Maclay Family Home, Weaverville, Friday Afternoon

[life_inshadow]

Tara hadn't had either the time or the inclination to keep in touch with her Fandom friends this summer (other than Kennedy, and look how well that turned out), but today was turning out to be a quiet day. Her father and brother were working, and her mother was in and out of appointments all day. Besides, at the supermarket that morning her checkout girl had been Weaverville's single Goth. Something about her reminded Tara intensely of Raven, and there she was, homesick for a place that wasn't really technically home.

When she got home, she talked herself into sending out a quick email. She figured people would probably appreciate knowing she was still alive, anyhow.

To: Fandom-friends
From: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
Subject: Any Interesting Invasions?

Hey guys,

Sorry for the mass email, but I just have a second and wanted to check in and let you know I'm not dead or anything. Sorry for leaving without saying goodbye; I was short of time and wouldn't have been any fun for anybody to talk to, anyhow.

So, um, hi! How are you? How weird is the island being these days? Any new magic-users I should know about?

I can't come back yet, but I'll see you guys in September. Promise.

Love,

Tara

She hoped no one would notice that she had carefully avoided talking about how she was.

[OOC: If you think you got this, you did! Open for email/phone/text responses. I just missed her.]

Comments

[life_inshadow]

To: notthepresident@gmail.com
From: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

No birthday card yet :-(. I'll ask at the post office if I don't have it by next Friday. So I'm 18 in your world? That's kind of cool.

Poor sneezy Kennedy. (I'm still allowed to worry about you, right?) Hope you're feeling better and kicking evil's butt again very soon.

I'll pass the message along to my mom, sure. She likes hearing from people.

- Tara

There would have been a lame joke in there about buying a lotto ticket if she ever went to visit Kennedy, but the whole topic struck her as very risky. As did the "I miss you" she desperately wanted to add.

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

There were a lot of things Kennedy really wanted to say, and might have if she had the mental wherewithal to formulate proper sentences. It was just as well she didn't; this was a little harder than she'd expected.

To: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
From: notthepresident@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

you're allowed cause i say so and i worry right back. and it's just a cold, no big. i'll get over it.

and yeah, happy early birthday! i owe you a present but in case there were going to be explanations i thought i'd hold off for now.

give moxy a pat for me, too. hope he's behaving himself.

- k

That time, she really did stop herself from adding the "I miss you."

[life_inshadow]

To: notthepresident@gmail.com
From: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

Can I order you to get over the cold? If I can, I am. So there.

Thanks for the early birthday wishes! I still have four months to go on this end. Maybe I should start celebrating early?

And Moxy says hi too. (I asked him and he pricked his ears up, so that totally counts.) He's all confused he's not in the dorms anymore, it's sort of funny. Mostly he hangs out in my room.

Tell Constance I said hi, btw.

- tara

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

Kennedy's next reply took twenty minutes or so to come up with, then send; it was too easy to picture Tara saying all of this, and even if it had been almost two months on her end there were somethings that were really hard to forget.

To: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
From: notthepresident@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

oh. well then. yes ma'am. picture me saluting and everything and pretend it makes me look badass to be holding a kleenex.

i'm always in favor of celebrating early. that way you can spread it out. get a little in every day. it'll be fun.

poor moxy. i'd offer to send bailey to keep him company for a little bit but i get the feeling that wouldn't so much end well.

and hi will be said, promise.

to constance. not bailey. i already took the liberty of saying hi to him for you. by which i mean patting him on the head. he twitched his nose.

i think the nyquil's making me really loopy now, huh?

- kennedy

[life_inshadow]

It was too damn easy to fall into this -- this banter thing, and Tara knew if they kept going with it she'd be asking to come visit in about two more emails. (Or, worse, asking for Kennedy to visit her.) She swallowed hard, throat suddenly sore, and very very carefully composed a much shorter reply than what she wanted to send.

To: notthepresident@gmail.com
From: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

Just a little loopy, yeah. Maybe a nap could be a thing? I bet Bailey would agree. (The Moxster is already asleep anyhow.)

-Tara

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

Kennedy was... feeling kind of dangerously wistful herself, but drowsy and unfocused enough that she couldn't put together the words to tease Tara about how a nap would be better if she had someone to snuggle with.

In light of that, and the fact that she wouldn't have turned down either of those requests if Tara had made them, it was probably a good thing her reply was so short.

To: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
From: notthepresident@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

kennedy sleepy. nap good. talk to you later?

l- k

[life_inshadow]

Short messages made everything easier. If Kennedy had made a joke about snuggling Tara would have spent the rest of the day thinking about the way Kennedy's hair smelled, the warmth of her skin. And that would have definitely lead to a relapse on the whole breaking up thing.

From: wiccan.tara@gmail.com
To: notthepresident@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Any Interesting Invasions?

Naps awesome. Later good. Bye.

-Tara