Versus

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

It never took Lucy long to realise when there was something wrong. With her counterpart, there were telltale signs she caught long before most others in the world would, because not only was Penelope Serrano-Blaise a creature of subtlety, she was one of privacy. It was never easy to learn about her unless she gave information willingly, and lucky for Lucy, she had learned so long ago how to read the slightest difference.

Penny never forgot, either. Lucy remembered that. She could do something wrong or likely offensive one day and pay for it a week later. It was life. It was second nature. It was - in its own way - love.

So she noticed when they were leaving the movie theatre how drastically wrong something was. Her hand was still held, but she was met with silence. The ride home in the middle of the day felt stale, too. Lucy let it slide. She didn't engage when she wasn't engaged. She waited. At least, usually she had the means to.

But it was difficult this time. Penny wasn't someone you just took out publicly with ease, either. It took its own brand of precision; things that sorted out in the ink manipulator's head when she likely had no idea of the intense thought. Penny was not typical. Never ordinary in her approach to the things most others would deem so normal. The first point of call Lucy could consider was that she made a mistake in her own attempt at that precision. So as she stepped through the door of the home they shared, she was silent as she hauled her jacket off and hung it where it belonged. As she kicked off boots and left them adjacent to the door so she couldn't drag anything through the house. She mulled in her own silence, until she couldn't.

"I give up." She started, but it sounded like igniting a conversation they had already been having. Perhaps in that silence, they had been fighting. "I'm pretty sure I can say I did everything right, so you just gotta give it to me this time."

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

Penny wasn't a movie goer. She wasn't even a goer of anything. When given the option, the psychometrist chose to stay at home. In the comforts of familiar walls and - more importantly - familiar arms. But she knew the importance of this movie, and her counterpart had pitched it perfectly to her. Over the years, she had learned how to convince Penny to join her. She was precise. Great, even.

This instance, it was a movie. A superhero movie for the girl who loved comics - who loved them so intently she had an enormous tattoo of one of the characters featured. It was more than being just a fan. Without all of her attention on the overlength film, she was acutely aware of her wife sitting next to her. How her attention shifted every time the woman made an appearance on screen.

She became exceptionally attentive; she gave the sort of attention the psychometrist believed only she deserved.

So on the drive back, Penny remained silent. Purposefully so. She still held the Australian's hand, but pursed lips kept her expression sharp. The movie wasn't up for discussion as she focused on the road ahead until they arrived at their home.

Penny slipped the jacket from her own shoulders, hanging it up before reaching down and slipping her shoes off. When she set them aside and bent upright, that silence was broken. The psychometrist raised her eyebrows, quirked upward to question the way she was asked for information.

"Did you enjoy the movie?" She replied instead, tilting her head slightly. "It looked as if you did."

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Deflection. It immediately sounded like a deflection. Actually, Lucy was pretty sure that's what that question was, and given how confident she currently was in her own actions, she was willing to put herself on the line for it. No matter the emotional discourse, she still watched the way she removed her jacket, eyes offering a flick down her form that naturally lingered, even if she wanted to fight it. That wasn't fair either.

"Nope." Lucy argued, shutting down the way in which her love spoke almost instantly. Because she wasn't interested in the way she tried, despite how quick she always was to give into her actions. "Everything right, love. I did everything right."

And as she stepped away, she felt that list elevate to the forefront of her mind. Swinging around, she pressed her hands to her hips, intent on keeping them busy in the same motion where she allocated distance to something potentially white hot. "We went in the morning. On a weekday. Because we're avoiding the school-based crowd, and most adults don't bother going unless it's night time. That's just how it is." But it wasn't a compromise. Truthfully, the ink manipulator didn't care either way.

"We waited a week, to let the first crowds dwindle out and the hype fell. We sat towards the front, because the back seats are both notorious and still the fastest to fill because that's also just kinda what people do." Again, not issues Lucy saw with the situation. These were her points of focus. They were things she knew. They were her second nature, now. "You covered your seat. And I didn't say a word when you cleaned every adjacent arm rest because I knew that's just what you do."

Raising a hand, she ran it through the length of her hair, drawing it to one side. A twist on her heel and she was looking back to her again; "And I didn't leave you at all. I was always there and you were always holding on. So you tell me what little thing I didn't check off the list so I can do it right next time."

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

Penny's question was shut down almost immediately, as if it had nothing to pertain to the context she had brought up. She allowed for surprise to take in her dark eyes as Lucy listed off every detailed thought that went into planning their trip to the movie theater. Admittedly, hearing it spoken aloud put pressure in the psychometrist's chest. It never mattered how frustrated Penny could be, Lucy still knew how to make matters difficult. She wanted to reach out; desperately so, but she was still being pressed for an answer.

So she took soft steps past the Australian, turning into the kitchen to turn on the kettle. Tea, as could be expected from Penny after having been out for a few hours. Tea always helped.

She still looked back at Lucy, and while her jaw wasn't clenched, there was a kind of tension that only she could wear. It burned in her eyes while the remainder of her expression remained almost stoic.

"Did you go and see it just for that woman?" The superhero one. Penny was positive she didn't need to explain.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

As Lucy listed off everything she considered, she didn't seem affected by it. She watched Penny's expression intently the moment she made herself available, but it was only to reiterate the fact for herself. She might have threatened a raised voice, but she wasn't angry. She was just confused.

When a question hit her ears, Lucy did her best to fight a disbelieving smile that wanted to catch her lips. Because the would be more bitter than helpful, and now wasn't the time to respond as such. For someone with a rather large image of the hero in question tattooed into her back, that answer must have already been obvious.

"Duh." Lucy replied, like that sound was a better answer than any real word. And given the look in the eyes of her love, it was clear she knew this already.

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

There, with a singular sound, Penny's expression broke. A twitch of frustration shot through her features, eyebrows lowering. Not only for the way in which Lucy responded, but the reminder of everything that it was. The Brit couldn't even look on the positive side enough to remind herself that at least she wasn't there for the male stars.

"You're an idiot." Penny denoted, probably too harshly for her own good. Though it wasn't the first time - or even likely the last - that she had a shot at her counterpart's intelligence, it was fueled with something far more dangerous than mere annoyance. Jealousy never wore well on the psychometrist.

She returned to her tea; or what she could make of it while she waited for water to boil. Reaching into the cabinet, she curled her fingers around the handle of a teacup, bringing it down to the counter top before going for the loose leaf tea.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

"Woah." Lucy shot back immediately. It wasn't the first time her counterpart bad called her an idiot, and she knew it wouldn't be the last. But without context, it was that much harder not to take offense to the seemingly outlandish statement.

She took steps towards the kitchen then. If they were going to fight aimlessly, they were going to do it in company, not separate rooms.

Lucy pressed her hip against the counter, crossing her arms as she positioned herself right by the kettle this girl would need in due time. "What the fuck was that for?"

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

It was better to keep busy; to keep her hands moving, because even with her frustration, she still wanted to reach out for the ink manipulator. She still wanted to kiss her; in part, that jealousy fueled it all the more.

Penny was difficult when it came to getting information of her. It was a fatal flaw built into her system; or perhaps something a little more brilliant. Either way, she knew that in part, it would be easier to just tell Lucy what she was bothered about. Except, the contrasting side of her wanted the Australian to figure it out for herself.

More than just the twitch of her nose, tension lined Penny's jaw at the way her counterpart swore, but she scooped the loose leaf tea into an infuser, snapping it closed and placing it in her mug before fully turning to her counterpart. Eyes narrowed, lips pressed into a hardened line.

"You were staring."

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Proximity had always been a danger. Lucy knew how to use it to her advantage in her own moments, but no one was better at it than her counterpart. Lucy took a rare moment for herself and used the lead it provided; she could play with such fire too when scrutinised.

Especially when those eyes turned to her like that. She was either mad or upset, but it was like a swirling mix caught in the dark eyes she adored. She instantly found herself staring, and even when she was accused, she glanced at her mouth for a spare second.

And then she caught them. Brief and soft against the harsh way her love accused her. She lingered in contact ad proximity for spare seconds before she drew back, but only just.

"Now tell me." She said, offering the words brushed against her mouth as she refused to step away.

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

It wasn't fair when she wanted to be angry at her counterpart; she knew the steps to take in order to disarm the fuming psychometrist. Gentle pressure to her lips had made her breathless, contrasting everything she was trying to offer by way of frustration. Because she reciprocated only a moment before the fleeting connection broke.

She was already trying to chase that connection, but Lucy spoke before she was given the chance to move for it again. She exhaled softly, feeling as if she already did tell the Australian. Though admittedly, she had been vague.

"I was just...surprised by how attentive you were whenever she appeared on screen." Over two and a half hours, but with every fleeting appearance, her eyes lit up.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

It was almost remarkable how quickly a situation felt diffused by the way in which she kissed her love. Lucy couldn't help but follow the course of action, but it took all her willpower not to lean in again when Penny seemed to search for it. Lucy was almost dismantled by it in turn, but she couldn't let it be.

And she couldn't laugh at the words offered. Pressed lips held back the feeling, but the corner of her mouth still twitched like she wanted to. It wasn't fair to the psychometrist when she looked so concerned by it.

No, not concerned. Irked.

"I don't have alotta interest in two guys beating the piss out of each other for no good reason." Lucy pointed out, but she knew she knew that already; "She's my fave."

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

It was as close as Penny could verbally admit to wearing a strange brand of jealousy over one of the many crushes Lucy had for fictional characters. She knew just how silly it sounded; it felt it, but that jealousy still burned in her veins.

And still, it was as if she didn't understand. Penny let out a harsh, pained breath, that was practically a groan of frustration. Her jaw clenched, eyebrows twitching together. Every sign that that was the last bit of information she wanted to hear. Even if she was denouncing her interest in the male leads.

"Oh, trust me. I know." She replied flatly.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Lucy was sure that on some level, speaking how she had would give her some kind of leeway. It was no secret that she didn't care for any other person in this entire world, but fabled exceptions were simply second nature. The response she got was borderline cold, and as such it had Lucy exhaling a sharp laugh in disbelief. Or her own stupidity. Likely both.

Easing her way past her counterpart, she reached for the kettle herself. She worked to fix the tea thought forgotten in a silent moment of her own creation. She could prove herself in more ways than one, but the primary seemed unavailable. General methods had to prevail instead. "It's not a big deal." She argued, almost carelessly, "The second I ask you to throw on a Wonder one piece before you get to bed? Then it's a big deal."

And worse, she laughed at her own ridiculous humour as she slid the cup over towards her gently.

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

A laugh was only fuel to the frustration Penny was feeling; how it grew with every failed attempt to express herself - or more, to be understood. She hadn't even managed to notice the sound of her water boiling. Dark eyes were too fixed on the girl she both loved and - at times - hated.

But Lucy managed to catch it, and as such, she was the one to continue through the process of making it. The cup was eased her way, and while she might have pressed her palms to the warmth it provided, she didn't look down at it.

Because her eyes were widened at the thought that was forced into her mind. Joke or not, Penny didn't take it lightly in the least. The bridge of her nose creased as she fought the way it bothered her so much. "You better not." She replied darkly.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

For Lucy, diffusing this argument wasn't as paramount as it was supposed to be. There was any number of sweet replies she could have given that would have ruined whatever agrivated state of mind Penny found herself in. Instead, the ink manipulator practically fueled the fire, but it wasn't her intention.

Glancing up, Lucy lost where her attention had settled. The cup where her eyes were on left her gaze, and instead she looked back to where her counterpart was standing. She caught the aggression in her eyes; how irked she clearly was by the humour Lucy tried to inject into the moment.

"Baby," Lucy reasoned, but nothing followed the single, rare word she had used. It was almost like it was enough to stand on its own.