Duplicitous (F.C)

Haunted Estate

Today's another day filled with preparations for Oliver's party. Elspeth seems to be running around the estate like a chicken with her head cut off. It seemed to be a bunch of madness within each room, because god forbid a guest walk into an undecorated broom closet. for the first time in hours I notice Elspeth standing still just watching from the window.

    "Everything alright?" She motions me over. "Just look at our boys." She smiles watching Felix and James building a wooden fixture just below us, neither of them looking up. "The moment I met James, I knew that he would be the father of my children." Her sudden vulnerability takes me aback. "Although he seems quiet, he has such a tenderness to him. The complete opposite of what my father had shown me growing up." She sighs turning back to the dinning table. "Money doesn't equal a happy home."

"You could say that again." My sigh matches hers as she motions me to the table. "While, my father had done everything in his power to protect and provide a stable life for us, my mother washed it all away the moment she got access to his money." Elspeth's normally stern face fills with empathy. "Not looking out for our future, but for hers and her friends." None of them she talks to anymore. "Felix gave me a bit of intel before the three of you came to visit." Which is most likely the reason I was met with coldness. "My father warned me to not be like my mother before he passed, and I had no idea how bad she had become until I had dealt with it on my own."

    Guilt trips, drugs and alcohol, and the occasional blame shifting." There had been a few times where my mother had told me my father had killed himself because of me. While she had forgotten it due to the alcohol, it never made it okay. "Well, you'll always have a home here." It's surprising to see how welcoming Elspeth had become. "I see the way you make my boy smile, not even a first class boys trip does that." When you're rich, debts go away, but most of the time you have yet to pay off the emotional debts that you fill voids with. "Well, if it makes you feel any bettter, he makes me smile too." Elspeth places her hand on top of mine. "I want the bad times to be behind us."

"Me as well." She smiles. "Soon before college is over you'll be a part of our family traditions. Felix's aunt makes a beautiful roast around the holiday seasons, it's to die for, really." My eyes peer up to see Venetia leaning against the doorframe. "You must join me on my holiday spa retreat as well." I could she her face falter as the one on Elspeth's grew brighter. How could she replace the daughter she raised with one she hated up until this moment. "V looks like she needs help with the decor." I motion to the box in her arms. "Everything is fine, Calliope." Her tone is a bit cold.

"Well, you could help me with the table arrangements." Elspeth smiles as Venetia drops a blue from her box. "I'll be back to help." I follow the trail of broken glass on the marbled flooring. "Hey, V." She turns to me with tear stained cheeks. "I've spent my whole life trying to empress her, to show me one ounce of empathy without a classless remark. She just opens up to you." I shake my head. "She's made my life hell up until now, I had to earn that inch that she gave me." I walk closer to Venetia. "I'm just such a mess to love." She continues to softly sob. "Everything I try to fix to be the best daughter for her, she turns her nose."

"I've bleached my hair several times, just to have it be fried because she has natural blonde roots, I starve myself constantly to be as thin as her because no one likes you unless you're a model, and I beg for someone to just hear my cry for help just once." I pull her into my arms as she cries. "I may not be your audience, but I'm here for you, V." Her sobs begin to quiet down while I rub circles along her upper back. "Maybe it's time to start living for yourself, not others who will never change their patterns." Venetia shakes her head. "She's my mum."

    "Believe it or not, I think she's doing the best that she can. Our parents are products of their parents and in-laws." It seemed as if Elspeth had none. "She seems stressed with the party, let's host a movie night to ease the tension and stress in the air." She furrows her brows. "Make the invites and I'll partner up with the staff to make sure everything goes without a hitch." She smiles. "I see it now." Her change in demeanor confuses me. "I see what Felix and Oliver see." She pulls me into a hug. "You're an angel sent from above, Calliope." She pecks my cheek before rushing off to do her task.

~~~~

    Movie night seems to be a success, which I'm thankful for. James and Elspeth seemed to cozy up to one another, while Oliver and Venetia had their own little thing going on in the corner. I'm not quite sure what's going on between the pair, but I sense a tension in the space between them. Felix and I sat in between the four, him beside his parents and me beside Venetia. "Don't be silly." Venetia chuckles at something Oliver says, causing Felix to peer over me, and I turn his head to look at the screen as the ending plays. "Whilst it's been fun, we're going to turn in for the night." James stands up as the ending credits play. "Big day ahead of us tomorrow." Elspeth places a hand on Oliver's shoulder before leaving.

    "Thank you for tonight, Venetia," Her mother compliments. "Just what the doctor ordered." V goes to say something but I nudge her leg. "She figured we could all use a break." Venetia smiles and nods. "Well, that we definitely did." She exits the room, Oliver and Venetia following quickly behind. "Thank you for helping V." Before I can say anything he gives me a look. "That was very sweet of you." Seeing the smile on her face when her mother gave her a compliment instead of a backhanded one was rewarding enough. "It broke my heart to see her upset; the amount of trouble she puts herself through just for your mother to notice her is horrific." She cared about an opinion that would never change.

    "How does she not notice her daughter not eating during meals, or how she goes through multiple packs of cigarettes a day?" Felix sighs. "It's the product of her upbringing, which doesn't make it fair, but it's all that she's known." Generational curses can be a bitch. "I'm glad that V has you." Little ole me? "She's always wished for a sister, someone that could understand her in a way that I couldn't." He smiles. "I'm surprised she has yet to dress you up like a Polly Pocket." The serious conversation turns lighthearted. "I'll have to ask for one of those fringe jackets before we head back to uni." Felix and I both chuckle. "Look at you, adapting our slang." I hit him with a couch cushion.

    Felix grabs himself a couch cushion, softly hitting me back. "Don't start a fight you can't finish." He warns me. "Oh, you are so on." As we continue our pillow fight, I end up tripping over the leg of the couch. "Calliope." Felix kneels down beside me. "Are you okay?" I use having the upper hand to my advantage by hitting him with the pillow, and climbing top of him. "I win." I grin. "What's my prize?" I hover over him. "You cheated." I pout at his rightful accusation. "I just used my elements to my advantage." He jokingly rolls his eyes. "Oh, that's what we're calling it." A yawn escapes my lips. "Guess we should head to bed." As I stand up, I notice someone in the distance of the hallway. It looks as if they had been watching the whole interaction. "Everything alright?"

    "Can we sleep in your room tonight?" When I look back, the figure is gone. "What's wrong?" I shake my head. "I guess I'm more tired than I thought." He scoops me up from the ground. "If you wanted me to carry you all you had to do is ask." I chuckle. "My knight in shining armor." Truthfully, my skin is still crawling from the thought of someone in this house watching us. Maybe I had proven my haunted estate theory to be correct. That theory is going to be what helps me sleep tonight at least.