Hello all!! My name is Carcosa (but can be shortened to CC if Carcosa is too long hehehe), I am 20 years old, and I use He/They/It Pronouns along with Hy/Hymn/Hys Neos!!
I have been a Long Time Lurker in this community, and I'm finally brave enough to at least a little interactive with the SFW Tickling Community.
Tickling has always been somewhat prevalent in my life and I've always enjoyed the act, and I'm happy to be interacting with people who think in a similar way!! Although, I am going to be tentative to interacting with the more Kink Inclined People as I am a Sex Repulsed Asexual so sex really isn't My Thing, but I'm not gonna knock you if it's Yours. Just keep actions with me Above The Belt and I will do the same with you ::::)
I am an Autistic Trans Masc with a love of Many a Spooky Thing, such fandoms include (Favorites in Bold, Hyperfixes in Italics ):
Hazbin Hotel [Show] (unfortunately)
Malevolent [Podcast]
The Magnus Archives [Podcast]
Camp Here & There [Podcast]
Soul Eater [Anime]
Homestuck [Mixed Media Web Comic]
Cookie Run Kingdom [Game]
Pressure [Game]
The Amazing Digital Circus [Show]
And Many Other Things!!!!
One day I'd like to post Fics here and perhaps Art, but the day where I'm brave enough to post any has yet to come hehehe, I guess we'll have to wait and see ::::)
I love how the biggest space guys on tumblr right now, Dr. Captain Ryland Grace and Simon the Convict, are played by Mark “send me to space I don’t care if I don’t come back” Iplier, and Ryan “oh my god please don’t send me to space. Why are you sending me to space?!?” Gosling.
pairing: ryland grace x reader (intended as platonic)
summary: you show rocky the human concept of a prank, on ryland. turns out he doesn't appreciate being the butt of the joke.
warnings: no use of y/n, gn reader, lee!reader, ler!ryland, conspiracy theories, pranks and ragebaiting, scary ler grace like i got a bit nervous writing this, light swearing
word count: 1.9k
authors notes: bc i think ragebaiting grace would be ssoooo funny. title: bodybag by wind walkers
///
It was interesting how humans could be bored in any circumstance.
It's not like there wasn't plenty to do on the Hail Mary. Research was constant and - astrophage and taumoeba aside - even just hanging out with Rocky was enough to keep things interesting. First alien contact, and all.
And yet, you were bored. Not just kind-of-bored where you could maybe occupy your mind with something or other, but the painful bone-deep kind of boredom where - no matter how much you wanted to - you could not get yourself to even move.
Briefly, you thought of the full access database of…well, everything, that you and Ryland were given with your laptops. But even a Wikipedia deep dive didn't sound engaging.
Rocky rolled over to where you were sprawled on the floor, feet propped up against the bed.
"Why not working, question?" He asked, no preamble. You heaved a sigh.
"Don't want to." You said blankly.
"Something wrong, question?"
"No." You said. "I'm just bored."
"What 🎶 mean, question?"
It hadn't occured to you that Rocky didn't know the word 'bored'. You thought for a moment.
"It's a feeling you get," you explained, staring up at the ceiling. "When you really want to do something, but nothing seems interesting enough to do it."
Rocky was silent for an extended few seconds.
"That sound stupid." He said.
You turned your head against the floor to look at him. "Do Eridians not get bored?"
"No." He managed to sound judgemental, somehow. "Everything interesting, always. Many things to do and learn, always."
"Huh." You mused, turning your head back towards the ceiling. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
"How stop 🎶 feeling, question?" Rocky asked. You chewed on the inside of your cheek, thinking.
"I guess the best way is to force yourself to do something." You admitted, knowing Rocky would find this whole concept ridiculous. "It's easier when you can do it with someone else."
An idea sparked in your mind.
"Hey, Rocky." You said, lifting yourself up onto one elbow, turning to him. "Do you know what a 'prank' is?"
"No."
"How about 'joke'?"
He perked up. "Yes, Rocky know joke. Grace say joke is to make others laugh."
"Yes!" You said, smiling. "So a prank is similar. It's when someone tricks another person to make a joke. But it has to be harmless. If it hurts the other person then it's just mean."
"Trick not lie, question?"
"Sort of." You agreed. "But it's about something small. And the other person finds out about it in the end, so they can laugh about it too."
"Understand."
You grinned. "Want me to show you how a prank works?"
"Yes, yes, yes! Show Rocky human prank!" He wiggled happily.
"Okay, but you have to promise to not say anything about this to Grace." You told him firmly. "If he knows we're doing it, it won't work."
"Yes, yes, yes, promise, promise, promise!"
You pressed your fist against his dome. Rocky mirrored you.
@
You glanced to your right from your perch on the stool. Ryland was busy scribbling on the whiteboard he had moved into the lab room.
You looked down. Rocky was a few paces away from Ryland, soldering something or other.
It was a good time to strike. A few hours had passed since the three of you settled into your work, and the silence had stretched and streched until it became taught with stress and tiredness. But for some reason your heart rate picked up.
You fiddled with your laptop for a moment, trying to gather your will.
Ryland huffed sharply, and wiped half of the board clean. You watched as he restarted his calculations.
Well, no time like the present.
"So you know how the earth is flat?" You asked, trying to keep your voice light and casual. The marker stopped squeaking against the board.
"Excuse me?" Ryland frowned, looking over his shoulder at you.
You kept your eyes glued to the laptop. No going back now.
"I was just thinking." You continued, clicking to another tab. "Do the windmills act as propellers?"
"What are you talking about?" Ryland sounded like he didn't know if he should be concerned or confused. He set the marker down with a click, turning to face you fully.
"You know!" You waved your hand vaguely. "They're propellers so they're bringing us closer to the sun? I figure that's where global warming comes from."
There was a long pause.
You fought not to look at him. If you did you'd start laughing and give the whole plan away.
"The earth isn't-" Ryland started, then cut himself off. "Are you feeling okay?"
"Yeah?" You feigned confusion, risking a quick glance at him. He looked comical - eyes huge, brows pinched together, hands hanging limply by his sides. "Anyway, what do you think? It's a good theory."
"That is not a good theory." Ryland said, incredulous. "It's not even a theory - it's madness!"
"Why?" You clicked through more tabs, then lifted your hands to make quotation marks gestures with your fingers. "Because 'the earth isn't flat'?"
"The earth isn't flat!" He sounded distressed. "It's round! It's an orb!"
"Oh yeah? And how do you know?"
"We're literally in space!"
"Sure." You allowed. "But I didn't get to see earth. So, who's to say?"
Ryland narrowed his eyes and looked down at your feet where you were bouncing your heel nervously against the leg of the stool.
"How Grace know earth round, question?" Rocky piped up from his spot.
"Huh?"
"Grace say always test yourself. If Grace not test, how Grace know earth round, question?"
Thank god for Rocky, you thought in relief.
"Alright." Ryland placed his hands on his hips. "What's going on with you two?"
Before you could reply, Rocky spoke. "Nothing, lie."
You closed your eyes in silent anguish. It hadn't even occurred to you that Rocky wouldn't be able to lie out loud because of his syntax.
"Oh, 'nothing', huh?" Ryland demanded, looking back and forth between you and the Eridian. "'Lie', huh?"
"Grace, listen-" You started, turning on your stool to face him. Seeing his expression - shocked, offended, miffed - a snort burst out of you. You pulled your lips into your teeth to stop yourself from grinning.
"So the two of you just thought it would be funny to spew lies and conspiracy theories?" Ryland continued, aiming the question at both you and Rocky although his eyes were locked on you.
"Rocky was curious about how pranks work." You shrugged, still fighting back a smile.
"Oh yeah? And who told him about them, I wonder."
You rolled your eyes. "God, you sound like such a teacher right now."
"We're supposed to teach him correct concepts." Ryland said. "Not about underground lizard people."
"I never said anything about lizard people!" You objected. "Come on, Grace, we just wanted a laugh."
He looked at you silently for a moment.
"Okay." He said, folding his arms. "C'mere then."
You faltered. "I feel like I shouldn't."
Ryland didn't speak. Only waved his fingers in a beckoning motion and pointed at the floor in front of him.
Shit, you thought concisely.
Slowly, reluctantly, you slid off your stool and walked towards him.
"Hmm." Ryland hummed, scanning you up and down.
"What?" You demanded, flapping your arms out.
"If you wanted to have a laugh," he said, voice lilting. "There's a much faster way to get it."
Your heart skipped. Double shit. "Grace. That wasn't my inten-"
"Your intention?" He raised his eyebrows teasingly. "As if you don't know how to get exactly what you want out of me."
"I'm not having this conversation." You said with finality. "I'm leaving now."
Ryland's arm wrapped securely around your middle, pulling you backwards into his chest, as soon as you turned to walk away.
"What isn't fair?" Ryland asked calmly, squeezing at your waist. His other hand came up to scribble on the back of your neck, where you had dropped your head forward to hide your reaction from him.
"What about Rohocky?!" You hated how your voice pitched up into a whine.
"Rocky is innocent." Ryland said. "He was coerced into this scheme by your evil little mind."
"Yohou're the evil one!" You kicked your leg out, hoping to create enough momentum to break free.
"How so?" He asked, pulling you back to him as if it were an afterthought. His hand veered to scratch around your ear.
"You know how!" You accused, reaching up to pull Ryland's hand away from your ear by the wrist.
"The same way I know that earth is round?" Ryland teased, letting you pull his hand away. "Who's to say?"
With that, he pulled against your grip on his wrist, and took hold of your jaw.
"Grace, I swear to god, I will-" You intensified your pulling and kicking.
"You're not gonna do anything." He said easily, and blew a raspberry on your neck.
You laughed desperately, legs nearly giving out under you. Ryland broke off from the raspberry, cutting it short by his own chuckling at your reaction.
"Oh man." He said through his laugh. "That was adorable."
"No it wasn't." You gritted out, jerking your head out of Ryland's grip. He let you, instead using that arm to wrap it around your middle along with the other.
"No?" He pressed his cheek to your hair. "You're right, it wasn't just adorable. It was also very cute."
You growled, feeling your face flush. You angled your head further away from him to hide it.
"You're sweet, and silly." Ryland continued, squeezing both hands against your waist gently. Just enough to get you giggling. "And you had to come up with this elaborate plan when you could have just come and asked me to tickle you."
Through the haze, you thought: I'm going to die here.
"That wasn't the plan." Your objected, but it sounded weak even to your own ears.
Ryland hummed in faux sympathy. It made your stomach do a flip.
"Let me goho." You whined. You actually whined. The realisation made you flush hotter.
"Awh." Ryland clicked his teeth. "Hard to get away when you're giggling so hard, huh?"
"Whahat do you want from me?" You were not above begging at this point.
"There is one thing." He mused, shifting one hand higher to your ribs. "But I'm not sure if you'll be able to do it."
"I'll doho it!"
"Will you behave?"
"Yehes!" You nodded your head. Pretended not to hear his wheezy laugh at how quickly you complied.
"Will you stop telling Rocky conspiracy theories?"
"Thahat's more than one thihing!"
Ryland increased the speed of his hands. "Will you?"
"Yesyesyes!" You yelped, pulling at his arms.
"Alright." He chuckled lightly, stopping his ticklish attack on you, but held firm as you tried to catch your breath. "Good."
You let your head drop back against Ryland's shoulder, your chest heaving. He rubbed his cheek on the side of your head softly, letting you get your bearings.
"Rocky have question, statement."
You jolted, shocked by his voice. You had forgotten he was even there.
"Yeah, bud?" Ryland asked, maneouvering both your bodies slightly so he could look at him.
"What mean lizard people, question?"
"Oh noooo…" You groaned, flopping your head forward.
"This is your doing, squirmy." Ryland informed you.
"I plead the fifth."
"I guess I did make you promise not to tell him about conspiracy theories." He mused, releasing his hold on you, but keeping both palms pressed to your shoulders. "I'll handle this one."
"I'm just gonna -" You made the mistake of looking at Ryland's face. His expression told you he knew exactly what you were going to say. "- I'll be back."
With that, you fled from the lab room, Ryland's wheezy chuckling following you like a ghost.
I told you guys I would start posting everything in my head straight away! Bare with me whilst I get back into my writing boots <3
Grace is a super physical guy with people he is close to, strangers wouldn't think it however if he is close with a person he LOVES physical affection of all forms. (I strongly headcanon he and Ilyukhina would sit on a sofa legs sprawled over each other discussing the mission)
With his love for physical affection comes a love for tickling and he loves to tickle others, whether it be a jab in one of his friends sides or full on bear hug tickling someone he loves it, he loves seeing his loved ones laugh so freely (is also immensely ticklish but that's for another time)
He's not a mean Ler however he is smug which some would argue is more unbearable because he has a shit eating grin on his face whilst he is tickling or teasing his victims.
He is a lover of the build up, he gets that glean in his eyes and you know you're in for it. you know that slow head tilt he does I imagine he will turn around to his lee slowly looking over his glasses tilting his head and you KNOW you're in for it.
He lovesssss a chase even more if you run just know you will be chased down, and this man is faster than he looks so he will purposefully slow down to prolong the chase until you're already a pile of giggles when he gets to you.
He either starts tickling one of two ways after a chase.
One, if he's managed to corner you he will slowly approach wiggling his fingers so your curl up into yourself giggling even harder before he finally gets to you and starts slowly tickling your stomach or sides and relishing in it as you fall into laughter leaning your head against his chest holding onto his wrists.
Two, if he grabs you from behind bear hug style he immediately grapples into your sides digging into your sides and ribs and tickling ruthlessly from the start following you down to the ground where he will proceed to pin you down and tickle the ever loving shit out of you.
On the topic of shit, so help you god if you swear when he tickles you you're getting "punished" and by punished he is going for where ever you are most ticklish and drilling into that spot until you apologise, will stay stuff like "Oh so that's how its gonna be huh?" "do you want to apologise for your language yet? No well guess I'll have to keep teaching you a lesson until you do"
On that note Grace is a teaser, he will tease the ever loving daylights out of you saying things along the lines of "oh what was that?" or "it tickles? well that's kind of the point!" this man is a menace through and through.
when he's finished tickling you he will hang around a while and make sure you're all good he's always one to check in on boundaries and to make sure nothing was to far.
When he's made sure you're all good he'll walk away like nothing has happened with a ruffle of your hair or a final poke to the side.
When he sees you around for the rest of the day he will throw a smug smile your way or pretend to grab at you to watch you flinch away and takes sick joy from it.
Ahhhh I hope you guys like them :) please feel free to send in requests!!
Project Hail Mary tickle fic - Switch!Grace, Switch!Reader. ~2k words
🌌Synopsis
Grace messes up an experiment. You are never going to let him live it down, but he's intent on destroying all evidence, and isn't afraid to be childish about it. Fortunately, neither are you.
(Based on this ask and this ask)
🌌Author's notes
holy shit this one turned out longer than expected. I have no idea how I feel about it but i'm at the point where I think i should post it and be done <3 enjoy ig!
(thank you to @//harringtonsslvt for inspiring me to upgrade my post layouts!!! Space dividers by @//strangergraphics)
This is unbelievable.
You can't keep the grin off of your face. It's been a long long day in the lab for you...but it's clearly been a longer one for Grace. You've just found evidence of him making a mistake - one he swore up and down that he had never made, and would never make.
Your hands skim over the plastic lid of the electrophoresis tray in awe. The exact science here is irrelevant; the important thing is that someone has inserted the wires into the tray the wrong way around, causing all of the sample to scoot merrily off the gel intended to hold it.
"From black to red or your gel is dead, they drilled it into me in undergrad-" He'd always say, tutting when you asked him for the umpteenth time to check your own gels. It was more out of paranoia than anything - sometimes these things could take hours to set up. Grace had always been happy to help, always adamant that he'd never done it the wrong way around, despite it practically being a rite of passage for every molecular biologist.
And here it was: his time had finally come, one PhD and a suicide mission later.
"Oh, Maryyy~" You make sure the onboard camera is pointing at you.
Ryland lifts his head from the laptop at your tone, bemused.
"...What is it? ...wait, why are you grinning like that-"
"Maaarry, start recording, I need to keep this for posterity-"
"Recording started."
Grace's eyes dart from your face to the camera on the wall, and then down to the bench. The cogs turn for a second - and then, horror.
"No."
You nod.
"No, no, nope-" He stalks over. You lean back to let him see the complete absence of stained DNA on the gel. There's a pause as he stares, dumbfounded. You notice a slight twitch in one of his hands, and you instantly know what he's about to do.
He lunges to cover the evidence. Fortunately, you're faster- you step in front, blocking his reach but not the camera's view of his handiwork.
"MARY, STOP RECORDING- DO NOT-" Grace splutters, shoving at your shoulders. You shift the equipment further towards the wall, and start calmly extracting the gel from its equipment. If you suspend it in the appropriate buffer, maybe you can preserve it in a jar...as a reminder. The ship could do with some more decorating. Your brain runs through the practicalities of keeping agarose gels long-term.
Ryland, meanwhile, runs through every PG-13 insult known to man.
"Fudging - give it BACK, you JERK-" He swats at your arms. Ignoring this tantrum, you lovingly place the gel onto some tissue to dry off, and turn to face him. It is important that you see the look on his face for this.
"And behind us, dear viewers, you will see clear evidence that Doctor Ryland Grace, 33.33% of humanity's last hope, does not know how to load a gel-"
"Ohoho, you're in for it now-"
He redoubles his efforts, trying to stretch over you so he can bin the evidence. In your peripheral vision, you spot Rocky enter the room with an amused trill. He has probably heard the conversation and wishes to have a clearer view of whatever comes next. Better make sure the spectacle continues, then.
"-despite repeatedly claiming that he would never make such a silly mistake-" You press on, cackling at the frustrated noise your lecture draws out of Grace.
"Grace makes silly mistake all the time. It is no surprise he has done this."
"Correct, Rocky - Hey, Ryland! Don't destroy the evidence, I need to frame it!"
Grace ignores you - he's not going to stop until he's snatched that gel from its little tissue paper bed. You won't tolerate that.
He reaches over again, still failing to cover the distance. This is an easy opening; an opportunity to match his energy that you can't refuse.
Without a second thought, you dart your hand under his outstretched arm, and wiggle your fingers.
Ryland folds, shrinking away with a screech.
You laugh at the wounded look on his face. He glares.
"Okay, that's it-"
What happens next is a bit of a blur - you know that Ryland makes one last scramble for the gel, and you know that Mary starts her usual spiel about conflict de-escalation, and you know that Rocky scuttles over, shouting something about not wanting anyone to get hurt. You don't really hear much of it though, because immediately after blocking Grace's lunge, he resorts to vibrating his fingers into your ribcage. Your hands reach out to retaliate, and both of you fall to the floor in an undignified pile of giggles and swearing.
"Let me hahave this!" You protest, trying not to reward Grace with a reaction as he trails his fingers over your tummy. He's sat over your legs, torso within easy reach - you take your chance, and squeeze at his stomach in return. You're immediately rewarded with a wide grin and an abundance of cackles.
"You lihittle-BUGGER-" Grace has folded over above you, making it even easier for you to keep tickling. You draw circles around his navel that make him go limp with laughter.
"I'm glad we're recording this, you're being adorable," You tease.
"MARY! MARY-!" He shrieks, hands struggling to keep prodding your sides. "DELEHETE RECORDING- NOHO-"
"Dohon't listen to him, Mary," You speak calmly over Grace, shifting one hand to tickle his ears and grinning when he becomes conflicted over which spot he should be defending. "In fact, make three backups."
"Backup in progress," She chirps.
Ryland is too far gone to do anything about this - you snort at the way he's blushing, trying to hide his face in your neck, and- oh no.
...He's not hiding.
The sound of him taking in a deep breath, paired with the light brush of his stubble, is the only warning you have for the horrific raspberry Ryland blows against your neck.
It's awful - the sensation completely shortcircuits your brain, your arms turning to jelly as all your body can do is scream it tickles it tickles it tickles. You don't even have the wherewithal to moderate your reactions, loud belly laughter flowing into the lab before you can think to tamper it. Somehow, you've managed to keep tickling Grace, which is... not helping, actually, because he keeps laughing through the raspberry. Which tickles more.
"Oh no no no. This is bad for you." Rocky observes, ever helpful.
Then, finally - it's over. Ryland has to take a breath. You move as fast as you can, rolling out from under him to trap him in a hug. With no time to waste, you return the favour, leaning in and blowing a raspberry of your own.
"WAITwaitwait-" He squeals, then wheezes, then giggles. It's incredibly endearing.
"Nope!" You pull away, hands squeezing at his sides. Grace scrambles to get up off the floor, and you follow, backing him against the counter. He shoots you a nervous grin, and you don't give him time to do anything more than that - you crawl your hands upwards, to his highest ribs, and wriggle in the space between the bones. Grace leans forwards, head resting on your shoulder as he laughs, the occasional snort punctuating his high-pitched wheezing.
And then, like clockwork, the revenge arrives - through his laughter, Ryland's hands creep over your torso, scritching gently at your sides. Soon, both of you are doubled over against the other, fighting to gain the upper hand.
"Ha- I'm keeping that gel!"
"You are NOHOT!"
"I absolutely am!" You're about to explain why, too, when Grace shoves his hands under your arms, and you start sinking down.
"Rocky think you are losing. Grace making you laugh a lot. Keeping gel is...unlikely."
Well, isn't that nice?
"He's right, you know. Gihive it up and I'll go easier on you. Maybe." The smug tone in Grace's voice makes you renew your efforts out of spite, fingers finding purchase on his sides. It's not enough, though - you both return to the floor, and Ryland swiftly pins your arms above your head.
"Rocky, Rohocky help-" You kick out your legs and shoot him a pleading look.
"No, Rocky not help. Last time Rocky help, Grace figured out Eridian tickling. Is too high risk."
Grace chuckles at that, and gives Rocky a warning look. "Wise decision, bud."
He turns back to face you, a glint in his eyes that makes your stomach flip in anticipation.
"Now, I'm gonna count to five, and if you agree to never speak of this again, I won't tickle you. Sound good?"
You shake your head.
"Fuck you."
It goes very, very quiet.
Okay, maybe that wasn't the smartest idea.
Ryland traces a lazy path over your stomach that makes your breath hitch, and leans in, muttering a single word.
"Language."
All hell breaks loose. His hands poke and prod and squeeze erratically over your torso, each touch designed to gauge your reaction before moving onto the next spot.
"Ha-Ryland- no!" Through your hysterics, you can see him logging the way his movements make you squirm.
He doesn't stop - rather, decides to make things worse. "Why, does it tickle?"
Oh god.
"Shut UP, you PRICK-" Swearing has done wonders for you so far. Surely more is the answer here.
"Ohoho, you've gone so red," He chuckles, thumb drilling into your second rib. "Don't like when I say that, huh?"
You are rapidly losing your ability to speak, and there's a growing warmth on your cheeks that you suspect is a blush.
"Alright, so we know this tickles," He murmers, breath tickling your ear. His hand moves higher, under your arm.
"Doesss this tickle?"
You blindly nod your head yes, hoping he'll move spots. Instead, he changes tact, his touch becoming lighter. Your laugh becomes a lot squeakier.
"I can't hear you," He grins. "Does it tickle?"
"I'm-" You grit your teeth. "I'm going to kill you-"
The laughter he's drawing from you is out of control, and just forming those words takes monumental resolve.
Grace doesn't have any issues talking, though - content with the shade of red he's turned you, he switches to providing a running commentary.
"And here, dear viewers," He smirks, scribbling over a spot near your hips that makes your back arch, "You will see clear evidence that the other 33.33% of humanity's last hope is hopelessly ticklish."
"Grahace! GRACE!" You yelp, using your feet to try and slide backwards along the floor. Ryland follows, of course, highly amused by the theatrics.
"Yeah?" He grins, slowing slightly.
You try to wipe the smile from your face, but it's stuck firm.
"I cahan't-"
"Can't what? Can't talk? I noticed." He lets your hands go, probably out of pity, but walks two fingers over your stomach just to keep you guessing. It's enough to keep you giggling in anticipation.
"Okay, okay, you win-" You gasp, trying to sit up and shuffle away.
"Oh, I do, do I? Thank you for pointing that out." Grace laughs, adjusting his glasses, which have nearly fallen off in the scuffle. He takes pity on you though, and offers a hand to help you up.
"Whatever. Mary, delete recording," You mutter, taking the offered assistance.
"Recording deleted."
"Appreciated," Ryland gives you a cordial nod, heading over to the bench.
"...Wait, where's the gel?"
"...Humans were taking too long fighting. Got bored."
"Rocky-"
"Grace pipetting technique bad bad bad. Gel punctured in several areas." Rocky holds up the agarose, which is now housed in a beautiful xenonite case. He's even had the time to fill it with the appropriate solution. Maybe you did take too long.
"Oh, for goodness' sake-" Ryland puts his head in his hands. "Fine, keep it. But we are never talking about this again."
"Don't need to. We keep next to gel area. Reminder."
"Excellent idea," You grin, still holding onto a nearby table for support.
"From now on," Grace points at you, "I'm not checking your gels for you."
"Good, I mean...You can't exactly be trusted anymore, can you?"
He raises his eyebrow at you. It's a challenge, daring you to say another word. His fingers twitch, almost imperceptibly. The message is loud and clear: Do you really want to do this again?
Alright, maybe not today. You'll give it a few days before teasing Ryland about it.
After all, you never deleted the backup videos. You'll be needing those.
Synopsis: There are many things infinitely more interesting than troubleshooting DNA purification. It's no wonder you take the first opportunity to do something else when Grace provides you with a convenient distraction. Based on this request and this headcanon
A/n: heyyy sorry this took so long, I'm having an exhausting week, but trust I am writing these as fast as I can, love you all dearly <3 hope this is alright, I really struggled to conclude it gracefully (haha).
"Augh- Ryland!" You scrunch up your shoulders, and glare at Grace, who has snuck up behind you and run his finger up the back of your neck as a greeting. He's recently discovered you're ticklish, and thus has thus been treating you like some kind of giggly stress ball.
Grace ignores your protest, and pulls up a chair next to you, glancing at the lab notebooks strewn everywhere.
"How's it going over here?"
"Not bad, thanks to your amazing work." You motion to the many calculations he's helped you with on the whiteboard - predictions for various aspects of the Taumoeba's metabolism. It involves a lot of diagrams and balancing a lot of equations. He flushes a little, muttering something about it being "just undergrad level". One of these days, you'll get him to just take a fucking compliment. Alas, today is not that day.
You turn to face the workbench, where several test tube racks are shoved behind your laptop, which in turn holds a lot of depressing readouts from the spectrophotometer.
"Having a little trouble with some stubborn protein contaminants. Look at this."
You point at your screen. Ryland squints, clearly unable to parse the tiny font from his lab stool. You roll your eyes.
"Ugh. Come here-" You grab his glasses from where they're hanging by his chin, and start sliding them into place. It's such a thoughtless gesture that you're already turning to continue your explanation before they're fully on.
Except you're interrupted by a giggle.
You turn back around, glancing at your hands, which still hold his glasses...but Ryland is no longer attached to them. He's shrunk back, a small grin tugging at his lips, one hand covering his ear.
"Surely not..." You mutter. "Don't tell me your ears are ticklish."
"I...won't tell you that, then." He murmers, which is a confession in itself.
He knows this. You can see him thinking it through, the same way you are. A second passes, and the two of you lock eyes.
...He bolts. Predictable.
You give chase, scrambling after him down the corridor as he starts shouting platitudes over his shoulder.
"Listen, hey, we don't have to do this-"
"We absolutely do!"
"Nope! Not happening!" He careens around a corner, nearly tripping over his own feet. By the time you catch up, the corridor appears empty. Perhaps he's gone into a side room.
Of course. The door to the wellness room is slightly open. You hold your breath, and sneak towards the entrance, pulling yourself against the wall so he can't see you coming.
One...two...three.
You throw open the door, and sure enough, Ryland is hiding on the other side. He shrieks, but it's too late. He's backed himself into a corner.
"uh oh."
"Hiding was a silly idea."
"Worth a try, though-"
"You aren't very good at it."
"Ok, let me try again, then?" Grace gives you his best puppy eyes. You almost cave, but think back to the number of times he's ignored your own pleading looks in these situations.
"Hm," you grin, swiftly tackling him to the floor. "Nah."
"Waitwaitwait-" He tries to shuffle backwards on his elbows, but you sit over his legs. knees pinning his hands in place. You've wasted enough time; you reach out as fast as you can, and swipe one finger over the shell of his ear.
It's immediately obvious why Ryland ran across the ship to avoid this.
"AHA- Nooooo! nonoNO-" He screeches, shoulders hunching up. His hands break free; they come up and try to block you, but you pin them out of the way again.
"I can't believe you kept this from me. After everything you put me through!" You convey your utter betrayal by fanning your fingers out behind his ear, swirling random patterns over the skin. Grace breaks into frantic giggles, his neck rapidly turning an adorable shade of red.
"Pleasepleaseplease-ahaha-It tickles!"
"Good."
"I'll- I'll do anythihing! Whatever you wahant! Just, please- MERCY" Grace cackles, snorting when you lean in to blow a gentle breeze onto his ear.
"Hm," you mutter, giving him a break so he can hear you talking. "...Anything? Let me think."
He's still giggling, the blush having spread up his neck to his face. Of course, he could have fought you off if he wanted to - you're acutely aware of the fact he's stronger than you. Something to tease him about later, perhaps. Your fingers trail over his sides as you keep thinking.
"I need something you'll hate..."
"I'll promise not to tickle you anymore- that's -aha- that's what this is about, right?"
You pause. This is dangerous territory. You'd never minded it, but he'd never stop teasing you if you openly admitted that. The best tactic is probably to change the subject.
"Excuse me, I'm the one deciding here." You return to his ear again, ever-so-lightly scratching around the helix, and he falls back into hysterics. "I could...make you do all the laundry for a month."
"Yehes- sure, fine!"
"...Nah, you agreed to that too quick."
You decide to give his ears a break, instead snaking your hands under his shirt to squeeze at his tummy. It sends him into absolute fits. A wide, carefree smile lights up his face, and his hands, having broken free a second time, clutch at his hair like he can't decide what to do with them. It puts a smile on your face too, seeing him like this. He doesn't laugh often enough - not genuinely, anyway. Neither of you do.
And then the idea hits you.
"Oh, I know what you'll hate."
Ryland goes still despite the fact you haven't stopped tickling - like he knows what's coming next.
"I want you..." You grin, drumming your fingers over his sides in a way that makes his breath catch, "...to tell me what a great scientist you are."
Grace gives you a look of utter dread.
"That's ridiculous," He huffs. "No one says that about themselves."
"And you won't accept it coming from someone else. So this will be a great step forward."
"When I get out, I'm going to tickle you so much-"
You don't let him finish; you immediately squeeze at his hips and watch the way he instinctively grabs at your wrists, never quite pushing you away.
"Are you gonna say it?"
"Noho!"
You scribble up his sides, and the pitch of his laughter slides higher again.
"Are you gonna say it?"
"NO!"
An evil idea occurs to you. "You have a nice laugh. You could admit that instead, if you'd prefer?"
"aha- screhew you!"
Your hands have reached his ribs, now. They poke gently at each one, and Ryland completely melts, covering his face and making a flustered sort of noise that's swiftly overtaken by helpless chuckles.
You slowly creep your fingers up higher and higher, watching as Grace gets increasingly embarrassed.
"Plehease, oh no, nono, that really tickles!"
He brings his arms down once you reach the top of his ribcage, head thrown back in near-silent laughter. Feeling a little sorry for him, you ease up, holding yourself still. However, it quickly becomes apparent that he's trapped your hands under his arms, and can't seem to stop making himself laugh, even though you've stopped moving.
"Oho- jeez-"
You give him an expectant look, flexing your fingers ever so slightly, sending him into more giggles.
"Ok, ok ok ok-" He babbles, adjusting his glasses. There's a moment of hesitation. "Uh...I'm... "
"...Yes?"
"I'm...a good scientist."
You retract your hands, satisfied. "Yes. You are."
Part of you wants to get him to say 'great' instead of 'good' - wants to keep that smile on his face for as long as possible. But, looking at him, you know he's giving you his best effort. You can see in his eyes that he's not ready for anything more than 'good'.
Something swirls uncomfortably in your chest with that knowledge.
If Grace notices the slight waver in your smile, he doesn't mention it. He's too busy propping himself up by the elbows, trying to wipe the silly grin off of his face.
You get up, and extend your hand towards his, trying to shake off the feeling. "Come on, you."
He swats your hand away with a pout. "No, I'm not talking to you right now."
There's absolutely no venom behind it.
"Ok, I guess the first ever Taumoeba WGS can wait, then. I'll make sure it's just my name on the paper."
He grins. "Oh, will you now?"
You lean against the wall. "Well, maybe I'll put you in the acknowledgements. Moral support, or whatever."
A moment of silence. He considers this. You consider the mischief creeping onto his face, and the way his fingers twitch ever so slightly; a barely noticeable motion that is definitely intended as a threat. He sees you notice, sees the cogs turning in your head.
i’ve always been a fidgety person—tapping on any surface despite not needing a clearer image, shuffling around when i ought to be standing still, tinkering on something unnecessary while having an unrelated conversation. i know this- everyone who has ever been in close proximity to me knows this; it's obvious if you pay attention to me for more than ∀ seconds. what i did not know was that aliens apparently also have this trait.
HELLO PHM TK FANS I HAVE ARRIVED behold the sillies‼️ they both get to ler and lee because i think rocky deserves to be taken down a peg in a fun way, and ryland needs to be Squeezed
i’ve always been a fidgety person—tapping on any surface despite not needing a clearer image, shuffling around when i ought to be standing still, tinkering on something unnecessary while having an unrelated conversation. i know this- everyone who has ever been in close proximity to me knows this; it's obvious if you pay attention to me for more than ∀ seconds. what i did not know was that aliens apparently also have this trait.
ryland's nervous energy manifests differently to mine, which i guess makes sense when you consider he has three less arms for activities, but it's obvious nonetheless—talking to himself when he’s in the middle of something that doesn’t require communication, constantly readjusting his clothing even after telling me he’s comfortable, vibrating his leg up and down if he’s sat down. it's nice to think that, despite the light years of distance between our two worlds and the complete incompatibility of our atmospheres and bodies, we really aren't all that different.
since i developed and began wearing the suit on a daily basis, our fidgeting has become more intermingled. mostly this means we're just tapping each other, but the thinness of the xenonite allows us both to feel textures that were previously unknown to us: my carapace and ryland's flesh. the squishiness of all that protects my friend from pathogens and wounds both unnerves me and intrigues me, but i suppose that he wouldn't be here if it were that inefficient. still, it's pretty gross.
apparently i have a morbid curiosity though, because the objectively disgusting feeling of ryland's skin moving under my claws is not enough to deter me from using him as a distraction item from time to time. like right now.
we're not talking much right now, both of us involved in our own entertainment, but the proximity made available by the suit is still novel and we are not about to waste an opportunity to cuddle, as ryland calls it. i idly rub my hand across the side of his abdomen while i listen to the drama i’m still not caught up on. seriously, how can i have been in space for years and still not have finished my podcast? ridiculous.
i reach the part of ryland's body where his ribcage ends and his skin is especially squishy. out of interest, i squeeze gently to feel just how much give it has, and ryland makes an alarmingly high pitched noise as he startles in his seat. we both freeze, staring at each other, until i ask, "what the fuck was that?"
"language." ryland says weakly, marking the page in his book and setting it to the side. the speed of his heart tells me he’s embarrassed, and my interest piques. "and, uh- human thing."
i do my best to mimic the human expression of being unimpressed. "you watch me eat. you can tell me what that was."
ryland nods weakly. "okay, i just- i’m ꕷ𐒅𝚋ݬ𐒅𝛤ဌ. um- it's when you touch someone lightly, and they laugh."
"humans can be ticklish?" i screech, standing bolt upright and not caring for how taken aback ryland looks. "how? you’re so soft!" without waiting for an answer, i squeeze ryland's abdomen again and he squirms in his seat, a nervous smile beginning to form. i try tapping at his skin, and the squirming continues. "interesting. humans need even lighter touch to be tickled."
"so how does it work for yOU- hehehey!" ryland starts to ask, when i try to test out scratching gently and he yelps before giggling. it's kind of adorable how he curls up in a poor excuse of a defence. "c'mon, i gotta- it's for science."
i sigh dramatically, because i was totally prepared to tickle ryland like i would an infant eridian, but i guess he has a point. "much harder motions, since we have harder skin. like this." i rub against his arm in what i would expect to be a sensitive manner, but of course, he just nods. "where are humans most sensitive? eridians have places that are more vulnerable; i assume you do too."
ryland narrows his eyes, and i can’t help but laugh. "you’re just trying to get me."
"not just." i wiggle my carapace teasingly, both amused and disgruntled that i’ve been found out so soon. "i'll tell you my places if you tell me yours." i concede.
ryland sighs, and i can already tell he’s gonna go through with it. "alright. for humans, it's here," he gestures at his lower torso—all the squishy bits "here," he holds up his arms and points at the pocket of skin beneath the joint. "and for some reason, here." he lifts his foot and pats the base of it.
that last one makes no sense to me. "you- don’t you walk on that? surely it should be less sensitive, so it would be less painful."
"hey, i didn't design it." ryland grins, and i guess that's true. "your turn."
"eridians are mostly ticklish here," i stretch out one of my legs to demonstrate. "here," i tap the top of my carapace, where the vents sit. "and here." i point at my mouth. "where the body is weakest, at joints and openings." i explain, because ryland looked confused. "can i tickle you now?"
blood rushes to ryland's face, and i suppose the phenomenon of being embarrassed about your sensitivity is not unique to erid. "i don't- hang on, i’ve not had a turn yet!" he folds his arms petulantly. i am again reminded of a baby, though i don’t say this aloud. "where are you most ticklish?"
i wasn't expecting this question, and i shift from leg to leg for a moment in flustered surprise before answering. ".. my vents. where are you?"
"my ල𐒅Էලဌ." ryland gestures to the lower middle of the squishy part of his torso, and i mentally catalogue the word. "for humans, you gotta be pretty light- like this." he taps his fingers against my carapace so gently, i can hardly feel it—though i suppose it wouldn’t be as barely-there if your skin is so soft.
"i think i was doing a good job." i say smugly, if only to hear the way ryland's heartbeat quickens. "it's kind of difficult not to tickle when i have to be so gentle on your weak sk♬♩♫-!" my words are quickly interrupted by a shriek as ryland darts forward and scrubs at my vents in an alarmingly ticklish manner for a human with such weak hands. i’m so surprised by the sensation that for a moment, i just flail around before i remember that i am considerably stronger than ryland and push him off. "rude!"
ryland, being the awful person that he is, just laughs at me. "that was so cute!" he grins, and i crumple down onto the floor dramatically. "you sounded like a cat."
"well you look like a baby." i retort, giving him a poke in the stomach for good measure. as expected, he squeaks and pulls away. "you’re a pebble. dumb, lanky, and dangerously squishy."
"and you are a ticklish rock." ryland teases, which is probably funnier if you’re a human; to me, this just seems obvious. annoyingly, it still makes me feel a little embarrassed. no- not embarrassed—flustered. "hey, do you guys ever get- like, cosmetic smoothing? like you’re getting polished?"
i tilt my carapace to the side. "yes. it's similar to human hair, since the skin grows back after time." a second later, i realise why he’s asking this question now. "oh- it can tickle, if that's what you mean."
ryland looks pleased. "i knew it."
for whatever reason, his smugness makes me all the more agitated and i scuttle a few metres back to finish my podcast. "i’m sitting here now." i declare. ryland laughs, but he doesn’t protest, and we resume our comfortable silence.
-
let this be very clear: i do not forget things. my memory is unusually good even among eridians, especially so when it's things i care about, so when i start idly tapping at ryland's ribs, it is not because i forgot about his sensitivity—it's because i think it's funny to watch him squirm. he assumes unconsciously that my memory must be similar to his (or maybe he’s just gotten used to me ignoring him completely sometimes and repeats everything he says for my benefit) and so his first instinct is not to complain about me being annoying, but to remind me. i can understand why he enjoyed teaching so much, to be honest.
"hey- rocky!" ryland wiggles particularly strongly as i move my poking closer to the flat of his stomach. it's a good distraction as any from the fact that his stomach didn’t used to be flat, and wouldn’t be if he had enough calorific intake, but there's not a lot either of us can do about that right now. "that tickles."
i make a show of gasping and putting a claw against my carapace like i’ve seen humans do in movies when they’re shocked. "really? you are ticklish? i can’t believe i forgot!" ryland gives me an unimpressed look, and i just continue my joke. "it's funny because i didn’t forget, and i never forget anything."
"alright, alright- sue me for giving you some grace." ryland scoffs, playful. i’m about to say something very funny about the 'grace' part of his comment, when he scratches hard at the leg i still have resting against his torso and i squeal unflatteringly as i scramble backwards. "i remembered that, didn't i?" he adds, clearly pleased with himself.
"you forget everything, and you still remembered that?" i mutter, shaking my leg out indignantly. "rude and disrespectful."
ryland grins, poking at my carapace teasingly. i know there's no way such light touch might tickle, but i find myself shying from his hands all the same with that familiar nervous excitement. "i mean, with that kind of attitude, you’re basically just asking for it now."
bizarrely, the idea kind of sounds nice. i straighten up in a mix of embarrassment and confusion at this thought, and ryland laughs. "that is not- i am doing- you are wrong and dumb." i settle on eventually, higher pitched than i usually am. "when did you last sleep?"
"uh uh, you can't pull that one on me again." ryland wiggles his fingers in my direction, and i suppress a squeak. why is this getting to me so much? "if you want me to stop, just say the word."
obviously my first instinct should be to tell him to stop, so i can go back to watching mamma mia with him and criticising the logistics of getting married at twenty human years. so- why is it that instead, i don't say anything of the sort? "i am not afraid of tickles." i say in a voice that completely undermines my statement.
this seems to be exactly what ryland wanted to hear, because he perks up even more. "i don’t know, you seem pretty nervous to me." he teases, fingers hovering just above my carapace. i squeak a little at the proximity, and he laughs, which does nothing to quell my embarrassment. "or are you just excited, hm?"
"you're seeing things." i say, focused entirely on how close his hands are to me—it feels like my insides are buzzing with the anticipation. "you need sleep. i watch."
"or, i could just do this." ryland begins scratching at my vents and i shriek in panic and excitement—which is a very strange combination of feelings, but i’m not really paying attention to that right now. instead i’m realising with horror just how much more ticklish the improved version of my suit makes everything now ryland's fingers can just glide across my carapace. "woah, that bad?"
"ye♬♪s!" i squeal, barely within ryland's hearing range. "it- ♩t fuck♫♬g t♩♫♪kles!" there's no way half of my words are making any sense whatsoever, but there's not a whole lot i can do about that when i feel like i’m about to explode. "♪♫♬♩!"
"that one wasn't even a word." ryland teases, not letting up on my fucking vents holy shit why are his stupid fleshy hands so ticklish? it's all i can do not to smack him in the face and sprint away. "c'mon, you can do better than that."
i do honestly try to say something (mostly insults), but all that comes out is a garbled stream of notes and laughter. listen, okay- it fucking tickles, and i have barely had any contact with another living being for decades, and my brain can't seem to decide whether i love this or need to escape right the fuck now. it's a lot!
ryland is entirely unsympathetic to my plight—just cooing at me like i’m a child. "uh oh, i think someone's ticklish! coochie-coo, rocky!" i don't think i've ever been more flustered in my life.
the worst part might just be that i know i can escape if i want- we both know i’m perfectly capable of pushing him off and getting out of there if i want to. so the fact that i’m still here, being tortured relentlessly by a big squishy alien is.. not a great look on me. although i have no idea why i’m so embarrassed about this; we are literally in space. there is no one else for lightyears that might be able to see us!
"this is adorable." ryland says fondly, beginning to slow down a little. i think i prefer this—still pleasantly unbearable, but not so much that it's all i can think about. "i can’t believe this never came up before."
"y♩ou are- you♬♪ abusing this." i complain, still laughing helplessly. weirdly, the lighter touches make it harder to keep still, and i find myself squirming despite my best efforts otherwise. "i w♩ill have rev♬♫nge."
ryland pokes me again, and i squeak even though i barely feel it. "yeah, i’m sure you will, buddy." it sounds sarcastic, but his nervous grin suggests he knows otherwise.
-
apparently there's a human saying that revenge is a dish best served cold. maybe this is true, in the sense of building up the anticipation would make ryland all the more tense and thus squeakier when i do eventually squeeze him to death, but i’m not nearly patient enough for that. another human phrase is cuteness aggression, which is when they find something so endearing that the brain doesn’t know what to do with the information and decides they need to kill it. when ryland first told me about this phenomenon, i thought it sounded ridiculous, but now i’m listening to his squishy body stumbling around and the way he laughs when he’s excited, and i definitely get it.
so technically, this doesn’t have to be counted as revenge and i can still serve it cold later on. right now, i need to squeeze this human until he metaphorically pops.
i pounce on him when he’s sat on his bed so i don't actually injure him, and he yelps in surprise. "rocky! jeez, dude, you nearly gave me a heart attack."
"i have a problem." i say, poking his cheek as i do. it's interesting to feel the softness of it compared to the ungiving bones of his teeth behind it, but mostly i’m doing it because i think it's sweet. he kinda looks like a ♫♩♬♫—an animal that doesn't have much of a tough exterior, since it lives mostly underground on erid and thus doesn't need protection against the atmosphere. "cuteness aggression is the problem."
ryland blinks at me for a second, and laughs, the blood rushing to his face in the way i know means he's embarrassed. "you think i’m cute?"
"yes, cute cute cute." i punctuate each word with a poke to each one of his cheeks, both amused and endeared by his reaction to all this. "i’ve done some research about how humans can help this feeling."
"i- alright." ryland grins shyly, and i shift a little so all my legs are free. "what is it?" i give his stomach a quick squeeze and he makes an adorably high pitched noise, eyes widening as he realises. "oh, come on. i’m not- that's not fair!"
i trill happily. "it's so fair. you make cute noises, and i want to hear them."
before ryland has the opportunity to complain all too eloquently, i begin to scribble at his stomach and he squeals, covering his face in his hands. "rock- rohohocky!"
"you’re like a little baby." i coo teasingly, tracing nonsensical patterns where his shirt has started riding up and ryland squirms uselessly. "cute cute cute."
"not fahahahair." ryland giggles helplessly, and i very politely don’t point out the fact that he could totally get away if he just asked me to get off. "ihihit tickles!"
i laugh because that seems pretty obvious to me, but maybe it's not as clear to humans. "yes, i’m doing it on purpose. tickle, tickle!" i tease, and ryland whines in embarrassment, beginning to push at my arm halfheartedly—i know his full strength, and this isn’t even close to half of it. "now, i’ve been doing research."
"how- hohohow much rehehesearch could yohou have dohohohone?" ryland complains, pulling his knees up seemingly unconsciously as i start to poke at his hips. i squeeze experimentally at where they meet his thighs, and he shrieks. "NOHOHO- not thehehehere!"
"you didn't tell me all the places humans can be ticklish." i wag a finger at him in mock-disapproval, mostly because he keeps doing it to me when i crash into something in my ball. "i told you the truth, and this is how you repay me? i don't even know if your worst spot is your stomach now, so i need to test."
i pull all my hands back, giving ryland room to breathe as he stares at me in playful horror. his heartrate has increased, but if the way he’s fighting a smile is anything to go by, it's excitement rather than fear. "you’re setting yourself up for a whole lot of revenge, buddy."
"it's for science! you love science." i wiggle my claws teasingly in the air, and ryland makes a very cute squeaky noise in response. "where should i start?"
when i don't do anything other than wait for a reply, ryland seems to realise i’m actually asking him. "where- you want me to tell you?" he gapes, as if i’ve just asked him to saw off his own leg.
"well, i could just figure it out myself." i say smugly, positioning my hands over his thighs and chirping in amusement when he twitches. "i’ve heard vibration can often be ticklish for humans, do you want me to test that too?"
"you- it- wait, is it?" some of the tension drains from ryland's body as his curiosity overrides his nerves, and i laugh. "shut up- i didn’t even know that." he grins, folding his arms.
i tilt my carapace to the side. "wanna see how it feels?"
ryland gestures to himself as if to say go ahead, and i begin to hum at a frequency too low for him to hear, but strong enough for it to rattle my body slightly; manipulating soundwaves is the most common way eridians tickle one another, but since ryland is incapable of doing anything similar, i didn’t think it was that important to mention. apparently i should have brought it up sooner, because the moment my carapace starts to vibrate on his stomach he gasps and claps a hand over his mouth to stifle his giggling—as if i can’t hear it regardless.
"so? does it tickle?" i ask. it's obvious this is sensitive for him, but i will never pass up an opportunity to tease my squishy friend.
he nods for a second, eyes squeezed shut, before he takes a breath and his laughter comes tumbling out. "yehehes! oh my gohohosh- sohohoho muhuhuhuch."
"good!" i begin to poke at his his chest and he squirms a little more underneath me. "where do i tickle next?"
"i cahahahahan't." ryland begs, which i guess is just an invitation for me to experiment on my own. after all, i don’t hear him saying no.
i laugh, squeezing gently at his ribs. he squeals, so i just have to keep going. "you can. i believe in you."
the testing lasts a while before ryland starts to flag, which allows me to learn that pretty much every part of him is ticklish. the worst places seem to be his stomach (at least that wasn't a lie), thighs, knees and ears (ears? that seems ridiculous to me- why should they even have nerves?), but i was able to get at least a giggle from anywhere i tried. as expected, he is utterly adorable in every second of my 'experiment'—curling up in a futile attempt at defence, wiggling around to release some of the nervous energy, occasionally smacking the ground when i find a particularly sensitive area—and it's all i can do not to squeeze him so hard it begins to hurt.
eventually though, his stamina is depleted, and he lays spreadeagled on the ship's floor while i pat his head; i don't know if this is helping him or not, but i like it, so- whatever. "you are disproportionately good at that."
"yes, i’m good at everything." i say smugly, happy to have brought my friend joy and proved my superiority at the same time—yet another point to rocky on the humans vs eridians scoreboard. "and you are very ticklish." i add, just to tease him a little more.
ryland scoffs, before reaching out and squeezing at my leg. i yelp in surprise and crumble to the ground as he doesn’t stop, a mischievous smile taking over his face. "oh yeah? it's just me?"
i squeal a series of words that are mostly just curses, and kick him off. he laughs at me and i huff dramatically. "you are.. also good at it. somewhat."
"point to ryland." he smirks, and i push him away for the sake of being petulant. which- okay, maybe i didn’t forget that he could use this to start tickling me again, and maybe i was doing it to goad him into retaliating. what do you care? we saved two planets, you don’t get to judge me.
