[right][code]Le Tournesol:[/code][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/5535452]A Companion Post[/url][/right][hr]

The dinner party only got more strange and alcohol-filled as the courses went on. Bottles of wine were shared among the Temple members, strangely or not almost never making it to the couple of the hour. But it seemed like everyone at the table had a massive goblet or glass to go along with whatever else they were drinking. 
Breads and soups, homestyle pastas, a cake made of donuts for dessert, the meal itself was carb central, and not a single plate left the grand table with food on it as they ate everything available. A compliment to the gluttonous, bacchanalian consumption of the near black wines they drank.  Squabbles seemed to bubble up and sweep away, people tossing comments up and down the dinner table. One conversation seemed to run into the next as a neighbor previously uninvolved in the discussion only tuned in to drop a bomb and leave again.

Casey’s brothers managed to make the moment about themselves during the main course, leading to Junior’s self ejection from the dinner party altogether. A dour mood swept across the gathering for a long while before Leon gave into the mounting social pressure and apologized for his own behavior. 
The wine flowed less freely after that, and while people didn’t stop being a hassle to one another, they did seem to cool down. Until an offer for free drinks at a nearby bar. Hari had, in the brief time between the two locations, offered to sort Trisha out with a spell she called “Condition Green”, which played with the brain to induce temporary sobriety.  

It was enough to get those who had too much from point A to B, and many of the attendees accepted the safe passage knowing that their drunken revelry would be more welcomed at a hangout like Le Tournesol. The owner, [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/5498577]a mid-level Temple Adept[/url], was a strong community player. Everyone valued Andre’s heart and soul going into his faith and his business, with Lynette herself citing a great deal of her favorite memories in that bar alongside her late Husband.

Now, Casey too found himself there, among the people who remained from dinner. Clarissa had stayed, half to insure that Lynette remained safe, but half to enjoy herself in a loose moment. She, the Polycurse, Lynette herself, Elise…
It was typical that Casey found himself, alongside Leon, to be the only males present in the group. But, they’d been brought here on the grounds of Sycamore Tree Coven business; and so Casey found himself alone, were it not for Andre’s presence. Condition Green had already worn off for some, mostly Mia, but Lynette had very quickly demanded chicken tenders and mozzarella sticks: A clear sign that she was drunk to anyone who really knew her.

Fried foods were in the [i]almost never[/i] category. Casey felt an invisible timer ticking away as he brought Trisha to the big table they sat down at. It was really just a few tables slid together, and plenty of booth space for people like Hari and Clarissa to ensure their deific boss’s safety by physically trapping her. Casey took a seat on the outside edge, starting to feel the buzz coming back after playing it cool in front of the Sycamore members…
Unlike his little sister, making out with the Shifter Leon had introduced… He draped his coat over the chair, still standing and reaching out for Trisha before she had the chance to sit down. 

He hugged into her, taking a deep breath as he did.
[color=577d06]”I give it an hour… I’m fucking beat!”[/color] he spoke to her sweetly, shuffling side to side slightly like he was trying to dance with Trisha.

[color=d1b300]“A whole hour?”[/color] Trisha giggled, beginning to feel a bit light headed again. She’d tried to pace herself during the meal, but alcohol had been the only way she could force herself to have a bit of every course. Even now she felt like she really couldn’t face another plate of food ever again. She swayed with Casey, arms loosely wrapping around his waist as she properly leaned into him. 
[color=d1b300]“Maybe [i]you[/i] can survive an hour. I already want to go to bed… or maybe I just need another drink.”[/color]

Noticeably, she’d managed to finish her drink on the walk from bar to table. Mainly to cope with Mia’s… weird baby bird behaviour, and then having to be in the presence of three Sycamore members grossly flirting. Just being around them was bad enough. Both Linqian and Aryin weren’t people she’d gotten along with. At all. 

[color=b2560d]”Another drink? What would you like? Any orders for this table, give them directly to me.”[/color] Andre popped up as if out of nowhere - though it wasn’t so much out of nowhere as it was talking to Lynette with one, magically enhanced ear always listening out. [color=b2560d]”Seeing as I’m about to lose my most capable employee for the night.”[/color]

Trisha’s brow furrowed, and she twisted around in Casey’s arms. Did she actually want another drink? If she kept drinking then she would get properly drunk, rather than just pleasantly tipsy. Then she might say things she wouldn’t normally… Did she really want that?
[color=d1b300]“Are you really willing to carry me home if I drink more?”[/color] she looked back up at Casey with a soft smile, before continuing in a much quieter tone.
[color=d1b300]“And I really wasn’t… that bad the other night when I got drunk? Honestly?”[/color]

Casey had to hear everything. Literally everything, as he got Trisha in one ear and Andrade and his Mother talking in the other.
[color=8882be]”Oh, SCREW me Andre, you know the deal. Driver, driver, driver.”[/color] Lynette laughed, her love of citrus and vodka well known by her closest; especially the people she trusted handling her food. 

Casey himself couldn’t help but laugh and lean in.
[color=577d06]”You drink as much as you want, Honey Bee. I’m here to catch you.”[/color]
He didn’t exactly have plans of staying sober at this point. Theo and Norm were both on page, and had cars ready to get people back to where they needed to go. 
[color=577d06]”Y’know, Andre, we can get someone from Andrade’s place tonight for you. Hell, we can probably fill the bar for staff. My treat?”[/color] he asked, casually shifting focus to something polite before barking out for drinks.

[color=b2560d]”Ain’t really a problem, Your Grace, I already called in my useless son,”[/color] Andre snorted, craning his neck as his enhanced eyes scanned across the bar. It was beginning to fill up again, especially with that terrible pun focused ‘comedian’ (in the loosest sense of the term) kicked out. [i]For now.[/i] 
[color=b2560d]”Well, perhaps another set of hands would help things. For now, one Screwdriver for Her Grace, anything else?”[/color] 

Trisha had been pondering over it as they spoke, content just being in Casey’s arms. If he said she could drink as much as she wanted, she might as well drink as much as she wanted. It’d make it easier to get through without getting more tense about things, hopefully. Because she really did want to go home but… this day was about celebration of Casey, with his family. She had to stick it out.
[color=d1b300]“Double rum and coke?”[/color] She was on the spirits now, might as well continue on the spirits for now. She definitely didn’t feel like going back to beer after all that food. 
[color=d1b300]“I need something stronger to catch up with everyone else,”[/color] she continued with a grin, glancing towards the girls, then Lynette. 

The two older women both started laughing like two old friends tend to. Obnoxiously, like they had an inside joke for everything… Or maybe that was just who they were? If you weren’t one of them, chances were you’d never know. But Lynette did raise a fist in the air. 
[color=8882be]”No shame! Just dive in, Babe!”[/color]
It was easy to see the breakdown of Lynette Hunter. The Lynette Hunter who came from St. Portwell, who went to New York with a bar crawling habit, and who never really lost her love of the party. Twenty years ago, there probably would’ve been drugs involved… But she never wondered why her children struggled. She only knew that she couldn’t let them dwell on it. And if they had the chance to get a little closer as a group? Why not let the alcohol flow, she believed.

But she gave up a lot of that regality for what could only be described as [i]Eu de Refuse[/i].  The trailer didn’t stray far from the cauldron, and in certain parts of the surrounding area, there were still echoes of the old ways. 
Casey knew it all at a glance, or at least believed he knew. He’d tucked his channeler into his underwear, not quite used to casting from anywhere but the hand. It was enough to utilize a great deal of the passive observational abilities Lynette had passed onto him.

Enough to give him a false sense of knowing everything. He’d not had long enough to understand that the folly in cheap tricks was that one had to be spot on in determining their judgement based upon so many small factors. Like a piece of overclocked technology, there was going to be a bottleneck somewhere that determined maximum performance.
And so was the battle, as even drunk, Lynette felt the weight of her own channeler in its custom strap. White Lux poured from her with such subtlety that Casey couldn’t yet hope to see the glint in his Mother’s eye.

Whether she was even drunk, or if it was all an act, was lost down the void darkness of the maw that opened up every time she tilted back her head to snort out a laugh.
[color=577d06]”I’ll absolutely have what she’s having, Andre. And a Last Round for everyone.”[/color]
[color=0072bc]”There wouldn’t be any chance I could get something frozen? [/color] Hari asked, almost sounding like a burden.
[color=66bb6a]”Oh, Dude! Mudslides! Andre? I’ll come, I’ll help, fuck I’ll make ‘em, just please tell me you still have that chocolate brownie ice cream?!?”[/color]
At Ed’s interjection, Hari gasped in a longing manner and leaned back, her tongue popping out of her mouth as she imagined the concoction.

[color=8882be]”Oh, fuck… [i]The bar food![/i] Andre, I… Is the… Are the cooks in?! One of those fuckin’ hamburgers! With that crazy sauce! And [i]extra[/i] mayo for the Mozzarella sticks!”[/color] Lynette excitedly included, unable to stop herself from bouncing up and down in the comfortable booth as she swung her arm forward.
[color=e0c4ff]”Go easy, Ly… He’s only one man! Andre, do you want me to help you until we get some more people in, Sweetheart?”[/color] Clarissa offered herself up for the good of the situation, as usual. 

[color=b2560d]”You tryna get my license revoked by gettin’ behind my bar without the proper shit, Etiennette?”[/color] Andre chuckled, shaking his head. He took it all in stride, not looking overwhelmed at all. 
[color=b2560d]”Be glad I’m lettin’ you drink at all, miss. But I got it, I got it. Screwdriver, two double rum cokes, Last Round for all, Mudslides- yeah I still got the brownie ice cream for em- and plenty of food. Kitchen’s still open another hour.”[/color]

Then he smiled at Clarissa, with a nod. 
[color=b2560d]”Would be great if you could come to the bar to bring over the drinks, at least. Just till Louis gets here- what’s the point'a bein’ part purple if you’re always fucking late. But ya know, table service ain’t normally offered, only for the likes of you all.”[/color]
With all the orders in, and not wanting to open up for more, he gestured to Clarissa to follow him and headed over to the busy bar.

[color=d1b300]“I didn’t think mudslides had ice cream in them?”[/color] Trisha said, in slight confusion, mind having buffered from the sheer quantity of drinks verbally thrown around. She’d had one before, but it’d just been a bunch of liqueurs and cream… She shrugged, looking up at Casey again. 
[color=d1b300]“Are we sitting down? You can keep hugging me… I’m happy to sit in your lap.”[/color] She smiled cutely, offering it very genuinely - she was more than tipsy enough to not really care about being so close in public.

Casey, not ever concerned about a bit of PDA, was happy to snag Trisha up a little tighter, spinning her and planting them both in the seat he’d intended to sit in. Clarissa rubbed Casey’s head as she passed, playfully messing up his otherwise neatly re-braided hair.
Hari had her phone out, texting Andrade to send Wendy over. That girl was certainly going to earn her pay and the tips that went along with them.
[color=0072bc]”Oh, I mean… Really they’re just like boozy milkshakes. He made them for Mom on her fortieth birthday, and we all had to have what she was having, so he had to make it good enough for all of us. Which meant no booze at the time…”[/color]

[color=8882be]”Awww, Harietta, I love when you call me Mom…”[/color] Lynette cooed, swooning close to the youngest of the Crones as Clarissa was off for their order.
Hari smiled, letting their heads rest against one another.
[color=0072bc]”Well, who else has been there?”[/color] Hari retorted, a deep breath washing over her as she tried to relax a bit.

Mia’s body shifted, and she sloppily pushed up and away from the table. Her steps landed her directly in between the two women, who both laughed and smiled before letting Mia slide into a newly formed gap.
[color=8882be]”Alriiiiight fine… I [i]guess[/i] you can sit between us.”[/color]
Instantly, Hari and Ed shot each other a glance.
[color=ed145b]”God fucking dammit…”[/color]

Casey could see the slightest wobble in his Mother’s facial features as she let the words echo out of her mouth. The quiver of a smile unshone. 
[color=8882be]”What?”[/color] Lynette groaned, as if she was asking her daughter what she’d done wrong. What was, after all, so wrong with a little joke?
[color=ed145b][b]”God fucking dammit!”[/b][/color] Mia smacked her fists against her knees. [color=ed145b]”Why can’t you ever just say you’re fucking happy to have me next to you!? Am I seriously a fucking… Why…”[/color]

Mia wasn’t looking at Lynette, nor did she have the array of abilities that were hidden away from her on the White spectrum. She’d not notice her Mother’s slight grin. Only Casey could see the drunken pleasure she got from the action. The administration of drip-fed pain. 

Trisha had practically gone limp against Casey, back pressed against his chest and letting his arms around her do the work in stopping her sliding off his legs. But, that very quickly changed as Mia started up again. She tensed up, legs automatically curling inwards at the knee, and hands moving from languidly fiddling with her hair to gripping it tightly. Her lips pressed together into a thin line, looking over at Mia.

Just like her, Trisha had no White Lux to speak of to notice any of the subtle undercurrents. Sure, she logically knew that Lynette wasn’t a good mother overall - it was so painfully obvious. [i]But[/i] she was there. In their lives, as toxic as it might be. There was that jealousy, the feeling that always pushed Trisha to her worst, bubbling up in her chest without the normal sobriety to keep it down. Jealousy of something she shouldn’t be jealous of in the first place. 

A poorly made joke required someone to be present in the first place to make it.
[color=d1b300]“At least she’s next to you in the first place.”[/color] What was supposed to be a thought, maybe a whisper to only herself, came out a lot louder than Trisha intended. Loud enough for everyone at the table to hear it, at least.

Lynette didn’t let her daughter get enough breathing room to come up with a logical argument to the presented sentiment. No matter how loud or soft it came out, it was enough that the whole table heard it and she needed to wrangle that momentum.
[color=8882be]”And lo, presenteth thine most serendipitous interjection! That! That, Mia, is a reason for you to really consider things and stop being so worked up over them. We both [i]literally[/i] moved our asses for you to get between us. Read the actions between the words, my little love…”[/color]


[i][color=#8882BE]"[/color][color=#8D7BB8]R[/color][color=#9375B3]e[/color][color=#986FAD]a[/color][color=#9E69A8]d[/color] [color=#A95D9D]t[/color][color=#AF5797]h[/color][color=#B45192]e[/color] [color=#C04487]a[/color][color=#C53E81]c[/color][color=#CB387C]t[/color][color=#D03276]i[/color][color=#D62C71]o[/color][color=#DC266B]n[/color][color=#E12066]s[/color] [color=#ED135B]b[/color][color=#E71A60]e[/color][color=#E12066]t[/color][color=#DC266B]w[/color][color=#D62C71]e[/color][color=#D03276]e[/color][color=#CB387C]n[/color] [color=#C04487]t[/color][color=#BA4A8C]h[/color][color=#B45192]e[/color] [color=#A95D9D]w[/color][color=#A463A2]o[/color][color=#9E69A8]r[/color][color=#986FAD]d[/color][color=#9375B3]s[/color][color=#8D7BB8]![/color][color=#8882BE]"[/color][/i] Mia mocked her Mother’s expression and inflection.

Hari quickly put her arms around Mia and slid her up onto her lap.
[color=0072bc]”Hey, listen! You’re embarrassing me a little bit, okay? Now, I love you- And nobody here or there thinks anything but loving thoughts about you! You are causing problems that shouldn’t be happening right now, and we would probably all appreciate it if you could chill out for now.”[/color]
Her hands gripped Mia by the belly, or what little was there, and gently rubbed like a cat would paw at a bit of cushion or rug. Mia’s eyes were leaking, and Lynette was looking up at her daughter with a playful frown.

[color=8882be]”Mummy won’t tell jokes like that anymore, Baby. If it hurts you so badly, we’ll insulate you. Just like we always have.”[/color]
Trisha could feel Casey’s fingers wriggle with discomfort. His head spun around, praying to see Andre and Clarissa coming back with drinks. What he saw was something totally different.

[color=C67C12]”Ma? Hey, I’m gonna be leavin’ soon… But, I was wondering if you wanted to do that thing…”[/color]
Leon’s frame loomed over them, and he put a comforting hand on Casey’s shoulder.
[color=C67C12]”Or are you too busy tormenting your Baby Girl?”[/color]
Lynette grinned at her eldest Son, then turned that grin to Casey with Trisha in his arms.
[color=8882be]”Gettin’ your freak on, Hound Dog?”[/color] Lynette giggled, a terribly strange way to ask one’s son about their plans for exploits in the near future. 

She held her hand out to him. 
[color=8882be]”Sure, sure… That lazy hack comedian’s gone. May as well entertain the people.”[/color]
Mia and Hari had retracted into some sort of wordless conversation, and clearly checked out of the moment. Ed, on the other side of Hari from Lynette, curled in close in an attempt to make the moment a little easier on her partners.
Leon knew, obviously, that his Mother was being troublesome. Like the both of them, his senses were beyond keen. But unlike them, it was all processed through the mind of a sex-crazed wolf demon. He couldn’t listen to it without a great deal of aggression and desire to fix it. Or at least give others the chance…

Taking his Mother by the hand, Leon led Lynette off toward the front stage. There were some instruments, thankfully an acoustic guitar.
Still bathed in gold, Lynette grinned at the crowd and spoke into the microphone.
[color=8882be]”Testing… DiffiCult to the beautiful people of Le Tournesol, come in?”[/color] she laughed.
Leon made the guitar look like a ukulele in his massive hands, but as Lynette tested the microphone and got people’s attention, he plucked away and tuned as needed until he was satisfied.

[color=577d06]”Fuck… I’m part thankful, part horrified.”[/color] he spoke quietly to Trisha.

Trisha was still pretty tense. The whole thing made her feel tense, and the Screwdriver she’d practically downed a bit earlier was really beginning to affect her. She was still fixated on a problem she didn’t understand - Mia’s problem, that was. Why? She had present family, who loved her, twisted as it was. Two girlfriends… It just had Trisha thinking about what she [i]didn’t[/i] have. 

But she forced herself a bit out of it, moving from still staring at Mia, Hari and Ed to twisting in Casey’s arms so that she could more easily look at him and over at the stage by sitting sideways. 
[color=d1b300]“Why, is she bad at singing?”[/color] Trisha asked pretty bluntly, but quietly. She shuffled a bit, slipping her heels off under the table, pulling up her legs so they were bent underneath her skirts and her tight clad feet rested on his legs. 
[color=d1b300]“I’m…”[/color] she trailed off, face scrunching up, before relaxing again.

[color=d1b300]“Didn’t mean to say that earlier,”[/color] she muttered, just to Casey. She really didn’t - but not so much because of the fuel it had given Lynette, but the insight it might’ve given about her. Her own relationship with her mother. 

Casey looked down at Trisha with a bright, warm smile as he rubbed her arms.
[color=577d06]”Don’t… Seriously. She’s drunk, she’s a grown woman, she’s got a warm, supportive group of people around her.”[/color]
There was a preemptive knock at Trisha’s Emotional Field before Hari gave her signature Pink Lux style over to Trisha for examination. It was like a little pre-recorded message that flashed on the table in front of Trisha, with its words reading “Only You can Hear.”

And then it started playing.
[color=0072bc][i]Casey is unfortunately right… Mia radiates pain. We’re like the heat sinks. One day, we’ll be coming down, and I’m sure she’ll want to apologize to you then.[/i][/color]
The little hallucination puffed out of existence in a cloud of smoke. Casey didn’t react, even though he felt Hari’s Lux flush out of her body and into Trisha. It did catch him slightly, and he almost thought he heard Hari without her ever talking…

But like most hallucinations, the mind's eye captured the moment and extrapolated it, overlapping Casey’s follow-up sentence.
[color=577d06]”Now, Mom being drunk, she’s liable to say [i]anything[/i]. Nice, mean, this song could be vulgar it, could be a nursery rhyme; she’s just as likely to pull out her own book of poe-”[/color]

[color=8882be][b]” It’s a very special day for the DiffiCult… One of my favorite Groundskeepers retired today. He was in charge of the whole operation, and he’s my darling Max’s best friend in the whole world. [i]But[/i] I managed to hook [i]the best[/i] man to follow in his footsteps: My middle Baby, my Late Bloomer. The Autumn Flower, my sweet sweet Caseau.”[/b][/color]
Lynette’s voice seemed to get raspier, as if she had managed some time to smoke half a dozen cigarettes to really rough things up. It was… Sultry. Like Joplin, she had an aggression that belied the softness within. 


[color=577d06][i]”Ma, don’t…”[/i][/color] Casey almost wordlessly whispered, the plea only passing through Trisha’s ear because she was so damn close. Lynette’s gaze was set squarely on her son, and she grinned ear to ear. Her voice was crystal clear through the venue speakers.
[color=8882be][b]”Now, I’ve got a lot of kids. And I know for a fact each one is incredibly special. Truly worthy of Charm and Grace. My blood, my fosters, my sweet pets, everything that exists in my life: It radiates with Charm, and with Grace. And I know you’ll continue to honor our name, Casey… So, this song is for you. After that? I don’t care if you run away with your spoils and your glory. You deserve your night.”[/b][/color]

Lynette spun to look at Leon, who looked lost until she did so, and he quickly moved the drumset to her front as she kicked her fancy shoes off to reveal still absolutely golden feet: nails and all. The full coverage was inexplicable, but the dedication was crazy.

[hider=Lynette’s Promise][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgjVrBatu2I[/youtube][/hider]

For the fact that she was constantly moving, her chest bouncing up and down as her foot continuously slapped into the drum set’s floor pedal. It was clear that she knew what she was doing, and Leon backed her with crispy, flowing guitar play that let his long hair flow around his shoulders to cast his face in a dark portrait.
But ultimately, she was drunk. With each chorus, she grew a bit more passionate and convicted in her delivery until the end of the song, when the music stopped. She wasn’t crying, but her eyes were welled with moisture. Even the trio had come out of their bubble, knowing each that despite the situation, she wasn’t just singing to Casey. Or, every selfish child likes to imagine that their mother’s love isn’t always so evenly spread.
[color=8882be][b]”And I… Will always love you.”[/b][/color]

Not that any of it was particularly comforting for Casey. It was the last thing he wanted to hear, a funny code buried in a song that had prior significance. Seemed like it was meant to be, but it didn’t make Casey any less tense. He had his head buried in Trisha’s shoulder, and his hand was gripping hers tightly as they sat there.
Leon didn’t stick around, helping his Mother out of the drummer’s seat and back to her spot on the bench before giving Casey another kiss on the head. By that time, Wendy was there to relieve Linqian, and Leon absconded with his fellow Sycamites into the relative comfort of his own bedroom for a change.

Trisha tried her best to keep up with [i]everything[/i]. Hari's message, overlapped with what Casey had said, then everything Lynette spoke about afterwards. And the song. She wasn't stupid enough to just take it at face value. 
Except she [I]was[/I] drunk. She could vaguely figure it out, but it was all just fuzzy ideas she couldn’t quite reach. Casey’s tension and strong grip on her hand told her a lot more than any thinking she was trying to do.

Then there was that stupid, horrible jealousy. It hadn’t quite been buried by what Hari said about Mia, and it was pulled back up where she didn’t want it to be. Casey was [i]unhappy[/i] about the song - because Lynette would always love him? She would never… let him go? Of course, it made sense. She was controlling, the Temple was a cult. As of today, he'd gotten in deeper. Trapped, maybe. No, not trapped. But that was what she wanted?
But again. She was there. She stood up on a stage and said that all of her children were special. Loved, even if it wasn’t a good kind of love. Trisha had never even experienced that from a parent.

But it wasn’t about her. Couldn’t be, shouldn’t be. Bury it down, hide it deep. She turned her head towards Casey’s pressed into her shoulder, kissing it. She tilted her head down to kiss his earlobe too, before whispering into his ear.
[color=d1b300]“You hiding there for the rest of the night?”[/color] She didn’t know what to say as an actual comfort. What could she say? She didn’t even fully understand the situation. 
[color=d1b300]“Just… think about it…” Being us. No, that’s not right. Love. Not there yet. Definitely not. “Less? Or not at all. Think about me instead.”[/color] 

Casey shook his head in his imagination, being so close to her that she’d feel if he did it in reality. Drunk people almost always had pearls of wisdom, gems, little mental bugs that they could scratch out and let loose atop the corpse of existence. So, why was Trisha’s advice shit? Think about her? Casey found himself thinking about her constantly, and about how utterly fucked his situation was quickly becoming. How he didn’t [i]want[/i] her involved in it like he was involved in it.

He was thinking about what he’d said before, crying at Trisha’s feet like a pathetic dog. The worry of having to cut her out, or keep secrets. Disappoint her, betray her trust, maybe hurt her to try and insulate her. Protect her. Back in the day, insulation was something he wished he had: He’d always wanted to feel safe and protected, and always wound up feeling like a beaten animal.
Now he wanted to take charge, and to give others the feeling he never had. Would they even want that? And then there was his Mother… He couldn’t tell whether or not she knew what he was thinking… But she was still looking over toward them when he looked back up.

His face was red. His eyes met Lynette’s directly, and she gave a cat-like smile, once more gently squinting her eyes. But the girls were back, somewhat… Mia had wound up pulling away from her partners, and from there Casey found a slight relief as Lynette’s attention was once more taken up by her daughter. 
Ed took the chance to relax, stretch out, and take a long sip of her alcohol-forward milkshake, her head swiveling to eye Mia and Lynette’s somewhat private moment before her arm wrapped around Hari and pulled her tight.

[color=66bb6a]”Y’know, Case… Seeing you and Trisha makes me think about when Big G was still around.”[/color] Ed commented gently. 
Clarissa, having swapped seats with Mia to let those two have their time, tilted her head back in exasperation.
[color=e0c4ff]”Don’t it though? I swear, you two just keep looking more and more alike the older you get, Casey. Trisha? Have you ever seen a real picture of Gravity Richoux? I don’t really remember Casey having many pictures…”[/color]

Trisha twisted her position again slightly, legs swinging back around to dangle over Casey's rather than being curled up against herself. She leaned forward to pick up her thankfully existent drink, downing half the double rum coke in one go before answering. She looked at Ed first, then Clarissa. 
[color=d1b300]“What, cause we look so perfect together? And depends what you mean by a real picture. One of my friends has posters with him on them, technically, so I have seen him. Didn't pay much attention to them, though, and haven't seen any pictures from Casey."[/color]

Her lips pressed together, turning her head to look at him without actually looking at him. Hiding the shift in her expression - because she [I]had[/I] seen Gravity Richoux. In the dream, going from what he'd been in life to what he was now. She hadn't wanted to, and she couldn't exactly say that. She shrugged. 
[color=d1b300]“So not really, I guess."[/color] One hand wriggled out from underneath Casey's, reaching up to caress his cheek with a smile. Drunk as she was, not helped by continuing to drink, she wasn't sure where to push the conversation. She could tell Casey was still uncomfortable but… from the song? From what was being said now? 
[color=d1b300]“Don’t most people look like their parents? That's kind of the point… I can start pulling out pictures of mine if we want to compare?"[/color]

[color=e0c4ff]”Oh my [b]God[/b] yes!”[/color] Clarissa excitedly jazz-handed before making for her small handbag and pulling out a big wallet. It was absolutely full of what seemed to be everything: Business cards, credit and debit cards, cash, but the bulkiest section was the now rapidly unfolding spool of little pictures she kept with her.
[color=e0c4ff]”I’m obsessed with capturing the moment, so… I’ve got plenty.”[/color] she grinned, scooting her chair right next to Casey and Trisha.

Casey groaned.
[color=577d06]”I’m so not toasted enough for this…”[/color]
One of his hands left Trisha to grab his drink, which he quickly finished behind her back and smacked the empty glass back on the table. 
His hand swung outward toward Hari, who he knew had taken the bottle of booze Mia was dipping into when they’d been headed to dinner. She gave it up pretty willingly, letting the weight of it dip slightly as she passed it along to him.

Clarissa had pulled a photo out of its place, handing it off to Trisha.
[color=e0c4ff]”Look, see!? Same age, same face, same hair…”[/color] she said, holding up a picture of the same man Trisha had seen in her dreams earlier. The effect on her Emotional Field would be noticeable, in that it seemed to highlight Gravity Richoux in the picture as if he had some sort of aura.

Trisha took the picture from Clarissa to look at it properly, moving it properly close to her face, eyes narrowing as she just stared at it for a moment. Mostly, the strange aura. Could everyone else see it? Was she so drunk that she was starting to see a fuzzy light around people in pictures? No, no, this was definitely magical. Was it because of the dream earlier? What else would cause that? 
[color=d1b300]“Honestly…"[/color] Trisha held the picture back out to Clarissa, turning to look at Casey. She squinted as if assessing him, head tilting slightly from side to side. 
[color=d1b300]“Oh, I see the similarities, but Casey is definitely more handsome. Maybe I'm biased, but it's definitely the case."[/color]

She then reached out for her drink again, and finished it off. A cute pout formed on her lips when she realized by finishing it so quickly she didn't have anything else to drink but… she'd sort that out in a moment.
[color=d1b300]“My dad's side always say I look like my mom, and my mom's say I look like my dad. Guess that means I don't look like either? Or both. That's the normal thing, isn't it. I think I look more like mom…"[/color] She rambled a bit, trying to decide whether to pull out a photo or not. Not that she had any physical ones. Or any of her parents when they were young. Or, actually, many of them at all. 
[color=d1b300]“But my brother? Spitting image of dad. Or maybe it's just cause he took over the business…"[/color]

Hari laughed aloud.
[color=0072bc]”Oh [i]my[/i] God, you mean uh… Fuckin’...-”[/color] she snapped her fingers.
[color=0072bc]”Ed-ed… Edward? Edgeword? Last year! There was this community outreach thing, and he was on the board of Trustees with Mom! He’s got that skeezy kind of look, right? Like he’s always hiding something?”[/color] Hari asked, clearly trying to parse out the name Ezra without actually remembering it.

[color=d1b300]“Ezra,"[/color] Trisha laughed. Once she started, it was difficult to stop, a fit of giggling overcoming her until she leaned back and pressed her face against Casey's chest to stop it. Just… Hari was so right, he did always look like he was hiding something. 
[color=d1b300]“That’s the one. You're right he does always look like that! That and like he's always judging you for whatever you say… like he's so much smarter cause dad chose him to take over, as if it wasn't just cause he was born first… oh man, everyone's always licking his feet cause of his money, but fuck, you're right."[/color]
She giggled again. 

[color=d1b300]“But y'know, he cares about looking good more than anything. Enough to keep the rest of us quiet by throwing money at us, at least. Last time I went to visit I didn't even get past reception before I got a text saying he'd put a whole bunch of money in my account, like he didn't even want to see me-"[/color] Trisha paused, eyes widening and frozen with her mouth half open. Shit. She didn't want to say that. Play it off, play it off.
[color=d1b300]“He was just really busy that day, business, you know."[/color]

[color=0072bc]”That sounds [i]exactly[/i] like my Birth parents. My birth Mom tried to reach out to me like, two years ago? Asking questions, telling me she regretted me leaving, yadda yadda… But, uh, Dad’s big on brainwash. When I started asking questions, I must’ve tripped like… Some stupid failsafe?”[/color]
Hari’s face went from sullen to frustrated, then back to sullen.
[color=0072bc]”I feel so bad for my Mom being a Blind… And my Siblings. He plays with them like puppets… He’s this politician in the Midwest, and he controls their lives like a crazy fucking architect.”[/color]

Ed couldn’t help but start up with a drunken laugh.
[color=66bb6a]”My Baby?”[/color] Ed’s head turned to face Hari’s, who looked back at Ed with a questioning gaze.
[color=0072bc]”Whaaat?…”[/color] she questioned expectantly in reply. Ed just kept laughing, having to speak through little wheezing giggles.
[color=66bb6a]”I love you… But those aren’t the same at all!”[/color]

Even Casey started shaking with laughter as he tried to hold it in. Trisha could feel him gently press his forehead into the back of her neck to hide his face.

[color=d1b300]“It's… really not…"[/color] Trisha snorted, holding a hand over her mouth for a moment, not moving much otherwise so that Casey could keep hiding against her neck. It was nothing like Hari's parents, but it gave her an amazing out. A Trisha special. Play down her own problems, play up someone else.
[color=d1b300]“There’s no magic in my family… Well, dad must've had a bunch of artifacts. Some of my sisters have it too, but nothing like that. No mind control- Not that I know of. Most are blind. Ezra too, he's just… a businessman. Typical, rich businessman. Only manipulation in my family is my sister trying to get everyone to love her- very mundanely."[/color]

She shook her head.
[color=d1b300]“If my dad or brother could brainwash people, I'm pretty sure it would've been a lot more peaceful growing up- uh, sorry. Sounds like shit. But yeah, not the same. That's… that’s much worse."[/color]

Even Hari started laughing at herself, shaking her head.
[color=0072bc]”Well, there wasn’t like thirty of us running around! I feel like at that point, the whole mind control thing is necessary… I’ve got two blood siblings, but Dad and I are the only magical ones between us. Mom, my Sister, my Brother… I mean, I was a puppet too, until I Kindled… Then, y’know, he… Just tried to kill me. At least, last time I heard him talking through my Mom, he didn’t threaten to come here.”[/color]

Clarissa snorted.
[color=e0c4ff]”That’s ‘cuz Von Voletta knows that it’s a quiet exit, left stage… You’re right where you should be, Baby. Ain’t nobody gonna get our Velvet Crone.”[/color] 
Hari smiled at Clarissa.
[color=0072bc]”Oooooh, Sister Veil… Aren’t we blessed for that?”[/color] 
Hari’s and Clarissa’s hands met together, clasping palm to palm as fingers entwined. They released a moment later, with laughter and smiles.

[color=0072bc]”But, I guess… No, not the same. But I do get… Uh… Not being wanted by someone who thinks they’re super fucking important. I know it seems pretty weird, but I do love my folks. Even if Dad… Has a hard time. But if it’s any consolation, I didn’t know Mr. Maxwell either. Their Dad…”[/color] Hari added, taking a sip of her drink and nodding back toward Casey.

Casey, who had sucked most of his little sisters’ backup booze dry, took a deep breath before speaking.
[color=577d06]”Dude… He’d have loved you. I said it before, but… You’re just like Elise, and he fuckin’ [i]loved[/i] Elise. Like, I remember he’d be fuckin’ yelling at me and Lee, and then Elise would come in to watch us training and he’d fuckin’… Like, stiffen up. And he’d get quieter, and more instructional. Less expecting us to just do shit on instinct. I bet he’d love that.”[/color]

Ed perked up, nodding in agreement.
[color=66bb6a]”What about Trisha, Casey? You think they would’ve gotten along?”[/color]
Casey took a deep breath, craning his neck to look directly at Trisha’s face. He tried to smile, but his expression seemed to die off. Like he felt bad.
[color=577d06]”Something tells me Dad would’ve loved you… I don’t know why.”[/color] he almost whispered, to the point that Ed leaned in.

[color=66bb6a]”Mumble-Mouth! What?!”[/color] she asked him to repeat.
Trisha would be able to see the light come back to his eyes, and he gave her a weak smirk before twisting back to look at Ed.
[color=577d06]”Gotten along!? Probably not, I think that Dad would’ve looked for reasons to argue with her once he got to know her.”[/color]

Clarissa laughed aloud again, covering her face after a rogue snort made it out from between her nostrils.
[color=e0c4ff]”How can you be so right!? He used to [i]brutalize[/i] me some nights! We’d be sitting at the dinner table, I could feel Furio’s blood get hot as hell every time Max opened his mouth: He [i]always[/i] had some question about why I wasn’t doing something, or why it wasn’t getting done better.”[/color] she seemed to remember fondly.

Trisha was still looking at Casey, even though he'd looked past her to Ed. Why did he think that his dad would've loved her? He said he didn't know why… there was no reason for it, was it just to be nice? No, he hadn't seemed happy about it. She knew that whatever Max was now, he'd drawn all across her emotional field - something the Queen said was supposed to be protective, even though it didn't do anything. But Casey didn't know about that… 
She was a bit tense again. She hadn't said to Hari that she wasn't wanted. Not explicitly. Was it the case? Probably, unfortunately. 

[color=d1b300]“Why would you sit at a table with someone like that?"[/color] she asked bluntly, as if it wasn't something she'd ever experienced - as if she wouldn't sit through dinner after dinner with her own mother breaking her down. 
[color=d1b300]“If he was still around, and he did try to argue with me, I'd just leave. It wouldn't be anything I hadn't heard because, with my siblings and mo-"[/color] she shook her head, reaching for her empty glass, frowning when she realised it hadn't been magically refilled.
[color=d1b300]“Twenty siblings and someone's always got a problem. I'm not going to sit around and take something as an adult I wouldn't take as a teenager either."[/color]

[color=66bb6a]”Oh, see? That’s exactly the kind of person Big G liked. He didn’t want you to talk back ever, he just wanted you to know he was displeased.”[/color] Ed explained, remembering plenty of dinners with Maxwell and the family.
[color=66bb6a]”Whether you sat there and took it or walked away, he didn’t care. Just don’t explain and don’t fight back!”[/color]

Clarissa’s hand slapped Trisha’s knee in a friendly way as she cackled again.
[color=e0c4ff]”And I knew that shit too: So he’d jab at me and I’d jab back. He’d get more and more frustrated, and then he’d get up and head off back to the gym! We’d get a quiet dinner after that.”[/color] she grinned.
[color=577d06]”Yeah… He was always a little miserable being [i]Dad[/i]. He always wanted to be [i]Gravity[/i]. It was the lineage, and the glory for him. Expectations, yadda yadda. Didn’t always know how to show that he cared.”[/color]

Food… It began to roll out from the kitchen and fill up the tables as Lynette’s many orders arrived. The two Richoux women broke their concentration from the discussion to begin inhaling french fries and chicken fingers.
[color=ed145b]”We talkin’ about Daddy?”[/color] Mia asked, looking and sounding like she’d been crying a bit. Lynette’s face was also a little wet, but that gold was holding [i]so[/i] strong.

[color=577d06]”Seems like we were kinda talking about [i]dads.[/i] But, right now, yeah.”[/color]
Mia tried to look past Trisha, but couldn’t. She just looked directly into Trisha’s eyes and smiled solemnly.
[color=ed145b]”I wish you got to meet him, Trisha.”[/color]
[color=e0c4ff]”We was sayin’ the same, Dolly. Trisha was askin’ why we would ever eat dinner with him the way he was.”[/color]

Lynette instantly cracked up.
[color=8882be]”Mmm! For a guy who ate so much food, he fuckin’ [i]hated[/i] the dinner table! Give him his food while he’s walking around or something, he was fine! Like nothing! Then, you put him in a chair at a table, he turns into a prick!”[/color] she explained before starting to laugh even louder.

Trisha met Mia's gaze, eyes narrowing slightly in obvious displeasure that she couldn't hide now that she'd had even more to drink. Of course, it was further set off by the father discussion - Mia calling her own ‘daddy’, which was only ever used for James Vanburen by [I]Tansy[/I]. His favorite, everyone else's least favorite. 
[color=d1b300]“Well, I get that. Being stuck at a table when you want to be literally anywhere else is shit."[/color] Trisha shrugged - obviously to her talking about her own feelings, all those dinners at home she'd rather not be at. 
[color=d1b300]“Not that it excuses being a dick… Why not just exclude someone like that from eating at the table at all? Guess it doesn't matter since he's gone now."[/color] 
Drunk, bluntly honest Trisha was very much beginning to come out.

Mia’s head tilted backward. Lynette’s mouth dropped in shock, and Clarissa began to laugh with discomfort in an almost immediate gut reaction.
[color=577d06]”Trisha!?!”[/color] Casey chided her from below, immediately taking her hands and holding them in his. He looked directly into her eyes.
[color=577d06]”Baby!... That’s… A fucked up thing to say, Dude… Please apologize?”[/color] he did his best to ask her gently without trying to make her feel like she was being targeted.

[color=66bb6a]”Noooo waaaay, let her [i]cook[/i] dude! I always [i]was[/i] curious as to why he bothered showing up at all!”[/color] Ed spoke up, eyes wide and her hand gripped tightly around her frozen drink.
[color=0072bc][b]”ETIENNETTE!?”[/b][/color] Hari gasped. 

Lynette, her dark black mouth almost lost in the half-light of the bar’s booths as it hung open in shock. Her body started to shake, and her eyes almost lit up as laughter overtook her. Mia’s face was incredulous, looking between Ed, Trisha and her Mother. With Clarissa also nervously laughing, she and Lynette seemed to goad one another ever closer to a climax of cackling that only two drunk sorority sisters could muster.

Trisha frowned, head tilting back to not quite meet Casey's gaze. She didn't really understand. She hadn't said anything that bad, had she? 
[color=d1b300]“Apologize for what? For suggesting you excluded him? It's not that bad when you get used to it. For saying he's gone? My dad's dead too, it's just a fact."[/color] It was pretty obvious that last drink had been enough to push Trisha over some edge, from some ability to filter what she said to absolutely none at all. The filter that kept all the deeper things about herself inside… but also the shittier thoughts she had from company she didn't want to piss off. 
[color=d1b300]“Fine, I'm sorry, okay?"[/color]

She turned her head around to look at everyone but Casey. The moment the words formed on her lips she knew she shouldn't say them, but it was already too late. 
[color=d1b300]“At least my dad didn't bother pretending to care, and just didn't show up in the first place."[/color]

Casey almost fully spun Trisha in his arms to avoid her looking at his family any more than she already was. He wanted her back into their own little space, where he could tell her why it mattered that she didn’t talk like that. He wanted to lecture her like she was a kid, or like it was supposed to matter that Maxwell Richoux IV was a touchy subject. She wasn’t going to understand how Mia idolized their father, or how even he had stinging feelings about the situation. 
But he truly didn’t want the scenario invoked any further. It was arduous, and in a fell swoop, Casey imagined that Trisha had ruined the mood of whatever this little afterparty was supposed to be. The Temple hierarchy who didn’t have lives. Leon had been here, but…

He stared into Trisha’s eyes, trying to find an ounce of brutality to hand back to her, to make her think again. He didn’t find anything but a tired ache for home. 
[color=577d06]”I said you could get as drunk as you want; but that doesn’t mean you can just go saying whatever. So lets get past this subject, and maybe tomorrow we can talk about making actual apologies.”[/color]

[color=ed145b]”Why the [b]fuck[/b] would we want her apologies, Casey? Like she sounded so fucking caring a second ago?”[/color]
[color=0072bc]”Oh no…”[/color] Hari groaned, starting to get up from her seat. 
[color=66bb6a]”Stoooop, Mimi!”[/color] Ed’s hand fell away from Hari as she stood, causing her to shift focus toward Mia.
[color=ed145b]”No! Fuck that! Yeah, of course it's cool for her to ask that question, like why wouldn’t it be when your Dad doesn’t love you. [b]I know my Dad loved me![/b]”[/color]

Lynette couldn’t contain herself, leaning back in her seat with laughter as she threw some more food in. It didn’t even look like she was chewing it, just tossing it in and swallowing. Clarissa had since scooted her chair out of the direct blast radius in case anything started to happen.

Trisha had almost, [i]almost[/I], been willing to move past it. The part of her that needed to not be abandoned, that feared Casey turning around and dropping her, was almost enough for her to just nod sullenly at what he'd suggested and agree to talking about it again the next day (something she wouldn't actually do).
But then Mia opened her mouth. 
[color=d1b300]“What the fuck do you mean?"[/color] She snapped, tone going from near monotonous to ice cold. It was difficult for her to actually look at the other woman, held by Casey as she was, but she tried her hardest by bending to the side over his arms and uncomfortably twisting her neck. 

[color=d1b300]“My dad loved me [I]too[/I]" He didn't. “What do you know? You can't even appreciate what's right in front of you, how would you know anything?”[/color] Jealousy. What Mia said touched one of Trisha's sorest spots, and set off the jealousy that had been burning underneath the surface all night. The hurt that came with it. All the fears she denied. And jealousy that Mia had all of these people still around her, when Trisha didn't.
[color=d1b300]“I’m not apologizing for [I]nothing[/I] to someone who thinks my dad didn’t even love me. Just- just because someone isn't present doesn't mean they don't- fuck. It must be [I]so[/I] nice to have everyone there all the time no matter what problems you cause."[/color]

Mia: Stunned fury. Ed and Hari: Anxious anticipation. Clarissa: Enraptured.
Lynette Richoux continued to laugh as if she was watching some sort of comedy production playing out in front of her. Like it was Saturday Night Live and she was the only live audience member. By the time she was able to speak, she was wiping her nose and eyes with a napkin included with her food.
[color=8882be]”Oh, oh!- Oh, my sides! Mimi!? Oh, Mimi, Mummy’s so sorry… But I really don’t know how many times I’ve had to tell you that someone’s gonna come into your life one day and not care about how sensitive you are… We’re trying to build heaven, Baby: That means taking whatever love you can get!”[/color]

Casey wasn’t interested in letting his Mother goad his girlfriend and little sister into a catfight; especially not after he assumed his blood had [i]just[/i] finished reconciling one thing.
[color=577d06]”No way! Mum, you said we’re free to go? Cuz we’re fuckin’ going. Trisha, Babe, come on!”[/color] he said, trying to scoop the significantly smaller woman into his arms so he could forcibly eject them both out of the situation. Clearly he’d made a poor decision in letting her get drunk thinking that she was always going to be sweet about it.

[color=8882be]”Awwww, Casey! This is healthy, Baby, you have to let people argue!”[/color] Lynette goaded again, a smile peeled across her face.
[color=ed145b]”Oh my God, both of you can seriously fuck yourselves! Lynette!-”[/color] Mia yelled, [color=ed145b]”-Since you’re so fucking in love with Trisha! Why not tell her about how excited you are to try and get some money out of her!?”[/color]

[color=8882be]”I mean, I’m thrilled, but… That’s kind of the point of business, isn’t it? I buy the honey, we mark it up, sell it to people like Mr. Devola for more… Legitimate good exchange is evil somehow?”[/color] Lynette retorted, stuffing a cheeseburger half into her mouth to rip out a chunk.


Trisha physically [i]rolled[/i] out of Casey's arms before he could probably scoop her up, landing clumsily on her feet, almost tripping over her skirts. With surprising speed for someone so drunk, she got up in Mia's face - at least, as much as possible with the height difference. 
[color=d1b300]“You know what? You [i]can[/i] be my sister, Mia, since you're just like the rest of them. Shit, self centred, and you clearly fucking hate me like they do."[/color] Shit. Move on, double down, cover it up.
[color=d1b300]“You think I don't know that all [I]anyone[/I] ever cares about is my money? I don't want your mother's love, I've got my [I]own[/I]. And at least I'm not still dependent on her as an adult."[/color]

Casey, clearly trained in experiences like this from his days spent breaking up fights in barracks, swung his coat backwards over Trisha, pulling her arms tight inside of it before taking both arms of the coat and tying them behind her like a makeshift straight jacket. In a second swinging move, his foot flicked her heels and almost sent her hurdling forward into Mia before he grabbed her and lifted her up onto his shoulder like a bundle.

[color=577d06]”Alriiiiight you ladies have a great night! Hari, Ed, I’m sorry!? We’ll-”[/color]
[color=66bb6a]”-Hash it out tomorrow, Dude! Uhhh… Congrats and all! Love you, sorry, and… And sorry, Trisha!”[/color] Ed called out to them as Casey made way for the door to Le Tournesol before they were ultimately alone in the cold autumn night. Casey didn’t even wait for anyone to come get them, starting his walk back to their apartment building.

But not before he let Trisha down so she could walk with dignity.
[color=577d06]”Y’know, there were definitely other ways you could’ve told me you didn’t want to stick around…”[/color] he tried to say calmly, moving to undo her from the bundle before putting the coat around her shoulders properly so she wouldn’t get cold.

Trisha stubbornly looked at her feet, whole face scrunched up. The cold night air was enough to slightly lift the anger she'd felt, but she was still upset. Then there was that panic beginning to bubble up from deep down, now that the object of her anger was gone, and it was just the two of them. She pulled his coat closer around her shoulders, only wobbling a little bit as she started to walk.
[color=d1b300]“I didn't…"[/color] Trisha started, hands clenching into fists. He was giving her an out, maybe, but what would that out lead to? 
[color=d1b300]“I was going to let it go then she said my dad didn't love me."[/color] As if Trisha wasn't the one that started things in the first place, really. But it wasn't like she'd said anything that bad? Had she? 

[color=d1b300]“My- my dad-"[/color] What was she even going to say? Her dad didn't love her, so of course she got pissed off when someone said the truth. 
[color=d1b300]“It doesn't matter."[/color] Better it was sooner rather than later, right?
[color=d1b300]“Just get angry with me too. Don't make fake excuses for me."[/color]

Casey’s arm wrapped around Trisha, rubbing her shoulder and cuddling her close as he started the pace. There would eventually be a car, he figured, when they noticed he was out and on foot. It was good to test the response time anyway…
[color=577d06]”I can’t get mad at you: I told you to get as drunk as you wanted, and drunk people don’t think.”[/color]
Not that he wasn’t drunk, but he was built quite differently when it came to situations like this. Too much tension let the adrenaline override his buzz until it was a dull thrum.

[color=577d06]”I just… Y’know, I hate talking about Max. My Dad… He’s got five kids, and all five kids look at him differently. I’m sure you’ve got siblings who hate your Dad, and then others like Tansy… But… Well, I don’t know, I guess I always just assumed it’d make sense to not basically say ‘Who cares?’ to a person who had someone they love and look up to be taken away from them prematurely. Like, a little warmth. Especially when that person is trying to uh… Get you to like them. I’m still not mad, I’m just sad that neither of you are mature enough to get that while drunk.”[/color] 

Trisha's lips pressed together as she slowly processed what he said. He was sad. That was just another way of saying he was disappointed. She would rather he was mad. But that was fine. She disappointed everyone in the end, anyway. 
[color=d1b300]”I don't understand. If someone said that about my dad… ah."[/color] She tilted her head, almost expressionless. Lips slightly parted, eyes blank. 
[color=d1b300]“I guess I didn't love him. Why would I? It's not like he-"[/color] loved her. [color=d1b300]“Was around. I guess I just don't get it. Family situation too fucked up. I won't bring him up again."[/color]

She made a half kicking motion, as if to kick a rock even if there wasn't one there. She was visibly calmer now - strangely so, if anything. Almost like she wasn't really feeling anything at all. A strange, despondent state. 
[color=d1b300]“How am I supposed to know if someone loves another person or not? It's not like anyone's- I've- It doesn't matter. Nobody's around long enough for it to matter."[/color] Her voice got quieter and quieter, till the last sentence was a barely audible whisper.

But she couldn’t escape Casey’s rapt attention, and he glared down at his girlfriend for a few more moments before he couldn’t help but bring his face close to hers. His lips planted a kiss on Trisha’s cheek.
[color=577d06]”Well? Let me show you, if nobody else has. ‘Cuz you were right. There’s people who don’t ever get love in their life. Even if all the love around me was fucked up… We can clean it. Clean it, and let it heal, and then you can look at it and you can tell yourself what love really is. Eh?”[/color] he offered sweetly, voice pitching slightly lower to keep the conversation intimately private.

Trisha finally turned her head to look at Casey. There was a hint of hope in her eyes, dark in the low light and clouded by alcohol. She didn't really believe it was possible. For her to ever understand, truly, what love was - or to have someone feel that towards her. For her to feel it too. Maybe she had, how would she know?
[color=d1b300]“I suppose… that'd be nice… but how do you- we- clean it? Even if we do…"[/color] Would anything end up directed towards her?
[color=d1b300]“And you won't leave before we're done? Not like- mm, uh, my dad, cause he died. Nobody else."[/color] 

She tilted her head towards his, speaking softly.
[color=d1b300]“I’d like to know what it's like."[/color]

[color=577d06]”You paint quite the picture, Trisha. At least… It’s not hard to know what you want.”[/color] he grinned to himself, still tightly clinging to her like she was the last piece of driftwood in the storm.
[color=577d06]”I’m not gonna leave, Trisha. I mean… Unless I die, but, like… I only think that’d happen if I was fighting Father Wolf to protect you, right? Then, chances are, you’re next. We’ll be right behind one another.”[/color] he joked grimly.

[color=577d06]”Now… Tomorrow? I’m not lettin’ you off the hook… We gotta talk when you’re feeling better, so we can [i]debrief[/i].”[/color] 

Trisha leaned into him, more than happy with the notion of dying one after another. She'd much prefer that to continuing to live with the slim chance of finding happiness somewhere else - happiness and a future she'd started to actually believe in with Casey already. 
It was scary. 

[color=d1b300]“We already talked about it all, what else is there to talk about?"[/color] she grumbled, as if that was all there was to it. She didn't want to talk about it any further. Then she'd have to actually think about and confront it all again. She didn't want to. This was resolved enough for her. But still being drunk, she was being pretty obvious in her avoidant excuses. 
[color=d1b300]“Don’t you have to start working tomorrow? You probably won't have time. Not that there's anything to… ‘debrief.’ What's that- what do you even mean by that."[/color]

[color=577d06]”What I mean is you still said something that, to my sister, was a fucking devistating thing to say. And I recognize she’s sensitive to take it so seriously, but you may be surprised to know that what you said also hurt me. So, your half-assed apology at the bar was not accepted… Tomorrow, you’ll be able to think more clearly, and maybe then you’ll at least be able to understand why it is you [i]should[/i] apologize. And then we can discuss it more.”[/color]

She had mentioned him working, and while it was true that he’d be in the big seat, that didn’t mean he didn’t have time for other things. In fact, a surprising appeal of the job was just how “off-leash” he would actually be. It was enough to stick around at home, or within the vicinity of other Temple-owned businesses where he’d be able to link up with other members of security easily. Once or twice a day, he’d maybe spend a few hours about town making routine check-ins. But otherwise, he was home. 
He’d hear one of the six thousand alarms if needed…

[color=577d06]”Because, trust me… We’ll have time to talk. I promise you, you’ll get plenty of Casey time, and I even learned that you can spend time directly with me in the security office… You can sit in my lap, watch me stare at black, blank screens. Is that an okay consolation?”[/color] he asked her sincerely.

Trisha had looked away again, struggling with the whole idea of apologising. She was surprised that she'd hurt Casey too. She was still struggling with the idea that anything that she'd said was hurtful at all. Would she understand tomorrow? Well, it was a little hard to think clearly right now, maybe… She could fake a better apology. If she needed to. 
[color=d1b300]“Alright, we'll talk about it then. I'll try to sleep on it… try to understand…"[/color] 

She looked back up at him, nibbling on her lip, before nodding.
[color=d1b300]“Yeah, that is. I was worried I wouldn't get to see you much. I have to tend to the bees but I don't have any other work at the moment… I'm happy if I get to be with you. You're my favourite thing to watch, anyway."[/color]

Casey couldn’t help but smile. Too drunk to drive, not drunk enough to feel anything other than sad. 
[color=577d06][i]So she’s a little crazy. Who isn’t in our life? And… He’s watching.[/i][/color]
[color=577d06]”So… You’re gonna just, like, stare at me? Like one of those little lemurs with those massive eyes?”[/color] he laughed, getting really close to her and opening his eyes wide to stare at her.

On his left hand, he took his index finger and extended it as far as he could, gently tapping on her forehead to mimic an aye-aye poking its long finger through a piece of wood to eat bugs.

Trisha also just stared back for a moment, but mostly out of confusion at first. Then she snorted, then started giggling. Her body shook with laughter, swaying gently from side to side, and she reached up to catch his finger, all four of hers curling around one. 
[color=d1b300]“Would it be cute if I did?"[/color] She squeezed his finger, before twisting her hand to properly hold his, successfully capturing it before he could keep tapping her. 

She finally, properly smiled at him. It was like the blunt brutality of everything she'd said earlier was a blip in her drunk mood, and she was back to what he'd experienced a few nights before. 
[color=d1b300]“Well, I'd probably read a bit. Nap if I'm dragged out of bed too early. But mostly stare at you like a lemur, yeah. Wouldn't be able to stop myself when you're right there."[/color] Her eyes creased, looking at him cutely.
[color=d1b300]“Did I tell you how handsome you look in that uniform yet?"[/color]

Casey grinned at her final comment, thinking about how heavy things had gotten in between the two parts of the ceremony. He nodded to her, wriggling his fingers in between hers.
[color=577d06]”Yeah… You mentioned it a couple times.”[/color]
Looking down the road, in between all the different cars, he could see a shimmering white aura accompanying a vaguely familiar dinging noise. The car coming to pick them up was attached to a little White beacon that let him know it was a Temple vehicle. 

He instantly had a prank in his head, but he figured she’d be annoyed by it, or at least he’d lose the mood. Sure, he wasn’t planning on having sex with her like this, but some before-bed kissing was probably still on the menu before he lost her to the blackness of his eyelids. It was too emotional of a day to not have her there, or to relax together…
[color=577d06]”The car’s coming. So we don’t have to walk in the cold.-”[/color] he decided to plainly explain. [color=577d06]”-You can’t see what I can. But, did you see anything weird today? Anything?”[/color]

It was a fishing line that he weakly cast into the ocean of Trisha, hoping it’d give him a fish. He knew… He just needed to hear her be even a little honest without being prompted.

Trisha shuffled closer to him, nodding as he mentioned the car. Since they didn't have to walk any further, she properly leaned against him, holding onto his hand tightly. For now, she was more relaxed than she had been, just enjoying being close to him. Her head tilted up, eyes narrowing slightly in confusion at his question.
[color=d1b300]“Define weird? Because everything I saw in the Temple was weird to me."[/color] It wasn't her avoiding the question, or purposefully not answering. She drunkenly and genuinely took it to mean anything, and everything had been weird for her. 

Casey’s foggy mind tried to figure out how to ask about if she’d seen a ghost. 
[color=577d06]”Well… Like… I guess, rogue ghosts? I… I could’ve sworn that I felt something in the air when I came to get you, and I wasn’t sure if it was the Queen, or if…”[/color] he trailed off, letting the question linger.

[color=d1b300]“Oh."[/color] Trisha's free hand scrunched up her skirts, then let go of them. How was she supposed to answer that? Yes, I had a dream about your dead father, the topic we just moved on from? And his ghost was maybe there? Not when she'd seen things she felt she shouldn't. Bits of Casey's past, probably, that he hadn't opened up to her. It didn't feel fair.

[color=d1b300]“I didn't see any ghosts but… the Queen did sense one while I was sleeping. It woke her up but didn't hurt me. I think it took my emotional field to be some kind of drawing board. But I never actually saw it, and the Queen couldn’t figure out much about it."[/color] It was close enough to the truth - at least the bits she was comfortable telling him, the surface level facts like with all these things. It just felt… strange to talk about the dream. She’d barely started to figure it out herself.

As the car got closer and started to slow down, Casey threw a hand up. Seeing Norm in the front seat waving back, Casey made way for the back seat and popped it open to let Trisha in. But before she could, Casey stopped her; held her. His free hand hovered over her chest, and the index finger upon it extended to gently brush against her clavicle. He was tracing the Ichthys.
[color=577d06]”It’s so weird, isn’t it?”[/color] he asked aloud, mostly to Trisha as he let her into the car.
[color=577d06]”Like, uh… You spend your whole life not knowing what something means? Then, all of a sudden you find out, and it changes things for you.”[/color] he grunted, climbing into the back seat after Trisha.

[color=577d06]”But I know what love means.”[/color]