Tuesday 20 June 2017

2.9 Hidden in Plain Sight




Shortly after the wedding, it's snowflake day! Marko throws a gift-giving party and invites the usual crowd. 



Persis wonders what's so funny about Tulip's skirt. She thinks her daughter is quite nicely dressed and does not warrant this party guest's ridicule. 

The stereo then proceeds to break down for no reason, pulling Persis out of her thoughts. She scoffs at the sparking appliance; her days as the home repairwoman are long over. Paolo can take care of that. 




The present opening commences. Tulip is placed next to her namesake, Tula. Tula doesn't really care about this hubbub with the colourful boxes. Her toy, Guy, is much more interesting. 



Tulip looks at her niece, surprised by just how much she looks like Paolo. There's no hint of resemblance to Krista, or any of the other Parrotts. Probably a good thing, too. The less she's tied to those guys, the better. 

A disturbing thought occurs to her. They might recruit her when she's older... it would make sense, after all. Aside from Pablo and Krista, the other Parrott children have yet to reproduce. To keep the family business running, the Parrott descendants of Tula's generation would have to be inducted into the criminal scene. And they'll try to make her one of them... 

Tulip looks away guiltily at the thought of her sister-in-law's criminal family. Tula may be apart of the Parrott family by blood... but she's still Tulip's niece. She owes it to Tula to try and stop this madness before it's too late. 




Tulip narrows her eyes at her now brother-in-law lurking in the party. Marko still insists (for some reason) that all family be invited to their get-togethers. He doesn't meet her gaze, but he must know she's there. 



And Paolo, ever so oblivious to the tension, claps happily after opening his present. A chess table! Too bad the house doesn't have space for it. 




Krista makes her displeasure towards her brother's appearance known. 

Pablo doesn't even flinch. She can boo and hiss all she wants, at the end of the day he's still her boss, and she still makes those gadgets and knick-knacks for him




Tulip watches the scene intently. Krista quickly falls back into a more neutral stance and Pablo claps her on the shoulder. 

"Tired of me already, sis?" Pablo says. Krista smiles weakly at him, but doesn't retort. 

The urge to butt in burns within Tulip. She'd love nothing more than to see Pablo behind bars... but she has to wait. Evidence needs to be found. She can't hide her glowering. As soon as she finds anything, Pablo is going down



Her absolute loathing for Pablo distracts her so completely, that she doesn't hear one of the Bedlington sons make a jab about Xara's quick procession of romantic partners after their father. Had she noticed, the rest of the party might not have gone so...smoothly. 



Xara, on the other hand, hears the insult loud and clear. She fights to keep her face expressionless. Bertram Bedlington was such an asshole. The only good thing that came from her fling with him was her son, Gregory. Her only regret about her current situation is that she's going to be tied to Bertram's family forever. 

The gifts are eventually distributed among the guests, and from there the party winds down. All the guests trickle out until the Winterly household is once again solely occupied by its primary inhabitants. 


Well, primary inhabitants +1. 






2 comments:

  1. That ninja age-up at the end ;-D Tula looks very nice so far, I too am glad that she doesn't look like a Parrot.
    So will Tula become a criminal? Is she even the heir or are there more children to come?

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    Replies
    1. Haha yeah, there will be 10 generations of birthdays, I decided not all of them have to be a big deal.

      Your questions will all be answered in due time :)

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