No one wants to become their parents…
"I'm home." Tobias's voice was strained as he walked through the front door.
"Been out flying?" Rachel asked curtly.
"You know I have," Tobias answered, and they were both surprised at how defensive his normally gentle voice was.
"I know," Rachel snapped, never one to hide irritation well.
"Why do you say it like that?" Tobias exhaled sharply. "You're acting like you think I'm cheating on you or something."
"Are you?"
"What? Rachel, I can't even…" Tobias tried to walk past her, but she blocked his way.
"Rachel, get out of the way." He stared through her with a hawk's gaze, like she was an obstacle.
"I know you're not cheating on me, okay?" she blurted out hurriedly, her eyes hurt and angry and scared. "I know that's not it. It's just…we talked about this."
"Rachel." And his voice was soft again now, tiredness straining it. "We've been talking about this for two years."
"And you said it would be different when we were married." The old Rachel would have said something like that with an air of self-mocking, but this Rachel choked it out like a wounded animal.
"Well, we're not married, so I guess I kept my promise."
"And you don't really want to be, do you?" she pressed. "You've been spending as much time as possible away from me, soaking up every second until you have to change, until you have to become…"
"I am human," he broke in. "I am a human. And a hawk. And an Andalite…and…Jesus, who even knows what else? Why can't you accept me for who I am? I accept you. And I love you."
He reached out and touched her face, and she lingered in his touch for a few seconds before pulling away.
"Do you?" she asked softly.
"Do I what? Love you? Yes." The hawk's gaze was softer now, but it didn't lose an ounce of intensity.
She shook her head fiercely. "No, I mean do you accept me? Because I'm not sure you do. Did you really think we were going to get married and live happily ever after and have normal lives? Do you think I have that in me anymore? Because I'm not sure I do."
He shrugged. "What do you want me to say? I think you could."
"And I think you could leave the hawk in the past and stay human for me. Not for anyone else. We don't have to go to dinner parties, or make speeches with Jake or go on talk shows with Marco. I just want you to do it for me."
The silence lingered and sliced through both of them.
"What do you want to do right now?" Rachel asked, already knowing the answer. "Right now…do you want to stand here and work this out with me…or do you want to get some wings and fly away?"
"I love you," he apologized.
They both knew that wasn't enough, but neither one of them could say it.
Later, he had gone flying again and she was hunched over on the steps out back, taking a long drag from a cigarette and letting the nicotine flow through her bloodstream in cleansing waves.
"Shit," she muttered to herself, running a hand through her hair.
…but we all do end up becoming just like them, don't we?
"Fuck," she muttered to herself, glancing over at Tobias sleeping next to her. She set the alarm to wake him in enough time for him to demorph. She ran a hand through her tangled hair and tried to shake away thoughts of the future.