(Untitled)

[gumshoewizard]

 Who:  gumshoewizard and needsheadphones
What A romantic little evening with a surprise
Where The top of the lighthouse at Demonreach
When Late afternoon of June 23rd
Warnings Sap, fluff, extreme cuteness. Diabeetus imminent.

Comments

[needsheadphones]

Ten years in the city and some things never changed. Rebecca still looked 28, the same age she had been when she woke up in Promenade. Her Newfoundland, Ollie, was still the same black-furred, playful yet unwaveringly loyal animal that he had been when he arrived, too. Rebecca still carried her music with her everywhere she went, though she had long since learned to relax with it around Harry, headphones resting around her neck when he would come over until they were taken off entirely as soon as she saw him. It wasn't hard to run a new piece of technology over to Sebastian for warding and visit with him and Buffy for a while, and she and Harry had managed to sit through the extended editions of Lord of the Rings without pausing (like they had that first time) at least once.

She was still wary about the warehouse/apartment, despite the security that had been installed. There had been times when she would slip away during the night to check on it, on the Animus within, only to come crawling back a few hours later with the same old report: nothing had changed. Eventually, after all the stress (combined with her interesting driving skills) helped contribute to a traffic accident in which she had badly broken one of her legs, she dismantled it, encrypted the data as thoroughly as possible and letting the Animus 2.0, her Baby, rest. She had to before she drove herself insane, before she or someone else got hurt even worse, grasping at hazy memories (apples, something about apples) that, for all she knew, weren't even real ("Nothing is true, everything is permitted").

It had been the right choice. She relaxed, helped pick on Harry about his telescope, and she had caught one of her students saying that she didn't look quite as strung out afterward.

That was the past, though. Rebecca had no real idea why Harry had asked her to meet him up on the lighthouse (though she had a suspicion that food was involved, because they both liked it too much to skip meals when they weren't engrossed in a project). Sure, they had been together for a long time, and sure, people were always asking when they were going to tie the knot already (especially after Tony and Noah got married, would wonders never cease), but with the way the late afternoon sun made the ocean look and the calls of gulls outside, it wasn't on her mind.

Humming slightly to herself, she slipped up into the lounging space, eyes glancing over the food. Ooh, cheesecake. With Harry over by the telescope, she couldn't help but grin. "See any naked ladies out there today?" Stepping over to him, still grinning at her own joke, Rebecca slid an arm around him. In all seriousness, it was a great view.

[gumshoewizard]

Those few years where Rebecca had all but drove herself to collapse over that stupid machine...even today, Harry didn't like to think over it too much. Rebecca wouldn't be swayed from her paranoia and with his techbane, there was literally nothing he could do to help her except watch her become more and more ragged as time went on.

And then the accident happened. He remembered seeing the wreck of the white van and Rebecca's body being hauled out of it. He remembers taking the vortexes out to where she was being healed and saw her laid out on her back, bruised across her cheek and nose where her head had slammed into the steering wheel, in a neckbrace, and the doctor setting the cast around her leg. He left. He left before he melted down the equipment attached to her. Stars and stones he had warned her about driving when she was exhausted. She drove like a maniac on a good day and with being as stressed as she had been...Damnit, damnit, damnit!

He left and went to find the largest, most unpopulated stretch of wilderness he could and proceeded to blow down enough trees with his magic to make a lumberjack jealous. Then, the next day, after exhausting himself of his worry and fear that he man-converted to anger, he came back. And they talked. She told him about the Animus, about being an Assassin and trying to save the world from itself. She didn't explain everything, because there were some things that were just impossible to talk about. And they argued a bit, too until she just dropped off to sleep on him.

And he stood guard as she, piece by piece, disassembled the device. The physical parts were cannibalized for other things. The chair itself was now a feature in her guest room. The information sealed away and the actual piece of plastic that contained it was hidden in a place that only she, Harry, Elijah and Tony Stark knew. Of course, he was only supposed to retrieve it in the event that its existence was too dangerous to allow to exist any more.

But, bah. That was a while ago. Dropping a kiss ontop of her head (he knew instinctively how to miss the band of her headphones now) he hugged her back with one arm.

"Totally. Did you know the queen likes to dance naked in her chambers?" Smirking, he kissed her on the lips this time. "Thanks for using the stairs, by the way."

Because she had - more than once - parkoured her way up to the top of the lighthouse to prove to him that it was entirely possible for someone to sneak in through it. It caused him to raise the balcony a full seven feet up the tower, and event which was another hilarious story full of busted thumbs, dropped screws and hanging from a harness with power tools. Rebecca had loved it.

[needsheadphones]

To that day, Rebecca didn't like to think about the talk they had had after the accident. She hadn't been a stranger to pain, and while the accident had terrified her during it, she'd always lived by the belief that what didn't kill you only made you stronger. It hadn't been the first time injury would change her life, and it probably wouldn't be the last.

No, physical pain she could deal with. It was telling him why she had always been sneaking away to work on the warehouse, what the Animus had been used for, what she was and what she had done before coming to Promenade and the argument afterward until her body simply couldn't handle it anymore... that had been painful.

It was, however, all in the past. She was still an Assassin -- that part of her would always be there. That said, she was a teacher and (with Braska's help) a mage and a friend, too. Her friends, her family, needed her here, preferably in one piece. She still took her risks, her craving for adrenaline still strong; the snowboarding trips had quickly become an annual thing, and there was always something new in Promenade to explore. She had her students, her friends, and Harry to spend time with. Things were good.

Returning the kiss, she laughed. "Yeah, well, I can't blame her there. It's a lot of fun." Leaning into him and looking out over the ocean, she glanced back up for a moment, snorting slightly. "I figured there wasn't much sense in attempting to dodge the flying projectiles the seagulls so lovingly deposit on my way up."

[gumshoewizard]

That had been some very awkward times for the both of them. For a while, he'd gotten the business end of her crutches because he would try to keep a constant eye out for her. She was a grown woman, more than capable of taking care of herself, but...yeah, sometimes it was hard to let go of the chivalrous, chauvinistic pig part of his brain.

"And you know by experience?"

He sort of cocked his hips away from her, acting as if he was just shifting his weight. He couldnt afford her feeling the little box in his pocket before he was ready to spring the surprise on her. To distract her, he laughs and reaches up to knock a knuckle against the iron roof over their heads.

"Thats why I warded this place. They can eat all the cheetos they want, but they're not going to to use my house as their toilet." Though that didn't help her when she was making the initial demonstrations. "Hey, you hungry? Soup's still hot, probably."

[needsheadphones]

It was also, though she tried not to let on, just a lot of fun to poke at Harry with her crutches. Noah had, of course, drawn lewd things on her cast, and Rebecca had taken to jotting down notes and equations on it. She'd even gotten Elijah to add a sigil for good luck to it. (She may or may not have kept the cast afterward. Shh.)

"Obviously."

Not thinking anything of Harry's shift, she looked up with him, snorting. "Good move on your part. Not the cheetos, but I'm sure they think that's a good move on your part, too." Just as long as they didn't steal any of her food.

Glancing back at the food, Rebecca grinned again. "I just walked up all those stairs. I think it's safe to say that I'm hungry. Besides, there's cheesecake, and I am always hungry for cheesecake."

[gumshoewizard]

"Haha, my genius ploy to make you eat worked."

Plopping down on his old couch, Harry moved the table over in front of him and to the side so they could both reach it equally. Ahh, sometimes he missed his old furniture, but the living room needed more sitting space, so he opted for one of those massive, wrap around the corner couches that seated about fifteen people. And, unlike the nickel polished, fashionable furniture that he'd seen once before (but where? An apartment, a person he didn't know he'd lost until he was found) it was plenty plush and comfortable.

Pressing his hand against the side of one bowl, he deemed them still warm enough for consumption before taking his grilled cheese and dipping it into the soup and biting off the tomato soaked melted cheese and fried bread. Mmmmm... Delicious, delicious heart attack.

"C'mon, no animal byproducts or anything in here, I promise."

And hopefully she wont see the boombox he's hidden underneath the couch.

[needsheadphones]

"Are you saying you invented stairs?"

Sitting down with him, Rebecca took a moment to relax in the comfort of the furniture. It was definitely comfortable, and by now it was familiar, comfortable. She'd fallen asleep up here a few times for both midday naps and and through the night, and she was half tempted to suggest they stayed up there tonight, too.

"Cheese is still an animal byproduct, you know." Her retort was quick, something she'd pointed out several times, and she half suspected that Harry used 'animal byproducts' instead of just saying 'meat' just to irritate her now. It's what she would do.

Tearing some of the crust off her sandwich, she dips that into the soup before biting it. Definitely delicious. "My compliments to the chef."

[gumshoewizard]

"No, but my well laid plan formulated years ago to make you hungry this very night through excessive stair climbing has come to fruition."

Grinning around his mouthful of sandwich, he stirs the soup the dredge up the cheddar cheese that had been sprinkled on top and had since melted and sunk to the bottom. Scooping a bit on the edge of his bread, he lets it soak in before making another bite. Damn straight these couches were comfy. The top of the lighthouse was the best place to nap, especially with the panoramic view of the sea and the city, the clear sound of the ocean and the salty breeze that would waft in from the opened windows.

"The chef accepts your thanks. No tip necessary, even."

[needsheadphones]

She laughs again, shaking her head. Luckily, they've always enjoyed each others sense of humor. "Should have included an evil laugh."

Breaking up the rest of her crust to sprinkle into the soup, she stirs it in with her spoon before taking a sip. Mmm.

"How generous of him." Still smiling, she takes a bite of her sandwich, making a pleased noise as the warm cheese hits her mouth. "Mmm... Seriously, Harry, this is really, really good. You are the grilled cheese master."

[gumshoewizard]

He snaps his fingers. "Darn, I knew I should've brought my flash cards."

He continues to dip his sandwich into the soup, trying to ignore how his heart is fluttering in his chest. He's trying to hide his nerves as best he can, but...its hard. He loves her. It took a while, but he really, purely and genuinely loves her. And Harry might be a fire-slinging, ice summoning badass, but he was also a hopeless romantic. It sort of went hand in hand with the whole white knight deal.

For a while, he was confused if he was just attracted to Rebecca or just liked her or something else. It took some time, dating, going through regular hell that the city so generously heaped upon them for him to sort his head out as to what he felt about her. It took time, because his memories had to fade. Of his guilt over a blood-soaked good bye in a vampire's temple. Of blonde hair and blue eyes and a button nose. It took him learning to accept that his fate as the Winter Knight wouldnt change him as a person unless he let it. It took finding some security and peace.

And now? He was ready to take the next step. He just hoped he wouldn't mess it up.

"Of course, Im required as a man to have mastery over all grilled products, meat or not."

[needsheadphones]

Snickering at the thought of Harry (though in a black cape and other generic evil mastermind clothing) rifling through flash cards to get his evil laugh timed just so (and she swears she played a video game where a villain had flash cards at some point -- maybe with Noah? That would explain why she couldn't remember it), Rebecca falls silent, focusing on eating. She hadn't been kidding -- the walk up the stairs had driven her appetite up quite a bit.

It was easier for Rebecca, in a way. She loved everybody, some more than others, but loved them all the same. She had practically adopted half the children in Promenade during her first year, and while some of them were now getting married and having kids of their own or running businesses, she still kept a close eye on them. It was the same with her friends. They had all been through a lot together, and Rebecca... well, she'd always been called a bleeding heart.

She didn't have the memory of a lost love to fade away; whatever she and Shaun were, it had been so new and fragile that it hadn't lasted the first few months in Promenade, not to mention years. She hadn't exactly been looking for something serious right off the bat, but that was what she had found, and she was happy. The more time she spent in the city, looking after the others and trying to keep everyone together, the more she realized that, despite everything, she had more freedom in Promenade than she did at home.

Accepting that she was in love with Harry, even after the somewhat awkward (at times, thanks to Harry's confusion) dating and all the things the city had thrown at them and the knowledge that, until the accident, there were things she had been keeping from him, was easy. As for the rest of it... well, she was stubborn. They'd figured it out.

"...You didn't grill the cheesecake, did you?"

[gumshoewizard]

Half of his sandwich sticking in his mouth, Harry glances over at the cheesecake and stares at it, turning the place around to get a good look at it on all sides. Chewing and swallowing, he gives her an over the top ponderous look.

"I dont see any char marks. So I think your cheesecake is free of that wonderful charcoal flavor. But if you want, I can throw it on the grill if you really like that criss-cross pattern."

Mostly kidding. After all, there was fried cheesecake, why not grilled? He continues to eat with a good appetite, satisfied that she was at least enjoying her meal. Its not until he's scraping the last of the soup up with the crust that he wipes off his fingers and stands up with a stretch, and then the wine glass.

"Hey, we should eat dessert outside."

[needsheadphones]

There was fried cheesecake, sure, but that didn't mean Rebecca ate it (fried Oreos, however, were probably fair game). "I think I'm fine without it, thanks."

Finishing off her soup as Harry makes his suggestion, she nods to herself, taking her own wine glass. That is a bit surprising -- if they're drinking, it's usually Mac's stuff, since Harry got her hooked on it early on. Then again, wine probably goes better with both soup and cheesecake anyway. Either way, she doesn't really feel like questioning it, too content after the meal.

"Mm, that sounds good. Just keep the seagulls away from my cheesecake."

[gumshoewizard]

"As long as you don't try to climb down the lighthouse with it, I don't think thats gonna be an issue."

By now, the sun was setting enough to turn the sky orange and purple. The few industrial buildings that managed to stand above the city's modest skyline glittered with their windows and the palace shone in the dying light. Speaking time was fading fast. Do or die, Dresden, you've always managed to get out of most of those situations in one piece.

Stuffing a fork loaded with cheesecake into his mouth to calm his hands (whoever said long ago that it was unmanly to love cheesecake could go take a dive off a bridge), he eyes the wine and puts it and the plate down on an end table near by and turned Rebecca around gently to face him. His hands rested on her shoulders and he inhaled deeply. He wasn't afraid to look her in the eyes any more, their soul gaze had been a long time ago.

"Hey, Rebecca, I need to ask you a question. Its important."

Smooth, Harry, she'll be swooning over your arms with this kind of high romance. Of all the times for his own subconscious to nag at him in Bob's voice...

"We've been going on a long time, right? And...I'm not happy with it. It's not enough. Not that this means I want to call it quits or anything!" Kicking one's self is a feat when you're almost seven feet. Growling at himself, he digs his hand into his pocket and pulls out the velvet box and...lets it slip between his fingers and bounce on the floor. "Hell's bells!"

Scooping it up, he stares at the floor for a moment before finishing the gesture of going to one knee and looking up at her. He nervously toys with the box before opening it, then spinning it around towards her properly.

"Rebecca, would you marry me?"

man if I'd taken any longer ten years really would have passed

[needsheadphones]

She had gotten used to TENEKA over the years, growing better and better at keeping accidental thoughts and feelings and images from crossing the connection. That said, if Harry had proposed to her with it active, it's possible he would have been overwhelmed -- if not then, than when the city returned to normal. Either way, the memories of the feelings she felt as soon as she saw the box (without the humor as he drops it) and the question left his lips would haunt her when the clocks and calendars were turned back.

Of course, if TENEKA had been active, Harry also would have been spared any fear at the sight of his girlfriend staring at him, eyes wide, with an expression that vaguely implied that she thought he had lost his mind. Then, however, a smile overtook her and she practically tackled him to the ground. If he had lost his mind, she'd lost hers a long time ago.

"Duh! Yes!"

Putting the ring on could wait; she needed to kiss him and let her lips do the job in place of telepathy. Besides, it was a good way to keep the fact that she was tearing up a little more discrete.

haha, I dont think I'm any better.

[gumshoewizard]

She said yes!

Rebecca could tackle and tackle hard when she wanted to, even without the benefit of her hasted magic. But the sheer elation that rose from the depths of his fluttery, twisting stomach grabbed her up and they both spun around and around on the gallery of the lighthouse, his mental whoop of triumph loud enough to send the seagulls scattering. That smile, the way it felt like, for just a moment, that his life finally fell into place, would scourge his dreams for years.

Happiness, it damn near kills you.

Mrs. Rebecca Dresden. That sounds kinda sexy.