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9 mos ago
Cheers to 3000 days on the guild. I love you all 3000
10 likes
10 mos ago
Y'all ever write something and just be shook about what you wrote? Cus damn it turns out I can write sometimes
9 likes
12 mos ago
I drink water now, like lots of water. The only reason it hasn't made me too powerful is because I always have to pee now and idk if that payoff is fair tbh
6 likes
2 yrs ago
No one remembers when corn kid said 'not everyone has to love it for it to be the best' and that quote hits deep
9 likes
5 yrs ago
Never did I think I'd be avoiding my roommates to avoid getting asked why there was a fake wedding in the lounge room but here we are, thanks DnD
11 likes

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Idk I need a place to put things where certain people can see so tada ig


A collab between @Hedgehawk and @Soufflegirl123

Mary had only intended to duck into the nearest Trader Joe’s to pick up some groceries but that intention seemed to change the moment her eyes settled on the figure of Amanda Aston sitting at one of the tables at the nearby restaurants. Amanda seemed to have been mysteriously absent from the coven house from the moment her son took over and somehow more so when Mary started working there. It was almost peaceful not having the woman glaring down at her for once in her life but after all the revelations of the handover weekend Mary had a lot on her mind in regards to that woman.

Mary walked straight into the restaurant and beelined for the woman, ignoring the gawking expressions and watchful eyes. "Mandy, I think I might join you here,” she greets the woman with an almost sarcastic level of syrupy sweet cheer in her voice as she takes the lone seat across from her. "We have much to catch up on, don’t we?”

Amanda had been finding retirement a bit boring. She had been looking forward to not having to deal with the shit of all the other coven leaders, but in one regard she was certainly missing being able to meddle and mess with people. Sure she had her plans in the background, and they were good plans, but that didn’t exactly fill in eight hours of the day. So as a result she had found herself at her favorite restaurant nearly every day now. It was the only high class place of eating in this dingehole of a town, so it wasn’t like Amanda had much of a choice.

She had just finished her salmon dish when suddenly Mary came swooping in and sitting at her table. Amanda rolled her eyes at her tone and place her fork and knife on her plate before responding. ”Come now Mary, this place isn’t for the pigsty people. Don’t you have that diner place where you common folk pick up your swine food or something?”

"I think you got me misunderstood, Amanda. I wasn’t offerin’, I was tellin’,” Mary replies as she shifts herself to get more comfortable in her seat. "Funnily enough you really ain’t all that intimidatin’. Who else would I go to for sad attempts at berating me, huh? Come now, you can do better than that.” Mary was asking for it, she was very well aware she was asking for it and honestly part of her was almost excited for the insult attempts she knew Amanda would throw at her. Sure, she had business to talk but she wasn’t against letting Amanda get some of her insults out of her system first.

”It isn’t really that fun when you come in here asking for it. Though I suppose when it comes to you and getting knocked up, you were always asking for it” Amanda retorted, grabbing a hold of a red wine bottle form the table and pouring herself another glass. ”So what are you doing here then? What is it that you are tellin’ me?” Amanda made sure to put her mock southern accent on for the “tellin’” part of her response.

"I would remind you that we’re not in the late 90s or early 2000s anymore but livin’ in the past was always your forte, wasn’t it?” Mary quips in response, dragging the water jug toward her and pouring herself a glass of water into the empty glass. "Y’know Amanda, I learnt some interestin’ things at the coven party. You and I already both know I knew you wanted me and my boy dead. I even suspected you havin’ Carlisle was purposeful. Your daughter though?” The woman takes a drawn out sip of water, her eyes not dropping from the other woman’s. "Now that’s a new development.”

Amanda simply stared back at Mary as she spoke back to her. Taking a sip of her wine she placed the glass down and ran her hand across the edge of the table. ”I was sure you would find out eventually. You alway stick your nose into places where it doesn’t belong. Yes I have a daughter. What of it?”

"Come now, Mandy. I hardly had to go lookin'. Can't blame me for the fact you like to throw every aspect of your life in my face now, can you?" Mary drawls before leaning forward in her chair. "Now, I clearly remember in '96 was it? Or was it '97? You lost a child. You wouldn't have lied to me, would you?" Mary asks. She knew the answer, of course she did but she wanted it directly from the woman's mouth.

”Well I am sure Carisle came running to you the second he found out. It is not like he can actually stop her. I will admit that I was shocked when I checked up on her to discover that she actually had magical power, and at that, quite a good set too” Amanda leaned in a little bit and lowered her voice so that the few people eating in the restaurant could not hear her.

"So, tell me if I'm wrong, you had the baby, she was perfectly healthy but you couldn't feel any magical energy comin' off of her so you just gave her away? As if she wasn't yours. As if she was worthless. That's low, even for you."

”In reality I should have done that with Carlisle instead and kept her. But we all make mistakes. But yes. I couldn’t allow the Aston name to be seen as being weak because there was a child with little to no magical ability. Carlisle is a fuck up, but he was at least somewhat salvagable”

Mary scoffed, looking the woman up and down. "You've got no shame, have you? Givin' your daughter away and lyin' 'bout it all. Not to mention treatin' your son the way you do. Do you care 'bout anything but yourself and that name if yours?"

”I don’t exactly expect the peasantry to understand. But being of a higher class, reputation is worth more than character.” Amanda wistfully mused to Mary as she finished her wine. ”Look, I made a mistake, turns out Violet was worth alot more than I originally thought. But now she is here. I get a chance to correct that mistake. And get my own way at the same time”

"Y'live in small town Washington, Mandy. Y'really ain't all that important." Mary quips in response. "If you truly were y'wouldn't be dinin' here alone now, would you," she downs the rest of her water before continuing. "You put me through so much hell over havin' Miles after your miscarriage. Turns out it was all fake," she muses.

”If it helps you sleep better at night, that little deception wasn’t aimed at you. But watching you hurt over it was just that little chef's kiss on the top.” Amanda mentioned before picking up the wine bottle and pouring out a final glass. ”I am the most influential person in all of witchkind. I command the coven of covens, the one that rules everyone else. Well…I used to. But I am still the matriarch of the family itself. Protecting the reputation is my business.”

"Probably good it weren't 'cus I might have become convinced you've become unhealthily obsessed with me," Mary replies to the woman's first statement with a chuckle. For as long as she was in Tanner Amanda seemed to have it out for her for what seemed like no real reason. It her youth it was an annoyance more than anything but nowadays Mary couldn't help but find entertainment in the effort Amanda went through to get on her nerves. What was once meant with snapped back responses from Mary had become chuckles.

"Commanded, Amanda. It ain't your coven no more, that fact you've made abundantly clear with your absence. But y'know what," Mary leans in closer, wiggling her finger to gesture to the woman to come closer. Quietly, her voice barely breaking a whisper, she says "You may be the Aston Matriarch, but I'm the woman who gave birth to the magi great family member 'bout to usher in a generation stronger than you could ever be." Her coming grandkids were hardly a gloating matter in many ways. Mary knew that but she couldn't suppass the chance to throw one of Amanda's common insults right back at her.

Hearing Mary’s words as she leaned in only served to anger Amanda. Miles was a stark reminder of how she failed to have the child that should have been hers. Splitting up their family was the easy bit, but trying to make Mile’s life a living hell was difficult, made more so that her own useless excuse of a son had befriended the moron. ”Assuming that they even survive to have the child” She snapped back still close to Mary.

Mary had almost forgotten that Amanda wasn't up to date on the status of her grandkids, namely that there was more than one. She wasn't going to be the one to spill that. "My boy's survived 24 years despite all your attempts. I doubt somethin' will change now. He's a fighter, that kid. Gets it from his mumma."

”Yes quite” Amanda retorted in regards to the comment about Miles being a fighter. ”My objective has changed though. I don’t need Miles dead. I just need to stop that devilspawn form ever being born. And now I have Violet. Someone who is capable, unlike that pathetic wimp of a son Carlisle. So I am going to get everything I want. That Brat Lilith and Carlisle both gone in a single swoop.”

"It's funny how you do all this talk on how Carlisle's incapable yet you're not even capable to even consider yourself to carry out your tasks." For as well as she could cover it Mary was starting to get mad, this woman was threatening the lives of her god-daughter and her grandchildren. Unlike Claire though, Mary was scarcely blinded by her anger. Besides, Amanda was giving away her whole plan, for that point alone Mary let the devilspawn comment slide. "But thank you for displaying every piece o' that plan for me."

”It is not like you could stop it. Violet is bristling with that Aston power. And who is to say I won't get involved?” Amanda said with a soft smirk, leaning back in her seat. ”It is really interesting at how long I have waited for my legacy to be saved, and now it is finally coming together.”

Mary couldn't help but chuckle. As much as she wanted to lean back in her seat and make clear she also had some cards up her sleeve she didn’t want to take any chances that may lead Amanda figuring out how she'd gotten to Violet already. Instead she shook her head. "Y'forgetting the status m'boy holds. Even if I didn't know that power still lives in him. Hell, Aloysius Leighton has found a home here and I think we both know who he's fightin' for."

Amanda gave out a short laugh ”You kid is an enchantment Magi, yeah he can swoon and make people like him, but that's it. And Aloysius, please. A simple call back to Salem, and I am sure I can make him run away a second time.” Amanda looked down at her nail, rubbing her one finger along them as she contemplated. ”I still don’t see what he saw in you. What was so special about that raggedy ass face of yours.”

"Oh Mandy," Mary tuts, wrapping her hand around her water glass. "You need to brush up on your skill sets. Enchantment can be a powerful thing. I woulda thought you'd know that better than anyone." Mary retorts. "Y'still wrapped up over that? 25 years later?"

”It isn’t that powerful. You know that. And yes, I still am. Life gave me everything I needed right there and then for some insane reason, he decided that you, of all people, were the one to settle down and have a kid with. You!” Amended responded pointing her arms out at Mary.

Mary leaned deeper into her seat, a smirk forming on her face. "Funnily enough some people care for more than a name. I mean, what else have you got goin' for yourself?" she throws back.

A look of disgust and frustration fell upon Amanda. "Shut it you brat. You have no idea if the power and influence I still hold even if I am no longer the coven leader. The only reason I kept you alive all these years was so that you could suffer"

"Amanda, you and I both know y'never really held any power over me. Y'tell me I'm sufferin' but which one of us routinely eats dinner alone because noone can stand to breathe the same air as them, hm?" Mary asks, tapping her fingers on the empty glass before her. "Y'talk so much 'bout me sufferin' but not all my life was quite so bad. Y'might have suffered more than I ever did."

For a the briefest of moments, a small flicker of sadness appeared on Amanda's face as the realisation of what Mary had said sunk in. That face was just as quickly replaced with one of anger. Unable to come back with a taunt, she grabbed her wine glass and simply threw the wine directly into Mary's face.

Had Mary gone too far? She couldn’t help but wonder if maybe she had. That was when Amanda threw the wine at her face. She runs a hand across her face, pushing the excess wine onto the table. From there to attempts to blink the sting out to no avail. She was a little unsure how to act. Did she yell? Did she swing? Or should she stay quiet? She could feel many pairs of eyes watching the pair of them. Not quite sure how to act she pours herself another water before throwing it in the woman's face. "I'd be careful if I were you, Amanda. I'd hate to see you get hurt on account of me," she threatens

Amanda gasped as she felt the water splash on her face. She wiped her eyes clean using the table cloth and glared back at Mary. "Try it. Try and hurt me. Get whoever you want to give it a go and a I promise you Mary Price, they will be given a free early grave"

"Oh please. You've been trying for decades and how far have you come? My boy's still alive and well despite your many attempts to end him all those years ago and you never had the guts to even try to kill me. Try your best, Aston, but I have always been one step ahead if you. Always have been and always will."

Amanda got up, almost flipping the table in the process. She glared at Mary once last time before simply storming off to the toilets in the back of the restaurant, leaving Mary on her own.


A @Hedgehawk & @SouffleGirl123 post
Featuring Mary Price and Aloysius Leighton




Slipping out of her car, Mary hummed to herself as she walked toward the door of her townhouse. Relatively quickly Mary caught a figure standing at her door. Miles? No, his hair was much too long to be his- Aloysius. The woman stopped in place for a moment. Mary wouldn’t admit she was avoiding the man but the fact he hadn’t heard a single peep from her since he gave her his number was indeed by design. She couldn’t help but shutter slightly at the sight of him. She hated that there was still some power he held over her. Sure, it wasn’t love or any of the sort but it was enough to put her off. She’d read the man’s letters, every single one, three times over as she tried to make sense of the whole mess. She hadn’t said a word to him since.

Mary doubted that her piss-covered scrubs were far from fitting attire for that conversation but she barely had a choice. Then again, he was meant to meet Miles this evening. Maybe Miles didn’t show up. ”If Miles stood you up you won’t find him here. He don’t live here no more,” she drawls as she reaches the man at her door.

It hadn’t been long since Al had left Huskers. He was slightly unsure what to do with himself. He did want to speak to Mary, and knowing that Miles was heading to Lilith’s meant that he could at least speak to Mary without anyone around. But that also meant breaking the one rule that Miles had tried to lay out. Still, he needed to speak to Mary and get confirmation himself. So that was what had dragged him here. Hearing the voice behind him, he turned and gave off a soft smile. It may have been twenty five odd years, but he still loved hearing her voice. It had hardly changed.

”Actually Mary I came to speak with you. I have already spoken to Miles.”

Mary looked over the man before giving the deepest of sighs. ”You always were too persistent for your own good,” she grumbles, fishing through her bag for the keys. Part of her wanted to send him off, tell him to just leave her to her own devices in her little bubble. There was nothing she wanted more right now than a shower and to crawl into bed but what good had just avoiding the man done for her so far? Maybe after this the nightmare will be over. ”Fine.” she huffs, pushing past him to unlock the door. ”Don’t mind the smell, I’ll get changed when we get in. I’m not so much surrounded by bacon grease and coffee these days.”

The woman then throws open the front door and ushers Aloysius in. ”Just make yourself comfy, I guess. I’ll be a moment,” she instructs before slinking her way into her room to get changed.

Aloysius had wondered if Mary had stayed in the diner for the entire of her life. It appeared not. She had left it seemed and went into some kind of medical field. Aloysius felt an odd sense of pride that he couldn’t quite pinpoint the source of. Following her inside he would find himself on the sofa while she worked on getting changed. He pulled out his phone and began to scroll through his apps looking for one that allowed him to order food. He eventually settled on a place that would deliver chinese food and simply typed in their old order, not forgetting the apple pie. It might not be the best kind of dessert to get from a chinese takeaway, but he remembered that Mary was a sucker for it. With it all paid for, he sat back and looked around the room, It had hardly changed, save for the photos of Mary and Miles on the wall. Looking at them would only make his chest sting in regret.

Mary took the liberty of taking a quick shower as Aloysius waited, if he wasn’t going to talk to her on her terms he was going to wait for a shower she figured. It was only a couple of minutes before she reemerged into the kitchen. She opens the fridge, looking at what she had that she could cook quickly. ”I think I’ve got some chicken here somewhere, I can whip up a quick pasta or something?” she offers the man before turning her head to look at him. His eyes were trained on the pictures on the wall. A mix of mainly Miles or her and Miles throughout the years with a few containing or of Lilith and Claire in there for good measure too. She rests her chin on her hands on the door of the fridge. ”They grow up real fast,” she says softly, her eyes taking in the pictures also. ”I swear I blinked and now my baby’s fixin’ to have his own.”

”Don’t worry about food. I have ordered some food, figured that it would save you scrambling around after work.” Aloysius replied, not taking his eyes off a photo of Mary, Miles, Lilith and Claire. Each of the photos only served to remind him how invisible he was. Years of memories that he couldn’t see or be a part of. ”Tell me about it. I blinked and all the sudden my entire sentence was coming to an end. Everything has changed so much. Everything is so much more complicated than it once was.”

Mary’s face softened slightly at the man mentioning he had food as she gave a gentle ”Thanks.” She pulls a bottle of white wine out of the fridge, pouring herself a glass. She holds it up so Al had a better view before asking ”Want one?”

”Sure, no harm in having a glass or two” Aloysius remarked as he sank deeper in the sofa. His eyes drifted away from the photos and back towards Mary. While he knew that she didn’t love him back anymore, being near her still gave Al a really warm heart feeling alongside comfort.

After pouring Al a glass and putting the bottle back in the fridge, Mary makes her way to the couch. She hands Al a glass before situating herself in the farthest spot from him on the short couch. She leans up against the side of it so she was facing him. Her eyes drift to the photo he was looking at earlier of Mary and Claire with their arms around their young children standing in front of them. ”That’s one of my favourites,” she says, nodding to the picture. ”I reckon Miles was about 7 here. We used to take the kids on camping trips in the Summer to catch up. They always were the sweetest friends.” It was clear Mary was avoiding the reason Aloysius had once again found himself at her door. She wasn’t so sure herself if she was ignoring it or waiting for the man to initiate.

Aloysius had picked up on the fact that Mary had sat as far away as possible from him. He should have really expected it. Looking around at the picture once more he smiled. ”So Miles and Lilith have been close for a long time then?” Aloysius asked, taking a sip from his wine glass before looking back at Mary. He was enjoying this quiet discussion time. It was almost more relaxing than the half hostile attitude that Miles had given him at the bar.

”I mean, Claire and I grew up together so it was kinda inevitable,” the woman replies, taking a sip of her wine. She couldn’t help but wonder when Al would get onto why he was here but she’d never turn down an opportunity to talk about her son. ”Claire found out she was pregnant a month or 2 after Miles was born. I used to joke that she made my son a wife, didn’t know it’d actually happen. Or it’d cause this many issues.”

”Well, it wouldn’t have caused any issues if it wasn’t for me” Aloysius sighed. While having Miles was always something he had wanted, he had wanted to be here for the experience. After the Magi war, Aloysius no longer cared about the politics of the Guild or any kind of powerplay. He had wanted to retire and set up a small family and enjoy peace and quiet. ”There are days I wish I had finished my research in Chronomancy. Not to win the Magi war, but to make the right choice and stand my ground. Stay here and actually be a father. I am sure Salem would have tried to kill me. But I should have been stronger.”

Mary gave a sigh, her eyes recentring on the man. ”It’s all in the past now, Al. Honestly, I don’t think it’s really fair to redo it all. We make mistakes for a reason. Sure, things were hard on Miles and I but neither of us hated our lives.” she muses before taking a sip of her drink.

”Nah, well Miles asked me to meet him at Huskers and it was an interesting experience.” Aloysius said as he took a sip of his wine ”We had some interesting conversations” He said with a soft sigh.

”Honestly I’m a lil surprised you came out of there without at least a black eye so it mustn’t have gone too badly,” Mary replies, taking a sip from her glass. She did dare ask what was said, it wasn’t her business. She did fully expect one of them to tell her anyway.

”Well, it nearly turned out that way. There was a moment where Miles was getting very close to squaring up. But we had a few moments of understanding.” Aloysius remarked as he took another drink. ”Though he did pretty much tell me to leave you alone as I don’t deserve to be here pretty much.”

”And the first thing you do is ignore his request?” Mary asked curiously. If it were anyone else in any other situation she would have been quick to make clear these were things Miles had no right to have control over but this was a unique situation. She was also interested in what the man had to say for himself in that regard.

”Well, I wanted to actually ask you if that was what you wanted. I know Miles has feelings, but ultimately I want to respect your feelings” Aloysius remarked as the door knocked. He got up and let Mary stay relaxed as he went to the door and a moment later he came back with the chinese and laid it out on the coffee table. ”Well, I haven’t had this smell in a long time”

Mary exhales a breath she didn't realise she was holding in anticipation for Aloysius' response. ”I guess Miles always saw himself as the 'man of the house'. Poor kid always felt he had to protect me." Mary chuckles, playing with her wine glass. ”There's a lot o' drawings from when he was a kid of him protectin' me from things. Dragons, green and brown blobs I think were meant to be swamp monsters- and you." Soon the sound of someone rapping their fist against the door echoed through the house caused Aloysius to get up. Mary couldn’t help the wave of nostalgia that came over her as the man opened the containers of food. Mary quickly collects a couple of bowls and sets of chopsticks, handing one to Al. ”So I guess you have some questions to ask me?"

”I do, but first, are there any questions you want to ask me. With everything going on and all the drama, we never really had a chance to sit down between us and just talk” Aloysius remarked as he opened his takeout pot and picked up the chopsticks. He began to pick at the food before looking back at Mary.

Mary found a sudden interest in her food. Over the years she'd built a whole library of questions she'd ask the man but so many of them were either null and void or at least complicated by those letters. ”25 years," she muses. ”Every one of those letters ended with an 'I love you' until a few months ago. I don't know. Why didn’t you just give up?"

Aloysius knew that Mary had a right to know. Even if the answer hurt him, she deserved to know the truth. ”Because I never really lost hope. It was tested numerous times. But I was forced out of here while I was still in love with you. I wasn't going to let my situation change how I felt about you” Aloysius replied, picking at his own food. He knew that Mary might not like the answer, but he was at least being honest and truthful about it.

”Maybe you shoulda," the woman mumbles, picking at her meal with her chopsticks. Part of her almost felt guilty for losing her hope and desire for the man. Almost. She checked his every word with her divination to make sure he wasn't lying, she hated that she had to do that with him but she'd honestly lost all trust in him after all his stunts. All of it was true from what it told her. ”I guess, shoot with your questions." she then muses.

”Okay, suppose I should start with the big one. Get it out of the way.” Aloysius said with a deep breath, taking a small bite of his noodles before gaining the courage to ask the question. ”I know what Miles said, but I want to ask you. Do you want me here Mary? If you don’t, I will leave. I came here because I wanted to set things right. I knew the chances of carrying on were basically 0%”

”I dunno," she mumbles, still keeping her eyes trained on her food as she picked at it. ”I guess it's more I don't want you showin' up at my door unannounced 3 times a week," Mary sighs, pushing her food around her bowl. ”It's hard for me to see you, y'know? I mean for 25 years you were the deadbeat who left me to be strugglin' single parent without so much as a note that you were leavin'. This was after gettin' so excited about findin' out I was pregnant and at every milestone and all that. I've read the letters, I know the whole situation wasn't desirable for you either but it's hard t' undo what I truly believed for 25 years. Y'know? I don't know if it can ever fully be set right."

Aloysius let out a sigh. ”I get that. I had to watch 25 years of my life rush by and be left all on my own. I missed out on so much. But hey, thats my punishment right” Looking down Aloysius shook his head ”I know this can’t be entirely fixed. If at all, but I want to try. My last attempt if you like”

”Last attempt to what, Al?" the woman asks, looking at him for the first time since this can of worms was open. He looked sadder and more dishevelled than the day she first met him. ”To win me back? To call us home? To call my child yours? To change the way I've spent 25 years feelin'? What are you really doing here? And by here I mean here in my house."

”My last attempt to actually be a good person and do the right thing. I ain’t exactly getting any younger. I survived taking a direct lightning bolt of the entire New York state powergrid. I hate to think what that is going to do to my life expectancy.” Aloysius picked at his food, picking up some chicken and shoving it into his mouth. ”I legitimately came over to speak to you and see if you still wanted me around, and to just have a conversation. Every time we have tried to talk before, emotions have been high and others have been around. Plus, after seeing those letters you wrote. It kinda set in just how much damage I did.”

Mary gave a shaky breath. This was too much. She wouldn't tell the man that. Heck, she wouldn't tell herself that, but it was. She thought through her words for a while. ”Claire 'n all that saw me in my worst states. Honestly Miles saw me struggle more than any boy should watch his mamma do so despite how hard I tried to hide it from him. They're just protective," she replies, slightly blowing off his questions. She picked at her food some more before taking a bite. Despite it all she wasn't going to apologise on behalf of Claire or her son. Deep down she got some twisted satisfaction from Al getting his upcomence from them, even if she wouldn’t admit that.

”You can ask more questions” Aloysius remarked. He was honestly shocked that Mary hadn’t gone off on him. While he knew that Mary was the more composed one of the family, he was shocked that she hadn’t just decided to either bombard him with questions or berate him. ”I know it is hard, and difficult. I know I did this. I just want a chance to try and help you”

Mary gave a sigh, her eyes failing to meet the man once more. ”I'm tired, Al. I'm tired of fightin', tired of hurtin', tired of expectin' the world to let me know every single thing I want to know. I'm pushin' 50, I don't have the tenacity I used to when I was 24," the woman muses, taking another bite of her meal. ”My questions will come. I'm sure."

"Well, when you have those questions, I will answer them" Aloysius replied. "I know that feeling about being tired." Aloysius carried on eating his food "What's the coven like nowadays?"

”I guess there's a bit changing with Carlisle taking over. Just tryna stop him from being his ma, or his anti-ma in the worst ways I guess. Turns out that miscarriage Amanda gave me grief for was a lie. And yes, she did try to send me out on dangerous field missions when I was more pregnant than you left me." Mary sighs once more, taking a sip from her wine glass. ”But I think things are changin' for the better now Amanda's gone. I really hope they are. Would say it ain't my problem no more but i work for them now so it very much is."

" So after that bitch basically ruined my life by calling Salem she continued to be a bitch. Makes sense. Is it really a good idea to have another Aston around considering Amanda's track history?" Aloysius pointed out, picking gt his noodles as he tried to get a good angle on the food. Chopsticks weren't exactly his forte.

”Can't say I'd expect any less from her. She's always had something against me." Mary replies, taking another bite of her food. She does see the man struggle with his chopsticks but figured if he wanted a fork so bad he'd at least ask. ”Carlisle not much like his mother. Kids got some real issues that need to be fixed, don't get me wrong, but at least he got some of a heart." she points out with a sigh. She turned her gaze back to the man. ”What happens with magi great families now you've done a runner. Does your sister take over?" she asks. Mary honestly knew very little about magi authority structures, or about magis at all if she was being honest.

”What great families? With the Louis line destroyed in the early 90’s and the Freja line losing most of their power only the DeSilvas and Leightons are left. Lola has no interest in being involved in Magi life, and Miles is here with the coven now. So there is no one left but Salem and her offspring.” Aloysius commented. It was a sad fact, but the war had pretty much cemented the DeSilvas as the lone rulers of the Magi now.

”Poor thing,” Mary clucks as Al mentions his sister not involving herself in her magic. ”Must’ve been traumatised by that war. Does she have kids that’ll take the Leighton’s place?”

”She does, but she is trying to bring them up with the most normal upbringing possible away from magic. Let’s just say, our mother could be on par with Amanda, and Lola bore the brunt of most of my mothers anger. Never being good enough, despite the fact that Lola was without a doubt the best hydromage I had ever witnessed. I am not sure if my mother was trying to push Lola harder so she worked on her magic harder, but it didn’t work. Once my mother had finished manipulating me, I mistreated Lola. it is one of my biggest regrets.” Aloysius lets out a small tut as he then eats some noodles. He had always wondered if Lola would get her kids inducted into the Guild.

Mary gave a sigh, silently eating her food for a moment. It seemed her and Miles weren’t the only people he’d hurt. Evil mother or no it was still him behind it all, Mary wasn’t going to deny that. Her heart went out to his sister. In that moment the realization hit that Miles had cousins. Mary herself was an only child and didn’t have a large extended family, in a way the Montgomerys took that spot. She didn’t say or do anything to indicate that realisation, she wanted to know where Miles was at first before looking into connecting him with his family.

The pair ate in silence for a while as Mary processed everything the man had said. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t find the silence to be a nice break from everything. When she was ready she finally spoke up. ”Have you got any more questions for me?”

Aloysius sat and eat in the silence, finding it awkward. Aloysius had always hated silence, but he was trying to learn to be a better person and let things hang in silence if the other person wanted it. Hearing her response, Aloysius put his cup down, pushing the container with the apple pie towards Mary. ”Well, Bit of a side track, How long has Ty been in Tanner for?”

As Al pushed the container closer to her a small content smile grew on the woman’s lips. She’d always loved apple pie, that had never changed. Apple pie from a Chinese restaurant probably wasn’t the best of them but she appreciated what Al was trying to do. Just as she was about to get up to get a couple of spoons and icecream Al’s next question came.

Mary had honestly expected more questions about Miles’ upbringing, about how their lives looked after he left and how her life changed. Maybe expected wasn’t the right word. Wanted. She wanted those questions, even though they may hurt it was in a way proof he really did care enough to have pondered these things. The last thing she expected was for him to ask about Ty. ”I think Miles was 14 when they moved to Tanner so 10 years ago? His wife’s bloodline is part of the council. Do you know him from the war?” Mary knew Ty was magi, that he didn’t keep a secret but that seemed to be all he was open about. Mary knew he was in the war but not what side he was on or what extent he was in it.

Hearing about How Ty was linked to the coven council families and how he seemed to find happiness made Al smile somewhat. Despite not having any kind of contact after the war, Al did still care about Ty as a friend, even though he was fairly confident that Ty couldn’t give two shits if Al lived or died. ”He was pretty much one of my, if not most senior person. I relied alot on Ty for advice and he could really hold his own for someone who was not a great family member.”
Mary raised an eyebrow at Aloysius’ answer. So it turns out Ty wasn’t only just in the Dark Shadows but also a high-standing member. ”I mean he’s still in Tanner if you wanna catch up.” She gets up to grab a couple of spoons and some icecream from the freezer.

”Nah, I think he would punch me if we saw each other again haha. I think I will remind him of a past that he would rather forget.” As Mary came back, he would change the subject ”Has Miles always been Mr.Man of the house? Or was there a time where he was a little bit more meeker and less likely to punch someone?”

”Seems to be a recurring theme in your life.” Mary points out as Al mentions Ty likely wanting to attack him for a similar reason that washed over Miles and her. She Places the icecream container in the middle of the coffee table before resting a spoon in front of Al and taking a bite of the pastry. Sure, it was far from the quality of the diner or what she or her mother would bake but it still held the sweet sense of nostalgia attached to the dish that she loved about it.

At Aloysius’ question she gave a light chuckle. ”His bark is worse than his bite most of the time. He talks a big game an’ I’m sure he can fight well but he prefers to talk things out from what I know. He was always a bold and- rambunctious kid if that’s what you’re askin'."

”Well, Miles is a strong willed person that is for sure. It will serve him well. He is going to need it” Aloysius spoke as he looked at the ice cream and the apple pie. ”And how about you? Why the change of pace from diner to medical?”

At his first statement Mary gives a small chuckle. ”He gets it from his mumma,” she muses, taking the final sip from her wine glass. As he looks at the food before him she gives a small nod, indicating he was welcome to eat also before taking another bite herself. At his question the woman sighs. She loved her job at the diner more than anything. Sure, it wasn’t the most impressive sounding job but she never minded that.

”The diner was a good job when it was just me but the pay was inconsistent, not to mention the hours were all over the place. As soon as holidays hit my hours would be cut to give the teenagers work. That was fine when it was just me, it a bit easier to be flexible when you’re supportin’ yourself but not so much when you got a kid t’ worry about too. When I had my- episode shall we call it I guess it gave me an interest in the field. I did a CNA course then started at the hospital. The hourly pay’s only a bit better honestly but it makes a difference quickly and there were always shifts, the hours were predictable and I was still able to get some maternity leave.” She pauses for a moment to take another spoonful of apple pie and icecream. ”I guess it was just more convenient. I think part of me intended on doing a nursing degree but I never really had the time and honestly I couldn’t be bothered anymore.”

Aloysius scooped some ice cream onto his apple pie while listening to Mary talk. It was understandable that Mary would have wanted a more stable job. ”That makes sense. I am still angry that Amanda took the money from those envelopes. I was sending a thousand every month. That witch probably has had close to half a million out of me” Aloysius sighed, he took a bite of pie and ice cream. ”So you are now working for the coven? What job is that?”

”Even if she hadn’t I woulda still wanted something more stable by the time Miles was born anyway.” Mary states. In all fairness she’d been angry at Amanda for that reason too, only adding to the snowballing list of reasons she was mad at her for meddling in her son’s life. At Al’s second question the woman nods. ”Carlisle’s given me the job of Seneschal, essentially I just keep the house running. Between both those jobs I keep myself busy.”

"Why would you do both at the same time? This is supposed to be the bit where slow down as your children have kids and enjoy life" Aloysius asked as he finished off his apple pie.

”Oh I still have time," the woman argues before licking the remnants of icecream off of her spoon. ”Besides, when have you known me to slow down?"

"Yes, but it had to happen eventually. You need to slow down" Aloysius interjected, taking one last scoop of ice-cream. "I am guessing I can't convince you to slow it down?" Aloysius asked placing his spoon down.

Mary laughs lightly, placing her own spoon on the table. ”I think you know the answer to that." For a moment the rage and anger somehow melted away as she almost seemed to forget who she was with. It didn't take long for it to return though, her chuckling ceases as her face drops slightly. ”Al, I'm fine. I know my limits." she says bluntly.

With a sigh she looks back up at the man, meeting his eyes. ”Does Miles have any other relatives I should know about? Other aunt or uncles? Cousins? Siblings?"

For a brief moment, Aloysius could have sworn that Mary was at ease. That for a few brief moments the old relationship was back to where it was before he left. It felt Al could drop his guard and finally lower his shoulders. Only for seconds later for the tone to change back once more. If anything it seemed to hurt Al more that Mary had slipped back into her more relaxed form. To him it almost signaled that she could be relaxed around him, but chose to be this way.

"No. Great families tend to keep narrow bloodlines. Mother and father are out of the picture. Lola had her kids and I don't really see them often." Aloysius had always wished he had an extended family. He had heard about large thanksgiving dinners, but he never really experienced them as the family on his side was so small. " Lola is the last relative I have left. Well, Miles too, but I don't think I am allowed to count him" Aloysius says with a sigh.

”Mm," Mary muses simply, ”Likely not." she remained in silence for a while once again. Her eyes became glued to the coffee table in front of her. It almost hurt that the man hadn't moved on and had kids with someone else, that he was stuck in limbo forever when Mary was far from done with him. It hurt even more that she was able to drop her guard around him so fast, almost as if there was hope that they could be amicable. ”I need more wine." she says simply, collecting their glasses, spoons and the icecream and starting her way back to the kitchen

Aloysius let out a soft sigh. This was fruitless. He knew that they were never getting back together. Even if he wanted it. But he had at least hoped that there could be some hope of at least being amicable and Aloysius spending the rest of his life here in Tanner. But Mary was closed off. She seemed to be doing a really good job of putting herself behind a wall. "Do you remember the early days of me and you? The diner and the fact I used to order three meals a day there just to talk to you?"

With the icecream back in the freezer and 2 fresh glasses of wine poured, Mary returned back to the living room as Al talked. What was he playing at? ”Some of it," she replies simply, setting a glass before him before returning herself to the farthest point on the couch again. ”It's all kinda in fleetin' moments now. Guess that's what happens when you try to suppress a lot of it. Why do ya ask? Do you remember it?"

" Of course I remember it. It was what helped keep me going through all the past 25 years. I met you in a really vulnerable part of my life. The war had just finished earlier that year. I was trying to discover who I really was after having the enchantment off my mother swiped off me. I always maintained that meeting you was the best thing that happened to me" Aloysius remarked picking up the glass and sipping from it. "After the war, most of my friends showed their true colours. They no longer wanted to be associated with me. To most I had become a liability. A joke sometimes too"

”I didn't really do anything 'cept serve you like I do all my other customers. Really ain't that special," Mary remarks, taking a large sip of her glass, seeming to down the third of it in one go.

Aloysius looked down. It was no good. " Yeah, I get that. You just were the first who treated me like a normal human, and I will always be grateful for that. Even if you were just treating me like another customer"

”Al," Mary starts softly before a sigh escapes her lips. Part of her felt bad for him, she did, but the years of bitterness and hatred seemed to wash away what she loved about him. She knew she did once but she could hardly remember why anymore. ”I'm startin' to think maybe you didn't love me, you just liked being treated like a normal person," she states before taking another sip of her drink.

"Nah. That might had been the the case at the start. But it became love after the first few months." Aloysius took a deep drink of his glass before carrying on "You are such a kind and beautiful woman. The one thing I will admit. We do make a good looking child"

Mary couldn’t help the small blush that crept onto her cheeks as the man complimented her. She thought she was over that but she was never good at taking sincere compliments. She then clears her throat, ”He always was a handsome lil man. Got 'im into a lotta trouble in his teen years though," she says with a chuckle, her eyes returning to the pictures that covered her walls.

"So how many hearts did he break during his teens?" Aloysius asked with a soft chuckle. In his late teens he had been known for sleeping around after losing Salem. He had hoped that his children would be different, but perhaps it might not be.

”I tried to not get too involved in that part of his life honestly. But I know it was a lot. The surge of enchantment magic probably didn't help either." she responds, taking another sip of her drink. She gave a sigh leaning deeper into the couch. ”Can't say he got that from me," she comments accusingly. ”The heartbreaker stuff, the enchantment was probably me."

Aloysius didn't really say anything in response to the accusation. He knew better than to feed Mary more excuses to hate him. " The important thing now is that things have settled down and he seems to have his head screwed on. Far better than I did at that age."

”I mean at his age you left me here alone to raise him so I'd say he's definitely doin' alright by those standards." Mary knew it was a low blow but she couldn’t help herself. Part of her had waited too long to voice her saltiness about the whole situation, it seemed even her grace had limitations.

Aloysius lowered his head. Clearly it was becoming too much. "Alright I get it. I know I was a let down for you and Miles. I know I left you when you needed me most. I get that. There is no need to rub it in anymore" Aloysius pulled some of his hair down so that it would conveniently hide some the tears forming in the corners of his eye, even if his slightly breaking voice betrayed him. "I came here in good faith. I wanted to show that I wasn't a deadbeat and give you the truth behind everything that had happened. I just didn't expect to have to everyone dig in so much"

Noticing the tears forming on the man's face, Mary couldn’t help but feel bad for the man. For as much as his absence hurt her, the letters and his return did explain so much. She pulls a tissue from the box sitting on her table and holds it out to the man. ”I'm sorry, Al. The past 25 years have just been a lot. You can't blame us for still feelin' that pain because we have explanations."

"I am not blaming you at all. Just, you don't have to use the pain to inflict it back on me." Aloysius begrudgingly accepted the tissue and wipes away the forming tears "For the first time in my life, I had positive relationships. I had someone I cared for and cared for me back. I was going to have to have a child. And Salem and Amanda ripped that from me. They made me sacrifice everything to protect the thing that bought me so much joy. I get you are hurt. But I have it too. Just a different kind of hurt"

Mary couldn't help but freeze for a moment, trapped between wanting to yell and scream at the man that things were harder for her than they could have been if she had a warning about who he was and wanted to apologise profusely for what he went through as if it were her fault alone she got pregnant at a 'bad time' for the man. She turns her head further from the man. Her whole life was upended when she found out she was pregnant with Miles and once again when Aloysius disappeared into the night not to return. Sure, she might have owed him an apology for the little hurts now but not then. ”What do you want from me, Al? Really want from me?" she asks, her voice barely a whisper.

" I don't know Mary. I just don't know. I don't even know why my brain bought me back here. This is all I had. I know you can't take me back. I know we can't have things like we had before. I don't know. Maybe I hoped beyond hope that there would be a place for me in Tanner. Evidently not." Aloysius let's out a frustrated but also sad breath, leaning back into the sofa. " We both got shafted with some fucking terrible bad luck. And I realise that all of your hurt is because I came into your life. I am not blind to that fact"

Mary stayed silent for a while, unsure exactly how to feel. She wanted to tell him he was wrong. He wasn't. Or that he had a place in Tanner but she was starting to doubt that too. Her next words fell from her mouth too fast for her to catch them, she knew they were fuelled by the divination in some way. ”I think, deep down, part of you thought or at least deeply hoped I would be out here just waitin' for you to come back to me," her voice was still low as she hated putting voice to her deepest suspicions but she forced her eyes to level at the man.

" A small part of me deep down yeah. Of course I wanted that. Who wouldn't want the love of your life back who you were nastily snatched away from. A part of me wanted to come back and treat you properly, make sure you were okay and protected. Actually be a good partner rather than a sucky one. He knew that Mary could divine right into his soul if she really wanted to. There was nothing she couldn't work out. So what was the point in lying.

A shaky breath escapes the woman’s lips. ”That makes a lot of assumptions, Al. I didn’t move on, I was getting the letters and not responding for some other reason than avoidin’ you, I stayed single. I mean, what would have you done if you came back to find I’d started a new family with someone else, hm?”

"I never understood why you never replied. But now I know, cause if Amanda. I had considered that you might have moved on and found someone. I hadn't really thought much about it. I mostly wanted to see that you and our child was okay. 25 years of hearing nothing can cause you to panic" Aloyisus was unsure what to really say to try and make any of this better. He wanted to say how much he still cared for her and her wellbeing, but he knew that would get shot down right away.

The silence seemed to consume the woman once more as Aloysius somewhat blew off her question. It was clear Al hadn’t moved on at all. ”Did you ever at least consider just givin’ up and findin’ someone else?” For now she was fuelling her curiosity more than anything.

"I didn't exactly have my freedom. Salem only let me out when she wanted me to go on suicide missions that probably should have killed me. Outside of that I was kept under lock and key. Salem might give off the aura of elegance here. But I can assure you, she is a very different person when enraged. She said what she said at the dinner because she knew it would cause the most embarrassment for me. For her. I am never allowed to happy." Aloysius sighed and ran his hands through his hair. " One thing I did when I was young and I can't escape it. The consequences of which has consumed my life. I just want to leave it all. I want my happy slice of life, in peace"

Mary just nodded her head as he spoke. ”I honestly don't know what to make of this, Al." The woman sighs, bottoming out her drink. ”Do you have anything else for me before I turn in for the night?"

Aloysius let out a sad breath. "No. That's it." Aloysius would out his glass down and take one more look around the living room. There was so much history here that he had no knowledge of. It was a strange disconnect. So familiar but at the same time completely alien. It felt like he both belonged and didn't.

Mary stood in place, collecting both of their glasses and containers. ”Well thank you for dinner, Al, but if you got nothin' else to ask me I'm 'bout to turn in for the night so it's 'bout time you went home."

" Heh, yeah. Home" Aloysius remarked as he got up from the sofa. "Despite the tense atmosphere, it was nice to just talk to you one on one" He said as he walked to the edge of the hallway.

Nice. Mary wasn't sure if nice was the word she'd use but at least she had answers. ”Al, I'm not the same person I was when you left me 'ere. You gotta understand that," she says quietly before sighing once more. ”Nevermind. Just- good night Al."

"I know you are not. But you are still a good person." Aloysius commented as he out his long black coat on. "Don't worry. I won't turn up here again. I will figure something out and be out of the towns hair soon enough" Aloysius walked to the door, opening it and looking back inside. "Look after yourself Mary. And I am sorry I never lived upto what you needed or deserved"
Miles Price & Lilith Montgomery

A @HaleyTheRandom & @SouffleGirl123 post
Featuring Miles Price, Lilith Montgomery, Claire Montgomery and John Montgomery




It wasn’t until, for the second time in his life, Miles packed all his belongings away into boxes that Miles had realised how little physical objects he actually owned. Although his ma would offer him all the furniture in his room and more he really didn’t need any of it in the Ranch Considering Mary wasn’t seeming to go anywhere he decided his mementos were better off remaining in the storage closet of her house. With his whole life packed into a total of 2 boxes and a suitcase, he officially left the Price household.

Miles didn’t quite know what to make of the move. The Ranch was essentially his second home growing up and he was only moving a good 10 or so minutes from his mother. It didn’t really feel like a move, not quite. But it wasn’t exactly nothing at the same time. Just under a week had passed since John agreed to have the man move in. He’s decided to wait for Saturday to move but with so small a change he wasn’t so sure why. He’d tell people it was because of work but moving not even a carload of boxes didn’t seem to change much. Maybe he was expecting John to pump him with rules or lectures and didn’t want to deal with that after a long day at the office. When he initially planned on moving in he expected it to be a good couple of months before John would even consider the option so Lil and Claire requesting he move in fast and leaving him with a week to get sorted was the last thing he expected. Dragging his suitcase to the front door of the Ranch he rapped at the door.

Lilith had spent the last week arguing back and forth with her grandfather and mother about things she was allowed to do and not to do while pregnant. The one thing no one could do was keep her off the back of her horse. For the last few days, Lilith had taken off early in the morning on horseback, and returned during the evening. She had managed to get some chores done here and there behind her family’s back, but spending time alone at the river had proved a much easier feat.

Walking back from the barn, Lilith prepared herself to be bombarded by her mothers questions once again. When was Miles going to move it? Had she taken her vitamins? What baby names were they considering? Had the morning sickness started? Why was she reaching for another cup of coffee? Claire never seemed to stop. Caught up in her own thoughts, the young woman nearly missed the sight of Miles’ car in the driveway. Picking up her pace, Lil hurried to the house. Spotting a some-what nervous looking Miles, she smiled. She walked right up beside him, opening the front door and allowing it to swing wide open.

”Ready for this,” she asked him, her nerves already starting to get the best of her.

Hyperfocused on the door before him, Miles didn't notice Lilith until she appeared right next to him. ”Lilith," he greets her, trying to choke back his nerves. For almost as long as he could remember the Ranch was a second home for him. He'd spent almost as many of his days in his formative years within its walls as his own but there was something about this official shift that was different. Almost off-putting. ”I don’t think I'll ever be ready." he admits, grabbing her hand with his free one. ”But I reckon if I make it to the end of next week without 2 bullet holes in my skull we can call it a win. How are you holding up? They ain't giving you too much grief, are they?"

Giving his hand a reassuring squeeze as she stood on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek, Lilith moved around Miles so that she could enter the house. Turning around, the young woman grabbed the second box off the top of the small stack in an effort to help. ”Greif?” she laughed. ”I think they’re tryin’ to send me to an early grave, honestly. Don’t do this, don’t do that - I feel like I’m five again, but somehow they’re treating me like I’m more breakable now that I was then.”

”Maybe you are," Miles’ muses. ”Or more accurately, maybe they are." he clarifies, nodding at her stomach. ”You were a pretty tough 5 year old." He watches her grab the top box in his stack. Should pregnant women be lifting boxes? What about women pregnant with triplets? Miles didn't know, he was going into this completely blind. Not that Lil was any better. ”Lemme take that, it's kinda heavy. You can take my suitcase?" he offers, holding the handle in her direction.

Watching Miles’s reaction only reminded Lilith of the similar ones she had been getting from the ranch hands since John had broken the news. It was frustrating, but Lil knew she couldn’t get upset with Miles for the way that other people had been treating her. With a soft sigh the young woman traded out the box for the suitcase. ”I know that this is weird, and totally not how either of us pictured finally moving in together, but I’m really hoping it’ll be a good thing.”

Miles sighed in response as he took the box from Lilith. ”I don't think either of us pictured any of this," he replies meekly, walking through the door and holding it open with his foot for Lil to walk through. ”Don’t think anyone did but here we are." Miles trails behind Lilith when she enters the house as if he didn't have the whole place memorised. ”I think ma teared up this morning, not that she'd admit it. It's funny, it's not the first time I've moved and here is a stone's throw away compared to Olympia but whatever."

Lilith didn’t waste any time entering the house, heading straight for the stairs. The last thing she wanted was for her or Miles either one to be hit with the welcome wagon. ”In her defense, I think this might feel a little more permanent than college,” Lil pointed out while beginning the climb to the second floor. ”The spare room is right across from mine,” she began to explain. ”Gramps made sure it was furnished with everything you need, and I have some extra space in my dresser if you need it.”

Miles trailed a good step behind Lilith. Should pregnant women be dragging suitcases up stairs? Why was there no manual for these things? He watched her every move closely, a tumble down the stairs would be the last thing either of them needed right now. At Lilith’s explanation Miles cocks an eyebrow. Admittedly he expected to be sharing Lil’s room rather than be given his own space. Not that he really minded all that much but it was unexpected. ”Spare room?” he asks, keeping his voice light as he half-joked. ”You’re legit carrying my babies and your pawpaw’s still insistent on keeping us separated? Is he scared I’ll make you even more pregnant or something?”

Lilith was hoping that the dresser comment was enough of a hint for Miles. Listening to him speak, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes when she realized her comment had missed the mark. ”You know how traditional he is,” she joked back in response. ”I think the poor guy is trying to still get his head wrapped around everything.” And I am too.

As they finished their hike up the stairs, Lilith leaned the suitcase up against the wall outside of the door to her own bedroom. ”I also think he kind of wanted us to have that conversation ourselves,” she laughed. ”I’d put some of your things in there at the very least, that way he doesn’t have a hissy fit since he put all that effort in. But you’re more than welcome to sleep wherever you want.”

”And how's your pawpaw taking it all? Which gun do you reckon he'll be holding at me?" Miles responds to her statement on John still trying to wrap his head around it all. As she leaned the suitcase next to her bedroom door he gives her a smile. ”I'm sure there's some stuff here I don't use a lot of, it'll keep John at bay. Need me to sneak between rooms in the middle of the night like we're 16 again?" he jokes with a chuckle.

”Probably the shotgun. That’s usually his go to.” She laughed again at Miles' question. ”The man goes to bed every night at eight. I’m sure we’ll be fine.” As silence filled the space between them, Lilith’s mind drifted off imagining how the next few months of their lives were going to go. ”I reckon we should probably get you set up with whatever you need right now and then focus on the rest later. I gotta get started on dinner soon.”

”Sounds like a plan." Miles replies peering into Lilith's room, or more aptly their room now. He'd swear up and down it had barely changed over the years. It brought a wave of nostalgia as he was reminded how long it had really been since he'd been in this room. Too long. He rests his chin on the top of her head before saying what had been on the back of his mind for the past couple of weeks. "What are we even doing, Li? Like, how are we supposed to raise children? I don't know the first thing about babies."

”Nor do I,” the young woman sighed in response. As Miles rested his chin on the top of her head, Lilith closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying the silence that filled the air. Deep down she knew there weren’t going to be many more moments where it was just her and Miles. They had barely laid a foundation for their newly rekindled relationship, and now they were moving in together not even two months later. Lilith was starting to wonder if the whole ‘written in the stars’ thing wasn’t just another joke from the Universe in the grand scheme to make a baby factory out of her. ”We just do what our moms did for us - their best. Feed ‘em, clothe ‘em, bathe ‘em, and when they come home cryin’ because some boy or girl broke their heart we’ll be there to listen. Don’t force our failed dreams on ‘em, and let ‘em make their own decisions - for the most part. All of the jokes and bullshit aside, mom says they have classes for all of that. To teach you the basics and stuff, I mean.”

Truthfully, Lilith had been spending every day for the last week in the woods, completely avoiding the inevitable change in her life. She hadn’t really given a second thought on how to actually be a parent - simply because whenever she did, her brain spiraled to a dark and suffocating place. There was no reason to tell Miles that she thought she was going to be ridden with postpartum depression or psychosis, or of all the other horrible things she knew could happen to both her and their children. As for now, Lilith Montgomery had simply been living moment to moment.

Miles gives a sigh in return before pressing a gentle kiss on the top of Lilith’s head. ”I guess we have each other at least. They did good enough by themselves so between the two of us we gotta be at least half-decent, right?” Unlike Lilith who’d seemed to be avoiding even thinking about what was growing inside of her Miles seemed to be unable to think of anything else all week. Not out of choice or intention but the nervousness and fear seemed to constantly remind him it was there as much as he tried to ignore it. Part of him wished he could avoid the whole situation in his mind even just for an hour.

”I asked ma what to expect. She didn’t want to talk about her pregnancy too much, she got weirdly guarded. But she said she got pretty sick. Let’s hope the Montgomerys have better luck I guess. Has it kicked in yet?”

Lilith made a mental note to pick Mary's brain at a later date. She wasn’t quite sure how much information the other woman would be willing to give, or much less how to ask. Lil had done what she could, asking her own mother questions here and there, but Claire seemed to be living in the land of rainbows and roses. Lilith would be lying if she said her mothers happy attitude wasn’t one of the main reasons she had more or less moved out of the house these last few days.

”Not entirely,” she began to explain. ”I keep getting waves of nausea, and my jeans already don’t fit the same. Certain smells make me want to rip my nose off.” Looking up at him, Lilith tried to hide the concern in her eyes before speaking again. ”What about you? How are things on your end?”

”Well I can't say I've had random bouts of nausea or that my jeans are tightening so I guess better off than you." he jokes, blowing off her question.

Lilith did the best that she could to force a small smile, her head tilting to the side as she observed Miles. She was used to her questions being dodged, but it really sucked sometimes when he didn’t want to open up about things. Nonetheless, she didn’t wish to push or pry it out of him.

”I guess you are,” she laughed. ”Though you don’t have people treating you like a prized candy dish, or yanking coffee out of your hands either.”

Miles forced a tight-lipped smile as his girlfriend studied him. Questions on how he was going was always a lose-lose scenario, he knew that. Either he'd tell Lilith he wasn't okay and she'd worry about him and spend her energy making him okay or he didn't and she'd be worried and disappointed that he was saying nothing. He pulled her in closer by the waist, glad she'd opted to drop the question. He'd hazard a guess that with her empath abilities could see he had a nice little cocktail of fear, anxiety and fatigue about him. The kids themself were news and life changing enough but his father reappearing and his relationship with Carlisle being more hot and cold than ever just added a few too many spanners in the works. Not to mention he was worried for his mother, working 2 jobs and doing all alone for real. He always worried about her.

”'Spose I should brush up on what you can and can't do, hey? Someone gotta slow that coffee addiction of yours," he half-jokes, Playing with the ends of her loose strands of hair.

”Well if you listen to my ma or gramps either one, they’re gonna tell you to put me in some sort of protective bubble,” she half-joked. Standing there in the silence, it was hard for Lilith to ignore the waves of emotions that seemed to be rolling off of Miles. It was in times like these that she wished their powers were more similar; Lil could sense emotions, but she couldn’t control or help with them. ”Really all you can do is try to help me stay sane - but you better let me do the same for you,” she declared, wrapping him in a fierce hug.

A small grunt escaped the man as his girlfriend pulled him into a tight grip. He untangles his hands from her hair and slowly wraps his arms around her. He bit down hard on his bottom lip, trying to hold in all his words. Why was she so set on hearing him pour out his heart as if he didn't have the easier end of the deal? ”You shouldn't be worrying about me. I've heard stress is bad for the babies," he says meekly. Miles was always the stoic type, holding the brunt of the burdens for those closest to him; his mother, Lilith, his friends like Carlisle. None of these people asked him to fill that role, it was a self-inflicted position perhaps to avoid looking inward. After a small period of silence he let out the deepest of sighs. ”Honestly, Li? I've never been so terrified in my life." he confesses under his breath. ”I know that's a pretty low bar, fear is not normal for me but- y'know." He sighs, resting his chin on her head once more. ”Let's just hope they're more like you than me."

Huffing, Lilith continued to keep her arms wrapped around Miles as she loosened her grip slightly. She wanted to give him a speech about how all she did was worry, and more so about how it was her god given right to worry about those she cared about - especially him. Lilith had been worrying about Miles for as long as she could remember. Their predicament wasn’t going to change that. If anything it made it worse. The young woman was doing her best to articulate the words to let Miles know he didn’t need to worry. Before she could get them out, his last comment made her blood run cold once more.

Lilith reckoned that having a child like her wouldn’t be the worst thing entirely. She had managed to make relatively good grades in school, maintain a steady job, and be a generally good person from time to time. On the other hand, her mind was designed to torture her. Lilith Montgomery knew full well that she came from a long line of insecure women and angry, egotistical men. More so that she embodied both sides of the coin. Add that to all of the generational trauma that she knew she’d be passing down, and Lilith was reminded of all of the reasons why she swore she’d never have children in the first place.

”I’m scared too, Kane. Terrified, actually. I know you keep sayin’ that as a joke or whatever, but the thought of having some foul-mouthed, dark haired wild child is absolutely terrifyin'. And we’re fixin’ to have three.” Taking a deep breath, Lilith tried to steady her nerves for what felt like the trillionth time that week. ”What if I’m a bad mom? What if I can’t connect with them? What if I hate ‘em?” she questioned in a near whisper.

”Then we'll be horrible parents together.” Miles makes the attempt at a joke before he even thought through the words, leaving him mentally kicking himself. ”Sorry, I didn’t mean that. Ignore me.” Miles quickly intervenes, running a hand down Lilith’s spine and stepping in closer to her. ”I’m sure you’ll be great Li. All we can do is our best and I guess that already gets us ahead of both our dads.” Miles didn’t really know what to say. Miles was good at pretty words and grand speeches but comforting was something different all together. He thought about injecting more calming energy into the air around them but could he use magic on a pregnant woman? Would their babies come out all odd if he did? He decided against it, that was a question for Claire or his ma later. Instead, he takes a deep breath, pulling her closer for a brief moment. ”I still have another box and my guitar waiting at the door, guess we should grab them, hey? Time to brace myself for the welcoming committee?”

The young woman couldn't help but roll her eyes at his joke. Miles had always had a special way of breaking the tension. He didn't have much to say, and that was more than fine with her. Lilith had always found comfort more in his presence than anything.

"Probably a good idea," she responded, still refusing to let him go. "I know ma's excited. Can't promise the same for gramps."

”Nah, I reckon your paw paw is more than excited to put me to work on the ranch. Probably hoping he can work me to death," Miles reasons with a chuckle. The man was generally interested in how John Montgomery would conduct himself around Miles. Until now he'd only received glares and occasional passive aggressive comments from the man but he knew moving in would open a whole new dynamic between the pair.

Despite her agreement, Miles couldn't help but notice Lilith had a tighter grip on him than ever. He presses a kiss on her forehead and lets the silence linger a while. Miles was never great with silence but right now it seemed almost healing. Unfortunately, someone had to break it and it would only be fitting if he were that someone. ”Let's go face your family." he says, loosening his grip around her.

"If you insist," she sighed in her own attempt to joke. Releasing Miles, Lilith settled on grabbing his hand before they began their descent down the stairs. "It's just me and you against the world now, ya know?" the brunette nearly whispered.

Miles gave Lilith's hand a squeeze as they started making their way down the stairs. ”With our families? I don't think it'll ever be just us. I think we’re doomed to never experience time alone again." he jokes. As they pushed closer to the bottom of the steps the clearer Miles could hear the TV playing in the background. ”John's home," he muses, squeezing Lilith's hand once more. He wasn't sure if whatever hassle John was about to give him or Claire's overexcitedness was more terrifying but it looked like he'd soon find out.

Taking a deep breath, Lilith squared her shoulders as the two of them reached the bottom of the stairs. ”I’m sure we’ll make it work,” she responded, still trying to keep the mood light as possible. Hearing the evening news in the background, the young woman was once again reminded of her new reality. So many things were getting ready to change for both herself and those around her. Lilith just hoped that her predicament wouldn’t burden many of her loved ones. More importantly, she hoped that whatever love Miles had for her wouldn’t crumble underneath all of the new pressure.

”I guess I should get a start on dinner,” she mused, her mind clearly elsewhere. ”Want to help me peel the potatoes?”

Miles turns to face Lilith, her eyes seeming to be fixed away from him. Miles was no empath, the furthest thing from it if he was being honest, but even he knew her mind was wandering. He couldn't help but wonder where to. For as long as he had known Lilith Montgomery he still could not figure out her mind, not precisely at least. His eyes floated to John for a moment. Would it be better to rip the bandaid off, just let the man rip into him now. There seemed to be so many places his own mind was trying to pull him. He gave Lilith's hand yet again another stabilizing squeeze. ”Sure," he muses, answering her initial offer as he follows her to the kitchen. ”Whacha thinking about?"

Squeezing Miles’ hand in return, Lilith walked into the kitchen and began to collect all of the items that she needed from various cabinets and drawers. ”Just the future,” she responded quietly. Grabbing the potato peeler from the drawer, she passed it to Miles before turning to grab one of the large bowls from the lower cabinet. ”Do you think you’ll still love the kids even if they come out with webbed fingers and an extra eye or two?” She did the best that she could to make her tone seem more upbeat. Humor had always been a deflection tactic, and becoming a mother didn’t seem as if it was going to change that fact. It was easier to joke about possibilities Lil knew were never really going to happen than to ask him the questions that were really on her mind.

Miles was halfway through peeling a potato as he gave his response to Lilith, his eyes still set on his task. He shrugs before responding. ”I guess. I don't really know what I- wait." He stops himself, turning back to watch what Lil was doing for a moment. ”That's not what you're actually thinking about, is it?" he asks, his voice almost as low as hers. If he was being honest Miles was unsure if that was a fair assessment. Maybe he had misjudged but something felt off. Regardless, the chances of her really opening up were slim anyway, he knew that. They were both as closed as each other in their own ways.

Lilith had moved over to the fridge at this point, taking her time scanning the items before her so she wouldn’t have to look back over at Miles. She thought that her deflection had worked until she heard him finish his thought. ”No,” she responded, lips pursed. ”I’m thinking about that and so much more. I know I said that I was scared - and I know you are too - but… it’s more than that. I don’t want to dwell on it or ruin the moment.”

”Moment's already full of fear anyway." the man shrugs. He pulls his eyes off of Lilith and back to his potatoes, moving to the next. ”Y'know this whole 'helping to keep each other sane' thing should run both ways. I think I have just as right to worry about you as you have about me, maybe more so right now," he waves the peeler in the air in time with his words before moving the freshly peeled potato out of the way and grabbing another. He knew in a way Lilith felt entitled to Miles' worries, and maybe she was, but all that seemed to do was pile on more pain for the woman. It was funny, she'd always complain about how stoic Miles was but she was no better somedays.

Lilith couldn’t help but sigh and roll her eyes in defeat as she grabbed the steaks from the fridge. Miles was right. ”I’m just… I’m scared, yeah. But I’m also disappointed, and confused. I know that nothing ever goes according to plan but… it wasn’t supposed to be like this. Not even four months ago I was dead set on never seeing you again.” The silence around them was deafening, the TV drowned in the background of her own thoughts. ”I’m not judging you or putting you down or telling you that you haven’t changed,” she continued, letting the refrigerator door close behind her. ”But I’m scared of the fact that old habits are hard to break, and die even harder. You’re a good person, deep down. I’ve always known that.”

The young woman was rambling once again, trying to sort her emotions and thoughts as she spoke aloud. Placing the cast iron pan on the stove, the brunette was careful not to meet his eyes. Lilith hoped that she wasn’t hurting him. ”It’s just… would you even still be in town if you hadn’t knocked me up, Miles?” That was the easiest way of asking. She could have been more blunt, but the subject was already sensitive enough.
The truth was that Lilith wondered if the only reason Miles was still hanging around her at all was the fact she was now pregnant with his children.

Miles could scarcely do anything but sigh at Lilith's words. She had a point about old habits, a great point in fact. Miles had had multiple discussions with Delaney opening up about his fear of messing it all up all over again. If he was being honest he wasn't even certain himself if he could stop the cycle. He wanted to make some big statement that would quell all her fears, show her he was far from that person but even he had some doubt he was. 3 months was a quick window of drastic change and no matter how determined Miles was to be better he wasn't sure if he was truly capable of it.

Miles looked down at the potato he was peeling to see he had shaved it down to half its size, well past the skins. He added it to the pile before wordlessly grabbing the next. He remained silent for a while, a skill he seemed to be becoming more adept in by the day but perhaps the sounds of the peeler against the potato was enough noise for him in this moment. As much as he didn't know what to say he didn't really know what to feel. While part of him hurt that Lilith seemed to all but trust him he knew she was completely justified in that train of thought. Eventually he gives a sigh once more before speaking what he wished could say were thought out words but were very much not.

”I mean I was here the month we didn't know." he says quietly. A weak defense, one he wasn't sure he believed in but there were so many thoughts and answers in that head of his he was hard-pressed on which to grab. ”I don't blame you for not trusting me just- I don't know I guess it would've been more fitting if I ran when I found out, wouldn't it? Or the morning after the party rather than trying to start something again?"

Lilith had always had a habit of overthinking things and letting her darkest fears get in the way of things. Miles returning, Claire’s chance at a new life, John’s diagnosis and being pregnant certainly did not help or change those facts. She had been focused on seasoning the steaks as the weight of her previous comment hung in the air. The brunette took a moment to process what Miles was saying - knowing full well that he had made a fair point, no matter how small. It didn’t help, no matter how much she hoped it would.

The truth was that Miles still had time to run. There were quite a few months left until the children were born, and who knew if he could deal with living at the ranch that long. Who knew if he could handle living with her? Sure, he hadn’t bailed on the first night or when she had told him she was pregnant - but he had left her standing there alone one too many times in the past after promising to stay for her anxiety to be at ease.

Continuing to focus on the task at hand Lilith was still sure not to look over in Miles’ direction, scared of whatever reaction she may have if she did. ”It’s not that I don’t trust you,” she nearly whispered. ”I forgave you a long time ago. I just have a hard time forgettin’ things.” With another sigh she continued. ”Just promise me you’ll always be honest.”

Miles remained silent a moment, now with all the potatoes peeled there was little for his hands to do meaning less distractions for him to focus on. In truth his mind seemed almost as much of a prison as Lilith’s did to hers but his was so much more easily drowned out by simple distractions. His first instinct was to find the nearest bottle of whiskey and start downing his first drink for the night but that would mean him walking across Lilith’s space and part of him was almost scared to have to do that. Instead he awkwardly stood in front of his peeled potatoes, fidgeting with the peeler. ”You make this massive deal ‘bout how you’ve forgiven me and all that but- I don’t know- it kinda sounds like you haven’t” he replies, training his eyes on the cutting board to avoid Lilith’s face. He didn’t want to imagine the expressions it was forming at his response.

The young woman was unable to keep her jaw from clenching in response. She wasn’t angry at his words, but she did have to fight the urge to respond sarcastically. ”I have though,” she half-way pleaded. ”Don’t know what I can do to prove it to you other than ignore what I’m feelin’ and avoidin’ hard conversations - and we both know I’m not that girl.”

Beginning to sear the steaks, Lilith felt the heat rise to her face. She was already emotional enough as is - and now she had to deal with pregnancy hormones as well. ”I know I wasn’t totally fair to you in the past either,” she continued to explain. ”You had big dreams, and my only dream was to be with you. That’s a lot of pressure to put on a person.” As the meat began to sizzle, she quickly wiped the already falling tears from her face. ”I don’t know, Kane. I guess all I ever wanted was a proper goodbye or an ‘I’m sorry’ and you never gave me either one.”

Miles pursed his lips for a moment. He refused to even glance at Lilith, knowing if he did it might just cause his own undoing. ”Look, I’m not saying don’t feel what you’re feeling but- I dunno, you’d know better than me. I’m no empath.” His eyes seem to dart around the room for something, anything to look at that wasn’t in her direction as Lilith says her piece. ”Li, You can divine into the deepest parts of my soul, you know exactly what I’m feeling from the moment I enter a room. I guess I just assumed you knew I felt bad for all that happened.” He exhales a breath he didn’t realise he was holding before continuing. ”If I apologise now will you think it’s just ‘cus you said something about it or would you actually accept it?”

”Of course I knew, but I shouldn’t have to use magic on you of all people. Sure, it’d probably make the situation easier, but sorry ain’t really that hard to say is it?” she questioned, brow now furrowed as she fought to keep her tone soft. ”I’m not tryin’ to make shit hard for you or even dig up the past, despite what it seems. My body just feels like it’s on fire, and all I knew is I immediately went from hatin’ you, to fuckin’ you, to havin’ kids and now livin’ with ya, and I just - I don’t know what the hell to think.”

Sorry shouldn’t be hard to say, Miles knew that yet he was never good at saying it. Not seriously at least. He finally turned his gaze to Lilith, biting his bottom lip at the expression etched onto her face. ”I guess ‘I’m sorry’ is my L-word. I noticed you didn’t use that in your little progression of our relationship.” he replies, his tone soft. ”Look, Li, I’m sorry. I am, for everything. I don’t really know what’s going on here either. I thought I had my whole life figured out. Now- I don’t know, it seems to be moving faster than I can keep up. I want to say I didn’t mean to hurt you when we were kids but maybe in a way I did, not maliciously but maybe enough to not try to be better. I know I don’t want to hurt you again but I’ve never been the most self-aware and I guess in a way I won’t ever not hurt you. But- I’m trying. There’s not much more I can do to prove it than just show you but I am.”

Once again, he was right. Turning the stove off a little too forcefully, Lilith stuck the steaks in the oven to finish cooking before responding. ”I guess that’s all I’ve ever asked you to do, so I can’t really be upset with ya for it.” Walking across the kitchen to collect the potatoes, Lilith grabbed a knife and cutting board before beginning to slice them. She still didn’t look at Miles, caught up in the awkwardness and weight of the conversation. Clearing her throat, she did her best to steer the conversation elsewhere. ”Why don’t you go ahead and grab a drink or something? Make yourself comfortable or whatever.”

As much as Miles didn’t want to shy from the current conversation he’d gotten the hint. ”Man, these pregnancy hormones are gonna kick my ass, aren’t they? Between you and John I may never get a break,” he half-jokes, pressing a kiss on the side of the woman’s head as he wanders to collect glasses and the nearest bottle of Jack, pouring himself a glass. ”Guess I should pour one for you pawpaw too, reckon he’ll accept it as a peace offering?” he asks as he starts pouring a second glass.

Miles’ comment had stung. Was she really already burdening him that much? She did her best to shrug it off. ”You can if you’d like, but your ma’s not here and I can’t promise he’s not carryin’,” she joked herself.

”I’ll only be saving myself 20 minutes if he is. Besides, he can’t shoot me now, for as much as he hates me he won’t leave you to raise these kids alone. He’s angry but he ain’t stupid.” He picks up the two glasses before beginning his journey to the living room. As he reaches its parameter he turns back to Lilith, a lopsided smile playing on his lips. ”You might need to start convincing Cordelia I’m worth being guided to her part of the astral plane just in case.” he throws back before turning back to the path before him.

Miles would be lying if he said John Montgomery didn’t strike at least a little fear into the man’s heart. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he pressed his way to the living room, John planted in his spot in front of the TV. He knew he was asking for a verbal ass-whooping but Miles figured it was better to rip the bandaid off as early as possible. ”I’ve brought your whiskey, John.” Miles greeted the man, holding the glass toward him. Maybe a hello or a ‘thank you for letting me live here’ would have been a better start but that never really seemed to cross the young man’s mind.

Lil had managed to laugh off his comments about Cordelia and John both, continuing to focus on cooking dinner as Miles walked into enemy territory.

John was wrapped up in the evening news, avoiding the ever growing want to eavesdrop on the conversation in the next room. Random images of places around town continued to pop up on the screen as the reporter jumped from story to story. When Miles approached, John responded with a simple grunt as he looked over, taking the glass from his hands. He could have made some sort of smart comment, but decided against it. Today had been a long day, and being shouted at by Lilith would only make it longer.

”How much longer on supper?” he asked, eyes now back on the TV screen.

Miles was expecting to have insults flung at him the second he'd entered the older man's space. He was unsure if the fact John was being so cordial put him more or less at ease. He took the spot a couple of seats away from John, unable to stop himself from scanning the man for obvious weaponry. ”I'd give it 10 or 20." he replies simply, taking a sip from his glass. Sitting on the couch with John, almost waiting for the man to snap as the TV droned in the background; it felt rather reminiscent of his tween years when he'd stay at the Montgomerys as his mother worked. ”Thanks for setting up the room and all that." Miles was very much tempted to make it clear to John he had intended on sharing Lilith's room but even he wasn't dumb enough to poke that bear… yet. ”Kinda feels like old times, huh?"

John wasn’t used to having the house so full of people. From time to time, a fellow rancher may have stayed in the spare bedroom. Sometimes Miles or Mary had crashed up there when they needed a place to stay for some odd reason. Lilith’s friends from time to time, but even that was sparingly. In the last few months, John had gone from having a house of two, to three, and now four. He already missed peace and quiet.

The old man nodded his head in response to the timing. ”Good. I’m starving.” Taking a sip from his glass, John couldn’t help but give the younger gentleman the side eye. ”’Welcome.” A short silence fell between the two as John struggled to find the words to say next. ”Yeah… ‘cept you didn’t live here and ya hadn’t knocked up Lilly.” Eyes now back on the TV screen, he continued. ”I ain’t sayin’ it to be an asshole. Lot’s changed. At least I ain’t livin’ with a total stranger I reckon.”

Miles bit down on his lip as to not come back with anything too stupid until he'd thought it through. His eyes dart toward the man for a moment before returning to the TV and taking a sip of whiskey. ”You're better off saying what you really wanna say while Lilith's in the other room," he says gently. Miles might have been asking for it but the man's silences were almost deafening, his cordialness almost as much so. Maybe Miles was hoping John would unleash everything then be done forever. An empty dream, Miles knew, but he'd hoped anyway.

With a heavy sigh, John took another large drink. The truth was that he didn’t really want to rip into Miles. It was childish to hold the past against someone, but John had learned the hard way time and time again to believe people the first time they showed their true colors. ”I’m disappointed she wound up with you. I’m not even sure if that’s the right word, ‘cause there’s worse out there. But I worry about her. When you took off for college, she was locked in her room for months. I didn’t have any choice but to have her committed to a psych ward in Seattle, and part of me blames you for that - but deep down I know it’s ain’t your fault. I’m scared these kids are going to drain her, and she’s never going to get to live any of her dreams because she’s going to pour her whole existence into you, those kids, and keepin’ this ranch alive when I’m gone. I’m scared you’re going to hurt her again, and I’m even more afraid she ain’t gonna come back this time.” Finishing off the last of what was in his glass, he chuckled dryly. ”That’s a lot to put on a kid, but that’s the nicest way I know of putin’ it.”

Miles bit down on lip once more. He knew Lilith struggled when he left, his mother's occasional backhanded comments on the phone had made that very clear but the psych ward was a new revelation. ”Well that's that, then," Miles replies as he takes another sip of his whiskey while his mind continues to try and process every single word. ”She's lucky to have you, y'know. I hope one day you might say the same for me."

”We’ll see,” the old man responded, leaning back into the couch.

With perfect timing, Claire had decided to walk through the door, enthusiastically greeting the household. ”Hello, everyone,” she called out.

”Dinner in five,” Lilith called out in response.

As Claire walks through the door Miles gives her a smile as he pushes himself off the couch with a grunt. ”Good evening, Claire. Here's to hoping you're glad to see me." he half-jokes as he closes some of the distance between them.

The woman met Miles halfway, embracing him in a hug. ”That’s an understatement,” she replied, beaming at him. ”Goodness gracious I forget how much you’ve grown. I hope you got settled well?”

Almost oddly enough, Claire seemed to have the most excitable outlook to Miles’ arrival. This must have been the welcome wagon Lilith was talking about. He returned the woman’s embrace. Before her return to the land of the living Miles’ was still in his very early teens, he still couldn’t get over the fact her embrace no longer encompassed him. Even moreso that she almost appeared closer to his age than his mother’s. ”Well as I can,” he replies. ”You got some grand speech to say too or do I get a free pass from you?” Claire Montgomery seemed to not hold the same fears both John and Lilith so validly held. Miles couldn’t help but wonder if she’d not seen enough to feel connected to the whole situation or if she truly was just quick to forgive and forget. Miles knew that was a rarity for the woman.

Claire shrugged her shoulders, beginning to make her way to the kitchen to help Lilith move the food to the dining room table and grab herself a drink. ”I think you know me well enough to know I’ll put my foot up your ass if you step out of line,” she half-joked, her tone still cheerful. ”But seriously, welcome.”

”I think I’ll get hounded with punishments if I step out of line. Especially without ma here to save my ass,” Miles replies with a chuckle. He tops up his glass of whiskey after Claire does so and takes a tray of food to the table as he wanders over. ”At least with you and John here we won’t be outnumbered by kids.”

The older woman laughed along with him, carrying the steaks into the next room with her. Lilith followed closely behind with the potatoes before returning to grab the vegetables as well. ”Well, here’s to new beginnings anyway,” Claire quipped, raising her glass in Miles’s direction.

Miles raises his glass toward Claire in return. ”And here’s to our eardrums and livers.” he responds, downing a good third of his glass before taking a seat. ”And hoping they’ll be easy kids.”


A Miles and Mary Price post



Mary had the day off the day after yet another dumpster fire of a family dinner. She’d spent the morning distracting herself. She cleaned the house, made some more healing potions to take to the coven house tomorrow, drove the 2 hour round trip to Seattle and back to take her parents to the airport and did some cooking. All the while the box of letters sat in the middle of the table. She’d moved them right after the Montgomerys had left with the full intention of reading them that night but she was too drained. Then the next day went on as the woman avoided them. They were uncomfortable to look at, in all honesty she was terrified of what she’d find within those words. It was just past 3 when she finally worked up the courage to open the box to find pages and pages of notes written on all kinds of paper. She made herself a coffee, slipped on her reading glasses and worked at starting on the project.




"Evening mum." Miles called down the little entranceway corridor as he returned home from work.

His mother called back a soft, "Evenin' Hurricane." Her words sounded distracted. While Mary often was keeping herself busy on Miles' return home she almost always called out her greeting. She only really had that gentle contemplative tone when she was really deep into something.

With a cocked eyebrow the young man walks into the dining room to see his mother at the table surrounded by stacks of trifold-creased pages. In front of her was a large box that still held a large collection of 100 or so envelopes despite the overwhelming amount on the table before her. "What's all this?" Miles asks, taking the seat opposing hers. He was sure he knew exactly what it was but he hoped it was wrong. "Looks unending."

Mary gave a sigh, putting the letter in her hand at the bottom of the stack closest to her and slipping her reading glasses off of her face. ”Letters from your father.” she explains gently, looking over her son. She hoped telling him wouldn’t blow up in her face, the last thing she wanted was another yelling match across her dining room. ”Asked about you a lot and wrote ‘bout his hopes and dreams for you. Sounds like he really wanted to be here with us, Hurricane. He was so convinced he couldn’t for our safety, he seems to never stop writing. Turns out Amanda was hoarding ‘em.” She decided to leave out the fact there was money mentioned in most of the letters that was missing par the occasional bill that was obviously mistakenly left behind.

Miles gives a low, drawn out sigh. So the box was exactly what he thought it was. He looked between his mother and the letters that surrounded her. Before he could say anything she spoke up once more.

”I did try to divine ‘em. You know my divination works better on the spoken word than writing but it seems he’s being sincere.”

Miles gave another sigh, finding a sudden interest in the tablecloth before him. "So what am I meant to do, ma?” he asks gently, picking at a loose thread. He kept his voice low, he didn’t want another argument with his mother either. "Just run into his arms and call him pa?”

”I’m not askin’ that of you, Milo.” Mary replies gently. She was glad this conversation was more civil than the day before. She felt bad for her son, the poor kid had been through so much the past weekend and she could see it in his eyes. ”Look, this is a very different situation for the both of us. For as much as I’ve suppressed it there was a time when I loved your father, when he made me happy and was good to me. It doesn’t discount the hurt or mean I want to be with him again but I had that. For you though? No matter how much he wanted to be here he never was a father to you. It wouldn’t be fair for either of us to expect you to want a relationship with ‘im.”

Miles looked up at his mother. He was honestly expecting her to beg him to give his father some grace, Mary was always quick to give that and Miles knew she wanted to instill some of that into him. "Thanks ma,” he replies quietly, a small smile playing on his lips. In all honesty Miles was unsure about how he wanted to play this. He knew he wasn’t going to hold Aloysius up as his father but he wasn’t sure how much more rage he could have for the man. For so long his father was someone to blame for a lot of near unexplainable things, mostly in the realm of how he watched his mother struggle, and part of him didn’t want to lose that.

”Carlisle told me you told him to pass the letters onto me. That was a good thing for you to do, Milo. Thank you. It really gave me some clarity I needed.”

Miles’ smile seemed to grow just a little wider. "Well, y’know,” he says meekly, rubbing the back of his head. "I guess I owed it to ya for everything.”

Mary’s face softened at Miles’ words. ”Miles, baby, you don’t owe me a single thing.” she clucks with a gentle smile.

"Don’t lie to me, ma. I know I put you through hell. I know I’m-”

”Miles,” Mary interjects, raising a hand. ”I’m your mumma, it’s my job to put up with all that. Sure, we’ve had our rough patches and you were a bit- out of hand shall we say- but I like to think you turned out ok.”

Miles couldn’t help the redness that spread across his cheeks as his eyes forced themself away from his mother’s gaze. "I hope I can be half the parent you are,”

”Oh, my baby boy,” Mary chuckles. ”You’re gonna be so much better.” The room fell quiet for a moment as Mary started putting her well-organized stacks of paper into a large stack and Miles scrolled through his phone. After a minute she clears her throat before speaking up again. ”So, when are you movin’ out?”

Miles was caught off-guard by her question. He should have seen it coming but it was in that moment he was reminded that asking John to move in at the family dinner was the first Mary had heard of that plan. Although it had been on the man’s mind before he found out Lilith was pregnant he didn’t intend on it being brought up so soon until he did. A perfect storm of thought out planning and spontaneity that was almost a trademark of his at this point. "I’m sorry I didn’t say anything sooner,” he replies, forgetting about her actual question.

”Honestly, Milo? Even without the divination I woulda assumed that was your next move. It’s fine. Really.”

Miles nods his head as his mother speaks. It didn’t sound contemptuous so he just had to assume it wasn’t. "Well Lil and Claire want me to move in as soon as I can. I was thinking Saturday, don’t have to worry about work then.”

”Saturday,” Mary muses in response. In all honesty she expected him to fumble around for a while. In a way he’d still live at home but slowly just start spending more and more time with Lil until suddenly his clothes were in her drawers and he only really went home occasionally to see his mother. In a way Mary was proud he was making a swift concrete decision for once but she couldn’t help but feel the sting of losing him in her house. She swore she could feel herself become misty eyed as memories of Miles over the years played in her mind. While he had moved to Olympia for a good few years she knew he’d come back eventually to take his place in the coven, she cried then a few more times than she would ever tell him. This, however, felt a bit more permanent, a bit more real. She was ready for him to move it, it was very much his time, but it didn’t mean it was painless.

Miles knew the face the woman was pulling, the face she made when she didn’t want him to know she was on the verge of tears. Miles did feel a twinge of guilt at bringing out that sadness in her but he knew it was time and he knew she probably did too. "Ma?” he questions.

”I’m fine, Miles.” she replies somewhat forcefully, in a way she was trying to convince herself of that.

"Are you going to be alright by yourself? Y’know the ranch has a lot of spare rooms and I’m sure if you asked John would happily-”

”Miles,” Mary interrupts once more. ”You and I both know the answer to that second question. I’ll be fine, I’ve done this before. I’m not just gonna mope around on my ass, I’ve got my work and I expect I’ll be at the Ranch quite a bit. Besides, triplets are a lot. I imagine Claire, John or the two of you might need an escape every now and again. Y’know you and Lilith are always welcome here.”

Miles nods simply, not getting a word in edgeway before Mary spoke again.

”Anyway, I can’t be assed cookin’ tonight. Was thinking of orderin’ some pizza? We could put on a movie and have a drink. I feel like we both need to decompress after the weekend we just had, hey Hurricane?”

"That sounds perfect. Let me pay for dinner tonight.”

”Nuh-uh, you pay for too much in this house. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you’ve picked up some of the Montgomerys’ tricks. This one’s my treat. You need to save them pennies while you can with 3 little ones on the way.”

"At least let me pick them up.”

”I need some air,” Mary replies simply. A code phrase the duo have had forever indicating they need to be alone and out of the house for a bit. In truth those letters had started becoming suffocating. Apologies after apologies strewn amongst ‘I love yous’ and memoirs of the life of a man it turns out she never knew. It all made her head spin a bit. She needed to get physically away from them for a while.

Miles put his hands up in surrender. "Alrighty, you go for it then,” he responds, getting up from his seat. At least it gave him some time to clean up and get into something more comfortable than his business suit.

Mary finished stacking all the pages and placed them on one side of the box, the other still piled with masses of envelopes. ”Look, it’s up to you Miles but if you do want to read ‘em I’ll pop ‘em underneath the coffee table. I recommend it honestly, not to make you see his side or anythin’. Clarity can just be a beautiful thing sometimes.” So goes and slips the box into its new home, deciding the rest of the letters had to wait for the next day, she was done for the night.

"We’ll see,” Miles mumbles, honestly unsure on if he would read them or not.

Mary collects her handbag and starts making way for the front entrance. ”You’re on movie duty tonight. Please nothin’ too crude tonight and Miles, honey?” she settles her gaze on her son, waiting for his eyes to meet hers. ”I’m proud of you.”



A @Hedgehawk @HaleyTheRandom & @SouffleGirl123 post
Featuring Miles Price, Carlisle Aston, Lilith Montgomery, Salem De Silva, Aloysius Leighton, Mary Price, Claire Montgomery and John Montgomery



Later on in the day, Carlisle had gathered all of the letters that Miles’s father had sent that Amanda had nabbed. He knew this was going to be painful. He was about to reveal what was going on in the background all these years ago. Once again the mirage of his mother was going to be lifted. Driving over to Mary’s place, Carlisle got out of his car and slid the box under his arm, walking to the door he used the doorbell, anxiously waiting.

Mary stood at the kitchen bench chopping potatoes for dinner as she hummed along to Clint Black’s Killin’ Time as it played from the small speaker on her dining room table. She’d gotten home to find Miles was still yet to come home. She figured he was likely still with Carlisle. She knew they probably needed a debrief from earlier that day but she was thankful to have the house to herself a while. For a little while she’d allowed the worries of the day to escape her as she got lost in her own little world of cooking and country music from her younger years.

Soon she was interrupted by the ringing of her doorbell. The woman’s brow furrowed, she wasn’t expecting anyone except maybe Miles for at least another hour and Miles wouldn’t ring the doorbell. The woman carefully laid the knife in her hand next to the half cut potato and made her way to the door, stopping on the way over to turn down the speaker. She swung open the door to find Carlisle with a box in his arms. She decided to pay the box no mind as she greeted him. "Carlisle, I thought you were with Miles. What are you doing here?”

Seeing Mary answer the door, Carlisle gave off a small smile. He was happy to see her again, but it was clear from his expression that he was feeling a little uneasy. ”Nah, we finished up a while ago, a good while ago. He is currently with Lil somewhere I think. They have alot to discuss. I actually came to see you. I found something in the office I think you probably need to see.”

"Is it whatever you’ve got in that there box?” she asks, pulling her hair away from her face and tying it back. She wished she could say she was clueless on what was in the box but she had some deep suspicions, ones that were nagging her enough she was sure it wouldn’t be long before it awakened her divination to tell her.

”Yeah it is. I think I need to do some explaining… and possibly some apologizing” Carlisle said as he swallowed hard. He had completely forgotten about Mary and her divination powers. But he was still going to stick to his guns and try his best. Why was he always having to cover for his mothers messes?

"Well at least come in, Carlisle, I’m not making you stand out there in the wind.” she insists, ushering the man inside. She closes the door behind him before leading him to their dining room and turning off the speaker completely. "What did you do so wrong that you need to be apologizin’ to me?”

Carlisle put the box down on the dining room table and sighed. This was it. ”It wasn’t me actually. It was my mother. She strikes again” Carlisle reached into his jacket and pulled out the first letter that he had showed Miles. ”So you remember how we said that Aloysius never actually tried to get in touch. Well it turns out he did. Alot. A real lot. And well, my mother had been intercepting them and making sure that you couldn’t see them” With a sigh he handed over to Mary the first letter that Al had written.

At his words, Mary’s jaw clenched shut. There was no denying it, her suspicions were correct, those were the letters Al was talking about. Part of Mary had thought her ex was lying, maybe part of her wanted him to be so she could keep herself justifying the hurt. "Your ma. Nasty piece of work she is,” she muses. Mary and Amanda hadn’t ever gotten along but this? This was too much. It was one thing to insult and mock, and a complete other to upend someone’s life then take away anything that could soften the blow. As she took the letter she let it rest between her fingers a while. "How many’s a lot?”

”She is. She has ruined so many people's lives. I am sorry Mary.” Carlisle rubbed his forehead and looked over to the box. ”I only read a few, but try at least one letter a month for 20-odd years. He never stopped. The last one came last week saying he was on his way to Tanner”

"Ain't your fault." the woman sighs, facing the letter face down on the table. She wanted to read it alone. "Not your job to make up for her lousy ways." the woman shot back.

”Yeah but my mother is going to go down in the history book as a tyrant. The least I can do is work hard to put the family name back together. I really want to fix things for everyone. If you ever need anything Mary, you just ask.I will make it happen” Carlisle tried to force a smile as he watched Mary place the letter on the table. ”I offered the letters to Miles first, so he could get some answers, but he thought you would want to read them first.”

"Smart kid," the woman replies with a small smile. "I wouldn't want to see what my parents wrote each other either."

”I get it. I just know Al was playing on his mind. He was beating himself up. I was hoping it would help him simmer down. Anyway… I should leave you to let you carry on cooking and do what you need to do.”

"Thanks, Carlisle," Mary replies, pulling the box closer to her and laying the first letter on top of the pile. It seemed she had some interesting reading to do later that night. "I'm fixin' the dinner for tonight if you wanna stay. Miles and the Montgomerys will be around in an hour or so anyway and I could always use a spare pair of hands now Miles is off gallivantin' with his girlfriend. You're meant to be back in an hour, no use for comin' and goin' like that."

Carlisle thought on it for a moment, it was true that he had pretty much become a regular at the Sunday dinners. And he had kind of invited a guest. "So don't be mad, but I invited a guest" Carlisle said with a chuckle. "I kinda invited Salem to join us for dinner"

After retying her loose ponytail Mary resituated herself to the kitchen bench to finish preparing dinner. At Carlisle's mention of inviting another guest Mary sighs but keeps her eyes leveled on the vegetables in front of her. "Carlisle. You can't go around invitin' people to other people's house without at least a warnin'," she gently chastised before switching to chopping carrots before her. In truth Mary was always prepared for an extra guest, it wasn't uncommon for kids from her kid's generation to end up under her roof but she always appreciated the warning. "Is it that lil girlfriend of yours?" she then asks curiously, giving the young man a knowing smile.

That was when Carlisle dropped the bombshell. Salem. The sharp knife fell to the cutting board with a clang. Of all people why her? And of all places why her own home? From what Mary had heard of Salem and the conversations of the prior night Salem seemed all but pleased with Miles' and Lil's situation and more than capable of killing them in one blow. As far as Mary was concerned, Salem was a threat. "Carlisle!" the woman snaps. She was rarely one to lose her temper at the kids but this was the second time that day. "Now that is something you run through me first. Does John know about this? How about Miles and Lilith? I can't believe you."

"I didn't think it would be much of an issue. She isn't as dangerous as people have made out." Carlisle said, holding onto the edge of the table. Clearly he had screwed up. "She isn't a threat to anyone. She isn't going to do anything. We had a very long conversation about moving on from Mother and all this drama. She knows she is here as my guest"

"You're a guest Carlisle. I know your ma didn't do much for you but I woulda thought she raised you with enough etiquette to know this is not on!" Mary sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose. These family dinners seemed to be getting more unhinged by the week. It may have been selfish but just for once Mary just wanted a nice family dinner; No drawn guns, no threats of death or mind imprisonment, no yelling or screaming. Just her favourite people around a table civilly discussing their lives. That seemed to get less likely by the day. "Well what's done is done I guess," she huffs, getting back to her vegetables.

Carlisle took a step back, feeling uncomfortable as Mary mentioned his mother. "I am sorry. I thought it would be okay. Plus I want to prove to Salem that things are good here. If she sees you all together she will feel more bonded. Salem wants to have a relationship with the Coven. Mother had trashed it. This is part of getting it back. And I trust you all more than anyone else. "

Mary couldn’t help the snicker that escaped her at Carlisle’s comment. "John’s too quick to level a gun at someone’s head, Claire will gladly uppercut anyone who looks at her or our kids the wrong way, I carried and single handedly raised the son of her greatest enemy and Lilith’s carrying Miles children who happen to be the taboo magi/witch hybrids that shouldn’t have happened. Carlisle, I love my family, you know I do but we’re dysfunctional at best, far from an example of ‘things being good’.”

"But the dysfunction Is why it is good. Because despite it, you still care and protect each other" Carlisle responded, making sure he was as far away from the kitchen and knives as he possibly could.

Mary huffs once more, transporting the vegetables on her cutting board onto a roasting tray. "Grab a knife, you can at least trim the damn green beans after this lil stunt."




Today seemed to be one of the very few where Lilith was grateful that Miles wasn’t the sort of person to be glued to his cellphone. The sporadic ‘good morning’ texts had taken some getting used to, and Lilith was glad to find that one didn’t await her this morning.

The Montgomery Ranch had been quiet that day. John was preoccupied with business as usual, and Claire was off being herself. Lilith wasn’t sure if they were outright ignoring the situation at hand, or simply just giving her the time that she needed to adjust. She had gone through her normal Sunday routine herself - minus a few habit breaking details. With the bits of extra free time that she had found herself with, Lilith had managed to get some much needed cleaning around the house done and knock out a shift at Huskers. The young woman wasn’t ready for everyone at work to give her all of the speeches about how she shouldn’t be there, so she had shown up and worked just as hard as she always did.

Lilith had decided to drive herself over to the Price residence, knowing that her mother and grandfather would meet her there when they were good and ready. She had spent an extra few minutes in her car after she parked, focusing on the steady rise and fall of her chest as she took a few deep breaths in the driver's seat. Climbing out of the car, Lilith closed the door behind her only to look up and see a black SUV pulling up to the curb.

Sighing as she walked across the yard, Lilith crossed her arms when she got to the steps. She already knew who was getting out of the vehicle before the Guild Leader ever walked up behind her.

”Salem,” the young Montgomery greeted her icily. ”Didn’t show up to kill anyone, did you?”

”Glad to see that you’ve inherited your mothers wit,” the older woman responded with a dry laugh. ”You can relax - I left my body bags back home in New York.”

With a deep sigh, Lilith gave a few quick taps on the door before opening it.

"Come in!” Mary calls toward the door, not that she needed to, most of the Montgomerys would walk themselves in anyway. She noticed Lilith first of all, she couldn’t help but feel bad for the girl. The party had brought realisations for everyone that made a lot of their lives more complicated but Mary reckoned Lilith took the worst blow. "How are you holding up, dear?” she asks the younger woman, wrapping her arms around her. It wasn’t until Lilith was snuggly in her arm that she noticed Salem on the doorstep over Lilith’s shoulder.

Mary gave a sigh. Part of her was hoping Salem wouldn’t actually show; that she’d thought she was far above these sort of things but she was proved wrong. "Salem,” Mary greeted her with a nod. "Come on in, I’ll give you the house tour when I’m finished talking to Lil here.”

Carlisle watched as both Lil and Salem arrived at the same time. He avoided making eye contact with Mary. It was fairly obvious from his poor disguised body language that he had been embarrassed infront of Mary. "Salem, So glad you could easily find the place. It's great to have you with us"

The young Montgomery was already half-way through the door before Marys voice rang out. She was hoping to have a somewhat private conversation with her godmother, and the familiarity of the older womans arms wrapping around her only reinforced the idea. Lilith was sure that she could have avoided Salem long enough, but looking up and seeing that Carlisle was there was enough to make her lock away whatever thoughts she was previously having.

Taking a deep breath, she returned Marys hug. ”Just peachy,” Lilith joked. ”Any idea on when Miles will be gracing us with his presence,” she asked, taking off her jacket and hanging it by the door. While she wanted her boyfriend as far away from Salem as possible, Lilith’s goal for the day had been normality. Miles being here was part of that.

Behind her, Salem had nodded and smiled in greeting to both Carlisle and Mary while she took in her surroundings. It was rare for Salem to be in places such as this. She was used to a higher class city life and knew hardly nothing about growing up in an actual home. Eye’s glued onto the fading crayon marks on the wall, the Guild Leader was brought out of her trance by her hosts’ voices.

”It’s a small town, Carlisle,” she began. ”I appreciate the offer, but I’m sure I’ve already burdened you more than enough Ms. Price.”

Mary could feel the girl tense in her arms as she saw Carlisle. Mary sighed, allowing her to pull away and ruffling her hair. ”We can talk later if you want, ‘kay?” she whispers to the girl. As she asks about Miles the woman shrugs. ”Honestly I thought he was with you, I’m sure he’ll be here soon enough.”
She then turned her attention to Salem. ”It’s not really a long tour anyway, I ‘spose. It’s not a big place so it’s not too hard to find your way around. Hope you’re not allergic to anything though, you were a bit of a surprise honestly.” Mary put everything she could into letting her words be light. Honestly her patience for undue surprises was wearing thin and she still didn’t fully trust the woman before her. All she could do is hope the night would go smoothly regardless. It felt like false hope but it was better than nothing.

Salem would have normally made a comment about being allergic to bullshit, but she didn’t think she was close enough with anyone here to make those sorts of remarks. ”I apologize for the sudden arrival, but I figured someone else would have told you,” she replied, her eyes flicking to Carlisle for a brief moment.

Lilith had appeared disappointed at Marys response, her shoulders falling ever so slightly. Was he avoiding her? Had he already skipped town? She didn’t have time to articulate her words before the door opened once again. John walked in first, stopping dead in his tracks at the sight of Salem.

Claire, on the other hand, made her feelings on the situation very well known. ”You’ve gotta be fuckin’ kiddin’ me,” she groaned.

Hearing John and Claire enter, Carlisle tensed further. This was getting worse. Carlisle forced a smile "Hello Both. I thought it would be good for everyone if Salem would join us for dinner. Try to show you that there are no hard feelings"

”Of course you’re the one responsible,” Claire scoffed.

"Got a problem with that Claire? I am trying to do a good thing here." Carlisle said with a small growl

”I got a really big problem with it, yeah.” retorted the blonde as she crossed her arms and took a few steps forward. ”Constantly sticking your nose in place it doesn’t belong and inviting people into their enemies homes without warning. I know your mommy never loved you, but she could have at least given you a little house training. Respectfully - Settle the fuck down before I remind you I am the one who is supposed to be actively running the Coven. I’ll show you the respect that you need in your position, but you aren’t going to start slinging around what little power you have - especially on me.”

"Your coven? Your coven? Lest we forget you wrapped your truck around a signpost. I don't think it really is your coven anymore." Carlisle growled back. Crossing his arms. "My mother is a bitch. I think we can all agree it. But I am trying to fix all of that. This is part of it. I am fed up of everyone in this family getting up my arse when I am trying to do my job. Everyone here treats me as if I am a fucking second class citizen at times" Carlsie said with a sigh followed by a huff "Sorry Salem you had to see this. There is a bit of tension at the moment"

”Don’t apologize for my mother,” Lilith interjected angrily. ”She might not be able to take your place anymore, but there’s plenty of others who can, Carlisle. I’ve told you multiple times that I or my family do not need your help unless we ask for it. You keep saying that you want to fix things - one of them being our friendship - but you continue not to listen and try to do whatever it is you do to ‘help’ me, all while completely disregarding the fact that I could be helping you with Coven matters. You didn’t even come to me for help with the barrier. I’m not trying to be rude, but for the love of the old gods can you just stop?”

"I didn't come for your help Lilith because I didn't need it. Plus we weren't really on speaking terms. You keep saying about how you don't want me to help because you haven't asked for it. Yeah. Well. Sometimes I have had to take action to prevent bad things from happening to you." Carlisle unfolded his arms. He didn't want to fight with Lil again. In reality he had missed their goofy texts. This last month and a half they had hardly communicated at all. And when they did, he was ways on the losing side of an argument.

"I had to speak to Salem that night of the ceremony. After learning want had happened. I couldn't let Salem kill either of you. You two mean far too much to me for that to happen. Plus, it was my duty as leader to protect you all. So yeah. I spoke to Salem. It was a constructive conversation. We came to an understanding. I invited her here so that we could look at moving forward. I am sorry I didn't forewarn you all. But it has been less than 24 hours. Understandably with you know, with my mother now running loose with a mentally unstable sister I didn't know I had, my mind has been a little preoccupied"

Listening to Carlisle speak, Lilith was unable to hide the bubbling anger that was building up inside. Now gripping the back of one of the dining room chairs, her nostrils flared as she sighed. ”My great-grandmother made that barrier, and I am the strongest divination witch of our generation. I mean this in the most polite way possible, but it was foolish to not ask for my help, despite our personal differences. You’re going to have to learn to work with people that you don’t agree with, Car. For the very last time, I’m going to ask you to step down from your high horse. I understand your concern regarding my children. I really do. But they are my children,” she nearly spat through gritted teeth. ”Mine and Miles. It is our duty to protect, nurture, and guide them through life. Not yours. You want to be the cool uncle? Fine. But don’t go around pretending to be a diplomat because your hero complex is working overdrive. Again - I mean this in the most respectful way possible. I don’t wish to argue with you. My blood pressure is already high enough.”

"I know it is yours and Miles children. I had this exact same conversation with Miles earlier today. I am not trying to get involved. But inadvertently you and Miles have created children that could spark a war. So of course I had to get involved. It would have been wrong for me if I didn't sort it out. You and Miles are safe now and that is all that matters" Carlisle let out a long drawn out frustrated huff. Everyone always seemed to get on his back about helping. He only got involved because of the political implications. He couldn't care less about the children individually, that was Miles and Lils problem.

"I am so sorry you are being witness to this Salem." Carlisle said as he looked across at her. "Sadly politics and disagreements between people is common at the moment. But I am sure you understand, I bet you get this back home too"

”I am not your responsibility, Carlisle Aston!” Lilith shouted. ”Your conversation could have gone a completely different way. You could have gotten us all killed. Did you even stop to think of that?”

Salem had stood by quietly watching the scene unfold, mildly entertained as she watched the younger generation bicker back and forth. ”I, uh… I don’t, actually. No offense, Aston, but I listen to my co-council,” she murmured after Liliths shouting.

Carlisle sighed "I was prepared for that Lilith. I was prepared for it to go south. If I had to fight that night I would have. And not to sound rude. You became my responsibility when you ended up creating children than could destroy the delicate balance that we have been trying to maintain." Carlisle then slapped the edge of his seat.

" I am starting to see why mother ruled things like a tyrant and did everything behind people's backs. There is no pleasing some people. I am trying Lilith. Trying to do good things and keep everyone safe. And I did it. I fucking did it. Rather than spending your time chastising me for what could have been, focus on the positives. I have had your back for years. Quietly listening, helping out and doing what I can to make sure your life was as peaceful as it could be given your circumstances. And the fact you still don't trust me to act in your best interests. It hurts."

”You were meddling in my life way before my pregnancy, and don’t you dare sit here and put me down for having kids, Carlisle! Do you know how ridiculous you sound right now? I didn’t know that Miles was a magi, and neither did he. I didn’t even know I was pregnant until the Ceremony for cryin' out loud, and you want to act like I’m just out here creating super freaks for the goddamned hell of it?! Here you are telling me to look at the positives while actively becoming and thinking like your mother, even going so far as to validate her actions. I am so sorry that I couldn’t give you what you wanted, and that I’m not carryin’ your kids. Because that’s what this is all about right? You’ve been blamin’ being in love with me on your mothers magic, and while that might have played into it, you literally just admitted to low-key stalking me in a roundabout way for years Carlisle.”

Angry tears now began to pool in her eyes. This was far from how Lilith wanted the night to go. ”I really want my friend back Car, I do. I really, really do. But I don’t know how we can go back to the way things were when all you want to do is treat me like I’m a problem when it seems like you’re the one creatin’ problems for me. And I swear on all that I hold dear, if you insinuate that me, my family, or my children are a problem in any way again, I’ll break your fuckin’ jaw,” she glared at him. ”What do you want me to do, Carlisle? Have an abortion?”

"I am not saying you are the problem. I know that you didn't know about Miles being a Magi. And I am not trying to say this is your fault. Life happens. But I had to get involved at that point. Could I have handled it better by speaking to you and Miles first? Yeah. I could have. But in all honesty… I panicked. I got told that my friends were in danger and went into reaction mode." Hearing Lilith compare him and his mother in the same sentence stung Carlisle a little. His body language shifted, his shoulders slumped as he looked depressed.

" I only helped you while we were friends. Nothing stalking or like that. It was little things. Like finding books in the library about the voices. Slipping money into your bag when you wanted to get a takeout but never had it on you. Cause god you wouldn't accept it from me any other way." Carlisle lowered his hands so they were dropped to his sides. "Maybe I am not cut out for any of this. Maybe the easier thing to do is just stand aside and move away. I seem to cause more issues and like you said. The coven leadership is more of a Montgomery thing"

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Lilith closed her eyes for a moment and let out a deep sigh before looking back at Carlisle. ”And there’s that weird guilt tripping thing you do,” she mumbled. ”You know what, Car? Thank you,” the brunette spat. ”If what you want is the praise that your mother could never give you, than I’ll shut the fuck up and praise you. Just stop messin’ up my family functions.”

”Can we eat now,” John intervened.

”I think that’d be a good idea, seein’ as that’s what we came here to do,” Claire replied, still glaring at the back of Carlisle’s head. Seeing how upset and tense Lilith was caused Claire to have some anger and aggression herself. With a simple spell, she quietly willed Carlisle to remain silent. He could still speak - he just wouldn’t be audible.

"Well, I suppose we can" Carlisle spoke. Only to realise that sounds weren't coming out of his mouth. He tried to sigh. Nothing. Looking around he tried to focus on what was causing the spell. But it was weird. He couldn't focus. No matter how hard he tried to lock in on the source of the magic, Carlisle failed every time. He couldn't counterspell it as he could not find the source. Defeated, Carlisle slumped into the chair, looking puzzled and confused.

At that rate Mary was back in the kitchen holding her head in her hands. She knew things would fall apart but she’d been hoping for a bit of a break before it all did. So much for that nice family dinner she craved. And Miles still wasn’t here. Nor were her parents. As John brought up eating Mary nodded furiously. "Please,” she calls out in response.

As if on cue Miles entered the house, his grandparents in tow. After his chat with Carlisle the man needed some time to just be alone to think and he found himself at the ranch’s river hangout spot. The last couple of days had been overwhelming, and honestly he hadn’t processed any of it until then. By the time he returned to the Montgomerys, Lilith had already left so instead he picked up his own memaw and pawpaw to make the trip for more than nothing.

"Good evening! Sorry we’re-” he was stopped in his tracks at the scene before him. Carlisle was defeatedly slumped in a chair, Lilith looked furious as she glared down at him, his mother looked frustrated and off to the side was a very amused Salem. For a while Miles appeared stunned at the scene before him, a wide eyed look on his face, fear overtook him a moment. Had Carlisle turned them in? Was Salem here to take them away? Or take the life of his children? That fear and stunned silence quickly turned to rage. He could soon feel his face becoming hot. "The hell’s she doing here?!” the man snaps, looking the older woman up and down. Miles thought he was done with picking fights for today but Salem being right there seemed to complicate that. He found his place at his girlfriend’s side, standing between her and Salem and glaring at the magi.

Watching Carlisle's confused reaction to the silent words falling from his mouth, Lilith snapped out of her rage for a moment to see Miles walking through the door with his grandparents. She could feel the rage and panic rolling off of the young man as soon as his eyes had fallen upon Salem, so much so that it made her own shoulders tense. As Miles approached, Lilith reached out to grab his hand, interlocking her fingers through his.

Claire was the one to answer his question. ”Your friend there thinks it’s okay to go around intervening and bargaining with people's lives. So naturally he invited the enemy.”

”What on earth did I ever do to you, Claire?”

”Plenty, and you know it.”

As Lilith wove her fingers in between Miles he gives her hand a comforting squeeze. Well, comforting may be a loose term considering the man himself was wracked with worry and he knew Lilith would smell that on him no matter how stoic he tried to appear. With Claire’s answer he turns his eyes to Carlisle and gave a disapproving tilt of the head. "C’mon, man. Didn’t we talk about this like 2 hours ago?” he asks, frustration lining each of his words. He then leveled his eyes at Lil’s. They seemed to silently ask her a simple question; Are we in danger? She always had a knack for these things more than him.

Carlisle went to respond to Miles, but once again as he spoke no words were actually audible. He waved his hands in both frustration and annoyance as he sat back down on the chair and folded his arms.

Lilith was the one to break her and Miles shared gaze, gently squeezing his hand three times in quick succession. It was a code they had had since their childhood days; Once for yes, twice for no, and three times for maybe or I don’t know. The young woman seemed to sigh once more as her gaze fell back upon a frustrated Carlisle. ”We also just had a long conversation about everything again,” she mused. ”Upon learning about our situation, Carlisle found it in his right last night to go and find Salem to make sure she wasn’t going to harm us or whatever. He wants praise for it. I feel as if he’s overstepped again. You know. The usual.”

Stepping closer to the group, Salem cleared her throat. ”I understand why everyone is on edge that I’m here, but I don’t mean anyone any harm. Unless it’s Aloysius. I can’t make any promises to anyone on that front - and even then I’m not really threatening to kill him.”

"So why are you here, Salem?” Miles asks curiously, remaining weary of the woman. "Despite Carlisle inviting you. I’m no empath but I’m sure you’re getting some benefit out of being here.”

”Not really,” the older woman responded with a shrug of her shoulders. ”My flight doesn’t leave until tomorrow, and it was either this, or have dinner at the diner, so I figured why not? But I can always leave, Miles. This is your house and if I’m not welcome all you have to do is say the official word. I stopped intentionally offending people ages ago.”

Miles first turns to his mother, looking to her for answers. The woman gives a shrug in return. At this stage she had already accepted this whole scenario, she was beyond caring where Salem went for dinner. The last thing that did for Miles was help him make a choice. With a sigh Miles turns back to Salem. "Lilith? What do you think?” he asks her, his eyes remaining trained on the only other magi in the room.

Lilith was fully expecting Miles to fly off the handle and tell Salem to get out. Instead, she was now shoulder with the decision. She wasn’t angry at Miles for looking to her for help, but she was still most definitely upset with Carlisle for creating the situation in the first place. ”I think that it was rude to invite her without telling anyone,” she began, looking at Carlisle before turning her attention to Salem. ”But I think it would be even more so for us to kick you out after airing our dirty laundry in front of you. I’m sure you’ll understand if my nerves are a little wound tight right now, so I’d like to extend the courtesy of letting you know that if you make one wrong move, I’ll banish you straight to hell. Literally.”

”Noted,” Salem replied, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Carlisle tried to wave his hands around to get people's attention, trying to mime that he was sorry. Seeing that it didn't seem to be working he slumped back into his chair. He had been embarrassed infront of Salem and it was going to take him ages to try and get that respect back.

Miles nodded his head at Lilith’s decision, squeezing her hand once more. "Now that’s settled, can we eat? I’m starving.” he groans making his way to the table. He pours himself a glass of whiskey before looking back at Lilith. He then tenses slightly before sheepishly pushing the glass toward Claire’s usual seat. The pair hadn’t quite talked about where they stood on Miles drinking around Lilith, the last thing he needed was a lecture from her. Miles was kinda over fighting for the day.

On the other side of the room Mary walks herself next to Claire before gently saying "You should probably give the kid his words back, I reckon the longer you hold onto them the more he’ll have to yell about.”

”Food sounds great” John quipped.

Claire happily picked up the glass that was being slid her way, wrapping her free arm around Mary as her friend approached. The blonde rolled her eyes, knowing that Mary was right. ”Mouthy little thing, ain’t he,” Claire remarked as she undid the spell with a wave of her hand.

Seeing how Miles reluctantly slid the glass across the table, Lilith picked up the bottle and began to pour two glasses herself before sliding them over silently to both Miles and her grandfather before sitting down.

Mary gave a little chuckle at her friend's comment before taking the bottle from Lil and pouring a glass each for herself and her parents. "Salem?" she offers, holding the almost empty bottle toward the woman, good thing there were always a couple spare handy.

Miles couldn't help the small smile that tugged on the corner of his mouth. He holds the glass up toward her with a nod of gratitude before taking a sip.

Carlisle finally was able to actually speak. Except he didn't. He just quietly sat at the seat and looked around at everyone. He knew that opening his mouth would just cause more trouble. Instead he spent the time trying to work out everyone's body language and how they were getting along.

”Don’t mind if I do,” the Guild Leader responded, reaching for the bottle. ”No reason to let the rest of it go to waste.” Walking around the table, Salem quickly found herself a safe enough spot wedge between John and Lilith. ”So what do you all usually do at these things? Besides eat, of course. I can’t say I’ve ever been part of something like this.”

"Hope Lilith doesn’t stain the floors red with someone else’s blood again,” Mary mutters under her breath, swirling the liquor in the glass before taking a sip. Placing the glass back on the table she travels back to the kitchen and pulls the brisket out of the oven, placing the tray on the table alongside the rest of the food before sitting down again.

As Salem finds her seat next to Lilith, Miles seems to tense slightly, struggling to draw his eyes away from the two women. He remains silent for a while, watching Salem’s every move like a hawk, lest she had a sneaky way to attack. He’d be lying if he’d said the woman did unnerve him. She may have stated she wasn’t going to try anything but how trustworthy was she really? Not to mention Miles felt this weird pull from his stomach around her. Honestly he’d felt that pull many times before with Ty but Salem’s seemed harsher, like birds beating against his insides over butterflies.

Carlisle looked around at Miles seeing how tense he looked and how he was always looking at Salem "Look, Everything is going to be fine Miles. If Salem tries anything I will counterspell her, and Lilith and yourself can attack me as much as you like" Carlisle said with a nervous chuckle, looking at everyone.

Carlisle’s words didn’t really put the man at any ease. Miles gave a gruff grunt in response before muttering, "My family, my issue Carlisle,” to his friend under his breath. He remains silent for a moment as people around the table start serving themselves before finally peeling his eyes off of the magi woman. He still shot her a glance every few moments, he wasn’t letting her get away with any tricks. Between glances he turned his attention to John, perhaps he had one more fight to start depending on how the man would react.

Miles clears his throat. "So- uh John- and Lilith. I was thinking I should move into the ranch at some point. Y’know- to help Lilith out with everything.” He attempted to keep his gaze on the man, even though he couldn’t shake the nervous feeling rising within him. Montgomerys were an intimidating bunch but by far John Montgomery was the most intimidating of them all.

Lilith couldn’t help as a small smirk formed upon her face as she heard Mary’s comment. Her mood was quickly soured by Carlisle's now un-muted words, and quickly changed to shock when she heard what Miles had to say. The young woman found herself wishing for a drink of whiskey, but forced down her tea instead.

John had been eating and drinking silently as he listened to the small conversations around him. His small talk with Marys father was cut short when Miles addressed him. Silence fell over the table while the old man collected his thoughts. ”Carlton moved out this morning,” he stated. ”You can move your things in there whenever you like.”

”Seriously,” Lil piped up, clearly surprised.

”Ain’t no sense in arguing about it,” John replied, shrugging his shoulders and taking a sip of his drink. ”Figured this would come up at some point, and if I try an’ fight it - well. I got you, Mary, Miles and your mother to argue with now, kid. An old mans heart can only take so much.”

Miles was clearly taken aback at the older man's response. He was honestly expecting to have a couple of months of back and forth with the old man before he'd finally surrender to it not being a bad idea. In fact he'd expected to already receive a lecture about responsibility or something from John by now. Perhaps he had worse waiting for him at the Ranch or perhaps John and him would be okay after all. "Well- I guess I'll look at moving my stuff soon," he muses before turning to his mother. He hadn't talked to her about this but the little comforting smile on his face told him she knew this was coming. As their eyes met she gave him a small nod.

Carlisle watched as John agreed right away to Miles' idea. His mouth almost opened in shock. He then furrowed his brow in somewhat annoyance. He was getting his ass lectured to by every single person in existence, but Miles was suddenly getting his own way? It was petty of Carlisle and he knew it was. He wasn't going to say anything, but it still grated him.

Truth to be told, John Montgomery knew his time on Earth was coming to a close. It wasn’t something that he dwelled on to heavily, or reminded everyone of - but it had been in the back of his mind more and more as of late. Miles wasn’t his first choice to move it, but Claire and Lilith were going to need all the help they could get once John was dead. There was no need to turn it down when it was being offered so easily. ”Don’t think you got off scott free though, kid,” he joked before taking another bite of brisket. ”You’re one of the most able bodies I got now.”

A few seats over, Lilith was trying to keep her composure. Her own emotions had been going up, down, left and right for the last twenty minutes - and so had those of everyone around her. Small ripples of shock and awe ran through the room, but the only remaining point of tension seemed to be coming from –

”Carlisle,” she questioned. ”Has my family upset you again?”

Carlisle swallowed hard. He forgot that Lilith could sense emotions. He did his best to try and suppress his emotions so that Lilith couldn't sense them. "No no. Everything is peachy and fine ha ha. Let's just eat ya?"

Laying down her fork and knife on either side of the plate, Lilith's brow furrowed. ”Please don’t lie to me right now.”

Carlisle sighed. He had been trying really hard to not air his pettiness given the hostilities of everything going on around him. With a deeper sigh he looked down "I don't want to start more trouble, so I am just staying quiet. It's not worth another argument over something petty. Please just leave me be" His attitude had switched to a submissive one. Just someone who wanted to back off and be left alone.

"Fine," the young woman responded with a frustrated huff. "Don't be so loud with your emotions then."

Miles gave a meek chuckle at John's reply as he turns back to his whiskey. Miles tried to pretend he wasn't listening to the conversation between Lil and Carlisle. Why did he have this gut feeling whatever Carlisle was feeling had to do with him? If Miles was being honest, he knew his and Carlisle's friendship had an odd dynamic and Carlisle’s feelings about him changed in the blink of an eye. That man harboured so much jealousy sometimes. Miles would be lying if he said he was never jealous of Carlisle either. He kept his eyes on his food, taking a bite of brisket.

Mary's eyes had been bouncing around the table at each of the conversations around her while she wordlessly ate her dinner. Lilith was starting to ramp up, Mary was glad Carlisle had found the right words to avoid Mary having to clean blood from her dining room floor. Before things could pick up again she decided to push the conversation. "Salem," she calls to the other side of the table, "How's New York this time of year?"

”Hm?” the woman replied, caught up in the conversations happening around her. ”Oh!” Processing Marys question as she sat down her glass, Salem took a moment to think. How did someone describe New York? ”Well, these next few weeks are sort of the calm before the storm. It’s always busy up that way with tourists and everything, but the holidays are the worst. There’ll be the Thanksgiving parade, then the Christmas light ceremony. Shortly after that is the New Years celebrations. It’s very pretty, but as a local - it drives me nearly insane. What about Tanner? I’m sure a little town like this has to have some sort of annual festivities.”

"Seems like it ain’t too much different to what festivities we got here, just a hell of a lot bigger, hm?" Mary replies, sipping at her whiskey once again. "The county fair starts next week, so there's something." A small teasing smile forms on her lips as she tacks on, "Milo and Lil used to go on dates to the fair when they were teens, it was all very cute." She nudged Claire in the side as she talked.

"Mum," Miles complains at her added comment, his eyes fixating on her. He seemed to have an idea of what was coming next and he wasn't looking forward to it.

"Y'know," Mary continues jovially, prodding Claire once more. "The first time he and Lil went by themselves he was adamant to wear a tie, was scared she was gonna look a whole lot more formal than he did or somethin'. Probably woulda worn a whole suit if I let him. We spent the whole afternoon tryna figure out how to tie that thing. Do you remember that, Miles?"

At this point Miles had found a special interest in his dinner plate and had one of his hands massaging the side of his temple. All he managed out was a simple affirmative "Mm."

Lilith found herself pushing the food from one side of her plate to the other, careful not to look at anyone. The heat rising to her face, she couldn’t help but smirk as she added her own thoughts to the conversation. ”And to think he made me feel underdressed,” she laughed. ”Here I was in jeans and a t-shirt as always, and Miles was sweating in a suit jacket.”

Laughing along, Claire returned Marys nudge with one of her own. ”Remember that time - I think they were like twelve - where we honestly had to pretend like they weren’t sneakin’ in and out each other's windows?”

Chuckles continued to erupt from Mary as Lilith and Claire chimed in. As for Miles, his face has turned a brighter shade of pink with every line. Part of him was glad to see his ma laugh, like truly laugh, for the first time in a long time but he wasn't so chuffed that it was at his expense.

"You could hear Lil comin' from a mile away. I reckon Miles' was no better!" Mary adds on.

"Ma, please stop, I'm begging you," Miles complains, sure that he was as red as a tomato by now.

"Oh, they're sweet memories, Hurricane," Mary says sweetly. "I remember when you were really little, you used to put your little teddy bear, your favourite book and a handful of toy cars into your little suitcase and tell me you were going to LiLi's house. You were so sure you could make it to North Carolina all on your own."

As Mary continued to share her stories, Claire's eyes lit up further. ”How about that time they actually ran away together and tried to survive in the woods that one week? I’ll never forget how filthy they were walking back through the door, little heads hanging low in defeat.” Still laughing, the woman reached across the table to pour herself and Mary another drink.

”Running away honestly doesn’t sound like such a bad idea right now,” Lil did her best to joke and keep the mood light.

”You’re starting to make me terrified for Celeste’s teenage years,” Salem added, trying to get in on the fun. Her eyes flicked from Mary to Miles. ”Hurricane? That’s a family nickname, I suppose?”

”Absolutely nothing sounds better right now,” Miles mutters to Lilith at her comment on running away.

At Salem’s first comment Mary gives a light chuckle. "Oh, look forward to that. Your tyke already seems like a lil firecracker, those teen years are gonna be wild.” That was when Salem asked about Miles’ nickname. Why couldn’t Mary help but feel like that question was more loaded than it should have been? She shook it off, assuming her concern may just be in overdrive. "Miles was lil whirlwind when he was little. The best way to find him was following the destruction in the house. Toys would be flyin’, things pulled off shelves, the family dog wound up. It was like havin’ a lil hurricane in the house.” Mary explains, taking a sip of her freshly filled glass.

Carlisle said quietly and eat his own brisket not really saying or getting involved. Mostly just listening to the stories of Lil and Miles Childhood. It was a painful thing to listen to. Mostly because his own childhood was a completely different experience. Meeting Miles was the high point, but he forgot that Miles also knew Lil, and that they were close, even at that point. He played around with his fork on his plate. He wanted to tell his own story from his childhood, but he couldn't think of one that wasn't depressing or showed how much of a bitch Amanda was.

-
Outside the house sitting in his SUV, Aloysius Leighton was reading one more letter that Mary had written. He had spent the entire afternoon reading every single Letter from Mary, and it had been something of an experience. A rollercoaster of emotions. Aloysius had cried at least several times during the readings. He had come here to try and make some of it right.

Leaving his vehicle he pulled out a bouquet of blue lilies he had managed to get a hold of at short notice. He wasn't quite sure if it was the right color for Mary. He began walking upto the door.

Carlisle in his seat, had a view of the walkway to the door from his window. Looking up and seeing a figure walking up, he only just clocked on who it was. He didn't want to alarm anyone, but he sat up straight, sending emotional distress signals out to try and get Lils attention.

Then the knock came.

As a knock came at the door Mary’s brow furrowed, she wasn’t expecting another visitor at this time. She looked over and exchanged glances with Miles, a silent conversation taking place as to who was to answer the door. After a few looks she shook her head before getting up from her seat and trekking to the door. She pulls it open to see a familiar figure in front of her. "Jo-Al, what are you doing here?” she asks, trying to ignore the bouquet in his hand.

Al didn't exactly know how to hand over a bouquet of flowers. He never really mastered that art. He pushed them forwards towards her for her to accept. "I got you these. I remember you like Lilies, but I can't remember which color you preferred. So I went with Blue. For calming and soothing y'know" Aloysius smiled, feeling like he was making a little progress "I spent the afternoon reading your letters. It was an experience. I guess I have some things I need to say"

"Uh- thanks?” Mary replies awkwardly, taking the flowers that were pushed toward her. She wasn’t all too certain what to say, or how to respond. As Aloysius finished what he had to say Mary gave a deep sigh. "Look, Al this isn’t the best-” she stops herself as curiosity won over. "You’re not just gonna stand here and justify why my feelin’s were wrong, are you?” she asks ominously.

" What!? No! Actually the opposite really." Aloysius gave off a soft smile as he looked at her, it was clear from his right eye that he had been shedding some tears. "Look, your feelings are valid. Extremely valid given the circumstances. Yes, life dealt me a scrappy hand, and others were responsible for what happened. But in all of this I never really sat down to take stock of my own involvement in this. I have always blamed others. Look. I am sorry Mary. I am sorry for all the pain I caused, all the shit I dropped on you. I didn't want to do it. But rather than stay and fight, I curled up like a coward, and I got what I deserved. I can't fix the past. I can't change what happened, but I can at least try and make the future better."

Claire was thankful for the playful and overall casual vibe that the conversation had taken. She had tensed slightly hearing the knock upon the door. Everyone who was invited or normally welcome at these things were already here - that was unless Carlisle had decided to invite another unwanted visitor. The woman continued to eat and drink in silence as her best friend moved to open the door, the conversation never dwindling. As everyone around her continued to act as normal, Claire couldn’t help but notice the voices coming from the entryway, nor how long Mary had been away from the table. Getting up and walking over to the doorway herself, Claires face fell as she spotted Aloysius.

Placing herself beside Mary, Claire quickly took in the scene before her. Grabbing the flowers, the woman shoved them back at Aloysius’s chest. ”Food’s gone. Whiskeys gone. You oughta be gone too.”

Seeing Claire, Aloysius own face dropped. This just got alot more complicated. With a soft sigh he simply pushed the flowers forward, aiming back towards Mary and away from Claire. "Look, just let me speak to Mary in peace please. I am trying to get something important out of the way. I am not here to cause trouble or to make Mary's life any harder"

Back at the dining table, Carlisle was watching as Claire got up off her seat. This was going to blow up again. With a soft sigh, He looked over at both Lil and Miles "Turns out Aloysius has decided to show up. It has nothing to do with me"

”Your presence makes things hard enough,” Claire snapped back. ”I’m not sure how good your people skills are, but if someone kept freezing up and breaking down around me - I’d probably stop approachin’ ‘em. Now I suggest you turn around and head back from which way you came, because what’s waitin’ for you on the other side of this door is a lot worse than me, bud.”

Mary was somewhat frozen, looking between Al and the flowers back in his hands. She wasn’t sure what to do but eventually succumbed to taking them, accepting flowers didn’t mean sudden forgiveness after all. She was taken aback about the fact Aloysius had apologised rather than just continued to justify himself. At Claire's final statement the woman gave a sigh. Honestly she was curious about what he had to say but in the middle of a family dinner? Probably not the most ideal time. "She does have a point, I’m not sure you’d survive my dinin’ room. But look, if you’re willing to try-” she turns to Claire, "It sure would entertain you.”

" I just want to talk to you Mary and get things off my chest. Reading those letters made me realise a few home truths. If that means enduring Claire here trying to rip me apart then so be it. Put me infront of the jury and let me state me case" Aloysius almost pleaded with Mary.

Mary glances at Claire for a moment to gauge her reaction before replying to Al. "You gotta understand, Al. This'll be the toughest jury you've ever faced. Every single person who closely watched me suffer at your loss is in that room."

"Which is why I have to do it. I deserve to be put under pressure a bit. Plus, they are going to want to flog me anyway, might as well get it over with"

Defeated, Claire shrugged her shoulders. ”Entertainin’ is a nice way of putin’ it. I make no apologies for Lilith in advance.”

Mary gave a deep sigh before stepping out of the doorway so Al could move past her. "As long as someone else is cleaning the blood off the damn floor," she mutters as he enters.

"It will be fine, I am not going to start anything. I just want to prove some stuff to you" Aloysius said with a soft smile. He walks through the hallway into the dining room. It was then his eyes met Salem. His body froze in place as his fight or flight instinct kicked in. He took a deep breath. "Salem! What are you doing here!?"

Salem was far from a divination witch, but she couldn’t help but feel the dark metaphorical cloud that had entered the room as soon as Mary opened the door. She had joined in on some of the smaller conversations around her, and had even managed to make Marys mother laugh in the process. As a familiar dark haired figure graced their presence, silence fell over the room. John looked confused - but ready to shoot - as always, Miles and Lil looked as if they were ready to fight, and the rest of the crowd just seemed completely bewildered. Knocking back what little bit of whiskey was left in her glass, Salem looked up to lock eyes with Al.

”Well, I was invited of course. Not sure you can say the same.”

"Why would they invite you?" Aloysius's body was tense and frozen in place. No matter how much he wanted to step back. Salem always had this ability to ground Aloysius where he was. He was confused by how she could be here and Miles not be in danger.

Shrugging her shoulders, Salem responded with the only thing she could think of. ”Because they find my company appealing, I suppose.”

Aloysius wanted to say something else, but he knew it would just end up with starting shit with Salem. Aloysius was here to apologise properly to Mary and try to move on. He needed to just power on through. Salem was going to make this near neigh impossible, but he would try his best. "I just came here to speak to Mary. I suspected that Miles would be here, I didn't expect it to be a full blown dinner. Now I see what Mary meant the room would be the toughest jury. Practically filled with people who hate my guts"

As Aloysius walked in the room, time seemed to almost freeze. Suddenly it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop despite Aloysius and Salem’s exchanged words. Miles was almost ready for the conversation to turn back to embarrassing stories from his youth. All the while a hot anger took over him. He took a quick glance at Lil, knowing the rage that swirled inside of him would consume her also, he hoped she wouldn't try anything despite it. He then turns his attention to his father, not that he'd use that title to the man's face. ”What the hell do you want from us?! You talked to her this morning, you don't need to again. Now leave me and my mother and our family alone so we can be at peace!"

Aloysius raised his left left hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Surprisingly Miles, there is alot to say after the past 25 years, plus, I had some stuff to read courtesy of your mother that has given me a new perspective on things" Removing his hand he looked over at Miles "Miles, I am sorry for abandoning you and leaving you to grow up with just your mother. It was a terrible thing for me to do. The worst thing a person can do. And I know you are going to be a far better father than I ever could have been to you"

Lilith was torn away from joking with her grandfather when a man she didn’t know entered the room. Silence and tension filled the air, quickly followed by the rage of Salem and Miles. Gripping onto her steak knife, Lilith watched as the stranger exchanged words with the people around her. It didn’t take very much for her to put two and two together.

”Aloysius Leighton,” she began, playing with the feeling of the mans name on her tongue. ”The displeasure is all ours.” If looks could kill, Al’s heart would have stopped the second Lilith locked eyes with his. Seeing Miles so upset only fueled Lilith’s natural rage even more. She had seen Miles in fights, or even in drunken rages - but very rarely did he ever actually raise his voice around her. Aloysius being here was clearly already crossing some sort of line. ”Don’t go around tryin’ to slap bandaids on bullet wounds. If you have things to say to Mary, then I suggest you go ahead and get it out of the way behind closed doors. But don’t expect anyone to forgive you, or for you to be able to walk in here and play father to Miles.”

At Al's apology, Miles scoffs. ”I don’t think I've heard a more piss poor, half-assed attempt at an apology in my life! What gives you the right to come into my home and talk to me like that?" Miles yells, standing in his place. As Lilith says her piece Miles nods along, throwing another glance at her. He couldn’t slow that rage flowing through him but he could at least stop Lilith from attacking Al if she tried something. In any other time he wouldn’t bat an eyelid at her attacking his father, in fact he'd be entertained by it, but he was extra cautious considering the state she was in.

Aloysius was able to roll with the punches, he could take whatever Lil or Claire threw at him. But you didn't need an empath's ability to tell that Miles' response hurt Aloysius. For the first time since his teen years, Aloysius had dropped the persona of superiority around him and revealed his more true self. He couldn't expect Miles to open his arms and invite him for a hug, but to at the very least he could have acknowledged what Aloysius was trying to do. Shuffling his feet, he looked down a little bit. It was a mistake to come here. "I should leave really. I didn't think there would be so many people around" Aloysius said with a defeated sigh. Everything he had hoped for the evening was now in shatters.

”Oh, boo hoo,” Miles mocks, folding his arms. ”How rude of me to not want to fall into my sperm donor’s arms because he decided to show up for once in my 25 years of life.” Miles snaps back at the man’s sad expression. ”What’d you think would happen? You’d read some letters, talk to ma once and suddenly I’d want to be your son?”

Mary sighed as she placed the flowers on the kitchen countertop, making a mental note to put them in water later. Even if she wasn’t the biggest fan of their giver she had to admit they were lovely. She’d always loved lilies. As Aloysius and her son talked Mary opted to stay quiet , not caring to intervene at this moment.

"No I didn't expect that. But… Look… I am coming here in good faith. I am not asking for full forgiveness or for us to have some kind of close relationship. I just wanted for you to understand the complications around my life. Both of you" He said as he looked at both Mary and Miles "And at the same time explain how I fucked up and ruined everything"

”I mean, that second part is pretty obvious. You left. You left ma alone, you left me alone. You left and never looked back. I don’t know what more explaining you’ve got.” Miles’ voice had quietened but that rage settled in his eyes, a fire still churning within them.

"Well Salem being here actually helps in that regard. She actively had a part to play in all this, and she hates me, so she won't cover for me. So she can verify what I say is true or not" It was risky trusting Salem to be honest. He knew she could do so much damage here by simply lying or making stuff up. But as long as Aloysius was truthful and didn't take the biscuit with it, hopefully she would cooperate. "I can tell you everything from the beginning, if you are all willing to listen" He was mostly looking for Miles and Mary's approval. But he wouldn't say no to everyone else listening.

”What is it about this town that brings out the stupid in everyone,” Salem interjected, rolling her eyes. ”Accepting responsibility does not mean coming in here and shoving the blame on me. I may have ripped you out of Tanner, but Amanda was the one to give the signal and you are the one who chose to lie about your identity. If you want to play the poor pitiful princess locked away by the evil dragon card then leave me out of it. I was personally hoping your plane would crash on the way here.”

Mary sighed, resituating herself at her seat and the table and taking a sip of her whiskey. "This woulda been a whole lot easier if you didn’t lie to me,” she muses under her breath. "But go on- say what you gotta say.”

Miles remained silent, opting to not take his seat but he did grip the back of Lilith’s chair for support. He grips so tight his knuckles turn white. He gives no indication on whether or not he was open to listening but he doesn’t seem to prepare to attack.

Hearing Salem's words caused Aloysius to have mixed feelings. She was at least backing him up on the fact Amanda sold him out. So he was hoping that would at least help convince Mary. "Please, do continue eating. I don't want your food to go cold. I can explain while you eat, or wait until you have all finished" He was trying to smile, but it was obvious that nerves got to him.

Seeing that no one had moved a bit, Aloysius decided to start "So yeah. I fought a war. I started it. Attacked the Guild and killed Salem's Father. My mother had convinced me that I was capable of doing anything. She used my feelings regarding mine and Salem's break up to convince me that the Guild needed change." Aloysius would grab onto the top of an empty seat, taking a second to think through his words. " Suffice to say, the revolution was a bust. I lost. Nearly lost my own life. I fled New York in an attempt to save my own skin and avoid the wrath of Salem once more."

"Half a year later, I ended up here in Tanner. It was such a nice little town. I met Mary and settled down. Knowing that if I used my real name, I used an Alias, Jonathan Park. My old alias back in guild operations. In retrospect, not the best disguise. Still. I was building a new life. Mary was such a great influence on me. The problem was. The more I saw how amazing she was, the more scared I was that she would reject me if she found out the truth. So I kept putting it off." Aloysius swallowed hard for a moment before carrying on " That's on me. Nobody else. I fucked up. I should have come clean sooner. I am really sorry Mary. Though I gave you a false name, everything else was still me. I know I can't ask for forgiveness. But I hope you can still see the person you fell in love with behind this new name" There was a hint of both nervousness and fear in his tone. He desperately wanted her approval.

Claire had been listening to Mary and Aloysius's conversation, her eyes bouncing back and forth between the two of them. Taking another drink of whiskey, Claire nearly choked as the last of Al's words filled the air. Lighting a cigarette, the blonde shook her head. "I call bullshit."

Mary listened to Al but her eyes were unable to meet his figure. Instead they would solace in everything else in the room. The swirling liquid in her whiskey glass, Lilith’s plate, the tablecloth. Anything that was not that man. At his last line Mary pursed her lips. After 25 years Mary had completely forgotten what made her fall in love with the man she knew as Johnathon Park. She may have forgotten him all together had he not left her with the heartache and a son. Before she could respond, Claire beat her to it.

As Claire drawled her unbelieving line Miles folded his arms, the first movement he had made since Aloysius started speaking. ”Me too,” he responds instantly.

"I am telling the truth! Why would I lie? I sent letters to Mary every single month… If I wasn't the same person, why would I bother even coming back?" With a sigh he watched Miles and Mary. Clearly Mary wasn't even able to look at him. "Look, my life was great here in Tanner. Then Amanda found out my true identity. At first she tried to blackmail me into being in a relationship with her. She wanted me to have a child with her. She knew the kind of power it would create. And she craved it herself. Something about securing her legacy. I said no. I had just discovered that Mary was Pregnant. I was over the moon. I took it as a sign that things were about to change in my life for the better. Sadly Amanda had other plans. After discovering Mary was Pregnant, Amanda told Salem where I was hiding. I was forced to surrender and go back to New York. I didn't tell Salem about Mary or the fact she was pregnant. I didn't want to risk Salem going after her. Perhaps if I actually stood my ground and was honest with both Mary and Salem, none of this would have happened. Maybe Salem wouldn't have gone after Mary, maybe I would have been able to live a quiet life in exile. I am just sorry for lying. To both of you I guess. For telling two separate lies."

Mary found herself still unable to face the man but a quick check-in with her own divination was enough to know he wasn’t lying. That was- was comforting the right word? Not really. But it at least gave her a peace of mind. She looked over at the magi leader sitting across from her. "For no reason ‘cept pure curiosity, what would you’ve done to me or my son if you knew?” she asks the other woman.

Salem had grown bored of the conversation around her, choosing to answer a few missed texts on her phone. Business back home never stopped no matter how much she wished it would. For now it was a much needed distraction from Aloysius. Truthfully, Salem should have killed him years ago - but toying with his emotions and always having someone to do your bidding proved to be just a little too much fun. Looking up from her screen, Salem shrugged her shoulders.

”The same thing I said last night - either get to you early enough to convince you to abort the child, or offer you and it both safety within our ranks back in New York. Knowing what I do now, Miles being born was inevitable. You’d have never been a family - not one with Aloysius included anyway. The problem was never with the Leighton line continuing, otherwise I would have found ways to sterilize Lola. Despite the harm that Aloysius had already done to his family name… well, Mary, you’d have been a Queen - second to myself of course. Miles would have grown up with the proper training, and perhaps with more of a feeling that he fit in. If you didn’t want to move to New York, then I could have set you up with connections in Atlanta or anywhere else you wanted to go. I may be a lot of horrible things, but a child killer isn’t one of them.”

Asking her divination for guidance, Mary was indeed alerted that Salem was telling the truth. With a sigh Mary turned back to Al, bringing herself to look at him. She could recognise that this was a complex situation, and that her emotional ties to the whole thing made it even more complicated. She was a biased judge. Everyone in that room was a biased judge. Her dad, particularly, seemed unimpressed. "This is ridiculous," he grumbles under his breath.

Miles was mad, more so than before. Hands seemed unsure what to do, swapping between their folded position and gripping on to his and Lilith's chairs. ”So you're telling me- not only did you lie to ma, which is something that caused the issue that you could control, but we could have actually been okay?" In all honesty, Miles scarcely wanted for a more privileged life, it came in fleeting moments of missed events and the few times his mother couldn't hide the exhaustion from her eyes, but it didn’t seem to help soften the blow. ”All you've done is come here and tell us this is all your fault, which is something we all know."

Hearing Salem's response, Aloysius's heart sank. He had convinced himself that he had done the right thing. He did what he did to protect Mary and his unborn child. Hearing that they would have been fine regardless only made it worse. What really hurt him was the fact that no matter what he had done, he would have never been allowed near Mary. Salem had controlled his life for so long. He had lost so much time because of her decisions. Listening to Miles, Aloysius just raised his hand to signal him to calm down and shut up.

"I didn't know what was going to happen. I came here originally to tell Mary that I understand now what she went through. And that I am truly sorry to the bottom of my heart that I cussed so much pain by being in her life. I have made so many bad decisions in my life. Choices that haunt me every single day. And thanks to Salem, even 25 years later, I can't find peace. I have repented for all the bad things I did. I served my time. Why can't anyone just let me have one small thing for once?" Aloysius's Voice raised as he got close to the end of his sentence, clearly agitated "Why does EVERYTHING I touch turn to shit? I just want one thing in my life to go right. Is that too much to ask? I sent letters for twenty five years because I knew that I wanted to make things right. Why can't I make them right?" It was clear that Aloysius was getting emotional. Tears formed at the edges of his eyes, as he felt them burn slightly.

"Cus the one small thing you're askin' for ain't that small. Not for us," Mary replies softly. Her voice was barely above a whisper as she found a sudden interest in the tablecloth once more. The corners of her eyes stung as she forced herself to hold back tears herself. Every single fiber of her being wanted to breakdown in shutters and shakes. This was too much. A reminder of some of the worst moments in her life, the worst hurt she faced and not only did he have reasons but he was breaking down over them himself. As much as she couldn't just get over the situation, it hurt how much pain was in the man's voice. It made the natural comforter in her to go and tend to him but she remained seated.

"You ain't gettin' any sympathy from me," Claire chimed in, taking another drag off her cigarette.

"Seconded," Salem quipped.

"Same here," Lilith responded, clearly having no sympathy for the man. If she had it her way, she would have banished him to another dimension the second he walked through the door.

"I concur," huffed John.

Aloysius closed his eyes, taking a moment to breathe deeply. ”I do everything I can to not be a bad person, and people still judge me as one. I see. Next you will be telling me Ty will hate to see me” Aloysius huffed in frustration, before once again calming himself. ”I know that I did bad things, and I can't say sorry enough. Mary has made me realize how much pain I caused, and the last thing I wanted to do was cause Mary pain. If those letters had arrived, maybe things would have been different.” His eyes dropped towards Carlisle, a look of fire in his eyes. ”It was your mothers fault. All of this. We could have had a peaceful life here if she hadn’t blabbed”

Carlisle stared back at Aloysius, completely at a loss of what to say at the seething man. He shrugged his shoulders slightly as he went back to eating a small piece of brisket.

Borderline exhausted and fighting back her frustrations, Lilith sighed. "Look, man. You said your piece, we said ours - what do we have to do to get you out of here?"

Carlisle watched as Aloysius' eyes were locked on his. ”Your family ruined it all, and you think you can still be in charge…” Before he could finish his sentence, Aloysius disappeared. With a small groan, Carlisle rubbed his forehead.

”He was getting on my nerves. Plus I am not my mother, and won’t stand being compared to her.”

Taking a deep breath, Lilith looked around the table, not quite sure of what to say. She had managed to keep from hitting Aloysius, which was a win - but over all this night felt like another loss. She was ready to go home. The young woman reached over her shoulder to place her hand on top of Miles's. She shrugged her shoulders, speaking the first thing that came to mind.

"Speaking of headaches, maybe I should have gave him one." Her tone was thoughtful and exhausted. As silence began to fill the room again, Lilith began to sip on her tea.

As Al disappears Mary gives an exhausted sigh, resting her head on her best friend's shoulder. The scent of tobacco surrounding her, both comfortingly familiar and unpleasantly foul all at once. Mary had given up stopping her friend smoking in her house since she returned to the land of the living, it bothered her less now the kids were adults. "I'm so over this." she mutters, keeping her voice low enough only Claire could hear. "I'm so exhausted, Claire. All the time. Always"

Now as silence fell the emotional high was starting to drain from Miles. He couldn't help but notice that it left him shaking a bit. ”You and me both," he replies to Lilith, rubbing the side of her hand with his thumb. Miles harboured more rage within him than he'd ever admit. In true Price fashion it was so naturally suppressed but he'd always been cautious with it around Lil, knowing she was so sensitive to those strong emotions. ”Sorry." he says meekly, glancing back at her.

Blowing out the last puff of smoke, Claire put out the cigarette on the sole of her boot before tossing it in the ashtray on the table. Mary had never been a smoker, but had always kept an ashtray around just for Claire. All these years later, and it was still in the same spot. As Mary put her head on Claires shoulder, the blonde began to play with her best friend's hair. Empathy was a rare trait - even for the Montgoemerys’ - but it didn’t take a genius to see how tired Mary was. She gently kissed the top of the older woman's head. ”I know baby,” the blonde whispered back. ”I know. Maybe you should think about moving into the ranch too.”

Claire could almost feel the tension in Mary's shoulders, even somewhat imagining the hardened expression on her face as she fought for her last will to fight. ”I know you’ll fight me on it, and you don’t ever even have to give me an answer - but the offer still stands.”

On the other side of the table, Lilith looked up at Miles. Eyes soft, her brows knit together in confusion. ”What for?”

At Claire's invitation Mary sighed. The Montgomerys had done too much for her, especially in the past 25 years. Even moreso than that she had built too much in this house, she was more attached to it than she'd care to admit. "I can't ask y'all to do any more for me." she says softly. In this moment of vulnerability the exhaustion seeps through her voice. She was so used to going breakneck speed bouncing between her jobs and commitments that in those brief moments of quiet she was intensely reminded of the impact her lifestyle had had on her aging body. "I worked so hard for, well, this. All of it. It'll feel… I don't know. I just can't."

At Lilith's question Miles blinked once. Then twice. He'd honestly expected Lilith to be more riled up from the aftermath. ”I dunno. All of that? I got pretty mad. I just thought- nevermind," he mumbles. He finds himself unable to meet his girlfriend's eyes for a moment. He wasn't quite sure what he was feeling. Shame? Fear? Discomfort? Whatever it was, he wasn't a fan.

”I ain’t asking you to sell your house, babe. Just think about it, yeah?” Claire knew full well that her efforts were futile, but she wanted to make sure Mary knew she was being serious. No one wanted Mary to sell her house or give up her life - but at the same time, Claire knew how hard having an empty house was going to be on her friend. She continued to play with the woman's hair, another sigh escaping.

Lilith watched Miles' confused expression. Had she said the wrong thing? Was he upset with himself? She really didn’t know. The young Montgomery shook her head. ”It’s fine Miles. I’m a big girl. I can handle myself. We’ve both got a lot going on, emotions are high. Nothing to apologize for.” Staring at her empty plate, the young woman wished that she had something other than her own foot to shove in her mouth.

Mary knew Claire only had good intentions in asking but it seemed a big ask. Mary was unsure which would be harder if she chose to go, letting go of such an important place to her or knowing that she was becoming another burden for her old friends to carry. Eventually she straightens herself up, shooting Claire a thin-lipped smile. "Y’don’t need to worry about me, Claire. I’ve done this before, Miles was in Olympia for college and work for a good 4 or 5 years. I’ve done the whole empty nester thing. I’ll be fine.” she says, taking another sip of whiskey.

”Yeah. Yeah we do,” Miles muses in response to Lilith’s mentioning about them having a lot going on. ”The whole high emotion empath thing- that’s not bad for the babies, is it?”

Carlisle laid down his fork as he finished eating. His face going a similar pale colour to the ceremony. Looking around he saw that everyone was comforting each other. It had been emotional, that was for sure. Carlisle himself felt very confused as to what to do next. "For the record, I am sorry for inviting Salem without announcing it. Things had been busy today and I thought it wasn't a big a deal. When in reality it was a major thing. I thought I was doing right by trying to show Salem's peaceful intentions. And I was wrong to assume that you would all be okay with it"

Claire shrugged her shoulders as she placed her elbows on the edge of the table to prop herself up. She might not have been able to convince Mary to move it, but she’d make sure she could be there for her friend - even if she had to do so in traditionally sneaky fashion.

Lilith shot Carlisle a stern look from across the table before answering Miles. ”I’m not sure. I know that being super stressed and things like that can cause complications. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if they come out with two heads and webbed feet.”

At Lilith’s response Miles felt an empty chuckle escape his lips before gently kissing the top of his girlfriend’s head. Honestly, the weekend had just left the man confused and drained. He was going to be a father, his mum and him fought and his dad had thought now was as good a time as any to try and wiggle back into Mary Price’s good graces. He then sighs, placing his forehead gently on Lilith’s scalp where his lips had just touched. He completely missed Carlisle’s rehearsed words.

Mary had not. "Guess y’learnt your lesson now, ‘ey kid?” she asks, rubbing her eyes in such a way to seem she was tired rather than soaking up the few tears that were starting to collect in their corners.

" If I ever turn out like Aloysius, shoot me" Carlisle replied, before quickly backtracking "Actually, don't shoot me. Cause too many of you own guns" Carlisle said with a nervous chuckle "I will let him out later when I get home"

”Plenty of other things to get shot over,” John chuckled. ”Can we go watch the Packers game now? Kinda tired of feeling like I’m a co-star in a soap opera over here.”

"C’mon,” Mary sighs, standing up in her spot. Dinner may have been a bust but she could usually count on John being relatively easy to impress. "I’ll fix the TV up for you.”

Starring Miles Prices and Mary Price




Mary pressed the wooden front door closed with a click. She remained with her face turned to it for a moment, taking a long breath to regroup her thoughts. As much as she wanted to say Aloysius’ arrival didn’t impact her at all she couldn’t help but feel shaken in his presence. After a minute or two she turns around to instantly be caught off guard by her son standing at the end of the corridor, causing her to jump slightly. "Miles,” she sighs.

Miles had awoken to the sound of muffled voices at the doorway of the house. By the time he had rolled out of bed, thrown on a shirt and wandered over to investigate his mum had just started pressing the door closed. In the few seconds he saw enough, the black hair and big purple cheek bruise, he knew exactly who she was talking to.

”What was he doing here?” Miles asks gruffly, looking his mother up and down.

"I was just passing over a few things, not that it’s any of your business,” Mary replies before starting to walk down the hallway.

Her response made Miles grit his teeth. It may have not been his business but that answer made him uncomfortable. Miles didn’t know anything of his father outside of being a magi war criminal and abandoning his mother all those years ago, both events he wasn’t all that chuffed about. He couldn’t really place why the man was back. Did he want Miles for whatever magi atrocities he had planned next? Was he looking to woo Miles’s mother again now Miles was old enough to be fully independent and possibly out of the picture? The fact his mother dared to be near that man made him uneasy, let alone having him at the house.

”If he left whatever those things were for 25 years I doubt they matter so much he needs to be here for them," Miles snaps

"Looks like someone rolled out of the wrong side of the bed this morning." Mary shoots back, finishing her trip to the kitchen where she starts a pot of coffee. The heightened emotions of the past 24 hours was starting to wear her down, the last thing she needed was Miles’ interrogations. "If you really must know, Miles, what I gave him I did for me, not for him,” she states as she goes to grab the mugs.

”For you. The hell do you mean ‘for you’? He abandoned us, left us to struggle and all it takes is some half-assed excuse for you to be ok with that? What’s next? You’re gonna fall into his arms and try and play happy families? Not on my watch,” Miles yells back, his pale face becoming flushed in his outburst.

"It ain’t like that and I’m sure you well know it!” Mary snaps back, banging her travel cup and a mug on the kitchen bench. "Last time I checked I was the parent in this house. Thought I’d raised you better than to talk to your mother like that.”

”And I thought you were decent enough to be honest with me but here we are.”

Mary’s face flushed redder than her son’s at that comment. Funnily enough the guilt wasn’t about to consume her, it was the frustration instead. She thought they were over the petty kitchen fights back in Miles' college days but clearly she was wrong. She could understand him being mad about all she put into hiding that he was magi from him but the rest of the attacks were unwarranted. Still, she remained on his last thought. "I did what I thought was right at the time to protect you. You’ll understand that soon enough,” she replies. Mary tried her hardest to restrain herself from yelling, she was barely successful but enough to lower her tone slightly. She could only hope Miles would follow suit.

Miles, on the other hand, was not having a bar of it. He was mad, the beating in his head from last night’s liquor consumption seemed to do all but help. ”Yeah? And how’s that working out for you?” he growls.

"Miles Price!” the woman snaps. She instantly cuts herself off, running her hands across her face and growling in frustration. Her patience was wearing thin and she wasn’t sure how many more of her son’s comments she could take. "Miles,” she starts again, her tone more gentle yet she couldn’t help the frustration that flowed through her voice. "Sweetie. I love you, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me but you drive me absolutely crazy sometimes,” she drawls, her voice full of exasperation. She knew she had done little to disarm Miles but part of her didn’t really care, it had seemed this argument had gone too far for that anyway.

Miles was taken aback by his mother’s comment. He knew he was far from the perfect son, he also knew even if he was his mother would have had it hard enough to raise him. ”Would you prefer to have Carlisle as a son then since he’s oh-so-perfect?” the man yells back. If Miles was being honest he hadn’t noticed himself being concerned with the effort Mary was putting into helping his friend, it was never an issue with Lilith who Miles figured may have been his mum’s favourite some days despite her denials. If he was being honest Miles wasn’t quite sure where that line came from. Genuine jealousy or an attempt to make his mother feel bad. Likely the latter, he figured.

That comment hurt Mary, had she spent so long invested in Miles’ friends that he felt kicked aside? Or was Miles just aiming to kill as he tended to do when he got emotional? Mary could have used her powers to calm the room but didn’t pay much mind to that knowledge, instead she checked in with her divination on Miles’ purpose for his argument. It answered clearly that it was likely an attempt to guilt her and that knowledge made her madder, and more frustrated. "Don’t play that card, Miles. Don’t do that to me. You and I both know what you’re tryna do here,” she growls back.

Miles fell silent. He wanted to ask how Carlisle knew about Lilith being pregnant before him, he was sure it was Mary that had told him. He wanted to yell it and demand to know why but for as much as Miles was mouthy he knew he was close to pushing his mother over the edge. He could tell in the way she growled and stomped across the room. Miles had only ever pushed her off that ledge a handful of times in his teen years but it was enough to know that was not a scene he wanted a part in.

"Now, if you’re finished I need to go pick up my parents who’ll probably have a go at me too because being told off by my son apparently ain’t enough,” Mary grumbles, pouring coffee from the pot into her travel mug. She then bangs the pot next to the cup on the bench she had retrieved for Miles before grumbling, "You can pour your own damn coffee.”

Miles remained silent, leaving Mary to assume he had no more to say, She aggressively snatches her handbag from its hook and makes her way to the door. As she opens the door she calls back "You better have a better attitude when I get home, young man!”

Miles’ hands balled into fists as his mother slammed the door shut. Now that the house was dead silent Miles was left on his own to reflect on the conversation. His eyes trailed to the coffee pot on the table. With the adrenaline wearing off fast the colour started to drain from the man’s face. While Miles and his mother had had their spats they hadn’t really had any full fights like this since his first (and only) year in college. He gave a sigh. At least he knew where he could get an answer on Carlisle’s knowledge of his and Lil’s situation.

Miles pulled out his phone and texted to ask to meet his friend at Huskers, they were due for a hangout anyway.
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