#his counters are bare of equipment/appliances

[tartt9]

that time of night when i'm thinking about jamie's relationship with money again

[chenziee]

Your love, endless like the sky above

First of my three pieces for the @opblondebombshells zine!! It turned out absolutely gorgeous and is available for download for free as of today, so check it out! ✨

[ Read on AO3 | Ko-FI | Commissions ]

—————

As he rummaged through the kitchen cabinets with purpose, Sanji felt a wry smile pulling on his lips. He had never thought he would stand in this kitchen ever again. How many years had it been since he last touched this stove? Thirteen, fourteen years?

It was honestly a marvel this stove even was still here.

They had all this money, all this knowledge, and they couldn’t be bothered to get better and newer kitchen equipment. 

Cosette and her team made such elaborate meals for their royal family every day with tools that were probably older than the head chef herself and they still got treated this way. It made Sanji want to kick their sorry asses to hell and back and there again.

Kingdom of Science my ass, he thought, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

“Sanji-sama, please! Let us cook for you, royalty shouldn’t have to—with this rusty, old equipment no less—”

“Nope,” Sanji said, raising one hand to silence the panicking cook. “Thanks for the concern but I’m a first-rate chef, not a prince.”

“But—”

“By the way, is the pantry still in the back?” Sanji asked, cutting the protests off before they could really start.

“Yes, sir.” The cook visibly deflated as he answered and Sanji huffed.

He supposed it was too much to ask for them to drop the formalities entirely. Shaking his head, Sanji thanked the man before making his way to the pantry—a route he could still walk blind, even after all these years. He could almost feel young Sanji’s heart racing in excitement from being allowed to walk in and grab ingredients for the first time.

Still innocent, still not realizing he was about to get himself—and the head chef—punished.

Royalty must not cook! 

The angry words echoed in his mind despite no one speaking them, forever ingrained deep within him. He never understood the words, never even thought to adhere to them despite the inevitable backlash. Despite the hate and disgust and pain.

Even at six years old, he refused to give this up. And now, at twenty-one… there was no point living if he couldn’t step foot into a kitchen again.

Why was he thinking about this anyway?

Shaking his head, Sanji chased his fath—Vinsmoke Judge’s words away. Instead, he focused his gaze on what was in the pantry, his eyes scanning the contents. He hummed appreciatively at the quality of the food stored inside—even if the kitchenware and appliances were utter shit, at least no expenses were spared on the ingredients.

Not that Sanji would have any trouble working with shit-quality food, but it certainly made his life easier. 

Grabbing two bananas, several eggs, some flour and sugar, and a few select spices, Sanji left the pantry again, closing the door behind him with his foot. He almost expected the old head chef to start freaking out, fretting over Sanji balancing too many things at once.

And honestly, he was right. When he was a kid, he’d barely had any idea what he was doing, always overestimating how much he would be able to carry without dropping anything or hurting himself. A smile on his lips, Sanji wished the old man could see him now, handling everything with ease. The last time they saw each other, it came with a complementary trip to the infirmary to get a bad cut treated.

He left everything on the kitchen counter to head for the fridge, mumbling to himself as he listed off the ingredients he still needed. It’d been so long since he made this combination of foods: grilled fish with some fresh bread, scrambled eggs, and banana flambé for dessert. All her favorite foods. 

He would have wanted to add a small scoop of vanilla ice cream as well but since that would melt, he decided against it. Maybe he should make some mini apple tarts too while he was at it?

Oh, should he make some fried rice? He didn’t see any mice around but he was sure there were some hungry critters scurrying about. Even though he wasn’t there to make food for them anymore…

“Man, what am I thinking,” Sanji muttered to himself, sighing deeply. There was no way the mice he had befriended all those years ago would still be alive after all these years. Mice simply did not live that long.

But…

Well, what was the harm in cooking a little more than needed?

—————

A bouquet of flowers in one hand, a picnic basket in the other, Sanji made his way towards the far corner of the Germa main ship. It was quiet, hidden from view by trees and bushes—trees that had become much larger, bushes that had been left to grow, unkempt in the years of his absence.

Seeing the state of the garden, Sanji half expected to find his destination completely taken over by vegetation but instead, he was surprised to find the gravestone perfectly clean, only with a tiny, impromptu bundle of flowers in front of it, one made up of the wild plants growing in this small, hidden garden-turned-park.

Probably Reiju, Sanji thought to himself, a small smile tugging on his lips.

“Hi, mom,” he said quietly as he carefully placed his own bouquet next to Reiju’s. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come see you sooner.”

He took a deep breath, willing his voice to stay steady. How pathetic; a grown ass man, getting all choked up at being by the grave of someone who had died over fourteen years ago…

“Zoro would have a fucking field day seeing me like this…” he muttered to himself, rubbing at his eyes. He hated how he suddenly missed the insufferable nicknames and annoying demands for booze.

He would take a fight with the Marimo over one second on Germa’s soil any day. Those were actually fun, if infuriating sometimes.

“You know, mom… I think you’d love the pirate crew I’m a part of. Luffy is so goddamn selfish and can inhale a month’s worth of meat before you can blink but he's always so happy with anything I make. It's fun cooking for him. Zoro is an ass and we fight constantly but he can tell the difference between good and shitty rice and as opposed to Torao, he doesn't throw a fit when I experiment with his rice balls. Nami-san never got to teach me how to make her special tangerine sauce… I could figure it out myself but I’d rather die than intrude like that…

“Usopp likes fish just the way you did and honestly it threw me off at first. Chopper. You'd love Chopper so much. He's like a stuffed animal who feeds on chocolate. We'd all be long dead without him.

"I like making Robin-chan's coffee and sandwiches when she's studying in the evening. She's the smartest person I've ever known; she could destroy Vinsmoke Judge in a second. Except she's not a piece of shit like him.

"Then there's Franky… if I wasn't there to feed him something decent, he would probably just eat junk food. And Brook, my god Brook. Mom, his table manners. His fucking table manners. It doesn't matter how many times I kick his boney ass, he still gets curry everywhere.

"And Jinbe—"

Sanji stopped suddenly, cutting his monologue short. Jinbe was their crewmate but…

"I guess I won't learn anything about him now, will I? I'm stuck here. With these shitty cuffs on my hands…"

He gulped heavily, clenching his shaky fists. He really was a fly caught in a spiderweb, wasn't he? Complete with his movements restricted, death lingering just at the edge of his vision, helpless.

Helpless, powerless… hopeless.

"Shit…” Sanji took a deep breath, closing his eyes momentarily before he dared speak quietly again. “Mom, I don't know what to do…"

But were there really any options left for him? The path was set the moment his wanted poster changed from Dead or Alive to Only Alive. There was no other way forward; no Baratie, no Merry, and no Sunny. No All Blue. 

There was nothing but Germa 66, the family he had long since stopped considering a family, and Pudding-chan.

"At least with Pudding-chan, I'll be able to keep cooking. There would be no point living anymore if I couldn't… I want to keep cooking for my crew but Pudding-chan doesn't deserve me making that her problem.”

Sanji paused then, almost as if waiting for his mom to reply. But he knew that was impossible, knew no one would answer. He wasn’t sure he even wanted anyone to answer. Not when he was being so… so lame.

But in the face of his mother’s grave, the grave of the one person he could let himself be vulnerable with when he was a child… it was impossible to keep the facade up. He was tired. Tired of pretending, tired of staying strong, tired of saying he was ‘fine’.

And yet…

“But I’m fine, mom, don’t worry. I didn’t actually explain, did I? Pudding-chan is the girl I’m going to marry. She’s the Emperor Big Mom’s daughter but she’s very cute and very sweet. I might introduce her to you one day…” Or maybe he wouldn’t. He wasn’t so sure he’d even want his real family here—never mind a girl he met once, no matter how nice she was. He supposed time would tell.

As he tried to reach for his cigarettes, Sanji was suddenly reminded of the picnic basket in his hand. He blinked a few times, his gaze dropping to stare blankly at the small woven carrier, wondering how the hell he had managed to forget the most important thing, and he chuckled awkwardly.

“Ah, I hate talking about myself. But—” he paused, fumbling with the basket to pull out the items inside. “I brought you something. You know, I… After I ran away from here, I became a cook. A real, first-rate chef thanks to the shitty old man. My dad—you know, my actual dad—taught me everything I know so my cooking is actually real damn good. So…”

Sanji set the basket carefully on the ground, placing a small black, lacquered box in front of the grave before slowly opening it to reveal the carefully arranged contents of the lunch box—scrambled eggs, grilled fish, bread, and banana flambé.

“Do you remember? I made this for you once. Messed up real bad too. Then I dropped it and it got soaked in the rain, turning it completely inedible,” Sanji said with a genuine laugh. “I still remember Epony’s face when she tasted it.” He was sure he would never forget the face that twisted with disgust and pain from the awful, downright horrible, amount and mix of spices.

Shaking his head, he continued, “I know what I’m doing now though, so I added some bread and vegetables to make it actually feel like a meal,” Sanji pointed out, gesturing to the freshly baked bread that was hopefully still warm, as well as the carrots, radishes, and cucumbers cut and carefully styled into flowers. “Also here—” he added, turning back to the picnic basket to pull out the wine glass and a bottle of the best damn red wine he could find in Yonji’s shittily supplied wine cellar, pouring a perfectly measured glass for her with practiced ease.

A soft smile was still playing on his lips when he spoke his next words. “I know last time I did a terrible job but I—thank you for saying it was delicious back then.”

—————

Reiju wasn't sure how long she was standing behind one of the trees in the overgrown garden that had turned into a park around their mother's grave, waiting for Sanji. She wasn't sure… but she didn't really care. It had been thirteen years since she had helped Sanji escape from this place, thirteen years of Sanji living his own life like he was meant to. She was sure he had a lot to tell their mom, a lot to share about the East Blue, about Straw Hat, and about his friends.

For a while, Reiju wondered whether she should tell him they had come for him… but with Sanji's kindness, he would end up blaming himself for putting them in danger. And Sanji didn't deserve that; not when he was already being put through this foolish marriage plan of their father's.

And so, Reiju didn’t say anything; didn’t say anything when they met, didn’t say anything on their walk here, and she wouldn’t say anything later either.

For now… she would simply let him talk to mom as much as he wanted to and she would be there for him as long as she could throughout this whole mess, looking for a chance to let him escape again, just like she did years ago. After all, the cuffs on his wrist weren’t going to explode and on the off chance that Straw Hat would make it all the way to the very heart of Totto Land, there wouldn’t be any reason for him to stay—as long as Reiju could make sure the hostages in the East Blue were kept safe and as long as Sanji’s kindness didn’t keep him chained to Germa and this family.

Reiju waited for Sanji for a long time, left only with her thoughts and the faint sounds of their soldiers training. There really was nowhere to escape the military aspect in this kingdom, was there?

Shaking her head to make herself focus, Reiju quickly put her usual smile on her lips—the one that showed nothing of her real thoughts, one practiced to perfection over the long years of living with her father and brothers—before she turned to face Sanji once more as he approached her.

“Told her everything you wanted to?” Reiju asked, not commenting on the vulnerable expression on her brother’s face.

“Yeah,” Sanji replied quietly. 

His eyes dropped downwards then and briefly, Reiju wondered whether he was hiding from her. But then he reached inside the picnic basket, pulling out a second, smaller lunch box and handed it to her wordlessly.

Reiju blinked. Her gaze fell to the box she was holding, then turned back to Sanji, who only gestured with his chin, prompting her to open it.

With a huff, Reiju carefully lifted the lid, peeking inside curiously… and soon, the corners of her mouth twitched upwards, her smile widening into a rare genuine, happy one. “Apple tarts?” she asked as if she couldn’t see them. “I can’t believe you remembered I like apples.”

“A good chef takes note and remembers their customers’ favorites,” Sanji noted with a shrug as if it were obvious.

And maybe it was, if this were any other family. But with the Vismokes… Reiju was used to no one besides Cosette even remembering she was deathly allergic to peanuts. After all, as long as it didn’t affect her battle performance, what did it matter?

“Thank you,”  Reiju whispered.

“Yeah.” Sanji nodded, then paused, seemingly mulling over his words—or maybe looking for them. “Thank you, too.”

Reiju didn’t reply. She simply picked up one of the little tarts in her lunch box, taking a bite.

She had never tasted an apple so sweet.

[omgfloofy]

I’m doing this as an image since I don’t want to drag anything down on the meaning that’s being presented in the original message nor do I want to bring hate on the people posting it. But at the same time I want to add something on this.

My most creative time with cooking came from when I was unemployed, and barely able to afford the roof over my head and to keep the bills running. I had a really really old Kitchenaid (I think retailed at like $150?) cookware set that I got when I was living with a roommate. (And I still have and use it to this day, while it’s like 14 years old now.)

I couldn’t afford to eat out a lot at that time, so I experimented and played around with making dishes that I really liked. This often meant playing around with boxed items from the store, or just making things from scratch. I learned to make several portions of tonkatsu for less than $7 or $8 total. It would give me 3-4 meals out of the week. I also recreated several restaurant dishes for a cheap cost.

You don’t need fancy equipment to recreate flavors you like. I had a partially busted electric stovetop that had an unevenly cooking oven and no fancy appliances in my kitchen - I lived in a dirt cheap apartment at the time that was in a low income area.

I can’t argue on the large city part, being that I had a grocery store nearby, but I also knew when to go to said store - based on when they were removing meat from the butcher counter and discounting it to get rid of it. I bought that frequently and kept freezer bags to freeze it in parts since it was just me. Even if you don’t live near one, learn that time for where you get food on your own.

The most unique thing I ever bought for my kitchen was an oven thermometer, but those aren’t expensive. You can find those for less than $10. I needed it to find the hot spots for my

Look up Dylan Hollis and his videos. He doesn’t use stand mixers or anything, to show that you don’t need that stuff to make the things he makes.

Another online source for recipes that makes things easy to follow, no matter what you have available to you: Food Wishes. His stuff is great and some of his recipes are now staples in my lineup.

If you want to get better cooking equipment, look up estate sales or garage/yard sales and buy them second hand. Good brands will last you a very long time. (Case in point with my kitchenaid stuff.) Also look up cookbooks at your local used bookstore, or even just get them from estate sales.

Another thing to remember: if things aren’t purchased at an estate sale, it usually just goes into the trash, so you’re basically saving something from the landfill in that case. Estate sales are always your friend,and they almost always happen at least on a semi regular occurrence, regardless of where you live.

And one of the recipes I made during that period is very much my own and one of the favorites my friends enjoy me making. You never know what you can and will accomplish when you’re forced to be creative in the kitchen.

[brivetaroundtown]

Is it almost 3am on the day the collab is due? Yes. But you know better here then never right? THANK YOU SO MUCH @seita for letting me join your Corrupt A Virgin collab. Go check out the other awesome contributors! It’s very yummy if I do say so myself and I do say so

Link Here

Also I did look up if ducks could drown so that’s now a thing in my search history.

Aged Up Tsukishima Kei x Fem Reader

TW: LEMON ALL THE LEMONS. NSFW SMUT. Dub Con, Tsukki being an asshole, Corruption kink, yan vibes, my writing, virginity loss. use of lamb asa pet name. If you see anything else PLEASE let me know so I can tag it.

2,342 words

Tsukishima wondered if you had grown up in a bubble. That could be the only way someone could have been kept so pure, so innocent. So utterly unequipped to handle even the most mild of flirtations. Surely, you had to know that everyone on the Sendai Frogs has been flirting with you at some point or another. More importantly, he has been flirting with you. Sure, he isn’t the most generous when it comes to niceties, but my god woman you had to have had some sort of clue by now.

But as Tsukishima stares down at your innocent face, he realizes that you have absolutely no idea the effect you have on him. That only makes him want you more.

“Y/N” the smirk couldn’t leave his face even if he wanted it too “you want me to walk you home.”

“I don’t want you to go out of your way or anything! I-its just getting dark and I am not used to this side of town…”

“Of course not, wouldn’t want our little manager to get lost.”

Such a sweet thing you were, thinking of others. Let’s see how far he can push that… accommodating… spirit.

30 minutes later they had finally arrived at your place. Kei could have cut that time in half by taking a short cut you knew nothing about, but where would the fun be in that? Besides, as you got to your apartment door, he knew that you would feel obligated to let him in. Kei did go out of his way to help you home after all, it was the least you could do.

“Thank you for walking me home Tsukishima-san! Ah w-would you like to come in for a drink or anything? I feel bad for making you walk all this way.” Blush staining your cheeks, you unconsciously bit the corner of your lip, a nervous habit of yours. Kei doesn’t even think you know that you do it. “Of course, a water would be nice.”

Kei’s first look at your little studio apartment confirms his earlier assessment of you. Innocent. Still classy, what with the greys and blues in the modern style but the stuffed narwhals and other cutesy sea creature decorations offset the steel bookcases and matching steel appliances. What also doesn’t surprise him is how organized the place is, having seen some of your spreadsheets for the team and your current struggles to organize the equipment closet.

Kei watched you move around your little kitchen. The way you stood on your toes to grab a glass, shirt lifting enough to give him a teasing glance of your smooth skin underneath. It was enough to make a lesser man beg. Thankfully, Kei considered himself not to be a lesser man. He wouldn’t be the one begging tonight.

You felt nervous with Tsukishima’s eyes on you. It’s always hard to normal tasks when someone is watching. But it’s especially more intimidating when that someone is Tsukishima Kei. He was so smart and quick. He made you nervous, you felt clunky around him being so much shorter than he was. Rounder too.

But whenever he included you in on a joke or smirked at you, you felt the butterflies in your pulse, heat rising to your cheeks. Special. It was a little crush, one you were pretty sure was one sided. And now that crush was seated at the island bar in your kitchen. Looking ridiculously tall in such a little space.

You slide him the glass of water while rapidly trying to think of something to say, feeling like an awkward duck drowning in a pond. That’s how dumb you felt, you’re not even sure ducks can drown.

“Can ducks drown?” Wincing at the realization that you said something that stupid out loud. You go to save yourself trying to ramble about your weird thought process but were thankfully stopped short.

“I guess if they weren’t able to produce the oils to stay a-float they would. Why do you ask? Save a drowning duck recently?” The warm chuckle and smirk were comforting. In its own weird way.

‘Look at you,’ the thought comes, ‘breaking the ice and being able to maintain your awkward status. You should win a medal.’ Thankfully, this is not a thought that comes out loud.

“N-no, that would be silly, not even sure what I would do in that situation.” The giggles come unabated, a pleasant combination of flustered joy.

“It’s one of the many things I like about you,” Tsukishima continues “you always have the most interesting thoughts.”

“You have things you like about me?” Your face is hot. Butterflies turning into waves as you try to assess. The whole moment is overwhelming.

“Do you think I would have walked you home if I didn’t?”

Tsukishima doesn’t expect an answer. Enough is enough, if not now when? Taking advantage of your flustered state, Kei had rounded the little island, cornering you to a counter. Hands placed on either side you.

“You asked me to walk you home because you liked me too, didn’t you?” his voice was low in your ear, breath hot on your neck. All the sensations, the heat coming from his tall body, the smell of his cologne and him was becoming too much. Everything was just so new for you.

“I..i..i”

“Well now you have me here. Wanting you like you want me.” He quirks a brow “you do want me don’t you? Or are you just a slutty tease? How cruel of you.”

“N-no!” You weren’t a tease, you did like him, you did want to get to know him more. This was just all.. s-so so much. Too much. “I like you, I..i do! I-“

With his soft lips against yours Kei cuts you off. Its unexpectedly soft for someone re-known for their vicious tongue. Who knew that that the words of a devil hid behind the soft lips of a saint?

Easily lifting you to sit on top of your counter, Kei slips his body between your thighs as he continues to taste you, drinking your soul that comes out in whimpers. “So sweet Y/N-chan.” His lips keep softly pressing along your jaw, softly nibbling on your ear.

“Do you know what I think? I think you have been wanting me for a while. Tell me, do you think of me when you touch yourself here” long fingers teased along your inner thighs, under your skirt, to trace along your quickly dampening panties. Your head shaking no, body feeling thick with the unknown powers of lust, words not able to make it past your lips. Then he rubs your clothed clit, and it is nothing like the brief moments you have touched yourself. It’s a test that Kei has definitely studied for, your body instantly reacting, the lust building, knotting in your stomach.

Moans singing from your throat, you didn’t even realize that you had gripped onto his arms. As if they could anchor you to reality when all of your nerves were shooting off to space. Kei watched as you climbed higher, and once you were close to the precipice, so close to shattering he pulled back, kissing you soundly. “Now now, don’t want to be selfish. Don’t you want us to come together?” His grin is sharp but he still kisses you so softly. The difference makes your head spin.

“I..i have never done anything before… s’much too so-“ your whimpers are silenced by the soft lips of the devil. “I haven’t done much before either” he lies “but don’t you want me like I want you?” Of course you couldn’t, Kei thought, he wanted to own you.

“I never thought you would be so selfish Y/N” your head began to shake on your own. You weren’t selfish, you did like him. You did! Your frantically whispered “please” had the sharp grin in place.

Kei lifts you towards your bed in the corner of the room, thankful for your studio layout. Sinful tongue tracing down your neck as you are laid upon the bed. He slips skillful fingers beneath your clothes, taking his time exposing your skin. The slow burn of your innocence rising like smoke. In this moment you experience the clarity that, whatever happens tonight will change you forever. And you are powerless to stop it.

Too much too soon too much too soon too much too soon “ahhh” the shocked scream leaves your throat as Kei suckles a nipple into his mouth. The knot tightening in your stomach, winding you higher, overwhelmed by all the new textures and sensations. Nothing was as you imagined, you could have never prepared for this. “K-kei” his name spilling from your lips did something to him, grazing teeth against the sensitive nub.

As he continued to show attention to your sensitive nipples, his fingers had been tracing your bare pussy lips, gathering the wetness from between your folds. The long digits searched lower, gaining entrance into your wet heat. Stretching you open, exploring to depths that you have never dared go before. Pleasure rising within you, you begin to pant as you reach a higher peak than before, knot tightening and yet you still could not break.

“We should come together.” Kei mummers against your skin as he slowly rises up your body. You are just so small compared to him. Kissing you deeply, he moves your legs to be around his waist, letting you feel the warm hardness of his length. Looking down, nervousness began to coincide with the rising of your impending crash, he was thicker and longer than you would have ever imagined. Similar to the rest of him, the red tip angry and leaking precum as Kei rubbed it along the wetness leaking down your thighs.

“Its not going to fit” you whimper out, head tossing at the pleasure of his tip hitting your clit. “Shh shh my little lamb, don’t get selfish, you can take this like a good girl. Watch, I will show you how good you can be.” With a groan Kei grabs his length aiming at your entrance. “We will go slow, let you feel all of me”. With that he began to rock in, tip breaking through the first ring.

Head thrown back with a groan he continued to slowly rock his dick inside of you, inch by slow inch. Thumb constantly playing with your clit, rubbing against the side of the hood as he paused to let you stretch. You were so unbelievably tight, even beyond virgin expectations. Your breathing was labored, your whole world focused on the stretch between your thighs, unknowingly clenching against the intrusion. Too much too soon too much too soon.

“Easy lamb, breathe for me” Kei spoke through gritted teeth. He was capable of kindness, you were his after all. There would be plenty of time to slam into you later. You began to loosen as he cooed at you, Kei never stopping the slow rocking of his hips. After what felt like eons, he had finally broken through, balls deep inside of you, letting you adjust to his length while he caught his breath, gloating at being the one to experience your tight heat enveloping him, of being your first. And your last, if he had any say about it.

“My sweet little lamb, being such a good slut for me” Kei cooed kissing away your tears that you hadn’t even realized were on your face. “Lets cum together yea? Would you like that?” you nodded your head, ready for the fall, for the anything you just needed him to move. “Use your big girl words” Kei admonished still holding still, even his thumb had stopped moving.

“P-please Kei please move, I w-want us-s to cu-m together-r” you moaned, not even finished with your desperate pleading before Kei pulled his hips back to begin ricking his cock in. A steady yet faster pace than he had originally intended, but he was only human after all, and he needed you to cum with him. He needed you to need him.

You were overwhelmed, only capable of strangled moans of Kei, and too much, and don’t stops. His thumb continuing its assault on your clit, the pace of his hips steady and fast and deep. You could swear you could taste him, he was hitting so deep inside of you, his thick length dragging along your walls. Driving you higher and higher, to where pain was pleasure and pleasure was pain.

Kei was close. He knew you were close, could feel it as you fluttered around him. Lifting your legs to his shoulders he changed the angle, searching for the spot inside of you that would completely push you over the edge, would ruin you. With a keen cry tearing from your lips he knew that he found it. Angling his thrusts he kept up his pace knowing that it was only a matter of time.

“S’too much stop. cant cant cant” your head knocked back and forth, your body on fire, electric almost nuclear reactive. “Yes, you can. Cum for me lamb” Kei demanded. His voice hard, determined. As if his words could control sin, you shattered, body spasming as you fell back to earth, hitting every rock along the way. It was a relief filled with sharp edges, causing tears to fall and shakey breaths. Kei cooed at you, telling you what a good little slut you were for him as he fucked you through your orgasm, quickly cumming himself as you milked him dry, painting your inner walls white.

Kei pulled out, a stretched out beside you, gathering you on top of his chest. “What a sinful little lamb you are, letting me do all of that to you.” Exhaustion was overtaking your body, as you gathered your wits about you, shame starting to replace pleasure.

You tried to defend yourself, but Kei interrupted you “its ok to be a slut for me lamb. Because you want me, and now I have you.”

[cuteandtwisted]

are bfyt isak and even living together at this point? miss them xx

i miss them too 💛.  here’s what they’re up to. (i got carried away. sigh.)

.

“I could put my desk here.”

“Why not there?” Even points to a wider corner in the empty bedroom.

“Hm. Your desk could go there instead. It’s bigger.” Isak responds absentmindedly as he continues inspecting the walls of the bare living room.

Even’s gasp is barely audible, but Isak hears it. 

He stifles his own when he realizes what he’s just said and wills his feet to remain glued to the floor. His back turned to Even. His ears and neck probably flushed already.  

“My desk?” Even asks behind him, his voice soft, his tone playful. Isak knows he’s smiling. “Why would my desk be in your apartment, Isak?”

Ugh.

“I don’t know. Most of your shit is currently at Kollektivet. Figured it’s only a matter of time before you start carrying your furniture to my new place as well,” Isak responds with a shrug, then walks away to where the person showing them the apartment is standing. 

Good save, he tries to tell himself. But was it? His therapist would argue that he’s falling back on his usual coping mechanisms, that he’s regressing by resorting to sarcasm and evasion tactics instead of voicing how he truly feels, what he truly wants, what he truly needs. 

What I really want.

But Even understands. He’s currently chuckling at Isak’s weak and unconvincing retort to his teasing. He always does. He’s never upset. He’s never impatient. He’s always kind and forgiving. He understands that Isak’s years of social ineptitude and prickly responses aren’t just undone and done away with because he started getting professional help. 

Still, Isak isn’t sure that what he wants is right, that it deserves to be voiced and spoken out loud. Because wanting something doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the right thing right now. 

As though sensing the turmoil currently eating Isak up (and knowing that a touch would suffice to anchor him and bring him back), Even squeezes his side as he walks past him and absently presses a phantom kiss to his hair before continuing to the broker. An uninhibited touch that carries so much meaning, so much weight. 

‘Stay with me. Don’t get too lost inside your head. Stay here with me.’

It’s so casual yet deliberate that Isak feels like melting into the hardwood floors. 

“Do you have any apartment facing East?” Even asks the lady with a smile so blinding, Isak can see her blushing too. “Isak has trouble waking up in the morning if it’s not bright enough. Also counter space. Isak needs more counter space. Do you have anything with more counter space?” 

Isak watches Even complain about details and nice-to-haves he would never otherwise care about to the broker and feels his chest swell, a warm and fuzzy feeling settling there and spreading down his limbs. 

It’s Sunday morning and Isak can’t think of any other place he’d rather be.

He walks up to Even mid-rant about the height of the ceiling and presses a sweet kiss to his cheek, making him pause and blink, visibly flustered.

“What was that?” Even smiles, turning away from the broker lady almost completely. 

“I don’t like this one,” Isak says simply, before linking his arm with Even’s.

“No?”

“No. It’s too far from your school.” Not the full truth. But a truth nonetheless.

Even just stares at him, smiling fondly like he’s keeping himself from speaking his mind. The real estate person somehow feels like she’s left the empty apartment.

“What?” Isak asks, embarrassed. 

“You’re being cute. Why are you being cute?”

“Am not,” he scoffs. “I’m being pragmatic. I just don’t want to spend money commuting to you.”

“I could just get an apartment next to this one.”

“What if you spend the night here and have to commute to school or what if i want to pick you up from school?”

Even cups his face with both hands and kisses him on the lips. It’s just a kiss, but Isak still feels dizzy when Even lets him go. 

“You’re being cute again,” Even says before kissing him again. 

.

They’ve been apartment hunting for two weeks now. Separately, however.

Isak had been crashing at kollektivet since he moved back from Trondheim, and it was only a matter of time before he had to find a place to live.

But when he asked Mutta if he knew of any good options, he found out that Even was looking to move out of his mother’s house as well. 

It was rather embarrassing to hear it from a third party when they spent every single night together, either in Even’s bed or latched onto each other on Eskild’s couch. (Isak secretly loves the latter sleeping arrangement the most. He loves not having to justify curling himself around Even and molding into him like he can’t bear being apart from him).

“Heard you were looking for an apartment.”

“Heard about you, too.”

“Maybe we can go to places together. Share one broker. Save time. We’re probably looking for different things anyway.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

But they’re not looking for different things. They hate the same living rooms and fall in love with the same bedrooms. Isak thinks about where Even’s desk would fit and Even complains about Isak’s counter space and sun exposure. Even wants a large bedroom that can fit a king sized bed, and Isak wants a living room that can fit a couch big enough for two tall men. Even thinks about the distance to Isak’s lab and Isak thinks about the one to Even’s uni. They bicker about hardwood floors and appliances, and somewhere along the line, their broker stops asking who the apartment is for, a quiet and knowing smile on her lips. 

.

It’s the perfect apartment.

Isak can just picture where everything would go. All of Even’s film equipment and art supplies. All of the little props he takes to the kindergarten where he’s completing his training. He can tell where Even’s drawings would go on the walls, where he’d leave his backpack as soon as he enters through the door, where Isak would find his socks crumpled on the floor. He can see himself on the kitchen counter, legs spread for Even to fit in between, their heated kisses filled with laughter and ease and ‘scientific’ foreplay. He can see the cupboard they’d keep forgetting about and against which Isak would hit his head every time Even kisses him too deep. He can see where Isak would retract to brood when Even calls him out on something. He can see where Even would nap and where Isak would just perch up to watch him, happy to just be able to watch him.  

It’s the perfect apartment. 

“I might as well put an application down now, right?” Even grins at him, seemingly agreeing with Isak’s entire train of thought and reminding him that he’s the one who found this apartment. 

“Right.”

Even talks with the realtor about faucets and finishes and where the washers and dryers are located in the building while Isak recoils into himself.

They walk out into the night after Even fills out an application and Isak feels a lump in his throat. 

“What’s up?” Even asks, eyes curious and pensive.

“Nothing.” Isak shrugs.

“You’re quiet.”

“It happens to me sometimes.”

“Oh does it, now?” Even laughs. 

“Ugh.” Isak laughs too, shoving him playfully. 

“Are you upset I found an apartment before you?”

No.

“No.”

“Then what is it?” 

Isak considers his next words carefully. He could say how he truly feels or he could go down the pragmatic route. 

“Iss?”

“I just don’t think it’s a very economical decision,” Isak huffs out. His therapist would be so disappointed right now. 

“Huh?”

“The apartment, I mean. The rent, for starters, it’s too high. I mean where are you gonna get all that money every month? It feels like a waste because, well, it’s too big, honestly.”

“Are you telling me to find a smaller apartment?” Even muses quietly. He doesn’t sound irritated. He’s smiling, like this is amusing to him. 

“No! No. The apartment is perfect. Like it’s actually perfect. I’m not saying that.”

Even furrows his brows in confusion. Frankly, Isak is confused by his reasoning, too.  

“Hm. Are you trying to steal my apartment by any chance? Is that what this is about?” Even laughs.

“No. No, I wouldn’t do that.”

“Then what is it?” 

Isak looks up at him then. Even is smiling. And he’s so self-assured, so present, so intimidating like this. 

“I’m saying we can both have the apartment,” Isak blurts out, his heart pounding hard in his ears.  

“Hm. And how would that work exactly?”

“We’d call the lady and ask her to add my name to the application,” says Isak. “I’d fill out my part and that way we’ll have more chances of actually getting the apartment with our salaries combined. Not to mention that we’d pay half the rent. And half the utilities! Half the electricity and heating bill! We could share groceries that way food doesn’t go to waste. And we won’t even have to spend money commuting from each other’s places. It’s perfect.”

Isak’s face is flushed by the time he finishes his rant. He’s beyond embarrassed. Even is probably fighting a smirk right now. 

“So this is a money saving strategy?” Even asks. He’s still smiling.

“What?”

“You want us to share an apartment to save money?”

“No. Not just money. I mean, it would be energy, too. Right? We’d lower our carbon footprint. We’d share one fridge, one radiator, one set of lightbulbs. We’d only have to use the vacuum once at a time. We could even share laundry cycles. It’s quite the responsible choice actually.” 

“So.. you want me to be your roommate to fight climate change?”

“Not roommate.” 

“I mean it sounds very close to what you were doing with Eskild.”

“I never showered with Eskild!”

“Oh, we’d be sharing showers, too. To preserve water. Of course.” Even laughs, but Isak doesn’t feel like laughing.

“Even. This is not funny to me! I’m serious!”

Oh. 

There it is. A crack. A small crack. Isak raising his voice and being visibly upset because he is. Because he feels cornered. Because he doesn’t know how to say what he truly feels, what he truly wants. 

And it hits him then. The reason why Even didn’t tell him he was looking to move out of Julie’s apartment in the first place. The reason he never brought up the fact that they spend every single night together and that it doesn’t make any sense that they’re looking for two separate places.

It hits him then: Even doesn’t want this. Even doesn’t, because Isak doesn’t give him enough. 

Isak doesn’t tell him that he loves him very often. He writes it. He implies it. He traces it on his skin, presses it against his lips, whispers it into his neck late at night. But he doesn’t say it. And while Even is kind and patient, he probably wishes Isak were more open by now, more normal. Isak wishes he were, too. 

Even is getting sick of him. Even doesn’t want-

“Isak? Isak, hey, stay with me.” Even brings him back with both hands on his face. A sweet touch, the most comforting touch. Isak will never stop burning for his touch. “I’m sorry for teasing you. It’s not nice. Forgive me.”

I should be the one apologizing. 

“Come on, let’s go back to my place and talk about this later. Yeah? Don’t worry about it.”

“But-”

“No buts.” 

.

It’s late and dark. It’s past midnight. They’re in Even’s bed at Julie’s apartment, sleeping. Even spooning him. But Isak can tell Even is awake too, his breathing too shallow, too uneven. 

“Even?” Isak asks, his voice a whisper.

“Hm?”

“I don’t want to share an apartment because of money.” 

Even tightens his arms around Isak’s stomach.

“What about climate change?” he asks, making Isak elbow him lightly.

“Don’t be a dick.” 

Even laughs. They both do. Then it’s quiet again.

“Why do you want to share an apartment then?” Even asks then, his voice wavering with nervousness.

It’s late and it’s dark, and Isak can feel Even’s heartbeat against his back. 

He turns around in his arms and tangles their limbs again. He can almost see the blue in Even’s eyes, even in the dark. 

Even is scared, Isak realizes. He’s holding his breath and he’s scared. 

“Because I love you.” Isak says simply. It’s simple because it’s true.    

Even lets out a soft but heartbreaking sigh. Isak wants to hold him until he knows. Until he knows just how deeply and impossibly Isak loves him. 

Isak wants to tell him so much. The words tumble inside his brain while they hold each other in bed rather desperately for a warm night in June.  

I want to share a home with you because I want you around. Because I love hearing you put on clothes in the morning when I’m still sleeping and I love the sound of you unzipping your jeans after a long day before you proceed to sing terribly in the shower. Because I love having you around and watching you make art or marathon some pretentious show or simply take a nap in the middle of the day. 

“Because I’ve never had a home until I had you,” Isak confesses with a tremor to his voice.

Even kisses him then, and it’s wet and salty and desperate. 

Isak can’t tell whose tears he’s tasting.

“Odd night to get emotional about climate change,” Even sniffles with a chuckle when they finally part for air.

“Ugh. Fuck you.”

“Ugh. I love you, too.” 

They kiss again and again and again. 

“My home. You’re my home, too.”  

.

They move in together a week after that.

x

[bowieandqueen11]

Afraid/ Barry Berkman Angst

Request: hello i love ur barry stories and I was wondering if I could request one where the reader finds out of Barry’s true job and barry tries to get her to stay by saying that he’s a good person and some angst ensues 🤭 thank u keep up the good work 

Hey lovely anon, why you got to make me cry like this??

If Barry Berkman were to tell you when he was ten years old how his life would turn out, he would have guessed he’s be riding a dragon before he guessed this.

Standing in the cold kitchen, he couldn’t fault it for its sleek, methodically planned design; every detail was intricate, every granite counter spotless and stainless with its steel appliances. A clean folded tea towel swished against his hip, nearly falling out of the back pocket of his jeans as his shoes tapped against the tiled floor, enjoying the slight heat that radiated with each movement. His mind was far away, allowing himself to relax for a moment and hum a gentle tune as his fingers went on autopilot with the knife, expertly dicing the garlic cloves, hoping you’d be hungry on this fine evening once you woke up from your nap. 

He smiles softly to himself, imagining the soft snores of you on your pillow, the way your face smooshes down like a marshmallow, the way he wanted to kiss every inch of your cheek but decided instead you needed the rest, and he really needed to make dinner. Turning his back away from the counter to stir the tomato sauce, he doesn’t hear you patter into the kitchen.

He doesn’t see what’s in your hand.

‘B-Barry...why is there a gun under our mattress?’

He nearly freezes for a second, placing his hand down without thinking onto the stove only to pull it away with a yelp when it burns his fingers. He’s almost afraid to turn around, shaking his hand out with a grimace and pretend shock on his face. But Barry had never seen you look this way before as your eyes met his and they dipped; your eyes had a deadness, a stillness. With one look the verdict was told. 

But it was more than that. There was a tenseness you weren’t even trying to mask. He backed away slowly until his hip bumped into the fridge, nothing about this making sense. Not your curling fists or the anger that radiated from your skin. This wasn’t supposed to happen, he was too careful for this, he couldn’t let his defences slip.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. And it broke his heart.

‘Y/n-I-I promise, I promise you, ever since I met you I just- I just.... Shit! I am not good at this-’

‘At what, being a normal, functioning person?!’

‘At feelings! Look, starting from now-’

‘No! No now, Barry! This is it! This. Is. Over. I have to- I have to call the police, Barry, this is FUCKING INSANE!’

You felt emotionally bankrupt. The was nothing left to feel, nothing left to say, nothing left but the void that enveloped your mind in swirling blackness as you dropped your arm, and the gun it held to your side, staring at Barry with a slack mouth and tears beginning to spring up in the corner of your eyes as you tried to figure out how the hell to get out of this situation. He was much broader, and taller, and stronger than you, but you still have the element of surprise, and agility in your hands. You make as if to reach for the carving knife on the counter, its glare harsh and bright in Barry’s eyes as he moves forward to stop you.

‘No, no, hey don’t do that, don’t do that. We can figure this out.’

Reaching over to you, he took the gun from your grasp, trying to ignore the familiar burn of anger that rumbled in the pit of his stomach like a wound as he gazed down at you. But the worst part, the worst bit was the fear. The colour drained from his face, unable to speak, wide eyed, the blood running into his ears as he raised his palms flat against your shoulders, as gently as possible squeezing his fingers into your muscles, trying to get you to look at him.

He kept his eyes steady, resting on your face like they were home, but just briefly, the sorrow already building.

‘I promise, y/n...I’m a good person. I’m a good person- you MADE me a good person, and look, I’m trying, okay, I’m trying to be better, but I need you to trust me, and I need you to forget-to forget, well, about that.’ He threw his head towards the gun he placed in his belt, but you just stayed rooted to the spot, your features buckling just slightly before you spoke.

‘You say that like it means anything. What is love to you? Lying? Who the hell are you, Barry Block?’

Barry had known that to love deeply meant to risk great pain, but the tears that dripped down his cheeks now were proof of how much worse the pain was than he ever expected; they were not quiet and controlled, they fell as fast as the fall rain and he sobbed to draw breath. His lungs heaved and he knew there was no cure for his heart. He slowly bowed his head, crumpling down onto his knees and nearly knocking you over by wrapping his arms around your waist. His grip was as tight as a viper’s, his thumb stroking into your skin as you felt his tears stain your shirt from where his head nestled into your stomach, his stubble itchy from where it rubbed into you. His shoulders fall from where you gingerly place your hands on them, your fingers slowly stroking patterns over their broad expanse as you feel them wobble and shake, his lips falling as he buries them further into you.

‘I love you, y/n, I love you I love you I love you I-I love you. I swear.’

[otterknowbynow]

Altean Home Economics (3/?)

Goo is great, but Hunk sure would feel better if they had kitchen access. all chapters in this tag | ao3 link in reblogs

Hunk makes his announcement that evening in the lounge, standing in the doorway to address the rest of the team. 

“Didn’t you find a kitchen before?” Keith is curled up on the couch, his chin resting on the back.  

“Ah, you mean the cookies.”

“Right,” Keith says, raising his eyebrows almost imperceptibly. “Cookies.” 

“Turns out what we found was a kiln and a bunch of ground minerals,” says Pidge, adjusting her glasses. “He basically made Altean hobbyist ceramics.”  

“The important thing is that what we’ll be making now will be food.” Hunk punches one fist into his other palm decisively, and takes a step toward the rest of them arrayed around the room. “Who’s with me?” 

“I mean I’m very much with the idea of you making food, don’t get me wrong,” Lance says, not bothering to raise his head from the cushion it’s resting on. “But I don’t think I have to be directly involved. I’m more of an eater than a maker.” 

“I’m a disaster in a kitchen,” Shiro laughs. “Ask anyone --” he cuts off and frowns for a second. “Anyway, it wouldn’t go well.” 

“Pidge? Keith?” Hunk holds a hand out in each of their directions, palm up. Keith shrugs and sits up. 

“I’m good at chopping.” 

“And I’m guessing all the ingredients will be labeled in Altean, so I’d better come with you,” says Pidge, pushing herself up off the table she’s been perched on. “Let’s go.” 

“Oh, this is happening now?” Lance swings himself up to sit against the back of the couch instead of draping himself across four cushions. Hunk cocks his head at him. “What? I said I wouldn’t cook, not that I wouldn’t come.”

***

“...so Coran just gave you the keys?” Keith sounds skeptical, but that’s not out of the ordinary. 

“Well, to be clear, he gave me the keys and went --” Hunk stops walking and draws himself up to his full height, eyebrows knit dramatically, and does his best imitation of the Altean advisor’s voice “-- ‘I expect great things to come out of that kitchen, boy, or you aren’t half the paladin I thought you were.’”

“He did not call you ‘boy,’” Lance says, laughing. 

“Oh, he absolutely did.” Hunk shudders and gets moving again. “And I have no intention to repeat the experience, so if you all will practice good skills in taking direction today, I’d appreciate it.” 

“No problem here,” says Keith, shrugging and glancing at Lance sidelong. “Not sure about all of us, of course.” Hunk isn’t sure if Lance misses the dig or decides to ignore it, but he continues as if he hasn’t noticed. 

“D’you think Allura ever makes pancakes? She seems like she’d like pancakes. I mean, honestly, who doesn’t? They’re the perfect food -- no tough techniques, no special equipment --” he’s ticking off criteria on his fingers, and despite his long legs seems to have invested himself enough in his argument that he’s no longer keeping up with the rest of them. “Hearty, yet sweet, kosher, versatile, no rare ingredients--” 

“--we don’t know what ingredients are rare for Alteans, Lance.” Pidge’s interruption seems to snap him out of it, and Lance performs a half-skipping gallop to catch up with the group. 

“And we’re here,” Hunk says, sliding the translucent rectangular chip Coran gave him this morning into a panel by the door they’ve just reached. It looks no different from the doors to their chambers, but opens into a vast room full of shining metal appliances of so many different sizes and shapes that no one is quite sure where to start looking, except for Hunk, who stares straight ahead, tearing up a bit, and then races across the room to the far side. 

“Look at all! This! Counter space!” He spreads his arms out as far as they will go and leans down onto the bright white stone, still barely covering a fifth of the length of the surface, which spans the entire far wall. Pidge clears her throat.

“I guess we’d better start exploring,” she says pointedly.  

“Alright!” Hunk whips around to face the rest of them still framed in the doorway. “Pidge, Lance, go figure out what over there is a heat source--” he gestures broadly toward the bay of gleaming machinery and appliances that fills the left side of the room “-- Keith, you’re with me. That --” Hunk indicates a large doorway in the opposite wall, leading into an area filled with what looks like an entire bank of giant middle school lockers more than anything else “-- has got to be food storage. Let’s see what we’re working with, ingredient-wise, and get you showing off some knife skills, since we already know that’s where your strengths lie.” 

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to make anything with...Altean ingredients?” Keith asks, as he moves to join Hunk and the others make their way over to confront the dizzying array of alien technology. 

“If I know one thing, and one thing only, it is this,” says Hunk seriously. “Given any set of potential ingredients, some time, and -- ideally -- some way to apply heat, I can make not only something, but a meal. Or else my name isn’t Hunk Garrett.” Keith is looking at him, but not with the awed respect he was hoping for. 

“Well, is it?” 

“What do you mean, ‘is it’?” 

“Is your name Hunk Garrett? I’ve never known your last name.” Hunk looks utterly betrayed, and Keith spreads his hands wide. “Do you know mine?” 

“Of course, it’s --” he pauses, frowns, shakes his head “-- no, no I don’t.” 

“Kogane. See? Now you know. And now I know. So we can move on.” And with this final conclusion, he pulls open the door to the first locker. 

[marvelswinterfrost]

About the Winterfrost drabble, what about Loki and Bucky unable to modern appliance (Blender, microwave etc) and arguing about it? (And very probably destroying various items?) (Tony can be judging them so hard in the background),

That’s not a cup

Summary: Bucky and Loki are trying to deal with the coffee machine.

Pairing: Bucky/Loki, WinterfrostWords: 987Genre: Humor, drabbleWarnings: none, maybe a bit of swearing (?)

A/N: This is gonna be a shorter one but thanks for the prompt! xD I might think about making this a series of short drabbles though. “Bucky and Loki trying to cope with modern technology” where it’s just them trying to get through life but it’s actually them messing up and arguing like an elderly couple.

...

“What’s that button for?” Bucky asked as he inspected the coffee machine. He and Loki had been trying to adjust to the modern world since the god came to earth and Bucky wasn’t put into a freezer anymore. But it seemed to be a lot more difficult than expected.

“I don’t know. Just press it.” Loki answered, taking a closer look. Next to the button there was a small symbol, showing a cup. “Maybe this is the button to pour coffee into the cup? Press it.” Loki urged.

“Stop rushing, Loki, we don’t know what this is doing.” the soldier hissed quietly, not liking the way the god was pushing him.

Loki rolled his eyes and shoved the other man slightly aside. “Well, if you’re not doing it, I will do it.” 

“No, are you mad? Who knows what that button is even for?!” 

“I already told you, James. It’s for the coffee. You press it, it comes down. I’ve seen Stark doing it all the time.” Loki was getting annoyed. For someone who used to be the most badass assassin the world knew, he seemed to be too careful.

“This is definitely not a cup.” Bucky pointed the symbol next to the button, shaking his head.

“It is a cup, Bucky. Now could you please do me the favour and press the god damn button?!” when the soldier denied a second time, Loki took the matter in his own hands and pressed the small button. Much to Bucky’s dismay.

“What the hell did you do?!” he shouted, looking for the power cable to rip out of the plug socket as the noises coming from the machine grew louder and louder. Loki stepped back, hands in the air and eyes wide open.

“Oh..” Loki said, as the coffee machine started to move to the edge of the counter, the vibration dragging it forward. But there was no coffee.

“It’s moving! It’s moving!!” Bucky shouted, grabbing the moving machine, trying to stop it from falling down, but it would still not stop. He looked at the black-haired man with an angry expression.

“ Stop staring and help me, Loki!” the cup fell to the floor. There was a loud cracking noise as it broke into many little pieces. “Fuck.” Bucky swore, taking a deep breath to calm himself down, keeping him from panicking. 

“It broke the cup.” Loki stated as he put a firm hand on the machine. 

Bucky put the strands of brown hair, that kept falling into his face, behind his ear, sighing.

“I know that it broke the fucking cup, Loki! I was standing-” he looked at the god, staring straight into his eyes, with hatred eyes, “-right here, alright?” he whispered dangerously calm, his eyes still not leaving Loki’s as he held onto the moving coffee machine as if his life depended on it.

2 minutes later the movements stopped. Both sighed, thankful that it was finally over and that nothing but a cup broke. Loki took a closer look at the coffee machine and gulped. There was steam coming from behind the giant machine.

“Oh no.” Loki whispered, shoving his partner aside again and turning the big black kitchen equipment. Bucky frowned.

“What?” he turned around, seeing the mess they’ve created. “Stark is going to kill us.” the soldier said, totally exhausted, not even trying to do anything against it.

“Okay, it’s been fun, really. You two are extremely entertaining, but if you touch my coffee machine one more time, I’ll put you back in the freezer,” Tony appeared in the doorway, out of nowhere, pointing at Bucky, “and kick your ass so hard you’re able to fly back to Asgard.” and then turned to Loki.  

Both were startled at the sudden appearance of the person they’d better avoided right now.

“Stark, we can explain.” the soldier tried to clarify, but Tony wasn’t having any of that.

“Zip it, kool aid. I’ve seen more than enough.” Tony laughed, taking a sip from his glass of orange juice that Peter had changed for the Jack Daniel’s one. 

“’Seen enough’? How? You just came here.” Loki asked confused.

“The moment I heard loud noises coming from the kitchen I asked Friday to live-stream the whole scene. And I was not disappointed at all.” he chuckled, wiping an invisible tear away in amusement. He walked over to the pair and looked at his coffee machine and sniffed before raising his eyebrows.

“You know I’ve had this one for nearly 10 years.” he put his hand on top of it and smiled.

“We’re really sorry, we didn’t mean to break it.” Loki said apologetic.

“It’s okay.” Tony laughed, barely able to hold it back any longer. He turned to look at the machine. 

“I’m sorry?” Bucky said, thinking he didn’t hear him correctly.

“I said, it’s okay. Don’t worry about it. It’s an old coffee machine that I bought somewhere on vacation for little money. I didn’t even think it’d last this long to be honest.” he turned to look at the couple again, changing the topic.

“But you two? Jesus, get used to technology. Steve was watching old black and white movies on a tablet a week after they heated up his frozen butt, but you two take a long ass time.” he left.

“Wait!” Bucky yelled as he jogged up to Tony. “Just one question. What was the button for?”

“The one you guys pressed?” Tony asked.

“Yeah.”

“Self-destruction.” he shrugged.

“They have a button for that as well now?” Bucky asked shocked, but at least Loki was wrong, which brought him a little bit of joy.

“Wha- no of course they don’t, Bucky?! Why would- you know what? That’s really enough for today.” he pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. 

“Just clean the kitchen, alright?” and he disapeared.

“Sure.” the soldier said confused as he walked back to where he’d left Loki. He’d already started picking up the pieces of the broken cup. The god looked up.

“And? What’d he say?” he asked.

“I was right. It wasn’t a cup.” Bucky smirked devilish.

[namjoonchronicles]

genius lab | yg

↳ pairing yoongi x you

↳ words 4k

↳ author’s note happy birthday to my fellow 93 liner, Yoongi. May we find a clue on what we’re doing in life. But hey, at least your life is better than mine, right? --i personally think that yoongi is very talkative to people he is most comfortable with. so that’s how i depicted him. i’m sick of people saying he’s cold and unaffectionate, it really is all or nothing for yoongi ok. 

↳ 3/3 ‘take your wife to work’ fic

↳ genre husband!yoongi, domestic au, fluff

↳ song sleeping at last ‘two’

“Babe, so skydiving right...?” “Yup.” “Which one thrills you most: the fall or the fact that you’re in the sky?”

Yoongi walks around, fastening the cufflinks of his dress shirt while you were tiptoeing against the bathroom sink, your bottom bouncing as you try to get a better look in the mirror.

“I don’t know how I’m going to get there on time, so the initial plan is I fetch you from the mall and then we go straight to wedding hall right?” Yoongi is now switching on the left side of his cuff which he had no trouble fastening. Now he is pacing to the far right of the bedroom, next to the unmade bed to fetch his Gold Rolex.

“That���s the plan…” you swing your head back so your chin could be closer to the mirror when you can see. Unamused with the lack of response thereof, Yoongi marches to the opened bathroom door to see you are now sitting on the bathroom counter, trying to pinch something on your chin.

“What on earth are you doing?” he leans on the door frame. You dangle your head to the side where he is, mulling, “What people with pimples do in the morning, because not everyone is blessed with clear skin…”

For emphasis, you eyed him up and down before resuming your task. Yoongi was about to leave you alone if your answers weren’t that annoying, but it was, so he grabbed you by the chin, making you lean your head on his chest while you struggle to break free of his head lock.

“You will not touch that pimple,” Yoongi hissed while trying to put an anti-bacterial lotion on the said boil. “I want to,” you spat back.

Yoongi lets you go and helped you down from the counter.

“It hurts…” you mewled. “Yeah, it wouldn’t if you didn’t poke it,” Yoongi passed, putting the ointment back.

His black slacks are hugging his bums quite attractively now that you have the time to pay attention to it. He was checking his phone, with one hand on his hip while you put on your black bra and undies before strolling across the room like nothing is wrong.

“I got an update from the event chatroom,” Yoongi pauses and reads the text out loud so you could hear them, he follows you closely outside where the living room was, “Please refrain from bringing outside food as we have food prepared for the performers and early guests in the cafeteria right below the hall. Remember to bring your tags for identification.”

Next, the kitchen. You pour yourself a drink nodding mindlessly, still wearing just bra and undies, “No take out then, shame… I was really craving for some spicy braised chicken,” you swirled the coffee mug around and took a sip, “Maybe we could, a few hours before we leave.”

“No, no, we won’t make it on time if we did,” Yoongi shook his head, eyes glued to his phone. “We won’t, but I will. Me, alone,” you corrected him, leaning against the kitchen counter, gazing lovingly into your mug of black coffee, your go-to morning breakfast. Staggered by your response to have good food without him, he peeled his eyes from his phone almost immediately. “I will not allow such a thing!” he thundered, before his eyes falls to the valleys of your breast, thighs and bare torso, “Where are your clothes?!”

“Took you long enough,” you arched an eyebrow before passing him the very mug you were drinking from. There’s still some liquid in them and Yoongi downed them at once. His eyes follows you down to the living room where the couch was. “I figured that if I’m not going to see my husband all May and the beginning of June, I might as well leave him with some…” you smacked your lips together, resuming, “penetrative memory, so to speak,” you pointed the remote to the television and it played the playlist.

Yoongi froze. He is also blinking rapidly, stammering, “p-p-pene-penetrative memory?” You moved passed his shoulder and glided your hand down the length of his forearm, executing as little pressure as you can so he could barely feel you there, “of what he is missing when he is away…”

He could hear you smile and with a loud smack on his butt coming from your palm, he knows today is going to be slightly difficult to go through and by difficult, he meant hard. And he also knows that you probably had stood there watching it jiggle, because you’re a demon he had gotten married to.

“I was kidding,” you hummed, throwing your head back while getting dressed in an emerald green knee length dress, after you saw blood draining down his face and possibly pooling somewhere else that might delay today’s plan, “You look like you’re about to faint… I’m not going to do that, especially having to go to your studio first, before the mall and then, attending the wedding.”

Bittersweet. He would like the tease, to be honest. And what do you mean by going to his studio first? “You honestly think you can go AWOL without your office calling you to be in your studio at least once, today? They’re calling you right now,” you tipped your eyes to his phone and it vibrated.

Yoongi clenched his eyes shut but after he threw an acid glance at your smiling face.

He threw a throw pillow at you and left the room to be in his home studio. You weren’t very much interested into having musical discussion today, but if Yoongi needs to go then you’ll understand. You’ve had musical discussions all night. To pry a dedicated man is a difficult task, so you have a reminder set on his phone, as: love wifey time. Which go off at least five times a day; a number you both had agreed on, prior to the initiation.

Yoongi left the door gaping open, which led you to sit on the chair he has inside and begin reading a magazine he was featured in. One particular paragraph in that article reads,

How do you balance private life from your professional one?

Yoongi’s responds were, alas, extremely straightforward, no sugar coating whatsoever.

“Very badly. I define private life as home, wife, family, Holly, etc. And I feel like a married life is so much different from how I was still single. I have more commitments now, more people I need to take care of. I still feel like I’m in that transition? I know my wife had been secluding herself in terms of making more space for my work and she sacrifices a lot in order for me to continue doing this (music). If you think that I’m balancing the two flips of my life good, I have to thank my wife for that, truly. She’s my anchor, my rope, my stone.”

He is quite a talker. He is sitting in his chair, swiveling around with the phone on his ear, his veiny hand scratching the back of his neck--the conversation too complex for you to make sense of. His head is bobbing in agreement to what the caller had to say. It must have been one of those expenses thing again. Yoongi is in charge of making decisions to how a track should be and even if he takes literally 5 seconds to decide those; he takes an eternity to decide if you look good in a dress or a blouse. Music is all he is good at. It’s both a curse and a blessing.

“Listen, Jungkook,” he begins, spinning around in his chair so he faces you, “I don’t think we can do this through the phone. I have a packed day today, but I can squeeze some time somewhere before noon, what do you say babe?” Yoongi asked, with a slight drawl.

“Sure,” you shrugged and gave him a lopsided smile. “I’ll see you before noon, Jungkook…” Yoongi ended the call.

You stood up to reveal that your dress weren’t zipped all the way yet. Gathering all your hair to one side, you gave Yoongi your backside and he proceeds to trail kisses up your spine as he zips them up.

“With one look on that dress, I could tell we won’t be at that wedding for long,” he whispers hotly against the shell of your ear. You faced him with a cunning smile, and batted your eyelash at your handsome husband, circling your arm around his neck. “Oh really, says who?” you arched one eyebrow at him, just to tease him further. “Mr. Min Yoongi, Grammy winner,” he clicked his tongue.

The day is sunny, there were not much vehicles around. A very slow Saturday for everyone. Yoongi is driving and you’re on the phone with the bride who is currently panicking.

“Look, when I got married to Yoongi, I, too, wasn’t sure that I was marrying the right guy. He is never home, he is heavily invested on musical equipments instead of home appliances, and he hogs the blanket. And then I got married to him, and he still is never home, buys 25 pianos and hogs the blanket. Truth is darling, marriage aren’t going to change nobody, change is going to happen when the individual allows it…”

Yoongi frowned at the view ahead but 100% listening to everything you said. Which 75% lies and chances are, the bride knows that. You go to great lengths to make people smile, even if it means grilling lies about your husband. They know how responsible he is, that itself didn’t need exhibition although you’re pretty much an exhibitionist yourself.

“Don’t worry, Yoongi is going to be there as your pianist, he pinky promised me. So he is coming. He was reading the event chatroom before he leaves and I honestly want to tell you, hun, everything is fine. All you need to do is breathe, look pretty and put trust in your future hubby. You’ve gone through so much for this to happen, you’re halfway there already…okay? Okay, I’m going to see you in a few more hours, and I don’t want these conversations of thinking you’re not good enough, because that is bullshit. You’re a great wife, I almost married you, if Yoongi didn’t snatch me first,” Yoongi poke your sides and you jolted but still maintaining the smile on your face as you bid farewell on the phone with your friend.

“She is low on sugar and everything is pissing her off,” you exhaled through your nose and Yoongi rubbed your knees with his right palm. You fetched that very hand and entwined your fingers with his. You switched your attention out the car window to see several motorcyclists passing through. “Isn’t it too late to be having wedding jitters?” Yoongi glanced at you once in a while, cruising comfortably through the city with few traffics.

“It is never too late to have wedding jitters… I know where she’s coming from and I’ve been there,” you raised both brows and added a little squeeze on his hand.

“I know weddings are scary… it’s huge, it carries so much weight and responsibilities. It’s two families merging into one, with a lot of expectations and goals to achieve…” Yoongi rambles.

“It’s to trust someone with your whole life, and to devote yourself into a household name, and you fear that you hadn’t been seeing the full layers of your lover, frightened that he might leave one, unrevealed. Marriage is like.. Like skydiving...without parachutes. You leap out of the ass of a moving plane, unsure if you’re going to land safely or not, but you just do it. It’s scary, at least to me, to her… we’re women, we have so many to live up for. And it sucks. That’s where the fear comes.”

You casted your eyes down to your lap, where his hand rested, you begin fiddling on his empty ring finger, playing with it, until he regains dominance over you and clasped them tight under his grasp.

“Some of us turn out lucky. Some, don’t,” you whispered. And he could feel that you were brought down to memory lane of your own unhappy home; the home you were raised in. There’s nothing else he could offer but an affirmation in his full presence. Even if it means, a small kiss on your knuckle.

♪...Like a force to be reckoned with A mighty ocean or a gentle kiss…♪

Jungkook’s studio has been raided with bags of food. A shrill call of his name pried him away from his computer. You walked in with a huge grin and Jungkook’s eyes turns into crescents.

“Hello you!” you cooed at the bunny as you set the food on his coffee table. Yoongi is following close by, carrying his own fairshare of bags. “I’m going to be right back after I send this off to the staffs,” Yoongi said but you rushed to his side, cutting your conversation with Jungkook short.

“I’ll do that, you help Jungkook,” you gather all the things from him and he held the door open for you. He watches you go down the hall and he reminded, “It’s the hall on the far left, next to the water dispenser…”

You made your way there easily. Most of them are gathering for burgers and you greeted everyone with a big smile.

“Only burgers?” you chimed and they started laughing and exclaiming once they saw what you brought them, “Yoongi wanted to get you food and I’m here to do the delivering… you look so thin since the last time I saw you, what happen, and what did I tell you about skipping meals!” You playfully scolded them. They’re all very young and they dedicate themselves into serving Yoongi and the rest of the producers. They are basically the machines in this company, and therefore, must be credited with their effort.

“Okay, you guys enjoy yourself… I’m going to go now, take care,” you patted one of the staffs shoulder, “Honestly, please...really take care of yourself, I’m worried.”

Using the passkey, you entered Yoongi’s studio with ease. He isn’t so big on cleaning up but hardly anything was out of place. The blankets for when he stays overnight are neatly folded, the bin is halfway filled, the humidifier is working, there’s some new additions in his studio family: new speakers, new keyboards, interesting.

The door beeps open to Yoongi walking in a slow stride.

“Why didn’t you turn the AC on?” he pointed the remote to the AC and took off his black blazer to sit on his chair. “Jungkook forgot that we were heading to a wedding so he asked me why I was dressed up, cheeky dude,” Yoongi commented, while leaning over the back of the PC to turn his PC on. “It wasn’t warm…” you shrugged and sat on his couch, taking off your heels and stretching your legs on his coffee table.

Yoongi promptly sit on the piano bench and uncovered the piano. Then suddenly, he begin dribbling a few note.

“You’re helping Jungkook compose?” you asked, resting your elbow on the arm rest, closer to where Yoongi was, placing your chin on the heel of your palm while you stare at him play. He has a beautiful side profile. It has always been his most charming point. The way his eyes falls to the keys, his cheeks full and round, his lashes make him look like a child. His veiny hands was a complete contrast of that baby face, and the melody he plays--as a veteran pianist; never fails to amaze you in ways you can never imagine.

“He couldn’t find the notes that would fit the beats…” he murmurs.

“So you’re memorising the beats that he made and playing a rhythm that would match, with a piano? By... heart?” you repeated. “Uhum,” he answered short, continue letting his fingers play an intricate piece. Something that sounded familiar from a long time ago, but you know for a fact that is nameless.

“You hadn’t done live composing in front of me since last year…” your tone falls soft and like a whisper. “I’m doing it right now, aren’t I?” Yoongi passed, “Listen, this to me, is your song.”

He started to play a short melody that reminds you of floating. A time passing, of sweet memories and the calming waters. And then he switches to a lower note and play something out of a horror movie, “This is when you’re angry…”

You giggled and shook your head, covering your eyes, “Glad to remind you of a haunted house…” “But mostly, you’re my…” Yoongi begins playing the ‘First Love’ notes of his older work. “I’m your living piano? Is that what I am?” you taunted him, moving from the chair to sit next to him on the bench, idling with a smile playing on your face. He avoided your eyes and smiled to himself and for that little moment, you knew what he meant.

That First Love was the embodiment of your beginning. There’s so many ups and downs before you both got to this point and at the end of the day, the feeling of belonging is beyond soothing. And in the chaotic life of Min Yoongi, lies a calming wave that was you. He was a wanderer in the forest of temptations and you were his salvation.

“I couldn’t possibly conclude how much you meant to me, but I like to think that this voyage that we are on, sails for as long as I live,” Yoongi hummed in thoughts. “I think we got it…” Yoongi shifted his gaze to the computer screen and emails them to Jungkook right away.

Yoongi moves and you stood up, before stumbling to your side. Then you heard a loud ripping sound. Both of you froze. Lowering your gaze to right thigh, you saw the threads come apart to reveal the strings of your black thong.

“Oh my…” Yoongi breathed. “Yoongi!” you screamed.

The deceptive cookie can with the picture of a smiling lady on them is mocking you. You’re laying on your stomach on Yoongi’s lap as he sew the threads back on. “I knew my sewing skills will be put to a good use one day. Never thought it would be today, of all days,” the thread was long enough for him to pull pass his shoulder, he pinched your butt when you wouldn’t stop wiggling. “Stop doing that…” “I can’t! My back hurts, and you’re taking too long… are you sewing or are you staring at my ass?” “How about both. What are you going to do about that?”

You pouted and cupped your chin, darting your attention to the smiling lady on the sewing container Yoongi had. You pinched your eyes at the view of it and let out an exhale.

“...I can’t even ask for the staff’s help even though they are far more experienced because somebody...won’t wear a normal panties…” his voice gradually grows louder. “I can march up to them despite your worries, Yoongi… and it’s a skin tight dress, I had to wear a thong or people will be taking notes on the shape of my butt,” you threw glances over your shoulder at your husband.

He is using his teeth to cut the extra thread unused, “Okay roll over, let me see how it looks.” You paused, and didn’t do what you were told. “What now?”

“You have a bulge…” you darted. “I know, so let me go to the bathroom and relief myself,” Yoongi sighed.

“You were sewing! What inappropriate thoughts were you having?!” you rolled over and he loosens his tie, angrily, “It was your ass wiggling in my face, and the conversations we had…”

You patted his clothed manhood and had him hissing out of frustrations; sexual and non-sexual. Walking backwards to see him, chanting, “dirty toilet, grimey walls and Valak from The Nun… dirty toilet, grimey walls, and Valak from The Nun…”

Sexologists say that thinking of disgusting items, or locations helps tame the boners down. So far it has worked with Yoongi, but today, he was struggling a bit, that you had to be driving to the mall.

“It is going down yet?” you asked. “I’m trying…” he groans when you purposely drive over a road bum in full speed, “It’s hard with your perfume dancing around my nostril.” “Let’s try stressing you out…” you hummed, tapping your cheek with you index finger pulling into a stop by the mall parking entrance, “How many tracks are you supposed to produce this week?”

Yoongi was shifting in his seat, clenching his eyes shut, “...5.”

“How many did you have done?” “Two…”

Really? Really…?

“You got to do better Min Yoongi, you have bills to pay this month,” you drove inside the parking lot, looking for parking. “Stress is going to help my boner down?” Yoongi is talking is harsh rasps now. That’s probably unintended, but now it’s turning you on.

“Well, usually… when you aren’t around and I’m horny beyond explanation, I usually plunge into self-implied depression? And it usually helps. If that’s not readily available, I could throw myself in a workload that wasn’t even real but my girlfriend down there gets fooled so...if it works, it’s not dumb. Look, we can’t fuck right now, because I’m in a hurry to get the door gifts from the mall, and you have to play piano in two hours in front of many many people so I suggest you get it together or I’d have to suck you, and I have a very expensive lipstick on,” you found a parking spot and hurried to unfasten your belt.

You intended a chaste kiss on your husband’s sweaty lips but he was out of it. He keeps moaning against your lips and holding your face in place.

“Honestly Yoongi!” You pulled away and struggle to hook your finger around the car door. “Please hurry…” Yoongi bit his lower lip as you slam the car door shut and sped to the mall entrance from the basement. Yoongi chants, “dirty toilet, grimey walls, and Valak from The Nun. Dirty toilet, grimey walls, and Valak from The Nun. Dirty toilet, grimey walls, and Valak from The Nun...fuck. Even Valak looks hot right now.”

“Yes I came for Mr. and Mrs. Jung? I was told that the extra door gifts are ready?” You chirped and the manager revealed the bags that you need to carry.

“Oh, I can do that,” you hummed to the sight of it. Within minutes, you were heading back down to Yoongi on the phone with somebody, two bags of gifts in your hand. You yank the back door open and shove the two bags of gift in before slamming it shut, so hard, the car rattled.

“Can you drive?” You didn’t care that he was on the phone, he nodded and put on the earpiece so he could continue talking.

It was pretty much empty when you came, but the groom was a little anxious. The door gifts are arranged and you rushed to get Yoongi on the piano where he should be. “You have mini rehearsals…” you hissed, and drag him by the elbow. He didn’t complaint and was completely obedient.

Yoongi went overboard with the music sheet of a simple Wedding March to making a complete Sonata until the emcee told him off. You were holding the bouquet to a frantic bride as she sat on the toilet cover with a long look. Listing her future husband’s antics;

“He picks his nose when we eat…” she sniffed, “It’s absolutely disgusting. How am I going to live like that for the rest of my life…”

You rolled your eyes to the ceiling, itching to get this wedding done and over with. Adulthood is difficult.

But as always, you’re expected to provide unpaid emotional support. Because, that’s what you’re good at. So good, that you considered charging everyone for it. Yoongi would purchase a lifetime subscription. That’s no question. And if he is listening to your thoughts right now, he’d probably want an added benefit as well. You’re good at telling people what they want to hear.

“All I hear is you are making up excuses to call off the wedding when you’ve dreamed of this to happen for so long… humans are not perfect and they come with flaws. And it’s up to you to make the flaws as beautiful as it can be, because as much as it is imperfect, it is yours. He is yours. Simply tell him to stop picking his nose if it bothers you so much, we’re past that zone in this relationship, now, aren’t we?”

Yoongi gradually feel the tension builds as the hall continues to fill up. Some recognise him as the Grammy award winning producer and some don’t. That’s no big deal. It wasn’t his day. It was theirs.

With a simple wave of your hand, Yoongi begins the Wedding March in a beautiful rendition he had composed himself less than hour ago. When you were younger, not yet married, you couldn’t understand why people would cry in weddings. Now that you’re older, and albeit, wiser, you understood how much weight was on the shoulders when such a union happens.

The bride looks stunning, with her hair up in a classic ballerina bun. Her veils giving the right amount of silhouette, just enough to make the invitees curious of how she looks if they hadn’t seen her in a while and holding the tails of her dress behind her, is you. Once she reached the altar, you joined Yoongi on the bench. Her husband took her hand in his, staring into her eyes, brimming with tears.

“We are gathered here today…”

It was a beautiful ceremony. Yoongi stood up before you again, and the event repeats itself; you stumble to the side to keep your stance and ripped your dress open. You clawed Yoongi’s arm with a horrified look, noticing that the people hadn’t fully leave the hall.

Yoongi took off his blazers and covered you from waist down. Both of you are scurrying to the car, the bride saw and although she was quite puzzled, she knew she’ll get an explanation from you later.

“I can’t wait to have that dress ripped off of you…” he grumbled and sped through traffic.

Once you get home, Yoongi tore off the entire dress in two forceful yanks, sending you yelping, face down on the bed.

“All May and beginning of June, you say?” Yoongi whispers hotly in your ear, nuzzling his face in your nape while he fumbles on the metal head of the belt he was wearing. “It’s the thong, isn’t it?” you rolled over to face him. You see his shy smile, and the way he was hiding his face by facing the side.

The post coital glow tonight was something else. You drew random shapes on Yoongi’s palm, talking in murmurs.

“Babe, so skydiving right...?” “Yup.” “Which one thrills you most: the fall or the fact that you’re in the sky?”

Yoongi hums. “The landing; knowing you would be there waiting for me.”

“You should be drinking more water…” he scolds, fiddling with his metal earrings as his jaws hung open to continue typing on the keyboard, fixing his lyrics.

“And give the bacteria an ideal environment to live in? I think not!” you retorted back at him. The response got him stop typing in the middle of a sentence.

The nonsense seep into his mind in an uninterrupted speed, which causes him to push his chair back so he could stand and turned the loudspeaker mode off. He pressed the phone to his ear and gnawed his lower lip as you rambled on how drinking water and eating food would increase nutrition intake in your body and allow the bacterial growth to flourish,

“–which would be the exact opposite of what you want me to do. Which is, getting well…”

Why did I marry her. Why the fuck did I marry her. Yoongi lets out a steady exhale to achieve peak nirvana–more like, attempted to. He grabbed his car key on the side stand and rushed out the door of his studio. “Now you listen to me…”

[lilacmoon83]

Finding You Always

Also on Fanfiction.net and A03

Chapter 194: One Mind

In the week since the welcoming ball, it had been very busy. Magical overhauls on the castles commenced, modernizing and updating them to include electricity, Wi-fi, indoor plumbing with modern bathroom facilities, and updated, modern kitchens with modern appliances. And now the villages were underway with the same modernization. The changes and modern faculties had mostly been well received. The Land Without Color was still very leery of magic, so Snow and Regina had hired a crew of plumbing experts and electricians to complete the work there without magic. It was going to take a lot longer for them at this rate, but it was best that way. The changes would be very slow and easier for those people to digest.

In the meantime, Eva was very busy planning an anniversary celebration for their parents. Her siblings were lending their help, as was Granny, Red, and Joe and Frankie, of course, as they were catering. It had been pretty funny all week, as both her parents discussed details for the party with them, while simultaneously thinking the other had no inkling. They were so focused on surprising each other that neither of them realized they were going to do just that; albeit in a different way than either of them expected.

"The menu looks great," Eva mentioned, as she handed the tablet back to Joe and he smiled.

"Thanks...looks like the set up is well underway too," he mentioned, as he noticed she had employed her siblings, the dwarves, and Red to set up and decorate the entire block.

"You really think your parents will stay out of town all day though?" he asked.

"Considering they're both determined to do so, it won't be a problem. And the less details we all know about what they're doing, the better," she joked, making him chuckle.

"Well...here it is," Frankie announced, as he emerged from the kitchen, carrying a cake. The most magnificent cake that Eva was sure she'd ever seen.

"Oh my gosh...Frankie, this is incredible!" she gushed, as she marveled at the magnificent cake.

"Yeah...I borrowed the book from Henry to make sure I got everything right," Frankie replied, as she observed the white frosted cake, which was adorned with peridot colored frosting trimmings, like the color of her mother's ring. Frankie had created snowdrop frosting flowers to decor the entire cake, but atop it was truly the amazing part. There was a miniature white arch, adorned with multicolored frosting flowers, much like the arch from their first wedding. Then he had created two figurines with a striking resemblance to her parents, dressed just as they were the day her father first awoke her mother from the sleeping curse.

"Yeah Frank...you really outdid yourself on this one," Joe complimented.

"Truly...they're going to love this," Eva said, as she started snapping pictures with her phone. She planned to document the entire party and then help her mother make an album, since Snow loved to create family photo albums, just as much as her father loved teasing her about how she could fill a room with all her albums.

"Whoa...that cake is incredible," Leo said and his twin saw his finger going for the frosting before he could even get close, causing her to smack it away.

"Ouch…" he cried in offense.

"Don't you dare," she warned and Elsa smiled, as he proceeded to pout.

"I finished the ice sculptures," she revealed and they went to the window to marvel at her creations.

"Wow...Elsa, those are amazing," Emma said, as she and Killian came in.

"Thanks," she said shyly. One of the sculptures was their parents, armed with their weapons and somehow captured the essence of the people they were. Leaders and defenders of their people. Then there was another beside them of the chalice with real snowdrops around it. The flowers were holding up well, but that was to expected since they were a flower that could survive the harshest conditions. It was a testament to their mother's name and their parents as a whole.

People were still very busy stringing up the twinkle lights that would soon light up the entire block for the party and the disc jockey they had hired was setting up his equipment, ready to play a mixture of classical and modern music.

"This is amazing...mom and dad are going to be so surprised," Eva gushed.

"Yes and it will be entertaining to watch their reactions when they find out they threw each other the same party," Emma added in amusement.

"This is awesome, but you know there's going to be a lot of PDA," Leo reminded.

"True, but honestly, is that really different than any other day?" Summer quipped.

"She has a point," Bobby agreed.

"But they'll be really happy and they deserve this, so we'll endure," Eva said, as she turned to them.

"Okay...there's still a lot to do and you all have your assignments," Eva said, as she spied her baby brother trying to sneak behind the counter.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Uh...I'm helping Frankie by being his taster?" he questioned with a wince.

"Nice try...but that's not your assignment. You get to help Leo set up tables for the food," she said, as she ushered him outside.

"But I'm hungry…" he complained.

"You just ate lunch and you can stuff your face at the party tonight," she refuted.

"Man...she's like a drill sergeant," Bobby complained and Leo chuckled.

"Yeah...that pretty much describes Eva," he joked.

"If you two don't get to work, I really will get a whistle…" she warned.

"Easy...we're going," Leo said, as they went to work.

"Boys…" Elsa joked.

"I know...I swear those two are bottomless pits," Eva joked back.

"I know what you mean. My kitchen staff is having fun trying to keep him fed. Kudos to your parents in having to feed two of them," Elsa mentioned. Eva nodded with a smile, as they went to work on their own tasks for that evening's surprise party.

~*~

"Here…let me get that," Killian offered, as he stood up on the step ladder to finish wrapping lights around one of the light posts.

"I'm not an invalid yet," Emma chided.

"I know...but you still shouldn't be getting up on step ladders and you know I'm right. Your sister the doctor will flip her lid if she sees you," he warned. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"She is so much like Mom that it's scary sometimes," she mentioned, as her cell phone rang.

"From the station?" he asked. She nodded.

"Yeah...I insisted that Dad let me take any calls today so he wouldn't see any of this," she replied, as she answered.

"Sheriff," she answered, as she listened to the person.

"Okay...we'll be right there," Emma replied, as he climbed down from the step ladder.

"Trouble?" he asked.

"That was one of the Merry Men. Guess they found a couple of bodies out in the woods," she replied quietly.

"Increase in crime...it's started already," he muttered.

"Yeah...you mind tagging along with me today? I'd like to keep this quiet at least for today. My parents really deserve this party and I don't want anything spoiling tonight for them," she said. He smiled at her.

"You couldn't stop me from coming with you, even if you wanted to, love," he replied and she smiled at him.

"Let's go," she said, as they hurried off. Fortunately, it was on the opposite side of town and not near the Toll Bridge, where she knew her parents were.

~*~

Snow sighed in contentment, as she lay sated against her husband and he placed idle kisses on her neck. They had come to their favorite place by the Toll bridge and enjoyed a picnic together, one which consisted of chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. He had picked them up from the chocolate maker in town, knowing how much she loved them. After they enjoyed the wine and feeding strawberries to each other, it had naturally led to some very intense lovemaking right there on their picnic blanket. And now, they were covered with another blanket and firmly nestled in each other's arms, while looking up at the clear, blue sky.

"Happy Anniversary, my darling…" he whispered to her. She smiled and looked up at him.

"Happy Anniversary, my love...I'm so glad we decided to get away for the day," she mentioned.

"Mmm...me too," he agreed, as he kissed her lips tenderly.

"I feel like we've been so busy in the last week that we haven't had time for us," she said.

"Yeah...but things will calm down soon and it will all be worth it. I think most people are really happy," he replied. She hummed.

"It seems that way...I just hope our peace lasts," she said. He kissed her hair.

"Me too," he replied, as he continued to spoon her against him and kissed her bare shoulder.

"Mmm...as much as I want to continue to lay here, we should probably get up if we're going to go riding for a bit, before we have to go home and clean up for dinner tonight," she mentioned," she said, as they started to get dressed.

"Yeah...are you sure you want to go to Granny's for our anniversary dinner though?" he asked. He had thought it was going to be a little harder to get her to Granny's that evening since they usually had their anniversary dinners at Tiana's or another more upscale place in Storybrooke. Plus with so many Kingdoms now within their reach, they had been exploring all the new cuisine they had to offer in the last week. He hoped that wasn't a sign that she was suspicious of his surprise party.

"Yeah...I like going all those other places, but somehow, Granny's just always feels like home. I think it's the perfect place to spend our fortieth anniversary," she responded. She hoped that he wasn't suspicious about her wanting to have their anniversary dinner at Granny's. It was, of course, a ruse to get him to the party and she only hoped that he wasn't on to her.

"Ready for that ride to see our true love sapling that's now a giant tree?" she asked. He smiled.

"Always with you," he agreed, as he whistled and a white unicorn came galloping to them. He mounted the noble beast and offered his hand to her, as she mounted it behind him, while wrapping her arms firmly around his waist. With that, they took off galloping, soon leaving the woods of Storybrooke and into the Enchanted Forest.

~*~

Five years. Five years spent traveling the realms to learn everything she could. Five years of living in a damn submarine, trying to devise a way to harness magic and expose all of this to the world. Revealing Storybrooke would have been one thing, but managing to make realm travel through portals proved impossible without magic beans. But all that had changed one week ago when a cloud of magic had swept them up and deposited all the realms in one land, side by side, with Storybrooke being their new neighbor. They were back in the Land Without Magic, though concealed safely from the rest of the world.

In the five years since the events in Seattle, she learned that the government had gone quiet about it mostly. They could no longer explain it away as a hoax, so they had immediately classified all files and information about that day, including the Nolan files, and buried them.

But the public had not forgotten. Parts of it had gone on with their lives, mostly returning to their normal, daily routines. But others had made careers out discussing, researching, and theorizing about those events and more importantly, the people at the center. There were podcasts discussing events with theorists and eyewitnesses, books had been written, some filled with wild theories and others simply documenting the events of that day. A few fictional writers had even spun their own tales about the pair at the center of it all. The mysterious David and Margaret Nolan, whom some really believed were actually Snow White and Prince Charming. Henry Swan's book had rocketed to the top of the best seller's list, naturally causing some fiction writers to spin their own tales based on his works and since Henry Swan had disappeared, there seemed to be no danger of anyone to sue them.

In addition to books, podcasts, and even supposed documentaries that discussed who these people might be, there was a darker side. Conspiracy theorists offered one outlandish theory after another and some even suggested that these mysterious people were not heroes at all, but figures of darkness that had a sinister plot to somehow take over the world. The proponents of these theories were borderline lunatics at best, but had quite a following.

But she knew the complete truth now and that Henry Swan's or Henry Nolan's book was the true history. And now that she was in Storybrooke, the time had come to find a way to open the United Realm's borders to the world, expose everything to the world, and most importantly, develop the technology that would allow them to invade and takeover this extraordinary place. Henry Nolan's family, aptly named the Charmings, were the key to it all.

"Time to blend in and ready the United Realms for takeover from within," the Major said quietly under her breath. She knew what she was up against and how impossible that task seemed. But she also knew the Charmings would have many distractions that they would never suspect or see her coming.

~*~

Emma and Killian arrived at the site where the bodies were discovered. It was in the woods bordering Storybrooke and Rose and Fandral's Kingdom, so she wasn't surprised to see Fandral there, already overseeing the investigation.

"Hey...sorry it took us so long. There's a lot more woods to comb through these days," Emma said. He smiled.

"I understand...will David be a long?" he asked.

"Ah well...I really want to keep him and Mom away from town until later, so I'm going to handle this myself for now and then I'll fill him later," she replied. Fandral smiled.

"No worries, Emma...I am fully confident in your abilities as Sheriff as well," he said, as he led them to the site, where there was tarps covering the bodies.

"I would brace yourselves though. There is a significant amount of decomposition," he warned, as he pulled back the tarp. Though she didn't see this stuff often, usually she was able to hold it together, but with her condition, it was way too much at this time.

"Emma...perhaps you shouldn't be seeing this in your condition," Fandral said, as she was now bent over and dry heaving, as Killian rubbed her back.

"I'm fine…" she said, as she managed to hold back and he covered them again.

"By their clothing, we can at least ascertain that they were probably not native to Storybrooke," Hook stated. Fandral nodded.

"Yes...one male and one female. Beyond that...there's too much decomposition. This summer heat probably only served to speed up that process," Fandral agreed.

"Well, if they're not native to Storybrooke, then that means they haven't been here any longer than a week," Emma said, as she dialed the lab.

"Hey Bashful...we're going to be sending you two bodies, probably homicides, with significant decomp. Do you think you can put a rush on this? We may have a murderer on the loose," she said and nodded.

"Thanks Bashful," she said, as she hung up.

"Most of the stuff he's working on now is minor so he's going to put them at the top of the list. It will still probably be a day or so before we know more," she said, as the medical van arrived and the bodies were put in body bags, before being hauled away on two stretchers.

"Not a good start for those two in the United Realms, though I did not see any defensive wounds or blood loss. Are you sure it's homicide and not accidental?" Fandral questioned.

"Not for sure...but if they were killed with magic, then there might not be any wounds or blood," she replied. Fandral nodded.

"Of course...and there is quite a suspect pool now," he realized. Emma nodded, as her phone beeped.

"It's Eva...it's almost time to get in place for the surprise," she said, as she pocketed her phone.

"Are you and Rose coming?" she asked. Fandral smiled.

"Of course...we wouldn't miss it for the world. We'll see you there," he replied, as they parted ways for the moment.

~*~

The Queen looked out from the castle window, observing all the fuss going on in Storybrooke from above. Her contempt of it all was barely restrained and she was beyond annoyed that it was all for those two idiots. But that irritation was assuaged by the fact that she knew she was going to crash it.

"I ruined one wedding and I'll be happy to ruin an anniversary too," she said, as she took the vial of serum out of her dress pocket.

"Are you ready for this evenings festivities?" Seth questioned. She smirked and turned to him.

"Very much so...I cannot wait to see the look on the little wretch's face when she sees that I'm back," the Queen replied.

"It's a good thing that this is finally happening. I am tired of hiding in the shadows and eager to say hello again to a certain Asgardian," Amora said, as she looked out over the town with her.

"Yes...what exactly happened there?" the Queen asked curiously. She smirked.

"What do you think happened?" she asked coyly.

"That one is almost more man than I could handle...and I've handled many, believe me," she replied.

"Finding out that this Prince Charming is almost identical to my former Asgardian conquest and that he has a twin brother was almost too much," she gushed.

"That's a triple vision I'm going to enjoy," she added.

"All three are happily married and woefully devoted. I don't think you'll get anywhere, as much as I wish I was wrong," the Queen warned.

"Hmm...we'll see," the other woman hummed.

"There is much goodness and happiness here...but I still sense that there are desperate souls. Desperate souls ready to make a deal with the devil," Mephisto sneered, as he gazed out at the town.

"The time has come to reveal Nephilim to the United Realms and myself. The Gods must now suffer my wrath for what they did to me," Seth announced, as they prepared to infiltrate tonight's party, first with the necessary glamor spells and when the moment was exactly right...they would reveal themselves and unleash their horror.

~*~

After a wonderfully relaxing ride on Summer's unicorn, Snow and David returned home to shower and get ready for the party. Of course, David thought they were just going to dinner at Granny's for a normal, quiet candlelit dinner and she couldn't wait to spring her surprise on him.

"Wow…" he said, as he came out of the bathroom, dressed in nice, dark wash jeans and a black button down shirt.

"Wow yourself…" she replied, as she admired how handsome he was. She was wearing a red party dress and glittery black ballet flats. Her shoulder length hair was half up and half down, with the part that was up being secured at the back of her head with a diamond encrusted barrette.

"Too dressed up for Granny's?" she asked.

"No...you're perfect," he replied, as he slid his arms around her waist and kissed her tenderly.

"You are...everything to me. Forty years...and sometimes, I still can't believe you're mine," he confessed and she marveled that he still somehow had the ability to make her blush.

"Oh Charming…" she uttered, as she kissed him again and then pressed her forehead against his.

"And you must know that I feel the same about you. You're my everything...you might as well be the air I breathe," she confessed, as her eyes sparkled with love.

"You're the love of my life...my eternity and every day that I get to spend with you, wake up with you...make love to you," she said coyly.

"It's everything and I am the luckiest woman in all the realms to share this incredible love we have with you," she continued, as he kissed her passionately again, leaving them both breathless and a bit dizzy.

"Sure you don't want to skip dinner and stay in bed?" he teased and she bit her bottom lip. Oh it was definitely tempting, but there was a surprise waiting for them.

"There will be time for that later," she assured.

"Do you promise?" he asked coyly, using her familiar phrase.

"What do you think?" she answered back playfully, as he offered his elbow to her and she hooked her hand on it, as they headed out to the truck.

~*~

Lucy walked excitedly between her parents, as they arrived in Storybrooke with Tiana and Naveen behind them. The latter had stopped by to meet their counterparts, a Tiana and Naveen from the 1920's Land Without Magic. Their story was entirely different, as they had been victims of the Collector and spent many years in Atlantis. They would be along soon with their counterparts. But meanwhile, they continued on to arrive ready for the big surprise.

"This is so exciting!" Lucy gushed. Henry chuckled.

"Yeah...leave it to my grandparents to throw the same party for each other," he said in amusement.

"You have to admit that it's really adorable. I mean...to be that in sync with each other," she said, as she nudged him playfully.

"You think we'll ever be that in tune?" she teased. He grinned.

"I think we're on our way there," he quipped in return, as he pecked her on the lips.

"Okay everyone...mom and dad both just texted me. They parked the truck around the block and they'll be rounding that corner any minute!" Eva called, as everyone got in position. Eva then nodded to Leroy and he killed all the lights momentarily. They all heard Snow laugh, as they rounded the corner.

"Why is it so dark?" she asked, playing along with the surprise. That was the queue and Leroy connected all the lights again, lighting up the entire block. There was a banner on Granny's building that read "Happy Anniversary,".

"SURPRISE!" a simultaneous shout ensued and they grinned, before looking at each other.

"Surprise, my love…" Snow gushed, as she turned to him and his brow furrowed.

"Uh...thanks, but this is my surprise to you, my darling," he responded. Her brow furrowed in confusion then.

"No...I've been working with Eva all week to plan a surprise Anniversary party for you," she said.

"But I've been working with Eva all week to plan a surprise Anniversary party for you," he answered, as they looked at their children, who couldn't contain their laughter.

"Actually, you both came to me with the same idea to throw an anniversary party so I decided to do it and let you surprise each other," Eva corrected. They looked at each other and then grinned.

"We threw each other the same party...now that is goals," he said.

"Oh baby…" she gushed, as they shared a kiss.

"Yeah...precious as always. Turn on the music and serve the booze," Regina quipped, as the DJ did so and the Aesop began mixing drinks at the bar tending station they had set up outside Granny's.

"We threw each other the same party," Snow said in amazement.

"Well...one heart, one soul, one mind," he replied fondly, as he took her hand and led her into the street where others were already dancing. She gazed at him dreamily, as they began dancing in each other's arms.

The party was three hours in and with no sign of stopping any time soon. Frankie and Joe's food offerings went over very well, as did all of Tiana's contributions. The bar was still very busy and the music was still pumping, while Frankie and Joe were preparing to bring out the cake.

"They look so happy…" Elsa mentioned wistfully, as she and Leo danced.

"Think we'll be that happy in forty years?" she asked playfully. He smiled.

"You're my true love...I know we will," he replied, as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"As usual...excellent party," Paul complimented, as he and Eva danced. She smiled.

"Thanks sweetheart...I'm just happy I could do this for me. Mom and Dad have been through so much and I feel like maybe we're finally going to all have peace," she replied. He smiled and kissed her cheek.

"I hope so…" he agreed.

"Mmm...this is so much better than dancing," Emma mumbled, as she devoured more of Tiana's beignets. Killian chuckled.

"Well, you are eating for two, love…" he said fondly, as her phone rang. She swallowed and answered it.

"Hey Bashful...I didn't expect to hear from you yet," she mentioned.

"I didn't think I'd have any answers either, but I've identified the bodies already," he replied.

"Really? How?" she asked.

"Apparently, with this new curse, it created a database of every person in all the realms. All I had to do was input their DNA signatures into the system and I got identification. It's remarkable and probably more magic than science. It's beyond any technology," he explained.

"That's great...I had no idea we had that ability now," she mentioned.

"Yes...our male victim is Prince Edward of the Southern Isles and the female is his wife, Charlotte La Bouff," he told her. Emma froze and turned to look in the direction of her parents. It didn't make any sense, because she saw this exact pair near her parents, along with King Malcom and Queen Freya. A really bad feeling suddenly settled in her stomach.

"Emma?" Bashful asked, noticing the line had gone silent.

"Uh...are you sure?" she questioned.

"Yes...the DNA is a one hundred percent match," he answered.

"Okay...thanks," she replied, as she hung up the phone.

"Love?" Killian asked, noticing her perturbed mood.

"Bashful identified the bodies already," she replied.

"That was fast...but that's good...isn't it?" he asked.

"It would be...except that he said the victims Prince Edward and his wife Charlotte La Bouff, who I'm looking at right now," she replied gravely. He followed her line of vision and vaguely remembered this pair from the ball a week ago.

"Then who are they really? And was it them a week ago or the real ones?" he wondered.

"I don't know...but I doubt it was the real ones then either. The question is who are they...and why have they made it a point to be near my parents?" she asked, as she started toward them, just as Frankie and Joe brought out the cake.

"Wow...now that is cake," David said, as he smiled at his wife.

"It is...oh this is wonderful. Thank you," Snow gushed, as she marveled.

"Hey...you're family and you two are the reason we have this new life," Joe said, as he picked up a glass of wine.

"To Snow and David," he toasted, as everyone else joined him in the toast.

"My my...to have such admiration from everyone. How does one manage that? You cast such a spell with your tru luv…" Charlotte said in an over exaggerated accent.

"Uh...well, our love has always inspired us to instill hope in others. True love is never easy...but it's always worth fighting for," Snow replied.

"Oh yes...I agree completely. I mean, unless you're someone that's constantly denied love time and again. Hope is a bit useless when everyone hates you, but then the wonderful Snow White wouldn't know anything about that," Charlotte said, with a sudden sneer.

"Excuse me?" Snow asked, as she bristled at the blonde's words.

"Mom...get away from them…" Emma interjected, as she put herself between her parents the two imposters.

"Emma...what's going on?" David asked.

"Earlier today, Killian and I got a call about two bodies found in the woods and thanks to the new database that Bashful has to work with, he already identified the murder victims as Prince Edward and his wife Charlotte," Emma announced, causing commotion.

"Then who the hell are they?" Leo questioned, as Rumple waved his hand over the pair and discovered an obvious spell; a very good one at that.

"Glamor spell," he announced, as Belle looked at him and then back at the pair in scrutiny.

"You are so right...Rumple," Charlotte purred, as she then looked at Emma.

"Excellent work, Emma...I guess the gig is up, as they say," the blonde said, as a puff of purple smoke engulfed her. More puffs of smoke ensued, as other "guests" were revealed not to be exactly who they appeared to be. And in the distance, a mysterious shadowy realm appeared, much to the shock of everyone and the crowd was now almost roaring with commotion.

"What is that?" Summer questioned.

"That's a very good question, sweetheart," Regina's voice sounded, except that the words did not come from her. The purple smoke began to clear and there were cries of alarm.

"No way…" Emma uttered.

"This is impossible…" Regina cried.

"No...no...no…" Snow cried, as she clung tightly to her husband.

"That's right...I'm back," she announced, as she turned to her granddaughter.

"And to answer your question, sweetie...that is Nephilim. A land of the fallen. A barren wasteland where the heroes have cast us out like trash!" she hissed and then smirked.

"But thanks to me, a dark curse, and a nice concealment spell, I brought us here so we could have our revenge," she announced.

"Us?" Eva questioned, as the smoke cleared on the other figures, revealing them to everyone.

"No…" Aphrodite uttered, as her face went ashen.

"Honey?" James asked.

"It can't be…" she uttered, as she clung to him and was more frightened than he had ever seen her.

"Oh it is, Goddess...I have returned and imagine my distress when I learned that your charges repaired all I had undone," he hissed.

"I ripped the realms apart and they undid it all," Seth hissed.

"But don't worry...I have decided not to rip them apart again. Instead, I just plan to rule them all and eliminate anyone that stands in my way," he added.

"We...we banished you once. We'll do it again!" Aphrodite retorted. He smirked and a blast of the most powerful dark magic any of them had ever witnessed shot out from his fingertips. The wind picked up and David held Snow close, as they watched the horror in the sky. The dark magic swirled into a magical snake head and screams of terror erupted, as the snake shot out toward Mount Olympus. There was an earth shattering explosion and through the smoke, they could now see that the entire mountain was engulfed in flames. Aphrodite cried out in horror. Hermes looked on with her, knowing that whichever Gods had been there at this moment had just perished. They may have been immortal, but the great Titan, Typhon or Seth, as he now called himself, was a God killer.

"You certainly know how to heat things up," Regina complimented.

"Indeed…" Mephisto agreed.

"It can't be...I know of him," Fandral uttered.

"From your home realm?" Rose asked, as he had her firmly nestled against him. He nodded.

"His proper name is Mephisto...but most just call him Satan due to his penchant for getting people to sell their souls to him," Fandral revealed. Mephisto smirked and bowed deeply.

"So good to know that my reputation proceeds me," he quipped.

"Who the hell would sell their soul to his asshole?" Leo questioned.

"Desperate people...very desperate people," Fandral answered.

"Very true...and I sense many desperate people in these lands, but I'm not the only one from your home realm, Asgardian," Mephisto retorted, as a woman stepped forward beside him.

"You…" Fandral hissed.

"Hello Fandral...it is so good to see you again," Amora purred.

"My love...who is she?" Rose asked.

"An evil Enchantress that does nothing but ruin lives," he spat, as she smirked at his description.

"I daresay he's not happy to see you," the Queen joked.

"Or he's worried he won't be able to resist me," she replied.

"You'll find yourself to very wrong about that!" Fandral snapped.

"I told you. That one," the Queen said, as she pointed to Rose.

"Is almost a bad as her counterpart. But fortunately for her, she's not the one I'm going to make pay. I'll leave that to you," the Queen continued, as her eyes came to rest on Snow again.

"You, dear step-daughter, are the one that will receive my wrath. I'm finally going to have my revenge this time," she growled.

"The hell you will!" David snapped, as he held her close and comforted his beloved, who was nearly hysterical now.

"I won't let you terrorize her again...not this time!" David hissed. She smirked at him.

"Oh, I'm not going to destroy her. She's going to do that herself," the Queen retorted, which caused them both confusion. There was suddenly an ear piercing screech that was emitted from Seth, as his sonic shock wave paralyzed them all. David struggled with all his might to move so he could protect Snow, as the Queen approached, but it was no use. Her glare bored into her step-daughter's frozen emerald eyes, as she pulled out the capped syringe with the red colored serum.

"I've waited so long for my revenge...but I realized that I could never truly destroy you. Not with your hope and true love sustaining you. But then I realized that if anyone could destroy you...it would be the darker half inside you," Regina said.

"Snow doesn't have darkness in her…" David hissed and she rolled her eyes.

"Yes she does...and you know it. Once her dark side is out, she'll do anything to unleash your dark side and that will be very fun for me to watch," she hissed, as they suddenly felt a rumble beneath their feet.

"What is that?" Leo asked, as he happened to see his baby brother out of the corner of his eye and gasped, as he saw him vibrating with his magic in his signature color of dark green.

"Bobby…" he uttered, as the boy's magic somehow broke through Seth's sonic spell that had paralyzed them all. A small earthquake erupted from him and canceled the Titan's spell, much to his shock.

"Impossible…" he uttered, as everyone was suddenly able to move again.

"Oh my Gods…" Aphrodite uttered, as she realized what had just happened.

"What is it?" James asked.

"Bobby just nullified his magic...no one, not even Zeus, could do that," she told her husband.

"How dare you...you're a child…" Seth hissed in disbelief, as his four older siblings were quick to surround him.

Once they were free, Snow tried to pull away, but the Queen was quick and managed to jab her in the arm with the needle.

"NOOO!" Snow cried, as she pulled away and looked at David, as he held her close.

"You're not getting off scott free this time, Snow White. I will see that your happiness is destroyed for good this time...if it's the last thing I do," she hissed. Snow's eyes widened, as she felt her entire body begin to convulse.

"Charming…" she cried.

"I'm here, my darling...I'm not going anywhere," he promised.

"No...you have to! You have to get away…" she cried.

"Not going to happen," he refused, as she cried out and convulsed, as all present watched her separate with horrified awe. David's eyes widened, as the separation was complete and he stared at this supposed dark side of his wife. She looked at them and her eyes immediately rested on David, as her lips curled into a smirk. Unlike Snow's now shoulder length hair, this Snow had a pixie cut and was dressed in a short, black leather dress and black stiletto heels. Her makeup was also a bit more pronounced than Snow's, especially her eye makeup. Snow swallowed nervously, as she approached them and David recoiled, as she tried to caress his face.

"Oh Charming...of anyone here, you are one that has absolutely nothing to fear from me. You and our children, of course," she purred.

"They're my children...not yours," Snow snapped and she smirked at her counterpart.

"I am you...just the darker parts that you keep stuffed away behind hope speeches. But deep down, you have dark thoughts like everyone else. I'm those dark thoughts. I'm the one whispering to you that you deserve revenge for all those that have wronged you and our beloved…" she hissed.

"No...revenge is wrong…" Snow refuted.

"Maybe for you...but now that I'm free, I can pursue all the revenge you failed to," she replied, as she caressed David's face, even though he shrugged away.

"My touch feels just like hers, doesn't it? It shouldn't surprise you, my love...I am her," she reminded. But he shook his head.

"No...no you're not," he refuted,

"I am...though it would be a bit confusing to refer to me as Snow as well," she replied.

"Snow is so pure and I'm not. But Winter...now Winter is harsh and cold, but beautiful. Winter destroys anyone in its path, but will fiercely protect those she loves. I am Winter…" she leered at him.

"And my Charming...my other half, the darkness in you, is now clawing to get out," she said. As she said that, David groaned and held his head.

"David?" Snow questioned, as she held him.

"What are you doing to him?" she demanded to know, but Winter only smirked.

"I'm not doing anything...he won't need the serum to separate. We share a black heart, just like you two share your pure heart. And my heart is calling to his that is inside your Charming. Don't fight it, my love...it's only a matter of time," she purred.

"And when we are together...we will rule the United Realms together with a vengeance and have revenge on everyone that's ever wronged us," Winter hissed, as she glared at the Queen, who scoffed.

"Bring it on, Princess...you talk a big game, but you're not even half as evil as me," the Queen challenged. Winter smirked.

"We'll see Queenie," she retorted, as she turned back to Snow and David.

"How the hell do you think you're going to rule all the realms?" Emma questioned and Winter looked at her. But it was Aphrodite that answered.

"Because if David's dark side emerges, then together, though they are evil, they can wield the chalice," Aphrodite revealed.

"She's right...and we will," Winter promised. Rumple waved his hand, as Snow and David disappeared in twin puffs of red smoke. Winter glared at him.

"Where are they?" she demanded to know.

"Somewhere safe from you and you won't find them," he responded, which made Winter cackle in amusement.

"Really? You think I can't find my Charming? Is that really what you think?" she growled. Rumple looked slightly uncomfortable, as he realized that she might be right.

"I will find him...I will always find him," she promised, as she turned and walked away. She wanted to go to her children, but she knew they would reject this version of her. For now...but in time, they would see that she was as much their mother as Snow was.

"Winter has come early to Storybrooke and if your last name isn't Charming...then you better stay out of my way," she warned, before she continued on.

"Holy hell…" Emma uttered.

"We're in so much trouble…" Regina uttered.

"What the hell have you done?!" Leo growled, as he faced the Queen.

"I told you sweetheart...I'm getting my revenge. Your mother will destroy herself and I'll finally get what I want," she replied.

"Or she'll destroy you," Rumple chimed in.

"She wants revenge too and I'd put you at the top of her list," he added. She glared at him.

"We'll see…" she said, as she glanced at Bobby.

"Keep him safe...or he'll destroy him after what he just did," she muttered to Leo and Emma.

"Oh, so now you're pretending you care about us?" Leo hissed and she looked him in the eyes.

"You know I do," she replied, as she looked at her counterpart.

"Hide him," she whispered, before turning away from them.

"Beware Storybrooke and the United Realms...it is the dawn of new era!" she boasted for show.

"A new era of evil!" she added, as Seth looked at her and he was still boiling with barely restrained rage.

"That boy...he must be destroyed," he hissed.

"In due time...but not tonight. He doesn't even know what he did," she reasoned.

"It doesn't matter," Seth argued.

"It does...he's my grandson and if he's that powerful...he can be useful. He's young and impressionable," she reasoned.

"Then you think he can be swayed to our side?" he questioned.

"Time will tell...and I'd certainly like to see how things play out. It's about to get very interesting in Storybrooke," she mused...

[andawaywego]

1, 2, 3 (you and me)

a Raven’s Home fic by andawaywego

…

Things are different.

Raven’s not entirely certain when it happened.

Sometime between phone calls about Garrett’s trial and a FaceTime discussion of plane tickets and the logistics of Chelsea and Levi moving halfway across the country to live with them.

She’s known Chelsea her entire life. Some version of her, at least (there have been several), but the one that arrives on her doorstep is the closest to the old her that Raven can remember. It’s a relief, then, to pull Chelsea into her arms. To press kisses to Levi’s squirming face as he laughs and tries to push her away. It’s a relief to share her space with her best friend, to have someone else for the first time in three years, to talk to about this parenting madness her own parents never prepared her for.

It’s not that she’s different. She’s the same, old Raven. The one who makes the same thing for lunch every day during the week (because Bernardo’s is cheap and she likes the excuse that she can’t join Paisley–or, did). The one who has visions she reads wrong and loops her best friend into trouble right along with her.

It’s not even that Chelsea is different (though that dark look she gets in her eyes whenever Levi brings up his dad might be enough to convince you otherwise). Chelsea still smiles at her and grins and talks about the benefits of composting. She still unplugs every appliance in the house when it’s not in use and she still falls, so willingly, into Raven’s messy life.

They’re still the same. That’s not the problem.

It’s that something between them has changed.

They’ve been apart (physically) since college and apart (emotionally) since that stick said Pregnant in the communal bathroom of her first dorm room and Devon had dropped to one knee a week after she’d told him. For years, their lifelong friendship had existed solely through telephone calls and emails and the occasional plane ride all the way to California or to Illinois.

But now Chelsea’s back. Like nothing ever changed. Or so she’d thought.

But something is different now.

Some spark of something that’s ignited in the space between them as it shortened, as the whole proximity dilemma went right out the window.

If you asked her, though, she’ll tell you that she’s not certain what it is until the night after the doggy fashion show disaster.

It’s when the kids are in bed and the patrons have left–satisfied, but mostly confused–that she finds Chelsea in the kitchen, cleaning up the rest of the mess they left behind. The lights are mostly off to prevent any straggling light from slipping under the cracks of the kids’ bedroom doors. She can hardly make her out from where she’s standing in the living room, but Chelsea has always been so beautiful in any light, and from this angle–face smoothed by the light glow from the oven light and she has her apron barely hanging around her neck now.

“Hey,” Raven says, voice low, hesitant to disturb the quiet. “How we looking?”

Chelsea stops scrubbing the counter and looks up, the shadows slipping down her neck from the change of direction. Raven can see the glow of her eyes in what light they do have.

“Not great,” she answers, shaking her head. “But, on the bright side, we made enough dough to go grocery shopping.” She steps around the island and into the living room, leaving the dish rag she’d been using to wipe the counter where it is. She pokes a pointed finger at Raven’s apron. “Quite the look, Miss Fashion.”

Raven reaches out to poke at Chelsea’s own apron, right on the cursive Mama written across the flat of her sternum. “Girl, check out a mirror sometime.”

Chelsea grabs her hand, curls her fingers around Raven’s palm, and holds it close to her chest, smiling. “Check yourself, Baxter.”

Memories, like always, filter in at her touch. A million touches like this before coming back, in torn-up pieces that she might be half-inclined to believe didn’t happen. Chelsea in her bedroom (attic, then basement) and Chelsea’s hand in hers and Chelsea reaching out across a pit of tar on a stupid dating game they never should have been on because–

Chelsea drops her hand carefully. Light enough that Raven can catch it before it falls to her side.

“So…tonight was weird,” Raven says, just for the act of speaking. Chelsea laughs quickly and Raven looks at her for a long moment. “You first,” she prods, smiling.

Chelsea grins immediately and Raven can see the absurdity of her answer forming in the mirth glowing in her eyes. “Oh, mine’s easy,” she says lowly. “Pizza place put our phone number on their ads, we pretended to be them. Got a little out of hand.” She pauses. “Your turn.”

Raven smiles at her, lets loose a laugh and then crosses her arms over her stomach. “Oh, the usual,” she says. “Paisley wanted me to do something nuts, I couldn’t do it without doing something even more nuts, which didn’t go like I planned, so I got fired.”

Here, Chelsea gasps, taking a step forward like she wants to pull her closer, but Raven holds up a hand to keep her at bay.

“And then some crazy rich lady, who I’m pretty sure we made up back in high school, ended up buying that vest I made for $10,000.”

Chelsea’s eyes are huge, wide, lips twisting on her mouth. “Wait, huh?”

Raven smirks and shifts towards her on reflex. “I have enough money to start my own clothing line, Chels.”

“Oh, my God,” Chelsea breathes, tone hazy and smooth. “Rae…” She moves forward in a rush, hands finding Raven’s waist, arms wrapping around to pull her into a hug. “That’s amazing!”

Raven’s breath catches the moment they meet and it’s like all the air has been sucked from the room. Chelsea’s cheek is hot against her own and she can feel the other woman’s breathing as it shifts her hair in small bursts of movement. Her arms are tight around her waist and Raven closes her eyes, imagining those fingers trailing up under the hem of her shirt and then higher.

Anyway, it doesn’t matter how badly she wants Chelsea pressed up against her on the bottom mattress of their shared bed, because her mind is light and dizzy and she’s pulled so quickly out of her body that she doesn’t get the chance to question what it means.

There’s a vision, of course, because there always is.

It’s clearer than some, blurrier than others. She’s lying in a bed with Chelsea at her side, smiling at her, this look in her eyes that Raven is certain she’s never seen before. I love you, too, Chelsea is saying and then she’s leaning forward, eyes shifting closed and–

Raven opens her eyes.

“You deserve this,” Chelsea says into her ear. “You really do.”

It takes Raven a second to pull back to reality, head reeling and oxygen deprived.

Chelsea pulls away and she’s close again for a moment before she packs up to a reasonable distance. Raven feels a flush of shame, face rushing with heady embarrassment.

She’s being so stupid.

That vision doesn’t mean anything.

She’s been wrong before.

“You deserve it, too,” she says and she barely stops herself from reaching out. “I…I want you to find something that you love doing, Chels.”

Chelsea smiles, reaching out to cup at Raven’s chin, smoothing away a lost glob of yogurt from one of the pizza’s with a careful thumb. “I’m sure I’ll figure…something out.” Then she ducks in, presses a kiss to the apple of Raven’s cheek, pulling away quickly. “We can make the boys do some cleaning for once in the morning. Leave it till then.”

She leaves Raven breathless in the living room as she disappears into their bedroom, leaving the door open a crack for her to follow. Raven stays there for a moment before she does.

(She decides it doesn’t–can’t–mean anything, because her visions are wrong other times. But she can’t stop thinking about it for days, eyes tracking Chelsea’s lips every time they talk, and replaying the quiet way she’d said, I love you, too, in that vision over and over again and–

It doesn’t mean anything. It can’t.)

Until it has to.

It’s that next Monday when things change for good and she’s been out all afternoon, buying fabric, tracking down leads, pricing equipment. Getting whatever it is she needs to start this business of hers.

When she gets home, the kids are in the living room, playing Mario Kart and shouting at each other loudly, laughing. She stands and watches them for a moment–Levi shouting, “Suck it, Booker!” and Booker groaning, looking ready to commit murder–and then moves through the room, touching each of their heads briefly on her way.

Chelsea is in the bedroom, sleeping on top of Raven’s sheets in the darkening bedroom. Raven stands in the doorway for a long moment, simply watching, afraid to disturb her, but then Chelsea’s eyes open quickly and she shakes her head, blinks a couple of times. Finally, she looks up at Raven in the doorway.

Raven grins, trying to look nonchalant, but then Chelsea is sitting up in bed looking drowsy and beautiful all at once. “Morning, Sleeping Beauty.”

Chelsea rolls her shoulders and smiles. “Don’t mock.”

Raven laughs. “Not mocking. Observing.”

“I thought you said you’d text me on your way home,” Chelsea says next, clearing her throat and rolling her head side-to-side.

Raven takes a step forward and pushes the door around behind herself. “I did. Check your phone.”

Chelsea looks around slowly, like she’s still waking up and not quite getting there. “I left it in the kitchen, I think,” she decides and Raven quirks an eyebrow.

“What if there’d been an emergency? I could have been hit by a bus.”

“Did you get hit by a bus?” Chelsea asks, but not seriously. She’s glaring.

Raven takes a deep breath. This is silly. Then, “No,” and a flash of her smile to try and placate the other woman.

“The kids have phones, too, Rae,” Chelsea says, but she doesn’t get up.

Raven hasn’t felt this unsure since high school, since back before Devon had been a constant in her life. When he’d been an aloof teenage boy who said two words to her some days and arrived outside her house with a boom box others. She wants to tell Chelsea about her vision, but she isn’t sure how, so she doesn’t.

She just takes a couple of steps closer until their knees are brushing and then she reaches out and runs her fingertips along Chelsea’s cheek. Drawn to her, like she always has been before. She’s positive she couldn’t stop herself if she wanted to.

There’s no protest, no hand swatting her away.

Just, “Are the kids okay?”

Raven doesn’t pull her hand away. “They’re fine. Levi’s a Mario Kart master. Booker is on the warpath.”

Chelsea laughs, but it comes out shaky. “He learned from the best.”

“I’m sure he did.”

There’s this unnecessary weight to the words or her tone, or possibly both. Chelsea is breathing too heavily for a normal conversation and something has changed, sharply. Like the two of them have changed course and now they’re heading in the same direction for the first time in something like ten years.

Her legs feel numb, Raven realizes. As if they’ve fallen asleep as she’s standing right there.

“What’s wrong?” Chelsea asks and Raven stops her movements at once.

She remembers being with Devon, how she’d sulk for hours over a class she couldn’t pass or her call with Eddie or Chelsea dropping from the distance, over not having enough money or the twins not sleeping. How she’d sulk and sulk, waiting for him to ask so she could burst open the floodgates and let it all out. Except, he rarely did. It took tears for Devon to know there was something wrong with her.

But Chelsea–

There’s never been a time when Chelsea wouldn’t have noticed something like that, when she wouldn’t ask Raven to risk opening herself so that she could hear all about it.

“Nothing,” she says. She pulls her hand away.

“Right, and I totally believe you,” Chelsea says, sarcasm dripping from every syllable. “Seriously, Rae. What is it?”

Raven looks down at her best friend–this girl she’s known her entire life–and frowns. “I can’t stop thinking about you,” she confesses, the words sounding harsh to even her. “I…I don’t know what’s wrong with me, Chels.”

Chelsea is still. So still that Raven might, otherwise, think she’s fallen asleep. She looks up at her with wide eyes and then blinks. Just once. She pats the bed beside her until Raven takes a seat, feeling the dip of the mattress under her weight.

“Why does something have to be wrong with you?”

Raven shrugs. Her words are tangled in her throat and she feels like she can’t even swallow around them. Like, if she tries to speak, she’s going to cry. And she shouldn’t feel this way. She’s an adult. She’s a mother. She hasn’t felt this way since she was a teenager.

Worst yet: she doesn’t have an answer.

Chelsea sighs. She can feel it beside her. That delicate release of a breath she’s been holding. Out of the corner of her eye, she watches as Chelsea plays with her own fingers.

“Well,” she says after a moment, “then there’s something wrong with me, too.”

It’s not what she’s expecting. The words feel electric sharp in her chest and Raven has to stop herself from whipping her head around to look at her.

“Do you remember the day I moved in here?” Chelsea asks after a moment.

Raven nods. It had been hot all summer and the air conditioner had broken two days before Chelsea and Levi were supposed to arrive. She’d gone all over the city trying to find a window or room unit just for the occasion, but there hadn’t been one to find. So Chelsea and Levi had arrived in a hot city and been dropped off in a hot apartment and it had been the first time Raven had seen her in close to two years–FaceTime doesn’t count, of course.

And she’d thought it would be ruined. That not having A.C. would be enough to immediately send Chelsea packing, but it hadn’t been, of course. She’d just smiled, widely in that Chelsea way she always had and said, Hey, Rae. Long time, no see.

And then they’d been hugging and the kids had been jumping excitedly and showing Levi around and then – I missed you so much, you know that, right? It feels like it’s been twenty years. The shock of realizing that it wasn’t just her who’d felt that way.

It’s always been a surprise, being needed by Chelsea. Needed and wanted in equal parts, the same measurements that Raven has always felt for her, too.

“I was so worried you’d changed,” Chelsea says. “And you did. I did. But…you’re still you. And I can’t help, but…” She trails off and then takes in a shaky breath. “You’re not alone, Rae.”

Raven knows what she means. As if she’s been suspended between two different existences–the life she lived alone and the life they now live together. And it’s in those pauses–that delicate balance on the precipice of happiness–that she’s starting to string together what it all means.

“Right, cause we’re a team. If we can handle being locked in a biodome while a plant tries to eat me and your vegetarian friend cheered it on, we can handle anything.”

Chelsea laughs, but it sounds like it’s in spite of herself. “Oh, come on. That thing hardly ate you and Jen was definitely not rooting for it. Vegetarians don’t like the idea of plants eating people any more than they like people eating animals.”

Raven smiles. “She hated me.”

“She wasn’t that bad,” Chelsea says. “You were terrible.”

“Screw Jennifer,” Raven says. “And Chelly.”

“You wish you could get up on Chelly.”

“You know I do,” Raven jokes and Chelsea grins, because that whole thing–the Jennifer dilemma and Chelsea becoming so close with someone that Raven became background has always been one of their running fights, one they’ve had without saying that’s what it was about time and time again until Raven eventually lost the fight forever the evening Chelsea married Garrett and everything finally makes sense to her now.

The jealousy. She gets it.

“It was never a contest,” Chelsea says, quietly, almost a whisper. “But if it were, you’d always win.”

And Raven reaches out and takes Chelsea’s hand before she can tell herself not to. That the two of them–they’re not like this. They hold hands but only in a purely platonic context. Not when there’s talk of feelings. Romantic ones. Chelsea’s worked so hard to move on from Garrett and Raven’s still not sure what they’re supposed to do about this.

“You’d win, too,” she hears herself say. “I don’t…I don’t know what that means, but I mean it.”

She takes a deep breath.

Chelsea’s head drops down to Raven’s shoulder and they’re still holding hands loosely. The kids are yelling again and the food will be here soon. It’s not perfect, but there’s no good time to kiss your childhood best friend, she supposes.

Nothing will ever seem right.

Like there’s some magnanimous moment you’re trying to live up to–some earth-shattering, harps-playing moment after which nothing will be the same.

Chelsea sniffles a little and pulls her head up. “This…this isn’t going to ruin everything.”

Raven looks at her. “How do you know?”

Chelsea squeezes her hand and tilts her head to the side, moving closer. “You’re the psychic. You tell me.”

She’s biting her lip and Raven’s eyes dip down to look at her teeth caught in the soft flesh of her lower lip. The room is swallowed in darkness now and it feels almost like she’s stepped outside her body to watch this conversation unfold. This whole bed feel disconnected from the rest of reality, despite the fact that she can hear the kids and the TV outside in the living room, down the hall. She can hear the cars on the streets and someone yelling in the apartment below. But it doesn’t feel real, none of it.

Only Chelsea seems grounded in reality, the way she’s looking at Raven the only true thing she’s experienced in so long that she forgets, briefly, about concepts like unemployment and debt and repercussions.

Chelsea moves closer, breath stuttering out against Raven’s chin. “Just kiss me, Rae,” she whispers.

So Raven does. She leans up a little and smooths her fingers into the back of Chelsea’s neck to pull her down, further. Chelsea meets her halfway, shifting closer with hands grabbing loosely at Raven’s waist.

She’s right about one thing: nothing can be the same now. But she doesn’t realize it until much later.

Dinner is loud, the kids leading the conversation as Booker tries to see how many fortune cookies he can fit in his mouth at once (and ends up cutting the roof of his mouth, to boot). Raven sits across from Chelsea at the table and watches her out of the corner of her eye. It’s either the low lighting, or her lips really are bright red, like they’re bruised from too much recent use.

They’d pulled apart when the food had shown up, the kids calling for them from the living room and dangerously close to walking in on them.

“We should–” Raven had said against Chelsea’s mouth and Chelsea had nodded.

“Yeah.”

And then, partway to the door, she’d caught Raven’s wrist and pulled her in once more.

Now they’re eating dinner across from each other and not making eye contact.

She wants to apologize, but she doesn’t know what for, and that’s enough to make the words die on her tongue.

And anyway, there’s no point. When they finally lock eyes, Chelsea is smiling and that’s enough for now.

“You have your tickets, right?”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Okay. And you’re getting in at–”

“Twelve-thirty. I’ve told you this ten times already.”

“Baby, I’m just making sure. I’d hate for your dad and I to get there too early and then have to wait. It’s not the best airport for that kind of thing.”

Somehow, Tanya still manages to treat Raven like the seventeen-year-old she was when she’d left for school in England. It makes sense, she thinks, but only because she perpetually thinks of Cory as a fourteen-year-old who’s five inches shorter than her, even when he’s calling to ask after the kids. It’s always a shock to be around him again, a head taller than her and his voice so deep it sounds put on.

She’ll give her mother the benefit of the doubt. At least for a few more years.

“I know, Mom. But we’ll be there, okay? Twelve-thirty tomorrow. I’ll text you when we take off and when we land.”

That seems to placate her enough, because she lets Raven hang up a moment or two later.

Booker is in his room with Levi, packing their suitcases. Nia is supposed to be dropping by occasionally to make sure they’re actually making progress and Chelsea disappeared into their shared bedroom some time ago to finish her things, too.

Raven stands in the living room, sparing a glance to her still-open sketchbook on the dining room table. It’s been a week. Exactly one week since that last kiss and they’re all flying out to San Francisco for Thanksgiving tomorrow. She’s barely made any progress in that week on any of her sketches.

She’s spent every day burning under every gaze Chelsea’s sent her way. They haven’t talked about it and they haven’t kissed again and Raven can’t help but feel that it must be partially her fault. It’s her fault for not telling her about that vision.

But–

“Hey, Rae. Your mom okay?”

Chelsea comes swinging in from the hallway in a moment, eyes kind and soft at the inquiry.

Raven nods and sets her phone down on the island counter, leaning back. “She was just triple-checking that we’re good for tomorrow. You know how she is.”

Chelsea laughs and the thing is, she does. Every time Raven had tried to make comments like that to Devon, he’d laughed obligatory. But Chelsea–who’d grown up at Raven’s side, who’d been branded an honorary Baxter kid at such a young age–really does know.

“Boarding passes are all electronic now. I’m pretty sure we’ll be okay. Little harder to lose.”

Raven feels her lips turn up in a smile, but she can’t focus on what it is that Chelsea’s saying. Her mind, instead, is drawn back to last Saturday night when Chelsea had been pressed against her, the way she’d reeled, gasping, when Raven’s lips found the hollow of her neck, just below her jaw.

“Right,” she manages, but she just happens to push the word out in hopes that it makes sense.

It does, maybe, but Chelsea crosses the room towards her anyway, reaching up an arm to press her hand to Raven’s forehead. “You feeling alright?” she asks. “You’re looking a little flushed.”

It’s platonic instinct, perhaps, to check if she has a fever. The kind of thing they’ve done for each other nonstop in past years. But now, the proximity has an entirely different connotation. One that Chelsea must realize the moment she’s close enough and they’re touching. She drops her hand, slowly, but she doesn’t back away and Raven’s eyes run over her face, waiting long enough to give her an out in case she should want to back away.

But Chelsea doesn’t. She stays where she is.

And Raven makes up her mind.

“We should talk about this,” she says and Chelsea nods dumbly. “We can’t ignore it.”

At this, Chelsea ducks her head and plays with her fingers. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Raven deflates. “Okay.” A beat of silence, then, “So…talk?”

Chelsea looks up again and shrugs and Raven feels the guilt of bringing this up settle deep in the bottom of her stomach and down her legs in numbing, shaky ropes. “Well, I don’t know, Rae, we kissed.” She pauses. “And not just a little.” Then, “So what does that mean?”

“What do you want it to mean?”

It’s bold, perhaps, but there’s nothing else for her to say. She needs to know.

Chelsea looks away, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. “What do you want it to mean?”

And there it is. Catch-22.

Showtime.

“I…I had this vision,” Raven says. “And…” She trails off, but she certainly has Chelsea’s attention now. “We were happy…in it.”

Chelsea nods, looks away, then back. “Are you happy now?”

Good ol’ Chelsea. Best friends first, always. She just wants the honest truth.

It’s the best friend’s job to kick the ass of the person not making the other half of the relationship happy. It’s certainly a little harder to do when it requires the possibility of kicking your own ass.

“I’m always happy with you,” Raven says, honestly.

And she means it. Things have been so much better since Chelsea and Levi arrived. She’d almost forgotten how rough they’d been before.

A bright smile washes away the anxiety evident on Chelsea’s face. “Yeah, me too,” she says finally.

There’s a fleeting moment of complete silence before Chelsea reaches out to cup Raven’s cheek, pulling her closer and up with gentle, guiding fingers.

“So, there you go, then,” Chelsea says, wise as always. “That’s enough for me.”

It’s enough for Raven, too, but she doesn’t get the chance to say as much, because they’re kissing a second later, lightly at first, right there in the kitchen doorway. And then Raven opens her mouth and Chelsea follows and–

She just never used to imagine this, that’s all. If someone had told her when she was seventeen that one day she’d be making out with Chelsea Daniels in the kitchen of their shared apartment with their kids down the hall, she’d have laughed until she cried.

She never saw this coming (she never does with the important stuff, it seems).

Chelsea sighs with her fingers tight around Raven’s hips and Raven tugs her closer, hands flat on Chelsea’s shoulder blades, kissing her back hard.

They’re interrupted a moment later by a loud yell from Booker’s room (“Nia, I can pack for myself!”), but for a second or two, it’s perfect.

When they arrive at her childhood home, there’s this moment, just inside the door, when Raven isn’t sure how much arriving for a holiday with Chelsea and their kids has changed things. But then Tanya is there, putting them so immediately to work.

Victor clucks at the kids as they spread out across the house, filling empty corners with noise for the first time since they’d visited earlier in the summer. Their feet are loud against the hardwood floors as they stampede out into the backyard and Chelsea shouts for them to keep their coats on while Raven says something about keeping it down and then they look at each other–as if surprised to be caught in an unexpected moment of co-parenting.

Tanya and Victor watch them carefully. This is new, of course, but only to them.

Raven is certain that it’s always been this way, if only for the fact that she’s having such supreme difficulty remembering a time before it.

Tanya needs help in the garden, it would seem, and when Chelsea offers to help, she says no–that she’s a guest. So Chelsea doesn’t ask again, she just follows Tanya out to the backyard where Raven can see her pulling out the extra pair of gloves that she always used to use out in the garden from the shed.

The kids are sprawled out in the grass of the backyard. Booker and Nia are tossing a tiny wiffle ball back and forth while Levi pulls grass out of the yard and piles it on the toes of their shoes, his own included.

Victor, fraught with the concept of making the entire Thanksgiving meal on his own like he does every year, has her making his jalapeno cranberry sauce within minutes of her not following her children outside. It’s not a hard task–he’s already basically prepared the ingredients–and it’s familiar, working in the kitchen with her dad.

So quiet, she’d nearly forgotten.

“I missed this,” Raven says, while she’s gathering the spices from the rack in the center of the counter. She used to do this as a kid, only without the knife part. He’d always done that part for her, and the last time she’d been able to bring the kids over for Thanksgiving was two years ago, right after the divorce went through.

She hadn’t realized how much it had meant before that.

Victor smiles. He looks older every year, it seems, wrinkles on his forehead and around his eyes, but his back still straight, his smile still wide. “I missed it too, baby,” he says. He’s working on the bread stuffing, but he looks up at her meaningfully as he says it.

“It’s nice to be back in the house again.”

She says it without meaning too, because it is. The years he’d been in D.C. and Tanya had been overseas go unmentioned so often that she sometimes forget they happened at all, that this house sat vacant for so long because she’d been away at college and he’d been too busy, too short on cash to come up here. It looks the same now, though, with everything out of storage for something like six years and Tanya around to make sure her decor all went back in the same place it had been in before she left.

“It’s nice to have you here,” Victor tells her. “To have everybody together.”

He looks out the open back door with a sort of longing look, where they can just see Tanya on her hands and knees pulling out all the tomatoes that she’s been able to keep alive this late in the year, laughing at something Chelsea’s just said. Raven smiles and catches Chelsea’s eye, briefly. Chelsea winks and then looks away and Raven turns back to her dad.

Raven pushes the chopped jalapeno to the corner of the cutting board and sets the knife down, rubbing her damp fingers against the fabric of her jeans. “I don’t know how you guys did it,” she says carefully. “Being away from each other that long.”

Victor laughs lightly. He shoots her an amused look. “I don’t either, honestly,” he says. “But, you know, it’s worth it sometimes, if you can manage. Your mom and I have always been able to find some way to make anything work. Even our two bratty kids.”

“Hey!” Raven says, trying to sound offended instead of amused.

Victor just laughs again. “I’m just saying,” he continues. “Being away from your mother, from you kids, that was always hard, I ain’t gonna lie to you.” He’s smiling and Raven leans against the counter to watch him. “But we’re together now. None of it matters anymore.”

Raven crosses her arms and looks away for a moment. It had never been that way with Devon. When they’d first gotten married, she’d imagined growing old with him as the next plausible step in their relationship. An inevitability. But the years had passed and each day had felt one step further away from anything close to that until she couldn’t even imagine it anymore.

Growing up around a perfect relationship, she’d thought, must have spoiled her idea of real love.

“I guess you guys just always made it seem so easy,” she confesses, and Victor stops working to look up at her, this expression of yearning on his face.

“Raven, baby,” he says, “when you find the right person, it’s the easiest thing in the world.”

When sauce is done and safely stored in the refrigerator for tomorrow, she slips outside to stand on the porch, arms crossed against the brisk November breeze sailing across the air, up all those steep hills, from the bay.

Booker looks up when the door closes and he grins. “Hey, Mom!” he shouts. “When’s dinner?”

Raven rolls her eyes. It’s two in the afternoon. “Good question. When you gonna start making it?”

Booker rolls his eyes, still smiling, and nearly misses the ball when Nia throws it his way. He’s thrown off-balance and has to catch himself on his elbows, but the leaning tower of grass on his shoe stays still despite his flailing. Levi lets out a breath of relief and goes back to stacking it higher.

Cory will be arriving in the morning and in a few hours, Chelsea’s parents will be by to pick up their daughter and grandson until the following afternoon. But for now, Chelsea is wearing an extra pair of gardening gloves and is wielding a trowel like a sword, as she pulls up the potatoes she can find and throws them in the basket Tanya brought out. She waves at Raven when she sees her.

“How’s the murder bird preparation going?” she asks and Tanya laughs like it’s the first joke she’s ever heard.

“This year’s Thanks-Killing Celebration is all set to commence at dawn.”

Chelsea rolls her eyes and rocks back on her knees, pulling herself to her feet. She takes the gloves off and wipes at her forehead in the seventy-degree sun like it’s summertime and not November.

“Mrs. Baxter, how many potatoes do you use for Thanksgiving when you don’t have my family coming to dinner?” Levi calls from where he’s seated and Booker laughs, shoving his shoulder while Levi lets him, ignores it–like it’s just an every day thing to have the other boy shake him that way.

“Oh, you know,” Tanya says, throwing the boy a winning smile. “About the same amount, the way my grandson eats.”

It’s Levi’s turn to laugh while Booker pouts and Nia nods like it’s the gospel truth.

Chelsea checks the slender, leather-banded watch she has on her left wrist and Tanya looks up at her.

“Leaving already?” she asks with a pout.

Raven watches and teeters her away over to the only chair on the back porch that hasn’t been stored away for winter, sitting down lightly on the edge of it.

“We’ve got time,” she says, first to Tanya, then to Levi, who seems relieved at this, like he doesn’t want to leave.

Raven doesn’t want him to leave either. When he looks at her, he offers her a cheeky smile and an air-five that she mimes back from across the yard.

Tanya smiles. “Oh, good. You know, we just love having the kids around the house.”

Whatever it was she’d meant is lost for a moment, because Raven’s mind wanders. She remembers Thanksgivings with Devon and his family and his stepmother, Shawndra, saying something quite like that, but with a different meaning.

We love having you and the kids over.

She’d meant it in terms of Raven and Devon’s kids. Both of them. Theirs.

It rings the same here and something with the weight of a stone drops into her stomach, leaving her feeling vaguely winded.

Chelsea stands, unsure for a moment on where to go as Tanya tells her that she should be good from where they’re at. It’s either sit on the ground with the kids, continue to stand, or go inside to make small talk with Victor.

Raven makes it easy and waves her over when Chelsea meets her eyes. Chelsea, as always, obeys with only a little bit of a questioning look.

“Here,” Raven offers, scooting back in the chair and patting her legs. “Sit down.”

“Are you sure?” Chelsea asks, like it’s too much to ask.

Raven rolls her eyes. “Girl, you weigh like eighty-two pounds. Yeah, I’m sure.”

At this, she tugs her by the waist until she finally sits down, and then hooks her arms around her. Chelsea loops an arm around Raven’s neck and trails her fingers down the arm of her sweater, leaving goosebumps under the fabrics from where she’s touched. It’s the closest they’ve been since last night in the living room and it makes Raven’s chest thrill at the heat of it, feeling Chelsea breathe against her.

The kids are watching them curiously, and even Tanya spares them a brief glance (and smile) before resuming her work. Levi’s the first to look away.

“Sure you don’t wanna give up that ‘no-meat’ mumbo jumbo once and for all, girl?” Raven jokes to break the silence. “That turkey is gonna be good and you know I only pick the best.”

She can’t see her, but she knows Chelsea is rolling her eyes. “Nah, I mean…” She holds her hands up as if weighing the pros and cons. “Animal rights,” she says contemplatively, bobbing her left hand up and up with her palm faced upwards. “Or one meal that doesn’t matter and forfeits my personal beliefs.” She does the same movement with her right hand and then drops her arm back down around Raven’s neck.

“You know I’m playin’ with you.”

Chelsea tilts her head to look down at her and smiles. “I know.”

She smells like the leaves back home and the slightly chilly breeze from the ocean, making its way through the hilly streets to reach them right here in the backyard of her childhood home. Raven strokes her thumb over Chelsea’s stomach through the jean material of her button-down.

The kids are back to playing and Tanya is preoccupied, but Raven would like to say that she’d have kissed the very back of Chelsea’s neck just then even if they had been looking. Chelsea doesn’t pull away.

Instead, she leans further back and says, “I’m sweaty.”

“A little sweat never hurt nobody,” Raven returns.

“Go back in time and tell teenage you that. She used to fake period cramps to get out of gym class every other week.”

“Hey, it worked, didn’t it? And I’m a psychic. Not a time traveler.”

Chelsea laughs, high and clear, and leans further into Raven’s arms. She presses a kiss to Raven’s temple and, even when Tanya sees, when Nia spares them a curious look, she doesn’t pull away.

Her bedroom looks like it hasn’t been touched. It’s impressive, of course, considering that the house had been vacant for months at a time when her dad and Cory had been in Washington, D.C.–before her mom returned from England.

Now, it’s a little disconcerting. Especially with Booker and Nia sharing Cory’s old bunk bed all the way upstairs. She can’t, for the life of her, remember how she ever spent such long amounts of time on her own down her like this. It feels weird, alien.

Like something she might have done in another life instead of another year.

It’s silly, too. Just separation anxiety. Her being needy after being spoiled by Chelsea’s near-constant presence over the last five months. She’s gotten used to it, and now that she’s facing the prospect of spending the night alone, it’s almost too much to handle.

She’s received exactly two text messages since Chelsea left–one saying that her and Levi arrived at her parents’ house safely, and another with a simple, Goodnight!

Raven stares at them, lets the light from her phone screen burn her eyes and then moves her thumb over to Chelsea’s contact info, hovering over the tiny phone icon. It’s barely eleven o’clock. She shouldn’t be asleep yet.

The phone only rings once before Chelsea’s answering with a hushed, “Rae?” that makes Raven’s chest ache.

“Hey,” she says quietly.

“Everything alright?”

It’s quiet on Chelsea’s end, just her breathing and maybe the squeaky springs of her old mattress. Chelsea’s voice in her ear makes her shiver in a way old phone calls with her never used to.

“Yeah, no,” she starts, but she doesn’t have a good excuse.

“Rae, is this a booty call or something? Because texting me the camel emoji would have the same effect as a phone call, you know. I’m easy like that.”

Raven laughs then, like Chelsea has broken the tension splendidly. “No, I’m…No.”

Chelsea’s voice curls a little as she says, “That’s too bad.”

And Raven laughs again.

“I just wanted to…” She could make up an excuse. She’s done it before, with Devon, when she’d just wanted to hear his voice and had made up some survey for a fake class that she needed him to weigh in on or something like that. But she’s too old for that. And this is Chelsea.

Chelsea always knows what she’s really saying anyway.

“I wanted to hear your voice.”

There’s a long pause and she’s nearly afraid she’s said too much, but then Chelsea lets out a sharp exhale. “Oh. I…I wanted to hear yours, too, but you done beat me to it.”

“It’s weird not hearing you snore above me.”

“Raven Lydia Baxter, I do not snore.”

Raven laughs. “You know what’s funny? You’ve said that forever, and I still know you’re lying, girl. Now more than ever.”

It’s lighter now, the silence less deafening in her old bedroom. Chelsea breathes into the other line.

“Okay, whatever. Agree to disagree.”

“Agreed,” Raven says.

They pause again, sleepily this time. Raven can feel the weight of her eyelids as they begin to droop. “I should let you sleep. Sorry for calling.”

Chelsea scoffs. “Don’t apologize for that. Please.”

She sounds pleading, too. Raven nods, but Chelsea can’t see her.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says.

“Of course,” Chelsea returns. “See you then.”

She makes this noise then, like she’s about to say something else and Raven is reminded of all those calls over the years that ended in some carefully tender, unromantic version of, Love you.

This one doesn’t, of course, but not for lack of trying.

The doorbell rings at four o’clock and Nia and Booker beat her to it, cracking it open with wide smiles as Raven chases after them from the kitchen.

Levi is the first inside, his tie clearly not a clip on as he adjusts it on his neck and hands Nia a bottle of wine bigger than his head.

“Hey, hey,” Raven cuts in. “Take that to your grandma, you hear?”

Nia rolls her eyes but nods, and Levi follows after her.

Chelsea is the next in, her parents–David and Joni–close behind. She has her hands pressed flat to the skirt of her dress, an old sign that she’s on edge that Raven would recognize any time and she steps forward, closer to the door like she can fix it.

“Booker, go help Grandpa in the kitchen.”

Booker shakes his head and then pulls at Chelsea’s arm until she steps closer, beckoning to her until she leans down so he can giggle something into her ear that Raven can’t make out.

With that and one last gleeful look at his mother, he pulls away and heads straight for the kitchen with nothing more than a waggle of his fingers in some bizarre wave.

“Come in, you guys, I’m so sorry,” Raven says once he’s gone.

She takes their coats, feeling weirdly on edge around them in a way she hasn’t in years–like she’s never met them before or only met them twice. Like there’s all this unnecessary weight to impress them almost, but after countless sleepovers and more years than she can count on both hands, it doesn’t add up.

Joni pulls her Raven into a bone-crushing hug after a moment, pressing a kiss to each cheek and making her face flush with the embarrassment, but she accepts it happily with a hug of her own.

“You look nice,” Raven says, laughing, when Joni and David have gone to the kitchen to help. Her eyes linger on the curve of Chelsea’s neck and Chelsea must notice because she smirks and takes a couple of steps closer, reaching out to grab at Raven’s hand.

“Two minutes in and you’re already trying to butter me up.”

This feels so unfamiliar. Like everything is different and the same and she’s just reliving teenage crushes and flirting right now. Or maybe experiencing them for the first time. She’s an adult now, but Chelsea’s smile thrills inside her like the edges of a first love she’s only ever associated with her now ex-husband.

Chelsea looks different in her house now than she ever did before. Raven stares at the steady, assured shape of her, a curious sight in a house she’s always associated with a much younger version of them both. She’s wearing a pretty dress, like she’d needed to dress up. She wants to reach out and touch her, but there’s a pie dish in Chelsea’s hands. Still, she manages to take one step forward.

“I brought pie.”

She’s smiling as she says it, tilting her head toward Raven a little as she squeezes her fingers.

“Don’t tell me that before my dad serves the actual meal. I’ve never been good at self control.”

Chelsea rolls her eyes. “If it makes you feel better, it’s store bought.”

“Mess up the frosting a little bit?”

“Pie doesn’t have frosting.”

“Shut it.”

She quirks an eyebrow. “Make me.”

They sound like children, like old versions of themselves that they used to be in this house and grew out of the moment they left for good.

Chelsea is smiling still, but in a different, less gleeful way than she’d been doing before.

“What did Booker say to you? When you came in.”

Chelsea laughs. “Why?”

“Just curious,” Raven says, because she is. Because Booker had looked ready to burst into a fit of laughter at her expense and Chelsea’s cheeks had flushed red.

“‘If Mom stares any harder at you, her eyes might pop out of her head–Take pictures if she combusts,’” she says. “Or something.”

She’s smiling now and biting her lip.

Raven scoffs and shakes her head, muttering something about getting him for that and Chelsea reaches out to grab her hand, pulling it over to brace it against her own sternum.

“I mean,” she says. “He’s not wrong. You were staring pretty hard.”

“So now I’m not allowed to stare at pretty girls? What other rights of mine are being taken away, just so I’m prepared to lose them?”

Chelsea laughs again and, for a moment, Raven thinks they might be about to kiss again, but then there’s footsteps coming towards them from the kitchen and the voices of everyone else finally wafting their way. Still, they don’t pull away, just keep their hands clasped together as Cory appears from the side room with a dish towel hung across his shoulder.

“Raven?” he’s saying as he comes into view. “I can smell that pie. You best not be holding out on us.”

Raven squeezes Chelsea’s fingers, but doesn’t let go. “Why you acting like you’re getting any?”

Cory smiles widely as he sees Chelsea, the scowl he’d been aiming at his sister melting away. His eyes dart briefly to their hands, but he barrels past it like it’s some insignificant detail. Maybe it is. “Hey, Chelsea,” he says. “Good to see you.”

Chelsea smiles, looks at Raven, and Raven feels like she’s a teenager again for more reasons than just the fluttering in the low of her stomach.

“Hey, Cory. You, too.”

When she passes the pie over to him, she lets go of Raven’s hand, fingers brushing together for a moment as the touch drops away.

Dinner is loud and nice and no one makes anyone else ask what the others are thankful for. Until Booker and Levi stand up like they rehearsed this and say a lot about families coming together and love (Levi says this, Booker sort of looks sick at the mention). Then Nia jumps in just to be included and Booker goes off book and starts quoting directly from The Princess Bride.

The marriage ceremony part, unfortunately.

Victor and Tanya look amused. Cory, confused. And Chelsea’s poor parents–Joni looks suspiciously on the verge of tears and David is bobbing his head along like he agrees.

Chelsea covers her face with her hand and looks away. Raven laughs in protest, feeling bright and embarrassed all at once as Booker calls Chelsea his “second mom” and–

Afterward, everyone disperses and Raven finds herself in the kitchen alone with Chelsea while the kids and their parents–Cory is off making some sort of phone call or other–sprawl across the living room watching the DVR of the parade.

Raven’s hands are covered in soapy dishwater and she’s saying something about her kids being absolutely insane as Chelsea laughs and laughs, arms looped loosely around Raven’s waist as she waits for the next batch of plates to dry.

The doors to the living room are pressed closed, but they can hear everyone just three inches of pine and glass away, voices drifting like ghosts, careful and slow in a post-meal laze.

“I blame you for that, you know,” Chelsea says as Raven shuts off the water and leans back into her arms. “You’re a wonderful influence on them.”

“Are you kidding? Devon and I always talked about how Nia and Booker took after their Aunt Chelsea.”

She turns in Chelsea’s arms and Chelsea shakes her head, but doesn’t let go. So Raven kisses her deeply, tracing her tongue along the roof of her mouth, the backs of her teeth, and then pulls away.

“They’re the best kids,” Chelsea says after a moment, looking dazed and a little slower now, her lips swollen red. “Of course they took after me.”

Raven is always kidding when she complains, but she’s certain that Nia and Booker must be learning something from Chelsea, because Chelsea loves every single day, but she’s always been one for romantic cliches and speeches and she’s made them watch The Princess Bride exactly six times since she moved in. Raven’s own love is much more subdued, muted, compared to how she’d been as a teenager, in the early years of Devon.

But Chelsea writes, Have a great day! I love you! on the kids’ napkins whenever she packs their lunches with about a hundred hearts and Nia did the same for Raven’s birthday card–the one she’d made herself–just two months ago. Levi holds her hand when they walk and hugs her before bed and is always so physically affectionate that she’s left with no choice but to be reminded of his mother every single time.

Even Booker has started to show appreciation differently, in the same ways that Chelsea does. He offers to help fold laundry and he takes out the trash without being asked and sometimes he mutes the TV when he knows Raven is working on designs at the table because she needs her concentration.

“All four of you are incredible,” Raven whispers and she means it so deeply she can’t even say it louder than that.

Chelsea stares at her for a long moment and then kisses her again, on the corner of her jaw and then her lips, leaning into Raven so hard she ends up pressed into the countertop.

Not that Raven is one to complain.

Victor has Booker put the star on the top of the tree, lifting him up onto his shoulders and groaning from the weight. It’s unsteady and frightening and Cory and Tanya wait at their sides in case Booker should fall.

“I can totally do this, guys,” Booker protests, and he does. Even if it’s a bit crooked.

“It looks great, Booker,” Tanya tells him, hand in his hair, once he’s safely on the ground.

He grins, wide and happy, and turns his head to lean it against Raven’s chest until she wraps an arm around him. “Our tree back home is gonna be twice as dope.”

Raven smiles at him, squeezing him further into her side. “What makes you so sure?”

“Levi’s got all those cool Star Wars ornaments,” he says. “Way dope.”

“We’re not putting all of those on, though,” Nia protests and Booker reaches out to grab her around the neck and give her a noogie until Cory has to pull them apart.

It’s a nice moment, bright with the realization that there’ll be a tree back home at all–that Chelsea and Levi will be there to decorate it, too.

Her parents are watching her curiously. They have been the past couple days. In this crinkle-eyed way that lets her know that it’s more than just the words they’re saying that are confusing them. It’s the way they looked at her when she’d come back from college that first winter break, like they hadn’t known exactly when it was she’d changed into a different person, but it must have happened in their absence.

It’s enough to make her look away.

The day before they fly back home, the doorbell rings only minutes after her parents and Cory have left for the mall with Booker and Nia. There’s a couple of Cyber Monday sales in-store at the mall and she hadn’t been allowed to accompany them for, “Oh, no reason!” as her mother had said, but she knows that they’re really taking the twins Christmas shopping for gifts for her.

It’s fine, of course, but a little odd to be in this house alone like this. It’s been at least ten years since the last time and it has her feeling this weird emptiness she can’t put her finger on.

Chelsea’s on the doorstep, shivering in her coat and smiling a little unsurely. She clears her throat after a moment of staring.

“Hey, um…I think our parents are scheming together. Any chance they took the kids to the mall?”

It wouldn’t be the first time (Chelsea’s surprise engagement shower rings a bell–and twists a knot in Raven’s stomach), so it’s not surprising to learn that Joni and David had smuggled Levi out of the house under the same guise that Victor and Tanya had taken her own kids.

Raven nods.

“Well, mine took Levi. My only son. Think they’re teaming up?” is what Chelsea says next and Raven laughs, and waves her inside.

“Joke’s on them. Now we can throw a house party.”

Chelsea hums in response and they’re standing close. She looks ready to tip forward if it means they’ll be even closer. “Woah, I’m having high school flashbacks,” she says. “Only if you get a mechanical bull again.”

Raven laughs and squints her eyes to combat the harsh noon-day sun filtering through the front window. “Hey, don’t put that evil on me. That was all Cory.”

Laughing, Chelsea steps forward and Raven tugs her closer by the hand, pulling Chelsea’s fingers up to rest against her own stomach. She can feel the glove-warm heat of Chelsea’s fingers burning somewhere in the heart of her in this way she’s certain she’ll never quite shake.

“Home alone then?” she asks, but her voice is lower than usual. Rougher.

“So it would seem,” Raven says and they’re staring at each other a little too meaningfully.

“Why do I feel like a teenager whose parents left town for the weekend?”

Raven laughs again, but she knows the feeling. She doesn’t have an answer though. She stands there for a moment, still, and then leans forward and kisses Chelsea.

When she goes to pull back, Chelsea follows her, leaning back in and curling the fingers of her free hand into Raven’s hair. It feels strange to be doing this in her old living room of all places, like she might be able to pretend it’s eleven years ago if she’d only shut her eyes. Surprising, yet inevitable.

Chelsea’s other hand presses further into Raven’s side and Raven leans back in without quite meaning to.

“I know you’re just across town and I saw you last night,” she says, her voice so quiet against the wind against the house and the unearthly calm of the empty house, “but I’ve missed you.”

Something about this house has woken her up more than she’d ever anticipated. Over the years, she’s forgotten bits of herself that being here now have brought up again. Like a homecoming in more ways than one.

And then there’s Chelsea. Chelsea who she’d never really been able to forget a fraction of, even if she’d been actively trying.

“I know what you mean,” Chelsea says and she’s leaning in, too. Her lips are soft, slow and compliant against Raven’s as they open for her, time and time again.

They make it downstairs somehow and Raven has forgotten–with Chelsea’s lips on her collarbone–that her bed swings. It makes Chelsea laugh as they knock against each other, trying to catch their balance, but the sound is quickly swallowed by Raven’s mouth as she kisses it away. The mood shifts a moment later, anyway, the second Raven pulls Chelsea’s sweater over her head.

It’s better that the two of them do this now, before she even gives herself the chance to screw it up.

The kids arrive home some two or three hours later, and Raven still has Chelsea pressed into her swinging mattress when Booker shouts down to them, asking where they are. It’s a mess, really, trying to separate, but they manage it eventually. They dress each other slowly, lips and fingers chasing skin as it disappears beneath warm layers that will be much more necessary the moment they get home.

Chelsea’s been in this room so many times before, but Raven never imagined her being in it in this context–the thought of the pale skin and delicate bones of Chelsea’s hips beneath her lips just twenty minutes prior makes the room tilt just the smallest amount.

It’s better that way, though. She realizes it halfway up the stairs, as Chelsea leads her towards the sound of laughter and shopping bags crinkling in the living room.

She’s always loved a good surprise.

“Don’t look!” Booker shouts and he’s sent up the stairs with a bundle of shopping bags, tripping the whole way.

Raven makes a big show of covering her face with her hand and Chelsea laughs.

Cory is looking at them oddly from the front door, smirking, and he wiggles his eyebrows when he catches her eye. She flips him off from behind her free hand, letting Chelsea slip away from her to do so.

“Oh, honey, there were so many good sales!” Tanya is gushing and Victor claps his hand calmly on her back as she listens. She leans into him and watches Chelsea across the room with Levi and her parents as Joni makes him model the twenty-some scarves she purchased.

“Are you happy, baby girl?” Victor asks, when Tanya is distracted, asking Cory where one of the bags is as he shrugs unhelpfully.

She tears her eyes away from Nia, laughing with Chelsea’s arm around her shoulder, and Levi bundled up so much by his grandmother that his eyes are barely visible. Booker trips his way down the stairs.

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” she tells him honestly.

He looks over at Chelsea briefly–this woman he’d practically helped raise alongside his own daughter–and shakes his head. Raven wonders if she’s not the only one who didn’t see this coming. “I told you it was easy,” he says, turning back her way.

She laughs, so loud and free that it gets her a couple of looks. Chelsea sends her that pretty, confused frown and she’ll tell her later, but, for now, she just looks back up at her dad and says, “You just gotta gloat, huh?”

“The one fatherly duty I take pride in,” he says, smiling widely.

And they’re both laughing when he pulls her into his arms, kissing the top of her head like she’s five-years-old again.

And she thinks that, if she stumbled upon all the luck in the world, she’d still never happen upon anything quite as perfect as this.

They fly into Chicago with the sunset the next day, casting rusty, orange light across the glass of the skyscrapers.

Raven has Booker and Nia on her right, but she spares a glance over to Chelsea and Levi, sitting across the aisle, both of them looking out the window. It snowed at some point, must have anyway. Raven can see tiny globs of it on the roofs of some of the buildings past where Booker has his face smashed into the window. She watches the sky twist and darken over the scenic, high-rising sweep of Chicago, drawing closer every moment.

They’re all quiet as they gather their things once they’ve landed and head straight for baggage claim. Booker and Nia fight over their suitcases once they appear and even hand Levi his small, red one. Chelsea smiles at Raven, small and careful. A smile she’s seen a hundred times over, but somehow now, it’s different.

On the street, rolling towards where the car has been parked for the past five days, she can hear the city moving in the distance, close enough to make her feel home again.

They pay too much for parking and smash into the car together, trying to make room, and Chelsea laughs as the kids sing Christmas carols in the back seat–terribly off-key with only half the words right. It’s hot in the car (Chelsea blasts the warm air through the vents and holds pale, skinny fingers up to them to warm them), and the heat settles somewhere in Raven’s chest and neck. Like nostalgia for something she’s only been missing a week.

Tess is waiting for them when they get back, sitting on the steps by their door and Nia and her hug for a second or two longer than normal. “Good to see you, Pipsqueak,” she says to Levi, carding a hand through his hair in a way that seems affectionate. “What up, Mrs. B?”

Raven smiles, then–

“Other, Mrs. B.”

Chelsea freezes halfway in the door, but then resumes wheeling her suitcase inside the apartment.

No one says anything about it. Booker just laughs.

“Clothes away, then you can goof off with Tess,” Chelsea commands, and Raven watches her as she shuts the door behind her kids and their best friend.

Booker is already sprawled on the couch, though, and Tess and Nia are gossiping under their breath in this hurried, breathless way that she thinks she remembers from when her and Chelsea were their age. Levi is the only one who listens, pushing his own suitcase back towards his and Booker’s room and throwing his mom an apologetic look on behalf of the others.

There’ll be time for scolding later, perhaps, but the look on Chelsea’s face as she shakes her head and shrugs off her coat–that resigned complaisance–is too much to ignore.

Raven wants to tell her that she loves her, wants to explain what it all means in terms of how this constant phrase (she’s always loved Chelsea) has redefined itself. That, for the first time in so long, through her mom moving away, then her dad, then college and a pregnancy she hadn’t planned and then divorce, she feels like something more than what she lets someone else define her as.

One of these is true: she is not who she expected she’d be or this is the first time in her entire life that she’s ever, blessedly, been herself.

An odd sentiment, maybe, and she can’t find the right combination of words for it in the first place. It’s the moment that’s wrong. This one doesn’t fit quite right, but she’s got all the time in the world, so she slides up behind Chelsea in the safe quiet of their bedroom as she packs unworn clothes into her dresser drawers.

“I’m glad we’re home,” Raven says, making the silence retreat–save for the kids laughing in the living room.

Chelsea stops moving and leans her back into Raven’s chest, tipping her head so that Raven is left nosing at her cheek.

“I’ll kill you in real life, Booker!” Tess is yelling, but she’s laughing a second later and so is Nia. So is Levi, even as they can hear him trying to stop the scuffle. It’s a nice sound. It reminds her of that first night, less than two weeks ago, and how it had sounded farther away then.

“Yeah,” Chelsea finally says. “Me too.”

They stay there for as long as the night, as their loud, fighting children, will allow.

It’s long enough for now..

Things keep changing.

Chelsea returns the bunk beds and they buy a new mattress for the room big enough for the both of them, and marvel at how much space it seems to return to them. Raven finishes the sketches for her first collection and Chelsea figures out how to make lasagna without ruining the pan she uses. They go to the kids’ Christmas pageant two days before school lets out and spend the next day with Levi, braving the Magnificent Mile for last-minute gifts when Devon comes swinging back into town to throw an early, quiet Christmas with Booker and Nia in his hotel room.

They sit the kids down to tell them and find that they already know–Booker rolling his eyes with a quiet, “Duh,” and Nia and Levi letting out an exasperated, “We know,” in unison.

The evenings (post-bedtime) are spent laughing over corny game shows in the darkness of their living room, with the subtitles on so the kids don’t wake up, commiserating about whose parents are coming and when over dangerously full glasses of wine. Sometimes, instead, they just kiss like teenagers left home alone for the night, in the way Raven is certain it was always going to be.

Other times, Raven will lead Chelsea back into the bedroom with a click of the remote to bathe them in darkness and it will take unbuttoning Chelsea’s jeans in the quiet of their locked bedroom for the other woman to understand where it’s going.

But then, of course, all bets are off.

It’s strange, she realizes on Christmas morning, when the kids come tumbling into their bedroom to wake them up before the sun is even fully up. Her best friend moved in with her so they could raise their kids together and that’s exactly what’s happened. Psychic or not, she realizes–grabbing Nia around the waist and tugging her down as they laugh, as she jumps on the bed with her brother–she never would have predicted this.

And maybe it’s better that way.

In a couple of weeks, Devon will call her directly to offer his congratulations. She’ll wonder how he heard--which of the kids told him first--but it will be the first time she doesn’t feel on the spot talking to him since the divorce.

Chelsea--she’ll learn (over and over again, it seems)--is good for everything.

Her mother will squeal over FaceTime when she finds out and Nia will introduce Chelsea to her teacher at the science fair as her and Booker’s “other Mom.”

(And that’s my little brother, Levi)

Raven will nod along in agreement with Levi on her back laughing at something Booker’s just said and she’ll wonder how she got so lucky, even as she wants to stop worrying about the future.

Right now, though–

“Start sorting out presents. Levi, you’re in charge. Give us some time to wake up, okay?”

The kids listen, Nia worming out of Raven’s grasp with a laugh, and they stumble and push each other all the way to the tree in the living room. The early morning light speckles in through the window and Raven turns her head on the pillow to smile at Chelsea.

“What a wake up call,” she groans and Chelsea laughs.

“They have so many knees.”

Raven laughs into the first kiss of the day–morning breath be damned–and Chelsea always kisses her right back.

“I love you,” she breathes into Chelsea’s mouth, open and careful and so steady that it surprises even her.

Chelsea grins. Kisses Raven through it and then–finally–”I love you, too.”

Things are different–they’ve been changing all along, maybe.

But it’s still perfect anyway.

…

[bellygunnr]

Cozy | Shops

"A Deluxe Vault for four, then?" The Inkling girl behind the counter ran Rider's card through the reader, ears twitching ever so slightly at the deep tone it sounded off. "Are you collectors?" She asked, raising a heavy-shaded eyebrow.

"Collectors? No, we just like to have our options open," Rider replied. He tucked his card back into his wallet, along with the narrow Shell Key the girl handed him.

"Ah, you're all fighters, then. Well! That's to be expected. Oh! You'll be needing this as well," the girl added. She slid another card in his direction, one branded with the apartment building's name. "If your roommates present this to me, I'll be able to get them a copy as well."

Rider nodded, just barely hiding a frown. That was a strange policy. Why were things so tight here...? "Thank you, ma'am. I'll be seeing you," he said.

The apartments were well-occupied. Rider passed Inklings of all types as he climbed the stairs to the fifth floor of the structure, leaving his tanned skin crawling with the feeling of being watched. He knew that they knew who he was and he was trying hard not to care but... The faster he got to his new home, the better. Really, who cared where he stayed...?

The whole of Inkopolis, apparently.

It wasn't soon enough when he arrived at his apartment's door.

"Rider! Look, look, isn't this place great?" Blaze gasped, pulling him excitedly into their apartment. "It's really cheap and there's space for all of us...!"

"Right, yes, is there-?" He was quick to tug his wrist free, brows knitting together. "Everyone's here!"

The walls of the apartment were bright orange, decorated with swirling blue waves and white bubbles, glinting under the harsh fluorescent lights. A lone sofa sat almost forlornly in the center of the living room, cheered only by Bamboo's hat dangling from its edge. A small alcove-like dip in the room gave way to a tiny kitchen, thankfully equipped with a fridge and other appliances. It would be a tight fit, though.

Otherwise, everything was completely barren. They would have to start from scratch save for the clothes they had with them.

"How do you like it, Rider?" Stealth cut in.

"It's bright," he replied. "I can tell it's only meant for one or two Inklings, but I don't mind-- don't look so stricken!" Rider felt his tentacles curl atop his head in alarm. "You did great, Stealth! How do you guys like it?"

Bamboo threw herself down against the sofa dramatically, hand pressed to her forehead. "You had us all in stitches! Anyway, I think it's cute."

"And it's really convenient- there's vaults on this floor!" Blazer chirped.

"That reminds me- shoot, they have stupid policies here. I rented out a Deluxe Vault for all of us. Our floor."

Rider joined Stealth in perusing the store's selection of cots- which, admittedly, was very meager. Most of them were also too short to accommodate Rider and his weird, long body.

Not that he was surprised. He was used to that.

"I could always sleep on the couch," he hummed. "And you could use a cot."

"Oh, yeah. We really don't need two of these things, do we?" With that, Stealth reached up to grab a box above his head, skin turning lime-green with the effort. "I want this one! Look, it's green!" He hauled it out with a grunt.

"We should have looked in the room before coming here..." Blazer sighed.

"Nonsense. Any apartment-issued blankets would be atrocious and an assault to the senses," Bamboo retorted. "We will live as queens on the plushest pillows and softest blankets!"

"When you put it like that," Blazer said, "it does sound pretty nice."

With that, they went their separate ways. By the time they met at their rendezvous- the cash register- everything was green and they were feeling very silly, but proud of themselves.

[iishipallthethings]

Three is (Not) a Crowd

Story Summary:  Two months after Kuvira was defeated, things have finally settled down in Republic City. For better or for worse, Avatar Korra is ready to talk to Asami about the Unspoken Thing between them, however there's something Asami had been hiding from her friends. And that something is Lin Beifong.

Chapter 14: Morning After

“Turn off that damn alarm clock,” Korra grumbled as she hid her head under a pillow to escape the awful beeping. She felt the body in front of her lean up to deal with the alarm clock and let out a sigh of relief at the silence that followed. The relief did not last long however. She could feel the two women that made her heart thump in her chest shift and rise from the bed. Korra whined and lifted the pillow off of the bed to pout at Asami and Lin.

Asami grinned at Korra while Lin rolled her eyes at the Avatar’s antics. “We have work,” Asami explained. She grabbed the covers and pulled them off of Korra’s body. But when the pout persisted, Asami gave in and sat on the edge of the bed. At once, a warm arm wrapped around her hip and Korra nuzzled into her waist with a content sigh.

The younger woman would normally complain about having the covers pulled off her body but the sight of the love bites gave her pause. Korra was impressed that none of them were in areas that would be visible but in the places that would be covered, they were numerous. Lin and Asami certainly didn’t waste any of that space to stake their claim for the Avatar. Korra looked over their bodies and saw that it was the same case for each one. It made her grin wickedly as she felt her lower stomach clench in arousal.

“We need to get ready,” Lin said, knowing full well that Korra was shamelessly looking over the markings that she had gotten that night by her and Asami. It made desire curl in her belly but she didn’t give any outward reaction, preferring to play the coolheaded one of their relationship. With a glance, she saw that Asami allowed her desire to be known in her green eyes and smirk when Korra turned her attention towards the mechanic. “I’m taking a shower. Join me if you want.” Lin walked to the other side of the room where a door led to Asami’s personal bathroom. In truth, Lin would much rather devote the entire day to the two women behind her, more accurately spend the day under the blankets with them, never seeing the light of day, but being the Chief of Police meant that she had to be responsible. And Asami mentioned that she had an important meeting with that ferretweasal Varrick and his wife Zhu Li. Still, Lin kept her eyes trained on the door that led to the bathroom so she wouldn’t see the two naked women and be tempted to say screw it and screw them.

Korra watched Lin cross the room, her eyes greedily taking in the view before they moved up to look at Asami. “Last night was incredible.”

Asami hummed in agreement, reveling in how Korra’s arm wound its way around on her waist like it was done on instinct. Like it belong there. She heard her bathroom door open and smiled as Korra’s eyes went back to Lin.

“Whoah,” Korra murmured. She had a limited view from her spot on the bed. Lin had  entered the bathroom and Korra couldn’t see her with the door wide open so that meant that the bathroom was huge. After a few moments the sound of a tiny waterfall reached her ears. Korra tilted her head and looked up at Asami for an explanation.

“Come on,” Asami laughed, pulling Korra out of the bed. The Avatar followed without resistance, most likely too curious to see Asami’s bathroom to stay in the warm bed. The mechanic led Korra into her bathroom and smiled when they went round.

Korra was wrong. Asami’s bathroom wasn’t huge. It was gigantic. It had a wall length mirror with a counter to hold all the makeup and appliances that Korra didn’t care to look at. There was another door to the left and Korra assumed that it held the toilet. In the middle of the room was the bathtub. The floor dipped down to form the tub which would explain why Korra didn’t notice it from the bed. It looked more like a small swimming pool in Korra mind, or a large jacuzzi from the jets that littered the walls and floors of the tub. The three of them could have a lot of fun in there, especially with Korra being a master waterbender.

Her attention was pulled to the right to where the sound of running water came from. There was a shower that was big enough to fit five people comfortably with a overhanging shower head and the usual front one. Both were on and the room was quickly filling with steam. Lin had entered the shower and the two could see her blurry form from the glass. The two women grinned at one another before joining Lin. The older woman was washing out the suds from her hair with her eyes closed. She would have jumped at the feeling of two pair of hands suddenly caressing her body, if she wasn’t using her earthbending to sense Korra and Asami entering the shower.

Korra was the first to show her disappointment at Lin’s lack of a reaction. She frowned and let her hands venture over Lin’s body, determined to get some sort of response. Her fingertips brushed against Lin’s right nipple and teased it until it hardened.

“Didn’t you have enough from last night?” Lin asked, opening her eyes and looking down at Korra.

“I could have you for the rest of all my lives and it still wouldn’t be enough,” Korra said with a cocky grin. She gave the nipple she was playing with a light pinch. “And your body doesn’t seem to be complaining.”

Lin grinned and looked back at Asami. The mechanic had taken it up to herself to grab a washcloth and start washing Lin’s back while Korra was teasing her nipple. The rhythmic circling pattern of the cleaning and the light pressure Asami was applying felt heavenly. Her resolve to get ready for work was diminishing with each swipe of Korra’s fingers and each stroke of Asami’s cleaning massage. “You two are insatiable.”

Neither Korra nor Asami denied the accusation but they didn’t take it any further. They focused on Lin for a while until she was more than clean. Then it was Korra’s turn. Lin paid the Avatar back with interest by kissing and nibbling on her ear as Asami took her time to rub the washcloth over her body. Korra was less successful in hiding her pleasure. Every now and again she would give a shudder or a whimper would escape her lips and Asami would let the hand not holding the washcloth wander down in between Korra’s legs. She never stayed long and each time Korra would give her an accusing look.

When it was finally Asami’s turn to be cleaned, it didn’t last long. The game worked Lin and Korra up too much. When Asami handed Korra the washcloth, the Avatar barely gave it a glance before throwing it over her shoulder. Korra pushed Asami to the wall of the shower and hoisted her up. Her hand went straight to Asami’s sex and found the mechanic slick and ready. Lin smirked at Korra’s eagerness and she knew Asami well enough to know that even though she was doing her best to keep a cool facade, her slightly parted lips and her flushed face gave her away. She joined the two and pulled Asami into a heated kiss, swallowing a moan as Korra’s fingers entered her. Asami reached her orgasm quickly and the two women’s names tumbled out of her mouth as her body tensed and relaxed. Korra and Lin finally cleaned her gently, letting the mechanic shift her weight over, not trusting her legs just yet.

The three women were cleaned and left the bathroom. Lin and Asami grabbed towels and were drying themselves while Korra simply waterbent the droplets off her body. When asked why didn’t she do the same for them, the Avatar gave a crooked grin. “Why would do that? I’m getting a show of two lovely women drying themselves for free.”

Asami swatted her arm but she didn’t put any force into the hit. She opened her walk-in closet and grabbed her business attire. She leisurely put on the outfit, feeling Korra’s and Lin’s hungry eyes on her. She pretended not to notice and went over to start doing her makeup.

Lin tore her eyes off of the mechanic and went to the closet herself. She had to walk to middle of the closet to find what she sought after. She grabbed her police uniform and exited the closet. Lin closed the doors and noted that Asami was watching her through the mirror while Korra sat on the bed, still naked, and blatantly had her eyes on her. Lin rolled her eyes and put on her clothes before using her metalbending to put on the uniform.

Now that the two women were dressed, Korra could put on her own clothes. She was forced to pick up the clothing that she had worn the night before. It wasn’t the first time that Korra worn the same outfit for more than one day in a row but because the two women were wearing clean clothes it made her a little embarrassed. She forced away the emotion with a grin aimed at Lin and Asami. “You guys really are prepared, huh?”

“Of course,” Lin said, making sure her equipment was working well. It was actually the same uniform as the day before. She brought the other outfit when she came over to cook for the two women. Lin would have not bothered to put in that effort if it wasn’t for Asami’s instance that casual clothing might make Korra more comfortable for the night’s activities.

“You could leave a spare change of clothes here and at Lin’s place,” Asami suggested. Korra nodded at that, making a note to bring several spare outfits for the two homes.

The three women left the bedroom to go into the kitchen. Lin prepared tea and they sipped it as they nibbled on assorted fruit. Asami fed Korra some grapes and the Avatar took them with a silly grin. She was going to offer Lin some herself but the older woman set down her empty cup and wiped her fingers clean.

“I should be leaving now,” Lin said, slipping into her authoritative role as if it were a glove. She kissed Korra softly. Asami kissed Lin and Korra smirked at the smudged lipstick that the mechanic left on Lin’s lips. The Chief of Police left the two with a glance that showed how much she would rather stay.

When the two were alone, they cleaned up the plates and cups. Asami washed the dishes and Korra used her airbending to dry them. “The date was interesting,” she commented as she gave the cup she was holding a little blast of air. “I didn’t think Lin would be so forward. Doing,” a blush creeped along her cheeks at the memory, “that to you while we were eating.”

Asami felt her own blush come about as she finished cleaning the last plate. “It was my idea.” She saw Korra raise an eyebrow as she handed her the plate to be dried. “We, or I, thought that if you were excited, there would be less of a possibility of you being turned of by,” she trailed off, her eyes darting down to her stomach to make it clear what she was referring to.

Korra frowned and set the plate in the actual dish holder. She pulled Asami into a loose hug as she kissed her cheek, a hand resting on the shirt where the scar was hidden. “I would never see you as anything but beautiful,” she murmured, her blush deepening at her sappy comment. The words made Asami smile and she turned her head so that she could share a sweet and lingering kiss.

“I have to go soon,” Asami said when she broke the kiss.

“Fine,” Korra grumbled. “Jobs suck.” Asami laughed at that as the two walked to the front door.

“We didn’t weird you out with the toy though, did we?” Asami asked as they strolled through the hallway. She knew that the servants won’t return for another hour so she could speak freely.

Korra shook her head with a chuckle. “No, that was really, really hot.” She brushed the bangs away from her face, making sure to flex her arm and to flash Asami a smirk as she did so. “We should definitely use it again. On Lin next time.”

Asami nodded, her eyes having followed Korra’s hand and settle on the muscles of her arm. She knew that Korra was trying to show off and it was working. If only she didn’t have the meeting with Varrick and Zhu Li.

By now they reached the front door. Korra opened it for Asami and the mechanic gave her a small peck on the cheek. Korra grabbed her hand and pulled her body flushed against her own. She smirked up at the mechanic with an eyebrow quirked. “You can do better than that,” Korra teased. She claimed the older woman’s lips in a deep kiss, groaning when one of Asami’s hands came up to fist her hair. Korra returned the favor by grabbing Asami’s butt and giving it a squeeze, loving the feel of the skirt riding up to reveal the top of Asami’s stockings.

Korra broke the kiss abruptly, earning a whimper from the older woman. Her blue eyes darted throughout the surroundings. “Did you hear that?”

“It’s probably a spirit or animal,” Asami murmured. “I let them travel the grounds, I like taking pictures of them.” Her eyes lit up with an idea. “Maybe we can have a picnic there soon?”

“That sounds fun.” There was a few spirits sleeping a few feet away from them, soaking in the sun. One of them could have rolled over and snapped a twig. Korra scanned the bushes one more time. “We can get Lin those lilies too.”

Asami laughed and Korra had to press their lips together again. “I really do have to go.” She kissed Korra one more time before walking towards her car.

Korra watched the older woman drive off and began to make her way to the ferries. It was early and she ran into a handful people but a few gave her strange looks, two teenage girls even giggled as the Avatar walked past them. Korra ignored them after making sure that she was wearing her clothes and didn’t put on something of Asami’s by mistake.

Air Temple Island was only starting to wake up as Korra climbed the steps to the main building. Acolytes were preparing the breakfast and going about their normal duties. She turned the corner to head to her room for a nice nap and almost collided with Pema. “Sorry, Pema!” Korra took a step back.

Pema opened her mouth to say something but the sight of the younger woman’s face stopped the words. A light flush spread across the mother’s cheeks. “So you did tell them. I’m glad it worked out.”

Korra tilted her head in confusion. “How did you know I told them and that it worked out?”

The flush became a true blush as Pema pointed on her lips. “I believe you have some lipstick smeared on your lips.”

A hand dashed up to wipe her lips. When she pulled it back, Korra saw that the pads of her fingers were tinged red. Asami. She grinned sheepishly and wiped her hand against her pants. “Uh yeah it went, um, good.”

Pema laid a comforting hand on Korra’s shoulder. “I wish you three the best.”

“Was there something you wanted to tell me before?” Korra knew that even though Pema knew she was seeing Asami, it wasn’t wise to let the older woman know the other woman in their relationship was Lin.

Pema looked as if she remembered something that she had recently forgotten. “Yes! I was actually looking for you. Breakfast is about to be served and you weren’t in your room.” She grinned knowingly and Korra was reminded that the woman in front of her was once in her shoes. “We were wondering where you went of to.”

The two women strolled to the dining room together. Pema was telling Korra how Meelo wanted to create a search party and scour Republic City, focusing on the restaurants and parks. Korra laughed at that. They entered the dining room and Korra spotted Opal and Kai eating among the other airbenders. The boy continually looked over to where Tenzin’s family was seated and Jinora was glancing back just as much. Tenzin was aware of the fleeting looks and he sat with his arms crossed, grimacing at his untouched porridge. Korra and Pema joined the family and they said their prayers before eating. The fruit at Asami’s mansion was delicious but not very filling, especially after exerting so much energy during the night prior.

“You’re much more relaxed than normal, Korra,” Tenzin said. The young woman he had trained for years usually attacked her food with a voracious appetite but she was taking her time, a soft smile playing on the edges of her lips. “Did something good happen recently?”

“More like something great,” Korra said, thinking about Lin and Asami. She wondered what they were doing now. Lin was probably throwing another criminal behind bars, both figuratively and literally. Asami was likely kicking major business ass in her meeting. Korra looked at Tenzin and felt a smidge of guilt in her gut. She was dating his ex but she didn’t feel guilty about that fact, she felt bad that she didn’t feel bad about seeing Lin. Korra was happy that Tenzin and Pema found each other but he let an incredible woman slip from his fingers. She was lucky that Asami and her were able to get Lin before someone else snatched her away. Korra felt everyone at the table staring at her and realized they were expecting her to say what happened. “It’s a long story and complicated but I’m really happy right now.” Pema must have sensed that Korra didn’t want it to be known she was seeing two people in a polygamous relationship because she added nothing on.

Breakfast went by peacefully. None of them pried into whatever made Korra so happy and the Avatar was grateful of their understanding nature. Korra spotted Kai and Opal getting up to leave and quickly excused herself to catch up with the two. Jinora looked a little envious and Korra gave her a reassuring smile. “Wanna feed the airbison with me after you finish eating?” The airbender got the hint and accepted the invitation without too much eagerness, although she still looked like Korra asked if she wanted to be the next Avatar.

Korra waved the two down just as they were exiting the dining room. “Hi Opal, Kai.” She gestured to the dining room, more specifically Jinora. “Jinora is going to be at the airbison stables. You should go now if you don’t want Tenzin to butt in.” Kai didn’t need any other encouragement. He bid the two a quick farewell and all but ran in the direction of the stables. “How are things?” Korra asked now the two women were alone.

“Good,” Opal answered with a grin. “Kai and I have been exploring the Earth Kingdom, visiting the towns that the Earth Empire touched. There’ve been marked improvements since Kuvira fell from power.” Her smile left her face as she played with her fingers. “Sorry, it’s probably a sore subject for you.”

It wasn’t for Korra but it was obvious that it was for Opal. She knew she was stepping on thin ice at the moment with the missing Spirit Vines and she had to censor herself. “I actually spoke with her a few weeks ago,” Korra said gently.

Opal glanced up at the mention of the name. Korra could see the confliction in her eyes and waited patiently for Opal to get her thoughts in order. “How- how is she?” The shock at the question must have shown on Korra’s face because Opal looked a little ashamed as she explained. “Kuvira was taken in by Mom when she was a kid, we grew up together. Kuvira has done terrible, unforgivable things, but I can’t forget that she was like my only sister.”

Korra took some time processing everything Opal told her and longer in answering her. “She’s doing as well as she can.” She wanted to tell the younger woman that Kuvira was openly helping them but that would be too much information. The less the public knew about the missing Spirit Vines, the better. Even if it was Opal.

Opal took the meager answer and accepted it. “Thank you, Korra.”

“No problem.” Korra left Opal to her thoughts and walked to her room. She shut the door with her foot and struggled to get out of her coat and boots. Korra got under her covers but sleep wouldn’t come to her. She was thinking too much about Kuvira. She saved Korra’s father and helped them defeat Zaheer and the Red Lotus but then she went down the wrong path. In her own way, Kuvira was like the other enemies Korra fought over the years. Kuvira wanted to do what Su did but for the entire Earth Kingdom. She might have been able to as well, if she hadn’t taken her ideologies too far. Korra rolled onto her back and stared at her ceiling. Maybe in the beginning Kuvira had the right intentions. What if Korra set out with the right intention but then she ended up taking her own ideas too far and everyone got hurt because of it? The fear was swiftly pushed out of her mind. Asami and Lin would stop her from getting to that point.

Korra’s eyes drifted close and she slept, dreaming of the Spirit World and how much the two women would love it.

[facetiousfanboy]

Shopping Mall AU 3

Part 1 Part 2

Jasper delivers a fridge, Lapis seeks new employment, and Peridot considers her future. 

-Jasper-

Jasper took a deep breath as she pulled up to the house of Greg Universe. She was driving the delivery truck that belonged to her workplace. She had only the one delivery and installation that day but she was very nervous about it, and she had no idea why. She ran her fingers through her hair and pulled down the visor in the vehicle, opening the small mirror to look at herself. She looked like she normally did, the strips of white skin across her nose, the natural sandy locks that framed her head, the amber eyes. She barely wore any makeup aside from her winged eyelashes. She ran a hand through her hair briefly.

She turned off the vehicle and climbed out. She took the time to look at the house. It was a single story building that fit in perfectly with the environment around it, that of a beach with some hills in the background. The beach had a handful of other homes on it but only one of them was close to this one and it was set up differently. The house before her looked barely big enough for one family. She turned her mind to the task at hand. She just had to get this finished and she would be done for the day. She walked around to the back of the truck and opened it up.

After she got the ramp set up she took the dolly from its secure place on the wall and moved it where the refrigerator was strapped on the side. She carefully put the dolly under the fridge and used a strap to secure it. She could probably have carried the entire appliance on her shoulders but she had to stick to safety regulations. She wheeled the fridge out and down to the beach, taking it to the front door and ringing the doorbell. She pulled out her phone a moment later so she could have the “Delivery & Installation” sheet signed as soon as the door was answered.

It took only a few moments for the door to be opened but Jasper was surprised when it was not opened by Greg but rather a small boy with black curly hair and curious eyes. He smiled at her. “Hi there, I’m Steven. Can I help you?” Jasper thought the boy looked familiar for some reason.

She hesitated before answering. “I’m Jasper, I’ve got a delivery for Greg Universe. Is this his home?” She looked past the boy and into the house, expecting to see Greg or some indication that this was the right place.

Steven nodded. “Yeah! He's working on the sink in his bedroom. I’m his son, Steven.”

That surprised Jasper. She hasn’t seen any wedding band on Greg's finger when she was selling him the refrigerator and so she thought he wasn’t married and therefore had no children. She mentally hit herself for assuming so much about a man she barely knew.

“Good. I've brought his refrigerator. Can you get him for me? I need him to sign this before I can get started.” She showed him the electronic contract.

Steven nodded. “Sure,” he opened the door wide for her. “Come on in, I’ll be right back.”

She hesitated before wheeling the heavy kitchen appliance through the doorway and standing in the living room. She looked around at the home. It was average with a couch, recliner, tv, and a guitar on a stand. There was even a cat laying in the middle of the room. She sighed softly. She began to think about the last time she had been in a place like this. She rubbed her arm uncomfortably, trying to get used to it.

Jasper lived in a single apartment, it was small but comfortable. She had lived there since she had moved out of her family's home a couple years previously. The last time she had even been in anything similar to the surroundings she was in now was when she had been dating Persimmon Diamond. That woman had been one of the best things to ever happen to her, but now she was gone, and Jasper had no idea why. She did know that the other Diamond sisters thought the one responsible was a woman by the name of Rose Quartz. Jasper had never tried to confront that woman, but she had wanted to, every day since Persimmon’s disappearance she had wanted to march over to that store across the street, throw down the door of her office, and make that woman tell her what had happened to Persimmon. But she knew that wouldn’t solve anything, and that Persimmon wouldn't want her to do that either.

That was another reason she was so nervous. She had been thinking about Greg ever since she had helped him in the store. She didn’t know why but his presence had filled her with a sense of ease, one she had not felt for a long time. She had been considering asking him out all week but she was more hesitant now that she knew he had a son. She didn’t even know if he was married or not.

Greg finally emerged from the hallway. He was dressed in just a white undershirt and jeans and was wiping his hands, which were covered in grease, on a dirty rag. He smiled at her, his brow covered in sweat. “Hi there. Your name was Jasper right?” He had remembered her name. She nodded.

“Yeah, I’m here to deliver and install your fridge, I just need a signature before I can get started.” In truth she didn’t actually need the signature until the installation was done but it was easier to get it first. She held the phone and accompanying stylus out for him to take.

The little boy, Steven he said his name was, walked out behind Greg but quickly moved to stand beside him. Greg stepped forward. “Right, of course.” He took the phone and stylus from her and quickly put his signature on it the screen. “There you go.” He smiled and took a step back.

“I assume you met my son Steven?” He gestured to the boy who moved forward and craned his head back to look up at Jasper. He smiled.

She looked at Greg and nodded. “Yes. I didn’t know you had a son.”

Greg chuckled. “Well He’s not just mine. He really takes after his mother don’t you Steven?”

Steven smiled and nodded. “Yeah, my mom is really cool.”

Jasper felt her heart sink. She could assume from how the two talked about her that Steven's mother was alive and probably married to Greg. “I see. Well I’ll get started on the installation now if you'd like.”

Greg smiled and nodded. “Right. Do you mind if Steven keeps you company? He won’t get in your way.”

“Yeah, I’ll just watch you and help if I can.”

“You see the water in the bathroom isn’t working and I’m afraid I’ve got to fix it. I should be done before too much longer though.”

Jasper hesitated. She had never been very good with children, maybe if the kid just sat in the corner and let her work everything would be fine. She nodded. “Sure, as long as he doesn’t get in the way.” She really didn’t want him to watch her but she would allow it for now.

Steven smiled and followed Jasper as she wheeled the refrigerator into the kitchen. The kitchen was small, big enough for maybe two people to stand in at the same time, and even then she imagined they would bump into each other a lot. Jasper quickly noticed the spot against the wall where the appliance would go and wheeled it into place. She made certain it was positioned correctly before unlatching it from the dolly and pulling the piece of equipment away. She put it back in the living room where it would be out of her way while she worked then moved behind the fridge.

Steven moved and sat on a counter where he could observe her. He swung his feet idly and hummed a soft tune to himself. “Miss Jasper, how did you start working at Zears?” He eventually asked after a few minutes, growing bored with just sitting there.

Jasper looked at him from behind the refrigerator. She considered telling him to be quiet but maybe the talk would actually help her nerves. “I applied to work there a couple years ago. I was working at a construction company before that but it was tough work and I wanted something more stable, so I applied and was hired.” There were other reasons too, like her foreman being a jerk and how out of place she felt in the construction industry, but that was her problem, not this kids.

Steven smiled. “Wow you were a construction worker? No wonder you look so strong!”

Jasper nodded, focusing on hooking up the fridge correctly. “I work out. Go to the gym every other day and train at home as well. I can bench five hundred easy.” She was proud of her body and all the work she had put into it. She had grown up with self-conscious feelings as a result of people in her school making fun of her for her skin and his stocky she was. So she had worked to make herself stronger so nobody would make fun of her.

“Do you play any sports?” Steven asked, his curiosity about this woman was only growing.

Jasper finally finished the hookup and moved around to the front of the fridge. “Yeah, I played football in high school.” She was getting tired of talking about herself. “What about you? Do you like living here?”

“Yeah, it's really nice living on a beach. You can go swimming whenever you want and the sun always shines. Dad and Mom work really hard to keep our home in good condition too.”

Jasper carefully grabbed the front of the fridge. “Who's your mom? I don’t think I’ve met her.” She lifted the fridge and moved it back into the space.

“My mom is Rose Quartz.” Steven exclaimed, smiling.

Jasper froze, letting go of the fridge and turning to look at Steven. She looked him over. She had thought something about him looked familiar, she had thought it was simply a likeness to Greg but now that she looked closer she could see the shape of his face, the eagerness in his eyes, the energy that she recognized belonging to Rose Quartz. She began to take deep breaths and clenched her hand.

She couldn’t believe it. She was in Rose’s home, talking to his son, she had been attracted to her husband… She felt sick.

Steven seemed to notice because his expression changed to one of concern and he held a hand out towards her. “Jasper? Are you okay?”

Jasper looked at Steven with a cold expression. She felt a growl begin to grow in the back of her throat. She put a hand over her face and forced herself to calm down, taking deep breaths and counting to ten in her head. She never liked her temper, it was one of her weaknesses, it had made her lash out at others, made her hurt people. She waited until she had calmed down before looking at Steven.

Steven was watching her with a worried expression. “Jasper, are you okay?” He asked again. Jasper’s brow furrowed in confusion and annoyance.

“I’m fine!” She turned back to the fridge and pushed it into place, leaning against it. “I’m just,” she paused, trying to decide what to say, “I’m just a little winded.”

Steven got up and walked out of the kitchen. He came back a moment later with a bottle of water and held it out to her. “Here, this should help.”

Jasper looked at the bottle like it was a snake trying to bite her. She reluctantly took it and drank slowly, glancing at Rose’s son as she did. After she had her drink she looked at him. “Thank you… can you go fetch your father please. I’m nearly done but I need him for the next part.”

Steven smiled and saluted. “Yes ma'am!” He left her to do as she asked.

As soon as he was out of sight Jasper slammed her fist into her leg. “Dammit! Keep it together,” she whispered to herself. She had to think her way through this, but first she had to finish getting the fridge set up. She opened it and checked to make sure it was producing a cold environment and that the lights worked. She focused on the settings next.

Greg entered the kitchen a moment later. “Hey Jasper, Steven said you needed me for something?”

Jasper looked at him. “Yes, Greg, I need to know what settings you want the fridge at. I figured we could just do this while I’m here.”

Greg smiled and nodded. “Of course.” They spent a few minutes adjusting the settings on the fridge. After that Jasper showed Greg some of the features and guided him through how to make water and ice come from the door. As they worked Jasper studied Greg, she didn't understand it, how could this man be with a woman like Rose Quartz, it defied all reason. They soon finished the settings for the fridge.

After they were finished Greg smiled and held a hand out towards Jasper. “Thanks for your help!”

Jasper hesitantly took his hand and shook it. She looked at him seriously. “Greg, can we talk outside?” Greg seemed surprised but he agreed and followed her out. Jasper grabbed the dolly on the way and took it to the truck. Once there she secured it in the back.

“So what was it you wanted to speak with me about Jasper?” Greg asked. He stood outside the truck, watching her.

Jasper finished securing the dolly and walked to the back of the truck. “It's more of a question, I hope you will be able to answer it…” She hopped down and closed the truck, locking it. “Do you know who Persimmon Diamond was?”

Greg started at the question, completely taken off guard. “Persimmon Diamond?” He seemed to be sweating. “I know who she was, a philanthropist, a woman of ambition…” Greg looked at Jasper. He seemed to know what this was really about. “But ask what you really want to know.”

Jasper scowled. “Did your wife kill her?”

Greg sighed. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked that over the years. I used to flounder at first, unsure of how to answer, so I finally asked Rose about what happened. She wouldn’t tell me. So I’ll tell you what I tell everybody else. No. My wife would never hurt anyone.”

Jasper punched the back of the truck, causing the door to shudder. “Don’t lie to me! Tell me the truth, I don’t care what it is, I just need to know…” Jasper felt the tears rolling down her cheeks a few moments later. She reached a hand up and wiped them away frantically. “Dammit!”

Greg jumped when Jasper hit the truck. His face quickly changed to a look of fright and then to one of concern when he saw her crying. He held a hand out towards her. “Jasper, are you okay?”

Jasper smacked his hand away. “No! The woman I loved has been gone for years! I’m not okay!” She felt herself shaking. She grabbed onto the side of the truck. She had to take a moment to gain a fraction of her composure. “Please… Please just tell me.”

Greg looked down and let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. I’ve asked Rose, time and time again, she won’t tell me what happened between her and Pink. All I know is that Rose never talks about her like she’s dead… If you really want to know what happened you’ll have to ask her.”

Jasper looked away. “Fine then.” She growled. “I hope I never see you or your son again.” She pushed past him and headed towards the driver’s seat of the truck.

Greg followed her. “Thank you for installing the fridge. I’m sorry again…” He turned and walked away, not wanting to bother her anymore.

Jasper didn’t look at him again. She turned on the truck and pulled away, going down the road, trying to get as far from the house as she could. She stopped partway down the road and pulled to the side. She fought the tears as they came to her eyes, she lost, crying as she thought of Pink, of how she had lost her, how she had mourned her. She made a decision there in that moment. She would find out what had happened to the love of her life, no matter what.

-Lapis-

Lapis Lazuli didn’t consider herself a weak woman. She had gone through hell and high water in her early years, suffering at the hands of her parents until she was old enough to escape. She had fled to college, trying to study the arts like she had always dreamed of, but her bills began to pile up and she soon had to drop out or risk being overwhelmed by debt. She had fled to this small town near the beach and had been here for years now, doing what little she could to survive in the unforgiving world.

She had always felt trapped, like she couldn’t ever really escape this prison that was life. She had been fighting to get out but to no success. She was trapped in a dead end job, looked down on by people who considered her trash, it was maddening. Then she had met people who treated her like a person, a man and his son, both laughed and talked to her like she wasn’t just some creature made to serve them food. Then the boy had offered her a way out.

Lapis stood outside of the store called Terra and looked up at it. It didn’t look especially impressive, when compared to the mall it was really kind of small and ugly. Lapis hugged herself, considering just running away and never looking back. Maybe she didn’t deserve to work anywhere but at that place. Maybe that was to be her prison.

“Lapis?” A voice spoke to her, it was familiar and made her jump in surprise. She looked down and saw the boy named Steven. He was looking up at her in surprise but a smile quickly decorated his features. “Hey, it’s me Steven! You look really pretty in that dress.”

Lapis looked at her blue sundress. It had a pattern on the front like a diamond. She didn’t think it was anything special but she still found herself smiling. The other’s mood was so infectious. She blushed lightly. “Thank you. I like your shirt.”

Steven pulled at his red shirt with the yellow star emblazoned on the front. He chuckled. “Thanks!” A thought occurred to him. “Wait, are you here to apply for a job?”

Lapis looked down at her sandals and brushed her feet together nervously. “I was thinking about it, but I’m not sure if I’m good enough to work here.”

Steven moved up and touched her hand. “I’m sure you’d be a perfect fit. Come on! I’ll introduce you to Pearl and help to get you that interview!” He pulled at her arm, dragging her into the store. She was surprised by his strength and she stumbled a moment before following.

Steven led her through the store. As she moved Lapis got to look around at the store. It was small, filled with various items to sell and having a few small departments, there weren’t many customers around, and there were hardly any employees either. After a bit of walking they reached a section selling home goods, things like towels, furniture, candles, plates, and some other things. Steven pulled Lapis up to a thin woman with pale pink hair. She turned and smiled at Steven but the smile quickly turned to a look of puzzlement when she spotted Lapis.

Steven finally stopped and smiled up at the woman. “Hi Pearl!”

Pearl smiled. “Greetings Steven. Please don’t shout in the store.”

Steven became bashful. “Oh, sorry.” He looked down.

Pearl smiled. “It's perfectly alright. Now, why don’t you introduce me to your friend?” She gestured to Lapis.

Steven stepped back and took a hold of Lapis’ hand again. “This is Lapis. She's looking for a job.”

Pearl seemed surprised by that and looked up at Lapis. “Really?”

Lapis took a deep breath and stepped forward, holding her hand out towards Pearl. “My name is Lapis Lazuli and I'd like to work here miss.”

Pearl regarded the hand for a brief moment before shaking it. “Very well. Give me just a few moments to get somebody to watch my section then we can have out interview.”

Lapis nodded and gripped at her dress nervously. “Thank you miss.”

Pearl nodded. “Steven, please show her to the office, I’ll conduct the interview there.”

Steven gave her an affirmation then took Lapis' hand and led her further into the store until they reached an office in the back. Once there Steven had her sit down in a chair and then sat beside her.

“That woman, she seemed very… prudish.” Lapis stated.

Steven giggled. “She's always like that. But she's really nice deep down and she always does her best to encourage others.” He insisted.

Lapis nodded and then sat in silence, planning out how the interview would go in her head and preparing her responses already. After so many applications at other jobs she had a lot of experience with interviews, but that didn’t make her any less nervous.

Steven eventually stood up. “Excuse me but I have to get going. My mom promised we would go to the community gardens today. I hope you get the job though, I’d like to see you working someplace where you can smile.”

Lapis looked at Steven in surprise but nodded. “Thank you Steven.” She smiled a little despite herself and waved as he left her, going to a large woman with beautiful pink hair. Lapis couldn’t quite make out the woman's face but she could see her smile as the woman lifted Steven into the air and brought him into a loving hug. The two left, walking towards the front of the store and soon passing out of sight completely.

Pearl arrived at the back a few moments later, a look of complete seriousness decorated her features. She had grabbed a clipboard at some point and held it in one hand as she moved to stand before Lapis. “If you’re ready let us go into the office and begin.”

Lapis hesitantly rose and nodded. She took one final breath before steeling her nerves and nodding, taking on a more serious demeanor. “I’m ready.”

Pearl led her back into the office and closed the door behind her. After they both took their seats the interview began.

-Peridot-

Peridot groaned as she sipped down her third cup of coffee. It was one of her few and blessed days off from work and she had been spending the better part of the day trying to wake herself up enough to properly focus on the tasks she had to perform. Her corgi, Pumpkin, came up and put his front paws on her leg, looking up at her with a curious expression.

Peridot smiled slightly as she lowered a hand to his head and scratched behind his ears, causing the little dog to display a doggy grin and tilt his head against her hand. After she pulled her hand away he jumped up onto the couch and moved to lay with his head on her lap.

Peridot chuckled softly and began to pet him slowly as she lifted up her notepad. She had been going over her expenses for the last few months and could tell that between what she was making and how much she had to pay each month she was just barely scraping by. She looked down at her dog and sighed.

“Well boy, what are we going to do?”

Pumpkin lifted his head and tilted it, causing his ears to flop to the side. He nudged at her stomach with his nose.

She nodded. “You’re right of course, we can’t keep going like this, I've barely got enough to feed both of us and make the rent on this place. Even working three jobs I’m not making enough.” She set the paper down and then frowned as her hand began to shake. She set the coffee cup down and grabbed the hand, rubbing it.

“The lack of sleep seems to be having an adverse effect on my health as well. Even with the coffee I’m having trouble keeping myself awake.” She lifted her glasses and rubbed at her eyes. Pumpkin whined softly in response and licked the hand closest to him.

Peridot went back to petting him. “I think that there are currently three solutions to our conundrum. Either I find a new place with cheaper rent that will also allow me to have pets, get a better paying job, or I find a roommate.”

Pumpkin barked at that. Peridot chuckled. “Sorry, another roommate. Preferably one with a source of income, unlike you,” she lifted the pup up so she could look him in the eye. “You freeloader.” She glared softly.

Pumpkin just panted and leaned forward to cover her face in doggy kisses. Her resolve quickly fell under his assault and she hugged him close. “Why can’t I stay mad at you?” Pumpkin nuzzled against her and licked her cheek. After she pulled away he moved to lay in her lap again. She went back to petting him.

“We'll figure something out boy.” Her mind began to work, deciding how best to go about tackling this issue. She slowly leaned back and began to doze off as she thought, taking a short nap.

-Lapis-

Lapis stepped out of the office with a stunned look on her face. Pearl followed, closing the door behind her. “Alright Miss Lazuli, thank you for the interview. I think that you will be a perfect fit for the store and I’m excited to have you become a part of the team.” She smiled and held a hand out for the young lady to shake.

Lapis looked at the hand briefly before grabbing it and shaking, not losing the stunned look. “Thank you.” She couldn’t believe it, after months of interviews, being rejected time and time again she had finally found a place that wanted to hire her. She kept shaking Pearl's hand for longer than she should have and blushed when she realized, quickly pulling her hand back. “I’m sorry!”

Pearl chuckled. “It's perfectly alright, I can tell you’re enthusiastic to get started.” She flipped through the papers on her clipboard until she found the one she was looking for. “Tell me how does Tuesday of next week sound to you?”

Lapis smiled, fighting back tears of happiness. “That sounds great.”

Pearl nodded. “Excellent. Please be here at seven a.m. to get started. Garnet will be seeing to your training and we'll have your uniform ready for you. If anything should happen that would cause you to be unable to begin working on that day simply give us a call at this number.” She held out a business card which Lapis quickly took.

Lapis looked at the card, it was a simple design with bold letters and had Pearls name, a telephone number, and the address of the store written on it. She quickly tucked it into her purse. “Thank you again.”

Pearl nodded. “Quite alright, quite alright.” She waved her hand. “For now why don’t you go home and get some rest? You look like you could use it.”

Lapis nodded. “Yes, yes I think I will. Have a nice day.” She turned and walked briskly, heading out of the store. A smile was plastered across her features as she moved down the sidewalk, unable to believe she had actually done it. She felt like she was flying. She went home excited to quite that horrible job at the mall and start her new one at the store called Terra. She felt like things were finally starting to look up for her.

-The Boss-

The woman pressed the button on her phone, dialing her secretary. The phone was answered before the first ring even finished. “Yes ma'am?”

The woman pressed the tips of her fingers together and leaned back in her chair. “I’d like to call a board meeting for later this week. We need to begin planning for the holiday rush. Do you understand?”

“Yes Miss Diamond, I’ll get it organized.” Her secretary responded.

Yasmine Diamond nodded and stared at the phone with a cold, calculating gaze. “Good. I want everything to be ready. We cannot afford to fall behind this year.”

“I understand miss.” There was a pause. “Do you still want that report on the Terra store?”

Yasmine’s face showed the briefest glimpse of a scowl at the mention of that store and she was glad that the other could not see her face. She kept her voice neutral as she responded. “Yes, have it delivered to my office as soon as it is finished.”

She hung up on the other after saying that and slowly stood. She walked over to the window on the side of her office and pushed apart two of the blinds to look out across the parking lot at Terra. She clenched her free hand into a fist and took a few deep breaths. She could not allow this to register on an emotional level.

She looked at a picture on her desk. The picture displayed four women, all of them smiling, standing out on a sunny day and posing for a picture. Yasmine picked up the picture and focused on one figure in particular, the one dressed in pink.

“What would you say if you were here now?” She pondered aloud. She set the picture down with great care. “You would probably disagree with what we have done, how we have changed… but you were always different.” She raised a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes. “I won’t stop now, I can’t.” She sat down again and pulled open the files on her computer files. “I’m sorry sister.”

She opened a file on Terra and read through it, going deep into thought about what her next move would be against the business and its owner. The horrible Rose Quartz.

Hey look, plot. Thank you for reading and please like, reblog, and comment. The next part has to do with the struggles the Crystal Gems have running a store. 

Part 4

[the-meddling-kids]

Test

Test post

Chapter 1

“Back it up, Slim!” Eddy yelled as Rolf put his tractor in reverse.Ed, Edd, and Eddy had convinced Rolf to help them drag the old busted up van out of the junkyard. The Eds had pooled the money they received that summer working odd jobs to repair the van, or at least get it in running condition. It was the summer before their senior year, and as far as they were concerned, they needed a set of wheels. What better car could they ask for than the van they spent many a day in when they were younger?

“Eddy, there was one thing we overlooked.” Edd said as he observed Rolf hook the van up to the tractor.

“What’s that, Double D?” Eddy asked.

“Where are we going to keep the van while we repair it?”

Eddy looked toward Ed, who waved his hands in the negative.

“No way guys. My mom would kill me.” Ed said.

“Well we can’t keep it at my place. It’s gotta be yours, Sockhead.” Eddy said.

“Now hold on, gentlemen, we never discussed this. While I’m not against the idea, I would need to get the confirmation from my parents.”

The Eds were interrupted by the loud noise of the tractor’s engine revving as it tried to get the van rolling.

“Are we even sure it’s even gonna roll?” Eddy asked, disrupting Edd’s protests.

“Not for long,” Edd replied, “The air will hopefully last until we reach the cul de sac.”

“Well you better hurry and get your garage ready, no telling what this thing is still leaking. I’m pretty sure something lived in there at one point.” Eddy said.

Edd hung his head in defeat and followed as Rolf guided the tractor through the side streets to avoid traffic.  The van was carefully maneuvered into the driveway and Edd thanked Rolf for his help.

“It is no worries, Ed boys. I am glad to help out.” Rolf said jovially as he roughly patted Edd on the back. He was much taller and more muscular than Edd, so he was staggered by the raw strength Rolf put into his friendly expression. Edd also noticed that Rolf had picked up more on English phrases, though his accent was still thick. “Good luck, Ed boys, you are going to need it for this hunk of junk.”

“Thanks Rolf, you’re probably right, but we might as well try. See you later.” Edd waved goodbye to Rolf as Eddy walked up with Ed in tow. Ed was holding a rather large toolbox on his shoulder.

“Are those the automotive tools Ed?” Edd asked.

“Yeah, I grabbed what you wrote down.” Ed said as he produced a crumpled note from his pocket.

“Go ahead and set it over there.” Edd pointed to the garage. He already had most of the tools needed, but his tool collection was more for tinkering with appliances and his inventions, not for cars.

“There was some stuff I couldn’t get Double D.”

Edd grabbed the list and could see that most of the items were crossed off.

“We still need an engine lift and we need some heavy duty jacks so we can get under it.” Edd said as he began to think of where they could acquire the items.

“Can you think of anyone who’s got that? I don’t want to spend our cash buying it unless we have to. We have a budget to stick to.” Eddy said as he crawled under the car.

Edd racked his brain but couldn’t think of anyone who could lend them the specialized equipment. It seemed that they would have to go out and purchase it.

“We have to go out and buy it.” Eddy said, voicing what Edd was thinking, “How much will that set us back Double D?”

Edd pulled out his notepad and began doing some basic calculations.

“Well we need to get the heavy duty jacks since the van is a large vehicle, that should be under a hundred dollars, but the engine lift is another story. The lift will cost more, and the prices vary in the hundreds.” Edd said.

“Well shit,” Eddy said as he kicked the now deflated tire, “We barely got the cash for replacement parts. Well go ahead and get it, I’ll see if I can get my parents to cover some of this. Ed, go schmooze your folks too. Sockhead, you can go to the store and get it ordered. We don’t have that much time before school is back in session and I’m tired of hearing Kevin bragging about his set of wheels.” Eddy said.

“You want me to go now? I was planning on inspecting the vehicle further.” Edd said.

“Yeah, now. We’re going to need it one way or another and I want it sooner, rather than later. Come on Ed, let’s get to our houses and start working our parents.” Eddy said as he motioned to Ed and started walking towards his house.

“Catch ya later Double D” Ed said as he entered his own house.

Edd was left by the van.

‘I guess there’s no point in arguing. It is probably for the best anyway. I don’t think I would trust Ed or Eddy to purchase something of this importance.’ He thought.

He checked his watch and it read just after  2 pm. He started the walk that would lead him to the main road. There was an auto shop that should be able to provide him with the equipment he needed, or at least point him in the right direction.

--------Break--------

The bell over the door chimed as Edd entered the office of the automotive repair shop on Main Street. It was a short walk, but with the July sun beating down on him, Edd was starting to sweat under his beanie. He walked through the aisles of tools and parts up to the unmanned desk. He looked for anyone to help him, but there was no one in the immediate vicinity. He rang the small bell on the counter and waited. Still there was no response.

“Hello” He said, leaning over the counter to peer into the repair shop. He could hear noises coming from that area, obviously human, but none that were getting louder to indicate they were coming to help him. Annoyed with the lack of customer service, Edd walked behind the counter into the shop area. It was a typical automotive repair shop. There were some cars lifted into the air on lifts and parked into the lanes where mechanics could work on it many parts and tools line the walls. The noises he heard were from only one person underneath a dingy red truck. He could hear the cranking of tools and muffled expletives followed by a deluge of oil. Edd saw the persons legs flail as they tried to scoot out from under the car as it spewed oil. Thinking quickly, Edd bent down and grabbed the person’s legs and dragged them out from under the car. The body glided easily since it was on a wheeled platform, but Edd was shocked at who the person was.

“Man, I just got these,” Marie Kanker exclaimed as she tried to brush the excess oil off of her clothing, “Thanks for pulling me out, I only got a bit on me.” She still hadn’t looked up at Edd.

Edd was debating on whether or not he should just run now, or stay and try to get the parts. Over the years since Jr. High, the Kankers had not lost interest in the Eds. Although their fervor decreased as they got older; they still favored the Eds as targets for their affections. They had a shaky truce with each other. There was no more kidnapping, or impromptu make out sessions, but that didn’t stop the Kankers from cornering the Eds every now and then and giving them a hard time.

‘This is the only major automotive repair shop in the town. I’ll just have to deal with it. Eddy is going to owe me, big time.’ Edd thought.

“I guess today just isn’t my day,” Marie said as she finished wiping her face free of oil. She looked up at Edd, a wide smile appearing on her face, “or maybe it is. Hey there, sweetie.”

She stood and kissed Edd on the cheek. He didn’t fight it, just blushed heavily. He knew that if he let her have this, she would be less likely to harass him further.

“H-hello Marie, I was unaware that you worked here.” Edd said as Marie pushed an oil pan underneath the car. He followed her over to a workbench where she began cleaning herself more thoroughly.

“Yup, just started a couple of months ago. Turns out I’m pretty handy around a car. Mostly been doing oil changes and minor repairs, mostly being the office bitch. Did you come to visit your girlfriend?”

She began to take off her coveralls, being careful to avoid the oil. Edd couldn’t help but notice as she unzipped the front and he began to blush anew. Marie caught this and started to do it more slowly, hoping to get a reaction out of him. She chuckled when he began to stutter as he spoke, she felt happy that she had this effect on him.

“N-no I’m just here t-to order some parts,” Edd said, trying to keep his gaze on her face. He wouldn’t deny that Marie was attractive, from an objective point of view, he told himself.

“Oh really, what for? I didn’t know you got a car.” She said.

“We are attempting to resurrect the old van from the junkyard.” Edd said.

Marie began to laugh at the thought of the van.

“That old junker? The one with the flames on it? I remember me and my sisters chasing you guys into it a couple of times. I could have sworn that it rusted itself into the ground.” She said trying to stop the giggles escape form her mouth.

“Actually, the frame appears quite sound, and any rust is mostly superficial. The engine, however, is completely shot, which is why I’m here.”

“Oh, I see,” Marie turned to Edd and pouted, sticking out her bottom lip in an exaggerated frown, “You didn’t come here to see little old me?”

Edd just looked at her, waiting for her to break. Marie quivered her bottom lip and sniffled. They had played this game before, many times in fact. Marie was unwavering in her hurt facade. Edd just sighed and admitted defeat.

“No Marie, but it is nice to see that you've become gainfully employed.”

Marie smirked. She always won that game. She finished removing her coveralls and kicked them to the side. She picked at her sleeveless tee shirt, trying to pick the oil apart from the black of the fabric and assessing the damage. She made a show of it, glancing at Edd hoping to catch him staring. He was too respectful to ogle, but she knew he'd slip eventually.

“It's okay that you're glad to see me, I won't tell anyone. Except I will tell everyone. Now stop flirting with me and let's talk cars.”

She put a finger to her chin and cocked her head to the side.

“Or keep flirting with me. Can't say no to more of that.”

Edd sighed, wondering why all of their conversations ended up this way. He'd say he was exasperated, but he'd become used to it. They began walking back to the designated customer area.

“I'll choose to talk cars, thank you. Now I am here to inquire about obtaining a set of heavy duty jacks and an engine hoist. Those are the only other tools we need, everything else has already been acquired.” Edd said as  he pulled out the notepad, double checking that they wouldn't need anything else. While reading, he didn't notice Marie walking around the table to stand behind him until she rested her chin on his shoulder. He flinched at the contact, but shifted the paper so she could read it better.

“Hmmm. This is a pretty thorough list, no surprise there. The jacks are pretty cheap but the hoist is pricey.” She continued to read through the list, wrapping her arms around Edd's waist and pulling him close. She could feel him tense up, recognizing this as his boundary for personal contact.

'Just a couple more minutes,' she thought to herself.

Edd tucked the list back into his pocket.

“This wasn't planned in our budget, but it is a necessity for repairs. We will find some way to acquire the money, but I need to know a price so I can keep track of expenditures.” Edd said, shifting his body away from Marie's, however slightly he could.

“Why not just rent one?” Marie said, letting go of Edd and returning the the other side of the counter. “It'd be cheaper and then you won't have to worry about having to store it forever.”

Edd thought for a second.

“I had considered the possibility, but I researched on the internet of all local establishments and found none nearby that would rent to teenagers.”

Marie reached under the counter, shuffling through some binders until she found the one she wanted.

“Guess it's both our lucky day, because we could rent it to you. You'd have to meet some conditions first.” she said.

“This establishment was not listed as renting equipment, although I suppose I shouldn't be surprised since their website was outdated.” Edd murmured to himself, making a note to contact stores directly. “Wait, what conditions?”

“Well first you'd need a parent or guardian to fill out this form. “she said as she began sliding various papers across the desk. “Then we'd both inspect the hoist to ensure no mechanical problems and sign a liability release form. You'd have to take me out to dinner this Thursday. Fill out this form stating intended purpose and repairs needed. Then we would determine how long you'd be renting for and adjust rates based off of that.” Marie shut the binder and pulled out a folder and handed it to Edd, “Use this to keep track of you paperwork.” Edd began mentally taking notes, comparing his and his parents' schedules and when they intersect. Looking through the papers he noticed a piece of receipt paper with number written on it. He then fully realized what she had said. He glanced at her.

“One of those steps doesn't sound like standard operating procedure for renting equipment, Marie.” he said, recognizing that it was a phone number she had written down.

“Aw come on. Everyone knows schmoozing the employees makes everything go faster. If it's somewhere nice, I could convince my boss to fast track this. Having me vouch for you would only make things easier for you. And we haven't been on a date in forever.” Marie said, resuming her pout.

Edd met Marie's gaze. He was at war with himself. An ingrained fear of Marie, cultivated by years of torment versus the allure of being able to drive. Dinner wasn't too expensive and they would be able to affect repairs faster. But on the other hand, he'd have to deal with Marie and her advances.

“Suppose I agree to this, how would you guarantee that my request would be expedited?” Edd said.

Marie put her hand to her chest, pretending to be shocked.

“Honey, have I ever lied to you?” she said

“Yes, on multiple occasions” Edd said

“I haven't lied to you since we were kids, I'm offended”

“Last week you told me my shoe was untied, then jumped on my back yelling 'piggyback' when I bent down to fix it.”

“That's a fib at best. Besides I'm at work and I can't lie to customers. At least not anymore.” Marie crossed her arms across her chest.

Edd sighed for what felt like the hundredth time.

“We can talk about why you can't lie at work anymore on Thursday. I'll meet you at the Sushi place on main street at 7. No funny business or I walk.” Edd said, crossing his arms as well.

The two stared at each other, Edd managing to maintain eye contact. The Kanker's didn't intimidate him as much as they used to. Granted they still did, but he found out that the more he caved, the worse they got.

“We both know you wouldn't walk out on me” Marie said after a moment.

“Try me.” Edd retorted,

Marie leaned across the counter, pushing her face as close to Edd's as possible.

“I love it when you get all aggressive like that. Really revs my engine.” Marie purred, walking her fingers up Edd's chest and coming to rest at his shoulder. As she leaned in, Edd leaned back

“M-marie, please. F-f-fine, you win. Now please return to your side of the counter so you don't fall.” Edd blurted out, almost overbalancing.

Marie lingered for a moment, both savoring their close proximity and proving to Edd that she could push back too. She leaned back to her side of the counter and began typing into the computer next to her.

“Fine,” she said, typing away at the keyboard. “But you need to give me your number so I can call you when the paperwork goes through.” She slid a contact form across the counter along with a pen. “Fill that out and you'll be in the system. One last thing, we need a deposit on the hoist. Minimum rent time is a week and the deposit is a two hundred dollars. If you return the hoist early, we can prorate it and give you money back.”

Edd filled the paperwork out, hesitating at the phone number field. Marie glanced over and saw him pause.

“I promise I won't use it to contact you other than rental related purposes. At least until you give me your phone number yourself.” Marie said

“Forgive me for not being immediately trusting.” Edd murmured, albeit a little too loudly

“That's harsh. Fair, given our history, but harsh Double D.” Marie said

Edd flushed, meaning not to be heard. Usually he wouldn't be so snide but the ordeal had tired him in a way that made him flippant.

“I'm sorry, that was cruel of me. Here,” he said, sliding the form over fully completed,” I suppose I can trust you this much at least.”

“Alrighty sweetie, I'll be in touch.” Marie said, punctuating her sentence by blowing a kiss at Edd.

“Farewell Marie, have a pleasant day.” Edd said as he began hurrying out of the establishment. Eddy owed him big time.

--------Break--------

The walk back to the cul-de-sac felt like a breath of fresh air compared to what he had just been through. Despite the heat, Edd hurried. It wasn't long until he returned to his house. He saw Ed and Eddy in the back of the van, ripping out the shag carpeting

“Guys, you really should be wearing some protective gear. Some gloves, goggles, and a facemask wouldn't hurt. Who knows what mildew and other bacteria could have been fermenting in there.” Edd said as he reached the garage, already going to the toolbox to retrieve said items. “Honestly that vehicle is ancient. Safety precautions need to be followed.”

Eddy groaned, patting Ed on the back to get him to stop.

“Come on sockhead, we both know Ed's room is worse than this hunk of junk.”

Edd held out the gear to his friends.

“We had an agreement gentlemen. My garage, my rules.”

Eddy and Ed took the gear and began putting them on. Ed picked up the pieces of carpeting they had torn out and put them into a nearby trash can.

“Jeez guys, my room isn't that bad.” Ed said. Eddy and Edd gave him a pointed look. “Well, not anymore.”

“Yeah cuz we almost had to call the CDC on that disaster. It was a chemical warzone in there. But that's beside the point. You get what you need at the shop Double D?” Eddy said, turning his attention to Edd. “Looks like you forgot something there genius. Where's the jacks?”

Edd started, realizing that he hadn't purchase the jacks. He had been too distracted by Marie. It was enough for him at the time to  get out of there unscathed.

“About that.” Edd began, donning a set of coveralls and protective gear himself, “It appears a friend of ours has begun working at the automotive shop I went to acquire tools from. They distracted me enough that I didn't remember to get the jacks.”

“Well didja at least get the hoist? And who works there? Did they at least give you a discount?” Eddy asked.

“I didn't get the hoist. The employee explained that it would be a better idea to rent one rather than own one.” Edd replied.

“Well who works there then?” Ed chimed in.

“Marie Kanker” Edd said

“What?!” Ed and Eddy shouted

Ed ducked back into the van and shut the doors behind him. Eddy continued.

“I'm surprised you even made it back here. Spill it Double D. I want to know how you survived that and why we don't have our equipment.”

Edd reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone.

“I will explain in just a moment my particular predicament. But first, let me call and ask about the jacks.” Edd deftly entered the number for the store, having memorized it that morning during his research. He didn't wait long until it was answered.

“Yeah, what can I do for you?” said a gruff and unrecognized voice.

Edd had expected Marie, but then realized that other people must work there obviously.

“Um, hello, my name is Eddward and I was in your establishment earlier inquiring about renting an engine hoist. During the process I forgot to order a set of heavy duty jacks. I wanted to make sure that I could still order them. I can return to the establishment today if necessary.” Edd said, adopting a respectful tone.

“So you're Edd, huh? I'll go get Marie.” said the voice.

“Wait, that won't be necessary.” Edd said. There was no response, he must have been too late. It wasn't long until he heard the other end get picked up.

“Miss me already? Knew you couldn't stay away for long.” Marie said, voice slightly muffled by the poor connection.

“Hello Marie. I'm calling because I forgot to order the jacks we discussed earlier.”

“Oh those? Don't worry about it, I got a set you can borrow. I'll bring em over when I deliver the hoist. It's gonna be at your house right?”

Edd was surprised, but quickly recovered.

“Thank you Marie, that's very kind of you. Yes the vehicle is at my house.”

“All I'm saying is Thursday better be rad or I might take em back.” She said, playful tone obvious even to Edd.

“Of course Marie, I'll see you then. Thank you again.”

“Later cutie.” Marie said, hanging up the phone.

Edd put his phone in his pocket and turned to face Eddy who looked genuinely confused.

“Since when can you talk with a Kanker and not freak out? And what do you mean by see you then?” Eddy said, opening the van doors and pulling Ed out.

“Well, I'm not sure how to put this.” Edd said wringing his hand together.

“Spit it out, we ain't got all day.” Eddy said. “I gotta get back to my place. I have my own chores to ignore.”

“Marie is going to let us borrow a set of jacks from her. She is also going to expedite the rental process and deliver the hoist and jacks once her manager approves.” Eddy said

“Damn dude, how'd you pull that off. She usually wears the pants in your relationship.” Eddy said, elbowing him lightly in the ribs.

“We're having dinner this Thursday. She made a convincing argument about 'schmoozing', as she put it, the employees to grease the wheels, so to speak.”

Eddy froze for a second, then burst out laughing.

“Good one dork, but I don't believe that for a minute. There's no way you'd agree to that. We don't deal with Kankers. They are to be avoided and scorned.”

“Eddy please, we're going to be seniors. We should handle this more maturely. And yes I did agree to it. It was the easiest way to placate her and provided us with what we needed. I'm not happy with the situation either.” Edd said

“There are other parts stores in town sockhead. You could have always gone there.” Eddy said, turning back to the van and climbing in the back. Muffled swears and the sound of ripping carpet signaling the end of the conversation. Eddy always got surly whenever one of the Kanker sisters got the upper hand on them, however slight. Edd sighed, knowing better than to push the issue.

He moved over to the hood of the car and began inspecting the damage. They had inspected it previously, but now that it was in his garage, he could more accurately list the repairs necessary. Edd began to become dismayed as the list grew ever longer. Some of the more extensive repairs would require significant research. He was confident he could do it, but it would extend the time table considerably. He didn't even want to think about the condition of the motor.

An hour had passed when Eddy and Ed bid their farewells, citing chores. Edd continued to catalog repairs needed for the van to even run. The list was daunting, but after some calculations, he figured they would be able to afford all of them. He glanced at the clock on the wall and decided to call it quits for the day. He needed to do more research and make multiple phone calls. Ed and Eddy had made it clear that they wanted Edd to handle repairs. They would provide whatever help needed and pay a higher share of the costs in return.

'School doesn't start for another month. In a perfect world we would be able to finish this project before school, but we don't. I am sure there are major problems with the motor. Hopefully nothing too expensive.' Edd thought as he peeled of his gloves and coveralls.

A quick shower later and Edd was in his room typing away at the computer, filling out a spreadsheet and combing through automotive repair forums. Some of the obvious repairs, like new spark plugs, new filters, new fluids, those were simple. They'd need to flush the system to clear any debris and clean the carburetor as well. It was easy enough to find a manual online for their particular vehicle. The list of repairs and needed components for the repairs only grew as he continued reading online. He wanted to make sure he did everything correctly.

He took a break from looking up vehicle repairs and began searching for a place for his date. He shuddered at the thought. Marie wasn't so bad, she just knew how to push his boundaries. It was as if making him uncomfortable was a game to her. There were a few new restaurants he wanted to try.

'Maybe I should ask her where she would like to go.” Edd thought, picking up his phone. 'On second thought, I won't. She cornered me into this date so at least I can pick the location.' He dialed the number for the new Mediterranean restaurant by main street. He made the reservation and reached for the folder with the paperwork and Marie's number in it. He dialed the number and took a moment to realize the absurdity of the situation. He was going on a date with a Kanker. He may have been coerced into doing it, but it was still a one on one social interaction. He smiled ruefully at the fact that despite attempting to avoid Marie at all costs, here he was planning a dinner date with her.

'She must be so smug right now,' Edd thought as he hit the call button. It was only a few rings when she picked up.

“Hey, what's up? Who's this?” he heard Marie say.

“Hello Marie, it's Eddward. I called to discuss dinner plans for Thursday.” Edd said, beginning to plan the conversation in his head. She would tease him at first. He would ignore her advances and inform her of the time and place to meet. He would then politely, but firmly insist he had to go back to research and end the call. It was foolproof.

“Oh hey sweetie. You should check out the package on your doorstep.” Marie said.

Edd was confused

“What package? I didn't order anything recently.” Edd got up from his seat and walked to the front door, curiosity derailing his planned conversation. He opened the door to Marie standing on his doorstep, tucking her cell phone in her pocket.

“Pretty sure you ordered about a dozen smooches. Got the order right here.” Marie said, handing a piece of folded paper. Edd unfolded the paper and it just said 'TRICKED U'. He should have known. He dropped the paper as Marie grabbed the side of his face and began pecking it, counting between each one. She got to twelve and stood there, grinning from ear to ear.

“You know I'm surprised you haven't fainted from fear yet.” She said backing away from Edd.

Edd was blushing, as he usually does when Marie gets affectionate. He realized he was getting used to this sort of attention from her and that scared him a little bit. He took time to recollect himself so he wouldn't stutter. It would only give her more ammo against him.

“I haven't fainted since we were thirteen and you know that.” Edd said as firmly as possible.

“Yeah and I'll never forget it.” she said looking to the side as if in rememberance.

Edd rubbed the bridge of his nose. He had a conversation planned with her and it was all for naught. He should have remembered that no battle plan survives contact with the enemy. A lesson he should have realized years ago.

“What are you doing at my house Marie. I distinctly remembering 'no house calls' being part of the truce.”

“First of all, I was delivering your order. Second of all I was delivering your order. Thirdly I wanted to see the van and the state its in. I thought you'd appreciate an experienced eye taking a look at it.” Marie said, counting along her fingers.

“You said delivering my order twice and I will shut this door if its for more smooches, I swear.”

“Why don't you look down Double D and you'll see I actually did bring something for you.”

Edd hesitated, expecting a trick. He glanced down and saw two large metal objects off to the side in a small wagon.

“Are those the jacks? I thought you were going to wait to deliver it with the hoist.”

“Yeah I was gonna wait, but figured since I was still in work clothes I could lug em here. Now open up that garage and lemme take a peek.” She grabbed the handle of the wagon and began wheeling it around the corner to the garage door.

Edd walked back inside the house, then into the garage and opened the door for Marie. She wheeled the wagon in and then walked over to the van. The hood was already propped open so she began inspecting it. Edd began removing the jacks from the wagon. And placing them near the van. He heard Marie humming a tune as she looked at the engine. He waited patiently for a bit until she backed away from the hood and approached him.

“It's just as I thought. I'm so sorry Double D,” Marie said, putting her hand on Edd's shoulder and looking very serious. “It's a piece of shit.”

Edd couldn't help but chuckle at the joke.

“Very astute Marie, how could I have missed that.”

She smiled.

“No problem, honey, it's what i'm here for. Laying down harsh truths and swearing. But seriously, that thing is pretty beat up. You know what you're getting into? For how much you're gonna dump in that pile could be a decent used car.” Marie moved to lean against the counter Edd was near. He leaned alongside her.

“We explored that option, but the van has a lot of sentimental value. It was the van or bust.”

Marie turned toward Edd.

“Well it's your wallet's funeral. Now about Thursday, is there any chance we can reschedule. Covering a friend's shift that night. They called in a favor so I can't really say no.”

“I had already made a reservation, but I suppose we could reschedule. What day did you have in mind?” Edd said

“Well I don't have anything else planned for the evening. What about you?”

“I had planned to organize the garage tonight as well as triple check our supplies and list of necessary purchases. It should keep me busy for the rest of the night.” Edd said, already making his way over to the toolbox. He began placing tools back in their proper place.

Marie moved to stand next to him, closing the drawer.

“So nothin special then? How about a night on the town?” Marie asked

Edd considered her proposal. It would be better to get it out of the way quickly.

“Sure Marie. I can postpone this until tomorrow morning.

[franceskarner]

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