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Karoto.
Wasn't smart once.
That seemed like such a simple sentence to say, but having to force yourself to be extremely smart from a small age to survive wasn't quite… normal.
It also wasn't normal to have no caretaker to watch you. Or feed you. Or even take care of your wounds.
So, to speak? From being born to the age of at least 5, he wasn't much of a thinker there, which was quite nice for his torturous life.
Sure, 6 and 7 included him wanting to mentally escape from everything, but it would probably all be okay someday.
So… When did it start? When did he start living?
Who birthed this little carrot? Why did he end up there?
If he was completely honest with himself?
He didn't know.
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[LOADING WIZZRO'S HOUSE] . . .
[Tip: Eating your own fruit or vegetable can be quite a different experience. Some of your teammates might not heal as much if they don't like it!]
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The only reason he even had a chance of knowing was due to this stupid experiment that the interns and Wizzro were doing.
“Alright-! Are you sure you wanna do this, my boy?”
‘Want’ was a strong word.
The reason he was here was for someone else's question they just couldn't get the answer to.
Whatever experiment they were doing before had included family, talking about their childhood and even birthstones, all mentioning origins and the beauty of being alive!
There were opals, emeralds, and so many crystals that he probably stole from royalty, which aren't actually that special sometimes.
Perhaps putting a gem in a dusty room full of old metal and gold isn't the perfect solution, hm?
Some lived in the woods, the wolf kid adored his cousin, the shy mask kid had apparently plants in their ceremony-
Everlovingly special.
Wizzro was proud while Nabiu talked so much about her own experiences, saying that she apparently didn't have a grandpa, which he didn't question due to lack of own experience.
Speaking of lack of experience.
Brocco had stood by the side, not talking about his family for comfortability reasons, only questioning once if Karoto wanted to talk about his parents, which caused a lot of interns to perk up in interest.
Usually, having bad parents is sadly not abnormal.
Some parents just don't care as much, have problems, or are just straight dipshits. Perhaps they moved away and now you don't ever want to talk about or with them again-!
But that wasn't what he answered.
So, What did he reply?
“What the hell is a parent?”
Yeah, that.
Caused some chaos.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DONT HAVE A PARENT????”
“What- what about a toy? Any-...Something at least?”
“Nobody cooked you a fresh meal…?”
“What about goodnight kisses-?”
Every response he gave was the same.
Either a no or a simple shrug, dismissing the questions as unimportant, as he did not do any of these things, telling that he barely remembered the house he came from.
Saying there were a lot of other kids there anyway.
Which made it all the MORE CONFUSING.
Nabiu finally questioned, asking if he even knew where he was from.
Thinking about it, Karoto wasn't entirely sure if he ever read the town name, especially after living in a cave for so long near it.
Always just leaving for food or to gain silk for stitching on his clothes.
He had been so hungry.
Hunger.
So much Hunger.
Brocco and Wizzro’s furrowed brows didn't help in any way whatsoever.
Of course for someone who didn't have any knowledge of a proper childhood or a caretaker, he wouldn't know why they were all worried.
Naturality isn't the same for everyone after all.
The old M.A.G.E theorized that it might have been due to his trauma or young age, meaning that the memories might be hard to resurface.
If he wanted to resurface them at all-
But then, a suggestion came that might help to his apparent emotional memory suppression, causing him to end up in this chair and questioning his life choices.
Hypnosis.
More specifically, magical hypnosis that was supposed to help him break past the suppression and unravel the memories that he had lost from all the fast thinking he did as a little child.
Finally seeing if it was all terrible or just something that was left behind in the chorus of haze and misery.
For a moment, Karoto wondered why the hell he agreed.
There was nothing special about his childhood.
Nothing that he could remember or care about.
So it probably wasn't important.
Just a few more useless days of living.
But, life left him to agree, so he just leaned back further into coziness.
He found himself surrounded by lots of curious children, a concerned blueberry, and the head guard who he had slowly gotten acquainted with to watch the experiment.
Everyone was curious, not just for the memories but for if it even worked.
That only left him to answer the question that was stated while Wizzro prepared his moon-shaped staff, its red orb shining right before him.
Not like he had anything better to do nowadays-
So, rolling his eyes and shrugging, he got comfortable in the chair, ignoring the whispers and glances from the little brats that weren't a Blueberry.
Curse their curiosity, it didn't bring him any good and it wouldn't bring anything to them, either.
Luckily, Nabiu was kind enough to bring a pillow and even adorn him with a blanket on his lap, just so everything would be nice and comfy while he sat in this stupid chair.
Sofa? Couch?
WHATEVER IT WAS.
Bless her golden heart.
Though he waved his hand dismissively, ignoring eye contact with almost everyone, before focusing on the orb that shone with fresh magical juice.
“Yeah, yeah… I'm ready and I want it. Let's get it moving.”
If anything, it'd just be more garbage to pile onto his everlasting baggage of emotions that he hadn't processed and didn't plan to yet.
While Wizzro hesitated and glanced at his favorite broccoli one more time, he soon nodded and made a motion for the children to stand back, raising the staff towards Karoto.
Said staff was lowered more and more, mixing the colors as a gentle purple met with a fiery red, somehow giving the feeling of a safe evening.
At least in his eyes.
The light was in his vision, glowing in a red and purple mix, spiraling and spiraling all around as he couldn't help but feel himself relax already.
But his mind was a protective one.
One that doesn't falter, one that was afraid, already pushing against it as he grumbled and shivered at the mere touch of any conscious relaxation.
You're getting manipulated, they will control you and kill you AND HURTYOUGOD-
Gripping, ripping, piercing through the fabric of the soft chair, letting the cushions rip apart even if they wouldn’t, as he was not strong enough to do so.
Resisting, wanting to not end up like a pathetic puppet to use, wanting to be n o r m a l-
Pat.
Pat pat.
Someone was there, though. Someone that he knew was safe, colored in blue and yellow, keeping close and rubbing his gloved hand.
Despite inner protest, he slid his hand into hers and squeezed, feeling the soft pressure in his warm glove.
Nabiu squeezed back, continuing the comforting motion.
Silent breaths were taken as his body slowly relaxed with comfort, the swirls keeping him calm and making his eyes droop.
Wizzro didn't even have to say anything. Impressive.
Though with that thought, his awareness of such a thing started to fade, blurring the ability to question what was going to happen.
Eyes drooping, slipping slowly more into the cushion as the faint sensation of his arms being tugged was still there.
The blanket also got to cover his legs and feet, his head sinking against the pillow as he could just barely keep his eyes open.
He admittedly felt just a bit younger right now.
But soon, the light moved up and with the simplest tap on his head-
Karoto slipped into a silent slumber.
With memories slowly… resurfacing.
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Karoto awoke
To a freezing cold sensation.
He nearly flinched with how much his shivers had affected his body, pain cursing through his veins, regretting the choice OF EVER DOING THIS-
Why was it so cold-?! His body felt stale and he couldn't feel his fingers and his head hurt and he felt like DEATH-
-S o meth ing-
…
…Wait.
It's better…now?
He had to wait, but slowly but surely someone's eyes opened, finally granting him vision as the blurriness didn't actually help him that much actually.
Getting any context was hard when you're a sick toddler, he guessed.
But, the feeling was there, so proceeding to follow that, he got a few cues about what might be happening.
First, his little self was wrapped in a blanket, moving his small, fragile hands onto a bottle that was given, tears rolling down his face.
He was crying. Snot ran down his face and was gently wiped away, someone seeming to care for him.
…Now that he could look more properly, he noted just how pale and small he was for a baby, just from looking at those small, cracked hands.
Karoto saw other babies with Nabiu once in a daycare, which included a carrot baby.
“AWEEE, ITS LIKE A MINI YOU!”
“A mini what-”
The baby was very big, but the little blueberry insisted that it was normal for carrots to have such a size at such a young age.
…
He had been much smaller, huh?
“Shh…there, there. God, this is concerning-”
A voice rang through, none he could recognize as the whispers alerted him that the room must have been filled with people.
It seemed to be… a room. A recovery room?
He remembered stealing from one once. They were used for people who were hurt and now needed to…you know. Recover.
There was a bed, that's all he needed to know to be comforted and nothing more.
“It's so small too-! You…said you found him in the ground?
“Y-Yeah! No parents, no food, no anything! The house was cluttered as if someone planned on moving in there once and me and a friend just wanted to explore a lost place because it looked utterly abandonded-”
As the People kept talking, he finished the bottle, snuggling into the blanket with a quiet sniffle, seeking closeness.
Which was luckily given with gentle rocking, caressing the head and removing something from his small hair.
Some people seemed to poke at him or even get warmth near, probably from a heating pad that soothed his freezing skin.
“So we went through the small house, reached the garden…and found him in the garden-! Usually we wouldn't care cause it could have just been normal vegetables but-”
It cut out from time to time.
Karoto couldn't blame the baby him from dozing off or falling asleep. Nearly rotting to death probably isn't comforting, even when you lack awareness.
The tug on his stomach that came from the soft whimpers and whines as it teared up every so often didn't help his sympathy problem.
“-And it was- it…it was half dead! Barely breathing-! Nobody dug out a LITERAL DYING BABY CARROT!”
“Hey, hey- Come on…it's alright now. It just needs a bit of warmth and food. Definitely needs to be put in an orphanage or caring program though.”
“Yeah, we Orphanly would be better with its state-
Orphanage.
Orphanage?
That's what the thing was called?
That's where he had been for the first years of his life?
Those people really didn't like him, cause orphanages SUCK.
“Y-Yeah, I-...I know. But the con–rni-g thing was that…ne–by in the w–rd, fog-y forest-”
The voices cut out as the memory slowly started to black out from the little carrot dozing off, seeming to find comfort in finally being safe.
So careless.
Without any need to think.
Karoto was nearly jealous if he didn't know about the circumstances and the fact he almost-
“There were blood smears on the dirt.”
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“-d you're sure he's gonna be fine-”
“Yes, yes. He's in good hands here! You have to stop worrying so much.”
Karoto blinked again as his vision came back, much clearer now as he was lifted and handed to someone.
His baby self was filled with curiosity, babbling absolute nonsense to himself as he grabbed for what had been before him, soft and silky-
Feathers. Something with feathers seemed to have grabbed him.
A giggle left his small throat, playing with them and snuggling against them for comfort as he ignored the talking for a moment and looked around.
It was…an orphanage.
He presumed, at least.
The walls were a gray-ish blue, clouds and sunshine being drawn on them as the kids seemed to have actually gotten allowance to decorate it.
The floor was a yellow color, but rather bleak yet fluffy, probably to prevent the children from splatting harshly on their face.
To the right, he noted that there was a line, almost like a hallway- on the right and left side, there were a line of beds, some decorated and some not.
Probably where the children slept then-
The light was not that powerful, bleak and rather harsh in his opinion, hurting his fragile eyes.
He hid them right back in the feathers.
Only lifting them from the laughter of children running around, seeming to play together-
“Hey-! Don't yell so much, you two.”
Gee, harsh.
Their disappointment was immeasurable and their poor day was ruined.
Must have been a strict Caretaker.
He couldn't see much more, but he could guess that this sweet place was a bit more grim when you aren't amazed by the interior.
But of course, baby Karoto couldn't really care with no brain to go with.
Some children came closer as the boring adults talked, causing him to peek over and make grabby hands for them.
“Your so small!”
“Such a tiny person-”
“He's like ____-
“NUH-UH-”
The names blurred out so easily, but his hands were quietly grabbed by the other kids as they made quiet hops up and down.
“-Alright. You take good care of them!”
…The door closed.
A groan left the feathered person, grabbing him improperly, his neck hurting from the hold as he was carried off to a crib.
Silently laid down onto the pillow, getting the blankets pulled over him, a little star plush near him.
“Of course, give me an UNCONTROLLABLE rascal, why don't you….”
She muttered, his liking for her vanishing like the care for himself when he got to an old enough age to have too much mental awareness.
Urgh. Old people. Everyone actually.
Everyone Sucks.
But his small self quietly whined before rolling over, seeming to find comfort in the warmth that this brute didn't give him.
His sight faded once again.
So simply.
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“WAaaaaa-”
Karoto awoke with crying in his ears, muffled just by the pillow as the baby sobbed heavy tears into the pillow from pain.
He nearly wanted to comfort the child himself from how much it was kicking its feet in distraught.
What was going on.
Why was he crying?
Why was he-
“But we aren't supposed to be-”
“We aren't supposed to be a lot of things, but this child is-”
He nearly cut it out as he grabbed the blanket, his fists hitting the mattress as his stomach hurt and hurt and hurt-
But someone. Picked him up.
Gentle. Caring. Actually supporting his head properly.
“Hey. Hey…wow, you really are bean sized.”
“Told you! He's the size of a Blueberry!”
Snickering of pure childish joy greeted him, opening his eyes to two children as he couldn't help but return it with giggles.
A bamboo and an apple.
The bamboo was the one actually holding him, slowly rocking his little form and looking over to the fruit on his left.
Must have noticed the muffled sobbing.
“...Now what do we do-”
“Feed him, clearly. The baby didn't eat all day!”
“Ah.”
How weird, but he could appreciate the effort.
Especially because his baby self was starting to cry again from hunger, causing the two of them to finally go around the very, very dark building.
It was probably night time.
“I thought he would be like the size of a watercooker.”
“Are you serious-? Why a watercooker?”
“Because the others were like this!!!”
He would have snorted if he was the adult in the room, but he currently was as smart as a rock, so-
With some blinks speeding up the time, they reached the kitchen, all old and busted with the wood already spliced in some parts.
At least they had a marble counter, which he was placed on, grabbing some leftover bread and biting sloppily on it, his teeth barely out.
“H-Hey! Be careful-”
The little bamboo quickly grabbed the bread, promptly causing the little carrot to whimper and sob again.
Karoto couldn't help but innerly chuckle to himself at the scene.
…Maybe it wasn't all terrible. At least with these children.
“Shh, shh- Please, else she will wake up…”
“Calm him for now, the milk is warming up.”
Of course, children didn't always know how to care for sobbing babies, but this one tried his best to wipe away the tears and rock him in his arms.
“Shh…Shh, I'm sorry…”
So apologetic and seemingly easy to convince without any words, as the piece of bread was stuck back into his mouth, stopping the tears.
Easily pleased. Of course, food was the most amazing thing in the world.
Even in the future that never changed.
The wheezing of a kettle caught his attention, grabby hands going before they were quickly snatched with shaky hands.
“OH Nononono, No grabby! Nuh-uh, no grabby for you!:
“...You sound like the old hag.”
“NOIDONT-!”
“Shh!”
“Oh yeah-”
A faint sense of comfort lingered in his chest, growing warmly from the comfort that these two children brought at a young age.
And now he would be getting taken care of and held, fed without much issue.
It…was almost like heaven.
“There we go- You know how to. You know. Feed him?”
“Mhm! Probably! I saw it many times!!!”
He could feel that skeptical stare from here.
But the child did support his head, settling onto the ground and silently putting the bottle to his mouth.
….of course his small self immediately latched onto it.
In the moment of quiet as the two talked and his little self was fed, he was almost watching from an outside perspective, keeping an eye around the room.
….a kitchen. Nearby was the whole eating room with those many chairs. The kitchen was surprisingly rather small, having everything it needed right here.
It didn't smell like food.
Hm.
“Wow-! You finished the bottle fast, huh?”
The bamboo snickered booking his non-existent nose and snickering, getting a little giggle from Karoto as he waved his arms around.
He also-
HATCHUU-
…
Sneezed.
Probably from the milk.
Somehow Karoto sneezed from milk. Only once when he started drinking it and never again.
He had no idea why.
“Okay, it shouldn't…cry now. Come on, ____, let's get him back to bed before the nanny comes-!”
“Oh yeah! Coming-!”
And as soon as he was picked up to the kitchen, they were already leaving it again, being put down in the crib and tugged in.
He whined at the loss of contact.
“Mm…Goodnight. Sleep well, little one!”
The bamboo smiled, giving a last wave with the apple before vanishing into the darkness.
….not everyone was cruel, it seems.
But he continued on the memory flow.
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Karoto noted that he had his first times a lot.
First teeth that got out and following the others, his first steps being rather cluttered and being helped by the kids, his first words were “Crystal’ due to a book the Caretaker read to them-
Such simple, simple things.
But you know it would have been very nice if he would have been properly taught how to write.
Because let me tell you-
Even as an adult he was so illiterate, having to be taught most if not all words, getting the alphabet explained to him too.
BECAUSE IT WAS VERY ANNOYING NOWADAYS.
…This memory especially really told him why he got a bad impression once he got older.
It was playtime, the children doing whatever they wanted outside or inside, mildly watched by the Caretakers, talking to one another.
Little Karoto, around the age of 3 or 4, had been picking up books, specifically a picture book that was about a small tale, talking about…
Something.
Something for sure.
The cover was rather pretty, showing a carrot just like him in extremely bright cyan, having that pretty paper that glitters.
It looked a bit goofy, but it probably was meant for a younger audience, so-
Flipping the book, he decided to analyze the pages.
The carrot was walking around, waving to the happy folk and seeming happy, another carrot following them around and a Blueberry as well.
Flip.
A wizard in yellow carrying a smile, a broccoli with a dress who seemed stern yet kind and a lime bat with an evil grin joined, seeming to be a team.
Yet only the carrot from the front had glittery clothing.
Flip.
The carrot and their team seemed to be going against an Evil Mage, adorned with such heavy paper that shined, it might have been sensory overload if it had been in the sun.
Flip.
The Mage seemed to have been returned to normal? It didn't have shining paper anymore.
The right page seemed to have time to explain something to the heroes, - or whatever they are - talking about a beast.
His eyes hurt from looking at it.
Flip.
The carrot proudly announces something as the others cheer, walking towards an dangerous area that he could describe as some strange woods.
Seeming determined.
Flip.
They reached the best.
Big and tall, shining harshly in that glittery paper.
They were battling it.
Flip.
….
They defeated it!
The beast was on the ground, the heroes proudly standing on it, raising their weapons high.
Flip.
And the end of the book showed them being celebrated, being around all those people, even the king and Mage celebrating them for their victory!
…
That's all he could get from this story.
Seemed rather nice, especially because it was a carrot!
Karoto snickered even if it wasn't heard, not needing to read the words that he couldn't understand to get this story.
Simple Heroism. Helping others and how it rewards you.
…
Bitterness stuck in his throat as he noted that he might have gotten a better experience if he did actually know the words.
But oh well.
The little baby carrot stumbled around with shaky steps, grumbling stomach calling him to the kitchen for food.
He whined, reaching it but not the counter with the little jumps, whining under his breath.
But maybe, smartness came naturally. A bit of creativity even.
One look around the room caused the little carrot to snicker, using the cabinet handles to climb up to the marble counter.
There was a cookie jar! Those are delightful!
Snickers left his throat, crawling to the delightful jar to get those sweet cookies-
“HEY!”
“A-”
But alas, adults are a nuisance.
“Dear Nantes, one must think you might have learned by now-!”
Leaving him to get dragged kicking and crying back to the playroom, his stomach not ceasing its complaints.
Though, despite this paining him to see, pain sorting him to another memory for repression-
Karoto asked himself.
Who is
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The memories went back and forth, never following an order, never truly being right.
They started to flood in more, going as quickly as a thought as he watched them pass by, almost naturally.
Counting along.
A memory of Caretakers complaining and neglecting the care for these children.
Of children taking care of the smallest one, which was him.
People wondering why he was so small and secluded.
Questioning why they couldn't just give his stomach food.
And one specific memory-
It came at the age of 3.
Young, barely walking, not really understanding the world.
Staring out the window as yellow light filled the night sky, the ground rumbling as he couldn't help but be unfazed by it.
The children were crying, clinging to each other in the house as the Caretakers did what their name meant for once in their lives.
Caring for them.
….Karoto.
Stumbled out the window in secret.
Walking. Crawling. Approaching a giant glowing crack in the ground, observing it while barely being in pajamas, not even caring about the danger.
People were screaming and hiding.
Something was flickering around at light speed, ignoring his babbles and fascination with the light, staring down at the line in the ground.
It seemed endless.
Reaching out to touch it was a mesmerising option, a child's mind never questioning their actions as he went and-
Tug.
Tug Tug.
Something very gently pulled him away from the edge, leaving him to babble nonsense and rub his eyes as he sat there.
The glow intensified harshly as the beast came in front of him.
Recognising it as a pure Lycan.
…Weirdly.
The Lycan wasn't completely yellow like nowadays.
No.
It seemed to be mostly cyan, much smaller yet flickering much more harshly, always moving and seeming utterly unstable.
Yet.
It stared directly at him, being still for its naturally as it was still taller than him.
Only blinks were left as a response, staring at the beast in amazement and grabbing for it, opening his eyes wide.
A noise.
Grumble.
…Before it gently booped him with its snout, licking the hair and electrifying the strands with a simple touch.
That made the small baby giggle, clapping his hands and grabbing a leg as it made something akin to a huffing sound.
Nearly smiling as well.
Nuzzling its head against him, the lycan gently licked the head more, seeming to almost engulf the toddler in a sweet hug of protection.
Unlike any lycan he has ever seen before, seeming to not prioritise the leyline.
Though, of course it at some point let go, leaving with a gentle nibble to his hand, gentle as ever as the friend stepped away.
….Karoto for once in his life wanted it to stay, but the leyline closed itself anyway, not caring for his pleas.
Reluctantly, he strode back to the orphanage with stumble legs.
And of course.
Went to sleep.
….
His memories hurt him.
Faintly.
Karoto felt his physical self crying.
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Karoto knew this one was worse.
Because as much as his repression goes…
He knew exactly that this was the last time he was in this cursed establishment.
Memories that flooded back came to the 7 year old child as well.
Of the children slowly just being another byproduct that he couldn't feel much about anymore.
Of the bleak food, the unloving Caretakers, his lack of knowledge, the want to just GET OUT OF THERE-
A want to see the night sky.
….Sitting in his bed, he tugged the blanket off, his little legs touching the ground as he noted his small form.
Malnourished. Unloved.
Urgh.
Karoto forced himself to keep walking, the inner want to stay with the children that kept him safe tugging at him, yet ignoring it for his own good.
No weight that he needed to carry.
Nothing that he owned or needed anyway.
Sneaking around, going tap, tap, tap, humming softly as not a single Caretaker cared about their duty, losing a child to this.
This child being a little carrot.
Walking, striding, the memory cutting in and out and in and out as he had grabbed a chair, then stood on it, noticing a vent and-
Clink.
Dislodging it from the wall, going in the vent and reattaching it again, crawling some more.
Dark. But not the sweet dark, just smelling smoke that intruded in his lungs like a parasite.
…At one point.
He fell out the vent.
Landing on soft grass, whining but not even stopping to realise he's out, his legs moving on their own, running through the grass and the night sky.
Karoto wore nothing but a shirt.
But of course he worked with that.
Running. Ignoring the lights. Ignoring the smells. Ignoring anyone seeing a baby carrot running around and heading for the hills.
His feet and ankles were getting wet from the fresh grass, drops in their wake as the moon shined brighter to him than ever before, not hiding behind a window anymore.
There were caves.
So, so many Caves.
The internal thought made him bite his cheek, knowing exactly what the child was going to do.
Looking around, searching for the perfect cave as his legs started to hurt from all this movement, begging for freedom-
And there was.
A singular cave on top of a rather average hill, a broken path almost begging him to follow it.
And he did.
….
Karoto remembered this so crystal clearly.
How he went into the cave, crying silently and curling up on the cold floor, accepting this as a better home than his warm bed.
Remembering how he stole a mattress for his home. How he decorated it. How he survived.
How it all hurt, yet felt so free because he WASN'T THERE ANYMORE.
A low sob escaped him, questioning if it was him or his small self peaking through.
Maybe it was both.
“K—...”
He was definitely crying now.
All he wanted was to be happy.
What did life have against him? Why couldn't it just give him those Caretakers everyone talked about so much?
“Kar-to-”
Karoto didn't want this anymore.
He wanted out of these stupid resurfaced memories, OUT OF THIS DUMB HELL OF A HYPNOSIS-
“KAROTO!”
HE.
He.
Karoto.
Blinked.
Being surrounded by interns was a sight, but Nabiu standing right on his lap and before his face was another and-
Oh.
His face was really, really wet-
“Are you- No…you're…”
She hesitated on words, fists sniffling escaping his throat as he noted Wizzro and Brocco quietly talking in the background.
…Slowly.
Her arms wrapped around him, asking no questions but comforting his fragile body anyway.
Karoto hugged back silently as he wiped his tears, wondering what life truly wanted from him.
Maybe it wanted to show him love now.
Maybe it didn't mean to do all this.
Maybe.
….
Karoto will sort through this baggage later.