Chapter 39: A Proposal

“How do you think it went?”

“Honestly? Couldn’t have gone better. Also, Lauren McCoy was a powerhouse. Honestly, I think she understands some of this material better than some of these experts. She just picks stuff up and it stays there. You don’t often meet people that hungry for knowledge. So yeah, not only was it a success, I like to think we had a really good time.”

“I’m glad. I’m proud of you,” Max said, and kissed Victoria on the cheek. “So, what’s next for my brilliant girlfriend?” Once again, Penny had liquified her spine as they’d sank into what for legal reasons was not a torture device. The airplane seats this time were somehow even less comfortable. Thankfully, the airplane had already begun its descent. Everyone had spent most of it sleeping. Even Penny yawned occasionally. 

“Well, I made a ton of good connections,” Victoria said. She opened her purse to reveal a bunch of drab business cards and picked the one she’d earmarked. “Berkeley wants to bankroll any future research I’m doing, and I’m kind of on the fence about it.”

“Because it would mean moving?” 

“Yeah,” V said. “And probably pretty regularly too. Giving lectures here and there, but also just doing a lot of local research traveling.” She pouted as she looked at it. “Honestly, I get the feeling the guy who was trying to recruit me wasn’t entirely on the level.”

Max crossed her arms and frowned. “What are you thinking?”

“Well, considering the fact that there were several SUV’s with darkened windows at the conference, and a lot more sunglasses, my guess is that they’re government sponsored. Which is a good sign because it means they think I’m onto something. But…”

“– it’s a bad sign because that means the government is watching you. Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

Max blew raspberries. “So now what?”

“I want to say yes,” Victoria said. “And before you have any objections, I want you to hear my reasoning. Right now, the world is trying to figure out what–” she lowered her voice, “– Penumbra and Redshift are. Governments would kill to have that kind of power, especially now that we know how Amaranth was born. If I work for a small research group odds are most of my work is going to be spied on anyway. If I work for them directly, I control what they see and what they don’t, and I have way more funding.”

“Hrm,” Max said. She has a good point though. Keeping our enemies close and stuff. Maxine’s frown deepened. Since when was the US government their enemy? Max. Maxine. Max Powers. Do you want an itemized list or do I just give chronological reasons? Okay, fair. 

“I know you don’t like it, and I know you want to keep Lockridge Bay safe,” Victoria said. “Long distance is hard, but I think I have to do this, you know?”

They both sighed, that kind of deep, weary sigh when someone realizes that there’s only really one thing to do and it’s about to make their life very hard and there are going to be time zones and at some point in the future someone is going to be crying on a video call. 

“Yeah,” Penumbra said. “We know.”

Victoria took their hand and squeezed. “You have to stay?”

“I think so,” Maxine said. “Penumbra can’t leave the ridge, not after what that kid is going to be doing. Someone needs to be here to draw the heat.” She grit her teeth after realizing what that might mean. Everything was about to change, thanks to one kid. “No good deed, right?” Heh.

“Would you do it differently?” Victoria asked. There was no judgment in her expression. There never was. Whoever Max decided to be, V would be by her side. That went both ways, and they both knew that, too. It’s going to make what we’re going to do easier. She smiled, and Penny did too, making the grin just a little bit wider, with a little bit more teeth that were a little bit sharper than they should be.

“Never,” they said. Victoria’s confidence in them, the fact that she wasn’t even the slightest bit shocked by this revelation, made both Max and Penny all the more certain of the decision they’d just made. But not yet. They needed time with just the three of them.

“You’re really hot when you look like that, you know that?”

“You’ve mentioned it once or twice,” Max said smugly. Her stomach lurched briefly, and then the plane’s wheels touched tarmac. Flirting would have to wait until the plane had done all the taxi-ing and whatever else planes needed to do before they let you out. They met Alyssa and her family by the baggage claim. 

“So,” Lauren said as they finished exchanging hugs and handshakes, “this might seem a little silly but, well, I’d like to know, will you be, uh, needing to go to Iceland any time soon?” She smiled awkwardly. Max wanted to just hold her. 

Yeah, Penny said. Me too. Just a big ol’ hug. Nothing more. Nope. Nu-uh.

“No,” Victoria said, and for a brief moment Maxine saw the light in Lauren’s eyes flicker, before V, god bless her tactless heart, held up a hand. “I want you to be my assistant, here in Lockridge.” 

“What? But I’m just a translator. I’m not–”

“What, qualified? You picked up astrophysics like it was first grade calculus, and you’re keeping up with translating new terminology while the scientific community is still debating which words to use. Frankly, I need someone like you here.”

“Wait, what do you mean?”

“Well, it looks like I’m going to be working out of a different research lab for a while, and I’m going to need someone I can trust to hold down the fort on this end,” Victoria said. 

Lauren looked at her, stunned, for a moment, and then looked at her daughter. “Is this about Alyssa?” Despite the time they’d all spent together this week, the suspicion in her voice was palpable. Max didn’t blame her. Lauren was a mom first. 

“No,” Victoria said. “If it was, I’d be talking to her. No, much as I’ve tried, Max does a better job as a test subject than as a researcher –”

“It’s the ADHD,” Maxine said sheepishly. 

“– and I trust you to receive my notes and pass on what needs to be passed on. You also know what’s up with the two of them,” Victoria continued, pointing at Max and Alyssa, “which means I know you’re not going to spill anything to anyone. Think of this as an extra way for you to keep Alyssa safe.”

“I-I mean, in that, uh, in that case, yeah, I would love to. How do I, uh?”

“We’ll figure out everything with regards to contracts over the next couple of days,” V said, turning to Max. “I’m taking the Berkeley job. They aren’t going to say no to a remote assistant.” She smiled back to Lauren. “You’ll be working closely with Maxine. After what’s going to happen, I think having more than one line connecting you to Alyssa can help make you more comfortable. Is you and Max working together going to work?”

“Oh, um, yeah,” Lauren said and tucked some hair behind her ear.

She’s blushing. Max, Max, Max, she’s blushing. Yeah. She was. It’s my innate charm. She didn’t start blushing until she met me. But they’d met by Penumbra smashing through the bathroom window, hadn’t they? Exactly. Perfect first impression. 

“As for you, Alyssa,” Victoria said, “you’re not going to be able to follow a normal university education. Well, not regularly. But if you were, oh, I don’t know, signed on to do overseas studying, you can come and go. As long as you do your homework on the road, you’ll be covered for.”

“How are you going to do that?” Lauren asked. “Who are you?”

“I have weird connections,” V said. “It just sort of happens to me. Does that sound good to both of you?”

Mother and daughter wordlessly deliberated for a second, before nodding decisively. “Yes,” Lauren finally said, holding out her hand. She seemed more than eager. Letting her keep an eye on her child was already a huge draw, but that she was also now able to engage in what had clearly become a passion was not just a cherry but a whole fruit salad on top. Victoria grabbed it. There was a brief moment where it felt like the whole world – or at least, baggage claim – held its breath. This wasn’t just a moment. This was, Max realized as the two women shook hands, a Moment. 

Then the Moment was over and actual goodbyes and hugs and kisses were exchanged. Max and Victoria walked outside and sniffed the evening warm evening air, the slightly salty Lockridge Bay summer heat. “Good to be home,” Max said. 

“It is,” Victoria said and breathed deep. There was something to be said about the Lockridge Bay air. It wasn’t clean. Decades of heavy industry had made sure of that. But what it lacked in air quality, it sure made up for in volume. The Lockridge bay air was thick enough to lean against some days, especially when a stiff breeze hit the bay just like that.

“Now, there is one more thing that needs to be done tonight,” Maxine said, taking Victoria’s luggage. For an ordinary person, the weight of the two cases, hers and V’s, would be way too much to carry in one hand comfortably. But Max wasn’t an ordinary person. 

She looked around. Nobody’s watching. Good. She wrapped her free arm around Victoria’s waist and jumped, launching both of them up and above the airport terminal. V wasn’t even all that disturbed, and Max and Penny couldn’t help but look at the woman in their arms, serene as she sailed through the air, in a beautiful arc that landed them on top of the roof. Halfway through, Penny enveloped Max to ensure that the landing was as soft as possible. More muscles. More control.

Victoria deftly stepped onto the ground as Penumbra lowered her. “Well,” she said, making sure her curly hair wasn’t too messed up by the sudden movement, “that was certainly something. What, did my teasing on the plane get you that worked up?”

“Something like that,” Penumbra said. “We have been thinking. This opportunity is going to put literally hundreds of miles between us. We think you should do it, but that does mean we will have to figure this out.”

“I know,” Victoria said, wrapping her arms around their neck. “We’ll figure it out. We always do. You two have each other and, well, pretty soon, you’ll also have Lauren around.” She winked and Penumbra’s eyes went big for a moment. “Yes,” Victoria said, “you have my blessing, you big gay dweebs.”

“About that,” Penumbra said, and then shook their head. “Well, not exactly about that. But about blessing. About the future, all of it. Even if we are apart, I want us never to be completely apart.”

“What do you mean?” Victoria asked. She looked a little confused. 

“We were going to do this next week, but it’s a beautiful night and we are feeling very sentimental, Victoria.” Penumbra went down on one knee and retrieved the ring out of their pocket. “Will you do us the honor of marrying us?”

For a very, very smart woman, it was staggering that Victoria had not seen this coming. That it was a surprise to her was a surprise to Max. That she said yes wasn’t, but that didn’t take away from the joy she and Penny felt when they put the ring on Victoria’s finger. For a brief moment in time, nothing existed. Only a woman, her symbiote, the woman both of them were going to marry, and the kiss they shared on top of an airport terminal.

Chapter 39: A Proposal How do you think it went? Honestly? Couldn't have gone better. Also, Lauren McCoy was a powerhouse. Honestly, I think she understands some of this material better than some of these experts. She just picks stuff up and it stays there. You don't often meet people that hungry for knowledge. So yeah, not only was it a success, I like to think we had a really good time. I'm glad. I'm proud of you, Max said, and kissed Victoria on the cheek. So, what's next for my brilliant girlfriend? Once again, Penny had liquified her spine as they'd sank into what for legal reasons was not a torture device. The airplane seats this time were somehow even less comfortable. Thankfully, the airplane had already begun its descent. Everyone had spent most of it sleeping. Even Penny yawned occasionally. Well, I made a ton of good connections, Victoria said. She opened her purse to reveal a bunch of drab business cards and picked the one she'd earmarked. Berkeley wants to bankroll any future research I'm doing, and I'm kind of on the fence about it. Because it would mean moving? Yeah, V said. And probably pretty regularly too. Giving lectures here and there, but also just doing a lot of local research traveling. She pouted as she looked at it. Honestly, I get the feeling the guy who was trying to recruit me wasn't entirely on the level. Max crossed her arms and frowned. What are you thinking? Well, considering the fact that there were several SUV's with darkened windows at the conference, and a lot more sunglasses, my guess is that they're government sponsored. Which is a good sign because it means they think I'm onto something. But it's a bad sign because that means the government is watching you. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Max blew raspberries. So now what? I want to say yes, Victoria said. And before you have any objections, I want you to hear my reasoning. Right now, the world is trying to figure out what she lowered her voice, Penumbra and Redshift are. Governments would kill to have that kind of power, especially now that we know how Amaranth was born. If I work for a small research group odds are most of my work is going to be spied on anyway. If I work for them directly, I control what they see and what they don't, and I have way more funding. Hrm, Max said. She has a good point though. Keeping our enemies close and stuff. Maxine's frown deepened. Since when was the US government their enemy? Max. Maxine. Max Powers. Do you want an itemized list or do I just give chronological reasons? Okay, fair. I know you don't like it, and I know you want to keep Lockridge Bay safe, Victoria said. Long distance is hard, but I think I have to do this, you know? They both sighed, that kind of deep, weary sigh when someone realizes that there's only really one thing to do and it's about to make their life very hard and there are going to be time zones and at some point in the future someone is going to be crying on a video call. Yeah, Penumbra said. We know. Victoria took their hand and squeezed. You have to stay? I think so, Maxine said. Penumbra can't leave the ridge, not after what that kid is going to be doing. Someone needs to be here to draw the heat. She grit her teeth after realizing what that might mean. Everything was about to change, thanks to one kid. No good deed, right? Heh. Would you do it differently? Victoria asked. There was no judgment in her expression. There never was. Whoever Max decided to be, V would be by her side. That went both ways, and they both knew that, too. It's going to make what we're going to do easier. She smiled, and Penny did too, making the grin just a little bit wider, with a little bit more teeth that were a little bit sharper than they should be. Never, they said. Victoria's confidence in them, the fact that she wasn't even the slightest bit shocked by this revelation, made both Max and Penny all the more certain of the decision they'd just made. But not yet. They needed time with just the three of them. You're really hot when you look like that, you know that? You've mentioned it once or twice, Max said smugly. Her stomach lurched briefly, and then the plane's wheels touched tarmac. Flirting would have to wait until the plane had done all the taxi-ing and whatever else planes needed to do before they let you out. They met Alyssa and her family by the baggage claim. So, Lauren said as they finished exchanging hugs and handshakes, this might seem a little silly but, well, I'd like to know, will you be, uh, needing to go to Iceland any time soon? She smiled awkwardly. Max wanted to just hold her. Yeah, Penny said. Me too. Just a big ol' hug. Nothing more. Nope. Nu-uh. No, Victoria said, and for a brief moment Maxine saw the light in Lauren's eyes flicker, before V, god bless her tactless heart, held up a hand. I want you to be my assistant, here in Lockridge. What? But I'm just a translator. I'm not What, qualified? You picked up astrophysics like it was first grade calculus, and you're keeping up with translating new terminology while the scientific community is still debating which words to use. Frankly, I need someone like you here. Wait, what do you mean? Well, it looks like I'm going to be working out of a different research lab for a while, and I'm going to need someone I can trust to hold down the fort on this end, Victoria said. Lauren looked at her, stunned, for a moment, and then looked at her daughter. Is this about Alyssa? Despite the time they'd all spent together this week, the suspicion in her voice was palpable. Max didn't blame her. Lauren was a mom first. No, Victoria said. If it was, I'd be talking to her. No, much as I've tried, Max does a better job as a test subject than as a researcher It's the ADHD, Maxine said sheepishly. and I trust you to receive my notes and pass on what needs to be passed on. You also know what's up with the two of them, Victoria continued, pointing at Max and Alyssa, which means I know you're not going to spill anything to anyone. Think of this as an extra way for you to keep Alyssa safe. I-I mean, in that, uh, in that case, yeah, I would love to. How do I, uh? We'll figure out everything with regards to contracts over the next couple of days, V said, turning to Max. I'm taking the Berkeley job. They aren't going to say no to a remote assistant. She smiled back to Lauren. You'll be working closely with Maxine. After what's going to happen, I think having more than one line connecting you to Alyssa can help make you more comfortable. Is you and Max working together going to work? Oh, um, yeah, Lauren said and tucked some hair behind her ear. She's blushing. Max, Max, Max, she's blushing. Yeah. She was. It's my innate charm. She didn't start blushing until she met me. But they'd met by Penumbra smashing through the bathroom window, hadn't they? Exactly. Perfect first impression. As for you, Alyssa, Victoria said, you're not going to be able to follow a normal university education. Well, not regularly. But if you were, oh, I don't know, signed on to do overseas studying, you can come and go. As long as you do your homework on the road, you'll be covered for. How are you going to do that? Lauren asked. Who are you? I have weird connections, V said. It just sort of happens to me. Does that sound good to both of you? Mother and daughter wordlessly deliberated for a second, before nodding decisively. Yes, Lauren finally said, holding out her hand. She seemed more than eager. Letting her keep an eye on her child was already a huge draw, but that she was also now able to engage in what had clearly become a passion was not just a cherry but a whole fruit salad on top. Victoria grabbed it. There was a brief moment where it felt like the whole world or at least, baggage claim held its breath. This wasn't just a moment. This was, Max realized as the two women shook hands, a Moment. Then the Moment was over and actual goodbyes and hugs and kisses were exchanged. Max and Victoria walked outside and sniffed the evening warm evening air, the slightly salty Lockridge Bay summer heat. Good to be home, Max said. It is, Victoria said and breathed deep. There was something to be said about the Lockridge Bay air. It wasn't clean. Decades of heavy industry had made sure of that. But what it lacked in air quality, it sure made up for in volume. The Lockridge bay air was thick enough to lean against some days, especially when a stiff breeze hit the bay just like that. Now, there is one more thing that needs to be done tonight, Maxine said, taking Victoria's luggage. For an ordinary person, the weight of the two cases, hers and V's, would be way too much to carry in one hand comfortably. But Max wasn't an ordinary person. She looked around. Nobody's watching. Good. She wrapped her free arm around Victoria's waist and jumped, launching both of them up and above the airport terminal. V wasn't even all that disturbed, and Max and Penny couldn't help but look at the woman in their arms, serene as she sailed through the air, in a beautiful arc that landed them on top of the roof. Halfway through, Penny enveloped Max to ensure that the landing was as soft as possible. More muscles. More control. Victoria deftly stepped onto the ground as Penumbra lowered her. Well, she said, making sure her curly hair wasn't too messed up by the sudden movement, that was certainly something. What, did my teasing on the plane get you that worked up? Something like that, Penumbra said. We have been thinking. This opportunity is going to put literally hundreds of miles between us. We think you should do it, but that does mean we will have to figure this out. I know, Victoria said, wrapping her arms around their neck. We'll figure it out. We always do. You two have each other and, well, pretty soon, you'll also have Lauren around. She winked and Penumbra's eyes went big for a moment. Yes, Victoria said, you have my blessing, you big gay dweebs. About that, Penumbra said, and then shook their head. Well, not exactly about that. But about blessing. About the future, all of it. Even if we are apart, I want us never to be completely apart. What do you mean? Victoria asked. She looked a little confused. We were going to do this next week, but it's a beautiful night and we are feeling very sentimental, Victoria. Penumbra went down on one knee and retrieved the ring out of their pocket. Will you do us the honor of marrying us? For a very, very smart woman, it was staggering that Victoria had not seen this coming. That it was a surprise to her was a surprise to Max. That she said yes wasn't, but that didn't take away from the joy she and Penny felt when they put the ring on Victoria's finger. For a brief moment in time, nothing existed. Only a woman, her symbiote, the woman both of them were going to marry, and the kiss they shared on top of an airport terminal.