Author's Notes- If I haven't yet had time or ability to thank you privately, I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who reviewed for your feedback! It really means a lot to me to hear what you like (or don't like) about this story.


❅ Chapter 2


No one in their right minds would describe Soul as an early riser. He liked to get in his solid eight(een) hours. In fact, if you were to ask his partner when she was in an off mood, she would peevishly describe him as narcoleptic if he didn't get sufficient sleep each night. He had a blessed ability to fall asleep anywhere and everywhere and sleep deeply virtually always, but tended to be cranky and drowsy if by some chance he was unable to get sufficient sleep.

Sleeping under a roof belonging to his parents was not conducive to getting sufficient sleep.

Soul suspected it was the smell. The private ski lodge where he had spent many a winter holiday during his childhood still smelled just as it had when he was young, a sort of musky, piney scent that he'd never smelled anywhere else but here. Although his memories of this place were mostly pleasant, it was still vividly reminiscent of a time when he had not been a very happy person. It was unsettling.

He had passed the night tossing fitfully, dozing off for what might have been minutes or hours at a time before twitching awake. The furnace that heated the lodge seemed to be turned up too high, and he spent half the night kicking his quilt off repeatedly when it got too hot for him to stand it, then yanking it back up when he realized that it wasn't quite warm enough to go without covers at this altitude. All told, he was in a foul mood when he finally gave up the game at what the clock on the nightstand told him was a little after eight in the morning. Well, if he couldn't sleep, at least he could eat something.

Soul stumbled down the hallway still dressed in his sweatpants and an old t-shirt, rubbing sleepily at one eye. He perked up slightly at the sound of voices coming from downstairs, and descended the stairs to the bottom floor, ears pricked curiously.

Tsubaki and Maka, he found, had taken over the kitchen and were midway through preparing what Soul could only assume were enough pancakes to feed a small army. And considering that was exactly who was currently residing in the lodge, perhaps that was appropriate.

Soul's train of thought was derailed when Maka turned around, a bowl of batter in her hands. She was still in her pajamas and her hair was falling loose around her shoulders, and she had a smudge of flour across her cheek. When she caught sight of him, her already cheerful smile widened into a beaming grin, and it was all Soul could do to keep from melting into a stupidly uncool puddle right there on the floor. Sometimes, in the midst of all the death scythe-wielding and the Maka-chopping and the kishin-slaying, he forgot that his meister wasn't just death on legs, she was also adorable as all hell. Which, of course, made the moments he was reminded of it all the more powerful in contrast.

He offered her a soft grin of his own in return, and was pleased to see that her cheeks pinked slightly as she turned back to hand the bowl she was carrying off to Tsubaki. "Perfect timing, Soul," she said. "You can get started on the bacon for us."

Soul groaned and hung his head tiredly. "Do I have to?"

Maka made a threatening gesture with a spoon. "Yes! Tsubaki's been working at this even longer than I have and she could use some more help. Now get your butt over here."

With an exasperated groan that sounded at least twice as annoyed as he actually was, Soul slumped across the room to do as he was told.


The smell of bacon frying roused the rest of the household, and over the course of the next ten minutes they came stumbling into the kitchen in varying states of half-awake, most of them still in their pajamas. The dining area was quickly filled with people, and Soul, Maka, and Tsubaki had their hands full trying to get breakfast to table as quickly as possible, a task made slightly more difficult by the fact that Tsubaki had decided to make four different kinds of pancakes on top of the ordinary buttermilk ones.

Last to arrive were Liz and Patti. The younger Thompson was drowsy and yawning, draped over her sister's back and sleepily half-dragging her feet behind her. Liz deposited her in a chair next to Kid, who was busy tidily bisecting his pancakes, then flopped into a chair beside Kilik, looking exhausted. "Coffee?" she mumbled hopefully.

Kilik grinned, and left off scolding Thunder for trying to put syrup in her brother's hair. He reached for the carafe of strong black coffee in the middle of the table. "Hey, Soul, can we get a fresh mug over here?" he called. "Sid's about to have some company in the walking dead category if we don't get Liz perked up."

Liz groaned and flopped a hand in Kilik's direction in a half-hearted attempt to smack him on the shoulder. "Shaddup, I had to share a bed with Patti last night."

"So?"

"She kicks. It's been so long, I forgot how much she kicks."

Kilik made a sympathetic face, distractedly thanking Soul as he passed him clean white mug. He poured steaming coffee into the mug and handed it off to a grateful Liz. "I know what you mean. Sometimes these two-" he jerked his head in the direction of his weapons, "-used to have nightmares and they would always come invade my bed when it happened."

Fire glared at him. "Did not!"

"Did so." He ruffled the young boy's hair playfully. "Eat your pancakes, kid."

Liz hid her grin in a sip of coffee. "You're good with them," she commented, ignoring Fire sticking his tongue out at her.

Kilik shrugged. "They didn't have any family when they were brought to Shibusen," he said. "Someone has to look out for them."

"And you're just the man for the job, huh?" she rejoined, smiling openly this time.

"Aw, c'mon, Liz," Kilik said, a cocky grin spreading across his face. "I'm just the man for any job. You've worked with me before, you know I'm flexible."

A lesser woman than Elizabeth Thompson would have blushed at the innuendo. As it was, she settled for smirking back at Kilik as if to say "prove it" and simultaneously hurling a sausage with pinpoint accuracy across the table at Black*Star, who was mime-gagging at them.

"Nice aim!" Kilik remarked, looking suitably impressed.

Liz's smirk grew wider. "I am a pistol," she pointed out. "Aiming is my job."

"Fair point."

Presently Soul joined the group at the table, having finished the jobs Maka had assigned him upon his appearance at the kitchen. He took the empty seat between Kim and Harvar, digging into his breakfast with gusto. At his arrival, Liz turned a friendly glare on him. "So I was doing a little exploring last night before I went to bed. Soul, you didn't tell us this place has a jacuzzi!" she said accusingly.

He swallowed a large bite of pancake and shrugged unconcernedly. "Slipped my mind."

"Aw man, you're kidding!" Kilik exclaimed, looking vastly disappointed. "If I'd known your folks had a jacuzzi I'd have brought my swim trunks!"

"Who needs a swim suit anyway?" Liz rejoined. "After all, isn't underwear pretty much the same thing?" She winked at Kilik, who gulped.

Kim leaned close to Soul's ear, making him jump, and whispered, "Sounds like Liz has been taking lessons from that sex kitten roommate of yours."

"What?" Soul spluttered. "Maka's not-!"

"Not Maka," Kim said with a roll of her striking turquoise eyes. "I meant Blair, silly."

Soul exhaled heavily, running a hand awkwardly through his hair. "Uh, yeah. Of course. Dunno why I thought you meant Maka. 'Cause, y'know, she's Maka and… uh…"

"I understand what you mean, Soul," Kim said, patting his upper arm reassuringly. Soul got the impression that she didn't understand at all, especially when her fingers lingered a little extra-long on his bicep. Both Ox and Jackie followed the action closely, and neither of them looked especially happy.

Soul would rather deal with an angry lantern and a jealous spear-meister any day, however, over the consequences of pissing off Maka. He could feel his partner's eyes boring into the back of his head as she loaded up the last plate of pancakes. He wasn't sure if it was because she'd overheard the conversation or if it was because she was jealous, but he hoped very much that it was the latter and was very sure it was actually the former.

He'd been very good about not making any comments about Maka's sex appeal or (supposed) lack thereof since the Book of Eibon. That little misadventure had taught him, if nothing else, that despite outward appearances his meister struggled with insecurities as much as anyone else, and he had no desire to continue contributing to that. It certainly didn't hurt that his female form in the Lust Chapter had been a little too flat-chested for him to get away with making any further comments about his partner's modest chest without someone (probably Black*Star, the loud-mouthed bastard) calling him on it. Some days Soul was certain that his friends lived to embarrass him like that.

And now, of course, she'd probably overheard that little exchange with the witch and taken what he'd said completely wrong. Way to go, Soul, he lamented, completely ignoring whatever comment Kim was currently making.

"Kimiearl," Ox interrupted abruptly, "if you could kindly refrain from flirting, some of us are actually trying to eat, thank you."

"Well then if you want to create a pleasant dining environment so badly, maybe you should consider putting a bag over your head," Kim shot back peevishly. "I can talk to whoever I want, Ox."

"So, Soul!" Tsubaki interrupted loudly, trying as always to make peace as quickly as possible, "Whoever your family had stock the kitchen didn't do a very good job. I'm not sure they knew how many of us were going to be here, because we used up all the milk and most of the eggs just on breakfast this morning, so I was thinking I might drive down into town today and pick up some groceries."

Soul shook his head. "Nah, you don't have to do that. I can just call the guy-"

"No, it's fine," Tsubaki said. "I need to go rent ski gear anyway, so I might as well do both things, right?"

Soul shrugged. "Fine, whatever works."

This touched off a flurry of planning for the day. After a lively discussion on the subject, it was decided that a whole group was driving back down into town to take care of some errands before officially hitting the slopes tomorrow. Tsubaki, Jackie, and the Thompsons immediately volunteered to go into town. Kilik had been planning on going as well, even though he had brought his own snow gear and didn't actually need anything, because the twins needed ski rentals. However, Liz volunteered to take charge of Fire and Thunder for the day and get them the things they would need, leaving Kilik free to join Black*Star and Harvar in scoping out the ski areas upslope and figuring out the best places to start the next day. Maka, for her part, planned to stay in the lodge and enjoy the view, since Soul had offered her the use of his mother's ski gear, which was just about the right size for her.

Kid had been planning on joining the group to go into town in order to ensure that Liz and Patti's gear met his standards, but shortly before they were all to set out, a call came through on the mirror from Sid and he was forced to decline at the last minute in order to speak to the teacher he had left in charge of Shibusen in his absence. Ox enthusiastically claimed his seat in Harvar's van once it became clear that Kim wasn't planning on going.

"Wait, don't you need ski stuff too, Kim?" Jackie asked.

The pink-haired witch waved a hand lightly. "Yeah, but I don't really feel like going all the way down. You know my sizes, right?"

Jackie's face fell, but she nodded. "I can take care of it. But you're paying me back for the rental fee!"

"Sure, sure," Kim agreed. Turning away from her weapon, she asked, "What are you gonna do while everyone's gone, Soul?"

"Probably chop some firewood. There's a big stack of logs behind the house, but it needs to be cut if it's actually gonna be worth burning, so I figured I'd deal with that."

"Wow!" she said. "Sounds interesting!"

He raised a pale eyebrow at her. "It's cutting wood, it's about as interesting as watching paint dry, Kim."

"Well then, maybe it's just you," she said with a coy smile.

Ox looked nauseated.

"You know what?" Make said, getting to her feet with a disgusted look on her face, "I changed my mind. I think I'll go into town after all. Is there still room in your van for one more, Harvar?"

"Should be," he said. "You're small. We can squeeze you in the back between Fire and Thunder."

"I thought you were gonna try to finish that book!" Soul protested. He had actually been looking forward to the house being mostly empty for a few hours, just him and Maka. Well, and Kim, but it was a big house. Sure, it was just him and Maka (and occasionally Blair) at home, too, but there was a difference between being alone in their home that they saw every day and being alone in a private ski cabin in the mountains. There was something kind of romantic about the latter and, okay, he and Maka weren't together, but he was working on that. A few hours alone, a cozy fire… that was something he could work with, dammit! Why did she have to go and change her mind?

"The book's going to be there when I get back," Maka said, and for the first time Soul regretted using that argument to get her out of the house so many times over the years. "I'd like to spend some time with our friends while we're all together like this."

"But-!"

Soul didn't really have an argument against that that didn't make him sound pathetic and incredibly uncool, but even if he'd had one, Maka had already stomped out of the dining room and up the stairs and it wouldn't have done him any good.

Kid, who had returned just in time to catch the tail end of the conversation, gave Soul a sympathetic grimace.

"What did Sid want, Kid?" Liz asked.

The shinigami sighed. "Nothing of importance after all. He was a little concerned about a minor argument that occurred yesterday between Azusa and Mabaa's high chancellor, but it most likely will turn out to be nothing. I think he's a little paranoid, since this is the first time I've left Death City on anything besides official business since my enthronement."

"Sid always did like to dot his i's and cross his t's," Jackie observed.

"Yeah, that's just the kind of man he used to be," Harvar said, straight-faced.

The whole table dissolved into raucous laughter, earlier unpleasantness forgotten.


It took Soul longer than anticipated to chop the firewood. It probably didn't help that he'd procrastinated for three or four hours watching the Death City Devils game on the flat screen, but the actual chore itself took an ungodly amount of time. He only wanted to have to do this once this week if he could help it, so he had a sizable amount of work to do, and he ran into a bit of a sticking point when he couldn't find the axe. Whether it had been misplaced over the years or simply stolen, he wasn't sure, but eventually he just resorted to using his own bladed arm to complete the task. He was a whole lot sharper than any inanimate tool, but he also had a hard time getting the right angle and leverage to split the logs, making the whole process take twice as long as it should have.

By the time he heard the rumble of Harvar's van pulling up on the other side of the house, his shoulders were sore, his lack of sleep was catching up to him, and he kept having to stop to blow his nose because the freezing cold mountain air was making it run. It was putting him in the kind of mood where all he wanted to do was go on a mission, just so he'd have an excuse to stab something. He took his frustration out on the wood he was working on as best he could, but that only served to make him clumsy.

"Do you need any help with that?" Kim asked. Soul nearly jumped in startlement, not having heard her approach. He was surprised to see her, as she'd mostly left him alone once everybody else left.

"Uh… no, I've got it," he said.

She smiled, and he was relieved to see that it seemed to be a guileless, friendly smile. He'd been getting the sense, since she'd arrived last night, that maybe she was hitting on him or something, as weird as that was. Maybe it was some kind of hormonal girl-response because she was single again? Whatever it was, it looked like she'd gotten it out of her system.

"Are you sure? Because I could just take care of all this with magic," she offered.

Soul shook his head, sinking his blade into another piece of wood, willing her to go away. Just because she wasn't inappropriately invading his personal space anymore didn't mean he wanted her hanging around watching him make a fool of himself trying to cut some goddamn wood. "Thanks, but I'm almost done," he said gruffly.

A new voice piped up, "You're gonna make your blade go dull."

Soul paused and glanced over his shoulder, his right limb still sunk deep into a cedar log. Maka was standing there, and although her expression was neutral, her eyes betrayed that she had a bee up her butt. Whether it was again or still, he wasn't totally sure, but he resigned himself to the fact that he was going to have to deal with whatever it was.

Kim, he noticed, had caught onto Maka's mood a whole lot faster than she'd caught onto his, and she was making a tactful exit from the scene.

"My blades don't go dull, Maka," he pointed out. "You know that. They're not inanimate objects, they're part of my body."

"My mistake," she said coolly. She tossed her hair over her shoulder. Ordinarily he would have been enjoying that she was wearing it down to accommodate her winter hat, but at the moment he was feeling too surly to care, and the fact that he didn't care just pissed him off more.

"Jeez, what crawled up your butt and died?" he muttered. "You've been in a mood all day."

"Says the boy who woke up on the wrong side of the bed and about six hours too early," she said scathingly. "Don't throw stones when you live in a glass house, Soul."

He turned away, not wanting to deal with this anymore. "At least I've been pleasant," he grumbled.

And he had, for the most part, because this was a vacation and he didn't feel the need to ruin it for everybody just because he hadn't gotten a decent night's sleep. It would be nice if Ox and Kim could pay everybody else the same courtesy, he thought grumpily.

"Whatever," Maka scoffed, and he heard the crunch of her boots as she tramped away through the snow. Jeez, even her footsteps sounded angry.

Seriously, what was her problem?


When they had all gone their separate ways that morning, they had left the dishes unfinished, and the kitchen was a disaster. Upon seeing the state of things, Maka immediately fell to the task of tidying up. Cleaning was a soothing, repetitive kind of chore that always made Maka feel a little better when she was in a funk. It made her feel in control of her environment even if she wasn't in control of herself, which she rather felt was the case at the moment.

She was being ridiculous. She knew she was being ridiculous and she kind of wanted to Maka-chop herself for it, but she couldn't help herself. She'd thought going into town with Tsubaki and the others had given her time to get over Kim's little display at breakfast, but when she'd gotten back and seen the two of them having what looked like a cozy little chat… Well, it was safe to say she'd lost her temper a bit, which wasn't really fair.

She had no business being snippy with Soul. After all, it wasn't his fault that Kim seemed to have latched onto him like a limpet. He certainly wasn't encouraging her. Even if he was, though, Maka wouldn't really have had a leg to stand on. Soul was not her romantic property. He was perfectly free to flirt with or date whomever he liked.

She didn't realize how hard she was scrubbing on the syrup-encrusted plate in her hands until she lost her grip and it went shooting down into the sink. It was extremely lucky the thing didn't break. Taking a deep breath, Maka forced her muscles to relax, and returned to the chore with a little less vigor.

Despite the fact that she had decided a long time ago that no matter what she felt about Soul, escalating their relationship wasn't a good idea, the knowledge didn't seem to be translating to the part of her brain that controlled her emotions. Seeing Kim being so coy and flirtatious with Soul had sparked a fit of futile possessiveness that boiled in her blood.

She hated how easily she got jealous when other girls took an interest. After all, he certainly couldn't blame them. Soul's looks were a little unusual but he was very attractive, as she would be the first to admit- though not where he would be able to hear her. At least she had gotten better at ignoring his gaggle of fangirls from the NOT class, mostly because Soul rejected them out of hand and never seemed to pay any mind to them at all. It was easy to ignore the competition when they weren't actually competition.

Not, of course, that there actually was any competition. Soul had made it clear in the past- and again today, though at least he'd had the good grace not to say it to her face- that he found her about as attractive as a rock. Maka wasn't especially self-conscious about how she looked, but given that more often than not she practically drooled if Soul saw fit not to put a shirt on after showering, it would've been gratifying if he found her at least a little bit sexy.

That whole thing was just so stupid, she thought, taking her frustration out on the griddle as she scrubbed cooked-on pancake bits off the surface. It wasn't as if she had any intention of making a move on Soul herself, so why should she begrudge Kim for trying? Kim was had broken up with Ox again, too, so she wasn't doing anything wrong. Maka just couldn't understand why it should bother her so much more to see Kim flirting with Soul than any of the dozens of other girls who had tried their hand with him.

Maybe it was just because Kim was their friend. She wasn't some nearly-anonymous fangirl among many. She was someone they were close to, somebody Soul actually did care about. Soul wasn't interested- at least, Maka hoped he wasn't, because she didn't know if she could stomach watching him date- but Kim definitely had a better shot than some curly-haired bimbo three years younger. Yes, that was probably it. Just the fact that there was a greater chance he'd take the bait for once had her on edge.

Ironically, it actually calmed her down somewhat to understand what it was that had set her off.

"Maka-chan?" Tsubaki's soft voice broke in on her thoughts.

Maka rearranged her face into something more pleasant than a thoughtful grimace and turned to catch the older girl's eye. "Hey, Tsubaki."

"Would you like me to help dry?" she offered.

"I'm fine, but I won't say no if you want to help."

Tsubaki grabbed a towel and jumped in immediately, grabbing a plate from the drying rack. They worked in friendly silence for a minute or two, before the weapon asked, "Maka, did you notice anything… odd about Black*Star today?"

Maka looked up from her task. "What do you mean? Odd how?"

"I'm not entirely sure how to explain…" Tsubaki said. "He just seemed very… focused?"

"Focused on what?"

Tsubaki blushed prettily. "Well… me."

Maka laughed. "Tsubaki, you're his girlfriend. It's not weird for him to be focused on you sometimes. He's probably just horny."

The Maka of a few years ago would have blushed saying such a thing, especially about one of her oldest friends; after years of sex talk from Liz and eventually from Tsubaki, from whom she had learned a great deal more about Black*Star's sex life than she ever wanted to know, she had gotten a great deal more comfortable around the subject.

Tsubaki stared into space for a few moments, pondering that suggestion for a moment. Then her face relaxed into a grateful smile. "Thank you, Maka. You're probably right." The tone of her smile shifted into something a little more perverted, and Maka immediately decided she needed to change the subject before she got to hear even more about how good a certain ninja assassin was in bed.

"So, what was that with Liz and Kilik at breakfast this morning?" she asked hurriedly.

"Hm?"

"I dunno, it just seemed like they were flirting a lot. Do you think there's something going on with them?"

Tsubaki shrugged. "I'm not sure. They worked together often while Kid was imprisoned by Noah. Maybe they got closer than we thought?"

Maka pondered this. Kilik had acted as the Thompsons' primary meister while Kid was missing, and they'd gone on missions with him since then if his own weapons were unable to go, but she hadn't thought much of it. "They've always gotten along pretty well," she reasoned.

"I think they'd be very cute together," Tsubaki said enthusiastically.

"It'd definitely be good for Liz to have somebody," Maka agreed. "She's been complaining about Black*Star cock-blocking her for years."

Tsubaki nodded in agreement, and then since neither of the girls was especially inclined to gossip, the conversation wandered in other directions.


It was another good twenty or thirty minutes before Soul had finally finished his task, and starting to get dark outside. He felt like his entire body had frozen solid and the only thing he wanted in the world was a cup of tea and a hot shower. He stripped off his outerwear and kicked off his boots in the doorway, suddenly grateful that this was his family's place and therefore his territory and therefore Maka couldn't yell at him for leaving his shoes wherever. He'd dealt with enough from her for one day, thanks. Of course, it probably wouldn't stop her if she took it into her head to be pissy, but at least if she wasn't right he could ignore her.

Upon entering the kitchen he found Tsubaki and Maka in the process of putting away the last of the dishes from breakfast.

It wasn't in Soul's nature to hold onto anger for very long, especially when it came to Maka. She got under his skin easily, but she was hard to stay mad at, especially when she was wearing that dorky Christmas sweater he'd gotten her as a gag gift a few years back because it looked horrible and which she'd taken to wearing enthusiastically and often just to spite him.

He resigned himself to the fact that, even though she'd started… whatever it was that had just happened, he felt compelled to put a stop to it and clear the air as soon as possible. He wasn't sure if they were fighting or what, or why she was even so surly in the first place, but he didn't like it when things were weird between them. He hadn't when they were just kids, barely more than strangers, and he definitely didn't now.

"Hey, Maka-" he began.

"I think I'll go to bed!" Maka announced to Tsubaki in a chirpy, forced tone, cutting him off sharply before he could get another word in.

Tsubaki looked sideways at her, then glanced at Soul, then back to Maka, clearly confused. "Are you sure? It's still pretty early, and Patti has more board games…"

Maka shook her head vigorously. "No, I'm sure. If we're all going to get up early to go skiing tomorrow, I want to be well-rested."

"Alright…" Tsubaki said, sounding a little uncertain. "If you say so."

"Yeah. You all enjoy the games. I'll stay up with you all tomorrow, okay?" Maka gave Tsubaki a warm smile, then a brief glance and a jerk of her head that might have been a nod to Soul, and padded out of the kitchen. Once she was gone, Tsubaki looked curiously at Soul, but he just shook his head and squeezed past her to get to the cabinet where the mugs were kept.

There were a lot of good things to be said about Tsubaki, but one of the best, in Soul's opinion, was that she was very good at reading people and knew when to let things drop. Without a single question on the subject of Maka's behavior, she murmured something about making sure Black*Star hadn't gotten into any trouble upstairs and made a tactful exit.

Left to his own devices, Soul set about making tea. Even in their vacation home his parents kept a good stock available, for which he was grateful. Maka was rarely willing to splurge on the real stuff, so he always had to settle for tea bags, which were okay in a pinch but not particularly satisfying or particularly much like tea. But he had a full selection of loose teas to choose from waiting in the cabinet, and the prospect of something hot and minty was enough to perk him up.

"You too, huh?"

Soul looked over his shoulder and found the source of the unexpected voice in one Jacqueline Dupré, leaning against the refrigerator with her arms crossed and her nose wrinkled up in a sympathetic grimace. She was more dressed-down than usual, just jeans and a casual sweatshirt, and it was weird to see the buttoned-up weapon so casual.

"What?"

"Can't keep your meister's eyes on you for more than two seconds, right?" she guessed knowingly.

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I saw you guys snapping at each other earlier," she explained. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she's a little annoyed because Kim was hanging all over you earlier. I'm sorry about that, by the way. I've given up trying to reign her in when she gets like this."

Soul's pensive frown deepened. "Is that what's making her so crabby?"

"Probably. Maka's always been kind of possessive of you."

It was a sign of how pathetically far gone he was that this casual observation was enough to make him feel like smiling. "You think so?" he asked, taking his steeping mug of tea from the counter and sitting at the table instead.

Jackie smiled, pushing off the fridge with her hips and moving to join him, dropping gracefully down into a chair opposite him, unfolding her arms at last to lean forward against the table. "Definitely. A couple of my younger friends in the NOT class and I had a running bet about how long it was gonna take for her to completely blow a gasket when you were being stalked so much by all those girls a few years ago. Right after Maka made you a death scythe, remember?"

Soul snorted, but felt a little disappointed all the same. Maka might have a possessive streak, but that whole fiasco had been related to her insecurities as a meister. Then again, Kim wasn't just a girl, she was also a meister. He supposed that explained Maka's behavior, at least.

"Shit, yeah… I guess she was a little extra-violent around then, wasn't she?"

"Yeah." The amused spark faded somewhat from Jackie's dark eyes and she looked away from him to stare thoughtfully at the tabletop. "I guess you've got a better chance than I do, anyway."

"Wait, you…?"

"Yep."

"For Kim?"

"Yep."

He blinked. "Oh. I didn't know you-"

"Yeah." She glanced up at him, and her look held a bit of a challenge. "Got a problem with that?"

"Why would I?" Soul shrugged. It was no business of his whom Jackie chose to love, or anybody else for that matter. "So do you think you've got a shot?"

Jackie leaned her cheek against her palm, frowning ponderously. "I dunno. I mean, she's a witch. Gender and sexuality are much more fluid concepts for witch-kind than for most humans, so… maybe?"

"Huh. I didn't know that."

She nodded, still with her head propped against her hand. "There's a lot about witches people don't know."

That was certainly the truth. Things had been improving in incremental fits and starts since Kid and Kim had forged the treaty some years back, but there was still so much both sides didn't understand about each other. Jackie probably knew more about witch society than any other human alive, given her unique access.

"Well, I wish you luck," Soul said.

"And the same to you," she responded with a sardonic quirk of an eyebrow.

He raised his mug. "Here's to being strung-out fools in love, huh?"

She chuckled. "I'd drink to that, but I haven't got a drink."

"Shit, you want something? Coffee or something?"

"A bottle of vodka'd hit the spot right about now, but barring that, the tea actually smells amazing."

Soul grinned. "That, I can manage."


Kilik had no more ambitious intentions when he left his bedroom than making a quick visit to the restroom. He hadn't intended to cross paths with Liz Thompson, barefoot and wrapped up in a fuzzy white robe (embroidered, he noticed, with little Christmas trees around the wickedly short hem… not that he was staring at her legs or anything). He hadn't intended to follow her after she gave him a long look and a jerk of her head to indicate that he should accompany her. He certainly hadn't intended to end up in the room with the jacuzzi she'd been talking about that morning.

And yet, here he was, watching Liz teasingly untying that teeny tiny bathrobe. Watching her drop it to the floor to stand there in nothing but her underwear. Oh god she was wearing a thong!

"Uh…"

"What's the matter?" she asked, flashing him that smirky little grin, like the cat that got the cream, that had been starring in some of his favorite fantasies for months.

"Nothing," he spit out quickly, maybe a little too quickly because she had a smug knowing look in her eye. "You sure you wanna do this?"

Liz stepped into the bubbling jacuzzi, and damn, those legs of hers-!

"What's there to be sure about?" she asked, coy. "It's like I said this morning, underwear's just like a swimsuit, right?"

Aw, screw it. A beautiful, interesting girl wanted him to get in a hot tub with her. Who was he to say no?


Author's Notes- Although I conceived the story and drafted the outline way back at the start of November, I got frustrated and put off starting until after Thanksgiving, and then I just put the prologue down and didn't write another word of it until... oh, the 21st of December. So basically, every word of this was written in an incredibly rushed, harried fashion as I tried to pull my procrastinating ass together to finish in time (which I still did not succeed in, by the way, so Chapter 5 will be written on the plane out to Phoenix and may be around 24 hours late if the dictation app on my mobile malfunctions or something).

Basically what I'm saying is, this fic could have been much more detailed and about 20K words longer if I'd actually started it when I first said I was going to write it. So... that may explain a lot. Feel free to not take it especially seriously as a result, because it's really not meant to be.