#dendydot

-//-

It was a simple mission. Get in, ensure the communication towers were online and functional, get out. Easy as pie.

At least on paper.

Smashing his head against the forced fusion’s skull, his helmet cracked further down the middle. Great- not like Sterling hadn’t just gotten him this one or anything. A snarl escaped the both of them as Amko dodged a slashing claw, diving for one of its hind limbs. Wrapping his arms around the limb, he wrenched back, sending it toppling to its stomach.

“I liked this helmet ya piece of expired leftovers.” He grunted, leaning back as he swung. A blur of violet and he sent the science experiment gone wrong flying off the cliff. Its whimpering cries sounded their way back up the mountain as they tumbled down, ending in a quiet puff at the foot of the mountain. Chest heaving, Amko straightened, wincing.

Rubbing his gem, he thumbed the line where ruby met amethyst, stomach tight.

“Fucking Orange Diamond.” Muttering to himself, he slumped to his knees with a groan.

FUUUUUCK he hurt. He needed a nap. Maybe one of those stupid UV lamps that Enide kept recommending. And food. Lots of food. Hell, just something to chew on really. Raising his head, he sucked air through his teeth at the movement.  Clothes torn and scuffed; his eyes lingered on a spot. Right along his thigh, the red of his markings could just be seen peeking out of it.

A little hole. Shifting his arm despite its protest, he picked at it a bit, until he could fit his littlest finger through.

Now it was a slightly bigger hole.

Sparing a smirk, he turned his attention back to the shattered visor before his eyes. After a few minutes of squinting and fussing with the error buttons, he gave up. Wrenching the busted helmet off his skull, he tossed it off the side with a growl of frustration.

It made contact with the earth and stilled before gleaming white. An annoyingly cheerful chirp sounded off and his gem had reclaimed the armor piece. Raking his fingers through his now free hair, a sigh escaped his nose.

Dammit he liked that one. Now he’d have to go through making it from scratch again because life couldn’t be easy for him and give him nice things. No, he’d just break them. And technically he was still banned from Beardo’s shop, so no help there.

Groaning, he reached between his shoulder blades, running his finger pads along the smooth surface of his gem. At least he wasn’t cracked. Laying back down, he threw his arm across his eyes. He didn’t have any RQW drinks on hand or stored away, and he was definitively not going to borrow one from her.

“Are you alright?”

Jolting upwards, his hands slapped the ground at his sides, as he whipped around to the small green figure beside him.

Speak of the devil.

“What? Think I can’t handle myself?” He growled, lowering his arm away to his chest to glare daggers at her., sneering. “Or were just hoping for some interesting data?”

Crouched over his head, Dendydot stared back at him. Brows furrowed, her eyes flicked across his form his loose hair and torn clothes. Always assessing and analyzing. It was annoying.

“You were facing against a Forced Fusion.” She shrugged, movements jerky and sharp. He raised a brow up at her as she stood. “I cannot imagine that would be easy for you as Kaio, much less on your own. Besides you…”

Mouth flattening into that pointed little frown of hers, she seemed unable to find the words as she shook her head.

“You look haggard.” she finished lamely, proffering her hand. Staring at it with disdain, he pointedly backhanded it away as he sat up on his own. Brushing the gravel off his pants, his scowl deepened as he was washed in light. Clothes replaced, hair tied back in his usual pony tail behind his back up helmet, he glared down at her challengingly.

“I’m fine.”

“I do not believe that.” She said simply, unphased by the sparks spiking off his gloves. A moment of silence passed before he uncrossed his arms.

“Whatever.” Muttering, he threw up his hands in the air, hoping the movement would loosen the tightness in his chest. “It’s not like you would know any ways.”

“Amko-“

“We both know you don’t care so don’t bother to pretend.” Cutting her off, he shoved passed her and stormed back towards the edge. “You’re only here to examine the Comm Tower and I’m only here to make sure you don’t do anything stupid and get yourself killed.”

"Wow, only a friend?" Kaio laughed as he scooped up his partner, who was blushing and frowning.

"I didn't want him to feel any worse..." Dendydot mumbled.

"Aww, Dendy... I'm sure I would have helped. I might not even have known! Or were you scared if I found out about dating I'd want to date you in that state, hm?" He teased.

Dendy fought back a giggle at that. "Hush!"

It was strange, how Kaio mimicked the humans. 

Gems didn’t need to eat; they got all they needed from the UV rays local stars emitted. Yet he chose to consume a plate of “hotcakes” every morning with the company of others. 

Gems didn’t need to exercise; they broke out of their kindergarten walls as exactly as they needed to be to get and ready for battle. Yet he chose to lift weights with them. 

Above all, Gems most certainly did not need sleep to recharge an inefficient, insufficient, organic brain. And yet, here he was, arms tucked behind his head as he rested against the stump she declared her chair, dozing off as his words tumbled together. 

Something about cards? A sort of trivial waste of time only humans could invent. Nothing she could possibly be interested in. You wouldn’t, for example, find an enormous collection of such slips of paper stored in her gem- no sir.

Listening to his words trail off, she glanced back from her holo-screen, to observe.  

It was curious and, surprisingly, endearing to watch his butterfly-like markings twitch across his cheeks. Amused, Dendydot paused in her typing, a small smile settling in her pointed mouth as she picked up a leaf. Leaning back, she brushed it along the length of his nose. 

Nose crinkling at the foreign sensation, it wriggled in an attempted to rid itself of the pesky tickle. 

“ermph- you get it- no you-” Kaio mumbled, tones shifting as he stirred, batting away at the leaf.

“Having trouble, Kaio?” She teased, pulling the leaf back as his eyes fluttered open. 

“Don’t you know not to poke the bear by now?” He griped, though he smiled. Raising an eyebrow, he leaned his weight on his arm, pushing himself up halfway to look at her. “Seriously Den- I was getting comfy.”

“Ah, yes because a chunk of decaying wood is the best pillow.” Nodding earnestly, she smiled as he chuckled. “Besides, you didn’t finish the explanation from earlier.”

“Explanation?” Confusion furrowed the fusion’s headband before his eyes lit up in recognition. “Oh! Right! I was telling you about the Back Room Mishap. Right. Uhh, where’d I leave off again?”

Rubbing his neck sheepishly, his fangs flashed in a embarrassed grin. Tipping his head back, he squinted at her screen- unable to read the text behind the little symbols littering the page.

“I believe you were at the point where you and Enide were determining which Radiquose was the real one.” 

“Right!” Releasing his neck, Kaio waved his hand in front of him. “So, there we were, trying to determine which gem was the right one...”

Listening to him babble, she adjusted her legs, crossing one over the other to sit more comfortably. There was something soothing to the way he’d recall his mishaps, or adventures as he’d call them. As his head rested against her back, she simply smiled.

-//-

Some soft Gem Kendy today. 

It’s funny- I almost forgot to add Kaio’s gem.

“My Diamond will have you shattered for this!” the Peridot shouted, her weird boots(?) kicking out as the fake tubes- were they supposed to fingers or not? why didn’t she just use her own?- scrabbled at his hand. 

“Your oh so precious Diamond would have had me shattered anyways.” He growled, giving her scruff a solid shake. The metal extension coating her other arm creaked and groaned under his grip. “Tell me where Ruko is!”

“Ugh- if you were in my Kindergarten you would have been recycled on sight.” She sniffed, though her eyes flicked nervously between her increasingly uncomfortable extensions and the gem holding them. 

“Trust me- they tried.” His teeth flashed in a cruel smile, before his mouth returned to a snarl. “Now unless you want to be ground into a green powder, you’re going to show me where he is.”

Chilled, her fear burned away into outrage.

“You mean that sorry excuse of a Ruby Guard? Ugh, why do you even care so much?” Glowering, she rolled her eyes as she resumed her struggling. “You act like you can’t function with out him, which- based on the stated of the brig- is hardly the case.”

“Are you seriously going to make me-” His head snapped up as he heard the screech of bare feet sliding to a stop. Whipping over, he saw him. 

In tact. Unharmed. And mirroring the shocked expression on his own face.

“RUKO!” Tossing the Peridot to the side, he bounded through the doors to his other half. 

“Amko?” Confusion. And then, delighted. “AMKO!”

Who made it to who first it was impossible to tell. The brothers collided, Amko sent rolling back as he hugged him tight. Burrying his face in his chest, Ruko was rambling incomprehensibly.

Only years of exposure to Ruko would allow one to decipher the jumble mess of words, which Amko had in spades.

“It’s okay- I’m here.” He murmured, enveloping the smaller gem in a hug as he stroked his hair. “I’ve got you.”

It was as easy as breathing, fusing was. A moment the Amko and Ruko were an the floor, the next, Kaio was landing on his feet, hugging himself with a wide grin. 

Tears drying, he straightened, rolling his shoulders. 

“Alright.” Cracking his neck, his hair shifted into a pony tail as his war helmet formed. “Let’s find the others.”

-//-