Closed Tied Together

[Eric Holland]

After the graduation ceremony Eric knew he wanted to congratulate Penelope as a family, he knew it would mean a lot to her and he felt responsible for her. Their dad not being there was a glaring obvious thing, and it infuriated him on her behalf. So the least they could do was be there for her. He had practically grabbed Holden by the scruff of his neck before he could run off to hang out with his friends, or whatever it was he wanted to do, and then ushered them all in Penny's direction. Eric had even thought of asking Connor to bring her some flowers, which was a gesture he hoped she would appreciate. As Penny approached them, Eric surprised himself by moveing forward and pulling her into a hug. He didn't think he had ever hugged her before, but it somehow felt natural. "Proud of you." He muttered before letting go and stepping back. He wasn't one to linger.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope felt like a wreck, she had been crying throughout most of the ceremony and she felt a little silly for it. She was still clutching her diploma as everyone started to gather in groups after the ceremony ended, unsure where to go. Should she go to Marnie? To Todd? But then she saw her brothers heading her way and she knew she had to go to them first. She felt a little uncertain as she stepped towards them. They weren't really a normal family, she hadn't even known about Eric and Connor for half her life, and half the time she thought Holden might hate her, but they were here. She almost forgot she was upset about her dad not being there when Eric pulled her into a hug. She thought that maybe, it would have felt just like this if he had been here. Maybe this was even slightly better. As Eric said he was proud of her, she knew she was a lost cause. The tears came back. She sniffed and wiped at her eyes. "Th-thank you." She said shakily.

 

[Connor Holland]

Even though it had been years since meeting the Marshalls, Connor still didn't really feel like much of a big brother. Penny and Holden had been at Hogwarts for most of the time since he met them, and before that he had been... well, his mental health hadn't been in a condition to really be much of a brother to anyone. He was pretty sure Holden still hated him, and it was... kind of hard to argue, really. Connor had been horrible to them; to all of them. To everyone he knew, really. It was hard to live with... any of it, honestly, but what choice was there?

Penny had invited him to be here today though, and at least she didn't seem to hate him. For all their differences, Connor's sister was the member of his family he felt the most akin to, though that only made him worry more about her. She was at least graduating school in better shape than he had. A dangerous thought, as the entire graduation ceremony had made him feel sick, and the walls of the castle were suffocating the last little bit of breath out of him. He had known being back here would hurt; would be ugly; would bring him back, but even then he hadn't managed to brace for how bad it would be. He was prepared to leg it to the nearest spot he could apparate the second the ceremony was over, but Eric had corralled him and Holden before he could make a break for it, and just like that they were in front of Penny, and he couldn't run now. He fumbled a bit as he handed her the flowers Eric had made him bring, glad the tension wound through his body hadn't accidentally crushed them. "Congrats..." He said, almost not recognising his own voice. Connor sounded, and felt, as though he'd swallowed an entire pottery studio's worth of clay, and it was gumming up his whole throat. He needed to be gone.

 

[Holden Marshall]

Holden still wasn't really ready to deal with the thought of Penny graduating. He had known it was coming, obviously, and he was happy for her, he was. But Penny was graduating, and he was going to be at school alone. Well... with Eric, technically, but he'd proven himself a narc. No support to be had there. But Penny - Holden knew it didn't really fit with the tough guy people thought he was, but he really did love his big sister. He didn't want to be anything like her, really, but she knew how to handle herself. She was clever, quick, and tougher than people gave her credit for. Back when their mum died, Penny had been the one to comfort him. They had both just been kids, but Penny had stepped into the role of parent much more than their actual father had, and Holden never took that for granted.

So, the idea of suddenly being without her was a difficult one. It had been difficult too, when she had gone to school and left him behind, but then he had been young enough to still have some kind of faith in their father. But now he was going to be at school without her, and the thought of totally fending for himself was scarier than he really wanted anyone to know. And now he was going to have to write his sister to discuss whatever book they were both reading. It would take forever. He let Eric whisk him away alongside Connor, who for some reason looked even more upset than Holden was - Holden was pretty sure Connor still didn't like either of them, so he didn't know what that was about - and went with his brothers to find Penny once the ceremony was over. As much as Holden wanted to hug his sister right away he hung back, glancing around to see who was nearby. There were plenty of people here he definitely didn't want to see him blubbing about his sister graduating. He stood to the side of Eric with his hands jammed in his pockets and shoulders slumped, looking around uncomfortably.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric knew he was forcing Connor and Holden into this interaction a bit, but as he got older he felt like he saw things more clearly. They were the only close family they had, besides their mother. They needed each other. He glanced sharply at Connor as he realized he sounded upset. He guessed being back here was hard for him, but a part of him wanted him to suck it up and be there for Penny. He looked away before Connor could see that thought on his face, glancing over at Holden instead. He moved to his side. "You okay?" He asked softly, without looking at him. To anyone passing by it wouldn't even look like he was checking in on him, just making casual conversation. Eric would be here for Holden after Penny graduated, but he knew it was different. He also knew Holden was still mad at him for being a 'narc', though he would just have to get over that and realize Eric had a job like an adult.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penny turned to Connor after Eric stepped back, not quite able to face Holden yet. If she was honest, she felt guilty to him for graduating without him, silly as it was. Penny smiled tearfully at the sight of the flowers he had brought, taking them from him and then pulling him into a hug as well. "Thank you for being here, it means a lot." She said earnestly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.