#like she’d say ‘i’ll train you in [test method]’ only to give like a half an hour overview before leaving me to fend for myself </3

[kayr0ss]

Halfsies

[Diakko Week 2020, Day 1: Chilldhood Friends, Fluff, Hehe, Cute, Maybe 2% Angsty] AO3

Happy to participate in Diakko week 2020! @dianakko-week

---

“We can halfsies!”

Diana blinked from behind her mother’s legs, peeking curiously at a foreign little girl who spoke funny and had sparkling, red eyes.

What did it mean to ‘halfsies’? Diana trained her eyes upwards—towards her mother—as though to ask how to proceed. She’s never encountered something like this before. The other girl came bounding in with unopened twin popsicles in her hand. She saw Diana, smiled, and then proceeded to tug at her own mother’s hand so that they would stop in their tracks.

That’s when she took the popsicle, and with some effort and a funny expression, tried her best to break it in half. Her face had scrunched up in concentration, and her brown hair bounced about while she animatedly moved around to get it done.

Finally, with a bit of help from a man who must have been her father, the popsicles were split into two.

Which brought them to where they were right now: a foreign girl close to her age—with a smile that Diana had never received from any of the other kids before—was holding out her hand with half a popsicle for her.

It was orange flavored and already melting.

“I said we can halfsies!” the young girl insisted in broken English, nearly crashing into her as she pressed on forward. Their noses bumped for a short second (it made the girl laugh), and Diana stepped back because it was a bit too much of personal space invasion for her liking. Six-year-olds knew what personal space was, of course! So was why was it her parents seemed so permissive, all but laughing at their daughter’s antics?

Much to her surprise, her own mother had a tender look in her eye that she couldn’t understand. She was smiling softly. She put a hand on her shoulder and urged her on.

“Go make friends, my darling.”

She looked towards the little girl. None of the other kids in this Shiny Chariot show had even bothered to stop and say hi to her, and the prospect of a friend other than her mean cousins and beloved teddy bear made her feel giddy with excitement.

She felt warm and welcomed.

Diana smiled, completely charmed, and reached towards the melting orange popsicle.

She thanked her gracefully—but she never got her name.

 ---

 Her first heartbreak was at twelve years old.

She was surprised at how effective a method for distraction work and study was, but the moment she had discovered it she decided to pour every minute she could spare into the endeavor. She was suffering through loss that she couldn’t even begin to measure, and so she’d stop trying to and simply be what she needed to be.

Calm, collected, ready to restore the Cavendish name and—

Perfect.

But on some nights, it was impossible to pretend.

Not when the one source of warmth she had come to know had been snuffed out and with nothing to replace it. Not that anyone would come close to how much her mother meant to her, no, but anything… anything would have helped.

She tossed and turned in bed, craving for one more goodnight kiss to her forehead and—

She wished she had a friend.

Her mind wandered back to better days with her mother, and with a sad smile she remembered that the little girl from Japan six years ago had a warmth to her that felt like the next closest thing.

She should have really asked for her name.

 ---

 Diana looked around Luna Nova’s main hall. She was grateful to be here, to finally learn what she needed to learn in order to restore both magic and her family’s legacy—but she wasn’t quite excited.

The moment she stepped in, there were whispers of reverence and awe. Even her two closest friends knew better than to get too familiar, treating her more like a leader than friend.

It didn’t bother her anymore though, or at least that’s what she told herself as she scanned through the new faces in the main hall.

Would any one of them walk up to her and ask if she’d like to share a snack?

She almost laughed.

She doubted that. Despite the many years she’s wished and searched and craved for another such selfless display of warmth, she knew better than to have her hopes up.

Not when she was Diana Cavendish.

But loud crash interrupted her thoughts.

Some sort of outsider crashed into the matriculation ceremony and Diana couldn’t help but furrow her eyebrows. This was scandalous!

Not only was the landing so poorly done (was she hitchhiking on someone else’s broom?), but the hour of her arrival was outright disrespectful. She hadn’t even bothered to change into the standard uniform! Diana huffed through her nose, knowing better than to give such a nuisance more attention than she deserved and set out to restore order in the auditorium but then—she paused, blinking.

Where?

Where had she seen those eyes before?

 ---

 Akko took both her hands, stepping forward and invading her personal space in a way that only one other person had dared to do in her life. And that was ages ago. But now was not the time to reminisce, not when they were trapped underground at the Cavendish Manor, and Diana seemed hopeless in her mission to ascend as the proper heir.

But Akko never lost hope.

She looked a little comical, the way tears were streaming down her eyes, but it was her words that struck so close to home, and her hands that grounded her.

“You can’t give up now!” Akko sniffled with a determined look in her eyes. “You can still save this house, Diana!”

She had a few words to say, but Akko wasn’t having it.

“I never knew that you had something so important to you.” The brunette said in a softer voice—but with just as much conviction. Akko stepped forward, their noses bumped, but this time Diana didn’t step back.

She welcomed it.

It’s been years since she had last felt something even close to how Akko made her feel. It was as though for a moment; the painful ache of longing had stopped.

The Claiomh Solais began to glow green. It was wonderful.

But all she saw was the loveliest shade of red.

 ---

 Diana sat along a Blytonbury bench with Akko humming softly by her side.

She tried to not blush too much at the sound of Akko’s voice, but the tips of her ears glowed pink and her stomach fluttered anyway. They were friends—and quite a bit more—and the in-between of where they were and where she knows they’ll be left her absolutely smitten.

Smitten, infatuated, taken, enamored—ah, it didn’t matter which word. Maybe all of them.

For Akko.

Akko came crashing into her life, and it didn’t take long before she forgot about the void that had been growing within her. The longing, the searching for something that was simply out of reach had ceased; replaced by a feeling of completion that she couldn’t quite describe. She chuckled to herself and held the brunette’s hand just because she could.

Akko bumped her on the shoulder. “What’s got you so giddy?”

Diana smiled and answered simply, honestly: “You.”

She wasn’t the type to be so forward in her affections, but the wonderful shade of red that rose up in Akko’s face was worth it and more. Days with her were days she didn’t know she’d ever get to have—they warm and they were easy.

The sun shone against her face, but the woman beside her was even brighter. And as beautiful as the scenery might have been on this fine, summer afternoon, it didn’t strike her quite as strongly as the way Akko’s face scrunched up in concentration. She was biting her lip as she reached into the paper bag she brough out from the store. She was rummaging for something.

“Do you need help—” Diana offered tenderly, and with a bit nervousness tested the waters: “—d—darling?”

Akko gawked and grew even pinker. “Did you just stutter?”

Diana wanted to roll her eyes.

“Hey, don’t give me that face!” Akko was grinning now. “That was adorable! Were you nervous about terms of endearment? Can I call you that too? Or not, ‘darling’ is like two whole syllables, maybe something else like—”

“Akko.” Diana said sternly, but the weight of her voice was betrayed by the small smile on her face.

The brunette just smiled even wider. “Fine, I’ll get off your case. But hey—”

Akko finally found what she was looking for in the bag. It was a pair of twin popsicles, fresh from the store, and in an action so familiar yet so far-away to Diana, she took it and split it in half before opening the packaging.

Once Akko had done away with the wrapper, she smiled, shoving a block of orange-flavored ice towards her.

Then it hit her.

Diana felt her heart swell and a stinging in her eyes. No wonder she stopped looking.

“We can halfsies!”

She finally found her.

---

A/N: Happy to get to join a ship week for the first time!

#Diakko #Diakko Week 2020 #Diakko Week #Dianakko Week 2020 #Diana Cavendish #Akko kagari #Dianakko #fluff #Day 1 #Childhood Friends #fanfic

[calligraphist-artemisia]

Soul of a Lion (Chapter 4)

Sequel to The Smallest Blade.

Summary: After the Red Lion steals them away from the Marmora base and takes them through a wormhole, Shiro, Keith, Katla, and Lance find themselves in front of a majestic castle with nowhere to go but inside. The events that unfold while they’re there will change the fate of the universe.

Also posted on AO3 under the username “kishirokitsune”.

☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆

4 | History Revealed

Allura was in good spirits as she made her way to the dining hall, where Coran was already seated and enjoying a heaping plate of food goo. She grimaced at the thought of eating more of it. Food goo was truly an acquired taste and she hoped Hunk was making plans to look into what was available on the planet.

Before she could shuffle off into the royal kitchen for her own plate, Hunk came bustling through the door with a broad grin on his face and a tray carefully balanced in each hand. One of the kitchen droids – a little one nicknamed 'Nikbot' for all of the times Hunk used it to transport picnic supplies – scooted along behind him, beeping in a happy tone as it carried a tray of drinks.

“I made breakfast!” Hunk announced, depositing one tray laden with all kinds of fruits and berries into the center of the table. “Or, well, I found breakfast.”

Nikbot beeped loudly and bumped into his legs.

“Nikbot and I found breakfast,” Hunk amended. “This planet has so much food! We'll be set for phoebs with all of the stuff we found, even with seven of us to feed.”

Allura cleared her throat and held out her hand, allowing her four new friends to scurry down from her shoulder onto the table. “Actually, there are eleven of us. Apparently they shared a pod with me for all of this time! You're looking at the last four genuine Altean mice!”

“Awww,” Hunk cooed.

Coran leaned forward in interest. “Well, hello!”

Allura happily introduced them, starting with the large yellow one (Platt), then the smallest blue one (Chulatt), followed by the skinny greenish-one (Plachu), and finally the pale pink one (Chuchule). She made no mention of her ability to communicate with them – Hunk certainly wouldn't approve of her spying methods, no matter that her intentions were to ensure their safety.

As the mice helped themselves to the array of fruits before them, Allura gladly accepted a steaming cup from Nikbot's tray and took a long, slow sip of the hot beverage. She hummed in pleasure and then surveyed the food, giggling as she witnessed Platt open his mouth wide and fit a whole berry into it. He turned to look at her, his cheeks bulging, and Allura giggled even harder.

“It's good to see you in such high spirits, princess,” Coran remarked as he accepted one of the cold beverages from Nikbot.

“It is going to be a good day, Coran,” Allura said in response. “I thought we could go over our itinerary while we eat. There's a great deal that needs to be done around here and planning is the best way to ensure the important details are accomplished.”

Hunk shifted a little. “I was going to take more food down to the others. I don't think they're fans of the food goo.”

Allura's smile was strained. “Then I shall be brief.” She gently set down her cup and took a deep breath, reminding herself that she needed to give them a chance to prove themselves and that getting angry over it wasn't good for her health. “Our automated systems have kept things in good working order for all of this time, but just in case, I sent out the repair bots last night to see if there's anything that needs our attention. We should have that report once we return to the bridge.

“As long as there isn't anything we need to immediately address, there are tasks that each of us need to complete. Coran, I would like you to check on the engine room. You have the most knowledge and experience in that area and I trust that you'll have it in working order in no time. Hunk, I see you've already begun your work in the kitchens. Once you're certain that the kitchen bots have everything under control, you'll be in charge of the care for our guests. Should Coran need your help in the engine room, he'll call for you.”

She went on to explain that she would be checking in on the crystal chamber, which housed the various power crystals that kept the Castle running. Using her Aspect of Spirit, she would be able to recharge any of the crystals that were running low on energy. It would take her some time to go over all of them, but she predicted to be finished by midday.

After lunch, she would take on the difficult task of speaking with their guests.

Or perhaps she'd only talk to one of them.

Yes, one at a time would be best.

☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆

“They don't really think we'll be content to sit in our rooms all day, do they?” Katla complained as she laid on Shiro's bed and stared at the ceiling.

Next to her, Lance gave a half-hearted shrug. “Maybe it's a test?”

Katla snorted. “If it is, then it's a stupid one.” She sat up suddenly and looked at Shiro and Keith, who were going through a series of warm-up stretches in lieu of their usual morning routine. “If you give me a few doboshes to look over the sensors on our doors, I bet I could disable it without anyone catching on.”

“I think we can offer more patience than that,” Shiro spoke up. He stood up straight and raised his arms above his head as high as he could before relaxing and letting them fall back to his sides. “I don't like feeling stuck either, but we can't blame them for wanting to be cautious. Wouldn't you be, if the situation was reversed?”

“I guess...” Katla reluctantly grumbled and then flopped back down, jostling Lance.

Shiro was right, but that didn't mean she wanted to hear it.

She supposed she was meant to also feel grateful that they were given nice rooms instead of being put into prison cells where their freedom would truly be stripped away. And she was! But that didn't stop the anxiety from kicking in the longer they sat around.

“If we don't see Hunk during lunch then we'll do some exploring on our own,” Shiro said.

Keith looked at him in surprise. “What if we get caught?”

“Well, I've always been good at talking the two of you out of trouble,” Shiro joked with a fond smile.

His comment eased the tension in the room and even Lance cracked a smile – the first Katla had seen from him since their arrival at the castle. It was a smile that immediately fell when they heard a knock at the door.

None of them were surprised to find Hunk standing on the other side.

“I thought you guys might want to get out and see more of the castle,” he said casually.

Katla sat up in an instant, her ears fanned out in excitement. “Can we, Shiro?”

“I suspect I'll have a mutiny on my hands if I say no,” Shiro remarked. “Keith, Lance, what do you two say?”

Lance heaved a sigh but muttered an agreement, while Keith answered by approaching the bed and helping Katla to her feet, which earned him a smile and a kiss on the cheek.

“Everything alright?” she asked quietly.

Keith nodded and turned his head so no one else could see his lips moving as he whispered: “I'll tell you later.”

With everyone in agreement, Hunk began the tour by leading them back to the kitchen and then onto a new branch in the hallway, at the end of which was an elevator. They rode it up three floors and when the doors opened they found themselves in an odd room.

Katla peered around Keith for a better look at the massive console lining the opposite wall, her eyes wide as she took in the startling amount of buttons and switches and the various touch-screens that covered it. Above the module were wide windows that stretched all the way up to the ceiling, through which an even larger and very empty room could be seen. If Katla had to guess, the lower room took up nearly an entire floor on its own.

Shiro stepped forward, his mouth slightly ajar. “Hunk, this is... Are you sure we're allowed to be here?”

“I don't see the harm in it,” Hunk said with a shrug. He waved them in and then walked right up to the console, which lit with a soft glow as he drew closer. “This is the control room for our holo-deck, which you can see down there. You can use it make your own training exercise or use one of the pre-programmed ones, like the electrified invisible maze.”

“But if it's invisible, how do you keep from getting shocked?” Katla asked.

“Oh, well, it's meant to be a teamwork-building thing. One person is up here with a map and can give directions. If you do it well enough, there's no electrocution,” Hunk explained. “Here, let me show you how it works.”

Katla barely refrained from squealing as she pushed past Shiro and Keith so she could get an up close and personal look at how everything worked.

Hunk quickly proved himself a fantastically patient teacher and he answered all of the questions she had, as well as anything Shiro or Keith asked. He walked her through the steps to creating her own program, which turned out to be relatively easy – so easy that she probably could have figured it out half-asleep and with no prior knowledge of what any button did – and then pulled up a full list of every pre-programmed exercise they had. Everything was meticulously labeled and divided into different categories and each program had different levels of difficulty that were clearly noted.

While Shiro and Keith actively participated in the lesson, Lance hung back away from the group, not saying a word but still listening to everything that was being said.

“That's about it,” Hunk told her. “Want to try it out?”

“Yes!” Katla didn't know it was possible for her voice to go that high, but she was too excited to get her hands on Altean tech to really be embarrassed by that fact. (For something so ancient, it was the nicest piece of technology she had ever laid eyes on.)

“Something simple to start out with,” Shiro advised.

Katla barely took notice of what he was saying as she scrolled through the options, oohing and aahing over the possibilities. “Uh huh.”

“Katla, I'm serious.”

“Okay, okay. Something simple,” she promised with a sigh, resisting the urge to call him a killjoy.

Hunk said something about a track, didn't he? One they could put hurdles on for an extra challenge? Katla's fingers hovered over the selection, wondering if it wasn't too simple. The option of an obstacle course was so much more tempting...

Katla selected the track and, with the exception of Lance, they all crowded around the window to watch as the floor of the holo-deck began to warp, twisting parts of itself up into tall squares and rising slightly in the center of the room so there was a clear indentation where they were meant to run.

“So, how do we get down there?” Shiro asked Hunk.

The answer turned out to be pretty simple: there was a second door to the right of the elevator they rode up on and it opened to a moving staircase they could ride down to the holo-deck. Once there, Hunk showed them a secondary control panel.

“You won't be able to change to a different program from here, but you can change the difficulty or move things around. It also has voice recognition that you can use when one of the combat programs are active. It's a built-in safety feature,” Hunk explained.

“This is all so cool,” Katla breathed, looking around the room with a delighted spark in her amber eyes. She grinned and mischievously tapped Keith on the shoulder before sprinting away. “Catch me if you can!”

Keith's grin was a little more feral as he tore off after her.

Katla laughed as she vaulted over the first hurdle. “Shiro, Lance, come on!”

It took a moment for Shiro to talk Lance into running with them, but he eventually agreed and it wasn't long before the four of them were embroiled in a fierce game of tag while Hunk sat back and watched, a smile on his face.

☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆

Shiro was a little wary as he entered the dining room where he was meeting Allura for lunch. After what happened the last time he tried to talk to her, he was understandably uncomfortable about being alone with her, even with Hunk's assurance that she wanted him there.

He hesitated in the doorway when he saw her already seated at the head of the table.

“Shirotak, thank you for joining me,” she said, giving him a strained smile. “Please sit. Our meal will be out shortly.”

Shiro didn't take his eyes off of her as he crossed the room to his seat. “Is it just the two of us, highness?”

“Yes. Coran has a few things he's looking over on the Bridge and will be taking his meal there. I believe Hunk is eating with your friends,” Allura said. “I thought this would be a good opportunity for the two of us to talk and... and I wanted to apologize for my behavior.”

It was the sincerity in her voice that put Shiro more at ease. “Thank you. I can't imagine that it was easy to wake and find yourself surrounded by strangers. Is there anything we can do to help you feel more comfortable?”

“I think getting to talk will help immensely,” Allura responded. “But first, we should eat.”

As if on cue, a pair of kitchen droids rolled into the room and served each of them a plate of food. Shiro was glad that there wasn't a single spoonful of food goo in sight. (But then again, Hunk had told them there was plenty of fresh food to be found on the planet, so was it really such a surprise?)

Shiro waited until Allura took her first bite and then dug into his.

Most of their meal was spent in silence, but Shiro didn't mind the time to think over all of the things he wanted to say to her, as well as to determine what he was allowed to say. Obviously, he'd have to reveal a few things. There was only so long they could keep the Blade of Marmora a secret before someone started to get suspicious, though he was pretty sure he could get away with only hinting towards a secret organization for the moment.

By the time they finished eating, Shiro had most of a plan. For the rest, he'd just have to wing it.

“I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you to join me,” Allura said as the droids cleared away their empty plates. “The truth is, I don't know what to think about this whole situation. I know there's a reason why the Red Lion brought you here, but I don't understand why it's specifically the four of you. The original paladins all knew each other beforehand, so maybe that's part of the prerequisite? But that doesn't explain why there are only four of you and not five...” She trailed off, her gaze distant.

Shiro wondered how much of that she really meant to say. After a few ticks had passed and she didn't continue speaking, he said “I don't have an answer for that.”

Allura blinked and sat up a little straighter as she refocused on the conversation. “Then perhaps a question that you will be able to answer: do you know how the war began?”

“Growing up, I was taught that the Altean king declared war upon the Galra when he ordered the destruction of Daibazaal and that the retaliation of Zarkon and his forces was justified. I later learned that it was all a lie, but we don't know the full truth of things either,” Shiro paused, watching as Allura's expression softened from outright rage to simple indignation.

“My father was a general in Zarkon's army. My mother was convinced of the might and righteousness of the Empire, like many are, and she raised me to believe the same. It was something she believed in until they tried to take me from her.

“It's tradition for the firstborn to begin training at a young age. More than tradition, actually. It's an unspoken requirement that most follow without question. My mother hoped that because of my father's status as a general, as well as the fact that I was the only cub she was able to have, they would allow me to stay with her instead. The army disagreed. My mother ran and took me with her. She didn't get far.”

Shiro hadn't intended on divulging his past to her, but judging from the horrified expression on Allura's face, it was the right way to go. At least she was listening.

“That was the day my faith in the Empire was broken. From that moment on, I began to see them as they truly were and I did everything in my power to become too troublesome to keep around. I knew that one day I would be too old to stay in training and they would send me out whether they thought I was ready or not. When that day came, I would be able to sneak away and they would be too thankful that I was gone to go looking for me. But then came a day when I did something exceptionally... foolish.

“I saved the life of a commanding officer. I can't even say why I did it. In-fighting is common in the Empire and it's not unusual for them to be to the death, but when I saw someone try to sneak up behind her I just... moved. It's how I earned this,” Shiro tapped the bridge of his nose, where his scar cut across. “In return, Ranzaria saved me from my destructive spiral, and eventually, she introduced me to a group dedicated to ending Zarkon's reign of fear and subjugation. I've been with them ever since.”

“Shirotak, I... I'm so sorry,” Allura murmured.

“It was a long time ago, highness, and I would not be the person I am today had I not gone through those experiences,” Shiro said. “But back to your original question, no one knows how the war truly began. The Empire has done everything in their power to obscure the truth and anyone who did know died a long time ago. At least, until the three of you woke up.”

Allura bit her lip and lowered her gaze to the table. “We were allies, once. It... it is true that my father ordered the destruction of Daibazaal, but it was not intended to be an act of war, but of prevention. Sometime before I was born, a meteor struck the surface of Daibazaal and when it was extracted, it revealed a terrible rift that penetrated deep into the core of the planet. For a while, it merely seemed to be an anomaly and was carefully studied by a few hand-picked alchemists, but as time went on they began to realize that it was destabilizing the entire planet. Left unchecked, the rift would have eventually ripped Daibazaal apart and, after that, continued to spread to encompass the entire universe. Destroying Daibazaal was the only way to seal it and prevent such a catastrophe.”

Shiro frowned. “I feel like I'm missing something. Shouldn't it have been up to Zarkon to give that order?”

“Unfortunately, it was not our first attempt at closing the rift.”

Shiro quietly listened as Allura told the whole sad story about trying to use something called “Voltron” to seal the rift and how they had only succeeded in increasing it tenfold, as well as costing the lives of two people – Emperor Zarkon and his wife, Empress Honerva. In the midst of the chaos left from Zarkon's death, King Alfor did his best to maintain control and used his role as head of the Galactic Alliance to order the evacuation and destruction of Daibazaal.

“Had the situation been reversed, it would have been well within Zarkon's rights to do the same,” Allura said, though it pained her to admit it. “Of course, everything went wrong after that. Zarkon was somehow resurrected. My father thought it had something to do with the rift, though we never knew for certain. He declared war on Altea and the rest of our alliance, destroying each of us one-by-one.”

She clenched her hands and glared at the surface of the table. “I never imagined the war would go on for so long. I- I should have fought harder to use the Lions and fight back! If I'd only tried a little harder-!” Her voice broke as a single tear fell from her eyes. She furiously wiped it away and lifted her head. “No longer. This is our second chance and I will not let it go by. I want to know where you stand, Shirotak.”

“We stand against Zarkon and his forces,” Shiro answered, meeting her eyes. “We stand with you.”

☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆ - ☆

Coran knew that he promised Allura that he wouldn't pull an all-nighter to reconfigure the navigation system, but what harm would it do to check on one last little thing while the system sorted itself off. It wasn't like he'd be able to sleep until he knew why the holo-deck was using extra energy anyway. He'd just pop over to the control room for a quick look and then go to bed.

He looked around the Bridge one last time, checked the progress bar for the seventh time in as many doboshes, and then reluctantly left to begin his trek to his room.

The holo-deck was only a brief detour on his path and Coran swore that he wouldn't stay long. He entered the command room and had to take a moment to comprehend what he was seeing. It was more than just a little problem. The console was fully activated, as though someone was running a program at that very moment.

“Impossible!” Coran said, rushing forward. Allura had gone to bed vargas ago and Hunk wasn't known for skipping out on sleep, or for frequenting the holo-deck. He was about to begin methodically shutting everything down when he happened to glance through the window and into the room below.

Two of the Galra were there. One was the boy with unusual black hair and the other was the girl. They were playing around on one of the climbing courses, occasionally dropping to a cushioned mat below in order to start all over.

Coran found himself relaxing the longer he watched them play. It was as they dropped to the mat at the same time and began a game of chase across the floor, breathlessly giggling, that Coran realized it was an oddly familiar sight.

A long time ago, he'd been blessed enough to witness the beginning of a truly great romance. It was one full of laughter and life and only grew more beautiful once Alfor was able to catch his beloved princess. A love that was cut tragically short.

In the room below, the boy caught up to the girl and pulled her into his arms. His balance must have gotten knocked off because they went down in a tangled heap, huge smiles upon their faces.

Coran couldn't bring himself to interrupt. Eventually, he dragged himself away from the window and off to his room. His dreams that night were full of his memories of happier days when Alfor wasn't yet king and still trying to find the right way to woo the future queen.

#voltron #kidge #kidgemas #fanfiction #soul of a lion #galra shiro #half galra keith #half galra pidge #altean lance #altean hunk #team voltron slowly starts to come to an understanding

[windyfiend]

*knock knock-knock*

Runa pulled back on her speeding hoverboard, whirled along the wall and spun in midair to face the locked door, her heart caught guilty in her throat.

“That’s Al,” Sebastian announced with an edge of impatience. He tightened the last translucent thread of a reattached limb. “Ask them what they want. I can’t be disturbed.”

Runa breathed again. With a swallow and silent assurance to herself, she clicked away the locks and pulled the door open a narrow crack.

“Hi Al,” she said meekly. “Hi Pallas. Sebastian wants to know what you want.”

Alexis raised curious brows while Pallas snorted a laugh at the nickname. “Tell Sebastian,” Alexis said evenly, “that I must speak with him in private on behalf of the empress.”

“Is it about me?” Runa gripped the edge of the door, hovering a little lower so she wouldn’t meet Alexis’ eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you my legs don’t work, but it’s okay and I know he tried, it’s not Sebastian’s fault, and if I’m making too much noise I’ll be a lot quieter I promise, and I’ll give back the hoverboard and please don’t get him in trouble--”

“Runa!” Alexis sighed with a reassuring smile. They dipped their head, searching for her face until Runa looked up. “This has  nothing  to do with you,” they said firmly. “It’s okay. We’re very proud of you for being so brave. And of course you can keep the hoverboard.”

Runa sat a little taller, as if a weight had been lifted from her back. A bright smile returned. “Okay!” she chirped, then turned to call out to Sebastian. “They said the empress sent them to talk to you!”

“Tell them to make an appointment,” Sebastian snapped without looking up from his work.

Runa gave Alexis an apologetic grimace. “He says--”

“Sebastian, you are not in a position to make demands!” Alexis shouted through the narrow space of the door.

“I beg to differ,” Sebastian hissed.

Alexis squared armored shoulders. “Runa, please move out of the way,” they commanded calmly, then pressed an armored hand against the door and marched inside, backed by a shine of sunlight from the hall. “Sebastian. You failed to appear for your report to the empress.”

“An empress who declines to show up to her own appointments is  hardly  justified in keeping me to mine,” Sebastian said while he zipped up the last body bag.

Pallas beckoned to Runa from the hallway, her armor glittering. “Come on, little bee,” she said softly, a hand outstretched. Her smile trembled. “The palace isn’t safe right now, so I’m your escort out of here. Let’s leave these two old ladies to their bickering.”

Runa hesitated, and the hoverboard swayed and whirred beneath her. She cast a questioning look across the room at Sebastian, but he was too busy scribbling in his notebook to look up. She turned away from him, her shoulders slumped, and glided quietly out into the hall.

“Shut the door behind you,” Sebastian’s crisp voice echoed after her.

The door clicked shut. Alexis stood at attention in the flicker of lavender candles and the dead blue glow of hanging lights.

Sebastian lined up the luminescent bottles of sludge-veskal, his back turned to the Scythe commander while he bowed over his notes. “Your cold predator stare will never have the effect you want, Alexis,” he said boredly. “I look into the gaze of death every day.”

“You’re supposed to be working on a project that would finally put an end to the abductions,” Alexis enunciated clearly for the artificer’s benefit. “But instead you fired your employees, declined to file your report, and spent half the day entertaining a child. The empress believes you may have misunderstood the importance of your assignment.”

Sebastian took his time writing out the rest of his lab notes. He read them over once more, then closed the notebook softly and turned to face his accuser with his chin held high.

“Did the empress,” he said with a mocking air, “explain to you the details of this assignment-of-great-importance?”

“I understand the purpose of withheld information,” Alexis snapped. “I do not know what I do not  need  to know.”

“You need to know  this,”  Sebastian said, “because you’re going to assist me.”

“Hire back the artificers that were provided to you!” Alexis snarled. Their armor shimmered and rippled with anger.

Sebastian watched them coolly. A sneer crept into his words. “It’s not that sort of assistance.”

--

Runa raised an arm to shield her eyes from the sunlight of the garden, and she smiled at the warm rainbows of the flowerbeds. Roses and lilies blossomed bright among a shimmer of tiny blue flowers and bursting pink blooms. A fountain trickled softly at the heart of a crystal pond, where little frogs leaped from the ledges and plunked into the cool water.

Pallas watched while Runa hovered over the quivering gardens, the hoverboard turned almost sideways while she craned her neck to see the colors.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Pallas asked quietly, her arms folded over her chestplate.

Runa raised her head, confused only a moment before she dropped her gaze to the pavement at Pallas’ feet. “I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it,” she said. “There’s nothing anybody can do anyway, so it doesn’t matter. But look!” She smiled again and the hoverboard surged higher with a blue flash and a spin. “Sebastian gave me a hoverboard, and I made handles for it, and a backrest, and a sling for my feet, and I can do cool tricks, watch!”

Runa shot like a bullet down the garden walkway, a streak of blue light in her wake. She corkscrewed high into the air like a bird, dove straight down and rippled across the pond before she spun to a laughing stop.

Pallas stood frozen in place, her eyes blown wide. “Runa…” she choked while her heart resumed beating, “...I’ve been training with hoverboards for a decade and I’ve  never  seen them go that high. Are you sure that’s  sludge  veskal?"

“Yeah.” Runa glided curiously closer. “I watched Sebastian cut the mushrooms from the dead-people pieces. He blended them up and juiced out the veskal. He wouldn’t let me help, though.”

There was a twitch in Pallas’ strained smile. “You’re a weird kid, you know that?” she laughed.

“Briony says that a lot.”

Silence tightened between them while they walked toward the end of the garden, where the top of the long steps overlooked the city of Woondaly and the sun-tipped spires. Beyond the light, high above, the stars still glittered in the night sky.

“We’ve got four squads on rotation looking for Briony,” Pallas said gently, her voice braced and careful. “If there’s any evidence for what happened, we’ll find it.”

“Did you check the abandoned candy factory?” Runa skidded in front of Pallas, her coal-dark eyes shining determined. “And the theater attic? And the reptile house at the zoo? We sometimes hide in the bathroom until after closing and--”

“We searched all your leads.” Pallas laid gentle hands on Runa’s shoulders. “I wish I had better news, honestly I do, but so far there’s no sign of her. We may have to be prepared for--”

“NO.” Runa wrenched away, a stab of tears cutting down her cheeks, her clenched teeth bared. “You’re not looking  hard  enough!” she shrieked.

Pallas winced as if she’d been struck. “Runa--”

Runa flung away down the steps and into the city streets far below, slicing like a blue-shocked blade through the crowds, and she was nearly out of sight before Pallas could grab her own hoverboard.

Pallas hissed a trembling obscenity, jammed on her helmet and raced after the lingering trail of blue light.

--

“The problem with sunlight,” Sebastian continued, stepping closer to Alexis’ rigid stance, “is that the Kith are its only incubator. These past three hundred years, the empress has made unparalleled effort to maintain the light with the city’s own mechanics. The orrery, so far, has been the best hope. But even  it  must be replenished once a year.”

He produced a bottle of pure veskal from his pocket. He held it up, shining bright as a tiny blue sun. “I suggested an alternative solution: a separate source of light, equally bright and powerful, incubated and renewed by the same methods as the Kith. We reverse-engineer those skull-faced atrocities, imbue our own people with the gift of light, and sustain the city forever without heinous contracts.”

“You want to  create  Kith?” Alexis wheezed in disbelief. “You would deform our own people for the sake of light?”

“Children’s bodies are most adaptable,” Sebastian argued. “If the imbuement is introduced early enough, they will live healthy, normal lives without side effect. But there are elusive properties of the Kith that are impossible to replicate based on theory alone.”

Something in Sebastian’s voice made Alexis’ stomach drop. “Runa--”

“--must return here when her hoverboard runs low on veskal,” Sebastian finished smoothly. “By that time, the induction should have taken hold. But in its current state, the experimental infusion is inherently flawed in a way that cannot be repaired.”

Alexis clenched their fists and carefully controlled their words. “She will never walk again,” they guessed.

Sebastian tilted his head in grim affirmation. “This is where your assistance is required,” he said gravely. “You could supply me a consistent stock of children with which to further test my hypotheses--”

“You’re out of your mind!”  Alexis roared.

“-- or,” Sebastian went on as if he weren’t interrupted, “you could bring me a Kith.”

#original writing #original fiction #stolen suns

[cyb-by-lang]

Shell Game (8/?)

Kei tries her hand at being nice, with mixed results.

There was, thankfully, no school the next day.

Obito went back to Konoha for a bit, both to restock his eyedrops and probably take a break. Kei sat in the apartment for an annoying amount of time, staring blankly into her closet while she tried to decide if it was worth going out or not. Schools in Japan also ran a half-day of classes on Saturdays, so this was still squarely in the middle of the week.

It was a nice day out.

Fuck it.

Kei changed into street clothes and decided that today, like many of the days before term, was a day to wander town like a stray cat. She did have a list of things to buy (such as a hairbrush), but those were afterthoughts compared to the raw need to just not be in the dinky apartment anymore. To this end, she hopped on a train to some other town, to see if the stores were any different.

Two incidents in two days involving villains, Isobu commented as Kei waited for a crosswalk to change indicators. The word “villain” sat strangely on his tongue. And four incidents in four days in which you have been pulled from class to speak with administration, teachers, and the school’s healer.

Sounds right. Kei crossed the street with the crowd, headed for a shopping district.

I do not think I have ever heard of another human, even across every one of your memories, who has managed to attract so much extracurricular interference in their first week of school. Congratulations.

It’d be fucking amazing if anybody ever had. Kei checked her phone as she waited for the next crosswalk. No messages, other than the news update talking about the attack on the USJ. Nobody was dead, but Facepalm-kun and Kurogiri had gotten away. Kei couldn’t help but think that if she’d been allowed to use lethal force, she’d probably have killed Nōmu. She’d never seen anybody parade around with a weak point in full view like that.

You are assuming that Nōmu needed his brain. With that kind of regeneration speed, I do not know if he was even kept down by the injuries you dealt him.

Kei shrugged. Maybe. Maybe not. But it was a tried and true zombie disposal method, if nothing else.

Kei eventually found her way to a combini, glancing through the shelves for anything she needed back at the apartment. A cell phone card would be nice, just in case she needed to pester Obito sometime this month without invoking every emergency service known to humanity. Thus far, she only had his number and the school’s, but there was a nonzero chance that could change later.

Also, snacks. So many snacks.

Sure, most of the snacks wouldn’t survive Hayate’s next visit, but few ever did.

She was still pondering onigiri vs. dorayaki when a somewhat familiar voice said, “You again?”

Kei looked up from her vital decision and spotted a classmate looking a little surprised to see her. It was Purple Kid, but not the one from the USJ. The tall one from her class, who always looked a little less sleep-deprived than Aizawa-sensei. He was carrying a multipack of pencils and pens, along with two notebooks and a box of bandages.

“Yo,” Kei said, though he didn’t exactly look happy to see her. “I, uh, forgot your name. Sorry.”

“Shinsō,” was his dry reply. “Gekkō-san, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.” Kei paused. “Nice to see you outside of school, I guess? I didn’t realize we lived anywhere near each other.”

“We probably don’t,” Shinsō said, already turning away to go and search the rest of the store for whatever.

What a riveting conversationalist, Kei thought, and promptly went back to her snack debate. She ended up not deciding and bought one of everything, so she could see her brother’s face when he tried some of the really weird ones. Ramune bottles would give him a hilarious headache. Obito too, since he couldn’t just teleport the marble out.

“You’re going to eat all of those yourself?” Shinsō again, of course. Right as she was walking out of the store with heavy “grocery” bags slung over her arm.

Kei considered being sarcastic, then decided she did enough of that in her head. “Nope. My brother and my best friend visit a lot, so I’m gonna stay up late and watch weird American movies with them.”

If she had a TV, anyway. That was another thing she probably ought to look into.

“…I can’t tell if you’re being serious or not.”

“Sometimes I can’t either.” Kei glanced at her phone, noting two messages about more USJ articles. Obito still wasn’t back yet, or else he would have already texted her about being bored. “Did you have something to ask me?”

Shinsō took a few seconds to put his thoughts in order. “A couple of things.”

“I’m listening,” Kei said, as the two of them fell into step.

“What’s your Quirk again?” he asked, rather than just getting right to the point.

“Tsunami,” Kei said, because it was easier to remember than the other names she’d tried out. “Why?”

Shinsō didn’t answer immediately. Then, “That’s…a really powerful Quirk for General Studies. Almost enough for the Hero department.”

“I guess. I killed a bunch of the villain ‘bots in the test.” Kei shrugged.

“Then why aren’t you with 1-A or 1-B?” Shinsō pressed, which made Kei think they were starting to get to the root of the problem.

“My test scores sucked.” Kei readjusted her grip on her store bags. “I know it’s really early in the year and things could change later, but I think I failed every topic besides science, math, and English.” Actually, she’d probably failed math, too.

“So you basically got in on the strength of your Quirk alone.” Shinsō’s expression was a little pinched.

“I guess. What about your entrance exam thing?”

Shinsō scowled. “You can’t brainwash robots. They don’t have organic brains and they don’t exactly talk back.”

Kei stared at him. “Your Quirk is brainwashing? Or mind control, maybe?”

“Yeah, it… Wait, you didn’t know?” Shinsō’s normally half-lidded eyes were wide.

“I got back to class at the end of introductions,” Kei reminded him. “And basically nobody in that class talks to me because they’re afraid of me. Or maybe they’re afraid whatever keeps getting me in trouble will rub off on them.”

“They think you’re dangerous,” Shinsō told her bluntly. At Kei’s blank look, he added, “Like me.”

“Okay, I can understand me, since I’m the ‘Gen Studies trouble child’ and everyone knows it,” Kei said, air-quoting Aizawa-sensei’s blunt assessment. She lowered her arms. “But I don’t remember you ever using your Quirk on anyone.”

“The part they care about is that I could. I just need someone to respond to me,” Shinsō told her. “Most people just stop talking to me once they realize that’s how it works.”

“So, basically, you could’ve done it fifteen times since the start of this conversation.” When Shinsō nodded, Kei shrugged again. “Okay. You clearly haven’t. Case closed.”

Shinsō stared at her. “…That’s it? No big deal?”

“I have weirder friends.” Kei smiled a little crookedly.

The list starts with me and goes around the planet, twice.

Thanks, Isobu.

It also starts with you.

…Thanks, buddy.

Shinsō didn’t appear to know what to say to this. He looked away, and then his phone buzzed. After checking the messages, he said, “I… I’ll see you tomorrow, Gekkō-san. I’ve got to go home.”

“Bye, Shinsō-san,” Kei said amiably, and waved as he left. Then she checked her own phone.

Cyclops: im back

Cyclops: and bored

Cyclops: also

Cyclops: how do u change names on this

Kei smiled and set out for the apartment again, the day’s good deed completed.

That meant the day’s somewhat less-good deed (laughing at Obito’s attempt to get the marble-blocked soda open) was neatly balanced out.

#Shell Game #Obito Uchiha #Keisuke Gekko #shinsou hitoshi #Isobu

[my-hero-aaron]

Provisional Licenses, Part 1

The remaining few days before classes started up again absolutely flew by, and thankfully, when the time came for us to enter into the new training are that the school had prepared for us, I at least had some idea of what I was planning to do for my special move. K wasn’t exactly so well off just yet, but I’m sure she’d come up with something clever to do.

We had all suited up in our costumes, and were now waiting outside the space they’d alloted for us to get working. The gym we were going to practice these moves in was less like a gym proper, and looked more like a retrofitted aircraft hanger. At least, the structure of the building did. I gave it one more glance before turning my attention to Vlad, who was explaining, in a bit more detail, just what we were supposed to be pursuing with this stage of our training.

“Now, the idea behind a special move isn’t just that it’s special. The main point I want you all to work towards with this is something that’ll either end a fight or give you a huge advantage in one. That doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be a direct attack, but that’s an easy category to aim for. If you’re short on ideas for something to work with, I’d suggest trying to find an aspect of your quirk you hadn’t noticed before the training camp. The work you all have done expanding your range should have opened either something new or amplified something you could do before.”

I had a few small ideas rattling around in my brain already, but Vlad’s speech clarified them greatly. Clearly, the blast of ice idea wouldn’t work, at least for now. Sure, it’d be a real fight finisher, but something big enough to have the intended effect would really tire me out, not to mention the trouble I could run into with frostbite. At the end of the day, something like that would be more of a disadvantage than an advantage. There was something involving snow blindness I was originally dismissing based on it not being much of a special move, but after Vlad’s saying it was supposed to give you a huge advantage, I was already coming up with a few changes that could really turn it into a signature move for me.

As we were wandering into the space for the first time, I took in the inside of the building. It was... chaotic to put it lightly, a wide variety of rock and dirt shapes forming all sorts of terrain shapes for us to work with. 1-a was supposed to be wrapping things up and heading out. Or at least, that’s what I was told, it sure didn’t look like they were getting finished with what they were working on. A few of K and I’s classmates got into a bit of an argument over just who was supposed to be here, but after it became clear we were simply here early, the topic shifted to the license test that had spurred on this whole exercise. Of course Neito was being over competitive about it with the 1-a students, saying how we would totally best them or something. Thankfully, before he got to boasting too hard about our “prowess”, Aizawa shut him down. He made it clear that 1-a and 1-b were going to be taking the test at different locations, as is tradition for all schools. Nobody wanted to have their own students pitted against each other, at least as far as the process of becoming a prospective hero went. Finally, after what seemed like ages of quibbling and quarrelling, we had the gym to ourselves to get tinkering.

Immediately, I walked over to the wall, pressing my hand against it, and reached out to see if there were any water pipes in the wall. I was going to need as much cold as I could get my hands on, and water has such a high thermal mass it would work phenomenally. O figured I could get away with heating the water a bit. Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry as much about my limits as far as holding cold went, the new piece of support equipment I got would see to that. Not only was the theming of my chestplate absolutely dead on with the ice texture, someone clever in the support department had sandwiched a layer of,, well, I wasn’t quite sure what, but it definitely could hold a simply remarkable amount of cold. I let out a small, involuntary sigh as the little feeler I put out hit paydirt, and the cold started to feed back into my arms, rolling into first the bracers at my wrists, and with a bit more coaxing, flowed through the metal and fell into the eager mass that was ensconcing my chest and arms. As soon as I took as much as I thought the plumbing could handle, I took a deep breath. It was time to get to work.

The move I was considering for now was meant to give me a combat advantage. You couldn’t hit what you couldn’t see, that was the theory I had in mind at the moment. The cloud of fog I had cooked up at the training camp seemed like just a neat parlor trick at the time, but if I could get the cloud to be dense enough, it’d be a simple enough move to strike while the villain was confused. Additionally, I’d still be able to see them, or at least sense where they were, with my thermal vision. I didn’t realize it while I was training, but in hindsight, it was startlingly obvious that my thermal vision wasn’t strictly based on my own sight. It was just a way that my brain was feeding me my own broader feelings about the temperature of things around me. That’s why I should be able to see them through the cloud of otherwise impenetrable fog. However, I had stalled trying to pull off just what I was planning long enough. Just like before, the slow flow of cold trickling between my fingers set off the fog to flow through my fingers like sand. However, this was clearly too slow for the instant cover I required for what I needed to pull off, not to mention that how small the cloud started out wasn’t doing me any favors, either. A few things needed to change, and I felt it was more effective to break those bits off. First, the cloud needed to be bigger. I blew a bit of the mist that was still leaking from my hands off, and cupped my palm, to let the fog pool in my hand, rather than slipping to the floor uninhibited. It was only a few moments before a little puddle of vapor had accumulated in my hand. What immediately sprung to mind was the fog that boiled off dry ice, and the comparison certainly wasn’t inaccurate. The smoke that I was tinkering with certainly wouldn’t look out of place in a cheap b-movie horror, and that had a spark of an idea rising out of my mind, and as though my legs had a mind of their own, I found myself jogging over to Kailey, who was struggling with... something, though I couldn’t quite tell just what yet, across the gym from me. The air was shimmering a bit occasionally, but it seemed like what was going on was nowhere near stable yet, as it only happened for half-second pulses.

“Kails, I have an idea, can yo-” I was cut off mid sentence by a feeling like 10 hand-sized semis blasted into my chest, and to say I stumbled off my feet was putting it lightly. After shaking the stars out of my eyes, I saw K’s outstretched hand swim into view in front of me.

“Sorry about that, Aaron, I’m... getting the hang of this, and you kinda surprised me. What’d you need?”

“I... figured you’re the alchemist around here, and I need a pretty large puddle to work with. I want to check if something works like I think it does.”

K’s confused look betrayed that it wasn’t exactly clear what I was pushing towards with this move of mine to just anyone, but by the time I opened my mouth to explain my ideas about surface area, airflow, and water vapor, the gears had already clicked into place behind K’s eyes.

“I think that would work, but you’re gonna need a lot of area, and I don’t exactly have the energy for a stuff swap that big along with what we’re supposed to be doing. Maybe try it on the dirt instead, I don’t think the water is quite necessary.”

I blinked a few times, rolling over the suggestion my best friend had just given me. It could make sense that the cold alone was the crux of how this was going to work, and there was only one way to find out.

“I’ll give it a shot, K! Good luck with... are those high-mass punches?”

“Something like that, sure!” K chirped, clearly not ready to filter it down into words I would get quite yet.

So I strode off to my side of the gym again, this time kneeling with one knee on the ground, superhero style. Like before, I let a small amount of cold flow through my hands, which were now splayed on the ground. A few small bubbles of fog started to rise from the ground beneath my hands, but it was still clearly nowhere near the amount of fog I’d need for something like what I was planning. I grit my teeth, focusing deeper on just how the cold was flowing. Clearly, the surface area of where I was effecting wasn’t quite high enough just yet, so I pushed slightly harder into the ground around me, feeling the circle of cold slowly expand at my feet. The cold was pressing not only from my hands, but through the leg that I had pressed to the floor as well. The circle of cold was pretty easily visible, since as the boundary grew, the fog started to rise from it as well. With greater surface area, comes greater effects, and the cloud of fog was now much more substantial, the smoke pretty handily coating me. Unfortunately, as I started to rise to my feet, and the flow of cold slowed, the circle immediately shrunk, a great deal of the fog covering me boiling off. Doubly unfortunately, I threw a few test punches and found that the fog simply slipped out of my way, making my movements dreadfully obvious. However, before I could do anything to tinker with my methods, a rather loud whistle cut through the din (that I’d somehow managed to not notice) that formerly filled the gym.

“Alright everyone, that’s your gym time for the day! Head back to your dorms, that’s all we have for you today!” Vlad’s shout echoed around the gym, and almost in sync, K and I jogged to the door of the gym, my hand slipping into hers.

I did my best to not have the most cheesy grin on my face as we strolled across campus to where we were supposed to stow our hero costumes, and after jumping through all the hoops required to check our gear back in, I met back up with K, once again taking her hand.

“K, it looked like you were working on something clever, are ya ready to clue me in yet?”

“Sure! I’m still not entirely sure it’s what I’m going to focus on but if you’re really curious I can try to explain!” She smiled

“Dear, all the stuff you do with your quirk are mega neat, feel free to explain!”

“Well currently my approach is based on time dilation as far as I can tell, well moreso warping space in such a way that time essentially stops for my target, which makes it practically trivial to hit everywhere that would do a great deal of damage to any opponent, and I figured that while I was at the trouble of warping space I’d lend some extra oomph to my punches as well!”

I could feel the confusion written into my face, and I blinked a few times to try to resolve just what my best pal was trying to tell me. “I... caught like 5 percent of that, Kails, you gotta dial it down for me.”

“Well essentially, I’m using something related to how I got you to my room, along with slowing down time for the enemy, so I slam, at least from their perspective, a ton of their pressure points at once.”

“That’s cool as heck?? Golly gosh!”

K’s quirk, while always cool, seemed to be getting more and more interesting as the days passed. However, as much fun as babbling about our quirks was, I wanted to spend my first night off spending some proper time with my best pal, and I made that clear as we stopped in front of K’s dorm.

“H-hey, so... d’you wanna hang out in your dorm and watch a movie? I found a huge database of old public domain american movies and I think I found one you’d be into?” I wasn’t quite sure why I was blushing at the prospect, it was just watching a movie, I’d probably done it a hundred times before... but here I was, my face rapidly going from a slight pink to a bright red. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one to blush, as K went a little pink in kind, glancing down at my hand, which was still in hers.

“Sure, you know I’m always happy to spend time with you.” I smiled softly at her response, and followed my girlfriend into her dorm.

#my hero academia #mha #boku no hero academia #bnha #my hero academia oc #my hero academy oc #my hero academy #boku no hero academia oc #mha oc #bnha oc #Aaron #Quirk: cryokinesis #Kailey #Quirk: Spacetime Manipulation #Oliver #Quirk: Green Thumb #Mod Glacier

[kuriquinn]

A Hole In The World [2/?]

Blanket Fic Disclaimer: 

Title: A Hole In The World (continuation of this prompt)

Rating: T (for now)

Pairing: SasuSaku

Beta Reader: Not beta-read; check back at a later date for edits

Author’s Note: I was going to put this up a few days from now just to space things out, but a lot of people seemed confused about whether this was a time-travel fic or not, so I decided to post this early to give you guys a better idea of where I’m going with this.

サクラ

Sakura awakens to the sound of beeping monitors and an itch in her left hand that suggests someone has put an IV in. She frowns, not used to being on this side of the scenario.

“Sakura-sensei?” Ando asks, unnaturally tentative.

“What…happened…?” she begins, her mouth painfully dry. Her brain takes a few seconds to remember the prelude to her unconsciousness, but when she does she pnaics, shooting into a sitting position. “The poisons! They have hallucinogenic properties, and could be airborne! You shouldn’t be here, you can’t risk exposure!”

“It’s fine!” Ando cries, holding up a reassuring hand. “As soon as we got your message we locked everything down, and a team was sent in with protective gear to retrieve you. The room was completely quarantined and the science team even checked the air quality before going in for you. But it was fine. You just passed out.”

“Did you scan me for poison?” Sakura demands.

“It’s not like I’ve been working here for months or anything,” Ando grumbles, but at Sakura’s warning glare he quickly adds, “There’s nothing showing up. According to our tests, your vitals are find. If there was anything, it passed out of your system before we got there. You probably healed yourself. Though I have no idea why you passed out…do you do that a lot?”

“It was probably the energy expended healing,” Sakura muses with a frown. “Though I’ve been through much worse, it shouldn’t have hit me like that.”

It suggests whatever was in those containers was a much stronger poison than she expected.

“Are you sure there’s nothing else?” Sakura prompts.

“I’m sure. You’re fine. A little overworked and your make-up could use a touch-up, that’s to be expected after being unconscious for five and a half hours—”

“Sarada!” Sakura gasps in realisation. She swings her feet around, scrambling to get out of bed. “I have to pick her up!”

“You don’t have to worry about her,” Ando assures her. “Your mother called when you didn’t show up. Your daughter’s fine. In the meantime, you should stay overnight and sleep a little more.”

“I can’t, I have to be there to pick her up…”

“Ehm…maybe I’m not saying this right,” Ando hedges. “Your mother said if I let you come home without getting a full eight hours of sleep, she was going to…um…do something rather unpleasant to some rather important body parts.”

Sakura narrows her eyes. “And what do you think I’ll do if you don’t let me go?”

“No offense, but your mother scares me more than you do. You’d at least come for me face to face…I think she’d kill me in my sleep.”

“One of these days I’m going to have to figure out how my mother has managed to terrify every man in this damned village,” Sakura grumbles, sitting back on the cot. She huffs and then makes a dissmisive motion with her hand. “Fine. But if I’m going to be here, I want you running every test we have. Something happened to me, even if I’m not showing symptoms anymore. I want to know what it is.”

“That I can do,” Ando agrees.

サクラ

There’s a backlog of tests being run in the lab, and although Sakura could use her clearance to speed up the process, she doesn’t like to flaunt her privilege unless she has to. There’s nothing wrong with her at the moment, and she’d prefer the labs be working on the sick and dying than her.

Instead, she heads home to shower, then goes to pick up Sarada from her parents. She ends up agreeing to stay for breakfast, which as it turns out, is a good idea; she is surprisingly ravenous.

“I don’t remember you eating this much in ages,” Mebuki remarks as she shovels more steamed rice and natto into Sakura’s bowl. “The last time you had three servings of breakfast was when you were training with Lady Fifth.”

“You’re like a hungry clock,” Kizashi adds. “You’re keep going back four seconds.”

“Grandpa,” Sarada groans, though there’s a tug at the corner of her mouth; just like Sakura used to do at that age, she pretends to find her grandfather’s jokes lame.

“Actually, the last time I ate so much was when I was pregnant with this one,” Sakura says, absently reaching over to wipe a speck of soy sauce from her daughter’s cheek. “She really liked natto…”

“Mama!” Sarada protests, craning away from her.

“Well if you weren’t eating so quickly, you wouldn’t get food all down your front,” Sakura reminds her. “What are you in such a hurry about, anyway?”

“I have training to do,” Sarada insists importantly.

“Not until you finish your breakfast, you don’t,” Mebuki returns before Sakura can do so. “You need to eat enough to keep your energy up. And that means eating slowly, so you don’t get an upset stomach.”

Sarada opens her mouth to protest, but Kizashi agrees, “Many a true word is spoken ingest.”

This time it’s Sakura who groans, while Sarada folds her arms in front of her chest. A lump forms in Sakura’s throat because she looks so much like Sasuke when she does that!

She’s even becoming more like him, in terms of attitude.

These days, Sarada has become very quiet and withdrawn, devouring the books in their house and at the library related to the shinobi arts. She knows Sasuke is a talented ninja, because of all the stories she’s heard about him; Sakura has always told her everything about her father that she could without alluding to his mission or the darker parts of his past. And it was never a question that they would raise her as a shinobi, so in many ways this sudden studious interest is a good thing. It will serve her well when she starts the Academy in a few months.

But Sakura suspects it has more to do with Sarada trying to feel close to her father by living up to the standard he set.

One of Sarada’s tomes on well-known techniques among the clans of Konoha is always open to the chapter on Shurikenjutsu; Sakura has watched her daughter determinedly try to master it in their yard. Sometimes she wonders if she should teach her Katon, if only to help Sarada feel closer to her clan’s traditions, but she can’t get past the feeling that Sasuke must be the one to do that. Not just because he’s Sarada’s father and the patriarch of the clan, but because for him it’s such a personal thing to share.

But that brings us back to the fact he has to be here to teach it, Sakura thinks sadly.

None of them expected Sasuke’s mission to take as long as it is, and she thought he would be back before it really had an effect on their daughter.

Some days, no matter how important she knows his work is, she wishes she had argued more, or that Naruto had refused to let him go. Not that Sasuke responds well to ultimatums, but ever since the war, when Naruto offers him an opinion, he considers it. Seven out of ten times, he’ll even agree; it’s the other three that are so tricky.

It’s a rare day off, and so she tries to put all of this and the issues from the hospital out of her mind, instead running errands with Sarada in tow. They pick up groceries, shop for new shoes and clothes for Sarada—she’s growing like a weed!—and stop in to see the newest Princess Yuki movie—one of the many sequels to the Princess Gale films Naruto was so crazy about when they were kids.

All the while, Sarada remains quiet.

Later that evening, long after one of their usual quiet suppers for two, Sakura wonders if she ought to speak up. She doesn’t often ask Sarada what’s wrong directly—much like Sasuke, Sarada will insist there’s nothing wrong—and prefers a tried and true method of wordless coaxing to encourage her daughter to open up.

Just as Sarada climbs into bed, Sakura opens her mouth to ask, only to be interrupted with a question.

“Mama, what were Grandmother and Grandfather like?”

Sakura pauses for a moment, confused, and then realises that she’s being asked about Sasuke’s parents.

“I…well…” she considers. “I never met them before. They died a long time ago.”

“Oh.”

“But I think Grandma did know your Grandmother Uchiha a little bit. Maybe she could tell you a little more about her,” Sakura suggests.

Sarada’s eyes go wide. “Really?”

“Maybe,” Sakura repeats. “I don’t think they knew each other very well. But…it’s still more than I did.”

“What about Uncle Itachi?” Sarada asks, sitting up eagerly in bed. “You met him, right?”

Sakura hesitates here.

Neither occasion was exactly optimal; in one he was a deadly enemy who would have killed them all if their presence interfered with his elaborate plans—the other was in an alternate universe where it wasn’t technically their Itachi Uchiha.

“Briefly,” Sakura says. “He was a good man and a loyal Konoha shinobi.”

“What was he like?”

“You’ll really have to ask your Papa that when he gets back.”

Sarada sighs, unhappy. “So, I’ll never know.”

“Don’t say that,” Sakura chides, tapping her daughter on the forehead in affectionate reprimand. “Papa will be home soon. And you can ask him all of this.”

I hope…

“Now, it’s time for you to go to sleep. I have to be at the hospital for the morning shift, so we’re going to get up early and bring you to Grandma and Grandpa’s house.”

“I don’t wanna get up early…I’ll be tired all day.”

“So you can take a nap later.”

“Naps are for babies!”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot,” Sakura laughs, and begins to rise.

“Mama, can I have a story before bed?”

She sits back down. “Which one?”

“Indra and Shachi.”

Sakura’s heart clenches a little at this.

“Don’t you want to wait for Papa to come home and tell you that one?” she asks gently. It’s always been their special story, even though Sasuke is careful to end it before it becomes too dark. Sarada isn’t old enough yet to hear the entire thing.

“You tell it better,” Sarada insists, a stubborn look on her face that is painfully reminiscent of her father.

Sakura sighs, because every day, Sarada is a little more critical and a little angrier about her father’s absence.

And yet, she always asks for this story, so as angry as she is, she still misses him an awful lot.

The whole things is beginning to affect her socially, which has Sakura worried.

She practically grew up with Boruto Uzumaki; they were inseparable. And how could they not be, given who their parents were? The amount of times Sakura would come pick Sarada up from the Uzumaki household to find Boruto, Sarada and Himawari curled up under a blanket on the couch, snuggled up like little puppies. She’s taken an embarrassing number of secret photos to show Sasuke when he returns.

But…that’s just the problem,

He left; Naruto didn’t.

Boruto and Himawari could go home at the end of the day to a mother and a father; Sarada couldn’t. And Sakura’s daughter noticed, because of course she did.

She stopped wanting to be around them, to the point where she’d pick fights with Boruto, and throw a fuss whenever Sakura tried to bring her for playdates. Not long after, the same thing happened with Inojin, who Sarada suddenly proclaimed was too weird. Ino mentioned that she started getting distant when Sai began to teach their son his Chōjū Giga.

As if it’s any mystery why that would upset her…

“Mama?”

Sakura shakes her head, coming back to the present, and says, “Alright then, if you’re sure.”

She begins to relate the familiar tale, stroking her daughter’s hair as she does until the child drifts into slumber.

When she rises, her thoughts are jumbled. She usually tells the story without thinking much about it—she’s told it so many times, and considering she’s already lived it (after a fashion), it has the same consistency in her brain as a well-loved memory.

Except it makes her think about what happened in the lab today.

The last time she started to have strange dreams without warning, she spent months reliving a past life.

That was triggered by my pregnancy, though, and I’m not pregnant now.

Honestly, it felt more like that time she and Naruto were dragged into that parallel dimension of Obito’s. Except, in that case she was actively pulled through a portal and stuck there until Naruto got them out.

So what was it? Could it be work stress?

She doesn’t sleep well that night, her mind puzzling over the mysterious contents of the box, and analysing every detail she remembers from her dream.

Or hallucination.

On top of all of that, Sarada’s worries needle at her. With that sense of helplessness in the face of her daughter’s questions, an overwhelming longing fills Sakura, for the man who has carried her heart so very far away.

サクラ

The next day, Sakura wakes dizzy and nauseous; it feels like she remembers the flu feeling, though it’s been many years since she’s been sick. Ever since she unlocked the Byakugō she doesn’t have to worry about that sort of thing.

She brings an equally grumbling daughter to her parents’ house, and heads to work, feeling like her head is a wind tunnel. The whole day she slogs through her work, delegating as much as she dares to. It even comes to the point that she is forced to hand over the C-section to one of her most promising subordinates, although she observes from the gallery in case of emergency.

At the same time, she marks down observations about her condition in a notebook, trying to find some common symptoms that will clue her in to what’s happening. Halfway through the procedure, Ando wanders in with a folder that has her name on it and hands it to her. “All of the tests we ran came back negative.”

“That’s not possible,” Sakura snaps. When he flinches, she sighs and apologies, “I’m sorry. This is just frustrating…”

“I’ll keep looking.”

“Thank you.” He begins to leave, and then pauses, a startled expression on his face. “You’re…you’re bleeding.”

“Huh?”

He points to her face and she raises her hand, touching her face just beneath her nose; her fingers come away red.

Alarm bells ring in her head.

“Do the tests again,” Sakura says quietly. “Leave no margin for error, and if there’s any test you haven’t thought to run yet, run it anyway. Even if it’s completely unrelated. Whatever’s going on might show up in an unexpected test.”

“Y-yes, boss.”

He runs off to do just that and Sakura reaches for her notebook again, jotting down another symptom.

Nasal hemorrhage…never a good sign…could the contents of those vessels have had a slow-acting neurotoxin, or—?

All of a sudden, her body seizes.

Her limbs go rigid and her head slams backward in her chair as the operating room and gallery vanish around her.

サクラ

Sakura’s world jerks and she is suddenly standing in the middle of an unfamiliar street, stumbling forward.

“Sakura!”

Someone catches her and when she looks up, there’s Sasuke again—the Sasuke from her dream. He isn’t dressed in the police uniform this time, but a high collared shirt similar to the one he wore as a genin, and neatly pressed trousers.

“What’s going on?” she demands, looking around. “Where are we?”

“What are you talking about?” he asks, his brows drawing together incrementally.

“The…I was in the…?”

Sakura continues to look around, noticing tiny details about the place that tell her she isn’t in a completely unfamiliar location. She’s been here before, only…only it was a lot emptier. Her attention pulls away from her panic long enough to consider the people wandering past; people who look familiar but aren’t. Her recognition of them is based on traits that she has come to know personally in the past decade.

Dark haired, fair skinned, black-eyed people, wearing the clan crest she adopted almost seven years ago.

“This is the Uchiha district,” she says, swallowing against the subtle, panic-induced tightening in her throat.

“Last time I checked,” he agrees, sounding wary. “Sakura, what’s going on? Is this that “pregnancy brain” you were telling me about?”

She doesn’t answer him.

“This is wrong,” she murmurs to herself, watching several children wearing uchiwa symbols on their back chase each other through the street. “This…this can’t be here. I can’t be…am I unconscious?”

“It’s happening again, isn’t it?” Sasuke interrupts, his tone anxious and accusing. “You said you were fine at the hospital.”

“I have no control over what Dream-Me says or does,” she shoots bag, aggravated and short-tempered in a way she rarely is with her Sasuke.

“That’s it,” Sasuke shakes his head. “We’re going back to the hospital and getting those tests you didn’t want. And you’re calling Iruka tonight and telling him you’re not coming in tomorrow.”

“Iruka? Why would I talk to Iruka?”

“They can find a substitute for you. They should already be looking, since your leave will be starting soon anyhow,” he continues. “This is why we talked about you taking it earlier—”

Right. In this world I’m a teacher, apparently. And—

“Hold on,” she snaps. “I don’t know how things work in this universe, but there is no reality where you get to boss me around.”

His eyes widen a bit in surprise, and then he sighs. “Hormones.”

Sakura narrows her own eyes. “You did not just say that.”

Her impending murder of her Not-Husband is interrupted when someone suddenly calls out his name.

They both turn around, just in time to see an older couple saunter out from a nearby storefront. Sasuke curses under his breath, probably unhappy that their discussion is being interrupted. But he turns and bows his head in respect.

Hold on…what? When has Sasuke ever…?

“Uncle Teyaki, Aunt Uruchi,” he greets them, allowing the woman to draw him in to a hug with an expression of uncomfortable tolerance.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve seen you, boy,” the man says, and then turns clever black eyes on Sakura. “And who is this?”

“This is my wife, Sakura,” Sasuke explains.

Oh, good, I’m not expected to know these people.

“Er…pleased to meet you,” she says for want of anything else.

The couple exchange what is clearly an uncomfortable, significant married-couple look, as well as a silent conversation, and then paste smiles on their faces.

“Ah, yes, we had heard you got married,” Uruchi says. “Congratulations.”

“Bit of a rush, wasn’t it?” Teyaki chuckles nervously, glancing at Sakura’s middle. “I suppose we know why now.”

Catching the implication, Sakura opens her mouth to snap back at the person, but Sasuke’s arm squeezes around her shoulders in warning. She intends to shrug him off, but finds his hold on her is heavier than expected.

Frowning, she tries to pull free, only to find that she can’t.

She has no strength.

What kind of world is this?!

“Now don’t mind him, he’s being rude,” Uruchi speaks up. “We all understand that circumstances don’t always work out the way we hope. You make sure you come by this way more often, dearie, you seem like a nice girl. And we make the best senbei in the village. It won’t upset your stomach or the little one’s.”

She smiles kindly at Sakura.

“That’s assuming they come back,” Teyaki points out, and then raises an eyebrow at Sasuke. The gesture is eerily similar to Sakura’s husband’s; she really isn’t used to seeing his mannerisms on anyone else but her daughter. “I take it you’re here to speak with your folks?”

Sasuke grunts in reply—at least his dislike of sharing personal information is the same.

“I just want to know what’s taken so long,” Uruchi harrumphs. “You and that father of yours are so stubborn—”

“Well, if it isn’t the runt of the family.”

Someone appears by their side, so swiftly and silently that Sakura suspects he used Shushin; he’s curly haired, and with a smile and a casual, friendly demeanour that reminds Sakura instantly of Kakashi.

“Long time no see, little cousin,” he continues, and then ruffles Sasuke’s hair in a way Sakura has seen her husband break ribs over when Naruto used to try it.

Instead, Sasuke simply jerks away, shoving the other man and snaps, “Knock it off, Shisui!”

Shisui…I think I know that name…

Sakura tries to remember what Sasuke told her about him, long ago; an older cousin, his brother’s best friend and something to do with Danzō Shimura.

“Forgive me, princess, I didn’t realise you still took offense to having your hair messed up,” Shisui replies without a hint of bother over Sasuke’s attitude. He faces Sakura and offers her a friendly smile. “Hello there. Allow me to introduce myself since my favourite cousin is too emotionally stunted to do it.”

“Shisui,” Uruchi chides.

“That’s my name.”

“At least you know that much,” Sasuke grumbles.

Shisui doesn’t seem put off by Sasuke at all. “Hey, when are you going to stop kissing ass at the police force and come join ANBU like your brother and me?”

“About the time you quit.”

“Ouch. I’m hurt. And here I thought it was because you preferred the cushy, safe jobs,” Shisui muses. “Or has uncle taken you off the roster already?” Sasuke grits his teeth at him. “Ah. I take it that’s one of the things you want to discuss with him tonight?”

There’s something entirely too innocent about his tone.

“Does everyone but me know what’s going on here?” Sakura asks out loud.

Sasuke suddenly turns to face her, eyes wide. “Sakura!”

“What? I’m just pointing out the truth here—”

“Catch her, before she—”

“I’ve got her—!”

The world tilts like she’s being shaken and Sakura tries to fight it. “Sasuke, what the hell—stop!”

But then the familiar swooping sensation of being ripped from her sleep overtakes her, and the world shifts.

サクラ

She awakens on the floor of the gallery; Ando has been trying to rouse her, apparently, and when she wakes the first thing she notices is his inability to disguise his fear.

Ando stands over her, unable to disguise his fear.

This isn’t going away in a hurry, she realises as control returns to her body.

“Book a lab and make sure no one but you and I have access to it. And tell no one about this—I don’t want to start a panic until it’s necessary,” Sakura tells him grimly as she pushes herself to her feet. “We have work to do.”

つづく

Reviews and constructive criticism are much appreciated! Also, if you are in a supportive mood, I have a ko-fi button at the top of the page, or you can find my tip jar here.

Thanks for your interest in my work!

クリ

Next Chapter

#naruto fanfiction #sasusaku #rating: teen #for now #legacy of fire series #sfw #blank period #parallel universes #meet the family #sakura haruno #sarada uchiha #sasuke uchiha #mebuki haruno #shisui uchiha #ando (oc) #drama #adventure #romance #kuriquinn

[azvolrien]

The Hawk Steppes - Chapter Two

ROUND TWO LET’S GO

~~~

           “She really wasn’t kidding when she said a lot of the miners suffered from dust lung,” said Rhona, flipping through her notebook. “I’ve given all of them at least a preliminary check; about a third of the workforce have it severely, and almost all of the rest have at least mild symptoms.” She shook her head. “It’s not that I don’t know how to deal with it, but I’ll have to remove the dust build-up from their lungs before I can heal the damage it’s caused, and that’ll use up most of the medicine I brought with me even after I work out the best way to actually administer it. I hope you’re growing those constructs without susceptibility to it!”

           Calburn nodded, leaning on the wall of their shared office. “Yeah, I’ve given them a sort of filtration system in their airways; there are these little… sort of hairs, like, that catch the dust in their nostrils and pass it back out before it reaches their lungs. I had to jury-rig some extra flasks out of old water tanks, though – Kedran wanted a batch of twelve to start with, and you know I only brought the one flask. At least I brought the ingredients for plenty of spell-fluid…”

           “Which are what, exactly?” asked Rhona. “They supplied it ready-made at the College when I grew Tyren – they never told me what it was actually made of.”

           “Yeah, the composition is journeyman-level stuff,” said Calburn, tucking his thumbs into his belt. “It’s mostly water, to be honest, but you need to get the proportions of the other ingredients right even before you cast the spells. Some salts, a smidge of fat-”

           “A smidge?”

           “Technical term,” said Calburn, nodding. “Various metals. A bit of blood plasma.”

           Rhona froze for a moment and slowly looked up. “Blood plasma?”

           “Only a little bit,” Calburn assured her. “Even Vrand’s flask only had about half a pint in it, and you know how massive he is.”

           “You know, I think I’m quite glad they didn’t tell me that when I was an apprentice. But wait, didn’t we all add a few drops of blood to the flasks back then? Red blood, not just plasma?”

           “That’s just if you’re linking a construct to a particular person.”

           “I… see.” Rhona set her notebook down, linked her fingers, and stretched both arms above her head. “Have you started growing those constructs yet?”

           “Yeah, they should be ready to decant in, mmm, about ten days.”

           “Can you see if you can make some prototype breath masks while they’re growing? I think that’ll be the best way to stop the miners’ lungs getting any worse once they go back to work.” Calburn nodded. “Great. C’mon, let’s go see if that courier brought any letters for us.”

           The mine was too isolated to have frequent access to the Imperial Postal Service, but the owners had arranged for a courier to arrive once a week with both official correspondence and personal mail, which the mine secretary sorted into different pigeonholes for each worker. Calburn’s was still empty when they arrived at the office, but a couple of sealed envelopes waited for Rhona.

           “My sister,” she said by means of explanation, waving one of the envelopes as they both sat down on the wrought-iron bench outside the office. “Said she’d write every week… Wasn’t aware she’d meant it quite so literally.”

           “My parents wanted to, but I talked them down to writing once a month,” said Calburn.

           “And this other one’s actually addressed to both of us.”

           Calburn peered at the envelope, its address written in carefully-neat capitals. “That’s Wy’s ‘I’m trying to be legible’ handwriting, isn’t it?”

           Rhona slit the envelope open and unfolded the letter. “They’re still on parental leave from the College,” she said as she read through it. “Though Fayn’s back on her feet now – good, you know how worried he was about her. Says the baby’s doing fine, too.”

           “Gods.” Calburn folded his hands behind his head. “I’m happy for them, but it’s still so weird to think of Wygar married with a kid. I mean… Wygar.”

           “I know,” said Rhona. “You’re probably quicker listing the people our age he hasn’t slept with. Still, you’ve only got to see him with Fayn to know how much she means to him. They’re always touching each other,” she added with a hint of distaste.

           “Come on, it’s kind of cute.”

           “…Yeah, it is.”

           Hooves drummed against the ground outside the mine perimeter, and they both glanced up. A lone rider approached from the nomad camp at a swift canter.

           “Must be the kid Kedran mentioned,” said Calburn as the rider reined in her stocky dun-coloured horse and swung herself down from the saddle. “Here to keep an eye on us, I suppose.” He shrugged and looked back at the letter.

           Rhona frowned and nudged him lightly in the side as the young nomad adjusted the horse’s bridle. “Look at her,” she said, almost under her breath. “Notice anything unusual?”

           Calburn made a thoughtful sound. “Actually,” he said, “now that you mention it…”

           The girl looked no older than her mid-teens, and in most respects she resembled any other nomad tribeswoman of the Hawk Steppes: she had the same golden-brown skin, dark, almond-shaped eyes, and a complex pattern tattooed across her cheekbones in black ink. A quiver of arrows hung from her belt, while a recurve bow was slung across her back. Her braided hair, however, was a sunny blonde where most nomads had brown or black, and her ears were long and pointed.

           “I knew there are elfin nomads,” mused Calburn. “But I didn’t know there are any, like, in the tribes, with the tattoos and everything.”

           “Clearly there’s at least one,” said Rhona. The girl’s ears were slightly different to Wygar’s or Stormlord Halleth’s; where their ears pointed upwards, hers slanted back at more of an angle.

           As they watched, the girl paused in her harness check and frowned over at them. “What are you staring at?”

           “Uh…” Calburn hastily lowered his hand away from his ear.

           “Just wondering,” said Rhona quickly. “I don’t think this place gets many visitors. What’s your name?”

           The girl pushed her shoulders back proudly. “Roxana Ernakyin Yaigani, tribal liaison,” she said, enunciating the last word very firmly. The mask of self-importance slipped a fraction and she tilted her head curiously. “What about you? I haven’t seen you around here before.”

           “New hires!” Calburn gave Rhona’s back an affectionate slap, making her hunch forwards for an instant. “Rhona here’s a Healer; she’s helping the miners with their dust lung. I’m here to replace the pit ponies.”

           Roxana looked him up and down. “How many mine carts can you pull?”

           “Very funny,” said Calburn as Rhona pressed her knuckles against her mouth. “I mean I make constructs. You know, like, fake animals.”

           “So what happens to the ponies afterwards?” asked Roxana.

           “Good question,” said Calburn after a long silence.

           “If your band is willing to take them, I’m sure Overseer Kedran would let them go,” said Rhona. “If not… Well.” She raised her eyebrows meaningfully.

           Roxana scowled, wrinkling her nose. “I’ll check on the ponies,” she said. “And after that… I’ll have a word with Ernak.”

           “Who’s Ernak?” whispered Calburn as Roxana purposefully led her horse away.

           “Nobody we’ve met, certainly,” said Rhona, and looked back at Wygar’s letter. A flash of motion caught her eye and she glanced back up just as a rat scurried across the yard into the shadows. “Unrelatedly,” she said slowly, “I need to speak with whoever’s in charge of pest control here.”

           They grew used to seeing Roxana around over the next few days. Although she returned to her band’s camp each night, almost every day found her wandering around the mine, inspecting the pit ponies’ stables, studying the enormous hoist that raised and lowered the cages, getting in the way of the shift captains, and generally making a nuisance of herself until Kedran banned her from the pit head. More than once, the wizards caught her in their workrooms, rifling through their notes and looking curiously at Calburn’s construct flasks, but she never asked any questions. Almost two weeks after their arrival at the mine, when the first batch of constructs was almost ready to decant, she showed up sporting what looked very like burn marks on her forearms, but defensively refused to answer any questions about them.

           Rhona put the young elf out of her mind and turned her attention back to the problem at hand, leaning thoughtfully on her desk. Her latest patient was responding well to the course of treatment, but was it really the most efficient method of medication?

           The surgery door creaked open behind her.

           “Hello, Roxana,” said Rhona without looking up.

           “Uh. How’d you know it was me?”

           “Process of elimination,” said Rhona. “Everyone else knocks. And I could hear your breathing. Every teacher at the College has had practice with apprentices trying to sneak up on them, trust me.”

           “Right. Um… can I- What are you doing to that rat?”

           Rhona tapped a fingernail against the wire cage. “Experimenting,” she said. “Even the rats around here have dust lung, so they make good test subjects for possible treatments before I give any to the miners. This spray nozzle here administers the potion in a fine mist, which the rat then inhales. It gets rid of the dust in the creature’s lungs, after which my healing can repair the damage the dust has inflicted on the organs. It’s working on the rat, but a human may need a larger dose. Perhaps some kind of steam room would work.” She turned around to lean on the back of her chair. “You wanted to ask something?”

           Roxana took a deep breath. “My band calls me Roxy,” she said after holding the breath for a few moments.

           “That’s not really a question, but all right.”

           “No, I mean – that’s what I’m usually called. I prefer it, to be honest.”

           “Fair enough.”

           Roxy sighed and fiddled with the end of her long braid. “Miz Rhona… How did you become a witch?”

           Rhona blinked. “I am not a witch,” she said. “I’m a wizard.”

           “But I thought – so, it’s not a man-woman thing?”

           “No, it’s not.” Rhona took her glasses off and wiped the lenses clean of dust. “A wizard is somebody with formal training in the use of magic to one degree or another. Witches are self-taught, or learned through an informal apprenticeship of some kind. Neither term is gender-specific. Nor is there any judgement involved, snobbery aside – I’ve known some extremely skilled and powerful witches, and some downright useless wizards. As to how I became a wizard, Stormhaven law requires every child of magical ability to study at our College of Sorcery for a minimum of four years, starting from age twelve, though there are also options for people who come into their powers later in life.”

           Roxy swallowed hard and looked at the floor for a moment. “So, so… If a wizard is someone with formal training, and a witch is someone with informal training… What do you call someone with magic but no training at all?”

           “A liability,” said Rhona drily. She put her glasses back on and caught Roxy’s crestfallen expression. “The general term for a person with magical ability, regardless of training,” she continued, “is ‘mage’.” She clasped her hands and propped her chin on her knuckles. “But somehow I don’t think this is really a conversation about terminology, is it? I take it this is connected to those burns on your arms.”

           “No one else in my band has magic,” said Roxy in a very small voice. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried testing things out, practising by myself, but…”

           Rhona nodded. “I take it you’re listening, Calburn?” she said, raising her voice.

           “The walls aren’t very thick here,” he said from his workshop in the next room. A couple of seconds passed and he let himself into the surgery, sidling around the room to leave the door open behind Roxy. “Thing about the College,” he said, sitting on the edge of Rhona’s desk, “if you make it to Journeyman rank… it gives you a duty to teach and protect inexperienced mages wherever you find them, whenever you find them. When you’re a Master, even more so. Rhona and me? We’re both Masters.”

           “Speak to whoever’s in charge over at your camp,” said Rhona. “Either you can hang around here in the evenings, or we can come over to your place for some lessons.”

           “…Then you’ll help?” asked Roxy.

           “Everyone’s magic is slightly different,” said Rhona, “so I can’t swear to exactly how much we’ll be able to help, but we will teach you to control your abilities at the very least.”

           “And if we can’t help you to master them, then you can be damn sure we’ll put you in touch with someone who can,” said Calburn.

           Roxy’s breathing shook a little; without another word, she simply nodded, backed out of the surgery, and ran off.

           “Well,” said Calburn once the sound of her footsteps had faded. “Guess we’ve acquired an evening job.”

           The following dusk found them both riding across the open grassland towards the nomad camp. As their constructs galloped closer, they could see that the tents alone, each with its own campfire and gathered loosely around a large central hearth, only formed one part of the encampment: gradually a dark, shifting mass on the other side of the tents resolved into a huge herd of cattle, more than a hundred of the beasts, and a smaller group of horses of all shapes and sizes.

           At the edge of the tents, a tribesman blocked their path with an outstretched spear and, with his other hand, blew three short blasts on a wooden whistle. Calburn glanced at Rhona and clambered down from Mostol’s saddle, wrapping the big construct’s reins around one hand. After a moment, Rhona dismounted Tyren and murmured for her to follow.

           “Think we’re expected,” said Calburn, waving a hand to include both himself and Rhona. “Roxy invited us over to give her a few magic lessons.”

           “That’s right, I did,” said Roxy, jogging up behind the guard. “It’s all right, you can let them in – Ernak knows they’re coming.” The guard nodded and lowered his spear. “Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

           Most of the camp had turned out for a look at the visitors. Although Roxy had referred to the nomads as her ‘band’, there were far more of them than the word implied: none of the tents seemed to house any fewer than five people, and some closer to ten. One curious child reached out to pat Mostol’s flank as he lumbered past, recoiling at some hissed order from her father. Several more stared at Tyren in open bafflement; although Mostol could almost have passed for some kind of bison, long-tailed, two-legged Tyren was like no beast of burden the nomads had ever seen.

           Any other elves, however, were conspicuous in their absence.

           Roxy waved for them to stop next to the camp’s central hearth. Mostol, always a little more intelligent than most constructs, grunted and took the initiative to sit down behind his master. Tyren remained standing, the granite pebble in her forehead glittering in the firelight.

           Roxy cleared her throat. “Calburn, Rhona – this is Ernak Okranir Yaigani, the leader of our band. Ernak, these are the wizards I told you about.”

           Ernak stood up from his place by the fire. Dark of eye and hair, he was a compact man – no taller than Rhona – but his shoulders were broad and his arms, left bare by his sleeveless leather vest, were well-muscled and marked with tattoos similar to those across his cheekbones. Over the vest, he wore a hooded cloak fashioned from the spotted pelt of a steppe lion, its head resting atop his own and its forelegs tied in a knot across his chest. For a few seconds, he just looked the wizards up and down, much like Roxy had, before he grasped them by the forearms and kissed them each on the cheek in turn.

           Calburn blinked. Rhona stiffened, holding her breath for a moment.

           “You are welcome in my camp and at my fire,” said Ernak formally, holding both arms out wide. He lowered his arms, apparently not expecting a hug, and went on less formally. “Magic’s never been all that common on the Steppes,” he explained. “Don’t know why. But it means Roxy’s been about turning herself inside out worrying about it.” He draped an arm around Roxy’s shoulders and hugged her against his side. “Yeah, don’t think I haven’t noticed,” he added to her. “C’mon, we’ve set up a little practice area for you.”

           It turned out to be a small campfire, set apart from the tents and fenced off to stop the cattle wandering too close. A couple of coarse blankets had been laid out on the bare earth around the fire.

           “Right, here goes,” said Rhona once she, Calburn and Roxy had all sat down by the fire. “Magic. At its heart, magic is about energy. What sets mages apart from other people is that we can redirect, convert and amplify that energy to cast our spells and manipulate the world around us, but even so everyone’s magic is slightly different.”

           “Not everyone can do everything,” put in Calburn.

           Rhona nodded. “For example – I’m a skilled Healer, but I can’t open portals. Calburn here is one of the best Constructists alive, but he’ll never be a Seer. A friend of ours is a terrifying force of nature on the battlefield, but he can’t heal to save himself.”

           “Literally!” said Calburn. “But despite all that, there are a few things that all mages can do, which makes them good practice for someone just starting out.” He cracked his knuckles one by one and shook his hands out. “Let’s start with a witchlight. Focus – it might help to close your eyes the first time – and find that energy inside you. Draw a little of it out, and will it to convert to light.” He held one hand out flat, palm up; after an instant, a little ball of white-gold light appeared, hovering above his hand. “See?”

           Roxy clenched both fists in front of her and screwed up her face in concentration. After almost a minute, a tiny, unsteady pinprick of light flickered above her hands.

           “Hm,” said Rhona, frowning.

           Roxy opened one eye a crack. “I did it!”

           “Yes…” said Rhona slowly, studying the burns still visible on Roxy’s forearms.

           Roxy’s smile faded. “What?” She looked down at her light, just before it vanished altogether. “Oh… It was too small, wasn’t it?”

           “Small’s good for a first time,” Calburn quickly assured her. “It makes it much less likely that you’ll lose control.”

           She sighed. “Maybe I’m just not powerful enough.”

           “The amount of energy that a mage can control – that is, their power – is considered innate,” said Rhona, still frowning. “Practice can help you to do great things with what you have – I’m not especially powerful, but my experience has let me hone my abilities to do some very fine healing work, more than a lot of more powerful Healers can – but where power is concerned, either you have it or you don’t. That little witchlight would suggest that… Well, that you’re barely powerful enough to be considered a mage.”

           “Oh.” Roxy looked down at her hands.

           Calburn scowled at Rhona, and she carried on. “Which raises the question of how you managed to burn yourself like that.”

           “Huh?”

           “You did those by conjuring a flame, yes?” said Rhona, pointing towards the marks on Roxy’s forearms. “Trying to experiment by yourself?”

           “Well… yeah.”

           “Remind you of anyone?” murmured Calburn.

           “So,” said Rhona, staring into space, “if you can hardly conjure a witchlight, how did you manage to conjure a flame strong enough to do that to yourself?”

           Roxy rubbed one of her forearms. “I dunno.”

           Calburn drummed his fingers on his knee for a few seconds. “Wygar,” he said suddenly.

           “What about him?” asked Rhona.

           “That thing he does with the glowing eyes.”

           “Yes?”

           “No, listen, I’m getting to something here. Roxy!”

           Roxy sniffed. “Yeah?”

           “All right, firstly – don’t cry. Rhona doesn’t mean anything by it, she just doesn’t always account for people’s feelings when she’s in lesson mode.”

           “Hey!”

           “Shush, Rho, you know it’s true. Right. Look for energy again, but this time – look out, not in. See the campfire there? There’s a big pile of light and heat for you to use. Take a little of that, and turn it into a witchlight.”

           Roxy took a deep breath, bowed her head, and stretched out one hand towards the fire. For a brief moment, nothing happened, before a fist-sized, painfully bright witchlight flared into existence above her fingers and hovered there, glowing steadily. Cautiously, she raised her head, revealing the brilliant golden-white light in her eyes.

           Rhona’s jaw dropped. Calburn folded his arms and grinned smugly. “Elves,” he said by means of an explanation.

           Rhona closed her mouth and swallowed. “Well. That… That explains a few things.” She pressed a fist against her lips and coughed. “Congratulations, Roxana Ernakyin Yaigani. You are very definitely a mage.”

~~~

Calburn can be a bit of a goof, but he’s actually very good at what he does and a lot more perceptive than he’s often given credit for.

#az writes stories

[cupnoodle-queen]

CHASING SUNS: Chapter 19 Battering Ram

2,365 words

So I realized after writing this chapter I had a lot of groud to cover. This unfortunately means I need to add another chapter before the Epilogue, so the entire work plus that will be 22 chapters total. Sorry for that! But I’m going to try and get Chapter 20 out tomorrow.

Tagging the bae’s, @themissimmortal, @blindbae, @nifwrites

Cam woke pleasantly sore, her five AM alarm blaring beneath her pillow.

She’d meant to turn over and grab her phone, but something - someone, was holding her midsection from behind, heat seeping through her tanktop and underwear. Contented realization set in and Gladio’s arm tightened around her, stirring from sleep. The bunk was small so space was unheard of; Cam nudged his considerable bicep up a bit and flipped onto her other side to face him, his facial features only just distinguishable in the near pitch darkness. He seemed to hesitate a moment as if questioning what side of reality he was conscious in, but then he pressed a single, imperative kiss on Cam’s lips. Gladio leaned back and observed her, appreciated her.

Fell for her.

“Hi,” he croaked, voice still laden with sleep.

Cam brushed her foot up his calf. “Hi.”

She silenced her alarm and was reminded of why she’d even set it in the first place. Today they’d have put their lives on the line, go toe to toe with something she’d never even heard of, and from the sounds of the discussions at the bar the night before neither had anyone else. Gladio seemed to land on the same page and he too came to the astute realization of what the day had in store for them.

They dressed at unhurried pace, stealing glances at each other’s bodies not out of suggestive intent but to engrave into memory. To remember them, should the need arise and they find themselves one short of a pair. The possibility made Cam’s throat bunch up, going so long without her other half only to lose them so soon…

No, it wouldn’t be an option. They’d go down together and though no words were spoken between them to affirm it, Cam knew in her heart and mind Gladio was in agreeance. Besides, she’d already lived through losing one love of her life; she didn’t have it in her to survive another. 

Gladio helped with the back buckles of her leather armor, latching each one methodically and with unwillingness. An approaching fight at the estimated magnitude would typically get him restless, anxious to let adrenaline overthrow his awareness and expel the pent-up frustrations and energy. But now? “We could just, y’know,” he began, fastening the last latch at the base of Cam’s neck, “hop in the Jeep and take off. Get away from here, for good.”

Cam sighed. “No, no we can’t.” She pulled on her leather gloves, followed by the bracers that Greyson bought her for her first hunt. “It’s...a nice thought, though.” 

Gladio stepped in front of her, his expression softer than she’d ever seen before. It gathered warmth in her chest and her marking tingled pleasantly beneath her skin. “Tell you what. We survive this mess, we’ll get away from here for a while, just us.” He tucked a stray curl that escaped her loose ponytail behind her ear. “Figure we got some uhh, catching up to do.” 

“Best idea you’ve ever had.”

The pair left the barracks and headed towards the food vendors to meet up with their friends before the final preparations took place. On the way Gladio stopped by the bar, tacking an envelope stuffed with a couple thousand gil for repairs and a hastily scrawled apology note on the inside door. He gave Cam a sheepish look as they grabbed two Ebony’s and split some rations for breakfast, joining Ignis and Greyson at a table.

While Ignis seemed as sullen as he had been from the night before, arms folded and head down, Greyson was quick to assess the situation. “Someone seems chipper for impending chaos,” he remarked, raising an eyebrow to Cam.

She attempted obliviousness, sipping her piping hot coffee and chewing on the rim of the paper cup. “What do you mean?”

“It’s almost five-thirty in the morning and you’re smiling,” Greyson replied, skepticism heavy in his voice. “You get lucky or somethin’?”

Beside her, Gladio nearly choked on his mouthful of food and Ignis’s head snapped to attention, his sudden keen interest making Cam flinch. Both her and Gladio didn’t respond, staring back at Greyson with matched chagrin. At their silence, his eyes widened. “Wait, really? You two?!” 

Cam rolled her eyes and sipped her Ebony. Without her protest, their fate was sealed. Greyson’s superfluous grin was unnerving. “Shit, you actually did it. Huh. NICE.”

At Gladio’s unappreciative glare he got up from his chair so quick the legs jutted loudly. “I uhh, need to grab me one of those,” he mumbled nodding to Cam’s coffee cup before scurrying off. “Back in a bit!”

Moments after Greyson left, Ignis piped up with heavy intrigue. “Is it true?”

Gladio sighed to his friend. “Hmmph.”

Ignis’s responding satisfied smirk was enough to make Cam’s cheeks flush; she was cynically glad he couldn’t see it. “Gladio is bonded to another human being,” he mused, leaning his elbows on the table. “Never thought I’d see the day.”

“Oh, please,” Gladio tossed his empty coffee cup in the nearby waste bin, “don’t be so dramatic.”

“I’m more relieved than anything,” Ignis replied, though his head lowered tucking his chin to his chest. “Despite your, poor timing.”

Cam scuffed her boots against the table leg. “Had to remind us, huh? Apologies in advance guys, but I for one will be a sitting duck out there. Can barely get a quick-shot in anymore...Pretty sure my blades have rusted by now...” Cam exhaled, the tension rolling off of her in waves. Gladio nudged her knee with his own and offered her a commiserating look.

An almost audible connection snapped in Ignis’s mind and he looked up again. “But of course, that explains it! How could I have overlooked the fact you two are soulmates…”

Cam frowned. “What about it?”

Ignis turned to her and she could almost see her reflection in his tinted lenses, the feathered edges of the scarring on his left eye giving her a sense of brooding. “You’d be willing to admit you...excelled exceptionally well in your training, correct?” 

There was no arguing fact. “Almost too well, yeah. I figured it was because this guy was such a hard-ass on me,” she elbowed Gladio in the forearm and he impishly chewed his lip.

“Gladio had to undergo intense training since childhood to develop the reflexes, strengths and knowledge that’s become second nature to him today,” Ignis remarked in the shield’s general direction before turning back to Cam. “You, on the other hand, were exhibiting the same characteristics within weeks. Would you say your, skills, had begun to deteriorate once you’d been apart for some time, not to mention after your slight falling out?”

Disconcerting realization began to soak into Cam’s brain. “Almost exactly at that point, yeah…” 

A self-satisfactory smirk tugged the corner of Ignis’s mouth. “His soul, the soul of a warrior through and through with unparalleled combat abilities and over a decade of experience...was influencing you, changing you, accelerating the learning process and molding you into a seasoned fighter in just over a month. Couple that with a desire to learn and unbreakable will, and that...is a force to be reckoned with.” 

It made sense, Cam thought. Only fitting that her other half assigned by the God’s above have such a deep impact on her. Ignis spoke again before she could comment. “And might I say, Gladio was more approachable, reasoning and mild-mannered than I can recall him ever being in the countless years we’ve been acquainted. A bigger feat, in my books.”

“Oh, please,” Gladio grumbled, though Cam caught a slight twinge of a grin pulling his mouth to the side. So she really did have an affect on him…

“Your knowledge of soulmates is impressive,” Cam offered. “How? Why?”

“Well,” Ignis’s softened and his drastic features seemed to lose some of their age, a childlike wonder that never left the young man despite years and hardships passing. “My mother was keen on the subject and it was the topic of many a bedtime stories. Not to mention since finding my other half, I’ve become so much more interested in the workings of soulmates, the way each pair can differ from another, be influenced so uniquely, such as you two are.”

Cam was grateful to know someone with such expertise on the subject. Sure she’d known what the sun on her hip meant since childhood, but up until she saw Gladio in the market that day the notion had barely crossed her mind...

Her thoughts resumed to the situation at-hand. “Do you think I’d be able to hold my own again in combat, soon?”

Ignis considered it. “Well, since you two are now...bound,” he paused, as if to impart gravity in that word, “I’m curious as to how quickly you can pick up on one another’s traits once more. It may be worth toting both firearms and melee weapons in today’s battle, if you can handle it. Should the will to exert more up-close and personal combat be roused in you, you can test the waters with actual foes.” 

“Good idea,” Cam replied, standing from her seat and checking her phone for the time; 5:45. The meeting would be taking place soon, but she had time to go grab her swords. “I’ll be right back.”

Walking away from the pair, Cam heard a chair squeak against the hardwood. Gladio fell into step beside her and she gave him a puzzled look. “Miss me already?”

“I just,” He sighed, closing his eyes and taking her hand. “Just need to be close to you. I’ve gone too long avoiding it, and now…” He stopped her, bringing his arms around her shoulders and resting his chin on her head. “Now I feel like it...may be too late for, for this...for us…”

Cam could sense his concern and she hugged him back, snaking her arms around his back and holding him close. She pressed a kiss to the centre of his chest and exhaled. “I know. We have to try, though. For everyone.” She tilted her head up, two pairs of amber eyes connecting between them. “For a future.”

Gladio swallowed hard and nodded. “Right.”

Her blades sheathed behind her back and guns at her hip, Cam and Gladio headed to the office for the debriefing with the other veteran hunters and higher ranks. Ignis was there already, speaking with Cor and Greyson near the front of the room where the whiteboard was on display, a jumble of diagrams and what Cam could only guess to be pathways or trails leading to the nest. A detailed sketch was pinned to the top of the board; Pyramid in shape, black and roughly the size of an apartment building. It loomed atop a hill, in a clearing with daemons filing from an entrance in the side in succession.

Cam gulped, nervously bouncing her knee when she took a seat next to Gladio and Ignis. The veteran hunters had arrived, and Dave was just getting off the phone with someone when-

“Where’s Prompto?” Asked Ignis.

Regret swelled in Cam’s throat, but before she could say anything the blonde peeked in the doorframe and strolled in, an obviously forced smile on his freckled face. He sat across from them, one of two empty seats left and nodded at Cam. She nodded back, an apologetic smile forcing her lips into a strange line.

“All here?” Dave asked, standing before the whiteboard.

“Steph’s not here yet,” one of the hunters noted. “Her car’s been gone since last night as well, I think.”

Cam’s eyebrows furrowed. What was she up to…?

Dave sighed. “Guess we’ll go on without her.” He turned to the whiteboard. “Alright, first things first. We’ve had the night shift rangers line the path leading to the nest with flags, and we have someone on standby with a truck to help transport people to and from. As mentioned previously, we’ll be dividing our numbers up into shifts. Three shifts of seven to ten people, and we’ll be able to manage rests, hydration and first aid or weapon swapping.”

Cor stepped forward and pulled a folded piece of paper from his jacket. “First shift will be under my command. Amicitia, Argentum, Kessler, Phillips, Reynolds and Scientia.” 

As each of their names were called, Gladio, Prompto, one of the veteran hunters, Greyson, Cam and Ignis stood. Cam felt a knot forming in her gut; she wasn’t ready for this, for the frontline, so soon, but she pushed passed it and awaited further instruction. “We’ll head out in ten,” Cor announced. “Meet by the armored vehicle at the west gate.”

Cor ducked out, a phone pressed to his ear to make a call. Dave took over manning the meeting. “I was going to have Mallory command the secondary shift-” Cam tensed at the mention of Steph’s surname, “-however given the fact she is AWOL I’ll request Seidler’s assistance.”

“Will do, sir,” the young veteran agreed, nodding with purpose. Dave listed off the names of the other shifts, seeming to place the lesser-ranked and newer recruits in the second and third shifts. That meant…

“We’re the battering ram,” Ignis muttered under his breath in Cam’s direction. “They’re sending in their best men first to break the front lines.”

She gave him a bleary look. “Fantastic.”

Dave wrapped up the meeting and they filed out of the office. Outside, the initiates and lower ranking hunters were awaiting assignment to their designated shifts. Gladio, Cam, Greyson, Prompto, Ignis and the additional veteran hunter all headed for the armored vehicle as requested, Cor still on the phone with someone as he paced back and forth next to the rear hatch. As they approached, the Marshal ended the call and lifted the back door up and open. “Ready to head out?” 

The group glanced back and forth at one another, heavy expressions in their eyes. Cam slipped her hand into Gladio’s, lacing their fingers together as she looked up at him.

Her soulmate. Her sun.

She felt courage swell within her, the courage to take on whatever the broken world of ruin would throw at them. 

“Ready.”

#chasing suns #chapter 19 #gladio soulmate AU #gladio #ffxv fanfiction #ffxv #ffxv soulmate AU #Gladio x Cam #angst #hurt #ignis scientia #prompto argentum #gladiolus amicitia

[thankyoufinnick]

Tada! Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Mags’ War has gone up. 

I may, um, still be aggressively editing later chapters. Sunday night I thought I was done except for chapter 5 of part 7. Then I decided to rewrite the second half of part 8. So...you’re going to continue getting chapters bit by bit until I’ve got the later parts under control.

Meanwhile, have a bonus chapter. This was originally supposed to be chapter 3 of part 1, but it doesn’t really contribute anything, it’s not especially good, and I can’t really post it as a standalone, because it assumes you’ve read all the way up through chapter 2 of part 1 of Mags’ War. But it’s got Mags and Annie! <3

So if you want to know what Mags and Annie are up to while Finnick’s in the Capitol right after the 74th Hunger Games, here you go.

I should have known. I should have done something.

Mags knows Finnick's a mediocre mentor, but she should have remembered that no one else would know that, and the other districts would react accordingly. She should have been able to come up with some plan for their kids, bought them a chance at least.

Learn from the past, focus on the future, Mags scolds herself. It's the same reminder she has to give herself every year, when she's home from the Games, working out a way to live with the loss of two more children.

With a sigh, Mags leans her head back on the pillow, wishing she could shake this flu-like exhaustion that's dogged her since the stroke. It's always hard to get out of bed right after the Games, and now it's impossible. Each trip to the bathroom takes everything she has to give.

She put on a brave face throughout the Games, because it was that or send Annie, but since she got home, she's been tucked up in her bed, sleeping when she can, and staring at the ceiling when she can't. She's glad it's a warm summer day in Four, because sometimes pulling a blanket over her body isn't worth the effort.

She's can't complain about a lack of pragmatic help, be it cooking, cleaning, or medical check-ups. In fact, she's overwhelmed with help. Someone's been organizing all this, and Mags suspects Pearleye. But grateful as she is, she can't help wishing someone were here simply to hold her hand while she's sick and grieving her tributes.

It's too late for that, though. She's spent her whole life keeping everyone at arm's length, for her protection and theirs. It's not safe to love anyone who's not already a victor. Now she's too old to ask, and she's trained everyone too well to expect them to cross that barrier. Mags is a prisoner of the very matter-of-fact warmth that she's always insisted on.

Finnick blazes past all barriers like they're not even there, but he won't be home for months, if ever. He's prone to hovering, but right now she could stand to be fussed over. Wise or not, she let him past her guard years ago, and now he's in her heart.

She misses him, and at the same time, she worries about him. She comes home from the Capitol and takes to bed, and he comes home jagged and on edge. And he'll come to her for comfort, but he won't talk to her.

At least she has the impression he talks to Annie. She hopes she's right. He's so insistent on managing his Capitol persona alone. And she's never quite sure what's going through his head. He jumped at the chance to move back in with her, but then he moved out, looking hurt and bewildered, when Mags was trying to make it work, and she never knew how to make that right.

A sound at her door makes Mags sigh to herself, and put on a tired smile.

Keys have been distributed to so many people that her house hardly feels like her own any more, but she has to admit that walking to the door is a tall order right now. Maybe she can reclaim some of those keys next week, when she's recovered a little.

All the victors have been by, even Rudder with a brisk status update on the academy. Pearleye. Daraleen. Most of the inner circle of the conspirators. The families of the two tributes. Friends and more friends. And it's only been four days.

“Mags!”

Mags actually raises her head at the sound of that voice.

She'd forgotten. The newest victor hadn't actually come by. She's so used to Annie not leaving her house that she must have subconsciously left her out of the list.

Annie throws her arms around Mags where she's lying. Mags smiles back and presses her cheek to Annie's, but doesn't raise her arms. She got all hugged out on the first day.

“My, it's dark in here. Do you mind if I turn on a light?” Mags glances around, seeing the living room from Annie's eyes. The sun went down on her gloomy thoughts, and it didn't seem worth doing anything about it.

At a nod from Mags, Annie turns on a lamp, and the familiar sights remind Mags that she's home again.

It's a little crowded, with the bed taking up a lot of space and a nightstand making it a little difficult to maneuver in certain places, but they've left her plenty of room to walk, cane and all, to the kitchen or bathroom. Finnick dug up a small table and a single chair, and put them on the path between the kitchen and the bed. More often than not, she has to rest there when making that journey.

Annie sits down on the bed and takes Mags' hand, looking her over. “I'm so sorry, you shouldn't have to do this just after a stroke. I would have mentored if I could have.”

Mags lets her hand rest in Annie's, while she keeps her face neutral. If you're not ready, you're not ready. But you may not have a choice soon.

“And I'm sorry I didn't come by sooner. I just—you know how it is."

Mags does. Annie looks about as destroyed as Mags feels.

"But I will make you waffles," Annie continues with a flickering smile. "I made sure to get all the ingredients this week. Blueberries and cream," she says proudly, and Mags' heart melts. Maybe she doesn't need Finnick for her post-Games recovery after all.

She smiles her gratitude and presses Annie's hand, but Annie's not done. "I was also thinking, if there are any renovations you want done to make it easier to navigate, I can help out. I know having the bed down here is the big one, but maybe a ramp up the porch? Or we could do something about the bathtub, I don't know."

Mags cocks her head. You're sure? Because she's been trying not to make too many concessions to her age, but now that Annie mentions it, a ramp would be wonderful. She's going to have to find accommodations that will help maintain her independence rather than threaten it.

"Yes, I'm sure," Annie says, still smiling. "I've been building stuff since I was a kid. I may not have been much help when they moved the furniture, but I'm not one of your big, strong victors. I'm your small, clever-handed victor."

Mags chuckles at how true that is, and they have a deal.

"I'm glad you're home," Annie says more softly. "Did things—go okay?"

Mags twists her mouth. Finnick may still not be great shakes at mentoring, but he's getting a bit better as he gets older. They lost both their tributes, but District Twelve brought both of theirs home. Or at least as far as the hospital, she thinks cynically. Wouldn't put it past the authorities to announce that they did their best, but the boy's injuries were simply fatal.

Finnick's stuck in the Capitol for the next several months gathering intelligence about how to make the most of the recent, shocking developments. Mags wants to hold a million meetings about what to do now, but first she needs to get back on her feet. She doesn't go in for self-pity, but it's not fair that the same stroke that left her with only exhausting methods of communicating also left her with constant fatigue.

And she isn't sure what's going on with Finnick and the way he won't stop talking about Katniss, but he'd better not be falling for her. The Girl on Fire, with her public life-saving romance, is more out of his reach than perhaps anyone in the country. She hopes Finnick would know better, but he surprised her with Annie, and he and Katniss have more in common, at least on the surface.

Annie's watching her face and coming to the right conclusion: it's complicated. Mags gestures toward the television and raises her eyebrow.

"Oh, did I watch the Games?" Annie interprets. "No, I didn't. I never do. I can't."

Mags didn't know what else she'd been expecting. Well, she'll see if she can get Annie to attend any of these meetings.

Meanwhile, she's going to take her up on that waffle offer.

All the sawing, pounding, and cursing sounds coming from above have Mags tilting her head curiously. She knows Annie's wrestling with the bathtub up there, but this is more excitement than Mags bargained for. It sounds like it's good Annie decided to practice on the upstairs bathroom before she touched the one Mags actually uses.

At just past sundown, Annie comes downstairs, covered in sweat and gunk. “Okay. I think I've got it! As long as...do you need to be able to soak in the tub? Or is just showering okay?”

Mags frowns at her, not sure how to answer that with a yes/no.

“I'm sorry.” Annie laughs. “Is it okay if there's no door and you can just step in and take a shower?”

Mags nods at that one. She hasn't felt up to soaking since before the stroke. Too complicated.

“Great! I'll do the downstairs bathroom tomorrow, and then you're set.”

The next day, Annie proudly shows off her handiwork to Mags. “You only have to step over three inches of tub wall to get in, and it's high enough to keep the water from flooding out into the bathroom, as long as we keep the drain clear. It'll need twenty-four hours to dry, and then you can use it!”

Mags tests stepping over the threshold, and finds there's a new handrail exactly where she wants it for this. She looks approvingly at Annie.

“Oh, yeah, the handrail. I put in two others, over there, see? That one if you need to steady yourself while you're standing up, and the lower one in case you need a hand getting up.”

Mags face lights up. Now she won't need to leave the bathroom door unlocked when she's in here. Or, maybe she still should—what if she has another stroke?—but she feels a lot more independent now.

She hugs Annie. Annie, you're the best.

Then Mags signs at her for a while. She's on the verge of giving up, when Annie guesses right. “You want Donn to come over?”

Vigorous nod. Great sweeping, embracing motions with her arms. “Everyone? Bring everyone?”

She nods again, and touches Annie's cheek proudly.

Annie blushes. “Oh, Mags. It's just a bathtub. You really want to show the whole Village?”

A definite yes.

What Mags doesn't need to tell her is that it makes a good excuse to get everyone over for a surreptitious meeting. Even if Brine and Octavius don't pick up on the double meanings, she wants to find out what Donn and Rudder think about Katniss, and Mags and Rudder aren't close enough that he can come over very often without arousing suspicion. It'll be good when she's not so tired, and she can start going back to the academy.

She trusts Pearleye's judgment, but even if Mags isn't making decisions any more, she still hates being out of the action.

Annie hates meetings now. She used to feel good about fighting back, when the prospect of her world getting blown up was distant and unreal, and she could tell herself that all the problems she worries about will be solved before they do anything dangerous. Now they're planning to take that leap with problems still unsolved, and it's all because of Katniss.

Even if Annie didn't watch the Hunger Games, trapped in the hell of reliving her own, the name Katniss Everdeen has been impossible to miss. The whole district is abuzz with it. Two tributes came home! Everything about this year is unprecedented.

Now that the Games are over, Annie's trying, for once, to watch television to see if she can glean what's going on outside District Four. But so far she and everyone else have been defeated by the censorship. The inner circle of revolutionaries here are mostly waiting for their spy to bring back all the information he's collected. Only Annie knows he might not, so she keeps watching.

But with Finnick in the Capitol and Mags unable to talk, the doublespeak is harder to follow than ever. If you want to find out what's really going on, you have to leave the Village.

In desperation, Annie finally bites the bullet and asks Donn to go with her to visit her sister. They can't talk exactly clearly on the way, but they can veil their conversations without worrying about every word being recorded.

Moving around on the ferry and admiring the sunrise, Annie's able to confirm her interpretation of events with Donn. Mags has been astounded by the popular response to Katniss, and it's led her and Pearleye to dramatically accelerate their timeline. Rudder is pushing to open hostilities before the next Hunger Games, Donn is coming around to the idea, and Mags is seriously considering it.

But there's one obvious name missing from that list. “We don't know how much outside support we'll have, though, right?” Annie asks. “We need more information.”

“We need more information,” Donn says, “and no one wants to strand him where he is.” He gives Annie a knowing look, and she nods, admitting that that's been on her mind. “He may not be my favorite,” Donn continues, “but we're all victors, and no one wants that.”

“Who is your favorite?” Annie asks, distracted momentarily from her fears.

“I don't know,” he muses, half to himself. Then his expression grows dark. “All my favorites are dead. Guess I don't pick my favorites too well.”

Annie flinches, and she puts a comforting hand on his wrist. She doesn't dare ask if Evan was one.

Donn gives her a small smile, pats her hand, and returns to the subject at hand. “We'll wait as long as we can, I guess.”

It's not enough, but it'll have to do.

Annie hates waiting, and what her mind obsesses about during the day, it dreams about at night. Again and again they start the war in Four, stranding Finnick.

Pearleye's not going to throw away the whole district, the whole country, to protect one man. If he dies in the Capitol, he dies a soldier in an enemy camp.

Mostly they don't kill him, though. They keep him. They pet him, and fuck him, and drug him so he can't spy and can't escape, but they always make sure he can still perform.

Sometimes they even let him appear on camera like this. While Annie huddles in a bomb shelter and cringes under each explosion, the socialites run their fingers down his chest and croon at him, like a little fuss in the districts is no reason to give up the important things in life.

The only way to protect him from here is to disown him. “I'd trust Annie with anything important before I'd trust him,” Pearleye scoffs on camera.

“He'd say whatever it took to get you in bed,” Annie's forced to say, “but after that...”

“He was a complete disappointment, and he's better off where he is.” Rudder rebuffs all attempts to use Finnick as a hostage.

Annie wants to launch a rescue mission herself, if Pearleye won't, but she has to be realistic.

A sound grabs Annie's attention, and she bolts upright in bed. Her heart speeds up. What is it? Is someone coming for her?

Johanna! Johanna Mason. That who Annie needs. She's undercover mission material. She likes Finnick. Annie just needs to find a way to get in touch with her so they can rescue Finnick.

First she needs to remember where she is. She's in a bed. Her bed in the Village, right? Maybe this is why Rudder sleeps with a light on. Maybe she should.

Wait, if she's in the Village, the war can't have started. Has it started? Annie sorts through her memory. She's pretty sure Finnick's in the Capitol, and Mags is...downstairs? Right, she's in Mags' house, and the war hasn't started yet. She's been having nightmares again.

Annie turns over and buries her face in the pillow, shaking. She hates not knowing what's real. She hates that this will feel real for the rest of the day. That, to her, Finnick will be as much drugged and captive as if it were true. Knowing better doesn't make a difference to her raw emotions.

Just like knowing she didn't trash talk Finnick publicly, and even in her dream didn't mean it, doesn't keep the bad taste from her mouth or the guilty feeling from her stomach.

And even knowing better, she still hasn't sorted out what that sound was. She's in Mags' house because of the stroke, right? A stroke is exactly the kind of thing Annie would dream up, but she's pretty sure these are real memories.

Suddenly a new fear surfaces, and she swings her legs out of bed as fast as she can.

She didn't fall. You're being crazy again.

Annie paces up and down the upstairs hall outside the guest bedroom, arguing with her brain while it screams at her about all the terrible things that could have caused that noise. This is why it didn't last when she and Finnick moved in with Mags. Her stupid, awful, crazy brain, ruining everything again.

With Finnick in the Capitol and Mags looking like death warmed over, Annie had to try again. And now she can't get the image of Mags lying helpless on the floor out of her head.

It's not crazy, her thoughts argue persuasively. It happened before. She's old. It could happen again.

No, no, Annie insists. She's just wound up because of the meeting earlier.

Annie does want to fight back, she does. She's just so scared of losing everyone. Grace has babies. Mags is an old lady. Finnick will be in the front lines even if her nightmare is wrong—and Donn never promised her it would be.

And she wants to help, but they're expecting her to make public appearances, and the last time she did that, she humiliated herself completely. It won't help the cause if she goes on camera and has another screaming, crying meltdown.

But no, she's doing better. She went all the way to the Capitol for Mags. She even booked a hotel room on no notice. When the time comes, they'll script her appearances for her. And she wants to help them out, not like when she was on Flickerman and the interviews were only to torment her.

It'll be better!

Now all she has to do is check on Mags, see that she's fine, and try to go back to sleep.

What are you going to do if you're right? the voice in her head taunts her. You don't know anyone in the Capitol with a hovercraft. You couldn't even carry her out of the house.

How do you get medical care after curfew? Where she grew up, it was just assumed that you couldn't afford a trained professional, and you and your neighbors pooled your knowledge and hoped for the best.

But this is Mags, oldest victor in the district. Maybe there's a proper doctor Annie can call. Maybe the Peacekeepers will even escort her somewhere. There's always at least one pacing the streets of the Village.

Annie can't stick her head out the front door and shout for the nearest Peacekeeper, Come save Mags--it's an emergency! Even imagining it makes her light-headed.

No, you have to have a plan before you go down there. If she does find Mags in distress, she'll panic and she won't be able to come up with a plan. Plan first.

Okay, just call Pearleye. She has a phone at home. She'll know what to do. She won't mind if you wake her up.

With that decided, feeling silly and sick and scared all at once, Annie starts down the stairs. She tiptoes into the living room and waits for her eyes to adjust to the dim light.

There's a lump in the bed that looks like Mags.

So she hasn't fallen. But is she still breathing?

Annie tiptoes closer.

The sudden motion from the bed makes her breath catch and her heart hammer, but it's just Mags turning half onto her side and holding out her arm. She makes a sound that, if it had words, would be Hey, honey.

All the breath runs out of Annie at once, and she wants to cry with relief. Mags is fine.

But Annie isn't. At Mags' beckoning, she comes closer, but she doesn't sit down. “I'm sorry, Mags. I don't think I can make this work. I can't stop imagining the worst, whether it's you or Finnick or both. I tried, you know I did.”

She lasted less than a month the first time, almost three now that it's just her and Mags. But she has to go home.

“I'll come over as often as I can, I promise. I'll keep cooking for you. If not here, then at home, and I'll bring it over. Or call Donn and send it over. And you know you're welcome at my place as often as your legs feel like making the trip. And if you think of any more renovations, let me know. It feels good to have something to do. But I can't stay.”

Mags sits up in bed and gives her a hug, then a gentle, understanding push. Go.

#annie cresta #mags #hunger games fanfiction #district four #my fanfiction #mags verse extended edition

[charlottebent-blog]

My Story

Today marks a year since the eating disorder services attempted to section me. It may seem like an odd thing to commemorate. Although the day itself was extremely daunting, it was also a victory in a weird way. So here's my story, the story that led up to the very moment they attempted to detain me.

I'm 19, and I'm the happiest I've ever been (at this point in my life I'm at university in Kent, where I've made some amazing friends plus I'm in my first serious relationship - yes miracles do happen). With it being reading week (one of the many glorious holidays of university) I decide to attend a family gathering. On arrival my Nana hugs me so tightly I can feel my ribs cracking. She then holds me at arm's length before saying 'you look very womanly, look at your curves'. I awkwardly chuckle, before thanking her for what I can only assume she meant as a compliment. At the time I told no one, even now I know she meant no harm by it, however that comment changed everything. I remember almost immediately going to the bathroom, I required some reassurance and I honestly believed the mirror would provide this. It's safe to say I was absolutely horrified. Suddenly I was seeing this different Charlotte. A Charlotte who no longer looked slender but padded. A Charlotte who had thighs and a flabby stomach. And as if this wasn't proof enough, I later discovered the weird marks around my middle were in fact stretch marks.  In fairness it was naive of me to assume my weight would stay the same when I was drinking heavily every other night and living off a diet provided by Iceland. But what terrified me was that others were able to detect this change in me, yet I was oblivious (perhaps something to do with excessive amounts of vodka). I saw this as my wakeup call and made a pact to get healthier.

I stuck to my pact. I took up running again, and, much to my disappointment, stopped scoffing oreo's at 3am. It did the trick, I trimmed down as my Mum called it and I was content. I stayed this way for about a year. Then, during my second year of university, I got  a new job. I was thrilled to say the least and, here is the irony, I became an activity leader at a camp for overweight children. Yes readers, it is here that I developed an interest of food content. Part of the training involved learning how many calories were in my dominoes pizza and how much sugar was in my beloved innocent smoothie. It's safe to say I was disgusted with this new knowledge and suddenly the weight I gained during first year made sense. Having learnt that almost everything delicious was calorific, I began to check food labels using my job as an excuse. Plus, on one occasion I had been caught secretly inhaling a pile of jaffa cakes whilst the children weren't looking and got told I needed to practice what I preached. Despite the energetic and long activity sessions, I denied myself the tasty treats my body craved. And, although my body objected, I felt powerful in being able to ignore the cravings. It was then that I began to weigh myself at work to see if my willpower was paying off. To my delight my weight was decreasing, along with my body fat percentage. The feeling of this was like nothing I had experienced before and the dangerous part is that I never wanted it to end. To ensure that each week I had the same result I had to push myself further. I was content with my diet, therefore the only other method I knew for weight loss was exercise.

I went into my third year of university with a new exercise regime to ensure I stayed trim. I ran every day, giving myself one 'rest' day a week. Rest days made me feel anxious and guilty, therefore they gradually become fewer and fewer until I was exercising daily. I began to refuse myself nights out due to the fear of getting drunk and having a snackaccident (accidental snack) that would sabotage my weight loss. I struggled to explain to others why I couldn't go out so I gave lame excuses. Consequently, I lost a lot of the amazing friends I'd made. I began to recognise that my diet and exercise routine was very rigid and anything that deterred away from it resulted in a panicked frenzy. I developed a knee injury, but despite this I continued to run, with the addition of swimming and knee strengthening exercises, in hope that my knee would heal. When it rained or snowed I ran up and down the hallway of my student house. Yes, it's as nutty as it sounds, but at this point I had no idea I was spiralling into anorexia. I just told myself and my bewildered housemates that I loved running.

People began to comment on my weight loss, but in a more concerned manner than before. I remember sending my sister a photo of me in a new outfit. Thinking I looked toned and healthy, I was surprised when she replied saying I looked disgustingly thin and iller than Victoria Beckham. My boyfriend at the time reassured me that I looked nice. It was that moment that my sister predicted I'd get anorexia. 'Absolute bollocks', both my Mum said, 'people with anorexia just don't eat, whereas you do'. That was always my excuse.

With university soon coming to an end, I felt lost and confused. Friends around me had direction and aspirations, whilst they planned their futures I put off making important decisions, instead occupying myself at the gym, athletics track or swimming pool. Exercise gave me a purpose and sense of control, something I failed to achieve in other aspects of my life. Regardless, I worked hard for my degree but rather frustratingly graduated 1% off a first. I managed to gain a place on a PGCE Primary Education course in Kent and felt obliged to take it. I moved to a different part of Kent and reluctantly started teaching. I enjoyed living with strangers and away from my boyfriend. I was free to organise my time to suit me without judgement from anyone. However, the teaching degree was full-time, and I became increasingly anxious that I was losing valuable exercise time. Even though I would plan lessons and mark work whilst on my exercise bike it didn't feel like enough. The fear of becoming the fat Charlotte once again crept into my mentality more and more. With no other option, I began to restrict food. I studied food labels carefully, checking over and over again in case I'd misread them. I bulked up on vegetables and stopped eating anything remotely high in fat or calories. Whenever the opportunity arose I ran. I had entered a half-marathon, which gave me the excuse to run 10 miles often. I would wake up every night with agonising leg cramps and although I knew I was damaging my body, I couldn't stop. My anxiety around food and exercise became overwhelming. It was here that I ended my first serious relationship. At the time it seemed so easy, I didn't feel sad or heartbroken. Although rather selfishly, I felt relieved, purely because it gave me additional time to focus on exercise.

Despite living 250 miles away from my parents, my stress levels didn't go unnoticed. With my teaching degree becoming increasingly demanding, I was extremely anxious. I couldn't cope with being tested and criticised daily, and consequently I spent a lot of time crying down the phone to my Mum. Having lived away from home for almost 4 years, I was starting to experience the misery of homesickness. It was around this time that I had to significant wakeup call, whilst I was out running. Having ran every single day for the past 3 months, my body was knackered and my legs burnt in protest, however this pain didn't compare to the guilt of having a 'rest' day. I don't remember exactly what happened but suddenly I wasn't running and I crashed to the floor (to my embarrassment right in front of a group of French tourists, who spoke no English and appeared to be more concerned by what they'd purchased from the chocolate cafe than my accident). Everything stung and my inability to stand up panicked me. As I rolled myself onto my back I could see my skin and blood grazed on the pavement. I tried to calm myself with deep breaths, but quickly tears brimmed my eyes and my body began to tremble. I did the only thing I know what to do in a crisis: call my Mum. I clumsily tapped away at my phone, whilst picking myself up. With sore knees and a throbbing hip, I didn't dare check the damage. Typical that usually I can't get my Mum off the phone (usually riveting topics, such as the Council replacing the lampposts with weaker bulbs) yet, when I desperately require her to answer, I get her voice message. I dial my sister who, much to my relief, answers almost immediately and consoles me whilst I gently jog my battered body home.

After this incident my Dad came to Kent to intervene. My parents were growing more concerned about my well-being and encouraged me to see a doctor. Conveniently neither of them were there for the actual appointment. I didn't see much point as I was convinced there was nothing medically wrong with me. However, I reluctantly attended just to get my parents off my back. The doctor was nice enough. She asked me some lifestyle questions, weighed me and then handed me a leaflet on anorexia. 'Your body mass index is within anorexic range. Along with your feelings towards food and exercise I'm diagnosing you with anorexia. I'll put through a referral to the local eating disorder services'. I thought nothing of it at the time, this doctor didn't know me. I eat the same amount of meals as everybody else, plus I don't look like a skeleton. She'd obviously misdiagnosed me. My Mum cried when I called her. Although I didn't agree with the diagnosis I certainly felt like this gave me the excuse I so greatly needed to move back home. I told my parents I would suspend my teaching degree and seek relevant medical help in Manchester.

I was delighted to move back to Manchester. I felt elated and motivated to change my life for the better. However, my freedom was limited due to my parents keeping a watchful eye over me. I was so overly cautious that they were trying to fatten me up that whenever they left the house I went on my exercise bike for as long as time allowed. My food restriction habits also worsened, and although I had been referred to the eating disorder services, I was still losing weight weekly. I acted oblivious to this and continued to spiral further into anorexia. After a couple of months, it was clear I wasn't getting better. I got told my weight was now dangerously low that an inpatient admission was advised. It was a trip to this eating disorder hospital ward that triggered my recovery. Seeing the shells, of these sad, hollow beings frightened me. When I got home I binned my exercise bike and created a food plan with my Mum which I stuck to. I gained weight. I'm not going to say it was easy. It was so incredibly tough and like nothing I had experienced before. However, I was enjoying having a social life again and began working at Waterstones. I even had a fantastic holiday to New York with my sister. I could feel the old Charlotte emerging.

A few months down the line and I was struggling. My discomfort meant I refused to gain anymore weight. I was feeling extremely self-conscious about my body and found myself missing my anorexic tendencies. I longed to feel hunger. I ached for the achievement of exercising. I was at a crossroads and I chose the easier path. My downward spiral into anorexia happened so quickly, I didn't even realise I had relapsed. Within two months, I was being threatened with hospital again, only this time I accepted. I figured hospital was the answer to my recovery, and was admitted onto the Oaktrees Ward.

Hospital was more daunting than I'd remembered it. From the second I stepped foot on the ward I thought 'I'm too fat to be here'. Everybody was so painfully thin it was distressing. A few days into my admission and I learnt that my Grandad had died. I cursed myself for being stuck in hospital unable to comfort my family. To add to my upset the hospital was just outside of Liverpool and therefore 45 miles from my. It didn't take long for the homesickness to kick in. I longed for a hug from my Mum and my dog. The days were never-ending and it felt like all I did was continuously ate. But I followed my Grandad's instructions and I did what I was told when I was told. They were often short staffed, so I didn't receive the support I so greatly needed to cope with the weight gain. When my parents visited I'd cry and beg for them to take me home with them. I had never felt so fat and disgusted in my entire life. Furthermore, being on a ward surrounded by severely anorexic people made me feel like a fraud. After 4 months as an inpatient, I discharged myself against medical guidance.

Once back home I wasted no time in ensuring that I got rid of what I felt was excess weight. I spent my mornings hopelessly crying as I tried on multiple outfits, all of which I deemed too fat to wear. I'd reached such a point of desperation and despair that I attempted to take my own life (and obviously failed). I distanced myself from the services and didn't trust my parents as I felt they lied, repeatedly telling me I looked thin. I threw myself back into work, doing whatever hours I could get. I constantly distracted myself from food, walking my dog and taking up indoor exercise. Furthermore, having spent so much time surrounded by extreme anorexics I had learnt the tricks of the trade. I spent hours eating one meal, cutting it into tiny pieces and claiming I was full, despite my gurgling stomach. I hid food and discretely binned it when my parents weren't about. This time my relapse was severe. I recognised I was poorly, however, just like before, I couldn't stop. One night I ended up at A&E with my Mum, where a doctor told me my heart was wasting away. I still couldn't stop. The services had detected my decline and arranged an appointment which I was forced to attend. They told me I could agree to go back into hospital, or they would request a section and force me. I refused, how could I bring myself to return to the place that mentally worsened me? I cried and shouted and begged, but they went ahead with the section.

13th May 2016 will go down as the most frightening day of my life. I remember pinching myself, convinced it wasn't real. How had my weight gotten so dangerously low that I had to fight to claim my sanity. I didn't feel mentally deluded, surely I was still Charlotte? So there I was, 24 years old, sat in my family home at our kitchen table between my Mum, grasping my hand tightly, and my Dad, on guard, ready to fight for me. In that moment I have never felt so much love and affection towards my parents.  Opposite us sat a panel of medical professionals who had been sent to deem me mentally unstable and detain me. It was daunting to say the least. But we fought and argued for what felt like forever. Eventually, they came to the agreement that if I were to start a refeeding programme immediately and my parents were to take responsibility for my mental well-being, I would be allowed to remain at home. We all sighed with relief and hugged victoriously.

Although I am not always proud of my decisions and often doubt whether I am doing the right thing, I am proud to still be at home. I am proud to still be here and I am proud to still be fighting.

(Apologises for the blog equivalent of War and Peace, congrats if you actually made it to the end!)

[acoolguyscoollife]

Chapter 2: Irradiated Bananas

“Bullshit.” The word came quickly and unanimously from all three of us. Tabitha was clearly not expecting this response, and her expression quickly turned to a frown. She looked behind her, at the computer, then back at us. A moment or so passed with a silence so uncomfortable that I felt the urge to say anything to make it end. Thankfully I was stopped from saying something hasty and dumb by Tabitha finally responding.

“You don’t believe me? Fine, get on the tables then.” She gestured to the tables that had come out of the ground, and we got onto them, seeing no alternative. I barely managed to fit inside without taking off my sunglasses and almost considered doing it for an easier experience, but didn’t. I wasn’t giving up looking cool no matter what. Very quickly I felt a whooshing feeling, for want of a better descriptor, and I wasn’t where I had been anymore. And it surprised me, because for all intents and purposes, I felt like I had actually moved. So obviously, I began testing the limits of the machine. I burst into a series of awesome, indescribable karate moves, the likes of which have never been seen and would make men weep and woman lust for my… okay maybe I’m getting carried away. The point was, I tried everything I could to break the machine as soon as she connected me to it. When I had finally given up, a glance upwards after I had flopped to the floor in tiredness revealed the other three to be staring at me.

“Should I even ask?” Tabitha said, staring at me with an expression that just screamed tired mother.

“Tryna break yo’ shit, fool.” I replied, before passing out for a moment. When I came to, I hadn’t moved at all, and nothing had changed. I did say it had only been for a moment. “I don’t get it!” I said as I did a cool-ass backflip type thing. Which is to say, I rolled backwards, got stuck slightly, fell onto my side and sheepishly stood up. “So, you weren’t joking? We’re really in some kind of life-replicating simulation?”

“Of course I wasn’t joking!” Tabitha replied, indignantly. “This technology is next level. If it hadn’t been for my mentor, this tech wouldn’t have existed. I-” Tabitha continued to talk, but my mind already began to wander. The technical aspects never mattered to me, it was more the potential of what could be done with technology like this. I could live on an island for the rest of my life. I could spend my life in a video game! This possibility was-

Tabitha

Forgive me, but I feel it necessary to hijack the narrative here for a moment. As the subheader says, I’m Tabitha, the girl who was talking in the story a second ago. Honestly if you somehow didn’t manage to catch onto that, I can’t imagine this bit of the story entertaining you much. However, if you’re interested in spatial-temporal mechanics, then I can guarantee that you’ll be very happy with this-

Cool Guy

BOOOOOOORING!

 Look, there’s some important stuff, and there’s some unimportant stuff. The important stuff is the stuff I’ll end up being re-told in the near future, and the rest of it can just go on Tabitha’s blog or something. The point is, I daydreamed for like half an hour as Tabitha went into an unnecessarily large amount of detail on stuff that I feel like neither of the other two even remember. To avoid this chapter just being nothing but people talking, I’m going to move the “plot” forward slightly by not including the part where everyone stands around aimlessly as the computer started up, and just stick to what happened after.

 “Okay, so do you know the game Apocalypse VII?” Tabitha asked us, half-rhetorically. Part of my whole aesthetic had come from the fictional greaser gang that was in the series, the Cellar Serpents. They wore leather jackets and had a no-nonsense attitude, so obviously I wanted to be exactly like them. Seth, on the other hand, was more of a hero-martyr type kind of guy, always taking the nice path no matter how boring it got. One of the best things about the Apocalypse series was how varied the choices were. You could work for the enemies who originally hated your guts, or you can kill them all. Or maybe convince everyone to work together so nobody dies. Or, if you felt like it, you could just go off and kill some zombies. I was aware that Amy had played it as well, but her methods of playing games like that where you have free choices was… odd, to say the least. The last time I’d seen her playing, she’d created a brothel of every character you can romance in the game. The weird part was how tender she had been in the creation of it, making sure all the characters were well-fed and watered.

“Of all people, why are you asking about video games? You play farming simulators and tycoons.” Seth remarked, and I had to hide my personal feeling of being attacked. Micromanagement Tycoon was a game I had spent a LOT of time on back in the day.

“Well, it just so happens that this machine, given a game’s world, can recreate it on a much more realistic level.” Tabitha pushed her glasses up the crook of her nose as she said this, as Seth gasped audibly in excitement.

“Ymeanwecngointopoclypsevn?” Seth said without a breath in between words. It took me a moment to process his question as being you mean we can go into Apocalypse VII? Tabitha nodded, and it was if a human firework had been lit next to me. Seth literally exploded.

Seth

No I didn’t!

Cool Guy

Seth metaphorically exploded. All I could do was watch as he bounced around, occasionally glancing over to Amy and Tabitha, who returned my uncomfortable expression.

“Are you done?” I asked as he finally began to slow down. He nodded, but his eyes still shone like an excited dog’s eyes. Tabitha had turned away, tapping away at a keyboard she had magically materialised out of nowhere. I would have marvelled at the technology more, but instead I tried doing it myself. I wasn’t sure which hand gestures caused things to materialise, so I found myself doing nothing but waving my hands around aimlessly as I tried to make something happen. I gestured up, down, and all around, doing a strange dance in a vague attempt at being a super-cool hackerman.

“CG, what the hell are you doing?” Tabitha asked, and I looked up to see that I was once again being watched by everyone.

“I wanted to make a keyboard appear.” I replied simply, before turning back to my efforts. Maybe it was the hand signs? I tried devil horns, holding my hands like there was an invisible guitar, and the shocker, but nothing worked.

“You don’t have admin privileges.” Tabitha said, her head in her hands, and I finally stopped, sidling over to Amy as Tabitha turned back to whatever she was doing.

“So, what are you gonna do first?” I asked, half-whispered. The less Tabitha knew about what we were going to do in there, the better.

“Well, first off, I’m finding Franklin and bringing him everywhere with me. I don’t know how carrying stuff works in this game and the last thing I want is to have to lug guns everywhere.” She replied, reminding me about the half-robotic companion you could get in the game. “Then, I’m gonna go to the Whiteguard and sign up. I’m gonna nuke everything I can.” I hadn’t even considered the possibility of nuking things, but the prospect excited me. I could go full Cellar Serpent, complete with a badass hairdo and shades. Well, I already had the shades, but that only added to the excitement. “You?” She asked, turning to me. I didn’t just wanna seem like I was copying her ideas, so I frantically thought of something to say that would be even MORE awesome, and totally befitting of someone like me.

“I’m going to… try the cuisine of the apocalypse.” I finally said. Balls, that wasn’t a very good excuse. Her eyebrow raised, but I quickly changed the subject. “Won’t the nukes break the simulation, anyway?” I asked, and Amy shook her head.

“Weren’t you listening to Tabitha? This stuff is a LOT deeper than your basic simulation. It’s powered by…” I found my mind wandering again as Amy spoke, this time about what the apocalypse’s food would taste like. Probably regular meat, but irradiated. Wait, don’t bananas have a minor amount of radiation? I wonder if radiation tastes like bananas.

Amy

Dude, you have ADHD.

Cool Guy

Look, I can’t help it if everyone around me is boring. And I still want to know whether bananas taste like radiation, or if radiation tastes like bananas.

 But anyway, Amy went on to most likely repeat what Tabitha had said that I had now conveniently missed twice, and would most likely not hear a third time until I had learnt the hard way exactly why there was such a specific difference. But hey, doing things like this has worked for me in the past. Why wouldn’t it keep working in a trans-dimensional situation?

“Voila!” Tabitha cried suddenly, bringing me out of a rousing thought-train about bananas and radioactive spiders, and I glanced over. Slowly but surely, the horizon, which had been dark with some faintly-glowing stereotypical computer lights, was now brightening. Well, I say brightening, but the image that was beginning to come in was more… earthy and dull than that. The price to pay for your games becoming owned by a triple-A company, but hey, at least I didn’t have to wait too long between instalments, and I’ve played games with worse stories.

“Holy shit, it’s happening.” I said, not able to comprehend much else. I had never played a game in VR before, not even with a flimsy plastic piece of cardboard that strapped my phone to my face in eye-burning closeness. This was next level, and then some. I could smell what the wasteland smelt like. I could hear what it sounded like, feel what the wind rushing through the landscape felt like. I could even taste the earthiness of the land… since the four of us ended up suspended in mid-air, causing us to all fall a few feet downwards. I wasn’t sure whether anyone else had landed flat on their face like I had-

Tabitha

No, we pretty much all landed on our feet.

Cool Guy

-but I quickly recovered, pushing myself back up in one of those aforementioned awesome gestures. Looking over at the other three, I could see that our clothes hadn’t changed at all, but thankfully, were all outfits that we could have probably grabbed somewhere in the game anyway. Hell, you could dress up like a psycho clown and hunt for giant moths, I was pretty sure that some basic pre-nuke clothing wouldn’t turn many heads. One thing that was quickly noticeable, however, is that while the videogame characters could easily walk around in a leather jacket all day, it was insanely hot in the wasteland. I took off my signature jacket, sighing as I could feel my overall coolness rating drop by a few hundred percent, and tied it around my waist, which pretty much dropped my coolness to zero percent. Everyone else, however, seemed to be content to stay in the outfits they had been in, not seeming to care about the weather at all. Even Tabitha, in her lab coat, was barely registering the heat, instead running around the environment with a handheld device, looking excited every time it went ping at something. And ping it went, over and over. Ping ping ping, as she ran around the area we had landed in, scanning rocks and sand and little patches of shrubbery. Eventually she reached us again, and the device went pong. She frowned and shook it next to her ear, and the rattling from inside was audible even over the wind.

“What’s wrong with it?” Seth asked, and she looked up at us.

“It’s more like what’s wrong with us. We’re not nearly as safe as I had hoped we would be.” She replied, taking out another device. For a moment I thought she was going to do another weird technical thing, but all she did was take a stylus out and write a few notes down. Right, not everything had to be super futuristic.

“And that means?” Amy asked, trailing off her words in that way of asking the other person to continue speaking. Tabitha was quiet for a moment, before looking up at me and Seth specifically.

“Try not to die.” She finished, turning away and looking over the horizon. Immediately, Seth and I looked at each other, smiles growing as we quickly knew what we were going to reply with.

“Are you saying that if you die in the game…” I began, and Seth was quick to finish as I saw Tabitha visibly bristle at the beginning of the sentence.

“…you die in real life?” Seth finished, barely able to contain his laughter long enough to finish the sentence. Tabitha turned back to us as if she was going to start yelling at us, but seemed to think better of it as she sighed, turning away again.

“Yes.” Her words dripped with irritation, but the serious nature of what she was saying still reached us. Luckily, I knew I was too cool to die. That, and I’d played this game enough times to know where to stay away from. Before either of us could say anything else, Tabitha spoke up again. “Let’s head that way. I’m picking up large amounts of people converging over there.” She put away the retro-looking device with a long antenna (you know, the kind of one you need to push down before putting it away) that I hadn’t seen her take out, and began to walk. Everyone else started following her, except for me. The sense of smell that this world had hit me with was making me very aware of a specific kind of smell. One of ripe fruit. I grinned, and yelled out to the rest of them as I rushed forward.

“It smells like bananas!”

#A Cool Guy's Cool Life #Cool Guy #Original Fiction #Creative Writing

[dogsporttrainer-blog]

Preseason Dog Training Tips

Long before fall arrives, serious sporting dog enthusiasts have been working to get their dogs ready. In reality, they never let up from conditioning/training mode, though the intensity of their day-to-day routine may relent a bit in the off-season.

Preseason training varies by age, experience and individual dog, yet experts agree success results when a program focuses on optimal training, conditioning and nutrition. Regardless of the sport, these components are essential when it comes to developing a dog for hunting or field trials.

Purina Senior Manager of the Sporting Group Karl Gunzer says, “Dogs need to be in good physical condition going into the season, which means owners and trainers should focus on getting a dog into top condition weeks ahead of opening day. Those who build a performance platform that balances training, conditioning and nutrition are enabling a dog to be its best.”

A pro trainer of retrievers for 20 years, Gunzer understands the rigorous requirements on the front end that produce the desired results in the field. “Training is a process that takes time. A dog must mature physically and mentally to the challenges being taught,” he says. “Nutrition supports the hard work. Feeding a nutrient-dense, high-protein/high-fat performance food helps to increase a dog’s endurance.”

Here is a peek behind the fall training curtain of three pro trainers. Sharing their training tips, they provide a glimpse of what it takes to build a successful program.

bikejoring equipment http://www.bigdogsport.com/must-have-bikejoring-equipment-for-beginners

Keeping Dogs Sharp

Tom Ness of Oahe Kennels in Menoken, North Dakota, develops all-around gundogs, with a focus on spaniels, by keeping them sharp year-round. “I never let my dogs get out of shape,” Ness says. “When I say ‘I don’t let them get out of shape,’ I mean not only in the physical sense but in the mental sense as well.”

Ness’ training laid the groundwork that shaped the 2010 National Cocker Field Trial Champion, NFC/FC/ CFC/CAFC Ballymena’s Irish Rose MH (“Nellie”). The standout Cocker Spaniel was raised on a program infused with tactical exercises designed to give her the perseverance to win when it counts.

Throwing bumpers on land and water is one of Ness’ methods for conditioning dogs. “Some dogs will wear your arm out before they do,” he says. “Then, you get a dog like Nellie, my National Champion. She’d retrieve a dummy once, twice at the most, and then she’d give me a look that said, ‘Are you kidding me?’ Put her in a field trial though, and she’d retrieve like she’d been shot out of a cannon.”

On the other hand, the daily “pack” run, blended with one-on-one heeling, is something Nellie always enjoyed. “I take my dogs for a run almost every day,” says Ness. "Usually, there are four dogs in a group. I heel three dogs and send one out to hunt. After 200 to 300 yards, I'll release another dog to hunt and call back the other one to heel. This way, I am constantly platooning the dogs being kept at heel.”

Among the virtues of the pack run, besides instilling obedience, it helps Ness maintain a proper mindset in his dogs. “It keeps them on their toes mentally, and a dog that is fit both mentally and physically is a dog that is likely to be successful whether your goal is winning field trials or having an enjoyable day of hunting,” he says.

An important aspect of the Oahe program is Ness’ custom approach to conditioning based on a dog’s purpose. Field trial dogs are worked so they can eventually run hard for up to 15 minutes. “That’s longer than they’ll ever have to run in a single series, but if they have to run two or even three series on the same day, they’ll have enough ‘gas in the tank’ to do it,” he says. “With this in mind, I purposely keep their preseason sessions short in order to condition them not to pace themselves.”

service dog counterbalance harness http://www.bigdogsport.com/service-dog-mobility-harness-a-must-have-in-dog-training

Likewise, hunting dogs are prepared for longer runs from 3 to 4 miles, with Ness riding alongside them on a mountain bike. Swimming is an activity he uses to help build strength and endurance. “I like to mix it up,” he says.

Preseason fall training begins with Ness evaluating dogs to identify any training holes. “This is usually more of an issue with younger dogs, as older dogs have a number of seasons of field trialing and/or hunting experience, thus they may only need a review of skills they already know,” Ness says.

Around midsummer, Ness starts evaluating each dog’s training status. “We start at the beginning and go through the whole process from basic obedience to whistle commands to game-finding ability in the field,” he says. “The idea is to sharpen their responses and get them back into the groove. No dog is perfect, and every dog can be better.” Go Slowly in Preseason

Preseason training at Chris Scott’s L&D Retrieving in Henderson, Tennessee, starts with assessing each dog’s age, weight and body condition, as well as fitness and skill levels. Preparing retrievers for hunting tests involves a multifaceted approach, one that Scott has mastered in titling hundreds of dogs.

“The situation you want to avoid is allowing a dog to push himself past his limit,” Scott says. “Young dogs, in particular, don’t know when to quit so you have to be smart about their management. A lot involves paying attention to the dog. He’ll tell you when he’s ready to take the next step. You never want to ask dogs to do more than they are capable of doing.”

Starting slowly with older dogs is crucial. “An older dog that’s a little overweight may need several months to get into condition compared to a young, fit dog that may only need 30 to 45 days of conditioning to be in tip-top shape.”

Nutrition is a fundamental part of the program. “It all starts with proper diet,” says Scott. “You can have the best conditioning and training program in the world, but it also is important to feed a high-quality food to help improve a dog’s ability to perform at a high level. It’s all interconnected.”

Integrating conditioning and training exercises, Scott says it is key to start with short distances and gradually increase the distance. “Older, experienced dogs that are healthy and fit may start running pattern blinds involving as many as nine bumpers and up to half a mile of combined swimming and running,” he says. “Younger dogs that have not graduated to complicated retrieves may start on multiple marks while also working on obedience and improving their delivery-to-hand skills.

“For the rookies, it’s about learning and building confidence. For the veterans, it’s about knocking off the rust and getting enough repetitions to let their memory take over. They learn or relearn to stay focused and on task, to sit straight, look straight, and go straight. The idea is to sharpen skills that have become dull.”

Giving dogs regular days off is important, too, Scott says. “Dogs need time to rest, recover and take a mental break. I work my dogs Monday to Friday and give them the weekend off unless we’re at a hunting test. Then, I give them Monday off.”

Building Endurance

Nolan Huffman of Beeline Brittanys in Lewiston, Montana, advises his clients to beware of putting extra weight on their dogs during the off-season. Dogs that are overweight start out behind, he says. “If you want a dog to be in the right ‘place’ when hunting season opens, you’ll have to start conditioning an overweight dog several weeks before you would if the dog was in reasonably good shape to begin with,” Huffman says. “To keep the weight off, you shouldn’t change what you feed, but you should adjust the amount fed to reflect the exercise level of the dog. Active sporting dogs should be fed a high-fat, high-protein diet.”

Huffman’s training program focuses on developing bird dogs for walking and upland field trials and hunting. His Brittanys are high achievers on the National Shoot to Retrieve Association trial circuit. Speed and endurance blended with bird-finding smarts and powerful drive are important virtues in these sports.

Building endurance starts with free running and roading exercises involving dogs pulling against resistance. “We start slowly and gradually increase the time and distance until dogs are running easy and not panting excessively,” Huffman says. “A dog breathing hard through his mouth simply can’t smell birds the way a dog breathing easily through his nose can.”

Older dogs with experience typically only need a conditioning tuneup to be ready to go. “These dogs don’t need as much actual training, but as they age, it takes them longer to get into shape,” Huffman says. “On the other hand, younger dogs need continued training. The most common problem I see is failure to back, or honor another dog’s point. I use the ‘whoa’ command to correct this, as it is the most basic and important command in the pointing dog’s vocabulary. You have to be able to enforce it though. If you spend five minutes every day working on whoa and you focus on making it stick, this should produce a dog that can properly back another dog in the field.”

Since summer is when fall preparation begins, Huffman prefers to work dogs in the early morning or evening when it is cool. He also says the more access to water they have, the better. “You never want to risk having a dog overheat,” he says. Rest days are just as important as exertion days, says Huffman. “Typically, I exercise dogs every other day, though if I see a dog struggling, he may rest for two or three days,” he says.

“You need to be able to read a dog. Some dogs are born sprinters, others are born distance runners, and some are a little of both,” says Huffman. “You have to take that into account, and if you notice any lameness, you need to immediately stop what you’re doing.” Warming dogs up before work and cooling them down after work are part of the program. “You want to give joints and muscles time to limber up and get loose before you kick things into high gear,” Huffman says. “Similarly, when I'm about a quarter mile from the kennel, I like to slow things down to a leisurely pace, and when we arrive, I let the dogs mill around in the yard for about 10 minutes before I put them up. I found it significantly reduces soreness and injuries.”

attack dog training suit http://www.bigdogsport.com/dog-attack-protective-clothing-a-must-have-for-dog-training

Training with a Nutritional Strategy

Experts agree that the best conditioning, the best training and the best intentions are nothing if a dog does not have a solid nutritional foundation. The ideal food for sporting and hunting dogs should be high in fat and protein, such as Purina Pro Plan SPORT Performance 30/20 Formula, a performance dog food containing 30 percent protein and 20 percent fat.

“Feeding a high-protein, high-fat diet primes a dog’s metabolic engine to efficiently convert nutrients into energy,” says Purina Senior Research Scientist Brian Zanghi, PhD. “Keeping a dog on a performance diet year-round is essentially giving a dog a two-month conditioning edge over dogs fed a maintenance diet that is lower in fat and protein.” In addition, “Feeding a nutrient-dense food allows you not to have to feed an excessive amount to keep weight on dogs,” says Purina Senior Manager for the Sporting Group Karl Gunzer. “When dogs eat less food, and thus have less volume in their stomach, they are more comfortable.”

The goal of nutrition is to optimize performance. “This means feeding a food containing key nutrients in an optimal balance to provide optimal benefits, enabling a dog to hunt longer and find more game,” says Dr. Zanghi. “Food can metabolically prime our dogs to promote optimal endurance.”

Nutritional Do’s & Don’ts for Sporting Dogs

• Don’t feed a hardworking dog before exercise. Since complete digestion takes from 20 to 24 hours, you should feed a performance dog the night before a trial or hunting outing. Dogs fed six hours or sooner before exercise results in the body’s fat-burning enzymes not being optimized, which contributes to reduced endurance and energy generation. • Do provide plenty of water to working dogs. These dogs should be well-hydrated, as exercise is a heat-producing activity and water is required to dissipate heat. Water also is needed to remove the byproducts of energy metabolism, which is essential to endurance and performance. • Don't forget about ideal body condition. This means you should be able to feel the ribs and see an abdominal tuck from the side. • Don’t always feed a working dog the same amount of food. During the first four to six weeks of conditioning, food quantity should increase, but then level off and decline slightly. Each dog is an individual, and you should adjust the amount of food fed to maintain ideal body condition. • Do feed a performance dog food year-round. It is best to feed a hardworking dog a performance food year-round, though you should reduce the amount fed if the activity level declines during the off-season. This helps to maximize training and conditioning. • Do feed once a day. This allows a hardworking dog time to completely digest the food. Young dogs or high-maintenance dogs requiring a larger portion of food can be fed twice a day with a slightly smaller portion in the morning.

[munchkinxcop-blog]

✘Linds

"I don't want to wait any more. I don't want the perfect date, the perfect weekend, the perfect time. I want to do this now. I want to put the boys in the car and do this. I don't want to wake up tomorrow as Erin Lindsay."

Detective Dimples

"Let's do it then."

✘Linds

"Yeah?!" Excitement floods her face as she nods her head, arms finding their way around his neck as she draws in tight to him.

Detective Dimples

Nods at her question, feeling her slipping around his neck as his hands found her hips. "Absolutely."

Erin

Feeling him draw her into that embrace, the woman had never been so sure or upfront about anything she wanted throughout the course of the relationship.  Burying her face in the curve of his neck for a long moment before she drew back, her eyes meeting his, a full smile where her traditional half-smile resided.  “I’m gonna marry your ass,” she stated with confidence, stealing his lips a moment after.  The pressing case could wait in the capable hands of their unit at work.  Everything else could be put on hold for the family of four to be given the chance to become that officially.  Already seeming to know he would say yes, things were already in place to do so thanks to her ever capable and trusted secret travel agent who owed them for his life, thus he spoiled the family rotten at a simple phone call.  “You get the boys and I’ll confirm flights?” she asked, telling him she had already been well up to something there with or without his approval, though it could have been cancelled at any point in time.  Convincing eyes found his as she stole yet another kiss to the man’s lips, her excitement radiating off of her with no attempt at controlling it now or ever.  It had taken her long enough to be completely ready for this moment.  When it hit her, it hit her like a ton of bricks, as living her life as Erin Lindsay was no longer for her.  She wanted nothing more than to hear his name after her own in a manner that was more than just a hypothetical.

C.J.

“Mhm.” he stated, her lips to his stealing his access to do much else as he pressed back to her. Agreeing. Yet, when it came time to separate, he was lacking the willpower. A series of firm pecks to her lips, smiling softly after the fifth or sixth one landed showing that he was struggling. “Gonna’ have to push me off.” the man managed, too overwhelmed with love for the woman and this spur of the moment go at it to do what he had to do next. Much less to allow her what she needed to do.

Erin

“Careful,” she whispered, a warning to the man.  If he wasn’t to let her go, then they wouldn’t be getting out of Chicago that day.  It didn’t take much to get her mind off in another direction, of this she knew he knew all too well.  She’d be wrapped around him in two seconds flat and then no one would be going anywhere.  As the last kiss landed at her lips, his words telling her she’d have to remove him, she bit at her own lower lip, not quite sure she could ever do such a thing.  “C.J…” she whined, tilting her head to the side with a playful pout developing at her lip.  “I can’t steal your last name if we never leave the bedroom,” she reminded him, as would be a test they would have to face down.  His last name, or complete intimacy at the idea of his last name.  She couldn’t do it.  Both were too good.  She wanted both at the same time.  Lowering her face, her forehead at his chest as she deprived him of her kiss, though the punishment was potentially harder on her than it would be for him.

C.J.

Hearing her whine, he was ready to whine back at her as he simply couldn’t help himself. Hearing her rebuttal, he knew it to be true yet he just needed to kiss her in that moment. Unable to get his last without promising himself another. Feeling her lowering her head, he smirked softly. Effective means of denying him as he simply pressed his lips to the top of her head. “I love you.” leaving her with that, he slipped back where his hands pulled from hers and made his way up the steps with each slow and assured step.

Erin

As he withdrew from her, the warmth against her was gone, leaving her to lift her head in his absence.  “I love you too!” she called towards the staircase.  Remaining there for a long moment longer than she should have, simply enjoying the feeling as it swarmed all around her.  A strong bite there to her lower lip before she was moving all at once to confirm that they would need the seats on the flight leaving Chicago as well as the promised accommodations as well for the next four days.  They could cut it short and return home sooner should he want to, but she’d give it that long at least to get them through the weekend.  A text was sent to Voight, letting him know they were taking his advice and getting out of town for a few days, though she’d make no mention of what they’d be doing out of town.  Another to Antonio stating the same thing.  Grabbing her suitcase from the top of the closet, thanks to a stepstool she hid in the corner, she laid it out on the bed packing as quickly as possible so she could help C.J. to pack himself and the boys as well.  No dress.  No shoes.  No veil.  No huge ass bill either.  She was more than happy with all of it, as all of that hadn’t mattered to her anyways.  The boys may have a little something else to say about it, but for now it was what it was.

C.J.

Getting upstairs where he was dragging their luggage out of the closet. Something that was new with the introduction of Erin in their lives as they weren’t ones to typically travel yet they already knew what that meant. Using an incentive method to get them to help him with the task as he knew to tell them now would mean it would never get going from sheer exhaustion. Doing the typical mental checklists. Shirts, jeans, underwear, socks. Spares. iPad, naturally. Any question about toys being left with whatever can fit in the bag as he managed to get their clothes together in about 20 minutes time.

Erin

In the time it took him to pack both boys, she was just finishing with her own.  She hadn’t been one for a lot of clothes or even traditionally ‘girly’ items, but still her suitcase was pushing at the seams.  Sitting up on top of it with her legs crossed over one another, tugging the zipper from the back around to just beneath her feet, attempting to do the same on the other side, determined to bring just the one bag.  Hearing the boys bustling with their own anticipation, the conversation she’d hear down the hallway would tell her they didn’t actually know where they were going.  A year and a half before, she’d sent the Luciano boys to a baseball training camp.  Then the trip to New York just six months before.  Now this.  This would definitely take the cake if the boys knew what was up, but it seemed that it was just another run of the mill getaway courtesy C.J. and Erin, the newly-found adventurers, though independently it had never been her thing.  She liked her bed.  She liked her apartment.  She liked her normalcy.  But ever since joining this family in spirit, the woman wanted to go.  She wanted to see and explore and experience with C.J. and the boys.  It was better than anything she’d ever expected it to be.  And now, as she was struggling with the zipper, starting to bounce up and down slightly against the hood of the suitcase, willing the thing to close, she couldn’t be more thrilled that he hadn’t told the boys.

C.J.

Getting everything pulled together, it was then and only then that he told them the news. Leaving them with that bounce off the wall excitement, taking both bags downstairs next to the steps and knowing surely a slew of excitement would follow them but managing a few minutes on his own in the meantime in hopes of getting his own things together. Walking to the bedroom, the door opening just in time to watch her bouncing on the suitcase. Having to try not to laugh but failing miserably as it all crept up on him at once. Having to stop in the doorway as his hands found his knees. Laughing too hard to even manage to stand up straight. “Sorry to interrupt, you want me to leave you and the suitcase alone for a few minutes ’til it finishes?” he managed just barely before he was covering his mouth with his hand.

Erin

The man’s laughter gave him away, giving her a moment there to roll her eyes as he enjoyed this entirely too much.  “Yeah, I’m about to marry your ass.  Had to get one last ride in before I’m stuck with the same one for the rest of my life,” she teased, intentionally giving a good bounce against the suitcase as she let that last word out teasing him just as hard as he had teased her.  “How about you get that ass over here and help me instead of standing there laughing at me.  There are things in here for you too, ya know?!”  she offered, giving only a little hint as to what else his fianc? might have schemed up in her journey towards marriage readiness.  With the sound of the boys escalating through the background, it would force a smile across her face.  Remembering a time not too long before where she was terrified of them, and yet now where were they all?  “Please help me?” she offered to C.J. again, finding that pout that seemed to put things into motion quickly, even if him helping meant he’d be in the magnetic pull of Erin and their bed.

C.J.

Still laughing as she gave up her own reasoning and laughing a bit harder, leaned over entirely as he finally straightened at the mention of what was in it for him. Holding his stomach as his free hand was wiping fallen tears as he approached her. He nodded at her offering at help. a gentle point to her. “We are revisiting that previous conversation…” he added, needing to know what all was in there as he approached. Allowing her to sit on it as he grabbed the zipper and gave it a sharp tug to line it onto its tracks. Still trying not to laugh again but failing as the visual returned to him.

Erin

Bearing all of her weight down on the top of the suitcase as his hand worked at the zipper, she met his desire to know what was in the suitcase with an innocent shrug.  “Can’t find out until you change my last name,” she reminded him with a smirk, up to something almost always as he well knew by now.  Never quite staying mainstream with her ploys as there was truly no telling what might be within that suitcase.  Once the case was closed, she gave it one more good bounce for good measure before she was finding her knees, hands to either side of his face, clearly drawn in by the magnet more than he was as she inspected the dampness at the corners of his eyes.  “You were laugh crying?  Really?  You laugh cried at my struggles.”  She teased him, shaking her head as her lips fell against his.  “That’s it.  No sex until marriage,” she threatened, a telling smirk at her lips as it wouldn’t be long now.

C.J.

“I can’t help it.” he confessed, still wiping at the corner of his eyes as it had snuck up on him as he felt her to the sides of his face. Pressing his lips briefly to hers before he heard her threat. “Yeah, yeah.” not taking the bait on that one as they both knew better, sneaking in another kiss of her lips and to her nose and forehead before a brief “ew” erupted from the door in back of him where someone had snuck a peak within causing him to glance back and shake his head before he was looking back at her. “That’s how you know you are old right there.”

Erin

“Nope,” she was repeating with every kiss he bestowed against her.  She’d be giving him none.  Zip.  Notta.  Not a halfway even, until she had his last name and he had to call her his wife to people.  Only agreeing to this as she knew flight times, hotel times, and a little something else that had been set up on the other end at their hotel that would have them married before the day was out.  Hearing the ‘ew’ from the doorway, she had to laugh.  Shaking her head as the figure took off running, her hands finding his ass as she gripped him firmly within her hands.  “You’re not old, you’re distinguished,” she clarified for him, stealing his lips for her own one last time before she was pressing her hands to his chest, backing away.  “Now get off me.  I have a wedding to attend and my future husband would be very disappointed to find me in a threesome with you and my suitcase.”  She teased, standing up on the bed to make a quick getaway off the other side that would come mighty close to looking just like it had in the cabin they had been to previously where tickle wars had ensued and elicited the same type of flight technique she was using now.  

C.J.

“Now I’m /really/ old.” He clarified, as being called ‘distinguished’ proved just that. Pressing his lips back to hers before she pushed him off, hearing her statement which caused another laugh before she was jumping onto the other side of the bed. “Guardin’ your virtue, I see.” he remarked as he glanced down towards the bag. Perking a brow out of curiosity. “So I guess I can’t sneak anything of mine in there, huh?” he asked, drawing into the closet to find his own.

Erin

A loud laugh erupted from her lips at the idea of getting anything else in there.  “You talking about my bag or…?” she teased, her mind clearly in the gutter after his prompting with her suitcase activities minutes before.  Making her way around the bed to where he was there in the closet, hands finding his hips as her face pressed into his back.  “I’ll have room for my /husband/ somewhere later on tonight,” she offered, biting at her lower lip even if he couldn’t see it.  One hand slipping around in front of him, knowing she needed to get the hell away from him if they were to leave on time.  “Maybe this?” she asked, her tone clearly flirting with him as she gripped him through his jeans.

C.J.

Glancing over his shoulder at her question, he heard her response as she was felt behind him. Smirking before he felt her grip to the front of him. A slow breath. “All that.” he promised honestly, dragging the suitcase from the closet knowing she was on thin ice as they always were. “Better be careful before you wind up with a situation on your hands.” specifying that it would be on /her/ as the two were always drawing into one another like a moth to the flame.

Erin

A low hum found her lips as he assured her she’d be getting all of it, only forcing that bite at her lip deeper against her lower tier.  Releasing him entirely, her back found the door frame of the closet where she’d take a moment to collect herself from that which /he/ had done to her.  Turning her head to the side to watch him with his suitcase, seduction lacing her hazel eyes in ways she could not even begin to control.  Slow, deep breaths to keep herself on track here as she closed her eyes.  Reminding herself of that which waited for them, though a part of her said a ten-minute quickie wouldn’t delay them much.  Rationalizing it in her mind, keeping her eyes closed there as she would need at least a full minute to work herself up to removing herself from his close proximity and probably the bedroom in general.

C.J.

Drawing out the suitcase which seemed all together too much for him given the fact that he didn’t need much. He’d get over it as he walked to his dresser. Drawing out the essentials first before a few pairs of jeans, shirts, a pair of gym shorts and a pair of slacks. Knowing a dress shirt out of the closet would be next which would prove interesting as she was standing directly beside it. Straightening, he slid in directly infront of her as he opened it. Reaching in where he pulled out one of the clothes hangers. “Color preference?”

Erin

As he gathered his things, it was just long enough for her to bring herself down from the sexually provoking high she had found herself on.  Just as she was about to move from the doorway, he brushed up against her on his way to conveniently find a shirt just after she’d gotten herself calmed down again.  Hearing his question, she shook her head no.  She wasn’t that person, nor was she ever gonna be that person.  It didn’t matter to her if they all wore paper sacks as long as the two of them came out of it married, husband and wife, and she became the legal step-parent to those boys instead of just dad’s girlfriend, she was fine by it.  “Anything you want,” she offered, so tempted to slip in behind him again, yet showing great self control as she headed out of the closet area, taking a seat on the bed should he need her expert suit case closing skills.

C.J.

“I don’t know what I want.” he stated, not asking her to make them match. Just genuinely seeing what color she thought looked better on him as he glanced down towards her. Only able to wonder what was going on in that head of hers. Glancing back towards her as she took a seat and he drew out the white one. “White? Black? Am I a storm trooper here or Darth Vader?” he asked, questions he needed to know otherwise they’d be put in the boys hands.

Erin

“Hmm, Darth Vader or a Storm Trooper…” she weighed the options, having to see which she could find herself marrying, attracted to, fucking, biting, licking, FUCK.  Her head was going there /again/ and it was almost uncontrollable now, ruining any starwars talk that might arise between the boys on the flight.  Giving away nothing that was in her head, she simply stated “black.” Rising from the bed, leaving it at just that, unable to be in the same room with him now as she went to go seek out the boys to cleanse her filthy mind.  The two were running amuck with no supervision, until Erin entered.  Quickly Bash was there before her, asking if she had gone dress shopping without them.  It was then that she’d realize that maybe it did matter what they were wearing.  “I didn’t.  Actually, your dad’s going as Darth Vader…” she offered, hoping that might kill the need for a dress in his mind.

C.J.

“See, that wasn’t so /hard./“ deliberately letting that word roll off his tongue just as she was leaving. Pulling out the dark dress shirt without hesitation and packing it. Knowing she was left nearly running out of there and quite proud of himself for it as he grabbed a few toiletries and finished his bag. Grabbing hers where he dragged them to the front door to join the boy’s bag and get them a step further in the right direction.

Erin

Hearing his statement and emphasis on the word, her foot hit hard into the door frame on her way out of the room.  If she could cause herself a bit of pain, she wouldn’t think of that yearning within.  Bash seemed to understand the lack of the dress shopping, shockingly enough, while J.J. seemed to side-eye her at the fact she’d found a way out of a dress entirely.  As C.J. appeared with their bags to the door, a wide grin spanned her face.  “And just like that, we are ready to go,” she prompted, to which it became a game of who could get to the door first, yet both knew better than to unlock it.  Joining C.J. at the door, Erin’s hand found his for a moment before they’d head out.  “Leaving here your fiancé?, returning your wife.  You sure you’re ready for this?” she asked, as if it had been him speaking of 2029’s for the last almost two years.

C.J.

Feeling her find him at the door, he heard her question about whether he was ready for it. Having to laugh softly. “Don’t have to worry ‘bout me being ready for it. I’ve been ready. I came home from the first day we met and went ‘I’m going to marry that girl someday’, didn’t I?” he asked, eyes off to Bash who seemed to have a much more acute memory than thought possible. The boy nodded. Eyes back to hers with a smile. “Better question is if /you/ are ready.”

Erin

Just yet another reminder that he loved her first.  He knew first.  He wanted her first.  And yet she’d never want to be reminded of anything but that.  To know that he had wanted her, loved her, and declared marriage to her after what might’ve been one of the roughest shifts when she was assigned a partner, a new guy, someone she didn’t want or need… it made her feel as though it was all worked out and she hadn’t needed to do a thing.  There was no stress or pressure on it.  And as long as he could claim he loved her first, she’d return it with the same smile as there was nothing more she could do.  “Couldn’t be more ready,” she assured without the need for hypotheticals or closed doors or running.  For the first time ever, the man had tamed her enough, finding some way to show her along the way that she didn’t have to run from anything she felt with him.  It was okay to just say it.  Be it titles, or I love you’s, or I want to get married.  It didn’t matter.  All she had to do was say it.  “First one to the car gets a window seat,” she offered, sending the boys flying out the door, leaving she and C.J. to grab those bags.  

C.J.

And he had done all those things first and he loved knowing it. Telling her. Reminding her. Not to get an edge over her but just so she knew that he had loved her long before he got anything out of it and that was the true marks of his feelings for her. Even when they hurt him and made him vulnerable. They were deeper than his pride which was truly saying something. Hearing her return statement, he flashed her a telling smile before she was starting the races with the window seat offering. Watching them darting off as he unlocked the car door from their own front door and grabbing the back lock. “Good thing we didn’t get that puppy yet.” he whispered as a way of reminding her since they could simply up and go now and getting Erin had quelled their desire for the puppy.

Erin

“Mhm,” she managed, though the woman wasn’t entirely done with the puppy idea either.  As C.J. started for the door, she quickly grabbed his wrist, tugging him back towards her.  A tiny frame there before him, yet she managed just fine to bring a hand to the back of his neck.  “When we come back, we’ll be husband and wife.  So kiss your fiance? at home one last time before we go?” she offered, recalling easily a time she stood on those very steps, willing the courage up to go inside to meet those boys.  Sneaking in that very house after the boys had gone to bed.  All of the things that had evolved were not lost on her in the slightest as she remembered them, each and every one, with the exception of twerking accusations she still thought to be bullshit.  With the audience to ‘ew’ them quite preoccupied with who got in and buckled up first, she was drawing herself into the man in a place that was safe.  The boys were so close and outside.  They couldn’t dare take it into the bedroom.  Kissing him here meant it was just a kiss, but the last kiss she’d receive on that porch as Erin Lindsay.

C.J.

As she stopped him and laid out his demands, he nodded softly. This is why they worked. They were just as sappy with one another and with that came comfort. Surprised he had not thought of it first as she drew into him. Palm finding the side of her face as he traced over her jawline. Meeting her eyes for a moment as he truly saw her. The depths of his love for her, his future within those eyes. Everything he had ever wanted in a woman. Out of this life. Leaning in, he pressed his lips to hers. Hoping to translate just that and then some through the synopsis.

Erin

As his hand took to the side of her face, she didn’t move.  She’d instigated this, and yet she’d then hand it over to him to take.  A give and take here between them as she took her moment and gave him the same.  The romance so often flowing from him had easily rub off on her over time, proving if she was given a stable place to flourish, she would do just that.  As he leaned in, his eyes remaining opened until that last moment, her own did the same.  A deep, silent exchange between the two as they felt the full gravity there between them of that which they set out to do.  It may not sound traditional, but nothing they had done had been entirely traditional either.  With their lips finding one another’s, she pressed up to her toes, tightening the fingers to the back of his neck as she drew her torso against him.  Allowing every ounce of her emotion for the man to flow through that kiss as she made no hurry to break free from it as it would be their last in this place as who they were in that moment and should be respected as such.

C.J.

Feeling her tighten around his neck, his arms did the same around her waist. Moving from her face where he gently rubbed over her back. Feeling her press up to her toes as his head pushed downwards in attempt to alleviate her of this obvious strain. Always caring for her own comfort more than his chiropractor bill as he pressed for as long as he could until the break would inevitably come before causing a psychological breakdown in the children. Not just theirs but the others of the neighborhood.

Erin

The draw the man held over her was without comparison.  For once, she could simply kiss him without the thoughts or desire for anything more than just enjoying that moment with him for as long as it might last.  As he drew back, her hands reluctantly freed from the back of his neck, smoothing down over his chest as she smiled up towards him.  “Now I’m ready,” she whispered, voice slightly choking at the power of that kiss before she was slipping down to grab a couple bags, helping him get everything into the car so they could head for the airport.  

C.J.

Detecting that difference in her voice, he shot her a glance. Not sure he was used to seeing that out of her before he was grabbing as many of the bags as he could. Sparing her his own bag which was ironically the lightest as he grabbed the boys in one hand and hers in the other. Dramatically grunting and groaning all the way to the car as he hit the car key to open the back hatch and load it up.

Erin

“Well, if you hadn’t packed half the house for the boys…” she began as though the weight in his hands had no bearing on what she had packed, or stuffed, in her own suitcase.  A laugh there at her lips as she pulled the door closed, double checking that it had been locked before joining him there at the back of the car with his back.  “What’d you put in here?  A ton of bricks?” she whined, pretending it was far too heavy as she leaned off to the side holding the bag, copying his grumble all the while.  “Gonna be gone four days and you put your whole closet in here.”  She teased, her smile ultimately winning out there as it displayed against her face without her consent.  Bringing it up to the back of the vehicle with the others before she was grabbing a handful at his ass on her way by.

C.J.

“Yeah, that’s be. Over packing. Always overpacking.” as it was usually the opposite, he felt her against his ass. He side-eyed her. Shifting the bags further to the seats as he waited for her to lean back before he was closing the hatch. Walking to the passenger side of the car where he was opening the door for her.

Erin

As he came around the car, she met his eyes with a smile to her lips.  “Thank you,” she offered.  Though he always did this, she’d never become desensitized to it, no matter how many times or how old they got.  Proof that he was a dying breed as her hand slipped up to pass over his cheek to the tune of a young man in the back whining for them to  come on.  She let it stand as just that passing touch as she slipped into the passenger’s seat, buckling her seatbelt around her.  Things changed, a lot.  He drove most all of the time now.  She rode here.  And they were not only dating in the same unit, but about to be married in the same unit.  It was a lot, but for once she wasn’t cracking under the pressure.  Instead simply beaming with excitement over the prospect of marrying this man as quickly as possible.  

C.J.

“Mhm.” he drew, closing the door behind her as he walked around the front of the car to find the drivers side and did the same. Sliding within the seat where he was starting the car and hitting a few of the windows to spare them of their heat. “Alright, now that /someone/ is finally done with holding us up.” side eyeing his fiance, he shifted into drive where he was checking his mirrors to pull out of that parallel position.

Erin

Her own eyes cut towards him and that which he had said.  The way she saw it, he was holding them up by being so freaking hot that she couldn’t even focus to fully help him pack his own things.  “Psh,” she managed there from the passenger’s seat as he pulled out onto the street for the airport.  “You’d better be nice to me or this’ll turn out just to be a fun trip to Vegas,” she teased, giving away the location to which they were heading, but also giving him a hard time all at once.  Her hand easing over to his thigh where she was gripping at his leg through his pants.  “And you know the rule…” she offered in throwback to what she had said previously about him not getting any until she had his last name.

C.J.

“Ohhh, Vegas…” starting to make sense of this as his eyes flickered briefly over to her, feeling her at his leg as he smirked softly. A nod. “Yeah, I remember.” he stated simply, getting her loud and clear as he reached for his sunglasses in the center console which usually meant he was about to start rocking his head in tune to something on the radio to embarrass her completely at stoplights. Saying nothing as they smoothed onto hook the back of his ears.

Erin

“Mhm,” she offered, yet she hadn’t given all that much away.  A knowing smirk over her own lips as she saw the sunglasses.  A quick shake of her hand there as she brought her hand up over the radio controls, spanning her hand as widely as she could manage with her tiny hand.  “Nope.  Not happening,” she proclaimed, quickly turning to the backseat.  “Hey, what do you guys want to listen to?” She asked, to which one was quick to answer in an excitedly loud voice ‘daddy’s songs!’  Erin cut her eyes from the mini-C.J. back to the full sized one, relinquishing her hand as she knew she’d lost.  If Bash had meant C.J.’s /actual/ songs, she would have been fine, but she knew just as well as everyone else in that car what the boy meant.

C.J.

“My boys.” he stated as they sided with him as he reached back, landing double high-fives as he won radio rights while beginning their drive to the airport. Beginning to scroll through the channels. Seeming to look for something in specific. “Need a good beat.” he remarked honestly, glancing over towards Erin, hearing the slight giggles from the backseat as they knew what that meant as well.

Erin

Drawing her other hand back from his thigh, containing herself in only her own seat as she prepared to draw herself up in a ball there in the seat.  They could get their kicks off this for as long as they wanted and she’d never get used to it, ever.  “How about Pink’s ‘You and your hand’?” she seemed to suggested as a slight smirk graced her features, sliding that one in where the boys wouldn’t understand the little hidden meaning there, but C.J. surely would.  “Or even a little Celine Dion?  All by myself?  If you want to slow it down, that is.”  She added, the back of her head finding the headrest as she settled in for the short, but surely torturous ride to the airport.

C.J.

Laughing once at her suggestion. Another time. Distinct, broken up laughter as she had to know that was ridiculous. She’d ever and they both knew it. Continuing to scroll through the radio. Falling upon “Hotline Bling” randomly where he had found his song. “Perfect…” he remarked, instantly getting to the head bobbing as he found the beat and maintained it it firmly until they were hitting a red light and he was still at it. “C’mon, Erin. You should do it in harmony.”

Erin

As he took to the radio, finding a song he could drive-dance to, she was almost alright with it until it came to the blasted stoplight.  Every time.  Never could they pull up to a light without another car of people coming up beside them, getting quite the eye full as C.J. was quite committed to his role of embarrassing the woman to the fullest.  “Just once, just one time, one car ride.  That’s all I ask for…” she complained from the seat, turning her face to look out the opposite window as he encouraged her to harmonize with him.  There was no possible way.  “Dream on,” she managed, giving up the title of yet another song he could throw in with her prior suggestions.

C.J.

"Cmon." He encouraged, glancing back as the boys in the backseat were starting their headbob in opposite harmonies, one taking their fathers leaving Erin the odd man out as the light turned a little too fast for him. "Ever since I left New York City, you got a reputation for yourself now..." rapping along with altered lyrics, assuring he'd test just how much she wanted to marry him.

Erin

The truth of the matter was, she found it endearing.  She found him sexy as hell when he didn’t give a shit who was looking and what they thought, when he wasn’t a cop or a detective or a professional and he was just this man, playing around with his kids and his fiancé?.  The way the kids fed off the silliness and her resistance to it would urge her to stand her ground and continue to be as though it were a fate worse than death and it was clear he got the same enjoyment out of it.  But eventually, even that wouldn’t be enough to keep the woman from being an active participant in any and all family activities, even the head bobbing to music in the car.  All at once, she grabbed for an ink pen there in the console between them.  Bringing the capped end of the pen up to her mouth as though it were a microphone, turning in her seat so the boys could see her.  Spitting the rap in the best little white girl way, managing to keep up with every line of the song much to the shock of the boys who couldn’t believe Erin actually knew the lyrics.  One hand holding her ‘microphone’ while the other was making sharp gestures, lyrics pouring loudly from her raspy mouth without a single trip up with no regard to any other vehicles as if these Luciano’s and herself were in their own little secluded bubble without a care in the world.

C.J.

Watching Erin all at once switch sides and not only take to their game but beat them at it, C.J. could have just about crashed the car as he heard the laughter more intensely then he could have prompted from the backseat as he was pressing his mouth into his hand and only having to take in this woman of his and what exactly he was seeing. Giving into a hard laugh of his own that crept up on him and nearly drawing amused tears out of him once again as surely by the end of this he would be out of tears all together. He reached out, turning it up to give her a little more to work with.

Erin

If only they were parked.  If only they had a sunroof.  A million ‘if only’s’ rang through her mind as she belted out the lyrics in front of them all.  A woman who couldn’t sing.  A woman who knew not to try to sing.  A woman who was putting all inhibition away to get a good laugh out of the lot of them.  Drake’s lyrics pouring off of her tongue, turning in C.J.’s direction as the lyrics denoted it in her mind.  Letting her eyes speak seduction in his direction to draw a quick ‘eww’ out of J.J.’s mouth from the backseat, quickly putting his hand over his brother’s eyes, closing his own.  A serious look taking over her facial features throughout, only to increase the second her portion of the song would end when all at once she’d drop the ‘microphone’ there on the console between them before returning to her previous seated position where she appeared completely uninterested as though none of this had ever happened.

C.J.

Watching her resume her place, he had to laugh as he reached out for her hand. So in love with that woman that it wasn't even funny as he brought her hand to his lips. Still trying not to laugh. "I'm all out of tears today. Make it stop." He complained, knowing he had wiped  away a few fallen laugh tears once again and he knew he'd be do in for a few more by this point. Especially making her his officially which would hit him with the water works.

Erin

As his hand took her own, his lips there to the back of her hand, she had to give him a smile.  Guilt written all over her face as he had been brought to tears twice now in the last hour by the woman’s antics.  “I can’t make it stop,” she pointed out, her hand gripping against his tightly for a long moment before she was leaning over in his direction.  “Just remember, that one was all your fault,” she reminded him as it was.  He’d asked her to join in.  He had done that one all himself in that playful underestimation of his soon to be wife.  “You’ve seen me brush my teeth /and/ sing into an ink pen… yup, the newness is gone, and it’s time to marry me.”  She confirmed as if there were no other milestones to reach, though he’d still had yet to find her using the restroom, fairly certain she’d never allow such a thing to happen.  

C.J.

“Perfect.” he stressed, though the newness would never wear off with her. He’s always be that tiny toy he was amazed he had gotten and had kept. He’d always keep that love polished as he was just as infatuated with her as ever and grew a little more so each day. Surely it would only get worse each day. Once they were married, with each day pushed forward in that life. She was his bestfriend, his former partner, his coworker. Hd wanted for nothing more in a relationship and each day she only proved how perfect she was and he’d spend each of those days showing her how much he cared about her. If only there was a proper way for those words to leave him yet they only made sense in music. Watching the airport approach, he couldn’t help but still be amused as he lost himself briefl in his own thoughts.

Erin

As he fell silent, the boys were still at it with the radio, continuing their antics in the backseat while the airport entrance came into view.  Not being entirely straight with any of them about that which awaited them, the anticipation was about to kill her.  The little karaoke break was a much needed distraction, but now things were getting real, real fast, and the woman could barely contain herself.  Keeping secrets from C.J. was not ever something she’d be good at.  Be it gifts, trips, anything.  She truly wanted to tell him everything, always.  Her entire life had become so wrapped up in this one man, in ways she never saw herself being a part of, and yet here she was, flying off across the country with him and the boys to commit herself for all eternity to him.  A smile graced her lips as she let her fingers slip through his as they both found themselves in quiet thought regardless of the noise level in the backseat.  “I think the boys won this round of car karaoke,” she stated honestly, flashing them a quick smile over her shoulder as her hand seemed to tense in C.J.’s out of sheer excitement.

C.J.

“I think so.” he confessed as his eyes flickered to the rearview where they sat. Happy to see smiling faces in return. Genuinely enjoying themselves. Included. Happy. Comfortable and provided for. It was all he could ever ask for as a parent. Especially in these circumstances where he had needed to start a new life to assure that they’d have one at all with their father in it. “Check that out, guys…” he stated, pointing towards a plane soaring nearly over the freeway that would be landing at the approaching airport.

Erin

Watching C.J. parent would forever be one of her favorite things to observe.  He was a good dad and he wore it well.  She had once told him it was hot and to this day, she’d swear it to still be more than true.  It was hot to see a man interact with his children.  It was hot to see him be silly with them and show them things of interest.  The wonder that seemed to leak into their eyes, slowly flooding over was something she’d never forget.  Drawing a slow breath of her own as she watched the plane descending quickly to land on the tarmac, she drew her lower lip between her teeth.  A thought flashing through her mind there, yet not one she could openly state at the moment.  It would have to be saved for another time in another place.  As the car came within the airport boundaries, she slipped her hand from his, grabbing for that pen she had sang into a moment before.  Taking his hand to her own lap, the cap of the pen between her teeth, she wrote against his skin before closing his hand tight around her words there in ink.  Within his palm laid the words ‘I so love you.’  It wasn’t that she couldn’t say them out loud.  Of course she could and the boys would have gagged and made a fuss over it.  It was just that she wanted it quiet, just theirs, a secret, as this was the beginning of their relationship nearly two years prior.

C.J.

Feeling her take to his hand and the unfamiliar touch of the pen, feeling her curl his fingers around it which he did with ease as he briefly pulled his hand back. Inspecting it briefly as he navigated the maze of parking lots and car garages having luckily enough information to do this. Reaching out for her hand, he grasped her. Pressing his palm firm to hers as he locked his fingers. A bit harder then he might usually as he pulled back. Transferring the ink from his hand to hers with a satisfied smirk. “Right back at you.” he added with a quick smirk.

Erin

A quiet moment should have been hard to come by considering, yet the two of them had pulled it off, perhaps even better than she had planned.  As she felt the damp ink to the palm of her own hand, her eyes flashed up to his, showing she knew what he was doing there.  A place where a half-smile typically resided, he would receive the full version in this moment as she truly could not have felt like any luckier of a woman than to be marrying this man who loved her with a strength and passion she’d never before known.  His words brought forth a flush of her cheeks as she leaned into him, resting her face against his shoulder as their hands became perfect mirrors of one another.  Deciding it would stay throughout the rest of the day, through their vows, and into the night as something they were bringing with them that tied them to their roots of secretive love.  Days gone by, yet exchanged for much better ones.  As he found a parking spot at the correct terminal, she lifted her head, her smile still seeming to reside there against her features.  “You have to let go of my hand,” she offered, a lift of her eyes as it was quite the feat for either of them in many moments, but perhaps especially this one.

C.J.

Hearing her statement as he shifted into park, realizing as he met her eyes. Sighing softly as it would seem like a struggle as he slowly allowed his fingers to come undone around hers as he killed the engine. “Just this once.” he seemed to warn her as he flashed her a telling smile. Drawing the sunglasses free from his nose which he tucked into his shirt. Slipping from the car where he closed the door behind him, opening the back door to let out his little convicts who were all too excited to be freed. “Just did 20 minutes hard time, huh?” he asked, hands underneath of Bash’ arms to help him safely onto the ground after getting a jumped start onto his father.

Erin

As his hand reluctantly left her own, she’d offer him that smile before the two were exiting the vehicle.  As she went around to the back, he was there at the backseat to free the boys, bringing a laugh from Erin’s lips.  No other would hold so much humor as he did through such normal, mundane things such as car rides and dinner.  Yet he always kept a light feel to most everything.  Perhaps that was why she’d tense up when he lost that jovial side of things.  It wasn’t customary for her to see him so serious.  It was enough to strike fear in her, something she never thought herself one to truly feel, but she did.  While he helped the boys, she was grabbing the boys’ bags from the back of the car, leaving her own and C.J.’s for him to grab.  “The tickets are in the front of my suitcase,” she offered, giving him the information they’d need to get the bags checked and themselves checked in for the flight due to leave shortly.

C.J.

As she grabbed the bags, it was an even trade. Willing to grab hers and his own from the hatch where he closed the hatch door. He had kept his humor through most things in this life. Yet, he did like how the world perceived him when he was finally serious. People actually heard him when it all came to a screeching halt. Feeling Bash beside him gripping one side of the bag to, kind of, hold his hand and stay close to him. Hearing her mention the tickets, he nodded slowly as he reached down to unzip the front of her suitcase where he reached in. Pulling out the fresh tickets.

Erin

With all of the bags, and children, collected from the vehicle, she watched as he pulled the four tickets from the suitcase.  A smile left her lips as she glanced up towards him, knowing these were the last moments in Chicago that she’d look at him as anything other than her husband.  Though it was a marvel concept, at the same time it was the most natural feeling she could imagine.  Silently basking in this realization, she nudged J.J. with his own bag.  “I won’t make you hold a hand if you grab those tickets from your dad,” she reasoned as he made that quick grasp for the tickets to help C.J. not have so much to juggle there as the four made their way into the airport, ready to get out of town and become a family officially though in truth, they were already one in most every way that counted.

C.J.

Watching J quick to hop on it, he was grateful for it as he allowed them to walk infront of them. Falling back at Erin’s side even if they had no idea where they were going and it was a bit funny to watch them confused and being led by verbal demands as they walked towards the elevator of the parking garage. Glancing over towards her briefly before they hit those doors where he told them what button to hit, waiting til the doors opened before he was pressing his upper arm over the door to allow the three of them to enter before he’d join.

Erin

Another stolen secretive moment would have her almost consistently reminiscing over times they had initially shared.  Times like this where they’d walk a little behind others from the unit, exchanging silent glances when their hands couldn’t touch.  Though this was different, it was strangely the same to her at the same time.  Nearly two years of memories flooding back through the woman all at once, though not a one had her slowing her steps towards the elevator.  As he held the door protectively to make sure all of his precious cargo made it into the confines of the elevator, Erin waited until both boys were inside before she’d join them, pretending there was no more room for him to come inside as well.  Spacing herself and those bags out in such a manner that she took up nearly three times her actual needed space.  “Oh, well, this is a problem. Why’s this elevator so small?” she asked, much to the amusement of Bash who was quick on telling his dad he’d have to take the stairs.

Erin

It took three hours and twenty-two minutes to leave the gate in Chicago before the plane was landing at the gate in Vegas.  The boys had both fallen asleep watching a movie on the iPad.  Erin couldn’t have slept if someone had tried to pay her.  Deboarding was a feat and a half with the two groggy boys who didn’t want to wake up, but once they heard where they were, it all changed.  Then it was nothing but energy from the two dark haired mini-me’s of her soon to be husband.  Baggage was claimed and the four were finally ready.  Erin checked the time on her phone, or at least it seemed she had done nothing more than that.  Slipping the device back into her pocket before she was picking up the boys’ bags, she flashed a smile filled with mischief up to C.J.  “There’s a car outside for us,” she offered with a slight nod of her head.  Sure enough, there was a black SUV sitting out by the curb with a man in a suit standing before it with a sign that read ‘Luciano’.  As they made their way to the car, the man with the sign was opening the back doors and back lift gate to allow the four of them easy loading while he tended to their bags.

C.J.

Bash was already tugging at his leg, not so politely demanding to be picked up. A request his father heeded when he was tired but currently unable to causing a near fit from sheer grumpiness. "Alright, J...give me a few minutes." He requested, already ready to get a luggage cart and give in before he spotted the driver. Sparring him for a minute as he lost a bag and gained a kid in the process.

Erin

Watching C.J. lift Bash as the bags were taken from him, she was beginning to second guess.  Not the marriage.  Not what they were there for.  But if Bash would be able to make it through. Leaving her to wonder if perhaps it should be put on hold for the day.  Biting her lower lip as J.J. got into the SUV where Erin would follow to sit in the middle.  “Hey Bash, you want to sit back here with me?  You can lay on my lap if you’d like,” she offered, giving the front seat up for C.J. as she waited to buckle that seatbelt to see what Bash would like to do.  If he just wanted his dad, she’d easily move into the front seat and let the boys have the back, but if he’d join her, she could at least give C.J. a break there and maybe help ease the little guy back into the land of the living again.  

C.J.

“You want to go with Erin, bud?” he asked of the cranky little guy who instantly growled his protest of her first name being used. Nearly smacking himself in the process. “I’m sorry, do you wanna’ go with mommy?” he tried again, glancing over towards Erin apologetically as he truly was attempting to get used to this transition as he heard him disgruntled and nodding. Now tired of his dad’s shit all together yet Erin was funny to think she’d get away with his head on her lap. He didn’t care much that he was half her size at this point as he slid him onto the seat to get him towards Erin.

Erin

The term was still foreign to be heard in her own direction, especially from C.J.’s lips.  But Bash’s little heart demanded it be used in every instance possible.  He was sensitive about it, and Erin couldn’t help but be appreciative of his efforts.  She knew they weren’t for her though.  The need to call her this was pure and about him.  As Bash was placed in the seat there beside her, she was buckling her seatbelt, prepared to do the same for him.  “Let’s get you buckled and then my lap is all yours,” she promised.  A few maneuvers later and the boy was fastened in, finding a place there against her lap.  She didn’t realize it, but she had a soft smile against her lips.  Leaning over, she’d press a soft kiss to the boy’s temple as her fingers took to his hair, sweeping through dark locks to ease the boy back to sleep.  It could mess up Erin’s plans, but in that moment, her plans didn’t really amount to much in comparison to the boy’s needs.  

C.J.

Glancing back towards them as they got comfortable, the man smirked gently at Erin for taking it so well. Knowing a grumpy Bash was something neither of them could prepare for yet he was always like that when he was tired. His brother could handle it a bit better but even he was prepared to dip out by the time the driver was moving out of the spot. “What’s the over/under that she’s gonna’ fall asleep too?” he whispered not too quietly to the man who smirked in response, knowing Erin would be able to hear it but he had his own theory here. Knowing it was all too hard to be around two sleeping kids and not fall asleep as well as he was turning to his side within the seatbelt to glance back towards the three who made up his entire life in that backseat.

Erin

Her fingers stroked through Bash’s hair as J.J.’s head found the window beside him, not quite so willing to curl up on Erin, as she watched her plans slowly unravelling right before her.  Her eyes shot up quickly towards C.J. as he made his little over/under joke; if looks could kill.  It had been a while since she’d delivered her daily death threat to the man and that look would suffice as today’s.  Lifting her hand to show him her palm, her backwards inked ‘I so love you’ still there within her palm.  Not saying a word as she hoped Bash could get enough sleep there to be functional once they arrived at the hotel.  It was but a thirty-minute drive, taking them nowhere near the strip as might have been expected there.  Instead, their destination was a little more secluded and not so mainstream as others might have chosen for the occasion.  But Erin and C.J. were a little quieter about things and tended to like things a little slower.  Their last vacation had been lavish and fancy, busy non-stop.  This one, she had other plans.

C.J.

Smirking softly as he met her eyes, knowing that look and finding it slightly entertaining as he flashed her a telling smirk. Just a bit of jet lag between them yet he knew the boys would quickly get their second wind and spring back to life once they got wherever they were going. Only able to wonder what all was coming next as he watched the passing scenery through the window. Reaching back where he could give Erin’s knee a gentle squeeze as he was briefly amazed at what this woman of his had arranged for them.

Erin

A half smile met her lips as his hand found her knee.  Not accustomed to riding distanced from one another like this, and certainly not with his boys on either side of her, though it was a moment like this that would almost make her feel deserving of the title the boys had donned her with.  As J.J.’s head wound up on her shoulder, her smile grew that much more.  With the both of them asleep now, it wouldn’t be long before C.J. would find out if his prediction was true or not.  “Miss Lindsay,” the driver spoke, glancing back to her in the rearview mirror, “the rooms are prepared for you.”  With assurances there, Erin nodded a thank you with a smile to her lips which was almost directly followed by her dosing off as well.  A short while later, they were pulling up outside of a large hotel, passing the customary entrance and heading off behind the hotel where smaller villas stood unattached.  The shift in the vehicle was enough to startle her awake, not ever completely able to sleep unless it was with C.J. next to her.  The driver reached for a key from within the console as he parked in front of one of the villas, handing the key to C.J. to a three-bedroom villa where the four of them would stay for the next four days.  The stopping of the car had J.J. waking up, but Bash was still gone to the world.  “Dinner is to be served at 6, if that is still satisfactory?”  Erin looked to the man and nodded her head, noting it gave them a short while before, but it would be enough time for them to make it.  “Yeah, I think that’ll be alright,” she offered, eyeing C.J. for input there.  “Go to dinner and then head to the Strip later?” She asked, giving Bash a chance to wake up a bit there and they could leave straight from dinner to go into the city.

C.J.

Half thinking how nice this hotel was, he was even more amazed when they skipped the hotel all together and he was handed the key. Glancing back towards the three as he answered her questions. Hearing her question where he nodded. It wasn’t overly ambitious for the group who would without a doubt be tired tonight but just enough to get them kicked off on the right start. “Perfect.” he concluded with a telling smile, overwhelmed with the need to hug the woman in that moment.

Erin

With C.J.’s confirmation the dinner time of six would work for him as well, she nodded once more in the direction of the driver who was opening his door to do the same for all other doors of the vehicle just as he had at the airport, starting with J.J.’s side.  “We can let Bash sleep a bit longer, then get dressed for tonight…” she offered, a smile widening there over her features as it meant a last name change for her and a /wife/ for him.  “And then we can head off right after dinner and shouldn’t be back too late?”  Confirming their own plans there with him as the driver went for the bags, giving him a moment to get them into the room before they unloaded themselves from the car, though knowing she was going to need C.J.’s help with Bash.  The driver was already busy at the back of the car, getting all four bags into the villa, leaving the door open for the four of them to enter without need to use the key this time.

C.J.

“I think he’ll be alright in a few minutes…” he stated honestly as the boy could either get his second wind or be out for a bit longer, there was no telling as he atleast knew J would be up as he slipped out of the car. Reaching over to help J out of the car before he had to nearly step within to undo Bash’s belt and help her out with him. Pulling him from her and onto himself, out of the car. Holding him to his chest where he didn’t even wake up through the transition making him shake his head. Missing the days when he slept that deep as he held him with one firm hand, reaching out to help her out as well. “Any slobber stains?”

Erin

As J.J. found his way out of the car with minimal help from his dad, Bash was another story.  Knocked out to the world as the three of them had all been for a part of that car ride, she took C.J.’s offered hand as she eased down from the SUV, releasing his hand so he could support the boy in his arms.  Looking down over the thighs of her jeans, she had to laugh as there were just as he had predicted. “Yep.  Sure are,” she confirmed, her hand brushing against them, though they weren’t budging.  “Guess it’s a good thing I brought something else to wear in that suitcase that was overpacked, huh?” she teased as though it was only for this instance that her bag was so full.  A groggy looking J.J. walked beside Erin as she led the way this time, stopping as the driver asked to speak to her for a moment.  “You guys go ahead inside. I’ll make sure things are set for tonight,” she offered, letting the boys make their way into the room before she was confirming transportation for that evening after dinner.

C.J.

“Imagine that.” he mused as she detected her own slobber marks, hearing that follow up statement causing a shake of his head as she was thoroughly teasing him and shamelessly so. Hearing her statement though, he released her hand and nodded. Allowing this as he had the key in that free hand of his. Hooked to a finger as his palm found the back of J’s head where he guided him gently along towards the front of this villa. Still blown away and in a mild stage of shock as they opened the door and slipped within. J. instantly waking up and Bash stirring as they did the glance around.

Erin

Within just a few minutes, the car was arranged for the evening with the same driver, graciously thanked, and highly tipped.  The two parted ways as she returned back to the path of the private villa, stepping within to find everything absolutely pristine.  With three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a full kitchen, and a private patio off the back, it was clear they would want for nothing that weekend.  The boys had a gaming system there in the living room as Erin’s only special request for the room.  Everything else was compliments of the hotel and a very thankful owner who Erin and Hank had helped quite some time ago in the location and rescue of their kidnapped child before C.J. joined the unit.  Forever grateful, they had told her long before to come and stay anytime she wished, and this was her making good on that arrangement.  Finding them all in the living space of the villa, she lifted her brows in question as she met J.J.’s glance.  “Whataya think?  This’ll do?” she asked, teasing as it was so much more than they ever needed.

C.J.

Snorting as she posed the question to J.J. who was nearly as stunned as his father without knowing matters of money like his elder doppelganger did. Still clutching Bash who was in the stages of waking up to what was around him. Still in slight awe as he glanced over towards her. "How though?" He found himself asking as he gently rubbed Bash's back who lifted his head. Looking at his father in sheer confusion where C.J. smirked softly. Kissing his forehead as he guided him back to his chest to wake up a bit more.

Erin

A smile of sheer innocence took over the face of the woman as she took a step towards him there holding Bash.  Pressing a kiss to his cheek before slipping down against the sofa, laying back as though this were home.  “I’ll never tell,” she offered playfully, just as she’d never fully let the cat out of the bag on just how New York had happened or how she had gotten such great baseball training tickets for he and the boys before.  As she made herself comfortable, she eyed a note card on the end table beside the sofa, lifting it to find “C.J., Erin, J.J., and Bash” against the white cardstock.  She glanced up to C.J. as she bit her lower lip in anticipation, truly not knowing what would be within.  “We would like to welcome you and your boys and do hope you have found everything to your liking.  If you are to need anything, do not hesitate to call the desk.  We hope you have a wonderful evening tonight and may we be the first to congratulate you all this day.  Thank you for choosing to spend your first days as a family here with us.  Sincerely, Ian Zacharelli and staff.”  Closing the folded over card, she handed it up for C.J. to see as well.  “There’s your answer.  Ian Zacharelli did this.”  As if he were someone C.J. would have known, though in fact he wouldn’t, she rose to her feet with a laugh to her lips.  “So we’ll dress for dinner in what we’re wearing tonight then?” she asked, her hand landing against C.J.’s ass as she eyed down the hall to the bedrooms where each bag was properly placed already.

C.J.

“You wanna’ go explore?” he asked of Bash who nodded, placed gently on his feet by his father where his brother was taking over on exploration mode. He took a seat beside her on the couch by her side as he plucked up the cardstock. Reading the contents and still coming up with a blank as to this name as he glanced back towards her. Her question luring a nod out of him. “Still got some ‘splainin’ to do, little lady.” he challenged, though what she had done being so great, he didn’t need to force a response out of her. Merely to thank her in the best way he knew how. Leaning down and stealing a kiss from her. “Thank you for this.”

Erin

As he joined her there on the sofa, she smirked to his ‘splainin’ comment, shaking her head slowly no.  Before she could say anything else, his lips were there to hers, stealing her smirk entirely before he drew back to thank her.  “You do not have to thank me,” she whispered, dragging her lower lip through her teeth.  “You do, however, have to marry me.”  She teased as though he’d hate the very sound of it.  Bringing both arms to wrap around him, she pulled herself over onto his lap as the boys went off to check out the bedrooms.  Once they were out of earshot, her smirk would return.  “It’s a real shame there’s no sex before the name change here.  We’ve got a whole hour before dinner,” she teased as her nose nudged to his.

C.J.

Laughing softly as she pulled into his lap and his arm slipped around her. “The beauty of havin’ kids…” he reminded her honestly as there was a reason many did not try to be with men such as himself. It was too much work. Too much distraction. Hand landing on her knee where he gently rubbed against her. Nudging his nose back to hers. “Just gets worse from here.” he reminded her, as if they ever children together, there would be even less time yet this seemed as good as birth control as one could find away from the actual pill.

Erin

“I’m afraid you misspoke there… Just gets /better/ from here,” she seemed to promise, her smile seemingly permanent as her lips stole to his for a brief moment.  “Besides, I think you know I can find something for the boys to do to get ten minutes alone with you,” she reminded him with a slow nod of her head, lips finding the side of his neck as a form of temptation before she was drawing back from him entirely.  “…but not until you change my name.”  She offered as she started her way off his lap, checking to be sure the boys were out of earshot.  When she was sure they were, she met his eyes as she prepared to fill him in a bit.  “In all seriousness though, the owner of this place is Ian.  Ian’s family is originally from Chicago.  A couple years back, his daughter was kidnapped.  Hank and I… She made it home safely,” she stated, dropping out the center of the story, finally explaining the connection between the hotel, Ian, and their stay.  “We’re welcome to come here whenever and as often as we’d like.  So I took him up on the offer and he’s been quite generous.  I’m sure he’ll make an appearance before we leave to go home.”  Giving him most of the scoop there, she pressed another kiss to his cheek before her hand was finding his, lifting herself from his lap.  “We have to change clothes.  Know why?”

C.J.

“Yeah, you just got to get creative.” he stated honestly as she seemed to understand well enough, feeling her against his neck before she was drawing back and he drew out a soft laugh. Hearing her explanation, unable but to feel that there was a bit more to this story but he’d let her have it for now. Knowing it most likely had a dark turn as so many of their stories had. Hearing her question, he perked a brow as he stood slowly. “Because we are getting married?” he asked with a telling smirk, so liking the sounds of that as his hands found her sides. “Because you’re all mine.”

Erin

As he stood there a moment after her, her hands were quickly there to his sides, easing down against his ass as she bit her own lower lip with a nod to her head.  “Mhm,” she promised.  “We are and I am.”  Taking a step back, she led him towards the bedroom.  “And if you’re really lucky, even though you aren’t allowed to have sex… I might let you watch me change clothes,” she teased, snagging his lower lip with her teeth as if it were some great consolation prize to be had, playful all of the way with him as she led him into the room.  Passing the bedroom doors of the boys who were already sitting together with the iPad, returning to whatever game had their attention at the moment.  

C.J.

Rolling his eyes at that last part as she would definitely ‘let’ him and they both knew it. Feeling her leading him to the room where he watched the boys already settled in. “Always a good sign with the iPad gets broken out.” he remarked honestly as they slipped within the room and he was already left unzipping his bag on the bed, pulling out his shirt and slacks as well as his shower bag. “I’m gonna’ sneak a quick shower…I don’t feel right slippin’ into new clothes dirty.” he commented with a smile as she had to expect this of him by now.

Erin

Knowing this of the man, she had already predicted it.  In truth, she’d be in there with him if she trusted herself.  Lifting to her toes, she pressed her lips to his as she finally released her hold on his ass before she was going to her own suitcase, waiting to unleash it until he was within the shower. “Quick,” she reminded him, being the operative word here as their hour was going to go by faster than either of them would realize.  “Hey, Bash? J.J? You guys want to start getting dressed in there?” she called out of the room, to which they abandoned the iPad faster than they’d ever moved towards getting dressed, ever.  Looking over to C.J., she had to laugh.  “Either they are really hungry or they are ready for what’s after dinner.”

C.J.

“Quick.” he continued, hearing the boys perhaps moving faster than he was. He smirked softly back in her direction before he was slipping into the bathroom. The door closed behind him and getting undressed. Knowing a good shower always helped him with jetlag to stay on his heels as he started the shower water. Beholding the glory of that shower which took him a moment to work out given the various heads, knowing he’d have to work that one out later but for now, just going for the operative overhead one as he stepped into the water and began the quick lather while the boys got to getting ready.

Erin

As the boys got ready and C.J. was well into the shower, Erin unleashed her suitcase.  Within, she’d find something that made her release a breath, standing in awe for but a moment.  Before C.J. would exit that bathroom, she had changed into a floor length, white linen, vintage dress.  It was plain and simple, with nothing lavish about it, yet it fit her height perfectly and had cost her only twenty dollars.  She hadn’t ever meant it to be the dress she’d wear to get married in, but it had been bought to wear for their two-year anniversary date.  Instead, she’d wear it now and hadn’t had to break the bank to do it.  A simple strand of pearls graced her neck and her hair was left down without fussing over it much.  The little bit of make-up she’d worn that day would be touched up around her eyes.  A pair of sandals added and she was declaring herself ready in ten minutes’ time.  Bash came bursting into the room without knocking, but thankfully Erin was just then buckling her shoes as he fumbled with the buttons on his shirt, complaining that J.J. buttoned him wrong on purpose.  “Here, let me help,” she offered, reaching out when the boy would realize Erin was in a dress, immediately yelling out to J.J. in complete excitement.  “Mom has a dress on!”  Erin had to laugh as Bash was running out of the room again, his shirt still not fixed, to get his brother to see something they had both wanted to happen there.  As the both of them returned, the noise in the room only grew.  Erin hoped they wouldn’t be mad at her for not telling them, but wanted to surprise them just the same and the looks on their faces said just that in that moment as Erin finally got ahold of the buttons of Bash’s shirt to get him fixed up correctly.

C.J.

Hearing the commotion in the other room, he was stepping out of the bathroom a few minutes later. Dressed and buttoning his dress shirt bit by bit as he glanced over towards them. Quite surprised at Erin’s get up himself and the boy’s reaction which told him what all the sounds were for. Watching her help out Bash as buttons were not their strong suit and as he reviewed his own attention to them, neither were they his. “If marrying me requires a dress, I’ll have to marry you more often.” he teased, as they could make it a frequent event if this was what it got him. Stepping into the room where he went into his bag to grab his shoes.

Erin

“It doesn’t require one,” she specified, turning to Bash where she’d whisper in his ear.  “Just for you and your brother.”  A promise there to the little boy that was halfway true.  She did like to dress up for C.J. as well and it had been nearly a year.  Only twice had she ever.  Once for the gala and once for their anniversary, but it seemed like the kind of occasion that might call for such a thing and she knew the boys cared about it.  As they went off to get their own shoes on, she was there to C.J. at the end of the bed as he reached in to get his shoes.  “You smell good,” she whispered, hands finding his hips before letting them slowly ease around him.  “Whataya think? Keep this dinner to fifteen minutes?” she teased as though to get them to the Strip, married, and back to the villa where she could finally take part in other activities, even if it was her doing to strip them away in the first place.  

C.J.

“Favoritism.” he accused as she seemed to like the boys better than him sometimes and he was fine with that despite his playful pouting. Hearing her mention him smelling good, he felt her at his hips after stepping into his shoes. Hearing her question which lured him to laugh softly. “Yeah, might have to update the waiter and the kitchen on that little plan.” he remarked, knowing it would be difficult to pull off with a busy kitchen as he reached for his cologne. A hit on each wrist as he rubbed the two together.

Erin

“You never know.  I could be fucking magic like that.”  She teased, flashing him a smile as she pressed a kiss to the center of his back before her hands were easing back from him to back up and allow him some room.  Bash and J.J. were quickly back in the room, ready and letting them know about it.  Erin looked over at C.J. as though he was taking his dear, sweet time here, teasing him all the while with impatiently crossed arms to match those of the boys.  “The karaoke won them over to my side,” she reminded him, eyeing the boys who seemed to flip sides entirely too easily there between the two of them.  “So dinner and then maybe catch a show or something?” she asked, hearing a quick refusal from the boys that brought a laugh to her lips.  Glancing up to C.J., she tilted her head to the side.  “Starting to think they want this more.  They know there’s no cake, right?”

C.J.

“Yeah, no cake.” he added as he brushed his hand over Bash’ head as he was now ready and moving towards the door. “God, what takes you guys so long.” he complained aloud, a shake of his head as he was now messing with all of them. “Woman finally puts on a dress and it takes her like a half an hour…” still at it as he reached the living area of that room, stopping just short upon the knowledge that he had forgotten all about the woman who was soon to be his wife as he drew back to find her. Playful smirking all the while at this little act as he offered his hand.

Erin

Watching this spectacle as he took over their complaining game, only mastering it far better than they had attempted.  She didn’t budge until he returned, his hand finding hers as she let a serious look take her features as though she were mad.  Letting it reside there a moment before that trademark half-smile would find her lips, walking with him out of the villa to the pathway that would lead towards the hotel.  “You’re mean,” she accused, wishing to call him an ass, but not daring to do it in front of the boys.  Wispy fabric flowed off the large back patio of the hotel where there were dozens of tables, speaking to an outdoor eating situation there if they might choose to do so.  Bash was still pouting about the loss of cake, while J.J. was taking in the scenery there at the back of the hotel.  As they drew closer to the back entrance, it was Bash that would take off running first.  Then J.J.  Erin was biting her lower lip as she waited for things to come together there for C.J. as they came closer and closer to find his mother sitting at one of the tables; the destination of both boys to her side.  The next table over and the one after that sat a collection of intelligence unit members.  In fact, every table held a small grouping of people they knew either through work, friends, or family. Stopping where she was there beside him, she turned into him, her eyes meeting his as her free hand found his cheek.  “This can go either way,” she promised.  “It’s whatever we want.  We can have dinner with our friends and family and then slip off like we planned, or we can get married here and now.”  Sneaking this one in on him as she proved everything out of her mouth had been a sham to get him to his own potential wedding, intricately handled by both she and her soon to be mother in law with accommodations to fit whatever it was the two of them wanted in that very moment.

C.J.

Watching her pull him towards that back door, letting her guide him before he was being greeted by a familiar set of eyes. The sight of his mother there making him feel like he was nearly hallucinating before his eyes traveled to the other table. Still so blind sided, he didn’t even know what to do. Feeling her at his cheek where his eyes lured down towards her as he heard her speak, hearing her statement about how this could go. Here, or privately. This woman of his had completely snuck one on him when he was used to doing this. He nodded his head upon that latter suggestion. “Now.” he stated simply without a moment of hesitation as his eyes remained upon hers like she was the only one here around him.

Erin

A sea of eyes on the two was not of their style in the slightest.  They had forever been quite private about their relationship, even once everyone knew.  They liked to be at home.  They weren’t making a scene of it out in public like some others that sat at those tables had.  But the collection of people there cared about the two of them in their own ways, and for that, Erin wanted this for them, but only if it was okay by C.J.  As he confirmed now, her smile grew instantly to the full form that was oh so rare.  “Yeah?” she asked, her eyes lighting up at the prospect as those in attendance waited.  They had been briefed on how this would go.  That she would ask him to join them for dinner or a wedding and based on their joint decision would be how the night would go.  There were held breaths, hoping the two would decide to go through with the seemingly impromptu service.  With that confirmation, she turned her head to the side, nodding to give them the answer they were waiting on, which immediately resulted in a soft round of applause for the two.  Bringing her eyes back there to his, her hand never having left the side of his face, she lifted to her toes to press a kiss to his lips with no regard to tradition as they had already botched that all to hell doing this their way, all the way.  “I like now.”  She whispered, confessing how she’d hoped he would decide before her hand was easing down from the side of his face.  There under the fabric that whipped in the wind from the tall bannisters of the patio, those moving about took seats.  A man stood up to the front edge of the patio, inviting the couple to join him when they were ready.  A single violinist softly playing the music of the first song C.J. had played for her, the night words were exchanged that would forever change the course of their lives.  “I’m ready when you are,” she whispered, leaving the rest to him.

C.J.

Hearing her agree, he nodded. The great C.J. Luciano was suddenly feeling shy. He was so used to everything with them being in public. Getting together, their engagement. Now their ensuing marriage was taking a public showing and all he could do was concentrate on her as that was all he cared about focusing on right now. While he appreciated the presence of the rest of those who were important to him, namely his boys and his mother, he was without a doubt hers in this moment where he heard her mention being ready. Hearing his own music take route on a violin causing the musician a light smirk as he nodded. “Been ready.” he challenged to her as he guided her forward after a slow moment.

Erin

With the agreement to his state of readiness, she had to smirk as she knew he’d long been ready.  With their quickly approaching two-year anniversary, she refused to get there without getting here first.  She had toyed with the idea for weeks upon weeks, going well into a time nearly two months before, but it would take time to get all of this in line.  Now, it was finally upon them and she couldn’t begin to try to hide her happiness.  Walking with him towards the small set of stairs leading upwards to the patio, the small grouping of people were silent.  C.J.’s mom encouraged the boys to go up and stand with C.J. and Erin, both standing to C.J.’s side.  Erin met eyes with Hank as he gave an approving nod, something none could have expected two years prior.  A moment of silence there as the two took spots before the man who would officiate before he began talking.  Erin could hear none of it as she kept glancing out from the corners of her eyes towards C.J.  That same bite to her lower lip there almost continually as her hand tightened in his.  Only thankful their backs were to those sitting at their tables, giving a feeling of privacy to the two of them where side-eyed looks could be exchange with only the pastor in the know.  

C.J.

Taking with her before the pastor, feeling the presence of the boys beside him. The only thing that could cause his eyes to flicker before he was back towards hers. Hearing the introductory statement of the ceremony as he had heard a hundred times over yet never expecting he’d get it himself. Hearing the words, feeling them burn on his tongue as she was the only woman he’d wish to be in that moment with as they were instructed to turn, look at one another and take one another’s hands which he was doing a moment later. One of her hands already in his as he reached for the other.

Erin

As they were instructed to do so, the two turned towards one another.  As his hand reached for her free hand, she easily gave it to him.  Ready to already hear them pronounced husband and wife while words of her vows to him rang through her mind.  Not wanting to mess them up as she’d spent entirely too long on them.  Slightly untraditionally, she had already asked that she speak first, taking her vows before he would for fear that she might not get through them if she didn’t.  The pastor looked to her with a nod to encourage her to go ahead.  Drawing a deep breath, she stared silently up at C.J. for a long moment there.  A smile to her lips as her hands tightened in his. “As far back as I can remember, I was fine being on my own.  As a child.  As a teenager.  As an adult.  There was never that piece of me that needed or depended on someone else.  The idea of love and trust were foreign to me, they were fairytales that didn’t belong in the real world.  I truly believed there was no such thing.  Until you.  I didn’t want a partner.  As in life, I was the same in profession.  When I was introduced to you, well… I won’t say what I thought, but I wasn’t happy at the prospect.  I’d rather trust myself than trust someone else.  Until you.  I was career driven and focused, with no regard for what life looked like after hours.  I got mad when you insinuated my life was empty, because… you were right.  I had you pegged all wrong from the start.  I saw you as a person who was all play and no work, but you quickly proved me wrong.  I thought you were a set of walking dimples that lacked instinct, but the first time you cracked a case wide open before me, I had to see my misjudgment, even if I didn’t confess it out loud.  In those first few months, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a running bet on how long it would take me to kill you, and maybe I owe a few people some money on that bet because I certainly thought about it a time or two.  But all because I was running.  I’ve always been good at running.  I’ve run away from home.  I’ve run away from life.  I’ve run away from every problem that has ever crossed my path.  I’ve run away from relationships.  I was a runner, until you.  You gave me the room to walk away, without the need to take off full speed.  You forced me to stop and see that which was right in front of me.  You taught me that it was okay to need someone else and even better to want them.  You showed me trust and in this, you taught me how to trust.  And now, I stand here before you, ready to make these promises to you without any hesitation… and slightly before the year 2029.”  A pause there and several places between, she felt the emotion drawing up in her throat, though she’d do her best to keep it at bay just a little longer.  “I do not promise to create this union today.  I cannot create something that has already been in existence for so long.  Instead, I promise to uphold our union.  I promise to build on it from this day forward.  I promise to fight for it day in and day out.  I promise to respect it and guard it from outside damage or influence.  I promise to honor it in the way it should be honored.  I promise to love you.  I promise to support you.  I promise to laugh with you.  I promise to be your strength when you are weak.  I promise to put you first.  I promise to choose you every day as I do this day.  I promise to listen to you without judgment.  I promise to always be there for you.  I promise to threaten your life at least once every day.  I promise to surprise you every chance I get.  I promise to always make your cup of coffee before I make my own.  I promise to be an active participant in teasing one another equally.  I promise to never go to bed mad at you.  I promise to be faithful to you for the rest of my life.  I promise to be present and to never run.  I promise to face my fears and help you face yours.  I promise my eyes will always fall upon you, because I’m yours.”  With a smile from the pastor, her hands trembled in his, tears welling and falling against her cheeks as her voice cracked.  At the guiding of the pastor, she repeated after him.  “With these vows, I, Erin…” she paused.  A smile cracking through the tears as she closed her eyes tightly for a split second.  Easily looking as if she had just gotten choked up, but he would understand entirely.  “I, Erin Josephine Lindsay, take thee, Cesare James Dominicus Luciano, to be my lawful wedded husband.”

C.J.

As she went on with her vows, without a doubt taking him back at the gravity of them. The idea that he wouldn’t cry here gone from him as it was merely an amount of time. Fitting considering he was infront of his entire unit yet he felt his throat tightening. Swallowing down at the extent of her promises and he believed them. As each one she had already shown him time and time again. Seeing her emotional never boded well for him as she just might have been the emotionally stronger one of the two. While he had never been that person, he was now as he heard the conclusion of her vows. Quite ready to hear her leave out her middle name yet upon getting it, his eyes were quickly rising as this had to mean alot for her to reveal that deep, dark secret infront of not only him but several others. Knowing it had to be a bit old fashioned but never thinking it would be that. Having to smirk as his own names weren’t much better and he knew it. Clearing his throat, he took a settling breath as he attempted to draw out his own prewritten vows to the back of his mind knowing they wouldn’t equal to her own. “I believe in you, the person you will grow to be and the couple we will be together. The goodness of your heart. The strength of your character. Your ability to see things through to the end and the way you both teach and encourage me to be the man you deserve to walk hand in hand with. With my whole heart, I take you as my wife, acknowledging and accepting your faults and strengths, as you do mine. Our pasts. Our salvation found in one another. I promise to be faithful and supportive and to always make our family's love and happiness my priority. I will be yours in plenty and in want, in sickness and in health, in failure and in triumph. I will dream with you, celebrate with you and walk beside you through whatever our lives may bring. Through the music and the silence; you are my ally―my love and my life, today and always. I, Cesare James Dominicus Luciano, take thee Erin /Josephine/ Lindsay to be my lawful wedded wife.”

Erin

As his words came forth, she could see the emotion clearly there on his face mirroring that of her own.  Heart felt words exchanged in both directions, vulnerable and raw, as though they were the only ones that could hear them.  Her tears rolled down her cheeks in plenty as he came towards that conclusion where her middle name was emphasized, drawing an inappropriate laugh from her lips to hear it on his tongue.  Almost skipping it altogether, yet deciding at the last minute to finally give it to him entirely.  Leaning her head down, her forehead found his chest as she allowed herself that moment before finally lifting her chin again.  Releasing one of his hands if only to wipe away her own tears, then releasing his other.  Stepping away from him, she came around to where the boys were.  A soft, yet tear-filled smile there on her lips as Bash whispered that she shouldn’t be sad.  “I’m not sad, I promise.”  She began, reaching out to take both of the boys’ hands.  “But as I make these vows to your father today, I also have a few things I’d like to promise the two of you.  Your father chose me, but it never meant you had to.  Not only have you let me share in this life with you, but you have welcomed me into your home, into your routines, and made me feel welcome while doing it.  You have shown me a love that I’ve never felt or given.  A love that is gentle.  A love that is pure.  A love that is trusting.  A love that is unafraid.”  The wiped away tears were back in full strength now as both boys looked to their dad as if they didn’t understand what was wrong with her.  Her tears would not stop her from repeating words the same as she had to their father as these promises were for them just as much as they had been for him.  “I promise to love you.  I promise to support you.  I promise to laugh with you.  I promise to be your strength when you are weak.  I promise to put you first.  I promise to choose you every day as I do this day.  I promise to listen to you without judgment.  I promise to always be there for you… I promise to help you become good men like your father.  I promise to help you with your homework, even if I have to stay up late to figure it out myself.  I promise to kiss you both goodnight every night, for as long as you will let me.  I promise to sit on your bed to talk as long as you might need.  I promise to play with you and never be too busy to do so.  I promise to take an interest in anything that interests you so that we may spend time together doing what you enjoy. I promise to uphold your trust.  I promise to see the world through your eyes.  I promise to be your mom and to always be proud that you chose me.”  

C.J.

Feeling her pushing into his chest briefly, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head in that meantime. Quite proud of himself as he had managed to keep it all together as he heard Bash speak. Still not quite able to make sense of it all but as he watched her take their hands. He knew he was done. He could take alot in this life. His own rejection, to be side stepped. While it hurt, he could take it. One thing he could never take was what they had lost once yet that day gained as his heart was with his children and everyone knew that. As she went onto speak to them, he could only shake his head. The moisture piercing his eyes. “and, I’m done…” he spoke to himself, knowing it was only a matter of time before the pastor was nudging his elbow. Handing him a tissue which he thanked him for quietly. Listening to the promises she made to the boys which made him love her a thousand times more in that moment. Not quite sure how he had come across anyone quite so decent let alone to be making her his. The boys seemed happy enough to take her promises, her offerings. Knowing fully that they were the same things she had always done and nothing would change in this. Wiping his eyes as the moisture fell but refusing to make it too obvious.

Erin

Taking both boys into her arms, she held them close for a long moment as she heard C.J.’s quiet words behind her.  Without a dry eye between herself or C.J., it seemed the only ones without tears flowing were two boys who still couldn’t be quite sure why Erin was crying.  She pressed a kiss to each of their cheeks before she was rising back upwards to rejoin C.J., returning to him with damp cheeks and watery eyes to which no tissue would be helping.  She drew in slow, deep breaths as the pastor gave the two a moment to settle back in and regain themselves once again.  “I love you,” she whispered out of turn as it was the truest thing she could say in that moment, her hands gripping tightly to his.  After that brief moment, the pastor continued on in a cracking voice himself.  “By the powers vested in me by the state of Nevada, I pronounce you husband and wife.” Turning to C.J., he offered a nod.  “C.J., you may kiss your bride.”  Having to maintain a certain distance between themselves throughout the duration of the service and truthfully their public relationship, the smile on her face was like no other, despite the tears residing there at her cheeks.  

C.J.

Offering her his tissue as a true marks of what he was willing to share with her, his eyes finding hers as she rejoined his. Tears not falling yet the moisture there within his green hues as he heard her whisper. “I love you too.” he returned lowly before the pastor continued on. A soft smile finding him before he was given that final go ahead. The sentence ending as he met her smile with his own. Hands gently tightening within hers as he leaned forward. Head tilting to the side to press his lips to hers. Allowing that kiss to linger while not out of the bounds of appropriate behavior as he inhaled her deeply. One hand slowly slipping from hers if only to hook her waist and pull her against him. Pulling back after a slow moment to avoid the inevitable ‘ew’ before his lips were finding the tip of her nose and her forehead all in that perfected sequence.

Erin

Finding his smile, her own was the same, she held the offered tissue tight in her hand making no attempt yet to wipe them away, but would momentarily.  As their lips met, she forever struggled to keep their exchange appropriate.  Just as his hand started to release from her own, her hand found the side of his face as the pastor announced for the group steadily applauding.  “It is my great pleasure to introduce for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. C.J. Luciano.”  With the kiss drawing to a close, his lips to both her nose and forehead in a pattern that felt like home to her, she stole a glimpse to his eyes before she was bringing that tissue to her face before the two would turn to attend what would be a dinner instead of a true reception, yet those on their feet already seeking to congratulate the two.  With one hand still in his, her grip was forever tight throughout the entire ceremony which would be no different now.  The smile seeming permanent there on her face as she leaned her head against his upper arm.

C.J.

Allowing his lips to linger at her forehead before she was wiping away her tears, feeling her hand tighten in his as he was using his own hand to wipe at his eyes as he guided that turn. Needing a drink. Yesterday. Just something to cool his nerves as it was only with her that he found himself nervous. Different than himself as he guided her from that spot. Free hand reaching for Bash’s who quickly dodged him for Erin’s hand instead. Getting J’s as a consolation prize as he guided them from that spot and towards a table clearly outlined for them yet knowing he’d need a trip to the bathroom just to pull himself together momentarily.

Erin

There on the table laid out for them rested their marriage license to be signed by the two of them, the pastor, and two witnesses.  Erin glanced at it while holding both Bash and C.J.’s hands, then looked back to C.J., still considerably in shock over it all, but thoroughly happy.  Releasing Bash’s hand, she lifted the pen to offer it to him first as his mother and Hank made their way to the table where they would serve as the witnesses.  Putting it officially in ink that the two were married, concluding the entire process, allowing them to now move freely about the dinner party.  There in Hank’s hand was already a glass of whiskey for C.J. while his mother had a glass of wine for Erin.  His mom had literally every angle of this covered for the two, much to the appreciation leaking from Erin’s eyes.  “Thank you,” she offered as Bash and J.J. took their seats at the table.  “Don’t sign it Cesare Lindsay.  My name changes, not yours,” she teased, trying to lighten things up for him a bit.

C.J.

Taking the pen from her, being advised on where he was signing as he nodded. Hearing her mention what he was signing, his eyes glanced back towards her with a cocked brow. “Thank you, I had almost forgotten…” he teased dryly as he signed his legal name. Completing it with his last name intact before handing the pen over to her to see if she could pull off the task. Thankful to take the glass of whiskey and the rough hug from Voight after releasing any small hands. Lips brought to the glass as he took a strong mouthful. Free hand settling on the small of Erin’s back as he did so.

Erin

With his hand there to her back, she held the pen in her hand, watching the interaction between C.J. and the closest thing she had to a father figure.  As he took the offered drink, she was leaning over to press the pen to the paper, signing her name against the line laid out for her.  Standing straight again, she passed the pen to C.J.’s mom who would serve as his witness, signing beneath his name, and then Hank would sign beneath her own.  Erin watched as his mother signed, leaning in against him as she brought the glass of wine to her own lips watching their marriage become official with each additional signature.  Within minutes, plates were brought forth from the kitchen for the private party on the patio, each seat receiving a prepared portion of food. The pen exchanged to Hank, serving as the last signature, completing the process as embraces were exchanged between the four of them.  Knowing the next couple of hours could be a complete free for all in the gathering of cops and family, she was lifting to find his ear, a whisper passing between the two.  “Walk with me?” she asked, indicating that privacy the two of them flourished in might be needed as she could literally feel the heat of so many people there around them.  

C.J.

As the last signature was formed and the ink dried, he heard her in his ear as his lips burned with the warmth of the whiskey. Nodding as he kept his hand over hers and drew back. Another hug to his mother nearly on the cusp of an emotional breakdown watching her only child married off and her shackles freed. He pulled Erin gently with him towards an opening and a bit of air as he smiled gently down towards her. "Look at you with all the tricks..."

Erin

Once the two found their way free, leaving the boys to enjoy the new promise of wedding cake if they were to eat their dinner, with their grandmother ever present to help that along, giving Erin and C.J. all of the time they might want or need.  With his hand at her back guiding her, she stepped through the opening, finding the short staircase there that they had walked up not so long before.  Finishing off her glass of wine, she left the glass against the last table before descending the few stairs.  Hearing his words, she shook her head with a smile to her lips, glancing up towards him.  “Nah.  Alright, maybe one or two, but I might be out for now… might be.”  She teased, “I use my magic for good, not evil”

C.J.

"Mmm, well. I can't be mad at you. I have one of my own though not nearly as good." He stated honestly as he allowed her to show him where she wanted to go if anywhere at all. Just to be away from it all for a moment. To steal a minute of time away for themselves and remember what this was still about. His hand sneaking down for her own as she left behind her wine glass. Still nursing his whiskey. "Though I'd like to think you'll still appreciate it." He remarked, another sip from the glass pressed to his lips.

Erin

“You?  Have something up your sleeve?  Not ever.” She teased, as she felt his hand slip into her own.  Leaning her head there against his upper arm as they walked aimlessly.  She had no destination in mind, only wanting to get out from the noise a bit.  Anyone in the place would understand and she didn’t much care if they didn’t.  “Of course I’ll appreciate it,” she assured, lifting her chin to look up at him.  A slow smile sweeping her face.  “So, what is it?”  She asked, unsure if he’d give in so quickly but still willing to give it a try with her hazel eyes aglow, her face finally dried, and her smile on full display.  

C.J.

"You had something that wasn't yours...now I have something that is all yours." Gesturing down towards her engagement ring once belonging to his mother, he stopped. Turning to face her as he met her eyes and that smile that lit his world up. "But first..." he began, leaning in where his nose was gently nudging hers. A sign that she should tilt her head for the inevitable as he pressed his lips firmly to hers. Indicative and telling of the kind of kiss he had wanted to give her minutes before as his arm tightened around her.

Erin

All forward movement stopped as he looked down towards her, gesturing to that ring on her hand, feeling the nudge of his nose to her own.  Naturally, her head tilted to the opposite side of his where a firm kiss fell against her lips as his arm held tighter around her back.  Drawing into him entirely, her arms drew up around his neck, holding him to herself as her lips at his held a power that had been lost in front of the watching eyes minutes before.  Just out of the sight of the ongoing dinner party, she gave in to him entirely without any reservation, sharing in that kiss that she’d dare not break.  Relinquishing her lower lip to his control there as her lips passed against his, meeting him kiss for kiss.  Her right hand finding the side of his neck, no longer needing to break the kiss for fear of it leading somewhere as there were no other plans to get to.  No flight needing to be caught, no boys ‘ew’ing at the sight.  A soft hum at her lips as she gave in completely to kissing her husband without any reservation.

C.J.

Feeling her drawing into his neck and as quickly interested in kissing him as he was hers, it made him feel better about that slightly selfish inclination just to kiss her. To be as they normally were behind the scenes. Thinking this was the most public exposure the two had ever faced even after going public about the details of their relationship. But it was all for a good cause. The man previously might have eaten up the attention yet he found himself much changed in recent years. Calmer, more collected, confident. Not fake confident, radiating ego. Real confidence that did not feel the need for brash loudness. After years of faking, he knew the difference. His hand gently squeezed over one of her opposite sides. Arm pulled around her entirely as his free hand remained on his glass. Keeping himself firmly vested to that kiss and resolved to pull away only when he had gotten his fill if ever possible.

Erin

Easily swept into him, his arm tight around her, forcing her hips against him, her lips pressed to his just as firmly as he offered his own.  Quickly heading to dangerous territory as her tongue slipped past the part of her lips to find his, seeking to deepen the kiss that much more, kissing him in a manner she’d only ever shared with him in the privacy of their home, her apartment, or on a forced lunch break many moons ago.  Wanting his taste, if only for a moment, before she might put one foot in front of the other once again.  But not now.  Now, she wanted to taste her husband in this manner for the first time, though she knew it would be no different than it had been before, a part of her felt everything was different.  Better different.  In a place she had once avoided with every ounce of power in her tiny frame, she had now shifted entirely, running full speed towards those vows and this man, proving that this man was absolutely one of a kind for no other could have brought this woman through so far and so quickly aside from him.

C.J.

Parting his lips easily with the drawing of her tongue over his own. Never having to really ask for that of which he provided to her freely. Smoothing his tongue over hers upon greeting as he tasted the wine upon her meshing with the whiskey of his lips. Holding her as close as they could manage. Inhaling slowly as the presence of the woman was more intoxicating than any alcohol in his mind. Passing his tongue over hers in brief overlap as nothing about him sought separation.

Erin

The feeling of his tongue meeting her own would forever send chills up her spine, the moment never lost on the woman.  Feeling the rush she knew would follow, the reason this kiss was saved for their most private of moments.  Her hand found the curve of his shoulder, down the arm holding that glass of whiskey.  Their feet on the edge of the concrete pathway, she only hoped she remembered there being grass to the side, though most of the ground coverings here were a gravel rock mixture that would not bode well for her now.  Risking it, she slipped her hand over his, stealing the nearly empty glass of whiskey from his hand to toss it a couple of feet to the side, waiting to hear that shatter that would surely follow if she had truly lost what the terrain was.  When the sound didn’t come, she felt complete relief as her hand found the side of his neck once more, finding a way to let him come into her completely as she did to him, knowing she could only maintain under the weight of this for so long before one of two things would have to happen, but willing to give in to it entirely at least up until that point.

C.J.

Feeling her stealing the glass, he heard the rush of air when she threw it and no glass shattering sound which made him smirk to her lips. Erin acting badly always delighted him for one reason or another. Maybe because he didn't see it too often. He wasn't completely sure but he did love it nonetheless. That recently freed hand finding the side of her neck as he gave her his whole attention. Not caring what came next, what was expected of him. Feeding off of her kiss like it was his very life form and now it was. His reason, his drive, his energy.

Erin

As his hand found the side of her neck, the man engaging her fully in the manner in which she desired beyond anything else.  Her body pressed fully into his as her arm drew around his neck just as the other remained. There was no interruption that could have stolen this kiss away, nor would it come. The loss of that glass of whiskey was entirely worth the depth his freed hand provided at her neck as her tongue continually met his in a passionate exchange between a woman exploring her husband for the first time. Slowly withdrawing her tongue from his, a series of softening kisses passed from her lips to his before she was sealing a kiss there at his lips. Drawing back slightly, though not moving from the closeness as a slow smile swept her features.

C.J.

Feeling her drawing back yet retaining that closeness, pressing his forehead to hers as he breathed her in. "My wife..." breathing the words in just as equally for the first time. A telling smile taking root as his thumb traced her jawline. A settling sigh as they were part of a break through in that moment. Reaching into his pocket, he withdrew a ring box. Drawing it open for her to look at. "I had to put J. up for collateral but..." he began, what the kids themselves had helped him with.

Erin

With a new title spoken to her, hearing it for the first time from his lips, the woman’s smile only grew as her teeth took hold of her lower lip for a still moment with their foreheads pressed together.  “My husband…” she returned, trying them on for size in his direction, feeling the weight and reality of that which they had accomplished that night.  Feeling his thumb to her jawline, proof that nothing would change here as it only seemed to be better than before.  Tied to the man indefinitely, in ways she never saw herself with anyone, knowing only he would be able to get her here of all of her own willingness.  As his hand drew to his pocket, a ring box presented before her, she tilted her head to the side as her eyes remained at his.  He had thought of the one thing she had saved for later, presenting her with a band that would signify their union.  Finally lowering her eyes to take in the piece of jewelry within, her hands freed of him as one drew up over her mouth, not expecting anything so ornate as that which he held in his palm.  “C.J…” she whispered through the parts of her fingers as her eyes shot up to his in time for that statement at his lips.  “It’s…” wanting to say it was too much, that they couldn’t afford it, yet there was no possibly way she could bring herself to do it.  Reaching her free hand to the box, a soft fingertip brushing over the surface as she looked back up at him.  “I love it,” she whispered, drawing her hand there between them for him to add it to the engagement ring she already wore.  Half tempted to ask him when he’d done this as she’d kept things so spur of the moment, or at least appearing to be, but knowing this man, he’d bought it two years prior before they were even dating, knowing he’d marry her.  She knew it wasn’t true, but at the same time she wouldn’t put it past him.  With no question of how or when, she lowered her hand from her mouth, finding his side where a tiny hand gripped his shirt.  

C.J.

“It’s yours.” he clarified as she mentioned what it was. A statement of their love that would exist long after they did just as his mother’s engagement ring laid on her finger. Proof that they could make that ring a success as the former failure it had once represented. Was it expensive? Surely but well worth it. Broken up into time. An investment into their love. A symbol. The woman wouldn’t have to go any further then one downwards glance to see the extend he was willing to go to provide. Drawing the ring from the box, he was drawing it up her ring finger. Still taking advantage of his own bare ring finger though she wouldn’t be as lucky. “Figured you already had traditional. Go for something a little different.” he added, feeling her against his shirt.

Erin

His time of a bare finger would come to a close at some point in the near future, but she wouldn’t tell him yet.  Perhaps one of the last surprises she had for him and it would have to wait but a little longer.  As he guided the ring down her finger, she could already feel the moisture building up in her eyes again.  “Damn it, C.J.,” she complained, not wanting to fall apart again as she knew she’d done enough of that in front of their family and coworkers already that night.  Taking a long moment there to just simply take in the ring and all he put into it, leaving her truly breathless for a long moment before finally she was lifting her chin and that hand once more.  Her hand stealing to the back of his neck as she lifted to his lips once more.  A firm kiss from a woman who had potentially cried more in that one night than in their entire relationship.  “It’s perfect,” she assured between kisses, finding herself in complete awe as she drew back if only to look upon it again.  A smile seemed to be a permanence at this point there against her features as she brought her hand slowly down his chest.  “Yours is on the Strip,” she lied in all seriousness.  “Tattoo appointment is at 11 tonight,” she nodded, selling the lie to him as though it were truth just to see if he’d agree to it.

C.J.

Pressing his lips back to hers at her willing and between kisses, he smirked softly. Glad she liked it. Always being nervous about this. Granted, she wasn’t difficult to buy for but who knew someone else’s tastes when she had not specifically shown him or told him what he liked. So far though, he had done well enough or atleast she let him think so. Watching her glance down towards that perfect fit where he was gently adjusting it to her finger as he heard her suggestion of where to find his own. The mention of the tattoo appointment drawing a soft laugh out of him. “Doesn’t scare me any. You are the scardy cat here.” he alleged.

Erin

As he went along with her lie, she couldn’t help but eye him suspiciously for a split second before she decided to commit to the part entirely.  “Good.  Your mom’s going to come to the villa and stay with the kids while we go get it.”  She suggested, making sure to leave it at ‘it’ and not ‘them’ as this had nothing to do with her.  “I’m not afraid of you getting a tattoo,” she offered with a smirk to her lips as she joined her hand back into his, the new ring making her hand feel awkward for a few minutes though she knew she’d get used to it quickly.  “Actually pretty excited about it.”  She continued on, going with this idea.  Truthfully, she had his ring elsewhere, but if he was going to go along with getting branded for life that night, who was she to stop him?

C.J.

“Yeah? What am I getting? Your name with a flaming heart?” playing along and playing her bluff as he didn’t believe her for a moment. Knowing better as he met her eyes. Seeming the glimmer of mischief within those hazel eyes as she went on. He nodded. “I guess I’d need something considering I don’t have to wear a wedding ring and all.” he stated, amused by this while she had to double up. Gently rubbing his hand to her back as they both went along with this game. Introducing new stakes to this claim.

Erin

“No,” she was quick to offer in regards to her name with a flaming heart.  “More like my name with a set of cuffs,” she offered as it was a bit more likely.  A smile there to her lips as she felt hand to her back once more.  “Okay, fine, no tattoo.  I mean, if you want one, I’m sure we can arrange it, but, your ring is somewhere else for later,” she stated honestly, allowing her head up and to the side to look up at him as she started them walking once again.  “If you want it now, I suppose we could make that happen,” she teased as though it would be a huge inconvenience, just giving him a hard time at this point.  The topic making her want to go sneak off to the villa with him more and more where the ring was waiting.  In a moment’s time, she was turning around in front of him, stopping all further movement as she looked up at him with a nod to her head.  “Let’s go now.”  She stated, knowing damned well there was a dinner happening on the patio of the hotel for them, and once they got in the room, she might not let him leave, but just that quickly she was on to other things.  Nodding her head convincingly as she let her inner brat show through a bit there.

C.J.

“I think I can wait. I think I can.” sounding like he wasn’t too sure of it when he knew he could but all at once, she was turning around from him. Hearing the determination in her voice as he nodded. Only able to wonder. She had sprung so many surprises on him that he could not begin to anticipate. Once, he had thought her quite predictable. Now? It was anyone’s guess and he let that slight hesitation linger through him as he tried to prepare. “Okay.” he consented as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze, feeling that new ring to the inside of his gentle grip at her hand as he took that step forward to follow her.

Erin

In truth, she wasn’t so sure she could wait either.  It had sounded like a great plan a week before when she came up with it, but now that it was there, and there was a ring on her finger, yet none on his, it wasn’t going to work.  She couldn’t wait.  As he took that step forward, she did the same, walking with him across the open space there behind the hotel towards their villa.  “So your mom’s in the one next to ours and she’s got the boys tonight and all day tomorrow.  Then the last two are shared by the unit,” she explained, giving a location to each of their guests, explaining that everyone was close and yet they’d have all the privacy they wanted at the same time.  “I think everyone’s heading out day after tomorrow, so the last day and a half should just be us and the boys, but your mom said they can go back with her if we want.”  Glancing up to him to see what he thought on that one as they made their way to the front of the villa they were staying in.  The porch light had not been on when they left, but now burned brightly, a sign to the woman that things were ready.

C.J.

Hearing her explanation of how this all was going to work, he nodded as it was all beginning to make a bit more sense. Meeting her eyes at the mention of the boys, another nod. “Guess we’ll see what they want to do when we get there.” he remarked honestly, hardly able to just ship them off if they wanted to be there with them as surely they had just as much reason to celebrate as he watched her. Content with not making plans for once. Just taking things as they came and enjoying their time as their life was rarely so open. Usually things were scheduled down to the hour. There was a sense of freedom within this. Dragging her hand to his lips as he pressed to her knuckles and the back of her hand in the meantime.

Erin

A nod was there at her head as she agreed that was for the best.  She had only wanted the night with C.J. by herself.  Beyond that, she imagined there would be plenty of family time as well as time with the others that had flown all the way out there to see the two wed.  Feeling that kiss at her hand, she looked up towards him, resting her cheek against his upper arm.  “So you weren’t mad that I didn’t tell you?” she asked, wondering now in the aftermath what his thoughts were with the surprise wedding.  She had been up and down about it when it came to what he might think, never wanting to steal his involvement, but wanting only to surprise him.  Arriving at the door of the villa, she came around in front of him, her free hand venturing down into his pocket to steal the key, though she’d take her time in doing so for other reasons.

C.J.

“Mad at you? Of course not.” nearly laughing at the suggestion, a surprise was never meant to be a bad thing. Hurtful. Hell, he did them enough. “No, it was great. I prefer it this way. Gave us that spring to just do it but involved people close to us. No potential hurt feelings, no guilt. Couldn’t have been anymore perfect. I feel the need to thank you but I don’t think you’d want to hear that…” going on a limb for that last bit, yet, still thanking her in that round about way as they got to the door. Feeling her hand slip within his pocket as he smirked softly at the length of time it was taking her. “Lose it? Deep pockets?” he posed figuratively as if he didn’t know any better.

Erin

“No thanking me,” she offered as she’d gotten just as much out of this as he had, if not more.  Her hand still fishing around in that pocket, though she’d touched the key multiple times.  “I liked the idea of sharing it with those that mean the most to us, but somehow keeping some privacy about it, if that makes any sense?”  she asked, finally seeming to catch her finger on the ring that held the key, trying to pull it free from his pocket, acting as though it were stuck for a long moment before finally drawing it from his pocket entirely.  Dangling it there before him as if she’d found the prize, an innocent smile to her features.  “So you were going to go out into Vegas tonight, to the Strip, with /that/ ring in your pocket?” she asked, quite amazed that he’d be so brave, already showing she was quite possessive over the piece of jewelry in such a short period of time.  “Do you have any idea how dangerous the city can be?” she teased as though they didn’t both know first-hand, or how much of a fight someone would have to come up on the two detectives, with their kids, and try to do a thing.  The thought had her laughing quietly as she turned in his hold to bring the key into the door, opening it where everything appeared to be the same as they had left it, though it was not.  Her hand in his drawing his arm around in front of her, keeping him close, tightening that hold as she lured him inside with her.

C.J.

"Thank you." Thanking her just because she told him not to in blatant defiance, he flashed her a telling smile as she drew out that key. "Voila." He announced before she briefly reemed him out. A roll of his eyes. "I didn't survive taking on one of the five back home to die in Vegas." He confessed as he had seen worse than what these streets to offer even if it had not been the best idea. Still, watching her open the door and guided him forward. Allowing it as he guided the door closed behind them and allowing her complete authority here.

Erin

As he pushed the door closed behind them, her hand had his arm secured around her waist as she leaned her back against his chest.  Tilting her head slightly to the side to allow herself to look up at him as she paused there inside the door.  “I wouldn’t have let you die,” she promised, though she knew he had himself well covered with or without her, but still quite liking to think she was the best partner he’d ever have.  Taking one step after another, keeping him pinned there to the back of her as she made her way through the villa to the door that led outside as if she’d just taken him through there for nothing.  Once they were outside again, she’d pause there as if the point of this was just to go outside again before she’d turn around and reveal to him a ladder that had been placed against the building just for them.  

C.J.

"Yeah, not before you got a life insurance policy out of me." He teased, stealing a kiss to her cheek as she kept them locked to one another, loving the closeness to her as he could have easily traveled through his day just like this. Feeling her guiding them as he remained attentive even as the ladder came into view. A cock of a brow in her direction showing he was falling apart on his own theories though the memory of what had happened on a rooftop once returned to him. Complete vulnerability. Telling her what he thought would make her run. The need to be honest. The paradigm shift as it all came full circle.

Erin

“It goes into effect at midnight,” she teased as though it were true, feeling that kiss to her cheek that had her leaning into it for a long moment.  “Letting your /wife/ fall would be a bad thing here,” she offered as she flashed a telling smirk before releasing the hold on his hand to reach down and lift the long linen dress up into one hand.  Though it was to be for later when the dress wouldn’t be an issue, there was no way she was letting this wait now.  Bringing her hand to the ladder, she began up, attempting to keep ahold of the dress at the same time, one slow rung at a time until she reached the top.  With a little help from the staffers, there was already a blanket against the rooftop, a place other visitors did not have access to.  On the blanket was a small chest of ice, complete with a six pack of beer within.  A couple of pillows laid back on the blanket, and beneath one sat his ring box.  Waiting for him at the top as she looked down, watching him with a smile there to her lips as she finally released the lower hem of her dress, standing at the top of that ladder as though she were his goal.

C.J.

"I will not let you fall...just be careful." He requested as he watched her dismount, ready to seek out her hips as she made him nervous with this task. Knowing getting down would be even more fun with gravity literally forcing them to the ground as he waited until she found her way up and he followed with ease a moment later. Standing atop that roof with her as the lights of the city were briefly eclipsing yet nothing could keep his eyes from her in that moment. Not even her mystery set up.

Erin

As he joined her there on the rooftop, she drew in to him as though the two had not parted a moment before.  From the patio off in the distance, they could see the guests there under white lights drinking and eating, celebrating their union, though the two had managed to slip away.  Her arms swept up around his neck as she lifted her chin to look upon his eyes, that slow smile there to her lips as a single hand came to the side of his face.  “I’m your /wife/,” she whispered, drawing that much closer to the man.  “Your wife,” she stated again, finding it to be quite the concept.  Not guiding him towards the blanket as she was perfectly satisfied for the moment standing atop the one-story building with him, feeling every bit as on top of the world as they were on top of the villa.

C.J.

Feeling her draw into him not a moment too early, his own arms finding her waist. Fingers tenderly brushing over her back from the otherside of the dress fabric. Still able to trace each inch of her to detail. Feeling her to his face, a soft smile seeking him out at the word choice. "Way ahead of schedule." He added. "Yet, not nearly soon enough." Kissing the tip of her nose, in awe of this woman of his.

Erin

Hearing his words, she’d melt all over again.  It was way ahead of schedule, that much wouldn’t get her.  The rest, however, would make her feel weak.  She knew why she wanted to marry him.  She had felt the love grow from a bantering friendship.  She knew every step of what she felt for him, but she’d never quite understand what it was he saw in her.  She wasn’t relationship material when the two met.  She wasn’t interested in anything remotely close to it, and yet he’d chosen her before she’d even known she was chosen.  Feeling that kiss to the tip of her nose, her eyes held a softness about them.  “You told me a long time ago that you loved me first.  That you wanted me long before I wanted you.  But I don’t know that you’ve ever told me why…”

C.J.

Meeting her eyes as she spoke, he smirked softly. "I'm sure I've tried and probably failed." He remarked honestly, a deep breath in attempt to make sense of it as his arms remained wrapped around her. "I guess...I mean, I never thought you were as irredeemable as you thought you were but...you always had a warm heart. I was impressed by your strength, I could tell you were waging somekind of war in there but it had not turned you cold. I guess your warmth and your strength are what really had me there. I struggled with those things. I lost myself somewhere between. Got cynical. Had to reteach myself alot of things and I saw alot of myself in you. Afraid but wanting more, wishing someone would see the potential but pushing them away. I knew what I was capable of and I knew what you were capable of and I don't know...you were hard to not fall in love with, Erin...and I was never that guy until you turned me into one."

Erin

Hanging on his every word, letting herself feel it to her core, this was a place she’d forever not understand despite his best efforts.  She wasn’t kind to him in those early days.  She was downright mean at times.  Yet he had kept on it, over and over again.  As she listened, some of it made sense, sinking in little by little, though it left her not knowing what to say.  He’d rendered her speechless as he was so famous for doing by this point.  His depth was beyond her own ability.  To look at a rock and see something more was something she didn’t know how to do, but if not for his skill in doing just that, they wouldn’t be standing atop that roof in that moment.  “Thank you,” she whispered, as it was about the only thing she could manage there, thanking him for seeing something in her she couldn’t have seen then.  A soft hand there to the side of his face, a slow moment where she didn’t make a move to kiss him or take him somewhere else.  Just allowing herself to be satisfied there in his arms as words failed her completely.  Drawing in closer, her head turned to rest against his chest as she let her eyes fall closed.  Taking in his scent there against his shirt, allowing just a brief time of reflection there as her mind flooded with flashes of memories all culminating into this night.  “I love you,” she whispered there against his chest, not for the response, not needing to hear it, just wanting him to know and never forget.

C.J.

"No thanks." Quoting her moments before, feeling her still to his face as they drew in that silence. Feeling her turn to his chest as he kissed the top of her head. Letting her marinate on it all as he gave up a slow smirk. "And I love you." He answered without hesitation, for the same reasons. Needing her to know it as if she'd ever be able to effect. Like he wouldn't be there everyday to remind her. "And I always will." Adding his 'post-secret' of sorts for reinforcement.

Erin

Hearing the customary response from the man, it would never be seen as customary and never as a response.  Its own sentiment, standing alone, meaning more to her than perhaps any other phrase until he let the last one slip forth.  Feeling it to her very core, she drew back from him to meet his eyes, letting her hands pass down his arms as she sought out his hands.  No words left her lips as she took a step back, guiding him to the blanket that awaited them, one step at a time.  Her eyes remained fixed on his, trusting he’d not let her bump into anything or heaven forbid fall off the rooftop.  When finally she felt the texture change beneath the sandals on her feet, she held to his hands to lower herself down against the blanket where she’d move back against the pillows piled there at the other end.  Releasing one of his hands if only to slip her hand beneath the pillow to find the ring box there beneath.  As he still stood, she drew it there before her, keeping it closed as a slow smile graced her lips.  “My first gift to my husband,” she whispered, eyes suggesting he sit with her as she maintained control of the black box.

C.J.

Watching her sit, he stood taking her in for that moment after safely guiding her back towards that blanket. Fishing under one of those pillows for a purpose before her retrieval leaving him with the knowledge that a naked ring finger was soon to be a thing of the past. Hearing her follow up statement. "I swear, I'm never going to get tired of hearing that." He commented honestly as he lowered himself to sit beside her. Stealing a quick kiss from her as sheer proximity left him unable to help himself. Feet to the concrete outside of the blanket as he crossed his arms over the top of his knees.

Erin

“Me either,” she offered honestly, something he’d need to have some tolerance on as it would more than likely be passing her lips quite frequently as she was just simply in awe of it.  Meeting his lips for the brief kiss as he found his place there beside her, before it was gone all too soon.  “When I spoke to him on the phone, the pastor asked me if I wanted to do a traditional service, or something shorter.  I told him I thought something short and sweet was a little more our style.  He went through the service order with me and there towards the end was the ring exchange during the vows.  Although it was a very traditional thing to exchange the rings then, I thought maybe we’d like to have that for ourselves.  Something our way without watching eyes.  Something private that no one else was a part of since most of that was for the boys and everyone else.  But this, I wanted this.  I wanted us by ourselves where we could be the best version of ourselves.  It’s funny in a way because you did it your own way back there on our walk and I couldn’t have asked for anything more in line with what I was already thinking.  Something that fit us.  So, with that said,” she whispered as she opened the box in the palm of her hand, not allowing him to see the ring she had selected for him with a little help from his mother.  Keeping it tightly held in her hand, she brought it to her lips to place a kiss against it that would fade, though she hoped the memory never would.  Bringing the band to his finger, she slipped it down the length of his finger before she’d allow her hand to slip back, finally allowing him to see the ring that would take up residence on the far too long empty finger.

C.J.

"It's our way." He stated honestly and maybe he had not wanted always wanted it that way. There were moments when the privacy was frustrating. When he wanted to scream it from the rooftops. Just to date the woman properly. To not be one another's dirty little secret as she had never had the capacity to be such. Yet, they had found security in that privacy and here was where they flourished truly. Not surprised by how right she had been for a minute. Allowing her at his finger after tenderly nursing the ring where he watched as she made it into his finger. Smirking softly as both of them had gone the non-traditional route. "Aw shit, I got bling." In a display of just how white he was, he flashed her a smile upon inspection of the ring before he was leaning into press his lips to hers.

Erin

His words brought a laugh to her lips, though they didn’t have her second guessing that choice too much.  His kiss stole her laugh for a moment before she drew back to eye the band there on his hand.  “It’s not too much bling though,” she offered, quite liking the way it looked on his hand.  Leaning her head against his shoulder as she brought her hand there to his, putting the two rings side by side as they had both officially marked themselves as taken in every sense of the word.  Her fingers slipping between the spaces of his own, allowing the two rings to meet together for the first time.  Nothing about their union traditional, including the rings they had each chosen for the other.  “If you’d rather no bling, I won’t be upset,” she promised, turning her head to rest her chin at his shoulder, having known weeks ago that it was a risk, but one she was willing to take.  

C.J.

"No, it's fine..." he returned, looking over it as it might not have been his traditional choice. Tell the man that he would be wearing one with such a description and he might have laughed but as he looked at it, the more he liked it. "5 diamonds...you, me, Bash, J and..." smiling softy, he let her piece that one together. That they'd need one more to make this work. Feeling her at his shoulder, eyes passing over both rings together getting used to the sight of it as it would without a doubt be an adjustment but one he would be happy to align to. He had worked towards this with all his might, after all.

Erin

She’d give this time.  If it didn’t feel right to him in a few days, he’d have a new band, something like the other she had considered the day she bought this one, not letting herself get hung up on this for now, trusting him to let her know if it wasn’t right for him.  As he started in with the diamonds, her eyes lifted to meet his.  “And…” she returned, a slow whisper there at her lips as she caught where he was going with this.  “And a little girl,” she whispered, her statement just a little too quick, revealing her own thoughts there.  As if she was alone in that house full of boys, needing a little girl to round it all out, or at least come close.  Pressing her lips to his shoulder for a long moment as she had already thought of the two of them having one of their own at least a dozen times over.  “You want to have a baby with me?” she asked, unable to hide her own desire there within her hazel eyes, though she’d try with all her might to remain neutral on the subject.  Her eyes though would give her away every time.  

C.J.

Laughing softly as she mentioned a little girl, he felt her at his shoulder as he stole a kiss to her forehead. "Even then, we'd still outnumber you." He reminded her as the Luciano boys still held majority under those circumstances. Yet, he couldn't deny that the concept sounded down right amazing. Hearing her question, they had talked about this before. He nodded. "I promised you dimpled babies." He reminded her, glancing down to meet her eyes at the origin story. "if that is what you'd like then yes but I'd never want to pressure you in that direction. I really like being a father. I'd do it a dozen times over if I could."

Erin

“I don’t know about a dozen…” she offered, having been that woman who wanted no children, no husband, no obligations at all.  Now sitting before him as his wife, mother to his two boys, and seriously wanting to have one of their own.  Things might not have changed in taking those vows, but things had certainly changed from the beginning.  She’d wanted a good relationship with his boys, but the idea of having one of their own, she’d been back and forth on.  Until now.  A slow nod was there at her head as she let it speak for her in agreement.  “Maybe I stop taking the pill…” she offered as her means of contribution there, “If you can promise me a girl.  I can handle three to two.  I can’t do four to one.”  She teased, though it might be the best way to get closer to the dozen number if she had to keep trying for a girl.

C.J.

“Said I’d /do/ it a dozen times over. Not that I want to.” he clarified as he eyed her, knowing full well that the man would struggle with the lack of alone and down time for that as those were two necessities in his life. Especially in their field. Hearing her suggestion of the pill, her rebuttal drawing a smirk out of him as he placed a hand over her knee. “I want you to think about that for a few days before we consider that. We’ll talk about it but…it’s not a little decision, you know? I think this is one thing that shouldn’t be spur of the moment and I know you’ve been a little lukewarm which is fine. Obviously. Wouldn’t be here with you if I wasn’t completely fine with any potential scenario…” he reminded her as his eyes sought out hers.

Erin

Sitting on a blanket of a rooftop, though not quite as high as the last one had been, still wearing that which they had been legally united wearing, discussing future plans was a little much and though she knew it, it would take him pointing it out to her to make her realize it.  She was on a high, operating and existing within that high.  A nod found her head as he suggested they give this time to be truly thought through and considered.  “And this is why I love you,” she reminded him, one of many reasons, but forever based in his ability to balance her out as much as she’d like to think she balanced him.  Leaning into him, she pressed her lips to his, in no rush to leave this rooftop and rejoin the dinner in their name occurring just a few hundred feet away.  Her hand slipping up to the side of his face as she drew in closer while still sitting beside him on that blanket.

C.J.

“And this is why I love you.” his own proof coming in a way she might not have realized. The fact that he did not have to be careful with her made all the difference. He didn’t have to watch himself. To be fearful of her taking it wrong. To walk on broken glass. No, she got that he wasn’t being mean or a jerk. Just looking out for her. As she pressed her lips to his, he was there to intercept her kiss and return it. Drawing closer into her as there wasn’t a single place he’d want to be more than in her arms now and at the end of the day. Knowing that if all the rest went away, as long as he had her and his boys that he’d still be the happiest man on the face of this planet for it.

Erin

There was no part of the woman upset or put off by his asking that she think things over.  Hell, it had taken her long enough to think over just about every other step in their relationship, it only made sense.  Feeling him return her kiss, night was falling around them.  The evening ceremony had stolen those last minutes of broad daylight, transitioning into sunset, where now the cloak of darkness wrapped against a city of light.  Slowly drawing back from his lips, she held one last thing up her sleeve to commemorate the night, yet it wouldn’t be exposed quite yet.  Leaning back against the pillows that lined the top edge of the blanket, she reached within the small ice chest to withdraw two beers, offering one there into his hand.  “A rooftop date is not complete without alcohol and the heavy discussions.”  She reminded him as it had been in their first and now in this as well.  With a beer in one hand, her other slipped to his thigh as she stared up into the darkness of the sky with him, just soaking every minute of it in.  “So, Luciano, how does it feel to be married?” she asked, a smirk to her lips as she referred to him by his last name as she had so many times in those early stages of their relationship, only this time it was hers as well.

C.J.

Feeling her draw back from his lips, he smiled softly before watching her at those beers. Taking one from her with a polite biding of thankfulness before he was cracking open the twist-top lid. Reaching out to do the same for her own before he was bringing the bottle to his lips. Humming upon the delivery of her question. “Best feeling.” he stated honestly between sips of beer as he placed it down gently on the concrete. “In the world.” he added conclusively as he glanced over towards her with a telling grin. “Just knowing that that is the face I get to wake up to everyday and know she is all mine. Nothing better.”

Erin

As she leaned back against those pillows, she felt him take her beer and open it for her, showing just another reason why she loved him as he was always taking care of the little things for her without even thinking about them.  A soft smile was there to her lips as she heard him answering her question.  Her hand tightening there at his thigh as she took a drink from the bottle in her hand.  “You know you already got to wake up to this face, albeit scary at times, and I hope you already knew I was all yours,” she returned, though she knew what he meant.  A telling smirk before she was drawing another drink forth from the bottle before setting it off to the side of her as well.  A whistling sound off in the distance out over an empty field behind the villas drew her attention before the sky lit up with the explosion of fireworks.  Leaning into him, she was now officially out of tricks.  “Good thing you said yes to the wedding now bit or there might not have been anyone to watch these,” she teased, pressing a kiss into the sleeve of his shirt.

C.J.

“Never scary.” he quickly interrupted, not able to wait until she was done to get that one out. Hearing the whistling sound. Anything remote to bulletfire always got his attention but as he felt her lean into him and the light of the sky. He suddenly understood. Listening to her, he had to shake his head. “Jesus fuckin’ Christ, Erin…” he stated, trying not to laugh but failing. “Anything else? This is literally the craziest thing I have ever been a part of…” he stated, as he had underestimated her a million times over and could have never expected this. Feeling her against his sleeve, he was leaning down beside her. Taking up a pillow for himself as his arm reached out to pull her into her spot there over his arm and against his chest.

Erin

“That isn’t me, actually,” she confessed as this was courtesy of the hotel entirely.  As he leaned back, she was drawn easily in there beside him, a laugh at her lips to his reaction.  “I suggested a small platform to set off some small ones ourselves with the boys.  This is their interpretation of that,” she confessed, situating herself there in her spot at his chest as her hand drew over his stomach.  “There is nothing else,” she whispered, lifting her chin with a smirk to her lips.  “Okay, maybe one thing, but it’s not a big deal, promise.  Very small, weighs next to nothing, and more than likely won’t last five minutes…” she offered, a lift of her eyes as though to give him a very strong hint.

C.J.

Hearing her mention something else being there, his brows lifted as he glanced down towards her. Lips finding the top of her head as his hand gently rubbed over her back. Thinking he was onto her but willing to play dead for the sake of his own suspicions. “Is it something you wear?” he asked curiously, not sure if it was wishful thinking or not but that last bit a strong suggestion to him as his fingers traced down her spine. Attempting to see if he could feel anything under there to set him off.

Erin

Another set of fireworks being set off just behind the one before, lighting up the sky off in the distance, and yet the two had found their way into something else entirely.  “Maybe,” she offered, shrugging her shoulders as though she couldn’t be certain.  Feeling his hand up her spine, she lifted up slightly, nipping at his lower lip as she drew herself partially over top of him.  “You are cheating,” she offered, her dress draping there against his leg as her own leg drew between his.  “You want to find out, you gotta get me off this rooftop, feed me dinner, dance with me at our reception, and then… /maybe/ I’ll let you in on it.”

C.J.

“It is…” pressing his fingers over her with the need to now locate what she had on, hearing her statement as she drew over him. Hearing her statement as he gave up a slow nod. “I will do all of those things…” he promised her, his eyes drawing into hers as he reached out. Hand slipping out to the side of her face. Thumb brushing over her jawline as he leaned up. “Just gimme’ one minute to not gross out my kids, alright?” he asked, nose nudging hers as he lured his lips back to hers. Just needing that quiet, private moment with her to find his center. Holding that kiss as he drew his source of comfort through to him as he always had.

Erin

As his hand found the side of her face, there was a soft nod to answer his question as she’d be more than willing to comply.  Feeling that nudge of his nose before his lips found hers once again as they had time and time again since the two had finally found their way to one another.  A soft hum there at her lips, bringing both of her own hands there to the back of his neck, drawing into him just as heavily as he drew into her.  Knowing if she stayed here much longer, she’d prefer it over any amount of food or dancing, though it would also mean a lot of awkward glances from their unit for the next four days at their disappearance during their own wedding.  Her lips parted for her tongue to ease at the part of his own lips, threatening to deepen the kiss as she allowed herself to fall captive there in his hold.

C.J.

Not wanting anything else then that kiss, he had every intention on giving her what she deserved here and a night to remember. He just wanted to feel close to her before they returned to the public eye. Nothing too overtly inappropriate about this yet not appropriate for young eyes and comfortable for even the older ones. Feeling her to the back of his neck, a hand slipping over the back of her hand and over her wrist and forearm. Feeling her lips part for him which he welcomed. Parting his lips where he allowed her within to the greeting of his own tongue. As innocent as the two could be considering.

Erin

An act so traditionally filled with passion, leading to something else for the two, was not at all.  In this moment, it was just simply sharing in that closeness between them, celebrating in their own way, with every intention of soon rejoining that which waited for them.  Though that warm feeling within her would rise every time.  After months and months of learning to fight it, she would be faced with the same battle now, only leading her to want him more and more as the night went on.  Her tongue there through the part of his lips found his, a soft movement of her own against his as she felt the path of his hand against her arm.  Each part of them engaging in one another in some way, their bodies forever in tune to the other’s.  A slow pass of her tongue against his before she would draw back into the confines of her own mouth, luring him there to follow.

C.J.

His hand to her face trailed his fingertips down her jawline and just underneath of her chin. Feeling her lips withdraw where he was drawing into her own mouth. Inhaling slowly as her comfort filled him. Warmed him. Made him the man he needed to be each day as she always did. Smiling softly into her kiss as it was literally like the man’s batteries were being recharged from the within, he wasn’t sure she’d ever understand her effect on him. Nor would he be able to explain it and make any sense yet there he was feeling it and quite hoping that it would never stop serving such a duty for him.

Erin

Feeling his hand there beneath her chin, forever her favorite way to be engaged by him, it transported her altogether back to her own apartment nearly two years prior as though no time had passed in the slightest.  That nervous feeling would rise up within her, though she wasn’t nervous with him at all.  It would forever hold a new and delicate feeling to it, which was potentially one of her biggest fears when it came to taking the matrimonial plunge.  Yet there before him, laid partially over top of him, his ring on her hand, his name permanently attached to her own, she still felt that feeling deep within her.  This between them had to be protected and remain just theirs.  Feeling his tongue over her own, she’d tilt her head to the side to afford them more comfort in the exchange as she flooded him with that which she well knew they both needed.  Remaining there for a long moment before she was withdrawing, sealing her lips to his, attempting to keep the both of them longing for one another late into the night.  The smile of his lips that had helped break that kiss was replicated on her own as she felt complete bliss there with him.  “I love you,” she offered softly, knowing it didn’t need to be said to be understood, and yet enjoying saying it to her husband perhaps more than she’d ever enjoyed saying it before as she found herself in that same place as he had stated, knowing he was now forever hers.

C.J.

Feeling her draw back, he knew it was time for it. He could only mourn so much for her yet he knew soon, he would mourn for that same kiss. Feeling her break off and replacing it with those words, he flashed her a telling smile as he met her eyes. “I love you more.” he challenged with a telling nod as his lips were finding the tip of her nose. Deep seated affection running through his veins as he pressed his forehead to hers. Knowing the time was nearing for the inevitable.

Erin

“You don’t get to use that anymore,” she offered in a hushed tone, feeling that kiss to her nose before she was pressing her forehead softly to his, nudging her nose against his as if that band on his hand said she loved him just as much.  “Equality,” she offered, teasing him as a telling smile took her over.  Remaining there for but a moment before she was leaning back onto her knees to start the process of getting up.  “We can come back up here later if you want,” she offered, extending her hand to his as she rose to her feet, using him to pull against while also offering to help him do the same.  

C.J.

“I’m always going to use that.” laughing softly at the presumption that he would not do this. That it would go away with marriage. He shoo his head at the mention of equality after feeling her nose to his. Watching her lean back up, he was slowly leaning up himself into a seated position with his hands still behind him. “Gonna’ go to my deathbed telling you that I love you more and I loved you first…” he reminded her, using her hand in complete mockery to pretend as she helped him up considering any weight or pull against her would have toppled her ontop of him. “Nah, I know where I wanna’ be later.”

Erin

It was pretty hard to be mad at a man who promised to live his life reminding her of the depths of his love for her.  She couldn’t do it.  She could only strive to make sure he knew and felt just as loved as he made her feel.  As he found his feet with barely any help from her, she was tilting her head to the side as she knew where she wanted to be later as well.  In truth, it couldn’t happen soon enough.  Yet there were people who had flown an awful long way just so they could see this union take place first hand.  “So we give this what… an hour?” she offered, thinking it was about fifty-five minutes longer than she wanted to give it.  A telling smirk there to her features, she kept his hand there within her own as she was walking back over towards that ladder.  Knowing going down was harder than coming up as gravity liked to play tricks there from time to time.  “You go first so you’ll catch me if I bust my ass,” she offered, a laugh there beyond the request as she tightened her hand in his for a fleeting moment before releasing him altogether.

C.J.

“Sounds good to me.” hearing her adding a time frame upon this before they’d slip off to their own devices, he nodded at mention of going first. What he had been expecting to do anyway as he allowed her to release his hand. Beginning the slow descent down the ladder step by step before he landed. Glancing up as he was now ready for her. Arms spread to suggest he was ready. “Just be careful…please. For my sake.” he added, not ready to lose his newly-fangled wife so easily, quickly or abruptly.

Erin

Flashing a flawless smile down to him, she couldn’t quite kill the mental image in her head.  Letting herself enjoy that one for just a moment before she’d ultimately turn around, taking up the length of her dress in her hand, easing her way down that ladder carefully.  Once she was safely on the ground before him, she turned around, tilting her head to the side as if to say ‘tada’, though she’d only smile.  “Forty-five minutes is enough, right?” she offered, narrowing that time frame down little by little as they were entirely too close to the bedroom of the villa at this point and the woman was known to get drawn to such situations quite easily.

C.J.

“and not a minute more.” he stated at the suggestion of their count down, hands lingering to her back as she saw herself down that ladder as if he’d catch her. Happy to see her safely arriving to the ground and before him as they set off their internal countdown. Knowing the two would not be able to keep their hands off of one another. Not tonight, not tomorrow or the night after as they never had and this was just the beginning.

Erin

His response had a smile to her lips as this man was every bit in line with her own thinking.  This was why a private wedding would have been better.  She knew this going in.  But it was hard to keep it as such when they were part of such a functioning family both personally and professionally, perhaps a little heavier towards the professional side of things.  Drawing a breath, she’d need that strength to make their way back through the inside of the villa, past the hall that would lead to the bedroom, and out the front door to find that path to the patio where their guests were already well through their meals.  Attempting to keep her mind away from the bedroom, she nudged her elbow gently to his side as she cut her eyes up towards him.  “You think you might be willing to dance with your wife?” she asked, hopeful hazel eyes directed to him.

C.J.

“Of course.”  The man stated upon her question as the woman would get whatever she wanted today. Not only was it her wedding day as well but in thanks for all that she had done for him there. For them. Even if it meant dancing yet he could manage a slow waltz well enough just not much after that. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. Not so long ago, they could not have made public displays of affection. Not there they were. Unable to help himself and even if he could, the sheer look of love in the man’s eyes would reflect it. From a hundred feet away, his love was still there. Sheer pride that she was his. That he had gotten that ring on her finger as there was one thing he could be certain of; she had never been better loved nor would she ever find another to compete with half the love he felt in his heart for her.

Erin

Looking up at him as she offered that jab of her elbow to his side, the hope in her eyes as she asked him to manage a dance with her, she was instantly smiling at his agreement.  She could count on one hand how many times in their relationship that they had shared a dance, yet each and every one of them meant the world to her.  She wasn’t a dancer, not ever.  She’d never been that girl at all.  Yet there was something about being in love with this man that made her want it, along with about a million other things as well that she’d never imagined herself to be.  He looked good on her, of that she was certain.  The changes, though seemingly small, were vast, and not a single person in attendance could say that they didn’t look good on the woman.  As they came up to the patio deck where their guests were finishing their meals, she couldn’t think about eating.  Not now.  “Forty-four minutes,” she reminded him, flashing that trademark smile of hers in his direction before slowly letting her hand separate from his as two little boys approached the both of them.  They had been gone entirely too long for the two boys, one of which was looking particularly tired at this point.  Erin lifted Bash there to her hip, a soft grunt at her lips to the weight the boy was carrying.  “Think someone’s partied out,” she offered, finding C.J.’s mother approaching.  Both boys were told to come say goodnight, having had waited until the two returned to bid their farewells for the evening.  A quiet ‘goodnight, mom’ was whispered into her neck, prompting a strong draw of her breath at the word and just how much more it seemed to mean today.  She closed her eyes, bringing one hand to the back of the boy’s neck where she pressed a kiss to his forehead.  “Goodnight, Bash.  I love you.”  Those three words were easily passed back to her as J.J. offered his dad the same.  Erin turned, offering the smaller of the boys to C.J.’s hold for him to get his goodnights in while Erin wrapped her arms around J.J., pressing a kiss to his cheek.  

C.J.

“42 minutes and 13 seconds”he returned, showing just how dedicated he was to that secret number and the count down. Shooting her a telling smile before she released his hand at the welcoming of the boys. The only time he’d allow her to let go of his hands. Watching as she lifted up the littlest of the two, he had to laugh. “Look, it’s a little person holding a little person” he teased with a telling smirk, thinking himself quite funny in that moment as did the older boy. Whether it be it was actually funny or sheer fatigue, he’d never know. Saying goodnight to J. before he was handed Bash. Repeating the same as he pressed a kiss to the boy’s face. Explaining how much he loved him as if the boy would ever understand what those words meant before he was handed off to his grandmother to be seen to bed. Watching as they were taken off to rest and knowing the two would sleep like babies that night.

Erin

With both boys hugged and kissed perhaps a little too much that night, they were taken by his mother to her villa just beside Erin and C.J.’s, assuring the couple the privacy of the night.  Once they had made their way down that same sidewalk, Erin’s hand was already back in C.J.’s again, never parting him for too terribly long, especially not today.  The countdown still alive and well in both of their minds as they made their way through the tables, grabbed and hugged along the way, congratulations flowing in their direction almost constantly.  It would take exactly eight minutes of this before Erin was turning into his chest.  Her chin lifted, eyes set upon his, with a familiar bite to her lower lip.  “One dance, one piece of cake, and then you take your /wife/ to bed?” she offered, cutting down on this forty-five minute time table as she couldn’t get the bedroom out of her head.  

C.J.

As the woman found his chest, he met her eyes as he nodded. “Deal.” he stated, a crack of a smile as he quite liked the sound of that last part. Leaning in where he pressed his lips gently to hers. The two were entitled to excessive amounts of PDA and he intended to make the most of it as his arms gently warped around her. Finding it hilarious how he had waited so long for this moment but he was now counting down the clock with her. Dividing up their time. “One of us is going to have to act really, really drunk to get out of this…” he reminded her simply, only able to wonder which one of them would have to get started on the pretending to be sloshed game.

Erin

The return of his agreement to her plan had an instant smirk on the woman’s face reading nothing but wanting to get back to their villa and out of the dress.  Returning his kiss with no reservation, under the eyes of many from their unit, her hand slipped up to rest at the side of his face.  There had been speculation of them dating previously, yet none could quite picture it.  Over time, some had seen their connection, yet never would they ever see it so proudly on display as they would here.  Although, it wasn’t a display at all, but two people so in love with one another that the bounds of professionalism could never truly hold them.  Humming there to his lips, she brought her hand down from his cheek to tap her finger at his chest.  “I don’t act drunk, but I could /be/ drunk, so I say we go with you,” she commented honestly, as if nothing else it could be wildly entertaining to watch at least while they were waiting on that time to run out.  “Shall I grab you a drink?” she teased, lifting to her toes to steal his lips once more before turning around to see if she could find him a glass.  If nothing else, he had to be /seen/ with a glass, even if it was the same one throughout to give the illusion of truly having been drinking.  

C.J.

“I’ll atleast try to get as close to the real thing in about 10 minutes as I can…” he offered as he watched her waiting for a drink, a moment later a waiter appeared as he got two glasses of his own. One for each hand. One glass he quickly shot down before he was placing it down on the tray before he was glancing down towards her. “Don’t ever try to say that I don’t love you…” he teased with a wink before his lips were introduced to that second glass.

Erin

As he took to the first glass hard and fast, Erin’s eyes would widen.  “If you get actually drunk here, I’m going to kill you,” she reminded him with a swift grasp of his ass as she glanced up at him.  “Maybe we do the cake and then the dance,” she offered, thinking if he was slightly intoxicated in the dance, it might be the right time to somewhat display it so that they could get out of the rest of the party that could easily take place into the early morning hours knowing the group that was in attendance.  “I’ll let you show me how much you love me in about twelve minutes,” she suggested as she slipped away from him to go let someone know they were ready to do the cake, a wink displayed there over her shoulder as she flashed him a smile of pure innocence.

C.J.

Hearing her mention of actually getting drunk, he had to laugh. “I just want to get a little bit of a buzz so it’s not a complete lie.” he returned as he worked on that second glass, hearing her mention about twelve minutes which had a hum to him as he watched her slip off. Watching her glance back to him before he suddenly felt a near dead on collision of male arms bum-rushing him and narrowly managing to stay on his feet as the crowd eclipsed. A brief distraction as the guys of the department joined him. A mention of two about making up for a bachelor party which he could only imagine would get downright shameful in this company before he was finally able to slip out from the circle with enough back pats and shoulder squeezes for a lifetime.

Erin

The path to the hotel concierge on site was one that would be interrupted with every step she took.  Just a few more feet and she was there, putting things into motion, but it would easily take ten minutes to accomplish the task.  When finally she was there, face to face with the man standing watch in a tuxedo, overseeing and assisting as needed, she had a look of relief on her face.  “Think we’re about ready to do the cake, if that’s good?” she asked, not wanting to inconvenience, but also trying to move things along.  She was assured that it would be easily accommodated and the table would be brought out within minutes.  Erin thanked the man before turning around, attempting to spot C.J. in the crowd of people.  Instead of moving forward, she’d just watch as he was engulfed with guys from the department.  She saw him often as a cop.  She saw him as a father.  She saw him as her better half.  But to see him just being a guy, it was something different.  His dimples appeared to flare deeper as he interacted with the others.  She’d watch on for a few more minutes, stealing a glimpse of this man that loved her until the concierge was there at her side, the table being brought in as they spoke.

C.J.

Managing to get his way back towards his wife with a fresh glass in hand, making good on that promise of his to atleast get a buzz while he could. His hand finding her side as he face her. “Third glass in.” he seemed to promise her with a telling smile as he pressed his forehead gently to hers. “Any luck?” he asked curiously, knowing she had been full of hellfire and determination when she set out on her task.

Erin

When C.J. spotted her, returning to her quickly, their near constant magnetism drew them back into one another.  With his forehead there to hers, her eyes met his, a soft hum there at her lips.  “Mhm, and the cake is being brought in…now,” she promised as it made its appearance there within the confines of her statement.  Nothing too elaborate, but enough to signify the occasion quite well.  In truth, Erin hadn’t known what it would look like, as was true with most everything else they had come into this day as she’d simply asked for particulars, but cared not for the details.  There atop the cake was a cop and a bride, though a badge and a pair of handcuffs dangled from the bouquet the bride held, prompting a full laugh from Erin’s lips at the surprise details there.  With a knife laid beside the cake, Erin drew her eyes to his as she lifted it into her hand.  “You’re going to have to put your glass down for this,” she urged before glancing back to the cake where three defined cut lines laid against the frosting to allow for two perfectly sized pieces to be cut.  “Be kind,” she warned, for if he was not, she would not either.

C.J.

Putting down his glass at her urging, he heard her warning that drew a soft and dimpled grin. Always looking like he was up to something even when he wasn’t. “I always am.” he argued in return as he reached out, allowing his hand to lay over hers and guide the knife towards the first of those defined lines. “Convenient.” he hummed as he was quite impressed by that slight detail before his eyes were briefly distracted with what sat atop of the cake. “You think that’s a cop joke or ball and chain joke?” he asked of her.

Erin

Their hands worked together to cut against the tiny markers, dividing off two pieces of cake for the two.  Glancing there over her shoulder to catch his eyes upon his question, her mind was clearly somewhere else altogether.  “Maybe they know about the first birthday gift I ever got you,” she teased, reminding him of the handcuffs that were not used in a professional manner at all.  Once both pieces were drawn forth, she worked with him to guide them to the two plates before the cake.  Releasing the knife, she lifted the slice of cake between her thumb and fingers, turning around towards him as she held the threat of a mess should he choose such a route.

C.J.

“Maybe.” he stated simply, letting her lead the way on this effort as he watched her release the knife. Making sure she got the piece as he watched her already turning at him. His eyes regarding her carefully. “Choose wisely, Erin Josephine…” he threatened, making good on that newly fangled middle name privilege before he reached down to grab that other piece. Assuring he was armed and at the ready as he used a nearby plate to slip it onto.

Erin

Eyeing him, it was so tempting, especially after he threw that middle name at her.  An audible sound of disgust came forth from her as she looked up into those eyes.  They were deceiving.  So handsome and loving, his true feelings for the woman shining through, and yet he could throw daggers from his mouth.  The guests all gathered round, watching to see what the couple would do once armed with their respective slices of cake.  “I love you,” she assured, bringing the piece to his lips, seemingly with care.  It would take a split second before the palm of her hand would replace her delicate fingertips that had held the cake into place, smearing the contents against his mouth and nose.  She knew well that she’d now asked for it, but he did so first at the mention of that middle name she’d held out on for so long.

C.J.

Hearing her state that she loved him, he already knew that it was all over. His lips would part but he’d remain cautious before the texture hit his face and plenty going up his nose. “I knew it.” he alleged, already attempting to clear his nasal passage with the back of his hand as he was handed a napkin. Promptly freeing his nose of what he could before his eyes met hers. Fresh for revenge as he bought himself a moment. Eyes glancing down towards that fallen spot of cake that had passed clean down the front of him. “and the boys aren’t here to protect you…” he challenged a moment later, yet all in that same breath, he was guiding a piece of cake to her lips. Waiting until she was biting through the piece for his free hand to reach for the remaining sliver where he used the icing to draw across her forehead and down the bridge of her nose.

Erin

“It’s a good look for you,” she managed as she looked up at his face covered in frosting, though it would be fleeting when he was offered a napkin.  There, she knew she was done for.  Her warning to be kind was out the window at her own hand and somehow she knew the man wouldn’t go kindly about this after she hadn’t, though she wondered if she had been, if he would have.  There was too much power in the possession of the cake.  “Shit, shit, shit,” she repeated quietly over and over as the cake was brought to her lips.  She didn’t trust him, nor should she after what she’d done to him.  Her eyes pleaded for mercy, but her request would be denied.  Biting through the piece, she found a false sense of security as he’d been all too kind there until all at once, he was painting against her face with frosting.  She couldn’t help but laugh as the guests applauded the little showing that was actually quite accurate to their relationship at home.  Neither of them truly taking themselves too seriously most of the time.  A napkin offered to her as well, she refused as she brought both hands, frosting still there at her palm, to the sides of his neck, drawing him in to press her lips to his, furthering the mess he had left against her face.  

C.J.

Feeling her pressing her hands to his neck and distributing the mess further, he pressed his lips back to hers. Getting a good coating of the stuff that even the napkin could not get rid of yet he was happy enough that it wasn’t up his nose. That was all he asked as he smiled lightly against her kiss. Truthfully, too in love with the woman to be too mad at her yet he could pretend. Pulling his lips from hers only to lick up a bit of icing from her cheek if only to get her going further.

Erin

As their kiss broke in exchange for his tongue there against her cheek, there was a hard bite to her lower lip that could not be denied.  The ever helpful concierge stood nearby with two damp towels to assist the couple in cleaning up, yet he was ignored by Erin entirely as she fell victim to her new husband’s antics.  “Evil.  Pure evil,” she whispered just loud enough for him to hear her.  A slight shift of her head and she was stealing his lips again which seemed to be a near constant tonight as she couldn’t seem to quite keep her hands or lips off this husband of hers.

C.J.

“and all yours.” he assisted as she called him evil, not denying it but merely reminding her of what she had done that evening. Pressing his lips back to hers with a light smile. Humming low to her lips as his arms took to around her waist. The two were a bit excessive and they both knew it but they had worked for this and anyone in attendance would be hard pressed to find two human beings who loved another more than these two as his own love far exceeded the bounds that he would have ever allowed for himself yet he found himself unable to regret it.

Erin

“Mmm,” she hummed, quite liking the promise that he was /all/ hers for the rest of her life.  The guests would disperse a bit, returning to that which they had been enjoying before the spectacle of the cake while the wait staff came to slice the rest of the cake for the guests.  Finding that glass he had abandoned for the cake cutting, she finished off the contents of it before leaving it there on the edge of a table.  “You feeling drunk yet?” she asked, teasing him as she attempted to gauge his status of just how prepared he was for his grand display of drunkenness, as if they really needed it to get out of there.  Leaning into his ear, she whispered quietly, “because I’m definitely feeling like getting out of here and out of this dress.”  A gentle reminder to him as to what was at stake here as she took the opportunity to lightly nip at his ear.

C.J.

"No, turns out...I don't gotta be drunk if I have buttercream in my nasal passages. I get out for free." Pointing out these new rules, reaching for that wet towel for his neck, face and anywhere else she had touched as he felt her at his ear. Smiling softly at the reminder. "I'm definitely feeling like I'd like to get you out of that dress." He added as he knew they were getting closer. Now approaching that final step.

Erin

As the towels were offered, she’d take hers, yet didn’t move for a long moment after hearing his own comment about the state of her dress.  If only that dance didn’t mean anything to her, they could be halfway to the villa by now.  She realized it, weighed it, thought on it, but ultimately she’d use that damp towel to clean up her face and hands before returning it to the more than willing to help concierge.  A moment of thanks to him before she was turning around to find her husband there before her, taking his towel to do the same with.  “Just how bad do you want me out of this dress?” she asked, intent to keep their goals firmly in their minds even as they went through to the only thing left holding them back.  

C.J.

Hearing her question after he had handed back that towel. Arms still to her waist as he smirked lowly. Lips finding her ear. "So bad that if I don't get it soon, I'm going to have to request a new towel." Flashing her a telling smirk as he met her eyes. Seeing exactly what she'd think of that even if he'd hold her to this first dance as he knew it would mean alot to her.

Erin

His sentiment there would be met with a drawn out whine from the woman letting him know just how he got to her in moments such as those.  “Then I suppose now’s as good a time as any to tell you I forgot to wear panties?” she asked, giving him no time at all to respond to that before she was turning there in his arms, her hands stealing his as she led him out to the center of the tables where a clearing resided.  Music already played over the speaker system, yet she’d wait for no formal announcement before she was turning back towards him, grinning from ear to ear as her arms swept up around his neck.  

C.J.

"Perfect time " he assured her as it was just enough to see him through. Feeling her guide him to the floor. Watching as she turned around, feeling her at his neck as his hands wound around her. A lose grip to allow movement as his eyes remain caught on her. A low breath leaving him. "I swear, you get more and more beautiful. I get older and greyer and you get better looking."

Erin

There was something to it, which he’d learn if he hadn’t already; if she wore a dress, she’d more than likely forego undergarments.  It had been true at the gala and it was true now, as it would more than likely be anytime she found herself in a dress.  As she found herself wrapped in his embrace, he’d drop the insinuations that had followed them through the last twenty minutes or so in exchange for a sentiment she wouldn’t quite know what to do with.  Her cheeks flushed as she met his eyes, bringing one hand from behind his neck to allow her finger to barely graze his nose.  “/If/ I get better looking, it’s because /someone/ has made me the happiest woman alive,” she deflected, putting the blame to him as she always would.  Bringing that hand to the side of his neck, softly swaying there to the music as she let her own words settle in on her.  It was true.  Never in her life had she been as happy or complete as she was with him.  “Married to the sexiest man alive,” she added only a moment later as it was more than true for her.  Soft fingertips there at the scruff of his face, graying just as he swore it to be, and yet never as attractive to her as he was in that very moment.

C.J.

"I don't know about that but you definitely get better looking." Able to agree to that much as he'd let her sway lead him to begin his gentle steps. Hearing her statement which had a roll of his eyes as he felt her to his face. "You wish you were." He teased as he allowed a step back that would work as half steps until they found their stride. "Until you get to marry him, you are stuck with me."

Erin

Letting him guide this dance as she would every one before and any to come as he knew her dancing all too well on its own, though she’d continue to deny it to this day, she couldn’t deny the eye roll her words were met with.  It was expected, though what he’d follow with might not have been.  Only in the interest of playing into what he’d offer there, she’d nod her head.  “Suppose I’ll be making the best of it,” she teased as though it could be true that her time there was only a holding pattern, though she knew he knew differently.  As he guided their steps, she brought herself in closer, allowing her head to rest there at his chest.  The music had been turned up at the spotting of the couple taking the dance floor which would soon prompt others to do the same.  “So is this what an interpretive dance major gets me?” she asked, cutting her eyes up with a telling smirk there at her lips.

C.J.

"You sound disappointed." He teased at her suggestion about his made-up major. Though truthfully, he'd usually come up with a much different one as he met her eyes and her smirk. "The NYU dance program isn't what it used to be..." he continued as he pressed his lips to the tip of her nose. "We can't all be professional twerkers."

Erin

“Not at all,” she’d return quickly at the idea of disappointment.  She could never be disappointed, yet she’d catch that hint of teasing a bit more momentarily.  “Ah hah hah,” she offered, highly drawn out, at his little mention there, the first time the woman wouldn’t deny it; a little wedding gift for him, though he’d never get her to confess it any further than she did in that very moment.  “How about you shut up and kiss me,” she stated confidently, her hand there to the side of his face, urging him to complete that which he’d been charged with.  

C.J.

"Mmm...love it when you get fiesty." He confessed as she well knew as he leaned forward. Pressing his lips firmly back to hers without hesitation as she'd only need to say that once to get him answering that call. Half steps turning into full steps as they allowed themselves a little more freedom. Somehow managing all the same. Hands passing up her midback. Fingertips already aching with the desire to see that thing off of her and for the two to just exist in their private capacity. Finding it hilarious how all they had wanted was the public and now all they wanted was to go back.

Erin

As his lips found hers, she couldn’t resist the smile initially, letting him kiss it away as her hand found the back of his neck.  Deft fingertips held tight to him as she tilted her head slightly to the side.  The kiss was both expected and dangerous all at the same time as each bit of contact such as this had her mind closer and closer to the bedroom of the villa.  Though there were certainly eyes on the couple, she couldn’t feel any of them as it was as though they were dancing together in the privacy of their villa, exchanging a kiss that could easily lead somewhere else.  A soft hum of warning there at her lips as he felt her hands passing up her back.  Never once thinking of the steps her feet were taking as she purely held onto him, letting him take her in whichever direction he saw fit.  Slowly breaking the kiss, her forehead found the front of his shirt, leaning into him as she gave him every indication in that maneuver alone that she was ready when he was.

C.J.

Feeling her break the majesty of that kiss speaking words that were not yet invented, he felt her to his chest. Lips finding the top of her head as he rubbed her back. The final notes of the song laid out before they buying them their window to exit as he glanced down towards her. A light whisper. "There we have it." He stated honestly as his hand found the side of her neck. Bringing her to him for a lasting and firm kiss.

Erin

As the notes of the song concluded, she couldn’t hear them for her focus had shifted entirely to the words he offered.  The shift of his hand to the side of her neck had her lifting her chin to him just as it always would.  The promise in that kiss spoke loudly to her as she heard guarantees of a life together as well as whisperings of that which was just a couple hundred yards away within a villa without a dress.  The soft burn of his kiss to her lips held her attention fully as her grip to the back of his neck tightened with the intensity of that which he offered to her.  Giving up her lower lip to him, a private offering that she hoped he’d understand as she brought both of her feet to step up onto his toes in a way she had long ago done so.  If the last kiss hadn’t left her wanting him, this one would complete the task as her hand slipped down from the back of his neck to play at one of the buttons of his shirt, threatening if he didn’t soon get them out of there, she could not be held accountable for her actions.

C.J.

Feeling her step onto his shoes, he had to smile tellingly into the kiss. A way to come completely full circle. From there to here where he had attempted to convince her that he could see her through to the finish line. That he wasn’t a game, that he could be her end all if she’d just give him a chance. Part of him wanted to remind her, another part kept that part to himself as he felt her to the button of his shirt. Smiling softly as he was pulling back. “Alright, ready to say goodnight?” he asked, stepping out of that dancing formation to find her hand where he was taking a step forward to find his mother and say goodnight. Really the only person here he’d go out of his way to personally say goodnight to.

Erin

“Mhm,” she offered in return to his question, lips luring there to the curve of his neck just once as she dared to push this a bit further.  She’d only wish to thank the hotel manager as well as Hank for helping get the unit to Vegas, as well as the photographer and… Letting go of all of it, there was no one that she couldn’t thank the following day.  Instead of freeing herself from him in that moment, she’d lean into him instead, finding her place there to his side, molded against him as her head rested against his chest where anyone would be hard pressed to get her free of the man.  She had one place in mind and it was not in a sea of people, but with the only person who was over the age of fifteen that actually mattered to her in that moment.  Her hand at his chest continued with the threat of that button, putting him on a new time clock if there were any he wished to bid goodnight to, for the woman could not be trusted, as easily seen at multiple spots throughout their relationship.

C.J.

Managing to get to his mother somewhat easy who was already ready to head back towards the room anyway as she had exchanged duties of watching the boys briefly to catch the rest of the reception. Stealing a hug from her, knowing the two had been through alot that day but for good reason as he told her he loved her and waved off a few other people as they were making their exit finally. Arm sweeping around her to allow her to lead them out towards their location as he wasn’t entirely sure he could get there himself.

Erin

Though every bone in the woman’s body wanted to be heading back to the villa already, she wouldn’t let it affect the manner in which she partook in the goodbyes that came in their direction as they attempted their stealthy move there, but wound up caught a time or two.  Finally, they were able to slip off.  Feeling his arm there around her a little firmer than before, she’d draw her own around his back, linking her finger to the back pocket of his pants as she guided them back down that path towards the last villa at the end of the row where the rest of the guests were mostly staying.  Glancing up at him as they walked, there was a smile that seemed to be endless to her face at this point.  “Did you have a good time?” she asked, knowing he hadn’t wanted anything this big, in truth, neither had she, but all in all she thought it had been a good time and hoped he felt the same way.

C.J.

“Yeah, of course.” the question seemed to not give it all enough credit. The wash of feelings intense but he’d give her that much. A good time. “You did good.” he stated honestly, having completely taken him off guard from the beginning and that alone was impressive for the instinctive man. “I know we had discussed before just going to the court house but…I think I preferred it this way.” he confessed truthfully as he always wanted her to have this. It just seemed like something that was important. Something to look back on. Those memories. Feeling her in his back pocket as they made their way towards their location for the evening. “How about you?” he asked, arm draping over her shoulders.

Erin

“I did,” she promised, though she couldn’t take credit for doing well here.  Most of it had been at the hands of the hotel manager who asked her very little in preparation and took it upon himself to give the two of them a proper wedding and celebration.  In truth, it was as much for the boys as it was for them, and that’s the way she had wanted it.  “Is it wrong that I’m glad it’s over?” she asked, only able to imagine that so many others in their position must feel the same way at the end of it all.  It was great, done well, and certainly something to remember, but at the end of it all, she just wanted to be with him.  

C.J.

“No, I think that is a good thing…I mean if you were having too much fun there and didn’t want to be with me…” shrugging, as he might have been slightly insulted by the suggestion, he liked this much better. His eyes glancing down towards hers before he flashed her a telling smile. “Wife.” he stated simply, just to hear the sound of it leaving his own lips as he quite liked the way it sounded. Knowing he was going to be repeating the word to himself for weeks to come in the realization that he had one in the first place.

Erin

“Oh, I don’t think there is anything to worry about in that department,” she promised as her hand gripped against his ass there within his pocket as a telling smirk stole her features.  A hum found her lips as he heard him refer to her in that new title; one she had thought to avoid like the plague.  “I’m /your/ wife,” she stated as they neared the door of their own villa where she’d stop for just a moment outside of the door.  “Don’t kill me…” she whispered, her hand easing out from his pocket to bring it there against the side of his face.  “But could we go kiss the boys before we go in for the night?” she asked, her eyes drifting to the villa there next to their own where the boys were surely already tucked into bed for the night.

C.J.

As she stopped him, he could only imagine what she'd suggest. Yet, hearing her mention the boys, he was quickly smiling. "Because I could be mad at you for that?" A reminder that he had married the right woman who wanted to say goodnight to a pair of boys most likely deep asleep and unable to remember it anyway. "God, I love you." Thoroughly exasperated with the thought, he let her lead him once again to the right place.

Erin

As he reminded her that he couldn’t be mad at her for it, a brilliant smile swept her features.  “I love you too,” she promised, pressing a quick kiss to his lips as she made that turn towards the villa next to their own.  She knew they were probably asleep, but it was still the same.  Though tonight was meant to be for herself and C.J., it was every bit about those boys as well and she took seriously every promise she’d made to them.  There was only twenty feet or so between small buildings there, leading them to the doorway in just a moment’s time.  Since they’d bid farewell to his mother back at the reception, she wasn’t quite sure who was in the rotation to sit with the boys, prompting her to lift a tiny hand to knock against the wooden structure.

C.J.

Feeling a bit funny knocking on the door, it would only take a moment until a familiar face was opening it. Yet, one had hadn’t seen in a good while with the exception of the wedding; his uncle who had been checked in for the task. Greeting him in Italian before the man was congratulation him. Wrapping him in a dense hug with a kiss to the cheek though the man bore a stark resemblance to C.J. or atleast what he would look like. The old school Costra Nostra type. Explaining that they were here to check on the boys where only then he’d let them in, teasing that he wouldn’t stop them from their time as he glanced down to Erin to explain that they could go in. “You shoulda’ used that Rosetta Stone kit I got you for Christmas…”

Erin

Every word spoken was not understood by the woman as she stood beside C.J., only waiting until someone did her a favor there of translating or moving so she could go kiss the boys goodnight.  As C.J. teased her, she nodded her head, sarcasm dripping from her lips.  “I keep meaning to when I’m bored off my ass, but it just always seems to slip my mind,” she teased back as the woman had barely any down time as it was, not to mention enough time to learn a foreign language.  Nudging her elbow gently into him, she’d smirk up to him before they were let through the door.  “If I learned the language, what would I need you for?” she asked, slipping through the doorway before him in search of the boys.  With the villa laid out exactly the same way as their own, it wasn’t hard to find the room housing two sleeping boys sharing a Queen sized bed.  “They didn’t want to sleep in their own rooms?” she asked, leaning against the door, not wanting to wake them, though she’d slip in momentarily.

C.J.

“They’re not used to being apart.” he reminded her as the two did most things together, only able to imagine what the day would look like when they went off to different schools as he watched her slipping into the room. Following a moment later as his hand found her back. Approaching the edge of the bed where the two were completely clonked out making him smirk softly as he leaned over. A kiss ontop of J’s head who was laying completely across the bed. Ironic considering he was the biggest of the two and leaving Bash to lay amongst the side of the bed to find room.

Erin

At C.J.’s guiding, the two entered the room where the boys were fast asleep.  They easily looked two to three years younger each as the two approached, something Erin could only imagine as three years was before her time.  A part of her would always wish she’d been there from the beginning and yet she’d be glad for the fact that she knew the boys had taken the time to get to know her before words of ‘I love you’ or ‘mom’ were exchanged.  Letting C.J. take the first kiss to each, she’d follow him before she was satisfied that they could retire to their own room for the night with the promise of bar b q’s throughout the following day in which they would be united as a family.  It wasn’t hard to remember a time that she wouldn’t enter the boy’s room when they were sleeping or getting ready for bed, always bidding her goodnights to them at the bottom of the stairs, and now she felt like such an intricate part of the goodnight process that she couldn’t stand to be next door and not be a part of it.  

C.J.

“He just keeps growing.” he marveled at the sight of his oldest there as she took her own kisses and he found Bash’s head. “He looks like he ate his brother.” he continued, a shake of his head as it was nearly amazing him just waiting the two sleep side by side. Glancing back towards his now wife and only able to imagine she felt much the same considering her own height as he was walking back towards the door to avoid waking either of them up though he knew they slept hard. Feeling a little too sentimental for his own good in that moment.

Erin

As he dropped back, she’d place her hand against each one’s forehead for a single moment before withdrawing.  In truth, she never thought she’d grow so attached, yet her attachment ran deeper than she could ever put into words even though she’d attempted to do so earlier that night by way of vows to the each of them.  Finally turning, she’d exit the room, pulling the door barely to the door jam before she was back at C.J.’s side once more.  Glancing up at him with a soft nod of her head, indicating without the need for words that she was more than ready now without further delay.

C.J.

Watching her get the door to the jam, leaving it open as he guided her from the hallway and towards the door. Waving goodbye to his uncle with a few more exchanges of Italian, only glancing down towards Erin as he remembered specifically warning her that there would be alot of thing to look forward to as they got to the front door. Holding it open for her.

Erin

Hearing C.J. and his uncle speaking to one another served as a reminder to her instantly that she really should spend some time at least learning the language to understand it, if not to speak it.  Feeling his hand there to her back, guiding her down the hallway of the villa, she’d step through first and to the outdoors once again, albeit a brief time frame they’d be between one villa to the other.  Once they were outside, the door closed behind them, she turned around all at once, both arms coming up around his neck as she’d allow no further delay in getting where the two had worked towards for the better part of an hour now.  Taking a step backwards, she’d start them on their way, yet allowing him to guide her entirely, trusting him as she lifted to her toes to steal his lips, not caring who could see them from the reception still in full swing not too far away.

C.J.

Watching her turn, he smirked softly at how they’d manage this one. Each guided step back as he felt her to his lips and his arms wound around her midsection. Assuring he wasn’t moving too fast and past her control as his eyes remained open to navigate the way. Fingers already smoothed over the back of that dress. Remembering clasps, exploring so he could manage to get her out of it without assistance yet little would she realize his diplomatic start to this task as that far villa wasn’t too far off thankfully.

Erin

As his hands smoothed down the back of her dress, she thought he was searching to see if those promises of the lack of undergarments were true, yet she couldn’t be more wrong of the man’s intentions there.  The texture of the ground would alter between the two sidewalks until she once again felt the concrete under her feet.  Not bothering to bring a hand behind her to protect herself, she put every ounce of trust in the man; a far cry from the first time she’d relinquished control to him to get through a doorway.  Tilting her head further to the side, one hand finding the back of his head, luring him deeper into that kiss as her tongue swept the part of his lips.  She was unrelenting as she challenged him to get them into the villa without breaking that which she had started there between them.

C.J.

Feeling her parting her lips, he allowed his own to do the same. His tongue rolling out to meet her yet his patience was thinning here. There wasn’t much more but just enough to challenge his patience. Pulling back from her briefly, his eyes met hers before his arms were sweeping down. Some women got carried over the threshold, Erin would get carried all the way back as his patience was non-existent by this point. One arm underneath of her legs and the other to the back of her shoulder. “Consider yourself lucky I can’t toss you over my shoulder in this thing…”

Erin

As he broke the kiss, there was nearly a whine at her lips, but feeling his arm sweep against the back of her knees, she seemed to understand, replacing that threat of a whine with a smirk to her lips as her arms remained there around his neck.  A hum at his suggestion, as she had truly expected him to do just that actually.  This was better, she thought, as her lips found the curve of his neck, ensuring the building desire within the both of them was not given a second to burn out.  “I consider myself lucky regardless,” she reminded him as her teeth found the lower curve of his ear, her tongue ghosting against that same curve.

C.J.

“Mmm…” he hummed simply as he felt her at his neck and ear, doing what he expected of her as she was a true tease through and through as he spotted the villa coming closer. Long strides getting them there in a minute or two which was easily the longest few of his life as they finally got to that front door. Leaning down so she could manage the door knob considering his hands were rather occupied. Groaning dramatically at the way he had to bend at the knees to let this happen though he was quite alright and had to make a showing of it.

Erin

When first he’d lean down for her to attempt the doorknob, her arms tensed around his neck at the fear of falling until she realized what he was doing there.  A laugh at her lips as she nipped against his neck in retribution for scaring her and she was reaching down for the doorknob.  “A guy I dated once threatened to kick a door in that wouldn’t cooperate, though I was straddling him at the time…” she seemed to recall, speaking of him, yet masking it as though it could have been another.  Finally grasping the handle just right, she pushed the door open as she returned to her hold around his neck, a telling smirk there to her lips.  “Where was I?” she asked, a telling smirk there to her lips as she brought one hand around to the side of his neck.  Soft fingertips barely touching his flesh as she trailed from his neck to his ear, around his jaw to his lips.  “I don’t think I remember…” she teased.

C.J.

“Yeah, give me a minute and I would have kicked down that door.” he threatened, showing her he was still just as capable but he was thinking of her and any potential security deposits. As she opened the door and he felt her return to his neck allowing him to straighten his knees. Hearing her question as he took a step in. Closing the door much easier as he simply pressed his foot to it and heard it close behind them as he felt her at his neck and jaw. “Better figure it out before your ass hits this bed.” he challenged as he thought she had remembered just fine.

Erin

“Are you threatening me with a good time, Mister Lindsay?” she teased, nipping at the curve of his neck as she thought to just push the man far enough to see what his threat would include.  “Wait, wait,” she offered, reaching as far as she could behind him, yet unable to accomplish the task.  “I don’t think you want company, do ya?” she asked, meeting his eyes with a warning before her lips found his neck right where she’d left off again.  “I know I don’t want anyone seeing what is /mine/,” she offered, finally able to say the words and they mean absolutely everything that they possibly could.  He’d been hers for a very long time now, and yet now he was hers in the eyes of the law as well.  Bringing her hand there to the top of his shirt, she’d quickly work to undo several buttons, allowing her to that place against the man’s shoulder she’d marked for the first time nearly two years prior.  A place he told her to mark him and make him hers.  The same place she’d seek now as her free hand pulled at the fabric of his shirt to allow her to that place.  A bite of her teeth before her lips would meet his flesh again, a place that had been marked again and again, where she now sought to do the same.

C.J.

Getting the door closed with his foot, he heard her mentioning what was hers. Somehow getting away with that ‘Mister Lindsay’ comment but just this once. Feeling her to his shirt as he walked her to that master bedroom. Already knowing the layout from that previous experience. Feeling her working at something yet not quite sure what until he felt her at his shoulder. This night already speaking to unimaginable symbolism between the two as he felt her mark coming to fruition before he was settling her down on that bed as his knees found the edge of it. Not daring to disrupt her.

Erin

The moment she felt the bed beneath her, she’d bring both hands against his shirt, carefully tugging at the lower hem that had been tucked in for their service.  One button at a time, she already had a head start here as she gently pulled the fabric free of him, letting it fall where it may to allow her the full access to his shoulder she’d desire.  Altering there between soft bites and the suction behind her lips, allowing for a strong mark there to his flesh just as she had left on him that first time, asking for no permission in her present endeavor.  Drawing back slowly, her eyes scanning over the place she’d intentionally taken for her own, she’d slowly allow her eyes to follow the curve of his shoulder there to his neck, finding his eyes by the time a trademark half smile had taken her features.  “You can carry me to bed any time you like,” she offered, having found it quite the throwback to that night in her old apartment, when desires were heightened and they were constantly alone.  Stealing a soft kiss there at his lips before she’d draw back to find his eyes once more.  One hand lifting to rest to the side of his neck as she let the moment simply hang there between them.  

C.J.

As he felt her pulling his shirt off all together, he felt her draw back. Knowing without a doubt that she had left quite the impressive little impression there to his flesh yet it was hers to take more now than ever. As her eyes met his, however, he smiled as he heard her throwback. Pressing his lips back to hers as his eyes connected with hers. In such a rush to get there and now he merely wanted to breathe in that moment as his hand found the side of her face. Eyes gliding down to her lips before back to her eyes. “You have single handedly made me the happiest man on this earth.” he confessed, as he wasn’t sure he’d ever have enough words to explain his gratitude.

Erin

There were moments throughout the last two years that would simply take her breath away.  She didn’t deserve this man’s love and attention, nor had she ever, and though she’d found a way to almost feel like she did, it was in these moments, when his sentiment was so thick and she had nothing to possibly offer him that she would find herself simply breathless.  Her lip quivered as she drew in a breath there, catching the shift of his eyes before he would speak words that would render her speechless.  Her hand there to the side of his neck would fall slowly as she gave him the time and space with her that he had allowed her there at his shoulder, though he was choosing a far different route than she had.  A slow bite was there to her lower lip as she resisted the urge to kiss him, hazel eyes set to his as her head leaned into the palm of his hand.  It would take her a moment before finally she’d have her wits about her again, evident there in the light behind her eyes.  “You make it easy,” she assured him as the man certainly didn’t ask for much, nor was he difficult to please.  It was easy to love him.  It had forever been easy to love him.  Never was there anything that stood in the way and offered a real challenge, not once she was out of their way, that is.  

C.J.

Hearing her mention making it easy once she got her bearings, he shook his head simply. “It wasn’t.” he reminded her, as she had to overcome alot of his history and past to get to this point. Not many would have stood before a man responsible for several murders and call him easy yet there she was. Knowing that there was nothing he would not do to protect his family or enact vengeance on those who had been hurt along the way. “but you took it like it was, like I knew you would. Somehow.” he stated, not an act of confidence or meaning to sound cocky. Just knowing that when he looked at this woman that something about her spoke to her patience and her ability to see past what others could not just as he could do for her. Pressing his forehead to hers as his hands reached inback of her to find her out of that dress.

Erin

There were a million things she could have said here to defend that he had guided her through it every step of the way and that it was he that deserved the credit here, not her.  She could have told him that it was because of his patience with her that she could easily do the same with him.  There were many things she might have offered here, but none of them could have amounted to anything because he simply wouldn’t hear her on this and for that, she’d love him more.  Wanting to give her credit even when she wasn’t so sure she deserved any for all she did was fall for the man.  Feeling his hands there to the back of her dress, she felt his forehead there at her own.  Bringing both of her hands to either side of his face as his eyes were there to her own, she’d softly kiss his lips for but a moment before she was whispering simply, “I love you.”  It was her only explanation as to why they were there and why they had gotten through the complications that had presented themselves.  He was drawing out something from within her that was always just beneath the surface with her.  A sentiment.  An emotional experience.  As he felt about her, she was just as equally in awe of the way he loved her, with her flaws and running tactics, her fears and her walls.  He invested in her in ways she never could have anticipated and yet the woman felt as if loving him was the only possible way to repay him for his gentle hands throughout.  “And I’m going to love you for the rest of my life,” she promised, as it was easily the most honest thing she could have said to him in that moment.

C.J.

Smiling softly as he mentioned loving her for the rest of her life. A good trade of. “and that is the best thing I could ever ask for.” he stated simply as he managed to find the way to wedge her out of that dress one clasp at a time as he was hungry to shed the skin of the day and just to exist with her. To be themselves outside of their clothing. “as I love you for the rest of mine.” he returned, as it was both a promise and an easy guarantee as he’d never be able to detox himself of her and all she meant to not only him but his family as he leaned up slightly to better work that dress off of her as carefully as he could manage knowing such a thing was normally kept.

Erin

Far too many buttons and clasps resided against the back of the otherwise simple dress.  As he worked there through each one, she could feel his care in the unhooking, taking far more time than she’d have imagined him to take.  His promise of loving her for the rest of his brought a full smile to the woman’s face as her lips could no longer resist his.  Both hands to the sides of his face, she forced her weight against him as he leaned up, finding her feet there at the floor once again as it would be easier for them both if she were to help him a bit.  Once she was standing before him, her kiss slowly drifted down from his lips, off the side of his jaw, the curve of his neck, his chest, attempting to lure herself slowly away from him.  She’d turn around, offering her back to him as she swept her hair over one shoulder, allowing him to see the inner workings of each one to accomplish safe removal of the dress.

C.J.

Being more careful than he'd like to be for the sake of her dress, his lips finding the back of her shoulder as he managed each clasp and button bit by bit. Humming low at it thoroughly tested his patience but would be well worth it as more and more of her bare back became revealed to him. Lips tasting her skin. "Alright..." he stated simply, thinking he got it as he guided a thick layer from her shoulders and watched it slowly fall where his arms and hands were hardly letting her step out of it before he was at her.

Erin

The kiss to her back would be enough to hold her over, keeping things intimate between the two as he settled into that daunting task of the buttons to the back of her dress.  A soft hum was there at her lips as she closed her eyes, allowing herself to simply be present in that moment.  Once the last button was undone, she could feel instant relief as the dress had been literally a second skin to the woman’s upper body.  A breath of pure relief under the heat of the fabric was released as she heard his ‘alright.’  With just the smallest maneuver, the fabric was pooling at her ankles as she felt his hands there against her instantly.  Not yet stepping away from the fabric as that one task had rendered her completely bare to him with the exception of her shoes.  Leaning back against him, she turned her head as her hand found the side of his face, forcing the turn of his head there as her lips stole his over her shoulder.

C.J.

Pressing his lips back to hers from over her shoulder as his hands took in the inventory of her there below his fingertips. Hands settling at her sides as she was about to lose her height advantage there yet he’d allow it for a bit younger. Her kiss being too good to pull away from. Still, he’d get her entirely bare before she got him so and he knew it. His hands passing up her sides and back down to find her hips as his tongue drew over her bottom lip in attempt to further that kiss.

Erin

The tracing of his tongue against her lips had her instantly parting to him.  No longer able to remain with her back to him, she turned into him, her hand moving to the back of his neck, her bare body pressing into his as she remained within her shoes in the center of that dress on the floor.  Her tongue slipped through into the confines of his mouth, his taste flooding her senses as a soft whine radiated through their joined lips.  Drawing one knee there to the edge of the bed again, attempting to bring him over with her, one hand gripped to the back of his upper arm.  Overcome with emotion as he had more than set this scene with her, striking on the emotional sea that raged beneath the surface of the woman, a place that he had broken through to time and time again.

C.J.

Hearing the sound of her whine as he allowed her closer to that bed. Guiding himself forward to see her all the way back against the bed until they were both meeting it. Finally. Lips parted and welcoming the flow of her tongue over his as he inhaled deeply. The warmth of her taste flooding him as he was seeing himself over her. A hand finding the back of her knee before his lips were slowly leaving her. Reaching down to guide off both of her shoes as he leaned back up slightly. “Time to lose your sudden growth spurt…” the man teased slightly before he was returning back over her.

Erin

There was nothing quite so intoxicating as that which he offered her the moment his tongue smoothed over her own.  Her senses lit on fire beneath him as he guided her there to her back against the bed.  Wanting nothing more than this, right here, for as long as it could possibly last, in a space where time didn’t seem to exist.  Two years had led to this moment, where the two were one now in every way.  Feeling his hand against her thigh to the back of her knee, his kiss stolen for the man to slip off her shoes.  A soft smile graced her lips as he took away the four inch boost she’d held throughout the night.  In truth, her feet throbbed from the heels she was not accustomed to wearing, prompting a sigh of relief the moment they were removed.  “You could have taken them three hours ago and that would’ve been alright with me,” she confessed as they were merely there to keep that dress from dragging the ground any worse than it already did.  Feeling him back over her, she’d realize she had more than a little catching up to do as he still had everything with the exception of his shirt and he’d managed to undress her entirely.  A hum found her lips as she sought to even the playing field a little, bringing her hands down his chest to find the top of his pants.  A tilt of her head and her lips were finding the curve of his neck as her fingers worked there at the man’s belt, unbuckling it so that she could access the button beneath.

C.J.

“I wish.” he stated honestly, as to get her out of anything a bit earlier would have felt like a blessing as he felt her finding his own dress pants as she also sought out his neck. His own fingers brushing through her hair as he settled into the feel of her while she also worked at his belt and pants. Drawing in the scent of her as his own hand smoothed up her stomach. Hungry to let his lips explore this woman as he’d allow her the chance to get him a bit more undressed yet she was on borrowed time. His need to devour her drawing to the forefront.

Erin

He had taken his time, and so would she, knowing just how absolutely torturous it was, while also being blissfully aware of just how sweet it would taste when finally he was set free.  Slowly unfastening that button as her lips ghosted against the curve of his neck to the place at his shoulder that had taken its color quite well.  A slight adjustment and she was there at the zipper of his pants as she allowed her tongue to slip past the part of her lips to taste of the man’s skin as she slowly drug the zipper downward.  She knew she was on borrowed time here, but just as she sought to push him previously, she’d do the same here.  Feeling his hand there at her stomach, his touch only seeming to lay out his plan as he attempted to control his desires momentarily, the smirk to his shoulder would give her away.  “C.J.?” she whispered, her voice cracking under the weight of his name, attempting to lure his attention there to her eyes once more.

C.J.

“Hm?” he asked as he managed to focus for all of a minute to meet her eyes, feeling her working down his zipper and finally getting some freedom here as even seeing her bare to her skin was enough to send the blood rushing south. She’d never have to work too hard for that as his light eyes sought out hers. Only able to wonder what was going on in that head of hers as he heard the crack of her voice and his lips briefly finding hers once more before he’d allow her to speak as the back of his fingers found her cheek tenderly.

Erin

The smirk that would follow his kiss would say it all as her hands grasped either side of his pants, boxers caught in tiny fists as she pulled down the fabric there all at once, her lips fusing to his as her plan had simply been to draw his attention so that she could steal his lips as she freed the man from the confines of his clothing.  Stealing his lower lip for a moment if only to allow her teeth to nip at that lower tier.  Drawing back all at once as her touch returned to the same soft, gentle nature that had been there a moment before.  Innocence painted her features as she met his eyes as though nothing had just happened there.  “I love you,” she whispered, returning to his lips with a slow burning kiss as her fingertips ghosted against his flesh from his sides up his back.  Forever playful in nature here, each indulgent pass of her lips against his only led to wonder when and if she’d turn the volume back up once again.

C.J.

“And I love you.” he returned, seeing right through her in that moment as she drew down his pants and boxers all in one fowl swoop. Feeling her at his bottom lip as he met her eyes and flashed her a telling smile. “and I love you.” he repeated, pressing his lips back to hers as he felt her to his back. Literally sending shivers up her spine which she’d be able to recognize as his body briefly tightened over her. Hand sweeping down as his fingers grazed the bone structure of her hip.

Erin

His first statement was met with a smile, one where her very soul would show through the hazel of her eyes as if to say she’d felt his words to her very core.  The second was met with a hum there against his lips as she felt the man tensing over her at the path of her fingertips.  Keeping her touch just as soft as she could, barely touching the man’s flesh, she felt his hand there at her hip.  Drawing her leg there against his side at the prompting of his touch, she could feel him there, protruding against her, tempting her touch, yet she’d remain as she was for the moment.  Her lips leisurely freed of his as she lowered her head down against the bed to meet his eyes, no longer playing with the man here.  As her hands made their way up his back, she’d draw them there against the sides of his neck, following the contour of his shoulders, stalling against the place she’d claimed him time and time again.  

C.J.

Feeling her passing to his shoulders after his neck, he felt her leg at his side. Knowing she’d be able to feel him there as his lips took to the side of her own neck before he was slipping down. Beginning that familiar detour that she’d recognize as the urge to taste her was entirely too strong to pass up. Especially not on this night. His own subtle way of reminding her of who she had married. A man who was never a selfish lover but occasionally liked to play with her teasingly if nothing else even in this capacity. Lips finding her chest as he stopped just over the beat of her heart.

Erin

The sigh at her lips was nothing but sheer pleasure and anticipation as she felt his lips there to the side of her neck.  Her own hand found the back of his neck, while the other remained against his shoulder, encouraging this path of his as she always would, even while knowing it would lead to her undoing.  With a strong bite to her lower lip as he took his time there against her flesh, pausing just over her heart beat which seemed to race under his lips.  Glancing down to meet his eyes as her hand slowly made the curve from his shoulder to find his hand.  Linking her fingers through his, her grip was firm as she was denied access to his lips.  Her desire for him strong enough to stop him, telling him she wanted him now, and yet at the same time she would not dare for it would be a disservice to the both of them.  

C.J.

Feeling the grip to her hand, he'd return it. Surprised she hasn't complained yet as it was always a personal goal of him to earn a complaint. Patience wasn't her strong suit and it never had been as his lips pressed firmer to her chest and that pulse that was now of his possession. Hips grinding forward as his lips pressed to the other side of her chest. Pressing over the swell of her cleavage. A free hand reaching out where his fingers would pass through her hair.

Erin

Something about that night was putting the woman on her best behavior, or at least as best as it got for Erin.  She was trying to be patient.  Trying to give him this space to enjoy her flesh for the first time as his wife.  She was trying, but it would only be a matter of time before that window would close and she’d give up the idea of gifting this time to him.  As his kiss found her breast, his hand to her hair, she gripped his hand tighter there in her own.  “I don’t think you want to kill your wife an hour after marrying her,” she warned, a verbal complaint masked in a reminder as her own patience would begin to run thin here.  “Your wife,” she repeated, finding herself hung up on the title and the elimination of the ‘ladyfriend’ she’d been under for far too long.  “Wife,” she stated again, a soft whine falling from her lips as she felt that grind of his hips against her own.  Teasing. She recognized it all too well, but would expect nothing less of the man in this capacity.  

C.J.

“Mmm…wifefriend.” he attempted, showing he’d be able to find a loopfriend to this as he tried not to laugh. Knowing he was in for it for that one but it was too good to resist as he loved the woman to pieces and had the right to do these things. Or so he believed. Feeling her grip against him at her warning as he’d lightly arch up on his arms to allow his lips to travel further down. Passing over the swell of her cleavage where he stood at the fork of the road as he could either continue onto this path and distract his hips from hers and go for her truly or to quicken up the process and skip to step 3.

Erin

A whine of intense disapproval crossed her lips as this new title he attempted to bestow upon her.  “No, no way… no… w i f e,” she demanded.  It was wife or it was Erin, but it was not going to be any variation of ladyfriend, not after she’d done the time there to earn her way out of it.  As he continued down, finding his lips against her abdomen, her stomach tensed beneath.  Bringing one hand to the back of his head, her fingers slipping between strands of dark hair as she let her eyes close in that moment.  A whisper there at her lips as her thoughts came to the surface, perhaps for the first time in all sincerity.  “Wouldn’t it be something if that wasn’t so flat?” she asked, a roundabout way of suggesting that maybe she get off the pill they’d waited so long to take effect two years prior.  Her eyes glanced down as she searched for a reaction there on his features, wondering what he would think of such a suggestion.  It wasn’t something that could be done here, as chemicals still had ahold of her in that regard, but she thought maybe in the weeks to come.  Her nerves igniting beneath his kiss to her stomach as her anticipation for the route he would take set in, mixed with that which she’d just suggested to him, riding on the momentum of the night and revealing a true desire there in that moment.

C.J.

“What was that? Wifefriend?” still playing along as he made his decision, no blatant yanking him back up as he felt her fingers through his hair as he allowed himself to draw further down her stomach. Assuring her bareflesh didn’t go an inch without the touch of his lips as his hands passed down the sides of her thighs. Hearing her speak which drew a loud and proud smile out of him as it felt nice to, for once, be on the same page with her in pace of these steps.”I can’t wait for that day. Gonna’ have to get you a bumper sticker. ‘Dimpled Baby on the way.’” he teased as his hands drew down her side, lips finding just under her navel.

Erin

She’d never forgotten the day he promised her dimpled babies, even if it had been before she loved him, before she liked him, in days where she barely tolerated him.  Yet, she’d hold him to that promise.  In that moment between her suggestion and his reaction to it, she felt those nerves within her, only to feel them completely relax the moment she found that smile to his features, prompting the same from her own.  “You drop the wifefriend bit here and I’ll give you more dimpled babies,” she assured, as if this were an even exchange as she felt his hands down the sides of her thighs, sending a chain reaction up her spine.  A soft exhale there at her lips as she felt his lips drifting lower against her stomach, suddenly able to put down the idea of rushing the man and returning to the idea of letting him have her body entirely, in his own time, as he couldn’t be argued with here anyway.  

C.J.

“But Wifefriend…” sighing low as he wanted both. He had always wanted both. He loved kids, he loved his boys and he loved being a father. He also loved seeing her in that capacity. He had always known her to be maternal. It was, as they both knew, one of the reasons he had fallen for her the way he had in the first place. She was so good with his kids that those new to the fold would be surprised to learn that she was not their biological mother. So seamless was her fit that both of the boys seemed to have forgotten as well with the occasional slip from J which were becoming less and less. Still,  he wanted her to experience that. For the both of them. “dimpled babies that take after their mother.” he continued as he pressed his chin briefly into her abdomen to glance up towards her.

Erin

She’d done well up until this point in time.  She’d made the suggestion in a fleeting manner that had been accepted in the best way she could have ever imagined.  She’d attempted a negotiation on the matter.  It was all just right in her mind, right up until his suggestion that the dimpled ones to come should take after her.  As his eyes met hers up the landscape of her own flesh from his position he’d worked so hard to get to, all at once the woman was lifting up, sitting before him, her hands vacating their residences to take either side of his face into her palms.  “Dimpled babies that take after us both,” she corrected, the sound of emotion flooding over the woman’s endlessly raspy tone only forcing her voice to break a little harder than it usually did.  Drawing her lips into his, she stole his kiss as the two seemed to devise their own plan there just hours after taking their vows.  “I love you,” she whispered to his lips, not vacating the kiss entirely to speak the sentiment into life there before she was returning to the soft pressure of her lips against his without missing a moment as she attempted to hold back that emotion threatening her.

C.J.

Feeling her lift up before she found his face, he heard her statement which drew a shake of his head. He already had two that took after him, he wanted one of her now. Pressing his lips back to hers before he heard her whisper which had him leaning back towards her. Lowering himself back over her as a hand found the side of her neck. “I love you.” he returned, seizing the opportunity to strengthen that kiss.

Erin

As he met her kiss, returning the same promise there to her that she had to him, she felt the depth of his kiss igniting there against her own.  If love was enough to impregnate her, the birth control wouldn’t be strong enough to stop them.  One hand remained there to the side of his face as the other found the back of his neck, lowering herself there with him back against the bed as he came over her.  Wrapping one leg there around the man’s hip as the other bent at his side, wanting nothing more than to find herself indefinitely closer to the man physically as she fully felt the closeness emotionally to him in that moment hitting levels she couldn’t quite explain, nor would she be foolish enough to attempt such a thing, knowing well that it needn’t be explained or put into words.  Her fingertips tightened there at the back of his neck as she attempted to hold this kiss, for within it the emotion wouldn’t take her over entirely, or so she thought.  

C.J.

Ready to feel just as close physically to her as he did emotionally in that moment, he was ready to complete the synopsis as his free hand was drawing at her panties. This kind of connection people spent their entire life waiting for. The physical easily achieved yet not always to their level of fire while the emotional was something to be strived for. Pressing closer into her, the man was suddenly shifting. Lips moving from hers as he switched their positions. Pulling her ontop of him before his lips were fusing back to hers.

Erin

As his hand moved to the fabric of her panties, she’d shift herself accordingly to help him see them free of her before all at once, she found herself over top of him as his lips returned to hers once more.  The break being brief, she almost wasn’t sure how it had happened, but then again, it was C.J. and things could literally turn upside down in this manner in a hurry.  There to his lips, her smile stole the kiss for a moment as she simply couldn’t help herself.  Seeing her panties off the edge of the bed, her knees drew to either side of him as one hand pressed to the bed just beside his head.  Stealing that kiss away all at once, she took advantage of the opportunity to meet his eyes as her nose barely touched the tip of his.  “You’re playing with me,” she accused, that smile still remaining to her lips as her hazel eyes set to his.  Feeling his bare body there against hers, the two would never last long separated in this position or any other with their clothes no longer stopping them.  Bringing her hand from the side of his face down between them, she’d seek him out with a tiny hand wrapping around him as she kept her hips slightly elevated, stroking the man gently there within her palm, only seeking to tempt him further as she was more than tempted and moments away from stealing away any semblance of taking it slow here as she had grown impatient and he had given her the upper hand by position alone.

C.J.

Hearing her suggestion as she pulled her lips back, meeting her eyes as he gave up a telling smirk. Meeting her eyes as his hands swept around her. Drinking in the feeling of her warm and bare flesh over him as it felt entirely too good just to have her near and close in this capacity. “Noooo…” spoken like a man who would never do such a thing as he allowed for build-up. Feeling her hand slip down and it was here that she’d find what she was after as he drew in a deep breath. Lips returning to hers as one of his hands found the back of her neck to retain that kiss.

Erin

Judging eyes met his disagreement with her accusation until the moment she felt his hand take the back of her neck, drawing her into that kiss with or without her permission.  Entirely wrapped up in this man, he could quite literally do no wrong here, fully entitled to steal her kiss any time he should wish and she’d never be disappointed by it.  Her lips fused to his, regaining the intensity they had seemed to give up for the last several minutes, making no secret of the depths of her own desire for him.  Her hand guided up his length if only to slip away momentarily to find her own entrance.  Her tongue traced the part of his lips, threatening to take the kiss that much further as her fingertips drew against her flesh, stealing the lubrication there from herself, bringing that warmth against him as she slipped her hand down his length once more, guiding the head of his cock against her as she traced her part with the tip.

C.J.

Gripping at her hip, his lips parting to allow his own tongue to roll forward and mesh over hers. The distribution of warmth against him earning a deep inhale and even more so with the looming threat of her heat. Hand tightened against her bone structure to show her exactly what he thought of that. Feeling entirely too sensitive to the woman in that moment not only physically but emotionally as the two had now meshed their souls and left it for their bodies to obey as well. All hers just as he had always been since the day they met whether she’d realize it or not. Tongue smoothing over hers.

Erin

The feeling of his lips parting to her own request was followed by the taste she knew and craved, regarding it truly as her home as she felt his tongue smoothing there against her own.  She tilted her head slightly to the side to accommodate the two better while slowly guiding the head of his cock from her clit to her entrance, continuing to toy with the man there since he enjoyed doing it to her so much.  The difference, he could pull it off.  The temptation was too great for her, resulting in her lowering herself against him, forcing him there within her just a few inches as a whimper radiated from her mouth into the confines of his.  She paused only a moment before she was lowering her hips that much further, her tongue gliding against his as she slipped her hand from there between them, bringing her fingertips up to his lower lip as she drew out of the kiss to give the man the taste she had denied him of previously.

C.J.

Feeling him meeting her in any capacity had a light sigh to his lips which she’d recognize clearly. The sound of unashamed pleasure had he had no shame in showing her that. If the woman only knew a fraction of the way he felt about her, she’d feel the most overwhelming love of her life for even that fraction far surpassed what many men had on their best days. Feeling her lowering herself to him as her hips took over. Feeling her at his lower lip as he leaned into better meet her kiss. “Mmm…I love you.” he hummed to her lips.

Erin

Drawing her fingertip away from his lips as he spoke, her smile met his hum.  “And I love you,” she reminded him, stealing his phrasing there as it was generally her who spilled the words first, or at least that was what she’d claim endlessly.  Meeting his kiss once more, she’d lower herself a bit more, then further, until her hips were coming flush with his with no space left between.  The tension within her inner walls throbbed at the pressure he provided within her, generating a whine there against his lips.  He’d been there within her a million times before and it wouldn’t stop the utter appreciation she held for the way he felt, filling her, completing her.  Unable to maintain the kiss, she lowered her chin to steal her lips free of his, drawing in a slow breath there at his chest as she slowly shifted her hips there against him.  

-July 19, 2016

#lindsayxquitxlollygagging #dimplesfordays #2016 #vegas #bashsmash #minicj #lincianolife #addicteddetectives