Log [Lorna, Alison] The simple things...

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

Sunday evening, nine pm or thereabouts. Returning to get the bags she forget in the car after her day in NY, Alison does her best to pretend it was only a regular day out, spent shopping. Of course, this doesn't mean Lorna can't read her like an open book…

Humming merrily to herself, the words of the song kept silent now that it was done and over with for the most important part of her entire plan, Alison opened the door to the mansion with a smile that could be called nothing other than radiant. The week had had severe ups and downs and heading off under pretext of an errand to meet up with Pete during Miles' Green Day had been nerve-wracking in its own very special way and the meeting with Leland a few days later... but none of it mattered. Not just now, at this very specific moment and time. For today had been a Good Day.

A very good day. Forgetting her shopping bags in the car was entirely acceptable. Closing the door behind herself, Alison looked down at her feet and grinned wildly. There was not a soul in the mansion she could tell of her little secret. And it didn't matter. Soon, it would all be done and then she would only have to sit back and wait.

Lorna poked her head out of a side sitting room as Alison went by. She narrowed her eyes after her, observing the grin and the bounce in her step.  Added to that, the self-satisfied hum could only mean one thing. Sneaking up behind her friend, Lorna tapped her quickly on the opposite shoulder then asked, "What have you done now?"

"Eeep!" The few bags Alison had with her went flying at that as she whirled about, recognizing Lorna's voice on the spot. "Don't do that! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?! Gah!" One hand pressed over her heart, Alison took a few deep breaths, giving Lorna a wide-eyed look. "You'll put me in my grave, you will!"

Lorna batted her eyelashes at Alison innocently.  "All I did was ask a question."  She helped Alison gather the bags back together, peeking inside curiously but not finding anything that would inspire quite the level of satisfaction that Alison was displaying.  "So..." She dragged out the word, tilting her head to the side sweetly, "what's making you all smug and stuff?"

"What makes you say that?" Affecting innocence, Alison accepted the last bag, not at all surprised that Lorna had managed to detect that before deciding to sneak up on her. Not that she was going to tell her anything of course, but still... "Isn't shopping and scoring a righteous pair of shoes reason to be smug?" They were nice shoes, too. That would  show off her legs perfectly.

Lorna slipped her arm through Alison's and nudged her into walking again while they chatted.  "Far be it from me to underestimate the smug value of a really great pair of shoes, which I want to see by the way and do they have them in my size?  But I also know that there is a limit to the smugness that shoes bestow and you're so beyond that you're at 'I'm dating Brad Pitt and you're not' levels.  And I know that's not the case."  She poked her lightly, "Spill."

"Who needs to date Brad Pitt with a boyfriend like mine?" was the cheerful response, though Alison obligingly fell into step with Lorna as she was led off. "Oh, that reminds me. Let's go see Mr and Mrs Smith together? You're leaving far away soon and this makes me sad. I want to get time in before you split." A woeful look followed that statement, without much pretence at all injected in it. Lorna leaving did indeed, make Alison sad.

Lorna grinned, "Deal.  From the previews, it looks like a blast.  Pardon the pun."  She guided them in a meandering fashion through the mansion to the kitchen.  She wanted a snack--getting information out of Alison could be tough work.  "You're not changing the subject by the way.  What's on your twisty little mind?"

"Nothing twisty," Alison replied serenely. This was, she knew, something Lorna would unfortunately not be able to draw from her. "It makes me happy, though. And I'm not telling." Grinning, she let the happiness show, then on impulse shifted just enough to be able to drag Lorna in an impromptu wild dance about the hallway, laughing cheerfully.

Lorna giggled and danced with her, keeping them moving in the right direction nevertheless.  "You have to tell me.  I'm like, your BFF or whatever.  There's a code."  She practically purred with delight as they entered the kitchen.  There would never be a time when that wasn't just about the coolest room ever, she was sure.  "Come on, pretty please?"

Ooh. Look at that, she'd lead them into the kitchen. "Lemonade. Have wild craving for lemonade." Dumping her shopping bags on the counter, Alison beamed at the fridge, patting it nicely before opening the door to peer inside. "Sorry, I was focusing on the dancing you about just then... tell you about what again?" She winked at the milk carton and moved it aside, spotting a fizzy lemonade bottle in the process. Torturing Lorna was mean. But oh so much fun.

Lorna brandished a knife in Alison's general direction before she sliced up an apple with customary efficiency.  "You.  Tell me.  Pretty please." Maybe breaking it down would help though she was beginning to think that Alison was going to just be stubborn about this.  Which meant she had hours and hours of entertainment ahead trying to tease the answer out of her in store.  Lorna grinned as she ducked into the fridge to get a jar of caramel.

"But..." Lemonade bottle in hand and snagging a slice of apple deftly, Alison popped it in her mouth, taking her time since talking while eating was impolite. Finally she leaned on the counter. "But that would be telling. Whatever it is you think I have to tell, anyway." Beaming at her logic, she nodded to punctuate her point.

Lorna swatted Alison's hand for stealing her snack and dolloped caramel over her apple slices, "Get your own."  She made a face at Alison, "You're being a stubborn brat queen.  I'm going to have to modify that crown of yours.  It'll say Obstinate Brat Queen."

"Ooh. The shiny gets revamped? That's great!" A cheerful school girl type bounce followed, complete with clapping of hands in approval. The caramel oozing into place over the apple slices was being eyed with far too much interest, too. "You love me. You really do!"

Lorna pulled her plate protectively to her, away from easy snatching range.  "You're so lucky that I actually do love you or I'd have wrapped it around your neck instead."  But she laughed because really, what could you do with Alison in this kind of mood?

"Nooo! You'd wrap the frying pan around my neck! Not enough metal in the plate." That pronouncement was punctuate with a wise nod. Opening the lemonade bottle, which hadn't been forgotten, Alison granted Lorna a serious look. "Now. ...do you want lemonade?"

Lorna shook her head. "I don't like lemonade.  I'm not even sure where you find that fizzy stuff."  She nibbled on a caramel-covered apple slice and eyed Alison's shopping bag.  "So if you're not going to tell me at least show me your loot."

"Mwah ha! The lemonade is all mine! And someone keeps stocking the fridge with it, so I figure one of the shoppers knows about my love affair with lemonade," Alison replied easily, even as she hauled up the smaller bags on the counter. "Loot! Lookit what I found!"

"Well it's either Jamie, Rahne or Dani because they're the ones who do the ordering.  Though I guess I should stop bossing them around now that they're not actually my students anymore."  The green haired girl pouted briefly over that.  "Which reminds me, I should talk to the Professor about arrangements once I leave.  It's not really fair to expect the kids to run the kitchen.  He should think about hiring a new chef."  Lorna poked through the bags idly as she spoke.

"Lots more people around here now than before. It'd make sense..." And probably would have been done before, had Lorna not taken over so efficiently. "Betcha he probably hands you a few folders with CVs to go over, when you walk into his office to talk to him about it, too. And that one's yours," Alison nodded at the wrapped package, lips quirking.

"Yay, presents!" Lorna pushed her plate out of the way and set the package in its place. She chattered as she unwrapped it meticulously. "Really someone with a general culinary would be better.  Preferably with a nutrition background, mine's always been somewhat inadequate for the task of raising kids even with the docs on hand. I don't know that I'm really qualified to look over applicants though and...Oh, Christ, that's fantastic!"  Giggling madly, Lorna pulled out the apron--excellent quality--and shook it out, grinning at the bold blue letters.  "Who are these kids and why do they expect me to cook for them?  I love it."

"You've got the entire collection of aprons know to man. Of course I had to improvise!" Beaming at the reaction to her gift, Alison tugged one of the stools closer and perched on it, pondering a wild grab for the plate with apple slices. And caramel. "You should wear it at least once in front of the kids before you go."

"You act like I'm leaving tomorrow!  There's, like, an entire summer left you know.  Except for the little bit that I have to skip off to go apartment hunting." Lorna slipped the apron over her neck and dug into the front pocket after the little EM field there.  The little plastic bubble made her chuckle and she shook it to get a better look at the ring inside.  "I can wear it for the picnic on the 4th."

"I've got the matching one in my purse." Nodding in acknowledgement, Alison heaved a not so small sigh. "You're still going away. It's funny, when you think about it... I was always the one on the go, on tour and all that for years. And now it's nearly everyone else skipping out for more than the average weekend away..." And it wasn't as though several people in the mansion hadn't already done so - though at least some had returned. "Feels odd to be the sedentary one. And not at the same time."

Lorna slipped the cute little friendship ring over her finger, admiring it like it was covered in diamonds. "I can't decide whether to tease you about getting old or about getting a taste of your own medicine or what." She smiled a little sadly and slipped off her stool to give Alison a hug.  "I'm going to miss you."

"Oh, older isn't all that bad," Alison murmured with a hint of a secret smile. Hugging Lorna back, she let out a small sigh - and just held on for a bit, until she could give the right answer. "I'll miss you too."

"I don't suppose you'll consider moving to Hawaii for a few years?  Miles would have a blast growing up on the island, learning to surf and snorkel." She gave Alison a hopeful grin.

"Mmm. We'll visit as often as possible?" was the counteroffer, Alison smiling crookedly in return. "Has Miles spoken to you yet about all the 'keeping in touch' stuff he was planning?" To say that the little boy would miss Lorna was something of an understatement.

Lorna shook her head, "Not yet.  He actually has been changing the subject every time I mention going away.  I got the impression he's got a surprise in the works so I stopped asking." 

Not about to spoil that surprise, Alison just nodded. It was partly that and partly Miles not taking the fact that Lorna was leaving all that well - though it could have been worse, Alison supposed. It wasn't as though the fact that certain people came and went was something new to Miles. And it wasn't as though Alison could promise she would never leave, either, all things considered.  It was still a hard point to live with at times, that one. "He'll be okay. Probably call you regularly for a while, though. Didn't think you'd mind terribly."

"Of course not.  I'll be glad to hear from him.  I'll be sure to call at least once a week."  She'd promise more often but the start of a semester was often too hectic to justify even that frequent calls.  "Maybe you guys can visit for Thanksgiving.  We'll have kahlua pig at a luau instead of turkey."

"Haroun can't have pork," Alison replied absently - going was the point and she had no doubt Lorna would make sure there was something suitable anyway, as she indicated with a wrinkle of her nose and a shake of her head. "We'll come over. No maybe or if about it. Heck, any good old time will do, once you guys are settled in. Who needs an excuse anyway? Wanting to see you is enough."

"Mahi Mahi for him." Lorna said dismissively.  "Any old time might be a problem with classes and stuff but holidays?  We'll definitely want to see you.  I should make sure Alex convinces Scott to visit.  Sun-boy will love the beach."

Alison snickered at that, and poked Lorna lightly in the ribs. "Which reminds me to go glow at him just 'cause I can sometime soon." She leaned on the counter once more, and grinned innocently. "You going to finish whatever you were going to do to those apples soon, or shall I just hunt them down as they are?"

Lorna glanced back at her plate of apples and laughed, "They're just caramel apple slices. Take one apple, slice it up, dump low-fat caramel dip on top.  No further work involved.  I just wanted a snack."

It didn't take long at that for Alison to swipe a piece, hiding a grin that had a tinge of 'yes!' to it by terminating the poor apple slice's lifespan in a drastic way. "Mmmm." A slug of lemonade followed, bitter to go with the sweet. "So, are those a will be defended unto death type of snack?" She grinned innocently at that, making no further attempts towards the plate.

"She asks after stealing from my plate." Lorna mocked gently. "Do you want a plate of your own? We have more apples and more caramel."

"Naw. It's the stealing pieces from other people's plates that's fun." Making a more determined move for the fridge, she looked over her shoulder. "And d'you want milk or water with those? You'll be thirsty soon enough."

"Water, please." Lorna sliced up another apple anyway and added more caramel. She knew her friend very well.  "So when are we going to the movies?"

A water bottle was retrieved from the refrigerator and poured with all due ceremony into a tall glass, which was then set next to Lorna. Going back to the other side of the counter, Alison sat down once more, perching on the edge of the stool to watch the proceedings with interest. "Well, first rule is that we make it a girls' night out only. We deserve roomie time and it doesn't matter that we're not technically roomies anymore." It was, she thought, the first time this had been said openly. "And how about... we just up and run off any old evening this week that seems to work?" Not planned would be nice for a change.

Lorna raised the glass to Alison in a salute, "I think that's an excellent idea."  She slid the plate between them and quietly plotted a way to get Alison's secret out of her.  It was all a matter of timing and persistence…