And I clicked my heels Who: Cameron & Amanda Where: Hospital --> Home When: Noon-ish
There were a lot of things Cameron needed to do. Later that evening was the debate with Liliya and he definitely, definitely needed to be at his peak. She wasn’t some kid fresh out of law school, she was a vampire with years more experience on him who’d somehow gone and convinced people that there wasn’t a problem at all with what she was. It wasn’t right and yet she’d done it and, wrong as he knew she was, Cameron also knew he had to be careful. But despite all of that he was leaving work rather early. His father wasn’t thrilled about it but Cameron had actually ignored what his father thought was best. Like hell he was going to let some driver pick Amanda up from the hospital. He’d never hear the end of it for one, she’d sulk for eternity for two and for three he wanted to pick her up. This whole ordeal had been a mess and he wanted it over with. Sooner rather than later no matter how much press coverage it’d given him. Things like that weren’t supposed to come at the expense of the people you cared about.
Or loved. Whatever.
He parked in the pick-up area and strode into the hospital like he belonged there even though he didn’t, not even noticing the hospital scent with how much time he’d spent there. He stopped at the desk to let them know he was there, declining the offer to be shown the way to the room. Cameron knew the way, thank you very much, and didn’t need help. Peeking into the room he smiled at the sight of Amanda. “Ready to go?”
Amanda had had enough of the hospital. Enough of the hospital and enough of its wretched staff, whispering the moment they believed they were out of earshot. She was fairly convinced she would end up with lop-sided frown lines for the number of times her eyebrow had raised at the back of someone’s head. No, she wasn’t faking the state she was in. It didn’t matter that the assault on her neck had healed -- it had scarred, and there was always the possibility of other lasting damages. It was considered fine for soldiers to be sent home with their so-called ‘combat stress’, but when she was attacked. No, she was accused of being melodramatic. Were she a lesser woman, Amanda would have struck the place off her list -- well, her mother’s list -- of yearly donations completely. And, really, it shouldn’t have been so hard to procure a mirror. She had her own, certainly, but the idiot nurse had ‘helped’ her pack it before she could see to her hair.
Pulling a face at her reflection, she sighed. No, this wouldn’t do. Today was important. She needed to look as bright-eyed as possible for when she saw Cameron. Nothing was to effect his performance. Especially since a loved one being released from hospital after however traumatic an ordeal was supposed to be uplifting. One hand ruffling her hair into... something that looked a little better than it had previously, Amanda flashed a smile at herself then immediately turned it on the familiar face at the door. “Yes, please, before that nurse comes back.” She really did want to go home, and she was pleased to see him. But Amanda truly never wanted to see that woman again. Ever.
So Amanda wasn’t quite as preened as usual, Cameron didn’t expect her to be. She didn’t have all of her supplies - those were back at the house because the staff didn’t approve of bringing all of them into the place - so it wasn’t like she could. Besides, she looked fine and he smiled to show that he didn’t mind anything that he was seeing. “God forbid the nurse comes to say good-bye,” he joked, stepping over the bed to help her. Habit, really, and he didn’t mind. It was actually nice to know that she wasn’t just going for a walk down the hall to show she could but out of the hospital and into the car, then home. Maybe she’d even be feeling up to coming to the debate tonight. “Come on then, our mothers” - because the two were practically the same person when it came to what they wanted - “will love knowing that I’ve finally taken you home. I swear that mine calls twice a day like she thinks I’m not going to eat or something.” Which, okay, he forgot sometimes. These things happened. Didn’t mean that he needed his mom to point it out to him.
She may not have been fully equipped, but Amanda still expected her reflection to look better than it did at present. Even if Cameron did not seem to mind at all, she did. One hand moved to press the tension out of her forehead before her eyebrows knit together completely. “If she comes anywhere near me, it won’t be to say a mere good-bye.” She could have continued, informed him that there was nothing comforting or nurturing about the woman, but those were not Cameron’s problems. They weren’t even hers any longer, though she would still be mentioning it to her mother. And perhaps her not-quite mother in law. That particular thought alone stung, but she brushed it away in order to focus on things of immediate importance. Their mothers garnered something of an affectionate eyeroll. Right now, she was far more interested in getting home than she was in broadcasting it to everyone else, but their reaction was to be expected. As usual. Brow forming a delicate crease of concern, Amanda gave Cameron a slightly pointed look. “And you have been eating.” It wasn’t quite a question, because she trusted him to be able to look after himself, but it still required a confirmation. She wasn’t either of their mothers, but she had her own worries occasionally.
Cameron hadn’t ever spent enough time in a hospital to know what the staffing was like. He was too healthy for all of that and didn’t see anything in the future happening that would put him there. Oh sure, Amanda’d gotten hurt but that sort of thing would only happen once, lightning never struck the same place twice and what vampire would be that idiotic? Though he did hate seeing the scars on her neck, fingers itching to brush them away, they screamed that he hadn’t picked the right person to look after her when she was out and even more that they were right. “I ate more often than I forgot,” Cameron acknowledged before turning for the door, arm automatically looping around her waist. Partially habit that he’d started trying to act on because she’d remarked on his lack of physical shows of affection anywhere and partially because he really was just glad that she was walking and out of the hospital after all that had happened. And I don’t even have the vampire’s head to give her. “Probably ate better than you, what with this excuse of food they tried serving you.” He’d tried some once, just to see, and had then gone to lecture the nearest nurse on how they couldn’t feed their patients that even if it did have all the nutritional value it needed. Disgusting.
Had she known her scars were at all visible, Amanda would have been mortified. Those... were not for Cameron to see. They would always be there, even if they faded with time, and she had used them as devices against the nurses rather relentlessly -- but he was a different matter entirely. When she got home it would not be a problem, she had reasoned. At home she had enough high-collared items of clothing, accessories and make-up to make sure the damn things were out of sight when they needed to be. She remained blissfully ignorant that her hair alone was not an adequate veil, suppressing a smile at the admission that he had, at some point, and no doubt more than once, forgotten to eat. She could forgive him that since she had deliberately not eaten her meals on more than one occasion. They were vile. With her thoughts tugged out of dietary habits, Amanda considered the arm around her waist with an appreciative smile and tucked her own arm around Cameron’s waist. As much as it was a display of affection, it was mostly for her own benefit. His reaction to such things varied little. Besides, it would be nice for someone -- even that awful nurse -- to see them both well and together. “It was either the hospital food or starve, darling.” Though her tone did not suggest it was in any way appreciated. She wasn’t even going to begin on how many times she had been told she was just fine and didn’t need to be present for dinner to begin with. Uncaring bitches.
Cameron had enough sense to not remark on any flaw that he saw unless he was asked - and then he was probably supposed to lie. He didn’t like sleeping on the couch but it was better than sleeping next to a stiff Amanda who practically seemed to emanate cold. Besides, he’d never call attention to something related to a supernatural when it touched on Amanda. Then he’d flinch when he looked at her and that he couldn’t have. His body did tense ever so slightly when he felt her arm around his waist and he had to take several breaths, reminding himself that these reactions were what had built up the little insistence, before his body relaxed while they walked. “We’ll fix that, you can have whatever you want at home, I’ll even make it before I have to leave.” Because she made it out of the hospital so she deserved something special. He was also hoping to keep her nice and appeased so that she wouldn’t sulk over the fact that her two week tops time period had come and gone. Twice. “Are you going to come tonight?”
And there it was. The tensing of muscles that, while not exactly welcome as such, was familiar. It was a familiarity that was oddly grounding where it would have otherwise been irksome. Part of being a couple was that they behaved as a couple and not as whatever it was that Cameron was allegedly more content with. It was hard to be together when there appeared to be an obvious gap between you. But she could let it slide for the moment. She could. Besides, he was quite relaxed now and it generally put her in better spirits. As for what she wanted, at the moment the list was potentially endless and that was only taking into account the decent meals she had already missed out on. “Do you think you’re up to that task?” It was most definitely tongue in cheek, but at the same time she did not want him to make unnecessary efforts when he had something rather more important to focus on. Her craving for pancakes was honestly dire, but she wasn’t going to let it interfere with, well, anything. “Of course -- I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” her features arranged themselves into a rather more supportive smile while she considered how many vampires may be cursing the fact she had survived. Yes, a living testament that these creatures were not to be trusted was putting herself back in the public eye. If they had a problem with it they could climb on top of their pyres. Not that that was the only reason she was going. She was, of course, being supportive.
No remark? No arching of the eyebrow or vexed sigh that informed Cameron that yes she’d noticed his tensing and wasn’t happy about it? Huh. Had she been given something to leave her slightly sedated? No, that couldn’t be, her eyes were perfectly clear. Maybe being stuck in the hospital at loosened her up just a little bit and, while Cameron hadn’t minded her before, wasn’t all bad. The corner of his mouth tugged up in a smirk and he leaned over to press a kiss to the top of her head, completely ignoring everyone else because they didn’t matter and it wasn’t like they were in some crowded room. They were leaving a hospital and going to his car. This could be blamed on the fact that she’d been gone for nearly a month. Your fiance - who was supposed to be your wife by now, even if it’d seemed rushed to Cameron he’d accepted it - wasn’t supposed to vanish into the hospital for a month. Nearly losing Amanda hadn’t been good for Cameron, not at all, and very few people were privy to that knowledge. “Mandy, I took off work early to take you home. Pretty sure I’m up for lunch, going over guest lists, getting the dust off your desk, making the bed back up - because I haven’t been sleeping there, it’s cold - ...whatever you want before we have to get ready to go.” Because if she was coming then of course, she’d come with him. Cameron wasn’t quite sure how confident he felt about letting her out on her own. Not that he could watch her, that’d be overbearing, but he could be nervous.
Reaching the door, he pushed it open and led her to the still-running car, only releasing her waist and unwinding her arm from his after he opened the passenger door. “Look at that, out and back into the world with everyone else.” All of the filth even.
Selective hearing was, when necessary, a wonderful thing. The mention of guest lists had been wiped out of Cameron’s speech before Amanda could fully register the internal twitch it caused. For that, she would actually have to think about the missed date. She would also need to be perfectly comfortable with the idea of setting another. The PR in her was screaming at her to consider the positive publicity it would bring and, yes, she had to concede it would look marvellous for both of them. Though, should the publicity turn out to be largely negative, nothing would look marvellous if they ended up with some kind of supernatural a-bomb. She loved Cameron, she really did, but she didn’t want both of them dead over what was potentially a publicity stunt. Bright-eyed, Amanda. “And I’m grateful,” she acknowledged with a rather brighter smile that he was only getting because he’d kissed her head and admitted to not sleeping in the bed. “But right now I could settle for pancakes and hot chocolate. And a shower. Oh, god, and something decent to wear.” There was actually nothing wrong with what she was wearing, ignoring the fact she had worn it too many times in the past few weeks. Recycling outfits on quite such a regular basis and without all the make-up she otherwise could not live without had her on a permanent setting of ‘invalid’. That word was for those left in the waiting room -- not her. “But the bed, Cam,” her eyebrow raised affectionately, “We do need to fix the bed.” And clean her desk. She wasn’t in the car yet and already the list was piling up. She had missed her life.
“Well, excluding the ones still stuck in there.” ‘Bright-eyed’ didn’t mean she had to be sympathetic. Sliding into the seat with what was almost a triumphant expression, Amanda beamed. Alive and kicking the appropriate asses. “Where did you sleep? Tell me at least that it was comfortable.” Bad sleep effected everything. But then that was what the little blue pills were for.
Cameron had no idea that Amanda was having wedding issues and if he had known he’d not have mentioned anything dealing with it. Because the whole thing was her idea and he didn’t see why it would’ve changed. He’d, of course, never had an experience anywhere near what hers had been. No one had ever threatened him outside the world of law and politics and in that world he’d just smile and laugh it off. He probably didn’t know how to be properly afraid for himself. Other people? Sort of. He’d worry for Amanda now without considering that they might be a lasting effect from the occurrence. Unless she said something or he noticed odd behavior. He nodded to what she said, pancakes and hot chocolate it was, running over what they had in the house to make sure that he had the proper ingredients. He did. “Maybe you can shower and get changed while I make you lunch.” Which was breakfast. It was his speciality after all. Pulling out of the parking lot and turning back towards Scarlet Oak, Cameron actually had to think about where he’d been sleeping. “That depended. You know how I have that cot in my office just in case-” because my father has one and I keep trying to be like him- “I used that, and sometimes the couch... luckily I didn’t sleep a lot.” Work, work and more work, and he’d had a lot of it with all the vampire activity and the second surge of demon attacks that he’d been glad Amanda was already hospitalized for. “Which isn’t something to be concerned about.”
Trying not to pay too much attention to her reflection in the side mirror, Amanda rearranged her hair as idly as she could manage when adamant she would hide those scars. She should had worn a shirt with a higher collar. “Mm, that sounds divine,” and would give her the chance she needed to make herself more presentable. Her -- their -- own shower, her own clothes, her own make-up. Her own damn life. Of course, the lunch should have been breakfast, but she wasn’t going to complain. Today was his day and he was taking time out of it -- something that was definitely becoming a mantra. Really, she viewed her release from hospital as background noise from-- “The couch is not comfortable, Cameron.” A given, otherwise he wouldn’t have been sleeping on it when she was annoyed with him. She couldn’t really pass judgement on the cot other than that it required him to sleep at work. “At the risk of sounding like our mothers, sweetheart, you need your sleep.” And not just because he had important work to do, but because she would much rather he was healthy in general. Sleeping in a cot and on the couch wasn’t good for anyone. Except, perhaps, a dog. Which Cameron was not. The last remark was answered with a partially raised eyebrow. For starters, Amanda decided what she concerned herself about, and really, comments like that rarely meant anything good. She chose not to probe further. She probably didn’t want to know.
Good, she’d be more comfortable and happy when she was in new clothes and clean. Not that Cameron doubted the hospital was clean at all, just that Amanda probably hadn’t enjoyed her stay. He wouldn’t have liked it. He’d seen that excuse of a bathroom and the thought of having to shower in there... he was certain that the showers they had at the firm just for people who had to stay for far too long due to urgent cases were nicer. With how much money the hospital had donated you’d think that they could have some better rooms for their higher-end patients like Amanda. “No, but when I’m not sleeping with you it seems the natural alternative,” his tone even had a bit of a teasing tone and he was smiling to himself. “And I will be getting much more sleep now that you’re home, you know that.” It was something he didn’t say but had noted a few years ago - he slept better when he was with Amanda. Now part of the reason was because it meant she was safe, but still, he didn’t feel like saying it exactly. “I’ve found a few more who might be willing to join the cousin. A young woman, Bianca Syme, and a friend of mine whose come to town, Treat Lorimer.” His friends were few and far between, a few of them having been cut out because of things that had happened during school. “Bianca came up to me during the second demon wave, when I was visiting the high school gym for the publicity. So glad we never went to school there.” That place looked way too cramped. Sure the people crowded in might have had something to do with it but Cameron didn’t care why it looked that way, just that it did.
What began as an almost offended expression quickly shifted into a vaguely amused nod of acknowledgement. Yes, alright. Amanda was -- could be -- that bad. When he had been asking for it. Which made her reactions perfectly justified, but really didn’t change the end result of him being turfed out of bed. Assuming he had made it that far. “Which makes two of us. Those beds are ridiculous. I don’t understand how anybody is supposed to recover from anything in them.” In fact, she wouldn’t have put it past them to deliberately give her the uncomfortable bed in the hope that she would shorten her stay. Were that the case, they clearly had no idea who they were treating. It had been impossible to sleep soundly on her own, though, and she had to admit she was looking forward to bed already. Who names their child Treat? Not something she was going to voice, but nevertheless. Really, it was wrong of her to even privately mock the name of one of Cameron’s friends. More so since they appeared to be... acceptable, for want of a better word. “Not everyone can be blessed with an education like ours.” And not nearly just because it would cheapen it for the rest of them. “One would think the past month would have made more people inclined to agree with the obvious, though.” That thought was pushed away, though, before she began frowning again. It was giving her a headache. “And Miss. Syme is... of a reasonable sort?” A question that would have been worded better were it not for the fact the girl seemed to attend the local high school. As for Mr. Lorimer, well she wasn’t going to question any of Cameron’s friends.
“Maybe they have that belief that you’ll heal faster if you don’t want to stay. I don’t know, maybe we should tell them to get new beds.” Honestly, Cameron didn’t think Treat’s name was a good one. It was ridiculous and his parents couldn’t have been thinking straight when they gave it to him. A treat was something that you gave a child or a pet and not what you named a child. But whatever, Treat didn’t seem to mind and he was on the right side so Cameron didn’t see a reason to care. “People are blinded.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly at the thought of how little had changed despite the vampire attack on Amanda, the demons, the increase of attacks. At least someone had gone out and killed a vampire. If not for the fact that Trigger had skipped out without doing her job then Cameron would have thought that it was her. “Liliya... her kind, they spin the words so well, but she can’t always. And yes, Bianca’s reasonable. She’s a student at the university, moved down from somewhere in the north. Her family has donated to our group, actually.” He didn’t think that any child would go against their parents in that regard because he couldn’t think of doing so himself. “I haven’t seen her that much, but she’s supposed to come by tomorrow, I think.” He had a planner for a reason, damnit, he couldn’t remember all of these things himself.
“Somehow I doubt that would cure cancer. And I wouldn’t put it past them to simply by newer beds of the same model.” See, the hospitals were given the money by perfectly willing and influential donors, and yet they continued to cut corners with the fundamentals. Contrary to their apparent belief, comfortable beds and decent showers were essential to fully recover. Eyeing his grip on the wheel -- darling, your knuckles will turn white -- she offered an understanding smile before promptly dismissing that fanged bitch of a politician with a wave of her hand. “So can you, Cam, and you have the natural advantage in that you’re speaking the truth.” As far as Amanda was concerned, that was all that mattered. The fanged population could say whatever they pleased, but it changed nothing in the face of the truth. Facts could not be argued with. And they were dead, why were they even getting a say in the matter? With a silent ‘ah’, she had to admit that Miss. Syme -- no, she could not rightly be bothered remembering her first name at the moment -- had just gone up in Amanda’s esteem. Her parents seemed to have the right ideas, and they did say the apple never falls far from the tree... Though she had promised herself she would never harass her own children as much as her mother did. “Where’s your planner?” The question was out of her mouth before she really thought about it, and even as she realised she had asked, she was wondering where her own was. Jesus, I’ve missed so many appointments.
“No one’s focused on curing cancer with medicine anymore, half of them want to use magic.” Cameron had heard people talking about how white magic was better than medicine, that it could do things science wouldn’t ever be able to dream of. No, it was magic, and magic wasn’t natural. People claimed that science wasn’t natural either but it was sure as hell more natural than magic. Everyone could use science, everyone could see how it worked, and that wasn’t the case with magic. Not to be trusted. “I know I am, but she’s got something - she had one of her friends come to my office earlier today and he wasn’t... right.” Cameron still didn’t know what had happened but he felt like it had been something. The man was probably some sort of a psychic. He wouldn’t put it past Liliya to use another supernatural against him. But he’d take care of that later, right now he sighed and let it go, rolling his fingers to release the tightness that had been forming. At Amanda’s question he nodded to the glovebox. “In there. Only thing left for today is making you happy and then making everyone proud by shoving Liliya’s words past her fanged teeth and down her throat.” He didn’t like the vampire, mostly because he knew even if he didn’t want to admit it that she was good at what she did. Damn good.
Glaring at a fixed point somewhere past the windscreen, Amanda gave a brief noise of disgust. Magic. The very idea was ridiculous. How magic was supposed to truly cure anything was beyond her. As far as she could see it was actually causing more problems than it solved. If magic was such a miracle, why could they not use it to solve the current issue at hand? Obviously, all practitioners would need to either be segregated or otherwise disposed of afterwards, but using their ‘powers’ for good by getting rid of the unnatural seemed far more practical than just giving them all rights. “Not right?” For a moment, Amanda flicked through her internal rolodex of dirty tricks -- she may have been in PR, but she was still a lawyer -- then pushed that aside too. “She’s just trying to get to you. It’s only natural that you would assume any associate of hers would be like the rest of them.” It was easy enough for her to say that with conviction, but she couldn’t help but worry that they may have been psychic. Or something worse. There really needed to be ways of checking these things for security purposes alone. And ways of keeping vampires out of businesses that didn’t have human accommodation attached to them. Those were certainly things to bring up the moment she got back to work. Proving one’s race wasn’t necessarily discriminatory, now, was it? Pulling the planner out, she gave a pleased hum at the rest of today’s schedule and flicked through to find the next day. For a moment, she just bit the end of her index finger, trying to ignore the use of the words ‘fangs’ and ‘throat’. Not things I want to be thinking about, sweetheart. There she was, though; “Tomorrow afternoon. Bianca Syme.” As though repeating her name made it any more or less obvious. It was sheer habit, really. And while she wasn’t reading his appointments, she sheer number of them made her despair over her own. She loved her job, but going back to work made her want to crack someone over the head a brick. She needed order.
Amanda might be right. There could have been nothing wrong with the man, Mael wasn’t it?, and he was just overreacting. It’d be just like a vampire to go and try getting under his skin in some unnatural sort of way. What happened to the good old days when you just did that flat-out and on your own? “You’re probably right,” Cameron agreed. And then, because he really was feeling better just having her there and he really was trying to live up to her expectations so that she didn’t accuse him of not wanting something again, he reached out and squeezed one of her hands. “See, Mandy, I even need you for keeping me from over-analyzing everything.” Flicking on the turn signal he waited for the light to change and then noticed that Amanda had bit at her finger. What? What did I say... fangs? His eyes went to her neck and he wondered if maybe it was just going to be a sensitive subject for awhile. Should he ask? No, he didn’t want to talk about that right then. “Ah right, meeting her on my lunch break. I’m not exactly sure what she wants to talk about but I think I’ll invite her to the next meeting. Then you can meet her, and Treat too if he comes.” Which he should. Treat should actually meet Amanda sooner than that. Cameron had become a lot more settled about introducing his friends and male acquaintances to Amanda since college. “I kept a list of people who call for you at home too, it’s on your desk.”
Yes, I am right. Because, really, they probably couldn’t afford for her not to be. Ignoring the nagging at the back of her mind -- this was just another reason for Amanda not to trust them -- she rolled her shoulders and tried to relax properly. The hand that squeezed hers was, admittedly, a little disarming. It was probably just as well, or Cameron would not have received the rather bright smile that followed being told she was needed. Even if it was just for over-analysis. She didn’t care. What she cared about what that he had said it -- something that she gave herself the luxury of dwelling on, remaining blissfully unaware that he was looking at her neck. She listened to the rest, storing the details away along with mental footnotes. “I’d be delighted,” though the comment only applied to both Bianca and Treat now that the former had been elevated from the rank of local high school student to university student. “Really? You are a bona fide angel,” Amanda declared, face lighting up through sheer relief. No walking into her workplace not knowing where anything was up to. It was possibly -- probably -- a lot of calls to return, but it was better than the alternative. “What would I do without you?” Really.
There was a bright smile and Cameron felt pleased that he’d done something to earn it so easily. Wait, really, that was all it took? Holding her hand? Take note of that. He needed a mental notebook so that he didn’t forget little things like this that seemed like they could potentially prove to be important. Or at least useful. “And everyone will be delighted to see you out and well. So many were concerned.” Others didn’t care, but Cameron did not converse with them and one who had dared to say that maybe Amanda was acting it up had earned himself a tongue lashing that’d left Cameron shaking. They didn’t speak anymore. “The world didn’t stop and I knew you’d want to at least know who called.” Besides, she’d have done it for him if the situation had been reversed. “And without me... you’d probably still be dating Ken Wentworth and out in Lansing, tied right into the supernatural movement whether you liked it or not. Thank god that’s not the case.” Without her he’d be right here, probably a lot like he’d been the past month. Tired, cranky and completely unwilling to do anything social with anyone because there wasn’t a point. “Father tried to give me a dog while you were away. He said he thought it’d be good for us to have a pet. I told him that sort of thing needed to wait until we were more settled and you had a say in the matter.” That was why Treat couldn’t stay with them despite the space, the man had what, twenty cats? Not really, but it was a big number and Cameron could imagine what they’d do to the furniture.
Tilting her head back against the seat, Amanda gave a wry smile. “Concerned-concerned or the kind where they know it is in their best interests?” Because if he didn’t roll over them with the car, she would willingly put it into reverse for him. Then again, she supposed they had their fair share of extended family. But truth be told, part of her was more interested in who hadn’t been concerned. She needed to know who had been effectively blacklisted before she was seen talking to them in public. Any extra thanks that was going to be added for the listed calls was replaced almost instantly with a horrified jaw-drop. That, in turn, dissolved into rather childish laughter and a gentle backhand across the shoulder. “I would not!” She would have moved onto his cousin in the very least. “I do have standards and I’ll thank you to remember that, sweetheart.” She was, after all, only engaged to one man and though her answer had been a little fast, it wasn’t a decision she had made lightly. “A dog?” Of all the things to suggest... Unless it was supposed to be some kind of practise child. But children don’t moult. “Do we have the time for a dog? Walking it and such?” Not that she was necessarily against the idea, but it wasn’t a cut and dry decision.
“Both, just depends on who you’re talking about.” Those who were truly concerned Amanda already knew of, of course, and the ones who only pretended Cameron had stopped pretending to pay any attention to. If they couldn’t truly care about her well-being then they didn’t deserve to know anything now did they? No. “No one who mattered didn’t at least have the decency to pretend, though the calls did dwindle after the second week.” Which he hadn’t minded. Constant reminders that he was alone didn’t really do anything for a mood already darkened by the demons and vampires. If she really wanted to know specifics then she could ask. He grinned at her laughter and strike, ducking his head in acknowledgement. “Of course you have standards, and taste, because if I do say so myself you’re engaged to one of the best looking men in the state.” Country? Cameron could be that vain. “And no, I’m not sure we actually do have time for a dog, I think father was either joking or truly just trying to give me something else to do. Maybe we’d have time for a fish... or a... what’re they... hamsters?” Those little furry rodents that children seemed to be so fond of. “I always heard people say it was better to not get a dog until after you had your children, so they didn’t get jealous of them.” Cameron may have been a lot of things but he wasn’t an idiot and only an idiot would’ve acted like children weren’t something to be thought about. Eventually. They could still come before the dog.
“Well, that is to be expected. At least there are people who realise it may have been in their best interests.” Amanda was vaguely annoyed by the sheer gall of the insincere, but she wasn’t above actively using the ordeal to weed out people who couldn’t even bring themselves to pretend. Everything had a silver lining, or at least a useful one. “Consistent concern is for family and close friends... and maybe the relentlessly well-meaning.” The latter she didn’t really appreciate all that much. It was hard to trust, for no reason other than no one should be that nice. “For everyone else, if I’m alive after two weeks I’m hardly about to drop dead.” Not that the decline in calls didn’t bother her. It did. If you’re going to put up some kind of facade, you might as well keep it up. If they couldn’t be bothered pretending for long enough then they shouldn’t pretend at all. It wasted time. “Yes, I am,” and she really looked a little too pleased with herself. The fact that they weren’t married yet was choosing to slip her mind, even as she leaned across to brush an imaginary something from his shoulder. Any emotional purges could just wait until she didn’t have something of equal importance on her mind. “Fish don’t do anything and hamster are just fat mice with no tails. Aren’t we a little grown-up for convenience pets?” And really, one needs to be married before having aforementioned children. That stung. That fanged -- ... and winged -- bastard had put her entire life on hold for almost a month. Long enough to both royally screw with her plans. “Perhaps not a dog, then. There are plenty of other options, though. It is worth inquiring about.” And if they were really strapped for time they could always hire a ... pet-sitter. People did that sort of thing, right?
Cameron had, of course, remained concerned about Amanda’s well-being from the moment she entered the hospital until he had brought her out. Yes, she had been healing well, but that did not mean he could not worry. She was sort of a really important fixture in his life and people like that weren’t supposed to go into the hospital. He hadn’t planned for that, out of all things, and he couldn’t help but worry. “Now no one needs to worry, I prefer it that way.” Stating the obvious but their conversation had gone in the oddest direction. No dog, he was glad for that decision, although he had to admit that she was right about his suggestions just being pets for the sake of existing. Though he had had a hamster he was very fond of as a child, he just couldn’t remember the damned thing’s name and whether or not it had died or gotten lost. “Perhaps we don’t need a pet at all since we’re going to be busy with so many things in the coming weeks. Aftershocks from the debates, you getting back to work, our mothers and their planning.” Other than just having fits in general over Amanda being in the hospital both of them had been so upset that their wedding plans had needed to be put on hold. “Though if you want something like, a cat, they’re supposed to be really independent.” Treat knew about cats.
“Not about my health, anyway.” So many asses were going to get kicked into next month when Amanda got back to work. There would always be someone to step up and take her place when she wasn’t available, but no one did her job quite as well as she did. And call her soulless, but the main issue she was having with the idea of a pet was the concept of having fur left everywhere. As far as she knew, neither of them were allergic, but she didn’t want to have to check and double-check her clothing for stray hairs before she went to work. Then there was the question of tidying up after them and trying to minimise any smell they brought into the house... They were all the reasons her own childhood pets were things to be kept outside. In a stable on someone else’s premises. There was no way her mother would have ever tolerated the shedding and wagging tails. The thought was nice, though. “There’s plenty of time to make that kind of decision, then,” she tried to remain unmoved by the mention of their mothers’ planning. They weren’t something she felt like contending with right now. She knew full well she was a force to be reckoned with, but so were they and they had her outnumbered. “A cat might be nice. Even if they seem to have egos to rival mine.” Which said a lot, really.
Truth be told, Cameron couldn’t decide whether or not he thought their mothers or Amanda were more capable of making things happen. Their mothers had wills of iron but when it came to him, Amanda knew how to make him do things. That pout or lip tremble or any other manner of emotional manipulation that she was far too good at. He didn’t have delusions about which one of them was responsible for half, at least, of the decisions made but he also didn’t mind. “Plenty of time is a relative statement, I forget that you haven’t seen our parents in some time. Your mother in particular is fit to be tied.” I know where you get that from at least. As though he’d ever doubted it. If boys took after their fathers as much as he did in some things then of course girls did their mothers. He did arch an eyebrow at the idea of a cat that had an ego to rival hers however. Possible? “If you’d like one, then we’ll look into it when we have the time. Your choice, Mandy, I didn’t have pets growing up and it was really my father’s suggestion.”
Generally, as far as Amanda was concerned, ‘plenty of time’ was not a relative statement. It was what it said on the label. It was also a phrase used far too much to make someone else feel better about any given crisis (though not by her) with a deadline. Fingers pressed to her temple, she tried not to frown. A worked up Tiffany Montgomery-Blake was not something she wanted to be faced with unless the cause was perfectly reasonable and she could argue her way around or out of it. “Over what?” Don’t say the wedding. She didn’t want to think about that right now. It wasn’t a subject that needed discussing yet. They were discussing pets. “I had a horse.” Which did not make her the world’s best authority on smaller animals. “If your father suggested it, it was for a reason -- is the reason still relevant?” Cats were fairly independent, or so they said, but Amanda was still hung up on the idea of fur getting everywhere. Nevertheless, if there was a good reason behind the suggestion then she couldn’t dismiss it entirely. It had been for Cameron, after all.
Cameron wasn’t thinking that maybe plenty of time was for Amanda’s own benefit. She’d always been the one in more of a hurry than him and it simply didn’t cross his mind that maybe it wasn’t the case now. He did blink, a little surprised at the question. She should know what the answer was to that without even a bit of thought. “The wedding, of course. Knowing that you were going to be fine meant that she and my mother went back to planning out every last detail that they’d thought they’d miss because they’d been given less notice than expected.” Ah, of course she’d had a horse, Cameron had known that somewhere. Though he hadn’t paid the most attention to Amanda when they were younger, he’d admit that to himself and himself only. Even if he’d just been a kid he didn’t think he needed to share things like that. “No, the reason that he suggested was because he thought I would get lonely. With you back in the house I think that is quite taken care of.”
“Oh...” There was a moment of awkward silence in Amanda’s head before she dragged on something not entirely dissimilar to her public face. “Of course they did.” She wished she had anticipated that. Why hadn’t she anticipated that? They were going to hate her. “Do you think a big wedding is a good idea? Given the current political and social climate.” She was trying to make it sound like it was a genuine question. Like she didn’t already have an opinion on the matter. She had several, but they didn’t agree with each other. She would argue that she just needed Cameron’s input to push her further in one direction than the other, but it wouldn’t necessarily be true. Not that she didn’t value his opinion, it just didn’t always fit the way she wanted it to. Amanda smiled at that answer. She found the idea of a dog partly replacing her amusing. There was only enough room in her shoes for her. “Then it’s not something we need to worry about.” And neither of them would end up with fur all over their clothes.
Cameron glanced over at Amanda and couldn’t deny feeling surprised when he recognized the face that she normally pulled on in public setting. What was that doing there? Then she added in that bit about being unsure about a big wedding and he felt even more confused. He hadn’t ever wanted a big wedding but she’d insisted, along with their mothers, and it seemed like one of those things that he just needed to go along with before he got run over. And now she’d changed her mind? Women. Dad said I’d never understand them and it’s really starting to look like he was right about that. “Didn’t you want one?” Weren’t you the one getting all sorts pissy with me because I didn’t want to set a date soon enough for you? Did he drop you on your head too? “I mean... whatever you want Amanda, you know that, if you think small’s better... then you can tell our mothers.” He wasn’t. Oh no, no, no, they’d accuse him of trying to make it that way. “And I’m fine with it.” He couldn’t get in trouble for that, right?
“Yes, I did.” And still do. In a world that has no freaks of nature destroying everything including me. “Well, think about it. I spent the last month in hospital just because of who I am and who I’m connected to -- don’t you think the same criteria would apply to our entire guest list? A big wedding would do wonders for PR, but we could be painting a giant target on everyone we know.” And good PR should never risk family and friends. Not theirs, anyway. “Cam, I just want things to be safer. I’ll... handle our mothers.” Reluctantly. Both women were terrifying in their own way, really, but Amanda was both a Blake and a lawyer. They could protest as much as they liked, but they would never argue their way around any argument she set up regarding the wedding. “You’re sure you’re fine with it? You’re not just saying that.” Because she was aware just how much she sounded like she had fallen victim to a bodysnatcher. Over this particular detail anyway. There were always ways to compensate, however.
Cameron hated that. He hated remembering that one of the reasons Amanda had been attacked and nearly killed was because of him. And more, he hated that it’d happened because he didn’t just back down like others might. Still hadn’t even though practically everyone he knew had told him that maybe he should consider a less direct approach. No, this was his approach and that was it. He wasn’t going to become more accepting after some fanger went and tried to kill his fiance. “Safe is good,” he agreed, looking at the road now and flicking the blinker on for their drive. He didn’t get how her mind could change that fast, but he wasn’t going to argue with it. He hadn’t even wanted to get married this fast. But he wasn’t enough of an idiot to say that. “And if you can handle our mothers then yes, I really am fine with it, Mandy, I wouldn’t lie to you. It’s just a big change, I can be a little surprised by it, can’t I?” But still totally fine with it. Looking forward to it more than before, actually.
Amanda knew she sounded as though she had changed the record overnight. Even if she had been dwelling on the subject in hospital, she hadn’t mentioned anything. Which was her own fault -- if she had said something sooner perhaps she wouldn’t now have to call the matriarchs and fight to smooth down god only knew how many issues she had just caused. It wasn’t in her nature to downplay enthusiasm over her own wedding, either. The size of the affair still wasn’t effecting it -- because they were getting married. That wasn’t changing. But while a big wedding would be wonderful... safer was better right now, and she didn’t want to just rely on the sense of security she generally associated with Cameron. He was enough. He was more than enough, but if anything happened to him? That thought was kicked out of her mind the moment it sprung up. It wasn’t happening, so back to the here and now. “Don’t worry about them, it’s the bride’s prerogative to be fickle.” So, in her reasoning, she could change whatever the hell she wanted. And she knew he wouldn’t lie to her -- he would just omit certain vital truths; she went to law school too -- she had just needed to hear it. “Of course you can. As long as you start thinking about who you don’t mind insulting by taking them off the guest list.” She flashed a smile like butter wouldn’t melt, content in the knowledge she was in the process of bulldozing a hurdle that had been bothering her. That and the fact their home was right there and she hadn’t seen it for far too long.
Bride’s prerogative. Did the groom have any of those? Yes, walk down the aisle and don’t look like too much of an idiot. If you can handle that then I think we’ll be set. I can handle that, right? Of course he could. It wasn’t really affording him anything like Amanda’s right to change her mind did, but he couldn’t object. Then she’d think he didn’t want the wedding and that would be a nightmare and a half that he didn’t need. He’d probably be the one back in the hospital instead of her. “Just make sure that they don’t stress you too much, you did just get out of the hospital.” Cameron was allowed to worry after what had happened. Hell, he was allowed to worry period. “And here I thought I didn’t have to play with the guest list at all, so long as my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and my cousins get an invite I think I’m clear. Oh, and Treat.” The man was in town, it wouldn’t do to insult him. “I trust our mothers and you with that whole thing. And I promise the house isn’t a mess.” Exactly. He hadn’t been cleaning but he hadn’t not been picking up after himself either.
“I’ll be fine. If they start pushing it, I’ll threaten to hire a wedding planner,” she answered with a shrug, playing with the ends of her hair. It was an effective threat and one she had used already over the bridesmaids’ dresses. It worked because they knew she’d follow through with it. A wedding planner was something she could get her claws into and order around. Mrs Blake and Mrs Calvert were something she could only steer in the right direction and hope they didn’t take too many liberties. “Family and Treat,” she repeated with a nod. Well, already listed family. If they weren’t already on the guest list then they were not supposed to attend at all. And she now had too many bridesmaids. Conveniently, she wasn’t all that bothered about offending any of them, which meant that the girls who looked the best in their dresses were staying. “As long as it isn’t clinical and eventually looks as it should, I don’t mind.” ‘Eventually’ meaning something closer to ASAP.
“Oh, good one.” Even if Cameron wouldn’t ever hear the end of that from his own mother. As an only child he’d known how much she was looking forward to this since he’d probably taken his first step. Or been stood next to Amanda for the first time since he was pretty sure it’d been a match made in heaven in her mind. Thankfully for her, in ours as well. Cameron wasn’t that good of a son to marry whoever his parents wanted if he didn’t want to. But he viewed the conversation as over and just as well, because he’d pulled into the garage. Clicking the door shut he unlocked the car and stepped out, stretching before going to open Amanda’s door for her. Smiling, he gave a little bow and held out his hand. “Welcome home.” She’d be able to figure out how much cleaner she wanted it later, he was just glad to have her back.
The moment the car came to a stop, Amanda gave an internal sigh of relief. All she really wanted was to get inside, get a shower, satisfy her craving for pancakes and pretend the last month hadn’t happened. And make herself look more respectable. Pulling her trail of thought away from the list of calls and when best to call work to say she was coming back, she released herself from her seat-belt. Home. She’d never been quite so pleased to see the inside of the garage before. With a bright smile, she took Cameron’s hand and squeezed it gently as she stood. “It’s good to be back.” The understatement of the year, really. Now she just wanted her shower and pancakes and she was ready to be herself again.