strongerthanaconcretewall

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“FREEDOM!”

Cue crashing onto his bed and just lying there.

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"WOO! ALRIGHT SO WE'RE GOIN' THROUGH A REBOOT AND I AM PUMPED I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE REST OF YOU! THIS IS GOING TO BE FANTASTIC!"

Looks like someone was going to get bothered now that Neo was allowed to exist again. Likely Tenor or Zamir, but who knows?

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“I’M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!”

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Tagged by: future-russian-princess

Icon of your muse:

What is Your Muse’s Blood Type: Standard Type 1 (Type A) oil.

How do You think Your Muse Handles Rejection?:  Concrete handles rejection by laughing it off most of the time.

What Makes Your Muse Jealous?:  He used to be a bit envious of the first DLN line and the experimental line, as they were one of the few industrials who didn't have to worry about an expiration date (at the time). This has since faded, but he doesn't like the way he felt back then.

What’s a Bad Habit Your Muse has?:  He's prehaps the loudest and most boisterous DLN, which says a lot since Guts Man exists.

A Prized Possession of Your Muse:  His life, really, after he almost lost it.

Any Medical Conditions?:  N/A.

~Questions for the Muse to Answer~

What’s Your Favorite Color:  "ORANGE!"

What’s Your Favorite Food:  "Why limit myself? Probably ham."

Skiing or Snow Boarding?:  "EITHER WAY I'M GETTING TO THE BOTTOM FIRST!"

Worst Injury You Ever Got?:  "Proooobably from Mega Man, though construction work isn't exactly safe."

Early Riser or Sleep in?:  "Depends on the day. I love sleeping in, but there's so much to do that I'm an early riser most of the time."

Video Games or Books?:  "Video games!"

Something that Makes you Cry?:  "I'd rather not think about it."

Someone You Hate? Why?:  "Eugh, Dr. Wily. Let's leave it at that."

Phobias:  "None? I mean I got fears, but nothin' I have a phobia of?"

Favorite Soda?: "MOUNTAIN DEW YO."

Favorite Drink in General?:  "MOUNTAIN DEEWWWW!"

What did you have for Breakfast?:  "... Oh yeah, breakfast's a thing..."

Song you are listening to right now?:  "THE BASS AND THE TWEETERS MAKE THE SPEAKERS GO TO WAR!"

Worst Job Ever?: ”Heh, I can't really complain anymore...”

Best Job Ever?:  "I'm just glad I have mine back. I love building dams and being part of the construction industry."

Ever Been thrown out a Window? Why?:  "PSSH NAH. I've thrown other dudes out windows though, only on the first floor though. Maybe once from the second floor."

Do You Regret what You’ve Done?: "... If you mean do I regret that, then no. Absolutely not. I hate that I was used, but I don't regret defending myself and my family."

Any Roommates?:  "Pssh nah. Family doesn't count BUT HEY MAYBE I COULD BE ROOMIES WITH BARI IF HE'S GOT THE SPACE."

~Choose Between~

Dogs, Cats, or Both:  "No offense to cats, but dogs are more fun. They can get excited over just about anything! Cats are cool too though."

C4 or Dynamite:  "That's not really my specialty, but C4 if I had to pick."

Catch Phrase or One Liners:  "The corniest one liners are hilarious! I love em!"

Day or Night:  "Day I guess, since that's when I'm operating most of the time. Night time is pretty cool too."

Star Wars or Star Trek:  "DUDE STAR WARS WAS THE BEST! I mean don't get me wrong Star Trek was pretty cool when done right but oh man STAR WAAAAARS..."

Cake or Pie: "Depends, maybe? It's more of a texture thing than anything... Probably pie? No, wait, uh..."

Zombies or Vampires?: "Hmm... Toughie! I guess vampires since they generally have a wider variety of interpretations than zombies do. Zombies get kinda old."

~Tag~

Just do it if you wanna.

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"MELLIEEEEEE!"

HUGS INTENSIFY.

"I'VE BEEN GREAT BUT I'M EVEN better NOW THAT I CAN SEE YOU ALL AGAIN ESPECIALLY SINCE I CAN HARDLY SEE YOU HOW'VE YOU BEEN?"

Oops, now Neo's all excited. It's easy to tell with his shaking and jumping up and down with his sister still in his arms. Sorry Melody.

“It’s finally gotten warm enough that I can start coming to shore again… I wonder how everyone’s been?”

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Baritone's plea fell upon deaf ears. Once Neo was determined to help clean up the mess he made, there was little that could be done to persuade him to do otherwise. He just wished he could've reorganized the papers for him, but that wasn't something he felt fit to try.

With the mess mostly taken care of, Neo refocused on his brother. He sure did seem off, didn't he? It seemed that Baritone hadn't just distanced himself from his family physically, but had also done so emotionally. It hurt feeling so far from one of his own line, but he wasn't going to let that show so easily.

"DUUUUDE JUST YOUR COMPANY. BRO I HAVE MISSED YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE AND JUST, JUST... C'MERE."

Within an instant, Baritone had been scooped up and smushed in yet another hug. He was more careful this time not to damage anything, but his hug was no less tight than before. For a moment, Neo had pushed the concern he had over his brother's behavior out of his processor, but there was still a lingering feeling that something was wrong.

There’s a quiet sigh of relief when the younger of the brothers is set down, and he’s about to begin picking up the papers that had been scattered when Neo gets there first. 

“Neo, you don’t have to–”

…Apparently he does. Well… It doesn’t matter, Bari supposes; All those papers will have to be sorted again anyways. At this point he kneels down to help out, and deposits his collected pile back on the desk. At least it hadn’t fallen over…

“I don’t think so,” he answers, quickly scanning the room for any more stray papers or knocked over objects. Thankfully there doesn’t seem to be, and so Baritone decides to get to the heart of the matter: Why exactly his brother is here. It couldn’t be as simple as just wanting to see him, could it…?

…Maybe he was being disowned and all that affection was just Neo getting it out of his system beforehand. At this rate, the DLN wouldn’t be surprised. After the incident and how distant he’d been, it’d probably be easier for everyone… Hands clenching into fists and quickly being hidden behind his back as he tries to brace himself for any bad news, Bari takes a deep breath.

“So… Was there… Was t-there something you needed from me?”

…Darn it. He’s slipping. If he can play it off as just being tired… 

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Oh, shoot. The room wasn't as big as Neo had believed, or he just didn't take into account the existence of Baritone's desk. He really should have done that earlier.

"Ahahahaha... whoops," Neo said sheepishly, fortunately not so desperate to spend time with his brother that he'd deliberately trash his office. Besides, there would be better ways of wrecking the place, and he was just one call to Tenor away from the office suffering complete annihilation. He gently set Baritone down and began picking up some of the paperwork.

... Sheesh, Baritone was busy. Neo had to do quite a bit of paperwork himself, but even if he didn't, he could tell this was some workload. He knew his brother said that he had a lot more to do now with more people seeking to go geothermal, but was he really unable to make time for them?

... That, and it seemed like Baritone was quite adverse to this sort of attention, which wasn't how it used to be.

"Sorry about that, I should'a paid more attention. Nothin' else was hit, right?"

Bari inwardly winces at his brother’s question. Well… Yes and no. Yes, he really had been busier, especially since more and more people were looking at geothermal energy as alternatives… But he did have more free time than he let on. Most of it was spent sitting in his office being miserable, but he did occasionally venture off on walks around his plant… And once or twice he’d foray into the hustle and bustle of Monstropolis, counting on how high the population was to hide him from his brothers.

When Neo gets the both of them back on their feet, he makes a tiny effort to escape his brother’s grasp– No such luck, unfortunately. Neo’s holding tight and doesn’t look like he’s letting go any time soon.

…He should be hugging Midi, right now. Or Melody– Especially Mel. Their poor sister was off on her own more often than not… Hugging Baritone, who didn’t even deserve to be called Neo’s little brother anymore, was a waste.

“Um… Sort of,” He answers after a pause, “The plant has had more customers looking into converting– Businesses, mostly, looking for cost effective means of generating electricity. Elec’s plant is so popular that its fees are fairly weighty, so most people just starting up can’t afford it… So I’ve been taking care of most business-y things going on around here on top of everything else, too. It’s… Easier to have the robot do it, as far as everyone else is concerned. There’s no chance of losing or forgetting information or terms of agreement– It’s all up here and won’t go away unless I delete it. Which I won’t.”

At least things seemed to be going well for Neo– He’d certainly not have much free time soon, given how much easier it was to do construction in the summer… He and Tenor would soon have their hands full… But they had each other and that other friend of theirs, so it would be alright.

The swinging shakes Bari from his thoughts, and once he’s knocked into his desk (sending a mountain of paperwork flying) the DLN begins to protest– A drastic change from how positively he’d responded to affection before their scrapping.

“Neo, careful–! Neither of us are exactly small… You’re gonna trash my office if you don’t watch where you’re swinging…”

…Then again, he’s half certain that Neo would just take the prospect of destroying his brother’s office as a chance for him, Tenor and Stone (he thinks it was?) to renovate it and spend more time with him.

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Midi was one of the ones Neo felt most guilty about for not being around. Only Melody could make him feel worse, and she didn't even try to do that.

"Ahhhh... sorry little guy. Schedules and permits and everything can be a real pain. These things don't build themselves. As for Bari... I don't know what's up with him." A grin came to his face. "Don't worry, I'll be crashing his workplace later. I'll let you know what's up with him."

Neo didn't really know what was wrong with their brother. He seemed so distant after their near deactivation, and he didn't blame him for it. That event took its toll on everyone, but Neo wondered if Baritone was taking it worse than everyone else. He was definitely crashing his workplace later, right after he smushed everyone else with love.

"Speaking of siblings we don't see too often, how's Mellie been? I really don't get to see her often enough," Neo asked as he gently removed Midi's hands from his mouth. His little sibling's volume didn't bother him in the least, thankfully. "I should really message her more often." It was hard to keep in contact with his siblings when everyone always seemed so 'busy.'

“I missed you big guy,” Midi answered, giggling as he returned the hug with one as tight as he could manage - which was nowhere near Neo’s own strength, but he made up for that with his sheer enthusiasm.

“I’ve been looking for aliens and - and talking to people and - AND MISSING EVERYBODY ESPECIALLY BARI HE’S TOO BUSY!” As he rambled, Midi’s voice rose in volume until the little boy was nearly yelling in his eagerness to get out all the things he had to say.

“HE’S BUSY ALL THE TIME AND NOW YOU’VE BEEN BUSY AND EVERYBODY’S BUSY AND AND I HATE IT!”

Belatedly, he realized he was getting too loud, and so he clapped his hands over his mouth and whined rather than speak again. He’d really missed his family, though, and it seemed like they never saw each other any more! Which was completely unfair and awful and NOT FUN AT ALL.

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Baritone was fortunate enough to have his brother believe that his hesitance and stammering was because he had just been tackle-hugged and practically slammed into the ground. He did have the misfortune of still being smushed in both Neo's arms, though thankfully he managed to pick both himself and his brother off the ground.

"Man, you NEVER used to be this busy. What, 're they putting more on ya or are ya takin' on more?"

"Work's been pretty standard. Construction seasons starting, so that means applying for permits and all that jazz. I had to come back though I MISSED YOU GUYS. YOU IN PARTICULAR I NEVER SEE YOU ANYMOOOOOOOORE."

Hopefully Baritone won't mind being swung around and held onto for the next... eternity. Neo's not letting him go, it seems.

Yep, he ought to be concerned. Unfortunately there’s no time to be concerned, for his hulk of an older brother has just thrown himself at him in a tackle hug, sending both of them sprawling to the ground and leaving the younger of the two trapped in his arms. No escape, indeed.

This is the absolute last sibling he wanted to see, too. What’s Neo doing here, anyways? He’s usually one of the busiest of the brothers or hanging out with Tenor somewhere!

“…H… Hi, Neo,” Baritone manages, chuckling weakly. “I’ve been doing alright… I’ve been busy lately is all. Lots of meetings and paperwork… And I had to train some new employees pretty recently, too. I’ve, um… I’ve missed you too. How’ve… How’ve you been?”

He hates how hesitant he sounds to even talk to his older brother… Hopefully Neo wouldn’t notice and would just attribute it to him being trapped in a hug and caught off guard.

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"Neo! NEO NEO NEO NEO NEO NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEO!"

"Midi! MIDI MIDI MIDI MIDI MIDI MIIIDIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

Little Midi would find himself quickly scooped up and smushed in hugs, though Neo was gentler with their youngest sibling than he was with the others.

"I missed you little guy? How've ya been and what've ya been doing? Does it have to do with space? I love space!"

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"TOO LATE."

Baritone was immediately tackle-hugged to the ground and smushed under the massive weight that was his brother. There was no escape.

"This isn't a bad time right? Y'know what I DON'T CARE HOW HAVE YOU BEEN BRO? I NEVER SEE YOU ANYMORE COM'ON YOU KNOW I MISS YOU."

“…I feel as though I ought to be concerned.”

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I'M BACK

"SHEESH IT'S BEEN TOO LONG."

"WHAT'D I MISS?"

[strongerthanaconcretewall]

why am I only designing neo 9000 years after booberry’s given him up

I blame chiichii designing magma

anyway, black rms are important. so neo is black :’3 (I don’t remember if that was my idea or boo’s but I know the name ‘neo’ was my idea after neo-soul music which is known for coming from black artists; think john legend and alicia keys) dreads are fun to draw tho now that I’ve finally looked up how to draw them

… I will not apologize for making him shirtless in the full-body shot, he looked really good and I didn’t want to heck it up.

I really like big, bulky men with long hair.

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test post nyeh