Anti-antithesis

Dating sites nowadays barely function as intended, and those that do have ridiculous terms and conditions. “Any successful relations as a result of a pairing on our services are required to send 10% of their shared assets” and other such bullshit.

Go to a bar, a park, a food court even. Go outside and talk to someone. You will, eventually, find someone who fits your weirdness.

-Vanguard Red Menace about how she and Bo met.

Jill

Waking up in someone's arms was very nice, as I discovered today. Showering with that person was also nice. Walking out into the common room with a bunch of others who were looking at us with knowing gazes was less than enjoyable. How the fuck did Vickie not cringe under our teasings.

Sitting at the table, Penny sat between me and Harmony, back in her sweater and skirt, hiding… many things. Harmony smiled politely while passing a platter of muffins, not saying anything. Desiree also said nothing, yet Daliah just couldn't stay quiet. “So, how was our little sheep, Jill? Did she treat you right?”

I could feel my face heat up as Roger poked Daliah, causing her to giggle. “Now, now. Leave her be, Daliah. She's not nearly as experienced as any of us. Look at her face, the poor thing.”

I turned my rage to Roger, my glare promising vengeance in the form of ‘friendly sparing’, which caused him to chuckle nervously as he took a drink of juice. “You seem awfully chummy with her, Roger. What, am I getting an older sister or something.”

Roger just smiled, which just pissed me off more. Buddy took a seat at the table as he said something that drew my attention away from contemplating launching myself across the table. “Harmony, would you be alright if we installed a few portals between here and the Niltmore?”

She nodded as she finished swallowing. “Oh, yes. Bahamut and I discussed that last night, a discreet entrance for the PMC as well as for emergency evacuations. We will need to build a power generator to support the portals, but it should be no problem.”

At that point, the bomb Gremlin, Wendy decided to join us, and she looked… sloppy. Her dress shirt wrinkled and kinda buttoned, showing her stomach and pink bra and panties. Her hair was a frizzy, tangled mess, and she was not wearing any pants, socks, or shoes. Her eyes were bleary as she scratched her chest as she climbed onto Buddy'slap, taking a bite out of some bacon.

I just stared at her blatant disregard for all of us as Buddy simply chuckled. “Glad to see you awake, Wendy. I thought I would lose an arm trying to wake you earlier.”

She grunted as she chugged a cup of coffee, leaning back into Buddy as she sighed contently. “I'm up when I'm up. Doesn't interfere with my job.”

Roger looked pretty shocked at the scene as Buddy ate around the gremlin in his lap. “Uh, I did not see you two head off together last night. How did that happen?”

Wendy just grunted as she nudged Buddy with her shoulder. He chuckled as he rubbed her head. “I did head to bed last night alone. Yet, once I had exited my shower, I found her curled up on my bed. Synaptic just said she bypassed the lock and wandered in. I tried to get her to move, yet she latched on to me and held me like a koala on a tree. I accepted my fate and fell asleep like that.”

Wendy grunted as she nodded, patting Buddy's thigh. “Very comfy, very warm.” Buddy passed her a plate of blueberry pancakes, which she devoured.

I chuckled at him. A big, warm tree fit Buddy very well. Breakfast continued peacefully as the other guests came out of their rooms, though none as messy as Wendy. Mindy apologized to Morrigan about not sleeping and begged to never be given that sleeping drug again. I saw Vickie and Cari head out at some point, as well, but paid them no mind.

Unfortunately, everyone had to head out and be responsible adults today. That did include me, as I had training soon. Hilda had listed it as awareness training, which just sounded like an excuse for her to beat me up while I was blindfolded. Penny pulled me aside, however, which did surprise me.

“So, um… last night was… nice.” She stuttered out, feeling nothing like the woman she was last night. “So, um… since Harmony is getting… portals set up… could I, could I come over more often?”

I blinked hard, last night flying through my head. “Wou-would you be alone?”

She giggled at my flustered face. “Of course… at least, until you want more.” I saw a glimpse of the gaze she gave me last night and I shivered.

She placed a kiss on my chin, as that was all she could reach, then scurried away, leaving me stunned and blushing. Sands, I was useless, wasn't I.

********************************************

Harmony

We watched Penny sprint up into the limo, blushing something fierce. I smiled as I shook my head, following her with Bubie, Desiree, and Daliah.

“I must say, Daliah, I'm surprised you're not staying.” Desiree said, placing a hand on my thigh.

Daliah simply giggled, waving her hand in dismissal. “It's not like I can't easily come back. Not to mention, I do have my duties in The Lower Six to take care of today.” She then smiled contently. “Besides, that young man isn't so needy or possessive as to require my presence by his side constantly.”

I raised my eyebrow at that last comment. “Was that a dig at the Saint, Daliah?”

She rolled her eyes at me dramatically. “Oh, please Harmony. We all saw how he basically needed Cari to act as a crutch. He's a textbook introvert who was forced to socialize by his extroverted family.”

Bubie raised her eyebrow as she leaned back, arms behind her head. “You know he was on his own for a bit there in the middle. I even had a fun conversation with him over Samurai Rush. Oh, by the way, Desiree. We have a permanent antithesis player for any group now.”

I slapped Bubie's rock hard thigh. “You did not convince a Saint to play antithesis for us! That is not only disrespectful towards him, but we shouldn't bother him about such trivial things!”

Bubie just laughed at my feeble attempt to cause her harm. “He volunteered when I mentioned that no one really liked to play the antithesis besides me. Said he had this brain aug thing that would allow him to multi-task like crazy. While he wouldn't be able to have complex chats, he would be able to control about three games at once.”

Desiree looked skeptical. “Three games using the same strategy?”

Bubie shook her head. “Nah. Three unique games at once. He also said not to allow any of the Commanders play, as they were basically grandmaster level players.”

That actually sounded amazing. We had quite a few groups that loved to play Samurai Rush, and if we could get a consistent anti-player, I should hear less complaints, which always made nights less fun.

Daliah nodded distractedly before leaning forward. “So, Penny, how was your night?”

Penny devolved into a mess of blushing as she tried to hide in her sweater while the rest of us giggled.

*****************************************

Buddy

As the women from Niltmore left and the company commanders made their way down, I had a new situation to deal with. Wendy, being four foot tall and weighing practically nothing, had decided that my chest was the most comfortable place to be and had wrapped herself around it, burying her head in it as she passed out.

I sighed, but controlled my nanite clothes to swaddle her, making sure she wouldn't be jostled or fall while I worked. Such a strange time I have had recently.

As I gathered the plates with the mannequins, I reminisced over last night's events. The evening went well as everyone devoured the supplemented food, then sampled the rest on their own time. Their faces lit up with joy and surprise with each item, conversation flowed nicely, bonds formed and strengthened through food, shared experiences, and differing opinions.

And all the while, this one kept sneaking glances my way. She would come up to me and ask what food I would recommend next, different drinks and desserts were shared between us. Then, she handed me a cookie while blushing slightly. Thinking nothing of it, I ate it and offered her one as well. She blushed harder as she took it and nibbled on it before walking off.

Again, thinking nothing of it, I continued to mingle with the guests, joking with Opal about how awkward Victor was about this entire thing, even talking with Gimbal for a time. She was fascinating as a person, yet currently acting as Outsider’s… she called it paramour, but I think it would be closer to kitten. She seemed fine with the arrangment, even after I asked some probing questions, saying that she ate well, got to hang out with her friends, and had her injuries and illnesses taken care of. I would still keep an eye on her, just in case.

Then, as everyone was winding down and going to bed, I lost sight of Wendy. After cleaning up, I retired for the night, taking a shower to clean off the sweat I worked up. I did indeed find her curled up in my bed under the covers, and Synaptic didn't have anything to do with it.

What I didn't mention was that I had, apparently, completed a proposal ceremony with her earlier, where we shared a precious food with each other with no hesitation. A custom of the Undercity, apparently, one where it showed true, unadulterated trust between two adults. Where we would share everything with each other and not doubt one another.

Now, as much as that was not something I had realized, nor something I was looking for, she was nice and liked my food, and it's not like she could harm me, so I just accepted.

And now, here I am, with my new… bride? Tied to my chest as I washed dishes and planned for lunch.

Abigail only needed me in a few days to work her bar, so she told me to practice some basics. Skillet work, griddle top work, and deep frying, all of which were main stations I was expected to bounce between.

Wendy stirred as I was cutting up some chicken, smelling the oil and breading. There was a field over the cooking area that caught hot oil and the like that I loved, wishing I could spread this technology to every home in the world, as neither Wendy or I ended up burned.

“Time…” She muttered sleepily.

“Nine fifty two.” I responded, causing her to groan.

She climbed around me like a monkey, placing a kiss on my shoulder as she dismounted me. “Have to practice with my troops. Get to blow up a train. See you tonight.” And with that, she was gone.

I chuckled at her as she ran off, finishing my prep for the fried chicken as I started to prep the burgers. Café Nobu Shite had a set menu of fried chicken, burger sliders, fries, and stir-fried veggies. Each item had to be out in ten minutes and often multiple portions at once. I had gotten good with the skillet and the griddle, but the fryer remained my weakness.

It was supposed to be simple. Coat it, bread it, let it sit for a few seconds, then toss' em into the fryer and let them sit, then pull them out after ten minutes, shake it out, and serve.

My problem was always the timing. I would just get lost in the rhythm of the griddle and the skillet and the bubbling of the fryer became white noise. Even with the alarm I had set, I would just… miss the timing. Too long and the chicken would burn, too short and it would be raw. Abigail would not let me serve raw food, and my pride would not let me serve over cooked ones.

It was a delicate balance, and by my fifth attempt today I was getting into a groove with it. By my eighth, I hadn't burnt anything!

As I started my tenth batch, I got a notice from Cody asking for a family meeting in the Screen. I looked over my work, of the dozens of chicken strips and plates of veggies and small burgers, all of which I would normally toss into the reprocesser, and decided to bring it with me. I'm sure everyone will appreciate the meal. I also set up a portion for Wendy and have one of the mannequins deliver it to her for me. I was certain she would appreciate it, and I would rather not be accused of neglecting my new partner.

So, I had not really planned for Buddy to get a girl, but it felt right. He's a big teddy bear of food, and she's a scrungly woman from the undercity who had to fight for each meal.

Both can and will kill to protect them and theirs.

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