Chapter Text
Two people stand alone on a private airstrip, patiently waiting for preparations to be completed.
“How on earth did you convince Brimstone to give us both a vacation, and licenses for you to leave the country after your little stunt with Reyna and Viper a few months ago,” Tala asks while gripping Hazel’s arm.
“I went above his head.” Hazal said with a smile.
Almost on cue a black suv pulls up, Brimstone getting out the passenger seat wearing a Hawaiian print shirt, before running over to the driver door, opening up to let an older woman step out.
“Ah, Hazal, care to introduce me to your date?”
“Tala, this is Lorraine, Brimstone’s wife, Lorraine this is my partner Tala.” Hazal kind of hides behind them, knowing what was coming.
“Oh well aren’t you lovely.” Lorraine walks up and picks up the much shorter Tala in a hug. “I’ve heard a lot about you, I’ve heard you helped tame my Liam’s biggest thorn in his side.”
“Lorraine, part of the deal is we don’t bother them too much.” Brimstone said replacing his beret with a straw hat.
“Oh.” Lorraine set Tala down. “I’m sorry dear, my southern hospitality got the better of me.”
Tala is a little too freaked out to say something and instead heads off to the plane.
“Are they okay?” Lorraine asks.
“They’ll be fine, they’re nxious to fly in a plane without fail safes for their radiance, but it’ll be fine.”
“Alright? Let’s be off.” Liam ushers the woman onto the plane.
-
The familiar air hits Hazal’s nose as she steps off the plane, and she can’t help but smile. “Welcome to Istanbul.”
Tala takes her hand. “Whatcha want to do first?”
Brimstone sighs. “Fade, before you two get to far, can I have a word.”
“I- sure.” The sudden comment catches her off guard.
Brimstone pulls them down the stairs and quickly out of ear shot. “I don’t know much of Istanbul but I know that there will be stray cats. Is there anyway I can keep them away?”
Fade pauses. “No.”
“Anything, please I’m desperate.”
“Just don’t be foolish, feed them, house them or treat them like your own house cats. This isn’t about you is it?”
Brim shakes his head. “She couldn’t leave a cat on the side of the road in our nearly thirty years of marriage, I didn’t process Lorraine and the strays till thirty minutes ago.”
Fade lets out a hardy laugh. “Good luck, but I can’t change the cats around here.”
“I appreciate the thought.” Liam sulks back to Lorraine waiting for him.
Tal walks over with a smiley “He okay? It looks like you killed his chances of enjoying himself.”
“No, he did that to himself by bringing his wife to this city, woman’s never seen a stray she hasn’t kept.”
-
Neon and Fade walk hand in hand up a busy side street in the old part of the city, no one bothering to stop their business to pay them any mind.
“I wish I could say our first stop was more exciting.” Hazal looks back at Tala with a smile.
“Visiting your grandmother is hardly not exciting, it’s nerve wracking to meet your family.” Tala moves her legs in place to get rid of the jitters.
“Don’t worry, she’s going to love you.”
The old house their family had in the city was nestled between two alleys, very small for a family home, but so few live in it, it never bothered anyone.the old sandstone walls smell of the old city, and the lingering stains of smoke from times past still coat the walls.
“Anneanne Aylin? You home?” Hazal asks in both Turkish and English.
A loud bang comes from a back room, followed by an older woman yelling back in English. “Hazal?! you better have gotten rid of that piece of shit husband or I-“ an older Turkish woman screams in English to insult someone who wasn’t there, quickly switching to Turkish to ask her granddaughter about the young beautiful one next to her.
“English please grandmother, this is one of my partners.” Hazal pulls Tala to the couch.
“Hi, I’m Tala Nicole-“ Tala’s voice dies in her throat as the older lady stares her up and down.
“I was just making myself some dolma, you two can have some.” She smiles, which puts them at ease. “I fear you’ve never had good Turkish food, it was Hazal’s brother who got all my skill in the kitchen.”
There was an awkward silence. Tala breaks it. “Can I tell her about the time you-“
Hazal immediately covers Tala’s mouth. “We’d love some anneanne Aylin.”
“Willing to embarrass your family this early, I like this one.” Aylin moves to the kitchen. “can you cook, dear?”
“Well enough, not much outside what my parents taught me of Filipino cooking though.”
Aylin laughs to herself. “Oh? And they cook, you’re getting spoiled.”
“Grandmother…” Hazal goes a little red with embarrassment.
Which makes Tala and Aylin laugh together.
“You get better by the second, come along let’s eat, Hazal get Jo.”
Hazal sighs before heading to the front door, leaving the building in pursuit of their old half stray family cat.
“Is she eating enough? She said you two were coworkers so I fear her lack of muscles could be bad for the nature of your work?” Aylin asks bluntly while Hazal is out of the room.
Tala tries and fails not to laugh. “Trust me, if she didn’t I wouldn’t be the first to yell at her about it.”
“I'm glad.” Aylin smiles talking a little too loudly. “I’ve always felt she would look good with a little more meat on her bones, don’t you agree? More than one way to do that-”
The door slams closed. “Grandma, for the last time I'm not trying to get pregnant, I'm not having kids right now.”
“So stingant about denying me my right to be a great grandmother. Beyza up the street already has two.” Her tone is a little more lighthearted than Hazal’s.
Hazal slaps her hand to her forehead. “My life isn’t here to make you win your local bragging contest with the neighbor you’ve had for sixty years.”
Aylin walks up to hug her granddaughter. “That’s very true, and I’m proud of you regardless of whether or not I get great grandchildren. Just don't burn down the house cooking when I leave it to you.” Laughing more to herself, she pays Hazal on the backs. “Let’s eat.”
-
Hazal and Tala walk along the canal by the old house, slowly walking to an old spot Hazal use to frequent as a kid.
“Your lola was a lot nicer than I expected given how rarely you get to come see her. I have a clause in my contract that requires me to go home for certain holidays. You two seem close did she raise you?”
Hazal kicks a stone down the road. “Not always, my parents tried, but they definitely weren’t ready for twins. So me and my brother spent a lot of time with extended family. Not uncommon around here, but when we were eight, they just up and left so she’s all I have le-“
Tala hugs Hazal. “We’ll find your brother. I know it.”
Hazal laughs a laugh that’s almost chilling. “If Cipher and I can’t find him-“
“Nope, no moping, we can mope later, right now it’s my turn for a surprise.” Tala pulls her arm along. I got us reservations at a place this way, I think.”
“You sure? This heads down to the old harbor, and I don’t think many places down this way have reservations.”
“Well, this one did.” Tala says tilting her chin up. “So you doubt my sense of direction.”
“Of course not-“
-they get lost-
“Dear, can you just check your email for the address? We’re practically downtown by all the tourist spots.”
Tala was panic looking through her phone’s email. “It said it was in old town, Viper recommended it… ugh why must directions be so hard.”
“Then just show me the address and I can take us there, for fucks sake dear I lived her for twenty-fiv-.” Hazal looks across the street.
Tala looks up to join her seeing a parade of cats. Dominating that entire side of the street. Square in the middle of them carrying five cats who seemingly had various leg injuries, is Brimstone. “Hey you two, do you want some dinner reservations?”
Hazal nearly falls over cackling as she could never expect her boss to be surrounded by cats, let alone a stampede of them.
“That sounds lovely, I couldn’t find ours.”
Brimstone Laughs a single laugh.“Okay, it’s just up the street, it's up one block, reservation is under Liam Byrne, Lorraine got asked to leave because her ‘pack’ was staring through the window…”
Tala fell into Hazal laughing, whispering. “His name being Liam is never not funny.”
“Thank you sir.” Hazal said as she started walking up the street opposite the herd of at least two hundred cats.
Tala quickly caught up. “Sorry my reservation fell through.”
Hazal rubs her hand through Tala’s hair. “If it had worked out we wouldn’t have crossed ‘see a stampede of cats’ off my bucket list.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s true.” Tala froze. “That wasn’t on your bucket list was it?”
“No.” Hazal leans in to kiss Tala on their forehead. “But I’m glad I saw it with you.”
They arrived to the restaurant and could see a less than packed house, seemingly many people leaving after the cats attack.
“Reservation for Liam, he sent us after his wife left.”
“Right this way.”
-one very romantic dinner later-
As they crawled into their bed that night Tala had a thought. “May I ask a question?”
“Yes, of course dear.” Hazal crawls up into the crook of Tala’s arm.
“Would you ever want kids?” Tala asks much more sheepish than they normally ever could.
“My grandmother’s joke got you huh?” Hazal pulls them really tight, making sure her partner is comfortable.
Their voice keep getting quieter. “I know I’ve gotten plenty about it from my parents and I’ve never known what to say.”
“Is this you asking, or are you worried your parents are gonna want grandkids.”
“I don’t know.” Tala began to shake
“Tala Nicole, whatever your answer is, I still love you. And if that answer is yes, we’ll talk about it and figure that out. Okay?”
“You're right as al-”
Hazal pushes herself up to silence Tala with a kiss. “No overthinking, okay?”
“Okay.” Tala returns the kiss with much more fire than she thought possible. “Are you?”
“Yes-“
“Your grandma-“
“She’s out playing poker with the neighbors, we have time.” Hazal pulls neon’s collar down to get access to her neck.
“I love you.” Is all the words Tala can get out of their mouth.
“I love you too.”
-the next morning-
A very groggy Tala and Hazal walk into the Tarmac, their coffee not having kicked in yet.
Brinstone stands there just as tired. “Sorry for cutting your trip short, Lorraine was asked to leave the country.”
The two let out a half asleep laugh.
They look over to Lorraine who’s handing out a fish to each individual cat, with different names for each.
“You can make it up to us. Next time Neon goes on a family holiday, I get to tag along.”
Brimstone laughs. “I can do that, but I’m not chaperoning that one.”