Lum stretched lazily as she woke up. She gave her still sleeping husband a loving look, then settled back down beside him. He smiled in his sleep, and she idly wondered what he was dreaming of this time.
Glancing out the window, she saw that it was a rainy morning, just as the ones before had been. Lum sighed, wondering when it was going to clear up. Being cooped up inside so much was beginning to get on her nerves. The Invader household had never been this crowded, and she was seriously thinking about just abandoning her room and taking up full time residence in their nearby UFO. Ten would probably appreciate having a room to himself again as well.
A light knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts. Trying not to disturb Darling, Lum carefully rose out of the bed and grabbed her robe from a nearby hook. After slipping it on, she cracked open the door to see who it was.
She was surprised to see her smiling father standing in the hallway. "Dad!" she quietly greeted him while closing the door behind her. "When did you get back?"
"Just a little while ago," he responded, giving her a hug. "Sorry I haven't been able to get down to see you."
"It's ok," she said. "I know you've been busy."
Invader sighed dramatically. "Yeah, things are tough. Kakari's relying on me a lot right now." He stopped and just looked at her for a moment. "You look well," he complimented her. "How have you two been holding up?"
"Pretty well," Lum responded hesitantly. "Darling was pretty out of it for a few days, but he's mostly back to normal now. I think doing all that volunteer work for Oyuki's people has helped."
"I'm glad to hear that," Invader replied. "He's a good man."
"I know," she said with a sad smile. "His parents seem to be doing ok too."
"They're a tough lot," Invader agreed. "Come on," he told her, heading for the main room. "We can talk over breakfast."
Her mother peeked out of the kitchen as they passed. "Good morning, Lum," she called out quietly, not wanting to wake all their guests. "Is Ataru still sleeping?"
"Yeah, I didn't want to wake him," Lum replied. Her mother winked mischievously and disappeared back into the kitchen, leaving Lum wondering what she was thinking.
Invader settled down and motioned for Lum to sit down. She joined him and he leaned back with a yawn.
"Sorry, I've not been getting enough sleep," he apologized. "I'm not used to this kind of schedule."
"I'm surprised you got to take a break," Lum responded.
He waved his hand dismissively. "Kakari couldn't really say no," he informed her. "And my men have things covered up there for the moment," he said, vaguely pointing towards the fleet orbiting the planet.
"Any news on Earth?" Lum asked eagerly.
"Nothing," Invader said with a grimace. "Best we can tell Uru still hasn't made another move in that system." He scratched his head. "I don't get it. They were originally pushing for immediate mobilization."
"You think they're stretched too thin?" Lum asked hopefully.
"No," Invader replied firmly. "They know we can't do much more than defend this system. All they need to do is keep enough ships nearby to keep us pinned in and they'll have plenty of force left to take care of Earth."
Lum frowned. "How about our allies?" she asked.
"Uru's not bothering Fukujin," Invader replied. "I've not been having any luck getting support from anyone else. They're just sitting back because they don't want to get involved in a civil war."
He frowned and continued. "I've been having trouble getting any information from our people on Uru, but I think something big's in the works. There's been a lot of turnover in the upper ranks this week."
"No idea what's going on?" Lum asked.
"They've replaced most of the people I was able to get news from already," he explained. "We're relying on low level sources at this point."
She nodded sadly. "It's really frustrating not knowing what they're planning."
Invader ruffled her head gently. "Enough of this depressing talk," he told her. "I want to hear about things around here."
Ataru woke up feeling groggy. "Lum?" he murmured, not feeling her beside him. He turned and found that she was already gone, likely off helping her mother make breakfast. He sighed and levered himself out of bed, stretching his tired muscles.
It was raining again. Ataru glared out the window, thoroughly sick of the bad weather. Lum kept assuring him that Oniboshi was sunny most of the year, so he figured it was just his usual luck that it had rained for most of the two weeks they had been there. Luckily they had secured good shelters for all of the Neptunian refugees before the cycle of storms had started.
Catching the faint smell of cooking food, he ventured forth from their
room. The familiar rumble of Invader's voice reached him as soon as he stepped out, and he wondered when his father-in-law had returned.
"Good morning," he called out as he stepped into the main room. Five pairs of eyes met him, and he was assaulted with a range of greetings. Ataru smiled and seated himself quietly down in a spot Lum had saved for him.
"So, you're finally up?" Hinoban asked teasingly. Ataru grinned in embarrassment. Ten's father was only a few years older than Ataru and tended to treat him like a younger brother, constantly giving him a good-natured hard time.
"I had a hard day yesterday," Ataru protested while looking away.
"I hear you've been volunteering a lot down at the spaceport," Invader commented. "I'm proud of you."
Ataru rubbed the back of his neck. "It's the least I could do," he said quietly. Lum took his hand under the table and squeezed it gently.
His father looked up from the newspaper he was reading. "Ataru, we're all really proud of how much you're doing." His paper rose back up, the shy man having said his piece. Luckily Oniboshi printed their newspapers in both Oni and Japanese, so he had still had plenty of reading material even this far from home.
Ten didn't say anything, staying in his best good boy mode. Ataru wondered how long the boy would last at trying to be perpetually polite. He figured it wasn't Ten's easy-going father but his intense mother that had the boy so wired.
The noise emanating from the kitchen made it clear where the other three women of the house were. With Ten's mother Tsuukai being the only one of the three who spoke both Oni and Japanese, she was constantly the interpreter between Lum and Ataru's mothers when they got busy making breakfast for the large group. Mrs. Moroboshi always insisted on helping around the house, having accustomed herself to their new home rather quickly.
A few minutes later breakfast arrived, the three ladies quickly ferrying out a small convoy of dishes to the table before settling down themselves. Ataru dug in, enjoying the meal immensely.
After breakfast Invader told abruptly grabbed hold of Ataru's father and led him into another room, telling everyone they would be back in a moment. The group looked after the two curiously, but left them alone.
"Ok," Invader said once they were alone, "now we can discuss matters in private like men should."
Ataru's father, still nervously clutching his newspaper, smiled weakly, not sure what was going on.
"Here's the thing," Invader started. "I can't say how long your family will be stuck here. To be completely honest, I can't guarantee right now that you'll ever be safe on Earth again."
"But-" Mr. Moroboshi started to object, but Invader cut him off.
"I just don't know enough about the situation," Invader growled. "We're not in a good place right now, and I can't promise anything."
Mr. Moroboshi looked down. "So that's how it is, is it?" he softly replied.
"I'm afraid so," Invader said, putting a reassuring hand on the much smaller man's shoulder. "I know you've been helping down at the spaceport too, but that's a bit of a waste for a man of your talents, isn't it? Weren't you in a financial management position back on earth?"
"Yeah," Moroboshi replied. "But by now my job there will be gone anyways. There's no way they'd overlook this, too many people were trying for my position."
Invader turned away and crossed his arms behind his back. "Do you remember when we tried to get our children hitched?" he asked tentatively. "I told you then I could get you a job afterwards if you ever wanted it." He turned back to Mr. Moroboshi. "Well, our children may not be officially wed yet, but my offer still stands."
"Is that so?" Mr. Moroboshi said hopefully.
"Governor Kakari has found himself in a difficult position," Invader continued. "He was basically middle management between Uru and this planet until this all started. Now he's struggling to keep things together." Invader looked Moroboshi in the eyes. "Several posts have opened up due to this. He could really use a good man like you, someone with real experience with budgets and planning."
"I really don't know if I'm qualified for such an important role," Moroboshi stammered out.
Invader narrowed his eyes. "Have some confidence in yourself," he said firmly. "Besides, things are desperate right now, and he's extremely short handed. This is something you could do that would really help a lot of people right now." He paused for a long moment. "I'm not going to force you into this, but it's a good opportunity."
Ataru's father looked down for a few seconds. "I'll do it," he decided. "I can't go on depending on you to support my family anyways,"
"Don't be silly," Invader replied. "It's my responsibility that you're all in this mess. You're welcome to stay here as long as you need. Besides, you're family."
Mr. Moroboshi smiled. "Thank you, Invader-san. I really appreciate this chance."
Invader looked embarrassed. "Just do your best," he finally replied. His face suddenly lit up. "Why don't we go get a drink somewhere?" he suggested. "I know this perfect little place downtown…"
Ten's mother rubbed her son's head absentmindedly as she sat chatting with Lum. The nervous boy's eyes were wide, but he kept perfectly still in her lap. Ataru held back his laughter, wondering if the kid would ever learn to relax around his mother.
Finally Ataru took pity on the kid. "Hey, Jariten, do you want to go watch some TV with me?"
Ten's eyes lit up. "Ma'am, may I?" he asked hesitantly.
"Sure, Ten," Tsuukai replied kindly, patting him on the head. His mother put him down and gave him a warm smile.
Ten bowed slightly and scampered off after Ataru into the other room.
"Ten's such a polite boy," his mother said happily. "You two have been a really good influence on him."
Lum looked nervous but smiled. "Ten-chan is a good boy," she agreed. "I think he's really happy you're able to spend more time with him lately."
"You think so?" Tsuukai asked earnestly. "I get the feeling I make him nervous sometimes."
"I don't know why you'd think that," Lum smoothly lied. "He missed you a lot when we were back on Earth."
"Is that right?" his mother replied thoughtfully. "I really hate that our jobs have kept us so busy these past few years."
"Well, things should be a lot less hectic here on Oniboshi," Lum reminded her aunt. "So now you can spend all the time you want with Ten-chan."
"That's true," Tsuukai replied thoughtfully. "But I kind of miss all the excitement of the big city too." She looked away. "I'm not a very good mommy, am I?"
Lum's mother rapped Tsuukai on the head as she passed by carrying a load of laundry. "Don't say that," she admonished her younger sister. "You're a good mom. You're just going to have to calm down a bit in life. Ten-chan's not going to stay be a little kid forever and you don't want to miss it."
Lum looked up innocently. "Do you ever wish I was still a little girl?" she asked.
Her mother looked thoughtful for a moment, then wrinkled her nose in disdain. "Not really. You were too much of a handful," she replied. "I'm glad you grew out of that phase."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Lum asked with an annoyed look.
"I'm sorry, but you were a little nut, Lum. Always in trouble at school, getting Ran in trouble, even bothering animals," her mother pointed out. "I've never seen a bigger tomboy in my life."
Lum huffed and looked away with an angry expression while her aunt burst out laughing. Her mother smiled and patted her playfully on the head.
"Oh, don't be like that," she said. "I'm just teasing you. You were an adorable little girl, even if you did drive me crazy half the time. I'm really glad you turned into such a fine young woman."
Lum looked at her with a wary expression. "You mean it?"
"Of course I do, Love," her mother replied, giving her a kiss before returning to her chores.
"See, she's a good mom," Tsuukai commented after her older sister had left. "She always was better at this domestic stuff than me."
Lum waved her hand dismissively. "You'll get the hang of it," she said confidently. "If an apparent brat like me can handle Ten-chan, you shouldn't have any trouble," she joked.
"Speaking of that," her aunt said with a serious expression, "When are you going to give me a cute little niece or nephew to spoil? I was still too young to when you were a kid."
Lum blushed. "I'm only seventeen!" she protested. "We aren't ready for that kind of thing at all." She paused for a moment. "We aren't even legally married yet," she finished quietly.
"You're almost as old as your mom was when she had you," Tsuukai teased. "Maybe I should ask your husband what he thinks."
Lum gave her a look. "Don't you dare," she warned. "Poor Darling's got enough on his mind right now."
"Hey, Jariten," Ataru idly said, half watching one of the rare Japanese language news channels. "You really shouldn't be so nervous around your mom."
"You don't know how she really is," Ten quietly protested. "If she knew all that I've done, she'd kill me."
"You're her kid," Ataru reassured him. "She isn't going to do anything to you."
"I love Mama, and I know she loves me," Ten replied. "But she's still really scary."
"You'll just have to get over it," Ataru answered. "You can't keep fearing her forever." He turned to Ten and ruffled his hair. "You have to grow up someday, runt."
"Hey, don't treat me like a little kid!" Ten protested. "I'm more grown up than you are."
Ataru chuckled. "Dream on," he replied, turning his attention back to the TV.
Ten puffed up, but remembering his mother in the other room didn't flame Ataru.
"You're mean," Ten finally pouted, a few wisps of smoke trailing from his mouth.
"I know," Ataru replied without looking. "It's merely one of my many wonderful qualities."
Ten settled down grumpily next to Ataru. "When did you start watching the news?" he asked. "I didn't think you were smart enough to understand it."
The comment earned a glare from Ataru. "Watch your mouth, Jariten," he growled before turning back to the screen.
"What are you going to do about it?" Ten taunted. It seemed like all his pent up energy from being good all the time was pouring forth. "If you try to hit me, I'll tell on you."
"I can just ignore you," Ataru replied calmly, not taking his eyes off the screen. "You wouldn't dare try to burn me with your mom nearby, and there's not much else you can really do to me."
Ten considered this for a moment. Getting an idea, he floated deliberately in front of Ataru's face, blocking the screen.
"Hah, ignore me now, idiot!" Ten crowed.
"Ten, are you bothering Ataru?" his mother asked warningly from the other room.
Ten covered his mouth and looked scared; he had forgotten to keep his voice down.
"Nah," Ataru called out. "We're just playing around."
"Oh, ok," Tsuukai replied.
Ten looked at Ataru in surprise as he floated out of the way. "Thanks," he said quietly.
"Eh," Ataru replied noncommittally.
Ten settled down next to him again and was quiet for a few minutes. "I'm bored," he finally said.
"Same here," Ataru replied. "They told me they didn't have anything for me to do down at the spaceport for the next few days. And it's too wet to go out." He was quiet for a few moments, counting the days. "Today would have been our second day of the senior year," he commented sadly. "Never thought I'd be missing school."
Ten looked thoughtful. "How do you think everyone's doing?"
"Dunno," Ataru replied. "It's not like I can just call them up and ask." He sighed. "I guess they're all in class right now. I wonder if it's quiet without Lum and me there."
"Probably," Ten commented. "You were always in trouble."
"Half the time it was because you were floating around disturbing class," Ataru reminded him.
"I'm a good boy," Ten protested.
"You just keep telling yourself that," Ataru replied without much confidence.
Invader threw an arm around Mr. Moroboshi. "You're all right, you know that?"
"Don't crush the poor guy," his brother-in-law joked.
Invader let up on his drunken companion. "Eh, he's tougher than that."
Ataru's father looked up with tears in his eyes. "You're a real pal, you know?"
Invader chuckled and slapped him on the back. He turned back to their other companion. "Hinoban, why don't you grab the next round?" he suggested.
Ten's father looked annoyed. "I already got the last one, it's your turn." His speech was slurring more and more as time went on.
"Eh," Invader said, raising his hand to grab the bartender's attention. "Another round, if you please!"
Hinoban burst out laughing. "I actually can't remember who got the last round," he admitted.
Invader shrugged, not really caring. "I can't either." He glared down at Moroboshi. "Drink up," he urged. "You'll be knee deep in work soon."
"I can hardly wait," Mr. Moroboshi replied, taking another swig.
Ataru suddenly found his vision blocked by a pair of hands.
"Guess who," a female voice told him.
"Tsuukai?" he asked in a hopeful tone.
"Try again," the voice growled.
He pretended to think for a moment. "Little Ran-chan?"
"Darling!" the voice warned him.
"Ah, then it must be Lum-chan," Ataru deducted.
She uncovered his eyes. "You're terrible," she pouted.
"I know," he sighed. "It's a curse."
Lum looked at Ten, who was sprawled out unconscious next to her husband. "What happened to him?" she asked.
"Just sleepy," Ataru replied, still watching TV. "I don't even have a frying pan handy."
"It is a boring day," Lum said glumly. "I wish it would stop raining."
She lay down on Ataru's other side, wrapping her arm around his. "Is there anything you want to do?" she asked him.
"I don't know," he sighed. "I'm really bored with the news at this point."
Lum pulled on his arm. "Come on then," she said, rising back into the air, Ataru in tow. "Let's go hang out in my room."
He looked annoyed, but followed her back. She shut and locked the door behind him, then floated over to her bed.
"Sit," she commanded after he didn't budge from his spot near the door.
Ataru gave her a wary look, but complied.
"That's better," Lum said, snuggling up to his side. "It doesn't seem like we've had much time alone lately."
"That's true," he mused. "This place is a bit more crowded than home."
"That's the understatement of the year," Lum replied dryly. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that, actually. How would you feel about staying in the UFO and letting Ten use this room?"
He thought for a moment. "Well, it would give everyone more space," he said. "And that bed is really comfy too."
"And we'd get more privacy," she said pointedly, playing with the sash of her robe.
"See if you can get us some stairs like Ran had and it's a deal," Ataru decided. "I don't want to have to rely on you to come and go."
Lum grinned. "I'll have some delivered tomorrow," she promised. "I'm very glad you said yes." She kept her eyes locked on him, now fidgeting with the neckline of her robe.
Ataru swallowed and looked away, his face slightly red. "Is that right?" he said nervously. She was getting way too practiced at making him flustered lately.
Her breath tickled his ear. "Darling, why are you so embarrassed?" she asked seductively.
"I'm not embarrassed," he insisted.
"Then why won't you look at me?" she teased.
Ataru gave her a quick glance. Her face was only inches away from his own, and he felt like he could drown in her deep blue eyes. She fluttered her eyes softly and he had to look away again.
"Darling's so shy," she teased him.
"I am not," he said irritably.
"Then give me a kiss," she said, closing her eyes and pursing her lips.
He gave her a quick peck on the lips.
"What was that?" she asked incredulously.
"A kiss," he replied casually.
"Not much of one," she said, sounding disappointed.
"Is that so?" Ataru replied, his voice suddenly smooth. "Well, let's remedy that." He put his hand behind her head and pulled her in for a much longer and more passionate kiss.
They finally parted, both breathing heavy. "That was much better," Lum agreed. She looked coy for a moment, then giggled and tackled him.
Lum's mother, her hand raised to knock on her daughter's door, perked her pointed ears and listened for a moment. Smiling, she lowered her hand and went on her way, deciding that delivering their laundry could wait for a more convenient time.
Tsuukai looked up from the living room floor, where she was playfully poking at her sleeping son. "What are you smiling about?" she asked her elder sister.
"Young love," Mrs. Invader replied simply, ignoring her sister's puzzled look.