4. In front of the fireplace. For whoever strikes your fancy. ;)
This is AU. This is SO INCREDIBLY AU. ::glares at muses:: SO. INCREDIBLY. AU.
Mairen Taerich blinked wearily into the darkness. It was silence that woke her ā a peaceful stillness that she had not felt all night: Despite their best efforts, tiny little Kalyan had been restless, unable or unwilling to sleep for more than a few minutes at a stretch. Each time he awoke alone in his bassinet, Mairen could feel a jolt of panic reverberating through her infant son, followed by a wail with lungs that would rival those of his adult siblings. She and Reanden had taken turns, pacing the floors of the Nar Shaddaa apartment, whispering, humming, and even quietly singing to try and soothe him. It was finally Reanden who managed to occupy their bright-eyed boy, reading to him while sending his exhausted wife to sleep.
Att first, her own sleep had been fitful, sensing the restlessness of both her husband and son, yet being unable to pinpoint the cause. She awakened at each sound ā each time the doors rumbled open or closed; each time the circulation unit switched on; the murmur of voices as Reanden paced the floor with Kal. But then the fatigue finally won out, her body drawing her down into a deeper, less disturbed rest.
Throwing back the covers and swinging her feet to the floor, Mairen reached now for the robe that stayed at the foot of the bed. She slipped her arms into the sleeves as she rounded the footboard and made for the main corridor. The last time she had seen Reanden make a round, he had been headed for the den. Tying the sash of her robe, she padded toward the transparisteel door.
It lumbered aside with the usual clatter, louder now for the lack of other ambient sound. The room itself was dark. An orange glow emanated from the fireplace beside the door, warm light casting light and shadow as the flames flickered. There, lit only by the gentle glow, she could make out the features of her husband, body stretched across the overstuffed couch before the hearth. His eyes were closed and his features were relaxed in sleep. One hand lay on Kalyanās back, arm propped by the back of the sofa, the little boy sound asleep on his chest. His other arm had slipped from his charge and draped now over the side and onto the floor.
Mairen felt an unmistakable knot form in her throat, eyes stinging. From the beginning, Kalyan had been nothing short of a miracle: Conceived by a mother of advanced age, from a father who believed his parenthood days well behind. His presence had been a surprise to both and she remembered well the way in which color drained from Reandenās features as the doctor offered the news, the nausea that overwhelmed him. For one brief, terrifying moment, she worried whether he wanted the child ā wanted her ā wanted them. This helpless little knot of energy, stirring within herā¦ their son.
And then she realized: It wasnāt that he didnāt want them. Quite the contrary ā he loved being a father, and regretted, more than anything, not being able to raise his own children. But it was overwhelming, the prospect of being a father again, now, when his own children were approaching their third decade. It had been that feeling ā soaring panic and fear ā she felt coursing through him, mingling with her own.
Then, as reality settled, came joy ā sheer, unadulterated joy, as he cradled her head in his hands. Tears spilled down both their cheeks and he kissed her triumphantly. In ten years, she couldnāt remember seeing or sensing him that happyā¦ at least, not since the night of her rescue. It was going to be a long road, but one they would travel together. As long as they were together, they thought, they could handle anything.
The pregnancy certainly tested the limits of their connection. Morning sickness had been a particular plague for another month; hormonal mood swings for the remainder; and the three elder Taerich children ā Xaja and Korin, especially ā had been unsure how to react to the news. Neither had been outright hostile, but it was clear the idea of a baby half-sibling was discomfiting. That they only had six months to adjust certainly didnāt help.
Despite his eldest childrenās concerns, Reanden couldnāt help but be ecstatic, his excitement reverberated frequently through their connection. In the later months, it would send Kalyan into a round of somersaults and kicks. Mairen couldnāt bring herself to fuss at either of the men in her life, however: She knew what a miracle she had, both in her son and in her husband.
And now those two miracles lay together, finally at rest after a fitful night. Her heart swelled.
Swiping away the errant tear that escaped her eye, she knelt beside the couch. One hand swept over the soft, downy head of her son, the other coming to rest on the shoulder of her husband. Kalyan snuffled in his sleep, but settled back, little jaw working as he stilled; his father stirred gently, blinking until he looked up to Mai. āHi,ā she whispered.
A sleepy, lopsided smirk twitched at his lips. āHi,ā he whispered in response. The smirk widened as she leaned in to kiss him, tenderly and slowly. āSomething you want to tell me?ā
Mairen gave a chuckle, shaking her head. āIf you havenāt figured it out already, you handsome old bastard, Iām not going to tell you.ā She smiled at their son. āLetās get him back to his bed.ā
Standing, she carefully extracted the auburn-headded little boy from his father, cradling him gently to her chest. He sighed. Curling closer to his mother, she placed a kiss on his forehead. Reanden stood behind her, his hand coming to rest against the small of her back.
Moving together, they padded across the hall, silence broken only by the rumbling of the doors as the etched transparisteel slid aside. The scent of baby powder lingered, fresh and clean, as they entered the nursery, yellow stars splayed over the ceiling from a small lamp. Mairen eased Kalyan carefully down into his own bed. He hummed as he sprawled out across the mattress, but didnāt wake. Along their connection, she could feel his sense of peace and relaxation, neither of which had been present before. Their restless night was over for the moment, it seemed.
She stood watching as Reanden reached down and smoothed a finger over Kalyanās cheek. The little boy gave a smile in his sleep, echoed by his father. Mairen could only chuckle and shake her head. The crotchety old spy she once knew was completely smitten by their months-old sonā¦ and she loved every minute of it.
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I don't want to be a hero,
You say in a small voice, watching the stones and the river, as it washes off someone's
(Who was that and why did I take them out I never meant to kill anyone) blood.
This just isn't right, you say in quieter voice that almost breaks.
He watches you with a look of intriqued and slightly cold bewilderment, the kind of a look of Get over it already, there's many more to come, before he finishes readjusting his backpack and tosses you an improvised towel out of a shirt.
That's as good as you get, here. Hero not in doing the right thing, but doing the wrong thing before the bad guys get to do it and take your chance.
You glare at him but he doesn't even move. Doesn't even change that annoying cold look of his.
And for a while, you trust him.
Not to know things right -
But to get you both through the day.
Maybe the night, too.
Even though it feels like a night already.
That trust is not enough; but, like other things, it just will do.
On the first day of college he was told the only unofficial rule of coaching was to never sleep with the player. The people who came up with that rule had certainly never met Harry Styles.
When Liam took the job as Harry's tennis coach he never thought it would end up like this. Now instead of just a championship title and his job on the line, it was his heart as well.
"There's no such thing as getting used to what you experienced."
Under the cut for length.
The tired-looking woman in the passenger seat didnāt seem to have heard him.
She had. She just couldnāt find the words to reply.
One of Sarahās upper arms was covered in dried blood, and the appendage hung limp next to her. Her leg almost felt better than her shoulder did. She couldnāt have lifted that arm if sheād tried.
After a long pause, the rasping, quiet voice that came out of Sarahās mouth didnāt sound like her own.
āI didnāt have a choice.ā
She glanced up at the mirror between them. John was sleeping in the back; a scratchy green blanket that was too small for him lay across his middle.
Heād had that since he was a baby.
āI was the mother of humanityās future,ā she went on, just watching John sleep. āThere was no way to keep the world safe if my son wasnāt protected, too.ā
Pale orbs drifted back down to the road before them. A weary head turned in his direction, only partially, and dark brows bunched up a bit.
āI couldnāt have done this without you, Wolf,ā Sarah told him, a little gruff, but with more feeling than she usually portrayed.
āYou helped us save billions of lives. I donāt know how many patients youāve saved before now, but youāre as much a part of this as John and I. I want you to know that.ā
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As Bolt padded into Mahana alongside Penny, he took note of the friendly, relaxed atmosphere that surrounded the area. He liked this place, he decided.
As long as nobody tried to hurt Penny.
Penny scratched behind Boltās ear as she walked towards a girl in the village, about to ask if sheād seen her father, but then paused. āThatās Mari!ā she whispered, awed. āThe hero of Mahana!ā
Bolt was puzzled, but he hurried after the girl as she approached the other teen. āHey there! M-my name is Penny, and this is my palamute, Bolt. Itās amazing to meet you!ā
Bolt sniffed at Mariās hand, then wagged his tail a bit. He liked her, too.
Ā Ā Ā Life is at ease on Krypton as one would expect the life of a noble family like that of the Vexās. However Daron-Vex is constantly having to pick up his youngest daughter, sixteen year old Nyssa-Vex from the Sagitari whenever she decides to explore the boundaries of Krypton law. This was something that always intrigued the young Kryptonian. She learned things better and faster then most by her explorations rather than learning from a teacher or Kalex. Feed up with herĀ āexplorationsā Daron put his daughter on lock down, only allowing her to be with him within the guild of the lawmakers or at home. Little did Daron know, Nyssa-Vex had been a master at the arts of escaping which she had done countless of times in the past. This time however she would simple escape to lend a hand to the twins from the house of En, Vera Ry-En and Bo-En.
Vera Ry-En is the brains of the operation, a young and proud scientist or at least future member of the science guild as she hopes to be. Trying to prove her worth in the science guild she comes up with the brilliant idea to make a transporter that would allow them to jump from one planet to another rather then taking a skimmer. With the help of her brother Bo-En things seemed to be going there way
Bo-En is the mathematically smart twin of Vera, who simple puts the algorithms together while his sister builds and comes up with ideas for there next big thing to show the science guild. Despite every idea most have been a complete flop or simpleĀ ānot what they are looking forā what ever that really means. Furious with the constant let down he was all on board with whatever crazy idea his sister had left however inviting the daughter of the Magistrate of Kandor he thought was the worse idea considering a lot of the work they did wasnāt approved by the council.Ā
The three worked for days countlessly almost all day and night, finally feeling as they where getting so much closer to making their machine work, they decided to test it, if it work and they did land on another planet Vera didnāt want to go alone, so she invited Nyssa to tag along so they would be there together. When the device went off, the two vanished and for a moment it seemed like it had been a success. Until a few moments later when Bo couldnāt get his friend and sister back and the machine started smoking. Panicād Bo tried everything to fix the machine while also attempting to cover up where the two had been and for him, it wasnāt going to well as Bo had a hard time lying.
When the dust cleared, Vera was near an ocean on the planet earth sometime in the future and Nyssa-Vex was now currently in the middle of a busy street in National City where the hero of the city was no one other then the girl of steel. An oddity to the young Kryptonian considering the house of El lost itās rank just eight life cycles.
