Realistic or Modern Transformation

[Acorn]

Annalise was quick to speak once the conversation became relevant to her again. “Yes, that’s exactly it,” she said, nodding. Before she continued, she held her hand out to a still frowning Becca. To Leon’s surprise, given how Becca had continuously pushed her mom away when they’d been back at the holding facility, the younger witch stepped close and took her hand. There was a moment that passed between them, where Annalise smiled reassuringly at her daughter and Becca brightened, that made Leon realize why Becca had fought tooth and nail to find her mother again.

“She’s mortified because she’s seen the mess Lorelei and I left behind.”

“That wasn’t you. You didn’t do it. I only found traces of Lorelei’s magic,” Becca protested.

“I appreciate that, sweetie,” Annalise sighed, “but I amplified what she was doing. I’m just as responsible as she was.”

Becca’s mouth took a stubborn tilt, but she didn’t say anything more because Annalise returned her attention to Rita. “The problem is we did so much damage that no matter how careful Becca and I are, we’re going to brush against things that hurt.” Her brow creased and she exhaled in a short, noisy burst. “If she left any mines behind and we hit them? What if it goes off and we don’t get it contained in time? That’s why Becca is worried.”

So that's why neither of them had thought his jokes were funny.

Silence prevailed in the room until Orvar, always thinking ahead, mentioned that the room they’d used in the past for witches to work in had since been converted into a gym.

“It shouldn’t take much time for me to create space for you to work,” the vampire said.

“No, not like that,” Leon said, forcefully enough that every eye in the room landed on him. “I’m not going to have her stand alone in the middle of the floor like I did when the sisters were fucking with my seal.”

“In the middle of the— What? Sisters? The triplets?” Annalise slapped her forehead when Becca nodded hesitantly. “Oh my God, of course they did. Always about making sure everyone knows they’re casting a spell. I bet they chanted to the top of their lungs and made you stand in the middle of a bunch of runes that didn’t even do anything, too.” She took a step towards the bed, shaking her head. “You don’t have to go anywhere. You can even stay just like you are, holding her, if that’s what you want. It won’t interfere with anything.”

That’s exactly what he wanted.

Leon, heedless of the eyes on them, pressed a lingering kiss to Rita's lips. When he pulled back, he told her he loved her, then curled his arm around her a little tighter, and gripped the hand in his a little harder. He knew what could happen when witches went digging around in places Lorelei had been. The last time it’d happened to him, when the sister witches had offered to take a look at the seal Lorelei had blown open to allow him to transform at will, they’d hit something the wrong way and he’d had a seizure.

By the way they told it, Lorelei practiced magic like a surgeon using a wrecking ball and dynamite instead of a scalpel, and his mind had reflected that. He’d only spent a few months with Lorelei fucking with him. Rita had spent years. As much as he didn’t want to, he steeled himself for the worst.

Once they were settled, Becca and Annalise both moved to sit on the bed’s edge closest to Rita, linked hands, closed their eyes, and began their search.

For a while, nothing changed. He held Rita, his chin resting lightly atop her head, occasionally shifting to press a kiss in the same spot and breathe in the reassuring scent that was uniquely her, and she sat quietly. Then Becca and Annalise opened their eyes simultaneously.

“You’re still human,” Becca declared with a grin, in the same way he imagined she would’ve announced Rita had won the lottery. She ducked her head and tucked a few stray strands of hair behind her ears and cleared her throat before she glanced at Leon. “Not that there’s anything wrong with not being human, you know. I mean, of course you know, but you… know, right? This is good news.”

“So that’s it?” Nate asked, looking at them curiously.

“No, no it’s not,” Annalise said. “The seal doesn’t require any digging to find. Now we need to dig.” She smiled gently at Rita. “Are you ready?”

 

[Poe]

“Go ahead,” Rita nodded, bracing herself for the inevitable pain that was sure to come. She’d had Becca in her head before, twice, and Lorelei certainly did not tidy up house when she left. Still, Rita hoped for the best and considering she was human still, she hoped her luck would remain. After all, it seemed the world had knocked her down enough over the past five years of her life for her to have earned a little bit of levity. That was not the case though when Annalise and Becca closed their eyes.

No matter how gentle and careful they were trying to be, her mind was a gaping wound. And if it had been a wound, it was still fresh and an angry red color, not yet eased by the scar tissue trying to rebuild. It felt like someone had stuck their hands in a bullet wound and Rita immediately felt her muscles seize up in pain and her hand grip Leon’s. She kept her eyes closed, buried her face into his chest and breathed as evenly as she could manage. In and out, over and over again. As they bug deeper and deeper, the pain became more intense and Rita did her best to hold her tongue.

Everyone had endured enough guilt and suffering, the last thing they needed was to see her writhing in pain, but it was overwhelming. It was like she felt Lorelei back in there, but the presence wasn’t oppressive. She could hear Becca’s reactions, her murmurings and sympathetic sounds. Rita could not see her own mind like a room anymore, it was just darkness like it had been before Lorelei – like everyone else in the world – but for a moment Rita wished she could see.

Then, Rita stifled a scream. She pressed her face even deeper into Leon as though she was hiding her expression, but it was twisted in pain. A white hot pain that radiated through her entire body and pulled tears from her eyes. She did not sob, she did not weep, but the involuntary tears trailed down her face soaked Leon’s shirt. But she did not pull away, she did not cry out for them to stop, instead she endured it.

They must have hit something,

It was a long arduous process after that. Rita could hardly breathe as they went deeper and deeper, moving and clearing out remnants of Lorelei. The pain would subside, the wounds would heal, but Rita wanted a chance at a real life – one where she wasn’t constantly afraid of what might implode in her mind because of some psychopathic witch who decided her mind was fair game. It went on for almost thirty minutes, the two witches holding hands and trudging through and Rita attempting to endure everything that came at her. Cries, screams, but never did she stop.

She just held onto Leon and so long as she could feel him there, she knew she would come out of this.

Rita’s breathing was ragged by the time she felt Becca and Annalise pull back out of her mind. It was just a slow drag, like nails against a chalkboard, but once they were out she felt relief again. Her entire body eased and her mind found peace. A headache gathered in a painful cluster and caused Rita to clench her eyes shut, but she just focused on her breathing and loosening her vice grip on Leon.

“Rita—“ Becca said her name, but Rita did not open her eyes at the sound of it. She was trying to calm the pounding in her head. Luckily, Nate was quick to interrupt.

“So, now is that it?” Nate asked, “Is she okay now? I mean, obvious not but his her mind okay?”

 

[Acorn]

There’d been a moment when he’d thought that maybe he’d been wrong. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt her, maybe they’d all just been paranoid in thinking that it would, but then she’d tensed and gripped his hand hard enough that he winced. It’d only gotten worse from there on out. He could tell she tried to keep it all from them, but he heard the scream cut short, felt the wetness of her tears through his shirt, and even smelled the endorphins her body released in a futile attempt to ease her pain. Leon, with his eyes closed and his teeth ground together, turned his cheek against her head, the soft strands of her hair catching on the stubble that’d grown in over the past week, and cursed a dead woman for what she’d done — and continued to do — to his wife.

He hadn’t been stupid enough to think that it was over when Lorelei had taken her last breath, but could anyone really blame him for wishing that’d been the case? For hoping that Rita’s fight was finally over? She’d slept uninterrupted for almost an entire day before Nate had knocked on the door and shuffled around just outside until Leon had finally gotten up to hear what he had to say. Concerned. They were concerned. Couldn’t they leave her alone, let her get some fucking peace and quiet for once? No. What if Lorelei had permanently fucked up Rita’s mind? What if when he’d bitten Lorelei, it’d affected Rita? What if. What if.

What if she’d already been fine? What if what they were doing right now, digging for pieces of Lorelei she might’ve left buried in Rita’s head, was the thing that’d send her over the edge? What if she couldn’t come back from the pain they caused?

What would he do then?

Time stretched on and on until he was sure he’d spend forever locked in that moment with Rita, but eventually, she relaxed, her breathing steadied, and Becca called her name. She didn’t lift her head or open her eyes, but he did.

“Now that’s it,” Becca said weakly to Nate. Her freckles stood out even more than they usually did on a background of sickly white, and her hands trembled as she lifted them to push back her hair from where it clung to her sweaty brow. “We scrubbed everything. Lorelei’s gone.” She dropped her hands and looked at Rita where she remained in Leon’s arms. “There’s still damage — God, so, so much damage — but now she can heal.”

Leon frowned. “She can heal? Can’t you heal her?”

Annalise, who didn’t look much better than Becca, shook her head. “Rita knows her mind best, what it should look like. She’ll need to take over from here.” The woman pushed herself from the bed and took a staggering step forward, but Orvar was there in a flash with a steadying hand at her elbow. Becca didn’t even make an attempt — she held her arm out with her hand bent at the wrist and waited for Nate to come help pull her up. She didn’t try to stand on her own either, and Nate’s eyes grew wide when she threw herself at him, trusting that he’d catch her before she hit the ground. He did, and she made a content little sound as she wiggled into his arms.

“Get some rest, both of you,” Orvar said. “We’re here if you need anything.”

The vampire’s words acted as the cue for the group’s exit, and once the door closed behind them, Leon sighed. Without unfurling his arm from around her, or releasing her hand, he scooted down on the bed, pulling Rita with him. He sighed again once he’d gotten situated with Rita curled up next to him.

Now she could sleep. She could heal. If not today, then—

He breathed a short chuckle through his nose and his mouth quirked at the corner.

“My grandma used to sing this song to me when I’d get hurt,” he said quietly, reaching up to stroke Rita’s hair. “Let’s see if I can remember it.”

Leon hummed a few notes until he caught the tune, but the words evaded him and his brow creased as he searched his memory.

“Sana sana… Something about a frog’s butt. Sana sana… colita de rana. Sorry, this is dumb,” he paused to laugh but continued on because he was committed now. “Uh. The second part’s better. Si no sanas hoy, sanarás mañana.” It was more chant than song with the way he’d recited it, but he was pleased that he’d remembered, and the sentiment was still nice.

If you do not heal today, you will heal tomorrow.

 

[Poe]

There was no better medication in the world than lying in Leon’s arms, listening to the deep, comforting timbre of his voice, and feeling the immense warmth emanating off him. Immediately she relaxed as the room cleared and it was just the two of them again. His hand stroked her hair slowly, pulling her deeper and deeper into sleep, but it was his singing that kept him awake. Well, rhythmic chanting but Rita felt a smile stretch on her features at the sound and she forced her eyes open to glance up at Leon. “I like that,” she spoke but her voice was quiet and thick with sleep, “especially the frog butt part. It’s really inspirational.”

“I love you, Leon,” Rita whispered and pressed a kiss to his chest where her head was resting. With those words, she slipped back into sleep despite the pounding in her head. There was nothing except darkness, real genuine rest, and by the time Rita woke up the next morning it was early, nearly before sunrise. They’d slept for nearly half a day but Rita could feel her body becoming antsy. Her head still ached a bit, but there was a clarity in her thoughts she hadn’t experienced in a long, long time. Very suddenly there was so much she needed to do.

They needed to write thank you cards, figure out their honeymoon, clean the house, go to the office – god, there were probably hundreds of phone calls waiting for her. She had forced herself to turn her cell off during the days leading up to and after the wedding for the sake of spending time with her husband but there were people who needed them. Leon was asleep beside her and she pressed a kiss to his temple to test whether he was actually awake or not, but he just shifted and curled deeper into the bed. He had to be exhausted after everything they had endured. He deserved to rest, so Rita slipped out of bed quietly and showered for the first time in three days.

It was a godsend and by the time she’d gotten out, everything felt rejuvenated. Her dark brown locks were healthy and her skin had a glow back to it. There were still plenty of bruises that Annalise couldn’t quite heal in the grand scheme of things because there was so much vital damage that had been done to Rita and Leon. They often had to pick and choose what to heal, but Rita could deal with bruises and a headache if it meant she had her life back. If it meant her and Leon had their life back. Rita slipped on real clothes though it was simply a pair of jeans and a white v-neck, but it was a far cry from the same three of Leon’s shirts she had been stealing since long before the wedding.

Barefoot, she slipped out into the hallway and went downstairs where there was an empty living room awaiting her. The last few days felt like trudging through a nightmare, so she was happy to see that between everyone in their little family, things had been kept tidy and organized. Rita made quick work of picking up the few things strewn about and opening a few windows for the sake of some fresh, Louisiana air. The sun was just rising, so there was a bit of a cool edge to the breeze that floated through the house. Rita moved towards the kitchen and thumbed through their refrigerator.

Leon and Nate both had difficult days the day prior, so Rita pulled out the bacon and sausage, grabbed the eggs and flour, and began cooking up a breakfast befitting of two full grown werewolves and a couple of witches who certainly deserved to sit down and have a bit of freedom from doing everything. Rita hummed to herself as she pulled out a couple pans and set up shop on the breakfast island.

Soon enough, the warm, inviting smell of breakfast was wafting through the house.

 

[Acorn]

The mingled scent of bacon and sausage is what woke him, but it was promptly forgotten as soon as his eyes opened and landed on the spot Rita was supposed to be in. He flung the covers off and sat up to scrub fitfully at his face. Normally, it took him upwards of half an hour to fully come to terms with being awake, but he pushed himself to a standing position and stumbled towards the bathroom.

“Rita?” He said, an edge of panic in his voice. She didn’t answer, and the only thing in the bathroom after he knocked and pushed open the door were several towels that hadn’t made it to the hamper. They’d already started to sour, but he left them where they were and turned from the room. She wasn’t on the balcony, either, and he raked both hands through his hair after he shut the door behind him. Where the hell was she?

“Rita?” He called out again, but this time from the hallway, and this time his voice was raised.

The door to the guest room popped open just before Leon passed it and Nate’s hair was the first thing he saw, sticking up every which way, followed by his eyes, squinted in confusion. “’S everything okay?” He slurred, but before Leon could answer, Rita called out in a sing-songy-not-at-all-in-danger way that she was downstairs.

Leon’s shoulders slumped and he hung his head. “Yeah,” he said, then lifted his head and pushed his curls back from his face. “Just… Y’know. Panicking over nothing.”

He let out a long sigh and started towards the stairs, not catching Nate’s look of sympathy before the other werewolf closed the door.

When he got to the kitchen, he wondered how it was he hadn’t made the connection between the smell of cooking and Rita’s absence. Of course she’d taken it upon herself to cook for everyone when she should be resting and letting them cook for her. She’d always pushed herself to get moving before he’d thought she was ready, hadn’t she? When she’d been recovering from a gunshot wound, he’d gone out to get her flowers and she’d taken that opportunity to weasel her way out of bed and had greeted him at the door when he came back. He’d damn near had a heart attack seeing her out of bed then, too, but she’d been just fine and had probably recovered all the faster for it.

The main difference here was that she was recovering from a thorough mind fuck, not a gunshot wound. He couldn’t peel back the bandages to make sure she was healing up properly. But Becca and Annalise could, couldn’t they?

They weren’t without the means to make sure Rita was alright.

“You know the sun’s not all the way up yet, right?” He scratched at his neck as he walked farther into the kitchen but dropped his hand when he drew close to Rita. While she poked at sausage and bacon with a spatula, he hugged her from behind and leaned over to rest his mouth on the curve of her shoulder, pressing a kiss there. He’d always loved bacon and sausage even before he’d been turned into a werewolf, but after a transformation, he could eat his weight in the stuff and still find room for more. In fact, he couldn’t really palate anything but meat for a few days after he’d shifted. Rita knew that. She never said anything about it, she just whipped up huge batches of meat that rivaled what he used to get at the diner across the street from the facility every full moon — except Rita could actually cook.

“Big change, waking up to the smell of breakfast instead of—“ Leon broke off and cleared his throat, realizing belatedly the path he'd started down, but he couldn't retract it even if he wanted. There was only one solution: Go all in. “Well, instead of screams or getting my ass kicked.”

 

[Poe]

Rita felt Leon’s warmth behind her and visibly relaxed into his chest. It was nice to be able to focus on him for once – the scent of him, the warmth emanating from his skin, the feeling of his eyes on her though she could not see them. She could feel them, she could always feel him. Those big, brown eyes, the way his curls always seemed to look unruly despite his best efforts – it was everything she loved about him in full surround sound, high definition. It was a freeing feeling. “Who needs the sun,” Rita teased, “Orvar doesn’t.”

She shifted the pan off the burner and turned in his arms to look up at him. His hands remained wrapped around her small waist but she could look up and see exactly what she remembered. All of Leon, his eyes with all the worry and love they could hold until they were brimming over, and Rita realized just how much she had been missing for so long having an unwanted tenant in her own mind. She reached up and dragged her fingers over the slight stubble before she pushed her fingertips up into his hand and back out of his face. It was a gentle, slow movement, but in the early morning light she wanted nothing less. “Believe me,” she admitted with a laugh, “I know. I can’t seem to get enough sleep anymore, but at least I don’t wake up screaming anymore. It isn’t an ideal trade-off, but it works.”

“I just figured no one had eaten in a little while. Thought I might try my hand at a real homemade breakfast as husband and wife,” she smirked, “and werewolf friend…and witch friend with her witch mom…and powerful vampire grandfather. Listen, it sounded more romantic in my head, alright?”

“Who you calling werewolf friend?” Nate’s voice called out from the staircase as Rita pressed her lips to Leon’s. The young werewolf scoffed but it was all in good humor. He had no qualms about settling down at the island and looking on expectantly as if he had not ruined the moment between them. “What?” Nate gave Leon a once over and chuckled, “I know you’re not going to call me out when you’re wearing boxers with cheesy dad jokes on them.”

“I bought him these boxers, thank you very much,” Rita eyed him from Leon’s hold, “I’m pretty sure I remember pulling heart boxers off the guest room floor while you were staying here.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Nate rolled his eyes playfully, “You win, Rita. Welcome fucking back.”

Rita laughed and slipped out of Leon’s hold to plate the breakfast. She was sure that Anna and Becca would need more sleep, but it was plenty for her to just sit with Nate and Leon for a few moments. She started with the bacon and sausage first, setting it out and watching as Nate shamelessly grabbed at it. “Oh,” he said, mouth full of sausage, “was I supposed to wait?”

“No, no, dig in,” she grabbed her cup of coffee and took a warm, deep sip of it, “Consider it a thank you for everything these last few days.”

“Rita, if you cook me breakfast, I’ll save your life any day.”

 

[Acorn]

“Yeah, God forbid you wait for anything,” Leon muttered as he went past Nate where he sat at the breakfast island, knocking into him harder than necessary with his shoulder. When Nate turned to protest, Leon snatched the bacon from his hand and crammed it into his mouth. “You should see my ones with the bear and the pot of honey,” he said, making his way to the stool next to Nate, where he quickly situated himself. He too unceremoniously piled heaps of sausage and bacon onto his plate, but he at least used the tongs Rita had passed him. “Says honey buns on the ass,” Leon added, leaning over to dig his elbow into Nate’s ribs. “Get it? Honey buns?”

Nate got it, but judging by expression, he didn’t find it nearly as amusing as Leon did.

It only made Leon laugh all the harder.

The next few days went much the same, with them all eventually returning to their old routines. Becca and Nate went back to their apartment with Becca’s mom in tow, Orvar returned to his mansion, and they — much to Leon’s dismay — returned to work. He didn’t mind the job, per se, because they did good, honest work unlike anything he’d ever done before, where they actually made differences in peoples’ lives, but it also meant a schedule.

An overbooked schedule.

Their week away from the office, no matter how extenuating the circumstances that’d caused it, had resulted in a backlog of people who all needed their help in various ways. It’d taken him close to an hour to go through all his voicemails and emails and make note of who he needed to touch base with, and when he’d peeked over at Rita where she was at the desk he’d set up for her in his office, she was still going through hers. Not because she was slow (he was pretty sure she was listening to voicemails while she answered emails), but because she was more popular than him and had easily twice the amount to go through.

Then, started the meetings. Rita’s were in the office, his were with Nate in the field.

After a long day of helping a family get settled into their new house in New Orleans proper, where he’d been taunted into playing games of chase with their eight-year-old in the middle of unloading boxes from their moving van, and a long night meeting with various anti-sun-sorts, Leon was more than ready to take Rita home and to bed. He’d been ready an hour ago, at midnight.

Leon stood in the doorway with one arm up to brace himself against, and had turned himself to face the same side of the room Rita sat working at her desk. “Rita, it’s one o’clock in the morning,” he said, thunking his head against the frame of his office door. He blew a breath of air out that sent his lips fluttering like a horse’s (or an overdramatic werewolf’s). “Shouldn’t you consider calling it a night since it’s actually morning? We can finish this tomorrow. Today, technically, but you know. Later?”

 

[Poe]

Rita was back.

Clad in her pencil skirt and heels, Rita sat attentively at her desk and flipped through some more files. There were plenty of people who needed help, more than she was comfortable with, which just meant she needed to schedule them all in. Once she had a working idea of when she could feasibly work with them all, it would be a lot easier to actually make to-do lists. Her planner was booked, color coded and laid open beside her as she scribbled in name after name, date after date. She would have to contact the vampires at night, work around the full moon scheduled for this week, and anticipate the risk of meeting with a family of redheaded witches out in the open. There were humans too, scared ones who walked into her office with their eyes wide and words uncertain. They knew they needed a new life but they felt lost in the supernatural world. They had no defense, nothing to protect them but their little group.

Rita loved them all equally and worked her damnedest to help, but there was always a swell of pride when she managed to calm a human family down and get them settled into a nice home. It gave them a sense of security again, something that was not easily gained.

To be honest, she did not even realize that it was one in the morning until Leon thudded his head against the doorframe. “Hmm?” she looked up at him and then back down at her work, “But they’re vampires, I—“ She was about to argue why she could not take some time and rest for herself, but after everything they had endured since getting married, Rita held her tongue. Maybe he was right. Just this once, she could call it an early night and go to bed with her husband. Since they had gone back to work, they did not sleep together much, more staggered based on their schedule. Leon spent long hours on the search and needed more sleep than Rita did, though the woman could certainly use all the rest she could manage. Even now, days later, she still did not feel entirely rested after her ordeal.

“You’re right,” she breathed out finally and shut her planner and slipped it into her purse. She reached below her desk and slipped her strewn heels back on and stood. “It can wait until tomorrow, come on,” she slipped her hand in his and tugged him from the now dark office, “Let’s go home.”

The next morning, Rita was jarred out of her sleep by a phone call and she rolled to see their alarm clock glaring a bright 3 am. “Mmm, hello?” Rita hummed, turning from Leon but keeping his arm around her waist. She was surprised to hear Orvar’s voice, but he seemed rather adamant that there was a family in need of their immediate help just outside of New Orleans. It would be a twenty-minute drive, maximum, and he had already informed Becca and Nate, so they would be on their way momentarily. He was also adamant that they were there before 3:30 am. They needed to get it taken care of before Orvar needed to return home.

It seemed Rita was behind.

After pulling Leon out of bed, Rita showered and pulled on a pair of jeans and a black tank top, holstered her gun and tied her hair back. If Orvar was calling so early, it had to be important. She hardly noticed the missing clothing from her closet as they rushed out the door. Rita drove, allowing Leon to wake up as they traveled, but when they came upon the coordinates, it was a small, private landing strip with a jet settled down in the center. When Rita got out of the car, Nate and Becca were standing by the plane with two suitcases and Orvar stood in an immaculate suit as always with something akin to a smile on his face.

“What’s going on?” Rita asked as she climbed out of the car.

“Do you sleep with a gun?” Nate teased and Rita shot him a look to which he immediately retracted his statement. “Oh, wait –“ he hummed, “I think this is the point where we’re supposed to say surprise.”

“Surprise!” Becca called out with a bright smile.

 

[Acorn]

Rita had said she’d drive so he had a chance to wake up, but it didn’t work out that way. Over the years, he’d learned he could fall asleep nearly anywhere: wedged in the corner of a concrete room, head down on his office desk, and even on the forest floor stark-naked. Cars were no exception. He pushed the seat back so he could better stretch out his long legs, shifted and wiggled until he could comfortably rest his head against the side of the door, then allowed the vibrations of the car traveling on the interstate to lull him right back to sleep.

He was still dozing when Rita parked and cut the engine. It wasn’t until she got out of the car that Leon finally lifted his head to look blearily ahead at a private jet that was sleek, white, and probably expensive. Important family, if they had been dropped off in Orvar’s airplane. Wait a second. Orvar’s plane? Leon sat up fully and strained against his seatbelt to peer out the window. That was definitely Orvar’s plane — he recognized the twin stripes that ran from nose to tail and the fancy way the wings tilted up at the ends. At least, he thought he did. His only experience with the jet had been flying back in it after they’d been captured, held, and tortured by the Enforcers at their Midwestern facility. The only thing he’d been focused on was walking to the plane without collapsing.

What the hell were they on about, though? Surprises? Was the family they were supposed to meet the big surprise? Surprise! They were on the plane all along.


“Ta-da,” Leon muttered, flopping back in his seat. Before he could think about getting comfortable again, there was a tap-tap on the window that made him glance up. He only had only seconds to undo his seatbelt before Orvar pulled the door open.

“I was just waiting for the family to show up first,” he said, in his own defense. Orvar shook his head and stepped back so he could get out of the car.

“The only family here is ours,” the vampire said, resting a cooler-than-human hand on Leon’s arm to guide him towards Rita. He deposited him next to her and continued walking towards two familiar suitcases.

“Why are our suitcases there?” Leon asked Rita, but Orvar answered.

“Because I brought them here.”

“So… we’re traveling to the family?”

“No.”

Leon side-stepped closer to Rita and slid his hand into hers, then looked uncertainly at her and Orvar in turn. He’d followed her lead and dressed in his combat clothes too (the shirt and shorts he’d had on the day before, since he’d just have to take them all off anyway if he needed to shift), thinking that with the way Orvar paired emergency with family that some bad shit was going down, but the family wasn’t there and they weren’t going to the family.

“Then what?” Leon asked, eyebrows knitted in confusion.

“We’re making you go on your honeymoon,” Becca squeaked past her grin. “Orvar got you a—“

The vampire interrupted her with an arm around her shoulder and chuckled.

“Leave them at least one surprise,” he said, and Becca looked like she’d protest but Orvar interrupted her again, this time by hugging her against him tightly enough her eyes bulged a little.

“Well?” Orvar said, directing his gaze their way. “Do I need to carry you both onto the plane or will you come willingly?”

 

[Poe]

“You—what?” Rita asked, wide-eyed staring at Orvar, Becca and Nate where they stood. It not an accusatory or angry tone, but one drenched legitimate surprise. Her and Leon had talked about a honeymoon but with Lorelei an the business, there just never seemed to be a good time, and Rita had just accepted it because what was the point? There was so much they needed to do, so many people they needed to help, and Rita had spent plenty of time in the passenger seat of her own life, so they had agreed to wait. It made her heart swell to see their family standing there, bags packed, waiting for them to get on the plane and off to their destination.

“But what about work, what about—“

“Rita Marie Alvarez, there are only two rules to this honeymoon,” Becca scolded, very reminiscent of Rita’s mother, “You cannot come home early and you cannot say the word work.”

“But I—“

“You two haven’t stopped since the wedding,” Nate added, “We’re fucking exhausted just watching you. So just suck it up, put the work down for a week, and get your shit together.”

Nate was eloquent as always, but it took Rita a moment to understand. This was really a honeymoon. A real, honest vacation that they were going to be able to take together. No cell phones, no work emails, no end-of-the-world attacks or facilities. No witches or vampires or werewolves (except for her werewolf, of course} and no other humans to deal with. “And to be honest,” Nate added, “we know you, Rita, and we know you too, Leon. You’re both still healing and neither of you wants to take a break because the other isn’t. It’s real fucking cute, but when you come back we’re going to need you on your game.”

“Please, please, please say yes,” Becca begged with puppy dog eyes.

Rita reached over hesitantly and gripped Leon’s hand securely in her own. After a loving squeeze, she looked up at him and shrugged, “What do you think? Think you can survive a week with me in an undisclosed location away from the rest of the world?”

 

[Acorn]

“Hmm,” he drawled, narrowing his eyes and twisting his lips in a show of being unsure about his decision. “I’m so used to getting chased or captured or fucked with, I'm not sure what else to do.” He joked, but it wasn’t far from the truth. Since he’d met Rita, their lives had been one long chain of bullshit they’d had to weather with bright, shining moments sprinkled throughout — like moving into the house they’d bought together, getting engaged, then married.

Except, Lorelei had been there through most of it, hadn’t she? She’d been in Rita’s head almost as long as they’d been in New Orleans. Hell, she’d gleefully announced that she’d been there on their wedding night. Before he could quash it, a shudder traveled its way up his spine and spread across his shoulders. The witch was dead, but she could still ruin a moment just as easily as she had when she was alive.

He must’ve been silent longer than he’d realized because Becca cleared her throat and when he looked at her, she shook her head and laughed. “All you have to do is get on. What’re you waiting for?”

Leon shrugged.

“As I said, I will carry you onto the plane if necessary,” Orvar added, and though his tone was light, there was a hardness to his eyes that suggested he wouldn’t hesitate to do exactly that.

“Don’t worry, they’re going.” Becca’s thin red eyebrows dipped as she looked at them imploringly. “Right? You’re going to say yes? Please?”

“Eh, yeah, I suppose,” Leon said, having recovered enough that he was able to slip back into his teasing drawl. He even laughed when Nate scoffed and rolled his eyes at him.


He tugged gently on Rita's hand to start them towards the plane, and as soon as Orvar saw, he had their suitcases and had disappeared in a blur.

Becca didn’t let them pass without hugs and more demands that they stay for the full week. She was happy for them. Excluding the snit she’d gotten into when her mom had been missing, she always had been. After Becca released him, he turned to Nate and held his arms out. The younger werewolf eyed him warily.

“Come on,” Leon beckoned, cocking his head back and smirking, “you know you wanna.”

Nate shook his head, but before he could slide away, Leon stepped forward to grab and squeeze him in a tight hug. He was the brother he’d never wanted, but couldn’t live without now that he had him. “You’ll take care of everyone while we’re gone, yeah? Becca, Orvar… well, maybe not Orvar. He can take care of himself, but definitely— “

“Fuck, okay, get off me,” Nate interrupted, pulling his arms between them so he could shove at Leon’s chest. Grinning, Leon released him.

Rita, on the other hand, Nate hugged willingly.

When they finally made it on the plane, Orvar was waiting for them with his hands clasped in front of him, but Leon barely glanced at the vampire.

“Holy shit,” he said as he looked around the interior. The last time he'd seen it, there’d been a couple rows of massive plush leather seats, but now there were only a handful organized around a table and beyond that was a big couch with a television bigger than the one they had at home in front of it. All the materials looked expensive and new, with cream-colored leathers and glossy dark wooden surfaces. “You fancied it up since the last time we were on here."

Orvar took great delight in telling him that they were on his other jet, the one with a bed and bath at its tail. While Leon spluttered, he told Rita to expect a car when they landed that would take them to their honeymoon destination. “I’ve ensured your every need will be provided for. Please, do try and enjoy yourselves.”

With that, the vampire inclined his head gracefully and left the plane. Soon, there were the familiar sounds of an aircraft preparing for flight and Leon wavered on his feet as it began moving.

“His other plane,” Leon muttered, reaching for Rita and resting his hands on either side of her waist. As he looked down at her and caught her big, green eyes with his, a smile grew and grew until he was sure his face wouldn’t be able to contain it anymore. “Hey, wife. You wanna go check out that bed after we hit altitude?”

 

[Poe]

“His other plane,” Rita laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. She held on tight to him as the plane began its takeoff. She knew they needed to sit down, but she just could not wrap her mind around the idea that her and Leon were about to have an entire week off to themselves. Rita was worried, naturally, about everyone they were leaving behind and all of the cases they would have when they returned, but Orvar had told them to relax and Becca told her that she could not talk about work – so she didn’t. Instead, she nudged Leon towards the plush leather chairs and urged him into one before she climbed on his lap with her legs on either side of him and his hands still on her waist.

“Think this counts as a seatbelt?” she teased with a bright grin, “We can definitely check out the bed when we hit altitude, but I think we would be neglecting Orvar’s gift if we did not give equal attention to these chairs. Safety first, after all.”

It was a long flight, longer than she anticipated. They had time for the bed a few times over and they were lying there curled up in one another when the pilot’s voice came over the speakers to inform them of landing. They scrambled to put their clothes back on and Rita pulled her messy bed hair up into a ponytail to keep it from her face. She was worried about arriving somewhere public where everyone would see that they had just spent the last few hours making up for weeks of lost time. When they finally landed, Rita grabbed Leon’s hand and made their way down the steps to the tarmac. It was so warm and not the same sticky humid as New Orleans. There were palm trees and a bright, clear blue sky, and not a soul in sight except for the car awaiting them and the driver bringing their bags to the trunk.

“If I find out Orvar has a private island, I am going to lose it,” Rita said in amazement as she glanced around at their surroundings. She could smell the ocean and for the first time since her childhood, she longed for the ocean. Naps on the beach, swimming in the ocean, bathing suits and sunshine – god, it was paradise. After a short drive, they made their way towards an immaculate little home on the beach with open, curtained windows. It sat on a beach, wide-open and untouched, and Rita glanced back at their driver. “Where are we?”

“Mr. Orvar has requested nothing but the most immaculate accommodations for the Alvarez family—“

“Is this his island?”

“No,” the driver chuckled, “Certainly not. But this is his property. He owns this beach, but not the island. Well, he owns two of the beaches, to be exact, but this was his most recent purchase.”

Rita whispered to Leon as they walked towards the house, “He bought us a beach for our wedding. A beach.”

“Now, the home is rather small but it is a beautiful property.it is entirely over the ocean. The living room is open air with an unbelievable view beneath into the ocean with glass floor tiles. The kitchen is fully stocked, but there is service that will come to prepare your meals whenever you call. The information is at the phone. And your room is just through here—“

He walked them through white curtains towards a beautiful, beach wood four poster bed with a sheer canopy. The entire house was drenched in the scent of the ocean and the warm breeze off the oceans billowed through the whole house. Rita immediately regretted all the black she was wearing. “I will leave your things here, if there is anything you need, anything at all – please do not hesitate at all to call. My information is by the phone. We are here to ensure you have the time of your lives. You will also find clothes in the armoire, in case you find yourself in need of anything more appropriate for the climate.”

 

[Acorn]

“The armoire,” he mouthed to Rita with conspiratorially raised eyebrows when the driver moved to place their suitcases at the foot of the big four-poster bed. As soon as the man left, Leon allowed curiosity to guide him into making a beeline to the aforementioned piece of furniture.

Orvar had gone out of his way to send them along with their suitcases, and he’d assumed that meant someone had snuck into their house while they’d been at work to pack their things, but talk of “appropriate clothes for the climate” made him wonder what exactly had been packed, especially after he opened both doors of the armoire and it revealed two big sections of clothes hung neatly on opposing sides. One, presumedly, was for Rita, and the other was for him.

He snatched a wide-brimmed floppy straw hat with a thick black ribbon wrapped around it from the top shelf, plopped it on his head, then grabbed another piece from a hanger — a bunch of black strings with bits of black fabric attached — to hold up to his chest. Leon turned and grinned at Rita.

“I think these might be for you,” he said. “Unless Orvar meant for me to wear the bikini.” He handed both articles off to Rita, then went back to digging. There were lots of tops and bottoms made of light-colored, airy materials for both of them, some dresses for Rita, and even an array of undergarments and footwear on the bottommost shelves. It wasn’t until he reached the end of his section that he found anything meant to go swimming in.

He made a sound of dismay and turned with a red pair of speedos in hand.

“He’s fucking with me,” Leon muttered and immediately went for his suitcase to toss it onto the bed. He unzipped and revealed… only his iPhone charger, the single pair of joke boxers that Rita had gotten him, and the plethora of hair supplies that only ever managed to keep his curly hair in check until he stepped out into the humid New Orleans air. Where were his swim trunks and the rest of his clothes? He sighed and eyed the red fabric in his hand again. Orvar, apparently, didn’t approve of his wardrobe and had taken the opportunity to give him a new one.

“I bet Nate was in on it,” Leon grumbled as he wiggled his way into his new swimwear. “He made fun of the only boxers that got packed, you remember? The ones you got me with the puns on ‘em?”

Once he got the speedo on, though, all his whining stopped. It was really comfortable. Maybe Europeans had the right of it, after all.

While he waited for Rita to finish changing, he made his way over to the glass panel in the living room floor to look down on blue water clear enough he could see coral and the sandy bottom of the ocean floor. Yellow and black striped fish and even a starfish or two went about their lives, unaware of the man in the bright red speedo standing above and staring at them with his arms crossed over his chest.

“That guy said Orvar had two places on the island. What’s a vampire do with a beach, anyway? I thought he said he didn’t do them ‘cause they were pointless without the sun.” He craned his head to peer over his shoulder at Rita, fighting back a grin that grew by the second and offset the concern he injected into his voice when he continued, “You don’t think he’s got another Rita and Leon working for him that he bought the first beach as a wedding gift for, do you? He wouldn’t replace us, would he?”

 

[Poe]

It was hardly any fabric.

Rita laughed as she slipped off her jeans and black shirt to slip into the tiny black bikini Orvar had chosen for her. There was a whole handful of them – all different colors – but each tinier than the last. Between the immaculate bedroom and the lack of clothing, she wouldn’t have been surprised if Orvar (much like her mother) was pushing a whole different agenda entirely. She chuckled to herself and pulled her hair down to fall over her shoulders. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and she was surprised to see the image looking back at her. She’d almost forgotten how much work her and Jason had done and how hard she had trained. When she met Leon, she was in shape, but it was nothing compared to this.

It was nothing Leon hadn’t seen before, but it certainly made her double take.

“He can’t,” Rita said simply as she walked over towards the living room where Leon was looking down into the floor, “There’s no way Orvar could handle having two of you ruining his priceless furniture over and over again, or dragging muddy shoes on his cleaned carpets and hardwood. He has lived for six hundred years, but that would be enough to push him over the edge.”

She laughed brightly and pressed a kiss to his bicep before she walked past him towards the outer deck of the home, overlooking the beautiful, crystalline waters. Without thinking, her eyes closed and face upturned towards the sky. Her hands combed her hair out of her face and she just look a moment to bask in the warmth of the sun and the quiet of her own mind. It was still so strange to get used to, but she was finally in a place where she could enjoy it. There was nothing holding her back anymore and she could be free to be with Leon and just Leon. She turned over her shoulder to look back at Leon and she gave him a bright, Rita smile illuminated by the gleam of her green eyes in the sunlight.

“I bet Nate was in on your suitcase,” she teased, “Becca was kind to me. Packed everything a girl could need and the damn kitchen sink. I have enough clothing to last us a few months.”

“Why don’t you bring that speedo over here, you know, so I can get a better look at it?” she smirked.

 

[Acorn]

“Over and over again,” Leon repeated. He looked up from the darting fish to Rita, his eyes narrowed and his mouth ajar until he snapped it shut. “I’ll have you know that was only once.” There’d been a time when they’d still lived at the vampire’s Garden District mansion that he’d come in after a bayou wolf run and without thinking, had sat down in an antique cream-colored chair with dirt still caked on him. It’d been the first time Orvar had yelled at him. It’d been the first time he’d been called an “uncouth beast”, too, though not the last. He didn’t always know his strength and all Orvar’s furniture was old, delicate, and not able to withstand say, throwing an ex-Enforcer into it.

His dark brown eyes danced merrily as he continued, “Technically, Jason broke the coffee table.” Any other retorts he might’ve had dried up in his mouth as Rita sashayed past him. She was right, it wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen before, but how often did he get to see her in a bikini? Especially one that drew attention to all her new hard-earned musculature. He continued watching her, his head tilted and his expression admiring until she looked over her shoulder at him. He blinked and dragged his gaze to her face, an eyebrow and one corner of his mouth quirked up in unison.

“Becca’s a better sister to you than Nate is a brother to me,” he said, but his heart just wasn’t in it. Complaining about the other werewolf could wait until Rita wasn’t looking at him the way she was while she looked like she did. When she beckoned him over, he didn’t hesitate to join her outside. The sun was hot, especially atop his head and shoulders, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. This wasn’t New Orleans, where the sun combined with humid air made breathing a struggle. On their private beach, the air was clean, clear, and didn’t make him want to escape back into an air-conditioned house until the sun fucked off and he could go outside without dying.

When he made it to Rita and she turned to face him fully, his hands automatically went to her hips and slid up to a waist small enough he could damn near wrap his hands around it entirely. He looked down between them, then back up at Rita, a smirk of his own growing. “I’m not just some piece of meat, Mrs. Alvarez. I have feelings, you know. Thoughts, too.” He laughed suddenly. “Sometimes, I even have good ones.”

Like kissing her, and then dragging her over to a lounge chair and determining if it could hold them both.

It could, encouraging them to further test its limits.

“Even the chairs are good,” Leon remarked later, after they’d pulled back on what little clothing they’d come outside in. He’d leaned the chair back and had his legs stretched out, but had scooted over enough that Rita had been able to curl up next to him. He was toasty in the sun, content with his wife at his side, and the only thing that made him open his eyes was his gurgling stomach.

“I don’t want to get up,” he mumbled, “but I think my stomach’s gonna start eyeing my spine soon if we keep going the way we have without eating.”



To be continued elsewhere.