"So how was Mister Spender's party?"

"It was awesome. Lots of roasting on Spender's end."

"Poor man. I bet Isabel didn't even give him a warning."

"Oh it was Max, too."

Cindy giggled and took a bite of one of the cookies that sat on a plate between herself and Ed, hoping it would provoke an interest in him. She'd made those cookies from scratch, although she hadn't said a word about it. They were the first edible thing she'd ever made, and that was only after months of practice. They probably weren't the healthiest, but they were cookies and they were chewy and they were good. She thought so, at least. If only she could get him to try them without violently shoving the plate in his face...

"That doesn't surprise me."

"Good, because it shouldn't."

Ed leaned over the table, resting on his elbows. He was eyeing the designs of her kitchen table almost apprehensively, his ankles locked together under the table as he stuck his tongue in his cheek. He'd been doing it for a while, long enough that she noticed the small crease in his brow when he grew silent. Cindy tilted her head and looked him over, eyeing his body when he fidgeted or took a deeper breath. He huffed and glanced up at her, a corner of his lips twitching up to fake a smile. "But, he went home early. So that wasn't very fun…" The crease was gone when he smiled or spoke to her, and part of her reveled in knowing she had that effect on him- if that's what was happening there. It might have just been how good he'd gotten at lying. He'd never admit it, as liars often didn't, but Ed was becoming very good at tricking others. Most of the time it was at the expense of his own well-being, which made it a problem she was surprised hadn't been addressed among their friend group.

"Well, he is thirty-two. The old man probably needed to sleep." Usually jokes at the expense of others were enough to lift Ed out of a heavy spirit, and she hoped that the smile he flashed her in response was genuine. But just as she feared, the moment faded and the smile fell. Ed continued sulking, tracing the many circles and patterns that adorned the table with his finger. "That's not what's bothering you."

"Cindy… do you know what I'm good at?" Oh, was that it? He was feeling insecure about his talents? Good, that was something easily remedied.

"Eddy, you're good at lots of things! You're good at video games, fighting, painting- especially fighting, though! You're amazing!"

"Okay, but what would I do as, like, a job?"

Ed stopped tracing the table to look out the backdoor window behind her, watching birds jump from branches and away from their nests. Some birds were new, smaller than the others and less adept to flying. The older birds seemed to help them along, though, flying off their perches and batting their wings in demonstration when the young ones were watching. "What do you mean? Aren't you going to join the consortium like us?" Cindy tried desperately to hide it, but her heart jumped against her ribcage, throwing her into a fit of worry. Of course she would miss going on missions with him, and the lack of his presence among the club would easily be a huge hit to morale, but she was more focused on the 'why' of the situation. He'd always wanted to join the consortium. What would have made him change his mind? Did something happen? Some form of panic must have slipped in her voice and clued him in, because he hurriedly reached out and set a hand on her shoulder, waving his other back and forth.

"Yeah, yeah! I am! I am! It's just…" She shouldn't have been, and she knew that, but she was disappointed when he pulled away. She loved the warmth that came when he touched her, was friendly with her. Cindy was always the one who broke the walls of personal space, though not as often as she would have liked. Ed never seemed to ignore her gestures, and would often hug her if she asked, but he never went out of his way to lay his hands on her. It confused her, because Ed was an otherwise affectionate man. She'd seen him squeeze Isaac to near-death when the medium came home from summer camp that one year and pretty much tackle Isabel from behind in efforts to start a tickle war. Max was the only other person Ed didn't get touchy-feely with, and that was because Max did not like being touched at random.

When Ed was settled back in his seat, he looked at her quizzically. "You do know we don't get paid for consortium work, right?"

"Of course."

"I'm talking about a real job. You know, for rent and stuff?"

"Well, there have to be plenty of jobs open to you, Eddy. I can't imagine there's a lot you can't do if you put your mind to it!"

Ed blinked and smiled at her with what was clearly sympathy, but it was gone as soon as she saw it. "Cindy, I'm trying to ask for advice. What do you think I should major in?"

"Oh, that's easy! You should-!" Cindy paused to think. Being a professional gamer sounded right up his ally, but Ed would have hated to compete for cash. He played video games because he liked getting high scores and venting on that boss that every player hated. Doing that as a job would get stressful for him fast. She could see him participating in martial arts tournaments for some side cash, but she didn't see him doing it for a living. He would get enough of that as a consortium agent. Being an artist was one thing- but he was looking for a job that could actually make him money. Once again, it was something he could do on the side, but nothing he'd quit a day job for. Eventually she came to the realization that she was coming up blank, so she bit her lips together, like that meant she wouldn't have to talk. "Mm…"

"Yeah, it's not really an easy question."

Ed dug his head into his hands, burying his fingers in his hair. She felt bad for him; She'd never had to go through the whole 'questioning where you want your life to go' deal. She knew what she wanted and had, if she failed, a very large green safety net to fall back on. While she didn't ignore school entirely, she was always more focused on making some memories. The concept of 'starving artist' was just that- a concept. She wasn't sure how to deal with Ed. What did one say to a loved one who feels like they're useless in the real world? Cindy coughed and folded her hands into her lap, eyes darting around the room looking for anything to give her a few ideas. There had to be something. She knew Ed, and he had a resolve thicker than stone. "You could study economics." That was her father's accounting book on the table.

Ed peeked out from behind his hands, the tip of his nose twitching below his narrowed eyes. "Wait, what?"

"Or you could study law!" Her eyes looked to the cat poster that hung like a sore thumb in the middle of their unsoiled black kitchen. In the picture there was a Persian cat, looking pouty and mad, in a judge's robe with a lightwood gavel in one paw. As much as she adored the idea of Ed in a fitted suit, she would have been lying if she'd said she could see him in court- and not on the witness stand.

"What? Cindy, law? I have no interest in-!"

"Or you could study culinary!" Knives, no big surprise. She felt her cellphone hum in agreement. If he became a chef, maybe they could work together; that way he wouldn't need to be scared about his future, either. Her safety net of moolah would be his safety net of moolah. Culinary wasn't exactly where she wanted to go, but she wasn't uninterested, especially if it would save Ed some grief.

Ed sat up and glanced around the room, eyes wide and bewildered. "What the-? Cindy are you just naming off-?"

"You could study physics!" That one was off the top of her head. She could see Ed as a physics teacher (or something of the sort), dressed for work with a tie around his neck and some helpful flashcards for the vocabulary test he'd be giving. He'd always had a way with kids since, you know, he still kind of acted like one. Being a professor was something even grander. He would make more money than he'd know what to do with! He wasn't really interested in science, but he was pretty good at math- better than she was, anyway.

"Cindy, stop! I- I couldn't do any of those!"

"Yes you could, Eddy! That's my entire point! You could do anything you wanted to if you put the time and effort into learning it!"

Ed sighed and shook his head, a clear sign of resignation on his part. Cindy grinned. It wasn't often somebody got to leave a person like Ed speechless. What an honor it was to be among the fantastic few who could. "Fine, fine. I see your point."

"I hope you do!" Cindy was silent for a few seconds, contemplating her next words very carefully. Ed wasn't easy to offend, but the subject at hand was a sensitive one. "I'd hate it if you thought you had to be stuck with other's expectations." The room went entirely quiet, Cindy realizing she'd probably hit some form of a nerve. She'd never really tried to talk to him about anything deep like that before. Perhaps there was a reason for that she'd forgotten in the last few minutes? Clearing her throat, she patted the table where he'd been leaning before. "Relax, Ed. Why don't you have a cookie?"

Much to her disappointment, Ed stood from his seat and beeline for the door with little words spoken. "Sorry, Cindy. I'm pretty full. I've got somewhere to be, but I'll talk to you later, okay?" He waved.

Cindy stood as well, but didn't go after him. She watched him walk out the front door, away from her and away from the conversation. As soon as she heard the click of the door, Cindy glanced back down at her plate full of cookies.

"I can't believe you're finally retiring. It seems like it took forever."

"Oh, are you so happy about me leaving my place in the dojo?"

Isabel leaned against the wall of the porch, arms crossed over her chest as she rubbed them for warmth. Winter was certainly approaching. If it was going to snow, she wanted it to just snow already.

Her grandfather sat in front of her right where he always was when he was shouting orders, calling out to some students who were slacking in their training with a solid voice loud enough to shake the earth. When she was just a little girl, she remembered training for the first time- having her grandfather yell at her like that for the first time. It certainly felt like the walls were falling then and it still felt like that as she stood a graduate student of the dojo. "Doesn't really matter to me, Grandpa. I'm not the one shaking like a leaf."

He chuckled. It wasn't so rare for him to laugh anymore, not in her presence. Once she'd become a trained spectral and didn't need his exercises, he'd become much friendlier. On one hand, it was really cool to see the grandfather she'd thought was gone, but on the other it unnerved her completely. Seeing him screaming and tantalizing made her realize who he really was. She wasn't sure if the wall between them had disappeared- in fact, she was beginning to worry the friendliness was his way of keeping up appearances. She was, after all, his only granddaughter. If he'd continued to treat her like he'd treat any of the other students- strong-arming and disciplining- even after she'd graduated, she might have considered leaving. She wouldn't have, but he didn't need to know that. "You were never one to shake, Isabel."

"I don't think you were paying close enough attention."

He hummed in response and stroked his beard. She had a feeling he didn't want to have that conversation, and she was fine with that. It was in the past. She was over it. As far as she was concerned, she was an adult and she only needed to respect him as an elder, not a master. He wasn't her teacher anymore and she wasn't going to quiver like he was. Nobody could break her. Nobody could scare her. Isabel was a Guerra woman and she could handle herself.

Well, if there wasn't going to be a conversation from then on, there was no reason for her to stay outside when it was starting to get freezing. The entire reason she'd come out in the first place was because she'd made some tuna and wanted to offer him some. He didn't want any, and she could have told you that, so whatever. She just wanted to be sure.

"My old pupil will be taking my place once I am gone."

She stopped mid-way to the door, turning her head over her shoulder. "Mister Spender?"

"You are his equal now. You are a woman. You should call him Richard."

She laughed and shook her head. "Yeah, no offense to him, but there's no way that's gonna happen. You know, unless he wants me to call him something like Richie or Ricardo." Grandpa Guerra laughed again, and it kind of sent shivers down her spine. Maybe she just wasn't used to hearing him laugh at her jokes? She'd hardly thought the man had a sense of humor at all before she'd graduated. "He's going to be taking over the dojo?"

Grandpa Guerra nodded.

Isabel turned back to face him. He wasn't looking at her, and she wasn't expecting him to. He was in the middle of overlooking a training session, after all. "Does he know?" That didn't mean he wasn't paying attention to every move she made. Sometimes she wondered if he scrutinized her; she wondered if he still criticized everything she did and if the only difference in their relationship was that he didn't open his big mouth to tell her. It felt like that sometimes.

"Of course."

"Does he want the job?"

Grandpa Guerra was silent, stroking his beard. Isabel knew what that meant- he hadn't even asked Spender yet. She bet he'd hardly mentioned it at all, and that was if Spender even knew he was retiring!

"Isn't there somebody else who could take the job? I mean, you've had more than one pupil graduate. There's gotta be somebody who could do it."

"There's nobody like him, Isabel." He sat in thought for a moment before continuing. "Nobody as qualified. Nobody as good a fit."

Isabel opened her mouth to say something, but quickly closed it. That was not a fight she was going to win. She found it ironic how Spender was somehow the most qualified spectral in the entirety of all of Grandpa Guerra's graduates. The old man had spent years mocking her teacher, a man she looked up to as her older brother and cared about as though he were family. She'd sat there and listened to him demean and diminish Spender for years and years. While the teacher never blinked twice at it, probably because he knew he was a damn good spectral, Isabel still hated it. She hated it with every inch of love she had for her big brother- her mentor and her friend. Even so, it was Spender's battle and all she could do was quietly cheer him on from the sides. He wouldn't have wanted her to get involved. Isabel turned around to go back inside again, only to hear him sigh in the way she hated so freaking much. "Where's the freeloader?"

"Ed is over at a friend's house."

"And you didn't follow?"

Something in her chest clenched, but she swallowed it down. "No, he needed to go alone." Isabel just couldn't help him, couldn't give him the advice he needed. She'd known her entire life what she wanted to do, and he was left struggling to catch up. Ed always was struggling to catch up. She wanted to help him, but how? Isabel was trying to be empathetic, but it wasn't her strong suit. Cindy, as much as she hated to admit it, was much more adept to dealing with emotions and helping people- helping Ed. She was family, after all.

Grandpa Guerra laughed again, and Isabel felt about ready to choke him. She whipped around, glaring as murderously as she could at his back and hoping against hope he'd feel the resentment coming off her in waves. He didn't even acknowledge her growing aura, wasn't scared of her and that pissed her off.

"I see! He's finally found himself a woman, huh? Took him long enough."

"No, Grandpa" his name felt like poison on her lips sometimes "she's his ex and they're just friends now." Isabel couldn't help but see the hilarity of it. They hadn't told Grandpa Guerra about the Baltons, and certainly not about how they were Ed's own blood. They never felt like it was something he needed to know- that was why Ed never said anything about it, anyway. Isabel was always worried the old man would kick Ed to the curb if he'd heard he had functioning, capable family in town. She knew the Baltons would take him in no question, but it was an undeniable fact that Isabel didn't want to live without him. It was embarrassing, but she'd been with him her whole life. Suddenly not having him there every morning would have been both unsettling and frustrating. Things wouldn't have been the same for her or for him. She knew she'd have to live separately from Ed someday, but as far as she was concerned that day could wait.

Grandpa Guerra finally stood up, chuckling to himself. The suddenness startled Isabel, but she remained where she stood, hands running up and down her arms to create as much warmth as possible. She'd started to feel even colder. "I'm telling you this as a man, Isabel. If he is at her home alone, he is not hoping for a friend." He turned around and called to the students in the field who had continued their spectral shots even after their master had become quiet to their ears. She knew the reason well; it was suicide to stop before you heard him command it of you. You stopped when you heard him say 'stop'. Any sooner and you were disrespecting his orders and were in for a horrible punishment. "Enough! We will continue tomorrow." He pointed at a specific student, a young girl with pigtails in her hair. She was still painfully new. Isabel had just seen her roll into the city last week. The little girl gulped and fixed her posture, hands glued to her sides as she struggled to not lose her balance on the tips of her toes. "You need to work on your form! If you can't stand up straight, you have no business learning my techniques! Understood?"

"Yes sir!"

Isabel's mouth hung open before her mind caught up with her surroundings. Ed was not going to Cindy's house to hook up! That was gross. They weren't like that- he wasn't like that. Ed had never been desperate enough for something so disgusting. She couldn't even see him hooking up with anyone, let alone Cindy. Isabel almost pulled back when Grandpa Guerra set a surprisingly gentle hand on her head. "If there was love there once, it very well may bloom again."

With that he took his leave and parted from her, passing through the front door of the dojo.

No, he didn't understand. The reasoning behind their relationship falling through had still not changed, nor would it ever change. Cindy was his cousin, they were family. Cindy might not have had a problem with it, but Ed certainly had. People didn't just decide to date their ex again, especially when they were related by the blood actual literal blood in their veins. Unless Ed had decided he didn't care, either? The thing that bugged Isabel was that she cared so damn much. She told herself anybody would have been freaked out and appalled by the thought, but it wasn't just the cousin thing that was bugging her about the situation. Isabel told herself it would have been fine if it was another girl, because she and Ed had worked through those problems a long time ago, but that was the thing; she wasn't sure if she would have felt any differently if the girl was anyone else.

"Izzy?" Another hand fell on her shoulder, and she just about jumped at the warmth of the skin that squeezed her arm.

She calmed down once she recognized the voice, letting the air she'd been holding onto escape her lungs. Of course he was home. He always came home. She turned her head, looking up at him and grinning because she was just so relieved. "Ed, you're back already?" Everything felt okay again. He was there, now. What she'd been thinking about seconds before didn't matter. It was all in her head- the real thing was standing in front of her. Ed smiled and shrugged, and it all felt so very familiar.

"Yeah, Cindy just wanted to talk to me about a few things. Catch up since she's been touring Mayview University the last few days."

Just as she felt like she could breathe again, the air in her throat clogged up. "What are a few things?" The question came out as nonchalantly as she meant it to, but inside she was fighting off anxiety. When he threw on his coat earlier on his way out the door, he'd said he was going over there for some advice. If Ed tried to dance around the subject…

"Yeah, like how Spender's party went and everything. Her hair's gotten even longer, too. I told her she needs to just cut it all off and let it grow back to a normal maintainable height, but she just won't listen. I mean, it's not like she looks bad, I just know that can't be comfortable for her."

Isabel glanced at her own locks. Maybe her hair was getting kind of long, too…

"So she's really going to Mayview University? She can't settle for Community like the rest of us?" She twirled a strand in her finger.

"Isabel, her parents-!" He groaned "My aunt and uncle are loaded. There's no way she'd go to a regular community college."

"You don't sound like you're too bummed about that- ACHOO!" Isabel covered her nose in a hurry, beginning to degrade herself for deciding that day was a good tank top day. It'd been warmer earlier, she swore it! She frowned and rubbed her nose gently with one finger. She should have gone inside when she had the chance. In fact, she should have never gone outside in the first place with shorts on when she knew winter was fast approaching. If she was stuck with a cold she was going to scream. Being bedridden in a home like the dojo was one of the worst experiences ever. It meant being left out of all the action- no missions, no anything. When she was growing up, some of the students would visit her in her room just to tease her about being sick. Grandpa Guerra would find them and shoo them away after a few minutes, but it was still humiliating. Teasing somebody else who was sick, on the other hand, was loads of fun.

She felt something warm fall over her shoulders, soft and heavy and soothing. Looking up, she found Ed's faux fur coat draped over her, leaving him in a loose green t-shirt. "Ed-!" She looked up at him, ready to protest. He knew she hated chivalry, but he certainly didn't seem to care. His eyes were narrowed, as though he was analyzing her, and he stood with his hands at his hips. It almost felt like he'd grown an inch with the way he squared his shoulders. Her heart skipped a beat. Ed hardly ever looked like that- serious, gritty, and worried. She loved it when he was laughing all the time and teasing anything that moved- to think of him losing that was to think of losing him; it was just that there was something special about the times when he dropped the jokes and put on a staid face, the times she really felt that lump in her throat. Those were the times Ed took control of the situation, behind-the-scenes or otherwise, and really became a man of war. She very much enjoyed it when he did that.

"Well you sound like you're getting sick. How long have you been out here? Come on, Izzy, let's get inside."

She tried again to get a word in, but her attempts fell through when his arm snaked around her shoulders as he pulled her into him. He felt like a sauna compared to the sharpness of the near-winter, chest taut against her back. Every objection she had melted away as she leaned into him, a small smile on her face.