Reflections of Light

Civility

"So... You're back now." Vivian said to Luci, sounding icier than she'd meant to.

"Yeah." Luci replied, peeling her son's arms from around her waist and leaning down to look into his eyes, framing his face with her hands. "Why don't you go get your things, so we can go, okay?"

Billy nodded, bounding off, a huge smile on his face.

Luci leant against the doorframe. "Thank you for taking care of him. Hope he wasn't too much trouble."

The fake civility was oozing off of these women like acrid smoke.
"Good as Gold. Other than the incident with the plastic wand. And the bit where they pinched Mag's dentures.
And the 'science experiment', under the bed.
And the bit where he persuaded a large group of his friends to return to the Mansion to play in the treehouse.
And the bit where your son, Lauren's boy, and my youngest decided it would be a good idea to actually go in the place and had to be rescued by some acquaintances of Evelyn.

Nope, no trouble at all."

Luci stiffened at the other woman's tone, but before she could say anything, Steven decided it was in everybody's best interest to break up the brewing cat-fight.

"Yes, well, that aside, we're just glad your boy managed to make it out safely to us the first time, when he said you'd disappeared. And also, that you are okay! I must admit, when Billy called us and said he couldn't find you, we feared the worst had happened, that the creatures in that place had...
...But you're okay, which is great!"

He was visibly wilting under the harsh gazes of both the snake -eyed woman, and his icy-eyed wife.
Tentatively, he took a step back, sweating slightly.

Vivian was not even making an attempt to hide her disapproval now, as she rounded back on Luci. "Yes, as you are perfectly okay, what reason did you have to leave your son alone in that place?"

"Vivian..." Steven warned her.

"No, Steven, this is perfectly within my rights to ask, as that was a completely irresponsible.... She, she, is a completely irresponsible... frankly dangerous..."

"Vivian!" Steven said loudly, cutting her off. "Let's not repeat the Boxing Day incident, shall we? I'm sure there's an explanation."

"What explanation could excuse..."

"Vivian! Please."

Luci scowled. "Actually, there is an explanation. Unforseen circumstances forced me to leave, but I didn't expect to be gone so long. Something unexpected happened, it all went very wrong and I ended up being physically unable to return for several days.
Each and every one I spent in constant worry about what could have happened to my child whilst I wasn't there.
Now, I would very much appreciate it if I could just take my son, and leave.
William, are you done yet?" She called out to him loudly.

"Can't find my shoe!" Came the reply from the bedroom.

"Oh, for..." Steven muttered. "Would that be this shoe-shaped object that I have found, here, in the middle of the floor, which I remember you launching across the room this morning?"
He said, sweeping it up and handing it to the small boy through the door.

He came out of the room a second later, both shoes on correctly, carrying a plastic bag of clothing in one hand, and his special box in the other.

Luci looked him over. "Where's your jacket?"

"In the bag."

"Put it on."

"Not gonna."

"It's cold."

"I'm Batman."

Luci sighed, taking the bag from her son.
"Don't blame me if you get chilly.
Come on, we gotta go. Say bye to your friends."

"No."

"William, I'm not fooling around here..."

"Not sayin' Goodbye. 'Cause Goodbye means goin' away, an' goin' away means forgettin'."

Luci sighed again. The boy lived his life by Peter Pan, and sometimes it really just made things difficult.

"Then go give Wesley a hug and tell her you'll see her another time, but you have to go for now. Come on, hurry up, I've got someone waiting outside and I really don't want to be gone long."

Billy nodded, noting his mother's serious tone, and rushed off to find Wesley, almost tackling her to the ground as he threw his arms around the surprised little girl.
"Wesley! Gotta go now, wif my Mum. But I will see you soon!"

"See ya, Billy!" Wesley giggled, waving as he walked back to the door.

'Goodbye means going away, and going away means forgetting' is a quote from the original book of Peter Pan.
I personally think it's really sweet, although a little sad.