Chapter Text
“YO! HEY! SOMEONE SET OUR BASE ON FIRE!” Jimmy yelled, immediately running down the stairs of Cleo and Scott’s base.
Tango wasted no time at all in turning around and following Jimmy over, already seeing red and feeling the licks of flame on his neck from his now fiery hair. “Oooooh he is gonna die!” They ran over, tripping over the uneven ground beneath their feet and struggling in their hurry to navigate the land between their neighbors house. His brain was already reeling with ideas for revenge and desire to attack the perpetrator of this disaster before Jimmy calls for his help in extinguishing the rampant flames. All he hears is Scar’s voice before he drops from his position in trying to douse the flames and readies his bow as Scar runs, able to hit him once before Jimmy calls out for his help again. He returned to the second floor of their quickly disappearing ranch and all he could do was feel himself get engulfed in flames, not only from the burning building but from himself as well. He heard a voice but could not comprehend what was being said, nor did he know how he was replying when all he could feel is his anger radiate off of him.
“TANGO! GET OUT OF THERE, YOU’RE MAKING IT WORSE!” Jimmy’s voice was the only thing that pulled him out of his moment and made him turn around and climb down the ladder before leaving the house. He turned around and felt his throat go dry as he watched the ranch he worked so hard on fall apart in front of him despite the efforts of all their neighbors that came to help. He could still feel the heat radiate off of him and smell the ash that clung to him. His mind was hazy, no thoughts standing out enough to stick except for the last words he could make out in his muddled mind, you’re making it worse .
~
“Guys, what’s happened?” Joel called as he and Etho ran up to the scene in front of them. After watching Scar make his escape, the two promptly made their way over in disbelief that Scar would pull a stunt like this so early into the season. Martyn was already at the site helping drown the burning wood in water as Jimmy went around trying to put out the smaller flames as they strayed further from the source.
“Help, we need help! The ranch is-” Jimmy started before coughing and pulling back from a flame that spread beside him. “We need help, we need so much help.” He sounded exhausted, having already spent so much time trying to put the raging flames out to no avail while only breathing in the smoke that bellowed from it.
“We’re comin’, we’re comin’.” Joel started pouring water onto the burning wood, Etho following close behind. Etho started immediately climbing to the top with a water bucket in hand, catching a glimpse of Tango standing to the side and watching the ground with a blank expression as his hair whipped around itself. Eventually Scott and Cleo showed up as well, prying for a reason why Scar would do this as if anything warranted getting their base burnt to the ground in front of them.
Together, Martyn, Etho, Joel, Scott, and Cleo worked together to salvage as much of the ranch as possible while trying to get as much information about how the event transpired. They stood talking a fair distance away from Tango, not quite out of earshot. “Yeah, and I told Tango to sit out ‘cause his hair was helping the fire spread. Hopefully he’s calmed down a bit.” Jimmy spoke softly, almost at a whisper before looking over and seeing Tango pace while wringing his hands, hair still lit but drastically calmer.
“What a hothead” Martyn said with a laugh, unable to pass up the opportunity for a good pun. Joel opened his mouth to reply with his own joke before Etho firmly placed his hand on his shoulder, giving the shorter a firm look that stopped him in his tracks. Tango’s ear twitched at Martyn’s comment and he tensed his hands again before he took notice and tried to regulate his breathing.
“It’s not like he can help it. It’s just part of who he is,” Scott added while nudging Martyn. While not intended as an immediate negative thing, Tango clenched his teeth and tried to tune them out as he felt the heat against his neck grow gradually.
“It’s not like this is the first time something like this has happened. I mean, he was just yelling at us right before this.” Cleo recalled their earlier discussion where she and Scott were blamed for killing their goats.
Something in Tango seemed to snap, his restraint no longer enough to keep himself anchored. He let his voice out in a growl, steam escaping the corners of his mouth, “Etho… Etho.” His pacing increased and his teeth ground together as his vision went red.
Etho turned around after hearing his name called the second time, quickly recognizing the familiar look in his eyes. “Yeah? You calmed down?” He smiled nervously despite knowing that none of them were the target of his aggression.
“I’m having some flashbacks Etho!” Tango clenched and unclenched his fingers, keeping his claws just far enough from his palm to avoid pressing into his flesh. His steps got heavier and trampled the soft dirt beneath him as he grew more restless, hair now returned to its former strength as if he hadn’t taken any time to calm down.
“Rage moment? Maybe Scar will sell you a rage crystal.” Etho had tried to ease his anger, make light of old memories to distract him from the situation at hand. Tango could hear the others around them laugh and he couldn’t help but feel like he was just a show to them, as if his anger was nothing but an act.
Tango continued to growl as his hands grew more tense, his claws digging further and further into his palms with every breath, to the point that Jimmy had started feeling the hurt from it. Jimmy hurried over and tried to keep in front of him, blocking his view of the others. “Tango, snap out of it!” He tried to grab the others shoulders to keep him still before a burning pain bloomed against his hands upon contact. He quickly pulled his hands back and held them to his chest as pain induced tears started to make his eyes sting. “Tango, snap out of it.”
“Breathe, Tango.” Cleo tried to help, especially after seeing Jimmy pull away from him like that. Although she rather enjoyed the chaos of seeing some action happen already, there would be no chance for it if they hurt each other too much first.
Tango tried to regulate his breathing again as Jimmy and Etho stayed close to him. “Look at it Tango, it’s not that bad,” Etho offered as reassurance, looking up at the building, or lack thereof, in front of them.
“Look, the R is still there.” Jimmy smiled, still cradling his hands, refusing to actually look at the damage done to them. He hoped that Tango would calm down now that the fire is finally put out and they can focus on rebuilding even stronger.
“Only because the R can’t burn.” Tango huffed before taking a breath, feeling himself slowly start to relax again. It was then that he tuned in to Martyn, Scott, and Cleo discussing their goats and their supposed wrongful accusation before he strode up to them, interrupting them. “Well somebody killed our goats!”
“We literally all came to help you put out the fire,” Scott said defensively. Tango rolled his eyes and tuned them out again as he looked over the interior damage done and complete lack of second floor, where he had helped the fire burn faster. It was Jimmy’s voice that brought him back to the conversation at hand.
“This was community watch right here, you all came to help. Me and- well, I know Tango doesn’t- he’s having a moment-”
Tango abruptly cut him off as the flames in his hair grew again “Help?! What do you mean help? There’s nothing left!” The others went on, ignoring Tango as his anger grew again. He let out a growl and stream of smoke before his pacing resumed.
“I think you need to express yourself physically, Tango.” Etho encouraged, though part of him knew that it wasn’t the best idea. Tango gave a maniacal chuckle as more steam left his mouth. He started making his way out of the ranch, no regard for what was in his way. When nudged by Jimmy as they followed behind him, he shrugged. “I think that’s the only way this is gonna work.”
“I’m not gonna get involved but I’m gonna watch,” Martyn called out as he followed behind him and alongside the others before Tango felt a tug in the back of his head slowing him down. “What a hothead.”
“Kill the pandas, Tango. Kill the pandas.” Cleo encouraged further, aching to see the chaos ensue. “It’s not like this is the first time something like this has happened.” Tango was back to seeing red as he tried his best to even out his breathing and his feet came to a stop.
“Tango, Tango, don’t head straight over, we gotta talk this through.” Jimmy tried to intervene, offer some voice of reason. It did help to a degree, Tango was able to listen and breathe as he stood still. “We gotta take a breather, take a day.”
“Use this fuel, otherwise you’ll calm down.” Scott followed, pushing him to put his anger to use, even if it was just to cause havoc. “It’s just part of who he is” Tango couldn’t help but bite on the inside of his bottom lip as he fought against himself. He wanted to give in and act on his rage but he also knew that by doing so, he would just reinforce their belief that he’s dangerous.
“No, we gotta be smart. We gotta be smart. Stop egging him on, you just wanna see destruction.” Jimmy stepped in, getting in between Tango and the others just like earlier. “YOU’RE MAKING IT WORSE!” Before his brain could catch up, his face paled, hair died out, and he fell to his knees as tears fell down his face. “Tango? Tango, what’s wrong?” Jimmy kneeled down in front of him and brushed his face with the back of his fingers.
“I’m sorry.” Tango forced his throat to work, voice coming out small and weak as he pushed his hand away from him. “I can’t do anything right. All I can do is get mad and… and I can’t even do anything with that!” He hiccuped with a choked sob and Etho and Scott made quick business to start pushing the others away from the scene.
“No, Tango, listen to me. You didn’t do anything wrong. I-” Jimmy tried to reassure him before getting interrupted.
“You said it yourself. I’m making everything worse. All I can do is cause destruction, even to those I care most about. I can’t help it. It’s who I am.” Tango curled in himself, wishing he could just disappear.
Realization dawned over Jimmy that Tango had misunderstood the intent behind his words. He sighed and sat properly, assuming they’ll be here for a while. “Sunshine, you have to believe me, that’s not what I meant at all. I… I just noticed that your hair was reigniting everything we put out and helping it spread… I didn’t mean to-”
“Jim, can I be left alone for a bit?” Tango cut him with a wavering voice, unsure himself if that was what he really wanted right now. He couldn’t dare look up right now and his hands could only pull at the fabric of his pants. He knew what kind of look he was getting and he knew that he couldn’t bear to meet it.
He nodded before standing up, “Of course. Sorry.” He started making his way towards the ‘relation’ ship, hoping that maybe they could provide some shelter for however long Tango needed. While walking the great distance between them, he finally looked down at his palms, grimacing at the red patches and the blisters that had started to rise. All he could do is pray that Etho or Joel is familiar with treating burns and are willing to help him out.