Guzma x Reader The Earth's End

V

By the end of the day you were sweaty, dirt stained, sunburnt, and tired. But you felt a lot better than you'd had in a while.

Troy seemed unfazed by the sun, his tanned skin apparently used to the heat. He chattered almost nonstop, about anything, everything, and absolutely nothing. You didn't respond much and he didn't seem to expect you to.

"And so I just kinda threw the kid, ya know? Just chucked him straight into the river. Now his mom was getting all mad and stuff like, 'Why you throwin' my son?!', but I mean, he asked me to throw 'em, and I couldn't just say no, because I kinda always wanted to throw a kid ya know, just seemed like a thing to do."

"Uh huh."

"And then I- Aw, hold up. That's Nanu over there, I gotta speak with him. See ya later!"

You waved to him and he bounded off, leaving you to wonder how he could possibly have so much energy left.

The sky was painted with oranges and yellows as the sun started to set and you kept your eyes up as you walked through the town, Guzma's mansion at your back.

You stopped when you heard a high-pitched shriek of excitement. You turned towards one of the houses and saw, to your great surprise, Guzma. He was being dragged down by no less than five kids, none older than nine.

The large man pretended to struggle, giving a roar of defeat as the children dragged him to the ground and pounced on him, burying him completely. He dragged himself free of the pile with a dramatic gasp, collapsing on his side. "I can't beat ya'!" Guzma panted. "Ya'll are too strong for ya boy. Tell my wife I love 'er."

One of the kids said, "Guzma, you don't have a wife."

He looked at her, surprise on his face. "I don't?"

Laughter rippled through the kids and they jumped on him again, for affection this time, as opposed to 'glory'. Guzma sat up and cradled them all in his lap, wrapping his arms around the whole crew.

He laughed. It was one of the most beautiful sounds you'd ever heard.

A little boy you recognized as J's kid saw you and waved. "Hi, new lady!"

Guzma turned his head towards you and you felt heat rising to your cheeks. You suddenly felt wrong for watching him, like the scene was something far too intimate for someone who'd only barely moved in.

But the leader motioned you closer, giving no sign that he was mad or embarrassed by your presence. "Hey, girlie. Wassup?"

"Um, n-nothing Guzma."

One of the kids grabbed a handful of his hair and tugged. With a wince, he worked his hair free and said, "Nothin'? Weren't cha lookin' for me?"

You shook your head. "No, I just heard the kids and came to see, I guess." You looked away and shuffled nervously. "I'm sorry I bothered you. I'll go."

"Oh no you won't." Guzma shook his head and motioned you closer. "I'm holdin' five kids in my lap, the least you can do is take one."

You walked closer, looking down at the kids. Four of the five were boys, and all but one of said boys were blue eyed and blue haired. "What's up with blue hair?" You muttered.

Guzma gave a short bark of laughter. "Who knows?"

The only one that wasn't a bluenet was J's boy. You reached for him and he held up his arms, allowing you to pick him up and place him on your hip. "Hey there." You brushed a lock of messy black hair out of the boy's face.

"Hey." He stuck his thumb in his mouth, his other hand fisted into the fabric of your shirt.

"My name is (Y/N). What's yours?"

"I'm Conner."

Conner pulled at your shirt and said, "You came in with Daddy."

You gave a small smile. "Yes, I did."

"Did Daddy save you too?"

"He did."

Conner nodded and said, "Yeah, Daddy is a hero."

Your heart warmed. You'd always sort of wanted kids of your own, and it was so sweet, how much Conner looked up to J.

You glanced towards Guzma and ended up staring, mouth half open in a mix of awe and surprise. He was still holding four kids in his lap, the girl was repeatedly opening and closing his jacket, one boy was taking the white part of Guzma's hair and putting many tiny braids in it, one was sucking Guzma's thumb, and the last boy kept trying to take his shirt off and eat it.

He looked tired and annoyed and amused all at the same time. Never before had you ever seen someone look so much like a father.

"Alright kiddies." Guzma gently nudged the kids from his lap, wiping one hand off on his pants. "Get on back in the house, get some dinner than wash up. Go on, get." He shooed them away and they ran off, pushing and laughing, towards the house nearby.

You put Conner down and he followed more slowly, stopping once to turn and wave. You waved back, watching the little boy head inside.

Guzma stretched and yawned. "They're a buncha hard work, but ya just gotta love 'em, yeah?"

Every story you'd ever heard about Team Skull flashed through your mind. This man, hair rumpled and braided, eyes tired from caring for five young kids, didn't match any image you'd ever had of him.

"Why do ya always stare like that?"

You jumped a little, startled from your thoughts by Guzma's voice. "I'm just trying to figure you out." The truth tumbled out before you could stop it and Guzma looked at you, one eyebrow raised.

"What's that supposed tah mean?"

"Well..." No backing out now. "All the stories I've heard about Team Skull, about the big bad leader, none of it matches up with a man that holds five kids in his lap and kisses them all on the head because it makes them happy. With a man that takes care of his people. A man that seems more like a man than a monster."

Guzma looked towards the house where the kids had went. "Sometimes," his voice was almost too quiet to hear. "I want to hurt something. Sometimes I want to take someone by the neck and twist till I hear a snap." You couldn't move, could barely breathe. Guzma was looking down at his hands, his eyes blank.

"I don't know why," he continued. "I don't know why I get so angry. Right when I think, hey I've got it under control, it flares up again, and I just..." His hands clenched info fists and he shoved them into his pockets. "There's something about makin' a plant grow. Something about a kid's laugh. It just takes that rage and... And it just kinda melts away, ya know?"

He started to walk past you then stopped. "You asked me why. Why I let those people in, when it all started goin' to hell." He paused for a moment. "It's was 'cause, even though they'd always hated me and I'd always kinda hated them right back, we were same right then. We were all beaten. I took 'em in because they were just as broken as I was."

He walked down the road. The sun set. And the shadows followed at his back.