Protection For Love

by Mori_Willow

Summary:

It started with a joke. Something that hadn't been serious.

"Having the Void Star would be cool." He hadn't specified why, because it had meant to be a joke. He hadn't meant for Noli to take it seriously, hadn't meant for him to come back with it stuck to his head.

He had tried to ignore it. Ignore the guilt, and tell himself that everything was fine. He had hoped that everything would be fine, and in the beginning, it had been.

N7 had continued to work at the little clinic, Noli at his Art Studio. Then, Noli had burned down the pizza place again. He had said he was just showing C00lkidd the C00lgui and got carried away. It was fine, he forgave him. But then, after C00lkidd's third birthday, when their baby boy had ran to Noli to show him what he had drawn with his new crayons, Noli had yelled at their baby, smacked him so hard he fell to the ground. He had held C00lkidd, cried while apologizing. He'd told N7 when he got home, apologized and said he'd never do it again.

And N7 had told Noli that it was okay, that believed him.

But, in the night while Noli was asleep. N7 packed up everything he could carry, picked up his sleeping baby boy, and left.

Chapter 1: Running For Help

007n7 was running. He was running though the empty street, between lightpost and through alleyways. He ran as fast as he could with his shaky legs, his lungs hurt from the smoke he’d inhaled, but he was rather it be him then Coolkidd. His precious C00lkidd. His baby boy. Who hadn’t understood what was happening. Who didn't understand why people had set their little apartment building on fire, or why 007n7 had jumped out the window while holding him instead of going through the fire escape. 

 

As upsetting as it was that his baby had passed out from fear when he jumped, he was glad that C00lkidd hadn't been awake when he broke his wrist on the landing. He was going to have nightmares about that sound for a long while. He was doing his best not to bleed onto his baby boy. He couldn’t risk him walking up and crying when he could still hear the footsteps behind them, at least three sets. 

 

He didn't know how they had found him, or if they had told HIM about where they were, but he couldn’t take any chances. He had promised C00lkidd, promised both of them , that he would keep their baby boy safe. Even if it was from his own father. He didn’t know how it had come to this. How had it come to him running away from the followers of the father of his child? 

 

N7 pushed his thoughts away, not wanting them to distract him. He couldn't slow down, not even for a second. Even as his lungs begged for air, his legs asked for rest, and his broken wrist bled into C00lkidd’s favorite pair of pajamas, he didn’t stop. He didn’t slow down. He didn't even look behind him to see how close they were. Because he could hear them, over the ringing and heartbeat in his ears. He could hear how they whisper-yelled to each other, so sure that their leader would be so glad to get his ‘Favorite’ and ‘Heir’ again that he wouldn’t mind them coming in a little damaged. 

 

N7 ran faster. There was something much warmer than sweat running down his back. He was sure that the knife in his back had fallen out at some point, as he didn't feel it leaving marks in his spine anymore. How could those bastards talk about a child like nothing more than a slab of meat. Though, he had no idea if He would care if they were hurt when they got to Him . N7 was pretty sure His goal was to get them back. He didn’t think He would care how. At least he wouldn't have to patch bullet wounds this time and his tail was mostly unscathed. 

 

“ Oh, fuck! No! He’s heading into Mafia territory!” He heard one say and he couldn’t help but smile. He was almost there! He just had to find the boss, or one of his goons, and C00lkidd would be safe. 

 

Fuck, he hoped that the tip he got about the boss having a soft spot for kids was right. 

 

When he passed a certain building, he heard all of them stop moving. They just stopped all at once. But, he knew he wasn't safe. They could have some sort of ranged weapon, one of them could be brave enough to cross the line, one of them could be in the fucking Mafia for all he knew. He just had to wait until he spotted someone. Preferably the boss, he just had to look out for a fedora and bunny ears. 

 

Right when his vision started to spot, and when his legs just started to give out, that’s when he saw him. He couldn’t even focus on who he was with or if it was even safe, but he would be damned if he died before he got C00lkidd to safety. 

 

“ He-lp! ” He called out, sounding weak to his own ears. He barely even noticed when a gun was pointed at him. 

 

His shaking legs couldn't hold him anymore but he luckily only heard the sound of his knees hitting the asphalt instead of feeling it. He couldn’t risk waking C00lkidd. Not now. Not when they were so close . 

 

“ Pl…please… you're our…” He swallowed the bile coming up his throat. (Was that blood he was tasting?) “ Youre our only hope… we have nowhere else to.. To go…” He said, relaxing a little when he finally got the words out. He let out a shaky breath, watching as the too-blurry man in front opened his mouth before suddenly his world tilted and everything went black. 

 

He was faintly aware of hitting something warm instead of the asphalt, and was glad that C00lkidd might still be able to have a good night's sleep. 

 

~

 

007n7 was firstly aware of the weight of his baby boy on his chest. That wasn't a surprise. C00lkidd would often sleep on his chest, being far too hot to sleep under any blanket that isn't his baby blanket, thanks to his skin condition. Most blankets were too thick or were just made of bad material. He could tell that the blankets over him were too thick for his baby, even if the texture was nice and smooth. He wasn't in a hospital. The beds were never this comfortable. That was good. He wouldn’t have to worry about Him or the admins finding him.

 

The second thing he was aware of, was that someone had wrapped up his wounds. Not well, mind you, (his wrist needed to be set back in place and casted, not just wrapped in gauze) but he had mostly stopped bleeding and he’d been crudely sewn back together from what he could tell. 

 

And the third and final thing he became aware of was that there were voices outside of the room he was in, three from what he could tell, but they were too low and muffled for him to understand no matter how hard he tried to listen. It probably didn't help that he was like 70% sure he had a concussion. His head throbbed like he did. 

 

N7 huffed as he finally opened his eyes, only to be met with more dark blurriness (he vaguely recognized that whoever had wrapped him up had taken off his glasses) than he expected. It took a second for him to realize that it was because everything in the room was black, with accents of dark red. Wow, talk about stereotypical. He was sure if he looked up ‘mafia bedroom’ this would be in the second line of pictures. He wondered if he was in someone's room or if it was a spare one. 

 

N7’s head shot up from the spot in the wall he was staring a hole into when he heard the door open, immediately regretting it when he when his vision swam and he felt pressure in his throat. He was not going to throw up, damn it! 

 

“Relax there, sweetheart…” Came the voice of the man who just stepped inside the room, surprisingly soft and was that a hint of Italian? “I’m not gonna hurt you or your boy.” He said, obviously seeing how N7 put his arms around C00lkidd, ignoring his pain to keep his child shielded from the man. 

 

N7 squinted as to try and see the details about the man who was slowly making his way towards his bed, like N7 was a caged animal. Good. It meant that he wouldn’t try anything, knowing the consequences if he did. N7 would fight like a caged animal if it kept C00lkidd safe. He noticed the twitch in the man’s ears, and realized as the tall man (he had to be at least a foot taller than him) got within seeing-without-his-glasses distance, that he had black ears that almost blended in with his hair. Bunny ears. This was the boss.

 

This realization made him stiffen, and pull up his c00lgui in case he had to teleport away. ( Where would he go? He didn’t know. But one wrong move from the boss and he was gone. ) The boss looked at the c00lgui for a moment before taking the chair that was at the end of the bed, saying nothing when N7 curled up to block C00lkidd from view. 

 

“So, I’ll cut straight to the point. Why did you come to us? One of my men told me that before you passed out, you were talking about us being your last hope?” The boss said, his hat making a shadow that covered his eyes. 

 

N7 looked at the boss for a long moment. “ You are our last hope …” N7 said, cringing at the sound of his own voice. He definitely inhaled too much smoke, his voice was scratchy and he sounded like he’d smoked a pack of cigarettes everyday since he was 12. No wonder his mouth tasted so much like blood. He needed some water, but he would be fine, as long as C00lkidd was fine. He coughed for a second before he continued talking, quieter this time as to not hurt himself more. 

 

“ My… my ex has taken a…very powerful and very dangerous… artifact…” N7 took a deep breath and closed his eyes to stop the tears that burned them. “ I had to leave... To keep our son safe from him… and well… he didn't like that…” He pushed away the memories that tried to play under his eyelids, opening his eyes to look at the boss, who'd yet to move. 

 

“Why not go to the admins?” He questioned, his expression not doing anything to help N7 feel like he was doing the right thing by telling him this. N7 looked down at C00lkidd, moving his hair out of his eyes, smiling softly. 

 

“ We used to be hackers… nothing worse than arson… we stopped after this one was born…” He said, gently kissing his baby’s forehead. “ I don’t know how much the admins know… I can’t risk getting banned. I can’t leave him. He’s barely three.” 

 

The Boss looked at him for a long moment, clearly thinking something if the twitch of his ear was anything. “What can you provide for us?”

 

“ I have an Associate's Degree in Nursing. The Mafia is dangerous and people get hurt. I can tell that you don’t have one already because no nurse would half ass my wounds like this. ” N7 had this ready. His plan was working, though most of it had been hoping that they didn’t already have a nurse. “ I can also cook and clean, if needed. ” He added, in case him patching them up wasn’t enough. He’d have to heal first, at least fix his broken wrist. 

 

N7 would do anything to keep his baby safe. Anything.

 

The boss nodded slowly, standing up. “We will give you and your son protection, in exchange for your nursing and cooking. Cleaning is not required. When you are able, make a list of things you will need and we will get them for you.” The boss held out his hand, his shadow engulfing N7 as he leaned forward. “Mafioso. Pleasure to meet you, sweetheart.”

 

N7 looked at him with suspicion for a long moment before putting his hand in Mafioso to shake. ( Fuck, his hand was so big. ) “ 007n7… but most people call me Seven or N.” He said, pulling his hand out from the larger man’s to look down at his son. “ This is C00lkidd… ” He kissed the boy’s forehead again, moving his tail out from under the blanket to wrap around the younger’s. 

 

“ Could you please get me some stockinette, delta dry cast padding and plaster? I need them to make a cast for my wrist.” N7 informed him, not looking up from his baby boy. The Mafia boss looked at the father and son in front of him, the sight attempting to pull his lips up at the corners. 

 

Mafioso nodded, turning his back to the pair and moving to the door, not being able to stop the smile when he heard the strained yawn followed by, “Looks like someone slept well.” as he left the room. 

 

~

 

Soldier sat at his normal seat at the meeting table. He had only just got back from dealing with a debtor and had barely been able to get the blood out of his hair before the meeting had been called. He assumed that something had happened while he was gone, as he had been in the mafia long enough that the boss no longer required him to inform everyone on how the mission went. He only had to tell the boss and could tell everyone only if he felt like it. 

 

“We have a new addition.” Mafioso said from the head of the table, and that startled him a little, but he was able to mask it. He didn’t know that they required anyone more support.

 

“The man with the kid that showed up the other day? You sure that’s a good idea, boss?” Consigliere asked, her forehead scrunching with confusion. Yep, Soldier definitely missed something important while he was gone. 

 

“We have made an agreement.” Mafioso assured his second-in-command. “007n7 will be our nurse and chef for the protection of him and his son.” Soldier nodded in understanding, although he wondered what the guy needed protection from. Luckily, he didn’t have to ask the question because Contractee asked it for him. 

 

“What are we protecting them from?” He asked, wearing his headphones but not his hat. He must be a little overstimulated. Soldier hoped he'd be okay, but he also knew this must be quite important if the boss kept the meeting going despite Contractee’s discomfort. 

 

“His Ex and the child’s father.” Soldier felt the atmosphere in the room shift as horror made him feel sick. Oh, that was… Soldier nodded firmly.  “We’ll keep him safe, boss.” Any of his skepticism was immediately thrown out the window. He may be the youngest in the Mafia, and he might not have as much life experience, but he knew what it was like when you were trapped with someone. He saw what happened when there was no one to help. He’d seen what his Papa did to his Mama, he had the scars of what his Papa had done to him. He wasn't going to let that happen to anyone else. 

 

Contractee, Consigliere, and Caporegime all nodded and made a general noise of agreement. Mafioso smiled at them before turning to Caporegime, serious again. 

 

“Caporegime, you will be the one to take him out if he needs to go out for anything. If he says you need to leave, drop everything and get him somewhere secure. His Ex has people looking for him.” Caporegime nodded in understanding, mumbling to himself about getting a ranged weapon. 

 

“Soldier.” Soldier snapped his attention from Caporegime to Mafioso. “007n7 is healing from an attack, please help him with his son, C00lkidd, when needed. He isn't allowed out of bed.” Soldier nodded, not being able to stop the grin on his face. He loved kids. He had loved playing with his little cousins when he was a teen. He was sure this wouldn’t be much different. 

 

Then Mafioso turned his attention to Consigliere and Contractee, telling them about the medical supplies that 007n7 had recommended they get. 

 

Then the meeting ended, with all of them briefed on how to help the new member. But Mafioso stopped Soldier before he could run out to meet the kid. 

 

“How did the mission go?” Whoops. He’d forgotten about that.

 

Notes:

THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MY OTHER FIC

There was an annoyingly low amount of works for this ship, so here I am! Making 007n7 the Y/n of on of those cringy mafia Wattpad stories. I just hope my writing is better then that.

Also, I was wanting to post this sooner (Tuesday, my normal posting day) but my proofreader was busy.

Next chapter should be (hopeful) the 19 of August! So look forward to it!

Chapter 2: Meeting The Team

Summary:

C00lkidds makes Friends!
And Mafioso does everything he can to ignore now much his men love the kid and how much he wants to meet him.
(He doesn't want to get attached)

C00lkidd liked his new home, even if it was a little weird. Daddy’s room, which he was staying in too, was mostly black and very plain. There wasn’t really anything fun or cool, but it was very comfy. It was much better than the little apartment they were in before! It was gross when they got there and other people were loud! He could never take a nap and sometimes it was hard to sleep at night too!

“Have you ever been to a place like that?” He asked his new friend. His name was Soldier. He had a c00l hat and funny hair that looked like bacon. He was helping Daddy watch over him because daddy got hurt. Bad people had been trying to take him.

“Yeah, but neither of us have to worry because we’re here now.” Soldier told him, pouring him more tea. He’d never had actual tea for a tea party and they had real biscuits and jelly too! Even if they weren't the way daddy made them, they were still good!

“Right!” He said, shoving a biscuit into his mouth. He looked over to his daddy to show him how big his cheeks were, wanting to make him laugh (his daddy hadn't laughed in a while) but all thought of that went away when he saw that his daddy was sleeping. He hadn’t seen his daddy sleep in a while, he had always been awake when he was. It had been like that for a while. Since daddy said they had to leave home because something bad happened.

“Hey, bud? What’s wrong?” He looked up at Soldier, quickly swallowing the biscuit in his mouth (daddy said it was gross to talk with his mouth open), before he talked.

“I miss dada…” He sniffed quietly, taking hold of his tail and holding it close to his body. He used to suck on it when he needed to feel better, but daddy said that wasn't good for him, so he tried not to do it anymore. He really wanted to though.

Soldier’s face did a funny thing, like he was trying not to show he was angry but it didn’t work. Soldier took a deep breath before he gently pulled him into his lap. “I know buddy, but at least you still have your daddy, right?” He asked, rubbing warm circles into his back.

C00lkidd pushed his face into Soldier’s chest, not wanting his new friend to see him cry. “Yeah…” He mumbled, putting his thumb into his mouth instead of his tail. It didn’t help as much, but his daddy hadn’t said anything about that being bad.

“Would talking about your dada make you feel better?” Soldier asked, making C00lkidd look up at him. He was smiling now.

“Yeah… I’d like that…” He said, rubbing his tears away with his sleeve as he moved back to his place so they could keep playing the tea party. “So, dada was really good at art! He painted more but he also…”

Yeah, talking about him was nice.

 

~

It turns out that the room he and daddy had been in wasn’t really their room! Daddy got a whole part of the big house! He got his own room again! It was a lot bigger than the one he had at home! He also got a whole room full of toys and art stuff and he also had some school stuff! So when daddy got better he could go back to learning! He could name a lot of colors but still had a hard time with animals. He couldn't wait to learn how to read so he could read big books! There were so many that looked so cool!

But he was pretty sure the reason was because daddy was going to be a nurse for Soldier and his friends! Soldier told him they got hurt a lot and they need his daddy to help them get better! Daddy was also going to start making food again! He was so excited! As yummy as noodles and mac & cheese was, eating it over and over wasn’t fun.

But daddy wasn’t making food yet! He had to get better first! His arm was so hurt he had to wrap it in a cast and his back hurt really bad! So someone else was making food. And pizza! He hadn’t had pizza since he helped dada burn down the pizza place by his first home! The fire was so pretty…

He squeaked when he heard the door open, quickly covering his mouth to cover up his giggles. He was playing hide & seek with Soldier and he was hiding in the nursing room. It was big and white and smelled sharp. He was hiding under one of the beds, against the wall. He had put his tail into his overalls to make sure it didn’t give away where he was.

He quickly realized that it was, in fact, not Soldier. He slowly moved closer to the open to see who it was. It was two people he hadn’t seen before. They had the same outfit on, but one had a black hat with headphones and the other had a white hat and black hair tied up with a black ribbon.

He got out of the bed, slowly getting closer to try and hear what they were saying without letting them know he was there. He was good at being sneaky.

“...You’re really sure they got everything we need?” The one with headphones asked, holding two boxes. One in each arm. He was so strong!

“Yeah, I’m sure. They know the consequences. But, if they did stiff us, we can take Soldier with us to give them a visit.” The one in the white said. She was so tall! And she was carrying four boxes! They were both so c00l!

“You’re friends with Soldier?” He asked, squeaking again when both of them jumped and almost dropped the boxes.

“Shit! Kid! Don’t sneak up on people like that!” The one with the headphones said, making C00lkidd gasp.

“You can’t say that word! You’ll get in trouble!” He quickly whispered, looking out the door as if his daddy would appear out of nowhere to scold the man. The one with the white hat laughed as she put down the boxes.

“Yeah, Contractee. You’ll get in trouble.” She said, taking the boxes from him and putting them next to hers. “What’s normal punishment for saying bad words?” She sat down on her knees to be at the same size as him but she was still looking down at him.

“Well, when dada did it, daddy would make him sleep on the floor and put money in the bad word jar! When it got to $40 we went to dinner without him!” He said, his smile showing off all his sharp teeth. He had to look behind him real quick to make sure there was nothing for his tail to hit. Daddy had been making sure he wouldn’t hurt himself when he got too happy!

He smiled even brighter when both of the adults started laughing, not being able to stop his happy hands. Daddy said it happened because he was so happy that it couldn’t fit in his body.

“We need to make a bad word jar, then.” The one in the white hat said, smiling at him as she got up.

“C00lkidd! Where arrreee yooouuuu?” He heard Soldier say from down the hall. He gasped and quickly hid behind the tall one, her legs could hide him better.

He heard Soldier walk up to the door, his footsteps stopping as he looked inside. “You two seen the kid?” He asked. C00lkid covered his mouth again so he didn’t giggle.

“Nope.”

“Nah, haven’t seen him.”

Soldier paused for a moment. “Okay! I’ll believe you. For now. See you two later!” He said before he left.

C00lkidd screamed as he was suddenly picked up, before turning into a giggling fit as the one in headphones tickled him.

“Alright you little gremlin! Since we helped you out, how about you help us bring some of the boxes inside?” He asked as he put kidd up on his shoulders.

“Y-yeah! I will help!” He said as he calmed down from his giggling. He put his tail back inside his overalls so he didn’t hit the boy holding him. “Onward!” He said like the pirates in the stories that daddy would read to him. He was making so many friends!
~

C00lkidd looked at the list that his daddy had from his spot in the cart. It was a really long list.

“Can not wait for you to cook again daddy! He said, looking around the store. He had never been to this one before, all of the food looked really fresh! Daddy smiled at him, messing with his hair. He giggled, pushing his daddy’s hand away.

“I know, baby. I’m going to get a few of your special foods, okay? I don’t know how much of this stuff you’ll like.” Daddy said, going through the aisles. He stopped at weirdly shaped apples. They smelt weird too.

The man with them, who was bald and had glasses and a funny thing in his ear, looked at him with a smile. “Those are peppers.” The man said quietly.

“Ohhhhhh…” He said, giggling quietly. He looked at the peppers, there were so many colors.

“Do you know what those colors are?” The man asked as daddy looked over the peppers.

“They are apple colors!” He said, then he pointed to each one to tell the man the colors. “That one is yellow, and that one is green and that one is red and…” He stopped looking at the orange one. That wasn’t an apple color.

“And?” The man asked, and C00lkidd quickly shook his head to stop his head voice. “And that one is orange!" He told him. The man smiled again, wider this time, and C00lkidd gasped when he saw he had sharp teeth. Just like him! He didn’t ask anything, though. Daddy had said it was rude (meaning not nice) to ask what they are.

“Did you know that peppers and apples have something in common?” Glasses asked him, and C00lkidd felt the end of his tail wag from where it was wrapped around one of the metal bars. Learning! Yes! C00lkidd shook his head.

“Peppers and apples both have different colors because they taste different.” Glasses said and C00lkidd couldn't help but bounce in his seat (Or as much as the buckle that was keeping him in the cart would let him).

“What’s got you so excited?” Daddy asked, putting a yellow and green pepper into a little clear bag before putting it into the cart.

“Peppers are like apples!” He said, laughing when his daddy looked at him weird.

“How so?” He asked, moving the cart away from the pepper and over to the tomatoes.

“They both have different colors for different tastes!” He said, happy to hear his daddy laugh.

“That’s right! I never thought about it like that.” Daddy said, kissing him on the forehead, between his horns.

C00lkidd looked at Glasses, giggling. He helped him make Daddy laugh!

~

Mafioso was having a dark time. His men had done nothing but talk about the newbie’s kid. Even Caporegime, who's never been big on showing his feelings.

Which is why he was trying to keep away. He knew the kid was cute, he’d seen as much when he’d first made the deal with 007n7.

But his men loved that kid to pieces, and he couldn't risk getting attached. He had his men, and that was good for him.

But he couldn't stop his curiosity.

He sighed. He’d worry about it later, for now. He and his men had to go have a discussion with a gang trying to take root in his territory.

Damn was he glad they had a nurse now. Caporegime could only do so much without medical training.

Notes:

The curse almost got to me guys. Almost went to the mental hospital. (Still a possibility)
But I'm still here!

This chapter might be a little weird because It was mostly in the pov of a three year old but I used my brother and the kids at the daycare I used to work at to hopefully do an okay job.

The Next chapter will be Sept 2
2001 words

Chapter 3: Healing Wounds

Summary:

The boy's 'discussion' with the gang didn't go well, but that's okay! 007n7 has them covered!
And Mafioso has 007n7 covered.

TW - depictions of blood, violence and domestic abuse and child abuse(?)

Notes:

Sorry about taking so long guys! I finally got a new job and my proofreader is in college now so updates will probably be all over place-

“I wish you would have let me treat you after Soldier…” N7 said into the quiet of the Infirmary, sewing flesh back into place. 

 

Mafioso just hummed in acknowledgment. N7 knew he was looking over his goons, making sure they were all sleeping alright after he had patched them all up. 

 

Soldier particularly, who had gotten shot twice. Once in his left arm, and the other had only grazed his right hip, but had taken a pound of flesh with it. He was lying in the closest bed, C00lkidd at his side. His baby had been so upset at seeing all his new friends hurt and he had refused to go to his room to sleep. He hadn’t the time to argue. 

 

“I don’t feel pain.” Mafioso said after a few minutes. Seems they were all sleeping well. N7 huffed. 

 

“You may not feel pain, but you still lost a lot of blood.” He said, gesturing to the IV that was currently helping get new blood into the Mob Boss. “You should be glad that Consigliere and Contractee were able to get O- blood, since they weren't able to get any AB.” He huffed. It felt weird, scolding someone, who could easily kill him, to be more careful. 

 

Despite the scolding, his hands were gentle as he stitched the still bleeding wounds together. He would have liked to wait until after he was done with this to give him blood, but from the blood he had seen earlier, he had been surprised Mafioso was still awake. 

 

Which N7 needed him to be, if he wanted to get to bed soon. 

 

“Why are you being so gentle?” N7 blinked, but didn't pause his work. He was almost done, after all. 

 

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He questioned, tying off the stitch and putting the curved needle away. He then began to clean the blood off. His hands were slow, careful. He had been heavy handed before, but there was no trace of that now. 

 

The mafia man went quiet again, and N7 paid no mind. He still had to dress the wound.

 

N7 grabbed the bandages, moving closer to Mafioso. He was careful that his chest wasn't touching the larger man’s back, not wanting to aggravate the wounds. 

 

“Arms up for me.” N7 said, his voice softer now. He thanked the man before slowly wrapping the bandage around his chest. 

 

“I know you want to make sure all your boys are okay first, trust me, I understand, but don’t put yourself in harm's way when there's no need to.” N7 didn’t expect Mafioso to answer, but he knew he heard. The way the man’s muscle tensed under the bandage told him everything. 

 

N7 gently cupped Mafioso’s jaw, encouraging him to lean into his hand. He had hesitated for a moment, but gave into N7 wordless order, resting his face into N7’s hand. He smiled, using the new space of his shoulder to secure the bandage.

 

N7 only realized that this could be considered something romantic when he felt Mafioso’s lips press into his hand as he looked over at the other beds, where all of his boys were sleeping (Really Caporegime didn’t need to be there, but he had helped Consigliere with her sprained wrist and Contractee with the blood that covered him).

 

N7 felt his face flush, and he had to tense to stop himself from falling into Mafioso’s back. He’d just been doing this for so long that he hadn’t thought about it. He took a deep breath to settle himself, not wanting to embarrass himself. At least not any more than he already had. 

 

He pushed down the warmth in his chest. It was just because he’d been touch starved lately. He had been so used to seeking out Noli whenever he needed any sort of affection. But he didn't have Noli, and he would never have him again. 

 

He didn’t think he’d be able to have something like that again for a long, long time. It was too soon. He had to finish mourning his fiancé, first. He had to make sure C00lkidd was okay with it first, his baby, his precious boy. He still didn’t know what was happening. He still thought that his Dada was coming to get them at some point. He still thought Noli had been left behind protecting them from ‘bad guys.’ Not knowing that Noli was the bad guy. 

 

Really, 007n7 didn't have the right to mourn him. It was his fault that Noli had turned out like that. He had made the joke about the Void Star.

 

He had changed, after the Void Star. He had been snappy, and reckless, even more so than they’d been in their exploiting days. 

 

He hadn’t realized just how bad it was until he got home from his 12 hour shift at the clinic, a week after Kidd’s third birthday, to see a bruise on his baby’s face, almost black against his red skin. Noli had begged, pleaded for his forgiveness. He had promised it would never happen again, that he still loved Kidd with all his heart and it had been an accident, a one time thing. 

 

But 007n7 knew better. Noli had been doing little acts of violence to N7 for a while. He hadn’t seemed to notice that he had been doing it. 

 

They’d had arguments before, but they had never yelled before. Even before they’d gotten together. But Noli had turned every conversation into a screaming match. 

 

And his touch had turned rough and harsh, instead of the soft and careful N7 had been used to. Bruises had bloomed under Noli’s hands more often than not. 

 

At the time 007n7 had just told himself it was a ruff patch. All couples had them right?

 

So he had ignored the pain, waved off the concern of his co-workers and had stayed. He had been so sure that nothing worse would happen. Even as Noli thinned and his body rotted and the treatment got worse. He had been sure they’d get through it. 

 

When Noli had finally noticed what he was doing, he'd been devastated. He’d cried in his lap, kissed every bruise with the softness he had before everything had happened. He had sobbed out that he was sorry and that the Void Star had been weighing on him. He’d stuttered out promises of getting better, of learning how to deal with the crown and get it off. And like a fucking dumbass he’d belived him. 

 

Maybe the reason he’d stayed for so long was because Noli was the only person who’d truly treated him right. Who had shown just how much he loved him, who had stayed though everything. He’d been a wonderful father to C00lkidd, loved their son so much. 

 

When he saw the bruise on their baby’s face. His baby’s face. He’d known he’d let it go on for far too long. 

 

He’d stayed too long. 

 

It had hurt so bad to leave, so bad to leave the man he’d planned to marry. The man he’d truly loved, who'd seen every part of him.

 

But it had to be done. 

 

When they had C00lkidd, when their boy had first been born into the cruel world, Noli had made him promise something. 

 

 “1f 1 3ver hur1 h1m… l3ave m3.” N7 had laughed it off then, but had promised nonetheless. But looking back, N7 remembered that Noli had sort of spaced off, his eyes had glazed over. He looked almost… knowing. 

 

Noli had told him, when they were in college, when they hadn't yet realized the love between them, that the people at the orphanage would always blame the bad stuff that happened on him. He had a sort of sixth sense for when something bad was going to happen.

 

Maybe that's why he’d made him promise… because he could feel it coming. 

 

“Youre shaking.” N7 jumped at the sudden voice, blinking to try and clear his eyes. What had he been doing? Right, he’d been bandaging Mafioso. 

 

How had he gotten so distracted?

 

“I-” N7 cut himself off to swallow back the sob that threatened to leave him. He covered it up by clearing his throat. “I’m fine, Mafioso. Was just thinking about something." His voice still wobbled and was a little raspy but it was the best he was going to. 

 

The larger said nothing, so thought he had taken his word for it. He quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeves (which were bunched up at his elbows but he still made it work) before finally finishing with Mafioso’s bandages. 

 

“You’re all good.” He said, pulling away and putting a smile on his face. He’d done pretty good for doing half of it with one hand. Although, he was kind of used to doing it that way. 

 

Mafioso turned to look at him, and N7 realized this was the first time in the two weeks since they had met that he could see the others' entire face. 

 

Mafioso had deep brown eyes, a little scar going though his left eyebrow and worry lines in his forehead. He had a strong jaw but soft cheekbones, and a bit of stubble. He was… handsome.

 

Like Noli had been. 

 

“You’re crying.” Mafioso murmured. Apparently, it was his turn to touch him, because a large hand was suddenly cupping his face and wiping his tears. He didn’t realize he was still crying. Or maybe it was that last thought. 

 

“I-I’m fine. Really…” He muttered, wishing he could stop himself from leaning into the touch. It was just… Mafioso was so warm and his hands were calloused just enough to stop himself from getting lost in his mind again. 

 

“You’re thinking about him.” It wasn’t a question. Was N7 that easy to read? He looked away.

 

“No, I’m not…” He didn’t even need to look at the larger man to know he didn’t believe him. He swallowed to try and stop another sob from leaving him. It didn’t work. It came out of him raw and loud, breaking the quiet he had tried so hard to maintain. 

Mafioso straightened, gently pulling 007n7 into his lap. His hand moved to rub the horned man’s back while he sobbed into his shoulder (the non-injured one) in an attempt to not wake anyone up. 

 

“It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault! If I hadn't made that joke he would still be himself. I don’t deserve to grieve!” Mafioso said nothing, knowing better than to try reasoning with someone… breaking down, for the lack of a better term. 

 

Mafioso had dealt with this before. All of his boys had broken down on him at least once. Contractee when he had his meltdowns, Consigliere when she first told him that she was a woman, Soldier anytime he remembered he couldn’t see his family back in Russia, and Caporegime when his Mama died. 

 

He knew how to make people feel better. 

 

It was a good 30 minutes (and a little vomit) before 007n7’s breathing started evening out. 

 

“You are not responsible for his actions and wellbeing. He made his own decisions, and they negatively impacted you. You did what you had to, so you could keep yourself and your boy safe… You’re allowed to grieve what you used to have.” Mafioso was able to put together some of what 007n7 said, though he was sure he only got some of the story. Even if it got all of it wrong, one thing he knew was 007n7 shouldn't blame himself for what happened. It was completely out of his hands. 

 

He waited a minute, not being able to stop his lips from turning up when he heard the tired little, “Okay…” from the father. 

 

Mafioso stood up (picking 007n7 up in the process), to find something to clean the both of them up. He was sure he and 007n7 were sticky from tears and Mafioso had to clean off the little bit of vomit that had happened when 007n7 cried a little too hard. 

 

“Sleep… Soldier is making syrniki for breakfast and you’ll want to be awake to learn how to make it.” Mafioso made sure that his voice was soft but firm, moving to the bathroom of the Infirmary to get a wash cloth. 007n7 needed his sleep. 

 

Mafioso got no words, a barely-there nod against his shoulder was all he got. Mafioso couldn’t help but chuckle. 

 

Mafioso was getting attracted, he knew. But really, who could blame him. The man was just so gentle… 

 

He pushed that thought away, as well as the feeling with it, and carefully crouched down to grab a washcloth. He stood slowly, not wanting to jostle the man in his arms. 

 

He put the cloth under warm water before going back to the bed they had been in previously. 

 

Mafioso laid down onto bed, sideways with 007n7 on his left. Why didn’t he just sit up to clean you both up, you may ask?

 

007n7’s tail was wrapped around his waist. Its hold was firm. Clearly, 007n7 needed contact. 

 

He carefully cleaned 007n7’s tear-stained face, ignoring how soft and peaceful he looked now, before cleaning his shoulder. It wasn't the worst thing he’d had on his skin. 

 

He let out a soft sigh, wrapping his arms around the single father and settling. He closed his tired eyes, a smile spreading as he fell into unconsciousness. 

 

Yeah, definitely getting attached.