View source for Logs:Fathers, do not provoke your children, or they may lose heart.

{{ Logs
| cast = [[Anahita]], [[Kitty]], [[Leo]], [[Toni]], [[NPC-Carmen|Carmen Pryde]]
| summary = "You already met my little girl?"
| gamedate = 2023-05-30
| gamedatename = 
| subtitle = 
| location = <NYC> Rooftop Pool - [[Le Bonne Entente]] - Astoria - Queens
| categories = Anahita, Kitty, Leo, Toni, Mutants, Le Bonne Entente
| log = 
This luxurious pool deck occupies the center of L'Entente's cross-shaped rooftop, precisely where the bell tower stood before the renovation. The main pool itself is round, its stairs forming concentric rings  that give it a pleasing visual sense of depth. Smaller circular pools extend out past the corners of the cross, with submerged bench seating and breathtaking views of the city over curved vanishing edges. On the eastern side of the pool is an elegant long bar in a colonnaded neoclassical pavilion, serving up drinks and gourmet small plates from the restaurant below. Luxurious chaises longues ring the central pool on all sides for sunning, reading, and people watching (in either direction), with tables for both standing and sitting arranged in a larger circle around these. On the western side of the pool, past the chairs and the tables, a sculpture garden with original statuary on classical mythological connects, in warm weather, to the eastern edge of the Carrefour conservatory nestled at the base of the bell tower.

Pool season has just begun, and it's a glorious day to be enjoying L'Entente's rooftop pool deck. The water is perfectly heated, the lounge chairs are comfortable, the bar well-stocked. Toni is just returning from the bar, two margarita glasses in hand as she slips back onto the low bench lip that rings this side of the pool. She's bold and bright at the moment, vibrant orange bikini top with a skirted bottom, her neat mass of braids ornately pinned up atop her head, a pink and orange headband tied off at one side. "Okay," she's saying to her companion as she settles back at the water's edge, offering out one of the strawberry-cucumber drinks, "you talking like, ''communism''-communism?" She sounds more curious than skeptical. "You stuck fast in this two-party system, what kind of things you get done?"

Anahita accepts the drink with a small dip of her head. Her bikini has colorful geometric patterns that look quite a lot like stained glass, though fortunately quite opaque, not that it covers a great deal of of her light brown skin for all that. Her long hair is in a single braid wound and pinned into a neat bun swirled with silver. "We have a great many meeting where we take turns reading ''Das Kapital'' aloud in the original unabridged German," she replies very seriously. "Sometimes, there is interpretive dance. But we do manage to squeeze in things like community pantries, free stores, strike support, jail support, and other kinds of mutual aid in between the protests and other, less legal actions. I got enough done to spend twelve years in jail. Not," she clarifies, "for doing interpretive dance on Marxist theory, although that would not be an unreasonable guess."

Just emerging into this relaxing scene is Leo, looking not ''quite'' as relaxed as a day at the pool should be. He's certainly dressed appropriately, black-trimmed daisy yellow swim trunks under a loosely knee-length wrapped sarong batik-dyed in a leafy pattern in shades of green and white, flip flops, a lightweight green button-down subtly embroidered along one side. He has a woven tote over his shoulder and a mildly apprehensive look on his face, searching first the deck and then the sky as though half expecting trouble to descend from ''some'' quarter. When no trouble does, he's continuing in with a (very slight) easing of the frown creasing his brow. "-- the restaurant is said to be very good," he is telling his girlfriend. Also mildly anxiously. "Do you want --" But this trails off into a small blink, a half-smile of recognition, as he catches sight of Anahita. ''Almost'' starts to wave, then checks himself when he notes her company.

If Leo looks not relaxed enough, then Kitty certainly isn't anywhere near pool-ready, the nervous tension in her body clear to see. Her gaze doesn't turn to the bright blue sky but scans the deck once -- twice -- three times, only beginning to relax when a quick glance over her shoulder confirms that yes, No Unwelcome Company is in sight, a glance down at the phone in her hand revealing No Unpleasant Notifications. 

She's in a cream-white button-down type coverup dress over navy blue halter-style top paired with boyshort swim bottoms, a band of white and blue stripes running along the high waistband and under the bust of the suit, cork-soled sandals, sunglasses propped up on top of her head. There's a polished jade bangle on her left wrist, a gold Star of David hanging from a chain around her neck, her hair done up in twin messy buns just above her ears. Her pastel-striped tote is the same size as Leo's (though it ''looks'' bigger on her shoulder, just from her being so much shorter), full up, and threatening to spill sunscreen out onto the deck at any moment. 

Kitty nods at the mention of the restaurant, her own brow creasing at the unfinished question. Follows Leo's gaze out across the deck -- "Friend of yours?" Probably to Toni there's nothing familar about Kitty's face, but Anahita might recognize, if she's good with faces, the echo of another employee's features there. Kitty reaches out her free hand to her boyfriend for a reassuring, solid squeeze.

"Okay ''Das Kapital'' I can get a hold of easy enough but I gotta fit interpretive dance class into my schedule before I can peek in on a meeting?" Toni looks brightly amused at this prospect. "I think the studio I've been taking West African dance ''might'' have something I can drop in on. -- What does jail support look like, do y'all --" But here her words are coming to an abrupt halt, and she nearly chokes on her first sip of margarita, blotting lightly at her lips with the back of her hand as she clears her throat. "Oh my -- do you know who that ''is''?" Her eyes have gone wide as she looks at Leo -- then quickly looks away to Anahita instead, trying (not very successfully) to hide her startlement behind the large glass.

Anahita doesn't quite smile, but she looks decidedly pleased that Toni is going with the bit, then even more pleased at the question, even truncated as it is. She follows her date's sightline to Leo. "Oh, yes," she says, equably. "We were in jail together, as a matter of fact. I hadn't planned on getting into the weeds about the ''kind'' of jail it was just yet, but sometimes the gods have their own designs." She does smile now, and waves casually at Leo, her eyes tracking over to Kitty and down to their joined hands. "He's rather shy, but I can introduce you, if you'd like."

Leo squeezes back at Kitty's hand, an easier smile creeping onto his face. "Yes, we were --" His brow is slowly creasing again. A deep flush fills his cheeks at Toni's attempted not-staring, probably reflexive more than anything else as he doesn't seem to grow any ''more'' discomfited than he was when he came in. His initial trajectory toward a table near the bar veers circuitous, drifting nearer to Anahita and Toni. "Hello," comes with a small smile. "Kitty, this is my friend Anahita. Anahita, Kitty." He's looked briefly at Toni, here, head dipping in a small polite nod. His free hand curls tight around the strap of his tote, and he adds, very serious: "It is okay, I am off-duty. I don't think I'm allowed to bring my white horse up here, anyway."

Kitty ''definitely'' noticed that, sorry Toni! She's giving the (maybe? shorter? Kitty-sized, anyway) woman a quick once over as they draw closer, very much not letting go of Leo's hand. "Hi!" The smile she gives Anahita, as soon as Leo has called her ''friend'', is warm and bright. "Always lovely to meet a friend of Leo's. The horse," she tells Toni, tone suddenly just as serious as her boyfriend's, "is ''very'' cute, but not nearly as cute as the horseman." Amusement and affection bleed through by the end of the sentence. "Oooo, ''what'' are we drinking that looks delicious."

"Jail? You and -- oh. ''Ohhh.''" Toni's eyes are still wide. "When you do jail you don't do half-measures, huh? Guess you know from jail support ''real'' good, then, that's -- I'm sorry, it --" But now Leo is ''right here'' and she is lowering her drink, looking up at Kitty and Leo with a ''broad''-broad smile. Her dark skin ''mostly'' hides her own deep blush. "-- place like this I wouldn't be surprised to hear they gave you a stable with your own valet." Her fingers have gone a ''little'' tighter on the stem of her glass, her posture a little more tense, but her voice is warm. "You not kidding, pictures do ''not'' do you justice. Ah -- I'm Toni, we're -- Anahita was just telling me how you all met. You didn't land yourself there with communist interpretive dance, did you?" She lifts her glass, peering at the pink drink inside before gesturing with it in the general direction of the Bar. "Strawberry-cucumber margarita? I just asked her to get us something fruity with a poolside vibe and when I tell you she ''nailed'' it."

Anahita nods. "I don't do a lot by half-measures." There's something almost apologetic in this admission. Almost. "Kitty," she echoes when the young couple draws near. "It's lovely to meet you. And it's lovely to see you out and about, having a good time," she adds, to Leo. "Oh, I don't know if you heard, but I work here, now." A very brief pause. "Also off-duty at the moment. It didn't feel like summer earlier, but I'm glad I needed Toni's expert summer advice. How do you two know each other, then?" She sips at her strawberry-cucumber margarita, dark eyes keen with interest.

"Lucien said this hotel was -- safe," Leo explains to Anahita, only shifting a ''little'' uncomfortably when it is called to attention that he is, in fact, enjoying himself. "It feels hard to believe but I am not arrested. Yet. You work here? Doing what? -- Do you work here, too?" This question, to Toni. His blush has not faded under the compliments, but some of the tension is starting to ebb out of him. He gives Toni's question a serious consideration. "Communist puppet show. I am not a good dancer."

There's a pause, then, and gives Kitty a slightly sheepish glance. "-- How ''did'' we meet. I think I spend my entire first year out in a haze." He's relaxing his grip on his tote, looking over toward the bar. "Do you want one? A drink. I could get you a fancy drink." He sounds ''very'' pleased at this fact.

Kitty's eyes, already drifting towards the Bar, widen when Anahita says she ''works'' here. Her hand is suddenly free of Leo's grip -- if someone was looking, they might see her hand drop through his instead of being tugged free. She's still smiling, though, even if it doesn't quite reach her eyes, focused intently now on Toni after Leo's question. "--oh, mutual friends," she says, her voice still light, "because mutant New York is basically a tiny shtetl." Should she be so breezy to announce her genetic status in front of strangers? Kitty doesn't seem to mind overmuch. To Leo, earnestly, "I gave you my fries. I was very adorable, probably. You could totally repay me for them with a fancy cucumber drink." She rocks up onto her toes -- aborts the motion before she can actually plant a kiss on Leo's cheek.

Whether it's Kitty's relaxed affection or the fact that none of them have abruptly burst out into plague, Toni is easing as she watches Kitty and Leo interact. "The food here's amazing, the bartenders are amazing -- Oh ''I'' don't work here, no, I just enjoy the atmosphere --" Her shoulder bumps, lightly, against Anahita's. "-- ''and'' the hospitality. This one," she's confiding with a slightly-breathless slightly-wide eyed air of telling Kitty and Leo a ''deep'' secret, "she's in charge of the gardens and ''whew''! Walking in there you feel like you've been straight transported to ''fairyland'', she puts some ''magic'' into those plants. -- Who's Lucien, he got some trick for keeping away the feds because some my old clients would ''love'' to know that one." This, here, sounds very wry, ''slightly'' distasteful. "Anahita here's gonna help introduce me to the wide world of offering legal services to people who actually ''deserve'' 'em."

"He's not the sort of man who makes such claims lightly. For what it's worth, I've yet to see any pigs here," Anahita says primly. "At least not in one piece. Lucien Tessier," she adds to Toni, "is L'Entente's proprietor, among other things. I would say he provides excellent jail support, too." Her not-quite smile is for Leo, this time. "But whether your professional interests align, you'll just have to meet him and find out." Her eyes flick from Kitty's hand to her face and back to a soft focus that makes it hard to tell what precisely she's looking at. "I suppose it is a sort of small mutated apple inside a bigger, also mutated apple, perhaps. But I think you two deserve a more dramatic meet cute. Like being transported to the same fairyland." She bumps Toni back. "I will vouch for it, if you come up with one."

"Lucien is --" Leo hesitates, glancing only briefly to Kitty as a deeper frown creases his brow thoughtfully. "... an actor. I have heard very wonderful things about the conservatory," he adds earnestly. "Before we leave I will have to see." And to Toni, a little wry of his ''own'' slipping into his tone: "Unfortunately, between us --" He gestures between Anahita, Kitty, and himself, "we know too many people who could use that help."

He ''does'' plant a small kiss on Kitty's cheek, before slipping off to the bar to order A Drink. Probably even two. Kitty's phone chimes while he is over there:

*(Leo --> Kitty): I have not seen him.
*(Leo --> Kitty): I have a terrible stomachache in wait, though. Just in case.

Kitty's smile is determinedly fixed on her face when Leo looks her way -- whatever her feelings about Lucien Tessier are today, they are ''not'' stopping her from asking Toni: "Do you like musicals? Doesn't really matter, you ''have'' to try and get tickets for 'Captain America', he's incredible in it. Just generally he's an incredible friend of ours-- our community." Her expression is only just starting to fall when Leo kisses her cheek, her smile returning with a faint pink flush. She sets down her tote, hesitating only briefly before shucking off her coverup and joining the women on the low bench. "I am pretty happy with boring coffee-shop meet-cute, honestly. Kind of lives we lead, we don't need ''more'' excitement. Probably more legal options, though." Kitty glances down at her phone, blushes deeper, and swipes out a quick reply: 

*(Kitty --> Leo): I love you 
*(Kitty --> Leo): so so so much

"What about you two?" Kitty's eyes are darting between the older women with bright curiosity. "Did you get swept up into the fairy realms together?"

"You telling me Captain-singing-and-dancing-America owns this hotel?" Toni looks downright ''tickled'' by this information. "I haven't been to as many shows as I'd ''like'' since moving up here but I do want to get out more. I'm just waiting for my babies to be old enough to sit through ''The Lion King''." She lowers her glass, glancing back over her shoulder towards Leo. "-- Ooh, I can ''definitely'' see how some peace and quiet is ''exactly'' the ticket. And if he ever ''does'' need some legal options, I --" She stops here, though, her face falling into a brief scrunch of a frown. "Well, I'm pretty good at bullying the courts into even ''pretending'' they care about rights. ''Peace and quiet'' shouldn't be such a struggle."

Her head shakes, and her smile is returning broad and brilliant at the question of her and Anahita's meeting. "''Just'' right up -- down?" She's squinting at the topology of the pool deck for a moment before waggling a brightly-painted fingernail in the general direction of Over There Toward The Conservatory. "-- down there, under a tree straight out of a storybook. Literally, too, she told me a ''whole'' fascinating myth about it. Brightened my day right up."

There's a ripple moving through the pleasant poolside atmosphere -- it doesn't ''actually'' come in the wake of a telltale shark fin beelining towards Kitty, but possibly the impression of Ominous Music is there all the same. Carmen Pryde does ''not'' look like he's here to get a tan or lounge with fruity chilled drinks in the water; the only concession he's made to the location is that he's shucked the drab grey blazer he was presumably wearing, leaving him instead in grey slacks, white dress shirt that's just slightly starting to wilt from its crisp dry-cleaning ironing, an unmemorable and respectably half-Windsor tied tie. He's lifting his chin in greeting to one of the other patrons who's caught his eye but doesn't stop to talk to the man -- just heads straight for the poolside. 

The cover-up that Kitty just shed receives a slightly disgruntled look as Carmen drops a hand to squeeze her shoulder, familiar. "-- ''Heard'' you were finally back here, babydoll, I had to stop by. -- this restaurant's all but ''slated'' for a Michelin star, you really should take advantage of the employee discount before it grows a months-long wait list.  You could grab a table," the nudge of the cover-up back closer to Kitty is not ''particularly'' subtle, "if you're out here to catch someone's eye. -- You already met my little girl?" His eyes are flicking over Anahita first with this question but then shift to Toni -- lingering a few beats longer here than necessary. "Woah, it has been a ''minute''. That one," he tells Kitty, significantly, "is a ''very'' good friend to have."

Anhita sips her margarita and gives a thoughtful moue. "When I first heard about that show, I imagined it'd be little more than jingoism set to a catchy tune. But I'm quite interested to see for myself, now." She gives a small nod when Toni points the correct way toward the conservatory. "Why not both? Its name means 'the crossroads' in French, because of its shape, and like other crossroads it is a place that is more than one place." The smallest twitch of a smile. "A garden, a library, a fairy realm, and somewhere to find peace and quiet."

It might not have been particularly obvious that Anahita has been watching their surroundings like a hawk, but she zeroed in on Carmen long before his destination was all that apparent. By the time he's reached them she's studied Kitty's face, then his, and perhaps drawn some conclusions that he immediately confirmed. She blinks at him, twice. "We just met," she says simply, her glance traveling between Toni and Carmen, now. "Perhaps both the apples are rather small, after all. How do you know each other?"

Over by the bar, Leo has his phone out and per''haps'' he was in the middle of replying to Kitty's texts -- the precipitous appearance of the Him in question, though, has him tucking the phone back into his tote. Peeling himself away from the bar to return to the others at the poolside -- had he intended to come back so quickly? He only has one drink, just yet (fancy strawberry-cucumber margarita to match the other women's), and is offering it down to Kitty though his eyes are fixed ''firmly'' on Carmen. "She is making me basil-peach." There is a quiet delight in this statement that melts away when he nods -- polite! -- to her father. "You must be Mr. Pryde? I have heard," he says, with a quiet earnestness, "so very much about you."

"--oh no." Probably this whispered piece of terror is not in response to Toni's offer nor her offered meet-cute story. Kitty's caught wind of Carmen's approach just soon enough for the hand at her shoulder not to be a surprise, not soon enough to leave, not soon enough to warn her company or to reach for her phone. "Hi, Dad." There's a new tension in Kitty's shoulders, some warmth draining from the (very! determined!) smile she's maintaining. Her shoulder remains solid under her father's grip -- her wrist does not. There's a small splash as her jade bangle hits the water and sinks into the pool. She blinks at the appearance of the drink in front of her, looks up at Leo -- "Oh, ''oh'', thank you," comes a lot more subdued when she takes the drink. Does Not Sip. Doesn't look at the other women, either. Should she do introductions? Maybe. She's reaching for her coverup instead.

"Oh no no ''no''." This isn't terror -- it sounds more like a quiet ''chiding'' of the bangle for having the audacity to fall. "You looked so snug on her wrist ''how'd'' you --" Toni is setting her drink aside on the edge of the pool. She drops herself off the ledge further into the shallows, hanging on to the bench seat as she stretches a leg down -- down -- wincing ''just'' a little as the water splashes up against her chin. She snags the bangle on the ends of her toes, pulling herself back onto her seat with a small relieved sigh once she has accomplished this task ''without'' soaking her ornate hairdo through. She plucks the bangle out of the water and offers it back to Kitty on a wet palm. Her head tips up, and she looks Carmen up-down-up, her brows lifting. "You telling me you had a part in bringing ''this'' wonderful woman into the world? I surely never woulda guessed. -- girl," her tongue clicks against her teeth as Kitty reaches for her cover-up, "you gonna leave us all alone with our drinks? Pretty sure," she nods to Leo, "you've already caught the only eye that matters."

"Same circles," Carmen answers Anahita, "-- same client circles, we've both worked with some ''pretty'' powerful people. Think that Iraklidis case would have gone pretty differently if I hadn't --" His easy bombast screeches to a halt as Leo arrives, and for a second he's straightening his shoulders, broadening his not-very-impressive chest.

Only a second. When Leo hands Kitty the drink, ''greets'' him, and for one long breath he just ''stares'' at Leo. It's hard to say if he remembers he's still squeezing Kitty's shoulder; the grip of his hand tightens, before it eases. "-- What happened to the other one," he splutters, then. "First you turn up with that thug and now --" He's slow to regain some semblance of composure but when he ''does'', he's patting Kitty on the shoulder, gesturing like he expects her to get out of the pool This Minute. He's not ''really'' acknowledging Leo -- not verbally, anyway, though the ''extremely'' wary glances he keeps giving the man are frequent. "Look, kiddo, this cannot be serious, if people see you with him you know the trouble it'll make for us?"

Anahita adds nothing to the exchange for a moment. Her eyes follow the bangle down into the water, then back up with Toni's impressive retrieval, return to Kitty, then drift over to fix somewhere in the vicinity of Carmen's mouth while he chides his daughter. She is otherwise almost completely still, just swaying enough with the water to avoid seeming too unnatural, but it's immediately apparent she was not just zoning out when she cuts in after his question. "You forget yourself, Mister Pryde." Her voice is gentle, but there's the threat of an edge in it that matches the slow furrow of her brows. "These are our ''guests'', and it should not signify that they are Mister ''Tessier's'' guests, in particular." The emphasis is exceedingly mild, but stands out in the habitually even tone of her speech. "It may not be so very apparent in your daily work, but 'hospitality' is more than a perfunctory word here, and we must behave accordingly." The specific fastidious timbre of I'm-not-mad-I'm-disappointed in this firm reminder might be distantly familiar to Kitty, even if she cannot quite place it with a certain  headmaster of her acquaintance.

"The other who?" Leo blinks at this, brief and confused, but is moving on in short order. A slight blush tints his cheeks at Toni's words; his head dips at Anahita's. "I ''have'' heard she takes after her mother's side, more," he says quietly to Toni.

Somewhere within Carmen, something is ''roiling'', and it is not just the man's inflated sense of his own self-importance. At first it's just a small uncomfortable ''twinge'' in his stomach, aching there like something he has eaten is beginning to disagree with him.

No, wait, not just disagree; that painted-nauseated churn is escalating into a full scale battle, somewhere in Carmen's intestines.

Leo carefully drops his tote bag from his shoulder, setting it on the floor behind Kitty. "-- we came ''here'' because Lucien said there wouldn't ''be'' trouble." Now his tone has edged toward a mild concern. "I didn't expect it to come from his own --" His brow creases as he looks to Carmen. "I am sorry what is it you are doing here?"

"-- Thank you, I hadn't even --" Kitty takes back her bangle from Toni with her free hand, cover-up abandoned. Holds the jade tightly in her grip, the margarita glass clenched in the other hand, looking between the two like ''one'' of them might solve her current predicament. Her father squeezes her shoulder -- Kitty does not wince, but she does suddenly swallow a large gulp of margarita. 

Other than that, she's frozen until Anahita finishes speaking, looking at her with a slightly glassy expression. Maybe it was that familiar tone that gives her the courage to set down her drink and climb out of the pool -- and keep climbing another four-inch 'step' into the air as she inserts herself between her father and her boyfriend. "Akihiro is just a friend, actually. Sorry if that wasn't clear at dinner." Kitty is not making eye contact with Carmen, her gaze very steadfastly fixated somewhere just next to his ear. Her voice is much softer than before Carmen arrived, her tone extremely conciliatory. "Leo hasn't made ''me'' any extra trouble. We've been dating long enough I would have noticed. -- Did you," she's sounding ''almost'' bright, ''almost'' hopeful as she tries to change the subject, "hear anything about the kids, because I can come see you later if you've got news. We can do dinner? A show, maybe? Just --" she reaches out a hand to Leo, and it's only shaking a ''little'' bit, "-- right now, we're kind of busy."

"''Mmm''? You planning on visiting that trouble here yourself? 'cuz I haven't seen anyone else kicking up a fuss, yet." Toni is looking ''just'' a little bit more pleased when Anahita speaks her piece, brows hiked up and her broad smile not-at-all hidden behind her long sip of margarita. Her eyes have opened ''wide''-wide when Kitty climbs straight up into the air, but she nods slowly, impressed. "Feel like between the two of them," she's gesturing between Leo and Kitty, "there's a whole ''lot'' of trouble they can handle, anyway."

There's a redder anger rising to Carmen's face, at first, as Anahita speaks. He turns aside from Kitty, pulling himself up to his -- not actually very ''significant'' height, though he's clearly happy to take advantage of the women's seated position in order to better Loom -- but the mention of Lucien's name puts a sudden sharp pin-jab in his posture. He's looking from Anahita -- to Tony -- to Kitty -- as though he expects ''someone'' to be backing him up here. When Kitty imposes herself between him and Leo his eyes go wide -- and then narrow. "Kitkat, be reasonable, I'm just ''trying'' --"

Here he stops, frowning. One hand reflexively moves to his stomach, then drops. "-- trying to ''keep'' you --"

A deeper frown. There's a low gurgling growl just faintly audible from his belly. "--to keep," he tries again, but then blanches, the red that's been creeping into his face draining away in favor of a sicklier green tinge. He mumbles something too quick, too stifled behind the hand that is clamping to his mouth, to be properly intelligible. It's probably ''not'' an apology. Maybe it's a curse. He's turning and heading swiftly for the exit, as fast as he possibly can without breaking into a full run.

"Quite a lot more," Anahita agrees lightly. She isn't smiling as Carmen flees, but there is a suggestion of satisfaction in her serene expression anyway as she sips at her drink. "However briefly visited, I am sorry you were troubled here, and by our staff, no less." Her gaze settles back on the young couples' hands when Kitty reaches for Leo's. "I'll get the bar to comp your drinks, at the very least. But if you wish to pursue it further..." She looks to Leo. "Wendy also works here. I am certain we could get him to leave you both alone on these premises, one way or another." Then back to Kitty, her expression softer now. "I'm less certain it wouldn't make more trouble for you elsewhere. Are you alright?"

"I think he may also be busy. Later." Leo is also not smiling, as Carmen flees, but he ''does'' smile as he takes Kitty's hand. Squeezes it, firm. "I -- am alright." His brows are scrunching uncertainly as he answers Anahita. "But I don't ''think'' you should get a harassing-guests pass just for because the guest is your daughter. I have a ''feeling'' that 'I can do it because I am her parent' won't go so far as an excuse with -- well." He lifts Kitty's hand, pressing a small kiss to the back of her knuckles before he releases it. "Thank you." To Anahita and Toni, a little quieter. His eyes ''do'' light at the mention of his drink, though. "It's actually very exciting. For me. To buy the drinks." Exciting enough that maybe, with that pleasure completed, he has forgotten to go ''claim'' the cocktail -- though his brief glance back towards the bar is all it takes for one of the bartenders to come over and deliver it. His thank-you to the server is polite, and after this he sheds ''his'' shirt and sarong, offering Kitty an entirely unnecessary hand back into the pleasantly warm water. "... I bet. That you can do a lot of accounting remotely."

There isn't ''far'' to fall but Kitty falls those four inches, landing on the deck with a faint surprised ''oof''. "I'm very sorry," she says to the other women, the small subdued tone Kitty took with her father only just starting to bleed away, "that you both had to see that." A faint furrow in her brow -- "That you both have to ''work'' with him, also. Still? Maybe? I always hope he's better at work than..." Her gaze is still following Carmen's rapid retreat when Leo drops her hand, still staring at the door he disappeared through while her boyfriend is undressing. "...Lucien suggested remote work too, last time I was here. And yet." There's something just faintly bitter in Kitty's tone, but it's hard to hear over the tremor in her voice. 

She slips the bangle back into its impossibly snug home around her left wrist. "I think I'm going to go --" Kitty starts to say, her feet and ankles disappearing ever so slowly into the deck as she turns back to her company with an apologetic smile. The smile disappears when her attention stutters on Leo's bare chest, eyes widening, pink spreading across her cheeks. What ''was'' she going to say? After a small pause Kitty takes his hand, lets Leo lead her back into the water. "-- I think," Kitty starts again, firmer, almost aggressively bright, "I am going to sit down and ''enjoy'' this margarita."

Toni is watching Carmen's hasty retreat with an amused smirk, though her look shifts to Leo until Carmen has gone, staying there curious and thoughtful until Kitty starts to sink into the floor. "Girl I'm sorry ''you'' have had to ''live'' with him. I get paid to deal with bullies, that's a whole other question than them thinking they're entitled just because you got ''born''. -- ''she''," Toni is nodding towards Anahita, here, "just gets paid for the plants, dealing with bullies seem like a fine-honed ''skill''." There's something else there, under her smile, under the thoughtful look she gives Anahita -- but she doesn't voice it, just now. She ''does'' track the path of Kitty's eyes, her own sweeping up over Leo with an appreciative lift of brows, but ultimately lifting in short order to look at the other couple. She lifts her glass, too, relaxing now back against the pool's edge. "S'what afternoons like these were ''made'' for."
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