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"Do you have the cake?"
A sigh met her harried question, "Of course I have the cake. I'm still not sure why we need a cake, but I've got it."
Fixing him with her sternest glare, the one that was now usually reserved for bad guys and children, Max started very slowly. "Alec. It's her birthday. It's important that we do this right."
"I know," he bit out, irritated by the volume of preparations this entailed each year, "but isn't Laylie a little young to care, really?"
They exchanged a look and Alec welcomed it when Max collapsed into his arms, both exhausted already. Sometimes it was just too hard trying to be normal, and neither of them really had any idea how to go about it. And it still had to be low-keyed and transgenic friendly because Layla had more than inherited her parents' powers and because there were still more than enough people that would have loved the three of them dissected.
Their weird little family.
They were so used to it that cat burglaries, rescue missions, and random transgenics showing up on their doorstep at any given point in time no longer fazed Alec and Max. It didn't matter that Logan had begged them to rejoin Eyes Only over his news feeds, or that Canada was less safe now than it had been several years ago - the secret branches of the American government were putting pressure on Canada to help them recover their precious, expensive military weapons: transgenics.
Sometimes, the most important moments proved to be the most mundane. So, when Alec skidded in the door several minutes before Layla's party was scheduled to start, the concern wasn't that he'd just been caught in a fight, or that sometimes he was the one who picked them - the concern was whether or not he still had the cake.
It was hard to find a real birthday cake in the post-pulse world, but not entirely impossible. Neither Alec nor Max were exceptional at baking, so they had undergone the task of finding a real baker for the occasion.
Moment over, Max gently extracted herself from her lover's arms, eyeing the cake box gratefully, and headed out to face the yard full of visiting transgenics and ordinary school children.
Layla was turning six.
And, oh, the trials of convincing a six year old that she couldn't beat up all the neighborhood bullies - since they were usually teenagers - really was quite impressive. So was keeping the mixture of Ordinaries and transgenics from paying too close of attention to one another. Transgenics were still skittish about Ordinaries, and Ordinaries weren't all that enlightened.
There were balloons, brought in from overseas, the cake, and a pile of questionably wrapped presents adorning the decorated backyard. Layla was playing tag with some of her school friends, and was being conscientious enough to let them win - mostly.
Original Cindy and Rain were chatting with an X6 that Rain had apparently known at Manticore, something about command protocol and how their latest trip to Spain had gone.
Max hurried over to greet her best friend, while Alec set out the cake and caught Layla's speeding form without looking, whispering harshly, "Go slower, Laylie."
As Max and Original Cindy embraced, Jondy was reprimanding her own son for much a similar problem as Laya. Original Cindy grinned happily, flashing an expensive looking diamond ring while Rain blushed, "You see what my Boo got for me? A diamond in the sun," and there was a slight tinge to her voice that let Max know the real Diamond was far from forgotten.
"That's wicked cool. Bet it leaves a great mark if you hit somebody," Max laughed, shrugging away questions of when she was going to get one - marriage was an idea that held little meaning for transgenics.
"Boo, you talked to Kendra lately?"
Half focused on a man hanging all over Jondy that looked suspiciously like it could have been her med tech, Max had to turn back to Original Cindy to address the question, "No. I haven't really had time to keep in touch."
Nodding, Original Cindy regarded her friend for a few moments before she spoke again, "The girl got a call from Sketchy, of all people. Turns out he's hiding in Africa after some run-in with crazy strong guys attempting to break his limbs." A delicately trimmed eyebrow raised, "Luckily they didn't get to his legs before he escaped."
Stiffened, Max tried to keep her face noncommittal, "Really, he has nothing to do with me."
"Betcha those crazy strong stalkers of his do." Rain rested a hand on Original Cindy's arm and the darker woman sighed, letting it go. "Well, the damn idiot's still alive. That counts for something, at least."
Alive. As opposed to in pieces thanks to familiars, "Yeah," and she had to run off to save some Ordinary parent from running into a startled transgenic fist.
It wasn't exactly normal, but it was a start.
Alec blurred around the corner, skidding to a stop just before the door. He took a moment to compose himself and swung the door open, cocky and unconcerned as always. "There was a problem?"
The principal was obviously not impressed - just Alec's luck to catch a male principal. What was even less impressive was the little girl swinging her legs against the counter unconcernedly, wearing a look that matched Alec's perfectly. He sighed.
The principal looked between father and daughter, shuffling through his paperwork, "Mr. McDowell…"
"Alec," was hastily cut in.
The principal nodded absently, gesturing to the lone unoccupied chair in the room, "Please, take a seat."
Shrugging, Alec remained leaning against the closed door. Like Layla could really do something harsh enough to shock him and still be sitting there.
The principal darted his eyes between Layla and Alec, but didn't comment on the fact that both of them remained stubbornly standing - fidgeting a little even. "Your daughter was found on the neighboring roof during recess."
Alec blinked. "So?" He wished that Max was here to deal with this, he didn't have the patience for it, but she'd missed enough work already and it was his turn to come up with the excuses.
"So," began the principal with rising irritation, "besides being a violation of school code for students to leave the campus during recess, we - quite honestly - have no idea how she managed to get on the roof. It's been barricaded off for some years, and it took quite an effort to get her down."
At this, Alec turned to Layla, who offered him an unapologetic little shrug and dropped her gaze away from her father's. Alec was pretty damn sure that he knew how she'd managed to get up there. Damnit. "If this is about cost, I can assure you we'll work something out to compensate the time you had to spend getting her down."
Steadfastly staying in his seat, even going so far as to stretch slightly, the principal shook his head. "You misunderstand me, Mr. Mc- Alec. I'm not worried about costs to this institution. I'm much more interested in how a ten-year-old managed to get up three flights of barricaded stairways in under a half an hour, without disturbing the barricades at all."
"Really?" Well, for starters, she jumped. "Well, if Layla didn't tell you, I doubt I'll be able to convince her to."
"You're her father."
This time, Alec stiffened, not liking the turn this conversation was taking. "Yes, I am." He let the near threat hang in the air a moment, as he turned back to Layla, "Laylie, wait for me in the car, okay?" and tossed her the keys.
If the principal was planning on objecting, he thought better of it.
Once Alec was assured by her footsteps that Layla was out of earshot, he sighed, running a hand through messy hair and taking the previously offered seat.
The principal shook his head at the younger man, wondering if some strange tale was about to pour out, or even stranger excuses. "This is not the first time Layla has displayed… extraordinary… traits."
Forced grin #52 for negotiating made it's way to Alec's face. "My girl's a wildcat, just like her mother."
"Ah, yes," the principal gave what could, under the right circumstances, be construed as a smirk. "Miss Guevara has provided quite an… imaginative… range of explanations for any odd occurrences."
Shrugging again, Alec waited to see where this conversation was taking them. If necessary, he still had time to snap the man's neck and grab the paperwork before anybody noticed that he was here. It would be messy to move again, but so be it.
Leaning over the desk, the principal whispered harshly, "I'm not stupid, Mr. McDowell." There was a pause, as he collected his thoughts and Alec tightened his grip on the chair sides, "But, if I can figure it out, so can others." He settled back in his chair and raised his voice to normal levels, "I would highly recommend, nay, demand that you have a long chat with your daughter, Mr. McDowell, about appropriate behavior at this institution. This is a school, not a playground."
Blinking, Alec realized that he had just been dismissed. The principal offered him a wink and went back to his paperwork. Damnit. So, they were being watched again. Max is gonna be pissed. He nodded and left - there wasn't much to say in reply to that.
There were finger marks left indented in the sides of the chair.
He slid into his car, turning the keys and glancing over at his daughter. "You're getting too old to play these games, Layla."
Startled at the use of her real name, Layla glanced at her father a few times before answering. Finally, she offered him slightly guilty eyes that usually got him to forgive her every transgression, "Don't tell mommy?"
"It's too late for that." And the car sped to life.
Max is gonna be pissed.
The new bed was, admittedly, more comfortable than the last. A perk of their latest move, keeping them just one step ahead of White and Manticore and God Knew Who Else.
Last time had been too close, much too close. They'd been gathering transgenics together, across Canada, building enough of a defensive system that they'd be able to finally make a stand. To stop running and stop hiding and to finally be free. Of course, it had gotten too big, news had escaped and, before the perimeter could be properly set up, the group had to scatter for safety.
Alec stretched slowly, waking up. He rolled over and was met with Max's stiff body, a sure sign that she was wide-awake. "Maxie?"
When she turned to face him, her eyes were open and clear, but the agony in them was almost too much to bear. "I've spent my whole life running, Alec. I don't want to put Layla through this anymore." I can't do this anymore.
They were getting too old for this, and they knew it. "This is the last time." Alec's voice was firm.
And it was true. A few more months and they'd finally have the force they'd been building for nearly a decade, finally have a strong transgenic nation within a nation. Enough hiding in Canada, they'd be able to go home again. Whatever that meant.
Her lips crashing against his were a little unexpected, in the moment, but nothing new. Enough years of raising their daughter together, and they'd finally developed the peace of what passed for a relationship. Alec pulled her closer.
Scene trauncated for content, dears, since I'm not entirely sure it's R.