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The warm glow of the sun shone brightly on Ralsei’s fur as he stepped into the light, and out of his car. as he did so, Kris, who also owned the car, slid graciously from the passenger seat into the drivers,
“When do you need me to pick you up?” they asked nonchalantly, leaning out of the window and into the spring breeze. Ralsei tilted his head back slightly to look at his partner,
“Probably in just a couple hours,” he replied, “they said they would be back around eight, so I assume near then!”
“Gotcha,” Kris said, nestling into their new position in the vehicle’s passenger seat. They looked back to Ralsei again as they started the car, “you’ll call me if anything happens, right?” Ralsei smiled back to them reassuringly, a small blush crossing his cheeks,
“Of course I will, but I doubt I’ll have to. Alex is a very nice child from what I’ve seen, if not a little quiet. I’m sure it’ll be fine!”
“Really?” Kris questioned, “that is not the impression they gave me last time I visited. But I also doubt you’ll have any trouble handling them, I guess I’m just being paranoid.” Kris let a short breath out of their nose before leaning up through the window and giving Ralsei a small peck on the cheek, “Well, I’ll get going. Love you, bye!” Ralsei waved goodbye as they began to drive off, the red on his face growing stronger than ever.
“S-see you! Love you too!” he called back as they disappeared down the road. They had been dating for years now, but any affection from Kris still seemed to send Ralsei into a whirlwind, honestly, he didn’t mind the feeling at all.
He then turned and approached the house he was in front of. It was large, very well kept, with large bay windows that overlooked a great view of the forest; he expected nothing less from the mayor's daughter. He approached the door and gave it a knock, waiting a couple of moments before it was opened by a tall reptilian woman dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and semi-informal dress pants.
“Oh hey, dude!” Susie greeted with a smile, showing off her rows of golden teeth. She craned back her long head into the house once more, “BABE!” she called into the house, “RALSEI’S HERE!!” quickly the sounds of hoof fall through the house rang true as Noelle appeared from around the corner, her white sundress practically glowed in the light. Quickly she approached him, wrapping her arms around him in a big welcoming hug,
“Ralsei! So glad you’re here! Just in time too!” Ralsei nodded happily as she pulled away, he prided himself on his timeliness, “Okay, all the food is in the fridge and pantry, make sure they don't try to climb the pantry to get to the sugar again. I don't want to have another incident. Also make sure they don't break anything while I'm out, if anything happens call me, okay?”
“Got it!” Ralsei replied, without missing a beat. Noelle chuckled, smile as bright as the sun,
“Though, I doubt a babysitting master like you will have anything to worry about! Well, we should probably get going so we don’t miss our reservation,” As she began towards the door the sound of light footfall rang through the hallway as well, as a small human child quickly appeared. A child of no older than ten with shoulder-length hair and bright green eyes, they quickly scampered up to the doe, wrapping themselves around her leg.
“Momma? Where are you going too??” the child whined, Noelle kneeled onto one knee, gently rubbing the child’s head,
“Alex sweetie, I already told you! Your mother and I are going out for dinner and a movie tonight! You’re going to stay here with uncle Ralsei for now, okay?”
“When are you going to be back…?” Alex muttered into her dress. Susie raised an eyebrow to the child as Noelle continued to rub their head, and swept them up into her arms with a smile,
“We’re gonna be back in a couple hours, alright? And you like uncle Ralsei, don’t ya?” Alex looked to Ralsei, who returned their gaze with a comforting smile, they tilted their head a little, before nodding, “exactly! So don’t you worry bout a thing alright?” Susie then gently lowered the child to the ground. Alex stared at each of the monsters in front of them individually, first Noelle, then Susie, then Ralsei, before slowly turning away and scampering into the living room from whence they came. The three of them watched them go, before Susie turned to the door, opening it for Noelle, who strutted out gracefully.
“Oh! By the way!” Susie added, leaning back into the door. Slowly her gaze on Ralsei became more intense, as she once again flashed a jagged grin, “if that kid even has a scratch on their person when we get back? I will bite your head off. Ya understand?” A chill washed down Ralsei’s spinal cord and his back went stiff. Noelle giggled softly, tugging at Susie’s bicep lightly,
“Susie! C’mon! You’re gonna scare the poor guy out of his fur!” Susie’s expression softened as she pulled away from him, her smile growing more genuine
“Yeah naw you’re right, you’ll probably have no issue, Alex is a great kid.” Now it was Noelle’s turn to intensify her expression,
“However, if something does happen to them, it will be your funeral.” Ralsei nodded, slightly shaky,
“G-got it!”
“Alright, see ya later man, text Noelle if anything happens.” and with that, they were out the door.
It should be no problem! Alex is a nice kid! Everything should be perfectly normal! Ralsei thought to himself as he strolled forward into the house. As he entered the living room he began to scan his eyes over the beautiful furniture, and quicker and quicker came the realization that Noelle was the one who did the decorating. It didn't take long as Ralsei scanned the room that his eyes landed on Alex, Ralsei jumped slightly, seeing that Alex had positioned themselves on the back of the couch in order to get as much height as they possibly could.
“O-h, um... Let’s get you down from there, that isn't safe.” But as Ralsei approached Alex to help them off the couch they swung out their arm, holding out a signal to stop with their hand, a determined expression painted on their face.
“So…” Alex began, crossing their arms and tilting up their head, flashing Ralsei a mischievous smirk, “I’ve been told you’re a pretty prolific babysitter, huh?” Ralsei stopped, completely taken aback by how well-spoken this small child was,
“W-well, I’m not sure about prolific… but people have told me I’m very good with kids.” The fluffy prince tilted his head slightly, his comforting smile staying strong on his face, “How old are you, by the way? Because prolific is quite the impressive word!”
“Eh, I don’t think so, I’m ten.” Alex grinned with barely hidden pride, scratching the back of their head, “or I will be in a month.” Ralsei was about to respond but was interrupted by Alex swishing out their arm again, “BUT THAT’S BESIDES THE POINT!” they declared, “If you think you’re such a good babysitter, you’re gonna need to earn my respect first!” Ralsei once again tilted his head, deciding to play along,
“Um, alright. How exactly would I do that?” Their grin grew wider as they re-crossed their arms,
“You have to catch me!”
“Oh! So it’s like a game of hide and seek!” Alex nodded with a big smile and Ralsei breathed out a small sigh of relief, thankful that this child had actually said a child accurate thing. He was starting to believe they were some kind of doppelganger.
“Okay! Now count to thirty! Hearing me doesn't count as finding me! And hiding in the bathroom is off limits!” Ralsei put his hands over his eyes and then peeked through his fingers,
“Why are you making the bathroom off-limits if you’re the only hider? Isn’t that giving me an advantage?”
“Because the bathroom is yucky! It has toilets in it! Now close your eyes, I'm gonna go hide!” with an amused exhale through the nose, Ralsei put his hands over his eyes and began to count to thirty. The thumping of Alex’s feet rang true across the wooden floor as they scampered further into the house until they could no longer be heard.
I’m glad this is what they meant by ‘gain my respect’. Ralsei thought to himself as he continued to count, The way Kris talked about Alex they seemed rowdier than they actually appear to be, I’m thankful for that. Maybe this won't be that hard after all.
“THIRTY!” Opening his eyes, he did a very quick scan of the living room in which he was standing, just in case Alex had tried to trick him by hiding in the same room they had started in. But quickly seeing there was no child in sight, Ralsei raced into the rest of the sunlit house, beginning the chase officially.
Ralsei swept through the house swiftly, passing through kitchens, opening closets, skipping bathrooms, and looking under beds, but his composure quickly degraded as his search grew more and more thorough.
He swung open drawers until he felt like he had checked every one in the house, nothing. He double-checked, triple-checked every bed, nothing. Every closet was open, every crawlspace was open, he searched more and more thoroughly through every nook and cranny of the large sunny house, nothing.
Eventually, Ralsei stood in the living room where he had begun and a bead of nervous sweat trickled down his face. He had no idea how they had done it, but the child was gone, almost as if they faded into mist once he closed his eyes. Ralsei’s gaze panned once more over the living room, now far more disheveled than it was when the game began.
What am I going to do if I can’t find this kid…? Ralsei anxiously pondered to himself, the breeziness of his sundress failing to cool his nervous sweating. I suppose I should just tell them I failed to find them and they won, but what if they are actually gone…? God… Susie is going to rip me a new one if she finds out I lost her kid… but his thoughts were interrupted by Alex’s voice, emanating from a place in the house Ralsei couldn't fully track.
“Having trouble, goat boy?” Alex snickered, causing Ralsei to jump slightly in surprise,
“Wh-, Alex?? Where are you???”
“Oh, wouldn't you like to know!” They teased, “But if I told you it would ruin the game! And the game doesn't end until you catch me!” Ralsei spun around further in confusion, trying his best to ballpark where the kid's voice was coming from,
“Well… Could you at least... Give me a hint?” the fluffy prince pleaded. Alex was silent for a minute, seemingly in consideration, before once again piping up to speak.
“Hmmm, fiiiiine.” They eventually gave in, “I guess that’s fair, I can’t say you didn't try to find me on your own…” Ralsei waited eagerly for the hint but was only met with another prolonged silence,
“W… Well…?” Ralsei prodded, only then receiving a response in the form of another mischievous snicker,
“I guess I should admit that my hiding place isn’t exactly fair… You aren’t ever going to find me.”
“What…? Why?” He could hear Alex’s smile through their speech,
“Because I’m in the walls.” Ralsei’s eyes immediately widened in surprise and questions buzzed around his brain like flies. Immediately a spike of worry shot through him as the various possibilities of everything that could go wrong with a child that he was supposed to be caring for being stuck in the walls played out in his mind.
“H-how did you get in there???” Ralsei asked, barely masking his panic now that he knew where approximately Alex was,
“I can’t tell you that, it’ll spoil the game silly!” Alex shot back, clearly not comprehending the gravity of the situation,
“Wha-, what if your parents come home and you aren’t there?! How do you think they’re going to react?”
“Well, that’s not my fault, is it?” Alex shot back without a second thought, Ralsei’s blood ran cold as he realized what they were alluding to. “If my moms come home and I’m not there, that’ll be your fault for losing me! Won’t it…?” Ralsei was at a complete loss for words, this was about the last thing he could have possibly expected out of Susie and Noelle’s child.
Oh god oh god what am I supposed to do?? Ralsei fretted, Noelle told me to call her if anything happens but what the hell would I say??? “Oh hey Mrs. Holliday just letting you know your child is IN THE WALLS”??? I guess this is what Kris meant when they said they weren’t polite… Ralsei thought to himself, until the realization hit him, Wait… Kris!! Of course, Kris would know what to do!! With a flash of determination, he whipped out his phone, trotting out of the living room and towards the front door. He could feel Alex’s inquisitive gaze on his fur for only a moment before he slipped out the front door and back into the afternoon heat.
He swiftly flicked open his contacts as he took a deep breath, and he put the phone up to his ear as it began to hum. Soon enough the call connected, and he instantly felt better as Kris’s voice spoke through his phone's speakers.
“Hey babe, everything alright?” Kris asked, the phone picking up the sounds of moving pots and pans in their vicinity,
“U-uh, I seem to have encountered just a bit of a problem,” Ralsei admitted sheepishly,
“Oh yeah?” his lover responded nonchalantly, “What happened? Did Alex make you play hide and seek with ‘em?”
“Yeahhh.” A smile grew slightly on Kris’s face,
“Are they in the walls?”
“Yeahhh.” Kris let an exhale of amusement escape their nose, and Ralsei could hear the sound of their front door opening from Kris’s side of the line,
“I’ll be over in a moment. Don't worry babe, I know a trick.”
“A-, a trick? What do you mean?” Ralsei inquired, letting himself lean against the front door of the Holliday household,
“Oh, you’ll see,” Kris promised with a smile slipping back into their car and beginning to pull out of the driveway to the two’s house,
“And you’re sure it will work?” Ralsei prodded anxiously. There was a pause as Kris propped their phone up on the holder they had stuck to their windshield, beginning their swift drive back to Noelle and Susie’s abode,
“It sure worked for me!” Kris shrugged with a smile, “plus any excuse to see you sooner is an excuse I'm willing to make,” they added slyly. Ralsei’s face flushed red with flustered emotions and he tried to push them down by shaking his head, he couldn't believe even after they had been dating for so long he would still get so flustered after a comment as small as that. However his flustered reactions were one of the things Kris loved about him, so he wasn’t too upset.
After a couple of minutes of standing in the ever-setting afternoon sun, Kris arrived back at the house, sweeping out of their Mercedes Benz with their classic slight smirk adorning their face. On their right hand they balanced a pie, currently wrapped in tinfoil.
“So that’s the plan!” Ralsei pieced together, “We just have to lure them out with-” Kris closed the distance between them quickly, sweeping a finger up and pressing it to their soft partner's lips before he could finish his sentence. Ralsei’s face burned a vibrant red once more as Kris leaned closer to him, now only about an inch from his face. They leaned in slightly further and spoke in a whisper that sent chills down the prince’s spine,
“Shhhh,” They muttered softly, “don't ruin the surprise, or else it won't work.” however Ralsei was only half processing Kris’s words, wrapped up in a sea of butterflies and their breath curling through his fur. Kris slightly raised their eyebrows from beneath their hair, noticing how Ralsei’s gaze flicked from their eyes to their lips. They smoothly moved their hand to their partner's face, stroking down his cheek until their gentle grasp rested on his chin and tilted his lips to face theirs.
“K-kris…” Ralsei stuttered, suddenly coming just close enough to his senses to be able to tell what was going on, “w-what if A-Alex sees…?”
“They won't,” Kris whispered in response, letting the smile widen on their face, “They’re inside, remember?” Before Ralsei could answer he felt the soft embrace of Kris’s lips press against his, causing him to let out a soft squeak of surprise before fully melting into the kiss. They held it for a moment, Ralsei letting his body press against Kris’s as he wrapped his arms around his partner, and all of the stress Ralsei once had faded away.
Eventually, they parted by a few inches, and Kris once again rested a gentle hand on Ralsei’s now flushed face,
“Feel any better?” Kris asked, grinning, and Ralsei nodded gayly in response. “Alright baby, let's do this then.” with that Kris led the way into the house, still somehow balancing that whole pie in one hand.
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The room was filled with the delicious aroma of the apple pie Kris had created as soon as they released it from its tinfoil prison, Ralsei let his lungs fill with the pleasant scent of one of the many classic Dreemurr pie recipes.
“Did you make this knowing an event would happen?” Ralsei tilted his head as Kris casually opened the fridge and began looking around,
“Nah, but it wasn’t like I was going to eat the whole thing myself, I made it way too big,” Kris responded, still gazing into the fridge. Eventually, they reached in, pulling out a can of whip cream, “Here.” They said, tossing it to Ralsei, “I’ll let you do the honors.” Ralsei fumbled with the can as they tossed it to him, almost letting it slip out of his grip and drop to the floor multiple times, but eventually, he was able to equip the pie with the proper amount of whipped cream. Kris waved the aroma of the pie out into the rest of the room as Ralsei returned the whipped cream to the fridge, as if they were trying to lure Alex into some sort of delicious hunting trap. After only a moment it seemed that the trap had worked, as a voice picked back up in the walls,
“What! No fair! You can't call for backup!” Alex called from who knows where,
“And when did you specify that rule hm?” Kris called back snarkily, bringing the pie out to the table along with plates and utensils,
“It should have been implied!!!” Alex shouted from in the wall,
“Well, I suppose you now know to not leave yourself open to exploitable loopholes!” Ralsei chirped triumphantly, plopping down at the table along with kris.
“Alex, you better get out here or we’re gonna eat this whole pie without you!” Kris threatened the walls. There was no response at first, but Kris nudged Ralsei to roll with it, and that he did,
“It… sure looks tasty! Maybe you should stay up there Alex so we can eat it all ourselves!”
“What!? But…” Alex finally responded, “You have to share with me! You’re supposed to be babysitting me!!” Kris’s eyes shifted to Ralsei again, filling the fluffy prince with the strength to continue to improvise,
“Well, that rule doesn't apply if you’re in the walls!” Ralsei rebutted,
“WHAT! NO! SINCE WHEN!?” Alex called back, Ralsei really had ‘em on the ropes now,
“Since I just said! Now get down here and eat some pie before it's all gone!” Ralsei called, and before Alex could say another word he added, “Also I get to make new rules, it's one of my special powers as an adult!” There was silence, then a loud groan, and soon Alex emerged from behind a corner. Ralsei grinned as his sights landed on them, “caught you!”
“Fiiiine, you win.” and with Ralsei’s victory set in stone, they sat at the table together, and ate some good ass pie.