More Than Anything

by sagesparrow394

Summary:

After prison and the island reset, Charlie woke up early. Taking the chance to escape the strange library, he headed back to Spawn to find his daughters. Unfortunately, he was only able to find one.
Months later, he finally finds the other.

Aka, my finale for q!Slimecicle

Notes:

How's everyone coping? I'm not

Chapter 1

Charlie didn’t think he was supposed to be awake.

The last thing he remembered was going to sleep with Sunny after spending a very interesting but wonderful day with her in prison and performing her a bedtime rap. Now he was sitting on the floor in the middle of a strange black and gold library, all the other island residents collapsed around him, unconscious.

His first instinct, of course, was to try and find Sunny and make sure his daughter was okay. He pushed himself to his feet, only to do a double take, looking down at his hands.

The rash, the black, the glowing strings of green numbers - it was all gone. When he’d woken up in prison, he had noticed it had receded from his head, but the rest he couldn’t tell, covered up by the orange jumpsuit he’d been dressed in. Now he was back in his usual clothes, though, he could see his hands and shoulder were normal again.

Must be because it had been so long since he last was with-

No.

He shook his head. He needed to stay focused. Find Sunny.

He wandered through the room, stepping over the sleeping bodies, trying to find any sign of his daughter. Occasionally he gave other residents a shake to see if he could wake them up; he spent a particularly long time knelt beside Mariana, shaking his shoulders.

Mariana… The two never crossed paths in prison, the last time they’d seen each other before now was Purgatory. A passionate reunion, a promise to try again. And then they never got the chance to. Even now, she wouldn’t awaken. Charlie had no choice but to move on, leaving Mariana led there.

Eventually, he’d searched every corner of the room with no luck. It seemed Sunny and all the eggs were absent.

Maybe they’d left? Found some way out of this library and ran back to Spawn? That’s what Charlie should do, find a way out and go back to Spawn. Then he'd not only be able to find Sunny, but JuanaFlippa too! The poor girl, she’d been alone for months. Charlie hadn’t seen her since before Purgatory.

He spent a while looking around the room, trying to find some way out. Eventually, he got lucky - next to the enormous cinema screen in the library, he found a false wall, a door. It led out to a long set of train tracks.

He glanced back at Mariana one final time, hesitating for a second… before slipping through the door, closing it behind him. Then, he took off running down the tracks.

He didn’t follow the tracks forever. For a while, he had no choice, stuck in an underground tunnel. The moment the tracks left the tunnel, opening up to the green horizon and blue sky, he took in his surroundings. To his relief, he could see the prison in the distance. Prison wasn’t too far from Spawn, if he recalled correctly. He could get there. He just had to keep running.

---

“Flippa! JuanaFlippa! I’m here! I’m home!”

As soon as Charlie had gotten close to Spawn, he’d found the first waystone he could, taking it straight to Eggxile. He barely registered the black and yellow tape around the place, or the fact that all the code blocks and dark matter in the place had been cleared. He ran across the beach, calling his daughter’s name. Occasionally, he’d call Sunny’s name too. Sure, he had met her in prison and so she didn’t know about Eggxile, but maybe she’d found out this was his home and come here too.

He burst into the house, almost falling down the ladder with how fast he descended. “JuanaFlippa!”

The basement was pretty much as he left it, even Flippa’s signs unbroken. The only exception was his backpack, which he had lost in Purgatory, but which was now right here, resting in the middle of the room. However, there was no sign of his egg. “Flippa?! Please, you have to be here… JUANAFLIPPA!”

His voice strained as he cried, tears pricking his eyes. He’d been gone for too long, hadn’t he? No tasks done for months, neglected. She was dead. He was alone again. Flippa was dead, Sunny was gone, he’d left Mariana behind-

Thud.

Charlie blinked, tears dripping down his face. Did he just hear that? Was it his imagination?

Thud.

There it was again. It was coming from the wall. The wall that contained the secret room Slimbus, Gimbus, Grime and all of Charlie’s other Mini-Mes had once been hidden in.

“Flippa…?” Charlie’s voice was barely above a whisper, as if scared to speak his hopes out of fear of disappointment. He went to his backpack, grabbing his pickaxe from inside. Then, he went to the wall, swinging hard.

With a couple of strikes, the wall was destroyed. And standing there, inside the little alcove, was a little girl with glasses, light brown braided hair, glowing green eyes, and green dragon wings and horns.

“P@p@?”

Charlie collapsed to his knees, relief flooding his body. He pulled JuanaFlippa close, hugging her as tightly as he could, burying his tear stained face into the crook of her neck. “Oh my god, I’m so glad you’re okay… I’m so so so sorry, I didn’t mean to be gone so long. I just- we were in a death match, and then we were in prison-  so much was happening, and I-”

“1t’s 0kayy. 1’m just glad y0u’re 0kay. 1 w@s worried.” Flippa hugged back, resting a hand on his right shoulder.

“I promise, I won’t ever leave you again. You and I, together forever.” He paused. “And Sunny.”

“ Sunnyyyyy?”

“Your new sister.” Charlie took a deep breath, wiping his eyes. “Which reminds me, we need to find her. She’s probably at Tubchunk. You’ll love her, Flippa, she’s… amazing. When I told her about you, she got so excited to meet you.” He leant back from Flippa’s hold and got to his feet, not noticing his shoulder was once again black, with strings of green. “Come on, let's go.”

Flippa frowned a little as she took her father’s hand, gripping it tightly as he led her out of the basement.

---

Sunny wasn’t at Tubchunk. She wasn’t anywhere. None of the eggs were.

For the next month or so, Charlie and JuanaFlippa would warp to and go for a walk around Spawn every day, looking for anything. Signs of the eggs being around somwhere, signs of the rest of the islanders being back. Plus, it was nice to have picnics with Flippa around different spots of the island.

Eventually though, after weeks of nothing changing, Charlie gave up. He resigned himself to not seeing Sunny ever again. It was weird, how much it hurt to grieve someone he’d known for only a day.

Thankfully Flippa seemed to be coping just fine with the news she’d likely never be able to meet her sister. She was the steady rock Charlie could lean on.

Honestly, it wasn’t just the lack of hope that influenced the decision to stop the searching; Charlie wasn’t sure if he’d be able to traverse the island much longer even if he wanted to. His rash had come back with a vengeance - and this time, it was starting to affect his legs too. It was difficult to walk for very long with the strange static numbness spreading up them.

And so, Charlie and JuanaFlippa spent their days at Eggxile, having picnics down in the glowberry cavern, stargazing by the fire pit when night fell, and sleeping in as late as they wanted. The two never left each other’s sides, not for even a minute.

Chapter 2

Summary:

Sunny's eternal sleep in her cryo-chamber is cut short.

“SunnySideUp.”

Sunny stayed frozen still. Her heart felt like it was thudding a million times a second in her chest. Their eyes flitted between Pepito, Pomme, Empanada, Chunsik, Dapper and Ramón, all of whom were asleep in their cryo-chambers.

This wasn’t fair. She’d done it, her mission was successful. All of them had. They should get a reward, not be forced to sleep for eternity, never seeing their Pa, Pop and Ma again. She never even got to meet her final parent.

“SunnySideUp.”

Tears were welling in her eyes. Maybe they could try to run? Sure, she probably wouldn’t get far; they were in a Federation building, scientists everywhere. But she could at least try. Maybe they’d get lucky and be able to run home to Tubbo.

“SunnySideUp.”

She felt a nudge in her back, turning to look over her shoulder. Leonarda, her hermanita, was giving her a comforting smile. “It’ll be okay,” Leo whispered. “Go. It’s just a little nap.”

“I can’t leave my parents…” Sunny mumbled back, tears starting to fall.

“I know. They’ll be back for us one day, I know it. The wait will go faster if we’re asleep.”

Sunny knew Leo was lying. She could see it in their eyes.

“SunnySideUp.”

Sunny turned back around, before slowly stepping forward. They stepped up to the Federation scientist that was waiting by an empty cryo-chamber. Her chamber.

Their shoulders shook with sobs as the scientist gently pushed them forward to step into the open tube. Her hands reached up into her hair, where a large bow made of green slime was tied. A gift from their pop that he had given them on the one day they had together. The only memento she had with her. She squeezed it, wishing that she could have had more time.

The scientist pressed buttons on a small console in front of the tube. It slowly closed. Sunny took one final deep breath.

The tube began to fill, and as she began to float in the water, her teary eyes fluttered closed.

---

‘WARNING: E.G.G.S. CRYO-CHAMBER CONTAINMENT BREACH’

Sunny coughed, choking up water as her eyes started to open. An alarm was blaring, loudspeakers crying the same message over and over. They gasped for breath as they pushed themself to sit up, adjusting their sunglasses up to rest on their head.

The room was mostly dark aside from the pulsing red alert lights, and the very soft blue glow of the lights in the cryo-chambers.

There was one other light in the room, though. One standing right in front of Sunny’s tube.

The neon green glow of ones and zeros.

Sunny screamed at the sight of the binary code, pushing herself right up against the back wall of her tube. They curled up as small as they could, sobbing into their knees. This couldn’t happen, she couldn’t lose both her lives now, she never got to say a proper goodbye to her siblings and parents-

“Whoa, hey, Sunny, it’s okay! It’s me, it’s Popcicle!”

Sunny froze, blinking. She slowly lifted her head, staring closer at the mass of code. It stepped forward, becoming illuminated by the blue lights in the tube. Sunny’s breath caught in their throat.

What stood before her was mostly a mass of black glitches and green numbers, but through it all, Sunny could see her pop’s features. The left half of his face was overtaken by code, but the right was still human, looking down at her, seeming both worried and relieved. His arms and legs were also obscured - he had a visibly limp to his walk as he stepped closer to Sunny - but most of his torso was still clear.

“Pop… what happened…?”

“I, uh, I don’t really know? Just, I was at home with Flippa and all the power on the island suddenly shut down, my communicator turned off. Then I saw a plane flying overhead, and the sky went red. And then there were just… codes everywhere! They weren’t attacking me or Flippa though… Then my communicator came back on, just for a second, and I got a message from someone called WS01? And I need to figure out who they are and thank them because they gave me the coordinates here to you. Sunny, I’ve missed you so much. I thought I’d never see you again…”

Charlie stumbled to his knees, wrapping his arms around Sunny. The egg flinched, wincing, expecting the code to instantly harm her; but it didn’t. There was a slight tingly sensation, but nothing more.

She wrapped her arms around his torso, squeezing tightly. She could feel the squish of his slimy form, comforting and familiar. Her pop had really come back for her.

“Right, um, we need to get out of here,” Charlie leaned back. “Flippa’s keeping watch outside. I know the codes aren’t attacking me and her, but I don’t know about you, so we need to make a plan so we can move fast. WS01 said in their message that we need to leave the island as quickly as possible. I’m thinking we could take the boat that brought everyone back from Purgatory? Last I checked, it was still parked near Foolish’s, I think.”

Sunny nodded along, pushing herself to her feet. “Mhm! We’ll wake all the others and then we can get going!”

Charlie blinked. “Others? Sunny, I… I’m only here for you.”

“Huh?” Sunny frowned. “But… they’re my siblings. I can’t leave them behind.”

“I know, Sunny, but… I’m one guy. A guy who has a fucked up rash that means he can barely walk. I can’t keep you all safe. It’s better they stay here, where they’re protected. Then I can keep all my focus on you and Flippa and make sure you both stay safe.”

Sunny shook her head. “No. If they’re not going, I’m not going.”

“Sunny-”

“They’re my family! If I left them I’d never forgive myself.”

“Sunny, you don’t get it! If they come with us as well, they’ll die!”

“You don’t know that!”

“1 D0!”

Charlie’s whole body glitched as he yelled, Sunny flinching and stepping back. It was only a brief moment, before his form settled. Charlie took a deep breath, trying to fight back tears that were building in his one visible eye. “Sunny, I… I’ve been through this before, back before I met you. I went into danger with more eggs than I was capable of protecting, and… and not only did one of them die, but it was by my own sword. I’ve never been able to forgive myself… I can’t go through that again. I can’t risk any of your lives. You and Flippa are the only things I have left that are worth fighting for. I love you more than anything, so I am going to make sure I can dedicate all my focus to keeping you both safe. I’m so sorry, but… I can’t afford to bring anyone else and risk getting distracted and losing you, not when I only just found you again…”

Tears were streaming down Charlie’s face, his visible eye staring at Sunny, pleading. Sunny’s expression had softened. They slowly reached out, taking Charlie’s hand, ignoring the strange staticy tingle of the code against her skin.

“Pa Tubbo used to tell me stories about you, back when I first got brought over from Egg Island,” she began. “I remember him talking about you two and tío Roier going on an adventure in a maze. He called the three of you ‘pendejo trio’.” She giggled a little. “He showed me photos of it. You were pole dancing in dark and scary rooms. Lava came close to flooding you, and you just went with it and did your best to keep yourself, pa and tío Roier safe. You sounded so brave, and I remember thinking ‘my pop is incredible, I want to be just like him’.” She looked Charlie right in the eye. “It’s the view I had of you that made me this way. You’re the reason I need to do whatever it takes to save my siblings. You showed me how to fight and not give up when things get tough. So please… can’t we at least try to bring them all with us?”

Charlie sighed, pausing for a long time. “It felt so terrible these past few months, thinking I’d never see you again. I hated that I might never know who you are… I’m glad I get to find out now.” He smiled warmly, cupping Sunny’s face. “You really are someone special, Sunny.” He pushed himself unsteadily to his feet. “Okay. Let's get them all out.”

“You’ll do it?” Sunny’s eyes sparkled.

Charlie nodded. “You’re my daughter, Sunny. I’d do anything for you. Whatever lies in store, I’ll do my best to keep all of you safe.”

He stepped from the cryo-chamber, Sunny eagerly following behind. “So how do we get them out?”

“Well, it’s a very finicky and technical process. Watch and learn.” Charlie grinned, as he stepped up to the next console for Leonarda’s chamber. He raised an arm… before slamming his hand through the console screen, shattering it.

He let out a bit-crushed staticy scream as his body glitched, in turn glitching the console. The lights of Leo’s tube flickered, the water inside beginning to drain. When the tube was empty and began to open, Charlie ripped his hand from the broken console, his glitching calming. He didn’t hesitate, immediately going to the next chamber, Dapper’s, breaking his console.

Sunny ran between each of the eggs as they were freed and began to wake up, hugging them, helping them to their feet and quickly explaining what was going on. Once the final egg, Pomme, had been freed and Charlie pulled his arm from her console, Charlie practically collapsed, groaning in pain.

“Pop!” Sunny ran over to him, kneeling beside him. “Are you okay?”

“ 1-1’m fin3…” Charlie reassured, taking a deep breath. “My rash is just hurting a little, but it’s okay.” He looked up at all the other eggs, who had gathered around, staring at him.

“What happened to you, tío Slime?” Leonarda asked, looking him up and down. “Why are you all… codey?”

“It’s nothing, just a rash- “

“Wait, Slime?” He was interrupted by Pepito, whose eyes sparkled behind his glasses. “You’re Papi Slime?! Papa Mariana told me about you!”

Before Charlie could react, the young egg had thrown himself into Charlie’s arms. Charlie just looked shocked. “You’re Mariana’s kid…?”

He had almost left his stepson behind…

Charlie wrapped his arms around Pepito, looking at Sunny and softly whispering, “Thank you for making me free him.”

Sunny smiled back, hugging her pop as well. Charlie held both the children as tightly as he could. “Your name is Pepito, right? It’s nice to properly meet you.”

He took a deep breath, trying to stop himself from tearing up. He’d cried enough times today. Besides, there were more important things to deal with. He pulled from the hug, sitting up properly. “Right, okay, I can’t really explain everything, but the basic rundown is the island’s been overrun by binary code monsters and it's not safe anymore. We need to leave, so we’re going to take the boat that brought us all home from Purgatory. Flippa is outside, so we’re going to go meet her-”

“JuanaFlippa?” Dapper frowned. “What do you mean? She’s- “

“She’s okay, she’s outside keeping watch for me. We’re going to meet her, and then find the first waystone we can. We’ll take it to Foolish’s place, and then get on the boat and sail away. It’s going to be dangerous and we don’t really have that much stuff, so we’ll have to be really careful. I promise I’ll do my best to keep you all safe.”

“What about our parents?” Pomme asked. “We have to go get them, we can’t leave them behind.”

“I… I think they might have already left? I don’t know for sure, I haven’t seen anyone in literal months, but I said to Sunny earlier, I saw a plane flying away from the island just after the codes all appeared. I think it might have been them leaving.”

“... So you’re saying they left us behind?” Empanada asked.

“N-no! I’m sure they didn’t want to, they probably just had to with how dangerous everything was getting, or maybe the Federation forced them to go. When we get off the island, I’m sure we can try to find them, and they’ll be overjoyed to see you all.” Charlie paused. “Wait. I just realised… where’s Chayanne, Tallulah and Richarlyson?”

“Tío Phil was able to get the Goddess of Death to send him, tío Missa, Chay and Lullah back to his home world before the Federation could take them,” Leo explained. “And Richarlyson went with tío Pac and tío Mike to be with Goddess Mine.”

“So they’re okay? Thank god. Shame I couldn’t say goodbye…” Charlie sighed, before getting to his feet. “Let’s go. The sooner we get you guys off the island safe, the better.”

He took Sunny and Pepito’s hands, the rest of the eggs following behind as they left the room and began to make their way through the Federation facility.

Chapter 3

Summary:

Charlie and the eggs try (and fail) to find the way out of the Federation facility

Notes:

Two chapters in one day lets gooo

“Are we lost?” The question came from the egg Charlie only met today, apparently named Chunsik. The child had spoken not in a snarky tone, but with genuine honesty, which almost made the question more embarrassing to hear.

“No, we’re not lost. We just… don’t know the way out…” Charlie sighed. “Look, there’s a lot of crossroads and stuff in this place, and I wasn’t really paying much attention to what direction I was going when I was looking for you guys.”

He and the band of eggs were wandering through the halls of the Federation facility. It was weirdly quiet, not a single soul seemed to be left in the place. The loose codes must have really scared the Fed workers off. Either that or they had killed them all and moved on.

“Goddammit…” Charlie muttered as they stepped into a corridor he was 90% sure they’d walked through before. “There’s gotta be a faster way out than just wandering until we find the exit. Maybe there’s a waystone in one of these offices…” He looked down at the eggs. “Let's split up and look around these rooms, see if we can find a waystone.” He gestured to the various doors along the walls of the corridor. “Stick in pairs, and if anything goes wrong, just scream and I’ll be right there.”

The eggs all nodded, pairing up. Dapper and Pomme went to one door, Leonarda and Pepito went to another, Sunny and Empanada another, and Ramόn and Chunsik another.

Charlie went through the last door in the corridor, finding himself standing in what looked like a record room. It was filled with large ceiling-high filing cabinets, some so full they were overflowing and couldn’t close properly. He started to wander through, trying to see if there was any sign of a waystone or warp plate or anything like that hidden in a corner somewhere. After a few minutes, he had looked around the whole room and found nothing. He sighed, about to leave and see if any of the eggs had had any luck.

That’s when he noticed something. One of the drawers in one of the filing cabinets caught his eye. The label read, ‘Slime Hybrid Experiments - DISCONTINUED’.

Charlie stared at it for a moment, before pulling the cabinet open. A single file was inside.

He picked it up, opening to the first page.

‘Entry 1.

After WS01’s success with the avian hybrids, we have been asked to conduct further research into the creation of hybrid creatures. For this, I have been promoted and made lead researcher, a true honour from the Federation.

I have been provided with eight test subjects, far more than I was expecting. It has been difficult to get them all to comply. I find it's often easier to keep them shut together in a tiny room - if you can even call it that - that I’ve nicknamed ‘the Boy Box’. They can’t exactly create a ruckus when they’re confined in such a small space; in fact, they can barely move.

I’ve chosen which one will be the first candidate, the initial test run. I will refer to this subject by the code name SLMCCL.

SLMCCL is, for lack of a better word, the runt of the group. He’s the most expendable if anything goes wrong, which it likely will. Experiments never go right the first try.

I will update once the DNA modifications are complete.’

Charlie was hesitant as he turned to the next page.

‘Entry 2.

The DNA modification was a complete success, to my surprise. The slime genomes were completely accepted by SLMCCL’s DNA. Now it is simply a waiting game to see if it alters his body in the way we hope.’

Charlie turned the page again.

‘Entry 3.

Today was catastrophic.

I’d returned SLMCCL to the Boy Box with the other subjects for the night. I thought being around his siblings would keep him calm so he could sleep and be well rested for observation tomorrow.

I got called in by security at midnight due to an emergency. What I found was six dead subjects. SLMCCL was standing there, but he was unrecognisable. He was a slime monster.

He was pacified and restrained. The one other remaining live subject was removed from the testing facility; what is done with him is in someone else’s hands now.

We are currently working to stabilise SLMCCL’s DNA. In the meantime, we will keep supplying him with general anaesthesia to prevent any more violent outbursts.

It had better go well. He’s the only subject we have left.’

Charlie's hands were trembling, turning to the final page.

‘Entry 4.

Good news: SLMCCL has stabilised. Tests have shown he is now able to control his shapeshifting, and his violent outbursts have calmed. He is the perfect human-slime hybrid. Perhaps I underestimated him at the beginning of all of this.

Bad news: Despite the success, the loss of the other subjects was not up to the Federation’s standards of perfection, and so the slime hybrid project has been officially discontinued. I have been demoted and will return to my previous position working on the Main Channel. When asked, I was told the Federation has no use for SLMCCL, and so he will remain under my care. I requested to have him made the responsibility of the avian hybrid department, but was denied.

I have to look after this child now. A constant reminder of my biggest success, and my most devastating failure.’

Charlie felt sick, his hands trembling as he flicked through the last sheets of paper in the file; subject profiles, children all with similar features to him and different code names. Faces he vaguely recalled. His siblings.

The second to last was instantly recognisable, with the code name ‘CRAFT’. Mike, the only one he didn’t kill.

The last, with the code name ‘SLMCCL’, was his own much younger face staring up at him.

He was an experiment. 

The man he remembered as his father wasn’t his father at all; it was a Federation scientist who never wanted him. He didn’t have any life to return to outside of the island. His whole existence, he’d been right here.

And aside from small flashes - Mike, the Boy Box, killing his siblings - it had been completely wiped from his memory.

“Papi Slime!”

Charlie jumped at the sudden shout of his name, blinking back to the present. His cheeks felt wet. He’d been crying? He hadn’t even realised.

He hurriedly stuffed the folder into his backpack and wiped his eyes. “C0m1ng!” He did his best to ignore his overwhelming racing thoughts, body glitching a little: eggs first, his own shit later.

“Wh@t’ssss going on?” he asked as he left the record room.

All the eggs were gathered in a circle in the corridor, and at the sound of Charlie’s voice, they parted, revealing Pepito standing in the middle. In his hands, Pepito was holding a grey rat with a blue bandana around its head.

“Look who we found!” Pepito smiled, holding the rat up.

Charlie raised an eyebrow. “That, uh, that’s nice, Pepito. We do need to stay focused on finding a way out, though. Maybe put el rato back where you found- “

“Ay, ‘el rato’?! I have a name, culero!”

Charlie blinked. The rat spoke. And it spoke with a voice that, while very high pitched, was still familiar. “... Roier?!”

“Si, pendejo! You need to help me, man, I’ve been stuck here forever!”

“Why the hell are you a rat?”

“It’s my evil twin brother! He works for the Federation, he put my consciousness in a rat and took over my body! He’s been running around pretending to be me!”

“We have to bring Apá with us, papi!” Pepito said. “I’m really sorry, Apá, I feel really bad that Apá Celbi and I didn’t notice it wasn’t you…”

"Qué?" Roier's eyes widened. "Cellbit's alive?"

Pepito nodded. "Mhm. Pomme and Richarlyson rescued him and Baghera back from Egg Island."

“Roier, you don’t happen to know the way out of this place, do you?” Charlie asked.

“Si, I think so. I think… that way!” Roier pointed down the corridor. “Vamos! I need to see my husband!”

“Alright, huevos, let's get out of here.”

Following Roier’s directions, Charlie began to lead the way through the Federation facility and towards the exit. Sunny and Pepito once again took hold of his hands.

The whole time, Charlie was trying not to think about the file in his backpack. What did it matter, right? He’d never questioned his past prior to waking up on the train before. He didn’t need to worry about it, he had everything he needed right here with him. His children, his stepson, his…

… Okay, maybe there was one thing missing…

But his childhood was a non-issue.

He didn’t care about it.

Really.

Notes:

q!Charlie being a Federation experiment is a headcanon I've had for so long, I had to involve it somehow

Also apologies if there are any errors regarding Roier's lore

Chapter 4

Summary:

The dangerous journey to Spawn begins

Finally, they’d reached the exit of the facility, two large double doors just ahead. On the way, Charlie had filled Roier in on the code situation, the plan, and the fact it seemed like everyone else had already left the island.

“Flippa should be waiting just out there. But, um, before we go…” Charlie knelt down, taking his backpack off and opening it up. He pushed the folder to the side as he began to rifle through it. “It’s probably going to be swarming with codes out there, so it’s best everyone has at least a little protection. I don’t have much, but it’s better than nothing…” He pulled out armour pieces, both his slime armour set and his old iron one, as well as a bow and a few swords, most of which were iron and stone; the only diamond one he kept for himself. “You all take your pick.”

The eggs started to pass everything around, trying to decide who got what. The older eggs insisted the younger ones got the stronger armour, while the eggs more capable in combat took the stronger weapons, so they could defend the others.

As they were passing things out, Charlie tapped Sunny’s shoulder. “Hey, Sun? I want you to have this.” He pulled his ghillie suit from his backpack. “If you find yourself in danger and need to hide from codes, just put this on and curl up on the grass. No one will be able to see you. Don’t move until it’s safe. I’ll make sure we don’t leave you behind.”

“Are you sure? You don’t have any armour, maybe it’s better you have it.”

“I’ll be fine. Like I said, the codes haven’t been attacking me. Besides, I don’t have limited lives, I can respawn.” Charlie pushed the ghillie suit into her arms. “Right, everyone ready?” He called to the other eggs, all of whom nodded.

“Let’s go!” Pepito grinned, pulling something from his pocket and putting it on his head: a gas mask.

Charlie couldn’t help but smile at the sight of it. “Bolas?”

Pepito nodded. “Bolas! Were you on team Bolas too?”

“Absolutely, from the very beginning! Glad to see the Bolas spirit is being kept alive.”

Charlie ruffled Pepito’s hair fondly, before he stood up and stepped over to the doors. He slowly pushed one open a little, peaking out. To his relief, there didn’t seem to be any codes nearby at the moment - and just outside, sitting on a nearby rock, was JuanaFlippa.

He looked back at the eggs and Roier, giving a nod, before fully opening the door and stepping out. “Flippa, we’re here!”

Flippa looked up, smiling at the sight of Charlie - before she looked confused at the sight of the other eggs. With the exception of Sunny, Empanada, Pepito and Chunsik, all the eggs’ jaws dropped at the sight of Flippa.

“How is she…” Leo mumbled.

“1 th0ught w3 were 0nly g3tting Sunnyyy?” Flippa asked as she stood up.

“Yeah, change of- Pomme!”

The French egg had run forward, brandishing her iron sword. She swung at Flippa, who quickly jumped out of the way and ran behind Charlie.

“Pomme, what are you doing?!” Sunny cried, scared for the sister she’d only just met.

“Didn’t you hear her voice? That’s not JuanaFlippa, that’s a code in disguise!” Pomme looked up at Charlie. “She’s tricking you, oncle, you can’t trust her!”

Charlie had scooped Flippa into his arms, holding her protectively as he glared down at Pomme. “It’s just a speech impediment! And Flippa and I have been spending time together for months, since even before Purgatory. If she were a code, I’d know by now.”

“Come on, tío Slime, have you seen your arms and legs?” Dapper asked. “And your face-”

“1t’s ju5t a r@sh!” The eggs watched, horrified as Charlie’s whole body glitched and contorted. “Flipp@ i5n’t d@ng3r0us, she hasn’t hurt me or anyone! Roier, you can vouch for me, right? She’s okay…”

Roier hesitated, before nodding. “Charlie’s right, Flippa’s been around for a while and she hasn’t hurt anyone. I don’t think there’s any harm in letting her be and come with us.” What went unspoken but the eggs understood was, ‘We won’t be able to convince him otherwise. If we want to keep moving, it’s best we give in.’

Pomme frowned, sharing an unsure glance with Dapper, but she lowered her sword. Charlie put Flippa down, but the girl stayed clung to his leg.

Seeing her nerves, Sunny tentatively stepped closer, giving a warm smile as Flippa crouched more behind Charlie. “It’s okay, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m Sunny, your sister. It’s nice to finally meet you! Pop’s told me a lot about you, I’ve been so excited to have a new sister!”

Flippa hesitated, glancing up at Charlie. He nodded, and Flippa stepped out from behind him. “1’m Ju@naFlippaaa. 1t’s nic3 t0 me3t y0u to0. 1 lik3 your b0w.”

“Thank you! Pop made it for me! Maybe he can make you one later and we can match?”

“1’d lik3 th@t,” Flippa nodded, smiling. 

“Um, guys?” Ramón interrupted, pointing in the distance. “We’ve got danger incoming…”

Charlie looked in the direction he was pointing, eyes widening. On the horizon, a horde of code monsters was appearing, moving gradually in their direction. “Oh shit, okay huevos, we’ve gotta move. Flippa, do you know if there’s a waystone anywhere around here?”

Flippa shook her head. “1 didn’t se3 @ny.”

“Then I guess we’re going on foot. Spawn’s this way, let's go!”

Charlie led the way, starting to run as fast as he could with his unsteady legs while not straying too far from the eggs. Leonarda stayed at the back of the group so she could see everyone and make sure no one fell behind. Roier climbed up to sit on Pepito’s head, keeping an eye on the approaching codes and watching out to see if any were coming from any other direction.

“Hey, Slime? How far are we actually from Spawn?” he called. “Because the codes are moving pretty fast, they’re catching up!”

“Fuck, we’re pretty far. Everyone keep your eyes out for any random waystones, give a shout if you see one!”

The eggs all nodded. Pomme and Dapper were at either side of the group, weapons drawn and ready in case any codes attacked from the side. Ramón was near the front, keeping an eye on the skies above them, bow drawn, ready to fire at any moment. The four youngest eggs were in the middle, Chunsik in the very centre, so that they were guarded on all sides. JuanaFlippa stayed at Charlie’s side, looking not at all nervous unlike the other eggs.

As the codes continued to advance, Charlie diverted course towards a forest. Surely it’d be harder for the codes to catch up and keep track of where they were with all of the foliage, right?

“Vamos, they’re gaining on us!” Roier called.

The treetops just behind them rustled violently. Ramón started firing his bow even though he couldn’t quite see exactly where the codes were, hoping he landed a few good hits.

Charlie’s plan of being obscured by the foliage seemed to work pretty well. Eventually, between Ramón’s lucky shots, a few well timed swerves of direction, and some quick thinking on Empanada’s part to throw rocks in the opposite direction to distract and divert the codes, it seemed the group had either lost or killed all the codes that had been pursuing them. Just in time too, as they reached the end of the forest, stepping out into a field of flowers.

Charlie slowed to a stop. His rash was killing him, it was a miracle his legs hadn’t given out yet. “Fuck, okay, is everyone still here? We didn’t lose anyone?”

Leonarda did a quick headcount, before shaking their head. “Nope, we’re all here.”

“Awesome,” Charlie sighed, checking their surroundings. “Okay, new problem, I don’t know where we are.”

“We’re lost again?” Chunsik asked.

“... Yeah.”

Charlie stepped further into the field; it was exclusively filled with roses as far as the eye could see, no sign they were anywhere in the vicinity of Spawn.

“Hey, wait a minute…” Roier said. “I know where we are! This is Bobby Fields, we’re near Jaiden’s house!”

“I thought Jaiden’s home is that place she's building near Foolish’s?”

“Yeah, but she has a secret place out here. We had a day out with Bobby here once. After he died, she wanted to move out of my place and build a home of her own somewhere where she could be alone and grieve without anyone judging. Then when she started getting close to Cucurucho and people questioned how trustworthy she was, she decided to keep it private. She’s only showed a few people, like me and Baghera,” Roier explained. “But the good news is, she has a waystone! We can take it back to Spawn!”

“Perfect, which way?”

“Over there, I think,” Roier pointed. “I think I can see her treehouse on that hill over there.”

The group once again followed Roier’s directions. The place was surprisingly clear of codes, which was lucky - the open field didn’t exactly provide many places to hide. It didn’t take long at all for them to step into view of Jaiden’s house.

The place looked very pretty and cosy, decorated with roses. A path led up the side of the house and up the hill behind it. On top of the hill was a large treehouse that provided a perfect view of the sunset.

Charlie went to make a beeline for the waystone outside, only to be stopped as someone gripped his sleeve.

“Wait.” It was Empanada, whose eyes were fixated on the house. “I… Jaiden was supposed to be one of my mamas, she’s on my birth certificate. I was so excited to get to know her, but... then we found out what happened to her. I never had the chance to meet her… Can I go look inside? I want to see more about who she was and, since we’re leaving, bring a few things of hers with us. So we don’t forget her, you know?”

“I guess we can make a quick stop and head inside,” Charlie said. “But what do you mean? ‘What happened to her’, ‘so we don’t forget’...? You’re making it sound like she died…”

He forced a chuckle at the end of that. Jaiden wasn’t dead, right? Sure, he hadn’t seen her in ages, she hadn’t gotten on the boat at Purgatory, and he hadn’t seen her in prison, but she couldn’t be dead! I mean, Cellbit and Baghera got left behind too, and they were apparently fine!

“... I forgot, you wouldn’t know…” Empanada mumbled, staring at the ground.

Roier had gone quiet, but he seemed to find his voice now. “... Jaiden didn’t come back with Cellbit and Baghera, did she?”

Empanada shook her head. Pomme explained, “When Richas and I went to get Maman and Cellbit, we were going to get Jaiden and Maximus too. But they told us there was no point. They’d already found what was left of their bodies…”

Roier sighed, closing his eyes. The news was terrible, but he’d already accepted it as fact long ago.

Charlie on the other hand… his eyes were filled with tears.

Those early days on the island, before even the eggs had arrived, back when he was living in La Ciudad de Sacapuntas in the wall; Jaiden had been one of his first friends, singing songs, goofing off, getting jumpscared by Cucurucho’s first appearance on the island. 

Then after the eggs arrived, Jaiden had continued to be one of his most supportive friends, especially following Flippa's death. Even when he’d gone on a rampage and attempted to kill her son, she gave him another chance and was there for him. Hell, she represented him in court and did an amazing job.

After Bobby’s death, Jaiden did become a lot more reclusive. Between that and Charlie being stuck in his self-exile, they’d kind of drifted apart. Despite it, though, he’d still felt some kinship with her when they did hang out. Maybe it was the shared experience of responding to grief with isolation that bonded them. Or maybe it was just because she was one of the few people who didn’t make jokes about misclicks at his expense.

When Flippa came back, Jaiden wasn’t suspicious like others, and she wasn't envious that he had his child back and she didn't. Not for one second did she question him. Sure, she was a little concerned about his rash, but she happily helped him with Flippa’s tasks. Who knew something like The Big Swell would come to have so much sentimental value?

And then Purgatory; bonded by Team Bolas Rojas and the madness that came with it; the two exasperatedly laughing together as they were both spawn camped by BadBoyHalo over and over; speaking the two most iconic lines of the event, “Holy shit, kill yourself!” and “This isn’t Purgatory, this is Hell!”.

In the end, he’d run away to that boat as soon as the countdown started. The thought of picking up the sleeping Jaiden on the way had never even occurred to him.

Jaiden. His lawyer. His co-writer. His teammate. His friend.

She was dead. He never got to say goodbye. Maybe he could have even saved her.

“ ... 0ne s3cond…”

He turned, walking away around a small hill. Once he was out of view of the eggs-

“AAa@@@AA@AaAAAAHHHhhhhHH!”

… There was a moment of silence.

And then he stepped back into view. “Yeah, Empanada, we can go inside.”

---

Everyone was quiet as they sat at the highest point of the treehouse. Charlie was sitting at the edge of the platform, legs hanging off. Sunny and Flippa were on either side of him, and he was hugging them tightly. The other eggs all sat around on the floor of the platform as well.

Empanada now wore Jaiden’s backpack. Inside was filled with various mementos gathered by herself and Pepito: there were paintings, flowers, photos, and Bobby’s gun.

Roier was sitting on his designated chair. Empanada had placed flower pots on the other two: the middle one with a blue flower, the last one with a purple flower.

“Look, it’s starting,” she spoke in a hushed voice, pointing in the distance. Everyone watched as the sky turned orange, the sun beginning to dip beneath the horizon.

Charlie took a deep breath, trying his best to maintain his composure as tears trickled down his face. “I miss you, Jaiden,” he whispered under his breath so that only he could hear. “I hope being with Bobby again makes you happy.”

And despite his eldest daughter being right beside him, held in his arms, he added, “Take care of JuanaFlippa for me, okay?”

Chapter 5

Summary:

The escape to the boat commences

Once the sun set, the group considered getting some rest and sleeping at Jaiden’s for the night. They were all pretty tired after the high stress day, after all, and with no codes around it seemed like a pretty good opportunity. Ultimately, however, they decided against it. On the island, they’d have to sleep in shifts so someone was always awake to watch out for codes. If they warped to Spawn and got to the boat, they could sail away from the island and sleep far more comfortably. Not to mention, the cover of night may be useful for getting through Spawn safely.

They made their way down the treehouse and to the waystone. Empanada seemed reluctant to go, but Sunny gently encouraged and comforted her older sister, holding her hand 

“Remember, we’re going to Foolish’s,” Charlie said. “His place is right next to the boat, so we should get there pretty quickly, and it’ll hopefully be literal smooth sailing from there.”

He placed his hand on the waystone, concentrating, before warping away. He stumbled a little, legs almost giving out on him when he felt his feet rest on solid ground again. Something about warping always made his rash flare up… Once he’d steadied his footing, he finally glanced around, taking in his surroundings. His face immediately fell.

There were codes everywhere. Around Foolish’s dragon, swarming the distant Favela, and lurking above Phil's old house on the wall. In fact, there appeared to be a giant code right above the centre of the wall. There was danger in practically every single direction.

Basically a death trap for the eggs.

Speaking of, the eggs began to appear one by one as they warped over. Almost as soon as they did, each one found themselves pulled into a nearby bush by Charlie, who was doing his best to keep them out of sight of the nearby danger. When Sunny appeared, Charlie whispered to her as he pulled her into the bush, “Get the ghillie suit on now.” Sunny did as she was told.

JuanaFlippa was the last egg to warp and, knowing she was likely safe, Charlie didn’t push her into the bush with the other eggs. Instead, he took her hand and whispered to the other eggs, “Okay, since the codes don’t attack us, Flippa and I are gonna go and scope out the route to the boat. We’ll do our best to find or make a safe route. Just stay here out of sight, and shout if you need me. Keep an eye on them all for me, Roier, okay?”

Roier nodded. Charlie gently pulled Flippa away, the two walking in the direction of the boat. They followed the coastline, making note of which areas were unlit and had potential hiding spots. They continued underneath the first set of train tracks that emerged from the station, until the boat was right in front of them.

To Charlie’s relief, the boat itself wasn’t swarmed with codes. In fact, there didn’t seem to be any at all beyond the coastline, which while unusual, luckily meant they should be able to sail away pretty easily. However, there were quite a few hanging over the train station. Hopefully the boat was fast enough to outpace them if they tried to chase…

“I’m thinking we could maybe dig an underground path up from here to where the other eggs are? Then we should be able to bring them all the way over here unseen. Then we just all have to climb up onto to the boat, and we’ll be on our way.”

“D0n’t youuu th1nk digg1ing will t@ke a l0ng t1ime?” Flippa asked. “1t might b3 d@ylight by th3 time it's d0ne.”

Charlie hummed. “Good point. I don’t want to risk us being seen in the day… Do you think the eggs will be okay if we try to just make a run for it now? Or is it too risky?”

Flippa nodded. “W3 just h@ve to mak3 sure to av0id well lit ar3as. And m@ybe, if w3 try to sh3ild them with 0ur bodi3s, the other c0d3s won’t n0tice themmm?”

“Hey, that’s not a bad idea, Flippa.” Charlie smiled down at her, proud of his daughter’s quick thinking. “Come on, let's head back and we can tell them the plan.”

He took his daughter’s hand again, the two walking back towards Foolish’s dragon. To Charlie’s relief, all the eggs were still hiding where he’d left them, unharmed and unnoticed. Sunny’s ghillie suit was working especially well, he almost didn’t see her at all.

“Okay, the plan is basically just to make a run for it,” Charlie explained. “We’re going to stay really close to the coastline to stay out of the better lit areas further into the island. Plus, Flippa and I are going to do our best to basically act as human shields for you guys. Since the codes don’t attack us, maybe if we’re covering you, they might not notice you, and even if they do, they might not attack.”

Sunny frowned at that. “But what if they do attack and you get hurt?”

“Then I’ll just respawn and warp straight back as fast as I can.”

Sunny still didn’t look convinced. “What about you, JuanaFlippa? You’re an egg too, I don’t want you to lose your lives…”

“1’ll be 0kay, Sunny, 1 pr0mise.” Flippa gave her younger sister a warm smile. “You d0n’t ne3d to worryyy ab0ut me.”

“Everyone good with the plan?” Charlie asked, and all the eggs and Roier nodded. “Right. Weapons out and ready, and let’s go.”

As the eggs crept from the bus, Charlie and Flippa did their best to basically wrap themselves around them, covering them as much as they possibly could. With how many there were, it was pretty difficult to do, so Charlie quickly led them further down the coastline and further from the abundance of light surrounding Foolish’s dragon. Soon, the only light that illuminated their footsteps was that of the moon and the neon glow of the 1s and 0s across Charlie’s body.

Charlie’s eyes were flickering in every direction, paranoid that at any moment a code could jump out from nowhere and make a beeline for the children. They were so close now; if anything happened to them, he could never forgive himself. He wouldn’t let another egg die on his watch …

“P@p@, stop,” Flippa whispered when they were about half-way to the boat. Charlie did as his daughter told, following her glance.

They were just about to head underneath the train track bridge. Just above it, however, a binary code was hovering.

Charlie’s heart thudded in his chest. He didn’t dare to even breathe. Please, he silently begged, please not see the eggs, please fly away.

To his relief, his prayers seemed to be answered. The code turned, beginning to move down the tracks towards the train station.

“Okay, wait until it’s inside, then we’ll keep moving,” Charlie whispered.

The eggs nodded. Chunsik had his hands clamped over his mouth, terrified to make even the smallest noise. Pepito was practically cradling Roier to his chest, while Sunny and Empanada were holding each other’s hands tightly. Leonarda, Pomme, Dapper and Ramón were all on the defensive, weapons held at the ready.

As soon as the code had crossed the threshold of the train station, Charlie gave the eggs a nod and they started to move again. They moved under the bridge and behind the train station, the shadow of the building obscuring them enough that Charlie finally felt comfortable stepping back from the eggs. “I’ll climb up onto the boat and scope it out just to make sure there aren’t any codes hiding on there anywhere. When it’s cleared, I’ll come pull you guys up. Just stay here out of sight until I call you over.”

“Please stay safe, pop.” Sunny gave him a quick hug.

“I will, don’t worry. Flippa, look after your sister, okay?”

With that, Charlie turned and pulled himself up onto the boat. The deck appeared clear as he wandered around, so he headed down the stairs, inside the boat. It was clear of codes and fully furnished, with beds and a couch. He decided to take off his backpack while he was there, leaving it on the couch for now - it'd be easier to help the eggs into the boat without lugging the heavy bag around as he did it. Finally, Charlie headed back up the stairs and to the boat's helm.

He stopped in the doorway. A code was right by the control panel, just waiting there.

Charlie pulled his sword from where it was looped in his belt, before slowly tiptoeing forward. He slowly raised the sword as he approached the code from behind. He knew the codes were strong and he wasn’t exactly a skilled fighter - if only Etoiles were here - but maybe with the element of surprise, he could just about get the upper hand.

As soon as he was in reach of the code, he took a deep breath, pulling his sword right back. Then, he sweeped it around, swinging it into the code’s side as hard as he could.

The second the sword hit the code, a glitch forced its way through Charlie’s body. He pulled the sword from its side, taking a deep breath as his form settled. When he looked up, he expected the code to be advancing on him, going to attack.

But it wasn’t. Instead, it was moving away from him, trying to evade rather than fight back. Even when he showed hostility, it still didn’t seem to want to attack him. Strange…

Now comfortable with the knowledge he was completely safe, Charlie chased the code and swung again. And again. And again. Each time his sword made contact with the code, his body would glitch and contort, but he did his best to not let it slow him down.

The code did its best to evade, moving closer to out on the main deck, but Charlie was ruthless. He wasn’t going to risk it leaving the boat and seeing the eggs waiting outside. He needed to take it down.

He swung his sword yet again, but this time the code was fast. It zipped out of the way and out to the main deck.

Charlie didn’t hesitate. He ran after it as fast as he possibly could. Before the code could fly off of the boat, Charlie thrust his sword forward.

It plunged straight through the centre of the code. As his body glitched, Charlie snarled, “I w0n’t l3t y0u hurt myyy d@ught3rs!”

It was the final blow needed. The code began to glitch as well, its green numbers beginning to gradually blink away until, ultimately, it was gone.

Charlie sighed, collapsing to his knees, sword clattering to the floor. The glitching of his own body settled as he took deep breaths. Fuck, his rash was killing him…

“Pop! Are you okay?” Sunny’s voice called.

“Yeah, I’m okay, Sun! Don’t worry.” Charlie gripped the barrier around the deck, hoisting himself back up. He stepped up to the edge, looking over the barrier and down at the eggs. “It’s all safe now. You can climb on up.” He leaned over, holding out his hands. “I’ll help you guys. We need to be quick.”

JuanaFlippa immediately stepped forward. Instead of reaching for her father’s hands, however, she knelt down on all fours, looking to the other eggs. “Y0u can cl1mb on my b@ck for a b0ost.”

One by one, the eggs stepped up onto Flippa’s back and reached for Charlie’s hands, letting him pull them up onto the boat. They started with the youngest, Chunsik going first, then Pepito, who had Roier sitting on his shoulder. Then Sunny was next, then Empanada, then Pomme, then Ramón, then Dapper, and finally Leo.

“Okay, Flippa, your turn!” Charlie leaned back over. “Just jump and I’ll catch your arms.”

… But Flippa didn’t move. She just stood there, staring up at him.

“C’mon, Flippa, we’ve gotta hurry. We can’t stand around all day.”

Still nothing. There was a sad look in the girl’s eyes.

“Flippa? Is something wrong?”

Finally, Flippa spoke. Her voice was unusually soft. “You know I c@n’t come with y0u.”

“Huh? What are you talking about, of course you can. Just jump on up.”

“1 c@n’t physic@lly l3ave the b0undaries of th3 isl@nd. 1t’s n0t in my progr@mming. 1t's okay, y0u sh0uld go without m3. It's for th3 best anyw@y."

Charlie shook his head, eyes already welling with tears. “No, Flippa, if the other eggs can leave-”

“1’m n0t an 3gg. You kn0w th@t.”

“I can’t leave you here! You’re my daughter!”

“N0 1’m not.” Flippa shook her head. Her voice was eerily calm. “You kn0w 1’m not Ju@naFl1pp@. You alw@ys hav3.”

“Please…” Charlie pleaded, tone desperate as he leant forward even further. “I need you with me, I can’t lose you again. I love you too much, more than anything! Please take my hand, I can’t leave you!”

“You d0n’t ne3d me anym0re. You h@ve 5unny. You c@n ke3p on liv1ng for h3r now.”

Tears were streaming down Charlie’s face. “You’re both my kids, I need you both! Just take my hand!”

“No y0u don’t. Y0ur rash… hold1ng ont0 me is hurt1ng y0u. You ne3d to l3t Flipp@ go.”  

She reached up, taking off her glasses. Then, finally, she reached up to Charlie’s hands; but she didn’t take them. Instead, she handed him the glasses.

“I enj0yed h@ving you tak3 care of m3, you w3re a gr3at p@p@. Thank y0u for show1ng me wh@t it’s lik3 to be y0ur egg. M@ybe I alm0st was.”

“Guys…” Ramón whispered to the other eggs, pointing up. The codes that had been hovering above the train station had now moved to the edge of the building, staring down at the group on the boat.

“We have to go now.” Dapper turned, running to the ship’s helm and the control panel.

“But pop isn’t ready!” Sunny cried.

“We don’t have time, we’ll die if we stay any longer!” Dapper switched on the boat’s engine.

Charlie’s eyes widened in horror as soon as he noticed the boat starting to move. “No! No no no, Flippa, please! Just jump, I can catch you!”

But Flippa just smiled. Tears dripped down her own face as she stayed stood still. “Go0dbye p@p@. I love you.”

“No, don’t say goodbye, this can’t be goodbye! Please, don’t leave me again! Flippa! JUANAFLIPPA!”

As the boat pulled further and further away from the coastline, picking up speed, Flippa just waved. Slowly, her feet were overtaken by green 1s and 0s, which gradually spread up her body. Charlie kept screaming for her, leaning as far as he possibly could over the barrier, body racking with sobs. The last thing he saw, before she became too distant to see, was Flippa's warm smile disappearing into strings of code, now indistinguishable from the monsters that had overrun the island.

Charlie collapsed to his knees, body glitching as he screamed and cried. His hands gripped the glasses as tightly as he could without breaking them.

Sunny knelt down in front of him, leaning into his chest and wrapping her arms around him as securely as she could. Pepito quickly joined, leaning against Charlie’s back and hugging him tightly. One by one, all the other eggs stepped over, enveloping their tío in a comforting embrace.

Charlie continued to sob, but his arms found their way around Sunny, clinging on like he was scared to let go.

Notes:

CodeFlippa mi nina I am sorry ;-;

Chapter 6

Summary:

Charlie's communicator suddenly starts to work again

Charlie was very quiet over the whole journey.

He spent most of his time sitting at the helm of the boat, making sure it stayed on course - not that there was much of a course, he was just taking them roughly in the direction he had seen the plane heading, hoping that they’d somehow come across where the other island residents had landed. He constantly kept Flippa’s glasses on him, folded up and hanging on his t-shirt collar. Occasionally he’d be seen reading the same strange file from his backpack over and over. When the eggs asked what it was, he just said it was “nothing”. He rarely smiled, he’d often forget to eat, he’d spend nights led wide awake and then sleep in until mid-afternoon.

It was slightly unnerving to the older eggs who had known him for longer. The previous times he’d lost Flippa, they’d seen him bury his grief, either beneath fiery rage, or a boisterous attitude, loudness and jokes. Now he was just… tired, letting himself fall completely into the sadness and feeling it.

On the bright side, his code corruption was beginning to recede. Each day, a little more of his regular form was visible. And he wasn’t denying that it was code and instead calling it a ‘rash’ anymore; it was harder to pretend after seeing JuanaFlippa - well, CodeFlippa, as they’d all taken to calling her - transform into her code form before his very eyes. Charlie was the only one who wasn’t happy about it; he felt like he was losing connection to the daughter he left behind.

Sunny almost never left his side. On the few occasions he did eat, it was often because she had made him; their stubbornness was pretty useful in that regard. She just wanted to do her best to reassure her pop that, no matter what, she would still be here for him. He may have lost two daughters, but he had another, and they would do anything for him and weren’t going anywhere.

After almost constant sailing across the ocean for about a week, making only brief stops at islands they came across to collect some food and resources, something strange happened.

The eggs had been playing around out on the deck, Roier keeping an eye on them. The only exception was Sunny, who was sitting with her father at the boat’s helm. Charlie was once again reading his file; by this point, his code infection had receded from his legs, back to only being on his forearms, right shoulder and head.

Suddenly, in the middle of rereading the final entry in the file, he felt a vibration on his wrist. He frowned, closing the file and looking.

His communicator, dead since the island’s power went down, was back on. The screen had lit up, a loading wheel spinning, until it showed a familiar message screen.

[+] Slimecicle

Charlie blinked, watching as more messages appeared.

BagheraJones: CHARLIE????

FoolishG: DUDE UR ALIVE?

Tubbo_: WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN

Cellbit: holy shit

Cellbit: where are you?

“What… why…” Charlie mumbled to himself.

“Pop, look!” Sunny suddenly called. “There’s land, and I think I see a town!”

Charlie looked up where she was pointing. Sunny was right, they were approaching what seemed to be mainland. And there, in a valley, he could see what seemed to be a town in progress. The beach front already had a dock built, there few houses, including a half-finished familiar looking castle being built higher in the mountains.

Charlie shoved his file away back into his backpack, which was resting on the ground, before he quickly typed on his communicator.

Slimecicle: we got off the island on a boat. please tell me that town I can see is you guys

BadBoyHalo: who’s we?

Slimecicle: the eggs are with me

That triggered a stream of messages, coming in so fast Charlie could barely keep up with them. He looked at Sunny as he steered the boat towards the beach. “I think that’s where the others landed.”

Sunny’s eyes lit up. “Really?! Is Pa there?”

“Seems like it. Go tell Roier and the other eggs.”

Sunny nodded, running out to the deck. Charlie looked back out the window - he could see a crowd gathering on the beach. He looked down at his communicator as it started vibrating again.

oiBagi: we can see you!

Etoiles: did you steal the purgatory yacht? nice bro

“Is it true?!” Leonarda ran in, the other eggs right behind her. “We’ve found them?”

Charlie nodded, glancing between all the figures on the beach. The closer they got, the more he could make them out - and yet he couldn’t see the one he was looking for…

It didn’t take long for the boat to get close enough that they could hear the shouts of the crowd on the beach, most yelling the names of their eggs. Charlie stopped the engine as he steered the boat, bringing it to drift up to the dock.

Once the boat had stopped, Charlie scooped up to his backpack. The eggs, meanwhile, ran out to the deck and practically leapt off the side of the boat. Then, they all sprinted to the beach.

Chunsik barreled into Acau’s arms; Empanada was scooped up by Bagi, Tina, Mouse and Niki; Pomme found herself encompassed in the arms of the French speakers; Dapper and Bad hugged tightly; Leonarda wrapped her arms around Foolish and Vegetta’s necks as they lifted her up.

“Pa!” Sunny practically threw herself at Tubbo.

“Sunny! Oh, I’ve missed you so much, poppet,” Tubbo held her tightly. “I thought I was never going to see you again without saying goodbye…”

“Tubbo?” Ramón was glancing around the beach, frowning. “Where’s Fit?”

“Ah shit, um…” Tubbo’s face fell as he let go of Sunny, cringing a little awkwardly. “He, uh, left you a book at your house at second Spawn. You never got it because of the whole kidnapping thing, but I found it and kind of read it. It’s back at my place, I can go get it for you. The gist, though, um… he’s returned to whatever world he was from before the island. It doesn’t sound like he'll be able to come back…”

“Oh…”

Pepito was the only one aside from Ramón who didn’t immediately go for a hug, despite Quackity, Rivers and Carre being there with open arms. Instead, he ran up to Cellbit, putting himself between Cellbit and ‘Roier’. “Apá Celbi, I need to tell you something important! That isn’t apá Roier! It’s his evil twin who works for the Federation! We found the real apá Roier in the Federation labs, he’s been put in the body of a rat!”

Cellbit blinked, confused, until Pepito held up the rat in his hands.

“Gatinho!” Roier jumped from Pepito’s hands, clinging to Cellbit’s shirt. “I thought you were dead, I’m so glad you’re okay!”

“Guapito?! It’s really you?!”

“Si!” Roier pointed at the other human Roier. “That’s my brother, Doied! He stole my body!”

Cellbit looked up at Doied, expression immediately becoming a glare. Doied chuckled nervously, starting to back away - only to bump into Quackity, Rivers and Carre, who had similar expressions. Doied wasn’t even given a chance to make a run for it before he found himself punched in the face by Rivers, sending him crashing to the sand. Then, before he could regain his bearings, he’d already been tied up by a lasso, which Carre pulled tight.

“We’ll find a way to get you back in your body, guapito, I promise,” Cellbit reassured, holding Roier gently. “I’m sorry I didn’t realise it was you. Thank you, Pepito, for bringing him home.”

Pepito smiled, before pulling Cellbit, Quackity, Rivers and Carre into a hug.

At this point, Charlie finally stepped onto the beach from the dock. He watched the reunions around him. His best friend, Baghera, now hugging Dapper, relieved her children were home. His daughter, Sunny, finally getting to show her adoption certificate to Polispol and ask him to be her father. His stepson, Pepito, asking where his final parent was.

Charlie listened intently to Pepito’s question, hoping to overhear the answer-

“Slime?”

His breath caught in his throat. His eyes snapped towards the direction the voice came from.

There she was, stepping from the path into the town onto the sand of the beach. His puta esposa.

The second Charlie’s eyes met Mariana’s, it felt like something snapped inside of him. The weight of everything that had piled up since he freed the eggs a week ago suddenly collapsed onto him. Learning he had a stepson that he’d almost left. Learning he was a Federation experiment. Learning Jaiden was dead. Everything with CodeFlippa.

He was so tired.

He stepped up to Mariana and, before the other could react, fell against him. His face buried itself into Mariana’s shoulder as his knees buckled, and Mariana had to quickly grab his waist to stop him slipping.

“Slime, que- …Are you crying?”

“I left her…” Charlie’s voice was barely above a whisper as his tears stained the shoulders of Mariana’s jumpsuit. “She made me leave her behind…”

“Who?”

“F-Flippa…”

Mariana frowned, confused - before she remembered that one day, just before Purgatory, that she had spent with that imposter.  “Slime… that wasn’t- “

“I know. I know it wasn’t the original Flippa, but…” Charlie tried to take a deep breath, only to choke on a sob. “Sh-she’s still my daughter. And I left her…”

His shoulders shook as he continued to cry. Mariana gently ran his hands up and down Charlie’s back. “It’s okay, Slime. I’m here. I’ve got you.”

---

Charlie didn’t remember going to sleep. He did remember, however, waking up a good twelve hours later in a bed in Mariana’s new house. Nothing inappropriate had happened, Mariana reassured as she’d brought him breakfast in bed; he’d just been so exhausted, and with no house of his own, she had brought him here to sleep.

“Thanks,” Charlie said as the meal was placed on his lap.

There was a long pause as Charlie slowly started to eat, while Mariana sat at the end of the bed, just watching him.

“I thought you were dead,” Mariana eventually said, breaking the silence. “All those months at new Spawn and I didn’t see you once. When I asked the others, they said they hadn’t seen you since prison… Where were you?”

“Where I always was: at Eggxile. With Flippa - well, CodeFlippa.”

“Did she not ever try to hurt you? I only spent a day with her, and she took me to the Nether and knocked me out, and then I woke up in Purgatory.”

Charlie frowned. “What? She never did anything like that to me, she was a perfect daughter. Did you do anything to upset her?”

“Well… when I realised she wasn’t the real JuanaFlippa, I called her a demon and I tried to perform an exorcism on her.”

“That explains it,” Charlie chuckled a little. “Can’t expect your daughter to love you if you treat her like that. It’s a shame I wasn’t there when you met her, I could have made sure you and CodeFlippa got along. Though…” his face fell a little, “maybe it’s for the best you never got close to her, with how things turned out…”

There was another heavy pause. Mariana hesitated, not quite sure how to respond, before deciding to change the subject.

“Thank you for bringing Pepito back with you. When Quackity and, um, fake Roier told me he was gone, I felt awful. I couldn’t even be there to say goodbye. It means a lot, to have more time with him, and now without the Federation looming over us to stop it.”

Charlie shrugged. “It’s nothing. I mean, he’s technically my stepson, right? I couldn’t leave him.”

Mariana smiled. “He was here earlier while you were asleep. He told me all about how cool he thinks you are. ‘Papi Slime is a hero’.”

“Hero is definitely a step up from misclicker.” Charlie half-joked.

There was yet another pause.

Charlie stared down at his plate, fidgeting with his knife and fork. “Hey, um… back in Purgatory, when we said we’d try again…” He looked up at Mariana, eyes a little teary. “Do you, uh, do you still want that? Just, these last few months, and everything that’s happened, it’s just…” he took a deep breath, “made me realise how much I miss you.”

Mariana went to respond, only for Charlie to interrupt, continuing.

“I know we weren’t perfect, I know we both kept hitting on other people, and I know we fought all the time and instead of actually resolving shit we just had sex. But I think, if we try again, we can be better. We can be good for each other, and we can be better parents. And I want it to work between us because, fuck, Mariana, I love you, and I’m not just saying that because I’m tired and sad and desperate for some kind of stability, I really love you. And I need you.”

Tears were slowly falling down his face as he stared at Mariana. His heart thudded in his chest as he waited for her to respond.

Mariana sighed, shifting to sit closer to Charlie. He reached out, cupping the other man’s face. “Mi puto esposo… I’ve missed you too.” 

She pressed her lips to Charlie’s, not caring about his tears, which seemed to fall faster. As soon as Mariana pulled away, Charlie buried his face into the crook of her neck, hugging her tight. “Thank you…”

“You don’t need to thank me for loving you, pendejo.”

Notes:

I think the next chapter will be the last one, a little epilogue

Chapter 7

Summary:

Charlie finally gets his ending.

Charlie took a deep breath, staring at himself in the mirror. Was it bad that seeing himself free of code corruption felt strange now? He adjusted the popsicle stick poking out of the slime on his head, straightening it out.

He frowned as he looked down at his outfit. A white button-down shirt, black pants and a waistcoat, a green tie, and draping off his shoulders, a white cape. It fell down to about half-way down his thighs, green flowers decorating where the cape was clipped onto his shoulders  “Baghera, you don’t think this is too understated, do you? Maybe I should have gone for a dress…”

Baghera chuckled from where she was sitting on her bed, wearing a suit and tying her tie. “It looks fine, Charlie, don’t worry.”

“It’s hard not to. Like, you know Mariana’s gonna look gorgeous; I don’t want to look like I didn’t even try in comparison…”

“Hey, you’re not just wearing a boring black suit, that’s already fancier than most grooms - don’t tell Cellbit I said that. You look amazing, okay?” Baghera reassured. “Mariana is going to be blown away when she sees you.”

“Okay… I just really want today to go well. I mean, this is it, our official fresh start.”

“It’s going to be great, we’ve planned the perfect day. Now come sit down here so we can do your makeup.”

Charlie sat down beside her, staying as still as he could while Baghera started to put foundation on his face. “... Can I tell you something? It’s a secret, I don’t want you to tell anyone else.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“I, um, I found something in the Federation labs I rescued the eggs from; a file with records from an experiment they carried out years ago. The study was on… genetically engineering slime-human hybrids. And well, surprise surprise, the first and only successful test subject had the codename SLMCCL, and the photo looks exactly like a kid version of me.”

Baghera stared at him for a moment, before a small smile appeared on her face. “Well, that explains why we get along so well; we probably knew each other when we were kids.”

“Huh?”

“The Federation also did experiments with bird-human hybrids. Guess who found their old childhood bedroom and diary on the island.”

Charlie blinked at her. Of course, the file mentioned ‘avian experiments’. “Wait, you got an actual bedroom?!”

“Yeah? Didn’t you?”

“No, me and my siblings got shoved in a tiny room called the Boy Box! You got fucking lucky, I wish I had been a bird experiment.”

“It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, trust me. My diary makes it clear I wasn’t exactly a pampered golden child… I wouldn’t be surprised if, with how much she got along with Cucurucho, Jaiden probably was.”

“She was an experiment too?”

“I don’t know for sure, but I assume so. I mean, she was also part bird, and she didn’t have any memories from before the island.”

Charlie hummed. “Do you think I should tell Mariana about this? He should know everything about me if we’re getting officially married, shouldn’t he? I just worry it’ll make him hate me.”

“Why do you think that? I’m sure it won’t matter to her where you come from.”

“It’s not me being an experiment I’m worried about. It’s more about… what I did when I was being experimented on…”

Baghera frowned. “What did you do?”

“I, um… Please don’t hate me for this, but I kind of killed all my siblings except Mike. I mean, I always remembered doing it, but I figured it was out of the need to survive. But in the file it sounds like I just reacted badly to becoming a hybrid at first and went on a killing spree… I wasn’t killing for necessity, I was a bloodthirsty monster.” Charlie sighed. “Why would Mariana want to marry someone like that?”

Baghera took hold of Charlie’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly. “Good thing he isn’t then. He’s not marrying SLMCCL the Federation experiment. He’s marrying Charlie Slimecicle, someone who overcame a terrible childhood and a lot of hardship to become a good man and hero; my best friend, and someone completely worthy of love. Mariana won’t care, I know it.”

“You’re sure?”

“Positive. Besides, after Purgatory we’re pretty much all guilty of that kind of thing. We’re away from the Federation, the Watcher, all of that now. It’s a fresh start for everyone. What happened back there doesn’t matter.”

“Thanks, Baghs.” Charlie took a deep breath. “Fuck, the ceremony hasn’t even started yet and I’m already almost crying.”

“Hey, keep those tears in or your makeup will be ruined before it's even done,” Baghera playfully scolded, lightening the tone.

“Okay, okay, I can keep it together. Heavy shit’s over, keep going.”

A few minutes later, Baghera was pulling Charlie in front of the mirror again to look at her handiwork. “What do you think? Is it good?”

“It’s perfect, thanks.” Charlie checked the clock. “Half an hour to go. Then the Charlie Slimecicle bachelor streak is over. Man, I’m gonna miss annoying Cellbit by flirting with him, it was always funny to see his reactions.”

Baghera chuckled. “I’m going to head out and check with the others that everything is almost ready. I’ll be back in a bit, don’t mess up your outfit while I’m gone.”

“I’ll be good, I promise,” Charlie grinned, sitting back on the bed as Baghera left the room. He heard her footsteps move through her house and the sound of the front door - and then a small gasp.

“Mike! Bonjour, we weren’t sure you’d be able to make it! Come in.”

“Oi Baghera! I wasn’t going to miss my brother’s wedding. Cellbit told me he’s here?”

Charlie quickly got to his feet, practically running out to the living room. Mike was all dressed up for the occasion, the same suit he’d worn to Cellbit and Roier’s wedding, and grinned when he saw Charlie. “Slime! You look amazing! It’s been too long, I’m glad to see you’re okay.”

“Mike, hey! When the eggs told me you’d gone off with a goddess I figured I wouldn’t see you again.”

Mike shrugged. “We were just travelling, and the three of us couldn’t leave you guys forever. Besides, the moment I heard you were getting married, I knew I had to come back so I could be your best man.”

“Ooh, you’re a little late there, bro.” Charlie nodded at Baghera. “That position’s already filled. But hey, I could always use another groomsman. So far I’ve only got Tubbo, Cellbit and Foolish.”

Mike feigned a dramatic sigh. “I guess it’ll have to do. Happy to be a part of it, Slime.”

“Where’s Pac and Richas, by the way?” Baghera asked. “I’m guessing they came with you.”

“Richas is with Cellbit, and Tubbo dragged Pac away saying he had some important machine to show him.”

At that, Charlie frowned. “Tubbo’s supposed to be getting Sunny ready…” He glanced at Baghera, who nodded.

“I’ll find them and make sure they’re ready while I do the final checks. Be back in a bit.” She headed from the house, closing the door behind her.

Mike glanced out the window, smiling at the view. “Quesadilla Valley was a good name choice for this place. You guys really have brought all the best stuff from the island back here. I’ll probably build a house, maybe remake my ranch from the island. It’ll be nice to have somewhere to stay when we’re tired of travelling.”

“Yeah, that’d be cool,” Charlie smiled as well. “It hasn’t been the same without you guys - especially without Richas running around and popping up everywhere.”

Mike chuckled. “Speaking of, I hear you're a hero to the eggs now?”

“Eh, depends who you ask. I don’t think Dapper would ever go as far as calling me that.”

“He’s still got a grudge against you after you saved him?”

“I guess when the reason he disliked me was because I tried to kill him, it just kinda levels everything to a neutral stance,” Charlie shrugged with a small chuckle, though it trailed off.

He knew what he had to say. It wouldn’t be right to keep it from his brother. It was his past too, after all.

“... Hey, uh, Mike, I have something I need to give you. It’s something I found back on the island, it’s pretty important.”

“Oh? What is it?”

Charlie gestured for him to follow, guiding his brother back to Baghera’s bedroom. His backpack was slouched in the corner of the room, and from inside of it, Charlie pulled the file. He had almost left it behind in his and Mariana house for the day, but he hadn’t wanted to risk her finding it. “Here. You should read this, though, um, I’d prefer if you did so after the wedding. What you do with the information in there is up to you.”

Mike took the file, frowning a little in concern. However, he nodded. “Sim, of course.”

“Thanks-”

“Charlie!” Baghera’s voice called, accompanied by the sound of the front door of the house practically being slammed open. Charlie and Mike quickly headed out to meet her, finding her standing in the doorway, an excited grin on her face. “I stopped off to see if Tubbo’s ready - he is, and so is Sunny, don’t worry. But he actually asked me to bring you your wedding gift from him…”

She moved fully into the house, allowing someone else to step into view. Mike and Charlie’s jaws dropped.

“Phil?!”

“No mames, dude, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again!”

Phil grinned as he stepped inside, already dressed in his wedding guest attire. “Hey, guys.”

“I don’t understand,” Mike was shaking his head in disbelief. “I thought you were stuck in a different world?”

“It’s the machine Tubbo was talking about,” Baghera explained. “He said he’s been working on something about time travel and in his experiments with wormholes and shit he accidentally found out how to make portals to different worlds.”

“With good timing too, since I hear it’s someone’s wedding today.” Phil smiled at Charlie. “I’m glad we aren’t missing it. Missa’s reuniting with the other Spanish speakers at the moment, Chay and Lullah are catching up with the others eggs, and Fit-”

“FIT’S BACK TOO?!” Mike practically yelled. “Where?!”

“He’s with Pac, I think they’re in the town centre.”

Immediately, Mike ran from the house, file gripped in hand, calling as he went. “Great to see you again, Phil! Catch up more later, okay?”

“Great to see you too!”

“Well, I definitely need to thank Tubbo for getting you here,” Charlie said as Phil turned back to him. “Wouldn’t be right without all the Bolas gang. Well, um, not all…”

Phil’s face fell. “You heard about Jaiden then?”

“Yeah… I wish she could be here. Things had better go well with Mariana this time now that I’ve lost my divorce lawyer.” Charlie forced a chuckle.

Phil frowned a little, like he was thinking, before sliding his backpack from his back. He rifled through it. “I think I’ve got some of Lullah’s flowers in here… aha!” He pulled out a small bunch of purple allium flowers. He took one, sliding it to rest on his hat. With another, he placed it into the chest pocket of Baghera’s suit. With another, he pushed it into Charlie’s hair, resting above his right ear. “There. Jaiden’s with us in spirit. I’ll give the rest of these to the other Bolas members.”

“Phil, that’s so sweet.” Baghera smiled softly. “It’s perfect. Maybe give one to Empanada as well, I think she’d like that.”

Charlie fiddled with the flower in his hair, adjusting it a little. “... Hey, Phil?”

“Yeah, Charlie?”

“I, uh… I was thinking, I don’t really have anyone to, like, walk me down the aisle and give me away. I mean, I don’t exactly have a real dad or anything. And like… team leader’s pretty much the next best thing, right? Besides, I feel like you should have some kinda role, but I already have a lot of groomsmen, so…”

Phil nodded. “I’d be happy to walk you down the aisle.”

Baghera looked between the two with a mischievous smirk. “Does this mean you guys will do a father-son dance at the reception?”

“Oh god, no.”

“Absolutely not.”

---

“You ready?”

“Yeah, I am.”

Charlie looped his arm with Phil’s, tightly gripping the bouquet of green flowers in his hands. As Phil led him down the path to the beach, Charlie smiled down at Sunny, who walked just ahead, holding a basket of flower petals.

As they passed the trees that lined the beachfront, which had been decorated with fairy lights, Charlie got his first look at the ceremony set up. The sun was just starting to descend in the sky, creating a gorgeous gradient backdrop. A long carpet rested on the sand, leading to a white, yellow and green floral archway. On either side of the carpet, chairs were set up, all the residents of Quesadilla Valley seated there. All were all dressed in nice suits and dresses for the occasion - except Fit, who stuck out like a sore thumb, given he had not long ago arrived from a wasteland where he had zero access to smart clothes.

Tallulah, Leonarda, Pomme and Richarlyson were not sitting with the rest. Instead, they were all standing to the side and had their flutes out, performing the wedding march for Charlie to walk down the aisle to.

Roier was thankfully back in his human body for the ceremony (Doied had been confined in the rat one and locked away in a cage). He was Mariana's best man, he and Baghera standing next to the arch on either side. Pepito stood just in front of Roier, pink dragon tail swishing excitedly. Etoiles, acting as security as he had at Roier and Cellbit’s wedding, was standing nearby with his scythe in hand. Cellbit, who had gotten ordained online a few weeks before, stood under the arch along with Mariana.

As soon as Charlie’s eyes landed on Mariana, he felt like he couldn’t tear them away. She looked gorgeous…

She wore a long white gown, a faint floral pattern embroidered on the bodice, and a matching veil. Over the dress, he wore a black charro jacket with golden yellow embroidery. He held a yellow bouquet, and his face was adorned with golden eyeshadow and ruby red lipstick. The sweetest smile was on her face as she stared right back at him, eyes practically sparkling.

“Wow…” Charlie mumbled, earning a quiet chuckle from Phil.

“Hey, save your ‘el sexo’ thoughts for after the reception.”

“Shut up.” Charlie gave Phil a small nudge.

Sunny went down the aisle first, throwing the petals from her basket as she slowly walked. Charlie and Phil moved just behind her. Charlie felt his heart thudding harder and harder in his chest as he grew closer and closer to his wife-to-be.

Once they reached the front, Sunny threw the last of her petals before moving to stand near Baghera. Phil unlooped his arm from Charlie’s, giving him a pat on the back, and then stepped away, going to sit with Missa and Chayanne. Tallulah, Leonarda, Pomme and Richarlyson came to the end of the wedding march, putting their flutes away as they went to sit with their parents.

Charlie took a small breath as he stepped under the arch, turning face-to-face with Mariana. “Hey.”

“Hola,” Mariana whispered back.

“You look beautiful.”

“So do you. I like the cape.”

“Thanks. Your dress is really pretty.”

Their hushed conversation was brought to a close by Cellbit clearing his throat. “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join this slime and this human in holy matrimony. As is customary, I must ask, if anyone has any reason to object to this union, please speak now or forever hold your peace.”

There was a long pause. Nothing.

“I was honestly kind of hoping someone would as karma,” Cellbit hummed, giving Charlie a playful glare. 

Charlie just shrugged as the guests chuckled. “Hey, can’t blame a guy for trying.”

“If no one wishes to object, we can begin the vows. Which of you would like to go first?”

“I will.” Mariana spoke so quickly Charlie didn’t even have a chance to open his mouth. “If, uh, that’s alright with you?”

“Yeah, of course,” Charlie nodded. “Go ahead.”

Mariana handed her bouquet back to Roier. Then, she reached into the pocket of her jacket, pulling out a sheet of paper. He unfolded it, before starting to read.

“Slime… Charlie. On Quesadilla Island, I was not always there for you when you needed me. When we were first paired for the egg task, I immediately tried to deny it. When you went into Eggxile, I didn’t make much of an effort to reach out and convince you to come back home. When we lost JuanaFlippa, I chose to run away and disappear. While it did help me grieve and come to terms with losing Flippa, now that I have seen just how much you went through while I was gone, I can’t help but regret it. You needed support, and no one had been there to give it. My promise to you is that I will never, ever run again. Whatever happens to us from now on, I will stay by your side. As they say, through richer and poorer, until death do us part. I’ll make sure you never have to doubt my love for you again. Te siempre amo, mi amor.”

Charlie took a deep breath, doing his best to fight back the tears welling in his eyes as he passed his bouquet back to Baghera. He reached into his own pocket, pulling out his own sheet of paper.

“Mariana, since we met, I have been through… a lot of shit. I lost two daughters, I lost a close friend, I accidentally killed a different friend’s kid, and I got a code infection that almost destroyed my body.” He paused for a moment, before ad-libbing a line not in his script. “I even discovered that I was created as a Federation experiment, making me completely reevaluate all my memories of my childhood.” He ignored the gasps from the guests and the way Mariana’s eyes widened, just continuing. “It was a lot. There were so many times I felt tempted to just… give up. But every time, there was something that stopped me. That something was you. Knowing you were out there, that in Purgatory you had told me you were willing to try again, it gave me hope that maybe one day I could finally just… settle down and live a normal life and start to heal. And now here we are, about to do just that. I am so thankful. For the time I got to spend with JuanaFlippa and CodeFlippa, for my step-son Pepito, for my beautiful daughter Sunny, and for you, Mariana. My promise to you is that I will not take you for granted like I did in the early days. I will cherish every moment I have with my family, because those moments are precious. I promise to love you more than anything.”

He looked nervously up at Mariana as he lowered his sheet of paper. To his relief, the shock about the reveal of his past had quickly disappeared. Instead, Mariana was smiling softly down at him, pure love in her eyes, a tear escaping down her cheek.

Cellbit smiled between the two of them. “Do you, Mariana, take Charlie Slimecicle to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

“Sí, acepto.”

“And do you, Charlie, take El Mariana to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do.”

“May we have the rings?”

Sunny and Pepito both stepped forward, holding wedding bands out to their respective parents. Mariana took the one Pepito held, sliding it onto Charlie’s ring finger. Then, Charlie took the one Sunny held out to him, sliding it onto Mariana’s finger.

“With that, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

The guests erupted into cheers and Cellbit stepped away. Mariana slowly leaned down for a kiss - only to feel hands grab his waist. Before she could react, she found herself dipped, Charlie grinning down at her as he held her. “You’re stuck with me now, mi puta esposa~”

Charlie pressed his lips to Mariana’s, and she didn’t hesitate to kiss back, reaching up to cup Charlie’s face.

The moment was captured in a photo by Phil. Flower petals falling from the arch around them, the sky behind them a soft orangey-pink thanks to the setting sun.

---

The reception was held in the town centre, which had been decorated for the event. With dancing, cake, karaoke, and catering by Chayanne, it was a wonderful celebration.

Charlie spent most of the evening with his bride, of course. They sat together during the meal, they cut the cake together, they had the customary first dance, they did the first karaoke duet. The only time they weren’t at each other’s sides were when Charlie, with a good few drinks in his system, went up to sing with Baghera, Foolish and Cellbit - first Gangnam Style, and then they attempted The Disappearance of Hatsune Miku in honour of Jaiden. 

After another duet with Mariana - a Spanish love song Charlie did his absolute best to sing with his limited knowledge of the language - Mariana stepped away to grab them some more drinks, leaving Charlie alone.

He hummed to himself, leaning against a nearby table. Maybe he could ask Mouse if she wanted to sing with him, they could give Bop to the Top another go-

Oh. Charlie felt his stomach drop. Mike was coming towards him.

He took a deep breath, preparing for the worst. It surprised him when Mike pulled him into a hug.

“Congratulations, Slime!”

“Oh, um, thanks. I, uh… I’m sorry for dropping that bombshell during my vows, I didn’t even give you a chance to read that file and find out in your own time in private-”

“I actually already read it before the ceremony.” Mike pulled from the hug, patting Charlie’s shoulder. “Sorry for breaking the promise, I was too curious. But It’s okay. It doesn’t change anything. Honestly, it’s kind of nice to finally have answers about why I don’t remember much from when we were kids.”

Charlie frowned. “You’re not mad at me for what I did to our siblings?”

“No? Why would I be? You didn’t have control over yourself, it was all the Federation’s fault for messing with your DNA and turning you into a fucked up monster - which you clearly aren’t anymore. I’m not going to blame you for that.”

Charlie sighed a little in relief. “Thanks for understanding.”

“You don’t need to thank me.” Mike patted his back reassuringly.

“Pop!” Sunny came running up to the two, grabbing Charlie’s hand. “Come dance with me! Pepito told me he’s going to dance with mami Mariana, so I wanna dance with you at the same time.”

“Okay, Sun, sounds like fun.” Charlie looked back up at Mike. “Talk more later?”

Mike nodded. “Go have fun, it’s your wedding day. You deserve to enjoy it.”

Charlie let his daughter pull him onto the dance floor, giving Mike a small wave as he went. As they started to dance, Charlie glanced over at Mariana, who was picking Pepito up, spinning him around as the boy giggled. Charlie couldn’t help but smile as he watched.

“Pop?”

He looked down at his daughter’s voice. “Yeah, Sun?”

“Mami Mariana wanted me to tell you she needs to show you something important after this. I can’t tell you what, it’s a surprise, but it’s really important.”

“A surprise, huh? Is it a ‘I should be excited’ surprise, or a ‘I should be nervous’ one?”

“An excited one! But I can’t tell you more than that, I promised.”

“Hm… even if I gave you a diamond?”

“Nope.”

“Two diamonds?”

“Nuh uh.”

“Ten?”

“I have plenty already, Pop. A queen cannot be bought.”

Charlie gasped dramatically. “Of course, how foolish of me! Apologies for the disrespect, your majesty.” He paused dancing to give Sunny a bow.

“You’re forgiven, Sir Popcicle.” Sunny curtsied back with a giggle, before taking Charlie’s hands again and going back to dancing with him. “Hey, pop?”

“Yeah, Sun?”

“About the whole experiment thing…” Sunny pushed her sunglasses onto her head. Their eyes stared up at him with an earnest expression of comfort. “You don’t need to feel bad about it, okay? I mean, me and all my siblings were Federation experiments too. Just because we came from a bad place doesn’t make us bad. You coming and saving us all says way more about you than where you were made. So please don't get upset about it.”

Charlie smiled. “Thanks, Sun, I promise I won't. You know, the Federation did a lot of fucked up shit, but they did do at least one thing right."

"What?"

"They gave me the best daughters. C’mere, mi huevo!”  He scooped Sunny up, hugging her tightly as the song they were dancing to came to an end. Sunny hugged back, giggling and resting her head on Charlie’s shoulder. “Well, guess I should go ask Mariana about that surprise. You want to come with, Sun?”

Sunny shook her head as he was put back down. “Mami Mariana said she wanted to show you alone. I’m gonna go ask pa to do karaoke with me, he promised me we'd sing something by ABBA together.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in a bit. Make sure someone videos it so I can watch it later, I want to see my star performing her heart out.” Charlie gave her a small wave, before heading over to Mariana, who had just sent Pepito off to dance with Quackity. He smiled as he saw Charlie approaching.

"Hey, where's the drink you said you were getting me?" the slime hybrid teased.

"Dancing with my son took priority. You'll have to hang on a little longer, tu alcohólico."

"It's my wedding night, I'm allowed to get a little tipsy. Anyway, I’ve been told there’s a surprise waiting for me? I thought we weren’t getting each other wedding gifts.”

“I know, but I had a bit of a last minute idea I had to follow through with.” Mariana moved behind Charlie, holding her hands over his eyes. “No peeking.”

Charlie smirked as he let himself be led away from the party. “Let me guess, we’re heading back to yours for the night~?”

Mariana rolled his eyes fondly. “No, pendejo, not yet. It’d be rude to leave our own wedding early. I’m trying to do something sweet so get the sexy thoughts out of your head for now, okay?”

“Hard to do that when you look so hot in that dress.”

“Slime.”

“Okay, okay. Saving that for later, got it.”

Mariana soon came to a stop. Apparently they weren’t alone anymore, as Richarlyson’s voice rang out. “Olá tío Mariana, tío Slime!”

“Hola, Richarlyson! Is everything ready?”

“Almost, just a few finishing touches… There! Good to go.”

“Okay, Charlie, you can look in tres… dos… uno!”

Charlie opened his eyes as Mariana pulled her hands away, and immediately felt his breath catch in his throat.

The three were looking at the exterior back wall of the town’s art gallery - similar to the one that had been on Quesadilla Island, where the residents and eggs could display any artwork they created. The previously blank white wall now had a mural painted on it.

The mural featured a lush field, vibrant green grass dotted with flowers of all the colours of the rainbow. The sky was blue, the bright sun rising high. And there, running through the field in the centre of the mural, joyful smiles on their faces, were two girls. Two nearly identical girls: the same thick glasses with chunky black frames, the same light brown hair tied into two braids, the same green horns, wings and tail. There were only two differences between the two: first was what they held, one brandishing a gun, the other waving a bubble blower. Second was the fact that the one with the bubble blower had some faint green 1s and 0s surrounding her person.

Charlie stared up at the mural, taking in as much as he could before his vision went cloudy with tears. “It’s beautiful…” His voice came out quiet.

“I’m planning on adding Tilín, Trump, Bobby, tía Jaiden and tío Maxo later,” Richarlyson said, picking up his backpack of painting supplies. “But Mariana had the idea for this earlier today and asked me to work on it over the reception.”

“It’s amazing, Richarlyson, thank you.” Charlie did his best to keep his voice steady, stepping slightly closer to the mural. There they were, his lost daughters, forever immortalised in the middle of town. Never too far away. Anyone who visited here would be able to see JuanaFlippa and CodeFlippa, to know they were once alive, to know they are loved.

Charlie took a deep breath. He turned, throwing his arms around Mariana, pulling her close and pressing his face in the crook of her neck. “Thank you.”

“It’s nothing, Charlie. Richas did all the hard work-”

“Not just for the mural. Thank you for giving me a happy ending.”

Mariana rubbed Charlie’s back, before lifting his husband’s head. He tenderly wiped away Charlie’s tears. “I think you deserve the credit for that yourself, esposo.” He pressed a soft kiss to Charlie’s lips, taking his hands. “It’s getting late. ¿Un baile final?”

Charlie smiled. “Si.”

He gently hugged Mariana’s arm as the two made their way back to the town centre. And for the first time, as long as he could remember, Charlie knew that everything would be okay.

Notes:

And with that, q!Charlie's story comes to a close. I hope this fic did justice to the character and helps others like me who were not okay with q!Charlie's lack of resolution to feel some kind of closure.
Thank you Mr Charles Slmccl for creating the guy who I've been rotating in my brain for over a year, you really made the most compelling fucked-up dude