Chapter 7: Getting Along Great.
She watched everyone get lively while cooking, and cleaning up the living room. She glanced at Equius, who was using his screwdriver on one of his inventions. She put on her glasses, gently adjusting them. "Mmmmhf… How'd you all sleep?" She asked the group. "I slept alright cuz!" Rexii answered. "We slept okay as well Ari!" Lexii said, while pouring a cup of juice for one of the group members.
She looked at Equius, wondering if he would say anything in response. "I slept… Alright Ari." He answered, while not taking his eyes off the device he was working on. Ari stood up, and she walked over to Equius, curious as to what he was working on. She watched him screw in a few screws, testing a few of the buttons making sure it works. "...Whatcha makin'?" She asked curiously.
He didn't look up at her, keeping his eyes on his work. "I was simply tinkering with your Earthly remote. Making it more suitable for usage." He answered her. Ari sat next to him, watching him fiddle around with the remote. She was fascinated at how he was able to reconfigure earthly devices. "Are you having any difficulties?" Ari asked softly. "No. In fact, its almost done." He answered her.
Lexii was teaching her friend how to make pancakes. "Now, you flip it when this side looks a bit flatter. And if you want to have it browned, you put some butter on it. Like this!" Lexii said, while demonstrating. "Why is that one burnt over there?" Rexi asked, while poking around. "...Cause your messin' with me thats why." Lexii answered, while sticking her flat tongue out at her brother.
Rex snickered a bit at her answer, knowing she was kidding with him. "Aw come on sis, you know I'm kidding with you." He said warmly. She smirked at him, giggling softly. "I know I know, silly dilly." She replied, while flipping another flapjack. "Lexii? I want to try this!" Nepeta said, while looking VERY enthralled. Lex nodded, while handing her friend the spatula.
Nepeta looks at one, and she tries to flip it; only for it to be TOO early. "O-oops!" She said, while looking a bit embarrassed. "Hey, its okay. You aren't gonna get it right the first time. Its like hunting, you gotta wait for the right time to catch the prey; ya know." Rex said. Nepeta nodded, looking VERY determined. Her eyes watched over the pancakes, waiting for the right one to flip.
Rexii could tell she needed a BIT of help, so… He helped her, like the gentleman he was. He walked to the side of the stove, leaning against the wall, and his eyes glanced down at the middle one. Nepeta's eyes looked at his, and glanced at the EXACT one he was glancing at. She took the flipping instrument, and flipped the perfectly browned pancake, going onto the other side to cook.
Lexii loudly cheered, hugging her friend. "Great job, Nepeta! I'm proud of you!" She said happily. Nepeta smiled, hugging her friend back, before looking up at Rex. His golden yellow eyes met her yellow eyes, and he gave her a wink. Nepeta gave a small smirk, knowing what he did. "Rex, mew should flip this one!" Nepeta said, while pointing to one. Rex grinned, grabbed the spatula, and gave the pancake a good flip!
While Ari watched Equius, he looked up at her, his shaded eyes meeting her ocean blue ones. "...Ari… About last night…" He starts his sentence. Ari stares at him, wondering what he was going to say. "...What about it?" Ari asked softly. "...What came over you in the bathroom?" He asked her. Ari nipped her lower lip. "... W-well I… I liked the kiss… It just… I dunno. Just made me a bit loopy." She answered softly.
Her eyes lowered to the ground, not looking up at him. "...I won't lie… The kiss was… E-exquisite." He said, while looking away from her. Ari's cheeks grew warm, a small reddish tint appearing on her cheeks. Before the pair could talk more, Rex came out to let them know that breakfast was ready. "Hey guys, the food is done. Come and get the food while it's hot." He said.
Equius set the newly modified device down, got up, and headed towards the dining room. Ari followed along behind him, while sitting in her spot at the table. "Now, you two are supposed to eat light. I kinda made a BIT too much… But its okay! Just start SLOW." Lexii said, while looking at her brother, and her cousin. They both nodded, as Lexii set down a plate in front of them.
The plate consisted of one pancake, and a bit of mutton. "Want some syrup?" Lexii asked, while holding up maple syrup. "Yes please, just put it on the side here." Ari answered. "And I'll take some ontop of mine please." Rexii said. Lexii nodded, and distributed the syrup in the way that was requested by both parties.
Once that was done, Nepeta had already put out the plates for her, Lexii, and her moirail. Everyone began to dig in, happily enjoying the food. Equius was casually eating the sweetened flatcake, when he glanced down at Ari. She delicately tore a piece of pancake, and dipped it into the syrup before placing it into her mouth. She was such a delicate eater, it was almost graceful.
While Rex on the other hand… He was a bit sloppy, he managed to get syrup on his snout, and he used his long, flat tongue to lick it off. Nepeta giggled, as she watched him do so; it was quite a show. The disgruntled noises he made, the pouty face he made when he couldn't quite reach the spot. "Dammit… Its on my nose… I know its there…" He said, while staring cross-eyed at his nose.
Nepeta gave a cute cackle at Rexii's silly looking face. "Rexii, mew are making such a silly face!" She said while wiping a tear from her eye. "Oh I am, now am I?" Rex asked, while turning his attention towards her. "Just you wait till we're done… I'mma get ya. And I'mma get ya REAL good." Rex said goofily. Nepeta snorted at him. "Oh sure mew will. I can't wait." She said, while crossing her arms.
Ari rolled her eyes, a small smirk creeping onto her face. "I surely hope you won't hurt her, cause if you do… I'll hurt YOU." Equius said, feeling protective of his Moirail. "Hey hey, I won't hurt her! I don't wanna hurt her. I was gonna like surprise her at some point, or catch her off guard with a head pat." Rex replied, assuring Equius he meant no harm to his moirail.
Equius still looked a bit stern, making sure that Rex truly meant no harm. "Ah don't worry, he's actually quite harmless. If anything, he's a MAJOR snugglebug, and gets overly worried for peoples' safety." Ari said, as a matter of factly, while sipping her coffee. "I hope you like snuggles from my brother Nepeta!" Lexii teased. Nepeta stuck her tongue out. "Yeah right!" She responded.
The group soon finished up breakfast, and cleaned up. "Here, let me help Ari! We made the mess!" Lexii said, while running some water in the sink. "Ahhh let me do it. I wanna help." Rex said, nearly towering over Nepeta. "Move your big body, befur mew fall on me." Nepeta softly hissed at Rex. "Oh stop, I'm not going to fall on you." Rex said, while grabbing a few dishes.
There was a bit of bickering, but of course Ari shut it down completely. "Ah ah! Don't you start fighting in my house!" Ari chattered. They calmed themselves, and finished up the task of cleaning. Once done, the girls decided it was time to go home with Rex. "Ari, we gotta get back. We did have fun though!" Lexii said, while giving her big cousin a hug. Ari hugged her back, and hugged Rexii goodbye.
They all left for home, leaving Ari and Equius by themselves. "Now what do we do Ari?" Equius asked her curiously. "Well, I have some work I have to do in the lab. You're welcome to come down and tinker with some stuff if you'd want; or you could stay up here and watch TV or something." Ari answered, while grabbing her lab coat, and putting her hair into a big, poofy bun.
Equius thought for a moment, and then gave her an answer. "I still wish to keep an eye on you. So. I'll be coming with you to your lab." He answered sternly. Ari rolled her eyes, but let him follow her along. They went down to the lab, Ari turning on the lights as she went in. She pulled out two lab chairs, one for her, and one for Equius. "Here, you can sit here if your gonna watch me." She said softly.
He nodded, and took a seat in the chair. Ari pulled out a small machine from her 'work in progress' bin. She grabbed a few of her tools, and began to work very hard on her latest project. Equius watched in utter fascination as she worked diligently on her work. He could notice that she was in her element, her work ethic flowing with grace and sheer patience. She was very careful not to solder anything that didn't need to be either.
It was an hour in, and she had already made such progress on her work, it was quite impressive for Equius to witness. She had to go and grab another tool to progress even further in her work. "I gotta grab my torque." She said softly, while scooting away from her workspace. She went over to her shelf where she kept said items, and couldn't find it in the location she always placed it.
She made a disgruntled noise when she looked up, and saw it on the VERY top of the shelf. The shelf itself was 6 feet tall, and she was under 5 feet. "Damn it. I wonder if Innot did this…" She grumbled, while looking pissy. She turned her attention towards Equius, who was still sitting there, watching her carefully. "Hey Equius, mind giving me a lift? I can't reach my torque." She asked, while crossing her arms.
Equius gave her a nod, willing to help aid her in her request. "Sure, Ari." He answered, while making his way over to her. "Be careful when lifting me, I don't wanna be dropped." Ari said, gently looking back at the tall troll. "I understand. I will be most careful, Ari." Equius replied. With that, his large hands went to her petite waist, lifting her up carefully. He couldn't help but blush as he lifted her upright.
His STRONG hands on her slender hips, her citrus scent hitting his nose, it was starting to plague him with quite lewd thoughts. "Here this is, and I'll grab this in case I need it." Ari mumbled, while grabbing her tiny screwdrivers. Unknown to Ari there was a spider web dangling over one of her other tools. She unknowingly ran her hand to the tool, causing the spider to crawl onto her arm.
When Ari looked at the creepy crawly, she let out a shrill scream, and flailed her arm about to get the creature off of her. Equius did his best to keep his grip on her, but she was squirming around so much, it was becoming more than a challenge to keep a hold without bruising her. "A-ari calm down! What is the- OOF!" Equius grunted, as he fell backwards onto the floor. Ari scrambled around her lab like a woman possessed to make sure it was gone.
Equius noticed her clutching her waist in pain for a moment. "A-aah.. F-fuck.." Ari hissed, as she rubbed her sore waist. Equius could tell he gripped TOO hard and bruised his lab partner. "Ari, let me look." He calmly said, while going over to her. She looked up at him, and shyly moved the clothing so that he could see the sore spots. Ari's face flushed in utter embarrassment as he looked her over.
Ari looked down at him, watching him study her bruises. "They don't look severe. You might just have to ice them." He said softly. She could feel his breath on her body, and it gave her a small shiver. "I'll be fine right?" Ari asked softly. Equius brought his face up to her, and gave her a nod. "Yes, you will be fine." He answered her. Ari's hands went to his face, and she gave it a small stroke.
Equius let out a deep hum as she did so. "...Ari… What are you doing?" He asked sternly. "Just touching your face. It feels pretty interesting. It has a much different texture than a human, or a furry." She answered. "Sorry, I'll ask next time. That was pretty rude of me." Ari said, while stopping her motions. "You are fine Ari. You were simply curious, as am I about your face." He replied.
Ari took his strong hand, and led it to her face. He gave in with some serious hesitation, for he was a bit nervous. He bruised her once, he was sure he would do it again. "It's okay… Just be really careful alright?" Ari said. He nodded, and slowly but surely, his hand was now on Ari's cheek. The new feeling was quite odd to him; soft, fluffy, and warm. "T-this is quite strange, but not very. Your face is toasty." Equius said.
Ari chuckled warmly. "W-well yeah! We are warm blooded, of course. Then again, there are some furries who are half aquatic; and will have LOWER temperatures." Ari politely replied. "You know, the only one of us that isn't really warm blooded, would be TJ's sister, Innot. She lives in Hellfene, so she MAY not be warm." She said, while making a thoughtful face. "I don't think I've ever met her… Sister." Equius said.
Ari's face read, 'You really don't want to'. "A-aaah… Let's keep it that way for now. She's quite…flirtatious, and always gets too handsy. But if you tell her 'no' she'll stop." Ari said nervously. Equius' eyebrow raised up, wondering if she was joking. "Do… People let her get away with that type of behavior?" He asked. "W-well sorta! I mean- Oh, here, let's get back over here. I don't wanna lose time." She answered.
They both made their way back over to the workbench, where Ari continued her work with her needed tools. "Now, she's a demonic creature. Here on Earth, thats a great deal to most people because she's a strange woman with strange abilities. Sure she's a devilish creature, but still, she's one of the Greats nonetheless. Around here, that's a pretty pretty powerful title, and anyone with it isn't to be fucked around with.." Ari said, while screwing in another screw.
Equius watched her work some more, while listening in about facts she was spitting. "Aw hell, I bet you didn't know that Samantha was one of Ashton's Greatest herself." Ari said, while using her magnifying glass on a certain part. Equius racks his brain, before pressing Ari for a clue. "...Samantha? Who's that again?" He asked her. "Oh, the lady you met at town hall. Piercing yellow eyes, large teeth, sultry voice, yadda yadda." Ari answered.
Equius took a moment to think hard, and realized something…He almost spoke back to a VERY important town figure! "Ari… If I may ask… How dangerous are these… Important Figures?" Equius asked her. Ari did NOT hesitate with her answer. "VERY. There's even a pecking order for who's the most likely to maim someone TJ's the 3rd dangerous, because she actually means well. Usually she's more likely to just let people off with a warning. But, if you piss her off, or hurt her friends and family, she'll hurt you in several, numerous ways." Ari replied, while adjusting her chair.
Equius thought about who the TJ woman could have been. He decides she must've been the purple rabbit lady with the aqua tipped hair. "Then, you have Innot in 2nd place. The one lady we were talking about first? She is the MOST sadistic Greatest there is. With her claws measuring up to 9 centimeters, and teeth size is at least 7 centimeters. She is able to unhinge her jaw, and decapitate you with a single CHOMP. I've seen her do so, and the sound is sickening." Ari said, while wiping the sweat off her brow.
Equius began to grow a bit more unnerved, as she continued her way up to the top of the totem pole. "But the one that everyone fears, the number 1 most dangerous one, is Samantha. Her teeth and claws are what you shouldn't fear…" Ari said, while eerily pausing. "...Its her mind you should be more afraid of." She finishes. "...Her… Mind?" Equius asked, a few beads of sweat dribbling down his forehead.
Ari gives him a nod. "Yes. She can SMELL fear. And whatever you fear the MOST, she'll use against you. It's… Worked well enough that people have had to go to mental hospitals after dealing with her. Honestly, she's kinda my idol; no offense to TJ. Samantha is just so… Strong, so dominating, so SERIOUS. She gets the job done, no matter WHAT she has to do. I even buckle near her; I'm afraid of making her mad." Ari said, while finishing up.
Equius' face started to flush a dark indigo color at the VERY thought of her being an dominant authority over him. "But… They all have their good sides. TJ of course is the MOST loving and caring person you've ever met., Innot is funny and flirty, but never takes it farther than you feel comfortable around, and Samantha is almost more maternal than TJ! And they each care for their friends in different ways." Ari said with a small smile. Equius felt a bit of relief at the thought; he certainly would NOT like to get on Samantha's bad side.
After another hour of working on another project she had for a third party commissioner, it was close to noon; snack time. "Whew! Sorry I've been talking your ear off Equius!" Ari said, while wiping off her semi-greased hands on a towel she had. "It is quite alright. I've been enjoying our conversation; and have been learning more about you and your associates." Equius replied, while setting down his pen and paper.
She stood up, and headed to the stairs. "Come on, let's go get a snack." She said, while trudging up the stairs. Equius was a bit surprised to hear her mentioning a snack, but then again, he wasn't sure if it was going to be a tiny snack for her or not. As they made it up the stairs, Ari turned off the basement lights, and walked towards the kitchen. Equius watched as she pulled out a loaf of bread, some peanut butter, and a banana.
Ari looked up to him, as she pulled out her toaster. "Want some 'Nanabutter toast? It's pretty yummy." Ari offered him, while pulling out a butter knife. Equius looked a bit unsure, but he was willing to try it if she was willing to eat it. "I mean, if you want a different snack, I have some veggies in there, or I have some snack cakes." Ari listed. "I will try what you are having, Ari." Equius stated.
Ari nodded, and made up the treat for the both of them. She also pulled out a few glasses for the both of them, so that they could both have some milk together. Once it was finished, she dressed it up as normal, and cut it in half. "There we go! Done!" She said with a happy smile on her face, while putting the plates down on the table. She also set down the cups, with a napkin for the both of them.
They dig into the toast, taking small bites together. Surprisingly, Ari was elated with this snack. Equius himself didn't have much of an opinion, but the milk however was pretty good. "Mmmmm… I love this soooo much…" Ari said, while having a big crumbly smile on her face. Equius had given a small brief chuckle at her face, seeing how funny she looked with a whole mouth covered in crumbs.
She looked up at him, cheeks full of toast, and a confused look on her face. "You have a… C-crumby smile Ari." Equius said hesitantly, knowing full well he HATES puns, or jokes of any kind. Ari snickered warmly, while wiping her mouth with the napkin that was placed aside. "Heh heh. That was a stretch… I guess you could say that you MILKED it?" Ari said, while sipping her milk.
Equius gave a small groan in response to her pun. "Ugh… Ari… Did you really just…" He said, while rubbing his eyes. Ari stuck her tongue out at him playfully. "Oh shush, you started it. And besides, I don't even LIKE puns or gags like that. They're cheesy." Ari said, while leaning back in her chair. "...You dislike puns too?" Equius asked her. Ari gave a nod. "YES. I hate them more than pranks…" Ari answered.
I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Sorry it took SO long, I'll hard not to take so long! :)
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