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[yallstupid]

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[yallstupid]

How 'bout you go to sleep, too? Lotta other people're sleeping, yeah... Them keebler twins y'all live with - they's sleeping now, right? [IF THEY'RE NOT, HE WILL FUCKING KNOCK THEM OUT UNTIL THEY ARE.]

Once everyone's up, then we can do, uh...whatever y'all said 'fore.

[catpiper]

[This is what happens when you give a dying child a pretty necklace. This is all his fault, actually. Time to repent and pay the kindness toll. She's gonna make his life h e l l.

Once everyone's up Well, she knows plenty of people that are awake-herself, Lup, Seto, Magnus and her cat!! Guzma is too, since he's talking to her, so it sounds like invitation to come over right now.]

Okay, I'll come sleep by you and then we'll wake up together.

[yallstupid]

[DEEP INHALE.

Ren, you're making this extremely difficult, but...but. The trek from wherever she lives might just give him the amount of time to get in a few more minutes of sleep. Lord, even a half hour would be sheer bliss for the night owl that is Guzma. He can't take this crack of dawn bullcrap some other people can do. He's not built like that, and never has been.]

Yeah...yeah, 'kay. C'mon over and, uh... [He breathes out, putting a hand over his eyes to try and get some rest again.] ...take your time.

[catpiper]

['Try and get some rest'-the keyword being, try, because while she does take her time ambling over to his home, getting distracted by this and that and even taking a quick peek at the glyph area to see what new drawings have shown up, every few minutes Guzma will be treated to a quiet I'm by the big tree and Can you hear me? and I found a treasure. When did this iStone become a liveblog? Just now, this second.

And by the time she spies his humble abode, he can probably hear-]

Do you want to sleep outside? The sun is warm.

[yallstupid]

[The reprieve, however short, is still beneficial - Guzma manages to get another forty minutes of sleep as Ren makes her way over to his little shack. During all the ‘updates’ she gives to him, Guzma snorts or hums sleepily in response before stuffing the stone of farspeech down into the depths of his blankets to smother the sound somewhat. His patience seems to have run out...sorry, boo.

When she arrives, Guzma just barely hears Ren’s voice coming from the stone, buried under his mess of blankets and crumpled clothes (and centipuppy plush).]

My bed is warmer. [He is not getting up before he is ready and not a soul can make him.]

[catpiper]

Warmer than the sun? It's like that?

[Despite his attempt to rudely muffle her, her voice is getting louder because she's so, so close to the door right now.

And even though she's trying to compromise with this dingus by making him nap outside, those warm blankets do sound enticing. She hovers near the doorframe, as if she expects him to change his mind on the whole Sleep Situation, and prepares to run off for whatever impromptu game he might come up with. He may sleep, he may play tag-she's ready either way.

And despite being literally feet away from him, she opts to hold the rock up to her mouth to say-]

Does sleeping make you happy?

[yallstupid]

[Oh my god, please. Ren, child, dearest and most precious little sister. Let him sleep.

The rock doesn't even hecking matter anymore, and Guzma momentarily curls his pillow around his ears to drown out the sound of her voice. This was a mistake...he's practically awake already, but this has become a battle and by god, he is neither going to back down nor is he going to lose. But Guzma knows the only way to end this is to take matters, and this wretched, little goblin, into his own hands.

He drags his hands down his face, swings himself out of his hammock, and stomps to the front door, nearly wrenching it off whatever hinges the poor, old, dilapidated slab of wood still sticks to.]

Yes...Ren. I like to sleep. I like it a whole hecking lot, yeah. [He grabs her very suddenly, tucks her under one arm like a football, and carries Ren right back to his hammock.] So you n' me are gonna go to sleep. Right now.

[catpiper]

[HOLY heck???

No potential game of tag could've prepared her for the way he busts through that door and while she's tensed up, ready to amble off to the great tag beyond, away from his you're it clutches, he swoops and grabs her without much ado.

He's talking about sleeping and she's staring at the ground like it's lava-why did he even grab her?? Was something scary below her? Should she be on the lookout for moving shadows? Heck. Frick. She raises her hands to clutch to the arm holding her up, which is difficult with the rock in the palm of her hand, curling her feet upwards too, in case something weird is going on and she's unable to figure it out. Why did he pick her up?

At least it's quiet?? Now?? For real?? She's not struggling, just nervously clinging to him and staring at the floor. It's fine.

Also the ash from her fingers that transfers to his arm when she tries to clutch him? Also fine. If he ever lets her be the free elf she's meant to be, he might understand the meaning behind-]

How do you make your drawing sleep? So it doesn't move anymore?

[yallstupid]

[It's blessedly quiet, and GUzma breathes out as he drags himself and this tiny nuisance back to his hammock, peering through the darkness and wondering how in the loving heck Luna can sleep through all this. She's a heavier sleeper than even he is, in this case, and he envies her to no end. Blessed be she who sleeps through this nonsense. Whatever she's got, he wants some. No more of this early rising bullcrap. Sleep is good and he likes it very much. The sun is for losers.

Just as Guzma is about to dump Ren into his hammock, yawning openly, he blinks at her comment and pauses. What in the world is she talking about? Drawings? He can just barely see the ash on his arms from where she touched him and raises a dark brow in confusion, his face screwing up a bit. Girl, please, he'll probably take a rinse once he gets up anyway, but still...keep your grubby mitts to yourself, please and thank.]

Wha...huh? [Lord, his brain is still in standby - he's not awake enough for deep thinking. PLEASE LET HIM SLEEP, YOU TERRIBLE GREMLIN.] The heck're y'all talking about?

[catpiper]

[One day, she might feel bad about ruining his life. There might be a point where she looks back on her past and thinks Boy that Guzma. Good guy. Sure put up with a lot.

But today isn't that fake hypothetical day. They're living in reality and that means instead of offering any kind of meaningful explanation, she tries to raise one of her arms high into the air, shaking it to let the sleeve fall back. It's covered in ash, spread about in an intricate, familiar pattern and some big blotches from where it rubbed against her clothes.

Look, she's got tattoos!! Incredible!!]

It's like your paintings-[Pause]-drawings? That thing? It goes away on me.

[yallstupid]

[All Guzma can see in the dim light of his home is a dirty little arm flailing wildly in front of his face. He blinks for a moment before setting Ren down in his hammock, moving aside his blankets and stuffed centipuppy plush (which he will offer her to snuggle with in a moment) before sitting down himself and offering his large hand to her to offer up her little, noodly arm for him to inspect.

Paintings? I mean, there's...something there, and he frowns as he rubs his fingers through the dirty marking and rubs them together before putting them to his face to give a testing sniff. Ash, that's good. He wouldn't be very happy if she was rubbing some sort of poisonous substance on her skin, and Arceus knows there's plenty of that to be found or discovered on the islands.]

My--...oh, you mean these? [Guzma holds out his own arm, where the mark of his former team are painted expertly in purple body paint. He's done it so many times that even applying the tattoo with his less dominant hand has become an easy task for him now.] It's not--...well, I guess it kinda is a drawing, but s'called a tattoo when you apply it to your skin like I do. Mine's not permanent either, but it takes way longer for it to go away.

[Guzma's not to the point where he can have someone jabbing him with a needle for hours just yet. Probably never, to be fair. Body paint is more costly, but he's learned to live with it.]

[catpiper]

[Sweet freedom. Ren didn't sign up to be carryout. That's not the part time job she scoured island Cragslist for and she's happy to be free from his hold to live her best life on this hammock. For good measure, she peers at the ground one more time to play Spot The Danger or whatever scary thing that may have caused him to grab her.

But there's nothing and her eyes fall back to him and the way he studies her beefy arm. There's a vast difference between the little symbol she tried to doodle in ash versus the one he drew in paint and while she's listening, she holds up her arm against his, pushing them side by side. With the original image in front of her eyes, she tries to smear the ash with her finger in an attempt to make it look similar and-

Makes it worse in the process. Oh well. Pretend she was trying to doodle an ash pile on her arm and it's perfect.]

Your 'tattoo' looks pretty. Did you draw more? Can I see them?

[yallstupid]

[Feeling the warmth of another hands press against his makes Guzma blink - he's still not entirely awake, but just as well - and he tilts his head to one side as Ren tries to redo her makeshift tattoo to look more like his own. Gosh...this kid... How come she's so dang cute? He's snickering a bit as he rocks his hammock a little bit, so they're swinging just slightly. She's trying to imitate him and that's hilarious and precious.]

More? Nah, I don't got no more n'just these two on my arms. But be careful if y'all ask for a tattoo, darlin'...getting a real one is permanent, and it ain't as easy as just painting nice on y'all's skin.

Stick to the fake tattoos, yeah? [Guzma's certain he'd punch out anyone that tried to jab his little Ren with a needle for hours on end. Even if it was to give her the Team Skull logo. Especially if it was to give her the Team Skull logo.]

[catpiper]

[The swinging has a calming effect on her and she leans against him as the hammock sways, following the pattern on his arm with her eyes and looking at her own. There's no point in making any tiny adjustments to her ashy arm-she ruined this attempt, but she's got far too much free time and there's always tomorrow. One day she'll get it right. Maybe Luna can help and they can play after they paint fun tattoos on their skin.]

Okay, I will.

[The quiet discussion, the sleeping girl nearby and rocking hammock make her feel kind of drowsy, but she's determined to Stay Awake a bit longer and in an attempt to do so, she holds up her dirty finger.]

I can put another tattoo on you.

[yallstupid]

[Were he not still so tired out, Guzma would have offered to actually paint on a tattoo for her as well - he's done it to a few of the other Grunts, after all - but the thought leaves him after he yawns openly, shifting a bit to lay back in the hammock with Ren by his side. Sorry, girly, but he's not giving up on sleep just yet - the sway of the hammock was lulling this big lug back to sleep as well.

So he sighs at her request and pulls up the blanket over them. Is this what it's like to actually babysit? Luna's been pretty good for a brat - she goes to bed on time and...kind of listens to him. Sometimes. Ren is a bit more difficult, despite being seemingly older. Hm, got to work on that, but he knows something that might get her to hit the hay with him.]

Maybe later, yeah? Right now we ought'a get some more sleep... Ain't gonna be no fun if I fall asleep while y'all is working. Won't see the finished product once it's done.

[catpiper]

[Ren is a Free Elf and being mildly difficult is her middle name. The wide-eyed, very much awake, look in her eyes remains, but the sudden addition of a warm blanket changes things. He's not wrong about how disappointing it would be to see him fall asleep while she's turning his arm into an artistic masterpiece and that statement is enough to make her silently agree, falling back against him when he lays down and she goes to shut her eyes and-

Then abruptly opens them. Says nothing and scoots herself up a bit, so can rest her head against his fluffy hair, lightly patting it down like he's one of her cats, if he doesn't move away from her.

It's fine. She's going to sleep. This is her routine. Accept the head pats.]

1/2 - SECOND MIGHT BE DELAYED

[yallstupid]

[WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING??!!]

2/2

[yallstupid]

[Guzma sucks in a breath when Ren shuffles up to snuggle into his fluffy, white hair, and he can already feel his face begin to heat up. This is the third or fourth time someone here has pet, touched, snuggled, or just plain messed with his hair. Is there really something so darn special about it other than the color? It's not dyed, he swears!! No one needs to stick their nose into it to check!

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Guzma mumbles out something unintelligible then clears his throat. M-Maybe he can move out of the way when she fall asleep? This is weird and he's not yet at the level of being comfortable with people, even close people like Ren, smothering him like this. His head and face was always been a point he never liked being touched, either - too many bad or bittersweet memories. His back is the worst, but his head and face was a close second. But he can't react the usual way he does, either. Not with her.

Shifting a bit, Guzma exhales and looks away, turns his face to the side and snorts loudly. What should he do now? He's wired, and his muscles feel tense and pulled taut - they'll both never be able to sleep like this.]

Yo--uh, Ren? H-Hey...wanna, um. [He chews his lip amd exhales.] Wanna hear a story? From Alola--uh. M-My world.

[catpiper]

[Maybe Guzma should speak for himself-she can sleep fine, better even, snuggled up against someone like this. Sorry pal. Since he doesn't shake her off, her eyes don't open and the entire dilemma behind his shifty, nervous movements is lost on her. Her ears do perk at the mention of a story and while she doesn't move away, she briefly stops petting his hair to rest her head against the fluff.

It's starting to feel like one of those late night moments where her heart says it's her sleepo beepo time and and she's on the brink of giving in, no matter how badly she wants to stay awake. The addition of a bedtime story sorta seals that notion. Should she open her eyes and check if the proper story prereqs have been met? Is he sufficiently tucked in? Probably. There's a blanket around them and she pats it down-yep. This meets her high standards. Sign her up-start talking.]

Hell yeah. I want to hear it.

[yallstupid]

[Immediately. Immediately Guzma tenses, and he sits up in the hammock to look down at Ren while his hands fist into the blankets, pulling them tight. His expression radiates something like a cold but powerful shock and outrage. Did he just hear her right? Did she just use a bad word right now? Who on this fucking island is teaching his little sister to use words like that? Words she doesn't even know the meaning of.

He's going to break their goddamn jaw. And various other bones. The story is all but forgotten, and he half-snarls, voice a quiet hiss through his grit teeth. He's not mad at her specifically, but it's hard to tell with how frightening his expression just became. Well, he sure is wide awake now, if that's any sort of consolation.]

...Who taught you to say that? [What else did she pick up?]

[catpiper]

[Okay, her waking up again? That's on him this time. It's his sudden shift in tone, from drowsy to-something else? That makes her eyes flutter open. She doesn't move or sit up, mostly because sudden movements seem like a bad idea. He's acting like a volatile cat and she's not sure what to make of that.

To her credit, she does try to reflect back on the original source of those words, but time is fleeting and she doesn't quite remember. It makes Taako laugh sometimes, the other inhabitants of camp base periodically smile when she says it and it's a pretty common phrase in the area. Other people on the island have said it too, so-]

I don't remember. I learn words from lots of people. Everyone talks to me here.

[yallstupid]

[She's lying. She's lying to protect whoever taught her that foul language and Guzma knows it, making his eyes narrow dangerously. Heck, Guzma doesn't care if people curse, he does too, but Ren probably has no idea what those words even mean. If she accidentally slips up and says something to the wrong person...well. He'd rather not. It's half the reason Guzma censors himself around kids like this.

He knows better. What upsets him is all of this; he's angry because she's being taught things without proper knowledge of what they really are or mean. Exclamations are not the same as curses, and they are still offensive to certain people. Plus, lying to his face like this? Nah, fam.]

Well. [Guzma breathes in and out slowly, slides out of his hammock, and approaches where he's tossed his sneakers.] It's a small island... Pretty sure if I go looking now, I can find whoever punk is teaching y'all to say bad words.

[He cracks his knuckles against his jaw for, uh...emphasis. Last chance to spill, stoolpidgey.]

[catpiper]

[Here's?? The Thing?? The "emphasis", the movement, none of this is making her feel any more generous with the little pieces of information she has. Not one bit. But he looks serious about leaving and she doesn't know how to diffuse situations like this. She only knows how to hide in her own silence and it takes all her willpower to stay in that comfy hammock instead of slowly hobbling off to hide somewhere. A couple minutes ago, she wanted him to wake up. Now she desperately wishes he would come back.]

They didn't sound bad-that kind of thing.

[She's starting to get nervous and maybe freaking out? A tiny bit. Her expression certainly doesn't hide how she's feeling.]

I won't say it again. I promise.

[Does that help??? Will that stop this man??]

[yallstupid]

[It doesn't stop him, but it does give Guzma pause for a moment. He's still very angry, and the oppressive silence that spans between them is suffocating. It's very clear what Guzma's intentions are, and h's not ready to accept her apology, or her promise, just yet. He has to get some form of retribution. Maybe not right now, but in time. He can be patient. He's learning, slowly, to be patience. Revenge, after all, if a dish best served cold.]

People use words like that in the wrong ways plenty'a times. I'm guilty myself, but I'm guessing them punks didn't tell y'all what them words really mean, yeah? You just know it as a way to show you're happy or excited, right?

That ain't right. That ain't what other people know those words to actually mean - they're bad words a lotta the time, and I'm gonna break someone's jaw whether you say them words or not. No one should be teaching kids curse words without telling 'em what they really mean.

[catpiper]

[This volatile side of him isn't new, but there's always been a mental safety net in the fact she relate his reactions back to a cat. She touched him without warning once and got swiped at-it's a sting she can remember and it's why she doesn't reach out to him now. Especially now. She can see his bristling, the angry slink and-

It's different.

There's no way she's offering any names. He's being scary and the sudden violent declaration is one she wants to desperately ignore. He has a kind heart-she knows that, so the words must mean something awful. A hidden reason that even the residents of camp base don't know.]

They're bad? Why?