Don't want the help.

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Kalif was not in the best mood as he entered his home at Styx Manor, his right hand removing his hood. One would think that this is rather strange considering that Kalif was really left handed. However during a mission that he was on, with his special requirements, he had to get some information, and he didn't leave anything behind. What he didn't pick up was the fact that the man he was after had a metal plate in his head. Kalif was strong, but he wasn't invincible. He never thought himself as that, and he managed to break his left hand on the guy's skull. The deed was done and there was little to no evidence behind, but Kalif was still in pain, and his soured, hardened expression covered it well. He closed the door with his boot before he went upstairs, his left arm crossed over his chest to make sure his hand didn't touch anything, and he crossed the many bedrooms. His six children were home today, and so was his wife. He didn't know where Kaleb and Artemisia was, but he could care less about them right now. They were married, and they didn't need someone watching over them. In fact, he wanted Kaleb to be able to move out sometime soon. It was no good to be married and still living under a parent's roof. However he was the one that put the scar on Artemisia, so he wasn't really fond of her. Filthy halfbreed. He hated the lot of them, and thought that they were all about as worthless as they come. He wished that they could have been like mules and unable to breed at all, however it appeared that it was not so. Kalif didn't dare think of it for too often though as he entered his private study.

He opened his door with his right hand and he walked into his study where it was lit by candles on the wall. It was getting close to night time, and he was home around the time that he told his wife that he would be. For some reason, when he went out, he always told her what he was doing, where he was going and when he would be expected back. Kalif treated Nicolette like his equal, and nothing was going to affect that, as it appeared. Kalif sat down behind his desk, and he slowly, cautiously, rested his broken hand on the desk. He started to shift through some of the papers that he needed to go through when it concerned his brothers running the family, and other family members that needed his help. Of course even when Asparuh was here, Kalif was normally telling others what to do, and why they were doing the things that they were. Asparuh was merely overseeing everything. Kalif used a spell to make the quill do the writing for him, as he couldn't write with his right hand. He heard some footsteps coming his way, but for now he ignored them. That is, until he heard who they belonged to. His wife.

 

[Nicolette Styx]

</COLOR>

<COLOR color="#000">Nicolette winced when she heard the loud thud that had come from upstairs. The kids weren't really being quiet like she had asked. Then again, did children even know how to be quiet? Nicolette encouraged them to play so they would get tired and sleep better at night, but her kids had no fear when it came to their playtime. Nicolas was probably the worst at this, but in her opinion none of them could have room to talk. but they were children. "Kids, your father is coming home soon. I really don't think noise is what he wants to be hearing. Keep it down please." Luckily they all complied with her request and actually quieted down. They were fairly well behaved for kids their age. It was probably due to the way they were raised by the family, but it wasn't like Nicolette minded. Her kids were well behaved and did what she told them to most of the time. In her mind, it didn't matter much how they were raised, just what they became with these skills as adults. Nicolette closed the door behind her and headed out into the hallway. Kalif needed to get home soon. Nicolette was bored. Usually when he was around she could at least bother him about something. It didn't matter what, it just amused her when she managed to get him all agitated. "Seven years and that man still hasn't kicked me to the curb yet." Nicolette didn't think he ever would, but she was surprised at times. Especially when she purposely tried to agitate him. But she supposed that something like that would never really happen. Kalif was attached to Nicolette, and she knew that. Now she would never abuse that. Except for the agitation thing. But it wasn't like he could talk. Especially not since he did the same damn thing more than half the time. Nicolette smirked when she heard a door close. Ah, there was her dear old husband. He had been away for far too long. She was going to make sure he knew that too. With him working at the school, Nicolette didn't get to pick on him as much as she would like to.

"Kalif!" Nicolette had a devious smile plastered onto her face. She was more than excited to see the face of her husband. She opened the door to his office and poked her face in, her golden eyes gleaming in the light of the room. "Hey butthead how was the-what happened to your hand Kalif?" Nicolette asked worriedly as she approached him. She could tell, due to her years of being a healer, that there was something not quite right with it. Kalif was a typical manly man sometimes. Of course he wouldn't go to her if he was hurt, or he needed help. He was stubborn like that. "Kalif how did you hurt your hand? Let me see it! I can fix it." Nicolette spoke softly but sharply so he would know that she was serious when she meant that she could help him. Nicolette approached his deskside and tried to take his left hand into her own. As usual he was still wearing gloves. But he was going to have to take them off. It wouldn't take long. She just needed to find out what was wrong and then heal it up quickly. No biggie.​

<i></i>

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Kalif merely looked up when he heard Nicolette enter his office, and he doubted that anything she had to say would be relevant to the situation. He looked back down at the quill that was still writing, before he shook his head at her question. He didn't feel like telling her that he broke it on that stupid man's metal plate in his skull. That was annoying enough for him. But for his wife to come in and bother him about things like this, it would be even more annoying than that bloody man. After being with Nicolette for so many years, he didn't know how to really live without her, but then again, there were times when he wished that he could shut her up. He was just glad that she could not get pregnant anymore. They had enough kids running around their home as it was. Finally he answered, "Don't worry about it, Nicolette. It is just a small injury, it will pass." Of course, it was not a small injury, he was just trying to cover it up since she sounded like she was worried over him. There was no need to be worried since he was stronger than she was. He still could kill and fight, whatever he wanted to do, he could still do it. Just with one hand. His right hand, which was something he would have to get used to. He looked up at her to see that she was approaching, and he narrowed his eyes at her. Why did she feel the need to come over here? Sometimes he thought that she lived to drive him insane, and why he wasn't already was beyond him. Instead he kept his eyes on her, as she approached the desk.

She asked how did he hurt his hand, and he had half a mind to retort something smart, but she wanted to see and if she could fix it. There was nothing to fix. He might have to snap a few bones back into place, but he was waiting for the pain to dwindle down. She was by his side at this point, and then she grabbed his hand. Well, it was not a harsh grab, but it was enough to make him swiftly take his hand out of hers, and stand up to his full height. He glared down at her, and he hissed, "If someone injures their hand, or anything, you don't grab at it. There's nothing wrong with it, I just broke a few bones. That's it, since you are so worried." Kalif took a few steps back from her, away from her touching distance. The last thing he wanted her to do was to attempt to heal it. She was rough enough as is. It'd heal with time. "Could you come up with a better insult than 'butthead'. You sound like an eight-year-old." His tone was not that pleasant, but she did actually cause him pain. Causing him pain, now that was unheard of. He walked around to the front of his desk, holding his injured hand to his side, ready to snap it back if she were to try to make another grab. He felt foolish now, almost running from his wife. Like cat and mouse. He continued to watch her though. Could he trust her with his injuries? It would be one of the first times that he came home with a broken bone, however he managed to fix that himself. He couldn't fix this one though. It was his primary wand hand. He did not want to risk injuring himself further.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

</COLOR>

<COLOR color="#000">Nicolette rolled her eyes at her husband. Just a small injury? His hand looked like it was broken with how swollen it was. "Bullsh*t. Look at how swollen it is Kalif!" Nicolette bit back and pointed at the wound, hoping he would realize that since she had been a healer most of her life, she knew when a wound needed to be treated. He was trying to be a big macho man right now but Nicolette wasn't going to let him pull that on her. He could say whatever he wanted to say too. Nicolette knew better. She was stubborn enough to fight and try to get what she wanted, so she was going to bother him until he told her the truth and let her attempt to heal it. He was hurt, and as his wife Nicolette felt like she needed to do what she could to help him out. Or keep him entertained. As soon as Nicolette grabbed Kalif's hand, she swiftly pulled it back, forcing Nicolette to narrow her eyes at him. What was his deal? She wasn't even being that rough with his injury, sure it might not have been as soft as he expected, but Nicolette needed to be stern with it to make sure she healed it properly. Here came the arguing, something Nicolette and Kalif were no strangers to. "Honestly Kalif, you're being a really big baby about this. Of course I'm going to have to grab at it to take a look at it and fix it, second of all, it's going to hurt when I do it because it's injured. No man up and just let me see your hand." Nicolette held her hand out and wiggled her fingers, as if telling him to give her his hand and quit whining about it. She was serious too, hopefully it was obvious enough in her eyes. Kalif was usually good at being able to read her, so this time shouldn't be any different than all the other times.

"You better watch who you're calling a child, Kalif. Because if I'm a child, then do you know what that makes you? A pedophile. And I'll be damned if I'm gonna stand here and be lectured by a pervert." Nicolette sassed back, her hands resting on her hips as she did so. This was probably not going to amuse him, but it was the best insult she could think of, especially when she was worried about him and his hand. Nicolette stepped forward again, hoping that he would actually allow her to try and heal him this time. Nicolette reached out slowly; "Now come on, just let me heal your hand really quickly!" Nicolette knew she sounded bossy, but she didn't care, Kalif knew she was bossy to begin with. So he should know how to deal with it, or ignore her. Nicolette figured she was going to drastic measures to get him to comply with what she wanted to do. Normally when her own life was in danger, or she thought out a plan of action carefully, she managed to win an argument or some minor detail of an argument.​

<i></i>

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Nothing she could say would change his stubborn mind. Not after that grab that she had made. Kalif looked down at his hand and then he looked back at his wife. He could lie and say that he did not see it, but truth be told, he did not want to lie to her. Kalif normally fought his battles with facts. Unfortunately, this was a battle meant for him to come out as the loser. He hated that, and he simply rolled his eyes at the thought that it was swollen. That was nothing. He could take something and get the swelling down. However he knew that his wife was, unfortunately, going to put up a fight. One might find that attractive in a female, but right now he was finding it to be rather annoying. He narrowed his eyes when she said that he was acting like a big baby. His broken hand was grabbed, of course he was going to react negatively! He could not believe that he was going to have to explain that a broken hand was actually something very painful, and would need to be treated with care. He would let her do that, but he was sure that she would not do it without hurting him even worse. He could tell that she was being serious, and then as soon as he took a step toward her, her sassiness made him pause. The statement made him look at her like she had grown an extra head. What in the world was she talking about? He was not even lecturing her, as far as he knew anyway. Perhaps scolding. "I know you did not come up with that on your own. You need to stop hanging around with Axel. You are getting an attitude." Kalif was just appalled at what she had said. He could not believe the words that had been said. Plus he did not appreciate being called a pervert on top of that, even if she was just trying to sass him.

Sighing, seeing as she was reaching out to him, and he was being a little unreasonable, he thought that nothing else could go wrong. After all, she used to be a Healer a while back, so she might as well fix that damn hand of his. He reached out his left hand, which was the broken one, and softly placed it into her own hand. He flinched a bit at the pain that it brought, and removing the glove was going to be worse on him. He rarely removed his gloves for anything and now he would have to get over that, and do it so he can get his blasted hand fixed. He hated having to depend on her for something like this. He decided to go on ahead and get this crap over with. He used his right hand to remove the glove, and as soon as he did, he could see how bruised that hand was. It was turning black around his pointer finger and his thumb as well as all of the area around it. Yes, he was in need of his wife's help when it came to this. So he did not say anything more as he trusted her to just treat him.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

</COLOR>

<COLOR color="#000">Nicolette had to keep from smirking at her husband. He thought she was getting the attitude from Axel? Clearly he didn’t realize how much of an influence he’s had on her the past couple of years. A sly smirk formed itself onto her face. "Kalif, if there is anyone that needs to be blamed for my attitude, it’s you my dear. You have no idea just how much of an attitude problem you have do you?" Kalif might not consider the way he was to be an attitude, but to Nicolette it was all the same. He could be a bit sassy when he wanted to be too. But that was one of her favorite things about him, particularly when he tried to deny ever behaving like that. It was difficult arguing with him because Kalif was pretty good at winning them, but Nicolette would never give in easily. That would allow him to win and would automatically just suck all the fun out of bothering him. "I’m sorry I called you a pervert. I didn’t mean it." Nicolette apologized after a moment. He probably didn’t like being called that, but she was mostly just joking around. The timing was perfect. He was actually anything but a pervert. He was a very respectable and private man when it came to such matters, so it would be stupid for anyone to assume that her statement was true. Actually, out of the both of them, Nicolette was probably more perverted than Kalif was, and she wasn’t really that bad. It was likely that Kalif wasn’t too thrilled even if she was joking around, but he would have to get over that sadly because there was no way for her to take it back now. Plus it wasn’t like she was truly serious about it. Nicolette just hoped that Kalif would just forget about it and leave it be for now.

Nicolette was actually kind of shocked when Kalif decided to comply with her and placed his hand into her own. He even was so gracious as to remove the glove for her so she didn’t have to worry about hurting him while she did it. When the glove was finally off and she could see how bruise it was, her mouth fell open. "Kalif Styx! " Nicolette lectured, instantly reminding herself of how she scolded her children when they did something wrong. His hand looked just awful and if she hadn’t insisted he was going to not treat it at all! Was he just insane? Nicolette stared up and him and rolled her eyes softly, she was more careful with his hand now that she knew the damage that had been dealt to it. "Pretty sure you fractured some bones in there. " Nicolette pulled out her wand and tried to do what she could to fix his hand without hurting him. She noticed as she worked about, how much larger his hands were compared to her own. Two of her hands were still a bit smaller than the size of his. Nicolette wasn’t sure if that meant he had big hands, or if she just had really small ones. She thought it might be her, because she also had pretty small feet for someone her height. Once Nicolette was able to mend his bones, she then started to work on making sure everything else was intact. "I’m going to have to bandage this. You’ll only need to keep it on for maybe a day or two. It’ll help with the bruising and swelling. DO NOT TAKE IT OFF." Nicolette warned, knowing that he might disagree with the idea of having something on his hand. He could take it off if he wanted, he just better be sure not to let her see it or she was going to get really mad.​

<i></i>

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Kalif raised an eyebrow to her retort about her attitude coming from his own influence. He had some comebacks, just about for all occasions, but one fell short to him that night. He did not know anything to say that would make her feel stupid or anything. Instead he simply said, "And here I thought you were never listening. Perhaps you are getting smarter." That was the best he could come up with, at that moment. He would probably think of something better in about two hours, but for now, that would just have to do. Kalif wondered if Nicolette had been holding back after all of these years. If she had, then he would have to have a long talk with her over holding back. Things could have gotten so much more interesting if they had been. He looked down somewhat when she apologized for calling him a pervert. He shook his head and murmured, "Best avoid things like that because it can backfire." Kalif had certain things that rubbed him the wrong way. It was a good thing that it did not piss him off. It just took him off guard. He never expected anything like that. Ass, he was familiar with. He was very familiar with that. Especially from Nicolette. If anything, she should be somewhat proud for actually winning that one since he did not know any better at all. Nothing could top that. In the back of his mind, he secretly blamed Axel anyway. Axel or Benjamen. Either one of them could have easily done what she had done. Sometimes the things that come out of their mouths, Kalif just had to walk away from because they were that bad. That was why he was not saying any more on the subject. Nothing could make him think anything else to come along with that. He just wanted to have his hand fixed and soon. The pain was making him irritated.

The moment that Nicolette saw his hand, he knew what she was going to say. His name. But he was not a child. He was clearly an adult. Kalif merely gave her a hardened stare, like telling her to shut up but also to fix it because this was annoying enough. He needed to be able to write and cast his spells. He was gifted in his right hand, but not the spells he often had some difficulties with. It was a good pairing for the two of them. She healed him a lot, and he protected her as she did him from time to time. It was not like they needed protecting anymore, but they watched over their children like hawks. Kalif shrugged when she said that she was sure that he had fractured some bones. All he knew was that it hurt too much to move even the slightest finger. So he did not do it at all. "I see," spoke Kalif in a low tone. He did not really care what he did, just had to get rid of the pest that was in their way anyway. As soon as she got to work, it instantly started to feel a lot better than before, and calming him down to some degree. However he rolled his eyes when she told him that he would have to keep it bandaged for a day or two. He could put up with that. "Two days maximum. Thing it comes off." He held up his hand, and it was also his way of thanking her. The only time he ever say it if he were being incredibly sarcastic.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

Nicolette smirked when Kalif remarked about her never listening, and that she was getting smarter. Oh if he only knew the half of it. Her golden eyes fell onto his form before she decided to actually voice was what on her mind. "I'm always listening. I just don't like to act like I am sometimes because I know it gets on your nerves. Or you happen to be lecturing me like I'm five." Nicolette rolled her eyes at that last part. Kalif did have a tendency to treat her like she was a little kid from time to time, but could he be blamed with the way Nicolette behaved. There were times when she could be really impulsive and hot-headed. Especially when Kalif started to piss her off. There were times when she began to wonder if he got her all riled up on purpose so he could get a good laugh when she started to act like that. Then again, he couldn't talk either. He got cranky and moody too when he was upset. It was cute to Nicolette, not that she would ever tell him that though. He would probably get annoyed if she did ever decide to ever tell him. "Sorry." Nicolette honestly did feel a little bad that what she had said bothered Kalif. Normally she called him an ass or something, which didn't seem to bother him at all. But pervert on the other hand really seemed to get under his skin. It was untrue though, he was probably one of the most strict men when it came to intimacy. In fact if they weren't alone he almost never was cuddly or intimate with Nicolette. Which made it even more special because it was like a rare little treat. It was even better when he was angry with Nicolette too.

"Unless your hand is still bothering you. Then I'll make you keep it on longer. I better not see you take it off before then either or you will never hear the end of it." Nicolette warned as she watched him sit down. She knew she sounded a little bit naggy right now, but she wanted to make sure he was going to be okay. Nicolette loved Kalif with all of her heart, and the last thing she ever wanted was for something to happen to him. After a moment of silence, Nicolette had the sudden urge to just be close to him. Carefully, Nicolette sat herself on Kalif's lap and made sure not to bump his injured hand at all. Then she rested her head on Kalif's shoulder. Chances were that he would be unhappy with the contact, and she would likely get shoved onto the floor, but it was nice to be able to spend even just a few minutes close to him. It comforted her because she wasn't able to spend a lot of time with him being away teaching all the time. It made Nicolette wonder if he ever missed being with his family while he was there. He did have some cousins, nieces, and nephews at Hogwarts, but did they fulfill the role of his wife and kids? Nicolette wanted to ask, but she didn't want Kalif to get irritated with her and then one of their infamous arguments start. Of course she knew one was coming, but she wanted to keep it at bay for as long as possible right now. ​

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

The next day, despite the wife saying that he needed to keep the bandage on his hand for two days, however Kalif thought differently. As soon as he had woke up and got himself decent, Kalif removed the bandage to see that his skin was no longer black. The bruises were mostly gone, only a slight green one in the worst area on the back of his hand. However it did not hurt him anymore, and he tossed the bandages away. He no longer needed them. Kalif decided that he would use the day out of school to get some family things done. Perhaps there would be a time when he would be a Patriarch, but now, he was not exactly interested. He wanted to continue with being a professor to terrorize those that were not related to him. After all, that was the best part of being the Slytherin Head of House. He also held the founder up in a high regard, despite the fact that he once hated the previous Head of Slytherin, whom was Severus Snape at his time at the school. It was interesting that they both taught the same subject, however one would definitely say that Kalif was much more fair. Kalif hated all houses and did not choose favorites. Those related to him suffered the worst of it all. For now, the school could not remain on his thoughts, and he had to think of the future for his daughters right now. He was in strong favor of choosing their future husbands. He was positive that they would end up with someone of better blood than the one that his firstborn with Nicolette chose. That part-veela woman did not even know that Kaleb was actually a pure-blood either. Kalif would not want to be there when she found out the truth. Kalif knew that it would be done while they lived under his roof, which he was actually getting sick of.

The walk over to his office was a long one from the bedroom, and he checked on the younger children while they were still sleeping. They would be getting up at any point now. Kalif would no longer have any more children and for that he could not be happier. He had enough after the number he had. Plus his oldest with Nicolette was still living with him. That could not be worse. Hades and Patricia were out of his Manor now, unless he knew differently and they had been living there without him noticing. That was not possible. Kalif opened the doors to his office, and he closed them behind him. That was basically saying that he did not want to be bothered for some time. Taking his seat behind his desk, Kalif started to get to work with writing with the formerly injured hand, which did not bother him in the least bit. It did feel a bit stiff, but he figured that it was nothing. What he did not want was his wife to yell at him for taking the bandages off early. It was not bleeding to begin with, and the blackness was not around it, so why would he keep bandages on his hand if he did not think that he needed them? Nothing would get infected. Kalif continued to narrow down some families that he knew over in Russia that he could contact. After all, he wanted the best for his daughters. He had yet to talk to Nicolette about it, but he would eventually.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

Nicolette was woken up the moment she heard a door slam down the hall. Being a mother, she knew exactly what that meant, her kids were awake and on the move. "I better get up before they start to destroy the house.” Nicolette yawned and lifted her limbs to stretch in an almost cat-like manner. Plus she wanted to check on Kalif and see how his hand was fairing. If it looked better than he wouldn’t have a problem with taking the bandages off tomorrow. On the other hand, if it looked just as bad, if not worse than what it looked like yesterday, he may need to have it checked again. Nicolette pulled herself out of bed and swiftly got herself dressed and ready for the day with some makeup and whatnot. The house was fairly quiet so the children must have been behaving themselves, or the house elves had detained them with breakfast. When Nicolette felt that she was ready for the day she left her and Kalif’s bedroom and peeked down the hallway. As much as she loved her babies, they were quite the handful in the morning. A wave of relief rushed over the blonde as she realized that they eating and out of trouble for the time being. This meant that Nicolette had time to go say hello to Kalif. When he was at the school teaching, it got really lonely without him. There was no one for her to pick fights with or cuddle with albeit being unwillingly from his part? It wasn’t the same and Nicolette was happily waiting for the day when he wouldn’t have to go back and leave her. Pretty soon even the kids would be gone, and then the house would be entirely empty while he was away at Hogwarts.

"Kalif, how’s your ha-KALIF IVAYLO STYX!” Nicolette wandered into her husband’s office, eager to greet him and start the day, until she noticed the lack of bandages on his hand. He freaking took them off, even though she had told him not to! He should know better than to do something like that. Nicolette charged into the room and thumped her husband’s uninjured arm, her eyes gold eyes burning with anger. "I told you not to take the bandages off! Look at your hand; it’s still not fully healed!” Nicolette carefully took his the hand that he had hurt, making sure to be careful with it as she inspected it. Of course he was likely to be unhappy with her over the whole situation, but he should have listened to her! Nicolette was only trying to help him take care of himself. "When will you realize that you aren’t superman?! You need to take care of yourself better Kalif!” Nicolette lectured as her small fingers grazed his hand, it still felt stiff and some discoloration to it. "I’m going to have to re-bandage it now.” Nicolette didn’t care if Kalif was unhappy with her decision or not either, she was going to fix his hand up again and this time, he was going to keep it on or else. He knew better than to test her temper, and right now this was exactly what he was doing. Why else would he take it off, knowing fully well that Nicolette had told him to keep it on? If she had to, she would lock him out of the damned office and watch him all day. That way she could be sure that he wasn’t trying to take it off when he wasn’t supposed to. Nicolette retracted her arms and then crossed them over her chest, waiting to see what her husband had to say about this. ​

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Kalif was not entirely pleased when he heard his wife enter the office, but then use his full name which made him drop the utensil he was using to write with. After contacting the families, he looked up when he realized that Nicolette used his full name, and he knew that there was something going to happen that he was not going to appreciate. She was mad. Her golden eyes were glowing with anger, and he looked at her in the eyes with his own old ones to counter the fire. "Using the full name to our children might make them fearful of you and your presence, but it does not work on me, Nicolette." His voice was utterly calm, and it also countered her voice which sounded more like a raging fire that could wipe out a wilderness with the slightest breeze. He looked down at his hand and he felt nothing, not even while he was writing with it. So it had to be healed up if he could write with it without cringing in pain. He looked down at the hand and back at his wife, when she said that she had told him not to take the bandages off, and that it was not fully healed. He had several comments to say to that. For one, she was definitely not his mother. To him, he was not sure he even had one. Another reasoning, she did not really have any say over what he did with his hands that did not involve her. At least that was the way that he thought. He rolled his eyes in a way that was obvious and he looked up at her once more before he clinched the hand that was supposed to be healed up.

Well, he had tried to clinch it but it was still a little stiff. He narrowed those eyes she said that he should realize that he was not superman. Who in the hell was superman? Kalif sighed, "If I can write with it, it is good enough. It does not need bandages especially since it is not bleeding." If she even tried to do it, then she would find herself in the pool faster than a teenager in a hot, summer day. Kalif would make sure of that. She knew better than to test him, as he knew better than to test her. It was now just a standoff between their own stubbornness. She said that she was going to have to put more bandages on it, and once more, he found his eyes rolling. He leaned back in his chair and he folded his arms across his chest. "I’d like to see you try it." It was almost a dare to her. To try to make him do something that he did not want to do. Kalif raised an eyebrow at her, like he was testing her to try something on him. Would she even dare? A smirk almost touched those lips, especially as he muttered, "Don’t make me find a way to make you pregnant so you can get off my ass." It was rare that a word like that would cross his lips unless he was annoyed, but this was a bit more than him feeling annoyed. He was also fairly amused at her behavior. Maybe if he could distract her with something, then she would not make a big deal of this all. He could propose the whole arranged marriage thing for their oldest daughters, but he wanted to keep his hand. He would have to wait a bit before breaking the news to her.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

Nicolette rolled her gold eyes, Kalif was going to fight her on this. He couldn't just do what he was told and let his body heal the natural way. He did too much and that put his body under constant strain. Nicolette doubted that Kalif was going to listen to her without some sort of fight between the two of them, but that was usually the norm around here so she wasn't too phased by this. "I never expected it to." Nicolette replied dully as she entered the office. Nicolette didn't want him to be scared, she just wanted him to realize that she was pissed off by his actions. "I swear to god, you must have done this on purpose just to piss me off. It's not like having those bandages on was killing you." Nicolette lectured her husband as she scanned his arm to see how bad it looked. For the most part, it was healed. But Nicolette could tell just by the way Kalif had it positioned that it was still not fully healed. It was probably that damned manly pride that was getting in the way. He had no idea just how much he was getting under her skin when he didn't do what she asked of him.

"Kalif, just because it's not bleeding doesn't mean there isn't something wrong with it. The bandages are there to keep you from overusing your hand." Nicolette went out to grab his arm, but it seemed as if he was going to make this harder for her than she would have hoped. He was such a brat sometimes. He should know better than to dare her to do anything, because she'll do it. "I don't think that's even possible. Fine.....that's how you want to play it then, bring it on." Kalif knew that Nicolette wasn't stupid or weak, maybe she wasn't as powerful as he was, but she knew she could defend herself against him if need be. Without truly thinking of any repercussions that her actions might have, Nicolette kept one hand on his other arm, just in case he were to try and stop her, and took hold of his arm with the injured hand. She needed to work fast before the initial surprise wore off she and wound up on the floor. Nicolette briefly admired how large his hands were compared to hers, how on earth did men work with such large hands? ​

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

Of course Kalif was going to fight his wife on this issue. He liked it when things were done his way, and in no other way possible. He smirked a bit when he wondered what Nicolette would try to do. Force him to wear bandages? If she even tried, he knew what he was going to do. She never expected to do anything, so he wondered why she even bothered with trying to do that. It was not going to work, and he knew that his hand was fine, no matter what she was saying. "Then why bother using my full name when it will do nothing but strain that voice. I would have hoped that you saved it for your wretched meowing." Of course, he would say something about her animagus form. It never failed him when he did. She lectured him and he gave her a look as if he were about to lose his patience, since he was. He did not want to have that bandage on him, and that was the way it would stay. "It was hindering my day to day activities, so not killing me per say but annoying me. Thus I got rid of the annoyance." Besides, not having it on would not kill him too. She should be able to see that.

"I am not overusing the damn hand. I just need to get these family things sorted out." The moment that he used profanity, it meant that he meant business. He was not about to let her put those bandages on him, but even he had to admit, this was fairly amusing. He could not help but challenge Nicolette. The moment that he dared her, she seemed to take up that offer. He knew that it was hard to resist that, and he prepared for what she was going to do. She grabbed the arm that was attached to his injured hand, and he narrowed those onyx eyes. Without waiting for a moment, he took his other arm to loosen her hand up, and after a few seconds, he pinned his wife on the desk, knocking over a bottle of ink to the floor. Both of his hands had his wife pinned to the desk by her wrists. What was she saying about him overusing his hand? Kalif looked down upon his wife as he hovered over her and he inquired, "What now, Nicolette? You should have seen this coming." Kalif was good at overpowering her. She was small, but she definitely was not weak. Sometimes he liked having a challenge. Nothing was ever dull in this marriage.​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

Nicolette knew that when her husband used profanity in his sentences, that he usually meant business. He wasn't the type to throw those words around casually. But at the same time, Nicolette could care less. He had pissed her off by ignoring what she had asked of him. Nicolette knew he wasn't weak, but he needed to take care of himself better than he was. Kalif needed to realize that he wasn't invincible. He could if he wasn't more careful with the things he did, plus Nicolette hated it when he didn't listen to her. "Don't curse at me Kalif. Al you had to do was listen and keep the bandages on for one more day like I asked you too. It's not that hard!" Nicolette felt like she was almost dealing with a teenager, and that teenager happened to be her very own husband. Nicolette had every intention of forcing the bandages back into his hand, but he seemed to find that as more of a challenge than anything else. Next thing Nicolette knew, he took his other arm to loosen her hand up, and after a few seconds she found herself being pinned to the desk, a bottle of ink clanging to the floor below. Nicolette tried to pull her arms back to her sides, but they were being pinned down by Kalif. He was too strong for her to break free from either. Kalif even taunted Nicolette, knowing fully well that it was going to aggravate her too.

Suddenly, Nicolette smirked as an idea came to her. One would think that her dear husband would have learned by now that this was merely an invitation for her more than anything. Since Kalif was hovering over her, he was within perfect range too. Quickly as she could Nicolette leaned her upper body up and planted her lips onto Kalif's, giving him the biggest and wettest kiss she could possibly give him. Partially out of affect and partially just to irritate him. "If you wanted to be on top, all you needed to do was ask, hun." Nicolette teased, fighting back laughter. Kalif could be intimate, but normally it was a more private and serious manner for him, playfulness wasn't really his thing. It was fun to see Kalif get flustered every once and awhile, especially since Nicolette had a very playful nature, whereas he didn't at all. Maybe her actions would be enough to get him to release her and actually listen for once. ​

 

[Professor Kalif Styx]

His wife was simply out to get him and he would never know why either. The moment that she said not to curse at him, he rolled those eyes. That meant nothing to him after all. Sure, he might not curse that much, but he just hated feeling somewhat restricted down with his hand in bandages. So, he was taking it easy and he really needed to get the things done for the family. He was the Head after all, and that meant a lot. He had to do these things. He was careful though, with some things. Other things, not so much. Sure, he might have been able to tolerate it for another day, but he was not about to. "It is rather hard to listen to you for more than two seconds. Perhaps that is why I took it off after the minimum of one day, which is what you originally said, woman." Kalif knew what he had heard and he would take full advantage of doing the minimal requirement to get her off of his back, which was not working the way he had originally planned. He would have to do something else and wing it. However, it did seem as though Nicolette was surprised that he managed to pin her down on the desk. He was simply too strong for her to break free, and she was definitely a willing victim for anything he could think of. Kalif figured that there was nothing she could do to surprise him from there.

However, the wife did manage to surprise her husband. The next thing that he knew, he felt Nicolette give him perhaps the most unappealing kiss he had ever experienced in his life. The instinct he had was to wipe it away, and of course, Kalif released Nicolette to do just that. Then, what she said next took him off guard. She really needed to stop hanging around his family so much. He narrowed his eyes and he did not know what to say to her after that. Kalif folded his arms across his chest and he said with a cold tone, "You know that what happens between us should remain unspoken. But since you violated that, you already know who is the dominate one." Kalif let out a sigh and he adjusted his gloves on his hands before he raised an eyebrow at his wife. "You should get off my desk now so that I can get back to work. We can discuss other businesses later."​

 

[Nicolette Styx]

Nicolette threw her hands up in frustration. Sometimes her husband was just too much for her to handle. He probably knew it too. "Honestly Kalif, arguing with you sometimes is like arguing with a brick wall!" Nine times out of ten, she felt like she would have accomplished more if she had just argued with the freaking brick wall too! At least she wouldn't come out of that argument feeling like she wanted to punch someone. Why couldn't that man do at least one thing she asked him to without initiating some type of a fight? He complained about listening to her, but if he actually bothered to listen to her without a fight every single time, he might not have to hear her talk to much. It was his own fault really. "I said a day or two. Especially if your hand wasn't fully healed, and it clearly hasn't! If you'd listen to me, I wouldn't have to keep talking all of the time!" He was worse than a child sometimes! Nicolette could barely scold him either, he was far too sassy to even get a single word into his head before he got upset. Nicolette wasn't sure why he was that way, but he just was.

The slobbery kiss had worked, because in the end, she was released. The urge to laugh was too powerful, and before Nicolette could fight it back, the blonde found herself in a full blown laughing fit over the reaction her husband had just had. It almost reminded her of a small child trying broccoli for the first time. If only she had caught it on camera to laugh at later! "That was so cute! Ha!" Nicolette roared. The blonde stopped mid-laugh when Kalif threw in a comment about dominance. Wow she hadn't expected that to come out of his mouth. "Surprisingly I have no comment for that." Nicolette nodded her head, admitting defeat this one time. Silently the blonde slid off of Kalif's desk and adjusted her clothing. As much as she wanted to argue about his hand, she had no more to say. If it bothered him too much, it would be his own problem when something went wrong. "Sure.." Nicolette muttered, knowing fully well what he meant by other business. Nicolette shook her head and resisted another bought of laughter as she opened the door and stepped out of his office ​

---

Fin​