"If you want," he said, surprising himself at the words. But truly, what could he say? No, don't drink? When he was making a claim that it was perfectly acceptable for him to do it. And, he supposed, if she wanted to get silly on alcohol she was at least home where she could be put to bed safely afterward, and not out there where people could harm her. Pollux arched a brow at her and gestured vaguely for her to continue.
He.. he didn't know if she was right or not. Would he have never done this before or was it simply inevitable? At home it was different. At home they had their own place in Dover and he and Irma carved out some existence together with the children. But even that wasn't peaceful. It was jaded and bitter and awkward. And here?
He was fine with just Cassi, the two of them had made a life together that worked and then Sirius had come back, and with him Lucretia and Arcturus. Children. More opinions and voices to the add to the mix and more stress. More trouble than he wanted to deal with. Arcturus and Cassi were children still, but Lucretia straddled the line between child and adult and picked which side she wanted to be on when it benefited her arguments. And Pollux? A scant year and several months older than Lu was the designated adult, not allowed to be a child, not allowed to have no idea what he was doing. Not allowed to make mistakes or to be wrong or helpless or lost.
And Cassi's concern was uncomfortable. No one cared, why should she and what did she want? Why.
Pollux took another drink and exhaled a controlled breath. It was fine. He could deal with it.
"It would hardly be different if I'd started at home," he said. "I'm hardly pushing it on you here. And Arcturus is pleasantly unaware of everything that's not related to himself. I don't see what the big issue is."