The shower was just enough to get the stench of death and vomit off of his body. His clothing had done a fantastic job of keeping him relatively clean, leaving him morbidly satisfied with the addition of the polymer under-layer from the previous iteration. In the end, it was mostly sweat… He wished guilt and shame could wash off, but that wasn't something he could ask for.
In truth, he figured that penance meant sitting with this new weight on his chest.

He didn't expect such instant relief from hearing Trisha's voice again, however. He kept his Channeler close, White Lux enhancing his senses so that even as he showered from below, he could clearly hear her. Not to spy, just… Comfort. He did his best to drown out the concepts. Drown out the voice of the man on the other end that he could also hear.
He didn't blame the guy for being nervous: He was too. Especially now, knowing that something like what he'd just done could be asked of him at any time. The needless slaughter.

Casey hoped then that she'd had a good night. She had to have… Anything else was just a time bomb. Still, he tried to hold off heading up until she was done, but the enchanted loofah was just too good at its job. So, out and dry, a set of clothes from his locker, and he was up the stairs. He opened the front door quietly, stepping in and starting to move down the hall.

“Gotta go, boyfriend's home, I'll send you that honey—"

Casey heard Ezra's questioning voice on the other end before the line went dead. He didn't stop at the doorway to their den, rather turning and heading up the stairs to make way for the laundry hamper. Dirty, sweaty undergarments went in, and for a moment he sat frozen as he tried to get the look of abject sadness off his face. For her. Even though he felt a great deal of relief at her voice and the sight of his beloved Trisha, it was still gruelling. Painful to think about.

He only hoped she wouldn't ask.

It didn’t take long for Trisha to appear at the top of the stairs. The sweater of his that she was wearing practically swamped her, sleeves having unbundled so that her hands weren’t visible at all. It was obvious to her that whatever Casey had been doing either hadn’t gone well, or the job in the first place was shit. Temple business. She didn’t want to know - and she didn’t want to make him explain it. Especially not after all the things she’d already found out tonight… she didn’t want to think about it.

“Hey,” she said softly, hesitating at first even though her feet shuffled towards him. She wanted to hug him, but she didn’t want to risk him pushing her away. Would he? She didn’t know where his head was at. But the bees didn’t share any of her reservations, a couple of them flying from in her hair and onto his shoulder. One was the one that had ‘defended’ her against her phone, wiggling its little body and letting off pheromones that were as close to bragging as a bee could get.

Not that Casey would understand them.
“I take it you’re all done? I just got off the phone with my brother- the oldest one, Ezra.” She stood right in front of him now, pushing away her worries to loosely wrap her arms around his shoulders. The bees scurried out of the way and onto his neck.
“It wasn’t as bad as I expected- aside from him calling me stupid a couple of times. Tansy told him about us… but as soon as he found out there might be some profit involved cause of the honey he seemed to accept everything. Not that he can make me do anything, but it was one of the few proper conversations I think I’ve had with him. Kind of funny now that I’m stepping away from my family.” Trisha offered up a brief summary of the phone call openly - none of what they’d talked about, aside from maybe Ezra’s insistence Casey was honey potting her, were things she didn’t want to tell him. And she kind of hoped by talking about it they could just… not talk about the meeting she’d attended just before.

She'd be able to see Casey's hand clutching his glove. The Channeler he so desperately wanted to put away forever. Whether the association between that and his magical senses would be made, he didn't know. The bee on his shoulder was something bright, and he turned his head to watch it crawl about slightly.

”He… Uh… Shit…”
He was about to try and comfort her about the situation, but there'd be no chance of her not knowing then. For a moment he was frozen stiff, his head slowly but surely turning down to look at the glove. It called back to him. His fist tightened before he flung it off the overhang of the loft, down into the area by the front door.

”God fucking dammit… Shut it off, fucking shut it off…”
Casey brought his empty hands up to his face, clasping and pulling the skin in frustration. Within a moment, he'd slid closer to the top of the stairs and stretched his arm out to scoop Trisha by the hips. He dragged her closer, onto the bed where they could intertwine and become one.

”Is he nervous? About… Us?”
Us could've been them as a couple, but it wasn't. Us was the Temple. The cult thing. He knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from her lips: To give her the chance to explain it herself, even though he expected her to avoid it.

Trisha rolled her eyes, though it wasn’t at Casey - it was at the question, and what her brother was actually worried about. She took a moment to answer as she cuddled in closer, suppressing the slight trembling in her limbs from his initial reaction. It hadn’t been at her, it was something else…
“Nervous for his reputation. He doesn’t actually care. He caught wind of the…” she trailed off, frowning. She didn’t really want to go into the details, about how Ezra had gone on and on about how he just wanted her for her name and money. Because there was that deep down anxiety that Casey didn’t actually love her - and she’d been wrong so many times before. But not this time. Definitely not this time.

“He knew about the cult stuff.” Thankfully for Casey, and not so much Trisha, there was still enough alcohol in her system for her to be a little more honest… or at least, a little less able to filter what was in her brain from coming out her mouth.
“He’s convinced I’m going to join and he’ll end up dealing with paparazzi questioning him about it during those stupid press conferences he holds. So yeah, I guess he’s nervous, but only cause he thinks I’m blind to it all and going to do something that’ll negatively affect him.”

”It isn't your fault our society is like that… Not everyone has magical foresight, or tolerance for things outside the norm. I empathize with his position.”
Maybe she wouldn't want to hear that. But Casey knew exactly what kind of risks came from doing business with the Temple.. So, how was he supposed to tell her that he didn’t think what he was asking for was a good idea without saying it?
”Little scandals can cost a lot of money… People go to Andrade’s restaurants at first because they just hear the press talking. Cult Chef this and Goat-Sacrificing Gourmand that. But then they taste the food, and they come back. The rich get a thrill from it. But, for him? What, he runs like… A conglomerate practically. Chairman of the board of whatever? People in his circles are always looking to bring one another down.”

He hugged her closer, partly because he could feel her tensing up but partly because he didn’t want her running from the moment. He needed her, and the distraction of a conversation that wasn’t about how work went. Trisha would be able to hear the disinterest in his voice turn to engagement.
”But, you also can’t tell him that we can cover him, can you? I’m sure he wouldn’t want that even if he did know. Or, maybe he would; I don’t really know him. Maybe magic would be everything he’s ever wished for.” he shrugged his shoulders, dislodging a bee from Trisha’s hair accidentally.

“He’d probably start looking for ways to profit from it,” Trisha snorted. The dislodged bee let out an annoyed buzz, but the consistent, low level comforting pheromones Trisha was giving out stopped it from taking any action beyond crawling back into her hair, nestling in deeper.
“I already know what scandals can do for his business- the ‘family’ business, whatever. Tansy’s caused plenty. It’s always been fine in the end.” Trisha herself had probably caused a few too, but thankfully smaller and more mundane than ‘being part of a cult.’

“I can’t tell him- and I won’t. He wouldn’t believe it… Especially not from me. But you can cover me, right? As long as nothing gets out about me then it’s fine. Ezra’s worries are solved, he doesn’t hear anything, it’s all fine.” It was a cut off, really, from the conversation going much further. She didn’t want to get into it - into the worries she now had, or how she really thought she needed some kind of contract for her business…

”Of course… Whatever you feel comfortable asking us to do, I’ll make sure it’s done. Press, Lawyers, Notaries… I want you to be confident that this isn’t just some crazy… Ploy. I know it probably sounds crazy even for me to say that, but-”
He cut himself off, letting his voice trail off as his head turned to look at her. He was doing his best to not sound like he expected her to react.

Trisha narrowed her eyes at him for a moment, lips pressed together. Why would he think she thought it was a ploy? Was he questioning her feelings- his feelings? No, no, it was just reassurance. She forced herself to push back down the irritation that was so ready to jump out. She just wanted to relax, and cuddle him, and feel fine for a while. It was fine.
“Just the Press. I have my own lawyer- as long as whoever is on the Temple side of the honey business is willing to sign contracts to do with it.” She tried to sound confident and like she knew what the fuck she was doing, and it wasn’t all just stuff Ezra had told her. She’d been too relaxed about it all…

“And I know it isn’t ‘some crazy ploy.’ If it was, you would’ve chosen a better Vanburen.” She continued, meeting his eyes with an almost… joking light in her own. A self deprecating joke, perhaps.

Casey couldn’t help but giggle, shaking his head.
”You’re the best Vanburen to me.”
His hands slowly slipped up to her face, both hands cradling her cheeks. He placed a tender kiss on her lips, letting his forehead rest against hers. When he finally pulled away, he looked at her with dreamy eyes and a slight smile.
”Coming home to you will always be worth the price of living in this nightmare world. You’re a blessing in my life.” he did his best not to break down.

For a moment, he saw Mary’s face. Her fury and rage. The face that nearly killed him… Because he hesitated. He gave himself up, because he hoped they’d run.
This nightmare world.
Clearing his throat, he turned his head into his own arm so he wouldn’t accidentally cough on her, then sniffled.
”B-but… Yeah. Contracts. I guess none of that ever got settled. I’ll call Elise tomorrow and we’ll schedule something. Negotiate or whatever. I doubt it’ll be too much of an issue.”

Thoughtlessly, the next question left his lips.
”Speaking of honey and bees and issues… Did you talk to Tamara and Dadonda?” he asked so innocently, as if he was a child who hadn’t set her up.

Trisha let out a light huff as the topic moved on from things she didn’t particularly want to talk about, to another she didn’t particularly want to talk about. But it was the one question she was alright to answer. The one good thing that came out of going to that meeting - aside from maybe the strange revelation that Layla wasn’t so awful.

“Yeah, I did. Gin was pretty insistent I talk to them to see if Dadonda could get the Queen to come out. It was almost like someone planned it all out.” She paused, tilting her head up and narrowing her eyes at him again. It was more teasing this time - because it was fine, he’d been doing something nice for her. It wasn’t his fault all that shit had happened in the run up to it. After forcing him to wait a little bit, just staring at him, she eventually relented.
“It worked. She came out for a bit as an extra big, ghost bee. She’s promised to help me more too… but no, she won’t come out now. I asked earlier. She’s gone back to sleep. She said that she’d help me with my magic too, so… that was nice. That went well.”

He was suddenly grinning from ear to ear.
”I fucking knew it! Who else but Dadonda!? Yessssss!” he subtly pumped his fist before pulling Trisha extra close. His body rocked back and forth slightly.
”God damn, I’m so fucking proud of you…”
And then he turned his head slightly to look at her chest, poking her in the sternum gently.
”And you! In there! Thanks for fuckin’ showing up, Lady! You made Trisha happy!”

Beaming, he started trying to pull away.
”This calls for fruit! Fruit party for the bees, come on! We’ll get to chopping, then bring it into the hive for them!”

“Babe, it’s the middle of the night. Most of them are asleep. We can do it tomorrow.” Trisha tried to say gently, because he was happy for her, but there was a hint of harshness in her tone that suggested she wouldn’t really take any arguments against it. At the same time, she enacted the Trisha special - arms and legs wrapping around him to prevent him from pulling away like he was trying to.
“And I’m tired too. I’ve had to deal with a lot today.”

Casey didn’t really hear Trisha when she said she had to deal with a lot. He felt a slight lurch in his brain that hung him up on a thousand questions… But he settled for one, because ultimately he couldn’t fathom what’d been so hard that she didn’t want to celebrate such a great thing.
”Like… What?”
The tone was all wrong, like he couldn’t keep the sensation of skepticism out of his voice.
”Did you kill someone today?”

“Do I need to kill someone to be tired?” Trisha went tense immediately, limbs around Casey loosening as they started to withdraw towards herself. She didn’t really get the implication there… had he forgotten what had happened that morning? Even without all the shit that happened at the meeting, it was still enough.
“I fought with Lila, remember? Then I had to deal with Leon being a dick- twice- and Alizée being a dick- also twice. So yeah, I’m tired, but you can go give the bees fruit yourself if you want.” Her tone and body language screamed bitterness and irritation now.

Casey felt her getting colder almost instantly. He tensed in return, not only in body, but in speech.
”Yeah, right Trisha. Like me, wanting to do something nice, is asking a lot of effort out of you. Christ, I figured you’d be game; you don’t even have to cut the fucking fruit.”
Swearing probably wasn’t the greatest method of de escalation. Pushing himself up, he sat with one leg pulled close and the other dangling off the bed.
”I know for a fact that the keylime you ate should’ve given you plenty of extra energy for the day… So why don’t you just come out and say that it was fucking horrible and that you never want to go again. Spare me the excitement that you maybe actually met people who you want to see again… And what about Leon, huh? What’d he say to you now that I need to make a fucking problem over? I know he’s still awake, I’ll fucking go and make it a problem right now if that’s what you want!”

Trisha sat up too, knees pulled in tight to her chest and arms wrapped around her legs. Her hidden hands clenched into the fabric covering them. She scowled at him, all that pent up agitation that had barely been taken out on Leon and Alizée coming right back up.
“It’s not the people at the meeting. They were fine!-” Bar Alizée and the weird Sycamore Fanfiction circle-
“-Yeah, it was fucking horrible, but not because of them. Do you really want to know what Leon said? Which one, the first or second time? Let’s start with the second time. Because yeah, I want to make that a problem- but not with him.”

As she spoke her voice got colder - though her tone didn’t get any louder. She wasn’t shouting like she had been with Leon. Her entire body was tight, and she was angry, but it was cold vitriol that came out of her lips.
“You’re eating the fucking food, Casey. He told me to keep you away from it when he knew you were eating it- and then used that to one up me and piss me off. Because I do what I want and- and you know what it does. Why are you eating it? Why do I get shit for not preventing it when I can’t.”

Casey’s whole torso reeled back slightly, surprise setting in on his face. His brow furrowed, and he tried to think about what that implied. That… Leon had told her to keep him away from…
”A fucking crescent roll is not going to kill me! Look, I get it, right? Fucking, yeah- Surveillance Cult! Sure! Everyone’s got eyes on everyone! But fuck that, how dare he try to make decisions for me, and how the fuck could you just play along with it!? Like, after dealing with the whole… Y’know, when you first met my folks? How you felt about people seeming to “know” you without ever asking anything in the first place?”

The irony wasn’t lost on him. It was a great big cycle of spy and be spied on, and it was almost endearing to see Trisha so easily slip into it when her interests were on the line.
”But you don’t even ask me? You don’t even think to question what my brother has to say, because you’re so willing to be skeptical about how we do things? Fuck that! Y’know-”
He stopped himself from saying something truly regrettable…
”-I just didn’t picture you being so hypocritical. The only thing I can think of is that you love me, and you’re worried, and you don’t want to see something happen to me. But I’m a big fucking boy, and I grew up eating this fucking food. It’s not a death sentence like they want you to think, Trisha. You can come clean of it, it’s just a matter of not being a fucking pussy like Leon is!”

“Then why did you go back to it?” Trisha hissed, breathing quickening as he managed to poke so many sore spots at once. She wasn’t a hypocrite, she didn’t quite love him yet- didn’t she?- it wasn’t the same.
“Yeah I’m worried, you think he told me and I jumped to do it cause it was Leon- or because I wanted to control you? I haven’t even stopped you from doing anything! I don’t care if it’s not a death sentence- I don’t want to eat it, I don’t want to see you trying to come clean of that shit. I don’t want to start finding black patches inside your mouth! If it’s hypocritical to care, then fine, I’m a hypocrite. Because me subtly making sure we eat takeaway and going to a normal fucking grocery store is the same level as finding out someone’s whole life story without ever talking to them. I’m just a controlling hypocrite who’s doing all of this for myself when I should just trust that everything’s fine.”

She let out a short, bitter laugh and tilted her head back.
“Sorry for being so skeptical about the fucking spying, oppressing cult.”

Oppressing… He trembled. A whole shot ran up and down his body, and every single face of death he’d seen that night crashed into him all at once.
”Oh… Oppressing. So that must’ve come up. How they feel wronged and put down, because we’d just as quickly eat their fucking caspers as we would put them to work doing useful shit? Don’t worry, none of them care when an Adept makes a problem for the upper crust just to have their entire families wiped out. They’d never tell you that we just kill, and kill, and kill up here; and how we do our absolute and ever-loving best to make sure that we don’t have packs of frothing Abcised monsters running around St. Portwell without culling them like rabid dogs!”

Casey stood now, taking a deep breath.
”Or that I’d be happy to let them all do it if it meant they’d shut the fuck up about it. Honestly, I mean congrats to you; you’re either-”
No. No. No.
”-I… I fucking love you. Goodnight, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He turned, made way for the stairs. He’d already said too much.

As Casey stood, Trisha had pushed herself back further onto the bed. Then, as he turned away, that harsh, acrid scent of her fear pheromones filled the air. They weren’t strong enough to get through his emotional field, but he’d felt them hitting up against it just as he smelt them.
“No, no- you’re not just allowed to leave,” Trisha grit out through the panic and anger clutching her at once. See you tomorrow always meant the same thing - a text the next morning ending everything. But it might be worse this time. Would he come back to end things with magical memory erasers and apparition suppression needles because he no longer-

She shot forward to the edge of the bed, hand reaching out to try and grab his wrist. The bees were buzzing agitatedly, clinging to her as her flight pheromones bombarded them. Just ask him to stay, apologise-
“Why didn’t you tell me about the fucking needles?! You think I care about anything else? I can’t lose them- was it so I wouldn’t know before it was too late?!”

Casey turned slowly, a look on his face that Trisha had only seen when he got particularly upset at Leon… When he learned that Leon was talking about her behind her back… The second day they even knew one another.
”Oh… So I could die a thousand deaths as long as you’ve got your bees? Nice… You could’ve said anything else, you could’ve asked me any other way… But that’s the qualifier you decide to make a big note of? You think I care about any- Yeah! Actually, I thought you cared about me, since you want to make a big fucking deal about the fact that I prefer eating bread because the sight and smell of cooked meat makes me fucking sick. And the only way I know I can get enough calories and micros in a day to keep myself in fighting condition without feeling like I want to rip my guts out is Andrade’s fucking bread!”

He didn’t leave… He just stood there, her hand still holding his wrist, and a more and more disgusted look formed. Waiting.

“I- I- I didn’t mean it like that!” Trisha choked out, the bitter smell in the air growing stronger. He hated her, he hated her, he hated-
“I didn’t know! Nobody tells me anything then they get pissed off when I find out and get upset!”

”Because you don’t ask questions, Trisha! You just fucking wait and then get upset at what you don’t know! So, fuck it! I didn’t tell you about the fucking spikes because I know for a fact that if anyone ever so much as got close to you with one of those, I would rip their fucking arms off and feed them to them!”
His other hand gripped the one that was still clinging to him, prying it away before cupping it in both of his massive hands.
”I have zero patience for this right now. For you just assuming that you know how things are going to go… I can feel your anxiety and your nerves, and I understand that you’re under duress. But if you can’t accept the truth that I’m dedicated to you? Then I don’t know how I’m supposed to convince you. You said you didn’t want Temple information, so I don’t provide it. I don’t tell you, because you don’t want to know. You don’t ask questions, so I don’t answer them. I tell you to stay on a set path, you deviate and you get into a fight with some fucking stray pigeon!”

He got real close, crouching next to the bed and leaning in.
”I. Love. You. Nobody is going to hurt you on my watch. But I cannot deal with this right now, because maybe you had a tough night? But I’ve killed to come back home and be excited with you. And you throw it in my fucking face like doing something together isn’t worth the effort. So, congratulations: You started a fight, now you’ve earned the consequence.”

He let her hand go, standing back up.
”Now, am I allowed to go to a different part of the house we share? Or do I have to stand here like you tell me to? Because I’m a fucking moron, and I will just stand here.”

As Casey had gotten close to her, Trisha flinched back slightly- automatically- and her eyes squeezed shut. She heard everything he was saying without really hearing it. He loved her, he wanted to protect her, but he was still leaving- of course he was leaving. All because she’d wanted to just cuddle in bed rather than drag herself back out. Unlike Casey, Trisha didn’t quite have the luxury of an emotional field that protected against her pheromones - in an enclosed space like this she just hit herself with them over and over again.

But he’d let go, he was leaving- no, not leaving, going somewhere else in the house. Or just standing there. But she couldn’t make him do that, no matter how pissed off she was, or how scared she was that he’d leave and come back only to kick her out. But if she made him stay he’d only get more upset at her. It’d just make things worse- weren’t things already at a point of no return? She didn’t know how to explain to him that her believing him and accepting it were two different things. It’d been proved time and time again how unloveable she was. People said one thing, and did another.

“I- I’m not going to control you,” she managed to whisper, opening her eyes again and forcing herself to look at him. She raised a hand to push away the tears that had started to form in her eyes, rubbing at them as if to stop it. She didn’t like crying when it was real.
“You can do what you want.”

Seeing her like this made him want to stay. To sit and resolve it and work things out. But at the same time, he wasn’t sure how he was going to come back from some of the things he said. He wasn’t sure if it was just a matter of time before-
”I wanted to go and chop up fruit and have a nice night with you. But it feels like that was asking a lot, so I’ll make this short and sweet: Do you want to be up here where there’s nothing but you and your thoughts? Or are you going back downstairs to the den where at least you can entertain yourself?”

Trisha sat and stared at him for a moment, as if the question wasn’t directed at her. Her hands were still at her eyes, fighting a losing battle of trying to block a biological function. She’d wanted a nice night too, here. She didn’t understand why that had been such a problem. Why did people always think she just never wanted to put the effort in?
“Downstairs. I have some research to do on my laptop.” An unnecessary explanation to show she wasn’t just going to be having fun or anything. She slowly uncurled her legs to stand up, gaze dropping to the floor.

Casey stepped to the side. He desperately tried to force himself statuesque, but he could feel her pain. Every ache radiating from her half-shattered morale made him feel like he was stuffing the nails into the coffin with his bare hands. So, he simply couldn’t.
His arm reached out, scooped her by the bicep of one arm into his embrace, and held her tightly. Not aggressively tightly, but enough that she couldn’t just sprint away from him.
”I. Love. You. One day you’ll trust me, and you won’t have to ask fucking questions… But it’s important to cool off. Please, think about what you want to really say when we talk again. I’ll think about how I can apologize too… Because we’re not over.”

Trisha trembled lightly in his arms. She couldn’t stop herself from crying now - her hands were at her side, so the tears flowed freely. And she hated it. She was so scared, so attached. She’d done it again, she’d fallen in so deeply that she’d drown before she could crawl out. We’re not over, we’re not over, we’re not over, we’re not over. She repeated it herself, like a mantra to stop herself from lashing out again or just completely breaking.
“Okay.” All that she was able to get out was one quiet word of agreement.

He softened his hold until his hands were just barely touching hers.
”Go on… I’ll get the pillows and blankets.”
It helped him to care… To make sure that it didn’t end with angry shouting. That’s how he’d always seen it end… Angry shouting, then a calm week after. Never resolution. He wondered if his Father had been this way, or if their relationship’s dynamic was different… He’d have died to ask.

---

---

Trisha had tried to do what Casey asked - think about what she really wanted to say. She’d even pulled out one of the notebooks she had stashed in the den after she’d stopped trembling and crying in a blanket bundle, trying to make a list. It wasn't that she couldn't write anything, but that nothing she wrote was right. Too vulnerable, not vulnerable enough, worries about being abandoned poured onto paper before being scribbled out, crumpled up into a ball and thrown into the corner of the room. She knew what she wanted to say but she just couldn't get it out right now.

So she gave up writing it down. Instead she found some video lectures on running businesses, and started watching those - the man somehow more boring than Ezra droning on and on at the low volume she'd set it to. Going back to what she knew, making notes upon notes as she tried to take in knowledge she didn't quite understand, calmed her down a bit. And eventually, the boring videos helped her fall into a light, restless sleep.

It wasn't peaceful.

She was in a dark, empty space. It was cold and lonely. There were no bees. Nothing. She was locked inside. But she could see from it. She could hear. It was her mom. Berating her, calling her a failure. It was all things she’d heard before - but harsher. How she would amount to nothing. Unloveable. Destined to die alone. You deserve to be abandoned. Failure, unable to do a single thing right.

Then she saw Casey. He didn’t say anything. He just looked at her. It was a look of pure disgust. Like he didn’t even want to see her. He didn’t have to say anything for her to know it was over. She was trapped in here alone, unable to do anything but cry and shout for him to not leave her. But he just shook his head, turning his back on her and walking away until he disappeared.

The scene shifted. In the car with Casey, and he kicked her out at Sabrina’s place. Another shift. The park, him breaking up with her. The apartment block gym, him not even looking at her. It shifted and shifted, place to place, none quite like reality but all close enough, and him breaking up with her in every single one. Constantly being left, again and again-

A dark forest. Vaguely familiar, but not at the same time. Somewhere she’d been… a buried memory… dark shadows flickering around her, hunting her. The thick smell of blood hung in the air, and each breath felt like she was choking on glass. There were no bees, just her.


Something close to Casey’s voice whispered in her ear, repeating what he’d said early - but it was distorted, cruel.

The shadows got closer. Sharp claws, dark tendrils that could pierce and choke. She was going to die, she was going to die, she was-

Before the claws sliced through her chest someone jumped in front of her- blocking them, saving her. She could only see his back but she knew him. Casey. Casey was here to-

Short lived relief. Shadowy tendrils pierced through his chest, coming so close to her face without touching it. Blood dripped from them onto her- his blood. He didn’t even make a sound. It was unnatural, but it was- it wasn’t real, right? No, it felt real, the blood sticky on her hands as she tried to catch him even as he slumped onto the ground.

“No, no, no, Casey- Casey please, say something, anything.” The hoarse whispers from her lips were met with silence. He was smiling up at her, even as the light in his eyes started to dim. Tears spilled down her face uncontrollably- no, no, not again.

Casey faded in front of her. Like he was slightly see through, his body overlapped another. Someone else, someone much smaller - someone similarly dying right in front of her. His face was blurry and his features indistinct. Trisha didn’t recognise him, but she knew him. She couldn’t remember, she didn’t want to remember. She refused to remember, this hadn’t happened, it wasn’t real-

Casey-Stranger’s lips moved in sync, mouthing silently.
’At least you’re safe.’

“No, don’t leave me alone, please, don’t-”

---

Trisha woke abruptly, panic still clutching her. She sat bolt upright, curling over herself as she tried to calm herself down. The blankets that Casey had brought down for her were thrown to the side, almost falling off the large couch. The lecturer’s boring voice was still droning on in the background. She reached out to slam her laptop lid shut, silencing it.

What time was it? When had she fallen asleep? Was Casey- no, he wasn’t dead. That was just a nightmare. It had felt so real… but it hadn’t been. Trisha’s hand went to the scar on her abdomen as she tried to calm down. Deep breaths. Look outside. It was just getting light. It was fine. Just a dream.

Casey was probably awake by now. She’d go out, and they’d talk, and it’d be fine. It was all just a dream. One that could become reality… it could all become reality. Trembling slightly, she forced herself to the edge of the couch. Her legs shook as she stood, the floor cold even against her socks. Did Casey not turn on the heating? That was fine, he was tired, they’d argued… Remembering the fight set Trisha off panicking again. She froze, hands clenching and unclenching at her side. She didn’t want to go out. But she had to, she couldn’t stay in here, he’d said he loved her. That they weren’t over.

It would be fine. Taking another deep breath, she pushed open the door and stepped out into the hall. She didn’t see Casey right away. But he appeared as she stepped out, coming from the loft as if called by her waking up. He’d probably heard her, they could-
He had a suitcase in his hand. It was put by the door beside others before he turned around.

Trisha’s blood ran cold. He was looking at her with that look. The one he used last night, the one he used when he was upset at Leon. It lacked any of that warmth and love she normally felt.
”Perfect timing,” he said casually, pointing to the suitcases. ”Get out. We’re over.”

No, please, don’t kick me out, don’t leave me like everyone else, you said we weren’t over, don’t-

---

Trisha woke with a jolt, feeling hundreds of little feet crawling all over her and panicked pheromones bombarding her. She sat up, hands gripping the fabric of Casey’s sweater that she was still wearing. How did she know this was real? The last one seemed so real. What if she just walked out and Casey was there again with the suitcases telling her to leave and-

The bees! There were no bees in the dream, the bees were here now, she could sense them- but maybe this dream was just different. Trisha shoved a shaking hand through the long sleeves, shaking the material out of the way until she was free. The bee that landed on her hand was confused by her command, and hesitant. It stayed there, trembling, for a little bit before it finally did what she asked, and stung her.
“Oh fuck-”

Reality. But that didn’t make it any better. Trisha curled in on herself, chest heaving up and down as her panic pheromones started to fill the room. He might’ve changed his mind. He might really be out there waiting to kick her out- maybe the time away meant he realised he didn’t want to be with her. That he didn’t want to deal with her. That she wasn’t worth it- of course she wasn’t worth it. But she hadn’t meant it. She hadn’t meant that she didn’t care about anything else, that she wanted him to die, she didn’t want to, she l-

But he didn’t know. Had he really calmed down last night? No, maybe it was just to get her out of the room so he could think for a moment and get rid of her and then- but wouldn’t that be better because then he wouldn’t die for me.

He’d done so much for her and she’d just thrown it all away. Why hadn’t she just done what he suggested? No, that wasn’t it, she’d just wanted to stay in bed with him… she hadn’t meant to start a fight… but it happened. And now he knew what she was like a little bit more. He saw what made other people leave her. It was only a matter of time before he did too… at least he didn’t hurt her. Did that matter? It would hurt when he left-

No, he said they weren’t over. He did. They’d promised not to lie to each other. They were going to talk today. She didn’t want to talk today, but she wanted to lose Casey even less…

With the conflicting, panicked thoughts not lessening Trisha had to force herself up. She’d just keep spiralling in her, going from the start of a panic attack to a full one she’d struggle to escape from. If she was fast enough she could get in the bathroom before Casey realised she was awake, and at least make herself look like she wasn’t on the brink of panicking. A shower would help…

Steeling herself, she pushed through the door. She couldn’t see Casey anywhere- her shuffling feet hit something. She looked down to find Casey slumped across the floor in front of her. Immediately she panicked- he’s dead, just like the dream, he- she crouched down, holding a hand under his nose. He was breathing. He was alive. His chest was moving too, she was being stupid, it was fine…

She carefully and quietly stepped over him, daring to make her way up to the loft for a change of clothes. He was still asleep thankfully as she crept back down, practically running into the bathroom and locking the door behind her. A long shower helped push down the panic enough to be manageable. It would be fine. Casey was still there- he’d even fallen asleep right outside the door.

He was still asleep when she came out in a fresh set of comfortable clothes, damp hair lazily tied up into a messy bun. He must be really tired… Trisha quietly stepped past him again to dump her sweaty night clothes in the laundry hamper. Then she went into the den and grabbed a pillow.

Crouching in front of him again, she carefully lifted up his head and slipped the pillow underneath it. At least he’d be a little bit more comfortable… looking at him sleeping for a moment was enough to ease some of the tension she still felt. She really liked him. Even after arguing last night, she still really liked him. And he hadn’t left. Yet. And he wouldn’t! Maybe she could do something for him… to show that she’d listened.

Ten minutes of googling and another ten minutes of hunting through the cupboards later, Trisha had everything she needed to make pancakes. It seemed like the easiest thing to do… perfect for breakfast and something Casey could eat. The recipe even said multiple times about how easy it was. Measure out the dry ingredients- fuck the flour got everywhere- then the wet ones- how the fuck did she crack an egg neatly? Fuck, there was egg shells in it, fuck- Whisk the dry ingredients together- why was flour so easy to get everywhere?! Why was it so white?! Why was she wearing dark clothes?! At least mixing the wet ingredients all together was easier… then pour them in together, and mix. But not too much. Wait, was she meant to add it gradually? Fuck it.

By the time she finished the mixture, there was flour everywhere and at least one egg had fallen on the floor. There was flour all over her too. And she’d just showered! But it was fine. Casey would have no choice but to stay after he saw the effort she’d put in, and it was helping distract her… the next step was actually cooking.

After more cupboard hunting she found a frying pan. It took a while again to get the stove started- it said medium heat, so turning it to the middle was probably right. Maybe a bit lower to be right. The butter thrown on, and loads of it, melted nicely. Then she poured on a bit of the batter. It didn’t make a nice circle, sploding out at the edges, but that was fine too. Taste was what was important. Definitely. But it was taking ages. Maybe it needed oil. She threw in a bit of oil, but it didn’t help. Maybe it wasn’t hot enough. She should turn it up to full-

As Trisha did, the flame got far too big. She panicked, grabbing the pan and tilting it towards the fire. The pancake batter started bubbling and spitting, heating quickly before turning brown then black then on fire incredibly quickly.

Trisha screamed, throwing the flaming pan into the sink. Her hand shot out to turn on the tap, feeling the heat threatening to burn her skin before the cold water splashed on the fire. Perfect, now Casey was going to be upset that she’d nearly started a fire when she was just-

Casey was still asleep. She’d screamed, the room smelt like something was burning (because it was) and he was still asleep. The panic waiting just below the surface clutched her again. He wasn’t okay, there was no way Casey could sleep through that normal, something had happened, was he dying-

“Casey! Casey, wake up. Casey?!” When shouting his name didn’t work she ran over, not caring about the still running tap onto the smouldering remains of her attempted cooking.
“Casey, please wake up, help- I started and stopped a fire and you’re still asleep- Casey?!” She started to shake him as hard as she could, her whole body shaking.

---

The beach was so warm. Southern Mediterranean waters were like the Bahamas… Warm, blue, inviting: It was no wonder the North was so envious… Even the lagoons around Venice weren’t this nice. Tripoli, Libya… They’d been ported here for a week now as the buildup for the crossing was taking place. The target was Sicily, certain forces had already gone ahead to insure that the Mafioso Resistance was on the up enough that they weren’t walking into a death trap, but Casey hadn’t been with them.

This whole waiting thing was hard. Some of the others told him to be careful in the water like this, but it was really the only thing keeping him sane as they waited. It was practically civilian life around here; the troops even had freedoms after working their twelve. You could go off into town to find food, souvenirs, anything you may have a hankering for… It was novelty comfort. Too calm. Too much of a pain.
But here? Swimming around the USS Marigold? So safe. So calm. Everything was fine. He felt the salt-laden water lifting his back so it arched up, relieving pressure from a few spots that otherwise ached.

He wasn’t sure why they ached. He hadn’t taken a fall in the hills outside Rome yet. The Bachelder Beast hadn’t tried to peel his legs off his body like a frog yet…
Oh… Dream, isn’t it?
He opened his eyes finally, looking up at the sun, then out toward the shore. It was empty. No G.I., no civilians… Just the cats.
”What’s the fucking point!?” he called out to them from the water. ”Just because you can?”

”A thank you-” ”-for the meal.”
Their voices reached him easily, not skipping across the water so much as crawling into his ear.
”What meal?”
Awareness in the dream usually meant control. In a flashing instant, Casey’s hand dragged him onto shore several hundred yards away from where he’d been.
”You don’t think we know-” ”-where the dying is?” ”They died in fear-” ”-of you, as they realized-” ”-what was happening.”

Casey took a deep breath. He knew not to engage them how they wanted… But he wasn’t leaving until they were satisfied.
”Fine… It’s yours. Take it from me if you want.”
”Why pluck-” ”-an unripened fruit?”

Oh no…

He could feel eyes from the town. Like the feeling of the enemy staring. Watching. Waiting. He gritted his teeth.
“Casey!?”
“Lord Richoux!”
“The Blade, the Blade!”
“Our hero!”
”GHA-PL-E-ASE! NOOOOOO!”
”HELP! HELP! DON’-”
”Mom? MOM!?”
The screams of their disembodied voices resonated from the buildings like sonic weapons, the soundwaves sending ripples across the water. The last thoughts of the dead, which the Cat had already taken from his brain. The constant blasting of his shotgun rattling off round after round was sonorous, and crushing like a pressure bomb.

At first, Casey tried to stand his ground, but eventually it became so cacophonous that he couldn’t take it. He tried to run back toward the water, diving in head first until everything was a dull and muffled thud.
Everything except-

---

His eyes snapped open to Trisha shaking him. The word fire came out of her mouth in the vague haze he could remember, and he forced himself to his feet like a bolt of lightning. Both of his massive hands practically threw her to the ground. His senses were sharp, and he was instinctively moving toward the smell of burning cookery. Sliding to a stop, his head spun from their woodstove in the outer den over to the kitchen. Black smoke poured from the sink.
”Oh, oh fuck! Babe, not water!”

He rushed over to the sink, finding the smoldering ruins of the pan she used. Thankfully there hadn’t been much oil, or water wouldn’t have been the solution… He quickly shut the water off and made for an oven mitt to grab the scalding hot pan. The black, carbonized lumps at the center gave him a good idea of what happened.
”Jesus… Trisha…? Babe? Are you okay?!” he turned backward, hoping that she’d be standing there.

Even though she’d bashed at least her shoulder off the floor when Casey had practically thrown her onto it, Trisha was quick to scramble back to her feet. After a moment's hesitation, briefly considering bolting into the Den and shutting the door, she trailed after him. She came to a stop just a short distance away, within reaching distance without quite breaching that gap herself.
“I- I’m fine,” she said quietly, intently staring at his feet rather than his face. She looked very much like a kid waiting to be scolded after doing something they knew was wrong. Patches of flour were obvious all over her dark green sweater and black cargo pants, with some even on the tip of her nose.

“I was worried because you didn’t wake up! I screamed and it was burning and you were still asleep when you normally wake up so easily, I thought…” She trailed off, grimacing and deciding not to finish that sentence. She thought he might be dead, somehow, or at least dying - like the dream. Something horrible. Her arms wrapped around herself as she still didn’t look at him, worried about what she might see.
“You’re probably just tired. The recipe seemed easy… it said it was easy… I just wanted to do something nice for you, so you knew I listened, but I ruined that.”

Casey was immediate in his comfort, rushing to her side and tugging her into his embrace. He held her close and tight, shaking his head gently to rub against hers.
”Trisha… Baby, it’s okay. I promise, it’s okay. I’m fine. It was… The fucking cats. Showing me something shitty, but my brain was clinging. Are you sure you’re okay? You didn’t burn yourself, did you? Let me see your hands-”
He pulled away slightly, grabbing her wrists and twisting them gently to see her pristine palms mostly unharmed. He took a deep breath.
”-oh thank God. I… I’m so fucking sorry, we didn’t go over the fire extinguisher…”

But he pulled her in close again, hand rubbing the back of her head now.
”I love you… It’s okay…”

For a moment Trisha just silently nodded, pressing her face into Casey's chest. She was trying her best not to cry, tears forming in the corners of her eyes that she tried her best to hold back… why? It wasn't like anything bad had happened, why was she so weak all of a sudden? Everything was fine… It was just the comfort after everything, it was almost overwhelming. Because she'd been expecting the worst after the dreams and last night, and instead he was just showing how much he cared.

“I saw you die," she whispered, barely audible with her face right against him.
“In my dreams. And- and then this happened… I wanted to show that I do care, I- I was trying, but…" she trailed off, feeling frustrated both at her inability to say what she wanted to while also not being sure if she even wanted to say it in the first place.

“I l-l-" she couldn't- “Like you a lot. I really do."

Casey’s lip quivered for a moment as he considered what she was saying. She didn’t even know if she actually wanted to say the word… It made him laugh. Made him smile. Her caution and quiet fear, feelings he knew but wouldn’t be able to tell her. He didn’t want her to be in pain. Certainly not to conflict her further…
”I like you too… I really do. And I’m not dead; I’m right here with you.”
His head turned. The flour, the eggs, the mess.
”Pancakes? ‘Cuz they’re bread, and you…”

She really was that scared. What’d Leon and the others say to her? Surely it wasn’t about him; nobody had given a fuck a month ago… Were they concerned with her position? Her lack of ability to push against it? Shaking his head, Casey planted a kiss on her forehead and looked down at her face welled with tears.
”Listen to me… I need you to be strong with me. Because these fucking people are going to do whatever they can to make you scared. To get you to run. They’re going to make you worried about every little thing that we do. But I don’t want you to go anywhere. And I don’t want you afraid… Because the fucking cat will smell the food. Do you understand me?” he asked her, softly but very sternly.

Trisha's face scrunched up for a moment as she wriggled her hands up from clutching at his shirt to her eyes, rubbing away the tears that were starting to form. She wasn't scared in a way that would make her run. She was scared about what could happen to him- to them- and that he might decide she wasn't worth it…
“I understand- I'm not going anywhere." Even though her eyes shone with unshed tears, the look she gave him was full of determination. Unwavering.

“I don't care what they do. I'm- I'm already paranoid about everything," she found herself admitting. It was true… after the snake, after all the people that had abandoned her too, it was difficult for her to fully trust anything. Even her own head.
“But I can handle it- I know that sounds ridiculous when I look like this." The last bit was mumbled as she wiped away the remaining tears, her arms dropping back down for a moment before shoving under his to properly hug him back.
“Leon said he didn't tell me because he didn't want me to break up with you. That upset me just as much as the food did."

Casey shook his head. It was quite the opposite of what he thought. He figured…
”I don’t… I don’t wanna start a fight, but if he really withheld the info from you for that reason then… I don’t know, doesn’t that sound like a good thing? I mean I admit, I could be wrong about some things, but that sounds like a wingman thing to me. I don’t like that he gave you shit for it though… We’re both grown: We should be able to make independent decisions, shouldn’t we?”

“We should- but I wouldn't break up with you. You can say that because it's for you- but it means he views me so badly he thinks I'd leave you for something I only care about because I care about you. But I wouldn't. There's nothing he can tell me that'd make me break up with you. It just- it's like that nickname. That's what he thinks of me." Trisha was visibly frustrated, body growing tenser - but she didn't pull away like she did the night before, instead pressing closer to hide her face against him again. She was trying to not start a fight. She really didn't want to.

”Trisha… You just said you’re paranoid about everything, right?-”
He lifted his hand up to her chin, lifting her head to look at him.
”-Part of my new job is to be paranoid about everything. And everything that you’re saying could be true. But I don’t want to be. And I certainly don’t think any of that about you. I don’t think you’d leave, and I don’t want you to. All I want is for us to be on the same page here… That we are both adults who should be allowed to make independent decisions. Right?”

Her lips pressed together as she thought it through. She didn't like being forced to look at him - there was always that fear of what she'd see. But she didn't see that. Instead it meant she couldn't deny his honesty about everything he said. He really didn't think that about her. She knew, he told her… but it was always difficult to believe. But every confirmation of it made her accept it a little more.
“Yeah. We are. I wasn't trying to make decisions for you, I just… panicked. I don't trust magic, and I thought you didn't know… but I should've talked to you." It was a big step for her, really, because it was pretty close to admitting to doing something wrong. Her eyes moved to look off to the side as best as possible when she talked. She really didn't like it, it made all her insecurities start to claw at her, but she wanted to be with him more than she wanted to not admit it.

He playfully followed her eyes with his face, staying in frame as she spoke and smiling as widely as he could. He wasn’t sad or mad; on the contrary, he was elated that she seemed to be accepting.
”And there are some things that I shouldn’t keep from you. I realize… This wasn’t a Temple thing. It’s a me thing. Something I should’ve been more explicit about. I meant what I said; about the whole ‘Man can’t live off bread alone’ shit.”

Casey took a deep breath, eyes closing and chest moving before he spoke again.
”Naturally, I want to qualify things and rant about how nobody has the respect to just check in with one another: But Andrade knows I don’t want the weird side effects. He knows I don’t need extra power from my food. I just need to eat it and be full, and not die from starvation. So, as far as I’m aware- And that’s a very important distinction -there’s nothing besides weird grains from other dimensions used in the breads he makes me. No Apparition juice, no milk of Adeptal Essence. Nothing crazy... I would feed it to you with zero worry, because I trust Andrade. Not all this food is made the same.”

He realized he was probably overexplaining. Maybe he even sounded like an addict trying to justify a habit… Maybe it’d be off putting for her, but if he was preaching about honesty, he could only be honest.

“Grains from other dimensions are pretty crazy to me," Trisha said with a light laugh, while she processed all the rest. If he'd feed it to her that really meant it was fine… probably. It was strange that while she didn't entirely accept that he loved her, she did completely trust that he wanted to protect her. Even if it did have the other things- if he needed it to live, he needed it to live. Seeing him starve to death would be much worse than any of the possible side effects. She just wanted to know about it. It wasn't something she understood, and when Leon first told her about the food he'd made it sound really bad. All that talk about how it was too late for him and the girls…
“I understand… But what happens if you- we- leave? If you can't get the bread from him? I'm not saying you shouldn't eat it, I understand why now, and it is your decision- I'm just thinking about the future. What would we do then?"

He grinned at her.
”Then we would deal with the fact that I can’t eat meat. Or that I don’t want to… At least, not most of the time. I take vitamins and supplements like a normal human… I’m just doing what’s most convenient right now. Who else can say they have a three-star Michelin Chef sending them a bread basket on demand? Besides your brother…”
Giggling, he held onto Trisha tightly, rocking them back and forth.
”I want you to ask questions if you’re not sure about something. If it’s Temple stuff, I’ll tell you that and let you decide if it’s info you still want. Is that a better arrangement for you?”

“Yeah, it is," Trisha nodded, pressing her whole body back against him so her face was once again hidden - but it was more to be as close to him as possible rather than hiding her expression. Asking questions was something she could force herself to do, rather than holding onto things until they exploded out… She tilted her head back up, chin pressed into his chest, before she kept talking.
“If being around meat is that uncomfortable for you I can stop eating it too. I don't really… have many preferences when it comes to food. I'd rather you felt alright when we're eating together. It's not like I need the extra protein or fuel or anything."

”Baby, I want you to eat whatever you want. Just being in the same room as you enjoying your food makes me happy. Besides, there’s only gonna be a few times where I deny a piece of fried chicken… There’s just some things. Red meats, or the raw uncooked stuff. Imagine if you saw someone exploded, right? Like… The aftermath. If you think the food looks like that, the chances are I’m gonna get-”
He wretched a little just thinking about what a steak looked like uncooked on a plate.
”-or… Like tun-ECH”

Casey’s arm lifted up to his mouth, and he shook his head.
”Sorry… Just… Don’t get the sashimi, maybe.”

Trisha's hand came up to gently rub his back, hoping it was at least a little comforting. She'd never really dealt with anything like that… to her food just existed, she ate what she was given without thinking much about it. But she could see how it'd be like that… like how she still struggled with complete darkness alone sometimes.
“I can live without sashimi. And red meat. I don't like raw stuff anyway- and it's not like I'm going to be cooking." She leaned back a little bit again to look at him with a soft smile, hand still rubbing his back.

“I really don't care about food, so it's not a big deal for me. Growing up the food was fancy, but it wasn't like we got what we wanted. Except pizza types I don't really… have food I prefer. Well, I guess I do a bit, but I haven't really thought about it. I don't really… care? I could eat anything and be fine." Or not eat at all.
“I’ll just keep it in mind when I get food."

Casey let the thought linger for a moment before a light turned on in his head. He wasn’t always sure of what to say, so the few safe bets were like prizes.
”You know I appreciate it? Like… Doing it even if I don’t feel like you have to, knowing that you’re thinking of me in your decisions is still really comforting. So thank you. And I’m sorry for being harsh and rude last night. You were right, and I shouldn’t have pushed you knowing what your day was like.”

He turned his head back toward the kitchen, laughed again, then turned his head back to her.
”C’mon… Get dressed or whatever you want; shower, whatever, then we’ll go. We’ll talk to the person at the source together. He can make us breakfast.”

---

---

Trisha washed up, and Casey did the same to the bombed out ruins of their kitchen. Like the classic image of a witch’s house, enchanted cleaning implements sweeped and mopped, and he desperately tried to scrape carbonized flour off the pan. When they left, the broom was still shuffling clouds of flour out the front door.

”Make sure you lock up!” he laughed, speaking to the otherwise unknowing broom. It didn’t speak English, and there was no point in locking the place. People could fucking teleport.

Their ultimate destination was Abrazo Cálido: The Warm Embrace Cafe, and Andrade’s Florida-Cuban diner. Unlike the place they’d been at for his ceremony celebration, the atmosphere as the two of them walked through the double doors into the lobby was cozy. Anything besides austere, it didn’t take itself seriously. There were pictures of gators next to Baseball displays. Glass boxes kept grubby hands from touching world-series winning balls and gloves and jerseys. There were pictures of people Casey didn’t even recognize plastered everywhere. Some had his family.

There was a rather large picture of Gravity Richoux and Andrade; a playful scene of the massive boxing legend sat in front of a comically large stack of pancakes. Andrade was on a stool pouring syrup down the stack, and if one looked close, they could see Lynette holding baby Junior in the background. She was laughing, her head tilted back to the point you’d imagine it hurting.
This place did feel most like a home to him. It was Andrade’s first actual restaurant here in St. Portwell, and despite his stars and his acclaim, his office was here. And so was his bakery.

Every location had to have the ability to bake fresh product, but this place was where the magic really happened. Casey could smell his prize as they entered, and he looked around the packed eatery with a whimsical look in his eye. The host didn’t ask any questions either, instead guiding them to an open booth near the rear of the place. There were menus there, tucked into a little metal pocket on the window side of the table.
”Murray?-” Casey spoke to the host. ”-Can you just go see if he’s got enough time to talk?”
“He” was understood by the experienced Maitre’d, who only nodded in response before shuffling off to the back of the restaurant. Casey smiled across the table at Trisha.

”Uncle Andy will bring us coffee… Did you want anything besides that to drink?” he asked her, his hands sliding up onto the table and opening, offering her a place to rest her own.

Trisha looked around with cautious curiosity as they were led inside, staying close enough to Casey that she was practically his shadow until they reached the table. The place was nice. More comfortable than the other two restaurants of Andrade’s she’d been to. But there was a slight anxiety she might see someone she knew. There was a very real risk Tansy woke up that morning and decided to have breakfast somewhere ‘quaint’ yet still owned by a Michelin Star chef.

Thankfully she didn’t see anyone. She was able to relax a bit more, reaching out to put her hands in Casey’s. Her fingers gently scratched his palm as she smiled at him.
“Probably just some orange juice. Last night wasn’t so bad I need a morning shot,” she lightly joked, still smiling. She was as comfortable as she could be outside of the house - Casey would be able to feel the slight amount of tension she still held in her hands that couldn’t quite stay still on his.
“It’s nice here. It's much more… homely. I like it.”

Reactionarily, his hands gripped hers close so they couldn’t move. It wasn’t aggressive; or he didn’t intend for it to be that way. It was just like a venus fly trap being teased by the bug… The trap shut. His thumb rolled across the top of her hand with his breath.
”The tables all have carvings underneath. You can feel them. If the tables haven’t shuffled, this one has a spot where Elise and I played tic-tac-toe over like six months.” he giggled.
”It’s massive, like twenty rows or something. The idea was to do it blind, so she would come in to work for a day, wash the table, feel underneath for the play. Back and forth like that.”

“Really? Let me see.” Trisha wriggled her fingers as much as she could, trapped as her hands were, until one was let free. She put it under the table and felt around until she found something that felt vaguely like xs and os. Her lips curved up into a smile even as her eyes closed. Hiding the hint of sadness in them… the jealousy. She’d barely been able to stay in the same room as her siblings growing up without a fight happening, nevermind playing any sorts of games. It was only now that she was older she was able to be civil with some of them.

“I think I felt it.” Trisha pulled her hand back up from under the table, going right back to rest on Casey’s. At the same time her eyes opened back up as if she’d just been trying to concentrate on her sense of touch. There was only warmth and softness in them now…
“So you two were close growing up? Or at least, pretty friendly? Anything that isn’t ignoring or fighting seems pretty friendly to me…” she laughed that off, looking down at their hands.
“Who won?”

Casey laughed in turn, shrugging.
”You know how that game is… It was a draw.”
Her question about their closeness was one he rarely considered. They weren’t the best of friends, but Elise was always maternal. Always nurturing. She couldn’t keep her hands out of other peoples’ business.
”Mom put a bit of responsibility on her before she managed to skitter off to New York. Part of that was trying to help me Kindle. So she was always hot and cold. Since the emotions required for Orange and White Lux manipulation are a bit different, she was always trying to push me into making new memories. Really living in the moment. If we were getting into trouble, it’s because she was trying to make a point. Get me to remember these crazy things.”

Courage and Nostalgia. The courage to do, and the nostalgia of having done. They were kids, young teens. He didn’t know if Lynette had prompted her and taught her about it, or if she was just a natural, but now that he had the scope of his White Lux expanded, he knew that all of her work was worth it.
”I love her. She’s not heavy.”
A very casual statement to describe a complicated situation.
”I kind of got it before, but… There’s really no siblings in your family that excite you? Nothing really keeping you there with them?”

“There aren’t,” Trisha answered truthfully. There was no point hiding it - and she’d promised not to lie to him anyway. Even if she was civil with some now - Sabrina, Brooke, Izzy, all of whom she’d managed to live with - it wasn’t like they were close. Roommates more than anything.
“There’s so many of us, and there’s twenty-eight years between the youngest and oldest. I really didn’t get on with any of the ones close to my age. Dad wasn’t exactly around to help, either, just nannies. Some had present moms, some had moms in different places, some didn’t have any at all… Then Tansy was trying to replace them too. It was a mess that just resulted in us all fighting. There’s too much bad blood to fix things now that we’re adults.”

She spoke calmly as if it was something that didn’t really affect her anymore. It wasn’t like she could change her childhood as much as she wanted to. Sure, she was jealous of people with good relationships with their siblings, and the few that somehow had them in her own family. But that would never be her.
“Last night was actually the first time I had a proper conversation with Ezra in… well, forever, I think.”

Casey frowned slightly, his eyes screaming empathy. It was awful, and an awful situation to have grown up in no matter what. Twenty-Eight years between her eldest and her youngest… So many of them could’ve been one another’s parents that Casey didn’t even want to imagine what a closer dynamic could be like. It was a nightmare.
”We’ll keep the family small. I think two would be plenty of kids, don’t you?” he asked, trying to keep it about something that involved the two of them together rather than something amorphous. He didn’t want her upset… Especially not with what was coming.

He hadn’t exactly consulted her on his plan either. That he was going to pull rank- something he hated doing -to prove to her that she didn’t need to worry. Of course, it wasn’t like he was craving that bread or anything… The sweet jam inside the croissant, the little packet of sweetened butter with it. Some of her honey, which he’d been eating without even telling her. He wanted her to feel secure, so that she could in turn feel and understand that she’s loved.

Trisha blushed slightly when Casey brought up them having kids, instantly getting a bit flustered. It was like all those big future things - both something she really wanted but was terrified of. Fear that she'd start thinking about it all, getting comfortable in a future that then disappeared… and other worries, specifically around children. She'd always wanted them, but what if she ended up like her own parents…

But for once she tried not to dwell on that. She was here, right now, with Casey. He brought it up, and he loved her. So for just now she'd try not to worry about it. Just accept it.
“Yeah, I think two would be perfect… Not too far apart, then they'd hopefully be close. I don't want to do… that… more than twice anyway." Trisha's face scrunched up a little bit.
“But it'll never be that small, cause there'll be thousands of bees on top of the four of us."

Nodding, Casey grinned thinking about his kids being absolutely tormented by thousands of bees. They’d be used to it by the time they were old enough to care, but for the first couple of years it’d probably be pretty wild. Good. Kids needed a little bit of magic; that’s something he never disagreed with when it came to his parents. If he hadn’t had so much exposure, if he hadn’t at least been Third-eye’d, maybe he’d never have Kindled… Maybe he’d have just died like the rest of his squad in that hell-pit in China.

”Oh sure, the bees. I mean, that means we really don’t need to even have kids, right? You’ve already taken care of all of that.”

But the moment was broken up by a warm voice and a smile.
”Ahhhhh, Mi Espada!-”
Andrade, hair pulled back in a tail and a smile on his face. He was wearing an apron on top of a rather nice and expensive name brand shirt that Trisha would’ve recognized. He was absolutely polished, shoes and even cufflinks shone in the light coming in from the windows. He had a decanter full of dark brown coffee, several cups, and a pitcher of orange juice on top of a wide platter. Sliding it down, he bent his torso over it to plant a kiss on Casey’s cheek, then on Trisha’s.
”-And the most beautiful girl in St. Portwell!~ How’re you both this morning, what’s going on!?”

Without asking, he slipped into the booth next to Casey and started pouring out coffee.

“Good morning, Andrade," Trisha offered him a smile, though she got a bit more tense again now that it wasn't just the two of them - even though she knew he was going to come over. It wasn't so much him as it was her, that discomfort as soon as a dining table started to fill up and the expectation that something would happen.

“Well, I tried cooking this morning, so we decided to come get breakfast from someone that can actually cook," Trisha said lightly, looking at Casey. The state she'd been in that morning and the circumstances around the cooking weren't ones she wanted to share but… the failed attempt itself was mostly just a bit embarrassing. She knew she couldn't cook, so really it'd gone as expected.
“Nobody told me that making pancakes wasn't actually easy."

Andrade was instantly empathetic. His face became somewhat, if jokingly, sad with a big frown and equally big brown eyes that stared at Trisha.
”Mija, that’s a myth! If you don’t get the batter right, you make shit pancakes- Max used to eat these fucking oat-filled things, they’d be like hardtack by the time they hit the plate. The most surprising thing was that the fuckers didn’t burn!”
Casey made a playful gagging noise remembering the protein cakes his Dad used to make. He looked at Trisha with a conspiratorial smirk.

”By the bag too. Honestly, I’d have sooner eaten what you made than what that guy used to cook for himself.”
”His buddies in the League; this Russian puto with a big stupid fuckin’ head… I always-”
Clearing his throat, Andrade waved his hands off. He divvied out the coffee cups, leaving the creme in the center and the sugar at the side. Then he poured a big glass of orange juice and slid it over to Trisha.

”I uh… I have no excuse- Like many other facilities, we’ve got monitoring. I just like to use mine to make sure I know what my customers want.”
He had a sheepish look on his face, ready to be reprimanded… Casey didn’t skip a beat.
”I’ve already talked to the others- If I’m in your restaurants, I want privacy. I want to feel like a guest, not a fucking person of interest, comprende?”

He raised his hands in return.
”I’m already sorry- It’ll be out of my mind from now on. Comprende.”
Casey’s arm wrapped around Andrade, sliding him closer.
”Good. You get one fuckup, and then I start swinging.”
Andrade only laughed in return.

Trisha's skin crawled at the thought of being monitored - she knew it was likely anywhere Temple, but that didn't mean she had to like it. At least Casey had handled it. If he got privacy at Andrade's restaurants that meant Trisha did too. So she smiled thankfully at Casey, eyes incredibly warm. She didn't bother saying anything about it since he'd dealt with it.
“So long as you take it outside and I can enjoy my meal in peace," she laughed, ignoring the orange juice for now in favour of taking a sip of the coffee. She poured a little bit of creme into it before taking a sip.

“On that, what do you recommend?" Trisha asked, reaching out for a menu and putting it on the table in front of her. She gave it a cursory glance, looking to see if anything jumped out to her - it didn't really, it all looked nice. She wasn't even that hungry anymore, after the talk of spying… but she'd force herself to eat something.
“I like anything, really… just maybe not pancakes. It's too soon."

Casey openly took the pitcher of orange juice, big hands wrapping around under the handle, and took a great swig from it. Great guzzling swigs, until the vessel was half empty. Andrade, who had opened his mouth to give recommendations, was absolutely shocked. Mouth agape, he stared at Casey, who slid it back onto the table. For a moment, his blank expression gave nothing away.
Then he smiled.

”Good juice. Kind of funny, Mom had a life-memory spell kicking around- I can see where the orange came from. Some nice groves in Florida.”
He was grinning like a child. The truth was that he saw that she didn't touch hers. His assumption was that she was simply too nervous and suspicious of it to drink after what Andrade said, so he was going to be her official taste tester. She'd never need to be nervous at a table with him.

”You… Could have asked…-”
Casey simply grinned, the smugness radiating from him. Andrade's face slowly managed to turn back to Trisha.
”-Now, what's good? It's all good. You should get a pastry box for Jumbo here, and the fruit bouquet. We can serve it with all the extra bits for a sweet little breakfast. Or, you can go for the Cuban part of the menu, which I'm proud of.”

Andrade proceeded to explain the different sandwiches and more traditional breakfast options from his home island, and his Floridian influence in them. It wasn't just Cuban sandwiches either; plantain soufflé, beans and rice, enchilada eggs and chorizo sausage…

”If you can't decide on one thing, I'm happy to load up a couple plates with a nice spread for the two of you.”
Casey nodded his head.
”Do you have that soup you serve at Dinner? I want some of that.”
Andrade laughed, hand crossing to pinch Casey on the cheek.
”Rrrrgh, picky boy… Yes, you'll have your soupa.”

Trisha shook her head slightly, mouth still covered to stifle laughter from watching Casey chug down half the pitcher of orange juice. While she wasn’t exactly a fan of him drinking right out of it, she knew he was doing it for her… So that she was comfortable drinking it. Her hand slipped away from her mouth, smiling softly at him, before she pulled over her glass and took a sip. It really was nice…

But there was a lot of choice when it came to food. Everything sounded nice… Well, she wasn’t so sure about soup for breakfast, but that was Casey’s choice.
“I think… the pastry box and fruit bouquet, and some extras… maybe plantain soufflé? I’d like to try a couple of the Cuban things, but I don’t want anything too heavy. Or any meat this early… is that too difficult to put together? I don’t want to be difficult too.” Her eyes squinted cutely, smiling teasingly at Casey.

But before they got any food, she did want to ask… Not that she didn’t trust Casey, or Andrade, but…
“I assume it's all safe?”

Andrade’s eyes narrowed. The question…
”What happened?”

Casey stopped, his expression mirroring Andrade. Uncannily so, actually; it was far easier now to tell who he’d spent more time around, as his expressions seemed to imitate that which left the greatest impression. From what Trisha had seen, Andrade seemed to be an affectionate and passionate individual. Always touching. Always smiling.

”I think it’s a valid question to ask.”
”It’s you two, I-”
”Leon busted us.” Casey replied matter-of-factly.
”Ah…-”
Andrade’s face turned rather flat now, and he bowed his head slightly.
”-Everything’s clean. Our clientele here is mostly Blind, and we maintain relationships with local Blind suppliers through places like this.”

Casey’s face had turned serious, and he leaned into Andrade.
”You’re going to show her the difference between the food you make me, and the food you make Mom… Because she’s scared. And she doesn’t deserve to be worried every time she picks up a fucking chicken wing around us.”
Andrade’s eyes closed, as if he’d been caught in the middle of something he didn’t want to be.
”You… Really are the Blade.” he spoke softly, nodding his head before taking a deep breath. Looking back at Trisha again, he still appeared somewhat remiss. Almost like a child caught in mischief.
”Will you let me put you at ease? As much as I can?” he asked her bluntly.

Trisha’s lip pressed into a thin line, considering it. She didn’t particularly like Casey saying she was scared - sure, it was true, she was worried about the effects of the food on him and what would happen if she ended up eating it too. But she wanted to feel as comfortable as possible with it, because Casey was going to keep eating it… she’d accepted that.
“I will. Casey trusts you, and I trust Casey, so I want to trust you too but… I can’t without seeing it.” Not that she’d entirely trust it when she did, or put her guard down fully, but it would at least help.
“I want to know what my boyfriend’s eating so I don’t have to keep worrying about it.”

Andrade nodded along with what she was saying, taking a deep breath.
”There’s a few… Special muffins. Lyn hasn’t asked for the delivery yet, so…”
The man slid from the booth and stood up. Casey did too, but his outstretched hand was less to reach for Trishas than it was to prevent her from standing up too. He put an arm around Andrade and held him.
”You know what it means to me, right?”
”I do, Niño. We’re on the same side… You need a refresher, it’s yours.-”
He cleared his throat, and Casey released him before sliding back down into the booth.
”I’ll be out in a few minutes, and we’ll go over it.”

And then he turned and left for the kitchen. Casey took a deep breath, then looked at Trisha.
”They need to understand I’m not playing around… I’m sorry to put you on the spot like that.-”
Casey’s hands reached for Trisha’s again between the glasses of drinks.
”-I love you.”

Trisha's hands immediately went for his, fingers curling up in his palm. The tension in her shoulders released slightly at the contact. She understood. Even if she didn’t want to deal with it all… it was better to do it on their terms. Then maybe she could relax just a little bit.
“I know,” she said softly. Because she did know- was impossible not to- even if she was still trying to accept it.
“I don’t really understand… everything with your position, but I don’t want you to be walked over. And I want to know enough to be able to trust that it’s not… hurting you. So it’s fine. I kind of expected this when we came here.”

”Traditionally, I’m responsible for people’s safety. Keeping our flock free of wolves in sheep’s clothing. But Furio set a new precedent; that the Blade is the ultimate judge, jury and executioner. The only voice higher than mine in our lovely little cult is Mom’s… That’s the bottom line. I say jump, people jump. She hopes I’ll fall in line - I hope she knows I won’t.”

He shrugged and shook his head. Even considering that meant thinking about where he’d been last night. What he’d done. The faces, the pain, the gargling of blood. Choking, cloying death. But it was hard when you spend your whole life looking at the people around you as if they’re authority figures. All of a sudden, because one person says so, the dynamic is flipped on its head? It felt wrong, disrespectful even. It was an uneasy thing, and he could only assume that being assertive for now would work.

It did beg the question; if Lynette did know… She wasn’t going to stop him? Or would she? What did she really want?
”It’s all… Uncomfortable.” he gently laughed.

“Sounds like an understatement,” Trisha replied quietly, thumbs gently rubbing against his hands. It was quite a lot to take in, even if she’d had some idea of the amount of power Casey had. Judge, jury and executioner… he said he killed last night… it didn’t change her feelings for him, but it did make her a little scared. What if the finger of the one person higher than him pointed at her. She knew he wouldn’t… but… it was still a lot.

“Why did she give you such a powerful position if she doesn’t know you’ll fall in line? Surely with how-” she paused, glancing around, not sure if they were being listened to here. It wasn’t like she could tell.
“Wouldn’t she want someone that supports her fully?”

”Birthright. It would’ve been Leon, but he… Well… Some people call it a sacrifice. Others think he’s just a pervert. Somewhere between those two options, he severed his Adeptal Lux and Adjoined. It was a big deal apparently, but… I wasn’t home for it. I was being a soldier.” he offered, shrugging his shoulders.
”She trusts me at least; more than she would Junior. But I don’t think that means that she’d be willing to listen to me when I ask to make changes. That just means that we keep her insulated from the worst shit. But I imagine she knows regardless.”
He shrugged his shoulders even deeper.

Birthright, of course… Trisha had mixed feelings about it. It kept him trapped here, stuck with the Temple, but would he have considered leaving anyway? And if he wasn’t the Blade he’d have no power… for himself, or to protect her.
“Probably, with her whole spying thing.” Though Lynette had promised not to spy on them- and Elise had said she was taking it seriously- Trisha didn’t entirely trust it. She didn’t trust it at all.

“So she trusts you, but you still have to do everything she says? I- well, there’s… some… people seem to think it won’t last long? I don’t really know.” Trisha spoke quietly, not quite looking at him as she gnawed on her lip.
“I didn’t get to say before because there wasn’t a chance, we’ve been so busy- but before your commencement ceremony Elise talked to me about some… stuff.” It both felt like a good time to mention it, but also not the right place to actually talk about it. She just wanted it off her chest - even though it wasn’t like she’d been keeping it a secret. She just hadn’t thought about it.

Casey took a deep breath, eyes closing for a moment.
”Seeing everything from so high up, I just… I feel like everyone is stupid. She’s not even subtle about it. Her phones, she talks openly to her closest about breaking off and heading back to New York. She thinks that all the reasonable Adepts-”
He held himself back. Cleared his throat.
”-You… You don’t want this much info. I know what her plans are, and I know what the Abberations are saying too. There’s rebellion on all sides. I don’t know if she’s just… Accepting that she can’t stem the tide and hoping that I’ll take things in a new direction, or if she just doesn’t seem to care…”

His head hung a little low.
”It’s so stupid. I wish we were just a normal fucking family.”

Trisha leaned up and over the table, moving to her knees as she did so. Her hands came away from his and up to cup his face, thumbs gently rubbing against his cheeks. It was a bit of a precarious position for her, and not the most comfortable, but she wanted him to know that she didn’t… care about all the shit with his family.
“It’s alright. My family’s not exactly normal either, yours is just present enough to cause problems.”

She tried to smile at him, but it fell a little flat. Was it really a correct comparison? Her family sucked, but none of them ran a literal cult. The worst, really, was a nosey busybody with no sense of boundaries. Really, like Lynette but without the magic to back her.
“If you already know her plans then that’s easier for me. I don’t really… I don’t want to say I don’t care in case you misunderstand again, but I care about you. Not them- well I like Ed, but she asked me just to support her anyway… I’ll only ever get involved if you ask. I’d never do anything without talking to you, it really isn’t my place.”

Casey took another deep breath, feeling her hands on his face. They were warm.
”I know you care. And I love that. And I want you to care about me, because I care about you. I need you confident enough to say ‘I know Casey has it handled.’”
His hands came up to wrap around hers, sliding one down slightly to kiss her palm sweetly.
”I… I’m nervous. Not about those two groups. I’m… Fucking… Furio and Clarissa. Furio knows every trick in the book, and Clarissa’s deep in Mom’s trust. They’re totally outside my purview, per her instruction. It’s breaking the chain of command, and it makes me nervous that… They have other plans..”

“And Clarissa can teleport into our home,” Trisha whispered, the fingers still on his cheeks curling inwards. She knew he’d just said she needed to be confident enough to believe he had it handled. She did trust him. He’d beaten Furio before… but both of them. Hopefully it wouldn’t even come to it, but it made her nervous too. Really nervous.
“So Furio retired but he still has the protections of his old job? They could… Well, they don’t have to listen to you. And if they do have other plans, you- we- wouldn’t know anything until they happen?” She was trying her best not to panic about it, closing her eyes for a moment and just concentrating on the feeling of his hands around hers. There were two of them too.

“That does scare me, but I trust you. I know that you’ll protect me no matter what… and I’ll get stronger too.”

Casey nodded. His hands gripped hers a little tighter… But the swinging doors to the kitchen opened, and Andrade was waddling his way over with the roll-cart. There was a big basket of fruit cut into various shapes with all the fixings on the lower shelves of the dolly. Casey cleared his throat, thankful that Andrade hadn’t been listening from his office if he was too busy in the kitchen. He trusted that, if any Adepts in the Temple wanted order and peace, it was the guy responsible for duties like Andrades.

However, leaving the dolly at the side of the table, he slipped back into his spot next to Casey. Even without any prompting, it was easy to tell that he felt different. Like there was something radiating off his body.
”You two look so cute as a couple… She’s quite affectionate, Mijo…”
Casey smiled, still affectionately holding Trisha’s hands.
”Now, Trisha… I can’t tell you how we turn things into material like this, understand? If Casey wants to spill those beans on his own time, I can’t stop him, but I’m happy to show you that they exist - Because even if they’re… Not so savory… I’m still proud of my accomplishments. Can you accept that?” he asked.

Trisha looked over at Casey first, then back at Andrade before answering.
“I can. I just want to know what it’s like. The process doesn’t matter.” It didn’t really. She knew that they were made of Apparitions, but it wasn’t what she had a problem with. Apparitions were intelligent enough to speak, sure, but they weren’t humans. Even if she had one inside her… it was the effects of eating something like that.
“Some people find meat unsavoury. I just care about not getting addicted to magical food.”

He nodded. He placed a single muffin on the table in front of her.
”Normal muffin.” he said simply. Then his other hand came up from under the table, and next to it placed an identical muffin… Except this one… Trisha would be able to hear it. Faintly. The ever-present echo of something not quite dead. It was beyond ominous, and the absolute radiation of the creepy apparition-muffin was loudly present as it bounced off of her own Apparition-bound Emotional Field.
”Spicy muffin. Do they feel any different to you?”

“Yes.” Trisha didn’t even need to get any closer, or pick it up. She could sense it without being sure how. Like it was crawling against the Emotional Field she had very little awareness of. There was a slight stirring in her chest. The Queen waking up slowly, curious.
“That one feels… creepy. I can’t really explain it. She senses it too. Is it normally that obvious?”

Andrade nodded solemnly.
”There’s something in it trying to escape. It can’t.”
”She knows that part… They spilled it to her last night. Actually, Subject 15.”
Andrade’s hand flexed into a fist.
”Puta madre… That girl… I should fucking-”
”It is what it is. The point is, I wasn’t sure if she’d be able to feel the resonance or not. But since you can, then you’ll know.” he said calmly, turning his face back to Trisha. He smiled, took a deep breath, then grabbed the other muffin. The okay muffin.
”Now, is this one of mine?” he asked, feeling it in his hand.

Andrade nodded, pulling a small bag of white powder out from the bottom tray of the dolly. Both hands passed it onto Trisha.
”This is good stuff. An exploration team found this grain in a place called Flare. Another dimension. We call it “Par-Wheat”, since a wholistic serving size is roughly “on-par” with a person’s daily micronutrient content. Vitamins, minerals, necessary proteins. But it’s not very caloric. It doesn’t actually have much energy value… So we mix small bits of it into our normal semolina flour, or sometimes cornmeal and other things you’d bake. Natural enrichment.”

Trisha held the small bag in front of her, looking at it suspiciously. It was difficult to believe that something like this could just provide all the nutrients someone needed, without any need for variety. The fact it was a nondescript white powder in a small bag too…
“Are you sure this isn’t just, like, magical cocaine- sorry, that’s a bad joke.” Even though it was only half a joke.
“So it really just provides all the nutrients you need? There’s nothing funny about it too? I can’t sense anything with it, and I know Casey trusts it… it’s just hard to believe that there’s just a grain in some other realm that can conveniently do that.” Though she didn’t really know how they could prove it. Casey said it was fine…

“Can I try it?”

Casey happily handed over his muffin to his beautiful girlfriend. He smiled widely as she asked, and Andrade quickly began to set up their fruit thing on the table. But as he did so, he explained further.
”From what we know about the place, it seems like Eden. Like how we were taught to believe Eden was. An intelligently designed garden. The team has tried gleaming information from the ruins of the civilization that once existed there, but it’s so unlike ours, there’s nothing to go off of. Anthropology can only go so far.” he laughed.

“If it's in ruins, obviously something went wrong with it,” Trisha shrugged, taking the muffin from Casey with a slight smile. She looked at it with a hint of suspicion… but she’d asked to try it. She’d just have a bit. She brought it to her lips, nibbling at first, before taking a proper bite.

It was sweet, but not so sweet that just one bite was enough. She could finish the whole thing if she wanted to… But otherwise, it just tasted like a normal muffin. No weird scent of death, or anything immediately setting off red flags. Just a normal-
I recognise this flavour.
“Huh?” Trisha was shocked enough by the Queen properly waking up and talking that she answered out loud without thinking about it. She put the muffin down, and covered her mouth with a hand.

From long ago… so long my memory is fuzzy. It’s nostalgic.
What do you mean? Aren’t you from this realm?
I am. But things were different millenia ago. I believe it was called… what was it called? Ah, I can’t remember.
That’s not really important, is it? Is it safe?
As far as I am aware. I am no human, however. Those who grew and consumed it long ago were… not the same as you are now.

Trisha’s brow furrowed, head tilting from side to side as she had a silent conversation inside her mind. It did make her a little less worried if the Queen recognised it and didn’t seem worried about it. But then again, she was an Apparition. Things affected them differently.
Would you be worried if I ate it?
No.

“Mm, it’s nice,” Trisha said, as if she’d just been chewing it the whole time.

Casey smiled widely, knowing full well what’d just happened. A nice little consultation. Andrade was no novice when it came to Abberations and their brain-companions either, so the two of them observing her chew without reaction was all but obvious.
”Good. I’m glad we’re all in agreement.”
He swung his arm around Andrade again, rubbing his shoulder and smiling. Andrade was quick to match him, and their brotherly hug filled the table with warm affection.
”Now imagine that with your honey, huh? Oh, which reminds me… We tested it, Trisha! Got the first results back from the lab. Not only is it more calorie-dense than normal honey, but scientifically it’s just more flavorful. The actual chemical components responsible for it being sweet are similar to normal honey, but the other flavor components are actually found in larger bond-strings… Ergo, it’s technically less honey and more… Well, like… More…”

Casey laughed when Andrade turned to him to find a word. It was a common thing for Andrade to be missing the necessary vocabulary to describe what he was saying, but in this case it was way over his head too.
”Oh, don’t look at me, dude…” he joked.
”It keeps more of the actual plant that the pollen comes from! So, it retains a really unique flavor profile. Super desirable, especially if we can ask you to produce honey from certain plants we have in mind.”

“So my honey could be why I don’t get hungry often?” Trisha said softly, more voicing a thought than an actual question. She doubted that was it, because she’d never particularly had an appetite… but even for her minimal eating she’d never lost weight unhealthily. But finding out it was different, and better, than normal honey was a real confidence boost. That meant Ezra would definitely be able to tell when she sent him some- oh, right.

“I wanted to talk about that, actually.” Trisha’s hands slipped under the table to her lap, fingers digging into the fabric of her jeans.
“The business. My business. Especially if I’m going to be directing the bees to produce specific types of honey… There’s nothing in writing. It’s not even that- I only know what’s happening because you’ve told me when we met for meals. I don’t feel like I have any control. I know I do, because nobody can take the bees- _{like someone’s worried about}- but I want to be more involved in it all. Formally.”

Andrade’s face lit up.
”That’s exactly what I was hoping you’d say. Whatever you want, it’s yours! What exactly were you thinking then- Because the only thing I care about is quality and quantity. I’m not sure if you want to have lawyers take care of contracting, or if you’d rather some sort of stake in my business… I’m totally open to working with you in a healthy way like that.”
His smile was infectious, but Casey was already busy digging into the strawberries in the bouquet.

“I’d like lawyers to take care of the contracts- I, uh, don’t really know a lot about this kind of thing. I’m still learning.” As much as she hated admitting that, but it was painfully obvious - it was her first business after all, and she’d let it get this far without any kind of plan.
“My brother suggested getting contractual agreements drawn up by his lawyer- as we’re not particularly close, he’s very successful in business so… I’m going to do what he suggested. And I want the honey business to be mine, at the end of the day. So like some kind of… supplying contract? And something for… well, you’d have a say with the honey, with the specific flowers used, and I’d like to know what it’s used for… but I’d have final say on the bees and honey, and you would for the food. Something like that? But I’d want to talk it through with a lawyer first.”

He was nodding away enthusiastically. After all, it wasn’t the first time he’d done business with a Vanburen… Not that he’d say that, it was the quickest way to another problem with Casey after all. But it was exactly what he wanted since they first spoke about it.
”You wouldn’t happen to be referring to Big Ezra, would you? Like, Vanburen LLC; Ezra Vanburen?” he asked with enthusiasm bubbling in his voice.

“Yeah, I was talking about Ezra.” Trisha’s face scrunched up a bit, but she also couldn’t hold back a laugh at Big Ezra. Maybe it was fitting for people who only knew him for his business, but to Trisha he’d always been a boring, tired man with very little personality.
“I am a Vanburen, so of course I’d get advice from the person technically in charge of all my other assets.” Not that that was at all how the call had gone down, but Ezra had certainly gotten excited at the prospect of money making… even though he’d suspiciously decided he didn’t want any returns from it.
“Why? Do you want to meet him, or something?”

”No, I… Probably just… Have worked with the same lawyers before. Your…-”
He looked at Casey. Casey looked back. It was an unspoken conversation with only a single word to translate between the air.
Careful…
”Miss Tansy has contacted us several times for various banquets and events here in the city. She’s got no problems throwing your brothers’ lawyers into various situations in order to get everything in receipt.” he explained gently, hoping it wouldn’t be a problem. Casey only laughed as he shovelled a star-shaped mango chunk covered in whipped cream into his mouth.

Trisha laughed too, though it was a bitter, almost mocking laugh, her eyes rolling up towards the ceiling.
“Of course she has. They’re probably her own lawyers- there’s no way Ezra gives her his lawyers unless the family name’s at risk. Though he might’ve given me a family lawyer, so maybe they are the same…” she trailed off, frowning now. She wasn’t so worried about the lawyers. They were unlikely to be in Tansy’s pocket if Ezra used them.

“If you end up working with her again for events and my honey’s ever used, don’t tell her it’s mine. I don’t want her to know, if possible. I don’t care about the lawyers, because I know Ezra wouldn’t give me a lawyer that would cause me problems, but I do care about her finding out.”

Andrade’s grin turned from friendly to a little bitter, almost imitating Trisha’s.
”We can do one better: We simply won’t accept her next contract.”
Casey’s head turned slightly, his brow furrowing.
”You’re going to… Turn down money?”
Andrade started to laugh a bit.
”That bitch is unreasonable… If Trisha here doesn’t want her products in her sisters’ hands, or- You know, fuck it! This girl right here? Way more important to me than someone who treats my staff like she does. Just unreasonable. So, Trisha? Don’t worry about what she’ll know. All she’ll know is that we don’t want her business.”

“I, uh, well, I really appreciate it,” Trisha stammered out, cheeks heating up a little bit. Andrade saw her as someone more important than Tansy? The woman who, while an absolute bitch, was well known in the upper circles of St Portwell and had connections everywhere? Most people didn’t care how she acted because of her money, fame and family name. She was technically second in line after Ezra.
“There’s a chance she’ll find out anyway, because she’s incredibly nosey but… I want to avoid it as much as possible.”

Trisha finally reached out for a piece of fruit, picking up a strawberry and taking a bite out of it. She finished it off before she continued talking.
“If there’s one good thing about her, it’s that she doesn’t discriminate. She’s unreasonable towards everyone, just in different ways. Thinks she’s superior… Casey’s already had to deal with her trying to flirt with him.”

”We had some very choice words the last time we spoke. She made one of my members of staff- a coordinator, mind you… Not a server, not a chef -cry to the point that she literally couldn’t complete the event. I had to go myself… Which is exactly what she wanted, because she misunderstood that I don’t usually participate in big banquets like that.”
He took a strawberry himself, dipping it deeply in the chocolate before pointing at the two different bowls.
”Also, be careful. One has chilli in it, like classic South American cocoa.”

Pushing up on his hands, he slid out of the booth with the wretched horror-muffin cupped in his right palm.
”Now, you two enjoy for now. I’ll be back with the other stuff you ordered, and I’ll pack Casey’s bread order up to go if you’re both in agreement. Next time we talk seriously, it’ll be with a few people smarter than us.”

He smiled, bending and planting a big kiss on the top of Casey’s head. Then the same to Trisha. Maybe it was uncomfortable, but it was how he was.
”Sound good?”
He left his other hand out to shake for good measure.

Trisha managed to not recoil, even though it was uncomfortable for her. But she was slowly getting a bit more used to it from people that she wasn’t dating…
“Yeah, sounds good to me.” Trisha reached out to shake his hand with a slight smile.

As he left, Trisha turned back to Casey with a smile. She felt more relaxed again - about the food and the business. The fact that Andrade had agreed to contracts and meetings with lawyers so easily was a relief…
“Thanks for bringing me here so that I can be less worried about the food. You could’ve just left it at your explanation.” She picked up another strawberry, lightly dipping it in the melted chocolate she thought had chilli in it. It was a strange combination with the sweetness of the strawberry, but… nice. Not too spicy, though she did have a decent tolerance for that.

Casey nodded and smiled. He had taken the sugar to his coffee like an animal, just pouring and pouring until it nearly flowed out of the cup.
”Well I want us on the same page… What better way than getting our hands a little dirty?” he replied, smiling as he took a sip off the top and put it back down with a satisfied smirk.

“Oh, I wanted to ask you something else?” Trisha’s free hand moved across the table towards him, clearly looking to hold his again. She looked at him as if she was about to ask him for a big favour, or something like that.

Oh boy… Here it comes. The floodgates are opened, and now it’s time to navigate the landmines underwater.
He grinned, hoping he could maybe catch her off guard and soften her for the answer to whatever question she may have had. He took her hand and gave her a sincere look.
”I already know the question and the answer… Yes. The answer is yes. I will marry you.”

Trisha just stared at him for a moment, like his response had entirely caught her off guard. Then a warm smile bloomed across her face, and she giggled.
“Perfect, I'm so happy. So when should we elope? Today, tomorrow?" It did help put her at ease. It wasn't like she was about to ask for anything big… but past partners had made it seem like it was. Too much effort, it wasn't like she put in the same effort, why should they bother- now that she thought about it, it was only really Reyna who'd ever done it with her…

“But it's not that- yet… Remember when you said you'd do something for me when I chose the ring," she started, holding up the hand not clinging to Casey's. It was there, comfortable sitting around her finger. She'd worn it pretty much the whole time since she put it on, aside from when sleeping. It wasn't like it did anything… and it was kind of nice.
“Well… I was wondering… if we could go on a proper date? Tomorrow, maybe, if you're not too busy? It doesn't have to be anything fancy- just a meal, or a couple of drinks somewhere, or a walk, or even the arcade again… just be nice to dress up a little and go out just the two of us."

Casey took a moment to look at Trisha as the question left her mouth… Like he was going to smash every single hope and expectation she had over asking for a nice time out. Sure, he didn’t much like crowds, but on what planet did she feel like she had to use his promise for something like that? They’d go on a thousand dates before that was ever something she needed his absolute and total devotion to receive.
Of course, it drew his attention… The ring, and her mention of it. His thumb rolled over the almost gaudy jewel perched atop its fitting.

”Trisha…-”
Her name hung in the air. Tension. Surely he had something better to do.
”-The promise I made to you was very special… Something didn’t mean ‘take me out on a date’. Something meant ‘I want this person dead.’ or ‘Please save this person from certain doom.’ Something dire…”
Clearly, a date wasn’t serious to him. Wasn’t dire…
”A date? You ask me on a date anytime. We’ll go. Unless I have work, you never have to treat a date like you’re asking me to move mountains.”

He smiled at her. It was so, so warm. No sense of irony or humor, not even a hint. Just warmth. Just love.
”Promise?”

Trisha wasn't able to hide her expressions - from the dropping smile and tense shoulders, to sad resignation, to confusion and relief. Her smile returned, so soft, and there was love in her eyes too… even though she wouldn't admit that yet. His warmth washed over her, heating up her cheeks and giving her a giddy feeling like it was her first relationship all over again. She certainly hadn't felt this loved by anyone before…
“Promise- but really, never? Even if I woke you up in the middle of the night to drive somewhere to watch the sunrise? That wouldn't be too much?" Of course, she had to go find where the line was drawn.

Then he started laughing. Not so loud that it drew attention, but enough that she would clearly understand that he… Didn’t.
”Sweetheart… Let me ask you a question… And I knnnnowwww, you’re not gonna love this one, but I really need context.”
He took a second to try and scrub the smile off his face, taking a breath and shaking his head. His eyes peered into hers.

”I can’t be the first person in your life to say this kind of thing, can I? Like… Like now… I took you here to make sure you’re secure, right? And when we leave here, we’re going to a department store. I’m going to buy new clothes, because most of my wardrobe looks like I just came back from an Army Surplus haul. And while we were there, I was already planning on making sure you got plenty of stuff as well- Because I want to spend my money on you. And then we’ll probably go to another place, where we’ll spend more time together, because my job is a joke and I’m the boss.” he giggled.
”But, like, none of this is an effort to me. It’s a pleasure... Has nobody else ever treated you like you were a pleasure?”

Trisha didn't answer for a while, head tilting down so she was staring at the table rather than him. He was right, she didn't love the question - but she also couldn't deny the comfort she felt from everything he said. He really wanted to do all that with her, and it wasn't an effort? He actually wanted to go out places when they could just be lazy at home? She knew he meant everything he said. It wasn't something he'd needed to say.
“Not really," she said eventually, quietly.

“Reyna tried, I think. But she didn't have the time or money- and she didn't like when I paid for everything. Most of the time we were just at my place… then Cass would interrupt." Trisha knew that Reyna had actually liked her, even if she'd eventually been too much. She didn't really want Casey to think any worse of someone who was now her friend but… it hadn't really been enough. Reyna couldn't be there like Trisha had needed because she had so many other things going on.
“And otherwise… well… No. It was too much effort when we could just… stay in bed… that kind of stuff…"

He furrowed his brow for a moment… Bed…
”As in… Sex?-”
Casey’s lips turned down slightly.
”-You’re… Not upset, are you? Like, you… I know some girls would maybe, I don’t know-”
He did his best to not open this little can of worms, but he’d gotten glimpses. Little hints reading from her in small moments.

”Like, my Mom! After she kind of got over my Dad, she started dating some of the other Temple members. Like Andrade. And within a week, as far as I’m aware, she was pressuring him to sleep with her. Said that she didn’t feel loved otherwise. Or cared for.”
It was only a moment before his eyes widened to saucers.
”I am not trying to compare you to my Mom. I’m not. It’s just an observation about some people because I want your perspective. Rather than taking it from you.”

She frowned, eyes moving back up to look at him. It wasn't so much an upset frown as it was a confused one, even if the ‘not a comparison' to his mom irked her a bit. Because she was actually having to think about it for the first time… Was she upset about it? Would she feel more loved if he slept with her? Well, she'd be more confident in his physical attraction towards her… but was that the same as feeling loved? Not really. She'd still feel just as insecure about everything but the one thing she felt she really had - her looks. But wasn't that also important, because if that wasn't there, feelings could go away too? She really didn't know…

“I’m not upset at you because we haven't had sex yet." Trisha's words were rather blunt, still looking a little confused.
“Obviously I want to, and I'm used to it happening right away… it's normally what people want… but I wouldn't want to make you do something… you didn't want to. Just because it's slower than I'm used to doesn't mean it's a problem… it's not- I'm not spending time with you feeling like it's not enough." Sure each time they didn't go as far as she expected those insecurities crept in, but at the same time the need wasn't as strong as it normally was because it was still time they spent together.

He grabbed both of her hands, turning his face down slightly to look up at her with big puppy dog eyes.
”You know I don’t not want to, right? You are gorgeous… But, I… You know when we first spent time in Leon’s apartment, and you saw his room, and I told you about that painting of my folks? Fucking Genesis? Everything in the Temple of Charming and Graceful Individuals is charged with sex. Everything. It’s just so fucking all encompassing.” he took a quiet sigh.

”I haven’t ever been with a woman. I don’t know if I’ll wind up like one of them, and honestly I’m… I guess worried? Worried about whether or not I’m going to like it too much. I hate saying that, but it’s how I feel…”

“You know that's not just the Temple? Well- the painting's a bit unique. Loads of people are always thinking about it. You go to a club alone and loads of people try to sleep with you… plenty of couples do it multiple times a day." At least in her experience. Really a lot of her past relationships had been more sex than anything else, she was realising…
“So you're worried you'll enjoy it so much you won't let me leave bed? That won't work out, because the bees will come for you eventually…" She squeezed his hands, shaking her head.

“But you're not like them. You said yesterday about how you could come off the food… isn't it the same? Even if you end up liking it too much, you're better at resisting it than them. I'm not worried because I trust you." But she hadn't been raised in a magical sex cult, so maybe she was looking at things too simply.
“I’m not saying we should just jump into it but… it's something you'll have to find out eventually, right?"

He looked at her with a solemn smile. She trusted him… Had faith in him. Then he brightened. Playfully, he bit his lip.
”Well… I… I want you to tell me when. I don’t want to take it unless that’s something you’re into. Maybe that’s the not-so-manly way of doing things, but… It’s just not in my nature to push you into something like that. Is that weird?” he asked genuinely.

“I don't… think it's weird." Trisha's head tilted from side to side for a moment, before she smiled at him. It didn't really matter. Sure, with all the other guys she'd been with it'd just been expected, even the much smaller number of girls she dated… it was really only Reyna who she'd vaguely talked about it with. Even then, they'd both been with people before.

“Alright, I'll tell you when. I think you're manly in all the right ways anyway. But do we really need to go shopping after this? Why don't we go home and…" she trailed off, smiling teasingly at him, eyes half closing. Then she laughed.
“I’m kidding. I don't want to force things… I'll just ask when it feels like the right time."
Casey laughed a bit more, shrugging finally.
”Who knows… Tomorrow may end up being enough! Who knows; romantic evening on the Marina? Or, hey! We could go to Cracker Island! Take a nice long walk on a cold beach, look out at the waves? I can keep you nice and close to me so you and the Bees don’t freeze to death…”

As he spoke, the rest of the food was making its way in. Andrade and another server, sliding the few plates down and leaving just as quickly as they came.

“That sounds nice… going back to where it all started. Hopefully without anyone punching me this time. I doubt many people would be on that island when it's not the Halloween festival anyway," she smiled softly at him.
“I’d suggest we bring a picnic or something, but it's a little too cold to just sit outside, even if we cuddle the whole time. Maybe we can get food somewhere after."

She then looked down at the food they had now. While it was just a few plates, there was quite a lot of variety… a lot of different pastries.
“If I try a little bit of everything will you finish it off, or do you want to have full pastries? Cause I'd like to try it all…"

After they'd polished off their breakfast, the couple headed to their next location.

St Portwell Department Store. Boringly named but it made it clear it was homegrown, rather than any kind of chain store. It had been around for as long as Trisha could remember... Though parts were destroyed during the Stygian Snake's rampage, it had just been rebuilt better. She was fairly certain her brother had some hand in the rebuilding... The Vanburen Family Business (or Ezra, at least) probably had some shares in it.

It'd been a long time since she'd been here. Last time was… highschool, probably, just before the Snake with her friends. It was fun going to somewhere that wasn't just a clothing store - they could buy anything they wanted, and did. It was a nice memory…

Of course, while the exterior hadn't changed, the interior had. Things shifted, products were changed to replace old with new. Even the layout was different - the escalators all the way at the back were replaced by ones in the very centre, going up and up the seven floors it spanned across. It was all tastefully cream and gold, lending it an elegant appearance without being so much that it alienated its mixed clientele.

The ground floor started out as a large section for makeup, various makeup artists trying to catch the unsuspecting customer browsing the wares or whatever company had hired them. Trisha expertly weaved around this, gripping onto Casey's hand as she managed to avoid every single staff member between them and the escalators.

Thankfully there was a list of what was on each floor. Trisha quickly scanned it to find men's clothing - just a few floors up. She turned towards Casey with a warm grin as she tugged him on and upwards.

“So what're you looking for?" Trisha asked him, swinging their joined hands. She smiled at him playfully. “Maybe something with colour? Or is that too out of your comfort zone?"

Casey too remembered being in this place as a little boy. Back in those days, Boxing was actually a more popular sport; being out with Max was something like a nightmare in itself. Every ten feet someone wanted a picture or an autograph, but he seemed to eat it up every time.
People like Clarissa actually got things done. Dragging him through the store much like Trisha was doing now, her excitement and pleasure wholly focused on the mass exchange of currency. Four people, six children, and carts of shit between them while Max and Lynette played the local celebrity game.

The escalator seemed so much scarier back then.
”I was already thinking that. I've never had much control over my clothes; it was Temple into the Military… Whenever I managed to come home on leave, I had a closet full of the same shit, y'know? I guess now my only concern is space… We could use one of the downstairs apartments to store stuff we only occasionally wear, but stuff that's easily accessible is limited.” he thought aloud, only really half answering her question.

”What I mean is, uh… Yeah. Color. I don't entirely hate the punk aesthetic, but I also envy those people who dress in really sharp business attire. Dad always told us to avoid clothes like that, because they're not flattering to the warrior frame we were gifted with.” he shrugged his shoulders, feeling silly as he said it aloud.

Trisha let out a thoughtful hum, stepping up onto the next step on the escalator and spinning around to look at him discerningly.
“You know it’s all about the cut, right? You just need something that’s the right fit… Though you wouldn’t get that here. You shouldn’t buy business attire from a store that doesn’t specialise in it, really. You could definitely get tailored suits that look good on you. We probably even have a tailor- sorry, you probably wouldn’t want that, and I’d have to go through Ezra. But some of my brothers are pretty muscular themselves.”

She smiled brightly at him. She hadn’t been properly clothes shopping with someone else for a while. Her and Nadiyah used to do it occasionally, and before that some friends… but normally she ended up going alone. So this was nice.
“But that’s not for today, or here at least. Storage wise… so long as there’s home clothes upstairs, I don’t mind storing a lot of mine in a downstairs apartment? I’m already taking up most of the space which isn’t really fair. It’s our home after all, we should be sharing the space. And you need more clothes… the more variety you get the more easily we’ll match.” She giggled a little at that as they got to the right floor.
“Do you know where you want to start?”

He wasn't usually sheepish or nervous about things, but shopping? It was only their second time out, and the kinds of clothes he really wanted to wear weren't here… She said so herself! Having someone cater to him, using years and years of in-profession experience, put him at ease in a way that raw-dogging a department store just didn't.

At least she sounded like she knew things.

”Where are we supposed to start? There's nobody here who can take my measurements like that, right? I mean, when you said come here I thought maybe it was different, but…”
He looked around, a little overwhelmed by all the racks without any clear direction.
”I don't know… This isn't what I know. I know that the last order of uniforms I ordered for the Temple had an extra layer of waterproofing inside the lining as a practical improvement. But they're still black jumpsuits.”

He almost twiddled his thumbs like an indecisive child.
”What'd you mean by the cut? Like… If we won't find that here, how're we gonna find anything that works?”
The tonal shifting was rather noticeable… He wasn't good at hiding his general nerves in a place where he already felt a little queasy.

Trisha stopped looking around the shop, craning her neck and going up on her tiptoes to try get a general gist of the layout. She turned back around to Casey, taking both of his hands in hers.
“That’s only important for something like a suit, where you want it to fit perfectly. It’s why made to measure suits look best - but it's unnecessary for almost everything else. We just need to make sure it’s not too small, especially if the material isn’t stretchy. Things like t-shirts are easy…” She tried to explain as best as she could, not entirely understanding where his nerves were coming from. It was just a store? Would he really be more comfortable in one of those stuffy places where someone makes all the decisions for you?

“You don’t need exact measurements either. I can probably guess your sizes - and you try them on. That’s part of the fun of it. We should probably start at shirts…” she trailed off, squeezing his hands and trying not to let his lack of enthusiasm get to her. She’d just have to teach him how to enjoy it, right? If that was even possible. Maybe…
“We can go somewhere else if you really want. One of the places that takes your measurements and does everything for you and forces you to buy clothes you don’t really like but they think look good on you.”

Casey tried his best to think about how to explain himself without sounding too crazy, as he probably already seemed crazy enough without explaining… Maybe that was part of the problem.

”I just… I guess I trust professionals. People who put all their lives into what they do, I just kind of assume they know what they're talking about. I don't need to worry when it comes to fighting, because I learned from the best. I don't worry about magic, because I learned from the best. I… I guess I figured we'd be in the rich people stores getting pampered, not… Not in the local Kohl's equivalent.”

Sure. Don't talk about what's really bothering you… Getting smacked for hiding in the racks, grabbed by the hair-
”I'm sorry. This is fine, it's just that I'm not in my element. Starting with shirts makes sense, I just… I know I'm gonna wind up looking like a suburban Dad if I pick shit…”
He gripped her hand tightly, frowning a little.

“Well there’s two things you can do to prevent that- don’t buy polo shirts, and don’t tuck your shirt fully into your pants,” Trisha said, forcing herself to still smile and not get antsy about it all. She didn’t like rich people stores. To her the ‘pampering’ there was just overwhelming and intrusive. Plus, every single one of those stores came with the risk of bumping into one of her family members. All the memories she had in places like that too… she’d always been jealous of kids whose parents picked out clothes for them.
“Most people don’t have ‘the best’ to learn from, and just have to learn by doing. But luckily for you, you have me. I can pick clothes for you- I mean, I’ll help you. Come on.”

Her thumb comfortingly rubbed across the back of his hand, before she gently tugged him into those aisles of racks. Most of these stores had similar layouts, so it didn’t take her long to find what she was looking for: the shirt section. Of course, there was a great variety there. She’d already mentally narrowed it down to start.

“Let’s start simple… I assume you don’t want to have to think hard about matching, right? So you want clothes that go together. Like…” She rummaged through one of the racks, pulling out a light blue button down shirt. It was made of a more casual fabric - cotton based probably, soft… It very obviously wasn’t his size…
“Very versatile. You can style it in a lot of ways, and it goes with anything. It’s a good start. Look.”

She shrugged off her coat, hanging it over the top of the racks. Bees visible on her shoulders fled to her hair, since there wasn’t much space to hide under the crop top she was wearing. Then she pulled on the shirt she’d grabbed. It was pretty big on her, but that didn’t matter.
“You can just wear it open like this over a t-shirt… or you do up most of the buttons. Unless you’re going full formal, never bother with the top few. Then you can tuck it in if you want… but you gotta pull it out a bit. You can even unbutton it more… roll up the sleeves. Loads.” She demonstrated each style as she spoke. She then turned around and rummaged a bit more to find their largest sizes. Thankfully there was quite the range here.
“You want to go a little oversized, so it’s not, like… bulging.”

She held up the button down she’d pulled out that was more his size, holding it up towards him. She glanced at it, then him, then shook her head and put it back.
“It’s too light, kind of washes you out, what about…” she went back to hunting and found a similar style shirt, quite plain, but this time it was more of a slate blue shade. She held it out to him with a smile. She really was trying her best to keep her energy up, hoping he’d at least start to enjoy himself if she did.
“I think this'll look nice. What do you think? It’s all about just trying things on and finding what you like… I can pick out a bunch I think will suit you and then you could try them on?”

Casey was doing his best to think about things in a logistical fashion. If they just took one of everything and bought it, they could do all that at home…
Wrinkling his nose, he listened to her talk about how to fit things and how they were colored. At least his military uniform was designed by someone who knew what they were doing… there was no guessing. No questions. Just a nice, sleek frame in a wonderful looking pristine olive drab.

You suggested this. You wanted this. Doesn't it look good in the movies? Isn't it something you crave? Don't sour her mood over a location. Play. Have fun.
”Does it have to be so dark? I thought color was like…-”
He gesticulated an explosion with his hands.
”Like bright and flashy. Like, a Hawaiian shirt. Are those fashionable?”

“Uhhh…” It was Trisha’s turn to wrinkle her nose, though she was still smiling.
“Some, but not the brightly coloured ones you’re thinking about. We can go brighter, just we’re, y’know-” she gestured to the clothes around them- “- in the boring blue section. There are colours between black and blinding, you know?”

She spoke jokingly and shrugged, putting the shirt back. Her head tilted back, squinting at Casey. She knew the basics of what colours suited people- though she mostly remembered for herself, and they were pretty different there. Warm versus cold… but that was fine.
“I think if you want bright, you’d suit purples or brighter blue- maybe some mint green too, kind of maroon? I guess we can even try to find a nice hawaiian shirt… so long as it isn’t one of those ones with beers on it.” She laughed, going to move on towards one of the colours she’d said, before pausing. They were shopping together, she should really slow down…

“If we’re lucky we’ll find something that suits both of us. Properly matching.” She held her hand back out for his.

The menacing hand.
”Stop fucking wandering off!”
Her bloody face… Last night. The sound of her fist cracking and splitting a skull like a coconut husk. He slowly took the hand.
”Uhh… Bee, can… Can…”
He found his throat dry as he tried to say that he was suddenly not doing so hot. Breakfast was coming back.
”M-maybe just… A new store? One neither of us have been to? I-”
”CASEAU L’DEL!?”
His head spun. She wasn’t there. They weren’t there. It was the same feeling as a creeping shadow, not knowing if something was going to magically materialize out of nothingness. She could.

And then he gagged.

Trisha had frozen with her hand held out, utterly confused about what was going on. Was it her? Was she too pushy? No, she hadn’t done anything that bad, had she- she really didn’t understand. And when she didn’t understand it was hard not to assume it was her.

“O-okay.” Her hand dropped and she reflexively took a step back. Was clothes shopping so bad that he felt sick? How was going to another shop going to help? She tried not to look upset, even though she was. Upset and confused.
“I don’t really know any I haven’t been to- it’s fine, we’ll figure it out, should we go outside?”

Without a second thought, Casey reached for Trisha’s hand and got real close to her. His breathing was heavy and erratic, and he was suddenly very sweaty. He wasn’t used to just taking comfort in her. It wasn’t normal for him to take comfort in anyone. And he didn’t exactly feel any safer around her. Of course, that wasn’t Trisha’s fault. It was all associative.

He could only do what his therapist had taught him. Get somewhere safe, take a moment, and come back to life. He couldn’t let things like this effect his whole world; so Casey’s arms simply wrapped around her. Like he would’ve done with his Mother if she’d given any lick of a damn.
So he held her close and tight, and found that it did feel safe. So he took a breath and moved out of the way of a few people passing by as he did what he had to do.
”Associative panic attack…” he said quietly to her. So quietly it almost didn’t sound like words, but being so close to her made it so it was clear enough. He didn’t explain further, just holding her close and breathing rather than letting the darkness consume him.

She frowned a bit more, her arms slipping under his to hug him back. Her hands rested on his back, rubbing in a gentle circular motion. She hoped that would help… she didn’t really know. Sure, she got panicked sometimes, but it wasn’t really like this? She didn’t think it’d ever really been a full blown panic attack. Nothing this bad at least. But he was holding her, so that must be helping. At least his breathing seemed a bit more steady?

“It’s okay, I’m here,” she said softly, those nagging upset feelings pushed back down now that she kind of knew what was happening. She didn’t entirely understand it but… it wasn’t his fault, and it wasn’t her fault. Probably.
“Just whatever you need, however much time you need, it’s fine.” She was certainly trying her best to comfort him, thinking of what she’d want if she theoretically had a panic attack.

He was taking deep breaths still, and the shaking was gone.
”It’s not e-even… War shit… Fuck!”
It was his fault. He didn’t express how he felt when she told him to come here, he didn’t even… He wasn’t thinking about it. Didn’t realize it’d be like this.
”I’ve just… Been here a lot. And it was never good. Lots of crying and being scared. Feeling abandoned. I thought I was over it, then… You started tugging me, and it started to take me back and I thought I could just get over it and-”

Casey looked down at Trisha with full eyes and a wet face.
”-I wasn’t. And I’m sorry. I’ll g-get over it in a second, and we’ll keep going. I’m sorry, I’m-”
So broken? So worthless that you can’t walk through a store?
Those weren’t his normal thoughts, of course… Just self conscious ranting.

So it was because of her.

Trisha couldn’t stop the thought. It was difficult not to get caught up in it, when she shouldn’t. Not right now, not when Casey was struggling like this. Just push it down like everything else, forget about it, add it to the large pile of things she did wrong.
“It’s fine, you don’t have to apologise.” Trisha’s hands moved up to his face, just like they had earlier. Her voice was a bit… off, but that could just be because she wasn’t used to dealing with something like this. That was definitely it. She never got set off and panicked by things…

“It’s not your fault, is it? You can’t help those feelings… I don’t really understand, I don’t have strong memories like that-” what did they say about lying to each other? But it wasn’t a lie-
“-But I know it’s not just something you get over. It’s fine, it’s really fine, nobody’s fault.” Well it was a bit hers. Or a lot. No, she was suppressing that thought.

“We can go somewhere else if it’ll be easier, really. I don’t mind. I just suggested here because I know it. That’s not easy to just overwrite, right? And I won’t tug you again.”

It took a few more moments before Casey spoke again, drawing air and snot through his nose.
”One day… I’ll take all of it back, I think. My therapist always said it wasn’t healthy for me to attack what hurts me. I used to do that a lot more. To feel control. Confidence. But, I think… Knowing that the monster is gone because you’re the one to slay it? It’s something that eases the mind. Closure. Confirmation.”
Pulling away slightly, he looked around again.
”Last night put me on edge. Not you, not our tiff. Work. A lot of people are dead who shouldn’t be, and it’s on my hands. Innocence. All because I trust her. The woman who raised me… Not my Mother.”

His hands gripped together behind Trisha, clenching and releasing.

”I would never hurt you. And I would never abandon you. I don’t want this to be our life, and I know it won’t be… But now… I’m afraid of the monster in the closet, and nowhere feels safe except here in your arms. I don’t think I would’ve taken this job if you weren’t here. So now I think… I think I have to kill the monsters.”
Wiping the tears away, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.
”Exposure therapy worked when we tried it before. I know I’m capable.”
Still slightly choked up, he cleared his throat and shook his head.
”I just don’t want you to be… Afraid of me… Or us… And leave. If I don’t have someone else to do all of this for, then I really don’t… I don’t know if I actually can. I don’t feel like I’m enough.”

Trisha trembled a little bit. Not because of the talk of killing. He’d said he killed last night… maybe it should scare her, but he clearly didn’t want to. It was the fact that he’d taken the job because of her. Why? Why would you do something that meant he was even more stuck with the Temple… and he had to kill for them? Felt that he had to kill again… she assumed he was talking about Clarissa. Furio too. Probably.

But she just didn’t understand how she was enough. Was she really worth it? Wouldn’t he just end up regretting it? But alongside her insecurities was selfishness - knowing that she was the only person who made him feel safe. But she should want him to always feel safe… And there was also that was actually doing everything for her. Not for them. But if what he was doing made him struggle so much…
“I’m not afraid of you. You’ve never even gone to hurt me- why would I be scared? I’ve seen people lash out for less.” She was confident enough in that. He hadn’t hurt her, and she couldn’t imagine him doing it on purpose.

“And I said this morning I’m not going to leave. You’d- you’d have to try to kill me to get me to leave. So you don’t need to worry about that. But-” Her head tilted down, voice getting even quieter.
“I don’t understand why. My situation wasn’t so bad you needed to take the job- or do all this for me. I understand doing things for someone else, but if it’s hurting you…” Was it worth it?

”Have you ever wondered what the fuck is the point? Living? If you’ve never been suicidal, it sounds stupid. But after the war ended, I… I felt alone again. Like I couldn’t go home, and I couldn’t stay with the people who I came to love. OSS disbanded our unit; scattered us to advisory positions where we were needed. The only people I felt knew who I really was were gone without my control.”
Casey’s eyes closed. A few more tears slipped from the corners as he remembered that feeling again. Loneliness.

”I don’t know what the fuck it is about you. I don’t know why I felt like I came home for the first time when I saw you… Holding your nose. Runny makeup. Bee onesie. Maybe I felt like you needed some kind of protection. Maybe it was the White Lux and I didn’t realize it. I don’t know, Trisha, I really don’t! All I know is that every single time I look at you, I get that same feeling. That you’re worth it. Worth me making the improvement, worth me taking back the life that I thought I wasn’t ever going to have.”

His forehead slowly but surely crept down until it pressed against hers. His long hair came around them, practically cutting them off from the world.
”I… I knew the second that I felt something like that, that I was going to have to smash through the walls between myself and freedom. Freedom to just be. Everyone wants it… But they won’t suffer the consequences. I will. I’ve suffered already. I’ll take the weight. Carry it until there’s a place I can lay it to absolute rest.”

Trisha didn’t know what it was like to not want to live, because there’d always been something to keep her going - resentment, hope, spite… But she did know what it was like to be lonely. So lonely. Everyone left eventually. There’d never been anyone who stuck around in the way she needed - giving her the love and attention she didn’t have growing up. She’d spent so many years alone that she’d forgotten how to let people in.

“Nowhere’s felt like home for me either, until you,” she admitted softly. It was true. It wasn’t like what Casey said for him- and unknown, or instant feeling. Sure, it hadn’t been long, but in that time he’d been there. With her, for her. It wasn’t enough for her to feel like it wouldn’t all disappear, but… she felt comfortable. Like maybe she’d finally found her place and person. Such strong feelings.

Which was scary too.

”I- I don’t completely understand.” Because she didn’t feel like she was worth it. Not that much. She tilted her head up slightly to rub her nose against his.
“But I want to just be with you. Even if it means that you- we have to push through so much to get there. Together, because even if I can’t really help, I’ll always be there for you. Whether it’s hard or easy. Because I-” love you.

She wasn’t ready to say it- or even truly admit it to herself, but he could probably tell… and it was hard to not feel it after everything he’d just said. That he thought she was worth it, that she made him feel like he’d come home… Each thing was a slight confidence boost. A little bit more stability and acceptance.
“I don’t want you to suffer, but if it’s to get to a better place… I understand.”

His arms pulled her close, and there the moment rested. But it was only a moment.
"That all sounded a little gay didn’t it?”
Casey almost immediately deflated. Hearing that voice drove him up a wall, and every little bit of Trisha’s aggravation at the previous evening came welling back up through a new vessel. He didn’t respond, didn’t even turn his head to look.

But the look on his face told Trisha all she’d need to know.
”For fucks- Come on. Just walk.”
Casey’s hand moved down to grab Trisha’s, but as he moved, she’d get a good glance down the little throughway they were stood on. And, of course, there he was. All his glory, black on black with a black jacket and sunglasses indoors. He even had a hood on, like people who were going to recognize him would simply suspend their belief like he’s Clark Kent.

Leon Richoux was stopped there, staring. But, someone else was with him…

”Oy, that ain’t nice- I thought it was cute!”

Trisha stopped from trying to immediately flee, also staring. Her hand gripped Casey’s tightly and the immediate tension from hearing Leon’s voice didn’t go anywhere at the sight of her friend. Cass stood beside Leon, slapping his arm a couple of times. Her mostly black outfit was less egregious - at least there was some red here and there, and chains hanging from her ripped, baggy pants adding a little bit of… light.

“... Cass? Why are you here?” Trisha’s lips pressed together, and she didn’t even acknowledge Leon. She didn’t want to. She was still pissed at him even if she’d talked everything through with Casey. She wasn’t someone to just forgive and forget. So she glared at him, holding Casey’s hand enough that it would’ve hurt if she actually had any strength.

”In the flesh! You’d’ve known if you ever checked the chat! Nice to see you again, Casey!” Cass bounced forward a few steps, ending up standing in between the couple and Leon. She then glanced between them, whistling.
”I’m sensing a bit of tension here… Do I need to defend your honour again, Trish? I’ll do it. Bros before hoes and all that- Sorry Leon.” She spun back around towards him with a grin, cracking her neck and swinging her arms around as if preparing for a fight. Then she winked.

”Guess it’s more like foreplay, eh?”
Trisha groaned, free hand pressing against her face. But the tension in her shoulders did ease a bit.

Leon looked at his younger brother, then his date, then Trisha… He didn’t get any smarter, pulling the hood and glasses off. His eyes were closed slightly, and he had a regretful look on his face.
"I guess that was probably the wrong thing to say.”
Trisha would feel Casey’s hand tense up as he answered.
”If there weren’t people here, we wouldn’t be talking.”
Leon brought his fingers up to the bridge of his nose, wincing in frustration.
"This can’t be every one of our interactions, Man.”
”It sure can if you keep dropping the ball…-”
Casey did his best to smile weakly at Cass.
”-Sorry, Cass. If I knew you were here, I would’ve given you the courtesy instead of trying to run… You having fun in our lovely St. Portwell?”

Leon’s face turned down further until he looked genuinely hurt. But he didn’t make a stink out of it.

Cass looked between the two brothers with slightly raised eyebrows, then at Trisha to try and read a little bit what she wanted. Except Trisha had twisted herself to half hide her face against Casey’s arm, trying to reduce her annoyance enough to not end up glaring at her friend too. Because there was some frustration there too - why was Cass here, seeing Leon, without telling her? Why was she even still in the area?

”It’s fine, dude, I ain’t upset! I’m having a great time, y’know, loads to do, good company, and all that. Even if it looks like we’ll be having a ‘shit you don’t say’ lesson after this.” Cass threw up a thumbs up towards Casey and Trisha, head tilting backwards to grin at Leon. There was a hint of sharpened teeth there…

She then hopped forward until she was right next to Trisha, leaning in.
”Y’know I can beat some sense into him later, just like-”
“It isn’t like that, and you can’t.”
”Yeah, yeah, it ain’t, I know, less’a problem and it’d be more like a bit of fun, y’know last time-”
“Please stop there. Why are you even here?”

”Oh!” Cass stepped back from what had been an unnecessarily hushed conversation, grinning. ”Aside from the date? I’m stickin’ around Portland a bit longer. In fact, I’ll be around a lot more. I quit my job!”
“What?!”

Leon did his best not to look a little pleased about it.
"Why not, y’know? We’re all still young enough. I asked her if she wanted to spend some time, so that’s what we’re doing. She’s closer up North than where she was before, an hour versus a few.”
Casey stared at his older brother in abject silence and disbelief. He was trying desperately to process what was happening.

”That’s probably for the best… I expect to see you at our place too then? I’m sure Trisha isn’t going to say no to some quality time.”
His grip was lightening. The tension was flowing away.
”We were just talking about a rebellion! You can sign on, we have these fun uniforms and shit?”

Leon’s face went from somber to shocked and angry.
"Casey…”
”Oh, and any food he hands you that sounds like its screaming to get out? Don’t eat it… Or do. I guess you’re a grown woman.”
"Qu'est-ce que tu fais, Putain?” What the fuck are you doing?
”You can say cryptic shit to scare my girlfriend, but I can’t do the same? Classic, Leon.”
"I don’t think it’s right Casey…”

”Address me properly…”

The command hung in the air like a damp cloth on the whole moment. Casey’s eyes were intensely blue, shimmering, and he was standing as stiff and tall as he could. Leon’s face changed once again, taking on new qualities of embarrassment and pleading.

"Don’t do this…”
”Y’know Cass, I really wish you could beat some sense into my Older Brother… I love him to death, but he can’t seem to stop treating me like shit. Like he’s above me… No matter how many times I outbox him.”

Cass was, of course, a little confused about the situation. She was pretty good at reading people - especially Trisha and all her subtleties. Obviously some shit had happened between Leon and the two of them… but when rebellions and screaming food came into it? Or proper addresses? Was this actually the army? She was fucking lost. Not scared, just fucking lost.

Trisha wasn’t, but she was uncomfortable. She shuffled closer to Casey, moving to be slightly behind him while still holding onto his hand. While she liked that Casey was defending himself and her, she didn’t like the audience - that audience being Cass. Like she was being dragged into a situation that revealed parts of Trisha she didn’t like revealing…

”Well I dunno what you’re saying ‘bout a lotta that shit- if food screams at me Ima just throw it outta window- but…” Cass looked at Casey, eyes squinting slightly, then back at Leon.
”You beat a boxer and they just wanna beat you back- not that that’s an excuse to treat anyone like shit.” Her eyes narrowed just a little bit at Leon. The arrogance was part of it, but really it shouldn’t come outside of the ring too much.

”That’s just all some toxic masculinity shit. You can’t beat him in a way that’ll work- I can. Well, will be able to. Gotta work on the magic first!” Cass winked at Casey, before her lips curved into an almost evil grin towards Leon.
”You’ll enjoy it.”

Casey’s eyes narrowed… But he cracked a smile.
”I’ll be sure to miss that recording.”
His voice became a rumbling giggle, and it seemed that whatever tension was there was starting to dissipate. Cass would be able to feel Leon equally break tension.
"I love you…”

It wasn’t to Cass, of course… He was looking at Casey.
”I love you too… If you know yesterday was up and down, and you know I’ll hear about it, the least you could do is not be like… How you are.”
The elder brother nodded, taking a deep breath.
"You’re right, I know… And I’m sorry.”
Casey’s eyes went bright, and he raised his hands slightly.
”Thank you! That’s all! Just fucking lead with that shit instead!”
"I know, I knowwwwwww… Christ, fucking… I thought Cass was going to make you both smile.”

”You using me as some kinda peace offering? Y’know I aint cheap!” Cass elbowed Leon in the side pretty hard - because she knew both with and without magic she could barely hurt him. No need to hold back.
“You should’ve brought someone quieter.” Trisha relaxed a little bit as Casey did, shuffling back around to his side rather than a bit behind him. She still stuck close, not quite looking at Leon. But she was clearly more… alright with his presence.

”Aw, c’mon, you love me! You missed me! And now you’re stuck with meeeeee!” Cass skipped forward, practically launching herself at Trisha - and accidentally slapping Casey as she wrapped her arms around her friend. She practically smothered Trisha - and herself, since there was practically no height difference between them.

“Get off me,” Trisha grumbled - but she was smiling… what little of her face was visible around Cass’s all encompassing hug. It remained there, just a little smile, as Cass let go.
“You could’ve said you were going to be in St Portwell.”
”That’d ruin the surprise! But I did say - like ten times in the group chat. You just don’t check it! And that’s on you, babe.” Cass grinned teasingly, bouncing back into the middle of all of them. She gestured between Casey and Leon.
”But I’m real glad you two made up from whatever that was- you gotta hold onto that relationship, cause you dunno when it’ll be gone.”

Casey stuck his tongue out and blew it jokingly as he got slapped by accident.
”Oh, it’s not up by a long shot, but there’s enough mutual respect to not dog-ass one another in front of two people who deserve better energy.”
Leon seemed to agree with the sentiment, nodding his head.
"We’ve had it out before. We’ll do it again later. But he’s right, it’s… You two. Every story you’ve told me makes me understand how much love you two share, so… All shit aside.”

Casey nodded, taking a breath and looking at Trisha and Cass.
”What brings you two here anyway?”

Cass looked between the two brothers again, nodding. She got it. She had four brothers of her own, after all, and there were tensions there… and she missed fighting with her oldest brother. For just a moment a sad look crossed her eyes. But just like that it was gone, right back to the normal Cass energy.
”What else would we be here for? To spice things up in a different location!”
“Oh my God Cass, you-”

”I’m kidding, I’m kidding.” Cass laughed, waving a hand in front of her before Trisha had the chance to continue. Trisha just rolled her eyes, but it was good natured enough. She was still smiling.
”Shopping, of course. I ain’t actually gone back to San Fran yet to get my stuff, and I ain’t got all that many clothes with me. Rey’s real anal about me borrowing her shit too, I’ve been having to cycle between like three shirts… So Leon suggested we go shopping! Course I agreed. We’re on this floor cause the women’s section sucks. I can’t be bothered with tryna find the tiny amount I like and then dealing with those sizes- the fuck do the numbers mean? Nothing! It changes at every shop! You ain’t got any idea how lucky you guys are to have fuckin’ waist sizes and all that shit.”

“You could just try it on. It’s not that bad.” Trisha tilted her head.
”Who’s got time for that shit?”
“Well, you. You’re unemployed.”
”Damn!” Cass clutched her chest, grinning.
”Just hit me right where it hurts, why dontcha? Just cause I got the time doesn’t mean I want to. There’s better things to be doin’.” She looked up at Leon with a grin.
Credit where it was due, the giant man was trying his absolute best to not react to the provocation coming from Cass. She was relentless; just his type, and absolutely unapologetic about it.
"We’ve got an appointment with Balthazar as well. I wanted to get her a dress made because I think that man makes the sexiest dresses in the city.”

Casey knew that Balthazar was a shop run by a premier French designer. It was a place their Father used to bring Lynette whenever he won, or whenever there was some official banquet run by the boxing leagues. It took months to get those kinds of things commissioned and sewn up.
Which meant he was actually fairly serious about this. The sex had to be good, Casey figured. He laughed.

”I should rat you out to Wendy.” he said simply, a chuckle leaving his lungs.
"Oh God, I’ll never hear the end of it at Christmas.” Leon joked back, scratching the back of his head and smiling.
”Wendy’s a cousin of ours. On our Dad’s side… Bigwig fashion designer out in New York.” Casey explained.
"Pretty impressive too! In an industry where she could’ve just used her magic to outcompete everyone, she’s done it all legitimately. No fancy Orange Lux tricks or anything.”

Casey’s head nodded as he thought about his family out East. The people who they never saw; most of whom hated his Mother and rightfully believed she was deceptive and duplicitous.
"You guys already eat?”
”Andrade’s… We got there before he sent Mom’s breakfast muffins off.”
Leon knew what that meant, and grimaced slightly.
"Jesus… You two must’ve had quite the talk about things.”

Casey smiled as big and wide as he could.
”Yessir… Get why I’m pissy yet?”
Leon just nodded, taking a deep breath.
”Which reminds me, Cass… Did you meet Leon’s cat yet?”

Once again, Cass didn’t get half of what was being said after the fashion talk - but she could tell that Trisha and Casey had a fight. It was pretty obvious by the look on Trisha’s face as Casey and Leon talked, lips pressed together and looking down at the ground. Which also meant they’d made up pretty quickly… that was good! Boded well for the future! So she grinned at Trisha, flashing her another thumbs up.
”Y’mean the massive fuckin’ fluffy ones that talk? Yeah, like, briefly. I don’t think they liked me- I thought it was cute how they talked and they gave me this evil look when I tried to pet ‘em. Now that I think about it, maybe it was the wolf ears…”

Trisha shuddered just thinking about the cats, looking up at Casey. Her hand reached out for his again, just for a bit of reassurance. But she was also concerned… Cass could take a lot, Trisha knew that. She’d witnessed her beat up a fair few guys bigger than her. But the cats were different.
“They haven’t tried to do anything to you?”
”The fuck could they do, they’re cats - talking cats, sure, but still cats. What’re they gonna do, bore me to death?”

“They’re dangerous, Cass. Really dangerous. Leon will tell you-” Trisha finally properly looked at Leon again, frowning.
“If it hurts Cass I won’t forgive you.”

”Hey, hey, hey, let’s not get all up in arms again!” Cass once again put herself in the middle, reaching out to grab Trisha’s free hand, and then also one of Leon’s. Like a strange connecting human chain…
”I dunno the fuck’s up with these cats, but they ain’t gonna hurt me on Leon’s watch, I’m sure. Plus, I can defend myself. I ain’t exactly round there doing cat friendly shit anyway- if anyone’s gonna be scarred by that encounter, it’ll be them.”

Trisha rolled her eyes at that, but seemed to relax a little bit. She still didn’t like it. The Wampus scared her a lot. What if it started targeting Cass as well because of her? Especially if she was going to be visiting St Portwell more… she looked up at Casey with a slight frown, not sure what to say. If Cass decided something was fine or she wanted to do something it was pretty difficult to change her mind…

Casey was silent for a moment before he shook his head.
”Y’know, I could’ve guessed they’d have a hard time with you. They don’t like you because there’s only fun in that noggin of yours. You don’t get scared, you don’t get mad or depressed much… The positivity is like a black hole.”

Despite her aggressive prodding toward him, Leon nodded in agreement before turning to Trisha.
"It’s honestly… Pretty funny. I’m pretty sure they skipped the next night she was around.”
Which gave Casey an idea of why they’d not bothered testing his warding until recently. It…
”Can we… Get rid of it?”
Leon gave him a half-smile.
"Do you know what they know?” he asked. Casey didn’t reply with speech, only nodding his head slowly.

Leon looked serious, if a little hurt.
"Ah… That’s not funny.”
”It’s not a joke.”
Confusion, a furrowed brow and dull eyes causing the other three individuals to blur in his vision. He felt slightly sick.
"Then we probably need to talk privately about it.”
”Save it then. Can we… Y’know, try and just-”
"You asked. But, yeah. Lets-”

Casey’s hand reached out for Trisha’s, grabbing it and pulling it up.
”If you’re both looking for Men’s clothes, then come on… I was doing some shopping too; we’re going on a date tomorrow and I wanted something that wasn’t black or olive.” Casey offered, flashing a more genuine smile at Cass.

”Awwww, that’s so cute! You gonna match? Trish has plenty of clothes, I bet whatever you get she can match you- that’ll be cute… I want pictures!” Cass grinned, easily moving past whatever had happened about the clearly magical cat that couldn’t get into her head. No point dwelling on something like that after all. She reached out to slap Trisha’s arm a few times excitedly.
”Seriously, you guys are so fucking cute!”

“Can you please hit the overly muscular guy next to you instead,” Trisha said, squeezing Casey’s hand. While the talk of the Wampus wasn’t comfortable for her, she relaxed a bit knowing it couldn’t get Cass at least. Probably. And whatever Casey and Leon were getting at, well… if it was private it was private. She trusted Casey.
“If you’re coming along, no hitting.”

”Got it, got it, I’ll try my best.” Cass shrugged, before shooting finger guns at Casey.
”What kinda thing you looking for? Aside from a bit of colour- I wanna few plaid shirts, some tank tops, another pair of trousers- pants, fuckin’ Americans. But it’s whatever I can find, really! I like a good mosey around, y’know.” Even as she spoke she’d already started moving forwards, normal bounce in her step.

"Hawaiian shirts."

Leon’s arms snapped upward like he was calling a field goal.
"You’re so fucking easy, Caseau!”
Casey wasn’t the least bit shameful. The fact that he was enamored with them was common knowledge among his close family… And besides, Trisha had seemed somewhat receptive to them previously.
”Listen, I’m an adult! I was denied my love for their pretty flower patterns and bright colors for too many years! I will be liberated by my prodigious collection of high quality flower and tiki prints, mark my words!”

Looking at Trisha, he could feel her concern about the choice in shirts for their incoming date.
”Except, y’know… Not now. I guess it’d be up to you if we match, since you know what you own and I don’t.”

“I do have some floral print dresses and skirts,” Trisha looked up at Casey with a soft, but thoughtful, smile. While Hawaiian shirts were maybe not the most fashionable thing she… really didn’t mind it if wearing them would make him happy. As long as certain designs were avoided.
“They’re more for summer, though. It’s probably too cold for them. I would like to match…”

”Trisha has so many clothes you could get anything and I bet she could match it!” Cass grinned, spinning around and walking backwards. She’d already managed to bounce quite a bit ahead… though not so far she couldn’t hear everything they were saying.
”It was a right pain when we lived together! Her and Diyah were both fucking fighting for wardrobe space, I had to put my clothes under my bed… I couldn’t use the wardrobe in my own fucking room! It was like a fucking warzone, I swear, I’m surprised you’re letting Casey buy any clothes, cause I bet there ain’t room for them!”

“First off, you offered up your wardrobe-”
”Only cause you two wouldn’t stop bickering!”
“- Second, I’d quite like my boyfriend to expand his wardrobe… and I’m not some kind of wardrobe controlling asshole like you’re making out. It’s our home after all.”

”Awww, love really does change a person- ooo!” Cass’s already shit eating grin only turned more devious as she reached out, pulling out a shirt. It had a pretty nice floral pattern, and had been practically hidden among the plain shirts… except it was also eye-searingly orange. Like someone had made orange high-vis jacket into a floral shirt.
”What about this one?”

”Flamethrower…”
Casey’s cryptic answer was strange enough until you understood where he was coming from. That big orange jet of fire splashing across the ground like a pool of fire. The screams. The danger of the machine overheating and blasting the user to bits…
”It looks like a catastrophic failure.”
His hand reached out and took the hangar. A morbid smirk opened up on his face, and he started to giggle before looking at Trisha. The flowers, at least, were white lilies that made him feel somewhat safe and secure… So he took the shirt.

”Cass picked the first one, Babe… Your turn. Then Leon.”
Leon blew air through his lips, scoffing.
"Dude, you know I’m not the type.”
”Sure you are. Just be ready… Uhhh… Do you even have anything that goes with this, Babe?”

“Oh yeah, it goes with my collection of fashionable high-vis clothing," Trisha snorted sarcastically, staring at the shirt for a moment with squinted eyes as if it was blinding her. Then she looked over at Cass. Cass just held up her hands with a grin.
“If you get that one you're saving it for special, not wanting people to look at you occasions."

She craned her neck, trying to look across the rows and rows of clothing. It was all densely packed together and, honestly, poorly organised. From what she remembered it wasn't like this years ago. Who put something so orange among otherwise dull blues and blacks? But- oh. She spotted a section of greens just a little bit away. Rather than tugging Casey again, and upsetting him, she squeezed his hand before letting go.
“I’ll just be a moment, babe." Then she scurried off, on a very specific mission.

"While she's doing that- hold this for me." Cass practically threw the mostly black, with hint of red, plaid shirt she'd been wearing at Leon. It revealed what was basically just a harness bra, with multiple straps that went diagonally across her chest and up to her shoulders, underneath - the fishnet top over it didn't exactly cover much. Tattooed leaves came over her shoulder, turning into delicate birds across her shoulder bones. She pulled out what was very similar to what she'd been wearing, except the main colour was the dark red. It was thrown on without bothering to button it up, big enough she had to roll up the sleeves and it fell to her upper thighs. Her arms went out to the side.
"Thoughts? Too baggy? Not bright enough?"

"Not as cute as what you were wearing last night.” Leon grinned, shaking his head as he really gave the shirt a look.
"I don’t think I’ve ever said something was too dark though, so probably the wrong metric.”
”That’s not true, you remember that dude Elise dated when she first moved to New York?”

Leon’s face cringed, eyes turning down at his brother.
"HIS ABSTRACTION TURNED HIM INTO A BLACK HOLE.”
Casey’s lips turned into a duck face.
”Why’s he gotta be a black hole?” Casey smugly replied, pulling the bright orange shirt off the hangar and pulling his sweater off to try this monstrosity on. It felt good around the shoulders, and he did a little dance as he made sure the whole thing fit well without restriction.

Cass laughed, putting her hands on her hips as she watched. It really was bright - which was exactly why she'd picked it out.
”Well I ain't really expecting you to say it ain't bright enough - you're clearly the all black kinda goth whereas I like to throw in a lil red and blue to spice things up… and you ain't getting last night's kinda spicy looks here. Just in comparison, y’know-" she gestured to Casey and his abomination of an orange shirt with a playful grin towards Leon.
"But seriously, a fuckin' black hole? That seems real inconvenient - did he just destroy shit if he turned into it accidentally? How do you even date someone like that?"

“Black hole what?" Trisha reappeared, looking at Cass in confusion. She was carrying two identical shirts - because she hadn't been entirely sure of what size would be right. Her gaze trailed over to Casey, squinting against the bright orange even as she smiled… the dance was cute.
“The fit is nice," she commented softly as she got close to him again, deciding not to say anything about the… colour. Honestly, if it was any other colour the design would've been quite nice too. Her head tilted back, smiling up at him, and she held out what she'd brought over. It was a lighter cool green, with outlined in a darker green and orchids outlined in blues and purples across it.
“I can definitely match these colours. I think it'll look really nice on you too."

”Oh, I do like my greens…” Casey cooed, taking the shirt and looking at it with a gentle nod.
"Yeah, uh… Well, he was good with his Abstraction. We didn’t realize at first, but he was a pretty well-adjusted Abcised, so… Elise cut it off.” Leon commented offhandedly, thinking back to finding out that his sister was technically dating a skinwalker. He still managed to toss Cass a suggestive look despite any lack of clarity as to how it could even be suggestive.

But Casey had only brought it up to tease Leon. In reality, he was far away from the thought already.
”I assume a shirt like this just goes with everything?” he asked, looking across the department at the racks of pants.
”But I don’t know how I feel about blue jeans. I wish they came in more neutral tones. Like greys and shit.” he explained to Trisha, sliding off the high-vis shirt to try this new one.

“... They do come in greys," Trisha said in an almost helpless tone. Like she was realising just how little he knew about clothes. She looked over at Cass hoping to share a despairing gaze… except Cass was smirking at Leon with her eyes narrowed playfully. Did she have any idea what was the cause of the suggestive look? Nope. Was she gonna go along with it? Hell yeah.

“You can get jeans in all shades of blues, greys and black," Trisha continued, going from scrunching up her face at Cass to smiling softly up at Casey.
“This shirt would go with anything, but I think grey would probably be nicest? But it doesn't really matter so you wouldn't have to think about it much… whereas the other one…"

"Would go with black!" Cass interrupted, stopping looking like she wanted to jump Leon there and then to incredibly swiftly screech back to friendly over energy.
”Really it's perfect to spice up an otherwise dark wardrobe."
“... Would you wear it?"
"Nah but I ain't the Hawaiian shirt guy!"

”Uhh… Yeah, I could see this one going with black jeans, but I’d… I guess I’ll buy grey ones too. Kind of trying to avoid the darkest stuff, Cass. That’s the point of this.”
"You should invest in the Dad look too, Bud… He always looked super clean in a white shirt and blue jeans.” Leon offered, a warmth bubbling up from within.

For a moment, Casey stood thinking about him. About Max. About those days without worrying about being magical or anything. When they were just a family. It was rare, but he did have memories like that.

”Remember he bought those jackets for us?” Casey smiled, looking at his older brother with a reactive pulse of White Lux emanating from him.
Leon laughed in turn.
"Totally impulsive, but we looked great for being little kids.”
”We did, we did… Mom’s probably still got the pictures somewhere. Can you look for them next time you’re home?”
"You’re welcome to go down and look for yourself too…” he offered in turn.

But Casey wouldn’t be doing that. He was trying to broker a peaceful existence with those cats, at least setting a precedent that if they don’t invade his space, he won’t invade theirs.
”We’ll see about that… For now, a couple Hawaiian shirts for the start of my collection. And then, I guess… I would wear them open? So, I need undershirts and stuff, right Babe?”

Trisha nodded. She'd taken a few steps back to properly look at him trying on the shirt she'd picked out, her smile only growing warmer. It was nice. Both in looks, but also having him wear something she'd picked… it was a similar feeling of safety she got whenever she stole his sweaters.
“Yeah, but you can really just use the t-shirts you have already for that? Or if that'll be too warm get some thinner ones… that's probably a good idea? Just neutral colours. White is probably best." As she spoke she moved back to his side, taking his hand and squeezing it. She was curious about the jackets and the picture but… maybe she'd ask another time.
“You look really good in that one."

"I gotta agree. Trish you've got great taste," Cass grinned. She looked about ready to sprint over to where the pants were, having somehow managed to grab a couple of shirts herself… but wait. The hand not holding shirts flew up into the air, only avoiding smacking Leon fully on the chin because of the insane height difference.
"Ain't we moving on too fast? You said Leon got to pick you a shirt too."

Casey laughed.
”He made his suggestion! I won’t torture him b-”
"Mighty presumptuous. Come on, we’ll find one.”
Casey put his hands up in a jokingly defensive manner, air pushing from between his lips dismissively. In turn, Leon giggled and slipped his arm around Cass’ waist. He slapped her thigh before resting his massive palm somewhere half between her leg and ass. As they walked, he shoved his free hand into his pocket.

”Now I’m just worried what he has in mind…”

“It can't be that bad, can it?" Trisha looked up at Casey, before narrowing her eyes at Leon and Cass as they followed them. Somehow Cass still managed to bounce rather than walk, even with Leon's arm around her and having slotted her body in right against his. It was almost impressive.
“It’ll probably be… the blackest black to have ever existed. I bet it'll suck in all the light around it." Trisha laughed lightly.
“And if it's somehow worse than what Cass picked out, I'll veto it."

"Jesus, you guys… Can’t I just get him some nice clothes?”
They wound up in the designer section; dozens and dozens of different dress shirts and slacks packaged up in individual plastic sleeves to keep them from getting dirty. He grabbed a white and gray striped shirt, checking the size on the package and nodding before going for some of the accompanying vests.
He held the shirt over Casey’s chest, then the vest. It looked like he was going for some sort of cowboy influenced vibe with gold vines crawling across the vest.

"Trisha? Yee-haw?” he joked.

Trisha stared at the clothes, then at Leon. It was pretty obvious that she was trying her best not to react badly. What he said was a joke, but were the clothes? Probably not. She took a deep breath.
“Haha... The shirt is nice. I actually like the shirt. The vest…" she trailed off trying not to bluntly say what she was thinking. It was bad. She'd almost prefer the blinding orange over the cowboy look.
“It’s more important that Casey likes it…"

"Hey, I think it looks great!" Cass grinned. She held up one hand to the side of her face to hide it from Leon while winking at Trisha in an overly goofy, conspiratorial way.
"Y'know what, why don't you get one too, Leon? Then you guys can match, and go shoot up some old style bars together… Ooo, or have some duels in a dusty street!"

The brothers exchanged a look that went from conspiratorial into completely different directions. Casey’s smugness radiated, and Leon slowly sunk into a pained expression.
"I… Already…-”
”Ooooh, yeah… One of Leon’s favorite aesthetics is the Johnny Cash. Gold on black, cowboy boots, tassels, the whole nine yards. The Outlaw.”
Leon only looked more devastated.
"I’ss not my fault you can’t see it for what it is…”

Casey just laughed, shaking his head.
”Blew your load pretty fast on that one, big guy… Should’ve been a bit more subtle about it.”
Handing the vest back, he kept the shirt.
”But Trisha says this part’s fine, so…” he winked at her with a smile.

“It- it is."
Trisha couldn't hold back her laughter, looking between Casey and Leon. Each time she looked at Leon it welled back up uncontrollably. Just imagining him in the whole get up… fuck, it was just too funny. Cowboy boots… tassels… it was so ridiculous. She moved over to Casey, pressing her face into his arm just to stop looking at Leon. Eventually, her laughter subsided.
“I’m never going to take him seriously again," Trisha half whispered, slightly out of breath from how much she laughed.

Cass looked Leon up, then she looked him down.
"Why ain't you worn that around me yet?! Or were you saving it for a special occasion?"
"’Cuz you’re just gonna bully me………”
Leon’s best pouting face was plastered so wide across his head that even Lelou felt herself totally drying out. A gentle wisp of fog curled up and out of his ear, wafting toward Cass and whispering something gently into her ear. It was so faint, she’d only be able to hear it after getting used to these intrusions during their prior sessions.

”He wants it anyway…”
Leon was turning a hundred shades of red, then finally buried his face in his hands.
"For fuck’s sake…” he gently groaned.

”It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s got our Dad’s old pair of chaps.”
Casey could only smile wider, bearing social pressure down upon Leon as he pushed the issue.
”You’ll really love those, Cass. They’ve got generational stains.” he finished, making a mock gagging noise.

“Gross, Casey," Trisha grumbled, hiding her face against him again - trying to muffle laughter that was coming back up again. Sure the stains sounded gross, but the thought of Leon owning chaps. Wearing them? It was too much again.

"Seriously? Do you actually have them?" Cass bounced right up to Leon, leaning into him a bit as she tilted her head up with a wicked grin. Not that she needed Lelou's whisper to bolster her confidence, but it sure was a nice extra boost. There was some genuine excitement in her eyes - not so much at the generational stains, funky as that sound, but something the Gravity had owned? Worn?!
"Well now you gotta show me! The whole fucking thing! You're really worried about a little bullying? Like it won't be the best bullying of your life- c'mon, you can bully me but I can't bully you?" Of course she probably wasn't talking about verbal bullying…

"We can make some new st-"
“Oh my god Cass please," Trisha paused trying to become one with Casey's arm to cut off her friend from saying anything worse. Not that Cass seemed put off by it…
"C'mon, Trish, you've heard me say way worse. Do way worse too."
“... Because that apartment had thin walls and I didn't have proper headphones when we moved in!"

Cass just smirked, looking back up at Leon.
"Sooooo… do I get to see them?"

Leon was looking a little more uncomfortable than before. It wasn’t the joking kind of uncomfortable, rather it was turning to something real.
"Dude… Really?”
Casey knew what this was. It only made his grin deeper and more… Evil.
”Awwww… Too real when she starts fetishising him over you, huh? Ego can’t take it?” he asked, smugness undying.

Leon just put his hand up, looking at Cass.
"Just please don’t call me ‘Gravity Baby’ again…” he whined.

"Of course, of course, don't worry, I wouldn't go doing something you've asked me not to!" Cass grinned, patting Leon's bicep a couple of times - there was maybe a squeeze in there too, she couldn't resist.

“I actually think… I'm glad whatever is going on here is happening," Trisha whispered to Casey, meaning Leon and Cass - and not really thinking about Leon's extra sensitive hearing. While she still wasn't comfortable around Leon, especially after everything last night, he was at least… a little more tolerable when Cass was around to do her thing. It'd always been the case with Cass, really. A great buffer between people with tensions.

"Also no need to get jealous or anything! Sure, Gravity’s awesome and his legacy, damn… But I've always been your number one fan too! Literally can't fuckin' beat me in the stats, if the stats were purely online shit- tweets, fanpages, GIFs, fanfic… I've made the most! Especially the fic, the shit I write is the most accurate too- even before we met! Nobody's doing it like I am." Cass pointed a thumb at herself with a wide grin as she continued with her normal trend of being far too open about certain things.

Trisha didn't even look annoyed this time. Honestly, she'd heard it all. There'd been one time when Cass had trapped her in their kitchen and gone on and on about something she'd written. If anything she was glad it wasn't just at her this time.

Casey felt his body slow down as the joke formed. He had every opportunity to avoid disaster by simply keeping his mouth shut and not bringing up their night last night. Not bringing up the meeting. Not bringing up the little piece of paper stuffed into Layla’s purse that let him hear everything.
”Holy shit, Cass… You write fan fics? About, what, the PBL? Or is it just Leon?”
He knew of plenty of people who fetishized the Professional Boxer’s League. It was only natural that people would treat it like some kind of sideshow wrestling event, writing their fantasies of steamy backroom lockers and muscled up men rubbing-
”We’ve got plenty of people who do stuff like that too in the Temple. My and Trisha’s friend Ginara writes that stuff too; we should hook you guys up.”

Crisis averted. Casey looked at Trisha and waggled his eyebrows.

"You probably would like her. She’s got the same energy as you most of the time. Very coiled and excited for pretty much everything she loves.”
”She’s even got Trisha addicted to Minecraft.”

“I’m not addicted," Trisha grumbled, though now that Casey mentioned it she remembered they never finished the new roof… they didn't even start it…

"Someone finally played Minecraft with you, Trisha? I'm happy- me and Sal played the death of it, so we didn't want to by the time we met Trish… Oh, wait, like, she writes PBL fic too? Cause I do write a lot, not just Leon- just wrote the most about him, heh. Hell yeah hook me up! So long as she ain't part of the weird part of the fandom with wrong opinions that keep telling me that the shit I write is inaccurate like they'd know, fucking assholes…" Cass trailed off in some surprisingly aggressive muttering, before brightening right back up. Once again going a mile a minute.
"But nobody ever talks to me about this shit! Some of my friends- not naming any names- started trackin' when matches were just to avoid me. Can you believe it?"

“You used to trap us and talk at us for hours," Trisha commented, with a light laugh. She smiled at Casey.
“I'm actually kind of scared about what it'll be like if Gin and Cass meet. Maybe we should just put them in a room and let them talk for most of a day?"

Casey nodded at Trisha, a goofy smile crossing his face.
”We could. She will probably be a big help with some projects. Gin’s been looking for a programmer for a fangame she wants to make about Sycamore.”
If Trisha was going to get annoyed about Sycamore being brought up, Leon beat her to the punch.
"Please don’t exile my girl here into the code mines because of Sycamore shit. I’ll never see her again.”

”Well, not never. She seems to like you, right Cass? You like him? Like… You’re dating, right?”
Leon didn’t confirm this. There was nothing exclusive about it per-se, so he wasn’t going to try and lock Cass down like that. Especially considering the dynamic between them… She was a friend, sure. Friendly, sure. But also a fan. And Leon didn’t exactly love the prospect of being in love with a fan.

Cass looked at Casey like he'd said the cutest, most innocent thing ever. Then she turned to Trisha. One hand offered a thumbs up while the other wiped away an imaginary tear. He really was so pure… luck for Trisha. She deserved someone like that. Trisha's reaction was, of course, an eye roll.
"Well yeah, I like him plenty. More than enough to not get stuck in some code hole and never come back." Cass said after the weird theatrics.
"But it's been like… three dates? Less than a week? I ain't in a rush to label it like that, we'll just see where it goes, yeah?" she looked up at Leon, one shoulder pushing up into a shrug.

While Leon didn’t offer more than a cursory nod, Casey made a cute but mocking pout.
”Awwww, he’s so embarrassed! Leon Richoux, does our Mother know?”
"Our Mother knows everything, Casey… I just don’t feel like exposing Cass to that kind of thing so quickly. Y’know, courtesy.”

”Hey, she’s totally fine! Handled it like a champ, right Trisha-Bee?”
Casey’s hand came up and playfully pinched Trisha’s cheek, a swift kiss following it.
”Come on… I still need new pants! And I want to get some regular shirts that are just different colors… Trisha, can I get some of those dumb ass dad-print shirts? The ones that have slogans like ‘Wishin’ I was fishin’ or something?”

“Handling it like a champ isn't how I'd describe it, but sure," Trisha mumbled, but it was impossible to dwell on it with Casey's kiss and swift moving on. Her lips pursed at the thought of dad-print shirts, looking at Casey as she considered it. It was… embarrassing. Goofy. But also she wanted him to… wear clothes he liked, even if they were goofy and embarrassing. There was a line somewhere, and some dad-print shirts she just wouldn't accept, but it was fine…
“You can, but you're not wearing them on dates. And I get to veto really awful ones. And we're cuddling tonight." She looked up at him with a cute smile, taking his hand and letting him lead the way - no more tugging on her part.

”You want to hug while he's wearing a dad-print shirt?! You've sure got interesting taste, Trisha!" Cass interrupted the cute moment with a joke, deftly ducking under Trisha's free hand that lashed out to hit her shoulder.
“Don’t you have your own clothes to go buy?"

Cass held up the shirts she'd been carrying slung over her arm, shaking them a little bit.
"This is plenty, just need to find some pants that fit me and I'm sorted. I gotta go back to San Fran in like a week or something anyway, move all my shit into Rey's- my landlord gave me, like, two weeks after I broke the lease. Stingy bastard."
“Maybe it wouldn't be such a problem if you'd, I don't know, pre-planned things? Not just quit your job on a whim?"
"Hey now, I've been thinking about it for a while! That job's pay was fucking sound but it was so fucking boring. And it's just all perfectly timed- Rey's flatmate moved out, plenty of people to visit here, I just handed over a project anyway… I'm more relaxed than I've felt in years!"

Trisha looked at Cass. She looked… about as energetic as she always did. Maybe more energetic. Had her job really been that bad? Maybe she… hadn't been paying enough attention to her friends. She was always wrapped up in her own problems.
“Well… I suppose that's good… I'm glad you're happy about it."

Cass looked at Leon, smirked, then looked back at Trisha.
"Sure am- oh! Maybe I can grab some fucking awful- I mean hilarious printed shirts too. Not for me, of course, but Christmas is coming up and Jack's an absolute fiend for them- that's my older brother. Literally all he wears. So you better not take all the good ones." Cass shot finger guns at Casey, grinning.
"Though I suppose it don't matter since there's an ocean between you."

Casey grinned back at Cass, holding Trisha’s hand tightly and rubbing the top of it with his thumb.
”You should absolutely ask Leon to get him some of the Temple shirts we have left over. They’re not even culty, they’re just pure humor. Mia’s made a bunch in the last few years; there’s this one of an Angel throwing up in a toilet with like a bunch of bottles around it. Caption is ‘Can’t spell Heaven without HEAVE’... It was for some Beerfest they did.”
Leon laughed and nodded his head.

"There’s better ones. I’ll make sure she sends ‘em off.”

With that, the small group proceeded on into the deeper parts of the store for what felt like hours. Casey and Cass happily bonded over their enthusiasm for stupid clothing, while Leon had the ultimate run of not being an asshole… Whether or not it was enough to make up for what happened prior was a completely different question.
The longer they spent, however, the bigger the piles of clothes got. Casey found the jeans in various shades, and found a great deal of in-between colors and styles that had nothing to do with black. In turn, his view of clothes expanded further, forcing a great deal of backtracking in order to put together outfits that previously hadn’t been explored.

By the time it was time to go, they’d spent well over a thousand dollars on clothing between them… Laden with bags, Casey felt right at home hauling what was necessary out of the store and off into the parking lot. While he still wasn’t incredibly enthused by his brother’s behavior, he couldn’t deny how much he cherished moments where he felt like a family. And if having Cass there meant Trisha would be comfortable in the future, then he was happy to have her close by… It meant she could experience it all with them!

"I for one am not looking forward to that shit… Any time they make a new movie it ends up being the same bullshit where they just take something we already liked and try to make it ‘better.’ Like, it’s not better, you just like your version more.”
They’d been talking about movies and the prospect of going to catch one together, but Leon wasn’t being very receptive.

”Aw c’mon, do you just not enjoy fun? It doesn’t gotta be better - sometimes it is, sometimes it ain’t! But it’s fun to experience!” Cass, unsurprisingly, was not backing down. It was somewhat comedic, her hands balled into fists on her hips and staring up at Leon as if she was about to start an actual fist fight over movie watching. Of course, it would be a fun, good natured fist fight!
”But if you don’t wanna come, you don’t gotta. I’ll just go with my best bud and her super cool boyfriend.”

Trisha just laughed as she listened - not one to have strong opinions on movies… or at least if Cass dragged her to something she tended to just go along with it. And having Cass around was nice, even if it meant spending a bit more time with Leon. For once she tried not to say anything… too shit to him.
”Movies are the one time Cass actually manages to stay still. It’s actually kind of incredible,” Trisha offered.

"Listen, I’m not saying I won’t go. I’m just saying… Let’s pick a different movie. I just feel like it’s gonna be the same movie that came out twenty years ago, just overall less charming.”
Casey laughed, adjusting the cluster of bags in one hand.
”Well I’m not watching a horror movie, so… Our options are growing more and more limited.”

"I mean, there’s that romantic comedy? I’ll watch it even if it’s dumb, just… Not something that we’ve already SEEN, you know? Like, I’m not asking a lot.” Leon shrugged, holding his hands up in a confused, slightly defensive posture.

Cass pouted. It really wasn’t a normal look for her. She even slightly hung her head. She looked a little like a kicked puppy. Like, a super cheerful puppy that had been kicked.
”Alright, fine… if you really don’t want to see it. I really like the original, I’ve watched it like… ten times… but I’ll just see the remake myself sometime. Let’s go see that one, I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Trisha pressed a hand to her mouth to suppress a snicker. It wasn’t that she was finding it funny, it was just… someone else having to deal with Cass’ fixation on doing a specific thing.
“I’ll watch anything.” Trisha’s expression was practically screaming ‘not so difficult now, am I?’

Leon was silent for a moment, looking down at Cass as Trisha managed to be smug about not having an opinion. He found himself remembering why he didn’t like her to begin with, but as Casey seemed to enjoy it, he didn’t bother lashing out. Rather, his concern laid with Cass and her absolutely unseen brand new expression.
He’d not seen her make a face besides one of pleasure in the week they’d known one another, so this was a new and guttural reaction that was being driven into him.

He could only stammer out a response.
"W-well… Y’know… F-fine! Fine. We’ll go see it, Cass. It’s okay, really. I won’t even say anything. We’ll just go, you can enjoy your movie, and it is what it is!”
Casey’s head turned to Trisha.
”Do you even want to go to a movie? We were kind of planning on cuddling…” he explained aloud.

“We can cuddle at the movies,” Trisha replied after a moment of weighing it up. Just going back home and cuddling up on their massive couch was nice, but there was also something appealing about… going on what was kind of a chill date. Plus she could sense Cass’ pleading gaze.
“It’s pretty dark… and maybe we can go to one of the ones with couches instead of those uncomfy chairs?”

”Ooo, that’s a great idea!” Cass perked up pretty quickly after getting Leon’s agreement, grabbing his hand and practically beaming up at him. Of course she was pretty much always smiling, but there was an extra little something in there.
”And the movie’ll be great! I’m sure of it!”

---

”Oh my fucking God, that was absolute ass. They ruined it! They’ve ruined my comfort movie- they ruined my favourite character! She was barely fucking there!”
Cass came out of the movie with all of her hopes and dreams shattered. She was a shell of her former self… even though her intense energy didn’t match that. While she was clearly pissed off about it, and ranting, she didn’t look sad. But she did look like she was unlikely to stop ranting about it anytime soon.

“Even to someone who hasn’t seen the original it was bad,” Trisha managed to say around Cass’ rant. Though she hadn’t not enjoyed the experience - namely because it had been a couple of hours cuddling Casey while only half paying attention to it. That was nice.

”Right?! How could they do that?! Who let that happen?! It was so fucking shit! I can’t believe we paid money to see that!” Cass’ hands reached up to grab her hair, yanking as if she was going to rip it out in frustration.
”I’m never watching a remake again.”

Casey had totally checked out of the movie; hated it as a kid and didn’t know why Leon ever liked it so much. It was just a dumb movie about a bunch of kids who didn’t have their shit together when the movie started, but weren’t any better by the time it ended. They just had magical powers after that…
”I thought it was an improvement. At least they didn’t have that whole scene where they were stuck in the dream world just crying until the wizard came and saved them. The main character realizing they could just wake everyone up with their powers was at least more realistic.”

"The whole fucking point of that scene was because the main character and his little brother didnt have a DAD! The fucking Wizard saves them and after that they start to actually trust the rest of the group!”
Leon was probably just as hurt as Cass was. All the subtext and secondary plots about the group dynamic were pretty much washed away by asserting that they were all friends to begin with. Even if they still had their personal stories intact, there was no friction. No spark.

”But the dude still ends up being evil, like he gives them that sense of trust and they, what? Hold onto it after it’s basically proven wrong?”
"WHEN IS IT PROVEN WRONG!?”
Leon’s hands gripped in front of him with a vague crushing motion, as if he was trying to squash whatever was in his mind between his hands.
”He betrays them at the end!”
"BUT THEY STILL TRUST THEIR FRIENDS BECAUSE THEY DON’T BETRAY ONE ANOTHER!”
”Easy, big guy… You’re gonna blow a gasket.”

"But he's right! That's what makes it so fucking good… even though they're betrayed by someone they trusted they don't lose trust in everyone!" Cass jumped right back in. She wasn't quite shouting like Leon was, but the way she bounced about now with her hands curled up into fists was like she was ready to punch something. It was a completely erratic, aggressive energy.
”And my girl… they made her a fucking barely there love interest! She was an integral part of the group! Sure, there were hints, but they're kids, it ain't the main thing. It's the friendship! But they took that away for her just to have some fucking save the girl scene that was. Fucking. Unnecessary! She was so badass in the original! I was so fucking excited cause I love the actress they cast as her, but then they ruined it!"

Trisha didn't really get it. She hadn't particularly enjoyed the movie, and she assumed she probably wouldn't enjoy the original… and what Casey said made sense to her. If she was betrayed like that, she wouldn't be so trusting anymore. But the thing that was on her mind more than anything, seeing the two of them get so heated…
“Isn’t it just a movie?"

Cass screeched to a halt. She spun around so she was right in front of Trisha, putting her hands on her shoulders. It wasn’t aggressive so much as it was her trying to stare into her friend’s soul.
”No, it’s not just a movie, Trisha. Do you know how much I related to her growing up?! Everyone always like ‘you gotta be more girly’ or ‘a girl wouldn’t punch someone’ or ‘nobody’ll ever like a girl that acts like that’, like it was fucking endless! Just cause I was the only girl of five doesn’t mean I gotta fill that role! But then I watched this movie with my brothers and it was like wow, it doesn’t matter! She’s got all these friends and can just be herself cause that’s the message! And we all loved it- we watched it all the time. It was like our thing. It’s way more than a movie to me.”

Trisha didn’t entirely understand. She didn’t have that - both the bond with siblings, or the attachment to media. There was no opportunity to while growing up - all she did was study, and then the Snake… She somewhat awkwardly raised a hand to pat Cass’ back. At the same time she looked over at Casey, clearly a little lost.
“I- I see. I guess it is… more than a movie… it’d suck to have something ruined like that.”

"And this is why I didn't wanna SEE IT!”
Leon's hands wound up on Cass's shoulders and almost around her neck due to their size. But he was gentle, slowly pushing his fingers into the muscles to massage her. It was colder out at this point, and the sun was fading off the coast before it would inevitably fade away.

"It's alright, Spitfire… We'll go back to my place, we'll pull out the VHS… We can get lost in the actual movie together. Eh?”

Casey couldn't do anything but smile. He wasn't sure if Leon felt some sort of connection to Cass, or if he was just being super polite… He never considered his older brother to be an empath, so he assumed they were both just mutually suffering. It was kind of funny…

Revenge was so close.

”That box of tapes is gone, Lee…”
Casey's voice held tight to its place in the air, forcing an expression of pain to wash across Leon's face.

"W-what?”
”Like a month ago? You told me to bring those tapes off to McGuigan's? The black plastic bin?”
"I never sorted them, Caseeeeeey!!! I didn't get the chance to!”
”Well, you told me to ta-”
"AFTER I SORTED IT OUT!”
”Which was like two weeks before I did it! I figured it was done!”

Casey was nervously giggling at his elder brother's reaction. The box of tapes in question was stacked into one of the storage rooms in the apartment building, not in the hands of an orphanage… He knew Leon hadn't bothered doing what he said, and rather than do what he was asked, Casey simply put it in a safe and out of the way place.

"Dad bought us that fucking movie as kids!” Leon whined, hands digging into Cass’ shoulders nervously.

”Hey, loosen up a lil, big guy,” Cass patted one of the hands on her shoulders, though she wasn’t actually all that bothered by it. Wasn’t like it really hurt… She tilted her head backwards to look at him, feeling actual empathy. If it was bought by their dad, who was now gone… that really sucked. Not that she thought it was Casey’s fault! Just the whole situation. Man, this remake really was the worst thing ever!
”I’ve got two copies! When I was a kid we all saved and saved to each buy one, cause we thought it’d be cool to each have our own… just dumb kid things. But I got my own and my oldest brother’s. You could have mine! I’d just have to go back to-”

“You’d go back to England for a movie?” Trisha had escaped from Cass’ hold and gone back beside Casey, slotting into his side and leaning in slightly. It was cold…
”No, I ain’t rich! San Fran, I brought ‘em over with me… I know it wouldn’t replace something your dad got, but it’s the original VHS! Pristine! More fucking pristine than my bother’s copy, cause I fucking took care of it…”

Casey found himself surrounded by empathy, dropping his act immediately.

”Oh Christ, they're still at home! Jesus, you don't actually-”
He stopped himself before he could start an argument about something that bothered him in front of these people who didn't need that kind of energy in their lives.
”-think… That… I'd get rid of your shit like that, do you? I'm a little more thoughtful than that, Leon. The box is in storage 104: I hope you go through it soon and bring the rest to those kids, because there's some actual good movies they could do with watching over there.”

His smugness radiated, but Leon's hands immediately softened, as did his face.
"You are such a dick, Casey…
He waved it off in turn, exchanging a glance with Trisha that let her feel every ounce of smug satisfaction he could produce.
”Yeah, whatever… Babe, do we have anything else to do out here? Or are we nest-bound?”

Trisha looked up at Casey, smiling. It was cute how smug he was over this. And even better that person at the other end of it was Leon… because if anyone deserved to be fucked around a bit it was Leon.
“No, I think we’re done here… let’s go home. I want to just relax together. Oh, I should check on the bees, though. Guess we can do that before we go cuddle up for the evening… maybe we could do what you suggested last night…” Trisha trailed off, voice getting quieter, but she was still smiling at him.

”I was gonna ask what your dinner plans were, Trish, but I guess we got a movie to watch.” Cass’ head tilted back to grin at Leon.
”I’m probably going back like tomorrow or Friday- to San Francisco. Gotta pack all my shit and move. But maybe I can swing ‘round before I leave depending on your plans… I ain’t gonna interrupt your date, don’t worry.”

“You better not… but yeah, that’d be nice if we’re free.” Trisha paused smiling warmly at Casey for just a moment to nod to her friend, before going right back to staring at him.
“I guess we need to setup a meeting with Gin sometime too.”

”Just come up after your movie!” Casey was surprisingly warm and inviting with his offer, turning to Trisha slightly.
”We’re night owls anyway; we can spend a few hours decompressing while you guys enjoy yourselves, and if you don’t come up, it’s no harm no foul.”

Leon’s lips pursed. He wasn’t sure if this was bait just like the video tape thing was, but he looked at Cass with a skeptical look.
"I mean… If we’re not too tied up?”

”Literally!” Cass joked. Well, Trisha hoped it was a joke. It might not be…
”But that’d be real nice, we’ll be there!” She didn’t share any of Leon’s scepticism, arm twisting back to nudge him with her elbow.
”I doubt we’ll be getting much sleep anyway, so what’s a couple of hours hanging out.”

Trisha glanced at Leon, then looked at Cass. She leaned into Casey before nodding. She would actually… like that. Spending time with Cass was one of the things she really missed from college… And if it helped her learn to tolerate Leon a little more, that was an added benefit.
“So long as all your movie ranting stays downstairs.”

”Course, I’ll get it all out before intruding- oh, do you have any games at your place. What about Mario-”
“I am never playing Mario Party with you again and no, we don’t.”
”Well that’s alright, I’ll just have to keep everyone entertained with my wonderful company,” Cass grinned at them all.

Casey nodded at Trisha’s lean, rubbing her shoulder.
”Then it’s a double-double date! Just text one of us when you’re about to come up, we’ll figure out what's for dinner…”
Leon took a deep breath, then blew air out from between his lips.
"Ugh, fine… But you gotta be real nice to me.”
”Don’t worry, Prince Leon. I’ll make sure the carpets are down so your pristine feet don’t touch the filthy organic wood-”

Leon, exasperated, simply turned on his heel and groaned, his hands leaving Cass as he made his way toward his car. Casey couldn’t help but laugh, shaking his head and smiling at Cass.
”Can you calm him the fuck down, please? He’s such a big baby sometimes…” he joked.

Cass laughed, hand raising to her forehead and moving forward in a mock salute.
”You got it! I’ll boost his ego so much he won’t be able to see anything past it, then you can say anything and it’ll just bounce off!”

“I’m not sure it can get any bigger…” Trisha commented quietly.
Cass smirked, waggling her eyebrows.
”It can always get bigger.”
“... Go deal with him and leave us in peace for a little while.”

Cass just grinned.
”Yeah, yeah, go enjoy your ‘decompressing’, don’t miss me too muchhhh,” she laughed, before spinning around and running (unnecessarily) to catch up with Leon.

Trisha shook her head, looking back up at Casey with a smile.
“Let’s go home?”

Though she’d mostly enjoyed the time spent out, Trisha was relieved to get home. In the end they’d just done a quick stop in the Greenhouse - Trisha making sure all the bees were fine, a quick check of honey production while bathing them in her pheromones. It meant that they were pretty content to go about the rest of their evening without her around… leaving her beeless when they made their way inside their place.

It was just more convenient for cuddling…

“The den is still set up with pillows and blankets, so we can just go relax in there? Maybe put something on in the background?” Trisha paused mid step towards it after discarding her jacket, freezing for a minute. Wait, she hadn’t cleared all of the crumpled up balls of paper filled with scribbled out scrawls. At least she’d been quite aggressive in covering up her words but… they were still there.
“Or maybe bed will be comfier! We can watch the sunset- oh, also, can I put paper in the woodstove?”

Casey was already down the hall, bringing the bags of clothing up into the bedroom. In doing so, he met the den door and thought for a moment about the previous night. He knew she was hurt; and had a pretty clear idea of what she’d been doing. She was trying to do what he said… Think of what she actually wanted to say…
But looking into the den, there was an absolute pile of paper. Like she couldn’t get it out. A frown came over his face, and he shook his head. Not wanting to force her into what he wanted, or what he thought would be best, Casey simply accepted that she’d tried and failed. He wouldn’t rub her nose in it.

”What-uh… Whatever you want, my Baby-Bee. You can put paper into it, yeah. Just be careful, and don’t burn yourself doing it. I’m gonna put these clothes away and pick out what I wanna wear tomorrow…” he replied very simply, his thoughts lingering on all the things left unsaid. It made him supremely sad that she didn’t feel like any of it was worth bringing up to him, and he didn’t want to steal the thoughts out of her head. But what other choice did he have?

Apparently waiting forever… He turned promptly and ascended the stairs, pulling the door back to where she had it earlier.

“Okay- make sure to show me whatever you choose, so I can figure out something matching,” Trisha called up the stairs, before she scurried into the den. She crouched down beside the sizable pile of paper, just looking at it for a moment. She’d written a lot… but none of it had been right. Maybe it was just seeing it written down made it feel more real. More vulnerable.

A piece at the top had opened up enough to show the first few sentences, not so perfectly hidden.
I think I do love him and that means if I lose him I’ll-
She reached out, fist closing around the paper to cover it all back up. Then she scooped up the pile in her arms, hurrying with it over to the woodstove. It took a moment to get it actually going, then she started tossing paper after paper into it. She was careful, of course, but once it was all there she stayed… squatting in front of it watching the words go up in flames.

Like burning them up would get rid of her worries. It all came down to fear. Fear that she’d lose the bees, that she’d lose Casey, and that she’d be left all alone. Some of the notes had ended up with thoughts she’d buried so deep down written across them… And some had been so cold. None of it was right. All of it would just make him view her differently… worse…

So she hugged her legs to her chest, eyes fixated on the fire as she watched it all burn.
There was a moment that she was allowed to remain in that stupor… But Casey could feel it all washing off of her just like he could feel the heat from the stove as he got closer. It wasn’t hard to feel. She was hurting still, from whatever was written on those pages. He wondered what it was that had her so broken up… Did he do it? Was it because of the things he said? Ways to tell him that she actually didn’t feel comfortable?

He did his best to put it out of thought, taking things out of the bags and trying to figure out what went with what. He was so immediately drawn to something bee themed, but imagining that it would get stale quickly, he set that aside for something more eventful later on. For now, he… He just couldn’t really decide.
It wasn’t like her negative energy was sucking into him or anything. It wasn’t like he was feeling every little bit of it.

He wasn’t…

Slowly, quietly, Casey descended the stairs having not picked anything. He had to see what she’d do… His glove was tightly fixed to his hand, and he gripped his fist for a moment before making a step around the corner to end up behind her. He was openly reading her, and it was clearly brushing up against her emotional field like a piece of fine sandpaper, looking for rough spots and patches…
Not to buff them out, of course. Just to know that they’re there. To see if they got better or worse as he approached.

”Hey…” his voice quietly pushed out from his throat and into her ears.

She didn’t respond immediately. It was like she couldn’t immediately drag herself out of whatever had come over her. Trying to suppress it all again, watching it burn… but it didn’t work. She’d opened up the box last night and she couldn’t shut it back up. Destroying the evidence didn’t get rid of the thoughts.

“Oh… hey.” Trisha finally spoke, when all the words had burned away. She dragged her gaze away from the fire and tilted her head back so that she could half look at Casey. She didn’t even realise he was reading her… not because she didn’t feel the brushes against her emotional field. But she was used to constant signals coming in, learning to zone out anything that wasn’t pheromones immediately needing her attention. So she didn’t even think…

It did change as he got closer. The rough patches got rougher, but the parts of her emotional field that were smooth, warm, got brighter too. Intense love that led to fear of losing the love. An eternal cycle she always found herself stuck in. She wanted so badly to be able to finally open up, but she was also terrified of it. Because what if he decided the next argument was it? What if it was her inability to just accept that he wasn’t going to leave that would, ironically, make him leave? But she didn’t want that. She was already so far gone…
“I don’t like writing things down. It makes them real.”

Casey got closer, hoping that she’d experience a more intense warming sensation… That he could at least make her world brighter right now.
”It’s all real, Trisha… They’re your thoughts on paper.” he said rather conspicuously… As if he knew what they were. Of course he did.
His legs bent into a pretzel as he slipped down onto the floor beside her. His arms came up under hers, taking both hands into his and holding them gently.
”I’m sorry… For snapping at you and making assumptions. Can you forgive me?” he asked quietly, kissing the top of her head slowly and cutely, lips planted on her scalp.

Trisha nodded, fingers curling around his as she tried not to cry again. It was so stupid. It wasn’t even the negative thoughts, it was his warmth. She could handle so much - and had - but then for just a moment she didn’t have to carry it all herself and she broke. What would she do if she lost this?
“O-of course I can- I do. I just… was scared… it came out wrong,” she managed to admit, barely a whisper. It didn’t feel much better saying it.
“My bees are the only thing that hasn’t- hasn’t left. I only have them and you.”

He nodded. This is what she wanted to say but couldn’t… He felt it ripple off her Emotional Field… Knew that this is what he was here for. For her.
”Can I tell you a story? About me?” he asked her gently, holding her tight to his chest as he let his White Lux fade away into the background.

“Why wouldn’t you be able to?” Trisha asked back almost reflexively, before nodding. She leaned back against him, legs still pressed to herself in a tight ball. Her head pressed against him, tilting slightly so she could look up at him.
“Of course.”

He nodded. It was quiet for a moment.
”I have Orange Lux. The emotion I use to make my spells work is courage. White Lux needs nostalgia; and for the longest time I didn’t have the recollection for it… I couldn’t think of things that weren’t tainted by resentment or sadness. It’s still hard, but… Anyway, that’s not the point. The day I Kindled was a bad day. Probably the worst day of my life. See, I was in China. Part of the Foreign Legion, before I ever joined my own military… Because they were already fighting. I wanted to get away from here and run as far as I could, so I took whatever position I could get. Now, we were in a bad place. Fighting in the Jungle sucks; it’s never fun. It makes you crazy.”

He paused, trying to regather his thoughts. He knew what he wanted to convey, but he didn’t know how to get there without turning into a driveling mess.

”This hill… We needed it, they said. It was a decent defensible position. Good for artillery and mortars; they could shoot down into the nearby city without any sort of sightline issues. Taking it was… Awful. But, it wasn’t unexpected. That part wasn’t necessarily the hard part.
The hard part was keeping it. And we did for a long while. Long enough to have a supply change; refresh on food and clean water. Boards to fortify trenches, make a slightly nicer place to be so we weren’t living in mud and shit. I can only assume the enemy didn’t like that, because after that shit started getting worse. Mostly at night. It was their favorite thing, y’know? Get in through the foliage, quiet as hell… No noise. You’d never even know they were there until you heard the sentries in the foxholes around the perimeter just… Y’know… Start screaming. Dying. You’d know they were coming then, and the grenades would come out. We’d absolutely level the surrounding forest every time.”

She could feel his hands shaking already. Like he was there again, scared to death of what was out in the dark. But they gripped tightly into her shirt. Tight enough that she could feel him pushing through the moment.

”Command told us to hold tight! That we’d get reinforcements soon, and that they’d flood the area. They wanted it fortified more, so that we could effectively hold more troops there. More walls and guns meant they wouldn’t come in as much, or that they’d be less likely to try. We accepted that. But then shit got bad in the city, and they had to start pulling out. We were… trapped. Stuck on a ridgeline with the enemy bubble getting bigger and bigger near us. It was only a matter of time. So we radioed again! And we asked what the situation was, how we were going to get out! They said we couldn’t extract yet; that they needed us to keep shelling as we could to cover the main force’s escape!”

He let out a grunt of pissed off incredulity. Frustration and anger meeting somewhere in the center.

”Okay, fine! We stay, we keep shelling, we do what we’re supposed to, we keep dying more and more and more until there’s not so many of us left! By then, we can’t actually keep the area completely under wraps; we’re hungry. We’re eating fucking lizards and snakes that don’t know any better than to crawl into our trenches! We try to get the bodies out, but they’re our friends! So we try to bury them and-”

A full body shake. A deep breath through a snotty nose.
”I couldn’t let them rest like that… In their own blood and shit… I couldn’t. So, I did it. I buried them. Captain Fleuren kept screaming at me ’Get back! Get back!’ and I kept telling him I just don’t speak French. Obviously that was a fucking lie, like they knew, right? But I just… I was so done. So pissed off, so tired and angry that our lives were being thrown away over this non-tennible position. And as I was doing this digging, I kept thinking about how pissed off I was that they weren’t helping. That I was doing it on my own. And then I heard the screaming turn inward. Into the complex. The little fuckers tunneled under us. Undermined. Busted a hole through our line and were bayonetting everyone in the back! I had to stop what I was doing, and it only made me more pissed off and sad. Angry. That if they’d been digging with me, maybe they wouldn’t have been getting stabbed to death. It was stupid, I was stupid, I know that now, that I probably should’ve just died with them, but because I was outside…”

He thought about it for another moment. Remembered the feeling of his feet kicking against the ground. Of scooping the machine gun off its emplacement and tucking it up under his arm. Round after round. Screaming. Cover. Screaming. Cover. The gun eventually just… Shooting itself. And then another, and another. The more of them he touched, the more they just aimed and shot at whatever he was already looking at.

”I got in behind the people behind us. Swept ‘em out. Closed the hole. Started digging more graves. I was there for two weeks. Alone. Learning that the most natural power I could muster was concentrated multi-interaction. Enchanting things to do something simple under my personal direction. I learned that I could not only get a dozen guns to do what I wanted, but that I could tell the artillery pieces to shoot too. Eventually I turned them myself. Backwards. Into the forest. I painted that place with fire and phosphates until it was a fucking wasteland. At first I was scared, but… I found my stride. I found that I felt better just… Doing tasks. Keeping things as in-line as I could. That magic filled up the little empty part of me.”

He looked at Trisha directly now. His face was bright red and tears were streaming down his face.
”I didn’t fucking leave them Trisha… I stayed! I stayed so long that they managed to retake the area. Liberated the hill… Found me and six dozen graves… And a wall of dead and decaying bodies I threw into a shit heap at the front. To scare anyone who thought they were coming into a graveyard. I didn’t fucking leave. Do you understand what I’m trying to tell you? The last time I ran from something was… Was when I enlisted. And then, I was too fucking young to do anything else. I don’t run from danger or pain, Trisha… I welcome it into my life now, because it’s necessary. A part of me. It gives me courage that I can overcome this kind of thing.”

Trisha was crying too. She couldn’t hold it back, hearing him talk about all of that suffering- his suffering. Her hands moved up from where they’d been covering his to gently caress his face. She did understand what he was saying. They were dead, and he still didn’t leave them. He stayed in a place where he’d suffered so much to protect people who weren’t even there anymore. It gave her a heavy, horrible feeling in her chest. Not because she thought he’d leave her, or because of her own fear, but because he’d gone through all of that. Because she lo-
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Because of what he’d been through, because she’d only make him suffer more if he wasn’t going to run away. She was too damaged to not, no matter how strong her feelings were. But- but-

“My own mother left me. I- I don’t know why anyone else would stay if she couldn’t. She loved me and then I disappointed her! M-maybe it won’t even be running. It’ll be throwing out the trash, like she did.” Her chest heaved up and down as it spilled out. She understood, but she also wanted him to understand why she struggled so much. She couldn’t hold it inside, not after everything he said.
“I don’t know how to trust anything. Even- even if I understand what you’re saying… You don’t leave, everyone leaves me- I- I could be the first. I just don’t- I want to trust it. I really do. But if she left me, my dad didn’t even want me in the first place… even them… how could anyone want to stay?”

”And I don’t know how you can take that story and… And not believe me… Trisha… When I say this next thing, it’s not going to be something you want to hear, but I need to say it. If your parents have really treated you that way? Then they don’t deserve you. They don’t deserve to see what a beautiful and smart woman you are; how you’re capable, and you’re smart and thoughtful. A parent should have to try to not love their child, not the opposite… Like, Lynette! Last time I spent an extended amount of time in St. Portwell, I told her I hated her; that I never wanted to see her again and that she ruined my childhood. Do you think she cared? No! She didn’t, besides that she was hurt. I didn't want to be a part of her life, and she couldn’t fathom it! Because deep down, she does love me… If your Mom doesn’t even care whether or not you’re around? If she left you? Then shes a shit mother. Worse than mine, and she doesn’t deserve you.”

His voice had become very adamant despite the gentle wavering. Of course it was hard to say, but he believed it. That nobody in their right mind would socially abandon their child. Even when he’d left, he received gift packages from the Temple, and then separately from his Mother. She never stopped doing little things that kept him strung just close enough.
”I… I don’t know, Trisha… I’m not going to leave you. I’ll die on our hill if I need to, and come back again as a ghost. I will, because I love what we have. Even if we’ve only just started, is it… Is it crazy to feel like we just have a connection? Like I feel comfortable around you instantly? That we fit like two pieces of the same puzzle?”

“I- I- I feel it too,” Trisha managed to get out. She was struggling after everything Casey had said. She did believe him, she did believe that he didn’t want to leave, she really did. But that belief was fighting against twenty four years of abandonment. It was so hard not to feel scared. Because she really hadn’t felt something like this before. And nobody had tried so hard to reassure her, or told her that it wasn’t her fault.

“M-my mom- she hasn’t- she-” She choked on her own words. It was like the floodgates to her emotions had opened, and she couldn’t hold it back as she started sobbing. She curled into Casey, pressing her face into his chest to muffle the sounds - the little hiccups, cries, mumbled sorries. Her hands gripped onto his shirt as she cried. It was years worth of suppressed feelings. Of always telling herself it wasn’t her fault, while secretly believing it was.
“N-nobody’s ever taken my s-side. Not like… like that. B-because I’m not good enough… I’m- I’m not smart, i-if I was she wouldn’t have… s-she… I’m sorry. Y-you’re right… B-but I’m so scared that- that it’s me. B-but I know. I know. I love you.”

She said it… Maybe it’s because she was extra emotional, or because she was vulnerable… He could imagine a world where she thought she was solidifying something by saying it for the sake of saying it. But he didn’t care. He just held her while she cried, hand running through her hair.
”I love you too, Trisha… I love you too…”

Time passed, the two of them wrapped up in one another exchanging breath and tender physical contact. Eventually, Casey found his knees in pain, and while he didn’t want the moment to end, he did want the avoidable physical irritation to. So, wordlessly and without letting go of the clinging barnacle, he picked her up and took her to a more comfortable place. To that big couch they both loved so much.
He was careful not to jostle her as he swung both legs up and onto it, knee-crawling to the corner where the back was highest and he could wedge himself upright. To cradle her… This had technically been their goal.

And there he’d let time pass until she was ready to breathe again. To be calm, and to simply be.

It took a while for Trisha to calm down. It was a lot. She hadn’t cried like that in a long time, and never with someone else there. But it was actually… nice, as she came back to herself. She felt safe in his arms. A little bit of the weight was taken off her. It wasn’t all of it, but it was a start. Eventually, she started to unfurl. Her legs moved from against her chest to stretched out, feet pressing into the couch. Her arms went loosely around Casey. She stopped completely hiding her face in his chest, tilting it up to look at him.

She was probably really ugly right now after all of the crying, but she didn’t really care. She felt safe and comfortable. The anxious thoughts that normally haunted her were quiet for once.

Trisha was content to just silently cuddle him even when she’d calmed down… but the peace didn’t quite last. Her phone buzzed in her pants pocket. She wriggled a little to pull it out, squinting at it. There was a message from Cass saying they were going to come up- then another one, confirming that was still alright.

Underneath that were about thirty messages from a group chat she’d never seen before named ‘Saving Cass from herself.’ Trisha ignored that for just now.

“That’s Cass- she wanted to check if they can come up. Kind of surprised she didn’t just… send a text and then come…” Trisha said softly, looking up at Casey.
“I think… I’m actually still alright with it if you are?”

Casey had been fairly relaxed after spilling the beans about his time in the Pacific. Supporting it was her, he found himself warm and safe with her just like she did with him. Taking a deep breath, rubbing her shoulder gently, he nodded and shifted his body forward.
”I’m ready for anything with you next to me. Have’em come up. D’yknow what you want to eat?”
As he slid her off of him, he was conscious of his positioning and made sure to keep her close and facing him… Not pulling away or running. He really understood now, and wanted to do everything he could to keep her steady and at ease.

“Chicken from the place we got it when we first met? If you think you’ll be alright with chicken?” Trisha asked, shuffling off the couch to stand up. She rubbed her eyes before quickly sending Cass a response saying it was alright to come up, before skimming through the messages from the new group chat… which she got the gist of. An annoying request. One she’d consider. She put her phone back in her pocket and looked up at Casey, smiling slightly.
“I need to wash my face first, don’t I?”

Casey’s face became supremely warm as he got closer to hers, until his hands wrapped around her cheeks. He began to kiss her, under her eyes and on her cheeks, each little peck directed at a spot where her makeup had caked up during her crying.
”I love your tears… But I’m sure you’ll feel better cleaning up. So go do that, and I’ll get the order started. What do you want?” he asked gently.

Trisha giggled, the kisses light enough that they felt ticklish. She smiled softly at him, eyes half closing even as she squirmed a little bit.
“Just some of those chicken tenders and curly fries again. Definitely not as much as last time cause I only have that appetite if I’m high.” Something she was reluctant to do again because of the effect on the bees. Hopefully since it would just be four of them she’d be able to eat a full meal anyway…

“I’ll be back in a moment.” She leaned forward to press her lips against his in a light kiss, before pulling back and scurrying off to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

Casey’s eyes lit up, and he was buried in his pocket before pulling his phone up and looking at it. His fingers flew and eventually he was talking.
”Leeeeooooon… My baby big brother???? Can you pleeeeease bring up some funky stuff?”
There was a pause, and then he spoke again with a laugh.
”I can pay…”
Another pause.
”I mean if you don’t-... Okay, okay! Fine! Geeze, just trying to give you the option, you don’t haaaave to.”
He laughed again.
”Alright. See you in a minute… Yeah, send her up. And figure out what you wanna eat from Pearla’s.”

As he hung up the phone, he smiled and called into the bathroom as he entered the main part of the house.
”Hey!? I don’t know if you want any, but… Leon’s gonna sell me the pot he has. So, if you wanna smoke, you can! For your appetite!”

“I’ll see, I don’t want to mess up with the bees again,” Trisha called back, before there was the sound of the taps turning on.

Casey didn’t get much of an opportunity to respond anyway. As if by magic, Cass was knocking on the door and swinging right in. Of course, there had been a minute or so in the elevator… and then a little cheetah power to cross the not exactly large roofspace. But she just wanted to maximise the time. Maybe catch them by surprise.
”Hellloooo again my favourite couple- wait, where’s Trisha?!” Though Cass had knocked, she hadn’t actually waited for an answer before stepping in. She stared at Casey, head twisting all around as if Trisha might be hidden behind a couch somewhere.
”Did she run off to avoid me? Is it because I let slip to our other friends that I was spending time with her?! Wait- is she just hiding behind you in the perfect stance that I can’t see her?”

Casey grinned at Cass, happy to have all that warm energy roll into the apartment. Hopefully her lingering influence would ward the cats off for the night, especially after the two of them shared a negativity bomb earlier by accident.
”Ooooh, you’re good!”
He stepped to the side, swinging his arms to reveal absolutely nothing. On her reaction, he laughed aloud and shook his head.
”She’s in the bathroom, goofball. We wound up napping, so she’s freshening up.”

He had his phone in his hand and one of his new shirts on- It just had a big picture of a deer, and above it there were bubble letters that said “Oh,”. There was an exclamation point next to the deer as well. He pointed to it.
”I’m rockin’ it by the way, this was a great choice.” he smiled.
”Did Lee mention we’re going for some fried chicken? They do a bunch of stuff, so if you don’t want that specifically, there’s plenty of other stuff.”

”Fucking sick, it looks great on you!” Cass grinned, flashing him a thumbs up. She moved properly into the house, getting closer to Casey without actually intruding into his space.
”Hell yeah he did! I always love me some fried chicken- that’s the shit you guys just do better than us. Your chips- I mean fries- on the other hand… they’re alright. But what else is there? I’m gonna eat a ton- since I kindled my appetite shot up. I think it’s all the animal forms, cause my older brother says it ain’t the same for him… but whatever! Loads of chicken and other shit! I’ll cover my stuff though, I ain’t expecting you or Trisha or whoever to pay for it.”

Still smiling, Casey pulled his phone out and went for the delivery app. Pulling up the menu, he handed it off.
”Dude, seriously crazy options. They even sell pudding! Not, uh… Not like your guys’ pudding, I mean like, y’know, the smooth creamy stuff. Not the bread stuff. Though, I do like that stuff too.”
He wasn’t lying as she pulled it up. It was like a true scottish fryer shop with all sorts of stuff getting dunked in batter and oil that shouldn’t. Pizza slices, candy bars, twinkies, anything she could imagine in addition to every kind of fried and grilled form of chicken one could eat.

”I like their macaroni and cheese a lot; it’s pretty fucking good. Super creamy and cheesy, obviously, and you can get it crazy style… So they put whatever the fuck you want in it.”
He shrugged his shoulders, throwing an arm over her and looking at her with a wry grin.
”Don’t even worry about paying. If Leon doesn’t have you, which he absolutely will, we do. I don’t care if you’ve got your own money, I’m just happy to have you here.”

Really, she felt like a little sister already. He found himself caring about her being there, and wanted to make her feel just as comfortable as Trisha.

”Aw fuck, there’s so much shit! Damn, it’s like an actual chippy- well the chips ain’t quite it, but fuck. They got deep fried pizza! I ain’t had that since I visited Glasgow when I was, like, ten or some shit! Damn.” As Cass chatted away, she started to add things to the basket, figuring that’d be easiest. A deep fried pizza slice, a bunch of chicken, fries, some customised macaroni and cheese with bacon and a bunch of other random shit added in.
”Yeah, kinda expected you to say that, Leon ain’t let me pay for a thing since I got here. I ain’t gonna trample on his man paying pride or whatever- shit, they really do have deep fried chocolate bars. Ain’t quite the original deep fried mars bar, but that’s alright.”

“Oh, add one for me. I didn’t get to try it last time.” Trisha came out of the bathroom, no longer looking like she’d spent a long time crying. She’d taken off most of her makeup and just reapplied some concealer here and there, and a light lip gloss.
“I’m going to get a change of clothes… I’m glad you guys are getting along.” She gestured to their closeness, seeming to mean it genuinely as she went past and towards the stares.

”Ohhhh yeahhh, it’s almost like your two favourite people would get along swimmingly!” Cass called after her, grinning. Trisha just laughed. Cass leaned in towards Casey conspiratorially.
”You learn to read between the lines with her- well she seems to be more honest with you, but anyway- that laugh was basically a ‘yes Cass you’re my bestest friend in the world.’ And how do I know this? I am the only person in the whole world that’s managed to make Trisha join a platonic, friendly cuddle pile. Sure, she sat on the edge of the sofa and would only let me half hug her, but I did it!”

Casey laughed about Leon’s inability to let others pay, then about Cass gushing over a cuddle puddle.
”Well, she’s got no problem clinging onto me! Thankfully… I’d be sad if she wasn’t interested… I’ve gone a long time waiting for a woman to cuddle me like that, so honestly I’m excited. It’s been great; I can’t wait for it to keep getting better and better.”

As Cass finished up her order, he started putting more stuff in the cart, smiling as the total went up.
”And, as far as Leon not wanting you to pay? I don’t think it’s ever been a manhood thing in our neck of the woods. More like we just… Well… Dad left a boatload of money, right? And he’s only made more being so good at what he does. Not sure if he’s told you about his uh… Other work…” he offered to her a branch of knowledge, wondering whether or not she’d eat from the fruit.

”Nope! He hasn’t, and if it isn’t something he wants to tell me yet that’s all good. I ain’t gonna go sticking my nose where it don’t belong.” She shrugged, smiling at Casey. Sure, she was curious, and could often be pushy about things - but Cass was pretty good at knowing where the line was, and wasn’t really one for gossip.
”Oh, unless he’s a superhero or vigilante! Then I want to know right now.”

Casey’s eyes lit up.
”Did you just say… Vigilante?”
He give her a very wide and knowing look… The kind of look that one gives someone when they’ve found out something that they’re not supposed to.
”Are you… Are you sure you want to know something like that?”

Cass stared back up at him with a somewhat evil grin and determined glint in her eyes.
”Absolutely. Even if it means I have to flee the country to escape getting killed like in some action movie, I want to know. Tell me.”

Casey turned to look out the glass of the front door, seeing his brother still hadn’t shown up yet… He pulled up the internet application on his phone, letting the delivery slide into the background. Typing a bit, he turned the phone back over to an article from the St. Portwell Porter; a local news print that focused on crime and the situations of the day…
The headline read “Secret Hero?: Giant on the Loose in St. Portwell’s Dark Districts!”

Cass would be able to see the blurry, almost comically worthless picture of a figure in a dark cloak pulled up in a boxing stance and driving his fist into a local thug.
”I won’t say he supplements his income by taking hits on local gangs, but… Leon loves fighting.”

Cass leaned in to squint at the blurry photo. While it really wasn’t an amazing photo… she could tell. She recognised his stance. But-
”Is he wearing a fucking cloak?! Oh man, he really is like a vigilante- dead cool.” It was pretty hard to tell if she was being serious about calling it cool when she was absolutely cackling to the point of wiping tears from her eyes.
”Shit, surely beating up local gangs is pretty boring for a magically strong boxer?”

”It uh… It gets the Ghost off, y’know? A lot of Apparitions make a bad habit of feeding off of people. Literally. So, they compromise most of the time: Leon goes and gets beat up, then beats other people up, gets home and fucks something. He gets cash to blow, the voice in his head stays quiet, yadda yadda.”

He’d looked away, then looking back up at the door, Leon was absolutely staring in. Casey jumped a little bit.
”Oh! Holy fuck… Look at that, Dog Ears…”
He pointed back, showing Cass by turning her shoulder. When she looked at him, and he looked back at her, Leon melted down a bit. A much less aggressive look. He opened the door and gave a coy little shuffle.

"Casseeeeeeeyyyy… What the Hellllllll!? You’re exposing my secret identity…”
Casey only laughed in his face, nudging Cass forward slightly.
”Yeah, whatever, Peter Parker… You got the shit?”
He held up a little wooden box, gently shaking it.
"I threw in the pipe you said you like too… D’ja miss me, Pretty Kitty?” he held out his arms to beckon Cass into them.

”Ohhhh yeah, course I did, all I had was a grainy picture to tide me over,” Cass laughed as she bounced over to Leon. She practically jumped at him, her arms wrapping around his neck - she ended up hanging off it with her toes just touching the ground. She used a little bit of magical strength to pull herself up so that she could whisper in his ear.
”I think the secret identity is cute. Where d’you keep the cape? Do I get to see it now that I know?”

Leon shook his head, groaning. Casey only laughed as he took the box from Leon and it in his hands to feel the weight.
"I don’t know if I can deal with you getting hornier than you already are. I’ve got a lot of energy but holy fuck.”

Subtly, Casey replaced the box in Leon’s hand with his own phone, the delivery app already open.
”Peeeearlaaaaa’s…”
"Yeah, yeah yeah… You didn’t order it earlier? We could’ve been done and had it already-”
”You don’t wanna hang out?”
"I… Do. I do. Sorry.”
Casey just laughed.

”I’m shitting you, dude… Chill out.” Casey smiled, putting the box down and popping it open. The pipe was already packed, which he found cute… Imagining Leon’s chunky ass fingers setting it up before it arrived.
”Awwww… You do care! I fuckin’ need this shit after the last few days.”

”That’s sweet, really stepping up as a big brother one weed pipe at a time.” Cass grinned as she lowered herself back onto her feet, spinning around towards the stairs leading up to the Loft. It had been a while since Trisha went up there… Cass knew exactly what was going on. She raised her hands to her mouth to shout up.
”Trrriiisshhhhaaaa, just wear the comfy clothes! You’ve lived with two of us and d’you really think Leon will care? C’mon!”

There was a very muffled response, which sounded more like grumbling than anything, then a thud. Cass laughed.
”She’ll be down in a moment… if she ever says she’s getting changed then takes ages? It’s cause she’s tryna decide what to wear.” Cass said to Casey, tapping her nose.
”Two years of Trisha flatmate experience.”

“What’re you saying about living with me?” Trisha finally reappeared. She’d been doing exactly what Cass thought - trying to decide between just wearing home clothes or something nicer. She didn’t normally dress down so much unless it was someone she lived with, or really didn’t care about… but Cass was right. This time. So she was now in dark sweats, her hair pulled up into a simple ponytail. She immediately made her way to Casey’s side, nodding at Leon.

”Nothing bad! Y’think I’d do that to you? I looovvveee you too much! Was just giving Casey some sound advice. You’ll thank me later.” Cass winked at her friend, grinning smugly as if she’d offered some sage wisdom as opposed to some very basic information.

Trisha looked at her suspiciously, then decided to let it go. She looked up at Casey.
“How much food did you end up ordering? Just… trying to figure out appetite wise…”

Leon was also in baggy sweats, amazingly enough… The amount of cloth necessary to keep them like that over three and a half feet worth of legs was incomprehensible. And he was holding Casey's phone, scrolling through. Casey, one arm wrapping around Trisha while holding his pipe in the other, gesticulated with a closed hand to his elder brother.

”Big man's still ordering, but I just got you the eight piece with curly fries so you can eat a bunch or have leftovers tomorrow… And your fried candy bar, which you should eat first so it doesn't congeal.”
Leon, scrolling and stopping to read, laughed aloud.

"Holy shit, Cass… If he's telling the truth, then how much shit are you getting? The fuckin’ pizza? No way in Hell there's gonna be back door action tonight then, I wouldn't want to shake you up just to get painted.”

Casey's eyes widened, and he looked from Leon to Cass to Trisha, then back to Cass with an absolutely stunned look on his face.

Trisha was staring in equally stunned silence. She wasn't so surprised that Cass might be… into that… she just didn't expect to have to hear about it here.

"Awwww, you're not into that?" Cass jokingly pouted, before laughing. She was entirely unbothered by the stares from both Casey and Trisha - hey Leon had said it, and the biggest discomfort there was it being his brother! Trisha already knew plenty…
”Not like there ain't plenty other ways to fuck- a girl's gotta eat, y'know! Not my fault it's all greasy shit- You have any idea what kinda energy all my animal forms use?!"

“Really, Cass?" Trisha groaned, finally coming out of her stunned silence.

"What, what he said was alright but me talking bout changing into animals- could just be practice, Trish!- is too much?" Cass shot back, lips pulling up into a teasing grin. Trisha pursed her lips, though she didn't seem… upset? At least, her body language was still pretty relaxed.
"It's soooo cute that love's turned you into a bit of a prude. Adorable. I'll pretend we've totally nevvveerrrr talked about anything like this ever. Secrets safe with me, babe." Cass even blew her a kiss, grinning a little more evilly.

Perhaps unexpectedly, Trisha didn't react to the teasing in any kind of… irritated way. She didn't snap. Instead she went red, turning towards Casey to hide her face against him with a muffled groan.
“Don’t make it sound like I'm into…"
"I ain't sayin' that! Just that you ain't got any place to act like you're uncomfortable."
Trisha let out a light huff at that, but didn't say anything else. Cass looked at Casey and then Leon with a grin, seeming pretty happy in her ability to tease Trisha without making her grumpy.

Though he didn’t look up from the phone, Leon started smiling and laughing in a very gentle fashion.
"Y’know, she’s right Trisha; it’s a great way to practice her magic. I’d say Casey should give it a try, but-”

”-Yeah, yeah, ‘Haha Virgin’ and all that. Trust me, I remember being a teenager.” Casey commented, not really letting the topic at hand affect him any great deal. He was confident in what they’d discussed earlier, he and Trisha… That she wasn’t looking for this to be some sort of strong sexual relationship.
”I’m just… Astonished that you’d not be into shit, honestly.”

Then Leon looked up, forehead scrunching inward.
"There’s some limits a guy has to keep. Getting frosted like a chocolate cake is definitely up there as far as things I’m not looking to happen.”
Casey could only laugh.
”Are you done yet? Ordering, I mean?”

"Fuck no… You know how much of this shit I have to eat to meet my Micros.” he grunted, still scrolling.
Shaking his head, Casey pulled Trisha a little closer and kissed the top of her head before sliding a few feet away to the countertop. A lighter came out of the box, and he looked at Trisha.

”Are we a smoke-positive household? Or are we going to set the precedent of going outside from here on?” he asked with a genuine tone implying his desire to make an intentional joint decision.

“Inside is fine, I think, as long as neither of us becomes a chain smoker," Trisha replied after a little bit of thought. She wasn't particularly bothered about it even if she ended up not smoking - and she'd much rather just have Casey there than send him outside for something that barely bothered her in the first place.
“Though I think we maybe need to set a no bees while smoking rule… mainly while I'm smoking… I don't want a repeat of last time." Perhaps it was a bit unnecessary to bring it up when all it required was her not calling the bees, but… it felt like that was less of a risk if she verbalised it.

”We’ll uhh… Lock the windows and doors?” Casey chuckled for a moment, finally pulling the pipe up to his lips and lighting the flame. A short tug, and he released a cloud of smoke up into the air, holding the pipe out to the others.

Leon’s arm stretched out, holding the phone for Casey to swap back. It was a seamless transition, both of their massive hands being able to hold two things at once making the swap clean and easy. He took a little more time to scroll as Leon took a puff and handed it off to Cass.
”Holy shit… I love this. They must hate us every time they see an order from my account.”

Casey’s hand moved the phone toward Trisha as he walked back to her. The total said $387.85.

Trisha stared at the number. For someone with a rich upbringing like her it wasn’t actually that big - if it had been ordering from a fancy restaurant rather than a fried food place.
“They probably have to close their orders while making everything for us,” Trisha laughed lightly, before looking up from the phone to Cass. Her eyes narrowed slightly.
“You definitely need to get a new job soon if you’re going to be eating like this.”

”My new job is being sexy as fuck, thank you very much,” Cass joked, holding the pipe she’d just taken a quick hit from out towards Trisha like some kind of peace offering.
”I can actually cook, so normally I ain’t ordering a shit ton of fried food- now, c’mon Trish, do some drugs, chill.”

Trisha was actually the most relaxed she’d been in a long time thanks to her talk with Casey. She did plan to smoke a little bit for her appetite but… there was something she should deal with first. Before getting high. Otherwise it would be a headache for her. She really couldn’t be bothered to deal with further pestering from their other friends, so…
“Uh, later. Leon, can we talk? In private. Just for a moment.” She put her hand on Casey’s arm, a light pat that she hoped conveyed that it wasn’t anything major. Or about them. Or even about her.
“It won’t involve any shouting.”

There was a moment where Leon tensed up to the point that Cass would’ve felt it. He did his best to not look at Trisha skeptically, keeping his feelings of fear over being accosted over the same bullshit down inside. Casey wasn’t entirely sure what Trisha was trying to convey with her patting, but either way this situation was ultimately between the two individuals. He could only add a reassuring nod to both parties.

"Uh… Yeah. No shouting, please… I’m begging, honestly.” he nervously laughed.
"Where are we going?”

“I said there’d be no shouting- I guess in there. Not many rooms in this house.” She gestured towards the Den, not that she particularly wanted someone else in there - but it had a door, and all the other options involved going outside. And it was at least completely clear from any evidence of last night’s… situation.

”Play nice, or I ain’t gonna be happy,” Cass piped up, putting her hand over Leon’s to give it a comforting squeeze - not that she had any idea what this was about - before she moved away to let him and Trisha go into the other room.

Trisha closed the door behind them both before going all the way into the room, perching on the edge of the couch. She pulled her phone out and put it beside her, looking at it for a moment. Eventually she forced herself to look up at Leon.
“This isn’t about yesterday. It’s not even really about me… This is me talking to you as Cass’ friend rather than Casey’s girlfriend, or a former covenmate. Cass made the mistake of telling the rest of her friends that she was seeing me, and now they’re all telling me I need to do the whole asking loads of annoying questions thing they did to Casey last week. I tried to tell them it wasn’t a good idea because… we’re not exactly on good terms. But they insisted and they will start phoning both me and Cass if I don’t.”

Trisha, maybe noticeably, was talking as if it was all just their other friends' concerns, and none of her own. Like she was a middle man in the situation. That wasn’t exactly the case but… she didn’t actually share the concerns they had.
“Reyna and Nadiyah sent a whole bunch of questions, and Sal wrote a whole speech he wants me to read out. What do you want first?”

Leon, who had sat down on the edge of the couch, was staring off into space looking at the wall. He was really listening to something a few floors down; someone talking about their Aunt being missing. It wasn’t their fault… Running afoul of the Temple wasn’t good for the health.
He checked in when she was talking about a speech.
"Uh… W-w-.... Wait, what? I… I think they’ve really got it all wrong but…”
He looked at Trisha now, brow furrowing.
"Whatever, uh… Just… I guess top down. Whatever’s biggest priority.”

Trisha was silent for a moment, then she laughed.
“That’s what I told them, but there’s no stopping them- sure, I’ll just skip everything Sal said then.” She picked up her phone, opening up the group chat she’d been dragged into. What was the biggest priority? Probably this bit that Diyah was saying she was very concerned about. And Reyna agreed. Sure, start with that.

“Nadiyah wants to know what ‘your intentions seeing a fan are’ with a side note of ‘even if it’s mostly sex its still suspicious’ and ‘she’s worried about Cass hanging around someone she idolises and has a perfect picture of in her head’- oh wait, I wasn’t meant to read that one out. But they seem pretty concerned about that, so…” She looked at him expectantly.

Leon’s face didn’t move. Actually, he was having a conversation in his head as he thought about what the fuck was happening. There it was, pushed into his hands on a plate to confront him in a very open fashion. Intentions? Fun. Sex. Comfort. Humanity.
"Oh… At least I’m not the only person thinking about that kind of shit.”
Solemn, his head turned to look at Trisha calmly.
"I don’t have any intentions. It just so happens that she’s a fan and she’s… Having fun experiencing a fantasy. You can tell by talking to her. But I’m not planning on leading her into anything, or exploiting her. I agree with your friend, it’s still suspicious. But it’s not something I’m unconscious of either. But if we didn’t connect on what I think is a real front, I wouldn’t be so open to spending time with her.” he offered the explanation as best he could without showing any strong mental cracks.

Trisha let out a quiet hum, beginning to type something out. Then she stopped, locked her phone, and put it down.
“This might surprise you, but I actually care enough about Cass to put aside my feelings towards you- but I actually trust that. I also don't think it's just some ‘fantasy’ for Cass. Have you ever actually read the shit she's written? I mean I hope she hasn't been- well, whatever, but I've had to. A few times. It's all sex. Thankfully I didn't know some of it was about you then because it's all ‘Timberwolf’-" Trisha made a face, a little grossed out thinking back on what she'd tolerated being read out to her for the sake of a close friends happiness.
“Whatever. I was actually surprised to see her with you today because I assumed she'd get her one of a kind meeting then the sex she'd fantasised about and that'd be it. It means she actually likes your company- which I don't get- beyond just the idolising shit. Do something she doesn't like and I promise you she won't just let you get away with it."

Then Trisha shrugged. Maybe she wasn't so worried because she knew if Leon managed to hurt Cass it would upset her, and if she was upset Casey would go beat his ass.
“As long as there is some kind of real connection on both sides- that's what the others would agree with, I'm sure. Probably."

Leon shrugged, not sure whether or not to push anything that she’d said.
"Uh… I mean yeah, she showed me… Asked if I could make some of it happen. I figured it was a pretty innocent desire, and I aim to please. Do you think I should cut things off? Honestly, I don’t… I don’t see getting into anything crazy besides a good friendship. If you think she’ll want more than that, then… It’d be something that we’d have to talk a lot more about.”

It was easy to tell Leon wasn’t comfortable at the moment. Whether it was because he was lying, or because he was actually in conflict with himself over the situation, was unclear.

Trisha frowned, properly thinking about it. She knew that in the past Cass had been in all sorts of situations - one night stands that turned into friendships or relationships, friends with benefits, open relationships, one particularly messy situation in a throuple that turned into five before it fell apart… but it had always been a bit hard for Trisha to tell where Cass' feelings went from platonic to romantic. She was just really close with people.
”Honestly I don't know if she'll want more than that. We're close but very different when it comes to relationships so I never… entirely understood when it became that for her in the past. But I don't think you should cut things off. Especially if it's because you're worried about what might happen or having to talk about it. Cass is the most open person I know. What she said earlier about ‘seeing how things go' is probably how she feels- but she's one of those people who's almost annoyingly pro conversations in all relationships."

Trisha was obviously uncomfortable too - she hadn't really wanted to be put in this position talking to Leon. She wasn't good at it, nevermind who it was but… Cass was one of her closest friends and for once her care for someone else outweighed her discomfort.
“I think it would be more of a dick move to just cut things off now rather than have a talk with her about expectations."

Nodding to himself, Leon inhaled deeply and felt the gentle drifting feeling of being under the influence. A series of tingles down his spine told him that Lelou was listening, and that she was interested. Invested, even.
"You uh… Did… Did anyone ask Cass what she thinks? Or is this one of those things where like, friends decide they know best and just make decisions without the person in question having any say?”
It was a genuine question, not malicious so much as confused. After all, he didn’t really love the idea of people going behind others backs to make decisions that were “best” for them, but he was just as guilty: Hypocrisy didn’t pay in this circumstance.

“It’s one of those things,” Trisha admitted. She pointed to her phone.
“It's mostly Rey and Diyah. Rey’s just used to being able to tell with her aura reading. Diyah can be quick to judge and doesn’t entirely trust our decision making. It’s mostly because me and Cass have ended up in not great situations in the past- though Cass’ didn’t start like that.”

She rubbed the back of her neck, still uncomfortable but not seeming upset at his question or anything. Trisha hadn’t really wanted to do this in the first place. She loved her friends, but they could be intrusive sometimes - especially Reyna and Nadiyah. Whereas Cass had only ever intruded on Trisha’s relationships when it was clear they were unhealthy.
“She probably won’t be surprised if she finds out about this, but she will tell everyone to fuck off. Because you’re… right…” It was clearly very difficult for Trisha to say that, lips pressed together into a thin line.
“What she thinks is more important than any of their worries, because she won’t actually tolerate things she doesn’t like. She’s not-” me- “stupid.”

Shaking his head, Leon cleared his throat.
"I agree with you there… She’s not stupid at all. Surprisingly aware, honestly; I figured she was going to be a little ditzy and goofy, but she’s… Well, when we were watching that movie downstairs, she said some things that… Like I was thinking the same things. And she said them without me prompting. It’s impressive.”
He had a bit of a dreamy look in his eye.

"I don’t want you guys to worry. If anything bigger happened, or is supposed to happen… I’d like to wait until this whole Father Wolf shit is over with…” he explained.

Trisha suppressed a slight laugh - not about Father Wolf, of course, but about the way Leon looked while talking about Cass. A lot of people were surprised when she turned out to actually be incredibly smart. It was just that she didn’t bother to use her brain for stuff she didn’t care about.
“Definitely wait… But honestly? I’m not actually all that worried. I trust Cass, but… I’ll pass that on.” Trisha frowned a little bit. Thinking about Father Wolf…
“Have you told her about Father Wolf? I haven’t - I didn’t even tell her about Sycamore, but I assume she knows now.”

Leon nodded, standing up.
"She knows… She probably knows a lot more now than you’d be comfortable with, but we… I guess it’s just easy to confide in her. She doesn’t let things stick. It all slides off, it seems like. I really like that.”
Looking back at the massive couch, he shook his head and laughed.
"Y’know, when he showed me this thing is what you guys got, I got a little jealous. It’s a sweet couch set…”

He let the words linger for a moment before he turned his head back to Trisha.
"I’m… I’m sorry. Again. I keep fucking things up, and all I want is peace for my little Brother. Amazingly, I find it difficult to not be an asshole… I’m working on it, but I don’t expect any tremendous amount of empathy from you. I’ve done nothing but prove your perception right…” he said with a small, almost hurt voice.

Trisha took a deep breath, standing too just so she didn’t have to crane her neck back so much to look at him.
“I shouldn’t have shouted at you about the food.” She also admitted, head turning to the side to look down at the couch. Thinking about Casey… about how she also wanted to try be a bit better for him. Slowly. Especially after their talk earlier.
“We both fucked up there. You’re right, I’m not going to be sympathetic about it. But hopefully one day we’ll prove each other’s perceptions wrong.”

His massive hand extended across with the arm behind it, out for her to shake as a friend.
"Thank you for being good to my Brother.”

Trisha smiled slightly, reaching out to shake it.
“And I’m going to keep being good to him… so let’s go save him…”

She easily slipped around Leon, pushing the door open and going back out into the main part of the house. Just as she’d expected, as soon as she opened the door she could hear Cass talking.

”-so we were just tryna leave, right, cause clearly this guy wasn’t gonna leave us alone- but then this fucker is all like ‘oh if I beat your guy friend one of you has to go on a date with me’, like what the fuck? And he was looking at Sal all murderous like, and Sal ain’t a fighter. Honestly, Sal’s a fucking wimp. So I was like ‘alright let’s take this outside’ and then I absolutely beat his ass-” Not only was Cass completely talking Casey’s ear off, but she was re-enacting the scene, jumping to both sides to act out both her and this guy in the fight.
”Oh he was sooo pissed off to be beaten by a girl, sexist prick.”

“Are you really telling that story? We ended up banned from that bar…” Trisha commented, having let Cass finish because… it was just easier. She immediately moved towards Casey with a slight smile.

”That pub fucking sucked! They let a guy try intimidate a buncha tiny girls-”
“He was the same height as Diyah.”
”- and banned me when I kicked his ass over it. But, anyway, I was just telling Casey about some of our fun times in uni. I’m barely getting started! Butttt-” Cass bounced over to Trisha first, catching her before she managed to get right next to Casey, quickly looking her over with narrowed eyes. Then she went over to Leon and did the same.
”Looks like you guys didn’t fight!”

While Cass had been blabbing on, Casey had been politely sitting there listening. She was so much fun, he thought, and hearing about Trisha’s second-hand adventures and how passionate she was about them made him feel like they were connected in a way that he didn’t usually feel with others. Plus, her accent was warm. It was best for comforting, and he associated it fairly openly with the goofy Brits he’d met in North Africa.
They were gentlefolk, but… A certain pugnaciousness about them made them rather endearing.

Leon, a little tired looking, could only smile as he got closer. With the pipe in his hand, Casey passed it off to Leon again and let the big man take a drag.
"Contrary to how things usually go, I never really want to argue. We just rub one another the wrong way…”

”Yeeeah, you deserve it. Mister ‘Richie Rich’...”
Leon pushed air out from between his lips, and Casey laughed while rubbing Trisha’s shoulder. Giving her a kiss on the top of the head, he looked down and got a little close.
”Everything okay, Boo? All taken care of for now?”

“Yeah, all good, wasn’t even really about that… but it’s all sorted for now. No more fights until the next time we rub each other the wrong way.” Trisha leaned into Casey, looking up at him with a warm smile.
“Did you manage to survive story time with Cass?”

”Heyyyyy, he loved it! I bet you barely talk about that stuff, so I gotta be the one to fill him in- I’m only telling him the exciting shit! Ain’t like I’m going on and on about all the times we dragged ourselves into the living room for some hungover studying or anything.”
“I told them about the time we lost Sal, when we went out for that few months late birthday celebration for you and me? So it’s not like I don’t talk about anything. I just don’t constantly talk.”
”Yeah, yeah- oh, but now you’re back, we can tell them together! Anything you guys want to know? Like what kinda shit we did or didn’t do during our crazy uni adventures?”

Casey waved his hand as if he was warding Cass off from the current conversational topic.
”Ehhhh, unless it’s somethingTrisha wants to share herself, I won’t make her. We already had a few issues of privacy and shit like that… Though, that was pretty funny. If it's mundane stuff like you all getting into shenanigans at bars, I don’t see why not.”
The hand on the end of the arm wrapped around Trisha gently rubbed her shoulder again, and Casey looked down at her with a wink. Gentle, subtle White Lux crept across her Emotional Field, and for the first time, Trisha would be able to hear another voice inside her mind that wasn’t the Queen or her own.

”I’ve got your back, my Love.”

"Casey and I could probably tell you guys some fun Temple stories… Ones that don’t involve crazy bullshit, that is. We have had pretty good times despite the, well… Bullshit, right? That’s definitely the word for it.”

”True enough. I kind of wish that uh… I’d been older, y’know, to travel with Dad like how you did.”
"Oh, well… That wasn’t so fun. It was a lot of Dad not actually being there. Lord knows he had a million things going on.”
”I’ve got stories from overseas too… Believe it or not, not all of it turns me into a snivelling wreck.” Casey joked.

Leon’s hand extended the pipe to Trisha.
”Oh, I finished the order by the way… Got a call from them? We’re looking at like an hour and a half minimum, so I don’t know what you guys want to do in the meantime…”

Trisha wasn't able to hide her reaction from hearing Casey's voice in her mind, looking up at him with wide eyes. She should be used to things like that by now but… it'd always just been her and the Queen. She'd done her best to avoid Pink Luxers that could actually worm their way in there. But this was sweet. Really sweet. So once she got over the shock of it, she smiled sweetly at him. She relaxed a bit more, reaching out to take the pipe from Leon.

"Oh shit, an hour and a half- I mean I ain't surprised but damn… I suppose we'll all be hungry by the time it's here. I mean fuck, I'm already hungry, but y'know… suffering is strength or something like that." Cass nodded as if she was saying something wise.
"You really don't have any games, Trish? I guess we always used Sal's consoles or my amazing setup for multiplayer shit… well, I guess it's just sitting and chatting then! My second favourite thing."

“I could hook up my laptop but there's… not really much on there." Trisha shrugged, gently blowing smoke from between her lips and holding the pipe back up to Casey. She was just kind of content to just… chill. Talk.

"Ooo, then I definitely want to hear some of the Temple stories. Like that shit's so far out of what I'm used to… fucking tons of magic and shit. I want to hear all the cool stuff!" Cass grinned.
“Shouldn’t you tell something about yourself that isn't just the various people you beat up, or the places we got drunk?" Trisha pointed out, looking over at Cass with slightly raised eyebrows as she cuddled up to Casey.
"Well there ain't really anything about just-"
“The situation."

Cass' hands flew up into the air.
"Fuck! I almost forgot about that!"
“...How?"
"Too much in my brain… you guys wanna hear about the time I was in a throuple that absolutely exploded? It's a wild ride, lemme tell ya, so you gotta be truly alright to go on it." She grinned at both Leon and Casey.

Casey and Leon both shot one another a glance with a layer of understanding beneath. Casey nodded, and Leon spoke up with a slight chuckle.
"I’d say we know a thing about thruples… Y’know, downstairs-”
They had been home. At the very least, Cass was introduced to them as a group, though Leon hadn’t explicitly mentioned they were in a group relationship. He was just used to them always being together, so to explain it didn’t ever feel necessary; only that they were “The Girls”, and they were a package deal.

"-But also… I heard it wasn’t just a thruple? Confirm?” He asked, an eyebrow rising up over the other to dominate his forehead.

"It wasn't, it was a whole fucking thing!" Cass once again threw her hands up, this time in exasperation. The whole situation was very amusing to her now in retrospect but at the time it had been pretty stressful.
"It started as like an open throuple, right. Like me and my partners - Keisha and Oscar, you'll need their names cause shit'll get confusing otherwise- were dating, but also alright with having flints with others, y'know. So long as anything more than sex came to the group and was agreed on! It was all good. Great, really. Then Keisha and Oscar met this other couple, Natalie and Bryce, and they hit it off. Sorta. Like Keisha liked Natalie, Oscar liked Bryce, they talked about it and decided they wanted to start dating that way." Cass paused, drawing a square in the air, then a little triangle at the bottom to represent herself.

"This'd be easier with a whiteboard- whatever! So I meet ‘em, I like ‘em enough - but not like to date ‘em - so we sat down and did all the discussions you gotta do with this shit-"
“I accidentally walked in on it and it felt like a boardroom meeting," Trisha added.

”It wasn't quite that formal! But yeah, all good still, y'know! I was happy, they were happy, and I was like great. I don't wanna get romantic with them but fivesomes are cool!" Cass paused dramatically, before grimacing.
"Fivesomes like that ain't actually that cool. Like, too many people, and there just isn't-"
“Please don't go detailing the downsides of fivesomes."

"Oh, no… Please go into the downsides of a fivesome. I assume, like, there’s not enough tender time to go around?” Leon interrupted Trisha, clearly rapt with curiosity.

”Dude, you've never had a fivesome? I'm shocked!"

"Not like how you’re describing… My fivesomes usually take place in dark rooms on large beds, and nobody sees faces.”
”Temple parties do get freaky like that…” Casey added, sticking his tongue out in disgust.

Trisha also made a face at that, while Cass grinned.
"See, that sounds actually hot! This was like, yeah… not enough shared attention. And when not everyone's dating each other it'll always be unequal, right? I thought it'd be like ‘oh we're all banging each other' kinda thing but noooo, Natalie and Bryce would barely touch me. It was just fucking unsatisfying!"

“Sounded satisfying for the others," Trisha intoned, eyes looking a bit dead at that.
“Went on long enough me and Diyah came back from our hours of home avoidance to its still happening."
"Well yeah, five people, that happens! I did suggest we go somewhere else but our flat was just the nicest!"
“Unfortunately."

"Anyway, one month and unsatisfying fivesome later, shit went wrong. Well, Natalie and Bryce broke up. But Natalie was still dating Keisha, and Bryce was still dating Oscar, so it was like… some fucking awkward situation. It was a bad breakup too! Suddenly they're having fucking, like, couples therapy at my place. My fucking bedroom… cause it was ‘neutral’ ground or whatever. Like sure! I'm unbiased or whatever but what the fuck! The fivesome seemed pretty good at that point, like looking back, at least I got some shit out of it."
“We all told her to break up with them at this point," Trisha said.

"I considered it but when it was just me, Keisha and Oscar it was still great, y’know. I was never dating the other two. It was like a small price to pay. Then… God, this was so fucking embarrassing." Cass covered her face with her hands for a moment.
”During one of their weird sessions tryna make shit work between the four of them, Natalie and Bryce made up properly. Not to like… dating again but at least alright with each other. But then they fucking… started having… makeup sex. In my room. On my bed. For a moment I was like oh, maybe we're going back to the fivesomes, hurray I'd prefer this- but no! It was just them. And worse of all-" Cass stood back up at this point, arms flying up towards the ceiling in despair.
"It wasn't even good sex! It was so fucking boring! So I ended up turning on my computer and gaming while they just went at it, cause what else was I supposed to do?"
“Kick them out. Break up with them. You didn't do either."
Cass shrugged.
"I was young, naive. A boring couple having sex on my bed didn't seem so bad then."

Casey was laughing too hard to reply, but Leon looked genuinely sad.
"Listen… It’s free love among my people. The only commitments you make are the ones you want to, right? And the sex is never boring… I think this weekend there’s supposed to be something, but I can-”
Leon froze up now, brow turning downward and looking at Trisha.
"-I’m… This is me being genuine. If she likes a lot of people, I can get a lot of people. No sex magic involved, no crazy rituals, no stealing bodily fluids.”

He turned back to Cass.
"D’you think you’d want to try even more? Just kinda, y’know, get lost in the bodies?” he asked with a genuine sparkle in his eye.
Through belly laughter, Casey shook his head and tried to speak.
”You’re a genuine pest, Lee… I know you’d never do anything without some sort of consent, but I swear all that’s on your mind is-”

"Eat, fight, fuck! Eat, fight, fuck! There’s a literal barbarian queen in my brain Casey… The longer I go without doing the three things she loves, I suffer for it, and it’s harder to get her to do anything else.” he explained, trying to be desperate enough that it was believably genuine, but not so desperate that he sounded crazy.

Trisha didn't say anything, just slightly inclining her head when Leon looked at her. It wasn't shit she was interested in really hearing about, but Cass was… an adult who could make her own decisions. And had consistently made better ones than Trisha, the wild throuple aside. It was just the Temple she was worried about, but she did somewhat trust that Leon wouldn't drag Cass into anything properly Temple… he didn't seem enamoured enough with the cult to pull someone else into it.

"Hey, I ain't gotta ghost in my brain and that's like sixty percent of what's on my mind- other forty is computers and games!" Cass laughed, not seeming put off by it at all. She just bounced over to Leon from where she'd moved more towards the middle of the room, looking at him with shining eyes.
"Is it really that good when there ain't the relationship bullshit in the background? I always wanted to try but there was never a safe way, y’know? And then I thought it was finally gonna happen and it was so fucking lame! Cause yeah, I'd love that, so long as it's just ‘getting lost in the bodies' and none of the other magic shit, y’know. And it ain't boring, cause if it's boring I ain't sticking around for it."

"Anyone I would call would be safe, clean and more than capable. Usually it’s a theme-”

Casey was quickly tuning it out. He knew Leon’s people, and thinking about the fact that he recently lost a couple because of him wasn’t sitting well. Two good friends, who Leon knew very well… He wondered if the big guy took any of it personally, or if he even had the sense to mourn.
They’d gone through loss while he was still relatively young, so he understood that those sorts of things would be different… Or could be, at least. You did learn to shut it off in the moment, especially when there was work to be done.

Or maybe he just… Didn’t actually feel as strongly as he meant it to seem? He didn’t want to be wrapped up in the paranoia of it, turning to go to the fridge while still holding Trisha’s hand until the last possible moment. Inside, he pulled out a watermelon quarter and a few other fruits. A mango, a big blood orange, some papaya… And he started to cut away at them, the difference between their texture and human flesh comforting enough that he could ignore the sludgy redness of the deeper colored portions. Leon was still going.

"-ould do it somewhere that isn’t controlled by the Temple too, if you don’t want to go to the main facility… I doubt you wanna meet our Mom, unless… Like… You wanna bang her too or something, I wouldn’t tell you that you can’t. You’re grown, just don’t let her do crazy shit to your brain.”

"Dude, no way! I ain't gonna bang your Mom- I'm sure she's hot and all with kids like you guys-" Cass turned to look at Trisha for confirmation about that. Trisha just stared about, face as expressionless as she could muster. She hadn't really been judging her boyfriend's mother's hotness when they met, and absolutely never planned to.
"-aw, c'mon, nothing Trish? Well, whatever- either way, nope! From all you've told me… yeah, that ain't appealing. Also fucking family- well family of people you're also fucking- just makes things messy. Learned that one from experience!"

Trisha had pulled her knees up to her chest, letting out a slight sigh of relief. Not that she… wanted to know what Cass did with that stuff, just… she didn't want her to meet Lynette if possible. Or anywhere near the cult.
“That’s definitely the safer option here," she said quietly.

"Awwww, are you worried about me?" Cass spun around, shooting away from Leon and over to Trisha. After all, she was completely open… which allowed Cass to practically jump at her, pulling Trisha into a tight hug and shaking her a bit.
”You're so sweet, don't worry, I'll make sure all my future orgies are off Temple grounds! Only the one Richoux involved! So you aren't constantly worrying about me."
“I wouldn't be," Trisha grumbled. Cass laughed as she let her go, spinning back around to face Leon, shooting finger guns at him.
"Well now you've brought it up you've gotta make sure it happens."

Casey was still laughing to himself, dumping chunks of fruit into the bowl he’d gotten down.
”I’d say he’s the only Richoux you need to worry about, but Mom’s ravenous without the ghost in her brain. I think that’s where he really gets it from, and just him and Lelou wound up being a good pair.”
Leon laughed too, shaking his head.

"Mia and Ed think she’s cute, but you know how Hari is.” he vaguely explained to Casey.
There was a nod in return, as well as a smile.
”Thank God for that. One of them carries ninety-nine percent of the braincells collectively.”
"Y’know, I should’ve asked them if they wanted to come up…” Leon said with a bit of remorse.
”Well, we didn’t really invite them, big guy… This is kind of, y’know-”

Casey gestured toward Cass and Trisha with the knife in his hand, taking a chunk of mango and popping it into his mouth.
”-Oooh, very nice… Quality fruit.”

He slid the bowl into the middle of the kitchen island for anyone to take from. He was already scarfing down grapes and watermelon like they were practically his.
"I… Guess I don’t really think about it like that?”

”It’s definitely not how we were raised to think, I’ll give you that… But I mean, I know for a fact Trisha doesn’t want to drag all of her siblings around to everything she does… Cass? I mean, I’m sure they wouldn’t make you feel uncomfortable, but you still understand what I mean, right?” he asked her openly.

“I don't want bring my siblings along to anything I do," Trisha commented. She got up and slipped over to the kitchen island, snatching up a few grapes around Casey's voracious eating. While she did like the trio, she was glad that there were less people tonight. It was more comfortable. Especially after last night… it could be awkward for her, Ed and Leon. It was already awkward enough there.

"Oh yeah, I get it! Like I'm sure it'd be fun, but sometimes it's nice for things to be a lil more chill. More quality time! Especially if it's a last minute thing- like next time? Yeah, sure, let's have a big gathering!" Cass smiled at Casey, energetically bouncing in to grab some watermelon and mango before hopping back out.
"Like, it ain't really the same, but me ‘n my brothers were close growing up - like we were always tussling, but we did a ton of shit together. But if they came along every time I went to see friends I would've kicked their asses- and if I'd invited them every time they would've laughed in my face. Though they did go through a period of tryna intimidate anyone I dated… when I was like fifteen, but I quickly beat that outta ‘em. Not that that's the situation here… just sometimes chill is nice!" As if she was ever actually chill…

Leon seemed content with the answer, nodding along as his arms wrapped around Cass.
"Hey, we were close. I think… Just some of us wanted to escape early, and some weren’t inclined to.”

”You. You and our pissant little brother.” Casey grinned from behind the counter.
”Maybe the poor baby downstairs, but… Y’know.”
Leon’s face scrunched up.
"Knowwwwwww…?”

Casey shrugged, waving him off.
”Point is, we’ve got five different perspectives. Were we close? Sure, when we were little. But we all drifted apart in our own ways. As opposed to Cass’ situation, where it seems like they’re all still relatively close. Like, y’know, buying funny shirts in a department store to send to them.”

"Oh… Well… I mean, that kind of distance sounds like it’d… Y’know… Affect that.” he looked down at Cass for confirmation.

"Yeah, it kinda does… more like that I left, y'know?" Cass replied honestly. She leaned against Leon, not wriggling about as much as she tended to. It wasn't that it was an uncomfortable topic - nothing was truly uncomfortable for her. But it wasn't all sunshine and roses like she'd like it to be.
"It was kind of like what Casey said, escape. My parents aren't so bad but there was always this pressure cause I was the only girl, so I had to fill in for our mum when she was busy. Then when my older brothers were drafted I was the oldest. When…"

Cass didn't quite frown but she glanced at Casey, then over at Trisha. Trisha had moved around the counter to be beside Casey again - she just found herself wanting to be close to him all the time, and when he was right there… She caught Cass' gaze, and nodded slightly.

"When Rowan- my oldest brother- died and then Jack was crippled just a few months later, it got worse. I was only seventeen, but there was all this pressure to help out cause my mum was really struggling. All this ‘you’ll stay in Manchester for uni, right?’ and ‘do you even need to go?’ So when I took a scholarship for uni in the states everyone was pissed. My little brothers weren't happy cause they suddenly had to deal with all this shit, and it was like they were losing me too. So… we've made up since. They went to uni in different parts of England too, and Jack never held it against any of us, but we just ain't as close as we were. I love ‘em a lot, but yeah, distance doesn't help." Cass didn't seem to have a hard time saying any of this - and maybe it was too much to just unload there. But she'd always been an open and honest person, and she didn't want to just… lie and say it was all perfect. And then if she didn't lie, she had to give the reasons, right?
"We all still get together for Christmas and suffer through our parents being absolute pains, and I send them shit and we call every now and then. So it really ain't too bad!"

Leon held the woman a bit closer now… A bit more tenderly.
"Ah… Drafted… I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
”They did what was asked of them, Lee. We were close too. But, at least now you know, and you can hopefully understand other people’s perspectives a little more…”

Casey gave a knowing nod to Cass. He’d had a vague idea, they spoke of it at some point before Leon made his way into the picture, but he could only get it so clearly. It wasn’t easy to go through, and everyone he’d spoken to personally confirmed how much of a toll the drafting and fighting took. It was important to show solidarity without forgetting those who had given themselves to the cause of defending their liberty.

"Does… That ever make you feel bad about Junior? Or me?”
Casey waved his hand at his brother, warding off the question.
”Well, the Government won’t take all of a family’s sons. At most, by law only two of us could fight… If there’d been a draft, then all of us probably would’ve gotten in. But, I bet you’d have wound up in the USO doing morale shit like those singers. Boxing exhibitions and such. Maybe the OSS would’ve recognized you were a Paranormal and sent you to serve in my outfit. Same with June… The only thing I feel bad about is that it may have actually helped adjust our boy… Maybe he wouldn’t be such a rabid animal if he’d been beaten a few times by a drill sergeant.”

Nodding, Leon sighed gently. The air from his nose blew Cass’ hair around slightly.
"I’m worried about what’s gonna happen to him. If all this internal shit boils over.”
Casey’s face didn’t shift. He simply bit down and ripped apart a piece of fruit with one motion. Leon knew what that response was, and he could only shake his head further.

"Cass… What would you do if you knew your brother was into bad shit? Like uh… Get stabbed in prison type of shit? Do you just… Let him? Do you oust him to someone who will do something about it? Do you beat him until he can’t anymore?” Leon asked with an obvious concern in his voice.

Cass thought about it for a moment, tilting her head back a bit to look at Leon. She didn't seem all that torn up about what she'd talked about… it was never talking about it that was hard, anyway. It was moments where she would want to talk to her oldest brother, or when she really missed him. But she had a good handle on her grief anyway… easily able to swap topics without being affected by talking about it in the first place.
"Well, if it's bad enough to get him stabbed in prison… if he acted on it, I'd oust him. If he ain't, I'd beat him till he can't, then if he didn't change, I'd oust him. I love my brother's but if they did shit that hurt others - like proper bad shit, not just fighting or shit - I ain't gonna stand by and let ‘em do it. You can protect someone like that if they ain't changing." It was a pretty tough answer from Cass - not very much positivity in there. It wasn't that she didn't believe in second chances, there was just a certain point… if it was that bad and they knew? Then yeah, they couldn't just let it happen.

Trisha furrowed her brow, moving closer to Casey and taking the hand not holding food. She looked up at him. She knew Junior was an asshole, and he'd made her incredibly uncomfortable but… she hadn't realised it was like that.
“Is it that bad?"

Casey gritted his teeth slightly thinking about his younger brother. Was it? He honestly couldn’t know.
”Uhhh… Temple stuff. I don’t actually know. He’s probably the best among us at covering his own tracks. He does a lot of things that look charitable and good on the outside, but when you start to peel the first layer back, you realize there’s curtains. Steel curtains, with rivets and welds.”

"From when we were kids, we know he can be… Not human? The cats love him. From what they’ve told me, pain lingers around him. But they won’t say what, or how, or what he’s done to make it like that. But given how good he is with his White magic, and his aptitude for something we don’t know anything about-”
”-Computers…-”
"-We… Can’t really get to him or his bullshit to investigate further. It’s suspicious, and the way certain people react when he’s around doesn’t make it much better.”

The two brothers frowned in unison, shaking their heads.
”Since… I got the boost from Mom… I’ve had a much easier time telling when he’s fucked with something. The computer parts he enchants are pretty hot in a magical sense. They throw up huge flags in my senses.”

"And I know you’re both computer people, but… Like Casey said; it’s Temple shit. Granted, it could be worse than that, but he’s our brother. Dad didn’t teach us to run to outsiders for help. So, no pressure on either of you… Understood?”

“What do you think I would do-”
”Ohhh there is much more of a risk of me decking him if I meet him and he’s that much of a dick. Just cause I know computers don’t mean I know magical computer shit- unless it’s like, shit hidden by normal programs- but I will punch any asshole.” Cass was back to her normal inability to keep still, this time like she was gearing up for a fight that really wasn’t going to happen.

“Pretty sure Leon’s saying to not do anything,” Trisha frowned. If it was Temple stuff, it wasn’t something she wanted to go into. She’d just avoid him where possible. She trusted Casey to keep her safe anyway. She glanced up at him.
“If you can see the magical parts, that's more than either of us can do… I just write code. I don’t really know computers in that way.”

”I do- but unless you want me to, I ain’t gonna poke my nose in it… but I will beat him up if I’m ever around him and he so much as looks at me funny - no fucking stigma cause I ain’t a relative. And he sounds like a nerd, so how hard can it be?”

”Gin tells me he can’t code. That it’s all spaghetti he makes work with his powers… But his shit works the same as anything else. Like, the uh… Operating system? We don’t use big-box products, we use what’s called “Trample”. His language, his uh… Y’know, framework and stuff. He’s the supreme admin, the one who pushes out updates necessary and shit like that.” Casey explained, trying to find the words he remembered being used by people in the Government.

"And he isn’t a nerd… It’s not like he didn’t get all the same shit we did; he was just younger. He can still fight. Maybe not like us, but-”
Casey’s eyes lit up, and he nearly crushed the piece of fruit he was holding between his fingers.

”B-but… Do you think… They’re complicit?”
"You’re her favorite, but… Y’know-”
”They got a lot closer after Dad was gone…”

Leon nodded his head at the vagueness of the conversation. Casey’s tone shifted.
”I won’t ask you to get involved unless you want to, Cass… But maybe between you and I, we can find a way to push things a little further… You don’t know what a Joint-Cast is, do you?”

Cass tilted her head as she racked her brain for everything Reyna had told her about magic. Joint-Cast, Joint-Cast… Oh!
”That’s the shit where two Adepts do spells together through the power of friendship and shit, right? Rey said something about it, then she said no to all of my ideas!” Cass shook her head in mock exasperation, before looking at Casey a bit more seriously.
”If it’s gonna help keep Trisha safe and happy then I’ll get involved in anything. Well, nothing too illegal. Also to defend the sanctity of good fucking code… You suggesting we do a cool ass spell together?”

Trisha didn’t say anything, but she did turn towards Casey to press her face against him. She was hiding how red she’d turned at Cass’ declaration - maybe a little misty eyed too. It was stupid, especially when Cass had always been very… aggressive about protecting friends. But it was just… nice…

Casey’s hand came up and rubbed Trisha’s head, fingers passing through her hair gently.
”A bio-organic computer virus. We’d need to figure out how he’s using the same kind of magic I have access to, to do the shit he’s doing. The best way I figured is by including someone who knows what’s happening to help break it all open.”

"Wait, Casey… I thought we weren’t going to include them! You and Trisha, you both-”

”I know what we’ve said. But ultimately, we’re not being dishonest about the risk. Cass; if you do this, there’s a chance things could become dangerous for you. I don’t advise participation… If need be, we will get to the bottom of this without you. So, unless you’re extremely adamant about participating, I won’t seek your council. Strictly, you’ll be an outsider… But that’ll also mean you can’t punch him if you meet him; you’ll have to play nice and innocent like you don’t know.”

Leon nodded his head.
"Even though there’s a high chance he’ll know that you know something. White Lux is his stronger suit, after all.”

”I’ll do it.” Cass barely hesitated. Sure, Casey said it could be dangerous… but that just added an extra thrill to it. Everytime Cass chose to fight someone much bigger than her there was a real risk of injury, yet she still did it - because it was pretty fucking awesome when she won, and she cared more about keeping her friends safe. Plus, what better things did she have to do right now?

Trisha turned her head a bit to peer at Cass with one slightly narrowed eye.
“Can’t you think about it a little first? You’re just agreeing on a whim. Casey’s not joking about it maybe being dangerous.”
”I know. I ain’t gonna change my mind- even though it’ll fucking suck to have to hold back from punching him, fuck! But it’d be so worth it. Ooo, I can just think of all the shit I’d get to code. Y’know what they say - no risk no reward!” Cass had a glint in her eye as she spoke, and it was pretty easy to read that she was excited by it even though she held back from saying she thought it would be fun. It just wasn’t something she could hide from her expression or body language.

“Still think about it, please? I don’t know, talk it through with Leon a bit more, at least when you’ve sat on it a bit?” Trisha said, looking over at Leon. Though she knew if Cass had made her mind up there was no stopping her - and she couldn’t deny the spark of joy she felt from that. And she trusted Casey when he suggested it but then he also said he didn’t advise participation… So she was worried about it.

Leon was pretty instant with his response.
"This doesn’t change what we just talked about, by the way… Trisha…”
He hoped she’d get the message, but from the little time he’d spent with Cass, he knew she wasn’t going to miss that he was trying to hide something. Unfortunately, however, it’d already left his mouth. So it was either sink or swim.
"This was not an intended outcome… And you can blame Casey f-”

”That’s why I’m going to agree with Trisha, Cass… I recently did some work and, it- Well… I just… It’s fucking too late Leon! Cat’s out of the bag, I think she kind of seems to lock in on these things. All we can do now is keep her safe. For all of our sake.”
Casey’s hand running through Trisha’s hair stopped on top of her head, and he looked down at her.
”I’m sorry. I never should’ve said anything, my bad… It really isn’t something we wanted, it just… Came up.”

“I just don’t want someone else to get hurt,” Trisha said softly, clear worry in her gaze. Someone else she cared about…
“I know it isn’t something you wanted. I trust you, but-”

”Hey, stop talking about me like I ain’t an adult capable of making my own decisions,” Cass interrupted, hand sweeping out to point at every single one of them before her arms folded in front of her chest.
”Yeah, sure, shit’s dangerous. Probably not my business- but you are, Trisha. You may want to think you’re not involved, but you are. And you got involved for someone you barely knew- sorry, Rey outed that one. I think you’re both perfect for each other, but that doesn’t change it- it ain’t so unreasonable I would want to get involved in something that hardly scares me for someone I love and have known for years.” Though the almost harsh bluntness would probably surprise Leon and Casey, who’d mostly seen Cass’ near permanent positive energy, it didn’t shock Trisha. She had seen Cass like this before it was just… more rare. But she didn’t hold back.

“But I don’t want you to get hurt, Cass- and this hardly affects me, it’s not like…”
”Father Wolf? Yeah, a bit pissed you didn’t tell me about that one, but that’s fine- just means I need to not get hurt, right?” Cass cracked a grin.
”Get proper good with my magic so I can just shrug shit off… but since you asked, and Casey agreed, I’ll think about it a bit more. Unlikely to change my mind, but I’ll sleep on it- if I sleep.”

”Alright!” Casey said excitedly, pumping his fist before snagging up a piece of fruit.
”I would’ve loved having you in the Corps, Cass… That’s the kind of attitude we live for!” he said with exuberance.

Leon, tearing up a little bit, let himself bend over Cass, wrapping both arms around her tightly. Doing so, it was a scene that Trisha had just that day been a part of… The long, untied mass of black hair wrapping around Cass like a veil of privacy. An intimate world of two… He whispered in her ear.

"I’ll always love him, Cass… But I need to know for certain. I’ll keep you safe, and help you learn more. You’re not joining anything… But you’re a student of Gravity now, aren’t you? A disciple of the Cosmos.”

It was low enough that Casey and Trisha couldn’t hear…
”Hey, Itt Addams! No hair curtaining!”

Cass turned her face towards Leon’s, eyes squinting slightly as she grinned. By now Leon would be able to read the differences in her happy expressions - and this one was pretty fucking intense joy… with a bit of excitement in there.
”Fuck yeah I am- y’know how nice it is to hear that? You’re lucky I’ve already got strong discipline because otherwise I’d-”

She was quiet enough that Casey and Trisha couldn’t really hear either, but Trisha didn’t need to hear to get suspicious. The only reason she hadn’t immediately reacted was because it was Cass…
“If you even consider making out behind that I’m kicking you out.”

Cass laughed, one hand wriggling up to pat Leon’s cheek.
”C’mon, pull that hair back before Trisha gets properly mad.”

Leon smiled widely, planting a gentle kiss on Cass’ hand.
"Go ahead- Pull it up! You got it…”

”Whoa, so lazy, I gotta do everything around here,” Cass joked. She reached up with both hands to push his hair back and away from covering them as best as possible, awkwardly holding it together in the worlds worst hand twin ponytails.

Of course she was met with Trisha’s disapproving stare, her lips pursed and arms folded. Cass immediately started laughing.
”Ooo, maybe I should let it back down, go back to hiding.”
“Don’t you dare, I’m being very nice right now letting you flirt at all in my house.”
”Aw, like you could stop me, Trish- and I know you love me too much to do anything about it! I can read you like a book, you ain’t even upset.”

Trisha let out a light huff, but Cass was right - at least, her body wasn’t tense like it did when she started to get properly worked up.

”Anyway, we learnt it from you and your boyfriend,” Cass continued with a playful grin at them both.

”And we learned it from dear old Dad…”
Casey wasn’t above flirting. Watching Leon all those years meant he at least knew how the game was played… Especially now with all the… Extra memories…
But it was fine! Because today, he’d had his own memory made. With the dark came the light; with their pain, Trisha had finally opened up a little bit. And, she said it! He may have broken down and said it first, but she had actually reciprocated! And he was feeling confident.

”Besides, Cass is right! You can’t deny that it’s actually good to be around good moods and positivity toward one another. Clearly, in one way or another, we all love one another.”
Trisha would be able to feel Casey getting into position before being engulfed in a black veil of her own.

"Y’know, you’ve got a lot of nerve calling me Cousin Itt, you fucking Wookie…”

Casey’s forehead rested atop Trisha’s scalp, and he started to wiggle slightly from laughter.
”He called me a Wookie Trisha… He turns into a fucking werewolf and he’s calling me a Wookie…”
Oh… Right… He was high. It finally crammed itself into his brain, dull cannabinoid receptors chugging back into a groove as it served him humor on a silver platter.

Trisha giggled, lips curving into a warm and gentle smile.
“Don’t worry, I’d still love you if you ever turned into a Wookie- and he’s just jealous you’d make a hotter werewolf than him anyway.”

”Oy, you better not be making out behind there, cause then it just ain’t fair!” Cass’ laughing voice, of course, got through Casey’s not particularly soundproof hair.

“Different rules for the homeowners,” Trisha retorted with another giggle, as she leaned against Casey. Her head tilted upwards so she could actually sort of see him, still smiling cutely. She continued to speak quietly, just to him.
“Yeah, you and Cass are right. It is nice to be around each other like this… I don't even really mind them… it’s kind of cute. Nowhere near as cute as us, though. We win against everyone there.”

”But we’ll be nice and let ‘em compete, right?”
Casey laughed as he kissed her on the top of the head, then pulled his hair back up and away.
”Now enough of this! We’ll forget about it for tonight, and just enjoy…”

---

It wasn’t long before there was a notification that their food had been delivered. Casey had texted Theo to watch out for when it was coming and grab it, which was just part and parcel for the job. As it’d taken a while to arrive in the first place, the fruit bowl had been emptied out and relegated to the dishwasher, leaving plenty of room for plates and forks and spoons. Mostly concentrated on Leon’s end, the spread of boxes was like a full spectrum for the eyes and nose.

Even Casey was excited to dig into some chicken, and his big giant bowl of macaroni and cheese stared at him in the face. He made sure to put Trisha’s fried candy bar on top of her little stack, and found that it was still piping hot in the box.
”Ohhhh yeah, that’s the best part about a big order. Your guy is just sitting there waiting for it to finish, and they’ve gotta cook it to order…”

"Fuck yeah, this greasy shit is best fresh and hot as fuck! Fuck, it smells so good," Cass grinned as she popped open a couple of her boxes, leaning forward to properly smell the greasy goodness.
"This shit smells nostalgic, like I walked into a chippy down the street back home."

Trisha smiled at Casey as she opened up the deep fried candy bar that had been put on top for her. It looked… interesting.
“Smells more like university to me… All the times we'd get fried chicken or something on the way home from a night out. Even though the first few times Diyah turned her nose up at it."

Cass cackled at that, already digging into her own fried chocolate bar. She seemed entirely unbothered by clean eating, absolutely devouring half of it in massive bites with bits of melted chocolate sticking all around her lips.
"Oh yeah, we lured her into the Holy Church of Fried Chicken."

With a slight laugh at that, Trisha cautiously picked up her deep fried candy bar. It didn't look appealing. But she'd wanted to try it, so she had to try it… she took a small nibble of it, which mostly ended up as just the batter. So then she forced herself to take a bigger bite. Her mouth was immediately filled with sweet, gooey chocolate and heavy, savoury batter. It was incredibly sickly. Trisha made a face even as she tried a second bite. Nope. It was far too much. Trisha's whole face screwed up and she put it back down.
“That’s… not for me… it's too much…"

”I get'it, your weak ass American stomach can't handle it! I'll eat it if no one else will," Cass grinned. She licked her fingers to get the last bits of chocolate and grease that had escaped her absolutely inhaling her chocolate bar. When one hand was done she pointed to Trisha's, tilting her head over to Leon with a grin as a just cleaned finger was pulled out of her mouth.
"You should've been more worried ‘bout that than the pizza."

"Eugh! Look, there’s brown at the corners of your mouth, dude… I get squeamish just thinking about it.” Leon groaned, taking a paper towel and wiping her face himself.

Meanwhile, Casey had already cleaved Trisha’s chocolate between his teeth, swallowing it in two pieces without a great deal of ceremony.
”Too much… Oh well! Do you want something else? Norm keeps a stack of peanut butter cups frozen in the freezer downstairs, Theo will bring you one if you want it…” he offered to Trisha, popping the top on his mac and cheese and digging in with his spoon. There were french fries and chicken nuggets sticking out of it, all covered in ooey gooey cheese sauce.
Squeezing a pack of hot sauce out of its little container, he stirred it in and gave another taste. Then more hot sauce went on, again and again until he was satisfied with his bite.

”God, bury me in this shit if I die.” he said to nobody in particular.

“Gross, I'd rather be buried in the normal soil," Trisha wrinkled her nose, though she let out a little giggle at the thought of it. There was an implication underneath her words as well - shared graves…
“And I don't need anything else, this is plenty- if I really want something sweet later I'll have some of my honey on some bread." Though she probably wasn't going to have the appetite for more. She'd smoked enough to at least feel some amount of desire to eat, but she wasn't sure if it was even enough to eat all of the food in front of her.

Cass had been shooting a mock glare at Leon for wiping her face - a very cute gesture, but a waste of chocolate remnants she would've licked off in just a moment! No food wasted… she looked almost mournfully at the paper towel. But her attention snapped towards Trisha. ”All of that's so fucking cool by the way, Trish. With your bees… like I thought the honey you gave us was sweet but now I know they're magic… so awesome. Also explains why they never stung us."

“They didn't sting you because I didn't bring them with me when I was around you all. If they'd always been on me… you'd have been stung a million times whenever you hugged me out of nowhere." Trisha pointed a curly fry at Cass before popping it in her mouth.

"Hey I can't help the irresistible urge to hug whenever I see you're cute lil face- I'm sure Casey understands!" Cass grinned. She hadn't actually moved on from the chocolate bar to whatever she was next going to eat… stuck in indecision. Chicken, Mac and cheese, deep fried pizza… She wanted to eat it all at once.
"How's that work? The bees? Do they like you, or do they get all mad you're hogging her attention?" she asked Casey directly.

Casey laughed aloud thinking about their little quirks.
”Uhhh… They seem to like me on a baseline. I think it’s because Trisha projects the feeling. Maybe it’s because their first impression of me was around a big pile of fruit… Once Trisha told me about them, I was all about it though. I think it’s pretty cool too, and she’s super cute about them. Like a real mom.”
Casey’s hand reached up and pinched Trisha’s arm playfully.

”It was… A little unfortunate, the first night we hung out we got super high and… Like… I got stung pretty badly. Accidentally fell on a bunch of bees, we had a good cry… I think that’s when I knew that it was gonna be a good thing between us though, ‘cuz she kind of just dealt with it and comforted me. Right? Especially after I was trying to be cute, talking about getting stung a million times, something cringey.”

Leon laughed, shaking his head as he opened the box he had his own fried pizza in. Crunching into it, he pulled the saucy cheese away and smiled, offering it up to Cass to let her try it before she had her own.

"How many times have you been shot? And the bee stings got you?”
”We had a lot of buffers… Better armor… Getting raw stung by like five hundred bees just fucking hurts.” he shook his head at his brother.
”But, we did a great job getting through it, and I’m making it up to the bees. So, hopefully they don’t hold my accidental massacre too close to heart.”

“It was a thousand bees, even if a few attacked the TV instead of you,” Trisha pointed out, cheeks a little warm from all that Casey had said - wasn’t dealing with it the normal thing to do? She comforted him because she didn’t want him to leave but… she was a little glad of it if it meant he’d felt they were good together from then.
“They don’t remember. At least, they don’t remember it was you. They really like you now because you keep giving them loads of fruit and you… smell like me… to them. Pheromone wise, cause I like… just soak you in mine.”

”Oh shit really?” Cass pulled back a bit from taking a bite of Leon’s pizza - unnecessary, she knew she’d like it, but she wasn’t going to say no - and turned her head towards Trisha. Her words had been a bit muffled as she finished chewing on it with a little groan. It was fucking good.
”Lemme see.”

As Cass leaned back properly, two antennas popped out of the top of her head. Her eyes glazed over a bit as she turned her head towards Casey and Trisha. It was… pretty cool. She could sense all the signals Trisha was giving off, even though there were no bees about - just constant pheromones that none of them could sense normally. And there were similar all over Casey - like he’d taken a bath in them and they’d permeated his skin. Lighter, non active, but there.
”Oh that is so fucking cool - it’s like pheromonal scent marking all over you dude. And Trish, you’re always giving that shit off, even without the bees around? Damn.”
“It’s just natural, I don’t do it on purpose…”

Cass shrugged as she opened up her own fried pizza box, picking it up.
”It ain’t a problem, Trish - it’s cool. Like you’re marking your territory or something!”
“It is not like that,” Trisha whispered.

”It could be… I thought about it for keeping the Cats away, but I think the two of you need a bit more time being in sync before you can do too much with it… I can kind of see the signals with my Lux, but they’re subtle in terms of their magical energy so,-”
Casey shrugged, taking a big spoonful of mac into his mouth. Barely chewing, he swallowed it down and grinned.
”Oh, she’s gonna let me put guns on them…” he brightly explained.

”I’m gonna make full sized guns, have them work off of her signals, then find someone to shrink them. I’ve got an ammo spell that shrinks the ammunition until it passes through a certain rune? So when the little bullets hit, they expand into full sized ones.”

Leon’s eyes narrowed.
"Why are we… Arming… The bees?” he questioned between bites of chicken sandwiches.
”Because… There’s a killer on the loose? And a city full of batshit crazy people who could try and take advantage of my Girlfriend and her family’s wealth? She should be able to defend herself from anything. And I’ll make that happen. Did she even tell you she got into a fight?”

"Like… With Adora?”
”Lila Blackwood!”
"Oh, dude… That’s birdshit insane, not batshit.”

Cass almost choked on her pizza as she started laughing at that, leaning forward and coughing a few times.
“I didn't tell him because I know who's side he'd be on," Trisha said quietly, intently looking down at her food. When would there have been a chance, anyway? In between the two times they yelled at each other last night?

Cass' eyes narrowed too, turning to stare at Trisha but unable to speak until she swallowed the massive chunk of fried pizza still in her mouth.
"Wait, you got into a fight?! When?! Where is she, I'll-"
“It's sorted, Cass. And we both… suffered for it. She lost a lot of crows, I lost a lot of bees. Nobody won because Casey arrived before things got worse."

Cass paused midway to standing. Now she was picturing the armed bees… with their little guns absolutely mowing down the much bigger crows. It was an amazing, if hilarious, image.
"I think the guns are a great idea! It means Trisha's bees can attack from a distance- lower risk! I bet that killer won't be able to get close. And you can also take revenge on this crow lady!"

“I’m not doing anything like that unless I see her again. I wasn't even trying to fight…" Sure, Trisha felt resentment towards Lila for all the bees she'd killed. Her crow ate a bee first. She'd escalated. But she wasn't going to go out of her way for any kind of revenge… as long as they stayed away from each other. She managed to look up, glancing over at Leon.
“I do need to be able to defend myself better. I'm not going to go massacre Sycamore or anything when I have armed bees."

"Hey, wait! On whose side!? That’s not fair, Trisha…”
Leon did, in fact, sound a bit hurt.
"I’d be on your side, obviously… If you got hurt, that would mean Casey’s hurt! So, I’m on your side… Besides, Lelou doesn’t like the Maiden!”
A memory flashed through his head that wasn’t his. A black sky, a wretched pain. Lelou’s Emotional Field wavered for a moment.

”Well, either way… Cass is absolutely right. We’ll have bee squadrons, patrols… Thinking about a thousand bees with full-scale munitions is… Horrifying. If I could get my hands on a shipment of M134s? The kinds they put on the transport choppers? Ooooh, Babe…” he reached a hand out, bumping Trisha playfully.

Leon shook his head.
"Did you just suggest putting actual factual miniguns on bees?”
”In literally every sense of the word. Trisha’s gonna be a fucking gunwitch.” he grinned widely, almost evilly.

Trisha leaned towards Casey a bit, smiling at him.
“It wouldn't really be me, it'd be the-"
”C'mon, just accept it Trisha, you'd be a cool as fuck gunwitch! I dunno shit about guns but if they're on choppers? Must be real strong- I'm getting excited just thinking about it! That'll be some movie ass shit."

“It would be cool… especially if I don't have to worry so much about them getting squashed. And I guess it'd all be under my control if it's working off my pheromones. So, yeah, gunwitch." Trisha nodded, reaching out for Casey's hand before it could be completely pulled back. She tangled her fingers in his… just for a moment.
“When I suggested it I didn't think it'd be actually possible. So thank you for taking it seriously, Babe."

"Thank fuck you got a boyfriend that specialises in bee munitions, then," Cass giggled. As Trisha looked over at her she raised her eyebrows, head inclining towards Leon. Trisha's smile dropped a little bit as her eyes followed Cass' gesture.

“I shouldn't have assumed you'd take Lila's side, Leon. I just thought because… you're back at Sycamore… you'd believe one of them over me." Trisha's hold on Casey's hands tightened as she forced herself to say something she normally wouldn't bother with. Cass gave a proud like nod, grinning.

Leon shook his head, hair fluttering about.
"Vibes are so different at this point, Trisha… We had a meeting today, and like… Blackmore, uh… Like, Sully and Stormy? Everyone that used to hang out together, we’re just distant. And, uh… Well, the whole thing with Layla and Void Heart, now everyone’s looking at me differently. Obviously.”
Not to mention that all the girls who would hang out between them like glue were dead now…

"Oh… Uh, Auri? Auclair? Dead. Wolf got her, and a few other people at the same time. I’m hoping that whoever or whatever this stupid fucking thing is won’t assault a building full of Adepts and Abberrations, but you should both be a bit more careful.”
Of course, this is what Trisha got for not going to the meetings: Third-hand information whenever it came up.
Casey tensed up visibly, furrowing his brow.

”Oh, dude… Were you close? Is it-”
"-No, no… It’s alright. Like I said, I’m… I’m not exactly worried about the other Sycamore. You guys are my priority.”

Casey’s head nodded, and he looked at Trisha.
”I guess project Bee Brigade needs a quicker timetable.” he said calmly, a little quiet and thoughtful.
”Though, you could hopefully get that kind of info out a little bit faster, Lee?”
"Then you should know we’re planning to assault Elysium Island tomorrow. And we could use your help. Resources, if I can pull my requisition for the month?”
Casey nodded emphatically.

”Of course. Get Theo a list, I’ll make sure it gets priority and packaged for tomorrow. Need bodies?”
Leon shook his head.
"No, no… It’s alright. We’ve got Greenwood and uh… The arthaus.”
”Oh, 317? Got it…”

At the mention of Elysium Island, Trisha flinched slightly, frowning. The Elite's stronghold. That would explain the cryptic bulletin sent out by Blake demanding they all go there tomorrow, which she'd completely ignored after reading the first sentence. Multiple Covens assaulting the island? That was going to go awfully… for the Elite.
“Why are you assaulting the island Blake Schmidt owns? It's used for orgies and insane drug filled parties. It's not because everyone wants to join in, is it?"

She shook her head.
“If everyone's distant now- which I'm not surprised about, it's been ten years- I suppose it's the only fight they might win… Is there something on the island? Or did Blake just piss someone off?" Of course she knew a bit of why - but her Elite membership was the one thing she really didn't want to be open about yet.

"You remember Kari Wilson? She’s got a bunch of notes that could help us, but… She’s supposedly MIA? At first we thought she was dead, but some other evidence says otherwise… I don’t know. It’s hard to follow when everyone gives you a cold shoulder. But either way, we know that the Elite has the notes, and they’re working with people to translate them. We’re gonna get ‘em back.”

Casey felt coiled interest building in himself. The need for war that was justified. A good war. But then he remembered Trisha, and the promise of a date he gave to her. His body moved on instinct, but his lips locked up.
”Uhh… Ehhh… Shit! Shit… I wish I could fucking kill some rich people. Fuckers, stealing shit that ain’t theirs.”

Casey unfurled a sandwich from its tin foil covering, ripping a chunk out with his teeth.
"Don’t you worry about it… Just get my stuff to where I need it, and you’re helping more than I could ask. And, honestly, probably more than most people would trust you to.”
Casey looked a little sad. They didn’t trust him? Because of Clarissa and Furio, and what had happened with Layla… He knew. But it wasn’t their show anymore.

Nodding, he leaned into Trisha, swallowing before planting a kiss on her head.
”Then our date is still on!” he grinned.

“Good, I wouldn't want our date cancelled over Blake Schmidt and his friends," Trisha smiled back at him, tilting her head towards him. She was a little worried… her sisters were part of the Elite- oh, no, they were out of town. They wouldn't be in danger. That was fine. And while the Elite were a chaotic group, they did have some strong abstractions. At least plenty that would let them escape. Then, she would get some entertainment out of their loss too.
“I’m sure as soon as you get on the island they'll just hand them over. Most rich people are… cowards. It won't be an interesting fight. Sycamore’s not worth it either." She was saying this more to Casey, since he clearly wanted to join… even if he'd accepted he wasn't going to. There would be a fight, because Blake was too stubborn to back down.

"Wait!" Cass ceased shoving Mac and cheese in her mouth, just as messily as she'd eaten the chocolate bar. She'd been listening along, not contributing to something she knew very little about, but…
"That mean you're gonna be kicking ass tomorrow? Damn, I wish I could watch. Bet you'll absolutely destroy them, though."

Casey whistled to himself a little bit, wagging his brow toward Cass.
”See, that’s where he gets crazy! I may be able to give him the punch-out when we’re both just living, but Leo-Lou has some seriously crazy abilities. Y’know, if he goes too far one way, he grows boobs…”
Leon laughed aloud, thinking about his more animalistic wolf form. The werewolf aspect was Lelou’s, and thus she was always trying to turn the vessel into something more comfortable when she took control.

"Yeah… We can’t bang like that, Cass. I’d almost definitely kill you, and then go on an absolute tear afterward. Luckily, Lelou likes you; she said so. So, you get the best of me.”
He had a box of nuggets for himself, and Leon’s hand scooped under it to dump the fried bits into his gullet. Chewing, he swallowed a big lump of chicken and breading.

”You should give her a little exhibition though! Maybe Lena will want to fight.”
Leon made a grave face.
"Oh, God no… She’s… Not someone I’m interested in sparring with. I don’t think she knows what an exhibition is.”
Casey laughed.
”Deeeefinitely not, she doesn’t pull punches.”

”You could spar with me! Though that wouldn’t really work for me watching… and we’d definitely just end up fucking midway through…” Cass grinned, waving a piece of chicken around before stuffing it in her mouth. She chewed through it incredibly quickly.
”Fucking high compliments that the Queen of fight, fuck, eat likes me! I get a pretty sweet deal outta it- I like you plenty even without the boobs. But y’think if I got good enough with the magical durability and healing, I could survive it?”

“You really want something that could kill you? When you clearly enjoy-” Trisha grimaced, glaring down at her food. She’d gone from smiling to a sour expression, like she’d just eaten a lemon rather than fries. It wasn’t because of what they were talking about. It was the mention of Lena. Just hearing her name upset her. Especially after what she’d said the last time, and hearing it from Casey’s lips… It made her tense up.
“That’s just stupid.”

”Hey hypotheticals, Trish, hypotheticals! Always looking to try out different things- but I’m more of an ass gal anyway, so it ain’t a big thing. Way more interested in seeing the fighting! Or experiencing it properly.”

Leon shook his head.
"It’s really a different thing, Cass… Uh… See, the way it works, I’m not exactly using Lelou’s powers with permission all the time. Sometimes I give, sometimes I take, sometimes we agree. But if you see me looking like a big ol’ wolf woman? Things are bad. It means that she’s upset, and anyone’s liable to get hurt after that, no matter how strong they are.”

Casey felt Trisha’s tension in her muscles. Instantly, he was trying to think of what was said that pushed her into that coiled state… Talking about fighting? Or-
Clearing his throat, Casey realized quickly that it wasn’t fighting. It was a namedrop. It was just the first Aberration he thought of that he figured would put up a fight. Oops… He quickly cleaned his fingers off with a napkin and kissed Trisha, getting a little close.
”Do you want a drink or something, Baby?” he asked her quietly.

Meanwhile, Leon kept explaining his situation to Cass.
"We have… Had? A cousin. She had my leash, right? It’s this thing, a leash and collar- Kinky, I know. -that I can wear. It strengthens the locks keeping Lelou in, so long as the leash holder has a strong enough Emotional Field. She could actually kind of blend them better than Lelou and I can do on our own, but also… She hates it. Lelou, I mean. Because none of it is part of her will, y’know?”

”I gettit, I’d be pissed if I was stuck inside someone else and then being made to do shit- ain’t to say it's easy on you either. Kinda sounds like a lose-lose situation you got there, the both of you. Chained together and shit- also kinda kinky if you think about it. She wants your body, right? Ain’t happy to just live in there and get her fighting, fucking, and eating?” Cass was, of course, both curious and empathic - somehow managing empathy towards both Leon and the Ghost.
”Glad I ain’t gotta deal with another voice in my head, my own’s enough!”

“It’s not always bad.” Trisha said without much emotion. She still hadn’t responded to Casey’s question, because she was thinking too hard about it. Did she want a drink? Not really. She wasn’t thirsty, and she really wasn’t hungry anymore either. But did she want something else? Well, probably… She shuffled closer to Casey, so she was right next to him. She leaned against him and tried to untense. It wasn’t like Lena was here. She knew Casey didn’t like her. It was just… especially with what she’d said…
But Trisha shook her head, leaning into Casey more, speaking softly.
“Just this is fine.”

Casey melted into Trisha’s hug, and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Rubbing her shoulder, he took gentle breaths and tried to match himself with her.
”Awww, you’re getting tired or something? It’s alright… Just chill.”
His free hand slid down and snagged some of her curly fries, but one was still hanging out of his mouth when he looked down at her and waggled it in his mouth.

”Uh oh… Fumfin’ ftuk immy feef!” he giggled.
”Heeeeerp” he grinned.

Trisha’s protests about not being tired died on her lips. She stared at him for a moment, then at the fry. Her body relaxed slightly in his arms and her lips tugged up into a slight smile. She just couldn’t stay upset when he was acting so… cute. For her. It just made her feel so warm… warm, loved and wanted.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get it for you.”

She tilted her head back and pushed up, biting the curly fry right where it stuck out of his mouth. It was chewed and swallowed before she softly kissed him too.

Casey’s smiling and friendly face was beaming as she pulled the fry away. When she kissed him, he felt a warmth flush across his body until he was outwardly blushing everywhere besides his palms. Frankly, he couldn’t help but wrap both arms around her, spinning them both in place with a quick pirouette.

”UGGGH! Thank you so much, I thought I was gonna choke! I thought it was trying to crawl down my throat, I didn’t know what was gonna happen.”

Leon was watching with a gentle expression on his face. It reminded him so much of the good old days… Of seeing Mom and Dad just be Mom and Dad. Not the Herald and the Fist. Not Gravity and the Lady Night. Just a couple of young star-crossed lovers who could barely stand to be apart. It made him ache for those days. He wanted them back. Fixed.
"Damn, my Man… Every trick in the book tonight, huh?” he giggled, turning to Cass.
"You’d think our Dad was back with how he’s acting…” he said with a wide smile on his face.

”Well maybe he is in spirit! Y’know, that whole they never really leave thing?” Cass had a pretty hard time dragging her eyes away from the couple, watching them with wide, shining eyes and her hands pressed against her own cheeks, squishing them upwards. But she eventually turned towards Leon with a grin, otherwise not changing her also cute watching posture.
”It’s cute! Not that Casey needs to use any tricks, Trisha’s clearly already head over heels for him, so completely in looooovvvveeee.”

“Cass, please,” Trisha softly grumbled, blushing too. But she was too comfortable hugging Casey right now to actually get annoyed about Cass just saying it. She did love him, but she’d just said it, she wasn’t comfortable with it just being thrown around like that… but it was also Cass. She said stuff like that all the time. And she was content now. Happy.
“You’ve gone all red, was it from the near death experience?” she asked Casey, giggling as her hands came up to hold his face.

”You’re red too, Trisha!”
“Caaassssss, stoppp.”

Casey had what Cass said in his mind… About him being there in spirit. He was, and she didn’t realize how right she actually was. What was more concerning to him was that the little marking he’d left behind simply wasn’t fading… Absolution… The formal release from guilt, punishment and obligation. A cleansing of Sin. The ghost probably didn’t know who it was originally, but now it was just… Strange. Strange to know what his Mother was actually doing.

”Cass, that’s actually crazy. I bet he is here, and that you’re totally right. He’s probably happy that Leon and I are together, and that he’s got such a big fan in his corner as well… That we’re all just… Being happy for once. Thank you guys for coming up, seriously. It’s really nice to know you’ll be around more. I think Trisha and I are gonna steal you pretty often.”

Leon grinned. He raised his soda up with a free hand.
"To Gravity’s Legacy, the Richoux name, and the love of those close to us. Santé!”
He didn’t have a drink, so Casey took Trisha’s hand with her heirloom ring on it and playfully pulled it up.

”Santéééééé!” he smiled down at Trisha.

Trisha smiled back at Casey, eyes filled with softness even as she wriggled her fingers around in joking protest. “Santé.”

Cass looked at Leon, then Casey, then Trisha. She let out an exasperated sigh, before grinning and raising her mostly finished soda too.
”Yeah, I ain’t gonna try pronounce that, so… cheers to all that!”

The night went on, and eventually Leon and Cass left to go back downstairs for their own… evening activities. All of the food was cleared up, with Trisha’s leftover chicken put in the fridge for tomorrow, and the house returned to its normal peaceful atmosphere. Just the two of them.

Trisha naturally gravitated towards Casey once they were finished tidying up. Her arms came up to slip under his and wrap around him. She pressed her face into his chest, rubbing against it for a moment before tilting her head up to look at him with a soft smile.
“Den or upstairs? I'm not ready to sleep yet… but I want to cuddle and talk somewhere comfortable." Trisha's gaze up at him was warm and gentle. Filled with love. She was tired after the day they’d had but not to the point of wanting to sleep. What she really needed to recharge was Casey’s company…
“I’ll probably still change into something for sleeping- Oh, since you've got new clothes, can I steal one of your old t-shirts?"

Casey, social battery strangely neutral after having to use so much of it, was more happy to hand over the shirt on his back right now. His hands slid up to grip hers, tucking them into the shirt so she was gripping the cloth before wiggling slightly to bring it loose. Still in a tank top, he spun between her arms as he let his slip out, eventually coming totally out of the shirt to face Trisha.
He was smiling, and as she still clung to the shirt, he pulled it over her head loosely to block her from seeing.

”Babydoll, you can wear whatever you want. New shirt, old shirt, two shirts, no shirt… Be comfortable in your own house. I promise, you don’t have to ask to steal my clothes; we’ll just get more.”
He pulled the upper part of the shirt away from her face so she could see his smile, and his forehead pressed against hers.

Trisha's smile was bright in response, lighting up her whole face before she giggled. She just wasn't used to it. Sure, maybe the comfort she got from wearing partner's clothes to sleep came from her anxiety over them leaving… but almost everyone else, Reyna aside, had made it a big thing. But he just didn't… even though it was one of his new goofy shirts.
“If I do that you'll have no clothes left," she teased, rubbing her nose against his.

She then stepped back, wriggling his shirt back up over her head so she could take her sweater off. It was thrown relatively accurately onto one of the couches out her and she pulled the shirt back on over her tank top. Then her arms disappeared inside both as she removed her bra in some miraculous action without having to take anything else off. That was also discarded before she moved right back to Casey.
“Now I don't have to speak if anything goes wrong, I can just point," she laughed, leaning back to point to the deer on the t-shirt. Her eyes narrowed contentedly.
“You didn't answer the other question… Den or bed?"

Casey let his face look like he was trying to think, but his decision was already made. While he didn’t want her to think he was ignoring her, he felt a lack of sleep was going to be a problem today and he didn’t want her thinking about it… Because he’d already seen her stay up way too late… If he could convince her to sleep, then he could at least head downstairs-

”Y’know… I’m probably gonna end up heading downstairs to do some work.-”
He couldn’t lie to her. He couldn’t muster duplicity in the circumstance. He could only be honest.
”-So, lets go lay on the couch. That way, when you fall asleep, I can carry you upstairs before I head down. But there’s no rush, right? Like… The point of hanging out on the couch is so you don’t fall asleep too soon. Does that make sense?”

She wasn't exactly happy that he was planning to go work… even though it was expected after spending the whole day together. It was normal, and it wasn't normal to expect your partner to always be there. And as long as he really did stay until she fell asleep it should be fine. Waking up during the night normally wasn't the problem.
“It does. I probably won't fall asleep for a while… so long as you're okay to stay till then? Otherwise it'll take even longer." She smiled softly, hiding the hint of upset that came from his work plans. She'd be asleep, it was really fine. She shouldn't be so clingy.

“We need to make the most of the couch… Leon said he was jealous of it, which only made me like it even more." She giggled again, taking Casey's hand and entwining their fingers. Then she led him to their den - careful not to tug, just a relaxed little walk to the next room. When they were inside she hovered in front of that large, green couch. She looked at him, then at the couch. What she wanted was for him to get comfortable first so she could slot herself in around him… that probably made more sense.

Casey didn’t wait. He scooped under her legs as soon as she stopped, pulling her up as a single long leg stepped from the floor into the center of the couch. The second foot found purchase on one of the support beams under the cushions, striding toward the very back where they’d been previously.
For his back, and the various other injuries he’d suffered, it was best to have the tall back with plenty of space to stretch his legs.

Holding Trisha like she was a baby, he was already cuddling into her and placing gentle kisses.
”I’m happy Leon’s jealous… He could buy his own, so if he really feels that way he won’t be jealous for long.”
With most of their bedding still pushed to one side of the couch, Casey let her go enough for her to readjust while he grabbed the blanket and pillow for her to use.
”Let's get you comfy, my Girl… You did great today, by the way. From morning to night, you did so good just dealing with people and shit.” he cooed, encouraging her gently.

“It was a long day," Trisha admitted softly, nodding a little. She didn't bother with the pillow - she already had the best pillow, her head gently nuzzling against his chest as she turned in towards him. But she took the blanket and draped it around herself. She ended up with her legs swung up over his and her arms wrapped loosely around his waist, with most of her body leaning into him even though she wasn't actually quite sitting on him.

“One full of surprises. I didn't expect to see Cass… I'm honestly a bit surprised she liked Leon enough to spend so many days with him. That's what we went to talk about… him and Cass. All our other friends were worried. It wasn't about last night or anything." She was happy to talk about it because she didn't want Casey worrying or anything. Especially since they'd just talked about not making decisions for each other, and they had happened the last time her and Leon talked here…
“Though he did apologise for being an asshole."

Casey’s free hand had pulled the remote for the television out, fiddling with it in the dark until it came alive with a deep blue and white light of the television’s booting screen. It was quiet once some programming came on, and he quickly muted it fully. It was clear he wasn’t paying attention to it, rather using it as a big bright light to see Trisha’s beautiful little face. His smile was still plastered across his face, and he leaned slightly to get their faces closer.
”Well that’s good… It’s worth being careful, so… You guys are good friends. He’s rich and famous, and she’s a big fan. The dynamic doesn’t look very good on paper, huh?” he asked her with a joking giggle.

“It really doesn't… Not that Cass would stick around if he tried anything. But Reyna and Nadiyah were especially worried so… we talked about it," Trisha smiled back at him, tilting her head towards him. She was incredibly comfortable and content. It was easy to just talk when like this.

“He was pretty reassuring about it… and seemed to be thinking about it too. He even asked me if I thought he should cut it off. That was pretty surprising… I didn't expect him to be so open to me about it, after y'know… everything else…" She wriggled a bit, face turning to press into his chest for a moment before she said something else in a much quieter voice.
“I’m not used to people caring about my opinions at all."

Casey sighed a deep sigh, frowning a little bit.
”The whole dynamic over there is… Not great. I mean with Leon and the other Abs. I think Ed and I both knew, if we mentioned it you probably wouldn’t want to go. Point being, I’m still proud of you for going and seeing what’s going on. And dealing with him like you did. And I know you helped Ed too. In ways she probably won’t express.”
He didn’t want to bring up what’d happened too loudly, not wanting to get her riled up about the situation.

”But he’s actually been trying. Really trying, which is hard for him. Babysitting, having the responsibilities he has thrust upon him, all that? He’s got no fucking clue how to be a leader. He’s a bad follower on his best days, so being a leader is… It’s not natural. He thinks he can make all sides happy. And he gets into trouble for it.”
Holding Trisha a little tighter, Casey got conspiratorially close.

”I don’t want you to feel bad for him. I want you to understand that he’s a moron, and interact accordingly. Gently, but firmly. And hopefully, Cass makes it all a little easier still. Though, I mean… Were you really surprised that those two horndogs would get along like peas? I knew the first time they disappeared together at the arcade…” he giggled to himself.

“I’m not surprised about that side, just that Cass doesn’t just like having sex with him. She actually enjoys his company… She’s friendly but she doesn’t tend to hang around people she just wants to bang outside of doing it,” Trisha explained her reason, shifting herself so she was lying on top of him a bit more.
“I guess she likes morons. I really… struggle with people like Leon. He just reminds me of a lot of some of my siblings. They were morons and always thought they were right. Then they’d get all judgmental of me so… it really rubs me the wrong way. But I’m trying not to react as badly. It's definitely easier when you and Cass are around.”

Even though tonight had been relatively calm, there were moments when it could’ve happened. But she’d tried… because she loved Casey and she loved Cass.
“I don’t want to be getting upset all the time. He’s going to be around- especially if Cass is more. But it is nice to know that Sycamore isn’t all it used to be… because then I don’t feel as bad about wanting him to prioritise us, and about not going back.”

”He is definitely not-so judgemental these days… He was a little moral crusader when we were kids. That definitely peaked around the time you guys were… Y’know, fighting. Like, I remember that’s when I first expressed interest in the military. Joining the FFL. Dad had said something disparaging about people in the armed service, and Leon took that as his queue to basically browbeat me out of joining. Because he felt like he was doing what Dad would want, since he wasn’t around by that point.”

Casey thought about those days, and about Leon being confused and scared that their Dad wasn’t in the picture anymore. He cried a lot, alone. Not that Casey wanted to tell Trisha that, but he was confident that by the time Leon came into his own that he realized he didn’t need to be everyone’s moral compass. It was enough that by the time he made it home on his first leave, it was super noticeable.
But he didn’t want to spend time with Trisha thinking about his older brother.

”Speaking of service and shit, though… Are you still gonna be okay to come with me this weekend?”

“Of course… Do you think I’d rather spend all that time alone?” Trisha raised an eyebrow, easily following along with the subject change. She was happy to not talk about Leon anymore now that she’d said what she really wanted to.

Of course, she was a little nervous about going with him. It meant meeting new people - some that didn’t matter, but some that Casey liked enough to share farewells with. More people to possibly dislike her. She didn’t really know what to expect, because Casey was the only person she’d ever been around that served in the military… But she didn’t really want him to know she was nervous, so she went straight for the practical questions.
“What day do we actually go? Is it just a day trip sort of thing, or will we be staying the night?”

Casey thought about it. There wasn’t really anywhere to spend the night besides going into the city… But up North wasn’t much different than down here anyway. Not like you could get something in Portland or Seattle that you couldn’t get in the good ol’ Saint.
”Y’know, unless you wanted to spend the night? Probably just gonna be a day thing. I don’t really love the idea of being gone from the city for too long, otherwise the chances of someone checking up on us gets higher. Not that I’m being manipulative, just… That’s how it is, and I know you’re not gonna love that.” he sighed, shaking his head.

Trisha nodded, her face rubbing up and down against him. She really didn’t want to deal with that.
“Just the day is fine. I like our home anyway… I just wasn’t sure if it was too far to drive there and back. I’ve never really been fussed about stuff like that. Going away somewhere different is nice, but I don’t get the short stays in similar cities.”

She brought one leg up to be bent against her chest, shifting herself to lie a bit more sideways against him.
“I want to be with you more than anything. Location doesn’t really matter… though going on dates is always nice, like tomorrow. I’m really glad you’re not joining Sycamore’s… assault.”

Casey nodded, smiled, and giggled a little bit.
”Can I… Admit something to you?” he asked ominously.

Trisha stiffened up a little bit, not sure what he wanted to say, but…
“Yeah, of course.”

Taking a gentle breath, he almost looked ashamed.
”When it’s uh… People who deserve it? I… I enjoy what I do. The blood pumping, the screaming. Even the pain. I… I do wish I could participate. But, I also know that you’re the most important thing that’s ever been placed into my life. You mean a lot more to me than hurting someone who I feel deserves being hurt. I know the first part probably makes me sound like a bloodthirsty freak, but…”

His voice faded off, taking a moment to look at Trisha fully. He even pulled the bit of hair in front of his face away.
”You said it today. So, I… We can be honest. With our feelings, and our thoughts. Right?”

“Right…” One of Trisha’s hands moved up to cup his face, thumb gently stroking his cheek. She wasn’t entirely sure that she could be. Not all the time. Even if she had been earlier today… even if she loved him… it was still difficult. Not so much for this conversation, though.
“It doesn’t change how I feel about you. There’s not much that would. Everyone has… not entirely acceptable things about them, right? And it’s not like you want to hurt… innocent people. It’s different when it's not. I’ve hurt people too, but… I’m glad I matter more. Really glad. Is that selfish?”

Casey giggled at the question. For a split second, he considered a watery answer as opposed to the truth.
”It sure does… But selfish isn’t always bad. Contextually, this is good! You don’t want your boyfriend, who you love, going out and doing dumb things and putting himself in harm’s way! I don’t think there’s anything negative about that, even if I did express that it was something that brings me joy. I know it shouldn’t, and it only does because… Well… My brain’s broken. And rather than go get it juiced by some equally fucked up wizard, I just live with it. Try to make my own situation better. And doing it with you? Way better…”

He cuddled her, wriggling her around slightly.
”Thank you… For not hating me after I hurt your babies. And for… The pillow, and the pancakes… Tomorrow when you get up, we’ll make them together.” he rubbed her chin and cheek gently.

“You’re welcome… I’ll keep doing the little things for you. And that sounds like the perfect morning,” Trisha smiled warmly. She shuffled herself up a bit, so that she could softly kiss him. It lingered, shallow but sweet. She really did love him. She loved being with him, hugging him, kissing him… just existing together. He made her feel safe in a way nobody else had.

Safe enough to not just ignore the niggling little worry… to actually ask. She lightly pecked his lips again before wriggling back down to curl her head in against his neck.
“How do you… decide it’s people who deserve it? Like, with the Elite. I don’t know much, just that it’s Blake’s little power seeking project with some other rich people. I don’t know exactly who’s part of it… do you? Do they all deserve it?”

He shrugged at first. She was making him think about it?
”Uh… Well… Usually it’s… Orders. Someone else determines it. You tell me someone’s a badguy, I go and I get them. Puts a separation between me and the decision. But in this case, I mean… Everything seems to be connected to Sycamore, right? But I know you aren’t badguys. Maybe uh… Devola. But, even then, he’s never struck me as a threatening kind of evil. More like a bad rash than radiation burns. But if the Temple’s intel pipeline has anything to say about determining factors…-”

He frowned. Looked at her squarely, he closed his eyes.
”Uh… Listen, if we’re being honest, I’ll be honest. Your name comes up in more than a couple reports. I don’t care; I know you. I love you. I’ll bend and break any rule I’ve ever made for myself if it makes you happy. But, if you’re… Worried? About some sort of connection to you? That’s not how it’s gonna go down.”

Trisha’s eyes widened slightly, reactively shuddering. Her name… in more than a couple of reports… about the Elite? Obviously it was about the Elite. That was what they were talking about. Of course it was in Temple intel. She’d been stupid to think otherwise.
“I was just bored,” she whispered, even though he said he didn’t care. But there was still that need to explain herself… the stupid reason for joining a disorganised group. Boredom, and just a little hope there’d be some company. She’d very quickly realised that wouldn’t be happening… So she only attended meetings when she wanted entertainment. Never participated in the other shit. Though she often ended up being dragged into making decisions because the Vanburen members seemed to follow a rule that only one of them would ever show up. Not on purpose, it just happened.

“My sisters. Two of sisters I used to live with, they’re al- they’re part of it. They’re not really bad people. We’re not especially close but we… get on enough. I wouldn’t want them killed or anything. And I-” She frowned, body curling up a bit as she hid her face against him. It wasn’t worry, so much as it was…
“I didn’t mean to put you in this position. I’ll leave at the next meeting.”

Seeing her reaction made him extremely hesitant to bring up the second portion of this… But he could understand her worry. Clearly she didn’t bring him up, because he was probably a bit more dangerous than the average Elite.
”It’s not you… It’s not your problem. If your sisters are anything like Tansy, then I doubt I’d even really know their names.”

Brooke and Isabella Vanburen. He wasn’t fucking stupid. But he could be for her safety and security. They weren’t big names on the list; ranked the same as Trisha. Bystanders, practically. Hardly worth-

”It’s people like Valos. Jason and Gabriella, and then Schmidt. They’re into worse things than you think they are, Trisha. Things that are reprehensible to me. Regardless of anything else, the vast hoarding of wealth and unwillingness to-” Play ball in Temple businesses “-donate to charitable causes, things that just make them… Badguys. Maybe not all of them are bad guys.”

If wealth hoarding was enough, then every Elite member counted for that. Maybe her family got away with it because her father had always been good at pretending to be magnanimous. Ezra helped small businesses succeed, which could be viewed as a charity. But he wasn’t part of the Elite because he didn’t have magic…
“Oh. You’re right, they are bad people. I know a lot of what goes on… The Valos have something against us too- with some of the things Jason’s said to my face.” Trisha grimaced. He was an asshole. But if it really wasn’t her or her sisters… She unfurled, looking at Casey again.

“Blake’s stupid- but a lot of them don’t understand. Especially the ones my age. My family’s situation is… unique, because dad’s dead. The rest are just rich kids following what their parents want. Not that I really… am friendly with them at all.” She shrugged one shoulder.
“I’ll still leave. I don’t want to be part of something led by people you find reprehensible. And I only ever joined because I hoped I’d find… well… it was mostly the boredom…”

Casey nodded and understood where she was coming from. Even if he said he had problems, he was mostly grasping at straws. Weak reasons that weren’t “Because our belief systems fall on an opposite end of the spectrum, and I don’t look at them as human.”

His psychologist told him that his mind was dangerous. That he shouldn’t think like that, and that he had to find reasons to humanize the amorphous entities in his head that he saw as “wrong” or “bad.” That things weren’t black and white, and that for every story, there was an author with the whole truth. It never made him feel much better, but fuck if he wasn’t trying now.
But she was saying she’d make changes for him, even if he didn’t care if she did or not. Hadn’t made her far more human in his head. He wondered if they’d have fought if she hadn’t gotten into that fight with Adora those couple of weeks ago…

”I appreciate your willingness to make changes for me. The common courtesy we get to share… It’s not something I’ve experienced outside the military. We really must mean a lot to one another to go on making all these concessions, huh?”
He smiled, giggled warmly, and pressed their noses against one another to rub together playfully.
”I love you, Trisha…”

“I love you too,” Trisha said softly, smile incredibly sweet. This hardly felt like a concession to her. She wasn’t attached to her Elite membership. It brought entertainment sometimes… But she wasn’t going to correct him.
“Isn’t that what love is? Making concessions. At least I think so, I’ve never… really experienced it before. But you do mean a lot to me, so I want to do things like that for you.”

If she was honest to herself, that was part of what had pushed her to realise that she loved him. She was willing to do things that she found uncomfortable. Normally she wouldn’t make concessions at all. But she was able to for him- she wanted to. And it wasn’t just the anxiety.
“There’s some things I won’t make concessions on. Like kids… we were interrupted by Andrade earlier, but you said about the bees meaning we don’t really need them. I… want to have kids. With you. One day.” Maybe it was a strange shift, but it was just thinking about loving him and the things they’d talked about that day… actually feeling like maybe thinking about a future wasn’t so scary. Maybe it would really happen.

Casey was trying to remember the morning. No, he was trying to remember the context… No, just react genuinely…
”Really? That’s… Honestly not something I expected to hear you say. I mean, I was joking a little bit I think, if I remember correctly, but… I mean, I love you! And if we love each other, then we can be better parents than ours were. We can be good parents! Like, if what you said about your Mom really was all true? Which I mean obviously it is, you wouldn’t be hurt like that if it wasn’t, but… Don’t you think that’d be special? To be everything she wasn’t and more?”

He smiled down at her, nodding his head.
”Obviously we’re uh… Y’know, taking things slow. But… Did you have any names?”

Trisha laughed, smiling warmly back at him. Taking things slow… obviously they weren't, aside from in the physical sense. They lived together, they loved each other… though this wasn't something she wanted to do in the immediate future. It just felt right to actually talk about it.
“It would be special… I had a whole list when I was younger. I think my favourite was Charlotte for a girl, and Francis for a boy but… that's the kind of thing you decide together, right? Not that there's a rush… I don't want kids for a while. I just wouldn't want it to become a thing in a year or two."

Her head tilted slightly as she thought about it. Being a good parent. Better than her Mom. Would she be? With Casey, probably…
“I always wanted a family. A proper family that loved each other so… I always wanted kids. So I could give them what I didn't have- like you said, be everything my Mom wasn't. Then I'd-" have people that wouldn't leave me. Trisha frowned slightly. That… didn't seem right. Or at least, it wasn't the right thing to say. Was it how she felt? Yes… because her future children would love her, just like she loved her Mom. But that wasn't… no, she wasn't going to think too hard about it right now.

“I’d feel happy about doing better than I was taught. But is it really a surprise I want to have kids with you? Do I not seem like… the type?" The question seemed to come out of curiosity rather than any upset that he hadn't expected to hear her say something like that… even if there was a hint of anxiety that drove her to ask her even after everything he said about loving each other and being good parents, and what she said too.

”I just feel like there's a lot more baggage having my family behind me. Between all the crazy relatives close and far, all the hangers who orbit my life, y'know? Though, honestly, I'm more surprised you were willing to agree.”

As he explained himself, Casey let his hands brush down Trisha's arms, taking hers in between them and holding them tightly. It was tender, and he couldn't help but try to get her just that little bit closer.

”I like the name Charlotte… And I’d hope for a girl first. Would you let magic have any part in their births? Y’know they’d be predisposed to Kindling because of me, right?” he asked gently.

“I know… Magic itself isn’t a problem. Any child of ours would grow up around it, I just wouldn’t want there to be any… pressure for them to Kindle. But if they know, it would be easier for them. My dad never taught us so I had to learn it all from a lazy ghost.” Trisha let out a light laugh, looking at him with a fond smile and open gaze. She wasn’t purposefully avoiding the first question, she was just trying to think what it meant… but she didn’t know. Her fingers wriggled a bit between his before she decided to just ask.

“What do you mean by magic having a part in their births? Magical healing, or… ceremonial?”

Casey couldn’t help but laugh at what he was thinking about. She went to a different level.
”Mom didn’t really give birth to us. Well, I think Leon? But, uh… The Doc just…-” he moved his hands to her belly, making a scooping motion. ”-Took us out. Green magic. Cesarean, no scars, no sign of pregnancy, choose when the baby comes out instead of experiencing labor… Or even uh, like… I’m sure She, the Doc, has some localized anaesthesia spell…” he explained.

Of course, he was almost certain she wouldn’t want anything like that… At least not for the first one. As far as he was aware, Lynette felt the same way until Leon was an absolutely massive fifteen pound baby. A memory that wasn’t his flashed through his head- A result of the transfer -of pained screaming. Of his Father’s half-masked face, eyes wide in terror as Lynette’s hand wrapped so far into his hair that she was ripping chunks bald.

”We make big kids, I’m told. Partly the diet, partly, yeah… Some ritual stuff. I don’t think there was anything normal about our time in the womb… You don’t make people who grow to this size without some sort of outside influence.”

Trisha’s brow furrowed. They were just taken out. A completely magical birth… as much as the idea of no pain was appealing, she didn’t want that. At all. There was something she just didn’t like about it. It felt… kind of cold.
“Well we make small kids- at least on mom’s side. Maybe it’ll balance out? I don’t mind anaesthesia spells, or magic like that to help, but I don’t want the… magical, whenever you want caesarean. Or any magical pregnancy rituals. Our kids will already be born with more of a magical connection than most. I don’t want them magically growing too.”

She shuddered a little bit at the thought, looking down at her t-shirt covered stomach. A deer just stared back.
“I would like it to be as normal as possible, unless there’s some… danger, you know? Which can happen, magical influence or not. I just don’t really like the idea of someone messing with my body normally, nevermind when there’s also… a child… in there…”

”Oh, right! I mean, of course; I wouldn’t expect you to or anything. Obviously… But I am curious to see what sort of lasting effects are in my blood, because, y’know, we’re genetic freaks. Could be anything, and I wouldn’t want it to hurt you. Or a baby…”
Playfully, Casey began to gently massage Trisha’s belly, fingers pressing lightly to make a gentle wave across her abdomen.

”At least by then, we’ll most likely be out from under this shit. We can live somewhere quiet. Middle of the country, nobody to hurt us or threaten our wellbeing. Homeschool the babies, teach them what they really need to know. Does that sound like something you’d go for?”

While she tried to hold it back, Trisha ended up breathlessly giggling, her hand moving over Casey’s to try to stop his fingers from moving. The light pressure was perfect… for being ticklish. Even as she squirmed a little bit, she still smiled softly at Casey. Her hand curled over his, keeping it where it rested.
“Somewhere quiet and with loads of space would be nice. Then the kids can freely run around- which we’ll probably need if they turn out to be as big as you. Energetic too, I imagine. Loads of space for the bees too… I’m not so sure about homeschooling? They’d end up experts at shooting and beekeeping, but I think there might be a lot… we’re missing. Or maybe that I’m missing. I learnt everything from books, I don’t know how I’d teach any of that.”

She chewed on her bottom lip a little bit, thinking about it seriously. Could she homeschool her children- have an active part in teaching them? What if she lost patience. Or ruined whatever relationship they had.
“And socially… I know school was where I thrived socially. Not that I’m completely against it! Just… thinking. I’d really like to live rural like that, I think. With you.”

Casey wanted to grab her hands and stop her from moving his. To keep tickling her. She was so cute, and the feeling of her wriggling around in his arms, squirming, was… He just wanted to squash her. Not in a violent way, just that he wanted to keep her tight. He wanted her close. So close. So warm.

”I just… Don’t think I’d want them going to school in the middle of nowhere. There’s a lot of people I met in the service who grew up in the middle of the country, the middle of nowhere… Nice people. Kind, generous, uh… Good people. But no brains. And definitely no social skills. Those are the kinds of guys who die, because you told them to flank a position and they can’t visualize a route to the point they need to be at. Maybe, uh… Maybe I’m a bit prejudiced, I don’t know.”

And he was, of course. You didn’t say something like that as a generality without it coming from a place of bias. Personal experience. He was trying not to use the language they used in the service. Lead-heads, bottom-brains, fucking re-
”Obviously, I could be proven wrong. We’d need to go through it before it’d ever actually be something to deal with.” he spoke calmly, clearing his throat slightly.

Trisha nodded as Casey talked, looking genuinely thoughtful. She’d not really met anyone who was properly from the countryside. Everyone at University was from cities - the majority from cities in Illinois. Maybe there were a few from rural areas… but if they were at University they were different from what Casey was saying. But it might be because they were people he met in service- no, she couldn’t think that. Shouldn’t.

“I definitely don’t want our children turning out like that if we can help it… I don’t really know anyone from the middle of the country, so you probably know best. There must be some rural areas that have good schools? Not that I’d want to choose where to move because of just one factor… I’d rather homeschool if it really is like that. We’d do proper research. Not that academics are everything. It’s more important that they’re happy and healthy. I, uh-” Trisha frowned a little bit, body swaying from side to side for just a moment. All the talk of schools… schools for their future children, making sure they had a good education… Trying not to think about the standards she held for herself that directly clashed with what she was saying.

“I wouldn’t want them to grow up thinking how they do in school is everything, anyway. My… My mom was like that. Barely around, but she always made sure to monitor my schooling. She was all about studying. I wasn’t-” Trisha frowned. Did she want to go into that, when everything was so comfortable right now?
“It was stressful.”

Casey reactively aw’d at Trisha, clicking his tongue between his teeth.
”Baaaabe… School will never be like that for them. Not our kids. They’re gonna learn, and we’re gonna encourage them to do well, but… Well, like, I think you and I will both know how to make them feel good about what they’re doing. And we’ll fucking love them no matter what. Dumb, smart, uh… Y’know, whatever! Cuz they’re the sum of us. Dad always used to say that.”

He cleared his throat, making his voice so much deeper than it already was.
”You’re my blood and bone, Caseau! You children are everything your mother and I have worked hard for! Our sum!”
He laughed, waving his hand away gently.
”I get what he was saying, but it’s just like… It never made sense to me. Now it kind of does, though!”

Trisha knew that she would love any child she had irrespective of their shortcomings but… Would it be because of what Casey said, that they were the ‘sum of them.’ Technically it was true, but if that was the case why did neither of hers…
“So just thinking about our future children helps you understand? You’re practically a parent already.” Trisha managed to smile.
“The sum of us… I think I understand it. Hopefully they’ll get the best bits of you, and the best bits of me.”

Her smile was brighter at the thought of that. It didn’t matter even if they didn’t get the best, but… that would be nice.
“My mom obviously didn’t think like that. She always said I was just like my dad… but with our kids it would be a compliment if I said they were like their dad, because that would be you.”

Casey grinned a big, wide grin.
”Damn, girl… Flattery? Before bed like this? You’ll get a stomach ache from all the sweetness…” he giggled, pulling her tight and close again.
If he didn’t know better, this is where the thing would happen. But he was so content to just have her in his arms that anything else seemed practically blasphemous. To sully the moment, to… Well, shame was very much a part of the vague Catholic nature of his time in an actual church. It was so small, and only when he was with his grandparents, but… He could hear his Nana talking about the Garden of Eden, and about how Eve ate the fruit and corrupted Adam to do the same.

About how the knowledge they gained caused them to understand shame; the fact that they knew what they did was wrong. It made everything carnal. He’d read Paradise Lost, the Divine Comedy, practically everything his Nan had told him to in order to understand where their faith came from. The actual biblical roots of the New Dawn.

He could only giggle with Trisha, softly breathing in the dim blue light of the television.
”I just… Want to keep telling you that I love you. It’s not good, right? It’ll lose its meaning. It kind of stinks? So, I’ll… I’m gonna find better ways to be mushy, and embarrass you with how much I love you. And I kind of can’t wait to meet your Mom one day, so I can… Show her what she’s missed in her life. Make sure she knows that you’re more than a prize. You’re a whole new world to me.”

Was it really possible to tell someone you loved them so much it lost its meaning? Trisha couldn’t see that happening… but then again, she’d rarely been told it until Casey. The actions behind it hit just as hard as the words. She didn’t really know what more he could do. She already felt more loved than she ever had.
“That’s really… sweet. Nobody’s made me feel like you have before. I’ve never been able to really believe in… a future… nevermind talk about it.” Trisha’s voice got softer, quieter, and she curled in towards him. Like she was trying to be completely enveloped by him.

“If you do meet my mom- we haven’t been in touch for a while-” massive understatement, “- you’d need to learn Tagalog first. And be prepared for a lot of snide comments. I honestly don’t know if you could… really show her that. She only ever cared about my grades, nothing else. She’s quite harsh. She doesn’t even try to hide the jabs like your mom does?“ For a moment she lost what she was actually trying to say, face pressing against Casey as she took a deep breath. It was like telling him about her mom in the first place opened the floodgates, and all the little things just kept wanting to come out… It was scary. And she was scared to hope that he could do something like that. She’d already given up on getting any sliver of love from her mom…
“I’d like to see that. I think you could handle her- I know you can. If you ever meet her.”

Casey gave a devilish grin at the concept of Tagalog being a prerequisite. Not like he didn’t end up in the Philippines or anything…
”Pwede niya akong sampalin kahit ilang beses niya gusto…” She can hit me all she wants…
He spoke quietly, almost seductively. Tagalog was a foggy language, buried under six years of warfighting… But he could still pull out a little bit. Enough that she wouldn’t just talk shit about him behind his back.

Still smugly grinning, he waggled his eyebrows.
”I suppose I can go to get it refreshed. This weekend, before we leave the Base. Unless you want me to do it manually?”

Trisha pulled her head back a little bit just to stare at him, eyes wide in shock. He knew Tagalog. She was surprised, and she was pleased. She'd always done her best to keep in touch with her Filipino side where she could so… having her boyfriend speak the language as well… It was nice. Attractive.
“Magically is fine. Then I don't have to teach you all the insults I might use against other people in the future."

Her eyes squinted contentedly, her whole expression gentle and pleased. She couldn't help but lean forward, pressing her lips against his to kiss away that cute smug grin. She deepened it slightly, lips parting as she twisted her body around to fully face him rather than sitting sideways in his lap. When she pulled back, just slightly, she rested her forehead against his.
“Do you know how hot it is to hear you speak my other language? How many others do you secretly speak? Or do I have to keep getting surprised- not that I know anymore."

Casey sheepishly smiled and giggled to himself, trying to recall the languages all crammed into his head.
”Uhh… Dad taught us all naturalized French. Spoke enough of it that we all pretty much picked it up… Except Mimi, she had it implanted like I've had most of my languages. Otherwise, uh… Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Tagalog, Mandarin and Japanese. Add the French, and you realize I ate some World War soup.”

Fond memories of the Logistical Corps, their funny artisanal war maps with moving doll troop markers. The black bands they wore around their arms with the Chimera, the symbol of their unit, emblazoned upon the fabric. Waiting in line for Captain Halloway to cool off before she could cram another soldier's willing head full of knowledge they gleamed about the local area.

”Squad leads got the languages of the areas we were serving in imprinted onto us. Captain Halloway would take like… Ten or fifteen friendly locals and drain their brains of whatever she could, then she'd pump it all back into us. Language, topographical understanding, anything the locals knew that she deemed useful.”

He let the thought linger for a moment before laughing.
”I feel like Pink Lux has the highest ratio of evil Adepts among all magic…”

It was a lot of languages. Trisha knew about magical language implanting, because there'd been people in the coven who got it done… but it had always seemed a little like cheating to her. For her. Higher standards for others than herself, so she still struggled away with her rudimentary Arabic with more fluency in the areas her and Nadiyah would normally talk about. But that little easily jealous part of her was glad most of the languages were implanted into Casey's head, rather than properly learnt… and she hated that she felt that way.

“The whole knowledge draining thing… just getting into people's minds without their consent is pretty creepy. Once they're in, they can do anything. It's why I never let them in. I don't like getting messed with magically at all." Trisha shook her head. She could see how useful it would be during the War - and the pink luxers they had had been useful against the snake. But that didn't mean she liked working with them… or having memories dragged out of her head at the end.
“I only really know three Pink Adepts - two pretty awful, one not. Reyna kind of makes up for Greyson and Anya I think… though she can be nosey with it. The only pure Pink one is Greyson anyway, and he's… scum." Trisha wrinkled her nose.

“As soon as you start willingly messing with minds… I don't know. Maybe it's hypocritical, because I can influence people with my pheromones. But it's not really the same, is it? It's just emotions." And manipulating people to be incredibly attracted to her… but it wasn't permanent… it wasn't like she controlled people.

Devola…
”Does it make you nervous that we work with him? Edict, I mean? You know I'd squash him like a bug if he actually tried to hurt you, right?” he asked genuinely, harkening back to the chance meeting at the pizza shop.

”Honestly, like… I'd only met him a couple of times over telecom, but seeing him in the flesh and hearing him talk to you like that really did make me think a little less of him.”

“A little bit nervous, yeah. I know he can’t get into my head if I don’t let him, but technically we all did… I don’t know if he can just do it again. I do know you wouldn’t let him hurt me, but…" She chewed on her lips a little bit.

“He always talked to me like that. Like he wouldn’t sleep with half the coven if they’d let him- but I wasn’t scared of him then. He was a dick but I don’t think he outright hated me. Now, I don’t know. I was one of the people that voted him out. If I wasn’t with you… he wouldn’t have stopped. What he said wasn’t the worst he could’ve. I don’t know what he knows, if he took something out of my brain when he erased our memories? I’m more nervous about that than him trying to hurt me physically.”

His eyes narrowed as he tried to think about what she meant. She was… More worried about…
”People knowing things about you really scares you, huh?” he asked quietly, taking a small breath.
He had a question that formed in his head which he knew he couldn’t ask. Or, maybe he could, but her reaction to it was totally unclear. She’d surprised him with her introspective thoughtfulness before…

”Uh… You’re special to me, right? I can convey that, and tell you all about how I feel, but… Other people? What makes you think that you inhabit any bit of their day-to-day mind? Like him, for instance. Yeah he’d have a reason to hold some kind of grudge, but like… D’you think he’d have some sort of weird fixation on you? Out of everyone in the Sycamore Tree who outed him?”

Trisha pursed her lips, moving to curl back into herself. She was still pressed up against him, hugging him, just… tenser. Like a coiled snake trying to stop herself from striking. It wasn’t like she wanted to get upset…
“Because it would be worse if they never thought about me at all,” she admitted quietly. There was that conflict that she knew made her so difficult to deal with - not wanting people to know who she really was, but getting upset when they made assumptions… Hating the thought of people thinking negatively about her but preferring it to nobody caring at all. It made things more difficult.

“He probably doesn’t. He probably forgot I existed until we bumped into him. I bet they all did. But that- that means I might as well have not existed. I don’t know. He clearly remembers enough. It’s like… They don’t have to be thinking about me daily to still know and remember things. Or to have bad intentions. Like-” She frowned, grasping at straws as she tried to explain what she meant. What was she even trying to say?
“Like Tansy. I doubt she thinks of me day-to-day, but she still goes out of her way to torment me when she remembers. And she always knows exactly what to say.” Yet somehow, she preferred that to being treated like she didn’t even exist…

Casey didn’t want her in pain. He didn’t want her to think about shit like this when they were trying to relax. Trying to get her sleepy… Comfortable. She didn’t need to worry…
”You’ve got a Genie mentality… Like being forgotten means you die.”
Leaning into her, he took a deep breath and let his finger trace up to her chest between her breasts. Near her heart.

”Y’know, people who have never met you want to keep you safe. Has the Queen talked to you at all about… Your house guest?” he asked, on the clearly touchy subject of being affected by things she didn’t ask to be affected by.
His finger slowly but surely traced the symbol sitting across her Emotional Field, barely touching her actual flesh. He was trying to think of a way to explain to her that-
”You remember the day I had my ceremony? I was asking you if anything happened to you?” he asked gently, hanging it to give her the chance to answer.

“I remember.” She looked down at his finger. The traced symbol that the Queen had told her about… She knew he knew, because he’d sort of brought it up before. But not so explicitly. There was no point in hiding that she knew too.
“She told me. Sort of. About the drawing, at least.”

Still anxious, he took another moment before he actually explained.
”I… Think it’s my Dad. Maxwell… Knowing that you’re not one of us. He… It. It being the Apparition that makes up the last remaining bits of him in our world. It knew you were vulnerable somewhat. So, he did what Maxwell would’ve done. Protected you. Made a sigil with his energy and piggybacked it onto your Emotional Field. Made it stronger, so things can’t push through.”

He frowned slightly, knowing how he felt about it.
”He came to you. Not to me. Not to Leon, or June or Elise, not Mia… He came to you to protect you from us. I… I can only assume he somehow can read people in his domain. And he blesses the ones who he feels need it the most. Outsiders.”
He knew what he was trying to say, but it wasn’t coming out quite the way he wanted it to. It had to be completed in his head before he finished the thought.

”You… You mean something. Something he can see, and something I can see. Amorphous reasons to protect you, and love you and care for you. I promise you that you’ll never be nothing. There’s always going to be someone somewhere who loves you and cares about you. I promise, you’ll never fade away, Trisha Vanburen.”

It was really hard for her to fully believe that. If Casey… she didn’t want to think about it, but if he wasn’t there she couldn’t imagine someone else loving and caring for her like he did. Maybe he was right. She had him, her friends, and a couple of ghosts… But that didn’t mean it would last. Some good years versus the rest of her life with the opposite being proven true. She did want to believe it, even though it was so hard to.
“I don’t know, sometimes I feel like… No, I don’t want to keep being negative about it. I… I know that you really mean it. So I’ll try to believe it.” She spoke quietly, reaching up to rub her eyes. Not quite crying, but beginning to feel emotional enough to. Again. She did wish she could just agree… but she didn’t want to lie.

“He showed me you. When you were younger, then when you were an adult. I don’t know if any of it actually happened but… It was all about you. So I think he saw whatever he did because you see it. Because you love me. But maybe that’s what I needed…” Someone to love her so that she could become someone really deserving of that love.
“You know I spent a lot of my life pushing through because of spite. So it’s a little strange to think about not fading away because I’m loved.”

Casey sat with the thought for a moment before his hand came up under Trisha’s chin. Index finger and thumb both found gentle purchase on either side of her chin, and he slowly craned his neck down to properly kiss her. It went on for a moment before he pulled away, forehead resting against hers.
”One day, you’ll know how much you’re worth Trisha… I’m sorry that I’m the first person ready to teach you… But, I will. I promise you, I will.”

Trisha’s nose rubbed against his in a slight nodding motion. Her body unfurled against his, as she tried to relax again. Not think about all of that stuff… just do what she was best at and ignore it for now.
“Thank you. For seeing what nobody else has… Because I’m trying. I really am.” And she knew that she could be difficult, even though she wasn’t willing to say that outloud.

“You really do care so much, I… I really love that about you. I’m not just saying that to flatter you.” She managed to smile again, head tilting slightly upwards to quickly kiss him.
“I feel safe with you.”

Casey held her close, nodding and dipping for another slightly longer kiss. Holding her there, his hands rubbed at her back. The deep bass of his voice rumbled out from his throat as he cautiously hummed a tune. Some French lullaby that his Nana had sang a thousand times pulled straight from his childhood. As he did, so did the mark of Absolution resonate against the outer layers of her Emotional Field.

Coincidentally, it was a rather comforting feeling. Like one worker among a grand hive, totally surrounded on all sides by friendly faces, Trisha was blessed with security for the night. It siphoned of Casey's White Lux, nostalgia weaving a blanket of memories that weren't hers to lay atop her. Protection from strays and errant beasts from other worlds.

The cats would be warded fully, and Casey came to a vague understanding as he felt his energy slightly draining. Eventually, her breathing slowed to a crawl, and he knew for certain she'd sunken into the abyss of sleep.
At first, his attempts to slip away resulted in Trisha's automatic grip tightening, sticking to him as he tried to gain a little bit of distance each slide.

After six attempts, he'd finally wriggled from her arms and made purchase on his knees… But she quickly stirred, prompting Him to grab the second pillow to tuck into her cuddle trap. Like an Indiana Jones scene, the dummy replacement seemed to work, and he slipped from the room without waiting for the rolling boulder.
But he was leaving with a supreme sense of love and tenderness that could only come from those kinds of moments. He felt it was safe to say that this was the supreme gift… Love granted and love earned.

Ascending the stairs to the Loft he redressed in the typical evening fashion of dark sweats, the addition of a new shirt he'd gotten that day. Simply, a skeleton with both thumbs up, and the caption “Milk: Yes.” written across the bottom.
He'd gotten a nicer pair of slippers than he had previously, a pair of moccasins with seriously heavy duty soles that he could walk across the roof in without worrying about soakage. They felt nice and warm, and he proceeded down the stairs and out toward the-

The door was black. Not nighttime black, rather… Covered by something. Casey slipped a hand into his hoodie pocket to grip his channeler, White Lux rolling across the floor and walls to stop dead against a wall of bees trying to vibrate through the door…

At least it was them. Not…

Either way, he opened the door with great care, letting the small swarm feel the warmth of the room. They responded instantly, plucking themselves from the glass door and dispersing themselves across the house. Most elevated into the hanging garden, but a concerted force buzzed off into the den and out of his sight.
It reminded him of a security shift change, which made him smile as he closed and locked the door behind him.

The castle was secure, satisfying the King greatly. He was free to do what needed to be done.

By the time the sun was rising over St. Portwell once more, Casey had loaded several crates of supplies and readied them for delivery. With his magic, the entire floor had been alive with the pattering of materials sliding themselves into boxes. The constant thudding of his ammo presses making up for lost stock. Theo's quiet but persistent recounting as he watched the various bits of the large order come together. He had a clipboard and a list, and was constantly marking down one after the other until it was all done.

From his seat, Casey had time to personally examine the data Leon had brought in. About the Sycamore's latest ethereal meeting spot, and about their timetable, where they'd wind up, et cetra. He wasted no time planning their date around this.

Couple's lunch on the Lady of the Bay: A fancy ferry that took people on a leisurely ride from the North end of the Bay out to the surrounding islands. While it stopped at places like Cracker, he planned on a small island nearby Elysium. Close enough that if there was a serious emergency, they'd be able to respond.

Not like the destination in particular didn't have anything… Like Cracker Island, Misty Island had its own small town with rustic shops and kerosene lanterns lighting the cobbled streets. Initially a fort and the town that rose around it, Misty was mostly famous for the old reused structures. The main part of the fort had been converted into a resort, which he also booked a night in.
He planned on presenting it as optional, but even if they didn't spend the night there, he wanted to give her the option in case she found it appealing. At this time of year, it was mostly empty anyway, meaning they had the run of rooms.

After the lunch and arriving on the island, he figured they'd attend the small carnival living in perpetuity there, to ride a few rides and play a few games in the cold. It probably would've been a better summer trip, but Misty Island was quite aesthetic during the winter. Frozen mist often congealed into big spikes of ice overnight. Some called it magic, others tried to prove them wrong…

But it was a peaceful place: A particularly silent hill climbing up from the water.

Satisfied with these plans, Casey spent another half an hour learning how to make pancakes on the internet. It seemed easy enough, so long as the stove top stayed at a decent temperature. He was kind of astonished she'd managed to set the fire, but…
It was funny to him that they didn't really have most of the ingredients. No buttermilk, no strawberries (he'd eaten them all), no maple syrup.

So he went down to the occupied floors, knocking on doors until he managed to gather enough of what he was looking for. A few security team members were foodies in their own rights, and gave him some tips to go along with his requisitioned ingredients in exchange for a little gossip. One even had a heart-shaped mould, which Casey was excited to use.

Finally making it back upstairs, he checked his watch. Eight hours had passed so quickly… The bees were still buzzing about the hanging garden, and he put his grocery haul on the kitchen island before making his way to where he'd left Trisha. Half expecting her to be awake, he didn't knock on the half-opened door. He just poked his head in to look around.

Trisha was awake… sort of. It was that half awake state that she drifted in and out of in the morning, considering waking up then always deciding to snooze a bit more. Her whole body was curled around the pillow Casey had used to replace himself, cheek pressed into it and eyes squeezed shut. Her long hair spread out across the couch and across her face. At some point while sleeping she'd kicked off most of the covers and her sweatpants, leaving bare legs sticking out from a t-shirt that reached her knees. The covers had ended up added to the pillow in her arms, trailing across her shoulders.

It wasn't Trisha that noticed Casey peering in, too busy trying to get back to sleep, but the bees scattered about the room. There were about ten resting across her body in various spots, and more on the couch and on the television. A couple buzzed over to Casey inquisitively, recognising his smell. The ones on Trisha started to move, crawling into her bare arms. She let out grumble, shifting and trying to dislodge them.
“M’sleepin, stop…"

But the bees were insistent. They'd been woken up by the intrusion, and they were rested - so their Queen must be too. Pheromones bombarded her and little feet crawled all over her. She wasn't going to get back to sleep through this, so… her eyes cracked open, squinting at whatever had bothered them. A sleepy smile pulled up her lips as she spotted Casey's face. Seeing him made waking up worth it.
“Morning… best view to wake up to," she mumbled, letting go of the pillows and pushing up onto her elbows.
“Did you sleep at all?"

Once he realized she was conscious, Casey slowly swung into the room. He was grinning from ear to ear.
”Naaaah… If I’ve got work to do, I can pretty much just stay awake. Like when you’re gaming.-”
Casey’s eyes narrowed into a vague smugness.
”-You were totally gonna keep playing the other night!”

Being careful to avoid any errant bees in his path, Casey slid up onto the edge of the couch so he could inevitably pick her up… She didn’t know it was coming, but from the moment he saw her messy hair, he knew it was a necessary action.
”So… I spent the night planning a quiet date for us. Stuff you usually do in Summer, but I think you’ll enjoy this a lot more. It’s a pretty nice little trip not too far away.”

He was alongside her now, propped up on one elbow with his legs stretched along the length of the furniture. The free arm stretched out, hooking over her and tugging her in to plant a kiss on her cheek.

“I don't stay up all night just to game," Trisha grumbled. But she immediately softened again when he pulled her over, stretching out her body so she could wriggle up right next to him. As she did the bees on her body flew off, towards the back of the couch. Her eyes creased happily as she looked up at him, gaze openly loving in her still waking up state. There'd been no time for anxieties to creep in…

And he was talking about their date. He'd planned their date. A nice little trip… how much had he planned? She would've been happy with just a nice meal out, but he'd… planned a whole thing for her? The more it settled in, the clearer the love and soft happiness across her face got. She leaned up to lightly kiss him.
“You planned a whole trip? Just for a date? Really?" It was pretty clear by the way she smiled that she wasn't upset about it, but rather shocked. She was. It was a lot for her… he'd put in so much effort… A soft giggle escaped her lips. She felt giddy, like this was her first relationship. It was her first love...
“That sounds really nice. Are you going to tell me what we're doing, or is it a surprise? I don't mind, I just need to know how warm I need to dress."

”It's as much of a surprise as you want it to be, my dear…” Casey chuckled, returning her kiss with another on her forehead.
”I would definitely bring a coat. We're gonna be doing a bit of walking. You should also pack for an overnight, since we're not gonna be sleeping here.” he grinned, impressed with himself that the stuff he'd wanted to do was actually available.

”I thought about waiting to ask what you wanted to do, but… Well, like, in movies and stuff it seems like the romantic thing to do is just plan and assume that you have the other person's interests at heart. Was I… Right?” he asked gently, trying to gauge a response.

Trisha looked at him with wide, shining eyes. Then she nodded, practically beaming at him. If it included staying somewhere overnight that meant he had a whole day planned… or at least, a vague plan for a whole day. They probably weren’t going very far, considering what he said yesterday, but that didn’t matter. It was a full day’s date planned just for her…
“Yes, yes, definitely right. Having someone put in the effort to plan something is… really really nice. Like I really matter that much to you.”

Of course he’d said it plenty of times to her, and proved it too, but it each thing added up. Her hands came up to cover her face as she began to go red, rolling over to bury herself against him as she giggled. She just hadn’t experienced something like it. All that effort…
“It’s really romantic… don’t tell me what we’re doing, keep it a surprise. Unless it involves any extreme sports… which I assume it doesn’t? Not that I’d mind, just that's an ask in advance thing… Oh, when do we leave? I need to know how much time I have to get ready. And to pack.”

She paused, uncovering her face to look at him again. Her face was the picture of satisfaction - even though the date hadn't even started yet.
“Thank you, Casey. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Casey was elated seeing Trisha getting so excited over it. He only hoped she didn't accidentally get her hopes up high for something incredibly extravagant. It was meant to be simple, emphasizing the time they could spend with one another in relative proximity to Elysium should things go particularly south. Not that he expected such, nor did he do anything drastic like task a crew with circling the island to prevent breakouts.

Definitely not…

Looking at his watch, it wasn't exactly ten yet. Plenty of time.
”Lunch is at One! But, I wanted to try doing something as a couple before we leave. I will say there's a big chance you're gonna think I'm an asshole over it, so it's totally optional and I won't be mad if you say no and just spend all your time getting ready instead…”
Of course he knew the risk of bringing up pancakes after she'd nearly burned their home down.

”I guess I'll just ask…-”
Casey slipped from the couch down to one knee. His hand slowly pulled Trisha's into his.
”Would you… Make pancakes with me?”

Trisha's head tilted to one side as her body followed him, twisting around and up into a sitting position. She looked a little confused. Why would she think he was an asshole over it when he'd already suggested it the night before? If she was going to react it would've been then. It almost made her more upset that he thought that but… the excitement and warmth over their date was greater. She wasn't going to ruin that.
And he was being so cute about it.

“Yes," she said simply, blank confused look turning into a smile again. Her handle curled in his and she swung her legs over the edge of the couch, sitting right in front of him.
“So long as you control the temperature… and maybe weigh out the ingredients… I'll be in charge of simple tasks like mixing and making sure bees don't fall into the batter. Or we can do it all properly together, where you stand behind me and turn it down when I almost burn it again."

She didn't seem… upset about the whole burning incident. It wasn't the burning that had upset her so much as the failure, and the fear that if she couldn't even do that one thing for Casey he'd decide she wasn't worth it. But the worse hadn't come to pass then.
“You know… one day when you actually ask the question I'm going to be expecting something like this. I guess then it'll definitely be a surprise."

The question was something he wasn’t sure of. Probably marriage? That was the only question one could be emphatic about in this context, right? He had gotten down onto one knee… It wasn’t like he was going to ask her to the shooting range over a platter of heart-shaped pancakes and a-

”Y’know, you’re really inspiring. I don’t really know what question you mean,-” he grinned, sarcasm leaking out of his smug face. ”-so now I have ideas for our next like… Thirty dates, and they all start with uh-”
From behind his back, Casey pulled out the heart-shaped pancake mould that he’d left in his back pocket. Since he hadn’t actually sat, it was still in pristine condition.
”-these bad-boys! Someone downstairs had these laying around, now they’re letting me borrow this one! I didn’t know if hearts were gonna be too sappy, but I loved it so…”

Standing fully, Casey offered his arm down for Trisha to take hold of.
”Getting up? Or you want me to get things started? I watched a whole bunch of videos last night about making pancakes, so I bet between the two of us they’re gonna be perfect.”

The heart-shaped mould was cute. Sure, it was really sappy, but that was fine. Trisha was happy to be sappy with Casey, especially when it was just them. It was nowhere near as sappy as saying they loved each other…
“I’m awake now, so…” She shook out her hair, before pulling it back and tying it into a loose ponytail with the hair tie pretty much permanently around her wrist when at home. Then she reached out from his arm, using it to pull herself to her feet.

“Getting up. If you watched videos you know more than me, I just read some tutorials… How do you, uh, use that.” She gestured to the mould, leaning into him and looking at it curiously.
“Do you put it in the pan and then put the batter in it? Or do you cut the batter in the pan? Won’t it be a bit tragic if we mess it up and end up with like a broken heart or something?”

”Oh… Pretty sure they just get greased?”
She was practically weightless as she pulled against him to lift herself fully. He could’ve carried ten of her. Would’ve, would. Would always be willing. His mind danced at the prospect of her love and affection being expressed between them in this tender moment. The lender had told him to grease it, of course… But she didn’t have to know that. He didn’t care. She asked, and he had an answer, and it just felt right. Like they’d always be able to do for one another.

”And, honestly? If we start putting fruit or chocolate or whatever into them, I don’t expect them to hold up amazingly. So, temper yourself ‘cuz we’re probably gonna end up with a few broken ones…”
His free hand now swept up to ruffle her bedhead properly, planting a kiss atop the fuzzy mass and dancing with her in a little motion. His hip bumped into her side, jostling her around slightly.

”How long d’you think it’s gonna take you to get ready? I’m not thinking we need to go crazy… But I’ll let you ultimately pick out what we’re both wearing since you’re the expert there.”

“You just want to get out of making the decision,” Trisha retorted accusingly, eyes narrowing up at him before she quickly broke and smiled. She was happy to pick for both of them, even if it would take her a little bit longer. Or maybe it would be easier, because she knew what they both had…
”An hour or two? I don’t need to wash my hair, so probably closer to an hour. I’ll give myself an hour and a half to be safe. Not cause I’m doing anything too fancy, just makeup and taming my hair can take a while. Then choosing outfits for us both…”

She shrugged one shoulder. She wanted to look nice, but she could achieve that with relatively simple makeup - she was naturally attractive, after all.
“C’mon, let’s go make some pancakes. Oh, if we have strawberries can I cut some up for the bees in here? I can sense they’re expecting something.” She didn’t really try to drag him anywhere, instead just hugging his arm and swinging her body back and forth, continuing the motions from his jostling. Like she was excited to get going.

Casey didn't give her much time to hang off of him, scooping her off her feet to cradle in his arms. He could lift her forever… Carry her for the rest of their lives. Just to feel the cursory weight of a human who was still breathing… He'd held a hundred dead comrades in the exact same pose, cradling their bodies as he pulled them from this hole or that trench.

But she wriggled slightly, probably to adjust her own comfort. Her hands didn't grip at him desperately. She wasn't gasping or breathing heavily or crying and begging to be put out…

But what if she was?

He looked down at her face, and his cheeks puffed with air that he slowly released. Trisha would be able to clearly feel him tense up as he did so, followed by an exhale that released some of it.
But his face was a little sadder now, though his awareness of the moment prevented him from breaking down into an anxiety attack.

”C'mon, Bee Babies! Let's get some breakfast!” he called after the few still working their way around the den.
Spinning on his heel, Casey was careful not to let Trisha smack into anything as he walked her back down the hall and into the kitchen.

”Alright, get ready-” he did his best to cover up the earlier anxiety with a joke. Pretending to drop her to feel her scramble in his arms, he finally bent down and let her feet touch the floor. It was enough to tell her she was still safe, and that she could escape him now.

Still laughing, he redirected his thoughts.
”Gotchaaaaa… Alright, you go ahead and get to choppin’ on the fruit, I'll get our actual mix made. Deal?” he asked with a wide grin.

Trisha let out a breathy laugh, heart pounding a little faster from the joke drop. She couldn’t exactly stop the jolt of panic that came with it, no matter how much she knew Casey wouldn’t actually drop her. But she’d felt his tension and she’d looked at his face long enough to see the slight sadness there. She didn’t know why… and decided not to ask about it. He would say if he wanted to.

“Deal. Be careful with the flour, it’ll get everywhere before you know it.” She lowered her heels onto the ground, but rather than immediately escaping she turned around to face him. Her face moved forward slowly, rubbing their noses together with a soft smile. Then she gently kissed him.
“And no getting it on me. If I have to wash my hair, that'll be an extra thirty minutes getting ready.”

She smiled teasingly, before slipping away from him. It didn’t take her long to locate the strawberries, getting out a plate and a small knife. It also didn’t take long for all the bees in the hanging garden to fly down to her, like they were perfectly trained to come when called. The reality was the opposite - she’d been actively telling them to stay away until she detacher herself from Casey. The mass of bees swarmed onto her, crawling across her shoulders and arms along with going in underneath the large t-shirt. The ones that had followed her through from the den didn’t bother joining their sisters, instead gathering around the plate.

“Yeah, yeah, good job keeping watch last night even though I didn’t ask you to- oh, I did? Huh- hey, be patient.” Trisha talked out loud to the bees as her pheromones swirled around her, reaching out to push away one that had started crawling towards the strawberries she’d picked out. It fell on its back and wiggled its little legs before right itself.
“It’ll be easier to share when I cut up. Once you’re full you can go rest, I won’t need many of you today. Mhm, that’s right, you’ve earned it.”

The actual conversation with the bees was nowhere near as indepth, but it existed. She smiled softly as she cut the strawberries in half, before cutting each half into six pieces. These were flipped up so the sweet insides were right there for the bees to devour. The scent was sweet even to her…
“Waiiiitttt- okay, I’m done.” She stopped actively ordering them to stay away as she put the knife to the side. Immediately the bees moved off her and onto the strawberry pieces, fuzzy bodies covering the plate. She turned back towards Casey.
“Most important job done- keeping the bees away from any interesting smelling batter. Do we have any other fruit left? I don’t want to give them too many strawberries, cause they’re for us too.”

Casey had been watching her just as much as he was watching the powdered flour rise out of the bag like baker’s smoke. He had two bowls, one for his own pancake mix, and one for hers. Assuming she'd not exactly enjoy a set of pancakes worth a few thousand calories, he set aside the flour from Andrade to focus on the normal batch first.

”Yeah! The classic stuff. There's blueberries in the uh… Crisper? I never know what to call those drawers. Blueberries, raspberries, and there's grape jelly on the door I think. Also, can you take a stick of butter out? And four eggs…”

He was doubling up the batch, but the assumption was that he would make her batch entirely, while only having a cake or two from the special flour blend to supplement his intake for the day. A lot of the videos said pancake batter was good for a few days before one started to risk foodborne illness, so he'd have plenty to just eat as he wanted…

”I'm not sure if mixing the fruit into the batter changes it… So we'll leave it plain and add what we like as we cook them?”

From the bags of room temperature ingredients he left on the counter, he pulled out baking powder AND baking soda. Same with the container of buttermilk, which a lot of videos said to leave out as room temperature or even hot ingredients made integration easier.

”Chocolate chips and peanut butter is also an option… I was thinking about just making a pb&j out of them, like using them as bread? God I love pancakes…”
Clearly genuine, Casey beamed from ear to ear as he measured out two cups of flour from the bag and dumped it into the bowl. He didn't get why people sifted the flour if it was all going to melt together anyway. Couldn't possibly fathom the little clumps of raw flour they said would inevitably ruin the experience.

”Should I… Sift this shit? Like, how worried are you about clumps of raw flour?” he asked with curiosity in his voice.

“If you mix it hard enough won’t it be enough? Sifting yesterday was how I got the flour everywhere, and I’d rather the clumps in my food than all over us,” Trisha responded, coming away from the fridge with the container of blueberries and raspberries stacked on each other and the grape jelly in the other hand. She put them down on the counter, grabbing another plate to throw a bunch of the fruit on along with a glob of jelly. This was pushed over next to the cut strawberries the bees were devouring. They quickly split in half between the two plates.

So her thoughts turned to their own food, and what Casey was thinking about making. Her mouth opened slightly as she tried to figure out if she could bite something like that. Depended on how thick they made the pancakes…
“Pb&j pancake sandwiches do sound nice… but I think I’ll stick to single layer ones. Adding what we like as we cook sounds good cause then we can make a whole bunch of different ones - I’ll have my healthy fruit filled ones and chocolate filled ones separate.”

With a bright smile towards him, she opened back up the fridge. A stick of butter and two eggs were grabbed, which she put next to the other ingredients. She scurried over to him and leaned up to quickly kiss his cheek, before just as quickly backing away with a soft giggle.

Two more eggs- what would’ve been a trip or two for Casey with his much larger hands took Trisha three, final two eggs held in one hand. The other reached out to grab a raspberry, popping it in her mouth as she came back over.
“Mmm this is good- shit.” A momentary lapse of concentration was enough for her to let her hand tilt down, one of the eggs slipping out of her fingers and hitting the ground. Raw egg splattered out, some of it catching her sock and her bare shins. She froze, staring down at it. It wasn’t like she was normally clumsy… Why did it just seem to be worse in the kitchen?

“Oh, uh, where do we keep the towels again? I’ll get another egg- sorry, I didn’t mean to.” She jumped back into action again, safely depositing the remaining egg on the counter before looking around with a hint of panic.

The deposited egg started to roll as if compelled by its fallen comrade to join in sweet oblivion. Casey put the measuring cup down in front of it, preventing further escape, before his hand slipped into his pocket to grip his Channeler. He was still smiling at her as he gave the situation a full onceover.

Then the dancing slip-mop slid out from its place next to the fridge. Probably scared Trisha half to death.
”Heyyyy, no sweat Babe. I’ll let magic take care of stuff like this. Did you get a lot on you? You wanna wash up?”
The dancing mop was already brushing past her as it adhered to Casey’s instructive spell. It’s little bottle of cleaning solution sprayed down the affected area, sweeping across it several times as it intentionally gathered the eggshells into one place.

Once the spell was cast, he trusted his design enough to follow through with the situation how he would to the best of its abilities… Given that it didn’t have arms, it’d require a little intervention here and there. But for the most part, it was good at cleaning. He’d done this a thousand times at the base up north…

”There’s a cupboard next to the sink in the bathroom! he pointed forward, directing Trisha in the assumption she was going for a towel for herself. As everything came to a vague halt, all he could do was stop with the dry ingredients and do what he was going to have Trisha do next: Casey snapped the cold butter stick in half, peeling the paper off and putting it into a bowl, then setting it in the microwave to mostly melt.
He figured one minute would be good, not wanting it to burn or boil over.

A shaky breath escaped Trisha’s lips as she half jumped out of the way of the suddenly moving mop. It was fine. He wasn’t upset with her and it was just a little mistake. Just a dropped egg… and they didn’t even need to clean it up. Magic really didn’t make things easier.
“It’s not a lot but I’ll go clean it off,” she said quietly, following his pointing and heading towards the bathroom. It really wasn’t that bad. All that was needed was a quick wipe down of her shins with a damp towel from the cupboard Casey had mentioned. She pulled her socks off with a grimace and bundled them up together.

She didn’t immediately go back into the kitchen, instead heading across and up to the loft. Dirty socks were thrown in the laundry basket and fresh ones pulled on, along with a pair of sweatpants so she wasn’t just in Casey’s shirt and underwear. Not that she had a problem with that, it just didn’t seem like the safest when cooking. What if she got something hot on her legs?

Completely egg free, she came back down for the kitchen, shuffling over towards Casey and pausing just a bit away from him.
“Is there anything else I can help with? I promise I won’t drop anything else, that was a one time thing, normally I can keep a hold of things while bees are running all over me.” Her tone was light, a bit of a joke to cover up the hints of anxiety that came from something so small.

By the time she came back, Casey was whisking away while the enchanted broom and dustpan struggled to do a pair’s work. The dustpan had backed its handle into Casey’s leg, the broom itself sweeping the last bit of shell into the waiting tool.
”Of course there is! Grab the pan out from under the island here… Not like the regular one with the handle, the uh… It’s wide and flat and takes up two burners…”

It was clear that the gears were turning a bit in his head.
”The… Fucking… Griddle? I think it’s a griddle. But, be careful! It’s heavy!”
The smell of buttermilk and fresh fruit wafted through the air. The bees kept wandering toward the former’s container with intent to redistribute the vaguely sour liquid among themselves. He wasn’t sure if bees could even do anything with milksops or lactic products, but he wasn’t keen on them falling in and getting stuck, so he kept blowing them away.

”Then when it’s on the stove, just turn both the burners onto, like, medium-high. At that point, we can both sit for a second while this stuff incorporates.” he grinned at her, whisking away still. He was being real vigorous with it, thinking about little flour clumps the entire time.
”Ooooh, Babe… This is a great arm workout, honestly. Full range of motion, active resistance; what’s not to love?” he grinned widely, jokingly flexing as he spun the tool in the bowl.

“Medium-high… are you sure?” Trisha looked up from where she was squatting down in front of the island, pulling out the griddle - if that’s what Casey thought it was, it probably was. Trisha didn’t really have any idea about what these things were called either.
“What if it burns again?”

Though she was a bit skeptical about it, she lugged it over to the stove. It was heavy, but not so heavy she couldn’t actually carry it - just she had to grab it on both sides so the weight was even between her two arms. She got it up and over two burners, before turning them up to medium-high just like he’d said. Then she could really take a moment to turn and watch him, lips curving up into a joyful smile as he joked and flexed.

“Maybe you should replace going to the gym with cooking- I bet you could find something to work out everything. Like, squatting up and down with a heavy griddle! Great for the calves.” Her eyes squinted playfully as she moved over towards the buttermilk container, hand coming up to catch the bees that still hadn’t given up on their strange quest for what remained inside of it. She deposited them back with all the others, sending out a command to stop doing that. With the bees scolded, she could go back to look at Casey - jokingly looking him up and down, before biting her lip.
“You look good while doing it too- plenty for me to love too. Maybe I should just watch you do all the work.”

Casey gave a warm laugh from his chest, followed by a jokingly skeptical look at his favorite person. Half “Oh, come on.” and half “Right now, seriously?”, the look screamed sarcasm in every direction as he stepped a few feet closer to her. Still whisking, he planted a kiss on her head.

”You're so goofy… Uh… Grab another stick of butter? Then open it at one end, and rub it across the griddle top until there's a big patch of melted butter. When it's got a nice melted tip, rub it onto the heart mold as well, then put that mold with the thin side down in the butter.”

Casey was good at instructions at the very least. You had to be in the military; it was amazing how often someone would have regret after giving vague orders to a group of relative strangers.

”Have you ever taught anyone to use the computer? Like, how you do, not like basic stuff…” he asked, just finding things to make conversation over.

“The coding? Nope. I'm mostly self taught so I wouldn't be a good teacher, I don't think." Trisha shrugged one shoulder, smiling at him as she grabbed more butter. Melting it onto the griddle was easy enough - after all this wasn't the stage she'd failed at when making pancakes yesterday. It was when the batter had actually gone on… and when she added oil to it.
“I’m not talented at it like someone like Cass- it comes a bit easier because it's logical, but I spent a lot of time just learning before I was decent enough to get any contracting jobs with it. Thankfully the maths degree helps a bit there… But I don't think I could teach it. Not like Reyna taught me a bit- she was super patient."

She started rubbing butter into the mould, beginning to understand a bit more how it worked now that she was actually holding it.
“I’d be better than Cass, I think. She'd tried to help me once and it was rapidfire information I didn't understand, ending with ‘it's just that easy.’ It wasn't… but I really don't know anything impressive or unique. Read a couple of my books and you'd learn most of it."

Heart mold in hand, she hesitated in front of the griddle.
“Put it down in the butter, like, on here?"

Watching the hot liquid fat bubble away, he noticed that it wasn't exactly how the tutorial had shown it was going to look. They'd emphasized that butter has a low smoking point, but it wasn't quite hot enough to get it bubbling the way he was shown.

”Yeah, just right in the puddle you made. It has to heat up too, I'm sure, or the top of it would still be raw and stuff.”

Satisfied with his mixing job, he slid the bowl onto the island top and stretched his arms a bit. Then, stepping forward to get much closer to Trisha, he grinned.
”What about boxing? You think you'd ever let me teach you how to throw a good punch?” he asked only as a half joke.

”Or, are the bees with guns already too much?”

The heart mold was placed onto the bubbling butter before Trisha answered. She stepped away from the stove, closing the gap between the two of them and turning around to face him. Her lips pursed thoughtfully. Would she let him teach her that? She’d considered learning some kind of self-defence ten years ago, but she didn’t exactly get on with anyone in the coven that could help with that… with Casey it would probably be fine.

“The armed bees go way beyond boxing,” she laughed, arms coming up to loosely drape over his shoulders.
“I’m not sure about boxing itself, but it’d probably be good for me to learn some self-defence… even if it's just so I can get away and run. So I guess the answer is I would, if you’re patient with me. And I get rewards. I don't want it to be army boot camp style.”

”Rewards?”
Casey’s smile deepened as he tried to parse out what exactly she was expecting.
”Y’know you can just ask for more cuddles, like, it doesn’t need to be a reward thing.”
He tapped her forehead against his, giggling as the butter began to really sizzle.

”Oh shit, alright… Lets get plates, and then uh… Stand by with your fruit or whatever you’re putting in, okay?”
He was moving to the drawer to grab silverware, slapping a couple of forks down on the table, then picking up the metal bowl with the normal batter in it to begin whisking away again. It’d stayed fairly frothy, so he was hopeful that the mixing job he did was enough to keep it all together.

His gloved hand- the Channeler, the worn down olive drab fingerless glove, the relic of a war now passed - crept down and touched the piping hot metal heart, his spell adhering the surface of it tightly to the surface of the griddle. The temporary joining of two objects was a spell that often came in handy, and it’d do just fine for making it so Trisha didn’t have to hold it as he muckled the batter into its open basin. Now waiting, he watched as Trisha followed through on her end with warmth in his heart and love in his eyes.

This is exactly what they fought for. These moments.

“I meant a kiss each time I did something right," Trisha said as she moved to the counter, picking up the tubs of raspberries and blueberries, along with a couple of plates. She knew she could just ask for more cuddles, and the same with kisses - or she could just kiss and cuddle him. She still wanted all of those too. There was just… something appealing about a little reward to get through something she'd find pretty physically strenuous.

But right now, there were pancakes to make. She leaned over and carefully put some berries in the batter, making sure not to splash any on herself. She didn't put too many in - not sure how it would work out - but there was enough that it should be nice. Once they were in they sank down into the batter, the raspberries practically began to melt into it while a couple of the blueberries burst. It wasn't what she expected but as the juices leaked into the cooking batter it looked… nice.

Her stomach gave a quiet grumble, and she looked down at it with a mixture of shock and embarrassment. She didn't normally get that hungry, nevermind her body actually complaining about it. Not that she felt much more than a little ache as the warm smells of the cooking pancake filled the air.
“How long do we wait? Since it's in a mold we don't have to flip it, do we? Do we just… wait and watch? It won't burn again, will it?" She asked a series of rapidfire questions, looking up at Casey with a smile and a hint of nervousness in her eyes.

Casey's instinct was to just answer her myriad of questions down the row. But with Trisha so enthused, now seemed like the perfect time for a little bit of sarcasm… Maybe the errant joke or two.

”I'm honestly just gonna give this one up to the griddle demons. They don't get fed enough, so we're just gonna let it go until it's black and charred.”
He was grinning from ear to ear, voice as emphatic as possible to get his joking implication across.

”Uhhh… Huh… I honestly don't think I can burn this though. I wish you could see what I see…”
His glove passed over the mould to release the adherence spell from it when he pumped a bit of White Lux. The heat from the griddle, the ring and the pancake siphoned into his eyes all at once.

Holding it, he found a perfect gradient from cooking side to the other side with still raw batter. He could tell the little flour and sugar blob was cooking into a fine pancake from beneath and on all sides.
”Uhhh… I'll flip it just to see what this color is?”

By color, he meant the heat scale. He'd done this before with optic sights that didn't come with a thermal registry, but he'd never actively attached the image into his own senses. Popping the heart mould up, he pulled it away and watched the batter sag from the sides just a tad. Then the spatula slipped under, and the whole thing flipped.

Still a little pale, Casey nodded.
”Oh, now I've got it I think…-”
He handed the spatula over to Trisha.
”-Now it's your turn. When I tell you. Until then, I want you to… I don't know, ask me a question? Any question. I'll answer it honestly.”

Trisha looked at Casey with wide eyes as she took the spatula, suddenly being put on the spot both for flipping and asking a question. Any question. What did she want to ask…
“You’re really giving me this? Then it really will go to the griddle demons… I don't have any of your fancy magic or skills," Trisha grumbled jokingly to give herself a bit more time to think without just staring at him.

What did she want to ask? There was so much she could ask… but she didn't want to ask anything too personal, or needy. It would make it seem like she didn't trust him to be honest normally. 'What would make you leave me' was one that immediately came to mind- but she didn't want to know, and she couldn't ask after yesterday. Not after everything he'd said about when he'd kindled. Because she didn't want him to think she didn't believe and trust him- because she did. Her own issues were just too much.

But it couldn't be anything too silly either. That would just be avoiding it… because maybe he was giving her the opportunity so she opened up a little more? She wasn't sure. She was probably overthinking it. Maybe he really just wanted her to ask any question, and it was just to fill the time.

Though the internal struggle felt like it took an age, in reality she wasn't silent for all that long. Enough for it to be obvious, but not enough to lose the opportunity.
“If- when- we move to the middle of nowhere, what would you do about your family?"

Casey was about to reassure Trisha that it was only an offer when she managed to squeak a meaningful question onto the table. Still staring at the slowly changing thermal gradient of the pancake, it's lovely heart shape no longer confined behind a ring of metal, he considered what she meant by it.

”Like… As an entity? I hope to support whatever good they do from a comfortable distance. Hopefully they're doing good things that don't have to do with making a pyramid cult for their own benefit. Like, I'm not gonna stop watching Leon fight… I'm not gonna leave Mia behind to deal with life alone. I'll do what I can. ‘Cuz, y'know, I love them. Does that make sense?”

To his surprise, the color of the pancakes's heat signature changed rapidly when it was fully cooked… The golden brown exterior was the result of leaving it there for an extra moment.
”Go ahead, flip it. Almost done.”

Trisha didn’t say anything at first, brows furrowing as she pushed the spatula underneath the mostly cooked pancake. Her flip wasn’t quite as neat as Casey’s, but it was difficult to get wrong when it wasn’t batter anymore. She then shoved the spatula towards Casey to take the pancake off when it was ready… because she felt like the delay between him telling her it was ready and her getting it off might be enough for it to burn.

“It does make sense, I…” Well, she didn’t entirely understand that. She didn’t have that. She didn’t love any of her family, aside from the mom who didn’t want her. That didn’t mean she didn’t want it and she wasn’t a bit jealous that he had a somewhat positive relationship with his siblings, dysfunctional as the whole situation may be.
“I was worried that you’d… cut them off. I wouldn’t want that, because I do like Mia- and Hari, and especially Ed. I don’t like Leon, but I know that he does care for you. I know you wouldn’t want to, but in case you thought you had to for… me…”

She was trying her best to be honest, to explain her reasoning behind the question rather than accepting his answer and leaving it at that.
“But I wouldn’t want Lynette around any children we had. I wouldn’t want to expose them to that.”

Casey heard what Trisha was saying. He heard well enough that he could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention. It was hard to imagine Lynette being around another year, never mind being around when they had their children. It wasn’t going to end well, this little fracture that was building. It was becoming a fissure quickly, and he had no intention of stopping it. Every single oath he swore to would be broken.

He had no question that things would go belly up. The face of his mother was in his mind as he stared at the slowly changing gradient in the thermal image of the pancake. Like a sunset on something that he thought was beautiful in a way.

Then the pancake started to burn. He could smell it, and hadn’t noticed the sunset growing incandescent. His hand swept down, snagging a plate off the island and bringing it over to quickly flop the pancake onto. It wasn’t awful. Not like the nightmare Trisha had experienced. Just a little darker than Casey preferred on a pancake.
”Ahhh… Don’t worry. It’s not bad. Look, the other side is perfect too…”

Clearing his throat, he gave a bit of a flat-lipped frown, then flipped the pancake over on the plate.
”I’m… I’m sorry Honey. I was just caught in a thought, I stopped paying attention for a second. Here, let’s load it up again and we’ll make you a better one…” he said, sounding a bit dejected over letting it burn after telling her it wouldn’t.
”But, I don’t think you’ll need to worry about Lynette around our kids. So, don’t even consider it. I promise.”

It was only out of sheer love for Casey that Trisha was able to suppress the gleeful smile threatening to pull up her lips, and the dig of ‘see it’s not so easy, is it?’ She knew it wasn’t the right thing to say. It wasn’t the nice thing to say, and it could be hard to take as a joke… it might even start a fight. She was comfortable and happy enough to suppress that side of her.

“Alright, I believe you,” she said simply. Her gaze moved to the pancake- that really wasn’t that bad- then back up to meet his eyes. She reached out to take the plate.
“This is fine- it’s just a bit crispy. I’m happy to eat it! The next one should be for you, it’s not fair if I have two before you even have one. This is really fine.” She brought the pancake to her lips, taking a bit to demonstrate.

She immediately regretted it- not because of the slightly burnt bit, because it was still really hot.
“Fuck, is hot,” she mumbled through it, tilting her head back and waving a hand in front of her eyes to stop the reflexive tears from the slight burn to her tongue.

Casey’s face twisted into a sympathetic frown.
”Ohhhh, dude! Of course it’s hot, why would… It’s… There’s fruit in there! It gets super fucking hot and turns into jelly!”
Rather than start a new pancake, he pushed past Trisha and went into the freezer for an ice cube. Bringing it back to her, he kissed her forehead and held the cube up.
”Open up… It’s better to ice it right now, it’ll help.” he said gently and empathetically.

“I didn’t think- It’s not that bad…” Trisha grimaced as she swallowed the burning piece of pancake - she’d gotten a bit of raspberry, but managed to avoid the blueberries that looked ready to explode with scalding juice.

Even though she protested, she still parted her lips and took the ice cube directly from Casey’s fingers. Her lips immediately pursed, nose scrunching up as if she had eaten a lemon rather than frozen water. It was really cold and the contrast to the too hot pancake just made it worse.
“M’shry,” she mumbled around the ice cube, still making a sour expression over its coldness - and frustrated she couldn’t really speak with it in her mouth. She’d just been trying to prove the pancake was fine, not make him worry…

Casey had stayed to watch her as she dealt with the ice cube in her mouth against the burn. His hands migrated to her cheeks, holding her face in his hands and gently rubbing with his thumb. As she mumbled, he pulled himself closely to give her a kiss on the lips. When he pulled away, he pointed at the sink.
”Go ahead, spit it out… It’s okay, Babe! Just, now you’re gonna have a burn on your tongue.” he giggled
”It’s gonna suck next time you eat something.”

Satisfied that she was okay, he pulled away fully and took the mix he made for himself into his hands. He got the peanut butter ready, then poured a layer.
”I’m gonna have to do it now too, y’know?” he giggled.

“Wha?” Trisha still had the ice cube in her mouth as she shuffled over to the sink. She shot him a look of confusion, before leaning over and spitting the cube into the sink.
“Do what? Burn your tongue on a pancake? That’s stupid-”

She paused, moving back over to him with a teasingly smug smile. She stopped right in front of him, hands clasped behind her back as she leaned forward slightly.
“If it’s cause you want me to kiss it better you can just ask.”

---

There were no more incidents with the pancake making. Instead it was just time- and food- enjoyed. Then, getting ready. It was actually quite easy for Trisha to pick the outfits: she knew from the start what she wanted Casey to wear, and it narrowed down her options trying to match with him.

It didn’t mean she took any less time getting ready. Makeup, hair, packing… it was all a lengthy process for her, including a bit of acting (unnecessarily) cute so Casey agreed to carry her heavier overnight items.

She was practically giddy with excitement over the date. Just spending the whole day and night out together was enough for her.

“So… where exactly are we going?” Trisha asked as she got out of the car at their destination- the Bay, it seemed. A beach picnic? A boat ride? An unknown (to her) restaurant on the seafront?

She shoved her hands into her long navy wool jacket. It was left open to reveal what she was wearing underneath- the outfit she’d put so much thought into. A green knitted sweater with darker green and blue thick stripes tucked into a grey denim miniskirt at her waist. She’d worn thick, dark tights and more practical boots. Her hair had been pulled back into twin dutch braids over the top of her head, intertwined together into a braid bun at her nape. There were subtle hints of greens in her eyeshadow to match, while the rest was left reasonably natural with her lips done with a muted rosy brown lipstick.

The entire ensemble matched with what she’d chosen for Casey. The green floral shirt she’d picked out for him yesterday over a white undershirt, matched with the fabled grey jeans he’d learned of the very same day. She’d left jacket choice up to him- with the caveat that it couldn’t be a hoodie.

They looked nice together. Perfectly matching. She really liked it… Unable to hold back a warm, cute smile as she looked at him.
“We’re not going fishing, are we?” It was a joke, of course- not that she’d actually mind… she’d do almost anything with him.

Casey laughed heartily at Trisha's inquiry, thinking about the last time he'd gone fishing… He hadn't. Fishing happened around him, sure, but he couldn't remember a point in time where he'd picked up a rod himself. Having also grabbed his wool peacoat (a pillaged naval coat he snagged from a carrier's laundry room), they looked more like two twins whose parents wanted them to dress like that. Though, he couldn't complain. He told her to match them, and if she thought it was cute then he was satisfied with that. Besides, they were both incredibly warm. Practically immune to the gusts of wind blowing in off the sea.

In the short distance, the loading docks for the Royal Touring Company were devoid of people and boats. However, there was a smaller crowd gathering around the loading plank for the ship he presumed was their booking. It looked like some families, a few more couples; but the Catamaran style ferry was so big that he questioned how it could operate without losing money.

With one arm locked into hers, the other holding onto both of their overnight bags, Casey couldn't really direct Trisha's attention… He couldn't point up at the ship, so he did his best to nod outward toward it.

”No, Babe… No fishing on the ferry, I'm pretty sure. Even if this is a cruising ferry, I think they'd get mad at us.”
He giggled, leaning down and planting a kiss on her head.
”I think this one's called like, Lady of the Bay or something. It's a lunch cruise. Supposed to be like a three hour round trip, but we're getting off at one of the later stops and not getting back on.”

As he said that, he bounced the bags in his outer hand around slightly, directing toward them.
”You did say that you didn't want me to tell you where we're going, so whatever island we end up on is gonna stay a mystery.”

Trisha smiled warmly up at him, before looking over towards the docks. Even without him gesturing to it, it was easy to figure out where they were going. There was only one ship docked after all… and she was glad it was a ferry, as much as she joked about fishing. The thought of being on a small boat, when she couldn't swim, made her nervous. But thankfully that wasn't the case!
“Now I'm going to spend the whole journey trying to figure out what island we're going to," Trisha joked. There was only a small selection… and she'd only ever been to Cracker and Elysium (sadly). So it was exciting that they might end up on a different one.

As they made their way towards the small crowd there was a slight bounce in her step. A lunch cruise and then an overnight on one of the island stops… It was more than she expected. Not that she didn't expect Casey to put in so much effort after everything he'd already done for her, but she would've been delighted with just the meal. She could count the number of proper dates like that she'd had on her hands.

“So long as it isn't one of the abandoned islands, and we're camping without a tent… I'll be happy wherever we end up. It'll be a good surprise." She looked up at him with an expression full of joy, eyes slightly creased and smile wide - and the date hadn't even properly started yet. Though as they got closer to the ferry she pressed a bit closer to him. The risk of falling in while boarding was slim to nonexistent, but just in case…

“With this amount of people they could probably spread everyone out enough it'd feel like you'd booked the whole boat," Trisha commented quietly.
“A private luxury lunch without having to pay for it… I bet they'll put everyone close together, but I'm still glad it'll be quiet."

Casey was lost in his thorough excitement about a more summer-oriented camping trip. He wasn’t the biggest fan of camping, but he knew a surefire way to make it as easy and luxurious as possible for both of them. Of course, if things didn’t boil over, he could probably…

”Wait… Why would they cram everyone together if there’s so much room? That’d be silly: We’ll ask if we can find somewhere a little more private if that ends up happening.” he finally responded, now locked in a battle of logic.
Of course, there was no real reason besides being able to keep an eye on everyone easily… But they were paying guests? He supposed no matter what, there was a chance that people would cause trouble despite dropping half a Krugerrand for a luxury lunch cruise.But some couples had their kids? He didn’t mind little ones, but this wasn’t exactly the place he expected to see them.

Casey could only assume that most of the people here weren’t actually here for lunch… Just using it as a tourist-y ferry.

The Lady of the Bay was bedecked with a red belly devoid of any markings, and as it climbed up out of the water, the red seemed to fade into a cool grey that almost swirled into itself… Like the break of the ocean fading as it was sucked back out to sea leaving only the sand beneath it. Lights were strung around the open-air deck, and there was plenty of seating for hundreds of people who just weren’t here.
”I did pay for it, by the way… The lunch thing isn’t the standard ticket; which reminds me!-”

Casey squeezed Trisha’s hand a couple times before letting it go.
”-I gotta get our tickets ready. They’re in my email, I’m pretty sure.” he giggled.
”But, also… Maybe we can go camping at some point soon. If we use a little magic, I bet you any amount of money that we could have the nicest little camping trip no matter the weather.” he laughed, shrugging his shoulders as his phone slid from his pocket.

”Would you be down?”

Trisha tilted her head, thinking about it for a moment. From a comfort perspective the idea of camping had never appealed to her. But then she’d always been jealous of the kids at school who got taken camping by their parents. It always seemed like more effort, and closer. You couldn’t just abandon your child in a hotel room to attend an academic conference when staying in a tent together…

“If it's with you, yeah, definitely,” she nodded after a little bit of thought. She knew she could enjoy it with him. She could probably enjoy anything with him.
“I honestly don’t really know what camping involves… beyond sleeping in a tent. I’ve only ever seen it in films and a bunch of them were horror films- which I wouldn’t want to experience. But I’d like to with you- go camping, not experience horror films. I want to try new things with you.”

He smiled and nodded. Her expression of desire to just be with him made a well of warmth bubble up inside his chest as his finger fumbled on the screen of his phone.
”Oh, yeah. We’ll do our best to avoid the horror part. Though, I’m… Kind of happy? This is the first nights sleep I’ll get in like several months where the possibility of a fucking evil cat crawling into my brain doesn’t exist. Nooooo cats. Well, I’m certain there are some if there’s mice. Or, like, people living there. But, not our cats.” he giggled.

Finally, he found the email with the ferry company’s name and pulled it open. There was a file that downloaded, and he sighed.
”Why, why… Why download? Just open it and show me my tickets…-”
Grumbling, he then tried to open the file and was greeted with a prompt asking him to download a PDF viewer because the phone couldn’t read the file.
”-You’re shitting me. God, I would huck this thing into the water if it didn’t have our tickets on it. I knew I should’ve printed them in the office…”

Stopping wholesale, he had to stare at the phone before frowning.
”Uh, Trisha? I… I know what a PDF is but like… Do you know which reader I should download? Does it matter?”
He held his phone up so she could see the screen. He was scrolling through the app store, clearly stuck in the mire of PDF viewing software.

Trisha wasn’t quite able to stifle her laugh. She wasn’t laughing at him, exactly, she just found it… endearing. Surprisingly cute.
“It doesn’t matter- here.” Trisha slipped her index finger under his eternally scrolling finger, gently pushing it away from the phone screen. She scrolled right back up to the top and hit install on the second one in the list- which was the standard. It started to install slowly.
“It all does the same stuff- just download one of the top ones if it's for something simple like this. You can always forward the email to me too if it's easier.”

He shook his head, laughing and smiling.
”It’d be just as much effort. Uhhh… Thank you. Honestly, you could tell me it’s simple and stuff but I honestly wouldn’t know one way or another what is and isn’t simple. It’s all Martian to me.”
His attention returned to the little bar that told him what the progress of the download was, staring intently until it was done and opened up an application. Instantly, there was a bevy of confirmation notifications and other crap which he was able to ignore pretty safely. Then it was showing him his phone, and the files accessible by the app, of which there was way more than one.

”Wait, what the fuck are all these?”
His furrowed brow became one of humor.
”Oh, my God… They’re all the same menu... I must’ve-” he paused for a moment, trying to think of what the Hell allowed this to happen. A slow smile cracked his frown open, however.
”-Oh… Right. Last time I got hammered by myself. I was trying to see the menu for this Chinese food place but it kept just kicking me out of the explorer and not showing me a menu. I was getting pissed, so I just ended up calling them and asking what they had.”

He laughed gently, scrolling through the hundred or so instances of this identical menu until he found a file that wasn’t the same. Opening it, he found a couple of QR codes embedded within, and the writing around them confirmed them as tickets from the Royal Ferry Company. They were specifically marked “F&A”, which he extrapolated as Food and Accommodations… Though, he wasn’t sure what kind of accommodations they meant. Maybe it was just the service?
”Aaaaalright, there they are! Fuck yeah Babe- I’d high-five you but I ‘got no free hands, so…”

His face pressed forward and planted a soft and sweet kiss on her lips. Pulling away, he hooked his arm again while sleeping the screen on his phone.
”Your escort is available once more, my Sweet.” he smiled coyly.

There was a hint of redness on Trisha’s cheeks as she smiled warmly up at him. So smooth… she certainly preferred the kiss to a high-five.
“I’m happy to have my super handsome escort back from his technology adventures,” she giggled, leaning into him for a moment. It was nice to be able to help him with something, even if it was just simple phone use… Something she’d keep having to help with, it seemed. Not that that was a problem. But it wasn’t important right now…

“Lead the way, dear,” she said with a little put on accent like they were in an old black and white film.

Casey smiled widely, especially thrilled that she seemed happy. His glove was stuffed deep in his coat pocket, so reading her exact emotions was out of the question… But there was a bubbly feeling between them that wasn’t natural. Almost like static. He was compelled to keep her just a little closer, causing a strengthening in the sensation… Maybe it was him? Regardless, they spent the next few minutes in line waiting for the boat to load. One PM sharp, and the crew members pulled the little rope to the side to allow everyone on board. Tickets were scanned, scanned again, and people were directed one way or another as they reached the top of the gangway.

For Casey and Trisha, there was a moment where the woman scanning seemed to have trouble with their tickets. A little anxiety before she ultimately asked to look at Casey’s phone directly. Looking at the tickets, she gave up an epiphanic nod and fiddled with her machine slightly before scanning again. The confirming beep washed the anxiety away, and the two were allowed to pass up and onto the ship. While most people were directed left, the two of them were asked to head to the right.

Not too far away, they were met by an attendant who opened the door for them to enter the dining area of the ship. It was like a small restaurant absolutely cut off from the rest of the boat; though Casey immediately saw the removable wall which he assumed separated them from the main rider area. It seemed like, just like at home in Leon’s place, there was a potential reason why they’d need the bigger space at points. But for now, the dining area was almost entirely theirs alone. One other couple sat in a far booth, but the attendant guiding them along intentionally brought them further away without Casey or Trisha having to prompt them. It didn’t look incredibly fancy, but it was absolutely chic and stylish. The booth seats seemed to have the same coloring as the ship, with the red fading into grey and a crown at the upper middle of each backrest.
In addition, there were little hooks that let them hang their coats up, and the attendant also showed them a drawer under their booth seats that comfortably fit their luggage so they could keep it there.

Pointing things out to them, the attendant let the duo know that they were permitted in the main cabin as well, but that there was a more private and intimate observation deck above them if they desired to roam. They handed the two a key for their foot lockers, and let them know there’d be just under an hour before lunch would actually be available. Menus were placed on the table, as well as a couple slips of paper that the two of them could mark their orders down on.
“In case neither of you are around but we come to collect orders, you can just fill these out and leave them! There’ll be an announcement when the food is going to be delivered to tables as well, so you don’t need to worry about anything. Can I get you two anything to drink for now? Wine, we have beers on tap, soft drinks-” she offered, letting her statement hang in expectation.

Casey looked at Trisha and shrugged.
”You want something good? Or, you wanna wait?” he asked her flatly.

Trisha wasn’t sure what Casey meant by ‘something good.’ Alcohol? If he meant alcohol, then she definitely wanted to wait- as much as she liked beer, she could barely handle more than one with a meal.
“Just a sprite, or whatever you have like that?” she responded almost questioningly. She glanced back up at Casey, voice getting a bit quieter.
“Not sure which that counts as.”

Casey gave a gentle laugh, being sure to not condescend.
”Just alcohol, y’know? Uh-”
He looked back at the attendant.
”I’ll take a beer, why not? You have Last Round?” he asked.
“Yep! Draft or bottle?”
”Bottle, please! Thank you so much.”
“Of course! A lemon-lime, and a bottle of Last Round! Are you guys planning on heading upstairs right now? Or should I bring them back here?”
”I’m sure we can wait here! Trisha?”

“We’ll wait,” Trisha nodded, leaning slightly towards Casey. It wasn’t like what they could see from upstairs- loads of water- was going to go anywhere if they waited for a few minutes.
“Thanks.”

“Of course! You two get comfy then, and if there’s anything you need, there’s a button!”
She pointed it out on the side of the table, smiled, and bowed slightly before stepping away toward the other couple on the other side of the hall. Alone once more, Casey had slipped his coat off and hung it on the side of the booth. He stretched slightly, taking a deep breath.

”You wanna sit? We can probably walk around if you want. Up to you.”

Trisha didn’t immediately take her coat off. Her hands slipped into her pockets, urging the few bees in them to crawl up her arms and under her sweater. She hadn’t brought that many with her but bringing none basically wasn’t an option, unless she wanted randomly timed visits. This way was easier… once she was sure there were no more bees in it she also took it off and hung it up.

“Let’s sit for a bit. I want to look at the menu first… And I don’t know what you have planned on whatever island we’re going to, but I assume it involves walking?” She slipped into the booth, squishing right up and patting the seat next to her to indicate she wanted him to sit there just now. At the same time she pulled one of the menus closer to her.

“This is really nice… and quiet. It feels like it’s just us which is exactly how I like it. I didn’t know St Portwell had something like this- how did you know about it?” She smiled at him as she asked, genuinely curious.

Casey was stuck for a moment as he tried to figure out what to tell her that wasn’t “I was scouting the internet for shit to do near Elysium Island.” But, he figured he didn’t have to lie, even though he knew she may take it poorly… No lies. Not unless it’d hurt her directly. Embarrassedly, he scratched his head and sighed.
”I was looking at Elysium, honestly… And then I saw that this company does Bay tours. When I read more about it and saw the different offerings they had, I knew it would be perfect. Just a nice relaxing cruise.” he did his best to explain without focusing on Elysium. Like she’d just accept it and brush it under the rug.

“Oh." Trisha didn't say anything else for a moment, leaving him in limbo as she stared at the menu without reading it. Internally she was fighting down the reactive annoyance. She didn't want to snap because he had planned this whole date, and the lunch cruise was a really nice idea. It was just difficult to stop herself latching onto the idea that the focus was Elysium, and Sycamore, rather than her. But he was with her. They were still on a date… it was just part of his job.

“You’re not going to run off in the middle, are you? The surprise end island isn't there?" It was still pretty hard to tell how she was reacting when she finally spoke again, even though from Trisha's point of view the fact she wasn't getting upset was a good reaction.

Casey’s fingers tapped away on the table as he watched her go over the menu. He wasn’t going to mention how much she reminded him of Lynette in that moment. The measured reaction, the unclear intention behind the questions… He wasn’t sure at all if she was pissed or just nervous, and worse was that there was no chance for him to check: His glove was in his coat. Wildcasting would only make it obvious that he was doing just that, so he had to play it cool as possible.

”Only if I got a signal from Leon that they need the Temple’s help. Even then, there’s no chance I’d be needed. I set the Mariners up on the west end of the bay, so if there were any problems, they would probably get there first. But, no… We’re not going to Elysium Island. Today isn’t about that: It just happened to be the prompt for me to plan something nicer than getting sloppy at a bar or taking you to a shooting range. I’m sure neither of those are ideal dates for you, right?” he asked calmly, doing his best to stay level and not just breaking down apologetically in the hopes that she wouldn’t start screaming at him or something.

Trisha visibly relaxed as Casey talked. As she did her hands slowly moved towards his. So it wasn't really about Elysium. At least, he shouldn't need to respond. That was fine then. The date location, which was very nice, hadn't been chosen solely for closeness to a potential fight. He was right that she preferred something like this but…
“My ideal date is anywhere with you," she responded quietly, finally looking up from the menu and at him. Her expression was still quite blank as she forced herself through the last bits of annoyance, but her gaze was soft and her lips slowly starting to pull back up towards a smile.

“I like something like this because you're putting in the effort… for me… so I was worried maybe it… wasn't…" she trailed off in barely a whisper.

There was a gut reaction to kill the anxiety with humor. The comment left his lips before they even had the chance to curl upward into a smirk.
”So, then… We can go to Elysium and it’ll still be okay?”
Obviously, or at least obviously to him, this was a joke. But also he almost instantly felt like it wasn’t the right joke to make.

While it wasn’t obvious to Trisha whether it was a joke or not, it was pretty clear she didn’t take it too well. This time there was no measured reaction, just a sullen pout and her whole face screwing up a bit. While she didn’t look pissed off she was certainly sulking in response.
“No. The only other thing that happens there are sex parties. I thought you weren’t interested in that kind of thing.”

He could feel her deflate. Casey didn’t need White Lux to know that she was definitely not happy now, and all he could do was frown in an empathetic response.
”I’m sorry… That was a bad joke, it played with your emotions and that’s not what I should’ve said. I promise you it was just a joke, and-”

A memory crossed his mind. The night of his Ascendency Ceremony, when Mia was having a particularly hard time. They were at Le Tournesol…
I guess you can sit between us.
Jesus Christ… His hand slipped up to his face, clutching his mouth before his face was consumed by a frown.

”-and… God, I’m… Such an idiot. Please, I’m really fucking sorry, I don’t want our day to be like that. I shouldn’t be like that to you…”
His voice was wavering slightly, like he was actually going to get emotional over it. He was, but not because he was apologetic. Rather, it was the reason for him being apologetic.
The association with the action. The smirk on Lynette’s face as the worst possible dig came out of her mouth. Like she knew exactly what button to push.

“I didn’t realise it was a joke,” Trisha’s head shook just slightly - barely enough to look like a purposeful action. She probably should’ve realised. She’d been told she was too sensitive plenty of times before… Cass teased her about it all the time. So maybe that was on her- no, it had been a bad joke. He was apologising for it.
“It was a bad joke but it’s alright, you’ve said you’re sorry so- so it’s fine, I’m not upset anymore.”

That wasn’t quite true- not that she was lying, it was hard to stay upset with him when he was apologising that much. There were just memories there for her too, from the last couple of years. A bad period in her life. A much worse boyfriend or two. Somehow even worse times without them.
“Even without everything with Sycamore that place sucks,” she opened up a little bit. Mostly because she didn’t want him to start thinking she was overly sensitive, even if he’d been the one who started apologising…

”I’m positive it sucks. I wouldn’t want to go there, and the only joy I would find is burning whatever buildings are there to the ground.”
And maybe killing a bunch of her Elite contemporaries… But just like she didn’t want him to think she was oversensitive, he didn’t want her thinking he was a murderous psychopath. He had no gripes over building relationships or anything that came with psychopathy, so… His Doctor had cleared him, after all…

His hands stretched out.
”I was just thinking about the other night at Le Tournesol. When Mom upset Mia, she… She had this fucking smirk. Like this evil little grin, and it was so fucking soft I had to use my White Lux to even see it. But, I feel like… She got pleasure out of it. Out of like… Taking what her daughter’s problem was and throwing it back into her face. It was a very Lynette coded joke. It just came out of my mouth so naturally that when I gave it a thought I felt sick.” he explained.

He hoped she understood, and waited for her to take his hand so that they could both seek and find comfort in one another.
”That’s not ever what I want for you. I don’t ever wanna be that person in your life who does shit like that to you. Do you understand me?” he seemed a bit more serious now that he was trying to make a point. Not so sad. Convicted in how he felt, because he knew exactly what’d happened. All he could do was be honest with her in turn.

Trisha automatically reached out for him, her fingers threading through his and curling round the back of his hand. She understood where all the apologising came from now, though she didn’t quite know what the seriousness was here. It didn’t really seem like a risk to her. It wasn’t like she’d put up- oh, she probably would. She just didn’t expect him to end up like that.
“I understand. I don’t want you to- and I know you won’t. Doing something a little like your Mom doesn’t make you like her… I say things like mine too, and when I catch myself doing it I always get upset too.” Not that it was all that often, she hadn’t exactly spent enough time with her parents for that…

“I won’t let you be anything like that for me, anyway… and you’ve been the opposite. You really have been.” Her voice got a little quieter. It was as much comforting him as it was herself. Because she knew he meant everything he said and he wasn’t like the people she’d been with who weren’t immediate obvious problems and became them later…

Like perfect timing existed, the attendant came back with their drinks and a simple smile.
“Anything else I can get you guys for now? We’re gonna be pulling away here in a few minutes. We don’t have any pickups scheduled for our first two stops, so those should be quick as well. We’ll have some nice leisurely time out in open water.”

Casey was still very much involved in just looking at Trisha and being a little emotional, so when he turned to look at the woman in front of them, he did so with wide, sad eyes.
”We’re here for it… I think we’re okay for now.” he nodded, looking at Trisha.

“What he said,” Trisha said very simply.

Accepting their assurances, the woman sauntered away to continue her other duties, leaving the star-crossed lovers alone once more.
”I love you… It’s hard not feeling like you’re constantly on the edge of becoming someone you know you aren’t. I spent so much time away, and now they’re back in my life and it’s like… I don’t know. Sometimes I wish she’d just disowned me. But, then… I would have a whole separate set of problems, wouldn’t I?” he frowned, shaking his head.
”All we can do is try for one another. Thank you for reassuring me, even if I was the one who told the bad joke.” he expressed, soft eyes looking up at her from a slightly slumped head and face.

“Well I also… love you… so I don’t like seeing you sad.” She shrugged slightly, lips pulling up into a slight smile. Her grip on his hands was a bit tighter- she’d squeezed when he mentioned wishing he was disowned, and hadn’t quite loosened up yet. She was trying not to dwell on it… It wasn’t like her mom had properly disowned her. And she understood, because his mom was much more manipulative than hers. Even if he’d said the other day that her mom was worse… she didn’t really think that was the case, because it wasn’t like she manipulated Trisha or anything. She’d never ever wished to be disowned.

“We chose each other… That’s what matters. I want to try for you.” She pulled herself out of the thoughts about their moms, trying to focus back on them.
“At least we both have family problems? Imagine if only one of us knew how to deal with it… or maybe that makes it worse, and it’d be easier if one of us had a normal family…”

Casey vaguely shrugged, his face turning back up to look at her fully.
”Fuck ‘em, y’know? We’ll make it through together. You’re right. We’re choosing one another every day. I never wanna choose anything else, Trisha. So, I’m happy to be here with you, on this boat or in the middle of the woods, in the depths of the Pit… I still wanna choose you.”
His thumb crossed the back of her hand in a gentle, tender and loving stroke. His smile opened again, and looking at her in this moment was all he really wanted. All he could ask for. Why think about hurting people? Why think about being hurt?

He picked one of her hands up, kissing it gently and squeezing to reassure her before letting it go.
”Detour over. No Elysium, no Sycamore, no Mom and Dad bullshit, right? Us, and a romantic (hopefully fun) night!”

---

The rest of the time before they docked at the chosen island was peaceful. Thanks to an announcement as the boat pulled in this location was finally revealed to Trisha. Misty Island… She didn’t know very much about it. In her mind that was a good thing. A new place meant no memories except the ones she made with Casey.

It had already been one of the nicest dates she’d been on. A nice meal, good company, interesting location… It was quiet enough that she could fully relax and just be herself like she often only was at home. The views were nice too, even to someone a bit bored of sea views thanks to growing up in the city. More than anything the fact that Casey had found and booked it for them made her very happy.

And it wasn’t even over yet.

“What’s the plan, then?” Trisha asked as they made their way out of the dining area, and towards the loading plank to get off the ship. She’d taken his hand as soon as they were both up with their coats on, while walking close enough to him that their hands almost got in the way.
“Are we leaving our bags at the place we’re staying first, or just bringing them around with us?” It wasn’t like she was even carrying them, a thought that made her giggle a little bit, but she just… liked vaguely knowing what was going on even with the whole trying to keep it a surprise thing.

Looking around the place gave Casey the same feeling as he had looking at the pictures. He’d never bothered coming out here either, the one chance he had more or less ruined by Junior. He could only giggle thinking about all those years ago. How it was so innocent now, but torturous back then.
The island wasn’t big enough for cars, but there seemed to be a booming bike rental place offering segues, electric scooters, and obviously bikes themselves for renting. There was also a map, which very clearly showed which side of the island they were on. The resort was a short distance up the western side, with these little islands not being more than half a square mile in total area.

He looked at the bikes and things, then down at his luggage. His eyes narrowed at the clear-cut tourist trap, and he took a deep breath.
”Uhh… I think it’s best if we head over to check in. Just so our stuff is safe, and we’re not lugging it around. Since, y’know… Someone’s got a sense of humor.” he grimaced.

Outstretching his free hand, Casey waited for Trisha to take it before extrapolating.
”I mean… I’m sure not everyone is coming to sleep here, but… Don’t you think it's a little funny that they don’t rent anything that can hold a bag? Not anything substantial at least, like…”
He rattled his overnight bag. It wasn’t bigger than a backpack.
”Like, there’s no golf carts? Or even-”

He was completely gobsmacked by a woman pedalling by with a little trailer hitched to the peg slots of the bike’s rear wheel.
”-Oh, no shit! They fuckin’ make those? A bike trailer?” he laughed aloud.

“Yeah, have you never seen one? You know they make ones that you can put kids in too?” Trisha looked up at Casey with raised eyebrows and a small laugh. It wasn’t exactly some amazing technology… though she guessed people just tended to drive around St Portwell.
“It doesn’t really matter if it can hold a bag because I… don’t… know how to ride a bike…”

Casey didn’t skip a beat, his eyes still locked onto the bike and the little trailer behind it as it peddled into the distance.
”Well do you want to fix that? Or are we gonna save it for another day?” he asked casually, never implying that it was okay and that she didn’t have to.

He didn’t know a world without riding a bike. His first freedoms had been on two wheels; down to the corner store with Leon and some of the other Temple kids who lived in the apartment complex.

“Maybe, but… It’ll be embarrassing if I fall,” Trisha furrowed her brows a bit. Wasn’t she too old to learn anyway? But if she didn’t then they’d have to walk, because she didn’t particularly want to go on what looked like less stable electric transportation… She gestured towards one of the paths that seemed to go along the edge, not particularly far away from the sea where the tide was right against the short cliffs.

“Is it even fixable?- What if I fall there and then end up in the water? Would you save me from drowning?” Suddenly she was catastrophizing.

Casey couldn’t help laughing. As she asked if he would save her from drowning, he nearly crumpled, his torso bending at an angle as he let her hand go to grab both his knees. Suppressing a laugh this big hurt deep in his chest, but he didn’t want her to think that things were hopeless. He had a tear and a smile as he managed to return to an upright position, groaning slightly as he wiped it away.

”Babe!? Why on Earth wouldn’t I save you from-”
And then he was struck by something profound.
”-Why… Why would you drown? Don’t tell me you avoided bikes and the pool as a kid…”

“Avoid makes it sound like it was on purpose,” Trisha grumbled, cheeks heating up a bit. It wasn’t her fault she couldn’t ride a bike or swim… though she’d gotten herself into this situation by even mentioning drowning, but it was a genuine concern!

”I’ve been in a pool… just it was with school and most of the other kids could already swim at least a bit. They just dumped the few of us that couldn’t in the shallow end and then when I… threw a tantrum over it… they let me out of it. They were probably scared dad would do something if they didn’t. I didn’t bother learning later cause it’s not like I normally do risky things like riding a bike for the first time next to the ocean.”

”Oh, Babe… My Trisha Bee…”
Empathetically, Casey let his bag touch the ground gently before embracing her tightly.
”I didn’t mean avoid like that… It’s just not something I’ve really considered. A life without bikes and swimming and all that physical shit wouldn’t be the same to me. I guess it makes it more important in my eyes than it is.” he said softly, planting a kiss on the top of her head.

”If you don’t want to walk, we can go inside here and see about a tandem bike or something, so you don’t need to do anything. Or we can walk… I’m not trying to pressure you into anything on a nice day like this.” he smiled down at her now, pulling away slightly.
”But, I would save you. And I would love to teach you, because it’s really not that hard. You use the exercise bike ever?” he asked.

“Maybe it’s not hard if you learn as a kid,” Trisha let out a light huff, but she wasn’t actually upset or anything- just complaining. She tilted her head up to smile at him. As much as it sucked to not know how to do the things most kids were taught by their parents… it was fine because he was willing to teach her. He wasn’t even judging her for it. Not that she should be judged for something that wasn’t her fault.
“I used it once or twice… I normally go jogging rather than going to the gym.”

She looked to the side as she tried to decide what to do. She wasn’t sure. The idea of finally learning was nice, but… she leaned away from Casey slightly to look around, before also looking at the map. It didn’t actually look like a bike was necessary…
“Let’s just walk today. It’s not like we have anywhere specific to be once we’ve dropped off our bags, right? You can teach me another time… I’d like to learn, but maybe learning swimming is more important? Then I won’t have to deal with Tansy inviting me on yacht trips before rescinding it because I ‘might fall in and tragically drown.’ Not that I ever want to go, but I won’t have to look at her smug face.”

With only the smile on his face to tell her how he felt, Casey simply opened the hook of his arm for her to hold onto. When she got close enough, he pulled her into a tight little hug before letting her relax into position. Since they were both only expecting an overnight, the relatively light loads were only cumbersome in the context of being out and about.
Having to drag them through the relatively small shop fronts here on Misty Island would probably wind up disruptive. But here in the open, it was just another walk.

One with his favorite person, of course.

As they began their trek, the road pulled inland in a hairpin fashion, pulling itself up a short incline that flattened out at the top. Another hundred yards on, and they were about the small town. The first establishments were closed things; beach shops featuring ice creams and boogie boards, tourist requirements. Then probably the closest thing to a general store the island had, and it was relatively busy thanks to the eight hundred or so full time residents. From outside, they could see a few tables and a coffee machine, as well as the usual coolers and shelves for snacks and goods.

Casey could see the little Kino area clear as day, and practically heard the electric buzzing of the monitor showing the different numbers called. It was comfy, despite essentially being a Legalized gambling den…
Then there were more shops. Locals selling whatever they could. Most were specialty shops who only opened up during the tourist months, closing and bringing their stocks back to related shops on the mainland.

But it wasn't dead at all. Little places to eat had bread and fresh food scents wafting from their doors. In the short distance, the sound of carnival rides shaking and vibrating as people screamed out in joy and fear filled the background. From behind a string of buildings, one could see the crest of the sole roller coaster operated by the carnival.
Casey's eye was naturally drawn from it down toward one of the shops it towered over… A familiar word that elicited a guttural response from him.

In measured, unflashy text scrawled across the sign over the door, Casey read the word Firearms. Trisha would be able to feel him tense up as little, like a kid seeing a toy they want. But he didn't say anything, nor did he try to tug her toward the shop… Calm. Calm.

Eventually, they made their way out of the little town center, and ahead on this loosely paved road, they could see a building bigger than all the others rising up to stare out into the sea. An eternal vigil of a retired guardian. The Hess Memorial Resort was once part of the network of forts protecting America's West coast until it was decommissioned just before the outbreak of the Great War. Since it was such a recent change, the facility itself was an extremely modern and comforting resort meant to capture the tourists in the summer and subsist in the winter.

The entry was only gated visually, and there were plenty of signs letting guests know they're welcomed and to simply push open any door that seemed locked. Inside was fairly austere, simply due to the fact that at one point this place was a Naval facility. Great attempts had been made to make the entry feel incredibly welcoming, with false fireplaces surrounded by different lounge sets. Amidst it, there were all manner of potted plants that gave the space a natural feeling.

The check-in went fairly smoothly, and this would be the first instance that Trisha would get to hear some random civilian thank him for his service. The older man at the counter made something of a big deal of it, shaking Casey's hand enthusiastically before implying that he had also served long ago. Curious enough to be polite, the two men sat and had a quick conversation about MOS’ before they were handed their key and sent on their way.
There were several suites located throughout the resort, and theirs happened to be detached from the main facility. Casey booked it purposefully, in case they wound up needing the absolute peak of privacy.

As such, they wound up walking through the facility completely before coming out on the chilly coastline again. There were several pillbox structures dotting the hillside; converted turrets of massive naval guns. They were concrete cabins now, and while it wasn't clear on their rear approach, opening the door and looking in revealed massive window panes that replaced the old turret slits to let the glory of the frothy North-West Pacific shine into the bunker.

As a suite, there was an onsite toilet and pantry unit. The floors had been laid down with hardwood, and there were these odd lamps that radiated warmth like they were under the counter at a local fried chicken shop. Additionally, there was something cute that he'd specially requested: On the main table of the place, there was a surprisingly adorable bath-towel sculpture of what could only be described as a bee.

It was guarding a box of chocolate covered fruits, with a note that welcomed them to the resort, and gave them a number to call for any sort of concessions necessary.
While the view outside was relatively beautiful, he was incredibly excited to see this little touch he requested come to life. Not openly reacting to it, he waited for Trisha to take everything in as he slowly entered the suite.

Trisha was at loss for words upon stepping in. It was lovely. A nice view and a cozy atmosphere that she could imagine relaxing in later. It felt comfortable. Not too luxurious and cold, but nice enough it wasn’t lacking at all. It was separate too, so they didn’t have to worry about noisy neighbours in the case of poor soundproofing.

Then there was the bee. She darted over to it as soon as she spotted it. It was… impressive. That was her first thought as she saw the way it had been put together. Her gaze moved to the chocolate covered fruits and notes, which she picked up and gave a quick read. Nothing too interesting… She very carefully picked up the bath-towel bee, making sure it didn’t unravel. She spun around to face Casey, holding it up with a warm smile that lit up her eyes.
“Did you ask for this? That’s so sweet… it’s almost as cute as my bees are, isn’t it?”

Seeing that she was happy with it, Casey almost melted. He'd been putting their bags into the armoire for safe keeping, and turned to look at her fully.
”They did a great job… I never expected uh-”
His hand came up to touch the bee, finger gently tugging against the, presumably, wire coat hanger wings.
”-y'know, they got the hardware out. Pretty impressive by my standard.”

He laughed in a goofy fashion, leaning down and kissing Trisha's head.
”I'm happy you like it… I was worried you would maybe get put off by the fact that it was a fort. Or, y'know, that'd we'd be in a gun turret…” he admitted.

“It’s a nice gun turret,” Trisha retorted, putting the bee back down on the table. As she did some of her own spilled out of her sleeves, crawling onto the soft towels. Her bee free hands grabbed his.
“If it was just a grey, cold box with small metal beds or something like an army barracks then yeah, I’d be pretty put off. But this is nice.”

She got close to him, smiling sweetly up at him.
“I’m not that fussy. I just need somewhere that feels a bit warm with a comfortable bed, and you. I guess the bed doesn’t even need to be that comfy, since I can just sleep on you. Should we test out the bed?” Her eyes squinted teasingly, smile turning playful before she laughed.
“To see if you have to be my mattress for the night… and if it’s firm enough to support your back.”

Without a second thought, Casey scooped Trisha up from her currently standing position, jokingly slamming her back down into the bed with a gentle puff of air. His knee lifted up, and in an instant, he was next to her. Their hair made a collective spread beneath them as both were able to stare up at the ceiling. Casey’s hand found Trisha’s, and he slightly turned his head to look at her.
”Y’know, this is pretty comfy, but you should probably get closer just in case you need to adjust.” he grinned.

Trisha giggled, rolling onto her side and shuffling over to hug into him. It was nice, because it was like it didn’t matter where they were. Home, here, anywhere… it would be comfortable and safe if the two of them were together.
“Mm, it is, but it’s still not as comfy as you. Nothing else is the perfect combination of comfort, warm hugs, good looks and company. So as long as you actually stay in bed tonight… it’ll be good.” She spoke lightly, leaning forward to softly kiss his cheek.

“We shouldn’t have laid down… now I don’t want to get up,” she jokingly groaned, wriggling even closer.

Feeling exactly what she meant, Casey groaned and laughed a little bit.
”You can’t do this to us, Bee… If we lay here the whole time, when will I have the chance to win you a giant carnival stuffy?” he asked with a very sincere kind of concern in his voice.

“Oh, well then, I guess we have to get up.” Trisha said with exaggerated reluctance. Really, it was cute… she’d never had anyone win something like that for her before. Not that she’d gone to carnival’s often. Most of the time she’d spent at Oceanview Gardens was when it was closed because of a city wide disaster.
“We can start a carnival stuffy collection, put them in a corner in the den.”

She pushed herself up onto one arm, seeming to be making a move. But instead of getting off the bed she flopped over on top of him. Her arms went to either side as if trapping him in… very ineffectively.
“You have to pay the toll first to get up,” she grinned down at him, before cutely pursing her lips.

”Oh, no…” Casey said in a very calm, almost joking voice. She had pinned him, yes, and then could feel his shoulders still lifting off the bed despite her best efforts. He didn’t do it fast, nor with a lot of force. It was the inexorable overwhelming torque that just couldn’t be stopped.
But he only pushed up enough to meet her face with his own, going in to plant a very strong and passionate kind of kiss that he hadn’t really given previously. There was something in it that had more than love. Excitement, anticipation, and a desire for her to really truly acknowledge that he was the one.

The only one who could excite her, and make her happy and thrilled. His hands both gripped at her wrists, pulling them off him and around her back so she couldn’t do anything about it… And he continued to kiss her like that. It could’ve been a minute, it could’ve been an hour, but eventually he let her wrists go, pulling his lips away while their foreheads pressed against one another.
”How’s that for the toll?” he asked very quietly in what was a somewhat intentional sultry fashion.

“Mm… good…,” Trisha breathed out. Her face was flushed and half lidded eyes looked directly into his. A look filled with desire for him and to give herself to him. She hadn’t been kissed so passionately in a long time… No, it had never been like that. There was never love and more, just lust. It was so much better. More thrilling. It made her mind go blank for just a moment.
“But unfortunately the toll just doubled.”

She kissed him back just as passionately as he kissed her. It was a little messy, tinged with desperation and vulnerability. Like she didn’t ever want to be apart from him. She didn’t. If she died here in his arms, she’d be happy.
“I love you,” she whispered, lips still close enough to his that he’d feel her breath as she spoke. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and she was completely lying on him now.
“I think we should enjoy the bed a bit more before we go out…”

Casey almost said yes… It was close. But he had to remain conscious of time, and budgeting it accordingly made him more or less flaccid. It wasn’t a lack of desire so much as a desire to do other things first. It wasn’t primarily on his agenda…
He gave her a soft smile, and while his hands grabbed tightly around her rump, it wasn’t carnal. It was just firmness, contact and a bit of shock.

”Christ… You’re like a roadman. You ask for the toll, see my fat sack of coins, then all of a sudden the toll doubles? Daylight robbery this girl…”
He laughed, smacking her right cheek playfully.
”Come on, you’re getting blue balled. I know you’re gonna regret not getting your genuine jumbo monkey if we don’t go and have fun. Besides, there’s some shops I wanna see too…”

He did kiss her again, this time more playfully, but he didn’t really force her off of him.
”What color is it gonna be?” he grinned.

Trisha let out a light huff, pushing herself up with hands on his shoulders so she was sitting rather than lying on him. She looked down at him with a playful pout, but wasn’t actually upset by it. She did wriggle on top of him a little bit, hands pressing into his chest - petty, teasing revenge along with just feeling him there. Making sure to not take it as a rejection. What she’d told him the day before was true- she was happy to wait as long as she was with him. Sure, she really wanted him right now, but it wasn’t like she had no self control.

“You’re lucky I’m patient enough to wait until tonight, and that I love you enough to not get upset,” she shot back playfully, with a smile that hopefully told him there wasn’t actually any pressure. She rolled off him and back onto the other side of the bed. As much as she didn’t want to, she needed to for just a moment. Otherwise she really might try to jump him…
“What colour is what gonna be? My nonexistent balls? You already answered that- oh, the jumbo monkey? Those come in different colours? Which ones- oh, well, obvious answer, green.”

Trisha swung her legs round, standing up. She started fussing around with her wool sweater, untucking it from her skirt and tucking it back in so that it was up to her standards.
“Which shops do you want to see? More than just the gun one?” Of course she’d noticed his reaction at the time, she just hadn’t commented on it.

”Hey, wait, what do you mean wait until tonight? You’re gonna… You’re gonna wait until I’m all innocent and asleep to… Take advantage of me!?” he giggled, playfully covering himself up as if she was shaming him with her gaze.
”God, I’m such a piece of meat…”

These were his favorite moments; little bits like that, where the two of them could pick on one another. Those were the best jokes in the barracks, and they were the best in his relationship too. Nobody was taking anything too seriously.

”Uhhh… I didn’t see it? But there’s supposed to be this shop that sells things that smell nice. Expensive candles and perfumes and stuff like that. I figured maybe we could find stuff for ourselves, and for the bees… And then obviously, we’re gonna hit every ride and game, ‘cuz it’s November and it’s fucking cold out and there’s probably nobody there.”

A shop full of nice smelling things… that did sound nice. But before she agreed with the plan, she had her honour to defend.
“You think I’d wait until you’re asleep? And what, do everything myself? What’s the point in having a big, strong boyfriend if I have to do all the work? And anyway-” She flicked a hand over her shoulder as if flicking her air… except it was in a braid bun at her nape, so it didn’t really have the same effect.
“-most people would love for me to take advantage of them.”

She couldn’t keep up the jokingly haughty pose, pursed lips splitting with laughter. She really did feel comfortable around him… she didn’t feel the need to act like anyone but herself. Her actual self, as opposed to the one she put on just to please people or be what she thought they wanted.

“I do like the sound of that shop. Some fancy candles around the house would be nice.” She decided not to mention that she didn’t really wear perfume. Couldn’t. Even though the pheromones weren’t the same as normal smells, they could still be masked or messed up by it.
“... And every ride, even the big rollercoaster? Or maybe it’s not that big, I’ve never actually been on one. Is it better or worse than teleportation?”

Casey’s brow furrowed.
”Like… As far as a ride?I guess it depends on the teleportation; someone like Clarissa is actually pretty smooth, but this guy in my old squad had this teleportation spell where it, like, dragged you in and spat you out. It was rough.”
Casey shook a little bit remembering the sick sensation.
Still, he pulled himself up completely until he was standing with his coat again. He yawned just a little, looking back at the bed.
”Geeze… How can you expect a soldier to do all that on a bed? My back hits that thing, it’s cap time.”

He pulled his hand up, just under her chin to lift her face and plant another kiss. He was just so happy to be in the moment, and the only way he could possibly express it was through affection toward her. With every fiber of his being, he wanted to grab ahold and squeeze her until she squeeked.
”I love you too, by the way… Don’t think I missed that.”

Pulling away, he still had a grin and took a deep breath.
”Shops first, or carnival first?” he asked.

“Shops, so you don’t have to carry all the massive stuffies you’re going to win me around them,” Trisha answered without hesitation. She smiled warmly at him, gaze full of returned affection.
“I guess… shops, then rides, the carnival games? That makes the most sense… unless you plan to buy loads. What do you even do with bags when you go on rides? Maybe we should do the rides first…”

Casey nodded, shrugging slightly.
”Thaaaat’s exactly what I was thinking. God forbid that gun shop has something nice in it, I don’t really want to be carrying something like that in a bag around a place where teenagers make up eighty percent of the workforce. No accountability there.”

He looked around the room, pointing at the little fridge next to the stove unit. There were waters, and he grabbed a couple before snagging a chocolate strawberry from the box on the table. Shaking the second water playfully, he handed it to Trisha, and spoke with a mouth full of fruit.
”Ahh cahhy ih ihuf yuh wauh…”

“Oh, you’d carry me everywhere? That’s so sweet, but I should use my legs,” Trisha teased as if she couldn’t tell exactly what he meant, taking the water bottle and shoving it in one of her coat pockets. They were deep enough to be practical, at least. She then held out her hands towards the towel bee.
“C’mon, ladies.” The twenty or so bees she’d brought with her buzzed up and onto her hands, neatly crawling into her sleeves.

“If you’re done stuffing your mouth with fruit, let’s go,” she smiled brightly at him, reaching out to take his hand. As much as she’d been the one trying to get them to stay in bed she was pretty excited to go out and do things together. She’d requested a proper date, rather than what was… the normal for her. Though the lunch had already been a lot more than normal.

“Do you think the bees’ll be alright in my coat on the rides?” she asked as they made their way for the door.
“I could leave them behind, but it doesn’t really feel… right if I’m outside without at least a few.”

”They do just kind of crawl all over you, don’t they?” he asked, chuckling slightly.
”I’m sure they’ll be fine. They’re bees! At worst, they jump off you and meet you back at the bottom.”

Making his way out to the door, he waited for Trisha to get close before opening it for her.
”After you, my sweet Lady.”
As he spoke, he triple checked his pockets. Wallet, keys, knife, a new addition in the room’s keycard, and finally his concealed carry. Ready to go.

“Very kind of you, my Lord.” Trisha grinned, putting on an exaggerated posh English accent. A little bit of an imitation of Sal, a little bit of her dad…
The temperature drop going back outside was a bit of a shock, and she shivered for a moment, pulling her hands up into her sleeves. Little fuzzy bodies crawled onto them, vibrating to heat them up. She giggled a little bit, shooing them away from one hand to push it back out so she could reach for Casey’s. Rather than that, she found herself being scooped into a full trot, Casey swinging her legs up and off the ground as they made way for their destination.

Back into and through the facility, then they were back on the outskirts of the town. The route to get to the Carnival was a bit different from the one they’d taken there - no need to go through the centre since it was behind the town. It was nice, if cold. Trisha was glad she’d worn her warmest coat with all the chilly winds coming off the sea. But it was nice. No rain, perfectly clear.

Trisha was energized by the whole going on a date thing. The second part of a date! The whole day was a date! Rides, games and shops… that was a whole three other things, then there was also dinner to get, and when they went back to the room for the evening. So much time together doing things…
“You’re not going to use magic to cheat on the Carnival games, are you? Not that a little cheating is bad… I guess if there’s any shooting ones all of your training would count as cheating too.”

”Hey now, most? I don’t need to cheat. Maybe if there’s a crane game, but those are rigged anyway!”

---

The Soldier’s Carnival was a perpetual funpark that had been operating on Misty since before the base was relegated to its current use. Along with the few residences for officers and brass, it was assumed that there should be a safe and fun place for the troops to come and experience a family friendly atmosphere. For years, Navy soldiers mingled with visitors and would put on performances from the in-house band to entertain guests of all kinds.
Now, without the support of the military complex, the park had fully privatized, and had since become just a little less magical.

Still, it was fun! And the rides, as few as there were, were in fantastic condition in spite of the constant exposure to the salty ocean air. It was a free place, one where there weren’t many eyes worried about what the guests were up to. One where, if they had the scratch to get out to the island, teens and young adults could spend time just being young.
Admission came with a small pink band around the wrist, and immediately the park opened up into games and smaller attractions. Casey was quick to point out the arcade, loving skee ball as much as he did. There was no chance he wasn’t going to drag Trisha in to play at least a game.

But they’d gone to an arcade not too long ago, so he was aware that it couldn’t be the focus. Hence, a few half-hearted games were spent mostly trying to throw Trisha off her own game rather than winning purely by locking in. It hadn’t worked how he intended, as the first go around was a victory but the second was a miserable loss to someone who now knew his gameplan. Whatever it took to get her back into his arms… They laughed and laughed, both at one another and Casey’s goofy attempts to distract Trisha from her victory. But neither wound up with enough tickets to do anything besides buy a few pieces of candy.
Casey did so, and now they both had delicious little lollipops to suck on as they made their way toward the next thing.

Booths with actual carnival games were set up all along the main strip, giving the two of them plenty of options to look at. Casey, enthusiastically waiting for the chance to impress, began pointing at the different booths.
”What’d I say? A giant blue monkey?”

His finger pointed directly at one, a smug grin forming across his face.
”Like that? I mean, there’s a thousand options. You could get uh… Orange Godzilla?”

There was, in fact, a strangely offbrand “cutesy kaiju” being advertised specifically at one of the booths… It was a dart game, where you had to pop all the balloons. He wasn’t awful at darts naturally, but a little magic probably would’ve made the prospect easier to swallow.
”I kinda wanna see if they have a giant bee anywhere. D’you think it would freak the girls out?”

“So long as it doesn’t have pheromones, it wouldn’t,” Trisha laughed lightly, smiling brightly up at him. It was a cute idea… a massive plush bee. It would be something she could easily hug in bed too if Casey snuck out like he had last night…
“It might end up smelling a bit like me, which’d confuse them… I think they’re more likely to think it’s a flower. Cause of the bright colours.”

She looked around at all of the options, eyes peeled for any bright yellow. But her eyes were drawn back to the “cutesy kaiju” stall…
“Look, that green… Mothra? I think? Is pretty cute.” She pointed over to where it hung among the other cute and oddly coloured kaiju plushies. She wasn’t sure if she actually wanted it… maybe? There was a lot of choice. And if there was a massive bee anywhere… she was almost overwhelmed, head snapping around.
“What do you think, Babe?”

”Uhhh… Maybe we save them for when we’re leaving? We can scope the rest of the place out, ride the rides, then hit the booths on the way back out! Intelligent moves and all that, right?” he smiled, pulling her close and rubbing her shoulder to warm her up a bit.
”You wanna do the Ferris Wheel first? I’d have a good angle to check on the other island, make sure nothing awful or tragic has happened?”

“Mhm, tactical, you really are useful to have around,” Trisha teased, leaning into Casey slightly. She did want to go on the Ferris Wheel. It always seemed romantic, but she’d never actually gone on one before. Though the prospect of him checking on Elysium made it feel a little less so… but as long as it wasn’t the whole ride. It wouldn’t be, right?

“Sure, let’s do that. Hopefully I don’t have an undiscovered fear of heights… pretty sure I don’t! But I’ve never been up high in a glass box where I can see all around. It might unlock something.” She spoke jokingly, changing direction towards the Ferris Wheel. In the end, she decided not to comment on the looking at the other island thing. It was easier to not get upset that way.
“It is safe, right?”

”Oh yeah! As far as I’m aware, the anti-rust protection package the state requires them to have is wild. Practically magic, and honestly it wouldn’t surprise me if it was magic.”

Though Trisha’s vision of what this thing was maybe wound up a little skewed… Casey didn’t comment, rather waiting until they got up close so that she could actually see: They weren’t the big glass boxes like in the cities. Ferris Wheels this far out became simpler, open topped four-seat cars that gently swayed in the breeze with each gust. The fully exposed bench seats were only wide enough for two smaller people, meaning that if they wanted to sit on the same side, Trisha would wind up in Casey’s lap…

But, thanks to the time of year, it wasn’t crowded at all. In fact, the line was just about empty, and the few people who were riding it seemed to be making several passes up and down without getting out.This was, to Casey, a fantastic thing. It meant he could comfortably get a pass where he could check things out, and then barring the absolute worst case scenario, enjoy several more without the mental pressure of checking to see if his older brother had turned into a massive wolf-thing.
He started trying to walk through the little switchback maze of a line, but the attendant was quick to wave them on, as if ushering them to scramble over the steel bars separating the sections of the line. Casey laughed, scooping up Trisha out of nowhere and beginning to throw one leg after the other over the metal bars.

The man watching the ride had already brought an empty cart to a stop.
“Be careful up there, Big Guy! Try not to put too much weight onto one side of the cart; there’s a lock keeping it from swinging too much, but we try to take good care of ‘em!”
”Oh, you got it! No problem, I’ll just squat down right in the middle!”

Both parties laughed, and Casey ascended the stairs to the ride with Trisha still in his arms. Finally getting there, he put her down to let her get in, and then in a second, they were ascending the ride slowly and surely.
”Heyyy, there we go. Comfy? You want my jacket too in case it gets too windy?” he asked Trisha gently and sweetly.

“I’m okay, my jacket is pretty warm,” Trisha replied with a cute smile, eyes creasing happily. Him asking, and constantly thinking of her like that, made her feel warm and gooey inside. Honestly, she would quite like to wear his jacket… but that would require loosening her death grip on the metal bars that surrounded them.

She did her best to pretend she wasn’t nervous about it. It was just… not what she’d expected. Sure, Casey had said it was safe. She trusted him. But if the cart swung just a little bit too much to one side what was to stop them from falling out? It didn’t feel safe. But she didn’t want to look like a coward. So she tried to act like normal, even though one hand was practically white from hard it was gripping the rail.

At least the cart was small enough that her legs were pushed inside his. The contact was comforting… and she’d relax a bit more if they didn’t die after the first trip round. Proof it was fine.
“It’s nice… I’m not sure I understand why it’s seen as so ‘romantic’ though. Not that it isn’t! Just, everywhere with you… is…”

Casey hadn’t moved to check out the island. It was on his mind, but after a comment like that, he knew it’d only be insensitive to roll into the new topic.
”Oh, you don’t? C’mere-”

He pushed forward, snagging Trisha and sliding her onto his lap. The channeler came out of his coat pocket, and he gripped the bar, along with Trisha’s hand to a lesser extent, and let a massive jolt of Orange Lux burst out from his body to ripple down the metal machine. From there, he could feel the status of the rotation-lock, as well as the main axel of the wheel and the overall integrity of the ride. It was good, solid, and- just like he predicted -already bound by a fairly powerful Orange enchantment that was artificially bolstering the metal’s ability to resist rust.

”Oh yeah… Babe, we’ve got nothing to worry about. It’s already been touched by magic. Swear on my life, this has some serious Lux pumping through it.”
Saying that, he wrapped his arms around her tightly and threw his feet up onto the opposite bench.
”Just stay here with me and chill out. The romance is at the top.”

Knowing they’d be facing the city skyline when they made it to the top, it was all anticipation now. Time to talk, and to be together intimately.

Trisha let out a panicked squeak when she was suddenly pulled from her seat. She immediately clung to Casey, unable to keep up her faux confidence. She’d been maintaining it with the combination of rail gripping and perfect stillness… which had been ruined. But it was safer in his arms. At least she felt safer. He wouldn’t let her fall out of the cart.

“It’s really safe? It’s not going to tilt and throw us out?” she whispered, legs curling up against her chest as she leant against Casey. Even as she asked, she knew the answer. He’d already said there was nothing to worry about. She believed him. Especially if there was magic on it like that.
“Maybe I’m a bit more wimp than I thought,” she mumbled, words muffled thanks to her face being pressed into his chest.

But as it moved slowly, she also pulled her head back a bit to properly look up at Casey. Still holding onto him tightly, but she relaxed with him hugging her like this.
“I wonder if being up this high is a bit like what my bees experience. They spend so much of their time flying… I was kind of envious when I first got them because they had so much freedom.”

Casey shrugged.
”Y’know this is one thing… But we could probably actually get you flying. Somewhere quiet, some time in the future? There’s plenty of methods to do it, and most of them are pretty fun. Safe too. I’ve even got a spell in my back pocket we could use, if that interests you one day.”

His lips pressed against the top of her head, planting little kisses from her scalp to her cheek. Hands gripped her gently, but his arms around her were all encompassing and warm. Full of love and care. He wanted her excited, but just as much, he wanted her curious and willing to experiment. With magic, with life itself… He wanted everything for her.

”But, I don’t think you’re a wimp if you don’t want to try, or if you don’t trust this even now… It’s okay. I promise. I’ll never look down on you, only down at you… ‘Cuz of the height, y’know?” he explained.

Trisha giggled gently, peering up at him with a joking pout.
“Now you’re just calling me short…” she whined cutely. It was nice to hear… because sometimes she felt she was just that. And with it came the feelings of failing. Fear, failure, fear, failure… an eternal loop she sometimes felt stuck in. But this wasn’t a failure. Just a bit of nerves.

She thought a bit more about what he’d said. About actually flying. She was curious about it. How could he do it with his magic? She’d probably trust that more than she would the other methods, if they were Temple.
“If it's your spell then-”
You don’t need other’s magic to fly.

Trisha was interrupted by her spirit rousing in her mind. Not the time she particularly appreciated it… during a romantic date. But she couldn’t control her.

I will teach you one day. I will lend you more of my magic.
“How dangerous is it to use more Apparitional magic?” she asked, seemingly out of the blue. But it was related…

Casey was a little shocked to hear that question out of her mouth, but there was a small ripple from one emotional field into his own, throwing flags up through one of his passively circulating detection spells. There was some internal interaction… And he didn’t feel those ever happen between the two of them.
He had to keep it clean, however, so he didn’t ask any questions.

”Well that’s a tough one, because it really depends. Apparitions are all different, right? Like, say, if the Queen had some kind of spell that gave you wings? It’s cool, but you gotta learn how to use ‘em, and then who knows if she has a way of protecting you if you fall? Or, uh… Theo! His Apparition is essentially a big cannon. He can technically use it to fly, but the landing part is super dangerous. Make sense?”

Trisha frowned thoughtfully, nodding. She didn't want to risk falling and getting hurt, or worse. She wasn't even sure how much she wanted to fly… it had just been an offhand comment from when she was in a different mental state. She didn't feel the same need for freedom. At least… she had a car now. She wasn't as restricted. Though it could be fun.

You wouldn't fall. I would take over before you fell.
Trisha wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that either. Wouldn’t some kind of transformation be painful too?
“I think I’ll stick to the tried and tested methods then. If you’ve got a spell that works for it… then I’d like to try it sometime. Just to see what it's like and if I enjoy it… it’s kind of like trying out an extreme sport right? Just magical. I trust you and your magic.”

Hmph.
Trisha let out a soft laugh, wriggling a bit in Casey’s arms. Her head came to rest on his shoulder, tilting up to smile at him.
“I think I upset her. During the meeting she… promised to help more. I’m just not sure if I’m comfortable with doing more with it.” She quietly brought up the dreaded meeting. The thing they hadn’t talked about much before having a fight. But she felt comfortable with him right now… and she’d put herself in a position where she couldn’t escape. But he couldn’t either.

”Who… You mean the Queen? What’d possibly upset her, huh? She’s got life on easy street as far as Apparitions go. You’ve had enough money to maintain her subjects, taken good care of them. You’re a good proxy. And a strong woman for dealing with, y’know, sixty thousand kids or whatever.” Casey laughed, shaking his head and rubbing Trisha’s arms to calm her down a little bit.

He could feel her tensing as she brought the meeting up, probably worried about whether or not he’d really gotten over it. But, if he hadn’t, would they be here now? The thought didn’t come anywhere near his mouth, just rolling around in his head playfully until it tipped out the side and down to the ground below them. He’d pick it up later…

”But, I mean… Tell me about it? I’m all ears, my Love…”

“Well, I’m not really sure why she’s upset… she just huffed in my mind when I said I’d rather use your magic,” Trisha said softly, relaxed again against him. It was difficult to retain any tension when he was so warm… so comforting. Even as they moved further and further up into the sky. Maybe it was the safety, maybe it was that she wouldn’t mind falling like this.

“She said she’d teach me how to fly. And at the meeting she promised to teach me more of her magic. I want to learn more for the bees… if I can use my pheromones better, or help them more. But if it comes with… physical changes. Like Lila. What if I end up like her? She wasn’t like that before.”

Casey shrugged.
”Well, I’d say… If you haven’t heard anything from her until now, and she’s offering to teach you things but you deny her? Sounds like there's a contribution to hurt feelings there. If she can teach you how to fly, and you’re capable, then I say you should just ask her more questions instead of… Y’know…”

He trailed off, hoping that she’d understand what he meant. The whole idea of listening and responding shouldn’t ever be a question to ask. It was only right that she should try to get all the information and understanding she could from the Queen.

Trisha did understand. It didn’t mean she was entirely comfortable with it. She tensed up a bit again. She’d gotten so used to doing things herself, and the way things were. Complacency. There hadn’t really been any want to change things. To change herself, or to improve. She’d been stuck until she met Casey. But… It was scary.

“But it’s scary,” she admitted quietly. Barely a whisper. Then, a little louder.
“And she said if I fall she’d take control.”

”But have you even considered asking her what she meant?” he questioned gently, the early afternoon sun finally shining through the island’s vague misty haze.
They were making their way to the top now, and Casey pointed out to the St. Portwell skyline in the distance.
”Oh, wait… See? This is supposed to be the payoff. Y’get up here, the clouds part, and you can see the beauty and splendor of the city… Takes your mind off things. Supposed to kind of overwhelm the senses, and make you feel some kind of passion or nostalgia.”

Trisha turned her head to look where Casey was pointing. It was beautiful. Appreciated more from where she was nestled against him. Nostalgia… there was certainly a feeling of that. Maybe less nostalgia, but relief. The city still existed. It had been rebuilt. The nightmare from ten years ago that still haunted her was in the past. Things were better now.
“It is really nice. Worth risking my life over.” The last bit was a joke, said with a smile.

I’m sorry. Can we talk about it later? she whispered in her mind.
I suppose.

It was enough. As they moved past the peak of the ferris wheel, Trisha turned from looking at the beautiful sights of the city to the beautiful sight of her boyfriend.
“I hadn’t considered it… because she used to never answer. But I’ll ask. Not right now, when we’re on a date… but another time. Because I do want to improve my magic.”

Casey’s face turned into a wry grin as he considered what she said.
”Hey, listen… You’re not gonna offend me… I can-”
His gloved hand slipped into his coat, pulling out a pair of reading glasses without actual lenses in them. As they connected with his fingertips, an orange glow radiated from where the lenses should’ve been, forming an octogrammal pattern of runes within that slowly faded away into nothingness…

”-just check on how things are going on Elysium. I have a little excuse, you have a little excuse, we accept it and kiss one another the next pass around. If I have it my way, we’ll spend forever together. Hopefully see things even more beautiful than this…”
Though the thought only passed through his mind, “Except for you.” was the most prominent thought of what to say. But, he figured it’d be way too corny.

“It’s not about offending you… but alright. You check, I’ll talk… and I’ll be waiting for that kiss.” Trisha smiled warmly at him, eyes creasing with joy at the thought of forever together. That’s what she wanted too. She hoped it would work out like that. That she wouldn’t become too much for him… But she wouldn’t think about that right now. Instead she relaxed against Casey, half closing her eyes.

So… What did you mean by take over?
Silence. A short while, and she asked again. Still silence. So she’d gone back to sleep… that was fine. Trisha didn’t mind. She had said later after all. So instead she tilted her head up, languidly watching Casey.

From the moment she was paying attention to him again, it was clear that Casey was enraptured by the happenings on the other island. His mouth was open wide, and one fist was clenched as he stared in awe. He’d not seen something like that on such a scale since Africa…
He quickly had the glasses off, looking back down at Trisha.
”If you’re done already, Babe, check it the fuck out! Drake Blackmore just disappeared, and now there’s a giant skeleton!” he exclaimed with the enthusiasm of a child on Christmas.

Trisha wasn’t sure if that was a good thing. Drake was a dick, but not so much that he deserved to just straight up disappear. And a giant skeleton… but Casey was so excited. She didn’t entirely get it, and there was that irrational jealousy seeing him so enraptured by something that wasn’t her… but she pushed it down as best as she could. He was with her. He’d chosen her over the fight.

“Mm, it was a quick talk,” Trisha smiled, reaching up to take the glasses from him. She put them on and turned towards where Elysium was. The giant skeleton was immediately obvious… then the Sycamore members. Aryin and Jack doing something together, Lila- that bitch- was even more crow than before… Sully was hiding behind a bush that did nothing to hide his bare ass.

That was a picture she wouldn’t get out of her mind.

Then there were people she didn’t recognise. Greenwood and 317, presumably. No Elite members. As far as she was aware, none of them could summon a giant skeleton… so it must be from someone they’d hired. There was nobody dead, and the few members she cared about weren’t there.
“Wow. I didn’t know the Elite had a giant skeleton in the back pocket. At least it doesn’t seem to be going badly?” There was a bit of forced enthusiasm there, because for Trisha seeing magical fights like this- with these people- was too reminiscent of the Stygian Snake days. But Casey’s happiness was hers, so it wasn’t entirely forced.

”Hey, nobody we know is a pasty corpse from what I can see… Not sure what happened to Drake, but whatever, dude’s a Blackmore. If he can’t handle himself, I bet his Dad would’ve killed him a long time ago.”
Casey knew more about the Blackmore lineage than Drake himself. They were one of the rival clans of prominence in this neck of the woods. While he hadn’t known much before his coronation, the imparted knowledge stream included potential enemies… And they were counted among them.

Regardless, Casey pulled the glasses off Trisha’s face and comfortably slid them back into his pocket.
”Still… That’s settled in my mind. No more thinking about it at all. Right?” he asked playfully as they descended back into the misty veil of the island.

And eventually, Trisha would get that kiss. Another rotation, and Casey made it a point to say one thing he thought was beautiful about the city they both came from before giving Trisha a passionate kiss until they descended once more. They must’ve spent an hour on that ride, just talking and passing sweet nothings between one another before the crowds had built up enough. Eventually the attendant simply couldn’t justify continuous rides…

It was plenty of time, and left them looking for the next thrill. What few there were, anyway… Spinning in some kind of circle seemed to be the theme, with a himalaya ride called “The Spiral” letting them both experience a fraction of the g-forces that a fighter pilot would. It wasn’t awful, but Casey couldn’t help noticing that she was absolutely white-knuckled the entire time. Like the machine was bound to snap itself off the track and fly away. It wasn’t going to, of course, as whoever was in charge of this little carnival seemed to be a skilled Orange practitioner.
He made a mental note to find out who was responsible, so he could glean some insight.

The finale of the rides, and the one that looked most dangerous even to Casey, was the seemingly hastily slapped together roller coaster. It wasn’t like one at a major amusement park; this one was scaffolding and wooden blocks holding up ten tons of metal and track. It was a single hill, with one hard loop right after the drop and some twists and turns before arriving back at the beginning.
Nothing to be worried about… Not that it shook, or rattled, or looked like the bolts were about to fall out. This one was touched just the same, so he had to trust it.

That didn’t mean Trisha did, however. No matter how much enthusiasm Casey tried to pour into the situation, he still had to catch the look of death on Trisha’s face as they came off it and down the ramp.
”See!? Not so bad! We’re all done, Babe!” he exclaimed, wrapping her in his arms on solid ground.

“I’m never going on a ride like that again,” Trisha whispered, pressing her whole body against his. It still felt like everything around her was wobbling. Her stomach felt like it was in her mouth. But more than anything, she’d hated how she couldn’t do anything about it the whole time. That was what had been the scariest.

She was trembling slightly, but eventually that subsided as the solidness of him holding her and the ground underneath her feet got through.
“I’m… still glad we did it. Even though I hated it. I wouldn’t have even tried if I wasn’t with you. But I definitely need some kind of massive plushie after that.”

Casey was excited to hear that… While Trisha was panicked on the coaster, Casey was taking the chance to scope out the booths that they hadn’t reached yet… So, he’d been able to keep the perfect secret.
”Oh, my sweet, sweet Trisha Bee… How right you are…”

Like he’d already done several times that day, Casey playfully scooped Trisha out from under herself again… This time probably caused a bit of a panic attack, but there wasn’t a lot that could be done about that. He was going to keep her one hundred percent safe, so she’d just have to get used to it.
And he took off into a full sprint like he’d stolen the prized pumpkin from the county fair, massive feet slapping off the pavement as he made way for the games at the edge of the park.

There, at the center of them all, was a large pool. It was waist height, and chalk full of little metal fishes sitting at the bottom of the water. Each one had a hook on it, and there were rods placed all around the thing. The attending individual was a friendly looking man with a “Women want me, Fish fear me” hat proudly sitting on his head…
But the main attraction was the grand prize… The size of a truck tire, and covered in shaggy orange fuzz, was something that looked like a tiger. But as Casey got close to it and rotated it in his hand, he nearly snapped it off it’s hanger out of excitement. Holding it fully, he turned its face upright and spun it to face Trisha.

In his hands, was a massive orange and black stuffed Bumble Bee. The fuzzy fur was meant to mimic the friendly little ladies, and its face was the cutest and most welcoming cartoon smile that Casey could think of.

“Ooooh, discerning eye, huh? We also have it in Red and the classic Yellow if you’d prefer.” the man offered, waving his hand over his game.
“This game, we call Fishin’ Tycoon. You get seven pulls. You get a matching pair, you get a little guy. Get three of a kind, you get the medium. Four? That’s your prize right there, our humble Bee friend. There’s fifty-two fish in the sea, you see… Just like a deck of cards. Five bucks, seven chances to draw.”

Casey’s face was bright with excitement.
”Well shoot, that’s pretty simple rules. Trisha? You wanna fish-a? Too, I mean?” he blushed slightly.

Trisha’s eyes pulled away from the massive, adorable Bumble Bee to Casey’s lit up face. His excitement was contagious… and she was excited too. She really wanted the bee. It was so big, she wasn’t even sure what they’d do with it… but it was so cute. Just like her girls.

“Fish-a? Sure, I wanna fish-a,” Trisha teased him with a giggle. She couldn’t help but reach up to squeeze one of his cheeks. He was cute too. His excitement and blushing just made her feel so warm. Happy, like she could fully be herself too.

She turned towards the large pool, looking down at it. Then back at Casey. She grinned.
“Sooo, you won’t be upset if I get the four matching fish and win the bee for myself, will you?”

Casey handed over a tenner, shaking his head and smiling.
”Why would I be upset? Like the rest of our lives together, right now, we’re working toward the same goal. If anything, I’d be super excited if you win it… Because that means if the world ends, you’ll be able to go and fish for us so I can focus on something else!” he chided, a finger reaching out to tickle her side playfully.

“Awwww, you’ve got a winner there, Little Lady. That’s a man built for marriage; took me twenty years to piece out somethin’ like that with my wife. Granted, she ‘int know she was my wife, I was living in the crawlspace behind the stairs then… Anyway!!! Iiiiiiiiits Fishing Tycoooooooooon! Grab your rods and fish your seven! Bring ‘em up one at a time, and we’ll reveal the results at the eeeeend!”

Then the man hit a switch, and crazy fishing music started playing. There weren't any other players, so the work wasn’t quite as frenetic as it otherwise would’ve been. While Casey didn’t want to get Trisha wet, since he didn’t want her to be cold, she had no such compunctions. Each flick of the chain on the fishing rod at her end caused water to splash up and spatter across Casey’s jacket and pants. He didn’t mind… It made him smile that she was feeling so playful even after the horrifying roller coaster ride.
Eventually, the two of them had gathered a total of fourteen metal fishes, placed into a basket at the center of the pool which the attendant then pulled out. Two baskets, two people. There were little hangers next to the old man meant for holding the little fish hooks up.

This let the players see the results like a scoreboard, meaning that Casey and Trisha could see their own individual failures… Out of seven, the first three for Casey were duds. After that, two separate pairs meant that he could theoretically pick out two small prizes… But they were all different kinds of clownfish, which were far less appealing.
Trisha had managed to pull a three of a kind and two other pairs, leaving her with a theoretical prize takeaway of either a purple raccoon or a turquoise tortoise (say that five times fast), as well as two fish of her own.

“Well I’ll be damned… I haven’t seen synchronised whiffing like that since the interpretive spoiled milk contest fifteen years ago…”
The man seemed to be pondering the fish as if he were reading the bones… Looking back at the couple, he frowned.
“Y’know… I was gonna say that it was pretty unfortunate, but… Y’know young man? You inspired me to look at things a different way. Like you said, you two? Working together… Sooooo…”

Casey had already spotted the unfortunate circumstance: That between the two of them, they’d managed to pull a four-of-a-kind out of the pond, effectively crushing their chances of either of them getting that set. But, as they were suits of cards with fifty-two in the pond, he had a flashback of all those nights spent playing poker and rummy in the holes.
He had seen the four Aces the moment he realized Trisha had two.

“I think… That because of that, we’re gonna go ahead and accept this four of a kind here! Any objections?” he asked the couple, his hook tool already sliding the four aces off their spots and holding them up for the duo to see.

”Oh, my God!? No way! No objections from me! Babe?” Casey asked.

Trisha had been disappointed too, but trying her best to temper it. She’d still got something. The purple raccoon was cute. It wasn’t quite the bee… but it was cute enough… it had to be…

“Huh?” Trisha looked up from accepting her failure, taking a moment to buffer and process what was said. He was… letting them take the bee? Combining their fish? Seriously?!
“Y-yeah, of course! No objections.” Trisha’s whole face lit up.

She didn’t waste any time in bouncing forward to take the massive orange and black striped bee. It was incredibly soft, the fluff getting right in her face as she grabbed it. And it was massive. More than half her size… the thing had to be about a metre in height. She could barely get her arms around it.
“Look, Babe, it’s practically my size! A Trisha sized bee!” Trisha giggled as she was practically drowned by it. Most of her face was covered, eyes peering over the top of that fluff at him.
“Should we name it?”

”I think its only right we name her Princess! After all, I mean… She’s not the Queen... But, like… Look at her!” Casey was all smiles, pushing close to Trisha and wrapping his arms around the giant bee and her at the same time.

“She really does look like a Princess,” Trisha giggled, leaning into Casey. She just felt so… happy. Genuine unadulterated joy.
“She’s so cute…”

”Holy crap, I mean… Mister, thank you! Seriously, we’ve… Got a thing for Bees!”

“Oh, I could tell from the initial excitement. I just hope you two treat Princess very well. Maybe, uh… Y’know… Some kind of protective spell.”
Casey’s eyes narrowed. Instantly, Trisha would be able to feel a flare of White Lux across her Emotional Field. Casey’s hair jumped slightly in response, receiving the feedback that confirmed his suspicions.

He smiled. The old man smiled back.
”I’m sure we can find someone to do that… I can only hope that she looks as good as the rides around here do in twenty years time.”

The old man only giggled.
“Just be sure to spend some time at the other booths too… Ey, Tiger?”
”Aye, Captain. Will do…”

After that, the whole time was spent collecting a myriad of other forest friends for Princess to crowd around herself. The raccoon made a return at the baseball booth after Casey dumped ten dollars into trying to legitimately hit the grand prize target and missing. Trisha had wound up winning it herself in the end…
Another giant friend came at the cost of a little extra stress, as the shooting gallery was an absolute shooin’ for victory.

Only for Casey to embarrassingly prove that this particular booth was painfully rigged. Probably a holdover from the days that Soldiers had been the main participants, the moving targets were wound so tightly to their spool that no matter how many times he shot them, they wouldn’t fall.
Eventually the younger teen running the booth was so shocked that he had to get the old man… Not expecting to see them again, he could only laugh and brush over the little targets with a “special rag” that would “loosen the mechanism”.

This time, it was a much bigger version of the tortoise from before, this time in a deep forest green that Casey loved dearly. It made him think of his own tank bound pal at home, and he happily named the massive thing “Sherman” after the famous American tanks.
Eventually they came to the end, where there were some booths that had different carnival foods. Fried dough, cotton candy; anything one could think of.

Casey couldn’t help himself, and ordered a big cup of soda, a sealed bag of caramel popcorn, and an equally large bag of cotton candy to bring back to the hotel and beyond. Now sitting on one of the benches and ripping a piece out of the bag for Trisha and himself, he took a deep breath.
”I think we’re gonna have to go back to the room with all this stuff… Unless you don’t mind me using a bit of funny magic to make our lives easier?” he asked calmly and matter-of-factly.

“You can use magic, it’s not like… I mind you using it,” Trisha replied, tilting her head a little bit. She reached out to take a piece of candy and pop it into her mouth, letting it melt there before continuing.
“I’m not against magic use, or anything, I just don’t want to get dependent on it. Unless… by a bit funny you mean there’s some wild side effect of making our lives easier. We won’t, like, turn the colour of the plushies or something will we?”

”No, absolutely not. It just looks really goofy, and I’ll probably need to use your pockets too. It’s not infinite storage since I don’t know Purple Lux. But, I can affect the dimensions of a space to a certain extent due to my control over the object’s adherence to reality. I call them ‘Clown Pockets.’”

His hand slipped up to his jacket, glove rubbing the large outer side pocket. He then proceeded to pull the mouth of the pocket open, and open a bit more… And more… And more again, until it was finally big enough to accept Sherman being stuffed into it and closing without a second thought. All that was there was a little bulge… Presumably the absolute maximum extent of the spell. He then did it to the other pocket, stuffing his snacks and most of the other smaller plushies down into the abyssal pocket.

”Later when I deactivate the spell, it’s gonna spew everything out all over the hotel room, so it’ll be like a plushie rain.” he giggled. Then he outstretched his hand.
”Now you…”

Trisha stared at the effect of the spell before shuffling around to offer up the right pocket of her coat. She made sure to scoop the few bees that had ended up in there out, depositing them in the other one instead. It didn’t look too goofy. At least not so goofy when the spell was done that she felt she couldn’t walk around like that.

“Go on, clown my pocket,” she giggled, picking up and holding out Princess at the same time.
“At least I won’t risk bumping into things if she’s in my pocket like that… and the plushie rain sounds like a fun way to end the day. Like a little… celebration for a perfect date.”

Casey pushed up close to Trisha, a smile crossing his face as he held onto her coat. His hands massaged the coat around the pocket, and he chuckled loudly.
”Honk honk honk…”

And Trisha would be able to feel the pocket giving way to her arm stretching it, though it was only the mouth that comically widened, while the bottom of the pocket remained stationary in wait for cargo to accept. Casey helped keep it open, and Princess the giant bee slipped snuggly into place inside the magically fixed pocket. There was only a small bulge left where the bee’s girth was at its widest to even give a hint to its existence within.

”That’s a clown pocket if I’ve ever seen one. Feel weird? You good? I’m… I’m definitely gonna come back here tomorrow before we leave, and buy like six sausage sandwiches to bring home. Something about tube meat in a bun makes it… Appealing again? Intestines are the only thing I ever saw and went like… Yummy…” Casey offered a bit of insight into a half-broken mind with a not-so-hidden grin.

“All good, feels just like a normal pocket,” Trisha smiled at him, while she tried to process what he said about sausages and intestines. She wasn’t exactly the most squeamish thanks to everything she’d seen during the Stygian Snake… But she hadn’t seen guts like that. Loads of horrendous injuries, but she didn’t remember seeing intestines… It was a strange way to think about them. But she didn’t find herself feeling in any way negative towards it. This was Casey. She loved him. So if he was able to eat sausages unlike other meat because of a strange association? Good.

“Will they last all the way home? We could just… buy sausages and buns and make them… can’t be that hard, can it?” Trisha asked, tilting her head a bit. Acknowledge what he said about intestines, don’t acknowledge it… she probably should.
“Just the intestines? Aren’t there… other parts of the body that’re like… tube meat?”

Casey laughed aloud.
”The dick doesn’t tend to last through a bomb blast. But there’s a lot of intestines. They tend to splatter or coil or, y’know, they hang. Get on things. Links remind you of the butchers, since the muscle-”
Casey’s eyebrows furrowed, and he shook his head.
”-you don’t want to hear about that. Arms sometimes. Legs, no. It’s not pretty usually.”

He thought about the prospect of sausage sandwiches from home and wondered if Andrade had a technique for imparting that smokey grill flavor without the grill. And the onions. The peppers… It always tasted so good from the fucking stands, he rarely ever thought about making one himself.
His hand reached out and offered itself to Trisha.
”C’mon Babe. Still want to go to the shops? Or you wanna take a break before dinner?” he asked gently, thinking about that little gun shop and whether or not he’d have to come back later.

“I want to shop- what’s the point of a date if we just do what we’d do at home?” Trisha took his hand immediately, fingers threading through his. It was a bit ironic coming from the person who’d suggested they stay in bed earlier… But that was because of the mood. Now that they were out she wanted to enjoy being out with him. While the rides had been intense and not the most enjoyable experience, she wasn’t tired enough to need rest. Honestly… shopping was something she could do in almost any condition.
“Where first? The nice smelling shop, or… do you want to go to the gun one first?”

”Which one is more boring? We’ll get the worst done first.” he offered, feeling her hand in his and welling up with a sense of joy and love that he wasn’t used to. At least, not until recently. Her. She was all the love and joy he needed to keep going.

“More boring for me or for you?” Trisha asked teasingly, with a little giggle. It was pretty obvious which one would be more boring for him… And she didn’t really have a preference. She wasn’t really interested in guns, but she was looking forward to watching him look at them. She’d enjoy his enjoyment…
“Nice smelling one first, then. Candles are just objectively more boring than guns, right?”

Casey shrugged his shoulders.
”Candle Making is an ancient art! Definitely objectively cool. But uh… We’ll probably spend more time in the gun store anyway. Unless they’ve got nothing, obviously. There’s a chance of that, since it’s such a small place.”

His bad rambling habit aside, Casey took the first stride forward out of the fairground and back toward the main strip of stores nearby. Careful to let Trisha follow along as opposed to dragging her, they made their way back around the bend and down toward the coastline, waves crashing as evening started to settle in. It was a beautiful place, even with the constant mist generally obscuring the path ahead.
Casey hadn’t checked on Elysium since they’d been on the Ferris Wheel, and was satisfied by the lack of calls being made to his cell. Nothing bad happened… Probably.

So, Casey contemplated: Why do I feel so strange?
His brow furrowed, and he looked down at Trisha. His White Lux rippled across her very noticeably. But he didn’t let her sit waiting for an explanation.

”Babe? Are you… Making any funky gas? Y’know, your pheromones? I’m getting this really weird feeling…” he asked her, concern in his voice despite his walking pace not slowing down.

Trisha looked up at him with some confusion, feeling the White Lux wash over her. There was a reactive pheromonal response, but only one that had her bees crawling out of their various hiding spots with equal confusion to hers. Just her normal pheromones. He’d be able to sense the light waves coming off her with his magic. But she was always giving them off a little, so it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.

“Not that you’d feel.” She shook her head, trying to press down the panicked feelings in her gut that could lead to those pheromones. It was Casey’s concern- getting a weird feeling. It was probably nothing, right? But it could be something.
“I can make you feel angry, panicked, or more attracted to me- not weird. It’s not me.”

”Panic applies… Probably just anxiety from some shitty memory. China got real foggy like this, that’s probably it.”
Casey’s arms pulled Trisha just a bit closer than she had been. Just enough.
”Can you get some of the girls to look around for us? Just… Ahead? Off on the sides, behind us. Fan ‘em out?”

He was a little embarrassed about asking her to do this. Mostly because he didn’t want to kill the joy of the date. They’d had such a nice time, after all. How could he make a big deal out of anything after that? But he was, only so much as he felt like it was necessary.
”I’m sorry… I hate to ask.” he confided quietly.

“It’s okay, I can,” Trisha replied softly, furrowing her brow. Maybe it was just anxiety. Though, it wasn’t coming from her. Her control wasn’t perfect but she knew when she was using those pheromones. They’d smell it, too. But it could just be him… and she didn’t mind doing something to put his mind at ease.

She only had about twenty with her, but that should be enough. She carefully split them into pairs, pausing in place as she did so. It was difficult for her to walk and command… She had to give each pair a slightly different direction, with the same instruction of looking around. For what? Suspicious people… but bees couldn’t tell that. People at all? Think about how it had been with the Stygian Snake when she used them to scout… just report to her what was around. Movements.

Most of the bees took off, leaving a small amount clinging to her neck. She looked back up at Casey.
“I can sense them, but it’s fainter the further they get away. I have to concentrate a bit more on it. They don’t really… understand what they’re looking for, but I’ll know if there’s anyone around.”

”If you can, pump them a little bit.”
What’s wrong with you?
”Wait, no! No… Just keep them nearby. Enough that you’re not straining. We don’t need to see too far, just let them be around. And keep going to the store.”

He was so used to those silly tactics… The ones that didn’t place a great deal of care for human life. Plenty of units had at least one or two Black adepts responsible for frontline recovery and recon. The dead made the best flank guards, seeing as how they couldn’t complain and their re-death usually didn’t affect the Necromancer. But these bees were part of Trisha… They were part of her sensory systems. She felt each and every death. He couldn’t send them out as bait to tempt a strike, or they’d die.

But the shops were close.
”I’m gonna pull you… I’m sorry!”
If there was anything Casey was good at, it was directional communication. Clear declaration of intent was key to battlefield communication.

Trisha would feel her arm tugged and pulled up into a jog. Casey brought them up to the side of the building, then took a deep breath.
”You’re not gonna be able to get a clear communication with them from inside, are you? Pull ‘em in.”

Trisha just shook her head a moment after he spoke, reaction delayed. She was having to process the pheromones being sent to her by the scout bees while making sure they knew where she was to follow. Then there was a translation- understanding what they were telling her, which was like a second nature to her now, and separating the useless information from useful. Most of this felt useless. But it wasn’t their fault, they couldn’t really understand.

But it was frustrating she couldn’t do anything to help. If this was something, rather than paranoia. But she trusted Casey.
All the bees she’d sent out came back, landing on her body and crawling into her jacket to hide themselves before they went inside the shop. Unlike her, they were happy to have done what they’d been told- a job well done to the girls.
“I’m sorry, they didn’t see anything. Well, they saw things, but it was all just… objects…”

Casey was quick to give Trisha a reassuring pat on the rear.
”You’re doin’ great, Babe. It’s a muscle, right? Gotta keep it worked out.”
He wasn’t going to clarify whether or not it was a drill. It wasn’t, but she didn’t need to get too panicked by thinking that it was totally out of their control.

So he did his best to calmly sweep around the building to the front and into the shop. It smelled like gunmetal, a little sulfur, mineral lubricants and cigarettes. The main display consisted of a dozen hand-crafted six-shooters tucked into velvet boxes matching each piece’s aesthetic.
Casey felt a little safer just looking at them. His face lit up immediately, and he gravitated toward them.

There were handles with pearl, blue-steel frames pressed with all sorts of different designs, gold trim and ebony wood. Each one was a little art piece of its own. Casey’s finger pointed up, his body able to take a breath and smile properly at Trisha.

”See, these are nice show pieces! Put ‘em high on a wall in a glass case, get the Smith’s stamp of approval and hang it alongside? It’s just a 3-D picture, right?” he asked with a chuckle.

As Casey seemed to relax, Trisha did too. If anywhere was safe, it was a gun shop… assuming any possible threat hadn’t gotten to the guns first. But he had magic to control objects, so it was fine even in that very hypothetical situation. She slotted in against his side, leaning into him slightly as she followed his finger up to the show pieces. They were aesthetically pleasing to the eye, even if she didn’t really understand it.

But he was happy about it, so she smiled and nodded. Still, she couldn’t help but ask…
“Can you use them? I see how it’s like a 3-D picture, but… art’s just art. I don’t entirely understand why you’d display a gun you then can’t use. Can it not be practical and nice looking?” Her tone was completely earnest, looking up at him with an open expression. Not judging, just wanting to understand.

”Uhh…-”
The question gave Casey a bit of a stop-start sensation in his brain. He wasn’t expecting the practical nature hidden behind her typically unassuming exterior. But she was right; there’d be no point if you couldn’t use them.
”-I mean, you can? They just require a lot of maintenance to stay pretty like they are… From regular people, I mean. Me? It stays nice. Y’know, one of the first real spells I made was to keep maintenance down to a minimum, but now that I’m home I still clean them. Every single time.”

He turned his head to look around. By that time, someone had come out from the back. Unassuming man, exactly what one would expect someone working behind the counter at a gun store to look like. That, plus the fishing Uncle at the game back in the park. Casey threw him a nod and a wave, looking back to the revolvers in the display.

“They are for sale! Unaccepted commissions; stuff we’ve had sent back that wasn’t up to grade for the customer.”

Casey chuckled to himself.
”Oh? Just aesthetic disagreements I hope.” he said with a calm and firm reply.

“Tags’ll say what happened. But, yeah. Generally speaking, it’s dumb stuff that either the original customer wasn’t clear on, or legitimate goofs on our part. Both we cover, and hope that someone else can appreciate the piece as it is. They’re up on our website too…”

Casey nodded, looking down at Trisha again.
”You like any of ‘em? Not that they’d be for you, but one you could deal with looking at? I wanna put it over the mantle at home. I was also thinking we could get you something you like preemptively. Or, y’know, not. It’s fine. There’d be paperwork and stuff for both of us to do.” he shrugged.

“Something I like… for me to use?” Trisha asked, head turning from looking up at Casey to looking at the show pieces. One that she could deal with looking at… They all looked nice enough. And she really wasn’t that fussy about how they decorated their home, as long as it didn’t look sterile. Or he didn’t start putting up so many guns there was more gun than wall.

She pointed to one that’s intricate design seemed vine-like. Reminiscent of a forest floor on a gun.
“That one’s nice. But none of them are bad... it’s not like you’re asking to hang up some massive rifle on the wall. That’s just my preference from them all. And I’m fine to fill out paperwork… as long as it’s with you, even that can be fun.” Her voice got a bit softer towards the end, quiet enough so only he could hear.

”We make everything fun… But yeah I was eyeing that one too.”
The one she picked out had the ebony grip, which Casey appreciated as an aesthetic choice with the vines traveling across the cylinder and up the barrel. Like some kind of dead rose bush or something reaching out to nothing.

”I wonder what kind of person ordered that.”
Looking closer at the specimen, Casey found the tag on display.
Carving/Engraving Error: Lack of excess material for further design.
Casey shook his head and laughed.
”Oh, boy… Alright, aptitude test. No failure pressure, I don’t have any idea if you’ll put it together. But what do you think that tag means for like… The gun, y’know? Like, reading that, what do you think that description means?”

Trisha's face scrunched up slightly, nose wrinkling and lips pursing. It was cutely thoughtful, even if internally she was panicking just a little bit. He said there was no failure pressure, but failing was failing. Her eyes narrowed at the tag, then at the gun itself, as if that would help answer. What does it mean for the gun? Her initial reaction was they ran out of materials to create the rest of the design… but that wouldn’t really affect the gun. Or would it, when it was mostly for aesthetics? Did they want to make a second matching one? No, that didn’t make sense either.

She was thinking way too hard about it, but she wanted to get it right. Maybe her gut instinct was right? It… seemed like it could be… what was the worst thing that could happen? Well, she’d fail, and Casey might be disappointed in her, and then he might-
“It couldn’t be completed properly? Like they needed to use different material for part of it, or there was meant to be more to the design?”

”More or less, yeah!”
He smiled at her, rubbing her shoulders gently and planting a kiss on her head.
”I bet what happened was that whoever was in charge of taking down the requirements for the commission did a poor job of explaining that there was supposed to be something else. So, when they realized the mistake, they’d already thinned out the metal too much. Especially around the barrel there; see how all the vines spiral together at the end? Too thin, it’s brittle and dangerous to shoot. So, they didn’t leave any extra material to work with. Hence the card..”

He knew she was going to get it. She used her brain for a living as far as he was aware… The man at the counter laughed.
“Yeah, we actually had the grip all carved wrong too. No room for the flowers that the customer wanted.”

It was nice to hear someone talk about a work mistake casually without fausting the blame back onto the customer. The guy could’ve implied it was the commissioner’s fault, or blamed anyone down the line… But facts were facts, and if they’d put the gun together like it was without a key piece of flair, he wouldn’t have accepted it either.
”Did it make it to the Customer?” Casey asked.

“Naaaah, we’re pretty good about keeping them posted through the process. The guy saw a picture of it one week, said it looked great, next week we said we were finished and he went ’Oh, so are you gonna weld the flowers on?’”

Casey laughed aloud.
”Oh, God no…”

“Yep! So, total do-over. Guy was mad, but probably not as mad as if he’d gotten it when he wanted it and it wasn’t right.”

”Amen. Can you wrap her up for me? And then we’re gonna be looking at compacts. Twenty-two, or nine mil maybe. You guys don’t have a range, do you?”

“Not a range, no. What we do have, however, is a neat little recoil machine. It’s kind of a toy, we got it for people stopping in as a kind of catch. But, it does work for what it is. I’ll bring you to it while I set this up… Y’all purchasing two?”

”The case gun, and then we’re looking for her first-timer, yeah.”

The man waved them around the corner into a closed off section of the store. There was an arcade-like machine set up to simulate a mock shooting range, and some fake guns attached to it that one could pull out like those standing arcade games. There was also a big screen with a digital target on it. On the panel, there were a billion different settings and selections on a smaller touch screen.

“Alright, so I reckon you’re not a novice?” the man asked Casey calmly.

”No sir, not at all. This is quite the setup, pretty intuitive. Does…-”
Casey’s finger was already sliding across the menu screen.
”-It’s got different powder loads and everything? That’s pretty intense, you can adjust it to feel exactly how the gun would feel stock.”

The man puffed his chest with a little pride.
“It’s a pretty solid piece of equipment. Bored on a slow day, I can come over here and plink away all day.”

Casey turned to Trisha.
”This is gonna help. It’s not dangerous at all. There’s like, motors and pistons in these things-” he said, swinging his hand to address the fake guns holstered in the machine.
”And so basically what we can do is let you feel the recoil. You can test what hurts your wrist and what doesn’t, and we can adjust from there.”

Seeing Casey already had a handle on things, the man nodded and stepped away toward the case with the revolver in it to prep it for Casey.

Trisha’s head tilted slightly as she stared at the machine. It was completely different to any she’d seen - though that was mostly just the type you’d actually get in an arcade. She tried not to think about what had happened the last time they were in front of a shooting arcade machine. This was completely different. A lot had changed since then too.

“You’re going to have to set it up for me. I don’t even know what gun to pick up. Or how to hold it.” She looked over at all the fake guns, then up at Casey.
“You’ll have to show me how to do that too… I assume if I hold it wrong it’ll hurt my wrist even if it's the right, uh, size? Or whatever we’re checking?”

Casey nodded, holding his hand out to the machine.
”What we’re gonna do is try some small calibers, see which you like. And yeah, hopefully this machine is accurate enough that we can kind of get you started on holding it right. How uh… Do you remember how it felt to shoot that gun the other day? With the cat?” he asked, gently explaining what was going to happen next for full clarity.

Trisha furrowed her brow, trying to remember the feeling. There’d been a lot going on then. She’d been incredibly panicked. That was the only reason she’d even been able to shoot it…
“I think so. It was heavier than I expected, and kind of pushed back at me. But I just picked it up and pulled the trigger in a panic, so I wasn’t really thinking.”

Casey nodded.
”Probably wouldn’t matter too much anyway. My pistol is so tuned with magic a baby could- We’ll get to that when we get there. For now, for your education and information, we’ll try this.”

Fingers sliding across the screen, Casey selected the nine millimetre caliber at a very basic grain level. Pulling the corresponding gun out of the slot, it was a pistol maybe six inches in length, and he very intentionally slid it into her hand.
”Lesson one. Never keep your finger on the trigger of a gun. If you’re not about to shoot-”

His hand crept against hers and rubbed it gently before pushing her index finger onto the trigger guard.
”-you keep your finger here. Just about every gun has one. The trigger guard. Blocks stuff from shooting the gun accidentally, including your fingers.”

Then he was behind her, free hand rubbing her shoulder while the other held hers in position. He slid that free hand down to her own, and brought it up underneath the gun. The mechanism was definitely an interesting modern haptic setup, and to be wireless to boot? It was impressive this little shop had such an expensive piece of equipment.
Regardless, Trisha’s hand seemed to slot into place under the magazine just fine.

”And then you support what you’re doing from this point. Can you make a seal-”

The education went on for some time with Casey moving Trisha into as good of a position as he could and showing her how to work the safety. It ended up being a real touch-fest, and Casey was trying to be playful while still being educational. Keeping the mood light. Eventually the time came for her to pull the trigger.

”Okay… Now, go ahead and slide your finger onto that trigger. Hold it in your hands firmly, but don’t squeeze because that messes up your shot. Align the dots like we talked about, and…-”

His hands let go of her, air replacing his warm embrace.

”- Remember the feeling. The stance. Ask yourself if you feel comfortable. And if you’re confident? Take the shot. Expect recoil.”

Trisha didn’t feel confident at all. At least, she didn’t feel confident she wouldn’t fuck it up somehow. Miss horrible- if this machine even registered that. It wasn’t a real gun, at least. She couldn’t shoot herself or someone else. But there’d been a lot of information passed over all at once. While she’d taken it in surprisingly well while it was mixed with playful touches and his warmth, she was going to have to go through it a couple of times. Would she really be able to get into this stance again? Hold it correctly?

She was trying her best to remember it all, and the feeling of the fake gun in her hands. If she hesitated more it would be obvious she wasn’t confident, and then it would seem like she wasn’t taking any of it in but she was.
Her whole face was scrunched up from concentrating so hard, and she tried her best to not squeeze it and align the dots. But as she pulled the trigger, she squeezed the whole gun, messing up her shot. The recoil was worse than she expected too.

“Ow,” Trisha pouted slightly. Obviously her wrists were weaker than she thought… or maybe she just wasn’t used to it. She tilted her head up towards Casey, still pouting.
“You planned this fancy date so we didn’t end up at a shooting range, yet we still ended up here. I can’t believe you.” It was hopefully obvious she was just joking as her pout curved up into a more teasing smile.

Casey’s first instinct was to comfort her. Despite the jump in her shot and the resulting unsteady recoil, she at least held onto the thing. He was surprised that it had a full slide function and everything. His eyes narrowed, and he slid the gun out of Trisha’s hand for a moment. Without taking much of a stance, he drew and aimed at the board, then pulled the trigger for himself.
”Well, that’s pretty much dead on I’d say. So, how hurt is it?”

Pulling out his glove, Casey suavely slipped the machine back into its holster and swung his arm down to hold Trisha’s wrist in his hand. He kissed the top of her head, letting a basic version of wound detection radiate across her arm. Nothing major, he figured- No broken bones or ligaments, no serious tears. Rupturing of blood vessels, some bruising for later maybe. But nothing a warrior who fought the Stygian Snake couldn’t handle. Even if she did downplay it.

”You think you wanna try again? Or do you want me to swap down to a slightly lower power cartridge?” he asked her with a gentle teacher’s questioning voice.

“It depends," Trisha frowned, dropping her hand to rub her wrist. It didn't exactly help. It was a bit tender to touch, in fact. She didn't exactly want to make a major fuss about something that came from her own physical weakness.
“How many times do you think I'd have to shoot? It's not so bad that I couldn't do that a couple of times… or was it because I squeezed the gun? And I wouldn't hurt if I did it properly?"

She didn't really know much about guns. What Casey asked didn't mean much to her, aside from her assumption it would recoil less, and…
“What’s the difference with a lower power cartridge?"

Casey liked where her head was at: Trisha was asking all the right questions, and he could only grin widely as he got to answer them.
”Oh… I’d say you’d maybe have to do it five times in a row.”

Sparing her a long diatribe, he decided to just give her the most grim scenario without exactly telling her: That she managed to see whatever contact was coming, and that she did draw and fire. Maybe in a panic, she gets it. She’s not going to stop firing until its done, and it’ll hurt… But five times accurately.

Because if those missed? She’d need one hell of a wall of bees to block the returns.

”Accurately, five times in a row. And as far as the lower power; for our purposes it’s just to gauge what’s most comfortable for your wrist and arms as it stands. If you’re not comfortable, you’re never going to want to shoot it, right?” he asked, knowing full well that anything could be adjusted.

Trisha nodded as she took in what he said. Five shots… she couldn't do five shots with that. Not unless she was desperate and willing to get hurt like that. And that wasn't the point. It was meant to be something she felt she could defend herself with… like he said, she'd never want to shoot it if she wasn't comfortable.

“Right… Then I want to try the lower power cartridge to see how it feels. Unless I'm going to hit the gym and work out my arms and wrists…." She laughed lightly. She didn't feel very confident about the whole thing… but Casey wanted her to have a pistol, and to learn how to use it. So she'd really try.
“I’m going to have to practice a lot to accurately shoot that many times… or at all."

Eyes narrowed, Casey’s finger scrolled through the machine’s options while his free hand kept rubbing Trisha’s wrist. He didn’t want her to be too uncomfortable.
”I’m going to make… A controversial decision. But its one I think you’ll wind up appreciating more later on.”

His fingers tapped away, and then he pulled the fake pistol out again to hand over to Trisha.

”Depending on the bullet and its properties, I have different spells that do different things. If we’re going to get you comfortable with shooting any kind of gun without magic, it should at least be a platform that I can easily work with later on. That way, you’ll have the perfect fit for you. What you used was a nine millimeter. Roughly four and a half foot-pounds of recoil energy driving back at you.”

Slowly, he started to maneuver her back into stance.
”It doesn’t sound like a lot when you put it like that, but four and a half pounds travelling at a pretty high momentum is enough to do exactly what that did: Hurt your wrist. This caliber shaves off roughly a third of that energy.”

Casey’s massive hands were gentle as he reset Trisha tenderly into position.
”Take all the time you need. Fire when ready, and always point the gun forward toward your target before you ever touch the trigger.”

“Y’know I don't know enough about guns to understand what's controversial or not? You're going to have to explain that to me too," Trisha smiled up at Casey.

She carefully did what Casey said, making sure the gun was pointed forward at the board. Her finger moved off the trigger guard and into the trigger itself. It took her a moment to remember exactly what he said… hold it firmly, align the dots. Then pull the trigger.

It still wasn't perfect. She struggled with pulling the trigger with one finger while not squeezing with the others, making the shit shaky again. It recoiled back, and her already tender wrist wasn't particularly happy about it. But it felt more comfortable. She could tell that there hadn't been as much backward force with it.
“I think that felt better? It still hurt a bit but… I guess that's something I'm going to have to work on? My shooting and my strength?"

Casey nodded affirmingly.
”Better is good! Better is way better than you crying or yelling, right? You’re exactly correct. There’s gonna be a while where you maybe just have to want to shoot the gun. Then you’ll get used to it, like any other workout.”

He stuffed the gun back into the slot again, and the monitor responded by opening back up to let him flip through again.
”Just for shits and giggles-” he laughed to himself, flicking through the menus again until he handed the gun back one last time.
”-Try this. And see if you can stance up yourself.”

“You haven't made it super powerful, have you?" Trisha looked up at him with joking suspicion.
“If it breaks my wrist I really will cry and yell.”

With a teasing smile, she tried her best to get back into the right stance. At least she hadn’t really moved her legs, and she could kind of remember the feeling. It was just getting her hands and fingers in the right places. It was obvious that she was thinking pretty hard as she tried to remember everything he’d said. If she’d known this was going to end up as an impromptu shooting lesson she would’ve brought a notebook…

Eventually, she managed to remember it all. She’d been slow and methodical, going through things in the same order Casey had when first showing her. Useless in a real situation where she had to use it, but at least she’d remembered it. Then she took aim, pulling the trigger. It still shook a bit, but it was an improvement again.
And it barely pushed back at all.

“That didn’t hurt- is that, like, a gun with no bullets?” Trisha asked, looking up at Casey with raised eyebrows.
“Or ones without much power? It practically felt like nothing- but if it was useful everyone would go for that, right?”

”That was good ol’ twenty-two. The bane of small rodents and varmints across the world. It’s a real little bullet, meant for shooting at like rabbits or skunks; shit on the farm that you don’t want there. But anything much bigger than the local rodent population, you start to have complications. And so do I: There’s not much bullet to enchant there.” he answered, placing one last kiss on the top of her head.

”But regardless of that, good job Babe. You tried it out, and now we know. I’ll probably hold off buying anything for you here. The paperwork we’d need to do for getting that second one would be more than either of us probably want to do tonight. Unless you really want to get it over with.”

“Aw, but I really wanted to go rodent hunting next,” Trisha pouted playfully. She put the pistol she was still holding back in its holster, before turning properly towards Casey. She tilted her body forward, arms going around him while her face pressed into his chest.
“Taking my reward for trying now… Mmm, comfy. And you’re right, I don’t really want to be stuck doing paperwork tonight. I’m fine with this, but paperwork isn’t a great date activity.”

She tilted her head back to look up at him with a mischievous smile, chin still pressing into his chest.
“Tonight’s for cuddling and other fun things.”

Casey’s grin only widened as he shook his head slightly.
”God, you’re stripping me with your eyes… I’m so uncomfortable.” he joked, laughing as he took both her hands and brought them upward.

”Come on… Don’t you wanna douse me in something nice before you unwrap me?” he asked in reference to the other shop he had intended on stopping by.
”Let me just wrap up here.”

Trisha’s eyes widened innocently even as her smile widened and became even more teasing. She was fine with him wrapping everything up but… she couldn’t help a little joke back.
“Who said anything about stripping? Your mind’s the one going straight to the gutter, Babe… I could’ve meant any kind of fun!”

Casey just grinned down at her like a beam of sunshine.
”You’re gonna be a problem one day… A problem I want, maybe, but still.” he giggled, wrapping his arm around her and finally stepping away from the interesting almost arcade-like machine.

---

There was another hour or so spent with Casey filing forms to own the gun legally, the paperwork, pulling up his military record and the like. At least it was the modern day, and they had computers to do most of the work.

Once they were done, Casey had his new purchase in its temporary case and tucked into a bag which he held by his side. Better to have the easy access just in case. However, that was instinct tricking the poor man, as he’d chosen not to get any bullets. Intending to keep it as a trophy, Casey didn’t even think about wanting to shoot it. It was just on hand now as they made way for the perfume store.
Thankfully, nobody needed to wave a firearm around in there. It was a peaceful and mellow atmosphere, and while Trisha had a slightly hard time adjusting the bees at first, they managed to spend another hour there. Time was spent popping the tops on candles, finding a nice potpourri blend for the house, and the two of them spraying each other with scents and taking great huffs of the stuff.

They couldn’t possibly outspend the gun purchase, even though they were coming out with bags of candles for later. The sun was down on the island now, and the air was brisk as the fog was thick. It almost felt like walking through a thin sheet of ice with each passing step, and looking back would reveal the traveler’s path with increasingly darkening gaps.

In this air, Casey felt a bit more alive. He hated the heat, especially having spent so much of his military service in hot climates. The heat wasn’t nice, and you could only strip down to your bare essentials before the sun became an unstoppable discomfort. Why not take the long way back to the room? Their little pillbox they were sharing the night in. So, rather than the direction most exact to their destination, he casually wandered them off toward a path that he knew went toward a set of battlements. Something to overlook the ocean, and from which they could pivot back toward the warmth of their room.

There were still lights out here. Park lights, like little beacons evenly spaced out one after another. But everything faded away in that fog. Seeing ahead of you was part guess no matter what.
”Uhohhhh… Are we… Lost?” Casey finally said in a very sarcastic tone.

”I guess we’ll have to just, like, wander around forever. Until we die of frostbite.”

“See, now you’re just asking for trouble,” Trisha giggled in response. She’d shuffled as close to Casey as was possible while walking, sucking in the gentle warmth he was radiating. It was really cold now that the sun had dipped below the horizon, but she didn’t entirely mind it. She was dressed for the weather, at least.

“Isn’t the best way to survive those conditions to strip and cuddle? Or maybe it isn’t, and the people that find our bodies will be in for a shock.”

”Enough shock to take pictures; they’ll never see something so perfect again probably.”
Casey wiggled his eyebrows at her playfully, giggling as they walked along. The sound of the shore being constantly hit by wave after wave of water echoed in the near distance, telling them they were close to the beach without being able to see it. At this point, at least there were small stone barriers preventing any mistaken wandering off the path.

”So… Good day spent? Do it again sometime?” he asked in a very casual way.

“Hmmm…” Trisha pretended to think about it, as if there was anything to think about. Of course it was. Of course she wanted to do it again sometime. And again, and again. More than that, she was thinking about how she wanted to answer. Jokingly? Keep it casual? Or be more honest?

She felt she owed him it, after he’d done all of this for her… he already knew that her past partners hadn’t really treated her in the same way. Not that they’d all treated her badly. Not at all, just… not the same.
“Definitely. It’s… the nicest date I’ve ever been on. Thank you for putting so much effort in for me. I haven’t really… had that before. Or think I could.” She smiled up at him, opening herself up just a bit. It was a further admittance of the past, after all.

Casey smiled back down at her, arm curling her tighter to him as she spoke. It felt very real to him, like she’d really felt that in her heart. He’d done a great job of not reading her expressions, or the inflection in her voice, and just accepted what she had to say as the truth. It was trust.
”They’re not all gonna be hits, but I promise we’ll try and do something interesting no matter what. But if you’ll be there with me, Trisha, then they’ll always be good.” he spoke softly, looking down at her with the same expression she gave him.

Genuine care.

”Thanks for putting up with all the bullshit around me.” he warmly intoned.
Feet stopped against the cobblestones, and he held Trisha in place with both arms now. He had her wrapped up in a loving embrace.

”I love you.”

“I love you too.” Trisha smiled softly, her arms wriggling under his coat and around him. She felt comfortable… happy. Properly happy. And she really did love him. It wasn’t just going along with him saying it or jumping to it in an attempt to cling. It was fast, but she’d always been fast… she’d just never had someone get there first. Or truly love her.

“As long as it’s with you, and there’s effort… you’re right, they’ll always be good. I’m not that fussy.”

They were at the very edge of the battlement now, with nothing but open rocky coastline beneath them. It made sense to build the fort here, this naturally defensible cliffside cutting off an entrance from the sea entirely. They were so high up that Casey never would’ve expected any kind of gust to blow a heavy amount of water up.

So getting doused in the face by a wave’s worth of water all at once was more than jarring.

Alarmed at the suddenness of the waterblast, Casey was immediately on high alert.
”Woah, what the fuck!?” he shouted, scrambling back from the coast still tightly holding Trisha.

Shock quickly became panic as Trisha went from being hit by water that shouldn’t be this high to half dragged, half carried, away from the coast. Her legs sluggishly responded to help getting away. It was more difficult to suppress the reactive pheromones, the lightest scent of citrus leaking out from her before being blown away. The bees started buzzing in her coat.
“I-it was just a freak wave, right?”

”Who you callin’ a freak, Babe!?”
There was another massive wash against the side of the battlement that sent water spraying into the air. Only a dark figure half lost in the mist followed the wave up and over, the deep blue of a surfboard practically black in the evening’s shadow.

Bedecked in an all-black wetsuit and standing beside a surfboard where the waves had impacted, was a tall and thin man whose long blonde hair couldn’t help but poke out the sides of his wetsuit’s hood. Pulling it away revealed long, paper thin blonde hair in waves and waves that fell from his head.

”Frankly, I’d back off the Fella! S’cuz we’re, like, not looking for you. Keep yerself safe, Ch’ya?”

Casey had already tucked Trisha behind him.
”My suitcase… My carry is in my suitcase!” Casey’s voice was very directive, and his head turning to the side as if to speak to Trisha directly was key in that.

He was telling her to run. To get his weapon. To save herself at least. Really, he just couldn’t beg the thought of her getting hurt. To a man who had been through what he’d been through, everything was a weapon…

Trisha didn’t want to leave him. Her hands gripped the back of his jacket tightly as her mind raced through the options. She only had twenty bees. Any pheromones she blasted would affect both. She couldn’t call the other bees. It would take too long, and she couldn’t have them travel that far.

She couldn’t do anything. Useless. He had to protect her too. More than useless. Deadweight.
No. She couldn’t abandon him. They were together. In everything.

The scent leaking out of her changed subtly as it increased. Harsher, as if ginger was being mixed in with it. It was a spicy scent that Trisha had accidentally hit Casey with the night of his commencement ceremony. But this time she was using it on purpose, like she’d done during the Stygian Snake. Pushing it to the point it would wash through Casey’s emotional field. Being outside, the smell dissipated before they reached the surfer.

Fight pheromones. But this time it was carefully controlled. Enough to bolster his confidence, remove any fear he might feel, and pump up his adrenaline without making him mindlessly aggressive.
“I’m not leaving you.”

Casey felt a strangely familiar hot and spicy warmth rushing through his blood. If nothing else, he felt himself sizing up this Adept in front of him. His hand had long ago slipped into its glove to begin channeling the most glaringly pale White Lux he could muster. Every single inch of the body had already been examined, and there were a few details he could glean.

The board was his Channeler, with a pure Red signature burned deeply into its pores. He was already channeling something- some kind of long charge spell. Probably a gathering spell of some kind for a wave.
He itched over it. Absolutely chaffed, straining at the bit to not move before he’d processed everything. It was too slow. Interrupted entirely by Trisha’s declaration, Casey could only snap to.

She was staying. She was very strongly in the camp of remain… Okay. Fine. No time to argue. But, she’d fought the other day! What if-
The wave of spice came again, rushing across his body into a flare of heat that rolled out of his throat. As his hand passed down from his jacket pocket to his jeans pocket, Casey cast three spells in rapid succession. A standard array he was used to preparing for many years, allowing the clothing to take on strengthening properties. Like a second skin, it all hugged him close now, cradling his limbs and hoisting them with the strength of his magic.

The hand with the glove was the same that grabbed the knife from his back pocket. In that instant, he was thinking about the moment he developed this next little John- A moment requiring immense courage, in which that knife was so much more like a lifeline than a mere tool. And all at once, that knife was a sword whose length alone stuffed itself into the dirt like a statue. The blade was long, comparably thin compared to other portrayals of these massive swords that Trisha may’ve seen, and seemed to have some kind of very intricate design carved into it.

Rending the blade from the ground, Casey swapped its hand and swept it up onto his shoulder before reaching backward with the now free hand of his Channeler. Trisha would be able to feel her clothes become somewhat rigid, holding her tightly in that same way. Any weight she had was gone now, and it felt like all movement was being done at her behest, rather than under her own power.

”Then be safe, Goddammit… I don’t want you hurt!” he growled backward, taking a stance in which his body began to tuck inward as if preparing a charge.

”Broooo, they said the girl wasn’t with you people… Sister Von Mettis, like, lied to me! I’m like, totally gonna hurt her, Bro! She goes first!”

And then the spell dropped. Casey wasn’t sure at first what the burst of Red Lux did, until the first icicle hit the ground next to him and exploded into a million pieces. The strike he’d charged wound up instantaneously redirecting upward into the sky, blowing a clear line into the thousand hanging spears that the assailant had formed above them. It was enough to avoid the worst of it, and Casey reached back to grab Trisha again, making sure she didn’t get caught where he hadn’t cleared.

But looking back, the goon was gone.

”Shit! Trisha… We should get inland… No! Let’s, let’s just try and get to the room! It’s a concrete fuckin’ bunker!” he urged her forward, crossing his sword across her front like a thin barrier between the outside and danger.

Trisha nodded, not needing to be told twice. Not when it was we. She grabbed hold of his arm with one hand as she moved forward, letting him lead from behind as much as possible. To not run into the sword, or cause more chaos. But it was easy with her clothes enchanted. She barely had to think about movement.

Her pheromones continued to pump into the air around them, measured perfectly to never push either of them over the edge to rage. A light wind blew them towards her- but that was beneficial. Panic reducing, adrenaline pumping through her veins properly.

“I can look out,” she said, the major burden of her body’s movement taken away. Fourteen bees flew out from under her jacket, splitting into groups just as they had earlier. High in the air, unnoticeable to a Red Adept- hopefully. Her eyes glazed over slightly as she both commanded them, and sensed where they were. She had the person in mind. She could… tell them the slight scent they were looking for.

It was all coming back naturally. What she did ten years ago. What she hadn’t had to do since, forgetting the use. She was connected to each bee, almost sensing what they did. And the moment any of them saw something? She could jolt Casey with a light, controlled blast of flight pheromones.

While it was true that nobody was really looking for the bees, it wasn’t the best weather for them either. Cold, thick air to fly through, and frost building meant any heat would turn it into moisture on their wings. Overall terrible conditions to fly in, but at least they weren’t being targeted… Not like the two of them were. Icicles formed in sweeping arcs that spattered across the ground in huge salty chunks.

To get the salt water cold enough to freeze was impressive, but the Siblings of Moirah weren’t the brightest cult in the book when it came to research. Sending a pure Red user like this, someone with a deep control of water in its various forms? It spoke to him that they didn’t even know basic things about his own organization. To not know that one of his main officers was roughly the same kind of Adept just spoke ignorance to him. Or lack of respect, maybe.

But the bee watchladies were paying off regardless of the assault. They were able to get a wide enough scope of the situation to see what was happening. How the Adept was controlling the mist in a big sheet to obscure his vision, turning it into hail and eventually massive chunks of ice that would rain down on them. The closer they got down the hill toward their room near the beach, the faster and harder the pace became.
Relentless ice; at least protected by the enchanted clothing it didn’t hurt so bad. There was a time Leon had used a similar spell, and the sensation would be just a little more familiar to Trisha.

A certain hallucination long ago. The two of them, and a few other members of Sycamore all drawn into the same illusion. They had to pull out all the stops, and when people started getting tired, Leon told their very clothing to stand up and keep moving. The flying serpents couldn’t penetrate her denim jacket, and now these icicles seemed to bounce off where Casey’s blade didn’t smash them back into mist.
He was more than deft in its usage, it seemed. Clearly, guns weren’t his only choice when it came to fighting. Despite its length and probable heft, he seemed to flick it with ease in order to strike out where it was most needed.

The bees were struggling with the weather. The longer Trisha had them out the worst it got. She could sense that they were flagging… She didn’t want them to be hurt. But they needed the eyes. The sharp jolt of pheromones she gave Casey each time to warn him something was coming, and short explanations of what was happening.

Maybe he could sense it all himself. But she liked to think she was helping. And had to keep helping. Her girls were strong enough to get through this. They’d been through worse with her. Like when her clothes were last enchanted like this…
One of Trisha’s arms was above her head to protect it from the icicles. She took a deep breath in, mist coming out her lips as she exhaled. Her eyes glazed over a bit more, hints of amber in their depths, and her pheromonal reactions became instinctive.

She didn’t quite see what was in front of her. She didn’t need to with the clothes and Casey. Instead, she fully connected with the bees. Sensing all the pheromones in the air… forging stronger ones through the mist that tried to dampen the signals. Through the connection she pumped more into them. Her own magic, the magic the Queen had given her, bolstered the bees in a way she’d only done when her life was at risk.
Like it was right now. So they could keep going. And she could practically sense through them as she pushed herself and her bees.

“I think… I can see him…” she whispered, words strained as if she was having to speak two languages at once.

Casey had been splitting and ducking, chopping and sometimes having to pick her up to move just a little faster than they were on foot. He was good with it; he’d carried men twice her size unfathomable distances. It didn’t bother him. In fact, this was still far better. Two brains working in tandem instead of one trying to do everything at once. Maybe if he’d been there from the start, Layla wouldn’t have had such an easy time. Well, obviously, but not so much.

If Trisha was working recon like this, it took strain off of him. Enough so that he could focus on things like fending off the attack. If she could see, then she could be both their eyes. Senses where Casey couldn’t place his own…
White Lux would’ve solved the problem, but in moments like this he had such a hard time mustering nostalgia… It was mostly battlefield memories, and those were linked to a dozen spells that had little application here. No grenades in hand, no firearm.

He did, but now he was kicking himself. Having a bad feeling before they got into the shops, it’d completely faded away by the time he left. He’d gotten complacent again.

”Show me where he’s gonna be, Baby! It’s gotta be on the fly!” he spoke with heavy breaths, but low enough that it was almost totally within Trisha’s own little world. His voice wasn’t scared either. It was confident. Like he trusted her entirely.
”Where’s he at!?”

Casey’s arms swung backward, preparing to hurl the blade through the air toward a moving target. It was all or nothing.

Where was he going to be? Trisha's head turned slightly, towards Casey - but also the bees with visual on him. Moving quickly… she had to predict it. The bees could only see. Her head twisted again, as if trying to follow him. She couldn't, she didn't know- she had to. Follow the trajectory, quickly…
“T- Your ten o'clock!"

She didn’t have enough wherewithal to tell him the trajectory. He couldn’t ask. Couldn’t expect it either. It was fine… Ten o’clock. With every fibre of his being, Casey spun them both at once. The long tip of the blade nicked the sandy beach, kicking up a rock and blasting it into small pebbles on release. It was whistling through the air now, a very slow rotation causing the blade to spiral just a few rotations in the time it took to… Miss.

He’d guessed the right direction that the bastard was surfing in from, but misjudged the speed. Now the blade was on a course who knows where, and they were really defenseless now.

”Shit, Trisha! Come he-”
Casey’s arms were already wrapping tight around Trisha, folding over her to block the next incoming volley that he knew his sword wouldn’t be able to destroy. They could only get to the room now… Only pray.

It missed, fuck it missed, this was it-
At that moment, Trisha’s panic turned to a strange calmness. Magic washed over her. Familiar, but strange… her own, but not magic she’d tapped into before. Her connection with the bees only strengthened. They were still themselves, but for a moment they extended her. And her magic flowed through the invisible threads that linked them to her.
.
Casey would feel her go slightly limp in his arms, honey coloured flecks increasing and glowing in her eyes. Magic pulsated out of her for just a moment. It supercharged the bees. Faster, stronger wings, harder fuzz, and sharper stingers. Even as the magic radiating from her waned, her strong connection with them remained.
It wasn’t pheromonal anymore. There was no delay from the distance. It was like she was speaking right into their mind. As if they were one.

Twenty bees moved with speeds they shouldn’t be able to attain. They merged into a tight line, shooting off after the sword flying into the unknown. This line swerved, caught the steel blade on strengthened little bodies. Together they pushed. One at the end used its stinger to flick it, more accurately directing it exactly where Trisha wanted it to go.

They deflected it with their own bodies, right towards the surfer. It was perfectly deflected and sent back in the right direction with all that power Casey had thrown it with.

As the sword was reflected back, shooting towards their enemy, Trisha let out a soft gasp. Her brain jolted with pain once, twice… six times. Six bees that died from catching the sharp edge out of necessity to turn it. But they’d done it.

Casey couldn’t see the bees do what they did, but he heard a sharp crack and whistle as he watched the blade turn course midair. It was a moment of panic for him, as his primary assumption was an ice wall deflecting his own sword back to kill him. It wouldn't have, but nothing really stopped that moment of stomach dropping panic.

He felt Trisha tense up though, hearing her strain and the little yelp that accompanied dead bees. It was enough to tell him that she had something to do with it, and he readied himself to snag it back out of the air. But the moment didn’t come. There was a chunky, wet “thock” noise that echoed across the beach, washing itself away with the tide in an instant.
Confused, unsure of what had actually happened, Casey did the only thing he could think of.

A blast of White Lux swept across the beach, echoing back to him the sentiment he most wanted. The opportunity to stop. To pay attention for more than two seconds. Because what he saw in that icy fog, about thirty feet off and pinned to the beach with legs squirming, was the Adept. Casey wasn't sure what was keeping him alive, but he assumed moisture control extended to blood in some fashion. It wasn't pooling into a crimson wash like he thought it should.

Standing still now, Casey still held Trisha in his arms. Empowered eyes stared through the fog into the pained face of their would-be assassin with a mixture of shock and anger keeping it plastered there. The board, his channeler, had been knocked some thirty feet more into the sea, it's safety line snapped in twain from the force or an accidental cut. He was struggling to Wildcast what he could, and ice was slowly building around the sword and his hands. A desperate attempt to rip the blade out.

Casey's arms didn't move, besides a gentle up and down manner to comfort Trisha. But his legs did. Enough that he was in danger of pulling away. He did, even, and only then did he speak.

”Stay here… Or go inside. I'll be right there… You got him, Trisha, we're okay. You're okay.”

He spun, keeping his front facing her until he disappeared into the mist. There was an audible gasp and a company of other wet gasping noises. Then another scream. It wasn't Casey's… When he returned from the fog, the blade was gone, and his grey jeans were spattered with blood across their front. He didn't wait to embrace her again.

”My God… Trisha… Are you okay baby?” concern dozed from his voice.

Trisha didn’t reply immediately. She was still in that strange state, her eyes half glazed as she saw as much through the bees as she did her own vision. There had been an emptiness in the short time he was gone that had her stuck there. But as he returned, it was barely a thought that she wanted the bees to come too before they were buzzing back. Fourteen little bee soldiers used the remnants of their strength to fly over to her before the ocean winds blew them away.

The fizzling magic only dissipated when each bee landed on her head, crawling down into her hair with tiny shivering bodies. The honey-amber flecks in her eyes disappeared as they cleared. She tilted her head back, hands coming up to grasp Casey’s jacket.
“I- I think so.” It wasn’t exactly a lie, because she didn’t know how she felt. In shock. Definitely in shock. Her breathing quickened as her pheromones reduced to their normal level and her adrenaline lowered.

“I don’t know what I did. I-I’ve never…” She struggled to talk through little gasps, trying to fill her lungs with air. She wasn’t exactly panicking, it was more… like she was suddenly aware of her entire body. She’d been out of it, and now was back in.
“He’s really-?” As if she hadn’t heard the scream, and couldn’t see the blood. She still had to ask.

”Whatever you just did… Dead accurate. Split his lower spine: He was mostly paralyzed already. I'm sorry…”

He was. Genuinely sorry and regretful of what had happened. It wasn't fair to her that there would be days like this. Days where his life would be on the line because of some random secondary group. It was childlike. The back and forth between these different outside Covens was a business of war that he'd inherited. Fun, maybe… A reason to always be ready, and to lack complacency at all times.

But putting Trisha through this? More violence in her life? Did it need to happen? He went about examining her for a long moment, checking her clothes for any signs of penetration before holding her tightly again.
In all fairness, he knew she wasn't a wallflower. But time stripped all compunction for combat. Enough time away, and no matter how much the body remembers, the mind may protest no matter what.

But his arms were around her. She was breathing and moving. Speaking.
”That… That wasn't something I was expecting to happen. You did an amazing job, Babe… God, I'm so fucking proud of you, holy shi-”

His voice was drowned out by the shuffling of jackets being pressed together as he picked her up gently. Tenderly. Like he'd protect her from anything else coming their way.
”-ust incredible. You must have impressed the Queen or something, I just don't know what else we could've done. It would've gotten way too sticky if we'd been trapped in the room…”

Trisha nodded as she curled her head in against his neck, face slightly red. That must’ve been it. Maybe the Queen woke up and used her own magic through Trisha to save them. It had happened before, just rarely…

There was a light, melodic laugh in her mind.
You didn’t need me. You’re growing more attuned to the magic I already gave you.
Trisha didn’t respond, but she felt confused. It hadn’t felt like it was her. She definitely didn’t feel like she could do it again.
We’ll talk about it later. Try to enjoy your night.

“It was the bees as much as me. I used them to see during the Stygian Snake, it came back naturally… But not that. I think I boosted them, somehow? So they could turn the sword. I don’t know. The Queen-” her voice got a bit quieter, but it wasn’t a problem with her lips so close to Casey’s ear.
“She said it was me. But I don’t know how.”

In the last ten years she’d forgotten what she could do. It was never the flashiest or strongest Abstraction, but she’d been useful. She’d just forgotten that. There’d been no need to use anything beyond talking to the bees and the occasional pheromone blast… she hadn’t even though she could do more with it. But she clearly could. She wanted to learn more about that- so that she could stand beside Casey like this.
“I’m just glad you're safe.”

”I feel exactly the same, Trisha…” Casey said quietly as he shuffled them both ahead.

Thankfully, he’d managed to stuff the other bags into the waiting maw of his enchanted pocket; having to retrace their steps and collect anything lost would’ve been a nightmare. He hated revisiting old battles, as recalling failure gave him serious anxiety that he could do little to prevent. Mistakes like throwing his only means of defence away on a called shot. He’d purposefully avoided a concealed carry for the trip, not wanting to feel like he was some kind of gang member having to stay strapped at all times. But this? Really didn’t make him feel any better about it.

Trisha would be able to feel Casey’s hand shuffling into his jacket, then pulling out something. A phone. The lights of it became bright in front of them as he kept her held up from underneath with one arm.
”Beans? There’s a harvest on the beach. Misty Island, by the resort. - - - Yeah. It’ll need a report; pick what you can, and bring it into Halie. - - - Yep. Thanks.”

Casey’s voice didn’t sound thrilled. Much to the contrary, he was potentially pissed off? Or at least tired from the way his voice sounded. Truthfully, he was just reeling. Of all the nights for the Siblings of Moirah to make a move, it had to be tonight? But his blood was still up; even as the pheromones were slowly washing away, there was a lingering feeling.
The lingering feeling. Of being alive. Was he selfish for that? For revelling quietly in spite of the woman he loved being put in grave danger. Or… Maybe it’d work out just as well in her favor?

Casey felt his hands gripping tightly to Trisha, like she was the doll that would be stolen. Even as they approached the door, he didn’t want to let go. But the key was in his pocket, and at an angle he couldn’t reach while holding her. So he let Trisha go, and felt her slide from his hands but never stop clinging to him. His hand reached for the key, but his head and chest swept down. His lips pressed against hers with force.

Suddenly, they were kissing. And it wasn’t exactly gentle either. Not rough like an animal, but like a person who knew all too well that near death experiences deserved near life rewards. Every fibre of his being was screaming the same thing… Indulge.

Trisha was a bit surprised at first, resulting in her not immediately responding. But she quickly got caught up in it, head tilting back and to the side to let her deepen it further. Her hands clenched tightly in his coat. She didn’t have the same lingering feeling, but his lips against hers washed away residual panic and burgeoning concerns. Concerns that they’d have to go back, and then he’d have to work and wouldn’t be there with her-

But there was no way, when he was kissing her like this. She pressed against him like she couldn’t stand having a single inch apart. The closeness and intensity brought her comfort. He was there, they were together, they were still alive…

She pulled just her face back slightly, hands flattening on his chest as if holding him back.
“At least… wait until… we’re inside?” she breathed out, looking at him with half closed eyes. Swirling with want and affection and love all at once.

There was a moment where it looked like he was going to ignore her. Where his hands just kept moving as if he couldn’t hear anything and the limbs had their own minds. But just as his hands were getting to a place they probably shouldn’t have been in the middle of that cold night, they passed. One had the key, and slid it into the slot to turn the knob. The other found her hand and took it. He was blushing.

”I’m sorry… There’s only so much time.”
Time… The fleeting sensations. The typically averse barriers were all gone in favor of fear and excitement. The imbalance of chemicals was sated by the extreme act, and the taking of life that presented itself as an enemy. There was such a difference between something like that, and the other night. What he’d done for work could never compare to the rise he felt from fending off some random bullshit.

Except… She’d been there. Not just, but participated. Helped. Again, she’d been everything he needed her to be and more. Casey tried to grip onto that feeling and hold it there, keeping it and maintaining himself in mind and body as they pushed through the door. He turned his back on her to lock it, but didn’t stop there. For a moment, he sat and Channeled a few spells, some of which were rather powerful wards to prevent further magical intrusion for the time being. It was long enough to get lost.

Long enough to accidentally open up one of the enchanted pockets past the point of retention. The condition which resolved the spell, and sent stuffed animals flying about the room in a stream. Casey actually screamed aloud, having managed to forget in the haze of maintaining other feelings and sensations.

Trisha was waiting close enough, practically touching as she hovered behind him, that she was caught in the explosion of stuffed animals as Casey’s scream rang in her ears. She jumped, sending the bees scattering, and her arms slammed into her side. A large, orange bee flew out of her own pocket to join the plushie party.

“Whhhyyyy?!” She practically wailed as she got a sinking feeling that this was going to completely ruin the mood. It was a mood she could easily get herself back into… but as for Casey, she wasn’t so sure.
“This isn’t a stuffed toy safe time…” she mumbled, pouting a little bit.

Though the moment was perhaps ruined, after she’d gotten over her shock over being attacked by a myriad of plushies, she moved back towards Casey. Her arms wrapped around him. Regardless, she just wanted to be close to him. She really couldn’t stand the distance right now. Not after what had happened, and even the moment he’d turned away- which she knew was to shut the door. But it didn’t stop the bubbling anxiety now things were cooling down a bit.
“That’s not what I meant by waiting until we’re inside,” she still managed to joke.

Casey was shaking, but after a moment it became clear that it was just laughter. He was giggling as he held onto her, the adrenaline washing through his system.
”Y’know as a teenager I always used to wonder if I’d be able to hold it in the first time… I guess we got our answer!”

His head tucked downward to loom over hers. His forehead laid atop her scalp, rubbing into the hair and smelling her. That scent wasn’t there anymore. The spicy something. He thought maybe if she did it again, there’d be a chance of recovery. But he didn’t want to ask… Felt it would be embarrassing. Like he couldn’t-

Taking a deep breath, one arm reached up and pulled her to the side. Releasing the other pocket sent bags of candles across the room. Thankfully, his aim was as true as ever, and the glass filled bags all knocked into the comfy pillows and bedspread. He knew he heard a couple of cracks, especially when the gun case flew out last and mashed into the top of the pile.
The whole reason he hadn’t stuck delicates in the pocket… The whole reason they’d saved the shopping for last. He could only shake his head at the foiling of a good plan.

A man was dead outside, and he was worried about his candles.

It took a certain part of him, that war. A few parts. Enough that he’d known to miss them in the first place. But maybe he could reclaim them. With some help, maybe they weren’t all lost forever. Being nervous about asking for help… He’d felt the same just a little while ago, and look at what’d happened. She’d pulled through. Totally unprompted, and completely selflessly. Almost heroic.

It was sexy.

And then after another breath, he felt it coming back. A grin formed across his face.
”Y’know… You hit me with that stuff again. Would you uh… Think less of me if I said I liked it?” he tried to ask very casually, hands slowly moving to pull her jacket off her completely.

“Hmm?” Trisha was a bit confused at first by what he meant by ‘that stuff.’ But she felt the mood shift back, and she liked that. Her arms moved up to make it easier for him to take her jacket off, stepping forward once she was free so that she was right in front of him. Her own hands moved to do the same for him, though it was a bit more difficult with the height difference.

Stuff she hit him with… Oh. The pheromones? Her fight pheromones? That must be what he meant, because they were also the only ones she’d properly hit him with before. Then it’d been an uncontrollable accident. Today had been a lot more calculated. She was more than practiced with these ones to use them in a way that was beneficial rather than pushing people into aggression.

This just wasn’t a use she’d ever thought about. It made sense… She was smart enough to see a pattern. The times Casey reacted more: after dueling Furio ‘to the death’ and now. It wasn’t ‘typical’ but… she really didn’t care about that. Didn’t make her think any differently about Casey. He found her attractive. He’d said so. If it was just the thrill of a battle, he wouldn’t still be…

“My alarm pheromones, you mean? Why would I think any less of you?” She smiled teasingly, hands moving up to cup his face. She urged his head down towards hers.
“They’re part of my magic. Part of me. So… No, I don’t. You just like another part of me. Do you… want me to use them again?”

He felt a little strange. Like it was all too good to be true. He felt himself welling with heat, even as his own jacket slipped off and hit the ground. The previously half-frozen gore on his clothes was starting to really thaw now, however. He felt it against him, and his hands began to move furiously in the removal of it all until he was down to untainted layers. Boxers and his tank top. His dog tags dangled from his neck, and in one hand he was still gripping his Channeler.

It took one spell for the top blanket to softly and safely drag itself and its contents off the bed, then the ratty old glove joined the rest of the clothing as it started to pile on the floor. Divested of the reminders of death, he only had her now. Truly. No other distractions, and it was more than easy to tell he didn’t need the help.

Because she would. If he asked. Only if he asked. But she wouldn’t even hesitate, and he felt that in the heat of the moment.
”Maybe later… Maybe someday. But maybe there’s a secret to all this…”

His hand brushed up under her chin, face falling to begin kissing her once more.

---

“You’re definitely carrying me everywhere tomorrow,” Trisha grumbled playfully a good while longer.

Of course, she didn’t actually feel upset by how heavy her body felt. Like all the energy had been sapped out of it… It had, really. Her physical stamina just wasn’t enough to keep up. Even just shuffling herself more onto Casey to cuddle as closely as they could felt like a lot of effort.

But she felt incredibly content. Blissfully happy. While she’d told Casey she didn’t need a super sexual relationship and had meant it, that kind of intimacy just… felt like yet another connection forged. Bringing them even closer together. Everything about it had been good.

Apart from the length of time, maybe… and her mind hadn’t quite gotten the exhaustion memo. It was the opposite. Even though she was physically drained, her mind was wide awake. Energised, but relaxed at the same time. It was nice.
“It’s different with someone you love,” she mumbled, hiding her face against him in embarrassment the moment the words came out.
“Well not like… mmm… forget I said anything.”

It was dark out now. Well, more dark than it had been. The moon had probably crested over the coast, and the sun was blocked out by the hills in the east for at least another hour. They weren’t making it home on time, and Casey knew that much. It was fine. For the first time in a long time, he felt more than relaxed. Relieved. All that time, and she was right. With someone you love, he imagined it wouldn’t be so bad. Though, that was an odd thing to say.

”Something need adjusting?” he asked quietly.

Hands still played with her hair, feeling skin on skin. She’d seen every single scar now. Every little hole where there used to be flesh. Cratermarks, valleys and rivulets from healed burns and scrapes. The endless tattoos that cluttered up his back and chest, done over years of having nothing better to do. He looked down at her with deep blue eyes waiting for a response.

“No, no, I didn’t mean it like that.” Her response came almost immediately, her head jolting up to look at him. She didn’t want him thinking it was something bad. It wasn’t. Hadn’t been. Quite the opposite.

“It’s…” Trisha trailed off, looking away. Her finger gently traced a tattoo on his chest and her eyes followed it. She was comfortable and safe enough that she just found the words tumbling out. More than that, she kind of wanted to talk about it. It was an open vulnerability after such an intimate moment.
“More intimate, somehow. It was more emotional, I think, and that made it better. Like… mind and body connected, or something?”

She forced herself to look at him again. Her eyes were a dark brown in the dim light, clear and genuine. She’d been a bit worried, though she’d never tell him that. It wouldn’t ruin things, but there had been all those what ifs in her head. The anxieties that, for once, didn’t come to fruition.
“I shouldn’t really talk about past times right now, sorry, but… a lot of the time it was just physical. They didn’t always care, because it was more about their own satisfaction. I didn’t mind because I enjoyed it. I thought I liked it but… I don’t think… that I did…”

It’d been much more of a roller coaster for him. As the first real frame of reference, he was more shocked about the involvement of it than anything else. He liked it… But would it be so long every time? Would he worry about whether or not he was hurting her? After she told him to stop asking, he did, but it hadn’t left his mind. Now she was saying it felt intimate? What’d that really feel like in comparison to… Not?

He knew part of it was the knife wound he’d taken near the groin. Nerve damage down the left inner leg. With such little predilection to explore, he’d never realized that it had actually affected anything else. So, a great deal of time and attention was being given to finding any spot that didn’t feel like he was just doing nothing. This wasn’t Trisha’s fault, and amazingly he’d managed to remain stalwart the entire time.

”What… Makes it more intimate? Like… I…”
He was embarrassed. Embarrassed to say what he was thinking for fear that she’d feel like he didn’t actually care. He didn’t want that, obviously. But she was sharing, so…

”Well, I just feel… Like I spent a lot of that time pretty focused on my own satisfaction. Uh, the… Changing? Like, I know I wasn’t really doing anything too consistently, but it’s only because I couldn’t really find… A spot.”

He took her hand and gently brought it down until it rested on the scar that remained from the blade.
”That wound. I got it in Africa. It’s all pretty numb, I suffered some nerve damage. Never had it fixed. Never knew it was going to do anything to make my life harder. I guess I should now, huh?”

What the fuck was he saying? He still didn’t know exactly… Everything was a bit of a blur. But she hadn’t ran away, so… She said it was better.
”Shit, but… What you were saying. That it was more intimate… How? Sorry… I’m babbling…” he simpered.

“It’s okay,” Trisha shook her head, though her brow furrowed a bit. She wasn’t even sure how to answer… and she couldn’t really just move on from the nerve damage. Struggling to find a spot. She’d noticed the changing, but hadn’t realised. So that was why it had been so long…

But no, she’d come back to that. The intimacy. How did she explain? She’d only just started to think about it herself. And it was more of a feeling than something explicable. It just was. She’d felt safe and loved even if he felt like he was focusing on himself.
“Uhm, well… the talking and the touching. The tender kisses too. You listened to me, and you complimented me. You touched me like… I was someone to be cherished, I guess? I don’t know how to describe it but… It’s not just about the act. That’s the purely physical bit, in a way… though that was good too. Most guys can’t… last long enough…”

She wasn’t sure if she was explaining well enough. It was difficult to explain to someone who didn’t have the experience of something else- and she didn’t want him to either. She frowned a little bit, concern flitting across her eyes.
“If you didn’t really feel anything, does that mean you didn’t enjoy it?”

Casey’s face turned into a slight frown. Not of angst or sorrow, but consideration.
”Uhhh… Well, lets see.-”

He rolled slightly, turning his head to look up at the clock. He’d taken a mental note of when they started, and the time it was now was considerable.
”-I think lasting that long means I enjoyed it.”

He wasn’t going to tell her it’d been something like five hours. She didn’t need specifics. He’d heard what she said ultimately, and understood from that what she meant. How he’d done exactly what he assumed he should’ve done. About being tender, and being sure to remain aware and conscious. It helped tremendously that he was fit for duty still, obviously; that he had the stamina and cardio to make it long past a normal person…
But just like everything else, Casey had nothing to go off of based on that. No other frame of reference. Just things he’d watched, and things he’d been told.

”But I really did. I… I like you. How into it you are. I feel like that kind of intimacy is worth cherishing, so I’m glad that came through.” he offered calmly, taking a moment more to think about what that really meant to her.

”And I absolutely felt things… Just, didn’t want you thinking it’s all dead down there. It’s just fleeting. Like an itch that you want to scratch, but it’s too deep below the surface of your skin to get to.”

Trisha let out a soft sigh of relief. Her hand gently traced the scar in question before moving back up to rest on his chest. The reactionary anxiety, so quick to appear, died back down. If he hadn't enjoyed it… there wouldn't be much point, would there? She wasn't the kind of person who wanted to do it just for herself… It could just lead to resentment then. But he said he enjoyed it and felt things, just not as much.

“I… understand what you mean, I think. I'm glad- not that it's like that, but that there's not nothing, and you did enjoy it. If you didn't… I wouldn't be upset, well maybe a little, but it'd be really one sided then." It all came out as a bit of a less calm ramble than she'd hoped, her lips pressing together into a thin line for a moment. Did she really need to say that? Let the already calmed anxieties out? And she was experienced enough that she shouldn't really worry about it like that, or at least should be able to be a bit calm about it. But did that matter? It was… him. She could be herself with him, without having to worry too much about protective layers or holding it together.

“We can figure it out together. What works for you, and me. Or you can try get it fixed, but… that's up to you." She meant it, looking up at him with a warm, honest gaze as her lips curved into a soft smile. She wouldn't push him into something like that. Not when she assumed it would require magic, and she wasn't a fan of magical intrusion herself. They could make it work together without it.

“Buuttt... I wasn't joking about needing carried around tomorrow. That was really long. E-Enjoyable, I… well y’know… a lot…" And why was she getting embarrassed now? Maybe because she didn't exactly talk about her own pleasure often… not specifically.
“But I can barely move now… I definitely can't do that frequently… which I don't mind, just. Maybe we can figure out how to make it a bit shorter too? If we find what works."

Quick to try and remedy the situation in Trisha's mind. He didn't want her to be reluctant to seek it out for herself if that was something she needed in the relationship.

”Well I don't have to… Y'know. Plus, at the end I think I found a spot. It's a lot less about me, more about you. That last position, maybe… Something clicked. We'd have to try again.”

He didn't turn his face or smile. He didn't want it to seem like a joke, because it wasn't, but he also didn't want her worried about mentally preparing for it. He wasn't even sure he could muster the sensation to go again right now anyway.
The afterglow made her gorgeous. Not sexy, though she couldn't stop being that. It was satisfaction at that point. Lust moved to the back burner, and left him basking in her more muted qualities.

The lines on her face, subtly scrunched here or there in the forehead and the bridge of her nose. A lifetime of having a consistent sour puss face.

”I just don’t want you afraid to ask. I'd rather do it myself and not finish than imagine giving you any reason to seek it out from someone else. You say when you're satisfied, and I'll be done too. For you, because I love you.”

“I’d never seek it out from someone else.” Trisha immediately latched onto that point, speaking with enough conviction her voice got louder than the muted, slightly hoarse way she’d been talking before. She didn’t want him worrying about something that wasn’t going to happen. She never had and never would.
“I wouldn’t.”

She pressed her face into his chest for a moment. Even talking about that, her whole body was still relaxed. She was. There was still that warm, content glow over everything. Like she was safe to be who she was, and just let every thought slip out. The minor sentences within a bigger, loving phrase that would normally have her properly snapping… didn’t. Even though there was still a bit of anxiety, she was still so… happy…

“It’s not actually that… well, it’s really nice you’d do it just for me, but…” Her voice got quieter and quieter, until it was barely a whisper. Like she was worried it would somehow get past the little world of the two of them, or wasn’t even sure if she wanted him to hear.
“I-It was always to… start a relationship. And to keep one. I enjoy it and I want to do it, but it’s not like… it’s the most important thing to me. Something I want with you. And I feel even closer now, but just because we have doesn’t mean I’m going to want it every day because… We don’t need to to hug like this. It’s the closeness.”

He'd always assumed that once it started, every day became a must. Growing up in a sex cult is usually a good way to misconstrue the action as it came. In the military, there were few people older than their mid twenties. Thirty year old middle management wasn't much different either. If the topic wasn't who you wanted to fuck, it was reminiscing about who you had fucked. His life had been saturated with it, and until he'd had his innocence gunned down, he hardly ever realized.

His childhood had been spent knowing that every night between the hours of eleven and seven, his parents simply weren't available unless they rang the ominous “emergency bell”. And he'd seen the consequences for ringing it without proper cause too… Interrupting the evening’s “private mass” had to be serious.

So, to hear Trisha say that again, even after things were said and done? And just as importantly, not personally feeling like it had to be done again… He really wasn't going to be like them. Or, at least he assumed not. He would've honestly tried to predict the future, but casting a spell now would've been tasteless. He could only assume that whatever was broken in his mind shaved off whatever bits of overwhelming carnal addiction that plagued his forebearer.

So his arms wrapped around her tighter. His fingers brushed against the soft skin of her belly, holding her gently and massaging ever so slightly.

”I'm just… Happy to be loved. Happy that it's your only real expectation, I guess. Not as a lazy thing, but simple is good. They taught us how to K.I.S.S. in the Military, y'know…”

There was a joke. One she'd almost definitely get trapped in. An absurd thing to say without knowing the acronym.

Trisha curled her legs up over him, letting out a soft giggle. Because she found it funny that… for him being loved was the simple thing. For her, sex was simple. She was attractive enough that people wanted to have it with her. What happened was understood, and most people- men especially- wanted it consistently. They just started wanting it- and her- less the more time they spent with her.

There’d been exceptions before. Reyna and others… but none quite as different as Casey. He was able to make her feel comfortable enough that she didn’t need it frequently to confirm he wanted to be with her.

“They taught you… how to kiss in the military? Like… sex ed videos?” She tilted her head, looking up at him with slight confusion. Then she pouted jokingly.
“I thought I was the one who taught you how to kiss.”

Hook. Line. Sinker. Casey beamed slightly, a grin forming across his face at a low angle.

”Keep it simple stupid.”
As he said the words, one of his fingers tapped against her skin in each place that a period would go. After each word.
”They never wanted us thinking too hard in Basic. That went out the window when I started getting more responsibilities, but I still try and live by it. Straightforward. And loving you is pretty straight forward it seems like… That’s not to insult you, again. This is all positive to me. As long as you’re forthcoming, then I’ll always be able to react.”

His devious grin slowly turned back into a soft smile, and he kissed her gently before she could respond.
”And, I like kissing. Touching. This little spot-”
Under the blankets, his hand flicked into her side and brushed a spot he’d found she was ticklish in.

“H-hey!” Trisha reactively jerked away. Her movements were more sluggish than when he normally tickled her, and she let out a little playful huff mixed with breathy giggles. She couldn’t tickle him back without using energy she didn’t have, so she moved a hand down to grasp his.
“Anywhere but there… I’ve rolled around enough for the night…”

She smiled at him, eyes creasing gently in the way they did when she felt especially content. Her head tilted up to brush her nose against his.
“I like it all too… just being close to you. I just want to climb into your arms all the time…” She basically did it, it wasn’t like they’d spent much time apart. But it was where she felt happiest. With him, close to him.

“You’ve become really good at kissing too…” She smiled softly, before lightly, briefly kissing him.
“And I don’t think anyone else has found loving me straightforward so… thank you…”

Intentionally, he pulled her just a little closer. To be up and in his arms, even laying down like this. He scooped under her, pulling and turning her lower body gently so that he was practically cradling her.
”Thank you for saving our lives again… So we can go on again, and forever more.”