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Aimsey wished she could say she was surprised, but at this point, she knew to expect the unexpected when it came to Tubbo. Even if that unexpected thing was him seemingly throwing all logical thought out the window.
“Yes I heard you the first time Tubbo, but you’re not hearing me,” She stressed again.
“No,” Tubbo argued, sounding infuriatingly reasonable for someone that was talking like a madman, “I heard you loud and clear and immediately said that I can’t tell you how I got the bruises. All I need is your help hiding them and a little discretion Aims, please.”
Aimsey couldn’t help but laugh a little hysterically at him. “Tubbo I’m a hero student , if there’s something going on and you’re in danger—“
“I promise I’m not in danger—“ he tried to argue only to get cut off with a hissed shout.
“You’re lying! You’re literally lying, Toby! People who have nothing to hide don’t need help doing makeup to cover bruises over half their face!”
Before either could argue further, they were interrupted by the sound of the period bell signalling the start of lunch. Echos of classroom doors opening and footsteps across the tile floors of the halls adjacent to the stairwell filled the silence that fell between them.
It was his dad, the ragged-looking ghost hovering behind them supplied. He’s not gonna crack and admit it though, the last thing anyone wants is heroes trying to look into his fake civilian identity’s home life.
Aimsey grit her teeth, only managing to smother her reaction after years of dealing with both Tubbo and the one lonely ghost that always seemed to follow him.
The ghost that, according to himself, was created when Tubbo killed him. That fact had been more than a little alarming the first time she was told it, but after keeping an eye on the ghost over time she was just left with more questions than answers.
Of course whenever Aimsey pressed for more information the dead man just vanished, only to drop strange tidbits of information at the most inconvenient times next time she and Tubbo spoke.
It was probably fine though. Tubbo didn’t seem like the type to kill without a good reason and Aimsey wasn’t naive enough to see the world as so black and white. There were reasons worth killing for, though Aimsey would be hard pressed to find one herself considering she’d literally have to live with that choice for the rest of her life and probably afterwards too.
It was fine as long as she didn’t think about it too hard. Like a lot of things in her life.
The stairwell quickly began to fill with the midday rush of students, forcing the two of them into the flow of foot traffic heading towards the cafeteria.
They didn’t speak until Tubbo had led her out past the cafeteria to the sports fields and under some of the bleachers, out of sight of any living eyes.
Beep and Tubbo’s spectral follower watched on with blank eyes, cursed silent observers that they were.
“What’s stopping me from just telling a teacher?” Aimsey challenged after a silent moment of heated glares. “Why exactly should I help you hide an injury instead of getting a hero who can help you.”
Tubbo let out a sharp sigh, scrubbing a hand over his face and groaning in frustration. “Aimsey why won’t you just help me out here man?”
“I do want to help you Tubbo, but I want to actually get you help , not encourage whatever fucked up behaviour this is.”
Tubbo chuckled mirtessly before throwing his hands up in defeat. “Fine!” he cried, volume rising now that no one was around to hear them. “You don’t have to help me but if you tell anyone about this, I’ll tell them you don’t actually have the powers you say you do, how does that sound?” he hissed, something unreadable in his eyes.
Aimsey couldn’t help the way she froze at the threat.
Of course, there was no way he could have known, there wasn’t really any way to prove that her powers were or weren’t what she claimed. If he went to someone to try and prove it, all it would take was a power gene test to prove that she did in fact possess active power genes.
But there was something about the desperation in his expression. Something about the confidence of his claim made her pause.
Was there some way he could prove it?
Would he actually do it? Possibly ruin her life and career out of vengeance for throwing off whatever strange goals he had under the facade of a driven high schooler?
The ragged ghost's voice echoed unnaturally as he chuckled. If he doesn’t already have the proof he’ll find it, the ghost said. If the kid wants to know something, he’ll get it no matter the challenge it presents. Just help him before he starts to feel actually cornered here.
Aimsey’s stomach twisted at the thought. It probably wouldn’t be impossible to find a picture or video of her using her actual powers. Telekinesis wasn’t always as subtle as she wished it could be, even as weak as hers was.
There wasn’t even really a point in arguing it. Aimsey knew plenty of things about him that she never mentioned, so it somehow only seemed fair.
Still, it didn’t mean that he had to like it.
“So what, you just asked me because you knew you could blackmail me?” She retorted, unable to hide the bitter bite in her tone. “And here I thought we were actually kind of friends or something.”
It was almost alarming how fast the tension in his shoulders drained at her words. He sighed again, pinching the bridge of his nose as though warding off a headache. Then after a long moment, he slowly sunk to the ground and rested his head against his bent knees.
It was somehow only then that Aimsey realized just how damn tired Tubbo looked. Even his usually fidgeting hands sat still against the crooks of his elbows when he crossed them over his knees.
He didn’t look at her when he answered, his tired gaze instead fixed on the middle distance through the bleachers.
“I asked you because I wanted to think I could trust you, Aimsey,” he said simply. “I don’t— I don’t exactly have a lot of close friends here, in case you haven’t noticed.”
Aimsey had noticed, obviously. It was why most of Tubbos' closest acquaintances at the school were hero students.
As much as she wanted to keep pressing, to fix all this by getting Tubbo away from the people that were hurting him, Aimsey knew it wasn’t going to work. In a case like this it was obvious things needed to move slower, that Tubbo needed people he could rely on before they could risk flipping his crappy life upside down.
More than anything, Tubbo just needed friends to be there for him right now.
“Okay,” she agreed, trying her best to mask the resignation in her voice.
Tubbo took another second of staring out into space before he blinked in confusion. “Okay?” He repeated, fixing her with a cautious look.
“I’ll help you,” she clarified. “But we better get moving before lunch ends. I’m unfortunately not that great at makeup but hopefully, we can work it out before next period. If you’re worried about not getting to go to your internship because of some bruises, you should probably consider how annoyed they’ll be if you miss all your classes.”
Tubbo didn’t quite smile at that, but he seemed to relax somewhat. “Right, you’ve got a pretty good point there.” He pushed to his feet, half heartedly brushing off his uniform pants. “After you, hero .”
Aimseys lips twitched at the light jab and she huffed. “Right then, follow me not -hero,” she teased, avoiding the word that she was sure they both knew she meant.
After all, the dead loved to talk when they realized there were ears to listen.
-----
“Wait! Beau, you can’t go in there—“
“What the fuck?” A heavily accented voice said loud enough to make Aimsey jump and drop the makeup sponge in her hand. Luckily Tubbo’s hand shot out fast enough to catch it before it hit the grimey bathroom floor.
“Uhhh,” Tubbo droned, shooting a wide eyed look between the three girls now standing around him in the bathroom. “What, uh, what happened to guarding the door Crumb?”
“Wh— well she’s scary!” Crumb protested. “How was I supposed to stop her?”
Unimpressed didn’t even begin to describe the look that Tubbo fixed her with. “You and I both know you could have stopped her.”
“I’m not gonna just hurt people at school!” She argued. “Besides you are in a girls bathroom during lunch break.”
“That’s what guard the door means.”
“ Hey --”
“What the fuck are you doing?” Beau repeated, sounding more confused than anything else.
“N-nothing?” Aimsey managed to stutter out. She shuffled over to try and hide the spread of beauty products across the counter behind her before shoving away Tubbo’s hand to hide the makeup sponge better. “We were just uhhhh--”
“Doing the worst coverup job I’ve ever fucking seen?” Beau supplied, squinting at Tubbo’s face with a wrinkled nose. Her huge white feathered wings shifted slightly behind her. “That’s even worse than it was when he got to school, how did you manage that?”
“Hey!”
“Was it really that bad?” Tubbo groaned, turning to look at his reflection in the mirror with a frown.
Aimsey watched Beau’s face go through a complex series of expressions before she rolled her eyes. “No actually, I just know how ta spot that shit. But the motorcycle helmet wasn’t doing it any favours. And neither is Aimsey.”
“I’m trying!” she protested. “It just doesn’t lay on the same over the bruises and I don’t know what to do about it.”
Beau shook her head with a sigh. “Well, what you’re gonna do about it is wash that crap off his face while Crumb goes back to guarding the door and I go take a piss,” she said decisively, already pivoting towards the bank of stalls.
“Ew--” Tubbo started to protest only to get cut off by a scoff.
“ You’re the one hoggin’ the bathroom!” Beau called over her shoulder going towards the furthest stalls.
Crumb snickered at the interaction as she backed up towards the door. “I’ll try to stop anyone else from interrupting but no promises.”
“You’re the worst guard ever,” Tubbo shot back, though he was grinning at her fondly.
“You and I both know that’s not true,” she replied with a wink before ducking back out the door.
Tubbo rolled his eyes and leaned back against the counter, his smile fading somewhat as the door closed behind the cat-hybrid.
Aimsey couldn’t help but sigh, shaking her head as she flicked on the tap and turned to grab a few sheets of paper towel. “You’d better stop picking on her,” Aimsey joked, wetting the towels and wringing them out. “You’re gonna miss her once she transfers to the hero class.”
He smiled sadly and started to nod, only to be stopped by Aimsey’s hands as she brought up the damp paper towel to scrub gently at his face. “Well, we had a good run while it lasted,” he muttered almost to himself.
Behind them, she heard Tubbo’s ghostly follower snort and she resisted the urge to frown.
Tubbo seemed to do that a lot, saying something that almost matched the conversation at hand while almost seeming to be talking about something completely different. She just wondered what it actually meant and what it had to do with Crumb of all people.
“Thanks,” Tubbo said suddenly, making Aimsey’s hands still on his face.
She snorted. “What are you thanking me for? All I did was screw up your makeup even more.”
“Thanks for not telling anyone,” he amended. “I…know I didn’t exactly ask nicely to get you to agree, so I’m sorry, but thanks anyway.”
Aimsey sighed with a shake of her head. “Don’t worry about it. Everyone’s got their secrets and I of all people should have known when to back down, I don’t hold it against you or anything.”
He smiled at that and it struck Aimsey not for the first time just how world weary Tubbo could look sometimes. “You’re a good friend Aimsey, even when I’m not.”
“Oh shut it,” she chided, smacking his arm lightly. “You’re so damn dramatic sometimes you know that?”
He grinned at her like someone who just stole something and knew you hadn’t noticed yet. “Oh man, you don’t even know the half of it.”