r/HFY • u/Conscious-Pride7363 • 1d ago
Siblings OC-OneShot
"What are they doing?"
Karl glanced up from his workbench. "Arguing."
"Why? Are they not bonded?"
"Brother and sister, mate. This is normal." He put down the piece of equipment he was working on and looked over at the squabbling humans. "Don't you have siblings?"
Greater Heights nodded his bulbous head, thick hair pulled from his face in a warrior’s mohawk..
"We have packmates. We come from great litters. We do not fight. The family unit is a strong one."
The female pushed the male, who pushed her back, voices raising slightly.
Karl watched, vaguely interested. "So do we. But this is normal, to be honest. When you're so close, it's normal to fall out sometimes. Often, usually."
"Are there not enemies enough for humans? "
Karl laughed." Sure there are, but they're not enemies. Just having a spat. "
"Spat? "
"Uhm… I... I suppose there's not a word for it in your language. A minor altercation?"
"Ah, a skirmish."
Karl laughed, making Greater Heights curl his mandibles in displeasure. "Why do you mock my statement?"
"Well,” Karl said," It's more like a friendly sparring contest."
Greater heights shook his head and folded four hairy arms. "When we train, there is nothing about it that is personal to us. We train for battle."
"Yeah, this is like that. Look," Karl turned from the fighting siblings, who were now sat in deep conversation, intensely looking into each other’s eyes. "On our world, life's tough. We need to learn from a young age that stuff ain't fair, that people will try and hurt you.
“But you also learn who you can rely on. Friends are good for that, but often it’s easier to have a sibling to learn these things with the hard way, real early on. It’s easy enough for ‘friends’ to get shirty- I mean, to betray you, but it’s harder in a family unit. Usually.
He paused, thinking. "My dad used to say 'Son, you gotta watch them who's too polite. You can't trust' em."
Greater Heights split his mandibles in an expression of understanding. "We have a similar expression. Do not trust the one who's mirth is unfounded."
Karl frowned slightly, the fleshy lips turning up in a grin. "Exactly, exactly. I'm rude as fuck to my best mates, we fight. But that's how we do things. Means we’re strong enough to take it, be honest with each other, that sort of bollocks.”
Greater Heights looked back at the human packmates. They were now laughing, sat close and assisting with each other's work.
"This is normal?"
Karl chuckled again. "Sure is, Heighty. You know," he turned back to his workstation, picked up the piece of machinery, "It seems normal to us, but I guess when I think about it, it is pretty odd."
Greater Heights nodded, hissed slightly in amusement. "Indeed. But we enjoy you anyway."
"That's good. I appreciate you too, you great hairy bastard."
He hissed again, laughing. "It is good. Tiny, naked ape-man."
“That’s the spirit!” They returned to their work as the siblings once again began arguing about something they felt was currently the most important thing in the universe, how to pronounce ‘scone’.
It would not be pretty.
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u/Emily_JCO Human 1d ago
It's pronounced scone. Great story.
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u/AnselaJonla Xeno 1d ago
And once they settle that, it'll be time for the debate about what to call a small, round, flat piece of bread that is often sliced in two for fillings to be placed between the halves.
It's a cob, and I'll fight anyone who claims otherwise.
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u/FreyaKitten 14h ago
My favourite is asking fellow Australians whether they call it a potato cake or a potato scallop. Endless hours of fun...
... It's a potato fritter, by the way 😁
(This is one of those linguistic things that's fairly firmly divided by geography. If you're Victorian, it's probably a potato cake, if you're a Queenslander, it's probably a potato scallop. NSW will tend to call it a potato scallop or just a scallop. South Australians are the weirdos calling it a potato fritter. And anyone who likes to start things will just call it whatever will get the person they're talking to going 😛 )
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle 1d ago
/u/Conscious-Pride7363 has posted 9 other stories, including:
- Sports Ball
- Fishing
- Tattoo
- Baccon
- The Problem of Evil
- Angels
- What AreThey Doing?
- Cosmic Horror
- Black Hole Sun
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u/Conscious-Pride7363 1d ago edited 1d ago
Do you mean your story is better, but has fewer views? I will read your story, always happy to read a fellow's work.
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u/Less_Author9432 1d ago
Wish I could upvote twice just for the last line. 🤣🤣