Work Text:
"WHY GOOD MORNING MY BUTTER MILK COOKIES! I hope you all had slept well, because today's adventure is gonna be a TEAM ADVENTURE!"
As Caine made the announcement, Kaufmo rubbed his eyes, still tired from yesterday's adventure, just wishing that he could just sleep in, but knowing Caine, he knows that he didn't had much of a choice.
He then looked around, seeing the other members, Jax was stretching his ears, and Ragatha was straighting her dress, the clown was still new to the whole digital world thing.
He didn't even know how long it's been since he came to the circus, a month? A year? Does time even exist here? Caine did say that both night and day can be whenever, but never said anything about if time was ever a thing. For all Kaufmo knew, he was trapped here, at least for now.
"Ah, so what kind if team adventure you pulling up today Caine?" Jax, who was a purple antromorphic rabbit, that Kaufmo had seen asked, "Is it gonna be a little hunting one like last time?" Ragatha, a ragdoll who had red hair and a blue dress looked at him, with a frown. "Last time I remembered, THAT adventure wasn't just a "team" adventure"," The doll commented, "it was just you and Ribbit poaching each of us as animals down and then eating us."
"Aw, come on Rags, that was funny! Besides, Kaufmo being a turkey was pretty suitable for him," he rabbit laughed, Kaufmo looked away, his face flustered with embarrassment, Ragatha then turned to him away from Jax to comfort him, Ribbit, a antromorphic frog with a pretty, pink bow also turned to the pour clown, with a reassuring smile. "Don't listen to Jax, he doesn't mean it," he frog said kindly.
"Yeah I did."
"No you didn't."
"How do you know?"
"Because I just do."
"You sure?"
"Just stop talking to me."
"But are you sure?"
"Jax, please."
"...You sure-"
As the two antromorphic animal character started fight back to one another, Ragatha roled her eyes, as Kaufmo just watched.
"Today adventure is A TREE HOUSE ADVENTURE! Where YOU get teamed with a random person and help build and create your team's treehouse! The first one to finish gets a special prize at the end! The special prize is-"
Before Caine can continue, he paused and stopped for a while, leaving everyone to just stare and wait. Kaufmo then perked up to talk.
"Is what-"
"After that, the adventure will be over, of course, not without me checking what your tree house looks like! AlsobeforeIcontinueinordertoseewhoisinyourteamyou'llhaveacolorbandonyourwristthat'llshow youwhoisonyourteam."
"W- Wait you didn't answer the... prize..."
Without a doubt, Caine had already placed the cast of humans in the map and went away to do whatever gods knows what. Kaufmo looked down around his wrist: the color was green.
As Kaufmo looked around the people around him, he note that the following pairs of groups had each other: Jax had Ragatha and Kinger had Queenie. Well, if that's the case, wouldn't he be left with-
"So, green band too, huh?"
Kaufmo turned around to see a familiar, green frog. Not saying he never seen Ribbit before, just that they don't talk as much even though it had already been a few days that he arrived to the circus and knew almost everyone... well, maybe apart from Jax only knowing he's a rabbit (obviously) and a prankster, but only that.
The other thing he knew was that Ribbit, despite being friendly, was also friends with Jax too, not bad enough where she WAS like him, but Kaufmo kept this information to be safe if she did ever do something to him. Not saying she would, but just in case.
Ribbit then showed her wristband, which was really hard to see as it blended with her green, frogy avatar, making Kaufmo squint his eyes.
"Out of all the bands, Caine of course choose the one color that suited me best."
"Uh, yeah! Totally..."
Despite trying to act cool, Ribbit gave him a confused- no- maybe weirded out look. Kaufmo turned away, feeling embarrassed and flustered, his face turning slightly pink.
Ribbit meanwhile stared at him, but then smirked holding in a laugh. pff, weirdo she thought.
Meanwhile on the side, both Ragatha and Jax watch the two from not to far away, Ragatha simply smile at them, Jax rolled his eyes. "How cute," she decided to comment from their behalf unknowingly.
"Gayyyy."
"Don't ruin this, Jax."
As the clown and frog worked on their treehouse, the two mainly focused on the structure of the place, it wasn't big, but not small either, just a seeming normal treehouse to hang out in. Kaufmo was indeed impressed on how it was going so far, he never own a treehouse from what he remembered as a child, but something about it made the place feel nostalgic, almost like home, this wasn't even his idea for what he thought what the treehouse would look like, Ribbit was the designer here.
Kaufmo, wanting to try again, decided to compliment Ribbit for the idea of it.
"This is... coming around good, great even, uh how did you... figured this out?"
"Back at my old home, I'd visited a friend's treehouse similar to this," The frog responded casually, "It was nice while it lasted."
"While it... lasted?"
"Yeah," Ribbit turned away from him, "turns out that "friend" turned to be a total bitch at the end of the day after I told her that I couldn't come over to her sleepover because of family and started gossiping behind my back."
Kaufmo looked at her in shock. He knew that she can be kinda unhinged, but trauma dumping so causally was not something he'd wouldn't had heard from her. Ribbit then turned, realizing what she just said.
"Oh shit, sorry, I didn't mean to make you-"
"Oh, no! You don't need to apologize, trust me! I only asked that because I was just curious."
"And that finnnee, don't worry!"
"Yeah, yeah..."
Both of them stayed in silence.
God, they where so bad at talking to each other it made the both cringe. Kaufmo specifically since he was pretty introverted guy from his life... well... maybe except for his mom and sisters...
He thought for a moment how to change the mood in order no NOT make this more werid as it is. That when something clicked.
"Uh, by the way! I want to show you something if that's ok."
The frog perked up to his gaze, curious.
"Uh... sure! What is it?"
Kaufmo took his hat off, and started his work. Taking out a little deflated, red balloon. He knew what to do. He found out not to long ago about this trick, it was probably one of the things that made him a little better about his situation being trapped here, at least he can entertain himself, the one thing he found his new body useful for. He blew into the balloon, after that, he tied a white string that he also took out from his hat too. He then placed his hat back on and held the floating balloon in his hand and then gave it to Ribbit. The frog was impressed.
"Wow! That's really cool of you."
"Thanks... found out a few days ago... it's not much but-"
"Thank you, that really sweet of you."
The clown face flustered again as he used his hand to cover the light pink forming, probably one of the nicest things he'd heard from someone in a while unlike some people.
Before the moment could last more, the frog's hand that held the string of the balloon loosened, causing the balloon to float away from her. There, the ballon stopped not to far away from the two, though, being across a hole that they had not yet patched up with a single wooden slab as a bridge.
"Ah shoot, sorry, I'll just-"
"No!," Kaufmo reluctantly interrupted, "I-... I mean, I'll get it for you don't worry!"
"Are you sure? That looks kinda risky, I don't want you to-"
"No it's fine, besides, what's the worse that can happen?"
Although skeptical, Ribbit didn't want to tell Kaufmo to stop, but also didn't want him to get hurt either, but with no other choice seeing that Kaufmo seemed to be too eager to help, she decided to also just let it be, it's not like bone exist in the circus, so even if he did fall, it could just be minor.
"Ah... ok then, thanks," Ribbit responded, "Oh and also, break leg while you at it!"
The confidence from Ribbit seemed to had worked with Kaufmo, seeing that he was on the beginning of slab, his plan being to walk across it to grab the balloon, easy.
As he barely started walking, the slab broke as his cartoon clown body fell down with a crash. Ribbit, horrified, rushed over the edge to look down at him.
"KAUFFY!"
Kaufmo only blacked out a little bit only to wake up a minute later, not quite feeling anything, but as he tried to stand up, he felt a sharp pain through his left leg, causing him to scream, Ribbit cringed hearing the painful cry.
Ragatha, Jax, Kinger, and Queenie all rushed up to see what had happened, of course to see a very injured clown.
"Goodness! What happened?!," Ragatha asked in absolute shock and worry, meanwhile, Kinger and Queenie where checking up on Kaufmo's leg to see how bad it was.
"Well, you see, Kaufmo gave me a balloon he made for me which I accidentally let go of and he insisted of getting it for me so I told him to break a leg-"
"Wait, wait, wait," Jax interrupted, "YOU told him to break a leg, and he ended up doing so."
"W- well, not on purpose-"
"Gotta admit, that pretty funny."
"JAX!," Ragatha shouted to the now grinning rabbit trying not to laugh his ass off before Caine can appear to help out.
Since of Kaufmo's injury, Caine decided to cut the adventure short, knowing that it wouldn't be fun to have an injured human on his adventures. Kaufmo layed in bed, his broken leg making it impossible to try to move without the pain hurting so much.
That so stupid of me, he thought, I just wanted to help only to make things worse, it's my fault that it ended so fast.
As he thought, a red balloon all of a sudden appeared to float towards him, looking at the balloon looked familiar, that until Ribbit entered in his room, looking guilty and quite upset.
"I'm sooo sorry! I didn't mean for that to happen at all!," she said, "I mean the whole 'break a leg part."
Kaufmo smile, knowing how kind she really was, as chaotic she could be at times, she really was there for you when you need it.
"Its... not a big deal."
"But you got hurt!"
"Not the worse."
"You have a broken leg."
"So?"
She scoffed at him, hitting his arm playfully, she was worried, yes, but at least Kaufmo was getting a little bit better knowing he was teasing her.
"Sooo... um, you really were eager to grab that balloon for me, huh?"
"Why wouldn't I?," he asked, "we're friends after all."
Friends...
A word that Ribbit had not heard for a long time, especially at home.
"Yeah, I guess we are... but seriously, you didn't have to."
"I just thought maybe I'd be useful for once."
The frog looked at him, questioning.
"Useful?"
"Yeah...," Kaufmo said almost ashamed, "I never told anyone this but... when I was a kid, I always wanted to be a comedian."
"A comedian?"
The clown nodded.
"Yeah. My dad... wasn't the best. He told me that... my jokes aren't good and I should... do something more useful in my life then that."
"What?," The frog asked, "Your dad sounds like a dick, come on, tell me a joke."
A joke?, the clown thought, no one's ever laughed at his jokes, should he?
"Don't worry, I won't judge."
"Uh...," he thought about it, what if she doesn't like it? Oh, no more time to mop, say something!
"Uh... well, why did the chicken cross the road?"
"Uh, why?"
"To... to get on the other side!"
Silence occurred.
"Uhhh, Here! I have another! What smells like blue paint?"
"What?"
"R- red paint..."
Ribbit snorted, and she chuckled
I finally made someone laugh..., Kaufmo thought.
"That was... bad, but I loved it!"
"Heh, thanks..."
Both of the two started to blush, Kaufmo and Ribbit turning away from each other to hide it, with more silence to come. That when Ribbit broke it.
"I... better get going... uh, but thank you for... that..."
"Yeah," responded the clown, "no big deal..."
Before Ribbit left, she peaked her head out of the door to tell him a little something more.
"You know, you don't talk too much... I like you!"
As she left, Kaufmo stared at his broken foot, then the red balloon, as he did, he started to smile.
Maybe things won't be so bad here after all, he thought.