TRP: Ba'ob, Goro and Hansel (Skull)

[Setting: Sitting room in castle, day 203.]

Ba'ob had explored the castle pretty thoroughly by now. Except for the locked doors. Might come back to those though. Later. For now he found a room with a fireplace, and pretty soon a fire. Ba'ob liked fires. They were nice and warm. Kept the chill out.

There was a nice couch in there too. Or used to be a nice couch. Ba'ob had torn it open with his knife and scattered its fluffy insides everywhere. But that was tiring, so now he was lying down in the middle of the mess, using the wolf as a pillow to take a nap.

Lina:

"You can't actually make me sleep," Goro said. Hansel had stopped responding to him, but Goro kept trying, anyway. "What are you going to do, hit me until you knock me out? Yeah, what do you think of that? I'm not even that tired, asshole. That'll be your only option. Knocking my head in. You looking forward to that, you sick bastard?" He beat his fists against Hansel's back. "God, I love you so much, you motherfucker. Put me down."

When they reached the second floor sitting room, Hansel came to an abrupt halt. "What?" Goro said, trying to push himself up and twist around so he could see. "What is it?"

Izzy:

Huh.

"Wolf," Hansel said mildly.

He had his axes on him, but it was kind of just napping. And that weird elf kid was napping on it. Which didn't make things less strange, but it was pretty goddamn adorable. He wasn't entirely sure what to do here.

Abby:

Ba'ob sat up when he heard noises. Good thing too. It was stupid orc from earlier. An' he had that elf with him too. The one Ombre liked. Ba'ob bared his teeth and growled. And then used people noises. "Here first," he declared defiantly.

Lina:

"Oh yeah," Goro said, recognizing Ba'ob's voice. "That kid. The wolf's fine, don't worry. The kid, you gotta watch out for."

Izzy:

"Huh. Hey, y'know this is that elf kid I told you about, from Skyport. One that bit me." He shifted to let Goro down. "We were here first," he told the kid. "Our fuckin' castle."

Abby:

"My couch!" Ba'ob glared at the two of them, shuffling so his feet was under him. Easier to run. "My room!"

Wolf didn't do anything. Wolf just looked up, and lay back down. Traitor. Ba'ob growled at her. She smacked him in the face with her tail.

Lina:

"Oh my god," Goro muttered. He bent over slowly to pick up a piece of the couch fluff. Then he just stared at it for a while.

Izzy:

Hahah. God, this fucking kid. Fucking checked out that he had a pet wolf, or some shit. Maybe he was the wolf's pet, actually. Ah, that was kind of sad. Wolves didn't live for any amount of time, next to elves.

He met the kid on his own terms, patiently saying, "Nope. Our couch. Our room."

Abby:

Ba'ob blew a raspberry. That's what he thought about their room.

Lina:

Goro shook his head and gestured to the couch. "Shame. Ombre's gonna be awful sad about this."

Abby:

Hey. No. Was mean elf trying to manipulate Ba'ob? Ba'ob didn't like that. He chucked that skull he drug around sometimes at the elf's head.

Izzy:

What in the fuck. Who the fuck carried around a skull and threw it at people? All right, this kid was fucking bizarre, but he hadn't seen that coming, exactly. He automatically stepped in front of Goro, grabbing his arm, and glared down at the kid.

"Hey. You fucking bite me if you want, but don't throw shit at him." He pointed a finger at Ba'ob sternly. "Listen, you're real goddamn cute, but I will toss you outta my fuckin' castle, you understand?"

Lina:

Goro was wincing and rubbing his forehead. Goddamn. What the fuck. He squinted down at the skull, and bent down to pick it up and examine.

Abby:

Uh oh. Ba'ob flinched and ducked behind the couch, glaring over it at the stupid orc. He wasn't happy. Protective of the elf. Hmmm... "No promises," he said. Studying the stupid orc. What'd he think about that?

Izzy:

Hansel narrowed his eyes. Kid seemed pretty spooked. He'd gotten that way in the port, too. Had to understand there wouldn't be any throwing fuckin' skulls at people, though. "All right, no promises about not kickin' you out then." He said it more kindly, though.

Lina:

"Is this a gnome skull?" Goro wondered aloud, half laughing. "The fuck."

Abby:

Ba'ob was silent a moment, continuing to study the orc. Threatening to kick him out- wondered how much of that 'kick' was literal. He glanced at the wolf briefly, still dozing, like nothing was wrong. She was here. Ba'ob wasn't alone. Two on two but not alone. That was okay. Yeah.

Guess he'd figure out how much of that 'kick' was literal. Ba'ob darted out from the couch and lunged for his skull.

Izzy:

Hansel saw the kid thinking. Little shit. God, it was hard to find him that intimidating, though. He knew some bullshit was coming judging by that look, and managed a quick sidestep to put himself in Ba'ob's path before he could reach Goro, just sort of letting him collide with himself, instead. Kid was smaller than Jonn; didn't make a dent.

"Listen," Hansel said.

Lina:

"Ah, I think he just wants this back," Goro said. He reached around Hansel to hold the skull where Ba'ob could reach it.

Abby:

Ba'ob grabbed the skull, took two steps back, and growled. "Mine!" he declared, and then ran back behind the couch again. Wolf just kept napping.

Izzy:

"Shouldn't throw shit you wanna keep," Hansel told him. "Hey." He turned partially to Goro, keeping his eyes on the kid. "Hey, when Leigh was a baby, he'd drop things on purpose just to make us hand'em back to him, and he'd cry if we didn't. I'm talkin', like, not even a toddler yet. How do elves work? Is this little shit a fucking toddler? God."(edited)

Lina:

Goro snorted and laughed. "Nah, beautiful, he's like... I don't know, I've seen some high elf kids who looked the same as him and acted a whole lot better. This one's just raised by wolves, or something."

Abby:

"Wolves nice!" Ba'ob declared from behind the couch. "Nicer than elves." And of course his voice had to get all squeaky-cracky. "And orcs," Ba'ob added petulantly. Stupid voice. All broken. Ba'ob needed voice.

Izzy:

Hansel nodded, covering a snort with his hand. Oh, god. God, that was fucking adorable. He really shouldn't think things like that were cute, but god, look at him -- all fuckin' hiding behind a couch, holding a skull. The fuck.

He cleared his throat. "All right, well, I won't argue with you, kid, 'cause this seems like a pretty fuckin' nice wolf. Fair."

Lina:

"Her name's Wolf," Goro offered.

Abby:

Ba'ob glared. "Wolves don't need names!" he yelled. Thought about chucking the skull again, but stupid orc was blocking the way. He settled on an insult. "Buttface!" Cutting his gaze back towards the orc. Wondering what he'd think about that.

Izzy:

Hansel snorted again. He couldn't cover it this time. "Oh, my god. Fuckin' ... deep cut, there, kid. You got'im."

Lina:

Goro hid his face in the crook of his elbow, laughing. "What would Ombre think?" he tried again.

Abby:

"Ombre not here," Ba'ob snapped back. Didn't like elf. And orc was laughing at him. (Guess it was better than being mad.) Still though.

Yeah Ba'ob chucked the skull at the orc's head, this time.

Izzy:

"Ow." Hansel winced and scooped the skull up quickly. "All right. Mine now, fucker."

Abby:

Ba'ob was quiet, studying the orc, craning his neck to look at the elf. Hm. Yeah he was gonna go for it. Ba'ob vaulted over the couch and ran up to kick the orc in the shins, grabbing for the skull.

Izzy:

"Again, ow," Hansel said, jerking the skull up to hold it over his head. He did that shit to Jonn sometimes. Kid just fucking started climbing him, after a while, though.

Abby:

Okay that was a problem. Orc was too tall. "Too tall!" Ba'ob complained, kicking him in the shins again. Didn't get mad when he did that though. Not like when Ba'ob went after elf. Was that what made orc mad? Attacking the others?

Ba'ob glanced towards the elf. Thinking. Maybe he'd test that out, make sure...

Lina:

Goro smiled and shook his head. "Not a good idea, buddy."

Izzy:

Hansel narrowed his eyes. "Hey. Little man. How about this, huh? If you can fucking behave yourself for a day and not bite people or tear shit up or whatever, you can have your toy back." He waved the skull at Ba'ob. Fuckin' positive reinforcement.

Abby:

"Don't believe you." Orcs. He shifted restlessly. People didn't like getting attacked. Orc didn't like it when Ba'ob went after elf. Wolf was here though. Sleeping but here. It'd be fine. Ba'ob'd survived worse. He darted around the big stupid orc, going after the elf again. Punch him maybe.

Lina:

Damn, the kid was quick. Goro didn't think he'd be able to get around Hansel, but next think he knew the little shit's fist was flying at his nose.

"Ow, fuck!" Goro's head snapped back and he threw his hands up to shield his face, taking a few steps back. He tasted blood in the back of his throat. Hot damn.

Izzy:

Hansel's jaw clenched. Ba'ob was a fucking kid. And a fucked up one. He didn't deserve the kind of threats and violence just about anyone else'd get for fuckin' punching Hansel's boyfriend, but still.

He grabbed the kid's sleeve to jerk him further away from Goro and make him look back to Hansel, then said, "All right," dropped the skull, and stomped on it, crushing it.

Abby:

Ba'ob felt a thrill of triumph at managing to get the elf. And then the orc had him. Ba'ob flinched, suppressing a whine in the back of his throat. Not yet not yet. Wolf was sitting up now. Looking concerned.

Another, harder flinch when the orc crushed Ba'ob's skull. (Could have been the one on his shoulders.) But he let go. Ba'ob scrambled back, to the wolf, gripped a handful of her fur. She whined a little- it hurt Ba'ob knew- but he needed it. Orc got him, orc let him go. Ba'ob was okay. For now.

Lina:

"Youch," Goro said, eyeing the broken skull under Hansel's foot. He sniffed and glanced at his fingers. Yup, nose dripping blood. He went back to holding it. "Told you that wasn't a good idea, kid."

Izzy:

Hansel kept a close watch on the wolf to see if it was going to attack, but it seemed more or less relaxed for now. Kid was freaked out, which he didn't like, but goddamn. Couldn't really talk sense into him, seemed like. "Turns out actions have consequences, huh," he said.

Abby:

Ba'ob glared at the orc. "Knew that," he muttered. Rubbed at his arm, where metal hid under a ragged cloth. Had expected worse though. Couple bruises at least. Maybe that'd been better, bruises healed, skull didn't.

Lina:

"I could fix that thing up with a mending cantrip," Goro said in Orcish. "If you wanna offer him another chance."

Izzy:

"He's already had a couple. I think he's good."

Abby:

Seemed like everything was calming down. Elf was saying something about fixing the skull, orc didn't want him to. Whatever, Ba'ob'd just get a new skull. He collapsed on the floor, hugging the wolf and watching them suspiciously. Was too calm. Especially after all that. "What it take?" he asked abruptly.

Lina:

Goro squinted. "What the what now?"

Abby:

"No. No hits." Ba'ob hugged the wolf a little tighter. She licked his face, trying to comfort him. It helped. "Why. Why no hits. What it take."

Izzy:

Hansel gave the kid a deeply troubled look, taken aback. "Eldath. I mean, what're you, fuckin' fourteen? I'm not gonna fucking hit you. Just don't want you to goddamn hit anyone else."

Abby:

Yeah. Right. "Don't believe you," Ba'ob muttered again, looking off at the wall.

Lina:

Goro shared a concerned glance with Hansel, then looked back to Ba'ob. "Hey, who's been hitting you?"

Izzy:

Hansel took Goro's sleeve and tugged him down to sit, putting them on Ba'ob's level. That'd seemed like it made the kid feel a bit safer, before. Shit, he ... felt bad about smashing the skull, now. The two things weren't really related, it just made him fucking uncomfortable.

Abby:

Ba'ob warily scooted back a little. Plenty of space. This was okay. Wolf was here. "Lotsa people," he muttered. "Specially elves. And orcs."

Izzy:

Hansel winced. "All right, well. Not this orc. Or elf. Listen, you don't gotta believe me, okay, kid? I don't mind proving it to you. You just can't fucking threaten my family, get it?"

Abby:

Ba'ob wasn't convinced. Met a lot more mean orcs than he had nice ones. If he'd met any nice ones. "Your family don't threaten me," he said. "Don't let hit. Not alone anymore." He nudged the wolf. She gave a happy yip and nudged him back. "Supposed to growl," Ba'ob grumbled fondly, scratching her ears. Wolf was always there, loyal, safe. Yeah. Wolf was great.

Lina:

"Nah, we're not a hitting kind of a family, anyway." Goro frowned to himself, pausing to consider whether that was actually true. Well, actually, there'd been some hitting. But y'know, it seemed like that was mostly directed at Goro, not other people. Point still stood.

Izzy:

"Kid. Ba'ob. No one in the castle's gonna threaten you unless you start shit with'em," Hansel said. "D'you remember who the first person to start throwing things was, here, huh?"

Abby:

Ba'ob bared his teeth and growled. Who cared. Ba'ob was--

Ba'ob was getting knocked over and pinned down by the wolf is what he was. "Hey!" he yelled indigently. "Up up!" The wolf didn't budge. Just started licking his face, wagging her tail. She thought it was play time.

March 12, 2019

Lina:

Huh. Really was no joke that the wolf was the more tame one of the two. Thank god she was there, at least. Goro watched them for a moment, then shrugged at Hansel. He linked their arms together and rested his head on Hansel's shoulder. "This has me thinking maybe I need a fuckin' nap after all. Think it was getting clocked in the head that did it."

Izzy:

"Hmm." Strange fucking sight, a wild animal playing with an elf like a puppy. Still pretty fucking adorable, though. Hansel shook his head. He'd ... come back to this later. He bet Mishka wasn't fucking thrilled about the new houseguest. They'd talk about it, or something.

For now, though, he just stood back up, pulling Goro along as he always did. "Yeah. Be great if you had healing magic, or some shit, right?" He hoisted Goro up into his arms again, watching the kid for a few moments more as he carried Goro off. "If only."(edited)

Abby:

[END]

Title: Skull

Summary: Hansel and Goro come across Ba'ob post destroying a couch. Hansel reprimands him for being violent, smashing his favorite toy skull, then he and Goro are troubled by Ba'ob demanding to know what it'll take for them to hit him. They promise not to.