Serna held Blake in her hands, the small soul looking even smaller compared to the hands of an eight-foot flaming horned goddess.
"We'll be back soon dearies!" she said to Derlik and Kye, turning.
She carried Blake into her laboratory, bringing them to what looked like a scanner first.
"Now, let's get a good idea of what your body should look like, darling."
Derlik laughed when Kye climbed into his lap.
"Comfortable?" He asked, ruffling his son's hair with a smile. With Serna out of the room, he reached back to the table, offering Kye one of the hard candies. Serna would have a heart attack if she knew anyone was eating those, and she'd probably make too many baked goods to make up for it.
That just meant she gave the extras away, of course, and Derlik knew it.
He nodded. “Did they ever tell you what body they want me to have?” They asked, not knowing himself what was in store for them.
"Well, I'm to assume a human body," Serna said, chuckling softly. "Or did you have something else in mind, darling?" Serna set Blake inside the machine she had walked to, turning to the operation board on the side.
“Oh no that’s perfectly fine with me, ma’am.” Blake replied. I mean you have to show manners when talking to a goddess, right? Especially when that goddess is giving you a body.
Serna held back a chuckle.
"The only one who has to call me ma'am is Derlik, darling," the goddess assured. "And that's because he can never seem to behave himself…" Shaking her head, Serna turned back to the controls.
"Now, I need you to hold nice and still for me, alright darling?"
Kye nodded, taking up more space than he technically needed. He hummed, content that things were going well, only to try and playfully push away Derlik's hand. He took the small piece of candy that was just within reach, popping it into his mouth. What was this one exactly? Butterscotch. That's what it was called. With all the sugar he'd had over the years, he still couldn't pick a favorite.
Derlik chuckled when Kye pushed his hand away wrapping his arms around the human's waist and pulling him into a hug.
"Big ol' butthead," he said, laughing some as he teased. He laughed some, setting his head on Kye's and trapping him in the cuddles.
“Okay, I can do that.” They replied, remaining as still as possible so Serna could quite literally work her magic. He didn’t want to accidentally mess up this process.
"You're the one who's big," Kye joked back, referring to his height. He would always be smaller than Derlik and the other gods. He was used to it, really, but that didn't stop the height jokes from happening. He weakly attempted to wiggle free, laughing as well. The boy then paused a moment, thinking of Blake in the other room. "Dad…? What'll happen when he dies…?"
Serna hummed a tune under her breath as the machine started up, the pieces turning around Blake as it started to scan them.
"Once we're done with this, which will take less than a minute, you can decide if there are any modifications you'd like to make darling."
Derlik fell quiet as Kye began to speak, tilting his head a bit as he thought.
"I'm not sure," the god admitted. "We could always just keep having him around, but I haven't Claimed him. I suppose we'll have to wait and see, then, when the time comes."
“Okay.” They said softly, feeling a spark of excitement at that. He didn’t want any major changes, he never had that type of desire, but there were some small things that he’d prefer to change. Things that likely no one noticed but them.
For some reason, Kye's soul felt uneasy at hearing that Derlik would consider Claiming him. He felt protective over Blake already. He wasn't supposed to have died and have been taken away, so it was only right Kye make up for it. He had been in the same boat once. Maybe that was why.
"Okay…"
Serna went back to humming, smiling some as the scan of Blake appeared on the screen before her.
"Okay, all done! Now, what is it you might like changed, darling?" Serna reached over, gently picking the soul up so they could see the screen with the layout for their new body as well.
"You'll be the one with the final say in it, how's that?" Derlik held Kye close, looking down. Derlik didn't quite see it the same way- if someone died, even by his hand, their time had come to an end.
That, and he had collected hundreds of souls over the years for uses in various ways, including a couple of the gifts he had given Kye.
Shh, the boy still didn't know that and Derlik planned to keep it that way.
“Um not too much really.” He said quietly, thinking before beginning to point out a few minor things. But when combined together, they’d help Blake look more androgynous, and that after all, was his end goal wasn’t it?
Serna nodded as Blake began to point out things, consulting him as she made the altercations.
"I think you'll look quite fine once you're in your body, darling," Serna said, not using a more gendered term on purpose.
“Thank you. Thank you very much.” He replied, feeling very much at ease around the goddess. He could see why Kye talked so fondly of her.
"You're welcome, darling!" Serna smiled as she lifted Blake up again, moving through the laboratory again. She hugged, going up to what could be seen as a modified 3D printer. With the push off a button, she started the printer up, watching a moment as the new body was being built from the bottom up.
"Now, while we wait for that, there are a few things you need to do to get ready to go in it, darling."
Kye hummed a moment before nodding. He would think about it and Derlik wouldn't interfere. He didn't like the idea of having that choice, but he brushed it away. He would ask Blake their opinion and then "make the choice." That sounded a lot nicer. Plus, that was years away anyways.
“Okay, what is it?” He asked, peeling his eyes away from what was a really interesting process to his science obsessed brain. They really were intrigued by…well all of this. He’d never imagine he’d see or experience things like this.
"Now, while we wait," Derlik said, changing the subject, "what shall we do once Blake has their body? I say we go clubbing and get roaring drunk." Derlik chuckled, but it was an earnest suggestion.
"Well, while you are technically dead, your soul had a few ties to it's old body still. So, we gotta wash them away, darling." Serna came to a small pool to one side of the lab, barely the size of a large bowl. She moved to set Blake in it, her hands so around them as water flowed in up to the soul's chest. It was a comfortable temperature, like being in a hot spring on a cold winter's day.
They nodded, growing a bit nervous. But they knew it must be done. Plus, he’d be getting a body he actually liked, so he didn’t mind too much having to let go of his old one. They were perfectly comfortable in Serna’s hands, waiting patiently.
Serna went back to humming the song from before, a lullaby. She gently rubbed her thumb into Blake's back, cleaning away the threads only she could see with the water. She kept her touch gentle, the water still warm with her touch.
Blake could almost feel it, the remaining ties to their old life being cut. But then they just told themselves they were being ridiculous and dramatic. Regardless, he didn’t mention it to Serna.
Kye frowned. "You know I don't like going to those places… It's too loud," he replied, remembering what happened last time. He felt scared because he could barely hear his own thoughts. Derlik had even gotten distracted once, leaving him in a sea of people.
"I don't mind having a few drinks though," Kye added, trying to keep the mood light. He promised himself he wouldn't have too much. He was supposed to be responsible with Blake. He couldn't blow it the first day, much less the first few hours.
"Drinks it is. You remember that one bar I took you to? It was quiet, it should be perfect." Derlik smiled lightly, hugging Kye. He really did feel horrible about last time- need been distracted by men and booze, and he'd let his son get pulled away from him.
Serna lifted Blake up, after a while, setting him down on a towel and wrapping him up a bit like one would a child as she dried him off.
"You're body should be done soon, darling," the goddess noted, smiling softly.
((I vote that Serna should now have custody of all the claimed souls lmao))
“Okay. Thank you.” Blake was, understandably, very excited. And now his nerdiness had finally caught up with him. “How do you do that anyway? Make bodies? I-If you can’t talk about it though it’s fine.” They said all in a rush, very quickly getting embarrassed.
(can we make it canon that Kye sees how attached Blake gets to Serna and Kye picks to ask Serna to claim him if Blake would want that)
(also another canon thing I'd like to happen: when Derlik has to go do something that he can't/shouldn't take Kye along for, he does babysitting rotations between Serna and Marcos. Marcos is only included eventually, after Kye decides he wants to try because Wren is there)
(:0 I love all of it)
"Oh, I can talk about it! I'm glad you're so interested, darling." Serna moved to it down, glancing up. Blake's body was halfway done, so they had plenty of time.
"Well, after shall I start… With the bodies, every living organism is made up of the basic building blocks, yes? My machine is able to combine the materials needed to build a body from the ground up, ask the way down to individual strands of DNA and molecules."
