it's mama time

Rocky makes xenonite figurines of everything he finds important. He has one of Grace and himself, Adrian and the rest of his family, his old crew, the ships, Eridian animals, etc. I don’t think he plays with them so much as looks at them and thinks. He lines them up and sits in the middle of them. Sometimes he gives them to little Grace to play with though because he knows he wouldn’t break them (he couldn’t break them even if he wanted to).

Rocky prefers to make contraptions to actually play with. Grace asks what they are, Rocky explains they’re not really anything just little fidget toys and Grace is like OGHH!!!! I WANT!!! so they share them.

Pebble Rocky is very clingy. He has debilitating separation anxiety that just gets worse when he’s regressed. He needs to have Grace close to him at all times. Rocky spent a lot of time completely alone and now it puts him in a stressful and self-destructive headspace. Grace usually has to chaperone him everywhere, not that either of them are complaining. Grace is happily glued to Rocky’s side.

Grace introduces Rocky to a lot of his childhood games. He learns quickly that Rocky doesn’t have the stamina to run like a human can, nor do either of them have enough energy for a lot of common child/pebble activities. They end up playing a lot of more relaxed games and card/board/video games instead. Rocky also shares some games from when he was a pebble that aren’t uncomfortable for Grace to play, but a lot of those are for hatchlings, so they’re generally reserved for when Grace is teeny tiny.

They have a lot of free time on the way to Erid so Grace picks knitting back up after he finds some supplies on the Hail Mary. With Rocky’s help they make a yarn-like material out of xenonite/whatever Eridians use for fabric that he can use to make Rocky things. Rocky absolutely loves his sweaters from Gracie!

Rocky finds human technology SO FASCINATING! Grace could give pebble Rocky a TV remote or a regular ink pen to play with and he’d be occupied for at least 15 minutes until he gets bored… which is a long time for a pebble to be actively interested in something! The entire scene where Grace gives Rocky a tape measure. Yeah. Everything he gives him is getting fully investigated, taken apart and put back together.

Especially at first on the Hail Mary, Grace mostly regresses involuntarily due to stress/fear/pain. The idea of being in such a fragile and vulnerable state while All Of That was happening and he was still missing a lot of memories was terrifying for Grace, so he avoided regressing for a long time if he could help it. The first time he drifted into headspace comfortably was very special for both Grace and Rocky! Maybe they were just hanging out or watching a movie or something and he felt safe. Rocky was very glad to see Happy Pebble Grace, it was a long time coming.

They both eventually figure out what helps each other feel little comfortably. They’re also embarrassing to each other about it. Rocky is particularly insistent about reminding Grace about his basic bodily needs because he has the worst interoception ever. Rocky can literally hear when his body needs something before he realizes himself. Grace has to keep Rocky on track with pretty much everything because he will get distracted. Grace has learned that pebbles have exceptionally short attention spans.

Sort of an Eridian biology headcanon thats related to Rocky’s regression. Grace also has found that pebbles have random quick periods of dormancy. It’s basically the Eridian equivalent of a power nap, where they stay conscious but their body is paralyzed for a short while to recharge. This is generally something adult Eridians don’t do because they grow out of the need and it’s kind of socially inconvenient; pebbles require a lot more rest than adults but it’s evolutionarily dangerous/unhelpful to be completely unconscious for most of the day. Let the body rest a little bit while staying conscious and parents can carry em around on top of their carapace.

^ This has become a sort of maladaptive habit for Rocky, as he’ll put off properly sleeping for too long by exclusively pebble napping. This was especially bad when he was alone and didn’t have anyone to watch him. Grace is helping him get back on a healthier sleep schedule but old coping habits are tough to break.

Once he makes a proper xenonite suit, pebble Rocky loves cuddles from Grace even more than big Rocky. He likes to curl up against Grace or carefully crawl half-into his lap (more like sit between his legs and drape a couple of arms over him) and just listen to his heartbeat/body sounds. Sometimes Rocky pebble naps or falls asleep there without any warning and Grace is on Rocky Watch until he’s up again. You just can’t move a sleeping pebble off of your lap. Also these moments are like victories for Grace because most of the time, pebble Rocky is extremely anxious about sleep. He’ll repeatedly ask Grace for reassurance that he’s going to watch him sleep, that he won’t go anywhere and won’t leave him alone, that they’ll both wake up again, and so on. Him falling asleep so easily is a very big display of trust.

In the same vein, little Grace also needs a lot of reassurance from Rocky that he’s not going to be abandoned or betrayed again. He sometimes hates to be touched and (unsuccessfully) hides from Rocky. Regression can be difficult for both of them, and they are both very patient with each other.

((Side note -> I think Eridians do hatch very vulnerable as they develop their carapace and learn about their environment, but they’re somewhat precocial and can fend for themselves a little more than human babies can. Rocky learns that humans are born underdeveloped because of their large brain size and are pretty much fully dependent on parents/caregivers. -> Rocky got a little too doting for a while after that conversation. He did a lot of intense research about human development and psychology. Little Grace is not used to the constant attention and has a hard time with it at first. He’s had a life of disorganized attachments, broken trust and caregivers that hurt/leave him. It can be overwhelming.))

They regress together frequently, it’s often a chain reaction. If one of them is little the other is probably gonna be close behind, they are so in sync. This is particularly common when they’re both on Erid and don’t have to really worry about being big and responsible to watch each other. Adrian is there to make sure they’re taken care of and safe, and so are their recovery teams if need be (although that’s not preferred).

Adrian loves to carry them both around on their carapace. It makes Rocky feel very small. Adrian has a baby sling hammock thingy for Grace. When he’s in there, that’s his Adrian-enforced “no one except Rocky can bother Grace” time. You need the human for something? No way, he’s in the sling you’re gonna have to come back later. Grace has learned to avoid doctor’s appointments this way… as many as Rocky and Adrian allow him to get away with that is. Which is not many.