Who: Armand and Marguerite What: A phone call between siblings after Armand finishes the California Bar Exam. When: July 16th Where: Armand's bedroom/The Blakeney residence Ratings/Warning: None Status: Complete Notes: Since we're ignoring covid-19 in-game, I'm ignoring the RL bar exam rescheduling to October and instead acting as though it happened in July as originally scheduled. It's a two day exam so this is after day 2.
He let himself into his apartment, drained to the bone. The bar exam had been tough, but he was 99% sure he had passed. Or maybe 95%. Still, the idea was that he was pretty sure he’d passed. But it had been a long day and he’d wanted to get some takeout and call his sister and brother-in-law to tell them how it had gone.
But his tire had gotten a flat outside of a Denny’s so he’d pulled into the parking lot, called for a tow truck and got a pot roast sandwich with fries and a milkshake while he waited. Now he was finally home, and all he wanted to do was sleep. But he knew his sister wanted to know how it went, so he would call her first.
He flopped onto his bed and then fished his cell phone out of his pants pocket and dialed up his sister, hoping he wasn’t interrupting anything.
--
Of course Marguerite wanted to know how Armand had done on his bar exam. It wasn’t as if it wasn’t a super important life event or anything. No at all. Still, between getting ready to go back into rehearsals and thus doing her own private practices in regards to songs, and then spending more time at Pimpernel Outreach, the actress was able to keep herself busy.
Singing along to her practice tape as she hung up some fairy lights around the living room (the old ones had given out and so she’d needed to replace them), Marguerite heard the phone go off. Well there was any number of people that could be and none of whom she could really let it go to voicemail for. So jumping off the step ladder, Marguerite grabbed her phone as she turned off the practice tape.
“Hello?”
Probably should have checked the caller ID but no matter.
--
“Do you know how much I hate my car right now? Because my car made me sit at Denny’s for almost two hours while I waited for a tow driver to change the driver,” he said as soon as his sister picked up. He was going to draw out as much time as he could before he told her about the bar exam. Bitching about his car seemed to be a good way to do that.
He shut his eyes. “I should sell it and get a more modern car. Classic cars are a lot of work, and I can get a convertible in something made after the 60s, you know?” He paused. “And please tell me I’m not interrupting anything. Like you and Percy stuff.”
--
And that answered her question, to which Marguerite just shook her head some with a slight smile on her face.
“Why I am doing quite well, thank you for asking.” Mild teasing of the brother was allowed. She didn’t mind him complaining about his car but it wouldn’t be Marguerite if she didn’t take the opening. Even so she just shifted and put her phone onto speaker so she could go back to what she was doing.
“That does sound very annoying though. And no, you’re not interrupting anything beyond my fight with the new fairy lights.”
--
“How are you doing, Sister dear?” he asked before grinning to himself. He deserved it for being an annoying little brother, though he doubted she wasn’t used to it after all these years. Besides, he really did want to complain about the car. He’d spent $50K of his inheritance on a 1964 Austin-Healey 3000, but it acted up more than he would like. He could do basic mechanic work on it, but it was starting to get to the point he was doing more maintenance on the car than actually driving it.
“It was. But Denny’s has good food so it wasn’t so bad. And who’s winning in this battle, you or the lights?” He reached over and grabbed the other pillow on his bed, lifting his head up and putting it on top of the one he’d been laying his head on. He could just imagine some weird OC stuff happening and Marguerite having to actually fight her lights. Not that that was that far out of the realm of possibility, but it seemed like it was just regular troubles, not anything major, at least by the tone of her voice.
--
“Quite well, petit papa.” He did deserve it even if she was used to him being an annoying younger brother. Cars and the like were definitely not her forte though and so if he had wanted to spend part of his inheritance on it, who was she to stop him? She knew there were a few mechanics on the network as well from what she saw.
“See, silver linings.” As for the battle between her and the lights? “Currently I am. But you know how these battles can go.”
Which meant, take nothing for granted. And well...Orange County was strange and it wasn’t as if it didn’t randomly become a scene out of The Nightmare Before Christmas so it was a valid question.
--
“Good. And how is Percy, sœur chérie?” he asked. “Sister dearest” didn’t have the same ring as “Mommy dearest,” which he had called their adoptive mother for years without realizing it was also the name of a classic film. But he’d been calling Marguerite dearest as long as he’d known the word. There was no one he loved more than his sister, and no one he wished for all the happiness for.
“Now, if it turns the tide, let me know and I’ll rush to your defense,” he said with a soft chuckle. “But I suppose I can get to the point so you can get back to fighting them. I think I passed. I’m hovering around 95% sure. It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t as hard as I imagined it would be, either.”
--
“Percy is doing well. Busy as always.” Between the business and then Pimpernel Outreach, especially the sneaking women and children out and forging new identities for them when the law had failed and the situation was dire. But they had a whole underground network setup for that. Still, it was a lot of work but she and Percy always found a way to make it work. It helped that she did her part for that network as well.
“I will definitely keep that in mind,” She was about to quipe that she was shocked he had an actual point to the call but then Armand was saying what it was and she couldn’t help but smile in pride, “Of course you’ll pass. And it makes sense to have some doubt. Human nature after all.”
--
“Is he there watching you fight the lights? Because if he is, I’ll kick his butt for not getting in the thick of it with you.” He knew Percy would absolutely be watching her with a tangle of lights and an amused look on his face while hers was exasperated. That had been what happened when they helped him decorate the tree at his place last Christmas. Percy had thought he could do a better job, and had then failed miserably.
“Good.” Once she said her bit about human nature he relaxed. He was glad the doubt didn’t seem that unusual. If it had, he probably would have been even more worried he wouldn’t pass, but his sister’s confidence in him helped. “Just think. Soon there may be an actual lawyer in the family.”
--
“No, he’s not. I’m not sure which office he’s at right now, but as it is, it’s just me and the lights.” No need for violence. Besides, it was Marguerite, she’d undoubtedly be insisting that she was perfectly fine and didn’t need help with the lights even when she did.
--
Well, pass on the news when you see him,” he said, yawning. It really was later than he’d planned, and he was more tired than he had thought. He probably should have had a third or fourth cup of coffee at the Denny’s.
“I think sleep sounds like a really good idea right now. But I wanted to let you know. I know you’ve been invested in the saga of me and law school ever since I dropped it on you.” He yawned again. “Maybe I’ll be up for a sibling brunch tomorrow.”
--
“I will.” And there was Armand yawning and sounding like he needed to go to sleep. Which made perfect sense with how much he had been studying. So she just nodded, even though he couldn’t see her through the phone, “Sibling brunch tomorrow sounds good. Get some sleep, Armand.”
--
“I will. Night, Marguerite.” He hung up then and shut his eyes again. He was out within seconds, not even bothering to change out of his clothes.