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They spend the afternoon in the vineyard, picking grapes and running through the paths. It's a beautiful place, stretching from the old country house down the mountain and to the village in the valley below. It's grown wild over the last ten years - there's still some demand for grapes and juice, but the wine market disappeared along with the ban on alcohol. Not that that stops their French comrades from producing some, but there are no longer the hands to tend the vineyards and the market in illegal but quality alcohol is slim. Aypierre's family has owned it for generations, or so Baghera had explained as she showed them around this morning. She's gone down to the village now, spending the weekend with some friends while the Brazilians make use of the old house. It's been set up like a hotel, specially for the six of them. Forever isn't sure what to make of that, but neither is he sure what to make of his comrades throwing him - and most of his family - out of the door. Metaphorically, throwing them out of the airship door would probably have killed someone, but out of the door. And now he's sat on a swinging bench hanging from a large oak tree, watching the late afternoon sun burn lazily in the sky. Felps sits down next to Forever, leaning his head on his shoulder. On instinct Forever shifts, slipping an arm behind him. "You good?" "Oh I'm fine. I just didn't want part of that," Felps points across the vineyard, to where the other four are. Forever can hear them laughing. He can also just about see them pelting one another with some of the grapes. He's no idea when it started, but as he watches the teams seem to shift - sometimes Pac and Mike vs Bagi and Cellbit, sometimes Pac and Bagi against Mike and Cellbit. Or perhaps it's actually a free for all. They were told to do what they liked with the grapes, but it still seems like a waste. Or perhaps… Forever leans over to Felps, conspiracy in his tone. "How about we turn the sprinklers on?" "The grapes are looking a bit dry," Felps nods sagely. And then, a hint of worry comes into his voice. "I'm not sure…" Forever can see the fatigue in his face, and he understands. There's a lot of things that can kill your stamina, and Felps has survived more of them than most. "You sit here - I'll get it." Felps grins, and leans back, pretending to sun himself. Forever can see, though, the way his eyes look towards the warring quartet with anticipation. Unsure where the control system for the sprinklers is, Forever heads towards the outside tap. Above it is pinned a laminated set of instructions. They're all in French, a language he knows only the basics of, but the diagrams are simple enough. And Baghera must know them too well, because the lights indicate that all he needs to do is turn the tap. He glances over his shoulder, waiting for the opportune moment. Mike ducks behind a grapevine for cover, placing himself directly next to one of the sprinklers. Perfect. Forever twists the tap, and waits for the shrieking to start. The quartet are quickly soaked through, and even over their yells Forever can hear the much closer Felps laughing. Forever himself begins laughing too, hiding his mouth as he watches Cellbit march over and shove his wet hands across Felps' neck. They're both still laughing - so are Pac and Mike, having taken it in their strides to remain under the water. Bagi is marching towards Forever. "What the fuck!" She yells. "Forever!" He laughs, "you were getting messy!" "I'll show you messy!" There's a grin in her eyes as she lunges for him. Forever ducks out of the way, only to slip slightly in the mud. He catches himself, and turns, only to find Cellbit there. Cellbit grabs his shirt, and pulls him the last little bit into the water as well. The water is cold, but the air is warm - he grabs Cellbit, and pulls him back under too. "Well Cellbo!" He laughs. "Seems we're both wet now!" Cellbit pushes him backwards another few steps, deeper under the spray. Soon enough its a tossle for position, both trying to escape the water but refusing to let the other win. There is no winning - both of them are only getting more and more wet. Forever uses a free moment to glance around, assessing the situation. Bagi has taken a place at Felps's side on the bench, squeezing water from her hair as they talk and lets the sun begin drying her. And then there's Pac and Mike, who have left their sprinkler and are creeping closer. Pac's hands are cupped suspicioisly, and Mike is carrying a bucket. Forever meets their eyes and thinks. Fuck. The second thing he thinks is that he's absolutely selling Cellbit out. He waits for the pair to get a little closer, before throwing himself under the heaviest part of the sprinkler's flow. Cellbit, confused, stumbles, and immediately looks around. He spots the pair just in time for Pac to release the frog in his hands, the little creature instinctively leaping and landing on Cellbit's chest. Seconds later it's followed by Mike's bucket - mostly water, some pond weed, and another four or five frogs. Pac and Mike run in different directions, deeper into the vineyard. Cellbit gives chase, and Forever can escape. He returns to Bagi and Felps, the two cackling with laughter. He pulls off his shirt, leaving it to dry, and accepts a towel for his hair. It's still hot, and bright despite being after dinner - there's no point in drying himself further when the sun will do it for him. "Having fun?" Felps asks of him. "If wet is fun, sure," Forever replies, still squeezing his braid and maybe this is bordering on too much hair. "You're laughing," Bagi points out - and, its true, Forever still is. "Maybe I am." The answer to that is obvious; he leans over the back of the bench, one elbow on each of their shoulders as he watches the others play. It goes on for a while, enjoying laughter and each other, before things go quiet. Forever immediately stops talking, looking for the others. Where are they where are they, what's wrong-? They had gone a little way down the mountain, in ear shot but not sight. Forever… Bagi gets up, and turns off the sprinklers. Felps grabs at the towels, and looks towards Forever Forever breathes. "It's safe here," he says as much for himself as the others. "Antoine warded it. No alarms have gone off. We'd see the ship if they sent an attack force." It's true, he speaks the words, and calms himself down. Bagi comes back, but doesn't sit. She stands at Forever's side, alert as they wait. "Maybe I should-" she eventually begins, before the trio appears from between some of the vines. A quick glance over shows nobody obviously hurt, though Pac is especially muddy and Mike being piggybacked by him. "All good?" Forever asks, checking them over again. "Mike's tired," Pac keeps his voice quiet. "He kinda crashed when he saw how much mountain there was to climb up. Dumbass forgot about that." "In my defense," Mike's voice does sound tired, drifting a bit even as he defends himself. "You're the idiot who slipped and dragged us further down the hill." "You're the one who said leave the heavy duty prosthetic with Tubbo for maintenance- this one's shit in the mud." "And? Should have been more careful." Pac doesn't audibly reply, but Forever's known both of them long enough to recognise the flickers of expression as it continuing. "I'm getting tired anyway," Felps interrupts the silent argument. "Shall we head inside?" "I'd like to stay out a bit longer, but you guys go," Cellbit gestures to the other. Pac and Mike's expressions soften, and they nod in time. "Are we sharing tonight or no?" Pac asks. It's a question for the group - Pac and Mike always share. He's asking if they're going to the room Baghera set up for all of them, or making their way to their own. "Together," Cellbit is quick - very quick - to answer, before suddenly realising its not only his choice. "If that's alright with everyone…?" There's a series of nods and agreements and goodnights before Felps, Pac and Mike head inside, leaving only three. Cellbit takes an offered towel, and sits on the bench. Bagi joins him. Forever lingers a moment, before sitting with them too. "Are they definitely okay?" Forever asks, eyes trailing a bit. "I think Mike's got a headache," Cellbit answers. "They wouldn't say, but Pac kept shushing me." It makes sense, then, as to why nobody called. In the past a headache was just a headache, but ever since… There's much worse Mike could have been left with than debilitating migraines, especially when they come and go. He didn't look like it was an especially bad one, at least; when they're on the worse end it's easy to read the pain on his face. The worst ones he cannot even speak without making it worse, and he was well enough to argue. It's fine, then. Sleep will probably solve the problem just fine, and they are here on orders to rest. "Pac was limping," Bagi frowns. Forever didn't notice that. "On his prosthetic," Cellbit points out. "His leg is fine, I think he was just being honest about the mud disgreeing with it." "We'll make sure he cleans it in the morning, if he hasn't already." It's another easy problem to fix - sleep, oil, and and a screwdriver. Would all their problems be solvable so simply. "And Felps?" Cellbit asks. "He wasn't playing with us." "He just got tired," Forever replies. "And you know he's never been much for the chaos." "He loves it," Cellbit replies. "He just doesn't want to get his hands dirty." And, yeah, that's plenty true. "And you?" Bagi asks of them. "Not too cold?" Forever looks at his lack of shirt and Cellbit's soaking being, and laughs. "It's warm enough," Cellbit replies. "You're not?" "I'm already dry," and so she is. "I left the water before it started getting dark." And it is getting dark now. It's not quite sunset, but the sun has finally made it low. Cellbit looks at Forever. He stretches out, testing tired muscles and old scars. They're a little annoyed by the activity, but nothing hurts. "I'm fine," he mouths. Cellbit looks suspicious, but accepts it. "Are we staying to watch the sunset?" Cellbit asks instead. "Why not?" Bagi replies. "It's not going to be long." "Sure," Forever stays intruding, relaxing onto the cushions and rocking it ever so slightly. The bench is made to swing, and so it keeps the little rocking for a short while, shifting in the low light. How long has it been since he watched a sunset? A real one, not just out the window as the Avenger crossed the skies faster than the earth turns. One without smoke, or gunfire, or the ending of a world. They can breathe here, for however long, and Forever… Well this place is Aypierre's, and Baghera's, and Antoine's, and Etoiles', not his. If he had a place like this, maybe he'd do as Philza keeps insisting and take a break more often. Probably not, but he might - and certainly he'd make the others do it, just… Home is in each other, yes, but it's true the only place they have is the ship. They should think about what sort of home they want, start making plans for after the end. "Do you think we can see the stars here?" Cellbit asks. "Huh?" Forever is startled from this thoughts. "The stars," Cellbit looks at him like he has three heads. "Usually there's too much light, but we're pretty far from the cities here." They don't mention the lack of fire, either - the few times the group travels to more rural areas, it's usually for an already too late rescue mission. "I can already see one," Bagi points up and, sure enough, a few bright ones are already visible as the sun dips below the horizon. They stay there for a while, talking as the light fades out. It's a good half an hour before the sun dips below the horizon - Bagi yawns, and Cellbit steers her inside and to bed. Forever stays. Not long, just a couple more minutes - watching the sky, and thinking. About everything, about nothing, about a beautiful but broken world. Because it is beautiful, and it is worth saving, no matter the pain, no matter the cost. After those few minutes of reflection, Forever finally gets up. He clears the leftovers from dinner into the fridge, before turning out the lights and heading deeper in. He doesn't bother locking up - the things they need most be afraid of will break the windows to get to them, and it's better to have the easy escape. The room Baghera - probably with help from Antoine, though Forever hasn't seen the man recently - prepared for all of them is a couple of floors up. It's a whole, large suite. Forever needs to clean up before he sleeps, but first... First he wants to check on the three who left earliest, make sure they're okay. He knows they should be, that there's no actual harm done, but he slips through anyway. Pac's prosthetic - cleaned - is charging in the corner of the sitting room. The rest of the room looks pretty much the same, but for the cracked open door to the bedroom, and the soft yellow light slipping through. Forever creaks the door open. He doesn't flick on the lights, just trusts the lamp light to be enough. Pac's crutches - propped up against the side of the bed, so he can get up without sending someone to fetch his leg if he wants to - cast bizarrely shaped shadows across the room. The curtains are drawn, the room is pleasantly cool compared to the heat of outside, and all three of them are tucked safely into bed; Pac lays on Mike's chest, curled up in a tight ball and clutching at his shirt. Pac's body, anyway - one of Mike's eyes is glowing blue as he reads some battered book. Felps is next to them, pressed against Mike's side and more than half asleep. Mike, or perhaps Pac, raises a few fingers in a quiet hello. Forever smiles and wakes back, keeping quiet so as not to disturb them. "Hi Forever," it's Pac's tone in Mike's voice, and maybe Forever should have expected that. Still sleepy, though, even as he puts a finger in the book's spine to save his place. "Where's the others?" "Just cleaning up; I'm claiming the bath, but just wanted to check on you first." "We're alright," Pac-Mike folds the book away, curling his hands over both people beside him. "Felps is asleep, Mike's… listening, but not up to much." "You swapped?" Pac-inside-Mike gestures at Mike's head, "headache. Let him have my body so he could get to sleep, I'm just waiting for the painkillers to kick in before I join him." "I won't keep you," Forever promises and... It makes sense, well enough. He makes a note to make sure Mike takes more in the morning, just in case. "You're better for Mike's eyes than the book in this lighting," Pac reassures, before making a shushing noise Forever doubt is meant for him. Forever moves over, perching on the edge of the bed. Careful not to get mud anywhere he reaches out, rubbing his thumbs into Mike's temples. He watches tension fade from both interlinked bodies, until Mike's arms move up and tug his down. And it is Mike who speaks this time, voice even more clouded by sleep, "we're fine - go get clean and join us." "And who is incharge here?" He asks. "Nobody," Mike replies, before Pac contradicts him with "Baghera, and she said to get a good night." Forever laughs, slamming his hand over his mouth as he realises how loud he is. Felps stirs, shifting a little and hand reaching out. Forever takes his hand, squeezing it with a quiet "we're all good" before tucking it next to one of Pac's. Neither Pac nor Mike move Pac's hand, but Felps latches onto it and drifts back to full asleep all the same. Felps' hands are warm, warm in a way that means it can't have been too long since he showered. That's good - Felps and Mike have both run cold since their injuries, and their discomfort often obvious. They're warm for now, but... he grabs some extra blankets from a shelf, tucking them around the trio. Better safe than sorry. Pac and Mike are both laughing in Mike's skin once he's done. Forever ignores them, grabbing a soft shirt that looks like it'll fit him for the night. "You to get some sleep, too - I'll be back soon," he tells them. He gets a wave, and the green flickering out to leave only blue still reading. The bathroom is just across the hallway, the showers next to it. He can hear Cellbit and Bagi talking, though the words are drowned out by two showers worth of water. Forever leaves the doors to both the bedroom and the bathroom cracked open, and sees the twins did the same - he's no shame in being seen naked, and quite a lot of fear of being needed. There's a whole selection of bubbles and oils beside the bathtub. Baghera had said use whatever they wanted so… he picks out a couple, turns on the hot tap, and tosses them in. He's not sure how the vineyard still has hot water, but somehow he does. At the sink he rinses the worst of the dirt from both himself and his clothes, before throwing said clothes in a laundry basket for the morning. There's already some in there - Pac's, Mike's and Felps' if he isn't wrong - and it makes him wonder how many people can fit in the bath. It's an old, fancy, porcelain thing, taking up the entire bay window and then a little. It's so clearly a bath, and yet it also reminds him of a hot tub. There's a bottle of wine in one of the cupboard - how they get away with this is beyond Forever's guessing - and he decides, fuck it. The pretty crystal wine glasses are ignored, but he does grab the bottle opener and the tub of fancy looking crackers. He puts those on the side of the bath, and grabs a brush. His braid is undone and his hair brushed through. Wetting the brush is enough to get the dust out and its doesn't need soap yet, so he just ties it into a bun once he's done. By that point, the bath is full. He slips into the warm water, back to the door, and gazes out the windows. This high up there's no need for the blinds - he instead grabs his wine, drinking it from the bottle as he watches the stars. There's a couple of other drinks he thinks he'd prefer, but it's a French vineyard, so they can be forgiven. There's still the low twilight, the sky still slightly coloured even as the start shine out. Somewhere up there, out there… somewhere in the sky Philza and Bad are taking care of things for him, and all he has to do is soak in the water, drink wine, and gaze at the stars. It feels almost wrong, and certainly decedent. Forever drinks the wine anyway - straight from the bottle - and slips further into the water. Pain he didn't even know he had starts slipping away, tension melting from his bones into the pool of warmth and oil. He can hear the others - Pac-in-Mike talking to Cellbit and Bagi, before conversation turns quiet and he hears snoring instead. By the time he finishes the bottle, Forever may as well be mush. The water is just starting to grow unpleasantly cold. Rather than add more warm water, he pulls himself out, and keaves the bath to drain. The tiled floor is cold, but his towel is warm - and night shirt, trapped between said tower and the radiator, warmer still. He leaves his hair up, and makes his way back. The painkilers must have worked, because both Pac and Mike are now asleep, clinging to Felps and to one another. Cellbit and Bagi have taken the other side of Felps, Cellbit holding the man while Bagi has her back pressed against his. There's only a little space left, like this. Forever tucks himself under the blankets by Tazercraft, turning out the lamp as he does. Cellbit stirs at the change. "Just me," Forever whispers. "Go back to sleep." His response is unintelligible. Forever sees Cellbit bury his face into the pillow, and decides to leave it be. Honestly? The pillows seem like a good option. Forever worms his arm between Pac and Mike to reach Felps, twisted so he can hug Mike and hold Felps' hand. Once upon a time he, the weakest, went in the middle of the heap. Now its Felps, who since his torture cannot stay warm overnight no matter the weather, and Mike, simply because he vanished for months and no matter what injuries the rest have taken it's terrifying that Mike was taken. Like this, Felps stays warm. Like this, nobody can get at Mike and steal him away again. Like this, they're together and as safe as they can be. Forever is now at the edge of the pile, and he's pleased to be trusted, but he hates why it changed. He shifts closer to Pac and Mike, despite knowing during the night he's going to end up either rolled onto by Pac or dragged into their tangle during the night. But, to be entangled is to be loved, and what are they to one another but love? Forever doesn't have an answer to that. So he takes love as love, and holds what family he can reach, and knows the rest are just a flip of the lightswitch away.