#and they all center around 'weird af /pos' and a slight sense of jealousy

[infinitethree]

Raine, what are your thoughts on the future child?

Having very clearly just woken up, Raine pauses in the act of making breakfast.

His hair is still tousled, clothes rumpled, expression tired. Evidently, whatever sleep he did get wasn’t great.

“It’s weird as shit,” Raine answers, then yawns.

Which is the truth! Daz and Aster have fought from the word go, evidently having been on less than awesome terms from the moment they first met.

Daz has confessed that he considered killing Aster at one point, before he learned that lives are infinite here. Aster has confessed that he was suspicious of Daz, and rightfully so, and it’s always pissed him off that nobody else caught on.

Predictably, being in the middle of them is an interesting experience.

Y’know, at one point, Raine would have rather died than ever interact with another Tommy. Yet now he’s not just close to two of them, he considers them his best friends.

More than that, they’re not just any Tommys. Both Daz and Aster, for the entire time Raine has known them, have been powerful. Aster’s power lies in his strength, fighting, and those who follow him; Daz’s power lies in his mind, questionable morality, admin spark, and social networking.

At any given point, either of them could have ruined him.

Yet, instead, Raine has become their closest confidant. They turn to him, over and over, in search of reassurance and friendship.

It’s as heartwarming and heady as it is surreal.

In a way, the idea of the two of them getting together isn’t the craziest thing in the world. Enemies to lovers is a trope for a reason, and the core reason why Daz picked so many fucking fights– his paranoid need to have a safety net in Aster being willing to kill him if he ever crossed the line– is gone.

But at the same time…it feels strange.

The idea that they’ll turn from him and seek solace in each other makes him feel weird. Maybe it’s a sense of jealousy, even if it’s not in a romantic sense. 

But if both of them are seeing the same thing, and agree on that being their future– and if Daz has spent the night with Aster (albeit probably not in a sexual way)...

Well, it’s probably already happening, right? And it’d be fucked up beyond reason to, what– say they shouldn’t get together?

Raine knows both of them better than anyone, arguably bar Innit. There isn’t a single person who comes close to understanding Daz, and Aster talks to him about some of the ugliest parts of his life.

There’s a beautifully carved wooden axe that hangs in Raine’s room. Delicate lines that seem closer to brush strokes form symbols that carry enough meaning that Raine sometimes gets overwhelmed just looking at it.

That’s another thing him and Aster have in common. He might not look it, but Aster has an artistic streak.

Not that Daz doesn’t, too. His clothing and sewing ability speak for themselves…and, probably, Raine will finally get to wear some of it.

The idea that Daz, despite how close he’s inched over the years, still kept that line between them not because he didn’t want to but because he was afraid that crossing it would kill Raine…

Fuck. That still makes his heart ache with grief for his closest friend.

Because, yes; despite how fucked up he can be, despite his pettiness and borderline sociopathy, despite Raine’s past–

Daz is his dearest friend.

There’s something awe-inspiring about how Daz looked at him and saw worthiness, saw something nobody else ever had. Daz plucked him from nothingness and, after making sure he was ready, revealed a hidden world to him.

The hidden world is something precious to him, now. The quiet power, the confidence of being on the inside for once in his fucking life– the secret fraternity of those with a common, albeit unhinged, goal.

If both Aster and Daz agree that that’s the future, and that they see a kid?

Then Raine believes them. He believes that they’re seeing their future daughter.

…Fuck, it’s so weird to think that, someday, they’ll get married and have a kid. A biological kid, by the sounds of it.

Knowing Daz, everything will be methodically planned and prepared for.

Azira will come into the world with arguably more power even than Lee. If admin sparks are genetic– which they might not be, nobody has any idea how they actually work– and the kid gets one because Daz is her bio dad…

Holy fuck, she’s gonna be untouchable.

Not only will Azira have her fanatically loyal dads, but from the sound of it, Day will be close enough to them that he’ll be like a grandparent.

Oh, and of course, Theo and Lee would be godparents. Raine too, probably, not that he counts for all that much. Aleph and Khons will likely be two more fixtures in her life.

All of that alone is a lot. But on top of that, if she is an admin…

Well. Admins are rare, and she’d be the first admin born in the server.

San would be a bit like a fairy godparent, bending the world to that kid’s whims. Probably– hopefully– nothing too crazy, but, well…San is apparently very fond of all existing admins.

An admin born on the server, related by blood to one of the existing admins, who is beloved by at least three of the aforementioned admins– and probably including Lucid, too?

That’s not a level of power you can reach without insane luck.

…Is it a little weird that Raine feels a vague sense of jealousy about that, too? That this kid will not just become the axis around his best friends’ lives, but be born into a life of love, luxury, and power?

Maybe something to figure out how to talk to his therapist about.

That odd feeling aside, though, he is genuinely happy for his friends. He’s glad that they’re finally burying their stupid fucking hatchet– something he’s championed for years now– and getting along.

He blinks and realizes that the Observers are still present and that he’s halfway through his breakfast.

“Was that not enough? Uh– so, it’s…weird, like I said. But not really in a bad way? I mean, I’m happy for them, obviously. I want them to get along, and I want them to be happy. Them having a kid will be surreal as fuck, but…if that’s what they do, that’s what they do. And that kid is gonna be spoiled rotten by literally everyone, so– she’ll have a good life.”

Feeling a streak of mischief, he adds, “In the meantime, though…maybe if they bang, Daz will be able to unwind for once. He’s wound tighter than a bow aimed at the moon, y’know? Sure, the idea is gross, but I don’t have to know anything about it.”

He pauses, and then tacks on, “Weird as it is to say, maybe they can both just– chill, once that’s a thing they’re doing.”

From how Daz taunted Aster in that surreal and upsetting meeting, it sounds like they do actually get up to…that.

Weird! Raine has never seen either of them show or express interest in literally anyone, beyond Daz mentioning a sort of clinical, aesthetic appreciation on very rare occasion.

He was under the impression that they were both aro/ace. Evidently, though, that’s not true…or, really, maybe they’re something close? Demi, or something.

It’d track if that’s what they’ve been all along, and their existing extreme feelings just kinda…flips to the other end of the spectrum and turns romantic.

Holy shit, actually– Raine cannot fathom a reality in which either of them cheat.

Both of them are loyal to the point of fanatic zealotry. Both of them hate the concept of traitors and betrayal.

If they do get together, and especially get married, and even have a kid…

Yeah, no. Once they decide on that path, there’s no going back. The two of them will probably do something stupidly stubborn like die in their sleep together rather than only one of them living.

…Will Aster move in here, or will Daz take it upon himself to redo Aster’s house and move in there?

Huh. Living alone would be…weird.

…Maybe it’ll be worth feeling out Innit, seeing if its cool or not. It definitely did fuck up, but as Aster pointed out– so did most of Sanctuary.

Plus the punishment was pretty damn extreme. And if Innit truly does just want to live in peace…

It might just need a friend.