Whether Riordanverse Characters are boy or girl parents.
This is just for fun. Do not take anything I say seriously. This is just what I see with their canon personalities.
Characters included: all of them.
Reminder, none of this means anything cause gender was made up as a way to control people.
Percy Jackson
Girl. Absolutely a girl parent. Although Percy would absolutely love a boy, I can see him bonding unequivocally better with a daughter. I can't really describe this one, its just a feeling i have.
Annabeth Chase
Either. She doesn't even have a preference. To her, a child can either be another person to share her intellect or she may follow the pattern of her own father unintentionally and be absent whilst working on architect projects. I think she's aware of this too. Thats why I cant ever see her canonly wanting kids, if she did want them she wouldn't have a gender preference.
Jason Grace
Again, either. Jason has had to do a lot of u learning from his time in New Rome. Mostly in himself and where he fits in the world. He would never make any of his kids feel lesser and he would always try to establish fairness between them.
Leo Valdez
This man is a girl dad. I will not be accepting any arguments on this. This man has never given anything other than girl dad.
Frank Zhang
This man does not care. He has too much move in his heart to care. Boy or girl, that baby will be his world. He often turns into big fuzzy creatures to entertain them. His kids personal favourite is the koala.
Hazel Levesque
Piper McLean
Hazel is a boy mom. I can't accurately describe how I know this. Its just a feeling i have in my soul. She's a great mother who loves her son so much.
Let us be so real, this woman is a girl and boy mom. She would get along with both equally well and she would make sure no matter what that she spends adequate time with her children no matter their gender. I can also see her charmspeaking them to tidy their rooms.
Nico DiAngelo
He does not care, this man would die for either his son or his daughter. He has lost too much family to push more on his own progeny.
Will Solace
I imagine these two having twins, one boy and one girl. And i imagine that Will unconsciously gives more attention to the child that gets hurt the most. But he does not have a preference. He just wishes his children would stop falling off swing sets face first.
Luke Castellan
Idc, keep children away from this man.
Ethan Nakamura
Girl dad. Another one I cant accurately explain. I think he would be so panicked everytime her baby hands would reach for his eye patch.
Carter Kane
He is really leaning towards a boy at first because he knows what life is like for Black and Brown women as a Biracial Black man himself but he is soon reminded that who he married also courses through his daughters veins.
Zia Rashid
Zia Rashid does not care at all. She is not a boy mom and she is not a girl mom. She sits comfortably in the middle. It is by coincidence they have all daughters but neither of them are disappointed.
Sadie Kane
Girl mom. 100000000% a girl mom. She is such a character that has become so ingrained into my mind i physically can't see her not teaching her daughter to disrespect all authority. Spoiler, it came to bite her back in the ass when her daughter is 12 and refused to clean her room.
Walt Stone / Anubis
This one's interesting since its a man and a god in one body. But neither of them truly have a preference.
Anubis has been around since before gender was even a concept in a philosophers eye.
And Walt is just happy to be alive and he is lucky enough to have a family which he never thought he'd ever get.
Magnus Chase
Are we being serious right now? This man's lover changes their gender presentation whenever She/He feels like it. This man doesn't care about no ones gender. Especially the ones he's supposed to love most of all.
Alex Fierro
Alex does not care. Alex does not belive in gender constraints. Alex honestly never thought she could love someone as much as she loves her kids. He never stops thinking about them even when they are just a hallway away. I think Alex would be the most surprisingly soft parent.
Sam Al Abbas
Girl mom. She definitely wants to inspire more young Arab girls that they can be more than the stereotypes. I think that is a cause that she holds very deep in her heart as an Iraqi American female pilot. It is also pivotal to her character that she experience racism and islamaphobia because she wears a hijab. Passing along that tradition and her religion to her children is so important to her, especially her daughters.
Hearthstone
This man is just happy to have a family that loves him. I think that in general he will feel melancholy a lot of the time because he'll never be able to hear his child speak. Blitz has to remind him that hearing is what the world brings into the body. What Hearth brings to the world for his kids is the most important part. They'll always remember that their father did his best even without the ability to hear.
Blitzen
Again, it is slightly implied in canon that Blitzen was abused and I think after going through something truly horrible like that, mundane things like gender don't really matter. Love does. Blitzen is just like Hearth in that way, their love for eachother and their kids is them making their own family. And their kids will never go through what they did.
Local death god infodumps about his special interest (human bodies)
Anubis doesn't have a lot of personality in The Kane Chronicles aside from being quiet and broody (but still very unapologetically sweet to Sadie and Walt) but I imagine once he gets comfortable enough to unmask, his friends are getting an endless stream of Fun Facts About Human Biology. He is the one who invented the mummification process, after all.
On a scale of Apollo to Anubis, how excited is this god to inhabit a mortal body?
Seeing as I hail from the Venom fandom, I am 100% primed to adore this "brain buddies sharing a body and also maybe romantically involved" dynamic. I need all my fellow Venom fans to read The Kane Chronicles and bring that Symbrock energy to Walt/Anubis and Set/Amos.
This design for Anubis is shamelessly lifted from @feeshies check out his art he does great work.
Hey! Love your tkc/Anubis HCs. Do you have any more recent thoughts?
Ahhhhhh glad you like them!!! To be honest I haven't really been thinking about TKC for a while but for you, I will try to throw out some more random hcs for Anubis <333
Some notes: most of these things are purely based on what I personally would enjoy in his character right now (10+ years since I last read the books and 1 year since I last read the wiki), and some of these things I've seen other people discuss as well, so I don't claim any of these hcs as my own or that they are canon compliant!
The biggest thing everyone needs to realize about him is that he is a big softie. He is a wild dog yes but still a dog. Walt and Sadie would have him wrapped around their fingers. He is SOOOO loyal and literally Made To ServeTM. His favourite thing is Doing Things For Others. This man was not made for being assertive. He was made to listen and look to others for orders. He needs Walt to tell him to do things otherwise he will literally do nothing like a robot in stand-by all day.
Massive biology nerd, finds the gross stuff most interesting (he already KNOWS all about decomposition but it is still his favourite part of Walt's biology lectures. Walt as to damn near wrestle control over the body to keep him from raising his hand to answer everything. He gets weirdly excited learning about body farms).
His second favourite subject is history. Just learning (only slightly melancholically) about all the things that happened during the 2000+ years he was in the Duat and all the shit humans got up to. The subject that is his... I wouldn't say favourite, and I wouldn't say most hated, but the subject he is Most Aware Of is 100% the usage of mummy in pre-raphaelite paints. He fumes and sulks for an entire day when Walt's history teacher brought that up.
Easily excitable. Almost to the point where he perks up the moment someone mentions something he likes. Practically vibrates when that happens (Walt once mused the vibrating came from his human form not having a tail to wag. Anubis was not amused).
To be honest, whether gods can actually be considered neurodivergent is a can of worms I won't open but frankly, in my heart Anubis has autistic tendencies. Funerary rites as a special interest, horrid social battery, gets really upset and struggles to adjust to sudden change, struggles to read peoples emotions/intentions/social cues, etc. Him seeming Cool and Mysterious is literally him not understanding what would be the socially acceptable way to react to something and therefore just seeming aloof. And also being hot and having that Cool BoyTM aesthetic going on. Walt is surprisingly understanding about his quirks I bet. One could think he would be getting annoyed with those tendencies but no! Because Anubis is his friend (and/or bf)!
On that note I've always been a Waltubis stan. Frankly I feel like Sadie/Anubis and Sadie/Walt is more compelling if it isn't a love corner but an actual connected love triangle yknow. Also I find it interesting to try to figure out how one would navigate a relationship with a guy you share body with.
(I will be honest. I don't like Sadie involved with them at all bc of their age but I cannot change canon. So I will simply not talk much about that <3)
Very OOC most likely but I honestly like to think he had flings with some of the greek gods that, at the time, were similar to his age before the death of Cleopatra and all that (so, like, the god equivalent of teens). The greek and egyptian pantheons were intermixed into what essentially became a new one in certain areas and I like having Hermes as like, his ex bf to explain the Hermanubis thing. That or they are just like, besties. Or were...? Either way I bet he gets flustered if someone asked about his past relationships. He is inexperienced in all regards and it shows.
He tries to act aloof but he is such a motherhen. Constantly worrying about everything and everyone. He would be the kind of person who decided you hadn't eaten enough and would just cook something extra just for you to make sure you ate enough (you have, but are too polite to tell him that). He has vast anatomical knowledge but no idea how much food would be considered a normal amount of food for a teen to eat.
Such a clean freak. HE cannot get infected with bacteria and all that gross stuff but Walt, Sadie and the rest of the Brooklyn House can... Even if I'm certain the place cleans itself. Can't fault him for wiping the counters one extra time.
Does he wear jewellery in canon? He does in my mind. Probably covered in gold and Walt adopts some of those style elements when he begins hosting. The secret neither of them will tell you is that Anubis wears so many rings because he constantly needs something to fidget with.
Anubis insists on teaching Walt the art of mummification. Walt knows he can't really escape that but keeps trying to put it up. And where would Anubis even find a corpse of someone that has consented to mummification in the modern world? Anubis says he has his ways and that does not calm Walt at all.
Anubis' ears are kinda twitchy. Like he hasn't fully grasped the whole human vs animal-headed thing yet so almost by instinct his ear twitches to turn towards a sound like a canine's ear could, but one cant really do that with human ears. One of many things that make people a bit weirded out by him.
He has the world record in holding grudges. Brought to you by that one mission in AC Origins. He does NOT tolerate people touching his stuff ("his stuff" includes Walt, and Sadie, and probably the rest of the Brooklyn House) and WILL be throwing curses left and right to punish whoever thought they could touch HIS stuff. Walt really has to convince him to not throw curses on some random high school jock that kinda picked a fight with Walt one time, or some random guy that vandalised Walt's or Sadie's lockers.
On that topic, I bet he is SOOOO possessive. Not even like, in the sense of "NO ONE is allowed to look at my lover ever". Its more like. He has his corner of Walt's room with his stuff that NO ONE is allowed to touch without permission. If something is his its HIS and he will bite about it. Walt is literally the only exception to most of those rules but he will even growl at him sometimes about it if Walt as much as tries to dust the shelf where His Stuff is. He is so normal and well adjusted in every other sense so he has to be a bit weird about something. With a lover he probably still is possessive but more in like... A huffy way. Like he tries to puff up and seem intimidating to scare "the threat" off but he is way more bark than bite. Walt and Sadie probably finds it more cute than problematic (because they know if they told him off he would deflate like a punctured balloon).
I kinda... I wanna hc or au things about his appearance... What if he had really dry hands and forearms from all the natron. Not because natron actually affected him but kinda like how Tawaret is described to look pregnant but not actually being pregnant bc thats her domain. Anubis who isn't affected by natron but still has dry skin bc of it.
Anubis with really dark skin bc of the mummy treatment... Like believe it or not mummies were that dark even when they were fresh, its because of the various ointments used. Anubis with his entire forearms stained darker colours bc of all the ointments.... Now THATS something. He probably smells really strongly of incense too.
Honestly I will just take anything that isn't white-pale-as-snow Anubis.
I'm between if he would have Cant Sit Still disorder or Regularly Mistaken For Being Dead disorder. I'm leaning towards the latter. He is so used to just sitting still and rigid like a damn statue he is often mistaken for A) a corpse or B) an actual statue depending on his form.
I am still a firm believer in the hc that Anubis and Nico know each other from lurking in graveyards and stumbling upon each other. I bet they are buddies. Nico probably taught him mythomagic. I think Anubis sees him a lot as an actual (not annoying) little brother-type but I also bet he gets kinda... I wouldn't say icked but I bet he does occasionally see too much of himself in Nico if that makes sense. Absolutely not helped with how much they look like each other in canon. It's kinda like looking in a warped mirror for too long.
In the canon where they look like each other, I think Walt/Sadie would meet Nico and immediately assume Anubis shrunk in the wash somehow.
Horus 100% bullies Anubis over the fact that he has a chicken in his hieroglyphic name. Horus is the only god Anubis has wanted to murder (as legally required of all older brothers). Anubis is, however, reasonable and would never ACTUALLY consider murdering Horus. Especially not considering the entire story with their fathers.
I think Carter and Anubis could be friends, ngl. Only after Anubis puts his pride aside over the fact that Carter (mostly unwillingly) hosted Horus once. I think they are both nerds in their own senses and at first HATED that the other is ALSO a nerd but eventually they kinda bonded over it (Sadie forced them to, she can't deal with either of them when they are Like ThatTM so they may as well deal with each other).
Zia... I don't remember her much. I think they could have some mutual respect, all things considered. Maybe she asks him about her parents since they must have passed the hall of judgement at some point. Maybe Anubis respectfully and empathetically answers. Maybe they both sit on the sidelines watching the Kanes get into weird chaos until they both decide to step in because they both consider themselves (and each other) to be the only truly reasonable people in the entire House.
I think he is oddly fascinated with Felix's penguins. He just stares at them for a while with his head tilted. Probably lets Felix ramble about them and listens 100% actually interested.
On that thought. He is always interested in what everyone has to say. Like probably a great listener. The only one he would never listen to in general is Horus (or Set) but basically anyone else? He will let them ramble or rant or vent and absorb it all and then ask appropriate questions.
He probably has the world's most intense stare. He doesn't even mean to he is just so unused to like. Moving. Seeming Alive. You'd think he has zoned out but that's how he gets you.
Now, Amos... I think he avoids him, probably. Because of Amos (unwillingly) being hosted by Set and all. I also dont think in general that Anubis has a very great relationship with any generally older men (Osiris is... Such a can of worms) so I bet he just kinda avoids interacting with him at all.
On that thought; you cannot tell me he is not a mamma's boy. Not in an obnoxious "letting his mother(s) get in the way of literally everything" way, it's mostly in a "older women kinda feel bad for him and wants to adopt him" way. They see his scraggly looks and fatherless demeanour and automatically wants to invite him into their homes for soup. It's like seeing a stray puppy all soaked in the rain. Which is basically how Isis and Osiris ended up taking him in anyways.
To me it feels like Horus is closer to Osiris and Anubis is closer to Isis. You get me.
Okay I kinda have to bring it up. I think Anubis... I wouldn't say he is /scared/ of Osiris per se but I think there is too much of that formality between them. Like Isis welcomed Anubis with open arms and Osiris did too but Osiris is more his boss than his father. Maybe Anubis keeps Osiris at a distance because of the fact that (as far as Anubis is aware, altho the canon seemingly says two different things) Set is his father and Set is Osiris' betrayer. I think Anubis is a bit tense about all of it because he doesn't want Osiris to see Set's sins in him, you know. I don't think Osiris actually blames Anubis for what Set has done (or what Nephthys might have done, for that matter) but I also think he is like. He is more awkward with him. So there is just this weird barrier between them that has stayed there and will stay there for millennia. Isis is so much more open with him so she is kinda the only person Anubis truly feels a familial bond with. I think he loves Nephthys but doesn't know her very well either.
Anyways. On a completely different topic. I just know that once for halloween one of the initiates suggested Anubis and Walt get matching costumes as Scooby Doo and Shaggy. Walt was willing. Anubis was not.
I think Sadie showed him the show "House of Anubis" once and all he took from that was... A great deal of confusion.
He tries to act aloof but I bet he is clingy... They gather in the great room or whatever living room equivelent they have to watch a movie on the couch and Anubis is already resting his head on Walt's or Sadie's shoulders. Probably Walt. I think bc Walt hosts him he is REALLY clingy with Walt. Walt either likes it or is entirely neutral to it. Probably more than once has Anubis been in his jackal form on the couch while they watch a movie, Walt absentmindedly scratches him behind his ear and Anubis' leg kicks whoever was closest by when his leg jumps.
Sadie once joked about entering Anubis into a dog show. Anubis was not amused by that either (but secretly thought he would win, anyways...)
More self-indulgantly I like to consider Anubis to be kinda genderfluid. Mostly in the sense of "gender is beneath the gods" but also he just seems like that kind of alt "gender is a social construct" teen. Could also be a neat way to explain the existence of Anupet; maybe someone mistook a fem!Anubis for an entirely different goddess (who ofc had to be his wife) and he just never noticed or felt the need to correct that.
I actually think he overheats kinda easily. Lets put aside the god thing for a moment and just imagine being a black dog in a desert. He probably lays down on the stone tiles in the Brooklyn House and sighs the way dogs that don't even pay bills do.
More likely however I bet he is constantly freezing. The Duat is probably cold but I'd like to think he uses being cold as his excuse to steal Walt's hoodies. They are twice his size and thick as fuck. Literally how could he NOT steal them. Also Walt is his host so he sees that as fair game.
Walt gets used to having a second voice in his head, a new reflection in the mirror, black fur on all his clothes, and a blanket hog in his bed surprisingly quickly. Anubis could do basically anything and instead of really questioning it Walt would just shrug and roll with it.
Hello! I loved your Tkc headcannons they were very well written and I completly see all of them happening in cannon!.
If you have the time to write some more headcannons, could you do something with amos? Hes one of my favourite characters (no pressure tho!).
Thank you in advance! And your writing is super good!!!!!
Sorry for taking so long to get to this, I honestly have no excuse lmao.
Amos is definetly a very cool character, although I don't remember much of him sadly, so sorry if these are a little underwhelming.
So, like I said in the other tkc headcanons ask, none of the Kanes are straight, I personally feel like Amos is either gay or pan? But idk.
From time to time (whenever he is free) he visits the Nome 21 at night and plays jazz for like 3 hours straight to all the kids that want to take a rest and listen, everyone enjoys those nights.
He quickly takes a liking to Walt, at first they wonder if it's because they actually enjoy each other's company or if it's because the whole Seth and Anubis thing, but in the end they decide they don't really care as long as everyone is happy.
This, of course, can only mean the beggining of an endless ammount of dad jokes.
He is more socially aware than Carter, Zia and Sadie all together, obviusly.
Philip is not by any means the last shabti that acts as a pet that he makes.
Best Walt/Anubis dynamic, whether or not it is platonic or romantic, is when they both think they are in a lord/knight relationship but both think the other is the lord. do you get me.
Like they do have a very like. normal friendship and see each other as Normal FriendsTM but also Walt is constantly aware that he has A God that Saw Him and Decided He Should LiveTM and for that he is grateful and a part of him wanna prove that you did a good choice in helping me survive and so I will be the best to you and Anubis is the ever loyal dog who is very infatuated with his master, equally able to place his head in his lap and look up at him with eyes full of worship while also using his teeth to tear apart those that wish to harm Walt with zero hesitation. You get me. They both see themselves as Nothing Much but the other is the reason they live. yknow.
A/N: This is the last oneshot in my backlog of stuff I have written and then couldn't be bothered to edit. I am not sure how Walt and Anubis managed to manifest into my brain so heavily but god damn.
This can be read both as a platonic and romantic fic!
Summary: Walt is chronically ill, and life is agonizing, but Anubis is more than happy to help him pull through.
CW: Mentions and descriptions of chronic illness but nothing outside of what is standard for Walt.
Wordcount: 3184
Occasionally, life was agonizing.
Walt had not been naive enough to think that his prolonged life would actively stop the curse which had burrowed into his soul. The damage was already done, to such an extent where he would live with the consequences for the rest of his life, even if it would not be the reason for his death... Hopefully.
During his “good” days, his biggest struggle may be his joints. His muscles were weak and his joints ached with every movement, his spine creaked and the tension in his neck never seemed to disappear. On a “bad” day, it could manifest more mentally, a constant overwhelm caused by noise and light which made migraines flare up to the point where it felt like someone was taking an icepick to his head over and over. On an admittedly horrible day, the feeling of mostly imagined organ failure followed by stabbing pains left him able to do little else than curl up in bed, try not to vomit, and attempt to breathe. But he had lived most of his life like this, and he was used to it, and he was used to getting through it alone.
Well... He wasn’t alone, now. Not anymore.
When they first met, and first started talking, Walt had assumed that Anubis’ worries were merely caused by a need to keep him alive for long enough to get him through the battle with Apep, as they needed as many magicians as possible on their side. Or perhaps he had assumed that the god’s worry came from the obvious advantage he had in the situation, as he might not have felt particularly keen on the idea of accepting a host who could keel over and die at any moment, but even after the serpent was defeated, and even after the curse got properly stabilized, it didn’t seem like the god really... Calmed. He still fretted, nagged at Walt to sit down, rest, drink water, eat- whatever it was that the god seemed convinced would help him in the moment. On rare occasions, Anubis would hold him and attempt to soothe his pains when it became too much for Walt to bear. He always seemed to be right by his side, always willing to do what he could to help. The more Walt thought about it, the more… Perhaps not weird, but unusual, it felt. After all, Anubis was a god, his god. It felt like the power dynamic should have been completely different, perhaps the god should be annoyed and indifferent to the weaknesses of his host, perhaps he should be regretting his offer to be hosted, and instead wish to have chosen a stronger, more capable vessel, but no. Anubis cared, and he cared a lot, always worried and doing his very best to make sure that Walt remained safe and healthy and taken care of, like a mother constantly worried for a sick child. Walt, to say the least, felt quite pampered.
Today, however, was one of those admittedly horrible days.
He had felt it when he woke up. It was a few hours before his alarm would ring for him to get up and ready for school, but the aching in his joints pulled him out of his sleep. Nothing new, perhaps he simply slept in a bad position, he could pull through.
He got up and groaned. The window, which he always closed before turning in for the night, remained almost wide open. Cold, moist air always seemed to make his sickness flare up more, and so he made sure to close it properly before he trudged towards the bathroom, so as to not worsen how horrible he already felt. Perhaps he had been lucky that he had woken up a few hours early, perhaps he had time to take a nice, long bath and hope that it would soothe his joints. He turned the faucet on and let the tub fill while he brushed his teeth. The water felt scalding, but as he settled in the tub, he didn’t feel as swollen, a sigh of relief escaped his lips as he leaned his head back.
He remained as such for an hour. He had almost fallen asleep, but had caught himself and hurried to get out of the water before his body could sink or the water could overflow. He knew he had death on his side, but he was not going to tempt fate by accidentally drowning himself, not today, at least. But the water had been marvelous and his body felt quite a lot better than before. Perhaps today wouldn’t be so bad, after all.
Once he was wrapped snug in a towel or two, he returned to the bedroom, where his godly companion had appeared. Anubis sat on his bed, seemingly having waited for him. The way he perked up with such an obvious expression made Walt smile. It was like seeing a happy dog, minus the wagging tail.
“Good morning, bud.” Walt greeted, stretching slightly. Anubis merely looked at him for a moment, before he remembered that, in a conversation, it was polite to reply when spoken to.
“Good morning.” He continued to eye him, “how are you feeling?”
Walt moved towards the dresser, where he had folded and prepared some clothes for the day. At the question, he hummed slightly.
“Better now, I think.”
It was true, and he didn’t really have to say much more. However, he warned the god that he would be getting dressed, and so Anubis politely averted his gaze.
“Do you think you will be able to go on with today, then?” Anubis asked, Walt could hear him fiddling with a bit of jewelry from behind him. “I do not wish for you to overexert yourself.”
Walt, with only his boxers and a t-shirt on, moved towards the bed where Anubis sat. The weight-shift made the god look up as Walt began to fiddle with his knee braces.
“I’ll be fine,” He hummed, “I just have to be a bit careful.”
His fingers felt heavy and clumsy as he attempted to separate the velcro on the first brace, but he only had to struggle for a few seconds before Anubis reached his hand out. Walt looked up, Anubis seemed to be silently asking for permission, to which the mortal nodded.
The god grabbed both braces and moved off of the bed, instead placing himself upon his knees in front of his host. Had it been a little later in the day, and had Walt’s energy been better, he might have made a joke about the position, what else the god had been on his knees for, or if he shouldn’t be the one kneeling for the god, but he decided to not bother the caretaker. Slender fingers easily separated the velcro, gentle hands moved his leg to position it against the god’s own knees, careful movements encased the aching knee within the brace. The movements repeated on the other leg, until both knees were braced and protected.
Anubis got up, ignored Walt’s ‘thank you’, and grabbed the elbow braces which were a bit further away from the two of them. Walt laughed slightly.
“Now you’re overdoing it,” Walt couldn’t help but smile at his friend’s worry, “my arms are fine.”
Anubis stopped, and squinted.
“They will not be if you do not protect them.”
Walt should know better, but he knew that there was no use trying to argue with a god like Anubis, as it seemed that he had said his final word on the matter. The god separated the velcro on the braces like before, and equally gentle hands grabbed Walt’s arm and positioned them, before he began to properly put them on. Walt merely sighed dramatically and gave up, letting the god have his way. He was done in only a few moments, repeating the same movements on the other arm until all limbs were protected, but then moved from Walt’s side until he was standing in front of him again, gently cupping the back of the mortal’s head and pushing him forward. The top of his head rested against Anubis’ torso, much to Walt’s confusion.
“What are you-”
His question was cut off as the long fingers pushed into the muscles on his neck and shoulders, making him wince and breathe in sharply. Anubis, aware that the pain would make him feel better, simply continued. His anatomical skills and time spent in Walt’s body meant he knew almost exactly where it would or could hurt later, and so he spent especially long time getting those muscles warmed up and tender to remove the tension, ignoring Walt’s warm breath against his stomach and the noises he let out. By the time that Anubis was done, Walt’s brain was little less than scrambled eggs, his vision was foggy, and the room felt like it would begin to spin. Anubis simply let the mortal’s head move up into the correct position before he came closer, standing between Walt’s legs so that his torso once more became the perfect resting place for the other’s head, as he attempted to breathe through the disorientation. Thin fingers moved over his scalp, through his short hair, grounding him further. It took merely a few moments before Walt had pulled himself together.
“...Thank you.”
Walt’s breathless gratitude got Anubis to smile gently, even if the magician could not see it from this position.
“Of course.”
Once the room stopped spinning and his vision became clear, Walt straightened his back and the god moved away from him. The magician took a deep breath before he stood properly, although Anubis was quick to be back by his side when his legs began to wobble. An apologetic smile, and a reassuring one from the god, as Walt resumed getting properly dressed. He opted for a pair of sweatpants today, which wasn’t really his style, but the best option for a day such as today.
His alarm rang, startling both of them. The realization of the cause got them both to sigh with near-relief, before Walt turned it off.
“What do you say about some breakfast, bud?”
Anubis wanted to roll his eyes, even though he had gotten quite used to that nickname. It was endearing, at the very least. But he- of course, already prepared for the day- nodded. Walt’s backpack was packed and placed by his bedroom door, next to his shoes. As the teen bent down to put them on, the god had to bite his tongue to not be overbearing and attempt to help, always worried for his host. But Walt managed fine, and with his bag over his shoulders, opened the bedroom door.
They ventured down into the Great Room, where a few of the school-goers were already gathering. It was a mere hour or two before they had to leave, and so they had time. They moved towards the kitchen area, which was currently empty, and Walt quickly scanned the fridge for one of his already-prepared sandwiches while Anubis put on the kettle to prepare tea for the two of them. Something herbal, probably.
The mortal, not knowing for how long his body would work and allow him to eat, sat down by the small, round table in the kitchen and began to eat immediately, soon joined by Anubis as the water had boiled and tea was prepared in two cups. Walt wasn’t really a tea-drinker, but he was not going to deny that teas and other warm liquids helped when his body was at its worst. He guessed that it was only a matter of time before Anubis would get properly mom-y and attempt to make soup for him, too. That thought was quite endearing.
Anubis’ ears flickered, alerting them both of the arrival of someone new in the kitchen space. Walt smiled gently as he watched Carter Kane, seemingly still half-asleep, trudge into the room with dragging feet.
“Morn.” The pharaoh yawned, although he, like Walt, quickly moved towards the fridge.
After he had found an item of interest, he moved towards their table and took the third chair in between the other two, Anubis unconsciously scooted further away from the former host of Horus. Carter, however, didn’t notice, and simply uncapped his yogurt and swirled it with the plastic spoon as he focused on Walt, noticing the elbow braces.
“Oh, bad day?”
Walt shook his head.
“No, not really.” He gestured towards Anubis, who observed them intently. “But he insisted.”
Carter grimaced.
“Well, take it easy, then.” The pharaoh said, although he couldn’t help but mumble ‘I don’t like when he gets gut feelings like that...’
Anubis gave the Kane an unreadable expression, but Walt smiled reassuringly at his friend.
“Don’t worry, I will.”
Carter nodded, and the remainder of the breakfast was eaten in silence.
Time passed quickly, and before they knew it, it was time to leave. Once Carter had left the room and the two of them were alone, Anubis let his form shift into Walt’s, until they were reunited in body and soul once more. The magician let out a sigh of relief, like a burden had been lifted off of his shoulders, before he left with the rest.
...
Safe to say, by the time the last bell had rung and Walt had been on his way back to the Brooklyn House, he felt absolutely miserable.
Despite the braces, his joints ached, his muscles tensed and pulled and felt like they tore for every movement he made, his migraine had flared up, and he knew that the stabbing pains would soon return if he didn’t hurry to bed. The journey home had been agonizing, but he was back at the Brooklyn House, moments away from salvation.
He found his way back to his room eventually, where he immediately turned off the lights, kicked off his shoes, and practically fell into the bed, braces and clothes and all still on. He attempted to steady his breathing, but every inhale sent another stab throughout his already abused muscles, he could do little else but to curl up and attempt to get through the pain.
He felt Anubis’ form leave his, but he was thankful that it didn’t seem to worsen the pain. He heard the god’s footsteps going through the room, the blinds were shut and he heard various appliances being unplugged, even the electronic static could occasionally worsen his overwhelm and migraines. Finally, the room got even darker, but Walt didn’t open his eyes, not even as Anubis carefully sat down next to him on his bed.
The god continued to stay silent, not wishing to worsen his host’s headache. During the time they had known each other, they had gone through situations like these more than once, enough times that Anubis knew almost exactly what to do to make Walt feel better, even if it was not much, even if he wished he could do more. Pale hands moved over Walt’s form, not daring to touch, but gentle energy seeped through the palms and into the other, like balm massaged into his body. For a moment, it was like the easiest knots in his muscles were untied and untangled, leaving him with momentary relief and deep breaths of ease, as Anubis moved his hands over his shoulders, down his torso, his arms, his stomach, hips, and down his legs. Finally, the god moved back up towards Walt’s head, letting the soft chill ease the headache which tormented him.
The hardest pains still remained, those no healer could ever heal or ever remove, but the smaller torments were eased and didn’t feel as catastrophic or overwhelming as before. Anubis went off of the bed and observed his host for a moment. This is where his help would normally end, where Walt would feel that this was enough and request to be left alone, and where Anubis would disappear somewhere else, but he couldn’t help but worry. Walt, eased of pain and alone in the bed, allowed himself to uncurl, and lay on his back instead. His body felt heavy, and he did not want to risk the feeling of being crushed by his own bodyweight. Yet, as Anubis prepared to leave, he couldn’t help but wish to not be… Alone.
“... Anubis?”
The soft voice of the other immediately pulled Anubis’ attention back to him, who looked at him intently. Walt did what he could to look at the other, and made sure he was still there with him.
“Yes?”
“Could you… Stay, a bit?”
His ears flickered, eyes widened. For a moment he couldn’t process his host’s request, yet he soon realized what he was being asked.
“Oh. Oh, of course.” He hesitated again, “where… Where would you want me?”
Walt considered it for a moment, but the words became hard to say, and so he simply patted the spot next to him on the bed. Anubis, however, seemed to understand his request. He let his form shift into that of his canine counterpart, the black jackal, before his soft paws climbed onto the bed, and he settled next to Walt. More hesitance, before he carefully placed his head against Walt’s chest, so that he could hear his gentle heartbeat. Walt did not seem pained by the weight, instead another soft sigh escaped as his fingers moved towards Anubis’ head, settling between his ears, letting the thick fur move between them. The jackal could not help but to let out a soft whimper, a gentle sound of worry, of helplessness.
It was devotion, no doubt about it. Walt Stone had the god of death wrapped around his finger through nothing but devotion and loyalty. At the end of the day, Anubis was little more than a forever grieving dog. Neither were sure how they had ended up like this, but neither could remember a time before; a time where they both were alone and plagued by themselves, in their own ways. Anubis would stay by Walt’s side until the day he died, and perhaps longer.
“I can practically feel the cogs in your head, bud.” Walt’s thick finger pressed between the dog’s eyes, bringing the pathetic thing out of his thoughts. “I am not going anywhere.”
The canine’s tail flickered, but the soft laugh in Walt’s voice calmed him, soothed him. He lowered his head against his host’s body once more, golden eyes peering at the other. Walt looked back at him, small smile still upon his lips.
“You’re a good friend, y’know?” Walt ruffled Anubis’ fur, “Thank you.”
It would have been hard to tell if the canine was listening, eyes large and glistening, had it not been for the thumpthumpthump of his tail against the mattress. That was enough for Walt, honestly. He needed little else as they both settled, as the canine calmed and as Walt managed to distract himself from the pain, just enough to rest.
Yes, life is agonizing, cruel, unjust, unfair... But at least Walt could be happy, knowing he had Anubis by his side.
