Riding a vertibird to the Prydwen at 10:00 in the morning after fighting off big mutated monsters the day before was just about the last thing Evelyn wanted to be doing right about now. She was tired after only getting a few meager hours of sleep, as well as sore from getting thrown around like a ragdoll by those beasts. The combination put her in quite a sour mood.
Stimpaks had taken care of most of her injuries and gone a long way in easing her concussion symptoms, but she had deep bruising on her ribs and thighs that were still tender to touch. So she'd chose to forgo her usual leather armor today and instead just wore a pair of dark jeans with a loose gray hoodie over a tank top. She didn't care that Danse had looked horrified at her choice of attire for a meeting with the Elder; anything more fitted than this caused her to wince from every little movement. Besides, she couldn't comfortably wear a bra very well due to the bruising, and anything that wasn't big and loose would have made that fact very clear to everyone else.
Evelyn turned to look out at the Commonwealth as buildings rushed past below. She hoped that her Minutemen hadn't encountered any more of those awful creatures. At least Danse's team would be on their way to Sanctuary by now; knowing that there was some extra protection nearby, at least for the time being, was reassuring to her. Her dream from the night before flashed through her mind, and she shuddered at the memory of the beast bearing down on her. She didn't want any more of her people to have to experience those monsters.
The vertibird was slowing down, turning alongside the Prydwen as they drew in close. Evelyn tilted her head back, squinting against the bright sunlight reflecting off of the airship's metal hull. She stifled a sigh as the docking mechanisms latched onto their vertibird, pulling them under the Prydwen's belly.
There was a heavy, metallic thud as Paladin Danse dismounted, landing on the platform beside the vertibird. He'd stood silently in his power armor during the ride, but now turned and offered Evelyn a hand in getting down: a small sign of understanding that he recognized she hadn't fully healed from the skirmish yesterday, and he'd noticed. Though she doubted he would ever say anything about it, both because he knew she didn't care to be treated delicately and because Danse was not so good at communicating anything besides Brotherhood orders.
She was grateful for it. It was one of the things she appreciated about Danse. They'd spent so many days working together that they had a bit of an understanding of one another now, and they didn't always need words to express themselves anymore. She gripped his hand and hopped down onto the platform beside him, biting hard at the inside of her cheek to stop herself from flinching at the pain that pulsed over her ribs. "Lead the way," she said.
They technically still had two hours before she was required to meet with Maxson, but she might as well get it over with, right? She had more pressing matters to deal with besides reciting all the grueling details of her Institute visit to the frosty Elder.
Danse escorted her into the cool exterior of the Prydwen, and Evelyn breathed a sigh of relief as the latch closed behind them and sealed out the humid Commonwealth air. Even on a cold morning like today, the air always seemed sticky. She brushed clinging strands of auburn hair away from her face, tucking them back over a shoulder as she trailed Danse towards Maxon's personal office on the top level of the command deck. A shower would've been a good idea before this meeting, but with her jeans and hoodie she figured Maxson would already be giving her that disapproving look he always seemed to wear, anyways.
The guard outside the door, shuffled aside to let Danse and her enter. Maxson had surely informed the guards to be expecting their arrival; he would never say it, but she was certain Maxson was itching to hear all her information on the Institute.
Dane stepped in first and then shifted aside to stand near the wall; he often lingered there when Maxson debriefed her, seldom speaking up unless Maxson asked it of him. The guard outside slid the door shut again when Evelyn was inside.
She tilted her chin up slightly, eying the Elder. He had turned to face them as they entered, hands clasped behind his back. His sharp blue eyes were already fixed intently on Evelyn, but left her face to study her choice of clothing momentarily, mouth curving ever so slightly in a frown. She crossed her arms when he met her gaze again, narrowing her eyes slightly as if daring him to say anything about it.
Instead, he just inclined his head a bit. "Knight Blake," he said by way of greeting. "I understand you finally made it to the Institute." His voice took on a slight edge. "You were to report straight back to me when you returned."
She continued to stand in place with arms crossed, refusing to break eye contact. "I had important matters to attend to with the Minutemen." Half of a lie. "I figured you could stand to wait while I dealt with those matters."
Elder Maxson studied her in silence for a moment, obviously not satisfied with her excuse. But his desire to hear about her time in the Institute overrode whatever scolding he may have wanted to give. "Your son," he started. Evelyn immediately tensed up. "If I remember correctly, you went there to find him."
She was silent for a beat before speaking. "Yes." Her throat suddenly felt tight.
Maxson waited, but when she offered no further explanation, he spoke a touch more gently. "It did not go well, then."
She again did not answer him right away, instead sliding her eyes over to Danse. She found him already looking at her, frowning. She suddenly wished she had taken the time to talk about things with him before this meeting. "I did not find what I was looking for," she stated finally, swallowing hard to try and relieve the thick feeling in her throat.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Maxson replied sincerely. He studied her for a long moment. "If you need a moment before the debriefing-"
"No," Evelyn cut in quickly. She didn't want any special treatment, especially not from Maxson. "Now is fine. I have another matter to discuss with you afterwards as well."
The Elder cocked his head slightly, but nodded. "Very well. I should like to know all of the information you have regarding the Institute." He leaned back against his desk, arms crossed over his chest.
Evelyn sucked in a breath to steady herself before launching into her story. She explained the teleportation that the Institute used, as well as the structure of their faction and some of their scientific work. Maxson eventually switched to pacing around his desk as she went on, only occasionally interjecting a question to clarify some detail. But there was some information she would not reveal to the Brotherhood; if asked about it, she feigned frustrated ignorance. She was a good liar, and though Maxson seemed displeased with her lack of knowledge in some areas, he didn't seem to catch on.
While she had no problem lying to Maxson, she did feel a twinge of guilt to see Danse listening to attentively. He had been good to her, and he didn't deserve the lies. But he as Brotherhood; as much as she trusted Danse to have her back, she couldn't expect him to conceal information from Elder Maxson.
"So you really don't know where the facility is located?" Maxson sighed, once more leaned up against his desk. She had finished her story, and now had to get through the Elder's barrage of questioning. "You can't map it on your pip-boy?"
"Doesn't work so far underground, I guess," Evelyn lied smoothly, shrugging her shoulders. "For all I know, it's not even in the Commonwealth."
Maxson studied her silently for a long moment, and Evelyn felt her heart rate kick up a notch. Did he suspect she was lying?
"You said you can return to the Institute, though," he mused carefully. Evelyn resisted the urge to groan. She knew this was coming.
"Yes. Something about the fact that I'm pre-war. Lots of scientific jargon I didn't quite catch," she remarked. "But they will allow me to relay back and forth freely."
"Permission to speak, Elder," Danse stepped forward into the room, clearing his throat. Evelyn glanced curiously at him. It was the first time he'd spoken up since she'd begun her story.
Maxson nodded, looking too distracted by his own thoughts to answer. Danse turned to address Evelyn. "Are you sure it's safe? It sounds like they could be trying to use you for their science experiments," the Paladin said, looking wary.
"A good point," Maxson commented, eying Evelyn. "We cannot trust the Institute, and for this reason, returning would be unwise." When Evelyn opened her mouth to protest. Maxson held up a hand to continue. "And yet, having someone on the inside is perhaps the only means we have right now of gathering information. I believe that the benefits outweigh the risks, in this case."
Evelyn crossed her arms, snorting. "Nice assessment. But I should tell you, I intend to go back either way." Danse frowned, concerned. "The Institute threatens the people of the Commonwealth, and as general of the Minutemen it falls on me to protect those people."
"Then it seems we are in agreement," Maxson said simply, straightening up. "You will need to return to the Institute, and whenever you come back above ground you are to report straight to the Prydwen."
Evelyn scowled. "I have other business to attend to, and I cannot always drop everything to heed your every-"
"That's an order," Maxson growled stiffly. Evelyn ground her teeth, staring him down. Danse shifted in his power armor, glancing between the volatile pair.
Pick your battles, she reminded herself. This wasn't the time nor place for this one; the effort wasn't worth it, not with a much larger concern looming over her head.
She heaved a breath, but finally yielded, breaking eye contact with the Elder. "I told you before that there was something else I came to discuss."
Maxson just inclined his head slightly, inviting her to continue.
"We have encountered a new breed of wasteland creature," she stated. "They're dangerous. Two of my Minutemen have been killed by them already."
She described the creatures to Maxson, as well as explaining what happened to her team at the Super Duper Mart. Unfortunately, Maxson seemed equally perplexed, scratching at his chin.
"I've never encountered such things, nor read of them in any Brotherhood files," he admitted. He met Evelyn's gaze. "Perhaps they are another abomination manufactured by the Institute."
Evelyn tapped her foot, shifting her eyes away from him. She had considered it; that perhaps Shaun had loosed the beasts into the Commonwealth. She wanted to rule out the possibility, but she couldn't; after all, Shaun had left her to wander the wasteland after she crawled out of that vault. Did he truly care if she lived or died? Perhaps her Minuteman settlements just made convenient targets to test his new monsters out.
"They could be," she admitted finally. "But they just… don't fit the Institute's style. These things looked like mutated monsters, not the carefully engineered work that the Institute prides itself on."
"We would like to check the archives for more information, Elder Maxson," Danse broke in. "Evelyn's team was also sent to collect samples from the specimens. It could be beneficial to us all to have some of those samples analyzed here." Evelyn cast a grateful look at Danse.
Maxson considered for a moment, eyes never leaving Evelyn. She resisted the urge to fiddle with her pip-boy; his piercing stare made her uncomfortable sometimes.
"Go through the archives if you wish," he said finally, speaking to Evelyn. His gaze shifted to Danse. "But I cannot spare the Brotherhood's resources unless these creatures become a real threat."
Evelyn's demeanor changed instantly. She bristled, taking an angry step towards Maxson. "'A real threat'?" She hissed. "They killed two of my men. They're as big as deathclaws, and smarter- they work together. I'd call that a real threat."
"I am sorry for the deaths of your men, but two deaths is not truly a thing to be concerned about. We cannot go hunting down every animal that kills someone," Maxson said dryly. "For all you know, the two beasts that your team killed were the only two in the Commonwealth."
Evelyn clenched her fists but made no further move towards Maxson. "There's something wrong with these creatures, Maxson. I can feel it." The Elder's jaw stiffened at her informal address, but she plowed on. "The Brotherhood has technology that could analyze these things and help keep the Commonwealth safe. What if these ones were just the first of many?"
"I am not changing my mind," Maxson said simply. "What I said stands: If the creatures prove to be a true threat, the Brotherhood will step in. But until then, we have more important matters to attend to." He fixed his stare on her again. "I cannot expend resources on this simply because it gives you a bad feeling, Knight."
She was going to strangle this man. If only she could make him experience the same fight she did at the Super Duper Mart; if she could make him stare into that beast's cold black eyes, then maybe he'd manage to get it through his thick skull. Didn't he even care to learn if there were more of those things out there?
"You would care if they killed Brotherhood men, though, wouldn't you?" Evelyn challenged. Maxson glared, and even Danse tensed up. "But because they only killed some inferior wastelanders, you don't give a shit."
Maxson's glare bore into her for another few moments, and she met it with as much fury as she could muster. Then Maxson shifted his gaze to Danse. "Paladin Danse, I think Knight Blake is rather stressed. Please escort her to her quarters so she can get some rest."
"I'm stressed because you aren't fucking listening to me, Maxson!" Evelyn snarled, stepping towards him again. Danse shifted in between them, and Evelyn snapped her gaze up to his own, fire smoldering in her eyes. "Don't you dare."
The pained look that crossed Danse's face made that fire start to flicker uncertainly. "Please, Evelyn," Danse said quietly, tilting his head towards the door. Maxson leaned up against his desk behind Danse, having the audacity to almost even look smug about this.
Danse never used her first name with her. Once, maybe twice before, perhaps. That fire in her sputtered and died out. She dug her fingernails into the palms of her hands, glowering at Maxson for a moment longer. Then she spun around and stalked to the doorway, throwing it open and making a bee-line to her room on the Prydwen. She could hear the heavy footsteps of Danse following behind, but didn't bother to look.
Hours later, Evelyn sat cross-legged on the bed in her room, scanning over papers she'd pulled from one of the multiple files scattered across the sheets. A half-eaten plate of bland vegetables and meat sat on the bedside table, along with a pair of empty beer bottles. Evelyn was currently working on a third beer, taking swigs from it every few minutes as she devoured the papers she'd borrowed from the archives earlier that day.
After being 'escorted' to her room after the meeting with Maxson, she spent the first hour trying to think of all the ways she could kill the man and get away with it. Danse had attempted to talk to her when they'd first arrived at her room- probably another one of his poor attempts to make her feel better- but she'd coldly brushed him off. She was angry with him even though she knew it was unfair; he had been doing his best to help her out, and it wasn't his fault that his boss was a complete asshole. He was following orders, ever the dutiful paladin.
He hadn't tried to return in the hours since, and at this point she was feeling a little guilty for her rude treatment of him earlier. Not that was about to seek him out to deliver apologies, though; she'd gone to the archives and the mess hall instead, choosing to gather what she needed before holing herself back up in her room. The Brotherhood had a decent collection of files on various wasteland creatures, as well as flora and fauna that they had yet to do full analyses of. She wanted to get through this stack of files and then get off this wretched airship.
Yet she had so far failed to turn up any information on beasts that matched the description of the things she fought. Some came close: there was a file on a species of hairless mountain lions with bony armor on their heads and backs, and another detailing sightings of a six-legged Yao Guai that a recon team claimed to have seen further south of the Commonwealth, but nothing lined up with what she had witnessed.
She loosed a frustrated puff of breath, lifting the beer to her lips for another long drink. The warm buzz of the alcohol in her system was a welcome feeling, even if part of her felt guilty for drowning her emotions in a bottle again. Better this than marching over to Maxson's quarters for a brawl, at least.
She plucked up the next paper. It was a long analysis on a species of giant grasshoppers that were attracted to bright lights. Useless. She tossed it aside and took another long drink. This seemed like a waste of time; these files were turning up nothing for her, and instead she was just sitting here getting drunk instead of doing anything remotely useful for the Minutemen. She was a shit excuse for a general.
Her eyes started to feel wet and she rubbed at them harshly, pulling the sleeves of the hoodie over her hands to scrub her face. Pathetic. Couldn't even handle a few drinks without the tears coming, every damn time. She snatched up the next paper to distract herself.
There was a hesitant knock at the door. Evelyn's head snapped up, jaw set hard. "Whoever it is, go away."
"Can I please come in?" It was Danse's muffled voice through the door.
Evelyn scrubbed at her eyes again with the sleeves but didn't immediately answer. Finally, she leaned back against the wall beside the bed, heaving a sigh. "I guess."
The door eased open and Danse slipped inside, shutting it quietly behind him before taking in the scene. Evelyn slouched back on the bed, still wearing the same hoodie and jeans from before, a mess of papers and files spread across the remaining space on the bed in front of her, and the beer bottles huddling on the nightstand. But instead of commenting on the gigantic mess her life had clearly become, he just tilted his head towards the files. "Find anything?"
"No," Evelyn said bitterly. Danse had finally ditched the power armor but remained in his black flight suit, only now with the addition of a jacket on top. He was shifting on his feet just slightly, which was enough to tell Evelyn he was uncertain. Understandable; he never seemed to know how to approach people gently.
"You want some help?" He offered after a moment. Evelyn just shrugged her shoulders noncommittally. In truthfulness, part of her did want the company of a friend; but part of her also wanted to just be alone with her miserable self right now.
Danse joined her, sitting at the other end of the bed after clearing a space among the files. Evelyn pulled her legs in, tucking her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them to give him some space. She winced at the movement; she'd almost forgotten about her bruising.
"Those are files I've already gone through," she murmured, tilting her head to indicate the mess of papers on the left side of the bed. "The rest I'm still working on."
Danse nodded in acknowledgement, gathering up a stack to start flipping through slowly. Evelyn took sips from her beer still, eyes wandering over the papers but flickering up to study Danse every now and then. Similarly, she noticed his eyes darting to her and away again every few minutes.
She sighed. "You have something to say," she said flatly. Not a question.
The shuffling of papers at the other end of the bed paused, and Danse shifted slightly to face her better. "Yes," he admitted, setting the files to the side. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry how it went today with Elder Maxson. I know how much you want to figure this out."
Evelyn was suddenly the one feeling uncertain, dropping her eyes from his. "You don't have to apologize to me for what he does. And I'm sorry I was such a jerk to you for it," she added. Apologies like this always made her feel vulnerable.
"You had a right to," Danse protested. "I shouldn't have… you didn't need an escort to your room." Evelyn snorted softly at that. Of course she didn't; Maxson just wanted to flex his power and humiliate her.
"And I know Elder Maxson won't allow Brotherhood resources to go towards the Minutemen work," Danse went on, "but if you encounter any more of those creatures- or any threats that you need help with- you contact the police station. If I'm there, I'll lend a hand," Danse promised.
Evelyn felt a swell of emotion at the declaration of support; too much emotion, actually, because she felt tears pricking at her eyes again. She angled her face to the side to swipe her sleeves over her eyes once more, but chuckled softly.
"Maxson might not like that," she commented, smiling slightly across at Danse. Danse grinned faintly in reply. It was a rare sight coming from him.
"You are a Knight of the Brotherhood, Blake," Danse said. "I will never ignore a call for help if you need it."
Evelyn smiled into her drink, taking another gulp of room temperature beer. "Thanks. You're a good friend, Danse," she murmured.
Guilt struck her hard as the words left her. Danse was a good friend, but she wasn't. All those lies she'd spun to Elder Maxson this morning- Danse was stuck in that same web. She hadn't even told him the truth of her son. She didn't deserve to be treated with such kindness by him. The beer suddenly tasted sour in her mouth.
"I'm not sure these files are worth the effort," she said, abruptly changing the subject. Danse blinked at her, looked wary of her sudden change in mood, but looked down at the papers in his lap.
"You've only been through half the stack," he tried. "Maybe there's something in here that could help."
Evelyn set her bottle aside, frowning at the files she had yet to search. "Nothing has even come close to the monsters I saw," a note of frustration crept into her voice. "I shouldn't be wasting my time here. Maxson has made it clear he doesn't give a shit about my people, and the Minutemen need me back in Sanctuary."
Danse looked uncomfortable- he usually did when she said anything negative about Maxson- but wisely didn't reprimand her this time. He watched her begin to gather up the used files into an uneven stack. "I can have Scribe Haylen go through them for you, if you'd like," he offered after a moment.
Evelyn paused, frowning at him. "I doubt your precious Elder would like that idea. You know, using up Brotherhood resources and all."
Danse shrugged. "Haylen complains about the amount of free time she has these days with all the other scribes running around here. She'll probably be happy to have an assignment to work on."
He was definitely being nicer than usual to her today. But then again, he'd heard that lie about Shaun earlier- that she 'didn't find what she was looking for'. Oh, god, he probably thought Shaun was dead. She chewed at the inside of her lip. She would tell him the truth. But not now, not on the Prydwen.
She didn't think these files would help her- not if Danse and Maxson both had never heard of the creatures out there. But Danse was doing his best to help her in this.
She rose up on her knees and shuffled across the bed towards him. Danse looked at her questioningly, but stiffened up completely when she threw her arms around his neck and tucked her face against his shoulder for a brief moment. "Thank you," she said earnestly, releasing him from the hug after a few seconds to look at him. He was clearly not used to receiving hugs, but managed to relax enough to nod silently at her.
Evelyn swung her legs off the bed, hopping to her feet. "I mean it," she said, padding across to the nightstand to gather up the used bottles. "I owe you one."
Danse stood up and began gathering the files she hadn't searched, tucking them into a much neater stack than she had made. "You've helped me out more times than I can count, Blake," Danse retorted. "You don't owe me."
Evelyn rolled her eyes to herself. Danse was always so humble.
"Either way," she said, dumping her trash into the bin by the door. "If you ever need me to save you from another pack of ghouls at the police station, just send a messenger to Sanctuary."
Danse straightened up, arms overflowing with the files he'd gathered up. "You've got yourself a deal, Knight."
Well, Danse had managed to make her feel a little bit better with his rare moment of sensitivity, but her mood was immediately ruined again when she ran into Lancer Captain Kells on her way to the vertibirds and exchanged some heated words about loyalty. He'd apparently been very interested in her visit to the Institute, and the man didn't trust a bone in her body.
Fair, considering she'd lied through her teeth earlier. But she still hated him.
Danse had to force his way in between them to keep her from throwing an alcohol-fueled punch into the man's sneering face, and then practically dragged her out to the vertibird they would be taking down.
Unfortunately, it also meant Danse had snapped back to his usual, rather aloof nature with her, no doubt angry she'd almost come to blows with Kells. Not that Kells didn't deserve it, but all the beer in her system was definitely not helping her attitude.
Danse stood silent in his power armor, files tucked safely into the storage compartment for delivery to Haylen. Evelyn had taken one of the seats behind the pilot again, analyzing the map on her pip-boy as they flew. The pilot had agreed to take her to the outskirts of Sanctuary for drop-off before taking Danse back to the police station in Cambridge. It was a relief to know she wouldn't be trekking home alone in the dark, constantly checking over her shoulder in case another one of those creatures came charging out of the night.
When the vertibird finally touched down just beyond the bridge, lights from Sanctuary glowing softly in the distance, Evelyn turned to Danse. "Thank you again," she said. "Next time I head south I'll be sure to swing by the station."
Danse just dipped his head to her. "I'll let you know if Scribe Haylen finds anything for you. Until then," he said. The vertibird whirred louder, lifting from the ground. "Ad victoriam!" Danse added, raising his voice above the noise.
Evelyn raised a hand in farewell, waiting until the sound of the vertibird had faded into the darkening sky before turning to face the bridge. There were a few shapes already waiting for her on the other end, it seemed; several flashlights bobbed her way.
She squinted against the bright lights, raising a hand to shield her face. "Just me!" She called out.
"Well look who it is," Hancock's voice, rich with amusement, was the first to reach her. Evelyn couldn't help but grin at it. Flashlights were directed away from her face, and she could finally make out the bodies approaching her. Hancock, Marcy, and another of the Minutemen she wasn't as familiar with.
Hancock threw his arm around her shoulders, falling into step beside her as they headed towards Sanctuary. "Cait told us how things went at the police station," he said, sliding mischievous eyes to her. "I can't believe neither of you knocked some heads around there."
Evelyn felt a laugh bubble up, unable to help herself. Hancock was good at getting her to laugh. "Oh man, I wish," she snickered. "You don't know how badly I wanted to see Cait have a go at Knight Rhys. One day I'm gonna let her knock his teeth in if I don't do it myself first."
Hancock snickered with her. Marcy sighed loudly and rolled her eyes, picking up the pace to leave them behind. They snickered louder.
A cheerful bark heralded Dogmeat's approach as the big canine barreled down the street and jumped up at Evelyn, tail wagging wildly. Evelyn smiled, leaning down to rub at him affectionately. The twinge of pain she received in the ribs was worth it.
"I missed my boy!" She cooed, scratching behind the dog's ears. Dogmeat's leg seemed to be mostly healed already from the fight, and the wounds on his flank were nothing but shallow marks now. The settlers here must have given him another stimpak after the Brotherhood escorted him and Cait back.
Preston appeared from one of the houses, followed closely by Cait. "General!" Preston called, looking relieved to see her. "Glad you're back."
Hancock crossed his arms from where he stood beside Evelyn. "I think she missed the dog more than any of us," he told the others.
Evelyn shot a playful look at him. "You're damn right I did." Hancock pressed a hand to his heart in mock hurt.
"How did it go with the Elder, lass?" Cait reached Evelyn, throwing her arms around her in greeting but immediately releasing her when Evelyn wheezed out a little sound of pain. "Shite, sorry 'bout that."
Preston drew up beside them, looking concerned. "Do you need another stimpak?"
Evelyn shook her head, waving away their concern. "I'm fine, just need some water and a spot to sit, I think," she said. "Gather the gang around, would you? Whoever's not busy right now. The meeting room."
"Sure thing," Preston turned on his heel, heading off up the street again. Cait shooed Hancock after him, and the ghoul relented, following after him to round up the team for the meeting.
"So," Cait said, looping her arm through Evelyn's and leaning in to whisper in a conspiratory voice. "How was it? Spending quality time with your favorite tin can?" Cait wiggled her eyebrows.
Evelyn groaned loudly. "Cait, if you're so in love with Danse you ought to just propose already."
Cait broke into a laugh, sauntering along beside her as they headed to the meeting room. "Aw, lass, I can't take your man from you. I've seen those puppy-dog eyes ya give each other."
Evelyn snorted. "The day Danse gives anyone puppy-dog eyes will be the day I start worshipping Atom." She paused, glancing sideways at Cait. "Well, aside from his power armor, that is."
Cait snickered. "I suppose you're right. With the way he looks at that suit- well, I don't think you stand a chance, lass."
Evelyn and Cait shared a loud laugh at the silly banter. In Evelyn's defense, she still had alcohol in her system.
"Come on," Evelyn tugged Cait along. "I don't want this to take too long. Everyone will be angry with me if I keep them from dinner, but I think this is something they should hear."
Author's Note: Forgive me for my hiatus! I had a rough fall semester, but I'm back to writing and hoping to get some new chapters out soon!