Victor (to Persephone): You're headed back today, huh?
Persephone (to Victor): Yeah, I can't put off the inevitable. Besides, it's really crowded here & one less person might help your parents.
Victor (to Persephone): Oh. Yeah. Heh. There have never been this many people in the apartment before. You'll be careful, won't you? Back home?
Persephone (to Victor): Of course. I'd say, aren't I always but you'd know I was lying. :-P
Victor (to Persephone): Damn straight I would. When are you leaving?
Persephone (to Victor): Probably this afternoon. Your mom was supposed to bring me over, but I think she's still dead to the world.
An hour or so later:
Persephone (to Poppy): Hi there, Aunt Poppy. Are you feeling okay? Need anything?
Poppy (to Persephone): Shhhh, honey. I feel as though I have been hit by a very large bus filled with tinier buses.
Persephone (to Poppy): Oh, I'm sorry. Here, let me make you some tea.
Poppy (to Persephone): That would be lovely. Thank you. Don't mind me, I'm just going to curl up on this table for a minute or two.
A few minutes later:
Vincent (to Persephone): Are you ready to go, hun? The little missus is fast asleep in the kitchen, so how about we take the long way?
Persephone (to Vincent): Oh. I don't mind at all. Is she going to be alright? I don't think I've ever seen her like this before.
Vincent (to Persephone): Honestly, I've never seen her like this either. But don't worry. I think she'll be fine. She crossed over 3 times yesterday. Twice while injured, and once with a passenger. It takes a lot out of her.
Persephone (to Vincent): Yeah, and not to mention... Um, nothing. Nevermind. Oh, look at the time. We should really be going, if we want to avoid the rush.
Vincent (to Persephone): Persephone ...
Persephone (to Vincent): Oh, damn. Me & my big mouth... When I told her about Mom being preggers again, she-- I swore I wouldn't say anything.
Vincent (to Persephone): What aren't you telling me?
Persephone (to Vincent): Aunt Poppy thought she might be expecting... She was going to take a test & wasn't sure how she felt about it. So, she didn't want to say anything to you until she had decided. She is going to kill me.
Vincent (to Persephone): Oh my good gracious! What is it with this family & synchronization? If Mouse is preggers too, I'll eat my rapier!
Persephone (to Vincent): That's doubtful. Mars said her dad was thinking about getting a vasectomy. Though, she might have been kidding. That girl has a weird sense of humor.
Vincent (to Persephone): Hee hee. I don't doubt it. Thank you for telling me, hun. If that's the case, we'll definitely let her sleep. Are you ready? Do you need to say goodbye to your cousins.
Persephone (to Vincent): I probably should. (to Nathaniel & Victor) Well, I'm off to the great beyond. I'll see you guys next time.
Nathaniel (to Persephone): Later.
Victor (to Persephone): OK. You're coming to visit again, right? Don't leave me here alone with Nate and Mars. Who knows what will happen to me?
Persephone (to Victor): Come here and give me a hug, you big ninny. I'll miss you.
Victor (to Persephone): Be careful!
Persephone (to Victor): You too. And, as soon as you can, you better come and visit me. Okay? And, feel free to contact me with the communicator whenever you want. I keep it my pocket all of the time. And, distract Yoyo from sword practice a bit, so that I can catch up. And, I don't really want to go home.
Victor (to Persephone): Heh. I'll do what I can. See you later, Seph.
Persephone (to Victor): Bye, Victor. (to Nathaniel) Bye, Nate. (to Vincent) Okay, I'm ready to go.
A little while later:
Poppy (to Victor): Did I miss Persephone leaving, sweetie? I had wanted to say goodbye to her.
Victor (to Poppy): Yeah. She left a little while ago. Are you feeling alright, Mom? You look a bit pale.
Poppy (to Victor): I'll be fine, honey. I've just got a bit of a headache. I overexerted myself a bit, yesterday. This is one of those lovely moments when I'm reminded that I'm not as young as I once was. When I was your age I would do the same sort of thing & be back the next afternoon doing it again. Now, I feel like just talking about it is wearing me out.
Victor (to Poppy): Do you want some lunch, or a cuppa or something?
Poppy (to Victor): Some peppermint tea would be fine, honey. Victor dear, can I ask you a question?
Victor (to Poppy): Sure, Mom. What's up?
Poppy (to Victor): I've been doing some thinking and well, do you ever regret being an only child? I mean, your cousins all have siblings, do you feel like you missed out on something?
Victor (to Poppy): Oh. Uh, wow. I wasn't expecting that question. Um, I suppose it's been lonely from time to time, but it's not a big deal. But it's not like I suffered or anything. Why? Are we adopting Nate? :-P
Poppy (to Victor): No, we're not adopting Nate... I thought I might be pregnant, turns out I'm not. But, I discovered that I was a little disappointed about the prospect of not having another child. I wasn't expecting that.
Victor (to Poppy): I... I have no idea what to say to that, Mom.
Poppy (to Victor): I think you turned out pretty good. Honestly, I had never given much thought to having another kid. You were enough, but you're getting older, soon you'll move out & do your own thing. I'm not sure I'm ready to give up all of that just yet. I'm sorry your mom's being a big sap. I don't know what's come over me. I should just go shoot or stab something. :-P
Victor (to Poppy): Don't freak out! It's not like I'm moving out tomorrow or anything! I still don't even know what I'm doing for college.
Poppy (to Victor): I know, honey. I'm not freaking out. I was just trying to have an adult conversation with my son. See, this is why I let your father handle these kind of talks with you. He's so much better at them. He had Mouse to teach him how to talk to people about emotional topics. While, I had my brothers, who have the emotional range of an iceberg.
Victor (to Poppy): Oh. Heh. Sorry. You're doing fine. I guess I just don't know much about babies, or empty nests, or anything. You're worrying too much. I don't regret the way I grew up. It's been odd sometimes, I guess, but we're kind of oddballs. So, you know, it works. I mean, I know I've changed the time stream, and stolen airships and a whole host of other shit... Stuff! I mean, stuff. But, we're OK people. It's more than a lot of people can say about their families.
Poppy (to Victor): I know, honey... Bear in mind, that I haven't spoken to your father about this at all... How would you feel about us having another child? I mean, you get to have a say in this to a certain extent. Your father may be completely opposed to it & I'll just have to come to terms with that, I suppose. But, I'd like to know what your thoughts are.
Victor (to Poppy): I don't know. I mean, I didn't mind when Seph lived with us, but a baby is a whole other thing. I'm not going to lie, Mom, it's going to be weird as hell, but if you and Dad want another kid, I won't pitch a fit. Do you, uh, do you think if you guys had another kid he or she would be like Nate and I?
Poppy (to Victor): I don't know. Before I met your father & Jacob, I had only known of one other person who could do what I did. Despite the fact that it has cropped up in the Jones family, at least twice that we know of. I still think it's pretty rare. That will probably be one of the things your father & I will talk about... Oh, this is going to be a fun conversation. For all his adventurous nature, your dear father does not like change all that much.
Victor (to Poppy): Ha ha ha! No he doesn't! He pouted for a week when he realized I was taller than him. Aside from our family and Mr. Rathbone, who was the other person who could walk through portals?
Poppy (to Victor): Oh. Just someone I knew a long time ago, honey. She died.
Victor (to Poppy): Oh. Sorry. Is that how you knew what was happening when you started to see portals opening?
Poppy (to Victor): Yes, Constance was the one who showed me that I wasn't crazy. She could have crossed over & stayed here, but she said it felt too foreign to her and that she would miss her home... She was one of the sweetest people I ever knew… I'm sorry, honey, I-- I think I need to go lay down.
Several hours later:
Poppy (to Vincent): Hi lover, did you get Persephone home alright? Would you like a drink? We are wonderfully alone in the house at the moment.
Vincent (to Poppy): We ARE? How on earth did we manage that? Persephone was delivered home without a hitch. Hee hee. Her mother had handed her a broom before I was even off the ground.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh, the poor dear. We are child-free because Nate is at work and Victor went to Yoyo's recital with Mars.
Vincent (to Poppy): Really? Whatever shall we do with our time, then?
Poppy (to Vincent): I thought we could just enjoy the silence for a few moments and then, perhaps curl up on the couch with a movie. I'm still feeling a little woozy from yesterday.
Vincent (to Poppy): Of course, hun. Are you sure you're alright? I've never see a crossing take so much out of you.
Poppy (to Vincent): I know, honey. It was honestly a bit different than normal. The other two crossings were fine but the one with Nate was odd. It was like touching a live wire or something. I'm not sure if it was because of the multiple crossings or if there was some sort of interference.
Vincent (to Poppy): Huh. The same thing happened when Victor picked up Persephone. He blacked out after he picked her up.
Poppy (to Vincent): So, judging by the way you're eyeballing me, I'm assuming Persephone told you something that she shouldn't have. Hmmm?
Vincent (to Poppy): You know that girl can't keep a secret worth a damn, hun. So?
Poppy (to Vincent): There's not really much to tell, honey. I thought I might be pregnant. Turns out I'm not.
Vincent (to Poppy): Oh that is not all there is to tell, you big fibber!
Poppy (to Vincent): What do you mean, lover?
Vincent (to Poppy): Oh come on now, sweetness. I know you better than that. Are you disappointed?
Poppy (to Vincent): There's no hiding from you. Yes, I am a little disappointed. I think I surprised myself a bit. I thought I'd be more relieved then anything else. There's a part of me that misses the closeness that I had with Victor when he was little.
Vincent (to Poppy): Heh. I don't miss the lack of sleep, that's for certain. Do you--do you want another baby?
Poppy (to Vincent): I'm not completely sure, honey, that's what I've been thinking about. There's a part of me that wouldn't mind it, but I'm probably just being silly. I mean, do we want to go throw all the diapers & strange sleeping schedules? And, once Victor moves out, it might nice to have to be just the two of us, again.
Vincent (to Poppy): Come here, lover. Honestly, I'm not worried about the diapers, or the lack of sleep, or even the terrifying amount of bio-hazard babies produce. I'm more worried that we're fast approaching 40, and, honestly, in professions that can be messy. If something were to happen to us, that would leave Victor to help raise the baby, & I'm not sure that would be fair to him. I feel like sometimes he didn't have enough of a childhood as is. Of course, if he had a sibling, at least there would be someone else who knew exactly how insane it is to be raised in this family. Hee hee.
Poppy (to Vincent): You're absolutely right, honey. But, we wouldn't be going into it blind, like we did with Victor. But, if you think it's a bad idea, I'll drop the whole thing. I'll be sad about it for a bit, but I'll be fine. It's probably just hormones or empty nest syndrome or just hearing about Bernard & Molly's impending child.
Vincent (to Poppy): I didn't ever say it was a bad idea, hun. Do you really, honestly, want another kid?
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, I really don't know. I keep thinking of a million reasons not to. But, think of the fun we'd have trying. ;-)
Vincent (to Poppy): Ha ha ha! Good heavens. You CERTAINLY know how to get my interest.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, honey, could we maybe just think about it for a few days & see how we feel? In the meantime, we can just entertain ourselves. :-P
Vincent (to Poppy): That sounds like an excellent idea. You know, hun, it's been a LONG time since we've had a baby. We might be out of practice.
A few hours later, at Renfield's, West Piedmont:
Mouse (to Nathaniel): So, Nate, how did you like your first night of work?
Nathaniel (to Mouse): Well, I didn't break EVERY glass in the joint, so, you know... Uh, Shit. I have no idea. Did I do alright?
Mouse (to Nathaniel): Yeah, Oliver said you handled the register just fine. So, if you're willing to stay, I've got a job for you.
Nathaniel (to Mouse): Uh, yeah. Thanks. I should probably get back to the mad house.
Mouse (to Nathaniel): Alright, I'll see you tomorrow.
