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Peri woke up to the sound of frantic clutter in a distant room. being particularly loud too, especially for a weekend.
it wasnt uncommon for him to spend the night at his godkids house rather than his own. he would take the form of a rug or lamp or on rare occasions, a stuffed bear if the kid really needed it. doing it more and more as time passed as he realized how it made his godkid sleep better. its not like Dale ever went into his sons room enough (or at all) to acknowledge the odd periwinkle thing here and there, so it was perfectly fine.
plus, seeing his company have a positive effect on his godkid made him all the more happy to. even if that fact remained unspoken between them.
this morning he took the form of a stray purple sock in his dresser. sticking out like a sore thumb amidst the boring plain white, grey, and black pairs of socks the kid wore. a little beam of light settling in the crack he always left inside for air flow. (hey, fairies need it too, y'know.)
he was starting to get annoyed and maybe a little curious as the noise never seemed to die down. so he supposed he just had to investigate.
with a groan and a crack of his back, he begrudgingly got out of his perfect nestled position and kicked open the drawer door. changing into his fairy form which was still in pyjamas. they were a matching pair of silky pants and a button down which were of course, his iconic shade of purple. with lilac stripes! an untied, darker purple fuzzy robe overtop, with adorable matching fuzzy slippers that had silly star antennas on the end that bobbled with his movements.
with an iconic stomp of his wand, his free hand held a magically perfect and piping hot cup of joe. exactly how a fairy like himself liked it; drowning in enough sugar to give a horse cardiac arrest.
its in a light purple mug with bold letters on it reading "#1 Godparent". he thought it couldn't be further from the truth when it was gifted to him by his parents, but he still cherished it as his favourite. hey, we all needed a little confidence boost in the ass crack of dawn now and then. especially when your godkid has a knack for testing said confidence in your career choice daily.
he floated down the halls in search for the noise. usually he'd teleport right to the kid but the closest door to the bedroom is the bathroom, and him and dev liked to have this interesting thing called privacy, which was mutually unspoken and agreed with between them. he thought it was the source of the noise, and was quickly proven right by the light peeking under the crack of a door titled with golden labelling: "The Little Dimmedome's Room"
he gently knocked on the door. "Dev, you there?"
the kid in question made a weak noise of surprise from inside. "P-Peri! dont come in!!" he heard small hands hit the door from the other side.
the Godparent sighed. a mix of slight amusement and tiredness. "you're making a lot of noise in there.. im just checking if everything's alright."
"y-yes... everything's fine, parrot." the kid said through his teeth.
dang, back to name calling? Peri thought. "really? cause i thought i also heard... 'come on! theres gotta be an unopened one!!' 'theres no way we're out again!' and... 'oh god.. what am i gonna do? i cant walk around like THIS!'" Peri quoted, over exaggerating the boys voice to tease him lightheartedly.
he heard a low whine from inside. then back to a few more beats of silence. Peri took this opportunity to press further.
"all im saying is, whatever you're looking for, you can always wish for it, but i need to know whats wrong, and what you need." he explained, thinking it was fair enough and straight to the point.
obviously to Dev he seemed reluctant about it. not talking for a long while.
"you're gonna make fun of it..." the kid finally grumbled.
"kid..." he chuckled bewilderedly. "now, why would i make fun of you? im sure whatever you need is perfectly fine." he flew down to crouch against the door where the boy sat on the other side.
after a few more beats of nothing, Peri sighed. "i promise i wont laugh at you. and if i do, may i be smited by a fly swatter. how about that?"
"...you really promise..?"
he huffed, smiling. "of course."
soon enough the door started to creak open, and Peri got up and turned around to face it.
"w-well?? hurry up and get in here!!" two hands suddenly yanked the fairy inside and slammed the door. making Peri yelp in surprise as he tries to regain control of his flying.
"jeez kid! its too early for yankin.." he slowly turned around to face the boy, but was met with a pleasant surprise.
Dev's head was full of curls. soft looking ones that fell down his face nicely. shining under the bathroom light. there were a few stray bits of curl here and there probably from bedhead. it definitely made the boy look... softer. and almost sweet, if Peri were to admit to himself.
Dev looked flusteredly at the ground like it was the most interesting thing in the world in the meantime. loathing every second of silence, before the fairy finally spoke up.
"woah kid! spiffy hair! is that how it naturally is?"
"y-yes..." Dev was a little caught off guard by the compliment, but still looked away bashfully.
"well, it looks nice!" the fairy smiled sincerely.
"ugh... stop lying." Dev groaned into the collar of his pyjama shirt. trying to hide an embarrassed smile.
the fairy frowned at this. "i mean it! i wouldn't lie to you, Dev. i think you look as good as ever!"
the redhead scoffed. not very convinced. "a dimmadome isn't supposed to show their curls."
Peri huffed. raising a brow. "is that so?"
"i-its unprofessional and messy... thats what dad always says..." Dev mumbled the last part as he stared solemnly at his reflection in the bathroom mirror.
Peri began to frown at that. this poor kid had been judged and taught wrongly by his father all the way down to his natural hair. that its something he needed to cover up or he'd be scolded for it. it made his resentment towards the boys father only continue to grow, but he pushed it down and offered to focus on the present.
"so... i wish for a new can of deluxe premium ultra-stick hair gel."
Peri's wand glowed as he obeyed the kids wish. feeling quite sad about it.
"thanks." he heard the kid mumble. he had been noticeably politer towards him since their last rodeo in fairy world, which he had been able to appreciate his effort about.
before Peri left, he turned to the kid who was unscrewing the lid.
"you know, you can call me cheesy but... i think you look great just the way you are. no matter what hairstyle you have, and regardless of what your dad thinks."
Peri had taken up finally asking his parents for advice on how to properly help a boy like Dev, and applying it to how he talks to the boy. making sure to give him support and words of affirmation aside from wishes, and hoping his sincere pep talks were effective.
he shouldn't need to be ashamed of what makes him Dev, and he hoped to have that conversation with the boy one of these days. his father had done too much damage to his self esteem, and its taken a definite toll on how he treats himself and the people around him.
Dev looked up at him with an awe-struck expression. and it spared no expense giving Peri that same pang to his heart every time.
"I'll be in the cereal bar if you need me kiddo."
he closed the door gently and made the trek. sighing contentedly as he finally took a sip of his perpetually warm 20% coffee 80% sugar. it always hits the spot just right.
he waits a few beats for Dev to finish. his conjured up cereal is getting soggy. well, it would if Peri didn't magically make it hydrophobic in the meantime. he sits patiently eating his own start to the morning. not looking up when he hears the echos of light tapping on the floors, and the whine of a chair being pulled out, sat on, and pushed in.
"heres your cereal, kid." he poofs the cereal-to-milk-barrier away and pushes it towards him. sliding across the marble counter with ease until its clasped with two little hands on the other side.
"thanks." Peri notices he doesn't instantly grab for the spoon. he glances up to question it. a small gasp leaves his mouth when he notices the kids hair hasn't been slicked back at all. its the same as it was in the bathroom. lightly brushed if anything.
after a few seconds, he finally digs in. sensing the godparents want for conversation, and wholeheartedly disagreeing with it. it made his face warm seeing the eyes on him through his un-slicked head of curls covering bits of his peripherals.
peri says nothing. looking at the kid with a huff and a soft, knowing smile. all the more thrilled to see any ounce of openness from the boy.
they eat their breakfast in comfortable silence.