Glass shattered against old metal seats with a beautiful display. Remnants of alcohol caught the stark light of Fenway Park just so, cascading momentary rainbows before it all fell into black. The four women laughed as they tried to see who could throw the farthest. Currently, Tessa was in the lead, but G5 had yet to try. The deeply intoxicated synth grabbed the empty moonshine bottle they'd taken to go when they left the Dugout Inn, a solid hour after the brawl finally was broken up by city guards, and aimed. She heaved it with the trained discipline of a soldier. Piper whistled as it flipped over itself before smashing into the old seats two rows higher than Tessa's had.

"Boom!" She shouted, hands up in victory.

"Can't beat that," conceded Tessa. G5's sloppy grin multiplied and she stumbled onto her feet. "I'm surprised you could see straight enough to make that shot."

"Coursers are remarkably sturdy," defended G5. "I was trained to still be able to fight if drugged, intoxicated, poisoned, or otherwise indisposed!"

"I'm surprised they ever thought you'd get drunk," snickered Piper.

"The Institute liked to be ready for any contingency." G5 at some point had forgotten how to be quiet, after bottle two but not yet done with bottle three. None of them were sure how they'd ended up in the vacant stands, but it was peaceful there in the more ruinous part of Diamond City. The bustling beacon of civilization buzzed beneath them like a beehive, workers, and drones zipping along at the late hour. It had to have been nearly eleven, but the city never slept. Perhaps they'd come for the privacy, maybe Piper had wanted to show a local secret, it didn't matter now. They were at peace with the pocket of pleasure they'd found.

Desdemona smoked a few seats away, staring out across the city with remarkably sober eyes. She hadn't had more than that first drink in the bar. Tessa, not quite as drunk as G5 but not nearly as sober as Desdemona, sat down beside the ginger woman and stole her cigarette. She took a long drag while Desdemona watched evenly, and exhaled slowly. Piper and G5 were giggling about something a few feet away, giving Tessa a chance to focus on the outlier. "You're brooding."

"Force of habit," Desdemona said as she reached for her cigarette. Her lips twitched when Tessa took another drag instead and leaned away. "What?"

"Lighten up Dez, it'll do you wonders."

She scoffed and leaned back into the rickety old metal seats. Centuries ago they would have been nosebleed section cheap views of the professional athletes playing for big bucks and the American Dream. Now they were a testament to good engineering and versatility. Nothing in the wasteland was ever truly junk, it was just unknown potential waiting for the right set of hands to shape them into something useful again. Tessa admired the Wall and what it stood for, caught up in her own brooding.

Desdemona reclaimed her cigarette and finished it off. "I can't help but feel like any second now Curie is gonna come along and hate what we're doing."

"Drunkenly smashing bottles at a dangerous height? Yeah, she'd have at least a few scoldings in her," snickered Tessa. She produced her own cigarette and Desdemona silently lit it for her. The taste of nicotine wasn't a pleasant one, but it brought a rush she enjoyed. "We're just showing G5 how to have some senseless fun."

"She's drinking too damn much," Desdemona muttered.

"Don't think she's just cutting loose?"

Hazel eyes squinted as a burst of fresh laughter came from the pair of brunettes, neither of them having heard the joke. "I know G5, or at least I thought I did. She used to drink, plenty even, but not near this recklessly. Now she's downing moonshine like she's not gonna wake up tomorrow."

"I guess Curie will be the one dealing with the physical consequences," suggested Tessa. "Things… people change. I think she's just trying to enjoy herself after what happened earlier."

"I think she's trying to forget what she did to that guy," countered Desdemona. This time she stole the cigarette and exhaled dramatically. They watched the smoke blow away in the calm wind, dissipating easily. Tessa wished all their problems would fade away so effortlessly. The glow of the cigarette caught fire to Desdemona's hair, stealing Tessa's gaze. From this side, her faded burn scars were plain to see, a tapestry of perseverance. She found herself staring at the marks, wondering if there were any others hidden beneath Desdemona's clothes. She was so caught up in admiring the older beauty that she didn't hear Piper and G5's approach until it was too late.

"And she's it!" G5 slapped Tessa's shoulder and ran with sloppy steps away, Piper right behind her. Tessa blinked, having almost choked on her cigarette. Piper slowed down when she realized Tessa wasn't pursuing them and turned around. "C'mon Blue!" The lights of the vacant upper stands illuminated the brunette like sunlight, stray hairs vibrant and the raw hard edges made as apparent as her soft curves and tender smile. There was a palpable energy to the reporter that demanded attention, and Tessa was more than willing to obey.

"Are they playing… tag?" Desdemona balked.

Tessa snickered as she rose from the stands, wiping dirt off her pants. "Piper knows exactly how to forget about your problems and just have fun," she said approvingly. "Think you can keep up with a bunch of young ladies like us?"

There was a flash in hazel eyes and Desdemona met her challenge with gritted teeth. "I regret telling you how old I am. Next, you'll make jokes about shriveling up like a ghoul."

Tessa openly checked her out before shrugging. "Still hot." While her words sunk in, Tessa slapped Desdemona's shoulder and proclaimed the ginger 'it'. Desdemona shouted after Tessa as the blonde retreated the way of the other two, stumbling after her with inebriated steps. She wasn't nearly as drunk as G5, but cheeks were still flushed and motions inhibited. Desdemona pursued the giggling women with determination, fumbling over destroyed baseball seats and random litter.

A shrill laugh gave away G5's hiding spot in a patch of darkness, and Desdemona leaped at her. G5 sidestepped her just in time, taunting her love as they avoided collision just so. "What, forget how to give a good chase?"

"Been a little while I'll admit, once I'm warmed up you're mine," growled Desdemona, heart fluttering in her chest. It felt foolish and yet refreshing to be so childish. G5 stuck her tongue out and shuffled away, passing Tessa and Piper who were safely out of range, laughing at some hushed stories. Desdemona snorted at them and continued after G5. Her breathing became labored swiftly, the drink getting to her more than she'd like to admit Tessa suspected. The lithe former courser continued to rise higher in the stands, basking in the emblazoning white of the stadium lights.

Mild regret flashed across Desdemona's face, and Tessa was just able to see it. Despite herself, Tessa started analyzing the older woman. Desdemona was moving like someone who wanted to make a good impression and feared the results of otherwise. It was a posture Tessa had seen her whole life and carried herself once upon a time. Then G5 caught Desdemona's eye and grinned, almost feral, challenging Desdemona to follow after her. "G5, careful you could slip!" Callsoberestt sober of the four. Half-broken chairs and countless bits of detritus were all that waited ahead of the courser, plenty of places promising an accident or even more a swift end.

"Oh, you worry wart!" Shouted G5 as she continued up the ruined stands. Discarded filth scattered this way and that as she climbed ever higher, nearly at the top now. Desdemona grumbled and turned away from G5, going after easier targets like the whispering lovers several rows down. Piper shouted when she realized they were being pursued and pushed Tessa between herself and Desdemona.

The betrayal upon Tessa's face was easy to see as Desdemona tagged her. "Brutus!" She shouted as the ginger retreated.

"What?" Piper snickered. "I don't know your pre-war references Blue."

Snarling with vengeance, Tessa chased after the reporter who shrieked and fled. Desdemona raced alongside Tessa who otherwise ignored the easy prey, focused entirely on her traitorous love. Their feet echoed over concrete and steel, thundering like hail upon a tin roof. If there was anyone around to care they'd certainly be complaining, but up here there was no one but them. She could vaguely remember sneaking into the stands before the bombs dropped, kissing on cuties while trying to keep from getting caught. It felt nice to her that she could make new memories with those she truly cared for.

Laughing with joy, Tessa cornered Piper near what was likely once a squatter's tent, with old cans of beans, and torn Instamash boxes littering the area. A rat scampered off as the duo drew close enough to startle it. "You're never gonna get me, Blue!" Shouted Piper, picking up the trash and throwing it at her peruser. Rotted cardboard boxes and half-decayed cartons came sailing at Tessa, most of them missing thanks to Piper's inebriation.

Tessa easily batted away the garbage that came close and dove at the reporter. The squeal she produced was tremendous, making Tessa snicker like a cat who'd caught the canary. They tussled over soiled sleeping bags and old pillows, eventually finding themselves surrounded by forgotten and discarded things. With a toothy grin, Tessa kissed Piper. "I think I got you."

"Oh shush," she replied, "you clearly don't know how the rest of the game is supposed to go if you're not going to start running."

"What if I just want you here? For myself?"

Piper snorted, pushing against Tessa but the blonde had a considerable grip. She'd certainly gained muscle mass since the first time they'd spoken. "I thought this was supposed to be a double date," countered Piper.

Tessa pulled back long enough to see Desdemona going up the stairs where G5 could just be seen silhouetted against the night sky. The temporary excitement had faded, leaving something bitter in its wake. "Alright, fun's over." Helping Piper up, Tessa dusted the dirt and grime off their casual wear. "You look lovely, by the way," she added as they started up to the top level of the stands.

"Shucks, you know just what to say to a girl," Piper replied, taking Tessa by the arm and leading the way. Tessa rolled her eyes but said nothing else as they steadily rose higher into the sky. They only slipped once or twice and leveled one another out each time they did. When they reached the others, Desdemona and G5 were sitting with their legs dangling over the edge. It was easy enough to climb onto the uppermost lip of emerald green metal, the whole of Boston sprawling out before them. While not the highest place in the Commonwealth, it was still quite the sight. No one spoke as the pair settled in, a singular cigarette making its way around.

Miles of pre-war architecture clashed with post-war necessities were theirs to behold. Buildings had crumbled, partially or entirely, with tents pitched most anywhere that didn't threaten to blow over in a single gust of wind. Barricades, fortifications, barbed wire, and ramshackle fences were scattered along at random intervals, a semblance of civilization prepared for yet hoping that someone didn't decide to get a bit destructive. So much of wasteland life was hoping nobody around you had a grudge, or a stomach, waiting for dangers to pass like weathering a storm. It was a sad thought to Tessa, something she wanted desperately to change. Corpses were visible even from this high, sometimes skulls on spikes left by raiders to mark out their territory, or meat bags that hung from jutting debris left behind by super mutants for a convenient midnight snack.

Firelights or functioning floodlights speckled the otherwise foreboding darkness, not quite promises of safety but rather potential dangers. More than once Tessa had approached a campfire hoping to find some traders, only to discover fresh corpses and a beast picking at flesh. She couldn't draw near any light without three backup plans now. Moonlight peeked between the few clouds that hid the stars from view, smatterings of darkness upon an otherwise masterpiece of constellations. Of course, it was a bit harder to see them with the never-ending glow of Diamond City, but compared to the old days the sky was much clearer.

"Well fuck," Tessa grunted, "I guess I'll break the silence."

Piper and Desdemona gave mirthless smirks, but G5 remained unchanged. "Guess we're all brooding now," Desdemona said, taking a drag from the cigarette. Tessa watched how the smoke quickly faded away on the exhale, here one second and gone the next. "It's infectious."

"I'm bringing down the mood," G5 admitted. "Can't stop… thinking."

"You aren't thinking of jumping now are you?" Tessa asked carefully.

"Course not. We've all been through too damn much to waste what I've been given. Besides, Curie shouldn't die for my actions."

Tessa took a long drag from the cigarette, buying them all time to think. Piper lit a new cigarette as Tessa finished that one. "Then what are you thinking about?"

G5 sighed and stretched her arms out, slowly relieving some of the built-up tension. "You're smart Grey, you already know."

"It's better for you to say it out loud," replied Tessa, though she offered a hand to the conflicted synth. "Self-actualization."

Slowly, G5 took it and squeezed tightly. "Fancy word."

"An Institute word for sure," Tessa snickered sadly, thinking back to those impossibly clean walls. It always felt too sanitized, but she knew the truth of the place now, the lies and moral desolation that had built it. "It's hard to leave patterns behind, habits I picked up to help me blend in. Doesn't help that Shaun has such a verbose vocabulary as it is."

"I learned to be silent, not say what I was thinking or believed. Just keep your head down, your mouth shut, and listen to orders. If you disobeyed, you got beat or decommissioned, and trust me when I say beatings were worse." G5 ran a hand through her hair, grimacing that it wasn't its former length just yet. "Especially in courser training."

Several moments passed of silence, only the noises of Diamond City behind them filling the space. Eventually, Piper cleared her throat. "Do you… want to talk about it?"

"Not… tonight," G5 replied, "but I know one day I'm gonna have to."

"We'll all face our demons, either here in hell or in the afterlife," Desdemona grimly said.

"Oh come on, life's not hell anymore," countered Tessa, "sure it was before but we've managed to scrape out a bit of heaven."

"Just look behind us," suggested Piper, gesturing to the center of Commonwealth civilization. The warm broth of Power Noodles wafted this high to them, tantalizing and drawing many customers. "200 years ago most of the Commonwealth looked like the Glowing Sea. Now, it's a few pockets of highly irradiated areas outside the sea itself. The Institute as we know it is dead, and a new one that has already made good on its promises has introduced non-irradiated food to the Minutemen, who are reunited and working with the Railroad for the betterment of not only mankind but synthkind. The Commonwealth has seen suffering and tragedy, but thanks to all of us and others there's finally real tangible hope."

"Quite the little speech," Tessa hummed softly, her heart swelling at all Piper had to say. "I suppose you'd be uniquely positioned to see how everything interconnects. With food more secure than ever, people can stop worrying about starving and think about expanding. Imagine if we could have proper families again?"

Desdemona and G5 gave ragged sighs. "Family? That's a novel concept," G5 muttered, "it's not about who we're related to. All synths are my relatives right, the same as humans are to each other? Just because we're kin doesn't mean I owe them anything."

"No, but we can choose to make bonds that will last through hardships. I wouldn't be here today without my new family, my friends," replied Tessa. Piper flashed her a smile.

"The Railroad is a family," agreed Desdemona, taking a long drag now. Tessa smirked as the smoke faded away. "Some days I feel like the mom, others the grandmother, but one thing is for certain, we're family. The kind that can get romantically involved with one another, sure, but still."

"I'm just saying, having kids, getting married, building a home? That's not my life. That's not a lot of people's lives. I'm a tool, an instrument for killing. I did it for the Railroad as much as I did the Institute, just for a better cause. Freedom. Now we have it, but what do I do with that freedom?" G5 finished the cigarette off and started another. No one tried to take it from her. "When I sleep, I'm not dreaming or anything. I just go from here to nothing and back. It's not like I can think about it when Curie is in charge."

Desdemona placed a hand on G5's shoulder, gaining a small smile in return. "You know… that's something I'm struggling with a lot now. Hundreds of synths just looking for a way forward, a bit of guidance. Used to be they got their orders from scientists, people who surely knew what was best for life given they could create it. Then they got into the surface world, where meals are fought over with bullets and blades. Kindness is more common than in their birthplace, but people still try to control and use you. Most just want to do something with their lives, make something of themselves. Many still innately want to be of use. The conditioning of the Institute is going to take a while to wear off. It might not ever."

"I didn't hear how that's your struggle," G5 growled. "I know you want to help, that you want to make it all better but that's their battle Dez, just like this is mine."

Tension ran down the other two's spines, but Desdemona only dipped her head. "You're right. I'm so used to finding the way, planning what steps to take, and who needs to handle what. I have to learn how to step back."

"They still need you," put in Tessa, "but… some fights are their own. We can get them pointed in the right direction but it's their own path to walk."

Desdemona looked to the horizon, a night of unknown future and potential. "Fuck. I have enough trouble letting them walk out when I know they're going somewhere safe enough. I don't know if I can just… let go."

"Like you can't let go of Glory?" G5 cut in. Desdemona blinked, a gasp catching in her throat.

Tessa and Piper shifted back, trying to give them space. They exchanged uncertain glances, cautious of what either of them said. Desdemona's gaze remained on the horizon. "What exactly are you saying?" Desdemona asked in a tight voice.

"I mean exactly that. You're stuck in the past Dez, when we're supposed to be looking to the future," G5 replied tightly. "You want things to go back to the way they were but they can't. It's impossible. Glory is gone and I'm not the same. You keep looking at me with sadness as if this is supposed to be our last night. I want- I want more nights. I want days, I want a goddamn life with you again!" G5 stood up, teetering on the edge of death and life. Tessa and Piper rushed to their feet, reaching for G5 but she shook them away. Dark eyes never left Desdemona. "You want me back, but I'm not me! If you want anything here to happen again, then you have to realize that you have to take me as I am now!"

"I haven't said I wouldn't," Desdemona shouted, up as well now.

"You're the loudest when you don't speak," hissed G5. "I know you too damn well not to hear you. Why did you confess to Tessa you're interested in her?"

Green eyes widened as G5 pointed accusingly at Tessa, the catalyst for so much as usual. She was a bit tired of being the force of change. "I got her to say it," Tessa said after Desdemona remained quiet. "I picked up on it and asked."

Desdemona inhaled briskly and stepped back. Piper carefully moved closer, offering a hand. She'd never seen Desdemona so scared, and they'd fought together against impossible odds. "This is why I didn't want to rock the boat," Desdemona muttered, not taking Piper's hand. "Fuck. Fuck! This was stupid. I knew better than to risk your mental state but I got fucking selfish. I saw everybody else finally enjoying a bit of happiness and when Bullseye offered me the chance I jumped for it. I shouldn't have."

Tessa frowned. G5 only tilted her head up as if she expected as much. "Are you… giving up?" The words tasted bitter on Tessa's tongue, something she'd never associated with the Railroad leader. Even when surrounded by death, comrades falling to crimson lasers and defeat almost a guarantee, Desdemona stood strong. Yet here, confronted by the living ghost of all she'd lost, the only thing Tessa saw was a woman afraid.

"I've only survived this long by being cautious, by being careful. Everything was considered, weighed, intel gathered and plans made. I had contingencies for contingencies," Desdemona was speaking faster, eyes wide. Her chest was moving with frantic swiftness.

To Tessa's surprise, Piper stepped forward. The brunette held herself with a confidence that had only grown in recent months, nowhere near the easily flustered reporter Tessa had met locked outside Diamond City. Sure, she had acted tough from time to time, but it had been more bravado than true confidence. Standing there, all Tessa could see was the determination and confidence of the woman she loved. The woman who had saved her life, and made her a better person, who had given her real love. Tessa couldn't help but smile as Piper spoke. "You're scared of change. Not the small daily victories and losses, I'm talking about the kind so unknown you can't imagine what the future will be like."

The older woman froze.

"Everything is planned out, right? You and PAM run the numbers and you've got a backup for everything," Piper continued, "Right now, you don't know what's going to happen. You don't like that, and it's making you scared."

"I can handle change," Desdemona said briskly.

"Only if you plan for it."

"How could I plan for this? I thought G5 was gone!" Tears brimmed in hazel eyes, cheeks burning from more than alcohol. "I don't know you, not really. I only know Bullseye and I don't know G5. Not anymore."

G5's lips were thinned, and she stepped back. Desdemona winced, reaching for the synth. G5 jostled away, jaw clenched. "You and I don't know what peace is. We've only ever known war. Neither of us knows how to act in this new age. We've had moments, but never true peace. I don't know who I am, how are you supposed to?"

"Can't we all… figure it out together?" Asked Piper in a careful voice. She took G5's hand and the synth sighed in relief at the touch. Desdemona flinched at the sight. Her thoughts were clear, she wanted G5 to accept her so easily. "It's not going to be easy, but it's not impossible either."

"Think you can handle not being in control?" G5 sneered at Desdemona. "You can't shape me back into what I used to be. That G5 is gone… the one who wasn't broken, confused, and angry. She wanted freedom and when she got it she chose to make sure others felt that way. All she ever wanted was for her kin to have a choice. Now I've got hundreds, and I'm not sure which one to pick."

Tessa put a comforting hand on G5's shoulder, and the former courser looked at her with shimmering dark eyes. They pressed their brows together, inhaling slowly as G5 calmed. "You have to trust yourself," Tessa whispered.

"I know," she muttered in reply. "It's hard. I don't want to hurt people again as I did earlier. I'm scared I'll pick something bad and hurt you all." She pulled back from Tessa and looked to the horizon.

Desdemona struggled to find her voice and walked to the edge of the stands. She could see the Commonwealth for miles, the horizon fading into darkness. Wind kissed her skin, fluttered her hair, and otherwise soothed her addled heart. Tessa stared at her, afraid of something going wrong. She could see the weight on Desdemona's shoulders, one she too was used to carrying. Hundreds of lives rested there, growing more numerous with each passing day. Did she too feel the need for perfectionism? The desire to be incapable of making mistakes was a festering poison Tessa knew all too well, and in its pursuit, she'd made more faults than ever.

Tessa clenched a hand and reflected for a moment. She knew now that Desdemona had lived the life of secrecy required by the Railroad for decades. During her short time, Tessa had nearly been crushed by the pressure. She could feel a kindred spirit with Desdemona, the fear of losing loved ones burned into her. It was so clear to see now that she knew to look, like undercurrents of color in a clear stream. With a tender smile to G5 and Piper, she crossed over to Desdemona.

"You know sometimes we act on instinct, and that isn't always a bad thing. If we deny ourselves joy for too long the chance for it will be too tempting to resist," she said in a soft voice. "And even then we feel guilty for finally letting ourselves feel something. Why couldn't we do it sooner? Why did we torture ourselves and deny others? What if it's too late?"

"I'm asking myself a good number of those," conceded Desdemona.

"You know what the answer to that is?"

With a heavy sigh, Desdemona shook her head. "If I did I wouldn't be so worked up."

Tessa put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "Let yourself live."

A tittering laugh came from the ginger and she shook her head. "How the fuck do I do that?"

"You start by being honest to yourself about what you want, what matters, and who you are. Face your demons if you have to, but let yourself live."

Eyes that hid decades of pain stared at Tessa, taking her in. The blonde only smiled and squeezed Desdemona's shoulder. Emotion roiled across her face, heat touching her cheeks until finally, she made a decision. With a slow exhale, Desdemona looked back to G5. "You're scared of making a choice, but you have to choose something. You can't stand still."

"What if I choose wrong?"

"Then you choose again and live with the consequences. You wanted freedom, well here it is. Freedom means you can fuck up as much as make things right. We can't be afraid to act." Desdemona smiled at Piper who brightened. "Not like I am."

G5 frowned so heavily that her brow knit into one. "I don't… things are so… it's all a mess."

Desdemona took a single step closer, watching for G5 to reject her again. When she didn't, she crossed over completely with Tessa following. "I think the best thing for us to do is figure out who we are before we figure out who we are together. That doesn't mean I don't want to try, but you're right that I've been hoping to see who you used to be."

A flash of fear raced through dark eyes. "What if I never know?"

Chuckling, Desdemona squeezed G5's hand. She gestured to Tessa and Piper. "You will if these two have anything to say about it. We're both damaged and I think rushing into something is a foolish endeavor."

"So… okay some… space?"

"For now, for ourselves. I'll be coming around now if that's fine. Try being friends first. If it works out… we could… take it real slow, date like they did in Tessa's day."

Crinkling her nose at the joke, Tessa put an arm around the pair and gave them a firm embrace. G5 grunted and slipped away immediately, while Desdemona happily accepted it. A jacketed arm slipped around G5's waist and she jumped at Piper's touch. The reporter smirked and pecked her cheek. "This sounds smart. Taking things slow will give you the chance to figure yourselves out."

"I hope I like whoever I turn out to be," G5 said with a warble to her voice. "And… you like me too."

Cracking a grin, Piper squeezed G5's side. "Of course I'm going to like you. I already like you."

Blushing so deeply she looked more like Curie, G5 cleared her throat. "I mean I don't want to take things any slower than we already are. You and K2 mean… a lot to me. I would be lost without you."

Tessa squinted, the name G5 used sticking to her. The only other person to call her that now was Madison, and it was a fairly unpleasant use of the designation. Coming from G5, however, it was warm and comforting. It was a kinship that granted her a sense of peace that was rare to find these days. "You mean a lot to me too," Tessa confessed.

Crimson colored Piper's cheeks and she smiled. "Awh, shucks. I've enjoyed growing closer to you too. We'll go whatever pace you want though, okay?" A quick peck to G5's brow made the synth blush from ear to ear. She buried her face in her hands and tried to gather her composure. Tessa glanced over at Desdemona, a hint of worry in her chest, but was relieved to see only peace on the older woman's face.

"I suppose… It would be best to wait for anything between us too," Desdemona said with a calm smile. "I need to figure myself out, after all."

A hum came from Piper. Her hands shifted around G5 to hold her, gentle and soft. "You're hot, Dez, but I didn't exactly feel any sparks."

Desdemona cracked a grin and shook her head. "I would be amazed if you did, given how much of a downer I've been. Perhaps we could try again in a couple of weeks, or months. I'm not in a rush for anything."

"Finally feels like you get to plan for the future?" The reporter inquired with a raised brow. "Your own future that is."

She brushed ginger locks back, illuminated by the stadium lights into a halo of fire. She was beautiful, flashing teeth in a way that caused a stir in Tessa. "It does. Thank you for this talk. Maybe it's what I needed most."

"Happy to help," Tessa said too quickly, cheeks burning. Piper gave a wry grin and Desdemona tilted her head with a smirk. G5 snorted and rolled her eyes.

"I think somebody really does have a crush," Piper teased slowly.

Words jumbled in her throat and Tessa pouted. "What, I was honest about that!"

"That you were," Desdemona chuckled, "but I think we've all agreed the smartest decision would be to not pursue anything just yet."

Huffing, Tessa bit her cheek. "Still means I can think you're hot."

"And so can I," G5 put in, "all of you. But for fuck's sake K2, not now. Keep your pants on."

Laughter surrounded the flustered blonde, but even she couldn't hide her smile. When they at long last had settled out, hearts and heads significantly lighter, Tessa shook her head. "Come on," Tessa said with a dramatic wave, "we need to finish sobering up, and I think there are some Sugar Bombs at home with my name on them."

Piper chuckled and touched G5's shoulder, waiting for permission. Once granted, the pair followed Tessa down from the stands holding hands. Desdemona was quick to catch up, a smile on her face. Inconsequential yet joyful conversation sprouted between the four women, carrying them to peace at last.