MHA #2 | Thursday Evening

[defenderofdesmoines]

It seemed that Wednesday nights had left a giant, gaping hole in Annie's social calendar, and thus it struck her that it had been entirely too long since she'd actually hung out with Rey. Granted, she could have totally swung by and visited during training (and maybe seen whether a year of superheroing made any difference in running that obstacle course), but you couldn't really bring sangria to a training session. Or, well, you could, but Annie didn't hang out with Queen Maeve that much.

So, instead, here she was preparing spooky (?) sangria and getting ready to pour it into spooky glasses, having kicked Diego out for the evening with the promise that he could drink out of a spooky glass later if he wanted.

And maybe she'd set out three glasses. Just Rey was coming over, sure, but it didn't feel right to not acknowledge their absent friend and founder of sangria nights, and pour one out in her honor.

[for the bestie with the obstacle course that no, Annie could still not do a year later.]

Comments

[thatwaslucky]

And of course there was Rey, right on time, knocking at the door.

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie greeted her with tragically non-spooky pitcher in hand. "Hey! Come on in. I like, just realized today that I should have decorated the apartment for Halloween so we're having Halloween-themed drinks to make up for it."

Diego was probably really upset that Halloween had snuck up on her and thus their apartment was without bats and happy candy corn faces and purple lights or whatever.

[thatwaslucky]

"Never tell Summer these have themes now," Rey teased, stepping inside.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"She'll just be jealous she didn't think of it herself and then come up with, like, five corresponding jello shots," Annie decided, because they were for sure texting Summer selfies with those skeleton glasses later. Like she made drinks with cute floaty orange pieces and wouldn't be taking pictures.

[thatwaslucky]

"That sounds about right," Rey agreed. "We'll need to say hello."

Because yes, of course.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I actually saw her last week," Annie shared, leading the way over to the couch and offering Rey a glass. "She went to that masquerade thing. I guess her party sense was tingling. She's doing well!"

And had been shot, but Annie genuinely believed she'd gotten the truth when she'd pressed Summer on whether things were actually good.

[thatwaslucky]

"Really? I thought she'd be wrapped up in things back there," Rey said, following and taking the glass before sitting. "She's been more proactive in all of that than I have."

Rey was just figuring out her place and mostly let herself be directed unless she had to run off and do something in the moment.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Well, she's got her mom," Annie pointed out as she settled into the couch and tucked her feet up under her. "And apparently Beth has a whole, like, team in place already. Probably helps to come into it more, like, mid-stream?"

At least, that was how it seemed to Annie, who had no idea.

[thatwaslucky]

"When you're Summer, yes, probably," Rey said, studying her spooky glass. "Tell me you use these at other times in the year."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Oh my God, I should," Annie decided. "They're too cute for just Halloween. Just on a random Thursday or whatever. Diego would love it."

Diego would probably drink out of half of a coconut shell if that was what Annie said they were doing that night, let's be real.

[thatwaslucky]

"That settles it," Rey smiled. "How's he doing?"

Since the last time she'd seen him there'd been a cake incident.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Good," Annie said, almost automatically, before amending, "I mean, better. We still don't know where most of his family is, but we kinda know more about how to figure it out?"

She jerked a thumb towards the guest room, which had been mysteriously, beautifully quiet all week. "Five's math finally started, like, producing some answers, thank goodness."

[thatwaslucky]

Rey looked toward the room. "That's something. This really hinges on math."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"And the power of family," Annie said with a happy sigh. "And he's just doing better, like, overall. It was our anniversary yesterday, actually. Longest I think either of us has been with someone."

Which was both sort of scary, and also felt like the most natural thing in the world.

[thatwaslucky]

"Congratulations," Rey smiled. "What did you do for it?"

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Raced each other through a corn maze and ordered a pizza," Annie replied, which was, of course, only part of the answer but there hadn't been that much sangria yet. "It's...good. We're talking about, like." She waved a hand, because she hadn't actually told anyone this, and talking about it with Diego was somehow different than putting it out in the universe with a friend. "Marriage. Eventually. When we find his brothers and sisters."

[thatwaslucky]

"Already?"

That was from someone with an anniversary next week where she doubted either of them had even fleetingly thought of that.

"Sorry. Thats big."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"He kind of, like, half-proposed when he thought he was going to die, with all the stuff with his sister," Annie shared, shrugging a shoulder a little self-consciously. "But then it was, like, out there after that, so we had to talk about it, and...yeah. I mean, we're not in a rush. Siblings first."

[thatwaslucky]

"How are you feeling about that?" Rey asked. Since again, that was big.

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie thought about it, sipping her sangria. "Like I'm not ready to, like, pick out a white dress tomorrow or anything, but...it's good to know we're on the same page," she decided. "Kind of took a weird pressure off things to know where we're eventually headed."

And the buffer of knowing that it wouldn't be until after they found his family made it a little less terrifyingly huge. She had time to get used to the idea.

[thatwaslucky]

"What kind of pressure?" Rey wondered. "Just not being sure where you stood?"

[defenderofdesmoines]

"And like, is this just for now, or what, and does he want kids, and all of that," Annie said with a nod. "It's just nice knowing that, like, I'm not gonna scare him off if I bring up the future, you know? That was one of the problems in my last serious relationship."

Which, like, they'd had a lot of problems, but Annie's experience dating someone who actively kept a lot from her definitely influenced how much she adored Diego's openness. "How are things with John? You guys have to be coming up on a year, right?"

[thatwaslucky]

Rey nodded. "Next week. Things are good. It's hard to look at things in the future because of everything back home, but day to day it's great."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"But like, you've taken him home with you since we all moved the base to Ajan Kloss, right?" Annie asked, smiling. "Just having him involved in, like, what the day to day means is probably wonderful."

Because coexisting in Fandom was one thing, but Annie knew very well by now that the real test was how on board your partner was with the batshit craziness you had going on back home.

[thatwaslucky]

"He's come with me, yeah. He'd even gone with me before that," Rey said with a little smile. "I had to go somewhere without him over the summer and it felt really strange."

She wouldn't call them codependent, but if codependent sleeping was a thing then they were probably that.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Was it, like, dangerous?" Annie asked curiously, leaning her chin in a hand. "I bet he'd be good at diplomatic stuff."

Call it a hunch. The guy seemed good at talking to people.

[thatwaslucky]

"I know he would." It was kind of his thing, even if his methods were not what Leia would like. "It was dangerous for me, but Poe's putting me on missions now. And John gets pulled to work by pretty much anyone on base."

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie remembered Poe pretty well -- aside from being BB-8's friend, like, that was just a guy she'd naturally notice, okay? She was the takenest but, like, hi, dude. "Do I need to worry about you?" she asked, frowning a little. "On these missions, I mean. Be honest."

[thatwaslucky]

Rey wondered if it would ever stop being weird to have anyone worry about her.

She shook her head. "I've got this. It's putting training into practice."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"And you'll say if you need help?" Annie added. "I totally made Summer promise when I saw her, too. I will get in a spaceship and come help with, like, no notice, any time."

Never mind where the spaceship would come from. Or who would pilot it.

[thatwaslucky]

"I appreciate that," Rey smiled. "And I'll remember it. But I'm okay. I have a really good team."

More like family by this point, though it felt like too much saying that aloud. And they were crazy protective.

"And I think training is actually working out pretty well." That was practically bragging.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Good. And you're, like, using it?" Annie asked curiously. "Have you run into any quicksand out in the field?"

[thatwaslucky]

"There is a complete lack of quicksand." Oh just wait, Rey. "Master Skywalker made the jumps longer, too."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"At what point does it become less jumping and more flying?" Annie wondered, half-teasing.

[thatwaslucky]

"That's a question for him," she said, because she wasn't really sure. "Force flying has not been brought up to be, at least."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Yet," Annie pointed out. "Does it come in handy? Like, the jump-flying thing. I mean, I can't think you use it to travel."

Maeve did, with her great leaps or whatever, but Maeve also didn't have, you know. Spaceships at the ready.

[thatwaslucky]

"More than you'd think," Rey said. "A lot of things back at home have catwalks."

Space OSHA wept.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"...oh, okay," Annie said, tilting her head as she tried to picture this. "So like you can jump over people's heads or, like, up onto catwalks?"

See, this was where Annie envied her graceful, springy friends and boyfriend. Her solution to a bad guy being on a catwalk? Blast down the catwalk, punch them.

[thatwaslucky]

"Yes," Rey nodded. "The landings still take work sometimes."

In case anyone thought Jedi were automatically graceful or anything.

"What about you? How's work?"

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie winced, if only because landings taking work meant she felt an immediate twinge of sympathy in her knees. For someone who spent a lot of time around people who could nail superhero landings, Annie was pretty sure she'd, like, land in a heap if she was ever in a similar situation.

"I'm the top-selling Halloween costume in my version of the US," she shared, doing a little self-deprecating jazz-handy flourish. "And my very bad music video's been released, so. They're keeping me busy with nonsense."

Though the Halloween costume thing was actually kind of cool and she was secretly pretty proud of that.

[thatwaslucky]

"But," Rey said, going for the good part instead of demanding to see the terrible music video because she was too good a person, "you're the top selling costume."

Which meant nothing to here but it seemed to be a big thing here!

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Yep. At least, for girls." Though she would be super supportive of any little boy Starlights! Shine on, brave little boy! "I could get you one if you're looking for a costume, though it'd probably be weird if you ended up turning into me."

Weirder to turn into one's best friend than a Good Witch, or less weird?

[thatwaslucky]

"I'm not sure I'm doing the costume thing this year," Rey admitted. "But I want pictures of every child dressed up as you."

Which in Rey's opinion was way better.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I'm supposed to do a trick-or-treat thing on Saturday," Annie admitted, "and I'll meet, like, probably at least twenty and will send you the pictures."

Because of course Annie thought that was about the cutest thing possible. Especially since, like, she could remember when she had dressed up as her own current teammate, as a kid. So cute.

"It's the cape costume," she clarified. "Which is not what I'm wearing in this now-very-famous video but fortunately I barely wear that thing anymore."

[thatwaslucky]

"Did I know you didn't have to wear that one anymore?" Rey asked.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Maybe?" Annie thought back. "It's been since the spring. Part of my new contract. Now I just wear it for promotional stuff, mostly."

Like lollipop advertising, and tasteful in memoriam music videos.

[thatwaslucky]

"As long as you're comfortable," Rey told her. "For so, so many reasons."