TW: Krus gets drunk in the beginning, there's a small mention of v0m!t and a small scene where Krus throws up and slight self-h@rm.
Ruv, Essie, and Affie were currently in the attic, sitting on the slightly dusty and worn out couch.
"So, what you're saying is that you want me and Affie to sing a song from you for dedushka?" Essie asked.
"Basically." Ruv answered.
"I'm fine with it." Essie said with a smile. "In fact, I'm glad that you're starting to care about your father just as much as we do."
"I'm okay with that as well." Affie said.
***
Later that day, in the living room, Ruv was walking towards the stairs, carrying an !nt0x!c@t3d Krus.
"I'm not drvvvvvvvnk..." Krus, who looked like he could pass out any minute, slurred out.
"Uh huh." Ruv said, clearly not buying it.
"I'm nooooot. I swear to [gosh], I'm not..."
"If you were sober, you wouldn't have used the Lord's name in vain." Essie pointed out.
"According to Athena, the last time you said that, you v0m!t3d all over babushka's shoes." Affie said as a gold, glowing insignia of an owl was briefly imprinted on her neck before fading.
"That was one ti- BLEGH!" Before he could finish, he projectile v0m!t3d and it landed on Melody and Penelope, who had just finished binging another season of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and were walking down the stairs, making the two grade schoolers freeze and tense up.
Krus then cussed under his breath. "Sorry."
"It's okay, praded." Melody and Penelope said as Ruv carried Krus up the stairs.
"Sorry you had to witness that, girls." Affie said. "Was there anything you needed?"
"We wanted to get a snack." Melody said.
"The both of you take a shower; I'll prepare something for you." Essie said. "Bread with Nutella?"
"Yes, please." Penelope and Melody said in unison before going to take a shower. (This ain't based on me, I swear-)
Essie chuckled. "Alright."
Affie took out her phone. "I'll call mom and babushka."
***
A week later, Krus, Ruv, Essie, Affie, Melody, Penelope, and Athena were sitting in a table in the corner of a café.
"Why exactly did you invite me and Ruvyzvat here when the five of you could've gone here by yourselves?" Krus asked, turning to Essie and Affie.
Ruv cringed at his father calling him by his full name. He [funked] up big time, and there was definitely not going to be an easy way to make it up to him.
"Because why not?" Affie replied.
Athena looked at Krus sympathetically as he continued to eat after that, lost in thought.
"For our next performance we have Essie and Affie." Essie and Affie stood up and walked to the stage, the latter with her guitar in hand, as the announcer called their names.
"Hello, everyone." Essie said.
"Tonight, we're going to sing 'If We Have Each Other' by Alec Benjamin." Affie said. "Each slightly rewritten verse and chorus in this song is dedicated to, in order, our daughters, our parents, and as for the last verse and chorus, you'll find out who that's dedicated to when we get to that part."
With that, she started strumming her guitar.
"They were quite young with their daughters almost there." Essie sung.
"On the East-side of the city, they were working everyday
Cleaning dishes in the evening, they could barely stay awake
They were clinging to the feeling that their luck was gonna change
And 'cross town, they'd take the bus at night
To a one-bedroom apartment, and when they'd turn on the light
They would sit down at the table, tell themselves that it's alright
They were waiting on the day they hoped their babies would arrive
They'd never be alone
Have someone to hold
And when nights were cold
They'd say"
Essie and Affie turned to their daughters, and smiled at them as they sung the chorus in unison.
"The world's not perfect, but it's not that bad."
Essie and Affie waved at their daughters, who smiled and waved back at them.
"If we got each other and that's all we have
We will be your mothers and we'll hold your hands.
You should know we'll be there for you
When the world's not perfect
When the world's not kind
If we have each other, then we'll be just fine
We will be your mothers, and we'll hold your hands
You should know we'll be there for you."
Penelope made a cloud that said the words: "We'll be there for you too" while Melody blew Essie a kiss.
Krus smiled and chuckled as he looked at the two girls. He knew just how much they and their mothers loved each other, and it warmed his heart to see that at least his granddaughters had a good relationship with their children.
On the outside, Ruv was emotionless, but on the inside, he was dy!ng from cuteness at how happy his grandchildren were around their mothers and vice versa, that their relationship with their mothers wasn't as broken as he and his father's relationship is.
"They were quite old and were living out their days." Affie sung.
"On the West-side of the city next to where they got engaged
They had pictures on the walls of all the memories that they've made
And though life is never easy, they are thankful that they've stayed
With each other, and though some times were hard
Even when she made him angry, he would never break her heart
No, they don't have the money to afford a fancy car
But they never have to travel 'cause they'll never be apart
Even to this day
Their love is stronger than
The day they made that truce
They'd say"
Both sisters sung in unison once more.
"The world's not perfect, but it's not that bad
If we got each other, and that's all we have
I will be your lover, and I'll hold your hand.
You should know I'll be there for you
When the world's not perfect
When the world's not kind
If we have each other, then we'll both be fine
I will be your lover, and I'll hold your hand
You should know I'll be there for you."
"This next part is for our grandfather and from our dad." Essie said.
Krus looked at Ruv stoically and raised an eyebrow at him. Ruv, internally cringing because he knew that he was the reason his father has become so expressionless and unemotional towards him, met his gaze, and smiled, trying his best to not look like a p$ych0p@th!c mvrd3r3r as Essie sung the next lines.
"Been alive for too long, and people are getting old
I know they don't have forever and I'm scared to be alone
So I'm thankful for my father, even though sometimes we fight."
Krus' expression softened a bit and tears formed in his eyes as Ruv mouthed the next lines, which were sung by Affie.
"When I was still a baby, he's the reason I survived
I know he'd never leave me, and I hate to see him cry
So I re-wrote this verse to tell him that I'm always by his side
Re-wrote this verse to tell him that I'm always by his side
Re-wrote this verse to tell him that."
Krus' expression reverted back to the stoic one he had minutes ago and he wiped the tears that were about to fall from his eyes, turning away from his son as Essie and Affie sung in unison once again, giving them a concerned and bittersweet smile.
"The world's not perfect, but it's not that bad
If we got each other, and that's all we have
I will be your child, and I'll hold your hand."
Ruv attempted to take his father's hand in his, only for his hand to be gently swatted away. Ruv sighed before turning back to Essie and Affie and giving them a hand signal that said; "It's no use; it's not working."
"You should know I'll be there for you
When the world's not perfect
When the world's not kind
If we have each other, then we'll both be fine
I will be your child, and I'll hold your hand
You should know I'll be there for you."
Ruv, Essie, Affie, and their (Essie and Affie's) daughters were sad that the plan didn't work, but didn't show it.
"You should know I'll be there for you."
***
"UGH!" Hestia, Athena, Circe, Hecate and, another woman with wavy, light brown hair that was tied into two pigtails with platinum blonde side-bangs and gray eyes who was wearing a pair of baby pink pjs, looked at Ruv with concerned painted on their faces as he banged his head repeatedly on the wall.
"Ruv, please stop." Hestia said. She was wearing a cute, pastel yellow top and a pink, knee-length skirt.
"You're going to get a concussion if you keep that up." Athena, who was wearing a red top with spaghetti strap sleeves and black shorts, said. "You really have to stop."
"It's my fault!" Ruv muttered. "I'm the reason he's acting this way towards me! He did everything he could to protect me, and I was a cyka blyat to him! He sacrificed everything, even his own life, to save me, and I was a cyka blyat to him! He tried to reach out and connect with me, and I was a cyka blyat to him!"
"Let me get this straight." Hecate, who was wearing a black, satin nightgown, started. "Krusveto and Rschvania were resurrected from the d3@d, and Ruv treated them like [crap] at first because he assumed bad things about them, and just as he began to care for them and regret how he treated them, his father begins to push him away, and now he's trying to right his wrongs and make his father forgive him?"
"Basically." Hestia and Athena said.
"Ruv, c'mon, don't be so hard on yourself." The woman with light brown and platinum blonde hair, Astraea, started. "That's literally how your father got into this mess in the first place."
"[Funk] off, Astraea!" Ruv cussed out. "He loved, and clearly still loves me, even if he tries not show it, so much, and I was a cyka blyat to him! He was already struggling mentally and I made that worse! I should've been nicer to him right from the start! I should've-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Circe grabbed him by the collar and $l@pp3d him in the face, making everyone else in the room wince.
"LISTEN UP YOU OREO *BLEEP*TARD! YOUR FATHER IS STRUGGLING MENTALLY AND INDULGING AND SELF-H@T3 ISN'T GOING TO HELP ANYTHING! YOU DIDN'T KNOW! YOU DIDN'T KNOW, AND THE PAST IS IN THE PAST! THERE'S NOTHING ELSE YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT! THE ONLY THING YOU CAN DO NOW IS TO DO EVERYTHING IN YOUR POWER TO RIGHT YOUR WRONGS AND APOLOGIZE! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!"
Ruv opened his mouth to speak, only to be interrupted with another slap in the face by Circe. "DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!?!?!"
"Yes, Circe." Ruv ch0k3d out.
"Good." Circe let go of him.
"My niece recently opened up her own archery classes." Hestia said. "You, Krusveto, Selever, and Rasazy can go and you can use the arrows to make a message for him."
"Not a [crappy] idea." Ruv said. "Thanks, Hestia."
"Any time, Ruv."
A/N: The gold owl insignia on Affie's neck appears when Athena communicates to someone via telepathy and disappears when the telepathic conversation is over.