#but I also feel like Sophie should be allowed to swing on at least ONE person

[hannahmcne]

Getting It Right

Ben almost throws up the first time a boy shows up to pick his daughter up at the palace.

And no, it's not just because she's old enough to be considered pretty and there are now boys sending her cards for her birthday and asking for her number. Because he and Mal have handled that pretty well - checking her phone weekly and making her download a spyware app that tells them not only how often she's using her phone to text but also who she spends the most time texting and also forwarding any photos she sends or receives. (Ben's honestly not too worried about her sending bad photos to boys since she's always been pretty aware of what would happen if someone got ahold of sexts from the princess of Auradon, but he does care about what she might receive.) And Belle is smart. She gets good grades and all her friends act like mini-adults outside of Preston and Jayson, Jay's two twin boys. Her two best friends are Tanner and Sophie, Evie's kids, and those two are the type of honest kids who make the world spin the way it should. So when Belle tells him and Mal that she'll be going out one Friday night(that did hurt a bit, in hindsight), he doesn't worry too much. He makes sure that she charges her phone and tells her to make sure to keep the ringer on and don't go anywhere there isn't reception. She gets some pepper spray and a switchblade from Mal, and a cautious warning from him. On the night of, she comes in to ask for help putting a braid in her hair(Mal pulls too much and always forgets which way she's braiding halfway through), and then borrows a pair of Mal's earrings that someone from the courts sent her and that she's never worn.

He has to run up to his office to file some paperwork, but Lumiere pages from the front gates when the boy arrives and he gets down to the foyer about a minute after Mal and Belle have already welcomed him in.

And that's when he has to hold back a simultaneous snort, roll of the eyes, and a gag.

Because out of all the people Belle hangs out with and her being the upstanding teen she is, why on earth would she want to go out with this boy?

His daughter had to bring home the worst sort of kid out there.

The smell of smoke is wafting around the kid as he stands in the foyer of the palace wearing a sweaty tank top and what appear to be girl's leggings that are pushed down to show the tops of his underwear. His ratty hair is braided back and he has green streaks in both his eyebrows and head hair. A nose ring pokes through his nostril with a gem swinging from it like some sort of crystalized booger.

Now, to be fair, Ben has no issue with boys braiding their hair or cross-dressing or nose rings or hair dye. Smoking toes the line a bit. And this kid, he knows, is definitely not old enough to legally be smoking.

However, it is the sheer lack of uncleanliness and the devil-may-care attitude that has him squinting a little, closing his eyes, and then dragging his hands down his face with a sigh.

Mal's mouth is pressed together in disappointment. She, too, is no stranger to funky hair colors or piercings and boys dressing like they're heading to tourney practice(she grew up on the Isle of the Lost with Jay as her close ally, of course), but her disappointment makes the air so thick he has no idea how Belle is still smiling, fidgeting a little as she presents the young man.

"Daddy," she begins with a little smile. "This is Joel. We're going out skating tonight." Then she waits with her little handbag clutched in between her fingers, twisting the toe of her shoe into the ground as she waits.

What is she waiting for? Approval? An "I'm so sorry for you"? Ben looks over at Mal, whose eyes are a bit wide as she exhales in frustration. It's good to know they're on the same page.

Joel steps forward, letting out a breath, and slouches forward as he puts his hands on Belle's shoulders. "When do you want her home?" He asks.

Now, Ben thinks, it is one thing to come into the High Palace dressed the way you are. It is another to think you can take the princess out, who looks decent and tailored and somewhat professional, when you reek like you've been choosing to shower in smoke and sweat instead of water. It is one more to meet the king - the father of the girl you're taking out - not introduce yourself, not greet him at all, and not have any regard to speak except "when do you want her home?"

Ben gives the boy another once over and this time notices something that turns his stomach around in his torso. The kid has a white box between the waistline of the leggings and his underwear, half-open and dirty from touching his skin. This time, he does roll his eyes.

"No," he announces, shaking his head.

"No?" Belle asks, with the smile dropping off her face in confusion. "What do you mean, no?"

"No," Ben repeats, stepping forward, taking her arm, and then pushing her towards the stairs a little. "Not happening. Go upstairs, you're going to bed."

Mal hides a smile behind her hand as the kid processes what is going on. He looks like a blue screen on a computer as it loads. "What?" He asks. "But-" he leans over Ben's shoulder to try and talk to Belle. "Aren't we going to go skating?"

That pisses Ben off. Because if anything, the kid should be asking him this instead of ignoring the way he's now standing in between him and his daughter.

"Not anymore," Ben takes the boy's shoulders and, ignoring the sweat that is now on his fingertips, turns him around and marches him closer to the door. "I just decided she's not going out. Have a nice evening and drive safe."

Mal opens the door with a smirk as Ben moves closer to it. Joel steps out with a dazed look. "Wait, but-" the door closes softly in front of him.

"Dad!" Belle protests from the stairs. She marches up with her green eyes blazing in fury. "Why can't we go out? It's going to be fun!"

"I can't believe you even tried to bring him home," Mal snorted softly. "If I were you, I would have attempted to meet up there."

"I would have had to have met the kid first to allow that," Ben disagrees, taking Mal's arm and shaking his head. "You seriously couldn't pick anyone better? The kid was high and looked like he hadn't showered since the day he was born."

"I met cleaner kids on the Isle of the Lost," Mal pitches in, nodding along to his words.

"Listen, Belle," Ben begins. "You are a bright and smart and beautiful young girl. I don't know why on earth you're going out with people like that, but I don't want you to ever bring someone like that home again."

"You're just upset because I'm older now and dating people!" Belle accuses. "And you're judging him based on the way he looks!"

"And smells," Mal adds dryly.

"Belle, I will let you go out with any decent kid you show me, boy or girl," Ben sighs, holding out his hands to count on his fingers when he talks. "But the kid you just tried to show me clearly put no thought into making tonight special for you, didn't even consider that he was coming to the palace to pick you up and he would have to meet the King and Queen before he'd be allowed to take the princess out, was higher than the ceiling fan, didn't introduce himself or shake hands or anything, and was filthier than the backside of a factory vent." He crosses his arms and frowns at her. "If you're going to make a habit of bringing home kids like that, we'll have to get you a lot more than pepper spray."

"A class," Mal moans, covering her face. "A self-help website. A book. A counselor. Something."

Belle's eyes fill up with stubborn, angry tears before she whirls on her feet and stomps away up the stairs. Ben listens to her march away. Her room is further up to prevent people from sneaking in while royal activities are going on, but he still hears the echoes of her door slamming about two minutes later when she reaches it.

Mal leans her head against his shoulder. "We're not going to survive the dating phase, are we?" She whispers. Ben sighs in silent agreement before she puts a hand on his shoulder and looks up at him. "Did you see on his hip? He had a box of-"

"I saw," Ben cuts her off with a shake of his head. "It's okay. It won't happen again."

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Belle doesn't stay mad for long. She forgets to be angry by lunch that next day and by the time 24 hours have passed, she's agreed that it probably wouldn't have been the best situation. It gives both Ben and Mal a bit of hope when she says she's been asked out again, but Ben makes sure to be in the foyer when the second boy knocks. There have been a few long conversations - Mal and Ben made a deal that if he gave Belle the "what to do if a boy wants to do things you know we don't approve of" talk, then she'd handle teaching their daughter a few self-defense tricks and set out standards for boys and dates and "how your father and I want your date to behave when he meets us" and the occasional threat for not complying with their terms. Belle now has a taser and Ben called Carlos to see if there was a way that they could program the emergency button on Belle's phone to also call him and Mal if she hits it, and they all feel a little more prepared.

There's a knock at the door and Ben opens it up. At least with this kid, there's an immediate reason why she's going out with him. He looks good. Long, dark hair like Jay's back in high school, but thicker. His skin is dark and clean and he's strong. He's dressed in a red t-shirt that looks well enough, but the blue jeans he wears are almost all holes. All up and down his legs, in the front and back. The only untouched parts are the seams on the sides. Ben sighs a little and puts a smile on. At least this kid doesn't have a jewel swinging in his nostril. Instead, the black gauges he has look calm and not flashy.

"I'm Carlie," he introduces himself, holding out a hand to shake. "Your daughter and I are going out to a rodeo tonight. I hope she's ready."Mal hums beside him. He glances over at her as he shakes Carlie's hand.

"Okay," he nods.

The kid steps over the doorframe, weaves around Ben, and then claps his hands together when he sees Belle standing beside the stairs. Ben sees Mal narrow her eyes as he invites himself into the entryway. "There she is!" He announces to the world in a loud voice. "Come on, we can't take forever!" He huffs and crosses his arms before giving Ben's daughter a once-over. She's wearing a floral dress with a white jacket. Her shoes are white sneakers, and she looks a little thrown off. "Girl, you're going to ruin those shoes. The rodeo has black mud for miles. And you won't be able to ride anything in that dress."

Belle's lips fall into a frown. Ben and Mal exchange a look. "You didn't tell me we were going to a rodeo," she told him. "You said to dress nice."

"I meant like this," Carlie slaps his hands against his distressed jeans. Mal presses a hand to her forehead.

Belle stares at Carlie, eyes tracing his outfit and the disbelieving expression on his face. Ben feels bad for her - she spent a solid three hours getting ready and even went to Mal for advice when she stopping believing his affirmations of "you look wonderful, sweetheart." She never goes to Mal for fashion advice. Ever. It's always him, Evie, or sometimes Audrey.

Belle sighs dramatically. "Well you should have given me context," she reprimands him. "And if you were worried about being late, why didn't you ask to pick me up earlier?"

"Didn't realize I'd have to come all the way up and meet your folks," Carlie replies, sticking a thumb out at Ben and Mal. "Most chicks just come on down and get in the car,"

"Well, I guess next time you know to plan ahead," Belle mutters. Her eyes are sparking in annoyance. Ben presses his lips together to keep from laughing.

"Next time?" The kid asks with a laugh. "Do I have to come by the king every single time? Maybe next time you should just drive yourself and meet me."

Belle looks past Carlie at Ben and gives him this wide-eyed, hard look of "I can't believe this is happening." Ben can hardly believe it either. He wishes he had a camera rolling. Would the security cameras pick up good enough footage?

"Well," Belle huffs. "I guess we'd better get going then." She walks towards the door, pausing beside Carlie and holding out her arm for him to take. He ignores it though, and then walks back out, scoffing a little as he passes Ben and Mal.

Mal hugs Belle and whispers a few lines of "Be safe, I love you, be good." And then Belle tries to hug Ben. He puts an arm around her and kisses her head, but he's not convinced yet. They watch Carlie jump down to his truck, which sits in the circle lot, and then hop in and start it up. A cloud of black smoke explodes from the tailpipe and the car starts with a noise like a cow screaming. Belle's arms are tense.

Ben puts his arms around Mal as they watch her walk down. "Are we really letting her do this?" Mal demands in an urgent tone. "Look at how he treats her!"

"It's okay. She needs to learn that if she picks the wrong type of guy, she won't have a good time," Ben assures her. Mal's fingers curl into her hands still, and they watch as Belle opens her own door, looking immensely irritated, and then buckles her seatbelt.

The car leaves slowly. Ben hums as they reach the end of the circle driveway. "I didn't think she'd last that long," he whispers in Mal's ear. She looks up at him, a little confused.

The car stays paused at the end of the driveway for the longest time. Then, instead of turning out to the main road that will take them to the gates, the car returns into the driveway and comes back up to the door.

"There is it," Ben laughs. Ben and Mal watch Belle open the door, now looking angry. As she jumps out, a storm of swear words follows her. Ben briefly hears about five insults directed at her, him and Mal, and the palace before Belle slams the door so hard a crack appears in the window. She stomps up the steps as the truck takes off, leaving behind a cloud of black smoke that makes Ben cough a little as his daughter storms past him and Mal. He chuckles as he closes the front door.

"How'd you know?" Mal asks once Belle is far enough away. "Ben shakes his head.

"Oh please," he snorted. "She likes the way he looks, but she doesn't like his attitude!"

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She only tries to sneak past Ben once, and he makes sure it'll never happen again.

He's in his old office, finishing up a few things, when Lumiere pages up. The receiver on his desk cackles a bit as it connects and then Lumiere greets him with a little smile. "Your Majesty," He begins, "The princess's date has arrived."

Ben pauses, staying silent, and glances down at the calendar on his desk. It is blank. No one is due to go anywhere tonight. This means Belle either completely forgot she had a date and didn't tell them, or she forgot to tell Lumiere not to tip her dad off when they showed up. Ben hums. "Thank you, Lumiere. Could you let them in, please? But if Belle is in the car when they go back out, keep them in."

Lumiere pauses on the other end of the line. Ben can feel him contemplating the odd request, but he doesn't ask. "Yes, your majesty," he agrees.

Ben picks up the key to lock his room on the way out and then walks past Mal's office as she's on the phone with someone in Arendelle, arranging for them to transfer a case from the lower courts to the High court. He's in a bit of a rush, but he can't resist her when she's furrowing up her brow and forcing her breath to come out normally. He loves how hard she works to be his queen. He steps inside and, when she doesn't immediately notice him, hurries to sweep in and cut her next sentence off with a kiss.

"We'll be expecting the file to arrive on - mph!" Mal squeaks as he shoves the phone away from her ear to tangle his fingers in her hair. There are days when his suits are tailored and his skin is clear and he is every inch the king his parents hoped he would be. Then there are other days when buttons on his shirts have been hastily snapped off and possessive marks dot his neck and jaw and there is nothing anyone else can do about it but roll their eyes. Sometimes he is perfectly professional. Other times, he's a fool in love.

"I'm on the phone!" Mal protests. "Why are you here?" He can hear someone from Arendelle laughing on the other end of the call as they realize what happened. He's well-known for interrupting meetings, conversations, and interviews when he decides she's too darn sexy for him to pass up.

"I love you," Ben laughs, kissing her cheek as her face flares up the way it did the first few times he said it when they were teens. "And I'm heading to correct some negligence in our family."

"Negligence?" Mal askes, dumbfounded. "What did Tyler do now?"

Ben snorts. Of course, Mal would assume it was Tyler after all the years they spent trying to get their middle child to shape up. He's an adult now, though, and not even living in the palace. He shakes his head as he heads back to the door, gesturing to Mal to finish her call up and he'll tell her later.

He has to speed up to make it down the entry staircase and out the front door before Belle comes down or before her friends show up, and then he takes a right and goes wandering through his Mom's rose garden to the left of the palace while he waits for Belle's friends to reach the front.

A red pickup truck pulls in, with three teens in front and a large group in the back. They don't notice him as they pull to a stop in front of the palace. The front door opens and Belle dashes out, purple hair up in a ponytail and a black leather jacket over her shoulder with an old school backpack in one hand as she dashes out to the truck in a frantic panic. One kid jumps out - a boy with muddied boots and a black long-sleeved shirt, and he helps her step up on the wheel and swing her leg into the truck. "Don't we got to talk to your parents?" One girl calls from the front of the truck.

Belle waves them on. "No, we just gotta leave before they get out of office! Come on, let's go!"

Ben pinches his lips together. Hmm.

She sits down in the back and then the truck lurches to a roll. They start to pull away, music loud and everyone laughing. Before they can pass the rose garden, Ben steps out and walks slowly out to the center of the driveway. For a moment, the teens don't see him, and then the truck screeches to a stop about seven feet in front of him. Ben just presses his lips together again. The kids in the front seat stare at him for several long seconds, and one of the girls has the decency to look sheepish. "What's going on?" Belle yells from the back.

Ben walks around the truck with his arms folded, nodding to the driver as he passes. He appears on the side Belle is leaning against and appreciates the looks of horror that pass each of her friend's faces. Belle's mouth curls down into that perfect pout she got from her mom. It used to get her out of lots of trouble, but it's not going to work now.

"Dad..." She moans slowly, shoulders slumping. She's just barely finished pulling on her jacket.

Ben walks to the back of the truck and pulls on the lever to release the back of the truck. It falls down with a little thud and Ben takes a moment to glance over the teens in the backseat. Belle is sitting perpendicular on her date's lap with her back to the sides of the truck bed and her feet tangled up with her other friends from school. Tanner, Sophie, Preston, and Jackson are in the car, along with Mila, Carlos's daughter, and a couple other kids that she probably knows from school. It's not unlike how he and Mal used to go around with their friends back during everyone's college years when they were all twenty. The difference was that his parents always knew where he was going and who he was with. And then, most importantly, what time he and Mal would be separated for the night. (They didn't necessarily care about who got home first or where they went once they were separated, but if they were falling asleep somewhere together there would be a debt to pay later on.) And it was only with Mal since everyone knew from day one that he was committed to her. If Ben wanted to sleep over at Evie's, fine, but they also had to know where he and Mal would be and who would be watching them.

There had been times that his mom or dad had stopped him before going out with friends like this. His mom had grabbed his arm and threatened dismemberment if she heard he and Mal had snuck off anywhere the first time that they'd left in this manner. But that was always inside, not in front of friends like this.

Belle's date looks mortified to have been caught sneaking the princess out of the palace with said princess's arm around him. He carefully removes Belle's arm while flushing and avoiding Ben's gaze. Belle looks heartbroken as Ben gestures her forward by holding out his hand and flexing his fingers with a small nod to the palace. It's a trick he learned from Hades, and he's grateful for it. Belle deflates and picks up her backpack dejectedly. She stumbles over everyone's feet. Ben seizes her upper arm when she's close enough and helps her climb out. She only starts arguing once she's on the ground. "Dad, we're just going down to the pier. You never let me go out with anyone fun."

Ben crosses his arms. "No. I never let you go out with anyone who'll hurt you."

"They're not gonna hurt me!" Belle protests, flinging her arm out in the direction of the truck. "Why can't I go?"

"Because I also don't let you go out when you're grounded," Ben replies, raising one unimpressed eyebrow.

"Grounded?" Belle repeats, furrowing her brow together.

"Grounded," Ben repeats, turning her towards the palace and shoving her shoulder to move her forward. He hates having to play the mean parent, but he's not going to put up with her sneaking out. She's still a princess, no matter how much like her mom she is. He's not going to let her be hurt. "For lying and breaking our rules. Go to your room. I'll send your mom up in a moment and you can explain to her what you were trying to do."

He's sending Mal because all three children are scared of their mother when she's angry. Five minutes of scathing disappointment under his wife's glowing green gaze and Belle will never want to leave home again, much less without permission.

Belle hangs her head and begins her shameful walk back to the palace. Ben turns back to the kids in the truck. He glances at the second generation islanders first. "Your parents better know that you're out," He warns them. Then, he focuses on the scared-stiff boy in the back of the truck. "If you would like to take my daughter out," He begins, "You have to meet me first. That is the rule."

Ben then lifts the truck bed back and pushes it into place. He steps back and gestures for the truck to continue its trek, sans one, down the driveway. The teenagers pull away in silence.

The front door is left open, which would piss Ben off even more if Belle wasn't sitting on the bottom step, waiting for him with tears running down her face. "Dad, why'd you do that?" She hiccups. "You're being mean. None of my other friends have to have their parents meet every single person at the door. I just wanted to go out for an hour. I would have been back at sundown."

"Well, that would have been a much more appreciated sentiment before you were jumping in and yelling about how you needed to leave before your parents got out of office," Ben raises his eyebrows at her. "And Belle, none of your other friends are attached to the crown. People get famous off of dating princesses. People could want to hurt you as a token of pride. I'm not going to let someone take advantage of you."

Belle hiccups and scrubs at her eyes before she breaks down. "Can you please not tell mom?" She whispers. "I won't try again. Please?"

Ben almost gives in when he sees how pitiful she looks with black streaks running down her cheeks. This is still his baby princess who was so excited whenever he'd put plastic or paper crowns on her head at birthday parties and who was so proud when people started commenting about how much like her dad she looked instead of always saying she had Mal's green eyes and purple hair. But he tilts his head, knowing there's no way in Auradon or on the Isle he's not telling Mal about this, and gives her a soft look that makes her start to cry harder. She stands up, stomping her foot, and begins to climb the stairs in despair.

"Belle?" He calls before she can get very far, and she huffs as she turns back around. He holds out a hand. "Phone." He demands.

Belle screws up her face as she whips out her touchscreen and drops it into his hand. He slips it into his pocket and then she turns and storms away to her room.

Ben walks back up to his office to continue work. On the way up, he stops by Mal's office and drops Belle's phone on her desk. Mal looks up from where she's searching through a filing cabinet, squints at the phone, and then turns to him for an explanation. Since they can remote-access anything on their children's devices and need to make sure their children can always reach the palace, it's not often they remove cell phone privileges.

"What happened?" She asks in a dull tone.

"I took care of it," Ben assures her by way of explanation. "But I need you to do the punishment part." He puts his index finger down on Belle's phone as his way of telling Mal she's not allowed to have it.

"That bad?" Mal stares.

"Don't go dragon when you hear," He tells her. "And I would do it now so she doesn't get herself together only to fall apart again." Get the bad parts all over with so she doesn't have to cry herself out twice.

Mal snaps the filing cabinet closed and slips the phone into her pocket. "Bye," She says as she kisses his cheek and slips out. Ben watches her go with a sigh. Thank goodness he married an Isle girl and not an Auradon princess, otherwise, it'd be his job to frighten the kids into submission and he's not one to be able to withstand tears for long.

Goodness, how is he going to survive Belle's dating phase?

________________________________________________________________

Belle manages to have one or two successful, small, low-key group dates before Derik shows up on his doorstep. The kid has a buzz cut, acts as if he's a soldier, and when Belle cracks a joke at the front door, he doesn't get it. Ben sends them off with a wave and a roll of his eyes and doesn't say anything when Belle sneaks back in twenty minutes later, frustrated."At least she's slowly learning, right?" He tells Mal.

________________________________________________________________

Things get harder then. Belle has a running list of what she wants. Someone kind, someone who will compliment her outfit and open doors for her, someone who will check all her parent's boxes and who is funny and fun to talk to. She doesn't just accept dates with anyone because she's flattered they asked anymore or because they look nice. Now it's with friends and people she's known for a while. Which makes it a lot harder if Ben has to say no.

Her science lab partner shows up for dinner one night. Belle's two older brothers Zach and Tyler get a little confused when they see him. Zach travels a lot, doing things for the throne since he's 'technically' king now. Tyler works in town, managing a restaurant that he actually started at by washing dishes. So they both have been busy and kinda oblivious to the fact their kid sister is dating. It rocks them a little when they find out.

Babel is the kid's name. It throws Ben off for a second because he hasn't heard anyone with that name, but then he nods and offers the kid a chair and then shakes his head at Mal when Babel's back is turned. He already knows this isn't going to work out. Twenty minutes into dinner, he realizes why.

"So, you're third in line for the throne, right?" Babel asks Belle, cutting off her and Tyler's rendition of something they used to do together as kids. Ben feels Mal's hand hit the table before she moves it over to set her fingers over his, and he sighs internally. It's something that came up with each of their sons whenever they started talking to girls(and boys. Tyler has experimented a little). The matter of the crown.

Belle frowns a little. "Uh, kinda." She nods and then attempts to relaunch into her story.

"Kinda?" Babel asks. "What do you mean?"

Belle sighs. "Well, I'm not of age yet, so I can't be queen until then. So until I'm sixteen, my parents actually are in line before me. If something happened to Tyler or Zach, the crown would go back to them. But once either of them gets married, my right of inheritance gets bumped back. So if Zach married, his wife would be second. And if they had a kid, the baby would be third. And then Tyler would be fourth, dad fifth, mom sixth, and I'm last in line before you go to my grandparents."

"And then your husband after you?" Babel asks.

Belle frowns and has a million-and-one questions about the crown and the kingdom and what Belle's allowed to do and "have you ever used your status to bend the rules". It makes Ben sad because he can tell Belle liked this kid before he started trying to insinuate what her reaction would be if both of her brothers happened to go missing. He knows as his daughter leads Babel to the door that night, that he won't be seeing the boy again, and that it probably won't be the last time someone dates her for a shot at the throne of Auradon.

When Belle shuts the door and then slumps against it with a disappointed sigh, Ben steps up behind her and gives her a hug. "Dating is so hard!" She complains. "Can't I find someone who is nice and cute and who likes me and not the castle?"

Ben understands. He was once dating Audrey, after all. He sighs and squeezes her tighter. There's not a lot else he can do.

________________________________________________________________

They get a system, he and Mal do. As boy after boy with the occasional appearance of a girl appear and leave on their doorstep in varying degrees of failure, they both start picking up on signals and body language. And then there are predictions.

"She's not leaving the property," Mal whispers as they watch her get into a small coupe with a smashed-in passenger side door.

"She'll be back late," Ben hums when someone opens the door to a large, red truck and helps her in.

There's still the occasional time that someone unfavorable shows up, but all Ben has to do is glance between his daughter and the person outside, say "No", and she'll lead them away with a sigh. If they're particularly cute or nice, he'll get a whine of "Dad, why?", but she trusts him after the first few problems she had.

Still, she's a teenager, and she's growing surer of herself. Ben knows it can't be long before she starts to disregard his advice.

It finally happens one evening in October.

Two weeks from his and Mal's anniversary and Lumiere pages up to say someone has arrived for Belle. Ben goes down, opens the door, and finds himself peering into a pair of clear, blue eyes. Someone with tanned skin and curly black hair and bright eyes stands behind his door with a confident smile. He's all dressed up in slacks and a red button-down shirt and his teeth are whiter than paper. Ben feels a headache come on. This won't end well.

"Pleased to meet you, Your Majesty," the boy extends a hand to shake. "My name is Jayme. What can I call you?"

"Ben," Ben replies softly. He doesn't recognize his last name when it's called since it's so uncommon to use it. "Nice to meet you, Jayme. Belle hasn't come down yet. I'll walk up and get her. Feel free to come in and wait in the formal."

Jayme gets past the front door, which is an accomplishment in and of itself, and Ben walks up the stairs. He glances back to see what Jayme thinks of the place. He briefly examines the family portrait on the wall and then the rug under his feet, and then takes a deep breath and waits. A bad feeling churns in Ben's stomach.

He knocks on Belle's door and she calls for him to come it. She's sitting at her dresser, finishing applying a dark pink shade of lipstick. She looks classy and elegant with her black dress and her purple hair all curled.

"Your date is here," he calls, leaning against the doorframe.

"Oh, great!" Belle smiles as she turns back around. "You met him then? What did you think?"

"No," Ben shakes his head. The smile drops off of Belle's face. "No, sweetheart, he's not the right person yet."

"What's wrong with him?" Belle frowns. "Did he not introduce himself or something? He might be nervous - it's pretty intimidating having to meet the former king."

"Belle, I think you should stay in tonight," Ben sighs. He knows, though, from the tone of her voice, that she's dug her heels in. She's like her mom and both of her grandmothers. When she thinks she knows, she knows.

"No," Belle replies, a sound that breaks Ben's heart. "I'm looking forward to tonight. I know he'll take care of me and I know that we'll have a good time. And if he doesn't, then there's always magic and pepper spray and 1-2-1." She taps on her cell phone as a further reference to Auradon's emergency number.

Ben sighs and opens up the doorframe. She steps through, expression still sour, and then heads down to the foyer. Mal is there now. She's smiling and laughing as he and Jayme talk. He catches the punchline of a joke before Belle steps out into sight and heads down the stairs. Jayme's mouth falls open a little when he sees her, and a blush blooms across Belle's cheeks. He tells her she looks beautiful, kisses her hand, and offers her his arm. Mal looks proud.

Ben comes down the stairs and ignores Belle's pointed gaze as he loops his arm through Mal's. "Be home by eleven," he tells her and then shows them both to the door.

They watch Jayme escort Belle out to a silver car with a black interior that he opens with a smile. She smiles as she gets in and the twisting in Ben's heart increases.

"Well, I think she finally got it," Mal laughs as they close the door. "He's a really nice kid. I like him." She puts her arm around his waist and kisses his cheek. "What did you think?"

Ben shakes his head and puts an arm around her shoulders. "No," he says.

That's all he'll say on the matter.

________________________________________________________________

Belle comes back overjoyed. Everyone is regaled with tales of Tayme over breakfast, and her phone is constantly abuzz with messages from him. Mal is just as excited for her. Mom and daughter stay up late talking about Belle's new relationship and comparing it with Ben and Mal's from back when they were teens. Ben just shakes his head.

Two weeks later, on their third date, Jayme asks her to be his girlfriend. She changes her social media statuses and makes her new profile picture a shot of him kissing her on the cheek. Ben knows the night she has her first kiss with him because she stumbles through the front door grinning like a fool and almost crashes into the stair banister.

Magazines write stories of him and her together, the boys slowly warm up to him and welcome him into their circle and all the while Ben has this pit of dread expanding in his chest because he already knows that somehow, this relationship will end with Belle heartbroken.

Belle counts all the months with growing pride and glee. First one, then two, suddenly they're at four and then five, and then one day she's coming to him with a bright smile and putting a watch down on his desk with the question "Is this a good anniversary gift?" on her lips.

"Yes," he answers with a nod. "He'll like that a lot."

"You like him now, right Dad?"

Ben pinches his lips together and gives a forced sort of shrug. "He's not the one," he whispers, and Belle's face twists.

"I think he is!" She protests. "Come on, what did he do wrong?"

Ben shakes his head. It's not that the kid has done anything wrong - it's just he can't see this lasting. Jayme seems like a great kid, but he's not going to make her happy in the long run. Nothing will change that. Sure, he may know her favorite orders to all her favorite fast food places and knows the places he and Mal used to take their family while she was growing up and he might have been invited to spend Christmas Eve with the family and all of Mal's old friend's families, but Ben knows like he knew he'd die for her the day she was born that this is just not going to work.

Belle leaves in a huff and stops speaking to him. She must have assumed that Ben was slowly warming up to Jayme, and now she's angry to find otherwise. Mal comes to him then with questions like: "What's going on with you?" "Why don't you like him?" "Are you sure you're not just upset she's getting older?" She doesn't quite know what to make of his responses - he's calm, nonchalant, but adamant against Jayme.

Jayme himself comes up one day to talk with Ben. They walk out on the grounds and talk about Belle and Mal and everything under the sun. "Do you not like me?" Jayme asks, innocently enough.

Ben gives him a once-over. "I'm not against you personally," he tells the kid. "But you and my daughter aren't right for each other."

Jayme looks appropriately hurt. "I love her," he assures Ben, and Ben has to keep himself from rolling his eyes. "Is there any way I can convince you of that?"

Convince him? Belle is already convinced. He raises an eyebrow for a moment and then looks out over the clearing. "I've just been thinking of where she's planning to go," he lies to Tayme, testing the boy. "She came to Mal and I a few nights ago and said she might want to go live with her grandpa Hades when she gets older. Stay on the Isle and do service work out there."

Jayme stumbles back, shock falling over his face and horror frozen in his eyes. "What? But she-" he relaxes when he sees the look on Ben's face. "Oh. You were joking. Why?"

Ben shakes his head. He has his answer now. He knows. He closes his eyes and snorts. "Never mind," he replies. "What do you want to do when you're older?"

There's a lengthy response about how fascinated he is with politics and how he wants to especially work with displaced people from the former Isle of the Lost, but Ben ignores it all.

________________________________________________________________

The breakup comes three days before their six-month anniversary, and it is every bit as bad as Ben anticipated. It breaks everyone's heart except for his. Belle locks herself in her room sobbing hysterically, listening to every depressing love song she can think of and going through gigantic boxes of chocolate and cotton candy. Ben gets the full story across the pillows of his and Mal's bed that night as Mal does her own crying.

Apparently, there was a phone call about their anniversary that she'd said goodbye to and then neither of them had hit hang-up in time. She overheard his friends laughing about her. There had been a lot - enough for them to break up but not enough to have Tayme arrested for malicious intent towards the royal family. Something about how Belle was beautiful but ditsy. Easy to please. Quick to look past problems. Something about how it would be nice to be king. Live in the palace. Drive nice cars and wear nice clothes. Something about how the Former King didn't seem to like him, but he thought he'd come around.

"How did you know?" Mal asks, wiping the last of her tears away as she curls against his chest like she's a kitten instead of a dragon. "How did you know what he was?"

Ben can only shrug. "I think it was because he looked at the portrait in the front hall weird," he lies. In truth, he has no idea, but he has to give Mal some sort of reason so that she can feel justified for missing it.

He lets himself into Belle's room the next day to find her curled up inside five thick comforters, two and a half empty boxes of chocolate beside her, and a stuffed animal from when she was three. Beauty and the Beast is playing on her phone.

Ben untangles her and then they sit together on her bed. She curls into a ball that he holds to his chest as she cries her little soul out on his shoulder. It's a few hours that they sit like that, just healing from everything.

"You were right, dad," she hiccups a little. "I'll listen to you next time."

He doesn't get any satisfaction from that. On the contrary, he sighs and kisses her head and just squeezes her tighter as she cries.

________________________________________________________________

She starts bringing her phone to him when someone asks her out. It's a little weird at first, but his track record is pretty great. He can usually give her a shrug of "maybe" or a "no" within a few minutes. Belle still sometimes gets frustrated with the responses, but she doesn't question him anymore.

Mal regards him as if he possesses some sixth sense. It's pretty cool how impressed she is with him. Even though he's married her and there isn't really a reason to keep trying to impress her like he's still trying to catch her attention, he still gets overly proud of himself when she smiles like he's one of their children and she's proud of them. He made the right choice with this one.

Belle goes on a few dates here and there but nothing serious while she's still recovering from her betrayal.

Belle turns seventeen in April. It's been more than a year since she first tried to bring home that first kid, and Ben has to pause to ponder his own state at seventeen. Seventeen was after he had already met Mal. Seventeen was when she almost went back to the Isle and he'd chased after her, having his suspicions that she was "his person". He got that confirmation in the self-same year. He's glad that Belle isn't like him and that she hasn't fallen so hard at so young. Sure, it worked out pretty well for him and Mal and it would sure solve a lot of the "what if" questions they all have now, but he doesn't quite think she's ready for the kind of commitment he and Mal had from a very early point. To be fair, he and Mal had to have a lot of commitment - she was coming from the Isle of the Lost and denouncing her mother on live television and he had passed a law that allowed her to be in Auradon and had publicly dumped Audrey to date her. Also, she drugged him. Something he still likes to tease her about.

He has to give a lot of credit to his parents because if Belle brought home someone like Mal(or even if Zach or Tyler brought home someone like Mal), he'd be more than a bit wary. To bring in a girl who kept knives up her sleeves and who more often than not kept her mother's spellbook tucked inside her jacket and then to bring in the story of how she gave him a spelled cookie to try and destroy Auradon before accidentally tripping over everything she'd been taught and falling in love with him. He hopes he'd have the same patience they did.

For Belle's seventeenth birthday party, they close off the woods that hold the enchanted lake, string up thousands of colorful lights in the trees, and then bring in tons of food and people. Evie, Jay, and Carlos all show up with their families in tow and it cheers Belle up to be around everyone else's families. They're all like cousins, those kids, because Mal and the rest of her "core four" are like siblings. Carlos was even the family member who gave Mal away to him at their wedding. He and Jay had fought over that right until Mal had implored Ben to find an alternative task for one of them and thus Evie had been the maid of honor, Carlos had walked Mal down, and Jay had been Ben's best man.

Ben doesn't know most of the people at the party. He recognizes a few kids that either Zach or Tyler or Belle have dated and he knows people from the courts that he had to deal with back when he was king and then there are a few old friends from Auradon Prep that make his children uncomfortable when they bring up old memories of their parents at school.

Zach and Tyler both bring their girlfriends. Zach is in his mid-twenties and has been dating Audrey's daughter for quite some time, which cracks both Ben and Mal up. They seem to like each other though, and Ben doesn't have anything against the girl. He just thinks it'll be a huge laugh between him, Audrey, and Mal if they end up getting married. Tyler has dated furiously, skipping around with different girls and boys(the greenest face Ben ever saw on Mal was the night he announced he was going out on a date with Uma's daughter) but his current fling is one of the girls from his graduating class who Ben rather likes. Her name is Faith, which is one of the names Ben requested for Belle back when she was born (along with Joy, Hope, and Charity, but he couldn't sway Mal to agree to any of his good-intentioned names).

Tyler and Faith swing around the buffet table and then come sit beside Ben and Mal. Ben has to chuckle at their choice of snacks. Faith obsesses over peaches and thinks they are the most delicious things to have ever existed. Meanwhile, Tyler...

"Give me some," Mal demands as soon as she sees his plate piled high with chocolate-covered strawberries. She reaches out to steal some, but Tyler shields his plate from her.

"No, mom!" He protests. "Go get your own!"

As Mal and Tyler began a squabble over Tyler's right to his chocolate strawberries("I'm your mother! You're supposed to take care of me!" "You have two legs and two hands! You get your own!"), Ben reaches out and shakes Faith's hand. She's chuckling a little and smiling as her boyfriend and his mom interact, and her smile grows a little wider as she smiles at Ben. He wishes that Belle could find someone and have things as easy as the boys have it.

Belle strolls over as the place is getting dark and the lights start looking like fairies hiding in the trees. She sits down so close to him that he couldn't even set his hand down if he wanted to and then drops her head onto his shoulder. She's exactly the same way Mal is when her mom gets tired. She just wants someone to hold her.

"What's got your goose?" He whispers, sliding his arm out from under her head and putting it around her shoulders.

Belle huffs and little tendrils of smoke escape her nostrils. Ben suspects she and Tyler, who also inherited Mal's purple hair, both have the ability to shapeshift into dragons, but since everything has been peaceful since the barrier fell, they haven't had to experiment too much with their powers. The closest either has come is when Tyler accidentally set a tree and then a field on fire when he went out drinking with friends for the first time a week after his twenty-first birthday. The kid holds alcohol about as well as Ben can, whereas Zach can retain his dignity no much how thick his BAC. He and Mal will always retreat to corners at parties to drink and talk - mostly about Zach's own childhood - while anyone who can't drink and remain conscious, like Ben and Tyler, keep away.

"Jayme said he was working on a song for my birthday," Belle confides in a small whisper, bringing Ben back to the present. "I'm just wondering what it would have been like."

"Probably more painful once you found out," Ben reasons softly, but he knows that isn't quite the answer she's searching for. He runs his fingers through her hair as she sighs dejectedly and curls up against his side.

He watches Zach lead Amber down a path closer to the enchanted lake. Their arms are linked together as they walk down. Zach pulls the crown off his head as soon as they leave the crowds and instead hangs it on his arm. Amber reaches up to ruffle his hair with a laugh and it throws Ben off a bit because she usually acts a lot like her mother, and Audrey would never have done that to him when they dated. Of course, Amber was Tyler's friend before she was Zach's girlfriend, so she's a great deal looser than her mother.

Belle gives a little, unhappy sigh at his side as Tyler jumps away from Mal's reach and then Faith appears with a second, more reasonable plate of strawberries for Mal. Mal sighs in happiness and then nudges Tyler. "Where can I trade you out for her?" She jokes.

"Give it a few years," Ben advises. "Maybe you can have both."

Faith blushes a deep red and hides her face as Tyler tilts his head, considering. Mal laughs - she knows he only teases them because of how badly they were teased for getting engaged so early in their lives.

Ben runs his fingertips through Belle's hair and hums. "You are my sunshine," He sings. "My only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are grey."

Belle snorts and then hides her face in his shirt. "That's beautiful, Dad," She chuckles. "I love you."

On Ben's other side, Mal slumps into his chest. He chuckles and moves his arm to be around both of his spunky, spitfire girls. Mal drops a strawberry stem onto the ground before setting her hand against his chest.

Across the way, through the trees and underneath a patch of pink lights Ben suddenly notices a young man sitting all alone on a bench with a homemade card in his hands. He sits, staring at the ground, with his shoulders hunched and hands braced on his knees. Ben pokes Mal's side and she yelps as she comes to life under his touch. He points across the way and sees Mal squinting to follow his gaze. It only takes a moment of hesitation before he pokes Belle's side too. "Look at that young man over there," He directs. "Do you know him?"

Belle blinks a little and then turns around to see who he's talking about. "I think so," She nods. "We have English and French together. He's very smart."

"He looks lost," Ben hums.

Belle nods in agreement. "He does," She affirms, and then gets to her feet. "I think I'll go talk to him."

Mal sets her hand on his knee as soon as Belle is out of earshot. "Look at you, playing matchmaker," She teases. Ben furrows his brow. That wasn't quite his intention, actually.

Belle sits down beside the boy without announcing herself and when he looks up, he jumps. They exchange pleasantries. The boy hands her the card with a shaking hand. Belle takes it, opens it, and her entire face lights up as she reads the contents. She says something, and he laughs, and then something new that Ben hasn't felt with any of her flings up until this point takes place in his chest. Peace.

This is going to be okay.

________________________________________________________________

A week later, Ben opens the door to let Auden inside the palace. The poor boy stumbles over the doorstep, looking around with wide, uncomfortable eyes. He swallows and then slowly extends a hand to Ben. "Hello, uh, sir," he stutters. "I'm Auden. I was hoping I could take Belle out tonight if, uh, it's okay with you?"

Ben smiles as he shakes Auden's trembling, sweaty hand. No one has asked him yet. "Hello Auden," He greets. "You can call me Ben, and yes, Belle will be down in a second."

Mal comes in from the front entryway and Auden shakes her hand too - something else that no one has bothered to do. Mal's hand is more often kissed, which annoys her to no end. She prefers handshakes and it shows as she smiles in approval at the young man in the entryway. Ben cracks a little joke that she only bites in dragon form and the kid laughs a little as Mal rolls her eyes.

There's a sound from up the stairs and then Belle appears with her hair down, wearing one of Mal's old Isle jackets and black slacks. She looks pretty with her makeup minimal and her smile bright. Auden's mouth falls open and he makes several gasping sounds in the back of his throat. "O-oh!" He exclaims. "You look so - just so beautiful! Wow!"

Belle blushes just like he does, dipping her head and trying to keep her smile from spreading even wider. Auden offers her his arm when she gets to the bottom of the stairs and Mal crosses her arms in silent approval. This kid is hitting every spot the others missed - checking every box. And for the first time, Ben doesn't feel worried or anxious about this. Even if they don't end up working out, it'll be on good terms. This kid isn't going to take advantage of her or ignore her or use her status to get where he wants. He's going to make her feel special.

And heaven help her if Belle doesn't do exactly the same thing.

"This place is so big!" Auden marvels, looking all around. "I'd get lost here."

Belle nods. "I'm thinking of moving out one day," she confides. "That's what my older brother did. I might go live on the Isle beside my Grandpa Hades."

"That'd be cool," Auden nods. "I haven't ever been to the Isle."

"We should go sometime," Belle suggests. "Mom took us all while we were growing up. I could tell you lots of stories about her."

Ben and Mal stand in the doorway as Auden and Belle head out. Auden makes sure to shake both of their hands again on the way out and thank them for letting him take their daughter out and promise to walk her to the door afterward. Another thing no one has even thought to do. They catch snippets of conversation as he takes her down to a beat-up blue civic in the driveway and opens the door for her and helps her in. "She'll be back late," Mal hums against his shirt, leaning her head into his shoulder.

Ben snorts a little and squeezes her tighter to him as the car starts and then slowly turns out onto the road. "You know," he begins with a chuckle, "I think we might survive the dating phase after all."

[mama-m1na]

The Journey of a Witch: One

                                          ~~~~~~~

So, quick note I made a quick sketch of the layout of the Shop on my page under “The Journey of a Witch” tab.

                                          ~~~ I ~~~

“Hey, isn’t that the witch?”

“Shit, it is! Be careful around her, they say all of her predictions are 100%!”

The sixteen-year-old paid no mind to the ramblings of those around her as her waist long, raven black hair fluttered in the breeze as she walked down the street.

Her the golden flecks in her brown irises glittered as they caught the dreaded sunlight which she came to dislike.

Her plum colored dress complimenting her tan skin tone quite well as she browsed the stalls in the farmer’s market.

“I feel kind of bad for her though.”

“What do you mean?”

“With what happened four years ago in Pyget, I’m still surprised she continues to do magic.”

A smile graced her face as her eyes caught a group of chicks for sale and she stopped to play with them for a while.

“A lot of the people are glad she does though.”

“I guess, with a pretty high success rate for her magic.”

“Yeah.”

With her arms full the teenager walked home to her home and shop in the small town of Etlecaum.

“I’m home!” she chirped to an empty house as she unlocked the door and took off her shoes.

She sighed as she put things away and tidied things up, walking past the three suitcases for the trip she was leaving for with seven of her closest friends.

The next morning the girl dressed in a plain black t-shirt, black leggings, and black combat boots.

Around her neck was a black collar with a bow at the front and a golden lock hanging from it. Most people would find it weird or kinky; however, for her it was a part of one of the spells she had cast upon arriving back from Pyget four years ago.

After eating breakfast she went down stairs to where her magic shop was and she checked everything before opening for the day.

Ten minutes later the door opens to let in a familiar elderly woman holding a wooden staff.

“Good morning, Mrs. Sage,” the girl greeted, “Looking for anything in particular?”

“No, Rhamina, I’m just wandering,” the woman replied looking through a book on crystals, “So, I hear you’re leaving for Pyget soon.”

“Yes, I’m finally bringing some others along,” the ravenette chirped.

“Oh, so more people will be allowed to join in the Festival now,” Mrs. Sage smiled.

“Yep, with that rule of ‘You can only take part in the Festival if you’ve partaken before or you’re a guest of a magician partaking in it,’ only Mr. Conrad and I have been able to do it for the past three years,” the ravenette sighed, “It was boring, just the two of us. He was a good person but the Festival and rituals are better with more people there.”

“Ah, yes, Mr. Conrad. Such a shame he passed away,” the woman sighed earning a nod from Rhamina.

“Yes, but better from old age than being murdered by them,” stated the teen, her eyes narrowing a bit.

Mrs. Sage placed a hand on Rhamina’s shoulder as she asked, “Do you still hold anger towards that group, The Remedy?”

“No,” she sighed, “I just wonder why they hate magic users to the point where they would want to rid the world of all of them. They haven’t pulled a stunt as big as the Festival recently but they still manage to ruin the lives of so many of us.”

“Truly,” the woman said checking her watch, “Well, I must be on my way, Dear, good luck.”

“Have a good day, Mrs. Sage,” Rhamina chirped as the woman exited her shop.

As Rhamina was on her lunch break the door burst open and a familiar voice screamed, “Mina!”

The ravenette sighed as she came out of the back room to find her friend, Kerstin, swinging around a toy minecraft sword.

“At least it wasn’t like Christmas when your parents got you a fucking nerf gun,” the ravenette sighed sitting on one of her counters, “I mean they should have known better than to get you that.”

“I know right!” the brunette chirped, “They immediately got shot that day!”

“I’m surprised they didn’t take it away from you,” Rhamina chuckled.

“They tried,” replied Kerstin causing the ravenette to bust out in laughter, “Oh, they tried.”

“So are you ready for your magical awakening in Pyget?” Rhamina mused as the shorter female squealed.

“Oh my fucking god! I’ve been so excited ever since you invited us!” Kerstin exclaimed, “Like it sucks what happened, but now it’s exclusive for all of us!”

“Yeah, but you have to be careful, you can still be kicked out by the townspeople since you’re new,” Rhamina warned, “they’re really on edge about it. Security is ramped up to the max this year since I’m the only original left.”

“Yeah, I know. I’ll be on my best behavior!” Kerstin replied patting Rhamina on the shoulder.

“That means no stealing anything from the markets,” Rhamina deadpanned as the brunette cursed to herself.

“Also, I hope you’re packed,” the ravenette chuckled, “We leave in two days and stay there for about a month.”

Kerstin chuckled as she left the building and Rhamina shook her head at the teen’s antics.

As the day came to a close Rhamina checked all of the things around the store before locking up and heading up to her living space.

As she ate her dinner she read through a book that she found interesting.

“Oh my Lord, I hate this character so much!” she exclaimed as she turned the page, “Why the fuck am I attracted to you?!”

This was actually a constant problem for her. Falling for fictional characters that is.

“I’m so fucking lonely,” she giggled as she closed her book and put away her left overs.

Two days later Rhamina sighed as she sat in between two fourteen-year-old girls who were both clinging to her arms at the airport.

This continued as they proceeded to board their airship.

One of them had shoulder length blond hair, ivory colored skin, and blue eyes.

The other had shoulder length brown hair, a light tan, and brown eyes with glasses.

“Mina!” the brunette chirped.

“Yes, Chloe?” Rhamina asked as she looked down at child-like brown irises.

“Pet me!” commanded the younger female as the ravenette begrudgingly obeyed.

“Look how spoiled she is,” Rhamina said momentarily stopping causing the brunette to look up in disappointment as she let out a series of owl noises.

“I mean look,” Rhamina continued as Chloe began to nuzzle the sixteen-year-old’s arm.

“Ramen, she looks like she’s gonna kill you in your sleep,” the concerned blonde said pointing out the adorable looking glare on Chloe’s face.

“Aurora, you know she can try but I’ll just put her in a corner,” Rhamina replied before leaning back in her seat for a nap.

Ten minutes later Rhamina slapped a hand that was above her face and opened her eyes to see a dark hand above her as a green marker fell to the floor.

“Have you not learned your lesson, Tijarah?” Rhamina asked her friend, “You cannot achieve this.”

“I’ll still eat you out of house and home though,” Tijarah scoffed leaning back in her seat.

“I can do that on my own, thank you very much,” Rhamina said looking out the window to see the night sky and ground below the airship, “Well, looks like we’re almost there.”

“Yep and it’s already dry as fuck,” Kerstin scoffed from her seat, “Sam, you’re going to have one hell of a time.”

“Fuck you,” the emerald-eyed female spat putting vaseline on her lips.

“You know,” a red-haired female said, “I’m kind of glad Mo isn’t here.”

“Yeah, I’m agreeing with Hannah here,” the oldest female said, “I mean he’s a good kid but-”

“He’s annoying as shit,” Sam said cutting off the other brunette, “Sorry, Sophie, but he is.”

“No, you’re not wrong,” Sophie replied, “He is just way too much.”

“Oh he asked if I would bring him so he could get a month off of school but I said no because he’ll just disrespect the whole thing,” Rhamina explained, “He comes from Pyget, yes. But he comes from a different area and knows nothing about this.”

“Wait, so what exactly did you say?” Hannah asked.

“I just told him ‘No, you’re not coming with us’,” Rhamina sighed, “He came up to me talking about all the places he was planning to visit like I had already invited him, too. It was really insensitive.”

“I mean I get free transport there because this is an important thing and I’m identified as crucial for this and I was able to weasel you guys free tickets as well but I had to pay for luggage and that shit ain’t cheap,” Rhamina continued.

“How did he react?” Kerstin asked.

“He was really disappointed but I don’t really care,” Rhamina replied, “He was being way too pushy and I have a right to say no.”

“Plus, I wanted a vacation for just us special weirdos,” Rhamina chuckled deciding to change the subject.

“Yes, Ramen,” Aurora mused wiggling her eyebrows.

“So what exactly are we going to be doing first?” Sam asked pulling her brown hair into a ponytail.

“Well, I couldn’t really afford to get hotel rooms so we’re just staying in my other shop,” Rhamina explained as the airship descended.

“You have another shop in Pyget?” Kerstin asked, “How the fuck did that happen.”

“You know,” Rhamina chuckled with an awkward smile, “It used to be my friends but he- he’s gone now and I didn’t want anyone else to touch it so I, you know, snatched it.”

“Oof,” Sophie said as Chloe and Aurora tried to comfort the ravenette.

“There’s not much room though,” Rhamina continued, “You guys can take the bedrooms. I’ll just be in the living room then. Just if y’all see me floating in my sleep or some shit, run.”

“Mina, we’re the guests so we can just take the living room,” Sophie suggested earning a glare from the ravenette.

“My Aiasian ass says no,” Rhamina barked back, “You’re the guests you get the luxury shit.”

“How many bedrooms are there anyway?” Kerstin asked.

“A guest bedroom and the Master bedroom,” Rhamina replied as they let the aisles empty out before standing.

“Did your friend use the Master bedroom?” Sam asked earning a nod from Rhamina, “Then we’ll just cram in the guest bedroom and you take the master.”

“Excuse me?” Rhamina asked.

“Yeah,” Hannah added, “It would feel wrong to take the master bedroom since it’s your friend plus if the guest bedroom is the size of your normal bedroom then we should be fine.”

Before Rhamina could fight back the two children at her sides kept insisting until she gave in.

“Fine,” Rhamina groaned standing up and grabbing her leather, kiss lock purse, “But you better not sneak into my room at night or some shit.”

This earned snickers from all but two of the other girls as they got off of the aircraft.

“Holy shit,” Kerstin said standing outside of the airport under and overhang as the girls waited for someone to bring them a cart to bring their luggage to the shop.

“Aesthetic, isn’t it?” Rhamina chuckled using a black scarf as a hood as multiple whispers came from the people surrounding them.

“Ms. Miyu!” a girl with dark skin, short dark hair, and hazel eyes called running up to the large group, “It really is you!”

“Nice to see you again, Selene,” Rhamina chuckled as the girl wrapped her arms around the ravenette’s waist, much to the shagrin of two fourteen-year-olds.

“I was afraid you weren’t going to come this year,” the child sighed.

“Why wouldn’t I?” Rhamina asked smile slowly fading, “What happened, Selene?”

“Ms. Miyu, thank the stars you’re here!” an older woman exclaimed almost on the brink of tears, “We thought they had already done something to you!”

The aura seemed to shift as the girls left their luggage to be taken care of by some of the townspeople while they were lead to the plaza only to see something quite disturbing.

Right in front of them was a carbon copy of Rhamina tied to a cross with iron rods impaling various parts of her but what stood out to the ravenette was the familiar symbol tattooed onto the thing’s forehead.

It was a red cross split by crossbones, known as the symbol of the extremist group known as the Antidote.

Rhamina’s were narrowed as the girls looked at her in concern.

“Mina, are you okay?” Hannah asked putting a hand on the sixteen-year-old’s shoulder.

“I’m, okay but I’m concerned because they haven’t really tried anything big since four years ago,” the ravenette explained, “And they decide here and now to try to scare me off. They didn’t do this the past years I’ve been coming with just Mr. Conrad.”

“They want to end the Festival entirely,” a male walking up to the group, “It is the only event amongst the magic community which gathers all kinds of magic as united and with it gone, they’ll have a better chance at erasing magic from our world.”

“Thank you for the explanation, Mr. Antar,” Rhamina spoke nodding in recognition at the man.

“Ms. Miyu, I’ve told you many times to call me by my first name,” the male chuckled, “We are friends after all.”

“I’m sorry, its just after so long, it would feel weird,” Rhamina chuckled before turning to her friends, “Guys this is Mr. Antar, he is the head of the town’s council.”

“Mr. Antar, these are the ones who I’ve invited to take part in the Festival this year,” Rhamina introduced earning a happy expression from the man before it faded into a frown.

“It’s such an honor to have you all here, though I wish your first trip here wouldn’t have been so alarming,” he said turning back to the obvious threat.

“I-is that a real person?” Chloe asked tugging on Rhamina’s sleeve.

“Nah,” came the teen’s reply, “It’s a doll, a really realistic looking doll, but a doll.”

“Christ, Mina, is this safe?” Sophie asked in concern not for herself but for the ravenette.

“Every path has its own risks,” Rhamina replied with a shrug, “I just happen to choose all of them with the most life threatening but hey my life isn’t boring.”

“Mina, you have actual terrorists after you and you’re not fucking concerned about this?” Tijarah asked as they walked to the shop.

“Oh, I’m concerned but knowing that they could be watching from anywhere do you think I should be panicking?” the ravenette replied, “I’m not going to give them the satisfaction. If they want to burn me down they have to reach me first.”

“Mina, please tell me you don’t plan on doing anything to provoke them,” Hannah said knowing how she, Kerstin and Sam acted.

“Oh hell no,” Rhamina said taking out her keys and unlocking the door, “I leave them alone if they leave me alone. However if they cross me they get what comes to them. Hell consider them lucky that I don’t come after them now. They’ve done enough to consider themselves on my bad side.”

“Holy aesthetics,” Sophie said as they walked into the shop which was quite different to Rhamina’s in Emltucae.

“Yeah, Asra tended to keep the shop a little messier than mine but it’s cute isn’t it?” Rhamina chuckled beckoning the girls to follow her up the stairs.

“This is where we’ll be staying for the next month,” Rhamina said once they reached the modest sized living area, “Of course I hope you guys will be helping me around the shop as well but I only plan on opening the shop for two days a week. After all I have to give you guys some training before the actual Festival.”

“Yeah no problem, Man,” Aurora said, “Of course we’ll be helping!”

“Hey, Mina, where’s our shit?” Tijarah asked.

“Should be in the guest room,” Rhamina said as she led them down the hall to their room which did indeed have their luggage.

“So what do we have planned for tonight?” Chloe asked.

“Well not much for today since we just got here, but we can go eat out for tonight then tomorrow we can go explore a bit,” Rhamina chirped.

“Yeah, plus we need to unpack,” Hannah stated earning a series of groans from the rest of the females.

“Oh yeah, Mina, what’s with the scarf?” Chloe asked as Rhamina looked up from her luggage to motion to the scarf around her head.

“Chloe, I don’t like sunlight and we are like almost in the smack dab middle of a fucking desert,” Rhamina said grabbing her suitcases, “I’m taking precautions.”

Once the ravenette left the room, the girls got to work at organizing who would be sleeping on the bed and who would take the floor as well as who’s clothes would go where in the closet.

By the time the sun went down the girls gathered in the living room to go out for dinner wearing the same thing they had been earlier that day.

“So where exactly are we eating?” Tijarah asked as Rhamina came down the stairs.

“Of course, all about the food,” Sam sighed.

“Like you’re one to talk,” Kerstin snickered earning a glare from both of them.

“Neither can you!” Sam exclaimed back as the other girls burst out in laughter.

“Depends, what do you guys want to eat?” Rhamina asked pulling the scarf over her head again.

“Paajnese,” came the collective reply.

Rhamina blinked before asking, “Did you guys coordinate this before I came downstairs?”

“Yes,” Kerstin replied, “We decided when we were unpacking our shit.”

“Okay, there’s a sushi place down the road and its pretty good,” Rhamina said after a few minutes of thought, “We can just walk there.”  

“That works,” Sophie said, “Alright guys let’s go.”

Once everyone put on their shoes they walked out of the building and Rhamina locked the door before leading them to the restaurant.

It was much cooler now that the sun had disappeared below the horizon and in front of the restaurant Rhamina pointed out a large building in the distance.

“That’s the building the Festival takes place in,” she stated pointing at the sand colored building, “It’s actually just four walls surrounding an oasis. The walls are enchanted though only those with special sigils can enter; which, reminds me I need to make you guys ID’s to get in.”

“You need ID to get in?” Chloe asked as they entered the restaurant.

“Yes, it’s really old but powerful magic,” Rhamina replied as a hostess took them to a large booth, “I’m really lucky to have learned how to use it.”

“How the hell did your parents even let you start coming here, Mina?” Kerstin asked, “Your parents were strict as fuck.”

“Actually, Asra convinced them,” Rhamina chuckled, “When we first met, before I had my shop, it was at Lady of the Lake and we just started talking and we got really close. My parents were really wary of him since he was a foreigner who was ten years older than me and yeah. He brought up the Festival when we were hanging out and offered to bring me for that year.”

Rhamina smiled at the memory as they browsed the menu and continued, “I really wanted to go but I had to decline because I knew my parents would flat out say no. They didn’t even like the fact I was practicing magic, going to the Festival, the largest magic event ever, was out of the question.”

“But,” she continued, “somehow I came home from school one day, he was in my living room with my parents and they said I could go.”

“I’m still surprised they said yes,” Sophie said.

“I know,” Rhamina chuckled, “I was for sure that if I didn’t come home when I did, they would’ve killed him or something with the looks on their faces.”

Once the girls ordered talk of various topics mostly regarding magic filled their table.

“You talk so much about Asra,” Aurora chuckled, “What does he look like?”

“Well, he was a bit taller than me as I am now, so about five eight? Five seven, maybe?” Rhamina started, “He had golden brown skin, kind of like mine but more glowy, deep violet eyes, and fluffy white hair.”

“He sounds like a character from a book,” Tijarah commented causing the table to burst out in laughter.

“He was an attractive character that’s for sure,” Rhamina chuckled, “Too bad I was, you know ten when we first met. I can show you guys a picture when we get back.”

When the food arrived Rhamina put down her scarf so she could eat without it getting in the way.

Rhamina got a roll with eel and a sweet sauce on it along with miso soup and vegetable tempura since she was allergic to shrimp.

The food was quite good and the owners even gave them each a free dessert of their choice.

After they paid and left it was about eight in the evening and the girls decided to walk around a bit since they basically stayed inside all day.

Walking back up to the plaza they were all relieved to see the cross and doll from earlier gone leaving only a small hole in the sand where the cross was stuck.

“So anything else about the Festival we should know right now?” Kerstin asked as they sat down by a fountain.

“Not really since I’ll be teaching it to you guys when we start your training,” Rhamina said before noticing most of the stores were still open.

“You guys can go browse around for a bit,” Rhamina suggested, “It’s more lively here at night.”

“Fine by me,” Kerstin said standing, “Are you just going to be here?”

“Yep, knock yourselves out just meet back here by ten okay?” Rhamina smiled dipping her fingers into the fountain.

As the girls dispersed Rhamina turned her full attention to the fountain and she dried off her hand as the focused on the water.

To those trained in magic they could feel the shift in aura of the girl as a ball of water floated out of the fountain and in front of the girls face.

At her command it shifted into various shapes until in the water she saw a familiar pair of violet irises causing her to drop it in surprise.

Her head snapped behind her as she saw a rustle of plants from the corner of her eye.

Standing up to go inspect it she saw it lead to a small alleyway which held seemingly nothing.

She walked into the small space between buildings until she reached the back where she saw a white snake.

It was about the same length as her forearm and an upturned snout; which, allowed her to identify it as a Western Hognose snake. She also took notice of it’s light lavender patterning as she slowly approached it.

“Hey, Little One,” she cooed kneeling down as the snake curled into itself but not showing any other defensive or strike posture, “What are you doing here? You aren’t native to Pyget.”

She slowly brought her hand in front of the snake and it flicked it’s tongue out to smell her almost like a dog.

It made no noise as it slithered onto the female’s hand and wrapped itself around the appendage.

“Well looks like you’re mine now,” she chuckled bringing the snake to her face to see purple eyes instead of the normal red for this morph.

As she walked back to the fountain the snake seemed to survey its surroundings from its new, higher, point of view.

Rhamina spent the rest of her time waiting, playing with her new companion and gushing over how cute snakes were until her friends returned from their exploring.

When they did come back some of them had bags of things they bought like new clothes or little items they bought.

“Mina, we back,” Chloe exclaimed not noticing the reptile of the ravenette’s hand.

Actually, most of the group didn’t… Most of them.

“Ramen, what the fuck?!” Aurora gasped at the betrayal in front of her, “Why are you holding a legless lizard?!”

“Aurora, this is Snow,” Rhamina chirped holding up the snake as it flicked its tongue, “Isn’t he cute?”

“Rhamina!” Sophie exclaimed, “Did you just pick up a random snake?!”

“But he’s domestic,” Rhamina whined, “Western Hognoses aren’t native to Pyget, plus he’s a really rare morph. It would be a shame for him to just be in the wild where he would be easily spotted and killed.”

“Mina, where are you going to keep it?” Hannah asked as the ravenette stood up.

“There’s an old tank in the storage room of the shop and I have a heating mat there too since there used to be a lot of stray cats,” Rhamina said leading them back to the shop.

Once they arrived the girls got ready to go to sleep while Rhamina stayed downstairs grabbing the tank and heat mat before bringing it up to her room and setting it up with a small water dish on a desk near her bed.

“There you go, Snow,” Rhamina said letting the snake into the tank so she could get herself ready for bed.

Once she was done she went into the bathroom to wash her face, brush her teeth, and get dressed in a tank top and shorts to sleep in.

Getting into bed she wrapped herself up in blankets before drifting off to sleep.

From his spot, the snake easily exited the tank and slithered out of the room going into the card room before slithering into a small hole under the floorboards.

Once he returned to the tank he watched as the ravenette shifted to lie on her side, the moonlight shining over her face.

In the guest room, the girls were all up talking random shit until Kerstin asked, “Hey guys, want to go see if Mina is still up?”

“Sure,” Sophie said getting up from her spot on the floor as Kerstin grabbed a polaroid camera.

“...Kerstin?”

“Yes, Sophie?”

“Why are you bringing that?”

“Just in case Mina isn’t awake.”

“...”

“Y’all gonna die,” Tijarah commented as they walked down the hall.

As Kerstin opened the door the well oiled hinges made no sound.

They krept over to where the ravenette was laying, eyes closed and breathing even.

Kerstin let out a quiet snicker as she lifted the camera to her face.

Flash! Snap!

Golden orbs cut through the dark surroundings of the room as the two girls momentarily froze.

“Hi, Mina,” Kerstin chirped as she collected the film.

The ravenette said nothing as she lifted the covers off of her and Sophie exclaimed, “Run!”

The two girls ran back to their room and slammed the door and turned the lock just in time for Rhamina the run into the door with her shoulder.

“Holy shit what did you do?!” Sam asked as Kerstin and Sophie were laughing their asses off.

Kerstin just handed the brunette the partially developed photo as she struggled to breath.

“Oh my fucking god, you didn’t,” Sam said as she passed the photo onto Tijarah.

“But we did,” Sophie said regaining her breath, “It was worth it.”

“Aw, she’s so cute in this,” Tijarah gushed, “She is so adorable!”

“Guys, wait it’s too quiet,” Aurora said hudling with Chloe, “Ramen, is in angry mode right? Shouldn’t she be screaming through the door?”

The girls stopped talking as they stopped their talking to listen for the female’s voice only to hear silence.

They turned to the door only to jump at the sound of a crash and the appearance of a human-shaped shadow as night air entered the room.

“You think locking the door is gonna keep me out, Bitch?!” Rhamina exclaimed as she pulled herself into the room through the now open window.

“Holy shit, Mina, this is the second floor!” Hannah exclaimed as Sophie and Kerstin were trying to open the door again.

“That means nothing,” the ravenette seathed turning to the two teens, “Don’t you fucking pull that shit again!”

“Sophie, you’re the responsible one too, I’m disappointed,” Rhamina hissed opening the door for them.

“Mina, she is the one that decided to break the window,” Chloe reminded earning a sigh from the brunette.

“Listen, being there was a crime anyway, what was a little window breaking,” Sophie argued.

“You cut open your hand when you tried to vault yourself in, Sophie,” Sam deadpanned.

“Listen, Buddy-” “Good night, Assholes,” Rhamina sighed as she left the room to return to her own and maybe get some sleep.

                                      ~~~Fin.~~~

[wessonba]

I signed up for a Diana Gabaldon talk and book signing in Fairfax, Virginia well before Outlander Starz was a thing.  It was a sold out event and the one and only time I ever stood in line to meet someone famous. Worried about my navigating (and rightfully so) D.C. traffic, my husband drove me five and a half hours for an event he didn’t have a ticket for. Unbeknownst to him, I had put him on the waiting list and he got in!!!! He was thrilled (hard eye roll here)!!!! As it was our first time at such an event, we didn’t know what to expect and were a little shocked to see a line into the auditorium that wrapped itself through and around a very large campus building.  I was walking with a cane at the time and crestfallen, I knew I would not be able to stand in line. My big burly manly man of a husband breached the crowds of plaid clad women to secure us a place while I sat feeling guilty in a chair.  It remains one of the nicest things he has ever done for me.  Listening to Diana speak and meeting her in person was a surreal ordeal, but well worth everything we went through.  As great as it was to meet her and despite my love for the actors on the show, I can’t see myself waiting outside or inside a venue for the hours it seems to take to meet them.  However, …I swear I would for Matt B. Roberts, LOL!

What can I say?  I’m a fan of writing and Outlander and he is my favorite Outlander script writer. I feel like I “get” him and the way he thinks. Well. at least about Outlander. No, …I really DO get how he thinks BECAUSE of Outlander.  I have learned that not everything a writer wants to be said or happen on a show comes to fruition. There are a lot of voices and logistics influencing the final product.  However, it is obvious to me what are Matt’s focuses and influences when I see an episode he has written.  In my humble opinion, he truly understands why this story and its characters are special. He sees through to the heart of what is happening. He gets what the story is saying about people, life, love, and family. That he is able to translate that visually continues to be a wonder to me.  Case in point? Outlander episode 4.9 “The Birds and the Bees”.

I recently republished a blog post  in honor of the 4.9 episode. I wrote about how I have grown to appreciate Diana’s imaginings of the first meeting of Jamie and his adult daughter. In that article, I point out how the expectations of that moment would have to have been unrealistic.  The import placed on this meeting cannot be understated for either the characters or the fandom. I remember the first time I read it, I was a bit disappointed. I think I was expecting some equivalent of colonial fireworks.  Diana didn’t give me or Brianna what we expected instead she gave us what we …needed. I found myself measuring this episode against that standard.  Did Matt B. Roberts and writing partner Toni Graphia give us what we expected or what we needed?

We Needed to See Their Faces

I’m starting to appreciate how important it is for actors to emote. Not everything can be communicated in dialogue nor should it be in a visual medium.  We sometimes need to see what a character is feeling and I felt their were some really important feelings revealed in this episode.  Lizzie, Ian, Murtagh, Roger and all three Frasers told us volumes with a mere expression.

I found myself really looking at Roger’s face in this scene.  At first he seems just irritated that he still has to deal with Bonnet.  He doesn’t have time to deal with this piece of shit. He needs to find Brianna. When the reality of what the Captain is saying, he will be sailing to Philadelphia, starts to sink in you can see the resignation.  I’m not sure why, but I felt like Roger’s expression was slightly sardonic. Of course he isn’t done with Bonnet, of course he is about to get pulled away from Brianna before he can tell her he hasn’t left.  This is no idle threat. He is well and truly screwed. However, he cannot show too much emotion. You don’t want to give this monster any clues as to how you are feeling and give him any ammunition. How ironic that the one person he is desperate to protect from Bonnet is already his victim. His “especially when it comes to women” line made me cringe.  I think uttering “poor Roger” under my breath is about to become a regular thing.

Brianna. Within the span of a few minutes we see her face reveal what has to be the entire span of human emotion. I felt emotionally exhausted just watching her swing from grief to hope and back again.

I’m not sure I need to comment.  These faces speak for themselves.

We Needed to Know Roger Didn’t Leave

There were some pretty big departures from the book in the last few episodes and I have learned (not easily mind you) to be patient.  Episodic TV can try that patience when you have to wait a whole week to get answers and everyone in the fandom is speculating and spouting disappointment. There are some things I still need to know about Roger and his storyline, but the biggest thing I needed to know was if he actually left. I needed to know he didn’t. I needed to know that it was just an argument fueled by some really piss poor communication, but that it was just an argument and not an abandonment. Nothing more happened than what has happened in my own and many other’s relationships. People got angry and said stuff they really didn’t mean out of hurt and stubborn pride. I needed to see when Roger did leave it wasn’t his choice. I knew when he left with Bonnet, he was coming back.

We Needed This Scene, This Exact Scene

Jamie meets the child he sacrificed all for. The child he never thought to see. Like all important moments like this, reality is never quite as we expected.  Nothing is ever as good or as bad as we might think.  Brianna only knows what she has been told about her “father” Jamie. He had to seem the stuff of legend and fairy tales to her. Her first view of her father was of him relieving himself. That very human reality took him very quickly from fairytale hero to just a man.  It was what exactly what she needed. Her expectations needed this adjustment.  I was thrilled to see they kept this part of the book!  Well, maybe not actually thrilled, maybe a bit uncomfortable, but you get the point.  She rounded that corner looking for someone bigger than life and found a man, a man whose arms were safe place to rest.

In my blog, I point out that Brianna learned more about her father in the few minutes he didn’t know who she was than in all the stories she could have been told about him.  We know fans can often loudly complain about any changes from the book. There were changes to this scene, but none that greatly affected its impact. Brianna learns that her father is loyal, firm, but kind and most importantly that he loves her.  It was so very close to how Diana imagined it.  Creating that visual representation of her imaginings was definitely made easier by actors who seem to inhabit their characters. Sam Heughan was absolutely amazing.  Sophie Skelton played Bree’s excitement and trepidation to perfection. When she fell into Jamie’s arms all felt right with the world.

We Needed Our Mothers

I still struggle with Claire’s decision to leave her daughter in the future. I appreciate that the show allowed Claire to show us she still struggled with that decision. Although she seemed shocked and overjoyed to see Bree, I had the sense that she was also dismayed.  The past is a dangerous place for a woman and I was struck by all that happened because Bree needed her mother. I would find it difficult to reconcile all that loss and wondered at how it would affect Claire’s relationship with Jamie. Bree is obviously struggling and Claire can see it, but she also knows that Bree is a woman now and as such can no longer be compelled as a child to tell her what is going on. However, Brianna needs her mother maybe more than she ever has.  She needs her mother to draw her out and comfort her.  We needed to see that happen.

We Needed To Feel Our Way

I love that this show takes its time with people. The tender and tentative dance between Bree and Jamie was needed.  They are virtual strangers. Strangers who want and hope and long and need to find a way to a come together and build a relationship. We needed to see them tiptoe around Frank. We needed to hear Jamie’s gratitude towards Frank and Bree’s guilty feelings about wanting to be with Jamie. We needed to see Jamie’s avid attentiveness to Bree’s every move and his constant furtive glances and smiles. We needed childhood stories, working together on the ridge, and time around the table family.

We Needed to See That Bree Understood

While it was obvious that Jamie was studying Bree.  It wasn’t quite as obvious that she was studying him and maybe more importantly, she was studying Jamie with Claire.  Bree telling Claire about Franks’s knowing she came back to Jamie was unexpected. The sadness with which this news was received gave me lump in my throat. I felt for all of well-intentioned choices and unintentional pain in Claire’s marriage to Frank. I’m not sure what Claire was supposed to do with that knowledge except feel guilt and regret, but Bree’s acknowledging she understood why Claire had to return was also unexpected and a…gift.

We Needed to Share Our Feelings

The quiet conversations between Jamie and Claire were everything. I get another lump in my throat just thinking about them. Jamie sitting on the edge of the bed rubbing his aching hand, a reminder to us that he too suffered what he does not yet know Brianna suffered. It reminds us that he has known so much pain and loss in his life and Brianna’s return is an unforseen and never dreamed of reality that he doesn’t want to end. He is human after all and a father wants his child to stay. Jamie’s openness and vulnerability with Claire is one of the main reasons this couple holds a special place in my heart. He is able to share his fears and regrets and his joys with her and know she does not judge him. In her arms, he safe to be himself without fear. In return, we know that he constantly thinks of her and a large part of his joy in Brianna’s return is because he knows Claire misses her so much.  His joy in Claire’s return to him has to be constantly colored by her leaving Bree. This child was the impetus for all the sacrifice and the 20 years of loneliness. Their constant touching and silent looks communicate their gratitude for all they have. But, I also feel each touch acknowledges the weight of all they have lost. They have Bree now, but they lost 20 years together with her.

We Needed Something to be Simple

In the end, Bree’s pregnancy, Claire’s promise, Lizzie’s mistaken assumptions, Jamie’s parental protective instincts, will result in complications that will change everything for everyone and I can’t say I’m looking forward to witnessing what happens.  And so, I’m grateful that Matt and Toni gave us something else we needed. The gave us something simple. They gave us birds, and bees and a name Jamie has longed to hear …Da.

    A sweetness that cuts…a reflection on Outlander episode 4.9 “Birds and the Bees I signed up for a Diana Gabaldon talk and book signing in Fairfax, Virginia well before…