Author's Note: And we continue. Bit of fun and fluff in this chapter!

Jupiter Jones was bored.

Jupiter Jones, given her recent experiences in life, had not felt boredom often. But when she did, she despised it.

Her highness was regularly kept busy. Tossing between her duties in space and on earth. But when duty doesn't call.. well, she lays sprawled out on Stinger's couch, suckling honey sticks, and cursing stinger for not getting an AC unit in his buzzing house.

Jupiter sucked another stick dry, setting the flimsy content down on the floor next to her where a pile of plastic began to grow from her previous sticks.

She huffed, crossing her eyes as a strand of hair landed on her nose. She grabbed another honey stick that was squashed up between her and the couch and ripped it open with her teeth. She watched the bees fly around her. Never touching, never. They only ever hovered.

Caine and Stinger had been called back to the Aegis for a mission that even Jupiter didn't have access to (which, if she tried hard enough, she knew she could). Stinger was called back more often then Caine- since the lycantant was posted as her lead guard. But he was one of the best in the Legion. A legend. As much as Jupiter wanted to keep him to herself, he was needed out there more. And Jupiter was more selfless than selfish. Besides, they usually returned within a week of leaving.

Usually.

It'd been almost a week now, and Jupiter admitted to herself she felt a little anxious about that. She often did when Caine and Stinger were gone for more than a day. She couldn't help it.

Kiza admitted that she too got nervous when they were gone for long but she was accustomed to it by now. Stinger gone more than not, leaving Kiza to herself before Jupiter entered that life. Kiza was better at hiding her jittery anxiousness. But being around them for 3 years now, Jupiter began to pick up on their habits.

Kiza liked to go out for drives to keep herself busy, which she was doing now. Jupiter had found a note on the front door saying that she was out to get groceries while Jupe napped.

Jupiter couldn't exactly remember when she read that note, so she shrugged and guessed that Kiza would be home soon.

But soon wasn't now, and Jupiter thought she was going to go crazy if she didn't find something to do. To keep her mind off the ache at being parted from Caine for so long.

"Alright." Jupiter said out loud. Jumping to her feet, she brushed off the honey sticks and muttered a soft "sorry" to the bees as they buzzed erratically at her sudden movements. She patted her hands on her thighs, wiping the sticky substance on her jeans. She tugged on her blouse in attempt to air her hot skin.

Trudging out of the house and into the sunlight, where she covered her eyes with her hands, she huffed.

"Come out." She ordered playfully.

Immediately, two blurs of furs plopped down in front of her from the roof above. Kiana and Kephri. Their big furry ears twitched as they landed and their big, overbearing grins grew to an impossible size as they grounded themselves.

Kiana bared her sharp teeth as she pulled the thick, long, black hair that started from her front hairline to the back of her skull over one side of her shaved head. "Your ladyship called?"

"Oh, please." Jupiter rolled her eyes at being addressed as ladyship and walked over to the two twins. She nuzzled both of their ears with her hands. "You can't tell me you're not bored."

Kephri tapped his chin, giving a dramatic sigh. He did the same as his sister with her hair, but moving his thick strands to the opposite side. "How could you say such a thing? Us- bored? Of guarding you, the oh-high-exalted-one?"

"Ha ha." Jupiter elbowed him gently. She saw his bat wing twitch, folding in on the other. The twins both got the same cybernetic wings, bat ones. "A little more feeling and I might actually believe that one." She placed her hands on her hips and glanced up to the sky. "Where's V and Nnit?"

Kephri jabbed his thumb behind him. "V is in the field-"

Kiana cut him off, jabbing her pointer finger towards the house. "Nnit is sitting in the tub."

"Oh." Jupiter turned to the house, cupping her hands around her mouth, she yelled. "Hey Nnit! Come join us!"

She turned back to the twins, blinking as a huge figure appeared behind them. Kiana and Kephri spun around to face them at the same time, still wearing their large grins.

"Welp, found V." Kiana said.

V, short for Vverana. A panther splice. A nimble being, more so than Grethan. Much more observant and quiet than even Blend them self. And she was considerably larger than Grethan as well. She usually took on the role of watching her family with Nnit. But when going out to Stingers, Nnit and her switch with Nila, Grethan and Blend. Vverani had also been one among the deadlands a few years back, just like Caine. Her sheer, brute force earned her the front lines. She was the only one of her Skyjacker squad to have lived through it. It's how she ended up as Jupiter's guard. Her dark, rich skin and black poofy afro made her green cat eyes pop as they looked down past her nose at Jupiter.

"Jupiter." She addressed with her deep voice. It used to intimidate her, now it soothed her. V was a comforting being to have around.

Jupiter beamed. She only had to tell Vverana to call her by her name once- and she did so from then on. She thought she saw V's whiskers twitch as she smiled widely at being called her name.

"Alright, well, once Nnit gets down here," She said the last part loudly. "We can find something to do."

Vverana reached to touch up behind her neck. Her blue and green patterned butterfly wings flapped. "Nnit, report down here please." Jupiter blushed, having forgotten all about the comm.

The twins vibrated with excitement. "Alright your majesty." Kephri said. "Give us a hint?"

"Jupe, please?" Kiana said when Jupiter didn't respond right away.

Jupiter waggled her pointer finger at them both. "Nope, not telling." She turned back to the house, to see the Nnit slither out. Red eyes winged with black eyeliner gleamed down at them as they stood at the end of the porch steps.

A piranha splice. Made by the same splicer as Vverana was. A wide mouth, but not as big as the twins. But definitely had sharper teeth. Smaller than Blend, about 4'3". And same temper. Jupiter decided she had to measure them both someday. Nnit was very sociable, and loved earth culture. Jupiter had ordered special covers that surrounded them in a holo that gave them an appearance of a normal human being for the sake of taking Nnit into town. It was easier to wear the holo then blank everyone who looked at them. Though it was harder to cover Nnit's gills. He had to wear small, squishy sacs filled with water around his gills so he could breathe properly. Nnit could live off the air from earth, but it was uncomfortable for him. He usually wrapped a scarf around them during then.

Nnit trotted down to them, face squashing uncomfortably. He stretched his flying fish wings as he walked behind Vverana. "It is too hot." He held his long feathered hair into a pony tail with his fist, closing make-up covered eyes. Kiza had done his makeup for the day. Always did when Nnit was around, he became her play doll.

"Yeah, about that." Jupiter held up her hand for a signal to wait, then jogged to the other side of the house. She grabbed the hose that lay tossed carelessly on the ground and drug it back to them. "See," she wet her lips. "This is here to solve our problems."

Nnit immediately perked up and the other three visibly drew back.

"Jupiter-" V said, trying to hide her displeasure. "Aren't there other ways to cool down?" Kiana and Kephri nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Of course but none as fun as this."

"I don't see how this is fun." Kiana and Kephri whined at the same time.

"Come on," She tugged more on the hose. "You'll see." Nnit was instantly at her side, hopping excitedly. Jupiter turned to him, quietly whisper in his ear.

The two dogs and wild cat splices gave each other uncertain looks and shuffled their feet as Nnit ran back and turned on the hose, soaking them all unexpectedly as they brooded.

"Okay." Jupiter shivered as a cool breeze hit her. It was dusk when Kiza returned home. And the water fight between her majesty and the royal guard had yet to come to an end as the heat raged on. "V will distract Kiza, then we'll ambush her with the buckets and hose."

The twins snickered at the thought, gripping tightly to their water filled buckets they found inside Stinger's house.

They all were soaking wet, and their shoes and clothes gave off an awkward slosh sound if they moved around too much. Nnit curbed his small hands around the bucket he held. "The spot Kephri found before would have hidden us better."

"Yeah." Jupiter said regretfully. They were hiding in the the fields right in front of where Kiza parked. If she kept her head lights on long enough and looked through the stocks, she could easily see them. They decided it was too late to relocate now and move to the other side of the house where they originally planed.

Note to self, Jupiter thought, maybe let the war heroes decide where the ambush goes next time.

"She is pulling in." Vverana said through the comm. The group looked up, seeing her air dryed hair poof as her wings fluttered gloriously in the last gleams of the settled sun.

"V will distract Kiza, we will ambush her." Jupiter said as Kiza's car became visible.

The twins passed a glance.

Jupiter turned back to them. The hose twisted in her hands as the car neared. "So, when Kiza pulls in, V will distract her. We'll ambush her-"

"We know." The twins said quietly, looking at each other again. Nnit had his eyebrows pulled together.

Jupiter looked at them, baffled. "But I haven't even told you the plan yet."

"Your majesty, you have." Nnit said.

"Oh," Jupiter said awkwardly, not really believing them. She hoped they wouldn't mess up the ambush. She turned to the on coming car, skin prickling as she felt their stares from behind. "What?"

"Nothing, your grace." Kephri said in all seriousness.

Her highness gave him an odd stare over her shoulder. "W-"

"She is about to exit the car." Vverana cut in as she dropped to the ground. V left her comm on as she greeted Kiza.

"Hey." Kiza said shakily as she reached for a grocery bag once the car turned off. "Sorry the trip took so long, traffic." V nodded curtly and took the bags from Kiza's hands. She grabbed Kiza's forearm firmly and dragged her away from the car, ignoring her questions as she did so.

Jupiter held up her hand to the group, staring intently at Kiza.

"On three."

V put her hands on Kiza's shoulders, steadying her.

"One."

Kiza looked at Vverana in confusion, yellow honeycomb eyes squinting.

"Two."

Jupiter spared another glance at her squadron. They were wound up like tight coils, ready to spring on her mark. So she didn't hesitate to set them off.

But at the same time she said three, a soft thud landed behind them and greeted them loudly. "Jupiter."

Scaring the daylights out of a Jupiter, who was halfway standing with hose running, whipped around in the most ungraceful manner. "Crap." She squawked as her heart burst from her chest. The twins twirled around, buckets of water spilling all over them. Nnit dropped his so forcefully it splashed up and hit all of their faces.

But not before the hose in Jupiter's hands aimed right for the intruder, ready to fend for her life. She put her thumb over the nozzle, intensifying the spray and aimed for the head...

...and a mouth full of water smacked Caine Wise right on his face.

"Caine." Jupiter blurted, twisting wrong and the hose tangled her feet. She half lunged and half fell on his coughing form, arms wide. She grabbed onto him, not caring that she was wet and forgetting all about the failed ambush on Kiza. The hose that still ran pressed awkwardly between them, causing her tight hug to become increasingly uncomfortable and wet.

He grunted, wrapping his arms around her in, still trying to spew the liquid from his lungs. His large hand supported the back of her head and to the small of her back. His body shook as his lungs tried to dispel the water as she wrapped her arms around his waist. He leaned his head down to nuzzle his nose on her neck. She felt more than hear him whisper her name. His hot breath came out in spurts on her neck due to his coughing. Jupiter giggled

"I almost tore your throat out!" Kiana tried to growl, but failed between her own giggling over the mess they made of their ambush.

"I was about ready to bite your ear off!" Kephris laughed as well, feeling his body shake with laughter as he helped Nnit up who had slipped on the wet dirt.

Jupiter leaned back to kiss Caine and he responded eagerly. She broke the kiss again, planting her face right on his chest to listen to his heartbeat.

Still alive, still here.

"My makeup is smudged." Nnit said distastefully.

"Worth it though," Kephris snorted between laughter. Nnit agreed happily, though still bummed at the fact.

"What's all the fuss about?" Kiza called where her and Vverana still stood. V leaned over to say something to her that Jupiter couldn't catch over the sound of Caine's breathing.

"An ambush?" Kiza said disapprovingly, clucking her tongue with a grin. "Don't forget who owns this house."

"Aye, I believe that'd be me." Stinger smiled as he landed behind Kiza, his bee wings buzzing. They met with an embrace, and Jupiter couldn't be happier or more relieved.

They were back. They were alive. They were fine.

Jupiter took a deep breath and reluctantly pulled back from Caine, wrapping just one arm around his waist and turned to Stinger. "Welcome home you two."

Caine reached over with his free hand that wasn't on Jupiter to touch the twin's foreheads in greetings. He nodded at Nnit and V, who both smiled and nodded in turn.

"Good to be home."

Jupiter laid on the bed that her and Caine shared at Stinger's house, their own spare room. Stinger gave it up willingly. Said that it'd be pointless to not let them use it since they were here so often. She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and wiggled her toes. She wore nothing but a large red shirt she had bought for Caine last christmas that said 'mistletoe tester'.

She watched Caine as he undressed on the other side of the old room, feeling tingly. "How'd it go?" She asked, referring to the mission.

He froze before he gave her a sideways glance and shrugged. He pressed his lips together, still stuff. He peeled back his shirt. "It went well."

"What is it?" She said, sensing something was up.

"Nothing, your majesty."

"Caine." He turned to her as she said his name, face closed off of emotion. Jupiter felt her stomach drop a bit. He hadn't acted like this since the commonwealth.. "What's wrong, did I do something?"

His eyes went wide. "No, no. Never." He immediately reassured her, then cleared his throat. He shuffled his bare feet, undoing his pants. "It is just-" He paused to slip them off completely. "You already asked that."

Eyebrows crossed. "I did?"

"Yes." Caine stated simply, then elaborated. "About the mission. Downstairs, at dinner. Then on our way up here."

Jupiter's mind reeled. "I don't remember." She answered honestly. Caine looked to the ground, jaw clenching. His wings stayed tucked neatly behind his back as he walked over to sit next to her on the bed. It sunk as he sat down next to her and Jupiter was forced to lean on him.

She drew her head back to look him over, noticing a new scar on his arm. She traced it with her finger. "This is new."

He shivered. "Yes."

"Hm." She trailed her finger from his bicep to his shoulders, softly skimming. She tracked the freckles on his skin, connecting the dots with her fingernail. "The sharpie marks are gone."

Sometimes, she pins down Caine and plays connect the dots with a sharpie on his back. She tries to make different shapes and images every time. Every now and then Kiza will help find new traces.

He only hummed, a low sound from deep inside his chest to her statement. Jupiter continued to draw shapes on his back for the next few minutes. With each passing one, her eyes got heavier and Caine more relaxed.

"Caine," She mumbled sleepily, dropping her hand. He took the hand that fell and brought it to his lips. He brought her pulse to his nose, taking a deep breath. There he kissed and then to her palm to her fingertips. She leaned her head on him, kissing his shoulder.

"I missed you."

Caine gave a soft whine, releasing her hand to turn and kiss her.

"I love you." He murmured roughly when the kiss broke and Jupiter felt her heart burst. It did every time he said it. He only ever said it in private, and sometimes, not even then. She could count on her hands how many times he's said it aloud. But that's okay, his actions told her everyday.

She leaned her head back on his shoulder. "I love you too." She reached over to trace her finger on the tip of his pointed ear. She stiffled a yawn into his shoulder, feeling as though she were about to asleep any second. He gently got up to turn off the lights, reaching to touch her shoulder in a comforting motion as he did so.

He walked back over and gathered her up, setting her and himself on the bed and underneath the covers. He curled around her, snuggling close. She felt his nose bury in her hair and by her neck and took a deep breath. He brought his hand to lay on her belly and unfurled his wings to cover them. Jupiter had her own hand cover his and squeeze. She gave a happy sigh.

"Jupiter." Caine whispered after they had settled. "Are you okay?" She thought she heard his voice break at the end of that sentence.

She could hear the worry and fear wrap the sentence and she desperately tried to ignore the own drop of her stomach at the thought of him being in an emotion turmoil such as that. She squeezed his hand again. There was nothing to worry about. She felt fine, she felt amazing. "Yes Caine, I'm okay. We're okay." Nothing was wrong with her. She was never going to leave him.

Jupiter heard him swallow, so she let him know after a few minutes of silence. "I won't be leaving you anytime soon, if that's what you're worried about." She said sleepily, words slurring.

Caine didn't laugh like she aimed for, his hand only tightened on her.

"No, you won't." He said seriously, fear and determination gripping his words.

Too tired to reassure him anymore that she really was fine, she fell asleep, protected and content.

Author's Note: Till next chapter!