Closed time well spent

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou did not often have time to make time for other people, but since Monty's ridiculous announcement that he was (almost literally) setting them up for life, it was hard for Mary Lou to convince herself she couldn't take one or two moments for her own. Marvin was now nearly an entire month old, and she had been focusing on convincing Monty back into the idea that she was ready and willing to take him up on that sparing challenge she'd asked him about. Still, she could work on that as the weeks went by, he didn't think she was far enough out of her labour to provide a decent enough challenge and okay, maybe she could agree with that as she certainly wasn't jumping behind dummies or flipping spells off of walls, but she'd also never been that way either. Rolling her eyes, Marvin sat in Mary Lou's arms, fussing about as baby do as she stared at the wall she was currently considering. She had a lot of ideas she wanted to do with this place for the remodel, and though she wasn't yet entirely sure how she was going to do it, she was determined to make it work in whatever favour she needed it to.

To get some fresh perspectives and catch up, she had invited her friend Kalif over. His keen eye for detail and his straightforward opinions would be invaluable for the remodel. Plus, it had been far too long since they’d had a proper chat. As Marvin continued to fuss, Mary Lou gently rocked him, hoping to soothe him before Kalif arrived. She glanced around the room, mentally cataloging the changes she envisioned. She trusted him to tell her when she was being completely ridiculous and she trusted that he wouldn't lie to her, as so many people in her life had done before. It was an unconventional friendship, but it worked for her. "I'm in the living room Kalif, just come through," she called out to him, but not too loudly so as not to wake an almost dozing baby. Madeira and Montana were out with Wendall this morning.

@Kalif Styx II ​

 

[Kalif Styx II]

How someone could have three kids at their age was beyond Kalif Styx the Second. He and his wife were on their way of having their first. It did take some time for him to propose, marry, and get his wife pregnant. Mainly because he was loving their time together before introducing that sort of life without the protection they needed to prevent pregnancies. After they stopped with that, they pretty much got pregnant immediately. The Styx genes are powerful indeed. Or her side was just as fertile. He suspected that it would have been his anyway. His reclusive nature only brought more confusion today, since he literally only conversed with family nowadays, when he received a letter from a former peer from school. Mary Lou Leyton. He would not get used to that anytime soon. At least he knew that this one was actually married.

Still somewhat baffled, he arrived to the home that he was invited to, and he knocked on the door. So undignified. But he was let in, and heard the familiar voice telling him where she was. He walked over to the living room to see that there was still a baby. Right, she had three now, right? "What was it that you wanted? I hope it is important enough to drag me from work." ​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou's eyes twinkled in amusement as she heard Kalif's distinctive and familiar voice. She looked up from where she stood, gently rocking Marvin, and flashed him a smile that was welcoming, and a little bit mischievous. "Kalif, always straight to the point," she said with a soft laugh. "Of course it's important, you're my friend and I value your opinion," she told him, shifting Marvin from one arm to the other. She moved to stand beside him and looked out over her handiwork, which mostly consisted of half used paint cans of varying colours. There were several streaks of paint on the walls in front of her, but she was considering maybe just knocking the wall out completely. “I could really use your expertise, actually. I’ve got all these ideas swimming in my head about remodeling this place, and who better to help me bring them to life than someone with an eye as sharp as yours?” Monty might have given her the means to do it, but she needed someone who knew a little more about how these things would work, and if Kalif didn't, she was sure he could point her in the right direction, he knew everyone.

Her tone grew a bit more serious as she added, “But honestly, I also wanted to catch up. It’s been too long since we’ve had a proper chat. And, well, you will know this soon—life with three kids can be... chaotic, to say the least.” she gave him a knowing look. “I thought maybe you could offer some advice on how to keep it all together. I hear you’ve got a little one on the way yourself. How’s that going, by the way?” She leaned back slightly, her eyes full of genuine curiosity. “But don’t worry, I’m not planning to monopolise your time. Just a bit of your wisdom—and maybe a reality check on whether I’m being completely ridiculous with my remodeling plans.” She paused as she heard a sound from the back and sighed, she quickly held Marvin out to Kalif. "Can you please take him for a second, I think I just heard one of the horses in the back."​

 

[Kalif Styx II]

There was no beating around the bush for him, and Kalif was always busy. He rarely had any free time. Any sort of time that he was not working, he was with his wife - and no one would dare interrupt that without losing a limb. Kalif just raised an eyebrow and wondered how in the world these people considered him a friend. The feeling was not exactly mutual. A friend was someone that one needed, right? And Kalif didn’t need anyone. And then she asked him about remodeling a room. “That is what you called me over for? This is a trivial matter. You should have just hired help for that.” Kalif would have done that, so he assumed that others would do the same. But not everyone grew up with a golden spoon. And the real reason came out. She wanted to catch up. When did he ever give off the impression that he cared? Kalif let out a sigh, and figured that there was no harm in humoring her. “I would suggest using protection,” Kalif said curtly. He and his wife only had their kid when they wanted, and not a moment too soon. “Mine is doing well, enough.” Suddenly, she literally shoved her youngest into his arms, which he was forced to grab before the child would fall. His normal, stone cold face went into mild shock. What the hell was he supposed to do with this thing? He just stood there, awkwardly, not knowing how to hold the child. Damn, how was he supposed to hold his own son if he was having issues with someone else’s?​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

She shook her head as he called her invitation trivial. She didn't think it was trivial, and Kalif was her friend, so she was calling help, wasn't that sort of the point? "You'll be fine," she said, ignoring his comment on protection because honestly, that was unnecessary. She loved her children and she loved Wendall and she would do with that as she pleased. Being a young mum was her dream and he wasn't going to ruin that. Still, she appreciated that he'd never minced words with her, even if she found some of his commentary unnecessary and distasteful. She let him with her child for several long minutes as she dealt with the horses before she headed back in, grinning at him. "There see, was that really so difficult?" She asked, holding her hands out to take the baby back, and she thought he might need the practice given that he would soon be having a child of his own. She personally thought he would make a good father, he was very helpful to her, and he was protective of people he felt needed it, she'd seen that side of him in school. After all, she hadn't asked him for help, he'd simply offered it when she'd had difficulties with Luxen. She would always be grateful to him because even though she hated school whilst she was there, and she had been miserable, she didn't hate some of it, because she'd had Kalif and her other friends to help her through most of it, especially after she'd returned from America. "Tell me honestly," she said, gesturing to some of the designs she had on the walls, "is it truly horrid?"​

 

[Kalif Styx II]

Kalif really felt uncomfortably just holding this kid, even if he was going to be a father soon. He did not want to drop it though. It was bad that Kalif kept thinking of the child as an 'it' but it was just who he was. As soon as Mary came back and held her arms out, he more than readily handed the kid over and shoved his hands back into his pockets. Maybe like this, she would not want to throw the baby at him again. "Give me a warning next time. You are lucky that I didn't drop i-him," Kalif almost called the baby an it in front of his mother, but cause himself just before he did. His eyes went to the wall to see which design that he liked best. He thought about it, considering them all before he found the one that he liked the best out of those. He nodded toward the more simple, modern one. "That one is okay. I still recommend a designer. If cost is an issue, I can assist with that." Kalif thought that it was more like charity at this point. That was the reason why he would be offering help - surely. That was what he convinced himself. Definitely not because he cared at all.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

She laughs slightly at what she deems to be something akin to panic. She has never really considered that Kalif might be one to panic, but she supposes that it can sometimes happen. She grins at him and squeezes him slightly on the shoulder. "I trust you, don't be silly, I knew you would not drop him," surely he has more belief in himself as a parent than that. Some instincts you just can't overcome and that's one of them. The kind of bond that a parent has with their child is infinite, and she truly can see that kind of love in Kalif, maybe he doesn't see it in himself, but she knows it's there. She saw it the day he offered himself to her as a tutor, he didn't have to do that, and it is one of the many things about him that she adores, that and the way he speaks to her as if he could insult her with his mere presence. Please, she's lived with a family who couldn't stand being near her for more than a moment, clearly Kalif does not feel that way about her or he would not have come over to help her with the colours. She's not silly - comparative to what people might think about her. "Cost isn't a problem anymore, I'm just concerned they will want to speak over me. I want this to be something I've done myself, it's important to me that all of this be my design," she says, nodding at his choice. She likes the way it compliments her vision of the rest of the farm. Yet, he can not see into her mind, so his choice is even more special, it shows that they really are on the same page, as she thought. "I will consider it though, Professor Pendleton has offered up some funds for us, so everything will be taken care of." Admittedly, the funds he has offered would likely not even touch the kind of bank Kalif might have access to, but she's not a greedy person, she has exactly what she needs and that's more than enough.​

 

[Kalif Styx II]

Kalif now knew one of the main reasons why Mary Lou was sorted into Hufflepuff. Her blind faith. She trusted him with something that he had never done before? That was laughable at best. She would likely never believe the sort of lives he had touched with the very hands that now held her infant for a short while. "I see. That can be an issue with people." Kalif himself never had to worry about someone trying to talk over him. He'd never allow that. Mary Lou, on the other hand, he could see her being more of a door mat than he would ever be. Even his wife wouldn't let anyone talk over her. Then again, she was exceptionally loud no matter what.

"He's not a professor anymore. I imagine you can say his actual name." Kalif shrugged his shoulders, though he was sure that people called his grandfather in a similar manner. He also wondered why Pendleton would even get involved to begin with. Were they related? He just could not imagine that man with a child, infant or grandchild. It was foreign to him.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

"He's not a professor anymore, you're right, but he is my mentor, he's been helping me with spell work, we train together quite a lot," she told him, both proud that she was doing it, and proud to talk Monty up. She thought of him as someone very close to her, he was her family. She'd made a joke with Wendall that the only reason she'd married him was because she'd found out he was related to Monty. It wasn't true of course, but it was fun to talk about. She loved Wendall dearly after all, Monty was just a lovely bonus. "After I had my first daughter, I had a terrible nightmare that someone tried to hurt them, ever since then I've done everything I can to make sure that nothing can happen to them. Even though it was hardly a prophetic dream, since I'm no seer, I couldn't shake the anxiety and... well after everything with Luxen I - well I just wanted to make sure that I was always going to be able to keep them safe." It was something she'd thought about a lot as she'd gotten older and the more kids she'd had. It started with Montana, but it certainly had not ended with her.​

 

[Kalif Styx II]

Of course, Kalif was right. How could he not be? He just raised an eyebrow when she mentioned how she still kept in touch with that man. Didn't he have a mental breakdown or something over a student a long time ago? Or maybe that was a rumor spread by the school. "Well, anything to increase your own skills isn't anything to frown about. I suppose he does have something to teach now." Kalif did not know what it was, but he did not have any opinions on it. Not anytime soon anyway. He did not see it himself, so he could not critique it. But now he wanted to see it for himself. He might have to invite himself along one day. "You cannot protect them forever, Mary. You will need to teach them to protect themselves when you are not around." Kalif was taught that when he was growing up, which was why he did not have any problems, especially with someone like Luxen the second. "If you had practiced safely, your kids could have been young enough for my future kid to go to school with them in the same year."​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou hesitated slightly as Kalif sort of disparaged Monty. She knew what he was like though, and if he wanted to be that way, nothing she said was going to stop him, she knew. He had a different world view to her, and she tried not to let anyone see the part of her that could actually hurt someone. The part of her that fiercely protected her children with every fibre of her being. That her fierceness had also extended to Monty was not a shock, but it had no place in her home right now. “Be kind, Kalif, you’re both dear friends.” She would hate to throw him out after all, not when he had come all this way to see her simply because she’d asked him to. “It’s thanks to you I even had the confidence to try, you know. You did a lot for me back then, I don’t know that I would be where I am today without it,” she admitted, smiling lightly at him. He’d helped her simply because he didn’t like bullies, and that meant something special to her. When he mentioned that she had too many kids (in a round about way) she smacked him lightly on the arm. “Safe enough, I could have had more,” but she liked the idea of her children attending school with his. She was so sure they would be friends. After all, she was friends with their father, and she did like Kalif very much. People might think him a rather cold and sour person, but she didn’t see it at all. He had a very warm heart. He had to, he was friends with Miss Sunshine.​