Chapter Text
Spamton was working, it was late and he was technically in bed. so Tenna couldn't complain when he found out Spamton was reviewing ad contracts by the light of the Tvs own screen.
Haha don't be a lamp then fucker!
There was a faint creek of floorboards that made Spamton pause mid pen scratch as he combed through the contract for typos and loop holes.
The creek that sounded distinctly like a child. Spamton rolled his eyes, glancing at Tenna, tempted to wake him to deal with this but … he was already awake and Tenna was fast asleep dreaming about the weather again.
A blue sky with a sun and clouds.
The door finally cracked open, and when Spamton didn't hear the immediate call for either him or Tenna he knew which child it was.
Confirming his suspensions he looked over to see Kris peeking through the door.
Spamton and Tenna’s strange situation regarding the Lightners in their care had stopped being “ strange” about a few months ago. It was just normal at this point.
Kris Dreemurr and Noelle Holiday somehow found themselves in the Darkworld and the king in charge of guarding the Dark fountain requested Tenna and Spamton take care of them.
Well Queen was asked to take care of Noelle but she was quick to dump that responsibility on her #1 Salesman.
From there Tenna and Spamton just sort of… fell into this domestic situation. Since the kids knew each other it made sense to spend more time outside of work together so they could play.
From there it made sense to move in together. The kids only had each other!
It made sense to get married! They were already living together! And they were dating well before this mess anyway!
Next thing Spamton knew he was married, and Noelle was continually swapping between calling him or Tenna Daddy . It depended on if she was aware of more than one of them in the room. A bright girl even for a four year old wanted to make sure the Dad she wanted attention from knew who she was talking to .
Kris was usually quiet and would usually hide behind Tenna's pant leg but more than once Spamton caught the four year old trying to hide behind him as well in crowded places.
Speaking of Kris.
Spamton sighed and got out of bed, wincing only slightly as his bare feet touch the cold ground. He was never going to get used to the cold floor board of TV world. It wasn't like the constant electricity that kept Cyber City warm.
“ What's up kiddo?” Spamton whispered as he ushered the child back into the hall. Kris just stared, Spamton sighed. Kris was already almost as tall as him so he didn't have to bend down very far to be even with Kris. He really just had to bend his legs a little.
“ C'mon buddy we talked about this, you need to use your words, any words, hand words are good too,” he reminded them, Kris sniffed and Spamton felt a wave of guilt rush over him despite that he needed to know what was wrong in order to help.
Kris didn't talk much, they were selectively mute. At least that’s what Tenna said when Spamton first commented on it.
“ Yeah Toriel took them to a doctor once about it. They just don’t talk much but that’s okay!” Tenna hoisted the three year old up and tossed them into the air. Kris giggled and grinned at the TV, “ We have other ways to talk don’t we?”
To put it simply, they preferred short simple sentences. They tried to teach them Sign language to try and help. Kris was getting the hang of it but the last year has been busy with the the moving to TV world, and the court house wedding, and the adjusting from having no kids to caretaking for two. They hadn't kept up with the lessons like they wanted to. . .
“ Bad.” Kris finally said, “ sleep bad.” Spamton blinked in confusion. His mouth pressed into a thin line as he tried to translate what the child was saying. Not wanting to push Kris more than he already had.
“ What's making sleep bad? Is it the dark?” Kris didn't respond or give any indication. They just stared blankly at the Addison. “ was there a loud noise?” Spamton didn't hear one but then again Tenna did say Spamton was prone to tubing out the world when he worked.
Again Kris gave no answer. Just staring blankly at Spamton who was starting to feel the exhaustion he'd been ignoring earlier. Part of him wanted to shake the kid and demand they just spit it out already! But he gripped his pajama shorts in his fists.
It wasn't Kris’s fault. They're just like this and it can't be helped. Besides theres only so many reasons a kid can’t sleep. So think Spamton Think.
“ Bad dream?” He tried again and this time Kris’s eyes lit up. They nodded eagerly. Okay, the kid had a nightmare. No big deal. Easy fix.
“ Awe buddy, c'mon let's go back to your room, we'll get your sketch book and you can tell me all about it okay?” Kris’s room was small with a few violent show posters on the wall that Spamton wasn't sure were age appropriate but Tenna insisted Kris loved those shows.
Once Kris was in bed Spamton handed over the child's doodle pad and crayons. It didn't take long for Kris to draw a little blue figure. ( Themself) And a massive figure looking over them.
It was mostly pink with yellows and a triangular head. Its eyes were yellow and pink, reminding Spamton of Swatch and his glasses.
Once Kris was done they showed it to Spamton.
“ Monster.” They said, Spamton resisted the scoff in his throat.
“ Oh that monster looks pretty scary but I assure you I've never seen a creature like that-”
“ No. Not that,” Kris pointed at the page. At the blue figure. Spamton could see a small red heart in the blue figures chest.
“ That's the monster! In my dream this is trying to help me but the monster makes me kill it,” the explanation tumbling out of the child’s mouth almost uncharacteristically. They must be really freaked out by it, it made goosebumps rise on Spamton’s skin as he examined the picture.
“ Makes you?” He echoed, Kris nodded.
“ Like …. Like a…” they struggled for a minute, “ like a robot! Can't fight it.” Spamton forced himself to smile.
“ Well that sort of thing can't happen, no one can make you do anything you don't truly want to do. Okay?” Kris frowned but nodded. Something gnawed at Spamton though, he could almost hear the faint ringing in the distance.
“ Tell you what though, just in case, let's come up with a secret code huh? Something you can do or say that'll let me know you need help from the monster.” Kris nodded and Spamton tried to think of something, drumming his hands on his lap idly. After a pause Kris mimicked him.
Spamton gave a soft “ ha” , then ruffled the kids hair.
“ How about…. We shake hands and when we do you say…”
“ I am the ultimate Fartmaster!” Kris announced, and Spamton was caught off guard. Snorting before breaking into a laugh.
“ Sure, if you can say that with a straight face then I'll know something is wrong okay?” He nudged Kris playfully. The child grinned, “ Alright, now you gotta go back to sleep, Tenna will throw a fit if you’re overtired tomorrow,” Spamton stood up, setting the sketch pad down. Kris’s smile slowly fell.
“ Can you stay?” They asked suddenly, Spamton blinked and stood there awkwardly.
“ Oh uh I dunno kid I got a lotta work to do…” Kris pouted, and sunk into their bedding.
“ But what if the monster comes back?” They asked. Spamton frowned then sighed heavily.
“ Kris the monster was never here , you had a nightmare,” Spamton reminded them, and the child deflated. For fucks sake if Spamton didn’t know Kris was physically incapable of it he’d swear the child shrunk just like Tenna did when he was upset.
“ …okay.” Guilt once again pooled into Spamton’s being, he ran a hand over his hair, looking towards the door before sighing heavily.
“ Okay, okay.. scoot over,” Kris obeyed and Spamton laid on the bed next to them. the child immediately nuzzled into Spamton’s side and the Addison couldn't help but remind himself that someday soon Kris would be bigger than him.
Spamton wouldn't be able to wrap his arms securely around the child like he could shield them from the world. But he could now, Kris was still just small enough.
Only just.
Spamton must have been more tired than he thought because he blinked and was laying in Kris’s bed alone. With a smirking Tenna leaning over him.
“ Morning~”
“ Morning.” Spamton sat up irritably and blinked in the room, Tenna offered him a cup of coffee. He had the courtesy to let Spamton take a sip off the cup before speaking again, turning his attention to the sketchpad sitting on Kris’s bedside table. He picking it up and examined it, a concerned expression crossing his face.
“ Kris mentioned a nightmare?” He mused, gesturing to the doodle pad. Spamton hummed, still drinking his coffee.
“ Just a silly thing, you know how it goes,” he slid off the bed and stretching, “ But I took care of it.” Tenna chuckled, then shook his head. Setting the doodlepad down.
“ I can see that, You've become such a softy!” Tenna teased, to which Spamton ignored him.
“ Shut up.” He smoothed his hair back, “ I gotta get back to work and finish the ad reviews, we'll talk later?” Spamton started speed walking away before Tenna could tease him further.
####
Tenna wasnt sure what woke him, all he knew was one minute he was dreaming then the next he was opening his eyes and seeing a small deer girl standing way too close.
“ AH! Oh! Noelle, it's just you!” He forced a laugh, glancing over his shoulder at Spamton who was dead to the world. Sprawled as wide as his short limbs would allow one arm over his eyes.
Tenna saw the sleep aid Spamton often took sitting on the bedside table … yeah Tenna was going to have to deal with this. He turned back to Noelle.
“ What is it my spotlight! My shining star?” He asked in a hushed voice. Noelle sniffed and wiped her eyes.
“ I had a bad dream that Kris was gonna hurt me….” She said, Tenna blinked in surprise.
“ Oh no, no, Kris would never,” he scooped the deer girl up and set her on his lap. Not really worried about Waking spamton. He was dead to the world right now.
“ in the dream Kris kept telling me to do stuff and it would hurt people and I couldn't stop it,” she sobbed into the TV's chest.
“ Oh, darling Kris cares greatly for you, they like to tease but they would never hurt you, okay?” Noelle wasn't having it, still crying, finally Tenna sighed heavily and settled back into bed. His back against the headboard. He set Noelle on his lap.
Think Tenna think, how do you make this kid stop crying.
“ Okay, how about we watch some cartoons to take our minds off it, hm? Oh! Actually you wanna see the bloopers reels of some of Spamton's ads before you kids showed up?” He asked, gesturing to the sleeping Addison. There was a pause where Noelle sniffled, looking up at the TV.
“ blooper reel?” She echoed, Tenna grinned.
“ Yeah! I mean, Spamton talks a big game, but not every ad was good the first time round, we have hundreds that hit the cutting room floor.” Tenna explained, “ Spamton has a sort of… adlib method to his adreads so he’ll try something and then it doesn’t work and it gets tossed…. Like one time we were a mattress ad and Spamton had some weird ideas….” Noelle giggled weakly.
“ What were they?” she asked,
“ Oh man, I could make you a list, there were so many of them,… business didn’t like them unfortunately…. You wanna see one?” There was a pause, then Noelle nodded.
“ Great, one blooper reel coming up!” Tenna let his face go flat so he could play the old ad on his screen, it opened to him sitting at a kitchen table. At the table included Spamton, and Lanino.
“ Hi, this episode of Mr. (Ant) Tenna’s TV Time is brought to you by Matress Kingdom, Guys,” Tenna turned to the other three, “ I’ve had my new Matress for almost six months now, and I’ve had so much better sleep than my old on, I thought it was fine but I never realized how much my shoulders hurt when we slept on that one.”
“ No, Me too,” Spamton chimed in, “ I love your mattress.” This was where Spamton ditched the skript, Lanino slowly turned to look at Spamton, and Tenna’s screen turned pink since this was before they were dating.
“ What?” Lanino asked, Spamton continued unbothered.
“ I mean it’s so cosy, I’m glad we love the same firmness of mattress,” he clarified, “ Like I took the quiz and it was Wow you and I, we have the same mattress , so yeah, I love sleeping on your mattress.” Spamton turned back to Tenna.
“ He means the same type of mattress,” Lanino cut in, “ not like your actual…same mattress-”
“ No! Same Matress!” Spamton grinned as he corrected the weatherman, “ Same time!” Tenna was struggling to keep a blank face, his screen turning a bright pink.
Meanwhile outside the tv Noelle giggled, grinning at her parent’s past antics.
“ You sleep on it… at night?” Comercial Tenna asked nervously, to which Spamton turned to him again.
“ On it? No! No! Oh no no, I’m in it .”
“ What?”
“ I actually sleep inside it, below one of the many plush layers, it’s just like I’m being hugged by a beautiful mattress.” Spamton explained. Tenna laughed nervously.
“ I feel like I would notice that.”
“ No!” Spamton cut in, but then let Tenna continue, so against the TV’s better judgment he played into it.
“ but it is a really soft mattress.”
“ Did you think the mattress came with a shoulder massage fuction?” Spamton asked, almost condescending. Lanino looked to the camera as if asking if they were gonna cut or not, “ Nah, that’s me.”
“ If I look through my mattress and find you in there,” Lanino cut in, turning back to Spamton who laughed.
“ Well I mean I can’t get there every day, Lanino, you live in TV world,” Spamton teased the weather man.
“ Well even if Spamton is not in your mattress, Tenna made a point ….”
Tenna didn't sleep that night but he did turn the old ads off when he felt Noelle slump against his chest and fell asleep.
He laid there watching her curled up like a kitten well into the morning. Only pulling himself out of the trance when he saw a white hand gently brush her hair back. He looked over to see Spamton was awake.
He met Tenna's gaze and smiled sleepily before sitting up more.
“ What is she doing here?” He asked, Tenna shrugged.
“ Nightmare,” he mumbled, Spamton scoffed.
“ Tis the season I suppose…” Tenna raised an eyebrow at him in confusion. It wasn't October so he didn't know what that meant. Did nightmare have a season?!
Whatever. It didn't matter.
“ I’ll get started on breakfast for them then since you're stuck,” Spamton leaned over the bed and kissed the side of the TV before sliding off the bed and leaving the room. Rubbing his eyes as he did. Tenna felt a wobbly smile grow on his face before he looked back down at the sleeping deer girl.
Later Spamton was pushed open Tenna’s dressing room door and pointed at him.
“ YOU! You wanna tell me why I caught Kris trying to cut a hole in Noelle’s mattress and when I asked what was going on Noelle said you showed her the scrapped Matress Kingdom ad?!” Spamton demanded, Tenna laughed nervously.