A knock on Maka and Soul's apartment door was not an uncommon one, and the sandy-blonde haired meister stood from her chair and walked over to the door, opening it without even thinking.
Casting her eyes upwards slightly, she caught a green-eyed gaze. She also saw short hair the same colour as her own, and she covered her mouth as her eyes widened.
"Maka." the woman said, a gentle smile on her face. Maka's eyes began to water and she quivered as tears ran down her face.
"… Mama." she managed to squeak out, before rushing towards the woman and hugging her tightly. Kami hugged Maka back tightly, tears streaming down her own face as well.
"I missed you, Mama." Maka managed, and Kami nodded.
"I'm so sorry I've been gone. I'm so sorry." Kami cradled the back of Maka's head, and the commotion had brought the white-haired scythe from his room. He raised an eyebrow and Maka turned around, her arms fixed around Kami's waist.
"Soul, I don't know if you met my mama?" she asked, still snivelling and shaking, and Soul's eyes flicked between the two women, a grin on his face.
"Probably briefly. Geez, can't half tell she's your mother, can you?" he asked. Maka and Kami laughed, and Soul smirked and shook his head. As Maka, Kami and Soul went to sit down, the older woman's eyes flicked to the framed postcards in the living room.
"Oh, Maka…" she murmured.
"I kept them all. Nearly five years worth." Maka remarked, and as Kami sat down she shook her head.
"It was all I could do. All I could send – it was awful." Kami crossed her arms. Maka rested against her mother, and Kami gently smoothed down Maka's hair.
"It's okay, Mama. I know why you couldn't come back." Maka said. Kami sighed and rolled her eyes with a huff.
"He's on a mission, Mama. He's not back for a while." Maka replied. Kami glanced down at Maka and smiled.
"So, do you have room for your mama to stay with you for a little while?" Kami asked. Maka beamed and nodded, but Soul looked quizzical.
"Soul, you're on the couch." Maka said. Kami laughed, and Soul groaned.
"Why did you come back now?" Maka asked.
"You turn eighteen soon. I wasn't going to miss that." Kami said. Maka smiled and hugged her mother again.
The first of Kami's reunions was done – but there were a whole lot more to go.
"Marie's your teacher now? She's back?" Kami walked down the hallways with Maka, not yet running into anyone she knew.
"Yes, she is. And Doctor Stein is my other teacher." Maka said, and Kami smiled.
"Good. I'm glad they got Franken out of that lab. I haven't seen him since you were about ten - I haven't seen Marie for over a decade. What about Yumi?"
"Azusa? Yes, she's around still. They all came in for the Demon God, and a lot of them just stayed." Maka said, and as they rounded the corner, caught in their own conversation, a voice called out.
"Kami?"
Kami's eyes flicked up to see the silver-haired man adjusting his glasses disbelievingly.
"Franken!" she grinned. Stein approached Kami and her daughter, and the woman slung her arms around the doctor with no apprehension, causing Maka's eyes to widen. Her eyes widened further when Stein hugged her back, although with less gusto.
"What are you doing back here?" Stein asked.
"You remember that little matter of that child I had a while back?" Kami asked, and Stein glanced at Maka for a second before looking back at the older woman.
"I remember having to hold your hair back whilst you vomited because everyone else was on weapon camp and Sid is the most squeamish person I've met in my life, yes." Stein remarked, and Kami sighed and smirked.
"Where's Marie? I want to see Marie." Kami near-bounced on her feet, and Stein turned and sighed.
"Death Room." he remarked, and Kami smirked.
"How is she?" Kami asked.
"She's well." Stein replied.
"You sleeping with her yet?" Kami asked. Stein raised an eyebrow.
"You're aware your daughter is right behind you?" Stein asked.
"I am. Are you sleeping with Marie yet?" Kami asked.
"I don't think it's appropriate to talk about it considering we're both Maka's teachers and-"
"Doctor Stein, everybody knows." Maka piped up, and Kami grinned. Stein's eyes flicked between the mother and daughter and he crossed his arms indignantly, giving a sigh.
"… We're seeing one another." Stein relented, and Kami very nearly leapt on the scientist.
"Oh, finally! It was like a soap opera being friends with you two. You could cut the sexual tension with a knife." Kami glanced back at Maka, who couldn't help but laugh.
"You should see them teach together." Maka managed, and Kami turned to Stein, grinning widely.
"… You haven't changed a bit, have you, Kami?" Stein asked.
"Not an inch, Franken." she replied, and they walked into the Death Room. Shinigami-sama could have sensed her soul a mile away, but he said nothing, for he knew that the blonde currently standing in front of him had not seen Kami for years.
"Shinigami-sama, I found this loiterer out the front. What should we do with her?" Stein remarked. Marie turned on the spot, and casting her eye across the woman, her mouth fell open.
"… Kami?" she managed. Kami grinned and Marie raced towards her, Maka and Stein taking steps back as Marie tackled Kami.
"Hello to you too." Kami laughed, wrapping her arms around the younger woman and pressing a kiss to her temple, pulling away and grinning at her.
"Why are you back?" Marie asked, on the verge of tears, and Kami sighed.
"Don't cry. Maka cried, I cried, and I'm not gonna let you make me cry." Kami brandished a finger in Marie's face, and the blonde laughed.
"Sorry, I just… it's been so long." Marie sighed, and Kami nodded.
"You haven't changed a bit." Kami smiled, and Marie glanced down, a small smile on her face.
"Is that a good thing?" she asked.
"It's a wonderful thing." Kami smiled, and she turned back around and walked back to Maka, gently grasping her shoulder as she walked behind her.
"And I do hope you two are fostering my daughter's natural meister talent?" Kami asked, though she deliberately looked at the hammer, and Marie crossed her arms.
"That's funny. Just gang up on me, why don't you?" Marie tipped her head up and even Stein gave a small smirk.
"Leave Marie-sensei alone, Mama." Maka crossed her arms and Kami sighed.
"Marie-sensei and I go way back – way too far back for courtesy." Kami remarked, and laughter filled the room until Stein stopped.
"Stein, what is-?" Kami stopped as she realised why Stein had. Maka was not far behind, and as Marie was facing the opposite way, she saw why they stopped without having to sense the soul.
"He's supposed to be on a mission." Kami's eyes widened, and a voice called out at the crowd in the room.
"What's happening here? Has someone died or something?" the redhead walked into the room, first seeing Stein, his eyes then flicking around to Marie and then back to Maka and the person behind her.
His eyes widened as they made contact with Kami's.
"Wh… What are you doing here?" Spirit's voice wavered despite itself, and Kami stepped in front of Maka.
"I'm back to see my daughter." Kami replied.
"Your daughter? The one you abandoned for five years?" Spirit asked.
"No, the one you constantly abandoned for thirteen years while you went out to please yourself." Kami crossed her arms, and Marie's eyes widened.
"Maka…" she walked over to the teenager and grasped her hand.
"Marie-sensei, I-" her bottom lip quivered and Marie turned her around. She kept trying to turn to look back but Marie guided her away.
"Stein, take her to the faculty room." Marie said, gently. Stein nodded and Maka shook her head.
"No, Doctor Stein, Marie-sensei, I… no!" she cried, but Stein grasped her shoulders and walked down the corridor.
"Trust us. Come with me." Stein murmured, and tears were welling in Maka's eyes.
"Doctor Stein, please!" she cried.
"Maka, it's not your fault. It isn't going to be pretty in there, you know it as well as I do." Stein replied, and Maka dropped her head.
"Last time Mama and Papa fought, Mama left." Maka whispered, and though Maka was a teenager, she felt like a child. Stein wasn't quite sure what to do, but he knew that he needed to get Maka away from the increased yelling.
"Don't put this back on me, Spirit." Kami hissed.
"Oh, what, just because I was an idiot and a shit parent means that you get to be one too? Is it like that? So Maka gets screwed over twice?" Spirit exclaimed.
"I've kept in contact with her. Have you stopped going to Chupa Cabra's?" she asked. Spirit swallowed hard and furrowed his eyebrows.
"You send postcards and you're venerated as some kind of perfect parent. I stick around and everything I do is wrong. I don't want you going high and mighty on me because you know you've made mistakes, Kami." he snapped.
"Not as many as you made." she hissed. Spirit shook his head.
"Do you think I don't know I've made mistakes? Do you not think that the look of disdain I get every time Maka looks at me reminds me that I'm an awful father? Well, it does. And you come back, and I bet she doesn't ask where you were or why you left, she just smiled and told you how much she loves you and missed you, right?" Spirit asked, and Kami stopped.
"Right. That's what I thought. Maka is all I have in this world, and there's nothing I can do to make her love me as much as she loves you. The damage is done, and my daughter hates me. So, well done. It was always a competition for you. I've lost." Spirit walked out of the room and Marie's uncovered eye widened.
"Spirit-kun!" Shinigami-sama called out, to no avail. Kami stood, shell-shocked as she glanced at the ground.
"Marie, I…" Kami looked up at the blonde, who clasped her hands.
"He's hurting, Kami." she said, and Kami crossed her arms.
"I can't forgive him." she stated.
"What did you think was going to happen? Did you think you could go your whole life without seeing him again?" Marie asked. Kami shook her head and shrugged.
"I… I don't know." Kami shook her head.
"You stay here. I'm going to go and check on Maka." Marie said. Kami grabbed Marie's shoulder as she went to walk off.
"Marie, she's my daughter." Kami stated.
"Kami, don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're back – but you and Spirit needed to think about that before you started fighting in front of her." Marie replied.
"But-"
"Kami, what was the last thing that she saw you and Spirit do before you left?" Marie asked.
"We fought - oh, Death, Marie." she murmured. Marie nodded.
"I'm going to go check on her." Marie said, and Kami stayed in the Death Room, completely shell-shocked
"And I don't want to lose my mama again and they can't stop fighting for two seconds and Doctor Stein, I don't know what to do and it's all my fault and I can't…"
Maka's words died down into sobs and she clutched onto the confused doctor for dear life as Marie walked into the room. His eyes flicked frantically to hers and she walked over to Maka, grabbing her shoulders and gently turning her from Stein.
"Maka, it's okay. It isn't your fault." Marie murmured, and Maka's eyes dropped as she shut her eyes.
"What if she leaves again? I don't want her to leave again but she can't stay while Papa's around!" Maka rubbed at her eyes and Marie sighed, looking up at Stein.
"I need you to go and find Spirit." she said, and Stein gave a heaving sigh.
"Stein, please." she begged, and Stein stood up and gave a begrudging nod.
"Fine." he said, and he left the room. Marie hushed Maka and she profoundly did not care about their teacher-student relationship at that moment in time. Marie had been there when Maka was little, comforting her through her parents arguing.
She wasn't going to let Maka down today.
"Spirit."
"Go away, Stein."
"No." he replied, and he stood beside the man sitting against the outside wall of Shibusen.
"She's been around me five minutes and we've already fucked everything up." Spirit sighed. Stein crossed his arms.
"You're going to have to cooperate. Maka's eighteen in a week and a half." Stein remarked.
"She's staying for that?" Spirit asked.
"Why else would she come back. It's not a coincidence. When did she ever do anything by coincidence?" Stein asked.
"I just… Stein, I can't. I can't decide whether I love her or hate her and it's all too hard." Spirit groaned.
"Then do it for your daughter, Spirit." Stein told him. Spirit looked up at Stein and sighed.
"You need to stop being around Marie and going all human on me, you know that?" Spirit asked. Stein shrugged and crossed his arms.
"You need to talk to Kami." Stein stated.
"I know." Spirit replied.
"You two have a knack for going from hatred to amicable to Death knows what in a very short amount of time. Work it out." Stein turned on his heel and left the redhead.
"Marie, I'm sorry about to-"
Walking into the laboratory, Kami saw that there were three people other than herself and the blonde walking in behind her. She expected to see Stein, but the presence of her ex-husband and daughter were a shock.
"Marie… what's going on?" Kami's eyes darted, and Maka stood up.
"Mama, please." she begged, and Kami sighed.
"Maka, sweetheart, it's really complicated." Kami said.
"Yeah," Spirit stood up, "but we're adults."
Kami's eyes flicked to Spirit, and Maka's eyes darted between her parents. Marie looked at Stein for a moment before walking over to Maka.
"Do you have somewhere you want to go for a little while?" Marie asked. Maka sighed.
"I don't know." she whispered, and Marie sighed, gently grasping Maka's shoulder before looking back at Stein.
"I'm sure there's some training you can do with Maka, right?" she asked, and Stein simply nodded.
"That's settled, then. We'll take you down to Shibusen for a while." Marie said, and Maka nodded. The three left the laboratory, and neither Kami or Spirit could ignore the lingering wide-eyed glance that Maka gave them both before exiting. Kami sighed and crossed her arms.
"I don't know what I'm supposed to say to you." she said, and Spirit sighed.
"Well, you're going to have to work it out, aren't you?" he asked, and Kami frowned, taking a seat on the couch, Spirit sitting next to her.
"I don't want to argue anymore, Kami. I'm pretty sure we've done enough of that over the years." Spirit said, and Kami glanced to the floor.
"I don't want to argue. Maka gets too upset." Kami said, and Spirit nodded insistently.
"And I think that's all this has to be about. Just Maka." Spirit said. Kami nodded.
"I agree." she managed, and Spirit sighed.
"Because no matter what happens between us," he said, "we're always going to share a daughter."
"I know that. Of course I know that." she remarked, and Spirit crossed his arms.
"So…"
"So you still hurt Maka." Kami remarked. Spirit ran his fingers through his hair and adjusted himself uncomfortably.
"I know I did." he replied. Kami sighed.
"We had something great, Spirit. And, Death, at the start, I wanted it to work more than anything. I just wanted to spite everyone." she remarked.
"As you do at eighteen." he added, and Kami smirked despite herself, glancing down.
"I wasn't there enough. I know. And Maka still resents me for that, I can see it." he said. Kami looked up again.
"Somehow I don't think that leaving for five years constitutes being there, Spirit." Kami admitted, and Spirit sighed.
"You were there when we were together. You weren't out doing what I was." he murmured, and though they had not been close for many years now, Kami could still tell when Spirit was distressed – his brows would furrow and he would glance down and wring his hands.
"Spirit, there's nothing we can do about it now." she instinctually grabbed for his hand, and Spirit looked up.
"I still did it." he said, and Kami sighed.
"We all do stupid things." she said, bringing her hands up to fold her arms, and Spirit crossed his arms.
"That's very philosophical of you." he remarked, and Kami smirked.
"I suppose it is." she replied. Spirit smiled and sighed, dropping his hands back down to his sides.
"I know that Maka wants us both there at her birthday party." Spirit said, and Kami nodded.
"I think I can manage that." she replied. Spirit exhaled with relief and Kami laughed.
"Come on, birthday parties used to be the only things we could pull it together for." Kami remarked, and Spirit nodded.
"I remember her sixth birthday when she went bowling-"
"- and you had to chase her because she ran down the lane to knock the pins over herself?" Kami smirked, and Spirit gave a small laugh and nodded.
"For a bright kid she did some ridiculous things." Spirit said, and Kami sighed.
"Yeah, but she was curious. She got into everything." Kami said, and Spirit chuckled to himself.
"Not the least of which was our bedroom." he said, and Kami rolled her eyes.
"It was like she knew! Every time!" Kami exclaimed, the redhead across from her laughing at her comment.
"Without fail." he noticed the way Kami crossed her legs and adjusted herself, and his eyes flicked to hers for a moment.
"Except when we got Marie and Stein to babysit." she remarked, and Spirit cleared his throat.
"Bit like now." he murmured. Kami swallowed hard.
"Spirit…?" she murmured.
"… Are we…" he began.
"Yeah." she grabbed his tie and tugged hard, pulling his lips to meet hers in a passionate haze.
"… So, we had a chat. And we're going to both be there for your eighteenth." Kami smiled, and Maka beamed and raced to hug them both.
"Thank you." she whispered, and her parents hugged her tightly back.
"It's the least we can do, Maka." Spirit said, and Marie noticed Kami's sideways glance. Maka smiled and Marie stood up.
"Maka, how about you head back to yours and Soul's apartment? I would really like a night with your mama." Marie said, and Maka smiled and nodded.
"Of course, Marie-sensei." Maka said, and Spirit looked up.
"How are you getting home?" he asked.
"I'll call Soul to come pick me up." she said, and Spirit went to stand.
"Well, I'll wait for him with you." he said, and but Marie pushed him back down onto his seat.
"I'm sure Stein can go and wait with her, if anyone." Marie kept her smile and Maka nodded, and she and Stein left the laboratory to wait for the white haired scythe. Marie turned to the two sheepish adults on her couch and crossed her arms.
"You slept together, didn't you?" she asked, and they both glanced down.
"No." Spirit murmured. Marie crossed her arms.
"We had sex on the couch." Kami mumbled, and she and Spirit both laughed. Marie shook her head.
"You two are ridiculous. Are you getting back together or what?" she asked, and both of their heads flicked up.
"No! No, no." they both denied her question vehemently and Marie frowned.
"Well, then, what are you doing?" she asked, and Spirit sighed.
"We're adults." he said.
"And we haven't seen each other for five years. It's a lot of time to cool down… and to remember how nice sex is." Kami admitted, and Marie sighed.
"I just don't want you going and getting into fights and getting Maka upset." Marie said. Spirit and Kami nodded.
"We know." Kami said, and Marie sighed.
"You're thirty-six now, you two. You're still acting as if you're eighteen." Marie said.
"I really hope Maka isn't doing what we did." Kami said.
"Don't even go there." Spirit said, and Marie sighed.
"Yeah, well, last time you two went around having sex as if it was nothing someone got pregnant." Marie said, and Kami crossed her arms.
"Sweetie, have you turned into my mother? We're older now. We can be civil and safe." Kami said, and Marie nodded and sighed. Kami stood to gently hug Marie.
"I know why you're worried." Kami said, and Marie stood back.
"Yes?" she asked, and Kami sighed.
"Because last time we were stupid you had to pick up the pieces when things went wrong. I promise it won't be like that." Kami said, and Marie nodded.
"Okay." she managed, and Kami squeezed her tightly.
"I missed you. A lot." Kami murmured, and at that point they heard a motorcycle driving off into the distance.
"Who's driving a motorcycle?" she asked, and Marie sighed.
"Soul does." Marie said, and Kami's eyes widened.
"He rides a motorcycle?!" she exclaimed. At that moment, the redhead behind them exclaimed.
"Exactly!"
Happy birthday dear Maka… Happy birthday to you!
Blowing out the candles, Maka felt a sense of wholeness she hadn't felt in her birthdays for a long time. It was all due to the redhead and sandy-blonde behind her, Spirit with his hand on her shoulder and Kami leaning down to kiss her daughter on the cheek.
"Happy birthday, sweetheart." Kami murmured, and Maka smiled widely. She may have been eighteen, but everyone at the party knew better than to comment on the fact that her parents were standing behind her as if she were five. They knew about the Albarn family woes and the fact that this was something that would have been impossible years ago.
The birthday was an altogether success, and once the party had finished, the now-eighteen year old Maka sat down with one of the photo albums. Flicking through it, she saw that it was the only one with any substantial number of family photos – and it had one page blank at the back. She took out the photo she had printed from earlier in the day and placed it on the page, sticking it down.
She was in the centre, beaming. Her father stood to her left, arm slung around her shoulder and his virtually perpetual grin on his face. Her mother was on her right, arm around her waist, tipping her head to gently rest against her daughter's.
Maka Albarn knew that her mother and father weren't together anymore – it was just a fact, something that happened. But the fact that they could come together and be civil for her gave her hope. Knowing of her father's licentious ways and hearing stories of her mother being taken with his mysterious nature, Maka thought it was a wonder that they did it without sleeping together.
Spirit and Kami didn't enlighten her. They knew Maka loved thinking she was right.
A/N: Just to clarify the bit in the middle where Kami and Spirit go from pissed off to 0.3 seconds - I think that their relationship would be quite adolescent because of when they first go together. But that's just me :3