#Dori x Geta

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

Time for another AU!

Vetera et praesens (past and present)

Main Characters:

Aricka and Dori- twin siblings who love the Gladiator II movie

Caracalla and Geta- the twin emperors and two of the main characters of the Gladiator II movie.

———————

Aricka and Dori are watching the gladiator II movie. Suddenly, the lights begin to flicker.

The room begins to shake.

And then-

The two characters they like the most pop out of the movie into their living room-!

What happens when Caracalla and Geta wind up at the end of the year 2024, having to work through the year 2025?

@astralshipper @rosieshipper @hyperionshipping @yeehawselfshipping @letsgofoletsgo @purifierkisser @callsign-revenge

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

“Stay awake...please... I'm ordering you to stay awake!"

(Aricka x Caracalla, Aricka and Geta, Aricka and Dori)

(When one of the gladiators (NOT HANNO) shoots an arrow at the royal box, treachery occurs. Geta and Caracalla scramble to aid the newest member of their family- Caracalla’s beloved, Aricka.)

(TRIGGER WARNINGS: heavy blood mentioning, description of arrow injury, fainting due to blood loss; heavy angst!)

*Geta*

Everything was going so well. Geta, his brother; and Aricka, Caracalla’s beloved “little dove” as he called her, were gathered in the Royal Box with Acacius, Lucilla, and several of the senators.

Aricka was resplendent in a golden dress, matching the one she made Caracalla two days prior. She was holding his hand, perched on the armrest of his throne, the pair talking as though they had known each other for years. It made Geta smile.

And then it all went so wrong, so fast.

“Aricka? How are you enjoying the games?” Geta asks, looking over at her. She leans over; having not heard.

“What, Get-?” She couldn’t finish her sentence, because at that moment; she jerked back with a cry of pain, and with a start Geta realized she had been pierced-

With an arrow from the coliseum.

She falls backwards, and Geta, not caring if another arrow was heading towards him, lurched for her, scrambling to pull her against him so she wouldn’t hurt her head.

She grips his hand and he lets it happen, intertwining their fingers. “Geta…?” She sounds so confused, so- far away.

"Aricka?!" His eyes widen in fear as he scrambles to catch her, "Oh no... Oh no, no, no, no!" He glances over at Dori, who's frozen with fear for her sister, before looking back at Aricka. "It's alright. You're going to be alright." He presses his hand against the wound, crimson red blood pooling around his fingers as he does.

It was staining her dress… the blood was staining her dress and her skin…

She gasps as she looks at her shoulder, breath quickening, causing more blood to gush out. “Geta…!”

“Shh... I-It's alright. Steady your breathing. You will be fine." He frantically looks over at Caracalla, frozen with fear just like Dori. "Brother!" He yells to snap him out of it, "Go find a healer, quick!"

“Healer-!!” Caracalla yells, “you-!” He grabs a soldier. “You will go and find the best healer the palace has to offer, bring them here immediately. Or suffer the consequences if you fail.” He does the same with several other soldiers.

“My… my arm…” He begins wiping her hair from her face as sweat begin to seep down her face. She struggles to breath, vision already blurring. “Dori…?”

"We will get her for you, Aricka. Right now just-just focus on your breathing, alright? Caracalla's fetching a healer for you now."

She blinks sluggishly, “so.. tired… Sorry… Geta…” panic fills him at those words. She couldn’t.. she just couldn’t…

"No, NO! No," He holds her face in his hand, patting her cheek to keep her alert, "Stay awake...please... I'm ordering you to stay awake!"

Her blinking, gasping. “You.. are…” she hesitates. “Geta… I’m so… tired…”

Tears begin to sting Geta's eyes as he chokes back a sob, "Please! ... I'm begging you to stay awake, Aricka... Please... If not for me, than for your sister. Just don't give in! PLEASE!"

Blue eyes meet brown. A shaky hand-the one holding his-presses to his cheek. “… I love you.. and Calla… you.. m’family…”

Geta squeezes his eyes shut as tears begin to flow down his cheeks. He sobs, "I love you too...as does Caracalla... He adores you..." he brushes another section of hair away from her face, "And Dori loves you... so much... P-Please hold on..."

“Let me have her, brother.” Caracalla scoops her up, and he does a scream rips from her throat, a gut wrenching horrible sound that silenced the entire coliseum, and the older twin begins running to the palace

Aricka manages to lock eyes with Geta, before blue eyes roll back and she passes out, blood loss overwhelming her body.

———

*Dori*

Dori was frantic. She hadn’t seen the traitor gladiator, hadn’t seen him lift the crossbow and aim at the box. She did, however, see the arrow pierce her sister’s shoulder, saw her sister flail back into Geta’s arms, saw the twin emperors immediately react and close ranks around her.

Geta and her shared an unreadable (to anyone else) expression. They nod; and immediately begin looking for a way to escape the arena.

Then the scream reached her ears. She became more frantic, "MOVE! I need to get to my sister! I need to get to her, please!Tears gush down her face. “ARICKA-!”

————-

*Caracalla*

Caracalla was- despairing. He held Aricka, whose precious lifeblood was pouring out from her like a river to the ocean, and he had no way to save her. He couldn’t heal her. He would have to set her down, let her go, so she could be tended to.

He looks down, and he pales even more to see her unconscious. “No…” he begins to move faster. Pushing to his own chambers, setting her on his bed. “BROTHER-! Where is DORI-?!” He holds her hand, gripping onto it for dear life. “Don’t leave me,” he says around a sob. “I still have so much to tell you…”

————

*Aricka*

Burning. Aching pain. And then- nothing.

Aricka woke up. She felt no pain. She looked around- she was in Caracalla’s room. Something prickled on her shoulder, and she felt a faint scar when she investigated. She looks down- her stomach was swollen- she was pregnant?

The door opens and she looks over to see- “beloved,” she hears herself say.

“My little dove, you are as radiant as the day I first laid eyes on you.” Caracalla walks over, hands on her shoulders, carefully, and kisses her temple. A ringer hand comes to rest on her stomach. “How is our little prince?”

“He is eager to join us in this world,” she replies. Caracalla laughs.

“So impatient,” he said.

“Like his father,” Aricka hears herself jest. “And where is our little Aelia?”

“Right here, mother-!” A little girl with blonde hair, blue eyes and the sweetest smile- Caracalla’s smile, Aricka realized- appeared. “How is baby Caius?”

“He is growing and so ready to meet his big sister!” Caracalla scoops her up, swinging the little girl around, making her giggle.

“I’m dizzy now, tata-!” She giggled. Caracalla perched the child on his hip, one arm around her back.

“Is that better, dulcedo?” She laughs and nods.

Aricka stands and joins them, her chin on Caracalla’s shoulder, her hand on Aelia’s back. “I never thought, when you asked me to join you in your royal box that day…”

“That we would get all this? I didn’t either, my love.” He smiles so softly at her, making Aricka’s heart thump painfully.

And then- she woke up.

———————

She woke with a gasp, eyes fluttering open as she takes in her surroundings- she knew this room. Not only had she just dreamed about it; she had been in here before.

Caracalla’s room. She scans the room further and sees-

“Dori-? Geta..?”

"Aricka!" The two gasp in unison, having just walked in to check on her. Dori practically launches themself onto their sister. Needing to hold her after fearing that she would never wake up again. "Oh, Aricka..." They sob, "I thought I was going to lose you..."

Aricka winced, one hand coming to her sister’s hair. “Sh…” she looks at Geta, standing behind Dori. “… it’s okay. Come on..”

That's all Geta needs before leaning in to hug her as well. "We were worried sick about you..." he sigh

She runs a weak hand through his hair. “I.. I’m sorry…” she whispered. “I tried to stay awake…” she pressed a kiss to both of their heads.

"It's alright. You did as best as you could," he whispers back, "I didn't know what your fate was going to be... I was just scared that you wouldn't make it..."

“You told me to fight… I did.” They sit in silence for a moment. “What.. what happened? To me?”

"After you fainted, Caracalla brought you here and the healer dressed your wound. Then Dori came to stay by your side and we both watched you for the night.” Geta allowed himself to run a hand through her hair, this girl who (along with her sister) had come to mean so much to him and Caracalla.

“… how many days…?”

"Two... and a quarter, if you count this morning." Dori lightly chuckles. Aricka giggled even though it hurt, but then went silent.

“…. Caracalla?” She whispered. “Is he…?” She was afraid to ask.

"He's perfectly fine," Geta says, "He has been just as worried as we have. He would watch you during the day while Dori and I watched you at night. It should be time for him to be here soon."

She smiles, not even trying to hide how please she was at that. “Good… I missed all of you. When I was sleeping.”

"We missed you too." Dori says, squeezing Aricka's hand.

The doors swing open, and Aricka looks up to see- “Calla-!” She says as loudly as possible- which isn’t as loud as it usually is, but enough for him to hear.

He sees her; and it seems like she is the only thing he sees at that moment. He staggers towards her, and she opens her arms just as he falls into them

Geta and Dori move out of the way. Giving Caracalla all the room he needs to embrace Aricka.

His shoulders are shaking, and the wetness gathering on her skin let her know all she needed to. “Oh.. oh Caracalla…” she tugs him close with one arm, “I’m -!” She couldn’t finish, because he surged forward to slot his lips against hers; hands grasping her neck.

“I love you,” he says once he pulls back. “I love you. I cannot- I will not- go another day without making my affections for you known.”

Without giving her a chance to reply he was pressing his lips back against hers, fervently; desperately kissing her, as though she would vanish if he didn’t. Aricka is vaguely aware of Dori dragging Geta from the room.

“Calla… my beloved Caracalla…” she whispers against his lips. “I never thought, when you asked me to join you in your royal box… oh…. Oh beloved…”

“Stay… stay with me.. be my wife. My Empress. Stay, stay, don’t leave me, just stay….”

“Yes, yes, absolutely, of course I will, yes, yes…” she whispers, cupping his face in her hands so she can look him in the eye. “I love you,” she whispers. “I love you, as a lover, and I love Geta as a future brother in law…. I love you. My Caracalla…”

He pressed his forehead against hers, their eyes both closed. She sighs softly. He does too. “My Aricka…” she blushes at that. “Marry me…”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes…”

“Yes-!” He removes the ring from his pinky; slides it onto her finger. “This is yours. As is my heart. For all time.”

And it always was.

——————-

@astralshipper @rosieshipper @hyperionshipping @yeehawselfshipping @letsgofoletsgo

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

Vetera et praesens (past and present) Part Three: The Emperors vs. the Microwave

It had been three days since the arrival of Geta and Caracalla to the modern day. The girls had welcomed them so quickly, integrated them into their lives so easily. They had learned a lot about a lot of things, from lightbulbs to television to modern makeup- a story for a different day.

Now they were faced with a new modern marvel- the microwave. The two boys stared at it, unsure if they touched it wrong they might be cursed.

Aricka slides up, gently puts her hands on Calla’s hips to move him to the side. “May I?” She’s got a baggie of microwave popcorn in her hands. “It can be a bit tricky if you’ve never used a microwave before.”

She unwraps the popcorn and sets in inside the microwave; “okay; so it’s a bit tricky heating up popcorn, I typically just set it for 2 minutes and 10 seconds.” She punches in the numbers. “Now we hit start,” and a beep follows, followed by a whirring sound. “Now we wait.”

They stand in front of the microwave, watching the popcorn through the window. Aricka bit her lip, feeling like she’s being judged. Don’t be nervous don’t be nervous, She thinks.

“You-You do not need a fire to cook this... popcorn, you called it?" Geta asks. Aricka shakes her head, a small smile appearing.

Aricka shakes her head, a small smile appearing. “It’s… electric, um- “ she flounders for a second, popping the knuckles on her left hand. Geta watched the movement, noting it was similar to something he did when he was stressed or thinking hard about something.

“It’s a form of energy emerging from the presence of charged particles both statically as an increase of charge- basically, it’s a substance that can help heat things up- like when you rub your hands together for warmth when it’s cold.” She explains. “So- right now, the popcorn is just kernels. But because it’s in the microwave, it will get hotter and hotter and then it will pop-! And then it becomes fluffy and white.”

Right as she said POP, the popcorn began to pop, and she giggled softly. Geta jumped back slightly, but inched closer.

“Fascinating,” Caracalla says , stepping closer to Aricka to watch. His arms slide around her from behind; and he rests his chin on her shoulder. She laughs and tilts her head, leaning into the touch. “Such wonders the future holds.”

“I’m so glad we get to show you,” she says, putting her hands on top of his. She felt such a connection to the older twin emperor. It wasn’t a secret before her and Dori watched the movie that she was crushing on Caracalla.

The microwave finished, with a slight BEEP, sound and Aricka opens the door. Carefully she pulled the bag out. “It’s hot,” she cautions as she opens the bag.

Steam rose from the bag, and a pleasant smell followed. Aricka pulled a few pieces of popcorn out, offering them to Caracalla and Geta. They both gave her a skeptical look. “It’s good, I promise.” She takes a piece for her own and eats it.

Both of them take a piece of popcorn and hesitantly eat it. Their eyebrows furrowing as they process the unusual texture. After a few bites, their confused expressions melt into a look of surprise. "Mmmm..." the twins hum in unison.

"That's much better than I expected." Geta says in an impressed tone.

Aricka giggles, her eyes lighting up. “It’s even better when you melt down butter and sprinkle salt on it-!”

“Now that, I would like to try.” Calla says, accepting a few more pieces, glancing at Aricka; who blushed and gave him a soft look in response.

“Hey… Geta… you wanna go help Dori pick out the movie we watch tonight?” Aricka asks with a sly smile. Calla and Aricka had made it their mission to hook the two younger ones up together

"Oh! Um...yes," he smiles, feeling a slight blush creep up on his cheeks, "Yes, I'll go help them. I'll leave you to it." He nods and makes his way over to the living room.

Aricka giggles, waving at Geta as he leaves.

Then she realized that left her alone with Caracalla- her crush.

Her cheeks flushed red and she emptied the popcorn into a big yellow bowl. “You wanna grab me another bag of popcorn please?” She asks softly.

“Of course,” He answers just as soft. He rounds the table and grabs another bag, and remembering Aricka’s words; unwrapped the plastic wrap before putting it in the microwave. “How long?” He asks.

Aricka moves to stand beside him, so close he could feel her body warmth, and pushed the right buttons.

He turns so he’s facing her. And she looks up at him. “Hi,” she smiles.

Caracalla smiles back. “Hi.” He carefully pushes a strand of hair behind her ear, and she blushes again. His fingers trail down the smooth skin of her face to her chin, and she lets it happen, heart racing in her chest. “I’m really glad we ended up here,” he says. “You two… You have been so kind to us… even though you could’ve turned us away.”

“Never,” Aricka says, covering his wrist with her hand. “We aren’t like that.”

“I know now,” he says, still quiet like he’s afraid of breaking the moment. His other hand drops down to grab hers, and he holds it up carefully. “I guess…. What I’m trying to say is… thank you.” She smiles once more, and at that moment the microwave beeped, startling them both. She steps away, and Caracalla immediately missed her warmth. Aricka fussed over the popcorn and got it ready, but he catches her hand again.

She looks up at him, and he noticed just how small a space was between them. “Aricka…” he said, softly, almost a whisper.

“Caracalla?”

“I don’t usually ask…. Before doing this.. but I feel like… I feel like I should.”

“Ask what?”

“If I can kiss you?” Her eyes widened, and her face turned crimson once more.

“Oh-! I- that is…” she clears her throat. “You may. Kiss me, that is.” He grins, steps a bit closer to her, and tilts her chin slightly upward. He leans down slowly, wanting to give her every opportunity to back out if she changed her mind.

But she was leaning towards him, her eyes drifting shut as she waited for him to make a move. As soon as her lips were pressed against his, his first thought was, she tastes like cherries.

Her hand reaches up to brush his chin, and he carefully placed his hands on her shoulders.

The moment would’ve continued, if they weren’t startled by two voices cheering for them. Aricka jumped away and Caracalla looked up to see-

Geta and Dori in the doorway to the kitchen. “We were wondering what was taking you so long,” Dori teased.

“If you two wanted a moment alone all you had to do was ask,” Geta added. Aricka blushed and hid her face in Caracalla’s shoulder.

“It just sort of happened.. we didn’t really plan on it..” Caracalla says. “Plus, we wanted to give you the opportunity to do the same with Dori.”

This causes the younger two twins to stammer, unable to formulate a proper sentence. Aricka giggles,

“Be nice you two.” She looks at Geta. “I really do like your brother. I won’t hurt him, I promise.”

This made him soften slightly. “I know you won’t.”

At that moment, the microwave beeps, causing all four of them to jump. They all look at each other, and promptly start laughing. “I’ll get it,” Caracalla says, going over and carefully pulling the bag of popcorn out.

Aricka goes and grabs the butter and salt, drizzling both items generously over the top of the popcorn. “What movie did you guys pick?”

“Iron Man-! I figured a good action movie would be fun,”‘Dori says, grabbing some cans of pop from the fridge. Aricka hums excitedly.

“Tony Stark-!!!” She grabs Calla’s hand and the popcorn. “Let’s go-!”

The rest of the evening was spent watching Marvel movies and laughing, all of them enjoying the popcorn and having a great time.

And that’s all she wrote, until next time-!

~~~~~~~~~~~~

@astralshipper @rosieshipper @hyperionshipping @yeehawselfshipping @letsgofoletsgo @callsign-revenge @purifierkisser

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

Vetera et praesens (past and present)

Chapter One: An Unexpected Surprise

(Eventual Aricka x Caracalla, eventual Dori x Geta)

(Aricka and Dori are watching Gladiator II. What happens when two of their favorite characters fall into their living room-?)

“How did this happen?”

“I don’t know; the lights flickered; the movie flickered, and now they’re here-!”

Caracalla was the first to come to, and quickly realized that he wasn’t in the Imperial Box anymore- he was leaned against something- or someone. He looks up- into the bluest eyes he’d ever seen.

The owner of said blue eyes gasps, “oh, you’re awake! Emperor Caracalla, are you okay?” Their voice is soft; feminine. She helps him sit up, and he grips her hand.

“Yes- I’m just- where am I?” The girl bites her lip, a worried expression in her eyes.

“That’s… a bit complicated. But I promise you’re okay. You’re safe. Neither of us are going to hurt you or your brother.”

Geta was here-?

“Geta..?” He looks over and sees another lady with his brother; who had just woken; it seemed, helping him stand up and walk over to where he was.

Geta was still taking a minute to process what just happened, having gone quiet, twisting the ring on his left hand. Aricka noticed, from where she was helping Caracalla sit on the couch. She looks at her twin, “is he okay?” She mouths, motioning with her eyes to the younger twin emperor.

“I think he's in shock." They mouth to her. They look back at Geta, clearing their throat to get his attention. "Emperor Geta?"

He jumps slightly as he's pulled out of his thoughts. "Y-yes?" Dori gives him an assuring look.

"Why don't you sit down with your brother? Just take a minute."

He hesitantly nods and walks over to the couch. Dori gently helps him sit down. "I'm sure this is a lot for you two."

Aricka was sitting in Calla’s lap, the older twin having pulled her down into it, still a bit unsure but she smiles at Geta as assuringly as possible. “My name is Aricka. This is my younger, twin sibling, Dori.”

Caracalla runs a hand idly up and down her back. “That’s a pretty name.”

She blushes. “Thanks… I got it for my birthday.” He laughs- not unkindly- at her and she blushes.

“It was the perfect choice.” She smiles.

“Thank you…” she squeezes his shoulder carefully. “You’re safe here…we won’t let you get hurt…”

“We'll protect you...We'll be like your personal guards,” Dori was absentmindedly rubbing Geta’s shoulder, and it made Aricka smile to see him lean into her twin’s touch.

Caracalla leans his head against Aricka’s shoulder, his other arm wrapping around her. “We don’t have much of a choice but to trust you….”

“We will earn that trust. I assure you. She begins running a hand through his hair, and he leans into her touch, too, and it made her heart twist and flip flop.

“While I find your promise of our safety comforting," Geta says, "one thing still has me at unease...how exactly did we arrive here?"

Dori looks over at Aricka, "Well...we don't really know, ourselves."

Aricka shrugs. “I mean… this stuff usually doesn’t happen in our world. But I have an idea?”

The two boys look at her, waiting for her to continue.

“I mean… time travel is the best way I can think about it. But how you guys time traveled through the movie…”

“Movie?” Caracalla asks. She shares a panicked look with Dori, before relaxing and looking back at Caracalla.

“We were just watching a movie featuring the two of you. You were characters in it. It was based on your real lives.” He nods. “Dori and I really liked the two of you. I guess the movie decided to do something about it?”

"Yeah,” Dori agreed, “Maybe it decided that you two needed something good in your lives." They look over at Aricka, "And I guess that something was us."

The boys sit quietly for a moment, then Calla’s grip grew stronger around Aricka’s middle. “Now what?” A quiet question. Aricka wrapped her own arms around his neck, leaned so her lips brushed against ginger curls.

“Now-?” She grins, “Now, we teach you how modern life works.”

—————-

@astralshipper @rosieshipper @hyperionshipping @yeehawselfshipping @letsgofoletsgo

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

Vetera et praesens (past and present)

Part two: Broken Plates, Bad Memories

(TRIGGER WARNINGS; mentions of abuse, crying, just… it’s a sad fic)

Everything was going so well. Aricka and Caracalla had begun the modern form of “courtship,” or dating; and Dori and Geta were inching closer to that same moment every day. And then something happened that made the boys open up a bit more about their pasts… and changed their dynamic for the better…

————————

Neither of them were watching where they were going. It was a pure accident. Geta was getting a homemade cinnamon roll- when he bumped into Caracalla, and the plate the older was holding fell; and instantly shattered.

Both of them freeze at first. Then Caracalla felt tears begin to sting at his eyes. Geta takes his hands, "Shh, it's alright. It's alright. I'll say that I did it. You won't be in trouble."

Calla nodded, biting his lower lip, a habit he picked up from Aricka. And speaking of…

Aricka walks in, laughing at something Dori said, then freezes in the doorway. “Hey D-!” She turns over her shoulder to yell. “You’re gonna needs shoes on, we have a broken plate.” She turns and puts her own shoes on. “You guys okay?”

Calla was just as frozen as Aricka is, doesn’t say a word. And that worries her.

"Okay!" Dori calls from the other room.

Geta glances back at Caracalla before looking over at Aricka. He steps in front of him slightly, "We’re fine..."

Aricka goes still, glances between the boys. “Hey… hey. It’s just me.” She holds her hands up in a “I won’t hurt you,” gesture. “Don’t move, okay? I- you don’t wanna get glass in your feet.” She slowly takes a step toward them. “Geta, are either of you hurt? Did you happen to step on the glass?”

"No," he shakes his head, "No, I don't think wither of us have gotten hurt..." Aricka nods, pausing for the moment.

Just then, Dori walks in with shoes for everyone. Already wearing their pair. "Here you go." They hand Aricka her pair.

“Thanks,” Aricka slides into her sparkly purple flip flops. She leans over to whisper in Dori’s ear. “I think this is bringing back some bad memories for them… what do we do?”

"Let's just take it slow and be gentle with them. Remind them that they're not in trouble." Aricka nods.

“You get Geta, he’s comfortable with you. I’ve got Calla.”

"Gotcha." They nod.

Aricka straighten up, acting like she’d just twisted one of the parts of her shoe. “You want to sweep up or should I?” She asks, as she takes the shoes meant for Caracalla, and begins to slowly walk over to him.

"I'll take care of it." They walk over to grab a nearby broom and dustpan and get to work sweeping up the pieces of the plate.

Aricka finally is standing in front of Caracalla, holding a pair of matching purple shoes to her own flip flops. “Hey Calla…” she says softly.’He looks up at her and she smiles. “I’m a little worried about you. Is it okay if I give you a hug?” She glances at Geta, too, as if asking him for permission as well.

Calla looks over at Geta a bit unsurely. Geta glances at Caracalla for a second. Looking at Aricka, he gives her a hesitant nod. Stepping aside to let Caracalla walk over to her.

Aricka smiles at Geta, and opens her arms to Caracalla, who immediately reached out for her, and, after she set his shoes down, she wrapped her arms around him. “It’s okay.. it’s just a plate. Are you okay?”

He buried his face into her shirt and nods. “You’re- not upset?”

She runs her hands up and down his back soothingly. “It’s just a plate honey. It’s replaceable. You and your brother aren’t replaceable. Okay?”

Geta watched them, an open ache in his eyes, beginning to spin his pinky ring back and forth.

"Geta?" Dori walks over, noticing how quiet he's being. They reach their hand out to him, "Are you okay? Your hands look a little shaky."

He gently takes their hand, "I'm...I'm fine..."

"Are you sure?" They give his hand a comforting squeeze.

"I..." he suddenly pulls them in for a hug. Resting his chin on their shoulder, "I'm just not used to such a...gentle response to something being broken... There's ususally some form of punishment I take for such things..."

"Oh Geta," Dori holds him tighter, "We'd never punish you for something like this. It's a silly little plate. They make thousands every day. It's no big deal."

“Oh,boys…” Aricka says softly. “Never. We would never…” She kisses Caracalla’s cheek. “Ever. Ever.”

He nods, fists digging into her shirt.

“Nobody should’ve hit you for an accident,” Aricka said softly. “How are you ever gonna learn if you don’t make mistakes?”

"We just learned to not make mistakes... or if we did, we tried to fix them or hide them before anyone noticed..." this from Geta, who wasn’t looking at anyone, his gaze on the floor.

Aricka makes a soft, sad little sound. She tilts Calla’s face up so she can look at him. “I’m so sorry,” she says softly. “That’s no way to live. To be human is to make mistakes…” she kisses him again. “You don’t have to worry about that here.”

The tears Calla had been hiding finally spilled over, and he pressed his face back into Aricka’s shirt. A soft little gasp escapes her and she looks over at Dori and Geta worriedly.

“Hey… hey…” she wraps her arms around him tighter. “Shh… it’s alright. It’s all alright. It’s over. We cleaned it up, nobody got hurt, it’s okay, Calla…”

Geta feels his own tears begin to sting at his eyes as he watches his twin cry. He holds onto Dori a bit tighter. Resting his head against theirs as he lets out a shaky breath.

"I gotcha..." Dori whispers.

“I say we move this little party somewhere more comfortable,” Aricka says softly. “Standing in the kitchen isn’t gonna help any bit.”

Calla nods, tears still falling down his face. “I agree,” he whispered, slowly letting go of Aricka’s shirt, and the girl takes his hands, rubbing the tension from them and kissing his knuckles.

"Me too." Dori says, "Let's go sit in the living room."

Aricka tugs gently at Calla’s hand, and he follows her to her chair in the living room. She sits down first, and he sits in her lap, arms around her middle; head on her shoulder. One of her hands cups his cheek, brushing the tears away, the other is around his back.

“Alexa,” she says to the speaker in the living room, “play calm music.” The sound of piano music fills the room.

Dori and Geta are quick to follow, making their way over to the couch. Dori sits down first, "Here. Why don't you lay down? You can rest your head on my lap."

Geta nods, sitting down on the couch before turning to lay down. Once his head lands in Dori's lap he closes his eyes with a sigh.

"How's that?" They ask, starting to run their fingers through his hair.

"Better..."

A sad little noise escapes Calla and Aricka looks down at him- he’s shaking, not very hard, but enough to worry her. “Oh, sweet love,” she whispered. “Did the loud noise scare you?”

He nods, gripping at her shirt.

“I’m so sorry, I know it can be scary. I’ve dropped a plate before, it’s loud when it breaks.” The response brought more tears to Calla’s eyes, then spilling over as she rubbed his back and held him tightly.

Geta was trying to relax, Dori’s arms around him helping fractionally, but as he was, hot, thick tears filled his own eyes, a burning sensation in his chest. He blinked hard, pressing his head against Dori’s shoulder. Dori continues to run their fingers through his hair the whole time, moving their other hand to squeeze his hand to help comfort.

“Oh, boys…” Aricka whispered. Her own eyes tearing up. “I….” Her voice falters.

Dori takes over, "You know we love you guys, right...? We would NEVER yell at you, or hurt you over a silly little plate, okay?"

Aricka nods, “It’s just glass, it might seem like a big deal right now but we promise it’s not.”

Calla seemed content to just listen, his tears being absorbed by Aricka’s shirt or wiped away by her own fingers. His fingers were curled into her shirt, and he was staring into space. Not really focused on any particular object.

Getas breath starts getting shaky, and even though his eyes are closed, he squeezes them shut even tighter. A few tears roll down his cheeks and he quickly tries to wipe them away with a sniffle. Dori, however, heard that sniffle, and they look down at him, "Geta...?"

“I’m… so sorry I yelled,” Aricka says. “I knew Dori wasn’t in the room, but I could’ve gone and told her instead of shouting. And then I yelled at you to not move instead of just asking.” Calla’s grip on her tightened and she looks down, into glassy ocean eyes.

“You.. didn’t know.” She laughs, a bit wetly, and her own tears fall. He reaches up to wipe them away like she was with his. The two press their foreheads together, momentarily in their own little bubble.

"I-I've never been treated so gently for my mistakes before..." Geta mumbles, wiping away another tear, "It....I don't know how to handle it, I'm sorry." His voice cracks. Barely being spoken above a whisper.

Dori's heart breaks at that. They gently run their fingers through his hair in an attempt to soothe him, "It's okay... I swear, Geta, I'll never ever be harsh to you when you make a mistake. We'll just talk it out, and I'll do what I can to help, okay?"

He nods, sniffling as he tries to regain his composure.

"If you need to cry, you can," they push his bangs back and place a small kiss to his forehead, "You know none of us will judge you."

And that's when the dam breaks. A small sob escapes Geta as he allows himself to cry. Letting out all of his emotions that have been built up for a length of time that only he knows. Dori pulls him closer, holding him as tight as they can to make him feel safe.

The sound of his brother’s tears prompted more from Caracalla, and Aricka resumed running her fingers through his messy red hair, guiding his head back to her shoulder. Shh…” she whispered absentmindedly. “You’re safe… we’re all safe…”

After a few moments, Dori puts a low-stimulating, calming Disney movie on. Caracalla was falling asleep against Aricka’s chest, the girl’s hand still in his hair while her other arm was lazily rubbing his back, and Geta was almost asleep himself.

The two who were awake shared matching looks. They would talk about this with the boys more tomorrow.

Right now; they would let them sleep.

So they did.

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