Work Text
Peri knew from the moment he was assigned to his first godkid that Dev Dimmadome was going to be a difficult case. Just how difficult of a case it would be, however, was nothing Peri could have predicted.At first, it seemed doable, albeit a bit frustrating: spoiled brat, victim of emotional neglect; expecting everything but wishing for nothing at the same time. But Peri was determined to be the best fairy godparent he could be; to not only uphold others’ faith in Peri’s capabilities but also to bring joy to a miserable child.Unfortunately, Dev was never satisfied. No amount of granted wishes could bring it, and the few things that could were not something he could simply wish for. It all came to a breaking point with Dev’s most recent wish.“I wish I had a boyfriend,” Dev commanded, arms crossed after hiding in the utility closet. He had just caught Hazel holding hands with Winn— both started dating this morning, apparently, even though Peri knew it wouldn’t last. “Relationships” between ten-year-olds often never lasted beyond a week, at most.Still in his headphones disguise, Peri hovered away from around Dev’s neck before transforming back into his normal fairy form. “Sorry, kid, can’t do that.” Peri materialized that thick purple book known as Da Rules into his hands; licked a finger before turning onto his desired page. “Says here that I can’t force people to love you.”Unsurprisingly, Dev snarled in response. But Peri stood his ground. He could not break Da Rules. The book vanished in a puff of magical smoke.“Then make me a boyfriend.”“You know I can’t, Dev,” Peri said exhaustedly, pinching the bridge of his nose. Couldn’t the kid just wish for something that could be granted?“Then how about you be my boyfriend?! Or is doing that against your stupid rules too?”Color suddenly drained from Peri’s face.
Meanwhile, Dev also stopped in his tracks. The boy’s eyes widened beneath those shades, as if he had just slipped out a confession he wasn’t supposed to. Nonetheless, Peri needed to nip this in the bud immediately.“Dev.” Peri’s voice was as firm as he could make it, despite how caught off-guard he was from that simultaneously innocent-yet-insidious statement. “I am an adult. Adults and kids do not like each other like that.”“They don’t?”What an odd question… yet the words left Dev with a weak, confused cadence to them, which had Peri frowning in concern. Peri studied Dev, whose face was pallid now; looking just as if not more shocked than Peri had just been.Something was horribly wrong.“Dev?” Peri asked, unsure what else to ask. But Dev’s expression had hardened again.“I wish you would leave me alone,” Dev said abruptly, storming to the door; already grasping its knob with a shaking hand.“Alright, but… if you need to talk, I’m—““Go!”Peri opened his mouth to say more… before sighing and granting the wish.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Peri was gone for the rest of the school day. Dev knew that he would return eventually, something which brought comfort, and yet, Dev still didn’t want to entertain the idea of seeing Peri.Instead, Dev spent the remainder of the day on his own, glaring at Hazel and Winn’s hand-holding from afar; blowing off Hazel whenever she attempted to converse with Dev.He felt… angry. Empty. Hurt.Hazel, the first person to ever be nice to Dev, liked Winn more than him. Just like how Dad liked his gold-spurred boots more than him. Just like how everybody always liked something more.He was alone. Unloved; always pushed aside for better things.Dev rested his head on the desk’s cool surface, barely paying attention to Mr. Guzman’s math lesson. Other children scritched equations into their notebooks. Hazel was especially invested, nodding along and raising her hand to declare the answers— far more chipper than she was usually, all because of Winn. But, weirdly enough, Hazel wasn't who plagued Dev’s mind.
“Adults and kids do not like each other like that.”
Peri’s words from earlier that morning lashed through Dev’s mind like a scourge.Regret winced in him at the memory. He shouldn’t have told Peri to leave. As always, Dev was pushing everyone away. That tendency was probably why Hazel was with Winn instead of him, and why Dad didn’t love him.Peri would be next to go, and Dev knew it. It's happened too many times to expect otherwise.Suddenly, the school bell rang. Dev snapped out of his apprehensive daze as kids burst into excited chatter and chairs scooted back. Everyone practically stampeded out of the classroom to go home. Sluggishly, Dev stood up and commanded his Au Pairs to lower down so he could step and hitch a ride on them. The drones lifted Dev and hovered home with him on their backs.To Dev’s silent relief, Peri was waiting for him at home. Dev walked into his bedroom, where Peri lounged in Dev’s oversized office chair, reading one of the many books about boats that Dev had available on his bookshelf. Peri glanced up from the pages.“How was school?” Peri asked as Dev placed his backpack down.“Fine,” Dev muttered.Peri shut the book and magically willed it to float back on the shelf. “I’m sorry I couldn’t grant that wish, kid. You know how important it is to—”“Yeah, I get it. Rules are important and stuff.” Dev slumped onto bed and stared at the white ceiling above. Peri paused before poofing from the chair, now lying beside Dev. Dev tensed. He could practically feel the fairy’s warmth, hear the soft rise and fall of his breath, not to mention smell the candy-sweet scent that emanated from the fairy.“I’m gonna be honest.” Peri turned his head to look at him. Dev avoided eye contact. “I’m worried about you.”Dev bit his lip.“I can’t grant you every wish, but you know you can talk to me, right?”Dev sucked in a breath. He couldn’t tell if he was annoyed, touched, or scared. His stomach fluttered in ways that were both pleasant and terrible.Dev squeezed his eyes shut. “I shouldn’t have pushed you away."“You needed to be alone. That’s—”“No. I pushed you away, like I pushed Hazel away, and..." Dev swallowed. He wasn’t going to mention Dad, too. He couldn’t unless he risked his voice breaking. “I… I’ve been thinking about it, Peri, and… I… think I like you.” Dev’s face burned red at the confession, stomach flipping so hard he might vomit.When Dev glanced up, he found Peri frowning down at him with knitted brows. “Define ‘like’.”Oh no. Disapproval. Dev’s heart hammered horribly, his body shaking, but he had to continue, had to keep Peri close somehow.“Be my boyfriend.”Peri's expression hardened. Not again. “Dev.” Peri’s voice was firm, but Dev could sense distress somewhere beneath its composure. “I already told you I can’t.”Dev sat up, facing him directly. “Why? Show me in your stupid rule book!”“There doesn’t need to be a rule for—”“There isn’t one?! So what’s stopping you?!”“You’re a child!” Peri’s voice was raised now. He shrunk back from Dev, wings flitting as he lifted off the bed, but Dev yanked Peri by the wrist to keep him from flying away; to keep him from leaving. Peri quivered beneath Dev’s desperate grip. “Dev, I don’t want to hurt you!”“But you’re gonna hurt me by—”“No, Dev!” Peri completely lost it at this point, shouting in Dev’s face before yanking his wrist away with such force that Dev’s fingernails scraped through soft skin. Peri cussed under his breath, but before he could say more, Dev grabbed Peri by the suspenders and forced him into a kiss.
Peri was unmoving at first, petrified with what Dev could only imagine as shock. But Dev still had to show that he loved Peri. No, not just love, but that he needed Peri. That moment of nonresistance came and went, and Peri thrashed under Dev’s grip. Dev just pressed the fairy’s face harder against his lips, thrusting a tongue into Peri’s tight-lipped mouth.Even the moisture in Peri’s mouth tasted sweet, like candy. He only got to taste it for a second, until Peri overpowered and shoved Dev away.Dev fell hard against the bed’s headboard, seeing stars for a second. Peri fluttered backward, with a broken string of saliva being the only indicator of what had just happened.Dev watched as Peri gasped for air and clutched at his heaving chest, eyes wild with perturbation. Dev’s own eyes widened, realization hitting him as he watched Peri struggle— and catastrophically fail— to pull himself together.“Peri,” Dev choked, beginning to tremble, himself. “I… I didn’t mean… I only wanted to—”Before Dev could finish his sentence, Peri waved his wand and teleported away; leaving Dev alone once again… and probably forever.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Peri lay curled on his parents’ couch, wrapped in a colorful, fuzzy blanket. Dad cradled Peri’s head in his lap while Mom floated into the living room with a cup of lavender tea— no sweetener added, per Peri’s request. Peri still reeled from the trauma that was magical buildup and couldn’t handle anything sweet these days.“Won’t you tell us what happened, Poofy?” Dad asked, stroking Peri’s hair. “You were in bad shape when you showed up here unannounced.”“Your father’s right, sweetie,” Mom said sympathetically, placing the cup onto a pink fabric coaster. Peri sat up from Dad’s lap to take the tea. He held it between his hands, allowing its warmth and herbal aroma to ground him. “We haven’t seen you so upset since…” Her words trailed off.Peri knew Mom was about to mention the day Timmy lost his memories. He was glad she stopped herself, as he had no energy to talk about the brother he would never see nor speak to again.“I’m fine, Mom and Dad. It’s nothing I can’t handle.” Peri tried to sound confident, but the words came out wavering with the remnants of shock.Mom and Dad glanced at each other, clearly not buying into his ruse.Normally, Peri would think twice before arriving at his parents’ place during a panic attack. As much as he loved the two, he did not want to worry them, especially after they almost lost him to magical buildup. But what Dev did— that forceful kiss— was so distressing that Peri didn’t even think. Peri just showed up, sobbing and hyperventilating to the point his extremely worried parents had to calm him down. Now Peri was on the couch, breath even and tears dry, while his parents flanked and looked over him.“Did it have something to do with your godkid?” Dad pried. Peri’s neck bristled when Dad eyed the scratches on his wrist. Neither of them mentioned the injury, though it was obvious they were trying to get Peri to bring it up. Peri, however, had no interest in explaining it.“Dad. Mom.” Peri took a sip of tea for sanity’s sake before continuing, “While I appreciate the concern, I promise everything is fine. I got shaken up, but really, it’s nothing I can’t handle.”“We just want to help any way we can," Mom said.Peri sighed. He tugged at his sleeve to hide the scratches, then gazed into the cup where his baggy-eyed, steaming reflection gazed up at him. “What if your godkid does something that isn’t okay? What do you do?”“Peri.” Mom’s voice was filled with worry. “Are you sure godparenting Dev is best for you? We can already tell that he…” She eyed his wrist again and Peri gritted his teeth.“It’s not as bad as you think, Mom.”It’s worse, he bitterly added in his head. The scratches on his wrist were nothing… but Peri was not going to tell his parents about that kiss. Even if he wanted to talk about it— which he didn’t— he doubted he even could without falling apart.“We’re all for sticking with our godkids through thick and thin, but—”“But what?” Peri retorted, glaring at Mom. “What is so bad about my godkid compared to, like, say, Timmy? Hasn’t he caused hundreds of problems, and you’re implying I should leave my godkid over some scratches?”Mom and Dad’s faces paled. Peri continued sipping his tea, though the atmosphere in the room practically made it bitter. A minute passed for the remorse to settle in.“Sorry,” Peri sighed, setting the cup down. “I just… don’t know how to help this kid. He’s going through all these things and I want to help, but… I’m unequipped.” He buried his face in his hands. “There, I said it. I’m unequipped!”“Peri…”“I don’t know how to help him!” Tears of frustration burned Peri’s eyes as he grabbed fistfuls of his own hair. “It’s like he’s drowning, and whenever I try to save him, he pulls me down with him!”“It’s alright. Just breathe, okay?”Peri realized he was hyperventilating again, so he took his parents’ advice and breathed deeply until his heart slowed. He drank more of his tea with trembling hands, focusing on its warmth, on the plush couch he sat on, and on the bright colors in his parents’ living room. “I’m just so… bad at this,” he concluded.“You’re not bad at this,” Mom reassured.“Yeah, you work harder than any other fairy we’ve met in thousands of years," Dad agreed. “We couldn’t be more proud. But you should look out for what’s best for yourself too. You can’t care for godkids without taking care of yourself first.”Peri said nothing.Mom put a hand on his shoulder. “Cosmo is right. You’re putting way too much pressure on yourself over this kid.”Peri swallowed the lump in his throat. “But… what about...?”“You’ll be there for him,” Dad said. “Just like you already are. You’re a good godparent, Poofy, but please take care of yourself, too.”“It doesn’t mean you’ll stop loving him,” Mom added.Peri was silent again. He finished his last sip and set the cup down, his mind racing with options— some more harrowing than others; bringing him far too close to home with his memories of Timmy. His parents were right, though. This wasn’t just about Dev, but also himself. If he failed himself, he was failing Dev, too.Without warning, Peri stood up, the blanket sliding off his back and onto the couch. “Thanks, guys. Not just for this, but… for everything. I’m lucky to have parents as good as you two.” Peri used his magic to zap the cup clean and for the blanket to be folded neatly on the couch. “Sorry this is abrupt, but I need to leave.” Before his parents could respond, Peri teleported away.Dev was asleep when Peri returned. The child lay curled on top of the covers, dry tears streaking his cheeks. Dev shivered as small whimpers escaped him every few pauses.
“Don’t, please…”
Peri frowned. He floated in place at the other end of the room, and as upset as he was with Dev, he couldn’t help but feel pain for him, too. Peri approached the bedside, pulling a blanket over him and stroking Dev’s still-gelled-back hair. The whimpers subsided and Dev stopped shivering.“It’s okay,” Peri whispered. “I’m here. You’re safe.” He let go and sank to the floor beside Dev’s bed, knees folded to his chest. What happened was too much to think about for one night, and he was so, so tired.Then concerns drifted to Dev again. Given the kid’s history, Peri would be more shocked if there wasn’t some underlying trauma that fueled Dev’s actions earlier. No healthy, sound-of-mind child would have kissed someone like that, especially not an adult. Whatever Dev had gone through to think doing that was acceptable, let alone necessary, made Peri’s blood boil— but not towards Dev. It was to whoever the asshole was that convinced Dev into thinking it was okay.“Peri?”Peri snapped out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Dev, who rubbed his puffy eyes and stared down at Peri in what seemed like disbelief, if it wasn’t for how burnt out he was.“You’re back?” he asked hoarsely.Peri forced a feeble, reassuring smile. "I'm back."Dev’s lip trembled, and without hesitation, Peri flittered up and pulled the kid close. Dev sobbed weakly, wet apologies spilling onto Peri’s shoulder.Peri was silent, not sure what platitude to even give. But he held Dev close anyway, so protectively that nothing else mattered at the moment.“I shouldn’t have done that,” Dev choked in Peri’s arms. “It made sense, but now it doesn’t.”Peri held him closer. “You’re going through a lot. You don’t need to make sense of it all right now.”“Do you hate me?”“Of course I don’t hate you. But…” Peri paused as an immense amount of guilt panged in his heart, but he had to do this— if not for himself, then for Dev. It wouldn’t be fair for Dev if Peri stuck around during this time. “I’m going to need time to process this.”Dev went silent.“Are you okay?”“You’re leaving.” Not a question, but a statement. An admission of defeat. Peri had expected an anxious or even defiant response from Dev, but this was somehow more concerning.“Not permanently. A week, at the earliest.”“Okay.” Dev was limp in Peri’s arms, as if ready for Peri to let him go. But Peri wouldn’t.“I don’t love you in the way you want me to—” Peri decided to explain, “—but I do love you. Whether I’m here or not; even if I have to tap out or step away… I will always love you.”Dev’s shoulders quaked at Peri’s words. He choked back another sob. Tears rolled down Peri’s cheeks. All he wanted to do was hold onto Dev forever, but he knew he couldn't. Not right now.“I’ll be back, okay?” Peri said, before using every ounce of willpower to let Dev go. “In a week or two. Can you be okay for me until then?”Dev nodded. Peri smiled sadly. He made a mental note to ask Mom and Dad— and preferably Hazel, too— to check on Dev while Peri was away… just in case the kid were to spiral again. Despite Hazel “dating” Winn, Peri knew she still cared for Dev and would be more than happy to help.Peri floated away. He looked over his shoulder and gave one last regretful glance at Dev. “You’ll be okay,” he said again. “We’ll be okay. We’ll get through this, alright?” He hesitated one last time before finally poofing away from Dev’s room. To heal. To rest. To process.Hopefully he made the right choice.