The wood-panel floor of the treehouse is carefully nestled between the twin trunks of a tree, about ten feet off the ground. A panel in the center of the floor opens to allow a rope to drop down and give access to those welcome.
The house itself is fair-sized and sturdily built, mainly of pine panels. One wall is largely open, covered in metal wire mosquito-screen with two large, thick blankets nailed and tacked as drapes and insulation for the cooler times. This makeshift window faces west, toward the lake, and a section has been carefully cut and taped up to allow access to a wooden windowbox attached outside.
Nearly half the floor -- right up to the trapdoor -- is taken up by the bed, a mattress filled with straw, topped with a thin but soft featherbed, all capped by a large nest of blankets, quilts, and pillows. The other side of the room appears to be mainly the kitchen, such as it is -- a small 'pantry' box of food, a few pans and dishes, and a clay pot redolent of woodsmoke and coal. In the corner away from the window on that side is a very simple wooden box with a lid, and atop that is a cobalt blue wine bottle acting as a vase for random wild blooms. Three rows of shelves line the wall above the cooking area, the vast majority of the space on them covered with carefully arranged shiny baubles of various kinds.
Did someone call for 'tall, dark, and handsome'? Well, dark's fairly well covered, at least. Jet-black hair's pulled into a long, loose tail at the nape of his neck, a few stray strands about the face occasionally drifting into his almost equally dark eyes, the irises of which are a brown deep enough that one needs to look closely to find the pupil. Nut-brown skin that sets off the white of his teeth and eyes -- it could just barely be mistaken for a very deep tan, if one really tried. Tall is a miss; he's still several inches off six feet, and he probably won't ever get there. Handsome... well, not a classic beauty, to be sure, but well-proportioned, with a stunning, frequent grin and deeply expressive features. Slim, but in perfectly good shape.
He's clad in... well, black leather pants. Somewhat faded, well broken in, but nicely cut and really =quite= nicely fitted. A simple cream shirt hangs untucked above them, long sleeved and fastened with a row of small, black stone buttons. Over that, he wears a decidedly well-worn old black trenchcoat, almost too big for him -- the cuffs hang down half-over his hands, when he lets them, and the hem hangs perilously close to his heels. Scuffed black leather boots with worn soles adorn his feet; there's a seemingly random collection of bracelets, all on one wrist, and several piercings along the upper section of each ear -- little silver hoops.
She's a young thing, looking to be in her late teens or early twenties. Not terribly imposing, she stands at about an average height for a woman with a build that's a few meals shy of healthy. Golden-toned skin hints at Latina heritage, a notion reinforced by her sleek, straight black hair, which has been bound into twin braids, each tied off with a length of powder blue ribbon fashioned into a bow. Several strands have fallen free to frame a pretty face with delicate bone structure and soft features. Dark eyes glitter behind the errant locks of her hair, bright and intelligent.
The dress she wears is a little loose on her, but she fills it out well enough to give her a distinctly feminine figure. Like the ribbons in her hair, the dress is powder blue, printed with tiny flowers in white and green. The cut is simple, a scooped neck with short poofy sleeves and a voluminous calf-length skirt. To keep warm, she wears a long coat over the dress, woolen and brown, with broad fleecy cuffs and more fleece lining along the lapel. Over a pair of somewhat faded white stockings, she wears somewhat battered leather boots embroidered on the sides with colorful flowers.
Around her neck, on a leather thong, is a pendant made from what looks to be a piece of glass taken from a chandelier, a faceted teardrop that catches ambient light and reflects it back in prismatic sparkles. She also wears a silver charm bracelet on one wrist and a mismatched pair of silvery clip-on earrings.
It's afternoon, and apparently this makes it the time of tidying. Aurelia has come to the treehouse for its daily dusting and tidying. She's stayed at the Frat House as per request, but every day she's taken time to come make the treehouse a cozy little home, just in case someone came in while she was away. Stale bread has been tossed to the birds, and she puts a fresh half-loaf of sourdough in the pantry box, along with some dried fruit. Old water from the day before has been poured into the window boxes to water the herbs growing there, and fresh has been put in for tea. Currently, she has just returned from airing the bedding and is remaking the bed, such as it is.
There's a familiar little squeak and shift in the sit of the Treehouse, and a moment or three later the trapdoor flips itself open, revealing a rather startled looking coyote kin. It's obvious Ren didn't expect to find Aurelia =here=; he almost loses his grip on the rope, but recovers in time, hauling himself and his not insusbtantial burden into the house. He stares at Aurelia for a moment while he does so, and then breaks into a somewhat shy little smile. "...Rae."
Aurelia blinks, glancing up, and she looks dumbfounded for a moment, but she recovers hastily. "Ren..." she says hesitantly, with a shy smile in turn. Then, with little forewarning, she launches herself at the kin to wrap her arms around him in a hug. "Darlin! Yer home!"
Serendipity tumbles backward, arms wrapping immediately and tightly around the Corax to pull her along with him. He gives her an intense squeeze, and almost -- almost -- a kiss; he hesitates just before his lips would have met hers, and after a brief moment, shifts his head slightly to kiss just beside them on her cheek, instead. "I'm home," he agrees, quietly, and squeezes again, then grins of a sudden. "I think that's the best welcome home I ever got."
Aurelia grins at the cheek kiss and hugs as tightly as she can before she draws away, kissing his cheek right back, and then she looks him over. Then she's off! Fussing at the burner to put on the teapot. "You look half-starved," she complains. "And you probably need a bath. Did you sleep okay? I bet you didn't bother doin' any laundry."
Serendipity half-smiles ruefully to himself and closes the trapdoor, hauling himself and his bag the couple steps necessary to plop down on the freshly made bed. "I ate plenty, I had at least one bath every day, I slept... I slept a'ight, an' I washed my shirt =twice=," he replies, sitting by the pillows with the wall for a backrest as he watches her bustle about. "...an' you? Doin' okay? All safe?"
Aurelia gives Ren a dubious look, and one for the bag. "Is that the laundry you didn't do?" she asks dryly. Then, settling into gossip mode, she fusses over the teapot and says, "Well, you missed the ghost gettin' out and threatenin' all them at the house, and Miki done chased it off for good. I'm feelin' better now that it's gone and I got my own dreams back, and Beltane's comin' up, and there's gonna be a maypole and bonfire."
"Beltane," Ren echoes, almost dreamily, the hint of a wicked grin starting, then fading away again. "...'spose your dance card's already full for that." He looks away, into the bag as he opens it. "'m glad you're sleepin' better. An' no, not my laundry. Just picked up a few things down in Millinockett. ...sewin' needles, for one."
Aurelia grins a little, commenting, "I'll be playing and singing, and yeah, prolly a bit'a carryin' on with you-know-who." She's quiet a moment, fidgety, then, "But it'll be fun with the dancin' and food and stuff. I reckon everyone's gonna be there."
"Most likely," Ren agrees somewhat half-heartedly, and unpacks things rather deliberately from the bag onto the mattress, making a few small, neat piles. Everything seems to be wrapped in sheets of unfastened paper.
Aurelia sets the kettle aside to boil, crawling over to the piles of wrapped goodies, curiosity winning out over all else. "What's this?" she asks promptly, reaching for one of the packages. "Is this stuff for me?"
Serendipity reaches over and swats the back of Aurelia's hand lightly, with two fingers. "What," he scolds, "you think you're the only person in town I'd bring things back for?" There's a momentary pause, and then, looking in the bag again, "...'s only =mostly= for you. Don't touch. Yet."
Aurelia sits back, barely deigning to be chastised, and she has to lace her fingers together to keep her hands off the goodies. "I was thinking," she warns Ren, then says, "But first, I wanna tell you, I been keepin' an eye on Tristan. He's outta town right now, but while you was gone, some vampire named Faro came round to cause trouble, but he's dust now."
Serendipity looks up quite suddenly, eyes wide. "Shit. He okay? Tristan, I mean. Is he comin' back? Anyone get any info outta Faro before y'all dusted him, an' who did it anyhow?" The goodies are forgotten. "Can't believe this timing..."
Aurelia shrugs helplessly. "I wasn't there, Ren-kins, so I just now what I heard. I reckon he'll be back. I talked to him, and he's still batshit nuts, but he's okay for him. I think it was Anderja wot killed Faro. You'd have to ask the folks that was there what happened."
Serendipity nods, realizing he's got a packet in his hand, and setting it on one of the piles. One of said piles =is= substantially larger than the others. "...a'ight. Okay. I'll hafta find him..." He runs a hand across his hair, pushing an escaped strand out of his face. "...you were thinkin', you said. Any survivors?"
Aurelia points out, "He ain't here right now." The larger pile spied, she leans in toward it, reaching out a hand. Snorting, she says, "So far, none dead. I was thinkin' we... you know, even if that retarded vampire won't admit it, him too, we're a kumi. And we should have a house. And the treehouse. I like the treehouse, but..." She gives Ren a plaintive look. "I want a rookery," she admits. "And maybe a chicken coop. And we could have a real kitchen. If we found maybe a cabin or somethin' that's been abandoned we could fix up."
Serendipity smacks the hand again lightly, and captures it with his own this time. "...we could do that," he agrees. "There's places around here, not too far off, this timea year we could make 'em livable enough. We c'n go lookin', if you want, see what we can find." He nods once, firmly, and releases her hand again. "...sit," he instructs her, pointing to an empty spot beside him, on the far side of him from the packages. He adds, after a moment, "...you still wanna be livin' with me, though? Not gonna move in with the boys or somethin'?"
Aurelia hmphs at the smacking, but she gives Ren's hand a squeeze. "The kettle's gonna boil," she warns, but she sits all the same. Giving Ren a Look, she points out, "We're kumi. Kumi needs a place. We get a house, and it's ours. If I stay over with the boys, then that's fine, or if you go out with someone, that's fine." She grins teasingly, adding, "And this way, if you wanted to bring a sweetie home, could do that too. And that lame-brained vampire could have a room if he wanted. House ain't gotta be a prison, sugar. It's a place where we take care of each other."
Serendipity half-smiles. "We talked 'bout a house before. I'm for it, honest. An' we can patch up onea the rooms so no light can get in, an' make it have the bare ground as a floor, for Tristan." He leans in sideways against her a moment, and sighs softly. "...I gotta ask. 's not relevant t' anything, but. What'm I allowed t' do, now? I'm guessin' now that- now that you decided, I don't get t' kiss you anymore, or... anything."
Aurelia considers this, agreeing quietly, "Yeah, we'll fix him up a nice cellar or somethin'." She sighs quietly, genuinely sympathetic, though her gaze does stray toward the presents frequently. "I wouldn't feel right carryin' on with someone who wasn't Danny," Aurelia admits. "I realized that if he took after another girl, it'd make me crazy, so it ain't fair for me to take after another boy. So I reckon I better not do anything with you that I'd get mad at him for doin' with someone else." She frowns thoughtfully. "Hmm. Kiss on the cheek is okay, and huggin'. But I guess we'd better not do anything much more."
Serendipity sighs again, glancing toward the lake, through the window. "Wish I could give you up so easy," he replies quietly. "...Kettle's prolly boiling. I got a few other things t' unpack." He's back in the bag, suiting action to words, then.
Aurelia sighs, and forgets the potential goodies. She heads over to the kettle, mumbling, "It ain't easy, Ren. I don't -like- what any of this has done to you, to us. But I can't go thinkin' with my gonads, sugar. That's been the curse a' womankind since some bint gave her feller an apple in a garden. Someone's gotta do the thinking."
"'m not thinkin' with my cock," Ren replies, more a flat statement than a protest. "'s higher up than that. ...I'm sorry. I wanna make this easier for you, mostly, want you t' be happy'n all. 's just hard. Never got my heart broken b'fore. Still want you t' be happy with =me=. Can't help it." He pushes the top of the bag away with more force than strictly necessary; it only makes it fall over on itself anyway. He adds, even softer, "...missed you so much."
Aurelia pours the kettle into the teapot, nice and carefully since having a temper tantrum with boiling water is never a good thing, but there is tension in her, despite the outward calm. "I missed you too, Ren," she says quietly. "And it hurts me to think that you think what we got ain't good enough just because it ain't romance. Makes me feel like, you know... like the only way you'll know I love you is if I put out, and I know you don't think that, but..." She sighs. "I didn't want to break yer heart. You can't imagine how much it's hurt me, too."
"If Danny said he just wanted t' be friends, would that be enough? Really?" Ren counters, more hurt than confrontational. "An' if it weren't, would it mean what there was didn't matter t' you? ...an' I loved you when you were still sayin' I had a snowball's chance on Helios. When you barely even let me kiss you on th' cheek. Know you love me. Just not like I..." He trails off, and looks out the window again moodily, giving the distinct impression he's not actually registering anything in his field of view. "Don't wanna talk 'bout it," he says, barely audibly, uncharacteristically subdued enough that even near strangers would probably think it notable. "...brought you stuff. Wanna see it?"
Aurelia says quietly, "Yeah, it would hurt, and it would take time to get over it, but I would get over it, and I wouldn't blame him. And I wouldn't treat him like... like... Fine. You don't wanna talk about it." She doesn't seem to notice the stuff. Potential shiny things not investigated -- this isn't like her. "Yer tea's almost done."
Serendipity doesn't reply, or in fact do anything much except Not Cry for a while. Eventualy -- eventually enough that the tea may be decidely imminent -- he says miserably, "I brought tea. And needles. And. Stuff. What am I treating you like?"
"Thank you," Aurelia replies, quiet, polite. She reaches into the pantry box to draw out the half-loaf of bread and a knife, and she checks to see if there's honey in the jar. There is, and she sets it aside, then gets to slicing. "I don't know," she says after awhile. "You make me feel like I ruined yer life. Like if I'd never come along you'd be happy, and if I just went away, maybe you would get over it, but then I come around again, and it just hurts you. And like you're the only one that's hurt in all this. Like I'm thinkin' ha ha ha I showed him, when it's killin' me inside, that I'm tryin' to do the best thing for three people, and ain't no one asked maybe what I thought about all this."
"Don't think you're thinkin' that. Sure it's not easy. But you're th' one who got t' choose. Got t' decide it was gonna be a one person thing, that there hadda be a choice t' start with, got t' pick which one. An' I'm not mad at you an' I don't =blame= you, not like it sounds like you think, but forgive me if knowin' it's hard for you doesn't exactly make it easier for me. 's just another way I fucked up. Shoulda known better t' start with. Shouldn'ta let myself... shouldn'ta thought if I tried hard 'nough maybe..." There's tension in Ren's body like it wants to =move=, to run or hit things or throw things around, but he stays quite still, voice quiet and flat. "...shoulda known better. 's all. So tell me, then. What'd you think about all this."
"Don't give me that, Ren Jones," Aurelia snaps, apparently setting aside personal reservations in exchange for the duty of scolding. "There is no shoulda known better, and don't you think that being the one who gets t'choose is anything to envy. You ain't fucked nothin' up, but if you keep on with this 'shoulda known better' stuff you sure will get to. Because it ain't ever like that. Do you want to know what it was like? Do you want to know what choice is? Because I could tell ya, or I could keep my peace. But you tell me one more time you shoulda known better I'll toss you out of this treehouse. I will."
"Th' one who gets to choose," Ren points out quietly, "has th' one he or she chooses t' comfort 'em about the part that hurts." He sits down on the bed again, wrapping his arms about his knees and resting his chin atop them. "'ve hurt people before. Didn't mean to, 'zactly, didn't want to, for sure, an' it hurt t' do it, didn't like it at all, still feel kinda guilty 'bout it now 'n' then when it comes t' mind. Only I had t' do it so there you go. So I mean it. I don't blame you like you think. An' I don't think it's easy for you. But I know it hurts more on this side. ...an' I don't wanna get thrown outta our treehouse, so I guess I won't say things that'll make you do it."
Aurelia nods firmly. "Damn right you better not," she says. Taking two bread slices, she slathers them with honey and sets them near to Ren, along with his tea, plying him with food even as she chews him out. "You think I can tell Danny how much it hurts me? Think he wants to hear about how lovin' me has caused me pain? But you're right, Ren. You're damn right. I chose, and that means I get to be with the one I think I oughtta. But it ain't like I... listen. You tell me what it is you blame me for, and I'll tell you why it panned out this way. Maybe understandin' will help. Maybe not."
Serendipity does not appear to have much of an appetite. "Told you, but you didn't understand. =Don't= blame you." He picks up a slice of bread, puts it down again. "Anyone picked me over Danny, all their friends 'n' family'd come by an' slap 'em in turns 'til they came back to their senses."
Aurelia says irritably, "It ain't like that, knucklehead. See? You don't understand, because all you're seein' is now. You ain't seein' ten years down the road, twenty. You ain't seein' the past what's led us to where we are and the future unfoldin'. What you see is the hurt of right now, and sugar dumplin', I see it too. And it aches me to know my part in it, and to think maybe I'm doin' the right thing, but what if I ain't? What if this thing I set in motion causes everythin' else to fall apart? But I acted, and now that's on my head, whatever may come t'be."
"Now's where I live," Ren replies, and sighs. "I was born in now, I grew up in now, someday I'm gonna die in now. I =was= seein' ten years later, or twen'y, or a lifetime, an' that just makes it worse. 's better stayin' in now. 's the only place you can actually live anyhow."
Aurelia nods slowly and replies, "True, you're right there." She pours herself a cup of tea, studying the liquid in the cup without drinking it. "Stories say Raven lives in all times, from what's come before til the very end. He sees the different paths unfold. Coyote, he lives in the now. They both got their wisdom, sure enough. But Ren, I was seein' down the road and... maybe I'm wrong. But I thought about it long and hard, and I thought what's the way I can love you, and know I'll love you for always. And it wasn't what you wanted, but it's what I picked. Because I only live sometimes in the now, and sometimes ahead, and sometimes behind. And ahead, I saw jealousy, and I saw tryin' to make somethin' work that woulda fallen apart. I saw one of us havin' to change beyond what we are, and maybe bein' happy awhile, but then old ways would start to creep back, and... You ain't done nothin' wrong, dumplin'. You didn't fuck nothin' up. I'm glad we did what we did. I'm glad you was the first. Now, if you gotta be angry, be angry. If you gotta be sad, be sad. But... just be there. And let me love you in the way I know I can without ever wantin' you to change a hair on yer head."
"Promised a long time ago I wasn't goin' anywhere. Not forever an' without you, anyway." Serendipity closes his eyes, chin still on his knees. "...but my road ahead, it was... I dunno. Beautiful. I never wanted something so bad in my life. Not even..." He trails off. "...more'n anything. An' I can't even hope for it. So how'm I not gonna be sad? Not in this now."
Aurelia nods again and says gently, "I know, Ren. I ain't faultin' you for bein' sad. Makes me hate myself to see it, but I understand. It's... it's somethin' that might make for a better yet, when all this is just a then." She comes over to sit beside him, putting an arm around his shoulder, if he'll let her. "It just makes me angry when it sounds like you think I chose this because you ain't good enough. You're worth lovin' for a lifetime, sugar, even if it ain't like you had in mind."
Serendipity lets the arm slide around him; leans into it, even, trying even harder not to start crying. After a while his breath evens out more reliably, and he murmurs, "...I love you. 'm sorry."
Aurelia grumbles, "Don't you be." And she sets her tea aside so that she can put both arms around him, guiding his head to her shoulder, which might not work quite well given her rather meager height. "I love you too, angel. And if it hurts, then we'll just get through it, huh?"
Serendipity rests his head on the shoulder, insubstantial as it may be given what he's recently used to, but this doesn't seem to be a problem to him. He nods just a little, and wraps his arms around her waist, giving her a tight hug. "...yeah. We'll get through it." He stays there in silence a long while before he finally lifts his head and unwraps his arms, using one to tilt her head up and give her one soft, light, very chaste little press of lips to lips before he lets her go completely. "C'mon," he says then, managing a tiny smile, "you've got things t' unwrap."
Aurelia smiles warmly, though sadly, and for a moment, she just looks at Ren, studies his face, and then she gives him a kiss on the cheek before she looks toward the packages and replies wryly, "You know how to bribe me." Now that permission is more or less implied, she reaches for the largest pile of goodies and makes with the paper shredding.