Chapter Text
Four years into farm life, Katie was well settled into her routine. She'd wake up each morning with a cat between her legs, sun peaking through the lace curtains. Most days— and now everyday— she'd wake up with Harvey by her side, mouth open and snoring. She'd brush the hair off of his forehead and lean down to let a kiss rest there. He'd stir and mutter something Katie never understood, and she'd smile and hop out of bed.
She never got over the fresh farm air, or the view of everything. The farm was back to it's former glory, sheds full of kegs and land well cultivated. It was almost exactly as she remembered it from childhood, apart from the few modernizations she was sure Grandpa would've approved of.
She'd do the full routine each day, taking care of the animals first thing before heading back inside for breakfast. She'd harvest whatever was ready, checking for weeds and fungus as she moved through, then head into town for any deliveries that needed completed— much easier now that she had a truck of her own.
Today she had no deliveries to make, freeing herself for lunch with Grandpa and Grandma. She brought out an extra plate for the two of them, and a small cup of wine tucked in her arm.
When she arrived at the old shrine, Marlon was sat there, resting his hands on his cane.
"I would've gotten a third plate if I knew you'd be here," Katie called out to him.
Marlon turned to eye her, then scooched over on the bench to make room. He nodded towards a bouquet by the shine. "Evelyn beat us both."
"When does that poor woman wake up? I've been up since sunrise and I never even saw her," Katie said.
Marlon shrugged. "She's horribly quiet when she wants to be. You probably just missed her."
Katie set her own plate on the bench, before bringing the second plate and wine to the shrine. She took a matchbook from her pocket, lighting the four candles. She stepped back to examine her work, then joined Marlon on the bench.
"I'm always surprised you come out for my grandma's birthday," she said. "Gil told me she used to drive you up the wall."
"Why do you think I liked her so much? She pissed me the hell off. Insufferable woman." Marlon paused, mouth turning up into a smirk. "Only person in the world who could compete with me on the dwarves, though. She knew too much. She and I used to talk about them for hours, holed up in that museum of hers."
Katie smiled, politely covering her mouth as she spoke, "I'm going to head over there after this if you want to join me."
Marlon shook his head. "I have plans with Gil and Debby."
"Right. I'm sorry, I forgot about—"
"Don't worry about it," Marlon interrupted.
"I can give you a ride into town if you'd like," Katie offered.
They sat together for Katie's meal, Marlon sharing all the same Betsy stories he always did. It was different from Katie's own memories of Grandma, the sweet woman who always had her nose in a book. The woman Marlon spoke of had a sharp tongue and confidence that overtook the room. Betsy had little patience for the guild boy's debates, only asserting her opinion— which she assured them was always right— before waving them off and heading for the museum.
Katie had always thought she'd gotten her personality from Grandma, with her disinterest in killing monsters and less chaotic personality than Grandpa. She'd realized from talking with all the old guild members just how much she had gotten from Grandpa, beyond just the love of farming. Hearing about Betsy instead brought Tyler to mind— or at least how Katie imagined Tyler must be, now that they hardly spoke.
"There wasn't one damn thing about that woman I didn't like," Marlon remarked.
"Impressive," Katie teased. "You're real picky with people."
Marlon side eyed Katie, but didn't disagree with her assessment.
Once Katie had had her meal, the two of them drove up to town together. Gil was sat outside of the graveyard with a woman with short grey hair and thick red glasses. Katie hopped out of the car to introduce herself.
"Well, I'd recognize that face anywhere," the woman mused as she and Gil stood. "You must be Katie."
"And you must be Debby," Katie said. "I've heard a lot about you."
Katie held out a hand for Debra to shake, but Debra pushed forward for a hug.
"Please, you're one of Gil's," she said, gently wrapping her arms around Katie. "That makes you one of mine."
Katie and Harvey arrived at the old apartment in Grampleton a bit late, after Katie decided to take a detour to pick up some flowers, and ended up stuck in traffic. Katie knocked on the door, but there was no response. After a minute she knocked again, and still nothing. Katie called Father, and they could hear the phone ringing through the door, but he didn't pick up.
Katie sighed, thinking he must be in the bathroom, and checked under the welcome mat for the key. She unlocked and pushed open the door, and called out, "Dad, we're here! We come bearing gifts."
She set the key in the catch-all dish by the door, and started moving through the familiar living room, taking in the feel of being home.
"Here," Harvey reached for the bottle of wine in Katie's hands, "I'll pop this in the fridge, and put the flowers in a vase. You sit down, okay?"
Katie hummed. "Thank you."
Harvey planted a kiss on her cheek then made his way easily to the kitchen. When he reached the doorway, he set down the wine and flowers quickly, and dropped down to the floor.
Katie jumped up. "Honey, what's wrong?"
"Don't come in here,"Harvey said, an urgent command. "Call an ambulance, and stay out there."
"No," she whispered. "No, no, no." Katie felt her stomach plummet, but she followed Harvey's instructions. She called, relaying the operator's questions to Harvey. She didn't like any of his answers.
They went to Grampleton Hospital Center, where Father was pronounced dead. Harvey and Katie sat in the waiting room, Katie staring down at Tyler's contact displayed on her phone.
"We can go home for this, you know. You don't have to do it here," Harvey said, resting a hand on Katie's knee.
Katie placed her hand on top of his. "It's fine. I have to call them, and… I'd rather get it over with."
Harvey nodded slow, offering a small reassuring smile. "Is there anything I can do?"
Katie twisted her lips. "Coffee?"
Harvey laughed softly through his nose. "Always." He placed a kiss on her forehead before heading for the cafeteria.
Katie watched him walk away, then looked back to her phone after he disappeared around a corner. "What do I even say?" she said through a sigh. She stared Tyler's contact photo down, lips pressed tight together, took a deep breath, and hit call.
It rang and rang, but they didn't pick up. She called again, no dice.
"Yoba, Tyler, fucking pick up."
She called a third time, nothing. She groaned, rolling her head back in her seat. She knew they didn't want to talk to her, but she barely ever called them. Did they not realize that if she was calling there probably was a good reason?
Katie huffed, on the brink of giving up, when an idea popped into her head. She reached into her back pocket, where she'd put Father's phone before leaving the apartment. She guessed the pass code— Mother's birthday, obviously— and pressed the phone to her ear.
Two rings later, a low, almost familiar voice answered the phone. "What? Did Kate complain that I'm ignoring her again?"
"Holy shit, are you on T? Good for you," Katie blurted out.
There was a pause at the other end, and then Tyler drew out a sigh. "Either Dad's sick or you just reached a new level of fucking annoying." She could picture them vividly, leaning back and pinching the bridge of their nose.
Katie swallowed hard, willing the words out. "Dad's dead."
"What?" Tyler exclaimed. "Was he sick? He's fucking, what, like fifty?"
"Fifty-eight," Katie corrected. "Good guess, though."
"Oh, don't fucking—" Tyler sighed, rumbling in their throat, apparently thinking better of properly starting that fight. "What happened?"
"Harvey found him," Katie said slowly. "He was already gone. We have to wait for autopsy results but… Harvey thinks it was a heart attack."
"Shit." Tyler paused for a moment, and Katie kept picturing them. In her mind they were leaning forward now, hand rubbing their forehead, then dragging down the length of their face. "I'm sorry, Katie."
The extra "i" in the name wasn't lost on her, but she decided it was best not to mention it. "Why are you sorry? He's your dad too."
"I don't know. I just— Do you need me to do anything? I can send money for… whatever," they asked.
Katie waved her hand in front of her body. "No, no. You just got out of your doctorate, I'm sure you don't have much." Katie braced herself as soon as it left her mouth.
Tyler scoffed on the other end. "Fuck you. And I graduated two years ago."
"I'm sorry. That's not what I meant, I just—"
The line went dead, and Katie could picture Tyler rolling their eyes as they hung up.
Katie bit her lip, cringing, as she let her arm fall to her lap.
Harvey returned a few minutes later with two cups of coffee, handing one off to Katie before taking a seat beside her. "Cafeteria was out. Had to bribe the nurses. Did Tyler pick up?"
Katie lifted Father's phone up. "They answered my dad. Went well until I commented on their financial situation."
"Yikes," Harvey cringed. "I'm sorry, honey."
Katie groaned, letting her head fall back. "It's fine, it's my fault." It was always her fault, wasn't it? Katie took a shaky breath, feeling that familiar pressure behind her eyes when she knew she was about to cry. "It's my fucking fault," she choked out, a tear falling down the side of her face.
"Hey, it's okay. I'm sure you didn't mean to say it, whatever it was," Harvey said. He wiped the tear away with his finger, then ran them through Katie's hair to comfort her.
Katie leaned into his touch. "Not that. I mean, that too, but—" Katie stopped, choking out another sigh and leaning forward, letting her head fall into her hands. Harvey's hand stayed, now gently resting on her back. "I don't know. I shouldn't have decided to get the flowers. Maybe if we'd gotten here a bit earlier—"
"Woah, woah, look at me." Harvey stopped her, using his hand to guide her face up to look at him. Once they locked into eye contact, he took a slow, careful breath. Katie followed his example. "It's not your fault. There's no way you could've known."
Katie felt her lip tremble, and she pressed them together to stop it. "Really?"
"Really."
Katie sighed, and wiped her tears. She stood up. "I need to go tell Hera what a horrible day we've had. Can we get ice cream on the way home?"
Harvey stood as well, linking his arm with Katie's as they walked toward the exit. "Robin's already on it. I sent her a message when I was waiting for the coffee."
Katie looked up at him, tears welling again, pouting her lip. "I love you."
Harvey smiled, leaning into her and giving another kiss on the cheek. "I love you, too."
Gil and Katie sat on the bench by the lake outside the guild, lines cast out into the water. Gil was always quiet, unless Katie was pestering him about something, but today there was more silence than usual. Katie had barely said anything, just walked in saying she needed a fishing buddy.
She'd already told Gil and Marlon, letting them know when the funeral was if they wanted to be there. They knew Father decently well, and Gil had watched him grow up once he'd joined the guild. They made arrangements with Kent so they could be in Grampleton the day of the funeral, planning to drag George, Evelyn, and Debby all along with them.
Gil eyed Katie, then cleared his throat. When she still didn't speak, he elbowed her arm.
"What?" she asked weakly.
"I don't like that you're getting quiet on me. It's off putting," Gil said. "Talk to me."
Katie looked at him for a moment, pressing her lips in a tight smile, then looked back out to the water. She stared out, combing her mind for the words, anything she wanted to say. Once she came up empty, she looked back to Gil and shrugged.
Gil furrowed his brows at her, before lifting his hand and touching Katie's forehead with the back of it.
"What are you doing?" Katie asked.
"Checking for fever," Gil said. He withdrew his hand. "Seems you're alright for now. I'll check again in thirty minutes."
Katie rolled her eyes. "No need. I'll talk."
Gil gave a curt nod, then looked forward towards the water. "I'll listen."
Katie took a deep breath, leaning back on the bench and letting her shoulders drop on the exhale. "Family is really important to me, and I can't seem to keep it around. Thirty-five years isn't enough time to have known him."
Gil smiled sadly. "No, it's not."
Katie glanced over at Gil and cringed. "Fuck, I'm sorry—"
"Don't," Gil said, suddenly looking a bit serious. "I'm saying I understand."
Katie looked down at her hands, fiddling with the rod. "I just… I know I have Harvey, I'm not saying I don't. I guess I just wish I could talk to someone about him who knew him as family too. Tyler won't fucking pick up again, and I miss them even though we never got along. I want to talk to someone who loved him. I have all this fucking…" Katie cringed at herself, but pushed forward with the words that came to mind. "I have all this love, and yes I have Harvey, but I need to put it somewhere else too."
Gil nodded slow, and waited to see if Katie would continue. She huffed, emphasizing that she was done, hoping he'd have something to say.
Finally, Gil took the hint and shrugged. "Just keep loving your dad."
"I can't. He's dead," Katie grumbled.
Gil shook his head, dissatisfied with Katie's statement. "You know, someone very wise once told me something that changed my whole perspective on this sort of thing. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. I don't know."
Katie glanced up at him, softly asking, "What was it?"
"She said 'grieving is just love in another form.' I think she was right," Gil said. "I think you already know that, though. Heard you made a meal for Betsy. She's been dead for years, but you're still loving her."
Katie sighed through her nose. "Yeah, I am."
The time had finally come to clear out the old apartment, and Katie was absolutely dreading it. She had lived her entire childhood in that house, and she knew it was packed full of memories, some she wanted and some she didn't. She didn't want to sort through it all, decide what was worth keeping and what to throw away. It made it all too real.
She had called Tyler to ask if there was anything they wanted her to keep. By some miracle they picked up on the fifth call, then quickly hung up after answering her question with, "I don't have space in the trailer. Trash it."
Katie supposed that would free up some space in her truck for whatever she wanted to keep, but she hated the idea of throwing out all of Tyler's stuff.
She'd hired Shane to take care of things on the farm for a few days while she packed up the apartment. Harvey scheduled his appointments around the trip.
She brought a few things with her: an incomplete photo album so she could toss out frames but keep the photos, a tool kit for taking apart furniture, more boxes than could possibly fit in the truck when they were put together, and some spackle— courtesy of Robin— for when she inevitably found a Tyler-related casualty behind one of the picture frames.
Harvey volunteered to drive even though he hated driving the truck. He always said it was too big and heavy, he felt like he'd topple over if he took too sharp a turn. Katie hadn't been up for the drive though, so he took the keys without complaint.
"Ready?" he asked.
Katie nodded. "As I'll ever be."
Harvey turned the keys, starting it up, visibly uncomfortable by the sound it made at start up. He reached over to turn on the radio to mask the sound.
I would rather not go
Back to the old house.
"Nope," he said, promptly turning the radio off again.
Katie licked her lips, which curved into a smile. She laughed. The absurdity of it. She just laughed.
Harvey looked at her, wide eyed and worried. "What's this about?"
Katie paused for a moment and looked at him, before laughing again. She reached over to turn the radio back on. Katie danced and sang along, awkward and terrible in her seat, dragging her hands down her face and body.
There's too many
Bad memories.
Harvey watched her for a moment, mouth hanging open, before starting to drive forward. When the song ended and Katie stopped her dancing, still laughing at herself, he turned down the radio, but let it keep playing. "What stage of grief was that?"
Katie hummed. "The secret 6th stage. The dancing stage." Katie gasped. "A stage for dancing!"
Harvey chuckled. "I always forget about that one."
"Well, you better start remembering. They'll take away your medical license for that."
Harvey trilled his lips. "Can't have that."
"Nope. I'd probably never go to the doctor again," Katie quipped. She crossed her arms over her chest. "I fucking hate the doctor."
Harvey set a hand on Katie's leg and smiled, letting the silence speak for itself.
Katie scrunched up her face in feigned annoyance, knowing exactly what he meant.
Going through everything took a long time, partially because there was 4 decades and 4 people's worth of crap in the apartment, and partially because everything Katie dug up made her sentimental. She had a hard time letting go of things.
It ended up being Tyler's belongings that she wanted to keep most. Dozens of composition notebooks with journal entries she knew better than to read, and the horrifying drawings that accompanied them. She also never realized before how many books Tyler owned, taking up the majority of their shared bookshelf, even though she'd always considered herself to be the big reader of the two.
At the end of it all, she ended up saving a few things of theirs: the book of scary stories Tyler used to make Katie read to them even though it terrified them, the yearbook from Tyler's senior year at Grampleton High School— though she was sure they'd want to burn those pictures— and the wooden toy sword Grandpa had given them for their birthday years ago.
She kept some of Father's childhood development books that he referenced for his teaching, just in case she and Harvey had luck starting their family soon. She snagged a book from Grandma's library, "Mysteries of the Dwarves" by the one and only M. Jasper, complete with Grandma's snarky commentary— and sometimes corrections— in the margins. She was sure Marlon would get a real kick out of that.
After a few days it was done: boxes crammed into the bed of the truck, extra furniture tossed or sold, and everything else thrown away. Katie took one last look at the apartment, now empty. It looked bigger without all the stuff, but somehow smaller at the same time. She took one last breath, savoring the smell of home, before shutting the door and locking it, and heading back to Pelican Town.