Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The young flower child painfully staggered into the familiar area of their town. They had their flowery little hands pressed tight over their teeth. Every step they took was shaken and weak. They zig-zagged and stumbled up the sidewalk. It had been a rough morning, to say the absolute least. They had gone hand to hand with Dr. Habit... They gave him his precious Lily, and all was well... 

Except for the fact that they had inhaled what was most likely some kind of poisonous gas, and the majority of their teeth had fallen out. 

They knew that Habit felt bad, but he hadn't really done much to help the poor little critter. So here they were, trying desperately to get home so they could take some pain killers and curl up in bed... Their real bed, not the creepy-flirty cowboy bed.

"...Was the cowboy bed a hallucination?-"

They didn't have much time to question it in their head before the bumped into someone. The two went toppling to the ground like bags of rocks. 

The Flower Kid started shaking in the arms of the person they had bumped into. They had slammed their hands into the jaw a bit hard on impact, and the sensation of pain fired up to their scalp and down their neck.

"F- Flower Vendor..? Are you okay?"

"I think the kid's hurt..."

Flower Kid looked up to see who was holding them, it was Parsley! The other person was Jimothan. 

"Hey, hey you're okay." Parsley reassured them. "No need to shiver..!"

Flower kid tried to open their mouth and speak but blood came rushing out of their mouth, which forced them to slap their hands over their lips once again. 

"Ch- F- Flower Vendor!"

"Kiddo!"

The two men were immediately shocked to see the poor kid bleeding buckets from their maw. "Pick 'em up, Parsley." Jimothan insisted, already starting down the sidewalk. "We need to help them."

"Yeah, yeah!" Parsley was quick to agree, they scooped Flower Kid up and carried them down the road and to Jimothan's house.

Jimothan took flower kid into the bathroom. "Spit the blood out in the sink, I'm not too sure how I can help you... But I've probably got some painkillers somewhere."

Flower Kid frantically shook their head, which only caused blood to dribble down their chin. Jimothan took a wad of toilet paper and wiped their chin. "I wasn't asking, kid. Grow a spine, and spit it out!" Although he wasn't loud, his tone was harsh. And after what the poor kid had been through, they were too scared to fight back. They leaned over the sink and spat the blood out. 

Parsley poked his head in through the door. "Be nice, dad. They're hurt."

Jimothan winced. "Right, right. Yeah, I Know." The gave Flower Kid a pat on the back as they swished some water around to get the last of the blood. "C'mere, let's assess the damage..." He carefully held the little one's chin in his hand. "Open sesame, please."

The Floral youngster hesitated before opening their mouth. Jimothan could've gagged. The kid only had their mollars, canines, and front teeth! "Oh, oh no..."

"W-What? What is it?" Parsley entered and went behind his dad to see. Immediately, he covered his mouth. "What did Habit do to you..?" He asked in a small voice.

Jimothan just shook his head sadly and lifted the Flower Kid up. "I'm getting the little squirt some water and pain killers." He said as he slung the kid over his shoulder like a fireman. 

The Flower Kid had a small sound of discontentment, their mouth still sore and aching. Parsley walked behind and gave a soft, empathetic smile. Flower Kid tried to reciprocate, but it was impossible.

Flower Kid was more than happy to finally have some pain killers, something to numb the searing pain that radiated through their entire head. They popped the pills in their mouth and sucked the water down like a weed. Jimothan would've been amazed if it weren't for 

1. He was scared for the poor kid

2. His son is just about as fast.

Flower Kid gave a reassuring thumbs up, but their face was still hurting. "Hm... That blood's nasty..." Jimothan thought out loud, Parsley elbowed him. "Ow- What? Ugh, I just meant that bleeding out of your mouth's gotta be inconvenient!"

"Right, right..."

"Hold on, I got an idea." Jimothan turned and ran back to the bathroom. Parsley watched before turning his attention to Flower Kid. He pulled up a chair and sat beside them. "Can you speak..?" He asked quietly. His head was lowered down to meet their gaze, even if Parsley's eyes were closed. Flower Kid shook their head. They had a lot of thoughts bottled up in their head that they wanted to get out but with their general habit of keeping quiet and their missing teeth, there was no chance. 

"I didn't think so..." He admitted. "But when you're able to talk again, just know that you can talk to me about whatever's on your mind. You... You really helped me back at the habitat. And it's pretty obvious you went to hell and back for everyone else, too. So the least I can do is be there for you..." He was speaking from his heart, although he did seem a bit shy to say it. Flower Kid was able to muster up enough strength to give him a small, closed mouth smile before hugging him. 

Parsley, ironically enough, sort of smelled like Parsley. And also Metal, wood, paint, paper and alcohol... Hm. But Flower Kid didn't mind, it had been a long time since they hugged someone. Same with Parsley. They sat their for a long while before Jimothan came back.

"Hey, got some uh... Cottonballs. I figured they would help with the bleeding." He walked up to flower kid and handed the cotton balls to them. They careful stuck them where their teeth used to be, much to the interal dismay of the Botch's. It hurt to see a little kid have to put cotton balls where their teeth should be. 

Once they were able to create a make-shift gauze with the cotton, they gave a silly grin to the older gentlemen. But they didn't laugh. "I don't know who Habit thinks he is," Jimothan began "But I'll beat the crap out of him!" Jimothan's expression was dark, and enraged. Flower Kid frantically shook their head, nearly spitting out a cottonball. "Moghh!! He'sh nout ehvul!!" Flower Kid messily muttered, it was hard to speak with cotton for teeth. The two Botch's looked at them, confused. They grumbled, and tried their hardest. "HA-BIT. ISN'T E-VIL." They opened their jaw wide, nearly wincing each time it closed to form a word. Parsley put a hand on his father's shoulder as he sighed in defeat. "I don't know how a guy who's obsessed with ripping out teeth isn't evil... But I guess what you say is what goes." He shrugged lightly, reaching out and gently ruffling Flower Kid's hair. It was really soft, kind of like rose petals. 

They gave a sincere smile. "I need to gogh..." They said, the thought of desperately wanting to lie in their own bed rushing back to them. "Thhhank you fourgh the halp!" Their eyes sparkled a bit. Jimothan gave a nod, having somewhat grasped what they said. "No problem, kid. Stay safe."

Chapter Text

Flower Kid, now feeling a lot better, felt as if they could actually wander around town rather than just collapsing into bed. It was probably better to get some fresh air rather than go home, seeing as the definitely huffed some poison.

They ended up crossing paths with Nat and Trencil. Nat was explaining to Trencil the story of a musical she really liked. Something to do with supercomputers and green soda. They both stopped and looked up when they saw Flower Kid. "Hey!" Nat waved, a small smile on her face. But... Trencil seemed to be lost in thought. He got up from the dusk blossom he was tending to and walked over to Flower Kid. "Young one... Are you injured?"

Flower kid tilted their head. For a moment, they weren't sure how he figured it out... Then it clicked. Trencil's a vampire, he could probably smell the blood. There was no use in lying if he had concrete proof. So they nodded.

Trencil's expression grew worried. "Are you alright? May I ask what happened?"

They opened their mouth slightly, just so Trencil could see the cotton balls and their teeth. (or lack there of.) He gasped a bit, carefully lifting FK's chin. "Oh, oh you poor thing..." 

Nat heard this and got up, immediately curious as to what happened. "What's going on? You okay?" 

Flower Kid didn't know how to respond. They were at a total loss for words, although there was no real point in trying considering their state. They just shook their head once more. A sudden feeling of being choked up overcame them. Trencil immediately senses their distress and pulled them close. "Shhh.... It's okay..."

They put their arms around him, heartbroken and unsure of what else to do... Started to cry. It felt so nice to be held, it had been too long. 

Trencil and Nat were saddened to see the once cheerful little florist break down like this. Trencil kept them in his arms as they cried, and Nat gave a comforting pat on the shoulder... She wasn't sure of what else she could do in this scenario.

Flower Kid wasn't ready for all of these emotions, they thought they could just power through the pain and get home... But now that the pain is gone, they're only left with heartache and fear. It was thanks to Trencil and Nat that this hadn't happened while they were alone... It could've been so much worse if they didn't have anyone to comfort them. 
Trencil slid down to a sit, his back leaned against his fence as he held Flower Kid in his arms. Nat sat down beside them, wrapping her arms around her dad and snuggling close to him. The two were a bit teary eyed, it was awful seeing such a kind friend fall apart like this. But what else could they really do besides give their support?

Flower Kid finally mellowed out after crying for so long. Now just breathing shakily in Trencil's embrace. The hug felt so much warmer now that they weren't sobbing their little eyes out, even if Trencil didn't technically have body heat.

"Are you okay now?" Trencil asked softly, not wanting to rush Flower kid. "It's alright if not, of course."

They looked up and nodded. "Ffank yew..." They struggled to say, Trencil merely shushed them. "I don't need your gratitude. This is the least I could do for you after all you did for us." He moved a strand of hair out of their eyes. Flower Kid nodded a bit and slinked out of his arms. "I 'eed to gogh... My pahents pobably mith me..." They explained, feeling a bit awkward after what had happened.

"Of course." Trencil stood up, giving a hand to Nat and helping her get up as well. Nat sniffled a bit. "Just know you can always come back if you need us, alright?"

They nodded. "O-Ok..."

Chapter Text

Flower Kid wandered home to their apartment. They thought about going home, but after crying so hard they just wanted to clear their head. They approached the elevator, but immediately their stomach sank. The memory of running into the elevator, confident and ready to face Habit... Then staggered out, blood pouring from their mouth.

They took the stairs instead. 

They wandered up to the roof. At this point, it had started to get windy at this point. It was oddly relieving, to breathe completely fresh air. To the point where they didn't even realize someone else was on the roof. After they took a moment to breathe, they realized who was sitting on the roof. It was Kamal! He was dangling his feet over the edge of the building and watching the skyline.

Flower Kid walked over and sat beside them. Kamal looked over, and his expression immediately lit up. "Kid! Hey! H-How did things go?" 

Flower Kid hesitated. "Mmm... Oh-kay... I gueth.." The mumbled. Carefully, they opened their mouth a bit. "Dok-ta Hah-it's gonna do 'etter." They explained. Kamal could see the bloody cotton balls, and his heart sank. "Dr. Habit took some of your teeth, didn't he..?"

They nodded, but didn't say anything else. Kamal scooted over and put an arm around them. "You said he's gonna do better. That's... Progress!" He tried to comfort them to the best of his abilities. "You're a hero, kid! Be proud of yourself!"

Flower Kid nodded slightly, but their expression looked... Nearly dead. Their eyes were glossy and tired. Kamal could feel a rock forming in his stomach. He rubbed their back for a moment before talking. "There's a lot of nutjobs like Habit out there in the world. For a lot of different reasons... But there's a lot of different kind hearted heroes like you. All for the same reason." They looked Flower Kid in the eyes before continuing. "They want to help others."

Flower Kid's expression brightened slightly. They smile slightly, even if it hurt. Kamal smiled back. Flower Kid really liked Kamal's smile. His teeth were a nice shade of yellow to match his eyes. Flower Kid leaned their head on Kamal's shoulder, and they watched the town from the roof together.

They were quiet for a long time, just sitting together. Flower Kid felt as if things would be okay, even if they needed time to recover.

But there's no point in crying over spilled teeth.

:)