Things slowly but sure did fall into a new normal. Despite the huge amount of adjustments, the mismatched family soon grew to enjoy their new mechanical friends' company. Warlord led the charge as he helped the renovation crew get a room completely outfitted for himself, Pyro and Viper. Star Dream, due to his massive size and need to teleport, would simply hang above in the Rec Room, watching and learning.

Vec, meanwhile, had a special charging station set up in Caleb's room. The Dalek requested this as to not have so much work put on a separate room. But Caleb could tell it was because even despite days having passed, the others were still not too comfortable with the Dalek hanging around. While some of them were warming up slowly, it was truly SLOW. So Vec felt it was best to stay close to the boy as a sort of safety net.

Caleb was really happy with how the robots were fitting in, and even with the Vec hurdles, things were turning into a new normal. The Pokemon were as lively as ever, and they were able to get their own little jungle gym build in the Rec Room. Star Dream would occasionally remark how it was cute seeing them play, though he did have a few instances of Voltula trying to sap him of his energy.

For a tiny tick, it sure was hungry.

Yeah, life was picking up once again. The classic chaos that followed the group wherever they went was crazy, some people would just leave, but for them it was love.

But one day, when everyone was just minding their own business, everything came to a screeching halt when an earth-shattering, rage-filled scream rang throughout the palace. Caleb, who was on a ladder in the library, still heard it loud and clear, and was so startled he would've fallen to the floor if not for McGee and Gretchen breaking his fall.

The trio all stayed on the floor for a bit before quickly standing up and brushing themselves off.

"What the heck was that?!" McGee cried out.

"Do you think someone got hurt?" Gretchen asked. "Because that wasn't a good scream…"

Caleb blinked. "I think that was Merida…" He rushed out of the library and Rec Room, the two campers close behind. Heading into the hallway, they saw a few of the others were also spooked by the scream, and all looking at Merida's bedroom door. Katania was there, and she went in as the trio from the library stopped with the crowd.

Kat poked her head out of the room. "Just give us a minute, okay? It won't take long."

Everyone nodded, and the general's daughter headed in. Looking around, she saw dresses scattered about everywhere. On furniture, on the floor, even on the ceiling fan somehow. The walk-in closet was open and a mess, with various accessories scattered on the floor.

And on the bed was a very frustrated Merida, who was burying her face in her hands, and a sad Izzy, who was rubbing reassuring circles on her partner's back.

"You, girls…" Kat said as she sat next to the princess. "What's going on?"

"Anniversary indecisiveness", Izzy said in a sad tone. "Merry's just having trouble picking out a dress."

"And where to go and what to do", Merida said bitterly as she suddenly leaned back and crossed her arms. "Three bloody years, and I'm already running out of ideas." The princess stood up forcefully and started to walk around the room, not caring that she was stepping on the plethora of dresses. "I just… The more we spend time together, the more I want to make things special."

"I know, Merry", Izzy said, standing up and walking over to the princess. "But you don't have to all the time! I mean, us just hanging out is good enough!"

"But Dr.C suggested you get out once every week, and I though today would be perfect", Merida said with a stern tone.

Izzy frowned and winced. "Riiiiiiight… I for-got about that…"

Katania looked between her two friends with a look of understanding and stood up. "Okay, so it looks like you two need to go out and enjoy your date, and since you kinda need to… I'm going to help." The girl walked between her two friends and brought them together in a hug. "You both deserve this day to be special, so no amount of arguments will get me to back off."

The two redheads both blinked, shared a look, then looked back at Kat with nods. "At this point, I'm open for anything, so what the hell", Merida groaned, stomping over to her bed and flopping down on her back.

"Well, first you two should get ready and get this place cleaned up", Kat said in determination. "When you two are ready, meet me at the front entrance to the castle." She smiled and left the room, leaving the two fireballs alone in the still messy room.

Izzy smiled at her partner. "Well, I'll see ya' later Merry. Look your best, I feel like Kat might book us a fancy dinner."

The princess sighed, letting out a breathy laugh. "Aye, yeah… See ya' later Iz…"

The Psycho Hose Beast left the room, heading into her own. The hallway was eerily quiet, which did make her a bit uneasy. But she simply pushed that aside and headed to her room.

In Caleb's room, meanwhile, Kat peered through the barely opened door and watched as Izzy entered her room. When the wildchild closed the door, Kat smiled and turned around to the little team she had assembled.

"Alright, I want this to be perfect for the two of them", she started, pacing before her team as they all sat or rested next to the room's couch. "And I felt you all were the best help I could get with this. I have some ideas, but I need your help getting it all ready."

She looked at her assembled team, which consisted of Caleb, Gladius, Star, Marco, Maria and Manolo. The groups all blinked, then shared looks with each other.

"You really want us to help you come up with something, Kat?" Caleb asked.

"Well, of course! You and Gladdy are my best friends, Star and Marco know a few things about matchmaking, and Maria and Manolo are married. Tiny guys are more than enough help!"

"Then why is Vec here?" Star asked, jabbing a thumb at the Dalek.

"I concur, I don't see any reason for me to participate in this activity", the Dalek said matter of factly.

"You're here because as a robot, you can help us out with the more technical stuff. Like money and such."

"But we have an infinite budget?" Maria said in confusion.

"I don't want to go overboard and make our fireballs feel guilty. So we're gonna budget and do this with a reasonable amount of cash." The girl walked towards the door, gesturing for the others to follow. "C'mon, we gotta head to my place. Better room for planning."

As she left, the others all followed after her, uncertainty but also excitement bubbling in them all. Manolo and Maria seemed the most invested as they followed the general's daughter, ideas already formulating behind their eyes as to what to do.

Caleb, Star and Marco lagged behind the group as Gladius and Vec headed ahead, conversing between each other.

"So… Are you two okay with this?" The bespectacled boy asked carefully. "I know that… considering things… romance stuff is a bit iffy with you two."

"Oh, yeah, no, we're okay", Star said with a reassuring smile. "Sure, it's weird, but it doesn't feel wrong. Sure, you'd think me and Marco would not want any part of this, but…" She glanced at her adoptive brother.

"But we like the idea of helping out with romance stuff", Diaz said with a nonchalant shrug. "Like sure, I am still a bit off, but I also do just feel better about it all."

Caleb looked between the two of them with an apprehensive look. For the three years they've been together, everyone knew that the whole topic related to 'Starco' really set the Echo Creek pair off. Star was always the one that had the more adversarial reaction, getting very snippy and sometimes frantic. Marco was more subdued, but seemed really saddened that because of things now he didn't have a romantic relation with anyone back at his city.

Because while he didn't make it known, it was obvious he didn't keep pursuing a relationship with Jackie Lynn Thomas. There was just too much… Fog, related to all of that.

So things were really uncertain for him. Star, meanwhile, had recently started to get back into contact with Tom, and things were going smoothly with them. But there were still some hints of concern from the magical princess that it would all fall apart.

Caleb just gave them both reassuring smiles, and they continued along their way in silence. It was best to just let it go and let them relax. The boy, while he was still worried, didn't want it to throw him off. So he stayed quiet as they headed towards Kat's home…

~X~

Izzy and Merida walked out of their rooms at the same time, and looked down the hallway at each other. The wildchild was wearing a green dress shirt with a gleaming orange flower on the chest, with matching dress pants and black heels. Merida was wearing a golden dress with blue and black accents, her hair done up in a bun with a golden hair-tie, and with deep blue boots that could just barely peek out under the dress' skirt.

The two redheads walked up to each other and intertwined hands, looking each other in their faces.

"You look amazing, Merry", Izzy said with a lovestuck tone.

"Only want to wear the best for you, Iz", Merida said back with a smirk. They both shared a kiss, then started to head down the hallway, hand-in-hand. As they walked passed the wall-length window as the orange glow of the sunset leaked in, they sparked up conversation about what they theorised would be their date.

As they neared the front entrance, they grew silent as staff they passed started giving them knowing looks. The two redheads looked at each other in discreet confusion, but when they rounded the corner, they immediately saw why.

Katania and Vec were standing before the open door, a limo parked on the front road. The girl was dressed like a chaperone with the Dalek dressed in a similar look that best fit his proportions.

"You two both look amazing", Kat said with a warm smile. "Which is also good, because you two are gonna have one hell of an evening."

"I wouldn't expect anything else, Kat", Izzy said with a smile. The two redheads stopped when Vec moved in front of them, lifting his claw up to show he was holding two necklaces."

"These are special gifts for you both", the Dalek said. "I constructed them myself as a celebration of your anniversary." The two girls shared a look, then carefully took the jewellery and put them around their necks.

"You really made these, Vec?" Merida asked as Izzy looked at the emerald on her necklace with starry eyes.

"Affirmative. I hope they are desirable enough."

The princess blinked, then looked down at the sapphire that was connected to her necklace. "Bloody 'ell, Vec… This is amazing. Yes, this is perfect, thank you."

The Dalek nodded his eye stalk and moved back beside a beaming Katania. "I am glad. I hope you two have a wonderful anniversary."

"We will!" Izzy said cheerily, her mood a lot higher than before. She beamed as she hugged the princess' arm and led her (more dragged her) out the front door and down the steps towards the limo. Caleb was standing next to the open driver seat door, smiling happily as the two lovebirds walked over. Vec hovered down and used his claw to open the door for them, bowing his eye stalk.

The twin redheads went inside, and Caleb ducked in and buckled up in the driver's seat. He rolled down the back window and looked through the rear view mirror. "You two ready to get going?"

"You know it, CC!" Izzy called out, leaning against Merida. The boy nodded and rolled the window back up to give the two of them privacy. He started the engine, and started to roll the limo out of the front gate. As the vehicle drove away, Katania waved happily as Vec moved back up the steps and started to head inside.

"Do you think all the setup we did will work out?" The Dalek asked, pausing to look at the girl.

She nodded with a smile. "I know it will." She headed inside, the robot turning around to watch the limo drive off. He hummed, then headed inside after her, the massive double doors automatically closing behind them.

In the back of the limo, Izzy and Merida were looking out the windows at the passing mansions as they headed towards the city. The wildchild was simply on her girlfriend's lap, leaning against the princess and looking out with a smile. Merida was hugging her close, hand running through her hair and face buried in the crook of her neck just so Merida could barely look out the window.

"Merry?' Izzy said in a happy whisper. The princess hummed in response. "Is this what you were hoping for?"

The princess nodded. "Completely. You always deserve the world, Iz, so I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy."

"Remember what Dr.C said, though…" Izzy pulled back and gave her partner a stern look. "You shouldn't kill yourself over this. Sometimes us just taking a walk in the courtyard is more than enough. So don't try and bust your butt all the time."

Merida's lips twisted in a half frown, but she nodded nonetheless. "Alright, I relax with the endlessly spoiling you."

"You better. Because your birthday is coming up and I don't want to feel outdone."

The princess snorted and let out a laugh. "Well, that'll keep me excited!"

Izzy smiled goofily, then leaned in. Merida caught on, and the two of them shared a kiss. It was close to getting more heated, but thankfully they were stopped when the limo came to a stop. They both blinked and looked out the right side of the vehicle, gasping as they saw where they were.

Next to the road was an extravagant restaurant with a beautiful front area complete with a fountain. Couples and families heading wearing suits, dresses, and anything akin to that as a doorwoman opened the door.

"This is apparently the most extravagant place to dine in the whole city", Caleb explained from the limo's speakers. "I don't know how to pronounce the name, so to avoid offending people I won't. But it's fancy, and Kat pulled no expense to get you guys one of the best spots. So you two enjoy yourselves."

"Where will you go?" Merida asked, making Izzy pause from getting out.

"I'll just head around back. Kat said there's a spot saved for this very limo, so I'll just chill there. Text me when you're done, got it?"

"You got it, CC!" Izzy headed out, holding a hand out so the princess could get out a lot easier. Merida smiled and gracefully took her hand, and when both walked onto the clean sidewalk, the limo door closed and Caleb drove off around the corner. They both smiled and walked up the polished quartz steps towards the front door. The woman there smiled and nodded and opened the door for them, and the couple headed inside.

The interior was just as extravagant as the outside, with a warm lighting you'd expect to find at a party under a starry night sky. Merida led the two of them towards the front desk, where a waiter was talking with a coworker about something. Upon the coworker looking at the approaching couple, he left and the waiter faced them with a jolly smile.

"Welcome to Herz der Kultivierung, madams. What brings you two to our exquisite restaurant on this lovely evening?" He spoke with a noticeable German accent, his smile not faltering for a moment.

"Well, we're here because a friend booked a table for us…" Izzy said, looking around at what was visible of the restaurant. "We're from the castle, if that helps."

"Ahhhhh, mistress Izabella and mistress Merida…" The waiter looked down into a book and nodded firmly. "Yes, your names are on here! Mistress Kat is a common customer with her parents, so much so we hold special regard for them." He winked at the couple and pulled out two menus and two drink pamphlets. "If you would both kindly follow me…"

He started to head into the restaurant proper, the pair of redheads following close behind. As they walked, the couple looked around the establishment in awe. It was so extravagant and warm, with people from all over the city enjoying a nice dinner under the glow of the candlelight.

The waiter took a turn and walked up some stairs to an area that was labelled "VIP Area". Merida smiled and rolled her eyes while Izzy giggled, and they headed up and walked over to the table their waiter was standing next to. They sat across from each other, and then were handed the menus.

"I'll leave you two to pick out some appetisers and drinks. And if you want any sort of alcoholic drink, show your server your ID." He bowed and left, leaving the couple in the almost empty VIP area.

When he was gone, the princess looked at her menu as Izzy looked around. "Give it to Katania to spare no expense and get us the best seat in the house, huh?"

"Eh, I expected as much", Merida said nonchalantly as she continued to look over her menu. "She wanted to help us, so something this fancy was always going to happen."

The Psycho Hose Beast hummed in agreement and looked over her menu. The options were staggering, with a plethora of food from across the world. And as she moved over to look at the drink menu, the selection there was even more wild. All the drinks, both alcoholic and not, looked straight out of some science fiction or fantasy novel. Unbelievable, but actually here and looking honestly delicious.

The redheads simply sat there, occasionally sparking up conversation as they scanned over the food they wanted. They picked out their appetisers and drinks, and continued to talk as they waited. It was a sweet scene, especially with how all of the frustration in Merida's body had long since washed out and let her breathe.

The rest of the dinner went by without anything of note. The couple ate and drank, maybe shared some very not PG comments to each other, and occasionally slipped in a kiss or two. After they were done and the bill was paid for (pre-paid by Kat), the couple stumbled out of the restaurant with goofy smiles.

Being the daughter of a warrior dad, Merida was a lot better at handling her liquor than Izzy, who was rosy cheeked, hiccuping and leaning on her girlfriend for support.

As they stood by, waiting for Caleb with the limo, Izzy started to drunkenly mumble something.

"We should TOTALLY get married", the wildchild slurred. Merida, still somewhat sober, blushed viciously and looked at her partner with bug-eyes.

"W-What?" The princess said breathlessly.

"We should get married!" Izzy repeated, too drunk to register… anything. "That way we can do this all the time, we can sleep in the same bed, and have all the fun we could." She hiccuped before she continued. "P-Plus… I want to be able to go 'That's my wife!' to random losers on the street." She suddenly fell silent, then looked at Merida with a lovestruck grin. "You know I love you, Merrrrrrrry?"

Merida blinked, still trying to process what was just said but still drunk enough to not care. "Yeah… Yeah, I love ya' too, Iz…"

The two girls leaned forward to kiss, but were stopped when the limo pulled up and honked at them. They both paused, slowly made their way inside, and as soon as the door closed…

Well, Caleb both somehow paled and blushed at how instantaneous and passionate the couple suddenly became. He blinked and rolled up the window to the back, keeping his eyes glued to the road.

"Ooooooo-kaaaaay…" He said to himself quietly. "Here's hoping they don't make a mess…" He focused on the road ahead, but even if he was uncomfortable…

He was also oh-so happy for his friends.

A slight smile of surprise graced his lips as he overheard Izzy mumble "Marry me…" after all the passion was spent. His heart raced, excited to see how that plays out…

~X~

The following morning was one with the redheads suffering from a pair of vicious hangovers. Because, as it turns out, after getting back to the castle they both drank more.

Which meant nobody was to get in their way else they'd be folded like a cheap lawn chair. Majima learned that the hard way as he was rushed off to. Fix his broken spine, leg and arm.

Caleb and Kat, off to the side of the cafe, shared a fist bump as they saw Merida and Izzy quietly talk with the rest of Team E-Scope at a volume that wasn't killer. The two redheads looked so done with life but well aware of what happened the night before.

And based on how they both blushed… They remembered what they talked about.

Caleb glanced at Kat and could see the gears turning in her head.

"Give them time, Kat", the boy said quietly, patting her arm.

"What? I wasn't thinking of anything!" She started to chase after her laughing friend. "I mean it! Caleb!" They both ran out of the room, ready to get on with the new day.

Merida watched them go with a curious look, then looked over at the bulletin board on the wall. The summer festival was coming up, and as she looked at the flyer, Merida's heart started to race.

Maybe…

~X~

And that's the next chapter done and dusted! Got some hints at what's more to come, especially with the romantic end of things. No spoilers, I want some things to be a surprise.

But yeah, a Merizzy focused chapter! Had fun with this one, especially with the start. But I also was so freaking stumped coming up with a name for the restaurant, to the point it was the main reason this chapter took so long to release. But I eventually came up with 'Heart Of Cultivation', but in German. Yes, a name took me a week to finish the chapter. I am such an awful author, lmao.

Aaaanyyyyway… Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, gang! Sure, it's a shorter one, but I sometimes feel like there needs to be some shorter chapters to balance the character and setting. Just how I feel about it, at least.

Up next: Feeling as though Caleb and Gladius aren't living up to their full potential, Galacta and Warlord team up to train the boy and blade duo in some more practical combat knowledge, dragging in a few others with said knowledge for the heck of it…

~Caleb~