Chapter 329 - 329 The Calm Before The Furos.
Chapter 329 – 329 The Calm Before The Furos.
In the end, the girls went through a few other variations of how to break the news to Lily's parents, but they settled on a rather basic one. Step 1, meet up and put together Sylvie's desk. Step 2, have Vivian show up with the desk in a trailer and be ready to start unloading it. Step 3, have Vivian talking to Lily's parents while Kat unloads the pieces. Step 4, don't react. Step 5, ??? Step 6, all hug and go home.
Now, obviously, it was recognised that step five was a massive hole in the plan, and Vivian kept trying to argue that it would go much smoother if she was wearing a fake moustache, but both of these issues were things the group was able to move past. Callisto commented that she could provide some assistance, if needed, and it was decided that she would sit in the driver's seat just in case she needed to be on scene quickly.
Sylvie was free to do whatever she wanted, and said that she had her own plans. Nobody asked her about it. Once these was all decided, Lily headed back home and everyone else washed themselves and went to bed. Well… Callisto just got back to work, and Sylvie joined Kat once again instead of using her own bed… but those are just minor details.
In the early morning, Kat got to work putting Sylvie's desk together. With her strength it wasn't even hard, and with her constitution she really didn't feel like eating more after the past few days, so she just put the whole thing together during breakfast, with Sylvie stepping in right at the start to point out to Kat where she wanted the desk. Super strength combined with Chekov's expert woodwork made assembly a breeze.
It was around ten o'clock when Lily managed to get over. She had slight bags under her eyes, but had a smile on her face. Currently, Kat was watching Sylvie and Vivian play a game of poker… using Uno cards. Kat suspected they were just being silly… but the game had been going on for about an hour now, so Kat's confidence in that guess was waning. So when Lily showed up, she took it as the perfect chance to do something other than ponder that question.
Kat got up and gave her friend a quick hug. "Hi Lily, come in" said Kat
"Thanks" said Lily "What happened to Sylvie's desk? I noticed it wasn't in the trailer anymore"
Kat shrugged "I put it together instead of eating breakfast. It wasn't that hard really, and I was able to easily do it myself. I did ask Sylvie first before getting the go ahead"
"That girl would let you get away with anything, of course she said yes" said Vivian from her place at the table.
"That girl" said Sylvie "Is currently winning our card game"
"Yeah… um… what are they playing?" asked Lily confused.
"Poker? Or so they said" replied Kat
Vivian nodded "Yeah we are"
"… How?" asked Lily voice laced with confusion.
"Well, we seemed to have misplaced the normal cards so we are just using Uno cards instead. We took out the fancy cards, use zeros as tens, and ones as aces. We just pretend the other court cards don't exist and that basically lets us play by normal rules" said Sylvie.
"So… I guess it's time to go confront my parents then…" said Lily
"Yup" said Vivian raising her eyes… only to see how tired Lily looked. "Lily, are you ok dear?"
"I'm fine Vivian, thanks for asking" said Lily
"If you're sure dear. Just because your friends with Kat doesn't mean you can avoid sleeping properly like her just yet. Wait till you become a vampire slime fox or something. Then I'll let you stay up late" said Vivian poking her tongue out at the end.
Lily chuckled. "I'm fine really… it wasn't even intentional… I just needed something to take my mind of this morning a little. I mean… I'm confident but… I don't know that I'm ready?" said Lily
Vivian put her cards down so that she could stand up and pat Lily on the shoulder. As soon as she saw the younger girl leaning in, Vivian pulled her into a proper hug. "That's ok. We'll be right there with you. Plus, if you get kicked out, I can have a third daughter!" said Vivian with a joking smile.
Lily tried and failed to stifle her laughter, until Callisto spoke up from the staircase she was residing on. "I'm afraid I have to veto that one Vivian. In just a few months you've already picked up two of them. Getting a third so soon after that makes me worry just how many you want in the future. I might have to put my foot down here to save this house from bursting at the seams"
Vivian, in the most mature and adult fashion possible, stuck her tongue out and blew in Callisto's general direction. "I can do what I want, I'm a fully grown adult. I pay taxes and everything"
"Vivian, I am also your accountant. I pay your taxes" said Callisto
"Still my money you pay those taxes with" said Vivian with a pout. "Besides, it's Lily! Don't tell me you wouldn't be willing to adopt her with such a cute face like this" as Vivian finished speaking, she turned Lily around and hugged her from behind, showing off Lily's face to Callisto.
Lily was looking a bit red from Vivian's repeated teasing and had a strained smile on. Callisto decided to help the girl out a bit and deescalate. "Look, Lily is lovely indeed, and I'm sure you could convince me, but she has two perfectly serviceable parents that care for her already. We don't need to adopt her, and we don't have any more spare bedrooms anyway."
Sadly, this did not have the desired effect. Vivian smiled wide and hugged Lily tighter. "See, even Callisto admits we'd love to have you. Sure she didn't say that but she's a bit of a stick in the mud. Besides, if they can't even put up with Kat when she hasn't done anything wrong, they don't deserve to have such an adorable daughter anyway"
Lily's light touch of red, turned into a deep cherry as Vivian continued to embarrass her. Seeing this, Kat slid over and freed Lily from Vivian's grasp, before giving her a soft hug and dashing away. This… also did not have the desired effect as Vivian was on a roll this morning and said "Oh, the fair maiden has been saved by her knight in shining silk! Whatever shall I do to steal her back?"
Lily groaned and, to Kat's surprise, went even more red, and decided to hide her face in Kat's shoulder again. Kat gave Vivian a frown, but she was unrepentant and stuck her tongue out at Kat as well. Kat was tempted to say something, but Callisto spoke first "We've been played Kat. Vivian is on a roll today. I fear for the sanity of Lily's parents in but a few moments"
Lily burst out into laughter that she tried to stifle with Kat's kimono. Vivian smiled at this, and Sylvie pointed out. "Vivian was just trying to get your mind of your worries" said Sylvie "She might seem like a big child but she's actually pretty smart"
"Oh" huffed Vivian affectionately "Pretty smart? Why Sylvie I am positively offended. I am the smartest. I know all of the big words. My mummy taught them to me"
Sylvie gave a look that seemed to say 'this is what I mean' somehow with an almost completely deadpan expression. "She's right though" said Callisto "Just leave your parents to Vivian. She might be a few cards short of a full deck, but she has a surprising knack for talking to people… and insulting them without making enemies"
"That's a bit mean Callisto. I would never insult good, hardworking, or honest people" said Vivian.
Callisto nodded "Exactly"
Vivian beamed, and Kat sighed. Lily however, had managed to look confident once again, regaining the smile she had when she walked inside and the bags under her eyes seemed just a little bit lighter.
"Ok. I'm ready" said Lily
Everyone nodded at that and headed towards the car. Vivian was still driving, because "Callisto was never good with trailers" and the three younger girls were all sitting in the back. Kat was sitting as far forward as she could so that the others could sit with their legs poking through one of the more spacious gaps in her wings and not be squished too badly. Sylvie had tried to convince Kat to allow her onto Kat's lap, but Kat denied it for safety reasons.
"Everyone ready?" asked Vivian
"Yes!"
"Everyone remember the plan?" asked Vivian again as she started the car.
"Yes!"
"Excellent" said Vivian as she backed out of the driveway