#jevcub

For a long time, the pair would compete against each other to collect bounties. Except, by the end of it, they started sitting down and sharing a few drinks despite whoever won. And then they realised they might as well just start splitting the bounty from the outset.

Cub got so pissed at Jevin for teaming up with and hiding all his eggs, he decided Jevin will no longer be the voice of the museum and made himself the voice instead. Jevin was so incensed over this betrayal he filled Cub's home with eggs cause he certainly loves those more than Jev.

Cleo's sitting on the sidelines watching and glad they're bothering each other instead of her.

Cleo finds it all utterly ridiculous, but also not her problem. Cub and Jevin are both terrible when it comes to pranks - she can only imagine how quickly this is going to escalate. Today it's eggs in Cub's house, next it will be the world.

One day he robbed Cub's house while he was about to get ready for bed. Cub led Jevin to his closet saying that's where he keeps all his valuables, but it's actually where he keeps his superhero uniform. The second he touched his uniform he switched over to being Vexation, the fae superhero who lives to troll strength-based villains.

And then Vexation did some math, decided to quadruple the minimum hourly wage of the state($20), and decided to pay him $800.

That confused the ever-loving daylights out of Jevin, but that wasn't all Vexation did. Every time Jevin tried to rob someone for money, Vexation showed up and paid him. Every time Jevin tried to rob a grocery store for food, Vexation dropped by before the robbery and took Jevin grocery shopping. Every time a villain hired Jev to do a job, Vexation stopped him before the job and paid him more. One time Jevin went to the planetarium Cub worked at only to find out he paid for Jevin's ticket, and Jev couldn't yell at him for doing that cause Cub was surrounded by children.

Jev knows Vexation is known for taunting people, but he's not sure if this is psychological warfare, or if Cub is being insanely kind for no reason at all. All he knows is if someone's threatening either Cub or Vexation, Jevin is stepping in to destroy them. When asked why, he says he's only doing it till he gets his answer, and for no other reason whatsoever.

Jevin hates not knowing. Living on the streets and obviously inhuman means you learn to be aware of what debts you owe. It feels like he's racking up a massive tab with Cub, and that worries him. Sure, he's able to help Vexation out occasionally, but in his head it's barely making a dent. He wants to get to the bottom of this, before Cub cashes in that debt.

Cub, however, feels indebted for an entirely other reason. He remembers thirty years ago. He'd worked all night trying to make arrangements for all the beings the scientist kept. Reading files, assessing their needs, reaching out to trusted contacts. He wouldn't rest until he knew they were all safe and had a future away from this forsaken lab.

In those files, he discovered one of the 'monsters' was missing. A creature made of a viscous slime with high levels of sentience. Despite Cub's best efforts - even as Vexation - he was never able to find the missing experiment. Part of him believed it had to be so recently deceased the file just hadn't been stamped yet.

That is, until those decades later, he discovers he's being robbed. Though his memory of the files isn't perfect, the sight of a vibrant blue person made of slime rings bells quickly. With some discreet questioning, guiding the slime to his closet, he discovers the timeline matches up.

He's dealt with enough villains to know who won't take hand outs. So he makes sure to give them in ways the slime person - Jevin, he learns - can't refuse. It's the least he can do to make up for his negligence in Jevin's rescue, even if Jevin doesn't realise it.

Vex on the other hand can catch just about every disease a human could catch, and the symptoms are intensified.

When Cub caught the flu, he shook like he was freezing to death while running a fever, his throat was scratched to hell, he was coughing and sneezing up more mucous than a hag fish, his head and body aced like he was beaten half to death, and he was too fatigued to take care of himself while suffering.

Jevin had to run to Cleo and almost beg her to help him cause he has no idea to take care of sick people.

Though Jevin has some basic ideas of 'human medicine' that's just for like. Scraped knees! Not this! Jevin doesn't even know how humanoid bodies regulate their body temperature. And Cub isn't even human! He's a vex! Who knows what differences there could be - certainly not Jevin.

He's lucky that Cleo isn't as cruel as she likes to pretend. She welcomes them in urgently, and Jevin is left to hover awkwardly at her side as she bustles around. He tries to watch what she's doing, because what kind of person can't look after their own partner? It all... Glosses past him. He doesn't understand any of this.

Cleo instructs him of another basics that she can take a rest. Jevin takes the opportunity to curl up in bed with Cub. He's always appreciated how cool Jevin is. He hopes that helps now.