Tomorrow's chapter is going to be massive! ;)
The trip to get the Christmas tree took out most of the day.
It wasn't a long drive, only about an hour down the peninsula, through a scenic route winding between the trees and the Chesapeake Bay.
Thick caps of snow weighted down branches and tips of evergreens, draping over barren limbs of those trees which shed their leaves. The day was bright, sky clear, and the radio played Christmasy jazzy themes.
Bane sat in front beside Bruce who drove, while Vic squished in between kids car seats in the back. Cassie hummed almost inaudibly the melody of playing carols and swayed to the rhythm.
Not for the first time, Victoria wondered what was the exact nature of little girl's problem. Selina never elaborated on that, only mentioned Cassie's birth parents were abusive. Victoria didn't want to pry into the nature of the abuse. She seemed happy now, and that was all that mattered.
When the farm appeared from behind the knee of the road, everyone visibly perked up. Well, everyone but Bane, because he was occupied with yet another set of printouts. To Vic's dismay, he angled the paper in a way that prevented her from reading what was written there. She only could glimpse some of the contents in a reflection when the road darkened.
Bruce stopped the car before a big black and white sign and went out to talk with an older man who came out to greet them.
In a minute everything was talked over and to the delight of the kids the whole group went in between the trees to find the perfect one to bring home. Naturally, Cassie and Tim kept close to Bruce, yanking on his hands with excitement, pointing to everything around.
Vic trailed behind them with a fond smile. The procession was closed by Bane, who maddeningly walked around reading his things.
"You know I could help you with that," Vic said matter-of-factly, pretending she was interested in a small spruce before her.
"With what?"
"Really, Bane. You think I can't make out what's on that page from here? It's the diamond necklace made for Madame du Barry, but never sold properly and finally stolen. Everyone knows this story. L'Affaire du Collier. Marie Antoinette lost her head partly because of it."
"And you know that from just one glimpse?"
"The reconstructive sketches are pretty characteristic. Those tassels with little bows are a dead giveaway. And pear-shaped pearls. And you asked what's a 'parure' earlier."
"What's that had to do with anything?"
She gave him an exasperated look and sighed deeply.
"Listen, I'm not interested in your reasons for learning about the history of jewellery. I really don't care. I have expertise in that subject and offer my help. No questions asked. Truce, remember?"
Her words hung in the air between them. Victoria focused on not blinking too much when she looked into Bane's stormy eyes. That was a surprisingly good descriptor - their color was difficult to pinpoint and somehow they projected a plethora of emotions at once. To many, to discern one over the other, so she was still unsure of his answer.
To Victoria's amazement, Bane extended his hand towards her.
She grasped the palm he offered and smiled. That would give her something productive to do, instead of wallowing in self-pity. She couldn't wait to start educating that big brutish man.
oOo
All seemed peaceful in the evening. The children were quietly playing with Ace out on the porch. Bruce and Bane disappeared into the home gym a while back. Selina chatted amiably with Vic in the kitchen, slowly working on getting their dinner together.
Apart from an occasional sniffle and some light coughing she was fine, especially since Vic and Bane decided to bury the hatchet and bridge their differences with some civility and friendly banter. It wasn't perfect yet, but there was a solid chance that Christmas would be pleasant after all.
The freshly cut tree stood proudly in the living room, waiting to be adorned.
The only missing piece was Alfred, and Selina found with some surprise that she eagerly awaited his arrival. The old man was charming, cared for Bruce and the kids immensely, and even showed her some affection from time to time. Plus he had a real talent for putting people in their place. She suspected it would be put to good use around Bane and Vic.
Not to mention, the results of the tests Bruce and Bane took. She wondered what would Alfred make of all this. There was still time until they get the letter...
"Would you get kids and the boys?" She asked Vic after checking on the casserole she had in the oven. "I think dinner will be ready in ten minutes tops."
"No problem," the woman said and went out the kitchen door. A minute later Tim and Cassie ran back into the house, giggling, chased by her and Ace.
"Come on, you little rascals, off to wash your hands!" Selina croaked after them. Her voice was getting really funny, really fast.
Victoria helped the kids in the bathroom and went out again to get Bruce and Bane.
Selina smiled fondly when Tim carefully took the plates out of the cupboard to set the table. She never thought she would be a wife, let alone a mother. But Bruce compelled her to trust him and she didn't regret it for one second.
It was a shock, leaving Gotham and starting their own private intelligence business. She never thought they could pull it off, but by some miracle, it all fell into place perfectly.
Maybe for once in both their lives karma decided to reward them, instead of throwing an obstacle after obstacle their way.
The kitchen door opened, and Selia looked at her cousin.
Well, there were one or two small roadblocks afoot, but small ones.
"Is everything okay, Kitten?" she asked since Vic seemed uncharacteristically quiet.
"It bends," she said breathlessly, a dreamy glaze over her eyes.
"What does?" Serena's voice sounded a bit muffled since she was rummaging through the kitchen cupboard in search of some herbs. "Are they coming to dinner soon?"
"They just finished exercising, when I came to get them," Vic said distractedly. She perched on the barstool and shook her head at the marble countertop. "I mean, did you ever saw a metal bar just droop on the ends because of the weight?"
"What?" Selina thought for less than a second on the subject. "Sure I did, Kitten."
She changed the temperature in the oven and started peeling carrots for the salad.
Her nose was getting runny.
"Really? I didn't see that before. Didn't think that's possible," her cousin seemed dumbstruck still.
"Now you know better." The amusement was evident, but Vic gave no indication she even heard what Selina said.
"We did have some talk about this in the metallurgy class, but it was all about industrial settings and machines doing the work. Not muscles and bones," she mumbled under her breath. Then she shook her head in bewilderment and looked up wide-eyed. "It was six hundred pounds, Sel!"
"Yes, Kitten, now hand me that wooden bowl."
Automatically, Vic passed the dish, not even looking at it, or her cousin.
If only Selina knew that this evening would be the pivotal point in their lives she might have thought twice about sending Vic to get the men back home.
As it was, she was too focused on her own problems. The itch in her throat developed into a regular sore throat. The outlook for next week wasn't too great...
Sxevlbtch - now that's some pressure! ^^" I'll have to watch my embellishments. Would you call out any inaccuracies in the story, if you find any?