#=[Shot.Thru.The.Heart]=

[coyotescribbles]

In which Billy is not, actually, a total goofball.

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Almost hesitantly, Billy raised his hand to knock at the door. For a split second, he paused, second-guessing himself… then he knocked.

And then he waited, fidgeting nervously.

This was a bad idea, he thought. This was a bad idea, this was a bad idea, this was a bad idea…

There was a rustling from the other side of the door, then the clatter of locks unlocking, and a moment later Dandelion was peering under the deadbolt chain and around the door at him.

"Uhhh, Dandie, hi!" He said, maybe a little too energetically, chuckling anxiously as he ran a hand through his hair - and trying to peek past the kid into the apartment. "Iiiiis your sister home? I kinda need to talk to her about something. It's important."

Wordlessly, she stuck her hand out with a "pay up" gesture, her expression carefully neutral.

"What?! Really? C'monnnn…! After we had that little heart-to-heart and everything?"

"Yep."

"Rude," Billy scoffed, patting at his jacket pockets until he found his spare dennies. Fishing one out, he dropped it into the waiting palm. "This is extortion, just so you know."

"Mmhmm." Once the money was in her hand, she snatched it back, stuffing it into her own pocket. "Rose has been up on the roof all afternoon. She's not really in a good mood right now."

"Oh. Uh. Do you - is something wrong?"

"No," Dandie sighed, "today is just a bad day. Good luck navigating that!"

Then, before he could ask what she meant about that, she closed the door, and he heard the lock clicking shut with a finality that he knew there would be no arguing with.

Turning away with a sigh, Billy headed for the stairs and took them two at a time until he reached the maintenance door at the top.

And he hesitated again, mid-reaching for the handle.

If Rose is in a bad mood, will she even want to see me? His shoulders sagged as the thought crossed his mind. What if I just make things worse?

His hand fell back to his side.

I seem to be pretty good at that lately…

He couldn't help lingering for a few moments, straining his audio receivers as if trying to hear something, anything on the other side of that door… but he eventually found himself turning away again, trudging back down the stairs until he was down at street level again.

Casting one last, sad glance up at the building's roof - so close, so far - Billy jammed his hands into his jacket pockets and set off towards Sixth Street.

Nicole was never going to let him hear the end of this.

He lifted one hand to drag it down his faceplate as he wove his way through the crowd. "Stupid, stupid, stupid, what was I even thinking-"

And then he stopped short - so short that someone behind him ran right into him.

"Sorry - sorry, excuse me! Sorry!" He apologized profusely as he scrambled across the crowded street - and slammed his palms down on the noodle shop's counter. "General Chop! You're exactly who I needed to see just now!"

The startled oni nearly dropped the noodles he was stretching out, but he still managed to greet Billy with a welcoming grin. "That so? What can I do for ya, kid?"

"I need an order of, uh," he faltered for a second, snapping his fingers as he struggled to remember the name of the dish; "crispy catfish shoryu ramen! That's the one! And a sweet and sour chicken with extra pineapple! To go, please!"

"Tryin' to impress somebody, huh?" Chop laughed. "One spicy catfish and one sweet and sour chicken, Comin' right up!"

"Ahh, I'm just trying to be helpful." Billy parked himself on one of the barstools, swiveling back and forth as he watched and waited. "I just can't stand seeing any of my girls sad, y'know?"

"Hah! I know that feelin' aaaall too well. Those gals are lucky to have a friend like you."

"You think so? Ah, shucks."

Before he knew it, both noodle orders were done, boxed up, and bundled into separate bags, at his request. Fishing out his wallet, he paid with his debit card, making sure to leave a generous tip before thanking the chef and hurrying off.

His next stop was the nearby convenience store, where he picked up drinks - melon cream soda for Dandelion, green tea for Rose - and two slices of cherry blossom cheesecake.

And then he was off, sprinting back towards the little apartment building with his arms full of food, weaving and dodging around slower pedestrians with a stream of "excuse me"s and apologies until he reached the door, shouldered it open, and bolted up the first three flights of stairs. Sliding to a halt in front of 301, he knocked urgently at the door - then barely waited for Dandelion to open it before depositing her half of the dinner order into her arms.

"Enjoy your noodles, kiddo!" He ruffled her curly hair with his free hand, then started back towards the stairwell again without waiting for a response.

This time, Billy took the stairs four at a time, his surroundings briefly turning to a blur as he raced up five more flights, then stopped short at the door to the roof.

"Okay," he breathed, combing his fingers through his hair and straightening his jacket; "okay, be cool, it's just Rose, just be cool…"

He rapped firmly on the door, then pushed it open and ducked through the frame. Gravel crunched beneath his sneakers… and a weary-looking Rose looked up from where she sat against the street-side wall, her guns laid out around her on a spread-out blanket in various states of disassembly.

"Roof service!" He announced with a laugh, giving the bag a jostle before holding it out to her. "Dandie said you'd been up here all day, so I thought you could use a lunch break. And before you ask, don't worry, I made sure she got some dinner, too."

"Billy, I can't-"

"Hey, don't worry about it, okay? We got paid pretty well today, and what am I gonna spend all those dennies on? Another Starlight Knights comic? Hah!" His laugh was self-conscious, though, as he sat down beside her, leaving a bit of space so she wouldn't feel crowded and watching her from the corner of his optic. Drawing his knees up a bit, he rested his arms across them and leaned back against the wall with a long sigh; the cinderblock was still warm from the waning sun.

For a moment, they sat in silence, until the rustle of plastic reached his audio receivers, followed by the barely-audible pop of the noodle container opening.

"…You remembered my favorite…" Rose almost laughed, but there was a slight tremor to her voice that pierced through his mechanical heart.

"What can I say? I'm not a total ditz," he smiled, before letting his tone grow serious. "Dandelion said you weren't having a good day. She didn't give out any details, but… well, she didn't have to. I just wanted to cheer you up."

"…Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

For what felt like a long time, they once more sat together in silence, with Rose taking her time with her dinner as the sun slowly sank below the horizon and the ambient sounds of the street below drifted up to them.

"So…" He finally spoke up, his voice taking on a teasing tone, "did I do a good job?"

She snorted out a soft laugh around her last mouthful of noodles, somehow managing to avoid inhaling any as she swallowed them down and set the empty container on the blanket beside her.

"Yeah," she said quietly, scrubbing at her eyes with the back of her hand and stifling a sniffle as she picked up the cheesecake and retrieved the chopsticks. "Yeah, you did a good job. Thanks, again."

"Anytime. Are you gonna need a hand with your guns?"

"No, thank you. I prefer to do all the maintenance work myself."

"I get it, I'm the same way with my girls. Thought I'd ask, though, just to be safe."

"I appreciate it."

The sky continued to darken overhead. Soon, the automatic light beside the door flickered on, bathing the rooftop in a sallow yellow light. Billy sat quietly, looking up at the stars as Rose returned to reassembling her guns, letting her work without distraction.

She had obviously been doing this for a long time; she barely even seemed to need the light.

Somehow, that only made him like her more.

Eventually, though…

"…So… do you wanna talk about it?"

She paused, not looking up. "Talk about what?"

"What's been bothering you all day. You don't have to, but… I've heard it helps. Y'know, from Nicole."

Another long silence stretched between them, and for a moment Billy wondered if he'd overstepped… Then Rose set her rifle aside, leaned forward, and buried her face in her hands. Her ears were plastered tight to her head, her breath was hitching, her shoulders trembled, and he could tell that she was putting every last ounce of self-control that she had into holding it all back.

"Ten. Years. Exactly." She finally choked out in a cracking voice. "I lost everything today… except my sisters… Our mom and dad, all my friends, everyone I ever knew, all the plans I had for my future… Just. Gone. All in the time it took to blink. And it's not fair."

Tentatively, Billy scooted closer and reached out to rest a hand on her back; when she didn't pull away, he began to rub in small circles between her shoulders.

That seemed to be all that was needed for the floodgates to slam open, unleashing a deluge of tears and bitter sobs.

And all he could do was let her cry.

"…No, it's not fair," he said quietly, "but I think what you've done is amazing. I mean, there aren't a whole lot of people out there who could pull themselves together to take care of four whole kids after something like that, and have them all turn out so… normal. Even Dandelion."

The sound Rose made at that was somewhere between a sob and a strangled laugh.

"And you're good at Hollow diving. You're so good you even got a license! Nicole doesn't even have a license, we just kinda wing it and try to avoid PubSec on our way out. You might be scared going in, but you never let that get in the way of getting your job done. Do you know how awesome that is?"

"I just wanted to be normal… I never wanted to be awesome…"

"That just means you deserve it even more." The faintest hint of a smile crept into his voice. "And, y'know… on days when you're not feeling awesome, you can always call us Cunning Hares for an assist."

He wanted to add an "especially me" to the end, but he also didn't want to push his luck.

"I mean that," he continued. "Anytime, any reason. You have Nicole's number, and mine. You can call us anytime things start to feel like they're too much, okay?"

[coyotedraws]

Close your eyes and leave it all behind Go where love is on our side It's a trust fall, baby It's a trust fall, baby You and I, and everyone alive We can run into the fire It's a trust fall, baby Yeah, it's a trust fall, baby

What if we just fall?

[dancing-coyote]

Not me thinking about Rose biting some goon's fingers off because they carelessly didn't consider the fact that a canine thiren has a full set of shearing teeth and an animalistic willingness to use them.

[coyotedraws]

It's a trust fall, baby

[coyotescribbles]

"She wasn't always like this, you know."

"Huh?"

"Mmh." Dandie clasped her hands behind her head and looked up at the sky. "She used to laugh and smile more, when I was little. She was happier back then, I think."

She paused for a moment, then, "…before she had to take care of us."

"What happened, exactly? No, wait - you're not gonna charge me for this, are you?"

"No." She was suddenly deadly serious. "Because if you're really interested in Rose, this is something you're gonna need to know. It's important."

With a sigh, she turned and hopped up onto the retaining wall, perching there with her legs dangling over the edge. Billy hesitated, then sat beside her, resting his elbows on his knees as he waited to hear what she was going to say.

"…When I was little, maybe five or six, we lived… somewhere else. Not New Eridu, but a little village out in the country. I don't remember it very well, but it was - I think it was nice."

The heels of her sneakers beat an unsteady rhythm against the brick as she kicked her feet, looking up at the clouds.

"…And then, one day, it just wasn't there anymore. It got swallowed up by a hollow, the whole thing. All I remember is, one minute, Rose was talking to mom and dad and so excited about being accepted into college, and then the next… it was like the world turned inside-out. I was too scared to remember everything that happened next, just that Rose managed to get us out. Just… that we were the only ones who made it out."

"Oh…"

"Yeah…" Dandie looked down again, as if studying the sidewalk would give her the answers she needed to fill in the gaps. "She had to drop out of college before she even started, so that she could take care of us and we wouldn't get split up into different foster homes. She never complains about it, but… I think sometimes she resents it, a little, having to give up ten years of her life like that…"

Then, like the shifting of the breeze, she perked up again, her white curls bouncing as she grinned and sat up straighter.

"But ever since she met you, she smiles more! I even heard her laugh the other night! Like, really laugh! She might try to act like she doesn't like you like that, but she doesn't seem as sad anymore, or as scared when she has to go into a hollow for a commission! I think - I think maybe you're just what she needs!" The kid's grin could have lit up a city block, and his motor stuttered.

So Rose DID like him!

Then Dandie's fist hit his shoulder in a playful punch, and she was hopping back down to the sidewalk and running off.

"So don't screw it up!" She called back over her shoulder, before disappearing around the corner.

[dancing-coyote]

On a lighter note...

I'm stuck with the mental image of Dandelion having breakfast one morning, when Rose gets a text from Billy.

And Dandie notices that her sister's ears are perked up for the first time in YEARS.

Cue the mad scramble to grab her own phone, snap a photo, and post it to the family group chat with a triumphant "WE HAVE EARS UP"

[dancing-coyote]

Well dammit, looks like I'm changing up some ship/OC tags, making some new ones, and making a tidy list of all of them. Even the ones I haven't used yet =u=

...I'll track down and edit things to include the new/changed tags later though.

=[Sol.et.Luna]= (Corona/Umbra)

=[Menage.a.Troi]= (Azrael/Thrust/Jetstorm)

=[Ignis.Regius]= (Predaking/Pyroclast) (The "Predaclast" tag will remain, too)

=[The Big Dumb Alien Robot Polycule]= (Ruby/Miscreant/Maelstrom/Sandstorm/Piledriver/Sometimes Mallory and/or Rally/Everyone that Miscreant flirts with)

=[Love Me Harder]= (Grace/Jerome)

=[Fractis.Gladii]= (Grace/Khyl)

=[Ferox.Amor]= (Jeannie/Hunter)

=[Shot.Thru.The.Heart]= (Billy Kid/Rose Wilder)

=[Lucky.Call]= (Felicity Faustus/Henry Hotline)

-[Chienne d'Guerre]- (Jeannie) (The "Jeannie vibes" tag will remain, too)

-[Filia.Solus]- (Azrael) (hahah it's both a play on "Filia Solis" ("daughter of the sun") that references Solus Prime, and is also loosely translates to "daughter of loneliness" or "lonely daughter", both of which fit her)

-[Candy.Crush]- (Nate|Neutrino)

-[The.King.In.Red]- (Leda)

-[Sol Invictus]- Corona

(Will be added to as I think about it :') lol)