Shadow's Kiss (Monstrous Hearts: Fleur's Story)

Story Extra: Tricked for a Treat (1/2)

A/N: A short story for Halloween! Hope you enjoy it.

"We're so excited to have you home for the weekend."

Fleur couldn't say she shared her mother's enthusiasm, but she also heard a hint of discomfort behind those words and knew it would be cruel to add to the pain of an abscessed tooth with her typical cynicism. "Yeah, it'll be nice, Mom. I figured I could help out with whatever since you're having dental issues."

Then she dropped her backpack on her old bed. In response, the pile of pillows by the headboard shifted, and Prosy poked her head out into the open to glare at Fleur. The cat yawned before crawling out to stretch and accept pets, even purring a little. Fleur found herself smiling, but her expression shrank again while she glanced around.

She had barely started classes a month ago and yet the room already seemed like a stranger's. It wasn't exactly a bad feeling, but it did leave her very aware that she would have to dance around the topic of Dario once her mother started prying into her life at college. Distraction seemed like the best way to delay the inevitable. "When do you see the dentist?"

"2:00 o'clock." Her mother fluffed the pillows back in place before adding, "Today is the end of it, thankfully. They'll finish the root canal and have the crown put in."

Fleur nodded. "Do you want me to drive you there?"

"It's probably for the best, if you don't mind," admitted her mother. "I was dizzy after the first visit. Hopefully, I'll feel good enough after this one to run the drinks stall at St. Paul's annual autumn auction tonight."

"I didn't know you were going to church again." Fleur had dim memories of sitting on wooden pews as a child and that was about it. Family dinners on Easter Sunday and Christmas were the closest they got to any sort of faith.

"Oh, well..." Her mother began unpacking Fleur's bag for her. Fleur, who had assumed this would happen, continued to pet Prosy while her mother said, "Now that I have a lot more time to myself, I've been trying out different ways to fill up the day."

Despite herself, Fleur felt a pang of guilt for moving out. Even though she had spent as much time as possible in her room, she had still been a living, breathing presence in the house. Now, with Dad always at the office or on business trips, there was no one. "Are you all right, Mom? You know, with me being away?"

"Of course, honey. It's just a change, that's all." As they walked back down the hallway toward the kitchen, her mother's expression lit up. Then she steered Fleur toward the guest bedroom instead. "Speaking of changes, I found something adorable for when Alice's baby arrives. Since she's due in January, I looked at winter clothes for newborns and found this."

Within a moment, Fleur found herself staring at a tiny, fleece onesie. It was pink. There were bunny ears attached to the hood.

"Isn't it adorable?"

"Very." Fleur couldn't hold back a wicked grin. "Has Colton seen it?"

"Not yet." Her mother neatly folded the onesie and put it back in the gift bag. "They're coming over Monday to visit. I'll give it to them then."

Damn. She'd really wanted to see the look on his face. "Then it's just us this weekend?"

Her mother nodded. "We'll have so much time to catch up."

That was exactly what Fleur feared.

By the time it was 1:57 and they were in the dentist's office, Fleur felt as wrung out as a witness grilled on the stand. She slouched in her chair, glad that no one else was in the waiting room, and stared up at the ceiling even when her mother nudged her knee.