Topic: The Last Straw

Rufus Bennett

Date: 2017-02-11 08:44 EST
Violence wasn't new to Rhy'Din, any more than it was to many other places throughout the multiverse, but ever since the governor's election, the violence in the city seemed to be spreading. This whole Humanity First nonsense had gotten out of hand. Protests had taken place all over the city, including the Marketplace. People had been hurt, and in some cases, killed. Yet another explosion had rocked the Marketplace causing widespread fear and panic. If someone didn't do something to stop the violence soon, the Marketplace was going to end up looking like a war zone. Despite Miranda's promise to make her shop a Safe Haven and the security team that had been stationed there, she'd had enough.

Shaken and on the verge of panic, she'd texted Rufus with shaking hands telling him she was on her way home, only to find herself stuck in traffic. He'd wasted no time in texting her back to use the bloodstone ring every Granger had in their possession to open a portal and bring her home to the main house without hesitation. The fact that she even didn't bother to argue about abandoning her beloved Corvette said volumes about how frightened she was, and within minutes of texting her husband, she had arrived in the basement of the main house, clearly shaken and terrified.

The car could be replaced; she could not be. Rufus had already been on his way out of the house by the time he was texting a reply to his wife, Ro under one arm to be deposited with Gabi and George with minimal apology and explanation before he jumped back in his car to drive the short distance to the manor. It was unlike his Miri to admit to being afraid; more so to abandon her shop in the middle of the day and come home because of some external influence. He didn't like it. Barely two minutes after Miranda arrived in the basement, he was marching in through the door, waving off Vicki's movement toward the basement with a curt assurance that he knew who it was. The first thing he did when he got into the basement was wrap his shaking wife up in his arms. The second thing was to turn the alarm off before Humphrey tried to find out what was going on.

It was a good thing he got there as soon as he did or she might have ended up curled up in a ball and sobbing on the floor. As it was, she broke into tears as he wrapped her up in his embrace, balling her fists up in his shirt and clinging to him for dear life. She had always been a strong woman and had prided herself on that fact, but enough was enough. Everyone had a breaking point, and it seemed Miranda had just reached hers.

"Easy, love," he murmured against her hair, knowing all she really needed right now was two strong arms around her as she worked through her shock on her own time. "I've got you. You're safe. I promise you, angel, you're completely safe." His voice was gentle but firm, his arms confident around her, but his eyes were glaring at the middle distance, wishing all manner of horrors on the people who had reduced his beautiful wife to this.

As far as she knew, she hadn't been the target of any attack or protestors. Why would she be? She was a harmless human just trying to run a business, but she had openly declared her shop a safe haven for those who might be in danger. She still didn't think that made her a target, but one only had to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to become a victim. It took a few minutes of sobbing and shaking before she was able to cobble together a few words. "S-sorry," she hiccuped. "What about my c-car?"

Rufus couldn't help smiling, stroking his hands against her back as she articulated the first thing to come to mind. "Taken care of," he promised her. "I called a friend at the Watch in that area, and he's going to have it collected and stored safely until we go to pick it up." He smiled, tilting his head to lean down and kiss the tip of her nose. "I am an organized fellow, love. Everything is taken care of."

"Oh, Rufus!" she gushed, a fresh flood of tears welling up in her eyes, though this time they were mostly from relief to be home safely and in his arms. "Don't let go!" she scolded him, burrowing back into his chest again, the tremors slowly subsiding. He'd seen her scared before, but never quite like this.

"I'm not letting go," he assured her, tightening the wrap of his arms just a little more to make sure she believed him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was minutely dissecting each and every member of the Humanity First and Divine Mother movements with a blunt spoon and a copious amount of vinegar to wash the wounds. He thought he'd been angry about this before, but now he was incandescent. And she'd made him promise months ago not to go looking for trouble again!

It took a few minutes and a lot of sniffling before she composed herself enough again to form words. Rufus' poor shirt was mascara and tear-stained by now beyond hope, but he had other shirts. "Where's Ro' Is she okay?" Miranda asked in a sudden panic when she realized he had come without their daughter - or at least, the child they had adopted and come to think of as theirs.

"With Gabrielle and George," he assured her once more, more than happy to keep reassuring her that everything was under control. "For as long as we need her to be." Her gently removed one hand from her, digging in his pocket for the handkerchief that was always there to dry her face. "Blow your nose."

It might be something one told a child, but she didn't even flinch at his command as she took the hanky from him and blew the snot from her nose as ladylike as one could. "I'm sorry, Rufus," she apologized again between rubbing and blowing. "I just panicked."

"Justifiably," he told her gently. "Come home, angel. You're safe now. And you're not going back to that shop." It was rare that Rufus laid down the law to his wife, but he wasn't having this. He'd been so proud of her for declaring her shop a safe haven, despite his concerns, but now those concerns seemed to be resembling reality. "I'm not losing you, Miri. Not over keeping a bloody dress shop open."

"No," she agreed without argument, sniffling further as she curled herself against him. "I don't want to go back. I want to stay home with you." This was very different from the woman who had been so excited about opening her own shop in the marketplace, but then that had been three years ago - before they'd had grandchildren, before they'd adopted Rowan, and before violence in the city had escalated.

"So stay home with me," he said unequivocally. "Stay with me and Ro, and design from your office. The shop was always just an ego boost, sweetheart, and we both know it. I'm sure your contributors and staff will understand."

"Are you sure?" she asked, as she tipped her head up at him, her nose red from crying. "You don't think we'll drive each other crazy?" Even if they did, at least each would know the other was safe, and she had to admit that she'd been missing him and Rowan last crazy lately.

He raised a brow, his lips quirking into an amused smile. "We each have an office, and there are plenty of places within walking distance to escape from each other in," he pointed out. "No, I don't think we'll drive each other crazy. Mildly annoy one another, yes. Crazy, no."

Rufus Bennett

Date: 2017-02-11 08:45 EST
"I miss you and Rowan so much," she admitted quietly, frowning. They'd spent enough time apart all the years she was raising Bethany on Earth, while he was on Rhy'Din, and she'd learned over the last few years that every moment was too precious to waste. "Are you sure I won't drive you crazy?" she asked uncertainly, needing to be sure this was as much his decision as hers, though he'd been the one to suggest it - or practically demand it.

"The only way you will drive me crazy is by constantly asking if you're driving me crazy," he informed her in no uncertain terms, that quirk of a smile still on his face as he stroked her cheek. "Better now" Think you can run the gauntlet of curiosity upstairs to get to the car and home?"

She nodded her head at his question, sniffling back the last of her tears. She'd lived in Rhy'Din long enough to know how violent it could be, but the bombings and protests in the marketplace were really starting to frighten her. She knew that was exactly what they protestors wanted, but what was the point of putting one's self in danger if you didn't have to' She made a meager attempt at wiping her face, though there wasn't much she could do about her smudged mascara without a mirror.

"What should I tell them?" she asked, knowing Vicki and Jon and Humphrey would have questions.

"The truth, angel," he told her simply. "They'll hear about the bombing soon enough; better to hear from you that you were nowhere near it, and it was simply the last straw, than for them to concoct a story between themselves and worry the Old Man."

"He's going to worry anyway," she replied with a worried frown of her own. She was aware that Fliss and Matt's parents had recently pulled them from Bristle Crios for the very same reasons. At least, everyone at Maple Grove was safe, so long as they remained on the grounds. GrangerGuild Conglomerate Security would make sure of that.

"Yes, but this way, he won't worry over something he has made up," Rufus pointed out, gently wrapping one arm about her waist to guide her toward the door. The sooner he had her home and comfortable, the better, in his opinion. He could hear voices at the top of the stairs - the inhabitants of the house, no doubt, concerned about what was happening in the basement.

"I suppose not," she admitted, wanting nothing more at the moment than to curl up in the safety of her husband's arms, but that would have to wait a little while long. Questions needed answering and people needed reassuring first. Still, she did not discourage his touch or his closeness as he led her toward the door.

It wouldn't take much longer than it needed to, though. Rufus was one of the few people on Maple Grove who could simply state a fact and have it absorbed and believed by the family patriarch without argument. Add to that the fact that Vicki had seen him walk into the house with singular purpose, and there was little explanation required. Humphrey pressed Miranda's hand gently between his own, his rheumy eyes gentle as he held her gaze for a moment before releasing her back into Rufus' care.

"There now," Rufus murmured against her ear as he walked her to the car. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Am I being a big baby, Rufus?" Miranda asked him, wondering why this had affected her so badly. Of course, it could just be the simple fact that the blast had scared the hell out of her and everyone else who'd been in the shop at the time.

"No," he promised her fondly. "It takes a lot of exposure to violence to work up a coping mechanism for it, and I, for one, am glad you don't have that experience. I used to scream like a girl every time something vaguely sinister leapt out at me, after all. Lei used to go into battle with tears of laughter running down her face because her big bad Watcher was hiding under the nearest heavy object and gibbering to himself."

Miranda frowned at the mention of Lei. Whatever she might have been - brave or reckless - she had been taken from them prematurely, just as she always knew she would be and had left her daughter in their care. It was in part what made Rowan so special. "I have never seen you gibber ....ever. You've always been there when we needed you," she insisted, able to point out examples of his bravery if necessary.

He chuckled, kissing her hair as they paused so he could open up the car. It had taken more than a year, but he was finally able to bring Lei up in conversation and not sink into quiet melancholy about his personal failure. It boded well for when Ro eventually asked the questions they knew were coming. "I had twenty years to learn how to be brave," he told her gently. "And regardless of what anyone might tell you, bravery is not the absence of fear. It's feeling the fear, and acting in spite of it, and you did that today. It may not feel like it, but you were brave today. I'm proud of you."

"I feel like a coward," she told him, but to be fair, she'd made sure all her customers and employees had gotten to safety before she'd headed for home herself. By that time, she'd been shaking so badly she could hardly hold the phone long enough to text him. "I'm not going back there, Rufus. A dress shop is not worth getting killed over. Maybe that's exactly what the protestors want, but I don't care." Now that she had calmed down a little, her anger was starting to replace the fear.

Rufus kept his own speculation to himself on that point. Such sustained violence had to be carefully stoked and kept going, which suggested the powers behind it had some kind of end-game plan. "I would rather you stayed out of the city while all this is going on, Miri," he told her gently, his tone asking her to do as he requested. "Please?"

"Sweetheart, there is no place I would rather be than with you," she assured him, going up on her tip toes to give him a kiss. "Can we go home now" I want to snuggle with my Rufio," she told him, brushing her nose against his.

For once, he was actually pleased to hear her call him by that ridiculous nickname she had pinned on him, a clear sign she was feeling better. He smiled into her kiss, dropping a second kiss to the tip of her nose. "If you get in the car, that's exactly where we'll go," he promised her. "I can't really drive with you in my lap, after all."

She needed no convincing. She had no intentions of going into the city until all the violence blew over, which it had to sooner or later. "I'll be in your lap soon enough," she promised him in return, feeling a little better now that she was safely back at Maple Grove.

He snorted with laughter, opening up the passenger door to help her inside. They both knew where they would end up - and he owed Gabi and George big time for taking Ro overnight on such short notice - but he was determined to see Miranda calm and settled before they got there. Her distress had unnerved him more than he wanted to admit. Even when he had been regularly courting the darker side of the supernatural, she had never been like this.

Maybe it was the fact that Miranda was a little older now or maybe it was the fact that she had a small child. Maybe it was just that the explosion had happened too close to her shop for comfort or maybe it was that there had been too much violence lately and it was starting to wear on her nerves. Whatever it was, her fear had been genuine, and so was her anger.

It was only a matter of minutes to drive home and settle in. Rufus allowed Miranda to call Gabi and make sure they were fine keeping Ro overnight, making the most of that time to find her comfort PJs and wave them at her before wandering off on some mission of his own. By the time he was done, she had a hot toddy that was definitely more alcohol than juice, and he had her feet in his lap, concentrating fiercely on painting her toenails her favorite shade. Fiercely. The big bad ex-Watcher had his tongue stuck out the side of his mouth and everything.

Rufus Bennett

Date: 2017-02-11 08:45 EST
Her favorite shade of nail polish was a very feminine, very bright shade of hot pink that perfectly matched her bright pink pajamas. How she managed to sleep in anything that color was a mystery, as they were so bright, they practically glowed in the dark. Was there any question she had designed them herself" As far as the booze was concerned, it was doing the trick in relaxing her and going straight to her head. "Do you love me, Rufio?"

"I'm engaging in something I am reliably informed teenaged girls do in groups of five at sleepovers," he said almost absentmindedly, concentrating to make sure he stayed on her toenail. "I, a manly man, am doing this for the woman I love. Do you really need to ask" I am, after all, the perfect specimen of macho charisma."

Something he said made her laugh, not because she disagreed with him, but because of the way he'd put it. She wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic or not, but she wasn't about to disagree with him. "No argument there. You are my hero," she told him, leaning close to tangle her fingers in his hair. Thank the gods he still had hair and it hadn't gone that gray yet either. "You are the most perfect speciman of man I've ever met," she told him, unconcerned if the compliment inflated his ego.

"Good enough to invent a word all of my own, I see," he teased her, looking up to lean over and kiss her fondly. "I will always be happy to be your speciman, Miri. Just ....don't ask me to braid your hair next."

She giggled girlishly into his kiss, the booze doing the trick to loosen her up and relax her maybe a little too much. "I've seen how you braid hair. You need practice," she told him, twirling a lock of his own hair around a fingertip before leaning back again and sighing. "I know what you're up to, Rufio!" she warned, waggling a finger at him.

"And my master plan is foiled," he grinned, knowing perfectly well that there was so much strong brandy in that toddy that she was probably already pretty close to needing help to stand. "I would have got away with it if it wasn't for this pesky woman being adorable practically in my lap."

"You are trying to get me drunk!" she told him, lifting a foot to wiggle her hot pink painted toes at him accusingly, too lazy to move from her lean against the pillows. "We should have gotten married a long time ago," she said, pouting at the thought of all those wasted years.

"Correction, I have successfully made you merry without argument from your side of the deal until this moment," he told her fondly, returning to finish off the last toe. His smile faded a little as she brought up the big sore spot of their past, one more thing he felt guilty about, but he made an effort not to react to it this time. "We're married now," he reminded her. "Making up for lost time in myriad and interesting ways." Screwing the lid back on the bottle of polish, he lifted her foot by the ankle and proceeded to blow on his masterpiece to dry it.

She frowned a little at him, but quickly let it go. She'd never been one to dwell too long on the past or have too many regrets, and she knew how guilty he felt about it without her making matters worse. She watched as he blew her toes dry, a twinkle of amusement in her eyes. "I think you missed your calling, love."

He smirked at her, fully aware that he was shamefully good at this sort of thing. "You still need to teach me how to do interesting things with hair," he pointed out. "Ro's going to start demanding that I do things to her hair the way that Jon does with Emily and Dom does with Daisy soon."

"All right," she agreed, wondering if he realized how very domestic they'd become. "We'll start with pigtails. Those are pretty easy," she told him, once again wishing he'd been there to see Bethany grow up and share in her childhood. All it really did though was make her be sure he'd be there for Rowan as she grew up.

"Do I have enough hair for pigtails?" he asked comically, letting her feet down to crawl up and rest against the pillows with her. "I was thinking more really tiny cornrows for my graying bonce."

She giggled again as he slipped into his native English. "Your what?" she asked, rolling close, the drink precariously held in one hand, though it was nearly empty. "Your English is coming out again, darling," she teased with a grin, eyes bright with something more than just amusement, the hot toddy clearly having an effect.

He laughed with her, wrapping his arm about her shoulders as he drew her close, rescuing the glass from her hand before she adorned herself with what little was left in there. "My bonce, my darling," he explained, knowing perfectly well she wasn't going to follow much of this and glad of it. "The proud cavity in which my marvelous mind resides, sitting atop the manly musculature of my neck."

"I'm not sure what you just said, but I love listening to you," she said, curling herself into him as he rescued the glass from her hand before one of them or the bed wore what was left in the glass. "Have I ever told you how much I love to listen to the sound of your voice?" she asked, brushing her fingers against the side of his face.

"I don't believe you have," he mused, smiling down at her. Though the sun was still shining outside, she needed to completely relax. He'd deal with her inevitable irritation when she woke up around dinner time when it came. "You have a passion for the cultured cadence of a well-bred English gentleman's voice, do you?"

"No, just your voice," she replied, not understanding half of what he was saying with her booze-addled brain. She sighed as she snuggled against him. "And you probably thought it was your sexy body that caught my eye first," she mused aloud with a sleepy smile.

"How you heard me at all in a library is going to forever haunt me," he chuckled softly, letting her cuddle in as close as she needed to. "I am not ashamed to admit it was your taste in literature that drew me first, and then that marvelous look at your legs you gave me with that opportune pencil drop. If I hadn't been such a gentleman, I daresay I might have got both of us forever barred from the library by acting on impulse."

"The fact that you were a gentleman was part of the allure," she told him. "There aren't enough gentlemen left, Rufus," she told him with that thoughtful, almost sad frown again. "No regrets?" she asked him, wrapping one leg around his as she snuggled about as close as she could get.

"I'd be lying if I said no," he admitted honestly, reaching down to tuck his hand about her thigh as she made herself comfortable. "But would I change any of the past' No, I wouldn't. Without those regrets, I wouldn't be here now, and there is nowhere I would rather be, angel." He smiled at her, pressing his lips to her forehead in a soft, protective kiss.

Had she been sober, she might have replied, but instead, all he got for his trouble was a soft sigh, her breath going quiet and even as she drifted off to sleep with her knight in shining armor right beside her. Regrets or not, everything they had done, every choice they had made in their lives had led up to this moment, and like Rufus, there was nowhere Miranda would rather be than right there beside him for the rest of her days.