Happily Ever (Cafas, Meld)

Lights flashed from the screen as the mouse returned to four legs: four very sore, over-stretched legs. The James Bond theme came on. Black eyes caught the light. Whiskers twitched.

Dun dun dun-nuh...

The mouse turned away from the bowl.

“What is this, Goldfinger? Do you expect me to talk?”

In a dash of gray fur, the mouse melded with the shadows at the back of the couch. Its little claws ghosted over the fabric: up, up, up—veer.

“No, Mr. Bond.”

Light flashed over Alchemist’s hair. The mouse was perched in it. For a brief moment: then, with a coil of nimble muscles, it sprang.

“I expect you to die.”

The popcorn barely shifted as the light weight dropped into its midst. Artificial butter oozed into his fur: a hundred yellow and white kernels warmly embraced him. The mouse promptly began to nibble at any and all of them that he could reach. There were so many of them, and he had so much love to spread...

>> "Awesome jump Caleb."

The mouse did not want your half-hearted praise! The mouse wanted only his munchables. Crunchables. Delicious delicious lunchables. Yum...

A kernel was half-chewed in his mouth when a small click happened in the back of his mind. The mouse froze, popcorn in paws. Swallowed. That click—could it be? A familiar feeling tingled throughout the mouse’s little body. A certain... readiness. But he’d been fooled before, oh so recently, by this feeling. Still. He had to try it. Come hell, high water, or hands picking him up—he had to try it.

Calley shifted back to human, somewhere awfully close to Alchemist’s lips. And this is how a naked nineteen year old covered in butter ended up in Cafas’ lap, kissing him.

Yum.

“Well,” Calley said, leaning back with a grin, “fancy meeting you here.”

Now ordinarily, Caleb Swartz was not a boy to be found kissing other boys. Actually, he wasn’t really even a boy to be found kissing girls—so far, he’d only done that with his first roommate. And she’d sort of done it to him, really. After getting him drunk. And maybe dragging him to his own bedroom. Which, really, hadn’t ended as well as you’d suspect.

Yeah.

In this case, however, the Italian ten was willing to make an exception. He was, after all, a teenager. Not to be confused with a small rodent any longer. One of his feet happily kicked over the popcorn bowl.

“So,” he continued, quite cheerfully. “I’m naked in your lap, Mr. Bond. Got anything for me?”

“Clothing-wise,” he specified, after a well-thought-out moment.

One lewd wink and a dinner invitation later, Caleb Swartz was squiggling out of Alchemist’s hug. Still grinning, of course. Because, folks, he wasn’t a mouse. And that was all just joking, anyway. Right? Of course. Guys didn’t do that. With guys.

Ahem.

“Come, Mr. Bond. Clothing first: then celebratory dinner. Also, a shower. Probably before I put on the clothes.”

The brown-haired teenager took a moment to do two things:

First, grab a throw pillow to provide basic protection against any wandering Mansion minors. This was modestly and grinningly positioned over his waist. Second: to poke at his own butteriness. And tentatively lick his finger. Baby blue eyes blinked.

...He was delicious.

The Mansion was not what Meld had expected it to be. Or perhaps it was exactly what she had expected it to be and that was the whole problem. There were children everywhere, for one thing. Well, teenagers mostly but that wasn't really the point. Aura was a teenager too of course, but Meld had never viewed Aura in that way because she was far too jaded and far to deadly to ever be considered a child. But here it was different, here many of the children knew nothing of the dance of death or the violence in the outside world. And that was the problem. Meld had nothing in common with these little mutants and even less in common with the little humans running around with them.

Today Meld found herself wandering the hallways of the Mansion, for lack of anything better to do, just watching them. She saw the looks she was given, saw the fear that most tried desperately and ineffectively to cover up. She knew what they must think of her, a criminal and a killer who had been on the news many a time for her various murders and indiscretions. The police still wanted her with a passion and despite where she now found herself living and despite the fact that she was most certain Ghost as many others would disapprove, she knew it was only a matter of time before they tried to come after her again and when that happened she would kill again. Her life was simply more valuable than theirs.

And even if the little people hadn't seen her face on the news, who could doubt by looking at her that she was an angel of death? She carried herself with the confident stride of a warrior and blades sprouted from every limb, including her newly created tail. And what use could such instruments of death be except to fulfill their purpose in causing pain and bloodshed? Meld knew of none. Even her eyes, for the few brave enough to meet them, bespoke of a dark and violent history. She couldn't' help the way her eyes provided a sort of window to her soul, couldn't help their cold dispassion. It was who she was and no matter what she might be pretending to be here, she coudln't change that fact.

And then there was the naked man walking past her. Meld blinked, confused. Naked man? That was strange even for this place. And looked again at the naked man. Who was startlingly familiar. As was the other man with the naked man. She blinked again. "Calley?" Groped for the name of the other man in her mind, the one she had helped to find this place. "And Alchemist?" This was a most unusual occurance.

C.J. observed the exchange silently. If there was one sight he was not one hundred percent prepared for it was an even more mechanical Meld. It was also not to be face to face with the rather idealistic mutant. He had even forgotten that he still had the slip of paper with her number on it.. "Hi Meld, long time, you get a new haircut?" He fell back on the cliches for jokes of the nature and examined the sharp looking object carefully. He concluded it was still meltable and relaxed slightly. Still, he couldn't take all of her down at once, that was well beyond his capacity.

'One limb at a time, it'd wipe me out though.'

Alchemist stopped himself from further sizing up the female mutant and payed more attention to the situation. On the upside Caleb, or Calley as she'd called him, seemed to know her, though that could be both good and bad. "So Caleb, our plans still on? I mean, I'm sure we can get Meld into a nice restaurant. In fact, we'd probably get served free." Such economic bonuses hanging out with giant killing machines and shape shifters brought!