Owner	Pose
Molly Hayes	Molly could barely sleep for nights after running into Karolina and Beroe at Coney Island. Maybe it was the cotton candy, or maybe it was the anticipation! She'd texted Nico right away with a lot of heart emojis and rainbows and very few words. Mainly "GUESS WHO I RAN INTO?!" and a selfie of herself and Karolina for later. An invitation to dinner was, of course, forthcoming and that's the topic of Molly's unbridled excitement: A night where she could slip away from Happy Harbor and see her best friends again.     So that brings us to now, Molly waiting in front of Karolina's apartment, hopping from foot to foot, staring at her phone. She's always going to be wearing that adorable Boo hat if Nico is involved in the outing, and the rest of her is in a puffy pink coat with Kirby on the back and her usual jeans and sneaks, hand-me-downs for a growing woman.
Nico Minoru	Nico spent /several/ seconds wracking her brain to figure out who Molly might have ran into until the selfie popped up on her phone, and the goth nearly dropped it in shock. Karolina back in town! Molly running into her! ...Maybe their behatted girl has magic powers. Magic find her gal pal powers that have somehow kicked in with her age. And then Nico had to pick out something for dinner. For dinner with friends... but... such good friends. Karolina. Molly. This is important. And so while she's still going dark in theme, it's less ornate Victorian era garb, but... still, a slim black dress, nothing too showy, but it's comfortable and casual and it matches her spiderweb patterned stockings. And of course, buckle-festooned thick soled boots as she makes her way down the sidewalk, bringing fingers to her lips to whistle sharply and throw her other arm up in a wild wave towards Molly, pace picking up to rush up and join Molly, reaching out to knock on the door... and flinching. Like she's knocking on some sort of dragon's door. But dragons just try to eat you or whatever. This is all... so much more confusing!
Karolina Dean	Karolina putters around her kitchen. After all, her friends are coming to dinner. Her friends who she hasn't really seen in quite a while. Her friends whom she loves and misses. Is there potential for awkwardness? Of course. Is she going to let that bother her? Not at all. She checks out the spread she's laid out. Two different kinds of hummus with vegetables and pita chips for dipping, oven roasted broccoli dusted in curry powder, a burnt orange squash soup, a small vegan lasagna, and the final thing she's finishing up right now, crispy and warm falafel with vegan tzatziki sauce. The knock comes, and Lina almost jumps out of her skin. She finishes pulling the falafel from the oil before darting over to buzz them up, hitting the intercom. Her voice is a little buzzy though the speaker. "Come on up! I can't wait to see you. Front door is unlocked!" She darts back over to turn the burner off. Karolina is wearing soft and faded jeans, a peach colored short sleeve over a white long sleeve and no shoes. Thick, warm socks are on her feet instead.
Molly Hayes	"It's us!" Molly squeals when she hears Lina's voice, then she gasps and wraps Nico up tight in a hug. "OMIGOSH! You look so good! So fancy! AAH! I have a girlfriend and she's totes hot!" The girl is ecstatic, and barely remembers herself and keeps herself from actually picking up Nico in a fireman's carry and hauling her inside. No.     She reigns in her enthusiasm, takes a long breath, emits a tiny squeak, and opens the door. "...um.. um.. you first! I've.. I already saw her. She lives here! She's been living here! How'd we miss her?" she almost flails but lets Nico go in first and follows behind.
Nico Minoru	Nico lets out an exaggerated little 'oof' as Molly seizes her into this hug! She returns it eagerly and has to fight back a laugh, which really /does/ make it sound like she's wheezing from the hug. "Hey! I'm the one who's supposed to be all self-deprecating and surprised I have such a cute girlfriend! And a lucky one! I mean, running into Karolina? I didn't even think she was... in town!" She winks and points upwards... yes, definitely not /in town/. And then Nico's carefully opening Karolina's door... she's been bad luck to doors lately, even if once was indirectly, but like, she did fluster Molly, so it was kind of her fault. Nico springs towards Karolina only to pause, her cheeks suddenly heated as she stares at her blonde friend, "I... hey... it's... you! You're here! Like... in town! On Earth! And... you met Molly! And she took a selfie with you and... I'm... just listing things you already know."
Karolina Dean	In the handful of seconds it takes Nico and Molly to get into her apartment from the street, Karolina begins to fret, anxiety seizing her heart. She shouldn't be nervous, these are her very dear friends, some of the only people on the planet, in the universe, who understand her. And yet... This is all forgotten when Nico enters. The blonde is all smiles as she takes her apron off hurredly and throws it aside. In a very Molly move, she nearly hurls herself at Nico and embraces her without even asking. Luckily, she's not terribly heavy or bone-crushingly strong. Her face ends up buried in the other girl's shoulder, and her words are muffled. "You look great. I missed you so much!" She's not crying. yet.
Molly Hayes	Nope, it's Molly that's bone-crushingly strong. And tough. And. She closes the door behind her, clasping her hands together and fidgeting as she watches Nico and Karolina reunite. She doesn't want to interrupt the moment. She lets Karolina say her words, hug the singular Nico, and wrings her hands. It feels like forever for her, even if it's maybe a minute, tops.     And then she's rushing in, "'Lina! Wizards and wiseguys, we're together again!" she carefully, albeit with enthusiasm, she wraps both arms around both girls and inserts herself into the hug, burying her face in both shoulders, eyes shut tight. ...ok she might be crying now. "...we're... we're together again..." she repeats, whimpering.
Nico Minoru	Nico lets out a squawk that's somewhere between shock at Karolina launching towards her, and helpless, joyous amusement at the very same thing. She's mindful not to hug her blonde friend _too_ tightly with her magical arm, just a real good, snug squeezing tightness of hugging, and maybe a little extra oomph... you know, to make sure Karolina's really here and not some magic illusion. She smiles crookedly and shakes her head, "Oh, please, this took _so_ much work! ...Well, the makeup. The clothes were uhh... kinda easy. I own a lot of black still." And as Molly moves in, Nico's arm stretches out on that side to gather the most stylish hat-owner of their group into that group embrace as she gives Molly a soft little pat on the back... to reassure her it's okay to cry? To try and soothe her to not cry? Both? Both. Paradoxical back patting. She eyes Karolina and grins broadly, "So like... I could have been crashing on your couch this entire time? I have slept in _so_ many libraries..."
Karolina Dean	Karolina lets herself luxuriate in the embrace of two of her dearest friends. A tear or two might escape her eyes when Molly joins in, the group hug now official. She takes a breath and pulls up, smiling slightly at Nico. "You always look great." She joins Nico in rubbing Molly's back, doing what she can to help soothe her. "We're here. Together again. We don't have to be apart." Her slightly beatific smile is instantly gone, like a record scratch at Nico's words. "You've been -what-?! Nico!"
Molly Hayes	Molly just about melts as she's patterd and backrubbed. She'd purr if she was able to. She hums though. Close enough? Close enough. Then at Karolina's sudden 'what?!', she pulls back and laughs. Sniffles, but laughs. "I wish I could've been sleeping in libraries! I was stuck in a foster home 'til I got a dorm at Happy Harbor! But now Nico an' I are tryna find a place..." she pulls her arms back and folds them in front of her, shuffling her feet some. "...but I dunno if I can find a job an' still go to school, I've got two years still cuz of... everything..."     She looks away, cheeks still red, eyes still watery. "...after we got split up... everything... kinna went to dookie an' I did a lot of running. A lot. I... guess where I'm at's okay but we're hoping we can find a place together... an' I don't want Nico to have to pay for all of it. Um... library chairs are real comfy though, I got yelled at for falling asleep in one once..." she rambles a bit and wipes her eyes.
Nico Minoru	Nico grins a little sheepishly at Karolina, "What? I thought one of us had to keep being an actual runaway! ...Also, the one time I almost had an apartment lined up angels invaded and I think maybe blew the building up? I'd gone out of town for the weekend and uhh... missed the whole thing." She shrugs lightly, like whatcha gonna do? New York apartment hunting, right? She makes a little gesture towards Molly with her chin, "See? Libraries confirmed comfy. I mean, also a lot of the university ones have couches, so you can uhh... sneak into the... stacks? Is that what you call any of the giant rows of shelves? And then it's super easy to sleep once everyone's gone and like, no one's around at night!"
Karolina Dean	Lina closes her eyes as Molly and Nico explain. She's had it so easy. With the ridiculous piles of money left to her by her parents, she's only had to concern herself with her education and whatever else she wanted to do. These two had to survive. Her heart breaks just a little, guilt clouding her face. "L-let's have some food. I told Molly I would help you two find a place to live, so I've printed out some listings we can look at later?" She sounds unsure, her stomach tangled in knots as she ushers her friends to the spread. It at least looks good!
Molly Hayes	"I would.. do anything.. to get out of that foster home permanently. I'm sharing a room with a girl my age! She's allowed to have boys over!" Molly grouses, "An' I can't stay in the dorms ALL the time. Maybe I can get, like, special um... special... circumstance.. thingy.. so I don' have to ever leave... an' Vivian's graduating so I won't have a roomie..." The not-so-tiny girl with the cute hat looks even cuter when she's grumpy. Her attitude doesn't match her curves, though, easier to notice now that she's sliding off her poofy Kirby coat.     "Mmhn... thanksy, Lina. I hope we can find a place! An' thanksy for dinner! Did.. did you make the crunchy falafel bits I asked about?" she seems to right her mood immediately at the talk of chow. She gives a small smile to Nico, "...you.. guess a lot better at runnin' away than me.... I kept getting caught.." she pouts.
Nico Minoru	Nico laughs softly and perks her eyebrows up, glancing around Karolina's apartment slowly, like she's already doing calculus on the size of Molly and her, and the apartment. Planning out how much room they'd need for a place. Although the problem solving is interrupted when she tugs Molly into another hug and a peck of a kiss atop her head, "Hey! That's... like... a good thing! Not you running away, but like, you not having to. I mean, I never graduated high school. You're going to, and you've got a roomie, and when she graduates you'll have a _friend_!" She looks over to Karolina, eyebrows lifting as she grins, "Hey, I'm never going to turn down a meal cooked with love... you seem a little nervous though..." Her eyes narrow slightly, voice dropping, you're really okay being like... back in town, Karolina? I've missed you a ton, and Molly and... it's already great with all of us being together again."
Karolina Dean	"Nervous? Me?" Karolina laughs, but it's kind of choked. "I'm not nervous, I..." She sighs. "I feel guilty. I've got money. I've got this huge place to live. You two have had it so hard, and it's not fair. It's not fair at all. I'm fine being back in town, Nico. I'm not going anywhere." Luckily, the crunchy falafels are there with plenty of the sauce. Lina starts to reach for a plate, but stops, appetite failing her for the moment. She looks at Nico, her hair falling to shade her eyes. "I'm guessing your budget isn't ... extensive."
Molly Hayes	"Look... it's..." Molly melts into the hug, squeezing Nico's arms around her. "...we all had... like... SUPER evil parents. Yours were just super good at making money an' integrating into society? I uh... still gotta leave the room whenever the foster parents watch reruns of General Hospital, tho..." the behatted girl shudders and sinks more into Nico's embrace. "Mmmh... Viv's a friend, a super good friend. She's gonna help me out with my jetpack! Woosh!"     Molly's moods seem mercurial enough, bouncing back and forth, but the underlying sorrow of their shared past does linger in her eyes. "Uhm.. Nico's got a job but I don't... I guess, like... I could be a barista or something.. I can't make money punching bad guys, I keep getting told..." she hangs her head, the little floppy arms of her Boo hat wiggling. The shirt she had on underneath her jacket is a She-Ra and the Princesses of Power shirt! Clearly Princess Powerful has a love of that particular series.
Nico Minoru	Nico Minoruico laughs softly and shakes her head as Karolina pauses, giving a reassuring little gesture to keep gathering up the components of dinner, "It's... not too bad. I mean, I've got a bunch of like... part time jobs? They can pay pretty well with tips." She rolls her eyes and heaves out a sigh, "I mean if I was doing more like... organized uhhh... superheroics? I mean, like, I was dealing with magic things that came up, if I went back to that I'd probably take a hit on income, but I can... afford a small place." She's sure not going to mention that her bed might wind up being a mattress on milk crates though. No need to worry 'lina about that. She laughs helplessly and _squeezes_ Molly as the other girl bemoans the lack of money to be made punching bad guys, "See? Magic problems, crime fighting, neither of them pay apparently. Which just seems unfair, right?"
Karolina Dean	Tears threaten again. She listens to the hardships and can't help but be moved by them. She bites her lip, but she listens to Nico, assembling herself a small plate of goodies. She still doesn't touch them. She can't. Thoughts tumble through her head. She knows what she wants to do, knows what she should do. She doesn't know how they'll react, and it makes her a little scared. She can't lose them again by wounding their pride. Still, she'll never sleep well again if she doesn't try. "Why ... Why don't you two move in... With me? I have plenty of space, and honestly I'd let you live here for free because I love the both of you, but if you want to pay rent, we can work something out. I don't want you," she looks at Molly. "To quit school to work. You're graduating, dammit." Her gaze swaps to Nico. "And I don't want you working yourself to death to live in a shoebox."
Molly Hayes	Molly makes the most adorable noise as Nico squeezes her. It's like a squeak and a squeal mixed together, the young woman's voice still cute and girlish. It seems like she's impervious to pain but something about snuggles hits harder! It just makes her wiggle tighter into Nico's embrace. "Right?! What was it, unless I wanna work for the mob or something? They don't get cute hats..." she grumps. "...and I'd probably get yelled at for drinking too much sugared coffee on break and then I'd just go brbrbrbrbbrrbrbr because of all the caffeine and..."     She sniffs a little, eyeing the food. Hunger is definitely taking over. She gently squeezes Nico's hands and tries to pull her small-tiddy goth GF over towards the table and the spread. She's about to reach for a plate to load up when Karolina drops the bomb on them. Her fingers swipe at air and she stares, eyes as wide as those plates, "...Lina? ...w-wha.. really? But.. what about... your girlfriend or whatever? Poly... poly-Namor-us... no wait that's... the water guy.. an'... you're a lez-bean..." she frowns, trying to collect her thoughts.     "...sweet French toast, are you serious?!"
Nico Minoru	Nico bites her lower lip tightly... fortunately not 'break the skin and bleed and then knock over Karolina's table with the Staff of One and feel like a total dweeb' hard... but still, she bites her lip hard as she watches Karolina, clearly struggling with something. And then her friend's blurting out the offer and Nico's eyes are widening like saucers, mouth falling open. Cheeks flushing, as she blurts out, "We.. I... love you too, Karolina! Totally." She snorts softly and murmurs, "I mean, I wasn't working hard enough to _kill_ myself, it's just bartending and waitressing and... stuff. Like, it's not like I'm carrying boxes in a warehouse but I totally have this arm that could..." She shakes her head sharply to hush herself... only for that self control to be shattered by Molly's rambling but very poignant and important questions and bring her right back to giggling and shaking her head wildly, "I... don't worry about all that Molly. We'll make it work. We'll be her roomies. It'll be fine. I mean, this place has like.... lights and running hot water and _totally_ chic furniture. We'll make do! And, you know, try not to completely take over Karolina's closet with goth dresses and adorable hats."
Karolina Dean	It looks like a weight lifts from Lina's shoulders as they don't outright refuse or get mad or anything. She exhales a breath she didn't know she was holding. Molly's question gets a smile, gentle and amused. "I am a polyamourous lesbian, yes, Molly. But I don't -have- a girlfriend right now. I might go on a date here or there, but, well, nothing serious." She positively beams at Nico. "It will be fine, and I have more than enough closet space for all your witchy wardrobe and Molly's cute hats. ... This will be so much fun!"
Molly Hayes	"...you mean... you mean all the hot water won't be gone when I need to shower for school?!" Molly squeaks with joy, then turns around and picks up Nico. "Is this for reaaaaaaaaaal?!" she squeaks again and just spins around with the goth beauty before setting her down. "I promise I won't break anything! And... and... and I've... got all my hats in a box.. cuz... sharing a room.. and... I don't have many clothes... and... I like lotsa food. I know you make real good food and..."     She blinks at Karolina, before just blurting out: "You've got two girlfriends right here now!" Wait. She said that word. Does that word mean what she thinks it means? Or is she just projecting? Or.... there might be a moment of awkward silence.
Nico Minoru	Nico squeals out as she's lifted and spun around, arms lifting up above her head in a /very/ muppety-flailing fashion with uncontrolled laughter, genuine and warm and delighted. And then she's _gasping_ and pointing imperiously at Karolina, "Oh ho ho ho, you're single? With two new roommates? Who are your best friends?" Eyebrows shoot high, "You won't be single long, Karolina... you've..!" And then Molly's just blurting out and her eyes widen, darting back and forth between Molly and Karolina, and Nico can _feel_ her cheeks burning, she's shocked there's not steam rising from her head, "I... was... going to say we'd totally set you up but uhh... Molly's... uhhh..." She clears her throat and mumbles, "She raises a point."
Karolina Dean	Karolina laughs in genuine delight as Molly hoists Nico and spins her around. The muppet flailing on Nico's part truly sells it. She missed this so much. Being with them, her dearest friends. It's all she's ever wanted. Her money doesn't matter, her schooling doesn't matter. This big apartment, this city, this world -does not matter-, if she can't share it with the people she loves. Even as optimistic and jyful as she is, Kaolina Dean missed these two. Of course, now it's her turn to blush as both Molly and Nico seem to be teaming up. "W-what?" Not that she and Nico haven't been together before, but it was never ... three.
Molly Hayes	Funny enough, even though Molly is the one that suggested it, maybe it wasn't her original intent. But then Karolina's blushing. And Nico is blushing. AND backing her up. Molly blinks, finally unhanding Nico so she can load up a plate with vegan snacks. But now she's blushing too, even as she loads up her plate with curried broccoli and a big ol' hunk of lasagna.     "Oh..." she says in a small voice. "...I mean... um... I learned... the other day.. that... you're allowed... to have more 'n one girlfriend..." she shuffles her feet a little, looking between the taller girls. "...an' I can't think of anyone else I love more'n you two..."
Nico Minoru	Nico heaves out a long, low sigh and bobs her head, reaching out to gently squeeze Molly's shoulder, "I mean, Molly's just... saying what I'm thinking too. I... was happy when I was with you Kare... and I'm happy with Molly, and I'm tired of not having both of you in my life and now... suddenly you're both here and... I don't want to lose either of you." Shoulders rise and fall helplessly and she murmurs dryly, "And, like, we don't have to worry about disappointing our parents, right?"
Karolina Dean	Karolina listens. She thinks and considers. On one hand, she is very nervous. These are her dearest friends, and ascending that relationship to a different level changes it fundamentally. Forever. Potentially bringing it to ruin if it goes bad. On the other, every other part of her wants to say yes. Love is what makes the world move, and she knows in her rainbowed and glittery soul that these two deserve so much of it and still have so much to give. She bites her lip, looking between the two of them. She steps closer, reaching to take one of Nico's hands in one of hers and one of Molly's in the other. "I don't want to lose either of you. I was so happy when Molly found me, even if it took hours to get all the sand out of my hair and clothes. When she said you were back, I almost cried on the spot. So... Yes. I'll make your duo into a trio."
Molly Hayes	"Our parents sucked..." Molly grumbles, taking a pita chip and a big helping of hummus as she crunches away her embarrassment. Crunch crunch. She has the courtesy to swallow, though, before talking. "...they.. tore us apart.. an'... we're finally together again. S'been so long. Too long... an'... We been through so much. Together. I wanna keep doin' stuff together!" She licks the salt from her fingertips, just in time for her hand to be snagged.     "H-heeey... I had to tackle you. And make sure you was you. And... feel you. Cuz. It'd been so long. And. Now we're here... an omigosh does that mean we can snuggle?! An' watch movies on the couch?!" she squeaks, even just excited about normal gal pal roomie things. She's not even thinking about the other possibilities. "Um.. um.. just. Tell me how I can help, ok? You know I'm real strong! An' ...maybe you can teach me how to cook some of this real good stuff so I can, like... I'unno, repay you some."
Nico Minoru	Nico smiles, slipping her hand into Karolina's, her non-metallic one, fingers warm, squeezing gently as she takes one of Molly's hands with her other and she sighs out loudly, "I was /floored/ when Molly sent me that selfie of you two. I mean, I was still reeling from running into _her_ and new years and... like, maybe we're just finally getting lucky. We went through so much crap, and now... we're... grown and in control and making our own choices, and maybe we just get to... _be_." Nico's eyebrows pop up and her lips slowly spread into a wide wide grin, "I mean, that's... also a good point. If we're living here, it's probably a good idea to make sure we can fit on the couch for movie nights and not be uncomfortable, right? There's gotta be a big cozy blanket we can use... and popcorn... and we're _not_ going anywhere, so we're going to keep you company, Karolina." She perks an eyebrow and grins, "Oh! And cooking lessons? You mean I can learn to cook something that doesn't involve microwaving or deep frying?"
Karolina Dean	Karolina giggles at Molly's assertion. "I suppose that's fair, Mols. Even with the hat, it was hard to believe it was you." All smiles now, though her eyes are still a little wet. She can't help it. She's got all of these feelings, mostly joy, and they threaten to overwhelm. "And yes, we can snuggle on the couch. I think it should be big enough, but, well, I can dip into the reserves and get a bigger one." Her eyes slide to Nico, meeting her gaze, blinking away unfallen tears. "Yes. We finally get a chance to be who we want. Nothing to run from. No crisis to hide from. ... Well, no crisis related to us, anyway. We can live as normal and average lives as we want." She glances slyly at Molly. "Though the superhero bit is fun, sometimes." Then there's a sigh. "I will teach you both how to cook and eat properly. Molly's metabolism is cheating, but we're not getting any younger, Nico, and too much fried food will catch up with us eventually." Says the girl who is literally a living star (sort of).
Molly Hayes	"New years! We had a good luck kiss! Then I ran into 'Lina! It worked!" Molly exclaims happily, hopping up and down for a moment. She's shorter than Karolina, but only just a bit moreso than Nico. She's catching up! "And.. I'm a big girl now! I had to get some new clothes an' everything.. even if they're just, like... school stuff and foster sister stuff..." she grumbles some more. "...but.. um... um... if you get a bigger couch.. I can carry it! Promise! But.. can't you fly? OH! I can use the jetpack!" she's going a mile a minute, just full of emotions now. Happy emotions.     "So happy, so lucky, so everything....!" she squeals joyfully, pulling the girls into another hug before letting go. "So hungry! C'mon! Those stupid painted pieces of fence say stuff like 'live laugh love eat' or 'eat good, feel good' or whatever! Foods gettin' cold an if we're gonna be stayin' here together... let's eat! 'Lina did all this work for us!" she pushes up on her toes to kiss Karolina's cheek and then Nico's before returning to her plate.     "We'll... get our stuff organized tomorrow.. after school or... whatever... an' I'll see if I can just... use my jetpack to avoid ridin' the bus to school. Grab my box of hats after class an' say goodbye to the foster folks." She nods firmly.     "...and um. Thanks. 'Lina. For everything. For dinner. For... for just. Being my friend. Our friend."