LOOK GUYS, CONTENT!

So, uh... don't expect these to be posted in any sort of chronological order. They'll be written when I get ideas for them, I guess.

History / family(?) / Rated K

History

"Morro, you're going to learn how to read." Lydia announced, marching into the living room and slapping a thick book down on the table next to him. The ex-ghost slowly rolled over on the couch to face her, raising an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"It's a basic life skill. I'm not going to carry your butt financially your entire life." She pointed a finger at him. "Besides, you have to read this." She tapped the book, and he sat up on the couch to squint at it. A thick, black, leather-bound book with some words and the image of a cross on the front.

"What is it?"

"It's called the Bible. It's kind of… history, sort of." She shook her head. "It's important."

"Why?"

"Reading this helps determine where your soul goes if you're not cursed. Either Heaven, eternal joy, or Hell, eternal suffering." Morro blinked.

"I'm pretty sure hell is a curse word."

"Don't get smart with me." She sounded serious, so he stopped.

"Alright, fine. I'll learn to read. When do we start?"

"Now. On your feet." She snapped her fingers and grabbed the book, and he rolled off the couch, landing in a crouch and standing up. "Come on, we're going up to my room. And," She added as his feet dragged. "Additional incentive: If you don't read this and believe it, we're not allowed to date."

"What? Why?" He hurried after her as she climbed the stairs. "What do you mean 'believe it'? Isn't history facts?"

"Ehh, well… there are people who interpret this differently… because they don't want to follow a specific set of rules."

"Okay…" He drawled as he followed her up the stairs. "Can't you just read it to me?"

"Look at this." She stopped at the top of the stairs, turning around and flipping through the huge book. "Assuming I read to you for an hour a day, it would take about… a year. To get through it all." Morro winced.

"As opposed to me reading it on my own…?"

"Well, that way it only takes up an hour of your life, not both of ours." Morro scowled, but she went on. "But I'll probably end up reading with you anyway. It is kind of confusing in parts."

"I grew up with Wu. I think I'm good as far as 'confusing'"

"Well, you'd be surprised." Lydia lead him into her room, then plopped down on the floor. "Sit." She ordered, and he obeyed.

"I hope you know what you're doing." He commented mildly.

"I taught Nya how to read English. As long as you're as smart as Nya, we shouldn't have any problem." Morro snorted.

"I'm smarter than Nya." Lydia blinked.

"I don't think there's any point in arguing that with you, so let's just say we're good then." The brunette grabbed a stack of paper from next to her, then scribbled on it for a moment before showing it to him. "The written English language is made up of blocks called letters." She started. "Each letter makes a different sound. These sounds are put together to make words. For example:" She tapped a sideways half-circle. "C. It makes a "kh" sound." She tapped an upside-down V with a line through the middle. "A. It makes an "ah" sound." She touched a line with another line on top. "T. It makes a "tuh" sound."

"So… kh-ah-tuh. Wait, cat?" Lydia nodded.

"You picked that up fast."

"Faster than Nya?" Morro raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know. I taught her the alphabet first."

"The what?"

"The letters. There are 26 of them."

"I have to memorize 26 sounds?"

"Well, a lot of multiple sounds they make."

"What?"

History

"I am not singing a song about the English alphabet."

"You gotta."

"Nope. I refuse." Morro crossed his arms and turned away.

"It'll help you remember them! That's how I learned to read!"

"You were a kid! I'm… 17ish!"

"You're like 14."

"I am not." A knock on the door interrupted their bickering, and neither spoke for a moment before Lydia called,

"Come in!" The door squeaked open, and Karen poked her head in, wild hair hiding half her face. "Hi." Lydia greeted her, and she padded into the room, sinking down next to Morro and grabbing a piece of paper and a pencil. She scribbled on it for a moment before shoving it at Morro, and he frowned.

"She's teaching me how to read English." He answered her apparent question. She scribbled something else, then showed him again. "She says your siblings keep attacking her, and she wants to know if there's way to make her hair more manageable without cutting it off." He translated to Lydia. "Which I understand. I like my hair too." He ran a hand through it. Lydia frowned.

"I dunno. I just put my hair in a ponytail to keep it back, but you have… a lot more hair than me." Karen sighed, nodding. "But for now I can brush it, at least. Come over here." The former ghost pushed her hair out of her face, scooting over towards Lydia as the brunette grabbed a hairbrush from a shelf. "Going back to our previous conversation, Morro," she started as she began working the tangles out of Karen's hair. "I guess you don't have to sing the song, but if you don't have the alphabet memorized by tomorrow then I'm gonna make you learn it."

"You suck." Morro muttered, snatching up the paper she had written the alphabet on and glaring at it.

"Nya learned it in two hours." Lydia remarked coolly. "But, then again, she wasn't too chicken to learn the song." She then had to duck as a wadded-up piece of paper was hurled at her head. "Morro, I'm trying to brush Karen's hair."

"Then stop mocking me."

"I'm not mocking you."

"You- what do you call that, then?"

"Teasing?"

"Same thing!" Letting out a frustrated breath, Kareen snatched up a paper and pencil again, hastily drawing some Asian-style characters and shoving it at Morro. The wind master skimmed the page, then his eyes widened in offense.

"Hey!"

"What's it say." Lydia asked, monotone.

"She says "I liked it better when you were lovesick fools"! We weren't ever lovesick fools!" Karen threw both hands up in the air in a 'duh' gesture.

"It's easier to fight when the fate of the universe isn't hanging in the balance, I guess." Lydia sighed, scowling as she yanked at a particularly nasty tangle. "Now that we're not worried for each other's safety."

"I guess. I'm sorry for being difficult." Morro offered.

"And I'm sorry for being bossy. I was just trying to be teasing, but… I guess not." Karen closed her eyes and pressed her hands together, as if to say 'all is right in the world again'.

"Kiss and make up?" Morro suggested.

"I can't, I'm busy." Lydia protested, tugging the brush through Karen's hair.

"Fine." Morro scooted closer, then leaned over and kissed her cheek. Karen made the 'duh' gesture again. Lydia, blushing, pretended not to notice, immersing herself in brushing Karen's long hair. "Now, what's this letter again?"

"Huh?" The brunette glanced over to see him pointing at R. "That's R. Makes an 'rrrrr' sound."

"And this?"

"T. 'tuh' sound."

"So, tea, the kind you drink, is just written with this one symbol?"

"No, tea is spelled t-e-a."

"That makes… no sense. How inefficient."

"Yeah, I know."

~FFF