Posted by Civilian Seamus McKenzie (Future Citizen) in Earth - Seek And Ye Shall Find… Whether You Want To Or Not

Posted by Civilian Ragna Idun McKenzie (Future Citizen) in Earth - Seek And Ye Shall Find… Whether You Want To Or Not

Posted by Civilian Seamus McKenzie (Future Citizen) in Earth - Seek And Ye Shall Find… Whether You Want To Or Not
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
The men stepped up to Capall, their faces actually serious. “Ok… let’s talk.” Mike said and the group ushered Capall away.

They made their way away from the party and into the Manor House. Taking seats around a low table, Mike cleared his throat and said “Ok. Questions. Get ‘em out. Cuyler, you first.”

The Gang

Cuyler sat back stretching his legs out in front of him and regarded the bald man across from him then looked at Seamus and Mike. “Well I guess I should start with the same thing I told those two, ya don’t need my permission. Runa, like her sisters, hell even more than her sisters, is capable of saying no and holding her own. What I really want to know is what the hell happened? How did she even met you? Because today was the very first time Runa’s step foot on Scottish soil. And until about half an hour ago I’d never head the name Capall of any last name.”

Before Capall could answer Kirsten and Devlin walked in. “Sorry to interrupt, Chief Michael, Cuyler, Kirsten insisted.” Kirsten walked right over to Capall and took his hand without hesitation. She looked at Mike and Cuyler and then Capall. “There is no telling when the last time was she cleaned that blade and gods know those shields are filthy.” The whole time she worked Devlin was right over her shoulder muttering instructions to her until finally she stood up, blonde hair flying and shoved him in the chest. “Shut up! Let me work.” She rolled her eyes, but Devlin was right back. Cuyler watched and glanced at Oddvar who kind of shrugged. Devlin kept hovering, hand on her back trying to get her to hurry up…even muttering about wanting her to ‘take it easy’ and ‘rest.’ Kirsten lost all patience, “Devlin Mattsen GO AWAY.” Cuyler chuckled. “Take a look lads…fair warning....” He grinned at Devlin, “Why didn’t you say something?” Kirsten finished and patted Capall on the shoulder, “Don’t let them scare you. It’s the women you gotta be scared of.” She laughed and walked out of the room towards the back to find Runa. Devlin grinned at Cuyler, “Kirsten insisted on waiting.” And then he was hurrying after her.

A door opened, “I AM NOT WEARING THAT! I WILL BURN IT AND HAVE A BETAZOID THEMED WEDDING FIRST!” That was Runa. “Go for it, Runa. You do you.” Lots of laughter, “Laugh it up Revna, I’ll burn your dress too. Mike will LOVE me.” Laughter and then, “What dress?” Silence, “Oh did you miss that Revna? Mike did say THREE weddings.” Ragna was laughing hysterically. Then Helka, quietly but carrying, “Devlin you wait outside. Kirsten shut the door please, Runa’s only being loud to stop the men from having their conversation. Stop distracting them dear,” and the firm closing of a door.

Oddvar was watching all of them and silently laughing so hard he couldn’t breathe. “Ohhh…hoooo.....don’t get ya hopes up boys. Helka won’t allow it. Now where were we? Oh yes Cuyler asked a question. What the hell happened? How did she even met you?”

The Gang

Capall looked at the assembled men and took a breath. “Very well… As Seamus can attest to, I am one of the group who tried to unseat Lady Tara and turn the clan over to Hammish. I didn’t realize until a few months ago what that meant, so I quit helping and started compiling information. Information I sent to Lady Tara. I surmised that the only way this was going to end was a call for Reconciliation. I also knew that Lord Michael would come back and take over, so -“

Michael sat up and said “Now how the hell did you know that?” and he stood up. “I didn’t even know that until a few weeks ago!” Seamus put a hand on Mike’s shoulder and said “Easy, Michael… easy.” and pulled him back down to his seat. Seamus looked around at the men and said “Capall here is definitely the smartest person in this room… probably in this whole assemblage. Not blowing smoke up yer kilts, lads. I mean scary smart. Doesn’t surprise me a’tall that he put that together.”

Cuyler and Oddvar watched Mike guaging his reaction. Oddvar was watching Seamus. Oddvar knew that Seamus had no end of hatred for Hamish and Argyle specifically, but Seamus was speaking in his favor. That was no small thing. He turned his gaze on the large built mostly unknown man in the room with them.

In the room Runa was being shown dress after dress and laughing at each one. “No, no, maybe, that’s not purple, YES!” Ragna snorted, “Lace, filly sh%!, and purple. Better you than me.” Revna laughed, “Oh come on Ragna, you can’t fool me. You were the one who visited me in San Francisco and was trying on every. single. dress. and. fancy. thing. they. sent. me. You love this stuff. I’m gonna tell Seamus!” Ragna had two inches on her oldest sister and paced her down across the room. “Revna,” was all she said and Revna collapsed in fits of giggles. Then Revna heard Mike’s voice and made a beeline straight for the door followed by Runa. Both to be blocked by Helka, “Sit down. You both leave them be. Revna, your turn.” Revna looked at her mother, “Don’t need a turn, let me out.”

Capall nodded his thanks to Seamus and said “So I planned to make sure Michael and Tara had everything they needed to do what they needed to do to save the Clan. And as for Runa… well… I saw here when I was working for my family. And don’t ask me why… but something told me I needed to explain to her what I had done. So in addition to the letter Lord Michael so ‘symbolically’ destroyed, I wrote her a letter. I tried to talk to her before the shield bearers shoved me away, but I did manage to slip it to her. I left, went to pack my things. Next thing I knew, some old man had offered to buy me a coffee and and she walked into the coffee shop looking for me. We spoke… and… well… she brought me back here. The rest you saw.”

Capall McKenzie

Cuyler nodded, it was Runa after all he wasn’t surprised she just jumped in. The presence of a letter to Runa from him explained why Runa went missing and sought him out. Cuyler drummed his fingers on his knee. He looked at Oddvar and nodded once, if Runa had forced Capall to come back with her it didn’t matter any more. Capall had taken an oath of blood and steel and there was no going back from that. The consequences would be more than the lost hand Michael had threatened. “Runa’s made her choice, it’s not my place nor do our laws allow me to nay say her. However, if either of you are not happy you’ll have to take it up with Michael and Revna.”

A door squeaked open and Devlin stuck his head into the room with the girls. “Kirsten come on.” “DEVLIN MATTSEN SHUT THAT DOOR!” All six women yelled at him. But not before: Ragna could be heard “I am not putting my hair up like that. I won’t know how to take that out!” Runa’s voice was considering but teasing “Get Seamus to do it.” Ragna huffed as only she could, “Do you know how many knots that would end in, just by looking at it. He’d just cut it off, that’s ridiculous!” It was quiet a moment and then clearly they could hear Revna, “Mike could do it. All that playing guitar. The man has great fine motor skills…” Cuyler and Oddvar could clearly hear Helka and Tara trying not to laugh followed by a very loud and resounding, “Oh Shut Up, Revna!” from Ragna and Runa. Devlin and Kirsten hurried through the main room not looking at anyone, but as soon as she got outside, before the door fully closed, Kirsten was laughing so hard she had to sit down.

Oddvar looked around and looked at Cuyler then at Mike. “I’ve got a question, but I think someone would stab me if I asked....” and Oddvar got up and walked across the room looking for a drink or ten to keep his mouth shut with.

The Edmans

Mike looked at Oddvar and said “Say it. This is where everything gets unloaded. We aren’t going into tomorrow with swords dangling above our heads and carting baggage back and forth.”

Oddvar looked back at Mike a very boyish grin on his face, and Cuyler groaned. “Oddvar, Brother, don’t. Just don’t. Mike, Son, I can promise you…” Oddvar broke in, “No no, Michael here is Chief and I always listen to my chief.” Cuyler rolled his eyes, “No you don’t. You never listened to me.” A low rumbling laugh issued forth from Oddvar, “You’re my brother first.” Then he looked back at Mike, “So this guitar playing fine motor skills…you gonna teach Seamus, because I think Ragna is going to be in a whole lot of trouble…and probably have to practice on Revna so she knows if ya taught him right…”

It was Mike’s turn to pull Seamus back down and he patted the Marshall’s shoulder. He looked at Oddvar with no expression, but there was a literal gleam in his eye as he said flatly “Well… maybe I could teach you a thing or two so you might have a chance with Lady Tara then, eh?”

Seamus looked at Cuyler, then at Mike with an open mouth that was mostly a riotous laugh forming.

The laughter was loud and echoed through the large room, even stopping any chatter in the other room with looks of good natured mock fear. Cuyler bent over double watching his twin turn pale, red, pale, and red again. Oddvar was an easy going man, for the most part, and took the ribbing in stride. He moved back towards his seat and dug something out of his pocket. “I’d certainly be willing to give it a try. That mean I have your blessing then Michael? And you Seamus? And Capall?” He wasn’t worried about Mike and Seamus and their positions, this was their - Mike, Seamus, and Capall’s - grandmother, and that was far more important. Cuyler eyed his brother, still laughing, a silent question passing between the two men.

“I supposed I still have enough youth left in these joints to play guitar, I did make this after all.” And he tossed something small, metal, and round at Mike. “I noticed Revna’s missing a bead in her collection, and you’re wearin’ it. A wedding gift for you.” It was a small hair bead. On one side was the rune for Bragi, that had been chosen for Mike, and on the other was a new rune combining the runes for Bragi and Freya into one symbol.

In the other room Tara looked at the three girls and smiled. She then looked at Helka and winked. “So Runa… tell me… why Capall?”

Michael and Tara

Runa turned her gaze on Tara. She knew the question was coming but was it genuine curiosity or challenge? It didn’t matter, she stood by her choice. “He’s a good man Tara. He was led along the wrong path for a long time, but when he knew he was wrong, he didn’t hide or try to justify it. He tells the truth even if it’s uncomfortable. He believed the lies his parents fed him, but even when all the evidence he collected showed you to be a good person, despite what he was told, he refused to alter it for their purposes, choosing the truth instead.” She looked at Revna, she would understand, “And when he knew he was wrong, he fixed it. He admitted it, and made it right, to his own detriment. He didn’t take the coward’s way out. He put himself at Mike’s mercy and walked beside me knowing both clans will despise him for years to come.” She looked at her mother, “He’s smart. There is always that one student we all remember,” Helka would know, she’d been a teacher, “But only 1 of us in a million get a student like him smart. And he could have used that and twisted it, but he didn’t. I met him before, years ago, and even then he stood for those that were wronged. He thought his parents and his cousins were wronged and he stood with them, until he learned better.” She looked towards the door, and the assembled men. “They didn’t do that with Mike or Seamus. Mike was considered a traitor to the clan by virtue of his father, but we knew better. And our clan took him in and accepted him, no question because you chose him Revna. And I’m in here playing dress up because mom has the door blocked, and I should be out there with him.”

Oddvar and Runa

“You should be where you are supposed to be, and that is the last we will say on the matter.” Tara stood up and dug the mound of dresses until she came up with the most gods-awful purple lace and frilly s#!t dress they had. She turned and looked at Runa and, throwing it at her, said “Put it on. Thats your wedding dress. You are getting married in that dress.”

Tara and Michael

Runa stood up and held the dress up, “Ummm.....okay....” She shrugged and right there in the middle of the room stripped and slipped into the dress. Helka zipped up the back and Revna and Ragna looked at her....”Seanmhair…?” Ragna asked, “I know you like to dig at Runa for how she picks on me, but…but it’s her wedding day....are you sure?” Runa looked at Ragna and then at Revna, down at the dress, “Oh come on it can’t be that bad....”

Helka looked around, winked at Tara behind Runa’s back and then walked out the door, right into the room and back and forth at all the men. “I’m glad whatever it is is funny.” She turned on Seamus, “Now son I KNOW you have whisky on you. Give it here.”

She downed half the bottle and glared at Cuyler. “You know what, you are their FATHER, you go do something with that! I’m too old for this.” Cuyler shrugged, stood up and walked over to Helka, kissed her cheek, “You know if you drink that whole bottle and get feisty it would make me feel better about last night.” and then walked out of the room. Helka snorted behind him, not a chance. A door was heard to open and then three overly sweet feminine voices, “DADDY!” and the door closing firmly. Cuyler walked back in, sat down, “Nope. They’re adults now and married,” He looked at Mike, Seamus, and Capall, “You three deal with it.”

Oddvar, Helka, and the Rest