[Lots of people]

[starchilde_lost]

[Dated March 31st, 2012]

She wanted this to go smoothly. She wanted this to go smoothly so badly, it was almost making her nauseous as she finished setting the table and setting out the last of the food. Some of it she'd made, some of it she'd bribed members of the kitchen crew to make for her, but all of it was hopefully something someone would like. And hopefully none of it would end up on someone's face.

Because she really didn't know.

She'd never really done anything like this before. Sure, there were family-style dinners at the mansion and with her grandparents while she was with them, but nothing like that existed here. She had no idea how this group of people that meant so much to her would get along with each other. She knew they'd all try, for her sake, and bless them for it, but she had a habit of making friends and family out of very opinionated and stubborn people and once the wine and beers were opened, who knew what would happen.

So she just said a prayer and hoped for the best as she got up to fiddle with her hair again.

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Comments

[likesthestooges]

"Yes," Aidan said with a nod. He didn't even have to think about that to answer McCoy. Despite how their relationship might have started, Aidan cared very much for Rachel.

"She's... a very special young woman and I'm lucky to be with her."

[leftwithmybones]

"Good answer," McCoy says with a nod of his head, still appraising him. "Sit down, have a drink," he encourages, patting the spot on the table next to him. "You can tell me about the mechanics of being a vampire and being alive for 250 years. I could use that kind of knowledge in time and progress."

[likesthestooges]

Aidan nodded and sat down, although he was going to stick with his beer for the moment. While he didn't expect any problems he still knew how much alcohol could loosen a tongue when you didn't want it to be so loose.

"We didn't exactly do really thorough scientific studies on ourselves. Most of the big revelations are psychological more than physiological."

[leftwithmybones]

"Yeah, well, you didn't have me around. I would've been trying to get as many details as I could." Which also probably would've gotten him very killed, but McCoy's not focusing on details like that. "How're you coping here with the sudden thrust back to humanity?"

[likesthestooges]

"True. Most vampires aren't concerned with scientific curiosity, unfortunately. At least not about ourselves."

Aidan was sure that someone, somewhere was looking into it but that wasn't his concern anymore. Aidan wanted to be left alone by the vampires.

"And it's good, mostly. Back home I was trying to survive on bagged blood and that's... difficult. I like being human again. A lot. Even if it is still strange at times."

[leftwithmybones]

"Bet if a plague started sweeping your ranks, you'd start caring pretty quick," McCoy says, since that's pretty much how it goes with humanity. It's all good until people start dying of fever and splotches and god knows what else. "I'm sure you've been threatened more than enough, but any of those old urges come back? Well, then, I think you might deserve anything Rach does to you. Good enough threatening?"

[likesthestooges]

"Probably true," Aidan said with a grin. "Although that's pretty unlikely and probably why we've never taken an interest."

Not that a plague would be such a bad thing. They were his people, but the world could do with a few less vampires as far as he was concerned.

"And that's good enough. Any of those old urges come back and I'll be the first one to send myself on a boat to the other island."

[leftwithmybones]

"Good man," McCoy praises with a nod of his head, seeing as the last thing he wants is for Rachel to get hurt in any of this. "Now, this question, you had to know was coming," he says, barely giving Aidan time before he lets it loose. "What are your intentions when it comes to her?"

[likesthestooges]

"That... is a tricky question," Aidan admitted, although it wasn't tricky for reasons most people might have thought. He and Rachel's relationship could be... problematic at times. More often than not it's been Aidan trying to push their relationship forward into something more serious.

"Rachel is very special and I would like to be with her for the rest of our time on the island. What that looks like we're both still trying to figure out."

[leftwithmybones]

McCoy listens carefully and nods when he gets a pretty savvy answer out of him. "So long as it doesn't mean you sleep around and somehow break her heart, I think you and I will get along fine. Besides, she'd probably smack me upside the back of the head if I hurt you too bad."

[likesthestooges]

"It definitely means that's not going to happen," Aidan reassured him. Aidan was ready to declare them exclusive before Rachel was, although he figured there was no need to mention that, especially since it's not like she had been sleeping around.

"If we break up, it won't be because of that."

[leftwithmybones]

"Good," McCoy says, but there's an echo of bemusement in his words, like he doesn't exactly believe it yet, but he'd love to. "I'd prefer if you two didn't break up at all, but that's the part of me that's ready for a nice long year of calmness speaking."

[likesthestooges]

"I'd really like it if we didn't break up also," Aidan agreed. They'd been through some pretty rough patches so far and come through them, so he had high hopes for them.

"So I'll try to not mess up your year too much."

[leftwithmybones]

"Good, because I got big plans," he says, given that his whole year is basically revolving around finishing up this Council term and then making sure he's ready to get married again, the latter of which is giving him some real panic attacks. "Seeing as Rachel's obviously going to be there in July, I take it I'll be seeing you at the wedding, too?"

[likesthestooges]

"If she gets a plus one invitation I really hope I'm the one she picks," he said. It was pretty safe to assume at this point in their relationship though that he was the one she'd take. That sort of surety is comforting.

"Congratulations, by the way.'

[leftwithmybones]

McCoy waves off the congratulations with ease. He'd rather not spend all of his time talking about how brave or courageous or loving what he did was. It's as simple as wanting to spend his life with Jim -- that's it. "Hey, she could pick a stranger, I'm not saying it's out of the question, though it would be sort of strange."

[likesthestooges]

"Well I'll just make extra sure around that time I don't do anything stupid that would make her too upset to take me," Aidan said.

Despite his age, he was still pretty terrible at relationships. He'd really only had one or two healthy relationships in his life and the rest were just awful. Aidan wanted Rachel to be one of the exceptions to that.

[leftwithmybones]

"See? We're all going to get along just great so long as you remember to follow up with that," he says, the picture of an accommodating man, smiling easily. "Plus, then, I won't have to stop making sweet yam mash for you. And that's just good news for everyone involved."

[likesthestooges]

"Trust me, I don't do the stupid things on purpose," he said with a laugh, thinking back to the few fights that he and Rachel have had.

"Usually they're just really misguided attempts to do the right thing that in hindsight are a horrible idea."