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Post by Princess Katie on Sept 13, 2008 1:44:06 GMT -5
“You don’t say?” Pia said excitedly (and loudly). She almost knocked over her glass of blood in her fabricated fervor. She then remembered, in retrospect, that her previous statement may have offended Jack. He should be used to things like that by now, but whatever. Pia patted his shoulder and tried to sound sincere, “Sorry, love, you know what I meant.”
Genevieve took this opportunity to butt into the conversation. The conversation was to remain about Mary all night. “That’s great, Auntie Mary,” She said cheerfully, “and how is moving going?”
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Post by Miss Jack on Sept 13, 2008 1:53:45 GMT -5
Alexander stifled a yawn. He knew this night was all about Mary and Vince, but this was, stripped of its deception, girl talk and he had no use for girl talk. Casually, he stuck his fork onto Nellie's plate and began arranging her potatoes to look like a sheep.
James? James? Oh for the love of Anubis.... Vince's eyes flicked briefly to Mary in disgust, but then he remembered himself and looked away.
Alright, Vince issued a growled warning into the head's of his companions. I don't know what the hell is going on, but if I sit through much more of this, I will kill something.
Jack winced. At least they got a warning? But what was he supposed to do? "Pia, sweeting, shut up." Yeah right. He was far more scared of his wife than he was of Vince; she'd probably killed more people than he had.
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Post by Jules on Sept 13, 2008 2:09:11 GMT -5
Mary was about to come out with something else to enrage him, but of course all she got was a disgusted look from him and it deflated her faster than a needle to a balloon. She sagged a little in her chair and looked at Genn.
"It's going okay. I guess. The windows are all broken and I'm sleeping on the floor for now, but it's got...rustic charm." Suddenly wanting the spotlight off her, she turned to Alex and Nellie. "How about you guys? The cemetery treating you well?"
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Post by Princess Katie on Sept 13, 2008 2:50:14 GMT -5
Nellie was positively enchanted by the potato-sheep. This whole situation escaped her realm of understanding, so she joined with Alexander in making grass out of green beans for the sheep to graze on. She looked rather shocked when Mary addressed her. Wasn’t she not supposed to get in on this conversation? It was made pretty clear that main point of conversation should revolve around Mary. Nellie did not want Pia mad at her. Pia was scary. But she also didn’t want to be rude.
“I…Uhm, it’s going well? I’m still adjustin’, I fink is the roight word.” Nellie looked toward Alexander for backup, and hoping to high heavens that she wouldn’t get in trouble for deviating from the planned conversation.
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Post by Miss Jack on Sept 13, 2008 19:06:10 GMT -5
"It's not bad," Alexander added with a bored shrug, moving his fork back to his own plate. "Minus a few dead people." Casually, he steered the conversation back to Mary. "So, does this mean you and James are... reconciling?"
"We'd be happy to help you reconstruct the cabin, Mary," Simon put in with a soft smile.
Vince continued to try and block out the conversation. He was not, as of yet, pushed past his limit, but it wouldn't be long now.
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Post by Jules on Sept 13, 2008 19:35:06 GMT -5
Mary really didn't want to do this anymore, she felt like she'd made a fool out of herself and was desperate to leave. She glazed over Alexander's question with a noncommittal noise although she had a feeling it was a bit too late to go back now.
She seized on the opportunity Simon presented her to talk about something else. "I'd really appreciate it. There's something wrong with the ceiling and I know the shed needs some repairing and the well is dried up so I have to walk to the river to get water. I miss the circus."
Mary almost stood up and fled the room right then and there, at the very least she felt that if someone came and yanked out her tongue they'd be doing her a service. She could almost feel the awkward descending on them momentarily.
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Post by Miss Jack on Sept 13, 2008 23:05:16 GMT -5
So come back! Vince almost snapped. Clearly, if she was over him enough to be with sleazy shop vendors and past lovers, she was over him enough to tolerate him as a neighbor. They could ignore each other easily enough. And maybe, if she was just there....
A silence did descend over the table, not necessarily an awkward one, but more so a 'Aha-- now we're getting somewhere!' one. Jack waited a beat, smirking a little. "Of course we'll help Mary. And, you know, no one knows more about long-lasting architecture than an Egyptian, right Vince?"
The look the mummy shot him could have started the next ice age.
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Post by Jules on Sept 13, 2008 23:13:38 GMT -5
Mary winced, she appreciated what they were trying to do, she really did, but it was like twisting a knife in a wound now. Thinking of Vince coming to help made her want to laugh. They'd need a heavy duty cattle prod just to get him there. She saw the look he shot Jack, and decided the Mummy was probably close to the end of his leash.
"Oh, it's nothing serious. No need for an architect." Figuring she was letting him off the hook, giving him an out. "Besides, there's barely room for more than four people in there at once."
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Post by Princess Katie on Sept 13, 2008 23:52:49 GMT -5
“Well, we just helped Alexander and Nellie with theirs, I’m sure we can help with yours. It can’t be too much worse. It’s bigger, too.” Illie commented cheerfully, obviously more comfortable with this strand of conversation.
Pia snorted and kicked Jack’s foot under the table, since an audible comment about the smoothness of his ‘architecture’ comment probably wouldn’t be all that appropriate at the moment.
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Post by Miss Jack on Sept 14, 2008 0:04:09 GMT -5
Jack hid his grimace, barely. Heels hurt. Clearly, their was a subtle art to female deception he had yet to master.
Vince managed to smother his snort of amusement. They fix a house? Maybe spruce up the interior, but actual building. None of them were exactly handy-men, and they (and their wives) knew it, so who they were trying to kid, he didn't know. He'd have to go out there himself, when nobody was there of course, and make sure it wouldn't collapse on her head.
All of this he conveyed, naturally, with a sullen frown.
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Post by Jules on Sept 14, 2008 0:18:56 GMT -5
Mary looked down at her plate, it was cold and her food untouched. There was no appetite in her, despite the fact she'd worked hard all day and hadn't eaten since lunch and then only some bread and butter. She fiddled with her potatoes and smiled at Illie, "I could certainly use it. Doing it on my own is harder than I'd thought." She'd actually been going to ask the guys for help, but not infront of Vince.
"I'm--I'm not feeling so well." She said slowly, focusing on her napkin ring. "I think I'm going to head out early." She pushed out her chair and stood, hoping no one was going to make it hard for her to leave. Mary just really wanted to be alone all of the sudden. "Besides I have to walk all the way home and it's getting late and thank you for dinner it was delicious and I'll see you all soon?"
She'd taken a leave of absence from the L.O.S listing 'moving' as a reason. Bitter sweetly, she was due back in a week. While she missed work she wasn't looking forward to seeing indifferent and unaffected Vince every day.
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Post by Princess Katie on Sept 14, 2008 19:19:23 GMT -5
Finola stood too, shaking her head as she did so. “Don’t be daft. It’s like, dark, and a long way to walk. I’ll give you a ride.” she offered. “And don’t worry, I’m a much safer driver than Alexander.” She made a sound that was almost a laugh (she never really laughed), and waved over her shoulder at the table. “I’ll be right back. Don’t eat dessert without me.”
Genevieve snorted, “We’ll scrape up whatever is left on the serving spoon, I’m sure that’ll be enough to fill you up.”
Finola responded with a huff and a flip of her ponytail. Once the door to the dining room was closed, Finnie looked at Mary very seriously. “You have no idea how pissy Vince has been lately.”
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Post by Jules on Sept 14, 2008 19:47:46 GMT -5
Mary didn't argue. The sooner she could be home, the better and the girl did make a lot of sense. "Thanks Finn." She said as they came into the hallway. She was about to ask after the girl's experiments when she mentioned Vince and Mary stiffened a little.
"He's always pissy. If he's more pissy than usual it's probably because he hasn't found where I left his pain killers."
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Post by Princess Katie on Sept 14, 2008 20:13:17 GMT -5
“No,” Finola said firmly, “it’s worse than that. Let’s rate it on a one-to-a-hundred scale. Most people’s normal is about a twenty (give or take) on any given day. Mom’s is a negative fourty-seven. Vince’s normal is about a sixty-three,” She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Mary was following. Her rating system was kind of complicated. “He’s like a two-hundred and fourty-six right now.”
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Post by Jules on Sept 14, 2008 20:22:56 GMT -5
Mary winced a little as she felt a bit of hope bloom in her chest. She could feel some part of her begin to theorize about why he would be so much more cranky and could it be because of her? Because he did really care? And the other part of her, the much larger part was trying to brutalize the hope to a pulp. But to no avail.
"It has nothing to do with me." She said as though saying it allowed would silence her wishful thinking. It hurt, because while she knew it was pointless, hopeless and impossible Mary could still feel herself hoping. It was like a part of her was this child still desperately trying to believe Santa Clause existed when faced with the facts.
"If anything, it's probably because I've been off work so long."
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