2022-07-11 - Friends and Family

As promised, the Blacks provide the fish.

Surely no one expected this cookout to take place without salmon when they’re involved.

Jules does indeed turn up with Mikaere, too. He even has the choice to accompany her to help her family pack up, if he so chooses. She doesn’t even abandon him once they reach the house to go take a shower (not yet, anyway). A post-kayaking drink is very much in order first.

Good thing, since Della's got the shower, and the door is locked.

It's been a good day for Una: sold out by early afternoon, and that means she's been free-and-clear to take off back home to start setting up for the party-that-will-be. By the time Jules and her crew arrive, she's got the backyard all ready (tired she can't possibly be tired, nope, tired is for other people), and plenty of other food underway: salmon or no salmon, no one is going to starve.

Mikaere's Ma raised him well: of course he'll help with packing up, uncomplainingly doing anything that is asked of him. He's even got his contribution to the barbecue in hand (beer, because... let's be honest, he's a boy, and this is about as far as their brains manage sometimes), though inevitably 'more food' would have been a better option.

None of this means he is not grateful not to be abandoned, of course; it's kind of cute, the way he sticks so close to Jules. "Beer?" he says. "Something else? Your housemate seems to have everything on hand."

It’s not as if Mikaere got a lot of warning, so he’s probably off the hook. In any case, Jules wants a beer, and there isn’t any in their fridge (at least, unless and until Una went shopping—in which case there are probably coolers full of everything under the sun) and so she brightly confirms, “Beer please.”

“For me too,” says her grandfather, congenial as he wanders over. “While we get the grill going.”

Ada, meanwhile, is all about helping Una lay out the spread, chatting away: how did her day go? Where would she like the smoked salmon and crackers? Won’t she put Alex to work?

The one good thing is that the shower stops: there'll be hot water for Jules later. (For anyone else? Remains to be seen.) When Della does make her way down, it's to pass out the things, to chat, possibly even to put Alex to work if Una wants that (though he won't like that nearly as much). Low-key, not-in-your-face. By now, they have a rhythm.

Groceries, obtained.

Sam, walked and fed.

Potatoes, sacrificed to the glorious and large Saran Wrap-covered salad bowl of potato salad. Parked out on the street, the barista makes her way up and along the driveway of 5 Oak Avenue with her prize in-hand. She's swapped out her sundress for a more pragmatic pair of beige khakis (nobody tell Dita!) and hiking sandals as well as a t-shirt sporting the white silhouette of a microscope and the phrase Biologists take cellfies. The pun is real this evening.

Appearing from along the side of the house, Ariadne cheerily waves. "Helloooooo," she calls out lightly. "I bring the best potato salad this side of the Cascades, y'all can fight meeeeee about it." Yes, she sing-song'd that entire sentence. "Where shall I put it? Oh my god, the fish smells heavenly, my stomach just tap-danced."

"We sold out completely," Una says, bright-eyed, in answer to Ada. She's got bread (baked yesterday, but whatever) and an array of easy sides, plus some sausages and steaks to go with the salmon: no one is going to go hungry. "And I got rid of a whole stack of business cards, too. I guess sometimes people do want more of a treat than the grocery store offers, you know? For a kid's party, or a special dinner, or whatever. How did you guys do? I didn't ask... do you do this often?"

She's changed her clothes too, and now walks barefoot to the table in the backyard to add more food to it-- and waves, brightly, to the arriving Ariadne.

(Mikaere? Well, she gives him a brief glance, but she is not going to do the Nosy Housemate thing, nope. Not yet, anyway.)

Mikaere hands out beers to those who want them, tucking the rest-- some of the rest-- into the fridge for later. "Let me help with the grill," he insists, easily. "Kiwis aren't quite as obsessed as our Aussie cousins, but we know our way around."

"Well done!" Ada tells Una with a broad smile. "That must feel good. We did just fine -- we can price it lower than the grocery stores, you know, and 'tis the season. We don't do this regularly, no; just once or twice a year for things like this. But if you go out towards Lake Quinault, where you get tourists, people will set up signs in front of their house and sell out of their garage. People generally don't pass through Taholah, though, so if you feel like selling, it means you have to register for farmers' markets, and that's just more work than Charlie and I have in us at this point."

Charlie, meanwhile, seems pleased to have the help -- or, more likely, an opportunity to casually chat and assess this young man who's dating his granddaughter. "Sure thing," he agrees. "You want to grab those steaks and sausages, and we'll get them going? Salmon's quick -- and if this young lady can smell it, that means it's time to pull it off!"

"I know better than to fight you over that one," Jules laughs, saluting Ariadne with her beer. "Over there," she waves, "somewhere in Una's domain. Okay. Showering. I should do that."

Seeing the t-shirt, Della gives Ariadne a taste of her own finger-guns: "Nice!" Also, "If you find someone to fight you, I want to take bets." Not only is she not fighting, she's also not going for the beer, or at least not yet; rooting around in the ice chest yields sparkling water with some flavor or other.

Of course, having also seen that glance... she attempts to draw in both Ariadne and Una and slide a look towards the grill. "So, what do you think?" Beat. "Can Charlie take him?"

"'eyyyyy, Jules is on my team," laughs Ariadne. She has no drink to return the salute, but two jaunty fingers off her brow should suffice. She drops off the potato salad on the table and then reaches into the fabric shoulderbag. Utensils come out, well-loved wooden serving spoon-pairing, and these are set by the bowl. Della's fingergun is returned one-handed and the barista then meanders over to the ice chest. Coming out with what appears to be a can of Dr. Pepper, she's also easy to corral up with Una.

Her gaze slides to the grill. Sporting an expression theatrically pensive, mouth momentarily pursed small, Ariadne can't help the grin to follow. "Maybe divide the grill in half and then it'll be fair. Or we can let me in there and I can fuck it all up and make them both look good, I dunno," she shrugs and then sips her soda after giggling. "I can grill, I'm just not well-practiced at it."

"It's definitely hard work," agrees Una, nodding fervently for everything that Ada has to say. "I don't think it's something I'd want to do regularly, though it's a good way to start my business, that's for sure. If even a few of these people come back with orders..." Her smile's a little shy, but warm all the same.

"There's never been a man in my life to do the grilling," she adds, to Della and Ariadne, laughing. "So I've always done it. Not that I used to grill often. But-- I bet the foreigner," she at least sounds amused rather than disapproving when she calls him that, "can hold his own. He's probably so desperate to impress, you know?"

Mikaere? He's on his very best behaviour, you best believe it, though he's charmingly friendly with Charlie anyway. Steaks and sausages get added to the grill, and the salmon? Well, that can be first course.

There will be no blood shed today. Promise.

Promise.

So Jules scampers off to shower with a “hold my beer” for her brother, leaving him to drift one way or the other. After a hesitation, he meanders towards the women, congenially offering, “Need any help?” At first glance, Alex looks nothing like his sister, with his wavy brown hair. It’s in the structure of his face where resemblance lies.

Ada has a mild, amused smile as she listens to the younger generation’s banter. She, of course, sticks up for her husband. “Don’t discount experience,” she chimes in before lowering her voice conspiratorially. “So, is there anything I should know? Which you can reveal without betraying Jules’ confidence, of course.” Give a nosy grandmother the scoop, please. “And for the record,” she adds, “should you choose to stage an uprising and do a grill takeover, I’ll be right there with you.”

Charlie isn’t trying to put Mikaere on the spot, at least, while they flip sausages and steaks and count the minutes while the salmon rests. He mostly wants to hear the sailing stories, how Mikaere’s enjoying the summer, what his work at the marina entails.

“So what are your plans after the tourist season?”

Okay, so maybe he puts him a little on the spot.

"It'll be delightful, and they will if they know what's tasty for them," Della completes on Una's behalf. "And we did do the price points and comps; it's not unreasonable, even if it's more than," she doesn't say Walmart, doesn't even pause, certainly doesn't look after Jules, "chain groceries."

"Anyway. If you want to grill, Ariadne, I'll back you too," just like Ada -- to whom Della slides a smile. "I do like your caveats."

To Alex, "Good man. We definitely will, come cleanup time; for now?" She nods to Una: delegate.

Una's supposition is enough to make the redhead with her soda chuckle in one of those chiming reels of sound. "Well...we'd best give him his chance to impress." Ariadne says this perhaps loudly enough for Jules to hear, but it's uncertain; she's gone to shower and Alex is now on beer duty.

She has her mouth open to see about assigning poor maybe-lost Alex a duty, but then there's Della stepping in with a wise suggestion. "Yeah, clean-up's going to be less of a chore with many hands and all." She does glance to Una for a split second; Ada manages to still retain a good portion of the barista's attention.

Her hazel eyes stray to the house and she sips her soda before noting to Jules' grandmother, "I like how you think." Agreement with Della, indeed. "And....I guess I'd like to know what you want to know first -- other than they're an adorable couple, obviously," she asides for everyone in their little gathering to hear. Mikaere's at the grill anyhow.

"I've never even met him before," Una tells Ada, gesturing expansively towards Ariadne and Della. "So you'll have to speak to them about this. Alex-- come on, you can help me bring out some dips, I think there are some in the fridge. And we'll definitely be looking in your direction to help with the cleanup... though yes, of course, many hands, light work."

Happily, of course, Mikaere's a good teller of stories, and he's got plenty to share: sailing, summer, work, all easy things. Charlie's latest question, though, draws a longer pause, as the Kiwi lowers his attention towards the grill: look, those sausages need turning, and they need turning now.

"Remains to be seen," is an admission. "I'll need a different job, if I'm to stay. Need to figure some things out. But--" Jules isn't anywhere in sight, of course, thanks to her shower-taking, and maybe he wouldn't specifically look at her anyway, but he's staring off into the distance anyway. "I'm not ready to leave yet, either. I have some business back home I need to take care of, so I may need to fly back, for a time, but I'm... thinking of staying a while longer, even so."

Alex, bless his heart, had just started to drift back towards the guys at the grill (he doesn't particularly care to investigate his sister's relationship status, thanks very much) when Una gives him a job. "Sure," he's quick to agree, and he's quick too to follow her back into the kitchen to retrieve dips from the fridge.

Ada has a perky smile to share, especially with Ariadne's descriptor. "Oh, what all family wants to know," she says. "Does he treat her well? Is she happy? Any red flags? I don't know how much you share with your families, but there's some truth to it that we're always the last to know." Her voice remains low, eyes sparkling. "Of course, it would probably be a little more difficult to discourage this one." She taps the side of her head with one finger in a sly allusion to the mental powers several of them share. Ada's own resonance is that of a warm glow: not particularly powerful, but steady and controlled.

Back at the grill, Charlie remains affable and easy-going, following along with the occasional 'mmhmm.' "What's the work situation like down here?" he asks in the end. "Our nation is one of the biggest employers for the county, between the casino and the seafood plant -- not that I'm suggesting you look at becoming a fish packer! Just curious what kind of opportunities are here in Gray Harbor."

"Aleeeeex, where'd you put my beer?" Jules is back, voice ringing out from inside through the open screen door as she spies how her brother's hands are now busy with other important tasks.

"Mm." Della's gaze had trailed after Una and Alex; she brings it back, now, but with a detour Ariadne's way. She doesn't say anything, nor is there any flare of power being used, and yet.

To Ada, then, "He seems to treat her well. He seems to appreciate who she is. No odd bruises," gets a touch of wryness. "So far as I know, he isn't encouraging her to move out and center her life around him, either. But... they aren't around here that much." What else. "I like his mother very much. Did Jules mention, she's a teacher too?" Ariadne's turn!

There goes Alex, gratefully whisked away by Una, and Ariadne grins to watch him scoot. She'd been able to pick up his nonchalant distancing from the relationship talk.

Her attention returns to Ada and Della, eyes flickering between the two of them. A fingernail dinks hollowing off the Dr. Pepper can once. Her gaze lingers in case of the latter to meet and hold Della's own for a passing second or two, these heavy; somehow, like feeling sunshine with eyes closed, she can tell there's comfortable, practiced power resonating in Ada.

"I haven't seen any red flags myself and I've seen them more canoodly than this," the barista shares with a twiddly finger circling to include Jules hollering about her lost beer and Mikaere at cooking. "I wonder how he's taking being grilled." A beat. "At the grill." Faint titter, throat clearing. "He's good people, from what I can tell. When we ran into trouble out on the water, with some mermaids, he went for the nonviolent approach. I heard," -- subtle emphasis to signify it as mental work, " -- him convince the mermaids to leave the boat alone. He didn't have to take this approach...but he did."

Una chatters contentedly with Alex, now that she's roped him in to help, but not about his sister, her relationship, or indeed, anything along those lines. Instead, she's interested in Alex: his work, what he likes to do with his spare time, whether he ever intends to follow his sister's example and study. Perfectly personable!

"It's not great," Mikaere owns, turning another sausage. "There's work at the sawmill, and otherwise-- well, the casino, I guess. If I'm lucky, something will come up at City Hall. Well: if I'm lucky, and they're also willing to hire a non-citizen. I'm not unwilling to take on a more physical job, though, if that's what's possible. My boat, she's not impossible to live off of, long term, but I can't imagine it'd be especially comfortable, once winter arrives, so-- we'll have to see."

He doesn't seem too perturbed about being grilled (though it's probably for the best that he's not aware of Ada's questioning of the women).

“On the table outside,” Alex calls back as his loads up with guacamole and a cheesy spinach dip to take back outside. Jules so directed, he’s free to answer Una’s questions. Working at the seafood plant is a good job; he’s followed in his grandfather’s footsteps in that regard. “I don’t really see myself as a college kid,” he admits, “but then, neither did Jules. Maybe if there was something specific I wanted out of it? Like if I want to move into management at some point? But a lot of it’s based on experience—and I like that. What about you?”

Ada largely looks thoughtful as Jules’ friends fill in some of her knowledge gaps. A smile, for Ariadne’s canoodling; another at Della’s mention of Mikaere’s mother. “Oh, has she been out to visit?” Jules only shares so much with her grandmother. “Mermaids. My goodness. It sounds like there’s a story there. This place is stranger than I realized.”

Jules, meanwhile, is heading over to investigate and reclaim her beer, joining that small circle of women to catch up with whatever it is they’re talking about. Ada shifts sideways to welcome her in.

As he chats with Mikaere, Charlie remains companionable. It’s grilling in the best of spirits, in both senses of the word. “Good luck,” he offers, and he seems to mean it. “Think those steaks are done?”

Canoodly gets a bright smile from Della, too, bright in her eyes even if her mouth's only allowed a little curl of a smile. Regarding Tui, "No, it's a little more compicated," but the tilt of her head defers to mermaids and their story -- "Mermaids, Jules!" -- before she drinks again.

"Yeah, a little more complicated," is all Ariadne has to offer in an echo of Della before the topic of conversation rejoins them with her beer. Jules gets a bright grin. "Mermaids." Her eyes shift to Ada again and she nods, her smile sobering by an amount. "Out in the bay, towards the ocean itself. It was a sports fishing deal and holy smokes, did something more than sports fish show up. There were enough of us to stop the mermaids from getting anyone to go overboard, but it was close a few times and I..."

The barista sighs and looks down at her soda for a second. "I hate being a marine biologist who's nervous about going out on the water alone or with anyone who doesn't...Shine, but man, it looked like the mermaids traveled in pods. Only one of me? No way: the normal person would be a goner unless I pulled an Odyssey and tied the poor person to the seat of the boat with duct tape or something."

Una's genuinely interested in what Alex has to say, following on with a tray of pre-cut bread, plus tortilla chips. "I never went," she admits. "And I always really resented it when jobs wanted a college degree, even though I knew I could do the job itself, no problem. I like it better when it's about experience and not qualifications, when that's practical. Though, I'm thinking about taking at least a few classes, this year, mostly because I've decided I need to know more about business if I'm going to really properly try and run my own."

They miss the talk of mermaids, though maybe Una hasn't missed it entirely because there's her voice, just a little louder, saying, "I think it's never too late to change your mind, though, if the right moment comes along. But equally... college doesn't have to be for everyone. We all get to find our own path."

"Thanks," says Mikaere, crooked smile in place. "May well need it. We'll see. Got some things to get sorted, first." He's caught sight of Jules' return and turned a glance towards her, thoughtfully fond but not destined to linger.

"Yeah, I think so. Let's get them all off and serve up."

Time to eat!

"Oh yeah?" Alex remains attentive as he maneuvers through the back door with his hands full, holding it open for Una with his foot and elbow. "That's cool. Maybe I'll see you there, if I give the management side of things more of a go. It'd certainly make them happy." A tilt of his head indicates the grandparents.

"Mermaids." Jules picks up the line Della tosses out to her. "Some cross between seals and toothy people?" she hazards, glancing towards Mikaere as well as her principle teller of mermaid tales. It means she catches the look, and there's a little quirk of a smile on her end in return. "I haven't seen them myself -- actually, I meant to ask, Grandma, if there were any stories about that kind of thing. And Ari, this just means that you'll have to go out with me more. They apparently don't hunt us," she adds for Ada's benefit, lest she be thought reckless. Not Jules. Never Jules.

Never ever ever. Della also isn't looking at all smirky behind her can of water, either.

She may have spotted Mikaere's look Jules' way, given how she murmurs -- designed to not interrupt the stories but just put in a little side note -- "Looks as though the griller-or-is-it-grillee hasn't been skewered, yet."

Ariadne too, just for a fleeting second, semi-purls her lips against what must be a moderately disbelieving grin. No d20 dice in her pocket to roll for disbelief about Jules being anything but reckless; lost opportunity, and the barista plans to have one in her pocket from now on.

"No, those critters don't hunt us, so...." Lips pop. "Looks like you're stuck kayaking with me now, Jules. Mid-week next week turns out to work best for me, by the way," she adds for Jules in particular per kayaking. Della, however, has captured her attention and now curiosity with her commentary about Mikaere. She'd unfortunately missed the little glance, but by the essence of the commentary, she wonders.

"Nah, he's still kicking. Not well-done yet," comes the grilling quip unashamedly.

"But would it make you happy?" Una wants to know, giving Alex a side-long grin. "I know that's hard to work out sometimes. I wasn't sure if this would make me happy, either," where 'this' could mean so many things, but who's counting, really? "But I think it does. I don't need to be wildly rich and successful. But I do need to be happy, and that's the plan." She acknowledges his efforts with the door with another of those grins, letting it swing shut again once she's back in the garden, carrying her burdens towards the table.

“Maybe?” Alex ventures. He’s young. How does he know what he wants? “Good for you, for figuring it out,” he tells Una with a crooked smile (ah, there it is again, that resemblance to his sister).

Jules copies Ari’s trademark gesture, the finger-gun, as she replies, “You got it.” The grilling and the skewering gets a laugh out of her, along with a protest: “Aww, Pop-Pop isn’t that scary.” The fond moniker is there to greet him after the men at the grill bank the fire and come to the table bearing the rest of the food.

“What’s this?” See Charlie puff up in mock indignation. “I showed those steaks who’s boss,” he claims as he puts down one of the platters.

“I’m sure you did,” Jules replies, stepping to her grandfather’s side for a quick kiss on the cheek. She winds her way over to Mikaere, then, and nudges him with her hip. “You survived the grill?” Low and humorous, that, before she adds in a brighter register, “We were talking about the weird wildlife in the bay. Our local mermaids. Seen any lately?”

There are normies here. Charlie’s a believer, but Alex? He rolls his eyes at what he can only presume to be a made-up moniker.

"Ketchup or no ketchup?" Della inquires dulcetly as the men approach. "Or is it more a matter of barbecue sauce." She won't say hot sauce, just gives Mikaere a nod and Jules' grandfather a warm smile. Her phone stays in her pocket, though the weight of it is hard to discern given the batik print of her loose, cropped trousers; her sneakers might look a little incongruous, but she hasn't been going anywhere without them of late. Anywhere.

As long as Jules is catching Mikaere up, she asks Ariadne, "Do you kayak often these days, is it a good time of year? And, any Sam news?" For Ada's sake, "Sam's her dog. He's magnificent."

"If you really want some fun, tell somebody from the South that a vinegar-based barbeque sauce is awful in the presence of someone from New England and then just sit back with popcorn. It's great," Ariadne informs the general vicinity now drifting towards the table. Her potato salad is there, able to be revealed by pulling back the cover of Saran Wrap, and it immediately scents the air around it with dill and paprika.

The barista glances over at Della and half-smiles. "Right now, it's a pretty good time of year if you don't make slapping on sunscreen and staying hydrated. Lots of marine mammals and their babies out on the water. A bit later on, like August, is the seabirds and their goofy fledglings. But Sam news?" She visibly thinks while she lingers at a chair, claiming it by dint of her hand rested on its back. "He nearly did catch a squirrel last week. I was thinking of popping back up to Seattle to see if they're still running lure-coursing at the place we used to go, get him back up to snuff. I can work him in the back of the apartment or maybe at the local soccer grounds."

Una's laugh is a bright one, and seems to brighten further for that resemblance to Jules; clearly, Alex is approved of as sibling to her friend. "Thanks," she says. "And don't sweat it, for yourself. You've got time, right? It's never too late. Right-- are we ready?" There's the potato salad, the meat and fish off the grill, and all the sides and bread, and she seems, just quietly, satisfied with it all. Not bad for a last minute kind of thing!

"Good for Sam!" she adds in, pleased, as she bustles about. "He's a very good dog, and I'm a very proud auntie."

Mikaere returns Jules' nudge with one of his own, looking-- just for a moment-- like he's going to lean in and give her a kiss, though he doesn't, in the end. Grandparents? Or maybe it's just simply too many people. "I survived the grill," he confirms. "I think we did a good job, your granddad an me, but the proof's in the eating, eh? None of this is going to the mermaids."

“Looks wonderful,” says Ada of the spread. “I think we are.” She’s content to fall quiet, pleased to let her granddaughter’s friends’ chatter wash over her. Charlie gets a pat on the hand for his efforts at the grill (and with the other kind of grilling), good man that he is.

“Leftovers for Sam, if there’s any, and if that passes muster with Ari. And bits of salmon skin for the kittens— Alex, we got kittens,” Jules informs her brother. “They’re stupidly cute. My phone’s inside,” because why does she need it, when all her people are here? “So you should get Della or Una to show you photos. Pass me a plate?”

She tilts her head to look up at Mikaere, then, with a bright-eyed smile. The kind that has a story behind it—whether it’s for the kids that isn’t, or for the one she refers to now. “I told you the refugee kitten story, right? How they crawled their way inside and sank their tiny claws into Della?”

Della's clearly considering this -- the mammals, and later the fledglings -- but. But. "'Go Sam." She doesn't look at any squirrel-people around, not directly, just a teasing glance out of the corner of her eye. "Lure-coursing,' is that on a string? ...Or, tell us the rest during dinner: looks like people are ready to eat." And pictures are ready to be passed with the plates in line. There's enough for everyone.

Ariadne flashes a bright grin at Una. "You've definitely won him over for life, Auntie Una," she teases back. "Those cookies were amazing. I hope you had a chance to showcase those at your booth too, you might find yourself doing gourmet dog cookie plates. A thought!"

She sits and finds herself a plate and utensils while platters and bowls are getting passed around. "Sam is welcome to have some of the leftover steak, the meat, no gristle. Too much fat for him, his stomach will revolt." One can imagine the results, no need to get descriptive. "And none for the mermaids, pfft." So sorry, Alex, the weirdness continues. Another glance over at Della from Ariadne. "Lure-coursing does originate from chasing live hares, yes, back when the sighthound breeds were working dogs and did keep properties free of hares and squirrels and gophers and on and on. Even coyotes sometimes, here in the U.S, though that was rare to start with; the dogs have thin skin, so any snappy coyote stood a good chance of injuring the dog. These days, lure-coursing is a sturdy length of cloth tied to a string and wound around posts. Set the recoil machine to pull the white strip of cloth and it does a great unpredictable zigzagging pattern around the low posts. The winner of a lure-coursing event is the dog who follows the lure most closely, including the turns without 'cheating' and going wide, for example."

"The kittens are too adorable not to fall in love with," confirms Una, with a contented smile, as she passes around plates and food and more drinks, and-- really, just about everything.

"Gourmet dog treats are definitely on the list-- and don't think I haven't forgotten your snickerdoodles, Ari. I sold plenty of the dog treats today, though, and lots of interest in more. It turns out even in Gray Harbor there are people eager to spoil their pooches... I mean, aside from you, obviously."

She does settle, eventually, once everyone's got what they need and there is literally nothing more she, as hostess, can do. Promise.

"You did," Mikaere promises Jules, lopsided smile in place. "Though I still need to meet them... at some point when it's not dinnertime, anyways."

“Just be glad we’re eating outside, where they can’t squirm around our feet like the monstrous little beggars they are,” Jules returns as she accepts her plate and begins loading food onto it. Salmon, because duh.

“I’m impressed you keep him as a working dog, Ari,” she says then. “Or up to speed—hah, get it?—with the kinds of things he was bred for. That’s pretty cool.”

Gophers. Della nods with real interest -- and caution -- for the troubles with coyotes. "Around the posts. Hm. Interesting. Recoil machine, sort of like one of Una's tape measures that springs back?"

Not that that'll stop her from leaning in to call to Jules, "Them's fighting words!" Salmon for her, too. "Monstrous little beggars, pah. I'll bring 'Thena out later, if you like cats," that last for the elders. But. Dog stories! And more stories. Stories.

For the reminded promise of the snickerdoodles, Una get a friendly kiss blown at her down the table. "You're the best," grins Ariadne. No need to over-enthuse about the cookies just yet -- there's salmon to be had and her stomach is definitely thrilled to see it available for plating.

"Look, I need to meet the kittens in person, so do bring the little rascals out!" Salmon is plated and then some potato salad, followed by actual greenery at one point. "But yes, I tried hard to keep track of what Sam's lineage was bred to do because it works the most of his brain. He'd be a neurotic, under-exercised mess if I didn't. He's happy, I'm happy, easy dog ownership. I've got some videos somewhere on my laptop, I'll be a proud dog mom the next time I have my laptop over here and show off his mad lure-coursing skills."

"After we eat," Una promises. Kittens for everyone! Brave kittens, kittens who like to explore the backyard, but are definitely not permitted out here unsupervised.

For now: it's time to eat and make merry, as the evening sun wends its way into eventual twilight, a fine summer's evening spent companionably with friends and family, quietly perfect.