Work Text:
8 Earth months into their journey to Erid, Rocky finished his first non-saving-the-world-related project. Said project was a transparent, polyhedral suit, made from the same indestructible xenonite as his ball and tunnels, so that he could clamber around the Hail Mary easier. Now Rocky followed Grace everywhere, they played games together in the Projection Room, and movie nights ended with Grace falling asleep against his personal human heater. It was a welcomed change.
What Grace wasn’t expecting was for Rocky to finish a second, much more secret, project 3 Earth months later.
“Rocky’s surprise for Grace is ready!” Rocky waved his arms like jazz hands as he ran circles around Grace’s feet. “Ready, ready, ready now! Surprise make Grace happy! Surprise fix Grace’s worries about Erid! Promise, promise, promise like!”
“Okay! Okay!” Grace chuckled as Rocky pushed him toward the corner of the Hail Mary that had become Rocky’s workshop. “I can’t wait to see it, Rocky.”
Still buzzing with excitement, Rocky climbed onto his table, and picked up a sheet of material, shoving it in Grace’s face like a child showing their parent their picture. “Look! Look! Grace like, question?”
The sheet was about 10cm long, made from a range of browns to greyish-browns to brownish-blacks, with slightly different thicknesses in different places to create the texture of shallow crater-like rocks, Rocky’s family crest carved across the centre, and 5 small, Rocky-like gemstones scattered randomly around the crest.
Grace raised an eyebrow at it, but his lips twisted up into a soft, genuine smile all the same. “It’s beautiful, Rocky.”
Rocky waved a free limb at his answer. “Yes! Yes! Very pretty!” Rocky agreed. “Mary help! Mary tell Rocky what materials are safe for Grace! Mary check bracelet is safe for Grace!”
“Bracelet?” Grace choked out, eyes widening with surprise at the sheet of material — was it a translation error, or had Rocky tried to make him a friendship bracelet?
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Rocky vibrated, happily. “Bracelet safe for Grace to wear! Rocky will fuse ends around one of Grace’s limbs so it can’t come off! Perfectly safe! Mary checked! Material can grow with Grace! Material can shrink with Grace! Material not toxic or harmful to Grace in any way! Material will not irritate or itch Grace’s weird soft skin! Safe! Safe! Safe! Grace has no family so now Grace is in Rocky’s family! Bracelet will show Grace is Rocky’s clustermate! Grace can show Eridians bracelet, and Eridians will know Grace is Rocky’s very good cherished best friend! Eridians will not hurt Grace, and will help Grace because Grace is clustermate of Rocky! Grace will no more worry about Eridians being mean to Grace! Rocky fix!”
Grace’s heart broke into a million pieces. Rocky cared so much about him that he wanted to mark him with his own family crest? Grace felt honoured. He sniffled, tears already piercing through his eyes from the sudden burst of happiness. “You made your marks on a human friendly carapace for me?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes! Grace understands!” Rocky cheered. “Grace happy, question? Rocky fix, question?”
“Yes.” Grace sniffled, gently dabbing his tears with his sleeves. “Yes, Rocky, thank you.” No one had ever done something like that for him. He felt chosen in a way he had never imagined. “Can I have a human hug, question?”
“Yes! Rocky Grace hug!” Rocky carefully placed the sheet back onto the table as Grace bent over to hug him.
“Thank you, Rocky.” He held him tightly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
“Rocky is happy that Grace is happy!”
“Grace is happy, happy, happy.” Grace agreed, before reluctantly breaking the hug. “Thank you, Rocky. Thank you. I am very honoured to be your clustermate. Really. I will wear your marks with pride.” Grace told him, serious and firm; he needed Rocky to know how truly grateful he was for the gesture. “Thank you for doing this for me. I feel very loved.”
Rocky chirped a cheerful rhythm, and raised his arms with glee, causing Grace to giggle with his own delight. “Happy! Happy! Happy!” Rocky chirped.
“Happy, happy, happy.” Grace grinned. “Can you help me to put it on?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Rocky spun in a circle, before grabbing the sheet of material, again. “Grace wear bracelet where, question?”
Good question. It would’ve been out of the way on his legs, but Grace wanted to see and feel it every day to remind himself that someone actually cared about him and wanted him in their life. “Here.” He held out his left arm and pointed with his right. “Between my wrist and my elbow.”
“Yes! Yes! Yes! Good! Good! Rocky agree!”
The process of giving Grace his marks was fairly straightforward and painless. After Mary and Rocky reassured Grace for the hundredth time that it was going to be very very very safe, Armando washed and disinfected his arm, before helping Rocky to wrap the material around it and solder the two sides together.
“Very pretty! Beautiful marks! Yes! Amaze! Amaze! Amaze!” Rocky chirped as Grace admired his new metal sleeve. “Cherished best friend saviour Grace is forever in Rocky’s cluster now! Cherished best friend saviour Grace is a part of Rocky’s family! Happy! Happy! Happy!”
Grace couldn’t stop running his fingers over the metal. He had the rest of his life to memorise every line and texture, and he couldn’t wait to get started. His insides felt so warm. He was wanted. He was loved. He was a part of a family. “Happy. Happy. Happy.” He murmured softly. “Very thankful.”
“Rocky fix!” Rocky cheered.
Grace laughed, his cheeks aching from smiling so much, and reached out to scratch Rocky’s carapace against his xenonite suit. “Rocky fix.” Grace agreed.
He was so lucky.