So when I rushed to upload 'Buttery Goodness' I totally forgot that I had written more to with it. Now my completed one shot has become a multi-shot and I'm not sure where else I'm heading with it. What I do know is that I absolutely love this piece of fic, definitely one of my favorites, and I hope some of you like it too. I own nothing and mean no harm.

November

"NO," he said it with as much authority as he could muster.

Given where they were and what she was considering, it was a hell of lot of authority.

"But-"

Nick cut her off, turning on his heel; he headed out the glass door without further hesitation.

Behind him he could hear Cassie apologizing, asking for more time, and then the door swung shut behind him and her voice was cut off.

Cassie was trying his patience, he knew it and she knew it, and he forced back to the urge to Move the whole damn establishment out of existence.

"Nick," there was uncertainty in her voice, a hint of fear and a whole lot of pleading. Only his Cassie could pour so much into four letters.

A deep breath helped, he felt the power that surged through him taper off, after all the structure hadn't asked that Cassie Watch it.

"A tattoo, Cassie, really?"

Their relationship was strange and strained enough as it was without her asking him for things she had no business considering much less asking for. He could have signed the permission slip without any trouble, the guy behind the counter hadn't looked like the type to ask too many questions, but that wasn't the point.

She was walking and talking, he was half-listening to her rambling explanation. Any second she was going to pull out that damn book and show him what he really, really didn't want to see; she had Watched herself get a tattoo, and he was supposed to take her.

"Cassie," her words continued uninterrupted, "Cassie," he said a little louder, and she stopped short, looking up at him, her gaze had less distance to travel than in previous months and the fact startled him.

Cassie was growing up, literally right in front of his eyes, "It's just weird," her mouth opened, than closed, and once again he surprised her.

"What why?"

Why indeed, because he wasn't her date, ten years remember, and he wasn't her brother, he wasn't even going to go into the why's of that one, and he wasn't even sure he was her friend. They were together because they didn't want to be apart but that didn't mean anything, or it meant everything, and still, "It just is."

There that was all she was going to get from him.

Her arms crossed and he realized he was going to have to come up with a whole lot more.

"You're fifteen," lame but true and it was slightly better than 'because I said so' and much easier than the truth.

Cassie was studying him, her lips were quirked and there was a line forming between her eyebrows, and he knew that she was going to make some revelation far too insightful for her age.

"I told you about this, included you, because I didn't want to go behind your back," and it's a major win for Nick's own Watching skills, "but I am going to get this tattoo."

And Cassie sure was pulling out the big guns, "with or without you."

Nick smirked, Moving her just enough that she slid back a few inches, "I'm pretty sure I could make it hard for you."

The eyebrow rose on cue and he saw her take a deep breath in, she could go either way really, rip him a new one, she certainly had the tongue for it, or Watch him while he was watching her and see how it all played out.

Cassie had gotten much better at Watching on demand and he resigned himself to Vaseline and saran wrap. A split second before she made her decision he made his, "so Ink huh?"

He smirked when her words failed her, "Let me see," he flicked his fingers at her bag, knowing that whatever design would be scribbled in her precious notebook.

"Uh," she dug through her bag; it was a big bag today, a garish mint green with random splashes of color that made him a touch dizzy. There was no reason for any one to carry around that much stuff.

After an amusing fifteen seconds Cassie withdrew her Moleskin notebook, he had picked one up for her in Chicago on a whim and she had fallen in love with the binding and pages, 'no more black spiral' she had sworn.

With a smile he took the book out of her hand, in a considerably better mood, his smile turned into a grin and she frowned, "Why are you so interested now?"

He flipped through to the last filled in page, "Just curious to see what I'm going to be getting," the words had dropped from his lips without permission.

"WHAT!" Nick was pretty certain that the look on her face, a mixture of shock and horror, was going to be worth some Ink.

"There's no way in hell that guy," he pointed the little book at the glass door, "is marking you before he marks me," at ease with his decision and not a little bit excited he examined what she had drawn..

Unexpectedly his chest tightened, the significance of what she had she Seen of what her future self had chosen hit him in the gut, his eyes flicked up to her face. Cassie was quite interested in the cracked pavement beneath her booted feet, his eyebrows rose as the shock of the choice settled.

Shutting the book, he carefully wrapped the band around the cover and handed it over to her, their eyes met as her hand met leather, their fingertips touching briefly.

"So a lotus blossom huh?"

She shrugged, mortification clear on her face, and he rocked back on his heels. Cassie loved to play grown-up to his tight-ass, well she in for a surprise, "I like it."

Her eyes widened, his continued ease at the upcoming event unsettling her, he smirked, "Have you thought about where you are going to get it? Location is important; you know how much it hurts and how long it lasts, that all depends on where you get it."

Freaking her out was proving to be more fun than he would have thought, she was clearly waiting for him to flip out, maybe grab her over his shoulder, as he had done on more than one occasion and stomp them back to their shit hole hotel; not tonight.

"Um," Cassie without words was a rarity.

"I think your wrist might be good choice," he pointed at her right hand, he didn't know why he pointed to the inside of her wrist, but it felt like the right place, he Moved the bracelets that covered the pale skin.

It didn't matter where they were or what the weather was, she never tanned and he always did; it was the way of things.

And that look, the one she was throwing at him, that was the way of her Watching unfolding. He must have brought the location from a Watch to the Real.

"So the wrist huh, like I said location was everything and that's a good one," he considered where he wanted his toyed around with a couple of ideas, thought about asking her to Look for his but decided not to press his luck, it was possible she might implode from his acceptance.

Slapping his hands together, she jumped about a foot in the air, his smirk deepened and he bit back the smart ass comment.

She really wanted an explanation, really wanted to know what had brought about the 180 in his attitude, but Cassie was doing as much lip biting as he was. Maybe she was afraid if he explained himself he might talk himself out of it, which was a very real possibility, or maybe she was a little bit afraid of another reason he was being so accommodating; a reason he didn't even want to consider in his own head.

It was an early birthday present; she would be sixteen in a month, or really month and a half, but who was counting (which was total bullshit since he counted off every day in his head) regardless, he was sticking with his story.

Without another word Cassie followed him back into the tattoo parlor, looking no happier than she would be on her way to meet Division agents and he couldn't help the laugh that was building and hiding it behind a rather obnoxious cough that drew both her sharp eyed look and the artist's curious one.

"Sorry, frog in my throat," how had he not found the fun in this before? Cassie could sure come up with some hair brained schemes. Some that had nothing to do with the big picture and others that could change the whole color scheme and every time he played the role of Devil's Advocate.

Shooting down the idea, reworking it until it was practical or safe or comprehensible, that was how they worked. And he had to admit that he got a sort of pleasure in their debates, but nothing it seemed, to what Cassie got out of it. She loved arguing her point, fighting to get her way was her way, and by simply going along he had thrown her for a loop.

Huh, it was so brilliant he snickered to himself wishing he had had this epiphany ages ago, most especially that one night in Vancouver.

"You know what you want," they were walking side by side behind the pierced man, who looked over his left shoulder with his question.

Nick smiled, "I want that," he waved to the open page in the notebook Cassie held, "here" with his left index finger he pointed to the inside of his right bicep, that spot would hurt like a bitch but it was where he felt it should go.

There he went again with the Watching, Cassie choked a little on her breath and he rolled his eyes, wishing, not for the first time that his Dad had told him anything about his Mother, like her name (Rebecca was the one he had used since he had realized he didn't know it) to her abilities (he was fairly certain she was a Watcher, at times like this, or a Pusher, like that night on the roof) but wishes were like questions and he had too many and not enough time.

Sinking into the worn red plastic he extended his right arm, tucking his left arm under his head, "you don't have to do this." Cassie whispered into his ear, he turned his head to the left and grinned at her.

"It's OK Cass," there was more he could have said but didn't because they didn't say those things to each other. They would get their tattoos, his mixed in with garish pinks and blues, his choices; significant colors if he were one notice such things, she was one to notice though and the noticing was bringing unshed tears into her big blue eyes, but they wouldn't speak any more on the subject.

Cassie stared intently at the artwork bleeding into his arm and he studied her as she did so.

Not how he expected to spend the evening, not even close, but then she bit down on her lip when the gun bit in deep and he couldn't help the grimace.

The blue eyes turned on him, concern and curiosity mixed in them, and took his goddamn breath away.

Not a bad way to spend the evening.

(Not that he would ever, ever admit the blue eyes stayed with him as long as the Ink would.)