Timelined a few days after Window Shopping
<Shaw> After everything he'd been through in the last few weeks, Sebastian didn't feel like cooping himself up in his workroom to tinker. So, today, he'd spread assorted electronics, bits and pieces, computer equipment and coffee mugs across the sofa and coffee table in the living room.
<Jessica> Jess had been baking again and now that there was no car she wasn't sure what to do when she ran out of counter space. Picking up a container or five of cookies she moved into the living room to put them on the table in there... but it was occupied, "Oh... well now we're as bad as each other."
<Shaw> He looked up at the stack of containers in her hands and started laughing. "Well, at least your clutter is edible.”
<Jessica> "It is... but we're going to get so fat... well you are because I'm already there. There's like a hundred more of these in the kitchen..." She dropped them on the other sofa. "If you don't fancy cookies, there's also muffins and cupcakes... and I thought I'd make some ginger bread."
<Shaw> "My, you have been busy." Saving his work, he let the small tablet clatter to the table and got up to open a container and sample a cookie. "I don't get fat," he said, taking a bite and grinning. "Enhanced metabolism and such, yes?" Sliding his arm around her, he pulled her close to whisper in her ear. "And you're not fat either."
<Jessica> "I am so fat... and you will so get fat if you eat everything in the kitchen," She kissed his cheek then took his hand to pull him to the scene of destruction.
<Shaw> "You look lovely, koibito, and particularly luscious in some of my favorite areas." He let her lead him, still eating the cookie.
<Jessica> "Yes... my boobies are huge." She nodded, "You did mean those, right?"
<Shaw> Taking a bite of cookie, he waggled his eyebrows at her, once.
<Jessica> She giggled and reached to pinch his ass before hurrying ahead of him into the kitchen - which was invisible under a layer of tupperware.
<Shaw> "Harder," he laughed. "How many times must I tell you?" When he entered the kitchen, he turned in a slow circle to let out a low whistle. "Widget, are you under there?" He poked a stack of containers.
<Jessica> "Oh he went to hide after the third round... he's probably in the basement. He likes it down there." She threw him a grin, "When I made this much before I could just take the extra to the school... but now there is no car because Bobby killed it."
<Shaw> "He likes to hide with Shinobi?" Sebastian gave her an an incredulous look, then shook his head. "And I suppose you frightened off your skittish little sidekick as well."
<Jessica> "He's like a lurking guard dog for Shinobi... and Sharky likes Widget a lot, they're besties." She nodded sagely.
<Shaw> "I meant Miss Green," he clarified, chuckling and moving to pin her between his body and the kitchen counter. As well as he could, at any rate, with her belly in the way.
<Jessica> "Oh... yeah after yelling at them she's sort of been avoiding me a bit...." She smiled at him, reaching a hand up to cup his cheek.
<Shaw> "Understandable." He leaned his head into her hand. "You are, after all, terrifying right now."
<Jessica> "I am a crazy bag of hormones, yep," she giggled, "And I am sorry for this."
<Shaw> "I find it mostly endearing." He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss. "Mostly," he added with a smirk, his hand stroking from her hip to rest on her bump.
<Jessica> "The rest is terrifying rather than annoying, right?" She cocked her head on one side, eyebrow raised in challenge.
<Shaw> "Oh, extremely." Sebastian managed to keep a solemn expression on his face, though his thumb stroked her belly.
<Jessica> "Good." She lifted herself up on her tiptoes to give him a kiss, "Don't worry though, I love you all the same."
<Shaw> He nuzzled her, prolonging the kiss with a few smaller pecks. "And I adore you, and you." This time, the bump didn't seem to answer and he grinned against her mouth. "Maybe she's sleeping?"
<Jessica> "I hope so... maybe I should try to sleep too..."
<Shaw> "I wouldn't be opposed to joining you." He smirked, pressing his hip to hers and giving her another teasing kiss.
<Jessica> "I bet you wouldn't," she muttered against his lips, twisting away from him to go to the stairs and head down to their room.
<Shaw> Since he didn't sense an eminent mood swing, he caught up to her and carefully swept her up to carry her. "You expected otherwise?"
<Jessica> She yelped as she was picked up, putting her arms hastily around his neck to steady herself, "Of course not."
<Shaw> He slowed down when he reached the stairs, giving her a quick kiss before he started down. Then, he recalled something he'd been meaning to ask. "Have you had any other surprising flashes of insight?"
<Jessica> "Not really...?" she chewed her lip, "Why?"
<Shaw> "Simply curious, love." He paused, looking at her face, and kissed that bitten lip.
<Jessica> She smiled, "I haven't really been looking for it though..."
<Shaw> Sebastian sat down on the edge of the bed and settled her on his lap. "We've certainly had enough distractions, and for a time I thought I imagined it all."
<Jessica> "Well... maybe we both did... we could just know each other really well... we spend enough time in each other's heads..."
<Shaw> He tipped his head back to study her face. "This makes you uncomfortable."
<Jessica> She frowned, "No... well... sort of...?"
<Shaw> "I haven't managed to convince you that we can be most pleasant company?" He bumped his nose against hers, closing his eyes on a slight frown of his own.
<Jessica> She cocked her head on one side, "What do you mean?" her frown deepened, she felt worried all of a sudden.
<Shaw> "Telepaths," he clarified, and gently rubbed her belly. What would he do if she decided she couldn't handle a telepathic child? "I would be here to teach her to control it, which is far more than I had."
<Jessica> She sighed, "I know you can teach her... but what about in the mean time? When she's growing up?" There was a lot of things she thought that should never be said aloud.
<Shaw> "We can handle it. You can handle it." He hoped, although her reaction wasn't filling him with confidence. He bowed his head to rest it on her shoulder, leaving his hand on her belly, where he felt the baby's slight movements.
<Jessica> "Yeah... with some help, maybe..." She was going to have to get very good at shielding her thoughts. She was still worried though but she didn't know why... that worry wasn't hers. It was hard to sort out from their link but it came from outside. "... Why are you worried?"
<Shaw> His hand stilled and he closed his eyes to check their link. "I'm just concerned, I suppose."
<Jessica> "About what?" she chewed her lip, studying his face. "Talk to me...."
<Shaw> "I don't want for you to feel overwhelmed, love." He turned his head slightly to see her better. I remember your misgivings about telepathy.
<Jessica> "Everything about this is overwhelming, Sebastian... I'll cope... we'll find a way..."
<Shaw> He straightened himself to lock eyes and send her a rush of affection.
<Jessica> She smiled, feeling slightly dizzy from the double strength effect, "Wow, holy shit... don't do that again...."
<Shaw> "What did I do?" He tilted his head and studied her face, puzzled.
<Jessica> "That thing... with the emotions over our link.... I just got that in stereo..."
<Shaw> His brow furrowed and he looked down at his hand where it still rested on the bump.
<Jessica> Jess looked down too, "Feels like she's still sleeping..."
<Shaw> "Let me try something..." Sebastian closed his eyes to concentrate.
<Jessica> Jess frowned, feeling a shift in emotions and wondering if it was just their link or whatever else this was going on.
<Shaw> This would probably be an easy task for a stronger telepath, and the line between his brows deepened. After filtering out what he was sure was Jessica and her confusion, he sensed something else. There was a definite presence and he smiled, full of pride of this little life they'd created.
<Jessica> She felt the pride too and squirmed a little, "What are you doing?"
<Shaw> "She's there," he said, the smile growing slightly. "I can feel her." Realizing he could share this sensation, he did.
<Jessica> "Oh..." she smiled too, "Well good... could she still be amplifying the link even if she's sleeping?"
<Shaw> That was a thought. "Or, if I somehow brought her into it when she became... aware?"
<Shaw> "I have no idea, love." He grinned at her and reached up to smooth back her hair. "I've never done this before either, and even though I've learned how to manage and maintain our link, I'm still not entirely sure how I did it."
<Jessica> "But... you didn't have powers when I was getting stuff before... so that can't be it, can it?"
<Shaw> "Good point." He smirked. "As I told you, it was all a bit of a blur-" The security system buzzed an alert, interrupting him.
<Jessica> Jess startled at the noise, her anxiety levels rising, "If that's anyone from the school, make them go away... it's always either bad news or something terrifying...."
<Shaw> "Oh, now, don't be silly... you enjoyed the baby shower, didn't you?" He laughed and stood up, setting her on her feet. "And I'm right here, so I do believe you're off the hook there." After a quick kiss, he went to check the monitor. Downstairs, he could hear Widget stirring.
<Jessica> "I did... but it was still terrifying..." she rested her hands on the bump and watched him.
<Shaw> "And very, very pink, I would imagine." He could also hear Sharky barking and Shinobi being a prat. "Ah, it's something I've been expecting, nothing to worry about. It will just be a moment." Sebastian passed by her and managed to sneak in another kiss before he started down the steps two at a time.
<Jessica> Curious, Jess followed him, though at a somewhat slower pace. "Sebastian... I'm uncomfortable with surprises...."
<Shaw> Already in the foyer, he waved the robot away and sent Sharky upstairs to intercept his mistress. There was no need to yell up to her, since she could hear him as well as he heard her. "It's not a surprise; I knew it was coming," he said before opening the door for a delivery man.
<Jessica> She frowned, "But I didn't know...." she mumbled, stopping at the bottom of the stairs to wait.
<Shaw> He accepted the packages and tipped the man generously, glancing to the sky. Fat snowflakes drifted down onto his face and shoulders and he paused for a moment to watch. Once back inside, with the alarms reset, he brushed the snow away. "Well, he was a bit early."
<Jessica> "With what?" Jess put her hands on her hips now.
<Shaw> "Well, perhaps with your Christmas present." He gave her a bright smile and joined her, gesturing they go back upstairs.
<Jessica> Jess frowned, turning to go back upstairs. She was still uneasy about this whole surprise thing.
<Shaw> He contemplated her backside before he started up as well. "Shall I carry you again?"
<Jessica> "I think I'll manage..." she glanced down at him, talk of surprises had dampened the mood somewhat.
<Shaw> And he had no problems picking up on that, so he held his tongue on the way up to the kitchen level, then cleared a space to set down the parcels. "I got Miss Guthrie a token, and it was damaged at the hospital, so I had it repaired for her." Locating that box, he opened the Tiffany blue box and inspected the work.
<Jessica> Jess' eyes swept over this 'token', eyebrows going up when she saw the store name on the box. "You know... to most people that's way more than a token..."
<Shaw> He smirked and quirked a brow. "I suppose."
<Jessica> "I'm sure she loved it..." it was very pink and sparkly, Paige liked pink and sparkly.
<Shaw> "She did, for all of five minutes before it was nearly destroyed." He closed the box and started picking through other Tiffany packages.
<Jessica> Jess chewed her lip, turning to open up one of the the boxes of muffins. She extracted one and started picking out the chocolate chips and eating them one at a time.
<Shaw> Sebastian found the one he was searching for and turned to watch her, leaning in and picking a chip from her muffin for himself. "Would you like your gift now, since it's arrived at such an inopportune time?"
<Jessica> She thought about that for a moment, "I thought you were supposed to wait to open presents?" She'd only really done Christmas properly one time.
<Shaw> He picked another chocolate chip and popped it into his mouth. "In theory, but why worry about tradition?"
<Jessica> "Hey! This is my muffin, get your own - there's plenty to go around." She picked up the tub and offered him the selection.
<Shaw> "But I like yours better." He gave her a playful pout.
<Jessica> "Contrary to popular belief, stolen food still contains calories so you may as well get your own muffin and save yourself the wrath of a pregnant woman."
<Shaw> "Am I about to experience one of your terrifying phases, love?" He leaned back against the counter, still holding the blue box.
<Jessica> "Depends... what's in the box?" She was too curious now.
<Shaw> "It's more than a token." He reached over and picked a chip from her muffin, eyebrow up.
<Shaw> "It's more than a token." He reached over and picked a chip from her muffin, eyebrow up.
<Jessica> She picked up a muffin, then bounced it off his forehead.
<Sebastian> He closed his eyes against stray crumbs and barely managed to catch the muffin before it hit the floor.
<Jessica> Jess giggled, "Gonna stop stealing my chocolate chips now?"
<Shaw> "I'm not sure. I may have just experienced the most interesting minute boost of my life." He grinned and bit into the slightly smashed muffin. "So. I take it you're not interested in your gift before Christmas?"
<Jessica> "Did I not just ask what was in the box?"
<Shaw> "Well, you have to open it to find out, don't you?"
<Jessica> He was teasing her. She felt a small flash of annoyance before she stamped it back down again. "I suppose so."
<Shaw> He knew he was treading thin ice, but it was amusing. Fighting a smirk, he offered her the box. "Merry Christmas, koibito."
<Jessica> She took the box, putting her half eaten muffin down on the top of the box it had come out of so she had both hands free. On second thought, she wiped the hand that had been holding the muffin on her trousers before she opened up the box, finding a charm bracelet inside.
<Jessica> She stared at it, lifting it out to inspect each charm, "Oh Sebastian... it's beautiful..."
<Shaw> Grinning brightly now, he put his own muffin aside and went to her. "I'm glad you like it," he said, sliding his arm around her waist and resting his hand on her belly.
<Jessica> She leaned against him, turning her head to press a kiss to his cheek, "I love it."
<Shaw> "Excellent!" He turned his head enough to catch her lips for a gentle kiss.
<Jessica> She put the bracelet back in the box and put the lid back on, "Better keep it somewhere safe."
<Shaw> "No, wait," he took the box from her and took the lid off again, picking it up to hold it up for inspection. "I need to show you its... special feature."
<Jessica> Jess raised an eyebrow, "It's not special enough on its own?"
<Shaw> "It's not." He turned it in his palm and traced the circuitry on the underside of one of the platinum bracelet links. "There's this as well."
<Jessica> Jess peered at it, "What's that for?"
<Shaw> "It will help keep you safe, if you're wearing it, love." He unfastened the clasp and held it up. "The tech will block, or at least greatly reduce, the effects of those inhibitor beams the sentinels are using."
<Jessica> "Sebastian... I can't wear something like this all the time... what if I break it?"
<Shaw> "You won't break it," he assured her.
<Jessica> "But look at it..." it looked so expensive. What if she lost a charm? Or someone stole it?"
<Shaw> "Yes, I hope you do," he laughed.
<Jessica> "No, I mean... it's expensive... I'm afraid I'll lose it..."
<Shaw> "Well, I doubt that, but if you do we can always replace it." He rattled it slightly. "At least try it on to humor me?"
<Jessica> She raised her hand so he could put it on her wrist, "I'll wear it... I just don't think I can wear something like this all the time..."
<Shaw> "Well, will you wear it when you leave the house? I can always get a less... flashy one? Something more suited to your taste. I plan to install the tech in my cufflinks, and perhaps in my wedding band."
<Jessica> "Something less extravagant for day to day I think... I can wear this one if we go somewhere nice... just not all the time... it's a big shiny to wear on trips to the supermarket, you know?"
<Shaw> "That's a good compromise. We can go pick something later, yes?" For now, he fastened the bracelet on her wrist and smiled. "Lovely."
<Jessica> She smiled too, twisting her wrist to watch the sparkly charms catch the light.
<Shaw> "Well then," he said, watching the bracelet with her for a moment before he looked up to catch her eyes. "It's a bit early, but merry Christmas, love."
<Jessica> "Thank you," she leaned to press a kiss to his cheek.
<Shaw> "Now... when we get an opportunity, there's a potential new car I would like you to see." He tilted his head. "Well, perhaps it's more a tank."
