Author: lilyme
Summary: New habits can be a funny thing. Especially when one person involved is not aware they had developed one.
Pairing: Callie/Arizona
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story, nor do I own any rights to the television show "Grey's Anatomy". They were created by Shonda Rhimes and belong to her and the ABC network. No copyright infringement intended!All mistakes are mine.


With a hearty yawn, Arizona sat down on her bed and slowly worked her prosthetic off her tired leg. Hearing footsteps, she turned her head just in time to see her approaching from the hallway. Callie. Equally as tired but smiling nonetheless. Infectious.

"Hi... Is Sofia all tucked in?" Arizona asked, sporting a fairly mischievous grin, because she knew that the answer to this would not be a short one.

On cue, the brunette sighed, "She keeps insisting that she is too old for that. Certainly doesn't want me to read her `kiddie books` anymore," she said, quoting Sofia's words with her fingers. "Now she rather reads books to me," Callie smirked nonetheless and began to put the throw pillows from the bed aside. "And not that this isn't fun and worth encouraging," she was quick to correct any wrong impression, "but sometimes I just miss those old days... and the kiddie stories," she added wistfully.

Arizona laughed, knowing exactly what she meant. "Tell me about it. Last week, I, uh, I asked her if she wanted to watch one of her Disney movies. You know, maybe Cinderella..."

The brunette chuckled. She knew it was Arizona's absolute favorite, and she used any opportunity she got to watch it.

"...but..." Arizona emphasized, "she just looked at me as if I'd grown another head, telling me she wasn't five anymore. So depressing," she pouted with a shake of her head and went to remove her earrings.

"Weird how things change. So much. So fast...," Callie frowned in wonder. Sofia was eight, almost nine years old. And even if currently she didn't want to be their little baby girl anymore, she always would be.

But it wasn't only Sofia who had changed. They had too.

As people. As parents. As a family.

And as a couple. New and old. Going strong for ten months now. Knowing, feeling, willing for this to be forever.

They got used to old and familiar things about the other again, and also grew to love new things.

For Arizona, one clearly being Callie's new haircut. Pompadour style with very shortly trimmed sides.

It had come as a bit of a shock at first. And she had missed the long tresses that she used to run her fingers through for hours on end. But she had quickly grown accustomed to the new, daring style. It had its perks as well. Letting her hands wander over the soft hair of the nearly shaved sides was a quite tingling sensation. And it always turned Callie into a purring pile of mush.

Another new discovery was pretty amusing. "Hey, Callie," the blonde began, thinking of this tiny something she had meant to share with the other woman for a while now. "Speaking of things that have changed... You have developed this weird little snore." She noticed Callie's perplex expression; obviously this was news to her. "You know, it almost sounds like a little piggie. Kinda like this," she proceeded to bring forth said noises, her amusement intensifying as Callie's expression became darker.

Obviously being likened to a little piglet did not fly with the ortho surgeon. And she did not hesitate to vent her displeasure. As the throw pillow that seconds later landed smack-dab in Arizona's face clearly demonstrated.

Temporarily stunned, she looked at Callie who stared back at her with raised eyebrows and a daring smirk. "You gonna take that back?"

"Um... nope," Arizona gleamed, throwing the pillow back at the brunette.

"I do not have a weird snore...!" the brunette complained, repeating her move, but this time Arizona caught the item right away and instantly returned it to its sender; followed by the pillow's lone companion that until now had had remained behind her back.

A bad idea, since now the other woman had all the pillow ammunition at her hands. And immediately bombarded her with it.

Arizona knew there was only one way out now. So she dove in, tackling Callie by the waist and pulling her down onto the bed. The brunette's surprised yelp only elicited a devilish laughter from her. "I can fight dirty too, woman," she stated, making a move to straddle Callie's lap, ready to proclaim herself the victor.

But Callie was not one to give up, "Think you can win this?" she challenged, quick to 'fight' back. She went for her sides, a tickle-attack with little mercy that was countered by Arizona with just as much energy.

They rolled around the bed, both laughing, trying desperately to gain the upper hand and stop the other's nimble fingers. Eventually Callie managed to trap the blonde's body under her own, having her in a wringer. Arizona's arms trapped above her head in a strong grip. "Okay," she started, a little out of breath, "Now you wanna take that back?"

The blonde didn't budge, "Nope, not really".

With one last trick up her sleeve, Callie bent down to blow some wet, sloppy raspberries on her lover's cheek.

"Aak, bah!" Arizona shrieked at the slobbery sensation on her face. "Okay, okay, I take it back."

Satisfied Callie let up. "No piggie sound?" she ventured, slowly releasing her grip.

"No piggie sound," Arizona agreed verbally to Callie's request. In her mind, however, it would forever be Callie's piggie snore. "But it is actually pretty cute," she added, shaking her now free hands to relax her muscles. "Especially when I tap your nose like this," she nudged it gently with her index finger, "and then you twitch it all confused... before you just continue snoring. Adorable," she smiled.

Callie nodded. "Alright. You wanna know what you tend to do nowadays? You know, whenever you're not disrupting my sleep like that?"

"Hm?"

"You're taking up a whole lot of space on our bed." And it wasn't even a lie. Whereas Callie always slept in the most absurd positions... she stayed on her side of the bed. With Arizona, however, it was an entirely different story. They could have the most ginormous bed in the world, and Arizona would probably still be occupying not only her side, but also the larger part of Callie's side of the bed.

Arizona knew exactly what Callie was talking about. Often she woke up, finding herself almost pressed into Callie, with the brunette in danger of falling off the bed because she barely allowed her any space. But she was only mildly sorry about this. She had a logical explanation. "Just trying to get close to you," she sighed, now a little more serious, and pulled Callie tighter.

The brunette noticed the shift in mood. "I can accept that," she just said,

tucking a strand of blond hair behind Arizona's ear.

She fully understood the sentiment. The need to be as close as possible.

They had been separated for so long. Now being back together, they seemed closer than before. Physically and emotionally. And it was the most amazing feel ever.

"I love you, you know that, right?" she looked at her lover in all seriousness.

"I do," Arizona smiled contently, her fingers reaching up to trace Callie's cheek. "I love you too, so much." She hummed against the welcome lips soon covering hers. It felt good to say those words again. To be with each other again after all these years.

Finally.

They had found their way back together. And they never wanted to let go again.

Arizona gazed up into the eyes of the woman above her, her hand inevitably finding its way into Callie's neatly trimmed hair. On cue, the brunette groaned as the lithe fingers reached a particularly sensitive spot at the back of her head. That one always made her go weak in the knees.

And Callie knew what would make Arizona go weak in the knees. "Say... are you still tired?" she asked, tipping her head in for another peck on her lover's sweet lips.

"Hm, nope, not really," Arizona grinned, ready for whatever Callie had mind.

"How about...," the brunette started, coyly playing with the strap of the blonde's top before leaning down to peck Arizona's neck, "I set up... the TV in here and... we... cuddle up and watch your Cinderella together?" she wondered.

It was not what Arizona had expected Callie would suggest. But it was so much more. "Really?" she cooed excitedly.

"Really," Callie affirmed, kissing her broadly smiling lover once more.

It was about an hour later, and about halfway into the movie.

Callie's arm was loosely draped around Arizona shoulders and the blonde was totally engrossed in the movie she had probably seen a hundred times already and probably would watch a hundred times more.

Only occasionally... her focus on the movie was diverted by adorable piggie snores coming from the slumbering woman beside her. Callie had fallen asleep about fifteen minutes ago.

Not really that unexpected for Arizona. It had been bound to happen.

She smirked as she as she leaned in to study her softly snoring woman for a second... before she reached out her hand and ever so slightly tapped Callie's nose.

True to her expectations, the sleeping brunette wrinkled her nose in the most adorable way. Scrunching her face into a tiny frown to boot. But after a few moments her face relaxed and the the sounds simply continued. Arizona smirked at the display, planting a kiss on the woman's cheek and gently tousling the dark hair.

A soft smile appeared on Callie's lips and instinctively her hold on Arizona tightened. Whether it was a conscious move or not, Arizona didn't know. And it didn't matter.

Snuggling into the protective embrace with her head coming down to rest on Callie's chest, she continued to watch her beloved movie.

Fighting her hardest not to let herself be lulled in by her lover's steady breathing and irregular soft snores.

But eventually...

… she as well...

… succumbed to sleep.