Donna looked at the viewfinder of her Nikon and saw Madison's gentle smile appear. The set-up wasn't the best but it was a decently composed shot. She wasn't satisfied though.

 

"You're too tense." she muttered, shaking her head.

 

"Sorry, Miss Donna, I'm just not used to having my photo taken." Madison was radiating nervous energy. The photoshoot had been her request, but a lifetime of not enjoying how she appeared in photographs tainted any view to comfort the encounter may have carried. Fortunately, Donna's gift for photography was not her only talent.

 

"I could relax you." she offered with a coy grin.

 

Madison's eyes looked up, head still tilted down, her lips parted softly and her gaze carried shyly eager longing. "Could you?" Donna wished she could take advantage of this enticing view and press the shutter again. It would have been an image she longed to remember. But to do so without invitation would be a betrayal of trust and serve only to put her on guard. Not exactly the right tone for relaxing her.

 

"Then just look at me. Past the camera. Straight at me. Deep into blue. Sapphire blue eyes like the fire that melts your mind. A blue stare that can hold your gaze. Notice my gaze hold you, pull you in, lull you and control you. You can do that for me, can't you?" Donna began, utilizing the correct tone for relaxing her. Her Voice dropped low and firm. The kind of Voice Madison could feel the capital V upon. Her attention was immediately captured.

 

"That's it, my dear," Donna continued, "No need to even worry about the camera just yet. I've got you. Feel yourself surrendering. Giving in. Allowing the comfort of the moment to overtake you." Madison nodded lightly, her motions disaffected as if she were possessed by that Voice which echoed effortlessly within her mind.

 

Donna placed a finger on the shutter, the camera whirred as the autofocus found Donna's face and prepared for the shot.

 

"I'm sure you know what happens when someone is staring at a photographer about to take a photo. When they have their finger on the trigger." Madison's face flickered a little from her detached bliss to a slow blink of confusion, "Oh? You don't? When they say "Smile" what do the people in the shot do?"

 

"Smile, Miss..." Madison softly responded.

 

"And what do they do when the photographer tells them to "Say Cheese"?"

 

"They say ‘Cheese’, Miss"

 

"That's right. They obey. Because it's normal to obey what the photographer says when they have their finger on the shutter, isn't it, lass?"

 

"Yes Miss" Madison's confused features settled into understanding, her shoulders melted tension, she understood perfectly. Obedience was easy to understand after all. It didn't require any thought at all. Just compliance. Madison liked to comply.

 

Well. Sometimes. She could be quite stubborn when she opted to be.

 

"And so if I said ‘Madison, sit rigid’ what would you do?"

 

Madison shuffled up and sat attentively, her eyes still locked on Donna's.

 

 

"It's okay if you relax after every photo, my love. You can just find every time you hear the shutter you'll no longer need to obey the photographer's command. You can just fade into restfulness and sink a little deeper for me, can't you, my love?"

 

"Yes, Miss Donna."

 

"That's my good girl. You please me so very much."

 

Donna teased the shutter again, "Madison, stare longingly."

 

Madison obeyed and another photograph was taken.

 

 

"But here's a fun thing, my lass, if I were to call you "Lass" when I order you, you know I am speaking to your deeply obedient unconscious mind, don't you?" She paused for the slow dipping nod of acknowledgement, "So you can just become completely and briefly entranced when I tell my lass to do something. You can just slide into fully blank and empty trance and come back again after the shutter. If your mind feels it would prefer to forget then it can, but you will be completely oblivious to the moment, won't you, lass?"

 

The barest whisper of "Yes Miss" carried through the air, swallowed by the distance between photographer and their photographic subject.

 

"That's right. 'Lass, tell me you are a hypnotized plaything.'"

 

The words struck and an empty, glazed-eyed expression shot over Madison as she helplessly repeated the words "I am a hypnotized plaything."

 

 

"Good girl, that's exactly right."

 

Madison's eyes squeezed shut and she returned to wakefulness with a momentary confusion, shaking her head. "Hmm?"

 

"We're taking photos, lass." Donna kindly informed her hypnotized plaything.

 

"Right..." a lost and confused Madison responded, her mannerisms far more loose and relaxed now, "I trust you."

 

"Thank you, sweetheart. I think we're ready to begin in earnest."

 

Madison bit her lip and hunched her shoulders in, "Please, Miss Donna?"

 

"As you wish... "Lass, pose for the camera and say 'I obey'"

 

And Madison obeyed.

 

 

The photoshoot lasted the whole morning. Outfits were put on and once Madison was primed and ready to obey Donna’s instructions she made a point of setting the auto-timer and pulling into a few of the shots for herself. She wanted to treasure not just the look of Madison’s entranced features, but the connection that the two of them shared.

 

Such a photo would do well for surviving the distance between visits.

 

It was the final day of Madison’s long weekend. By the time the sun went down that night she would have taken her car and driven back home to Saph. She didn’t want to deprive Madison from her partner any longer than she needed to be gone, but facing the final hours of the visit, she desperately wished for just a few more.

 

She’d never ask it, though. Especially not while she was suggestible and lingering in the afterglow of an inventive morning of making mementos.

 

Donna had been through every item she could think of from The List. She had come up with new ideas and had found herself an indulgent taste for seeing Madison kneeling before her or applying kisses to the neck and nibbling on her helplessly mesmerized partner’s earlobe.

 

Madison, in turn, had an equal level of enthusiasm for spoiling Bella with suggestions such as the Elphie sleep spell and the instantly enchanting Silver Crystal. It had been brought out a few more times over the course of the weekend, including during the photoshoot and each time Bella found herself succumbing to its power instantly. There mere mention of it was enough to make her whimper and drop her guard completely.

 

“Okay. I feel we have run through the list of things we can get away with for our photoshoot.” Donna sighed with a hint of remorse, “Unless you are able to think of anything else?”

 

“There is one thing…” Madison said, slyly, her senses recovering a little from being brought in and out of trance so many times during the photoshoot, “Though it does involve Bella. I can get set up and when she’s ready to come out we can do it?”

 

Donna collected Madison’s hand and planted a kiss on the back of her palm, “My love, it’s perfectly okay. I wish for you to have photographs of your sweetling as much as I wish for photographs of you, my lovely lass. Though if I do retreat there is no promise that I’ll return before the end of our dwindling time. Should this be all we get, then please accept my undying love. I have enjoyed this weekend.”

 

“Thank you.” Madison said, fully understanding Donna’s conviction, “I appreciate it.”

 

“Have all the fun you are able. You deserve every second of love and delight you can obtain today. Notice Me send my love with you through the drive. I shall miss you until our inevitable reunion.”

 

The pair drew close and kissed, fingers interlocked and souls entwined.

 

Once they broke off, Madison lowered her head and recentered herself, “I love you.”

 

“I know.” Donna assured.

 

“Wait here a moment, okay?”

 

Madison took her bag and disappeared into the restroom. Donna kept herself busy by checking through some of the photographs and making sure the settings were right on her camera.

 

When Madison returned she was wearing a deep green dress with leaf patterns trailing up the legs and red heels boosting her already impressive height. Her hair poured flat down her shoulders and her make-up was accented by lip gloss bright enough to demand Donna’s attention.

 

“Heavens, I hadn’t expected this. I’m glad I did not put away the camera equipment.” Donna remarked, impressed.

 

“I remember someone mentioning that Poison Ivy was one of their favorite hypnotic characters.” Madison remarked, “And hypnotic kisses did make it onto the list, didn’t they?”

 

Madison watched as Donna’s confidence shattered and was consumed in the fires of Bella’s eagerness. The transformation was so obvious and sudden that she wondered why no one else seemed to notice it besides her.

 

“Oh?” Madison husked wickedly, “Did someone hear something that they liked?”

 

The tone struck Bella as surely as if it had taken physical form and grabbed her shoulders. Her eyes widened and her mouth hung agape, “I… I…!” She whimpered, futily.

 

“What’s that?’ Madison continued, the firm tone of her voice maintaining its darkness, “Use. Your. Words.”

 

Bella whimpered aloud and shrunk up, trembling a little, “Ye–yes Miss!” she managed, “I… I like Poison Ivy very much…”

 

Madison strode slowly, raising a hand across the chasm of empty space between her and her prey, “Oh? Why’s that, sweetling?” she asked, feigning a coy teasing tone.

 

“...her hypnotic kisses…” Bella shyly admitted. Her eyes had not been able to draw themselves away from the beauty of those vibrantly painted lips.

 

“Mmm… that’s right. I do remember you saying something like that…” hand still up in the air, reaching out to her sweetling, she twisted her wrist and firmly snapped her fingers.

 

Bella froze.

 

The Susan Snap was a suggestion Madison had trained in her during the months of video calls since the last time they had seen one another in person. It would freeze Bella and allow her mind to ignore anything that happened until Madison snapped her fingers again, all suggestions spoken to her during that frozen time would sink into the back of her mind, ready to be enacted on without Bella’s knowledge.

 

“That’s right, sweetling. Well remembered. You know exactly what happens when I snap my fingers like that. Just like you know what happens when Poison Ivy uses that hypnotic kiss. You’ll find yourself hopelessly spellbound, infatuated and controlled. Irresistibly compelled… isn’t…. that… right?”

 

Bella did not reply. She was frozen in the moment, but that was just proof that she was being a good girl and obeying perfectly. 

 

“But it can happen slowly. A soft acting drug just like that infatuation potion we used before, you remember that, I know you do. You can just let every kiss slowly but surely drug you a little bit more and make you hopelessly spellbound and hang onto my every word…”

 

Once again, Bella’s frozen features did not even flicker a smirk of anticipation. She was not moving at all.

 

Madison grinned in satisfaction and snapped her fingers again, Bella resumed motion as if nothing had happened, recoiling in shyness from Madison’s tease, “Please, Miss?” she whimpered, ducking her shoulders to look more demure, “Please?”

 

“Please WHAT, sweetling?!” Madison demanded, her hand had lowered and she raised to her full impressive height.

 

“Please kiss me…!” Bella whimpered, her own posture shrinking with every passing moment.

 

Madison approached and brushed a hand to Bella’s cheek, holding her gaze. The gentle submissive trembled in anticipation against the faint touch.

 

“Hmm…” Madison hummed, “Should I? Is that really what you want, sweetling? I don’t know if you’ve convinced me.”

 

A meek sound emitted Bella’s throat as her eyes opened wide, barely able to process Madison’s unexpected bout of firmness. Everything she’d expect from a comic book supervillain.

 

“Plead.” Madison commanded, those enticing lips bent in a smirk.

 

“Please, Miss! Please!” Bella desperately called out, “Please oh please, Miss, please kiss me, please, please kiss me!”

 

“Oh sweetling…” Madison could only sigh out fondly before pressing the first kiss directly to Bella’s lips, holding her shoulders and using pressure to ensure the lip gloss would leave an imprint. As she backed out slowly Bella inched forward, desperate to keep the last moments of connection.

 

Madison drew up to height and Bella sank back to meekness, eyes pleading for more. Madison raised her eyebrows, silently reminding her to use her words.

 

“Please, Miss… Please Miss, please kiss me again…!”

 

“Oh, you want another kiss?” Madison said slowly, “Very well sweetling…” she moved in and planted another firm kiss on her cheek. Bella could feel the wet imprint of the lip gloss leaving its trace and that moist sensation began to tingle not just against her skin, but against her mind.

 

It felt like a hint of trance.

 

“Please….” Bella whispered again, the plead command still working its magic on her suggestible mind and her desire for Madison’s lips becoming her only focus.

 

Madison’s joy at seeing her partner so impacted was breaking through her villainous play-acting and fondness blossomed to her grin, “So indulgent, my love…” she sighed, reaching in and kissing Bella’s the exposed neck above her collar, another wet imprint of lip gloss pressed against the hypnotee’s freckled skin as well as her mind.

 

“P…please…!” Bella swooned, her head growing dizzy with every additional lip gloss mark left on her.

 

“Aww…” Madison cooed, “...is my lip gloss making it hard for you to think? Are you getting all fuzzy? All drifty?”

 

“Please….!” Bella slurred, swaying on the spot, eyes flickering open and closed.

 

“Please?” Madison asked, barely able to conceal her bright joy at how well Bella had taken to her suggestion.

 

“Pleeeease….” Bella whimpered out, leaning towards Madison, eyes locked on her bright lips.

 

“You want more?” Madison teased, “Oh, my dear…”

 

She obliged, pulling Bella in and locking their lips together and kissing away the last vestiges of her waking mind, drawing her into a powerful and empty trance. Bella clung her arms around her love and as the kiss endured her hands fell lip and Madison collected her full weight, softly guiding her down onto the hotel bed.

 

“There you go, sweetling, just like that.” Madison softly spoke, setting the camera as Bell had taught her before the photoshoot began. She framed the viewfinder to get a shot of her lingering on the bedsheets with a broad smile that bore an unmistakable kiss mark, as well as the imprints on both her cheek and neck.

 

“You look lovely, my love.” she praised, getting ample shots of the mesmerized cutie, “That’s it, just enjoy the drifting sensation and notice me love you.” Bella’s smile somehow found new vigor to beam brighter than it already seemed.

 

“Okay, love, you can come back to me now on 3-2-1…” Madison called, once she was satisfied with the number of photographs she had gotten of her adorable love.

 

Bella’s eyes blinked open and she looked at Madison completely infatuated, “Oh… Miss…!” she swooned while swaying on the spot, “I love you sooooo… much!”

 

“Oh, love. You still look out of it. Was my kiss really that powerful?”

 

Bella nodded with a silly smile, “Uh-huh…! I’m so so so in love…” her eyes rapidly blinked again and her shoulders sagged.

 

“Oh, that lip gloss is still impacting you, isn’t it?” Madison giggled, delighted by the way Bella’s mind interpreted her suggestions at times.

 

“Yeeeeah…” Bella sighed, “lip gloss is good and I’m just… in love!”

 

“What am I going to do with you…?” Madison sighed fondly, not for the first time.

 

“Love me, too?” Bella responded, a reply that was slowly becoming as familiar as the question.

 

“I do.” Madison stated firmly, “I never want to give you reason to doubt that.

 

“Eeee…. I’m so lucky…!” Bella swooned, flopping back onto the bed with a grin plastered on her face.

 

“No me!” Madison protested, hesitating a moment as Bella did not react, “Sweetling, did you slip back into trance?”

 

“Yes Miss…!” Bella softly murmured.

 

“Oh, sweetling…” Madison sighed, “That drug is still in your system, isn’t it?”

 

“Mhmm…” came the soft response.

 

“Well, sweetling, I want you to sit up for me, can you do that for me, love?” Madison asked, her voice containing no traces of her firm and villainous tone from the start of the scene.

 

Bella did as she was told, swinging her legs off of the bed and sitting upright, her posture slouched and eyes still lightly closed. Madison gently wiped at the lip imprints. They did not remove, but a suggestible mind could follow along with the action and her words to believe they would be, “Notice me removing the lip gloss now and you can find it metabolize in your system so it will no longer effect you once you wake from this trance, you can do that for me, can’t you?” Bella gently nodded the affirmative, “Good girl.” she planted a kiss to Bella’s forehead leaving a fresh, albeit faint, lip gloss mark, “and any further kisses will not have that hypnotic effect, you can just treat them as normal kisses from now on.” Bella’s head gently bobbed to indicate she heard and understood.

 

“Now, sweetling…” Madison said, gaining some inspiration, “I want you to open your eyes for me, even as you remain deeply under my hypnotic spell.” she stood up and watched as Bella’s eyes struggled to open. Her vacant expression rocked back and forth a little as she stared upwards at her love, “That’s it… now when you see me gesture to you like this…” she shot her hand out and drew it back in curling her fingers towards herself, “you’ll find me summon you, pull you towards me. When you see me do this…” she repeated the action, “You’ll instantly come towards me, no matter what you’re doing unless it is not safe for you to do so. You can always know I intend for you to remain safe and if your mind ever notices anything which would compromise that safety then you know that your priority is always to keep yourself safe for me. Right, sweetling?”

 

Bella nodded gently, “Yes Miss…” she whispered.

 

“Good girl.” Madison affirmed, “Wake up for me in 3-2-1…”

 

Bella’s eyes blinked to light and life as her smile blossomed from the blank expression she had been wearing, “Thank you, Miss!” she proclaimed, giddily.

 

“My pleasure.” Madison shot back. As she spoke she raised her hand and performed the gesture. Bella’s eyes shot wide open and she plucked herself up and standing before Madison, a look of wonder on her face.

 

“Oh, I like that.” Madison grinned, “You obey so well, love.”

 

Bella blushed shyly and shrank at the compliment, Madison took her chin and leaned in for another kiss. This one did not have any magic to it and yet Bella’s reaction may have indicated otherwise, she melted just as sweetly and held her Miss tightly, smitten beyond language’s ability to convey.

 

Madison gently placed her hands on Bella’s shoulders and walked over to the desk area, collecting an object that was laying innocently by the hotel phone. She then turned and performed the summoning gesture again.

 

Bella sprang into action and crossed the space possessed by the magic of the trigger. As she stopped before Madison, a familiar shimmering object was put in front of her.

 

“Oh, that’s right…” Madison cooed, watching as Bella melted instantly upon seeing The Silver Crystal. The trigger to go into trance every time she saw the crystal had been well utilized during the visit and the moment she comprehended what she was seeing she melted instantly.

 

Madison caught Bella in an embrace and prevented her from falling, pouring her affection into the hold and lingering long enough to truly enjoy the connection.

 

“And back again on 3-2-1…” Madison whispered.

 

Bella opened her eyes and saw the crystal in front of her face again and sank right back down. Madison broke into triumphant cackles of delight at how well that had worked.

 

“And 3-2-1…” she said, again.

 

Bella opened her eyes and let out a gentle whimper as she was once again caught by the crystal. Madison cackled in triumph. “That’s my good girl. Just like that. You respond so well…” as she spoke she stroked Bella’s hair and savored the embrace.

 

Check-out was approaching. She knew that. The camera equipment and her remaining outfits needed to be packed up and she did not want to drive back wearing the Poison Ivy outfit. Silently cursing the clock, she stabilized Bella and walked to an area by the bed without obstructions that was within view of the camera. “3-2-1”

 

Bella woke and looked around to locate Madison.

 

“Bella, love, can you set up a photo on timer, please?” Madison requested, indicating the physical space the pair would inhabit when the timer completed.

 

Bella obeyed and depressed the shutter switch, once the light indicated the timer had begun Madison signalled her summoning charm one more time and Bella appeared at her side, pulled into a gentle embrace as the shutter clicked and captured the moment for them to both enjoy beyond the day.

 

A time was spent with deescalation, deprogramming and aftercare and the lip gloss marks were removed despite Bella’s protest. The pair lingered as much as circumstance would allow but soon enough all photography equipment, clothes and magical attention stealing crystals were sealed away and Elphie was put into Bella’s care. The room was checked up and down multiple times and a tip was placed for the cleaning staff.

 

It was time to leave.

 

Within Bella’s heart a mild argument was breaking out over how to approach the final hours. Bella did not want to let go but she understood that clinging too tightly may cause Madison to spend her energy applying care to her when she was the one who had the long drive back home to Saph.

 

Understanding and preventing were two separate concepts, though. Once their bags were packed Bella’s hand locked around Madison’s wrist and refused to budge. Even separated by screens as they typically were, Madison recognized Bella’s urge to hold on to wrists. She had even utilized the Notice Me trigger to accommodate the need more than once, as well as created a loving reply for these situations.

 

“I’m here.” it was true, even if it would not be by the end of the day. It soothed Bella’s spirits. It did not loosen her hold upon Madison’s wrist.

 

“We still have some time, even if we aren’t here at the hotel.” Madison noted, “I’ll need to head out before too long but I’d rather wait until the sun is fully down before heading out. It’ll skip rush hour and avoid the sun in my face. It may only give us about four hours, but that’s still four more hours than we’ll have for the next couple months.”

 

Bella silently squeezed the wrist. The concept of her going away again was near physically painful. With the other hand she squeezed Elphie and tried to not think about the visit being over.

 

“For now, sweetling, I think we can enjoy a leisurely lunch, don’t you think?”

 

Bella nodded enthusiastically and tried to turn her thoughts away from later.

 

The pair went through check-out and loaded up Madison’s car, Bella continued to grip onto the wrist every opportunity she got. It was when Madison went for the driver’s seat that she was finally forced, reluctantly, to say “Sweetling, I need my arm back.”

 

Bella pouted and released it.

 

[You’re acting childish.]

 

Bella stopped, hugged Elphie close to her and breathed in sharply. The mild war within her heart reached a crescendo.

 

Bell opened the passenger’s side door.

 

“Okay. So… we need a sit down place that’ll let us linger, huh? Can I suggest a local diner?”

 

Madison smiled to herself and shook her head, “Hello, Bell.” she said, matter-of-factly, “Did Bella decide she wasn’t okay letting go of my wrist?”

 

“A little bit of that, a little bit of me not wanting to make a scene in public and a little bit of not really wanting to get all emotional and clingy while you’re driving. You need that wrist for driving.”

 

“Well, thank you and I hope sweetling knows that she’s a good girl for knowing when to share. I wanted to get a chance to see you all today. Well, you, Bella and Donna at least.”

 

“Can’t say I’m the biggest fan of goodbyes but you have a pretty good track record with them.” she placed Elphie on her lap and checked the inside of her purse. Phone and wallet were both accounted for but most importantly the red bead from their last parting was still there.

 

Bell liked looking at the red bead. Every time she doubted the stability of her relationship with Madison that bead reminded her of the commitment that Madison had met at the end of the last convention event.

 

Remembering how long ago that was served only to remind how soon the next one was, as well as how long the relationship that the red bead signified had been growing.

 

The pair spent some of their remaining time on the drive heading to the diner, cozy chat filling the distance. They soon found themselves sitting in a booth. Bell blissfully accepted a carafe of coffee and went to work on it while Madison ordered a soda.

 

“So, I guess after today the next time we’ll see one another is at the East Coast Hypnosis Convention, huh?” Bell noted, “Somehow it’d just not been on my mind until now but I suppose I have to start getting ready for it.”

 

“Mhmm!” Madison chirped, “I’ll be doing another Meet’n’Flirt and teaching a few events. Are you going to be doing anything?”

 

“I’m doing a safety course for suggestibility.” Bell noted, “Sort of a ‘watch out what you say when someone is deep’ kind of thing?”

 

“Useful.” Madison noted, “Though I’d love to see Donna take center stage and teach from some of the things she’s good at. She does things with her physicality that I think could be useful.”

 

Bell shrugged, not too moved by a compliment to her wilder hypnotist side, “I’ll see what I feel when it’s time to sign up for the next round. What about you. Still focused on 101 classes for those starting out on either side of the watch?”

 

“Mhmm! And I’ll be helping out with some other stuff, but I’ll have plenty of free time if you want to hang out.”

 

Bell tilted her head, “I mean, I’ll take every second I can get but I’m not the only person you know at these things. We’ll work it out, I guess. Plus, The House will be going out together so I’m sure I’ll be busy too. At the very least neither one of us will have a clear room for shenanigans.”

 

“Saph and I communicate and know when to let one another have the room. It’ll be okay. I promise.”

 

“I believe you.”

 

“I know.” Madison shot back with a wink.

 

The pair continued their animated conversion as they ordered food, nursed beverages and did their absolute best to not think about the limited amount of time left to them.

 

“We’ll have to make a new tab for The List.” Bell noted, “Time to have some fun and imaginative ideas for the convention.”

 

“Promises, promises. I look forward to seeing what y’all come up with.” Madison responded.

 

“I hate having to part…” Bell sighed, “But knowing that we can spend the time between visits planning and dreaming of the next time we see one another…? It softens the blow, you know?”

 

“I know. But however much I hate parting, I would never want you to be away from your family here. We have the best we can have for our situation and I never feel any less loved for the distance.”

 

“The ‘Notice Me’ trigger does a lot of heavy lifting, I’m lucky it works so well.”

 

“Notice Me kiss your cheek.” Madison said, slyly before leaning over and performing the action just as Bell reacted to the trigger. “Making use of proximity while we still have it,”

 

“Ah, then Notice Me return the kiss.” Bell happily replied, sneaking in a quick peck to punctuate the trigger.

 

Madison broke into an unguarded laugh, “Interesting… the trigger kissed my left cheek and you kissed my right.”

 

“Brains are amazing, aren’t they?”

 

“Mhmm!” Madison chirped, “they really are.”

 

Time continued slipping away and soon enough the pair were back in Madison’s car, driving towards The House. Bell found that one hand was pulled towards Madison’s wrist and the other clutched Elphie as if dropping her would be the end of the world. Bella’s little bouts of passive influence were not unlike following a hypnotic compulsion. The actions just happened without checking in with the conscious mind first. With a post-hypnotic suggestion the impulse to grab a wrist would have been born from being told how irresistible and natural the action would be and simply bypass any critical filter; here it was a desire born from a stirring in the heart which didn’t quite have a voice but most certainly carried a will.

 

“Goodbyes suck…” Bell grumbled with a frown,, “I’ve never been good at them.”

 

“I know, love… but we’ll still have our regular date nights and we’ve got the next visit planned. That helps a little, I think.” Madison took a second to consider, “Maybe in future we keep that in mind. Every time we see one another we should have an idea of when we’ll see one another again. If we can.”

 

Bell nodded vaguely, “I like that. It won’t make the distance hurt less, but it’ll always give us something to look forward to.”

 

“It will.” Madison said, pulling up beside The House, “And, love? This weekend has been lovely. I really mean it. Thank you.”

 

“I don’t really feel like we did anything special, though. Most of it was in the hotel room.” Bell’s eyes flickered down, a sense of shame and regret for how time was frittered away.

 

“It was time together and you let me have time with all of you. Even ‘Sis’.” she reached over and framed Bell’s face, looking into her eyes, “It was a wonderful weekend. Thank you.”

 

Bell placed Elphie down and took Madison’s hands, “Glad you had a good time, then… and I hope you have a safe drive home. You’ll text me when you get back, right?”

 

“Of course!” Madison responded, scandalized to have even been asked, “I promise.”

 

“I believe you.” Bell said, calling upon a comforting sentiment that she often repeated, “I’ll miss you.”

 

“I’ll miss you too. All of you. Take care of them for me, okay?”

 

Bell’s expression flickered, she was about to raise an objection, as she was still uncomfortable with individualizing the facets, but she relented in no small part due to a burst of emotion in her heart that was shaped like Bella, “I will.”

 

Madison had read the emotion and pieced together exactly what had gone through Bell’s head in that fraction of a second. She was glad Bell was getting better about her defensiveness on the topic.

 

“I love every part of you that you’ve shown me.” Madison affirmed, “and I am grateful for you sharing yourself with me. I don’t take it for granted.”

 

“Well, I appreciate how you can see me. I’m lucky in that regard… it’s not something that everyone can do.”

 

“I still don’t understand why.” Madison said with a shrug, “It’s so obvious.”

 

“Regardless…” Bell said, getting back to topic, “I love you too. I love how enthusiastic you are about the things you love, how imaginative you are on both sides of the watch, how kind and giving your heart is and just how much of a nerd you can be.”

 

She leaned forwards and kissed Madison, squeezing her hands and trying to prolong the connection for as long as it could last. Madison reciprocated, pulling her partner in closer.

 

The moment could not endure, though. The sun was down and the road awaited.

 

Bell exited the car and gave one final kiss through the window before letting Madison drive away. She clung to Elphie and watched until the car vanished in the distance. This time there was no ringing in her ears. Just a longing in her heart.

 

She entered the house to the delight of Munchkin and gave quick greetings to The House before retreating to her room. There she found herself laying on her bed looking at her phone. Elphie sat on her chest and Signal curled up against her leg.

 

“Hoping you get this when you do a stop for gas. I love you and I miss you.”

 

Last time she had the opportunity to text Madison for much of the journey home. This time it was a clean break.

 

The weekend had been filled with so much life and love and now it was quiet.

 

Bell, listening to the Bella shaped screaming of her heart, pulled Elphie close and squeezed her as hard as she could.

 

A trace of Madison remained with her. Now she had something to cuddle when she missed her and she had photographs capturing some memories so that she could look back on fondly and see the connection they shared.

 

The idea of observable memories was alluring to Bell. She didn't always remember things with clarity and the photos reminded her that photos were not the only method for capturing a moment to look upon later. Pulling out her wireless keyboard, she opened her journaling app. Memories were a gift. There was no use dwelling on the absence when there was so much presence to dwell on instead.

 

Filled with light and purpose she began typing.