word_of_law:

The private plane touches down at Logan International airport at sundown and Avery's eyes snap open as he comes awake. He looks about wildly for a moment, uncertain of where he is, taking stock of the people around him. He's been feeling strange since the other night.

He's on this plane for a reason, but he doesn't know why. Furthermore, his mouth is so dry that he feels like he could drink a lake.

"Water..." he manages to croak, turning to Sydney.

nextgen_holiday:

"A father is a guy who has snapshots in his wallet where his money used to be." -- Unknown

word_of_law:

It had taken Avery two weeks of quiet research and calling in a few favors to get some access to the traffic cameras on the day of Sydney's accident, but he'd learned the name of the man driving the truck that hit Sydney that day. Selfishly, Avery waited for a day that Titan was out to ask for his help in "getting some information."

The moment Avery told Titan his plan, the green giant agreed with all due haste. They'd made quite the pair heading to David Hawke's apartment building in East L.A. and walking up the steps to his 1020A. Hawke opened the door and promptly tried to slam it in their faces. Titan held the door open with ease, allowing Avery to walk in.

Over the next hour, he explained to David Hawke what would happen if he didn't give Avery the information he was looking for, not the least of which would be that Titan would eat him whole and then forget he'd done it. Hawke threatened to go to the cops, the media and anyone who would listen. Avery nodded and then gave Titan "the signal".

When Titan opened his mouth as though he were about to bite Hawke's head off his shoulders, Hawke sang like a canary, describing the woman who'd hired him and how she'd told him to make sure "the bitch didn't walk away from the accident". Avery's blood boiled while listening to Hawke's account and then he calmly, but sternly, suggested that David Hawke take his ill-gotten money and leave Los Angeles that night. If he didn't, Titan would be back tomorrow to finish the job.

Once they were done, Avery thanked Titan and told him that the dinner reservations for him and Marlow at a fancy restaurant would be taken care of shortly.

Then Avery got into his car and sped toward Cecelia's apartment to lay down the law.

shield_maiden:

Svalin was stretched out on one of the large couches in the rec room of the main building and was trying hard to enjoy sitting still. Her feet and ankles had started to swell and her wife wasn't going to let her do much besides sit and put her feet up as much as she could. Svalin had tried to argue but it didn't get her anywhere except sitting on the couch with her feet up.

She sighed and looked at the television. To Kill a Mockingbird was on and Svalin was still waiting for the killing to start. Why was kill in the title if there was no killing in it? It didn't make much sense to her, but it was one of her wife's favorite movies and Svalin would watch it.

Svalin focused on the television and was surprised by the sudden kick. She gasped and reflexively put her hand on her stomach.

team_mascot:

Zoey was always happy when there was going to be a party. The Asgardians didn't have an exact birthday, but it was sometime in the spring. So today they were going to celebrate the Asgardians' birthday. Zoey of course wanted a party with balloons, streamers, ice cream and cake, but Mom had said that they would be having dinner of their favorite foods and then cake. Not a regular birthday party.

Zoey did help Sarah and Malinda make and decorate the cake.

Dinner came and the Defenders gathered around the large dining room table.

"Happy birthday!" Zoey said and handed each one of them a card she had made herself. She went shopping with Mom and the two of them had gotten the Asgardians some clothes.

sydney_ashcroft:

Sydney had just enough time to run some errands before she had to pick Zoey up from school. It had been a busy day so far and Syd still had a lot of items on her To Do list. It seemed like her days just got busier and busier. One of these days she'd get the chance to take a real vacation. Her errands were complete and she headed toward Zoey's school to pick her up.

She drove along and sang along to the radio. Katy Perry's "Waking Up In Vegas" was on and quite catchy. Syd found that she rather liked it. The traffic light was green and Syd proceeded into the intersection.

She didn't see the pickup truck coming from her left, but it plowed into the side of her car. Glass broke and metal was pushed inward. Her car skidded across the intersection and slammed into another car. More glass broke and metal twisted. Another car hit hers and by now she was unconscious. She couldn't feel the broken bones that she suffered and she couldn't feel the blood running down her face and would have run into her eyes had she not been unconscious.

People gathered around and a few started to help the injured people in the vehicles. The man in the truck was unhurt and climbed out of the truck. He saw that his job was done and took off running down the street.

Sirens wailed in the distance.

Forty-five minutes later Mr. Cooleridge's assistant dialed Sydney's cellphone. When it went to voice mail she called the next number on the list belonging to Mr. Crittenden.

butterflybullet:

She'd never really pictured this happening. Of course, she'd married off her dolls as a girl, but the idea of her wedding had always brought with it the idea of really settling down with one guy, which had never been much on her agenda. This, of course, was different. This was Svalin. And she loved Svalin, and honestly wanted to be there for her and be a family with her. And while there would be sacrifices involved, it wasn't the same as Really Settling Down. A platonic marriage that still came with a fancy party. Nothing wrong with that!

Her parents had been brought up to Asgard, along with the Avengers and the Defenders.

The first royal wedding in a generation was the Event of the Season, with quite a bit of bustle about it.

...And the dress was going to be perfect.

But first, Spa day with Mom and the Mothers-in-law --two of them. Oh gosh.

She hoped Svalin was okay.

nextgen_citizen:

Cecelia Wyndam-Crittenden was sure that this was a bad idea when it came to mind, but she had to know. She had to understand why Avery had spent every day for the last seven years pining away for a woman who didn't really know him, leaving Cecelia to the ruins of their marriage. She'd made her own mistakes, certainly, but the reasons for those mistakes had some of their basis in Avery's cruelty to her.

Even after all the pain, the screaming and the betrayal, however, Cecelia Wyndam-Crittenden still loved her husband.

Avery ran back to Los Angeles so fast after handing her the divorce papers that a blind man could have seen the smoke trail behind him. He'd gone after the woman Cecelia was watching from the table at Cafe Rio. All of the information she had on Sydney Ashcroft wasn't much; she had a sister, Bryn, and a daughter, Zoey. She didn't have a picture of the child yet, but she wondered if Avery was bothered by raising another man's child. Or was he willing to deal with it just to be with this woman?

She'd watched Sydney come in and sit down, order, and then begin to eat by herself. Cecelia studied her from three tables over, simply watching her move, eat and breathe.

Finally, when curiosity got the best of her, Cecelia stood and walked over to Sydney's table, hoping to talk some kind of sense into her. Maybe she didn't understand that she was a home-wrecking whore who was standing between a woman and her husband, but Cecelia was going to tell her.

"Excuse me, are you Sydney Ashcroft?" she asks, flashing her best charm school smile. 

Sydney will, of course, recognize her as the woman who bid against her for Avery at the charity auction.

word_of_law:

Avery brought Indian food to the mansion along with a couple of books on archaeology. He'd been trying to learn more about it lately so he could have conversations with Sydney, though he knew he'd never match her encyclopedic memory. Still, listening to her talk so passionately about her love of history was a big turn-on. He loved her and enjoyed seeing her happy.

Once inside, he picked out a bottle of wine for them, and brought the food to the table, then went to go find Sydney.

nextgen_holiday:

“We’re here outside the Four Seasons Hotel in New York where the who’s who is gathered tonight. Celebrities, royals and superheroes have all turned out for the annual Maria Stark Foundation Winter Charity event benefiting Toys for Tots.

It’s truly an all-star gala here tonight.

New York’s own princess, Anya Stark, was seen being escorted by what appears to be her new flame, actor Austin Cain. Her brother and currently second in line to the Russian throne, Mikhail Romanov, was seen entering the party with Lyta Worthington, heiress to Worthington Industries. Tony and Natasha Stark, parents of a new baby, are making their first public appearance since the birth of their son.

Mackenzie Rider, a prince of the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, is escorting Ms. Andrea Denker of the Fantastic Four tonight. Kristoff Vernard, leader of the Fantastic Four, was seen in attendance with his wife Cassandra and their son Scotty. Vincent Amorason, heir to Latveria, arrived alongside his brother and was seen escorting a member of the Defenders, Asleif Thorsdottir. The rest of the Fantastic Four are here too with their dates, though Miss Valeria Richards is not in attendance. Franklin Richards is in attendance and is escorting one Miss Gill.

Los Angeles’ own superhero team, the Defenders are in attendance as well. Arriving with her team is Grace Danvers, daughter of Hollywood hunk Simon Williams and she is being escorted by teammate, Eiltin. The two Asgardian princesses and daughters of Thor, Asleif and Aridis, are also attending the festivities with their team.
Akilah Munore, the crown princess of Wakanda, is here tonight with her steady flame, Daniel Sherwood a member of the Young Avengers. The other Young Avengers are in attendance tonight with their dates, alongside the adult Avengers.

Donald Trump arrived with his wife and is one of many other famous faces to arrive. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Hugh Jackman, Jack Nicholson, Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift are just a few celebrities who have made an appearance here tonight.

It’s truly a party of the who’s who and it’s all for a great cause.”

sydney_ashcroft:

With Zoey with Avery for the weekend Syd had used the weekend to finish her paper for a class and wrap up the Scion end of quarter stuff. It had been a productive weekend and thankfully the chaos had been kept to a minimum as well. Maybe she was getting a Christmas gift early.

She poured herself a glass of wine and retreated to the library. Zoey would be home soon and Syd would spend the last few moments of free time with a glass of wine and a book. She curled up on one of the large couches in the library and dove into a book.

nextgen_misc:

You are cordially invited to attend the 27th annual Maria Stark Foundation's Winter Charity event.

Four Seasons Hotel
57 East 57th Street
New York, NY 10022

Saturday December 18th
Seven O'clock pm - Midnight

Formal dress required.

Please bring a donation for Toys for Tots.

nextgen_holiday:

It was a perfect Southern California day. The sun was warm and bright and the water was nice and cool. Traditionally the large bbq pit would be fired up and food slow cooked over it all day, but today the Defenders went for something different. Two very large grills were carried down to the beach along with tables and all of the food. The Defenders' Labor Day celebration would be a beach party.

The volleyball net was strung up and the surf board were carried down. Two brand new jetskis were also purchased and taken down to the beach.

Massive amounts of food were prepared to satisfy godly appetites. A whole pig was set up over a pit and put on a spit, burgers, hot dogs, sausage, barbecued ribs, corn on the cob, pasta salad, salad and fruit salad were just some of the food available to eat. Soda, water, fruit juice and other beverages were on ice.

It was a day of rest and relaxations for those who put their lives on the line for others.

team_mascot:

Zoey would have a lot to write about when she did her "What I Did This Summer" report when school started. First there had been two new arrivals to the Defenders with Andy and Eiltin. Three if you counted Titan, who Zoey liked to call Big Green. Next came finding George and taking care of him. That lead to an adventure into space and beating Galactus.

Now it was a trip to Boston. Zoey loved taking trips and flying on airplanes, especially to places she never been before. Boston was a city she hadn't been to before and when Mom asked if she wanted to go, Zoey immediately said yes. Daddy had said he would show her around and she would get to meet her grandparents. Zoey never had grandparents before and thought it would be neat to meet them and get to know them.

The only downside was that she couldn't take George. She left him in her room and George assured her that he would be able to get his own food and take care of himself. Zoey didn't like leaving him, but she had no choice. She packed her own suitcase and backpack. She took clothes and some books to read on the plane. Her iPod and Nintendo DS were also put in her backpack.

Zoey read on the plane and also took a nap. They were in Boston in what seemed a short while. She started out the window as they were landing. The city looked pretty from the air and there was a lot of water. It was the Atlantic Ocean. Zoey had looked at the atlas before she left.

They collected their luggage and Zoey walked with her dad out of the airport. Holding his hand as was the rule when around a large number of people.

word_of_law:

A few nights after their date, allowing for both of them to get their lives on track and such, Avery calls Sydney to invite her to dinner at his place. He keeps the affair simple, with some wine and Thai Food ordered in from her favorite restaurant, and waits for her to arrive.

He's really trying to make this less about their time from the other night and more about settling into a dating rhythm. They have a lot of other things to talk about as well, so he doesn't want to make things awkward for her.

He's wearing a blue polo shirt, blue jeans and brown boots, and praying he's not under-dressed for a casual meeting. Of course, Sydney could show up in a bathrobe and she'd look amazing, but that's beside the point.

He really tries to push the image of Sydney in a bathrobe out of his mind as he waits.

sydney_ashcroft:

Last night hadn't gone exactly to plan, but it had been a wonderful night. The exhibit had been wonderful, dinner excellent and afterwards...Syd blushed at the thought. She had woke up this morning snuggled up next to a warm body and with a smile on her face.

She would have stayed in bed if she could, but an eight am meeting on the East Coast meant a five am meeting on the West Coast. Syd rolled out of bed at 4:30 and got dressed and caffeinated before her video conference with Mr. Stark. After the meeting she started a batch of blueberry muffins and scrambled up some eggs. Pancake batter was made and ready to be cooked when people filtered into the kitchen.

The residents and their guest would be waking up soon and it was best to be armed with food. She smiled at the thought of two dogs, a tiger and a kid jumping into bed with Avery.

sydney_ashcroft:

The black strapless dress fit just right and Sydney looked at her reflection in the full length mirror. The clock showed 5:45. Nervousness gripped Sydney as she turned to look at her side and back. The dress had been a spur of the moment purchase during a shopping trip and now Syd was glad she had made it. She had bought it for a date with Simon, but now it was being used for a date with Avery. How fast things changed.

Syd put on a little makeup just to shake things up. She didn't normally wear it, but this was a formal date after all. With Avery. If she was moving on from Simon, she was going to do it right. Was she moving on? Had Simon already moved on? She hadn't seen him and she wasn't going to go out of her way to see him either.

Syd wiped her sweaty palms off on the side of her dress and then chided herself for doing it. Oh man was she nervous. She couldn't remember the last time she was this nervous. It was just a date. Right?

Syd slipped her feet into a pair of black heels and took a deep breath. She could do this. One last glance in the mirror and another deep breath.

word_of_law:

"Hey, Syd...can I see you? I really need to talk to somebody about this, but I don't know who else to call." Avery says, rubbing at the beard he's managed to grow over the last few days. He hasn't been back to work since news broke about the devastation in Fargo, Georgia. 

Avery was as shocked as anyone upon hearing about the damage to the small town, but nothing really hit home until his saw his cousin, Adrian Carver, reporting on his show Adrian Carver 720. The damage to the city was catastrophic, and the death toll heartrending. But it hurt Avery all the more because he recognized the damage the moment he laid eyes on it.

It was the city from his vision during dinner with Sydney. The man he saw in the vision was there and now that city was destroyed. Rarely did he see the direct results of his visions come to pass so quickly, which now meant that he could no longer ignore or push away what he'd seen.

Avery now found himself trying to live with the guilt of knowing that he could have said something, anything, to the authorities to stop it.

He waits for Sydney in his house, hoping she doesn't bring Zoey with her. He wasn't sure he could face his little girl tonight in his current state of mind.

ministryoftruth:

“…The damage here in Fargo, Georgia is catastrophic tonight. Reports are still coming in, but the latest casualty toll is over 2,000. Military planes are being loaded with supplies and moved in from as far away as New York at this time.” Adrian Carver says solemnly, looking directly into the camera.

“Behind me, you can see the damage that occurred yesterday morning.” Adrian says, and the camera pans around the area to show the husks of ruined buildings, rubble, and emergency crews helping people to medical tents. The camera returns to Adrian, his eyes slowly misting.

“ Eyewitness accounts say that a battle between rival groups of mutants reached a fever pitch before a bomb or explosives of some kind were activated. Investigators are still researching the cause of this disaster; more information will come as this story develops. My name is Adrian Carver, signing off from Fargo, Georgia.” he says.

 “Good night and God Bless.”

sydney_ashcroft:

Of course it had to be one of those days where Sydney was running late for everything. Zoey was late getting to school because of some issues finding her sneakers this morning. Then Syd's car had issues and wouldn't start right away. She finally got Zoey to school thirty minutes late.

Which made Syd late for her karate class. She had things to discuss with the instructors after class, which made her late for lunch with her sister. Lunch ran late which meant she was late for a conference call with Mr. Stark and the board. The universe was just out to get her today.

The one thing she was on time for was picking Zoey up from school, but then Bryn was late picking Zoey up, which made her late for dinner with Avery on top of traffic.

Syd walked into the Thai restaurant twenty minutes late.

shessomarvelous:

Bendy-timed to before a couple of days before Loki showed up

Grace fidgeted with the sleeves of her black robe. The gold tassel from her cap dangled in front of her face.

She was graduating from high-school. Sure, it wasn't the school that she had started out at, but she did it. She'd put in the hard work, and she'd soon have the diploma to prove it.

The speeches having been over and done with, Grace stood in line with the kids from her row to get her diploma. As long as she didn't trip, everything would be perfect. Dad and the Defenders were somewhere in the crowd. She'd even told Zoey to invite Avery along. Her Mom had flown in from Boston to see her daughter graduate.

Grace could feel her heartbeat start to speed up, as she got closer to the platform.

"Grace Elizabeth Danvers!" Her name was called out by the vice-principal and she walked across the stage, taking her diploma from the principal, a wide grin on her face.

When all the names had been called and all of the seniors had officially graduated, Grace tossed her cap into the air along with the rest of the students. Then, picking it up, she rushed off to find the Defenders and her Mom. Mom had booked a room at a local restaurant for them to have all of them to have a nice dinner.

sydney_ashcroft:

Thankfully Sydney had swapped important information with Avery when they were synchronizing their calendars and it had given Syd the head's up that Avery's birthday was coming up. She knew Zoey would want to give Avery something for his birthday. Zoey had made him a card and Sydney took her shopping.

Just what did one give someone one didn't know too well for their birthday?

Syd racked her brain to find something, then she remembered Avery liked music. So she suggested a guitar to Zoey and they went shopping to find one for him. Syd didn't know if he still played, but it was the only thing she could really think of. Zoey liked the idea and of course now wanted to take guitar lessons too.

The man at the shop had been so helpful. All guitars looked the same to Syd, so she relied on the sales clerk to help her. They found a nice acoustic guitar and wrapping it had been a task, but in the end they managed it.

With card, gift and a cake made by Sarah in hand, Syd and Zoey went over to Avery's house.

sydney_ashcroft:

Sydney hummed an upbeat tune while she cleaned and chopped carrots for a salad. The classes she taught today had gone very smoothly. She only had a few more weeks to go and she would have her masters in Ancient History. In the fall she'd be starting on her doctorate. Life was going very well for her and she was a happy woman.

She glanced at the clock. It was only four thirty. Zoey was in the rec room watching cartoons and Avery wouldn't be home for at least another hour. Which mean she still had time to think of something to make for dessert. She was thinking about brownies. There was plenty of time to make some and they would go great with the vanilla ice cream and topped with melted peanut butter.

The carrots were tossed in the bowl of salad and she toss the knife and cutting board into the sink. She glanced at the muted television. Huh. LA now had its own team of superheroes judging by the headlines. She didn't think San Francisco would get a team anytime soon. Which was fine in her book. They didn't need villains and heroes alike destroying parts of the city.

She grabbed a box of brownie mix from the cabinet and started collecting the items and ingredients she would need.

nextgen_holiday:

Mothers are the place that we call home.
On them we rest our heads and close our eyes.
There's no one else who grants the same soft peace,
Happiness, contentment, sweet release,
Erasing nighttime tears with lullabies,
Restoring the bright sun that makes us bloom. - Anonymous

team_mascot:

Zoey loved spring! It was her favorite season after summer. Though winter was good because winter had Christmas in it. Christmas was the best and this year she had met Santa Claus! She even drove his sleigh! But now it was spring. Spring meant a lot of good things and one of those things were the Asgardians birthday.

Zoey was a little confused about how they didn't know the actual day they were born and Mom couldn't really explain it either, but they were okay with just spring as their birthday. Birthdays meant parties and Zoey had decided that there HAD to be a party.

A party was her favorite thing right after Christmas. She LOVED parties and this would be the bestest birthday party ever!

She knew she couldn't do it alone so she went seeking help. Mom. Grace. Ohu. Any of them, or all would help her. They HAD to.

word_of_law:

Avery followed the directions from his GPS to the mansion, not sure what he was expecting. The place was huge, he knew, but what he could see from the gate was....epic. There really wasn't another world for it.

He'd called ahead to let Sydney and Zoey know he'd be coming, but he still wasn't sure what to expect when he pulled up to the front gate. He didn't see any dragons or, heavens forbid, any Mongolian Death Worms, but one never knew with these types, did they?

He just hoped Zoey was still interested in being around him even after all the awesome she was currently surrounded with.

word_of_law:

Thus far, Avery Crittenden had enjoyed spending time with his newfound little girl. Zoey was bright, talented and outright amazing, and it made Avery proud to be able to say that she was his daughter. He called every other night, work permitting,  to speak with her and tell her good night and that he hoped she slept well. He still hadn't told his parents about her yet, wanting to ease Zoey into getting to know her extended family, but he hoped that she'd come to call them family in time as well.

Today, he was meeting with Sydney to hammer out and finalize the terms of their custody arrangement. Sydney was indeed with the time Zoey could spend with him, but Avery had in mind to ask for a small something extra. He didn't think it was anything Sydney would mind too much, and their previous discussions on where she would go for different holidays helped him come up with a few other ideas on how to set up a good time with Zoey. 

Avery and his lawyer/best female friend,Claire Walsh, would arrive at the office of Sydney's lawyer with their papers and requests to be added to the custody agreement. He didn't think he was asking for very much, about sixteen days each apiece, give or take when one of them had work to attend to. Sydney's schedule appeared more flexible than his, though, so his idea might benefit her more.

"Avery, you're being extremely charitable about this whole thing. Honestly, you've got ground to demand join custody and set some of your own terms regarding this situation where your daughter is concerned. Are you sure you don't want me to file that motion for you?" Alexis asks as they enter the building.

"No, Alexis, I don't want you to. It would only hurt Zoey in the long run, and Sydney and I agreed that we can be adults about this. She could have told me to go hell at the start, but she didn't, and I'm not trying to make waves. Zoey is my priority; I've missed too much already and I'm not going to waste anymore time by starting a custody battle." he says.

"You're afraid she's going to sic her friends on you, aren't you?" Alexis asks. "They're a pretty handy deterrent for a lot of things, you have to admit."

"No, I'm not. She wouldn't do that." Avery counted.

He hoped.
 

word_of_law:

Avery Crittenden did not get nervous on dates with women. He did not worry about what he wore, how he looked, or if it was a good or bad hair night. He didn't get nervous over business dinners when million-dollar deals were on the line, or times when the eyes of the entire gallery were on him, listening to him speak on why this or that argument held water or did not.

He stood outside the Chuck E. Cheese Restaurant early Saturday afternoon and wondered if the sweater and slacks were too conservative for meeting his daughter. Would she pick up on that? Should he have just gone with the polo shirt and jeans? Would that make her think he was a slacker of some kind? 

Would Sydney consider him a bad influence upon her?

Avery took a few deep breaths and smiled ruefully to himself, thinking he should have gone with the polo shirt and jeans.  Ah, well. He hoped Zoey would enjoy spending a little bit of time with him today, and that Sydney would see that he was ready to be an active, supportive parent to their little girl. He knew it was best to take things in slow steps, but he also wanted to let Zoey know he would always be there for her.

So, he waited outside for Sydney to show up with Zoey and fought the urge to call and say he'd be late so he could run home and change.
 

nextgen_citizen:

Avery walked into the large, sprawling house dropping his bag at the door and shaking his shoulders to loosen some of the tension there. Despite the motion, his stomach was still doing flips.

Very soon, he would get to meet his daughter.

He had to play this slowly, though, because one wrong move and Sydney would try to keep Zoey away from him. It angered him on a few levels that she had all the power in this, that his rights had been violated. Still, he kept a lid on it, because getting a chance to know Zoey outweighed his anger at Sydney. He could be an adult about all of this.

He walked into his home office and sat down, picking up the phone and dialing Sydney's number. The two of them needed to reach an understanding first, before they brought Zoey into the picture, and the best way to do that was a friendly chat.

Avery waited as the phone rang, hoping Sydney was there.

sydney_ashcroft:

Nervous was too kind a word. Sydney had been on edge from the second she had woke up in the morning and had looked at the clock a million times during the day. She was meeting Avery tonight for dinner and she had a sinking feeling in her gut. Whatever was going to happen, she knew it couldn't be good.

The plans were for dinner at a restaurant she knew well. Syd had called Avery earlier in the week to make the arrangements. A place and a time had been arranged and until this morning Syd hadn't thought too much about it. She had enough distractions around the place to keep her mind occupied. This morning was a different story however.

During the week she did contact a lawyer and met with him to explain the situation. Avery wasn't stupid and Syd was going to have things ready if the subject of Zoey came up. She wasn't going to let anything happen to her daughter or her relationship with her daughter.

Zoey was dropped off at Bryn's (despite how much Ohu assured her it was okay to leave Zoey with him she was not going to leave him with Ohu) and Syd headed for the restaurant.

She arrived ten minutes early and was shown to a table.

sydney_ashcroft:

Sydney sat across from Zoey and waited for Zoey to finish her slice of pizza. Syd had picked Zoey up and had taken her to the mall. Some quality mother and daughter time was needed and the mall was the perfect place. Of course they hit the food court first. The first words out of Zoey's mouth every day when Syd picked her up from school wasn't "Hi Mom" it was "I'm hungry!".

The Defenders, Scion and school kept Syd plenty busy and the two of them needed some time together just the two of them every week. Syd made a promise to herself that no matter what happened, they would get that day. Getting Zoey away from the Defenders for a little bit was always a good thing. Thees and thous were starting to slip into Zoey's speech on regular basis.

She went over the todo list in her head. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.

She looked over at Zoey and smiled when her daughter looked at her. "Love you, monkey."