"Someone is going to sleep well tonight" Shion said. She slung her bags over her shoulder. "It was a blast Momo. I'm looking forward to your play." She tipped her hat at them and turned into the sunset.
Momo sighed from exhaustion. "Remind me never to go to the mall with Shion again. I know I said that last time, but this time I REALLY mean it…"
The turkey man passed the bucket he was holding to a random passer bier and plopped the headpiece over their head. "Let's walk and talk. I'm sure your Mom will be made if you're out too late."
"Oh right…I was supposed to be home two hours ago, but then I met Shion…"
"Shion is history's greatest excuse." The subject was instantly dropped.
By the time Shion made it home darkness had completely consumed the city. Her hair which was still damp had completely frozen over and her clothes smelt musty. She stumbled up the stairs tripping on the last one. She landed on her hands and knees on her door mat. As if on cue Allen opened the door allowing Shion to crawl in. Her hand clutched the arm of the sofa and with great effort she was able to pull herself. Allen stepped back his mouth slightly agape.
"What happen…to you?" His shock causing him to stutter to the point where he was barely understandable. Shion propped herself against a cushion.
"I took a wrong turn I think. I ended up in some alleyway where a rabid raccoon started stalking me. I thought if I dove into a dumpster I would lose it, but as my luck would have it said raccoon had already chased another person in that dumpster. They were scheming to defeat it by candle light…and I landed right on the tip of the flame." She rolled on her side. Allen's eyes doubled in size at the sight of Shion's scorched bottom. Shion flicked a piece of popcorn she had found between the couch pillows and it hit Allen squarely on the nose.
"I'm that hot right?" She winked at him, but he was too busy rubbing his nose to notice.
"That still doesn't explain the beads…"
Shion pulled the string of beads from her neck and shrugged. "I wandered into a casino after the decisive battle with the raccoon since my eyes were all but scratched out…"
Allen lunged towards the couch and engulfed Shion in a hug. "It's a big scary world out there…I shouldn't have let you go alone…"
Shion pouted and stared at Allen thus starting a staring contest. Allen made the funniest face he could muster without bursting out in laughter himself. Shion fixed her gaze on the vacuum cleaner. The clock ticked and a mouse scurried across the kitchen floor. Allen's face puckered up as if he had just eaten a lemon whole. Shion tapped her fingers to the tune of her favorite song on the coffee table. Allen's face took on a shade of blue making it clear that he had confused a starring contest with a breath holding contest and forgot to breathe. He collapsed to the ground clutching his neck and gasping for air. Triumphantly, Shion stood up and paraded into the kitchen. The sight of seven pies lined up in a row on their counter brought a smile to Shion's wary face.
"chaos sure was busy." Allen came up behind her. "He was determined to create the perfect pie. The prize must be something he really wants."
Shion poked the first pie in the row. The top collapsed in on itself. Shion raised her eyebrow and moved onto the next one. Its dark crust giving away that it was in the stove for a few hours too long. The third one looked so nice Shion got her hopes up and ran to grab a knife from the drawer. Drooling, Shion attempted to cut the pie. The pie was so hard it bent the knife without taking even a scratch. Shion took a step backwards and dropped the knife. She tried her best to blink back the tears, but she just wasn't that strong. She crawled up in a tight ball on the floor sobbing. Allen rushed to her side to comfort her. After having her faith in the world shattered by a single pie Shion found it difficult to talk.
"P….I…e…." She choked on her tears. Allen turned his attention to the counter hoping that if he found a good enough pie Shion would come back to him. The fourth pie appeared normal enough. The crust was the right color and cherry feeling was visible through the cracks. Allen cut Shion a wedge and placed it on the floor next to her. Shion cautiously picked the pie off her plate and nibbled at it. Shion's face went red and she jumped to her and dashed to the sink to get a drink of water. Curiously, Allen took a bite. It had a similar effect on him. Allen scratched his head.
"I knew I should have asked chaos why he had a hot pepper…" Allen said as he moved to dispose of the pie. Shion stopped him. She took the pie for later use.
"Shall we burn the other two then?" Allen asked.
"I could never throw away pie!" Shion inspected the fifth pie. Whip cream and strawberries covered the top. Shion bit her lip and pushed Allen forward.
"It's your turn to taste it. I was brave last time." Allen worked up his confidence before testing a spoonful. He chewed for a second as he searched for something to compare the flavor to.
"And…" Shion tapped her foot and glanced down at her nonexistent watch.
"Remember the time you got drunk and in your stupor mixed a crap load of random ingredients together and baked it." Shion shook her head. Allen smirked and patted her on the head.
"Of course you don't. You were so out of it you…." Allen's face went so white he was unable to finish the story. Shion had lost interest in the topic so she stole the spoon and tasted the pie for herself which she immediately spat out.
"Allen, why didn't you warn me" She punched him in the shoulder.
Shion starred down the remaining two pies. She went for the one which resembled a cheesecake first. After it cut without breaking the knife or collapsing Shion allowed herself a bit of hope. Allen watched in awe of her bravery as she tasted it.
"It's edible. I mean it would be a thousand times better if he put sugar in it…" Slightly encouraged Shion tested the last pie which appeared to be pumpkin, but with chaos as the chef it was best to assume nothing. She froze.
"Remind me to complement chaos on his odd mixture of flavors."
Allen swept his arms over the counter. The pies crashed into a heap on the floor.
"A days worth of cooking and not a single pie is worth a g." Allen held his face in his hands and lowered himself into a chair. Shion pried his hand free and inserted a taco in it. Allen gulped it down. Since Momo had told him Shion was bringing food home he hadn't eaten dinner. Four hours had passed since then.
"Well it's been a busy day. I'm hitting the hay." Shion returned to their bedroom, changed into her pajamas and settled herself in bed. Allen joined her a few minutes later. Allen cuddled close to Shion to keep warm since she was hogging all the covers.
The next morning Shion awoke to a strange silence. She sat up and looked around the room. The curtains were open and what little sun there was in late November shined through. Shion looked suspiciously at the bare floor. The pile of clothing had been there so long she had almost forgotten the color of their carpeting. After stretching and yawning Shion dragged her body into the living room. Upon entering she rubbed her eyes as hardly as she could with hurting herself. She seriously hoped what she was seeing was a mirage. Allen was dusting the bookshelf on the far side of the room with a feather duster. He donned a pink apron and had tied a pink scarf around his hair. Shion slammed her head into the wall. As she so frequently was reminded pain was the best way to wake yourself up. The noise from the impact drew Allen's attention.
"Morning Shion!" Shion dove under the coffee table. Allen shrugged and went back to his cleaning. After a minute of lying still Shion squeezed her eyes shut and scurried into the kitchen. Thinking she was safe from blinding images Shion opened her eyes. The tile sparkled more than chaos's eyes. Shion screamed and darted into the laundry room locking the door behind her. In there she found herself ankle deep in water and floating garments. Shion scooped up her favorite jacket and stroked it.
"Who this this to you?" Shion grabbed a bottle of detergent from a top the machine and kicked down the door. He stomped through the unnaturally clean kitchen and into the living room leaving dirty footprints everywhere she went. She dumped the remaining detergent over Allen's head. He spun around in utter shock. When he saw Shion he tried to creep away, but she grabbed his arm and forced him to look her in the eye.
"WHAT THE HELL YOU DO TOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" Allen could swear Shion's emerald eyes were completely consumed in flames.
"C…l…e…a…ning…." He stuttered. He was contracting more on not wetting himself in fear then speaking.
"AND WHO GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO CLEAN?" Allen cowered in the corner. Shion whipped the bottle at him and returned to the laundry room to mourn her clothing. Allen didn't dare move even when he heard knocking. Whoever it was let themselves in and Jin appeared. He helped Allen to his feet and patted him on the back.
"I've been there." Not another word needed to be spoken on the subject both men understood.
"So are you going to need any help with the cooking?" Allen asked to break the awkwardness.
Jin shook his head and pulled a book out of his kimono.
"Cooking with Tonberry" The title read and a picture on a green creature with a butcher knife decorated the cover.
"I and Kosy have it all under control." He slapped Allen again and turned to leave. "Oh be sure to come to the community center at around six for the pie contest and play. Momo, chaos, and Jr. are mighty excited." He said as he went through the door.
Shion poked her head out the door of the laundry room. "Who was that?"
"The mail carrier" Allen lied not wanting to bring Jin down with him. Shion remained in the laundry room for a good hour while Allen finished tiding up the rest of the house. The moment he saw Shion immerge Allen went to hide gain. This surprised Shion.
"Contrary to popular belief I don't bite." Shion informed the terrified man. Allen sighed and added this to the numerous times he had been saved by Shion's short term memory loss problem. The couple peacefully ate lunch then Shion reluctantly finished the laundry.
"You know there was a reason for that pile on the floor. I didn't want to have to stand here working." Allen just nodded not wanting to risk saying anything to set her off again.
When the chores were finished Shion changed into a pair of newly washed denim capris and thin sleeveless top. Allen studied her with concerned eyes.
"Shion if you go out dressed like that, you'll get sick"
Shion pondered this. "Trust me Allen getting sick now is far preferable to being forced into eating a meal cooked by my brother and Kosy. Once a while back he heated up a can of soup for me. Apparently no one ever told him you can't just pop the can in the microwave and set the timer." A new source of fear filled Allen's eyes.
Shion walked a few miles to the home of Momo and her parents. She rung the doorbell and debated charging off at top speed just to be annoying. Before she could make a decision Jr. opened the door. Shion was greeted by Momo and Ziggy who were taping what Shion presumed was the ham costume. Jr. was closely inspecting his pilgrim outfit which was lain out on the sofa. Shion also noticed chaos hovering over the stove, but he was far to engrossed in the task at hand to notice Shion.
"Instead of just watching it why don't you try it on?" Ziggy suggest to Jr.
"Hey you just want to laugh at me. After your turkey get up you're desperate to see someone make an even bigger fool out of themselves." Jr. countered and returned to watching his costume. Ziggy stabbed a piece of cardboard which Shion suspected represent the bone into the rest of the costume. Shion helped herself to a cookie from the plate on the floor. She nodded towards chaos.
"What's up with him?"
Momo looked up from her painting. "He came over earlier covered in ash begging Juli to teach him how to bake a pie." Shion tip-toed into the kitchen and jumped out at chaos. He didn't move. Shion reached in the cabinet for a pan to whack chaos over the head with when he turned around.
"Try this Shion." She opened her mouth to object, but he stuffed a slice of pie into her mouth. All eyes were on Shion. She grabbed the rest of the pie off the stove and devoured it. Shion dropped the hot pan and it shatter into a trillion tiny shards. She rushed over to the sink and ran the water on her burnt hands. chaos nodded.
"I'm ready" he said. He swept up the broken pan and properly disposed of it then attended to Shion. Her hands had already begun to blister. Momo was rolling on the living room floor laughing and Jr. squirted milk out of his nose from laughing so hard. Ziggy whistled innocently. chaos bid the gang farewell and hurried on his way. Shion sat down on the sofa.
"You have a stain on your shirt Shion. It's cherry and I love cherry." Jr. said watching the stain on Shion's chest.
Shion glanced at it. "That must have been from the pie. I did laundry before I left so all my clothes are squeaky clean." At this moment Juli walked by humming.
"It seems chaos is trying to impress someone." Juli said.
"I wonder who?" Jr. thought out loud. Shion's connection gear beeped signaling her to take her leave.
"I have to go get Allen ready. If I wasn't there he'd be playing Final Fantasy XII all day. Ever since it came out he's been addicted."
"It came out!" Momo clapped her hands. "Mommy told me the release date was delayed indefinitely."
"Yeah Allen waited all night with Kosy to get the Special Edition." Juli shoved Shion out the door and slammed it behind her. Shion waved through the window as she walked backwards down the street. A mail truck raced around the corner almost bowling Shion. Shion dove into a nearby bush where she thought she would be safe until she could catch her breath. The squirrel that made its home in the bush pierced it teeth through Shion's arm. She jumped out of the bush shaking her arm in order to displace the creature. It hung on and Shion fainted in a ditch. When she awoke the only evidence of what had happened was a pinecone taunting her. Shion rubbed her head and came to the conclusion someone must have spiked that cookie she had.
Back at her apartment Shion discovered Allen sprawled out on the floor reading a book while his battle party in Final Fantasy XII took down hordes of enemies. Shion picked the controller up and hit a few buttons. A few rounds later "Game Over" appeared on the screen.
"What you do that for"
"I didn't like the way that half naked lady was looking ay me." Shion yanked the book from Allen's grasp.
"Why the hell are you reading Beloved? I heard rumors that it makes even less sense than the ones I write."
"Because its classic literature?"
Shion smirked. "And yaoi mangas aren't?"
Allen patted her on the head. "I guess since you're dyslexic mangas would be much easier for you." Shion smiled blissfully ignorant to the insult.
Shion dug through her closet searching for appropriate attire for the evening. Allen had simply changed into a nice pair of jeans and a green shirt, but Shion refused to be under dressed. Shion pulled out a long silver dress.
"Covers too much skin." Shion dropped it in a pile with at least a dozen other rejected outfits. Allen studied Shion's body.
"I love what you have on now." Shion had been trying various things on so she was clad in only her underclothing. Shion stood in front of the mirror.
"Nah makes me look too fat." Allen chucked a shoe at her. That statement was no longer acknowledged with an answer. Shion returned to her quest for a dress. She was bombarded with shoes falling from a higher shelf. In the back Shion found what she wanted. It was a light purple dress that left far too little to the imagination. Shion threw it on and did her hair in its usual style leaving Allen speechless. Shion put her arm through Allen's and they left for the community center.