"QJ..." A soft voice whispered his name, pulling him out of his slumber. He opened his eyes with a heartfelt sigh. "Didn't we agree not to visit before dawn?"
Angel swayed gently overhead, her spider legs gripping several strands of webbing. "Yes, that was the agreement. But this mystery supersedes that."
"It can wait until my alarm goes off." QJ pulled the pillow over his head.
Angel lowered herself until her hair was nearly touching the bed. "The orange cake has reappeared."
"Reappeared?" QJ moved the pillow aside, not surprised to find Angel's pretty face a few inches away.
Angel nodded and pointed to the small table near the door. "That's it, right? The same one that vanished back then?"
The round, two-layered cake stood out like a lighthouse during a midnight storm. QJ grabbed a set of ceramic discs from his bedside table and immediately logged in.
A moment later, QJ appeared in the corner of his room, fully dressed in his school uniform. He ignored his real self lying on the bed and joined Angel, who had moved to the doorway.
QJ bent closer, inhaling the sweet scent of oranges. "Orange frosting, masterfully applied with a delicate touch." He pointed out the gentle marks on the cake; the baker treated the topping like a canvas, with each brush stroke matching the one next.
"A magical mystery cake," Angel agreed. "We're going to eat it, right?"
QJ nodded. "Definitely going to eat it."
A few minutes later, light footsteps approached from the hall. Anna peeked in, her short, dark hair standing upright as if in protest. "What are you two..." She paused when she noticed the half-eaten cake. QJ sat near Angel, leaning against the soft fur of her carapace as they both enjoyed a large piece of the delectable morsel.
QJ held his finger to his lips. "Shhh... You'll wake up, Dad; then we'll have to share."
Anna stared at the cake for a moment before nodding. "I'll be right back! This girl wants some cake, too," she whispered.
Anna returned a few moments later, sitting next to QJ while he cut her a piece. "Don't chintz me!"
"It's a mystery cake," Angel said. "I was checking up on QJ when I noticed it."
"You check-up, QJ?" Anna used her fork to cut off a small piece before popping it into her mouth. "Oh god... that's so good."
"What's so good?" Quinn spoke from the hallway; his twin gnome pistols were evidence that this was his TAP avatar. "Is that cake?"
"Crap..." QJ frowned at Anna, who guiltily ignored his glance before sampling another bite.
"Tal! Log-in to the house. We have cake!" Quinn rubbed his hands together greedily. "Save those last two pieces for us."
Angel shifted slightly so Quinn and Tal could sit on the floor. "As expected, the Nemesis can sniff out baked goods."
Tal laughed at her son's expression. "Do we know someone who bakes?"
"Not telling," QJ frowned at his dad, who was scrapping the orange frosting off the cake platter.
"Whoever they are, make sure to say thank you," Quinn waved his fork in the air while he spoke. "Orange frosting with two layers of orange cake, separated by a thin layer of lemon icing. Good stuff."
Tal nodded in agreement, smiling at the small family circle. "We should do this again."
Anna nodded in agreement. "Let's proclaim the 1st of every month to be Cake Day! All in favor?"
"Aye," Q replied.
"Aye," Tal replied.
"Fine..." QJ pulled the empty cake platter from his dad's hands and placed it back on the table. "Everyone out."
"Sure, sure," Quinn snorted while helping Tal to her feet. "Who wants milk?"
"Oooo... We should have milk next time." Anna followed Tal and Quinn downstairs, leaving Angel and QJ alone.
Angel sighed in discontentment. "We were forced to share the mystery cake."
QJ nodded. "Yeah... Let's get a glass of milk."
[At the same time, in the Exodus Museum of Gaming History]
A stealthed figure hung upside in the entry, an obvious lookout. She moved deeper into the shadows but not before whistling softly.
A second figure was holding a rope as she carefully lowered her teammate. She heard a Nightingale's soft whistle. "It's still clear, Ori."
"Understood." The goggled girl reached carefully through the security lasers that protected the Guns and Gore Artifact. She carefully sprayed the timer that was attached to the glass. You had to enter the code, or an alarm would go off. Unless, of course, you froze the timer. Ori shook her head; Exodus security was so crappy.
A few minutes later, six stealthed figures moved quickly through Exodus; by the time alarms went off, they had already arrived back at the Songbird Tavern. They entered quickly and locked the door behind them.
Nightingale slipped her hood off and walked behind the bar, "I'll pour."
Ren was the last to slip her hood off; she smiled at Lara. "Seamless as always."
"Yep, great planning Lara." Robin sipped her drink before glancing at Ren. "That's for QJ, right?" The Songbirds visited the Vegas house regularly.
"Give it up, Robin. QJ is too young for you." Lark laughed at her friend's antics.
"Who said I like QJ?" Robin downed her drink and motioned for another. "I'm not too old for him either."
Ren laughed gently. "Yep, his birthday is coming up, and he's crazy for everything from Guns and Gore."
Robin pursed her lips together. "Is that going to be from all of us?"
Ren gave them a guilty look. "I could do that, I suppose."
Robin glanced down when her hud buzzed. Then, without thinking, she opened the brief text message.
[Best cake I ever had. Thanks, Robs.]
Robin dismissed her previous comment with a wave of her hand. "I'm just teasing. I'll get him something else."
"Hey..." Ren smiled at the orange-haired Songbird. "Besides Guns and Gore, he likes outdoor activities; rock climbing, hiking, swimming..."
"Noted," Robin replied.
***********
Several weeks passed, QJ spent his days at TAP Academy with his classmate while squeezing in a few hours daily with Angel and Jacob. Robin began stopping by the house regularly. After learning about 'Cake Day,' she volunteered her baking services.
Midnight in Ravenwood, cloaked in shadows, a lone figure fled from the warehouse like a thief in the night.
/Ravenwood: Crow: Son of a bitch! We got a break-in at the warehouse!
/Ravenwood: Fintree: Which warehouse?
/Ravenwood: Crow: The one with our brandy in it.
/Ravenwood: Fintree: Anyone up at the Silverleaf tents?
/Ravenwood: Belle: I am. I'll do a quick roll call and see if anyone is unaccounted.
The quick footsteps of someone running sounded outside the Red-domed tents; without thinking, the figure ducked through the closed flaps and entered.
/Ravenwood: Belle: Everyone is here. It must be someone else.
/Ravenwood: Fintree: Thanks, Belle.
Belle smiled at the new arrival; her sky-blue eyes were dark, indicating that she was using visual transference with her shadowfiend, Mali. "Who have we here?"
The cloaked brandy thief pulled down his hood and sat the small barrel on the ground. "Hey, guys... What's up?"
The small group of high-elf women included Ru, Belle, and three others who had been playing cards. All of their mouths dropped open in surprise.
"No way..." Ru's purple hair was damp from her recent bath. "The prodigal son."
QJ scratched his head in embarrassment. "Those dang halflings are relentless; they've been chasing me for an hour."
Belle clucked her tongue. "I only see two options here. The first is to return the barrel to the warehouse and confess your crimes."
"Hmmm... Not sure what option two is, but let's go with that." QJ glanced at the doorway; escaping was an option, but he'd already put down the barrel.
Ru grinned and darted toward the barrel before QJ could grab it. "Option two is we forget this happened and thank you for the present."
QJ frowned at the purple-haired high elf. "Not going to share that with me?"
"Your ill-gotten goods?" Ru asked.
Belle stroked the soft fur on Mali's neck. Her dark blond hair was loose for once, cascading down her back to her waist. "Why should we?"
QJ shrugged. "Fine. Option one, then."
"Bullshit," Belle smiled when she said it.
/Ravenwood: QJ: Got an update for you on the brandy thief.
"Hey!" Ru gave Belle a panicked glance while hugging the barrel tightly.
"Fine, we'll share." Belle motioned for Ru, pausing to wait for QJ.
/Ravenwood: Crow: You catch them, QJ?
/Ravenwood: QJ: Nope. They ported out, looked like one of the halflings.
A few hours later, QJ shook his head to clear it. The barrel was tapped and half-empty. Ru and Belle were the only ones still awake. "Time to go," QJ started to stand up.
"No!" Ru grabbed his arm and leaned against him. "We haven't played any games yet?"
Belle nodded in agreement; her eyes were sky-blue again. Drinking interfered with transference, so she had sent Mali to sleep. She held tightly to QJ's hand. "Come on, QJ. Don't you know any drinking games?"
QJ laughed at the two high-elf women. They drank like fish but somehow managed to stay upright. "Aren't you two a bit old for that?"
"Old?" Belle frowned at QJ. "We wouldn't even be treated like adults if we were still in Zi'Fendyl."
Ru refilled his cup and scooted closer. "I'm barely in my forties. I probably won't get married for another fifty or sixty years."
QJ shook his head and started to stand. "Time for me to leave."
"Stop him!" Belle wrapped her hands around QJ's waist while Ru used leverage to tip them into the cushions.
QJ laughed at their antics; even drunk, he could have easily escaped their clutches.
Belle gripped his face in both hands, leaning closer until she could feel his breath on her face. "Are you really in a rush to leave?"
"Going to sleep all day?" Quinn stood in the doorway; he'd just returned from working out.
QJ frowned into his pillow before sitting up slowly. Unlike real drinking, virtual booze came without hangovers. The ceramic discs were still attached to his temple, even though he'd logged off shortly before dawn. "It's only eight."
"I know." Quinn grinned knowingly. "Let's hit the wafflehouse."