Who: Eron, Hanna and Dite What: Eron meets the ladies for the first time When: Feb 26th, 2014 Where: Dite's Rating: Low Status: Complete
To say that Eron was trepidatious about meeting Angel was somewhat of an understatement, but he’d gathered up the documents he needed anyway and headed out. Right now he was staying near campus in the city and it was kind of a long drive, which gave him plenty of time to think and collect himself. He’d known he had half-siblings from a very young age, but it wasn’t until he’d gotten older that he started thinking about them again. After getting over the initial shock of his mother’s death he decided he had to at least try to find them since he didn’t have any other family. Angel was just the most easily accessible.
Once he arrived at the complex he was definitely intimidated. This place was nice. Eron was aware that his half-sister had money, but knowing and seeing were two different things. He felt really shabby in his old Sentra and casual wear, but he gave the information to the man at the gate as he’d been told and headed out to Angel’s place. Once there he parked his car, gathered his things, and made his way to ring the bell, adjusting his shirt and hooded sweater self-consciously.
Dite generally wasn’t one given to pacing, not unless she was wearing a new skirt or shoes or anything else that absolutely required walking back and forth in front of someone until they paid attention to her. But in this case, where she would possibly be meeting a half brother, pacing was totally called for, as was the muttering about her ‘asshole of a low-life loser-head, moralistic jerk-face’ of a father. She hadn’t thought about the man for years, after his rejection and disownment of her she had been happy to bury any memories of him and just move on with her life, now he was back. Well, maybe not him himself, but reminders of him and the fact that he was generally the biggest douchenozzle to ever live and breed so often.
If she had been speaking to anyone else in the family beyond Zachary, Percy and her brothers, she might have been happy to use the information of a possible love child of his to hurt him in the eyes of the rest of them. As it was she couldn’t see getting in contact with the rest of them, or even her father included, as worth the trouble. And really, she was trying oh so very hard to get over being spiteful. The minotaur had been a fantastic lesson for her on that subject.
The pacing did finally stop when she heard the bell, she had been pacing in the foyer since she got the call from that gate that he was coming, and now stared at the door for a moment. Maybe she was hoping that he was wrong, or maybe she was hoping that he was right and his existence would just confirm to her that her father was a hypocrite, whatever it was she wanted, it slowed her movements when she went to answer the door. Taking a deep breath as she opened it, and looked over the young man on her doorstep.
She then abruptly closed the door and turned to lean against it in her shock. It had only taken a look but she knew. She knew. Brother or not, she was willing to bet brother, but he was definitely related to her. She had seen his face before, she had seen him plenty in her dreams, in fact he had been in most of them. Of course that was with wings and he was calling her mother instead of approaching her like she was his sister. Of course the dreams would do this to her.
Dite let out a squeak, a ‘what the flying fuckity fuck fuck’ from under her breath and then turned to open the door once more. She really was going to have to have a word with the universe if it didn’t start behaving itself. “Uh, hi. Sorry about that, I thought you were someone else.”
It didn’t take long for Eron to hear the unmistakable sounds of someone in the foyer preparing to open the door. He stood up straight, brushed imaginary lint off of himself, and ran quick fingers through his curls to make sure he looked presentable. Even if this meeting went south he wanted to make a good impression. He generally did try to do so in any kind of social situations. When the door opened he pushed down his nerves, ignoring his fluttering belly, and put on his most charming smile. Eron knew that he was pretty, that he seemed delicate, and he wasn’t ashamed to use that to his advantage when needed. If a nice smile and good posture could defuse any potential bad blood between them he was going to make sure that he did his absolute best to present both of those things.
Angel was just as beautiful as he’d seen in photos, maybe even more so in person like this. Before he could even say a word a look of shock crossed her face and the door was closed as quickly as it had opened. Eron’s heart sank into his still quivering belly. He wasn’t sure how to proceed from here. Should he just go? He shuffled his feet a little bit, face scrunched up in a moue of frustrated confusion. In the time that it took for him to decide on a course of action the decision was made for him when the door opened again and the woman greeted him with an expression that was pleasant, although still slightly shocked if he said so himself.
A nervous chuckle bubbled out of his lips at her explanation and he shook his head before offering his hand out to her. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Umm, I’m Eron. Eron Fletcher. Thank you again for agreeing to meet with me.”
He’s not your son. He’s not your son. He’s not your son. She told herself again and again, trying desperately not to freak out again. He probably didn’t even know about the dreams, maybe hadn’t even had one yet and wouldn’t know her from Adam save whatever information he probably had about him being her father’s ‘dirty little secret’. In any case, treating him like anything other than someone who had come to her because it was possible that he was long-lost family would only mark her as crazy. And while she may have occasionally doubted her sanity she couldn’t take anyone else doing the same.
She took his hand, her smile as genuine as she could make it, “Di- Angel. Though you obviously already knew that. Nice to meet you, please, come on in.” she invited, stepping to the side next to the heavy wood door, trying very hard to be the normal Angel who was your average supermodel with average dreams. “Uhm, Fletcher? That’s one I don’t remember. You from San Antonio, sweetness?”
Eron returned the handshake and the smile with a winning one of his own and moved to enter Angel’s home as he was beckoned. It was very likely one of the nicest homes he’d been in and it took all of his willpower to keep him from staring like an idiot, though he did look around with an appreciative eye. “Uuh, it’s-it was my mother’s last name. It means arrow-maker, and no. I’m from around here, a bit north of here actually.” Now that he was here he didn’t really know how to proceed. He had a little folder held against his body in the crook of his elbow that contained the documents he’d promised to bring, but beyond this point he hadn’t really planned anything. Yes he’d thought about their meeting, but he’d tried to be realistic and not let himself hope for too much. Eron wasn’t even really sure what he wanted besides to make the connection. “You have a really lovely home, Angel.” he said, falling back on politeness when other words failed him.
Hanna was curious. Dite had seemed so agitated and she didn't know exactly why, only that some family was visiting. Family was good, wasn't it? She'd think so, most of the time, her own experiences didn't really count, she thought. Her friends had all had normal families.
She was seated in the main room, on the corner of a couch and out of sight as the door with a big book in her lap. She wanted to stay out of the way of the reunion, even if she was a little curious about it. She could see the family resemblance pretty easily, though she said nothing.
“Ah.” Not local then. Not one of the scores of women her father had kept closer to home. She didn’t remember all of their names and where they lived but Fletcher hadn’t been one she recognized. She really did have to wonder about her father though, all these women closer to home and yet when he was away he found others. Perhaps Dite had inherited his ferocious appetite for that sort of thing, but at least these days she could claim it was because she had a love goddess in her head, she wondered what his excuse was. “Why thanks, sweetheart. I’m rather fond of the place. And it held up surprisingly well to all that ash and nastiness.”
Enchantments on the house had helped too, but he didn’t need to know about those.
She took him through the kitchen and out onto the back patio where she had dragged out a table and chairs earlier in preparation for this. She thought the view of the ocean might keep her calm if this all turned out to be true, it also gave Hanna a pretty good view of them if she decided to watch. She was actually thankful for the girl being there, if there was something untoward about this fellow the more cautious blonde would likely see it first. “So,” she started, slowly circling the table like she was feeling too jumpy to actually sit. “Ero-Eron, you said that you think we might have the same father? And I’m sorry for jumping straight into it like this, I’m an awful host right now, but this is kinda big news. Dad was always so careful with his women before, or so I thought.”
He followed her dutifully through the house and onto the back patio, too overwhelmed to really see all that much, so between that and her strategic position he completely missed the young girl curled up on the couch. The view from the ocean was marvelous. He’d grown up near the beach, but had never had the luxury of living so close that it could be seen and heard and Angel had a completely unimpeded view. “I heard about that. So strange. I’m glad to hear that you weren’t really effected.”
Her straightforwardness was actually refreshing. He wasn’t sure if he could have handled playing the politeness game for very long with the question lingering in his gut and his paperwork a much heavier weight than something like that really should have been. Her nerves did nothing to assuage his, however. If anything it made them all the more sharp and he swallowed hard and licked his lips before speaking. “No. It’s fine. I mean, this has to be surprising for you and maybe not all that pleasant.” Eron said before taking in a shaky breath and releasing it to calm himself, looking over the woman he knew was his sister. He took a step towards the table and set the slim folder down on it, flipping through his personal documents until he found what he wanted. There were legal agreements his mother had signed, things to keep her quiet in return for financial support, and other unrelated documents, but she was gone now and they no longer applied. He pulled out the photo first and offered it to her. It was a shot of him at about 8 or 9 with his, their, father behind him, both looking somewhat grim. He didn’t know how his mother had coerced him into taking it and didn’t really care. “This is the only picture that I have of him.” He stated and shrugged more carelessly than he felt. “I have my birth certificate too and my ID. You can see both if you want.”
The teen shifted where she was sitting so she could keep a better eye on her pretty hostess and her young caller. Hanna tried to read his body language, and nothing stood out to her as unusual. Erik had taught her that sometimes the most subtle clues could reveal the greatest amount of information, but the boy seemed nervous. Not a dangerous nervous. Her book was forgotten, and her only issue now was that Eron was sitting in a way where she couldn't read his lips.
Tucking her hair behind her ear, she got up and moved into the kitchen, using the excuse of opening the fridge so she could see better. She gave Angel a smile through the patio window.
So much for her nerves making her want to stay on her feet, looking at the picture in her hands she found herself pulling out a chair and sitting down, her knees feeling like they might have given out had she stayed standing. It was definitely her father, there was no question. Of course she had already guessed that when she first saw him. The young man wearing Eros’ face of course had to be related to her, she supposed she should have been happy that he wasn’t her son here, but it was still a shock to her system to not have only found a brother but a dream son in the same day.
“Woah, that’s… I think you’ve left me speechless, good job that’s actually pretty hard to do.” She resisted the urge to scratch out the image of her father’s face with one of her well-tended nails. “But uhm, yeah, that’s my dad. Our dad. Wow. Uhm, have you spoken with anyone else? Like have have you spoken to him? I don’t really advise it if you haven’t he’s… He’s a jackass. How old are you?”
Her thoughts were jumbled and her eyes made their way past Eron into the kitchen where they spotted Hanna. She gave the girl an utterly lost half smile before looking back to the young man. “I mean, I’d like to see your birth certificate, if that’s okay.”
When she sank into her seat like that he leaned toward her a bit, feeling like he should help her somehow, but stopped himself as she made her way down safely. It was obvious to him before she even said anything at all that the man in the photo was indeed her father and that the revelation had shaken her composure. Another nervous little chuckle found its way past his lips at her words regarding her, their, father and he sat himself in the chair opposite her. “No. I haven’t. I didn’t really want to talk to him, y’know, considering how things were between him and my mom. They didn’t really talk. You were the closest and the most, um, visible so I thought maybe it would be easier for me to approach you.” He reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet, sliding his ID from the plastic covered window and grabbing his birth certificate from the folder.
As he slid the two pieces of identification over he looked over her with a bitten lip and a guilty expression, but noted her eyes were elsewhere. He followed her line of sight until he saw a young girl in the spacious kitchen. He directed a small smile of his own towards the girl, hoping it was friendly and reassuring, before turning back to Angel. “I’m twenty. I’ll be twenty-one in May.” A playful little smile curled his lips at that, remembering plans he’d had with his friends up north for that particular day, but it was gone just as quickly as it had come when he remembered those plans wouldn’t be going forward. “I’m sorry about all this.” Eron sighed out and scrubbed a hand through blond curls. “I really didn’t think about how you might feel about it.” That was a little bit of a lie. He had thought about it, but it hadn’t been enough of a worry to stop him from contacting her anyway.
Hanna thought that Dite looked particularly out of it as she talked to the boy. She pulled out some water and hopped up onto the counter to sip at it. Dite look shaken and she didn't know what to do about it, or even if she should do anything about it. She looked around the kitchen - the extent of her comfort knowledge was making breakfast, but it was a bit late in the day for that.
She read 'birth certificate' off of Dite's gorgeous lips. That piqued her interest, considering she'd come to Orange County to find her mother.
Looking down into her water bottle, Hanna felt guilty, like she was prying.
It all fit. It made sense and was well documented just as she had expected it to. After all, he was still very much Eros, the more he talked and put a hand in his hair the more it drove home for her that he was who he said he was and more. She also couldn’t help but hope that he wasn’t much like his dream self, she loved her son but by Hades was he a massive pain in her ass. She would likely have to wait and see if Eron was a little shit too. “Look, you don’t have anything to feel sorry about, I’m shocked yeah, but you know, it’s a big surprise. I thought I had all the brothers I was ever gonna get.”
But then she took a closer look at his ID and a brow shot up. “Your birthday is May the eleventh? Really?” She checked it on the birth certificate to make sure it matched. Of course it was May eleventh. Aside from the fact that it was so typical of her father, she knew she had been born pregnant with Eros and his brothers in her dreams, she hadn’t dreamed of their birth yet and didn’t have a full grasp on how time worked for gods, but it made a weird sort of sense that they share the same day. “It’s mine too. I- I really don’t know what to say to all of this you know? I mean, who are you? Why are you looking for family now?”
As if that wasn’t obvious to everyone involved. The snarky little thought wriggled in as she again stated her surprise, but he contained it, determined to be on his very, very best behavior for this meeting. He wouldn’t ruin his chances of finding out more about himself just because he felt the need to be a smartass. Thankfully over the years he’d had plenty of practice in holding in such comments and not even the shadow of it passed over his face. His own brow raised in a very similar fashion as she stated her birthday was on the same day. Odd, but definitely not impossible.
Eron took another long breath before speaking to gather his thoughts and decide how best to proceed. He’d thought of plenty of conversations they could have had and this question was one he definitely expected. He actually hadn’t really thought they’d even get this far in the conversation as with someone of Angel’s status he was sure there were plenty of people out there who would try to con her for money. So, he figured the truth was best. “My mother died a couple of years ago. She had some agreements with our father about not trying to contact his family, stuff like that. I don’t really have any family on her side besides an uncle. We talk sometimes. Her parents are dead. I didn’t know anyone else. Um, anyway, when she died it took me a while to get stuff together and when I was going through the paperwork I got curious and figured out the agreements they’d had didn’t apply to me. Some kind of oversight, I’m sure.” He drummed his fingers on the table in a nervous gesture and bit as his lips before proceeding, eyes cast down, but flicking towards her on occasion. “I had some stuff happen in school, had to leave. Nothing bad, I mean, nothing weird. Just personal stuff. But I guess I just don’t really know where I’m going, what I want. I’d been poking around and you were here, so I thought why not?” He shrugged and finally looked up to fully meet her eyes again. “It’s not a big deal. If you want I can go.”
That was very odd. Hanna didn't know what significance May the 11th had. But if asked, she knew what it felt like to want to find family. Maybe not a sister, but still family. For her, not wanting to be alone. Wanting answers as to who her father really was, and who her mother really was. So she could definitely emphasize with wanting to not be alone.
While they spoke, she kept careful watch over Dite's facial expressions, and tried to give her reassuring smiles. She didn't know if they'd do any good, but the woman had been so nice to her that Hanna constantly looked for ways to thank her.
“Uh, yeah. I mean, no. No, you don’t have to go.” Let her son yet not son leave the house before she knew where he was staying or what he was doing or where he would be going, it was unfathomable. Sure, she was mostly thinking of the little winged shit-disturber from her dreams, but there was every possibility that he could dream at any moment and become her beloved yet bratty son in a way similar to how she had become ‘Dite’. Letting him run around unsupervised, even if he was technically an adult would have been a horrible idea, or so whatever part of her dream self that lived in her head now said. She was actually a little more willing to keep him there for a while to get to know him. After all, she loved her full brothers, who was to say it wouldn’t be just as nice having a half brother.
Not to mention it was wise to befriend him now before he started showing signs of godly powers.
Dite glanced past him for a moment to Hanna who she waved over before looking back to her new brother. “I might need a minute or two to fully digest this whole thing, but you’re welcome to stay for a while. I can’t say you’ll get much in the way of family info from me though. I’ve not spoken to dad in years, nor most of the rest of the family. There are our brothers at least but they’re all over the place.”
His sister’s words brought a smile to his face, small and secretive as his smiles usually were, but hopeful and relieved as well. Maybe this hadn’t been a completely stupid idea? That had yet to really be seen, but he hadn’t been kicked out yet so he considered it a small victory. He was a little bit disheartened that she didn’t have more information to give about the rest of the family. He supposed he’d have to do his own digging, or perhaps it was just that she didn’t trust him yet. He couldn’t really blame her as he wasn’t so sure he was ready to give all of himself either. Despite their blood relation they were still essentially strangers and Eron was very aware that he was in a touchy position for someone like Angel who had to carefully monitor their reputation.
“That’s alright.” He said, his smile widening ever so slightly as he spoke. “I guess I’d just like to chat a bit with you, maybe get to know you?” Eron noted her gesturing to the young girl and his brow wrinkled a little bit as he cut his eyes over to her in curiosity. He wondered who she was. She was way too old to be a daughter and he didn’t think Angel had any children. He waited to be introduced, despite his growing curiosity.
It seemed like there might be another person hanging around. Hanna didn’t particularly mind. She was just a guest after all, and she didn’t know how long it would be before she outstayed her welcome. She waved back at Dite and beamed, unaware of any worries about reputations. That sort of thing was so far out of her experience it might as well be like something she’d read in her books.
The girl really did have a lovely smile. She was particularly fond of that smile, it was her barometer of how well she was doing with the teen, the more she saw it the better she knew she was doing with her. And really, after finding out that she had been sleeping in some library, she was very happy to see her happy. “Come here, sweetheart, I’d like you to meet someone.”
Returning her attention to her new brother she smiled back, finding it a little easier to accept that this was her brother and her son the more she looked at him. “I’d like that, it’s always nice to meet new family members, though usually this sort of thing involves a maternity ward. But there is something to be said about you being able to respond when I speak and understand me, and not having to pick you up.”
Hanna slipped off of the counter and gripped her bottle tightly as she opened the glass doors and joined Eron and Dite outside. She paused a few feet from the table and lifted her fingers, wriggling them in greeting and smiling nervously. It was really easy to act nervous - she was! “Hello, I am Hanna.”
The smile that had been teasing his lips widened further again at her little joke, flashing a hint of teeth. Knowing that she would at least talk with him was a huge relief and he could already feel his nerves calming considerably. Even if they didn’t become close he now had even a small connection to his father’s family.
He turned his attention, smile and all, to the girl as she entered and waved his own greeting. “Hello, Hanna. I’m Eron. It’s nice to meet you.” Even if he was curious about the girl and felt no malice toward her, he wondered if she were around all the time. It seemed like she kept to herself, but it might be strange to have her there while he and Angel talked about family stuff. Then again, it wasn’t as if he even properly knew Angel, so he tried to be open-minded about whatever situation this was. If this girl was a large part of his half-sister’s life it would be a bit mean of him to shut her out.
“Hanna, my dear, this is apparently my brother. We’ve just met for the first today.” Hanna may have been a guest in her house but the girl deserved to know what was going on, and Dite would have been happy to include her in anything she felt comfortable with being a part of. “He’s going to stay and chat for a while, we have a lot of catching up to do after all. I was thinking that since the fridge is mostly empty and we have a guest to consider, we could order from the restaurant when you got hungry. Would that be alright with you?”
She could have just zapped it all onto the table in front of them but she was trying to hold back her godly powers until she got to know Eron a little more. Better to shock him, and it would be a shock, when they had a better friendship. Less likely to run screaming into the night if he knew Dite was completely sane before that.
"Nice to meet you." Hanna had a lightly German accent, her speaking pattern a little clipped. She looked at Dite, flushing a little bit and then nodded. "That would be okay with me. I can eat anythings."
She turned back towards Eron and offered her hand.
It seemed he would likely be here awhile, then, if Angel’s comments about food were anything to go by. He wasn’t particularly picky when it came to eating so whatever they wanted to get he would likely agree with. The accent and pattern of speech caught his ear as it was unusual, but otherwise she seemed pretty normal, if shy. He reached out and took her hand in his own, shaking it firmly, but not too tight as he didn’t want to hurt the delicate seeming girl. He dropped her hand once it seemed appropriate and rested his palm on the tabletop before idly straightening the paperwork in the folder and flipping it closed. Now that that business was done with he could close that away and hopefully move on to more positive things. “So, what do you want to know? I suppose I should give you both first pick of questions. Ladies first, after all.”
That was good, them being friendly. She wanted them friendly. Like with Percy when she found new family she quickly became attached to them, possibly because she wanted to replace the old one for the most part. She did genuinely have a capacity to love her family but she was usually shut down or shut out pretty quickly. At least she could try to make the new boys like her before they were corrupted by the rest of them. And Hanna, well she liked Hanna so well that she was perfectly happy to let her stay there forever if she needed, which in her mind put the girl pretty close to being family.
“You said you grew up somewhere north, right? Where?” She could remember her father going on trips, there were a few cities that he favored and she couldn’t help but wonder if he had been going to visit Eron and his mother when he claimed he was working.
Hanna squeezed Eron's hand. Her grip was firm but about as strong as one would usually expect for a sixteen year old girl. She stuffed her hand into her pocket and gripped her water bottle as she looked between Dite and her brother. She didn't want to intrude, and she felt that maybe he wouldn't be as forthcoming if she was hovering around.
She gestured towards the kitchen. "I will order, what would you like?"
“South LA, technically the South Bay, in Torrance. It’s a pretty quiet area. Nice. Kinda suburban.” He shrugged a bit. His upbringing wasn’t spectacularly exciting, but he’d be happy to answer any questions that weren’t super private. He doubted she would ask them in any case. She didn’t seem the type. He probably wouldn’t speak in detail about his recent past. That was still pretty painful and definitely fell under the “private” category.
He flicked his attention back to Hanna after she asked about food. He wasn’t super hungry yet, but he hadn’t really eaten much before he’d left. His stomach had been all upset with his nerves. Now that he was calm he might find himself getting there and he also didn’t know how long the food would take to arrive. “What do they have?”
“Oh, you know, the sorts of things that people with more money than sense shell out for because it has a French name and costs fifty bucks a plate. It’s all really good though, worth it even if it is a little pretentious. Uhm, let’s do the tasting menu I think, it should still be the the crab cavatelli, scallops, john dory, duck and the lamb. Forget the wine. They’re probably doing the black forest cake and paired ice cream, but maybe we should also get some of those chocolate spheres too? Gabriel doesn’t have to know we’re eating another man’s chocolate.” she smiled to Hanna. “I won’t tell him if you don’t.”
"Tasting menus," she said, then repeated back what Dite had said. "Crab cavatelli, scallops, john dory, duck and the lamb. Forget the wine. Black forest cake and ice cream. Chocolate spheres."
The blonde girl nodded her head, then smiled devilishly. "I will not breath a word!" She turned and bounded through the doors and back inside the house to order.
Eron couldn’t help it, his eyes widened in comic surprise when Angel spoke so casually about food he had no hope of affording. He knew that she was rich, but he still felt awkward that someone would be spending so much money on him, particularly someone he didn’t know well. His first instinct was to refuse it, but he didn’t know how she would take that. “Wow, that’s...I suppose I should just thank you, but I feel a bit like I’m taking advantage.”
That was something Eron had worried about from the very beginning. Angel had money and he didn’t want her to feel like he was approaching her to try to horn in on that.
“It’s just money. Hubby would be concerned if I suddenly started being sensible with it.” She waved his concerns away with a graceful turn of her hand. Angel had wanted for nothing when she grew up, she hadn’t been spoiled. A lifetime of close scrutiny had kept her comfort from going to her head. But as an adult she spent money like water and saw no problem with it, be it hers or her husband’s. Now she didn’t have to spend a dime if she didn’t want to, she could will whatever she wanted into existence “Besides, when it’s good, food is always worth it.”
With Hanna out of earshot she looked to her new brother again, “So I’m guessing that since you’re talking to me and not to dad your relationship with him was about the same as ours? Well, I guess he was better with our brothers because he was the one looking after them when mom and I were out of town, but they all say he’s an asshole too.”
“Well, thank you again, then. I can’t really say no to free food.” Being in college wasn’t cheap and beyond his initial discomfort Eron wouldn’t complain. He was being fed high quality food in a luxury home in Laguna Beach and with his sister on top of that. His life was suddenly a bit more exciting than it had been a day previously.
Her next question sobered him up a little it.There wasn’t any reason for him to be anything but as honest as he had been already. “You would guess correctly.” He said with a sigh, fiddling with the edge of the folder still laying on the table. “I’ve only met him a few times, actually. I can’t say they were all the interesting or enlightening. It’s been years.” He couldn’t remember exactly when he’d last seen his father. Perhaps sometime in high school? Seemed about right. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but it’s a bit of a relief to know I’m not the only one. I mean, if he treated his legitimate children like crap maybe it was better he wasn’t around.” He gave self-depreciating smirk before realizing what he’d said and looked up to Angel again apologetically. “Sorry. I didn’t mean...well, I did mean that, but that was kind of careless I guess.”
Inside, Hanna was ordering Dite's order verbatim, and correcting the person on the other line when they got it wrong. In fact, she made him repeat the order twice before she was satisfied.
She returned outside long enough to give them both some water and let them know it would be 'thirty-five to forty-five minutes' for dinner, then darted back inside to give them privacy.
“Thank you, darling!” She called after the girl when she disappeared back into the house. Hanna really was a dear, she was going to have to see about getting her another pretty pair of shoes or something equally as nice after this thing with Eron, she deserved something else new.
Dite could only shrug at Eron’s apology, “It’s okay, I know better than anyone how much of a shitty father dad is. We had a falling out some time ago, over my work, but really we weren’t all that close before that. I’m also not surprised that he hasn’t tried to see you. He was awarded visitation rights when he and my mother split but he never saw fit to exercise them even though he was doing a lot of work in New York where I was living at the time. I don’t know what he does these days but I know he’s not too busy to make time for any of us if he wanted to, he just doesn’t want to.” she sighed softly. “I’m sorry dad’s a dick, I really am. But that’s just how it is.”
She crossed her legs and folded her hands in her lap, feeling more relaxed about the whole thing. “So, where are you staying these days?”
He may have joked it off, but it really was a relief to him that it wasn’t just him personally that had been treated badly by their father. Eron wasn’t sure how he would have reacted to knowledge that Angel had some sort of great father-daughter relationship with him even if he kinda knew that hadn’t been the case.
“It’s not your fault. I don’t really want to see him. Part of me does, but it’s not the most well-informed part.” He was, he thought understandably, a bit bitter about the whole situation, but he didn’t let it rule his life. Angel seemed nice and ready to get to know him, so maybe that could curtail some of the anger he had been holding over the years. “Close to school up in L.A. I found a place pretty cheap on Craigslist and the other guys are decent. Typical college guys, y’know?”
“Are you happy up there?” She didn’t know exactly why she was heading in this direction, more than likely it had to do with the whole Eros ‘thing’. She knew he wasn’t her son here, that he wasn’t her responsibility, and yet she wanted to keep him close. Maybe she wanted to hang on to her nicer family, but she was more than a little sure that it was some sort of compensation for very, very poor maternal instinct in her dream life. “Though I guess it makes sense for you to be close to school.”
Normal people still had to deal with the hassle that was transportation. She had no idea how she had ever gotten along without her ability to teleport.
“What are you studying?” It was nicer to talk about than their father at least.
“It’s alright, I suppose. I don’t really know any of those guys, but I don’t have anything against them either.” He shrugged again. He’d never shared a space like that so it was a bit odd, but he was dealing with it. It was kind of cramped though. “That’s definitely the best part of it.” He rented out a space at the school to keep his (also rented) grand harp. Not only was it huge, but it also was worth a fair chunk of change and although he didn’t explicitly distrust the guys he didn’t really trust them that much either.
His coursework was something he could talk about all day and he gave the fullest smile he’d had since arriving at her question. “Music, actually. I’m majoring in harp performance at USC. The facilities are really impressive.”
Eron seemed to light up when he spoke of his passion and she couldn’t help but find it very sweet. It was good to see anyone doing what they loved, him being family only made it better. The fact that he was playing the harp seemed like it should have been significant, she could sort of remember Eros with a harp or something similar, but she wasn’t far enough into her dreams to make the instant association. When she did though, it would likely make her smile.
“The harp? Like one of those great big ones? The kind that look like they need a couple people to move? How in the world do you lug that thing around? How does it fit into your place?” She loved a nice harp, but even she couldn’t see someone lugging it around with them from class to class.
“I rent a space at the school for the big one. It’s rented, too, actually. They’re crazy expensive. There’s just not room and since I don’t really know the guys all the well I thought it would be better.” His tone is softer at this and obviously somewhat put out. “I have a smaller harp that I keep with me for practice, a different type. I still usually keep it in the trunk of my car when I’m out of the house since I need it all the time.” It was obvious that he was more comfortable with this topic of conversation, body much more relaxed than it had been previously.
He’d really love to have a pedal harp of his own someday, as well as a place to keep it, but that was well into the future when he’d made his way into performing professionally. “Keeping it at the school means I don’t have to lug it around as well. It weighs something like 80 pounds.”
“Dite?” Hanna poked her head out of the door. “I am sorry. Where do you keep the moneys so that I can pay the delivery man when he arrives?”
“The resort just bills me for it, but there is some cash on the island if you want to tip him. Fifty ought to cover it.” There hadn’t been cash there before Hanna asked but there was now. Just one of the endless perks of being a goddess, cash could be instantly on hand and there was no limit to how much she could summon from her accounts.
“Well, I know you don’t know me very well, but you’re family now. If you ever need a place to stay or a place to store your harps, you’re always welcome here. I clearly have nothing but room, as you can see.” she smiled. To think she had been lonely in the months leading up to this burst of activity, now she was never alone and she was rather enjoying it.
Hanna nodded, and then disappeared back inside. She located the money (this whole tipping thing was strange to her, but she supposed since it was custom she could go along with it) and then plopped down in the front room to wait.
He looked up to see Hanna reenter the room and smiled at the girl as she and Angel conversed. She really did seem sweet and he once again wondered how they had met. He paled a little bit as she recommended a $50 tip. He really didn’t want to think about how much this dinner was costing her. He resolved to stop thinking about it and just enjoy it.
The offer was surprising and he was sure that his shock showed easily on his face. “That’s really generous of you. Thank you, but I’m not sure if I can accept. I wouldn’t want to intrude on you and Hanna.” Still, though, his mind was racing with the possibilities. It was a beautiful place and it would be amazing to be in a position to have his instruments out where he could use them at any time. “And I don’t think I could afford it really. Living in the area, I mean.”
“Well, I would be happy to cover you for anything.” she was, what else was she going to do with the money anyway? And really if he wanted something she could will it to appear before him, no money required. She would have to tell him that later. Right now was far too soon for the ‘god talk’. “And really it wouldn’t be any trouble on this end, you probably wouldn’t even have to see either of us if you didn’t want to, the place is big enough.”
He seemed like a good kid, she was happy enough for that at least. Given what his dream self was like he could have been a spoiled, rebellious brat, his genetics didn’t help either as their family wasn’t known to produce the nicest people. “But it’s alright, this offer doesn’t have an expiration date and I don’t have any intention of going anywhere. I’m not sure about Hanna yet, but I would hope that she will be with me for a while yet.”
“I...wow. Thank you. I’ll think about it.” It was really a very tempting offer, but he’d have to consider it. It was sudden and her place was kind of far from school. The money he would save alone might make it worth it. He felt a bit stupid being so wary as he hadn’t known his current roommates when he moved in. However, this was a bit different. This was his half-sister. If something happened with the guys he could always leave, but if something happened here it would be harder to cut off that connection, tenuous as it was.
“How did you and Hanna meet?” He asked, very obviously changing the subject. He’d think on it though and call her later with his answer, whatever that ended up being.
“We talked online for a bit, she said I was really pretty in some form of German. She didn’t have a home to go to when all that stuff with the volcano happened so I invited her to stay as long as she liked.” She chuckled a little. “And I just realized that makes it sound like I’m somebody who ought to be on To Catch A Predator. That’s kind of awful. Uhm, yeah, I’m not a pedo, not even a little. She’s just a girl that needed help and I was happy to give it. I can promise you that nothing inappropriate is going on.”
Dite shrugged, “I’m not running a half-way house or anything, she just needed help and I have guestrooms. She’s very sweet to have around really, wonderful company. Eager to help with everything too, like she thinks she has to repay me or something like that.”
“That honestly didn’t even cross my mind.” The thought that Angel might have been taking advantage of the girl wasn’t one that had even registered as a possibility. He supposed maybe it was naive of him not to consider it, but Hanna seemed happy enough and if he was going to be around anyway he would probably notice if that wasn’t the case.
If he was to come and stay he would want her to be comfortable with it as well. She was young and he remembered how awkward those years were and there were a variety of reasons she might not be comfortable with a stranger, much less a male stranger, in the house. He resolved himself to ask her about it over dinner. “I don’t blame her for feeling that way. You’re very generous, Angel.”
Hanna would be mildly disappointed, but then she tended to crush on girls pretty easily, especially pretty ones. But Aphrodite was no Sophie!
And she really did want to be helpful, to do whatever she could to make up for Aphrodite's generosity. She wouldn't even call them in until she had the table set and the food out!
“I’m very fond of her.” She admitted with a little shrug. “But she is very much not legal so I’m doing what I can not to cross any boundaries. I remember being her age very clearly, having someone being nice to you just because they wanted to be nice was rare. That’s also probably a commentary on the family. They’re not all like dad, but not everybody is the sort of person you’d want to sit down and have dinner with. I suppose the nice thing there is that you’re unlikely to get a dinner invitation anyway.”
There were a few good eggs though, and she would be sure to point them out. “There is Percy at least. He’s our second cousin. Sweet kid, in the same situation as you pretty much, though his father doesn’t know about him yet. Around your age, goes to college somewhere around here. Lives in the dorms otherwise he’d probably be here too.”
Eron nodded in agreement with her statement. Thankfully he hadn’t been in that kind of position in his life, but he knew others who had been and he knew that it was important for their relationship to have those boundaries. “That’s good. It’s good for her to have a safe place.” The mention of their family and their friendliness, or lack thereof, made him smirk a little bit. He was more and more certain of his choice to approach Angel first, regardless of it having been made mostly because she was close.
The mention of another family member, a cousin closer to his age it seemed, piqued his interest further. “Oh? Do you know what school he attends?”
“Not off the top of my head, no. But I can give you his number if you want to get in touch with him.” She supposed she should have remembered, Percy had told her after all, but with all she had taken in lately it was hard to keep simple facts straight. It was hard not saying he was Poseidon's son and that Eron was in a way her son, but she could keep control over her tongue. It was very hard though, surprisingly she wasn’t very good at keeping secrets. “He might go where you do, but that could just be my brain trying to hang on to everything you’ve said.”
“Yeah! Sure. That would be great.” The idea of having another family member so close, and one in a similar situation to him as well, was pretty exciting. It would be even better if he went to the same school. If Angel was remembering correctly and that was so, he should ask whether this Percy wanted to meet up, maybe join his study group or just get together some weekend. “I’d appreciate that a lot, Angel.”
Hanna once again interrupted them, curls bouncing around her head as she opened the patio door. "Dinner is ready! It is all set and I saved the wine so that you can open, Dite." She thought that that was somehow something special that Dite should do, and then closed the door behind her before bouncing back to the table.