A Birth day

"Cora's not worth it," Angus told Ruby. "That's pretty low and disgusting for her to deliberately have a go at a place where I was already wounded. Let Evan have her." He drank the coffee that had the potion in it, and Marcus took the cup and threw it away. Between the pain potion and Edward's spell, Angus was feeling some relief. "I'm better. Let's go show them who's boss, shall we?" he looked at her and smiled. He stood up and reached for her hand.

"I'll see you inside," Edward said, deciding to go in ahead of Angus, wanting Angus to be able to say he and Ruby made their own entrance to the reception. He went inside and back to Simone and Jessie and the girls

"He's alright for now," Edward told them quietly. "We've had a slight change of plans, Ginger. Stay close to Ruby. She'll fill you in as she can. You will probably be leaving earlier than we planned." Ginger nodded.

When Angus felt that he and Ruby were ready, he walked over to the winery doors, and Marcus opened the door for them. They walked in together, and they got exactly the sort of reception he had always gotten from them. The muggles looked at him because of his appearance, looking like he was a man to not be messed with. The family members looked at him with the same disgust and revulsion they had always had for him, except now there was more disgust than before. Then, when they had sent enough dirty looks, they looked away.

They hadn't been in the room for more than a moment or two when Patrick called the people to attention and said that the meal was ready to be served in the wine cellar and he asked that people come take a place at the table.

Ruby looked at Angus "your right, it was a low blow on her part" she said watching him drink his potion she smiled when he offered her his hand she took it and stood next to him. " let go a show then they can't knock a Donohugh down" she smild at him as she had seen Edward enter ahead of them.

Jessie looked as Edwrd returned to their table and spoke softly to them he was relived to hear Angus was okay then he looked to Ginger as he spoke to her. It was now he looked up to see Angus enter the room and every one went silent it was now he smirked seeing some lower their heads as he passed by their table.

Ruby held her head high and walked towards their table noting how some looked on with detest and others with envy. All she ignored , she was with Angus and she felt proud of him. Retching the table she sat next to Ginger on her right and smiled to her to hide her concern at being in close quaters with these people.

Anise deliberately chose a seat next to Angus. With Ruby on Angus's good side, Anise sat on his bad side. She partly did it to be close to her family, but the other part of her chose her seat to try to protect him a little.

"Marcus,.." Edward began to speak very quietly to Marcus. Then he looked at Marcus and saw Marcus had already had a plan in mind to protect him here. Marcus cast Edward a slight smile.

"It's what I do," he reminded Edward quietly. This sort of environment, a reception hall full of people, and someone important to protect? This was what Marcus did best.

"You've already got him, don't you?" Edward asked. Marcus nodded just once, slowly. He looked at Jessie and then gave a glance towards the kitchen door. He wanted Jessie in the kitchen to make sure that Jessie was using those ultra observant werewolf skills to keep a sharp eye on whatever was to be served to Angus to be sure it wasn't tainted.

As the wine was poured as the aperitif, an older man came over to Angus and whispered something in his ear. Angus stiffened, trying not to be angry. Edward saw the exchange.

"Stay here," Angus told Ruby softly. "Stay with the girls. I need a word with my uncle Jonathan. I'll be straight back." Angus was ready to set Jonathan straight. Angus got up and left the table, and Marcus followed Angus and the older gentleman, and they stepped out of the wine cellar back into the lobby.

"I said my piece," Jonathan said. "You eat your meal and then get out. You have some nerve coming here today. Eat and then leave this family to grieve from the pain you keep inflicting on them."

"You haven't liked me from the day I was born," Angus said.

"I haven't like you even that long," Jonathan laughed bitterly.

"Why? I never did a thing to you," Angus asked.

"You brought a curse down on our family," Jonathan said fiercely.

"What are you talking about?"

"Your parents. Your mother couldn't get pregnant, and she was desperate to have a child, so she made a deal with a dark arts woman. The woman used a ritual to help her get pregnant, but there was a price. She would have a child, but that child would bring misery, poverty, pain, and death to the family. And then your mother had you. She believed she could undo the curse. Your father, when he found out, he couldn't stand to even look at your face. And look where it got us. Your parents--dead. Both of them. Your grandmother--dead. Basil and Gloria--penniless and now dead. You don't belong here. Everything you touch is doomed..."

"That's enough," Edward said fiercely. "I don't know what you're on about, but you have two choices. Go back to the dining room this instant, or, if you hesitate, I'll throw you out, John."

"You never knew?" Jonathan looked incredulously at Edward. "You'd better go read Eileen's journals. We were there. We saw it, but she wrote everything down. so go read it for yourself before his curse strikes you down too."

"Go back to the table. Now," Edward repeated. Jonathan turned and went back to the wine cellar.

"Is it true?" Angus asked.

"Are you cursed? Certainly not. If those other things happened, I don't know. I'll try to find out, but maybe that answers the question, ludicrous as it is," Edward said. "Come on. Let's eat. The sooner you eat and get back to England, the better you'll be. I'll check into the rest of this when I get back from Romania. You have my word."

Edward brought Angus back to the table.

"Sorry," Angus apologized to Ruby and the girls, "Just another unhappy relative. I'm glad its time to eat. I'm starving."

Jessie saw Marcu's look and moved to the kitchen standing next to the door casually as if just observing but as each course was brought out he took a long deep breath in smelling nothing but food for the moment. Seeing Angus stand up and follow a man down to the basement he stiffened but saw Edward follow them down.

Ruby watched and saw Angus's back stiffen at what ever the man had whisperd she frowned at the man and wanted to tell him to leave them alone but instead she held onto Gingers hand as Angus stood up and left the room. Leaning over to Ginger she whispered softly " when were done here and back at th house , pack for yourself and Anise quickly." she told her and looked at her to show she was serious about her words. Seeing Angus return she forced a smile as she saw the same man return to his table not far from them and looked to Jessie who was focuing on the trays of food leaving the kitchen.

"Who was that man?" Anise asked Angus. "He had negative energy all over him."

"My uncle Jonathan. He's a couple years younger than Edward. Basil was the oldest. Then it was my great aunt Marietta, then Jonathan, then Edward, and then my great aunt Julietta," Angus told her. "Fortunately, I don't see Jonathan very often."

"I don't like him," Anise said.

"That makes two of us," he told her.

"You should stay away from him. He's full of hatred and rage. It rolls off him like water over a waterfall."

"I don't need any more contact with him."

"Why is he so angry with you?"

"He told me some balderdash that supposedly I was cursed before I was born."

"If you were cursed, I'd know it," she told him. "I'd feel it. I think he's barmy."

"Thank you," he smiled at her.

"Maybe I shouldn't go to Romania," she frowned.

"No, Edward needs you," Angus said. "It's only for a couple days. Ruby and Ginger and I are going home straight after we eat, so we'll be safe there. Besides, I've got plenty of bodyguards. It'll be fine. I wonder what's on the menu.'

"Beef and chicken," she said. "I can smell it. And I smell potatoes and onions and...um...maybe asparagus."

"You've got a good nose," he laughed.

"No, I'm just hungry," she smiled. The servers started to serve the antipasti.

"You should get plenty to eat. A meal like this in Italy has seven courses. This course is an appetizer." He looked at Ruby as Marcus took Ruby's and Angus's appetizer plates, checked them and then put them in front of Ruby and Angus. The appetizer was a couple small crostini. One was done Margherita style with tomato, mozzarella, and basil. And the other was done with a flavored cream cheese spread, some sauteed mushrooms and caramelized onions.

"Have you ever had one of these seven course feasts before?" Angus asked Ruby. "I think even our girls will get enough to eat here today."

Ruby listened to Ginger and nodded "That makes three" she added then listened to them talk "Thats balderdash" she said "You are not cursed" she added and saw the food glad that Marcus had checked it "Nope never had anything like this before, Im going to pop before the third course." she said and chuckled as she looked to Giger and Anise and nodded but she knew that even if they didn't eat anything they would get food one they were home in the duplex.

Jesse saw Marcus double check the food and was glad as some of the smells were over whelming his nose a little but he continued to watch and smell the dishes.

"I can't imagine ever turning my back on a baby or a toddler because of some dark magic horsecrap," Angus said, almost finding it funny now. "Edward will be going through my mother's things when he gets a chance. I'm not bothering with it because I know he'll get to the bottom of it."

"So what comes after the appetizer?" Anise asked.

"The first course. It's called the primi. It normally is some sort of pasta course or a risotto or maybe even a soup, but with our family, it's normally a pasta course. The next course, the secondi, is that beef or chicken you've been smelling. The next course, the contorni, is the vegetable course. That could be the asparagus or the potatoes you smelled. The next course is a salad course, and then a cheese and fruit course after that, right before dessert. Then that's followed by coffee, and the last course is called a digestivo. It's normally a little alcoholic drink, supposedly to help digestion of all those other courses you've just eaten." She giggled at the idea that there needed to be something taken at the end to help soothe the stomach from the overindulgence of the six former courses. "Marcus?" Angus called.

"Right here," Marcus said from behind him.

"Make sure you and Jessie get some food too," Angus said.

"We will. Caterers are accustomed to seeing men in my position. They'll make up take away boxes for Jessie and me. We'll be taking ours back to the main house, and we'll eat while you lot are packing to go home. It'll still be fresh and hot, so we won't miss out on a single thing," Marcus reassured him.  

"How's your crostini, Ru?" Angus asked her. "You'll probably get a couple of options now for each course as it moves along. Anise thinks there is beef and chicken coming up, and she's probably right." He glanced briefly at Anise's plate, but her crostini were gone. She'd eaten them already.

Ruby looked at Angus and smiled " he'll figure it out" she said simply as she ate her crostini "it's nice" she said " but I wouldn't eat it all the time, a bit rich" she said looking over at him " Im more a simple cottage pie kinda girl" she chuckled as she saw Anise had finished hers already.

Jessie heard Angus talk to Marcus and nodded he agreed on eating after they got home so they could concentrate on protection of Angus and the others. " don't worry about us " he said and watched as a server walked out of the kitchen with a tray for another table with another course.

Angus just nodded as Ruby said that the food served here wasn't really her thing, that she preferred a simple cottage pie. Angus realized she hadn't been exposed to the wide variety of lifestyles that he had and all the differences in foods and environments that he had. It did tend to give him the ability to adapt in ways she hadn't gotten used to. He was familiar enough with roughing it that he could survive in the woods on leaves and roots if he had to. Likewise, he could shift into a tux and sail unfazed through a seven course gourmet meal. She just hadn't been exposed to some of that. He hoped that, in time, she might be able to become familiar with it enough to adapt.

Truth be told, this was where and how he had been raised, and someday, he was going to be expected to return to it and step into it again. He was, silently, concerned about whether Ruby would be able to adjust to this luxurious lifestyle when it came.

Marcus took the next course, the offering was a very delicate pasta roll that had been stuffed with spinach, ricotta, and parmesan. The roll had been sliced relatively thinly and topped with a garlic butter sauce and then garnished with shavings of fresh parmesan. It was served, of course, with a different wine. Marcus checked it and set the plates in front of them.

He caught the sight, at the other end of the table, of Cora arriving late, with Evan bringing her in and putting her quite deliberately at the other end of the table from Angus, and a server put the the pasta course in front of her and poured her a glass of wine. Angus didn't say a syllable. He understood she had been allowed to eat because if she had not shown up, it would have caused far more questions than it was worth.

The main course was a choice between a beautiful portion of beef that had been slowly braised and a rich red wine gravy drizzled over it. Or, an equally beautiful chicken piccata. Anise chose the beef, and so did Angus, Ginger chose the chicken.

"Which would you like, Ruby?" Marcus asked her. "You can have either one."

Ruby smiled at Angus as they ordered the second course seeing Angus order beef she decided that they should eat different meals " I'll go for the chicken piccata, it sounds interesting" she said smiling at him a she was trying to broaden her tastes to include gourmet foods. "might as well try the other on the menu they we can try each others" she said and chuckled " besides it makes sense to have opasite meals incase something happens." she said in a lower tone. She had seen Cora return and frowned but understood why and was glad Evan had brought her and probably scolded her for her actions before he took her memory. Looking at Ginger she smiled " you enjoing the meal?" she asked knwing how hard Ginger worked to get her apitite back.