Meeting the Family

In this Our World story, Selphius and Helix come to stay with the Dash family.

This is a transcript from Discord.

## Story

```
Later in the evening of the day where New Babylon fell from the sky and Eggman's empire was toppled, we check in on the home of the Dash family. Father and daughter scurry around, tidying up the house.

Hannah:
"More advance notice would've been nice..."

Dr. Dash:
"Yes. It would've been very helpful to have this in mind while toppling an empire."

Hannah:
"..."

Dr. Dash:
"Sorry. Just... trying to keep things lighthearted."

Hannah:
*Nod.*

Dr. Dash:
"And I'm sorry for springing this on you, but Calias said they didn't have anywhere else to go."

Hannah:
"Yeah, I get it..."

A gust of wind is heard, followed by rapid knocking at the door.*

Hannah:
*Turns eyes to the sound.*

Dr. Dash:
*Jokingly.* "Now who could that be?"
*Opens the door.*

Hannah:
*Listening from around the corner.*

Calias:
"Hey, Dr. Dad! Sorry for the short notice, but..."

Selphius:
*Selphius and her father, Helix, enter.*

Dr. Dash:
"It's quite alright. I'm always happy to help."

Calias:
"This is my friend Selphie! And her old man, Helix."

Selphius:
"Yes, I am Selphius the Caladrius. You must be 'Dr. Dad'?"

Dr. Dash:
"Haha. That's me. But you can call me Dr. Dash."

Selphius:
"Understood."

Helix:
"A doctor? You are a man of science? I knew it!"

Calias:
"Oh, yeah. Dr. Dad actually had a part in creating me!"

Helix:
"Yes, that is how offspring works."

Selphius:
"No... Father, Calias is a clone of King Nihil."

Helix:
"...I knew that."

Dr. Dash:
*Ahem.* "Well, it is nice to meet you both."

Selphius:
*Walks up and hugs Dr. Dash.* "Nice to meet you as well! Thank you for letting us stay."

Helix:
*Joins in on the hug.*

Calias:
"Oh, yeah. They're huggers."

Hannah:
*Happy.*

Dr. Dash:
"Fine by me. And don't mention it, it's great to have you."

Calias:
"Yeah! Oh! You gotta meet my sis, she's gonna love you! HANNAH!!"

Dr. Dash:
"You don't need to yell, Calias. She's right here."

Hannah:
*Steps out from behind the corner and puts on a smile.* "Hi."

Selphius:
*Goes over to Hannah and hugs her as well.* "Very nice to meet you, Hannah. From what Calias says, I'm sure we'll get along just fine."

Hannah:
*Returns the hug.*

Soon, the group has settled in the living room. Calias is currently in the kitchen making hot chocolate for everyone.

Selphius:
*Telling the story of their adventure.* "--And then we got into the Watcher's observatory and saved Calias from one of the Guardians... Honestly, he's hopeless on his own."

Hannah:
"..."
"We all are... But we're not alone."

Calias:
*Walks in carrying four mugs and balancing one on his head.* "I would be offended, if that wasn't true, Selphie."

Helix:
*Gets up and takes the mug off his head.* "Here, allow me to help you."

Calias:
"Thanks, Mr. C."

Dr. Dash:
"Yeah, we did just clean up."

Selphius:
*Yawns.* "Well... It's been a long two days. I think I shall finish the story tomorrow, if that's alright with you."

Dr. Dash:
"Of course. Rest all you need."

Calias:
"Speaking of which... What DAY IS IT?!?"

Hannah:
"Friday."

Calias:
"EGGMAN TOOK OVER THE WORLD IN ONE DAY!?!"

Hannah:
"Pretty much... Just brainwashed everyone in a moment."

Calias:
"Honestly, it felt like I was gone for a bit longer than that..."

Hannah:
"Um, yeah? It's been two weeks."

Calias:
"..."
"*TWO WEEKS.* TWO WEEKS!?!?"

Dr. Dash:
"Well, once you factor in the relativity of the time and the speeds you had to be traveling at, the flow of time becomes very unpredictable."

Calias:
"...Okay... So what you're saying is it's been two weeks here, while it was like, two days on New Babylon?"

Hannah:
"I guess so."

Dr. Dash:
"It's hard to say, exactly. Not without more data to extrapolate from. But more or less... Yes, that's what I'm saying."

Calias:
"Gotcha... Wait a second... Oh no..."

Hannah:
"What?"

Calias:
"I told Star I would call her... She probably thinks I don't like her anymore or something!"

Dr. Dash:
"I'm sure she'll understand, Calias. A lot has happened."

Calias:
"GAH! Sorry to bail! I'm gonna go give her a call." *He dashes to his room.*

Selphius:
"That was strange..."

Dr. Dash:
"Oh. Star is Calias's, uh... They're... Hm..."
*Looks to Hannah.*

Hannah:
"They went on a date a couple days before everything happened."

Helix:
*The Caladriuses just stare at Hannah.*
"What is a date?"

Dr. Dash:
"I guess you could say it's a sort of earth [Mobius?] mating custom. Though, nowadays making it about marriage is considered old-fashioned."

Helix:
"I see... So he's already spoken for."

Dr. Dash:
"Well, like I was saying, one date doesn't normally mean much. That said, Calias does seem rather... invested."

Hannah:
"I dunno if Stripes feels the same..."

Dr. Dash:
"Mm..."

Selphius:
"He does seem to put his heart into everything... He could get very hurt..."

Dr. Dash:
"You aren't wrong. But we can't make decisions for him." (And some things you have to learn the hard way...)

Calias:
*Meanwhile, Calias lies on his race car bed and makes a call.* "Please don't be mad... Please don't be mad..."

Larry:
"Hel-lo?"

Calias:
"Oh! Larry, my man! How ya doing? It's Calias."

Larry:
"Oh, heyyy! How've you been? You looking to talk to Stripes, maybe?"

Calias:
"Um, yeah. If that's all good. I know it's kind of late..."

Larry:
"Of course! She's right here."

Calias:
*There's an awkward pause on the other end. Cal blinks.*

Stripes:
*Deep breath.* "Hiiii Neon... What's up?"

Calias:
"Star! I'm so glad you answered. I'm so sorry I didn't call sooner, I was... caught up in some stuff..."

Stripes:
"Uh-huh. That's cool. I've been pretty busy myself..."

Calias:
"Oh yeah? Do anything cool lately?"

Stripes:
"Um... Yeah, you could say that."

Calias:
"Yeah? Guess what! I got to go to space!"

Stripes:
"Really? What, uh... What were you doing up there?"

Calias:
"Saving an ancient civilization from an oppressive cyborg king. Y'know, a normal Friday."

Stripes:
"The fun never ends with you does it?"

Calias:
"Nope! When's your next race? I wanna cheer you on!"

Stripes:
"It's the off-season right now, actually. I've been up to... other things."

Calias:
"Like what?"

Stripes:
*Sighs.* "Have you been on the internet lately?"

Calias:
"Erm... No? Been in space remember?"

Stripes:
"Right, okay... Okay, I'm gonna be blunt about this. But you can take it, right?"

Calias:
"Um... Yeah? There's not much I can't take."

Stripes:
"Great. While you were gone I started dating someone else."

Calias:
"Oh, okay." *It takes a second for him to process...*
"..."
"Oh..."

Stripes:
"He's another superstar. Kind of a big deal. It's been all over the internet. I would've tried to tell you, but things happened really fast."

Calias:
"...Um... It's okay... How long... How long have you been...?"

Stripes:
"Not long. You know how fast I move, right?"

Calias:
"Yeah... Would I know this guy?"

Stripes:
"Probably. The name Needlemouse ring a bell?"

Calias:
"As is Maurice Needlemouse?... The movie star?"

Stripes:
"That's the one."

Calias:
"...Huh. I... don't know what to say..."

Stripes:
"Yeah... At least it was fun while it lasted, right?"

Calias:
"...Yeah... I... wish it could have lasted longer..."

Stripes:
"This was your first... relationship like this, wasn't it?"

Calias:
*He nods, holding back tears, before realizing she can't see him.* "...Yes."

Stripes:
*Sigh.* "Well, I'm sorry it had to be me. But, to be honest, this is how things tend to go, so..."

Calias:
"...Please, don't feel bad... I'll be okay. I'm gonna let you go now... Okay?"

Stripes:
"Okay. I'll... see ya around."

Calias:
*Tries to sound like his usual, cocky self.* "Yep... See you around."
*He hangs up, after hesitating for a second.*
"..."
"..."
*The tears start flowing. Try as he might, Calias can't control them.*
"Heh... Why am I crying?... I'm Calias the freakin' Phoenix!... This is... nothing..."
"..."
"Oh, who am I kidding?! Not even dying was this painful..."

Hannah:
*Speaking from outside the door.*
"Goodnight, Cal."

Calias:
"..." *His eyes are red and puffy, he tries his best to mask his hurt.* "G-goodnight, Sis... Don't come in, okay?"

Hannah:
*Can tell by the tone of his voice it didn't go well.*
"You sure you don't need a hug?"

Calias:
*Doesn't respond.*

Hannah:
"Well... I'm here if you need me, Cal..."

Calias:
"..." *Thinking she's begun to walk away, Cal calls out.* "...Hannah?"

Hannah:
"Yeah?"

Calias:
"Maybe... I could use that hug..."

Hannah:
*Cracks open the door.*

Calias:
*Inside, Calias looks like an absolute mess.*

Hannah:
*Closing the door behind me, I kneel in front of him and give him a big hug, starting to tear up myself.*

Calias:
*He buries his head in her shoulder.* "...Don't cry, sis... You're gonna make me feel even worse..."

Hannah:
"..."
*Continues hugging for as long as Cal wants to.*

Calias:
*Cal continues to sob for a while... But soon, he wears himself out, falling asleep in Hannah's arms.*

Hannah:
*Sets him in his bed and tucks him in.*
*Whispering.* "Goodnight, Cal."
*Turns off the light on my way out.*
*Goes to my own room.*

Selphius:
*Has taken residence on the bean bag chair in Hannah's room.*
"How is Calias?"

Hannah:
"Not great... He's asleep now."

Selphius:
"Was it as we feared?"

Hannah:
*Nods.*

Selphius:
"I see... I wish there was something I could do for him..."
"..."
"Hannah, might I ask you something?"

Hannah:
"Yeah?"

Selphius:
"You and Calias are like me, correct? Your mother is... gone."

Hannah:
"Yeah. Well, Cal never had a mother. But, yeah..."

Selphius:
"Did she die? If you do not mind me asking..."

Hannah:
*Nods.* "It was many years ago."

Selphius:
"My mother was killed for standing up for the Cryptids of New Babylon. I was very young at the time... I've always wondered what it would be like if I had grown up with her in my life..."

Hannah:
"No telling..."

Selphius:
"True... I was just thinking about her... She would be so happy to see what has happened to New Babylon... She would have liked Calias..."

Hannah:
*Nods.*
"It sounds like you carried on her legacy well."

Selphius:
"...Perhaps. Thank you, Hannah. I needed that..."

Hannah:
*Smiles.*

Selphius:
"I think I'm going to go to sleep now... There are many things to do tomorrow."

Hannah:
"Yeah. Goodnight."
*Lays down.* "Oh, so you know... I've been having nightmares... a lot lately. So um, if I wake you up, I'm sorry..."

Selphius:
*Has already fallen asleep.*

Hannah:
"..." (Impressive.)
*Turns off the light and tries to do so myself.*
*Sleepiness weighs heavy on me, but so does everything that's happened today...*

And as the night goes on, thoughts and dreams race through the heads of our tired heroes... Heartbreak, joy, reminiscence... They're all part of being alive. While the past and present can hurt, tomorrow is another day...

```

## Characters

*In order of appearance:*

* Hannah Dash
* Bradley Dash
* Calias the Phoenix
* Selphius the Caladrius
* Helix the Caladrius
* Lawrence Lazertongue
* Stripes the Star

## Participants

* HannahDash
* Pip9766
* Captainclay55