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People were talking, forming into a combined chorus of unintelligible gibberish to everyone not a part of it: even if Caviar was paying attention he doubted he'd understand a word of it. It was all politics and business deals, nothing he had much of an interest in. The only reason he was here was because Oyster personally invited him, and he wasn't going to turn down one of his few allies in the convocation of elders.
Although Oyster had long since left him to his own devices, leaving to join in the discussion of trade. Giving him no one to talk to—he didn't exactly want to fraternize with anyone here.
One of his few days on dry land and he was spending it somewhere he didn't want to be. Almost made him wish he was back out there with his crew. But hey, he couldn't complain. He had free drink, the occasional caterer coming by with food, and no one trying to bother him.
...To be honest it was kind of boring.
Not to mention it was getting kind of stuffy from how crowded it was. He needed some fresh air, and it wasn't like anyone would notice (or particularly care about) his absence or anything.
So quietly he made his way out, not even excusing himself. Brushing past groups of party-goers to slip outside and into Oyster's garden, and just like the rest of her property it was lavish.
Shutting the door behind him allowed him to be privy to some much needed quiet: just him, the wind and his thoughts.
He rested his elbows onto the railing, taking in a deep breath of the night time air. If he closed his eyes he could almost imagine himself down in Choco Mudtown: the faint scent of salt on the breeze, the cawing of sea birds flying overhead; all coming together to make that familiar feeling of home...
"Hello."
Caviar nearly jumped out of his own skin, causing his mystery guest to do the same. He whipped around to look at them, recognising them almost instantly.
"Light Cream, don't sneak up on someone like that!" He joked, rubbing the back of his neck in embrassment. She was a mousy thing (wouldn't even be his half his weight soaking wet), and yet he jumped like she was the scariest thing possible.
"I've been standing here the whole time, maybe I should've cleared my throat..." she nervously wrung her hands together, looking sheepish as she always did.
"Eh, more like I should've been paying more attention..." Caviar let his shoulders slump, turning his attention back to the greenery while trying to ignore the fact that some how he had missed the presence of another person.
Light Cream silently moved to stand beside him, then they stood in an awkward silence—with a faint background ambience of people talking. The air starting to get that same stuffy feeling it had inside.
"So..." Caviar broke the silence, making Light Cream flinch slightly. "What brings ya' here? I mean, I thought party's like these wouldn't be your type of scene."
"Clotted—I mean—the Consul invited me. Thought it would be good for me to get out of the house."
Caviar hummed in acknowledgement. "Ya' know, ya' can just call him by his name, he's your own flesh and blood after all."
"I know." Colour filled her cheeks, a common sight when you knew her long enough. "I'm just... still getting used to it." For the all time Caviar knew her, she had always been intensely formal: if someone had a title, she would use it. Took him ages to get her to just call him by his name instead of 'Elder Captain Caviar Cookie'. Even then she called him Captain Caviar for far longer than he expected.
Honestly, it was a little adorable.
"I'm just sayin' that he'd appreciate it, he's been a lot happier since reconnecting with you."
Light Cream paused, turning to look up at Caviar with those big doe eyes that reminded him so much of the sea.
That look made his heart jump into his throat.
"Why are ya' looking at me like that? It's true!" He laughed, grinning at her. "He's been in a better fettle for months now."
Light Cream smiled back at him, that soft curve of her lips that always suited her face, a sparkle in her eyes.
They fell into a silence again, but without that stuffy feeling in the air anymore.
This time it was Light Cream who broke the silence.
"So... do you have any new stories to tell about your time out at sea?" She asked, despite knowing the answer already.
"When do I not?" Caviar joked, turning his full attention onto Light Cream. "It was just that nobody in there wanted to hear em!" He gestured vaguely at the door, before shifting more of his weight onto the railing and flashing her with a sharp-toothed grin.
"Now, where do I start?" He began to regale her with his latest tales out at sea, of coming toe to toe with one Stink-eye Tortuca (with only a splash of slight exaggeration, for dramatic effect of course.)
"And then, when I was staring down that ol' one-eyed, overgrown turtle I said..." He glanced at Light Cream, gauging her reaction to his tale. And there she was, staring at him with the most interest he had ever seen on someone's face—bar the Rookie, who always jumped at the chance to hear his tales.
It made him forgot what he was going to say; left him staring at her face with what was certainly a dumb expression.
"Then what, what did you say?" Light Cream prodded him to continue, hanging on to his every word.
Caviar snapped out of stupor, quickly clearing his throat. "Oh, I uh..." he rubbed the back of neck, averting his gaze over to the grass. "Ya' know what, I'll tell ya' later."
"What!?" Light Cream gasped. "You can't just leave it there."
He laughed. "I've been talking about myself for long enough, I think it's about time I asked what you've been up to."
"I'm afraid I don't have any stories half as interesting as yours..." She sighed, following his lead on looking out at the garden. "I don't live a very interesting life."
Caviar glanced at her, "Come on, you've got to have a few stories!"
"I'm afraid not. I don't go fighting pirates and sea monsters every other week, I think the most interesting thing I do is grocery shopping..."
"Hey now!" Caviar protested, "Not all stories have to be about fighting pirates, I'm sure ya've at least got a couple of interesting stories."
She laughed slightly, looking down at the railing. "Like what?"
Caviar paused in thought for a brief moment. "Well... you're from a disgraced House, I think that's gotta be an interesting story."
Light Cream froze as soon as he finished his sentence, and Caviar quickly realised he had perhaps treaded onto some barely healed wounds.
"I, uh, sorry—I don't mean to pry." He opened his mouth to say more, but Light Cream cut him off.
"No, it's all right." She reassured, glancing over to give him a small smile before returning her gaze to where it was before. "It's just that story isn't all that interesting either..."
Caviar stared at her for a moment, taking in her sullen face. It was a mystery to him why her House had fallen from grace, the reason seemed to be very hush hush—although the ire Light Cream faced because of it could be as loud as it wanted. "If you're willing to share then I'd love to hear it, even if it's not all that interesting."
She seemed to think about it, before turning to face Caviar once more. "You see... it was my fault House Scone fell from glory."
Caviar hummed, showing he was listening, while trying to keep his face as neutral as possible.
"I was never any good at all the political stuff of running a House, and being the only inheritor increased all that pressure. So my parents set me up to be married to someone who could handle all that political stuff for me—"
"You were gonna be married? To who?!" Caviar blurted out, causing her to laugh.
"Its actually kind of funny, I was going to be married to Elder Custard." He must've been making a funny face, cause it only made her laugh harder. "What? Is that hard to believe?"
Caviar shook of his stupor. "No, no, in fact I quite believe it—of course the only way Elder Custard could get married if it was arranged for him!"
"I mean, back then he was just Custard Cookie," She said, "but even then he was still brilliant at politics."
Caviar coughed to hold back a scathing remark directed at Elder Custard, earning him a concerned look from Light Cream. He was here to listen, not to make rightfully sly comments about a certain Elder.
"I... wouldn't of needed to worry about a thing." She paused, starting to toy with the end of her fluffy hair. "But a few weeks before the wedding, I met someone."
That piqued Caviar's interest. "Ya met someone?"
"Yes, he was very interesting; a free-spirit, well travelled, and most interesting of all he rode a dragon." She smiled as she reminisced about past memories. And almost like she was reading his thoughts, she spoked again. "Although he didn't really ride a dragon, it was actually a wyvern—an adorable one at that. He liked to exaggerate his stories and accomplishments..."
She gave Caviar an almost knowing look, it made him avert his gaze as his face turned a fluster.
"He was brilliant—at least I thought so. Gave me the best two weeks of my life, but you can't tie someone like him down so... I let him go." Light Cream sighed, hanging her head low. "Then it was a few days before the wedding, me and Custard were on a 'date', and I wasn't feeling so well and..."
She trailed off and Caviar's curiosity got the better of him. "Then what? Is this because I didn't finish my story." He joked.
"It's embarrassing."
"Can't be more embrassing than having to go on a date with Custard!"
Light Cream held back a laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. "Okay, maybe you have me there. So I wasn't feeling well and... I threw up on him—"
Caviar burst out into laughter, nearly doubling over from how hard he was doing it.
"It's not that funny!" Light Cream exclaimed, cheeks turning red.
"Oh yes it is!" He chuckled, wiping imaginary tears from the corner of his eyes. "Sorry, continue."
Light Cream waited a moment for her face to cool down, trying to laugh off her embarssment in the process. "After that... incident,"—Caviar snorted—"I went to a doctor, and that's where I found out I was pregnant. The wedding was called off, and I feel like you already know what happened next."
She sighed and tried to smile. "So... that's why House Scone is disgraced."
They fell into another silence as Caviar processed the whole thing: without the influence and support of House Custard, House Scone didn't have any legs to stand on. So that's why it fell, but to call it disgraced...
"Ya' wanna know what I think?" Caviar broke the silence, turning to face Light Cream.
She nodded in response.
"What a load of crap!" He exclaimed, causing Light Cream to gasp. "That's the reason everyone thinks they can treat ya' like dirt!?" Caviar crossed his arms over his chest, muttering a whole slew of words under his breath.
He had witnessed Light Cream's treatment first hand a few times, and all that came from the fact she made a choice to live her life instead of living by the whims of others.
"Sure, ya' made some mistakes or whatever, but those mistakes certainly don't add up to how people treat ya'." Caviar took a deep breath, running a hand through his hair. He glanced over at her, taking in her shocked expression. "Sorry... I lost my cool there."
"It's okay..." she whispered, awkwardly shuffling on the spot before shifting her gaze to the dark sky above them.
It was silence again, one far surpassing the stuffy feeling of before that Caviar had hoped to avoid. He mulled words over in his head, trying to find something to say to rid the air of the growing tension. However no words came to him before Light Cream spoke up.
"I appreciate it..." she muttered so quietly that Caviar thought he was hearing things for a second.
"It's just basic respect. Ya' don't have to thank me for it."
"I know, but I feel like I should."
"But why?" Caviar turned to look at her. "Ya' have always treated me with respect, so it's only fair I return the favour."
Light Cream looked taken aback, like that was something she never expected to hear from another person. He gave her a smile. "Frankly it's nice having someone who doesn't expect much from me." Caviar reached out to pat her on the shoulder, his hand lingering for a few moments before retracting.
"Anyway, it's getting late." He said with a stretch, moving away from the railing to make his way to the door. "I bet Oyster's already wrung everybody in there for all their worth, so I don't think there's much point in hanging around any longer." He would still have to say his goodbyes to Oyster, it was only polite after all.
Light Cream seemed lost in thought for a moment, before quickly moving after him. "Wait!" She blurted out, nearly stumbling over her own two feet. Caviar looked back at her and hummed. "Would you mind walking me home?" She asked, "I mean, you don't have to—"
"I'd love to walk you home."
*****
After saying his goodbyes, both he and Light Cream departed from Oyster's Manor: guided by the orange glow of streetlights, and replacing the sound of idle chatter with the ambience of night, the only thing breaking it being the fall of their footsteps.
Oyster's property sat in the middle ground between Choco Mud Town and the upper end of the Republic, meaning Light Cream's home wasn't too far of a walk. But it also meant the chill of the sea wasn't far away and was seeping into the air. It didn't bother Caviar none, he was used to it, but from the corner of his eye he could see Light Cream practically shivering.
"It's cold, isn't it," Light Cream laughed, rubbing her arms to try and stay warm. Caviar didn't say anything, but slipped his coat off to drape it over her shoulders. It made her freeze on the spot for a brief moment, face turning a bright shade of red, before quickly returning to the brisk walking speed of before.
"Thank you..."
They continued walking, making brief conversation about everything and nothing, and it wasn't long before they arrived at Light Cream's quaint little place.
Caviar watched her walk up to the front door and unlock it, opening it a smidge before turning back to face him. She looked like she wanted to say something, hesitating by the door.
"Goodnight, Light Cream." Caviar spoke first, putting a pin in whatever Light Cream was going to say.
She smiled at him. "Goodnight, Caviar. Thank you for walking me home." With that she went inside and closed the door, leaving Caviar standing there with his thoughts for a brief moment.
He sighed to himself, before starting his own trek back home. However he was only a couple houses down before he realised...
He never got his coat back.
Oh well, it just gave him an excuse to visit her tomorrow.