then comes mr sergeant dumbass duffy, who grabs his hand to cross the road. with no understanding of personal space, who also keeps to the outskirts because he can't exactly trust most of the gang either and was already an outsider and is dealing with a different brand of overstimulation but still understands that distance, and space, is safe

by nature of timewarp, they had to get okay with a lot of things really fast. kieran was the only one literally available to be javier's 'timewarp buddy', to teach him about modern era as best he could and help him settle in. but kieran is kieran. so javier was forced to hang around kieran. the second they stepped outside of bessie's house after that first chaotic week or two of 'settling', kieran was the only thing he could recognize. he went from 1911 mexico to 2011 blackwater.

that meant trailing kieran like a lost puppy, even if it was arms crossed and walking several yards behind him and not being thrilled with the situation. and kieran did not bat an eyelid because phew spared the torture of small talk.

but kieran grabbing javier's hand to cross a street (because kieran does that with anyone, but also javier's first time crossing a road don't want him hit by a car) was a big, big deal. because javier is touch-starved. and he interprets people reaching for his hand or touching him as them trusting him as much as he is conscious of the fact he only touches people he trusts

for kieran? typical thursday. for javier? actually about to buckle at the knees because how long has it been since touch was pleasant, was gentle, and intended to keep him safe instead of someone trying to kill him. it was crippling, and overwhelming - and they crossed the street, and kieran let go and kept walking before javier could even process the instinct to pull away

it was as momentous as it was unremarkable. someone held his hand for a bit, and then let go, and then kieran waited for him to catch up because he didn't want javier getting lost. it just became a thing. 'kieran holds my hand when we cross roads'.

after their excursion, they're walking side by side, no talking, just focused on getting home. when javier says 'thanks duffy' and retreats back to his room, he walks so close to kieran that the latter's coat flits with the movement.

javier already thought of kieran as harmless, and walking through blackwater demanded a level of vulnerability that he wouldn't have been able to deal with if he wasn't walking with someone he perceived as harmless, but a simple, near-silent walk very quickly shifted kieran from someone harmless to someone who is safe. someone who can come within the very, very wide personal bubble javier kept around himself.

the issue is kieran is v contact sensory seeking, but similarly to javier he needs a very high level of trust before he gets to that point. yes, he will prod and poke arthur for the sake of poking arthur because arthur is basically just a squishmallow to him and it's funny. once they get into a relationship, they bizarrely compliment each other

standing uncomfortably close to javier (which is comfortably close for them both) is just as satisfying. if he is getting a 'don't touch me i'm not in the mood' vibe from javier, he won't. if he can get away with just standing arm to arm with javier, he is more than satisfied. on the rare days when javier initiates touch, kieran lights up like the 4th of july. but they both find comfort in closeness, and that's more than enough because there are very few people who would happily stand an inch apart like they were meant to be one another's shadow

he gets that touch is a big deal. kieran's touch issues are based in sensory imput, javier's in trauma, but christ if One Person knows how awful overstimulation is to deal with, it's kieran duffy. he had his weight blankets and toys and fidgets for when he wants to touch something, and arthur to poke, and hosea when he just wants the comfort of another person without sending javier into a touch-overstimulated meltdown. and he respects that!! touch is a big deal and kieran gets it!!

- deep breath- to the second point: javier does not forgive dutch. he was abandoned after 1899, he felt the fallout of being associated with dutch, he saw dutch go on to ruin the lives of every single person in the gang either directly or indirectly. he is one of the gang who does not forgive dutch for his bullshit and kieran is v supportive of it. kieran, john and javier at the we hate dutch party

ironically, in saying that, kieran will, in whatever language is necessary, absolutely tear javier apart for forgiving john at all. the second john is mentioned kieran is the angry, opinionated moral backbone of the relationship. john cannot talk to javier or stand within 4 yards of javier without feeling the angry o'driscoll stare boring into the back of his skull.

Charles dies before Arthur - he went 9 years mourning Arthur before timewarping, and I'm not putting him through that again. Only in his early 70s, Arthur noticed the tiny change of Charles sleeping more than usual and insisted he go see a doctor. Metastatic lung cancer: with only two or three weeks left to live. Instead of suffering through treatment for at most an extra 6 months, Charles decided just enjoy what time he had left - helping Arthur plan for how he would cope without him, seeing family and saying goodbyes, going to the few sights they hadn't seen and some of their favorite places for the last time. 3 weeks after the diagnosis, and only the second time he actually complained about pain, Charles simply took a nap and never woke up.

Similarly, in the once-Matthews-now-Duffscuella household, Javier dies first. Javier did not age well, and got a lot of age-related illnesses younger than most people. Arthritis in his 40s, heart disease in his 50s. Still, his death was very abrupt (only a year or so after Charles, so early 70s again). He was sitting on the couch, watching TV with Kieran. Sat his cigarette down on the edge of the ash tray, said he didn't feel like it, and laughed when Kieran asked if he could have it. But then - didn't pass it to him. Massive, sudden cardiac arrest. No response to attempted resuscitation: so quick it was painless. Didn't mean Kieran was any less distraught.

Kieran ends up living with Arthur because, as well as his self-neglecting brand of autism, Kieran was diagnosed with early stage dementia shortly before Javier died. As it progressed, Kieran's confusion manifested as basically thinking it was canon era. He'd huff he had to take care of the horses, or have moments where he still thought he was an O'Driscoll and start stealing things (from himself) because if he went back to the gang empty handed 'Colm'll have my head'. Arthur was always the best at calming him down, second to Javier, and generally knew how to keep Kieran happy in terms of things he would eat and what situations would be too overstimulating for him. Also, Arthur actually had horses so Kieran could look after them in his stableboy moments and be content. Kieran also passed away before Arthur.