Chapter Text
"Oi, Kris, you're killing me..."
Kris smirked, peering down at Ramb. Ramb shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't believe the kid had already outgrown him. It felt like only yesterday the kid was a little tyke crawling around on all fours, trying to chew on his cord like a puppy dog.
Now they stood at least a head taller than him, dressed in that TV Time red vest they always wore. Their shaggy mop of blue hair covered their eyes. And yet, that smirk was still visible. That playful, teasing smirk that belonged to nobody else.
Ramb doubted that Kris would ever grow as big as Tenna. But one day, would they be grown up enough that they would want to leave and do their own thing?
Man, it was hard to think about. But they were a Lightner, after all. Lightners were constantly growing, constantly changing…
"Well, off you go, then," Ramb waved a paw. "Go and see the salesman. I'll cover for ya."
Ramb had a feeling that Kris was the only one who still visited that damn salesman. After the divorce, the salesman had stayed permanently in the Cyber World, living inside the garbage dump. A shell of his former self.
And yet, Kris still cared for him, sneaking out under Tenna's overprotective gaze to visit him. They were a good kid. Much better than the salesman deserved.
It was dangerous, of course, sneaking off into other Dark Worlds. The salesman, in Ramb's opinion, was not worth it.
But if Kris wanted to go and see him, then ain't nobody would be able to stop 'em. Kid was as stubborn as a mule. At least this way, Ramb knew what they were up to. (And hey, he wouldn't admit it to anyone but himself, but it was nice to share something with the kid that Tenna hadn't stuck that extremely long nose of his into.)
Kris smiled, hugging Ramb. They could rest their chin on his head. God, that made him feel old.
It was strange. Yes, Kris would slowly but surely grow and change, but Darkners were different. Change could come abruptly, but then nothing would happen for years. And it had been a very long time since something had happened to the Darkners of TV World.
Regardless, Kris was off, and Ramb would keep his mouth shut, for their sake. He knew they'd probably go and visit their friends before seeing the salesman, but even if Tenna caught them, they deserved some alone time.
Sure enough, about ten minutes later, the TV man himself arrived, his antennae curled up in worry.
"Ramb," he said, "you haven't, by chance, seen Kris around here, have you?"
Ramb chucked and shook his head. "Can't say I have, luv."
"You're not LYING to me, are you, Ramb?" Tenna asked, 'LYING' in big, bright red letters.
"The only long-nosed bloke around 'ere is yourself," Ramb retorted.
Tenna's smile was strained at the edges. Ramb had to admit, it was fun to pull the guy's strings.
"Little tyke's probably gone to prank the Pippins again," Ramb waved a hand. "You know what they're like."
Tenna was scowling. He tapped his fingers together, while Ramb kept up an innocent facade.
"You shouldn't worry about them so much, luv," Ramb said. "They're growin' up. Kids need their independence."
"HA! As if I'd take advice from the likes of you," Tenna huffed, adjusting his tie. "I know Kris best. They're my NUMBER ONE VIEWER, my little star, my…" he trailed off. "I need to find them!"
Ramb sighed, shaking his head as he watched Tenna race down the hallway. Sorry kid, I tried.
Elnina puffed up her cloud-like curls, gazing over her reflection in the mirror. Lanino stood behind her, adjusting the buttons on his suit. It was nearly time for the weather, and the two of them were preparing themselves for the spotlight.
That was when Elnina noticed a flash of dark blue hair. Kris emerged from behind a wall, somewhat crouched.
"Hi, Kris!" Elnina greeted. "Here for a hairdo?"
She suspected that Kris was probably sneaking around as they always did. The teenager shrugged, leaning against the wall.
"Kris, so good to see you," Lanino said, walking over to them.
He reached out, doing up some of the buttons on their collar. They scowled, but didn't push him away.
"Tenna's going to be looking for you," Elnina added, with a tinge of worry.
Kris waved it off. They sat in Elnina's chair.
"Oh, alright," she laughed. She combed a hand through their shaggy hair. They never seemed to want to grow it any longer than their shoulders, and it was also a little messy, despite her and everyone else's efforts. Still, it was fun to style it into braids, pigtails, a ponytail, whatever the occasion called for.
Today, she went with a simple, low ponytail. Lanino pitched in, placing sun and moon themed hair clips into Kris' hair. Kris was the closest thing Elnina and Lanino had to a child of their own. Essentially, Kris was their nibling.
"My love," Lanino nudged Elnina's arm.
Outside the room, they could hear Tenna's booming voice, alongside his glooby footsteps. Unlike Kris, Tenna never failed to announce his presence.
Kris was already standing up. They signed, "Thank you," before darting back into the walls.
Lanino sighed, shaking his head. "Oh, that little rascal."
"Aren't they wonderful?" Elnina asked.
"Of course," Lanino smiled, as he and Elnina leaned in for a kiss.
Kris' escape was just in the nick of time as Tenna loudly knocked on the door. The couple supposed they could keep him busy for a few moments.
Battat scowled, gesturing wildly at his pinboard. The other two Mikes watched with mild interest.
"SERIOUSLY, GUYS!!" Battat yelled. "Who the HELL is Mi-"
Suddenly, there was a very GLOOBY knock at the door!
"OH @$#&!!" Battat yelled. "IT'S TENNA!! GET IN COSTUME NOW!"
Loud, heavy footsteps drawing nearer. The Mikes scrambled, putting their outfits together as quickly as they could.
"Hey, waits a second," said Jongler. "That's-"
Kris opened the door, walking towards the Mikes.
"DAMMIT, KRIS!!" Battat cursed, throwing off his costume's head. "We just got dressed up in costume! Give us a break!"
Kris just smirked into their hand. Battat wanted to strangle that kid, and he would, if Tenna wouldn't actually kill him for it.
"Well, what do you want, brat?" Battat sighed. "Another favour?"
Kris shook their head, signing, "games."
"Wha-" Battat stammered. "Does it look like we have the time to set up our minigames right now? We're supposed to be looking for you!"
"Hey, they came rights to us, boss," said Jongler.
"But if we call Tenna here, they'll leave!" Battat cursed.
Pluey let out a cheerful honk.
"That's not helpful!" Battat groaned. "Look, Kris, just- we'll play minigames later. For now, Tenna's tearing this studio apart to find you. So could you go and tell him to calm down already?!"
Kris just wandered off, heading into a wall crevice.
Battat wanted to pull his dots off. Man, that kid drove him crazy! And he knew they did it on purpose, too!
Then, all 3 Mikes jumped when they heard a familiar glooby knock. There was no mistaking it.
"COSTUMES!!" Battat screamed. "NOW!!"
The Mikes quickly scrambled around, as the door opened… and it was Kris again. They giggled, before running off.
Battat snarled. "That little piece of-"
"Piece of what?"
And then Tenna himself walked in! The other two Mikes quickly hid themselves. Battat put his headpiece back on.
"Oh, Boss!" Battat said, innocently. "Uh- a piece of- um, good looking TV! Haha!"
"Good-looking TV is right!" Tenna grinned, before the grin turned to a snarl. "NOT! MIKE, where is KRIS?!" 'Kris' was in a bright, bubbly font.
"We're, uh, working on it, boss!" Battat said, trying not to sweat up a storm. "Don't worry! I'm sure they're somewhere close!"
"They BETTER BE!" Tenna growled, before storming out of the room. "Filming starts in 10 MINUTES!"
Battat groaned, collapsing onto the ground. He never asked to be a goddamn babysitter. The worst part was, Kris themself never got in trouble for their shenanigans. Spoiled brat…
Where were they? Oh, his baby, his little Kris, why did they have to be so good at hiding, especially when it was show time?
Little, huh. They weren't so little anymore. Sure, they would always be small compared next to him, but they'd grown up so much. His little Kris, a teen already.
He thought about what Ramb had told him, and briskly shook his head. Kris was his entire world. His TV Time was all for them. Every show he made was all for them. They were the only Lightner left, and they were his. If he let them go, he would have nothing.
And besides, he couldn't just let Kris wander off into the Dark Worlds all by themself! Every Darkner and their grandma would be positively foaming at the mouth to get their grubby mitts all over Kris. No way Jose! Tenna wouldn't let that happen. Not to his baby.
Speaking of Kris, he finally located them near the parental locks. Had they already figured out the new passcode? Uh oh!! He was not going to let them escape. Sure, he didn't mind taking Kris outside every now and then (with PARENTAL SUPERVISION!!), but letting them venture out alone?! Inconceivable! Bad TV!
"Kris!" he raced up to them, growing a few inches. A flower sprouted from his nose, and his text was bright and colourful.
Kris turned their head, staring up at him. Still so small. The apple of his eye.
"Come on now, it's time for the show!" he said. "Aren't you ready?"
Kris gave him a thumbs up, but their shoulders had a bit of a slump. Kris wasn't the most chatty person, so they often expressed emotion through body language and actions.
"What's wrong?" he asked, kneeling down to their height.
"All fine," Kris signed. "Time for the show."
"Kris…" he reached out, picking them up like a baby. He held them close to his chest, giving them a gentle squeeze. Their legs dangled over his arm. Their cheeks went a bit pink, and they tried to hide their face, as they always did when he showed them affection. Oh, what a little teen rebel!
"Come now, you're never too old for a ride!" he laughed.
Kris wiggled out of his grip. They climbed onto his shoulders, grabbing his antennae.
"HEY HEY HEY-" he said, grabbing them again. "KRIS, I told you those are SENSITIVE!"
They stuck their tongue out. Tenna sighed. He pressed his forehead to Kris', and they leaned in. Their hair, groomed by Elnina, was ruined by his static electricity. They didn't seem to mind, though, judging by their smile. Oh well, they often messed up their hair on their own anyway.
Despite the sweetness, he could feel them getting restless after a few moments, so he put them back onto the ground.
"Are you ready, my superstar?" he asked, 'superstar' in bright, glowing text.
Kris nodded. They raced ahead, waving to him. So full of energy, and light. He never wanted this to end.
"It's TV TIME!!"
Kris signed, "TV Time," towards the camera. Tenna jumped onto the stage, holding out his hands.
"MIKE, the lights, please!" he clapped, and the lights intensified. "Welcome to the TV World, everybody! We've got a bucketload of events tonight! Sponsored, of course, by our one and only (LITERALLY) Lightner and sign language translator, Kris Tenna!"
Kris signed their name, taking a bow.
"As long as KRIS is here, us Darkners continue to thrive!" Tenna said. "So don't touch that dial, because they're not going anywhere!"
Kris signed 'anywhere', trying not to smirk on live TV.
Not going anywhere. For the meantime, anyway.
After the show wrapped up, Tenna went to go and check on that 'secret' he had (it was just one of Spamton's pipis), giving Kris the chance they needed.
Finally, there was nothing stopping them now. They sneaked towards the parental locks, bypassing Ribbicks and Serious Trashy. Shadowguys honked as they raced by, and Kris gave them a wave.
This was it. They stood before the parental locks. They'd already gotten the new code from the Pippins, so bypassing them was no trouble at all. They felt for their knife in their pocket. It shifted, turning into a somewhat tall and shadowy figure with horns. It was more of a silhouette than anything.
"About time," it groaned. "Don't 'cha get sick of him, Kris?"
Kris shook their head. They pointed into the distance.
"Fine, fine," the knife grumbled. "Let's get going already."
Kris stood in the icy wasteland surrounding the TV Studio, taking a deep breath. It was time to head to the Cyber World.