Fourth Sin: A Return To The Way (Pt. 5)

--- Mercer ---

Now while he was at least forty percent sure, she wasn’t actually angry with him, he also knew that she was willing to stab him -(If not there because it’s too valuable to her. Wouldn’t stop her from stabbing my leg though.)- which is why due to the perfectly normal desire to not be stabbed (even by a hot blonde) he slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a sucker before-

“What’s tha-oom!”

-shoving it in her mouth, fully aware of her lack of a gag reflex.

Julie blinked before glaring at him, only to blink again as she actually tasted the candy. “Damn, that’s actually pretty good.”

“I know, right?” He couldn’t help but agree as plopped one in his own mouth before tossing a pair of suckers at the girls. “Just got ‘em from Betty, finally got her to give me her supplier.”

“And only took you what, eight years?” Jules taunted, before withdrawing her knife and stepping back. “Also was kind of hoping you’d escalate given how I’ve been gone for like a month.”

“Yeah, but…” He made a vague gesture towards the girls who were cautiously opening the candy wrappers.

“Since when do you care about witnesses?” Julie scoffed with a bit of amusement. Probably referencing both his violent impulses as well as their… rooftop antics.

“Since they’re kids and once we get started neither of us are stopping.” He admitted, giving her a look. “And you know we wouldn’t stop.”

Julie merely gave him a little smirk that almost had him picking her up girls be damned, but… (they deserve an explanation.)

Then he’d carry her upstairs.

“Right, so…” He coughed into his hands and turned back to Scarlet and Bell. “You girls have met Julie, and assuming she half assed her introduction, as she tends to do.”

“No, I troll my introductions, and even then only half as badly as you do.” Jules interrupted him.

“Exactly, you half ass it instead of going all out. You need to make a whole production of it or else they won’t remember it.” He agreed with a disappointed shake of his head. “We both know you can do better.”

Julie muttered something along the lines of, “Drama queen.”

“No, I’m the drama king. You’re supposed to be the queen and you are clearly failing your duties.” He attempted to keep his follow up to himself, but, “I’m going to have to punish you for that later.” he couldn’t help himself.

“Uh, no.” Julie disagreed, shaking her sucker in his face. “You’re the one in trouble for bringing two teenagers home.”

He gave her a mild glare before tabling that for later when there weren't two underage teens watching them.

“As I was saying…”

“She’s your wife?” Bell finished for him, causing him to blink.

“Of five years in a couple months.” Scarlet added, causing him to blink again.

“We had girl talk while you were running late.” Julie explained for him. “They’ve got the broad strokes, I’m your wife. Yes, I’m aware you’re a vigilante. And no they have yet to meet your mom.”

“They’ve only been here for a couple weeks, why would they have met my mom?” He frowned more in confusion than anything else.

“Because you take after both your parents apparently.” Julie shrugged.

“The fuck does that mean?” He frowned in far more legitimate anger because (the fuck?!)

Julie stared at him for a moment before glancing back to the girls and giving him an even dryer look. “What’s your relationship to your parents?”

He shrugged. “Want to shoot him and want her to spot me when I do.”

“Right, right, your oedipus complex.” Julie nodded, as he forced himself to keep his mouth shut despite the fact that (I do not have an oedipus complex!) “But no, I was talking more about the… circumstances of your family… and your siblings…”

“Oh.” He realized before, “Oh, damn it, not you too!”

Julie raised her hands in defense. “Look I’ll admit, I kind of wish you asked me first before you-”

“That’s not what’s happening here!” He interrupted. “I’m just… helping them out!”

“The addiction runs in your family all the way back to your grand-pappy.” His traitorous wife reminded him.

(Just because my dad, uncle, grandfather, and somehow my mom all have that addiction does not mean I do!) He grumbled to himself, knowing that if he voiced that thought he’d be admitting she had a completely valid point against him. (I’m not getting dommed tonight.)

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“Uh, what addiction?” Bell asked, finding something to focus on despite both girl’s blatant confusion.

“I have an addiction to violence, and so does the rest of my family.” He answered, completely honest if in the completely wrong direction of what Julie was implying. (Because that is the addiction we all do in fact share ever since gran-pappy got a taste of killing nazis.)

Scarlet’s face scrunched up. “You can be addicted to violence?”

“Aren’t you?” He asked, the teenage cannibal, earning himself a shrug. “Then you can’t judge me… feel free to judge my dad though. And judge him hard.”

“He is something of a hypocrite.” Julie agreed, reminding him once more why (I love this beautiful blonde bitch.)

None of his siblings took his side in that argument.

“R-right, anyway the point is… you met my wife, she’ll of course be living with me-”

“Until I kick him out to the couch.”

“Which she won’t actually do for… reasons.” He assured the girls through grit teeth.

“I brought plastic.” Julie informed him with a little smirk.

He inhaled deeply before exhaling and giving her a look. “I’ll remember that.” (And the fact that I need some duct tape…)

Her grin merely grew.

“Anyway, the fact that there are no new claw marks on the wall lets me hope that you three have gotten along well enough to live together until we get… something, sorted out in this… whole situation.” He finished explaining with a gesture towards the girls.

“We already know how it’s going to be settled.” Julie taunted him.

“How?” Bell asked innocently.

“Yeah, Mercer, how is this going to be settled?” Julie prodded with a grin as everyone focused on him.

(...)

(...)

(Fuck, I’m blanking.) He swallowed, very much having not thought about this beyond ‘help the teenage girls in trouble’ given how he had the slightly higher priority of ‘reestablish myself as a threat before someone pops a cap in my ass’.

“Uh, I… am… going to try and… find your family!” He answered, given how that was usually a default response for him after rescuing a lost child.

“Uh, our parents are dead.” Scarlet bluntly informed him, reminding him of a suspicion he’d had but hadn’t actually confirmed. “Have been for… years…”

(Fuck!) He grimaced despite the fact that neither girl seemed overly heartbroken by that detail. (Which kind of makes it worse!)

Having finally achieved the maximum level of misery and awkwardness his wife found her amusement switching to pity, Julie took over and told the girls that, “If your family is gone we’ll help the two of you establish yourselves and readjust to… whatever lifestyle makes you most happy.”

Scarlet gave them a confused look. “And that means… what exactly?”

“Eh, no clue.” Julie admitted. “Biggest secret I learned about this hero stuff is that all of them are just making it up as they go and none of them are actually functioning human beings.”

He gave Julie a glare for that, but couldn’t bring himself to argue when she was the one bailing him out of this mess.

“Seriously, you girls need any life stuff come to me, not him. His solutions to his problems are always violence, bribery, or blackmail.” Julie continued uncaring of his offense.

“Those are all important life skills.” He tried to defend. “I mean my mom and I both made a career out of those skills! Hell, I could have them both set up for an extremely profitable lifelong career if I taught them!”

“Glad you’re volunteering, I was a bit worried I’d have to do this single rent style.” Julie clapped, her meaning and her smirk both flying over the girls’ head.

“That’s not what’s happening…” He whined.

“Either way it’s all stuff we’ll get settled over the next few days.” Julie assured the girls. “I just need to have a talk or two about where we stand after he incinerated all of our shit.”

“That’s not what happened…”

“It is what happened.” Julie told him, shoving her finished sucker into one of his pockets- (Gross!) - before taking his hand and leading him towards the stairs. “So you two just go back to your books and cartoons while I talk to him upstairs… Oh, and good night since we’re probably going to crash once we’re done.”

“Uh, good night?” Bell waved looking just as confused as her sister.

The moment they were out of sight of the girls Julie shoved him against the wall.

“You asshole!” She quietly hissed, before slamming her lips against his.

Understanding exactly what was happening he rolled his eyes, before spinning them around and slamming Julie into the wall.

“So… how much of that was… you playing nice and… how much was… legit?” He asked just as quietly as he moved his lips to her neck.

“They’re sweet girls in a bad spot…” Julie answered, before pulling his hair and dragging his head away. “But would it have killed you to call me or barring that have someone call me to tell me that you were taking two strays in?!”

“Wasn’t exactly planned, and I thought it’d be a temp thing.” He reminded her as he freed his hair and put her arm in a lock. “You’re the one making it permanent.”

“Bullshit.” Julie laughed, dragging him towards the stairs despite the lock. “Top floor?”

“Top floor.” He nodded, as she threw him into the railing before going up the steps.

“You’ve got the red one following you like a puppy and you gave the quiet one your auto-reader.” Julie told him, walking up the stairs backwards. “If you tell me that isn’t you making this permanent I will slap you.”

He frowned following her. “It isn’t me making this-”

They both froze his head to the side and her hand raised.

He growled before tackling her into another wall, their mouths meeting once more as they bit, grasped, and clawed at each other.

“Fuck, I missed you…” He told the love of his life as he came up for air.

“Me too love.” Julie smiled at him, running her hand through his hair before glancing at the next flight of stairs. “Fuck, how tall is this building?”

“Uh, another flight or two.” He couldn’t really recall with more important matters on hand. Namely the parts of her he had in hand.

“That’s going to be a pain…” Julie moaned, before wrapping her legs around him. “Carry me up.”

Hearing -and sharing- the impatience in her voice he quickly made his way to their room before once more pinning her to the door of their room.

“Hold up…” Julie called breathlessly as her hands found their way under his shirt, just as his did the same to hers.

“What?” He gasped, pressing his forehead to hers.

“If we’re keeping the girls… I’ve kind of got to wonder…” Julie began, before growing a little smirk. “Does this mean I’m a MILF now?”

He pulled back to look his wife in the eyes, because while he was still figuring out what to do with the girls, in the moment his more immediate response was a resounding, “Yes.” before throwing her into their room.