Marriage is Murder

Robert came downstairs, but when Brian did not show up exactly on time, Robert bellowed up the stairs, threatening to take him out naked if necessary. Khaat heard some sort of muffled grumbling.

"I heard that," Robert bellowed back. "Cuss at me again. Go ahead. You wanna try it?"

Brian came quickly down the stairs, and Khaat thought he looked like a rebellious teenager.

"Move it," Robert shoved him out the door and slammed it behind him. Khaat saw Robert pushing Brian into a run. Khaat sighed heavily.

"I can't reach him when he's like this," Khaat said.

"He doesn't intend you to. He intends for you just be there," Kate smiled. "You don't remember as well as you think you do, do you?"

"Remember what?"

"What he was like for the first couple of weeks he was with us?"

"No."

"He was a hell of a lot worse than this. He was a young boy, without his parents, whose siblings abandoned him, living with total strangers. He had nothing. Nothing but rage. He completely destroyed your father's potions lab one night."

"What?"

"Yep. Broke everything in it. And when your father caught him, he told him if he was going to do that, then he needed to learn how to do it right. He didn't leave Brian out of his sight for the first couple weeks. This is Brian's reliving all that hurt all over again. The only Quinns he has left is Kieran and Fi--the very people who walked away from him. I think he thought this was all healed for him, all in the past. And I think he found out when Fi's husband and kids were killed, that it wasn't as over as he thought it was. Your father is determined to make him let that all go now. And since Robert walked him through it before, its going to have to be Robert who walks him through it again. He'll get there. He needs a little time, though. And a whole lot of understanding. Does that make sense?"

Jack stood up and watched them go out side " um Kate do you think I should go with them ?" he asked " They both are very important people and if James tries again " he said and glanced back out the window " Kate we all know how it feels to be abandoned or lose family , each of us has in our own way gone threw it " he said smiling as Jess moved to him and held him tight. Even cassidy looked at Kate and nodded before she spoke.

" I guess we all deal in our own way , Brian is anger , Jess bottling it away, jack well he just goes on a rampage" she said and looked at Steven " Steven just reads, but that's us, Brian is a box growing full waiting to explode and its best for a demolitions expert to be there when it does" she said as Steven looked up at her and nodded smiling

"You're welcome to go, but take Steven with you and stay at a distance. Brian's liable to be cussing at Robert and acting like he's 8 again," Kate said, "But I can't say that I blame him much. Robert is just going to make him run until Brian has almost enough energy to walk home..."

"Is that why Daddy came home so many times almost carrying him?" Khaat frowned, remembering now.

"Exactly. And in fact, he did have to carry him twice. Wore him completely out. Thats why he duels with him so hard. But Brian is too angry for dueling practice right now. He's not ready for that. When it comes, he'll help him do that. Until then, Robert's going to push him into either running or hard exercise in the gym. As hard as it comes and as often as it takes." She looked at Jack and Steven. "You two sure you're up for that?

Jack looked at Steven who nodded and moved to him standing next to Steven he nodded as he looked at Kate " yes we are, he's family " he said and both walked out " don't worry we'll keep a distance we'll only be there as back up or if he needs us" he said and left Jess looked at Kate.

"Don't worry they will keep their distance, jacks not that silly" she said and moved to reheat her tea which she drank slowly watching Khaat and Kate. " how you feeling Khaat?" she asked smiling as she sipped her drink slowly.

"I'm exhausted," Khaat confessed. "But there just really isn't a good time to be tired right now."

"If he isn't better when he comes back," Kate reassured her, "I'll have your father take him back home tonight. Perhaps a night alone for him to work with him until he just can't stand up anymore. But you know he would not ever mistreat you. He'd be rude, irritable, perhaps crass, but..."

"I know," she said. "But he'd stand by me. I can't do less."

"You're down to pushing yourself pretty hard now, though, and he's too far into his own pain now that he doesn't have to keep performing for Fi's benefit, to be able to see anything but his own stuff. But that does not mean that you should even consider pushing yourself until you can't stand up anymore." Khaat didn't respond. Kate paused. She got up and brought the energy potion over. "You can take one more dose. Thats all you can take. From there,, you really just have to do the work to recover. You know that. We've been through this too many times." Khaat poured another liberal dose in her cup and drank it quickly while her mother put the bottle away.

"Jess," Kate said. "Why don't you and Cassidy heat up some leftovers for dinner while they're out running and set the table? I'll help Khaat get out of the dress clothes into something warmer and more comfortable and then if she wants to go to bed right after dinner, no one is going to care." Kate took Khaat upstairs and helped her change. She discouraged Khaat from her usual silk and to choose something warmer. It was getting colder. Kate convinced her to choose a pair of pink plaid pajama pants and a pink thermal top. She and her mother both knew she might make it through dinner but not much longer. She wasn't ready to be up all day, and yet she had managed. Energy spells and potions only did so much. She needed rest. Soon. Without making Brian any crazier.

Kate watched her daughter take off her jewelry and brush the elegant style for the day out of her hair. "Will you be alright if I leave you for a little bit?" Kate asked

"Yeah," she said. "I'm fine." Kate smiled and went downstairs to help them finish fixing dinner. She was fine--for a couple minutes. Then she felt dizzy. Not well. The dizziness was so strong that it seemed to just sweep her vision from her.

Outside, Robert stopped, highly alerted and suddenly stressed. "Keep going, Boy!" he ordered Brian. Brian, who was already ahead, stopped and looked back. Brian instantly knew by the look on Robert's face.

"Khaat," Brian said. Robert nodded. The two of them apparated back to the house cancelling the run, and dashed up the stairs. She was just sitting at her vanity, her head in her hands, trying to stop the dizziness. They didn't even need to check her.

"Enough," Brian said, picking her up. The minute he picked her up, she fell backwards, limp into his arms. "You overdid it and I was being a jackass."

"Apologize later," Robert said opening the bed. "She has to rest now. " They put her into bed, and Robert covered her. Her father sat on the edge of the bed and checked her well. He drew his wand and wove a complicated spell. The more he wove it, the worse she felt for a long moment. And then she felt sleep beginning to overtake her strongly. It was discomforting. "You wont' be able to fight it. I removed all the extra energy you've been using. This is your own fatigue now. I'll add a bit of a sleep potion but you do really have to sleep now." Before she could protest, he touched her forehead and sent her into a deep sleep. He looked up at Brian, who seemed to be feeling guilty for not seeing it.

"She didn't want you to see it, Son," Robert said. "She wanted to look good for you today."

"And she did. She was gorgeous."

"It'll be alright. We'll take her home tomorrow and let her rest up."

"She doesn't need dinner?"

"No and I might let her skip breafast," he laughed. "Come on. I"m tired and I"m hungry." He led Brian downstairs so they could let her sleep.

Jack saw Robert and Brian aperate and thy moth turned to head back to the cottage Jack running ahead and entering first and heading up the stairs he stopped at the door way seeing Khaat in their arms he folded his arms across his chest and watched Steven joining him a few moments later. Jess sighed and shook her head feeling Robert return upstairs she looked at Kate.

" Kate..Khaat? " she said simply as cassidy reheated the lat of the food and placed it down on the table. Jess kne3w if Robert was there it had to be not good , she felt Khaat seeming to relax and smiled knowing she was now sleeping.

"The potions and the spells only do so much, Jess. They dont' substitute for the body's own natural restiing process. She wasn't even able to be out of bed for more than just a short time yesterday. She was lucky to be able to sit with us at the table through a meal. And she's been keeping up with us, step for step, all day long. She's just pulled on all the energy she knew how. And we truly couldn't give her any more potion. If I know Robert, he's drawn all of the energy potions off so she can sleep. She wasnt looking good before I took her upstairs. You and I both know that. She said she was pushing like hat just in order to keep Brian from worrying about her. I can understand that, but that's just a momentary plan. It isn't going to work very long. "

Robert found Brian reluctant to leave her now. He took hold of Brian's arm. "We have guards for that," he told him. "Let her sleep. Its what she needs. Come," Robert told him firmly. He took him downstairs. Angus set out a bottle of really nice and smooth Irish whiskey--a rare treat--and several glasses. Robert looked at it and uncorked it and sniffed it. "Very nice," he announced, pouring it three or four glasses for whoever wanted one. He handed one to kate, one to Brian and one for himself. Angus took a fourth and asked. "Anybody else brave enough to try some muggle whiskey?"

Jess sighed and nodded knowing that he had felt it all and knew Khaat could not have gone much longer on her own as she was she was running on a thin line with her energy. Jack followed them down stairs he saw the whiskey and smiled. Every one took a glass and waited to see if Robert was going to give a toast or not. " this should be interesting " Jack said holding his glass and smelling it it smelt like regular whiskey. Steven smiled he'd had muggle whiskey before and knew it was going to be good, cassidy on the other hand wasn't so sure but she was willing to try it she'd only ever had fire whiskey and not the good stuff ether.

Robert raised his glass. "Let us keep in mind that what happened here was not the fault of Ireland. Nor was it the fault of any of us. We have gotten justice for those we lost. Let us resolve that Ireland is still a place of beauty. When we leave here in a few hours, let us do so with our hearts at peace and our minds at rest. Let us go home looking forward and not stuck looking behind us. To peace, hope, love and to the future."

"Here, here," Kate smiled, raising her glass.

"Cheers," Brian said, trying to resolve to follow Robert's lead. Angus and Michael raised their glasses in agreement.

When they had taken a sip of the whiskey, Michael said, "Angus, I think I might go with you in the morning. I thinnk perhaps I'd like to help you fix something special for breakfast to greet them when they get home." Angus perked up.

"Oh, I'd like that. You have something special in mind, then?"

"I do," he grinned.

"I will defer to your lead then," Angus said, looking forward to cooking with Michael.

As Robert toasted jack downed the whiskey and smiled looking at Steven who'd already placed his glass down on the table and smiling cassidy took a sip and coughed but then drank it feeling it warm her inside as she finally finished and sat down " wow that was good stuff" she said and this sent Jess smiling as she finished her drink gathering all the empty glasses she moved to the kitchen with them washing them she placed them back where they came from before returning to the living room to sit just as Michael spoke " are we going to know what this special breakfast is or should we just wait?" she asked.