Table Talk

When Queen Bee nodded to receive her prize, she had swapped the spears into one palm and held out her free hand.

But Fort had taken hold of the armored gauntlet and done something unexpected. Instead of giving her a trophy, Fort pulled the duelist into his arms, dipped her, and proceeded to bring his mouth towards her mask. The delicate metal barely disappeared in time.

Brock and Blaze could hardly believe their eyes.

Their father was kissing Queen Bee! In front of them! In their living room!

"Stop it!" Brock screamed, too shocked to move.

The Queen's back was to him now, but she didn't seem to be pulling away.

Why wasn't she stopping him? Was her arm coming up to his shoulder? What was happening?!

Brock's brain felt like breaking.

"But but but Mom!" he sputtered.

"I'm very impressed by that performance from both of you. You took that duel very seriously."

The voice had come from the woman in armor, further stunning Brock.

"Queen Bee can talk?! And she sounds just like mom..." Brock's second phrase was more to himself than the room.

Blaze, who had a better angle than his brother, was a step ahead. "It is Mom," he said, his voice shaking at the revelation.

The brunette warrior spun around with a wide smile on her face. "Hello Brock. Hello Blaze. As I said, it's very good to see that you have been practicing so hard. That was very fun."

The hair was wilder than usual and the eyes were ever-changing with color, but the face-- Brock knew it almost as well as his own.

"Mom? Mom!" His eyes grew nearly as big as his face. 

Fort grinned with amusement as Brock began to put the pieces together. 

"You were kissing Mom!"

"Of course," Fort winked. "I wouldn't ever consider kissing anyone else."

Brock stuttered, "But that...that means..."

"Mom is Queen Bee." Blaze stepped forward, poking Noble's pauldron gently. "It's logical really, now that I think about it."

The younger twin leaned in to examine the metal more closely.

Noble chuckled lightly. "You like it?"

"It's even cooler in person," Blaze nodded. "I especially like the overlapping plates here. That gives you extra protection and also ease of movement."

"I had no idea you were interested in armor!" Noble disengaged from her husband to hold out her gauntlet for her son to see.

Blaze rubbed the back of his neck. "It's a…recent hobby. In case the Spell should infect me, I wanted to have a solid knowledge of how to select armor if I get a choice."

There was some hesitation in Blaze's expression, but Noble quickly soothed him.

"It is wise to be ready for whatever might come. I am glad you are thinking ahead." She hugged her younger twin and tousled his hair.

"What is wrong with you people?!" Brock blinked at them uncomprehendingly. "Are we really not going to talk about how Mom is Queen Bee?! How did this happen? When?!" He turned a critical eye on his sister. "You knew and you didn't tell me?!"

Rain crossed her arms and leaned against the back of the couch. "I just found out myself. I actually came in here to tell you, but you were so engrossed in your little game that you wouldn't listen. Maybe next time you should give your big sis a little more of your attention."

Brock blew out his cheeks, unsure of how to answer such an accusation.

Noble chuckled softly as she brought her other son into a hug as well.

"How and when, you asked? I have been Queen Bee since right after you were born. It is my hobby, I suppose. Your Dad got the pod, and I thought it might be a good way to brush up on my skills. I never thought I would be as decent at fighting as I am." Noble shrugged.

"Decent, she says!" Brock scoffed. "You are a champion of the Dreamscape and you say you are a decent fighter. There's being modest and then there is being absurd!"

The duelist shrugged.

Even after the second Nightmare, the thought that Noble was anything better than a passable warrior still felt strange. There were so many Awakened that were more powerful than her, not to mention how high enough category Nightmare Gate could obliterate not only her but the entire region.

It would be foolish to boast about her own strength.

"I do what I can," Noble said at last. "Anyway. I am glad you all know. That is only the beginning. There is so much more I want to tell."

"More?" Fort raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you sure?"

"Disappearing like I did has shown me I need to get this all out in the open. I think it is the only way we can move forward." Tilting her head, Noble gave a small smile. "It is time."

Taking her hand, Fort kissed her gauntlet gently. "If you are certain."

"I am, but it might be easier if we did it all over a hot meal. When will dinner be ready?" Noble sniffed experimentally at the air.

"DINNER!" Fort blanched as he ran to the kitchen.

The other four looked at each other with a mix of amused and concerned expressions.

A puff of steamy smoke accompanied the opening of the oven. Fort coughed as he pulled out the synthetic meat.

"It's alright!" He forced a smile. "I always like my food on the well-done side, don't you?"

Thankfully no one was in the mood to dispute his claim. The kids were far too eager to hear what their mother had to say, and Noble loved her husband far too much to ever disparage his cooking.

Even on some of his worst days, the Director could still pull out a passable dish, which this one ended up being as well. While not gourmet, it was still quite edible.

The table conversation was especially lively this evening.

The children peppered their mother with questions as she told them about her adventures in the Dreamscape. She had had no idea that they had been paying such close attention to her persona's career.

How had they seen so much of her work?!

When pressed, Fort looked away and asked Rain if she needed more potatoes. That was all the answer Noble needed.

As the evening went on, Noble told of her first Nightmare, Awakening, and then jumped to the Nightmare Gate and finally her second Nightmare.

After the first revelation about their mother being Queen Bee, the children were receptive and attentive to the other information she had to offer. Noble was careful not to get too graphic in her description of events, but she also didn't hold back when it came to sharing some of the more difficult obstacles.

"So you see," she said, concluding her tale, "I did not want to leave you, and the time while I was gone was nothing short of horrific. To be right here with all of you is what I want most in the world." 

Fort hung his head. "I am sorry I didn't communicate better. I didn't realize how my struggles were affecting all of you. That was wrong of me." 

If he had known that Rain was struggling so hard, he would have pushed aside his own grief and been honest with her in a heartbeat. 

"It's ok, Dad. I think I get it now...You were hurting, not trying to hurt me." Rain nodded slowly. It would take a little time for her to fully trust her father again, but after the talk this evening, she at least thought it was possible. 

"What I'm most hurt by is the fact I'll never see your estoc in person," Brock complained around a bite of food. 

"Don't be too upset. Look," Noble scooted back from the table and stood.

In her hands, the Zenith manifested. "I got this from the Bloom of Doubt." 

The three children rose from their seats to get a closer look at the beautiful sword. Even Fort's attention was captivated by the new weapon. 

"This is amazing!" Rain knew a good weapon when she saw one. 

The corner of Noble's lips twitched upward. "You think that's amazing?..."