#fluffyashell

Author's Note: Established yuri, some lipsmacking at the end... yeah. <3

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Ice cream.

  Everybody loved ice cream, right?

  Lee was entirely too nervous as she and Marie entered the small shop hand in hand, the selection of icy, creamy perfection settled in the display case for their choosing. Today…would be a big day. And she was absolutely and completely fucking nervous.

  Even though she was lactose intolerant, she knew Marie had quite the sweet tooth and she was hoping to sweeten her up a bit before putting it all on the line. So she’d popped a lactose pill and suggested they go out for a treat. Marie had been more than excited, which was definitely encouraging. It was hard to believe that it had been about three months since they’d been together, but she was more than certain of how she was feeling and she… she just needed Marie to know.

  No matter what happened, she had to do this.

  “What would you like, sweetheart?” she asked softly, peeking over at Marie with a fond smile. Already, the little Cali girl was getting excited as she perused the multitude of flavors at their disposal.

  “Mmmm… How about a scoop of cookies and cream, and a scoop of cake batter? Those sound pretty good,” Marie said with a grin, a happy gleam in her eyes.

  “A double-scooper, huh? I’ll just have a scoop of cookie dough. That’s more than enough for me,” Lee replied, chuckling as they finally stepped up to order.

  Soon they were settled in a corner, lapping at the frosty treats happily as they enjoyed each other’s company. Settled by the ease of their small talk, Lee tried to summon up her courage to actually make her grand announcement. Well…hopefully it would be grand. Or… you know, something special. Marie…Marie was special.

  “So…” she murmured, the tension suddenly thick between them as she tried to put into words what she wanted to say. But nothing really was coming to mind, now that it finally came down to it. Fuck. Marie was staring at her, her brow furrowed in confusion at the sudden shift in the aura around them.

  “Yes? What’s on your mind?” Marie inquired, leaning over the table, licking up a little of the melting cream that threatened to slip onto her fingers. Lee held back a shiver, knowing just what that tongue was capable of. Swallowing thickly, she shook her mind from the gutter, trying to concentrate on what needed to be said.

  “I…well… There’s something I need to talk to you about…” Lee stumbled over her words, watching her ice cream melt in her cone. Fuck, why was this so hard to say?

  “What is it?” Marie asked, getting more curious and concerned by the second.

  All the words she had planned to say just ran away, leaving her completely lost as she stared down at her cone, trying to think of anything, anything to say. It felt like trying to catch at quicksand that was quickly slipping through her fingers. Try as she might, it was impossible to get a word out of her reluctant mouth. Finally… a few squeaked out syllables were blurted out.

  “Ri… Iloveyou.”

  Marie blinked, brows furrowing in confusion. “I… what did you say?”

  Lee took a deep breath, trying to slow herself down as she fought against her dark blush. “I said… I love you.” Well that was certainly eloquent.

  Marie simply stared at her for a few moments, too in shock as she simply digested this simple confession. She barely even noticed as her ice cream started to drip onto her fingers, making her hand quite sticky in the process. After a few moments of silence, Lee was starting to get worried and quickly began to apologize before Marie silenced her with a gentle finger upon her lips.

  “I love you too,” she replied, her eyes warm and so immensely happy that it shocked the elder woman to the core.

  “You… You do?”

  “Of course I do! I have for a while now,” she said with a soft smile, brushing her fingers over Lee’s blazing cheek, “I just…could never find the right time to say it.”

  Happiness.

  That was the only thing she could really feel as she tugged Marie a bit closer over the table and pressed their lips together in a tender kiss. There were no more words that needed saying in that moment with their ice cream slowly dripping down their hands.

Finally! Halloween was here!

  Though it had only been about two to three months since she had arrived in the Grove, Marie already felt like she was at home here. That may have had something to do with the fact that she had an amazing girlfriend, but who was she to complain? Apparently, Lee was even more perfect than she had originally thought: Halloween was her favorite holiday too! And today was the day.

  She was getting ready, packing up a bag with their costumes and a few extra things that would help them out. It was kind of silly that she was so excited to dress up like a little kid and decorate Lee's apartment with Halloween decorations, but she simply couldn't help herself!

  Marie ignored the amused looks Emma was sending her, too caught up in her little world to really care what the blonde thought of her somewhat childish behavior. This was her favorite holiday; she was allowed to get excited – especially since she’d be celebrating the night with her girlfriend! Zipping up her bag and throwing on a jacket, she threw a quick farewell to her smirking roomie before heading out to Lee's.

  It looked like Mother Nature wasn’t going to just stop the rain, even for the holiday. Half soaked by the time she rang the doorbell, Marie wasn't surprised by the worried look on Lee's face as she was tugged inside the apartment. "Well hello to you too," she teased as Lee hurried her along into the bedroom to change out of her wet clothes.

  "As much as I love seeing you, I don't want you catching a cold. Now, did you bring my costume? Might as well change too," Lee said as she watched her younger lover. Admittedly, she was a bit nervous. She’d allowed her young lover to pick out their costumes, and she had absolutely no clue what the college student had up her sleeves.

  "I have it! One sec..." Marie muttered as she dug through her bag and pulling out what looked like a hybrid snuggie and animal costume, "Here we go! I thought you'd like the fact that it's a fox. I know you like all kinds of canines."

  Lee looked down at the costume for a few seconds before smiling. "You know, it's not as bad as I expected. What's it called again? I don’t think I’ve seen anything like this before… except that time at Comic Con."

  "It's a kigurumi. I was looking on Tumblr and found all sorts of cute pictures with people wearing them and I just knew we had to try them! So come on, try it on! We'll even match!" Marie teased, pulling out and shrugging into her own panda kigurumi. It was rather adorable if she did say so herself. She did love a black and white color scheme, and what was better than a panda?

  Soon enough, they were both decked out in their kigurumis, giggling together as they applied face paint to match their costumes. Marie got two dark black eyes and black lips, the rest of her face painted a ghostly white. Lee, on the other hand, had most of her face painted orange with white around her nose and mouth with a black spot on the tip of her nose.

    Once they were finished with their get ups, they prepared the house for the holiday, cobwebs, eerie candelabras and black and orange streamers strewn everywhere. There was nary a surface untouched with something grimy, slimy, or spooky. By the time they were done, Lee’s apartment looked like it had been mummy wrapped by the Halloween spirit gone wild.

  Satisfied with their work, Marie gave Lee’s orange cheek a soft peck, black lips grinning from ear to furry ear. “I think we’re looking pretty good, don’t you?” she gloated, pride at their disastrous Halloween horror land emanating from her.

  Lee chuckled fondly, lightly tugging on one of Marie’s panda ears. “We make a pretty good team, I admit. Now come on, let’s get some candy gathered together before the wee ones pop by.”

    About ten minutes later, they were ready with a bowl full of Snickers, KitKats, Kisses, and Mr. Good Bars. Okay, perhaps it wasn’t exactly full… Marie might have pilfered a couple KitKats for herself. Hey, they were yummy! Lee had her own stash of sour candy that she planned to nip off of during the night. So what, exactly, did the two lovers plan to preoccupy themselves with as they waited for the little children to come to their door?

  A horror movie marathon, of course!

  Considering Lee’s enormous collection of horror movies, they had quite a bit to choose from. There was the Saw franchise, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Collection, Friday the 13th, the Scream series, Nightmare on Elm Street, Insidious, Resident Evil, Silent Hill, The Ring movies, House of Wax… The list went on and on. Marie had agreed to watch anything Lee wanted, on one condition.

  They absolutely had to watch Rocky Horror Picture Show.

  The cult classic was just so necessary today. Rather reluctantly, Lee had agreed, which was how they had ended up snuggled in their kigurumis on the couch watching Saw III. Just as they were getting to the beginning of the gore, the doorbell rang. Marie eagerly hopped up off the couch to answer the door, happy to both see the children and get away before the gore became too much for her. Lee chuckled fondly as the exuberant panda played nice with the little ones, chatting them up a bit just to avoid going back into the living room.

  This went on for a couple hours until the last of the children stopped by and the small town went to sleep for the night. About three movies later, Marie was contently cuddled up to Lee’s side, her head nestled on the orange fur of her lover’s shoulder. When Lee looked down, she was quite amused to find the panda fast asleep.

  “Tuckered out, eh, dove?” Lee chuckled, moving to scoop the young woman into her arms and heading to the bedroom. Tucking her dove into bed, Lee crawled in beside her, cradling her warm body in her embrace. They could always change tomorrow.

Author Note: So this involves some girlxgirl lipsmacking. Don't like, don't read. <3 Enjoy!

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“What exactly do you have on your head?”

  “It’s a cat hat with mittens attached. What, don’t you like it?”

  “You know, it is strangely adorable on you. You know, even though it looks like a cat’s eating your head.”

  “Great! I got one for you too!”

  Lee blinked, staring at the wolf head hat that Marie was thrusting in her direction. As much as her lover looked quite adorable in cat ears with those damn little paw mittens, she wasn’t so sure she wanted to wear one for herself. Still, the enthusiasm on Marie’s face at this little gift was quite infectious and she gave out a sigh of defeat, taking the hat from the bouncy Cali girl.

  With a teasing huff, she tugged the cap onto her head, slipping her hands into the attached mittens. “There. How does it look?” she asked, waving a pawed hand at her kitten girlfriend.

  Marie giggled as Jaz hopped up into Lee’s lap, pawing at the scarf part of the hat with a yip. “It’s perfect! You’ve always been my puppy and now you look the part!”

  “Is there any specific reason you got these? Or did you just think they were cute?” Lee smirked, petting the happy Chihuahua in her lap.

  “Yes! Well, both. I was doing research and the first Sunday in October is Children’s Day in Hawaii! So I thought we could sort of, kind of celebrate? I thought it’d be fun to just act like kids for a day,” Marie explained, her hands making small gestures as she talked. Oh, her Italian side was certainly showing its colors today. Lee smiled in amusement as she shrugged, picking Jaz up and setting her back on the floor. She got up and gave Marie’s cheek a soft peck, chuckling in her ear.

  “Thank you for the present, dear. I love it,” she said with a smile, kissing the beaming Californian with a chuckle.

  “I was hoping you would! I just thought they were pretty adorable,” Marie said, nearly wiggling with happiness. She loved getting Lee little gifts, just gifts and gestures that showed she cared. It was quite amusing how they would both pamper the other and insist that they didn’t want anything in return but the other would always get them something anyway.

  Lee looked towards the kitchen before glancing at her watch. It was about dinner time by now. “Want to help me make dinner? We can make mac’n’cheese or grilled cheese in honor of Children’s Day? I’ll have to take my pill, but it’d be worth it.”

  “Grilled cheese! I haven’t had one of those in ages,” Marie grinned, bouncing off into the kitchen. Shaking her head in amusement, Lee followed close behind, heading to the fridge in search of ingredients. She should have all the makings for grilled cheese; even though she was lactose intolerant, Marie loved cheese and was the reason she still bought the stuff in the first place.

  They settled into an easy rhythm, working side by side as Marie worked on the sandwiches and Lee started on some tomato soap. Unbeknownst to them both, this version of the soup had a bit of a kick to it. While Lee didn’t mind spice too much, Marie had a very weak tongue.

  Soon enough, Marie had finished up with their matching triangles of toast and melted cheese and was peeking over Lee’s shoulder and the simmering liquid. Curious, she went to grab a spoon, dipping into the pot and sipping the concoction before Lee could warn her away.

  “Ow! Oh damn, that’s spicy!” Marie squeaked, dropping the spoon into the sink as her mouth lit aflame. Damn that was hot. What the hell was in that stuff? She rubbed her tongue against the roof of her mouth, whimpering as the heat made her mouth ache.

  “It has a bit of a kick to it,” Lee warned a bit too late, smiling sheepishly at her flailing lover as she turned off the flame under the pot. Shaking her head, her hands grasped the mitten ends of Marie’s hat, gently tugging her closer. Marie looked up at her girlfriend in confusion before gasping as the older woman pulled her in for a slow, sensual kiss, their tongues slowly tangling together.

  Damn, Lee could make her knees go weak and her legs turn to jelly. Whimpering as the heat slowly ebbed, her fingers tangled into the curls peeking out from beneath that wolf hat, pulling Lee closer to her with a soft moan. Eventually they had to break for air, both women gasping softly with a soft laugh.

  “Feel any better, kitten?” Lee teased, reaching up to pet one of the cat ears on her girlfriend’s head.

  “Strangely...yes. Should I take another bite so I can get another kiss, puppy?” Marie teased, her fingers slipping down to hook on Lee’s belt loops.

  “Nah, kisses come free,” Lee smirked before swooping in for another kiss.

Author's Note: There's some girlxgirl stuff in here. Don't like, don't read. <3

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“There’s no way you’re dragging me to a dance class. No way.”

  “Lee, come on. I love it and Emma will be there. You like Emma, right?”

  “Of course I like Emma, but that doesn’t mean I want to tango. I have two fucking left feet!”

  “That’s why I’m here. I’ll help you learn. Come on, it’s going to be fun!”

  Lee wavered, Marie’s puppy eyes doing wonders on her resolve. She wasn’t a dancer, but it was getting harder and harder to say no to her lover. Rubbing her hand over her face, the raven let out a sigh, shaking her head with a wry grin.

  “It really isn’t fair when you pull out the pout. Fine, I’ll come this one time okay?”

  Marie squealed in delight, tackling her girlfriend in a hug as she bounced excitedly. “Thank you! Thankyouthankyouthankyou! You’ll love it, I promise! Now let’s get changed, Emma will be here in fifteen minutes!”

  She was going to regret this, she could feel it.

  Lee reluctantly followed her girlfriend into the bedroom, watching the other woman strip and redress for a few moments before doing so herself. They’d gotten so comfortable together as of late, more than likely due to the fact that they trusted each other above all else. It was so odd, being able to actually trust someone again. They both had trust issues, which was why it was kind of amazing that they could trust each other so much. She didn’t know how or why, but she wasn’t going to question it.

  They just…clicked.

  Marie was getting rather enthused as she dressed, pulling on her yoga pants with a grin. She’d wanted to drag Lee along to one of hers and Emma’s dance lessons for a couple months now, and she’d finally been able to convince the rather stubborn Ohio native to join them. She knew her blonde roommate enjoyed Lee’s company when they were around each other, even if they argued every once in a while. That tended to happen when two very stubborn women clashed heads.

  Turning to see her girlfriend ready in sweats and a loose t-shirt, Marie grabbed her hand with a smile, leading her out towards the campus with a bounce in her step.

  They were going to have so much fun, she could feel it.

  Emma was waiting at their usual spot right by the official university sign, her blonde hair pulled up in a bun that left quite a few tendrils loose around her face. Her eyes lit up in surprise at the sight of Lee walking rather reluctantly behind Marie, confusion slowly morphing into glee as she held out a hand for Lee to shake.

  “I’m surprised she got you to come along. I’ve been asking her to invite you for weeks,” Emma said, eyes sliding to the grinning brunette. Lee smiled sheepishly as she shook the blonde’s hand with a shrug.

  “It took some persuasion, but she’s pretty convincing,” Lee replied. Emma smirked with a shake of her head.

  “She got you with the eyes, didn’t she?” she said knowingly.

  Marie pouted, putting her hand sassily on her hip. “I’m right here, you know! Come on, we don’t want to be late for the lesson,” she chided, tugging Lee along behind her with a huff. Lee and Emma exchanged an amused glance before going along with their youngest member of the trio. It was better not to prod the little California girl too much. She could be rather prickly when she wanted to be.

  The trio walked into the dance studio about two minutes late, earning them a small look from the instructor as they settled into the back of the room, looking adequately chagrined as they secretly exchanged covert smiles. Emma and Marie were already used to the instructor’s rather no-nonsense attitude, and luckily Lee was rather easygoing and dismissed the pain-in-the-ass teacher’s behavior. Soon enough, they were paired up and working on their form, the teacher going around and correcting posture and movement.

  Lee was looking rather awkward, hands placed hesitantly on Marie’s body while Marie moved with certainty. It was easy to see how nervous the poor raven was, and Marie was doing her best to calm her girlfriend’s nerves.

  “There we go, just follow me. It’s easy once you get the hang of it,” she promised, peeking at Emma to see how she was doing before turning back to her anxious partner, holding back a wince as her feet were trampled once more. Lee hadn’t been kidding; she really did seem to have two left feet that were constantly arguing on which way to go. Still, Marie was determined to get her to learn, and by Jove, she’d do it!

  “That’s it, and one, two , three… that was my toes, let’s try again. One, two, three, four,” Marie gently prodded, leading the two around the dance floor with ease. Lee followed along, stumbling here and there but eventually getting the hand of things. Soon enough, they had completed a few moves to almost perfection, Marie’s eyes lighting up in triumph.

  “Haha! I told you you could do it!” Marie exclaimed in excitement, looking into Lee’s eyes. In that moment, they were frozen, just watching the other with tenderness in their gaze that they hadn’t thought existed. A deep blush stained Marie’s cheeks as she finally took notice of their position, their bodies pressed tightly together with their faces only a couple inches apart.

  After what seemed like eternity, Lee leaned forward to capture Marie’s lips in a searing kiss, making the young brunette’s knees go weak. She kissed back for all she was worth, completely forgetting that they weren’t exactly alone. Lee was about to deepen the kiss when they heard a very flustered cough come from right beside them. Marie jumped, stumbling a bit before Lee caught her, her sheepish gaze meeting that of the dance instructor.

  “Miss Gomez, please restrain yourself whilst in my class. You know my policy on PDA,” the instructor huffed at the crimson cheeked Marie before turning his gaze to the sheepish Lee, “As for you, I would like to inform you that I pride myself in having high standards in my studio and PDA is certainly not allowed. If I catch you two again, you will not be invited back to class. Is that understood?”

  Both women nodded sheepishly, cowering under the instructor’s gaze until he left, bursting out into a fit of giggles to release the tension. Emma was watching the two with an amused smirk on her face as she came over to them, shaking her head. “I swear, I can’t take you two out anywhere without you going at each other. Ever heard the phrase ‘get a room?’”

  Marie stuck her tongue out at her smug roommate. “You’re just jealous you don’t have a hot girlfriend like I do, Emmy.”

Author's Note: WARNING: Some inappropriate touching and odd innuendo are featured below. Proceed at your own risk. xD

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Marie was relaxing languidly on the couch as she watched Lee battle some zombies on their PS3, munching away on a couple chips to keep her stomach from growling. They’d been playing on and off for most of the day, just relaxing for a bit on this rare day off. Marie had just finished a major project for her major and was intent on spending some downtime now that it was over. Reaching out for another crisped piece of tortilla, Marie’s fingers slid with surprise around the empty bowl, peeking down with a frown.

  “Damn. Out of chips. I’m gonna go refill,” Marie said, kissing Lee’s temple as she grabbed the bowl and headed off into the kitchen. She hadn’t been in the kitchen for the last three days. After all, Lee usually grabbed her snacks whenever she was hungry and she hadn’t been able to come over for dinner in the last week due to her project. Needless to say, she was definitely surprised when she opened the door and found the fridge bare of food. Blinking in surprise, she leaned over, scouting through the drawers for anything edible. Nope. Nothing.

  “We should probably go grocery shopping soon, honey. You’re nearly out of…well, everything,” Marie observed, peering into the barren innards with a frown.

  Owner of said fridge looked up from her video game with a furrowed brow. “Could have sworn I restocked it,” Lee muttered, pausing the game and shuffling to her side, “Crap. Maybe that was three weeks ago…”

  “Three weeks?” the brunette gaped in astonishment, “Yeah, we should definitely go visit the store.” Marie kissed Lee’s cheek as Jaz yipped excitedly at their ankles. The raven looked sheepishly over at her girlfriend with a wry grimace.

  “I’m sorry, babe. I thought I still had something left in the fridge,” Lee apologized as Marie tugged her along into the living room, grabbing her purse and keys off the counter. Their game could wait; Marie in a hunger buzz was never a good thing, and she would rather be safe than sorry.

  “Hey, it’s fine. Let’s just go stock up again, okay?” Marie smiled, heading out into the rain slicked streets. Together, they started the couple blocks trek to the closest grocery store, hands swinging between them as they chatted idly on the journey. By now they’d been dating for five months, and Marie couldn’t be happier.

  Admittedly, she’d gotten pretty lucky. Lee, while still being a wonderful girlfriend, helped her keep her mind in her studies. As much as they enjoyed their time together, Lee acknowledged that her college education was important and helped her focus as much as she could, even sometimes to Marie’s chagrin. It was nice to have that support, if she were to be honest. On her own, it was pretty hard to stick to her studies, but Lee helped her stay on track and push through.

  Soon enough they were walking through the aisles, Marie guiding the shopping cart as Lee plucked out what they would need. “Let’s see… bread, some Silk, how about we head towards the veggies?” Lee mused, sounding more like she was talking to herself than to her companion. She did that sometimes; just zone out into her own little world. Marie didn’t mind. Sometimes the most interesting words left her girlfriend at times like those.

  “You know, cucumbers make me think of sex ed,” Marie mused as Lee hefted the said vegetable in her hands, “Did you ever get the condom demonstration? That was just wrong. And I don’t really need it.”

  Lee slanted her a glance, a chortle rumbling in her chest. “We got a carrot. Apparently teach wasn’t thinking we’d need to know how [i]thick[/i] guys could be… though the carrot was pretty accurate, so maybe she actually knew what she was doing. The cucumber just sets you up for false promises.”

  A giggle welled up in her throat and threatened to spill out, Marie’s cheeks flushing red as she tried to hold it in without much success. “I don’t think I really want to know how you know that, Leelee.”

  “I have my ways,” Lee replied with a wink, “Don’t worry, it’s not what you think. My friends were mostly guys, and let’s just say they really loved to moon people. Full on mooning, pants down to their knees. It was kind of gross.”

  Marie couldn’t keep in her laughter any longer, shaking her head as water pricked at the corners of her eyes. “And that’s probably why I kept to female friends. I don’t really like the dangly bits…unless they’re on the chest. I do so love melons.”

  “Really, melons? I prefer apples or peaches myself. Just right for a handful,” Lee jested with a teasing glint in her eyes.

  Marie looked down, rather lewdly cupping her breasts in her hands without a second thought. “You know, I think I’m about really big, juicy peach size. What do you think?”

  For what it was worth, Lee didn’t burst out laughing. In fact, she was a bit too preoccupied staring in disbelief and slight arousal as her girlfriend so openly fondled her breasts. “Uh… yeah, t-that sounds about right,” she stuttered, tugging at her collar for some air as she tried her best not to get too flustered. Damn, that was…strangely hot.

  Marie smirked, winking in triumph as she reached out to scoop up a couple apples. “Come on, you perv, let’s finish our shopping,” she teased, kissing her stunned lover’s cheek before continuing on. It took a few seconds for Lee to recover, but she was bounding after the young woman after a few seconds.

  After checking out their groceries and paying for the lot, the two women waddled home, arms fully laden with bags. It took some maneuvering to get the door open, but they managed to fling it open, stumbling over themselves to set the bags down on the kitchen counter.

  “Damn, that was a big haul,” Marie griped, rubbing at her fingers with a pout.

  “It wouldn’t have been so big if you hadn’t grabbed those cantaloupes,” Lee replied with a huff, shaking her head.

“It really isn’t fair that you look so damn adorable.”

  “Well, you get to be the badass one. Cute was all you left over for me!”

  They were huddled together, looking over the crowds that had come to the convention. What convention, you might ask? Why, Comic Con, of course! Admittedly, Marie had gotten very lucky; she’d managed to nab a pair of tickets off a classmate last second when the guy complained to her about having the spares since he and his girlfriend had had a falling out. This was the perfect time for her and Lee to get their nerds on!

  Tugging on her cap, Lee looked around nervously. “You know I’ve never cosplayed before, right?”

  “Neither have I. Now come on, Trainer, we’re going to be late!” Marie chirped, little lightning tail swishing behind her as she moved through the crowd, Lee’s hand gripped tight in her own. Perhaps their get up was a little cliché, but what fit them better than a Pokemon trainer and Pikachu?

  Claustrophobia seemed to creep in the further the couple went, though Lee managed to brush it off as she drank in the variety of colorful costumes. Everywhere she looked, she could see superheroes, pokemon, villains, movie characters, everything she could possibly imagine brought to life. She’d never been to a convention before, and it was almost overwhelming to be surrounded by so many people who had the same quirky spirit she and Marie seemed to possess. She managed a timid wave to a passing Joker, sticking close by her Pikachu’s side.

  Marie’s eyes drank in her environment like a sponge, enjoying the atmosphere of frivolity and freedom that it brought. Admittedly, she’d been to one convention at the age of fourteen, but she hadn’t really been able to appreciate the experience due to the fact that she was still very unfamiliar with everything around her. Now, though, she had lost the shyness and had grown in her knowledge, making this little outing that much more fun.

  “How about we get some fan art? There are some amazing artists selling and you could use some color to add to your walls,” Marie said, peeking up at her Trainer with a smile.

  “You think so?” Lee inquired, peering at the tables lining the pavilion, “I suppose it couldn’t hurt. Let’s go see what’s available, ja?”

  Bouncing on the balls of her feet, Marie led the way, showing Lee a variety of stalls filled with artwork. It really was amazing what these artists could do. Together, they picked out a couple pieces that were most definitely going to adorn Lee’s living room and bedroom in the weeks to come. Beaming excitedly, Marie pecked Lee’s cheek, cuddling into her side as the two continued their adventure through Comic Con.

  Eventually the day came to an end and the couple headed back to the Grove with bags full of art and goodies they’d managed to acquire during the course of their adventure. They ignored the looks they were getting as they walked down the street back to Lee’s house, Marie’s Pikachu tail swishing proudly behind them.

  “You know, overall, that wasn’t too bad,” Lee conceded as they walked into the apartment, Lee’s Chihuahua Jaz trotting up to her owner’s side with a bark. Marie smiled fondly as Lee scooped the little dog up, going to drop their bags off on her girlfriend’s bed.

  “I told you it wouldn’t be. Wasn’t it fun dressing up as someone you actually want to be?” she said with a smile, plopping down on the couch.

  “Have to admit, I loved being a Pokemon Trainer for the day. After all, I got the cutest little Pikachu at my side all day!” Lee teased, settling in beside Marie with Jaz tucked away on her lap.

  Marie rested her head on Lee’s shoulder, humming softly as she linked their hands together. “We should do this again sometime,” she mused softly.

“Why are we doing this again?”

  “Because it’ll be fun! Now stop whining and help me shop,” Marie teased, guiding the shopping cart through the aisles with a bounce in her step.

  “I still think you’re getting off easy on this. I’m the one who will have to dress all…girly,” Lee complained, trotting over the enthusiastic young woman.

  “You’re the one who said I could bet you anything and you’d win. I just decided to take you up on that bet,” Marie said as she turned into the women’s section, looking through the racks curiously.

  So maybe it wasn’t entirely fair. She knew Lee absolutely hated wearing anything girly and having the chance to actually see her in such clothing had her curious. Still, this clothes swap idea meant she’d have to wear something along the lines of Lee’s clothing – including the collar. For some reason, that just sounded so kinky in her mind.

  It made her way too excited.

  “How about this? I’d totally wear this,” Marie said, brandishing a cute yellow dress in Lee’s direction. The poor woman looked like she was going to be sick.

  “Really, Marie? Can’t you pick something that’s even a little bit on the darker side? If I have to wear a dress…can’t it be black?” Lee whined, tugging on the hem of her shirt.

  “Nope! I usually wear brighter colors, so that’s what you’re going to have to wear too,” Marie chided, hanging the dress back up, “I could go with flower patterns, but I’d rather not die. Come on, we’ll find something.”

  They continued on, Lee picking out a baggier black shirt and loose dark wash jeans for Marie’s outfit. She was fine with that; at least Lee liked dressing comfortable. Lee already had the collar, which she wasn’t very enthusiastic about giving up. Yet Marie wouldn’t budge. There was no way she would let this bet go down if Lee got to keep the collar.

  Finally, they settled on a burgundy blouse with a black knee-length skirt for Lee. After check out, they hopped into Marie’s car and headed back up the interstate to the Grove. As usual, the town was in a sleepy hush, laidback and thrumming beneath the surface with life. Parking in front of Lee’s apartment building, they grabbed the shopping bags and headed upstairs.

  “So, the deal is that we wear these for however long it takes for the other one to crack. If it takes too long, we can just trade our clothing, yeah? Lot easier than going out to buy new clothes every so often,” Marie grinned as she held out her hand to Lee, “Now hand over the collar, missy.”

  Lee swallowed thickly, taking off the collar and hefting it in his palm. “What does the winner get, anyway?”

  “Oh, you know… bragging rights,” Marie replied with a shrug, snatching the collar out of Lee’s hand and putting it on, “Maybe cook the other person dinner for a week. Something like that.”

  Her eyes looked up to catch Lee staring at her with a flush in her cheeks. “What?”

  “Just… uh… you look hot in my collar,” Lee replied, blushing harder as she tried with all her might not to get flustered.

  “Thanks,” Marie giggled, grabbing her bag of clothes and pecking Lee’s cheek, “I’m gonna go change. You should too.”

  With that, she nearly skipped off to the bathroom, leaving Lee staring at her in disbelief. Oh yes, this was going to be interesting.

  It didn’t take long for Marie to change, tugging the pants and shirt over her head with a grin. She liked this, actually. Perhaps she’d wear this every so often. Looking in the mirror, she quickly styled her hair with a severe part to the side, letting her bangs cover one of her eyes. Should she add the eyeliner? Nah, she was fine as she was. Tugging lightly on the collar with a smirk, she headed back into the living room.

  Standing very stiffly in the middle of the room was a very uncomfortable looking Lee, tugging at the skirt with a grimace on her face. This would be such an easy win. Marie smirked as she felt the Lee’s eyes drift over her body, tilting her head to the side.

  “Like what you see?” she teased, shaking out her wild mane of hair with a giggle that really didn’t suit the clothes she was wearing.

  “Yeah. But I have to wonder… how do you stand these?” Lee inquired, peering down at the foreign ensemble that left way too much skin unveiled for her general comfort. Marie chuckled as she walked over to her girlfriend, stroking her hands over the material of the skirt.

  “You know, it’s not that bad, Lee. You get used to it,” she murmured, chuckling as she felt Lee shiver at her touch.

  “Yeah… Right. I’m changing.” Lee shook her head as she retreated back into her bedroom with her proverbial tail between her legs.

  Laughter rang out, more amused than mocking as Marie fell back into the couch, shaking her head. She almost felt bad about this. Almost. It had still been entertaining in the two minutes it lasted.

  Lee finally came back out in her regular clothing, plopping down beside Marie with a pout.

  “It wasn’t worth it. Free dinners for a week I can manage, but not that damn pansy skirt,” Lee groaned, wrapping her arms around Marie as the younger woman snuggled up into her chest.

  “That was probably the shortest bet I’ve ever been in. We can always make another one?” Marie offered with a grin.

  “Babe… let’s take a break with the bets, okay?” Lee chuckled and peeked down at Marie in consideration, “Also…”

  “Yeah?”

Author's Note: I do not own Mario Kart. I only enjoy playing it on the rare occasion I have free time. ^^ Enjoy!

----------------------

“Shit!” Marie groaned, plopping back into the couch cushions in defeat, swearing in a way that would make even the most hardened sailor blush. This was the seventeenth time in a row that Lee had beaten her at this damned game. It was slowly but surely becoming the absolute bane of her existence.

  The game…was MARIO KART.

  Lee laughed, watching Marie’s antics with amusement. “Best out of forty?” she teased, brandishing the wii remote with a grin. Giving her a certified death glare, Marie grumbled under her breath, thinking it over. On the one hand, she would more than likely lose again, which would only make her even further frustrated than she already was. However, she did not feel like calling true defeat just yet. Deep inside, she was damn competitive and she would win at least one game.

  “Fine. Let’s try this one more time…” she muttered, grabbing her remote and selecting a new race. Of course, she chose Baby Peach – Baby Peach was hers. It may seem a bit weird…but she adored the little princess. Okay, so maybe she thought Baby Peach was adorable, but what was the harm in that? Strangely enough, the one character she seemed to detest greater than all others was Baby Mario. The damned little bugger seemed to always sneak ahead of her somehow. Maybe it was for that reason that Lee had decided to tease her and choose the little pipsqueak as her icon.

  “Baby Mario is going down,” Marie jeered, settling in for the race. Lee only shook her head and smiled, readying herself as her eyes narrowed in on the screen. The little floating turtle started counting down and they were off, Lee immediately taking a lead with Luigi and Bowser.

  “Yes! No! Wha-… Wait! No! Oh crap,” Marie griped, brow furrowed in concentration as she accidentally over steered, Baby Peach’s motorcycle swerving this way and that. It really was no wonder why she had yet to win; she hadn’t really gotten used to balancing her vehicle to make it a smooth ride. Lee couldn’t help but notice the little things, getting distracted from the game as she just watched Marie this time. With her brow furrowed in concentration, her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth in determination, Lee could have sworn that she had never seen anyone cuter.

  That’s when Baby Mario smashed into a tree, sending her momentum completely off course.

  “The hell…? Yes! Haha!” Marie yelped as she pulled ahead, her little motorcycle somehow racing almost steadily around the course. Finally, she was getting somewhere! Soon enough, she was in fourth place with three mushrooms to spare on the last lap.

  “Alright, alright, alright… almost there…” she muttered as she pushed the B button, sending her shooting over the grass curve, cutting ahead of Koopa Troopa. So close, she was so close… Lee was right behind her, nudging her way past Waluigi with ease as she started to catch up.

  In the last few seconds, they were neck and neck, Baby Peach and Baby Mario vying for the win. Then, out of the blue, a red shell sped up and hit Baby Mario from behind! This gave Marie just enough time to shoot Baby Peach over the finish line, securing her first place.

  “YES! Hell yes, I did it!” she crowed in triumph, jumping up off the couch as she did a little victory dance along with Baby Peach who was cruising on her victory lap. Lee merely laughed, shaking her head fondly as she watched the younger woman with a grin.

  “Congrats, Ri,” she said, warmth evident in her tone. Marie peeked back at Lee, grinning sheepishly as she plopped back down on the couch.

  “Sorry, I just… Heh. Um… Okay, so maybe I’m a little competitive.”

  “A little?”

  “Okay, a lot. But hey, that was my first win ever on Mario Kart!”

  “I know,” Lee said with a smile, reaching out to tug Marie close, hugging the giddy woman to her chest, “Like I said, congrats.”

  Marie blushed lightly as she hugged the elder woman in return, debating a few moments before kissing Lee’s cheek. Both of them froze, looking at each other for a few moments before each splitting into equally shy smiles.

  “Marie… would you…maybe… want to go out with me? You know, sometime?” Lee asked softly, a deep flush staining her cheeks and neck as she ran her fingers through her hair nervously.

  Marie couldn’t help the beaming smile that lit up her face brighter than the sun.