True to her word, about an hour after leaving Danny's house, Aurelia is in the treehouse with dinner just about ready. The smell of roasted meat might even escape the small space, giving Ren an idea of what's awaiting him. She's tidied up the treehouse, the sleeping next neatly arranged on one side, the burner, mismatched dishware, and the food she's brought on the other. She's sitting on the floor, her hair pulled back in a ponytail with a length of white ribbon, and she's fussing with what looks like a pot of some kind of stew.

And, indeed, about an hour after parting, Serendipity comes up the rope and in the hatch, carrying a decent sized bag along with him. "...hi, beautiful," he greets her a little sheepishly, and closes the portal behind him. "Smells amazin'."

Aurelia glances over her and offers Ren a grin before turning her attention to stirring and sorting out bowls and such. "Well, I didn't make it. I'm just warming it up and putting in some herbs. I have it on good authority that this is fresh venison, though. Killed this mornin'."

Serendipity grins back immediately, and glances down to rummage in his bag. "Best kind. And fair 'nough, I didn't make anya this, either." He comes up with a soft brown loaf of bread, followed by several little pots of jams, honey, and butter, and then a corked, cobalt-blue bottle of something.

Aurelia moves away from the simmering pot to take stock of the booty. She takes the bread and sets it on a slab of wood turned cutting board, then arranges all the little pots around it. "Oh, this is nice, sweetie," she says. "What's this?" Which is directed to the bottle as she takes it and looks it over.

"Strawberry mead," Ren replies, "...there's this guy a few miles over who makes it. 's nice." He sits down near her, though not, he hopes, in her way, and gets comfortable. "That do?"

Aurelia's eyes widen with delight. "Ooh, I haven't had strawberry mead since... well, it's been awhile." The bottle is set aside carefully, and she starts serving up the stew, ladling a rather large portion into a bowl for Ren, and tearing off a bit of the bread to go with it. "Here you are," she says, offering it over. "Figure you've worked up an appetite, workin' all day."

Serendipity grins like a little boy at the eye-widening, and accepts the food, pulling it into his lap. "Well. Now thatcha mention it, I =am= kinda peckish. Been a long time since I got t' help build anything, y'know? I mean, with other people and everything."

Aurelia scoops up a more modest portion for herself -- after all, all she did was supervise from afar -- and tucks in, munching down a mouthful before she replies, "I think it's neat. It's a good way to get to know folks, you know? And helpin' out like that is good for the community. Reminded me of home."

"Yeah..." Ren scoops up a good bite of stew, and soaks up some of the liquid with his bread. After some chewing, he adds, "...me too, kinda. I mean, at home we built caravans, not still-buildings, but. Y'know, when we needed more room'n all." He glances toward the blanket and then down to his bowl, half-smiling and admitting, "Wasn't positive they'd want me there, but it went okay."

Aurelia points out, "They got no reason to not want you there once they get to know what you're like." She doesn't eat daintily, but she's neat enough to make quick work of the food without any of it ending up on her face or clothes. Halfway to a proper lady, maybe. "You're a good guy, and people see that once they get past the part where your head is in your pants."

Serendipity looks down at his pants as if they might look back up at him, and gestures with his spoon as he looks back up, "...only got one of 'em in there, same as most guys. Honest." Small grin.

Aurelia says wryly, "Well that's a relief. Contrary to the stories you might hear, I'm pretty sure most girls prefer it that way." She sneaks a look at him with a crooked little smile, then goes back to making quick work of dinner. "So you doin' okay?" she asks.

Serendipity opens his mouth to make a standard reply, then closes it again and watches her sidelong for a few moments while he eats a slow bite of bread. "...yeah," he replies eventually, "I s'pose I'm pretty much okay. ...how 'bout you?"

Aurelia replies readily, "I'm fine, sugar. Except wondering what's up with you boys, I ain't got a care in the world." She sets her bowl aside to take up the bottle, working it open to pour mead into two chipped mugs. As she offers one over, she says, "I just never know what's going on in your head is all."

Serendipity accepts the mug, and takes a long, slow, savouring sip, closing his eyes. Opening them again, he looks at her over the top of the cup and replies almost shyly, "Well. You've never asked." There's the hint of a smile, and then he hesitates, looking down at the mug and considering something. "...I... had somethin' else for you," he mentions, reaching into his pocket and offering a little fabric bundle over, tentatively. "'s not real shiny or anything," he warns.

Aurelia sips from her cup sparingly, then sets it aside to reach for the bundle as she admits, "You're right, I never asked. And I reckon I should." Carefully, she unwraps the fabric, looking curious despite the forewarned lack of shininess within.

The fabric, at least, is shot through with thin silvery threads; it's probably a very old bit of material. Within it is a small carving of a coyote, howling to Luna, fashioned from some kind of light brown stone spotted with dark brown, red, and white in patches. Like the raven, it's a bit rough and imperfect, but more than recognizable. "I thought," Ren says uncertainly, "maybe he could keep the raven company."

Aurelia's eyes widen and, shiny or not, the carving clearly delights her. "Oh, sugar. This is so cute." Dinner and mead are forgotten as she hurries over to the nest area and rummages through her belongings. She seems to know exactly where the raven is to be found, and she sets the coyote beside it. "You're so sweet."

Serendipity smiles fully at the delight, and ducks his head slightly, taking a long sip of his mead. "'m glad you like," he replies, and goes back to his stew, still looking quietly pleased that the gift is appreciated.

Aurelia returns to her food and drink. Without a word, she tops off Ren's stew bowl, then her own. Munching commences. "I was thinkin' of finding a way to put up all the things I've got around here so that it'll look all pretty."

"We could put in shelves," Serendipity offers, and after a moment, "Or. We could move. I mean, if you don't like it up here. We could find somewhere else, or build something. If you'd rather." It's meant to be offhand, and it makes it about 90% of the way.

Aurelia eyes Ren dubiously, then glances around the place. "Well," she says thoughtfully, "I'd kind of like a place where I could have a garden. Maybe get some chickens for eggs and what-not. Kind of hard to have that here, but I reckon there's no hurry. We could put up shelves in the meantime."

"Eggs're good," Ren agrees, and looks thoughtful a moment, probably plotting something. He grins a little then, though, and eats some more. "T'morrow, I'll see 'bout gettin' us some wood 'n' nails 'n' all, for the shelving. That shouldn't be too hard, I figure."

Aurelia nods amiably. "That'd be nice." She eats in silence for awhile, til she's polished off her portion of stew. Then she sets the bowl aside and tears off a bit of bread, spreading jam on it. "So, since I ain't asked before, I reckon I will now -- what's going on in your mind?"

Serendipity has finished off his stew, too, and sets it aside, refilling his mug with mead. The question startles him a little, despite almost inviting it earlier. "I... dunno," he replies, looking down at the cup, and seems to square his shoulders a little, taking a breath. "...if I try t' make words of it, are you gonna leave?"

Aurelia arches a brow, reaching for the bottle to top off her mug as she studies Ren dubiously. Once the bottle is set aside, she takes a swig, swallowing it down. "Wasn't planning on it," she replies.

Serendipity nods, though he doesn't look entirely reassured about the possibility. "Keep not plannin' on it, yeah?" he requests, and sips his own drink. "Dunno how t' start. What d'you wanna know?"

Aurelia regards Ren over another swig of mead, looking at him the way one might a person gibbering about mind control lasers, only replace ridicule with concern. "I wasn't plannin' on leavin' no. That's... kind of the point of decidin' to stay. I guess I wanna know what you think of all this. You ain't seemed very happy lately. I dunno what you want."

Serendipity sighs, and has another drink, looking uncomfortable but determined. "Maybe me neither. Anyway. I =have= been happy lately, it's just the last couple days not so much, I guess. It's been..." He looks at the mug again, and pinkens slightly. "'m happy bein' with you. I think-- I care about you a lot. I like you a lot. More'n... I think more'n I have anyone else," he says quietly, and looks up at her, with a slightly wistful smile as he continues, "an' the way you smile when I do nice things for you, it makes me... you ever hear that story where this guy's trying to mess up this town's celebration, an' then he realises he's bein' an asshole an' reforms? There's this part where they say somethin' like, his heart grew six sizes that day, somethin' like that. It makes me feel like that." He colours a little more and glances away. He's probably got more to say, but he takes a moment to drink altogether too much in one sip of his mead.

Aurelia grins a little, then ducks her head, glancing aside. With her complexion, it's hard to tell if she blushes or not. Maybe her cheeks get a bit duskier. "I like you too," she says awkwardly. "I like that you do sweet things for me, and I like that you're funny, and I like... lots of stuff. About you."

Serendipity's head stays down, but he glances upward to see her, and smiles, just a little. "...like so much stuff 'bout you," he replies softly. "Like your heart, an' your mind, an' your strength, an' how you know when t' take my crap an' when not to, an' how y'don't actually need me t' try'n' take carea you, but y'let me, an' th' other way 'round..." He turns the mug around in his hands, halfway, then the rest of the circle. "I got. Feelings for you. That're kinda... new. An' I dunno what t'do with 'em," he admits. "I just..." He looks up at her, and runs a hand back over his hair, nervously. "Justin offered t' brush Ruth once, when she was all messy from a fight, and she said yes, an' Danny was all -- he was definitely actin' like it was, was like gettin' mosta the way inta someone's bed. An' I know you said. You're a one-person kinda girl. An' he's prolly a better choice'n me, he's a shifter an' he's got th' dream thing an' he could help you fight 'em there, an' he's a good guy an' he'll prolly stay in one place an' everything, and... an' if you decide you want him, then I..." He trails off and after a moment adds very quietly, "...then you won't want me."

Aurelia listens attentively, and at that last bit, her expression softens. She takes the bottle and her mug, and she moves over to sit right beside Ren, topping off his cup before setting the bottle aside. "Oh sugar," she says. "I... I been thinking about this, okay? Do you wanna know what I think?"

Serendipity presses his lips together briefly, and nods, taking a slow breath. He looks awkward, and exposed, and younger than usual. "...I always wanna know what you think."

Aurelia eyes him sidelong, but whatever snippy remark she has to that goes unsaid, and she keeps her serious demeanor pointedly. "Well," she says, "I've had a lot of time to think about it, because I know what you're like, and you been courtin' on me, so I've had to take it into consideration. I know you ain't ever gonna be a one-girl kinda man. Sure, maybe I could try to make you that way, and maybe you'd even try your damndest to be like that. But the day would come when you'd have to just be who you are, and it would cause a lot of hurt feelins. So I figured I better learn to accept it now." She glances to the floor, sipping from her mug before she continues, "I do want just one person. Eventually. I don't see myself livin' like you do, sugar plum. Not all my life, hoppin' bed to bed and never settlin' down. There ain't nothin' wrong with that, but it ain't who I am. On the other hand, I ain't so sure I'm ready for growin' old with the same person yet, either. Hell, I ain't even barely twenty. I got years before I need to start worryin' about that. And I thought about it, and I decided maybe I ain't ready to wait for years to get me some, though. So I dunno."

Serendipity toys with his mug. "Only, I do wanna settle down," he replies, softly. "Maybe not th' same way most terrenes think 'bout it, exactly, but. We're travellers, so it's not like we usually set down roots, but. You find someone, or maybe a couple someones if you're really lucky, an'... an' you take care of each other. You prolly raise up mosta your kids together, if you find 'em before it's too late for that. An' maybe you visit another place or another bed, but you always come home. 'cause they =are= home. No matter where they are."

Aurelia nods thoughtfully, then points out, "Only you got this quest, and until you find your people, ain't you always gonna be lookin'?" She takes another drink, then adds, quieter, "I was lyin' when I said that stuff about not havin' a destiny. I just don't like it much is all."

"...yeah," Ren confirms, "...but you could come with me. Like if we did th' trading thing. Or I would come back. T'you." He tilts his mug, watching the mead shift, and takes a drink. "What is it, your destiny?"

Aurelia shrugs and says glumly, "The dream thing. Bein' a dream warrior. It ain't like there's very many around, and even if I don't do it, the baddies will come anyway. And besides, I made a choice to fight 'em. So that's what I do." Glancing to Ren, she asks, "Well, why can't it be like that? Maybe travelin' or you comin' back? I don't understand what's got you down."

"Figure that's how most destinies go," Serendipity muses, and then sighs at the question. "I'd. Like it t' be like that. But if you decided the one you want is Danny, or someone else altogether, then... then I guess it couldn't be like that." He laughs, suddenly. "Unless you decided you were a two-guy girl after all, I guess. Maybe he could pull th' wagon," he says wryly.

Aurelia rolls her eyes and, in the spirit of sensitivity to Ren's feelings, she jabs him in the ribs. "Would you listen to yourself?" she says. "Ren, honey. I ain't lookin' to settle down with -anyone- right now. I ain't even thinkin' far enough down the road to say who I'm gonna choose, if anyone, and if it'd be either one of you, or both, or... hell, I don't know. I ain't fixin' to leave you, okay? We're kumi. No matter what else. You know what? If I married Danny tomorrow, and we never bumped uglies, you and me, that wouldn't change the fact that we're kumi-mates. As it happens, I ain't got any plans to propose to Danny just now. I like him. I think he's handsome, and we've been through stuff with the dreamin'. I'd like to get to know him, and yeah, that might mean lettin' stuff happen if it's bound to. But that don't mean I'm gonna be all 'Ren who' because it ain't like that."

Serendipity nods, and takes a few more sips of his mead, nearly emptying the cup. "'m sorry. I'm just not useta this, an'... it doesn't exactly work with the ways I usually deal with strange new things, y'know?" He half-smiles, and then examines the remaining contents of his cup.

Aurelia reaches for the bottle to pour again. "Well, you're frettin' too much," she decides as she pours another half-mug for him. "If I was gonna leave you, Serendipity Jones, it would've been after last night when you was out tomcattin'. Since it never even occurred to me, I reckon I ain't gonna. Maybe we ain't ever gonna be husband and wife. Maybe we will. I dunno. Don't ask me now. Ask me in a few years. Right now, let's just finish off this mead and go to bed."

Serendipity reaches over, as she pours, and pulls her head gently closer to steal a kiss on the lips, then lets go, looking at her, and then the cup. "You went off t'brush Danny, an' then y'came back and y'seemed... preoccupied, an' you went off flying, an' I got too restless so I went for a walk t' think, an' then I ended up at Rex's t' =not= think, an' that worked for a few hours, but then he was asleep an' I was thinkin' again, an'... yeah. So I came home," he explains quietly.

Aurelia returns the kiss, then withdraws to set the bottle aside and drink from her own mug, nodding to his words. "Yeah," she says quietly. "I know. And I know you and this Rex fella gotta thing. And... Ren, if here and now, tonight, I told you I wanted us to be forever -- could you let him go? Could you let them all go? And would it make you happy?"

Serendipity rubs the back of his neck, thinking about it. "....I dunno. What he and I got is, we're friends. Just friends. There's some stuff he 'n' I understand 'bout each other no-one else 'round here does, or maybe can, but we're just friends who have kinda a lot of really hot sex every so often, an'... that's it. An' I could stop sleepin' with him, but... I don't wanna, an' it wouldn't make me stop wanting him, or other people, an' nonea that has anything t' do with whether or how much I wanna be forever with you. I mean. It wouldn't make me happy, but I could do it. It'd feel. Unnatural. An' confined. It'd be like... if I made not laughin' with other people a condition. ...I dunno if that makes sense." He draws a fingertip across the boards of the floor beside him. "...I think. If it made you happy, I'd try. But I... wish I could make you happy with me still bein' who I am, without havin' to ask me to."

Aurelia studies her mug, then takes a long swallow of the mead. She's a cheap date, so it wouldn't be surprising if the drink was already starting to affect her. "Well, I ain't gonna ask you to. But put yourself in my shoes for a just a minute. Imagine being with someone who goes out and fucks whoever he pleases, but you gotta stay home and be the good little woman? And maybe there's someone you coulda got to know, but he didn't like it, so you didn't. And now when he's out havin' a good time, you're in a cold bed all alone."

Serendipity blinks. "I never said you gotta stay home an' not be with anyone else," he replies, sounding genuinely startled. "I mean, that you would. You said you weren't interested in that kinda thing. I mean if you told me right now you wanted us t'be forever, but you wanted t' maybe sleep with Danny, or Bryce, or Justin, or Danny 'n' Bryce 'n' Justin all together sometimes too... see, that wouldn't bother me. 's just. If you wanna be with just one guy, an' you pick someone else... I'm gonna lose you. That's what I... that's what hurts t' think about," he tries to explain.

Aurelia arches a brow. "Danny 'n' Bryce 'n' Justin all together? I might hold you to that one." She almost smiles, just a little quirk of one, and then she sighs. "Ren... look. I don't know how many ways I can put this so that it'll make sense: I ain't lookin' to settle down just yet. I ain't sayin' I only wanna be with one guy just now -- I don't -know- if I do or not. And even if I do, someday down the road, you ain't gonna 'lose' me. It ain't like I'm gonna disappear and never speak to you again. Maybe it'll mean we don't get it on anymore, but we ain't doin' it now, so where's the loss?"

"=I'd= do it," Ren points out, a bit wickedly, "...but I'm thinkin' your odds are a lot better there." He sighs, and empties his cup in a final swallow. "I guess the loss'd be... I think..." He sets the cup down, looking a bit frustrated. "Every way I try t' put it in some kinda words comes out stupid," he complains.

Aurelia shrugs and says, "Why let that stop you now?" The words fly out of her mouth unbidden, and she looks a little surprised at herself, adding quickly, "I mean since we're havin' a heart to heart here, don't hold anything back. I'm just teasin', but for real, it's okay. I ain't gonna laugh at you."

Serendipity looks kind of hurt. "Y'think it's been coming out stupid?" he asks, and pokes at the tip of his boot, staring at it. "'m doin' the best I can."

Aurelia sighs and reaches over to grasp his boot-poking hand. "I'm teasin', darlin'. Ain't you figured out by now I don't tease unless it's someone I care about? You ain't bein' stupid."

Serendipity squeezes her hand, and replies, sheepishly, "I =feel= stupid. You call me dumb all th' time, but it doesn't bother me 'cause I know I got a lot more goin' on up there'n people give me credit for, usually. I just feel stupid, tryin' to explain this stuff. I can barely get =me= understandin' mosta it, if I'm even doin' that," he confesses.

Aurelia twines her fingers around his and just keeps holding his hand, casual-like. "Well honey, I'm tryin' to meet you halfway here but I don't even know what the trouble is. I keep sayin' we're a kumi and so we shall remain. I keep sayin' I ain't goin' anywhere. I don't know how to make it clear you ain't gonna lose me. If ever that were to happen, it would be because of something between us -- you and me. Not because of me and some other guy."

"The trouble is," Ren starts, and takes a deep breath. "The trouble is I think I'm maybe serious 'bout you. As more'n friends. That's all. An' you keep sayin' the worst that'll happen is that we can't be, like that's no big loss, an'... I dunno. Maybe it feels like it is." He rubs his temples with his free hand, and is definitely blushing somewhat. "I don't know."

Aurelia sidles a little closer and leans her head against Ren's shoulder with a quiet sigh. "I don't mean to make it sound like it ain't any kind of loss," she replies. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that, no matter what happens, we're more than friends now, Ren. We're kumi. We're family. Wherever you go in this crazy world, maybe I won't be right there, but you'll be in my mind, and in my heart, and that ain't gonna change if I end up married somewhere with a dozen kids. And it might not pan out like that. I don't know." She hesitates, then adds, "Besides, whatever else happens, at least you'll always be my first, right?"

Serendipity wraps his arms around the girl, and leans down to kiss her, soft and lingering. "...I had a dream a li'l ago," he mentions, with a little amusement. "We had this wagon, an' some huge numbera little toddlers, who were all 'bout th' same age, an' we were heading somewhere, an' they were climbin' everywhere an' gettin' into everything. ...It was kinda a nice dream, though."

Aurelia leans into the kiss, all romantic and gentle right up til she hears the part about all the toddlers. Leaning back a little, she quirks a brow and eyes Ren dubiously. "For you," she replies. "You ain't the one squeezing out that litter."

Serendipity laughs. "Yeah, but it was a dream, so neither were you. They magically skipped from inside t' outside without a moment of pain. So I decree, so mote it be." He grins, and pulls her back in toward him. "...think I'd be kinda frightened if you =really= had that many kids at once, anyway. Your belly'd be bigger'n all the resta you put t'gether."

Aurelia grumbles, "I ain't havin' a litter. Birds don't litter." She leans in toward him, finding a place to set aside her mug before drawing both arms around his waist. "So, you gonna tell me about your dreams, or are you going to let that part about bein' my first penetrate that thick skull of yours?"

Serendipity blinks, and arches a brow. "...and then I had a dream where I was a sausage roll," he replies earnestly, and pulls her into his lap, brushing a strand that's strayed from her ponytail away from her face. "...You sayin' you decided you wanna sleep with me, beautiful?"

Aurelia slides onto his lap, paying little mind to how a dress might tend to ride up a bit when a girl straddles someone. "Hell, I wanted to sleep with you before I ever came to Haven," she says dryly. "But I wanted it to be when and where -I- say. I'm just like that, I guess."

Serendipity does not exactly help the dress situation, resting his hands on her knees and running them up just a few inches higher, taking the fabric along with them. "Yeah?" he replies, rather pleased by that, "...Mm. I like that you're like that, I guess. And does this particular when and where appeal to milady?"

Aurelia quirks a brow at 'milady' but rather than reply with something snide, she curls her fingers through his hair and leans in for a kiss as she murmurs, "You don't think I got you drunk to talk all night, do you?"

Serendipity laughs and slips one hand up further, over her hip and around to the small of her back, to pull her closer as he returns the kiss, quite enthusiastically. "...mm. Can't imagine you havin' t' get anyone drunk," he murmurs when he eventually pulls away for a moment, and then kisses her again, extracting his free hand to liberate her hair from its bonds.

What transpires is, to say the least, energetic. There is enthusiasm -- much enthusiasm, sometimes working at cross-purposes, but they manage to work it out. The burner burns down eventually, then out, and still there are the most interesting sounds coming from the treehouse, late into the night.