Sorry for the lack of updates lately. I had an essay due this morning. I finished it... this morning.

There is quite a lot of language in this chapter, but because it's dialogue I think it's important for the mood, so I won't tone it down, but I'll up the rating if anyone has a problem.

Bollo's insult is based very closely (there's one word differently) on one I found on the Telegraph website.

My apologies for all the unfair oogyness (I've wanted to say that ever since I thought it, just a second ago) in this chapter. I do luvz you.


Howard noticed that Ciro didn't always come straight home from school. Maybe this was the sign he'd been waiting for. Desperate to find out if it was, he moved in.

"And where have you been, young man?" he asked, small eyes twinkling.

"Just… out," Ciro answered, looking every bit as nervous as if his padre actually was angry. Howard took this as a good sign.

"Who with?" he asked.

"Oh… you know. Jaime, Alberto, Juan. That lot."

He was quite obviously lying through his teeth. Howard could always spot that. He'd seen a lot of it in his time, and done a lot of it too.

"Come on, tell me the truth Ciro," he laughed. "Who is she?" He paused. "Or he."

"What?" Realisation dawned on Ciro. "Oh, no one!" he cried, his voice an octave or two higher than normal. "No one."

Ciro was blushing quite badly. Howard wasn't sure whether to infer that he was embarrassed that his padre had figured out that he had a girlfriend, or whether it was because he sill didn't.


"I think Papa knows I'm coming here," Ciro said, a little sadly.

Naboo looked at him oddly, raising an eyebrow. "I can't see him minding too much."

"I know, but…" he trailed off, not knowing how to explain himself. "Would he really want to… see you… now?"

"I think I see what you meant there," giggled Naboo. "I suppose not. But I think he will eventually. Everything's eventual."

"Do you think he'll be angry?"

"Probably," Naboo sighed. "But it's Bollo you want to keep an eye on, not me."

"No way," laughed Ciro, cuddling up closer to Bollo's grey side.

"No, really," said Naboo. "He and your dad never saw eye to eye."

"How come?"

Naboo shrugged. "Not many people really did. I'm sure he's changed by now, but back then he was… a bit of an arse."

"He's still an arse," giggled Ciro. "All papas are arses."

"No, I mean, he was a real jerk-off," replied Naboo.

"Bloody barely sane, badger-throwing, egg-headed malodourus bastard of questionable parentage," Bollo muttered. Ciro just looked at him oddly.

"Seriously, though," said Naboo. "A lot of people didn't really like him. He was one of those people who could never get people to take his side."

"You did, though," said Ciro, looking at him ernestly.

Naboo found that he couldn't reply.

A memory. An argument. Raised voices.

"Will you shut up- shut the fuck up for once and listen to me!"

"Shut the fuck up yourself, Howard, you shitface! I'm bloody sick of this!"

"You're sick of this! Oh my god, you're sick of this! How do you think I feel, you twisted little airheaded parasite!"

Naboo is stomping down the stairs to the shop. He was asleep a moment ago. He storms in, veins pulsating with angry voodoo.

They stop. They're staring at him. Vince looks vaguely afraid. Howard still looks pissed off, but it's a muted, repressed pissed off.

He takes a deep breath.

"What the fuck is going on?"

There is an anxious silence. Howard speaks first.

"It's just- nothing."

Naboo glares. "If it's nothing, then why the fuck doesn't it sound like nothing?"

Howard blanches and steps back, no answer ready.

"Shut up," Naboo says, then retreats.

The crash of something breaking.

He snaps and spins back round. "The fuck was that?"

Neither answers. Howard is glaring at Vince.

An ornamental glass statue lies shattered on the floor. It's worthless, but Naboo doesn't care. It's the principle of the thing.

"Fuck's sake," he moans. "Vince, get upstairs and take a break, just stay out of my way. Howard, do something about that before it hurts someone."

He glares at Howard, pushing Vince towards the stairs. He just catches a glimpse of a raised finger behind Vince's back. Of course, now he wishes he hadn't, but he ignores it.

"You little prick," Howard spits.

Naboo turns back.

"Shut your ugly face, Moon."

Naboo realised that Ciro was looking at him, an odd expression of concern and mild curiosity on his face. He knew that Ciro would expect an answer, but he just couldn't bring himself to give one.

He wished it was later, because suddenly it seemed that he couldn't quite bear the innocent young boy's presence any more.


Ciro made an excuse and left Naboo's early. Something had upset him, and Ciro suspected he was making it worse by being there. Whatever it was-

He couldn't really understand it. It must have something to do with his papa. Something he didn't want Ciro to know, perhaps?

He must have his reasons for it, but a niggling feeling kept coming back and tickling Ciro inside his mind.

He wanted to know.