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Tweak says, "No disassemble Number Five!!"

Lila Gray (burningveins) wrote in light_of_may,
@ 2011-06-16 00:47:00

Entry tags:

2009-08-17, lila, madeleine

Gonna tell me what you are?
Who: Lila and Madeleine + NPC familiars
Where: Madeleine's
When: Late afternoon

Scarlet Oak wasn't that interesting. Lila had managed to come to that conclusion days ago but it hadn't been changed by anything as of yet. The only interesting things that happened here that hadn't anywhere else in the world were her daughter revealing that yes, she actually was pregnant, and then of course there was the father of her child. Lila wouldn't lie and say that she wished anything but that she found him first, but he seemed to make Madeleine happy. And that was more than could be said for that rather useless water elemental she had been married to. Lila hadn't been at all distraught when she learned of Anthony's death. He'd been no real use to anyone. He hadn't helped to give her a grandchild and had apparently been a part of the reason why Madeleine left England.

'But if he hadn't then you wouldn't have a grandchild on the way because she wouldn't have found the snake-man.'

"Point," Lila conceded as she finished brushing her hair and allowed her familiar to climb up her arm and perch on her shoulder. He seemed to enjoy sitting there, where he could play with her hair, and it didn't actually bother her. Even if she had a strong feeling that part of the reason why he enjoyed it so had something to do with the fact that it made him very visible and he was fully aware that Madeleine was the opposite of fond of him. "I can still be irritated if I choose so."

'I've yet to find a fire elemental who isn't able to find a reason to be irritated even if they're having the best day on the planet.'

"If you weren't my familiar I would char you for that." Lila's smile was amused as she began to look for her daughter.

'You just made my point perfectly well.'

Ignoring that statement she spotted a familiar head of hair. As well she hoped that the only other person she came across in this house was Madeleine. Unless it was Zaviar... "Madeleine, darling, I cannot believe that this city spent an entire weekend celebrating the water. Tell me you've heard tell that they do the same for fire."

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burningveins
2011-06-19 02:48 pm UTC (link)

To that confused look and the subsequent question, Lila gave a patient, correcting smile. "In most cases, yes they are, but you were a special exception now weren't you?" Even if she hadn't been then Lila would've still claimed it was true. Because Madeleine was the one who was there and the one who was pregnant. She was required by the rules of her own nature to say things such as that. The other side of her nature, the much smaller and rarer seen one, was responsible for the embrace she gave her middle child. Lila wasn't a hugger, really, though she was rather big on touching. But for special events like this she made an exception and when she released Madeleine she could just tell that she wasn't in as bad a temper anymore. See? All she needed on occasion was her mother. This was why she should've stayed in England.

'I don't think fireworks are legal.' Martie had seen a show where people had to go to different states to get them because they weren't allowed. He didn't know if that applied to this state in particular but he was going to think that it did. Because he could. And because he doubted the snake would call him on it. She was a snake, she couldn't even turn the TV on without help.

"There's this nice little place in Ann Arbor," Lila offered as she took her seat again, wishing to finish her tea before it grew cold and needed to be reheated. While it was no trouble to do it always took something from the taste. "Because god knows there's nothing in this little place you've settled yourself in. But the real question is do you have any cravings yet? I wouldn't want to suggest a place your stomach won't allow you to eat at. There goes all the fun." Lila wouldn't suggest where she really wanted to go. Partially because she was sure that Madeleine wouldn't want to and then because ... no it was just that. Lila would be perfectly fine taking her daughter to that one restaurant because all of the waiters seemed to be male and they wore tight pants.

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burnlyrical
2011-06-27 07:25 pm UTC (link)

She believed herself a special exception in most cases; a trait that she considered to be hereditary and had yet to find a shred of proof to the contrary. Madeleine had excelled academically, had never been for want of a social life in spite of being what the vanilla plebs quite accurately called "an elitist bitch" and she was born right - did she need any other reasons? Oh, and she was rich. 'And a master.' That hadn't been something her ego needed reminding of, but she acknowledged it all the same. Nevertheless, if the thing in her uterus was both born right - 'Zaviar said it would be, remember.' - and female, she was never doing this to it. There was a pause - a moment of silence in her head while her familiar waited for her to correct herself. Who was she trying to convince, exactly? She was barely into her first trimester and she was fairly certain the little fiend could tell she was lying. "As long as I don't have to suffer an absurdly long labour, I don't care." She could take everything else out on someone else at some point. Childbirth - well, there were really only two people to blame for that and she wasn't all that keen on taking her frustrations out on either of them. "How did you stop yourself from setting fire to any midwives?" Just out of interest.

'That's because this country is backward,' Althea informed him. She even managed to think it in the exact same tone of impatience Madeleine had used when she had said it - in a completely different conversation that had nothing to do with fireworks and everything to do with the traffic. Or something.

"As I recall, I didn't settle here as much as pull it out from under him," Madeleine pointed out from over the top of her mug. True, she had since settled, but there were reasons for that. One and then two good reasons for that. "No cravings that I've noticed and nothing makes me ill that didn't prior to getting myself pregnant." The suspicion that she was craving cheese was only a suspicion and she still mostly ate like a horse. "The menu remains as varied as always." Which meant Lila still had free rein. Madeleine wasn't sure how concerned to be. "Why, what constitutes as 'nice' these days and what is the dress code?"

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burningveins
2011-07-01 02:07 am UTC (link)

"The first labor is always the longest," Lila pointed out. Martie made a little chittering noise and Lila gave him an amused grin because he knew she was doing it on purpose. Which she was. "Something about the body getting used to it... the ones after are either longer or shorter. Although yours was my most difficult it was Jackson's that last the longest. Nearly an entire day. That little brat just didn't want to come out into the cold world." Not that Lila blamed him. She was definitely warmer than any delivery room could hope to be, though she'd been younger than Madeleine when she had him. As she began searching for her purse she pursed her lips as she thought about that last question. "What makes you so sure that I didn't set fire to each and every one of them? It is a wonderful stress reliever and your grandfather disapproved of the fact that I wanted to set you father on fire instead." It had been a valid option so far as she was concerned.

'I think you're backwards.'

"That just makes the place even better." Had Lila divorced her husband instead of burning him alive because the idiot had locked her in the attic then she'd have tried to take everything he owned. "In that case... nice and the dress code are two varied things that I'm never sure on until I arrive. I'm sure that a skirt and nice top would suit just fine, dear. So if you cleaned yourself up a bit then we could be off to find somewhere to eat. I'm very nearly craving steak." A small smile played across her lips as she took another drink from her cup. "I think that may have something to do with that delicious piece you keep bringing here. Temptation is a terrible thing, dear."

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burnlyrical
2011-07-02 12:06 am UTC (link)

Alright, say the little demon was successfully brought to term and born right - 'What did I just tellinformsay to you?' - that did not mean that Madeleine herself would survive this ordeal. 'What?' She was half considering drowning herself in the bath. Stories of how difficult childbirth could be were categorically not what she wanted to be-- "An entire day?" Her eyes had widened, mouth not quite managing to close properly. "Sod that for a game of soldiers. I want a C-Section." And she meant it. She would rather go through surgery than that. For the briefest of moments the image of flaming midwives raised her eyebrow in amusement before she remembered what the point of her question was. Drumming her nails against her mug, she removed the mention of her father from her thoughts. "As much as I don't care who knows what I am, I don't think roasting hospital staff is a good idea given the current political climate, Mama."

'I think you're the pygmy missing link.' The corner of Madeleine's mouth twitched in a smirk.

With a hum of contemplation and a glance around her kitchen, Madeleine had to agree. "I just need to finish it..." she said absently, half-aware that she never really would because the parts that she didn't want to do would never truly get done and she was restless enough that everything else just kept getting moved about. She needed new furniture anyway. Someone also needed to tell her mother than you could not define a word by using the word itself. "So I'm not to out-shine you, then," she quipped. It could be safely said there would be a reasonable number of men there, in that case. Steak. Steak sounds good, actually... "The delicious piece is mine." Madeleine smirked. She was nothing but smug about that. "And I'm already carrying the result of that temptation."

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burningveins
2011-07-04 04:26 pm UTC (link)

"But darling then you'd have all those scars on your stomach and you wouldn't want to ruin your lovely skin. Even if stretchmarks might do that for you." If Lila got all of this out of the way now then she'd be able to stop and be a supporting mother with pleasant stories instead of - oh who was she kidding? No she wouldn't. Her children had made her wait this long and damnit she was going to get her entertainment out of it. "Who said that you'd be exposed to multiple hospital staff? I half don't trust them and the ones they have for nurses. Private care, Madeleine. You haven't forgotten that you're able to afford that have you?"

'Do you even know what you just said or have you been watching too much TV? I'm putting it on the channel where they turn snakes into forms of clothing next time they leave the house.'

By pure virtue of the fact that she was younger Madeleine tended to outshine Lila. Not that she'd ever admit that unless the words were quite literally pried out of her mouth with a crow-bar. "I don't see why you'd need to try and look better than me. After all you have your Zaviar and seem rather attached since your hackles went all sorts up when all I did was get a better look." Singing someone's shirt off so that you could make sure they had good genes was perfectly acceptable so far as Lila was aware. She didn't want to live in a world where it wasn't. "Saying that only makes me wonder if you are rather like rabbits or if he's virile. Stop giving me material to think about if you don't want me to do nothing but stare the next time that he comes to visit. Which, incidentally, should be soon. It's only fair that I get to know the father of my grandchild better."

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burnlyrical
2011-07-08 02:36 pm UTC (link)

Fair point. "There are ways to minimise stretchmarks," Madeleine countered. "And treatments to get rid of them. That I can afford." There would forever be a bonus to being rich. The bigger bonus was the exchange rate. 'Can I start betting on whether she'll run out of stories?' By all means. Except she wouldn't. Madeleine could see her mother making them up rather than ever admitting that any of her children had been easy to handle in any way whatsoever. Again, she now wanted at least her brother to hurry up and reproduce so she could help disturb him and his... whatever she was. "Private care full of fire elementals or private care full of fire-proofed staff? I don't have your control." Or didn't. She hadn't managed to set fire to anything in the kitchen yet. Given the mood she was in to begin with and that Martie had been winding her up, that was an achievement.

'Doesn't movebotherunsettle me. Madeleine thinks things like that all the time.' And she'd mean it too if the act wouldn't kill both of them.

Madeleine's eyebrow rose slightly. She didn't view her mother as the kind of woman one tried to outshine because there wasn't much point. She wanted what she wanted and, as far as Madeleine could recollect, she got it. There wasn't any room for negotiation. Which meant you could walk out into a restaurant wearing nothing and there was still a distinct chance that Lila Gray commanded the attention of the most attractive men. Besides, it was easy for Madeleine to make men back down. It was called being herself. Without the usual fae mask. "I was joking. And yes, I am attached and that possessive pronoun is still correct." She was going to repeat it until she was told to stop because she was making someone's ears bleed. 'She and Zaviar had that conversation alre--' "Althea." 'But you did.' Ignoring her familiar was one thing, ignoring Lila was another. And Madeleine truly did not want to consider what her mother may or may not be thinking about. So she wasn't answering. "I'll ask him." Or she would conveniently forget. No, she would have to ask or the question would only arise again and again and again. And then Martie might lose his extremities.

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