Family Days: Oneshot Collection

by TheCat1987

Summary:

A collection of short stories on a slow day at the circus.

Notes:

Thank you to ParkRyder525 for some of these ideas.

I wanted to try an experiment of writing very short oneshots that just give more about the characters or just having cute moments with them. Kind of like the new shorts Helluva Boss is going to have. They might not be full stories but it gives characters some time to shine.

The first story is based of a Calvin & Hobbes strip where Calvin tries to tackle Hobbes but fails. Fortunately Buckzo wouldn't claw at him but he still traps his son for trying to interrupt his nap. Definitely in character for them ;)

Barbie I could see trying to sneak the special cookies her mom got at the store but with Buckzo blocking her path, it's a battle of wits. But since she worked so hard, after dinner she got the first cookie ^_^

Fizz I could see not wanting to overstep his bounds when he has one-on-one time with his surrogate parents but when Tilla brings him onto the couch, he lets his guard down in his sleep and calls her something he's been thinking about a lot.

And with the Buckzo and Tilla story, I wanted to have some cute flirty moments with them but also hint at their past and how they got together. I'll delve into it more but for now it's just hints here. They both escaped a bad situation.

[Golden Opportunity]

 

Buckzo was napping on the couch, needing a break after practicing his clowning skills. Even with how fun circus shit could be, it could also be pretty fucking exhausting. Normally he’d go nap in his trailer but with how tired he was, stretching out on the couch was better for his back and neck. A little nap wouldn’t hurt and then he could get back to work on his paperwork crap.

Unbeknownst to Cash, however, he was going to be getting a surprise during his nap.

Blitzo had finished his chores and was going to watch some TV before dinner. He wanted to see his favorite pony cartoons before his parents hogged the TV with the news after dinner. The little guy was disappointed to see his dad snoozing on the couch, his hat covering his eyes. He probably wouldn’t want the TV on when he was sleeping.

“Crap.” Blitzo grumbled, crossing his arms in frustration. “Now what can I do?”

Tapping his chin, the small imp then got an idea. His dad was pretty much out cold so he was totally vulnerable. Barbie managed to tackle their dad when he was distracted by Blitzo so with him conked out, he could totally get him. Barbie and Fizz would be so impressed he finally got the drop on him.

Grinning to himself, Blitzo managed to clamber onto the nearby armchair and position himself just right so he could tackle him just right. Wiggling his tail to give him proper momentum, he leapt off the chair with a mighty yell.

“YAAAH!”

Not even opening his eyes, Buckzo smirked before using his tail to grab his son around the middle. He opened his eyes to see his goofy son squirming in his tail trap, confused and a little bit nervous. “Gotcha,” He chuckled.

“N-No fair! I was so close!” Blitzo grumbled, waving his arms to try and get at his dad.

“If ya wanna tackle me, don’t yell out like a doofus ya doofus.” Buckzo told him before looking at him sternly. “And what have I told you about climbing on furniture?”

“To not to?” He guessed.

“Bingo.”

Blitzo blushed as his dad gave him a knowing smile. He didn’t seem angry but that smile was very worrying to him. “I-I’ll remember that…can I go now?” He asked, laughing nervously.

“Oh no no no. Now it’s my turn!” The older imp grinned wickedly, spinning his tail in so Blitzo was trapped by his tail and arm. “This is what ya get for interrupting my nap, ya little runt! C’mere!”

Blitzo groaned as he felt his dad noogie the hell out of him. “Ack! Uncle! Uncle!” He whined.

“Try to tackle me again while I’m napping and you know what’s waiting for you, pipsqueak.” He warned playfully.

“Alright I get it! Lemme go!” Blitzo yelled out in annoyance.

Buckzo kept it up for a few more minutes before letting his son go, laughing at how dizzy he looked. “Alright you’ve had enough. Go find Fizz or Barb, alright?” He jokingly ordered before pulling his hat over his eyes. “Still wanna get a nap in before working on that paperwork shit.”

“Yes Papa.” Blitzo nodded, rubbing his head as his dad immediately fell back asleep.

At first he pouted a bit from failing at trying to tackle his dad once again along with getting caught and noogied for his trouble. But he wouldn’t give up. He’d send him rolling backwards like Barbie did. He’d probably get bonked for his trouble but it’d be worth it.

“I’ll get you one of these days…” Blitzo muttered with a devious smile before heading outside.

Buckzo opened one eye before shutting it again, smiling to himself. The boy certainly had guts, he could definitely say that.

“You’ve got a long way to go, knucklehead.” Buckzo chuckled to himself.

[END]

 

[Operation: Cookie Thief]

 

Barbie had just finished putting the costumes in order in the props tent when she saw her mom had returned from grocery shopping. Wanting to be helpful, and potentially scope out some snacks she could sneak at later, the young imp girl decided to help her mom put groceries away.

“Hey mom, do you need any help?” Barbie asked, entering the house.

“That’d be great kiddo. If you can get the vegetables put in the fridge, that’d be a great help.” Tilla told her gratefully.

Barbie was ready to be handed some vegetables when her eyes caught the most wonderful thing she had ever seen. Sometimes in the mail they got fliers with coupons for the store that would give discounts on groceries. Usually it meant they’d be stuck with junk they didn’t necessarily like but if it was a good deal, they put up with it. But this time she saw something that made her eyes widen and her mouth start to drool.

“Are those Chunky Choco-chip Cookies with Marshmallow bits and Raspberry chips?!” Barbie gasped.

“Yup. They had a good deal and they looked pretty good so I figured why not?” Tilla smiled.

Barbie immediately made a run for the cookies, panting rapidly. “I gotta try it! I gotta try it!” she declared, not even noticing she was basically running on air as her mom had caught her in her arms.

“Ah-ah. No dessert before dinner.” Tilla chided before placing her down. “I know you really want to try them but I don’t want you spoiling your appetite. Okay sweetie?”

“Okay mama…” Barbie sighed, smiling a bit as she felt her mother kiss her head.

“That’s better. Now how about those vegetables?” she tried, hoping to keep her daughter distracted. As she watched her daughter put away the vegetables with a sulky look, she couldn’t help but wonder if Barbie would let her sweet tooth get the better of her. All the kiddos had a bit of a weakness for sweets but Barbie was usually the one sneaky enough to try and break into the pantry for snacks.

Both Tilla and Buckzo were aware that their little troublemakers thought they were a lot more clever than they thought. Distracting one parent so the others could sneak into the pantry to get snacks. And usually they were pretty good at covering their tracks but sometimes the occasional lost chip or crumbs on the floor or dropped candies betrayed them. They were kids and kids weren’t going to be that crafty.

But these were limited edition cookies so Tilla didn’t want Barbie and the boys to scarf them right away. Otherwise they wouldn’t be as special. Plus their poor tummies would hurt.

She would definitely need to call in reinforcements to keep her sneaky girl from getting at those cookies.

(...)

Dinner was going to be prepared in a little while but Barbie couldn’t stop thinking about those cookies. Packaging could be deceiving sometimes on snacks like that but she knew for sure those cookies would taste as good as they looked. For something that was limited edition, they had to make them taste good right?

Barbie was upstairs in her room trying to keep herself busy so she wouldn’t be tempted to sneak a cookie.

“You’ll get one after dinner. Just be patient…” she told herself, pulling out some paper and markers to draw with.

She wasn’t really that artsy–Fizz and Blitzo did more drawing and coloring than she did–but she needed something to take her mind off of those delicious cookies. Shaking her head, Barbie plopped herself down and began to color, letting her mind drift off. She had self-control when it came to a lot of stuff. Fizz and Blitzo were a lot more impulsive so that’s why they got in trouble a lot more often. Barbie’s record for mischief was a lot more clean with only occasionally getting caught. If those doofuses tried to steal those cookies, they’d get caught on the spot. If she tried, she would be a lot more careful and manage to get a cookie without being noticed.

The young imp girl looked down and saw that her coloring page was covered in drawings of cookies, large and small.

“Oh hell with it! I am getting that cookie!” Barbie decided, leaving her room before she went insane.

She managed to creep down the stairs, seeing her dad asleep in a nearby chair and snoring loudly. This was perfect! Even if he was sitting guard, her dad was a notoriously heavy sleeper so she could be in and out no problem. And one cookie wouldn’t really spoil dinner, right?

“Cookie time. Hehehe.” Barbie giggled to herself as she crept her way to the kitchen, trying to not make the floor creak as much when she walked over the floorboards.

Unfortunately for Barbie, Buckzo wasn’t exactly in a deep enough sleep to be a useless guard. He was mostly resting his eyes but hearing Barbie not so subtly creep her way across the floor caused him to wake up. He rolled his one open eye at her sneaking but he decided to have a little fun with his goofy kid. The older imp played possum, wanting to see how far his daughter would go before he tried to stop her. But that didn’t stop him from snaking his tail towards her path.

Barbie was so focused on her goal to get that cookie she didn’t notice her dad’s tail at all. “Almost there–huh?” she blinked, looking down to see her dad’s tail blocking her at her waist. She let out a yelp as he spun her towards him, stopping when she could look at his smirking face.

“Whatcha doin’ there, Barb?” Buckzo asked.

“Uh…trying to get a cookie?” Barbie confessed.

“Heh. Your mother was right. You are predictable.” he chuckled before spinning her into a pile of pillows left from the pillowcases needing to be washed. “But I ain’t lettin’ ya spoil your dinner.”

“No fair!” Barbie pouted. “It’s just one cookie!”

“Tough. I ain’t supposed to let ya in that kitchen.” Buckzo told her before giving her a cocky grin. “But I’d love to see ya try, ya little squirt.”

Barbie growled a bit, not liking being denied like that. It was one thing being blocked from her treat but her dad teasing her? Nuh-uh! Cookie or no cookie, she was getting in that kitchen. She only had a short window before her mom came down to start making dinner. If she was going to get in there, she had to try now.

It soon became a battle of wits as Barbie tried every possible tactic to sneak into the kitchen. Crawling on her belly? Her dad hooked his tail on the back of her shirt and dragged her back to the pillow pile. Trying to leap over the threshold of the kitchen? Caught mid-air and plopped far away from the kitchen. It was basically becoming a game for the two imps. Barbie was clever but Cash had more experience so it was a battle of wills.

Though soon enough, Barbie was becoming less focused on the cookie and more trying to outsmart her dad. He really was a worthy opponent but she wouldn’t be defeated that easily!

“Had enough, pipsqueak?” Cash questioned.

Barbie, feeling a bit out of breath, gave her dad a tired grin. “Not even close!”

Tilla, who had gotten up from her nap to start making dinner, heard the commotion downstairs and saw Barbie was in a battle of wills against her dad trying to get into the kitchen. She did have to admire the kid’s determination but she was relieved her husband took his guard duties seriously and didn’t cave by giving her a cookie.

“Working up an appetite for dinner? Unorthodox but I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.” Tilla smiled teasingly at her daughter.

Barbie’s eyes widened as she saw her mom enter the kitchen. “Rats!”

“Game over, kiddo.” Buckzo laughed as he set her down one more time. “Now go take those pillows upstairs, will ya?”

“Fine…” Barbie grumbled, picking up the pillows as she walked upstairs.

Tilla peeked her head out before giving her husband a kiss. “Nice work, honey.” she told him.

“Hey the little goober gave it her best shot but ya don’t mess with the best.” he smiled proudly, puffing his chest out a bit. “Frankly I’m surprised she didn’t try the back door to the kitchen.”

“DAMMIT!” Barbie cursed upstairs, making both parents laugh.

“Well let’s hope your little game with her helped her appetite.” Tilla giggled before heading back into the kitchen.

Dinner went off without a hitch with Barbie being able to eat her food. Though she was still sulky that she missed the most obvious solution to getting that cookie. Maybe she wasn’t as good at thinking ahead as she thought she was. But she did have to admit playing with her dad was pretty fun even though she couldn’t beat him this time around. But she’d outsmart him one of these days.

As they were getting ready to clean up after dinner, Barbie felt a tap on her head. Buckzo held one of the cookies behind his back for her, giving her a wink. “Ya waited long enough kiddo.” he whispered.

Barbie took it gratefully, giving her dad a big smile before taking a bite. The flavors were so good! The richness of the chocolate, the tartness of the raspberry chips, and the fluffiness of the marshmallows?

SO worth the wait!

[END]

 

[Snoozing Fizzy]

 

With Buckzo staying late in his trailer to work on paperwork and Barbie and Blitzo getting ready for bed after their baths, Tilla decided to take some time to relax with a little bit of TV. One of her guilty pleasures was watching those talent shows where demons from all over showed off their best talents. Some were fairly standard with music or dance but there were some real interesting oddballs on there.

She once saw a tiny little demon girl that could lift 20 times her own weight with a barbell and still manage to do some incredible gymnastics.

Just as she was settling down on the couch, she noticed Fizz sitting on the floor, completely focused on the TV. “Fizzy? What are you doing down there?” Tilla wondered.

“Watching TV. Is it okay?” he asked her.

“Well you don’t have to go to bed yet but…wouldn’t you be more comfortable on the couch?” she questioned.

“I’m okay. This is just as comfy.” he told her.

She wasn’t sure if sitting on the floor would be that comfortable for the little guy but she decided not to push it. “So who do you think will win this week? That drummer from Envy looked pretty impressive.” she mused.

“He’s good but my bet’s on the sword juggler from Wrath.” Fizz replied. “She can keep perfect focus without cutting her hands.”

“That’s a good point. At least they’re better than that breakdancer from Greed.” Tilla joked, making Fizz laugh.

“That dude had no sense of rhythm. Style moves are cool but ya gotta build up to them.” Fizz explained. “If you use your best moves already, that’s just poor showmanship.”

“You really know a lot about this, huh Fizz.” Tilla smiled.

“Hey I had to learn somehow. Performing is a lot of fun so when I watch others do it, I learn from them on what to do and what not to do.” Fizz explained, noticing a sheep demon falling flat on the ground after a failed unicycle trick. “Like right there? She let the stage lights get in her eyes so she lost her balance. Ya gotta find a spot in the distance to focus on and not let the lights get to you.”

The taller imp woman was very impressed with Fizz’s insight on performing and how to show your best without getting lost in your own head. The time they spent together felt so special whether it was preparing for performances, going into town for errands, or just relaxing, she was glad he was a part of their weird little family. And he always had interesting things to say.

As the show ended (the sword juggler winning this week), Tilla muted the TV. “Well you were right Fizz. Maybe you’ve got a career in talent scouting in the future. Wanna start a movie for a bit before heading to bed?” she offered. At the silence from her surrogate son, she looked down and saw he had fallen asleep against her leg, softly snoring. Not wanting him to get startled if he fell over, she used her tail to scoop him up on the couch and place his head on her lap. “Sleep well, Fizzy…” she whispered, patting his head.

“Mmm…frank you…mama…” Fizz mumbled tiredly.

She blinked in surprise but smiled softly as she felt her eyes water. It was probably because he was so tired he called her that but knowing he loved them enough to think of them like parents?

It meant the world to her.

[END]

 

[Flirty Folks]

 

When they weren’t busy working on preparing for new shows or getting chores done around the house, the Buckzo family relished in time to relax and do whatever they wanted. The kiddos usually liked to go outside to play while Cash and Tilla liked to stay indoors and either catch up on sleep or work on their hobbies.

“Hmm…a four letter pet name for your romantic partner…” Buckzo muttered, tapping his head with a pencil as he looked over his crossword puzzle.

“Try babe, dear!” Tilla called from the kitchen.

Buckzo counted out the letters before smiling as he wrote them down. “Thanks hun! Ya know, those stupid crossword helper hotlines are a fuckin’ ripoff.” he told her. “I’m lucky I married a smart woman like you.”

“Oh you’re smart too, sweetie.” Tilla told him, kissing his horns. “You know the best ways to get good deals at thrift shops and how we can sneak in snacks at the drive-in without getting in trouble.”

“Heh. I guess you’re right.” Buckzo mused before giving her a devilish smile. “Also…I know how to get a smooch from the most beautiful demon in Hell.”

Tilla let out a laugh as she was pulled onto the couch, giggling as he started peppering her face and neck with kisses. She might’ve been taller than him but he could be pretty strong. “C-Cash you’re being silly!”

“Aw come on baby. The little goobers are outside so we don’t have to hear them say ‘ew gross!’ when I just wanna spend time with ya.” Cash told her.

“Well…I do admit it is nice we can get some alone time when the kids are busy.” she mused as she cupped his face. “And you do look cute working on your puzzles.” She easily kissed him on the lips, letting their tails twist together as they made out on the couch.

Love worked in funny ways. Their meeting was by chance when they were younger and finding a home in Imp City just felt…right. Things weren’t always easy but they worked hard to get where they are and she was so happy to be with her goofy husband. Could he be a hardass? Sure but with where they came from, it wasn’t hard to see why he could be like he was. And she had her fuck up moments too.

What mattered was they tried learning from them and doing better for their own sakes as well as for their kids.

“I know I say it a lot but…damn your hair is pretty.” Buckzo told her, running his claws through her hair. The silky locks moved smoothly as he touched her hair.

“You sure you don’t want to try getting into hairstyling?” she joked.

“Nah. You’re plenty for me. But I think Barbie might want to try playing hairdresser with you sometime.” he teased.

“Well let’s keep the scissors away until she’s older.” Tilla smiled sheepishly. Once when Barbie was really small, she had requested to cut a bit of her mom’s hair. Unfortunately, a loud noise outside distracted the young girl and she cut a much larger chunk out of her hair than she had intended.

Barbie was so mortified and more upset than Tilla actually was so she spent the afternoon comforting her daughter. And she had to cut her hair a bit shorter so it wouldn’t look uneven but even then, Buckzo still thought his wife was gorgeous.

“Maybe we can get the kiddos some of those hair bands and scrunchie things that are popular these days.” Buckzo mused.

“Oh you just want more photo-ops, don’t you?” she smirked, making her hubby laugh.

“You’re a born model, babe.” he told her, bumping his forehead against hers. “I really am lucky we met when we did…”

Tilla gently touched his face, looking him in the eyes. “Hey you saved me too. We could’ve been stuck in that terrible place but you wanted a better life for us and our kids brought us here. It might not be as fancy but we have our own dream together. And I’m glad I can share it with you.” she told him.

Buckzo wiped at his eyes before hugging his wife. “Damn…you’re gonna make me go all sappy and shit…” he mumbled.

“I love that side of you.” she told him softly.

They would’ve kissed more but a splash outside caught both their attention as they heard Blitzo let out a frustrated groan. “STUPID BUCKET! WHO LEAVES WATER UP HIGH LIKE THAT?!” he yelled out.

“Looks like the doofus ran into the rain catcher.” Buckzo snickered, giving himself a mental note to fix that leak so this wouldn’t happen again.

“I’ll get him a towel and some fresh clothes.” Tilla decided, giving her hubby one more kiss before heading upstairs. “A parent’s work is never done, I suppose.”

Buckzo laughed as he got back to work on his crossword puzzle. She was right but even with all the messy parts of parenting, it was worth all the crazy parts.

And with Tilla by his side, it was even better.

[END]

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 102 of Blitz/Stolas Happier Childhood Memories