Sky Sector Catch-All: May

[wrathfulkhan]

Characters: Everyone!
Date: Throughout May
Location: The brand spanking new Sky Sector
Situation: Moving in, getting settled...housewarming parties?
Warnings/Rating: None anticipated. Please don't blow the new houses up. We just built them!

The Palace of Landed Sky has been largely demolished, and a good section of the land has been repurposed as Foreigner housing, should they choose to move into the new dwellings. But there's not just housing - there are shops and artisans and a space that may become part of the university. The new sector of the city is abuzz with possibilities.

Comments

[bigdamnhiro]

[Hiro's instinct is to seize up and pull away after about two seconds, but he wrestles that instinct away, stays still and lets Tadashi get his hug time in, the only movement from him the slow rise and fall of his shoulders as he breathes in and out. If it's what Tadashi needs, he's okay with it.

He shrugs and lets out a quiet heh.]

I haven't even done anything. Just yelled and dropped the bunk bed.

[He wonders if this is anything like when they lost their parents. He only has nebulous memories of being cranky and fussy and three, and wondering when mom and dad were coming home, and everyone else being sad for what felt like an eternity...he's not three anymore, though. He can do more now than he could then.

He hesitates to ask, for a second, but it's not like he can make things any worse -]

What helped you, when mom and dad died?

[anewangle]

You started a conversation.

[And even if it was with yelling and dropping things, it's still more than Tadashi could do.

Thankfully for Hiro's awkward teenage aversion to affection, Tadashi doesn't hold the hug for too long. Longer than baby bro would prefer, probably, but he pulls back in time for Hiro's question.

What helped him then? He doesn't like thinking back on those months immediately after their parents death. There are some things he doesn't remember (understandable considering his age), but a surprising amount is still clear, the most vivid memories coming in short vignettes.

Gray skies and rain at the cemetery. Days drifting by like slow fog, the hours muddled and seeming so much longer than they ever could have been. Crying from the kitchen late at night and aimless chatter at breakfast in the morning.

And a broken toy robot...

Tadashi smiles down at the floor for a moment before lifting his gaze to Hiro again.]

You did. And Aunt Cass, but-... You know all those robots toys you had at home? The ones you pretended you didn't play with when you thought no one was looking?

[bigdamnhiro]

Wait, what?

[He blinks a couple of times, staring at Tadashi in confusion - maybe a little embarrassment. This was not the way he was expecting this conversation to go and also he didn't think anybody knew about that. He'd thought he was keeping that on the down-low and away from the prying eyes of older brothers who might use it as blackmail material one day.

Needless to say, he's denying it.]

No - I mean, yeah, I remember the robots, but no, I haven't been playing with them. I haven't touched them in years. You're imagining things. They're collecting a fine layer of dust on the shelf as we speak.

[He has plausible deniability. It's not like Tadashi can go check and prove him wrong, seeing as the evidence is currently in an alternate dimension. But still, there's an awkward couple of moments of Hiro squirming before he clears his throat, breaking the pause.]

But yeah, those robots. What about them?

[anewangle]

[Deny it all you like, bro, it won't change the truth. Luckily for Hiro, he has a loving big brother who currently has no plans on using that blackmail material. Nope, just gonna smile and keep that little gem is all to himself.]

You had a bunch more when we were little, but your favorite was this little red one. You were always kinda rough on your toys, though, and it must've been a few months after the funeral when it finally broke. I think it had some kind of chest blaster that stopped working, maybe, but I guess that part doesn't really matter. I just remember you being really upset because you couldn't figure out how to fix it.

[Tadashi reaches up to tip back his hat for a moment, scratching at his head briefly before pulling the brim back down into place.]

So I showed you how. You were so happy... and making you happy made me happy. It was such a little thing, but...

[But it gave him something new to focus on. It made him realize he didn't have to be sad forever.]

[bigdamnhiro]

[It's funny, Hiro doesn't really remember this, either. He may have been a smart three-year-old, but he was still only three, and a lot of things from that time have just...slipped away from him. Dad's voice, mom's face, where they lived before they moved in with Aunt Cass. He doesn't really remember any of it, and he tries not to dwell on that, because it doesn't bother him too much.]

Man, I don't even know if I have that robot anymore, that was forever ago -

[And then he sort of thinks better of saying anything else. Instead he stays quiet through the rest of Tadashi's story and listens carefully, because this is important to his brother, and maybe he should start listening instead of callously blowing him off whenever he talks about the parts of their childhood he doesn't remember.

He's still quiet, even after, because he's thinking, turning the wooden peg for the bed over in his hands - and after a second he smiles and tosses it at Tadashi.]

- Catch. So, then, in that case: wanna help me put together this bunk bed? For real, this time. I'm officially asking for your help.

[anewangle]

[One day Tadashi will have to sit Hiro down and tell him things about their parents. Share the details the elder Hamada can still remember before they too slip away. The way their mother's always laughed with her mouth open, happiness never covered by her lips or hand. The careful way their father would polish his glasses when he was nervous, and the firm, but still gentle tone he used when his boys needed chastising. The tone that would ultimately be used as the base for Baymax's voice...

Tadashi catches the peg, blinking down at it for a moment before fixing Hiro with a grin.]

... Then I'm officially accepting.