#((still; just thinking about that *actually* being a part of the lore...that'd be so heartbreaking! D:>))

[theheadlessgroom]

@beatingheart-bride

Just as wordlessly, Randall took Emily's hand and squeezed it back, exchanging a tender smile with her when he did. He knew in his un-beating heart what she was thinking, what she was feeling, and his heart went out to her at such. It wasn't fair that she didn't have these sorts of fond memories to reflect on when it came to her own family, who by and large let the servants handle the child-rearing, particularly in Emily's formative years. It was not the childhood she deserved.

But similarly, Randall held his own tongue, not wanting to bring up the de Clair's-it wasn't his place, and now wasn't the time. The tension that had hung over his parents and uncles like a dark cloud was beginning to wane now, fortunately, chased away by Lon's infectious enthusiasm for his home, and Erika's sweet answers to the little questions her family asked her and her brother as they continued to explore the park, and he preferred it stay that way. It was nice, the whole family going on a walk like this...

"You wanna go on a ride with me, Uncle Cal?" Lon was asking, hanging off his great-uncle's arm; at this, Callahan laughed, saying, "Ah, Col and I would be delighted to go on a ride with you, lad!" It'd have to wait until the evening, of course, but he'd be more than happy to join his young nephew on one of these new-fangled thrill rides, something neither he nor his twin had ever been on before, but was intrigued to ride.

"But only if it's okay with your folks," he added, looking up to Randall and Emily, not wanting to overstep any parental boundaries. At this, Lon turned back to his parents with big eyes, asking, "Can I, can I?"

As he did so, bouncing up and down in anticipation, Erika shied away a little-noticing this, Josephine asked, "Not as enthusiastic as your brother about these sorts of rides?"

"Uh-uh," she confessed shyly with a shake of her head, at which her great-grandmother laughed gently, saying with a smile, "That's okay, neither is your granddaddy. Just looking at one of those big roller coasters with the loop makes him nervous!"

"Riding a glorified mine-cart is just not my idea of a good time," he shuddered with a chuckle, and Josephine smiled (the idea of going on such a ride thrilled her, but she knew it held no appeal to her husband), before suggesting, "Well, if it's alright with your parents, maybe we could split up: I'll go with your brother on one of the roller coasters, and maybe your granddaddy could go on one of the slower rides with you?"

"I'll go with you too, Erika," Wilhelm added-those sorts of rides didn't call to him the way it did his brothers, so he wouldn't mind taking it slow and easy with her, and he was sure Randall would be no different.