Ben Norton liked Mathias Bishop. They had worked together long ago and where Claire saw disconnect, he saw a very quiet wisdom. Mathias did not say much, but he expressed his love in quiet, different ways. He still had pictures of his girls lining his hallways, he spoke about them in the present tense, and the dowdy little house elf always made sure to look for his girls' name in the paper. He had wanted to congratulate them both on numerous occasions but had been persuaded, mostly by his own insecurities at having failed them as a father, to keep the silence between them unbroken. He made sure to send cards, but had long lost Avery's address and no owl had managed to find her yet. These were things he mentioned casually to Ben - and there was surely more, for the man was not much of a talker.
Agnes was sweet, at thirty-eight, and she had a youthful glow. Ben had wanted her to be horrible, to justify the hatred he knew would come to her once the other women met her, but his weekend with Agnes had proved her to be nothing but pleasant. It had been Friday afternoon when he had received the owl that Mathias was acting strange. They had checked into the nearest hospital and all had seemed fine, until the spot was found. That had been the night before. He called Elsie first, telling her they had to contact the rest of the Bishops. Elsie volunteered to talk Claire into coming, and Ben had been given the task of talking to Else Bishop. Somehow, between the pair of charming brunettes, it was all agreed.
Ben was waiting on the bottom floor and Claire and Elsie appeared at eight sharp, in time for visiting hours. Claire obviously looked at a loss and, for once in her life, was not bothering to pull on a mask that proved her indifference. She was worried, and she was conflicted. Her life had just been on track to righting itself, to making sense, to falling into neat, little boxes. Her family remained the messiest part of her life and, somehow, she would be expected to clean it all up. She knew it in her bones.
They had arrived, but Elsie did not let go of her friend's hand. Claire blinked in confusion at Benny, and looked to Elsie, who did not seem at surprised to see her brother. Finally, Claire said, "Benny? What are you doing here?"
He stepped forward and took her shoulders in his hands. "It's okay, Claire."
Elsie squeezed Claire's hand and murmured, "Benji has been here since Friday. Your dad's girlfriend didn't know who else to call."
"Angie?"
"Her name's Agnes," Benny corrected, smiling, "And she's actually looking forward to finally meeting you. Not thrilled about the circumstances, course..." He paused, rubbing her shoulders, before pulling her into a hug. Her arms remained clamped at her side as she processed all that she had just been told. Her best friend's brother had been taking care of her father for almost two days now - it should have been her, or Avery, of her mother, for Merlin's sake. Benny pulled away, and Elsie wrapped an arm around her brother's torso, plopping a kiss on his cheek.
"Shall we go?" he asked.
There was a sudden crack, and the three turned around to see two familiar blondes. Claire immediately stiffened, and Elsie tightened her grip on her best friend's hand. Benny hopped forward to play diplomat, holding out hands for the two.
"Hi, Mrs Bishop, Mrs Ivanov. I'm Ben, we've met a few times, I think. Elsie's brother, and a friend of Mathias. Agnes called me in, but it was time you guys come along too. He really wanted to see all of you." He spoke with honest eyes and a kind smile. He glanced back to Elsie and Claire, beckoning them over. Elsie took a step forward, but Claire stayed rooted to the spot. Elsie paused, looking between the two groups, before slowly releasing Claire's hand.
She reached out to draw the two women into a hug, saying, "Hi, Mrs Bishop, Avery." She gave them both bracing looks and then looked back to Claire, who was now openly staring at her mother's aged face and her sister's deflated stomach. She blinked and turned her head to Benny. "Shall we see him now?"
Benny looked back at Claire with sad eyes, sad for the walls that refused to fold even now, and nodded. "Come on, I can take you," he whispered, turning and heading out of the lobby.