Artistic intuition [cw]

"I know, but I might be around for the next one," she pondered, searching through her schedule in her mind before nodding a few times. She hadnt scheduled anything for that day but at the same time she did want to spend as much time with Gerard as she could. Even if all they could be were friends. "Yeah, that guy," she chuckled, feeling a little giddy to admit it. But she trusted them both enough to say it. Connor didnt mind holding her hand, looking at her as she turned her attention to him. "Yeah sure. I can also go through the whole assignment with you to see if you've missed anything?" he suggested. He loved helping her with schoolwork because she really seemed to be a sponge for learning. Tessa went to get a glass of water, before she moved to the kitchen door to see if she could catch at least a small part of the conversation in the living room.

She appreciated the promise but she wasnt going to think anything of it before she had seen it happening. His answer however made her narrow her eyes a little as she couldnt say that he was lying. But she couldnt say that the answer was clearing up a lot, only the fact that he was being honest. It did strike a thought but she kept that one to herself. He was right that it was something for the future, but for her, 6 months wasnt really a long time anymore. Suddenly her little girl would be considered an adult and she wanted to be sure that she wasnt just going to jump right into his arms. Even though she was free to do so. His urge made her sigh, waving her hand at him like he didnt need to push the idea any further. "I'll show up for a moment to see what happens at these events my daughter go to," she said like it was her final say. She guessed that she also had to make her verdict on whether Tessa was allowed to go. "I'll truly see if you're a man of your word too. She can go to the event, but only if you make sure she's safe and sober," she remarked. There had been some implication that Tessa had had a glass of whatever was served, which had surprised Leona. She got up from her chair but seemed to give him one last stare-down. "I am not trying to be cruel. I am simply trying to keep my daughter safe in any form I can," she said, grabbing her glass as she took a small sip. "Stay over for dinner," she urged him before she went to the kitchen. She looked at Tessa who was standing by the doorframe, looking at her before she went to prepare dinner. Tessa just hurried into the livingroom, wrapping her arms around Gerard as she feared the worst.

Leona chuckled at Saoirse, touching her cheek gently. "You dont have to help me, sweet child. I can see that you'd rather go with Connor, though it is heartwarming to see how you care" she smiled, looking up at the clock. "Conrad could be stepping through the door any minute, so you dont have to worry," she assured her, moving away to get the things she needed from the fridge. Connor grabbed Saoirse's hand and nodded towards his room, "Let's have a look at your homework," he urged her with a smile.

She looked up at him with worried eyes, not really wanting to let go at all, but then he chuckled and his words confused her for a second. Then a bright smile spread on her lips as she started chuckling, "Is that what she agreed to?" she asked, since she hadnt heard anything of the conversation he had had with her mother. She listened to him as he explained what that implied, nodding before she made a deep sigh, like a heavy weight was now gone from her shoulders. "Do you think its better this way?" she asked him, when she heard the front door open. She turned her head and a bright smile spread on her lips.

Leona turned as her husband had announced his arrival, opening her arms as he approached her to then chuckle as he spun her around. "Oh you charmer," she whispered softly, her whole demeanor changed as she felt his embrace. His question however made her step out of that loving person to concerning mother again. "Yes. The man who took our daughter home at the last art event," she explained, lifting a hand to cup her face as she looked a little distressed. "I dont know where to place him, but I've given him a chance to prove himself either way," she said, looking at her husband with a worried expression. She was only speaking so freely because she knew none of their children would hear them. "I worry that if I didnt, we were going to have another runaway situation," she confessed, frowning for a second but then she turned to prepare some vegetables, peeling them before running them under the faucet.

Connor as the geek he was was already deep into reading her homework, so when she kissed him on the lips, he needed a second to realize she was kissing him, before he could kiss her back. But she leaned away so he looked at her for a second, shaking his head at her apology to then lean in and carefully kiss her lips. He knew Buffy and Baal had found out about what they had done so he was mindful to not spark any tension. Just being sweet and loving instead.

“I know but she’s also very driven by her emotions. And right now it seems that she think he’s the one for her,” she sighed. She knew Tessa had just hoped for a green light to do whatever she wanted but Leona just couldnt do that as long as she was as young as she was. “Cooking helps my worry,” she argued, looking at her husband with a short smile. She knew it was silly but in a way she could understand why Tessa was behaving as she did, because Leona had been quite alike when she met Conrad. Her parents hadnt thought he was a good match for her, that his blood woumdnt do the bloodline well and yet here they were with two children that seemed like a blessing from above. Leona did consider Saoirse as a daughter to her, but she couldnt just fully rob Buffy of motherhood; Because in a way, she had decided to hold a hand over her niece when Verona tragically died. Leona felt the tears press on as she thought of her sister, missing her more and more; now even more with the thing going on with Tessa. She felt a little alone beside having Conrad to support her.

She nodded at his words, but a part of her couldnt really be happy about it. She wanted to be with him and she didnt really want to wait, so to her it was only a mystery why her mom couldnt just look beyond her nosetip and see that. However when he seemed to compliment her mother for her concern, Tessa scoffed, “It’s only because I ran away once. I was gone for a couple of weeks before they found me,” she explained with a frown. The frown disappeared completely as she saw her father, running to him with her arms spread wide, wrapping around him for a tight hug. “Father,” she greeted him in a happy tone, letting go before she let him greet Gerard. She couldnt really tell if her father was approving or disapproving of Gerard but time would have to tell.
“Sure, we’ll do that,” she said before she watched her father walk off. She went to a cabinet to open it and pull out a few plates. She placed them on the table and handed a few to Gerard while she placed some herself. “This mentoring thing wont change how I feel about you,” she said like she needed to clarifiy that, looking at him with serious eyes.

“She sure doesnt,” she remarked with a sigh. But it was also what they loved about their daughter and Leona knew her stubborn nature would help her later in life. She felt bad for having lied, also due to the fact that she had done it so casually. “I hope so. But I dont know how I’ll feel if she’s just seeing this as something she can wait for,” she pondered with a worried expression. She placed the salad in the fridge before she began on another, knowing Connor and Tessa liked different things in a salad. Though she noticed that Saoirse would eat anything that was served.

As he sat down next to her, she decided to lean a little closer to him, resting her shoulder against his arm as she looked down into the album. It was interesting enough how in most of her pictures even as a kid, she had long hair and a ponytail to keep her hair out of her face. Though her clothes werent exactly gendered, it was obvious that she wore what seemed to be more feminine than for boys. His question made her sigh as she leaned her head a little onto his shoulder, “She wasnt around when we were kids,” she admitted as she looked at him. “But I cant tell you why, so please dont ask,” she said in a sadened voice. “It’s a complicated matter and we’re trying to keep her safe,” she whispered, not being able to say more than that. She looked down at a picture and frowned a little as she recognized it rather fast. It was the first time she had put on some of her mother’s makeup and done her hair in pigtails all on her own though on the picture she only had one eye done as an inexperienced makeup user would have applied it while the other eye was smudged. “The babysitter found me and tried to remove it before my parents got home. But luckily for me they got home and found us. The next day they took me to a specialist,” she explained, looking at the picture for a little longer before looking at him again.

She sighed at his words and shrugged. “I dont know,” she said with a sad expression. “I really miss Verona. She would have had some odd angle to throw in that would make us see it differently,” she said in a sad voice, looking down at the kitchen table for a while as he head sunk down between her shoulders. She shook her head and sniffled. “It’s noting,” she quickly whispered, correcting her posture.

She stuck out her tongue at his remark but snuggled up a bit to him as he placed his arm around her. She actually liked this quite a lot, showing him her childhood through pictures. She smiled softly at the kiss on her forehead though she would have liked more; but it was always like that for her. His confession made her frown a little concerned as she looked at him. “You dont have any pictures?” She asked but it was quite obvious that he didnt, she just didnt know why. She looked down at the album again and noticed his broad smile as she tried to figure out what photo he was looking at. “Halloween,” she whispered, remembering how happy she was back then. It was back when she was starting her transition and ot was also the night that really seemed to make people around her realize that she was in fact a girl. She looked up at him and poked his cheek, “Chill with the charms,” she chuckled, but she wasnt actually serious. “It’s one of my best memories,” she remarked, “I’m glad you dont find my pictures silly,” she said as she looked at him with serious eyes.

She smiled a little as he said Verona was in her children. But she hadnt realized that there was so much of her sister in the little trybrid. The thought made her eyes water a little as she nodded. She smiled happily and hugged her husband close to her. “She really does resemble her a lot, both in person and looks,” she admitted, giggling a little as she shook her head. “I know she’s watching over us. It’s just not as good as having her here physically. She had many years ahead of her,” she mumbled but decided to let it go. She couldnt keep on holding onto her grief.

She definitely agreed with him, smiling softly as she loved hearing him voice his thoughts. “Well I didnt take any of these pictures,” she remarked but she could imagine the value it had to her parents if it meant this much to her and she hadnt even been the one behind the camera. She rubbed her head lightly against him as she just kept looking around the pictures and read her mother’s descriptions.
His sigh sent a slight shiver down her spine, looking up as he suggested going out to help her parents. She wanted to stay here but could tell that he was starting to have a difficult time being this close to her. “Okay,” she whispered, carefully kissing his shoulder before leaning away from him and getting up. She took the album and put it back before she made sure that he was going to be okay. They went out to help finish up the dinner which surprised Leona a bit but in a good way.
The night ended on a pretty good note and Tessa practically interrogated him for his thoughts about it once they were heading home. She didnt want to part ways, but knew it was necessary. She did sneak in a kiss on the cheek, chuckling in a sly manner as she waved goodbye at him. She couldnt even get him out of her mind as she got home but it was always like that.

// End of topic <333