave his husband a fondly exasperated look. “The three months are real. I don't want us to get him things he'll hate in a few minutes, okay? We can get him custom pieces then.” James turned to the piercer. “Thank you very much. I know we can be a little overwhelming."

Casper’s shoulders slumped slightly, as he nodded. He usually could try to wiggle things past James to spoil Danni, but whenever he was taken by the chin, he knew that his husband wouldn’t budge. There wasn’t any amount of puppy dog eyes that would help here. “Okay, okay, okaaaay,” he sulked. “We’ll wait three months to get the sick ass jewelry.”

Jean-Claude chuckled, shaking his head. “No worries, man. I’ve had ta deal with far worse.” He went about putting his tools away, before rattling off information for Danni and Casper about care for their new piercings, what to do if things weren’t healing correctly (as more of a formality, given James’ work), and other pertinent information. “See Nessa on the way out, she’ll get ya a bag of goodies.”

“Thanks, man.” James gave Casper an appreciative kiss, hooked his arm in his husband's, and called out to Danni “Come on, kiddo. Let's get out of here; otherwise, you won't have enough time to do all the outfit changes you want.” Danni gasped and bolted for the door, already muttering about which outfits to do first. James just laughed and leaned in to Casper as they left.

“My family's the best.”

Casper had to restrain himself from running off after Danni - he also was suddenly gripped with a world of fashion possibilities. He was in his early thirties (perpetually) and hadn’t even touched this accessory since his early thirties!! He whimpered slightly, and looked at his husband. He wanted to have James leaning on him. But his walk in closet, the size of a family home in its own right at this point, was calling to him. “Jaaaames… is it okay if we run too?” he begged. “I have this two piece, the black one with the sparkles and the top with the boob windows - the one that shows the tattoo that you like - that I think will look reeeeally good. Ooo!! Maybe with my fur coat?? Have you seen that one btw? I haven’t seen it in like three years and I miiiiiss it.” He had worn it last week.

“After we check out with Nessa, then sure we can run baby.” James assured Casper gently touching the piercing. “You sure its safe to run with?”

“Papaaaaa, Pops! ‘urry up!” Danni shouted from the front of the store.

“You healed me, babes,” Casper reminded him, before leaning over and nipping at James’ ear. “Also, I would and have run with piercings that were fresh that you didn’t heal! Just gotta spray them with saline to cool ‘em off a bit and you’re all good!” he cackled.

James bopped Casper on the nose when he got close, a pleasant shiver running down his spine. “Thank God we're past those days. I'm just thankful you made it long enough to meet me.” James sighed at the thought of Casper neglecting his piercings.

At the front of the store, Nessa gasped and squealed, clapping her hands. “It looks so good!!!” She praised Danni. “Not too bad I hope? I know it can be scary to get your first, but now the world is your octopus! Or whatever the saying is! I bet you’ll be back to get more soon!!”

“OMG, I know!” Danni struck a pose once, twice. “I might, I might but Pops I'll make me wait. It wasn't t’at bad at all! It was def a little spooky but 10/10, would recommend ‘is ‘ands on me again! If I want more, def comin’ ‘ere! Is Jeanie t'e only piercer? Can I ask for ‘im specifically if I come back? Or do I ‘ave ta like, take whoever is ‘ere?”

James raised his eyebrows as they passed into the front of the store. “Three months waiting period.” James reminded Danni firmly. “Jean-Claude asked us to check out with you before we left. Anything you guys need or do you know how to call when you need some help?”

“Right on!! So we have Jean-Claude most of the time, if he’s not around it’ll be the owner, Stardust. You’ll love them, they’re super chill,” Nessa explained. “But if you call ahead to make an appointment - which we recommend so you don’t have to wait a while - let us know you want JC and you’ll get him!!” She then nodded, turning to James. “Hell yeah we do - sorry if this is weird but… we actually met before,” she admitted, before tapping the side of her stomach. “You got some bullets out of me. So we’re all good on our end.”

“Top tier dad behavior,” Casper murmured under his breath, before grinning widely. “You’ve probably pulled things out of everyone in the French Quarter by now. Me most of all.”

James did not show blushes very well, but he could feel his face flame up. Not only had he not recognized this woman after he'd apparently helped her, but then he practically made out with Casper in front of her. That's not top tier dad behavior. James chuckled awkwardly, a handful coming up to rub at the back of his neck. “I'm glad you're doing well then. I am so sorry I didn't realize that. But please don't hesitate to call if you need anything or just flag me down if you all see me.”

“You got shot?!” Danni screeched “What ‘appened? Did a villain try ta snatch ya? Did ya run inta an evil clone of yourself? Did ya-” James firmly clapped his hands over Danni's mouth.

“We don't ask people that. Everyone deserves their privacy.” James scolded Danni before offering an apologetic smile. “Thank you again. I'll pop by in a week for the custom pieces?” Danni licked his Pop's hand and James fixed him with an unamused look. He'd been this kid's dad for 17 years and Casper's partner for longer. He was not afraid of a little saliva.

Nessa smiled somewhat weakly. “Yeah, a villain tried to snatch me - and it’s fine!! I’ve changed my hair and a lot of stuff since then, trying to leave that past in the past y’know?” Her smile brightened, but it was a little forced. “Oh! Almost forgot!” She then presented Danni with a CD, and a social handle was attached to it. “Message me with what you think once you’ve listened! And next week should be perf!! Have fun guys!!”

“Jaaaames Danniiiiii it’s ooooooutfit tiiiiiiiiiiiimeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!”

Danni took the CD once James had let go and beamed at her. “T'ank you! I'll let ya know when I listen! I'm glad a villian didn't getcha - come over for dinner sometime!” Danni bolted out the door. “Last one home's a rotten egg!”

James watched his son speed away. Before he ran to catch up, he put a hand over Nessa’s and gave her just a touch of his power, just enough to remind her she was alive and well and away from where she was, and he looked at his husband. “Well, we don't want to be a rotten eggs, do we?” James laughed, pushed his husband back into the shop, and took off after Danni, sticking his tongue out at Casper over his shoulder.

Casper gasped. “Betrayed??? By my own husband????” he screeched, as he dramatically fell to the floor of the shop. “I’ll just die here, then… All alone… Unloved… Broken… Sexy…”

He played dead for a moment, waiting to see if any attention would be bestowed on him, before his eyes flashed an electric blue. “C’mon, horsie, let’s show them you can’t mess with a master of the grave!!” he urged, doing his best to summon a valiant ghostly steed he could use to rapidly overtake his family with.

Instead, a faint, glowing blue duck appeared on top of his head.

And it was love at first sight.

“Imma name you… Ben Jr!”

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

---

---

---

---

“Okay, mister. We gotta keep goin’ ‘cause I'm starvin’, you want beignets, we need ta get ya all patched up from savin’ us, and t'en its outfit shoppin’ time! We gotta getcha a cool set of ski clothes, we gotta getcha a dinner outfit, we gotta getcha two or t'ree casual outfits - we don't gotta go too crazy wit’ t'at. Some mis amd match items will do good!- and we gotta getcha t'e showcase piece. I already ‘ave some many t'oughts for t'at!” Danni vibrated with excitement again, but paused. “Wait, ‘ow long are ya goin’ again?”

“The showcase piece?” Percy blinked. He really thought he’d been into fashion. Then he’d met Danni. And Percy realized that he just had an interest in fashion, one that paled in comparison next to Danni’s obsession. He also tended to be more into looking at fashion on other people - dressing himself and his own body had its own unique challenges, beginning with his height. It was hard to find clothes that fit him properly off the rack. “Mm, we are going to be there for two nights, I believe. I don’t think I have any clothing that’s appropriate for snow, either.” He then stood up off of the couch, dried his eyes one more time, and headed down with Danni to the makeshift medical bay in the basement of the Kingston-Gray house.

“Yeah! If you're t'ere for two nights, you def need a showcase piece. Its like the outfit all you're ot'er ones build up ta, ya know? I really wanna put ya in somet'in’ backless tbh, wit’ like a little cape or cloak. But I don't t'ink you'll like that so I'll keep brainstormin’. Dee's probably like it t'ough. Maybe we do somet'in’ that just ’ightlights. Don't need ta show extra skin, I guess since ya don't like short sleeves, but maybe a design t'at highlights t'at curve ta your waist.” Danni spun ideas as they descended. The trip down was quick and Danni hit a switch to reveal two long fluorescent lights filling the space with sterile light. The room was mostly concrete, with three tall industrial metal cabinets affixed to the wall, a large three compartment sink along one end, and two uncomfortable metal tables that looked like they'd been salvaged from a morgue. Two rickety chairs were stacked on top of each other in another corner and another door sat in the far wall.

“Hop up on one o’ t'e tables! Pops will be down ta fix ya up in a second. But while you're t'ere, I know you're always in like stiff pants bit ‘ow do ya feel ‘bout jeans? I know a great brand that'll make your butt pop.”

Percy nodded, taking in Danni’s advice very seriously. That made sense - it was almost like the anticipation of receiving gifts each night of Hannukah, the suspense building night after night, as his mothers saved the big ticket item for the very end. The thought of a backless outfit made him squirm a little bit, he rarely showed any skin, even unbuttoning the first few of his tops was a bit of an effort… but then Danni said that Dorian would like it. And Percy was nothing if not a simp for his boyfriend. If he had Dorian wrapped around his finger, Percy was thoroughly knotted around Dorian’s. “If you really think Dorian would like it… I can try something backless,” Percy decided. “Just - not around other people.” It seemed cold and impractical, but… maybe the point of it was to wear it just in their room at the lodge. Percy could handle that.

He then raised an eyebrow, as he took in his new surroundings. “I thought your family’s medical room would be a little… warmer,” he admitted, somewhat skeptical. “This looks like an embalming suite.” He then realized Danni had asked him about jeans, as he got onto the table. “Jeans are fine.”

“Yeeees, you're gunna want t'em anyways wit’ t'e cold. We'll getcha some long johns, six pairs o’ wool socks, four jeans, four long sleeves, one cozy jacket, one sweater vest since ya rock t'at style pretty well, one ‘eavy jacket, and t'en anyt'in’ for skiin’. Actually, are ya goin’ skiin’ or ya just ‘eadin’ ta t'e lodge? Eh, I don't t'ink it matters. We can getcha it just in case ya wanna try it.” Danni waved his own concerns away and paused as footsteps could be heard on the stairs and James slowly came into view. Danni bounded over to his Pops and threw his arms around him. “Pops, ‘ave I told you you're t'e bestest in t'e whole wide world yet today? And ‘ow much I love you?”

James chuckled softly, pressing a kiss to his son's head, returning the hug, and continuing without breaking his stride. He was far too used to his son's antics. “Mhm and you wouldn't just happen to be saying that so I don't ask too many hard questions about why you Papa suddenly dragged me away from my book for an unexpected house call?” James asked, pointedly staring at the young man already on the table.

“Whaaaat? Me? No, never.” Danni's laughter shifted to a square as his Pops picked him up and plopped him on the table next to Percy.

“Never change, kiddo.” James shook his head with fond amusement before turning his attention to Percy. “It's different for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I don't restrict access to my services, which means I run into a lot of questionable people I don't want to welcome back. Secondly, this is the only place in the house where there's no magic. All of this I dragged down here when we first started out right after…” James trailed off with a far away look in his eyes, though he shook it off a moment later. “So, walk me through what happened and I'll get you all squared away. Do you think there is any debris, dirt, or blockage in the wounds?”

Percy sat up a little straighter as James came downstairs, and as he explained the difference in their surroundings, his ears burned. He was by far the scariest of Dorian’s parents, followed by the wizard, the eldritch nightmare, and lastly the drag queen. It made sense that James treated everyone - as much as he was intimidating, he was also heroic. Perhaps a bit too much. Percy himself wouldn’t have helped everyone - he wouldn’t have trusted them all, wouldn’t have found them all to be deserving of it.

The second part of the explanation, though, he couldn’t rationalize. Why would they magic not be in this space too? Did it interfere somehow with treatment? Did James not want to have the basement be too cozy? Was Max just lazy and missed a spot?

“Why is there no magic here?”

He then frowned and considered James’ question. Could there be debris in the wounds? The day’s events flashed before his eyes - nearly being run over by Los Angeles traffic, extracting Fred’s innards, tackling a flaming Danni, nearly drowning in the San Pedro Channel, and then passing out on the living room floor in the Kingston-Gray house.

“After Danni helped me with some acne, a… fire broke out in the house. To extinguish it, I took us and the source of the fire into the bay, where I nearly drowned. Your son saved my life.” He didn’t want to name Danni as the source of the fire. “There is almost certainly debris and dirt in the burns, and perhaps in the remnants of Fred.”

James nearly asked a question, but Danni beat him to it. “Don't let Spicy downplay it, ‘d was a total ‘ero! ‘Ere we are, just finishin’ Fred's last rites and Spicy got all sparkly eyed and t'ankful and it was like t'e first time Spicy was all direct and up front ‘cause I know I'm t'e best friend ever in t'e world but ‘e got like t'at and I just wanted ta squuuueze ‘im ta deat’ ‘cause ‘e looked like a shy little kitten but ‘e wasn't feelin’ up ta squeezin’ so ya know big feelin's gotta go somewhere so I was like Oh perf, a shower!. So I strip, Spicy is a little stressy ‘bout why I'm nakey, and t'en ‘e finally turns ‘round-not t'at I mind, tbh. I put a lotta effort inta lookin’ good so I would like someone ta ‘ppreciate it, but don't tell Dre ‘cause ‘e gets all wierd ‘bout Spicy and ot'er guys-and t'en t'e water is goin’, I light up, and everyt'in’ is great until I realize t'e water? Ain't doin’ not'in’. Zip, zilch, nadda. So I realize t'is is a not good. Real bad. And I tell Spicy ta book it ‘cause at t'e end o’ t'e day, I'll be fine. ‘is ‘ouse not- OH no, Spicy. Your mom was sleepin’ wit’ t'ise ‘eadphones. She woulda been real crispy! So Spicy doesn't run like I tell ‘im, ‘e books it for me and pops us all t'e way ‘cross t'e city! It was so cool, spooky ‘cause I def drank wierd water but t'ats fine, but t'en turns oit Spicy csn't swim, I got ‘im up but I was really worried I'd ‘ave ta do CPR ‘cause I was in t'e shower ya know? But now we're ‘ere wit’ my Pops who's gunna take care of Spicy and t'e remnants of Fred and t'e give us cookies?” As Danni went on, James took the moment to start gathering some supplies: gloves, a few wash cloths, some liquid soap, and a stool. James nodded along, a few acknowledging hums, and raised eyebrows as the story progressed and he smiled at the ending.

“You're lucky your Papa made me promise not to drag you two into a long conversation about responsibility already. However, I do have to ask that the next time anyone gets it in their head to disappear halfway across the country to leave a note or send us a text. I don't know if vanishing to the wind is cookie behavior.” James chastised gently, returning to Percy. “However, that was a good job recognizing when you were losing control and taking the right steps to mitigate it. That is cookie behavior. I'll see if I can get your Appa to bake some for you two.” Danni, who'd been wilting at the first part, sprung back to life and did a victory dance as he followed James.

“Percy, come to the sink. We'll clean your wounds out and get you fixed up.” James instructed, placing the stool in front so Percy could step up and slid gloves onto his hand. “But to answer your question, I cleaned this space up here, installed everything, and maintained it all these years without magic. This is my space and as simple as it is, I'd like to keep it that way. It's been helpful; Vicky isn't the only person in the world who has a poor reaction to magic. Maybe not quite in the same way but non-magic people suffering magical wounds get a little skittish around the stuff. At the end of the day, just a preference.” James shrugged as Danni dropped into a split and James huffed a laugh and clapped, earning him a pleased grin from his son. However, James blinked, frowned, and fixed Percy with a pained look.

“Fred isn't a rat, is it?”

Percy felt a little strange at James’ brief lecture. He’d never cared before that he didn’t have a father, never had a male role model - his moms were enough and all he needed. But in this moment, he couldn’t help but wonder about who his father really was - about what his life would have been like if he’d had that masculine presence. He’d never had paternal energy directed at him, and as James spoke, he felt it there. It was odd. He didn’t know what to make of it - didn’t know how to deal with the mildly unsettling feeling that he’d disappointed him in some way. “That was my fault. I technically kidnapped him,” he admitted. He didn’t want Danni to get into any trouble because of his actions.

He hopped off of the table and walked over to the sink as requested, without a dance. His face flushed slightly at the stool that had been placed for him, but he stood on it anyway. The explanation James gave made sense. There was a lot of magic in the French Quarter - Percy had to guess that James had seen his fair share of magical injuries.

“Oh. No. I think Dorian still has the rat,” Percy wasn’t quite sure what his boyfriend had done with it after their heist at the museum of superheroics. “Fred is what Danni named my pimple.” He then pointed at the dead center of his forehead.

Danni gave Percy a wide eyed look at the mention of the rat. James stared at Percy for a few long beats and just let out a quiet “Hm.” before turning on the sink. “Well, then I'm going to have to ask you to do the same thing, kiddo. You have to let your mom know before any adventures across the country. Our kids have a little more freedom ‘cause we can do whatever we need to get to them in an emergency, but your mom doesn't have those kinds of resources. You get in a bind and she doesn't know where you are, she's going to be really upset because the person she loves most in life didn't let her help him, you know?” James turned the same speech on Percy as he was testing the water, getting it just past luke warm. “But, you can still have cookies as long as you call her and then text her if she doesn't pick up. I have her phone number if your phone is damaged. Sound good?”

“Okay,” Percy mumbled a bit sheepishly. He knew that James was right… but he didn’t love admitting that he was. His pride took a bit of a ding. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, and was relieved to see that it was functional. As much as he didn’t want to call his mother, he didn’t want James calling her either. He scrolled through his contacts, his finger hovering over his mother Naomi’s button - James hadn’t specified which mother, and the one currently in New York was infinitely preferable - but while he didn’t turn his head to look, he could’ve sworn he could feel James frown in disapproval. So instead he scrolled a bit more, and clicked on his mother Domimika’s contact. She was probably still asleep. She’d slept through everything he and Danni had done. She was probably still -

…click

“Percy? Vso v poryadke?”

Fuck.

“Da, ya v Novom Orleane s Danni. My pokupayem veshchi dlya poyezdki,” Percy answered quickly.

“Ty budesh' doma k uzhinu?”

Percy sighed slightly. He looked at James. “She wants to know if I’m having dinner here.”

“You'll be home for dinner. You'll be away from home for a few days and I'm sure your mom would appreciate a meal together before that.”

He nodded. “Da,” he said into the phone.

“Khorosho, khorosho provedite vremya i bud'te ostorozhny. YA khochu posmotret' odezhdu, prishlite mne fotografii, khorosho? YA tebya lyublyu.”

Percy’s face turned bright red. He muttered something unintelligible to Danni and James, and ended the call.

Danni had questions after that and he was not going to be denied. “‘ey, what did sh-” Danni made a strange noise as James bopped him on the nose and sent him a look.

“Wait until after we're done, Danni. He's been dealing with the burns long enough.” Danni blew a raspberry at his Pops who laughed and gave Percy a serious look. “Now, here is what is going to happen. We'll cool the burns down and then clean them out, which means I will be washing the affected areas. Once I'm satisfied, I'll remove the gloves and initiate contact to start the healing process.” Danni whined and James gave Danni a confused look.

“He doesn't wanna be touched right now.” Danni whispered as quietly as he could, which was not quiet at all.

“And that's why we're walking him through the process so he has time to think and prepare.” James explained patiently and when Danni went to argue, gave Danni the warning look. Danni pouted, turned his back, and crossed his arms, stomping irritably all the while. James' mouth twitched into a smile for a moment before smoothing out. “Take all the time you need, Percy. Just let me know when.”

Percy tried (and failed) to bite back the smile as Danni told his father that he didn’t want to be touched. Maybe Danni really was his best friend right now. He nodded though as James explained everything. He could handle that. The roadmap really helped. His stomach twisted a bit in anticipation of the gloves being removed, and James making skin to skin contact with him.

He bit his lip. “Will you count down how long the contact has to be for?” he requested. If he knew the timing, it would help him to withstand it. Limited contact was infinitely preferable to indefinite.

“I'll count backwards from 10 once I make contact.” James agreed and then pulled Percy's arm under the water. James was quick and methodical, the task of cleaning burns practically a habit. The first year after Danni's fiery awakening had been… challenging and it certainly helped him to figure out the most efficient way to wrangle a screaming teenager (or his husband) after a particularly heated outburst. Danni made sympathetic noises in the background, though stubbornly turned his back the one time James glanced towards him.

Soon enough, the bits of debris and grime were swirling down the sink and James stepped back, turned off the water, and dried the burns. He took his gloves off and gave Percy a moment to signal he was ready.

Percy did his best to bear the pain, gritting his teeth and curling his toes. Even then, he still emitted a few gasps and cries throughout the process. But even that pain was very little compared to the anticipation of what would happen next. James had said he’d count down from ten. Percy took a few deep breaths, quickly running through a grounding exercise they’d taught him in CAGE. He identified something he could see - the basin. Something he could hear - Danni’s whines. Something he could feel - his soaked socks. Something he could smell - the medical supplies. Something he could taste - he always struggled with this one. His tongue felt like cheating. But once he ran through the exercise, he nodded at James that he was ready.

Danni peaked back over as James placed his hand on Percy's forearm, the familiar rush of sensation searching and seeking flowing like water. It wrapped cool and soothing around the burns and scratches and James could feel the building anxiety, the up tick of a heart beat, the teasing of muscles, the rush of adrenaline that came with fight or flight, and James coaxed it away. He was a far cry from his Underground days, where the rush of sensations would drag him under and leave him a mess for days. Instead, James eased away the strain, relaxed the heart, took away the pain, and brought Percy down to James’ calm.

“10… 9… 8…”

Danni peeked over James’ shoulder just to watch.

It was… strange. Percy felt the tension growing in him, felt his body begin to panic, to urge him to run, to escape - to put distance between himself and the touch. He would have had to consciously focus on his breathing, make small deals with himself that he could hold out a little longer, attempt to reassure his inner self that they weren’t in any danger. And as soon as that started… it faded away, like white noise dissipating into the background.

He felt calm. Peaceful. It wasn’t like when Dorian touched him, where he felt a need to burrow into his boyfriend. It… it reminded him of the way he had felt as a child, when his mother would hold his hand. And each moment that he felt the fear creep back in, it was washed away.

“Danni, if you want to hug… this might be your opportunity.”

Danni struck like a snake. In an instant, he was wrapped around Percy and beaming at the opportunity. “Yeah, Pops’ ‘ealin’ is pretty chill right? Just makes ya feel real safe and loved!” Danni hooked his chin on Percy's shoulder as he spoke. “And t'is is why I know t'at no matter ‘ow ‘urt I get, I'll never really be in danger! Pops will always be t'ere ta catch me, ya know?”

“Okay, I'm letting go in a moment. Danni, step back so Percy can adjust.” Danni moved away reaaaaaally slow but James disentangled himself from Percy and took a half step back to give Percy some space.

As the calming effect ended, Percy focused on his breathing as his senses came back to their natural, somewhat hyper tuned state. It was a little like jumping into freezing water after relaxing in a sauna. His heart rate sped back up to a frantic pace for a brief moment, and he took a few steps away from both Danni and James. But as the sudden intensity dipped down, he found himself overall feeling better than when he’d entered the basement. He was hungry, yes, but otherwise feeling energized and recharged. Better than he’d ever felt after self medicating.

“Thank you,” he told James, before hesitating slightly. “For the healing and… for that, too. If you ever did that again… I would not mind it… Erm. We should get going, yes?” he turned to look to Danni.

“Go on you two. Have fun but if you leave the city, I expect a text at the very least.” James laughed, but he gave Percy a soft look. “It isn't always the best answer but you know where to find me.”

“And remember, you promised Appa cookies. I want t'e kitchen sink ones, wit’ all t'e fixin's!” Danni remind his Pops, skipping over give him a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek, dodging his Pops hand enroute to ruffling his hair with a gotcha sound, and skipped to the foot of the stairs. “A'ight, come on Spicy! We ‘ave beignets and coffee table get!” Danni nearly shot up the stairs before James called out for him.

“Remember to put on real clothes, Danni!”

Upstairs, Casper had already set out an outfit for Danni in the kitchen - well, more of several outfits. He had placed one on each chair at the kitchen table, giving Danni seven options to pick from. Some were more casual, some were more extravagant, and at least half Casper had pulled from his own wardrobe. He was sitting on the table, still in just his shorts and shibari, as he sipped his coffee. “Did I hear we’re getting good boy cookies? BEN! WE’RE GETTING COOKIES!!” Casper screamed towards the stairs.

Percy flinched a bit from the sudden shouting, as he and Danni emerged onto the main level. He was a little cautious as he went, wanting to make sure that Dorian wasn’t around before he fully stepped into view. James had healed him, but it hadn’t done anything to help his poor clothes. At least even the remnants of Fred had been handled. He’d much rather Dorian see him like this than with a gigantic zit on his head. “I think I have enough energy for two more jumps at most - maybe more after I’ve eaten,” he told Danni. “Where did you want to go?” He was pointedly not looking anywhere near Casper.

“PAPA!” Danni screamed back as he bolted for the kitchen and studded to a stop when he saw that his clothes were all laid out. “T'ere are so many good options! Should I do somet'in cute, somet'in’ ‘ot, somet'in punk rock? Uuugh. Oh! You got my combat boots! Def want t'ose… oh! Papa, you'll let me wear t'is?!” Danni's eyes watered as he picked up the pretty blue high waisted skirt with gold embroidered designs across it. He hugged his Papa tight after he put it back. “‘ave I told you you're my favorite Papa? I love you so much!” Danni continued to consider his options from where he was hugging Casper and pointed at a white T-shirt and a blue jacket. “Def t'ose!” With his decisions made, Danni started slipping the robe off him until he screamed as James suddenly clapped a hand on his shoulder.

“Change in the bathroom, please. James sighed a long suffering sigh. Danni grumbled, collected his items, and kicked the door shut with all the angst a teenager could muster. James looked unimpressed and leaned into his husband. “Percy, do you want something more filling that beignets. We do have actual food here.”

Casper had grinned widely, returning his kid’s hug. He always loved being able to put a sparkle in Danni’s eye. And now that he was old enough to both wear and care for his clothes, he didn’t mind loaning out some of his favorite pieces to him. And as James leaned into him, Casper put his arms around him, and pulled him in as close as he could - he would have put him into his lap but he figured James wouldn’t want to, not with Percy around. Lame. “You know, bb, you can keep the skirt! Just let me borrow it back every now and then, okay?” Casper called out to Danni.

Percy didn’t really want to impose, but his stomach growled. He wasn’t exactly sure what time it was, but he hadn’t eaten anything that day. “If that’s okay,” he nodded. He still wasn’t entirely comfortable around Dorian’s parents - and his unease grew as a third one approached, Ben coming into the kitchen in gym clothes and a pair of glasses.

”Oh, I didn’t know Percy was over. Does Dorian know?” Ben asked, as he gave both Casper and James a squeeze on the shoulder. ”I’m making cookies, yeah? Any particular kind?”

“Danni's demanding kitchen sink cookies, if you're feeling nice. And apparently, we're keeping it a secret from Dorian. Prep for their date tomorrow.” James put his hand over Ben's on his shoulder and let the other man go, pressing a kiss to Casper's cheek and pulling away. “Let me make you two a sandwich. I know keeping up with Danni's a full time job but at least it won't slow you down.” James pulled out bread, leftover brisket, mayo, coleslaw, pickles, and hot sauce. “Anything here you don't care for, Percy? Danni's hot sauce packs a wallop so I won't faultcha for not trying it.”

The bathroom door slammed open and Danni swept out of the bathroom all smiles and giggles. “Oh, Appa you're ‘ere too!” He skipped over, slung his arms around Ben's waist from behind, and hugged him before spinning away to Percy. “Oh, oj, question since almost all t'e ‘rents are ‘ere. Percy ‘ad t'e great idea t'at I should get a navy piercing. Whatcha t'ink?” Percy looked at the different things James pulled out. None of them startled him - although he was a little worried about Danni’s hot sauce. He hadn’t grown up eating a lot of spicy foods, but it couldn’t be that bad, right? “That all looks fine,” he said with a nod. He was curious how their brisket would taste. His moms always made brisket this time of year and the recipe was a point of family pride. It was one of the few things Percy knew how to make.

Ben snaked out two tentacles, grabbing Danni and flipping him upside down for a brief moment, before setting him back down onto the ground. “A navy… oh. A naval piercing. Hmm. Kiddo, why don’t we start with your ears first?” Ben suggested.

“Wait, that's not fair!” Casper whined, sliding off the table and onto the ground. “I want a naval piercing too!”

“Right now, no one is getting a naval piercing if we're all going to whine.” James replied as he started assembling their sandwiches. “Babes, you're an adult and can get one at any time, but you have never mentioned about being interested. Danni, that's not something you spring on us when you're about to go out with your friend. Finish your shopping trip and then we'll talk about it tonight. I'm inclined to agree with Ben, but I'm willing to compromise.”

Danni shrieked gleefully as he was flipped, giggling and patting the tentacles affectionately as he was set back down. “But I don't want my ears pierced! I want my belly button pierced! My tummy looks boring in crop tops, I need ta add a little sparkle and what better t'an a piece o’ jewelry! It'd be so perfect! Oh wait, Pops, I want extra sauce and t'e pickles sliced short instead of long pls!”

James adjusted one sandwich, turning as he finished them and offered them for the kids to take.

“Can we go to the body piercer after they go off shopping then?” Casper asked his husband, giving him puppy dog eyes. All of his piercings and tattoos had been erased during the fall of Genosha, a weird quirk of the Entity’s formation and separation. He’d slowly been getting them all back over the years, but he had had so many tattoos he didn’t even remember them all, and it was only in this very moment that he remembered he’d had a belly button piercing. “Bb would look pretty cute with one,” he added, supporting Danni’s case.

Ben, meanwhile, had almost finished making the batter for the cookies. “Do you kids want these when you’re done shopping or are you taking them with you?” he asked. He made these so often for Dorian, Danni, and April growing up that he had the recipe essentially memorized, just having to double check every now and then exactly how many grams of each ingredient he needed. He made them somewhat frequently to give to the kids he worked with as a social worker, too. Sometimes, a homemade cookie went a long way towards building trust.

“Thank you,” Percy said, taking the sandwich from James. He had decided to stay out of the piercing conversation - although the thought of piercing his own ears floated into his mind. It was a little bit tempting. He made a mental note of it, deciding if it still seemed tempting in a few months, he’d act on it. He bit into the sandwich, bracing himself slightly for an influx of heat… and while it was incredibly spicy, his eyes didn’t water, his mouth didn’t burn. It actually tasted really good. It was more than edible. It was delicious. He swallowed, before going in for another bite. Still spicy, but manageable. And he found that he even liked the spice, as the bites that didn’t have as much hot sauce on them were disappointing.

“Danni, this sauce is incredible,” Percy said earnestly. His stomach growled again, and he continued to eat, the sandwich almost entirely gone in a matter of seconds.

“Yeah? T'at's great! It takes mont's t'at make ya know! Lots a people just let it bat'e for a mont’, but I did t'ree for t'at batch and t'e flavor profile is so much richer and defined, right, right?” Danni explained around a mouthful of sandwich. He had shoved most of it in his mouth in one go and was chewing awkwardly around it. “Wait, Papa gets ta go get one wit'out a discussion?! And ‘e's gunna go wit'out me?! T'at so meaaaaaan!”

James sighed at the sight and passed the two napkins before turning back to his husband and, hit with the puppy dog eyes, flushed a little. So many years together and the sight of Casper excited and wanting something new was still so cute. “Again, your Papa is an adult and can make that decision. You are not and I want to make sure you understand some care information and potential ways a piercing can be used against you as a hero.” James cleaned up the small mess he'd made and turned to Ben. “I'll be back down in a bit so leave your dishes and I'll do them.” James pressed a kiss to Danni's forehead and wrangled him into a hug despite his pouting.

“You two have fun, be safe, text us.” James reminded them sternly. He hooked a finger under one of Casper's ropes and pulled him out of the room.

“Let's ‘ave t'em when we get back and/or we can send t'em ta your place and ya can share wit’ your mom! Right now, we gotta fashion you up and a few of t'e shops we ‘ave ta visit get reaaaaal upsetti ‘bout food in t'e store.” Danni wiped his mouth and washed his hands before sliding up to Ben with the same puppy dog eyes his Papa used. “We get ta lick t'e spoon t'ough?”

Ben was more than experienced with Danni’s puppy dog eyes. He shut his eyes immediately, a sly smirk appearing on his face. “Your strategy won’t work on me, kiddo. I can’t see your adorable little face,” he teased. “But hmm. We can make a deal here. If you help me with making dinner tonight, then I suppose you can lick the spoon. Deal?”

Percy tried not to visibly gag too much at the idea of licking the spoon right after Danni. He wasn’t one for raw dough either. He took the risk of eating uncooked flour and contracting salmonella very seriously. “I’ll pass.”

“T'at's not a ‘ard deal, I'm down!” Danni snatched up the spoon and took a long lick up the handle and the back of the spoon. “So good. You're missin’ out, Spicy. You really need ta learn ta live on t'e wild side. It's delicious and we ‘ave cookies!” Danni pressed a kiss to Ben's cheek, sucked off the rest of the dough from the spoon, tossed it in the sink, and skipped back to Percy.

“Okie dokie, artichokie! What's our game plan? Anywhere ya like ta shop or I got full creative control? ‘ow much energy ya got left, ‘ow crazy you wanna be?” Danni paused as he was about to sling an arm across Percy's shoulders and stared at his arm for a few seconds before folding it back to his side. “And we can always get Pa ta portal us back from somewhere if we wanna go far and ya decided ya need a nap!”

Percy couldn’t help the small smile on his face as Danni put his arm back without touching him. “I do actually like shopping - provided I don’t have to be the one talking to people,” he admitted. He enjoyed the process of finding what he was looking for, browsing the different options, getting a feel for what was popular and new. However, his sense was that similarly to his interest in fashion, Danni probably loved shopping. And given how confidently Danni had spoken earlier about what Dorian was interested in… It was probably a terrible idea, but… “I trust you. You can have creative control,” he decided. “Hmm. I think I can go for a few more hours, the food helped so I don’t think transportation will be an issue.

So we can be as… crazy… as you want.”

Danni blinked and something stalled in his brain. There may have been the smell of burning from whatever gears inside his head had stopped, but he couldn't be sure. As crazy as he wants? Danni didn't anyone other than his Papa had ever suggested that and Danni's grin turned absolutely devious. “As crazy as I want? Well just remember, you insisted!” Danni cackled maniacally. “Appa, we're ‘eadin’ ta Paris. Can ya tell Pops for me? My phone is still at Spicy's ‘ouse. I t'ink we're gunna ‘it t'e usually, but I'll let y'all know if we change t'e plan! Let's go, Spicy! Phone out and I'll show ya!”

Ben raised an eyebrow, before pulling his phone out of his pocket, and handing it over to Danni. “Here - take mine. Just in case you need it. Password is your Pa’s birthday,” he said. “And kiddo? Try not to go too crazy, okay? You’ll be wanting some stuff for prom in Spring, so we gotta save some money for that. Maybe keep it to just ten grand at most?”

Percy’s face paled, as he realized what he had just agreed to. Ten grand…? It was fine. Everything was fine. He didn’t need to go to college anyway. He’d thought the $300 shoes were expensive, but it was slowly dawning on him that for Danni’s tastes, those might be cheap. “Erm, yes. If you… want to help me pick out things for prom, we need to… not spend all… one hundred grand… right now…” He was definitely not sweating. Not at all. He pulled out his phone again and handed it over to Danni so he could show him the location.

“Oh, phone, sweet phone. ‘ow did I ever survive t'is time wit'out you?” Danni held it lovingly to his cheek and then stared at Ben, thinking extra hard. “Okay, ten grand? Well, we only got one hundred grand durin’ t'e contest so I don't know… ‘ow many grand does a shirt cost? ‘ow do you use a grand? Where is t'at from? Is it like from Asia or somet'in’? Idk, Spicy you're in charge of t'e grands on t'is trip so like, lemme know I guess. Normally Pops or Pa just tell me yes or no so just do t'e same!” Danni typed in Pa's birthday and googled the store he wanted to go to. He shoved it in front of Percy's face.

“Take us t'ere!”

Percy blinked for a moment. Did Danni not… did he not know what a grand was? He stared at him for a moment, and decided it was probably very lucky that Coulson had given them all As in their courses last semester. “Er, sure, I can do that.” He really hoped that meant Danni wasn’t going to give him puppy dog eyes if he said no to something. He didn’t know how he’d be able to handle that. He studied the store, looking at the map view once more, before nodding and putting a hand on Danni’s shoulder.

In the blink of an eye, they reappeared on a street in Paris. Snow was softly drifting through the air, the roads illuminated by street lights, as shoppers in the evening rush hurried to and fro. As the two boys materialized, the lighting hit them just right as to give them an almost heavenly glow, the wind tousling their hair just right as to make them appear more like young demigods rather than mortal teens. If there was ever a moment for a selfie, this was one.

Danni loved New Orleans more than life itself, but there was something about Paris that electrified him. The heights of fashion, the hustle and bustle, the people, the food… Danni loved spending time in Paris almost as much as New Orleans. New Orleans was slow and steady and home but Paris was innovative and creative and energetic, everything Danni felt himself to be. The cold, crisp December air, the glow of old lamplights, and the holiday energy in the air sung in Danni's blood and he whipped out his Appa's phone.

“Okay, Spicy! We goooootta take a selfie!! You good tag ‘ug just a little? Ooooh, or we go to t'e cafe and get ‘ot chocolate, but t'is is so perfect!!!!” Danni clicked into the photo app and looked at himself, and Percy, to make sure everything was perfect. And Percy… lacking.

“Hm, we ‘aven't ‘ad a chance ta change ya up so lets…” The phone went away for a second and Danni helped smooth down Percy's collar, roll up his sleeves, straighten out his pant legs, and dusted him off a little. Still, it was a little too disheveled for the vibe they had. Danni shrugged off his jacket and pulled it over Percy, leaving Danni in his sleeveless white crop top. Danni beamed and slung an arm across his shoulders and pressed their cheeks together, blocking off any view of the disheveled clothing beyond. “Smile Spicy!” Danni cheered as he snapped several shots in a row, holding up a leave sign with the other hand.

The jacket helped - pressing the cheeks together did not. Percy forced himself to smile - somehow managing an expression that wasn’t a completely pained grimace. He counted his breaths, estimating that Danni probably only needed 30 breaths at most before the selfie would be over - and at the very least, the jacket was much warmer than his still damp clothes from the San Pedro Channel.

Danni pulled away once he was satisfied and pulled the photos back up. He'd only taken 8 so hopefully, one of them was to his standards. The first two Danni deleted immediately. Something must have flown in front of their lighting but there was a strange shadow. The next one was okay, the next one was better, and he continued to swipe and delete or save. “Okay, Spicy ‘elp me choose out of t'ese t'ree.” Danni shoved the phone in front of Percy's face and explained each photo in detail without giving Percy a chance to explain. Forgetting how many photos there were, Danni swiped over once more and…

Ben looked at the camera with a weird look on his face, tentacles extending from his stomach. One held his arms behind his back, two others were holding his legs open, another extended off camera and was clearly holding the phone. He knelt on the floor riding a…

Danni screamed and threw the phone into a nearby trash can.

Percy was just staring blankly forward, having completely disassociated at seeing his boyfriend’s father like… like that... “Are we… shopping… now…?” he said weakly.

“Why would ‘e give me ‘is phone wit’ t'at on t'ere?! Oh my god, omg, t'ats so grooooooooooooss.” Danni whispered screamed into his hands, his face on fire. Not literally thankfully, but he needed approximately 12 gallons of bleach. 4 for each eye and 4 for his brain. “‘ow am I suppose ta look ‘im in the eyes now? No, you know Imma just ignore it. I'mma forget it. We're ‘ere ta shop. I'm in charge o’ t'e fashion and you're in charge o’ t'e grands so lets… lets just do t'at.”

Danni went to head to the store, but paused. Appa would probably be upset if he just threw away his phone but more importantly, Danni and Percy looked good in those photos and it would be a crime not to show the world. Danni groaned and creeped back to the trash can, dancing uncomfortably on his toes as he wavered, and finally fished out the phone. Thankfully, it was empty and nothing gross came out with it. Danni typed in the password, shut his eyes as he forced the photo off screen, and sighed in relief as he had the clear background again. Danni took a second to text himself the photos and pocketed it again.

“Okay, okay, time for shoppin’ and we never, ever saw anyt'in’ ot'er t'an our cute faces on t'is!” Danni proclaimed loudly and he gestured to the boutique they appeared in front of, decorated in Christmas lights and garland, the two mannequins in the window displaying winter clothes. “So t'ats where we goin’. T'e backside ‘as a cafe where t'ey ‘ave some of t'e best ‘ot chocolate in t'e city so we can do some rechargin’ for ya before we move onta t'e next one! Sound good?”

Percy nodded in agreement, doing his best to mentally refocus off of what they had seen and back onto the clothing. As he looked at the window display, he became acutely aware of the fact that he had never been in this nice of a store before. His idea of a nice store was Nordstroms at the mall. This… this was a completely different level. Ben’s suggestion of limiting to $10,000 was beginning to make more and more sense. And they would be going to multiple…? He swallowed slightly, before nodding once more. He had faced the Young Avengers. He had faced the Hex Girls and Arcade. He could do this. He could survive a shopping trip with Danni. Yes, he had already nearly drowned today, but he was fine. Nothing else bad could happen. Right?

“How many stores are we going to, Danni?” he fidgeted a bit with the bracelets on his hand.

“‘onestly, we'll see. Gotta make sure we got t'e grands and if we can find everyt'in’ t'at suits you and is cohesive, ya know? Your clothes ‘ave gotta tell a story, right, and if ya use t'e wron’ pieces, t'en you'll ‘ave t'e wrong stories bein’ told.” Danni shrugged, taking Percy's response as the green light and throwing open the door to The Row and switching into French, his voice smoothing out from its usual chaotic mess. “Good evening! Your favorite customer has arrived! Do you have an opening?” He announced into the store.

Percy’s jaw dropped. Had Danni hit his head…?

The Row Boutique was a two storied clothing shop that boasted a gorgeous spiral staircase, all wrought iron and decorative panels. Although the walls were beige and white, splashes of colorful fabrics on the walls to give it some personality. Downstairs was the small lobby leading into the café in the back, where the smell of baked goods and coffee and chocolate drifted through the store. Raphaël Ducroy, a middle aged, willowy man who often oversaw the evening shift glanced up from his paperwork behind the counter and offered the pair a polite smile.

“Mr. Kingston and…” The smile shifted to something a little more forced as he took in Percy's disheveled appearance.

“Rapha, meet Spicy. Spicy, meet Rapha. He's been handling our account for the past three years!” Danni didn't quite catch the tensions and continued on, sauntering up to the counter. “He's got a date with Dee tomorrow and his closet is so stuffy. It’s suit, suit, suit, grey, black, grey, black. We have to change it up. They're going to a ski lodge, so I'm thinking winter collection for the necessities, spring collection for the fun, and something backless for the dinner night. Any chance you have a private room available? We don't need an attendant; we'll want to peruse in the show room. Actually Spicy, do you want a menu for the room?”

Percy didn’t pick up at all on the non-verbal cues from Rapha. He was, however, immediately a bit overwhelmed at the idea of the show room, the private room, the menu for the room. Was the menu for ordering clothing…? Was this how wealthy folks got their clothes - did they look at a menu and have everything brought to them? He looked at Danni with wide eyes, trying to communicate without words that he had no idea what was going on or what was happening. And the more overwhelmed and uncomfortable he got, the less he wanted to talk.

“Yes, please place a menu for the room.” Danni continued, nonpulsed by Percy's silence. Rahaël typed away on the screen in front of him and pulled out a key card.

“And are we expecting any of your other family members, Mr. Kingston?” When Danni shook his head, Raphaël sent a message upstairs to ensure no alcohol was available. “Very good, Mr. Kingston. Please follow me to your room.” Raphaël stepped out from behind the counter and brought the pair up the spiral stairs and onto the second story.

The second story was a sprawling space of displays, artfully placed through a winter wonderland. Gold elevator doors were set on the left and a hallway was hidden behind snow covered trees on the right. Raphaël continued down the hallway and paused at the third door. A small metal plaque with the store's logo and the number 3 was set into it. He tapped the key to the lock and it flashed green. “You have the room for two hours, Mr. Kingston. Please ring if you need further assistance.” He bowed, passed the key card to Danni, and took his leave.

“Thank you! Okay, Spicy. Let's get settled and we'll start shopping. I think they had their Spring 2026 collection on preview so I want to see if we need to pre-order anything as well!” Danni pushed the door open. Inside was a comfortable room, another door across the way labeled Changing Room. A large rug took up most of the hardwood flooring and an antique table with six chairs sat in the center. An alcove on the side offered a place to hang coats, hats, and bags and a small lock box offered a place to store valuables. Along the back wall hung a TV that was set to a crackling fireplace and holiday music played quietly. A tablet and a menu were placed in the center of the table and a drink cart, only holding water and cups, was nestled neatly next to the entrance. Danni immediately bounced to the tablet and began placing an order.

Hot chocolate for you and me, do you like peppermint and cream? You do like peppermint and cream and then we should also get some tea cakes. They're delicious here. You want to see if they have anything else you want?”

“... Pre-order?” Percy repeated, speaking back in French, and blinking somewhat rapidly. There were times where he could forget the large wealth gap between himself and Dorian’s family. This was not one of those times. He had never been anywhere like this before in his life, and if he hadn’t asked Danni for help today, he probably would have just gone to Macy’s to look for clothing. He didn’t even know where they were supposed to start. His ears turned a little red. “Danni, I have no idea how any of this works. I have never been to a store like this before. They… serve food?” When Danni had mentioned there was a cafe in the back, he had been anticipating something more like a Starbucks in a Barnes and Noble experience - or even a cafe that was in a separate building right behind the store. “You’ll need to explain all of this to me.”

“There really isn’t anything to explain? It works like a normal store for the most part. I'm placing an order and they'll deliver it, and it will be hot chocolate with chantilly cream and a few lavender and rose finger cakes on a pretty plate. Then, once we're ready, we'll head out to the show room, mark down what we want to try, and they'll send us the pieces. We'll do a whole photoshoot, buy what we want, and then we'll try a new store if we haven't hit where we need to. Like, we won't get boots here. Maybe some day use shoes, but for comfortable snow shoes we'll go to a proper skiing store - they'll have the right jackets and pants rather than fashion forward items.” Danni explained, popping down in a chair as he explained and pushed one out for Percy with his foot. “Just let me handle it! It's going to be great. I spotted a nice pair of tights I think will really look good on you coming in, but question - your mom was chill with everything right? I saw you turn reaaally red and I gotta know what that was.” Danni sat forward, eyes all bright and eager.

Percy swallowed slightly. He’d hoped Danni had forgotten about that part. But at least explaining what his mother had said on the phone was easier than wrapping his head around this store and its functions - and the way this was Danni’s baseline standard. “Erm. Yes. She… she wanted me to send pictures of me trying on the clothes,” Percy explained, avoiding eye contact. He really hated having his pictures taken, but he also knew that getting Danni to not touch him every five seconds was a huge victory, and he didn’t know if he would be able to similarly get out of the photographs. “When you say photoshoot… that’s just a picture or two, yes? Not an entire album?”

“Oh, yeah. Just a picture or two per outfit combo. We don't need a whole album just for a shirt and pant swap.” Danni waved that concern away. “Why did that make you so red? And quiet. You were super quiet there at the end and we don't even speak the language! Anytime Dee or Rillie or I get clothes, we always swap photos.”

He considered for a moment how to broach this. There were a multitude of reasons why he had turned red at his mother’s request - he hated being photographed, he wasn’t comfortable with his body, he’d already agreed that they could try something backless and the idea of showing his mother something meant to turn his boyfriend on was a little embarrassing. He didn’t know if Danni would understand any of those, however. It wasn’t just a class difference between the two of them - it was a fundamental difference in how they saw the world and how they saw themselves in it. He tapped his fingers on his knee for a moment, before deciding on how to respond.

“Mm. So,” he paused for a moment, even with his mental rehearsal on how to say this, it was still somewhat difficult - somewhat vulnerable. “I don’t like the way I look in photos. And if the clothes we are trying on are supposed to be items Dorian would be interested in… I don’t know if I want my mother to see me in them. I know it’s strange, since she already knows that we are sleeping together, but… it’s uncomfortable.”

Danni nodded slowly. [color=E948FC][i]“Oh, well. Not all of it will be stuff Dee will like like. I mean, we're going to put you in things that make you look good and Dee likes you so Dee will like what you wear, regardless of what we send. Obviously, we'll need to adjust the photos to the viewer. If you want to pose a little differently for Dee than your mom, we can do that too.”[/color] Danni shrugged. “I don't really know why a picture of you in clothes tells your mom you're knocking noses with Dee but you know her better than me! Plus, I think she'll be more appreciative that someone got you out of your stuffy suits and into something a little more breathable. You're going to love it and I think if we stick with the women's section, we'll get stuff off rack for you pretty easily! We might be able to keep this trip under two hours, though depends on if we get to the shoes quick enough.”

He opened his mouth, about to explain to Danni that backless clothing - or really any clothing that showed skin - felt suggestive to him and that was specifically why he didn’t want to show those things to his mother, when another bombshell was dropped on him. They were going to be shopping in the women’s section? “But I’m a boy. Why would we shop in the women’s section? Are we getting things for your sister?” Percy frowned. He knew that he was smaller than most boys but… he was still a boy. Did Danni not see him as a boy? He shifted uncomfortably, as he felt his temper start to rise a bit. “You do know I’m a boy, right?” Danni didn’t know what a grand was - maybe he was confused?

“Rillie? We're on this trip for you, silly! Why'd we get anything for her? I mean, sure I'm going to check out the Spring Collection to give them a heads up but otherwise, this is all about Spicy!” There was a faint knock at the door and Danni stood, shaking the skirt out and smoothing it down, before crossing to open the door and let in the attendant, who pushed a small cart in with two large mugs on sauces and four little cakes on a plate decorated with gold leaf and rose petals. She placed it on the table and slipped back out.

“Okay, two of these are lavender and two or them are orange so feel free to grab what you want!” Danni instructed, sliding back into place and immediately taking a huge gulp out of his peppermint hot chocolate. He let out a satisfied sigh, a little chocolate milk staining the top of his lip as Percy's question hit him. “Yeah, I know you're a boy. What does that have to do with anything? We're getting stuff out of the women's section because they run in your sizes! And clothes don't have gender anyways. Is this skirt a woman? No. It's a skirt. It's like saying this mug is for women and your mug is for men. The only difference is one has reasonable pockets and the other doesn't.”

Percy’s knee jerk reaction was to double down, to protest that he couldn’t wear women’s clothing because… because what? As he reached for that explanation, all he found were the remnants of bullying from middle school, little pieces of internalized homophobia. He stared at Danni for a moment longer - Danni who was definitely still a boy, even though he was wearing a skirt. And Danni’s father Casper was still a boy, even though he was in a dress almost every time Percy had seen him. If Percy were to wear a women’s shirt, would it make him any less of a boy?

He was silent for a few moments, as he turned the shape of that idea around in his head a few times. “I don’t want to wear a dress,” Percy settled on.
“Or a skirt. I think it would be too cold,” and he still couldn’t remove the gender from those items, at least for himself, right now. But if Danni was right and the clothes in the women’s section might fit him better… He bit his lip. Thought of a question. Hesitated to ask it. Reached out and instead took a tentative sip of the hot chocolate, but the question was still swimming around in his head, so he decided to ask it. “Do you think I’m too small?”

“Oh for sure. They have some really cool, broody tops though you're going to love though I guarantee you. But absolutely, no dresses, no skirts. You can layer them so they aren't cold, but you do you boo.” Danni snagged one of the orange cakes and dipped it in the hot chocolate before cramming it into his mouth. He looked confused at the question. “I don't… I don't think you're too small? Like, you're a smol so you're small. And that's just a fact. I promise, the clothing won't care about your height. They don't give opinions. And I'm dressing you, why would it look bad?”

Percy frowned for a moment. He had lied and told everyone he was 5’6” whenever they’d asked for the last year or so - it even made its way into his medical chart at one point. It was one of the things Chase and the others had bullied him about repeatedly - the fact that he was so small, so tiny, so easy to shove into places. “Not the clothing,” Percy shook his head slightly. “Other people. I know that… people don’t like boys that are small,” he said quietly, looking down at his hands. He’d thought he would have had a growth spurt by now. But while his powers grew, his height stayed the same. He clenched his fists slightly. “What if I never get any taller?”

“People don't like small guys? I mean, I'm shorter than average and plenty of people like me. And you're dating a guy who is definitely into you.” Danni pointed out through a mouthful of cake. “Again, it doesn't really matter at the end of the day. Can you change it? No. Can you own it? Absolutely. You are who you are and that's that. The only thing you can do is decide if you want to suffer because of it or if you want to kick butt and be awesome. And no one likes the suffering part so just choose to rock it!”

He nodded slightly. “Okay,” Percy affirmed. “Okay!” He took a bite of cake, doing his very best to psych himself up for this. This was fine. And Danni was right. His boyfriend was very much into him - and often times, in him. He just needed to get out of his own head. If Dorian wanted someone taller… his stomach churned angrily at the thought of that. That was unacceptable. But he could try - he could try to be a little bit more confident, to not let what the bullies had said in middle school rule over his life. “I will choose to kick butt and be awesome,” Percy repeated solemnly.

Danni grinned wildly at him and wisps of fire rolled off him before he stood up. “Okay! If you're ready, I'm ready! Its time, young student, to learn the ways of fashion.” The second Percy was out of his seat, Danni snatched his hand up and bolted into the showroom. From there, it was a whirlwind of activity - Danni picking out a shirt from one display and pants from another, making Percy stand next to mannequins, holding shirt after shirt after shirt against his chest to gauge the size, holding pants and shoes and shoving hats and earmuffs over his head and finally, riddled everything down to twelve shirts, eight pairs of pants, fifteen jackets, and six pairs of shoes before he dragged Percy back into the dressing room and shoved him along with various pieces. While Percy was otherwise occupied, Danni typed in an order into the tablet via its clothing catalog so that the showpiece idea would be a secret to Percy too.

Danni made Percy try every jacket, shirt, pant, and shoe combination there, snapping a few shots with Percy's phone each time, and then sending him back in. Danni had picked a few items out of the men's size, mostly jackets, and only one of those stayed. Everything else clung to Percy's shoulders or thighs and a number of the pants Danni picked out ensure he'd looked excellent from the back as well. Danni finally paused Percy after just over an hour and beamed. Against the door, a zipped clothing bag hung.

“Okay, okay, okay! I think we just have to pick you up some ski clothes and a proper set of boots from the next shop! We got all the basics here and two layering shirts so you'll be set. So now it's time.” Danni skipped over to the bag and brought it over. “Into the changing room with this. Don't fuss too much. The fabric can be tricky but I'll arrange it once you're out. Go on!”

Percy raised an eyebrow, as he took the bag from Danni. Nothing so far had matched the description of a showcase piece so… this must have been it. Of all the clothing he had tried on so far, this is the one that made him the most nervous. But the trip was almost over. He’d almost made it through the gauntlet and he was somewhat terrified to look at how much all of this would cost. He did surprisingly really like the clothes Danni had selected, however. He never would have looked in the women’s section before for himself, and the way everything fit… It was better than anything he’d ever purchased from the Gap or JC Penny’s - or even Hollister.

He went back into the changing room, and opened up the sealed bag. For a moment, he had very little idea what he was looking at. It looked like a light blue button up shirt - but the more he inspected it, the more he found himself confused about how the fabric was supposed to work. He wasn’t even sure if it was one piece or two. Purely by the collar he guessed which side was supposed to be the front, as both the front and the back were open, allowing for bare skin.

The pants, at least, were a little less confusing. They were long, billowy, and black, with a slit on both pant legs that went all the way up to the upper thigh. For a moment, he had thought Danni had selected a skirt for him after all.

Percy sighed slightly, staring at the garments. What had he gotten himself into?

He didn’t know where to start with the shirt. But at least, he could put on the pants. And maybe a closer inspection of the shirt would then help him to figure it out. He was absolutely terrified to know how much the twisted piece of fabric cost. He changed into the selected pants, the hem skimming the ground. He raised an eyebrow at that - they were buying everything off the rack, this clearly was too long for him.

And then he looked at the shirt again.

He turned it a thousand different directions.

And then he was forced to swallow his pride.

“Danni?”

“What's up, Spicy? Are you doing okay?” Danni's voice floated through the door.

“I don’t know how to put the shirt on.”

There was a brief beat of silence and then the door swung open, Danni skipping in. “Yeah, it's a tricky piece but I saw it on display and I knew Dee was going to die for it.” Danni plucked the shirt out of Percy's hands, without a care that he was shirtless. “Stand in front of the mirror and I'll show you! I know, I know. Who wants to wear a weird shirt like this in the winter but I saw it and I immediately knew the theme of your piece is winter royalty! So start with the arms. Since it's all one piece, just think of it as sleeves with a collar and looooooooong fabric. Yep, left and right and perfect! Now, we wrap left over right and right over left… Danni muttered as he arranged it all, tying the fabric in a neat bow just on top of the waist of the pants.

“Now, shoes. You pair these with the boots we picked because of the heel. That'll give the pants just a few inches to sway when you walk.” Danni kneeled, helping Percy into each boot and zipping up the sides. Danni adjusted everything as he stood, tops his finger into the waistline to check the fit, and fiddled with three collar and sleeves. He stepped behind Percy and looked over the stay shoulder in the mirror. “Now imagine: a touch of blush on the cheeks, some eye liner, and a little silver circlet: Percy the Snow Prince.”

Percy didn’t need to imagine a touch of blush on his cheeks - his face naturally provided that, as he looked into the mirror. He had expected to completely hate this outfit, to see the way his ribs threatened to poke through against his skin, to feel like a sickly Victorian orphan dressed up in modern day clothes. He was prepared to be revolted by his own appearance. But as he stared, the blush rose more and more in his face - and slowly, Percy started to look in the other mirrors too, seeing the different angles. He didn’t feel gross or disgusting or tiny. He strangely felt… beautiful.

He sniffled slightly. He’d never felt this beautiful before. If he was a snow prince, then Danni was his fairy godmother. “I don’t know what to say,” he mumbled, trying not to cry.

“Well, good thing you don't have to say anything next. It's time for a photooooo.” Danni waved Percy back into the sitting area. “Do you want to do a Momma Spicy photo for this one or just a Dee photo?”

Percy’s eyes widened and he vehemently shook his head no. “Absolutely not one for my mother. No. Never. I’d die.”

Danni doubled over in laughter. “Okay, okay, don't worry. Just Dee then. Now how should we do this… Ah! We'll do three shots! First, lay on the couch, prop your head on your fist, raise your knee, and then put your hand on your knee. I'll set the clothes, grab some snaps, and then pose two!”

Percy mentally replayed those instructions a few times. And then, just like with the clothes, he decided to just try the first step and hope the others became more clear. He lied down on the couch on his side, and propped up his head on his fist. He then raised his knee, placed his hand, and… immediately realized what pose Danni wanted him to be in. It was the draw me like one of your French girls pose he really enjoyed seeing in fanart of Achilles and/or Patroclus. Once he realized that, his face turned bright red, but he tried to make some adjustments to match Danni’s vision a little better. And while he didn’t say as much, he was a little excited at the idea of sending Dorian a picture like this. It was one of the few pictures in his life he didn’t hate the thought of posing for. “Like… like this?”

“Yes! Give me a moment, I have to move some… Okay lets have this lay like that and shift your knee just a bit…” Danni stepped back from his fussing, flipped out Ben's phone and snapped six photos from different angles. “Okay, now sit up. We're going for something more confident so arms along the back of the sofa and manspread like your life depends on it.”

He obediently sat up - the more quickly he complied, the sooner this was over. And again, there was something enticing about taking these sorts of photos for Dorian. It sent a bit of a thrill down his spine, a shiver that went down to his fingers and his toes. He moved his arms first to the back of the sofa - and then he hesitated for a moment, that same blush crawling up his cheeks, before he slowly started to open up his legs, inch by inch, looking at Danni to judge when he had spread them out enough by. “... This?”

Danni tapped his foot and huffed. “No, no definitely not enough.” Danni strode over between his legs and knelt between them, forcing them wider until he fit comfortably between them. “There we go. Now let's fix your clothes here.” Danni started with the boots, slipping his hands up Percy's leg to make sure they were sitting properly. Danni smoothed out the legs and leaned forward, face nearly in Percy's stomach, and untied the bow he'd made for the shirt and instead let them cross and continue so Danni could tuck them under Percy's legs. Danni looked up and adjusted the front, letting it slouch artfully and then frowned as he took Percy in. “Sorry, sorry I know it's a lot of touching but the quicker it all settles the quicker we're done, I promise! Relax the shoulders and give me some confidence!”

Percy gritted his teeth, trying to relax - even as each touch felt a little bit like being burned, and he was more than acutely aware of the way Danni had knelt in front of him, face practically in his stomach. He was incredibly grateful they were in a private room. He forced a smile onto his face that didn’t quite meet his eyes, and as he tried to project confidence, his body just tensed up more, looking almost pained and strained.

“Spicy, if you need to use the restroom, you can take a break. Otherwise, I need you to be serious, silly.” Danni stood and grabbed a chair, sitting across from him. “Okay, so confidence isn't about a smile or a look. It's all about being sure of what you're doing. You don't have to smile, but you need to relax. Take some deep breaths, feel the tension leave your body with each one. You know Dee's head over heels for you. You know Dee will love these photos. Just concentrate on that and give me that intensity. You got this - you are an intense person and we just got to catch that here!”

Percy took a deep breath. He was relieved to drop the smile from his face - it had felt disingenuous, and the effort of keeping it strained his cheeks. Being sure of what he was doing. Percy could do that. In his mind, he remembered the first time he had met Dorian - not the bad, not the anger and the frustration with his jacket being set on fire, but the good. The way his eyes had dazzled in the light, the way Dorian was so proud, so opinionated, so ready to stand up for what he believed in. And with each breath, the memory fixed into his mind, he began to calm, the tension abiding until his muscles were relaxed, and Percy was gazing intently forward at the camera.

Danni snapped back to his spot on his knees, directing Percy to keep his head straight and just look down at him with his eyes. Danni snapped another six and then pushed to his feet. “Okay, great, great. You're doing perfect so far Spicy!” Danni looked around and clicked his tongue irritably when he didn't find what he was looking for. He snapped his fingers and pointed, signaling for Perxy to stand in a new spot. “Lighting control, lighting control, lighting control. Ugh, no they're all on the same switch. Who ever does that any more?!” Danni stomped from one side of the room to the other until he stopped and stared at the changing room. He threw the door open and his irritation melted away.

“Actually, come here and stand in front of the mirrors. I need fifteen second to pose you, we can count if you need.”

Percy nodded. “Is this the last one?” he asked. He could handle fifteen seconds of Danni posing him. He could do that. He didn’t know if he could handle another fifteen poses each requiring fifteen seconds of adjustments. He hesitated for a second, before he moved in front of the mirrors of the changing room. No one else was present, which was fantastic - every other store he’d been at, they would have seen a few employees by now. He couldn’t help but wonder how often Danni went here - especially given that his family had an account. “Can you just edit the photo for the lighting?” He didn’t really understand how any of that worked. Almost every photo he’d ever taken in his life had been against his will. His camera roll only contained selfies when Dorian had asked for him to send them. All the other photos were of his boyfriend, sites around Los Angeles, Greek mythology depictions, and latte art that had impressed him.

“Yeeees, but Dee normally does that and I'm awful with the programs and I can't really ask him to do these so it's gotta be natural.” Danni started counting down as he positioned Percy. Arms nestled in each other with his hands on his elbows, head turned left and looking down past the shoulder, left left barely shifted left so it accented the slit in the pants and forced Percy to shift his weight right and his back tensed just slightly. Danni finished just as he had to count past 0.

“Okay, great, great, great. Hold that. We want to hold that pose. Now, we want the energy of missing Dee. This is the Snow Prince missing his boyfriendo and remembering how it felt to be hugged from behind okay? If you get a little teary eyed, roll with that. Pond hit the lights.” Danni sprinted across the room and slammed the switch, plunging the room into darkness.

“And now time for the magic” Firefly sized flames flickered into existence, just enough light to showcase Percy in the mirrors but not enough to give a view of the room, contrasting Percy sharply against the room.

Percy bit his lip for a moment, before he nodded once more. The feeling of missing Dorian. That was easy. He felt it all the time. He felt it in CAGE, the few days he had been forced to be there for detoxing, cut off from his boyfriend physically and on an entanglement level. He remembered the absence of Dorian first - of every moment he had spent alone, every time he had gone back to an empty dorm room, too filled with anger and pride to admit how he’d felt. He remembered the way he had slid to the ground in his room at the Kingston-Gray house, so overwhelmed from everything with the contest, but so alone and scared all the same - so willing to believe that no one wanted him around, that he didn’t deserve to have help, to have friends. He remembered every time he had chosen to drink instead of going to Dorian, afraid that he would drive him away - that he would realize his mistake and how unlovable he was.

And he saw the images begin to flicker and morph - Dorian bringing him food that first night, a half faded dream of him carrying him to bed, their training sessions with Nemo, study sessions in his room, their date to the mall, the museum, the food trucks, the first time they were intimate with each other, surviving Arcade, playing fuck marry kill at his house, learning about the entanglement, how Dorian had comforted him after Chase’s reappearance, their adventures with Leah in Asgard - he saw it all, their relationship running through its course and the deep sense of love that emanated from each memory.

It didn’t take much effort to cry, as he reached out for the feelings of his missing other half.

Danni beamed at the effort Percy was putting in and couldn't help but snap more than his usual six. “Aaaaaand, you're all set! Great job, Spicy! I think that was your best one yet! Actually, you think I can keep this for my portfolio? It's really nice!” Danni walked out of the changing room, his on the phone as he fiddled with some settings, and let the door to the changing shut behind him as he walked to turn the lights back on and the fires flickered out one by one.

Percy was still for a moment, as he slowly unentangled himself from that position - and the tears continued to flow quietly. He would have wiped his eyes on the shirt, but he didn’t dare with this material. He had a feeling it was worth more than most people made in a year. And it should have upset him, but at the moment, all he felt was that absence, that ache. He took another breath, and followed Danni out of the changing room. “Erm. S-sure,” he sniffled a bit. “... Can you send me those? I’d like to send them to Dorian now.”

Danni hit the lights and looked up, a soft look on his face, and he quickly shot them over. “Yep, sent them over. I'll start getting everything all gathered up so just pop out of those and you can make sure the grands are good.”

He blinked back the tears, as his phone vibrated with the photos. Danni had done a really incredible job. He hated looking at photos of himself, but not these ones. He selected those last three - the French girls, the manspreading, and the vulnerability - and sent them to Dorian, along with a brief message -

@Dorian

My love,

I miss you.

Percy

Translations

Russian -
Vso v poryadke = is everything okay?
Da, ya v Novom Orleane s Danni. My pokupayem veshchi dlya poyezdki = Yes, I’m in New Orleans with Danni. We are shopping for the trip.
Ty budesh' doma k uzhinu? = are you coming home for dinner?
Da = yes.
Khorosho, khorosho provedite vremya i bud'te ostorozhny. YA khochu posmotret' odezhdu, prishlite mne fotografii, khorosho? YA tebya lyublyu = Okay, have fun and be safe. i want to see the clothes, send me pictures okay? i love you

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

---

---

---

---

Percy wished he had woken up screaming. Anything would have been preferable from this reality. He would have gladly faced Arcade a thousand times and died a thousand deaths. He would have watched Dorian choose Billy over him in the Contest of Champions until his eyes turned to ash. He would have returned to CAGE for the remainder of his days, never to feel the whispers of his powers again. He would have sworn himself to celibacy. Anything but this.

Anything but the gigantic, screaming, angry red zit on his forehead, almost perfectly centered above his nose.

He had a date with Dorian tomorrow - their first real, grownup, vacation date. And it was ruined before it had even begun.

Percy glared at his reflection in the mirror, still dressed in his silk pajamas. He had already tried styling his hair a hundred different ways. There was no hiding it, no concealing it. Even if he forced his bangs to cover it, its sheer size caused his hair to be noticeably raised. He had thought about squeezing it, but there would be no going back from that - and he was almost certain the large volume of pus produced would be followed by an equal amount of blood. He needed an expert.

He needed a miracle.

Maybe this was why his powers had grown. To save him from this fate. There was only one person in the world he could trust, one person in the world who could battle the blemish on his skin - only one last hope against the dying of the light.

Danni.

He squared his jaw. Clenched his hands. Closed his eyes. Concentrated. And disappeared.

A moment later, he was across the country, in Danni’s bedroom at the Kingston-Gray house. He didn’t stop to consider any magic or wards, or that Danni might need to collect supplies - instead, he grabbed onto Danni’s arm, and in a blink, whisked him away - all the way back to Percy’s room in California.

“Danni, I need your help. It’s a matter of life or death.”

It was an easy morning for Danni. He'd slept until 8 when Amelié was ready for her breakfast. He'd gotten an excellent cup of coffee, Pops had picked up the extra large muffins on his run so Danni cup one in half, heated up the insides a little, hit it with some butter, and enjoyed his breakfast whole everyone else was doing… whatever they were doing! Pops and Pa were going to sit down with him later to talk about sponsorships and being a public figure and all that (he assumed Rillie and Dee were coming along), so Danni decided to get himself all done up in case they went to visit anyone or anything! He'd taken a short shower, hit his morning skin routine, and was now sitting in his favorite fuzzy pink bathrobe that matched his Papa's, hair up in a towel, and nothing but a pair of booty shorts underneath for decency. Apparently, Danni had accidently flashed family members before and he was firmly informed he had to wear something more than underwear underneath. Danni had conceded as long as they said HotShot across his ass.

So here he sat, a toe spreader firmly settled between his toes as he sang to a golden oldie: Confession of a Teenage Drama Queen. He was holding up Wavetide Coral or Sun Spark Peach next to his toes, debating how warm he wanted to feel next to his skin tone, when everything changed. For one, his music was gone even though he was still singing. For two, his glittery Christmas decorations - tinsel and garland and his mini-Christmas tree in the corner - vanished and were replaced with book shelves. For three, Danni's comfy, plush chair he always did his toe nails in was replaced by carpeted flooring. And finally…

“Spicy?!?! What in t'e- where are we? Why are we ‘ere in t'is… depressin’ room? Where's t'e color? Where's t'e pizzaz?” Danni cried, gesturing wildly before honing in on Percy. “You need my ‘elp?! What's goin’ on? I am not a doctor, please remember, and… OMG. Spicy, I t'ink you ‘ave somet'in’ livin’ on your ‘ead!” Danni screamed, pointing at the pimple. It was huge and Danni's face morphed from confusion to horror to realization as the lightbulb flashed behind his eyes.

“Oh no, your date!” Danni whisper-screamed. “You can't go out lookin’ like t'at. You weren't lyin’, t'is could ruin your relationship. Okay, okay, okay, okay. I see why ya came ta me and cam I just say, t'is is exactly why we're friends. Ya just know t'e right person ta ‘elp. Okay, so let's go get your tweezers, gloves, a towel, and what cleanser do you ‘ave wit’ Salicylic acid? Actually, you probs don't if you're ‘avin’ a breakout like t'is so you probs just hydrate right? You got a moisturizer?” Danni hopped to his feet, plucked out the toe spreader, and burst out of Percy's door, searching for his bathroom.

Percy’s eyes widened, as Danni started rushing forward for the bathroom. He let the insult about his room slide - he had just moved into this house, things weren’t decorated yet. Most of his items were at his dorm room at Margaret Carter, too. A room he was praying would not be welcoming a new roommate. He had enjoyed having a double to himself so far.

No, the issue he had was twofold: 1) he didn’t have any of the things Danni mentioned, with the exception of a towel, and 2) there were things in his bathroom that he definitely did not want Danni to find. Supplies he kept on hand for when he saw Dorian. Items that would send Danni on a spiral, when Percy’s dignity needed him to stay focused and on task. If Danni couldn’t help him, he was completely and utterly doomed. The acne was large enough Dorian would probably run away in disgust if he saw it.

So Percy flung himself forward and teleported into his bathroom, quickly grabbing his lube and condoms - and in a panic, he shoved them down his pants. Danni was right around the corner. He couldn’t let him see them.

“Erm, yes, I have towels here and…” Percy tried to say nonchalantly, as his eyes swept the bathroom counter. There were hair styling products, a toothbrush and toothpaste, soap, a brush, and a comb. In the shower itself was a bottle of 5-in-1 and a loofa. “We just moved,” he added, hoping that would temper some of Danni’s judgment. He had been trying to get into skincare at the start of the school year, but he’d evidently fallen off that horse.

Danni peered at Percy and then back at the bedroom and then back and Percy and then back at the bedroom and back at Percy again. “Idk what you're ‘idin’ young man, but Imma find out eventually.” Danni picked Percy up, turned, and dropped him out in the hallway before starting to dig through his stuff. “Hm, okay. Decent hair product, t'ough you should swap t'e brand. T'is is kinda a meh brand t'ese days. I'll send ya some recs. Okay, toothbrush, toothpaste, no dental floss or mout'wash certainly a choice, and t'en…” Danni threw open the medicine cabinet. Nothing. Danni pulled open his bottom cabinets. Nothing. Danni gave Percy a bombastic side eye. Percy wouldn't. He wouldn't do this to Danni, would he? He wouldn't make him suffer such horrors. Dee couldn't have that bad of taste. Danni stood from where he'd crouched, prepared to dig through bottle after bottle, and found himself facing the shower curtain with trepidation. Danni took a deep breath, tore open the, and screamed. He scrambled back, clutching the door frame as his legs trembled, and his worst nightmare rose from the depths of hell itself.

5-in-1

An absolute monstrosity. A failure of mankind. A monument to the hubris of ingenuity. And Percy, boyfriend to his brother, had the audacity to call Danni for help while he used that garbage. Danni hit the ground, dragging himself out of the bathroom and clutching Percy's leg. “Spicy. Wha- What is t'at? ‘Ow… ‘ow could you betray me like t'is? Do you even moisturize? Exfoliate? Condition? Give me t'e tiniest bit of ‘ope.”

Percy’s face was as red as a beet. He cared a lot about his appearance - but mostly when it came to maintaining his clothing. He polished his shoes, hung up his shirts neatly, and freshly ironed his slacks. His hair, while washed with 5-in-1, was neatly styled, now placed in loose waves rather than the combover he had previously. Skincare… was a bit of an afterthought. He washed his face with soap and water. And so far, that had seemed to be enough. He hadn’t learned about skin care routines as he hadn’t really needed them.

The embarrassment was so intense that his skin didn’t even crawl as Danni clung to his leg. He hadn’t protested either as Danni picked him up and set him aside. “... There’s conditioner in the 5-in-1.”

Danni flinched like he'd been threatened. Danni wanted to cry and his eyes burned with the unshed tears. He tried, he drsperately tried to hold it back, but Percy's life was horrid and Danni sobbed. He shakily picked himself up and dropped himself over Percy, sobbing into his shoulder. It was just too much. He couldn't believe how much Percy hated himself. Danni could not, would not, tolerate this abuse because this family didn't believe in self-harm. “You've been suffering so much and I'm so- so sorry. But you did t'e right t'in’ comin’ ta me.for ‘elp. We're gunna get you taken care of and t'en I'mma tear Dee apart for lettin’ ‘is boyfriend treat himself like t'is.” Danni choked out once he'd managed to get himself under control. The bottle of 5-in-1 caught fire wit'out Danni ever taking his eyes off Percy and Danni hugged Percy protectielvely. “Its okay now, shhhh. I'll keep you safe from t'e bad, bad chemicals. We're gunna get you all set up so even after I fix t'is parasite on your fore’ead, it won't come back. Now, show me where you're mom's bat'room is. She ‘as tasting ‘ave somet'in’.”

Percy flinched, freezing as Danni practically collapsed onto him. He could barely stand up under Danni’s weight, becoming acutely aware of how muscular his boyfriend’s brother was. His words were eerily familiar, echoing how people had talked to him when he was preparing to go to rehab - when he’d started to admit that he was an alcoholic. “Don’t bring Dorian into this?” he asked, feeling a bit short of breath. The touch was… a lot. His skin was startling to crawl, and he swallowed as he saw Danni set his trusty 5-in-1 on fire. Maybe this hadn’t been his best idea after all. Maybe he should have told Dorian he couldn’t go on the date, as he had relapsed.

He tried to teleport out of Danni’s grip, to reappear in the hallway, but as he moved, Danni moved with him. “... Danni, I need you to let go of me, or I am going to have a meltdown,” he murmured, trying not to snap. He needed Danni’s help. But if he didn’t get his personal space back, he would explode. “My mother’s bathroom is - it’s down the hall, in the master.”

“Oh, perfect! Let's see what your Mom ‘as stashed away! ‘opefully, at least a pair of tweezers and a cleanser, get t'at oil and gunk out after.” Danni shouted, as he already bounced down the hall the second Percy gave him directions. The teleport had gone unnoticed and his previous tears were all dried up, his mood completely recovered at the thought that someone would have the tools of his trade readily available. Danni kicked up Percy's mom's door, scurried across the room to throw open the bathroom door, and he tore into every cabinet, nook, and cranny he could get his fingers into.

And he found almost exactly what Percy had in his. A hair dryer, a box of brown hair dye, gloves, a pair of tweezers, a wash cloth, and a box of tissues was all he found different from her son's bathroom and Danni decided it was genetic. He was too afraid to brave the shower. If he saw another 5-in-1 container, he would scream. “Spicy! I need ta know - you wanna clear t'is up first or you wanna do t'is right? You'll be seen out and ‘bout wit’ t'at if we do it right but since your fam is allergic ta lovin’ themselves, I can't clean your fave properly ta clear it up safely. Pick your poison, bb.”

Percy hesitated for a moment. He didn’t want to be seen like this. This was social suicide. And yet, if taking care of it now meant that it wouldn’t be done right, if his forehead would still be disgusting come tomorrow… He bit his lip. “... If we pop it now, will I be ugly tomorrow?”

“Pls, ‘ave some fait’ in me ‘ere. We pop it now, we wash it wit’ some basic soap, cleans it out real nice but leaves it wit’ no protection so your skin is gunna dry out and you're gunna ‘ave some redness or irritation. But it'll look liat you dropped your phone corner on your face rat'er t'an a tumor.” Danni explained, a little hurt that Percy didn't think he'd get him through this spiritual journey. “Or two, we wait. People see you wit’ a second ‘ead but when I pop t'is, we get a cleanser t'at clears out t'e gunk, and t'en we moisturize so t'at you're skin stays ‘ydrated while ‘eating. No red or irritation. Your choice, baby boi. I'll get it all squared away once you're down. Eit'er way, we're goin’ out and pickin’ you up supplies after.”

Maybe it was greedy of him, or vanity. But if there was an option that didn’t leave him with an angry red mark on his forehead… he had to take that one. “I’ll find a hat,” Percy decided, before hesitating slightly. It then occurred to him that maybe even the slight pressure of a beanie on it wouldn’t be good. He wanted to have Danni’s approval before he did anything - a first in his life for sure. “… is that okay?”

“Mmmmmmm, lemme check.” Danni leaned forward, tapping the offending creature gently. "It's still a little firm, so should be fine. Not squishy enough ta pop at t'e littlest bit o’ pressure. And since we're out, we can get t'e proper stuff ta get t'at popped wit'out it bein’ a ‘hole mess. Gunna ‘urt a bit, but beauty is pain and all t'at. And since we're goin’ out, we're gunna need your Mom's magic card. Where is ‘er bag?”

“Her… magic card?” Percy blinked, before realizing what Danni meant. His mother’s credit card. Ah. He then glanced back into the master bedroom, where his mother was still asleep. She was practically nocturnal. She hadn’t even stirred at Danni’s dramatics. “Her wallet should be on the dresser - if not there, on the table by the entryway. Or in her clothing from the previous night. Or already in the laundry machine. It’s possible it’s in her bed.”

“Ooooh, is it in t'e pile o’ stuff on ‘er dresser? I'll grab it!” Danni skipped back into Percy's mom's room and hummed through the collection of stuff. Glasses, keys, notebooks, gum, lipstick… a wallet! Danni opened it and whistled. “Wow, she ‘as so many magic cards. Should I take a specific one? Should I take t'em… Yeah, let's take t'em all!” Danni took every card in there, not sure which one was the right one, and stuffed it into his robe. His robe? Danni looked out at his outfit and groaned. He was definitely not being seen on the streets of California looking like this. As great as he looked, it was not paparazzi wear.

“Spicy! We're pickin’ me up some clothes too! You kidnapped me ‘fore I could dress properly.” Danni said as he stepped out and shut the door behind him. Gotta let Momma Spicy sleep. “Like, don't het me wrong. I look ‘ot as ‘eck but now t'at we're famous, I gotta present perfectly out and about. What stores are close? Or are you poppin’ us ‘round?”

Percy blinked for a moment. He was so used to Danni being flamboyant and extra, it hadn’t occurred to him for a moment that he would need a change of clothes. A bright pink robe and a pair of booty shorts with HotShot across his ass seemed like something Danni would wear in public. He looked good, too. “Where do you want to go?” he offered. “I don’t think I can do a ton of cross country trips, there was a decent chance I was going to teleport into your wall instead of your room earlier. But is there somewhere in Los Angeles you’d like to go?” He then paused, considering whether Danni would be able to wear any of his clothes. His shirts would probably look like crop tops on him. His pants would have a similar problem.

“You can borrow something of mine, if I have anything up to your standards,” he added, figuring a crop top might be better than nothing, as he headed back to his room in search of a hat.

“Yours? You're so smol t'ough. Oh actually, do you ‘ave any work out clothes? If I can get a shirt, I can make t'is look good. And a pair o’ shoes. T'e places were goin’ will all ‘ave t'ose silly No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service rules but I can make t'is look intentional wit’ t'e right top. Preferably mesh, if you ‘ave it.” Danni said, following Percy back to his room. “What size does your mom wear? Maybe I can borrow a nice pair of ‘ers.”

“… Am I supposed to know what size my mom wears?” Percy asked, a bit bewildered. As they returned to his room, Percy pushed open the closet doors, and stepped back. He figured showing Danni clothes operated by the same principles as feeding a ravenous lion - distance was his first line of defense. His clothing tended to skew more towards semi-formal or causal, not really dipping down into workout… or at least, not until he had started training with Dorian. Dorian had gotten him a selection of things, some of which had seen activities a little more strenuous than teleporting. And of course, the free swag they had received after the contest was hung up neatly as well. The main feature of his closet was his shoe collection, at least twenty different pairs, all kept in near perfect condition.

Danni pursued the clothing with a critical eye. He ignored anything too stiff - that was Spicy's thing, not his. For someone who saw a decent amount of action - Danni waved that thought away and raised an eyebrow at his collection. It definitely sung to someone else's tastes and Danni picked up a few shirts, tighter athletic material with high necks, with a groan. Dee definately got Spicy these. “Definately didn't need ta know somet'in's I'm puttin’ toget'er ‘ere, Spicy. I'mma smack Dee when I see ‘im.” Danni grumbled to himself. He would have really prefer something sleeveless but he couldn't imagine Percy would put up with that. The kid was always buttoned up as far as buttons would go - if he could get them in front of his face, Percy probably would. So Danni sighed, grabbed a black stretchy workout shirt, and headed back for the bathroom.

“Come wit’ me, t'is robe ain't ‘ittin’ t'e ground while I finish gettin’ ready so you're ‘oldin’ it. T'en, find out which stores around us carry Emma Frost and Luna Snow's beauty line crossover Diamonds in the Snow and we'll go t'ere. It was supposed ta be a limited time run but it got so popular, t'ey kept it around. Expensive AF but it's good.” Danni demanded, already shrugging off his robe and passing it to Percy. He struggled a little into Percy's shirt, feeling it stretch extra snug around his chest. Thank god he was all lean muscle and not a body builder like Leah. “I'm borrowin’ your ‘air product too since mine just finished dryin’ properly.” Danni didn't wait for a response, instead taking the time to pull off the towel on his head and carefully hanging it on the wall. He examined the products laid out before him and got to work styling his hair, carefully brushing, combing, and sculpting to give himself an artfully ruffled look. Since he was basically wearing a running outfit, plus his beautiful robe, Danni figured he may as well look like the wind was in his hair.

The shoe conundrum was another matter. To sell the look, he really needed black or pink running shoes. Or, he could get some nicer looking sandals but then they'd have to wait for his toe nails to dry since he got interrupted on that too. Danni wanted to be mad at the kidnapping, but he couldn't bring himself to be - Fred was a horror that constituted a beauty emergency. He'd have done the same if he ever had a pimple like that. Okay, hair check. Shirt check. Still need shoes and…” Danni stared at his stomach, framed by the shirt and his shorts. He certainly didn't have abs, he liked food and water too much for that, but it was flat and toned. It still seemed a little… “Spicy, fo you t'ink I'd look wit’ a piercin’ ‘ere? I feel like I look so borin’ right ‘ere.” Danni gestured to his midriff.

Percy’s face was bright red. Danni was already grumbling about the clothes in his closet. He was incredibly grateful he’d managed to hide the things in the bathroom. And as Danni threw the robe at him, he grabbed it and took advantage of Danni’s back being turned to grab the things out of his pants and quickly throw them underneath the bed. Danni wouldn’t have any need to look there. He hoped. “How much is expensive AF?” Percy then asked, realizing a new danger.

His mother would kill him if they maxed out her cards.

Danni had no understanding of the value of money.

But it was important. If he showed up like this to his date tomorrow, Dorian would break up with him for sure. It would be on sight.

So he rushed after Danni into the bathroom, still carrying the giant pink fluff. He would have protested about Danni using his hair care products - those were nice and limited in supply - but he held his tongue. Danni was helping him. He could allow it… this time.

“Do you have a hole for the piercing to go through?” he asked. He didn’t make a habit of staring at his boyfriend’s brother’s midriff. But he would not have been surprised if Danni’s routine to get ready would suddenly involve a stop at a body piercer.

Danni looked at him and looked back at his stomach. “Ugh, no t'at's what t'ey do, silly. T'ey make a ‘ole! I t'ink I'd look good wit’ one.” Danni considered a little longer before he snatched up his robe and shrugged it back on, fiddling and fussing with it to make everything lay exactly how he wanted. The robe made him feel like he needed one every more, something red or pink and a little glittery to draw the eye to the middle and then up. “Peerfect. I'll bounce it off Dee and Rillie and t'en I'll talk ta t'e ‘rents. Papa will definitely be down, but Pops and Appa might be a little grumpy ‘bout it. T'ey're always super cautious ‘bout big changes, ya know? But I'm t'inkin’ I'm goin’ back ta school wit’ a my first piercin’!” The more he thought about it, the more excited he got. But, he had to remember that he was on a mission and that mission included shoes. He pulled out his phone since Spicy couldn't be bothered apparently and searched what stores were around. They didn't need to go to a high brand skin care store for the lower end of product, but they definitely weren't…

“Oh! I didn't know L'Occitane ‘ad a store in L.A.! Perfect, I get one of my favorite face creams from t'e one in Paris. T'ey actually might ‘ave somet'in’ better t'an t'e collab stuff. And t'ere's a small boutique next door. We can stop by and pick up shoes for me, get your skin care stuff, and t'en we'll find you somet'in’ fun and flirty for your date. Everyt'in’ in your closet screams sickly Vikgorian child, which works great at school but if you're goin’ somewhere fun, t'en we need ta change it up. Do you know what you're doin’? We can t'eme t'e outfit t'en. Anyways, chop chop, daylight is awastin’ and we gotta deal wit’ Fred sooner rat'er t'an later. Every minute is gunna make it worse!”

Percy let out a small sigh of relief at the revelation that they would not, in fact, be rushing off to a body piercer. However, at the same time… he couldn’t help but be somewhat intrigued by the concept. When he was little, he had decided that he hated piercings - but he had also decided then that the only acceptable hairstyle was a tight combover. The notion of going with Danni to check out a body piercer was somewhat exciting. And maybe… hmm, there was an appeal he couldn’t deny about the idea of getting something pierced himself.

“Can you show me the address and surrounding buildings - using the Stark earth view?” Percy requested, putting the impulsive idea aside for the moment. His jumps were easier if he had a clear idea of where they were going. “Also… Fred? Did you name my pimple Fred? Erm, but yes, I believe we are going to a ski lodge. If you have advice on outfits… that would be really helpful.”

Danni clicked a few buttons, pulling up the location and viewing it at street level. “Well, yeah. It's large enough ta be sentient sooo gotta give it its respect, ya know?” Danni shrugged and held up the phone. “Btw, Is t'is good enough or ya need me ta like, do a panomatic? If it's a ski lodge, we need ta get you two outfits: one for when ya ski and one when ya are just chillin’. We'll do shoes, skin care stuff, give Fred ‘er funeral, and t'en we'll go cloth shoppin’ for ya for t'e cold. Know which ski lodge?”

Percy was studying the photo, reaching out for Danni’s phone. He repositioned the view, clicked on nearby buildings, identified any landmarks that were helpful. He didn’t actually know if he needed to have been somewhere before or not for a larger jump. But there was only one way to find out. “Mm, I’m not sure. This is very new for me,” he admitted with a shrug. “… Don’t I need more than two outfits? For the first and second day?” He grimaced a bit at the reminder of the zit’s supposed sentience. “Dorian said it was a surprise.”

He then grabbed onto Danni’s arm, and teleported them… reappearing in the middle of oncoming traffic in the correct street.

“Well, I figured t'at you'd fight and- OH MY GOD SPICY WHAT DID YA DO?!” Danni snatched Percy by the waist and hit it as hard as he could, barely clearing the oncoming minivan as it blared it's horn at them. He hit the sidewalk hard, stumbling and dropping Percy on his butt. Danni breathed hard, his heart racing and one hand clutching his chest and the only supporting him on his knee, and looked around to make sure no cars had crashed as a result of two kids suddenly appearing in the street. Traffic was still going, no one was screaming, but he realized something terrible.

He'd flown them to the wrong side of the road.

“Uuugh, t'e shop is over t'ere. Now we gotta cross again. So uncool.” Danni whined with a little stomp of his foot. He looked down at Percy sheepishly and held out his hand to help him up. “Sorry ‘bout t'e rough ride. I panicked.”

Percy hadn’t known he was a reactive screamer. But as Danni started screaming, so did he. He shut his eyes instinctively, his heart pounding - and then suddenly, something grabbed him, practically flinging him out of the way as he was picked up and thrown onto the sidewalk, landing on his ass. He opened his eyes slowly. He took a deep breath. He tried to act like he hadn’t also been terrified for a moment there.

“It’s fine, I think Fred survived the landing,” he said briskly. He stared for a moment at Danni’s hand. And then he sighed, reached out and took it, and teleported them across the street. The minute they reappeared, he let go and got up to his feet. “There.”

Danni blinked as his surroundings changed. He did not anticipate another teleport after the first catastrophe, but he appreciated it nonetheless. “Aw, look at you Spicy! You do like me! And ‘ere I t'ough I was just a beauty school booty call.” Danni laughed. Although they were in front of L'Occitane, he grabbed Percy's hand and dragged him next door to the pretty white, gold, and blue boutique with dresses and shoes on display. Inside, with a beachy theme and pictures of men and women strolling and laughing along the Califorina shore, Danni beamed.

“This is perfect! I'mma get a cute pair of sandals and t'en we'll pop over ta t'e ot'er store. I'll make t'is one quick ‘cause we're def spendin’ a tooooooon of time in t'e next one and t'en a tooooon more time on your date clothes. And now t'at you've said we can buy more outfits, we're gunna spend aaaaaaaall day long in and outta shops.” Danni cackled maniacally as he bolted for the shoe wall.

Percy’s arm practically felt like it was being ripped out of its socket, as he tried to resist Danni’s mad dash. The pain of being dragged flared up above his discomfort with being touched. He would have teleported out of the grip, but that hadn’t worked earlier either. His breath was quickening too, and the creeping sensation was beginning to spread all over his body. “Let go of me!” Percy snapped slightly, his voice more desperate rather than angry.

“Hm? On you need ta use t'e bat'room? T'ey probs ‘ave one over t'ere.” Danni gave Percy his hand back and stared intently at the shoes. None of the sandals on display were quite what he was looking for. He wants some of those that laced half way up the calf, but all they had were chunky velcro ones. He like two pairs and he certainly picked them up and then put them down again. He was here to help Percy, not pick out stuff for himself. Well, he supposed it went hand in hand, right? He grabbed two pairs and had them held at the little counter/kiosk thing in the corner that new age stores liked to set up and checked for something a little more stylish. He found a thinner sandal, light colored and with only a few straps that kept it secured around the ankle. That would have to do.

“Okay, we'll take t'ese t'ree and t'en a bag please!” Danni said cheerfully, offering up one of the cards with numbers on it.

Percy just stared at Danni as he shopped. He took a few deep breaths, trying to quell the urge to lash out, to scream. For a mutant with the gift to speak any language, he didn’t know how to use one to get through to Danni on this. He didn’t know how to explain that every touch was somehow both blistering and suffocating - that he would rather lose a limb than be forced to prolong physical contact with almost anyone. He didn’t even think Dorian understood it. Not really.

Would people even believe him if he tried - or would they see how he liked affection from his boyfriend and decide he was just being an ass, that it was all a lie? It would have been easier if he’d been like Leah or Rogue - if his powers made touching his skin harmful to others, instead of the reality where it was just harmful to himself.

More importantly, though, he realized Danni was trying to pay with his mother’s Disneyland Annual Pass. “Can I see the cards?” he asked, forcing a smile - one that almost came off as psychotic. “That one is for Disneyland.”

“Oooooh, Disneyland. Okay, okay.” Danni handed the handful of cards to Percy. “Also, t'ey're sayin’ t'is is $890. Isn't t'at like a steal? So cheap! T'at's not even my full allowance from t'e Contest!”

“WHAT?”

“Right? T'e deal is insane. Like, ‘ow are t'ey e en operatin’ and t'e nice lady said t'ey were givin’ me 10% off t'e last pair since we're buyin’ three pairs! Idk why t'at's a t'in’ but it is!” Danni laughed.

Percy was shaking violently. He knew Danni was weird with money, but did he have no concept of it? Did he not know how much anything cost? If someone offered him a banana for $100, would he also brag about what a good deal that was? He had been trying so so hard to be nice to him, to give him the benefit of the doubt. And he’d been doing a good job of it - he even let Danni wear his clothes!

But something in him snapped here.

“We cannot buy those. My mother will kill me. She won’t even kill me, she’ll kill me permanently,” he stressed. “She would make sure both of us had - had Freds covering our faces for the rest of our lives. And then she would kill us, so your corpse would be acne ridden too. You can get one pair. Not three. They’re scamming you. And we - we can put it on my card. I’ll use my contest money for it. It’ll be fine. It’ll all be fine.” His eye twitched. He was going to spend all $100,000 today because of Danni, wasn’t he?

Danni took a step back, eyes wide. He didn't get why Percy was being so mean all of a sudden. Why would they scam him? And why would Percy's mom put acne on them? “Uh, um, okay. I guess we'll just get those?” Danni said very hesitantly about the last pair. He could feel a lump form in his throat and he just stared at the ground, waiting for Percy to finish up. He thought they were having fun, he thought they were bonding, but Danni guessed he was wrong. Danni wasn't even sure what he did wrong and he…

He sniffled as his vision got blurry.

Percy reached into his own wallet and produced his card, handing it over to the employee. His tactic seemed to have worked! He was a little bit relieved. All he had to do to get through to Danni was connect things to his own interests, and he understood! He could replicate this. This was workable. “Where to now?”

Danni took the sandals silently and slowly put them on his feet. He'd been snatched out of his room without finishing his morning routine, he'd had to look everything up and make all the plans, and he was even nice enough to try and find a store near where Spicy needed to go even if the clothing store wasn't something he'd normally go to all so Spicy didn't have to teleport too much. Danni could feel his breathing getting faster and he really tried cause he was probably gunna get yelled at again but…

The damn broke, the tears rolled down his face, and he wailed in the store. “I already told you where we're going next! Right! Next! Door! Why else would I be in this ugly shop, in this stupid city, instead of finishing my pedicure and my morning routine and cooking lunch and playing with Amélie! And all I'm doing is helping you and then you yell at me for no reason!” Danni choked out between sobs. “Go talk to them by yourself if you wanna be mean to me, Percy.”

Percy fell silent. He didn’t know how to fix this. He didn’t know what to do. And Danni was right. He hadn’t even asked if Danni would help him - he’d just grabbed him, expecting him to do all the work to pull off a miracle. He’d tried so hard to be nice to him - but his best hadn’t been enough. He’d still upset him so much he was crying. And Percy could feel everyone in the shop looking at them, as a famous teen celebrity had a public crash out.

“… I’m… I’m sorry. I’ll take you home now.”

Danni just rode out the feelings, letting himself cry it out until he was just down to sniffles. “And who's gunna ‘elp you wit’ Fred? You're gunna take me ‘ome and t'en you're gunna try ta cancel t'e date, aren't you, and t'en Imma feel bad ‘cause Dee would be upsetti and it would just be bad everywhere.” Danni took a shaky breath. “Okay, okay. I'mma listen ta Mavie. Percy, I need ya to explain what ‘appened t'ere ‘cause I'm really ‘urt and I wanna ‘elp you but ya gotta give me more t'an dumpin’ me on t'e side of t'e road. ‘Cause Imma be ‘onest ‘ere, Percy. You t'row me away right now and it's gunna take a lot ta get me back.”

The guilt and self-disgust and shame had thickened into a nasty, viscous soup. He hadn’t thought that far ahead about what would happen after he took Danni home. All he knew was that he felt he didn’t deserve his help, and that Danni would be happier back in New Orleans, far away from him. Maybe having Fred appear on his forehead was a manifestation of his true character. He didn’t find heroism natural. It was something that had been made abundantly clear with Dorian - and now with his brother, too.

He opened his mouth, and tried to speak… but the sound died in his throat. He didn’t know where to begin. Or what to say to make this better. He hadn’t wanted to hurt Danni. Maybe it was time to be honest.

He slowly reached out, putting a hand on Danni’s shoulder, and the two of them reappeared in the changing room. “This is hard for me to say,” he bit his lip. He decided looking right at Danni was too hard - the wall of the changing room, a little easier. “I am sorry I yelled. Every time someone touches me, it feels like my skin is being peeled off. It hurts. I was overwhelmed and lost my temper. You don’t have to help me, I will take you home right now if you want, and what happens with me and Dorian is my problem, not yours.”

Danni peered at Percy like he was a particularly challenging puzzle to solve. He heard the words that came.out of Percy's mouth, but they didn't really make any sense. “Touchin’ you makes you unhappy? T'at's kinda wierd ‘cause Dee touches you all t'e time and you're def more t'an chill wit’ it. I mean ‘eck, I touch you all t'e-” Light started to flixker behind Danni's eyes. “Omg I touch ya all t'e time. Omg, I make ya un'appy like literally all t'e time. Do I make you un'appy all t'e time? Omg, is t'is like when Monica or Javier wanted ta do t'e stuff you do wit’ Dee and I said no and t'ey tried ta do it anyway? I make ya feel like t'at?” Horror and dread dawned on his face and Danni lunched forward and then stopped and looked like a confused, sad puppy because he had no idea what to do.

Honesty had been helpful. Percy didn’t know if saying yes to Danni’s question here would be helpful. Not that Danni made him unhappy all the time… yes, he was incredibly touchy, but to a certain extent Percy had coping strategies - and he wasn’t the only person in his life who made contact with him. Unhappy all the time felt extreme. Unhappy sometimes felt more truthful.

“I… I don’t know why it doesn’t hurt when Dorian touches me,” Percy said, and his face flushed. “When I first met you both, and he possessed me, it felt like I was being suffocated. It doesn’t anymore. I… actually really like the feeling, now. I feel a little empty without him. Erm. Sorry. You don’t need to hear that. But… hmm.”

Was there a compromise here?

He took the beanie off of his head, revealing Fred in all of his glory, and he put the beanie on his hand like a glove. “… We can try this, if you can hold on very lightly, and I’ll tell you if it’s okay,” he offered.

“Oh, don't stress ‘bout t'at, I get it. Dee possessin’ ya just let's ya float and not stress and just vibe. Its like a little break!” Danni agreed readily, perking right up as Percy offered a solution. Was it really as simple as just putting a barrier around his skin before Danni touched him? Danni reached out and very gently grabbed his beanie clad hand. “Okay, okay - ‘ow you feelin’, Spicy?”

“… This is fine,” Percy decided. It likely also was motivated by the fact that he had been the one to initiate the contact, rather than having it sprung on him. But it felt more like Danni was holding onto the beanie instead of his hand, and the familiar sensation of bugs crawling underneath his skin hadn’t happened.

He surprised himself, though, with the way he was tempted to continue to talk to Danni about the feeling of being possessed. He hadn’t talked to anyone about it since the start of the year, when the series of unfortunate accidents had happened, and he’d reacted with extreme hostility. “You said the next location is right next door, yes?” Percy confirmed, as he moved to head towards the exit.

Danni grinned, all his energy back once again and he practically bounced his way out of the changing rooms. “T'anks again for t'e shoes!” Danni waved at the lady behind the counter, who gave Percy and Danni a strange look, and Danni was out the door and scurrying through the next. Across the street, a camera snapped a shot of them.

L'Occitane. The building wasn't grand by any means, white, pressure washed walls accented with gold trim and a gold awning over its display window. Models posed with a variety of products, everything in white and gold containers. Potted flowers bloomed outside and a small bell chimed as the door swung open. Saffron, jasmine, and teak spilled out and Danni took a death breath. All his stress and frustration melted away. Danni beamed and made a sweeping bow.

“Welcome ta t'e solution ta all your problems! T'is is where t'e magic ‘happens.” Danni all but sprinted inside and immediately began scanning the store. “Oooookie, so you ‘ad not'in’ at ‘ome so let's get ya all figured out. We need stuff ta extract, ta cleanse and ta lock in t’ose juicy, juicy nutrients. So lets see…” Danni snagged a basket at the entryway and hummed as he considered a few different comedone extractors. He pointed at another display.

“T'ose are all t'e cleansers wit’ t'e lower solution for your skin. Find a scent in a cream - you ‘ave dry skin so we don't wanna get a foam. We'll start wit’ t'is stuff and t'en if its treatin’ ya right bit not quite gettin’ results in t'e future,we can bump it up. Just look for saliclyc acid content ‘round 1% and lower.” Danni instructed. “Pick out at least 4, t'en we'll see if t'e attendant ‘as any samples so we can make sure you're skin isn't gunna get irritated real quick.”

Percy raised an eyebrow at Danni’s spiel. He did have dry skin - he’d surmised as much when he briefly tried to get into skin care at the very start of the school year, subconsciously trying to catch the eye of a certain someone. But he had never gone beyond the basic stores found at the mall, like Lush and Bath and Body Works. L’Occitane was on a completely different level. At any rate, he was a little surprised that Danni had figured that out about him so quickly. “Do you know everyone’s skin type?” he asked, a little impressed. Was that what Danni focused on when he touched people?

He nodded a bit at the instructions. Low salicylic acid content, four different ones to make sure it didn’t irritate his skin. It was straightforward enough. He pulled his hand out of the beanie barrier and started looking through the options, before picking out four that he hoped wouldn’t smell obnoxious. The scents were supposed to be pretty subtle, as Percy didn’t want to smell like a fruitcake when the other products were used in tandem, each with their own scents. “Are these okay?” he then asked Danni, offering him the bottles.

Danni settled on the third one he'd picked up and tossed it in the basket. As Percy was browsing, Danni took a look at some of the wash cloths they had. He hadn't remembered seeing anything specifically for washing his face and they had the same ones he used, just in more boring colors so he added a three pack of those to the basket as well. Danni turned to evaluate Percy's choices, turning each of them to inspect the ingredients. “Peeerf, great job Spicy! So we'll check ta see if t'ey ‘ave samples of t'ese, do a quick dab on t'e skin ta see if it'll bother you, and t'en check if t'ey ‘ave a matchin’ ‘ydratin’ cream. I figure we'll start easy and not worry ‘bout layerin’ scents ‘til we get you a daily and weekly routine. T'en we can start t'inkin’ ‘bout bi-weekly stuff if you reaaaaally get into it.” Danni pulled him over to the attendant, only to be pleasantly surprised when they'd already put out one for each.

“And t'is why you go to ‘igh end shops! T'ey already are workin’ on what you need!” Danni exclaimed after thanking the attendant and asking them to check for matching items. “Okay, so we're gunna test t'em just ta make sure t'ere's no burnin’ or not'in’. Open t'e up, scoop out a little dollip, and t'en rub it in a small circle. We'll let it ait for a minute and t'en wipe off. If you feel any burnin’ or we see any redness, we'll toss it.”

Percy nodded, a little bit of tension leaving him as he realized Danni was giving him instructions so he could do it himself. It was one of the kindest things he’d ever done for him. He couldn’t help but sniffle slightly, as he tested out the four different types, separating them to make sure there weren't any overlaps, and that it was clearly defined where they were. Two of them almost immediately started to burn and Percy cursed under his breath, looking for something to wipe it off his face with. They had little makeup removing wipes so he quickly took one of those and removed the offending ones, and set those two bottles off to the side. “Are one of these two better than the other?” he asked Danni, gesturing to the ones he hadn’t reacted to.

Danni watched Percy carefully, ready to step in if things went south, but Percy got through it just fine. Now that he had less options, Danni reviewed the backs of both. They were similar, both fine, but one had some extra stuff that would probably be good for Perxy's skin; however, he really didn't want to overload Percy's skin. He could practically hear his pores crying for water and if Danni ruined Percy's experience now, it would haunt him forever. Danni put down the one that was technically better and put the other in the basket. Pomegranate was an odd smell, but it wasn't overwhelming - understated and calm. “Ooh, and a gold ombre. It'll go great wit’ t'e towels you're buyin’. Need dedicated materials for your face - can't share it, yeah know!” Danni skipped over to the attendant, Lydia, and grabbed the matching hydration cream.

“And t'is matches everyt'in’...” Danni muttered as he reviewed the backs. He dropped it into the basket and took a look around the store. “Do you ‘ave a decent sunscreen? Or should we pick t'at up too? Most people t'ink t'ey don't need ta wear sunscreen in t'e mountains ‘cause its cold but the sun will getcha double in t'e snow.”

“I got some nice sunscreen at the start of the school year, it’s almost out, but I think I have enough?” He didn’t dare mention to Danni that he still had some because he had stopped using it. Yes, they lived in California, but they spent so much of their time indoors, studying or training, and on a cloudy day it felt excessive to use it and carry it around. Or at least, he thought it was a nice brand of sunscreen. He mentioned the name of it to register Danni’s reaction. “That’s what I have… if that’s acceptable?”

He really hoped this wasn’t another $900 bill, too.

Danni tilted his head back and forth, considering if it would work for his tastes. Not Perxy's tastes because Percy clearly had none in this area so… “Eh, it'll do I suppose. Right now, we're aimin’ for tomorrow and we'll getcha all squared away wit’ all new stuff in a few months anyways once you've gotten everyt'in’ inta a routine.” Danni nodded decisively and marched across to Lydia. “Okay! Just t'is! I know we should get a second cleanser and a twice a week exfoliating serum, but ‘e's new ta t'e process and I don't wanna overwhelm him.”

“Good idea. It keeps them interested longer.” Lydia laughed as she presented the check in a leather presenter and took the items to arrange them in a pleasant little box rather than a bag. It was white with their gold logo and she tied it with a thin orange ribbon. “Its always sweet when someone is introducing someone important to skin care. If you don't start now, then you'll regret it later.”

“See Spicy? You ‘ave ta listen ta t'e experts. Wit” ‘ow much you frown, you'll get wrinkles by t’e time you're t'irty unless ya listen ta me!”

The check, which listed out every item, also presented a single discount line.

The Sweetheart Package - ($70.20).

Percy handed over Dominika’s credit card this time - it was a specialty Pride branded one from a local Californian bank. Well, it was one of her credit cards. He then glanced at the cheek… and a series of emotions rolled over him. It wasn’t as expensive as the three pairs of shoes, at least. But almost four hundred dollars, after the discount… and then the color in his face returned, replaced with a crimson red hue, as he read the discount description. He then replayed what Lydia had said to them - that it was sweet to introduce someone important to you to skin care. Did she think…

Percy looked at Danni, his eyes widening.

“We’re not - he’s not - I’m not - we aren’t a couple!” Percy protested. “I’m dating his brother, that would be - we would then be - no!”

Danni looked between the pair. Percy was getting really, really red and Lydia was giving them a weird look. “Datin’? I'm super confused. I'm just ‘ere ta ‘elp get rid of Fred for ‘is date tomorrow.” Danni pointed to the bulging pimple on Percy's forehead. “It's pretty brutal so Spicy ‘ere snatched me outta bed, whisked me ‘cross t'e country, and begged me on ‘ands and knees for a miracle. And who am I ta deny a poor, unfortunate soul in need and pain?” Danni sighed wistfully. “I'm just ta nicest person in t'e world. And now t'e nicest person in t'e world is gunna carve t'e gross stuff outta your ‘ead!” Danni giggled, eyes a little wild and manic energy radiating from him.

Lydia stammered out her apologies, passing back the card and the final receipt. “Oh, you two just looked so close, I assumed… I shouldn't have, I suppose, but good luck with Fred and your date!”

“Okay, take us away, Spicy! It's time ta read Fred ‘is late rites.”

Percy couldn’t wait to get out of there. He did, however, check the receipt. As much as he wasn’t thrilled to have been accused of dating Danni… he was very glad that they’d kept the discount. Maybe he needed to see if there were discounts he and Dorian should be taking advantage of. Not that his boyfriend super understood how money worked to begin with, but…

He slid his hand back into the beanie, allowing him to touch Danni without skin to skin contact, and he teleported them back to his bedroom - a graceful landing this time, too.

“‘ey, look at t'at! So smoot’, all ya needed was a little Danni support!” Danni cheered, letting go of Percy's hand and looking thoughtfully at him. “Okay, so t'is could be a little messy. T'ere may be some blood, t'ere may be some puss, t'ere may be tear and snot so we are def doin’ t'is in t'e bat'room but we gotta talk ‘bout t'is touchin’ t'in’ cause I'm ‘bout ta touch ya a lot. Normally, I'd get a chair, sit in your lap, and operate, but I don't t'ink t'ats wise so let's brin’ a chair ta t'e bat'room and we'll figure t'at out!” Danni grabbed Percy's desk chair and hauled it to the bathroom, pulling out the kit, the face towels, and grabbing one of Percy's towels.

“Oh, also no shirt. Come on, take it off! We don't wanna get blood, puss, or water on t'em!” Danni said as he shrugged off hia robe, peeled off Percy's shirt, hung them both, popped open the tools he'd just bought, and started gloving up.

Percy froze again - not at the thought of all the physical contact that was about to happen, but about removing his shirt… in front of Danni. He was barely comfortable having the first few buttons of his shirt open, even when it was just him and Dorian. He swallowed a bit. Communicating directly with Danni seemed to have worked well so far. He could do it. His entire power was about language. He could say what he needed to say. “I need you to promise you won’t laugh,” he said quietly. He was underweight and more than a little bit self conscious about his chest. He didn’t like the way he could see his ribs slightly.

Danni snapped the second glove in place, looked over at Percy with a confused look. “Spicy, I ‘ave seen you wit’ Fred and I ‘ave seen you after one of Poisson-Pas's near deat’ experiences. I can promise you, t'ere is not'in’ you're gunna show me t'at I will judge nor will I make fun of anyt'in’ I see. I'm vain, not a jerk silly boy.”

He hesitated for a moment, before nodding - and slowly, he took off his shirt and tossed it aside. Almost immediately, he started to shiver a bit, and he crossed his arms over his chest, trying to preserve some small bit of modesty, of privacy. He then bit his lip, thinking. “... If you put a towel between us, and if you’re fast, I can handle it.” He wanted Fred gone and he wanted it done right. Danni operating on Fred required a certain amount of touch. He could handle it. It wouldn’t be pleasant, but it would be fine.

“And I ‘ave gloves so no touchy t'ere!” Danni said proudly. He did lay a towel around Percy's neck and unraveled one of t'e wash cloths. “Okay, lemme talk ya through it. I'mm wipe down Fred wit’ some nice, hot water and soft t'at suckered up a little. T'en, I'mma take t'is sharp one and t'ese tweezers and t'en were gunna wriggle out t'e blockage. If Fred is still all Freddy, t'en we'll do some gentle massagin’ and t'en I can either A) Wash your face for ya or B) I can walk ya t'rough t'e process of washin’ your face wit’ everyt'in’. I'm ‘ssumin’ option B is your best bet so lemme know when I'm dealin’ wit’ Fred ‘ere.” Danni made sure Percy was nice and comfy and settled into his lap, hovering right in front of his face with intense concentration.

As he said, it was simple really. Slip the sharp end between the blockage and the skin. Check. Wiggle it loose slowly. Check. “Oh, actually. Question for ya.” Pinch with tweezers. Check. “‘ey, t'is might get a little more uncomfy. Slight pinch!” Danni gently and slowly pulled the blockage out, waiting when there was resistance, until it was finally clear. A little puss and blood dipped from the opening. “Who is Chase? Just kinda popped up outta no where.” Danni gently massaged Fred, dabbing with the towel to make sure that nothing dripped onto Percy's face or chest.

Even with the towel between them, Percy could feel Danni’s weight on him, his warmth. His heart beat a little faster, his breaths were a little shorter, but through sheer force of will he stayed still. It almost helped to focus on the pinch and the pain, of the odd sensation of having Fred’s innards extracted. He had shut his eyes as well, as the thing he hated almost as much as touch was direct eye contact, and Danni’s face was looming over his.

He winced at the question, though. That pain was even easier to focus on. He hadn’t talked about Chase in a while. He found it incredibly difficult to talk about. Even the thought of discussing it with Dorian made his skin crawl. But… Danni had helped him today. And he’d been an ass. He took a deep breath, picturing the words in his mind, settling on telling just a portion of it, and not the entire story. Communication so far had been good. He could try a little harder, try a little more. “He beat me up each week in middle school and shoved me into lockers, trash cans… any place I would fit.” His face then started to tremble, and he scrunched up his eyes to try to keep himself and his emotions under control. “I… I am not good at talking about it. Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Oh, ‘e's a villian, gotcha. Whelp, you know what ‘eros do t'at villians so guess ‘e's goin’ ta jail.” Danni said decisively. He leaned back, considered what was once Fred, and nodded. He climbed off Percy and tossed the gloves in the trash, washing his hands thoroughly. “Oooookay, looks like we're all set! Now it's time for t'e round two of not so fun ‘cause its gunna sting. Like, a lot. But t'is way it actually chills and doesn't just form right back up.” Danni grabbed the two products, the cleanser short and squat and the hydration cream taller. He tapped on them as he spoke.

“Now, you're a smarty pants so I probs don't gotta tell ya, but its cleanser and then moisturizer. Why you ask? ‘cause t’e moisturizer makes a nice little protective layer t’at'll draw t'at water up and keep it for your skin. If you do t'e cleansers after you make t'at nice little barrier, you just wasted all t'at stuff and considerin’ ‘ow you felt ‘bout t'ose shoes, I'm assumin’ you don't wanna waste not'in’.” Danni explained. “So what you shall do is wash face wit’ t'e warm water. Apply cleanser and use hands ta scrub. T'en, use wash clot’ wit’ warm water and gently remove and rinse face. T'en, you will repeat t'e process wit’ your moisturizer wit'out t'e last face wash. T'en, sunscreen! Do you feel confident wit’ cleanin’ technique or do you want to do to it at t'e same time as me?”

“... Can I put my shirt back on for this part?”

Danni considered it. “I mean, technically yes. But there's a lotta water and chemicals flyin’ around. If ya wanna potentially stain your clothes, t'ey're your clothes.” He shrugged.

Percy hated the idea of staining his clothes.

So he sighed, and nodded, as he recalled Danni’s instructions. Warm water, cleanser, scrub, wash cloth, rinse. Repeat with moisturizer, skipping the last wash. Apply sunscreen. He could do that. It was simple. He muttered the order under his breath a few times, before nodding once more, and he set to work. Each time he did something, he glanced out of the corner of his eye at Danni, judging his reaction. He didn’t think he’d messed up on any of the instructions, but he figured he could gauge his facial expressions - or try his very best to do so, he found that challenging sometimes - and make corrections if needed. When he was done, he washed his hands and dried them off… stared at Danni again… and then slowly put his shirt on.

“Thank you… This was very nice of you.”

“I know, I'm just t'e best.” Danni blew Percy a kiss and winked. “But next time, make sure you keep the pressure on t'e upstroke, not t'e down stroke when you're scrubbin’ ‘cause stretchin’ your skin down is gunna make you get wrinkles easier!” Danni slipped Percy's shirt back on and his robe, taking a moment to touch up his hair.

“Okay, t'en when you go to sleep tonight, get a cold compress ta ‘elp get any lingerin’ swellin’.” Danni reached out, froze, and rocked back and forth on his feet. “Pleaaaaase lemme touch. A little ‘ug, a little ‘air ruffled, anyt'innnnnnnnnnnnn'.” Danni's whine bordered on desperate.

Percy bit his lip.

He could still feel the lingering discomfort from having been straddled by Danni during the facial surgery. It wasn’t enough to push him into meltdown territory - he didn’t need a repeat of what had happened in New Orleans. But Percy didn’t want a hug, he didn’t want his hair ruffled. Danni’s whine, however, complicated things. He couldn’t help but feel a little bit guilty… at least he was asking for permission now, instead of doing it. “...Not right now. But ask me again in an hour, okay? I still - I still feel like spiders are running up and down my skin from the straddling.”

Danni nodded along, still bouncing on his feel. He could feel the little bubbles of affection under his skin building and stretching and…. Oh. “Okay, okay, gotcha. No problem.” Danni said cheerfully, stripping off his robe. “You mind steppin’ out for like, idk a few minutes t'en? Otherwise, you're probs gunna be real uncomfy!.” Danni hooked his fingers into his waistband with one hand and turned the shower on with his other.

“Danni… what are you about to do?” Percy didn’t want to know the answer to that question. He really did not want to know. But at the same time, he had to know that Danni wasn’t about to do what he thought he was, seconds after being told he couldn’t touch Percy.

Danni glanced over his shoulder and shrugged. If Percy was comfortable watching, then Danni didn't really care. He stripped off his shorts and stepped into the shower half a second before the bubbles on him popped. “Burnin’!” Danni shouted over the roar of flames as they burst out of him. The giddiness rushed out and he laughed along with it, impressed with how much his self control had grown from burning down his own house til now. And then he looked up.

The water rushing out of the shower was evaporating before it could hit him. The fire was growing ever so slightly and Danni felt the dread creep in. “Spicy! Run!” Danni screamed as the fire grew and for a moment, Danni couldn't see through the fire.

Percy was absolutely not comfortable watching. He had already started to turn his back to leave the bathroom as quickly as he possibly could when he heard the roar of flame come out of Danni, accompanied with his somewhat psychotic, giddy glee. For a brief moment, it reminded him of the day Danni had almost burned the school down, swollen with emotions about Dorian and Percy having sex while everyone else attended Coulson’s meeting. In many ways, the two of them were opposites. Danni exploded if he couldn’t touch. Percy exploded if someone did touch.

And then, just as he was about to leave the room, he heard Danni scream for him to run, as the joy turned to terror. Instinctively, he spun around to see the birth of a small inferno in his bathroom, in the house his mother and her friend had just obtained. If he had been worried about how Dominika would react to spending $900 on shoes, he was terrified about how she’d handle the house burning down.

So Percy did run.

At Danni.

He tackled him, and teleported them both into the nearest body of water he could think of - the San Pedro Channel.

Danni didn't know what was happening until he was five feet under water and his screams were suddenly cut short. Water his lungs and he thrashed fighting his way towards the light filtering down. He broke the surface and tried to take in air, but coughed up water instead. His throat felt raw as water seemed to keep coming and his vision got blurry at the edges until finally, he took a heaving breath. “Spicy? Spicy? Where are ya?” Danni shouted.

Percy was a Californian native, born and bred. He should have been swimming from a young age, taking to water like a duck. He ought to have spent birthday parties at the beach or the pool, gone out on a boat with his moms and friends, snorkeled in shallower waters to find seashells and critters. In an infinite multiverse of possibilities, that should have been the one constant, one fact so immutable that it would be laughable for any other option to be true.

But somehow, this particular timeline was the exception that proved the rule. Instead of going to swimming lessons, his mothers had taken him to piano lessons. Instead of going to parties at the beach, he had gone to the library. Instead of spending a hot summer day out on the water, he preferred to be almost anywhere else. Beaches in Los Angeles were crowded and loud, filled with obnoxious tourists and equally obnoxious residents.

How hard could it be to swim, though? Dogs did it! So as he decided to teleport them to the water, Percy had more or less assumed he would figure it out in the moment.

He did not, in fact, figure it out in the moment.

He could see the surface up above him, and he thrashed, trying to reach it - but it was no use, every kick he made somehow made things worse, every time he threw his arms through the water, he couldn’t get himself propelled upwards. Water was already in his lungs, as his tiny, tiny limbs did their very best to try to keep him from going further downwards - from drowning.

Even as he turned about, he couldn't see Percy break water. Did Percy just teleport him? Could Percy do that? “Everytime ‘e teleports someone, ‘e's always wit’ t'em t'ough. He's gotta be ‘ere. PERCY?! PERCY!” Danni screamed, hoping he'd get some sort of response. “Okay, maybe ‘e unlocked a new part of ‘is power? Mutants do t'at right? Your ‘ouse burnin’ down wit’ yoir sleepin’ mom in t'ere is def stressful enough, right?” Danni's teeth chattered and he shivered violently in the water.

“Dee's gunna kill me if I don't check.” Danni muttered and he dove under the water. It was dark and burned his eyes and everything in him protested that he'd just been here and suffering. His eyes took a moment to adjust and it took him several moments of peering through the water to finally find his drowning friend. Danni almost sighed with relief that he found him until he realized the most important part of that: drowning.

Danni cut through the water, trying to get a hold of Percy, but his flailing made it difficult. Danni grabbed an ankle, a wrist, and rolled Percy so they could see each other. Danni gestured toward the surface and grabbed Percy's waist as he used his other arm to help drag them to the surface. Danni gasped in another breath of air, his lungs burning, and he immediately turned to Perxy. “Spicy, cough out t'e water. If ‘ave ta get out of t'e water ta save ya, I'm gettin’ arrested so pleaaaase don't need CPR.”

Fortunately for both of them, once Percy’s head was above water, he immediately started hacking. Water came up out of his lungs, and he took desperate breaths of air, not even caring that his boyfriend’s nude brother was holding him right now. There were some burns on his arms from having tackled Danni, but they were both alive, and they hadn’t (to his knowledge) burned down his mother’s house. Fred had been vanquished. And he felt more than ready to collapse. But they needed to get out of the water - and Percy had pushed his luck with his mom enough that day. So with what little energy remained to him, he blinked them out of space-time for a brief moment - and sent them crashing onto the living room floor in the Kingston-Gray house.

“I think I need…” Percy mumbled, dizzy and seeing stars, as he struggled to keep his eyes open, “coffee.”

And then he fainted.

Danni just starfished on the floor, sore and tired from a crazy day, and ready to curl up and pass out. His eyes shut, his chest heaved, and he just starfished in the living room, uncaring of the seawater staining the living room floor. He giggled at the absolute absurdity of it all and it slowly evolved into uncontrollable laughter and he rolled over to see Percy out cold, even breathing, and he curled in on himself, cackling.

“Spicy!” Danni choked out between laughter. He snapped in Percy's ear. “Spicy, ya gotta get up! Come on, wake up!”

Percy woke up almost immediately, and for a brief moment, he just let himself stare up at the ceiling. So much had happened in such a short period of time, he could barely process it. At Danni snapping in his ear, he reached out and shoved him away slightly. “You’re far too happy,” he murmured.

And then, sitting behind them on the couch, mocktail in hand, Casper Kingston paused the telenovela he had playing on the TV. His nails were drying, the little foam spacers still between each toe, and he was about five minutes into his facemask, and his pores were absolutely loving it. “Awww, but we just got that rug,” Casper pouted. “It feels so nice on my back, too.” He wasn’t too phased by his son suddenly appearing on the living room floor, nude, with his other son’s boyfriend. That was just a Tuesday in this household. But as he took a closer look and saw the injuries, Casper shook his head. “C’mon, get downstairs, I’ll go get your Pops.”

He then got off of the couch, took another look at his son, and shrugged off his identical pink fluffy robe and tossed it to Danni. He now was clad in just shibari rope and a pair of booty shorts, with James written across the ass. “And don’t worry, I won’t tell our little ghoul you’re here,” he added to Percy with a wink, as he headed upstairs to go grab his husband.

“T'anks, Papa!” Danni called, sitting up and wiggling into Casper's robe. He looked back down at Percy with a sheepishly grin. “Well, yeah! I gotta ‘ave lots of fun adventures with a best friend! Why wouldn't I be ‘happy! It's been a crazy day, not sayin’ t'at it ‘asn't been, but its been all over t'e place in t'e best way, yeah? ‘ow could I be anyt'in’ but ‘appy?” Danni hopped to his feet, dusted himself off, and tied the robe neatly shut. He held out his hand to help Percy up.

“I know you wanted ta get coffee, but you gotta wait til Pops fixes ya all up. ‘e'll get grumpy if ya take somet'in’ wit'out ‘im checkin’ ya over in full. T'en, coffee and t'en date clothes!” Danni beamed, nearly vibrating with excitement at the prospect of shopping more.

Percy had been doing his very best not to look at Danni as he jumped to his feet, and only relaxed his avoidance once the robe was tied shut. He’d see more of him today than he needed for a lifetime. He took Danni’s hand - he would have protested or avoided it, but he was beyond exhausted. His clothes were somewhat tattered from the ordeal as well, allowing the sleeve of his shirt to slide, revealing a now somewhat melted bracelet with his name on it - and next to it, a pristine matching one that said Dorian. “… Coffee and beignets?”

Danni helped Percy up and before he could put thoughts to words, he paused. A distinctly out of place beaded bracelet sat on Percy's wrist and even though it was a little worse for wear, Danni would recognize the friendship bracelet he'd made for him without even caring in Percy wanted it. Danni yanked Percy's wrist to eye level and stared at it long and hard. “You still ‘ave t'is? I t'ought you were gunna t'row it away, ta be ‘onest.” Danni's voice was suspiciously watery when he pointed it out. Danni, simple though he may be, knew Perxy didn't really care for him in the beginning, but it seemed like their friendship was exactly what her thought it was: best friends. Who else would leave a little plastic doodad on their wrist like this?

Percy looked down at the floor, his cheeks reddening a bit. “I thought I was going to, too, but… I’d never had a friend give me something before,” he admitted quietly. “Or had a friend, really. There were people I thought were my friends, but… it wasn’t real.”

Danni's eyes watered violently and he took a deep, stuttery breath. Danni left Percy's hand drop, went to rest his hands on Perxy's shoulders, stopped, looked at his hands and Percy and then his hands again and very slowly put them in the robes pockets. He crouched down a little to be on Percy's eye level. “Spicy, I need ta tell ya two t'in's. One, t'is is very real. I've considered us friends since t'e beginnin’ and I don't lie because lyin’ takes a lot more effort t'an I wanna put inta it. Two, you are a smol. And I need you ta recognize t'at you are a smol. T'is means, t'ere is a violent urge ta ‘ug you when you say sad and cute t'in's like t'is ta comfort you. Now, I know you are feelin’ a creepy, crawly right now so I am not gunna ‘ug ya, but I need ya ta know every instinct in me is tellin’ me ta bundle ya up in a blanket, stick ya in bed, give ya a little pot of coffee and a book, and keep you locked away from t'e world forever ‘cause you are a precious.” Danni stood up and calmly walked across the room, moving a few books and pulling a lever in the wall.

“Now, I am gunna ‘old t'is ‘ugin’ insticnt in until Papa and Pops get down ‘ere and I will spare ya t'e touchin’, but you'll ‘ave ta know its for you.” The bookcase swung open and a set of stairs descended into darkness below. “Ya ready?”

Percy shook his head slightly. He was still looking at the ground, he hadn’t moved from his spot. And he hated crying, but everything Danni said made him want to cry. He’d gone into his first day of Margaret Carter assuming that everyone was out to get him, that they were ready to be cruel and heartless, that he had to be guarded - and that it was better to attack them first, to make them feel small, before they could hurt him. He’d become a monster trying to protect himself from shadows.

He didn’t know why he wanted to tell Danni this, but he did. Maybe it was one of the first times he’d felt safe in a while. He swallowed. “I didn’t used to be like this,” Percy said quietly. He clenched his hands into fists, his knuckles white. “It didn’t hurt all the time - only when I was upset, and things were too much…”

He took a steadying breath, and sat down on the couch. “There was this boy I really liked. He was cute. So I… I decided to write him a poem, for Valentine’s Day… He didn’t feel the same way about me. He… he hated me, actually. He got physical, he got violent. He made sure I knew how - how disgusting and unlovable I am. I couldn’t wear short sleeve shirts anymore. They didn’t hide the bruises he left.”

“And that is why I cannot touch people. That’s why… that’s why I was such an ass to you this year, because I was afraid - afraid that you would all be like Chase, and it would happen again.”

He then fell silent, and he hugged his knees to his chest. “That’s why I’m broken.”

Danni was quiet through all of it, although it was a struggle to keep the waterworks quiet. It was clear that Percy had been holding onto this for a while. He creeped over, a little concerned if he moved too quickly this strange bit of vulnerability would vanish forever, and settled in across from Percy. He was close, but he kept a bit of distance so Percy didn't feel overwhelmed. “You're not broken, Spicy. You just ‘ad ta deal wit’ villians for so long all by yourself ya forgot ‘ow ta let t'e ‘eroes ‘elp, t'ats all. Clearly, not unlovable if my dope o’ a brot'er is anyt'in’ ta go by. You got ‘im wrapped ‘round your finger, ya do. Boi is whipped AF. And t'ere ain't not'in’ disgustin’ ‘bout ya just since ya like boys. Look at our little group.” Danni giggled through the tears, sniffling loudly. “But maybe ya don't get used ta it again and t'ats okay! What's t'e saying? Different strokes for different folks? Idk why people are talkin’ about swimmin’ but it kinds fits ‘ere right? But yeah, you're our friend now Spicy! And I'm ‘ard ta shake, ya know. Gunna ‘ave ta pry my friendness off like one of t'ose water t'in'ies… a barbnicle!”

Percy took in a shuddering breath, as the tears continued to almost silently fall. He couldn’t help but smile a little bit though, at Danni’s reassurances. He was always afraid that one day, Dorian would wake up and see him as some wicked, vile thing - that he would see Percy as he truly was. He wasn’t as good at doing good as the rest of the group - he hadn’t even come to Margaret Carter to learn to help people, he had done it for his own selfish interests, to seek adventure and glory. And he’d been so cruel to Danni in particular, refusing to use the name he wanted to be called by, treating him like he was just another idiotic bully. Percy didn’t feel that he deserved this friendship at all, this compassion. Even the way that Danni maintained a distance between them for his comfort meant the world to him.

“Thank you,” he said, his voice somewhat hoarse. “I think you mean barnacle,” he then added. Percy then rubbed his eyes, trying to dry away the tears. He was already starting to look red and puffy. He took another breath that sent his entire body trembling. “Mm. Maybe - maybe instead of touch, this is how you can express those feelings to me? This - this doesn’t hurt.”

“Yeah, t'at's what I said! T'ey stick on like little suckers and t'e pirates always gotta peel t'em off wit’ t'e scrapper and its always a punishment ‘cause no one likes ta do it!” Danninagreed wholeheartedly, wipping tears off on the arm of Casper's robe. “Like what? I'm literally not doin’ anyt'in’ but sittin’ ‘ear? Like if me sittin’ hurt you, we were gunna ‘ave ta look at a whole new lista issues ‘cause I could try, but I don't t'ink I can fly forever.”

Percy shook his head slightly. “Just telling me how you feel. I… I also struggle a lot with that. Reading facial expressions, body language, subtle cues… it’s ironic, but it’s the one thing my powers won’t translate for me.”

“Oh! Well, t'ank god me talkin’ doesn't ‘urt ya ‘cause you'd be dead in like, a minute.” Danni giggled. “Well, dontcha worry ‘bout t'at. I say whatever pops inta my ‘ead all t'e time so it'll ‘appen, no worries! And for t'e touchy stuff, I've been wantin’ ta add some of t'ose eeal nice embroidered ‘ankerchefs ta my outfits so t'is is t'e perfect reason ta finally get ‘round ta it, so t'at you don't always ‘ave ta wear a beanie!” Danni jumped to his feet and stretched and wiggled out the joints in his arms and legs.

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

---

---

---

---

Today was the day!!

America was so incredibly excited!! She’d already done a livestream earlier with some of her followers, telling them that she was about to do a multiversal photo shoot extravaganza! It was different from her usual content, where she jumped off of buildings and went to junk yards to see how big a car she could throw. Ordinarily this was the sort of thing Kate would arrange - she was the branding expert for the Young Avengers - but doing this with Danni and Andy? So fun!! She was on her fifth ice coffee and raring to go, having thrown just about every piece of clothing she owned into a set of five suitcases. She had some nice pieces, too - things Kate had purchased for her.

Eli was excited too - but for a different reason. The photo shoot aspect was a fun idea, he just wasn’t as interested in that sort of thing. No, he was much more keen on spending time with Danni and Andy. He hadn’t known either of them very long, but Andy was now dating one of his best friends, and Danni had quickly wormed his way into Eli’s heart. He’d packed a single suitcase with options matching Danni’s requests, and slung over his shoulder was a garment bag containing his tux.

“Let’s fucking goooooooo!!!” America squealed, dressed in a denim jacket, matching jeans, and a red, white, and blue star hoodie. She punched a hole in the multiverse, and dragged Eli on through to one of her favorite in between points - a universe where unicorns were the dominant ruling species - before punching again, a portal opening to a quiet street in New Orleans - the very street where Andy and Danni lived.

America and Eli hopped on through, Eli dressed in a black cargo jacket, V neck shirt, and jeans.

“We’re here!!!!” America shouted, bouncing up and down. Eli had pulled out his phone to text in the group chat that they’d arrived. “¡Apúrate!”

Danni blasted music in his room, the oldie Funk Rave blasting in his room. He didn't know Spanish but he loved the club vibe and that was enough. He picked outfit after outfit and tossed it caringly into the bags the parents had brought to their post-win goodie round up. If he was going to multiversal travel, he wanted as many hands free as possible! Now, he'd only thrown out a winter wonderland photoshoot but they'd had the brilliant idea of a beach shoot too and Danni nearly caught fire he was so excited. On that note, he grabbed sunscreen and threw it into the bag as well. He frowned as he considered his swimsuit options - he had soooo many and he wasn't certain which one would look best, especially in other universes. Danni hopped back and forth with indecision and threw his hands up.

“I guess I just gotta brin’ one of every style.” Danni sighed. If he was like Uncle Harry, then he could wear them all. He grabbed a speedo and top combo, clown fish themed in color, a pair of gray cherry blossom swim trunks, and a black one piece swimsuit with pink stripes down the side. “Ugh, but what if t'ose styles don't vibe wit’ t'e dimension? Uuuugh, I'll just grab a few more styles…” A few more turned into a lot more and half Danni's closet ended up in the bag before he was finally satisfied.

“Ugh, do you t'ink t'at's enough?”

”Is your bag specially expanded so you can fit everything?” Andy's own bag was a duffel, more than she would have brought if she hadn't had a list from Danni including everything she should pack. In most cases she had outfits that were several of the required ones just shifted around. She did not have enough clothes to have multiples sets of anything.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. I mean, it's gotta ‘ave a limit, but its got a ‘ealt'y stretch. It can't fit everyt'in’; ot’erwise, I'd just bring everyt'in’, ya know?” Danni hoisted the bag over his shoulder, pressed a kiss to Amélie's head, and scooted her over to Dee's room for playtime with Amour. He shrieked as he heard America shout outside and took the stairs two at a time, slammed the door open, and threw himself at Eli. “Omg, I'm so excited!!!! I ‘ave so many ideas and poses and- Eeeeeewk!” Danni shrieked and giggled.

“Okay, so which one we wanna do first? Winter? Punk/goth? Letterman? I t'ink we should ‘ave t'e beach last so we can ‘angout and swim! I wanna play in t'e water!”

Andy laughed and followed Danni. He definitely had enough packed, at least in her mind. She felt like she had packed too much but putting together something “formal” was a bit difficult.

”Let's do winter, so we have time to warm up and don't do a temperature jump.”

Eli laughed slightly at Danni’s tackle, gripping him firmly and spinning him around, so that way Danni’s legs dragged in the air. He then set him down gently. “That sounds good to me, I figure this is your show, Danni. I’m here to take direction.”

“Winter…. Hmm… Hmm… Oh! Oh oh oh!! I know EXACTLY the place!!” America squealed, jumping up and down for a moment. “I haven’t been there in ages, but it’s one of those universes where everything is permanently a single season - so it’s always cute and wintery year round, and they build most of their houses and all out of ice. Lots of furs and hot chocolate and igloos - you’ll love it!” she preened. She then leaned back and threw out a punch, shattering a hole in the fabric of space-time in the French Quarter. She then hesitated, glancing over at the house. “It’s just me, Mr. Gray!” she shouted out, just in case the resident sorcerer caught wind of her antics.

“¡Sigume!”

Danni hooped through the portal, landing in the snowy multiverse.

Andy, bag slung over her shoulder, gave America a quick kiss on the cheek and jumped through. She was excited about this. Andy could live without the picture taking, but she figured it would still be fun. Hanging out with Danni often was. The world on the other side was beautiful. She gasped, taking it all in. Andy giggled a little.

This wasn’t Andy’s first time traveling to another universe. Technically it was her third. That she was aware of. The second had been during the Contest. Thank goodness America had brought them back before the pain of the broken leg made her pass out.

”This place is gorgeous!”

Danni leapt through the portal without a second thought, hitting the ground on the other side and staring around with wide, sparkling eyes as he took everything in. “T'is is so ‘eckin’ cool! It's so pretty and t'e ice is beautiful! I ‘ave soooo many ideas!!! I gotta go t'rough your stuff and see if we got t'e right colors but even if we don't I can probs make it work. We def got t'e potential and Andy's electricity will make some super cool shots possible t'at we couldn't-” Danni shivered violently.

“It's so coooooold. I didn't t'ink ‘bout t'aaaat!” Danni whined as he wrapped his arms around himself. “Eliiiiii, ‘ow am- Oh wait, I got fire!” Danni snapped his fingers, trying to conjure a few orbs of warmth, but he missed and a spark instead bounced off his shivering fingertips and onto the icy road they stood on before vanishing. “Okay, nope, gotcha. Do you think they'll get grumpy if I get changed ‘ere? I gotta snow outfit but its in my bag.”

The universe was as beautiful as it was cold. An aurora borealis lit up the sky, dancing greens and blues and purples dotted with tiny pinpricks of starlight. The buildings and dwellings were carefully constructed of pink and blue ice, with ornate carvings of runes adorning them. What lighting the borealis could not provide was given by eternal flames, softly glowing from braziers that had been affixed near every home and gathering site. The snow was crisp as it crunched underneath their feet, with well-worn paths showing where others had come before, compacted ice peaking out beneath the footprints.

“Clothes are free in most universes, so if we don’t have what we need, we can get it!” America affirmed. She giggled slightly as Andy gave her a kiss on the side of the cheek, and nuzzled her nose against her girlfriend’s. “After the photos, we need to have a snowman building competition!! Did you know it’s an Olympic Sport in like every world except for ours? Ours is so lame sometimes! Ugh! So we definitely need to do it!!”

Eli’s teeth were chattering, and he stared at Danni blankly for a moment. He was about to remind him that he was the pyro here, the one who had bragged about how warm he ran, when Danni figured it out for himself. “Any c-chance you wanna try to flame on again?” he asked, rubbing his hands on his arms for added warmth.

“Oh! Yeah! That should be totally fine. Your world has a lot of hang ups about nudity, tbh. So go for it!”

Andy trusted America would know. She had only seen two universes, well more than that but two she had spent time in. Both had been fairly similar so she wasn't sure how true what America said. But at least if they did get arrested for public nudity it would be as a group. She was not getting naked right now though. She added layers quickly.

”This place is way colder than any other place I've been before.” Andy shivered. Even a winter in Colorado and two in upstate New York didn't match this chill.

”You know Danni I mostly own black clothes so I don't know if I even have the colors you might want.” Her teeth shattered a bit as she dug out a thick winter coat. And she was thankful for it.

Danni felt the chill getting into his bones and one, two, three more snaps all failed miserably. He could feel his face heat up with embarrassment as the embers just wouldn't take. It was an easy trick, a few bits of fire just to keep the worst of the cold at bay, and he couldn't even manage that. His whole thing was fire. He normally couldn't get the fire to relax and it typically rolled with his mood but now that American, Andy, and Eli needed it? He couldn't pull it out of his pocket.

“Um, uh, I g-guess I ca-can't?” Danni muttered, eyes on the ground as he mimicked Eli. He'd probably start crying if he wasn't afraid it would freeze on his face. Or worse, freeze his eyes shut! “May-maybe it's just a li-little too cold. Lemme get changed and t'en I'll t-t-try again.” And it was. The appeal of this place was quickly disappearing as he shook, no fire and not dressed properly, and he quickly dug into his bag, pulling out this and that. He passed them to Andy to hold.

“Don't worry! I got t'at covered! You're pretty consistent wit’ your fits so I figured! I brought some stuff ta give ya a little pop when we need t'em but you make all t'at stuff look good so you won't need much.” Danni said as he stripped off his shirt and tossed it back into the bag. He shivered and grabbed the orange, long sleeve turtle neck he'd brought and wiggled into it, quickly stripping his pants and pulling on the light fleece pants he'd brought. Finally, he shrugged on his Winter Coat and wrapped the equally colorful scarf around his neck. All comfy for the weather, Danni tried for another spark and watched as the cold snatched it from his fingers. He blinked and stared at his hand for a long, cold moment.

Andy laughed. Danni had her number alright. She had pulled out a simple black puffy jacket, now she pulled this assault of colors on too. The double jacket felt like she was a puff ball but hey she was warmer this way. She also had an assortment of gloves and pulled out a pair too. These didn't have metal in them like her fighting pair. She used to wear them all the time but didn't anymore.

”Thank you, Danni”

America bit her lip, worried for a moment. “It’s not too cold, right?” She’d started going through her suitcases, pulling out different puffy coats, before selecting one that was a soft grey, with small blue stars itched into the patterns. She put it on and immediately felt better, pairing it with an adorable pair of fuzzy earmuffs, and fur lined snow boots. “If it’s too cold, I can take us somewhere else - it won’t be as pretty for the photos but it’ll be pretty good! Or maybe - or maybe we just try to do this one pretty fast, before we go to the beach to warm up?” she offered.

Eli was shaking like a leaf, as he dug through his bag for his heaviest winter coat - he was holding the bag with his suit in his other hand, not wanting to let it drag on the ground and get wet. “Th-th-th-this is f-f-f-f-fine.” He didn’t care if his look was particularly fashionable, as he shoved a fur lined aviator hat onto his head, struggled into a pair of snow pants and a black ski jacket, swapped his shoes out for snow boots, and then put on gloves to keep his fingers from getting frostbite. His shield he strapped to his back - he didn’t want to feel how cold the metal had become in these conditions.

“No, no, no. We're gettin’ pictures ‘ere even if it kills us!” Danni declared, rubbing his hands together to build up a little heat. He focused on the building warmth and pulled his hands apart, a handful of embers flaring outwards and growing into softball sized flames that swirled around in a lazy circle. “T'ere we go! Now, before I go boltin’ off… Anyone t'ink t'at t'e city's melt if we explore a bit before photos?”

Andy shrugged. ”I doubt it. My understanding of how Igloos work says probably not.” Andy had never built a proper igloo, but the basic understanding of the science behind them was something she had learned. She definitely wanted to explore. It would be insane to not explore a whole other universe when given the opportunity.

“M-m-maybe we can exp-plore a cup of hot ch-chocolate,” Eli whimpered, as he stood as close to the flames as he could without setting himself on fire.

“Yeah!! Let’s go!!!” America did a small flip in the air, before reaching down and taking Eli’s and Andy’s hand - and without a moment’s notice, she launched them into the air, flying them towards the town. “Last one there’s a rotten egg, Danni!!!”

“‘ey! T'at's cheatin’!” Danni shouted, a blast of fire under his feet and he was roaring off towards the town. It was a pretty sight, firelight softened as it bounced between the serene buildings, but Danni agreed with Eli , They needed a hot chocolate infusion stat! He laughed with the rush that the cloud air whipping around him brought, the familiar swopping feeling in his stomach making him giddy, and he caught up to America with ease. “I see why ya needed t'e ‘ead start. Danni shouted over the wind and then blasted off again, doing a barrel roll into a back flip, before hitting the ground with practiced ease. He stuck his tongue out at America and whipped out his phone, taking a quick victory selfie. His cheeks were all flushed with the cold and the wind and the excitement and Danni nodded his approval. Cute AF.

“Okay okay, okay. T'is ‘as a little ice sign wit’ a cup on it so I figured t'is is a good place for drunk?” Danni pointed above, a round shaped cup with rolling steam carved above the door in the middle of the runes. “T'at or its poison if we're goin’ by cartoon logic and I really wanna believe its somet'in’ yummy.”

Andy typically kept both feet on the ground. This was terrifying and exhilarating. She screamed, but the scream of someone on a roller coaster. Hopefully it didn't disturb the locals.

When they landed she placed her hands on her knees to catch her breath for a moment before kissing America lightly. ”A warning next time please.” Andy didn't consider herself an adrenaline junky, but maybe she'd have to give it a bit of a go after this.

”Hopefully they have a warmer climate somewhere on this planet so they have coffee and chocolate beans. Maybe they have a good mocha.”

America wasn’t one for a light kiss. She let go of Eli’s hand, and wrapped her arms securely around Andy, before dipping her into a more passionate embrace. When she pulled away, she held her gaze for a moment, before giggling like mad. “Wanna go again, Danni? This time without me hauling dead weight?”

“Hey!” Eli protested.

America winked at her girlfriend. “His shield weighs like a million gazillion pounds, it’s soooo annoying. I don’t get how people are throwing them around like frisbees, gotta hurt your wrist or something you know?”

Eli wasn’t going to engage with his argument - not again. He’d made that mistake before. And ordinarily he would have been a little more cautious about entering a place they had no idea about, but he was pretty sure what hair remained on his head was about to fall off, along with his ears, lips, and nose from the bitter chill. So he took the lead, heading into the establishment, and pausing for one second to look back at Danni. “That was cool as shit, man,” he added with a grin. “Maybe next time you carry me instead of ‘Merica - felt like my arm was going to be pulled out of its socket.”

Danni rolled his eyes at Andy and America's display and followed Eli in, offering a sympathetic noise. “Aw, poor Eli. Want me ta kiss it better?” Danni offered making obnoxious kissing noises to mock the pair behind them.

“Yes, that might help,” Eli said with a slight eye roll - even as he clinged a little closer to Danni.

Danni laughed and obliged, pressing a kiss to Eli's shoulder. “But, uh, we can def try. Again, please note t'e exceptional noodle-ness of my arms so if I drop you, I'm blamin’ your shield.” Danni laughed, winding their arms together and rushing to get out of the cold.

The inside of the shop was cozy, a little short but wide and roomy. Lanterns hung from the edges of the room that cast flickering light across the tables. Made of the same purplish blue material, they were covered in a fine red tablecloth and a few people were scattered around. Behind the counter, an older woman with grey frizzled hair and thick heavy glasses pattered between long metal tubes. What seemed to be a menu was carved up behind her and she served drinks from the tubes in cute wooden cups. The scent of chocolate and pomegranate filled the air and periodically, a vent opened in the room and warm air hissed out. The woman looked up as the door opened, a whisper of a bell echoing around the room, and smiled at their appearance.

“Oh deary me, another set of lost ones, eh? Well, you all settle right over there and I'll be right over. Anyone hurt this time or just the usual bumps and bruises?” She pointed to a table in the corner and grabbed cups. She scooped out a strange little paste into them with a flat spatula and then shoved them into the tubes, pulling a nearby lever that caused the tubes toto hiss and shriek.

Andy blushed, enjoying the deep kiss from America. She returned it with enthusiasm. And giggled as she was set back on her feet upright.

Entering the shop made her almost freeze in place. It seemed almost like a magical alchemist shop instead of a coffee shop. She was only slightly aware of the dangers a magical shop could offer. She hadn't been one for fantasy stories. But she was nervous about the place. Like she had been of Agatha. At least this time she didn't have her mother in town. She looked to America hoping her previous travels to this place would guide them.

America didn’t recognize this person at all. She’d been to this universe before, and loved this location, but it had been ages. “Nah, no one’s hurt!” She kicked up into the air, flying over the table before sliding into the chair. “Wait, actually, no one is hurt, right?” she glanced around at her traveling companions. She was more durable than the rest of them, and it occurred to her she might have been talking out of her ass.

Eli scanned the room for a moment, taking his surroundings in. He was surprised by how different the people here looked - like they too were made of ice or crystal. But at the same time - it was just a really aesthetic coffee shop. Nothing to worry too much about. He offered Andy and Danni a compassionate smile - traveling to other universes was hard at first, before pulling out a chair for both of them at the table. “‘Merica, do you have money to pay for this?” he asked.

America shrugged her shoulders. “Food’s free in most universes.”

“Nah, we're all good! We popped in on over real easy.” Danni replied before seeing Eli pulled chairs out for them and he felt his face flushed a little before skipping over a settling in. “T'anks, Eli. So what we drinkin’? What's all t'is writin’ mean? Or like, what language is it? Do you know? Waaait, pictures! Ah, t'e camera!” Danni pulled out his camera bag from the bag of holding, popping it open and starting to assemble it.

The lady pulled the cups out soon enough, steam hissing out of the pipes as she placed them on a tray, and bustled out from behind the counter. She plopped one in front of each of them and laughed at the sight of Danni's camera stuff strewn around. “You Vagrants and your toys. I swear, always something new. If you all need help finding your aurora foils, let me know and I'll see if Gokthil is hanging around. You just relax and drink for now and you'll be back in the sky in no time.” Danni snatched up the cup and sniffed at it, nose wiggling as he took a careful sip. He beamed and sipped a little more.

“It's so good! It's like chocolate and pomegranate and passion fruit, but like dark, dark chocolate!” Danni took a heavy sip, the liquid staining his top lip.

Andy sat down next to America. The idea that food in most places was free was astonishing and she hoped it was true here. She wished it was true in her home universe too. That at least made her feel like this was likely a place of safety.

”Aurora foils?” Andy asked, eyebrows raised. The comment about being back up in the sky made her think it was some sort of conveyance method. She hoped it was and that they could get their hands on at least one to try out if she was right. Andy sipped the drink and was impressed. She did hope it contained some caffeine too. But for now she wrapped her hands around the cup.

America let out an excited scream. “AURORA FOILS!!!” She then paused, seeing the looks some of the other patrons shot at her. “... aurora foils…” she whispered, her cup immediately forgotten in front of her. “Okay, so there’s this movie that Billy showed me, because he was low key thirsting over some guy in it - wait, actually, no, sorry, that’s not this movie. It’s the other one. But he probably liked the guys in it too. So. Have you seen Treasure Planet? Aurora foils are kinda like that - you skateboard in the fucking sky, basically! The light becomes your pipe, basically. I have some videos of me doing it on my Snikt, it’s what I usually come here to do.”

Eli took a long sip of his drink - it was nice, nicer than most beverages he was served on their adventures. They didn’t always include a pitstop in a cafe, so he savored the moment, letting the liquid warm him up from the inside out. He let out a soft exhale, a bit of fog coming from his breath - it wasn’t as cold as it was outside in here, but it was still freezing. “Do you know who Gokthil is?” he asked.

America shook her head. “Nah. But that’s not an issue, the lady said she’d help. And think of how sick this would be for the photoshoot! Hmm. We might want to find someone to take the pictures for us…”

Andy’s jaw dropped. ”You’ve seen Treasure Planet, that was one of my comfort movies when I was little. I loved it. Oh we have to get our hands on a few of those. I need to try.” Andy had never gone skateboarding before, but she was confident in her balance and general proprioception.

“Are you not some of the vagabonds from across the Lip?” The lady asked, growing more confused as their conversation continued.

“No, we're from anot'er universe, just doin’ photoshoots and ‘an'in’ out!” Danni explained excitedly, having returned to setting up the camera. With a soft click, the lenses popped into place and Danni held it up at America and Eli. “Say cheese!!!”

“Oh dear. I'd better call a medic as well. They're delusional.” The woman sighed and busted away across the room.

“Cheese!!” America grinned, flashing a peace sign.

Eli smiled, throwing an arm around America.

Once the photo was done, the two of them relaxed. “Pffft. If I had a piece of cheese for every time someone called me delusional…” America sighed, before chugging her drink. She half-slammed the mug back down onto the table. “Oh my god that’s fucking good. Some universes have the worst food - there’s a bunch where, like, they don’t season anything. Total nightmare fuel. But this one has the best bevvies. And we are abso-fucking-lutely going Aurora Foiling!! I’ll warn you though, I look hot as shit when I’m doing tricks on my board.”

“As hot as HotShot here?” Eli joked.

“Maybe!”

Andy hummed and looked at America appreciatively. ”I definitely think we need to do this sky surfing thing.” She wiggled her eyebrows to be silly.

”We can possibly ask a local to help with the camera as we do this.”

Danni took several photos in quick succession, tongue poking out as he reviewed and deleted a few. “Aw, you t'ink I'm ‘ot? I knew I liked you!” Danni blew a kiss at Eli and took a long drink from the drink. “Where do we even get t'e equip for it? I'm so fuckin’ ‘yped! And t'e best part is even if we bite it, we can fly and save each ot'er!” Danni blinked and put a little alarm on his phone, reminding him to send some photos to Ben and call him to tell him about it!

Eli exchanged a look with Andy with the we can fly and say each other comment. That required both Danni and America to be focused and attentive enough to notice if he and Andy needed help - required the two individuals who were walking poster children for ADHD to pay attention. He’d heal from a bad fall, though - probably. His super soldier serum wasn’t top of the line, but it got the job done. Andy however didn’t strike him as nearly as durable.

“You make fire, that’s pretty hot,” Eli replied with a chuckle. “And your name is HotShot. How’d you come up with that, by the way? Did you pick it or did someone else get it? I’ve been wanting to change mine, but Patriot is unfortunately stuck at this point,” he sighed slightly.

“I’ll go ask for that Grimly person or whatever their name was, brb!” America leapt up, launching herself in the air again over the table, as she then skipped happily over to the waitress. “Hola!! Can you help us find Gizmo so we can get some foils?”

Andy rolled her eyes, sharing a flat look with Eli. She figured there was a small chance if she fell one of the others would notice in time to catch her.

When America stood up to go find Gokthil, Andy finished her drink quickly. She wasn't super excited about the cold. But the extreme sport sounded like fun. Maybe this place had some safety measures in place. Or she would just stay as low as possible.

”You do remember I can't fly. I usually keep my feet firmly on the ground.” She bumped Danni softly.

“Oh yeah, def! I worked t'rough a few before I settled on t'at. I was gunna be Salamander, Inferno, Pyro Shot, Pyro Boy, Perfect Blaze, but ‘otShot ‘ad t'e right vibe in t'e end. And ‘ey, Patriots paints a good picture of whatcha stand for, but I'm ‘appy ta ‘elp if ya wanna change names! Its your identity, do whatcha want wit’ it!” Danni reassured Eli eagerly, waving as America rushed away. He laughed at Andy's comment. “Yeah, ‘course I know! T'at's what ‘merica and me are for! T'at catch ya if you fall!” Danni beamed and then snapped a quick photo of her.

“Pyro Boy? Would you have changed it to Pyro Man?” Patriot asked, a bit curious. He did smile slightly as Danni said his name painted a good picture of what he stood for - and maybe he did. But there were more and more times lately where he felt conflicted about it, where he wondered about staking his entire identity on a nation’s pride.

“Oh, he'll be here in a moment deary. You just-” The bell rang and a gruff old man stomped in, heavy clothing over a hunched, heavy frame. “There he is! Gothkil, over here!” She waved at him.

“Bah, how you always find these vagrants, I don't know. Why you tolerate them and pamper them, even more confusing.” He muttered as he stomped over, snow tracks left behind. He stared down at America with beady, mistrustful eyes. “So, where's your kit? Can't haul it outta the snow if I don't know where you crashed.”

America paused for a moment. The right thing to do would be to be honest with Gizmo and tell him that they didn’t have foils at all. But that wasn’t how they got free Aurora foils to use. “Uh, we crashed, like, a mile that way!” she pointed in a random direction. Hopefully there were some random foils people had abandoned there. “They’re kinda crashed in deep, is there any way we could, like, get some loaners while you dig them out? We don’t wanna miss the, uh, peak shredding time.” She then flashed double peace signs at him, hoping she seemed hip and cool.

Andy shifted quickly as she realized Danni was about to snap a photo of her, she went from the pouty face she was making to a smile, holding up her empty cup. There weren’t a ton of photos of her, but now that she had them to look back at, it felt nice to know there would be mementos of her now. Once the camera went down from taking the shot she stuck out her tongue.

”You better.” She looked over to where America was trying to convince the guy to lend them foils for the day. She wondered briefly how someone could bounce between worlds like America did. It was a good thing she was so friendly.

Gothkil sighed. “This is how you idiots die. Just keep your feet on the damned ground.” He grumbled, stopping back across the room. “The few who crashed didn't make it. Was going to ask you to take ‘em back anyways. Peak shredding season, unbelievable.” He pulled open the door and waved for America to follow.

“You sure you don't want a medic deary? Your… colorful friend seems a little lost.” The woman offered again.

Danni hummed thoughtfully. “Eh, probably? But t'e word man makes me feel wierd, ya know? Like, people put a lotta weight and expections behind it and it kinda makes my skin crawl so tbh, probably wouldn't ‘ave gone wit’ boy either.” Danni shrugged. “Gender is dumb. I just wanna look cute, kick butt, and ‘an’ out wit’ all t'e people I love.”

Eli looked at Danni thoughtfully for a moment. He realized how often he used man and a bit of guilt hit him. He’d make an effort going forward not to use that with Danni - or bro either. Maybe fam could work? “Are there pronouns you want me to use for you, babe?” He wasn’t sure how that felt either. Some of his friends used babe for each other. “Any terms of endearment you like?”

“Guys, c‘mon!!! Gilear is gonna help us out!!” America shouted, waving her arms wildly to get everyone’s attention. “We’re gonna miss peak shredding season!!!”

Andy laughed, stood up, and placed her empty cup on the table. She turned to the woman and smiled. ”Thank you for your hospitality. The drink was delicious.” She bounced over to America, wrapping her arm around her.

”I’ve never done skating or anything like this, you’re going to have to help me learn.” She whispered.

America paused for a moment, before nodding. “I’ve got you, babes, no need to stress,” she reassured Andy, before pressing a kiss to the side of her face. “Just follow my lead,” she added with a flirtatious wink.

Danni rested his head on Eli's shoulder, looking up at him with warm adoration. “Eh, I don't t'ink ‘bout it t'at ‘ard. If you come wit’ good vibes, I'm ‘appy, ya know? I'm real easy ta please, don't go stressin’ you're pretty face. You'll get wrinkles.” Danni giggled and bopped Eli on the nose, a quick hug turning into a yank as Danni hopped to his feet and quickly slammed all his things back into his bag, threw back the last of his drink like a shot, choked as he realized it was half a cup, and leaned on Eli as he wheezed. “Omg, my life flashed before my eyes.” Danni wheezed out.

Eli shook his head fondly. “Uh huh. Next thing I know you’re going to get me onto a skin care routine, aren’t you?” he complained. “I think wrinkles look kinda hot, though, not gonna lie. Proof that I was around for a minute, y’know? So many people don’t get to go old so… I’m excited that I get to. Or I hope that I get to.”

Gathkil watched the disaster train that the strangers were, huffed in irritation, and stomped out of the building. In the middle of the road, a six legged beast with snow white fur and four pairs of horns along the center of its skull stood attached to a heavy stone cart. Two metal poles sat in the back. “Here they are. You'll hafta see if they still open up or if the last impact broke em. Up on Shira's Spire's the best launch point for ‘em. I'll go scrounge out your foils in the meantime. Just don't leave them behind.” He gestured at a tall spire just behind the opposite end of town, hoisted the poles out, and tossed them both at America.

The poles offered a variety of runes carved into them, with the one nearest the top clearly able to depress.

“Thanks, Gilligan!!” America preened, as she caught the poles. “I hope it doesn’t take too long for you to find our stuff!!” She then handed a pole to her companions, and studied it for a moment. She didn’t really remember how this worked. But there was a button and she knew that buttons were meant to be pressed… so she pressed it.

Andy had given a concerned look to Danni when he drank way too much of his drink at one time. She was a little worried he had half drowned himself. But he was breathing and talking. He couldn’t be that hurt then.

There were two poles. That meant they’d have to share or take turns. That was alright as far as Andy was concerned. If they shared she could be on one of the foils with America and wouldn’t be worried about falling. If they took turns then that meant the two who could fly unassisted would hopefully be paying attention when the pair of them who couldn’t fell.

She watched as America took one of the poles and waited to see how these things operated. She did not realize that America did not remember how to operate the foil. Andy had faith that someone as well traveled through the multiverse as America was, would know these sort of things.

Long spindles popped out from the sides of the rods and then an ethereal rainbow energy filled the space between them to create a semisolid board. Two smaller spikes popped out of the bottom of one side like foils and the whole thing hummed softly. One rune glowed a pale red, indicating it wasn't close enough to an aurora to operate.

“We def ‘ave v. diff takes on t'at but don't worry. I'll keep ya nice and smoot’ so at least ya age like wine and not cheese! ‘cause you're not bouncin’ on me anytime soon!” Danni reassured Eli as they walked outside. He lit up at the pretty board, passing his hand through the lights and giggling at the tickling sensation. “I love t'is. I've ‘ad t'is for less t'an a day but if anyt'in’ ‘appened ta t'is, I would cry. T'is t'in’ tickles!” Danni tilted his head very confused.

“But, ‘ow do you fly wit’ t'is? You can't even stand on it.”

“Might be one of those things where you have to leap off a cliff for it to activate fully?” Andy dearly hoped not. If it was, she was not participating.

America clicked her tongue for a moment, trying to remember. There was something about the red rune. Something important. Something… “OH!” America screamed. “We need to be close to an aurora, come on!!” she then took the board with one hand, and Andy with the other, and kicked off into the sky. “Last one to the aurora is a rotten egg!!!!!”

Eli was too mesmerized by the board to be annoyed by America’s antics. He’d never quite seen anything like it, either. And as Danni mentioned that it tickled, he started passing his own hand through it, twitching slightly at the strange sensation. “Well… We racing up after them, HotShot?” he asked, mentally preparing himself for Danni to try to fly both of them on up there - although… “Can you lift me?” he asked, a little concerned. America had super strength. Danni did not.

Andy gave a little yelp of surprise, and then latched onto America. She had no desire to be dropped. This wasn’t as bad as leaping off a cliff she supposed, but only marginally so. Andy did not close her eyes though. She let the rush of adrenaline wash over her. It was exciting. It was thrilling.

Danni sized Eli up and down, hands on his hip as he considered it. “Yeah, you are a big boi. I don't… Yeah know what, t'e ‘eck wit’ it!” Danni couched down, gesturing for him to get on Danni's back. Danni let out a little grunt of exertion and he felt his knees protest. Danni's lack of super strength was never more apparent than now. “Okay! Everyone on t'e Danni train! Next stop, t'e moutnain!’ Danni
Felt fire catch but he barely moved so he took a deep breath, careful to avoid burning Eli, and pushed. Danni gingerly took to the sky, getting a little faster bit by bit until finally, he dropped and let Eli down. His knees trembled a little.

“See? No-not a problem!” Danni held up a victory sign, panting hard. The runes on the foil had fully lit up, the rainbow colored energy solidifying. The board tugged towards the aurora in America's hand.

Eli clapped Danni on the back, shaking his head. “This is why you gotta start lifting, fam - I get it, you wanna zip around and everything, but flyers get asked to carry people all the time. Do you drink protein shakes? Lemme get you some recommendations, we can add a little meat to your HotShot,” he offered.

“ISN’T THIS THE COOLEST SHIT YOU’VE EVER DONE???” America screeched, deploying the board this time as she and Andy reached the aurora. “I HOPE YOU LIKE GOING UPSIDE DOWN, WE’RE GONNA FUCKING SHRED!”

Danni's nose wrinkled at the mention of protein shakes. “T'ey're grooooooss. I don't like t'em. T'ey're all powdery and iffy, ya know?” Danni sighed, hoisting the other rod and clicking the same button. It popped out and formed. Danni offered it to Eli. “Go first! I gotta get t'e equip set up for photos!”

Andy was white knuckle holding onto America. She screamed, but it was the scream of someone enjoying a roller coaster.

”LET’S DO IT!” she yelled back. Andy spared a little attention to the aurora, it was a beautiful display of light. If Danni was going to be taking pictures of them zooming around like this, those would be fantastic pictures.

Eli hesitated for a moment. He never loved leaving someone behind to set up for photos. It felt mean and inconsiderate - he’d been asked to do it a few times, and there were moments where he’d looked at all his friends having fun without him, and a bit of jealousy would strike. But they only had one foil between the two of them. “You sure?” he asked. “I don’t mind waiting - we can go together.” If he insisted, though, he’d go on ahead.

“LOOK AT THOSE LOWERS, SO FUCKING SLOOOOW!!!” America taunted, riding out the waves of the aurora lights, shredding back and forth like it was a half pipe. “ELI, DANNI, GET YOUR ASSES UP HERE! ¡¡¡¡Apúrate!!!!/ BEFORE WE RUN OUT OF LIGHT!!!! CAN WE RUN OUT OF LIGHT?? FUCK! WE SHOULD HAVE AAAAASKED!”

Danni whooped along with America, his things forgotten for a moment, and bopped Eli on the nose. “Go ahead! ‘ave fun! I can catch up wit’ you whenever I want. I'm not real strong, but I'm quick in t'e air! Just don't be surprised when I pop on wit'cha!” Danni reassured him. There was definitely a time Danni would have freaked out about being left behind but… This semester settled something about him with his friends. He didn't always feel like if he wasn't the focus, he'd be left behind. They'd gone through death, villains, the contest, and relationship troubles (yes, his siblings giving up his precious time to their partners counted thank you!) and Danni felt a little more settled in his skin. Danni blew a kiss at Eli and shooed him up into the air, the tripod coming out and the camera following, Danni snapping a few shots as he had the opportunity.

Andy was laughing. ”OH MY GOD! I thought you had been here before!” Andy’s eyes were dry, but somehow tears were coming out the sides, she squeezed them tight. But the sensation of flying around without seeing was worse.

“I HAVE BEEN HERE BEFORE!”

If asked later Andy couldn’t have said exactly what happened, but she lost her grip. It was in the middle of a flip or a swoop. And she fell. Tumbled right off the small platform. Her scream followed her all the way to the ground.

The fall should have hurt, should have killed her even if she landed wrong. But it didn’t. She blinked.

”I’m fine!” She yelled and waved.

America dove down after her, all too used to her squishy friends insisting that they were fine when they were anything but. The foil lost the ability to glide as she got too far from the aurora, but that was fine, as she flew down under her own power. “Holy shit, you actually are fine? I thought you were lying to save face, and we were about to have a teary moment where I have to rush you to a hospital or something - def not one back home, fuck paying for healthcare, there’s one universe I almost exclusively go to for injuries but… yay! You’re okay!” America beamed, before offering Andy a hand up.

Andy took America’s hand and used it to help pull herself up to her feet. ”Thanks.” She dusted herself off and checked for any pain or injuries. There was nothing. Wild.

Eli blinked for a moment, the spike of adrenaline causing his heart to pound as Andy fell - and then got right back up, as if nothing had happened. Cool, cool, cool. He hadn’t known she was durable. But that made sense. She’d gone toe to toe with America in the contest, durability was an asset there. He just hadn’t known she had that power. He took a breath, before smiling at the others, and launched himself and his foil up off into the sky, a scream of bewilderment and joy escaping him as he defied gravity.

“It’s meeeeeeeeeeee!” he sang to himself.

When it happened, Danni had just finished setting up the tripod with the little remote clicker in his pocket. He'd been half a second away from heading up himself when he jumped out of his skin and watched as Andy plummeted to the ground, America in hot pursuit. He caught fire, one foot already in the air, when Andy popped out of the snow, totally fine so instead he turned his camera at them and snapped a handful of shots he'd send them later. Danni laughed as Eli took to the sky and a few snap shots later, followed suit.

Danni loved flying, feeling free and uncovered by whatever happened beneath them. The rush of air in his face, battling the crosswinds that kicked up and sent him spiraling sometimes, the brief drop in his stomach as he hit the peak before a dive - as energetic as his everyday life was, mastering this aspect of his power gave him access to an entirely new world and he genuinely feel alive in the sky. He laughed and flew loose swirls around Eli in all directions, sometimes turning off his flames just to experience the free fall and hit it again barely twenty feet off the ground. Danni followed the skaters through the sky, clicking shots periodically as they passed the camera.

Andy had gotten back on the device and back into the air. She still felt the thrill, but she was digesting what had happened. That fall, it was too far. She didn’t know exactly how far she had fallen, but looking down, even at the lowest point of their flight, she knew it was too far. She let it go, for now, and focused on having fun with America and Danni and Eli. She enjoyed not being afraid. Enjoyed the moment.

The four spent another hour in this universe, delighting in the lights and skating along the aurora. They came back windbitten and a little dizzy from the altitude, but the flush on their cheeks matched the laughter and the easy way they leaned against each other breathlessly. However, Danni had his eye on the prize. He’d planned four more outfit changes, four more universes, before they found their way home: Championship jackets, Goth & Punk, Formal, and Beach Day! He’d demanded beach day last of all so that they could relax, have fun, and warm up before heading back to their universe.

Championship jackets came next, a universe experiencing an autumn like season with leaves made of synthetic light and beings who shimmered a little more than the four were used to. Danni walked them through pose after pose: Back to back, jacket swaps between Andy and America and Eli and Danni, Andy and Danni balancing on America and Eli’s shoulders, and several more before they were off to the next.

Formal and Goth & Punk settled into the same universe, a night time world where the moon glowed on its own accord and no stars broke the dreary darkness. It was a dangerous and feral place, but what civilization flourished found itself sheltered in a glass like material that they built their cities from and their fauna glowed in the perpetual gloom. Danni dressed the four in their nicest formal wear - America in a formal jumpsuit that left her shoulders bare and swept down into a long, flowing piece, Andy in a shorter dress, leaving her collarbone and shoulders revealed, Eli in a well pressed suit, and Danni in a split fabric suit with shoulder pads - and had them pose and preen for his camera: Young Avengers dancing with each other, Excelsior dancing with each other, a swap, America dipping Andy, and Danni and Eli pressing kisses to America and Andy's hands. Danni swapped the theme after and America hunted down a club they could sneak into, the flickering, ethereal lights set against the night sky a striking contrast. Danni’d done up America and Eli’s make up - heavy blacks, purples, and blues to match with their outfits of torn black jeans, a sleeveless mesh studded shirt for Eli and a black tank top with metal studs following the neckline, and a pair of studded fingerless gloves for Eli and Andy’s jacket held artfully over one shoulder by America. Meanwhile, Danni shoved himself and Andy into artful black outfits, more formal than their punk counterparts, with understated oxblood makeup. Their photos reflected the difference: America and Eli depicting violent, feral bodyguards to a haughtier, more reserved Excelsior.

And finally, Danni’s favorite set - the beach! Although discovered and fleeing the dimension as quickly as possible, they found themselves on a faint purple beach with greener water than back home. America and Danni took no time at all swapping into swimsuits, the pair looping Andy into begging, pleading, screaming for Eli to dress in the matching speedo America had slipped into his bag. The first photo was the four of them - Eli and Danni in matching orange and white speedos, America in a bikini with a mesh cover up, and Andy in boardshorts and a bikini top - before the next series was an impromptu volleyball game where flying had to be banned after the first round that Danni and America were on the same team, Eli popping out of the water, America cannonballing from sixty feet in the air, Andy splashing someone off screen, and the four of them playing chicken with Andy on America’s shoulders and Danni on Eli’s.

When the four finally made it back home, the sun was nearly beneath the horizon in New Orleans and Danni and Andy collapsed into their respective beds, exhausted.

Strange Academy: Journey into Mystery

---

---

---

@Achronum@Trainerblue192@Morose@Blizz@Kirah@PatientBean@Teyao@KazAlkemi@kittyluna45

---

Late Morning - Fri. Nov. 1st, 2040

---

The Statue of Ardyon

Connie, Barty, Jake

Croan ignored Connie for the moment, instead pulling out a small pocket watch and glancing at it. “Wrap up your ruminations - we are nearly at the limit of our permissions.” Croan snapped the pocket watch shut and tucked it back away. “Their writings, a copy for each of you, have already been delivered to your rooms. Your initial impressions both give you an opportunity to look at it without undue bias and me an opportunity to gauge your efficiency. I’m sure you know how your coven faired, Ms. Winthrom.”

“Yes, Mr. Mcleod. Continue your inane murmurings. Perhaps your covenmates will spontaneously develop telepathy over the next few minutes.” Croan drawled and sent Jake a judgemental look. “Do you understand anything about your abilities or are you as incompetent as a newborn babe?”

A Trip through Magic

Willow, Nicky, Callaghan, Cassiopeia

Nicholas tilted his head as he considered, letting the shifter continue to mutter and investigate books without him. Cal knew the library better than he did; Nicholas knew he’d be hard pressed to find something Cal couldn’t. “Mikkail, for all his strangeness, commands more power than most in this institution. Could it not have just been a reflexive stress indicator? Like someone chewing their nails or picking at their skin?” Nicholas asked. Cal knew Mikkail far better than he did but it did seem improbable the dragon was overpowered. A millennia old creature did not succumb easily to mental manipulations, traps, or even simple distractions regardless of how strange they presented themselves. It would take a moment of extreme distress to bypass even the most basic of the Professor’s defenses. Nicholas should know - the twins had tried.

Nicholas was about to suggest they accept Mikkail’s invitation to return any time, but the arrival of Callaghan’s plaything stilled his tongue. The jealous edge in her posture and coldness in her gaze did not go unnoticed. Nicholas didn’t bother restraining himself and sighed. He did not like complications and while it had been a fun thought, Nicholas was quickly tiring of engaging through Cal. “Callaghan, we can resume our… discussion where your concerns lay.” Nicholas gestured to Cassie. “The floor is yours.”

Meanwhile, whispers started in Willow’s ears - just beyond comprehension and spilling from the edges of the journal.

Into the Unknow

Rohan, Finley/Dysphoria, Frankie, Annika

Dysphoria cooed softly and curled around Finley’s throat, the faint thrum of adrenaline still keeping them on edge.

“Excellent, excellent. And very resourceful, very resourceful. The Neverish is a place of chaos; you never know when you need to consider anything a resource.” Sariel praised the group, pushing off the wall and striding to the middle of the room. “Now, once it is completed I will lock it away and energize the connection. It may be… mildly uncomfortable for a moment, but you’ll come to appreciate it well!”

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

In the French quarter of New Orleans, there was an unusual home unlike any other. Its strangeness was not solely due to its appearance - two houses connected through an upstairs hallway, with gorgeous trees and flowers that seemed to be perpetually in bloom, regardless of the season. And it wasn’t necessarily either due to the extensive magical warding on the property, designed to let the mage of this land know exactly who had come to visit and their intentions, and protect his family from harm. It wasn’t even due to the people who lived there, odd as they were - three omega level mutants, a part-time ghost, a former ghost, a sentient water cannon, a master of the mystic arts, and of course their pets, a baby dragon and a baby dinosaur.

No, the unusualness of the Kingston-Gray residence was that everyone who lived there genuinely loved each other.

Inside the home, enchanted candles gently hovered in the air, as artificial snow fell from the ceilings and dusted the mantlepiece. Pictures covered the walls of loved ones past and present, the shimmering lights casting them in a warm glow. The living room itself was almost dominated by a gigantic tree, nearly twelve feet tall, under which a mountain of presents lay freshly wrapped - and only a few of them had the telltale teeth marks of a teething creature.

Ben Gray, the husband of the mutant mage Max Gray, and father to Dorian, Danni, and April, was currently busying himself in the kitchen. He had gotten up early that morning, in order to go visit some of his foster siblings who still lived in the area. The visit hadn’t been long and when he arrived back home, he had set out to make a sweet breakfast treat for the rest of the family - cinnamon rolls. They were just about done, steaming hot as he layered the icing on top, stepping back to admire his work and clad in an apron. “Kiddos!” Ben called out. “Cinnamon rolls!”

Casper Kingston, husband to James Kingston, foster sibling of Ben Gray, and father of three (the lines in their household were incredibly blurred), was still sprawled out in bed. He’d been up late the night before - not necessarily doing anything special, he just had poor impulse control and scrolling through Snikt! was just way too easy. “Ben, it’s too early,” Casper grumbled, rolling over as Ben’s voice carried. “Five more minutes…”

Unbeknownst to the adults, however, two of the children had already been up for a while. April was still preening over her new haircut, using the mirrors in Danni’s room to admire it from each and every angle. She’d changed from her PJs into some clothes for the day - a pair of acid washed jeans with holes in the knees and doodles up and down the sides in sharpies, and a blue holiday sweater with jellyfish and snowflakes. On her feet she had pink Jeff the Land Shark slippers. “Okay, okay, okay, they’re awake!!” April squealed. “How do I look? Should I use sparkle spray to make myself glitter? Or is that too much? Do you think it takes away from the haircut? Ooo - what about a really dramatic eyeshadow?”

Normally, Danni would be grumbling much like his Papa downstairs and would be more than happy to rally against his Appa's crazy morning schedule, but someone had rolled him out of bed before that. So he'd cut Rillie's hair to perfection, showered all the hair off him after they'd finished cleaning up, and now was debating. Yes, it was Christmas and that should mean soft and flower and fluffy but… he'd just gotten this lovely leather jacket and pants and he kind of wanted to wear them…

“If ya wanna do any makeup, keep it chill. Your ‘air is t'e star, not'in’ else silly.” Danni said from the closet, towel still wrapped around his waist as he considered his options. He's put them on hangers to consider. “Riiiiillie. Which should I pick? T'is one gives t'at classic, homey Christmas vibe but t'is one matches you a little better, bit idk what Dee is wearing?!” Danni held the two options out.

Downstairs, James returned from his morning run and paused to take a deep breath. Cinnamon rolls, cold morning air, and the smell of Christmas trees made it difficult to resist the holiday spirit. James toed off his running shoes and put them on the shoe rack before jogging into the kitchen. “Morning, Ben. Those smell amazing. Just us up so far? Let me get coffee started. That usually gets the stragglers moving.” James chuckled, pulling Ben in for a side hug. “Merry Christmas, by the way.”

Dorian was up before Danni. He was always up before Danni was. He had already showered and gotten dressed into his Christmas outfit, a deep wine red long-sleeved shirt, forest green pants, and a pair of olive green converse along with black Rayban fake glasses. He had a red Santa hat on with white fluffy trim and a ball at the end, the works. He'd managed to wrangle a small santa coat onto Amour so that she could join in on the festivities. He snapped a photo of himself with Amour worthy of a Christmas Card and sent it to Percy after adding a few snowflakes on with an editor. ”You're probably still asleep but I can't wait to see what Santa brought you. Merry Christmas Babe. Xoxo” The scent of cinnamon rolls wafted up into his room and Dorian couldn't resist it. He'd have one now and one when coffee was done brewing. ”Already awake! Last one down is Flatscan!” Dorian yelled back as he phased through the floors and went straight into the kitchen.

”Oi, what did we say about using Astral Powers during Christmas? I don't want to see you peeking inside of the gifts Santa gave you.”

”I won't Promiiiisssseee”

Max was busy adding the finishing touches around the household. Having made the kids decorate it by hand without the aid of magic this year. Now he just wanted to give it a little sparkle. He snagged the first cinnamon roll off the tray, using his magic to cool it down instantly before taking a bite. ”James if you want I can handle the coffee, Casper getting up is a full time job. Besides, we are apparently getting a surprise today so we need to make sure everyone's up and ready.” He said before conjuring up the day's newspaper in hand.

“Mm, merry Christmas, James,” Ben said, wrapping one hand around James’ waist to return the hug, smiling softly. He was one of the quietest members of his family, but he didn’t adore them any less. Doing little things for this was one of the ways that he could show them how much he cared - in a way that he often struggled to do with words. He’d made a lot of progress since his resurrection, grown a lot and been through at least five different therapists before he’d found one he liked, but this was still how he expressed himself best to the people who mattered. “Good luck,” he then added, not wishing having to wake Casper up on anyone - he had decades of experience with it and didn’t miss a single moment.

Upstairs, April was studying the two outfits Danni presented very seriously. One of them was giving old wealth, fortune, and grace - the other was a little more punk rock, featuring a leather jacket. She scrunched up her face, going back and forth between the two of them, before finally deciding on the one he held up on the left. “It stands out more from what you normally wear,” April explained. “More of a statement, y’know? Like you could wear the leather jacket any day and rock it, ‘cause you always dress like a badass, Danni. But this almost academic, home for the fancy Christmas party look? That’s niche.”

James laughed quietly to himself. “Yeah, it is. But I'd hate it if I didn't get to do it. Thanks Max. And merry Christmas, old man.” James ruffled Max's hair before pulling Dorian into a quick hug. “Merry Christmas to you too, Dorian. Don't forget to text Percy.” James reminded, disappearing past his doorway and into his bedroom to get Casper out of bed, into the shower, and tied properly.

Danni nodded along with April. “Makes sense, makes sense. Pops and Appa and Pa are all probs gunna be nice and proper too, ‘u’? It's make t'e photos nicer.” Danni muttered after Rillie's input. He shrugged, put the punk rock back and hung the various pieces of his chosen outfit. He'd have to adjust his make up plan, a little more rose and sparkle, so he'd need a bit more time. He stripped off his towel, tossed it to the side, and then realized he hadn't considered underwear. Since it was Christmas, he pulled on a cute pair of red briefs with Christmas trees and candy canes and then popped himself into each part of his outfit. He did a little twirl in the mirror and beamed at himself.

“Okay, I gotta go do my hair rq!!!! Danni bolted to the bathroom and did some quick work on his hair and just a dusting across the cheeks, gave himself a little wink, and held his arm out for his sister to take. “Ready ta show t'e world?”

For a second, April was gripped by the fear that she was underdressed. But most of her Christmas-y things were dresses and skirts, and the idea of wearing one right now made her nauseous. So instead, she went to take Danni’s arm, only to scream. “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait - it needs to be a reveal!!” April ran back to her room, tearing through her closet until she found what she was looking for - and then she sprinted back to Danni’s, showing him. It was a Christmas tree hat. “Then when everyone is downstairs, we can remove the hat and - tada! New hair!!” She then took Danni’s arm, putting the hat onto her head. “Now I’m ready! Let’s go before Dori eats all the cinnamon rolls,” she whined.

”Old?! I'm the youngest one out of all of us.”

Dorian gave James a hug back before snagging his own roll, a plate, and another roll. ”Already did! We're gonna see if Santa visited ‘im last night! T'ough I'm not sure ‘ow well it'll work since ‘e needs to believe for it to work. Pa! Where's coffee?”

Max returned the hug. Standing back up as he went to go take over James’ job on coffee. He flicked his wrist, snapping the newspaper with a crisp sound before it vanished from his hand and appeared at an armchair in the living room for later. Max began to make his way through the kitchen, stepping over the Amour as he tried not to get in their way before starting on the coffee. ”It's coming, be patient. So, when can we expect the young Novikov? And when are you heading over to his place for a night of Chanukah?”

”He's comin over before dinner for a little while. And we are goin’ to Eriks t'e 29th for ‘is annual one. Figured it'd be nice to spend it wit’ Andy too since it'll be ‘er first year.”

Ben nodded slightly, going to undo the knot on his apron to take it off - only to find it stuck, as if by magic. He shot his husband a glance from across the counter. “You want to keep your present wrapped, then?” he murmured, as he crossed the space and kissed his husband’s ear. “Merry Christmas, sweetheart.” He then went over to Dorian, giving him a hug - and shooting a tentacle out to wrap around Max’s wrist gently. “Merry Christmas, kiddo. Did he send the daily Chaucer yet?” he asked Dorian.

James made his way to the bedroom, pausing in the doorway to admire his husband still sleeping despite the ruckus outside. “Come on babes, time to wake up.” James made his way over, shifting the blankets to press a kiss behind his husband's ear. “And if you get up quick enough, we can shower together. Missed you on my run this morning.”

Slowly, Casper opened one eye, mentally weighing the pros and cons of staying in bed longer against having fun doing certain activities with his husband. Pros - the bed was soft, warm, and filled with his favorite blankets. Cons - he liked doing those activities with his husband, and he might not get another chance until later that evening, with how busy things were for Christmas.

Like a cat, Casper stretched out his arms and legs, yawning dramatically as he sat up in bed. “Fiiiiiine,” he pouted, dramatically flopping against James. “Carry me?” he then asked, with pleading eyes.

James chuckled, sliding his arms under Casper and lifting. “Anything for you, love.” James promised, pressing a slow kiss to Casper, and maneuvered around the bed to the bathroom. “And I picked out an outfit for you; I want to get you suited up myself after we're done.” James stepped into the bathroom and kicked the door shut, the sound of running water a second later.

Danni grimaced at the hat. “I mean, I guess but t'at is deeef a piece t'at we should repurpose. Full time.” Danni guided April down the stairs and towards the aroma of cinnamon rolls and coffee. Danni shook with the effort but it wasn't enough; Danni bolted forward, holiday excitement buzzing through him and burst into the kitchen screaming “MERRY CHRISTMAS!” He hugged everyone in the kitchen, telling them he loved them and then snatched up a cinnamon roll with his bare hands and shoved over half of it in his mouth, groaning with satisfaction as he settled in to wait for coffee.

“Where is Pops and Papa?” Danni asked around a mouthful of cinnamon roll.

”Ones sleepin’ as always and t'e ot'er's tryin’ to change t'at.” Dorian said with a laugh. ”Merry Christmas! Not yet, no Mornin’ poem or anyt'in’.” He was so excited for the surprise they had come up with for the rents. ”’ey save some for April!” Dorian used his powers to pull the tray away from Danni's unending maw.

”Oh just one thing.” Max said as he moved away from the coffee, the pot having been enchanted now to finish the job as he made his way towards his husband Ben. Wrapping his arms around him and giving him a kiss in between each word. ”Merry. Christmas.” He began to make his way back over as he flicked his wrist and a bit of magic smacked Ben's ass.

”eugh grooossss. Not while I'm tryin’ eat guys. Get a room.” Dorian said before running over and giving Danni a huge hug, practically squeezing the air out of him.
”April! ‘urry up! Danni's eatin’ all t'e buns!”

Ben rolled his eyes at his son’s antics. “Consider this payback for when you and your boyfriend reappeared from the astral,” he teased. He and his husband didn’t do a lot of public displays of affection, not nearly as much as James and Casper did. His son could handle his dads sharing the occasional kiss - it was Christmas, after all. “Where is your sister?” he then added with a frown. She was usually up well before Danni.

“I’m coooooming!!” April called out. She had been about to rush off after Danni, when an incredible idea occurred to her. Not only was she going to make a grand reveal with her hair, but she was going to make a grand entrance! She darted into the nearest bathroom and turned on the tap, pulling out enough water to work with, wrapping it around her hands like gloves. She rushed back to the hallway, and shot the water outwards, coating the ground and freezing it, turning it into ice. This was going to be incredible!

She sprinted forward, and for a moment, she felt like she was flying - she let out a joyous screech - “Here I come!!!!” - but it soon turned to terror. She was going faster and faster, she didn’t know how to stop, and her Jeff the Land Shark slippers didn’t have any traction! She screamed as she ran out of ice, and the momentum carried her legs forward, but not the rest of her, as she crashed spectacularly, about to land on her back when four tentacles suddenly shot out, grabbing her.

“... Hi Appa!”

Ben stared at her. “Hi, April.”

“‘ey! What are ya doin’?!” Danni grabbed the tray when he noticed it wiggling away, getting into a tug of war with Dorian's telekinetics. However, the fact that coffee suddenly became available made Danni lose interest in the buns and he snatched up his mug and poured eagerly. “I can't ‘ave anyt'in’ nice. I ‘it my ‘ead t'is mornin’, Dee won't let me ‘ave cinnamon rolls, I ‘ad ta wait for coffee - oh, woe is me. My life is so ‘ard.” Danni sighed dramatically, tipping over and slumping against Ben with a hand to his forehead.

Dorian busted out laughing as April came barreling down the stairs. ”T'e fabled Ice Princess makes t'eir appearances down a very slip n slide.” He looked towards Danni and rolled his eyes.

Max however quirked up an eyebrow. He was up early? He hit his head? Clearly if he had gotten himself awake without some form of warfare. ”How did you hit your head?”color]

April didn’t think through what she did next, giving her brother the middle finger. However, hearing Dorian use they made her heart twitch for a moment. But she was too deep into the holiday and the big reveal she’d planned with Danni that she didn’t examine the feeling, letting it pass with the moment. “My own brother, being so mean to me, on Christmas?!” she gasped.

“April…” Ben warned, less than thrilled with her choice of hand sign. “We don’t flip each other off, sweetheart. Apologize to Dorian.”

“But–”

“But you feel really sorry, I agree, so tell him that,” Ben folded his arms.

“... Sorry Dori,” April mumbled, before going to go grab her mug from the cabinet. She opened it up, and went to jump up a bit to be able to reach it, only for Ben’s tentacles to beat her to it, offering the cup to her. “Thanks Appa.”

“Mhmm.”

Dorian stuck his tongue out at April when Ben wasn't looking. Snagging another roll as he finally got himself a cup of coffee and sat down on one of the kitchen counters. Dropping a bit of Cinnamon Rolls on the floor for Amour to enjoy. She perked up, sniffing the air before she made a mad dash towards the fallen roll and began hacking away at it with her teeth. Excited chirps in between each tear.

”I do not think that sugar treats are a balanced food for a prehistoric pet Dorian.”

”Sugar is energy, and energy is fuel, and she need ‘er fuel!”

Danni pouted at being ignored. “Appa!!! I was bein’ dramatic and ya didn't even say anyt'in’.” Danni grumbled. He couldn't stay upset for long, not with it being Christmas, and he popped open the cooler where Amour and Amélie's food was stored. “T'at's a secret for soon, Pa! I'll tell ya all ‘bout it, but everyone has gotta be ‘ere!” A loud bang, thud, and nails on the ground could be heard as Danni giggled. Amour finished the bits Dorian offered but quickly scampered to Danni, making cute little tips at the prospect of meat. Danni pulled out two bags, already portioned for ease of feeding, and dropped the chunks into the two bowls neatly named for each pet.

A surprised yip, nails on ice, and a screeching dragon made a whizzing appearance through the door, wings flapping in distress as she slipped and slid on the ice left behind by April's entrance. “Rillie! T'e ice!!!!” Danni screeched, lunging to grab Amélie but he he didn't put any fire behind it and instead hit the floor as his baby flew over him.

April screamed, having completely forgotten she’d left an icy trail in her wake. “Amelie!!!” She flung her hands out, the ice shooting up from the floor to form a half sphere, almost like a baseball bat - but the dragon smashed on through it.

“That’s because I was saving my reaction so I could— “ Ben had been about to wrap his tentacles around Danni and playfully throw him around, but instead he sent them out to try to grab onto the dragon - and while his reflexes were fast, they weren’t quite fast enough, as his tentacles just grazed the dragon, barely slowing her down.

A small portal opened before Amélie as she came crashing down, opening back up to send her ricocheting into Danni's arms. ”Do pick up your toys April. I don't need James to be healing any broken bones on Christmas.”

April’s face turned bright red, as the rest of the ice melted and flew itself into the sink.

Danni let out a heavy oof as Amélie crash landed into his chest as he was sitting up, hitting the ground and groaning. Amélie took a moment to recover, trembling and cuddling into Danni's neck. He cooed softly at her, whispering reassurances into her ear, until she finally hopped off and galloped off to her bowl and tore into the pile of meat left for her before Amour could steal any. Danni sighed.

“Ya know, I've never looked at t'e ceilin’ t'is many times. ‘ow lon’ ‘ave we ‘ad webs up t'ere?” Danni wondered aloud and then shoved himself to his feet. “Ooookay, I def need waaaaay more coffee. What a wild mornin’. Uuugh, I wanna show you your present!!!!! It's gunna be t'e best Christmas present ever! Dee, did we figure out ‘ow ta show t'em, btw? Idr, tbh.”

Dorian grinned triumphantly as he fetched out a sling ring from his pocket. ”Sure did.” He spun the sling ring around his finger, showing it off a bit before catching it in his palm and putting it back into his pocket.

Max looked unamused at his sons antics. ”Where did you get that? And what do you plan on doing with it? You know you're can just as me to take us where you want to go, I do it every year.”

”Oooook but t'is is a surprise so I cant tell you where. Obvi”

Ben’s eyes narrowed slightly. Had Dorian stolen Max’s sling ring? He knew the children had gotten a little more rebellious lately, but he thought they’d have the sense not to mess with magical artifacts they didn’t understand. “I also would like to know where you got that,” he prompted, crossing his arms. “Do you know how to use that? It’s not a toy.” He had half a mind to snatch it with his tentacles, but he also knew Dorian’s reflexes were faster than ever - and as loath as he was to admit it, he didn’t know if he’d be able to take it from him.

“Yeah we have a surprise!” April preened, before tilting her head in confusion. Dorian didn’t know about the surprise. “Wait, what surprise do you have? ‘Cause Danni and I have a surprise, and there’s no way you know about it…” She frowned. Were they keeping secrets from her? She wanted to be mad about it, but she and Danni were also keeping a secret from Dorian, so she supposed it made them even. “Unless you told him? Danni, did you text Dori already about the you-know-what?” she whined slightly.

Dorian shot a look towards April, equal parts confusion and anger. Did Danni ruin the surprise already by telling April?! He crossed his arms and huffed in annoyance.

“Wha… Oh. OH! No, no I ‘ave a surprise wit bot’ of you. Muwhahahaha, my secret plan is coming toget'er! I ‘ave all t'e secrets ‘ere!” Danni cackled as he picked up his mug and went to refill it. “Rillie and I ‘ave a reveal t'at we gotta do before Dee and I'd reveal ot'erwise, Rillie and I's surprise will be suuuuupeer overshaded!!! And Pa, Appa truuuust us pleaaaaase? We pwomise t'at not'in’ bad is ‘appenin’; if ya know where we are goin’ it ruins t'e suprise! And Dee knows ‘ow ta use it! ‘e studied wit’ Strange!” Danni looked out of the kitchen as he heard footsteps on the stairs.

“Who studied with Strange? Should I be concerned why this is relevant? I feel like spells start flying anytime that comes up.” James asked, carrying a freshly showered Casper with him to the kitchen table. “Babes, I'm putting you down so you can eat, okay? Do you want coffee?”

“Your mom studied with Strange!” Casper shouted gleefully, before immediately pouting at the prospect of being put down. He wanted to be carried at all times, except for when he was trying on clothes or dancing or lounging in bed. And it was Christmas morning! He tucked his head underneath James’ neck, whimpering. “Nuuuuuuuuuuu,” and then he paused in his whining. “Yes pleeeeease.” He did want coffee.

”It's a loan ok? And I do know ‘ow to use it. I've ‘ad more trainin’ ‘ere t'an anyone besides Pa in t'e mystics arts.” Dorian whined. ”I'll give it back after Christmas is over.”

Max raised an eyebrow at all the antics being brought out at once. ”Two surprises already? It must be Christmas morning then.”

James tilted Casper's head back and pressed a kiss to his mouth before fetching his husband his breakfast. His Christmas mug was filled three quarters with milk and sugar, a splash of coffee, and whip cream, chocolate syrup, and rainbow sprinkles finished it off. James plated up a cinnamon roll and slid the combo in front of his husband, before settling in next to him and sliding his hand to Casper's thigh to run his thumb along the inside seam. “These surprises didn't damage anything, right? I would rather Christmas not have any surprises that take longer than 5 minutes to fix, please.”

“Okay, everyone is ‘ere!!! Let's get rollin’!!!!” Danni announced, sticking his tongue out at his Pops and then spinning around. “Ladies, gentlemen, and all our nonbinary friends, get ready for t'e show off t'e year! T'e show of t'e season! Be prepared ta lose your socks and… I don't know what us but ‘old on ta everyt'in’! Be prepared ta be blown away by… Drum roll please!”

Casper leaned over, doing a drum roll on his husband’s thighs. He didn’t know what was happening but he was so excited, cinnamon roll held between his teeth!

Ben looked like a vein was about to burst in his forehead from stress and anticipation.

Danni beamed at his Papa and gestured dramatically at April.

“Tadaaaaaa!!!” April threw the Christmas Tree hat off of her head, revealing her new haircut. It was short, vaguely resembling a mohawk. But the more one looked at it, the more horrendous it became. It was drastically uneven and choppy, there weren’t any bald spots but there were areas of varying thickness. If someone were to shut off all the lights and hit their head, it would look to them like a world class haircut; but to anyone else, it was a dumpster fire not even worthy of Great Clips. “What do you think?”

Casper immediately choked on his cinnamon roll, as he gasped and the sweet, sugary goodness shot into the back of his throat. His hands went immediately to his throat, his legs flailing.

Ben shot a worried look at Max and James, before smiling politely at April. “Oh, I love it, sweetheart,” he lied through his teeth. “But do you love it?”

Max shot a glare to Dorian. ”And you say there are…two surprises? I dare say I don't know if I can handle a second at the moment. April sweetie, what style is this? Is it new? It's very Avante Garde.”

Dorian tried to keep it in, he really did, but every cabinet flew open at the same time as the food for Amour flew into the air and around the kitchen, causing the little raptor to sprint from one place to another nipping at each piece before Amélie could get to any. He didn’t say anything, but his chest was in so much pain as he held back laughter.

James swore and immediately got his husband out of the chair, working to keep him standing while he flailed. James couldn’t get Casper to cooperate so instead, James kept two fingers jammed into his jaw and reached in with the other to grab the cinnamon roll and yank it out. Thankfully, it hadn’t been chewed much so it was one solid piece. James tossed it in the trash and pulled Casper to him. “Okay, you take a second to catch your breath, babes.” James hadn’t had an opportunity to look at April’s hair for longer than a second and now that he viewed it in its full glory…

“I definitely remember you having more hair yesterday. Who did you go to? They certainly have talent - we want to make sure we can get notes from them for the future.” James sent a hopeful look at Max.

Danni beamed at that. “It was me! Rillie woke me up at 6, I came down ta get coffee wit’ Amélie, got knocked on my butt and ‘it my ‘ead, drank a little cold brew, and t’en went up ta cut Rillie’s ‘air! Doesn’t it look great?”

“You hit your head?! Come here.” Danni scooted over and James gently ran his hand across the back of Danni’s head. A little bump was there and James sighed, healing it away. “Next time, you wake us up. Head injuries are no joke, kiddo.”

Max spoke into his mug, low enough so no one else could hear. ”Hit your head? That explains the cut.”

Casper didn’t give himself a moment to recover and catch his breath, as his beautiful, talented, amazing husband saved his life - not for the first time, and not for the last time. He tucked himself back into his favorite position, flush up against James - and his eyes widened. “Danni, baby boi, love of my life, the sweetest kiddo there ever was - if you hit your head too many times, you’re going to end up like your Papa!” he fussed, before pulling his son into a tight hug. “We gotta protect those brain cells, okay?”

And then, without thinking, he looked at Max. “Can we get her a beanie? Pleeeease?”

Ben immediately glared at Casper, his tentacles thrashing a bit as they threatened to force their way on out. “Because this hair cut would look even cuter with a beanie, right? Right?” he practically hissed. It was a terrible haircut, yes. But he didn’t want to see their kid have a meltdown, especially not on Christmas morning. And it wouldn’t be just April having a tantrum, it would be Danni, too.

He then shot an intense glance at Dorian, a very clear dad gaze that translated to: be nice to your siblings and I will make it worth your while.

“Right, Danni is so good at this!!! We should all just start having Danni cut out hair, tbh, like he’s a natural!!” April gushed. She was too swept up in the moment to notice the truth behind her family’s reactions. Dorian was so in love with the haircut he couldn’t control his powers, he was shaking with love and adoration! The cut was so good that her Papa had almost choked to death! Her Pa thought it was Avante Garde - and he was a model, so he knew what he was talking about! Even Pops and Appa both really liked it, talking about how much they loved it and how they wanted to compliment the lucky stylist on it!! It was the best Christmas ever and she couldn’t keep herself from fidgeting, almost overwhelmed with joy.

”Non, J'aime ma coiffeuse en France. Merci beaucoup.” He took another bite of his meal before he continued. ”But you did really good! I didn't even know you couldn't get up at 6 am.” Dorian joked with a smile.

”A beanie would help to accent the haircut very well. Make certain pieces pop, if you wanted one April. We use hats and toppers like that a lot in modeling to help frame and showcase styles and hair all the time.”

Danni basked in the attention, joining Casper and James in the cuddle fest. “But Papa, everyone wants ta be like you! T’at make me lucky!’ Danni giggled and turned to frame April with his fingers as people made suggestions. “Ooooh, I love t’at. A beanie would tots make t’at look perf! Maybe one t’at matches ‘er eyes t’ough. Yeah, def t’e eyes!” Danni stuck his tongue out at Dorian’s tease. “Truuuust me t’at was not willin’. Amélie was a spicy burrito, but ‘ow could I pass up an opportunity for t’is masterpiece.” Danni sighed dramatically, bending down shortly after to pick up his baby dragon. Amélie, hearing her name after eating, had scampered over immediately upon realizing Amour was willing to fight for the food and settled contently into his arms.

“What have I said about talking poorly about yourself, baby?” James murmured firmly. He didn’t like it when Casper did it to himself, all the jokes he used to make, and he wouldn’t tolerate that on Christmas of all times. He smiled at his son reassuring his Papa and James smiled softly at the little family in the kitchen. Even when it was chaos and things weren’t perfect, he always thought about the times in the MU or in the rubble of Genoshia and couldn’t be more thankful for these people here. “Well, why don’t we get April her accessory and we can figure out who is Santa’s helper this year so our kiddos can get to open their presents. Unless you want to show us the other surprise next?”

“Oh! I’m sorry, bae,” Casper apologized, a little sheepish. “I can choose to be kind to myself. I am worthy of love and respect, especially from myself. I am proud of who I am becoming,” he repeated. It was part of their morning routine, something they’d say into the mirror together before getting ready for the day. He turned and brushed a kiss to James’ jaw as a further apology, before placing one on Danni’s head, too. “I want to see the other surprise!!” He somehow stopped himself from adding - it can’t be worse than this one!!

There were stars in April’s eyes for a moment. Pa really liked her hair! She squealed excitedly, kicking her feet a little from where she was sitting. “Do you think I could model with this hair, Pa? That’s so cool!! Danni, you could be my stylist - do my hair and I can wear clothes you design and stuff!! And Dori - ooo Dori you could model too!! We’d be a power trio!!! So yeah, Pa, I’d love a cool hat!! Can you pick one out?” she asked. The Christmas tree hat had been mostly a silly joke - she wanted a cool one, like what her Pa was talking about.

“If there is a secret third surprise…” Ben muttered under his breath. He had almost forgotten his concerns about Dorian with the sling ring, but given how the hair had already been a disaster, he was expecting that the next surprise was a trip to the center of the sun.

Max gladly created a hat to help cover up Aprils hair. Allowing a tuft of the psuedo mohawk shave to pop out from beneath it. He also (with a lot of magic) styled it in a way that the unevenness was hidden amongst curls and volume anywhere the hat didn't touch.

Dorian jumped out of his seat, sling ring at hand and ready. ”OK ok my turn!” He held his hand out, making circular patterns like how his Pa did every time he'd opened a portal. Sparks began to fly, but nothing formed just yet. Dorian kept at it though, now sticking his tongue out to help with the concentration, and then finally, a portal opened to what for some was a familiar land, to others brand new and a place of myths and legends. ”I can't ‘old it open for long.”

It had been over a decade since anyone had been to Genosha.

The bloodbath of the Hellfire Gala had been stopped, lives saved and lives taken by those who had sworn to protect their mutant brethren. But even averted, Selene’s magics came with a heavy cost. She had not paid it - and would never pay it, sealed within Max Gray’s acheron. So the island and its inhabitants paid for her. It consumed its victims, bleaching their skin to a chalky white, their eyes milky and unseeing, as their bones cracked and reshaped into horrific blasphemies, compelled to bring their fate upon others - to feed and to multiply. There was no logic, no justice as to who was taken - as to who was lost to them. No reasoning with them, no reversing their fate, their very essence consumed.

A fate that spread to the island itself - the skies occluded with a white haze, the fauna devolving and the flora dried to a brittle crisp. The mutants of Genosha had no choice but to flee, to abandon their home and search for a place elsewhere, congregating in the grounds of the Massachusetts Academy, of the French Quarter of New Orleans, of a station in the stars. But the tragedy of Genosha did not end there - did not end after human opportunists raided the island, stealing its memories and its wealth, taking the bones of the dead all to turn a profit. No, the sickness of Genosha spread, the white haze pushing ever outwards, turning the surface of its waters to an icy glass, until its mages were forced to act, until Max and Pixie and so many more cast a spell, isolating the island until the day that it was safe again - until the day that Selene’s price had been paid in full, and its curse lifted.

As the Kingston-Grays stepped through the portal, they found themselves in a place all too familiar - at the site of the last stand they had made against the lunar goddess. It had been a gala, and the wreckage of those final moments remained - dresses, gowns, and other attire littered the ground, bloodied and torn. Glasses still sat on tables, where the survivors of the Mutant Underground had once gathered and laughed - where Casper had curled around James, where Max and Ben had first kissed, where Sunshine and Marrow had bickered, Harry had begged his sister Val to relax, Andy and her girlfriend had sampled drinks and food from around the world - where Selene had compelled James to kill Casper, where the infection had spread to Max and warped his mind, where Val had spilled the blood of innocents - where Casper had risen from the grave, where Ben had stood against a goddess with just four tentacles, where Harry had broken her trance with a song, where Andy had traded spell for spell. It was nearly silent, but the screams could still be heard, ringing in their minds - where images of joyous dancing and celebration were interpenetrated with gross tragedy.

But through it all, the signs were true - the heaviness in the air had begun to lift - the trees and the plants were a little more vibrant, a little more lush - and almost imperceptibly, the cries of animals could be heard, chattering in the brush.

When Dorian had opened the portal, James had no idea where they could be going. There wasn’t anywhere in the world off limits to the family and he couldn’t imagine the kids had been asking Max or Stephen to ferry them around without hearing about. So when Danni danced through first, chattering a mile a minute with some sort of introduction, and James caught sight of a moment frozen in time, he nearly threw up.

He could see Casper’s gown from that night, caught up in a lazy dance. He could remember the moment Selene sat with them, the concern he’d felt but ultimately waving it away. The music as he’d pulled Casper into his lap, chatting without a care with the rest of the MU, the teasing and grumbling they’d always got when James had shown his affection for his then boyfriend. He’d remembered planning the rest of the night, taking Casper somewhere alone, a ring tucked away in his pocket, and expecting to beg Max to fix Casper’s gown when James decided it was in the way.

He could hear the screams when the music changed, the chaos that erupted in the aftermath. James could remember the rag, the all consuming need to hurt and kill and tear the people he cared so much for into pieces. He remembered he got his hands on Casper and… his eyes were drawn to the spot all those years ago. His feet carried him, stumbling, to the spot and the strength left his legs. James hit his knees silently and reverently touched the ground. He could remember when his heart shattered and his world ended when he’d shaken free; he’d been in a haze back at the Mutant Underground where everyone was safe and sound and Casper was just sleeping and he’d come out of it with his husband’s blood on his hands. James let out a broken sob and tears poured down his face, hand over his mouth to stay silent, but his whole body shook as his other formed a fist and he pounded it against the ground once.

Casper had been so incredibly excited, thrilled for the surprise. As much as Ben hated surprises, Casper adored them. He moved through the portal with an open mind, unable to comprehend what their kids wanted to show them. Was it a secret land in the arctic (or the antarctic? He always got them mixed up) where dinosaurs still roamed? Was it a fantastical castle, where brooms moved by themselves and the corridors always shifted, complete with a spooky dragon for the family to befriend (he did not realize, of course, that he was just picturing their house)? Or maybe they were leaving Earth behind entirely, going on a holiday in space! Was the photoshoot going to be done in zero gravity this year? He was about to turn back to grab a wig - there was one that would look amazing with the hair billowing about - when their destination came into view.

His heart dropped into his stomach.

His memories of that night were patchwork, little flashes of scenes out of order, out of context. Jumbo Carnation designing a dress for him - Casper wearing it for James for the first time - Casper taking it off for James for the first time - Casper putting it back on again for James - curling into his boyfriend’s lap at the table, feeling like the luckiest man alive - sampling exotic foods and drinks, but knowing there was only one thing he wanted to taste - dropping Danni off with his mother before the gala, as his son needed his rest - taking a photograph of their tiny family, Danni’s fist curled around the fabric of his dress - a cold, all consuming darkness, a void - waking up on the ground, covered in blood, in his own blood - merging with his fellow mutants - scrambling back to where his mother lived on the island, clutching Danni protectively to his chest as he clung to James for hours - screams and tears, whose, he didn’t know, he didn’t know.

“What… did…” Casper’s question died before it could be asked. He wanted to let himself collapse, to let himself be weak.

But James had always been strong - had always been strong for him. His body felt numb as he made his way over to his husband, quiet for perhaps the first time in his life as he knelt down next to James, and put his arms securely around him, pulling his husband into himself. “It’s okay, baby, let it out,” he murmured. “I’ve got you.”

Ben hated surprises. He hated this one, too - hated it for the way that it broke him, the punishing cocktail of trauma and hope. Hated the way his tentacles started to trash and strain, the apron ripping as they violently shot out of him, desperately searching for something to latch onto, something to grab and to break. A scream tore its way from his throat as he had the faculties to get away from his family as his monstrous self writhed, ensnaring long since abandoned tables, snapping them into two and compacting them down, adding to the destruction and the debris. He didn’t face them as this happened, turning away. He didn’t want his kids to see him like this - didn’t want his partners too, either.

He’d been born here, on Genosha - reborn, really. His partners had defied Death herself to bring him back. It was a question that had always haunted him, one that he never voiced - one that he lived with, day after day. Had this been their punishment for stealing fire from the gods? If James, Casper, and Max had never brought him back, would this have happened? Would Genosha still be alive if he were still six feet under? Had it been hubris that condemned them? The tentacles continued to reach out, crushing anything within reach - anything that dared to stray too close.

“Kids, stay away from me for a moment,” he managed to get out through gritted teeth.

Max strode through the portal slowly, tentatively, unable to believe the sights set before him. The sounds, the scenery, the way it all perfectly encapsulated the moments before, during, and after the storm that was Selene. His hand gently grazing the top of the table as he walked past, dust from the years rubbing against his fingers as he did so. He could hear the band, the music, how The Blob greeted guests at his bar and the taste of food from a culture born within this very island. He could see the ghosts of the people they were, of his friends and family at a time they truly believed nothing more could happen. Even after the attacks from The Vault, the pure sense of safety at the gala that was meant to usher in a new era of mutant kind.

As all these feelings came rushing in, Max was unable to control it. A single tear dropped from his eye, imbued with magic he could not hold in. It dropped against the island's ground and a wave of illusions came rippling out from it. The band music began to play once more as the MU stood around their table with their drinks and food placed atop it. The Blob could be seen several feet away tending to people with no faces, a young Ben in Max's arms as he had finally discovered the way to bring back mutants. Every good memory he had of this island, every person he met, soul he touched, each one of them locked in a memory that now replayed for all to see. ”This…shouldn't be possible…” Max's words barely a whisper.

While James lowered his head into his husband’s lap, tears staining his pants as he clung to him and cried, Danni shifted from one foot to another awkwardly before sidling up to Dorian and April. “Uhm, I really t’ought t’ey’d be a little ‘appier.” Danni muttered nervously, poking the tips of his fingers together and on the verge of crying. “Do ya t’ink we did… bad? Maybe we shouldn’ta done it. Oh gosh, we ruined Christmas, we are t’e worst!” Danni started breathing faster, tears in his eyes, and wringing his hands as he watched his parents all break down and the fascinating display of magic in front of them.

April was still processing everything she was seeing. This was Genosha? This was their family’s home? Dorian and Danni’s surprise was an entire island? And all of their dads seemed to be on the edge of a panic attack, if not fully in one?? Pops was broken, clinging onto Papa like a lifeline?? Appa was destroying anything he could grab?? Pa was projecting his memories out?? None of their training had ever told them what to do here. And then Danni looked like he was freaking out, claiming that we ruined Christmas even though April hadn’t been involved - and the intrusive thought to go no, you two ruined Christmas crossed her mind.

“Uh, guys… what did you do??” she shook her head, hoping they’d catch her up to speed. “This is Genosha - the Genosha? How…” Her eyes fell on their dads, all of them in varying degrees of distress. “Should we call Auntie S? Like… I think you broke our dads??? I don’t… do we give them lithium??”

Dorian blindly reached out and grabbed Danni's hand, squeezing it tight. ”No we did…good, right? Bringin’ back t'e island was a good t'in’...i t'ought…” His throat hurt as he felt a lump forming in it. Trying hard not to cry. ”We are t'e worst aren't we…” Dorian's eyes began to wet, unsure of what to do in this situation before them. He expected jumping and hugs and glee and merriment. Laughter and Joy, all things that encompassed a good Christmas present not…this.

Casper took a deep breath. He wasn’t usually the adult on call. In fact, he was never the adult in the room. He lived in a house with three capable, type-A gays. He was the last line of defense. His children were on the verge of a meltdown, Max and Ben were struggling to control their powers, and his husband was crumbling into his thighs, sobbing. “Kids, stop,” he said sternly, rising up slightly from his crouched position so he could make eye contact with all three of them. “You did not ruin Christmas. You are not the worst. Your dads just need a minute. You’re going to go sit at that table,” he pointed to one out of Ben’s warpath, “And you are going to repeat the same words your Pops had me say earlier. Five times each, slowly, and you are going to mean each and every one of them. No arguments.” He held eye contact with each one of them, a serious, stern expression on his face that they’d never seen before.

It was shocking enough that Danni’s blubbering stopped. His Papa wasn’t really a parent. Danni loved him to death, but Papa was much, much closer to his best friend than his parent. But now, as Casper took a stern voice and took control of the situation, Danni blinked at his Papa and mechanically followed the instructions. He felt a little numb and floaty, like he wasn’t really there and things seemed so far away and so close all at the same time, and he sat hard into the chair and stared at the table top. I can choose to be kind to myself. A sniffle. “I am worthy of love and respect, especially from myself. His voice broke. “I am proud of who I am becoming.” Danni finished the first one in a whisper, taking a moment before continuing.

April hunched her shoulders slightly, almost defensively as Papa of all people decided to step up and be a parent. She couldn’t remember him ever disciplining any of them - if anything, he was usually an ally in their shenanigans, helping to distract Pops or talk him down from a punishment. He didn’t show up to the grueling training sessions, but would sneak them candy afterwards, even if they weren’t supposed to have more sugar that day. She shuffled on over to the table, sitting down next to Danni, as her eyes kept on darting over towards their dads. Her hands were cold and clammy, as she sat on them to try to warm them up a bit - and the anxiety in her body was continuing to build and build. “I can choose to be kind to myself,” she mumbled. It was a mantra they had her repeat since she’d been adopted, when she was struggling and scared, jumping at her own shadow. “I am worthy of love and respect, especially from myself.” She swallowed. That one was always hard. “I am proud of who I am becoming.”

She looked over at Danni, and reached her hand out to take his, before going onto her next repetition.

Dorian was shocked. Shocked that Casper had been so stern, shocked that he even could be stern, and most importantly shocked that anyone had listened to him during his morning ramblings. Danni and April seemed to know exactly what he was talking about as the three of them made their way over towards the table, but Dorian only muttered along mumbling words in time with April and Danni but having no idea what he was meant to be saying.

The tone. That's what pulled James out of the pit he'd been drowning in. Casper's voice was never… stern. James took a steadying breath, the familiar smell of his husband reassuring, and blinked through red puffy eyes at whoever Casper was speaking to. He must have been hallucinating because he could have swore that he'd seen the kids, at Casper's direction, settling in at a table to repeat mantras and calm down. James chuckled, a little watery and a little broken, but a smile still played at the edges of his mouth. He pulled himself back onto his feet, dusting himself off, and pressed a kiss under Casper's ear. “Thanks for taking care of them, babes. I appreciate you stepping up like that. Sorry I didn't give you a heads up.”

“Mm, I’m taking care of you, too,” Casper murmured, before effortlessly scooping up his husband bridal style, and holding him close to his chest. It was his favorite position when he was upset, and he had a feeling James needed this sort of comfort right now. He then captured James’ lips in a kiss, before returning his attention to the others. James was back with them, so that left Ben and Max. Previously, his strategy when Ben was upset had been to avoid him at all costs, take enough drugs that he couldn’t manifest, and by the time he’d come down from the high, Ben was usually fine. Maybe working it out of his system was enough here. If it escalated, however, he would restrain him. And Max, too, if needed. So he turned his attention to Max.

“Max, are you in control?” he asked. “Do you need me to handle you?”

The thought alone of Casper handling him was enough to bring Max away from his past and into the present. He didn't need the immortal twig of a twinkle carrying him Bridal style. Max waved his hand as if to dismiss a foul odor, washing away the illusory memories as they each turned into a fine mist and rolled away. ”I am fine. Thank you.” He looked over towards where the kids sat, reciting lines, and gave a sigh. ”I owe you a new outfit for stepping in. I…should've been –” Max cut himself off, afraid that if he continued that line of thought that Casper and James would force him with the children somehow. ”Regardless, Thank you Casper.”

Max conjured up a Happy Meal Box, full with chicken nuggets, dipping sauce, apple slices, fries, and a toy. He made his way over towards Ben, maneuvering around the tentacles with caution as he went to hold his husband's hand. ”Care for a bite?” He said with an awkward smile as he squeezed Ben's hand, offering him the first meal they shared together back when he was dead.

Slowly, the tentacles began to still, as the debris and wreckage they had ensnared fell to the ground unencumbered. Ben took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment and focusing on the sensation of his husband’s hand in his - on the palpable reminder that they were alive, all of them - and that even Selene’s destruction, as devastating as it had been, was only temporary. They were mutants. Death was not the end. He opened his eyes again, as the tentacles retracted into him, his body trembling from the effort. His clothes had been ruined, torn so that way his midriff was exposed. He rested his forehead against Max’s for a moment, murmuring. “Can we talk about this later, when the kids have gone to bed?”

And then he pulled away slightly, holding his husband’s gaze as he reached into the familiar Happy Meal Box, grabbed a nugget, and bit into it. “You know very well I always care for a bite,” he then added, keeping his voice low. That would have to wait for later, too.

He then looked at the kids, sitting at a table and reciting lines, somehow managed by Casper. He blinked a bit. “Since when could Casper parent?” he whispered, stunned, before raising his voice. “Kids - did you do this? Did you… did you fix our home?” There was still a bit of strain to his voice, as he struggled to keep his tone even and calm.

Danni finished up his lines, eyes shut and hands grasping April and Dorian's like a strange prayer circle. He peeked one eye open as their Appa spoke to them, eyes red and cheeks stained from the tears that had managed to come out. He shrunk into himself, making himself look smaller than he was as he looked at the four parents. It was certainly strange that Papa was carrying Pops, normally it was the other way around, but Danni didn't wanna point that pit and get yelled at more than they already were. “Ye- yes?” Danni said quietly, not certain how to navigate the mine field they'd found themselves in.

“Well, um you see- um, well, ya know- t'e whole um, Entity t'in'y? Well, we realized everyt'in’ it could do and t'en we were like gasp Genosha, so… tadda?” Danni offered awkward jazz hands, one stiff breeze away from having a complete breakdown. “We just wanted ta get ya a good Christmas present? We didn't mean- we didn't- we… I'm sorry!” Danni blurted out.

James was still equally shocked and impressed with his husband. He… he'd never been picked up like this, but he felt safe in Casper's arms and breathed in his husband's scent as he brushed the soft skin of his neck with his nose. It was so close and so tempting… James resisted the urge to bite it before settling a kiss in the crook. He tapped Casper twice, unfurling himself. “Yeah, you are. Thanks, baby.” James murmured in his ear, catching him in one more kiss, and turning to the kids. “This is amazing, kids. I'm sorry we scared you. We just… there was a lot we left and clearly, we have more hang ups than we thought. We just… I never thought we'd see this place again.” James made his way to them, placing a kiss on each of their heads.

Max laughed at Ben’s remark towards Casper. He raised an eyebrow at Ben’s forwardness with the food before the children but decided not to remark on either of them as he noticed Danni appeared ready to cry. ”I am with James on this one. I am both in awe and in wonder at how you actually had achieved this, or what I was even seeing. I, me and the other Mystic’s ensured this place was locked up, ensured the plague couldn’t spread out more to the rest of the world, it claimed so much and yet…you have somehow managed to make it in such a way as if it never even existed. An island frozen in time, a home long lost behind the white fog of war now found and brought back to us…” Max had a hard time finding any of the words for how he felt. He made his way over to his kids, wrapping his arms around all three into a group hug. ”You’ve made this old sorcerer very proud, and very happy. Merry Christmas kids.”

Dorian squirmed within the hug. Glad they didn’t have to recite whatever it was that the other two were saying, but also in an emotional whiplash from how their parents were behaving. ”We’d been ‘olin’ on to t’is gift since t’e contest…we t’ought…we t’ought we could…I don’t know…”

April felt incredibly awkward being wrapped up into the hug - she hadn’t done anything for this, she hadn’t known that Danni and Dorian had brought the island back. The kisses and the hugs and the praise, they were unearned.

“Group hug? Without meeeeeeee???” Casper whined, before dashing over to Max and the kids, and throwing his arms around them to add them into the cuddle pile. He then gasped, as an idea occurred to him. “Wait! Babes! Do you think my dress is still here somewhere??” He’d process the trauma of this all later. For now, he was just so happy to have his family together and his home back - even Ben was struggling to be grumpy.

“Danni, kiddo, you gave us the best Christmas gift of all time,” Ben reassured, as he ruffled the hair of each kid. “I knew you kids were powerful but… I never imagined you were capable of all this.”

Danni did break into tears as Casper and James joined the hug pile, relief that they hadn't ruined Christmas making him sag against his parents. “W-we-we wanted ta te-tell you s-s-so ma-man-y times.” Danni sobbed out, still feeling a little small in the embrace. “It w-wa-was ju-just t'ere, wit’ t-t'e spa-pacey power. I just…” Danni took a few seconds to breath and collect himself, rubbing the tears off his own face and onto Max's shirt.

“T'e demicolon… No t'e whatever Wiccie is, we ‘ad all t'e power and just wanted ta get a big gift for Christmas and t'is was t'e biggest one we could t'ink of.”

James laughed and pressed a kiss to each of the kid's heads. “Well, it's an amazing gift and I think maybe it's time we get back home so we can give you yours. None of them are as big as an island, though.” James admitted sheepishly before pulling his husband into a kiss, Danni gagging. “Maybe it is. We can come back tomorrow and look for it.”

Dorian squeezed into the hug even tighter. Tears threatening to spill out from how happy he was that his parents did actually like their gift as relief washed over them that they did not in fact ruin Christmas. ”Oh! I'd almost forgotten we ‘adn't gotten ours yet! I can't wait to see what Santa brought!” He went to go open a portal as Max placed a hand over Dorian's to stop him.

Max laughed. ”I can take it from here.” He opened a portal back into their living room where enchanted snow fell, a Christmas tree was perfectly framed, and wrapped ups boxes were delicately placed around it.

For the next hour, the Kingston-Grays exchanged presents, as the fireplace roared, hot chocolate was shared, cookies consumed, photographs taken, and stories and squeals swapped. They drew lots for which one of the kids was Santa’s Helper this year - and St. Nick picked his strongest defender to be the one to distribute gifts (Casper, to his regret, had been deemed ineligible once the kids were old enough to participate). Dorian passed out the gifts one at a time, allowing the drama of the reveal, the ooo’s and ahh’s of admiration, and the conversation to continue to flow. And with the size of the family, this was by no means a short ordeal.

From Dorian, Danni received something he had always wanted and failed to find in the libraries of Margaret Carter - a book on dragon rearing, one that Amelie eyed with a look that clearly said chew toy? April gifted him a new stocking, intricately crocheted with his favorite colors, and HS embroidered on for HotShot. Santa left him instructions for the hot cocoa recipe from the Santa Clause movie. Pops surprised him with a new set of lenses for his Polaroid camera and film, as well as dragon themed slippers - which Amelie definitely was already drooling at the sight of, ready to gnaw on. Appa gave him tickets to see one of his favorite musicals on Broadway, Kinky Boots. And then from his Papa, a floor length mirror that allowed him to preview different outfits and styles. Lastly, his Pa gave him a gift that made Danni nearly burst into flames - a Vogue spread all about him - HotShot: The Boy on Fire.

As for Santa’s Helper, he also came away with a more than decent haul. April had made him a stocking as well, crocheted with purple yarn and embroidered with ghosts, designed to glow in the dark. A P for Poltergeist was stitched in as well. Danni gifted him a K-Pop themed horror board game, where you played as a stalked K-Pop idol, as well as a two sided locket - one frame featuring the family, the other with a thirst trap from Percy’s social media account. Papa gave him a vintage gaming console - a PlayStation 5 - complete with games that were almost impossible to find for it anymore. From Appa, Dorian received limited edition merchandise from one of his favorite K-Pop groups, as well as a signed poster. Pops gave him an antique silver pocket watch, Astral resistance training weights that made it more difficult to go ghost, as well as a new sharpening kit for his sword. And perhaps the most shocking gift of all, possibly as it technically involved kidnapping… A trip to the Himalayas to ski, unsupervised, for two nights, for Dorian and his boyfriend. There was also an odd note addressed to Dorian, sitting on top of a gift bizarrely addressed to Percy from Santa Claus. The note read simply: To my truest believer - you are welcome.

Dorian gifted April a punk rock patchwork jacket, where all of the patches were punk edits of Shark Girl - she squealed, immediately putting it on over her sweater, even though it was far too warm for it. Danni gave her Oceans, an oceanic survival board game, and a tiara - she removed the beanie and put the tiara on, squealing as she looked in her phone’s camera at how it looked, especially with the shorter hair. From Pops, she got a pair of heavy tread steel toe combat boots, a new wetsuit, and a quartz diving watch - the slippers were similarly shucked and replaced with the shoes. Appa gave her a new surfboard, with the Excelsior logo painted onto it, and her Pa got her a comb, enchanted to dye hair any color she could imagine. From Papa, a mirror like the one he gave to Danni, allowing her to try on new styles and aesthetics with ease. The last gift she opened was from Santa Claus - a pair of ice skates, with blue wave details and Cascade stitched onto the side.

The parents received gifts too, of course. April had made Appa a stocking with a soft pastel color-changing yarn, looking almost like water colors, with an R for Revenant stitched on. Danni gifted Ben a smart watch, preloaded with photos of Ben with each of the family members, and an alarm tone set with a prerecorded message of the family saying We love you, Appa! He immediately wept upon receiving it, mumbling something about allergies or dust in his eyes. Dorian hadn’t realized Danni was giving the parents presents beyond resurrecting the mutant nation of Genosha. Casper had gifted his foster sibling a series of books Ben had been wanting to read, while James continued to pull on the heartstrings, giving him a jigsaw puzzle. When assembled, this puzzle revealed a picture of the family all hugging Ben. He ugly cried into the silly socks James had thrown in as well, and sniffled through his thanks for the aftershave that matched his favorite cologne. Max, ever the romantic, gifted him a year long vacation for just the two of them.

As for Max, he received a set of five green books, embellished with gold, that detailed the myths and folklore of Ireland from Danni. April crocheted him a stocking with topaz yarn, with little arcane sigils meant for luck and protection embroidered into the work, and a W for Warlock to complete the project. Ben gifted his husband a collection of handwritten letters done in calligraphy and sealed in wax that he had written each week of the year for Max, detailing his love. Casper gave him a set of tickets for a viewing of a private collection of clothing from witches and other practitioners of the arcane to be held later in Salem that year. And from James, he received a shrunken head, a gold painite ring, and a definitely not stolen Macallan Fine & Rare 1926.

For James, Danni gave him a Guns & Roses record, signed by Izzy Stradlin. April crocheted him a green and soft yellow stocking, with tiny flowers embroidered along the sides, and a C for Caduceus. Max gave him coffee beans from an exclusive pre-release, whereas Ben gifted him a series of Lego kits, each larger and more complex than the ones before. As for Casper, his gift to his husband was a decoy, the true one too inappropriate to be opened in front of the children, so for now James received a custom calendar, each month a sexy photo of Casper, wearing the outfits he knew James loved the most (February was him as a nurse), chocolates, and a bouquet of fresh roses.

The last member of the Kingston-Grays, Casper, screamed with each gift he opened, loving them all more than he could have ever imagined, and being genuinely surprised. His darling son Danni custom bedazzled a pink 4 slice Smart waffle maker for him. April crocheted him an impossibly fuzzy soft pink stocking, with CC for Cassie Caskets in hot pink thread. Max gave him a jumbo snap hand, enchanted to never get dirty, lose its stickiness, or break - not to prevent Casper from breaking it, but from one of the family members “accidentally” destroying it. Ben gave him a year’s supply of makeup from his favorite line. And his loving husband, James, gave him a thigh length dress (he immediately wanted to go try it on), tickets to the Las Vegas EDM festival for the two of them, and a simple silver key. He gasped, holding up the key.

“What’s it for? Jaaaames you gotta tell me!!! Wait no, I wanna figure it out - ooo it’s like an escape room, right? I need to go find what this key is to and then I get another present?” he gasped, pulling James into a quick frenzy of kisses, before jumping out of his lap. “This is so cool!!!” he squealed, as he rushed off to try the key in every door he could think of.

“Wait, babes, no come ba- And he's gone.” James sighed, fondly shaking his head as Casper went wild with the key.

Camp Lava Lake

Friends- Best Friends

“Marco sweetheart, I am standing in front of my tools of war and we're justifying mattresses that are probably as old as the first murder at this camp? No, no, no. Let me bask in the glory of the end of life and my eventual conquering of this disgusting, wretched place and.. Oh, at least that's well polished. Hello there.” Aster turned his head this way and that in the distorted reflection in the bottom of the metal sink. It wasn't perfect but even in the hazy reflection, Aster felt the stress melt away as he watched the art in the sink: himself.

“What in the world would Em be- oh. Oh! You're talking about intimate things. I see. Well, you certainly have fun with that. I will be tucked away, dreaming of beaches and massages.” Aster dismissed the idea of Marco and Em stumbling around in the underbrush. “A snack? That boy is practically feral! He thought Zeke was cheating on him with me, even though they hadn't said anything about being exclusive, but of course I stared at him like the child he was and that mollified him. Strange creatures, these people.”

Aster hopped around, peaking over Marco's shoulder and looping him into a loose hug. “Over easy with cayenne pepper. You don't think Dobbs will get us caviar? I would die for some and maybe a little non-alcoholic champagne. We could do mimosas one morning if we could wiggle out some OJ.”

Marco chuckled softly and rolled his eyes at Aster’s antics. It seemed that he was back to his usual self at that point, just a little bit. He hadn’t been trying to justify why the mattresses were old and sad, mostly just explaining.

”You can dream of your beaches and massages, but I’ll be here, with Em.” He chuckled at that and looked over at Aster as he said that the Dark haired boy, Demi, was practically feral. ”Well then, as I said, if they just got together, I’m not gonna bother.”

Marco heard Aster’s order and relaxed against him a bit. ”Over easy then, with cayenne. And I doubt he’d get us caviar. That might be too expensive. But some good steak, maybe some nice cheeses, and fresh vegetables and fruit. At least for the week.” He chuckled more as he turned to grab the cayenne pepper.

“Uncultured. Dobbs doesn't know what he's missing out. At least we can get steak.” Aster sniffed, stepping out of Marco's way as he reached for Aster's cayenne and hopped up to sit on a counter. “I just can't understand why people find these activities fun. Man invented air conditioning for a reason and insect nets for another. Is running around, tearing your clothes, getting dirt all over, and then barely having adequate facilities really all that fun?” Aster sighed dejectedly, but shook it off.

“Okay, last of my complaints. For now. At least they have a decent water sports area it seems. I can't wait to get on the lake; we just have to get this cabin suitable for habitation first.” Aster looked out past the kitchen door. “Now, you and Em I know, feral cat and golden retriever I am acquainted with, which leaves us Jennifer. Do we know anything about her or just that she is attached to the two animals? ]

”Jennifer, there’s no… Oh. You mean Nancy, huh? …Where on Earth did you pull out Jennifer, Aster?” Marco raised his brow as he dashed the pepper onto the eggs, while moving to flip the toast and bacon. He was keeping an eye on the other eggs he had cooking, pretty sure the meal would be ready soon. He flipped on the warmer section of the griddle, and started to move some of the bacon over there and covered them with a metal bowl.

”She seems to have a medical condition, and is more withdrawn, but I think Em and her are getting along so far. I’d like to get to know her better, but I did volunteer to make breakfast.” Marco chuckled softly and then looked back up at Aster again.

”Now, when you say get out on the lake, in what way? Canoes? You?”

“Nancy? Strange - Jennifer feels much more appropriate. It's the cheeks. What Nancy do you know with those cheek bones? None, right?” Aster dismissed the question. He eyed the food, wondering if he could snatch some without burning himself. “Oh, no. If I want to canoe, then I'll have someone paddle for me. I mean swimming. The walk was fine and all, but I certainly want to get my laps in. Just because we're locked away in this torture camp doesn't mean we have to let ourselves go. And I'm sure Dobbs can't complain - I'll just be making sure it's safe and clear of hazards and all that.” Aster hopped down and edged closer to the griddle, waiting for Marco to lift the bowl so he can snatch up a piece of bacon.

”Ah, of course… gotta keep in shape. I’m sure that we’ll be going on plenty of hikes as it is, but I’m sure that you can volunteer to keep an eye on the swimming campers if you want to keep that swimmer’s body.” Marco looked over as Aster seemed to move in closer and raised a brow. ”Now Aster, did you come to talk or are you trying to sneak some food. Because you know you could ask, dear.” Marco reached over to the bowl and fished out a piece of the finished bacon and handed it to Aster. “I just made a bunch so I could save some for lunch.”

“Now, why can't I do both? I'm quite capable of multitasking. Have I told you you're my second favorite yet? After myself of course.” Aster accepted the bacon, popped it in his mouth, moaned appreciatively, and washed his hands. “Normally, I wouldn't eat something so greasy but the stress from today is just ugh. And of course I'm taking those brats out on the water - at least that way I can have a halfway decent view. It might not be a mirror, but at least I can still see myself whenever. I'm sure I'll need it when those idiots try to drown themselves. Aster paused for a moment and looked at Marco suspiciously.

“Are you going to have a child one day, Marco?”

Marco raised his brow and looked at Aster. ”Child? Me? Maybe? That is more for whomever I’m with at the time to decide. But that’s a future thing. Right now I want to focus on finishing school, if they even let me back. I mean a little mini Em would be adorable, but that’s something we’d have to talk about. Why do you ask?”

“Because children are gross and we've never discussed it. I don't know your stance on them - I was hoping for a scorched earth policy here, but I supposed you have a soft heart.” Aster sighed. “I suppose you'll want to play nice with the campers then rather than reminding them how inferior they are to us.”

”I mean… Aster, you do remember how I grew up, right? I’m not one to think of myself as superior to anyone that can afford to go to camp, even one like this.” Marco sighed as he turned to the oven and fished the quiches out of them. As much as Marco did like Aster, he thought sometimes that Aster did forget that Marco really wasn’t from the same economic background as him. ”But, I will be playing nice. What you do with them, that is up to you.”

“Yes, yes. A tragic tale of economic misfortune and all that. But now you're associated with me and that means you are immediately better than the plebeians chaining us to this place.” Aster waved away the judgement in Marco's sigh. “I have reached my limit of selflessness for the year - the golden retriever is enough effort for this trip and it will take everything in me not to let these campers drown. I can't be expected to better another person's life beyond my presence.”

Marco gently set the quiche down and started to let them cool, as he checked the food on the flattop. ”Well, I’m sure you won’t let them down, and that’s all they can ask you to do~ For now, I think the food is almost ready.”

“I'm nearly afraid to ask what they expect us to use as plates - half of me expects us to have to hold it all in hand. I'll set the table while you finish up. I doubt anyone here knows what a proper table setting is.” Aster sighed dejectedly, hopping around the kitchen to salvage something functional to serve with. Aster pulled open cabinets, drawers, and anything else he could open until he slammed one shut, trying to keep himself from gagging. He took a few steadying breaths and gingerly opened it. Inside, he found a small stack of paper plates that had been opened recently, and some plastic plates that… Aster held them with the tips of his fingers and dropped them into the trash as quickly as he could. “Well, paper will have to do I guess. Dobbs here really wants us to figure out everything, hm? Barely even basics.” Aster grumbled and deposited the paper plates next to Marco, moving to plop everything else he’d scrounged up in the sink. The faucet spat for a few seconds as water pushed through and he quickly set to work scrubbing out the dust and gunk built up inside.

“This is the saddest excuse for a table setting in my life.” Aster complained. The mismatch made his skin crawl and plastic cutlery made him want to die. Everything was disgusting, the place was awful, and he was not looking forward to insects and frogs or whatever else screamed in the middle of the night disturbing him along with the nighttime antics his fellow inmates would be doing. Aster put a little more effort into scrubbing, sniffling as he blinked back tears and his throat felt a little tight.

Marco looked over at Aster, and then put everything on the warmer parts, and then turned all the burners off and walked over and hugged Aster from behind. ”I’m sure we can ask Dobbs for nicer plates later. C’mon… let’s get some food in you. I know paper plates are not your thing, but it’s been a big morning already. I’ll clean up the dishes and get them nice and clean later.”

“Just… barely treating us like people, nothing is habitable, everything is awful. At least you're here.” Aster whined, turning around once the cups were clean and dry, resting his head on Marco's shoulder. “This is just so- so- so dumb! I just don't understand why people think this is- Ugh, this is stupid and inhumane and gross! I just hate it, I hate this, I hate it all! The only good thing is you and Em are here so I won't be completely miserable and-” Aster gave himself the moment to cry and then stopped. One last sniffle and it was like he'd never been upset. The confidence was back in full force and just a little redness around the eyes gave away that he'd been upset at all.

“Okay, that's enough of that! Let's feed the peons and get them on their way. Then, I can actually get the cabin cleaned up and maybe that'll make this place less awful.”

Marco didn’t want to point out the obvious. This wasn’t supposed to be a good time. They were all here as punishments for crimes. So of course they were barely people to someone like Dobbs, or the cops. But he wasn’t going to remind Aster of that for the moment. ”Alright then. You go sit down, I’ll serve up. And call in the others. And Aster, if I’m in the kitchen, it’s always open.” He offered his friend a small smile before going out to the patio and ringing the bell to call everyone in. Since there weren't any real serving plates cleaned up yet, everyone could be served in the kitchen.

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

---

---

---

---

April yawned, her hair pulled back in messy braids as she shuffled her way down the stairs. It was barely six o’clock in the morning, and she was still dressed in her old Harry Simmons concert tee, Shark Girl pajama bottoms, pink frog slippers, and glasses. Her only plan for the day was the most important one - to drink her weight in coffee. Everything had been so chaotic and stressful lately, between Arcade’s betrayal, her suicide attempt and stay at C.A.G.E., Nemo’s death, and the Contest of Champions. She’d barely had a moment to catch her breath. So instead of scheduling out every minute of her day, she was just going to vibe and see where her mood took her - maybe she’d go to the library and find some new books, maybe she’d continue to crochet presents, maybe she’d go for a swim, or maybe she’d watch terrible Christmas movies and eat way too much chocolate.

As she made her way into the kitchen, she saw that she wasn’t the only one up this early - and that the coffee was already brewing. “Have I told you that you’re in my top four favorite dads?” April squealed, as she threw her hands around James’ shoulders, and gave him a quick hug. She opened up the nearest counter and stood up on the tips of her toes, straining a bit to reach until she snatched out her mug. It was from a trip she’d taken on her first birthday with the Kingston-Grays, where they had visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

James let out a soft oof as the patter of feet and a sudden weight on his back broke the morning stillness. James laughed under his breath, not disturbing the softness that the early mornings blanketed the house in, just a smidge on the cold side so that Max's enchanted snow didn't melt immediately, and reached up to help April get her mug. He caught the handle with his pinkie finger and offered it to her. “And you're in my top three favorite children, so I guess we're on the same page.” James teased back, an arm around her shoulders to bring her into a tight squeeze before he was pulling out his own mug.

“You're up early. You sleep okay?” James asked, the back of his hand against her forehead to feel her temperature.

“Thanks, Pops!” She was the shortest in the household by several inches - and even with the mugs on the bottom shelf, it could be a bit of a struggle to reach them. She snuggled into his hug, letting her head rest on his chest. April scrunched up her nose slightly as he felt her temperature - she didn’t really mind it, but she was a teenager and had to protest at least slightly. “I’m fiiiiiine,” she protested. “I don’t sleep in as much as Danni,” she stuck her tongue out a bit.

“Mhm.” James, satisfied with what he found, pulled his hand back and instead ruffled her hair. “The only person who sleeps more than Danni is your Papa, that's true.” James shook his head fondly, eyes drawn back to the coffee machine as it beeped. He let April go, snagging both their coffee mugs and pouring coffee. “Whatcha got going on today? Racing off anywhere right now or you got some time to hang out with your old man?”

April shrugged. “I was thinking I was going to chill today and do… I dunno. But I guess I can hang with Papa when he wakes up,” she giggled, before nodding. “Whatcha wanna do? I was thinking maybe watching movies and eating a bunch of chocolate? I probably burned like… a million calories in the contest, gotta replenish.”

“Yeah, a movie before everyone gets up sounds good. Let's head to the living room; I'll bring the coffee.” James filled his to the brim, nothing in it, and he poured April's just past halfway - cream and sugar filling the rest. James picked the two mugs up and followed April out of the kitchen, placing them down neatly with coasters on the coffee table before he settled into his corner of the couch. “Pick one out and we'll have an easy morning in, yeah?”

“A Knight For Christmas?” she asked immediately. It was predictable trash, but still warm and comforting. And she could’ve sworn that the lead actor in it was Pa’s long lost twin brother. She popped the movie in, before opening up the ottoman and grabbing her favorite two or three blankets from in there. She’d learned this sort of nesting behavior pretty soon after meeting her family, and she tossed the blankets onto the couch, before flopping down next to James and getting settled. Was she liable to fall asleep? Sure. But it had been ages since she’d had a quiet moment with her Pops and a cuddle and a movie sounded amazing right now.

James threw his arm along the back of the sofa as April flopped onto the couch and got comfortable. Whether it was Casper or one of the kids, James was used to settling into this position for long hours. James let his arm drape across April’s shoulders once she settled instead and he laughed as the title screen popped up. They always joked that one of the characters looked just like Max, even though he denied it until his last breath. Casper had brought up the clone idea and James had very quickly shut that down - he didn't know which one of his overactive children would want to investigate but he wasn't going to let that happen. It was a familiar movie, so James turned the volume down a little so it'd be back ground noise.

“So catch me up with life, kiddo. You had a crazy semester. How you feelin’?”

“Honestly, I feel really, really good,” April leaned forward for a second, grabbing her mug and taking a sip of her coffee - it was just the way she liked it, almost purely sugar and cream - before setting it back down. “Like kinda night and day, y’know? Just - we won the Contest, aced all our classes, and now I just get to vibe and not stress about stuff. Yeah, a bunch of bad stuff happened but… I dunno. Is it weird that I feel kinda incredible?” The meds were getting better, too. The tremors in her hands had mostly settled out. And she was going to get to see her old therapist again, someone she was really comfortable with. For the moment, she felt in control.

James nodded along and offered a thoughtful hum. “Yeah, that does sound pretty good. But I'm a little concerned. I mean, a near death experience into a complicated relationship into the Contest, making out with your ex on the global stage and then flirting with a new girl barely six hours later? It seems a little much for your normal, kiddo.” James offered softly, squeezing her into a hug for a moment. “You've been through a lot, especially with your trip to C.A.G.E. and a hard conversation with Vicky in the friend group during that bad time period, it's okay to be a little off balance. And I think your upswing might be a little too aggressive, kiddo. Its feeling a little manic. What do you think?”]

She squirmed slightly, her face turning red as James listed out a summary of the last few weeks - and it didn’t even include everything she’d done. She’d kissed Sabine twice after they’d broken up. And if she were to be completely honest with herself, as much as the Hex Girls had been a struggle to fight, she would have kissed any of them if they’d asked her. She knew what depression felt like - knew now how to identify that deep sorrow and some strategies to manage it. But they hadn’t really talked about the manic half of being bipolar when she worked with Dr. Whitehall at C.A.G.E. “I don’t know why I kissed her twice… It just felt right in the moment?” she bit her lip. “I don’t even like her that way anymore… Um. But… how would I know what mania feels like?” she asked him. “I just - I just feel really good. Isn’t that good that I’m not feeling sad anymore or thinking about… you know…?”

“It's definitely better than dwelling on all those things but-” James blinked as exactly what April said settled over him. Twice, okay. Maybe more of their kids took after Casper than he thought. “But I think that if you were a little leveled out, you probably wouldn't be making some of these decisions, yeah? I don't know what mania feels like but I do know it still affects your judgment making skills and that's fine, we just have to make sure you can stay safe while you're navigating this part of your life and your identity you know?” James couldn't let it pass by though.

“And twice? You're going to make your Papa proud with that.” James laughed.

Her face was positively crimson at the last comment. She didn’t know all of the details of her Papa’s past, but she knew that he slept around a lot before meeting Pops. Was she being slutty…? She’d never had sex before. Dorian was the one who fucked his boyfriend every minute that he could. But… if she were being honest with herself, the urge she had to kiss girls - and maybe even a little more - had skyrocketed over the past few days. “It’s just kissing!” April protested.

But there was something else that stuck with her - what James had said about navigating her identity. She peeked out at him for a moment, taking her gaze away from the movie - even though it was at her favorite part, where Sir Cole met the Old Crone. “Pops what if… what if I’m like Papa in another way, too?” she asked tentatively.

James pressed an apologetic kiss on his daughter's head, even as he was still laughing. James made a mental note to have Casper give April the talk again. If his daughter is starting to be more active in exploring that side of relationships, James wanted to make sure she was as prepared as possible and Casper had the most experience with all of the extremes. “Well, I think that's just fine. Your Papa does have me wrapped around his fingers after all.” James reassured her. “But what's on your mind? Your Papa's a lot of things so you'll have to be a little more specific.”

April pulled the blanket over her head, so that way she wouldn’t have to watch James’ reaction. It was something that had been on her mind for the past few days, something she hadn’t really admitted to herself, just considered as a possibility. But snuggled up with her Pops, she felt safe enough to at least pose the question. “What if I’m not a girl, Pops?” she whispered. Her heart started beating thunderously fast.

James let April hide herself away for the moment. He let her question hang in the air a moment and forced himself not to rush and reassure her. This was clearly something weighing on her, even if he himself thought it wasn't a particularly big deal, so he gave it some more thought. “Then, you aren't a girl. Gender and how we express it isn't a big deal - I mean, your Papa doesn't even answer the question anymore if someone asks. He just tells them how long he tapped dance on my nerves. And both your brother and your Papa wear whatever they want, even if we do have to remind them that means underwear too. So if you aren't a girl, then you aren't a girl, kiddo. Girl or not, you're still my kid.”

She poked her head back out from under the blanket, holding back tears. It felt silly to her - Pops was right, she knew that her Papa didn’t have a concrete gender and Danni never passed up on a chance to wear a skirt or a dress - but she still had been terrified at the idea of it. Coming to terms with being a lesbian had been easier, almost a foregone conclusion. Everyone in this house was gay. But the gender of it all was harder - she didn’t understand, really, what it felt like to be a girl. She didn’t know that not everyone hated the way they looked in the mirror, that not everyone felt like tearing their own skin off, that not everyone felt trapped in their body. It was a way she’d felt for as long as she could remember, even back when she was little, living with her grandmother.

“I don’t think I’m a girl,” April said slowly. “I don’t… I don’t like my body, Pops. It doesn’t feel like it’s mine. I look in the mirror and I don’t recognize the person looking back at me. I don’t even know if I like my clothes. I… I thought that was how everyone felt but… it isn’t, is it?”

James let out a sympathetic noise and pulled April a little closer. “I'm sorry you're going through this kiddo and that we didn't know to be there for you. I can't say that I've experienced that but it doesn't mean I can't support you in whatever healthy way you choose to make your reality come true. Thankfully, there are lots of ways to make who you're seeing in the mirror fit what you're feeling inside; clothes, make-up, surgery, magic - we have all sorts of options to explore and some of them are more intense and need some discussion, but whatever you need, we're going to help you feel good in your skin again, okay?”

She shook her head slightly. She hadn’t let them be there for her. It was one of the lessons she’d learned in C.A.G.E. - that hiding it only made it worse and made it so her family couldn’t help. How could they have known if she didn’t tell them? But she cuddled closer to her Pops, the sniffles turning into tears. She nodded. Magic was an easy solution but… it scared her, too. What if she got it wrong again? What if she chose surgery and then realized her body still didn’t feel right? “After the movie… could we try some clothes, maybe? I don’t - I don’t know if I know what it feels like to be a boy either, but… maybe it would feel better.”

“Of course. If you want, we can pop out into New Orleans proper and do some shopping around if you want to try on some newer stuff or we can get your Pa to copy over some of your brother's clothes so they fit you. You think about it and let me know.” James paused. He knew there was something he'd been missing. “And since everything has been a little big and overwhelming this semester, the rest of your fathers and I decided that it's best for you to spend some time at home with the family. If only to get a break from everything and focus on yourself for a bit, okay? You'll be able to go around New Orleans just fine, but anything further than that is off limits until you're back at school. That's not because you're in trouble or we're upset; we just want to make sure we can smother you with love until you have a little bit to bring with you to school, okay?” James hadn't wanted the kids to go to superhero school in the first place and this only made him feel that stronger. Yes, they won the championship but what did they suffer to reach that?

“Y-yeah, can… can Papa come too?” she asked. She wasn’t as fashionable as Papa or Danni - although as soon as she asked, she realized that meant they wouldn’t be going until the evening. “Or maybe Pa?” He would be awake. He used to be a model. Maybe he’d have some ideas. She was pretty certain that James knew as much about fashion as she did.

Her ears burned a little bit at the news that she was grounded. She wasn’t exactly surprised - it had been weeks since Arcade (where they definitely had been grounded) and CAGE (where she’d had to beg them not to pull her from school immediately). She’d probably given all of her fathers grey hair, had Pops not kept them from aging. “… I’m not going to be able to convince you otherwise, am I?” she pouted.

“Of course they can. We can bring all the parents if you want.” James agreed easily. He laughed at her last question. “Well, you should thank your Papa and Pa. If it was up to me, it would have just been the French Quarter so I've already compromised for you. Definitely not budging any further, kiddo.”

She glanced down at her hands for a moment, a sudden wave of guilt hitting her. “... I’m sorry for scaring you so much lately…” She bit her lip again, and tried to blink away the fresh wave of tears hitting her. “I didn’t mean to.”

“It's okay, sweetheart. You got a lot going on in that head of yours.” James reassured her, keeping her close. “But we're getting you the support you need to make it so you can make it through without scares like that. And being a parent means we do nothing but worry about our kids. You're going to be 62 and I'm still going to worry about how you're eating and if you're going outside enough and all that. You're stuck with that forever, kiddo. Ain't going away any time soon.”

April really didn’t want to cry again. She felt like all she did some days was cry. But it still meant the world to her every time she heard that Pops and her other dads weren’t going anywhere. She didn’t remember her birth parents, but she remembered her grandma - and remembered the pain of losing her. James was something constant, something she couldn’t lose. So a fresh wave of tears hit her as she hugged her dad tighter, completely missing the scene where Sir Cole was hit by a car. “This is top tier dad behavior,” she sniffled, trying her best to lighten the mood a little bit, so she could stop crying. “I love you, Pops.”

“I love you too, kiddo.” James accepted the affection easily. “Just remember that the next time I tell you you can't stay out late: Top tier dad behavior and all that.”

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

Danni Kingston

---

Location: Court of Two Sisters
Skills: Dance

---

---

“Noooooope, didn't know ‘im at all! ‘e was flirty t'ough, it was fun!” Danni laughed as Eli caught him again. “And ‘e said we could ‘an'out too! We're gunna do a spa day; ‘e said we'd ‘ave ta find out if ‘e likes t'e sauna but I def wanna go relax t'ere so it'll be an excitin’ experience! ‘e can find out if ‘e likes saunas and I can relax in t'e ‘eat! I also told ‘im I'll put my army of creams and staff ta work for ‘im and ‘e seemed ta like t'at! ‘onestly, wit’ ‘ow tough Spicy was on ‘im, I t'oight ‘e'd be worse!”

With the music loud and friends all around, Danni couldn't think of a better end to everything they'd gone through. Arcade, Halloween, C.A.G.E., the Contest, and his baby girl Amélie, Danni couldn't help the bubbly feeling come up and out and he laughed as he spun around the dance floor for the rest of the evening, swapping partners until the music stopped and he nodded off, nearly face first in a bowl of gumbo, only to be carried back home and tucked into bed by an amused James.

Camp Lava Lake

---

---

---

Location: Camp Lava Lake Campground
Skills: N/A
Outfit: Outfit

---

---

By the time Aster was able to respond to Zeke, he'd been pulled outside by the buffoon of a boyfriend. Aster shrugged, the nuisance out of his hair for at least a moment. He shoved everything back in the closet - he'd grab it back on his way back over - and shut the door as the fools wandered back in, people from the HAM radio in tow. “Yes, the cabin is open but I would find a more suitable place to place it. I'm certain the vermin in sewers have better accommodations. And, for your own health, do not touch the mattresses. I'm still looking for anything to actually clean with and I can guarantee your safety in their current conditin.” Aster sniffed, cutting in for Zeke, and whirled on his heel to bother Macro in the kitchen.

The smell of food frying was a welcomed surprise and Aster sighed as he pushed open the doors. “Marco darling, light of my life, apple of my heart, you will.not believe how atrocious this place is. The mattresses are basically a grilled cheese sandwich and ick is the filling. I think there are rat droppings under the beds and Zeke nearly made me put my suitcases on the floor. Can you believe that? Now, they don't have anything but a questionable spray bottle, a mop, and that's basically it!” Aster complained, propping an arm on Marco's shoulder to see what he was cooking. “Though, you should be proud of me. The stench of insecurity from those two has been cleared. I gifted Zeke the wisdom of my confidence and he got his man, though I certainly question his taste. I have done my good deed for the day and I am exhausted. How do the masses do this every day?”

That was when Aster saw it. A non-descript little cabinet under the sink. Aster gasped and bolted for it, throwing it open, and nearly sobbed with relief. Floor cleaner, glass cleaner, and rags all neatly wrapped up in plastic. Aster spun and broke into an energetic victory dance.