Meeting the fam.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana did believe she'd talked about this with Pat possibly one time before when she heard his options, but still she nodded with a small smile. He always did love his history.

She looked back over to Pam, nodding slowly at her answer. She wasn't sure if that was really the reason, but she knew that training to be an Auror took a lot of work, and probably excellent grades as well. "Oh, well that's ok. You still have time to decide." She assured Pam. Maybe not much time, considering they were all in Seventh year now.. but enough.

Glancing over to their father, she smiled when she noticed that he truly seemed to be interested in their career choices. Only then did she remember that the Wood's family were Muggles, her confusion from his question disappearing within seconds.

She chuckled as both Pam and Pat rolled their eyes, but she offered the man a small grin. "Not equivalent.. but maybe a desk job at Gringotts Wizarding Bank?" She offered with a light laugh, the best she could come up with. She gave him an apologetic grin.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Pat did remember that he'd already gone over what he wanted to do with Alli but he wanted to go first, so that way Pam didn't feel awkward in anyway.

"Dad, we're not getting desk jobs," Pam teased their father. His passion was accounting and every few weeks trying to take up cooking.

"Yeah Dad," Pat shook his head.

"Can't blame a guy for trying," their father shrugged.

Pat reached for another piece of pizza and then leaned over to whisper into Alli's ear. "So, how are you enjoying yourself?" he asked.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana once more grinned toward their father, figuring out that he must have enjoyed accounting and probably had wanted at least one of his children to take up the same career. Everyone had their one preferences though, she was all too familiar with that. He was right, they couldn't blame him for trying.

She had finished off her slice of pizza and was debating whether or not she wanted another slice when Pat leaned over to whisper in her ear. She placed her hand on his knee for a moment, giving it a quick squeeze. "I'm having fun." She whispered back in his ear, before leaning back and giving him a smile to prove her point.

She really was having fun with the Woods. It wasn't as awkward as she'd thought it would be.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick grinned a little when Alli said that she was having fun and when she squeezed his knee.

"I'm glad," he whispered to her.

"Alli, do you want another slice?" Patrick's father asked. Two-Bit and Soda hopped into Pam's lap--knocking her water bottle off the arm of the chair.

"Here Pam," Pat said with a slight smile as he got up to get it. Pam shot Pat a slightly dirty look.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana brought her hand back to her side after squeezing Pat's knee, smiling again when he whispered that he was glad. She was glad, too. And she hoped she was making at least a decent impression on his family. She didn't think they would think anything bad of her, but one could never be too wary about things like that, right?

Looking toward Pat's father when she heard his name, she glanced back down toward the pizza, considering. After a small moment of debate she grinned though and nodded, leaning forward to help herself to another slice. "Yeah, thanks!" She said, sitting back and taking a bite of the pizza. She always had been a girl with quite the appetite.

She watched as Pat got up to get Pam's knocked over water bottle, and also noticed the slightly dirty look he got in return. She glanced down with a small chuckle under her breath, continuing to eat her second slice of pizza.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick had noticed the slightly dirty look that his sister had shot his way but didn't think anything of it. Pam had been doing that since she started showing. Maybe it was pride but he didn't know.

He sat back down next to Alli, hearing her chuckle, and to that he raised an eyebrow.

"So, how long have you two been dating?" his father asked.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana tried her best to keep looking down either at the floor or maybe the boxes of pizza on the table, but she could feel Pat looking at her from the side and she did her best not to look right back at him. He was probably wondering what she was chuckling about but truth be told, she wasn't exactly sure. Besides the fact that she was rather amused by Pam's slight attitude, although she did wonder where it came from.

Another couple bites of her pizza and she finally dared a glance toward Pat, her blue eyes meeting his for a fraction of a second before she heard the question. Hm.. that was a good one. She hadn't thought about it in a while, and so it took her a moment or two before she could reply.

"About little over a year now." She said with a happy smile, looking toward Pat for the confirmation but knowing she was right.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

"Yeah," Patrick nodded. He was distracted by his father's question and Alli's response. "This last October was our first year anniversary."

He'd have a talk with Pam later--he knew it was difficult right now but she didn't have to take it out on him.

"So you two are serious?" his father asked.

Patrick really didn't like the look on his father's face. It meant a talk was coming soon--and Pat really didn't want to know what the talk would be.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana turned her attention back toward Pat's father for only a moment as Pat spoke, because she could tell by the look on her boyfriend's face that something was a bit off. She obviously couldn't ask at the moment because this wasn't the time or place, but still.. sneaking another half-worried glance at Pat she bit her lip, but managed to smile again when he finished talking.

That was, until his father asked another question, and Alli exhaled slowly before shifting her weight on the couch. She'd never really been asked that before nor did she really know what to say, either. Were she and Pat serious? She assumed so, but..

"Uhm.. yeah. I guess so.." She said slowly, unsure if that was the wrong answer or not but really not knowing what to say. She could feel her nerves beginning again and she clasped her hands together in her lap now that she'd finished her second slice of pizza, biting her bottom lip again. Nervous habit.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick glanced at Alli and saw her nervousness.

"We are serious dad," he nodded and then whispered into Alli's ear. "Don't worry. He wants to figure out if he should give me the Talk later."

He squeezed her hand and noticed a small smile on the lips of his father.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana felt slightly more relieved with her answer when Pat confirmed it, breathing in deeply to calm herself. She wasn't sure what it was about the question that made her lose her cool to a certain degree, but now she was back under control. She leaned in toward Pat ever so slightly when he whispered in her ear, and she gave him a slightly grateful smile before nodding to show she understood.

She squeezed his hand back before looking back toward his father, noticing the small smile. It was enough to make her cheeks grow warm but she fought back the reaction and a subject change. "Thanks for dinner, Mr. Wood!"

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick smiled back at Alli and wrapped his arm around her after he put his empty plate on the table.

"Are you all finished?" his father asked. Patrick blinked; he had no idea that they had eaten both of those pizzas.

"I'm done dad," Pam said with a smile. "You need some help cleaning up the kitchen, seeing as you tried to cook?"

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana allowed herself to lean against Pat lightly when he wrapped an arm around her, always one to enjoy being close to him. He was a great cuddler, after all.. which reminded her of the time they'd fallen asleep together in the Room of Requirement. The memory was enough to bring a slight smile to her lips, until she was being addressed again.

She really had to stop drifting off into her thoughts! "Yes, I am." She replied with a small nod to the question, glancing toward Pam when she heard the girl's words. She waited to see if the man would in fact need help before offering up her own set of hands to assist. After all, she didn't want to seem pushy or act like she were trying to take over Pam's offer.

One thing she didn't want was to be on the girl's list of people she disliked. Maybe they might have gotten along, had Alli ever tried to really talk to her. Never know.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

"I'm sure Patrick and I can clean it up," his father said with a grin. "You and Alli can stay here."

Pat gave Alli a smile as he got up. He couldn't hope but think that his father was trying to get him alone so that he could give him the Talk. Turns out he was right.

"Patrick," his father said as they began to load the dishwasher. "Just how serious are you and Alli."

"We're pretty serious Dad," Patrick responded.

"Have you...you know?"

Oh Merlin no!

"Yes Dad!" Patrick said, his cheeks turing fire-engine red in two seconds. "We have done...you know!"

"I just want you to be careful," his father said.

"We are," Patrick said, giving his father a look. "Please tell me we're done here."

"Sorry but no," his father said and chuckled as Pat groaned.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana settled back against the couch once Pat got up, and she offered a small smile to Pat in return to his. She didn't mind sitting here with Pam, even if she wasn't exactly sure what to say. She figured small talk with her wouldn't hurt... it wouldn't be the best either, but she had little to work with.

Once the two guys were gone, she shifted her body a bit so she was facing Pam. She would have to start the conversation sometime, and she really did want to talk to the other girl. "So, how've you been?" She asked quietly, listening with a nod as Pam explained how she had been before returning the question. "Oh, I've been pretty good.." She replied. She smirked slightly when Pam made a comment about how the boys might be a while, considering the type of cook their father was. "Is he really that bad?"

She was sort of happy that things weren't so awkward. They weren't exactly exciting either, but at least they were making the effort to talk to one another, right? After a moment of silence Pam told Alli a short story about her father's cooking experiences in order to prove her point about his cooking. Alli could only chuckle and shake her head in amusement. "At least he tries!" She reasoned.

Speaking of which, she wondered what might be being talked about in the kitchen.. but she looked back to Pam. The girl still didn't look thrilled with talking to her, but hey. It was better then nothing and she was happy just to get a few words out of her.

*Permission granted to GM Pamala Wood in this post*

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick figured he could light a match on his face with the amount of heat he was giving off.

"Dad, why are you doing this?" he hissed to keep his voice low.

"Because you need it," his father replied. "Besides, your grandfather gave me the talk when I was your age."

Patrick groaned. His grandfather--he was cool. The talk with him was probably something like "Don't have sex, or you will get a girl pregnant and then she will die."

"Everyone goes through this Patrick," his father said with a smile. They had filled the dishwasher all the way and now were hand washing the dishes that they had left.

"Why'd you use so many dishes?" Patrick asked, trying desperately to to change the subject.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana heard the clattering of dishes from the kitchen and figured that they might be a while longer, and so she began to wracked her brain for ideas of what they could talk about. She wasn't going to even mention the pregnancy - it was none of her business after all. And she didn't want Pam to completely dislike her, so that idea was out. She wasn't going to ask about her career options, because that had already been established. She wasn't sure if Pam was with the father of her babies or had a boyfriend, so she couldn't ask how a relationship was going..

She looked up when she could feel Pam staring at her, although the girl looked away and took a sip of her water a moment later. Exhaling Alli was beginning to feel bad for boring her.. she watched as she began to pet one of the kittens, and jumped at the chance to say something. "How long have you had Soda?" Pam seemed surprised by the question but after a second replied. "How did you come up with the name? You like The Outsiders as well?" At least she was learning a little about Pam..

Alli shook her head when asked if she had a pet of her own. She couldn't remember the last time she had actually had her own pet, as sad as that may have been. She was slightly surprised when Pam offered a topic of conversation when mentioning Alli had a twin as well. "Yeah, twin brother. Alex.. in Ravenclaw. Don't know if you've ever met him." She replied. Pam quieted down almost immediately after that though, and Alli wondered if that meant she shouldn't bother trying to think of another topic to talk about.

Quietly she uncapped her water and took a sip, buying for a little time. She supposed she couldn't entirely blame her fellow Gryffindor for being slightly closed off with her. Oh, well. Better small conversation then none at all. That would have really sucked.

*Permission granted to GM Pamala Wood in this post*

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick wondered if his father used so many dishes in order to get him alone to give him the Talk or not but it was working.

"Finally," he muttered under his breath as the last dish was put away. It really made him miss Hogwarts--and it also made him wish that his father was more hands off.

He walked back into the family room, his face blazing like the setting sun, and he noticed that the room seemed almost awkward. One could almost hear crickets.

"So, what have you two been talking about?" he asked as he sat back next to Alli. He would have gotten away with being totally cool if it hadn't been for his father calling out "REMEMBER PROTECTION!"

Pam burst out laughing as he fell off the couch.

"You planned this, didn't you?" he asked his sister who shrugged.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana felt guilty for thinking this but as soon as Pat walked back into the living room, she felt immense relief. Who would have known that trying to talk to someone could be so tiring? Although she did take notice of Pat's bright red cheeks, and she arched an eyebrow as she smiled in amusement. "Uh.. you ok there?" She teased, her eyes still observing his color change as he took the seat beside her again.

She figured he had also been able to tell that the room had a slightly awkward feel to it, but she tried to assure herself that they had both tried.. basically. Being forced to talk to one another wasn't really the best time to start a true conversation anyhow. Maybe one day, the two would find some common ground. She was just about to answer Pat's question when she heard the call from the kitchen. Her eyes widened for a moment before she began to laugh.

"Well, I guess I know what was going on in there now..." She mused, laughing some more at the thought of Pat's red cheeks and ignoring the fact that her own were tinged pink. Oh, Merlin that must have been an awkward talk. Her mother had tried having it with her before, but to no avail.

She chuckled again and looked down at Pat, who was now on the floor. "Comfortable down there?" She smirked playfully.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

"I'm fine," Patrick said with a smile trying to brush off the fact that his father had given him the Talk with his girlfriend in the next room. That wasn't an easy task with his father shouting for him to remember protection.

"Not as comfortable as I'd be next to you," he smirked back just as playfully. He got up and kissed her gently on the lips.

Pam coughed. Loudly.

"You have the tact of a train, don't you?" Patrick asked his sister.

"It's a gift," Pam smirked back.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana didn't bother hiding her smirk when he said he was fine. "Sure looks like it." She continued to tease him with a wink, reaching out to poke him in one of his red cheeks to prove her point. She let up on the situation though, remembering a moment later that Pam was still in the room with them and she didn't want to embarrass Pat too much.. not more then his father already had, at least.

She laughed at his words and rolled her eyes playfully, but kissed him back.. until she heard Pam coughing loudly. Oh, oops. Blushing slightly she pulled back and grinned sheepishly in her direction as the two siblings exchanged words.

"I get it. I don't know if I'd be thrilled with seeing Alex and his girlfriend kissing, either." She reasoned with a small shrug.

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

Patrick rolled his eyes as Alli poked his (probably still red) cheek. At least Pam was in the room, otherwise the teasing would be endless.

"It's okay," Pam shrugged. "I mainly did it to annoy Pat."

"As you live to do at times," Patrick added.

Pam smirked. "Whatever you say, brother dear."

Patrick rolled his eyes at his little sister and turned back to Alli. "So, how have your holidays been so far?"

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana smiled slightly but nodded in understanding. "I can get that." She replied, and she could. She probably would go out of her way to annoy and or embarrass Alex as well, if she ever saw him anymore that was.

She chuckled at the small exchange between the two, despite the sudden ache in her chest. She missed the times she'd been this way with her brother, but now they hardly even spoke two words to one another. She tried her best not to appear upset at the sudden thoughts and hoped her smile was still genuine as she shook away the thoughts.

Looking over to Pat, she shrugged. "They've been pretty good I guess." Which wasn't a complete lie, after all. "How about yours?"

Posts : 203 Join date : 2011-08-07 Age : 30

"My holidays have been alright," Pat smiled at Alli. Pam even smiled at the two of them. Granted, it looked like a grimace from where Pat was sitting.

"How's Alex?" he asked as his father walked back into the room.

Posts : 182 Join date : 2011-08-07

Alliana smiled at his answer, returning the smile that he was giving her. She even thought she saw Pam smiling but she could have been wrong. After all, she didn't think she'd ever see the day where Pam would smile at them. Although she knew she shouldn't be so judgmental after all. She had no right to be.

Again, she felt the pang in her chest and she hoped her expression didn't fall when Pat asked about Alex. "He's been alright, I think.." She said slowly, before smiling somewhat sadly. "From what I've seen of him anyhow." She shrugged, acting as if she didn't care. Even though she knew she did, and she knew Pat would see right through the facade. Oh well.

She smiled at his father lightly when he walked back into the room, despite wanting to blush when she thought about what had been talked about in the kitchen no more then a few minutes before.

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