Twist of fate

I hate you

  Ava woke with a sinking feeling, her stomach filled with pins and needles. She'd been dreading this day for months, wishing time would slow down, stop, something, anything to not have to deal with what was coming later that night. This was supposed to be a happy day, a day to celebrate, have fun.
But instead she felt like she was going to her execution.
  Happy sixteenth birthday to her, right?
  Ava shook her head, slowly climbing out of bed and heading for the bathroom to take a shower and start getting ready.
  Big Mom had made her stay in the Whole Cake château for the last month, not letting her leave without a chaperone.
Ava knew it was because she was thought of as a flight risk.
But she had to much to stay for.
Eris, her niece Nyx and nephews, Erebus and Aether, where here. That was four reasons to stay, four reason she couldn't and wouldn't leave. She would count Artemis, but the woman had left not long after the triplets had been born saying she had previous engagements. Then there was Shinobu and her husband Jazz, Dacquoise, Angel and Custard, Katakuri, Brûlée. Even Perospero, Oven, and Daifuku were starting to grow on her.
Those last three had finally acknowledge her when she'd started going out on "missions" about a year in a half ago.
More like getting food for Mama so she didn't throw tantrums.
Ava rolled her eyes as she stepped under the hot scalding water of the shower. She should probably take a cold one, considering her very vivid dream from last night, but she didn't want to be frozen this early in the morning.
Dam Cracker. And dam her too for being so freakin attuned to him. Stupid man went from freezing to scorching in sixty seconds. It was like the more they fought, the hotter he would get.
It been like this for the last two months.
Tough he was very, very carful to never cross the imaginary line they had built between them, he never failed to make suggestive comments, turning her into a hot and bothered mess.
Her head thunked against the tiled walls of the shower stall in frustration. She really had hoped her infatuation with the big, scarred, biscuit man had just been a passing fancy.
  In the end he'd made sure it wasn't. And as bad as she wished otherwise, she was a living, breathing, woman who's hormones had been getting the best of her where he was concerned.
Ava was going to have to avoid the shit out of him today, just like she tried to do almost ever time he came around of late, if she didn't want to embarrass herself.
  Ava ruthlessly scrubbed her body focusing on the luffa. She had to get her head away from those thoughts, before she delved to deep and did something she shouldn't.
  "What the hell is taking you so long?" Eris called out moodily.
  Seemed someone hadn't gotten laid last night.
  "Give me a moment, I'm almost done ya bitch." Ava yelled out with a little laugh.
  "Language!" Eris yelled back. "I got the kids with me today."
  Ava squealed in excitement, and quickly finished her shower. She wanted to get her hands on the babies.
  Well toddlers, they where almost two years old now.
  Throwing on a bathrobe, she made her way back into the room.
  A very energetic Erebus and Aether where wrestling in her messy bed, Nyx like always was sitting in her aunt Brûlée's lap playing patty cake. Shinobu was there too, talking to Eris about clothes.
  Great! They where trying to pick out what she was going to wear today, dresses and cute heels piled high.
  Ava shook her head in amusement and disappointment. Both should know her better then that by now.
  "Excuse me!" She laughed, pulling a squealing, happy, Aether off of his brother.
  Goodness, but both boys looked like miniature versions of their daddy, the only way to tell them apart was their eyes. Aether had pretty red eyes like Katakuri, Erebus had bright neon purple. Nyx however looked like a spitting image of Eris, minus the purple hair. Instead the little girl had a deep reddish hair, purple striations running through it here and there.
  Eris looked back at her and sighed. "You look like crap Ava."
  Ava found herself smacked in the face with a little chubby hand. She laughed and tossed Aether down onto the bed and he giggled in delight.
  Shaking her head, she gave Eris a pointed look. "That will happen when you don't get enough sleep."
  Erebus toddled up to her lifting his hands as both boys giggled. "Toss me auntie, toss me too!"
  She picked him up and threw him up the bed, little squeals and giggles of happiness erupting from him.
  "I guess that's to be expected." Eris sighed again, the look in her eyes troubled.
  "Ava you can't let this get you down." Shinobu cut in, cheerfully. "It's your sixteenth birthday. Go out there and have fun and don't worry about what's coming."
  "She's right you know!" Brûlée giggled, still playing patty cake with Nyx. "It's not all that bad. Besides any of my brothers will be lucky to have you. You are such a bright and happy person, and smart. Isn't that right my beautiful little Nyx."
  Nyx giggled, nodding her pretty little head.
  Brûlée looked up at her with a kind smile. "Don't think about the naming of your soon to be groom. Just go out there and have the time of your life."
  Ava shook her head again, tossing Aether up the bed, feeling somewhat trapped. "That's not the issue. The issue is I don't have a say, I don't get to choose. It's all been decided for me."
Her door sung open, Angel and Custard sauntering into her room.
"Who decided what for you?"
Custard laughed as Erebus rolled off the bed and scrambled for her.
"Auntie Custard, auntie Custard!"
"She's not happy about the groom naming tonight. It's putting a damper on her mood." Brûlée supplied.
"Aw. Ava, put that out of your mind and go have fun. It's your sixteenth birthday." Angel smiled, waving her fingers at Erebus.
She felt like she was listening to a broken record, it irritated her.
Aether toddled back up to her and she tossed him up the bed.
Ava growled. "I want to choose damnit!" She looked at the woman in the room. "Me, not Mama. Don't I deserve to be able to fall in love, have my happy ending?"
All eyes had sympathy in them as they looked at her. All of them understood perfectly well she had a right to feel like she did.
Angel sighed in regret. "I'm sorry Ava!"
"Sorry isn't gonna fix this!" She spat. "Sorry isn't gonna get me out of this situation. I'm gonna be forced into a marriage that's not of my choosing."
"Ava!" Eris snapped at her, giving her disappointed looks
Ava deflated, her ire disappearing. It wasn't their fault.
She sighed in resignation. "I'm sorry!" Aether was back and she tossed him again. "I just want a chance to find love." She looked at Shinobu, feeling envious. "I want to find what you and Jazz have. I want a partnership where I'm looked at as an equal, not just a wife that is expected to bend to the will of her husband."
Brûlée scoffed at her, Nyx leaning into the tall woman as she rubbed her eyes tiredly. "You have three years to get to know who you are marrying. Who's to say that you won't fall in love along the way?"
Ava's brows furrowed. She hadn't thought about that. She'd been to upset about being forced into an unwanted marriage to even contemplate the thought of actually getting to know whoever was chosen for her.
  But that still left her other fear.
  "What if it's Daifuku or Oven?" She asked solemnly.
Angel shook her head. "Mama wouldn't marry off either of them. They are to valuable as they are!"
"But what about Katakuri?" Eris frowned. "He is one of her Sweet Commanders."
"Katakuri went and nocked you up and refused to leave your side." Custard laughed, along with the rest of the woman. "Not to mention the stuff you and Ava can do. Better to have you married to Katakuri, and know that her family is growing, then to take a chance of you slipping through her fingers."
"That's a shit way of looking at it!" Ava deadpanned.
"But it turned out okay, didn't it?" Brûlée snickered waving at the three kids and Eris. "Everyone is happy."
Ava rolled her eyes at the woman. "But that wasn't a guarantee and we all know it."
Angel smacked her upside the head. "How do you know that you won't be happy unless you give it a chance?"
She glared at the much taller woman. "The same could be said about me being unhappy."
"Quit bitching and start getting dressed." Custard pushes her towards the dresses with her free hand, Erebus snuggling into her chest. "We have a party that's going to be starting in a few hours.
  "Nope, nope, nope. Get those things away from me." Ava back peddled away from the dresses and high heels in disgust. She had her own outfit for today stashed away in her bag.
  "Ava we brought these for you, you have to look nice today!" Shinobu chided playfully.
  "You should all know by now I'm not wearing a dam dress." She laughed, digging in her bag by the window. "Besides it's my birthday, I'mma get my way in at least this."
  Pulling out the clothes she had made specifically for today, she held them up for the woman to see.
  Everyone's eyes went wide, their voices rising in alarm. "You can't wear that!"
  "Oh, but I will." She smiled deviously.
  "Ava, no!" Eris said disapprovingly.
   She laughed maniacally. "Ava yes!"
  She may not be able to control what would happen at the end of the day, but she could control this.
  And no one was going to stop her.