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It seemed so far away. The sun drying her damp clothes. Laughter as she chased after a soccer ball gone astray. The haunting notes of the music from a cold land. Yes, it seemed like so long ago, but the images were as crystal clear as though it had happened yesterday. That had been the first day they had truly acted like the kids that they were. That had been the first time she had seen them relaxed. Yes, Lisa would even go so far as to say it was the first time either of them had ever really looked happy.
"What are you thinking about?"
Lisa jumped at the sudden voice. She had been watching the sun set through the window and hadn't noticed Twelve enter the room.
"I was thinking about happiness," she supplied, catching his puzzled expression before turning her attention back to the sunset. Twelve took a seat beside her, and both of them stayed quiet.
"Are you not happy?" he asked finally, a hint of concern in his voice.
"No, actually, quite the opposite." Lisa turned to meet his gaze, a smile on her lips and eyes that shone in the dimming light. Twelve grinned back. He pressed a kiss against her forehead, moved to the tip of her nose, and finally down to her mouth.
"Good," he murmured, lips ghosting against hers, both of them still smiling.
She rested her head on his shoulder, and both turned to watch the colours bleed together. Red, pink, orange, and yellow painted the sky as the sun slowly dipped below the horizon. Suddenly, he pointed to something out the window.
"Do you see that cloud there?"
"Mhm."
"That's what your voice looks like."
Warmth spread through Lisa's chest as the looked at the blur of warm yellow just beside the sun.
"Oh, really? It's such a pretty colour!" she gushed. She wrapped her arms around Twelve, hugging him close. Yellow was a happy colour, she decided. She was glad of it.
Perhaps ten years wasn't quite so long, but so much had changed that it seemed almost a lifetime. Nine and Twelve had succeeded in their goal. Thanks to that detective, Shibazaki, the world came to know the truth about what happened. As for the three of them, they had disappeared. They carved out a quiet life in a small town, somewhere they would never be found or recognized. A life where they were safe.
The moment was interrupted by Nine calling from the kitchen.
"Twelve, I sent you in there to get Lisa for dinner. If I'm going to be cooking, the least you can do is show up to eat it."
"Coming!" Twelve shouted back. He grabbed Lisa by the hand and pulled her along to the kitchen. Three plates sat waiting for them on the table. Nine glared as they entered, but there was no heat behind it, not anymore.
"I have to say Nine, your cooking sure has come a long way," Twelve said between mouthfuls.
"At least it's always been better than Lisa's," Nine responded flatly. It was a joke, she knew, and a true one. She never really had gotten the hang of cooking. Some things never change.
After dinner, Nine left them to clean up. Lisa stood at the sink washing the dishes while Twelve stood beside her drying them. It was a familiar routine. The quiet opening and closing of the cupboards as he put the dishes away. The smell of dish soap as she scrubbed and rinsed. Somehow Lisa always managed to get suds in some obscure place only to be wiped away by Twelve.
It had taken a lot to get here. She had given up the only home she'd ever known. They'd had to run and hide, change their names, fake their documents, cover their trail. The world was looking for them, after all. Granted, Nine and Twelve had been able to take care of that. They'd been doing it all their lives. Some things had been harder. It took Nine a while to accept the fact that he couldn't work. Keeping his migraines under control required a minimal amount of stress and mental strain. Even then, there were bad days. All of them still had nights where they woke up screaming, images of the horrors they've been through flashing through their minds.
That day, so far away now, may have been the first time they were happy, but now Lisa knows that that day marked the beginning. The start of their lives. The start of their happiness. No more mission, no more bombs, no more race against time. Even Nine had warmed once all the pressure was gone and he was able to stop seeing her as a liability. Together, they had been able to build a normal life out of the ashes.
The sun had faded a while ago, and now the sky was black. Black, but littered with stars. As Twelve began to make his way to their room, Lisa reached out and tugged his sleeve.
"Twelve."
"Yes?"
"I don't think I could be happier."
"Yeah, we got our very own happily ever after."