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Dan doesn't like feeling angry.

The feeling burned and bubbled like lava deep in the pools of his stomach. It feels like a slow rising tide of heat and a ticking time bomb for a volcano to rupture.

This, arguably, feels worse than that hypothetical metaphor.

His fingers tapped anxiously on every surface, be it the counter or his knees. He flinched at every voice that wasn't his son's. He played nice for the same reason and dropped the smile when the conversation is over.

Dan feels like he's about to set a forest on fire for how on edge he is.

Why perhaps? One reason.

He doesn't feel like he'd be spotten in that fire.

No, let's rephrase. He'd be the first suspect. Try again. The forest. It's the forest.

Dan is, hypothetically, in a forest. Always surrounded by trees, even though he's easy to spot, nobody can hear him.

And nobody would even dare to remember that he's there. But setting a small fire to the forest?

All eyes and fingers point to him. Sometimes it's not even his fault, but who cares? What if there was always some person who could never ever do such a thing? And if they did, nobody would ever suspect them because they're so nice, so lovable, so..

Not. Dan. He feels like this in this house.

He's a ghost again in a house that isn't his, and the host doesn't even bat an eye when he tries to at least make it haunted.

Speak of the devil when he's alone down in the basement, hearing the stairs creak in a slow timed rhythm.

"Is something wrong?" His demeanor changes completely when he's separating himself from his thoughts. An empty but convincing smile plasters on Dan's face as he turns from his shittly made desk.

"Do you need anything?"

[ @maximum-father ]

Max trudged down the stairs, skirt hitched up with one hand, the other resting on the railing. She did indeed want something. A break, someplace just far away enough that nobody would bother her.

Instead, he shrugged and crossed his arms nonchalantly over his chest, letting the fabric cascade down around his ankles. "Nope! I just wanted to stop by."

"For... what?" Dan asks.

"Huh?" Maxo scrunched up meow's eyebrows. Normally, meow did come when meow needed something, yeah, but that was... it wasn't that much of a pattern, was it? "I don't know. Am I bothering you?"

"Not at all. Just- why here, you know?" Dan chuckles weakly. He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. He feels awkward.

"This isn't a.. you know, type of hangout spot, heh."

Good, at least Max wasn't being a nuisance. Then again, did... did Dan have any hobbies or just- anything to do at home? She would probably remember a detail like that. Maybe.

"It's a good place to relax. Quiet."

Maybe because it's the only place he feels enough to be in.

"Yeah, it- kind of is." He sucks in his teeth and looks around. Dan's mind sounded like an asshole. He probably is one too.

"Do you- want to find something to sit on?"

Oh. Yeah. It probably wouldn't be good if Maximus stayed on her feet for too long, and- huh. That expression wasn't normally a good thing.

"Sure, uh- you still have your bed down here, right?"

"I... think.. so?" Dan mostly slept in the pool nowadays. He never really.. trusted his bed. Since he came back, again, anyway. Gives him an odd vibe.

"You can sit there, I don't mind."

Max nodded. Okay. It was fine with them being there, at least. They walked over, hardly hesitating at all before they flopped down onto its bed.

"You know... you could sleep upstairs?" They prodded, "There's always room."

Dan hopes that it's dark enough downstairs that she doesn't see him wince.

"No, it's... alright. It's only enough for you and Pierre anyway, haha.." He's trying so hard not to actively shudder. "I like it down here anyway. It's- fine."

"No wayy, come on. My bed is empty half the time, and you don't use this one." Max's tone stayed light, but he still wanted to push it.

"I just use my pool, it's fine, really. What if he stays over, y-you know?" It insists.

"We could- could set up a- a calendar?" Max couldn't help but laugh a little at how self-centered it sounded. "Maybe?"

"Calendar?" Dan asks, almost in shock. "Like- Like for who's sleeping with you?"

"... Yeah? Or just- just plan it?"

Dan wrinkles his nose in the dark. "Dunno.. It's fine, Max, really."

"I don't want to disturb anything."

Well. Maxo hadn't expected it to dig its heels in, too. She sighed dramatically, hand placed over her heart. "F-fine, fine. You'd rather be in the fucking basement than with me. I- I get it! Whatever."

"W-Well, it's not like you're the same also!" Dan fumbles. "I don't- I don't want to be in your bedroom if I might be disturbing you and Pierre or whatever!"

"No, no, you just don't like me. That's it." They grinned, glancing over at Dan.

(If you knew the parallels.)

Dan wrinkles its nose. "For not being in bed?"

"Obviously, yeah."

"I just don't want to disturb you." It shakes its head. "I'm just here to help around."

"You're not doing a good job, then. I don't- I barely see you around! That, that disturbs me. He huffed, crossing his arms.

"Around you, maybe! I'm around when Trumpet needs me at least." Dan huffs back. "You- You're always ignoring me and you don't even see me when I'm in the room, anyway!"

Oh. That... was probably true, wasn't it? Shit. Max didn't even know what to say to that. She couldn't just apologize and call it a day, but she couldn't let it be, either.

"I- I... I'll keep that in mind, yeah?"

"It'd be nice..." Dan sighs. It runs a hand through its hair. This conversation kept jumping all over, it's the same thing over and over and it's not really going everywhere. Man. He really is an asshole.

"Thanks." It says almost too sharply.

... He was still upset. Somehow, he was still upset, and he wasn't even saying anything about it. And that was probably Max's fault. Again.

"What's- what's wrong with you?" She asked, realizing only a second too late how horribly that sounded. "Like- like all this, what's this about?"

He can just bury this all under again. It's fine. They don't have to keep talking about this.

It's just Dan who's the problem.

"Nothing. Just- had a rough day." He avoids almost too roughly. "Don't worry about it."

#ooc: i hate this thread

Dan doesn't like feeling angry.

The feeling burned and bubbled like lava deep in the pools of his stomach. It feels like a slow rising tide of heat and a ticking time bomb for a volcano to rupture.

This, arguably, feels worse than that hypothetical metaphor.

His fingers tapped anxiously on every surface, be it the counter or his knees. He flinched at every voice that wasn't his son's. He played nice for the same reason and dropped the smile when the conversation is over.

Dan feels like he's about to set a forest on fire for how on edge he is.

Why perhaps? One reason.

He doesn't feel like he'd be spotten in that fire.

No, let's rephrase. He'd be the first suspect. Try again. The forest. It's the forest.

Dan is, hypothetically, in a forest. Always surrounded by trees, even though he's easy to spot, nobody can hear him.

And nobody would even dare to remember that he's there. But setting a small fire to the forest?

All eyes and fingers point to him. Sometimes it's not even his fault, but who cares? What if there was always some person who could never ever do such a thing? And if they did, nobody would ever suspect them because they're so nice, so lovable, so..

Not. Dan. He feels like this in this house.

He's a ghost again in a house that isn't his, and the host doesn't even bat an eye when he tries to at least make it haunted.

Speak of the devil when he's alone down in the basement, hearing the stairs creak in a slow timed rhythm.

"Is something wrong?" His demeanor changes completely when he's separating himself from his thoughts. An empty but convincing smile plasters on Dan's face as he turns from his shittly made desk.

"Do you need anything?"

[ @maximum-father ]

Max trudged down the stairs, skirt hitched up with one hand, the other resting on the railing. She did indeed want something. A break, someplace just far away enough that nobody would bother her.

Instead, he shrugged and crossed his arms nonchalantly over his chest, letting the fabric cascade down around his ankles. "Nope! I just wanted to stop by."

"For... what?" Dan asks.

"Huh?" Maxo scrunched up meow's eyebrows. Normally, meow did come when meow needed something, yeah, but that was... it wasn't that much of a pattern, was it? "I don't know. Am I bothering you?"

"Not at all. Just- why here, you know?" Dan chuckles weakly. He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. He feels awkward.

"This isn't a.. you know, type of hangout spot, heh."

Good, at least Max wasn't being a nuisance. Then again, did... did Dan have any hobbies or just- anything to do at home? She would probably remember a detail like that. Maybe.

"It's a good place to relax. Quiet."

Maybe because it's the only place he feels enough to be in.

"Yeah, it- kind of is." He sucks in his teeth and looks around. Dan's mind sounded like an asshole. He probably is one too.

"Do you- want to find something to sit on?"

Oh. Yeah. It probably wouldn't be good if Maximus stayed on her feet for too long, and- huh. That expression wasn't normally a good thing.

"Sure, uh- you still have your bed down here, right?"

"I... think.. so?" Dan mostly slept in the pool nowadays. He never really.. trusted his bed. Since he came back, again, anyway. Gives him an odd vibe.

"You can sit there, I don't mind."

Max nodded. Okay. It was fine with them being there, at least. They walked over, hardly hesitating at all before they flopped down onto its bed.

"You know... you could sleep upstairs?" They prodded, "There's always room."

Dan hopes that it's dark enough downstairs that she doesn't see him wince.

"No, it's... alright. It's only enough for you and Pierre anyway, haha.." He's trying so hard not to actively shudder. "I like it down here anyway. It's- fine."

"No wayy, come on. My bed is empty half the time, and you don't use this one." Max's tone stayed light, but he still wanted to push it.

"I just use my pool, it's fine, really. What if he stays over, y-you know?" It insists.

"We could- could set up a- a calendar?" Max couldn't help but laugh a little at how self-centered it sounded. "Maybe?"

"Calendar?" Dan asks, almost in shock. "Like- Like for who's sleeping with you?"

"... Yeah? Or just- just plan it?"

Dan wrinkles his nose in the dark. "Dunno.. It's fine, Max, really."

"I don't want to disturb anything."

Well. Maxo hadn't expected it to dig its heels in, too. She sighed dramatically, hand placed over her heart. "F-fine, fine. You'd rather be in the fucking basement than with me. I- I get it! Whatever."

"W-Well, it's not like you're the same also!" Dan fumbles. "I don't- I don't want to be in your bedroom if I might be disturbing you and Pierre or whatever!"

"No, no, you just don't like me. That's it." They grinned, glancing over at Dan.

(If you knew the parallels.)

Dan wrinkles its nose. "For not being in bed?"

"Obviously, yeah."

"I just don't want to disturb you." It shakes its head. "I'm just here to help around."

"You're not doing a good job, then. I don't- I barely see you around! That, that disturbs me. He huffed, crossing his arms.

"Around you, maybe! I'm around when Trumpet needs me at least." Dan huffs back. "You- You're always ignoring me and you don't even see me when I'm in the room, anyway!"

Oh. That... was probably true, wasn't it? Shit. Max didn't even know what to say to that. She couldn't just apologize and call it a day, but she couldn't let it be, either.

"I- I... I'll keep that in mind, yeah?"

"It'd be nice..." Dan sighs. It runs a hand through its hair. This conversation kept jumping all over, it's the same thing over and over and it's not really going everywhere. Man. He really is an asshole.

"Thanks." It says almost too sharply.

Dan doesn't like feeling angry.

The feeling burned and bubbled like lava deep in the pools of his stomach. It feels like a slow rising tide of heat and a ticking time bomb for a volcano to rupture.

This, arguably, feels worse than that hypothetical metaphor.

His fingers tapped anxiously on every surface, be it the counter or his knees. He flinched at every voice that wasn't his son's. He played nice for the same reason and dropped the smile when the conversation is over.

Dan feels like he's about to set a forest on fire for how on edge he is.

Why perhaps? One reason.

He doesn't feel like he'd be spotten in that fire.

No, let's rephrase. He'd be the first suspect. Try again. The forest. It's the forest.

Dan is, hypothetically, in a forest. Always surrounded by trees, even though he's easy to spot, nobody can hear him.

And nobody would even dare to remember that he's there. But setting a small fire to the forest?

All eyes and fingers point to him. Sometimes it's not even his fault, but who cares? What if there was always some person who could never ever do such a thing? And if they did, nobody would ever suspect them because they're so nice, so lovable, so..

Not. Dan. He feels like this in this house.

He's a ghost again in a house that isn't his, and the host doesn't even bat an eye when he tries to at least make it haunted.

Speak of the devil when he's alone down in the basement, hearing the stairs creak in a slow timed rhythm.

"Is something wrong?" His demeanor changes completely when he's separating himself from his thoughts. An empty but convincing smile plasters on Dan's face as he turns from his shittly made desk.

"Do you need anything?"

[ @maximum-father ]

Max trudged down the stairs, skirt hitched up with one hand, the other resting on the railing. She did indeed want something. A break, someplace just far away enough that nobody would bother her.

Instead, he shrugged and crossed his arms nonchalantly over his chest, letting the fabric cascade down around his ankles. "Nope! I just wanted to stop by."

"For... what?" Dan asks.

"Huh?" Maxo scrunched up meow's eyebrows. Normally, meow did come when meow needed something, yeah, but that was... it wasn't that much of a pattern, was it? "I don't know. Am I bothering you?"

"Not at all. Just- why here, you know?" Dan chuckles weakly. He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. He feels awkward.

"This isn't a.. you know, type of hangout spot, heh."

Good, at least Max wasn't being a nuisance. Then again, did... did Dan have any hobbies or just- anything to do at home? She would probably remember a detail like that. Maybe.

"It's a good place to relax. Quiet."

Maybe because it's the only place he feels enough to be in.

"Yeah, it- kind of is." He sucks in his teeth and looks around. Dan's mind sounded like an asshole. He probably is one too.

"Do you- want to find something to sit on?"

Oh. Yeah. It probably wouldn't be good if Maximus stayed on her feet for too long, and- huh. That expression wasn't normally a good thing.

"Sure, uh- you still have your bed down here, right?"

"I... think.. so?" Dan mostly slept in the pool nowadays. He never really.. trusted his bed. Since he came back, again, anyway. Gives him an odd vibe.

"You can sit there, I don't mind."

Max nodded. Okay. It was fine with them being there, at least. They walked over, hardly hesitating at all before they flopped down onto its bed.

"You know... you could sleep upstairs?" They prodded, "There's always room."

Dan hopes that it's dark enough downstairs that she doesn't see him wince.

"No, it's... alright. It's only enough for you and Pierre anyway, haha.." He's trying so hard not to actively shudder. "I like it down here anyway. It's- fine."

"No wayy, come on. My bed is empty half the time, and you don't use this one." Max's tone stayed light, but he still wanted to push it.

"I just use my pool, it's fine, really. What if he stays over, y-you know?" It insists.

"We could- could set up a- a calendar?" Max couldn't help but laugh a little at how self-centered it sounded. "Maybe?"

"Calendar?" Dan asks, almost in shock. "Like- Like for who's sleeping with you?"

"... Yeah? Or just- just plan it?"

Dan wrinkles his nose in the dark. "Dunno.. It's fine, Max, really."

"I don't want to disturb anything."

Well. Maxo hadn't expected it to dig its heels in, too. She sighed dramatically, hand placed over her heart. "F-fine, fine. You'd rather be in the fucking basement than with me. I- I get it! Whatever."

"W-Well, it's not like you're the same also!" Dan fumbles. "I don't- I don't want to be in your bedroom if I might be disturbing you and Pierre or whatever!"

"No, no, you just don't like me. That's it." They grinned, glancing over at Dan.

(If you knew the parallels.)

Dan wrinkles its nose. "For not being in bed?"

"Obviously, yeah."

"I just don't want to disturb you." It shakes its head. "I'm just here to help around."

"You're not doing a good job, then. I don't- I barely see you around! That, that disturbs me. He huffed, crossing his arms.

#minecart ride #just a ring. but i think it's mine.#long post #straightverse

"Around you, maybe! I'm around when Trumpet needs me at least." Dan huffs back. "You- You're always ignoring me and you don't even see me when I'm in the room, anyway!"

Dan doesn't like feeling angry.

The feeling burned and bubbled like lava deep in the pools of his stomach. It feels like a slow rising tide of heat and a ticking time bomb for a volcano to rupture.

This, arguably, feels worse than that hypothetical metaphor.

His fingers tapped anxiously on every surface, be it the counter or his knees. He flinched at every voice that wasn't his son's. He played nice for the same reason and dropped the smile when the conversation is over.

Dan feels like he's about to set a forest on fire for how on edge he is.

Why perhaps? One reason.

He doesn't feel like he'd be spotten in that fire.

No, let's rephrase. He'd be the first suspect. Try again. The forest. It's the forest.

Dan is, hypothetically, in a forest. Always surrounded by trees, even though he's easy to spot, nobody can hear him.

And nobody would even dare to remember that he's there. But setting a small fire to the forest?

All eyes and fingers point to him. Sometimes it's not even his fault, but who cares? What if there was always some person who could never ever do such a thing? And if they did, nobody would ever suspect them because they're so nice, so lovable, so..

Not. Dan. He feels like this in this house.

He's a ghost again in a house that isn't his, and the host doesn't even bat an eye when he tries to at least make it haunted.

Speak of the devil when he's alone down in the basement, hearing the stairs creak in a slow timed rhythm.

"Is something wrong?" His demeanor changes completely when he's separating himself from his thoughts. An empty but convincing smile plasters on Dan's face as he turns from his shittly made desk.

"Do you need anything?"

[ @maximum-father ]

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

And at that moment, Max, having finished setting up with Pierre, stumbled down the stairs and into the living room.

Trumpet and Dan seemed busy playing with dolls, but... well, it wouldn't hurt too much to interrupt for a second.

"Hola, Trumpet! Would you and Dan mind coming upstairs? We- I, I have something to show you, yeah?" She fidgeted, trying her best to tamp her excitement.

Trumpet glances at Dan, then shrugs. “Sure.” He stands up, straightens out his skirt, then gently lays down his figurines in the dollhouse. He ducks to the far side of the couch and grabs the other two parents, too. He doesn’t want them to be separated while he’s gone.

Once everyone’s home, he shuts the dollhouse again. He takes Dan’s hand, then reaches out to let Maxo take his own. “What are you showing us?”

God, Trumpet was too precious. Maximus slotted their wrist into Trumpet's hand, same as normal. Things were normal today. Yep.

She glanced over at Dan, raising her eyebrows in way that she hoped read as 'please back me up here'. "It's a surprise. A good one."

"I uh- I assume it'd be a good one," He weakly jokes, stumbling over himself in an all around confused state. "Otherwise it's not really a surprise worth showing, you know?"

Dan is so lost and confused, but he's got the spirit.

Trumpet squints between the two of them. Somethings suspicious. “Oh-kayyyy…” he says slowly, then shrugs. “Let’s go upstairs then.”

Had it just forgotten? Fine. Maxo could work with this, still. Maybe. She started to lead them both upstairs "Mhm. We've, uh, we've been planning this for- for a while."

OH THAT WAS TODAY.

"Ah- right." Dan immediately looks like he's awake. "Yeah- yeah! So it's- definitely a good one."

Trumpet blinks. Dan looks excited, which makes Trumpet start to feel something fizzy in his stomach, too. Maxo’s usually excited about something or other, but Dan’s more laid back. “…Okay!” he says, walking a little straighter. This must be something BIG.

They turn into the upstairs hallway, down to the door Trumpet always assumed he wasn’t allowed to open. Pierre’s waiting there, too. That’s all three of them.

Trumpet stops in his tracks. Have they built him some kind of big…thing? So big they’ve had to hide it in a whole other room? He’s noticed that they’ve been doing stuff in that room for a while, but he could’ve never imagined it was something for him.

He looks up at Maxo. This surprise seems so big that he can’t help but be nervous. What if it’s a bad surprise? “Que está pasando?” he asks, narrowing his eyes in comical second-grader suspicion.

Trumpet didn't seem to be aware of what was going on quite yet, but that just made this all the better.

Max crouched down to be on his level, bracing himself with his hands placed on his knees.

"Well... you know how you've been staying with- with me and your dads, and you don't really have a place to yourself? Now you don't have to, if you want. This-" She gestured to the door behind him, "this room is all yours. You do whatever you want with it."

Trumpet blinks, his eyes going wide. He looks at the door. He looks at Pierre and Dan and then back at Maxo.

"...A room for me?" he asks, pointing to himself. "Just me?"

"Just you, bud." Dan pats his back. It nudges its head towards the door. "Go on, go see for yourself."

Trumpet glances at Pierre, who gives an encouraging nod and a thumbs up. He takes a deep breath and steps forward, opening the door.

…They made it orange. And blue. With little bits of red and green here and there, like his hat.

Trumpet walks into creamsicle colored walls and feels his feet squish in soft baby blue carpet. He gives a delighted squeal and dances around, spinning off-kilter as he struggles to feel the rug with his feet and stay standing at the same time. On the far wall are two long windows. Trumpet crosses eagerly over to them and looks out. The view here is of the front yard.

He looks around the room. They’ve put some furniture in here. A bed with plain sheets (for now,) a dresser, a desk, some shelves and a big chest. Space for his stuff. Space for his life. Space for him.

It’s the fact that it’s colored like his hat that drives the point home. This is HIS place. It’s a room that’s for him and nobody else. It’s his the way that Maxo’s room is Maxo’s and the create kitchen is Pierre’s and the lava pool in the basement is Dan’s. It’s a space that would be empty and sad without him, proof built into the house that this is where he belongs. He’s a part of this building.

They’ve built him into their home. That’s what he means to them.

It’s not temporary.

Trumpet is going to grow up here.

When he turns back to face the three of them, his eyes are full of tears. He opens his mouth to thank them, then chokes, sniffles, and rubs his eyes.

Maxo grinned at him from her place in the doorway. She had gotten it right, Trumpet was at that point where he was ready to be more individualistic. It wasn't too much.

"Hey, hey, it's- it's okay, you'll have forever to get used to it, yeah?"

Forever.

Trumpet immediately starts sobbing, pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes. He stumbles towards the door, then pauses, unsure of who to hug.

He doesn’t have to choose, in the end. Three pairs of arms wrap around him and he feels stretched and squeezed but mostly just. Held.

“Y-you really wa-ant me hh-here,” he sniffles, his chest jumping erratically.

"Oh bud, of course. You're our son." Dan's tail instinctively wraps around Trumpet's leg. He pats his hair just a bit. "I'm sorry it took this long to show that."

Max nodded along. "Mhm. And I- I should have probably set this up when you first got here. I hope it makes up for that."

“Mm-mmhm!” Trumpet sniffles. It’s true that it probably would started things off on a better foot if they’d done this in the beginning. But Trumpet can’t find it in him to care about that right now. He doesn’t want to spoil a moment as huge and awesome as this by being mad that it didn’t happen sooner. And…they’ve been figuring this shit out just as much as he has, haven’t they?

Pierre’s humming happily, pressing itchy kisses to Trumpet’s cheek that tease the corners of his lips up through his tears. Trumpet knows where he stands with him. The other two, though…

“You’re our son.”

Trumpet had given up on being a son. He hadn’t realized how much it still meant to him. But there’s a difference, he guesses, between not being abandoned versus being actively wanted.

“Tha-ank you,” he manages. “I like it- I really- thank you.”

He pulls away gently to wipe his face and looks around the room. It’s too emotional for him right now. He wants to keep things moving.

“…I w-wanna put all my stuff in here,” he says, looking around at all the space available to him.

#end of the railroad #minecart ride #trial and success #just a ring. but i think it's mine.

Maxo grinned. Trumpet was actually planning on making this place his own. She was already excited at the thought of how his room would look in a few years.

"Well, let's go." They clasped an arm around Pierre's shoulders.

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

And at that moment, Max, having finished setting up with Pierre, stumbled down the stairs and into the living room.

Trumpet and Dan seemed busy playing with dolls, but... well, it wouldn't hurt too much to interrupt for a second.

"Hola, Trumpet! Would you and Dan mind coming upstairs? We- I, I have something to show you, yeah?" She fidgeted, trying her best to tamp her excitement.

Trumpet glances at Dan, then shrugs. “Sure.” He stands up, straightens out his skirt, then gently lays down his figurines in the dollhouse. He ducks to the far side of the couch and grabs the other two parents, too. He doesn’t want them to be separated while he’s gone.

Once everyone’s home, he shuts the dollhouse again. He takes Dan’s hand, then reaches out to let Maxo take his own. “What are you showing us?”

God, Trumpet was too precious. Maximus slotted their wrist into Trumpet's hand, same as normal. Things were normal today. Yep.

She glanced over at Dan, raising her eyebrows in way that she hoped read as 'please back me up here'. "It's a surprise. A good one."

"I uh- I assume it'd be a good one," He weakly jokes, stumbling over himself in an all around confused state. "Otherwise it's not really a surprise worth showing, you know?"

Dan is so lost and confused, but he's got the spirit.

Trumpet squints between the two of them. Somethings suspicious. “Oh-kayyyy…” he says slowly, then shrugs. “Let’s go upstairs then.”

Had it just forgotten? Fine. Maxo could work with this, still. Maybe. She started to lead them both upstairs "Mhm. We've, uh, we've been planning this for- for a while."

OH THAT WAS TODAY.

"Ah- right." Dan immediately looks like he's awake. "Yeah- yeah! So it's- definitely a good one."

Trumpet blinks. Dan looks excited, which makes Trumpet start to feel something fizzy in his stomach, too. Maxo’s usually excited about something or other, but Dan’s more laid back. “…Okay!” he says, walking a little straighter. This must be something BIG.

They turn into the upstairs hallway, down to the door Trumpet always assumed he wasn’t allowed to open. Pierre’s waiting there, too. That’s all three of them.

Trumpet stops in his tracks. Have they built him some kind of big…thing? So big they’ve had to hide it in a whole other room? He’s noticed that they’ve been doing stuff in that room for a while, but he could’ve never imagined it was something for him.

He looks up at Maxo. This surprise seems so big that he can’t help but be nervous. What if it’s a bad surprise? “Que está pasando?” he asks, narrowing his eyes in comical second-grader suspicion.

Trumpet didn't seem to be aware of what was going on quite yet, but that just made this all the better.

Max crouched down to be on his level, bracing himself with his hands placed on his knees.

"Well... you know how you've been staying with- with me and your dads, and you don't really have a place to yourself? Now you don't have to, if you want. This-" She gestured to the door behind him, "this room is all yours. You do whatever you want with it."

Trumpet blinks, his eyes going wide. He looks at the door. He looks at Pierre and Dan and then back at Maxo.

"...A room for me?" he asks, pointing to himself. "Just me?"

"Just you, bud." Dan pats his back. It nudges its head towards the door. "Go on, go see for yourself."

Trumpet glances at Pierre, who gives an encouraging nod and a thumbs up. He takes a deep breath and steps forward, opening the door.

…They made it orange. And blue. With little bits of red and green here and there, like his hat.

Trumpet walks into creamsicle colored walls and feels his feet squish in soft baby blue carpet. He gives a delighted squeal and dances around, spinning off-kilter as he struggles to feel the rug with his feet and stay standing at the same time. On the far wall are two long windows. Trumpet crosses eagerly over to them and looks out. The view here is of the front yard.

He looks around the room. They’ve put some furniture in here. A bed with plain sheets (for now,) a dresser, a desk, some shelves and a big chest. Space for his stuff. Space for his life. Space for him.

It’s the fact that it’s colored like his hat that drives the point home. This is HIS place. It’s a room that’s for him and nobody else. It’s his the way that Maxo’s room is Maxo’s and the create kitchen is Pierre’s and the lava pool in the basement is Dan’s. It’s a space that would be empty and sad without him, proof built into the house that this is where he belongs. He’s a part of this building.

They’ve built him into their home. That’s what he means to them.

It’s not temporary.

Trumpet is going to grow up here.

When he turns back to face the three of them, his eyes are full of tears. He opens his mouth to thank them, then chokes, sniffles, and rubs his eyes.

Maxo grinned at him from her place in the doorway. She had gotten it right, Trumpet was at that point where he was ready to be more individualistic. It wasn't too much.

"Hey, hey, it's- it's okay, you'll have forever to get used to it, yeah?"

Forever.

Trumpet immediately starts sobbing, pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes. He stumbles towards the door, then pauses, unsure of who to hug.

He doesn’t have to choose, in the end. Three pairs of arms wrap around him and he feels stretched and squeezed but mostly just. Held.

“Y-you really wa-ant me hh-here,” he sniffles, his chest jumping erratically.

"Oh bud, of course. You're our son." Dan's tail instinctively wraps around Trumpet's leg. He pats his hair just a bit. "I'm sorry it took this long to show that."

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

And at that moment, Max, having finished setting up with Pierre, stumbled down the stairs and into the living room.

Trumpet and Dan seemed busy playing with dolls, but... well, it wouldn't hurt too much to interrupt for a second.

"Hola, Trumpet! Would you and Dan mind coming upstairs? We- I, I have something to show you, yeah?" She fidgeted, trying her best to tamp her excitement.

Trumpet glances at Dan, then shrugs. “Sure.” He stands up, straightens out his skirt, then gently lays down his figurines in the dollhouse. He ducks to the far side of the couch and grabs the other two parents, too. He doesn’t want them to be separated while he’s gone.

Once everyone’s home, he shuts the dollhouse again. He takes Dan’s hand, then reaches out to let Maxo take his own. “What are you showing us?”

God, Trumpet was too precious. Maximus slotted their wrist into Trumpet's hand, same as normal. Things were normal today. Yep.

She glanced over at Dan, raising her eyebrows in way that she hoped read as 'please back me up here'. "It's a surprise. A good one."

"I uh- I assume it'd be a good one," He weakly jokes, stumbling over himself in an all around confused state. "Otherwise it's not really a surprise worth showing, you know?"

Dan is so lost and confused, but he's got the spirit.

Trumpet squints between the two of them. Somethings suspicious. “Oh-kayyyy…” he says slowly, then shrugs. “Let’s go upstairs then.”

Had it just forgotten? Fine. Maxo could work with this, still. Maybe. She started to lead them both upstairs "Mhm. We've, uh, we've been planning this for- for a while."

OH THAT WAS TODAY.

"Ah- right." Dan immediately looks like he's awake. "Yeah- yeah! So it's- definitely a good one."

Trumpet blinks. Dan looks excited, which makes Trumpet start to feel something fizzy in his stomach, too. Maxo’s usually excited about something or other, but Dan’s more laid back. “…Okay!” he says, walking a little straighter. This must be something BIG.

They turn into the upstairs hallway, down to the door Trumpet always assumed he wasn’t allowed to open. Pierre’s waiting there, too. That’s all three of them.

Trumpet stops in his tracks. Have they built him some kind of big…thing? So big they’ve had to hide it in a whole other room? He’s noticed that they’ve been doing stuff in that room for a while, but he could’ve never imagined it was something for him.

He looks up at Maxo. This surprise seems so big that he can’t help but be nervous. What if it’s a bad surprise? “Que está pasando?” he asks, narrowing his eyes in comical second-grader suspicion.

Trumpet didn't seem to be aware of what was going on quite yet, but that just made this all the better.

Max crouched down to be on his level, bracing himself with his hands placed on his knees.

"Well... you know how you've been staying with- with me and your dads, and you don't really have a place to yourself? Now you don't have to, if you want. This-" She gestured to the door behind him, "this room is all yours. You do whatever you want with it."

Trumpet blinks, his eyes going wide. He looks at the door. He looks at Pierre and Dan and then back at Maxo.

"...A room for me?" he asks, pointing to himself. "Just me?"

"Just you, bud." Dan pats his back. It nudges its head towards the door. "Go on, go see for yourself."

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

And at that moment, Max, having finished setting up with Pierre, stumbled down the stairs and into the living room.

Trumpet and Dan seemed busy playing with dolls, but... well, it wouldn't hurt too much to interrupt for a second.

"Hola, Trumpet! Would you and Dan mind coming upstairs? We- I, I have something to show you, yeah?" She fidgeted, trying her best to tamp her excitement.

Trumpet glances at Dan, then shrugs. “Sure.” He stands up, straightens out his skirt, then gently lays down his figurines in the dollhouse. He ducks to the far side of the couch and grabs the other two parents, too. He doesn’t want them to be separated while he’s gone.

Once everyone’s home, he shuts the dollhouse again. He takes Dan’s hand, then reaches out to let Maxo take his own. “What are you showing us?”

God, Trumpet was too precious. Maximus slotted their wrist into Trumpet's hand, same as normal. Things were normal today. Yep.

She glanced over at Dan, raising her eyebrows in way that she hoped read as 'please back me up here'. "It's a surprise. A good one."

"I uh- I assume it'd be a good one," He weakly jokes, stumbling over himself in an all around confused state. "Otherwise it's not really a surprise worth showing, you know?"

Dan is so lost and confused, but he's got the spirit.

Trumpet squints between the two of them. Somethings suspicious. “Oh-kayyyy…” he says slowly, then shrugs. “Let’s go upstairs then.”

Had it just forgotten? Fine. Maxo could work with this, still. Maybe. She started to lead them both upstairs "Mhm. We've, uh, we've been planning this for- for a while."

OH THAT WAS TODAY.

"Ah- right." Dan immediately looks like he's awake. "Yeah- yeah! So it's- definitely a good one."

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

And at that moment, Max, having finished setting up with Pierre, stumbled down the stairs and into the living room.

Trumpet and Dan seemed busy playing with dolls, but... well, it wouldn't hurt too much to interrupt for a second.

"Hola, Trumpet! Would you and Dan mind coming upstairs? We- I, I have something to show you, yeah?" She fidgeted, trying her best to tamp her excitement.

Trumpet glances at Dan, then shrugs. “Sure.” He stands up, straightens out his skirt, then gently lays down his figurines in the dollhouse. He ducks to the far side of the couch and grabs the other two parents, too. He doesn’t want them to be separated while he’s gone.

Once everyone’s home, he shuts the dollhouse again. He takes Dan’s hand, then reaches out to let Maxo take his own. “What are you showing us?”

God, Trumpet was too precious. Maximus slotted their wrist into Trumpet's hand, same as normal. Things were normal today. Yep.

She glanced over at Dan, raising her eyebrows in way that she hoped read as 'please back me up here'. "It's a surprise. A good one."

"I uh- I assume it'd be a good one," He weakly jokes, stumbling over himself in an all around confused state. "Otherwise it's not really a surprise worth showing, you know?"

Dan is so lost and confused, but he's got the spirit.

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Oh, Monsieur Chat has been eyeing Missis Squirrel for a whiiiile," Trumpet says, waggling his eyebrows up at Dan. "He wants her- her hot squirrel body, you know? Here, you be Monsieur Chat," he says, shoving the father cat figurine into Dan's hands.

Dan blinks again, incredibly confused and absolutely unsure what emotion he is feeling right now. Shock? Incredulousness? What.

"I- feel as if this isn't for you or in any case a character that I can not at all."

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]

"Do you want me to play with both of them or just one?" Dan asks with genuine interest and confusion. He's kneeling on the floor, position halfway towards the couch while facing to Trumpet with empty hands.

"Are you still the director and I'm still almost every actor?"

"I'm the director, yeah," says Trumpet immediately. He moves his figures to one hand and passes Sra. Gata and Mr. Squirrel to Dan with the other. "You don't have to play them, just move them to the other side of the couch and then they'll be at work."

He walks the rest of the cat and squirrel families up to their respective breadwinners and give them little goodbyes and kisses. Dan returns them as its characters and moves them to the other side of the couch, and Trumpet takes the remaining two parents.

“Right. So now that those two are gone, Monsieur Chat is going to make his move on Mrs. Squirrel," says Trumpet, beginning to walk the father of the cat family over to the mother of the squirrel family.

He blinks, seemingly lost on the lore of Trumpet's critter world. "And- why?"

"Okay," says Trumpet. He has a Calico Critter in each hand and is staring at the open dollhouse with all the seriousness of a tactician surveying a battle map. "Now- now Senora Gata and Mr. Squirrel are both going to work- you make them go to work, 'kay? That's on the other side of the couch."

[@thediamondmodcart @maximum-father]