Marriage is Murder

Jim smiled and looked hurt with a smile " w I think Margret would complain some what" he said and chuckled " you go ahead, Venice is a city for lovers and those in love, if my wife were here I'd have her out there, but tonight it's your night. " he said smiling as he already heard the gondolas song drift threw an open doors of the balcony from the canal below and up. Jim sat quiet and listened his mile clear on his face as he relaxed to the sound of the tenner singing some where out in Venice but close enough they could hear him. " a beautiful end to this day" he said softly his pipe in one hand and the glass of wine in the other.

"Indeed," Michael said, accio'ing the bottle of prosecco and two glasses out to the balcony for them. Brian took Khaat out to the balcony. He took a seat on one of the lounge chairs and had her sit in front of him and just lean back against him where he could just sit and wrap his arms around her.

"They look better now," Michael said to Jim quietly. "He's starting to relax. And that's good. He can help her relax then. It might be wise if we adjourned to our own suite soon." He cast a spell for the kitchen to clean itself. "If they need us, we'll hear them. I don't think, in the best suite in Venice, a pair of newlyweds need a set of parents. Not tonight anyway. I think two old farts like us ought to be enjoying a smoke, a glass of port, and a quiet chess game or one of the rare books I brought. What do you think?"

Jim chuckled and nodded " sounds about right " he said and stood up as he watched Brain and Khaat " yea I hope they will , that book sounds interesting" he said and moved to Michael a he placed his empty glass on the table then watched as it floated to the kitchen." and you might be able to beat me at chess" he chuckled as he waited for Michael to get that he was challenging him into a game as it would give him something to think about other than Brian and Khaat. He gave a last look at Brian and Khaat and smiled " ok Michael, lead on" he said and placed his pipe in his mouth following him to the chest board.

"I brought several first edition books," Michael said. "I've learned they're a good investment. I"ve been steadily replacing the worthless versions in the cottage library with much better ones. There is nothing like the feel of a nearly priceless book in your hands at the end of the day. And as far as the chess goes, you can try. But better that you practice on me. When Khaat gets her sight back, she'll whip your arse. And if you really want a challenge, the person you want to face off with is Kate. She's the only one I've met that can beat Khaat or Robert with some sort of regularity. The more amusing games are when Khaat and Kate team up against Robert. I think it keeps him humble for them to defeat him every so often."

He went over to their equally beautiful suite and had his bag unpack into one of the two master suites. He ordered the books, his pipe, the port, and the chess board and the port to surface. A stack of rare books neatly piled up on the table, the bottle of port landed beside them and the wooden case with the chess board landed beside that.

"Now that," he smiled, "looks like my kind of a perfect evening."

Jim chuckled and held up his hands " ow no I have seen her play she plays for blood preferably who ever shes playing against." he said chuckling as he watched Michael unpack the books,the port and chess set " yea just right" he moved to a chair and sat down watching Michael as he spoke again his chair was positioned where he could see Brian and Khaat but only a little. " so black or white ?" he asked him smiling as he drew on his pipe and blew it into the air. Waving his hand he made the port pour its self into two glasses and he raised it ," to good food good company and absent friends, we hope" he said with a smirk as he took a sip.

"Agreed," Michael said, raising the glass. "I'll take black. I've learned darkness is a friend sometimes." He fille and lit his pipe. As an after thought, he disabled the muggle smoke detector in the room. "Two pipes can create issues for those infernal little mindless muggle devices. And I would prefer not to have them see us playing wizard's chess. Muggles just dont get that."

As the sun went down, Khaat found she could take her glasses off. She couldn't see anything, but since she was only starting to see light and dark, Brian wasn't disturbed. They shared a couple of glasses of champagne, not saying much, just enjoying the time in the quiet without trouble. It wasn't long before Brian looked down at her face and realized she'd relaxed enough to fall asleep, her head tucked into his neck. He just decided to sit and enjoy the moment. She was comfortable and felt safe. And that, for tonight, was enough.

Jim chuckled and nodded " yeah, I find that at home too, " he said " and black can be a friend or foe depends on how it feels" he said making his first move. He sighed and puffed on his pipe as he chuckled " never thought of that " he sipped the port and sighed " your move I believe " he glanced out at the couple and smiled seeing Khaat now with out her glasses but still with Brian at her side. Now he did miss Margaret but she was safer out of his work " so any one waiting for you besides the furniture?" he asked watching Michael make his move.

"No," Michael said, "No one steady anyway." He was not the least bit interested in anyone steady. Commitment unnerved him far more than the thought of being caught doing a heist or being arrested or even imprisoned. He had women who were definitely fond of him, and some he'd spent some time with, but not unless they were clear that, as much as he might like them, he couldn't give more than that. The only women he'd ever given any sort of long term loyalty to was Kate and Khaat, but that was entirely different.

"Besides," he said, moving his piece, "I happen to have grown fond of my furniture. Not that I've spent much time at home lately. Seems like family obligations have been keeping me busy." And to Michael, the Lupins were all he had.

"But--speaking of family, how does your wife put up with you if you're gone for months at a time? How can you raise a family or run a marriage on that?" Michael wasn't trying to be critical. He truly wanted to know. He had honest curiosity. Distance sounded like it had a certain appeal to him, at least in terms of any long term romantic relationship.

Jim watched Michael make his move and smiled, " Shes like Kate in some respect, we have trust and respect , and I send her nice things back too" he said and chuckled " shes a seer, so I sort of see her every night. " he said moving his piece on the board. " Trust and love Michael can stretch beyond the physical boundary into a more.. " he paused " well let say we have a bond that keeps us strong, some thing like Kate and Robert. " He smiled and sighed " I do miss her though, being away for long periods just makes things stronger with us, besides the kids seem to keep her busy." He looked at Khaat and Brian as he blew a smoke ring " Rare though it is nothing is as beautiful as true love " he looked back to the chess board.

"Fairy tales and myths, Jim," Michael said, unwlling to go there. "I'm glad it works for you. But to me thats always just been fairy tales and myths. Robert and Kate and Brian and Khaat seem to have found something of that, but perhaps it just isn't my gig. Khaat was lucky to have talked me into that daminable furniture. I was unhappy about that for weeks, but now I rather like a house that takes care of itself." He moved his piece and took a sip of his port.

"I'm considering that once Khaat gets her sight back that perhaps Brian ought to take her sightseeing. They could spend years seeing the sights and never see it all. And--there are some wonderful glass galeries here, with all the glass works. Some outstanding art museums in Rome. Not to mention all the historic sights. And--if that isn't enough, we're only a short hop from Greece. Once she gets her sight back, Brian needs to get her mind off all the ugliness we've had lately and concentrate on beautiful things."