Keira stepped back and looked at her mom, proud that she was able to hold her own. This version of Evie Frye didn't yet know all of her moves, but Keira knew hers. It was an unfair advantage, sure, but both of her moms had taught her to make use of those, so it wasn't really cheating. Besides, her style was a blend of Evie and Sara's with a few of her own moves thrown in. So technically, Evie would know most of it on some level.
There was also something energizing about sparring this younger version of her mom. She couldn't quite place it, but she'd felt it the entire time she'd been back in time, getting a glimpse into the lives of the two most important people to her before she'd ever entered the picture. It was an odd dynamic with her in it, sure, but she could see how she'd eventually fit in.
"That was fun, Mom," Keira said, grinning. "It's much harder to fight you later on."
It wasn’t always easy to impress Evie. She’d seen and done a lot in her lifetime, but mostly she had grown up with a twin who was in the constant state of “watch this”. It desensitized her, to a small degree. But to say she was impressed with Keira’s showing was an understatement.
It shouldn't have surprised her, she knew just how good Sara was. And, boastfully, she knew just how good she was. Together they were often a force to be reckoned with, especially if you threw in her brother and Diego for good measure.
Evie leaned against one of the benches and started unwrapping her hands, a grin forming on her lips as she looked over at her daughter. “I hope so. But you fight well - your technique is good, and you stay sharp the whole way through. I can see a lot of Sara in how you move.”
"Yeah, you've taught me my lesson about not staying alert," Keira admitted. "More than once." She was the fighter that she was because of the Underground and because her moms didn't try to shelter her, something she appreciated.
"But I learned from the best, so…"
Keira gave Evie a smile and then added, "I hope I remember this later, because who knows how any of this works." Evie didn't remember much about being older, which was weird and an adjustment. "Even if I don't though, I'm glad I got to meet both of you now. And that you weren't like… horrified at the thought of suddenly having a kid," she added, almost shly.
“It’s a lesson we all have to learn,” Evie confirmed, not at all sorry about it. She knew that one herself, and had been taught it time and time again. But so had Jacob. It did make her thoughts drift to her own training, and the knowledge that Ethan Frye had imparted on the pair of them when they were young, younger than Keira was now.
Her brows furrowed, and she glanced over to her daughter. “I truly hope you weren't worried about that. Or at least if I can alleviate some of that worry even more, do let me know? My relationship with your mother isn’t new, necessarily, but I’m not one to jump into things. However, children are different.” Thoughts drifted back to Clara, back home, and not for the first time, Evie wasn’t surprised she ended up with a child that had come from the streets. “Taking you in feels like an easy decision to me even now, knowing it’s likely years off.”
Keira grinned at Evie. "So relationships you take slow, kids you'll adopt just like that? I think most people are the opposite. But no, I wasn't worried about it after our first conversation when you both were like, yeah, sounds on brand."
They were done sparring, and Keira didn't feel like finding anyone else to take on, so she unwrapped her hands. "You're both great parents, by the way. I mean most kids don't meet their families when they're trying to pickpocket, but I think that kept things open between us from that day on."
What was the point of secrets after that?
“You’d be surprised,” Evie shot back with a matching grin. “Your uncle and I used to go around London, liberating warehouses with illegal child labour and helping them. I’d befriended a young girl named Clara there, who was on the streets trying to support her siblings. We made sure she was taken care of, but it wasn’t our place to raise her.” Evie would have, though, if given the option.
“But I’m glad to hear that.” She finished unwrapping her hands and started rolling them back up. “Are you happy? With us? With your life?”
"I think you've mentioned Clara," Keira said, trying to remember. "Early on." It had been an adjustment, moving in with people who truly cared about her, but it hadn't taken that long for the three of them to find their footing with each other.
Those were easy questions. "Yeah, definitely," Keira answered. "I mean, other than when you try to say frozen yogurt isn't a breakfast food but somehow unfrozen yogurt is?" One definitely tasted better than the other, but she was also just kidding.
"I'm doing alright in school. My friends love coming by our house to hang out. We can talk about anything, and do. You let me join in at fight club and I came in third the other week." It was the highest she'd placed, amongst really skilled fighters who were generally all older than her.
“Frozen yogurt isn’t the same thing and you very well know it,” Evie could lecture even at this age, make no mistake about it. She’d been more adult at sixteen than most were in their thirties, and getting their child to eat healthy was a battle she could see happening for years to come. Might as well practice now.
At the fight club mention, Evie smiled. “I’m glad to hear it. As long as you enjoy it - anyway. I assume we’ve already had the talk of you making your own choices, not being obligated to follow in our footsteps.” Not that Evie didn’t believe in the Creed, but that neither her or Jacob had ever been asked if this was the life they’d wanted.
"Yeah, frozen yogurt tastes good," Keira said, unable to hide a grin, both at that and the searching statement that followed. "And yeah, you did," she affirmed. "But I already took after both of you when you took me in, and I still do," Keira said. "I love fight club and learning from different people. Getting my ass handed to me every once in a while," she admitted.
It was one of the best ways to learn, at least.
"Speaking of froyo, we should get some. Unless you're still here for a while, then I could go get some and bring it back?"
“Good. That’s how you get better.” She was glad that Keira clearly had a good head on her shoulders, even if a little chaotic. Sometimes, sometimes, a little chaos was a good thing. Pair that with a cousin who was clearly as buttoned up as Evie was despite having exceptionally chaotic parents, and Sara’s level headedness, and they all made a fairly balanced family.
After it had just been her and Jacob for so long, that was a strange, but welcome thought that warmed itself in her heart.
“I have--” She had a few hours left, before Jacob or one of the other trainers would be here. Things had been a bit off-kilter lately with the age changes, Diego and Jacob being teenagers had thrown everything for a loop. But there was no one else here, and she had no scheduled training sessions left for the day, just walk-ins.
Work could wait. Evie pushed herself off the bench with a shrug. “Nothing else on the docket, I’ll close up and you can show me just why you’re addicted to froyo.”
"Deal," Keira said, smiling. With as little time as she had with this version of her moms, she wanted to make the most of it.