Then There Was Me and You
Disclaimer: I own not a thing here. I'm just playing in this sandbox.
Summary: Emma Swan is home and there is only one person she wants to see. Lucky for her, he's anxious to see her as well because, well, he made her a promise and it's about time he lived up to that promise. Swan Cricket.
Emma and Mary Margaret are back in Storybrooke! Who else is so excited about that fact? I hope I'm not the only one.
Anyway, now that they're back, I figure we need the Archie and Emma reunion scene(s) and, mayhaps, some smuttiness that might ensure because, come on, smut + Archie and Emma + my track record and quasi-perverted (okay, full-on perverted) brain = internal squeals of delight (at least, so I hope).
Given that new episodes won't start back up again until the beginning of January (with what appears to be an Archie-centric episode – with a name like "The Cricket Game," how could it not?), we're just going to have to subsist on the stories. Hm, maybe I might be able to write a Christmas-induced Swan Cricket tale to fill in the interim. Evil idea is evil.
Yeah, I'm going to go all fangirl on you all and there will be a lot of unabashed smuttiness in here – and some cavity-inducing sweetness as well. I hope you enjoy this!
They were home.
At last, after weeks and months of waiting and searching, they were finally back and, just as with the moment when they had been ripped away, Dr. Archie Hopper knew the very moment that Emma was home. He felt it, somewhere deep inside of him. The ecstatic jump of his heart, when something rippled through town, told him.
Despite the negative voice in the back of his mind that was telling him not to get his hopes up, he couldn't help but feel so hopeful and excited. He just knew that they were home, that Emma was home. He didn't know where she was or what she was doing, but he knew for certain that she was back in this world, back in Storybrooke. More than that, Archie knew that they would find each other, as soon as humanly possible, because, as Henry had told him in a hurried phone conversation not even an hour ago, he and Ruby had something to settle with Gold and Regina because (and Archie wasn't quite clear on this because of how rushed the conversation was) the two were trying to stop someone bad from coming through the portal from the other world.
And, when he was in the middle of taking Pongo for his afternoon walk, Archie was so glad that he refused to listen to that negative voice in the back of his head because he turned a corner, Pongo's leash tight in hand, when the Dalmatian started to bark excitedly.
Archie Hopper stopped in his tracks and his breath was taken away by what he saw.
Their eyes met. Archie gave her a smile, slow and true. Emma's returning smile was just as warm and happy.
He had to tighten his hold to keep Pongo from the dog, who was pulling at his leash, from breaking away from him, even as he started down the street towards Emma, Henry, Snow White, Charming, Ruby, and the dwarves. Happiness welled up inside of him.
Briefly, Archie noted how Henry looked up at his mother and nudged her side, grinning with all of the enthusiasm of a boy who believed in fairy tales. Snow White touched her daughter's shoulder. Emma turned to the brunette and Snow gave her a secret smile, tilting her head in Archie's direction, saying something quietly to Emma. When Emma turned back to him, her smile was broad and blinding, lighting up her whole face.
That was when Archie decided he liked happy endings and the clichés because, damn it, he finally got to have that moment.
He released his hold on Pongo's leash, the dog not caring that his owner had done something entirely unexpected and, taking advantage of the dropped leash, bounded towards Henry, who was more than happy to engage with the Dalmatian. Archie, on the other hand, was too busy and too focused on Emma to care.
Archie had his arms open to her when they met in the middle of the street and Emma entered his embrace eagerly, throwing her arms around his neck. She was laughing, despite the tears that he had seen in her eyes. Archie buried his face into her hair, inhaling deeply. Gods, he had missed her so much. His control on his own emotions was paper-thin right now and he wasn't sure if he could keep that control for very much longer.
But, Gods, it had so long and he missed her with everything in him.
She held him tight and he felt her press a kiss to the side of his neck. Archie felt something akin to tears fall on his skin and that shredded the last of his control. He lightly ran a hand through her hair, turning his face into her briefly as a few tears of his own fell.
"You came back," he breathed into her ear, his voice cracking with emotion.
Emma pulled back and looked up at his face, long and hard. There were tears in her eyes and she was so obviously not ashamed of them. She reached a hand up to cup his cheek, fingers brushing at his tears. She looked at him with a sort of unbridled awe and amazement and that had his interest piqued.
"Of course, I did," she told him, her smile falling the tiniest bit. "I had every reason to get back here." She looked away from him briefly and he saw her brush tears away from her eyes. "Between you and Henry, I couldn't stay away. How could I?"
"And you're safe?" It was more of a question than an observation, but it needed to be said, for his sake as much as hers.
Emma laughed and nodded. "Why wouldn't I be?" she shot back. There was mirth in her eyes now, despite the tears. A lazy smile crossed her lips as she gave him a look that was positively smoldering and made him shiver in delight. "Besides, didn't you promise me that I could steal you away and unwind with you in any way that I so desired? You did cross your heart on that one."
He remembered that. Oh yes, he remembered that and all of the things that he was going to do to help her unwind.
A laugh escaped his lips.
"I think I recall something to that effect," Archie said. "I think I also promised a dinner as well."
Emma shrugged, grinning, and looked over her shoulder at the group that was standing at the end of the street. "Well, dinner's going to be covered. Ruby's treating us all." She reached a hand up to grip the collar of his shirt, closing the small distance between them and added, in a quiet and oh-so-sultry voice, "And then, after that, you and me are going to make good on that promise of yours and I'll be damned if Gold does something to interrupt us this time."
If Gold interrupted again, he'd have hell to pay this time from the both of them, Archie silently swore, but he decided against sharing that with Emma at the moment.
Instead, he leaned forward and captured Emma's lips with his own. Her response was immediate and with equal force. Emma deepened the kiss. Archie tightened the arm that was around her waist, keeping her close to him. Gently, Archie lifted her up off of the ground a few inches and spun her around slowly.
It was the way that she snaked her arms around his neck and leaned on him that told him that she was enjoying this as much as he was. Archie smiled into the kiss.
Loud wolf whistles, courtesy the dwarves and, if Archie wasn't mistaken, Charming, pierced the air.
Emma was laughing when he set her back down and they parted.
"Show-man," she teased, breathless.
"I wouldn't say that," he replied, smiling.
She slipped her hand through the crook of his elbow. "Come on; let's go get some dinner," Emma said, with a happy smile on her face, "though I think Ruby's going to have to baby-sit tonight." She winced and Archie could guess the reason behind it with well-trained ease. "I was there when Mary Margaret woke David up from that sleeping spell and I don't think either one of them will want to baby-sit Henry tonight."
"I don't think Ruby will mind baby-sitting," he replied, knowing precisely what she meant by that.
And, as it turned out, Ruby didn't. In fact, the woman told them, as they were walking into Granny's, that Henry already had a bag packed and was already planning on spending the night with her and Granny, since Snow and Charming wouldn't be leaving Snow's apartment for a good long while after dinner and, as Ruby had so delicately put it, everybody could tell that there was only one thing on both of Emma's and his minds at the moment.
Archie had blushed, Emma had gaped, and Ruby had walked into the diner with a triumphant look on her face.
Dinner, as it unfolded, was pleasant enough. Archie was loath to leave Emma's side, just as she seemed to want both Henry and himself near her as they ate. Charming was the same way, sticking as close to Snow as he possibly could get without being downright indecent, as if he was afraid that she would disappear the moment he turned his head. The two men shared a look halfway through the meal and, in that silence, they traded understanding nods that neither of their significant others missed seeing.
Emma nudged his side after that and he looked her. She gave him a smile and linked her hand through his, squeezing tightly. He didn't say anything, yet Emma seemed to know that he needed her at his side, more for his own reassurance than anything else.
During dinner, the dwarves and Henry were excited to fill Emma and Snow into what had happened in their absence (the mining for fairy dust, Belle, Henry's horse, among other things). Emma had been surprised to find out the identity of Rumplestitskin's One True love (though, Archie mused, she didn't seem so surprised that the Imp had one in the first place, but he shrugged that surprise off easy enough) and Snow seemed so proud of her grandson for learning how to ride a horse, even after a few mishaps along the way. Emma and Snow, after some prodding, had shared some of their adventures in back in the old world – Aurora, Mulan, the escapades of trying to get home again, the Beanstalk and the last giant who lived up there, Hook, Cora.
Emma seemed to be more withdrawn, when talking about the latter two and it was Archie's turn to offer his comfort and support, however unspoken that support was.
Finally (finally!), after a respectable amount of time (longer than Snow and Charming, Archie noted, with the barest hint of pride), they were able to bow out of dinner. Ruby gave them a smirk and Henry waved to them. Leroy made a lewd comment, which Ruby smacked him upside the head for and Henry blanched at.
Pongo looked up from the corner, but Archie gave him the command to stay. Ruby had agreed to watch the dog for the night as well.
Emma kept her hand firmly in his as they walked back home. Every few feet, she would brush against him, always just enough that he could feel her touch, but never more than would betray her true intentions. Archie gave her a side-long glance after about the fifth time she did this and she gave him a smirk that held a promise in it.
The walk took a lot longer than he would have liked, but his car was home and he had moved her Bug into his driveway not long after she and Snow had been ripped away and hadn't gotten around to moving it much after that. Sometime later, when he had a chance to, Archie would confess to Emma that there were times when he would just go sit in her car and pretend that she was there with him, but they would have plenty of time for that later. There were other things on his mind right now.
Eventually, they made it home.
Once the door was firmly shut and locked behind them, Emma had him pinned against the wall and was planting a kiss on his lips. Archie wasn't quite taken by surprise by that. In fact, he was almost a bit disappointed that she had made the first move before he did, but whatever disappointment he had felt disappeared almost instantaneously, as he turned them, pressing her firmly against the wall, one hand stroking her thigh.
"God, I could use a shower right now," Emma said, when they both came up for air, and that did catch Archie by surprise.
"What?" Okay, Archie was confused by that.
"A shower," she reiterated. "You've heard of that before, yes?"
"Yeah."
She smiled eagerly. "Good, because there was a distinct lack of showers over there and, quite frankly, showers were something that I started to miss after about three days there, particularly when a shower involves you."
The innuendo sunk in and Archie gave her a grin as he chased her up the stairs.
Less than two minutes later, they were out of their clothes and in the shower, the hot water blasting at their skin. Archie didn't have much to think about besides Emma and the fact that she was in such close proximity to him, though she was obviously very intent on a proper cleaning and he was more than happy to assist her in that regards. After all, that meant that he got to lavish the attention on her that he hadn't gotten to lavish when she was away. He marveled in her and her body, kissing, licking, and suckling over every patch of Emma that he possibly could.
They had a pretty good track record with prolonged showers, ever since that one time he had surprised Emma in the shower and she had made him promise that they shower together more regularly. He swore to himself that he was going to live up to that promise, now that he had her back.
Eventually, once Emma was satisfied that they were both cleaned to her expectations, they moved out of the shower or, rather, Archie scooped her up in his arms and carried her into their bedroom and laid her down on their bed.
Emma pulled him down next to her, one hand falling down to his hip, fingers dancing lightly over his skin.
"You have no idea how much I missed this," she told him, rolling onto her side to face him.
Archie smiled, leaning forward to press his forehead against hers.
"I think I do," he confessed quietly. The tears came again now and he moved to wipe them away quickly, but Emma stopped him.
"Archie?" she asked, worry in her voice.
He gave her a watery smile.
"Gods, I missed you so much, Emma," Archie admitted. "When you were ripped away, I thought that I lost a piece of myself that I would never get back."
She closed the small distance between them and kissed him warmly.
"I'm back and I'm not going to go anywhere again," Emma promised. "At least not without you at my side, remember? You're packing the get-away bags."
Those words made him laugh warmly.
"Yeah, I remember that."
"Good." Emma gave him a big smile. "Archie Hopper, I love you."
Something inside of him warmed at that declaration.
Archie reached over and tucked a strand of damp hair behind her ear, relishing in the skin-to-skin contact.
"I love you, Emma Swan."
That was when Emma gave him an entirely devious smile. Archie might have been concerned, if that smile had been on any other person, but this was Emma and he trusted her most implicitly.
In one swift movement, she had pushed him onto his back and straddled his hips, her hair tumbling down over her naked shoulders, her hands absently running up and down his chest. She peered down at him and pressed herself against him, teasing him gently. Archie groaned at that contact.
"Tease," he accused, in a playful tone.
"I wouldn't say that," she replied, gleefully tossing his words from earlier back at him, continuing to rub against him gently.
Archie grinned at her. If she wanted to play, then he was going to go all in.
His hands found their way to her hips and he lifted her up a little bit, positioning himself underneath her. Emma raised an eyebrow playfully at him. She smiled and deigned to assist him in this endeavor. With gentle care, he lowered her onto him. He was slow in his movements, at least at first. Archie wanted to prolong this and Emma seemed to be on the same page as he was at the moment.
Slowly, their movements found a comfortable rhythm and Archie lost himself in the movement, relishing in the feeling of being inside of her again. He was more than happy to let her set the pace right now. Emma needed this as much, if not more, than he did.
Finally, they were both at that edge and climaxed within moments of one another, crying out in near-unison.
Emma buried her head into the juncture of his shoulder and his neck as she came down from her post-orgasm high. Archie held her loosely, the release that had washed over him relaxing him more than he had been in a very long time. Her nearness was as much of a drug to him as anything was.
"Did I mention that I missed you?" she asked quietly, a smile in her voice.
"Maybe once or twice," he replied, shifting his hold on her so that he was cradling her in a very gentle way, her head cushioned on an upper arm. "Did the promise live up to your expectations?"
Emma peered at him and blinked, a bit owlishly.
One hand snaked its way across his chest, fingers dancing over his skin.
"I'll let you know."
"Know?" he parroted, just the tiniest bit confused. "Know what?"
"When my expectations have been reached."
There was something very definitive in her tone of voice that he couldn't deny and Archie had a feeling that they would be teased mercilessly by their friends in the days and weeks to come. That sudden burst of knowledge didn't bother him or surprise him. Hell, he practically encouraged it.
Tilting his head a little bit to meet Emma's eyes, Archie asked, "And what does a man have to do to meet your expectations, Emma?"
She drew in a breath and gave him a look. That mirthfully devious look had returned to her eyes. Archie was so in for it.
"I can think of a few things," she told him, quite suggestively. "After all, we've both gone for quite a while without being around one another. I'm sure that there are certain things that we've both missed."
Archie gave her a steady look, though he knew that the smile on his lips totally belied the playfully stern look that he had attempted to adopt. Emma pursed her lips at him.
"Now that you mention it," Archie told her, fingers trailing down to that ticklish spot just over her right hip. Emma squirmed at that. He chuckled. "I'm sure that there are a few things that can be done to assuage your expectations."
Before Emma could do anything, Archie twisted away from her. He reached over and opened the drawer of his night stand. Glancing back at her, Archie felt a surge of glee at the confusion and interest that was written plainly across Emma's face. He reached into the drawer, blindly searching for something. Seconds later, he found it and clasped at it, turning back to Emma, the item hidden in his hand.
"Archie?" Emma asked cautiously, sitting up, not at all abashed by her nudity, looking at his clutched hand.
He gave her a warm smile and shifted so that he was facing her directly.
"I was going to give you this a while ago, but I never got around to because you got pulled away," he told her in a halting voice.
Archie opened his hand, revealing what he had there. Emma looked down at it and a smile crept across her lips.
He had bought the charm bracelet weeks prior and he had intended to give it to her on her twenty-ninth birthday, which had fallen not long after she and Snow had been swept away. It was white gold and only had two charms on it at the moment, an umbrella and a tiny sheriff's badge, with plenty of links to add charms to it.
Gently, Emma reached out and her fingers brushed against the two charms. Archie saw her smile. She understood the importance of the charms.
"I could have used a lucky umbrella," she commented, looking back up at him. Archie chuckled lightly. She turned over the small umbrella charm between her thumb and her middle finger.
"Do you like it?" Archie asked, tentatively.
Emma leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I love it," she said, when she pulled back, her eyes all alight.
She held out her right wrist, prompting Archie to clasp the bracelet around it. Once it was fastened, Archie lightly guided her arm up to his lips and pressed a kiss to the inside of her wrist. He trailed kisses up her arms.
"I love you, Emma," he whispered.
Her hand laced through his hair.
"I love you too, Archie." Her smile was infectious. "Thank you."
Emma drew him up to her, wrapping her hand around the back of his neck, gently guiding him in for a kiss. Archie let his hands slide up and down her sides, running circles on her skin. One hand went down to her leg, cupping her knee. Archie gently pushed her down onto the bed, positioning himself between her legs.
They made slow love, holding each other close, tenderly bringing each other to great highs.
Archie realized, as they lay in the dark of the room, after the fact, that he was so glad to have Emma back again, back in his arms, and back in his life. They molded together, limbs intertwined, falling asleep together. He smiled happily, pressing a kiss onto the top of Emma's head and it was with Emma in his arms that he fell asleep.
And she was still in his arms when he woke up the next morning.
They had shifted some during the night, but they were still folded around one another. Emma was still heavily asleep and Archie had to wonder when was the last night that she had had a good night's sleep was and he hoped that that night wasn't the night before the Curse was broken. If the fairy tale world was anything like what Emma and Snow had said it was like, then he knew that Emma needed to get as much sleep as she possibly could. He didn't want to disturb her. He sincerely hoped that she had gotten at least some decent sleep there.
Carefully, he shifted her and eased himself out of the bed. He pulled on a pair of flannel pants and a t-shirt and slipped his glasses onto his face before bending down and covering her with a blanket. Emma shifted and sleepily reached towards him. The charms on her bracelet shifted some on her wrist. Archie pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"I'll be back," he whispered to her.
Archie stole down to the kitchen and started on breakfast.
He was busily making blueberry pancakes when he felt two arms wrap around his waist. Emma pressed a kiss onto his shoulder blade.
"Morning," she mumbled, resting her head on his shoulder.
"I was going to bring you breakfast in bed," Archie confessed, slipping the pancakes he was cooking onto the plate next to the stove, with the other pancakes on it. "You deserve it, after everything that you've been through."
"Yeah, but when I woke up, you weren't there," Emma replied softly.
She didn't have to say much more than that. Archie put the spatula down on the counter, letting his hands fall to cover hers. Her bracelet brushed against the inside of his wrist and he smiled.
"I'm not going anywhere, Emma."
"Good."
Emma released her hold on him, letting him turn to look at her. Archie smiled, seeing her standing there, in the kitchen, wearing one of his old shirts and a pair of gag boxers she had bought him for Christmas last year that she obviously fished out of one of the dressers drawers. It was so perfectly ordinary and every day and Archie realized that he had missed seeing her walking around the house in such a mismatched outfit.
For a moment, he looked her up and down and Archie really appreciated the sight in front of him. She saw the way that she looked at him and that made Emma lean forward to kiss him properly.
"Good morning," Archie said, chipper now.
Emma laughed. "Good morning." She looked around the kitchen. "So what are you making?"
"Wait and see," he teased.
She gave him a light frown. Archie only responded by pouring a cup of coffee and handing it to her. Emma took it and went to sit down at the kitchen table, watching him as he finished making breakfast.
It all felt strangely normal and as if Emma hadn't been gone at all. That alone eased the remaining nerves and the tension that he was feeling.
Minutes later, Archie had their plates ready and the table set (albeit a bit rushed). There were the blueberry pancakes with the appropriate butter and syrup on the side, plenty of bacon (they both had a big weak spot for it), and some strawberries in a bowl. It wasn't a commonly known fact, but Emma loved strawberries and Archie always made a point of keep them in the fridge.
Emma offered him words of thanks before she heartily dug into the meal. Archie had to laugh before he joined her.
It wasn't long, however, before she took stock of the strawberries in the bowl. A sly smile crossed her lips. Archie put down his utensils and returned her look, letting a smile of his own slide onto his face.
"Yes, Emma?" he prompted.
"I think you forgot what the best thing to eat strawberries with is, Archie," Emma told him, in a very matter-of-fact tone.
He raised an eyebrow, knowing full well what she meant. "And what is that?"
Emma didn't respond. Instead, she pushed back her chair and stood up, crossing to the refrigerator. As she opened it, Archie knew precisely what she was going for. They always had this in supply, along with the strawberries.
When she came back to the table, Archie grinned at the sight of the Reddi-Whip in her hand.
Instead of going back to her chair, she crossed to him. Archie grabbed the bowl of strawberries, leaned back in his chair and gave her a lazy smile that issued her a challenge. Emma settled down onto his lap, wrapping one arm around him and leaning against him in a comfortable way.
They fed each other the strawberries topped with whipped cream in slow, easy movements. Emma was very liberal in her usage of said whipped cream and took great pleasure in seeing him squirm ever so slightly, every time she sucked the excess off of his fingers.
It was hard not to continue what they had started the night before.
A part of Archie was extremely happy that he had no pressing matters to attend to today because, if he did, he would be calling in sick. He had more important things to attend to right now, namely Emma, though something told him that it was quietly being spread around town that Emma and Snow were back – which meant that everyone knew not to expect to see Charming and Snow for a good long while . . . and that Sheriff Swan would eventually appear, probably dragging Dr. Hopper along with her.
But that would be later and this is now.
Archie caught Emma's arm as she went to go grab another strawberry. His fingers played with her skin. She reached her free hand up and absently started to play with his hair. He didn't quite have the words to explain why he did that, but Emma seemed to understand.
"I can't believe I missed out on so much while Mary Margaret and I were in the other world," she confessed. "I'm almost surprised that no one has left the town, especially after all of the crap that's gone down here." Dark memories crossed Archie's mind and his face must have shown it because Emma's hand stopped its lazy pursuit of the back of his head. "Archie, what is it?"
He couldn't quite meet her eyes as he told her about the very stringent town lines and that no one could cross the lines and remember who they really were. He told her about how they tried to leave, until Charming had stopped them, and that, without her there, he couldn't bear to be in their home, in their bed because it all felt so empty without her. More than that, Archie told her that, when she was taken away, that was when he realized just how much she and Henry meant to him, that she was the only one for him and that he loved Henry as if the boy was his own.
And he told her about how he wasn't proud of that moment of weakness because, had he crossed the town line, he would have forgotten the real reason that she was gone and it killed him on the inside.
When he finished, Emma's hand found his chin and she tilted his face up to her. There was a knowing smile on her lips.
"You're not weak," Emma told him, "and you stayed. You remembered. You realized that you could do more good thing, if you stayed here. That counts for something in my book." She shrugged and added, "Besides, even if you did cross the town line, you wouldn't have forgotten me and, if I had came back to a town without you, you can be damned sure that I would have packed my bag, gotten Henry, and come to find you." Archie tilted his head to the side, giving her a questioning look. "My home is where you and Henry are, Archie."
"Now who's the therapist?" he asked, letting a smile cross his lips.
She bent down and kissed him lightly.
"Still you," she told him, pulling back. "But I have picked up a few things from you."
Archie gave him a smile. "I don't doubt that."
Emma started to fiddle with his hair again, trying in vain to smooth it back against his head. She always did that when she was thinking, for some reason that Archie had yet to figure out.
He was about to say something when Emma leaned forward and cut him off, pressing her lips to his. Seconds later, he reached a hand up to rub the small of her back. Emma shifted some on his lap.
"What were we talking about?" he asked, when they both came up for air.
Emma gave him a grin.
"Nothing that can't be solved in a more comfortable place," she answered.
"Most definitely."
She easily slipped off of his lip. Archie made to leave the kitchen, not caring that their dishes were still strewn around the table and the counter. He paused as Emma reached for something on the table. He gave her an amused look as he saw her cradle the Reddi-Whip against her chest in an entirely protective manner.
"I have a plan for you yet, Archie Hopper," Emma told him playfully.
He closed the distance between them and wrapped an arm around her waist. "I think I have a good idea of what you're planning to do with that Reddi-Whip, Emma Swan."
She smirked at him.
"Well, in that case, what are we still doing here?"
Her tone promised so much than what was on the surface and Archie was going to take her up on that promise, if it was the last thing that he was going to do. He arched an eyebrow at her, grinning again. Prior experience taught him that Emma could improvise with the best of them. Whatever she was planning to do with that Reddi-Whip, Archie knew that they would both enjoy it a lot.
"You're right. What are we doing here?"
And later, once the can of Reddi-Whip was used up and the can was in the trash can, Archie realized that they were edging closer to noon. Emma, however, seemed perfectly content to be curled close to him on their bed.
"I'd say that this was a good welcome-back," Emma said, her hand rubbing circles across his stomach. Archie turned his head and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She looked up at him. "You definitely do live up to your promises."
He laughed. "I always do my best."
"That you do."
And that, Archie knew, was a good thing.
"I'm glad you're back," he whispered.
"Me too."
Well, I do hope that this lived up to your expectations. I know that this was an awful lot of smut, but it's totally worth it.
Anyways, you know what to do. Please review and let me know what you thought about this story. Also, I will do my darndest to write, edit, and post a new Swan Cricket story soon. I'm hoping that the fact that we're getting close to Christmas will inspire a story or two about our favorite duo.
Well, that's all for now folks.