Author's Note: Well, this is it, for real. Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing. I'd love to know what people thought of how it ended. I liked writing this even more than I thought I would, hope it was ok for a novice piece. Ta.
Things weren't perfect, of course. There was the time when Howard baked Vince a pie and Vince had freaked out, thinking it was a trick pie. Howard had sulked all evening over that, until Vince had insisted on making it up to him by modeling the prototypes of his new underwear range.
Then there was the time they're been chased through the streets of Paris by a creature named Mrs Henry made entirely of corduroy off-cuts. She was a cousin of Mr Susan and had convinced herself that she and Howard were in love and made for each other. Vince had saved him, of course, and Howard had worn a bit less cord after that. Vince hadn't complained.
There was also the day they'd discovered that Blanche could talk to animals. She'd been sitting by the window, cooing to a pigeon when while Howard watched with a slight smile on his lips. He'd thought it was sweet but when Vince had walked in and heard the exchange he'd been furious.
"You can't say things like that to my daughter, you flying fleabag!" He'd yelled, flapping his arms and shooing the pigeon away. "She'll get ideas!"
He hadn't wanted to tell Howard what the pigeon had said, only murmuring that, "Pigeons are well racist," and Howard had left it at that. Until Blanche had called him a "Coo coo ca-coo" when in a temper. He didn't know what it meant but he'd told her that it wasn't polite and she'd apologised. There'd been no pigeon language from her since and Vince had loved taking her to Paris zoo and introducing her to animals of substance.
Blanche had moved into the spare bedroom eventually and Vince had cried for an hour because his baby girl was turning four and growing up too fast. Howard had reminded him that she'd only be in the next room and of all the extra private time this would give them and Vince had felt a little better but he'd still snuck into her room half a dozen times a night for the first week. Howard had eventually resorted to tying him to the bed to stop him from sneaking away. At least, that was how it'd started anyway.
The magic was well and truly back and Vince Noir and Richmond Avenal made their own brand of magic in the fashion world too, bringing androgyny to the kids with their sexy creations, and embroidered capes.
Things weren't perfect, though. They never are. Blanche still had nightmares and Vince did too from time to time. Howard worried regularly that Vince would leave him for someone more fashionable and Vince panicked that he was getting fat at least once a fortnight but they helped each other through it. Howard even learnt French, with Blanche's help.
No, life wasn't exactly perfect, Howard mused. But it was pretty close and whenever he was feeling down all he had to do was crack a joke and make the two loves of his life laugh in return. When he did, Vince's smiling face reminded him of pure sunshine and Blanche's laugh reminded him of glitter and the tinkling of glass bells.
They were his two Noirs and he would follow them wherever they went, do whatever they asked. Even if it involved dressing up as WonderWoman every now and then.