The Road Home

[abrightboy]

Raylan's loose ends had been tied in Kentucky and Malcolm's were as tantalizingly close as they'd ever been. He and Raylan made the trip to New York with the intent of discovering the fate of the girl in the box, so they could head down to Miami without... baggage.

They would have to start with the revelation Jessica and Ainsley had made to Malcolm right before Raylan was shot, sending Malcolm back to Kentucky: that Eve had infiltrated the Whitly family to learn more about the Surgeon's victims.

Malcolm let them into the New York loft - a space he considered theirs now, more than his, since they decided they might weather the hurricane season there after moving to Miami - smiling as Sunshine tweeted greetings. Once the door was shut behind Raylan, he opened the door of her cage. Ainsley would have fed her diligently, but nobody would have let her out to fly. Sunshine took off across the loft and Malcolm grinned, watching her go.

He looked at Raylan. "We can still bring her with us when we leave, right?"

Comments

[tinstar]

Raylan nodded in agreement. That would be an ugly and painful fight, not just for him and Winona but for Malcolm and Willa too. If he could avoid that, he wanted to. The following point was taken with a little laugh of his own at the thought of Jessica honestly arguing that she just had to buy the pony and of course, Willa should enjoy something that wasn't as lowbrow as her father or something.

"That might be a good idea, at least for the first couple. Winona's just about as prideful as I am and your mother isn't exactly subtle." His mouth curled at the edges with his words; he was learning to not mind Jessica's eccentricities, to embrace them as much as he embraced Malcolm's. "Definitely no ponies... But I wouldn't say no to puttin' her through a course or two once she's old enough. Get her comfortable on the back of a horse. Course, I hope she never needs to ride one, but if she ever finds herself in Kentucky again.."

Well, it might come in handy but frankly, Raylan liked the respect and power it brought. Respect for the animal that allowed someone to get from point a to b so swiftly, and the confidence of learning. Both important things, to his mind.

[abrightboy]

"She might get curious about her roots," Malcolm noted. He looked at Raylan. "You know how to ride a horse?"

That shouldn't have been a surprise, the way Raylan dressed. And yet.

"Where did you learn?"

[tinstar]

"Summer work as a farmhand before I got into the mines," he replied with a smile. "It's quicker to bring in a horse by riding it, so I had to learn. But I liked it. Horses too. Never really ridden outside of that, so I am not callin' myself skilled. Just know how to not fall off," he finished with a grin.

But riding in the fields was likely something Malcolm could imagine, he'd seen those exact type of fields.

The grin faulterd as he continued. "I hope she does get curious. But I ain't eager for her to learn the truth of it all. I'd rather keep it a little rosier for her... til she's old enough to understand."

[abrightboy]

"You get to decide that," Malcolm told him. "You get to decide to keep the good parts for her."

[tinstar]

Raylan's gaze was lost on his foot, ruminating in his own thoughts. Didn't she have a right to know where she came from? Did it matter? He wasn't sure.

"And make more good parts," he answered, opting to focus on that than give voice to the thoughts in his head. "With both of us."

He took a deep breath. "That'll hold too. I got time to figure it out." Though he'd likely need Malcolm's help, and he was okay with that.

[abrightboy]

"You're a good father, Raylan. Listen to your own instincts; you know how to take care of people you love," Malcolm assured him. He smiled. "But I'm honestly delighted to help."

[tinstar]

"Well I'm gonna need it so I'm glad." Raylan leaned over and pressed a kiss into Malcolm's hair.

"I should also go ahead and shower, put on a clean shirt for your mother, hmm?" Dinner had to be soon. "Suppose I'll leave my hat here this time.." Never supposed to wear it at the table and all, though it was a rule he often ignored arbitrarily.

"Promise to still be here when I get back or do you wanna join me?"

[abrightboy]

He started to nod acknowledgement of Raylan's plan, but perked up at the invitation, getting up, looking delighted.

"I'm going to put the chain on the door and then I'll be right behind you, but if I get a vote on the hat, I think you should wear it."

[tinstar]

"You always get a vote," he laughed as he pushed to his feet and headed that way, slowly undressing as he went. Boots were kicked off and his tie thrown on the bed as he started on his shirt and got into the bathroom to turn on the shower, stripped down to nothing by the time Malcolm got there.

"Best image I've got in my head is you walkin' around here naked in nothin' but my hat," he continued. That memory came to him often.

[abrightboy]

Malcolm grinned happily, shedding his own clothes in a need to catch up.

"I did leave you a souvenir of the moment," he admitted. "Maybe I knew what I was doing."

He hadn't considered cementing the image itself when he slipped that affirmation card in Raylan's pocket, but whatever worked.

He gave Raylan a lingering kiss before stepping into the shower.

"I can't tell you how happy I am to have you with me when I had to come back here this time."

[tinstar]

"I think you did," he replied with a smile as he collected the kiss and followed into the shower after Malcolm to slide his hands around his waist and pull him close against him. Raylan's smile broke easily into a grin as Malcolm continued.

"Now that I'm done with Harlan, you don't ever haveta come up here alone again, unless we can't help it. You're lucky you're a good road tripper, makes the drive up a lot more comfortable."

Malcolm was a good everything, for the most part and Raylan had somehow known early on that putting Malcolm in the trunk wasn't ever really going to happen. Raylan still wasn't sure why Malcolm's chatter didn't bother him, but he'd had some 8 hours of it on the way up and he still wasn't tired of the sound of Malcolm's voice.

"And even if we do have to make some separate trips, we've got all the holidays to make up for it."

[abrightboy]

"No more double lives. Just the odd business trip," Malcolm said before humming into a kiss. "And our life."

They were bringing Sunshine home with them; this was not a drill.

"When we're at my mother's, don't let me forget to pick up the thing from my old room that I want to give Willa."

He hadn't said what, exactly, it was, but Raylan would find out soon.

"When we find the house, I want her room to be great."

[tinstar]

Raylan hummed back before laughing softly to himself. How was it even possible that he was this happy and secure? He nodded at Malcolm's reminder.

"Still ain't gonna tell me what it is? I'm findin' being patient harder and harder." They were supposed to be showering, but Raylan was selfishly enjoying the bare contact and intimacy of that. He squinted.

"You're not gonna get her some four poster princess bed, right?"

[abrightboy]

Malcolm smirked up at him.

“Deputy Marshal Givens,” he said with playfully false indignation, “are you suggesting that I - as a child - slept in a four poster ‘princess’ bed?”

He stepped back so Raylan was squarely in the spray and reached for the shampoo with one hand, the other arm still wrapped around him.

“Because I know I did ballet but I was actually still a boy.”

[tinstar]

"We could call it a prince bed if you want," Raylan said with a grin as he tilted his head back and carded one hand through his hair, getting it wet and ready for the incoming shampoo.

"But I was thinkin' more of what you might consider when you're talkin' about makin' a little girl's room great. A princess bed seems to taste."

[abrightboy]

He laughed, reluctantly unwrapping that free hand from Raylan's middle to squeeze shampoo into it.

He did love pushing shampoo into his hair, though.

"Maybe when she's a bit older, if that's what she chooses. I mean. We can't do anything about that."

Not give her the kind of Big Girl Bed she wants? Out of the question.

"She's a bit small for one now," he teased.

[tinstar]

Raylan loved that part too - he might help with the hair wetting but he wasn't going to get in the way of the shampoo and conditioner. He chuckled at the assertion, cracking an eye at Malcolm as he idly ran his hand up and down his back.

"Definitely a little small for such a big girl bed. Only other idea I can come up with is a lamp. Maybe one with stars or planets cut out of it." He watched Malcolm's face for any hints that he was right.

[abrightboy]

Malcolm couldn't stop a crack of a smile.

"Ocean waves, actually, and ships that sail around the room," he corrected. "Detective," he added, teasing. "But she can have my books, too, when she's older."

[tinstar]

"Ah!' he sounded in victory with a laugh and a grin. "I hope you get her into all of all the stuff you read. I can handle the fiction section. Plenty of Stephen King and Isaac Asimov. Maybe some Winnie the Pooh in there when she's old enough."

[abrightboy]

"Winnie the Pooh. I didn't think of that one." He moved Raylan under the water, rinsing him out. "I loved that light when I was a kid. It was my favourite thing. I hope she'll enjoy it."

[tinstar]

"I'm sure she will," he assured, tilting his head back to be rinsed out. "I also think it's crazy that you've still got a lamp from your childhood."

He didn't have anything from his; it was a novel idea. Raylan pushed forward, bringing himself out of the the stream so he could kiss Malcolm chastely but deeply, nonetheless.

"She's gonna love you, you know that right," he muttered as the kiss broke.

[abrightboy]

"It's an antique," he explained.

He met the kiss with a faint hum and smiled at that sentiment almost bashfully.

"I don't know what that's going to be like," he admitted. "But I'm also really excited for it."

[tinstar]

Raylan sounded an 'ah' note and found himself smiling again, as he almost always did when they were together.

"Got our whole lives," he repeated with no small amount of pleased awe as he turned Malcolm into the spray and grabbed the shampoo himself. "And a whole lot to look forward to. Tomorrow's just the new first day in making it all happen. We'll knock it outta the park."

They finished their shower shortly after, being well behaved enough to not let their naked intimacy distract them and make them late, and Raylan got dressed in clean clothes and one of his nicer work shirts. His casual didn't feel right at Jessica Whitly's dinner table, so this was his most comfortable option. The hat was slid on though, per and fully because of Malcolm's request, and Raylan was glad for it. He liked wearing his hat, thank you very much.

[abrightboy]

Malcolm liked seeing the Hat. There was something reassuring about Raylan's silhouette that the hat was part of. There was a normalcy to it. He was glad the Marshal had picked up an extra one in New York that time. It wouldn't have been right for him to get back on his feet and not have it. Like Boon had taken something away.

He'd almost taken something away. Malcolm almost felt bad for feeling relieved the psycho was dead.

He dressed in a suit, of course, and when they reached the townhouse, he let them in with his key, walking into the lounge, but not finding her there, so he carried on into the living room.

"Hello, Mother," he said as he spotted her.

She turned around from where she was pouring herself a tumbler of scotch.

"Darling!" she exclaimed with a bright smile. "You've returned. Good. This situation has gotten out of hand; Eve has stopped taking my calls, which is inconvenient, since she's my attorney on this dreadful stabbing matter and apparently there's some sort of form that needs to be filed as a formality to close it out for good and it hasn't been filed..." She turned her attention to Raylan, her eyes sweeping up and down, appraising. "And you're back on your feet," she noted without pausing for breath. "Well, that's a relief, isn't it?" She took a sip of her drink. "Dreadful business, hospitals and... bullets. Come through," she told them, turning to lead the way into the dining room. "Ainsley is already here."

Malcolm looked at Raylan as she turned, his lips pressed together and his eyebrows raised. She was in a state. He tilted his head after her before following. Might as well see it through. At least she wasn't telling either of them off.

[tinstar]

There was a security to it for Raylan, one that he tried to ignore and not acknowledge whenever possible. It was part of his image; what he was known for. If he thought about it, he'd be glad for the spare too.

Still, he felt good next to Malcolm as they came up and into the house. Less nervous or tense than he'd ever been before, though he couldn't say why. Maybe it was because he knew there was nothing that could stop him and Malcolm now. His eyes still swept the house as they moved through it, mind still imagining that anyone could pop up out of the curtains. But Jessica was a better distraction from what he was sure was fine and he gave her a warm squinty eyed smile.

Alright. Malcolm was right. She liked him enough, even if he might not be her most favorite person in the world.

"Sorry to have kept Malcolm down there for so long. We woulda come up sooner, but I was kept in line by the rules." And one very concerned Malcolm who wouldn't let him break them. Sweetheart that he is.