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Things had been good for Emilee throughout her life, at least at the time she'd thought they were. However, things had since changed. She'd tried calling Enver, tried writing to him - she'd even tried to reach out to Every to try and talk to him. But he just wouldn't come to see her for a proper visit, just a couple of days here or there, everything was always business and they never really got any time together. It was all her own fault, hers and his Dad's. They'd had him because it was what you did when you were married, and there was no better fashion accessory and statement than a child. And what a child he'd been. Perfect in every way as he'd been trotted out for this party or that, seen here or there and photographed constantly. But that's all she'd ever treated him as - a piece of jewellry to be 'seen with', and now she was paying for it. With her husband dead and gone, Enver was all she had left and she wanted to reconnect with him. She'd wanted to for a few years, what with her husband's ailing health, but now - now she was driven. Enver, and Every, were the only family she had left in the world - and she was theirs. She knew from Every's email that the two cousins weren't close, some sort of difference or opinion over politics of all things - and she wanted to make that right. There was so much she wanted to make right and Enver just didn't seem to be willing to take that step and let her in.

She was more driven than ever now. With her news. Enver's father, her husband, had smoked like a chimney. If you didn't see him with a cigar or a cigarette in his hand then one had just finished and the next was about to be lit. He hadn't cared a bit for the no-smoking laws and had flaunted them everywhere, simply paying people to look the other way. As such, she too had been subjected to the smoke and had breathed all of his second hand smoke in. He'd died a few months ago of lung cancer, and she'd just been given the same diagnosis. That niggling cough and irritation that she'd been unable to shift, had ignored and hidden from everyone - hadn't just been a bug. It had been so much worse. It had progressed beyond the point of treatment, and had spread to other areas of her body too, so she'd been given the news and told that if there was anything she wanted to do - to do it sooner rather than later as her egg timer had been turned and there wasn't much sand left.

She'd done most everything she'd ever wanted to do, when it had popped into her head. She'd never wanted for anything and every whim had been catered to as and when it had flown into her head. No. The one thing she wanted and the one thing she regretted - was her family relationships. Enver was to be an orphan, and she wanted him to have some good memories, and fond memories, of her and his childhood, because there were some there that had just been hidden by the teenage years and on. He was getting on a bit as well, he would probably be thinking about a family of his own - for all she knew, he may already have some children and just hadn't told her about them. Such was their relationship. She wanted stories to be told of their grandmother, stories told with fondness and not with cold and hard edges.

Then Every. Poor Every. Who'd been lost to the family over some..... silliness amongst the men. She still wasn't too clear on the details of it all, but she wanted to reach out to the girl and just hug her - let her know that she was family. Then, she wanted to put an end to whatever silliness was between Enver and Every so that they might be proper cousins and be there for one another. After all - they would soon be all the other had by way of family, and it broke her heart to think of the mess of it all and how she was to leave them, possibly without ever managing to let them both know and see how sorry she was. She knew what Enver was like, she could say she was sorry until she blue in the face and he would simply nod silently and believe none of it. For Enver, seeing was believing - so show him she must.

It had taken her a few weeks to sort everything out. Running businesses was a lot of hard work and suddenly washing your hands of them and passing them off to someone else - was a huge undertaking. But she was meticulous in her paperwork and planning, so the transition had seemed to go smoothly. She had to arrive with him in plenty of time for Easter - because what better way to reconnect and get the ball rolling than to arrange a proper, family, Easter Sunday Meal - complete with an egg hunt in the garden just as she'd done when he was a boy. She needed to get there, find her way around, find out what sort of table he had, as well as utensils - just so she could see what she had to work with - and then there was the cooking and the planning and the inviting..... oh it was going to be wonderful and cozy and homey and just a perfect family day.

She had tried to call to tell him what she was planning, but she never managed to reach him and only ever seemed to get his voicemail. It was understandable though - he was a busy man with his businesses there in Canada. Proper little entreprenaur, just like his father had been - and she was so proud of him. So very proud of him. She paused in her packing, thinking of Every, and trying to remember if she knew what the girl did. But for the life of her she couldn't think if she knew or not. Part of the problem with the pain medication she was on, it made her head floaty light and more often than not, her thoughts and memories just floated right on out of her head on a fluffy drug cloud. They always came back to her - usually - once they'd had a nice day trip out to wherever, but it was most frustrating at times when she was trying to be professional.

Finished with her packing, she changed into her travel clothes as the staff carried the bags out to the waiting car. Then finally - she was ready to go. She descended the stairs and smiled at her man who was waiting there, assuring him she'd be fine and that he was to take care of the house while she was gone and thanking him for his years of service to the family. Both of them knew, though neither of them said it, that she wasn't coming home again - not unless she were in a wooden box.... and that would all depend on what Enver decided to do with her remains. Quickly, and before she cried, she walked out of her home and into the waiting car that whisked her to the airport. Her schauffer helped with her luggage as there were 7 bags and trunks travelling with her - and he got them all checked in while she went and relaxed in the first class lounge with a large gin and tonic to settle the butterflies in her stomach - doctors and their warnings about mixing alcohol and morphine be damned.

The flight to Harper Rock seemed to fly by in a flash, as the alcohol mixed with the morphine and helped her drift off into a deep sleep within moments of take off. She knew the name of the theatre that Enver owned, and he'd told her that he lived there as well, in some sort of apartment. So, with her airport provided helper in tow, she collected her bags and found herself a taxi.... or two. As her bags would not all fit in one, so she had to use two. They drove directly to the Oldtown theatre, which gave Emilee her first taste of Harper Rock - and she had to admit, it wasn't a good one! The place was.... fairly run down and a bit dowdy looking. Yes, she'd seen glimpses of better areas and neighbourhoods, but on the whole - it didn't seem great. However, this was where her son was. This was where her great neice was. Therefore, this was the best place on earth to her at this precise moment.

The taxi drivers dropped her off at the Theatre and carried all of her bags inside for her, leaving them stacked up just inside the entrance. She nervously - stupidly - looked around and managed to find someone who worked there, asking them if Enver were around. The young lad gave her the funniest of looks - as she clearly stood out like a sore thumb - and then told her that Enver wasn't there at the moment, but may be in later. She thanked him for his help and sighed before perching herself elegantly on one of her trunks. Reaching into her designer handbag, she removed her phone and tapped out a text, sending it to the pair of them.

"Evening Enver, Every.

I'm currently sitting in the foyer of the OldTown Theatre. I don't suppose either of you are free to meet me are you? Also, I'm in need of a place to stay.... for a while. Preferably with one of you, as it's you I'm here for.

Hope to see you soon.

Lots of love.

Mom/Auntie E"

Then, there was nothing for it - but to wait.

He sat at the crafting bench in the asylum, working on some gadgets for a few people, when he heard his phone go off. Enver looked up from the trap he was making with a puzzled look on his face. He thought he had lost the thing in some building Keara more or less dragged him in to earlier in the week. And since he had telepathic powers now, Enver hadn't been in a hurry to go replace the thing. He dug through the drawers in the wood table, searching for the thing, discarding old cell phones that he knew weren't his until he found the right one. Seemed he mixed his in with ones he was planning on using later on down the road for something special.

13 missed calls. 5 voice mails and 3 text messages. He looked to see who the missed calls were from and sighed. Most of them were from Emilee, his mom and he knew exactly what she wanted. She'd been talking about Easter for some time now and he had kept blowing her off. He wasn't ready to go back to Cali, not since his wife had gone a little off her rocker (to put it nicely), sired some people, killed his old thrall and did who knows what else? Enver skipped past the voice mails, figuring she had tried that route first and then resulted to text messages as a final attempt to get his attention. And as he guessed, she was wondering when he was coming home and what his plans for Easter was. That was, until tonight.

Evening Enver,

I'm currently sitting in the foyer of the OldTown Theatre. I don't suppose either of you are free to meet me are you? Also, I'm in need of a place to stay.... for a while. Preferably with one of you, as it's you I'm here for.

Hope to see you soon.

Lots of love.

Mom

Either of you? Who was she referring to? His old man was dead and he didn't have any siblings here, or anywhere. Only person he had any connections to was- "**** me." He growled out at Enver glared down at the text. His fingers from his free hand moved to the bridge of his nose to pinch it before he groaned. Why the hell was she here? After all this time? She comes now? Not that any time was better than any other, but now wasn't really the time for a surprise visit.

Enver didn't reply to Emilee, but instead scrolled for the last text message he had gotten from Every, which was quite some time ago. It wasn't like they talked a lot, and when they did, it was more or less giving the other grief about something. How one dressed. Political stances, name dropping. Whatever it was to try and rile the other up, they did it to the other.

"Looks like Emilee's here. Told you she wanted to see you for Easter. She's at the theatre waiting to see you. Best get a move on it." Was what he sent to her. Sure, he was passing his mom off on her, but it wasn't like she was a typical mom. She was more a business partner and had been since Enver could remember. Since his childhood. So he didn't feel any guilt giving her to one of his worst enemies.

The lock clicked and she moved her hand to pull open the door before collecting the antique, sliding it into her bag as she shut the door and headed to the next. Crouching down, she picked at the last lock and cursed when her phone chirped at her to signal a text. She pulled away, removing an electronic lockpick from her pocket as footsteps headed in her direction. After the door swung open, she snatched out the second antique and threw it in her bag before hurrying away from the footsteps and to the doors. “Hey!” She turned a corner, her hand automatically collecting a knockout bomb before she threw it at the man’s feet in a fluid movement as her phone chirped at her again to show she hadn’t read it.

She gave a small growl in annoyance, gritting her teeth before she stepped over his slumping body and into the fresh evening air of Harper Rock. Pulling down the baseball cap she wore, Every hunched down in her denim jacket a bit as she moved to Wickbridge transit station and waited until she was situated before tugging her phone from her pocket unhappily. The brunette began to type out a response about nearly getting caught because of the sender and the fact she had said a telepath would be more beneficial until she glanced at the number and paused. Emilee? She frowned as guilt washed over her. Enver had mentioned in their last email that his mother, her great aunt, had been talking about Easter.

The brunette pursed her lips together, hitting backspace and went back to the original message to read it over, and if it were possible, Every would have gone paler. “**** me.” She muttered under her breath, ignoring the strange look she received from a man beside her as she skimmed over what her great aunt had sent her. Somehow, she knew this was all Enver’s fault. She crossed her legs underneath herself as she began to type out a response about being busy and needing to take a rain check as she was studying for school until her phone chirped at her once more. Enver. “Why the **** do people only now decide to message me?” The man beside her got up and moved, clearly unhappy about her language. She rolled her eyes a bit and moved out of the message from Emilee. Had he been nice enough to send her a heads up? Even if it were late? Emilee had put “either of you” which told her that she hadn’t been the only one to receive the message. Her hazel eyes narrowed.

“Oh hell no. Who does he think I am? I am not babysitting his mother.” She thought unhappily before she decided to reply to him first with: “Correction. She wants to see either of us, and if you are not there before I am, I am going to tell her that you’re busy because you are moonlighting as a cross-dressing prostitute named Hilly. I will point out street corners, saying you can be found there some evenings as a return home from work and tell her that it’s such a shame that her son has fallen to such need for money. You might be an actor, but I can put on a show when I please. Also, stop assuming that I am not busy, you dick.”

Pressing send, Every went back to the other text message and glowered at it. She had been more comfortable talking to her aunt knowing she’d never see her, that Emilee was living in California and working. It made things easier. She could talk to her through email and that would be that. Admittedly, her biological family was still a sore spot to the female. Her father hadn’t hinted that he had any family left. Her brother had kept it a secret from her even in death. It had taken her snooping through the man’s past to connect anything and it had brought her to Enver – her enemy and it hadn’t been long after she had put a bullet through his head that the revelation had taken place.

Muttering incoherent things under her breath in Spanish, Every sent another text to Enver: “Your mother is not staying with me. We both know with what I do, that’s a stupid thought and you can probably afford to get her a place. I’m throwing my bag in your office, if you touch it, I will hurt you.” And then, she replied to Emilee as she stood up when the train pulled into Cherrydale station sometime later, slinging the bag over her shoulder before she begrudgingly headed to the Oldtown Theatre. The text read, simply: “I’ll be there in a little bit.”

The pile of bags and trunks hadn't been too comfortable to sit on, she'd found out after 5 mins of sitting there. So up she'd gotten with her handbag looped over her elbow to hang by her hip. She had to admit, that while she'd had very little appetite recently - the smell of the popcorn was making her mouth water. Her feet wandered her over to the kiosk to peek through the glass to see what was on offer. Her eyes scanned the sweets, the chocolates, the crisps, the nachos, the hot dogs - but it was the popcorn she couldn't help but keep coming back to. She caught the attention of one of the employees and gave him her winning smile, pointing with her gloved hand to the salted popcorn.

"I'm sorry, but could I trouble you for a small bag of the fresh popcorn? I don't want the stuff that's been sitting there since yesterday, just the fresh stuff please. Mmm Hmm. That's the one, the salted."

She confirmed as he pointed between the salted and the sweet. A little, striped, paper bag was collected and an ample scoop was tipped into it - and she watched as the little spots of oil began to seep through the paper as she heard her stomach growl. Handing over the coins he asked for, having to double check what she was giving him with the strange currency she wasn't used to, she retrieved her bag and then looked around for a seat. There was a semi cofortable looking armchair style thing across the way that she walked over to and settled herself delicately into to enjoy her popcorn as she waited.

One kernel at a time went into her mouth in an elegant fashion, which made a couple of the employees stare at her as they'd never seen anyone eating popcorn the way she was. She simply smiled at them and couldn't help but pity the for their lack of class, and the lack of class in the establishment. A part of her brain was screaming at her at how dirty the place was, that it was all over her designer two piece suit and that she just felt grimy from the travel and the destination. Yet, there was the other part that was laughing and asking her to really think about just how much worse could it get. Really? None of this crossed across her face however, and she was the picture of elegance as she sat there and waited, finally looking to her back as it chirruped to let her know there was a text.

Happily, she set aside the popcorn and withdrew her phone, wondering what Enver had to say to her sudden arrival. However a little of her happiness was tarnished when the reply said it was from Every. She knew that Enver was busy, but a part of her had been wondering if he wasn't as busy as he made out and that he was simply blanking her and putting her off. After all, here she was at his place of business and he was nowhere to be found. However, her neice - she couldn't be bothered with the great - had replied, and as she read the text her smile grew once more as she was on her way. However, this was going to be their first ever meeting - and she suddenly worried that she wasn't dressed right, that she was indeed grimey from her journey and that she'd be a letdown to her neice. However, it was too late now - as she'd said she'd be here in 'a little bit'. Her popcorn was retrieved once more, and she began to stress eat it as she waited, more nervous than she'd been in years.

She took a detour to the theatre, and by detour, went purposely out of the way to The Eyrie to drop her stuff off after it dawned on her that she didn’t trust Enver, at all, with her bag. Even if she claimed against him, she knew he was an allurist and would very much likely request for someone to go and remove it. Antiques, ritual flowers, and a few books, while there was nothing in there that was particularly incriminating against her, she didn’t like the idea of losing it; the antiques were difficult enough to find and she didn’t have the patience to go after them again until they were needed. After setting the bag on the inside of her door, she ran a brush through her hair quickly and glanced down at her clothes, mumbling at a blood stain on her jeans before she changed into a darker, clean pair.

Once she was done, she teleported herself to the alleyway beside the theatre and smoothed out the green button down blouse she wore and stepped inside. It dawned on her that she didn’t know what Emilee looked like only after as she arrived, her frown evident on her features as she glanced around in search of her great aunt and settled for removing her phone from her pocket. Every hadn’t even felt it vibrate and there was another text from Enver. The brunette rolled her eyes and began to send an indignant response about what would be good for her – shoving him off a cliff – until she noticed he was already there.
“Well. That works.”

She waited until he was over by an older woman, giving the two about five minutes before she made her way over, tucking her hands into her pockets as she stepped to his left. Sneaking around and stealing things kept her in the habit of moving around quietly and if she startled Enver with the task itself, it’d be a plus. “Well, I recognize one individual,” The urge to reach out and smack him simply because it would cause her joy was tempting, but she settled for punching him lightly in the shoulder as a greeting, “This lovely woman must be my Aunt Emilee.” Although she wasn’t one for large crowds, Every knew how to be charming and friendly and given the relation that Emilee had to her father, she gave her a warm smile to play the role of sweet niece.

“Welcome to Harper Rock.” There was a hidden, ‘why are you here’ that fell short before “Enver and I were just texting about how he’s going to offer you a place to stay. I’m having my bathroom reconstructed and it’s a mess right now. You’d never have a peaceful moment. We both agreed it’d be best, too.” Her expression was one of practiced innocence, as if to spite Enver for the sudden appearance of is mother – not to mention the fact he had attempted to shove her on the brunette.

Emilee almost jumped when she heard his voice. She'd been expecting a woman, Every, to appear first seeing as how Enver hadn't responded to her text at all. She looked up at him and smiled, setting aside the empty packet of popcorn.

"Mom!"

She said firmly and then stood up, straightened out her clothes and very awkwardly opened her arms and moved in for a hug. First, she just sort of looked at him, and then her arms opened a little and had to open wider after she judged their sizes a second time. Her handbag dangled from her elbow and she stepped forwards. She leant in, slightly angled to the left and then stopped, shuffling forwards another half step as she rejudged the distance, and then tried again with the lean. This time, she deemed it right, and her chest met his and then stopped. Her arms sarted to wrap around him, but stopped and then kept going on tightened around him. It was all horribly awkward as she stood there, holding him for just too long - because she wasn't sure how long a hug was supposed to last and just did it all wrong. Finally, she let him go and stepped backwards, looking up at him with a smile and was about to answer his question of how long she'd been waiting - for that's how she'd taken it - when a woman appeared as if from nowhere and spoke.

She looked at the girl and blinked, surprised at her sudden appearance and then exclaimed.

"Oh! Every dear!"

Now well versed in the art of hugging..... she stepped in to Every too and embraced her much more easily than she had Enver and pulled the girl into her ample bosom. Hugging strangers was so much easier than hugging Enver - and that really bothered her as it crossed her mind. Why would hugging a stranger be easier than hugging your own son? Again, lost in her own thought, she let the hug continue on too long as she all but clung to the girl. Finally, she let her go and smiled, nodding.

"Thank you for the welcome dearie! It is so lovely to meet you finally!"

She reached out and cupped the girls chin, turning her head from side to side as she studied her features and shook her own head.

"Well, it's easy to see you're family! I'm just sorry it's taken so long to meet you, but at least the day has come!"

Finally, she looked at Enver and held her own hands, one in the other, across her stomach with her bag by her hip.

"Don't worry Enver, I wasn't waiting long. You can never wait too long for family - and I've so been looking forward to this little trip. And really? I'm going to stay with you? Well, so long as it's no trouble."

She was just being polite, as she always was to most everyone. Whether it had been 'trouble' or not, she wasn't going to stay in a hotel. She was Emilee Marshall, and you didn't tend to refuse her when her mind was set on something. And boy, was her mind set on staying with one of them!

"You know me, I won't take up much space, you'll hardly know I'm here and I only packed light."

She waved a hand towards the large pile of trunks and cases - which to any normal person would be packing the kitchen sink.

"Now, it's getting on a bit and I have to admit I'm a bit peckish. Why don't you get one of your staff to take my bags to my room and I'll take us all for dinner? I'm sure one of you; Enver, Every, knows of a nice restaurant we can have a bit of a chinwag and a bite to eat and drink?"

She was still smiling as she looked from one to the other, part of her not really believing that she was here, with her family. But all of her was loving it!

She managed not to flinch when Emilee pulled her into a hug before she felt her face being studied. She could see bits and pieces of her father in the woman’s features, glancing from Emilee to Enver in comparison. There had been consideration where she wondered if Enver had been adopted or she had simply found the wrong people and by chance, there had been two Enver Marshall II. All of that hope diminished the moment she saw that she was definitely related to them.

When she was released, she felt the man’s arm and about jumped out of her skin. That was twice in a very short span of time that the brunette who wasn’t very fond of being touched by people was embraced in some manner. She had been that way excessively in the past year ever since Pratt had pinned her and removed her shirt. There were only a few individuals, such as her sire and a few close friends, that generally didn’t bother her doing so and while Emilee’s back was turned, she gave Enver a heated glare as she remained at his side. At least with Enver, she knew the gesture was an act.

At his explanation of getting a suite, she narrowed her eyes. Oh yes. She was planning his next death. First, she’d let his mother harass him for however long she’d remain. Then, she would cut him up into little pieces and sit at the Morgue at the exact time he’d come back, and then kill him again. Over and over and over again. Maybe with a baseball bat or a blunt knife.

She hadn’t decided yet, clearly.

Still, she spoke under her breath for the allurist’s ears only, "Yes, because sticking your human mother in a room with a pro-masquerade vampire that actively hunts anti-masq and has been killed by your buddy Robert Pratt is ******* brilliant. I will not show up." Every hissed out quietly at him before giving Emilee a warm smile. No, she did not like that idea at all and she could very much make herself invisible when she felt like it – a trick that she would do for days if needed.

Dinner. The shadow almost visibly paled as she considered how she would get out of it, her brain considering to go along and fake that she’d eaten something that would give her food poisoning – or she could take a bite and run to the bathroom. Surely, that would get a perfect response and alas, she wouldn’t have to eat. As Enver looked at her, the brunette smiled sweetly in response. "I don’t mind tagging along for conversation, but I’m afraid I’ve got a previous engagement for dinner with my friends. It won’t be for another hour or two."

She gave an apologetic look to Emilee, "Reservations were hard to make. " Hopefully, that would also help her not to eat. She had a flask of blood in her bag for emergencies. Thoughts of killing Enver continued to play through her mind as she considered the many different ways she could do it after having someone throw him into a shock cage so he wouldn’t be able to run.

Enver hadn't hugged her back and it stung, neither did Every for that matter. However, she hoped that in time she'd be able to change that. She'd be able to hug them more easily and they'd return the gesture in kind. She waited as the boy removed himself from their vicinity to move her cases, and smiled as Enver gave him a decent 'tip' for doing something that obviously wasn't part of his job description. Once he was gone, she turned back to her family and shook her head at Enver.

"No no. I won't hear of being put up in a hotel. I came here to spend time with you two, and being shoved into a hotel doesn't fit in with plans. Besides Enver, I want to take care of you. Cook for you, clean for you, make sure you're ok. You know, the lack of contact and visits has plagued my mind - like there's something wrong."

She looked around and frowned, making sure no-one was close enough to hear her other than Enver and Every as she leant in and spoke quietly to him.

"Enver. Tell me the truth. Are you using again?"

She watched his face to see his reaction, as that would give her her answer more than anything he could say.

"Besides, a bachelor like yourself - I'm sure you'd be thankful for a bit of help around the house. And I'll need full access to your place to cook a proper family dinner on Easter Sunday. Oh Every, you must be there and I won't take no for an answer. We'll have a full and proper family meal, an Easter Egg hunt and after dinner games!"

She'd taken Every's hand in both of hers and was giving it a squeeze as she grinned at her. She was definitely very excited about her Easter Sunday plans, and she wasn't going to let anything ruin them.

"So you see Enver. With Every's place being out of action with her renovations, it will have to be your place. And we will have so much fun! It will be just like when you were a boy, with me taking care of you. Oh! I can make your favourite too - porcupine balls. Do you remember them? I'm sure you must."

She smiled from one to the other and then slipped her arm into each of theirs, holding them to her as she walked to the door.

"Not to worry Every. I know it was short notice that I arrived. At least you have some time to spend with us and have a drink while we eat.... You don't mind if we eat in front of you do you? Well, if you feel hungry, you can have something from my plate. That's not a problem at all. So dears.... where shall we go? What cuisine and establishment do you recommend?"

As they hit the cold night air, she looked from one to the other, waiting for a response.