Room 409 at the Arms Hotel; Sunday [10/06].

[what_big_teeth]

The unexpected arrival of some of Eleanor's family had spent her Parents Weekend into a little bit of a whirlwind, and while, underneath all the chaos it created inside of her, that was a part of her that was oddly grateful for it. That Luma had wanted to come, even if it was mostly to give her a hard time or to just remind her how much Rhys depended on her, and that her mother had wanted to come, too, even thought it would be difficult for her and she'd be spending most of the time in a hotel room. She didn't invite them because she figured it would have been pointless, but it turned out they'd come anyway, and that meant...

Something. She wasn't sure quite what yet, but it meant something, and she'd figure it out once it was all over. For now, she was mostly just trying to focus on having this next part go over well. She led Kamala down the hallway to her family's room at the hotel, but she paused at the door before opening to turn to her and regard her with all the nervousness and gratitude she felt roiling around inside of her.

"Thank you," she said, "for doing this. I know you're going to say that of course you would, why wouldn't you, especially since I've met your parents, but..." She shook her head lightly. "Just...thank you. It's really going to mean a lot to her. It means a lot to me."

She gave Kamala her best attempt at a confident smile, a pale imitation of whatever Kamala herself probably would have been able to wrangle up.

"Ready?"

[[ and for the oh-so-lightly modded girlfriend, please! ]]

Comments

[slothbabyproductions]

It was a very sleepy Kamala who returned the smile and leaned in to give Eleanor a quick kiss on the cheek. The night before had turned into a nightmare but now Arden was at least no longer in danger. And the bottom line was, who knew if Kamala would have this opportunity again? So she was not only caffeinated but also squishied up for this moment.

“I’m ready,” Kamala she replied. “And I’m happy to be here. And with you.”

She straightened out her outfit which was much more casual than yesterday and double checked the small package she brought with her. “Shall we?”

[even_bigger_teeth]

"We shall," Eleanor confirmed, her smile just a little bit easier now, and then she turned to give a light knock on the door to let everyone know they were coming in and opened it to lead Kamala inside with her.

On one of the bed, Rhys was sprawled out listlessly, just sort of staring up at the ceiling; Luma was sitting next to him, back propped up on the headboard, regarding them coolly as they entered, though her attention shifted back to the fashion magazine she was reading with a flip of the page.

But they were there, of course, not for either of them, but for the woman sitting in the chair by the window, all but wrapped in a sort of diaphanous but damp robe, with a wet veil drawn over one side of her face. There had been a little bit of a debate; they'd bought a tub for Aurora to keep herself damp, but she insisted on not using it ("Mother, I've already told her--" "Is she important to you, dear?" "Well, yes, of course! But what does that have to do--" "Then I want to be my best when I meet her." "But Kamala would think you were your best at your most comfortable...", but it just started to fall on deaf ears at the point, her eyes drifting with quiet stubbornness toward the window), and so she was properly dressed, sitting in a chair, the towels underneath her doing nothing to save the upholstery from the water, and she turned her head toward them as they entered and smiled with the one side of her mouth.

From what could be seen of the side of her face not cloaked in the veil, there was no denying that this was Eleanor's mother, the resemblance striking and uncanny. And within the shadows of the dark veil, something was moving underneath, writhing and shifting, like sea anemones in a tidepool.

"Hello, dear," the voice was clear and gentle, like a bell on a buoy. "You must be Kamala. How nice it is to finally meet you."

[slothbabyproductions]

“It’s very nice to meet you as well,” Kamala said moving forward and offering her hand for a handshake.

Yes… Eleanor’s mother looked very different and the motion under the veil was unexpected but Kamala had been to other planets and seen all sorts of different humanoids with different shapes and appendages. So she took all of that in stride. “I don’t know if any of you like sweets or not but my mother brought some chocolate chip cookies for everyone to have if they’d like.”

Because werewolves love cookies, right?

“They have nutmeg in them!”

[even_bigger_teeth]

The visible half of Aurora's mouth moved up into a smile, the softness of it reflected in the brightness of her eye. She stood carefully, tentatively, lightly, taking Kamala's hand in hers, the good one, although the other just naturally joined it, in a sort of embrace. It was only fleeting, though, as if remembering that the feel of the damp glove it was encased in and the soft squishiness underneath it would probably be off-putting. Both hands retreated gently.

"I do like nutmeg," she said, "especially in the colder autumn months. You'll have to thank your mother for us, that's very considerate of her. She's visiting as well? Eleanor's said your parents are very generous, always sending care packages and the like to you and your friends?"

[slothbabyproductions]

The wetness was no surprise and Kamala found herself putting her other hand on top of Aurora’s hands before they retreated.

“Yeah, my parents are little extra,” Kamala said with a smile that showed a touch of pride. “They were like this for my friends at home too. Nobody left the house without some kind of food in their hands. Have you enjoyed your stay here?”

[even_bigger_teeth]

"I have, yes," Aurora smiled again softly. "Thank you. It's lovely here, it reminds me of..." She seemed to falter little, with uncertainty and hesitation. "Well, where I grew up, I suppose, in France. But it's been quiet. Peaceful. We even had a chance to spend some time down at the beach yesterday, so that easy very nice. I think Luma's getting the most out of it of any of us, though. I know she's hoping to get in some shopping before we all leave.

"Would you like to have a seat?" she offered, with a gesture at another, dry chair. "I wouldn't want to take too much of your time, Kamala, I'm sure you've got plenty on your plate already. But I don't know how often we'll get to visit."

"There is a lot to be done at the new house still," Eleanor pointed out, stepping forward a little more boldly now that things seemed to be going well and Kamala didn't even seem the least bit phased over her mother's strangeness. Not that she really thought she would be, but it had still been so nerve-wracking. "Maybe," and her eyes passed over to Kamala with a hopeful sort of smile, "I can bring her along when I come home, too?"

There was a long stretch of awkward, uncomfortable silence, but Aurora's smile remained where it was on the good side of her face, while under the veil, the polyps seemed to shudder a little and writhe.

"Maybe," she said, slipping back into her chair a little wearily. "That could be something to consider. Once we're a little more settled."

Eleanor's shoulders fell a little, because they'd been there nearly a year now. And so settled was clearly a code for once they were more sure that Kamala wouldn't bring trouble with her.

And she couldn't even be upset about it, either, since the last person Eleanor brought to their home had nearly destroyed them.

[slothbabyproductions]

It was the long awkward silence that finally put Kamala at a little unease. Clearly there were some familial tensions that Kamala only had an inkling of. Still she kept the smile on her face and nodded along with the decision. "I totally understand. A couple of years ago we had some aliens attack our house and it took months before my Ammi felt comfortable bringing in guests again," she replied. "And if Luma is looking for places to shop, I know a couple of place in Baltimore I can recommend. There's also a nice little shop in town she can check out that has a lot of vintage clothing."

Kamala of course probably would have not recommended Boc's shop if she wasn't so tired. Boc and Luma in one room could be a catastrophe.

[even_bigger_teeth]

At that suggestion, Luma's attention snapped up from her magazine. "I can't go to Baltimore!" she said, her eyes flicking from Kamala to Eleanor incredulously. "Is that supposed to be some kind of joke?"

And now that her attention was honed in on Kamala now, she had to wonder: why was she so tired? She even smelled exhausted. She smelled strange, much different from yesterday, and now she felt a burning need to know why. It triggered something in her that told her she's tired, that means she's weak. Look at those sleepless eyes, it's the perfect time to atta--

Eleanor's voice cut through her thoughts. "She was just being nice, Luma, of course it wasn't a joke! You'll be fine, you'll like Pixie Dust. And Pick Your Poison, too, if they're open. There's plenty of places to shop here on the island."

Luma's sharp gaze lingered on Eleanor before it softened and she settled. She'd remained fully human the whole time, but there was just something about her posture and the way her hair seemed to settle around her that was decidedly canine, like a properly chastised dog tucking it's tail.

"We shouldn't be spending too much money, anyway," she murmured, flipping the next page of her magazine.

[slothbabyproductions]

Kamala blinked, her eyes darting between Eleanor and Luma, trying to figure out what exactly she’d said wrong. "Wait—" she stammered, her voice softening. "I didn’t mean to offend anyone, I swear."

She took a breath, looking around at Eleanor’s family, then back at Eleanor herself. "I get that you don’t know me, and I totally understand if I haven’t earned your trust yet. But... I want you to know I care about Eleanor. A lot. She’s important to me, and I know how much all of you mean to her."

Kamala gave a small, hopeful smile, glancing back at Eleanor. "Maybe someday, when you’ve had the chance to get to know me, you’ll be able to trust me, too. I’m more than happy to work toward that day if you’re willing to give me a shot."

[even_bigger_teeth]

Eleanor's hand had slipped into Kamala's, squeezing it tightly, the same sort of reassurance that she had given her on Friday and countless other occasions, although she had to admit, part of that was just as much for herself right now as it was for Kamala's sake. She should have known this wasn't going to go well, that it would be a disaster compared to how it went with Kamala's family, but she was trying to tell herself that it could probably still be worse.

"That fact that you're even here right now is us giving you a shot," Luma pointed out scathing, hackles raising once again.

"Luma." Aurora's chastisement sounded uncertain, clearly not someone used to having to take that sort of stern position, and she sighed a little afterwards as if having to be harsh with her daughter took something out of her. She took a moment, feeling the polyps underneath her damp clothing tighten and constrict from the flare of anger, for them to settle again, and that uncertainty shifted toward Kamala with an apologetic smile now. "I'm so sorry, Kamala. It's been...it's been a rough time for us lately, and we're not....well, we don't really socialize as often. Certainly not like Eleanor is used to. This is all....this is all quite a bit much for us, but we are glad to have you come and visit. And I can't tell you how much it means to me that Eleanor's found someone who cares for her the way you clearly do. Who is obviously so caring and kind."

She sighed a little, as her eye passed from one daughter to the next, and then back to Kamala.

"That sort of thing is often in very short supply, for...for people like us."

At that point, with a sharp intake of breath, Luma tossed her magazine aside and rolled to her feet off the bed. "I'm going to go get some air," she announced abruptly, moving swiftly and with determination across the room to grab a purse on the dresser and move out the door before anyone could stop her, slamming it behind her in her wake.

Both Eleanor and Aurora flinched at the slamming door. Rhys, of course, remained unresponsive.

"I'm so sorry," Eleanor gushed out, clinging to Kamala's hand with both of hers now.

"Please don't mind Luma," said Aurora, adding to the pleading. "This has all be very hard for her. But she'll come around, dear. Just give her time."

[slothbabyproductions]

Kamala also flinched when the door slammed but the response from Eleanor and Aurora surprised her.

"You don't have anything to apologize for," Kamala said, shaking her head and looking between them. (And Rhys too, though he didn’t seem to be paying much attention.) "I’m not gonna hold either of you responsible for Luma. I get that she might not like me, but hopefully, that'll change with time."

It wouldn't be the first time someone had a negative reaction towards Kamala and certainly for much less.

"This is just us meeting for the first time, and I’m going to make sure it’s not the last," she added, giving Eleanor’s hand that familiar, comforting squeeze. "I really want to get to know your family better."

'

[what_big_teeth]

"Well," Eleanor offered, "this is most of what's left of it, at least." Her smile was small and fleeting. "There's Aunt Margaret, Rhys' mother, and Grampa Miklos, but he's stuck as a wolf. Aunt Lusitania and Charlie want nothing to do with us." And she really couldn't blame them. "And none of us are as warm and friendly and inviting as your family has been so far."

As clearly evidence by Luma's dramatic exit.

[slothbabyproductions]

"They don't have to be. And I'm not going to ask them to welcome me with open arms," Kamala said reassuringly.

After this weekend Kamala was learning that what she had with her family was pretty special.

She then turned to Aurora. "But I love your daughter. So unless she kicks me to the curb one day, I'm going to try and be a part of her life and hopefully you let me be a part of yours."

And then after a second's pause.

"And I'll always bring cookies," she offered.