#and he gave me a high end hot glue gun for Christmas when I was 16 so I can wield those glues that require a specific temp

[oneknightlight]

Something I didn’t actually realize until I was making Hita’s bracers in October (and probably is why they’re my first hot-glue fueled project that stuck together) is that apparently for really sturdy hot glue’s, like gorilla brand stuff, there is actually certain heat settings you’re supposed to administer for it to stick correctly to different substances. Like fabric and foam required low heat only.

And it was the first time I’d made armor with hot glue and had it actually bond, I’d say almost permanently. I could rip it apart if I was really fucking trying, but it’s impossible to get apart unless you’re trying on purpose to break them.

[aswithasunbeam]

Broken Bears and Cocoa, a Modern Hamliza AU

[Read on AO3]

Rated: G

Summary: Eliza finds a young Fanny Antill crying alone on the sofa in the middle of the night. The rest of the Hamilton clan quickly follow, and together, they do their best to show the little girl that whatever she's struggling through, she need not do it alone. __ A modern hamliza AU

A soft sniffling  drifted out from the living room as Eliza slowly padded down the stairs. The lights downstairs were all still off, but the soft white glow from their Christmas tree spilled out across the dark entryway. Eliza turned towards the living room and paused, heart breaking at the scene within.

Fanny Antill was curled up alone on the couch, clutching at the stuffed bear Angelica had loaned to her and crying softly, clearly doing her best to make as little noise as possible. The girl looked so young and small; everything in Eliza longed to rush over and scoop her into her arms. But she resisted the urge. The poor girl had just lost her father and her home, and now, without family capable of taking her in, she found herself living with virtual strangers. A hug may not yet be welcome.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Eliza asked, voice low in an effort not to startle the girl.

Fanny jumped anyway, and her face crumpled further. “I’m sorry,” she moaned. “I didn’t mean to. It just fell off.”  

Eliza’s brow wrinkled with confusion until she saw Fanny hold up one of the bear’s plastic eyes, the Christmas lights twinkling off the shiny surface. She felt almost relieved to see the cause of her current distress. At least this was a problem she could fix.

“Angelica’s going to hate me,” Fanny added in a whisper.

“Oh, no, sweetie. She’s not going to hate you,” Eliza assured her. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And, anyway, we can fix it.”

Fanny looked at her with wary hope. “Really?”

“Easy,” Eliza promised. “I’ll get the hot glue gun out and stick it right back on, good as new. Okay?”

Fanny wiped the back of her hand across her nose. “Okay.”

Eliza smiled. “I’ll be right back. And I’ll start some hot cocoa for us while I’m at it. How does that sound?”

The offer of the sweet drink brought a tiny smile to Fanny’s face at last. “Good.”

“All right. Wait right there.”

Heading into the kitchen and flipping on the overhead light, Eliza filled two mugs with water and popped them into the microwave to heat before squatting down to dig through the cabinet in search of the hot glue gun. She heard footsteps on the stairs, and turned her head in time to see Alexander come to a stop just inside the kitchen, rubbing at his eye with a sleepy yawn. He had adorably mussed bedhead, and was wearing the old reindeer t-shirt Pip had decorated with his two little handprints for antlers back in preschool. Her husband’s wardrobe had been growing goofier by the day in an effort to make Fanny feel less shy around him. Eliza felt a wave of fondness wash over her, and grinned up at him.

“Hey there, handsome.”

He smiled back at her, though he was visibly confused. “Why are you up? Is somebody sick?”

“An eye fell off that old bear Angelica gave Fanny. She was upset, so I’m making us some cocoa and looking for our hot glue gun.”

“I think it’s in the garage,” he offered. “Pip was using it to make ornaments with Alex yesterday.”

“You let them use hot glue by themselves?” she asked, voice going high with disapproval.

“Of course not. I was supervising. What kind of horrible parent do you think I am?”

She softened and pushed herself up. “I think you’re a wonderful parent,” she assured him, planting a kiss on his lips before scooting around him to go look in the garage. “Can you finish making the cocoa?”

“Sure.” He was already in the kitchen when she glanced back.  

The glue gun was in fact in the garage, back on Alexander’s makeshift workbench beside some old fishing hooks and scraps of felt. Bare feet freezing on the cold cement, Eliza rushed over to collect it and hurried back inside the house, still shivering as she flipped off the light and closed the door. She heard the television as she made her way back down the hall.

“I’m independent,” she heard Hermey the elf declare. She stepped back into the room to see the elf suggesting to Rudolph, “Hey, what do you say we both be independent together?”

Fanny was still on the couch clutching at the bear with one hand, but Alexander now sat on the other end. They were both holding steaming mugs of cocoa, and Fanny looked at least mildly interested in the movie. Alexander smiled when he spotted Eliza, and nodded to the television. “Rudolph’s on.”

“Exciting.” She stooped down to plug in the glue gun, then narrowed her eyes at the mug he held. “Hey, you stole my cocoa.”

He made a face at her, which made her laugh.

“We can share,” he offered. “I promise I don’t have cooties.”

“What’s going on?” Eliza looked back to see Angelica standing at the foot of the stairs, half her hair loose from her ponytail and one leg of her polar bear sleep pants twisted and caught around her bony knee.

Fanny tensed at the sight of her, but Alexander waved her over to the couch. “Come here, Geli bean. We’re watching Rudolph.”

Angelica looked slightly wary, like this might be some sort of trick or test, but she came over after a seconds’ hesitation and crawled up onto the couch beside her father.

“Cocoa?” Alexander offered, holding the mug out towards her. Her face lit up with delight, and she happily took the mug.

“Angelica?” Fanny asked, voice scared and small.

“Yeah?”

“I broke your bear.” Fanny slowly unclenched her fist to reveal the shiny plastic eye in her palm. Angelica frowned at it for a minute, shrugged, and took another sip of cocoa. Fanny watched her carefully, then asked, shocked, “You’re not mad?”

“Mama will fix it,” Angelica said dismissively.

Eliza smiled at the utter faith her daughter seemed to have in her ability to fix everything. The little light on the glue gun had stopped blinking, she noticed, indicating it was ready for use. “I’m going to fix it right now,” she said, motioning for Fanny to come over to her. “Come here, honey.”  

Fanny slid off the couch and came over, holding out the bear and the eye. Quickly smearing the glue all along the back of the eye, Eliza affixed it in its rightful place and pressed down, counting under her breath for half a minute before releasing the pressure. “There, all fixed. We’ll let him stay here on the table to set while we watch the movie, all right?”

To her surprise, Fanny surged forward and wrapped her in a tight hug. Eliza happily returned the embrace, squeezing the little girl to her securely. “Thank you,” Fanny whispered.

“You’re very welcome,” Eliza whispered back, kissing the top of the girl’s head.

Just as she was unplugging the glue gun, she heard the sound of tiny footsteps on the stairs again, and looked over to see Jamie coming down, his ratty old blanket in hand and his thumb in his mouth. The little boy grinned at her around his thumb and raced over to the couch, plopping down on Alexander’s lap.

Alexander laughed and cuddled the boy to him. “I think we’re going to need more cocoa,” he said, glancing over at her.

“I’ll get it,” she offered. “And I’ll wake Pip and Alex. We might as well all be up as a family.”

By the time the movie had ended, the coffee table was littered with mugs and a half empty bag of marshmallows, and their children were all snoring between them on the couch, snuggled up under blankets. Fanny was cuddled between Pip and Eliza, her newly fixed bear held close, and all evidence of her earlier tears now gone.

Eliza noticed Alexander watching her with his head resting against the back of the couch, his face warm and soft in the glow of the Christmas tree. “She’s going to be all right,” he said, his gaze flickering down to the little girl in her arms.

“You think so?” Eliza asked.

“I know so. There’s a lot of love in this house. Whatever she’s going through, she’s not going through it alone.” She stretched her free hand out across the back of the couch to ruffle his hair tenderly. He gave her a wink and added playfully, “Not to mention how amazing we are at parenting.”

She laughed. “Oh, yes. Quite the parenting we’re doing--hopping our kids up on sugar and letting them pass out in front of the tv at one in the morning.”

“Exactly,” he nodded sagely, serious for a beat before his face broke out into a beaming smile.