Disclaimer: I don't own The Life And Times Of Juniper Lee

Title: Moving Out and Moving On

Summary: Ray Ray and June move out together. Ray Ray isn't sure where he stands anymore.

Warnings: Ray Ray's POV possible O.O.C., etc

...

Ray Ray didn't like to brag or anything, but he sported a mighty extensive collection of magical books and dohickeys scattered about his room, all read and/or messed with, and they were real boogers to stuff into a book bag and overnight satchel; along with his comics, piles of overdue homework, an extra bit of money for the road, and a few pieces of clothing shoved into the cracks, if only to pad things.

Monroe glared at him disapprovingly from the doorway. "She'll never agree to this."

"Dude, June knows me. She had to have had at least, like, a premonition this would happen."

"It's a two-room apartment! Juniper's an adult now, lad. Do ya honestly expect her to let you sleep next to her?"

'Juniper's an adult now.' The words made his stomach clench. 'June and Ray Ray' had always gotten along better than 'Dennis and Ray Ray', mostly because of the closeness of their age and physical stage. But now... June was nineteen. All grown up. Ray Ray had only been a 'true' teenager for a couple years now.

'Darn age difference.' He grumbled mentally, whipping around.

"This body's just made for couch-crashin'!" He gestured to his small and scrawny body. A semi-cramped couch was more than worth it to get out of the house. Having only one magically gifted inhabitant (what the heck Dennis, get a job already. You're the oldest and your little sister is moving out before you. That's just sad.) live there instead of three would be a lot less suspicious.

Monroe shook his head. "Yer mad."

"Hey, she's takin' you with, ain't she?" He crouched down to flick one of his ears. "Why not me?"

"Because I'm an adviser, teacher, and parental figure wrapped in a small and cute package. You're an annoying little brother with hyperactivity issues."

"Psht. Whatever." Swinging his backpack over his shoulder, he picked up his duffel bag with a grin. "Let's do this."

He slid down the stairwell and burst out the front door like a rockstar appeared from behind the curtains at a concert. "I'm ready, baby!"

June didn't look surprised. A tad flabbergasted, but not surprised. She didn't, however, look very amused. "Ray Ray, look. I'm cool with you spending the night once in awhile, but moving in is a totally different thing."

"Don't worry." He patted his bag. "I pack light."

"What about rent?"

"I'll get a job. No, wait, two jobs." He held up two fingers.

"Food?"

"Hey, as long as it's edible, I'll eat it." It didn't even need to live up to those qualifications either, depending on what it was.

June's face fell into a wry frown. "You're not going to give up, are you?"

"Nope!"

She sighed in exasperation, bringing a hand up to cradle the bride of her nose. "Get in the truck."

"Yes!" He bounced into the passenger's seat with a grin.

Monroe's jaw dropped. "And just when I thought I'd get some peace."

June shrugged. "It wouldn't be Ray Ray if there was. Relax, I'll ask mom and dad to pass you between houses so you can get some sleep."

"Thank you."

"Hey, some people just can't handle him over long periods of time. I get it. You are gonna have to sit in his lap for the drive, though. I don't have room for you anywhere else."

The first night they don't even bother unpacking. They drug in all the boxes and furniture into their respective rooms, ate dinner, and zonked. Ray Ray woke up the next morning feeling like he'd been run over by ten buses and left to be picked at by stray cats.

June, already busy at work at her computer, knowingly hands him a coffee without so much as a good morning. Ray Ray studied it suspiciously.

"...You're kicking me out the door, aren't you?"

"Yup." She nodded. "You're going job hunting."

"But I just got here."

"So did I, and I have homework and a crappy job to look forward too. I told you, Ray Ray, I don't make enough to support three people who tend to come home once a week with battle wounds. You're gonna have to start pulling some of your own weight around here."

He crossed his arms. "Monroe doesn't have to pull his weight."

"Yeah, well, Monroe's an ancient magical being in a little dog's body. There's not much he can do."

"Man, that's so not fair."

June shrugged, turning back to the computer. "Life's not fair. Deal with it."

"Welcome to- oh, hey, Lila."

Lila chuckled, examining his uniform. "New job?"

"Yes." He slumped, jabbing a finger into the keys of the cash register. "You gonna order or not?"

"Geez, snappish much." Lila lifted her hands in surrender. "You going on break soon?"

"Half-hour."

"I'll wait 'till then, then." She stepped out of line. "I'll be by the door."

"I hate my new job." He groaned, flopping down on the curb to the right of Lila. He handed the older woman a bag of leftover food he'd managed to scrounge up from the back and ripped the hat off his head. "It's like they're trying to crush any and all individuality they can get their greasy claws on."

"Hmm..." She wrinkled her nose, shifting through the bag with a hesitant hand. "You wouldn't happen to have any vegetarian meals, would you? Or, I don't know, some tree bark or berries?"

"There's some trees in the back. Go nuts."

Lila sighed and placed the bag down and off to the side. Even as a teenager the Sasquatch easily towered over him- over everyone, really- but it suddenly occurred to him that despite this, despite the fact she could easily snap his spine like a twig should the need present itself, Ray Ray had never felt threatened by her. He wondered if it that had something to do with spending most of his childhood following his sister, the only person as capable as Lila, around on dangerous missions against creatures that were multiple stories tall. He guessed as much.

"Ray Ray, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, it's just," He shrugged. "I dunno. We moved in a week ago and I already got ten bazillion things I gotta do."

"Hey, at least you're not in college. Imagine the nightmare June's going through."

He snorted. "Did you know she's going for a degree in journalism?"

Lila nodded. "She mentioned it. Something about more flexible hours? I was laughing too hard to listen."

"Juniper Lee; newswoman." He swept his hands through the air. "Cliche much?"

She giggled. The noise made his heart soar. "It's certainly not the most original of career choices, true." She paused. The smiled faded a little. "How's the move-in going?"

"Pretty good. Monroe's hoggin' the sink with all his fur-care stuff and makeup, but that's pretty much how it always was, so..." He paused. "Lila?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you... I dunno... Do you think me and June are still pretty close? Y'know, even though..." Even though June is an adult and he's still just a teenager and she's smart and pretty and tall and all that other crud family members like to gush about at family reunions and he's just Ray Ray. Short, good-looking, magically inclined, butt-kicking Ray Ray Lee; teenage acne and all.

"Even though what?" She asks. He doesn't answer, because anything he could say would sound seriously corny and stupid. "Ray Ray, she let you move into her house. I'm pretty sure that takes a lot of fondness."

Pretty sure. Because Lila was a Sasquatch, and she was and would always be the tiniest bit out of her element. The reminder makes his heart clench. "I kinda made her take me in."

"You seem to be forgetting that June can pick up cars." Lila answered, rolling her eyes. "If she really didn't want you there, Ray Ray, you wouldn't be there."

"She was mad."

"Yeah, because you didn't check with her first, but what else is new?"

True. Ray Ray had his moments, but normally he tended to do rather than think. "Yeah, I guess."

Lila smiled and punched his shoulder hard enough to leave a bruise. "You two are still peas in a pod, I promise. Just give it time."

Ray Ray smiled back. For a moment, everything was almost perfect.

But then it all went down the drain.

Ray Ray had never gotten past the child's way of dealing with problems- hiding. Now he was just a heck of a lot better at it. He just went to the one place he enjoyed that no one ever really bothered to check.

A.K.A.; the library.

Contrary to popular belief, Ray Ray did enjoy a good book. He just happened to harbor the pickiest of tastes, and it took a lot of time for him to find something he'd read cover to cover, but once he found the right book, nothing could get him to take his nose out of it.

And right now he had a lot of time to kill before he went back to the apartment (it was still too early into the move to call it home) and faced the music.

Normally it was the fantasy and/or action sections of the library that called his name. Today; it was the travel section.

He tended to avoid that part of the library as though it were a curse (which it kind of was). It felt like he was breaking some sort of unspoken rule by cracking open one of the magazines and flipping through the pages. No one in the Lee apartment read travel magazines. The newspaper, yes, but never books specifically intended to help you prepare and guide you through far away lands. Ray Ray tried not to bring his geography book home if he could help it, it was so bad. It felt like he was smiting someone he didn't want to smite.

Week one of job hunting was almost over, and Ray Ray Lee was officially jobless.

But it was worth it, oddly enough. Lila was practically in tears by the time that jerk was done making fun of her. How was Ray Ray to know it was one of the bigshot's he'd reared back and slugged before it was too late?

He hoped that black eye would never go away.

See, Ray Ray had a theory on soulmates. They came into your life when you're too young, too immature, or too selfish to realize just how important they are to you, and then they proceed to knock your socks off. Just look at June and Marcus, for example. They'd known each other since they were five, dated since they were eleven, and it wouldn't surprise him if, eight years later, they were plotting marriage behind his back. Or him and Lila- Lila, who was still breathtakingly beautiful even after he'd outgrown everything else he'd found beautiful at that age (magic, explosions, and mindless video games).

Lila was more than worth getting in trouble for. She was worth a lot of things, really. He hoped her future husband (or wife. Whatever she was in to) would see that too, or he may just have to 'talk' to 'em when the Sasquatch wasn't around.

('Age difference, man. You gotta respect the age difference. She's never gonna be yours. Suck it up.')

Of course, that didn't mean Ray Ray wanted to go back just yet and face his untimely demise. He wanted to get some relaxing in before June killed him. Just a few more hours, then he'd go home. He promised.

"So, uh, don't be mad, but..."

June closed the book she was reading and set it down on the couch cushion beside her, eyes narrowing. "Ray Ray, what did you do?"

"It's a funny story, actually. But, uh... I got fired."

"On your first day out of training?"

He nodded. "Looks that way."

June stood up. "Ray Ray, how could you be so- Don't you know that- Ulgh!" She threw her hands into the air. "You promised me you wouldn't do this!"

"I remember no such promise."

She ignored him. "What happened?"

He rocked on his heels. "See, here's the funny part. I kinda... slugged my manager's manager? Yeah, that's it. That's what I did. Allegedly."

"Ray Ray, you're sixteen years old and you barely come up to my hip. What in the world possessed you to pick a fight with someone that's probably twice your age and triple your size?"

"Well, I had too. He wouldn't shut up!" He waved his hands, desperate for her to understand.

"Neither do you, and I don't punch you for it."

"Yes you do."

"Shut up."

"I just, he..." Ray Ray sighed, shoulders slumping. "He made Lila cry, alright?"

All at once, the atmosphere changed. June's whole body tensed, and her hands balled into fists. Despite this, her voice was calm. Level. "Tell me what happened. From the beginning this time."

"Well, I was on break, and me and Lila were talking about... stuff, when my manager's manager, which I didn't know he was, came out. He started makin' fun of her, 'cause she's older than me and she was hanging out with the 'newbie' and she's startin' to grow some of her old fur back on her hands and stuff."

"The potion's wearing off?"

He nodded. "That's what she told me."

Monroe hmmed. "I'll make 'er another batch later."

"Anyway, I told him to shut it, but he just laughed at me. Then he said some other rude stuff, but I was too mad to really listen. Lila looked ready to cry. So I stood up and slugged 'em. Gave 'em a black eye and everythin'. And then I got fired."

"Name?"

"Huh?"

"Did you get his name? A number?"

"No, why?"

"Because I want to slug him. Give him another black eye to match the one he's already got."

Ray Ray immediately stepped out of the way, knowing better than to get in her way. Rule one of June- don't mess with her friends. Rule two? Stay out of the way when someone does mess with her friends.

"Careful, darlin'." Monroe twitched a paw for her to stay. "When you punch someone, they tend 'ta come away with broken bones. You don't need that kinda attention right now."

June sighed. Her body slumped. "Yeah, I know." She answered, voice flat. "Just wish I'd been there, is all."

"It's best you weren't. He'd 'a had a lot more 'n a black eye by the time you were done with 'em."

The young woman flopped back on the couch. Ray Ray stayed standing.

"Am I in trouble?"

"No, no, just... be more careful next time, alright? Report it to the head office. Violence isn't the answer."

"But it is a permanent solution." Ray Ray chimed, sinking down to the floor. He leaned against the arm of the couch and pulled out a comic, careful to zip his bag up all the way.

June couldn't know about the travel guides. If Ray Ray had his way, no one would.

There's something oddly comforting about knowing every inch of Orchid Bay top to bottom, and Ray Ray held onto the familiarity as he chased after a rogue goblin with a banishing stone.

It was pitch dark, but that didn't matter. Ray Ray knew every twist and turn, every hidey hole, every house and every person living in every house by name or face.

Orchid Bay wasn't a small town. It wasn't just anybody who could honestly say they knew their way around like he could.

But that had its downsides, like bursting through a hunk of bushes and stopping the moment he realized something, no matter how small, was off, letting the goblin duck away into the foliage.

Ah, let 'em. June'll find him later.

Shoving the stone into his pocket, he glanced around. "What the-"

Then it hit him.

And then he turned around.

Then he saw the sign.

It was pitch black out, but Ray Ray could still tell, with dead certainty, the words carved into the metal, even from behind.

'Now leaving Orchid Bay. Have a nice day.'

Ray Ray blinked. "I'm outside. As in, outside Orchid Bay." He whipped around in a circle, smile growing bigger with every passing second. "Awesome!"

He clutched his stomach. "Why do I feel so weird? Oh, who cares? I'm outside!"

He did a little victory dance. He had Te Xuan Ze magic running through his veins, he realized. It was only natural that his body would react when-

He stopped.

Te Xuan Ze.

"June."

He ran like the ground was falling apart and lava was seeping up beneath his feet. He felt like everything slowed down when he went past the sign, like he was racing through a vat of honey, then sped up when he burst through.

"Ray Ray?"

He whipped around. "Uh, here!"

"Oh, good." June jogged into the street line, hands on her knees. "I've been looking everywhere for you. Did you get him?"

"Uh, no, sorry. He got away."

"I see."

"Yeah. We should, ah, we should... be gettin' back. It's pretty late, and stuff."

June didn't move. Ray Ray turned around. "June?"

"Hmm?"

He walked over and stood beside her. Together they stared at the words on the sign as though they were a foreign concept.

"We should... we should be gettin' home."

June nodded, but still didn't move. "You don't have to stay for me, you know. I'm not gonna fall apart or anything."

"Huh? I never said I was-"

"I know you could've went along with Ophelia and Jody. I also know you said no."

"Oh." He scuffed the dirt with his shoe. "They, uh, they told you about that, huh?"

"Yup."

"Oh."

June slowly turned and bent down to be on level with him. "Ray Ray, just because I can't leave doesn't mean you can't."

"Yeah, I know, but it doesn't feel right, you know? Leaving you here all alone."

"I wouldn't be alone. I've got Monroe."

"Yeah, but we're-" The words died in his throat.

'We're the only ones left.'

Ophelia and Jody were working on movies together and traveling the world (Ophelia, having known about magic for about two years now, and Jody, having admitted to knowing about magic around four or five years ago- and wasn't willing to tell anyone just how long she'd really known-, they sent in reports of magical creatures they ran into on the road and their numbers). Marcus was in Texas for college. Rodger was surfing the waves off the shores of eastern Canada- last they'd heard, at least. He tended to get distracted and forget to call for weeks on end. Dennis was applying for a job in magical government, and would be on call for a good three or four years, traveling, sharing his knowledge, etc.

It's funny how that all works.

"We're... you know."

June nodded like she knew even though she probably didn't. She didn't prod him further. "I'm not all that worried about it anymore, honestly. I'll still have a good thirty or forty years left after I have kids-" There was no 'if' in a job that was passed down by blood and blood alone. "And one of them is chosen, possibly. That's plenty of time."

"Exactly. We'll still have half our lives ahead of us. If you can wait, I can wait."

"You're an idiot, you know that?" But she was smiling.

"No, I'm your annoying little brother. That's a step up from the average, everyday idiot."

June reached out and hugged him. Ray Ray hugged back.

"It'll all be cool, you'll see. We'll look back on all of this one day and laugh. I promise." He smiled into the crook of her shoulder.

Nothing was said after that. There wasn't anything to say.

Author's Note: Okay, so this was going to be this funny little oneshot at first, but then my muses got thinking and it spiraled out of control. Not really sure what to call this, other than long.

-Mandaree1

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