[it turns out... getting all the positive emotions pulled out of you... makes you feel kinda bad? whoda thought. buzz just looks away with a sigh. she's right, and he knows she's right. he did all he could reasonably do.]
I still could've done better. You didn't see how warped he ended up in the few short hours after I left him. His head was-- I never should've left him!
[...maybe he has a tiny trauma about this. just a small one.]
[Her tone is gentling, soothing. It's a mimic of the tone he's used on her countless times to talk her down from a mood spiral. He can sure recognise A Trauma when she sees one, and she'd really rather he not have to cart all that many around. He's too goddamn good-hearted for that noise, he deserves better. ]
Hey. Don't do this to yourself, okay? You didn't know- and maybe if you hadn't of left him, you wouldn't have been able to cure him. Or he wouldn't have gone with you. There's no telling. You did the best you could by him, and I'm sure he appreciates you saving him a lot. You did a great thing. Don't doubt that.
[he's quiet for a long time as she speaks. this sort of thing would work normally, but he can't even tell if what he's feeling is real or if it's just part of the cure. he doesn't doubt he'd be upset about what happened but to this degree?
feelings are extra hard right now and everything about this is unprecedented.]
[Feelings are the worst and she instinctively wants to protect his. Normally she'd just decide to go punch/yell at whoever made him feel bad. But he did this to himself, and she doesn't want to punch or yell at him. ]
...Maybe that would help?
[She really hecking hopes it does or she's going to have to find the Doctor that took his heart and do... something. She doesn't know what yet. Maybe she can lob a brick at his head. That might fix things. ]
You need me to do anything? [Something. Anything. Some way to help.]
Maybe. [he reaches out and gives her hand a squeeze, hating that he's basically just going through the motions instead of being able to feel it properly and genuinely. he'll act like it's fine now, but if she's right and those feelings never come back...
...well, he'll work something out. not being able to feel it properly right now doesn't mean his feelings have changed at all. they're still there, just buried somewhere. she was the last thing he thought of before his heart was pulled out and she'll remain at the forefront of his mind no matter what.] Can you... maybe check in on Fern? I didn't want to leave him again but circumstances dictated otherwise.
[he almost asks her not to tell the others as well, but stops himself. what she does in that regard isn't his choice to make or control. don't be shitty, idiot.]
[Oh, she can tell he's going through the motions and it twists in her non-existent gut in the most awful way. She hates this. Absolutely and completely. There's a desire to curl into herself and slam up those defensive walls of hers until this awfulness has passed. But that won't help, she knows it won't. This is one of those times where she has to get the better of herself, rather than the other way around.
She nods, returning that lil' hand squeeze.]
Okay. I can do that.
[She's worried about the kid, too- perhaps not as much as she's worried about Buzz, but enough to be concerned for his wellbeing. And if this is something she can do to help Buzz out... well, she'll do it. Wise move, Space Ranger, don't be shitty. ]
[he gives her hands another squeeze-- unable to think of anything else to do or say. ordinarily, this wouldn't be a problem for him. when he can barely feel anything? yeah, it's not that easy. buzz disappears up the stairs and after...
...he's not sure, actually. maybe manages to pass out for half an hour after like an hour of rolling around and groaning irritably. the emotional change from the cure wearing off is so strong it pulls him out of semi-unconsciousness with a jerk. his thoughts go to jessie first, as they always do, so he rolls over and scrabbles towards his stupid huge fluid, quickly tapping out a text to her:]
I think it came back. Where are you? Are you okay?
[then when he's 5% more awake he realises a text is stupid and immediately calls her.]
[Jessie had been doing what she promised- checking in on Fern- and was making her way back when Buzz's text comes through. She reads it and feels an overwhelming sense of relief. She's been so goddamn worried about him. She didn't know if he would get fixed- and how the heck they were supposed to help him live a life sans his heart. Knowing it's back lifts away a shadow that's been dogging her for the time she's been waiting to hear from him.
She's about to reply when she gets a call instead. Still, a smile crosses her face as she answers. ]
Hey you. You feeling better? I'm on my way home. Fern's fine.
[probably all the crap that's happened this month that he woke up and immediately thought that someone was in danger. everyone's fine, ya dingus! she can probably hear the soft exhale of relief from his side when he hears her voice, chipper as always.]
Yeah. Now I just feel like I was being dramatic over nothing. [which... is slightly true. he did genuinely feel completely horrible. you know how it is, looking back at something. he does not enjoy the loss of composure.] Do you want me to come out and meet you?
[She hears it, and she's glad it's there. It furthers the promise that he's back to normal. ]
Well, even you can be dramatic every once in a while- it doesn't have to be just me and Woody all the time. [Even if they're both REALLY good at it.] And I wouldn't say it was nothing. It was a pretty big something.
[She sure had been genuinely scared for him. ]
Yeah, sure. I'm on [give her a sec, she's checking] Maple Street, making my way up.
[he knows exactly where that is. once again, his obsessive map studying comes in handy.]
You weren't around for the days when I used to do a backflip across the room for... no reason. Fun. [buzz you still do that, don't act like that's a habit you've since grown out of. you haven't. you never will. you'll be jessie's age and still stunting on the youth by doing a standing backflip.] How was Fern?
[More than once his obsessive map-reading has come in handy. One day, it might save their lives!]
Buzz, I'm pretty sure I saw you do a backflip across the kitchen this morning. Unless I was imagining things.
[She appreciates his backflips, they're nice to look at. She quickens his pace a little, she suddenly, desperately needs to see him. To be sure that he's back to normal- that he's got that wonderful heart of his back. ]
He's fine. Better. I think he's still a little confused about it all, but he's not sick any more. You can relax. You helped him a lot.
[he didn't. it was just for show, because he's Like That.]
I'm glad to hear it. [he says, voice fading out lightly as he's getting out the house. there's that tip tap tip tap of plastic boots on cobblestone!] ...I'll relax when I know he won't change again.
[sorry, jessie. he's full boyle woody on this one.]
The fact he's so gosh-darn concerned over the kid is further proof at Buzz is back to himself, and she should be able to breathe easy. But, like Buzz, she kind of needs to see the proof before she'll really believe it.
She heard that familiar sound of his boots and it gives her some comfort- just like when she arrived here. It means he's coming, that she'll see him soon and it'll make everything just that little bit better. He's always been a ray of light to push away the darkness for her and now is no exception. ]
Well, that's fair. I'm sure he'll wanna see you.
[But her first, sorry Fern, she's going to be a touch selfish here. You can have him later. She turns into the next street, already looking for him. At least her lanky ragdoll legs means she can cover a decent amount of ground when she wants them to.]
[honestly, he feels similarly. he'll certainly check in on fern as soon as he can, but he's just been through something awful and traumatic. sometimes... you just wanna hold the good lady wife after that. bury your face in her neck. act like you don't wanna cry the way you do.
she can probably see his glowing armour sliding down some metal railing way before he's actually visible in the dark. "the days when i used to backflip", shut up buzz, he literally backflips off the railing.
guess who gets the big hug this time? you bet your ass buzz grabs jessie up and gives her a bear hug like he hasn't seen her in a decade. he needs it. they both need it.]
It's a perfectly serviceable springboard and you gotta work with what you've got.
[She can't believe she's being called out like this, wow!!
She sure sees him coming and she sees the backflip. She's about to pass comment on it when suddenly she's being scooped up in a bear hug and any smartass remark she had vanishes away. He's right, they really do both need it. She'd been so scared he'd lost such an integral part of himself forever. It would have broke her heart to see him without his for good.
She's perfectly fine with the scooping. He can scop her all the live-long day. She'll just wrap her arms around his neck and cling to him like a straggly limpet. She doesn't dare tell herself that he's okay yet, because who could be after that? But he's back and that's... well, that means the gosh darn world. She gives him a tight squeeze. ]
[he holds on way tighter and longer than he does usually. it's easy to feel completely ridiculous for not wanting to let go, but at the same time he can't bring himself to care. when he finally does, he takes a step back with his hands on her forearms.]
I know, I'm sorry. Believe me, I'm not in a rush to do something like that again. [...you know, unless fern or one of the other toys needs it. he is super tired of almost dying, though!] Are you doing okay?
[He'll hear absolutely no complaints from her for this. She'll happily cling to him til' the back end of forever -maybe then she can convince herself that he's not horrendously broken forever because of this. He does eventually release his death-grip on her and she offers him a smile that could be a whole lot more convincing if she were a better liar. She's not, though, so he gets a sad, worried attempt at a smile instead of an actual smile. ]
You did what you had to do, I get it.
[She doesn't LIKE it, but she gets it. The poor excuse for a smile fades at his question. She really isn't much of a liar, and she doesn't want to lie to him.]
Been better, been worse. [This is awful, but not the most awful. That would have been after the goddamn TV dropped on him and she thought he'd died. Nothing has topped that just yet and she doesn't especially want to tempt fate there.] I'm just glad you got better.
[all he can really do to that is nod-- he doesn't really want to dwell on it. if she wants to talk more about it, he will, but he's not going to push the subject otherwise. buzz is 10000% more concerned about jessie, anyway. what he did was entirely by choice-- he knows most of what jessie must've been through has been the opposite.]
Yeah. [that makes two of them. he doesn't want to talk hypotheticals, don't want to dwell on it. it's just a nightmare that'll haunt him for a long while. it's fine.] Let's get back. I put on a new incense stick that doesn't smell of strawberry for a change. You can relax.
[Okay, that brings a small smile to her face, a genuine one. Because she'd very much like to get back and not have the house smell like rancid traitor bear. She moves, slipping her arm around his. Sorry, Space Ranger, hand-holding just won't cut it today, you're going to have to live with this. Try to not pass out.]
I'll sure as heck take that. And it would be nice to relax a 'lil. It's been a month.
[there is no reality in which he would not be okay with that. he lets her do so, miraculously doesn't pass out, and even threads his own plastic fingers through hers. nice. 10/10.]
That's... certainly one way to put it. [he exhales lightly, as they walk, still keeping as low key as they can.] I can't believe Woody had to deal with this on his own for a month on top of waking up just after the whole garbage tip thing.
[Good job, buddy. You levelled up in intimacy. She's so proud of you. She'll give his hand a little squeeze to show it. ]
Honestly, I don't blame him for being onery with every dang person he came across here. [Because Woody doesn't deal with stress well at the best of times and this was a deeply stressful situation.] How the heck he did it on his own, I don't even know.
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