the_lioness | (no subject)

(no subject)

It had been a wonderful weekend.

A weekend full of surprises, to be sure, but fantastic surprises all the same.

Early evening sees Alanna in the spare bedroom with a paintbrush, a can of red paint and a glass of fruit juice. Puff is curled around her neck as Alanna adds something to the bottom right hand corner of the wall near the door. She's still stunned, smiling to herself every time she thinks about the fact that they actually did it. They are married.

Lucifer is officially her father-in-law.

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Adam? Adam doesn't really have a smile on his face, even if he doesn't look quite so irritated as he did when he left Thom. But he comes in with the two bottles of cider, and takes a deep breath and tries for a smile.

"It's too much to hope that you're painting over my flaming undergarments with that brush, isn't it?"

"No, I'm painting a Beefeater."

She glances at him over her shoulder and gives Puff the black paintbrush to hold in her small dragon teeth.

"If I painted over your undergarments, Raven would be most displeased. However, I felt we should definitely have an artistic representation of our weekend."

Adam manages a laugh and walks up behind her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

"It was an excellent weekend, wasn't it?

And you were happy, right?"

The dragon gives him a disgusted look and hops down to go check on her brood. It's possible she leaves a black mark on his hand on the way.

Alanna turns in his arms, gaze questioning, and loops her arms loosely around his neck.

"More happy than ever, I would say. Why? Did I not look happy?"

"You did. and I thought you were. I was just . . . thinking."

"About?"

Suddenly worried, she watches him a bit anxiously.

He shrugs, and pulls back, handing her a cider.

"Stuff Thom said, s'all."

Alanna eyes the cider, but she doesn't drink it.

"Oh." She tosses the other paintbrush back in the can. "It just never seemed like the right time to tell you."

"I wish you had."

Quietly, "I'm sorry."

Glancing down, she kicks the floor.

"He's said a lot of hurtful things in the past, but this-"

"I know."

Adam kicks the floor as well, a mimicry of her own motion before reaching out with a hand, offering it if she wants it.

"I can't say he was much nicer to me. Or that I was much nicer to him."

Of course she takes it, twining her fingers through his with a sigh.

"You saw him?"

He holds his own bottle up and squeezes her hand.

"When I went to get these. I-

he knows, now."

"I thought he might. Judging by the look on your face."

Squeezing his hand, she starts walking towards the living room, leaving the cider on a table.

"I'm sure he was thrilled."

"M'not sure, honestly. He was angry, and then he stormed off."

Adam follows her, a bit slowly, raising his voice so she can hear him.

"Did he tell you why we fought?"

She asks carefully, stopping behind the couch and picking at the cat fur covering the throw blanket.

"Vaguely. He didn't really have to, though."

He catches up to her, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder.

Alanna blinks up at him, confused, until she remembers everything that has happened recently. She brushes his hair back, fingers lingering near his temple.

"Is it alright if I tell you anyway?"

He nods, and brings his other hand to her.

"Please do."

Even so, she doesn't know where to begin.

"I just wanted to ask him why he hadn't really had a reaction to the news about the charm. He told me he didn't like it, even if we were sure I wouldn't die."

She swallows.

"He said he wasn't ready for me to go soft."

He swallows and lowers his voice, and says the words he knows she knows.

"Becoming a mother isn't going soft."

She nods swiftly, not quite able to meet his eyes.

"I know. I do. I told him it wouldn't change who I am, but then he asked me all these questions about who I think that is, and told me it wasn't exactly heroic. And then-"

Scowling, she imitates Thom's voice.

"What sort of mother will you be if you DON'T go soft?"

He makes a soft hushing sound and leans forward to kiss her forehead.

"He's upset and taking it out on you."

A stubborn shake of the head.

"He said he doesn't like us, Adam. Together. But the worst part? He said I couldn't possibly be happy with who I am. That I'm not who we always dreamed I would be. How could he say that? After everything, even now, I always thought he was proud of me."

Swallowing a sob, she leans her forehead against his shoulder.

"It doesn't matter what he says, so long as you are happy."

And there's not really anything he can say that can help, but he can hold her like this and whisper in her ear like that.

It's enough.

"I told him I was. It didn't seem to matter much. And I'm not who I said I wanted to be when I was ten. Nor would I want to be. I think I'm better than that."

He pulls back slightly, gives her a small kiss, and looks into her eyes seriously.

"If I were who I said I wanted to be when I was ten, you'd likely be kissing a pirate. Or possibly an astronaut."

Her lips twitch a little, for all that she doesn't know what being an astronaut involves. Pirate she understands perfectly.

"I wanted to be a warrior maiden, but all I saw was the glory. I thought I would wander the world doing great deeds and having adventures, needing nothing and no one beyond my sword. Beyond Thom. I certainly didn't want a family, and thought love only meant giving part of yourself away."

He places another kiss on her forehead, and pulls her close.

"And what do you think now?"

She smiles against his shoulder before turning her head to kiss his neck.

"I married you, didn't I? And there's no charm about my neck."

"And I know how much Thom matters to you. But he's not in here."

Adam taps her head.

"Or in here."

And then her chest.

"How did you get so wise?"

Straightening, she looks up at him with worried eyes.

Softly, "but what if he's right? What if I'm too... something. I want to be a good mother."

"Too what? Will you love them?"

"With all my heart," she says honestly. "And I know you will too."

"Then that's all that matters. You can't-

you won't be able to be who you were, exactly. But you won't be a different person."

"I certainly won't be so reckless, but since that's what everyone I know has been asking for since I can remember, I don't understand why that's a bad thing."

She shrugs.

"I don't think he understands that I had my grand adventure. I helped save the country, and even in the smallest towns, people have heard of the Lioness. The Goddess told me it was time to go my own way. She wanted me to learn how to love. I don't understand why he's not proud of me anymore, all of a sudden."

"I think that has less to do with you and more to do with him."

"I don't see how," she says with a frown. "So he got angry and stomped off? Odd, I thought he wanted us to get married. But I suppose that was before he decided he didn't like us together after all."

"Give him time."

To do what, Adam isn't quite sure. But he figures Alanna needs the time as much as Thom does.

Alanna nods, standing on her toes to better hug him. It's several minutes before she says anything, both because she doesn't know what to say, and because she doesn't trust her voice.

But finally she decides to focus on happier things.

"I feel as if we should put up a sign." She smiles.

He waits a moment, hugging her and squeezing her hand before speaking again.

"Dear Patrons of Milliways Bar, no longer do you have to worry about what to call Adam and Alanna?"

She giggles, looking at him sideways.

"But if we don't tell them what to call us, Goddess knows what they'll come up with. Do you really want to give Lilly that type of opening?"

"No. No, I really don't."

He laughs.

"But we should tell people. I just don't know how. It's not a big thing, like for Archie and Svava, and yet...

it is."

"Honestly, I think if we just start correcting people when they call you my 'whatever,' it will catch on soon enough."

Smiling, she pushes further up on her toes to give him a kiss.

"Aye, it is. Husband."

She waggles her eyebrows.

"And somehow I suspect Raven will know before we even go to correct him."

He laughs, happy, and kisses her back.

"Wife."

"Yes, where are our cookies? I've come to expect them after such events."

She blushes, smiling happily.

"You know, it feels good. Scars on the right, rings on the left."

"It matches."

He takes her right hand in his and holds it tight.

"There's not much that could make this better, I think."

It's almost like they're dancing, she thinks. They are much better at it now. They are much better at lots of things now.

"Oh, I'm certain we'll find a way."

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