the pookas

[instar]

The following day, Bella goes with Trouble, when he heads for the park.

Comments

[megale]

"If I start walking home now Mom'll be gone by the time I get there, probably."

[aeskhyne]

<Okay.>

[megale]

She picks him up and carries him home.

[aeskhyne]

Where Trouble, of course, demorphs on her bed.

[megale]

"That really is pretty gross," she says, not sounding like this has affected her.

[aeskhyne]

He giggles. "I know, it's nasty," he says, and hugs her.

[megale]

Hugs! Yay.

[aeskhyne]

Snuggly hugs. Mmmmmmm.

[megale]

Snuggles. "So hey, are you romancing me, do pookas do that, or is this just a snuggling sometimes kissing thing?"

[aeskhyne]

"I dunno," says Trouble. "Do you wanna be romanced?"

[megale]

"Does that put me in extra evil cult danger so that you have to dump me after a couple weeks for my own good or anything?"

[aeskhyne]

"Nah, it's the same either way."

[megale]

"And are you any good at romancing?" she inquires cheekily.

[aeskhyne]

"No idea," he says. "Never tried."

[megale]

"Wanna find out?"

[aeskhyne]

"Sure!" he says. "Oh, but I can still make out with other people and stuff, right? I do that."

[megale]

"Is that a pooka thing?"

[aeskhyne]

"It's a me thing. I am way more a me than I am a pooka."

[megale]

"What's 'and stuff'?"

[aeskhyne]

"I dunno," he says, "stuff. Snuggles? Sex? Baking cakes for people? I really like baking cakes for people, I'd bake one for you if I could figure out how to get you and it in the same room afterward."

[megale]

"Uh, definitely don't mind if you bake cakes for people or snuggle them. The having sex with them is not going to interfere with the young adult paranormal romance novel thing? Because I'm kind of digging that."

[aeskhyne]

"Why would it?"

[megale]

"...'Cause... it usually would? I don't have a list of why."

[aeskhyne]

"Well, okay," he says, "I'm in love with another guy but he pretty much only wants me for my body and definitely doesn't care what I do in my spare time, and I also kind of have a thing for Titania but she's not into me so that's that, and then there's a girl I hook up with sometimes because we're just that kind of friends. There's nobody waiting around to swoop in and yell at you for stealing their man. So if you don't mind having your paranormal romance with a guy who sleeps around, then I think we're fine."

[megale]

"Titania? Extremely cranky pooka queen Titania?"