#poll the egg

[semifontos]

HAPPY BIRTH @which-qsmp-egg-would !!!!!!!!

Here is my interpretation of Gin's design!!!

I tried searching back in our dms what you have said about him, and hopefully compiled it correctly. You have permission to shoot me if anything is unaccurate btw btw

Have the messiest sketch of Poll braiding TQ's hair except I drew both of them from memory

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

It feels like it's been forever since I've drawn my eggies in their full egg goodness. Behold, the children.

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

I'll sleep soon. Once my lungs stop aching, and my heart stops pounding. Everything is fine.

right?

Anxiety is a bugger, right?

Image without the blur:

Fun fact! this drawing is adapted from a doodle from this post, and the description TQ gives when he's having his first out of body experience! Poll isn't having a great time. Recovery is slow, especially when recent events have triggered repressed emotions.

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

GLASS BRACELETS

Chapter 1

Next

---

Tequilla's memories are like a mirror. But its been broken and scattered around this massive nook of an island far from Poll's own. It feels like the two of them should be able to repair the whole thing and get his memories back – they've found several shards already – but it's like they never have enough pieces to get a good look at the full picture.

Poll has done their best to help him remember though! They sit down every morning and try to figure out which of his dreams might have been memories, and they visit the mystery house all the time, just like they are right now.

Poll sits on the cold wood floor of an orange, dust filled bedroom in front of a short oak bookcase, sifting through its contents for any kind of clue. They aren't exactly sure what they and their brother are really searching for. Notes? Maps? Maybe something to help him find his moms and dad…

Poll's tail lashes. They shake their head, ignoring the stray thought. “Found anythin’ yet, TQ?” 

Tequilla hums a no from the other side of his old bedroom, sat in a chair a bit too small for him at a table too short, hunched over the papers he sifts around in his claws.

“mm, me neither.” Poll sets another book onto the stack next to them where they sit on the wooden floor. “Other than y'havin’ a lot of Magic Treehouse books. Don't know how you read them all.”

“Yyou read slow.” Tequilla reminds them.

Poll huffs, cracking open another dusty book as Tequilla continues to rifle through the room that used to be his own. It became a much easier task once they cleaned up the signs strewn across it. Although Tequilla was adamant about not destroying them, so they ended up piled on top of the bed instead.

“Maybe this i-is something?” Poll looks up at their brother, eyes drifting to the paper held in his hand. It's a child's drawing just like the rest of them. Although its a lot more scribbly than the others. There's an egg drawn in orange crayon with a frowny face - probably TQ - and a large white figure with a big smile and mustache. Surrounding the figure are black scribbles. Poll squints at the drawing. 

“...Nah, looks like some of th’ others we've found.” Poll waves away the drawing. There's plenty of drawings of the funny bear guy from summer camp strewn around amongst the doodles of parents holding hands and houses, but none of them have sparked anything.

TQ whines, a loud frustrated noise, dragging the drawing back into the pile.

Poll tugs on their claws, reaching a wing towards TQ. “Trade?” They offer. Tequilla nods his head and stretches out his wing too, touching gently. Poll stands, shaking itself out like a dog. They tilt their head at him, opening their wings like a second set of arms. “Hug?” Their brother nods, tucking his wings and tail tightly against his body, relaxing as he feels Poll's scales slide across his clothes, enveloped by warm darkness and the tight squeeze of its arms. “Do you need a break, bubba?”

He shakes his head. “N-nneed answers.”

Poll rumbles soothingly, carding through TQ's hair. “We gotta keep lookin’. We'll find it.”

“May-be it's in th-the underwater cave. T-the one t-that…” He trails off.

“The one that th’ octopus mom lived in?”

“Mmhm. Maybe t-that has ssome clues.” Tequilla mumbles.

Poll pokes the back of his head. “Nuh uh. We tried that an’ it didn’ end well.” That's kind of an understatement, but Poll knows it's kind of a touchy subject right now. They tried to swim down and investigate the cave weeks ago. Tequilla started to panic a couple feet down and papa had to pull him out of the water. He said he had a pounding headache after so they decided to not push it any further. The look of terror on its brother's face is burned into it's memory though. They feel bad for grabbing his tail.

Tequilla sniffles. “Wwhat if I-I do-n’t find aanything-ing?”

“This house is so big, I'm sure we'll find somethin’. If not, I'll help jog your memory.” Poll assures him.

“...Like the cart-oons?”

“Like the cartoons.”

Tequilla buries his face further into Poll's chest, finally reaching his arms around to squeeze Poll just as tightly. “Promise?”

“Promise. Let's have papa take us home now.”

“Okay…”

—

Tequilla flops onto the couch face first, growling muffled against the fabric.

Poll climbs onto the couch too, shuffling to sit directly on top of their brother's prone back. 

“You gonna make it, TQ?” Poll sticks their claws into his hair, scratching lightly. 

He grumbles, swatting at Poll with his tail.

“C'mon bubba, let's play a game, I'm sure that'll cheer you up.”

“No.”

“C’moooon jus’ one game, I'll even let you pick what we play.” Poll bribes.

Tequilla stays silent for a moment. Then sighs. “hhide n’ seek?”

Poll beams, scrambling off their brother to stand and cover their eyes. “Okay you hide first!”

“One, two, three, four, five…”

—

“Ready r'not, here I come!” Poll uncovers their eyes immediately glancing towards the more common hiding spots in the house. Behind the couch… under the coffee table… behind the door… nope. Tequilla is nowhere to be found. They sneak out of the living room, wings flared for balance as they tiptoe into the kitchen. He's not in the pantry, or the fridge. (Papa told them both off for that last time.) Poll glances outside briefly, but doesn't spot the tell-tale dents in the grass that their claws make. They skip back through the house, checking the bathtub, the toys room, laundry baskets, blankets, pillows; no brother to be found.

“Where is he hiding…” Poll mumbles to itself. Have they missed a hiding spot? it doubts he would hide in their closet, and there's no way he would hide under their bed since the present is there-

“Oh no,” They hiss, tail still. “Oh no no no no no.” Poll sprints to their shared bedroom, pushing the door open with enough force to make it bounce off the wall.

Tequilla stands next to the bed, holding a small orange wrapped present, brows furrowed.

“Poll? What is t-this?” He holds the present up towards them, gently, as if it were made of glass.

“You weren't supposed t’ find that.” They blurt suddenly, hand coming up to cover their mouth to silence the traitorous noise.

“I w-wasn't ssupposed to…?” Tequilla asks with a look of confusion and concerning bleeding from the exposed side of his face.

“If y'knew I had it, you woulda been so upset with me.”

Tequilla reaches forward for Poll, “Why?”

Poll flinches back. “Because I broke my promise!” They cry. “I told you that I was gonna help you find your memories but I lied an’ didn' tell you about the present n’ I know I should've but I didn' want you to be upset with me-”

“Slow,” Tequilla assures. “Why?” He reiterates.

“Because…” Poll considers lying again. But if lying got them here, then lying even more will just make it worse, right? “Because I got it… I got it from your mom.”

Tequilla looks down at the small present clutched in his claws. The look in his eyes when he meets Poll's makes their chest tight.

Betrayal. Total betrayal.

“Y..you m-met my mmom? Wh-whhich one? When ddid th-this happen? Where was she? Did she mmiss me?”

Poll takes a breath past the lump in their throat. “It was th’ goat one, she said her name was Doll like the toy an’ she was really nice. It was at Christmas, you were asleep an’ I had left my gloves at th’ mystery house, I saw footsteps and… she was at your statue, she had brought a present for you. She missed you a lot.”

Tequilla hugs the present tight against his chest. He shakes, tail twitching as his wings open subconsciously. “Th-then why isn't she here n-now? Why didn't I knnnow she was around until nnnow?” He lowers his head, a single horn presented toward his sibling. “Yyyou lied t-to me.” 

Poll shrinks under his threat display. “I'm sorry,” they whisper, “I just-”

“NO.” Tequilla yells, a sound louder than Poll had ever heard from their brother. “NO. NO NO NNO NO NO!” His wings are fully flared now. “I don't wanna talk to you, I d-don't w-wanna hear it!” He stomps, pulling his messenger bag from the floor and slinging it around his shoulder with a dull thud. 

“Please, Bubba-”

“NO, I'm n-not going to be the brother of a liar! I hate you!” He shoves past Poll, running for the back door.

Poll begs through tears. “Please TQ I don't-”

Tequilla throws the door open; Poll flinches as its hinges rattle from the force. “I'm g-going to find my real fam-ily a-and find my mmmemories on my own. I-I don't need you.”

Their brother sniffles, wiping tears and snot from his face, and turns sharply, dashing for the underbrush of the forest. 

They pursue, begging their brother to come back. They didn't– they didn't MEAN to, they were just so so scared– Poll dodges branches and bushes and vines, crying out, until-

Their foot catches on a root and they plummet to the ground. 

Dazed, they push themself up, watching distantly as blood drips from their muzzle and onto the forest floor below. The orange blur of their brother gets farther and farther away.

Poll sobs. Big, ugly, gasping things as that orange blur becomes one with the dark green around it. It curls into itself, wings wrapped like a shield around it.

The smell of thunderstorms and grass and salt fill the air, barely detectable under the overwhelming smell of blood in their nose. A cold hand brushes against their wing. Their papa stands over them, body reflecting a dark thunderstorm over snow covered mountains, projecting concern to its ward. Poll cries harder, reaching up to its papa. Stardust lifts the dragonling into its many arms.

“I messed up, papa.” Poll croaks.

“I messed up so bad.”

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

We got a lot of snow today :D

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

Happy pride month to my two losers! I love them dearly

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

How it feels to write them, honestly

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

GLASS BRACELETS

Chapter 9: EPILOGUE

Prev

---

Poll smiles outside of that lonely town (not so lonely anymore), watching Miss Doll's friends work together to make each house liveable one by one. The big robot, Stephen, does a lot of the heavy lifting. Collen does too, but she mainly just mimics Stephen's shape to do it. The twins though, seem to be having a lot of fun rummaging through the town for metal and stuff. Poll thinks they commandeered one of the houses at the end of the block to be their lab. Tapioca and Lils have taken to cleaning up, removing cobwebs and taming long forgotten gardens. Their brother has been helping too, he said that the group became his friends while they traveled and he wanted to make sure they got to be comfortable like they made him.

Poll is still a little nervous about going into the town properly just yet. So it's sitting on a large rock by the path with Doll, weaving together flowers that were found in the gardens and growing by the houses to make decorations. The houses are probably really happy that they've got friends again, and want to look their best.

“And then I tie it like this?” Doll asks. Poll doesn't know why she's asking, she's the one who suggested this. She must be confused, Poll thinks.

“Mmhm!” they hum. “I bet we can get this sooooooo long, it'll stretch from here t’ my house!”

“I bet, since you're so good at these, baby. But don't you think it would look better on these houses?” She gestures ahead of her.

Poll squints at their flower garland, then back up at the houses. “Hmmm, that makes sense.” Doll chuckles, grabbing another flower from their ever growing pile.

“Hey cuddle bug,” Doll stage whispers, “Can I tell you a secret?”

Poll cocks their head, curious.

“I'm really glad my son met you.”

Poll blushes, a mix of embarrassment and pride. Its only been a few days since Doll and their brother came back, and they haven't been able to really shake off the guilt as much as they've said. They bury their face in the garland, squeaking.

Doll chuckles. “I really am glad though. If it weren't for you, I don't know if I would have ever had a chance to reunite with him. My team and I wouldn't have somewhere safe to stay. I wouldn't have met you.” She smiles warmly at Poll.

“But I lied t’ you an’ TQ..” Poll mumbles.

The hybrid shrugs. “Siblings do that sometimes. When my sister and I were younger, I would steal her toys and pretend like she had lost them so our parents wouldn't yell at me. Or this other time, she told me that my boyfriend at the time had called our house phone and said he was breaking up with me right before a date. In reality, she just wanted the car for herself that night. The point is, having siblings can be rough, and it can hurt. But in the end you still love each other. And… well, I can tell you had other reasons to lie.” Doll weaves another flower into her side of the garland. “From what you told me about your Clutchmates when we first met… I can understand why you wouldn't like being alone.”

Poll nods. It's quickly learned that Doll understands them in a way that they didn't know adults could.

“Hey Doll!” Tapioca shouts from behind one of the houses, “We found a waystone!”

“That's wonderful! I'll be over in a minute!” She turns to Poll grinning. “You've never seen a waystone before, right Poll?” Poll shakes their head. There's a lot on this island they don't know, apparently. “If you want, I can show you how they work.”

Poll hesitates. But the oppressive loneliness of the town feels lesser now. Not as scary as it used to be. So they take Doll's hand and nod.

The hybrid leads Poll through the cobblestone streets. They catch a glimpse of Stephen and Collen inside one of the homes, moving and replacing rotted wood beams and broken furniture, The old man surveying it all from the stairs. He seems mean, but he ruffled Poll's hair once without grazing their antlers, so they know he's nice even if he won't admit to it.

She brings them to the side yard of the second house on the left, plant debris piled up against the paneling, a separate pile of flowers right next to it. What's really interesting is a small awning next to a side door nearly invisible from the ivy that covers it, under that awning is a stone pillar thing, a little taller than Doll, covered in a similar moss and vine as the rest of the stone.

“Good find, Taps.” Doll squeezes Poll's hand. “This is a waystone, bug. It lets us get around more easily. They're hard to find but really easy to use. Do you want to see how to use one?” Poll nods. “Okay, first you need to hold your hand out to it like this,” she holds her hand out in a ‘stop’ motion, and Poll does the same. “Now this next part might be a little tricky, since I know you eggs can be a little magic sensitive. You need to place your hand against it, and let the magic in, okay?” Doll places her hand against the stone, weird purple magenta lights glowing through the moss, reflecting off of Doll's gold bands.

Poll's nose wrinkles at the smell of ozone, but copies her anyway. They place their claws against the moss of the stone, feeling the plant covering squish on their palm. The glowing starts, a tingly static feeling growing uncomfortably in Poll's fingertips. They reflexively pull their hand back, shaking out the weird feeling.

“It's okay baby, it won't hurt you.”

Poll shakes out their tail, placing its hand against the waystone again. The prickly static feeling builds for a moment, before fading down their arm into nothing. There's…a weirder feeling somewhere in the back of their head, but nothing uncomfortable.

“Good job cuddle bug! With a little experience, you'll be teleporting around the island with this in no time. Maybe we'll find another that we can put by your house.”

“These do teleportin’? I know alla-bout that! My papa takes me on trips sometimes, thas how we foun’ Tequilla's old house!”

“Oh?” Doll always gets a funny look when Poll tells her something about papa, all open mouth and wide eyes. “Well maybe they can show me sometime. I need to replace the waystone at the nook, since it went missing after everyone left. The closest one is a little too far out for you.”

“I'll ask next time it's home!” Poll grins, ears perked happily.

—

Poll thought sleeping alone was difficult. It was hard at first, falling asleep without their brother next to them. Papa could only stay with them a few times, of course. They tried to cuddle with plushies and pillows but it was never the same.

Readjusting feels even weirder.

It's only been a few days since Tequilla came back. Papa had brought in a spare bed for Doll on the first day, the hybrid sleeping soundly in the room across from their's. Poll thought that Tequilla would have decided to share a bed with his momma instead of them. It hurt him, afterall. But instead Tequilla just hugged them and resumed his usual spot on the bed.

Poll sits against the wall, watching their brother sleep. His wings twitch minutely as he sleeps, blanketing him in orange. He breathes deeply, snoring so lightly Poll could have missed it entirely.

Maybe watching their brother sleep is kinda weird. But… it makes their scales crawl, the thought that they might wake up to him being gone again. The last few months have been rough for Poll. It brought back some.. tender memories. Of their clutchmates. Of J-10 and J-2 and… and J-4. Poll wishes she had gotten to learn what names their parents gave them. Poll hopes they got to have a name like they do. She wishes she had gotten to say goodbye before they disappeared.

Poll tugs on his claws. They don't need to think about that. They wanna watch their brother.

Tequilla mumbles in his sleep, turning to have his back to them. How come he only has one set of wings while Poll has two? Maybe to make up for Poll's inability to shapeshift like he can.

The sleeping dragonling's breathing speeds up, his tail coming up to wrap around his torso.

Is he having another nightmare? Or maybe it is a memory dream. Poll remembers that Tequilla hates being woken up from those.

As he curls into himself further, whining and panting in his sleep, Poll thinks that maybe it doesn't matter now.

“T? Wake up TQ.” They poke his side. No reaction. Poll grabs his shoulder and tug lightly.

Tequilla rips his shoulder from their grip, eyes wide and distant, breathing ragged. He scans the room, until his unfocused eyes land on Poll.

Then he bursts into tears.

Poll's tail lashes. How have I already ruined this? “Bubba? Are you okay? Did I do somethin’ wrong?”

He just shakes his head, curling around himself.

“I'm..” Poll reaches out to him, but pulls back. “I'm gonna get your mom, okay?”

They crawl across the bed, tumbling from the high matress onto a pile of plushies. Claws click against the wooden floor as they slide into Doll room. She snores deeply, one ear splayed on her pillow, the other across her eyes like a sleep mask. Poll gently lifts an ear.

“Miss Doll?” They loudly whisper.

Doll snorts, quickly sitting up and rubbing her eyes. “Wha happened, who threw up?”

Poll rolls their wings anxiously. “I- Tequilla was havin’ a nightmare so I woke him up but I just made it worse n’ now he's cryin’ an' I dunno what t’ do.” Poll sniffles.

Doll sits up. “Awe baby, c'mere.” She scoops Poll into her arms as she stands, the dragonling gripping onto her pink night dress tightly. The hybrid kisses Poll gently on its temple. “It's okay cuddle bug. He's had nightmares like this before, right?”

They nod. Their breath hitches as Tequilla's mom kisses their head again.

“Then let's both go help him, okay? Do you think we could calm him down with our powers combined?”

Poll giggles wetly and nods into Doll's shoulder.

Feet make more of a pat pat sound than a click click sound like Poll's claws, they realise. Tequilla never goes into his hybrid form very often so they never really noticed until now. Huh.

Doll sets Poll down on the bed next to the still crying Tequilla, her sitting on the opposite side. “Tequilla baby? Are you okay? Nothing hurt?”

Tequilla shakes his head.

“Good, peanut. Just a scary nightmare?” She strokes his hand, uncaring about the claws digging into her own.

“Are you upset at me bubba?” Poll blurts.

Tequilla shakes his head, tears turning into sniffles.

“See Poll? No harm done, just a scary dream. Do you feel better baby?” She finger combs TQ's hair.

“Mm'hm.” Tequilla hums quietly.

Poll reaches past their brother and tugs on Doll's dress. “Do you think you could stay in here, Miss Doll?”

Doll smiles at the dragonling. “Of course, bug.” She scooches back to lay in the middle of the bed, lifting Poll to the other side. “As long as you both get some sleep, alright?”

Poll nods, cuddling up against Doll. Nights are cold for them and their brother. Poll can feel Tequilla scooch closer too.

They listen to the sound of Doll's breathing, her heartbeat, her snores.

Maybe this won't be such a difficult adjustment.

—

Tequilla is in his hybrid form again today.

It happens sometimes, usually after a memory dream. T says it happened subconsciously in the big city, but he reverted back when he got scared.

He seems fine, chatting with Tapioca and Lils. The skink hybrid ruffling his hair while they show him their building materials.

He gets frustrated when he shapeshifts without his say. Says that it messes with his balance really bad.

So Poll shouldn't feel jealous.

Afterall, they like having their wings and tail and four fingers. And they can still turn into an egg. It just… takes more effort.

It shouldn't bother them.

But it really does.

“Hey kid, what did the grass do to you?” Someone says above them. Poll looks up from where they had been ripping fistfuls of grass out of the ground. Collen crouches in front of them, Doll standing just behind the shapeshifter. It's hard to tell if the jester is smiling or if it is just her face.

“uhm…” Poll rolls their wings. Would it be mean if they didn't tell her? Or would it be mean if they did tell her, and Tequilla found out they were jealous again? Probably that one, but wouldn't Tequilla be sad if they lied again? Miss Doll definitely would be. “..I'm bad at shapeshiftin’.”

Collen and Doll share a glance, the shapeshifter helping the hybrid sit down on the grass next to Poll. “Okay, what's the problem with that?” Collen asks casually.

Poll avoids eye contact, wiping grass from their scales. “TQ can do it.” Their tail thumps against the ground. “An’ a lot of other eggs my age can too.”

A warm hand rubs Poll's shoulder gently, the dragonling leaning into the touch. “Aw, bug. There's nothing wrong with that. From what I understand, you eggs shapeshift to mimic people, right?” Poll nods. Doll pulls them closer, playing with their hair. “Well, since your papa shifts so much, I bet you didn't get a chance to mimic them too much. and since you… ah, weren't around other people that often, you just never got to practice.”

Collen shrugs. “Eh, kinda.” the shapeshifter grabs Poll's claws. “Look kid. Where I'm from, I was the only shapeshifter. I knew of my species, but noone really taught me how to do it. So growing up, I was a lot like you. I knew I had the capability, but I didn't know how. Things changed slowly instead of suddenly like it should. Like how your brother shapeshifts.”

Poll looks at their feet. “But I can't even go into my egg form without it takin’ forever.”

“How old were you when you first took on your dragon form, Poll?” Doll asks.

“Uhm… I think it was a week or two after papa found me. They said I had white scales at first.”

“Well, did you know that Tequilla was in his egg form for a little over a month? He was a latebloomer, even compared to the other eggs on that island, I believe.”

“Oh, no I didn’.” That… kinda doesn't make Poll feel better. Poll's horns came in way later than Tequilla's, maybe it was just a fluke.

Doll elbows Collen, giving Poll a side hug as she sees their crestfallen expression. “Help me out here, Cee.”

Collen pokes Poll in the chest. “What ‘mom’ over here is trying to say is that while Tequilla is better at it for now, you've got a lot of promise. As long as you practice shifting, you'll be able to do it even better than your brother, yeah?”

Their tail wags. “Yes miss Collen!”

Collen fake gags, and Doll just laughs.

Miss Doll and her friends are so nice. Tequilla is so lucky to have her as a mom.

—

“So you're sure your papa is coming back today?” Miss Doll asks again. She had a funny look on her face when she found out papa leaves all the time. But she always gets a funny face when she learns about papa.

“Mmhm! They don't really have a routine, they jus’ know when I need them. Last night I asked them to come home, so it should be here soon.”

“...Was it here last night?” Doll asks tentatively.

“I w-wouldn’t think too-oo hard ab-bout it momma. I th-th-think Poll and Stardust talk with their m-minds.” Tequilla mumbles over a poptart.

“Nuh uh!” Poll shoves him with their foot. “I jus’ talk to th’ outside an’ my papa can hear.”

“It's mind reading.” Tequilla loudly whispers to his mom. She just smiles softly at them both. “S-so whats the plan, momma?”

“Well, since the waystone back at The Nook is missing, Poll is going to ask their papa if they can take us there. I should still have a spare in the chest I hid in the gazebo. Yes baby, you did know about that. I swore you to secrecy.”

Poll picks at their own poptart as the mother and son chat. It's hard to believe they kept this from happening for so long. They were so scared of losing TQ, even more when he ran away, but instead of losing a brother, they gained a…

The smell of rain and grass wafts by their nose. A familiar presence outside the door. Poll gasps, “Papa's home!” and bounds to let them in. Which is unnecessary, since papa could have just appeared inside the house, but last time he did that Doll almost got stuck in the ceiling from jumping so hard.

Poll gives papa a running tackle hug, getting a 4 armed one in return. Papa feels colder than miss Doll does, like holding your hand up near a window in the fall. “Are you ready to go papa? ‘Member what I asked?” Stardust nods. “Yes papa, I remember. Okay Miss Doll, jus’ hold onto papa's tail. Or wing, if they have one right now. Whatever's closerest.”

“Y-you might wanna cl-cloose your eyes, Momma.” Tequilla whispers loudly, “And mmmm-aybe take a deep b-breath.” He places a hand against Stardust's arm, Doll tentatively placing her own on papa's tail.

Poll's stomach rolls despite their experience as the world warps. Everything flickers for a moment, like they're going super fast. Then all at once it stops, the four of them suddenly standing on grass.

The hybrid makes a funny noise, fist covering her mouth as she turns a few shades paler. “That is not like waystone teleporting at all.” Tequilla pats her on the arm as she struggles to not heave.

“We can take th’ waystone back, miss Doll.” Poll offers apologetically. Papa agrees, letting them know that they're moving on again. “Okay papa, see you soon!” They beam. Without another moment, Papa dissappears.

“Do they.. always leave that quickly, cuddle bug?” Doll asks.

Poll nods. “Papa wanders, but I'm a big kid so it's okay.” Poll fidgets with the hem of their over shirt. “So, where is th’ waystone we were talkin’ about?”

“Oh, yes right.” Doll looks around, glances between the barely worn trail below them and the increasingly dilapidated house in front of them. “It's up there baby, across the rope bridge.” She points up to the gazebo on the cliffside.

“Then let's go already!” Poll runs ahead, not wanting to see that sad look on Doll's face anymore.

—

Poll could have sworn rope bridges were supposed to be a lot more dramatic. All swinging and breaking boards and splitting ropes! This rope bridge is boring. Tequilla told them that it had been reinforced or something. Sure, Poll doesn't actually wanna fall obviously, but Doll is taking forever to grab stuff from the hidden chest and they're bored.

The hybrid crouches next to an upended floorboard, pulling clothes and weapons from the chest. Tequilla moves between her and Poll, helping her retrieve items while also chatting with his sibling.

Poll isn't quite sure where Doll plans to store all the items, but they assume that's another one of those magic things she'll have to explain again.

“Found it!” Doll exclaims. The woman in pink holds a small stone object in her hand. Like a mini version of the glowy stone they touched before. “Now how about we find a good place to put this, kids?”

“Mmm-maybe at th-the front of the house? Th-that s-s-sounds good.” Tequilla offers.

Doll hums. “True, peanut. But since the last one got stolen, maybe we should put this in a more secluded spot, where people may not look.”

“Ooo, ooo, I have ‘n idea! What if we put it super deep in th’ woods, and hide it in a tree house!”

“That won't work either, bug. We might not always have your papa's mob repelling effect here, and that could be very dangerous while you are still unable to fight.”

The three ponder for a moment, until Poll speaks up again. “What if we put it by th’ beach? It can be near th’ tree line an’ we can cover it in vibes to camouflage it.”

Doll perks up. “Oh that could work! The beach is…” She trails off, glancing at Tequilla. “Well, it is a good idea, but only if Tequilla is okay with it.”

Tequilla tilts his head at her, curiously. “Why w-wouldn’t I be okay with that? Pl-plus you want-wanted to take us to the beach anyways, remember?”

Her smile is strained, but she nods. Probably one of those things Doll would say ‘Don't worry about it’ when Poll asks. “If you're up for it, Poll, would you like to come hunt for sea glass with us?”

“...OBVIOUSLY??” They shriek.

—

Poll and Tequilla rarely visited the beach when investigating the mystery house. It didn't have signs or wood or house things, so they never thought to investigate it.

So they had no idea there was so much hidden in the sand.

“Okay you two, I need you to listen to me very carefully, okay?” Doll brings herself to one knee, a hand resting on the siblings shoulders. “I'm serious.”

“Yes momma”

“Yes Miss Doll”

“I don't want you, under any circumstances, getting near the water, understand? If you see something near the water line, tell me and I'll get it for you, okay? I also want you to stay in my line of sight at all times. If you need to go somewhere, you tell me first. Do you two understand?”

They nod. It doesn't understand why she's so worried. Maybe it's a mom thing.

“And TQ,” Doll pokes his chest. “No kicking sand at people.”

Tequilla huffs, but nods.

“Good.”

The twins take off, swiping through sand with their claws like they were hunting for buried treasure. In a way, they are. Poll spots the dull shine of sea glass under the sand, pulling out a blue piece bigger than their thumb. They also find a piece of metal, but Doll tells them to throw it into the water.

She lets them dig for what feels like hours, occasionally picking one out herself but mostly keeping the piles Poll and TQ have made safe, watching over her kids- kid.

Poll's favorite is a deep green piece, just a bit smaller than the yellow one Tequilla wears. They keep that one in their hand while they hunt.

“Okay babies, it's time we head home for lunch, okay?” Poll whines. Doll just smiles at them, collecting the sea glass scattered at her side. “I know bug, we can come back another day okay? Now what do you wanna do with this sea glass?”

“I w-wanna make a bracelet fffffor you and Poll!” Tequilla blurts. “P-poll, which one do yyyou want for your bracelet? I think momma should get this one.” He holds up a piece of reddish-brown sea glass.

“You wanna make me a bracelet? Like the one miss Doll made for you? But…” Poll looks down, lip quivering. “Tha's for you two. You're family.”

An orange wing taps against their shoulder. “You a-are fffamily. S-so you shhhould get a br-bracelet too.”

Poll sniffles. “...Can we use this one?” She holds up the green piece she'd grown attached to. “It matches your rings.”

Doll grins at the dragonlings. “Of course we can, baby. You are family, after all.”

—

Crap, crap this is not good.

Shit, how can Doll lose track of her other kid??

Doll was planning to help her friends rebuild the town centre today, but plans have to change because Poll has run off.

She paces in the front lawn, tugging on her ears. Did she say something wrong? She couldn't have, they barely talked this morning! Tequilla is already at the town, and he hasn't seen the little one either.

What if they get hurt in the woods? Or wander too far past their papa's protective aura and get caught by monsters. Oh she knew they should have started combat training much earlier.

And how is she meant to find them? Clearly they know this place much better than her, and she has no idea how to track someone out here. Maybe the old man could help? But he might not be able to track either, that could just be a canine hybrid stereotype. Maybe-

Poll's papa, of course! They've got that.. psychic connection going on, right? If anyone could find Poll, it would be their parent. What was it Poll said? Just talk to the outdoors?

“Uh, Stardust? Poll's papa? Can you hear me?” She cringes at her own voice, tight with panic. “I need your help.” She waits for a moment, listening to the wind blowing through the leaves around her. All she can smell is grass and the slight scent of wild flowers.

“I know you can hear me!” She shouts at the wind. “Poll says this is how they talk to you, so I know you can hear me! I need your help, please Stardust.”

Nothing changes.

She sighs, turning back towards the trail to ask her friends for help.

Only to be nose to nose(?) with the strange form of Stardust.

She shrieks, nearly falling on her tail.

“QUIT DOING THAT.” She squeaks. Its eyes (if they can even be called that, just two white lights that look like the shape of an eye) pinch in amusement. “Look, just- I need your help.” Doll dusts off her skirt. “Poll ran off this morning and I have no idea where they've gone. I know you've got that connection with them.”

Stardust just stares at her, form shifting slowly. Elf ears turn to sheep turn to dog, arms and wings and limbs shift in and out of existence. Its skin, a very loose term, is a kaleidoscope of images. If she looks very closely, she can see glimpses of Federation buildings and towns and forests.

“I… I can't understand you, I'm sorry. Poll is the only one that can, it seems.”

Stardust nods slowly.

“Do you know where Poll is?”

Rabbit ears to human to feathers. Stardust nods again.

Doll can't help but feel responsible for Poll. Maybe it's just something ingrained in her, to protect these eggs. Maybe it's because Poll reminds her so much of how TQ was before… well, before things changed.

She understands that Poll loves its papa.

But she doesn't understand Stardust as all.

“If you know where they are, why haven't you brought them home? Don't you know how dangerous the forest can be if they are left unsupervised?” She's doing it again, she can tell. Donnie always made fun of her for being so strict about Tequilla's safety and upbringing. But she just.. she just can't help it. “If something happened to them, would you be able to poof there in time? What if something happened to them while they were inside their home and you were none the wiser?”

It tilts its head at her, ears flopping.

“Poll told me that they're used to being left alone. Said that you leave for days or even weeks at a time. No kid their age should ever go through that. No kid should ever..” She thinks about her Tequilla, lost in that forest for so long. No knowledge of family, of friends, of himself. “No child should be alone like that.”

Stardust shifts its form quicker, tails flicking like it's frustrated.

“Do you not understand how harmful that can be to a child?” She snaps.

The shifting slows to a crawl. It retreats half a step, and shakes it head.

“You… you don't? How can you say that, why would you adopt them if you didn't know how children worked?”

Stardust mimes an egg with their hands, flesh shifting to visions of snowy mountains and blizzards.

“Poll was… cold?” It nods. “So you took them in?” It nods again. “And your… species doesn't have children in the same way we do, do they? That's why you wouldn't know their needs.” Stardust closes its eyes, nodding once more.

Doll sighs, lowering her head. “I'm sorry for shouting at you. I understand that you.. you were just trying your best. I'm just worried about Poll.”

“Hey miss Doll! Look at this stick I foun’!”

Poll emerges from the thicket, a large tree branch in their claws. There's a smear of mud on their grinning face, and even more on their freshly washed clothes.

“Poll The Egg, what in the world were you thinking!” She strides towards them, using the mom voice (and adlibbing since she doesn't know if Poll has a last name) at a kid that isn't even her own, but she can't help it. “Do you know how scared I was to see you gone from your bed? I thought you were sleeping in!”

Poll shrinks into himself, wings tucked close while his secondary wings fidget behind him. “I did sleep in, a little. Then I left to go hunt bugs.”

She crouches and swipes dirt from its hair. “And you didn't tell me you were leaving why?”

“...Cause I didn’ wanna move bricks again today.” They mumble.

Doll sighs. “Bug, if you didn't want to help in town, you could have just told me and we could have found something else for you to do. You didn't need to run away.”

The dragonling tilts their head. “But I didn’ run away. I was jus’ in th’ woods.”

“I understand that Poll,” Doll takes their claws into her hands. “But you can't just run off where I can't see you without telling me first. What if you had gotten hurt? I would have no way to find you, and I wouldn't be able to understand your-” She glances towards Stardust, only to find the space he once occupied empty. Of course. “Just- tell me before you go somewhere, okay? Or even just tell Tapioca or Lils or anyone in town, understand?”

Poll stares at their shuffling feet.

“Do you understand.” Doll repeats.

“...Yes miss Doll. ‘M sorry for scarin’ you.”

Doll brings the dragonling into a tight hug. It's not their fault, not really. They've never had these kinds of rules before, after all.

Her gaze catches a shifting figure at the tree line, two glowing white eyes the only clear thing visible. It.. stops for a moment, seemingly looking at her and its charge. Then in an instant, Stardust dissappears again.

One problem at a time.

—

After that last incident, Doll made sure to sit Poll and Tequilla down for a talk about her rules. Tequilla, despite being just as prone to wandering when he was younger, did know the rules before. Now though, she's unsure if he remembers them at all.

“Tell me where you're going before you wander off. If you're going with someone tell me who, especially if it's someone not from the neighborhood. If there's a mob too close to the house, come get me if you can. If you're going to spar, don't use your egg forms. And if you're ever in pain or uncomfortable, tell me, okay? We don't keep secrets here.”

Tequilla nodded along to her listing the rules, seemingly used to them (does he actually remember them?). Poll on the other hand was a bit more… resistant. As it turns out, having a mostly absent parent makes rules feel like a prison. They had the most trouble with the “don't wander off” part, but they're definitely getting better at it.

So taking care of the two eggs hasn't been a big deal, all things considered.

Unfortunately, now they have something else to figure out.

It's been happening since the last incident, when she had her talk with Stardust. She keeps seeing shapes out of the corner of her eye. Glowing lights in the forest. The smell of the ocean or cow fields or other misplaced scents wafting through the air. None often enough to be noticed by the kids, but enough that she's sure it's not her imagination.

She's sure it's Stardust. It's not exactly difficult to piece together that the lights and smells are from whatever Stardust is. The real question is why Poll's papa is just observing them from a distance, rather than interacting with its kid.

From what she understands, lingering like that isn't in their nature. The exact opposite, in fact. Poll said that papa's people wander for a long time until they're ‘complete’. She's not quite sure what that means.

Maybe laying in bed isn't the best way to figure this out. Breakfast would probably help. The kids probably want breakfast too. So she should get up.

She groans as she hoists herself up. She may love her figure, but it doesn't always make it easy for her.

Poll's voice drifts from the kitchen to her open bedroom door. She heard Tequilla's voice a bit before that, but it is quiet now. Doll listens idly as she changes out of her sleep shirt.

She misses bits and pieces of the conversation as its drowned out by the sound of clothes shifting. “You're home — need somethin’? Yeah she's — we can go say Hi.”

click click click

Doll jolts as she realises that the claw clicks she hears are coming towards her bedroom. Quickly throwing the loose dress over herself, she directs her attention to the door.

Poll trots in, leading Stardust in by the hand. Before she can get a word in, Poll speaks up. “Papa says they wanna talk to you about somethin’ important but I gotta translate.”

“Oh, um,” She moves to the side of the bed, sitting and patting the spot next to her. “Then come on up, bug.”

The dragonling bounds across the room, rolling onto the bed to sit in the exact middle. Stardust follows, sitting on the other corner from Doll.

“Okay um, Papa talks different so I might have t’ fill in the blanks. Yes papa, I will try t’ stay close t’ what you're sayin’.”

Poll clears their throat. “My people are very different from you. We are…” Poll scrunches up their face. “Papa I dunno how t’ say any of that. Basically papa and their friends are a lotta things an’ big. Okay, continue papa.” Poll watches them intently. “We aren't meant to stay in one place for a long time. When I found Poll, I felt something new. I wanted them to wander with me. But I quickly figured out that beings like them need to stay in one stable place, something against my nature.” Poll nods along to their own translation.

“All my experience with taking care of little ones comes from watching - Like how I learned t’ speak from cartoons! - so my understanding was poor. When you shouted at me - aw miss Doll, that's not very nice! - I realised that I'm…” Poll trails off. “What? Papa you can't be serious. You- you're my papa! Of course you're a good parent!”

Doll squeezes their ankle. “Let them explain themselves, cuddle bug. You need to be their translator for just a little while longer.”

Poll pouts, but continues. “I realised I'm not good to be Poll's parent. I wander, while Poll stays still. They need someone who also stays still. They need-” Poll glances, wide eyed at Doll. “You?”

Her face heats up. “You mean- no you can't possibly-”

Stardust nods.

The blue dragon tilts its head, eyes shining with tears. “Papa? What d'you mean? That's… you can't do that.”

Doll rubs against the yellow band of Poll's ankle. “I think what Stardust is trying to ask, is if you would let me be your mother, like I am Tequilla's.” The entity nods once more.

“But…” Their lip quivers. Suddenly they look up at Stardust. “ ‘I'll still visit, but Doll can take care of you much better than I can’. But what if you- you leave an’ don't come back? What if I need you?” Poll's wings roll behind them. “ ‘Then you can just call for me, and we will wander together.’ “ Poll sniffles. “Okay papa. I trust you.”

This egg, this young egg who has only known its papa and Tequilla, who struggles to shapeshift and has nightmares about things they refuse to tell anyone, who calls her ‘miss’ with the anxious air of someone trying to make a good first impression, whose voice jumps between accents from so many sources, who thumbs its glass bracelet with the reverence of a sinner, this child looks up at her with tear filled eyes and mutters; “So… you're my momma now, too?”

Doll's own eyes prick with tears as she hugs the dragonling, feeling them melt into her body heat. “I always have been, hon.”

A confused voice pipes up from the door.

Tequilla stands awkwardly, poptart in mouth.

“Did I mmmmiss sssomethi-thing imp-portant?”