June 28, 1984

Ian couldn't remember the last time he had watched a premier on television instead of being in attendance, even for films he wasn't in. The major actors at the studio were always invited to view each other's premiers. It was good for business.

Yet here he was, on Bonnie's couch, watching it through the screen of her television set. He wouldn't actually get to see the film in its entirety this way, just the opening carpet walk and various interviews, but he had promised to do this, and in the name of friendship –and eternal hope of maybe some sort of relationship with her in the next twenty years- he was drinking a cola and eating cheesy popcorn and Aerugean tacos.

Not that it was unpleasant. It did mean he could make whatever comments he wanted about whomever he saw on screen—and whatever they said in their little interviews—without worrying about them hearing him. "I can't believe she's wearing that," he commented as he looked at one of the actresses not in the film, but invited to the premier, and the very unflattering slate-gray dress she was wearing that was just… wrong.

Bonnie groaned. "I told her not to wear that."

"Is that why she insisted on it?"

"Probably." Bonnie shrugged. "Kannie doesn't like me much."

"Any particular reason?"

"She has as much professionalism as an aardvark and I told her so?"

Ian stared at her. "Didn't you get in trouble for it?"

"Oh, Tanner told me not to do it again, but he happens to agree with me, so it wasn't much of a lecture."

"Do I want to know what she did to get you mad?"

"She complained about her costumes."

"What didn't she like about them?"

"They weren't the right size."

Given he'd never known her to get that wrong, Ian doubted it was the case. "Were they?"

"They were her size," Bonnie smiled, a little meanly. "It's not my fault she's not as scrawny as she thinks she is." She sighed. "I don't get why half the girls I make clothes for can't just be realistic. It's not like they're even fat," she gestured at the television in disgust. "I don't get nearly as many problems from the men. Except you," she said, giving him a nudge in the ribs with an elbow.

"When do I ever complain?" Ian asked defensively.

"Not complain, problems," Bonnie repeated. "You're the only one I have to worry about being too thin for half his costumes."

"Hey, I'm trying to make you happy here," Ian grinned, holding up his third taco. "At least I'm normal again, right?" For him, anyway. His nerves had cost him a few pounds filming the rock star movie.

"Stealing my taco is supposed to make me happy?"

Whoops. "Sorry. I didn't realize—"

"I'm kidding, Ian," she replied.

The little… at least she felt comfortable teasing him right? "Well that's a relief," he popped the rest of the taco into his mouth. "I'd hate to think I was being a bad guest."

"So you're not sorry you're missing the five-star cast party afterwards?"

"Are you kidding?" Ian chuckled. "I always starve at those things. Five courses that wouldn't feed a cat, and I have to mind my manners, make small talk, and take very small bites." He shook his head. "This is much more my style… and better company."

"Then why did you ask me to go with you?"

"Better company," Ian repeated with a little more emphasis. "Do you know how many really boring dates I've had for those kinds of things?"

"At last count I believe your fans put the number at seventy-two."

Ian didn't even try to deny that number, though it was a little high. They were probably including every girl he'd been in a magazine or movie with in that number. "Yeah, well, more than half of them can't have a decent conversation about anything, and most of the rest like to talk about themselves. Every time I've tried to take a girl who's just a friend, they've had another date… usually her boyfriend." In one case, a husband. "They're good for business; you get seen, you're more of a team player, you get more press."

Bonnie looked concerned, as if she hadn't really thought about what these things meant for the careers of the actors. It surprised him. "Will you get in trouble for not showing up?"

"Nah, I talked to Tanner about it." Ian shook his head. He hadn't exactly told Tanner everything. "I told him I had a pressing matter to attend to and couldn't make it."

"This is a pressing matter?"

"Well I'd have been lying to say it was a family thing," Ian's grin widened. "And yes, yes this is. How could I go back on my word? Besides, it's nice to be able to snark about it like a normal person."

Bonnie chuckled. "See, I told you it could be fun this way."

Ian casually draped his arm across the back of the couch, keeping it away from Bonnie's shoulders or any kind of making-a-move gesture, as the television interview moved on to another of his co-stars. "Let's see what old 'can't remember his lines' has to say."

July 2nd, 1984

Minxia tried not to be nervous as she waited with Thrakos and his sisters in the parlor where she had met his family upon their own arrival. Still, it was difficult when Thrakos, Lori, and Gia were all dressed in their best afternoon clothes, and nervous about the arrival of this particular relative; Thrakos' mother's Aunt, Maritsa Valancia. Minxia had been warned that the old lady was a bastion of tradition, extremely picky, and predisposed to dislike anything that varied from the way she thought it ought to be. She also, apparently, already disapproved of the marriage, even having not met Minxia or seen Thrakos since he was fifteen.

I hate family politics. Minxia had conceded to the importance of a good first impression for the sake of familial peace—at least through the wedding—and worn a lavender dress with matching short-sleeved jacket. Her long hair was up in a twist on the back of her head. Fortunately, her matching gold-and-amethyst jewelry had been with her on her arrival.

"Relax," Thrakos smiled at her, though he looked a little nervous himself. "You look fine."

"Says the man who has adjusted his tie three times in the last two minutes," Minxia quipped in reply, though she felt some sympathy. Thrakos and his sisters had not painted fond memories of this woman, and Lori had seen her a couple of years before, and had reaffirmed that she had only gotten more unpleasant and persnickety with age.

"But we have to invite her to these things," Thrakos had grumbled. "She's very important in Mom's family."
Minxia had learned a lot more about the maternal side of Thrakos' family the past couple of weeks, as he tried to teach her all of the important people she needed to know, how they were all related, and how not to offend anyone. Apparently just being polite and friendly wasn't enough. Great-Aunt Maritza was the living matriarch of the family, being the eldest child of the line, and unmarried. Since it was just her and her sister, she had insisted on keeping her family name. It was a long family line that came down through the old Cretan nobility, and so the name was still respected through many associations, and certainly qualified as 'old money' given its formerly aristocratic position in the now democratic society.

"You'd think my Uncle and Cousin being Emperor of Xing would count as noble enough," Minxia commented very softly as they waited.

"It's not your Xingese half she dislikes."

That was all there was time for, before they heard footsteps in the hall. Then the door opened, and Thrakos' parents came in, escorting a thin rail of a woman with steel-gray hair, in a very traditional dress-suit of slate blue. There was a dignity about her, but a stern expression fully at odds with the joy of the upcoming occasion.

They joined Thrakos, Minxia, and the girls, before Thrakos' father smiled and made introductions. ::This is Miss Minxia Elric, the bride.::

::So, this is the mixed-blood.::

::Aunt Maritsa!:: Thrakos' mother's tone was slightly scolding, and certainly offended.

Minxia felt more than a little of the Elric temper rising up her spine at the woman's words, but she forced it down, compressed it, and controlled it. ::Yes, ma'am,:: she replied, surprising even herself with the almost-amiable tone. ::I come from a family of heroes, activists, and talented historians and alchemists, and also the esteemed family of Xian, whose humble beginnings led to the attitudes and abilities that have brought more stability to the Empire of Xing than the past ten generations. I am, indeed, fortunate enough not to have only one incomparable family line, but two. I am honored that you noticed.::

For several moments, Maritza gave her a very hard stare. Minxia met her gaze evenly, but not confrontationally. She wasn't about to give the woman ammunition. She could almost see the thoughts flying behind those eyes, trying to find a way to save face or find a clear fault in Minxia's behavior.

Instead of responding to Minxia, the woman spoke to Thrakos' mother, as if Minxia wasn't even there. ::Typical. Just what I expected. Utterly common and unfit to bear.:: She shook her head and turned away muttering about the ::dilution of peasant influences.::

::Now really, Auntie,:: Thrakos mother followed her aunt with a look of consternation and tired patience born from years of experience with the woman.

::I'm sorry, Minxia,:: Thrakos' father apologized sincerely as soon as the woman had left the room. His thin-lipped expression belied well-controlled anger. ::She is, I assure you, the most difficult person you will have to deal with.:: Then one corner of his mouth twitched. ::That was very well said. It's a shame you haven't gone into politics.::

::I'll leave the lobbying to Thrakos,:: Minxia chuckled, letting out a long slow breath of relief. ::But thank you.::

::That was a great face, did you see her expression?:: Gia didn't even try to hide her grin. ::Serves her right. She was awful to me the last time I saw her.::

::What did she do?:: Thrakos looked at his youngest sister, startled.

::Told me I looked like a squashed toad in my favorite green dress.::

Arius Argyros looked like he might explode.

Thrakos looked like he wanted to go after the woman and beat her.

::It's all right, I got her back,:: Gia continued, holding up both hands. ::Not that she could ever prove it was me, but there was a little frog in her wine glass the next afternoon at her social picnic.::

::Giada…:: Thrakos' father's tone was mildly disapproving, but Minxia could tell he wasn't really all that angry.

Instead, he started chuckling, and they all laughed together.

::Old Auntie Maritza really is the worst of it,:: Thrakos assured Minxia, ::Though I think she'll think twice before trying to match wits with you again or just straight up attack you. That was a brilliant response.::

Minxia shrugged. ::I'm not intimidated by anyone; you should know that by now. I don't want to antagonize her, but I'm not going to sit by and let her insult my family.::

::At least it was brief,:: Lori commented. ::When she met Cousin Alia's fiancé she grilled him for nearly half an hour, insulted him to his face repeatedly, and got in an argument with his mother over protocols.::

::Wow.:: Minxia didn't ask why they kept inviting the woman to weddings; there were just some things you couldn't avoid, and sometimes family was one of them. At least her Great-Grandfather on her mother's side, corrupt an Emperor as he had been, hadn't been alive to muck about with her childhood. ::Should I be worried?::

::Not to fear,:: Thrakos' father assured her. ::We have plenty of plans in mind to keep her distracted and away from anyone she might have a major fight with.::

::Good,:: Minxia nodded. ::Because if she gets cross-wise with Uncle Edward, we won't have to worry about ordering enough fireworks.::

July 10, 1984

"I'm still getting used to this anonymity thing," Mao commented to his sister as they walked the few blocks from the Argyros family home to the old Palace where the wedding ceremony of her daughter and Thrakos would be happening in just ten days' time.

"Enjoy it while you can," Ren chuckled, enjoying the beautiful day, even if it was warmer here along the coast than it was back home. "As soon as you get introduced at the reception, half of Creta will know you're here."

"Good thing I'm retired then," Mao nodded.

"It's more fun this way," Jiu chimed in, agreeing. She looked far more relaxed than Ren had ever seen her on visits to the palace in Xing. "No huge entourage. No one telling us we can't go into cute little shops we happen to come across. No stiffly-formal schedule."

"For you anyway," Will commented, chuckling. "We've got plenty of all of that."

"That's because she's your daughter," Mao replied. "When Meifen gets married, we'll have just as much to go through."

Ren enjoyed the banter. It wasn't like there weren't enough family members to qualify as an entourage if Mao and Jiu had still been actively ruling. The four of them, Michio, and Kamika had arrived in Creta that morning, and Minxia and Thrakos –with Minxia's friend Angelique- were the ones taking them to see the palace.

Funny that I may be the only member of my family not married in a palace. Her wedding to Will had been beautiful, and perfect in her mind, but far less extravagant than what her brother, or his sons, had experienced.

Ren was a little surprised at how well her daughter was putting up with the insanity of what was turning out to be a relatively elaborate wedding, given Minxia's preference for simple elegance.

"Here we are," Minxia grinned as they came around the block and finally got a full view of the palace that had dominated part of the skyline for the entire walk.
As many ancient buildings and grand palaces as Ren had seen and lived in during her life, the ancient palace at Pylos was, indeed, a grand spectacle. Tall, airy, with intricate columns of carved white marble. It was surrounded by gardens that were in full bloom, a riot of large colorful near-tropical blossoms that Ren knew would never grow in her garden back in Central, but they were delightful to look at. This time of the summer, all the colors were out in full force.

Ren had actually been here once before, with Will, back when they were traveling a lot for his research. That had been before Minxia was born, so it had been quite a long time.

The building was as much a museum as it was an old building only rarely rented out for auspicious occasions. There were rooms full of artifacts and antiques from over a thousand years of Cretan history; vases, books, tapestries, paintings, furniture, maps, and much, much more.

The tour mostly focused on the rooms being used for the wedding: the wedding itself was going to be in the old royal audience chamber, which already had the build in staging and seating needed. The vaulted ceilings, painted frescoes on the walls, and intricate multi-colored tiled floor made for a colorful, tasteful setting that wasn't at all austere.

The dinner and dancing to follow was actually planned to be outside on the lawn of one of the largest formal gardens.

"I just couldn't stand the idea of not using the gardens," Minxia said as they strolled between beds of bright yellow and blue blossoms. "There's a formal dining room, but this is so much more inviting."

"It will look amazing in pictures too," Ren smiled, though she knew her daughter liked it mostly because it was outside, and even a formal garden was less stuffy than the royal dining hall inside.

"Is the escape route to your get-away car faster from here?" Will asked Thrakos with a knowing grin.

Thrakos laughed, but he nodded. "There's a garden gate that leads down to the back parking lot on the property. I figured that was the best place to leave my car."

"What kind of car do you have?" Ren asked, curious. It had never really occurred to her that her nearly-son-in-law owned a vehicle, given how much traveling he had done lately.

"Oh, it's not much," Thrakos shrugged, though there was a heavy note of false modesty in his tone. "She's just a '79 Phoenix convertible in metallic deep-sea blue."

"Just?" Minxia snorted a laugh. "If that car were a girl she'd be spoiled rotten."

"Which is why only my favorite girl gets to ride in her," Thrakos leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek and a squeeze of the hand he was holding. "I'll whisk you away to our fabulous honeymoon cottage where no one will bother us, or try and make you wear fancy dresses," his voice dropped to a near-whisper at that last.

Ren tried to pretend she couldn't hear him, but Will reached out and squeezed her hand, and she was quite happy to smile into her husband's eyes. There was a lot about Minxia and Thrakos' lives that reminded her of their own early years dating, and married. They hadn't stopped traveling together until Minxia's birth had determined the time for them to settle more permanently in Central.

"Looks familiar, doesn't it?" Will asked, nodding towards the pair in front of them.

Ren nodded. "I was thinking the same thing."

Ted took a sip of the cup of coffee in front of him on the kitchen counter of Felix Tringham's home as Felix caught his two-year-old son up in his arms as the boy tried to make a break for it to avoid his before-bedtime bath.

"Not tonight!" Felix grunted, grinning as he hefted the toddler, who was giggling, over his shoulder. "No escape for you, Mel! Try again tomorrow," he said as he handed Melvin to his wife, Mikena, who was smiling as she took the boy in her arms.

"Your bath toys will be sad if you don't play with them," she reminded her son as she headed for the stairs in their little town-home. "Flora's already finishing up her bath."
Flora was their six-year-old daughter, who had chattered happily at Ted all through dinner, loving having a new person to talk to. Both of the children had their mother's curly dark-blonde hair.

Ted watched Mikena carry the boy upstairs as Felix returned to his own cup of coffee. "You've got a very energetic family."

Felix laughed. "You should meet my cousins. My Uncle Fletcher had six kids, and they've all got two, or three, or four of their own."

"Sounds like my family," Ted admitted, thinking of his brothers, and Reichart in particular. Every time he turned around his older brother seemed to have spawned another bouncy, but undeniably cute, child. "I always wondered as a kid what it would be like to live in a house with less than six kids."

"Less sharing," Felix smiled. "It was just my older brother Derrick and I at our house. We got along pretty well for brothers, but I always kind of liked the chaos at my cousins' house."

"Does that mean you're planning more kids?" Ted teased, testing the waters of this new friendship with his teammate.

Felix sipped his coffee, but was still smiling when he finished. "Planning? No. Not right now, anyway. Kena would probably kill me. She really likes working." He had mentioned during dinner that Mikena worked in an accounting firm. "What about you?"

Ted almost choked on his coffee. "Me?"

"You got a girlfriend? Somebody special?"

Ted shrugged, trying to fight off the uneasy feeling he got whenever he thought about women lately, Clarina in particular, who always seemed to come to mind when the subject came up. "Not really. I'm focusing on my career at the moment."

"Okay," Felix set down his mug and gave Ted an annoyingly knowing look. "Who was she?"

"Try they," Ted replied, failing at not sounding at least slightly bitter. "Let's just say I've had a lot of bad luck in that area and leave it there, all right?"

"Sure, sure, if that's what you prefer," Felix waved it off as if it were of little consequence to him. "So long as it doesn't affect your performance on the team, it's none of my business. We can always talk about something else, like, what do you think of the team assignment?"

"I'm honestly not sure what I think. I feel like I screwed up somewhere, getting assigned three babysitters on my next team." Ted shrugged. He hated sounding like a child being punished, but he sort of felt like it.

"Is that how you see it?" Felix looked surprised.

"Isn't it?" Ted looked up at him.

Felix shrugged. "Well, when I talked to Kane the other day, when he asked me if I wanted to be on the team, he mentioned he thought you needed more of a challenge."

"He did?"

Felix nodded and sipped his coffee. "Yeah. He wanted to be sure the rest of the team could keep up."

"I figured everyone was mad at me about Xing."

"It's not your fault," Felix should his head. "What happened is what happens to State Alchemists in times of war. We're major targets because we can do more than almost any weapon they can throw at us, even rocket-based ones. I have to tell you, I was quite happy to be one of the few assigned to stay home. Kena was certainly happy about it." He shrugged. "I've seen the reports through the office. You were doing your job. Your team just ran into bad luck."

"You should hear Vera talk about me." Ted frowned. "As far as she's concerned it was entirely my fault."

"Don't listen to her." Felix should his head. "She's hurting, same as you are. She didn't only lose two team-mates, she lost a man she was in love with. That'd make anyone a little nuts for a while. She'll understand eventually. Frankly, I'm impressed you've held up as well as you have. Some guys crack under that kind of pressure. It happened to a lot of us during the war with Drachma."

"What about you?"

"I… not as bad as some," Felix admitted. "Dad took it worse. When Derrick died, it hit all of us. My father was furious with me afterwards, when I said I was going to take the offered commission and remain in the military. He's never liked how the military handles alchemy, even now after all the changes. He came to fight in the war because Uncle Fletcher was coming, and because Derrick and I refused to sit home while our country was invaded. Derrick's death… for me, it was more of a catalyst."

"Did your old man ever forgive you?" Ted asked.

"Mostly." Felix smiled sadly. "He understands now, I think, but he's never really liked it. I think the only thing that really got him past it was when I met Mikena here and gave him grandkids to distract him." That came with a chuckle. "He and Mom visit at least once a year and we try and reciprocate."

"At least my family has a long tradition of military service." Ted could be grateful for that. No one had thought it at all odd for him to want to be a State Alchemist. "And with my brothers, my parents will never have a reason to bug me about grandkids," he added with a chuckle. "So, do you think Deluge is always this much of a monster, or is she just trying to break us now?"

Felix snickered. "From what I've heard from others, she's pretty much always that way."

"Well, this is going to be fun."