Chapter Text
“So, I heard your sister’s friend is hosting a shrimp party. Think you wanna come with us?” A halfling male Nikon asked one 10:30 Wednesday Lunch. Wednesdays were an Early day at Augefort,
“How’d you hear that?” Bucky asked. Not even they knew about the shrimp party.
“Mazey told us at Unicorn Coalition, it’s a super cool queer hangout spot. You don’t have to be queer to come technically, but most people are.” Nikon responded. “If you ever wanna come it’s not a far walk.”
“My parents warned me about that place. Aren’t there like condoms everywhere, and a bunch of people…” they pause, then in a whisper “Doing the deed”, before returning to normal speech “everywhere”
“I’ve never seen anyone, “ Nikon starts, then whispering as Bucky did. “Doing the deed”, before continuing, “there. It’s mostly Arcade games and Video Games and stuff. It’s pretty fun. They have arts and crafts and stuff. It’s 100% free, but sometimes they do donation drives.”
Pyra gave a nudge to nikon, as if saying “Stop telling them all our secrets” but Nikon gave it no mind.
“Are they gonna let me in even if I'm wearing my corn?” Bucky asked?
“Why not?”
“Cause… I don’t know.” Bucky said. “Helio and Gays are like boiling Oil and frozen water”
“I think it’s more like Oil and Egg. They’ll stay separated at first, but once they get stirred around and interact, they emulsify.”
“I don’t know…” Bucky said. “I don’t really want to, no offense. I just don’t want my parents to find out. They track my crystal.”
“That’s perfectly fine, I was just giving you an opportunity.” Nikon said, just looking at Bucky for a second, they seemed almost sad, but more, disheartened. “But are we on for the shrimp party?”
“I’ll have to ask my parents.” Bucky said
“Fine by me,” Mac said, surprising Bucky, “Cork and Bricker have the Cub Scouts sleepover tomorrow, so this gives me and your mom a night off. We might be able to go see Freedom’s Sound. Bobby Dawn said it was ‘Mighty Fine.’ I’ll see if Buddy can come pick you up and Supervise you.”
Buddy Dawn, how Bucky disliked him. It wasn’t for anything he did, he was nothing but courteous. It just felt as if Bucky’s parents saw him as a new Kristen. He’d come over for dinner often. He’d watch Cork and Bricker. Bucky felt as if Buddy was replacing Kristen. But if a night with Buddy was how Bucky got to go to a highschool party, so be it.
As Bucky patiently waited for Buddy’s 1970 Itsuhoshi to pull up around the corner, that Friday night, They wondered what everyone else would be wearing. What form would Nikon be in? They were a male storm Genasi earlier today. Mostly male this week, what a waste. If Bucky could shapeshift they’d never be a boy. It’s so straining. So constricting.
Their voice had started changing, they didn’t like it. It sounded wrong to them, but that was just a part of life, something they could never avoid. Just gotta get used to it. After all, they could never be a girl, they weren’t one of those transes. Though they wished they were.
“You coming little man?” Buddy said, walking up to the lonely kid sitting on his steps.
“Yeah.” Bucky got up and hopped into Buddy’s car.
“So I’m gonna set some ground rules right now. Don’t do anything stupid, don’t do anything noticeable, don’t get drunk. I trust you enough to not need to chaperone you 24/7. Now, if you get hurt, i’m in trouble, but I can heal you if you need me to. Call me if you need anything, if you feel unsafe and wanna go home, if you can’t find me, anything. Mac and Donna want you home by 11, so we are going to meet at the entrance at 10:20 to give us some leeway. I will be checking in on you throughout the night. If you wanna smooch a…” he paused. “If you wanna smooch someone, I don’t care, but nothing more, and no tongue. That’s gross. No playing twister if they start a game; that ends up in all sorts of sexual situations. When Mac and Donna ask me, you were with me the whole time. Anything contrary and we’ll both be in trouble, understood young dude?”
“Yeah.” Bucky said, rolling their eyes.
When they arrived at Seacaster Manor, Bucky looked up with amazement, only to see that Kristen was soaring through the air on a bike. He was so scared, but she seemed safe.
“Now that, don’t do that. You’re gonna get yourself killed. Now, i’m gonna go meet up with my friends, see you later Bucky”
“L…Later.” Bucky said, walking into the room, they saw Nikon, they presumed, same blue hair, same piercings that they always had, in a form that was distinctly male, wearing a Bright red Cocktail Dress with Jeans underneath. In Bucky's brain, synapses were firing, blood was rushing more than on the bloodrush field. Their cheeks blushing redder than Nikon’s Dress, there was just something so admirable about this person, the ability to be so confident in who he was. It was a quality Bucky knew they lacked. Never mind the blood rushing lower, this was just admiration, totally just admiration.
Because Bucky was a boy, and Nikon was a boy, at least right now, and Bucky wasn;’t gay. He wasn’t going to go to hell. Right, there was no way he’d go to hell.
As Bucky gained their composure, they wished they had the ability to cast Calm Emotions. Their thoughts were racing, and they approached Nikon steadily. “H..Hey Nikon.” they said, N.. Nice dress” They instinctively went to push their hair back, even though there was nothing there anymore.
There was a poignant pause. Bucky hadn’t even clocked that Py and Rowan were dancing right nearby Nikon. It was as if Nikon had drawn all of Bucky’s focus towards him, As if Bucky were under the effects of Mental Barrier.
“Hey,” Nikon said, Clocking Bucky’s outfit. A black suit with a black tie. “Thought this was a formal event, huh? I made the same mistake.”
“Y..yeah.” Bucky said, looking closer at Nikon’s face. Sharp, angular. When they looked at their face like this, it felt wrong, but something about it looked right on Nikon, even down to the 5 O’clock shadow framing their lips, which had bright red lipstick on.”
As if Id Insinuation was affecting their Wisdom, they were bombarded with countering thoughts. “He’s kinda Cute” “I’m not a fag” “I want to kiss him” “That’d be terrible.” “But what if it wouldn’t be?” “You’d go to hell” “It doesn’t count, he’s not really a boy, he has no gender” “But what if it does.”
“Wouldst thou liketh to Danceth” Nikon asked, offering out a hand.
Bucky’s mind kept asking these questions, but their body moved on its own. They took Nikon’s hand, and danced to a fast paced boogie. Bucky recognized the song, Burn Towns, Get Money, it was Fig’s song.
As Bucky’s mind kept racing, a slow tune came on. Bucky didn’t know what happened, but soon Nikon and Bucky were slow dancing in the middle of a pirate ship. And everything just felt right. Bucky calmed down and was faced with not clarity, but calm. In this moment, their thoughts ceased bothering them, and they let Nikon Guide them through the slow dance, dipping, and turning.
Bucky caught Nikon blush, and wondered if Nikon was feeling the same way. Was he also nervous? Did he have no idea what was going on?
“I’m sorry if i’m totally reading the vibes wrong,” Nikon said into Bucky’s head with a message cantrip, “But do you like, like like me?” before a pause. “If not, just disregard what I just said, this is just your brain thinking. Fuck I messed up”
Bucky answered the message by kissing Nikon on the lips. Both their faces went red. The song stopped, and the instant Bucky’s mind came back into focus, they started hyperventilating, started running for the bathroom, as if they were gonna puke. They opened the door they thought was the bathroom, only to walk in on Buddy Dawn and some Drow guy kissing on a bed. Like full on making out. With Tongue.
“I… I can explain.” Buddy Dawn said, “It’s not what it looks like.”
“Can we talk?” Bucky asked? “I think you’re the perfect person to help me right now.”