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Fig took a swig of her drink, scanning the crowd of the party.
She hadn’t drunk nearly as much as she normally did, which was good for her liver but bad for her anxiety.
And right now her anxiety was working over time.
She was always a bit worried when any of her friends were at these kinds of things; while she knew she could take care of herself she knew none of the other Bad Kids were quite as experienced with this scene as she was.
She was always especially worried about Adaine. Despite her becoming more adventurous since being abandoned by her parents, Adaine still seemed to bring out Fig’s protective instincts; even though she was probably the one least likely to drink too much.
However, Fig was normally able to cut loose somewhat and only cut back on her drinking slightly so that she could keep an eye out for problems.
But tonight, there had been a problem since they’d walked in.
That problem’s name was Biz Glitterdew.
Thankfully they’d managed to avoid much contact with the senior over their time at Aguefort but even so Fig had learned enough to know two things about him:
He was a creep, and he had a deluded thought that he and Adaine had an unspoken attraction.
When they’d arrived Fig had immediately turned to Adaine and asked if she wanted to leave, but Adaine, with a resolute expression she usually reserved for facing life or death adventures, had just said that she was not going to let him drive her off.
Admittedly, Fig had been a little impressed at her determination but now she was half wishing she’d insisted they’d left right then as it would have saved her a lot of anxiety.
Biz had already come up to them three, maybe four times, each time it was less easy to get rid of him; apparently no one else here wanted to talk to him either.
And now Adaine was missing.
Missing was an exaggeration, she’d been gone a few minutes to get a drink but still, Fig missed the familiarity of her beside her.
She had also lost sight of Biz, she’d expected him to come buzzing up by now, while Adaine was gone. Maybe ‘hoped’ was more accurate than expected.
As much as Adaine disliked Biz, she was always opposed to FIg beating the shit out of him, if only for the purpose of keeping Fig out of trouble, without the voice of reason, Fig would’ve had the freedom to punch him so hard his wings would dislocate.
But she couldn’t make out his obnoxious shape anywhere and she came to the conclusion that he’d taken the opportunity to go bother Adaine again.
Taking another swig of her drink, Fig grit her teeth and began making her way through the clumps of people towards the kitchen of whoever’s house this was.
When she made it to the cramped (though still large) room, Fig immediately saw red: Adaine was clutching a drink and very clearly restraining herself, her knuckles white on the bottle, her posture in the practiced straightness she adopted when her anger swelled up.
Hovering in front of her was Biz, talking some bullshit Fig couldn’t hear while Adaine was making terse replies with an expression that almost made Fig nervous, but apparently Biz wouldn’t notice a sign unless she swung it against his head. Repeatedly.
Biz ‘casually’ rested a hand on Adaine’s shoulder and Fig was halfway across the room, knocking people aside carelessly, before she was aware she was moving.
Balling her hands into fists, Fig absently hoped she wouldn’t get a mess of pixie blood on Adaine’s pretty dress.
Just as she was preparing to pull back a punch, Adaine caught sight of her and instantly her terrifying facade melted into relief and she rushed forwards to meet her.
Honestly, Fig was far too angry to stop even if Adaine asked her to, she would make sure this asshole wouldn’t bother her Adaine again.
But then, a second before Adaine grabbed her arm and wrapped it in hers, she said something which froze Fig to the point that if she hadn’t been grabbed she may have stumbled to the ground, unable to move.
“Hi, baby!”
It took a second for Fig’s brain to resume functioning and she looked at Adaine’s face, searching for help.
Either she had drunk way more than she had thought, or she had walked through a portal to an alternate universe… or she’d misheard.
Because there was absolutely no way that Adaine had said that. Of course not. That was completely unfathomable. And that was why Fig was freaking out internally, ‘cause of the unfathomability. There was no other reason hearing Adaine say… that, made her hair stand on end.
Behind a bright grin, there was an intense look in Adaine’s eyes which read: just go with this.
Oh ok, that made sense. Fig chose to ignore the part of her heart which sank at the realisation.
“Hey…” Fig paused for a second, she was playing along but how ‘along’ was she supposed to play? What pet names was she supposed to use? Was she supposed to use any? Were Adaine and Biz having an in depth discussion about what Fig normally called Adaine in their fictional relationship?
Looking into Adaine’s impossibly blue eyes, Fig forced herself to calm.
“Love,” She managed. And if her voice was borderline hoarse, like she’d imagined saying that a thousand times and wanted it more than anything else in the whole world?
That was just because she was a fucking incredible actor.
“Just came to see if you needed help,” a pointed look at Biz, “with your drink?”
“No, no, there’s nothing worth bothering with here,” Adaine waved her free hand around the room, but mostly at Biz, “sorry I was just on my way back,”
“Well then, allow me to escort you, my darling.” Fig replied with a barely suppressed grin.
“My endless gratitude, my brave protector!”
With that, and without any further acknowledgement of the pixie, the pair turned and walked back to the seats they’d claimed before, as they sat down, Adaine broke down in hysterical laughter, leaning against Fig for support as she gasped for breath.
Adaine’s impromptu support was painfully aware that their arms were still interlocked.
“I’m really sorry, that was weird.” Adaine smiled, apologetically, once she had recovered her breath.
“What? No! I have gorgeous girls coming up to me and calling me ‘baby’ all the time,”
Adaine’s expression became curious and Fig pushed on, hoping that in the dark room her blush wouldn’t be too visible.
“Errm, still wish you’d let me beat him up though,”
“He definitely deserves it,” Adaine conceded with a groan as she untangled herself from Fig, “but I don’t want you going to prison for murder.”
“I wouldn’t kill him,” Fig laughed, “just make him wish I had!”
“Well, I don’t want you going to prison for that either, besides, did you see his face? That was brilliant!”
“Yeah,” Fig lied, she had barely taken her eyes off of Adaine’s face, “it was hilarious,”
“Thank you, for playing along by the way,”
“Anytime,” grinned Fig, before her expression soured.
“Speaking of-”
As she saw Biz floating through the coward, Fig wrapped her arm around Adaine’s waist protectively (and maybe a wee bit possessively) in the way she would if they were actually dating.
Not that she’d thought about where she’d put her hands on Adaine if they were dating a lot. Or ever.
“Biz, isn’t there someone else here you can bug?” Adaine asked, irritably.
“Alas,” Biz remarked, floating above them with seemingly zero self awareness, “there is no one present to match my intellect, any attempt at conversing with these plebeians would be a tedium I cannot abide, you, however are capable of much more stimulati-”
“Hey!” Fig snapped, glaring up with such intensity Biz finally seemed to get some kind of hint.
“She said to stop bugging her, so buzz off before I get a newspaper.”
Adaine’s hand found Fig’s free one and squeezed it, thankfully.
“Witty as ever, Fig -”
“Please, I prefer Pleb.”
Biz regarded her and floated a bit further away, keeping Adaine between them.
“My dear, I’m not sure that our conversation would be entirely intelligible to your friend -”
“Girlfriend.” Adaine interjected, firmly. FIg’s heart gave a leap of joy. Because of how good an actor she was. Obviously.
“Errrhmm, I’m sorry, I must have mis-”
“Fig is my girlfriend.” Fig had to bite back a stupid smile, she hadn’t realised she was this good at acting.
For a brief moment, Biz was stunned into silence.
Unfortunately it didn’t last long.
“Well-”
“Please stop harassing my girlfriend.” Wow, saying it herself felt even better.
“So, it’s clear I now have a banal competitor for your affec-”
“No, there is no competition. If it were a competitive sport, Fig would be winning a gold medal at the world contests, and you would be the guy sitting at home and raving about how you could do better than professional athletes.”
“I don-”
Adaine cut him off with a harsh glare
“OK, let me explain. I am with Fig, I love her.” Fig’s breath caught slightly, even as she told herself not to get her hopes (which she didn’t have) up.
“But why her?” Biz’s tone was indignant but it sounded almost muffled.
Adaine had said she loved her. All other words seemed worthless.
That was until Adaine started speaking again.
“Why her? Fig is…” Adaine trailed off and for a second Fig thought that their deception would be uncovered, but Adaine’s hand hadn’t tensed up and it became evident that she was not lost for a reason, she was struggling to verbalise.
“I’m not a poet… I’m not sure the greatest prose ever written could accurately answer that. But I’ll try. Fig… she makes me want to be a poet, she makes me understand the obsession and devotion which has driven so many great works of art and I would happily labour for all eternity to do justice to her transcendence.”
For a second Adaine’s flicked to Fig’s, as if she was asking for permission to continue.
“I don’t have eternity so I’ll just say this:” she flashed a subdued but entirely genuine smile, “Fig is more than this world deserves, she is the most compassionate, the strongest, the kindest, the funniest, most amazing person I have ever met,”
Fig could feel Adaine’s body tense, as if she had only just realised how much she was talking, she squeezed her hand reassuringly, trying to communicate that Adaine could stop now, not that Fig wasn’t embarrassingly happy to hear it.
Either Adaine didn’t catch her meaning or just decided to ignore it, as she continued.
“She expands my world and makes it brighter, she is rain after a drought, and a ship in a flood, she would keep me warm in a blizzard and is more brilliant than the stars and the moon…”
Adaine had turned to Fig, her voice softening as her eyes gazed into Fig’s.
“She is more brilliant than she knows, I love everything about her. I did not know what unconditional love was before I met her. My heart, my soul, everything I am is in her hand, and I couldn’t pry it away with the strength of the Gods, even if I wanted to. I am completely lost in my love for her. I could spend a thousand years trapped in it without care, every second I am with her is a reminder that there is some good in this world, and her voice could drag me from the deepest pit of damnation with a single word.
To call her my girlfriend is an insult bordering on blasphemy. If my life were cut short today I would consider myself lucky beyond all possible logic for being graced with knowing her.”
Adaine paused, and all Fig could see, all she could feel, was unmasked adoration which made her heart burn.
“She is the love of my life.”
Adaine smiled, that soft, secret smile which was reserved for Fig and which filled her with such a rush of happiness that she could almost cry.
After a long, pregnant pause, Adaine spoke over her shoulder, not taking her eyes from Fig’s.
“And you are a piece of gum on my shoe. Annoying, gross, and forgotten in a week.”
Biz was silent for a while before he spoke again.
“Well, we’ll see.”
“You’re going to see my fist close up if you don’t get lost,” Fig bit back, but there was little anger behind her words, to feel angry right now felt… unnatural.
“Well I suppose that’s the kind of civility one can expect from a Woodelf dyke,”
While it stung, Fig was about to ignore Biz for the first time tonight.
Adaine had other ideas.
Standing, Fig’s arm fell from her waist, but their hands were still held together, Adaine turned to face Biz.
She was shaking, an anger radiating from her which Fig had never experienced.
“What. Did. You. Just. Say?” Adaine’s voice was shaking worse than the hand Fig was clasping, reassuringly.
Finally Biz seemed to take a hint, he went pale and his eyes grew wide as he started backing away through the air.
“Oh, nothing, I was just, um, I was just leavi-”
Biz’s scared words were cut off by a squeal of surprise and fear as, with a snap of the fingers on her unoccupied hand, Adaine summoned a horrifying mass of black tentacles which wrapped around the Pixie who looked like he might faint from fear as the dark bindings encircled him, one circling his throat menacingly.
“No one. No one insults my Girlfriend. Understand?”
Biz nodded wordlessly.
“Good, now. Fuck. Off.” With that, and a casual flick of her wrist, the tentacles threw Biz through the window, shattering the glass.
Adaine turned back to Fig and smiled shyly.
“What?”
It was then that Fig realised she was blushing madly, her mouth hanging open slightly in amazement.
“That was awesome!”
No one seemed bothered about the violence committed against Biz, a couple of people giving Adaine congratulations, and it was an easy enough task to mend the shattered window with magic, but it still seemed best for them to leave not long after, laughing as they walked out into the cool night, still hand in hand.
“Um, so, hey,” Fig said during a lull in the conversation, once they were far enough from the party that there was no chance anyone would see her embarrassment.
“All that… stuff… that you said back there?”
Adaine stiffened slightly as they kept walking.
“Yeah?”
“Well… did you… errhm… did you mean it?”
“...mmm hmm…” Adaine said, and Fig could practically feel the anxiety which matched her own in Adaine’s voice, despite the fact that she had just hummed.
“Is… is that ok?”
“Yes!” Fig let out a relieved laugh which Adaine fell into easily.
“And… when you called me gorgeous?”
“I meant that as well. I don’t think I’ll be as articulate in saying it: but I… I love you, Adaine.”
“I love you, Fig.”
“Cool… so are we… together now? Like, actually?”
“If you want to be, I want to be,”
“I want nothing more, Love,”
“I like when you call me that,” Adaine said in a low voice with an intense blush.
“Well, Love, I think we have to discuss something,”
“What?”
“Well, did we get together just now, or did we get together during your speech about how amazing I am?”
Adaine groaned, affectionately.
“You’re going to be insufferable about that aren’t you?”
“That’s the plan!” Fig declared, happily.
“I suppose that’s just part of my charm! Maybe that’s why you think that I’m ‘the most amaz-’”
Fig’s teasing was brought to a halt by Adaine pulling her face close and pressing a kiss to her cheek which left her lost for words