sixthiterationlogs | open | we always are together

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open | we always are together

WHO: Kamala Khan
WHERE: House 6
WHEN: Dec. 13th; late afternoon aka KAMALA'S BIRTHDAY PARTY
OPEN TO: residents of house six, assorted cr of Kamala and the other house six residents - basically everyone who knows Kamala, Frank, and Jessica and is on good terms with them. It's basically everyone.
WARNINGS: Possible mentions of horror settings or past trauma since Kamala does live with Frank Castle and Jessica Jones who are their own warning. Honestly this is a rated G birthday log.

She wakes up super stoked to be alive. It's not unusual for her honestly. Kamala is more excited than usual if only because it's not every day you get superheroes coming over for your birthday. Granted she's seeing them more as ordinary people who do incredible things sometimes. That's a positive change as far as she's concerned. It doesn't change the fact that Kamala from like age seven and up would have seen this as a dream come true. Who is she to question the wisdom of tiny Kamala?

She spends a decent portion of the day (following breakfast) getting ready for guests. She styles her new, shorter hair cut as elegantly as she can, dresses in the hunter green dress and pants outfit given to her by the Observers because screw them it's pretty and they can't ruin it with what they pulled after.

By the time she finishes, it's time to greet guests and see what Frank's done with the rest of the house while she's been hiding out in her room to obsess over her appearance. She'll go around greeting whoever shows up, shoving food at them, and generally be grateful they came. It's her seventeenth birthday. She's away from her home, childhood friends, and family. Having anyone here today means a lot more than she lets on. It's about the only thing allowing her to feel happiness instead dwelling on what she's missing.

(ooc; ~~top levels will be posted by Frank in like five minutes for setting info. please hold for those!~~ feel free to tag those or make your own starter ~~once they're posted~~. I'm flexible.)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"You two are gross," she mumbles halfheartedly, draining her tea to a quarter full. Oh yeah, the key ingredient in tea is water. Must be why she's sobering up a little. While at least one of them gets drunker on the agonizing wholesomeness that's transpired. Jess shakes her head and rests her eyes, her lips cracking into a vanishing smile from a vanquished laugh. Goofs. She's not one of you. Dorks!!!!!

The Bruno debate had been one for the ages. Really Jessica is missing out on that one. Kamala chuckles at Frank's quick uptick in mood. It never fails on him which is endlessly amusing to watch. Jess' lack of commitment to pointing out what weirdos they are gives her sense of superiority only a teenager can feel when noticing the obvious ten years later. She totally loves them. Kamala is sure of it!!!

"We're dorks. Isn't that why you hang out with us? You automatically look cooler by comparison."

He nods seriously, scooping the cat up and placing her on his thigh.

"Gonna be honest, kind of assumed that's why you were here too."

The edge in her voice is tired past inflicting itself on them when she says, "I came for the electricity, now I'm thinking they might be connected." The joke there is that it's on her. She has the dork fuel to light up one room for a couple hours, if that. Granted, her reservoir fills some with every outdated "non-fiction" book she reads.

Kamala openly sulks at the lack of warmth at her side and grabs the pillow to hug to her chest. She doesn't say anything else because he knows what he did!!!! Well that and he got her a lamb today. She can't complain too much.

"Heh! We have more winning qualities than I thought." She flops back against the couch with a tired sigh. "Why do we have stairs again? I don't want to get up."

He smiles - more like grins - in Jessica's direction at the not-even-a-joke. Look at them, being a unit. It fills his heart so full he thinks it might burst. Then he turns to Kamala, gaze and voice both soft as he places the little catbird back in her lap and sets his tea down so he can get up first.

"Come on," he urges, holding out a hand for her. "I'll give you a lift, birthday princess."

Her crap-ass kingdom for the vigor to tell them that if he carries her, she's moving out, immediately, like right now. She's demonstrated that her capacity for cuteness already overrunneth and any more will be straining the system. Her eyes may be shut but she's inherited the same sense for noise as they have and can tell one pair of footsteps from two while drunk and without trying.

She could also fall asleep here without much effort, which must be what makes her spot so special. Blinking her eyes open, Jess finishes her tea then heaves herself onto her feet. "Night, Kam," she utters with a lazy cheer of her mug. "Happy birthday." Got it in just under the wire.

She smiles up at him. For all her talk of adulthood, Kamala loves when he indulges her. "This is why you're my favorite knight." She takes his hand and moves to get up with her little catbird tucked against her chest, pillow abandoned for the time being. She spares a smile for the other woman. "Thanks, Jess. Goodnight." Now will she actually have to walk?? Time will tell!!!

He notices Jess judging them, or whatever passes for her version of it, but he doesn't care. This is Kamala's day and he's done everything else to cater to her and make it perfect, so why wouldn't he indulge her one last time? "Hold on," he whispers though he doesn't clarify whether he's talking to Nina or Kam before sweeping them both into his arms and heading for the staircase.

Ohh my god. Jess rolls her eyes and leaves them to their journey. Frank will probably have some sappy shit to say for a goodnight. Plenty of time for her to put away the dry dishes, rinse out her cup and the teapot, wash them and set them to dry in turn. A dog or two watches her half-heartedly from the hallway as she abandons the kitchen for the bathroom, using the toilet then the sink. It seems unable to sleep while she's up and about, staring bleary-eyed at her under heavy lids. She can hear it gives a huge sigh when she retreats into her room to take her pants off. Typically her last step before crashing. It feels borderline optimistic to go putting another pair but she'll do it, on the off-chance whatever happens happens. It's not like he can't change his mind and he's not as high now as he was then.

She laughs because being indulged is actually a lot of fun. It's briefly lived since she's actually very tired. There's a reason why her work clothes can also double as pajamas if need be. Her evening prayers and nightly prep for bed are already done. Really she just has to get there. Frank is already seeing to that.

Once they arrive, Kamala doesn't hesitate to slip in under the covers. She releases the cat to settle where it wills even knowing it will take the same spot it does every time to sneaks into her bed. "Thanks again for a pretty much perfect day." It's not the first time thanking him today, but he deserves one last reminder of what this meant to Kamala.

Frank tucks her in and pushes freshly cut bangs off her forehead so he can lean over her and place a kiss there. There are tears shining in his eyes for the millionth time today, but it was well worth the grief to see her this happy.

"Only pretty much?" he teases, but he's smiling as he pats Nina's head in goodnight as well before drawing back up in anticipation of leaving the room. He pauses to look down over her one last time. "Happy birthday, sweetheart."

Whatever's going on up there, Jess can surely only be undercutting it. She gets into her scrub pants, that haven't been washed since the weather was warm, and then kneels down beside her bag. Jess digs out the whiskey for a final gulp before sleep, then decides to take two instead. Jess turns the lights out, throws her covers up, gets into bed and throws them back over herself. With a deep sigh that sinks her further into the mattress, she reminds herself she's not waiting for anything or anyone. It's been a full day and she's going to sleep. Anything more is... well, more.

"Only pretty much. I don't want to give you a huge ego, okay?" Kamala teases from bed. It's impossible to give Frank even a normal sized ego, but she will settle for a laugh.

She yawns loudly and shuts her eyes. "Goodnight, Frank. Don't stay up all night. You'll be a bad influence on Jess." She reminds him like she's the parent here. That's all the advice she has for one night though since she quickly knocks out right after. It really has been a long day albeit a positive one. She's exhausted.

"Thanks for keeping that in check," he says, smiling as he leaves the room and softly closes the door behind him. There's a lightness in his heart that hasn't been there for a long time as he makes his way back down the stairs, but then immediately he starts feeling nervous instead. Does Jess still want him to stay with her tonight? Maybe she's already asleep, they both sleep so little he would really hate to wake her especially with Kam's parting words ringing through his head.

Steeling himself, he gives a little rap to the door, no clever codes for a change just a soft sound that shouldn't even wake anyone in this oversensitive household. Somehow he's picked up two dogs on his way, but for once he pays them no mind as he ducks his head in to see if she's awake.

"You up?" he whispers before creeping inside and beelining for the drawers to sift through until he finds his own scrub bottoms.

Her scoff is smothered by the pillow. Needlessly, considering his sharp ears, Jess reconfirms, "Yeah." Obviously. She'd love to fall asleep that easily, while that pleasantly drunk, but if she's not binging herself into a blackout state, it can be up to an hour before she's out. And that's if insomnia doesn't come for a visit. She might fall asleep faster with him but she doesn't want to jump to such a sentimental conclusion based on two instances. More data is a double-edged sword, if it turns out those weren't coincidences. So was her proposition and Jess regrets it as much as she doesn't, like she knew she would. Getting stuff off your chest means exposing your heart. It's a small, shrivelled and shrouded target; naturally, Jessica Jones chooses to go flashing it at the professional sniper.

He bites into his lip as he throws the pants over his shoulder and turns to make his way back into the hall headed for the bathroom. He wants to ask if this is still happening, but she'd tell him to get out if it wasn't. Not to mention, he remembers how shitty it had felt when she asked him to stay with her after the moth incident. Sometimes, he just has to take these things for granted. He's not at fault if he takes her word at face value. Aloe hops right up onto the bed with her like he's keeping the spot warm until Frank gets back while Bruno pads off with him.

"I'll be right back," he manages apologetically. He's as exhausted as she looks and he knows on some level that they both need this. Here's only hoping it works instead of blowing up in their faces as things typically do. Five minutes later he manages to pee, brush his teeth and change into just the bright teal pants, leaving his clothes from the day in a careless heap by the door as he softly clicks it shut. Bruno decides that's his bed for the night and faceplants into the laundry pile as Frank heads for the bed. Here goes nothing, right? He signs for the pit bull to get off the bed but he only shifts to the foot of it and he decides he's too tired to make him listen better, sliding in under the blankets and laying flat on his back a moment. His mind is racing as he tries to consider all the ways this could go. Hopefully, her safety bubble isn't going to make an appearance tonight, and that's only one of a multitude of complications that could arise.

Frank turns over on his side towards her, tucking an arm behind his head and heaving out a soft sigh. "Hey," he manages super lamely.

Once he's out of the room, Jess rolls onto her back. She listens to the sounds of the old fashioned house as it settles, and the plumbing as it rattles the pipes like a shiver travelling a skeleton. Jess does her best to tune out enough that her senses lose track of the sound's direction, trying to fool herself, for one second, that she's back in her apartment. It doesn't work but it's more pleasant than contemplating what Frank is or isn't contemplating as he quietly moves around.

She slips her feet out from under the dog when he curls up on one of them. Jess shifts onto her side to be more comfortable, bunching the pillow under her head and opening her eyes. The stilted offering that comes from him soothes some of her nerves and unsettles others at the same time. Jess is objectively not great at sleep but she's a hundred times worse at talking. And so does he. Maybe one time out of ten they'll cancel each other out.

"Hey," she says back, voice low. "Tired?"

There's the slightest smile when she returns his greeting, and he nods. He's fucking exhausted, but he has been for weeks and still has only slept a few hours scattered here or there.

"Always." The urge to stay up and savor this moment is there too, his foot brushing her ankle as he shifts to find a comfortable position in the small bed. Though somehow not as small as the ones they found in Reims. "You?"

'Always' hits close to home for her too. Whether she's awake for days or falls dead asleep in the middle of the afternoon, the irregularity of it is the only part of sleep she lets herself get used to. If she can fall asleep, she can do it anywhere, but if she can't, there's no particular place she lays her head down where she can bank on it being more likely. Surely it's like that for everyone here.

"Yeah." The soft scrape of his cold skin stokes a shiver from her core. Jess hitches the blanket over her shoulder and then slips her hand under her pillow to warm up. His smile passes onto her, smaller and paler, and furtively vanishes as she voices very quietly, "Thanks."

The rejoinder gets a quizzical look, trying to hold off asking for as long as he can. With his track record, she's lucky he lasts ten whole seconds.

"For what?"

"I don't want to think about that night anymore," she admits, sounding sleepier than she is. That's a better reason to have her eyes closed than because saying something real is too overwhelming while staring him in the face. "Now there's this one." She can have it at the ready and paste over that dreary, frightening night the next time it invades her thoughts. Even now, it's scratching to get in, reminding her the night's not over yet. But if she does have nightmares, he physically won't be able to hold her, so she won't end up hating herself nearly as much. And his danger sense will give him the heads up to roll away. It's all good.

He wants to reach out for her now, when she says that, but he doesn't. Frank knows instantly what night she's referring to, or at least, he thinks he does. There were some choice ones to sift through.

"Then I should thank you, too."

Jess might not have minded the contact but she's glad he didn't initiate any. It seems like less of a big deal like that, being honest after everything; believing they've gone through it and aren't still mired in the middle, unbeknownst to them.

"Don't thank me yet," she says dryly. His sensitive ear won't miss the humorous crackle underlying her tone.

"Okay," he agrees easily. Perhaps too much so. Bemusement dances in his gaze anew. "Need a lullaby?"

open | we always are together

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