Busting Out for the Umpteenth Time

Agh, they knew?! And...they weren't scolding her about it? Ako's eyes widened in surprise and she gawked up at the Elders, absently remembering to close her mouth as her cheeks colored.

"O-of course, Elders, thank you so much!" Bowing respectfully, mind thoroughly blown by the extent of their knowledge and her own ignorance, Ako swallowed thickly. She was still so stupid and...well, bratty. It was as if the Elders' mercy and their knowledge had finally humbled Ako, soothing her prior rage, if only for the moment. The embarrassment was worse with Giles there, however, and Ako wished that she had left him at home so he didn't see her come down a few notches. Maybe he wouldn't notice.

"Tell me what I have to do to prepare, and I will do it." Mouth dry, she dared to glance at Giles before focusing back on the Elders, doing her best to look capable and calm.

-----

"Huh...looks like we'll get along just fine, then, PJ." Locating the soap, he began to lather in hands in anticipation of cleaning PJ up, but Orion's sudden appearance cut that thought quite short. At first, it didn't occur to him that he was one piece of clothing away from being naked, and while he certainly felt he hadn't anything to be ashamed of, her awkward amusement had him flustered in no time. It wasn't awful, though, until she decided to scandalously touch his naked back with her equally naked hand. Frozen in place by her briefly skimming fingers, he sat in subdued silence, burning from his head to his toes.

"PJ...your mother is out to get me." Washing the dog to keep his mind off of her and her little hands, Ich had PJ leaving the bathroom clean and relatively dry before hurriedly bathing himself, shaking out his pants and wifebeater before pulling them back on. It was odd, seeing himself without layers of dust and grime, and his hair felt and looked lighter, though it was still a mess, even when wet. Wiping off his goggles after turning off the light, he placed them back around his eyes before exiting the bathroom, feeling naked without his numerous layers.

"...Orion?" he ventured, wanting to know where she was to prevent any sneak-attack touching.

Of course Giles saw her. He sees everything. Well not everything. He's not a pervert. But he definitely saw this. His goofy lopsided grin proved it.

"Don't be so quick to thank us. The journey you'll be going on will not be an easy feat. Go gather food and supplies for you and your companions. A messenger will deliver the details tomorrow. If you fail to deliver the message, there's no need for any of you to return to this city." She replied, no where near as kind as Ako was assuming. The old woman snapped her brittle fingers and two guards escorted Ako and Giles back to the elevator.

"ooh thank you elders, I'm sooo humble. I'll do anything you ask." Giles whispered in a mockingly girl tone then laughed as they arrived back on the ground level of the city. "Man, I wish I could have recorded that. It was a present almost as great as my oven mitts. Almost. Where to first my suddenly sweet boss?"


---------------------------

"I'm in here!" Orion called out. She was sitting on the couch curled up with a blanket. "Sit down. We need to talk Ichabod."

She gave him a serious look waiting for him to sit beside her.

"Okay... what should we talk about?" She smiled, looking very airy as usual. "You said you wanted to get to know each other right? Well now's perfect. Okay, I'll go first. What do you like the most in the entire world? And what do you not like? and... hmmm, I'll think of more in a minute."

She handed him a glass with dark purple liquid inside.

"I found juice in the fridge. It's good." She giggled, taking a sip from her own. "Oh oh oh! If you could fly... what... what color wings would you have?"

"Yes, Elders." Ako squeezed out, flinching slightly at the old woman's tone. Still, it wasn't an awful deal...if she failed, she would have to stay away, and her responsibility would be gone. It would take her time to adjust to living like a commoner, but there were still perks. Either way, the thought terrified her. Staying quiet as they left until they were free of guards, Ako whirled around and took Giles' face in her hands, squishing his cheeks.

"Brat! And we...we are going to..." She paused, thinking hard for the place with the most attractive men. Giles was going to pay or end up showing that he really was mittsexual. "We're getting supplies." Frowning severely, she stormed off, heading to the nearest store she could find. It ended up being a clothing store, and she almost left, but then she remembered Orion and Ichabod. Plus, visiting the underground made her realize that tiny pieces of fabric were not ideal for all climates. It was a sad truth.

"Can you look for clothes for Captain Schnoz over there?" she asked Giles, pointing to a nearby section that seemed to accommodate men Ichabod's size. She saw a male employee not too far away, and noticed that he was within a perfect distance for Giles to unintentionally notice her talking to him. Oh, this had better work, or she was going to be grouchy all day. She hated men; they made her feel weak and inadequate, sometimes, and she had to resort to being a bitch to compensate for her ego. Sidling up to the man's side, she cleared her throat, grasping his attention, and placed her hand upon his arm.

"Excuse me," she began eyes hovering over his face before slowly dropping down, "I was wondering if you could help me...you see, I have these extraordinary oven mitts, and I would give them to my servant, but I just don't think his hands are adequate. I think they would be more suited to your hands, since they seem so capable, and big..." Taking the man's hands in her own, she watched him fidget and blush, though he was a good servant, and complied immediately.

"It's my job to serve the customer, regardless of their request. Do you require privacy for this?" he prodded, testing the waters uncertainly. She was important, after all, and it wasn't unusual for gals of her stature to have random trysts in stores.

"Oh yes, absolutely," she assured, peeking through her peripheral vision to see what Giles was doing as her face reddened.

-----

Ichabod followed her voice, relieved to see that she seemed content to sit and not molest him. But what did she want to talk about? Unsurely, he took a seat beside her, sinking into the couch and clasping his large hands before him with tentative nerves. Was this about their contract that he didn't know about? Was she going to ask for children? He didn't think he could handle that. Her question of what they should talk about eased his worries, however, and he shook his head, reminding himself to not be so fretful while he listened to her politely.

"Well...I like...inventing. And I dislike spider clechs." The thought of the spider-limbed fiends that plagued the deeper mines of their home had him frowning. They had taken many of his friends who were assigned to the older mine shafts." Accepting the glass with a questioning frown, he sniffed its contents and took a sip, deciding that it was unlike anything he had ever consumed. Its taste was light and sweet with a bitter afterbite that wasn't entirely unpleasant. He decided that he enjoyed it, and took another drink. "I suppose my wings would be black from all of the coal dust," he mumbled, thinking of home.

"Um...what are your answers to those questions?" he asked lamely, unsure of where to begin.

Giles sighed when he saw Ako 'flirting' with the attendant. It was painfully obvious. But, if he ignored it, she would end up embarrassing herself and then she would be grumpy for the rest of the day. Giles sighed again. Looks like it's time to do some acting.

With his hands in his pockets, he strutted over to the pair.

"Miss Ako. Would you excuse us for a minute..." He smiled sweetly but his eyebrow twitched. He pulled the attendant within eyesight but out of listening range.

"Hey Bob. How's work going? Sorry about all of this, I'll make it up to you with that five dollar off coupon you were eying." Giles whispered, then punched him in the face. Dammit that hurts. Must, must not show pain. But act cool.

He resisted the urge to hold his bruised knuckles or to help poor Bob off the floor. Instead he put his hands back in his pockets knowing that this pain was still worth it. He strutted up to Ako with a poker face on.

"Get what you need so we can go." He grumbled, then walked past her to get clothes for Ich. Once he was hidden behind clothes he held his hand and whimpered like a girl.

After a bit of self pity, he bought the clothes and waited for Ako outside, trying to look cool once again. Hopefully that would deter her from trying that again. And poor poor Bob earned like two coupons with that.

------------------------

"Ooh yeah, I remember those spiders." Orion nodded, reaching over to hold his hand. "Don't worry, we'll go back sometime to see everyone. We'll bring them gifts."

She then tried to ponder her own questions towards herself while sipping more.

"What do I like most in the world? Well... I like you a lot, and I like PJ, and our new friends, and of course Phillips ghost. Oh! Did I tell you? Phillips ghost visited me when I was taking a bath. He says he approves of what you have been doing. But, other than that, I like.. well... planting thing. Plants are so cute. I want to pinch their plant cheeks." Orion giggled, rolling around on the couch a bit. "I don't like... I don't like... silver."

She narrowed her eyes at the thought.

"Silver and I go way back. I will never forgive it..." She whispered, then suddenly smiled again. "Okay, Okay, what is your favorite thing about me? And what is your favorite thing about PJ? and what is your favorite thing about yourself?"

Thank goodness it was working, because Ako was running out of ideas. She tried to keep her peeking surreptitious as she dismissed them with a nod, watching Bob's look of confusion before he was decked. Temper soothed, she quickly went to picking through clothes, giving Giles a short hum in response before picking out some warmer clothes for herself and Orion. Once Giles had gone out, she snuck over to Bob, apologizing quietly and stuffing all of the money in her wallet in his hands before purchasing the clothing with her card and escaping the clothing store.

"Hm, provisions. Guess we should get some food and other junk." Reaching over, she pinched Giles' cheek before taking him by the wrist and dragging him off for more shopping. Luckily, Giles' acting had passed, and she did not pursue anyone else during their quest.

-----

Wondering if it was obvious that he actually missed home a bit, Ich gauged Orion with his eyes, surprised when she mentioned him as one of her favorite things in the world. A sense of flattery twitched in his stomach and he smiled ever so slightly before drinking again. The glass was empty, and he was left to wonder why it had gone so quickly.

"His ghost? That's good." Speaking of Phillip, he still had to make him a monument, since he had promised. Or did he promise? Either way, he said he would do it, and that's what counted. And what was her problem with silver? Or minerals and metals in general? She was odd, but it probably came with having no real friends in a mining town. The thought dampened Ich's spirits. He found himself wanting to try and make up for it, if even a small amount.

"I like that you're caring...PJ is easy to understand and handle...and I..." he trailed off, thinking about himself. What did he like the most? "I like that I was able to leave our city. What is your favorite thing about me?" The inquiry was curious as he eyed the bottle of 'juice' and found himself pouring another glass before topping off Orion's own.

Giles smiled slightly as she pinched his cheek, but removed her hand from his wrist, and instead held it in his non-bruised hand.

"I we stand next to each other close enough, no one should be able to see." He grinned, walking side by side, heading for the market. "Alright, I'm assuming we'll be gone at least a week. So let's get nonperishable. We'll also need dog food and lots of jugs of water. I'll order it and have it delivered straight to the ship. Ako? About this mission..."

He looked around to make sure no one was listening.

"...I don't think it's real." Giles whispered, starting to load their cart. "I think they're going to try and have us killed... so, don't tell the others yet, and stick close to me the entire time, okay? It just doesn't feel right."

---------------------

Orion let him top it off as she drank some more, randomly giggling at time or falling into a fit of hiccups.

"My favorite... thing about you..." She whispered slowly as if starting to struggle with the words. "I'll show you, okay? okay. Stay still..."

She put her glass down and clumsily crawled over towards him. She stumbled and fell against him chest but grinned.

"I like your nose." Orion then leaned up and planted a small kiss on the tip of it. "It's my favorite. You're my favorite."

She pulled him into a hug.

"I'm sorry for calling you a rock killer. Y-You're a gooood person Ichabod." She whispered, slurring her speech. "Please be my friend forever. You remind me of the good things about home. I don't want to forget..."

Feeling sufficiently loved as Giles took her hand, Ako returned his smile, finally at ease with a sense of affection that quelled her earlier moodiness and took it to the deep, squeezing his hand in hers and lacing their fingers. It was odd, seeing where she was now in comparison to where she had been. Ako used to always be agitated around Giles, and wary that he would one day snap and just shank her, but now, here she was, reveling in the smallest of touches he sent her way. He was making her soft.

"That sounds good." Glad to have him around for more than hand-holding, Ako inclined her head towards him, letting him know that she was paying attention. His suspicions made her heart sink and she found herself snatching his face into her gaze, frowning. "Why do you think that? Is it because I'm a huge brat?" What did he think this was, a case of kill the messenger? What benefits would the Elders have for killing her? ...probably a lot, now that she stopped to consider it. Even so, she didn't want to jump to conclusions, because it was a frightening idea to stick with so suddenly. Even so, sticking with Giles never hurt anything, and he saw things she didn't, since he was a servant. No one really showed their true face around her, not in this city.

-----

"Okay." Ichabod sat still as Orion set down her glass, approaching him with an off-kiltered motion that had her landing against his chest. He was transfixed, much like a rabbit in the face of a predator, and could only sit in a strange mixture of fear and curiosity as she declared a like for his nose. It was the first time in his entire life that Ich had heard those words, and it made his heart stagger when paired with the innocent kiss. Did she know how deeply that affected him? Setting his glass down gingerly, he returned her hug, pressing his face against her hair tenderly and blushing profusely. If they weren't married before, well...

"Orion. Are we married? We should...be married. I think. If you think so. Or we can just be friends forever, instead; I don't want to pressure you, but we're hugging, and you...my nose....thank you." Ich was more of a lightweight than his body mass would have to say, and it showed.

Giles pulled her aside to a secluded area and shook his head.

"It's not you. Well maybe indirectly, but not because of your personality." He smiled softly. "Think about it. Why are they so concerned about the word getting out? And why weren't they surprised at all? I figure they already knew about the town and if everyone else finds that out, they're screwed. So, the best thing for them to do is send us on a suicide mission. There's not much we can do now. Our best chance is to play along for a bit. I'll buy enough for us to live a while off of, and when we get back, you pack up anything you could possibly need, becuase we might not be coming back."

Then he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, since it's not like there was much the elders could do about it now.

After grinning with confidence, he started stockpiling supplies.

"Are you ready for this?"

-----------------------

Orion giggled slightly, nuzzling against his chest.

"Of course we aren't married. I'm not eligible, remember? Oh.... I guess that was back home... oh..." She thought about it then nodded. "I think that sounds nice."

She then hiccuped and fell asleep.

Giles opened the door for the apartment and scrunched up his nose as he let Ako in.

"Smells like when you drink after they punish you for running away. So much booze... ah... looks like they found your stash." He laughed, pointing as the drunkenness. "Hey, Ichabod, she's asleep, stop taking advantage of her. sheesh."

Giles laughed more, enjoying being able to tease someone else for once.

"We're heading out in the morning, so don't get too comfortable."

"I hate politics." Ako reiterated, glad that Giles was more in-tune with the world than she was. "But I've been ready to ditch this sandpit for awhile, sort of." Her arms wrapped around Giles' neck as his lips brushed her cheek, and she hugged him, nose burying into his hair before she just as quickly let him go. Life was much better with Giles Giles as...this, rather than a thinly veiled enemy that didn't really want to kill her.

"Let's giddy-up, at any rate; who knows what those moles are doing back at home." Tone mildly affectionate, Ako helped Giles finish up before the two of them returned home. Upon walking through the door, she recognized the scent of her favored 'I hate the Elders and feel like a waste of life' wine, which had apparently been shared between the pale duo upon the couch. Ichabod peered up at the two of them with slow movements, idly stroking Orion's hair as she slept on him.

"'m not," he declared, apparently having had a bit more during Orion's slumber, "we're married now. Now I can touch her hair. You two, though, you two...are scandalous. And you," he looked pointedly at Ako, "are practically runnin' naked...all the time. But tha's fine, 'cause you two...will do it. Get married, I'mean. Thanks, Giles." Nodding with distraction, his attention returning to Orion, Ichabod continued stroking her hair as Ako flushed.

"...what a conservative," she muttered, later resolving to insult his nose in retaliation for the jab at her clothing...or...kind of lack thereof. She lived in the desert, though, it made perfect sense! "Who wouldn't run around practically naked in this heat?" Maybe she would just let him suffer the awful hangover she knew he would have. After all, that wine was far from kind, even to her. Still, it seemed Ich was nodding off, despite Giles' warning, and Ako looked from the mole people to her not-exactly servant not-officially significant other.

"Should we just toss a blanket on 'em?"

Married? Giles went slightly red because he honestly had never thought about it. The idea seemed... weird. They were already acting the part, weren't they? He was sure the idea was freaking Ako out as well. She certainly didn't seem like the type of woman that would want to get married.

"J-Just ignore him. Don't worry, that obviously isn't going to happen." He whispered, meaning that he wasn't going to pressure her into anything serious any time soon, but it came out wrong. Not knowing how badly he messed up, Giles put a blanket over the other two and nodded to ako. "I'll be going to bed then. See you in the morning."

He smiled and wandered off.

The next day, Giles was sitting in the kitchen, making breakfast while reading their orders.

Orion woke up at the smell of food, then held her head which was pounding beyond belief. Not to mention, her bed felt firmer than she had expected. Patting her Ichabod pillow a bit, she rolled over and tried to go back to sleep.

Ako stared at Giles with wide eyes, shocked that he had the audacity to say such a thing to her face. And he just went off to bed, as if it was the most casual thing in the world to say to her! Feeling more hurt by the statement than she would ever admit, Ako turned on her heel and stomped to bed, spending a great portion of the night strangling her pillow while relying on her second stash, the one she kept under her bed, to nurse her to benevolent sleep. When she awoke, however, her mood was as sour as her mouth, though by some higher grace she had evaded a hangover. Her mouth was dry, but that was easily resolved, and she cleaned herself up until every detail of her clothing and hair was immaculate. She was the general, and she had to go to battle with her cannons ready.

Exiting her room silently, she passed through the living room, noticing that her guests were stirring. Normally, she'd get a kick out of seeing their first hangovers, but today was raw from the night before, so she entered the kitchen, voice cold as she regarded Giles at the table.

"What does it say?" she snipped, grabbing two tall glasses and filling them with water.

Not too far away, Ichabod's eyes opened, only to squeeze immediately back shut. He yanked his goggles over his eyes and tried again, feeling Orion squirm and almost bolting on the spot out of terror. It took him awhile of dazed, eye-scrunched staring to recall that they had spent the night this way after...after...

...she kissed his nose. Was that a dream, or did it really happen? He didn't want to ask, feeling his stomach churn from nerves and growing nausea as he attempted to distract himself by rubbing circles into her back.

"It says we have to go to the beach." Giles replied, not sure why she seemed upset. He made her a plate of food and set it down at the table anyways. "I've never been, just seen pictures like Orion. So who knows what's waiting for us. You all packed? Anything else you need before we leave?"


Orion slept for a little bit longer under the smell of food lured her awake. She smiled at Ichabod rubbing her back, but it still wasn't as good as food right now.

"A-Ako... I think I'm allergic to your juice." She yawned, sitting up and stretching before looking down at Ich. "Oh... you're not a pillow at all, are you? Good morning Ich. Did you think I was PJ? I bet you did."

She giggled and started sniffing him like PJ would, then she licked his cheek.

"You two come in here and have some water; I'll get some asprin." Ako answered, ignoring Giles completely after he told her what she wanted to know and leaving the room to act on her words. Ichabod watched her walk by with little interest, since he didn't know what an aspirin was.

"Um...n-no, I didn't." Ich blushed at her dog impersonation, sitting up slowly and holding her arms so he wouldn't tip her off of him. "You just...looked like you needed it." His voice was quiet, both for his benefit and hers, as he pat her shoulder. "We should probably eat something before we go." Did Giles say the beach? It sounded interesting.

"Yeah, you should. I packed for you two, so let's get moving. Here, take this with some water, you two." Ako had returned, placing the aspirin tablets in each of their hands before ushering them from the couch. "It'll make your head stop hurting." she added, seeing Ich look at them queerly. That seemed to do the trick, however, as he helped Orion to her feet before going to the kitchen and accepting the mug of water that had been left there for him by the irate woman.

"The sooner we're gone, the better." Her arms crossed as she stood moodily at the window, glaring at the continually rising sun with vehemence. Wasn't going to happen...well, she'd show Giles what else wasn't going to happen.

As Orion and Ich took their aspirin and ate their breakfast, Giles watched Ako by the window. She was definitely upset about something. Didn't he punch a guy in the face just to make sure this didn't happen? How did he screw up this time? He sighed as he started washing dishes.

"Ich? When you're finished, let's go out and check that our new plane is working properly." Just in case the elders were plotting to get rid of them on take off.

It's a good thing they did, becuase some of the wiring was tampered with.

"Ich... If you see anything that doesn't seem right, let me know, okay? Not just with the plane, but anything in general until we get to the beach. There are some people trying to make sure we don't make it." He whispered while starting to repair it.

Meanwhile Orion went to look out the window too, becuase Ako was obviously fascinated by it.

"Everything okay Akosua? Are you upset that Ichabod hugged me?" She frowned slightly. "Are you in love with him? Am I getting in the way of your clay making? Oh no... why didn't I see this sooner?! All the cute nicknames and stolen glances... I'm a home wrecker! How dare I dream about adopting a ore pebbles with him..."

"Will do," Ichabod affirmed, quickly finishing off his breakfast to join the other man. He didn't know that this city was such a place that one needed to check their aircrafts, but flying safely was always the best course of action, he supposed. Unfortunately, it seemed their check was necessary, for Giles revealed that there was, indeed, something amuck. Ich watched Giles quietly for a moment, then shook his head regretfully.

"Seems like people want you two done in no matter where you go. But yeah, I'll keep a lookout. By the way," he muttered, running his hands over the body of the plane, "what's twisting that woman's knickers, today? She seems frigid." It was time for damage control in more ways than one.

-----

"Huh? Me and Captain Hook? No thanks. Giles is just being the biggest toad on the face of the planet right now. I should've seen it before; I thought this whole thing was a bit too convenient, what with us just suddenly being together and it being great and him not hating me and maybe it would last, y'know, because no one knows me like he does, and no one else would stand my temper, but nooooo, he's a huge prick who thinks it's entirely unfathomable to ever marry a witch like me, just like every other stupid man I've ever met, and I don't care that I'm scared of being tied down, because just the idea of him not wanting to that much tells me more than I ever needed to know in order to be ignorant and happy!" Her tone had started out quiet, but by the end of it she was hollering at the window, jabbing her finger against the glass before slapping her palm against it in a heated smack. Chest heaving, she silently simmered, then finally removed herself from the image of the glass.

"So everything is just great, as per usual." Since Giles wasn't present, she sat herself down to eat her cold breakfast, not really wanting to stomach any of it, but knowing that her day would just get worse if she didn't. "How are you and the 'husband'? Big nose seemed pretty happy last night." It was obvious that she was bitter and trying to get the topic away from herself.