#Sol/Nemmie

[redditchwitch]

I think about how if you date Anemone without getting the Peace on Vertumna ending she ends up dying young... In every timeline.

[instarsanddyke]

some bobbles (+ two unfinished things)

[brainicusrotticus]

continuation of vace’s first medical appointment—

sol: okay. and your augment, please?

vace: well-endowed.

sol, regretting everything: …what the fuck does that mean.

vace: *leans back, smirks, subtly increases the manspread*

vace: …i think we’d both prefer i show you.

sol: …

sol: so, in about *checks watch* four minutes, i’m going to be squeezing your balls and asking you to cough. are you sure you want to lose this much dignity ahead of time?

vace: …what?

sol: great. i’ll step out of the room while you get changed. *sets the holofolder down in plain sight and leaves*

—and then, a few hours later, while sol is checking the announcement board—

tang: …why did anemone come into my lab to ask me all about penile fractures today?

sol: oh, vace tried to put the moves on me by claiming he’s above average. so i made sure to include in his chart that he’s at an increased risk for penile fractures.

tang: …the difference would be completely negligible, if one exists at all.

sol: yeah, i know that.

[ukuraichu]

i'm doomed I fear

[pika-bitch-iii]

Here have this I Was a Teenage Exocolonist oneshot since I couldn’t get it out of my neurodivergent little brain

MAJOR GAME SPOILERS!

[sunflowers-daisies-and-tulips]

Nemmie: So do you have any nicknames for me?

Sol: ...

Sol: Nem, Nemmie, Nemone, Nebula, Ai-nemone, Ne, Neon, Nebraska, take your pick

Nem: ... I think I'll go with Nem

[wanderingchronicle]

Title: four chambers, just a standard issue (Chapter 3: "i see you go half blind when you're looking at me") Fandom: I Was A Teenage Exocolonist Rating: T Relationships: Anemone & Everyone, past Anemone/Vace, Anemone/Rex, Cal/Sol Additional Tags: Coming of Age, Grief, Forgiveness, Queerplatonic Love Confessions, Familial Estrangement, Post-Canon, Not Quite A Fix-It?, More Like A Canon Expansion, Discussed Amatonormativity, Queerplatonic Relationships, Aromanticism, Friends with Benefits, Self Discovery, Discussed/Referenced Emotional Abuse

There’s a rustle, and then: “Nemmie?” Oh, no. Absolutely not. Anemone shifts from a leisurely amble into a fast walk, taking her hands out of her pockets. If that’s who she thinks it is, she has no desire to continue this conversation. She hears the crunch of grass underfoot, and walks faster. “Nemmie–” “My name,” she says, “is Anemone.”

Anemone breaks old cycles, and chooses new ones to perpetuate in their places.

--

IT'S FINISHED. Hoo lads, this has been a big one. In this chapter

more talks about amatonormativity

sibling-type slapstick

Vace ruins his own evening (twice!)

NOUGAT!

Gender envy

The return of Spotlight

Drunk sentimental Sol

Thank you so much to everyone who has read, commented, kudosed, or reblogged/recommended my fics so far! <3 Meri Kirihimete!

[pechebeche]

theres nemmie/sol art on etsy and im thinking........so so hard.............

[leastdatablebracket]

SEMI-FINALS, MATCH 1

Propaganda under the cut!

Solas

Propaganda

He believes all mortal beings deserve to die. He is bald but in a very unsexy way. He exudes zero chemistry and talking to him about romance is like talking to a boiled egg. 

Described by major media as "elf hitler," he dumps you to destroy the world

He is a smelly know it all, and that's before you find out he is a deity in disguise who caused the rift you spend the game trying to fix in the first place and he betrayed you and chopped off your hand

Breaks up with you, disappears without saying anything, plans to destroy the world

Look. I’ll admit I have not personally romanced solas. I am baffled that anyone would WANT to romance solas. I know we all love a waify little elf wizard with questionable motivations but jfc look at him like im trying not to say anything demeaning about bald dudes but he does not wear it well. Also iirc you can only romance him if you’re also an elf and then he’s weirdly rude and dismissive if your character is Into Elf Culture. Look im a huge lesbian but Iron Bull is RIGHT FUCKING THERE why would you do this.

Vace

Propaganda

well you (the pollrunner) already know cause hes ur icon but i will say that at least he is meant to suck as a romantic partner with only one ending (two if you include astronaut) having him and sol (the player character) staying together on the other end tho there's three ways to start dating him one is to make him go to therapy n then start dating after he is no longer abusing his girlfriend (either breaking them up by convincing him to dump nemmie or convincing nemmie that hes the scumbag he is n she deserves better) another is to be his side piece and the third way is getting him so mad he drags sol off by the neck to beat the shit out of them with this event ending with either him n sol sleeping together (also causing him and nemmie to break up) sol getting the living daylights beat out of them (to the point they got knocked out n needed medical care) with the implicit threat of vace will do this again if they dont stay out of his way and sol avoiding both of those things but being so shaken by the experience that theyre struggling to breath until theyre outside and fully away from him which gives a very different undertone to hooking up with him in this event

the stuff from when i submitted him is entirely from memory so im directly grabbing snippets from the game files this time around (stuff from the game will be in italics like this spoilers for the game btw) starting with if solanaceae is dating vace during the green vertumna ending (warning for abuse cause he is like intentionally written to be abusive)

As the military gains more power under Lum, Vace feels ambivalent over the increased role he's forced take in adjudicating the pointless squabbles of colonists indefinitely trapped in a tin can- more akin to a police officer than a pround defender. This ambivalence turns to bitterness and resentment. He backslides even further during your relationship with him, eventually becoming violent. Your relationship with him ends in a protracted, messy manipulative break-up that occupies the gossip mill for weeks.

this is the only ending where he becomes physically abusive... to solanaceae at least as if you dont break him and nemmie up and dont manage to corral him to therapy this is a piece of his ending card

Vace loves the idea of having a family to protect. Nemmie retires from active duty when they announce that they're expecting their first child... and then second, and their third shortly after that. He and Nemmie are the picture of bliss for years... that is until it all comes crashing down. Vace is your friend, which is probably why you didnt see the cracks until their family was already broken. Nemmie takes the kids and leaves him in the middle of the night, and Vace never really tells you why... but judging from the way people rally around Nemmie so he can't get to her again, you can take a guess.

the snippet if vace does go to therapy isnt much better

You know that Nemmie was never the mothering type, and having kids is tough on her. (<- nemmie has been repeatively establish throughout the game to not want to be a mom and break up with you if you get the prolific parent career) and Sometimes you wonder if they're truly happy together or just... stuck with each other, but at least they've found some peace.

here are the snippets from if you're dating him first if he goes to therapy (good ending?)

Your relationship has its ups and downs. Vace has a lot of unpacking to do, and it takes time. On his worst days, he's just as he was before: quick to anger, and quick to fall back on intimidation tactics to get his way. You're able to see through to the struggling man underneath, but it takes a toll on both of you. You date on-and-off, fighting and making up often. He's never violent or cruel towards you, (sideeyes other endings) but after a while... you just realize you're unhappy. You're both unhappy. Your relationship feels more like an metaphor for his self-improvement than a beautiful thing you share. Eventually you break up for good. [if mem_ending_parent] He says he'll help with the kids... but he doesn't really have the patience for it.

and without it

Your relationship has its dizzy highs, but more than its fair share of horrible lows. You kind of like it though... it keeps things spicy. You've never been happier than when you and Vace are tearing into each other, whether it be on the training mats or in bed. It makes you feel alive. It all comes down when one of Vace's soldier buddies breaks rank and tells you... Vace is doing the same with other people. The fight is cataclysmic. You scream and throw things, but nothing gets through to Vace. Just like how things were between him and Nemmie, he doesn't consider your feelings at all. He's in it for only one person: himself. When word gets out you two are quits for good, Nemmie gloats about it for days.

here are some bits from nemmie's endings that relate to vace as well with them staying together

However... as the years pass, you begin to see cracks form in Nemmie's happy household. Vace's overbearing nature really leaps out when he had her trapped with three of his kids under their roof, insisting he doesn't want his kids to be raised in 'some hippie creche' like Nemmie was. [if mem_vace_therapyComplete] Nemmie is miserable. She tells you about how they fight all the time- about how every day, she's scared that he'll go back to his old habits and things will break bad between them again, but she's so hopeful because she knows Vace is trying his hardest to be a good partner. It doesn't last forever, though. Vace trusts you, (and not his goddamn wife??) and with you on Nemmie's side, you get him to change his mind on the creche. With more time to breathe at home, the Nemmie you love returns. (no therapy version ->) Eventually, their relationship takes a turn for the worst. Nemmie shows her physical wounds on her skin, but it's harder to see the emotional ones. When she flees to your quarters late one night with bruises, you welcome her in and give her all the support you wished you could have given her all those long years she couldn't see.

and if you break them up

Nemmie's relationship with Vace may have been brief, but it was formative. She doesn't throw herself into loving anyone that deeply again for a long time, instead focusing hard on her work. You're by her side during her misadventures in dating some of the other soldiers- and once, notably, Rex- howling with shared indignity and laughter with every awkward breakup.

for a bit more of a spotlight of how specifically formative vace was nemmie's first relationship and she was 16 going on 17 while vace was 20 going on 21 He Is 4 Years Older Than Both Nemmie And Solanaceae And They Are The Only Named Characters He Can Get Romantically Involved With solanaceae and nemmie were 14-15 when he first meets them i dont remember exactly how old cause i havent played the game in almost a year n the files im using rn (endings + vace's character file) dont have that specific info in them but in the game you can click on character portraits to see the info you have about them which includes their actual ages (+ in game birthmonth) in them anyway theres a lot more i can include but its late n this is already long so heres the specific event i was referencing in my submission i'll do this -> (...) <- to indicate that im omitting some lines for length

You're feeling self-destructive today, so you go looking for Vace. He finds you first. CLANG! Vace gets the drop on you, grabbing you around the neck and slamming you into the metal wall. You're dragged unceremoniously into a side room. Vace's hand clamped across your mouth. He throws you to the ground, and you take quick stock of your surroundings. It looks like a munitions room, though it's been mostly empited but for a few stacks of boxes. There's no one here except you and Vace. Vace stands over you, placing his heavy boot on your chest to keep you pinned to the ground. "It's time you and I had a little chat, Solanaceae." (... just two dialogue choices that lead to vace insulting you before continuing) "Here's what's going to happen," Vace says, deadly calm. (... vace explaing that is going to beat you up expects you to lie there n take it n then ->) "And three, you're going to wake up somewhere else knowing that if you ever mouth off to me in front of my men again, next time you aren't going to wake up." (... dialogue option of "screw me yourself, coward." leads to hookup n will break up him n nemmie if you havent already broken them up n then two skill check choices of Stop You Could Kill Me and Stop You Have More To Lose (ie his position n respect from others as a solider) Than I Do leading to the successful release ->) You close your eyes and wair for the blow to land. It doesn't. "Shit," Vace mutters, lowering his hand. He drops you back on the ground and steps away. "Get the hell out of here before I change my mind." You do that, fighting down the nauseating feeling of his eyes burning a hole in your back. It's not until you're back outside and gulping huge breathes of fresh air that you stop trembling.

you can cheat on vace with a nonromantic victim of his btw n you can be in like an actual polycule in this game n attempting to date anyone else while in a monogamous relationship you automatically break up with the other person but you can cheat on vace if you want to cause he sucks so much back onto the event though those are the successful talking options you can also start fighting him back n convince him to fight you fairly (n then also run away immediately if you dont have enough skill for the Kick His Ass dialogue option netting you the same line about taking huge breathes of air to stop trembling) but here's the text for if you lose talking him down

"Please, don't hurt me." "I'm not hurting you," Vace says. "I'm making you stronger." You close your eyes. It doesn't help. As foretold in the prophecy, you awaken in the medbay some time later. Your skull feels like it's full of buzzing blip bugs. One of Congruence's monitors lights up and she slides over to your bedside. "Welcome back," she says in her best attempt at a soothing voice. "Don't be alarmed, it's quite normal to be disoriented after a head injury. How are you feeling?" (... two dialogue choices that only add one word to the following) Congruence whirrs. "Yes, according to the report from Vace, you were in a training accident," she says. "You should use more caution when sparring, Solanaceae. Concussions are not an advised part of a healthy training regimen."

you can get this event at like almost any time it just requires pissing vace off n solanaceae to be 17+ (as vace n nemmie start dating during their 17th birthday party) you might even be able to trigger it while already dating him (would have to test it tho) cause the thing that triggers the event is ~ if mem_fight_vace > 2 and the things you can do to get that number up are like winning at space soccer n then punching him for insulting your friend and winning sparring against him things unrelated to whether or not you're dating him here's some photos i took of the former event when i got it as a treat for reading all of this no one who dates him is getting a good relationship

[creepyfruit]

hiii so glad u had fun playing iwatex! im sending this from my main but my iwatex blog is dillypillars <3 what endings have you gotten so far and how do you feel about them?

Hi, I actually love your blog omg

I haven't had many runs in the game yet, rn I'm in the first year of my fourth, but here's the three runs I've done so far.

1st run:

Bestie: Cal

Romance: Tang

Ending: tangent's cure

Alignment: 80 Loyalty

Augment: Eagle Eyes

Like I already mentioned in a previous post tangent's cure traumatized me to the point were I haven't gotten over 30 hearts with my girl tang in any other play through. The whole ecocide that I help cause paired with the fact that Cal (who gets shot and killed in that ending) was my bestie and also all the regular first play through deaths (Tammy, Uncle Tonin, Kom, the old governor I forgot her name, both of Sol's parents, professor Hal) made me feel so horrible. Your home girl managed to eradicate a whole planet and half the cast in one play through 😍🤞.

The one thing I absolutely loved about this ending was the angst. Romancing Tangent and seeing that vision/dream in one of the later years with the planet bare of life and her crying and apologizing was so confusing but hurtful. And then I actually got the ending and omg my hearttt. Poor Tang crying while that lunatic Lum pulled her up on stage and praised and congratulated her broke me. But the icing on the cake is what came after, Sol following Tang after she run of stage. Honestly I might go back to that save to try the other dialogue options but the whole scene of Sol finding out she helped cause this and then the truth about how Lum was forcing them do it and finally Sol forgiving Tang and telling her she still loves her. Ouch

2nd run

Bestie: Nem

Romance: Marz

Ending: Standard Ending as a Novelist

Alignment: 100 rebellion

Augment: Calm Temperament

My second play through was much more uneventful and light-hearted. I still managed to somehow forget to save uncle Tonin and I couldn't save my parents but the fact that Tammy was alive and that I focused on all the yellow stats set me up for a peaceful run. I worked in places I hadn't touched before and therefore I got a lot of fun and cute little work events. My absolute favourite thing about this run (beside the Marz romance ofc) was the whole secret club thing. It was soooo cute and such a sweet reminder that, hey these are still a bunch of little kids. Also the art piece of them solving that mystery is so close to my heart simply because of how adorable Tang looks in it.

I was a bit disappointed that I couldn't stay with Marz in the end but it makes for a realistic story that's for sure (also Marz getting with Tang for a short while after the break up made me giggle, my ship has sailed) I also didn't mange to work at the bar enough so the twins didn't get their moment.

3rd run:

Bestie: Dys

Romance: Nem

Ending: Disabling the Array

Alignment: 80 rebellion

Augment: Super Strength

My latest play through was interesting to say the least. I managed to save my mom finally although I didn't have high enough empathy at the time my dad died (stupid shimmer I have no idea how to cure it yet) and our relationship went to shit. I really wanted to focus on explorations and meeting Sym and I achieved that. I actually thought that disabling the array was a great compromise and I would consider it the best ending if it didn't force me to become besties with Vace in the epilogue, minus points for nemmie breaking up with me as well. I don't like Sym but I still felt kinda bad for taking away his immortality but at the end of the day between submission to the stupid gardeners and constant glow attacks I'll take this ending without a doubt.

Yet another ending were I couldn't keep Dys at the colony because he, yet again, disappeared and was never seen again. I was pretty certain that he wouldn't like this path given how much he sympathises with the gardeners for reasons I still can't understand but it still sucked to see him go since him and Sol spent so much time as expedition buddies. I honestly wish the creators didn't push this ending as the "asshole military dude who wants to kill all the poor animals". Like no I just want to leave peacefully while admiring and coexisting with the planet's native flora and fauna without having the ai soldiers over my head trying to kill me very year.

[milfbrainrot]

yayy got doctor ending

but did not stop the bombing or make peace w the gardeners in time so all my closest friends and parents died young lmaoo.

i had sol romance nemmie this time because i think doctor/soldier is fun, so it sort of worked out that nemmie died early because doctor/soldier fun comes from the angst of the doctor half not always being able to do their job properly to save the soldier half. :')

[funkylildragonfella]

My hoards of names & pronouns!

Names

Doctor/Doc

Lu/Lucifer

Void

Eleven/11

Ouroboros/Ouri

Nemo/Nem/Nemmy

Ophion/Ophis

Mnemosyne/Mneme

Jinx

Dot

Solace

Clover

Nexus

Vortex

Limbo

Nova

Veil

Ghost

Echo

Sirpa

Sephtis

Achlys

Reeva

Ness

Glitch

Cian

Teal

Calypso

Trinket

Fidget

Cavity

Doll

Static

Scythe

Abyss

Crow

Kelpie

Wisp

Vig

Onyx

Opal

Thistle

Diamont

Nettle

Oran

Obsidian

Palloc

Juniper

Solace

Alden

Kay

Key

Lock

Puppet

Echo

Birdie

Ash

Shep

Nydia

Shadow

Fenn

Gill

Canto

Coral

Linu

Scar

pronouns

abyss/abyss

algae/algaes

antique/antiques

babble/babbles

bat/bats

beep/beeps

bite/bites

bizarre/bizarres

blendy/blendys

blob/blobs

blub/blubs

blue/blues

blur/blurs

boing/boings

bouncy/bouncys

bow/tie

bubble/bubbles

bug/bugs

bun/buns

cae/caer

cat/cats

chain/chains

chameo/chameos

chaos/chaoss

chomp/chomps

chord/chords

claw/claws

clock/clocks

cloud/clouds

clover/clovers

coin/coins

comet/comets

confusy/confusys

cool/cools

coral/coral

crab/crabs

creature/creatures

crow/crows

cry/crys

crypt/crypts

cub/cubs

cuddle/cuddles

cyan/cyans

cy/cyber

dark/darks

deep/deeps

deer/deers

depth/depths

dino/dinos

dipper/dippers

dive/dives

doc/docs

doll/dolls

dragon/dragons

drake/drakes

dream/dreams

drift/drifts

drizz/drizzles

drop/drops

dust/dusts

eclipse/eclipses

eerie/eeries

end/ends

eon/eons

eternity/eternitys

explodey/explodeys

ey/em

fade/fades

fall/fallen

fang/fangs

fawn/fawns

feather/feathers

fez/fezzes

fin/fins

fish/fishes

fizz/fizz

flame/flames

flap/flaps

flare/flares

flick/flicks

flight/flights

flinch/flinchs

float/floats

flock/flocks

fluff/fluffs

fog/fogs

fractal/fractals

frill/frills

frisk/frisks

fur/furs

fuzzy/fuzzys

gill/gills

glacier/glaciers

glide/glides

glimmer/glimmers

glitch/glitch's

gloom/glooms

glow/glows

gravity/gravity's

grawr/grawrs

growl/growls

gull/gulls

gup/gups

harmony/harmonys

haunt/haunts

he/him

hiss/hiss

hoard/hoards

hour/glass

howl/howls

hug/hugs

hum/hums

hydra/hydras

ice/ices

it/its

ix/ixs

jam/jams

jelly/jellys

jelly/fish

jinx/jinxs

jump/jumps

kelpie/kelpies

key/keys

leviathan/leviathans

liminal/liminals

lock/locks

loop/loops

lu/lu's

lumi/lumis

lyric/lyrics

mar/mars

mavity/mavity's

meep/meeps

meow/meows

mer/mers

mix/mex

moon/light

moon/moons

moss/mosses

mud/muds

myst/mysts

myth/myths

nap/naps

ne/nym

nebula/nebulas

nem/nems

nest/nests

night/light

night/mare

nix/nix

nom/noms

nova/novas

oak/oaks

ocean/oceans

odd/odds

orb/orbs

orbit/orbits

other/others

paint/paints

past/pasts

pastel/pastels

paw/paws

pebble/pebbles

per/pers

phantom/phantoms

pin/pins

pit/pits

planet/planets

play/plays

plushie/plushies

pond/ponds

puff/puffs

punk/punks

pup/pups

purr/purrs

quail/quails

quest/quests

rai/rais

rain/rains

rarity/raritys

rat/rats

rattle/rattles

rawr/rawrs

ray/rays

reef/reef

ribbon/ribbons

ripple/ripples

river/rivers

rock/rocks

rot/rots

ruffle/ruffles

rumble/rumbles

rune/runes

sand/sands

scale/scales

scratch/scratches

sea/seas

seal/seals

serpent/serpents

shadow/shadows

shark/sharks

sharp/sharps

shed/sheds

shell/shells

shore/shores

silly/sillys

silk/silks

sing/sings

siren/sirens

sleep/sleeps

slither/slithers

sly/slys

smol/smols

snap/snaps

soft/softs

sol/solar

song/songs

soul/souls

space/spaces

spacey/wacey

spark/sparks

spike/spike

spin/spins

spirit/spirits

splash/splashes

squeak/squeaks

squeal/squeals

squid/squids

star/stars

static/statics

steam/punk

stellar/stellars

stim/stims

sting/stings

stream/streams

stuffie/stuffies

swamp/swamps

tail/tails

thalassa/thalassas

they/them

thing/things

thorn/thorns

tide/tides

tilt/tilts

time/times

timey/wimey

tiredy/tiredys

torn/torns

toy/toys

travel/travels

trinket/trinkets

tune/tunes

twirl/twirls

uh/uhm

uncanny/uncannys

unknown/unknowns

vast/vasts

void/voids

water/waters

wave/waves

weep/weeps

whale/whales

whisp/whisp

who/whom

wibbly/wobbly

wolf/wolfs

worm/worms

wyrm/wyrms

zey/zem

[ochamocha]

overall, sym’s creepiness is forgivable because it’s generally super well written. like i said he’s one of the best written characters imo, i just cannot get past him casually drugging sol out of nowhere. you’re absolutely right that helios got the shaft, but tbh i didn’t know utopia was trans? i don’t remember any lines suggesting that lol but i could be wrong, and yeah no nomi tends to kinda roam a bit. also, i don’t think seedent knew much about vace and nemmie’s relationship. i don’t think she turned a blind eye as much as just didn’t know, which willful ignorance is still bad but it’s worth noting after kom’s death nem’s relationship with her mom is so strained that nem often just didn’t come home, and virtually never initiated conversations. it’s not unreasonable for someone who’s busy in the domestic wing to have no idea what’s happening in the military wing yknow? i don’t think she was really a bad mom, you have to remember when kom died they both were grieving, he was her son just as much as he was nem’s big brother, neither one of them handled it well at all, and they just have methods of coping that didn’t combine well. nemmie wanted vengeance, and her mother wanted to be so busy she couldn’t think about it. also i don’t think it’s that unreasonable for the character possibly least affected by the change in governing to have her vote reflect what her coworkers feel they’d be benefitted by no? ultimately not much changes in domestic wing regardless of who’s in charge, so i saw it more as aligning with her peers who have more stake in the decision. also you don’t have to provide links on the stratos being designed first and seedent voting based on others, ive got dozens of runs under my belt im well aware 😭

objectively correct tier list feel free to ask why i put ppl here bc almost all had specific (if subjective) reasons for their positioning even within their own tiers

[brainicusrotticus]

the crucial event that tied doc!sol and vace together:

they set off for the subaqueous swamp. sol drives the transport vehicle, and brings a bag for storing samples. he practically forced a second bag on vace, but that’s alright because vace forced sol to carry a plaspistol, in addition to bringing his own plasrifle, stun gloves, and a hunting knife.

they get to the swamp, and go about doing their thing. vace gets a bit twitchy a few times, but sol gives him the stern “don’t shoot at shit unless we’re about to die” look, and it’s enough to settle him down.

they’re there for hours. sol darting from plant to plant, vace just following and keeping an eye out.

it gets within about two hours of sundown, which means they’re going to need to leave soon. there’s also a heavy looking storm moving in, so sol is trying to get some last readings from another new species of plant that seems to have solid healing properties.

vace seems on edge. he’s usually been quietly pacing about, always looking out for shit. but sol takes a quick breather from this plant, and realizes vace is standing very nearby, and very still.

something feels off, but vace can’t tell what it is. and that’s not good.

sol takes him seriously, because that’s what vace is there for. he unholsters his plaspistol (for show, because it’s not like he actually know how to use the thing), goes for a sample of this last plant, and then they’ll get moving back to the transport.

first rule of vertumna: it’s never just a plant.

this plant turns out to be the hook for a creature fairly reminiscent of a snapbladder. and the second sol touches it, the trap springs.

it gets a decent clamp on sol. across his left shoulder and chest. it’s clearly not sized for human prey, but it’s bite is strong enough. it’ll bruise, and its teeth break the skin, but it’s not all that worrying.

it lets go when vace fires some non-lethal shots into it, and scurried away. vace goes to check on the doc, who assures him that it’s all fine.

but they haven’t been unnoticed. all day, noctilucent has been keeping tabs on them. waiting for a good opportunity to strike. and what better opening than worried distraction?

but he’s mean. he aims for the hard hits.

he drops a tree on them.

vace manages to swing the doc out of the way, and takes the full force of a falling tree on himself. not that solane being present would’ve changed that, then they’d just both take the full force of a falling tree. and it would end much worse for one of them.

it’ll leave some bruises on him. might’ve even left a few small cracks in the bones. but this is vace. he’ll be fine.

there’s only one major problem.

his legs are pinned under it. and he’s strong, but not super strong, and it’s hard to get proper leverage when you’re face down on the ground. sol is managed to catch his breath after being thrown to the ground (really just failing to catch himself), and is about to get up and go to vace…

but noctilucent emerges from the bushes. still dripping, like he’d crawled right out of the swamp water.

(he did)

sol hasn’t met noct before, but he knows about gardeners from sym

particularly that there are a number of gardeners who want the whole colony gone. and who think “dead” is good enough.

and in this particular scenario? he doesn’t really get the feeling this is going to be a friendly chat. he wonders if noct was the one responsible for the looming stormclouds.

noct knows how to threat assess. also, he’s been watching them all day. he knows that one of these individuals knows how to use a gun, and the other is a goddamn nerd. so vace presently being stuck under a tree? means that problem can be dealt with immediately.

so noct goes to him.

and stomps on vace’s head with those ugly ass hooves of his.

but, it’s vace. he’s built different. it’ll leave a bump, and left a little split in the skin that bleeds a bit, but it’s probably not even enough for a concussion.

(sol definitely has that brief moment of “i just witnessed a murder” before he remembered vace’s augment)

but noct keeps going. he gets another 3-4 in before sol throws himself on vace, literally wrapping around noctilucent’s leg like an octopus. screaming for him to stop.

and noct backs up a step. mostly because he’s surprised by the sheer audacity sol is showing.

and sol covers vace’s body with his own.

he doesn’t know how to fight. his plaspistol isn’t in reach, he can’t see vace’s plasrifle, the only thing he has is the knowledge that gardeners don’t die when their body is killed. he isn’t a soldier.

but he has to be.

vace is out of it. he seems to be wavering on consciousness, but his legs are still stuck and he definitely has at least a concussion now.

sol is the only one who can help them right now.

he’s shaking and sobbing, pressed overtop of vace. he can see something like amusement in noct’s eyes, and it pushes him that much further.

noct leans down. he wants to meet this human eye to eye, to mock sol for this before he kills them both. he’s absolutely focused on the full-faced misery of sol.

it’s classic, really. a common trick used by magicians in old holovids.

misdirection.

noct doesn’t see sol work vace’s knife free of the belt. he isn’t as guarded with sol. this human has only ventured beyond the colony a handful of times, and has never shown any prowess for combat.

sol isn’t a threat.

and as the doctor, lightning quick, wraps a hand around the back of noctilucent’s neck and slices so deep he leaves a cut across his own palm, he wonders if noct will remember this. feel some primal unease the next time he sees solane. or if, like his recent memories, all sense of threat melts away with his body.

the sprinkling rain is starting to grow heavier. sol uses a thick branch to leverage the tree off of vace, and wishes desperately that he had the time to fully exam the damage.

but he doesn’t. utopia will probably realize something is wrong soon—probably sent a message to the transport when stratos picked up on the storm moving in, and is waiting for a response that indicates they’re heading back to the colony.

when it doesn’t come, she’ll report them as missing. normal protocol is a search and rescue party.

but the storm would make for hostile conditions. if it raises the water too much, there are parts of the road that’ll flood, and they might not even be able to get a squad to the swamp. unless the storm blows over in minutes (which is possible, if not likely), it’ll be nightfall or later by the time anyone can make it.

and nighttime isn’t a good time for a rescue squad. it just puts more people at risk. in most cases, they’d wait until day. rhett wouldn’t get any sleep over the worry and guilt, but he’d make the choice anyway.

except, maybe, for sol.

he’s a doctor. the only one who knows what to do besides instance. he has more old-school knowledge than instance, and a xenobotanist background. he’s valuable, and he hates knowing that. that someone might consider it worthwhile to risk other lives to save his own.

but others can be trained. medbeds can handle just about any problem, as long as they stay functional. rhett knows that, as much as he knows sol wouldn’t want others to risk themselves unnecessarily for him.

the doctor honestly doesn’t know what choice rhett will make, and doesn’t envy him having to make it.

(he’ll buy something nice for the security chief, if he gets out of this.)

(when. it has to be when.)

vace is conscious enough to move, a little. support his own weight, hopefully. but that’s about it.

sol gets him up, supports his weight on one side. vace has about eight inches and ninety pounds on sol, which is a fucking problem.

sol puts on his best rhett voice, and barks orders at vace. “time to push it, soldier! if you don’t, we’re both dead!”

he can’t honestly tell if it helped. he knows vace can’t do much. he knows he was mostly saying it for himself.

because if sol can’t manage this, they’re both dead.

they might get lucky. rhett might send a squad after all. nem might defy orders to come after them herself. dys might come for sol’s sake, with her or own his own. he might even get word to sym.

but sol can’t act like help is coming. can’t let himself do anything less than as much as he fucking can.

the sun has set by the time he gets them back to the transport, drenched and muddy and shaking. he barely manages to open the sliding door with one hand, and then has to lay vace on the floor from outside, get in, and drag him the rest of the way. he pulls wads of fabric from between his own teeth, put there to keep his teeth from cracking when he clenched it shut.

he can barely get the scraps out, with how tightly wound the muscles are. that’ll hurt in the morning.

(he’ll just add it to the list.)

he locks them inside the transport, and takes a chance to examine vace. he’s semi-conscious, definitely has a concussion. he can talk, a little, and vaguely understand context.

(he swears, mostly. given the context, yeah. sounds about right.)

the bleeding has stopped. there are some cracks in his skull, but nothing that feels imminently dangerous. already bruises and a hell of a black eye, and sol is pretty sure there’s a fracture along his left orbital bone. but those are all things a medbed can handle just fine. as long as he makes it to one.

sol straps vace into one of the bench seats, and gets the transport started. as expected, there’s several messages from utopia, and one from rhett. the storm interferes too much with comms for much to get through, but sol does what he can. a distress signal, canceled after three seconds. three seconds of silence, and then the signal sent again, canceled after three seconds. deliberate enough for them to know it’s a message.

he starts the transport home.

about ten minutes of slow travel down the road, it’s flooded. sol isn’t going to risk it, not after what he just went through. he parks them.

he unbuckles vace so he can lay the soldier down on the seats, and try to get some sleep. sol takes the floor, and sleeps in fits.

eventually, he jolts awake to the sound of a quiet drizzle.

he straps vace back in. he’s relieved to hear the mumbled complaints about ruining his sleep.

the floods come fast in the swamp, but they leave that way, too.

it takes another hour and a half, but eventually he sees the lights of the colony.

utopia and rhett are already at the outer post, pacing and watching the road. they see the approaching transport before the lookouts do, but not before dys and nem.

both of whom are sequestered right next to the security chief, and looking rather dour.

sol can see how much self restraint it takes to wait for the transport to roll in, and not just run to it.

as soon as it’s parked, someone starts trying to yank the door open.

(it’s locked and dead bolted, because sol wasn’t taking any chances.)

he unlocks it, and rhett yanks it open before sol can. all the doctor manages to say is vace’s name, before he’s being unbuckled and carried out in rhett’s arms.

held like a princess, limp and soaked in a way that makes his clothes and hair cling to him, vace looks like the kid he is. barely sixteen, too young to be dealing with this shit.

(they both are. hell, all of them are.)

sol doesn’t need help to move. he knows he looks like shit, but his adrenaline has been running so high for so long that he sprints ahead to prepare a medbed.

instance is waiting, but she knows someone who needs work when she sees it. she’ll be the one who cleans and cares for sol’s own wounds later, in the quiet silence of an active medbed. tang will uncurl from the corner where she’d been watching owlishly, to play the part of nursing assistant.

vace will be under for three days. it’ll heal all the worrying injuries, but sol knows the soldier can’t stand to spend forever in a medbed, even if he doesn’t remember it.

(and he doesn’t remember the medbed. but he does remember a surprising amount of that day. remembers the dissonance of hearing sol sobbing while also feeling deft fingers work his knife loose. knows noct died, and he couldn’t have been the one to do it. gets flashes of the slog back, of sol carrying him when he could only feel frustration at his weak, sluggish legs slipping in the mud.)

they’re different, after that. sol never acts like vace owes him anything, and starts taking self-defense lessons. neither one of them actually suggested it. they just made eye contact across the cafeteria one morning a week after the event, and walked to the garrison together to start.

vace trusts sol to do what’s necessary, and to know what that is. it’s hard not to, when you know the empathetic, xeno-loving doctor willingly killed a gardener. his trust grows from there.

and sol trusts vace to have subtlety, and sympathy. he never says more about that day than what sol himself admits, even after he tells sol he remembers it. he seems to pick up on the days when it’s really bothering the doctor, and finds a way to hover nearby. whether it makes sol feel safe, or reminds him that he saved someone, vace doesn’t know.

seeing the most trusted kids from each ship suddenly get along has a deep impact on not just their peers, but the adults too.

(lum hates it. he never managed to scare them, but he could usually get them to cooperate. now they do nothing less than exactly what they think is right, and the few times he’s tried to control them, they both just fixed him with a stare that said he was a problem they could solve the moment they decided to.)

it’s the start of a new era for stratos-helios relations.

the violent soldier who toughened the kind doctor, and let himself be soothed in return.

(nothing changed in them. not really.)

(they just learned how to balance.)

(and everyone else followed suit.)

[theskella]

That's New - An Exocolonist Fic

I recently played I Was a Teenage Exocolonist, and I absolutely adore it.

But there’s criminally little fic and content regarding my good good Squat Queen.

So I wrote a fic myself.

The punishingly dry air of Dust stings Sol’s near-sleepless eyes as he finally leaves his room, having abandoned making up for lost sleep. Groggy and stompy bootsteps bring him out to the overly-familiar sight of the multicoloured Vertumnan sky above, and the colony he has spent eons building and rebuilding from just off on the sidelines below. The noises of late morning activity on the farm serve to lightly annoy the tired teen. Is it too much to ask that I be allowed a restful sleep every now and then? He thought. I mean these folks owe me that much, surely. There were a few lifetimes that Sol bitterly considered how little credit he was allowed for managing so many lives, caring for the tapestry of the exocolonists' story here. Having staved off disaster after disaster, all without being believed that he was the weaver.

Familiarity breeds contempt. An old adage he despised crept its unwelcome way to Sol’s forebrain. There was another that Sol learned – from a cartoon, no less – that he’d often turn to to quiet the worming, malicious thought.

When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.

Sol looks over the railing to the colony. He’d subtly influenced so much to award himself this view, the greatest view of the colony, from where he could see all of his friends, and the infinite; though arduously realized, potentials they have. But chief among these, for this, the last, and so many other innumerable lifetimes, Sol’s eyes fall thus again to Nemmie. Her shock of vibrant red hair is easy to spot. Leading the jogging group of Helios, ahead even of Vace, a fact that – from its gilded frame in the hall of his most precious memories – reminds Sol that Vace seethes over. Sol chuckles, mentally viewing the thought, pondering over its fine-tuned aesthetic distance. When probed, Vace used to erroneously claim that it’s to ‘watch her go’, but Sol knows from thousands of lives that Nemmie is just naturally faster. Even he has struggled to keep up with her in their many foot-races from childhood to now.

Fortunately, Sol had already crested the hump, Nemmie had broken up with Vace a few weeks ago. This time an argument over having another man’s name tattooed on her arm lit the fuse. Nemmie’s stalwart defense of the personally important tattoo earned a terminal bout of silent treatment from which their already unhealthy relationship would not recover. Of course, Sol had to play a part. A part that once seemed difficult and uncomfortable; but with recitation and understanding of his motivation, he no longer felt or acknowledged that difficulty. Separating Nemmie from a woefully ill person in such a delicate time was the easiest of the boundless choices Sol makes.

Sol’s groggy waking movements begin to pick up as the still-overbearing heat of Dust bids his blood to pump. He passes Cal, pushing a heavily laden wheelbarrow outside Geoponics. Sol stops him from his work to hand him a Bobberfruit, clapping him on his unyielding shoulder.

“Man, Dust always makes me wish I had your augment!” Sol jokes as he repeatedly flaps the hem of his shirt to cool himself. Sol keeps up chit-chat until Cal idly bites into the fruit, letting Sol know that he’d devour it shortly. Despite his love of food, Cal’s dedication to work often has him skipping meals, a fact Sol has never quite been able to influence beyond joining Tammy in regularly putting food in his hands. As he jogs away letting Cal get back to it, Sol quickly pulls his holopalm up to update Tammy in the private chat they keep to let her know. A moment later she sends back two emotes, a sandwich, and the custom Tangent emote that Marz convinced Nomi to make as part of a set for all of them. Sol sends back a selfie: a single hand held in prayer in front of a bashful smile in thanks.

Next on Sol’s walk he passes Rex and Marz sitting casually on the steps up to Command. It’s always fun to try to get a reaction from the highly charismatic duo. Let’s see how they like this. Sol happily doffs his shirt with relief and enters their field of view, muscles aglow with beads of sweat, prompting a hearty, familiar and welcome howl from Rex. Marz soon joins in, similarly enjoying the show. Sol draws his hands up and down his rugged torso, mimicking some of the salacious videos Rex had shown him and Marz and taking more and more dramatic poses earning excited whoops and hollers. After wheeling around from flaunting his tush, the realization comes too late that Rex has advanced the bit and is racing toward him. It’s too late to brace and the collision brings the two young men to the ground, tumbling. All three laugh at the scene. From the ground for a brief moment, Dys can be seen peeking from over the hill the gate stands upon. Sol finds his eyes just long enough to convey a greeting in passing– Dys’ preferred morning interaction. Rex has gotten up and grips Sol’s forearm to pull him to his feet and brushes him off, cheekily spending more time than needed pawing at his body. 

“Sorry, can’t help but chase juicy pieces of meat.” Rex says with his wolfish grin, his eyes don’t make contact with Sol’s, choosing to linger elsewhere. The emphasis is a little too thick but that’s to be expected. Sol replaces his shirt, ruffles Rex’s piebald hair a bit and softly pushes his head back toward Marz. Looking to where she’s lounging on the stairs, Sol returns the smile and sultry wave she gives him as their eyes meet. Her attention turns back to Rex as he starts hustling toward her, before turning to give a goodbye wave to Sol with a huge smile on his face.

Moments later Nomi Nomi suddenly bursts into Sol’s’ vision in an eruption of shiny and colourful clothing, loud-but-lovely hair and inexhaustible energy.

“HEY SOL! Guess what! Guess guess guess!” They greet with far more energy than should be allowed this early.

Without even waiting for a guess they immediately launch into a story about a thread of comments that the stories they’ve been writing together are getting. People really seem to enjoy them, as Nomi all but squeals to him. 

“I can’t tell you how I know, but even some of the Helios kids are being nice!” Nomi pulls Sol’s sleeve to lower his ear to their face “I… snooped a little and they’re even writing fanfics based on our stories!” they say in a hushed, conspiratorial tone.

Sol encouragingly offers that perhaps the Helios aren’t as violent as they seem, and it’s a matter of perception that paints them as such. Nomi excitedly agrees and rushes off, yelling over their shoulder that they have a duty then, to encourage this creativity.

Gazing over to the Garrison shows the joggers are still running a few laps. I probably have some time then. He livens his pace a little toward the Engineering building. When he arrives he is happy to be greeted by Tangent and Tammy together in the hall. Tang is sat on the floor, busied by interfacing with her holo-eye, and taking breaks to chug from an energy drink. Tammy for her part is taking advantage of Tang’s hyperfocus to swap the energy drink for water, and keep a stream of idle chatter to distract her from the moments Tammy holds a sandwich half to Tang’s lips, prompting her to bite. Tammy catches Sol’s eye and gives a pronounced sarcastic eye roll and warm smile. Sol puts his hand to his heart and mouths ‘thank you’.

It didn’t take much to get Tammy to agree that Tang takes poor care of herself, but there was significant coaxing into convincing Tammy that Sol would help keep Cal fed if Tammy helped Tang in turn. Cal’s issue was in not stopping to eat, while Tang’s was thinking anything you eat would do for nutrition. Tammy’s significant culinary ability would be better spent keeping Tangent off of an all-protein bar diet. Tammy was reticent at first, knowing Tang’s past bitter refusal to be cared for. Sol did eventually convince her to give it a shot, saying that slowly but surely, Tang’s gotten over that attitude. As Sol approaches, he pings Tangent from his holopalm to ‘look up’. She does so, and is a little surprised by Tammy’s presence. Tammy reflexively stiffens, but Tangent is– however removed from the situation she may be– thankful for the food, and takes it from Tammy to continue eating. Tammy sighs in relief as she rises to her feet while being careful to keep the energy drink she’s protecting Tang from hidden behind her. The sweet girl places a gentle hand on Sol’s shoulder before excusing herself to the Creche.

“How are the tests for the modified pomoea batatas going?” Tangent asks, rapidly switching from tasks to attention to Sol.

“Things look good so far, they’re able to take to Vertumnan soil now. However, Cal let me know that they are also being singled out by an endemic fungus.” Tang curses under her breath as Sol speaks, clearly disappointed but in a way one could have expected.

Sol is mindful to mention “Cal thinks their enhanced nutritional load is prompting the targeted parasitism. You should talk to him about it, he’s really come into his own in terms of the science of farming.”

Tangent, quite without knowing it, pays Cal a compliment, “Yes, he has been helpful. I will do so.” It isn’t much, but Sol knows better than most to take careful measure of the words Tangent uses, she’s likely already considered their meaning 3 or 4 times before saying them.

Sol wishes her well as he leaves, watching over his shoulder to see Tang munching on the last bit of her sandwich with a surprising vim. It comes as a huge relief, she’s seemed much healthier overall, since Sol stood by her side against Lum’s push for a plague.

Sol exits the Engineering wing into the none-waned heat to see with shielded eyes the Garrison clearing out from the track. Nemmie is punching arms and waving goodbyes before she looks up and spots Sol, she exaggerates her waving to him in a way just familiar enough to when they were kids that it makes his chest flutter. A beat passes before Nemmie starts bouncing into a run toward him. He starts to bob along to meet her. Though, Sol notes, she’s gradually picking up the pace as she nears. Sol realizes then, this isn’t a run– it’s a charge! Ignited with a youthful flame, Sol sets his form like he used to when the Garrison was mostly an official excuse for him and Nemmie to rough-house. Before the fall of the Strato. Before the arrival of the Heliopause and before Vace made the entire space feel coarse and– ironically, alien.

Nemmie is approaching at a blitz, Sol looks for any sort of indication of the opening volley– a tackle? A flying kick? What’s her plan? The heavy footfalls Nemmie makes reach Sol’s ears now, his fingers twitch in anticipation. Nemmie is within 4 meters and his defensive posture stiffens, a stoic-looking Nemmie kicks off the ground, turning to the side and sailing through the air to deliver– nothing? She’s just flying toward– OH SHIT! Unsuspecting arms reach out to catch his friend, but the force is just a little too much and Sol is taken to the ground. Nemmie lands in a ball on top of him before bursting out laughing, a sound he hasn’t heard for far too long.

“You’re supposed to catch me null-head!” Nemmie’s eyes peer up from where her head rests on Sol’s chest, behind the tangled, beautifully chaotic mass of red curls that coil and tumble over his chest. The sight reminded him of more treasured memories, desperately and excitedly piecing together fractions of his wife’s face from behind those same curls, grown out and allowed to be wild once more. He forced his current-self to compose again, before things got inappropriate.

He fires back. “I was expecting you to hit me!”

She tosses her hair out of her face with the back of her hand, then presses into Sol’s chest to extricate herself. “You gotta be ready for anything, farmboy. Expect me to run this drill again.”

The smirk she wears now is knowing, Sol’s aware, she’s aware. Before leaving the Garrison, Sol outranked her– fair enough, he was intimately familiar with bolstering his performance– in fact thinking about it, even now she is one rank lower than he was, who is she to assign drills? She’s taunting him.

He’s not having it.

His fingers find Nemmie’s sides and rub, dig and grind prompting a flurry of jerky movements and fits of laughter. Despite all her training, Nemmie has always been ticklish. All the training did was make Sol have to work for it. The giggly girl desperately paws, punches and slaps away at the offensive, but to little avail. Soon Sol has pushed himself off the ground and over Nemmie, who is laughing and rolling about, fully at his mercy.

These dear, childhood friends carry this on for a few more moments, the less fun passerbys scoff and give a wide berth. Eventually Nemmie taps, completely robbed of breath and laying on her back to catch it. Sol is similarly posed beside her, relishing his best friend’s returning energy.

“Hey have you eaten?” He says, tapping his knuckles on her shoulder. “I’ve got Xeno Eggs at my place– Cal’s certain they’re for eating.”

Nemmie almost starts an excuse, Sol knows the tells. Her hand raises toward her head to run her fingers through her hair. But– it stops. Her hand is paused in the air. There’s a moment in Sol’s mind that feel’s… a bristling discomfort, almost a chill. Nemmie is up on her feet before Sol’s given a chance to dwell on it.

“That sounds great! I’m starving.” Nemmie reaches that same hand towards him. He cranes forward to reach for it, but Nemmie reels it back before his grip can find her, awkwardly spending Sol’s effort and making him look foolish. She’s back to laughing.

A classic Nemmie rug-pull. Her laughter plays like music in Sol’s ears as he grins and gets up on his own, playfully batting away renewed offers to help him up.

“But hey– I’ve gotta shower and change first, I’ve already worn these fatigues for a solid week, and I stink.” She says pulling at her collar and fanning her face in mock disgust. Sol hadn’t even noticed.

“It’s no big deal, You can shower at my place, and I think I still have a set of your sweats from last Wet. Clean, of course.” Sol offers up, not wanting to waste any of her time, he knows how dedicated she’s made herself to the Garrison.

The pair trek back, retracing Sol’s earlier walk until they arrive at his home. His parents are going to be working, so they essentially have free run. All the while through the walk, Nemmie is– at least by comparison to earlier this month, in high spirits. She asks about Sol’s expeditions, and how he’s doing with his photophoner practice. She’d gifted him that very same photophoner when they were kids, and he’s kept immaculate care of it since. Sol’s glad to talk about anything non-military with her. He’s surprised when passing Cal. Nemmie sends a small, brief wave back when Cal greets Sol. It apparently surprises Cal too, as he nods back at her with a quizzical look on his face.

Once inside, Nemmie beelines immediately to the shower. Calling back to Sol that she won’t be long and to just toss the sweats in when he gets the chance. Sol makes for the kitchen, pulling out the ingredients and supplies for omelettes from the fridge and preheating the pan. Swiftly, Sol retrieves the sweats that had indeed been left when Nemmie got caught in a bad rainstorm and sheltered here, wearing some yet-to-be-returned clothes of his to get back to the Garrison when there was a break in the rainfall.

Sol approaches the bathroom door, calling out “Delivery” before momentarily cracking the door and throwing in the clothes, then going out to the kitchen again.

Benefited by the lifetimes he’s spent helping in the cafeteria kitchens, it’s a trivial thing to prepare some Xeno omelettes. So his mind comfortably wanders as he moves on autopilot. Something’s been nagging at the very cusp of his mind since he felt that chill, but he can’t pin it down. He abandons the quest when he realizes he should ask Nemmie what cheese she wants, some colony kids take issue with floatcow cheese. He rounds the corner to the hall the bathroom door is in and is greeted with a Nemmie fresh out of the shower, just starting to pull the sweater down over her slick, rugged abs, freezing him in place.

“Oh, sorry!” Nemmie blushes, tugging the sweater down over her  “I rushed out when I smelled the food” she exclaims, trying to change the subject.

“Speaking of shredded; what kind of cheese would you like on your omelette?” Sol asks, holding the pan with the nearly cooked eggs inside. He punctuates with a teasing wink. She punches his arm in answer to this teasing when she walks over. 

“Floatcow’s fine. Stars, it really does smell fantastic in here. Lucky me– having a renowned cook-off champion as a best friend.” Nemmie boasts with a grin.

After finishing the omelettes with cheese and neatly folding them, Sol leads Nemmie into the den, choosing to eat on a comfy couch. The pair wordlessly adopt an arrangement they’ve had for a long time: sat facing each other, Sol cross-legged and reclined on the arm of the sofa and Nemmie laid out with the soles of her feet pressed against his stomach. Many cartoon marathons in the lounge of the Strato were enjoyed just like this. Between bites, Nemmie heaps praise on Sol for his cooking, and wishes she had the time to learn to cook like this. Sol offers to just cook for her and Nemmie lets out a singular laugh with her mouth full.

“Imagine, my own personal chef.” she says, a lilt of joking wistfulness in her voice before swallowing.

“Marz would be so jealous.” Sol points out before taking another forkfull. Something about Sol’s comment gives Nemmie pause, her eyes dart about and blink rapidly.

“Thank you, Sol.” Nemmie’s tone shifts, growing more serious as she continues, “I know that you put a lot of effort into making sure we’re all… just– thank you. You’re the best, most caring person on this planet. And I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Her foot idly presses and rubs against his stomach.

Sol places his plate on the coffee table and gently places his hands on Nemmie’s legs, warming toward answering her sudden candour, “Nemmie is everything alright?”

She smiles somberly. Her eyes are cast down on the empty plate she’s fiddling with. She takes a few breaths before saying “Yeah. Yeah, things are… better. I’m just–” she pauses. A long moment ticks by in the measure of her breathing before she finishes her thought.

“Everything made sense to me when I was with Vace–” she puts her hands out defensively in front of her and quickly covers– “I know, I know, he was awful. But things were easy. It’s hard to describe. It’s like, I was already angry and hurting, so Vace just felt like more of the same. I could deal with it, it was just part of the norm. And I’m happier now, but– without Vace I can see how lonely I was, how alone I made myself by tying myself up in his approval, and I’m… I’m scared that the person I was– who I let myself be when I was with him…”

Sol’s squeezes on her calf, trying to silently convey his empathy, to make it more tangible to her that he was listening. Nemmie’s feet swing suddenly over the edge of the couch, she spins to her knees sending her plate clattering to the ground and her falling toward Sol, catching him in a hug. 

Her eyes are welling up, and she sniffles into Sol’s chest before continuing to speak, though the words are laden with effort to keep her tears back. “I don’t want to be that lonely person,” she manages to squeak out in a whisper. Sol’s arms went around her in reflex, and tighten now as he’s clueing into what she’s trying to say. He hushes her. Letting her know it’s ok. He lets her breathe for a moment, comforting her until he can compose what he wants to say.

“Nemmie. Nothing could change so drastically that I– or any of us for that matter– would hate you,” She wetly sniffles some more, trembling but still holding tightly.

“We know who you are, and… as bad as things seemed sometimes, we knew that it wasn’t– that it’s not who you are,” his hand cups the back of her head, stroking her hair. “We were sad, and it hurt. But I promise that we love you. And it’s because we love you that it hurt to see you acting that way.” His own words are beginning to choke in his throat, but he tries to keep it together.

“How can you know?” her question is heavy with worry.

Sol can’t tell her. Not that she’d even believe him, that he’s already grown up with them countless times, and nothing has ever truly torn them apart. They’ve strained, frayed at the edges and shown wear and tear, but the tapestry remains beautiful– mending, patches and all.

“Because I know my friends. You’ll have to trust me.” Sol offers instead, though it’s not what he wishes he could say. 

She lifts her head up to look him in the eye, though his chest is no lighter for it. Tears have left trails down her freckled and scaled cheeks. Her eyes are puffy and red and searching his. The hug tightens on her subconsciously.

“I– I do,” her voice is steady now as she answers.

Then, quite brashly and without warning– Nemmie brings her lips to Sol’s. A moment cast in the haze of elation passes before Sol gently separates her from him.

“Nemmie wait–” he’s at once cursing himself and eagerly encouraging his next words– “you’re… you’re going through a lot right now. Are you sure– I mean, I don’t want you to…”

The faintest expression of doubt passes over the face of his best friend. Sol didn’t want her to jump into something like this out of stress. Wait–

“You’re right, I’m a wreck right now,” she starts softly and straightens herself up, pushing back off of him. Sol wants to disagree with her words, but she doesn’t give him a chance. “But you’re here for me. You’ve always been there, even when I thought I didn’t want you to be.” She starts out whispering, but she reaches her hand forward, her fingers barely graze against the arms that held her, and the quiet voice dissipates as she finds her confidence. And her hand gently but firmly grasps Sol’s wrist

“I’ve been thinking about this. You’re caring, you’re funny, I–” she takes a deep breath. “I don’t feel lonely with you. You’ve been my best friend for as long as we could walk. You’ve never once forgotten my birthday. I can talk to you about anything.” Her words fluctuate in volume and tone, it’s clear that she has thought about it, but the thoughts are coming out in a random priority.

It’s adorable.

“And– you make me feel safe.” She finally exhales.

Sol’s neck hair stands on end, as he finally catches that evasive, errant thought. Or rather it rockets toward him, a collision that shakes every corner of his consciousness.

“I– I’m in love with you, Sol.” Her brilliant, purple eyes lock with his, and he feels unable to breathe.

She’s never been the one to confess–

That’s new.

And that’s all for now. I want to continue writing this, but I felt like this was a good enough point to post a Part One.

comments in good faith welcome

[eggplant-crusader]

SHE'S FREE!

(I WAS A TEENAGE EXOCOLONIST SPOILERS / MY NEMMIE MELTDOWN)

SHE DISMANTLES THE WALLS!!!!

SHE'S THE NEXT KOM!!!!!!!!!

SHE GOES BACK TO HER CHILDHOOD PASSION!!!!!!!!

THEY LITERALLY TELL YOU SHE LIVES A LONG AND HAPPY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Imma take a break from this game now but when I come back (AND I WILL) I think I might have to avoid her forever lol, there's no way I could handle getting details about her in the ending that are not THIS.

I'm so happy. I did it. She's not a fascist, she's not a victim, she's COOL AUNT NEMMIE, BREAKER OF WALLS, BALLER OF SPORTS

I hope she knows she means everything to me.