#tiny bdubs

The moment Bdubs saw him he was sent the fiercest glare he's ever gotten from him. Etho was really hoping he wasn't about to be blamed for the power outage. If Bdubs yelled at him about the cold he'd probably trudge right out to the generator and flip it on, and wouldn't that be annoying? Going the whole morning without flipping it on just to let a little guy bully him into it.

"Etho," Bdubs growled, crossing his arms the moment he was standing in the middle of the counter.

"Bdubs," Etho replied calmly, though after a moment he shifted his gaze and started glancing around the kitchen. Even at three (and a 3/8ths!) inches tall Bdubs had an intimidating glare.

"It's cold," Bdubs said shortly.

Etho hummed. "I thought you had the best insulated walls a borrower could ever have?" He questioned, directly quoting Bdubs from a few weeks ago.

"I do!" He was quick to defend. Offense to defense in an instance. "I- I just-! Why on Earth is it so freaking cold? You usually flip the generator on within the hour!"

It was still weird, but something he was getting intimately used to, hearing Bdubs talk about his usual habits. To Etho, they had only known each other a few months, having caught Bdubs when he was attempting to borrower while too sick to stand. Bdubs, however, had been in the home for about as long as Etho himself had. Years to memorize his schedule and habits and favorite foods. Bdubs knew him with an intimacy that very few people even got close to. He was slowly doing the same with Bdubs, learning each little thing about his housemate, to be able to pick up where and when he'd be and what he'd do and say. Getting to know every bit of him that he could.

"The power should be back on soon. It's not that cold, Dubs, you can wait it out."

"Maybe for you!" Bdubs shouted back, "Big oaf! You're big enough to heat up a whole room yourself."

Etho chuckled, "I'm really not."

There was a half second of silence, not anything anyone else would notice but Etho had gotten used to Bdubs' quick tongue that any moment of hesitation to think meant he was about to say something really interesting. "Well prove it then! If you're soo cold too, then I bet you couldn't warm me up."

His eyes immediately shot back down to the borrower. Bdubs was still arm crossed, still looking determined as ever to get what he wanted. Etho thought he had just wanted the generator back on, for the heater to start warming up his tunnels in the walls again. Seems he had something else in mind now.

Etho couldn't help the growing smirk, "Oh? Is that what this is about? Want me to warm you up?"

"N-No!" Bdubs replied, "Don't think I want this! I just think you're holding out on me. You could easily control the heat in the house and you're purposely making it cold to spite me! Now, I would be inclined to believe it's "not that cold" to you, cause the whole being a giant thing, but you insist you're freaking cold too. So, I know you're just being mean to be mean. How about that?"

Etho rolled his eyes. "Right. I see. Okay, I'll "prove" to you that I'm "cold"," he said, making the quotations with his fingers.

Bdubs either didn't notice or didn't care. "You better!"

Etho hesitated a moment, definitely still not used to picking up Bdubs, before setting his hand down on the counter. Bdubs had less of a moment of hesitation before climbing right on.

Bdubs blinked down at Etho's palm his own palms pushing into the skin (along with his knees), "What the heck? Why are your hands actually just as cold as mine?"

Etho slowly lifted Bdubs up, his other hand cupping around the back so there was one less side for Bdubs to tumble off of. "Told you."

Bdubs shot him a glare as he stood up. He looked around for a second before spying the sleeve opening of Etho's jacket. "Ah-ha!"

Etho had no clue what he was doing until Bdubs had shoved his entire hand down his sleeve. The little limb was cold against the warmed skin within his jacket.

"Just as I thought! You are holding out on me, your jacket is better than my moss- better at keeping in heat that is. My moss is the best in every other way, of course."

Etho sighed heavily. Bdubs was gunning to try and get into the jacket and that meant one of two actions. Either sticking Bdubs in one of the pockets until he complains about the amount of swaying and Etho takes him out for him to complain again OR Etho sits down somewhere and lets Bdubs curl up wherever he wants and Etho gets nothing else done until the power comes back on.

Then, Etho remembered another option.

He set Bdubs back down on the counter, ignoring his complaining, and flipped his jacket open. He has an inside breast pocket, one that he did not often use.

He dug his fingers in, making sure it was empty, and pulled out a packet of travel tissues and set it aside. With nothing else inside the pocket he scooped Bdubs back up. He gave the borrower a moment to realize what was happening, and when no actual complaints came out his mouth, he slipped Bdubs into the breast pocket and let his jacket sit against his chest again.

For just a moment the weight of Bdubs was heavy in his pocket. Especially as he readjusted and got comfortable, but soon it was as unnoticeable as the packet of tissues had been.

"You good, Bdubs?"

Instead of the usual shouting, Bdubs voice came out quietly, something so soft in the words, "Your heartbeat is so loud..."

"Wh- What was that?" Etho asked.

There was some sputtering and then, "Nothing! Just that I was right! This is much warmer. I am a genius."

Zed: Are you okay?

Skizz: Why did Impulse lunge at me!?

Zed: He was probably trying to make you be quiet. Bdubs doesn’t like lots of talking.

Skizz: Who?!!?

Zed: The tiny one.

The small sea monster currently swimming in circles around Impulse Gives Zed a glare, almost like it understands and does not like being called Tiny.

Zed: Sometimes I wonder if he would taste like seaweed.

This remark earned him a small bite from Impulse, who looked at him disapprovingly, apparently this had been said enough for the sea monsters to understand him. Impulse then turned to Skizz and made a low moaning noise, swimming up and nudging at his foot with a hand.

Skizz: um.. are you.. uh..

Skizz gingerly reached out and patted the hand. Impulse stared for a second, blinked, then left. Leaving Skizz to resume his panic.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 ⋆⭒𓆟⋆｡˚𖦹𓆜✩

Keralis hummed softly as he skipped down the hallway to Princess’s Tank. The large sea monster was decidedly his favorite. Not just because they were paired up either.

The hallway to xB’s Tank was dark. It helped set the mood for meeting him. Keralis didn’t find his Princess particularly scary, but apparently little kids freaked out, so they had embraced it. The tank itself was on the lower level and was basically just a massive water filled cave. Not a natural one, but it was amazing what terraforming could do. The actual pathway guests walked through was a series of clear tubes, the place workers used was a large catwalk above the tank. Which, unfortunately, had a lot of ladders. So many ladders…

Keralis pulled himself up the rungs of the ladder to the Tank access. Reaching the top with a triumphant huff. He walked out to the middle of the catwalk and sat down near the edge.

xB was big. Very very big. He twisted up from the depths of his tank to rest his chin on the catwalk near Keralis. He was the largest sea monster in the aquarium, and, in Keralis’s opinion, had the prettiest tail. It had iridescent teal scales that reminded Keralis of prismarine and was tipped with a spiky orange fin.

Keralis: Princess!

xB: Keralis!

It was cute, how xB pronounced his name. It sounded like he was gurgling water while doing it. Then again, it sounded like that whenever xB spoke. Neither of them could actually under each other much more than names and each of their words for no and yes. Well, in truth nobody except other sea monsters could pronounce xB’s name, so it had been shortened to xB. Either way, they were close enough to understand what they meant.

[If something is italicized from now on, it’s an aequorian speaking in their language]

Keralis: I missed you!

xB: aww, you’re sweet.

Keralis: Have you had a good day?

xB: it’s been good, how has your day been?

Keralis: Well, we got a new Hire, a Keeper for Impulse. I haven’t met him yet, I heard he’s nice.

xB: maybe I should go see him. He’s probably at the hub.

Keralis: Race ya there?

xB: Sure. I’ll beat you this time.