Beware the Vengeful Wrath of Nature!

Tumb chuckles and pulls both of them close, glad to be surrounded by people - person? whatever - what love him. One hand runs through Eternal’s hair, fluffing it up and tickling his scalp, and the other holds Finny tight, his fingers tapping against his side ever so lightly. “I’m sure he doesn’t. I’d prefer not to talk about him, now. Let’s talk about me. Because I’m just so cool. I should always be the topic of conversation!” He winks at no one in particular, then laughs again, kissing the top of Terny’s head.

"Heeyyyy where's mine?" Infinity whines, twisting around to look at Tumb and pouting at him. It might have been cute if it weren't for his ferocious teeth, "How come he gets a kiss and I don't? Be fair, sunshine, that's not very nice..."

Eternal lets out a snort and curls up against Tumb, practically crawling into his lap. He closes his eyes ,enjoying his warmth, feeling the weight of tiredness tugging at him. He doesn't want to fall asleep, no now, not when he has time with Tumb, but it's hard, so hard to stay awake.

Have you had anything to eat in a while? Or slept at normal hours?

*hr shrugs*

I've slept and eaten. Kinda. I mean there's not really any food in the tent so I've basically been living off of truffula fruit. Which... *he frowns a little, running a hand through Tonks' fur* ...which I think I'm not supposed to do....?

*looks at him oddly* I thought you all knew me well enough to know I can handle him. How are you holding up thought?

*Eternal snorts, not looking at her, he's leaning against Tonks who is curled beneath a tree*

Okay, I guess. More annoyed than anything else. Everyone's babying me.

.......

............

...kind of a little tired I guess........

"Oh." That’s all Tumb can think to say. Oh. He stands for a moment, awkwardly taller than them, then throws himself down on the ground to be at their eye level. He’s closer to Finny than Terny for once, and he ruffles his hair before bringing his hand up to his mouth, kissing it softly.

"I knew ya had a soft side," he says, smirking. "I didn’t even know you knew what sorry meant, let alone how to say it. I’m proud of you."

He’s making light of a serious situation, and part of him wants to hit himself for it, but a larger part of him wants to end it all, end the fear and the sadness and the dark, wants laughter and soft jokes and tender touches that no one flinches away from anymore. He wants to be normal. And maybe if he pretends the scary things aren’t there, they’ll go away.

Infinity blinks at him curiously and then sighs and looks away. But he leans into Tumb's touch anyway. Eternal, suddenly feeling jealous, crawls closer and purposefully lays down, plopping his head into Tumb's lap. Infinity glances at him, snorts, and shimmies down to the grass to lean heavily against Tumb's side.

"I know how to say sorry," He grumbles, "S' that fucktard back in the tent that doesn't know what that word means."

*stops and looks around* No, I'm calling the part who, when separated from his other parts, acts like a horny, sleezy ass to anyone that comes in and isn't going to harm the valley.

It's just our--his way of dealing with stuff. He doesn't mean anything by it. If it makes you uncomfortable then just tell him to stop. Or I'll tell him. Maybe.

*walks into the middle of the valley* Hello? Is anyone around? Preferably not Finny cause you're an ass and yes I know you can hear me.

*there's a dark mutter from the shadows of a truffula tree*

You call part of us and ass, you call all of us an ass.

Busy Gods

Kodak leaned back against nothing at all and watched the brief little spat unfold before him. Then he watched Infinity slink away into the shadows. When it was just him and Aeon, Kodak turned to the lighter god. “You know, arguing with yourself like that has no point. And as for Eternal…”

Kodak hesitated. Infinity Aeon and Eternal were all equal parts of his brother, and two to one meant more of his brother wanted him confined than free. But he still wasn’t sure about trapping Eternal in the Valley. It seemed like a decision born of fear and paranoia, not real desire or sense. “Well, look at it this way; you can’t stand Infinity. Eternal feels for you and Finny the way you feel about the inky old bastard. Difference is Eternal is human, not a drop of the World is in him right now. That being said he’s not human right now. He’s a third of a god in human form. Mortal souls have always been so damned complex, I don’t have time to argue semantics, but my point is… I don’t think forcing him to stay here is a good idea. Especially since, as you said yourself, he is another part of you. You and Infinity stay in the Valley, no one told you to. Eternal may take trips, but his home is HERE. He’ll always come back, so attempting to forcibly confine him is only going to drive him away.”

"You speak sense," Aeon admitted and he seemed to soften a bit, some of the coldness edging out of him just a tad, "But you have to understand, we are afraid. We are not...as strong as we thought we were and it frightens us. I believe that Eternal flees from us not out of a desire of rebellion but because he wishes to find a place to hide. We are dealing with this in our own way; Infinity with his brashness, I with my indulgence of work, and Eternal with his skittishness." The light being not so much as crosses his arms as wraps his arms around himself, drawing his wings in tight,

"It is...difficult to put these things into words. It is even more difficult to speak of them. What happened to us...what Ghost did and what Ellis attempted to do can no be undone or forgotten. We cannot erase it from our minds nor get rid of the scars it left on us. We are still struggling with this." He looked away, into the trees, away from Kodak,

"If I have driven a part of myself away, it is only because we do not yet know what to do with ourselves."

Busy Gods

"….." Kodak gave Aeon a half glare, half amused look. "You’re the ones who asked for my help. What exactly did you expect? The world itself has an order, an order that can be manipulated, code that can be used for an effect. Runes of power, thoughts iron clad that can trap even gods. So I brought something that predates all of it. It shouldn’t fuck up the Life Force itself, I only made it to protect."

"But uh, yeah, as soon as you’re whole again it is best to crack this thing in half. It creates a big ol’ bubble, a shield, to block anything that intends harm upon you. If it’s left on for too long, everything here will stagnate, go stale."

Aeon's eyes narrowed, "I do not like the idea of relying on something we do not quite understand. Nor do I like that this could cause potential harm to the valley. However, we do trust you and we appreciate your help all the same. Eternal has been quite difficult to contain despite his mortality. It is bothersome."

Infinity cackled, "You're tryin' to box him in! Of course he's gonna rebel! We're about freedom and sunlight and wide open spaces, dumbass, how many times do I gotta say it? You can't even stay in the tent that long, you're poppin' out every chance you get!"

"Oh shut up." Aeon ruffled his wings, swiping one at Infinity who ducked, still laughing, and danced away into shadows of the trees. His glowing blue eyes glinted out at them, mocking with silent laughter. Aeon hissed at him and then returned his attention to Kodak,

"Thank you for your help. Perhaps you could help us wrangle Eternal as well, make him see reason. He apparently abhors spending time in our company, it's rather ridiculous as we are him and he is us."

Busy Gods

Kodak appreciated Infinity’s constructive criticism and helpful brotherly advice. Which was, as usual, wrapped up tight in about fifty layers of jackass. Kodak huffed out an irritated breath and let the monolith thump heavily against the grassy earth. It was a tall, vaguely rectangular slab of dark stone, blank and featureless. But it thrummed with a great power, a power that had no right existing. It was Old Magic, older than even the wards on Kodak’s own home.

"I’m doing what you and Aeon asked me to. Helping. Like Brighty Mc Snootypants said, I do have unique abilities that can prove useful. And if Aeon wants to throw a fit over this stone then he can kiss my help goodbye because this is it.” Here Kodak proudly patted the stone monolith. “This baby is Old Magic. It’s a warding stone. And yes, I know the Valley already has a lot of protective wards, but those didn’t. Stop Him.” He frowned. “My point is, this stone is super fucking old. The magic I used to make this thing is seriously old school. Like, the shit we used before the planet was done kind of old. Technically shouldn’t even be around anymore, but I built tougher things. There’s not a single brand of magic on earth that can scratch this thing, it’s just not compatible.”

"Rrriiiggghhhttt, well, as long as it doesn't fuck with us or the valley, I could care less." Infinity pushed himself upright and walked closer, sniffing curiously. The shadows around him rippled as he passed,

"Just make sure you get it outta here when we're whole again. I don't like the way it smells. And it doesn't exactly go with the decor." He sneezed and the shadows shuddered again in agitation.

There was a flurry of movement from deeper in the trees and then an incredibly tall figure seemed to materialize in a shaft of sunlight. Aeon stepped out of nowhere, wings fanned in wariness, eyes hard,

"If felt something happening out here. You alarmed us, Kodak. Please let us know next time you're going to bring an ancient artifact into the valley. It's disturbing the life force."

Busy Gods

Adapting the cavern, the city, for renewed habitation by a race he had thought lost to him was not an easy task. Even with Ailbe’s help, it took months. The religious following of his children was growing, as more and more Andalites migrated from their jungle cave to his damp home.

Things became complicated when the vents he thought dormant burped and rumbled to life and flooded the caverns with not only water but plenty of heat. Kodak had only just gotten everything under control when the tab he kept on his brother, the small little shape tucked in his soul that reflected Eternal’s, suddenly split in three.

Now he had Infinity to deal with, and Eternal was upset about it. Not only THAT, but Eternal was HUMAN and there was a third iteration of his brother, Aeon.

Aeon seemed snooty.

But Aeon and Infinity actually agreed on something and that something was a request of assistance in protecting Eternal’s fragile human self. So there he was, dragging a literal monolith across the Valley plains. Frickin’ Wards.

"What the fuck are you doin'?"

Infinity was leaning against a tree, watching Kodak struggle with his arms crossed over his chest and a smirk on his face,

"That don't look very pretty, brother. And I'll bet you anything Aeon's gonna piss himself six ways to Hell when he sees you messin' with the valley. What're you playing at?"

askthecrosses said: Alan tilted his head at the sound of the voice, taking a half of a step backwards “oh…I-I’m sorry! I-I just..w-wandered i-in here” resting his hand on a tree, he peered about where the voice had come from “I-I’m Alastair Cross, w-who a-are you?

Eternal peered around the truffula tree, wary, and wished maybe he'd thought to bring a weapon with him. Like his ax.

"I'm--I'm the Once-Ler Eternal!" He stated, trying to sound bold and failing somewhat as he was practically hiding behind a tree, "I'm the guardian of this valley. Sort of. I'm kind of...having issues with that right now. But I'm still the guardian!"

He sounded more like he was trying to convince himself than any visitor.

on the edge of Eternal's valley, the man stood in slight awe. how had he gotten here? he had just been wandering in his own woods and then he was here. it felt vaguely familiar, which provoked Alan to begin his way into the valley, looking at the truffula trees curiously "so w-well t-taken care of..." with a smile curling onto his lips, he gently pet the bark of a nearby tree. it had been a while since he had been in a place with such strong and alive plant life, it made him a little giddy

Eternal was sulking underneath a truffula tree, wearing a pair of Tumb's pants that are still a bit too short on him and an oversized shirt that makes him look much too skinny. Starved levels of skinny.

But he scrambled to his feet in a mild panic when he heard someone's voice and flattened himself against the tree,

"Wh-who's there! This is a nature preserve, you know! P-protected and stuff! So no funny business!"

#askthecrosses

Tumb stiffens when Finny gets near him, drawing into himself. He steels himself, stands up, and draws himself up to his full height, squaring his jaw and trying his best to look intimidating. The results were limited; he was still a good foot shorter than Finny.

"F-fuck off, Infinity." He means to sound fierce, to scare him off, but his voice shakes and he stumbles over his words. Fuck. "In case you hadn’t noticed, you sort of interrupted us while we were having a moment. We were discussing mental health things. That means it affects you, too." He crosses his arms. "Unless you want to join in, too?" He swallows thickly. Finny is probably the last person who should share their thoughts on this matter.

#((cont. from yesterday))

"Wasn't gonna do nothin'..." Infinity grumbles, sniffing as he straightens up. He scratches the black marking on his face with his sharp nails, looking around the valley. His gaze falls on Eternal who is still glaring at Infinity, partly in anger and partly in fear.

"Quit givin' me that look, Terny." The shadow guardian huffed, lowering himself onto the grass with a hissing sigh, "I thought we got over the hating ourselves thing. I know we're scared and jumpin' at our reflection but, geez, I thought we were better 'in this." His dark eyes fall on Tumb, unusually serious,

"I'm not going to do anything to you, sunshine. We're all Eternal, no matter what you think. We might react differently but we are the same. I am the vengeful anger of nature, the storms and the darkness and the mysterious depths of the forest. I bite and I scratch and lash out and attack anything that harms us." He tips his chin up, proud rage and the deepest, darkest depths of the shadows where something, something is always watching,

"But I am we. I am us. And we are all ravaged by what happened." And Infinity crumples, curling in on himself, looking--for the first time anyone has seen him--defenseless. Eternal hesitates and then scoots closer to Tumb, also closing the distance between himself and Infinity as well. And then he and Infinity speak at the same time,

"We are frightened and feel so small so vulnerable at the realization that we can be captured and hurt and betrayed. And we are working to fix it. And we are sorry for any trouble we might have caused you because of everything."

"I love, you, too." Tumb smiles, and leans in to kiss him, but pulls himself back halfway through. His hands drip down Eternal’s sides to his hips, holding him down, not in a sexual way, but to keep himself focused and grounded.

"What about kissing, then? Dating? Are those fair game? If we can’t date anymore, then we better come up with a good excuse for what we’re doing right now." He’s trying to lighten up the situation, make it weigh less heavily on his shoulders. "And maybe, if we’re just friends now, I should start calling you old man and snotrag again."

"Hey, hey, I'm the one who called you snotrag first, kiddo." Eternal replies, "And we're still a couple, sunshine. We can date and stuff. Kiss. Whatever. But we'll take it lightly. Nothing...nothing..." A tinge of red slowly creeps up his neck, "Y-you know. N-nothing--"

"Sex, Terny! The word you're looking for is SEX."

Eternal lets out a shriek and falls backwards, scrambling across the grass to bump into a truffula tree. Infinity lets out a harsh laugh and strides across the grass, closing the distance between them. He ruffles Eternal's hair (Eternal swats at him angrily) and then turns to Tumb,

"Hey there, sweetcheeks, long time no see. You still got that little souvenir I left you from last time?" He leers over Tumb, showing all his teeth in a hungry grin,

"You miss me, Tumb? I can show you the good time Terny's too chicken shit to iffin' ya' want...?"

"Yeah." It slips out of his mouth and before he really registers that he’s doing it, he’s nodding in agreement to Terny’s words. "Yeah. Yeah, okay."

He hugs himself awkwardly, not really looking at Eternal but not really not looking at him either. “I think taking a breather might do us both good. It’s like…. god, Eternal, I love you but it’s suffocating, you know? I feel like I can’t breathe sometimes…”

He reaches out and touches Terny with one hand, lightly, gently, dancing his fingers up his side. “We can still be together, right? Just not… together, together.” He presses his head against Terny’s chest, taking deep breaths. “I don’t want to break up with you.”