droptheious | Deerington inbox

Deerington inbox

FROM:

SUBJECT:

	FERN	Ooo slang part the second
	FERN	i think we just shared electrons, because i'm feeling a covalent bond between us
	LANCE	Pidge, I need your help. I gotta send a meme to Chloe but ...
	DIPPER	Hey Varian. You know those crazy alchemy bombs you used...
	PETER	Hey Varian, this is Peter. Um, Peter Graham.
	USAGI	Soooooooo~ How'd the date go?
	MAKO	Varian— Checking in.
	SHIRO	i think one of us put a chicken patty in my toaster
	EDDIE	Hey. We need to talk.
	MELIUS	𝐻𝒾. 𝐼 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒾𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝑜𝓀𝓈 𝓌𝑒𝒾𝓇𝒹 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓇𝓉
	EDA	Hey, kid. I... owe you an apology.
	LUZ	Valentines
	MAUL	I have a proposition for a project I think you'll be interested in
	USAGI	I LOVE YOU
	FERN	DUDE you still have your bandana!
	BUZZ	Morning. I heard from Fern you wanted to go out into the blizzard.
	FERN	dude your profile changed
	USAGI	Ruby told me about the breakup.
	GLITCH	Varian, I'm gonna go live somewhere else for now
	MAKO	A "nerd" is somebody smart...
	MAUL	Gifts
	FERN	heeyyyy quick question
	FERN	Christmas is coming up!!!
	CHLOE	god who the FUCK ever thought emojis were a good idea???
	KRISTOFF	Varian,It's getting colder so I thought you could use this
	FERN	heyyyy Variable
	RAPUNZEL	okay not to put you on the spot but...
	EDA	Potion time
	NEO	Dude, I can mine antidote shit here!
	GLITCH	Got this in my basket.
	EDA	hey smart kid
	TEN	Hallo
	ADAM	Hey, k-- uh, Varian. I just wanted to check in
	USAGI	I'm sorry I worried you and fainted on you yesterday.
	AMARA	i lived, bitch
	NEO	Debatably good news, asshole
	USAGI	Hey Varian! It's Usagi
	OSCAR	I'm sorry, Varian. Tell me what you need
	FERN	a dark past huh
	MAUL	Varian. I am in great need of your assistance
	FERN	Varian VARIAN I CAN EAT FOOD
	USAGI	How much moon essence do you have?
	USAGI	VIVI-KUN, VIVI-KUN GUESS WHAT GUESS WHAT!
	RICHIE	well I promised
	FERN	A TOTALLY INCOMPLETE LIST OF OOO WORDS 'N SLANG
	GLITCH	VARIAN ARE THERE BUGS IN THE WATER?!
	USAGI	To help with restless nights and the...
	VIRA-LORR	Little alchemist. I have a gift for you.
	MARTIN	Hi, Varian. This is Martin. I wanted to reach out...
	USAGI	Hi Varian, sweetie! I have a question for you.
	GLITCH	varian I need to talk to you. it's important.
	USAGI	I need you not to panic after what I tell you.
	FERN	dog you have so many vests
	IRONHIDE	HONK HONK
	USAGI	... I'm sorry I couldn't help you better, Varian
	EMERALD	Hey, V. Not that I care that much or anything...
	FERN	tell me when you're alive
	FERN	Varian i stabbed two people
	AMARA	hey weirdo i have something for you
	FERN	is the Rapunzel in town your Rapunzel?
	PENNY	Salutations!! You do not know me, but my name is Penny Polendina
	YANG	Hey, is this Varian? I think we've met once before.
	FERN	hey can we talk
	FERN	you told ruby
	MAUL	Surviving another year is always an occasion worth celebrating
	USAGI	Hey I wanted to apologise
	USAGI	VARIAN-KUUUUNNN!!!!
	FERN	birth
	MAUL	Look what just arrived for me.
	KATHERINE	Do you want to get paid to make more purple goo things?
	FERN	ok i know you're good with plants but what about animals
	FERN	dog interested in means girls or guys

TO:

SUBJECT:

	USAGI	So. Maul dropped by, he's got his memories back.
	ADAM	I'm worried about Shiro
	FERN	Hey handsome
	OSCAR	You've been weirdly quiet lately
	FERN	Guess what I haven't told you lately?
	USAGI	Hey. I'm back from the dead and I feel like trash.
	FERN	I made meatloaf that may or may not poison us!
	Emerald	Hey. I know you probably don't want to talk to anyone right now...
	BELLA	Hey Bella. You've dated someone who's a different species to you right?
	BILL	Hi, Fern mentioned you were interested in interdimensional portals...
	FERN	Aw, your pictures are nice!
	KURT	Hey. Are you around?
	RICHIE	Is it just me or is Eddie acting weirder than usual?
	QROW	Hey. Checking up on you.
	EDA	Hi Eda. Hope Ruddiger found you okay.
	GLITCH	Hey. What happened between you and Maul?
	LUNA	Luna- I uh... I think I need your help
	EDDIE	So hey, I finally worked out how to replicate the Antidote
	OSCAR	So, I noticed Ozpin has shown up.
	ROGUE	Hey, I managed to replicate the Antidote
	KURT	Hey. We're back. None of us are dead.
	QROW	Uh... hey. How are you guys holding up?
	PETER	You gave Ruby the haunted dolls
	GLITCH	Hey, Bud. Sorry I tried to murder you with a robot
	KURT	I'm probably the last person you want to talk to...
	JON	I'm sorry I attacked you
	JON	Stay away from Fern.
	FERN	Hey you still haven't got me those baking ingredients
	FERN	Okay so the Betties are upping their war...
	USAGI	Hey. So. Update.
	NEO	You tried to bury her alive? SERIOUSLY?
	USAGI	Emotions are really difficult
	FERN	OH MY GOD YOU HAVE ONE TOO
	FERN	Okay this better be to Fern this time.
	WYNONNA	So guess who got into the fridge and ate literally everything in there.

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[Hazel is more than happy to follow after Ruddiger, if only because the poofiness of his tail is clearly something he needs to practice him pouncing skills on.

Fern briefly returns the smile, moving to drop his backpack onto the edge of the bed before sitting down next to it.]

I brought you some stuff. [A lot of stuff, and when he realizes what that sounds like he hurriedly adds:] Uh, not that this means I'm gonna go back to the treehouse or anything. I'll be here as much as you want me to be. I can get you groceries and sleep on the couch, doesn't matter.

[He reaches up, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly.]

The first time I died I wound up living at Will's house for the whole month after. [He's just going to go ahead and not talk about the second time he died.] Not being on my own helped a lot.

[Downsides to living on your own, amirite?]

All of that's for me? And Fern, there's like, three bedrooms in this place. You don't have to sleep on a couch.

[To be fair, this is already the longest he's been in his own bed since he got here.

Varian's smile, small as it already is, fades. Fern might not bring up the second time he died, but Varian sure will. He looks down at the bedclothes, picking at them a little. ]

...That's more than I did for you when you died the second time around. You're well within your right to just leave me to it, you know. No grudges held. I was... a pretty terrible friend.

[He still IS, all things considered.]

[Fern just shrugs a little. Look, if the air wasn't currently trying to murder them all his first preference would be to sleep on the roof. Beds and couches don't really matter to him.

He'll open his backpack up and start pulling stuff out, starting with a bunch of books. Several more of those Choose Your Own Adventure novels Kurt had brought him after he died, as well as a book on Billy, Champion of Ooo's adventures.]

I want to help you, you dummy. What you chose to do isn't a good excuse for me to get a free pass to be a bad friend.

[He is so, so unimpressed with that argument, Varian.]

[Okay but books are the best thing ever and Varian would be lying if seeing the fact Fern owns so many now didn't give him a whole lot of joy. The power of reading!!!.

...And yeah, he can't really argue with that. He clears his throat, offering a fleeting smile. Sorry, Fern, his self-loathing is maxed out today. Give him a day or two to accept he might be worthy of people's affection again. ]

Okay... that's fair. Sorry. And you're a great friend, seriously. I mean, look at all the books!

[He should really thank Kurt for all the reading material.

Fern is just glad they aren't going to argue over this. He knows what it's like recovering from the deathflu alone, and it makes everything about a hundred times worse. Staying at Will's, even though he had felt like crud and couldn't even keep his body together, had been nice. Staying at Will's had felt more like home than any other place in town, and despite the disparity in their feelings Fern at least wants to try to help Varian in that same way.]

Yeah, you're probably gonna get bored being stuck in bed for a week, right? And - [The next thing he pulls out of his backpack is a wreath made of antlers. He stands and goes over to a wall, and apologies, but he's stabbing a large thorn into it so he can hang the wreath.] - this should keep any robots from busting in.

I will definitely get bored stuck in bed for a week. I can't even stay in bed for a night. Or... go to bed at all. Whichever.

[Aside from his awkward message to Kurt apologising for trying to murder him with a robot, Varian's pretty sure they should not be conversing all that much.

He really does appreciate the effort- as much as he feels it's undeserved. He eyes the antler a little, because oh hey, that's - that's a thing. ]

Did it come from Sodder? [There's another pause, because... well. He shouldn't bring this up but he needs to know.] How did you get out of the junkyard? Talking about... robots and all.

They'll be handy, then.

[Even he got bored being stuck in bed for a whole week, he isn't surprised Varian is the same way.]

Uh, yeah. [To his first question. The second question causes a wave of discomfort to overtake Fern as he sits back down on the bed. The junkyard had been an awful time all around, and he'd been pushing all that down so he wouldn't have to think about it.] Some spooky guy helped me out. No big deal. I wasn't dead or anything.

[Just in a thousand pieces. It's fine.]

...A spooky guy?

[That's... not comforting. He kind of figured Fern didn't die, what with the trial and all, but it was close enough. Too close, in all honesty. Varian has seen Fern fall apart more times than he's strictly comfortable with. Once is too much and now he's seen it three times in as many months and it's starting to give him a bit of a complex. ]

That's... something. [His gaze is still down, brow furrowed.] I tried to make sure someone could find you. It was- it was like trying to swim through fog. I couldn't fight it. If I could have, I would have, but that's all I could do before it sucked me under again.

He kind of reminded me of Marceline.

[One day Varian will learn what a goth is.]

You helped. [He scoots closer, so he can rest a comforting hand on Varian's shoulder.] I'd probably still be a pile of grass in the junkyard if you hadn't set off that bomb.

[It wasn't great and he isn't going to even try to deny it, but it was more than Varian just ditching him.]

I know what feels like. [Drowning, fighting for control but only being able to sink even deeper.] You did what you could, and it was enough.

Edited 2020-07-23 18:10 (UTC)

...The vampire who drinks colours?

[He rolls his shoulders in a shrug. It doesn't feel like enough. Nothing feels like enough. He should have been stronger. He should have fought it better. So many people nearly died because he didn't. ]

I wish I could have done more. I should have been able to do more.

Yeah. I mean - his style. [Similar spooky styles.] I think he said his name's Gerard.

[He should probably reach out with a 'thank you for helping me when I was a pile of grass.' That might be warranted.

Fern shifts uneasily. Varian, your guilt is palpable.]

I wish I hadn't picked a fight with Kurt. And not had my stabilizing gem where it was. That was just - a huge mess, and neither of us can go back and change any of it. We gotta live with it. You, me and Kurt.

Don't think I've come across him before.

[Not unusual, Varian isn't exactly a social butterfly. He lets out a soft noise, almost a laugh if it wasn't so bitter and hurt. ]

Great. I'll add it to the ever-growing list of things I have to live with. No problem.

I haven't, either. He seemed okay.

[He feels bad for not being more reassuring, but he can't. He can't just say it's all going to be okay, that Varian will get past it and it won't be a big deal. He'd be lying if he did.]

Sorry, dude. I don't know if it helps any, but you setting off that explosion means.... [He drops his hand so he can fidget with his fingers, because this is hitting some sensitive spots he doesn't like talking about very often.] It means you didn't abandon me. And that's still a big deal to me, even if you think you didn't do enough.

[He appreciates that he really does. Normally the ever-optimistic promise of things being okay might help, but right now... he really doesn't want to hear them. There are no guarantees. Not here.

He sucks in a breath, considering this. He's seen some of Fern's memories- he watches his father abandoned him. That... that explained a lot, when it came to Fern in all honesty. He finally looks at Fern, offing a ghost of a smile. ]

Yeah, I know. It's why I fought so hard to try and do something so you weren't completely abandoned. I wish I could've done more than that, is all.

[That his attempt at making Varian feel better didn't fall completely flat is great, Fern feels a little lighter when he sees that smile. Maybe he isn't as bad at this comforting thing as he's always thought?]

Hey, maybe you'll get another chance to do better.

[And when he realizes how bad that sounds, he pauses awkwardly.]

That... that was supposed to be reassuring.

[Varian's smile fades a touch as he stares off into the middle distance.]

Yeah. Yeah, you probably could have phrased that a little less ominously, there.

[He offers a shaky thumbs-up.]

But I'll take it in the spirit in which it was meant? Still... really don't want a repeat performance of- of literally any of that ever, though.

Th - thanks. Yeah, I don't either.

[If he could go a solid two months without falling apart, that'd just be swell.

He makes a mildly frustrated noise as he sits back.]

I was way better at this when I was Finn.

[Varian would be super okay with Fern never falling apart again. ]

Eh, I get what you meant. I think I probably would have found you doing it as Finn insincere and annoying.

Hah, that's kinda hard to believe. Pretty much everyone back home likes him.

[Even Tiffany sort of came around before dying horribly or whatever.]

[He lifts his shoulders in a half-shrug.]

Yeah, well. I prefer you. And I can say that with confidence now I've seen your memories and actually seen him. So-

[He shrugs again, in a shit you can do about it kind of way. He related to Fern so much more than he ever could some... weirdo idealist. Maybe back before he ruined his own life, he would have found Finn fascinating- the broken mess that he is though? He gets Fern so much more.]

[That Varian has seen his memories of Finn really only makes his confidence in this matter even more baffling. In Fern's opinion, anyways. It's Finn, hero of Ooo, the guy who knows how to talk to people without making them cry, the guy who puts himself out there on the line for people who hate him because it's the right thing to do.]

I don't think I'm ever gonna fully understand that, man.

[Self-loathing is a heck of a thing to be saddled with.]

Well, that's just how it is.

[Varian sits back a little, partly because he's making a point about how very that's how it is to Fern and partly because he's still feeling kinda dizzy and he thinks he should probably lie back a little before he falls back.]

You don't have to get it. My opinions not changing on that one.

Okay. Your choice, I guess.

[As much as he'd like to, he isn't totally sure how he'd go about arguing with Varian on this. Not when his Finn feelings extend beyond idolization and reach into hatred, so part of him doesn't want to argue with him about it.]

I got you one more thing.

[He'll instead pull the last item out of his backpack, a music box. Similar to what Varian used for his robots, but this one is sitting upright and decorated with little bulldogs.]

I said earlier mom had this lullaby she'd sing. It's, uh, guaranteed to put anyone to sleep, and this month is gonna be real rough for you.

[At the sight of the music box, Varian tenses- the memory of his own robots still very much raw. It only lasts a moment, though- he's home, and he's with Fern- he's as safe as he can possibly be. He looks again at the music box in Fern's hands. The dogs remind him of Jake- from Fern's memories, and a small smile tugs at his lips. Right, of course, Fern had been raised by sentient people-dogs. ]

You say that like I slept easy before all of... that. [But he appreciates the gesture a lot. ] But that's... actually really nice of you. How does it work?

[The music box's appearance is an extremely unfortunate and ironic coincidence, one that hasn't escaped Fern's notice. He's hoping it's something Varian can look past, since it's so personal to him and might be incredibly useful for the next month.]

All you do is rotate the handle and sing. Typical lullaby junk.

[No weird Ooo magic or science involved, for once.]

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