(Serna reminds Kye a lot of his mom because she just kinda gives unconditional love and good hugs)
(:0 we should make it canon that Kye cried the first time he met her)
Kye allowed himself to be carried off, enjoying not having to walk. Ah yes, making father do all the heavy lifting. Not that he weighed much. And even if he did, Derlik was stronger than he looked.
He remembered the first few times he was allowed to be full size. He recalled the look in the god's eyes, noticing how thin he was. It was something that seemed to both concern him but not surprise him. There was also temptation there, Derlik still not being entirely too kind.
But now? He really didn't have to worry about going hungry. He now had 3 square meals a day in addition to snacks and the occasional drink.
(:00 yesssss. Serna would be so concerned for him.)
Derlik had always been tempted, every day after he had become attached to Kye. Sometimes he had given in, but he'd been so apologetic afterward… and the incidents had always dwindled until there were none anymore.
"So, shall we go get drunk?" Derlik said once they were out of Serna's house. The god put the cookies in one of his many pockets, humming some.
Kye giggled at the suggestion, shaking his head lightly. "Like I said, I'm not getting drunk so I can prove this was a good idea and that I can take care of Blake," he reminded in an almost sing-song tone. "But I'm not saying no to getting drinks though," he added quickly.
(Derlik decides he doesn't like the look of Kye's form after age 40 ish and just kills him only to grumpily bring him to Serna. Serna then goes to make Kye a new body and once they're away from Derlik, Kye just sobs and she's so concerned)
"Good, then." Derlik laughed a bit, holding Kye in one arm as they warped back to Earth. It was the modern age, this time still, in a small town in a very familiar place in a forest. Derlik hadn't meant for it- he'd just aimed for a random bar.
"O-Oh…"
(Oh no bby- Serna's kinda used to things like this, so she just sits there with Kye and lets him cry into her shoulder)
(ok i'm super confused what you're hinting at, this the same town where Blake was killed?)
(Yes it's definitely been centuries since Kye had first been born in the village in the time they stepped out in)
(I consider the word future being the 21st century when we do these, my bad lol)
(Mhm me too aha, very future 21st)
(So wait future Kye's village that's kinda in the past, or future past Blake's time period lmao)
(Okay, to clear up; this is the Twenty first century version of the village Kye was born in)
(These people are all, for the most part, descended from the people Kye knew)
(And yes they still worship/fear the god in the woods and don't like outsiders who don't know about him)
(oh lmao my brain couldn't think straight last night)
It took awhile for Kye to recognise the forest, but he didn't quite understand why Derlik's mood seemed to dampen. "Dad…? What's wrong? Are we not getting drinks?" he asked, still very confused. He looked around at the town a moment, seeming to now recognise the lay out of the land. There was the very same river he used to wash his clothes in. And just some few feet away was where his home once was. "Oh. I… I see now."
“What is it?” Blake asked, peeking his head out of the top of Kye’s pocket, mild confusion written across their face.
Kye generally liked talking about himself, similarly to his adoptive father. But being here, even in the future… it didn't sit right. In the woods back at home, he could ignore that the area was even there. It could be in whatever century out there, but their own time in the clearing. Just him and Derlik. And technically the lesser gods, but they stayed further in. And now Blake would be included too. Remembering that, the boy gave a weak smile.
"I… I'll tell you about it later. I don't want to think about it right now. Makes me sad," he hummed in reply.
Blake nodded, not wanting to upset Kye by pushing the topic, so he just slipped back into the bottom of Kye’s pocket.
Kye blinked as he watched the small human hide himself away. "You… you don't have to hide in there if you don't want to," he offered, hoping he didn't make Blake feel like he had wasn't to be seen.
“Oh okay.” They replied, looking up at Kye. “I don’t really mind either way but it’s nice that I don’t really have to.” Blake smiled softly.
Derlik was still looking around some, biting his lip.
"Do you want to go somewhere else?" He finally asked, looking down at Kye. Kye's old house wasn't there, none of the old buildings were. The layout, though, was almost identical… A house did stand where Kye's home used to, and Derlik had to hold back a reaction when he saw a little boy run out the door to go play in the river.
Kye visibly flinched at seeing the same thing Derlik did. He didn't want to be sad right now. He was supposed to be happy. Happy for his new friend. Happy for his dad. Happy for himself. Just… happy.
"Y-yeah. I think that's a good idea," he replied softly, still sounding somewhat somber.
Derlik turned, then, already warping them to the next, truly random town.
"I love you," the god said softly, hugging Kye close carefully and kissing his head. "I love you so much, baby boy." Anything to distract Kye from what they had just seen, from the memories it brought up. How… cruel, how horrible Derlik had been in those early days. The choice, the pain, everything.
Kye didn't even fight the nickname Derlik had used. He had to try and focus on making himself forget. He had to push it away. If he didn't think about it, then it wasn't there. "I love you too," he replied softly, leaning into the embrace. He had to remember the good things. Kye remembered the nights where Derlik had cuddled him to sleep. He also thought about the time he had first tried on modern clothing. Derlik had tried giving him a skirt to match one he wore a lot, but Kye wasn't a fan of it. It felt too open when he ran. He also didn't think it looked right on him in his opinion. The two of them had a good laugh about it that day.
"I love you a lot, dad," he said, already sounding better. He had to sound happy. He couldn't allow himself to be sad for too long. He was blessed to be here. He should be happy.
