Fandom Into the fire (1x1 MzHyde/Gallifrog)

[MzHyde]

Kay knew that there would be more than enough for Rinaa to have what she wanted as like her sister Sam would say, she would make enough to feed an entire army most times which always went down fine as it meant there was always lunches for the next couple of days for people, and this night was no exception, even with Rinaa's hyper metabolism at play. She was just glad that Rinaa liked it enough to go for a second helping and Fia to finish her own plate for her. Whilst the teenagers were eating away, Kay listened to Cliff's reply to her quip, smiling and nodding every now and then, having always gotten that feeling from Benji when on the island. "I got that feeling from him, that he'll complain to high heaven but means absolutely none of it himself" she smiled.

She continued to listen to her nodding in understsnding, "I get that from Benji. It's obvious how much he loves being at home with your parents. Pretty sure a blind man would be able to see that. I think its pretty admirable actually" she commented, truly meaning her words. She rarely ever came across anyone who had no plans of leaving home, even from a young age, all she ever heard from kids was how they couldn't wait to be able to be old enough to move out and live with their friends and not family. Whereas Kay was neither wanting one over the other. Sure, she liked the idea of moving out, and when they were old enough, herself and Sam did move back to London for study purposes, but she never had that thought of wanting to escape the nurturing of her adoptive parents. As for her birth parents, she never got to make that decision for herself. Her mother died and her father walked out on her, so for her she was abandoned and not wanted until she learned to accept the fact Sam's family did went her and weren't going to abandon her like her birth father.

"he doesn't have these two as parents, if he did he might think differently" Fia joked gesturing at John and Kay whilst giving her signature cheeky smart ass grin. "smart ass!" Kay retorted, finding a crumb of flatbread and chucking it at her.

 

[_gallifrog_]

When it came to moving out and away from parents, everybody around the table had a different view on it. John followed his sister's example and moved out as soon as possible (and in his teenage years spent as little time as possible in the flat with his father, choosing either to crash at Chas', sleep rough or stay the night with whoever was the latest person he'd picked up from a night on the pull. Moving out was highly attractive for him. Chas didn't have John's family problems, but the area they lived in was an utter shithole and he wanted better. Cliff's decision to leave home hadn't been her own, sure she could have worked in the family fishing business despite being deaf, but her parents knew it would be an upwards struggle and could already see that being a doctor was a better choice for her. Sending her off-world on an academic scholarship, was, when Cliff looked back, the best decision her parents made even if she herself wasn't keen on it at the time. Cal took matters into her own hands and left, forging her own life. Elliott didn't have a choice when it came to moving away from his birth parents (a bit like Kay in regard) and with John things were more complicated, he'd vanish for weeks on end, but he'd always return to John's place. But Rinaa and Jay were arguably even more complicated, a place never felt like home when they were in it, only afterwards they realised that it was indeed a home to them.

Cliff nodded and smiled in agreement as Kay summed up what kind of impressions she got from Cliff's older sibling, agreeing with all she was saying. "Though if it's all the same I won't tell him that, he doesn't need his ego to get any more bloated than it already is." She joked, to which Rinaa, Cliff and Cal all rolled their eyes, knowing Cliff was only teasing. Benji's ego wasn't that massive, he took everything in a good-natured way and managed to make light or make a joke out of any situation. He was the most positive of the siblings, Matteo being the second most positive sibling his outlook on life was full of youthful exuberance. Cliff and Charlie were realists (they had to be in their line of work). Nat was the most negatively biased.

There was good natured laughing at Fia's quip, even if for the briefest moment John did have a sort of internal panic about being a biological parent. "There's an element of truth to what she said." Rinaa said, at the same time as Jay said "though she does have a point." The two looked at each other an unspoken conversation passing between them 'you too?' 'yup, never really knew where home was, I wasn't always the happiest' 'was it the constant moving or the people?' 'the people, without a doubt, some places felt right' 'but at the same time there was always something missing and no matter how much you pretended that wasn't the case, it was' 'yeah, exactly, though there were some damn good times too'.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay chuckled at what Cliff said about not letting Benji hear that, seeing that even when apart by a far distance, Cliff can still make digs about Benji and do it with love in her heart for her brother. Kay also got from the time she had known Benji that his ego wasn't nearly as big as Cliff jokingly made out it was. He was a kind soul, that much she got from him in the time she had spent with him and the others. Her thoughts on Benji were soon diminished when Fia made the quip she did, glad that everyone found it amusing even if John did have a brief moment of panic being reminded that yes, he was a biological dad and not just an adoptive dad to a kid. Kay didn't even have a moment to think about that reality hitting her again as she was too focused on throwing the crumb of flatbread at Fia in retaliation.

Fia felt quite smug that she got such a reaction out of Kay and that she made everyone chuckle at her quip before Rinaa and Jay spoke what they did, only making Fia all the more smug. She could see how both women were seemingly having an entire unspoken conversation with each other, and said nothing on it, just letting it play out as she did with Jay and Leah in her timeline when these moments came about. "you shouldn't throw food, it's highly childish and wasteful you know" Fia quipped at Kay, putting on a tone and body language that made her sound like a posh mother. "oh shh, I made it I can do what I want with it and it was just a crumb" Kay retorted back with a smirk. "and that fake posh accent is fooling no-one." she added.

 

[_gallifrog_]

In Fia's timeline, Jay and Leah having unspoken conversations like this one was a fairly normal sight. At times it was as if they were on exactly the same communication wavelength without even trying to be. Neither appreciated being interrupted during such times and would send cutting glares at whoever dared to break their conversation chain. Elliott had attempted in Fia's timeline to also gain the same level of unspoken understanding with his daughter, but had never succeeded beyond the odd look that conveyed a whole sentence of meaning. He hadn't quite given up, even though it was abundantly clear to everybody else that it was a skill he just didn't possess. Rinaa possessed a similar connection with her Jay, so it was a sort of surprise and relief that with this version of Jay that same connection still existed. Their back and forth looks continued for a maybe a minute or so, thus missing Fia's posh accent and the related banter that followed.

Fia's posh accent was quite something to hear and completely in contrast to her current appearance and as such it was too good an opportunity for John to let slip, he loved a good accent, and had, over the years acquired quite a collection, sometimes mimicking his actual friends and acquaintances, other times stealing them from TV programmes or movies. He quickly lapsing into a different posh accent, one that managed to be even snottier and snobbier, as if it had come out of the mouth of some elite person in the Victorian times. "You call that posh?" He asked pronouncing the word 'posh' as 'p-oh-shhh', dripping snobbery from his words, nose pointed high in the air as he continued in the same affected posh accent (which was in direct contrast with his outwardly scruffy, rough demeanour). "You clearly haven't heard anything, compared to the refined accents and eloquent phraseology of the royal court and the highest noble houses of the land, that's positively peasant speak."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia knew people hearing her speak in a well spoken accent would be quite something considering she was dressed in what she would consider lounge wear, but to everyone else it was far from it. Only the jumper she was sporting could be remotely classed as such garments, but the jeans weren't by any means. The moment John couldn't resist in joining her on the whole accent banter, she smirked as the very action just reminded her of her John back in her timeline and how they'd always go back and forth switching from accent to accent just to see who would crack first. It was usually her, though she did still remember one time she beat him and got him howling with laughter and she forever held it over him.

She listened to what he was saying and just smirked all the more, taking his words as an utter challenge and there was no way in any universe she was going to back down from it. "well if I may say dear father, I wasn't even trying before and I think you'll find those elocution lessons you so insist on one to per take to keep our rank amongst the nobles have indeed been worth every shilling you have spent" she said in the most poshest accent she could muster, making it sound like something that wouldn't go amiss in Downtown Abbey. Kay was struggling to not burst out laughing loudly and bust her gut in the process, finding it was one hell of a sight to be witnessing the two of them acting like this. Not to mention the comment about elocution lessons just utterly metaphorically killed her.

"here we go...this isn't going to end any time soon I feel" Kay remarked to the others whilst trying to not laugh. She was just waiting for one of them to break and hoped when one of them did, it wouldn't disappoint.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John was trying very hard not to burst into snorting laughter at Fia's impressively posh accent. He got an incredible amount of enjoyment from accents, whether it was using them to deliberately piss off certain people *cough cough* Bruce Wayne *cough* or in a more fun context like this. What was even funnier was if somebody had a really thick accent- Texan or Scottish for example- and some of the natural accent seeped into the person's fake accent. The elocution lessons comment made him laugh internally, something that showed as a glimmer of amusement in his blue eyes. Obviously he'd never formally been trained in mimicking accents or speech patterns and his father certainly hadn't forked out the money to send his son for elocution lessons. John's accents were entirely self taught, usually from being around people with said accents, though occasionally for harder ones he cracked and ended up seeking guidance from YouTube.

Rinaa and Jay had finished their silent conversation and were listening to the posh accent competition with great interest and barely contained smirks of amusement as the two descended further and further into period accents and ridiculousness, with John even adding in gestures as if he was smoking a pipe and twiddling an olde style moustache. Their back and forth was finally broken by Chas, who managed to trump them all with an accent that managed to be just that little bit posher, snobbier and downright stupider than both of theirs. "Well of course a game set of croquet on my immaculately maintained lawn, the one next to the terrace with the genuine handmade specially commissioned tiles from Florence, not the west terrace with the mosaic flooring from Turin mind you, is the only successful way to setter matters of the utmost political importance whilst ensuring that one remains utterly dignified at all times through out the proceedings."

 

[MzHyde]

Seeing the glimmer of amusement in John's eyes was noticeable by both Kay and Fia, and Fia was getting incredibly happy that she could bring that out in this time's John just as she did with her John. She was always being called the prankster of the family but she was also called that constant amusement. When Fia got into one of these super good moods, it was hard for her to contain her happiness and it had the capability of being infectious, spreading onto her whole family. She could also tell that everyone was trying to not laugh at the impromptu competition going on between herself and John which just made her want to keep it going. Then came in Chas, unable to help himself and somehow managed to outdo the both of them.

Kay by this point was sniggering but not quite bursting out laughing properly, and she had to admit that Chas' period posh accent was actually really well done. She wondered how either John or Fia were going to be eat this and she could tell their kinds were whirring with comebacks as she watched on in anticipation. "oh don't you start! This isn't a mere game you know!" Fia came out with somehow going from posh to Scottish, "first it's 'oh Fia you's not talking properly! Then it's' Fia! A laaaady doesnt have her weapons on the table!" she continued, the scottish accent getting stronger as she spoke, elongating the word 'lady' for dramatic affect as she went on. "next thing you's be telling me one does not simply walk in Mordor willy nilly! Well yous can shove your croquet game and elocution lessons up your jacksie and feck off!" she ranted in the most comical manner possible but an equally impressive Scottish accent, that if they didn't know she was John's and Kay's daughter, they could believe she was Scottish.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Chas' accent was what made Elliott finally crack into laughter. He'd never heard anything like it from Chas before and couldn't contain his laughter any more. Jay managed to prevent herself from laughing by biting the inside of her cheek. Cliff and Cal were the most contained of the lot, having not heard these accents before. The reaction of simultaneous shock and glee on John's face at Chas' accent was something the cabbie wished he had the foresight to record. Chas, compared to John had a fairly limited repertoire of accents, and this posh one wasn't one John had heard from his mate before. He fully intended to question Chas on the origins of this accent but then Fia transferred almost seamlessly from a posh accent to a rough Scottish accent that sounded uncannily like that of a friend of his and well as looking incredibly natural. At the Scottish accent Rinaa made a strategic retreat to the kitchen, knowing that if she even so much as looked at Fia she'd fall off the chair laughing.

What Fia didn't know was that by switching to a Scottish accent she had provided Chas with the opportunity of the evening. Scottish was one of the accents he could do very well and she had unintentionally left with an opening to make a reference to something. "No you can pull yer head out yer arse listen tae me!" He replied in a thick, rough Scottish accent. "This is ma bloody pub, ye cannae just walk in here like ya own the place. That may be what yer type do in doze poncy places back in England with those other British dobbers, but this be Scotland. We do that kinda shit differently here, tavern brawling and beating the shit out of yer type is what we do for sport when there's nae good things on the telly. I have nae qualms with ripping yer kneecaps straight outa yer legs out with mah teeth if yae don't get oot within the next ten seconds."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia really thought she would have them at her seemless switch, especially when Rinaa had to leave the room to save herself from breaking into laughter, so when Chas came back at her with an equally amusing rant in Scottish, she had really try hard not to burst into laughter and think up a solid rant as a comeback as she listened to Chas go off on one back at her. She had to give it to Chas, it was a good comeback and if she was anyone else she would admit defeat, but she was stubborn as a mule and refused to back down just yet. "yer pub? Yer pub?! This ain't no pub yer cretin! Yer also not me bloody dad so don't go tellin' me what to do! If yer think I'll listen to yer, yer mistaken yer... Yer.... Cockwomble!!" Fia replied, but it was the moment she said the insult that she absolutely lost it, not knowing where in all of her sanity, she came up with such a insult.

Kay was barely holding it together as it was when Chas gave a show of his own Scottish accent skills to Fia, so the moment Fia came back at him she was really starting to chuckle, yet the moment Fia came out with 'cockwomble' a word that doesn't even exist, Kay lost it entirely and burst into proper laughter, tears streaming down her face from said laughter. "what the hell?!" Kay questioned giggling whilst wiping her eyes. "I dunnae know!!! It just came to me in the heat of the moment!!" Fia said, unable to stop the accent just yet. The longer Fia kept it up, the funnier Kay was finding it all and felt like she had to get up and start taking some of the empty plates to the sink to try and get a breather.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Chas' Scottish accent only served to make Elliott laugh harder, the phrase 'I have nae qualms with ripping yer kneecaps straight outa yer legs out with mah teeth' was one he had only found out the context of recently enough (it was Chas he'd finally weaselled it out of). The cabbie was going for the accent with gusto, clearly enjoying himself as the more he continued with the accent the more uncontrollable the laughter from Elliott, and now John became. Jay was the only one of the 'Earth group' not laughing, but her eyes were sparking like highly polished silver (which he had come to understand was her way of laughing silently). But it was Fia who stole the show with her not only made up word, but made of insult of 'cockwomble'. The sheer stupidity of the word was enough to set him off laughing too.

When John had regained his ability to speak, he knew there was only thing he could say, though it took him a couple of attempts to actually start the sentence. He managed to adopt the overdramatic voice-over tone used for movie trailers. "From the creator renowned across worlds for the phenomenon of 'shit on a stick' comes a new creation" he gestured dramatically with his hands as if he was a tour guide indicating an exhibit in a museum "cockwomble!" In response to the question of what a 'cockwomble' even was both Chas and Elliott had jokey answers, which they managed to blurt out once they'd finished laughing. "Sounds like a monster in a kids picture book." Elliott replied, giving his two cents. "Or some kind of euphemistic name for a STD." Chas added. In the kitchen Kay would find that, in an effort to stay upright during her own fit of laughter, Rinaa had practically draped herself sideways over the countertop.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia couldn't even stop the laughter escaping herself because she really didn't know where the word came from in her crazy head but the fact it got everyone into hysterics was enough of a win for her. She kept laughing as John desperately tried to compose himself enough to be able to form a full sentence again, watching as he really struggled for a few attempts before managing to speak properly, making it all the more funnier. She couldn't stop the grin and giggles radiating off of her and out of her as he spoke, and it only grew when Elliott and Chas gave their opinions on what a cockwomble could be. Hearing Chas say it sounded like a weird name for an STD, she just cracked up even more and had to hold onto the table so not to fall off her chair. "I shouldn't ever speak around you lot in future!" she wheezed in her normal English accent this time.

Kay in the kitchen was desperately attempting not to drop any of the plates as she washed up whilst being in hysterics, which only grew as the chatter went on. She saw Rinaa draped sideways over the counter top and smiled, "trying to avoid the hysterics too huh?" she guessed between chuckles and wiping her eye son her elbow as her hands were wet and soapy. She refrained from saying something 'I swear that girl is gonna be the death of us from laughter' as one, she didn't think it was appropriate to bring up death of any kind and she didn't want to risk ruining the mood of the apartment by saying something wrong to Rinaa. Yet she did however still want to include Rinaa in it all knowing she deserved to be included in these kinds of antics as she hadn't experienced it in her timeline.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott had been very pleased with his quip when he thought it up, but as soon as he heard Chas', he, like Fia was sent into another riotous fit of laughter. Jay was outright smirking at that joke, and even Cliff had started laughing, as she did actually know what the acronym STD stood for because as well as learning the basics of multiple languages, she'd also learnt the specialist medical terms so she could be an effective doctor on planets where Attili or her native language weren't spoken (between chuckles she explained to her wife in Attili what the English term 'STD' meant). John also thought Chas' remark was the stronger of the two and the fact it had been aimed at Chas was even funnier. If anyone in their group was to be called a walking STD it was John (he'd actually been called a similar thing at one stage). "I think yer gonna find that pretty hard to do. And we can all agree, points to Chas in that round, well done mate."

"Not exactly succeeding" Rinaa shrugged once her laughter had subsided and she could stand upright again without the aid of the kitchen worktop "but yeah, that was kinda my plan." She admitted that fact almost sheepishly, brushing some lose strands of hair off her forehead. "At least here I'm not in any danger of falling off the chair while laughing, which I have done before." Kay was right in suspecting that Rinaa wouldn't have taken a death related quip too well, it was one of those cases where it was okay for her to use such humour, but if anybody else was to use it, she'd either get offended or depressed (even if she knew it was only meant in jest). Without even thinking of what she was doing she reached over and grabbed the dishcloth from the towel rail and began drying up the dishes that Kay was washing. Drying and/or washing the dishes was something she'd always done when living with Cliff and Cal and it just felt right and sort of comforting to continue doing it in this timeline. It didn't occur to her how much of a shift in mindset it was that she was okay with being this close to Kay and doing something so domestic with her.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia was about to protest John's comment but then she realised he was utterly right. There was no way she couldn't stay quiet around them because someone would say something that would make her chime in her two cents, or she'd think of something either insightful or hilarious that would make her open her mouth, or something would happen that would make her say something else that would crack everyone up. She could see why everyone would find it all hilarious however, the very idea of Chas being called such a thing was about as far from who Chas was in comparison to everyone else in their group or her direct family. "Chas is definitely the winner here, not even I could beat that" she chuckled as she regained her composure at least a little bit.

Kay smiled and chuckled at Rinaa admitting that she wasn't succeeding in staying composed from the three at the table. "likewise, I knew if I didn't bring in the plates I wouldn't be able to stop laughing" she smirked, before chuckling at Rinaa chair comment. "I'm surprised Fia hadn't fallen off the chair, pretty sure she's making herself laugh at this point as well as John and Chas" she said in an amused tone as she washed up. When Rinaa came over and grabbed the cloth to do the drying, Kay was surprised the teenager was so willing to be this close to her, but she appreciated the help none the less. She found that they actually worked well as a team doing this, with neither getting in the way of each other and decided that she'd make the most of Rinaa's mindset switch. Kay was going to give Rinaa her thanks but instead she decided to take a risk that would either blow up in her face or continue to really bring Rinaa out of herself. The risk was something that she had happened to her when she was a kid and it worked so she wondered if it would work for Rinaa as well. She washed the last plate up and put it one side then very lightly splashed Rinaa with some bubbles whilst acting casually, but a smirk was on her face.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"Agreed, that was a stroke of genius Chas." Elliott replied, while laughing he'd draped his arms over the back of the chair for support, but now with the laughter subsiding he returned to a more normal position. The cabbie smiled and nodded, internally very proud of the fact that nobody could come up with a good come back. It was a very rare occurrence indeed that nobody could think of a good response, given how sharp tongued and quick minded everybody in this extended group were, so he intended to make the most of it.

Rinaa had taken up her usual position for drying dishes, which involved bracing one foot up against the lower cabinets (there was a spot between doors that was the ideal size for her foot) and slouching ever so slightly to give her a better grabbing angle. It was a very comfortable position, one also used by Cliff when she dried the dishes (there was an unwritten agreement between them that cal would do the washing as she could use her pyrokinesis to hear the water and Cliff would do the drying). Needless to say the teenager was NOT expecting to be splashed and was completely caught off guard. The slight smirk on Kay's face told her that this was not an accident and befpre she knew what she was doing the teenager had retaliated. As the towel was still in her hand she decided to make good use of it. By dragging it quickly through the soapy water she was able to direct a far bigger splash at the older woman.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia, now composed yet again and able to breathe properly, she nodded in agreement with Elliott, unaware of what was happening in the kitchen for a brief moment. She could see just how much Chas was revelling in the fact he managed to get one over on all of them with his remark and knew he wouldn't let it be forgotten any time soon. "and now Chas will think its one of his greatest achievements that he beat us all... For once" she smirked cheekily, before a yelp of surprise coming from the kitchen made her look over to see what was going on. What she saw was something she didn't think she would ever happen and that was her mother laughing, soaking wet and Rinaa damp and having bubbles stuck to her.

When Kay saw how Rinaa reacted to being splashed out of the blue, she stifled a chuckle before yelping as Rinaa got her back with the soaking wet tea towel and she got soaked with water and bubbles from the soap. She instantly started laughing again and grabbed a handful of soap suds before smearing it down Rinaa's face in retaliation. She felt glad that Rinaa took it as the light hearted motion it was meant as and wasn't afraid to retaliate. She wasn't even aware that their stupid antics had caused any of the lot at the table to look in and watch them, she was just glad that Rinaa felt comfortable enough around her, as she showed her she was a friend and not an enemy to her.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"Not the first or last time I've done that, but yeah, I'm gonna hold onto this one, use it to do a little ego control or if we need a laugh." Chas smirked. He didn't usually brag about every single one of his victories, preferring to bring up a select few in the form of anecdotes time and time again (unlike John who would brag about pretty much anything, regardless of whether it was true or not). The sound of Kay's surprise filled yelp had all head turning towards the kitchen, wondering what could have been the cause of said surprise. "The Hells is going on in there?" John asked rhetorically, leaning back on his chair to get a better view. The sight he saw in the kitchen was completely bizarre and he had to blink a few times to make sure that this was actually happening.

It was a fairly normal to sight to see Kay happy, and it was gradually, as their relationship became better, becoming more common for Kay to mess around with Fia. But messing around like this with Rinaa was something they'd all privately thought would never happen, at least not in this timeline. The teenager ducked away from the soapy, bubbly hands of Kay, her body bending backwards and swinging around low, a move that was clearly adapted from dodging a punch. It also brought her to a position right beside the sink where she proceeded to start flinging as much water as possible in Kay's direction, taking full advantage of the fact that she was ambidextrous.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia couldn't believe what she was seeing, just like the others were in disbelief, and like John she found herself questioning if this really was happening or if she was hallucinating it. "you guys are seeing this too right? I'm not hallucinating?" she questioned, pointing her thumb in the direction of Kay and Rinaa. She knew none of them would be surprised to see Kay happy, they had seen what a positive hopeful personality Kay was considering everything she had either been through or witnessed. It was stranger for Fia to see as she had grown up mostly seeing her mother be so serious, and even though she had witnessed her mother be playful, whether it be with John or herself, it was still rare.

However, seeing her like this with Rinaa was even beyond surprising for her, but she recognised the play Kay was doing. She had done to her when she was younger, bring her out of herself and make her relax by covering her in soap bubbles, just to get a laugh out of her. She also remembered how her mum would tell her that her adoptive mother did the same to her when she would close up from them all, particularly when she first became a part of the family.

Kay knew she'd have to mop up the counters afterwards but it was really bringing Rinaa out of herself and more willing to be casual with her so in her eyes, it was totally worth it. She laughed and covered her face as Rinaa all but showered her in the water and soap, it sticking to her hair and clothes. "okay okay you win! Though both hands is totally cheating" she laughed lightly. She then glanced out and saw everyone staring at the two of them in utter shock. "what?" she smirked, knowing if any of them came over she wouldn't hesitate to splash them either.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John raised an eyebrow at the sight, watching in shock. When Fia questioned her sanity, his answer was hardly reassuring "I'm seein' it alright" he confirmed, the disbelief evident in his tone "but maybe we've just hopped into an alternate universe of something." "I'm seeing it too." Elliott confirmed, just as stunned as John and Fia were. Rinaa was clearly enjoying herself, her eyes grey and gleaming as she began splashing water back in retaliation, clearly not holding back. "Doesn't mean I believe what I'm seeing." "We haven't switched timelines or jumped into some crazy alternate universe, believe me, I'd know if that had happened, timeline sensitive and all that jazz." Jay interjected, impressed with the smoothness of Rinaa's earlier duck, her tone equal parts amused and surprised to be witnessing such a thing. "So whatever this" she gestured at her daughter and Kay mucking around in the kitchen "is, it's really happening."

Rinaa smiled at being declared the victor of this little.... contest?..... play fight? desperate attempt to cheer her up? Whatever it was, it had been surprisingly fun and the fact it had been with Kay Hale of all people, well, she wasn't quite sure how to feel about it if she was being honest with herself (aside from an instinctive twinge of relief that it had been cool water thrown her way as opposed to boiling warm liquid). The only logical thing she could think of to say was "it's not cheating if you're ambidextrous, it's habit." The fact they'd had an audience didn't surprise her, even if they did currently resemble animals in the headlights. Kay's shriek had been pretty loud after all. "I do actually know how to have fun y'know?" she added in a kind of teasing tone before shaking her hair out like a dog, spraying droplets everywhere.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia was glad that she wasn't the only one witnessing such an event in front of her eyes. She agreed with Elliott when he said about not sure if he could believe what he was seeing, as she couldn't either but it was surely something to see and she kind of wished she noticed it earlier and had the thought to film it so they had proof that it did happen. She heard Jay out and confirmed that yes, they were still very much in the same universe they had always been, making her nod.

Kay smiled, seeing just how happy Rinaa was to be having childish fun whilst drying the dishes. She knew the moment the water had cooled off enough it would be fine to start, and if it was any hotter she wouldn't even risked such an action. Last thing she wanted to do was burn Rinaa after possibly her alternate self did such a harsh job of that. She chuckled at her comeback about it being habit and not cheating and nodded in acceptance, "okay, I'll let you have that one" she smirked, before they acknowledged rhe others shocked faces, with Rinaa's comment making her chuckle. "what she said, and who can honestly resist a good old childish soapy water fight?" she shrugged as she brushed off the bubbles into the sink and emptying the bowl of water down the drain, before she got tempted to use it on either John, Elliott or Fia. She leaned in to whisper to Rinaa, whilst keeping her eyes on the group, "shoulda used the water on that lot, woulda really given them something to look shocked about" she then stood up straight, "guess I should change my hoodie to a dry one" she chuckled.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The others knew it was okay to laugh at Rinaa's joke, they'd seen that she could have fun, both in this timeline with Moya and friends (or more recently in the nightclub with Fia) and back home in her own timeline with her own friends, band mates, work colleagues and Isogrii kids she grew up around. "Fair enough." Elliott held up his hands in a 'I'm agreeing with you, don't lash out as me' kind of gesture. "Wish I'd known that trick when this one was spending all her time stressing about exams and refusing to do anything fun." Cal remarked with a chuckle, placing particular emphasis on the word anything, hoping to get it across just how much Cliff had fulfilled the 'medical student who locked themselves in their room to study when they weren't doing work placement or attending lectures' stereotype. This resulted in Cal being elbowed in the ribs by her wife.

Rinaa did her part in cleaning the remains of the water fight away, the contented smile not leaving her face as she scrubbed the worst of the water from the cabinets with the tea towel before wringing it into the sink. For once she didn't startle when Kay leaned over to her ear (despite the age gap, they were very nearly the same height) and smirked at the idea of throwing water over the others, it would be hella fun, no doubt about that and bar Jay, they all looked too dazed to be able to stop such a surprise attack. "Shoulda yeah" she replied softly while at the same time looking down to see how badly soaked her shirt was. As a result of her maybe over-vigourous enthusiastic splashing her t-shirt was as soaked as Kay's was and clinging uncomfortably across her shoulders. "I should probably change out of this as well." She declared, already half way out of the room, beginning to pull the shirt from her shoulders as she did so.

Rinaa emerged a minute or so later, her wet t-shirt replaced with a lightweight hoodie, the same one she'd worn most nights on the Cliff's family's island when the temperatures dropped to nippy. It had been too big for her when she found it in the vintage shop, and was slightly too big for her these days, the sleeves too long (the ends of the cuffs coming down below her fingertips) and the body slightly baggy. It was grey in colour with the logo of the research team from the original Jurassic Park movies.

Spoiler: Hoodie design

 

[MzHyde]

Kay just smiled when Elliott held his hands up in defence and defeat at both her and Rinaa's words before sniggering at Rinaa agreeing that they should have done a surprise attack on the rest of them. When Cal spoke up about wishing she knew the trick of splashing Cliff with the water when she was in exam mode, Kay had to chuckle. "it's never failed I can say that much. First happened to me when I was 10 years old by my adoptive mother to bring me out of myself, and it's a method that's stuck ever since" she explained, before seeing that Rinaa did indeed need to change her own t-shirt. She let Rinaa go on ahead of her before she left the room to change her hoodie over herself. It was now when she changed that she felt glad she wasn't wearing her oversized white shirt she slept in sometimes, knowing all too well the consequences of wet white shirts.

She changed into a faded red hoodie that had too long sleeves just as she liked most of her clothing if it wasn't sleeveless (her outer worn out biker jacket being a good three sizes too big being the prime example) and came back drying the ends of her hair in the process. By this point Fia had moved from the kitchen able where they were sat to one of the couches, still processing what she had witnessed. She noted that Rinaa was wearing an old vintage jurassic Park hoodie and Kay in a plain faded red one that she recognised instantly as one she had nicked once and curled up quite literally entirely inside of it. Only difference was by her timeline it had alot more rough edges and a couple of small holes in it, including one in each sleeve as makeshift thumb holes. Kay came back and sat down next to John as she hadn't done so much all day, feeling so much happier and relaxed after working hard on the meal and just having a bit of childish fun. "as fun as that was, definitely prefer being dry" she said slightly amused as she pulled her sleeves right over her hands, her fingers just curling over the hemline to hold the sleeves in place.

Spoiler: The hoodie

She just looks so adorable in this hoodie I had to use it XD! Even though the editing app always crashes when I try to change her eyes to Kay's grey blue hues lol

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa was already out of the room by the time Kay started explaining the origins of that method. None of the others had heard of such a thing before, but they couldn't deny that it had worked. There was something heartwarming about the continuation of the method and it showed the high regard the love Kay had had for her adoptive parents in the way she talked fondly about when it had been used on her. It also highlighted that there were a number similarities between Kay and Rinaa. The teenager mightn't have been adopted, but it did sometimes it did feel to John like Rinaa was going through the classic behaviours of the adoptive child- feeling inferior to the biological child (and at times resenting them), being uncertain of her place both within the family and within the world and having a rebellious streak a mile wide. "Well there's no doubt that it's effective." Cliff replied to which their were nods of agreement.

Rinaa took a different strategy to Kay when it came to dealing with the too-long sleeves of her hoodie, pushing them halfway up her forearms, this way ensuring her hands were free for working (should the need arise). The left hand neck cord was completely frayed away as Rinaa had a habit of chewing on it while thinking. She vaguely recognised the red hoodie as one she'd seen in John's apartment in her timeline, but didn't make any further comment. The version of the hoodie in her timeline, like in Fia's had significantly more wear and tear, but that was normal with a garment that had been around for long. The Isla Nublar hoodie had a repaired rip on the left shoulder and all the hallmarks of wear and tear that came from being well loved in both it's previous and current life. The teenager had chosen to leave her hair wet, as it was short enough that it would be fully dry again after no more than fifteen minutes. As it dried the blue streak would become more prominent. "Depends on what it is that's wet really" Rinaa replied "wet hoodie or biker gear, that's fine, especially the later water runs of it. But t-shirts that's just miserable, clingy and itchy... though the lat one could be just me."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay never really thought about the time her adoptive mother used the method on her until she did it to Rinaa to keep her happy mood going. She also didn't think much about her explanation or how the others would think it was heartwarming how she spoke about it with fondness in her heart. To her it was a stupid little thing but she knew it worked wonders in making someone smile or chuckle, no matter what going on negatively in their mind. She also didn't even think much about how herself and Rinaa did have the similarities between them, even though those very similarities were staring at her in the face. She rarely spoke of her parents, unlike how she could tell a hundred stories about Sam, she rarely spoke of her parents, having only mentioned before that they saved her from being orphan and ending up in care by adopting her.

She was also aware suddenly that the only times she ever brought them up was when she spoke about how she knew a skill like archery or cheering someone up like just now. Bringing them up again did make her miss them greatly and make her feel guilty for making them believe she was still missing and nowhere to be found, even if it was for their safety. She sat on the couch and listened to Rinaa's opinion on her initial comment and nodded, "true that, wet tshirts suck a lot, but if they're on certain other people it's a good thing" she smiled, her previous thoughts on her parents vanishing from the front of her mind yet again. She also couldn't resist the stupid part of her comment, knowing that it was something everyone could agree with.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Kay was right in thinking that most of the others could appreciate the sight of somebody in a clinging wet t-shirt. John was smirking, as were Elliott and Jay. "Fit people clad in wet t-shirts would have been a major part of my teenage years had I spent them on my home planet. One of the great advantages of growing up on a water world like mine." Cliff remarked before her wife chimed in with "though it does explain a lot about Benji" in a wry, teasing tone. "True, true, he'd appreciate a wet t-shirt a tree" she chuckled. Her eldest brother had always been very comfortable with his sexuality- omnisexual being his preferred label- and it was clear from her fond tone that she didn't mean it as an insult in the slightest. "But that's because it more than likely means there's somebody AT LEAST half naked nearby." Rinaa added, deciding that her weird extended family did NOT need to know her opinions on people in either wet t-shirts or in clothing so saturated with sweat it was clinging in all the right places. Both Cal and Cliff chuckled at it, because it sounded so very like something Benji himself would say as a justification.

"Though if we're being honest here" Jay chimed in in Cliff's direction "you would have made up for missing all that back home when you were training as a cadet" she paused "or at least you would if your military experience was anything like mine." Cliff and Cal both nodded knowingly. "Oh we had a load of those stereotypes and when you spent all your days training with these people, it's impossible not to notice you're all becoming physically fitter. Obstacle course training was always great to watch, doing the course wasn't fun, but the view at times." Cal raised her eyebrows wiggling them suggestively in a way that made Elliott cringe (as they'd seen on the island he still hadn't quite accepted just how much his sister had really grown up over the years they'd been apart). The three women all smirked in unison, thinking back on their army days fondly. "Good days." "Good days indeed."

It was Elliott who eventually changed the topic, directing his question at his daughter. "You said yesterday you'd explain about the black nails, Now seems like a pretty good time." The teenager smirked "and it's actually related to the earlier topic as it was from my ex that I got the..." she paused searching for a suitable word "inspiration I guess you could call it." Seeing the question Jay was about to asked she nodded "yes THAT ex" which could only mean Cass, the girl who had not just broke but shattered her heart. "She had a horrible habit of biting her nails when she was younger and to stop her doing it, she'd have her nails pained with DISGUSTING tasting polish so eventually after many months of biting and tasting the horrible polish, she was conditioned not to do so. I just thought it looked cool and went with my look both onstage and off stage."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay had to smirk at Cliff being the first to speak up her agreement on the whole wet t-shirt remark, and the smirks on John and the others didn't go amiss either. She had to snigger slightly at Cal's quip about it explaining Benji well, and how the rest of the conversation proceeded on, only to make Elliott cringe about seeing his sister talk and act in such a way. Fia was a mixture of smirking and cringing, hearing her family talk about others in such manners. Fia just knew deep inside it would either be herself or Elliott who would change the subject, so when Elliott changed it, she wasn't in the least bit surprised by it. She was surprised it was changed to Rinaa's black nail polish of all things, but she listened to the answer none the less.

Fia had never gone as far as to paint her nails as she never saw a point to due to what she was being brought up to do out in the world. She knew if she did paint them they'd only chip and look messy in minutes of doing them, so she never sported any kind of nail art in the slightest. Kay however had done before but it was rare for her to do so, even when she did it'd be either a dark red or other dark colour and only ever for a special occasion. Both girls however found it interesting that Rinaa picked it up from her ex. "never ever been bothered to do it myself. I just know if I did it'd be wrecked as soon as it was done" Fia commented with a shrug. "I could probably count on one hand the amount of times I've bothered" Kay remarked.