Mmhmm. She hasn't figured out very much yet but it doesn't seem all that hard.

"You're a budding mechanical engineer, you are."

"Winona, babe, what's for dinner?" Julie calls.

"Fish skewers," Winona calls back.

"Keen," says Julie.

Dinner is halibut skewers with zucchini and bayleaves and lemon slices on them.

Nom. (She continues to be in the habit of reading at the table.)

Are they doing anything special tonight since Julie is home?

There is dessert! Winona bought a pie! She serves herself and Julie and pauses, looking at Dusk.

Dusk blinks at the look and shrugs.

"If she doesn't like cherry you could've got pecan, I don't need to eat cherry pie every month like clockwork," says Julie.

"No, no, it's some thing about dessert in general..." Winona almost starts cutting another slice, then stops and sits down to start hers.

It's complicated. It's not dessert in general but it's not exactly not, either. The pie would have been fine but asking her about it was kind of not.

"I'm sorry," says Winona.

It's okay. Winona wasn't trying to do anything bad.

She's been keeping what food she likes and doesn't like secret for a long time; it's probably safe to stop now but it doesn't feel safe, especially since she can't take it back. And even if it is safe she doesn't really want to think about it herself.

"Well, next time I can just put some dessert on your plate without asking if you want any," says Winona.

Yeah.

(Winona is pretty great.)

Winona smiles and kisses her head.

Julie takes a second slice of pie and gives Dusk some without asking if she wants any.

That gets a grin, though the pie itself is eaten with the same careful neutrality as everything else.

"It is good to be home," pronounces Julie when she's put away the second slice of pie.

It's good to have her home.

Movie? Or something?

Movie! What Disney stuff haven't they watched yet? Princess and the Frog?

They could watch that! She's seen part of it but not the end.

They can watch the entire thing! And have popcorn. Julie and Winona sit on either side of Dusk and the popcorn goes on her lap.

Eeee. (The movie's good, too.)

Julie goes to bed early, right after the movie ends. "Julie's going to be a little tired for the next few days recovering from her injury," Winona tells Dusk. "I don't expect it to be a big deal but maybe no hot air balloon towing."

That's fine. She's going to be okay, though, right?

"She'll be fine, Dusk. Kaiju are nasty critters but we can help out our own healing a lot in starscape."

All right.

Snuggle.