Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hat Kid could easily draw several comparisons between all of the people she had previously fought in her quest to reclaim the Time Pieces. She could also remember what made each fight unique.

When fighting Snatcher and the Mafia Boss they had both used projectiles and their minions in order to try and hurt her more. So far the Conductor had thrown himself at her, tried to squash her with both stage lights and a disco ball she was pretty sure he had stolen from DJ Grooves, and insulted her the entire time they fought.

And then there were the knives.

Similar to the ones that had been used during the murder train mystery film she had recorded several days ago except there was one major difference. The knife that had been used on set was fake, she would know since she was the one who got the owl to wear it!

The ones the Conductor was throwing at her...

These were made out of steel.

Hat Kid knew for certain they were real knives, she had felt the bladed edges graze her body and rip her clothes when the Conductor’s attacks had landed just a bit too close.

This was another major difference from her previous battles. With both Snatcher and the Mafia Boss she had more room to move around and dodge, but the Conductor constantly followed her with his knife attacks, making it difficult to dodge.

Never mind when he would randomly lunge out of the shadows at her. She had some small cuts from those attacks.

Hat Kid jumped over yet another lunging attack and smacked the Conductor with her umbrella for what felt like the millionth time. Another difference from Snatcher and the Mafia Boss.

Her previous opponents were actually rather weak once she managed to get in a few good hits with her umbrella, so the battles had gone by pretty quickly. This fight seemed to be dragging on forever!

She tried putting more power into her attacks and do more damage, but all that did was make her tired quicker.

The child could feel her dodges getting slower with each passing moment. At some point she was going to get hit badly. The Conductor, either sensing her weakness or getting a second wind, began to attack far more ferociously.

And then came the knives.

Left. Right. Right. Left. Hat Kid ducked and dodged, too tired to jump up and completely avoid the blows. This deadly dance continued on for some time and would have kept going for longer, but one of the dancers suffered a misstep.

A deadly mistake.

Squelch.

Both Hat Kid and the Conductor looked down at the knife now protruding from the child’s side.

The owl immediately let go and backed up, staring at the wound in horror. The child continued to stare at the knife plunged into her side and the blood that was starting to leak out. Interestingly enough she had not felt any pain yet. She placed a hand on the handle of the knife, moving it just the tiniest amount.

And then the pain kicked in.

With a wail the child crumped to her knees, pain streaking through her nerves and setting her side on fire. Agony consumed her and all she could do was cry and not jostle the knife any more than she already had.

The Conductor moved forward as if he were about to help the sobbing child, but a shout stopped him in his tracks.

“CONDUCTOR!” DJ Grooves boomed, lunging over the railing towards the shocked owl. Hat Kid blinked at the loud shout and wondered to herself when the energetic penguin had arrived.

The Conductor did not get a chance to reply as the infuriated penguin promptly kicked him into the wooden stand, cracking the structure with the force behind the kick. The owls that were around the crash site quickly scattered, not wishing to suffer the same fate.

DJ Grooves stalked towards the prone form, anger radiating off of his body. He opened his beak and spoke in a calm, deadly tone. “Conductor, darling, if I ever see you around my star again I will make you regret it.”

The threat was clear and with that the Conductor fled the arena, or tried to.

“By the way I’d like that Time Piece you have.” The demand echoed through the now silent room.

The owl was about to protest but one look at the furious expression on his rival’s face had him rethinking his decision. Eventually he nodded and tossed the hourglass over to the penguin who easily caught it.

“Scram.” The infuriated DJ hissed, and with that all owls fled the scene, cramming themselves into the elevator.

While the panicked chaos continued at the elevator DJ Grooves spun around and rushed over to the still sobbing child, gently looking her over. To his horror the child seemed to have grown significantly paler in the last few minutes, a dangerous sign.

“Oh darling, I’m so sorry,” He muttered, tears forming in his eyes as he looked at the growing bloodstain on her shirt. “If I had been faster this wouldn’t have happened!”

Hat Kid mumbled something, but her voice was too weak for the penguin to hear it. The distraught DJ took a deep breath and let it out, now came the hard part. The child had to go to a hospital to get the wound looked at, but there was not enough time for help to go down and up the elevators. He had to get her to help, now.

Which meant he had to move her.

Luckily enough one of his Moon Penguins had joined him on his mission to confront the Conductor and help the child during her fight.

He quickly instructed his follower to call for an ambulance while he figured out what to do next. No matter what the child would end up hurting, he just hoped he did not hurt her too much as he rushed to the surface.

“Darling I have to pick you up now.” He said to the semi-conscious Hat Kid. “You can scream if you need to, but I need you to stay awake for me.”

And with that he put one arm under the girl’s knees and the other on her back, and lifted her up.

Right away she began screaming as the movement aggravated the knife that was still stuck in her side. Tears poured from both her and the DJ’s eyes, but he did not stop. The penguin rushed to the elevator as quickly as he could without hurting the girl further, Moon Penguin following along. 

The ascent up the elevator was most likely the worst part of the trip. The metal box constantly moved around, jostling the riders. Hat Kid would let out yelps every so often as the movement made her wound worse.

DJ Grooves had removed his coat and asked the Moon Penguin to cover the knife and bloodstain with it, hoping the extra cloth would help to keep the cut clean. The Moon Penguin had hesitated at first but then gently placed the fabric over the injury, determination present in his eyes.

They, of course, then had to move from one elevator to the other as quickly as possible.

The DJ had to bite back the curses that bubbled up in his throat. He was, understandably, extremely frustrated with the entire situation. Who in their right mind would fight a child?! Never mind try to stab said child with a real knife!

He was going to have words with the Conductor, but right now he had to focus on the bleeding child in his arms.

After what seemed like an eternity the trio finally reached the ground level of the studio and rushed forward, the Moon Penguin helping the move people out of the way so DJ Grooves did not have to worry about slowing down during his flight to the lobby.

He sprinted past the confused Receptionist and down the hallway that led to the parking lot, relieved to hear the sirens outside the building. He burst out of the building, glasses askew, afro a mess, but hope higher than it had been for the entire day.

Everything was going to be okay.

The DJ passed the gasping child over, once again taking notice of how pale she was. He heard one of the medics, a dove, mumbled something about extreme blood loss and transfusions. Worry roared through him once again. 

Please darling, be alright!

Hat Kid blinked, vision beginning to fade once her exhausted body was loaded into the white vehicle. She could faintly hear DJ Grooves talking in the background, telling her to stay awake, but she was so tired.

Everything was getting so fuzzy...

Maybe it would be best to sleep...

Her eyes closed and the child passed from the conscious world, treading on the dangerous line of no return.

Beep...

Beep...

Beep...

Beep...

What is that...

Beep...

It’s so annoying! Make it stop!

Beep...

With a groan Hat Kid opened her eyes and was greeted by the colour white. She blinked and it took her a moment to realize where she was.

She was in a hospital. The clinical smell, annoying beeping, and gross sheets only helped to confirm her theory.

She tried to sit up but stopped once pain slammed into her side, making her hiss and wake up the other person who was in the room with her that she had not noticed. DJ Grooves, wearing a clean coat, jolted up from his chair on the other side of the bed, nearly falling out of it.

“Darling!” The penguin cried out, happy tears trailing down his face. “You’re alright!”

Hat Kid smiled and waved at the happy DJ. “Yeah, just a bit sore.”

“Darling you had to go into surgery, I’d expect you to be a bit more than sore.” The penguin sighed out, stress completely draining from him in a matter of seconds.

The child blinked. “Surgery?”

“Yes, you were badly injured so the doctors needed to operate.” He had begun messing with his afro as he recalled those terrifying moments. He had been stuck outside the ER rooms for what felt like hours, waiting to see if she would survive.

The blood loss had nearly killed her, but luckily the doctors managed to figure out her blood type and had some extra human blood bags on hand.

“Wow.” Hat Kid mumbled, one hand gently touching the bandages that were on her side. “It was that bad...”

“I will have words with that Conductor!” DJ Grooves scowled darkly behind his sunglasses, making the child laugh. She had never expected the DJ to be the violent type when he got angry.

Watching him kick the Conductor through a wall had proved her wrong. That was probably the best thing that happened during that fight.

Wait... the fight...

“My Time Piece!” Hat Kid cried out, suddenly remembering the reason behind the battle. “The Conductor still-”

“It’s right here darling.” DJ Grooves smoothly interrupted, passing the worried child the hourglass that had been sitting beside the hospital bed.

The child sighed and relaxed back into the bed, both hands holding onto the hourglass. Now all she needed to do was go back to her space ship and take a day off before continuing her search. “So when can I go home?”

“Not for a week, unless you have someone taking care of you.” Hat Kid looked up, dismay covering her face.

“Sorry darling, doctor’s orders.” DJ Grooves did not look sorry in the least. Between what the child did at the studio and the other places she visited, the penguin had a feeling she was long overdue for a good break.

“But what if I want to go back to my space ship?” She asked, hoping she would find some way out of this mess. She had to find the rest of the Time Pieces!

“Then I’ll help take care of you.” What?

The child’s jaw was on the floor as she looked at the DJ. He... he was willing to stay with her on her space ship and help her heal?  But why? No one else on the planet ever seemed worried about her health, even after she had helped them. Why now?

“But why?” She asked, eyes wide in surprise.

“You need to heal, darling, and not get hurt looking for more of these Time Pieces.” DJ Grooves said, scooting closer to the bed so he could look her in the face.

“I don’t want you getting worse, so I’ll help you recover.” Hat Kid blinked and found her vision getting blurry. Why...

“Oh darling.” The DJ cooed as he gently hugged the crying child.

She sniffed and sobbed, reaching up with her arms to hug him back. The situation she had just been in, the life threatening danger, and the penguin’s compassion had finally sank in, ripping apart the emotional numbness that had covered her since she woke up.

The duo stayed like this for several more minutes, Hat Kid basking in the comfort of the hug, and DJ Grooves continuing to softly speak to her about what they would do next.

It was decided that the penguin would stay on the child’s space ship for the next week to make sure she healed properly from the stab wound. He would take care of all of the chores, such as cooking and cleaning, while she rested.

She did feel a bit bad since her room was a complete mess and her kitchen was a bit dirty, but to be fair she was not expecting any company!

Finally the doctor, a robin, entered the room and checked the girl’s injury. He confirmed that it would be alright for her to leave, but she had to come back to the hospital every two days so they could check the wound and make sure it was healing properly.

Apparently this hospital rarely worked with human patients so they were being extra cautious with her.

Hat Kid had then been carefully placed in a wheelchair and rolled down to the front lobby. At first she had tried to protest, not liking the idea of being pushed around, but she reluctantly agreed after DJ Grooves promised to cook for her once they got back to the ship.

Cook what, she did not know, but she had a feeling he was a much better cook than she was.

“DJ Grooves,” Hat Kid said after they left the building, now free of the wheelchair. “Can I watch you kick the peck out of the Conductor once I’m better?”

Rather than become annoyed at her cursing the penguin looked thoughtful, as if she had given him an idea. He started mumbling and she could faintly make out the words “would that actually work” and “might as well try”.

“Maybe, darling.” The DJ finally said, answering her original question.

Meanwhile back on his train, the Conductor felt a shudder run down his spine, as if someone had just walked over his grave.

Hat Kid giggled, amused by the thought of the penguin kicking the owl through a wall once again. The violence was so oddly out of character, it was hilarious!

“Now, how do we get up to that space ship of yours?”

Hat Kid grinned. “I’ll take care of it, let’s just get away from the building.”

With that the now silent duo, consisting of one laughing child and one confused penguin, walked away from the tall building and into a more deserted area of the parking lot.

Or it had been silent until DJ Grooves began screaming as he and Hat Kid rocketed up into the sky.  

Chapter Text

“It looks like the wound has healed up nicely, no signs of infections or inflammation present..” The robin doctor muttered as he inspected the slowly healing knife wound.

It had been one week since Hat Kid had been stabbed by the Conductor. One week since DJ Grooves had temporarily started living with her on her spaceship, an odd arrangement considering it had always been just her and Rumbi, but a welcome one.

Waking up every morning to hear the penguin softly singing as he made breakfast was nice and something she would certainly miss when he left...

Not that she would ever say that to the energetic DJ.

“Alright, I’m finished now.” The doctor said, breaking Hat Kid out of her thoughts.

She lowered her shirt, hiding the stitches from sight, and jumped down from the examination table she had been sitting on. Her guardian winced, waiting for some sign of pain, and sighed in relief when there was none.

Raising children had been something DJ Grooves had never thought of throughout his life, too busy focusing on making movies, and while helping the hatted child was far more stressful then he had imagined at first, there was something rewarding about it.

It had been nice seeing her eyes light up in joy when he cooked breakfast for her, listening to her laughter when they watched movies together, or even her amusing reactions to whenever he scolded her for tormenting her intelligent vacuum.

The penguin shook the thoughts from his mind and returned his attention to the child standing in front of him and the doctor that had saved her life.

“And since you behaved so well during your check up,” The robin spun around and, based on the sounds she heard, started fiddling with something in one of the drawers behind him.

Once he was finished doing, whatever, he turned back around, wings hidden behind his back. “I think you deserve a reward!”

With that he presented what he had been holding and Hat Kid gasped.

It was candy!

She eagerly reached her hands out, ignoring the laughter coming from the penguin beside her, and collected all of the wrapped sweets that were passed to her. A massive smile took over her face as she looked over her treats.

While the child was preoccupied with her reward, the two birds faced each other. The doctor cleared his throat and spoke, nothing but gratitude in his voice. “You have done an excellent job keeping an eye on her.”

The DJ chuckled. “Trust me, the little darling is nothing but a trouble maker.”

The fact that Hat Kid mainly ate cookies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, how messy her home was. Indeed it might have only been a week since DJ Grooves had started taking care of her, but it had been an extremely busy week.

He was still finding cookie crumbs in his afro!

The doctor shook his head. “Regardless, I don’t think anyone could have done better, given the circumstances.”

The staff at the hospital had been more than a little concerned once they had learned that the hatted child did not have any guardians on this planet, and several had been surprised when the famous DJ turned movie director had stepped up and assumed temporary guardianship of the wounded girl.

Several nurses had kept an eye on the local newspapers and were happy to have found several images inside with the DJ and child happily interacting with each other, typically smiling and laughing as they walked around either on the moon or on the planet.

A good sign that their faith had not been misplaced and that their patient was being taken care of.

“Remember to call if you need anything and I’ll see you in two weeks.” The robin doctor said, turning around once more to start cleaning up the office. The penguin took the child’s hand and together they started the trek out of the building.

“Thank you!” Hat Kid shouted as the duo walked out of the room, turning around to wave at the doctor, who waved back.

“You feeling better then, darling?” DJ Grooves asked, voice softening as he watched the child happily plop a piece of chocolate into her mouth.

She hummed happily and nodded.

The duo continued to make their way down the hall towards the elevator, Hat Kid waving at the other birds she encountered along the way. It was actually surprising how many different birds she had encountered so far as she had previously believed there were only owls and penguins that lived on this planet.

And moon.

“Is there anything you want to do today?” The DJ asked, looking down at the child near his side in curiosity. Several times in the past week the duo had gone out on both missions and trips. Missions to look for more Time Pieces and trips to allow Hat Kid to experience more of the planet.

There had been little success in finding more Time Pieces though considering that the hatted child could not move anywhere near as much as she used to without being in pain thanks to her injury.

That dammed Conductor...

“Nope!” Hat Kid said, breaking DJ Grooves out of his thoughts. “But maybe we can go home and watch a movie?”

A faint smile broke out on the penguin’s face, mostly hidden by his beak but still noticeable to those who paid close attention. “Of course darling.”

She grinned. “Can you make me a milkshake too, please?”

Normally he would scold her for wanting something so sweet, especially after she had just gotten a bunch of candy, but today was a special day, so he nodded, making the child let out a cheer.

Moments later the duo found themselves back on the first floor and walking towards the entrance of the hospital. Once again the child waved to all the birds in the vicinity as they walked out of the building and into the warm, afternoon sun.

The DJ continued walking forward, focused on getting back to Hat Kid’s spaceship, but the child paused, noticing something odd not too far from where she was standing.

The figure standing near the door was hunched up and seemed to be nervously playing with their hands. The outfit they were wearing was black and made their yellow feathers-

It was the Conductor.

Hat Kid gasped, immediately catching DJ Grooves’ attention.

The penguin turned his gaze towards where his temporary charge had been looking and felt pure, seething hatred fill him in moments.

“What are you doing here?” The DJ spat, positioning himself so he was between the owl and the wounded child. His shades might have hid the furious look in his eyes, but there was no mistaking the venom in his voice.

He was more than furious, the anger that burned through him was righteous and demanded revenge for what had been done to his movie star. He could feel Hat Kid grab on to one of his wings, clutching the appendage to herself as she peered around him at the cowering bird.

“I just wanted to apologize to the lass.” The Conductor stuttered out, cringing when a scoff escaped the DJ. “It’s true!”

“Conductor, I highly doubt someone as, egotistical as you would be capable of feeling remorseful for their actions, never mind actually apologize.” The penguin coolly uttered, taking great satisfaction in seeing the guilty bird squirm under his gaze.

“I’ll listen.” Hat Kid softly interrupted, no hostility present in her eyes as she took in the sight before her.

“Lass,” The owl began, clenching his hands as he looked at the cracked pavement below him. “I don’t know what came over me, attacking ye with a knife, and all the other things I did...”

“Yes you do.” The DJ all but snarled, shades flashing in the sunlight. “You allowed your greedy, petulant mind to take control and freaked out just because you lost, and because of that you stabbed a child!”

The owl opened his toothy beak and tried to get a word in, but the penguin kept talking.

“No one should forgive you for your actions!” The damming shout echoed in the too silent parking lot, and the Conductor looked like he was moments away from crying.

Hat Kid stepped out from behind her protective guardian, looking at the sorrowful bird with eyes that seemed too mature for her face, too aware of the weight of his actions.

She knew the guilt of what the Conductor had done would never leave him, even with his apology, but it was a start, and then there was also the role the Time Piece had played in his strange mood swing...

“Let’s go back to my spaceship and talk about this there!” Hat Kid suddenly chirped, completely and utterly destroying the tension that had filled the air. She then started walking forward away from the two stunned birds.

“Darling!” The DJ shouted, rushing to catch up with her. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“Yup!” She replied, slowing down just a bit so her guardian could catch up to her.

“You don’t need to forgive him.” He whispered softly in an attempt to change her mind after catching up to her. When the child shook her head and continued moving he knew he had lost this discussion.

The Conductor would be coming with them, whether he liked it or not.

DJ Grooves sighed and paused, hearing the rapid footsteps that were undoubtedly from his former rival. Once the unwelcome visitor got close enough, he spun around, face filled with open hostility.

“If you do anything that puts her in danger again I’ll see to it that no one finds your body.” The furious penguin hissed. The owl, still in shock from the DJ’s surprising display, nodded.

The two birds then rushed forward in order to meet up with the child standing in the middle of the deserted parking lot. A devious chuckled escaped DJ Grooves as he recalled her unique method of travel, and found himself excited as to what the owl’s reaction would be.

Once they reached her the hatted child she held both of her hands out. The DJ immediately took it while the Conductor was a bit more cautious in his approach, but he did eventually grab hold of her offered hand.

“Now don’t let go,” Hat Kid said, sending a smirk to a confused Conductor. “It’ll be a looooooong fall!”

With that the trio shot up into the air, rocketing through the sky and soaring up into the atmosphere. The wind grew colder, the stars shined brighter, and the world below them only grew smaller with time.

The Conductor did not stop screaming until they reached the spaceship.

“Conductor,” DJ Grooves began once they reached the safety of Hat Kid’s spaceship. “You did not need to scream the entire time.”

“Sorry.” The Conductor wheezed, feathery hands on his knees as he hunched over. “I couldn’t help meself.”

Hat Kid, who had been watching the spectacle from off to the side, let out a giggle. She was happy to see that the bird duo were getting along a bit better now. It had been strange to see DJ Grooves so angry and the Conductor so timid, it was like their personalities had been reversed.

Granted the DJ had a valid reason to be angry, but she also had some explaining to do about that fight...

A faint sigh left her and she walked towards the center of the room, dodging Rumbi as she went. The birds, now finished their discussion, noticed the solemn mood that had engulfed the child. The Conductor tried to take a step towards here, but was held back by DJ Grooves.

The penguin had a feeling the hatted child needed to talk about something.

“Time Pieces are important back on my planet.” Hat Kid began, facing away from the birds as she spoke. “They’re used as fuel and an energy source, but that’s not why we collect them.”

She paused, took a deep breath, and continued speaking.

“Things like the Time Pieces, they change people the more you use them and the closer you are to them. That’s why no one’s allowed to use them unless it’s an emergency.” Hat Kid explained, looking down at the warm carpet below her.

“Power corrupts, and the Time Pieces are some of the most powerful items in all of our reality.” Her words sounded oddly scripted to the bird’s ears, as if she was repeating information she had heard many times before. 

“They,” The child paused, searching for the right words before she continued speaking. “Pollute you, turn you into something you’re not because it makes you believe in something else, in a time that doesn’t really exist but it’s one that you want to exist.”

Her hand drifted to her side, brushing against the scar that would forever stain her skin.

Hat Kid looked over at the Conductor and smiled, nothing but warmth, forgiveness, and honesty in her gaze. “I know you’d never hurt me, it’s just the Time Piece that made you all mean and stuff.”

A faint frown overcame her face and she corrected herself. “Well, you’re a bit mean, but you’d never stab anyone!”

All things considered, the hatted child considered herself lucky that the fight had not gone worse considering that the Conductor had been slowly getting more corrupted as the battle went on. Even though there had been none of the typical signs, now glowing aura of power, the change in his personality had been enough. She could easily recall the story all children were told about the danger of using Time Pieces, especially during a fight.

How insane your opponent could get, how high the chance of being killed was, and the sheer amount of damage that would happen to the surrounding area, the mass destruction.

The story of Cap and Blade...

Hat Kid shuddered, immediately catching the attention of both the Conductor and DJ Grooves.

The Conductor stepped forward. “Lass, are you-”

“I should’ve known you’d get corrupted.” The child interrupted, guilt saturating her voice. “I’m sorry I didn’t think of it sooner, it’s my fault.”

“No it ain’t.” The Conductor squawked, DJ Grooves nodding along beside him.

“Darling it sounds like none of this is your fault.”

“I brought the Time Pieces here.” She muttered, clenching her hands as she spoke. “And now they could be out there corrupting a bunch of people-”

“Which is why we will find them.” The DJ smoothly interrupted. “Darling you’re still hurt, and I’m not letting you do this on your own.”

Hat Kid blinked and looked over at the penguin, genuinely surprised by his offer. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off when the Conductor decided to interject.

“And I’ll help too, lass!”

There were no mistaking the tears that were building up in her eyes. The hatted child sniffed and did her best to wipe them away. The unexpected help would certainly make looking for the Time Pieces easier, and it would mean she would get to spend more time with the DJ.

And who knows, perhaps she would be able to become good friends with the Conductor as well!

Hat Kid giggled once more and beamed at the two birds who had become her allies.

“So, how about that milkshake?”