a/n: I've decided that I'll post new chapters every Wednesday and Saturday just for a bit of structure for myself more than anything so bear that in mind. Otherwise, enjoy!
Fiala purred back at the cat which was purring at her. She wondered if that was weird - decided it probably was - then decided she didn't care. It was her cat, she'd do with it as she pleased.
She was waiting for Hope to get back. He'd responded to another foreign airship sighting and though Fiala had wanted to beg him not to go, what choice did he have? He couldn't be seen to be backing out of something - he was a leader. But the last time this had happened - 2 people had died. And she'd signed the death warrant for one of them. She couldn't go through that again. She'd put in a call to Even and told him to standby, ready for casualties. Even had no qualms about doing something so callous and his knowledge was superior to hers.
She'd gone around and found some small comforts to distract herself. A bag of chocolates in the cupboard were nabbed. One of the various shirts Hope left on his bedroom floor was slung over her shoulders as a pajama top for her because it had his scent on and it made her feel less lonely. The cat was tucked under her arm and she grabbed a book - a novel, for once - and set about enjoying herself as much as she could.
About quarter of the way into her book, the door was thrown open and she bolted up to greet whoever was entering their home. It was Hope himself and she beamed brightly. He didn't look sad either, so something must have gone right. She stood up to approach when a small army of strangers sauntered in behind him, making her step back cautiously. She wasn't fond of faces she didn't recognize; this automatic defense barrier put itself up.
Hope approached her and took one of her hands gently, tugging her forward. She shook her head slightly and stayed where she was, turning the tables and pulling him closer to her instead. He bumped into her lightly and put his arm round her shoulder to keep them both upright.
"Fiala, I know it was a while back, but do you remember Snow?" he asked, stepping to the side and pointing at a tall blonde man in a black coat.
Fiala squinted and scrutinized his appearance. The name, as the very least, rang a bell. And Hope had often talked about him too, often in an admiring fashion. It finally clicked when the man gave her a crooked grin and thumbs up.
"You tried to help us out in the beginning!" she gaped. "What are you doing here!? I saw you get taken away on that ship!"
"We came back... are... you two a..?" asked Snow, pointing at Hope and Fiala. She now had her arm wrapped around his and Hope was doing nothing to throw her off.
"Friends?!" choked up Hope, his voice raising in pitch slightly. Fiala blinked at him in surprise. If she didn't know any better, she'd say he was nervous. "We've stuck together since then, w-we're really good friends!"
"Okay," said Snow, holding his hands up defensively. He stepped forward and offered his hand out to Fiala, and she hesitantly shook it as not to be rude. "Should introduce myself properly, maybe. I'm Snow."
"Fiala," she smiled, then looking around him to the other four people loitering around. They all waved tiredly.
"Yuj, Maqui, Gadot, Lebreau..." explained Hope, pointing at them in order. Fiala wouldn't remember any of their names in the morning. "But maybe we should leave proper introductions for the morning. I'm sure you're all tired."
Trust Hope to be sensible and to the point. Fiala smiled absentmindedly at his seriousness. He did receive a series of nods and grunts of agreement though.
"This is a three bed house and there are seven of us. I don't think I need to point out that some of you need to share," said Fiala, shuffling awkwardly as everyone looked at her.
"Me and Fiala will sleep on the sofa," offered Hope.
"No, I'll take the sofa," said Snow, walking over and lazing out across the seats. "I love me a good sofa. Oh, hey kitty!" he cooed as the cat wandered over his torso to greet him.
"Raphael, get down!" grunted Hope.
"He's fine!" insisted Fiala and Snow at the same time, grinning after. Hope rolled his eyes.
"In case you forgot, my fiancee is a crazy cat lady," chuckled Snow. "I think we'll have more cats, than kids when the day comes."
"Okay... uh, you guys..." said Hope, turning to the others.
"Are all the beds doubles?" asked Lebreau.
"Yeah."
"Great. Then I'll share with Big Guy," she said, patting Gadot's chest. "And Yuj, Maqui, you two suck it up and share."
"Awh, Lebreau!" whined Maqui, throwing his arms about as if having a childish tantrum.
"If I bed with Gadot, I'll punch him when he rolls over onto me. If you bed with Gadot, guys, you'll be flattened and NORA will be down one member."
"I don't roll," grumbled Gadot shortly.
"Whatever. You're lucky we're being put up at all because they really don't have to," said Lebreau, tapping her foot in a warning gesture. "So are you going to complain, or are you going to take what you're given?"
"Take what we're given," mumbled Yuj and Maqui.
"Is that my shirt?" asked Hope as he kicked stuff out of his way. Fiala chuckled and leaped into bed the second he pulled the covers back.
"Maybe," she teased, snuggling up to the wall.
"That's my side!"
"Not anymore."
"Whatever," he tutted, falling haphazardly into bed beside her. "And stop stealing my shirts."
"No, they're kind of comfy. Plus, they're all just plain black and white. Do you really need that many plain black and white shirts?"
"Yes. One for every day of the week but double."
"That's at least 7 pointless shirts. No, that's 11 pointless shirts!"
"Shut up," he grumbled kneeing her lightly under the covers. "Snow said he had some interesting news for us about Pulse."
"Oh, what was it?" she asked, sitting up.
"Think about it tomorrow, Fi. Let's go to sleep," he yawned, petting her head. His hand slid down off her shoulder and hit the bed with a soft sound of impact. He was already asleep.