February Catch All [closed]

[nastyboy]

Who: What remains of Team Femblemtroika
What: With a few hard hitting losses to the gang, they all try to deal with it. This may mean a roadtrip through Kanto.
When: February
Where: Starting in Olivine, ending in the vague and widely defined area of Kanto
Warnings: None besides their grief (as of yet)

Comments

[nastyboy]

I know... [Gently, as gentle as he ever can be, Dimitri leans in to pull her into a hug.] I know.

I, too... would rather go with all of them with us as well.

[But they will waste away if they all stay stagnant here.]

[But Felix would be enraged if he saw them do nothing but mourn.]

[But Chip would hate it, if they made Grant cry.]

[Dimitri does not say any of these things. It is a lot to lay on a child on even a normal day, and it is a lot to lay on a child grieving. So Dimitri does not go into such things, not today. Instead, he pulls back, his arms still wrapped around her.]

But you know... Sylvain left, once before. And then he came back a little while after, you know.

So one day... I am sure we will see them all again - whether all together, or one by one. [Another soft stroke of her hair.] And when that day comes... We can guide them personally to all the places we got to visit, and show them all the most fun things, and exciting places.

And we'll take pictures, just to show them.

[candyapplechild]

[ She leans into the hug, still sniffling but... taking comfort in the gentle show of affection. What he says makes sense... and it does give her hope. Of seeing them all again... ]

Can... can I take pictures myself too...?

[nastyboy]

Of course you can. [Dimitri pulls himself together, just enough to smile down at her.] We have to show all the ways you're growing up! And when you win your gym battles!

Felix will be so proud.

[candyapplechild]

[ Eri wipes her tears against Dimitri... which might not exactly be the cleanest thing for Dimitri's shirt, but she's young enough to get away with it. ]

Mm...! O-Okay...! I'm... I'm gonna get lots of badges... so then I can show them when they come back...!

[nastyboy]

There we go. It really will be amazing when you get to show them. [Frankly, Dimitri's clothing at any given time has been subject to a lot worse than child snot and tears, so he doesn't really care.]

[All he does is lean down, pressing a kiss to her forehead.]

So where would you want to go first? Have you ever thought about the places in Kanto?

[candyapplechild]

Mm... I dunno... are there any pretty places there?

[ Meaning no, she hasn't really thought about it. Well, she hasn't really thought about it beyond the trip to all the gyms. ]

[nastyboy]

Oh, many pretty places! There is an amusement park there, and another city has a sprawling garden that anyone can visit... There's all sorts of incredible things there that we can go see, especially as it starts to get warmer.

[candyapplechild]

[ Eri's eyes light up at the mention of an amusement park. ]

An amusement park...!

[ Well, Dimitri's found what caught Eri's attention. ]

[nastyboy]

[There they go, he knew that'd get her. Dimitri finds his smiles able to come to him a little easier, now.]

That's right. And they have a water park over in Cerulean City! It is of course far too cold to go there now.... but why don't we go when it starts getting hotter?

They let all your Paliens play in the water too!

[candyapplechild]

A water park too...!

[ Oh now she's very excited... granted, they'll have to figure out what to do about the concerning amount of scars on Eri's body if they're going to go swimming, but that's something to figure out later. ]

[nastyboy]

That's right. There are a lot of amazing places to see in Kanto.

Do you want to look over it all with me? We can decide where to go first.

[candyapplechild]

Mm...! Thank you, Dimitri-sa—ah, um...

[ Eri's enthusiasm suddenly and abruptly turns to nervousness again... though before Dimitri can question her on it. ]

D... Dad...

[ The look on her face is as if she's asking if "this is okay" ]

1/shrug noises

[nastyboy]

Oh, it's no problem, Eri -

2/

[nastyboy]

[wh]

3/

[nastyboy]

[did she just-]

4/

[nastyboy]

[is he dad now]

5/

[nastyboy]

[AND HE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE TO GET INTO A HIGHLY RESTRICTIVE AND POTENTIALLY LOVELESS POLITICAL MARRIAGE TO WHATEVER NOBLE FAMILY WAS MOST ADVANTAGEOUS TO HIS REIGN AS KING OVER NOT JUST ONE COUNTRY BUT LIKE THREE WHOLE ONES THAT WERE TRYING TO KILL EACH OTHER?]

6/

[nastyboy]

[AND IT'S ERI]

7/

[nastyboy]

ERI WANTS TO CALL HIM DAD]

8/

[nastyboy]

his heart is doing stuff]

9/

[nastyboy]

[don't cry. don't cry. don't cry.]

[nastyboy]

[Okay. Deep breaths. Super don't cry. Dimitri manages a smile.]

We have all sorts of books. And I can go get us something to snack on while we look at all the different places we can go to. Okay?

[And then he can cry in the kitchen, or someone's shoulder. HE'S DAD? HE'S DAD NOW.]

[HE ALWAYS WANTED TO DAD.]

[candyapplechild]

[ Eri is looking up at him, clearly concerned because of the seeming lack of an obvious—at least to Eri—reaction to having worked up the nerve to call him "dad". ]

O-Oh! Um... okay!

[ Is he upset? Is he happy?? Eri has no clue. ]

[nastyboy]

[He's having a lot of emotions, Eri, it's okay, he's]

[probably fine]

Then lets go - I bet we can make something very yummy while we read. [With that, he hefts her up into his arms.]

[Although he does have to ask...]

Eri... Were you serious about calling me "dad"?

[candyapplechild]

[ Eri is still nervous, waiting for the acknowledgement of what she just called him... and so she wordlessly nods as he hefts her up into his arms. Then, at last, the acknowledgement comes... ]

U-Um...

[ And she's suddenly WAY more nervous than before. Still, it's something she's thought about for a long time... so even if literally none of her prior-planned words are in her head anymore, she still has to answer. ]

I-I um... I-I thought about it... for a long time...

[ Her small hands grip Dimitri's shirt. ]

I-I wasn't sure at first... b-because... u-um...

[ She feels her voice catch in the back of her throat, unable to speak the words that she wants to say... causing her to have to try and explain in a different way instead. Truth is, the idea of having a "dad" was a stressful one to Eri. Even if it was just a cover story, the closest thing she ever had to a dad was Overhaul himself... and Dimitri knows how well that went. More than that, she scarcely even remembers her blood-related father... the one who she was apparently at fault for having disappeared due to her power.

It's why, despite how long Eri's been here with everyone, Dimitri has determinedly remained "Dimitri-san" and so on. But more time passed, and more people ended up leaving... and the thought arrived in her mind. What if Dimitri disappeared one day as well?

The thought threatened to crush Eri's heart right then and there... but with it also came a new sense of clarity for how she felt about the man who has been taking care of her for so long now. Even longer than when she had been traveling with Ochako. ]

Y-Yeah... I'm serious...

[ She can't get all of that out just yet, it's all just too complicated even for Eri right now... but the important part is that if this isn't what it's like to have a dad... then she really doesn't have any idea what a dad is supposed to be. ]