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Eli set his phone next to his bed and took a deep, steadying breath. "You can do this, Pepperjack. You are a hero, a warrior, a Creepslayer. Your exploits are things of legend. Nothing scares you."This last part was a lie to make Eli feel better. A lot of things scared him. Creepers - their default name for weird creatures before they could get ahold of Blinky or…Dictatious (Steve's suggestion of a nickname for Blinky's brother had been roundly shot down, so Dictatious it was), the as-of-yet unseen threat of extraterrestrials, the fear he'd one day wake up and find everything that had happened to him over the past year was a dream.But Eli pushed through all of these fears every day.This was nothing.He poked his head into the living room. "Um, Mom? Can I talk to you for a second?"His mother didn't glance up from her crossword. "I told you I don't want to hear about your 'troll hunting'. My constitution can't take hearing what you get up to with those hooligans."Eli nodded; his mother's resigned acceptance of the Creepslaying had been about the best outcome Eli could have hoped for. And between Dr. Lake and Strickler, Eli had plenty of human(ish) support. "It's, um, not. About that. It's about something else.""Well, sit down. Carefully; I just vacuumed in here."Eli gingerly set himself down on the couch next to his mother, trying not to hyperventilate. He could do this."Um, you know Steve? Palchuk?"Eli's mother huffed. "Yes.""Well, I...we…""He's pressuring you, isn't he?""Wha-""I knew I should have said something when you took up with that boy, but I thought, 'Elijah's got a good head on his shoulders, he knows a good egg from a bad one'. Well, I wanted to wait for this talk, but it is apparently happening now."Eli's mom set her paper aside and went to The Bookcase. She drew her hand across the spines of several binders, some Eli was familiar with, lectures and lessons that made frequent appearances in his life, and paused at one Eli had seen only once, when he'd turned 13.She settled next to Eli and flipped the binder open; when she looked up at him, her face was uncharacteristically soft. "Obviously we've been through the basics, but it's time to revisit...certain topics. Thirteen is much too young to be having sex, sixteen…less so. But that is a very serious thing to decide, and not because some boy is saying you have to.""Some - what? I'm-" Eli cut himself off before he could continue the automatic denial, because it would defeat the purpose of this conversation. "Me and...Steve...aren't h - having - sex." (This wasn't a lie, exactly, but definitely a grey area, given the spectrum of what constituted 'sex', and not a debate he was eager to have with his mom) "I've only been - dating him a couple of months." (The exact timing of that decision was a subject of some debate, but 'a couple' probably encompassed all reasonable interpretations.) "And he isn't…making me do anything I'm - I don't want to do." Oh God, Eli's cheeks were heated, and his whole face was probably red. "He's really nice to me, Mom.""Well." Eli's mom shifted a little closer. "Good. You shouldn't ever date someone who isn't nice to you." There was a quiet moment before she spoke again. "Now what was it you wanted to talk about?""I wanted to tell you - we were dating?""Oh." His mom put a hand over her mouth. "Was that all?""Yeah, I-" Eli paused, halfway through rising from the couch. "How did you know? We were trying to be discreet.""Well, a mother always knows."***Rachel Pepperjack muted the television, turning her attention from her coloring, at the sound of an engine idling in her driveway. So. Elijah was home. She rose, crossing to the front window, tugging aside the curtains for a better view of her front yard. Elijah was standing next to Steven's Vespa, one hand running through his hair, matted from the helmet held loosely in his other hand, she noted approvingly.Steven was straddling the bike, clearly not intent on staying, but neither boy seemed in a hurry to leave the driveway. Steven said something, to which Elijah laughed, his cheeks flushing.Rachel felt a twist of worry in her chest. Worrying about her son running around with the Palchuk boy had seemed pointless in comparison to the chasing boogums in the middle of the night. But this was another thing altogether; she knew Steven had been something of a bully, and while Elijah had apparently proven himself capable of taking care of himself, heartbreak wasn't something a sensitive boy like Elijah could inure himself to, especially the sort of thing that ended a friendship.And then Steven glanced toward the street, grabbed Elijah's arm and tugged him closer, leaning in to press his lips gently against Elijah's.Ah. Rachel stepped back hurriedly; it was clear that was not something either boy intended her to see. Sitting back down on the couch, she found her eyes a little moist, and grabbed a tissue to dab at them. She'd worried about her son never getting out of the house, never making friends, dating, all of the things normal teenagers did. And now he was doing all of them - none of them quite the way she'd ever imagined.He was growing up, and doing so well - always a bittersweet moment, but one to celebrate.The front door clicked open to admit Elijah, stepping hesitantly into the house. "Hi, mom!""Your curfew's in fifteen minutes, Elijah. You and your friend-" (boyfriend) "could talk a little more before he goes home.""It's alright, mom." Elijah still looked a little flushed; he had probably already made his goodbyes, and if Rachel knew anything about kids these days, he'd be texting that boy even after he'd gone to bed. "I'm going to finish my homework and get to bed, okay?""Did you eat?""Yeah, Jim fed us after patrol; you know how he is.""Good. Well, have a good night, Elijah. I love you.""Love you too, mom!"
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Steve rapped on the wall of the kitchen; his mom and...Coach Lawrence looked up from their dinner preparations, his mother with neutral curiosity, Lawrence with more exuberance. The dude was relentless in his attempts to bond with Steve, which was...fine. Cool. He'd starting taking Steve down to his gym, like an adult gym, to train him in boxing, on the theory that surviving fights with creepers didn't mean Steve knew what he was doing.Coach Lawrence wasn't Steve's dad, regardless of Steve's occasional slips of the tongue. But he cared about Steve; heck, he'd forced his way into the parents' group chat so he could keep up to date on schedules, missions, injuries.And Steve...maybe sort of a little cared about Coach Lawrence, too.That Eli thought Coach Lawrence's attempts to keep Steve in one piece made him some sort of saint made it hard to not like him."What's up, so - Steve?""Just wanna chat. Quick thing, not a big deal. Just, you know, keeping you two in the loop." That sounded casual, right? Maybe too casual? Fuck, he should not have made fun of Eli for suggesting he practice this beforehand. "I mean, maybe a little deal. Um." "Steve?" Oh shit, his mom actually looked worried. It was too late to just abort the mission, but being a Creepslayer had taught Steve how to adapt. "Is something wrong?""Barbara didn't mention anything," Coach Lawrence said, fumbling for his phone. "And, nope. No injuries, abductions, or magical mishaps."Oh god. Steve had thought he could do this quickly, but like every serious Creepslayerz mission, it was spiraling out of control. "Eli Pepperjack's my boyfriend."The silence hung in the air for a few tense seconds Steve used to plan his getaway, because it wasn't like Coach Lawrence had ever stopped anyone from stuffing Eli in lockers or calling him a 'pansy', and he couldn't recall hearing his mother ever say anything at all about gay people (Bisexual. Maybe. Probably. Not worth arguing about right now, anyway), good or bad."And what's your news, son? Er, Steve.""What?"Steve's mom gave him a cautious smile. "Is there something wrong with Eli?""No one's giving him any trouble at school, are they?""Um - no." Being Steve's friend hadn't proved quite enough to keep Eli from being bullied, but Jim was another story. Neither of which took into account the time Rick Sanders had broken his hand against the wall trying, and failing, to punch Eli.There was an awkward pause before Coach Lawrence perked up. "Oh! Susan…" He jerked his head at Steve. "He's telling us he's dating Elijah.""Oh, Steve. You thought I'd be upset?" Steve's mom was by his side, suddenly, pulling him into a tight hug. "Elijah's such a nice boy.""And we're honored you thought you could share this with us." Coach Lawrence was beaming, probably because this sort of touching exchange was what he'd expected step-parenting to be like. "It takes a lot of guts to come out and say this," Coach Lawrence added. "I'm proud of you."Steve sniffed, finding his eyes wet, like he wouldn't have been fine no matter what happened. He swiped at them, pushing away from his mom. And then something occurred to him."You two knew I've been seeing Eli! Have you been spying on me?"His mom and Coach Lawrence exchanged glances before Coach Lawrence replied. "Your mother and I respect your privacy, Steve, absolutely. Just…"***Toby and Claire were on patrol tonight, so when Steve returned home, he was trailed by Elijah - or, rather, Steve was towing Elijah behind him as he made a beeline for his room."Hi Mom, Coach, we're doing homework and Creeper research, don't bother us til dinner, thanks!" Steve was gone inside of fifteen seconds, his door closed and, when Lawrence tried it, locked."Go away!" Steve called. There was a quiet voice and then a more reluctant, "please." Lawrence grinned at that; Eliah really was a good influence on Steve.They were quiet, at least, while Lawrence helped Susan make dinner, the talk easier now that Lawrence wasn't so occupied with worrying whether Steve liked him. When he went to get Steve for dinner, Lawrence paused outside the door when he heard a yelp, high-pitched, more likely to be Elijah than Steve."Steve.""What?""You-""And? No one's gonna see it.""Your optimism that no one in the locker room is going to notice a-" Elijah's voice dropped in volume, but rose in pitch, so Lawrence could still easily hear it, "hickey on my chest is incredibly misplaced."Okay, that was definitely Lawrence's cue to interrupt whatever was going on in there. He rapped against the door."Steve? Dinner's ready. Will Elijah be joining us?""Fuck." Lawrence hadn't known Elijah knew that word, though the amount of time he spent with Steve, it shouldn't have been a surprise. "That'd be great, Coach!""Yeah, just give us a - two - minutes, okay? See you then!"Lawrence returned to the kitchen, bemused. This development was low on the list of what he'd expected from parenting Steve Palchuk, but he'd caught Steve in unguarded moments watching Elijah, and the fondness in those expressions meant this development shouldn't have come as much of a surprise.The boys emerged after slightly under two minutes; both looked a little ruffled, but except for what Lawrence had overheard, he might not have thought anything was going on between them. Elijah seemed incapable of meeting anyone's eyes throughout the entire meal, and when it was over, bolted back to Steve's room, returning a moment later with his bag. Steve seemed unsurprised, excusing himself to get Elijah home 'before his mom kills him'.Lawrence followed, just trying to make sure Elijah was okay, finding them in the alcove just by the front door, Elijah almost tucked up against Steve, Steve speaking quietly to him."...be okay?""I'll be fine.""I didn't mean to-""You knew exactly what you were doing." But Elijah was grinning, which Lawrence took as enough evidence he shouldn't be worrying about Elijah, and retreated back into the rest of the house.He did resolve to stop by the guidance counselor to pick up some literature that was much more immediately relevant to his life, however, because he had gone into this intending to be a loving and supportive stepfather, even - no, especially - when he had no idea what he should do.
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Patrolling with Claire was the best.Well. Almost the best. Nothing could beat patrols that saw the Creepslayerz teamed up to protect Arcadia Oaks from the dangers of the night. But patrolling with Claire came close (less so now that Creepslayerz patrol shifts involved serious kissing when things got slow).But fighting with the now-lost Shadowstaff had left Claire with practiced human agility, and a love of being places she wasn't supposed to, making patrolling with Claire basically competitive free-running.Eli was currently leaning against a tree in the park, breathing heavily. Claire was getting water because her lungs didn't feel like they were going to collapse. Eli supposed it came from trying to keep up with Jim, who had superhuman agility, strength, and endurance, which sounded like a lot to put up with. It was clearly working for her, though, so Eli tried not to judge."Think fast!" Eli snapped a hand out to catch the bottle Claire had chucked at his head. He glared at her as she settled next to him, twisting her bottle open."That was dangerous," he chided."We risk our lives every day," she retorted. "We have to keep sharp." She took a long swig of her water.It sounded crazy unless you remembered her boyfriend was on the hook for fighting evil trolls and other monsters for the rest of her life. Eli could walk away any time."Is...everything okay? With you and-" Eli broke off, shaking his head. "Sorry. You don't have to answer that.""Everything's fine. Hard, but," she shrugged. "What about you?""What about me?""You and Steve."Eli's chest hitched. "Me and Steve...what?""Eli, I know you've been seeing Steve." She gave him a bright grin before returning to her water. "I can't say it wasn't a surprise, but, hey, stranger things have happened.""And you're...okay with it?" Eli pulled his arms up, hugging them around himself.Claire raised one eyebrow at Eli. "Setting aside the fact my mother would mail me to the moon if I contradicted her public positions on LGBT youth, you're a Trollhunter, Eli.""Creepslayer, actually."Claire huffed, but nodded, smiling. "You're part of our gigantic, weird multi-species family. You deserve to be happy, whoever makes you feel that way."Eli grinned, a little, half from how sincere Claire sounded,and half from thinking on how Steve did make him happy, even when he was awkward and uncertain about how to treat Eli (especially then, really; there was no better evidence of how Steve felt than how hard he tried even when he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing)."Can I ask you something?""Sure.""H - how do you know? About me and Steve?"Claire burst out laughing.***Claire missed seeing Jim during the day. Even when they didn't have the same classes, it was a comfort to run into him in the halls, see his bright grin across a crowded room.His smile was different, now; it seemed ungrateful to complain about that, but she felt perfectly justified in being annoyed that Merlin, in his infinite wisdom, hadn’t managed to leave Jim in a form that would let Claire see him during normal school hours.Jim, who, in the aftermath of a war requiring unchecked aggression, had settled into something closer to his old attitudes than Eternal Night Jim. As a result, a month after their defeat of Morgana, Toby was waiting at Claire's locker when she arrived, proudly presenting her with a lunchbox covered all over in pictures of dogs."What's this?""Your lunch."Jim's morning routine generally involved preparation of lunch for his mom and Toby, and he had apparently decided to include Claire in that part of his day. It wasn't nearly as good as having Jim around, but it was sweet, being presented a little box every morning that showed Jim was thinking of her, even though she still saw him nearly every day.And then there were the notes. They were rarely long, and some were basically emoticons. But Claire kept them in a box in her room she had threatened Not-Enrique with dismemberment to keep even him out of it. She suspected Dr. Lake got notes in her lunch, and have never gotten around to inquiring if Toby got them, as well (she wasn't jealous; some friendships had the sort of closeness where you'd leave daily notes in your friend's lunch and that was all).Today she'd found Eli sitting alone at a table in the corner of the cafeteria, and dropped onto a bench across from him. His lunchbox was bright red, unadorned, and he was reading a note that he folded hurriedly and tucked away when he saw Claire looking at him.His ears were bright red."What've you got there?""Just a - my lunch." Eli pulled out a sandwich, bottle of sports drink, and a banana. The sandwich looked a little rough, but Eli appeared to be relishing it. Claire unpacked her own lunch, shrugging helplessly when Eli looked over the precise sandwich wrap, homemade chips, and applesauce."Jim," she explained."A - Oh." Eli ducked his head, taking a bite from his sandwich. "Does he do that a lot?""Most days." Remembering the note Eli had been reading, Claire nudged him. "Did your mom make that?""Ah-""Hey, Pepperbuddy - I - Claiiire." Steve, who'd dropped next to Eli, arm dropping around his shoulders, scooched a conspicuous six inches away and pulled his arm to his side. "How's lunch?""It's good!" Eli exclaimed. His ears were bright red again as he stared down at his sports drink.Claire glanced at Steve, who was leaned against his hand, grinning at Eli, easy, self-assured, almost cocky, and then back at Eli, who was peeling his banana with intense concentration. Something weird was going on. Steve was a jock; he manhandled Eli all the time. The six inches of space between them was much more conspicuous than Steve's normal habit of basically holding Eli in a headlock was."Are you two...okay?""We're fine, Nuñez. Right, Pepperbuddy?""Yeah!" Eli looked up at Claire, bright-eyed, blush still high on his cheeks, but no sign of his earlier discomfort. "No problems here. Just two bros enjoying lunch. Like friends.""Yeah, me and my Pepperbuddy hanging out. Like bros."Oh lord. One of them had kissed the other one, and they were trying to pretend everything was normal.Claire closed up her lunchbox and stood. "I've got some math to finish up; I'll see you two later."She desperately hoped they found a new equilibrium soon, because this 'just bros' act was going to get old quick.
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Patrolling with Jim always made Steve feel a little useless. It was hard not to feel pathetic compared to a guy with a twenty-foot vertical leap and the ability to lift a car. And for all Blinky lectured them about the value of working as a team, of two sets of eyes, blah blah blah, Jim could clearly take care of himself. Or if he couldn't, it wouldn't be in a situation where Steve could protect him.Example: Steve was currently 'watching' an alley while Jim was checking on movement he'd seen on the roof of the movie theater. If it was a creeper, Jim would pound it into dust and they'd move on. Hell, if there was a creeper down here, Jim would end up being the one smashing it. Steve had come to realize he wasn't that great at this 'trollhunting' thing. Creepslaying, with his best friend (boyfriend) watching his back, he was awesome at, but take that away and Steve was just a teenager with above-average athletic skills.Steve spun toward the source of a soft footfall behind him; he relaxed, marginally, when he saw it was just Jim, who on top of being strong, agile, and tough, could be quiet as a fucking cat."It was just a raccoon," Jim said."Was it?"Jim's face twisted a little; it took a second to recognize the look as confusion. "What do you mean?""I mean, you've got shapeshifting creepers - why wouldn't they turn into a raccoon if they think the Trollhunter's on their case?"Jim glanced up toward the roof, frowning thoughtfully. "Do you really think that?""That your raccoon isn't a raccoon. Fuck, I don't know. The important thing is it could be. That why Creepslayerz standard procedure is spritzing them with a water bottle.""A...water bottle?""We got a pretty good track record exposing Creepers that way.""Like 50-50, or…""I don't know; I'm not a math nerd. All I know is Creepslayerz standard procedure works."Jim huffed and waved them further into the back streets. "If you think it's that much of a concern, we could get you a gaggletack.""A what?""Gaggletack. It's this thing, like a rusty horseshoe, that forces shapeshifters - well, changelings, at least - into their natural forms."Steve considered. Eli would probably be on board getting a new tool for the Creepslayerz arsenal. But the thought of bringing it up just reminded Steve how bad he was at all this stuff. Eli could research stuff, and Jim had all the stuff his troll dad taught him, and Steve was just a guy good with improvised weapons."But I'll remember the water thing if I'm chasing something the gaggletack doesn't work on. Did Eli come up with that?""Pft, no. Pepper does all this research and shit; I just accidentally dumped a gutterfull of water on this weird demon dog disguised as a dachshund."Jim paused, turning to look at Steve. He was frowning, a surprisingly ferocious expression. "Look, I know we used to - not get along-" Something of an understatement, "but you're a good Trollhunter. It's not all about who's strong or fast or smart-""Don't heap on the praise there, Lake.""Okay, just shut up for a second, I'm trying to say a thing here. Blinky's told me about what you and Eli get up to, and yeah, maybe you're not a research guy, but you're a quick thinker, and sometimes that makes all the difference."Steve might have been tempted to laugh it off, but Jim looked super sincere, and Steve had gotten out of practice acting unmoved by compliments (because Eli couldn't really read the difference between 'cool' and 'indifferent'). So he gave Jim a hesitant smile."You're pretty good at this shit, too."Jim laughed, shaking his head. "There's a time I never would've believed you'd be giving me compliments.""Yeah, well." Steve shrugged. "Once I figured out you were one of the good guys...Eli would've cried if I didn't try to get along with you.""Would it be rude to say he's been good for you?"Steve couldn't stop the barking laugh from escaping him. "Nah, man, I've been thinking the same thing." He took a deep breath, because there probably wasn't a better time for this. "Even if we weren't dating. Each other. Romantically."Jim smirked. "Did you need to clarify you aren't dating him just as friends?"Steve glowered at Jim and punched his shoulder. It was like punching a brick wall, and Jim didn't seem to even feel it, if the widening of his grin was any indication."Shut up; I didn't get, like, pamphlets on the 'coming out' thing.""I would've thought Eli-""Wanted me to practice. Which, yeah, seems like a good plan now. Of course, if I'd known that everybody already knew, I would've told him not to bother; this has really been eating into my Pepperbuddy time."Jim shrugged, but his cheeks were darkening; he was blushing."And how the hell do you know?"***Steve was late. Not like, super late - five minutes, maybe. But Jim's leg was jiggling of its own accord; he itched to be doing something. It was hard, apparently, for a troll to do nothing, which most trolls channelled into a hobby rather than letting that nervous energy accumulate.Jim perked up when he caught whiff of a scent - two scents (and man, it had taken a while to get used to his new, sensitive nose, even if it was pretty cool) approaching."Hey, Steve, Eli - you're not really supposed to-""Just me, Lake. I think you need to get your eyes checked." Steve smirked at Jim's obvious confusion. "We doing this?""Y - yeah."Jim wasn't sure why he'd thought Eli was with Steve; he technically wasn't allowed out here if he wasn't scheduled to be. The patrol schedule was to keep any one of them from burning themselves out with homework and clubs and trollhunting, and Eli was nothing if not diligent. Sure, he thought he'd smelled Eli, but it could be his mind playing tricks on him. Steve and Eli did hang out a lot, and with the amount Steve basically manhandled Eli or carried him around, it wasn't unusual to catch a whiff of Eli's shampoo even when Steve was on his own.But (and Jim did this discreetly, because humans did find it weird) Jim sniffed cautiously at Steve, to confirm he wasn't just smelling things, and no, he wasn't. It wasn't as strong as if Eli were actually here, but there was a strong, lingering scent.Which didn't make any sense at all; Jim had gotten used to his nose enough to pick things up, and scents didn't really linger that way unless you'd been, like, rolling around in them-Oh.Jim didn't think any of the humans had picked up the subtle difference in shade that distinguished a blush on his face, so that was a small mercy. But…oh, man. His first urge was to tease Steve, but he wasn't Toby; Jim didn't know what he could get away with. And he frankly had no idea what was going on, except that Steve and Eli had been in very close proximity, very deliberate and prolonged proximity, probably, if Jim had to guess, based on the intensity of the lingering scent, Eli's bed (he tried to banish the thought, because he doubted either Steve or Eli would appreciate him imagining it).So he kept his mouth shut, even if it became commonplace to smell Eli on Steve, or vice-versa, a clear sign that the two of them were...in close proximity...on a regular, continuous basis; explaining he knew would require explaining how he knew, and that would just be embarrassing for everybody.
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Steve was Eli's best friend. Unimaginable until the moment Steve had begged for his help dealing with a captive creeper, it was just the way the world was, now.But Blinkous...was a close second.Jim was cool, Toby fun, Claire smart, but Blinkous…Blinkous had a library. A wealth of knowledge about the supernatural world, and a burning desire to share it. Which meant that while Aaarrrgghh was undoubtedly Blinkous' best friend, and Jim his son in all but blood, Eli suspected that with the amount of time he spent in Blinkous' library, he might qualify as Blinkous' second best friend (second best living friend, Eli had learned during a particularly sobering night when Steve'd been at his grandma's for Thanksgiving and Eli needed company).Eli had seen Aaarrrgghh fondly watch Blinkous chatter on about what he'd been reading, see Claire debate a subject she needed to master, but he was pretty sure he was the only person who was just interested in anything - everything - Blinkous had to share about his world.And Blinkous, for his part, for all that he knew so much more about this stuff than Eli, never dismissed him or made fun of him. He was intrigued about Eli's alien sightings, although was doubtful of the existence of something he didn't already know about. But, and this was the best part, Blinkous had offered a dozen alternative theories that Eli had disproved. Eli almost didn't care if it turned out to be aliens at this point.But he did sort of care how Blinkous felt about him, so he was going about this delicately. He was helping Blinkous archive books they'd charmed out of Gatto when he decided to take the plunge."Can I ask you something?""Of course, my friend." Blinkous settled his armful of books to the side, apparently at random, as he ambled to Eli's side, smiling. "Though the number of times you've stumped me, I cannot promise I can answer.""I've heard a couple of trolls call me something, and I wanted to know what it meant.""Oh." Blinkous drew up short, looking a little worried; Eli regretted his phrasing, seeing Blinkous' worry that someone was being rude to him. "Go ahead."Eli had heard the word thrown around, had seen it written down, but he was atrocious at pronouncing Trollish, and was certain he'd mangled it.Blinkous, though, lit up, relieved, Eli guessed, it wasn't some sort of slur. "Oh, that! Like many Trollish words, it has many connotations based on context, the person using it, and so forth. The closest English word I've found to it is 'helpmate', though as I said, its actual meaning varies.""So if someone called me Steve's…helpmate..."Blinkous nodded. "It could mean a number of things. It would not be inaccurate to call Toby Jim's helpmate-""But I don't think they would."Blinkous paused, peering at Eli carefully with all six eyes. "Ah.""Because Toby and Jim aren't dating.""There is, I admit, a particularly intimate connotation to the word. Aaarrrgghh, of course, calls me his helpmate-""Wait. What?""For him, I prefer a term which might be better translated as 'shelter', but he was always the romantic one-""No. Wait. Back up." Blinkous' brows raised, curious. "Do you mean - you and Aaarrrgghh-" Blinkous waited, patiently, forcing Eli to actually ask. "You're, like, together?""Oh, yes, certainly. Going on, oh, seventy years or so."Eli knew, objectively, Blinkous was hundreds of years old, but it was daunting to hear he'd been dating the same person for slightly less time than Eli's grandmother had been alive.And then there was the fact he'd been worried how Blinkous would react to the news Eli and Steve were dating, when Blinkous had been gay for an entire human generation."Why didn't you ever tell us?"Blinkous shrugged. "Well, it's hardly a secret - Vendel was actually quite critical about how we carry on. I shouldn't be surprised other trolls would call you Steve's helpmate, the way you two act."Which, of course, had been the point of Eli's question - having discovered one possible meaning of the word was 'husband'.Still…"What do you mean, how we act?"Blinkous waved his hand vaguely. "It isn't any one thing. Your physical closeness, of course, is a factor. Steve's affectionate diminutive is another. If you're concerned about them mischaracterizing your relationship, I could see about tamping down on that sort of talk.""I mean, it's not mischaracterizing," Eli replied, feeling his ears heat. "Seeing as we're dating and all. I mean, I've seen it translated as 'husband', and that's a little...serious?" Eli winced at the high note his voice hit.Blinkous just chuckled. "No one actually blieves the two of you are as serious as Aaarrrgghh and I.""But...you don't seem surprised. Is it because of the way we act?""Ah...no."***"Come on, Pepperbuddy, I'm bored. You promised we'd run around the unexplored depths of the earth if I came along on this dumb library trip.""First, they're not 'unexplored'. Trolls have been living down here for ages. Second, if you want to get out of here quickly, you can help me research."Blinky perked up as he descended down to his library. He'd told Elijah to drop by any time, and the Creepslayer (a delightful name that Blinky thought better encapsulated the ethos of the Trollhunter than the actual word 'trollhunter') had apparently taken him up on it. He puffed himself up, ready to present himself as a font of information and superior research skills, when Elijah let out a quiet, "Oh.""What?" From what Blinky had heard about Steve, he was surprised to find the boy so affectionate toward Elijah. But it shouldn't have been much of a surprise; the bonds forged in battle could become the tenderest, for the awareness of how fragile one's friends were."N - nothing!"There was a brief scuffle, but no noise from either boy, until-"A dictionary? You dragged me down here to look up words?"Elijah huffed, a familiar sound, that Blinky was used to making himself. "I was looking up a troll word. Trolls keep using it around us, and it isn't the word for human-""Do I need to pound somebody?"Elijah let out a high-pitched laugh, a little hysterical. It was actually funny, imagining Steve trying to fight a full-grown troll."No, I just. It's not anything rude. It just. Means 'boyfriends'."Oh dear. Blinky should not be listening to this, but the stair behind him creaked ominously when anyone stepped on it, and he was much too close to the door. So he did his best to stay perfectly still and not make any noise."You mean, trolls look at you and me and think-""Pretty much," Elijah squeaked out. There was silence for a moment, and then he continued, hurriedly, "I don't know how they got that idea, and whatever it is I'm doing I can stop, just don't stop liking me-""Hey, can you shut up for a sec?"Despite being an unwitting and mostly unwilling observer, Blinky felt tension in his chest. He knew the fear that a good friend might find one's attraction a reason to turn away from them."First, you're not going to stop being my Pepperbuddy just because a bunch of trolls think we're, you know, together. And second...you're not doing anything weird, okay? I mean, weirder than you normally are. I just bet...those trolls look at us and figure I'd have to be a real moron not to…want to be your boyfriend.""Steve?" Elijah's voice was high, a little shaky, but he didn't sound scared, or hurt, which meant Blinky did not have to be here if he could just find a way to pretend he hadn't been standing here the whole time."Which, if I'm not being clear, which Coach says is a thing I really need to do, I think we totally should be boyfriends. If you want to.""R - really?""Yes. You're smart - sort of, um, cute - and you're a Creepslayer - like, one better than a Trollhunter. A real 'catch'.""...No one's ever called me a 'catch' before.""Well, you are.""A - are you blushing?""No! Maybe. L - look, I'm the one putting myself out here, so if you could just tell me what you think about the whole boyf-"A moment of silence."That better be a yes, or that was the most misleading kiss ever.""Of course it's a yes. I gotta lock this down while I've still got a chance."Steve snorted. "You're such a dork." Another quiet moment. "Besides, you've had it 'locked down'...for a while, now."Okay, that was enough eavesdropping; Blinky rocked back on the creaky stair, and continued down into his library, grinning at the two boys and the pointed foot of space between them."Elijah! Steve! What a delight to see you two."Elijah glanced at Steve, his cheeks red, expression careful, hopeful. "It's - nice to see you, too, Blinkous. But Steve and I actually have to go. Um, very important Creepslayerz business."Steve gave Elijah a brief scowl. "Really? I dont-""Important. Creepslayerz. Business," Elijah said carefully. "That the two of us. Need to handle. On our own. Together.""Oh!" Steve sat up a little straighter, before a careful grin crossed his face. "Yeah. Gotta go. Very nice to see you, Blinky. Catch you later!"Blinky watched them go, before moving to resort the books Elijah had been reading. As guilty as he was having inadvertently overheard that, he couldn't help but feel a little cheered by it.A little lonely for his own boyfriend, who wouldn't be back for at least several hours.Blinky grinned and headed back out to Trollmarket, intent on securing a surprise for Aaarrrgghh when he returned. Just because it'd been 70 years didn't mean he couldn't remind Aaarrrgghh of when they'd been young(er) and flush in the promise of new romance.
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In Steve’s defense, Toby had been uncharacteristically early. He and Steve hadn’t been paired together for patrol often, so he hadn’t quite gotten the hang of how much time it took to get to Steve’s house.Plus, Aaarrrgghh and Blinky had, like, date night or something, and Jim was like a week behind on his homework from being kidnapped by that sorcerer (Toby was officially over wizards; they were clearly inconsiderate jerks down to the last man). So maybe Toby was looking for company, even if that company was Steve.So he waved at Steve’s mom when she answered the door.“Hey. I’m here to pick up Steve for patrol?”She gave Toby a wide smile; he was pretty sure she thought the trollhunters were all close friends, and clearly thought the rest of them were a fantastic influence on Steve. “Come on in. He’s in his room, getting ready.”In Toby’s defense, there had definitely been the implication he could head on into Steve’s room.So he went on back, opened the door, and hurriedly slammed it in response to Eli’s yelp, and a more delayed, “Don’t you ever knock, Domzalski?”Patrol was quiet. Toby wasn’t certain about Steve, but Eli had clearly been mortified, face flushed when he’d excused himself back home. Which was perfectly understandable, really. As compromising positions went, it didn’t get much more compromising than shirtless with your hand down a guy’s pants.“So, uh. You and, uh, Eli.”“What?” Steve demanded, practically a growl, and Toby wished he maybe hadn’t said anything. Because adding Steve’s defensiveness of Eli to Steve’s own prickly jock persona meant this was the sort of situation that would have gotten Toby pounded two years ago.But Toby had lost control of his own mind, because the next thing out of his mouth was, “Are you two like, friends with benefits, or-““No,” Steve snapped, face flushing more than Toby had ever seen it. “He’s my-“ Steve stopped abruptly, looking away from Toby. “You can’t tell anyone, anyway, got it?”Toby’s chest hitched a bit, concern for Eli pressing him to ask, “This isn’t like when you were an ass to him in public because you thought being friends with him would hurt your image, is it? Because that was a shitty thing to do.”“I know, okay?” Steve actually looked distraught, not surprised, but like he was rehashing an old shame. “We’re working on how to tell our parents and, well - everybody. I really like him, okay? So don’t ruin things by running your mouth.”Toby shrugged. “Alright.” Unable to help himself, he nudged Steve until the other boy looked over at him, wary. “Of course, if you two keep making out in unlocked rooms, you aren’t going to have a secret to tell.”“Shut up, Domzalski!” Steve retorted, punching Toby’s arm. “Some of us knock before we barge into other people’s bedrooms!”Toby just shook his head, laughing, because the blow hadn’t been any harder than Steve would hit Eli’s arm, and that probably meant he and Steve were okay. “But seriously dude, if Eli’s gonna be macking on you the way I saw, you’re gonna wanna get ahead of the story before the two of you manage to out yourselves making out in the janitor’s closet or something.”And Toby could have been happy not knowing any more than he did, but seeing the sudden renewal of Steve’s blush (and who knew it was so easy to embarrass the guy? Eli, probably) and the certainty that whether or not they’d been caught, Steve and Eli had made out in the janitor’s closet, sort of made him wanna give Eli a high five, because the dude had game.