uhh... hey guys.... so uhhh...
completely self indulgent fic alert!! I've fallen back into the Jschlatt rabbit hole! I know this is a tad bit different from my normal stuff but this is my blog and i post whatever slop i see fit :) so enjoy the roughly 2k words i wrote instead of studying for finals !!
(also, i am working on Athena stuff do not fret. i have two things i'm working on rn and will hopfully have one out to you all soon!)
Schlatt didn't mean to get her pregnant… he really didn't. To be fair, he didn't remember that night… or her fully. But the second he told her? He committed every bit to memory. The second Aurora came into Shlatt's life everything came into perspective. When she told him that she wanted no part of Aurora's life he could not comprehend not wanting to be around her.
Aurora was the light of his life. Brown curly hair, that she inherited from him, would always sprawl around when she bounded around the apartment. small hair clips littered his desk, hair ties constantly on his wrist because every time her brown eyes looked at him and begged for a braid he would fold.
Texas was hard. Okay, maybe that was his fault, but how in the actual fuck was he meant to know that the state wasn't going to have electric or water? The first night made him rethink the move, fatherhood, and his life.
Aurora had cried when she found out they were leaving New York, she begged and begged him to have them stay and god does he wish he listened to her. The packing was worse, watching her eyes fill with tears every time he put something in a box, no matter how much he reassured her that their stuff was going to meet them in Texas she would still weep and mummer goodbyes to each and every thing. It took him a week to find all her toys that she hid, attempting to get them to stay. Maybe she was onto something.
Flying into Texas with 2 carry ons was going to be easy. They would get to the house, she would wear the pajamas in her suitcase, her favorite might he add, and go to sleep and sometime the next day their stuff would get there. Except none of that happened. He had to carry both their suitcases, because Aurora refused to walk in the airport- and you know what, fine he said, he understood, she was a kid and tired and didn't want to move. He could manage his backpack and the suitcases, easy peasy. Hell, even the rental car was easy. No line, the women at the counter gave Aurora a lollipop, to which she even beamed a "'tank you!" to the women unprompted. The rental car was nice and the second he pulled out of the airport he could tell his luck ran out. It was snowing. In it of itself that wasn't an issue, he's dealt with lots of snow before and Aurora loved the snow. It turns out that the rest of Texas did not feel the same.
After nearly two hours of the most god awful driving, which he would happily trade for New York City traffic in a heartbeat rather than every Texan learning to drive in the snow in the first time. "why is it taking so long?" Aurora would eventually call up to the front seat.
"I dunno kiddo" he would call back to her
"are we goin to lego?" the only car rides this long she knew about were when they were going into the city
"no kid, we're goin to the new house" he reminded her
"whatta 'bout… the dinosaurs?"
"'rora we're not seein' the dinosaurs-" he sighs
a big gasp fills the back seat of the truck "build a bear?!"
"aurora" he glances at her through the rear view mirror, before quickly looking straight, this wasn't new york driving and he couldn't trust anyone else on the roads. In the short time he looked at her, he could see her small face fall. She adored going into the city, mostly because they were going to a toy store or to the natural history museum where she would stare slack jawed at the fossils. "we're going to the new house, remember?" he prompts softly
"yeah" she mumbles, he can hear her pouting, "I 'member"
"are you excited?" he attempts
"no" she huffs
he hums, making an upset sound "'no'? why not? it'll be fun" when he hears another huff he sends another quick glance into the rear view mirror "'s snowin' and you aren't excited?" he tries, knowing she would be excited to be in the snow.
"dont 'ave my coat" she mumbles "you said 'm not 'llowed in'da snow without it" her voice upset and disappointed.
"how 'bout this" he scans the street in front of him, man no one it texas could drive to save their lives, "when we get to the new house, 'll let you in the snow… without your coat"
a loud gasp fills the truck "really?!"
he nods "yeah, how's that sound?" he offers
"for real? for real, we can play in the snow?" he knows just by the tone in her voice she is vibrating in excitement.
—
The driveway had snow on it, crunching under the tires. The headlights casting two beams of light onto the garage. "well?" he tries, fully turning to look at her.
"why are all the lights off?" she tilts her head
"cause we haven't gone in yet, bub" he unbuckles, moving around the car to carry her. "you excited?"
she shrugs from her place in his arms, head on his shoulder. She burrows into his hold, the snow causing her to seek his warmth. "crunch, crunch, crunch" she mummers as his boots crunch the snow. her small sound effects make him smile, her constant narrations always made him smile.
"crunch crunch" he echos, bouncing her higher on his hip. he fishes the key the realtor gave him out of his pocket and unlocks the door. The house is dark and freezing when the door opens, and he just assumes that its because of the snow and not having someone living in the house. "ta da!" he shifts her so she can see "whatta'ya think, kid?" he probes.
"dark" the sound muffled into his shirt.
"yeah, dark well… let there be light-" he flips the light switch, frowning when nothing happens. He hums, attempting the switch again. When nothing happens he begins to spam the light switch, and yet nothing happens.
"'s still dark" she reminds him
"thank you, bub" he teases
—
The house didn't have electricity or heat. Great. no it was great. his little girl is tired, cold, afraid of the dark, and holding back tears. He has her wrapped in his jacket and her blanket, wishing he packed more blankets and jackets in their carry ons. "I know, bub" he coos, rubbing her arms "I know 'm sorry" he mummers. He pulls his phone up, checking the status of the power and frowns when he sees no foreseeable positive outcome. "hey" he whispers to her.
she sniffles at him "wha?" she mumbles into his chest
"you wanna go onna adventure?" he tries to cheer her up. he frowns seeing her shake her head "no? why not?"
"already went on an adventure" she huffs "I don't like this adventure"
his heart breaks hearing that, knowing that he dragged her here and this was the experience. "hey.. do you wanna go to a hotel?" he frowns at the lack of answer "c'mon you like hotels… they might have candies for you?"
"will it be cold?" her voice small, big brown eyes staring up at him
"no" he shakes his head "no we're gonna be all snug and there's gonna be lights and everything" His words finally caused her to nod, the promise of warmth and lighting making her more excited. "yeah?" he looks down, seeing her nodding
"yeah" she nods back. He scoops her up, causing her to immediately burrow into the crook of his neck.
The drive to the hotel was more bearable. Light was at the end of the tunnel was visible, there was a promise of heat, an actual bed, electricity, and water was better than being offered a million dollars at this point. He could see her pink sneakers swinging back and forth from her place in the booster seat, excitement finally filling her. she swayed to the radio, he was happy to find a channel that wasn't static or the news.
"all the lights are gone" Aurora had unbuckled herself and clambered onto the center console when he parked. He didn't have the heart to remind her not to do it.
"yeah" he breaths out, trying to control his anger
"…why are the lights gone?" she looks at him.
He moves his gaze from the dark hotel to his daughter "i dunno… they told me they had power, kiddo" he watches the tears build in her eyes "i know kid, 'm so sorry," tears falling down her cheeks.
The hiccups had started "i wanna go home," her words causing him to pull her in his lap cradling her into his chest.
"i know kid… 'm sorry" he presses his lips pressing against her hair.
—
Calling mizkif was a last ditch effort to save this move. Normally Schlatt would be embarrassed with how quickly he agreed to be in a stream, but the promise of getting Aurora a place to sleep in warmth over powered anything.
"we're gonna go stay with one of my friends, okay bub? we're gonna be all warm and there's gonna be a big bed-" he tries to console her hiccuping sobs.
"I don't wanna stay with anybody" she cries into him "i wanna go home" she sobs
"i know bud, but we cant… they're are no planes goin'" he attempts to explain "'s gonna be a few days… and we're gonna go to the new house and it'll all be okay" all he gets in response is a whimper and her burrowing further into him. "'s that gonna be okay? hmm? can you be brave for just a bit longer?" he decides that the small grumble was the only answer he was gonna get.
He's able to tuck her into the guest bed, before he was forced to earn his keep on stream, "how's that, huh? nice and warm and comfy?" She burrows into the blanket with a sniffle, humming in agreement, happy to be warm. He cards his hand through her hair "you gonna be okay if I go work for a bit?" he mumbles. He smiles at her small tired nod "'ll be back soon, m'kay 'rora?" all he gets is another tried nod as her eyes struggle to stay open.
His knees ache as he stands, waiting for a moment watching her eyes fall shut and her breathing steady. He presses a kiss to her forehead, "night, kid" he whispers.
—
the two weeks at Mizkif's was not so bad. Aurora fell into her routine relatively quickly, and soaked up all the attention she was given. She learned what rooms she was aloud in very quickly, because the other rooms would house someone who was willing to pay attention to her. The second he went out and bought a snow coat, since hers was in a FedEx box god knows where, she begged, pleaded, and pulled on anyone in sight to go into the snow with her.
Schlatt had made himself comfortable on the couch, laptop in front of him running the editing program with the soft hum of the fans. It was nice having other people around to keep Aurora entertained, he loved the kid to death, but attempting to edit with a six year old who loved attention was a bit difficult. If anything, the few weeks here was the most help he's had with Aurora since he lived with his parents. He looks up from the screen displaying one of the streams from earlier in the week when he hears her giggles fill the room. She had roped a few of the girls into playing some Jurassic Park game that she found at target. Schlatt isn't fully sure where it came from, since Aurora had wandered with one of the girls during the house's target run and came back proudly holding the box and beaming so wide that the mask couldn't obscure it. The game was compliated, he knew that much. The instructions were a novel and the board folded out at least four times, but he couldn't say no to the way she lit up. Aurora had figured out the basic gist and ran with it, one person acts as the dinosaurs and the others are the humans attempting to escape. Growls, rawrs, and the sound of plastic dinosaurs hitting cardboard cut through the typing and clicking from everyone's editing.
Derived from an old nickname my grandmother used to give me based on my middle name, Haru is my oldest friend besides Mari.
I typed a lot, so information on backstory and why I drew him like this is under the cut.
(Saturday 16th September, 2000, 8:26 PM)
Backstory
When I was little, I don't remember much, but I know I had meningitis. There was an outbreak at my kindergarten, and I got it really bad (this was before I moved to Faraway, by the way). Because of how dangerous it is and how fast it spreads, I was pretty much in isolation in the hospital. According to doctors, I had bad fevers and other symptoms that meant it was a miracle that I pulled through.
My only real memories were missing Mari, seeing crayoned pictures in my room being hung up, and a nurse who felt bad for me and read comic books out loud.
I guess one of the comic books had something about cloning, so I later invented this kind of story that I was actually a clone and my original copy had died of the sickness and that's why I couldn't remember, because it wasn't actually me who went through it. It fit with how I was, as my dad said, "not really the same after". It also fits with how the next time I saw my grandma, who was old and confused, she kept asking for "Haru" and denying I was her grandson.
Later on, I felt Haru's presence whenever I was lonely or screwed up or did something bad. When most prayed to God, I tried to talk with him to figure out what was wrong, what they screwed up when I was cloned, what I was doing that made my family look so worried and sad sometimes in comparison to how they saw Mari.
It got to the point where my memory would black out sometimes, and whenever I described the blackouts to Mari she said she could tell because I seemed almost a different person, seemingly brighter and more out-there and weirdly clingy with my parents (who I was very distant from after being sick) and not seeming to know my friends as well as I should. It scared me at first, but then I extended my prayers sometimes to wanting Haru to take control more, as he seemed to get the "good son" act that I never could.
Although I was sick when I was four, Haru part-grew, part-didn't with me. Like, his face and voice and stuff was still like me as a kid, but he got taller and his intellect mostly kept up. But some "babyish" habits that I abandoned after my sickness, like thumb sucking, persisted as when Haru was there Mom and Dad would find it endearing and wistful seeing me act like I did when I was "happier" (I don't know if I was actually happier, or just better at showing it with them). He also is more likely to see things very black-and-white and stand his ground on odd opinions, and his handwriting and drawing is a lot messier.
He hadn't fronted properly for a while in the time leading up to Mari, but I could feel him in the back and understand some of his thoughts and emotions and what he wanted and liked in comparison to myself. But after Mari died, and once Dad left and Mom was working all the time again, Haru was almost entirely silent. And I felt worse because I remembered the old baby story I told myself and felt I had "failed" at my "purpose" and should have just never been "created" (even as I knew that it can't have been real). Maybe I locked him away deep in my mind to protect him from all these big scary things that were already like that for me, I don't know.
He's slowly emerging back, carefully, as things settle and I figure out how to be a functional human again, but the collapse of the status quo leaves him wondering if he even has a place now in whatever ecosystem my mind is. And if he recognizes us as being at a hospital, doctor's office or similar location he usually darts right away and leaves me or whoever else picks up after wondering why we feel all stressed and scared and sad and alone.
Haru isn't a big fan of scary things or science fiction, unlike how I like comic books and cartoons. His favorite book is Paddington Bear, and every time he sees a train station he makes sure to look for any bears with name tags just in case.
Design
Haru's one of the only ones allowed color in my head. He exudes a sense of innocence, but at the same time, he's trapped in my early childhood in the way that he affects me. I drew him in pajamas both times because in a way, he never left the hospital properly.
The stuffed animal is a weird cat plush with a tail but no proper legs that was a baby toy of mine. It was thrown out at the hospital at some point.
Also, the red line represents the life support he was on. In that first dump, the red stand was some sort of solution. The red here is meant to stand out against the colder, softer color pallet I used for the rest of him. He gets a hospital bracelet too.
His pajamas are a bit too big for him, as hospital issue during a meningitis outbreak in his age group. He's also usually quite tired. That's the only trace of his sickness that he has, though, as I don't remember the rest.
A family I made for Honeyclan in @clansofeiremisneach that I’m p pleased with! (Dad not included yet) We got Bloom Bounce, Star Burst, Honey Drizzle, and then my boy Milk Splash! The first three are adopts, tho Star Burst has been reserved.
Sunny's Screeches back at you with another jschlatt post! i low key love aurora and idk its fun to write about this little goofball. I also googled so much about the new york natural history museum and i tried so new yorkers please give me a pass, i tried. also if you want a part two of this about them in the actual museum i would be down.
Aurora Schlatt had a big day planned. Uncle Ted had flown in yesterday and she was going to see the dinosaurs. That's two trips into the city and she was ecstatic.
When she and her dad went into the city to pick up Ted she had to be reminded multiple times to stay close, because she had a bad habit of wandering. She held tightly onto her dad's hand as she bounced on the balls of her feet as she waited. Every time a plane would come in and Ted didn't walk into arrivals she would complain, a whine of 'why isn't he here yet?' would join the chatter that fills the airport as she tugs on his arm, using it to keep her from falling.
"patience," he reminds her, causing another groan to leave her
"you said he would be here" she tangles around his hold as she twists and turns
"and he is" he looks at the board describing the incoming flights "he's gonna be here soon"
"when is soon" she looks up at him "soon isn't a time"
He looks up at the incoming gate, seeing brown hair peaking over the rest of the people. "looks like soon is now, kid" he nudges her and nods his head toward the gate where Ted walks toward them.
Aurora brightens the second her brown eyes see him, gasping and tugging on her dad's hand. She silently looks up, tugging on their conjoining hands, asking if she can move toward Ted. He nods slightly with a smile causing her to rush toward Ted. "Uncle Ted!" she cheers, weaving around the other people to get to her uncle. Ted laughs when Aurora calls out for him and slams herself into his legs. "uncle ted! you made it! we were waiting for you for forever, and like a trillion people were here and- and we waited and- and then you got here" she's attached herself to his leg and rambles as he walks toward Schlatt.
He chuckles softly when he sees his friend walking toward him, his daughter attached to his leg. "welcome to new york" he chuckles to Ted. "alright, 'rora let the guy breath" he pulls her off Ted's leg.
Aurora, now pried from Ted, still bounces on her feet, needing to get some of her excited energy out. She stood right next to her dad, allowing him and ted to hug before she had to hold his hand again. She listened to Ted's stories from his flight as they made their way to the car.
The next morning Aurora woke up before she was allowed out of bed. She stares at the star shaped clock, she couldn't full read or understand the numbers, but it was still red. After months of getting woken up at six, Schlatt had bought one of those child's alarm clocks that shows them when its okay to get out of bed. The fifteen dollars well spent, he now was able to get to 7:30 (sometimes even 8, moments that he cherished very much) before a small pitter patter of feed would bound into his room. The star turns green and a small smile worms onto her face as she moves her covers out of the way. She pads toward her dad's room and frowns when its empty. The soft talking coming from the kitchen makes her turn and move towards it. She peaks around the corner, her brown hair moving to one side from the gravity, she sees Uncle Ted and her dad sat at the kitchen island, drinking coffee.
Schlatt spots her big brown eyes from their spot peering around the corner "look who decided to wake up" he comments, his words cause Ted to turn behind him and see the girl.
She moves toward the stool, clambering to settle between the two men. "g'morning" she answers, fist rubbing against her eyes. Grabbing a piece of toast from Schlatt's plate and munching on it.
"hey, gremlin" Ted's voice breaks through the sound of chewing "I thought you said you were gonna show me the dinosaurs when i came up here"
The reminder of the promise she made when she would hijack Schlatt's calls with Ted causes her to brighten. She turns to her dad, eyes light up at the prospect of seeing the fossils "can we see the dinosaurs?" she leans forward now sitting on her knees on the bar stool.
"i dunno… you don't seem that excited about it" he teases his daughter.
His words cause her to frantically shake her head, her messy curls shaking with her "no! we have to go, dad! Dad we gotta show uncle ted-!" she pleas
—
All three of them, now dressed and fed, were moving toward the car. A cross body sat across Schlatt's chest, holding their memberships and a few granola bars so Aurora didn't crash from hunger half way through the day. Aurora moves happily toward the car, happily chatting Ted's ear off on how excited she is to show him the multitude of fossils and other exhibits.
"Uncle Ted do you have a favorite dinosaur?" she asks the taller man as her dad situates her into her car seat. She was banned from touching the buckle part, so she waited with swinging legs for him to secure her to the seat.
"you ask me this every time we call, gremlin" he answers from the front
"well what if it changed!" the retort comes in a slight squawk.
"'s a T-Rex, kid, it has been for the last ten times you asked me" he turns his body to look at her from his place in the front of the car, "you change your answer since I last talked to you?"
She hums loudly, thinking it over with great care, "Spinosauridae" she eventually answers.
Ted nods, his knowledge of dinosaurs was limited to the big 3 (t-Rex, triceratops, and pterodactyl) no matter how much he studied the dinosaurs to keep up with her. He turns to Schlatt with a smirk plastered on his face "well… Schlatt, you got a favorite dinosaur?" he rests his chin in the palm of his hand.
Schlatt flicks his forehead "'s a fuckin' triceratops, idiot"
"yeah, uncle ted!" Aurora pipes up from the backseat
~
The job of keeping Aurora near them was now shifted to Ted, since the small ball of energy is attached to his appendage and tugs on it. "Uncle Ted, 's gonna be so fun 'cause there's like 'utterflies, and space, and the ocean, and bugs, and- and-" she takes a large breath, attempting to keep up with her ramblings "obviously," she butchers the word "the dinosaurs, but since you never been here 'afore we can see the other stuff too"
Ted watches as Schlatt moves through the winding lines with ease, clearly well versed in the process of getting into the museum. "Christ, schlatt, you're a fuckin' pro" he chuckles, lengthening his stride to keep up.
"the Schlatt's don't play about the museum, I told you, teddy" he turns slightly, never stopping. Once they get toward the front of the member's line he turns to his daughter "think you can hold onto the tickets?" he pulls the passes, holding hers toward her.
She nods, and gives a gap toothed smile "yeah! I can hold both!" she thrusts her hand out to attempt to grab them. Once in her grasp, she spins around to Ted "look!" she shoves the tickets toward his line of sight.
"damn, kid" he whistles "all professional and everything"
They reach the front of the line, the women scanning tickets smiles at Aurora, not minding the two tall men in baseball hats, "hello" she smiles "do you have your passes?" her voice soft and kind.
Aurora smiles and nods, holding them toward her softly. She ensures that the barcodes are facing the women, clearly not her first rodeo. "this one is mine" she points with her other hand at the pass covered in stickers, "and this one is my dad's" she points at the second. The women nods and scans the passes "and this is my uncle ted!" she grabs him and brings him forward, causing him to raise his hand in an awkward wave. "he's gonna come with us and see the dinosaurs, and- and hes gonna use the guest spot on the pass"
The women smiles softly, "sounds like a good trip" she tells the girl "enjoy your trip" now standing up from her crouch and smiles at the two men.
