Sleep is good for the Brain [Brainiac 5 x Emotion Alien! Reader]
(they don’t have a better gif of Brainy, big sad :()
Show - Legion of Superheroes 2006 cartoon
Episode - After 6, Before 7
Summary - Quavermass 12 dug into some past trauma, (Y/n) just wants to sleep at four am in the morning.
Warnings - mentions of death, past trauma
The rattling and scraping together of steel is what woke me up. I groaned, turning over and pulling myself up to my elbow, checking the time as I pulled my blanket back, moving the stray hair from my face.
I need to go check on him, I thought. Only one person in the dorms tinkered in the middle of the night, a certain blond-haired, green-skinned boy, Brainiac 5.
I got up and caught a glimpse of my alarm clock, four am. Okay, not the middle of the night, but still too early for this to be happening.
I grabbed Brainys hoodie, which I borrowed so long ago it’s basically mine, and slipped it over my rumpled t-shirt.
I walked out of my room and headed straight to Brainy's room, which was right across from mine, thankfully. I asked Computo to open the door for me and strolled on it, putting my hands in my hoodie pocket.
"Brainy," I called, approaching the boy who was melding one sheet of steel to another in a massive project that didn't seem to quite have a purpose, yet. It just looked like a blob of metal right now.
He didn't acknowledge me, so I tried again. "Brainy."
He hummed so I continued. "What're you doing? It's four in the morning, go back to bed." My tired naggy mother voice was undercut by my morning voice.
"I am attempting to create a helmet that blocks—”he starts and I yawned.
"Brainy, I love when you talk about your inventions, I love seeing you make them, and I love seeing them completed, but after not getting any sleep yesterday - due to you know what - I don't appreciate being woken up this early, so let's get back to bed." I urged him, noting how he flinched as I brought up the Quavermass incident.
“Soon, I just want to finish this last part then,” I took the wrench from his hand, putting my face close to his, “Tomorrow. Bed. Now.”
The only way to get Brainy to do what I wanted when he was like this was to be strict and unyielding, if I left him here he wouldn’t stop until he wore himself out three days later.
“Brainy, you may be a twelfth-level intellect, but if you wanna keep that you have to sleep,” I poked his head with my index finger before getting out of his face and putting his tools away.
“Computer or life form, we all need some time to rest,” I nagged him. I heard him sigh and start helping me put the tools away, good.
“Any negative effects of sleep deprivation only become concerning after three days, one night wouldn’t hurt anything,” he grumbled and I frowned.
“That’s true,” I turned to face him as we put the last of the tools away, “But I know you haven’t been sleeping well the past two days, I don’t think any of us who went on that mission have.”
He shook his head, “It was resolved, I’m fine.”
I narrowed my eyes, “We all saw some nasty stuff, Brainy, it’s okay not to be okay.” Truthfully, I didn’t even see Brainys fear simulation, being targeted after Saturn Girl. I was told what happened though, Brainy handled his simulation with logic, and Superman dealt with Quavermass and saved us.
“They were simulations, nothing more, nothing less. I only have to be afraid if it’s real,” Brainy rationalized, going to pick up his project and put it away. I followed.
“Brainiac, I’ve been around you long enough to know when something’s bothering you, spill.” I didn’t want to be this invasive, this harsh, but I’ve learned being direct is better than subtly with him, who values logic over all else.
He turned back to me after placing his helmet on the shelf, I imagined he would’ve raised an eyebrow if he had one, with the expression on his face.
“Are you mad at me?” He asked, incredulous.
I sighed, “No, just worried,” I crossed my arms and put most of my weight on one leg. “I want you to talk to me, Brainy.”
“I already told you,” He shook his head again, long blond hair swaying with it, “I’m fine.”
“Liar,” I frowned again, “Something’s bothering you.”
He paused, “That’s… correct.”
I furrowed my eyebrows, “Brainy, you don’t have to deal with it alone, okay? I’m right here if you need me,” I walked over to him, taking his hand in mine, “So maybe if you tell me what it is I’ll be able to help?”
He looked down at our hands before looking back up at me, “It’s not about me, though,”
“Then who is it about?” I asked, tired.
He inhaled before saying, “You,”
I froze, why was he bothered by me? “Did, did I do something?” I asked, suddenly conscious of myself, confused out of my mind.
“No, it wasn’t you,” He told me quickly, “It was your fear simulation that had me thinking.”
I froze again, my fear simulation? Something got caught up in my throat as I remembered the sight, myself, dead-eyed and gray, no emotions showing on my face as if there were none left for me to feel. Utterly alone there was no one to witness, to help me, to feel something as I fell to the ground, dead. Suddenly others of my species followed, I saw my homeworld, the apathy that was our life forces enemy slowly draining away at our lives.
I shivered. My worst nightmare. When I had seen it I had cried, and as Quavermass had wanted, I screamed. I screamed so hard my lungs hurt.
“What do you mean, Brainy? I reacted like everyone else, lost my cool, ended up a portrait, that’s all,” I deflected, the past two days that had been what awaited me when I slept, the bags under my eyes are proof of that.
“It’s not my place to ask, but curiosity got the better of me,” Brainiac admitted, pulling me to him, giving me a hug. It was awkward, but I wouldn’t trade it for any other. I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my head on his shoulder.
“Your reaction was just, so visceral. And your scenario was unlike the others, I just wanted to know why.”
I nuzzled my face into his shoulder, “It’s okay,” I broke away from him, watching as he seemed not to have wanted to do the same.
“We’ve been friends for a very long time, Brainy. And I’ve made no secret about the fact I love you, so if you want to know,” I paused, inhaling, “I wouldn’t mind telling you.”
“No, it’s fine.” He brought a hand up to stop me, “You should tell me when you're ready, if it weren’t for Quavermass you wouldn’t have brought it up, and I don’t want to dig into old, agitated wounds.”
The breath I was holding in left my lips, and I smiled. “Yeah, okay. Bed then?” I’m glad I didn’t have to talk about it tonight, but tomorrow maybe, I’d bring it up. Not because he deserved to know, there was no such thing, but because I did want him to know. Just not tonight, I’m too tired to share.
“Your room?” He asked and I nodded, giggling.
“Well, I’m certainly not sleeping in your bed again, things made out of bricks.”
He huffed, “No it’s not, it’s just a little firmer than yours,”
“Sure,” I dismissed him, grabbing his hand and leading him out of the room, asking Computo to turn off the lights as we walked over to my room, “And I’m a unicorn,” I sassed.
His mattress was like sleeping on a testing table piled onto fifty tons of bricks while also wearing a back support harness.
I opened my door before flopping down on my bed, making myself comfortable. Brainy does the same, less naturally than I do, but still laid down beside me. It’s become a regular routine for me to drag him to bed with me. It’s not weird, we’re best friends and practically dating anyway, just never bothered to put a label on it. Though we do everything a couple does anyhow.
I yawned, not the time to be thinking about this. Sleep now.
I cuddled up to Brainy, feeling his arms wrap around me as I wrap mine around his waist.
He kissed the top of my head, and before I know it I’m sleeping peacefully for the first time in days.
Unless I make a part two…
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