This was a short snippet I had written separately back in Dec. 2009 at ATD, but I had meant for it to be an epilogue, so I added it here as such. I added a small bit for you ATD-ers who had read this before. =]

Curious - A Holiday Story
by Athena, aka Larceny

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Six-year old Lucas sat on Lucy's lap while his mother read to him. His raven hair and big, bright blue eyes made Lucy smile. My boy's gonna be one hell of a heart-breaker someday, she mused. She had just read a few holiday stories to him, ranging from Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas stories, with the last one being "Baby in a Manger".

Lucy enjoyed just holding her son. They sat in front of the fireplace in comfortable silence. There was just something about watching the roaring fire, its flames dancing and swaying in the air, and listening to the logs burn rhythmically like a lullaby without a melody, now and then snapping and sparking. It wasn't very long till Lucas yawned just a bit and hugged her tighter. He rubbed his eyes and burrowed into her. Just when Lucy was about to announce that it was time for bed, Lucas looked up at her with curious eyes. Lucy smiled and stroked his head fondly.

"Mama?" he said with a tiny voice.

She reached for a glass of water and took a sip. "Hmm?"

"What's a lesbeen?"

Lucy spewed and sputtered.

"Mama!"

"I'm sooo sorry, sweetie!" She wiped her son's face and shirt with her sleeve. "Why do you ask?"

Lucas pouted before he sighed and leaned back on his mama's chest. "The kids at school say you and Mommy are lesbeens."

"Um. Right. Yes we are. It means women who love each other."

"Like you and Mommy?"

"Uh huh, and we're dam- er, darn proud of it," she replied, then kissed his head, "just like we're so proud of you."

That seemed to calm him down a bit, despite the slight frown still etched on his face. While playing with Lucy's hair, he spoke once again, "Mama?"

"Yes, sweetie?" This time Lucy was careful not to reach for the glass.

"Am I adopted?" His face turned downward. "I've seen adopted kids and they're very sad or angry. I don't wanna be like them."

"No! No, sweetheart, of course not, honey. You're not adopted," Lucy said quickly, squeezing her boy and rocking him gently. "Wait... have you been feeling sad? What makes you think that?"

"Well, the kids at school..." He seemed to cave into himself, but hugged his mama tightly. "They make fun of me."

"Is that why you've been having more scratches lately? Have you been fighting? Are they bullying you?"

The more Lucas stayed quiet, the more Lucy grew worried. In fact, she began to run a mental checklist of her weapons arsenal in her super secret hideout. The one only she and Scud knew about. They may have given up a life of crime, but emergency situations called for drastic measures, like in the case of earthquakes with a magnitude of 9, a nuclear holocaust, or even a zombie apocalypse.

But this was worse. Her son was being threatened by bullies. For all she knew they were children of assassins or crime lords. Scud would help run a search for these little effers.

"Okay, who are these kids, honey? I'll, I'll-"

"How come I don't have a daddy?" he asked, placing his little hand atop a shaking bigger palm. "Mrs. Johnson said you need a mommy and a daddy to have a baby."

"..."

Lucas looked up at her, alarmed to see her bulging eyes and gaping mouth. "Mama?"

"... G-Go ask your Mommy. She's the smart one."

THE END

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