We all turn, seeing the well dressed owner of HTV standing on the curb, watching us with amusement. He holds out his arms and Emily and I rush forward for a hug. I love Andre, he’s such a great guy.
“And when were you planning on telling me goodbye?” he demands, picking us both up easily. He’s a Minotaur shape-shifter, just like his son. “Here I was planning on taking everyone out to the movies this weekend.”
“Can we do it when we get back?” Emily asks, looking up at him with huge blue eyes.
“How can I say no to that?” he asks as she gives him an impish grin. My sister is adorable, have I mentioned that yet? She abuses it shamelessly.
“You can come with us!” I offer. “We’ll sneak you in with the luggage.” He laughs loudly, and I grin, hugging him more tightly before stepping back. “Thank you for the limo,” I tell him, “and for waking up so early to see us off. We really appreciate it.”
“She’s got great manners,” Taurus says, dropping a hand on my shoulder and tugging me into his side. I reach up and grab his hand as I lean against him, my head not quite to his chest. I tilt my head to listen to his heartbeat, instinctively checking his blood pressure and heart rate. His huge hand comes down, covering my eyes in a casual movement. “Well, other than her habit of checking people’s health in public,” he drawls.
“Oh--oh crud,” I stutter, blushing brightly. “Sorry, Taurus, it’s just been about a week--“ I say as he starts to laugh. “The shape-shifting puts a lot of strain on your heart,” I tell him, going into bossy-mode instinctively. “You’ve got a really good heart, but I still want to make sure it’s not being strained too much!” Speaking of which, I should check Andre, too, shouldn’t I? I start forward, my hand already going out, only to be pulled back by Taurus.
“At least wait until we’re somewhere private,” he says quietly, turning and looking at the other people filtering into the KCI Airport. It’s pretty crowded for this early in the morning, but then again, this airport is always crowded. We’re getting a few curious looks, but not as many as I would have expected. For the most part, the people look a bit like zombies. I can actually pick up on their problems as they walk past me--stress, high blood pressure, headaches everywhere. It’s actually a bit overwhelming, honestly. It’s been a while since I was out in public and not surrounded by exceptionally healthy supers for the most part. Even in the ER the problems are spread out by rooms.
I blink as sunglasses are slipped over my eyes. I shoot Liz a thankful smile. “This is actually quite fascinating,” Andre says, moving closer to me and leaning down slightly to look at my eyes. A hat is placed on my head even as he reaches down and takes my hand.
“Dad, there’s a reason I told her to wait--“ Taurus starts out.
I can’t help it, I scan him. “You need to lay off the meat,” I tell him seriously. “Eat more fruits and vegetables! And you need more exercise--both versions. It’ll bring down your stress. I’m sure that if you called Mastermental he’d be more than happy to give you something your other self can do as a workout! Since we’re taking both Liz and Ta--Devon, he might even put you in the field,” I tell him cheekily. “Or you could help out with reconstruction! They can always use some brute strength.”
“She’s pretty bossy, isn’t she?” he says to Taurus with a little grin.
“Consider it the doctor’s orders,” Taurus says. “She’s the best around.”
“And let more people carry the load of the company!” I tell Andre, on a roll. “You can’t micro-manage, it’s hard on your heart, and you’re the same as your son! I don’t want you over-straining it!”
“Time to go in, Aubrey,” Taurus says with amusement.
“I’m not done lecturing your dad,” I tell him with a hint of a pout.
“You can call him when we get
“And when were you planning on telling me goodbye?” he demands, picking us both up easily. He’s a Minotaur shape-shifter, just like his son. “Here I was planning on taking everyone out to the movies this weekend.”
“Can we do it when we get back?” Emily asks, looking up at him with huge blue eyes.
“How can I say no to that?” he asks as she gives him an impish grin. My sister is adorable, have I mentioned that yet? She abuses it shamelessly.
“You can come with us!” I offer. “We’ll sneak you in with the luggage.” He laughs loudly, and I grin, hugging him more tightly before stepping back. “Thank you for the limo,” I tell him, “and for waking up so early to see us off. We really appreciate it.”
“She’s got great manners,” Taurus says, dropping a hand on my shoulder and tugging me into his side. I reach up and grab his hand as I lean against him, my head not quite to his chest. I tilt my head to listen to his heartbeat, instinctively checking his blood pressure and heart rate. His huge hand comes down, covering my eyes in a casual movement. “Well, other than her habit of checking people’s health in public,” he drawls.
“Oh--oh crud,” I stutter, blushing brightly. “Sorry, Taurus, it’s just been about a week--“ I say as he starts to laugh. “The shape-shifting puts a lot of strain on your heart,” I tell him, going into bossy-mode instinctively. “You’ve got a really good heart, but I still want to make sure it’s not being strained too much!” Speaking of which, I should check Andre, too, shouldn’t I? I start forward, my hand already going out, only to be pulled back by Taurus.
“At least wait until we’re somewhere private,” he says quietly, turning and looking at the other people filtering into the KCI Airport. It’s pretty crowded for this early in the morning, but then again, this airport is always crowded. We’re getting a few curious looks, but not as many as I would have expected. For the most part, the people look a bit like zombies. I can actually pick up on their problems as they walk past me--stress, high blood pressure, headaches everywhere. It’s actually a bit overwhelming, honestly. It’s been a while since I was out in public and not surrounded by exceptionally healthy supers for the most part. Even in the ER the problems are spread out by rooms.
I blink as sunglasses are slipped over my eyes. I shoot Liz a thankful smile. “This is actually quite fascinating,” Andre says, moving closer to me and leaning down slightly to look at my eyes. A hat is placed on my head even as he reaches down and takes my hand.
“Dad, there’s a reason I told her to wait--“ Taurus starts out.
I can’t help it, I scan him. “You need to lay off the meat,” I tell him seriously. “Eat more fruits and vegetables! And you need more exercise--both versions. It’ll bring down your stress. I’m sure that if you called Mastermental he’d be more than happy to give you something your other self can do as a workout! Since we’re taking both Liz and Ta--Devon, he might even put you in the field,” I tell him cheekily. “Or you could help out with reconstruction! They can always use some brute strength.”
“She’s pretty bossy, isn’t she?” he says to Taurus with a little grin.
“Consider it the doctor’s orders,” Taurus says. “She’s the best around.”
“And let more people carry the load of the company!” I tell Andre, on a roll. “You can’t micro-manage, it’s hard on your heart, and you’re the same as your son! I don’t want you over-straining it!”
“Time to go in, Aubrey,” Taurus says with amusement.
“I’m not done lecturing your dad,” I tell him with a hint of a pout.
“You can call him when we get
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