"Have Evalyn and Elly ever fought before?"

"Fought? Once, I think. Why do you want to know?"

"They seem too lovey-dovey sometimes. It doesn't feel like normal couple behaviour."

"How would you know what a married couple is supposed to act like?"

"Intuition."

"Where'd you learn that word from, Iris?"

"You said it when you were talking about catching those bad guys."

"The moles? When did you hear me say that?"

"My room is right next to the office, and you talk on the phone loudly."

"...well they've only fought once as far as I can remember. I can't believe Evalyn tells me some of this stuff. It's sad, realising your goddaughter has no friends she can gossip with so she does it with you."

"She can't say most of the stuff to regular friends."

"She could this time. He kept nagging her about how frugal she was with her money and she told him to zip it. She grew up rich and didn't want to live up to that stereotype again."

"But she's not rich now."

"...how cheap do you think government contracts are?"

"I don't know, but our house is small and we don't have a car."

"See, that's what Elliot was complaining about."

"I didn't know he was greedy."

"He's not greedy...okay maybe a teensy bit. Oh...."

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"Oh?"

"There was that other time. It only happened once, so it wasn't all that memorable. Evalyn asked him to quit being a pilot."

"...she what?"

"I know right?! I still can't believe it now."

"What happened?"

"Well, a few years back Geverde was involved with a peacekeeping operation in a northwest country trying to resolve a civil war. The detachments were all coming back one day, filing one by one through Excala station. People were waving and clapping and flying flags. Elliot had wanted to go watch and Evalyn went with him, but she was sour the whole time apparently."

"She didn't like people celebrating about it, did she?"

"...wow, you really are her daughter."

"Huh?"

"Anyway, like you said, she couldn't stand to see a parade thrown by the same state that had sent soldiers to their death. It was a peacekeeping operation, Geverde's main goal in it all was probably political influence, racking up an 'I-owe-you' with that country. She could stomach the fact lives were being thrown away for that, but not the celebration. So that day, she asked Elliot to quit the Air Force."

"Why?"

"She was afraid the same would happen to him. He'd come home in a wooden box and a medal to replace his presence. I, on the other hand, was afraid what'd happen to whoever killed him."

"She'd tear their entire country to shreds."

"Probably. But Elliot resisted, saying that he wouldn't throw away the other half of his life all for her. They promised each other that they'd protect each other, watch each other's backs. She was the reason he flew, and he was the reason she fought. In his eyes, she was prepared to throw that promise away."

"What happened?"

"They didn't talk for a few days, which is when she came whining to me."

"What did you say?"

"I told her she was an idiot. A guy like Elliot wouldn't throw away his home away from home just because his wife can protect them both. And, I had to admit, a guy like him wasn't going to come home in a wooden box anytime soon."

"He's good, isn't he?"

"Yeah...but he isn't superhuman. Coming from a demigod like her, I guess I could see why she thought it was okay to ask him something like that. He was half her family, the man she'd kill the world for."

"What happened then?"

"What do you expect? It's Evalyn. She went straight home from my house and apologised all teary and snotty. He forgave her, and they compromised. That's why Elliot's a flight instructor now for the most part. He's the best in Special Operations, so he ends up being deployed when it's necessary. But yeah, that's where that comes from. Before Evalyn meddled, he was the top gun of the Air Superiority squadrons."

"So they do fight."

"Yeah, what do you expect? They were young back then, they're still pretty young now. No one's got it figured out at twenty eight and thirty."

"Which one's older?"

"Elliot's thirt—hang on, you forgot this?"

"When's their birthdays? I don't remember."