#Vladimir_Tod

[giggly-squiggily]

Okay I got through watching this Christmas movie with Aimee Garcia, and she can sing and dance, and I'm just like okay... Aunt Nelly can sing and dance. I don't make the rules here.

AHHH WAIT I LOVE THAT???

Aunt Nelly singing along with her favorite songs as she makes cookies, her scrubs replaced with comfy sweats as she sways and steps around the kitchen. She pulls Vlad into it; he's a bit clumsy in the footing but he's having so much fun he forgets he's supposed to act like he hates it lols (he might give her some reluctance- a dramatic eye roll and groan that's so fake he can't even hold it without grinning) Through her he learns to dance, and he's able to impress Snow with his dance moves when they eventually get together kjarkjajerej

With Otis? They're slow dancing 100%. She'll guide him in her arms until he takes charge, slowly rocking her around the kitchen as she sings love songs to him. He can kinda sing? Not nearly as good as her but he can hold a tune. They perform little duets that end with them kissing and Vlad has to literally evacuate the house before he pukes rainbows from how lovey dovey they are akjlrejkarjej (JK he's beyond happy for them, but he does leave before things get...interesting)

Thank you for sharing friend!

[giggly-squiggily]

OH THIS IS SO CUTE!!! CUTE CUTE CUTE BEYOND CUTE AHHHHHH! @nutzgunray-lvt Thank you so so much for this submission! I loved every word!

Here it is! I hope you like it! Since I headcanon Nelly's face claim to be Aimee Garcia, a Puerto Rican-Mexican American actress, I attributed that to Nelly as well.

How To Cure Jet Lag In One Easy Step

The smell of baked goods and cleaning products practically overwhelmed the house, as did Nelly's 'Now That's What I Call A Puerto Rican Christmas!' playlist. It wasn't doing a whole lot in helping Vlad get a handle on his roller-coaster of feelings and laundry list of things to do, but he figured that pretending his aunt was in the vicinity would help get his motivation going.

Unfortunately, the knowledge that she was currently in the trenches of a double shift at the hospital really killed the attempted immersion.

As did the timer for the cookies.

Growling in frustration at the contrasting smells and sounds, he switched off the music and turned off the timer. After he set his fifth batch of chocolate chip cookies on the already crowded kitchen table, he sank into his spot and put his head in his hands as he sighed heavily.

For glob's sake, why did his life have to be such a mess?

In between the existence of a vampire slayer who was hunting him down, his upcoming finals, his vampire homework, and the Christmas decorations that he promised Nelly he'd get a head start on, his brain felt like a used up, messy clump of Play Doh - and that wasn't even counting how he was adjusting to being back in the United States after his week in Siberia.

On top of adjusting back to the human sleep cycle that always left him the slightest bit grouchy, he also had jetlag to contend with. Jetlag and just under 24 hours of a sleepless flight that consisted of layover after layover.

It left him a frazzled, sleep deprived mess.

A brush against his leg startled him to the point that he banged his knee on the kitchen table, and the loud swear that left his mouth was one that he wasn't really sure if Otis would be proud of or disapproving of.

"Vladimir?"

And given how unimpressed his uncle appeared to be as he stood in the foyer, cradling a spooked Amenti in his arms, it appeared that he was the latter.

Great.

"It's not like I know what that word means, Uncle Otis," Vlad sheepishly tried justifying himself as he got up and went to give Amenti an apologetic scratch behind the ears. He was pleased to see her close her eyes and purr happily as she butted her head up into his hand.

Apology accepted, and he got cat purrs as well.

Nice.

"I heard Vikas say it once, and… I don't know, it just came to me. Look, aren't you more happy that I'm remembering spoken Elysian Code better?" he asked as he gave Amenti's nose bridge a gentle rub.

Vlad had thought that it wasn't possible for his uncle to look anymore unimpressed than he already was, but as he set Amenti down, the look he gave his nephew as he stood back up said it all.

"Remind me to remind Vikas to watch his language around you," Otis muttered moreso to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose as he sighed heavily. "You may not technically be a child, but I won't tolerate any foul language coming out of your mouth, Elysian Code or not. Agreed?"

The teen barely held back from rolling his eyes as he nodded and echoed, "Agreed."

As the older vampire opened his eyes and straightened back up, his brow furrowed and his nose wrinkled as he finally caught the conflicting scents permeating the air as well as the sheer number of baked goods crowding the kitchen counters and tables.

"Vladimir…" he slowly asked as he approached the table and took a cookie for himself. "Why does the kitchen look like you're in the process of opening a bakery?" 

On any other day, a (relatively) well rested Vlad that wasn't battling jet lag and a large to-do list would have taken the question as it was: an admittedly leading question from an incredibly concerned uncle. But today, Vlad was battling jet lag and a large to-do-list, which made him suck his teeth in as he snapped, "Well it sounds to me like you already know the answer to that, don't you, Uncle Otis? You know I bake when I'm stressed, and given how you think I'm trying to go behind Nelly's back and open an at home bakery, I'm clearly really stressed out!"

He stormed into the living room and collapsed onto the couch, hugging a pillow to his face as he screamed into it. It… didn't do much to help him feel better, and really, it only made him feel ashamed at snapping at Otis the way he did. Since day one, his uncle was nothing but patient with him. From being accused of being a crazy murderer to nearly being blasted to kingdom come with the Lucis, he took it all in stride - even before he told him they were related.

When was he ever going to be a nephew that Otis would be proud of? 

From the way things were looking, It looked like it was going to be never.

As Vlad tried suffocating himself with the pillow, he could sense his uncle's swirling thoughts of guilt and worry before he entered the room. He could feel the pillow being pulled off his face and see how sad he truly was before he was exposed to light and air again, and he could tell what Otis was going to murmur before the words left his lips:

"You look exhausted, Vladimir. How much sleep have you gotten?"

The question was quietly asked with no force behind it, but it took the wind out of Vlad's sails all the same. He closed his eyes and muttered, "I don't know, Uncle Otis. I haven't been able to sleep since we got back from Siberia a few days ago, and-and with everything else going on like the finals and decorating the house and the slayer -"

"You're jet lagged," Otis patiently explained as he moved around the couch to sit by his nephew's legs. "You're already dealing with much more than a fifteen year old boy should have on his plate, and trying to readjust to the time zone difference isn't helping."

The teen grunted as he grabbed the pillow and placed it over his face again.

"Well, that along with the fact that I have to actually sleep at night now," he sniped, his voice muffled by the fabric. "It's hard, Uncle Otis. It's hard, and it's really not fair."

The sympathetic chuckle from the man in question made Vlad's scowl deepen, and before he could put up a proper fight, the pillow was once again snatched away from him. 

"We need to tackle one problem at a time, as well as divide and conquer, Vladimir," Otis explained. "Why don't I get started on the Christmas decorations while you get some sleep?"

The teen didn't mean to look so disgusted at his uncle's honestly helpful suggestion, but the way the man burst out laughing only made him double down even more, especially as he felt his cheeks redden in embarrassment.

"I can't take a nap!" he protested. "I'm fifteen, not five! Fifteen year olds don't take naps! Besides, do you even know how to set up Christmas lights? You almost started a fire trying to make atole, so I think I should be on the lookout for more Uncle Otis mishaps, especially if they involve gas or electricity, wouldn't you say so?"

On any other day when Vlad's internal clock wasn't running thirteen hours behind, he would have realized that he made a horrible mistake in saying that. He would have noticed how his uncle's brow rose in amusement before he smiled - bared his teeth really - and went for the kill. But today - for the past few days - Vlad's internal clock was thirteen hours behind, so the only thing he noticed before his brain completely dissolved into goofy mush was the fingers gently but firmly digging into his ribs.

"Nohohoho Un-Uncle Otihihihis!" he screamed through his frantic laughter, his body twitching like he had just been struck by lightning. "What-WhatdidIdo?!" he hurriedly screeched as he tried and failed to pull his uncle's hands away from him.

"Why don't we run through them together, dear nephew of mine?" Otis playfully asked, chuckling when he spidered his fingers down to that terrible, awful spot on his lower ribs that turned his laughs into something resembling bird chirps. "First, you've had quite the foul mouth on you today. Second, there's the sass I got from you for expressing my concern about your wellbeing. Third, you're tired and jet lagged and this is the one way to help you go. To. Sleep."

He punctuated each point with a pinch to that awful, horrible spot, and what could Vlad do when that happened? He could do what he always did when that particular death spot of his was being attacked:

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing other than laugh, scream, squeal, flail around, and chirp like a bird.

"Why don't we go over your recent homework?" Otis asked conversationally, as if he wasn't being the evil uncle that Vlad first saw him as. "We can use that as a gauge to see whether or not you're ready to go to sleep. Won't that be fun, Vladimir?"

As the teen desperately nodded through his teary eyed, squeaky laughter, he gasped for air as the gentle yet agonizing pinches to his lower ribs came to an end. He rubbed his flushed face and took in air like had spent an eternity underwater, and after a minute, he gave his uncle a thumbs up.

"Alright then, where is the one continent in the world that vampires don't live -"

"Antarctica!" 

The way Otis evily smiled at him threw Vlad for a loop, and before he could protest - that was the right answer! - the spot right above his kneecap was being assaulted with awful squeezes, and the teen was a mess of shrill laughter.

"Bu-But wahahahait!" he frantically begged. "Tha-Thatwasright, thatwasright!"

"I never said you needed to give me the right answer, Vladimir," the older man wryly remarked as he scribbled his fingers behind Vlad's knees. "Why don't we move on to the next question?"

"Do-Do I eheheven have a chohoice?" The teen asked through his breathless giggling as his uncle gave him a reprieve.

"No, I'm afraid not," Otis answered with a smug smile. "I need concrete evidence that you're finally tired enough to go to sleep, and I also need to make sure you're keeping up with studying the Compendium. It kills two birds with one stone."

Vlad shook his head, though the smile on his face really said it all.

"You're evil, Uncle Otis. You know that?" he asked.

The man in question shrugged.

"You may have told me that a few times, but if my evil ways are what gets you to sleep, then so be it," he remarked. "Now for the next question… who is the youngest vampire to sit on the Grand Council since the Black Death, and what is the minimum age a vampire can be to be voted onto the Grand Council?"

Vlad's eyes widened, and before he could answer, his uncle's horrible hands shot up and under his shirt and his fingers began dancing across his belly.

"THAT'S-THAT'S TWO QUEHEHEHESTIONS!" Vlad shrieked through his hysterical laughter. "NOHOHOHOT FAHAHAIR! NOHOHOHO!"

"The clock is ticking, Vladimir!" Otis teased, poking and prodding at his nephew's stomach. 

"I CAHAHAN'T! I CAHAHAHAN'T!" the teen wailed, his laughter going near silent from how agonizingly ticklish everything was. "I GIHIHIVE UP! PLEHEHEASE!"

"Are you sure?" The older vampire teasingly asked, feeling a twinge sadistic as he scratched a finger into his nephew's belly button. "Are you absolutely sure that you don't know the answers to these questions?"

All Vlad could do was tap out like his very life depended on it, and when the tickling finally stopped, he curled in on himself and gasped for air in between yawns. 

"You're… so mean… Uncle Otis," he muttered as he rubbed his eyes and got himself comfortable. "Did I… Did I ever tell you that?"

"You just did a few seconds ago, Vladimir," Otis answered as he gave him back his pillow from earlier. He nodded in thanks as he placed it under his head, and he couldn't help but happily sigh as he felt himself being covered with a blanket. The last thing he registered before finally going to sleep was a hand brushing his hair out of his face and a caring voice softly saying,

"And if being evil is what it takes to ensure you get some much needed rest, then so be it."

Was that Uncle Otis? 

His dad?

It didn't matter. 

What mattered was that by now, they were one in the same, and that knowledge was what was letting him sleep in peace.

That, and getting the life tickled out of him.

[giggly-squiggily]

More headcanons if you don't mind!

Otis and Vlad have to watch medical shows behind Nelly's back, otherwise she's just nitpicking all the medical inaccuracies and berating the TV characters. But really, Vlad finds it funny and Otis finds it kind of hot.

Also, I'm not sure if they ever say what nurse she is, but I headcanon her either being surgical or ICU. I also think she uses optimism to cope with what she sees and to not get burned out (a la That 70's Show when Eric asks Kitty how she gets through her days at the hospital).

PFFFT YES! Those medical dramas are beyond over the top! Nelly would have a FIELD DAY pointing out all the things wrong: "Why are they not cleaning the area first?" "Where are his gloves- that's beyond unhygienic!" "Malpractice! Malpractice all around!" Meanwhile Vlad's giggling like a goon in his hands and Otis is all but swooning over Nelly cause like you said- he just finds her passion incredibly attractive <3

They watch when she's not home; and then they tell her about it just to get her going off in spanish as she makes dinner akjjkearjkeajrj

Possibly? I always assumed she'd be an RN or maybe emergency? She has access to blood (she's raising a growing vampire afterall) so I'd imagine her nursing would fall within something like that. And oh my god YES. Optimism and Otis' bad jokes. Bad jokes get her through the day akejkarjajkrjej XD (I haven't seen That 70's show but I trust your headcanon! :3)

Thanks for sharing, friend!