The Spirit of a Fighter

by tinkertot95

When you make a big decision, the best course of action is to stick with it and roll with the punches as they come. She figured it would be quite literally, but figurative punches can hurt just as bad.

10. The McCoy Setup

Welcome to chapter 10! Here we are at another McCoy Christmas! I always loving writing the dynamics of Olivia with the McCoys! Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

---

I sit down on the bench, regulating my breathing when Tro comes over with two bottles of water. She hands me one and I drink deeply from it.

"So, I don't think your problem is with lack of experience in real world fighting. Our training the past couple of months has been good for you, but that's not the main problem." She says and I look at her. "Because based on what I've seen from him, you should have no problem doing it. You're physically capable."

"So the problem is psychological." I say and she hums. I sigh. "I don't know what to do to defend myself against him then."

"I'll help you get there." She says and I look at her. "I'm not great at making friends. I'm distant and I don't trust easily. I mean hell, it was a year before I even told you remotely what I did before this." She looks down at her hands. "You help me and you are someone who is very important to me, so I am going to help you. It might get scary."

"The only thing that scares me is the idea of anyone I care about getting hurt." I say and then I take another drink of water. "Getting beat up? Those pains fade away. When he gets out, I don't think he's going to directly come after me anymore. He might, but I think he's going to switch to manipulative tactics."

"So we need to work on beefing you up against those." She says and I nod. "You actually hurt me today, Ollie. I've never been more proud." I laugh.

"You're a weirdo, Troian Sullivan." I say and she puts her arm around me. "So how's my jiu-jitsu coming along?"

"You've gotten a lot better since we started working on it together. You're so nimble though, I'd kind of like to get you started in Muay Thai. You've got some elements in with your krav maga techniques, but I really think you'd do well with it. I'm also a personal fan of expanding your repertoire." She takes a drink of her water. "I can get a tutor to come in and teach you."

"I'll let you know." I say and she nods. "I'll forgive you for the split lip." She winks at me.

"Good thing McCowboy is still too scared of me to give me any dirty looks." She says and I laugh. "No, he's alright."

"If he weren't, would you let him within a hundred feet of me?" I ask and she considers that.

"You're right." She shrugs. "I've got to get going. Tonight, we are having a girls' night. Ice cream, movies, pajamas. The whole nine yards."

"Yes ma'am." I say and she winks at me again before she picks up her bag and heads out of the room that she's been booking for our training sessions. I pick up my own bag and head out. As I'm walking, someone puts their hand on my shoulder. Startled, I hip toss them and I realize that its Fairchild. "Oh my god, Fairchild. Are you okay?"

"A little startled, but yeah." He says, accepting my hand up. "You dropped this." He hands me the jacket I had hanging from my bag. "I guess you weren't kidding about those combat classes, huh?"

"You've got to always be prepared. Sorry about that, I've been training with a friend and it wouldn't be above her to sneak attack me." I say and then I look him over one more time. "Are you sure you're okay? I feel really bad about that."

"I'm fine, we all get at least a little bit of training. Good form, by the way." He says and I laugh. "Well, I'll see you around."

"See you." I offer a wave before I leave the gym, more than a little embarrassed. Leonard meets me outside. "So Fairchild is going to have a story for you next time you see him."

"That man always has some sort of story for me. What's it gonna be this time?" He asks and I just start laughing.

"Well, I hip-tossed him." I say and he just shakes his head. "To be fair, I thought Tro was sneaking up on me. I actually just dropped my jacket and he was returning it to me."

"That'll teach him." He says and I cover my face. He laughs, then he gently takes my chin and tilts my head up to look at my lip. "Did he do that? Or was that Sullivan?"

"Totally Fairchild." I say with a nod. "That's why it's already scabbed over and everything."

"Listen, Smart Ass." He says and I wink at him. He takes my bag for me and throws it over his shoulder. "So, you comin' with me for Christmas again this year?"

"Would your mother permit me not to?" I ask and he allows that. "It'll be good to see everyone again." I link my arm with his. "And this time there will be no unwelcome interruptions, knock on wood."

"You couldn't have waited until we were actually near some wood to knock on?" He asks and I shake my head. "Everything is gonna be fine."

"I agree." I smile. "So Tro thinks I should expand my repertoire to be less grapple-y." He looks hesitant. "It's a style known as Muay Thai. Which my initial training before Starfleet has elements from that. I'm going to do some more research on it before I make any decisions."

"Yeah, and does Sullivan have any other genius ideas about your fightin'?" He asks, less than thrilled, but I expect this.

"Well…she doesn't think that lack of real-world experience is my problem when it comes to defending myself against Marcus." I gently tap my fingers against his arm. "And since she's said it, I can see it. I don't keep my head like I do otherwise."

"It makes sense." He agrees. "So, what are you thinkin' to try and get over that?" I shrug. "Well, I'm here for you."

"I know." I lean my head against his arm. "I know that you all are. The past year and a half has been training myself out of those survival habits I had. Do you have any idea how freeing it is to be able to take birth control without having to sneak around?"

"I imagine it's pretty freeing." He says and I sigh. "You've been doin' a great job. It gets a little better every day."

"It does." I agree. "And it helps that I've got a pretty great boyfriend who is incredibly patient with me."

"Yeah? Who's that?" He asks and I bump his hip with mine. "You're worth it. Especially because you beat up my annoying friends."

"Wait until we see Malachi and Easton again." I say and that has him laughing. "They wouldn't know what to do if I did that to them."

"You should definitely do it to Andrew." He says and I shake my head. "He's been botherin' me a lot lately."

"Bothering you how?" I ask and he shakes his head. "Leonard, I tell you literally everything."

"I'll tell ya later." He says and I give him a dubious look. "I promise. Have I ever broken a promise to you?" I think back.

"I don't think so." I say and then I point at him. "You once told me that it wasn't going to hurt before you hypoed me."

"Yeah, doctors are trained to tell that lie though, so it doesn't really count." He shrugs. I roll my eyes. "I'll tell ya later, Darlin'."

"You win this round, but just remember, I have ways of making you talk." I wink at him. "But I'll get back at Andrew for you. I'll ask him if he wants a demonstration of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and then use him as the test dummy."

"He's gonna fall right into that trap. You're diabolical." He kisses the top of my head. "I knew I loved you for a good reason."

"And here I thought it was just my incredible ass." I say and he shrugs. "Oh! What if we made it look like it was easy to do and so when he inevitably wants to try it, I can startle him with a triangle choke."

"I think you woulda been a great older sibling." He says and I laugh. "Maybe. We gotta teach him about tappin' out properly though."

"Would I ever actually put someone I care about in danger?" I ask dubiously. "He'll be fine. He's a big, tough guy. He can probably bench press me."

"All a hundred and fifteen pounds." He says and I jump away and point at him. "Darlin'?"

"I'm not a hundred and fifteen pounds. I'm one-twenty-two!" I exclaim and then I go in for a high five. He chuckles, but high fives me none the less.

"I'm proud of ya, Darlin'." He says as he brings me back in and puts his arm around me. "See? I told ya not bein' stressed was good for ya."

"Watch it, McCoy." I say and he chuckles as he holds the door open for me and I enter our residence hall.

"Another detail, Momma wants to know if we're bunkin' together this time." He says and I look at him.

"Do you want to 'bunk' with me?" I ask, using air quotes. We step onto the lift and take it up to our floor.

"It's up to you. I'm alright with it, I just wanted to give ya an option." He says, typing in my code for me. We step into the room.

"Sure. Are you still going to do yoga with me while we're there?" I ask and he looks hesitant. "You don't have to learn it. I don't want to teach you if you're going to be embarrassed about it."

"No, you're right. It has helped." He says with a sigh. He sets my bag down on the couch. I go over and wrap my arms around him. "I just know that little shit is gonna say somethin' if he sees us."

"Well, we'll be sharing a room. I'm positive that there will be enough space for us to do yoga together before breakfast." I stand up on my toes. "No one has to know that you do yoga." I whisper.

"I don't even care if anyone knows. He's just like a flea that won't stop bitin'." He says, narrowing his eyes at the thought of his brother. "Momma thinks its great."

"I figured she would." I give him a chaste kiss. "I'm sweaty and gross, so I'm going to take a shower."

"You're not gross." He rolls his eyes. "I'll be here." He kisses me and I wink at him before I collect clean clothes and take a shower. Once I'm finished, I dress in my yoga pants and tee shirt combo before I comb through my hair. It's gotten pretty long again. It's definitely not a bad look on me, but my hair was never something I actually had a choice over. It had to be long and it had to be perfect. So I will be going back to short hair. I don't apply any product and I just pull it up into a bun before I go and join Leonard on the couch. He's studying. "When's your last final?"

"I've got…two on Thursday…a certification exam on Saturday…two on Monday…and then I've got one early Tuesday morning." I list them off and then smile. "So Tuesday I'll be done around….eleven-ish."

"Alright and I'm done Tuesday around one. So you wanna leave around three?" He asks and I shrug.

"That sounds alright to me." I go over and sit down beside him. He closes out of his textbook and then goes to reserve our seats. "Look at us, we're like a real couple or something."

"Or somethin'." He agrees and then he puts his arm around me. "I love you." I look up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I love you too. Is everything okay?" I ask and he shrugs and opens his textbook back up. "Leonard, I know you love me, but you don't typically just say it like that." I observe him, trying to figure it out. "Are you nervous because we're definitely going to see Rachel again?"

"This is why we're doin' the yoga thing." He kisses the top of my head. "So I get over that."

"If Marcus showing up at your parents' house didn't mess this thing up, I don't think that there's anything you can do that'll mess things up with me. Aside from the obvious, but you're not that sort of man." I cross my legs and give his foot a little kick. "So just love me like you have been and we won't have a problem."

"I'm still gonna sweep ya off your damn feet." He mutters, going back to his reading. I smile and grab my own tablet before I settle in to study for my own exams.

---

Thomas and Lucille meet us as we walk up the steps of the front porch. I meet her with open arms and she gives me a tight squeeze. Then she passes me off and Thomas gives me a lighter hug. Hugging him feels less weird to me now, which I'm thankful for.

"I'm so glad you two are here now." Lucille says as she cups my face. "Oh, you're more beautiful every time I see you."

"I say that and I get smacked." Leonard says and I roll my eyes at him. "So you're just beautiful, deal with it."

"I never said I wasn't." I say and Lucille laughs as she takes me by the hand and leads me inside. Leonard takes my bag from me and I raise my eyebrows at him and he maintains eye contact as he walks over to the stairs and heads up by himself. "That boy."

"You sound exactly like his mother." Thomas says, laughing. "And this way you get to miss his enthusiastic realization that his brother is already here."

"How that one manages to annoy him so much from this far away is actually impressive to me." I shake my head and head into the kitchen where Lucille had gone to. "What needs done?" I'm washing my hands at the sink.

"If you must," She starts, giving me a look, but before she can finish, Andrew jogs into the kitchen.

"Leonard said you wanted to show me your jiu-jitsu?" He looks a little excited and I have to work at maintaining my straight face.

"I can give you a demonstration. Leonard needs practice anyway." I say and my boyfriend gives me a look as he enters behind his brother. "Oh, hi honey." I giggle at the look that gets. "I was going to help…"

"Go." Lucille gives me a stern look. "Maybe you can make those boys behave themselves for once."

"Lucille, I'm a mediator, not a miracle worker." I sigh and she laughs. "I will be helping you while I'm here."

"Whatever you say, Sweetheart." She says, giving me a placating smile. "Go, have fun." I shake my head and head into the living room with the McCoy boys and their father.

"We're gonna need some room. Give me a hand with the couch." Leonard says and Andrew obliges. I put my hand over my heart.

"You two can work together." I say like it's the sweetest thing I've ever seen. They clear out enough space and I pull as much hair as I can into a small bun. "But anyway, as we go, I'll explain why this is a good style for me because it does seem a little excessive." We take off our shoes. "So, I'm one-twenty-two and I bench about one-forty." Andrew nods. "Leonard is one-sixty-three? And he benches…one-ninety-five?"

"Give or take." He says with a shrug. "The point is, she's tiny, but in control of her emotions."

"Correct." I grin. "Now for me, I either want to be out of their reach or I want to be in close enough so that they can't put much force behind their hits. So I'm going to take Leonard to the floor now." I go in and I fold him to the floor and get on top of him. "This is where you want to be because, yeah he could punch, but he can't really torque it. From this position, he could also throw me off pretty easily." Leonard demonstrates that gently. I go back to position. "Oh come on, like ya mean it." He gives me an unimpressed look. I wait. He rolls his eyes and then he tosses me off a little more like when I'm training him. I go back. "So, what ya do is," I lean forward and hook my ankles under his knees. "lean all of your body weight on your opponent , is it prevents him from throwing me off, because while he can bench almost two hundred pounds, he can't bench press the both of us. So this is effective for me because it could wig someone out who hasn't encountered this before and if they're struggling, they'll tire easier." I unhook my ankles and sit back up.

"This is cool too," Leonard starts and then he rolls us, so he has the upper hand position. "she can still be entirely in control."

"Like this." I get him into a triangle hold and he taps out quickly. I let him go. "When you put pressure on the carotid artery like that, you've got six seconds before you go unconscious." I scoot away and sit up. "I took down the biggest guy in my training seminar that way…which is probably why guys on campus don't bother me much anymore."

"Especially after that pretty public spar with Sullivan as well." Leonard says and I roll my eyes at that. "And she judo flipped one of my friends. She's mean."

"He startled me. Tro is evil." I defend myself and he smiles at me. "You get extra ornery when we come here."

"You love it." He says and I roll my eyes. He looks to Andrew. "So what'd ya think? You scared of her yet?"

"I wouldn't want to be on the receivin' end of one of those choke holds, I'll tell ya that much." He says and I chuckle as I stand up and offer my hand to Leonard.

"But that's it, Brazilian jiu-jitsu is easy." He says as he takes my hand and lets me help him up.

"Yeah, you weren't saying that the first time I was teaching you." I say and he gives me an indignant look. "Don't call me mean and maybe I won't act out."

"She's got ya there, son." Thomas says as he sits in his chair. "I'm glad you found somethin' that works well for ya, Olivia."

"Me too. When we get back, I'm going to start training in another style. I'm pretty excited to explore it." I say as I go over to grab one end of the couch, but the boys don't let me. "Sexist." I mutter as I sit down on it to make it slightly more inconvenient for them.

"So what made ya decide to want to start teachin' that stuff to Leonard?" Andrew asks as he takes a seat beside me. My boyfriend gives him a look as he sits down in the other chair.

"While I am also fond of him, I want him to always be able to get back here to you guys." I shrug. "It's good practice for me. He's pretty decent in a fight."

"Don't let his momma hear you talkin' like that." Thomas says and I decide not to bring up the accidental split lip. "Especially if you mean against you."

"I wouldn't make it to Christmas." Leonard says, shaking his head. "But you made a compellin' argument. But of course, I went easy on ya."

"If that helps you sleep at night." I say sweetly. I receive another indignant look that makes me smile. "You're so cute when you smile at me like that."

"I'll show ya smilin'." He mutters. "I'm your boyfriend, damn it, not some mixed martial arts fighter."

"Por qué no ambos*?" I ask with a shrug. "Ideally you won't need it, but the couple who spars together, kicks ass together."

"Okay, now that's cute." Andrew says and I shrug again. "Oh, congratulations on the good news. Three years." It makes sense that me talking about fighting would remind him of Marcus.

"Three years." I agree with a nod. "I've actually managed to relax a little bit since that, which has been wonderful for my sleeping. My doctor has no complaints."

"I wouldn't say no complaints." He says and I narrow my eyes at him. "At least you're not teeterin' back and forth on bein' underweight."

"Leonard lookin' on the bright side? What have you done to him, Olivia?" Andrew asks and I shrug. "At least some things never change."

"You see to that." Leonard mutters and I shake my head, he looks to his father. "So, Pa, what's new with you?"

"Pretty much more of the same." Thomas says offering a bit of a shrug. I'm still not sure exactly what that entails, but he seems content with it so I smile. "Your momma convinced me to start goin' to dance classes with her."

"She mentioned that last time we talked on the phone." Leonard says and he has a bit of a smile on now.

"I hope I don't lose my will power like the two of you whenever I get around to findin' a lady." Andrew says and Leonard shakes his head.

"You'll understand when it happens." He says and I eye him warily. "There are worse things than not bein' able to say no to you."

"That might be one of the sweetest things you've ever said to me." I say and that earns an amused shake of Thomas' head. "Well, it's up there with calling me a medical marvel. You and Lucille raised a real sweetheart." I'm being sincere, even though it sounds sarcastic.

"What's the actual sweetest thing he's ever said to you? I want to make fun of him for it." Andrew says and I try to think back.

"Oh." I clear my throat. "If you think you're only as pretty as I am handsome, then you're delusional."

"Of course it is." Andrew laughs. "I can't even make fun of that. No, wait, yes I can. Dr. Biceps thinks he's handsome."

"Did you not just see that I'm learnin' to turn people into pretzels?" Leonard asks his brother and I shake my head. "As often as her friends call me Dr. Boyfriend. And she calls me Dr. Sunshine, Dr. Sensitive, and under the influence of pain medication, even Dr. Hunky."

"It sounds like someone is proud she's datin' a doctor." Andrew says, turning the annoying brother bit back on me.

"He's a damn good doctor." I shrug. "I don't think I really even started that, did I?" I'm trying to think back.

"Who knows anymore?" He asks and I offer a fair enough look. "At least you didn't start Dr. Boyfriend. Your friends are weird."

"You count as one of my friends, you know." I say and he shrugs. I shake my head. "What have you gotten into since I last saw you, Andrew?"

"Not too much. I am gonna start takin' classes this upcoming semester. Sociology. I might even go for a doctorate. Then someday we'll have at least three Dr. McCoy's." He says and I chuckle.

"I've got a bachelor's in soc. Let me know if you need any help." I smile. "I was going to try and go for a PhD and do research in the social psychology field."

"Not that it's easy to forget you're an intelligent person, but sometimes I do forget that you're basically a genius." Andrew says and I roll my eyes. "I'll see how it goes, but you'll be at least the third person I call. I know you're busy."

"I'm never too busy for friends…unless I'm trying to avoid you. Then I'm incredibly busy." I say and Leonard shakes his head and rolls his eyes. I smile sweetly. "You've hardly been the target of that in at least almost a year."

"Yeah, you just put me through Squirrely Jim." He says and I smile sweetly again. "I get it."

"I know you do." I assure him. "I was actually incredibly merciful with that. I could've avoided him for at least another week."

"At least there weren't anymore dive rolls this time." He says and I snicker. "You're ridiculous."

"If people didn't try to make me talk before I was ready, I wouldn't have to be ridiculous. I used to hide out with One-Eyed Pete when I wanted to avoid people, but he's not here to protect me now." I say and Andrew raises an eyebrow at me.

"You were friends with a guy called One-Eyed Pete?" He asks incredulously. "I learn somethin' new about you every time I see you."

"He and the bartender, Thomas, looked after me. They were probably the closest friends I had in Illinois." I say and then I shake my head. "My life is weird."

"More like cool. I wish I were friends with someone named One-Eyed Pete. Did he only have one eye?" He asks, giving me the same exact reaction I usually get when I talk about Pete.

"He definitely had two eyes, but you don't ask a guy with that kind of nickname where he got it from." I say and that has Thomas laughing. "Especially as little as I was? He could've broke me in half with his pinky finger. He worked in the private sector, if you know what I mean."

"You were friends with an assassin?" Andrew asks, his jaw slightly agape. Leonard even has his eyebrows raised.

"Listen, I never asked. All I know is that he offered to take care of my problem once and Thomas told me no later." I say and then I laugh. "Wow, my life really is super weird."

"Yeah? And we signed up for it to get even weirder." Leonard says with a shake of his head. "At least you're not hangin' out with potential assassins anymore."

"Okay, he was probably more like a mercenary, but that's not much better. Though it might say something for his character that he never asked me for anything in return for looking after me sometimes." I don't sound defensive, but I am defending him. He never did anything bad to me and I haven't heard of anything that he's done that's been bad. "He dealt with Drunk Ollie the best. She would get herself into all kinds of trouble. I don't miss her."

"We've all got our worst moments." Thomas says and I smile. "I'm glad it seems like yours are startin' to get further behind ya finally."

"You and me both." I say and that makes me feel a little emotional, even though I don't show it. It hadn't really been acknowledged until now. I saw it as a pause in bad moments with Marcus going to prison, but it actually is progress.

---

"I don't wanna get up." Leonard says as he wraps his arms around my waist tighter. "Let's start over with the yoga when we get back."

"You can start over when we get back." I try to peel myself away from him, but he just wraps me up tighter. "Leonard." I can't help the little giggle.

"I was havin' the best dream. Let's just go back to sleep." He says and I raise an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah? What was your dream about? If it was good enough you want to go back to sleep for it." I say and he looks at me for a moment.

"Darlin', we've got yoga to do." He says as he lets go of me and gets out of bed. I lay on my side and look up at him, unimpressed. "Unless you want to go back to bed?"

"Now you're trying to make it seem like it was my idea." I say as I try to figure it out. "I wouldn't be as curious as I am if you didn't act so suspicious."

"I was comfortable and I didn't want to get up. You happy?" He says and I narrow my eyes at him before I pat the spot he vacated. "What about the yoga?"

"We can cuddle and practice mindfulness." I say and he lays back down and pulls me into his arms. "This is nice, isn't it?" He hums and I snuggle up to him again.

"You are the most cuddle-y sleeper I have ever encountered. And Joanna slept in the same bed as me until she was three and a half." He says and I shrug. I note how he doesn't mention her mother with that. "As often as you nap when I'm around, I figured you would be, but man."

"Is that a bad thing?" I ask, leaning my head back so that I can get a better look at him. I am a little worried.

"Not at all." He kisses my forehead. "And you don't have killer breath first thing in the mornin'? Are you even human?"

"I must be a pretty convincing android if you, my doctor and the man I sometimes have intimate interactions with, can't tell if I'm human or not." I say and he grins. "Mhm. So, what was your dream about?"

"It was about you." He says and I roll my eyes. "What? I can't want to have nice dreams about my girlfriend?"

"Why do you need to dream about me when you've got me right here?" I ask and the kiss he gives me tells me why. "Also, you must be an android too since you also do not have morning breath."

"Mhm, needed to distract your mind?" He asks, winking at me. "We are in my parents' home, Olivia."

"I'm not the one having those kinds of dreams, Leonard." I say and then I shake my head. "You're incorrigible."

"I like to think I might be corrigible." He says and then he thinks on it. "On other things. You're one habit I don't wanna give up."

"Oh, so I'm just a habit now?" I ask and he rolls his eyes. "I like how even first thing in the morning we have our sassy rapport."

"When I'm not wakin' ya out of a dead sleep." He says and I try to think of a time where that's happened. "Last Christmas? The snow? I still remember how adorable your face was."

"Oh yeah." I smile and let myself get comfortable again. "Are you worried about seeing her again?"

"Not worried, but I know better than to let her get close now. I'm gonna need to get that taste outta my mouth again." He says and I nuzzle his neck.

"Nope, you've got to deal with that on your own." I say and he starts tracing patterns on my back. "What exactly did she say to get so into your head that three months later it still bugs you?" He sighs.

"She's the insecure sort, so she started bad mouthin' you." He starts and I nod. "Said you'd probably get bored with me."

"She and I obviously do not know the same man." I say as I tilt my head back to look at him. He's got that smirk on his face. "Go on."

"She just reminded me of everything I did wrong and I don't want to do that with you." He says and I nod.

"Okay…have you done any of that so far?" I ask and he looks up as he thinks about it. "You told me about emotional availability, and if we aren't emotionally available to each other right now, then I don't know the meaning of it."

"You're right." He allows and then he shakes his head. "Ten years." I smile. "And you'll be there for at least three of them to keep me in line."

"If you're lucky, which so far you have been. I'd say your chances are good." I say and he kisses me slow and sweet. "I read an article that kisses like that extend a relationship by at least five minutes."

"Five minutes? Well, we'd better get to work." He says and I giggle as I pull away from him. He pulls me back by my waist and he locks his fingers together over my stomach.

"Well I guess that's okay." I stop struggling and he kisses my cheek. "You're not going to convince me to skip yoga tomorrow."

"I wouldn't dream of it." He says innocently and I turn my head to give him a look. "You act like I'm incorrigible."

"You literally said I was a habit you didn't want to quit." I say and he shrugs and squeezes me before he lays his head back down on the pillow. In spite of myself, I start to feel a little emotional. It's a good sort of emotional, but still. "I need to go for a run."

"And what are you runnin' from at," He looks at the clock. "Six in the mornin'?" I don't look at him. "Darlin'?"

"I caught feelings." I say like it's a dirty word. "So I need to go and sweat to remind myself of how manly I am."

"Darlin', I hate to break it to you, but you couldn't pass for a man." He says and I look at him dubiously. His look changes. "What feelings did you catch? I am a doctor, ya know."

"This feels normal." I say and he watches me, apparently waiting for me to continue. "Normal in the way that this is what I always wanted. I got the best sleep last night."

"I'm pretty great." He says, making me roll over so that he can hold me close that way. I roll my eyes. "It does feel normal. We can give Jim to Troian and I'll take you. How's that sound?"

"As nice as that does sound, I think we'll just have to stick to the occasional sleepover." I say and he kisses me. "No amount of kissing is going to change my mind."

"That sounded like a challenge." He says and then he shakes his head. "I don't know what's wrong with me, usually I can contain this a little better."

"I'm pretty great." I say, turning his words back on him. "It's probably the thing I was saying last week. We're a real couple. Staying together at your parents house for a family Christmas thing."

"That's probably it." He agrees and then he kisses me again. "But I don't hate it." I wrap my arms around him and bury my face in his chest. "I am glad ya came. I was worried that you were gonna try to hang back because of what happened last time." He's tracing patterns on my back again.

"The thought crossed my mind." I admit. "What if she says the mean things to my face this time?" I'm joking mostly. "I can talk my way out of most situations. If not, I guess we could end up on one of those classic Jerry Springer type shows. Man's new, younger girlfriend kicks his ex-wife's butt on Christmas Eve." That has him laughing.

"That's only funny because I know you'd never do that. Sullivan though? I wouldn't put it past her." He says and I shake my head.

"She would get her attention. I don't think it will be a problem. Joanna likes me and she has some obligation to remain civil because I don't think Joanna would like it very much if she was directly mean to us. She's got that southern belle, bless your heart thing down to an art." I sigh.

"I'm sorry we've got to deal with this, Darlin'." He says and I lean back and blink at him a few times.

"You're sorry that your ex-wife is jealous of your new girlfriend and so she says mean things? Leonard. Shut up." I cuddle back up to him. "You get all of the free passes where your family is concerned."

"The only thing he's ever done to me is make ya think that bein' with me isn't a good idea." He says and I sigh. "Darlin'. I think we do need to do yoga. We're more worked up than I thought."

"Okay." I say with a smile. "I appreciate that you're entertaining the idea and trying it at least."

"It might end up bein' a problem someday, but I really can't say no to you." He says as he releases me and gets up.

"Sometimes you'll complain about it the whole time, but you'll do it." I say and he shrugs. I get up and step a certain way and my back pops in three places. "Oh my god, that felt amazing."

"You need to see a chiropractor." He grumbles and I stick my tongue out at him. "That's it, I'm gonna get licensed."

"Oh no." I say, wiggling my fingers in my supposed fear. "Why don't you get licensed as a massage therapist?"

"If you want me to rub ya down with oil, all you had to do was ask." He says and I gape at him. He winks at me.

"We are at your parents house, you cannot say things like that. I will literally die of embarrassment if anyone overhears something like that." I say and he laughs as he comes over and hugs me.

"I'm sorry, but you left yourself open for it. Rookie mistake." He says and I roll my eyes. "Alright, teach me your ways."

---

"Well there's your little homewrecker, Leonard." Rachel says and I feel my eyebrows shoot up.

"I'm sorry, what did you just call me?" I ask, my tone remaining perfectly neutral. Leonard, however, looks incredibly nervous.

"I said, you're a homewrecker." She looks incredibly satisfied with herself. "You're so young and you think you-"

"I'm going to stop you right there. I am not going to have a conversation like this in front of Joanna because she doesn't need to see it. However, if you would like to give me ten minutes, I would be more than happy to calmly speak with you out of her presence." I use my training. That is the only thing I can do right now to stay calm and not lose my temper.

"I'll tell you where you can put your ten minutes. Why don't you go back to whatever dump you call home and leave this family alone." She says, remaining indignant.

"Ms. Hampton," I say evenly. "Seeing as though you are not willing to cooperate, I am going to remove myself from this situation. I hope you have a Merry Christmas." I turn and I go back upstairs. I hear someone follow after me. I glance over my shoulder, it's Andrew. "I hope you're not opposed to climbing out a window if you plan on following me, because I almost lost my cool there." I step into my and Leonard's room and grab my hand wraps.

"We'll go through my room, it's better for climbin'." He says as he leads the way. He opens the window and climbs out onto the overhang. "I haven't done this since I was seventeen."

"Don't hurt yourself, old man." I say as I climb out. He rolls his eyes as he climbs down. I follow suit and he spots me. We head for the barn. He flips the lights on and I put my wraps on and go over to the punching bag. He holds it. "This is more violent than I'd like, but Leonard might have a heart attack if he spotted me jogging off."

"I think you're right." He says and I lay into the punching bag, trying to get that feeling of pent up energy to go away. "As things are, he might get a little nervous if he goes upstairs and we aren't there."

"He knows you wouldn't let me run off." I say, smiling a little in spite of what I'm feeling. "This is bull shit. I know I'm not a homewrecker. Their divorce was literally finalized before he even knew I existed." I land a powerful kick. "I think I'm the most angry that she did that in front of Joanna."

"Heaven knows that girl doesn't need to see any more of that. Leonard never raises his voice around her, but there's a reason we call her the harpy." He says and I nod. I throw a last punch and I don't draw my hand back.

"The first time Marcus cheated on me…I approached him like that. I thought I was hot shit because I caught him and that was the first time he beat the shit out of me. I told him I was leaving and he did not accept that." I take a breath before I start punching again. "I thought he was going to kill me, but that wasn't even the worst time." The tears are starting to well up in my eyes. "I'm sorry it's you I have to tell this to, but this is how I'm going to stop feeling this violent."

"You're not tellin' me anything I've never heard from someone I've helped." He says and I nod. "Don't even worry about it."

"It was stupid. I was stupid. I should have packed a bag that night and ran as far away as I possibly could." I say and I throw a knee. "I didn't have kids to look after. I had friends in town."

"But he promised he wouldn't do it again, right?" He asks and I nod. "And you bought it because it was all you'd ever known."

"I turned eighteen and he moved me out of my abusive father's house. Of course I stayed." I shake my head. "I was too pretty. If he didn't treat me that way, I was going to turn into a slut. And then, once Marcus finally had me right where he wanted me, I wasn't pretty enough. I was too fat. If my hair was short, I looked like a lesbian. I looked like a slob if I didn't have a full face of make up on." I throw a punch and that one stings a bit. I back off and shake out my hands. "And I bought it. We turned twenty-one and I quickly found out that alcohol took away those bad feelings for a while." I come back in and start throwing jabs and crosses again. "I can't completely condemn that part in my life because if not for that, I would have truly had all hooks sank in. I got pregnant but since I was so underweight, I didn't have a regular cycle to realize that I was late and since I drank so much, I miscarried. It's in my medical record, but I've never actually talked about this out loud. I know he knows, but we've never needed to talk about it." More tears well up and fall down my cheeks. "I don't want to cry anymore, Andrew. Because it feels like if I start crying now, I'm not going to stop."

"It might feel that way, but I don't think you'll stop feelin' how you are if you don't." He says and I know he's right. "I'm not Leonard, but a McCoy hug is pretty great no matter who it is." I let out a little laugh. Then I hear the yelling and the tears take over. He walks over and hugs me and that breaks the dam. I'm not a loud crier thankfully. The yelling is getting closer. I step away from Andrew, take off my wraps and toss them on the ground before I dry my face with the hem of my shirt and I head out of the barn.

"That is enough." I say in my best, scary even tone. Leonard lets out the breath he had taken in. "Leonard, take a walk. Now." I turn to Rachel. "And you need to compose yourself. The two of you are adults, you need to communicate as such for the sake of your daughter. Now we are going to go our separate ways and cool off and then we need to sit down and have a grown-up conversation. No yelling. Because that is not how you communicate with another person."

"Alright." Leonard says and he looks at me. He wants to ask me if I'm alright. I know you can tell I've been crying. "Rachel?"

"Yeah." She says and then she turns and walks away. Andrew walks out of the barn with his hands in his pockets.

"I'll let you two have some time alone in there." He says as he walks away. I head back in there, Leonard follows me. I see that Andrew set my wraps on the table in the corner. I take a deep breath and press my palms against my eyes.

"I wasn't crying because of what she said, I was crying because of the memories it dragged up. I may have traumatized your brother. He insisted I didn't tell him anything he hadn't heard before, but I'm still worried." I say and I feel his arms go around me. This isn't a him comforting me sort of thing. I hold him tight.

"As much of a pain in the ass as you can be, you never, and I mean never, push on my temper at all." He says, his voice a little hoarse. "Are you alright?" Am I?

"I'm a little upset with myself for almost losing my temper." I say honestly. "And this dragged up feelings I thought I dealt with a long time ago. I really want a shot." I shake my head. "The thing I'm the most angry about is how she did that right in front of Joanna. Is she okay?"

"She's fine, she and Momma went for a drive." He says and I'm incredibly grateful for that. He takes a step back and he takes my hands and looks at them. I split open one of my knuckles and bruises are already forming. "Darlin', I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." I say and he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. "I figured you might have a heart attack if you saw me jog off somewhere, so I elected to torture the poor punching bag."

"She was hopin' you'd run for the hills." He says and I roll my eyes. He pulls me back into his arms, but again, I'm the one doing the comforting. "I was scared you might."

"Then you don't know me at all." I say and his arms tighten. "The only thing that would make me run from you is if Marcus endangered your family. Specifically Joanna, but I'd be pretty upset if something happened to Andrew as well." I'm trying to lighten my mood by joking. "Leonard, I love you and even if we don't work out, I will probably love you for the rest of my life. It's weird and terrifying at the same time because part of my brain thinks that this is some sort of unhealthy attachment, but the rational part of my brain doesn't really think it is? I don't know, there's a lot going on up there right now. And for some reason the Klingon alphabet keeps popping in there too." I shake my head. "The point is, as long as we operate within the parameters of our relationship. Meaning, one, we don't get sick of each other and two, your family is not endangered, I am going to be part of your life and she's going to have to get over that."

"You're amazing." He says and then he's kissing me. "And I love you." He kisses me again. "And we've talked about this, the second parameter isn't an actual thing. It's not gonna happen, but I'm not lettin' you run away from me. You've got to be legitimately sick of me. You've got to submit forms and I need at least a thirty-page dissertation on why you're sick of me."

"With your jokes? Thirty pages would be easy." I say and he just sighs and I start laughing. New tears spring to my eyes. "Can we have one Christmas where there isn't drama?"

"We can try again next year." He says and then he kisses my forehead. "You were kiddin' about thirty pages bein' easy, right?"

"Yes, Leonard, I was kidding." I sigh then. "How long does she typically take to cool off? I could really use a nap now."

"Unfortunately, there's a very slim window in which you can actually get rational thought out of her." He says and I shake my head. "I know, but it's how I wasn't sentenced to death in the divorce papers."

"You must have had a really shitty lawyer." I say with a laugh. "Alright, we'll go back inside, clean up my hands, and then we can settle in to talk. I am calm." With a final deep breath, this is true. I take his hand and we walk out of the barn to see Lucille and Joanna walking towards us. Joanna is wide-eyed and carrying a bouquet of flowers. "Hey, Chickadee, what's up?"

"I'm sorry." She says in a small voice. I go over and I hug her. I put into my hug everything I wish that someone would have given me whenever I witnessed my parents arguing. The flowers leave her hands and she steps closer to me.

"You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for. I promise." I say and then I feel the tears starting to get my shirt wet. "It's okay." I stroke her hair. "I brought you something, do you want to go inside and check it out?"

"Sure." She says and then she looks around and sees that her dad has the flowers. She takes them back. "These are for you."

"They're beautiful." I say as I accept them from her. The four of us start walking towards the house. She reaches for my hand with the split knuckle. "Ope, watch out Sweetie, I bumped my hand earlier." I switch sides and take her hand with the one that isn't bleeding.

"Hey Ollie, you do say it." Leonard says and I shoot him a look. "So much for not havin' any Midwestern verbal tics."

"Daddy, be nice." Joanna says and I make a face at him. "You and Momma, I swear." The sass is real. "And you better take good care of her hand."

"Yes ma'am." He says with a tired smile. "Is there any way I can get the two of ya to forgive me?"

"It's probably gonna cost you some ice cream." I say and Joanna nods. "Probably sundaes, with all of the appropriate toppings."

"You ladies drive a hard bargain, but I'll see what I can come up with." He says and Joanna's smile returns. "We are gonna have to have a talk with your Momma though." She's tense again.

"Don't you worry at all. Have I ever told you about what I'm going to do once your dad and I graduate?" I ask and she shakes her head. "It's going to be my job to help people better understand each other so that we don't have to fight with people we want to be friends with." We reach the house and Lucille takes the flowers from me.

"I'll get these in a nice vase and then we can put 'em in your room." She says and I smile brightly.

"That's going to be great to wake up to." I say and that brings Joanna's smile back again. Lucille does as she said and Leonard takes the vase from her before we take Joanna upstairs. I notice he also has a first aid kit.

"And where would you like your flowers, Darlin'?" He asks and I look around the room, pretending to think about it.

"How about right on the nightstand?" I suggest and he goes over and sets them down. I look at my bloody knuckle before I sit in the chair in the corner and pull Joanna into my lap. "Alright, Dr. McCoy, show the future Dr. McCoy how it's done."

"That's a great idea." He flips on the light before he walks over and kneels down in front of us. "First thing you wanna do is clean up around the wound so that it doesn't get infected." He opens one of the antiseptic pads and I hold my hand out. I smile as she places her hand under mine to help hold it steady. "Thank you." He gently cleans the area. "Now that I can see that it is just what we call an abrasion. That means that it's not deep, the skin just got scraped off."

"Like when I fell off the swing last time." She says and he nods at her. "Oh, Daddy, it's bloody again."

"It's alright." He says as he wipes it up again. "Now, we want to apply some of this stuff to help it heal better. It also has some stuff in it to help it not hurt if it is hurtin'." He says as he applies the cream. "Finally, we're gonna put a bandage on it. We've got a neat one that'll not come off when she moves her hands. He opens the bandage and he puts it on. "And we're done. It's as easy as that."

"You're not done." She says, sounding incredibly sassy. "You've gotta kiss it, Daddy." I contain my smile as I look at Leonard expectantly.

"Of course, how could I forget?" Leonard takes my hand and gives it a kiss before he stands and places a kiss on my forehead. "Now we're done."

"What's the forehead kiss for, Daddy?" She asks and I smile as he pretends to think about it.

"It's to let the patient know that everything is gonna be okay. Though, I only recommend you do that with people you're really close to." He says and then he thinks about it. "And not until you're twenty-five."

"That's a wee bit hypocritical." I whisper and Joanna giggles. "Alright, now time for your surprise." She slides off of my lap and I go over to my bag and take out the little box I packed them in. We sit down on the bed and Leonard goes off to throw things away and wash his hands. I open the box and pull out the bracelet I made. "Ta-da!"

"That's so pretty!" She exclaims as she takes it and looks at it. "Did you make this for me!?"

"I did." I say with a smile. I pull my matching one out. "And I made one for myself too. They're friendship bracelets."

"No. Way." She says, looking at me very seriously. I smile and her expression falls a little bit. "You're not gonna leave, are ya?"

"Well, after New Year's, your dad and I have to go back to San Francisco." I say and she shakes her head.

"I mean…you and Daddy are together, right? Like you kiss and stuff?" She asks and I nod slowly. "You're not gonna leave Daddy since Momma was mean to you, right?"

"I'm not going anywhere." I say and she looks relieved. "Sometimes people need a little help learning to understand each other. I hope that your mom and I can understand each other better."

"I do too." She says softly. "I love you, Miss Ollie." I successfully hold back my emotion at that. I smile.

"I love you too, Joanna. I really do." I say and she hugs me. "And I love your dad a lot, so it really means a lot to me that you love me too."

"Daddy looks so happy when you're around." She says and I lean my head against hers as I stroke her hair.

"He might look pretty happy, but I have never seen him smile more than when he gets to see you. And when we're not here and he's telling me about the stories you tell him? My goodness. He can't stop smiling." I say and she smiles. "You are the light of his life, Joanna."

"Oh! You know how your friends call you Ollie? Well my new friends at school started calling me Jojo! So I want you to call me that too! Since we're friends." She says and then she slides on her bracelet. I put mine on as well.

"Alright then, Jojo it is." I say and then I notice Leonard leaning against the door frame. "Oh, hey."

"Hey." He says with a smile. "You and Mamaw are gonna go and pick out the ice cream stuff." She looks at me, worried.

"I have everything under control." I say and she doesn't look worried anymore. If I can convince a nine-year-old, I might be able to do this for real. The three of us head downstairs and Rachel gives Joanna a hug before she leaves with Lucille. "Let's have a seat at the dining room table." I take command and lead the way in there. They sit across from each other and I make a decision and sit at the head of the table. "If I were overseeing a meeting between combatant tribes, I would insist that we lay all weapons out on the table. Do we have any weapons?" I'm going for funny and Leonard's lip twitches.

"No, Lieutenant." He says and then he sighs. "Rachel, this has got to stop." It's not hostile, it's truth. "You and I have been done for a long time and you know that." She doesn't like that part.

"Okay, I'm going to stop you there." I say and he looks at me. "It's not fair of you to assume anything. Yeah, you guys are divorced, but that doesn't mean that there can't be any feelings left."

"She's right." She says and I'm a little surprised. She looks at me. "I apologize for what I said earlier."

"I forgive you." I say and her eyebrows furrow together. "I don't know your guys' whole story and I don't need to know the whole story." I fold my hands in front of me on top of the table. "I feel like a lot of the issue with all of this," I gesture to the three of us before I lay my hand back down. "is that we don't really understand each other. Or more, we don't understand you. Though that goes into a whole thing with a them versus us mentality which is not healthy, but that's not my point." I take a breath.

"I just don't get it." She says and I see the frustration, but she pushes it back down. "He and I are done and he runs off to do whatever. Then he comes back to see his daughter and he has you and there is literally nothin' that I can find wrong with you. You're sweet and funny and you are a great baker. It pisses me off." I find that funny, but I don't show it. "And he is suddenly this sensitive, caring, family-oriented man? It's not fair." She looks up at the ceiling, but I see the tears in her eyes. "That was supposed to be who he was for me."

"Rachel." Leonard says evenly. "We didn't work for a myriad of reasons. You and I just don't mesh well together personality wise. I'm findin' out that I've been these things all along, we just don't bring that out in each other."

"But she does?" She asks and he looks at me. I maintain my neutral expression, but I'm pretty sure I know the answer.

"Yeah. She does. When I feel like I'm not enough, she doesn't pick apart what I've done wrong. She tells me what I've done right." He says and I suddenly feel like I shouldn't be part of this conversation. "Hell, I literally sat there one day, tearin' myself apart for bein' a terrible father to Joanna. You know what she told me? That what matters is what I'm doin' now to be a better father. To be a better man, damn it." He sits back in his seat. "You and I were meant to be together for one purpose, and it's that beautiful little girl. Olivia is gonna be in my life for as long as she'll have me and that's somethin' you're gonna have to either accept or just sit there and be pissed off quietly." She sits for a moment, somewhat stunned.

"And there is nothin' I can say that'll make you want to take me back?" She asks and he shakes his head.

"No. I respect you as the mother of my daughter, but I am not in love with you Rachel. I haven't been for four years." He says and I really feel like I shouldn't be here now.

"Okay." She says and a few tears slide down her cheek. I reach over and grab a tissue and hand it to her. "Thank you." She wipes her eyes and then she looks at me. "Are you even really a human?"

"I get asked that more than you probably realize." I say and that makes her laugh. I smile. "I've dealt with a lot of shit. More shit than someone my age should have gone through. I got tired of fighting and so I do my best to not have to fight."

"Yeah, then what'd you do to your knuckle? Punch a wall?" She asks and I flex my hand and chuckle.

"Actually, boxing. Andrew and I climbed out of his bedroom window and I went to work out some aggression." I say and then I shake my head. "None of it was directed at you. I was upset with you, but only because we were in front of Joanna. I'm not a mother, I've technically never been a mother, and I don't know if I will be, but I've been a daughter who had to watch her parents go at it. Luckily, Leonard is an amazing man and he'd never do half the stuff I've seen, but it just made me think of a lot of stuff that I thought I dealt with completely, but I've got work to do." It's probably a bit excessive to explain that much, but I want her to understand me and it is part of my story.

"I'm sorry. I guess I really don't know the first thing about you." She says and I wave it away.

"I can see why you would immediately dislike me." I say, thinking on it. "Some twenty-three-year-old kid comes for Christmas the first year he's away. We weren't together at that point, he just brought me because I was nervous about being on my own like I would have been."

"You're only twenty-four now?" She asks and then she shakes her head, slightly amused. "I guess his type is younger women."

"I guess it's lucky for me that it's pretty weird if he goes any younger." I say and that makes her laugh. "He's the same age as my older brother and he did not like him at first."

"I like to think he came around pretty fast." He says and I look at him and smile. "Joshua and I have an understanding."

"I didn't know about this." I say as I rest my chin in my hand. "Is it something along the lines of, 'if you hurt my baby sister, I'll string you from a flagpole by your testicles'?"

"That's not the one I'm referrin' to, but that has been said." He says and I roll my eyes. "That's the thing about the two of you, you can be incredibly graphic with your threats." He shakes his head. "Anyway, have we come to an understanding?"

"Yeah. We're divorced, we're done." Rachel says as she sits back in her chair again. "I'm not gonna cause trouble and I'm not gonna keep Joanna from you." She looks at me then. "She is crazy about you."

"I'm crazy about her too. She's the best." I say with a smile. "Now, if you guys will excuse me, I need to go and make a call." I get up and head back upstairs. I don't really need to make a call, but it sounded like a good excuse. I kick off my shoes after closing the door and sit down cross-legged on the bed for some deep breathing exercises. I straighten my posture and rest my hands on my legs and close my eyes. I focus on my breathing and being present in my moment. After a little while the door opens.

"She's gone, you don't have to hide anymore." Leonard says and I just smile. "Are you alright?" I open my eyes and look at him.

"I'm as alright as I ever am." I say and he comes over and sits down beside me. "Maybe her telling me to go back home affected me more than I realized."

"She's good at that." He says as he lays back and pulls me with him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I kind of already did with Andrew. I think what's bothering me the most right now is that the miscarriage I had three years ago popped up for whatever reason." I say and I feel him nod. "I think at some point I might want to be a mom…just so I can show a kid what I never had from my parents. Just to prove that cycles can be broken."

"You know where I stand with that. If you do and we are together, we can." He says as he traces patterns on my lower back. "As far as the miscarriage…havin' that baby woulda killed you."

"I know. And if it didn't, I would have been stuck there." I say and then I think about it. "For a while longer anyway." I look at him then. "So how much younger than you is Rachel?"

"Three years." He says with a roll of his eyes. "And it is not that I'm into younger women. It's just worked out that way."

"I believe you." I say and then I wrap my arms around him. "I don't see myself getting sick of this."

"Me either, especially if you say you wanna keep lookin' like this into your sixties." He says and I laugh. "Darlin', that incredible ass of yours has only gotten better."

"I might outgrow incredible one of these days." I say in fake astonishment. "We need to start coming up with better words now so that we're prepared." I pretend to think. "What about stupendous? Or marvelous? Asstonishing?" I gasp. "Legendary." That has him cracking up.

---

I reach the bottom of the stairs and Leonard meets me and takes my hand. He does the thing where he spins me.

"Good God, woman, you're tryin' to kill me." He says and I give him a skeptical look. "As pretty as you look in red, the green really brings out your eyes. I'm not sure what to focus on."

"How about you keep your eyes up here." I say, pointing to my eyes. "This is your family's Christmas party. You're incorrigible."

"We already had this talk, Darlin'. That's not gonna change." He says as he brings my hand to his lips and kisses it. I roll my eyes. "Now, Easton went and got himself a girlfriend."

"So you want me to help you embarrass him?" I ask and he shrugs, looking innocent. "I don't know, he made me feel really uncomfortable last year. I don't want another girl to go through that."

"How'd he make you uncomfortable?" He asks, eyebrows furrowing together. I roll my eyes.

"I was probably looking too much into it, but he said 'this one is sweet'. So my brain was like, well obviously he's referring to the ex-wife." I say and he rolls his eyes.

"I'm sorry that made ya uncomfortable. You are sweet though." He says as he pulls me in and kisses me.

"Hey, there will be none of that." I say as I lean back to escape his lips. "No such kissing in common areas." I take a step back and take his hand off of my waist. "I will get a spray bottle." He laughs. It's good to see him in such a good mood, especially after the day before last.

"It's a rare time where you don't have some sort of split lip. I need to take advantage of this little vacation." He says and I give him a look.

"Hey Lucille? Do you happen to have a spray bottle?" I ask as I walk towards the kitchen. She looks up at me as I walk in and she laughs.

"Is that son of mine comin' after ya since you look so pretty?" She asks and we laugh. "Leonard, behave yourself!" She shakes her head. "His daddy is just as bad. So he'll probably get worse the longer you're together."

"Oh boy, and we're only coming up on year one." I say and she smiles. "There are worse things." She hums. "Now what can I help with?"

"I have a very important job for you, actually." She says as she comes over and takes my hands. "I want you…to go out there…and enjoy this Christmas party. You gave me so much help yesterday and this mornin'. Go."

"I'm not going to give up on trying to get you to let me help you more." I say and she smiles a placating smile.

"Of course, Sweetheart. Go on ahead." She says as she pats my cheek. "Go keep that son of mine out of trouble." I give an exasperated look, but I go back out. People are arriving and Thomas is there greeting everyone as they come in. I spot Leonard talking with Malachi and walk over, he places his arm around my waist, pauses what he was saying and kisses my cheek before he goes back to it. I smile.

"Olivia, radiant as always." Malachi says and I keep my amused expression as I shake his hand. "How are you?"

"I'm doing well, thank you." I say and then I hear Easton and look over, holding the hand of a girl who's a little taller than me. She looks a bit overwhelmed.

"Guys, I'd like to introduce ya to Amalie Bisset. Ali, these are my friends Leonard, his girlfriend Olivia, and then that's Malachi." He says as he nods to us respectively.

"It's great to meet you." I say with a bright smile as I shake her hand. "Don't worry about it, Easton is the worst between the three of them, so you've got it easy." Malachi laughs at that.

"She's right. Leo and I are harmless." He says as he shakes her hand as well. I raise my eyebrow at that.

"Maybe not harmless, but Olivia has a way of makin' people behave." Leonard shakes her hand.

"It is very nice to meet you all." She says and I place her accent as French. I've found how I'll help her if I need to rescue her. "Easton tells me that the two of you pursuing careers at Starfleet? That must be very exciting."

"When your five-foot-two girlfriend starts teachin' ya Brazilian jiu-jitsu, I'd say so." Leonard says and I roll my eyes at him.

"You admit that so confidently." She says and then she looks to me. "You must be quite the fighter if he can do that."

"I'm getting better." I agree with a nod. "But he makes it sound glamourous. Right now it's pretty much just advanced college. And I'm okay with that, I'm a glutton for research."

"That does sound like it would be interesting." She says with a smile. "What are you studying? I know that Leonard is a doctor…"

"I'm part of a new mediation program. Starfleet is a peacekeeping organization, but some of the higherups can be hotheads and so they're training a bunch of us to be able to go in and negotiate." I say and she nods. "So I have to study various languages and cultures from planets within the Federation and those who we would like to be friends with."

"She's got quite the ear for them. How many do you speak, Darlin'?" Leonard asks and I give him a look.

"I only fluently know," I start, trying to think. "four Terran languages and three or four others. The most important part will be recognizing the languages and then remembering what won't offend them." I almost said 'get us killed', but that seems a little too intense for a Christmas party.

"Do you speak French?" She asks in her native tongue and Leonard looks at me. We don't really talk about all of the languages I speak.

"Yes, it's actually my favorite, but I don't think that I do it justice." I respond as such and Leonard raises his eyebrows.

"It is disgusting how many things I know is goin' through that man's head right now." Malachi says and Leonard turns and has his grumpy look on. I turn back to Ali.

"Don't worry about them. They've all known each other since they were boys. Some men never grow out of it." I say with a roll of my eyes. "Especially this one." I gesture with my thumb towards Leonard who is eyeing me warily. She laughs.

"No, Easton warned me that it would probably be a bit much." She says, switching back to English. That has me laughing.

"I got no such warning. Though I wasn't dating Leonard when I met them." I say and Easton makes a face like he disagrees. "And what could you possibly have to say?"

"You may not have been official, but you two were together." He says and I roll my eyes. "Leonard McCoy doesn't like anyone."

"No, I think he just has a type of friend he attracts." I say thoughtfully. "Like these two guys he has study dates with all the time. Fairchild and Grace. I swear, it's like talking to the two of you, minus the potential for embarrassing stories."

"I've been meanin' to send ya that one I was thinkin' about." Easton says and Leonard is grumpy again. "So what were you ladies talkin' about?"

"Oh, I was just talking about how muscle-y and dreamy Leonard is." I say, my tone denoting that it definitely was not what I was talking about. "Did you know he calls himself Dr. Biceps?" Malachi nearly falls over, he laughs so hard.

"You're in trouble." Leonard says, but his expression says that I'm anything but in trouble. "Her friends are weird."

"Olivia was just reassuring me, which I appreciate, no need to worry, Leonard." She says and I smile. Then Joanna runs up and hugs me.

"Hey Jojo!" I exclaim as I wrap my arms around her and rock back in forth. She's laughing.

"There's my girl." Leonard says and she hugs him as well. "If you'll excuse us." He lifts her up and puts his arm around me before he walks away. "You had to tell 'em about Dr. Biceps."

"If I didn't, Andrew was going to." I say and then I glance back to make sure Ali is alright. She seems okay. "Where are we going?"

"To get the two of ya somethin' to eat." He sets Joanna down and we go through and get our plates before we snag three seats. "Where's your Momma?"

"She and Mamaw are talkin'. She told me to come find ya." She says and I can tell that something is off. "I don't want you guys to go back."

"We've still got an entire week left here." I say as I put my hand over hers. "So we'll start there, and then we'll deal with the rest when we get there."

"I couldn't have put it better myself." Leonard says and I see him thinking. "Do you know why I'm doin' this?"

"Because you want to help people." She says and he smiles. "Can I come visit you guys? I want to meet Miss Troian."

"I'll see what I can do. I'm not gonna make any promises because I don't want ya to get your heart set on somethin' and it not work out, but I'm gonna try." He says and that lights up her mood entirely.

"I need to borrow Olivia for a minute." Andrew says as he comes up. He looks a little freaked out.

"Sure, no problem." I place my napkin on my chair and I follow after him. He goes out onto the porch and he has one hand on his chin and another on his hip as he walks towards the swing. "What's going on?"

"You're not to breathe a word of this." He says very seriously and I contain my amusement as I nod. "So…I invited a girl here tonight. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to make it…but she's on her way right now."

"That's good news, what do you need me for?" I ask and he looks desperately into my eyes. "Holy shit, you've got it bad for her, don't you? What's her name? How'd you meet?" I sit down on the swing. "Give me details, man."

"She's a friend of a friend. Her name's Harper." He says as he sits down as well. "I deserve it for as much shit as I've given most of the people in that house right now, but I'm freakin' out."

"Just relax. I'll run interference." I say reassuringly. "I owe you one anyway." He visibly relaxes. "You wouldn't have invited her here if it weren't more than just a little crush, would you?"

"I can't tell her no." He says like that's the worst thing in the world. "She got me to go to hot yoga with her." I laugh. "Olivia, this is hardly the time."

"I guess it must be once a McCoy can't tell a woman no, she's the one." I stand up. "Don't worry, I've got your back Andrew. Now I'm going to get back to my meal. I was starting to get hangry." He looks worried. "Just play it cool. Why don't you come and sit with us?"

"Yeah, okay." He agrees and I lead the way back inside. I take my seat and he tickles Joanna and kisses all over her face before he sits down.

"What was that about Uncle Andy? You looked really scared." She says after she relaxes from trying to stop being tickled.

"A Klingon telemarketer was tryin' to sell me somethin' and I just could not get him to accept no as an answer, so I borrowed Miss Ollie's knowledge." He says and she narrows her eyes at him. I chuckle.

"Don't worry about it, Jojo. I'll tell you later." I say and she looks incredibly excited about that. Leonard has an eyebrow raised. "Don't worry about it."

"Why's she get to know and I don't?" He sounds a little indignant and she lets out a giggle.

"Because, it's girl talk." I say with a shrug. "No boys allowed. I don't make the rules, I just enforce them."

"Enforce them." He scoffs and that has Joanna giggling again. "We'll just see about that." Andrew checks his messages and he goes pale. "Boy, what is wrong with you?"

"Andrew." I say and he looks me in the eye. "I've got your back." He nods, gets up and goes outside again. "He invited a girl." I whisper and Leonard raises his eyebrows. "Her name is Harper and he can't tell her no."

"It's serious." Joanna gasps. "Papaw always says that's when he knew he wanted to marry Mamaw. Daddy, we've gotta help him!"

"Shh." I say, leaning in conspiratorially. "All you've got to do is be yourself, Jojo. We've just got to be sweet as we always are and stick close so no one will want to come and put a damper on that."

"Corruptin' my daughter." Leonard shakes his head. "But alright, I'll bite. I can run interference on Malachi. Easton's behavin' since Ali's here. He owes me though."

"That's between the two of you." I say and then I finish the last of my mashed potatoes. I see that Joanna is finished with her plate, so I stack it with mine and stand up.

"Uncle Andy!" She exclaims as she jumps up and runs over to leap into his arms like she usually does, only this time, she's turned on the extra cute charm.

"Damn." I say, impressed. "You McCoys really pick it up young, don't you?" I ask as I look to my boyfriend who is just shaking his head. He stands up, takes the plates from me and gives me an almost inappropriate kiss before he strolls into the kitchen. I look over and see Andrew, Joanna, and Harper walking towards us.

"And here we have probably the scariest person in the house, Olivia Gray, she's my brother's girlfriend. Olivia, this is my friend Harper Holloway." He says as they walk up.

"I'm only scary if you push my buttons." I say as I offer my hand. "It's very nice to meet you, Harper." She shakes my hand.

"Likewise, I've actually heard a little bit about you. Andrew tells me that you guys are pretty good friends." She says and I look at him and pretend to size him up.

"He's alright….for my boyfriend's brother. Joanna and I saved his life this summer. It was pretty amazing." I say and the little girl grins.

"I still owe the two of you ice cream. They ran me into the ground in a pick up game of tag and then little Dr. McCoy over here figured out that lemonade would save my life. Then Nurse Ollie got it real quick and here we are today." He explains, gesturing grandly. Harper laughs. Oh boy, she is incredibly into him as well. Leonard walks up and slips his arm around my waist. "Harper, this is Leonard."

"It's very nice to meet you, Harper." Leonard shakes her hand and he actually behaves. "We're glad you could make it."

"Me too. A couple of my kids had an emergency and so I had to pick them up and place them in a new foster home." She says with a shake of her head. "But they're safe and warm and stuffed with turkey and cookies." That's more for her. "I'm sorry, work comes home with me more than I realize before I start talking."

"Don't worry about it." I say, waving that away. "He brings my work back to regular conversation more than I would like. So it sounds like you're a social worker?"

"Yes." She agrees with a smile. "What do you do that Leonard is so proud of?" I hadn't thought of it that way…it always just seemed braggy.

"He and I are with Starfleet, I'm currently studying in the mediation program as well as the nursing program." I explain and I see recognition in her eyes.

"That is crazy, I actually considered going into that program." She says and I feel my eyebrows go up. "If this whole social work thing doesn't work out, I might still go for it. They were really leaning on me for it."

"But your heart took you somewhere else, I get it." I say and she smiles. "There are still a lot of problems here that need to be addressed."

"Exactly. I just couldn't bring myself to step away from what I do." She agrees, then she laughs. "Sorry we kind of just started ignoring you boys." Andrew smiles.

"No, I love hearin' you talk about your work." He says and he means it. He clears his throat then and runs a hand through his hair, a hand going to his hip. "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, I am." She smiles at him and I see him relax. "We'll catch up with you guys later?"

"Yes! For dessert! Miss Ollie helped Mamaw make everything!" Joanna exclaims and then she giggles. "Then she kept Daddy and Uncle Andy from tryin' to steal cookies. She whacked Uncle Andy with a spoon."

"I warned him three times, which is two more times than I warn unruly, hot-headed cadets." I say with a shrug. "Leonard almost caught the spoon too."

"Look, you made those peanut butter cookies last year and it seems like it's gonna only be a once a year thing and I'm a weak man." He says and I laugh.

"If you want me to make them, all you had to do was ask." I say and he gives me a look. "A weak man." I laugh. "You're funny. But anyway, go eat. Everything is delicious." I place my hands on Joanna's shoulders and lead her away with Leonard tailing us.

"He's got it bad, Daddy. You've gotta help him. How do you not be silly around Miss Ollie?" Joanna asks and I shake my head.

"He is silly around me. I don't think there's any helping it." I say and she giggles. "And what do you know about havin' it bad?"

"Elizabeth says that you can tell a guy really likes you by the way he says your name." She says and then her eyes widen and she glances at her dad. I suppress my smile. "What? It's true."

"You have an excellent ear for inflection, Jojo." I say and then I glance over to see them seated at the table, their heads are close together and they're laughing.

"I'm gonna go play with my cousins. Bye!" Joanna says and then she runs off. I look up at Leonard and he shakes his head.

"You gonna be okay?" I ask as I rub his arm. "This no boys until she's twenty-five rule isn't going to work out. One because it's incredibly hypocritical and two because when it happens, it happens. All you can do is be there for her when they inevitably say something stupid."

"Fine, no boys until she's twenty-three." He amends and I give him a look. He suddenly leans in and gives me a kiss before he walks away. I'm confused before I see Malachi headed this way.

"I've been tryin' to keep track of how many times he's smooched ya, but I lost count." Easton says as he and Ali walk up.

"That's an odd thing to keep track of." I say and Ali laughs and then I see her smile over my shoulder.

"Oh, they look like they are very in love." She says and I glance over. Yup, Andrew and Harper. Easton looks over and his eyes briefly dart to Ali. I feel the satisfied smirk on my face.

"Is there somethin' you wanna say, Easton?" I ask and he thinks about it for a moment before he chuckles and shakes his head.

"Naw, I'm happy for the little shit." He says and I smile. "So what's the scoop on her?" I roll my eyes.

"Her name is Harper. She's a friend of a friend. A social worker." I say and then I glance over again.

"God, he flirts just like Leo." Easton rolls his eyes and I raise an eyebrow at him. "You don't recognize some of those moves?"

"I guess I don't." I hum. "My first encounter with him was right before we were leaving for San Francisco and he smelled like a bar and I had a pretty mean black eye. Though I do know now that he was checking me out before I even had the black eye."

"Why on Earth would you have a black eye then?" Ali asks, her eyebrows drawn together.

"It's not that big of a deal." I say, waving it away. "It was a miscalculation on my part." Something changes in her eyes. "So Andrew is basically early twenties Leonard? That's interesting."

"He still hasn't told you about it?" Easton asks and then he laughs. "He was a big flirt, but he's always been faithful."

"I have no worries about that." I smile. I look over and see Leonard looking annoyed. "You might need to help Leonard keep Malachi in line. He's being a good brother right now."

"You're right, it's an easier job as a team." He says and then he takes Ali's hand. "Come on, I'll show ya how to keep any of us in line."

"That seems as though it will be useful." She says and then she smiles to me. "I will talk to you later."

"Okay." I smile and they leave. It's odd that she said it that way. I see a cousin who is also a doctor walking towards Andrew with a look of mischief on his face. I pretend to not be paying attention and I fake a trip right beside him.

"Olivia, are you alright?" His name is…Timothy asks as he places a hand on my waist and on my shoulder. The southern gentleman overriding the ornery family tendency.

"I think I may have twisted my ankle. I'm such a clutz." I roll my eyes at myself. "Don't worry about it, I'll see if I can find Leonard."

"Don't worry about it, he's not the only doctor in the family." He says as he has me lean most of my weight on him. Leonard looks over and looks concerned, I wink at him and he rolls his eyes, but has a proud smirk on his face. We're at the table now, across from Andrew and Harper. I make a show of sitting in the chair.

"Jeez, I'm sorry about this Timothy. You looked like you were busy." I say and Andrew takes he and Harper's empty plates.

"It was nothin' important." He says and I take my black high heel off and he starts feeling around on my ankle. "It's not swellin' up right now. Why don't I grab ya somethin' to drink and you sit down for a minute?"

"That would be great, water please. Thanks. And I'm sorry again." I say and he winks before he heads off to grab me some water. Andrew mouths 'thank you' as he walks past me. He guides Harper away from danger. Lucille is now walking towards me with a bottle of water and a look of concern.

"Sweetheart, Timothy said you tripped? Is everything okay?" She sits down in the chair beside me and takes my hand.

"Everything is fine." I say and then I turn her attention to her youngest son. She smiles. "I'm running interference on family who wants to get him back for all the times he's gotten them."

"That's a tall order." She says and I laugh. "She is very pretty. He didn't mention that it was a girl who was coming."

"He can't tell her no." I say and her smile grows more fond. "He was so nervous before she got here, I thought something was actually wrong."

"Uncle Andy!" Joanna calls from across the room. I look over and see Harper smile as she takes his hand and starts heading that way.

"Oh she is not setting them up." I say as I look to the doorway they'll walk through. She's standing not quite under it, but they're going to stop right under it. "And Leonard said I was corrupting her."

"This has Thomas written all over it." She says with a shake of her head. "He's the one who set you and Leonard up with this last year." Joanna giggles as she points up at the mistletoe. Andrew looks like a deer in headlights again, but Harper, without missing a beat, stands up on her toes and lays a kiss on him. A real kiss.

"She went for it." I say, having all of the respect in the world for this woman. I smile and slip my shoe back on.

"I might cry." She says and I give her hand a squeeze. "I need you to introduce me to her. Make it look real natural."

"Of course, I love these McCoy setups." I say as I stand. We link arms and start heading in that direction. Harper has a big grin on her face and Andrew looks shell-shocked. "Hey Harper, this is Lucille. She's Andrew's mom. If the three of you will excuse me, I need to see my doctor about this ankle of mine." I leave them and head over to where Easton, Ali, and Leonard are desperately trying to keep Malachi's attention. I clear my throat as I walk up. "I've been subtle, Malachi, but I'll level with you. That boy is under my protection and I will end you if you step so much as one toe out of line to embarrass him this evening."

"Damn." He says, his head tilting back a little bit. "She ever talk to you like this?" He looks to Leonard.

"No, but I know another doctor she threatened and he hasn't so much as looked at her since late last February." Leonard says and I shake my head.

"You do not grab my arm and try to get me to have sexy study dates with you." I shake my head. "Anyway, I'm a sucker for love and those two are in love. So yeah, I'll twist you into a pretzel and then toss you in hot cheese."

"I'll behave." He holds his hands out in surrender. "I wondered why these three were tryin' so hard to keep me over here." He thinks about it. "What'd you do to that other doctor?"

"I twisted his arm, shoved him to the ground and threatened to rip his arm off and shove it up his ass if he ever laid a hand on me again." I say with a completely neutral disposition.

"That's my girl." Leonard places a kiss on my cheek. "I may not like it, but she can take care of herself."

"Jailhouse rules." I shrug. "Assert dominance over the bigger guys and then no one else will mess with you. It's very important in my advanced combat classes when you're easily the smallest person in the class."

"What was the most satisfying takedown you ever did?" Ali asks and I look up as I think about it.

"It was a training seminar for the Brazilian jiu-jitsu stuff. I was facing off against literally the biggest, meanest guy there. He had to have been at least six-three and two hundred and twenty pounds. Well I got him into a triangle hold, lost my count and he was too stubborn to tap out, so he passed out." I shrug.

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall." Ali says, looking incredibly satisfied with that herself. "When I was in university, I was a member of the Brazilian jiu-jitsu club."

"How am I just now hearin' about this?" Easton asks, his eyebrows raised. "Where did you come from?" He kisses her cheek and she smiles.

"It was good seein' you guys. We'll see ya next week." Leonard says, startling me a little as he lifts me into his arms, but I can't get myself to really stir.

"So you are gonna marry her, aren't ya? You have the looks about you." Malachi says and it's quiet for a moment. Why is it so quiet?

"There's some stuff from her past we gotta figure out, but I want to." He says and I try again to make myself actually wake up.

"If it's a guy, do me a favor and pop him. She mentioned somethin' about a black eye when ya met and I figured." Easton says.

"Not unless I have to. She doesn't like that. Good night." Leonard is walking then. I open my eyes finally. We're on the stairs. "Convenient that you wake up as I'm carryin' ya up to bed."

"Why walk when I have my hunky doctor boyfriend to carry me." I say as I wrap my arms around his neck. We reach the top of the stairs and I sigh, but move to get him to set me down. He does. "You can go talk to them some more, I'm just going to take my makeup off and go to sleep."

"Believe me, I'd rather go to sleep with you." He says as he leans in and gives me a kiss. I smile before I sleepy walk to the bathroom. Leonard leans against the doorway, looking amused as I start removing my makeup. "You haven't been this tired in a while."

"It was a long day." I say and then I go about removing the bobby pins from my hair. I run my hands through it. "Do you need somethin'?"

"I just don't get tired of lookin' at ya." He shrugs. I roll my eyes and pat his arm as I slide past him and go to our room. He follows. I go over to the dresser and pull out the shorts and tee shirt I plan on sleeping in. He closes the door.

"You're being weird." I say as I start to change. He walks over, that air about him. "Leonard…" He runs his hand along my side. "We're at your parents house."

"Mhm." He says as he slowly guides my back to the wall. He tilts my chin up. "You've reminded me a lot the past few days."

"These are dangerous moves." I say and he smirks as he leans in and kisses me. This is not how I imagined Christmas Eve this year. Dressed in my shorts and my bra with my back pressed to the wall as my boyfriend tries to make me lose my mind. "I'm going to start changing in a different room again. You clearly can't behave yourself."

"Do you want me to behave myself?" He asks and I purse my lips as I think about it. "I'm sorry, Darlin'." He gives me one last kiss before he lets me go. I eye him warily before I put my shirt on before I take off my bra. I throw it at him. He winks as he catches it and sets it with the rest of my clothes.

"Santa is watching you, Dr. McCoy." I climb into bed and cover myself up. He chuckles and changes before he climbs in and pulls me into his arms. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Darlin'." He says as he kisses my cheek. "Are you mad?" I roll over and place my arms around his neck.

"Mad that I don't want to do that here." I say and he gets that smirk again. I roll my eyes before I snuggle up to him. "And Leonard?" He hums. "I'd probably say yes." I close my eyes. He leans back presumably to look at me.

"Darlin'?" He asks and I pretend that I'm asleep. "Olivia?" He tilts my chin up. "I know you're fakin' it. What would you say yes to?" I probably shouldn't have said that.

---

*"Por qué no ambos"- Why not both? I hope this reminds you of that taco shell commercial where the little girl says this and they have a fiesta, because that is absolutely why I say it.