chef_chocobro | The Far Less Creepy and Far From Abandoned Mansion in the Woods; Friday Afternoon/Evening [06/27].

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The Far Less Creepy and Far From Abandoned Mansion in the Woods; Friday Afternoon/Evening [06/27].

When the guests arrived, they would, of course, be instructed to find their way to the garden conservatory; the subtle decorations both inside the mansion and through the exterior gardens would guide most people to there, and, barring that, the steward was naturally on hand to provide and escort. There, they would find a scene that seemed almost a stark contrast to the dark and brooding decor of a necromancer, a place filled with light and life, with plants both decorative and functional, colorful and aromatic and useful, and, of course, no lack of the expected gothic or Victorian touches here and there. Somewhere, some cleverly situated water fixture babbled steadily along with the light, inobtrusive music that set the atmosphere: something elevated just slightly above casual, that slight touch of pretentiousness that was gentle in its demands for propriety and decorum and class. Comfortable chaises and chairs were arranged here and there sociably, a gathering a wrought-iron bistro tables and chairs as well, but the set-up seemed to suggest the kind of floating interactions of butterflies among flowers, drifting from one to the next with an airy regard.

And, of course, the spread of food was exceptional, lighter fair, but plenty of it, things that could be enjoyed while fluttering about with the other guests in one hand, while the other held a glass of fine wine or sparkling water garnished with fresh fruits or even a robust coffee or a floral cup of tea. Small sandwiches and crostini, bruschetta and other variations, but there were also empanadas with a chimichurri sauce, paella with scallops, pomegranate pork kebabs...

Spring rolls, summer rolls, smoked salmon cucumber rolls...

And of course, desserts, which would include alfajores dulce de leche, coffee truffles, fruit crostini, and key lime mini pies.

Needless to say, no one should be wanting for food. Just be careful not to fill up on treats too much if you plan to stay on later; there was still plenty of dancing to be had, once the party moved itself to the awaiting ballroom.

[[ ~~naturally, ocd incoming~~ ocd is up! Come and celebrate with us! ]]

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"I - " Steven looked uncertain. "As much as you do, I suppose? We've paperwork for him back home. Er, Marc and my home. Forged, but authentic enough for government as they say."

Steven might have looked guiltily in Captain America's direction even if it wasn't the Steve from his world. Just felt weird admitting to illegal activity in the same room as one of the more wholesome Avengers, even if he couldn't hear you.

"That's far more than I have, darling," Liliana assured him with a smile. "I don't recognize kings or governments or whatnot, so I couldn't care less about this document or that. But, if he can get false papers, what's to stop you, darling? And even if you can't...so? Do you really care that much about the legality of it all?"

"I - " Steven looked around, his eyes lingering on the various couples. "I can't give him everything. Not like you can with Ignis."

"Well, that's patently untrue," Liliana scoffed. "You give him all of you. Are you not his everything?" Because that also sounded patently untrue. "You may not be at the forefront of every minute of every day, but when you are, you give him everything you have. Don't let perfect be the enemy of good, darling, thinking of the things you can't do. Don't be afraid to trust him when he says he'd rather have you for some time, rather than someone else for all time. You might still be struggling to accept the reality of your existence, but I'm certain that Llewellyn Watts is simply grateful that you do exist, in whatever form that might take."

"Never thought about it that way," Steven admitted. "That's profound, isn't it? I'd certainly rather have some of him than all of anyone else. Er - no offense to present company."

"Oh, darling, I'm not in the least insulted," Liliana assured him. "We wouldn't suit at all. Whether or not you like peaches doesn't mean I'm not still delicious." She waved a hand. "I know you have some idea of what the ideal marriage looks like, but I think you're forgetting that all it really takes is him."

And if she were to be glancing at someone right now that wasn't Watts, well, Steven would surely understand.

"I have never cared overmuch about marriage. When you take away all the things that it's for - property, children, religion, civil authority, chastity - what's left? What's the point of it? That's what I thought for a very long time...and then Ignis asked me to marry him and I realized that I was wrong. Marriage isn't meaningless. The meaning is him." She looked back to Steven, her violet eyes deep and fathomless and full of the weight of two centuries. "Don't let someone else's definitions take what you could have away from you, Steven."

Steven nodded along with all that. And not only did he understand her look towards Ignis, he seemed happy about it on her behalf.

"I had ideas of marriage growing up," Steven admitted. "Partner of some kind. Home. Children. It's been something to adjust to whether I could still have those things. Maybe not the way I imagined. But perhaps different.

"Suppose that's a lesson you're teaching us all here in a way. You never know when or how happiness might come. Can't predict what it'll look like. But hold on to it when you find it. Best you can."

"That's for certain," Liliana said quietly. "Did you know? For the longest time, neither he nor I thought it would last. He thought I would get tired of the fling and flit off for something new, leaving him behind, and I thought for certain he would leave when he got to know more of me. You may be surprised to hear, Steven, but I am not a particularly good person, and I'm quite happy with the way I am. But Ignis is so...very good. But I stayed. And he stayed. And here we are."

"I worried about that with Llewellyn," Steven said, with sympathy for Liliana's concerns. "Early on he told me how he loved to travel, didn't care for staying in place too long. I worried he might wander off and I'd not see him again. 'course now we travel together. I like that part very much."

"Then it sounds like you're already experienced in finding ways to make the things you're afraid will drive him away work for you," Liliana pointed out.

"Maybe," Steven said. He considered everything Liliana had said over the course of their conversation so far. He leaned in closer, lowering his voice as though whispering a secret. "Think you're nicer than you give yourself credit for as well."

Yeahhhh...he should probably get an idea of her body count - no not that one - before saying that.

"Darling, don't be rude to me at my own party," she said with a laugh. "I'm just in it so that someone will mention me in the official wedding speech, about how without my intervention, none of this would be possible."

Steven's thoughts were still firmly in the context of this party, so she briefly lost him.

"Why wouldn't you get mentioned in a speech at your own wedding? Downright silly, ignoring the bride."

Liliana laughed. "I meant at yours."

"Oh!" Steven had to laugh at himself when he realized the blunder he'd made. "Right. Yes. Makes more sense. Couldn't imagine people not talking about you at your own wedding. Talk about you at parties that aren't even yours, posh and pretty as you are."

Liliana preened. "Why thank you, darling. And yes, I have no idea what we're doing for a wedding yet, but I'm certain I will command everyone's attention, as is right and proper."

"'round Halloween?" Steven said, floating the idea more than anything. "Dunno about Ignis but could see that sort of darker and dramatic time of year suiting you."

She tossed her hair, pleased. "I see you're making up for that accusation of niceness," she teased. "But, truly? I'm in no great rush ~~which is good, because Ignis wanted to kill the remaining two demons that owned her soul before getting married~~. I'm still getting used to the idea that it's happening at all."

"Of course, of course," Steven said. "No rush by any means. Wonderful that it happened. Did you propose or did he? If you care to share the story, that is. Don't mean to pry if you'd like it between you both."

"Oh, I certainly don't mind," Liliana said. "I don't think anyone else has asked, actually."

Perhaps they'd asked Ignis? Certainly not her.

"He proposed to me; left to my own devices, we would have gone on as we are now for the rest of eternity." Because, yeah. Marriage mean remarkably little to her. "It turns out that he'd bought the ring last August and had then spent the last year psyching himself out of asking me."

Which...honestly probably hadn't been the worst thing.

"Then on the rude day when the baggage rained down, one of his bags simply said 'Marriage,' which I assumed meant he had baggage around the entire concept. Which...then had me thinking about how I felt about that, and how it wasn't the immediate relief I might have assumed otherwise."

Especially since she had grossly misinterpreted where such baggage could have come from, but who needed to get into all of that? Not Liliana, that was for certain.

"For him, however, it was the galvanizing impetus he needed, especially upon following it up with a weekend apart. So Monday afternoon, he inveigled me to run away with him to our home in Argentina for a few days. Wednesday evening, he brought me outside, we danced together under the stars, and then he surprised me by asking if I would marry him." She smiled a bit, mostly because if she let herself smile fully, it would become something truly ridiculous. "Three times, in total."

Steven's smile grew as he listened to the tale. "All the way since August? Nearly a year, that!" As though Liliana needed him to tell her.

"That's sweet, though. Well romantic. Under the stars and all. And nice that the island was able to help in a way. That you were able to make something wonderful out of something that could have been cruel with the luggage."

Not dissuading Steven's opinion that Liliana had nice tendencies deep down either.

Hey, if left to her own devices, Liliana had been planning to stew over the bag and what it meant and then push it down where she buried all the other thoughts and feelings she didn't like and never think of it again!

"The part that entertains me the most is that, through it all, I had no idea that anything such thing was on his mind. Running off to Argentina? A dance under the stars while a music box plays our song? Curling up with a bottle of the wine we made last year and bits of sweet fruits? Honestly, not markedly different how we've spent other such evenings without the benefit of new jewelry." She lifted her hand so she could show off he could see the ring.

"Is that the ring?" Since Liliana was holding it out, he figured it was all right to look. He quickly patted himself down for his glasses so he could better see the details.

"How interesting!" he said. "Does the pattern mean something? I'm not familiar with it. It almost looks like writing?"

"Stars," Liliana said softly, looking down at her ring with a tender smile that she would absolutely be hiding if she realized she was wearing it. "An entire universe of infinite stars, just waiting to be explored."

Steven took his glasses off as he straightened up again. Which meant he could see her smile now but he wasn't going to comment on it. "So like the night sky then? That's lovely. If I do say so myself."

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The Far Less Creepy and Far From Abandoned Mansion in the Woods; Friday Afternoon/Evening [06/27].

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