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notveryglittery · 5 years ago

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all the way home i’ll be warm

summary: 'tis the season for spending time with your loved ones! for some mischievous college kids and their "unfortunate" dads, that happens in more ways than one. ships: romantic roceit, romantic moxiety. siblings logicality, brotherly thvi. familial morolo, familial remceit. wc: 6.8k / warnings: sympathetic deceit, food mentions, flying mention, two characters locked in a room together. author’s note: participated in @sanderssantas as a pinch hitter and got to write some lovely wishes for @max-is-tired!! it was a lot of fun and not gonna lie, i kinda want to write a moxiety prequel to it now LMAO. anyway, happy belated holidays!!

read on ao3 | @fandersfic-roceit @fandersfic-moxiety

— — — — — — — — — — —

“Did your disaster of a dad sweep the librarian off his feet yet?”

Patton sighed and rested his cheek on the palm of his hand. It made his face sort of squished and extra cute. Virgil wished they were having this conversation directly so that he could be the one squishing Patton’s face with his hands.

“Nope! Vee, I swear, they’re worse than we were.”

“That’s really saying something,” Virgil said.

“Do you want to hear something impressive?”

“Anything you say is impressive.”

Patton giggled. “Oh hush, that doesn’t even make sense.”

Virgil shrugged helplessly. “Nothing in this world does, babe, but you sure help make it easier to deal with.”

Patton was turning properly red now and Virgil made a mental note to thank Picani again for the suggestions when he’d expressed wanting to buy a new phone. The camera quality on this one made video calling with Patton even better.

“I said hush!” Patton squeaked. “We’re moving on!”

Virgil just smiled back innocently. “Well, what impressive thing do you have to share?”

“Logan hasn’t gone a single day without complaining.”

That was, actually, pretty impressive.

“Logan? Complaining?”

Patton nodded.

“Never has anything to say about you always mentioning that you’re fifteen minutes older-Logan? Has aced literally every final he’s ever taken without a single whine-Logan? Can sit in traffic for hours and not protest once-Logan?”

Patton nodded, fervently. “I know!”

“Explain,” Virgil demanded, feeling very much like he’d just been deposited into an alternate universe.

“Well, you know how he had a secret sweetheart for, like, ever and we only found out on accident, right?”

“Right.”

“He says Dad’s being ridiculous for pining for so long! Apparently, in the time it took for Logan and his lover to get their feelings sorted out, Dad had only just got Dev’s phone number.”

“You’re having fun with alliteration,” Virgil mused, before continuing. “That…” He paused to process. “Pat, they’re not just worse than us, they’re like… the worst in existence.”

“I don’t know how they do it,” Patton moaned, tilting his head back.

“At this rate, I’m going to visit over break just so that I can lock them in a closet together.”

“And that’s the only reason for you to visit, hmm?”

“Of course,” Virgil answered, solemnly, “not like I got my act together and have a handsome boyfriend that I’d like to spend 7 Minutes in Heaven with, or anything.”

“Virgil!” Patton exclaimed, nearly screeching.

“Yes?”

“I’m hanging up on you now,” Patton threatened.

“You’re impossible to fluster in person. When else am I supposed to snipe you?”

“I’m confiscating the love gun!”

“It’s cute how you think that’ll stop me,” Virgil said, delighting in the way Patton was still pouting.

“Good night!”

And with that, the call ended.

Virgil laughed, switching to their text thread without missing a beat.

stormcloud: love you lots. hope your dreams are as happy as you make me. sunshine: i love u too, u bully, good night!!!!!!!! >:( sunshine: … sunshine: ��💙💜💙

—

“Operation Matchmaker is a go!”

“I am making the executive decision to reject that name immediately.”

“Vetoed.”

“On what grounds?”

“I was born first.”

“By fifteen minutes, that hardly counts.”

“It does, too! It counts fifteen whole times.”

“You realize how little sense that makes, don’t you?”

“It doesn’t have to.”

“And why’s that?”

“Because I’m older!”

“That is not how this works—”

“What are we debating this time, kids?” Roman interrupted, arriving before a full blown argument could start.

“Dad!” The twins chorused, one far more enthusiastic than the other. Then again, one of them had been complaining for the last two weeks of his father’s oblivious pining.

“Patton and I were wondering if you wouldn’t mind driving us today, since you haven’t got anything planned?”

“And just how do you know I’m not busy? I could have many dragons to slay!”

“And princes to swoon over,” Patton mumbled.

Logan elbowed his sibling in the side. “It would be quite efficient to take just the one car out instead of both. However, we all know how much I dislike driving in the snow, and I don’t trust Patton behind the wheel when I know Virgil could call at any moment.”

“Hey!”

“Good point.”

“Hey!”

“And if we leave now, we’ll beat rush hour traffic and be home in time before nightfall.”

“Alright, fine, as long as we’re all good with stopping to get takeout for dinner.”

“That is agreeable.”

“Perfect!”

The trio separated to get their things together. Roman had still been in his pajamas when he happened upon Logan and Patton at the dining table.

They had seemed suspiciously like they were scheming but given it was nearing Christmas, it was safe to assume they were just figuring out gifts. He’d taken care of presents for everyone last month, including Patton’s aforementioned boyfriend. That one had been fun to plan and if everything else went up in flames (as the holidays were sometimes wont to do), he knew that this, at least, would be well worth the work.

Figuring the pair only had a few quick errands to run and that all they’d really expect of him was to keep the car running and warm, Roman went with dressing down for the day. He bundled up in crown patterned sweatpants, a maroon turtleneck, and a black beanie. His hair would not see the light of this day, thank you very much.

“You look comfy!” Patton chirped as they regrouped at the entryway. Their pink pronoun necklace matched the earmuffs and gloves they were wearing; in fact, Patton seemed to have decided on more of a pastel aesthetic than normal today, what with the rest of their outfit in complementary soft shades.

Logan, on the other hand, had gone with his usual and was covered head to toe in navy and black. “Indeed. Do you intend to join us at all or will you be taking self portraits in the car?”

“Ha ha,” Roman deadpanned, shooing his kids outside and locking the door as they left the house.

It wasn’t until they were settled and on the road that Roman thought to actually ask what the plans were.

“What’s on the agenda, then? Gifts? Missing ingredients for cookies? Dropping anything off at Goodwill?” He hadn’t missed the fact that they both had bags, and that they seemed rather full.

“All of the above, actually,” Patton piped up from the backseat. “I wanna donate some of my old plushies and Lo’s got some books he doesn’t need anymore.”

“Patton is in need of vanilla extract and food coloring. I wonder how we could possibly be out.”

“If I don’t make red velvet French toast every morning during holiday break, then what's the point of you being home from college?” Roman asked.

“Quality time spent together, a reprieve from coursework—”

“There is no point!” Patton interrupted. “It’s the best part about being back!”

“Patton, there is no ‘being back’ for you seeing as you do not even live in the dorms. Theoretically, you could have red velvet French toast every morning, regardless of the time of year.”

An offended gasp from his father made sense but to hear it from Patton as well surprised him.

“Blasphemy!” Patton cried.

“The disrespect!” Roman exclaimed.

“That breakfast is tradition, Lo! We’d never have it without you,” Patton promised, clasping Logan’s shoulder and squeezing.

“Thank you,” he responded, voice dripping with sarcasm, “that truly eases my concerns. I was so worried.”

With the streets empty as they were, getting to and from locations took no time at all. Sure enough, Roman waited in the car while Patton and Logan stopped in at the grocery store.

This hadn’t been part of their plan but it was better this way; originally, one would have had to distract him while the other worked. Logan emptied the contents of his backpack, old plastic bags to be recycled, to make room for the pre-ordered bouquet of flowers from the floral department.

“It’s lovely,” Patton gushed to the seasonal employee. “We’re finally gonna get dad to confess his feelings to Dev. It’s been years in the making, they’re both just so clueless. Not that that’s a bad thing!” They hurried to correct while Logan muttered “It really is,” under his breath.

“I think it’s real sweet what you kids are doin’ for your pa,” Valerie said sincerely. “Roman’s been a blessing since I moved out here. I swear, the number of times he’s sighed wistfully during our Disney movie marathons while thinking about that man… I bet the whole town’s rooting for them.”

“It’s a miracle the whole town hasn’t lost their collective mind waiting for one of them to make a move.”

“Logan!” Patton scolded despite looking delighted over their brother being so exasperated that he could hardly be bothered anymore to resist roasting their hopeless father and his crush.

“Well, keep me up to date, won’t you?” Valerie requested, shoving another handful of ribbon into Logan’s bag.

“You bet!”

With the flowers and groceries, not forgotten thanks to Logan, safely secured, they were on to their next stop. Roman denied any teasing of having picked just the right parking spot for prime selfie lighting (not that any of them would have been posted anyway, given his casual look today).

True to their word, Patton stopped in at the local Goodwill and emptied their backpack of stuffed toys and books. If they stopped by the counter to buy something they’d begged be held for them earlier that week, well…

“Darlin’, I dunno how y’all are gonna pull this off.”

“Oh, ye of little faith!” Patton said, running their hands through the purchased scarf to check for any snags or loose threads. “I think I know enough about romance to make it work.”

The snap of Remy’s bubblegum startled Patton into peering up at him.

“You’re joking, right?”

When Patton didn’t answer, Remy reached up and took his sunglasses off. He pointed them right at Patton’s nose, who went slightly cross-eyed trying to focus. “Babes, tell me you’re pullin’ my leg.”

“I’m not!”

“Oh, bless your heart,” Remy cooed, smiling as he perched the eyewear on top of his head. “Honey, romance could be painted on the broad sign of a barn and you’d still miss it.”

“Uhm, hello? Virgil?” Patton replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Planned the cutest prom-posal in the history of prom-posals despite his anxiety after you mistook your first three dates as him trying to get to know Logan better through you.”

“Listen—”

“Yeah? To you yelling at me over the phone about whether or not Virgil kissing you meant he liked you or like-liked you?”

“Remy!” Patton whined.

“I’m just sayin’, sweetie,” Remy relented, “It’s a good thing Logan’s helping.”

Patton huffed, shoving their receipt into the bag. “You’ll still meet us there? You’re kinda important to this going right.”

“Only kinda?” Remy rolled his eyes. “I take offense to that. But yeah, I’ll be there.”

Patton bounced a couple times on their feet, leaning across the counter. Remy couldn’t help grinning as he pressed his lips against their forehead.

“You’ll grow out of that someday.”

“Never!” Patton crowed, backing up and towards the exit. “See you later!”

Patton returned to the car and startled Roman by opening the driver side door.

“I’m afraid we might’ve been a bit dishonest with you,” Logan said, only barely managing to cover smug with sheepish.

“Out, daddio! I’m driving us to the last stop and you get to be blindfolded for it!” Patton exclaimed, bright and mischievous.

“The betrayal,” Roman cried, unbuckling his seat belt. “And so soon before Christmas, too. Whatever are you surprising me with?”

After some poking and prodding at Patton’s ticklish spots and Patton yanking Roman’s beanie down further over his eyes, they were off. Roman didn’t stop griping the entire way. Logan kept the banter going, texting Remy all the while to make sure everything was going according to plan.

—

“I’m here, you’re welcome,” Remy called into the break room very obviously marked Employees Only.

“I’ll only be thankful if you brought lunch,” the pile of blankets on the couch replied, muffled.

“Hot soup, hot cocoa, hot tea.”

“Last one’s literal or figurative?”

“Guess you won’t know ‘til you shed.”

“Uuugh.”

The voice groaned the entire length of shrugging the blankets off until they were all gathered around his waist and over his legs.

“Ah, there he is! Dearest dad emerges from his cocoon.”

Devereux glared at his son as Remy crossed the room and set a plastic bag down on the table.

“All I do for you, just to be relentlessly tormented by your sass.”

“I learned from the best,” Remy said seriously, setting up a series of thermoses and tupperware.

“Suck-up.”

The moment Remy was sat beside him, Devereux was ruffling a hand through his hair, tousling the oh-so-meticulously-taken-care-of locks. Remy shouted in outrage, batting his dad’s hand away and scooting to the other end of the couch.

“All I do for you!”

It took nearly a minute of the two glaring at each other, waiting for one to make the next move. When Devereux’s stomach growled noisily, the stalemate ended. Remy smirked.

“Truce?” He offered.

“... Truce.”

They reached for the table at the same time, picking their own containers. Remy grabbed a thermos, no doubt filled with hot coffee. Devereux chose a microwavable bowl and a spoon, cradling it carefully to his chest. Silence followed for awhile longer while Remy texted with one hand and Devereux stared out the window as he ate, scowling slightly when snowflakes started drifting slowly into view.

“A shame I won’t get home tonight,” he grumbled, glaring into his soup.

“And why’s that?” Remy asked distractedly.

“The weather. Too cold. If only you’d look up from your phone and—”

“Okay, boomer.”

“I hate you.”

“I’m telling mom.”

“Who’s she? Never heard of her.”

Remy took an extra loud sip from his drink, maintaining direct eye contact with his dad as he did so.

“I’m sending you to boarding school. Far, far away. You’ll live with your grandparents.”

“No, not the Witch and the Critic,” Remy hissed, actually suddenly nervous.

“They really aren’t that bad,” Devereux said, doing a terrible job of hiding his self-satisfied grin.

“I had to sneak my caffeine in!”

“It would’ve canceled out Grandma’s sleeping spells.”

“Stop that!” Remy shrieked at the same moment his phone started ringing. He glanced at the screen and then back up. “You’re lucky I love you even when you’re being this mean to me.”

Answering the call, Remy set his thermos back on the table and stood up from the couch. “Y’all make it safe?”

Devereux tuned the conversation out as he put his soup down and worked on getting out of his blanket nest. He cleaned up as Remy chatted, thinking about everything that needed to be done before the day was over. Did the grind ever stop? Not that he’d change anything; Remy was the best thing that happened to him, and while the nightmares had seemed unending at the time, life nowadays was a dream come true in comparison. Sure, there was one unattainable fantasy that would be the cherry on top, but he’d learned not to get his hopes up anymore.

“Got something to show you,” Remy said and Devereux supposed he could put up with whatever nonsense was to follow since Remy had brought him lunch.

They headed out into the library, which was relatively empty since school was out for the holidays. That didn’t change the fact that some families simply couldn't handle being cramped in the same house together for long periods of time. Devereux saw all sorts come through for a reprieve from the stress: teenagers with headphones blaring music loud enough that even he could hear it, parents with tense shoulders that appeared worn out no matter the hour, students visiting home that felt out of place after being away, now in need of a break from their discomfort.

Devereux followed Remy to the private study rooms. These were ideal, usually, for finding some peace and quiet, but he had a feeling some sort of havoc was inevitable.

“Eyes closed!” Remy exclaimed suddenly, pivoting. He practically resembled the Cheshire cat.

They had paused in front of room five. The lights were on and the blinds pulled but Devereux could see shadows moving through the slats.

“Might as well get it over with,” he muttered sarcastically, doing as requested.

Several things happened in the next moment.

Remy knocked once on the door and it creaked open. A hand took Devereux’s wrist and yanked him forward, presumably into the room. He collided into something sturdy, though the sound of crinkling plastic sounded less so. Someone erupted into giggles, another muttered “finally,” and then the door slammed shut, and the lock clicked.

“Oh,” squeaked the voice of whoever it was holding Devereux up from falling backwards.

(‘Whoever,’ we say, as if Devereux wasn’t achingly familiar with this voice.)

His eyes flew open and he resisted yelping in alarm. Just so. Roman was stood in front of him, dressed in loungewear, and holding a bouquet of flowers. He was rapidly turning red and he seemed about as confused as Devereux felt. This wouldn’t last long, it never did with the two of them, but it was really just a matter of who would snap out of it first.

“You look exquisite,” Devereux murmured finally, pulling back from Roman just enough that he could brush a hand along his forearm. “As if you’ve just gotten out of bed and yet… still so effortlessly handsome.”

“I can only imagine how divine it’d be to lay with you,” Roman responded smoothly, “though there’s not been created a material that could match your warmth.”

A pause, both realizing what they’d just said.

“Flowers!” Roman exclaimed suddenly, voice cracking, as he stepped away, and thrust the bundle towards Devereux.

“Wonderful,” he coughed, holding them gently, and admiring the colors. “Not nearly as lovely as you, of course, though one could search the ends of the Earth and still nothing would compare.”

“Why, Devereux,” Roman purred, “it sounds almost like you’re calling me the prettiest thing on the planet—”

“Aren’t you?”

“— when in fact, your beauty outmatches that beyond this world. I’d choose still to gaze into your eyes, reminiscent of sweet honey crystallized, even if offered a glittering sea of endless diamond skies.”

… Was it getting hot in this room? Roman looked exceedingly pleased with himself and Devereux cursed the competitive, theatrical streak they shared. There would be no moving from this spot if they continued like this… Not that he had a problem with it. Roman truly was a vision: hair tousled (Devereux could only imagine combing his fingers through the tangled locks), cheeks rosy (what he’d give to cause that blush daily), lips curved in satisfaction (oh, how he’d love to kiss that grin right off his face).

The same moment Devereux glanced upwards, Roman’s gaze flickered down.

‘Interesting,’ thought Devereux, taking note of the little sprig of green pinned to the ceiling.

Their eyes met again, their smiles melting into something softer, more sincere.

“Our kids will be the death of us,” Roman muttered with a resigned sigh.

“Our?” Devereux echoed. “I like the sound of that.”

“Oh,” Roman managed, breathlessly.

Keeping the flowers tucked in the elbow of one arm, Devereux reached forward with his free hand and rested his palm flat against Roman’s chest. His heart was racing. They had that in common.

It was imperceptible, trying to figure out who leaned closer first. The kiss was hesitant to start, years of yearning and pent up passion and fragile feelings. Once the realization hit, that the pining was mutual, that they both wanted this, that they both had been wanting this…

Well, it was a good thing the window to study room five was shuttered.

—

“Vee, it went perfectly!” Patton screamed into the receiver.

“Uh, yeah, I sure hope it did,” Virgil answered, shifting so that his cellphone stayed firmly between his ear and shoulder, despite Patton’s volume, “given how long they’ve been flirting for.”

Patton went on, gushing about how he and Logan had successfully tricked their dad into driving them to his own trap; how Remy had been instrumental in bribing Devereux with lunch; how they’d unlocked the room to find the pair slow dancing to music playing on Roman’s phone— “A Thousand Years,” covered by Boyce Avenue, they’d discover later.

Had Virgil not been so busy with finals, he surely would have heard the story sooner; it had been just under a week since the set-up and, apparently, Roman and Devereux were, somehow, even more sickeningly affectionate than before.

Not that Virgil would have any room to talk in… He glanced at his watch. The nerves over his flight were replaced quickly by the excited anticipation about seeing Patton in three hours.

“Sweetie?”

“I love you,” Virgil exclaimed suddenly, “just… so much.”

Patton squealed. “Ahh!! I love you too!!”

“Good. That’s… I’m glad. Hey, I gotta email a couple of professors. Talk later?”

“Of course!”

‘Sooner and closer than you think,’ Virgil mused, smiling at his lock screen photo after the call ended. They’d been going through his closet for spring cleaning and despite the silliness at the time, something about seeing Patton wearing his clothes warmed him all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes.

Virgil let his mind wander as he headed through security and to his gate, wondering just what he’d do during his two weeks back home. Attending college a state over was miserable to start but he’d been grateful there’d been one still relatively close, at least, with his stupidly specific major. He hadn’t been able to visit during Fall break and so it’d been an agonizing five months since he’d last hugged Patton, last held his hand, last— okay Virgil calm down before the touch starvation rears its ugly head.

Boarding, thankfully, took no time at all, since it was a smaller flight. The weather stayed mercifully clear and landing went off without a hitch. Grateful that he’d only needed to bring a carry-on and his backpack, he headed passed baggage claim and right for the pick-up zone outside. He was checking his phone to see where Thomas was parked when a body slammed into him from the side. Before he could panic about being attacked or robbed, his brother’s voice was rambling a mile a minute.

“I literally have so much to tell you, I cannot believe how much has happened since you were here last, and look!” Thomas exclaimed, shoving his phone into Virgil’s face. It was a picture of a kitten he didn’t recognize which meant Thomas had adopted another pet. Virgil gave Thomas a deadpan stare as he rattled off all the reasons he’d definitely needed a new cat.

He threw an arm over Virgil’s shoulders and led the way to the car, still gesturing excitedly as he went on about everything that had happened in Virgil’s absence. Apparently, Halloween had seen a jack-o’-lantern carving contest that was all for naught when Remy and Patton switched pumpkins, Logan’s boyfriend got a little knife happy with the picnic table, and Devereux realized halfway through his design that it was too humiliating for anyone else to see and had promptly threw the entire thing against a tree.

“Was it Roman’s face?” Virgil asked, rolling his eyes.

“Joan swears it was but you know them,” Thomas responded.

“Agent of chaos,” Virgil agreed.

Thanksgiving was the same as each year: Roman and the twins, Devereux and Remy, Valerie, Leo, Joan, Talyn, Terrence, Kenny, and Thomas all gathered at the local theatre. Even if any of them did have a house big enough to host a large group, the theatre held so much weight in all of their lives, and felt like the best place to express all the things they were grateful for— namely, each other. They made sure to leave the stage as clean as at the start of dinner, taking care to not leave any stains or scuffs by laying the floor with a plastic tarp. It took a bit of extra work, everyone having to transport their food, but the following games of charades and group improv made it all worth it.

Virgil swore to himself he’d never miss another one again, college be damned.

“No offense to Roman but the twins really got him good,” Thomas was saying as he merged onto the freeway. “They left Goodwill and just drove in circles until Remy let them know he’d made it to the library.”

“The fact that neither of those disaster idiots had even a clue as to what their kids were planning is…” Virgil gestured broadly, as if he could pluck the word out of thin air, “ridiculous.”

“But not unbelievable!” Thomas added. “I think they get blinded by the gay.”

“Yeah, you’re one to talk,” Virgil began but Thomas was slamming the button on the console to turn on the radio, drowning out whatever his brother was planning on saying next.

Virgil just settled into his seat, whistling innocently as Thomas’s face went bright red and Straight No Chaser sang through “The 12 Days of Christmas.”

Making it to the Sanders household took longer than Virgil would have liked but it was three days before Christmas and people were out and about for their last minute shopping. It didn’t help that it had snowed heavily the night before and so traffic was slow moving with everyone driving so carefully.

Still, they arrived before Patton got home, which was the important part. Roman was standing on the porch, waving excitedly as Thomas pulled into the driveway. Virgil glared at the second parked car, recognizing it as Devereux’s, and prayed that Roman didn’t actually have company over. Patton’s surprise was supposed to be known by as few people as possible and the gossip in this town spread fast.

“Welcome home!” Roman exclaimed, yanking Virgil into a hug as soon as he was within arm’s reach.

“Yeah, yeah,” Virgil said back, voice muffled as his face was pressed against Roman’s shoulder. “I’m happy to see you too, don’t get me wrong—”

“I know,” Roman sighed, dramatically, relenting as he let Virgil go and ushered them in from the cold. “I’m not the one you want to be squished by.”

“Shut up!” Virgil spluttered, swatting at Roman as if that would wipe the amused look off his face.

“Oh, there he is!”

Virgil was accosted the next moment. His face was met this time with a leather jacket and all he did in response was groan. Remy eased back but not before gently tugging once on Virgil’s earlobe and then tapping his nose.

“We are way too old for that,” Virgil complained, scowling.

It lasted all of three seconds before he caved, kicking out to tap the tip of his shoe against Remy’s ankle.

“I still stand by that being a stupid handshake,” Devereux said, appearing out of nowhere just as suddenly as his son had.

“Well good thing it’s not a handshake then, huh?” Virgil replied. However, it went mostly unheard as Roman stole Devereux’s attention at the same time, as if they literally hadn’t just been in the kitchen together three minutes ago.

“I hate this already,” Virgil said, taking his phone from his pocket, hoping for a text from Logan to distract him.

Sure enough, the younger of the twins had sent a photo of Patton at the candy store, eyeing a display case filled with fudge. His pronoun necklace stood out against the white of his sweater and matched the violet beanie pulled over his curls… the same one Virgil had left with him the day he had gone off to college. His heart swelled and if he’d been paying any attention, he’d have noticed the picture Remy snuck of him and the absolutely smitten smile on his face.

Thomas clapped his hands, snapping Virgil out of it. “Okay, I’m gonna drive home. Roe’s gonna follow and then bring us back over here. Doesn’t make any sense for me to be hanging out but, not gonna lie, I think the twins would be sus if Roe wasn’t here.”

“Hey!” Roman protested.

“No offense, darling, but he’s not wrong,” Devereux said, smirking.

At Roman’s put out expression, Devereux pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

Remy and Virgil were staring at each other as if they were each other’s cameras on The Office.

“We got the decorations out earlier,” Remy said, pointing towards the living room.

“Oh thank God, please get me away from them before I get cavities.”

The two ducked out of the entryway where they’d all been gathered since Thomas and Virgil’s arrival. For the most part, the house had already been dressed up for Christmas. The tree was lit, the stockings were hung, and there was one final box left to be unpacked. It’d been left on the coffee table, waiting to be opened and taken care of.

“I forget how sappy you look when you’re thinking about Patton.”

Virgil only gave Remy a rather rude hand gesture in return before lifting the lid off the container. Inside were the ornaments he and Patton had made together over the years. It was a tradition they’d had since before they began dating. Some of them were simple, made out of foam or cardboard and drawn on in marker or glitter glue pens; others were glass or ceramics and decorated with paint or sequins. The one thing they all had in common, though, was the indigo ribbon used to hang the baubles. It was the perfect mix of their favorite colors and needed to be special ordered anytime they ran out. Each one had the year written on it wherever there was space for it. Virgil loved them. Patton loved them so much that he refused to hang any of them without Virgil there to do so with him.

According to Roman, who Virgil really had to thank for making this trip possible, Patton hadn’t even considered touching the box housing the ornaments, since there hadn’t been any guarantee of Virgil making it home for Christmas. Now, though…

“Seriously, Virge, if I didn’t already doubt your dark and edgy exterior, I would be right about now.”

“Shut up, Rem,” Virgil said, laughing.

For awhile longer, the pair just caught up on the last half year. Eventually, Devereux and Thomas returned. Apparently, Patton had gotten chilly and sad (not that he’d admit to that last part but there was no hiding it from his twin), so he and Logan were heading home early. That was all fine and good; they mostly had just needed to get Patton out of the house long enough for Virgil to get home and to bring out the special ornaments.

While Virgil wanted to disagree with Thomas, Remy, and Devereux being there, he couldn’t be mad about having them around to keep him distracted… as long as they were gone before Patton arrived. With Remy sticking around… Virgil doubted it would happen, and he wouldn’t actually be mad if it did, but he was very good at hogging Patton’s attention. Which was hardly fair!

Remy got all the attention he could ever ask for already; admittedly, he and Patton had grown up together, were best friends throughout school, not to mention still living near each other and getting to see each other every day and okay sure, without Remy’s guidance, he was pretty sure that even now, Patton wouldn’t believe that Virgil loved him because no offense, but he could propose and Patton would still ask “as like… friends?”

… Alright, so maybe Virgil couldn’t get mad, pretend or not, at Remy being greedy with Patton’s company. That still didn’t make it fair.

The following thirty minutes were agonizing. Sure, this wasn’t going to be nearly as extra and it wasn’t like Virgil wanted to outdo Roman and Devereux’s confession but also if he could outdo the drama gays (a term coined by the majority of the town, which was really saying something), then he’d have it to hold over Roman’s head for the rest of time, and that sounded pretty cool. In his humble opinion, jumping out and surprising your loved one was way more romantic than being locked in a room with them and hoping everything would go well. Was he sure yet when he’d be jumping out and surprising Patton? Nope! He kind of figured it’d just be something he knew.

“They’re here!” Thomas exclaimed, nearly dropping his phone at the suddenness of receiving the text.

“Get out,” Virgil snapped immediately and unthinkingly at Remy and Devereux.

“Kinda late for that, doll,” Remy said, at least looking a little sorry about it.

“We’ll hide out in the crafts room,” Devereux offered, already pulling Remy down the hallway. Virgil pointedly ignored the kiss he blew in Roman’s direction. He very pointedly ignored Roman catching it.

“You know they’ll see Roe’s car, right?” Thomas prompted, grinning.

“I’m glad you’ve already thought up a reason for them to be here then,” Virgil responded, shooting finger guns at his brother, who started stammering reminders that he was terrible with excuses. Never mind that he was an actor and should have been able to improvise something.

“I’ll handle it,” Roman cut in, patting Thomas on the head, which looked a little ridiculous since they were the same height. “Better get hiding, Virgil.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. Virgil hurried to the kitchen where he proceeded to shove into the storage closet, which had been cleared out just enough for him to cram his scrawny self into. It smelled like various spices which reminded him of last year and baking cinnamon cookies with Patton. He wondered what they’d make this time.

The sound was muffled but the front door opened and shut and… God, how was he supposed to wait long enough to properly surprise his boyfriend? Just hearing Patton’s voice made Virgil want to throw himself into his arms, to kiss him senseless, to hold onto him and never let go. He steadied his breathing by focusing instead on the various scents surrounding him, only half listening to whatever Roman was saying to the twins. The noises got louder as they moved towards the kitchen, probably for Logan and Patton to put away the desserts they’d gone shopping for.

“Thanks for agreeing to help decorate, even if it is just a— a possibility,” Thomas expressed, voice cracking on the last word. Ugh, he really never had learned how to lie.

“The odds of Virgil actually being able to visit are quite low, Patton,” Logan was saying, “I just don’t want your hopes to get up too high.” Wow. Were they even trying to be subtle?

“I know that!” Patton exclaimed and Virgil was sure he was flapping his hands. “Imagine if he could, though! What if he showed up on Christmas Eve, oh, that would be so magical!”

This certainly wasn’t as magical as it could have been but Virgil was sure he’d explode if he waited a second longer. So as soon as it started to sound like the trio was heading back out, Virgil nudged the door open with his foot. It creaked and he winced. No doubt having peaked Patton’s curiosity, Virgil threw the door open the rest of the way, and practically launched himself at his boyfriend’s back.

Patton, for good reason, screamed.

The arms locked around his neck now, however, allowed him to see the hands clasped over his chest. Purple nail polish. A black ring on the middle finger of the right hand. An old friendship bracelet hanging loosely from the wrist.

Patton screamed again.

“Virgil!”

If asked, neither could guess how long they stayed embraced for. Patton was laughing breathlessly into Virgil’s shoulder, muttering his name over and over, sprinkling in the occasional “I love you.” Virgil couldn’t have stopped combing his hand through Patton’s hair even if he wanted to.

Eventually, they would separate, but only just enough so that Patton could pepper kisses all over Virgil’s face. There might have even been a couple minutes of just gazing at each other, soaking up the mere presence and warmth of the one they loved so dearly.

Of course, they weren’t really alone which meant the reunion had to end at some point. The house was still full of nosy siblings and parents, after all. So, when Remy came crashing into the kitchen, shouting about how bored he was, neither Virgil nor Patton were all that surprised. He stole Patton away, claiming they had to do something really quick and insisting that Virgil catch up with Logan in the meantime.

“Hey, L,” Virgil said, greeting Logan with a signature two finger salute.

“Nice to see you again, Virgil. How was your semester?”

They chatted about college, and their respective majors, and any hall mates from hell. Without really realizing it, they got into making a large batch of hot chocolate for everyone while they talked. Each mug was picked especially for its recipient, as well as the various ingredients added to each one. Virgil dropped a peppermint stick into his, added extra marshmallows to Patton’s, and a generous spoonful of caramel sauce for Thomas.

With Roman’s help, all the drinks were brought out safely to the living room. Devereux seemed to have dozed off in the recliner closest to the fireplace. Thomas was nowhere to be found, so Virgil assumed he’d been roped into whatever nonsense Remy and Patton were up to.

“So,” Virgil started, settling into the corner of the couch. “Did I outdo the drama gays?”

“Absolutely not,” Roman responded vehemently.

“Virgil!” Patton shouted suddenly, appearing from the hallway, carrying a bag. “Honey, oh my god.”

Patton shot an apologetic look towards Devereux, who was stirring from his nap, as he hurried towards Virgil. He threw himself onto the couch next to his boyfriend and abandoned the package in favor of grabbing onto Virgil’s arm.

“Earlier, you…” He paused, giggling. “You came out of the pantry.”

Logan groaned.

Virgil blinked, slightly bewildered, before he started laughing, too. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess I did.”

“I have something for you,” Patton continued, retrieving the present. He shoved it into Virgil’s lap.

“Christmas isn’t for another three days?”

“Yes, and?”

Thomas, who had just arrived with Remy, snorted. “As if you’ve ever had the patience to wait until the actual day to start opening your gifts.”

While Virgil pestered Patton about not needing to get him anything, really, Remy and Thomas fought over the last armchair, and eventually just ended up tangled together on it. Logan rolled his eyes at their stubbornness.

After some insisting from Patton, Virgil pulled out all of the colored tissue paper. Patton proceeded to ball it up and throw it at Remy, whose complaining got progressively louder, until his dad finally tossed a pillow at him with a grumbled “please shut up.” Roman settled on the arm of Devereux’s recliner with the most adoring look in his eyes and carded a hand through his hair, whispering sweetly to him.

“Oh,” Virgil gasped, momentarily losing himself in sensory bliss at the material he’d just got his hands on.

Patton wiggled, patting Virgil’s knees excitedly. It was the very same scarf he’d bought from Remy barely a week ago. It was black which meant it’d go with anything in Virgil’s wardrobe or with whatever outfit Patton decided to wear should he steal borrow it from him.

“Try it!” Patton said, moving the rest of the wrapping out of the way.

Looping it around his neck provided Virgil the realization that it was of an infinity scarf, which meant all sorts of different ways to wear it. Would he still just bundle it up to hide his face in it as much as possible? Probably.

“It’s so soft,” Virgil murmured, rubbing the fabric against his cheek.

“Cashmere,” Remy piped up. “You’re welcome.”

Patton leaned in, waiting with bright, hopeful eyes. “Do you like it?”

“Like it?” Virgil huffed, failing spectacularly at downplaying his delight. “I love it. Thank you.”

If a person could embody !!!, then Patton would be doing a very good job of it. He surged forward, catching Virgil by surprise with the intensity of the kiss. One hand cradled his face while the other clutched at the scarf, using it to pull him closer. Smiling against Patton’s lips, Virgil couldn’t help but think that this was very much something he’d like to have for the rest of his life.

Later, they would hang up their personal ornaments. Tomorrow, they would work on making new ones. The holidays would only continue to get more magical as the years passed, he was sure of it, and honestly? He was really looking forward to it.

#sanders sides fan fiction #roceit #moxiety #ts deceit #sympathetic deceit #romantic roceit #romantic moxiety #dani writes

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cruddyborderlandstheories · 5 years ago

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Fl4k Fl4k Fl4k Fl4k Fl-

i didn’t die i just fell in love with that skill tree creator and have done nothing for the past few days but make skill trees and sleep for 3 hour intervals. im very excited for the gameplay on Wednesday but oh man oh me oh my i gotta catch up on a lot of posts lol

tl;dr: Fl4k is a badass. Stop misgendering them or I’ll show up at your home at 3am local time every time and then eat your spine. Bonus: Mr. Chew being an ‘Eridian skag’ is probably due to some funky mutation from eridium/slag/eridian stuff. Kinda like how Threshers have the ability to make singularities because they are native to Elpis, which is a big ol’ Eridian base (which i totally addressed in this post lol). I also gave my opinion on Fl4k’s skills in general, if you’re interested in that. Overall, a very awesome trailer! Definitely lived up to the hype.

i said it before, this trailer was one of the best ones. definitely #2 for me, Zane is still at #1 because i actually laughed during it. the music in this one is definitely the best out of all 4 tho. seems like they’re all variations of the same song, i like this one best. I need this soundtrack sooo bad.

also i know probably no one else following this blog watches one piece but like

that first footstep with the studded boot and the sound effect immediately flung me back to katakuri. god katakuri was a badass. i was so excited to see that fight animated.

mr chew spinning around is my favorite thing ever. i love that you can tell the personality of the pets just from watching the intro.

i know fl4k is like a real badass in this trailer, but i get the feeling they’re going to end up being at least a little soft for their pets. i mean... they have stuffed animals of them ffs.

so... we’re near Sanctuary-III in this trailer? I gotta keep my eye out then. i also want to see if that one claptrap area guess i had is correct or not... this looks like an entryway for the garage so im guessing i wasn’t, but let’s seeeee

there is a raised bit up and to the left

also im wondering if this means we’re going to have to rescue ellie from the CoV.

hmmmmmmmm

hmmmmm i don’t think the signs match up.

mr chew is the goodest boy. im so glad we can pet/interact with him!! i want to know what the names of the other pets are

also, a bit off topic but

i could have sworn fl4k’s jabber was cryo/shock. it was blue, wasn’t it? i wonder if they changed it or if it’s skill upgrades change its color. i thought the upgrades just gave it better guns.

yeah it was! i guess possibly upgrading it with the guns gives it a new color scheme? maybe? this could be the gunslinger upgrade!

it looks like their jabber went through the most design changes out of all of the pets. that or this is yet another upgrade (since each pet has 3 states). maybe this is the beefcake version.

‘bitch’. i love how expressive fl4k is with just the eye. very well done.

ohhh you know what that building is in the back?

[we’re near the intro to the game!]*

and tbh i don’t think this place has the building for Ellie’s Scrap in it... i don’t see it anywhere. maybe this is the actual scrapyard and the building is on the other side?

not quite sure tbh. but at least we know this place may also be near sanc-iii, just maybe not the same area as the actual Ellie’s Scrap.

i mean... there IS a shitload of cars everywhere. i wouldn’t surprised if it’s near her garage cause it looks like a scrapyard.

but also where in the fuck are all these ‘normal’ looking cars coming from?? it’s not like we see them being used on pandora. all the ones we see in bl1/2 are clearly dilapidated and rusting. big thonk. at least the vans/busses kinda make sense.

oh yeah that is definitely the same building. [it’s the recruitment center!]*

this scene with the rakk is my favorite out of all the trailers. so fuckin cool

i do hope the jabber goes back to being blue at some point. i like the red design too, don’t get me wrong, but i much prefer the glowy blue. it’s my favorite color and you guys know i love glowing things 👀

<Huge Selection!!!> lol

cat/doggo/monkey. mr chew is my favorite pet but i love the jabber panting like a dog lol

i never knew this is where spiderant mouths were

i always assumed they were below that... f r e a k y

“he likes to chase cars”

fl4k probably took them to the scrapyard for this exact reason ngl. fl4k being a big softie to their pets confirmed

(also, notice how fl4k uses ‘he’ for mr chew. it’s almost as if they understand the concept of gender, chose their own pronouns, and your argument that they only are nonbinary only because they “don’t understand yet” is invalid! Fl4k is canonically nonbinary and uses they/them/theirs pronouns as confirmed by both SungWon Cho and their in-game skills.

Now that you know, use they/them/theirs for Fl4k or get off my blog. Because by not doing so, you are disrespecting the devs’ wishes for this character AND the nonbinary people who find representation in them and I won’t support that. if you feel like arguing your reasons to purposefully misgender them even after knowing this, please DM me so I can block you. thanks!

For those of you out there actually making an effort: mistakes happen, especially if Fl4k is the first NB person you’ve learned about. Just make sure to correct yourself then move on, and we’re okay. Everyone has to learn sometime and it’s better to put in the effort than not care at all. It will become second nature.)

Fl4k is such a badass, they really are way different than i expected (personality-wise), but i am not complaining. gearbox knows me better than i know myself, so i know i’m going to end up loving Fl4k anyway. ProZD did such a fantastic job, i honestly did not recognize him at first! i can tell with certain words now, but wow i am blown away.

i hope we’re able to climb that bird’s nest lookin’ thing in the back. it would be perfect for sniping and/or placing ur clone for maximum coverage.

seriously, what a badass.

idk i feel obligated to give my opinions of Fl4k over here since they were recently released. I am digging them 100%, tho i was kinda surprised (not in a bad way) they’re not as... i guess soft as i was expecting from their character design with the plushes and the face on the backpack and the smiley face pin, but i imagine that’s different when they’re interacting with their pets. im super curious to see how this VH group’s dynamic is going to go.

mechanically, their skills seem perfect for people who loved sniper Zer0 and in general Mordecai, with a splash of Salvador tossed in for good luck. I am a dirty melee Zer0 main and i prefered Phasewalking over Bloodwing (altho i still play mordy bc he’s best bl1 VH) so, while I am definitely going to give Fl4k a go, they’re not my main bl3 Vault Hunter, that’s reserved for Zane and his lovely ability to befuddle enemies and run around. Funnily enough, I’m not even a fan of pet classes, so Fl4k being second in my play order is pretty funny. Tho, yeah, Amara being last is also pretty weird. I guess I don’t necessarily enjoy melee, I just enjoy messing with the bad guys lol

ohh, also, I am most interested in the upgrade for mr. chew that gives him the ability to create singularities and is called ‘Eridian Skag’.

so I’m not saying my theory that the threshers on the moon were connected to Eridians was right, I’m just saying they’re the only form of wildlife we know that has a singularity ability (outside of Mr. Chew, apparently).

im just saying gearbox, you should hire me to write your deep lore for you cause i’d do it for free

im wondering if we’ll be seeing skags with wormhole abilities in bl3. maybe the constant exposure to slag is starting to mutate them further beyond just elemental bonuses (on badass skags). We know Maya’s phaselock has a singularity ability (so does Amara’s phasegrasp), and that is sorta ‘occurring naturally’ (you know, as natural as siren powers can get) unlike the singularity grenades we encounter which use our known technology. plus, uh, whatever happened to the destroyer’s eye in TPS that made it create a singularity/wormhole by injecting it with a fuckload of slag. that probably has something to do with this as well.

but geez i really hope mr. chew is okay with being all slag/eridium-ed up. i guess being badass elemental skags doesn’t appear to hurt them, just make them more powerful, unlike humans. maybe that has something to do with sentience, if slag/eridium/eridian stuff actually is driving bandits crazy. could explain why/if the jabber doesn’t get an element like the skag (eridian skag) and spiderant (fire) do, since they’re described as semi-sentient...

anyway.

Fl4k is cool. Definitely a neat trailer- my second favorite for sure- and the skill tree drop blew me away because i was not expecting it. im expecting a lot of Fl4k mains in the first few weeks of gameplay because they look like a lot of fun!

EDIT: i was wrong, in the newest IGN vid, it turns out we ARE near the recruitment center, because that IS the recruitment center

they gave them little orange flags! good to know!!

#fl4k #borderlands #bl3 #borderlands 3 #fl4k is nonbinary #fl4k uses they/them/their pronouns

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studious-punk · 6 years ago

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Hi!! I saw you have a MSI laptop! I'm thinking about buying a laptop for college (instead of bringing desktop PC to campus or nearby apartment). How is the battery life on your MSI? What kind is it? Do you recommend it? Is it heavy or fairly light? I can't part with windows to get Macbooks like many other studyblrs, so I was super excited to see that you are using a gaming laptop!!

Hi! Thanks for being as excited about my laptop as I am! I’ll admit I generally feel so strange posting in the studyblr tags with a not-so-aesthetic laptop, but I love my MSI to pieces. I totally agree with you about Macbooks too, I love Windows too much to own a Mac.

My laptop is an MSI GT72 Dominator Pro, and it’s a beast. If you’re going to be doing a lot in VR, I recommend it just because of the sheer number of USB ports (six!!). The battery life is... okay. I don’t really use it a lot without having it plugged in, but it’ll last a good 1.5-3 hours, depending on what you’re doing with it. pretty much the only place on campus you’re not going to have ready access to an outlet though is in a lecture hall.

It’s very large. VERY. This thing will not fit in your backpack, that’s how big it is. You will have trouble balancing it on those tiny lecture hall folding desk things, too. the laptop itself weighs 9 lbs, and the charger probably adds about another pound onto that.

I love this laptop, but it has its pros and cons. I can’t really say if it’s the right laptop for you, because I don’t know what your needs are. I’ve owned my laptop for just about four years, and it’s been perfect. I use it primarily for game development (along with all my other homework, but I bought it with game dev in mind). I do occasionally play video games on it, and it performs extremely well at that too. One thing I like about it is that while it doesn’t itself have a 4K display, it supports output to 4K external monitors, so you can get the benefits of 4K without the crazy power drain that comes along with having a 4K monitor as your main display.

Pros: crazy powerful. It’s got a top-notch intel processessor, and high level nvidia graphics. It has a 17.9in display, perfect for gaming or development.

Cons: heavy, especially if you’re going to be walking/biking more than a mile at a time. average battery life, will not last all day without a charge.

MSI has a lot of options regarding laptops, and I definitely recommend their laptops, especially if you’re into gaming, but even if you aren’t. The one I have is pretty pricey, but they have a lot of cheaper options, if you’re concerned about money. Just spend some time browsing their website, and consider what your needs are when choosing which laptop to buy. :)

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justwravel-blog · 5 years ago

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Kedarkantha - The Best Snow Trek Are you the one who was the one always fascinated about the snow-clad region shown in some of the best Hollywood thrillers and romantic movies? If yes, then the next destination on your bucket list should be the Kedarkantha Trek - The Best Snow Trek in India. Did you always dream of sleeping under the open sky, amidst the alluring and endless snow all around? No matter you say yes or no, you shouldn’t wait any longer and just grab the next chance to trek to the Kedarkantha Summit. The trek has a considerable layer of snow covering itself, throughout most of the year, especially during the winter months of November, December, January and February- perfect for snowfall lovers, this trek must be the next big thing in your bucket list. The Kedarkantha peak stands tall at an astounding elevation of 12,500 feet. Instead of this much elevation from the sea level, this trek remains a beginner’s trek. The trail is easy to follow, and Just Wravel’s trail leaders make it even more comfortable with their thoughtful inputs about the trek. The best time to trek to the Kedarkantha peak is during the winter months, the trail remains accessible throughout the year, but Monsoons should be positively ignored. Making your way to the most mesmerizing trek. The picture-perfect setting of the snow-clad region and towering trails, these all origin with your journey from Dehradun. On the very first day of the trek, the trekkers board a group vehicle from Dehradun, and they arrive at the beautiful village at the foothills of Kedarkantha - Sankri. Usually, groups take an overnight rest at a local guesthouse or hotel and start their trekking journey the next day. All through your journey to the beautiful and cultural village of Sankri, your route will be accompanied by several rivers and creeks such as the Yamuna, the Kedar Ganga, and the Ton River. Upon arriving at this beautiful cultural hub, one can experience the vicinity of the ages-old Himalayan culture enclosed within these immobile and exquisite mountains and folds. Beginning of an epic journey. After spending a warm and long night in the warm quilts, trekkers are quite curious about trekking to the next destination, which is Juda Ka Taal, a natural pond in the colds of Himalayas. Juda ka Taal or Juda ka Talab is a freshwater lake located 8,858 meters above the sea level. This lake comes in the restricted forest area of Uttarkashi and hence is untouched from the toxic pollutants of the humankind. According to the locals, several hundreds of thousands of years ago, Devo Ke Dev or the Lord of all Lords - Lord Shiva, untied his bun (Juda in Hindi), and some water droplets fell on the ground, and the Talab (pond) was formed. This prepossessing lake has an outstanding religious value because of the local beliefs and folklore. After a 4 kilometer walk through the lush forest, trekkers are generally tired, so trek leads decide to camp at the Juda Ka Taal for the night. The evening starts by setting up the camps and preparing and serving dinner. One just can’t ignore the steaming hot puris and sabzi served in dinner. After the tasty meal, the trekkers go to their respective tents for the restful night’s sleep. Ascending to the Base Camp. After spending a night by the side of the frozen lake, it will be frozen if you trek to the Kedarkantha in winters, the trekkers prepare themselves for yet another hike. This time the team ascends to the Kedarkantha Base camp, situated at an altitude of 3,413 meters. From here, the trekkers will have to trek uphill and on a more steep route than their previous day’s trek. You need not worry, our skilled trek leaders will assist you throughout this enchanting and exciting journey. Post breakfast, it’s a 4 kilometers trek to the Kedarkantha Base Camp. The masala chai made by the locals of the Uttarkashi district’s Sankri village is unavoidable, and you should try some before starting your trek to the base camp of Kedarkantha. If you’re a fan of the Hollywood movies and the snowy lands they portray in them, then you will fall in love with this enthralling trek, entirely covered in snow. Be amazed at every step you take. Most visitors couldn’t take their eyes and soul off this serene, untouched and tranquil terrain of the Kedarkantha Trek. After walking for three to four hours, one reaches the famous Kedarkantha Base Camp. Post setting up the camps, the only things which remain undone is - throwing up your backpack in your tent and stretching your legs into a quick nap. Peaks of several mountains like the Swargarohini and Kala Nag can be easily identified from the Base Camp of Kedarkantha. After taking the mouth-watering dinner served by Just Wravel, our wravelers are all set to hop in their tents and stay warm till three or four past midnight. The last ascend. After several hours of rest and warmth, our traveling group will be all set to leave for the summit of Kedarkantha. The ascent starts at 3:30 A.M. or 4:00 A.M. in the morning where you walk for almost 1.5 kilometers, 1.1 kilometers to be precise. Just Wravel prefers to start the trek so early in the dawn because we want to provide you an opportunity to witness one of the most serene and magnificent views you can have in any mountain - the sunrise. Sunrises from the summit of the Kedarkantha are just unmissable and unforgettable. The moment one witness the glistering rays of sun lighting up their eyes, the whole trek seems to be worth it. To help our Wravelers soak in the scenic beauty of this natural wonder, our trek leaders start the trek from Base Camp to the summit early in the morning. Last, but not the least - happy ending. After spending some time and soaking in the sun at the Kedarkantha summit, Wravelers will be all set to descend from the summit. After observing the giant peaks like the Bandarpoonch from the summit of Kedarkantha, the team descends to the Haragaon camp. By evening, you’ll be at the Haragaon camp and having your dinner beside your campsite. After spending a night and recharging their enthusiasm, wravelers will be all set to descend from Juda ka Taal to the Sankri, the last motorable village in the district. At Sankri, Just Wravel’s mini-bus picks up the traveling team, and they head back to the Dehradun. All in all, the trek to the Kedarkantha is once in a lifetime experience, the sunrise, the astounding frozen lake which leaves everybody awestruck, the lush green meadows and forests, the pine trees and other Himalayan flora and fauna will leave you surprised. Looking upon the terrain of the Kedarkantha trek, it can be concluded as an easy to moderate trek with minimum risk. This trek has a mixed cocktail of medium-high ascends and slant descending slopes. All this mixed up with the enthusiasm of the snow trek, makes the trek pretty much easy for debutants trekking to their first summit. Do reach out to JustWravel to book your Kedarkantha Trek. Thank You…!!

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fallen029 · 8 years ago

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Forest Through the Trees.1

This is just the start of a short story I’ve been working on. Next part hopefully soon, but we’ll see.

His life was a mixture of fantastical lies and horrific realities. That’s what I consider most of them now, when thoughts of those warm summer nights and frozen wintry afternoons flicker through my mind. It’s not often, honestly, that I think of it. Or about it.

The first time I met him, he told me that his name was Aardvark and he lived in the forest that surrounded my house.

Which, even at six, sounded extremely fictitious, but I took him at his words, as there weren’t many other children in the area to play with in those days. It was just after lunch, when I was out in the expansive backyard on my family’s property, spending the start of my lonely summer months kicking around a soccer ball to myself.

He just...seemed to appear, out of nowhere, but I know, as an adult, I must have just not heard him approaching. Maybe he even sneaked up on me in order to make himself seem even more mysterious. Because, you know, that’s all someone named Aardvark that was raised by woods and the creatures inside it needed was more mystic.

If you knew him the way I did, you’d figure out pretty fast that that’s probably exactly what he had done.

I was excited, honestly. My first year of school had only ended two weeks previously and I was already missing all my friends and, really, just some decent human contact. He was another child, right there, in my yard, and that meant that we could play together.

“You wanna play soccer?” was probably along the lines of what I asked, though he only stood there, before me, head held higher than mine. Which, the last part wasn’t too hard, considering the boy was older than me and, truth be told, I’ve always been on the shorter side.

Sucky genes, I suppose.

Aardvark, as I knew him that day, only told me, “What is this...soccer, you speak of?”

And even though it seemed like a lie, that he grew up in the forest, it made perfect sense, when you think about it, that someone raised by the forest wasn’t privy to things such as these. Of course, he also shouldn’t have been wearing, you know, clothes or speaking English so clearly, but…

He told me that if I wanted to play with him, I would have to go into the woods. Which sounded bad, really, and made me hesitate, because that was one of those Stranger Danger things that I’d been introduced to in the past few months, thanks to Kindergarten. But…

He was just a little boy. Not a man. Or a woman. And I was really lonely.

I took my soccer ball though, kicking it along as we headed back into the treeline. The sun was out and shining brightly that day, but the forest was shadowy as always. I didn’t like it much, honestly, and only ever went into it when I was out walking with one of my parents or when my older cousins made their yearly visit around Christmas time, where we’d all run around in the snow, looking at our tracks and the ones of the animals.

We kept going deeper and I was starting to wonder just what sorta ‘play’ animals did and if I should try and hightail it back home before I found out. My fears were squelched, however, when we stopped upon a random tree where a backpack had been dropped.

I wanted to mention, as he bent down to unzip the thing, that I don’t think that animals had backpacks and that he was seeming like a pretty big liar, but again, this was the only kid that I was going to get to hang out with that day.

Not to mention what he pulled out kinda kept me from saying much at all.

“Whoa, cool,” I giggled as he pulled out freaking Pokemon cards and I didn’t have any, but the anime was a pretty big deal about that time and he had a whole freaking binder of ‘em. I’d seen the commercials and, even though I wasn’t really sure how to play with them much less who I would play with, I still wanted them.

Everyone wanted them.

I quickly found out, of course, that Aardvark must have been in the same boat me. He had the cool little binder with the cool little sleeves, but as we pulled them out and I asked him to teach me how to play, he informed me that animals from the forest didn’t know and therefore, neither did he.

My wits were reaching their end as it was just complete lunacy that he would acquire the cards, somehow, even though he was raised by what animals he wasn’t specifying in the woods around my house, and yet was also unable to figure out the rules due to their existence.

It was aggravating.

But…

Again, I was an only child and running him off at that point wasn’t an option.

It was the summer of 2001 and that had left enough time for quite a few cards to circulate and be released. He was telling me the different packs he’d gotten, but I didn’t even know what packs were and I mostly just liked pointing out my favorites from the TV show as we flipped through the plastic pages.

That’s not all we did, of course, as that quickly got boring. Aardvark pulled out some more toys from his dark red backpack, mostly just those random action figures and such that you get as a kid, but never really remember getting if you know what I mean. He had a Superman one, I recall, that he was super weird about and wouldn’t let me touch, but that was fine, as he let me toy around with the others.

We laid on our bellies, in the grass and dirt, messing around with the toys and talking. He told me that he was eight and had lived in the forest his whole life. I told him that I was six and, considering I lived in my house my entire life yet had never run into him, I found that hard to believe.

When I said this, his face grew dark and he looked about ready to reach over and pop me in the head or something, but I only looked off and resounded not to call him out again, on his lies. I wasn’t...afraid of him, not really, but…

I just figured it would be better to hold my tongue and nod my head. If he wanted to be from the forest, fine; honestly, I was a bit bummed that I didn’t have a cool story like that to share with him about myself.

So I embellished a bit, when I told him about how I’d just finished kindergarten, completely rewriting myself into the place of this kid named Jacob in my class. Jacob was the cut up type, always made the teacher and class laugh and smile. I wanted to be Jacob.

And I was. That day. Laying in the shade of the trees above us as I lied to the boy who was lying to me just as much.

My memories fuzzy on just how long I was out there with him, but the sky was turning that red and orange shade when I heard it.

My mother.

Calling for me.

I’d been gone too long.

Popping up, I must have given him a panicked look as Aardvark only shoved up and asked who that was.

“My mom,” I explained, knowing just how much trouble I was going to be in, for going into the forest alone. It was a big no-no. I could play in our open backyard all by myself in those days, as either my parents didn’t care about me at all or didn’t understand how simple it was for a child to vanish in an instance, but going into the woods could get me a whooping.

And I didn’t like whoopings.

“What’s a mom?” Aardvark asked in fake confusion and, finally, he’d pissed me off. I wanted to yell at him that I wasn’t dumb and I hated when people thought that they could act like I was. Like when my mom and dad would argue and then, if I asked what was wrong, they’d just tell me nothing. Aardvark wasn’t that older than me, but it felt like he was trying to act like it and I was over with it.

Glaring at him, I balled up my little fists and…

Did nothing, of course. My mother sounded frantic then and I had to figure my way back home, as Aardvark had led me deep into the woods. So I only said to him that if he wanted, he could come by again the next day and maybe we could play with my toys. He only laid there still, on his stomach, and stared. Not having time to wait around for him to agree, I only waved and rushed off, not realizing that I’d left behind my soccer ball until it was too late and I’d run into my mother.

I didn’t get a whooping, but only because I think I really scared my mother. Not having the soccer ball provided the perfect excuse that I’d kicked it too hard, accidentally, and had gone of to find it and gotten a bit lost. She only hugged me though and seemed a bit emotional, for me to have only been gone a few seconds. As she bent over and held me to her though, I could smell the sweetness on her breath and even at six, I knew she’d been drinking. Not that I really knew what drinking was, I did know that my mother, who was a stay at home mother (a loose term) was rarely without her wineglass and that typically, if she had too much from it, she’d get all weepy and weird.

More fun, maybe, but still weird.

Different.

I didn’t tell her about Aardvark though. My father either, when he got hoe just time for dinner. I’m not sure why, but I’m sure part of it was because I was afraid of getting in trouble. Like I said, we lived in a pretty remote area outside the town, so I was a bit different than most kids, I guess, in that I didn’t get that experience of hanging out until the streetlamps came on, with the great communal family of neighborhood children. I’d only ever gotten to go play at one kid’s house before and it had been that year, when one of the kids in my class had birthday party and I got an invitation.

My days before school had been spent with me, myself and I. And my mother, I guess, when she wasn’t busy diving full force into chat rooms on the desktop in the den. It wasn’t so bad. I didn’t have to share my toys or the TV with another child. My father wasn’t rich, but he made enough to support us and I got a pretty good haul, each birthday and Christmas that were more than enough to make up for the fact that neither of my parents wanted another child, if they’d ever even planned for me, and that they were both happy with him going away on business to do Lord knows what every three weeks and her rotting her brain with people she’d never meet on the ever developing internet craze.

I figured that they’d have more questions about Aardvark than I could answer. And I’m really glad now, thinking back, that I didn’t open my big mouth back then, as hearing your very young child saying an older kid came out of the woods, claimed he was basically part animal, and led them off into the depths of the surrounding woods for hours wouldn’t exactly make any parent feel content that their child had had a safe June day.

Mostly though, I think I just wanted Aardvark all for myself. I wasn’t sure if they’d take him away or not and it had been lonely, already, after two weeks. School hadn’t been great, as there were times when I just didn’t wanna get up in the morning and have to go do things like recite my alphabet or count to a hundred. Nap time was a farce and if it was wet out, we didn’t even really get recess. But…

I liked being around other kids, in a way I hadn’t been able to be before.

And I wanted the boy that had just appeared out of nowhere to be like that for me. A friend.

I wanted to hang out with him every day and play Pokemon Cards as well as with action figures. Teach him what soccer was and finally, my blue Frisbee would be for more than throwing at things. I could throw it to a thing. A person. A kid. A kid my age that was going to be my friend.

Aardvark and I were gonna be best friend sand I was gonna have fun summer.

Until, you know, he didn’t show up.

I sat out in the back yard, having drug a bunch of my toys out there following breakfast, waiting on him. Sitting there in the grass, I stared longingly at the treeline he’d seemed to appear out of, the previous day, listening as my father left for work, just waiting.

Eventually I shifted to less waiting and more just playing on my own, no stranger to the concept, and trying hard not to concentrate only on the trees before me. It was difficult. I wanted him to hurry up and come.

When my mother called me in for lunch, it hit me that I hadn’t seen him the day before until after I’d eaten and perhaps he’d show up when I was done. Eating my food as speedily as I could, I rushed back outside almost just expecting him to be standing there, in that smug way that I already kinda was alright with, but that wasn’t how it went, of course.

I waited all day and, even when my mother made me come in to help with dinner, I just kept watching out the windows. Not that if he did show up so late I’d be able to go out there and play with him, but I just wanted to know that he was there. That I hadn’t imagined him.

But he didn’t come back. I must have waited four days before I gave up and decided that he’d gone back to whatever he’d been doing before inviting me to play with him. Probably, I decided, he didn’t like playing with me. Which sucked because, even though he was a major jerk, I still liked playing with him.

It was on that fifth day, when I’d mostly given up hope, but still kinda sorta wanted to see him again that over dinner, my father announced to my mother that he’d seen lights on, at the house way down the street (the closest to us) and stopped by to introduce himself to the new neighbors.

I’d heard them talk before about someone moving into Ms. Agatha’s house, but I didn’t like it much. She was this sweet old lady that my mother would walk me through the forest to visit on some rare occasions that had been shipped off by her children to a nursing home finally not long before that. They’d thought that the house would stay vacant, but apparently her children had finally sold it.

“Must have moved in,” my father told her over the table, “while I was outta town. I should have seen them, you’d think, move in.”

“I believe Agatha’s children left most her furniture and stuff in the house and were trying to sell it with the place,” she said with a shrug. “Maybe they didn’t need much to move in with.”

“Met the guy that lived there,” my father went on. “Just shook hands on the porch. He invited us over to dinner sometime next week. Gave them our number and said they should give us a call about times. You, I mean.”

“Yes. Me.”

I was pouty, that day, about still not having seen Aardvark, but honestly, even if I wasn’t, the chances of me making any connection between a new family moving in on the other side of the woods from us were pretty slim.

Considering that the likelihood of Aardvark actually, not only having that name, but also being raised in the woods by animals that he still hadn’t really specified what were (though I figure he was going for that sorta Jungle Book, everyone pitching in, kinda vibe) was pretty slim, it would come as no shocked to anyone that I would be meeting my so far one day stand friend again very soon.

Just...not in the way I was expecting.

Next Chapter

#Short Story #Friendship #Friends #Story

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