A/N: So we're jumping ahead a little.. No Le and Let this chapter. Maybe next time. As usual, thankyou to all who read or reviewed. You guys make me want to write more.

Song for the chappy : "Somewhere In Between" by lifehouse. Pretty song.

Tala stood silently in the doorway, the only light in the room coming from the open fridge door, exposing Vince. She watched with a proud smile as he carefully opened jars and packages, making himself a sandwich. Not a month ago he would have woken her up to help him, claiming he was unable to open things on his own. All it had taken was a little tough love in the form of her refusing to cook him dinner one night a couple of weeks earlier, leaving him to either starve, or figure something out himself. She had sat at the table and watched him struggle, desperately wanting to rush to his aid, but in the end she had stayed put. Sure, he had made a mess and he got more sauce on the counter than the bread, but he was adapting. He was adapting well.

"Hungry, firefly?"

Tala jumped. He hadn't even looked up to know she was there, lurking in the shadows. She cleared her throat, missing his pleased smirk. "Uh, no.. I was just wondering where you'd gotten to."

He looked up now, pressing the resealable cheese pack closed. "I was hungry."

"You're always hungry." She teased lightly, walking toward him.

Vince gasped, his hand paused mid way to his mouth. "Are you calling me fat?" he asked incredulously, throwing the sandwich down on the plate.

Tala laughed, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Yes I am." She wasn't complaining though. It felt nice to have more of him to hold on to. Vince rubbed her back and dropped a kiss on top of her head.

"Just checking." He reached for his sandwich and nodded his head toward the balcony. "Come sit?"

She looked out onto the balcony, out into the stormy night, then back at Vince. "I'm marrying a lunatic." She stated to no-one in particular, shaking her head.

Vince chuckled, handing her his plate so he could open the sliding door. The sound of the rain was loud, almost deafening but it smelled wonderful. He looked outside for a moment, then back at her. His eyes were wide and pleading.

"Please?"

Tala's eyes narrowed on his feet, toes flexing against the floor. It was a nervous habit of his. "What's gotten you all tied up in knots?" she asked gently, following him out onto the balcony. Despite the rain the small sheltered area was quite warm. She sat beside him, kicking her feet up on one of the spare chairs.

Vince took a bite of his sandwich, chewing slowly. "Will your mother like me?" He asked finally, after swallowing. Tala cringed, not looking forward to introducing Vince to her beast of a mother later that day. The older woman had decided that things between Tala and 'that young man' had gone on long enough without her meeting him and had demanded that Tala introduce her husband to be to the family before she threw her life away on a potential failure. She had tried telling her mother that Vince didn't handle crowds well but she would have none of it. She was dreading subjecting Vince to that.

"Uh.. That's difficult to say," she bit her lip, "She doesn't take well to certain kinds of people."

Vince blinked, looking down at himself. "..Oh."

She sat up, putting a comforting hand on his arm. "No, no! Vince… She's a horrible woman. She's superficial, bitchy and can be downright cruel. You could be royalty and she would still look down her nose at you."

He frowned, scratching his cheek. "Maybe I shouldn't go then... I mean, I don't want to cause problems with your mother."

Tala rolled her eyes, pushing his sandwich into his mouth to quiet him. "Vince, there's always problems with my mother. She's that one in the family that you see on your front step and pretend you're not home or just on your way out."

He looked even more concerned now than before. "You're not helping, honey. Really. You're not."

Realising she was more likely to scare him out of going, she nodded. "Right. Sorry."

"What do I call her?" He asked, picking at the crust of his sandwich. Tala slouched further into the seat and scoffed.

"I dunno.. Satan? Medusa? Take your pick."

Vince rolled his eyes, flicking a piece of bread at her. "Alright, but what do I call her to her face?" He gave her an innocent grin as the piece of rolled up bread he'd just flicked at her fell down the front of her shirt between her breasts. She growled at him, annoyed and fished it out, standing to shake the crumbs off.

"I honestly don't know, V. Ma'am?" She shrugged. "You never know with her."

Vince looked over his general appearance quickly before the door was answered. Simple white buttoned shirt with a silver embroidered dragon on the breast, long sleeved of course, and his most decent pair of jeans. He'd gotten his hair trimmed and had even tidied his beard for the occasion. I'm as decent as I'm going to get he thought drolly. His palms were sweating and his stomach was tied in knots. He could hear the hum of voices inside, many voices by the sounds of it. Beside him Tala was adjusting the strap of her top, but she managed to give him an encouraging smile.

"They're going to love you, big guy." She cooed, pulling him down to give his a reassuring kiss. Vince leaned his forehead against hers, squeezing her hand. "Just avoid getting caught alone with my mother."

"You could have told me there would be this many people here." He eyed the line of cars filling the drive and the street, then shuffled his feet nervously. "Is she really that bad?"

Tala smoothed his collar and brushed her thumbs over his cheeks, thankful for the extra height her heels gave her. "She's a shallow monster." At Vince's startled look, "But I don't plan on leaving you alone with her. I will warn you though," her eyes darkened, "-my cousins are grabby little snots."

"… Grabby?"

She sneered. "As in they will goose you." She spat, her distaste for them obvious. "If they touch your butt, which is mine, I will not be held responsible for my actions." Her face turned from dark to bright and cheery as the front door swung open, the hum Vince heard before now turning into a loud cacophony of voices. He immediately closed his eyes and cringed, trying to block out the roar of sounds. The only thing stopping him from doing the bolt was Tala's soft handed grip around his hand, gently reassuring him. He could feel her hand rubbing soothing circles on his lower back. This was the first time he had willingly been to a large social gathering in almost nine months. Large meaning over ten other people.

He blinked a few times and looked up. He was met by the sympathetic face of a man, maybe an inch or two taller than himself, with dark hair that was greying at the temples. The sound had quieted and he noticed that the man had closed the front door after stepping out.

"It's always hard the first time, son." He said in a quiet, mellow voice. Vince smiled uneasily, squeezing Tala's hand in his. She kissed his scarred knuckles, then turned to the man.

"Daddy this is Vince, Vince this is my father, Walter." She let go of Vince's hand so he could shake Walter's.

Vince nodded. "Hello, sir."

The stocky man let out a deep belly laugh. "Call me Walt, Vince. It's nice to finally meet you."

Vince nodded, unsure of normal meeting the parents protocol. "You too."

Walter looked from Vince to Tala, then stepped back a little, reaching for the door. "How about you two come in when you're ready?" His eyes narrowed conspiringly. "Your mother is in fine form today, Tal. Maybe you should come in the back door.. make a quiet entrance." He then turned to Vince. "Remember, son. Women are like sharks. They can smell blood… Don't let her know you're afraid of her."

He started to laugh. "I haven't even met her yet."

Walt's eyes narrowed again. "Trust me, Vince. I married the crazy bitch and she scares the hell outta me!"

Tala gasped and Vince erupted into a fit of laughter.

"Daddy!"

He shrugged sheepishly. "It's true!" He looked over his shoulder, making sure the door was still closed. "Now go! Go in the back door. That way the boy can get in a few drinks before he meets the devil!"

"Daddy, stop trying to scare him!" Tala scolded, swatting her father. Meanwhile, Vince had sat down and was quietly killing himself with laughter. From what he was expecting from his first meeting with his future father in law, this was the furthest from it.

"Firefly.. Maybe we should just go in the back door." He suggested, wiping the tears from his eyes. She looked at him, then back at her father.

"Fine! You distract her… we'll go in the back way."

Walt hugged her impulsively. "That's my girl!" He turned to Vince, "Remember! Show no weakness!" With that he disappeared back inside, the sound dying down as soon as he shut the door. Vince grinned, standing and taking Tala's hand.

"I like your dad."

She rolled her eyes. "Everyone likes my dad." Vince started to laugh again when he heard her mutter 'crazy bastard' under her breath. He only stopped when she thumped him in the stomach with her purse.

"Stealth, Vincent!"

He cleared his throat, following her quietly. "Right.. Stealth." He nodded firmly to himself, unable to stop the grin from creeping onto his face. Tala shook her head, opening the back door ahead of them.

Smells from the kitchen immediately wafted toward them, the noise not as loud back here. Stepping into the kitchen, Vince was met with a familiar face straight away.

Juliet looked up from the massive island counter, saw them there and put down the piping bag she was using to fill some sweet pastries with cream.

"Tala!" She cooed, wrapping her niece in a huge hug. She looked her up and down critically. "You look amazing, little one." Her eyes averted to Vince now and he felt some of those butterflies return. His worry was ill founded as she swept toward him and grabbed him into a hug much like the one she had given Tala.

"How are you Vincent? Is she taking care of you, dear?"

He nodded, leaning down to hug her. "I'm good and better than I deserve."

"Nonsense." Juliet gave him a squeeze before bustling back to her task. "First time meeting the family?" At his nod, she patted the stool beside her. "Well if you need to get away you just come out here with me." She dipped the edges of the little pastry scroll in some melted chocolate then handed it to him. "Eat up. You're too skinny."

Never one to refuse free food, Vince accepted the treat and took a bite. "I'm two hundred pounds." He mumbled around the confection.

"How heavy you are has nothing to do with how skinny you are! Eat up!"

Tala watched the scene from the side of the kitchen, pushing her purse onto the bench. "Don't force feed him, Jules! Jesus.. Let the poor man breathe."

Juliet merely rolled her eyes. "Get the boy some alcohol before your mother realises you're here. You better have some too."

Vince looked from woman to woman, "Is.. Is she really that bad? I mean.. I don't want to cause problems.."

Tala slammed a corona down in front of him. "Drink up, Coyote."

"You didn't answer my question." He said softly, his tone accusing. Tala shot him a beautiful smile and ran her hand through his hair, spiking it up.

"What question?"

He growled, "Tala.."

She winced and took a sip of his drink. "…She can be.." she replied evasively. "But hey, maybe she's drunk?"

"Oh that is it.. I'm outta here." Vince was already halfway out of his seat when somebody cleared their throat behind them.

"Well, it seems like he's running out on you already, Tala. At least it'll be cheaper than a divorce this way. God knows you could never find yourself a decent man."

Vince froze, chills running down his spine. He straightened slowly and he could tell by the set of Tala's jaw that the woman who spoke was her mother. Her words confirmed his suspicions.

"You don't even know him, mother! So don't pass judgement on him before you do!"

He turned, his hand on Tala's back. "Don't, firefly.. I don't want to come between you and your mother."

He glanced at said mother out of the corner of his eye. She was a taller version of Tala, her features a little more severe than soft, her eyes icy instead of warm. Her hair was pulled back in a tight bun and her make up perfect. She looked smug.

"It seems you already have." She spat haughtily, giving him the once over. She turned to Tala. "Do you always go for the big, brawny type or is it just this oaf?"

Juliet gasped beside them. "Penelope!"

Tala's arm wrapped around his thick waist, fingertips stroking his side when she felt him tense. Against her hip his fingers started to twitch, a sure sign of his discomfort. She ignored her mother and aunt's arguing and guided Vince out of the room, looking for her father. When she spotted him, she navigated her way through relatives and touched him on the arm.

He looked down at her, beaming. "Ah, Tala! I was just telling-"

She cut him off. "I need the key to your study." She demanded quietly, but urgently. Walt stopped and glanced across the room where he saw Vince leaning by the wall with his head down, left hand clutching his right arm. The boy looked like a tightly coiled spring, ready to burst.

"Good god, he met your mother." He fished his keys out of his pocket and pushed them into her hands. "Go on.. I'll talk to her."

"No, don't." Tala shook her head, "It would be pointless anyway. She's already decided that Vince is a big, brawny oaf."

Walt's normally calm composure cracked slightly. "Oh she didn't.." He glanced at Vince. "Take him before he rips his skin off. I have to have words with that mother of yours."

Tala leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, then made her way back to Vince. She took him by the elbow and lead him down a quiet hallway, away from the rest of the guests. She unlocked the door and lead him inside.

"I'm so sorry, big guy. I should have known she would say something like that."

He remained quiet, but looked at her with sad eyes. "Maybe she's right," he allowed her to push him into an oversized leather armchair. "Maybe I'm not good enough for you."

Tala crawled into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging his head to her chest. She was going to kill her mother.