A Long Day's Night.

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana watched as Ren slunk near Ellie. She just shook her head and looked over to Mithos. He was about the color of Ren now and looked on the verge of puking again. Mana decided to take action. With a calm and cool look, she walked over to Tom, hugging him tightly.

"You are back early dear Uncle," Mana said with a beautiful smile, "I hope your trip was all that you hoped for."

"Can you tell me why my house, that was beautifully clean before I left," Helga said scoldingly, putting her hands on her hips, "is now in shambles and reaks of alcohol and regurgitation?"

"Ah yes," mana said taking a step back from the both of them, "About that. You see, Mithos...."

She looked back. He didn't look it, but Mana could tell that the overly calm look on Tom's face made him nervous. Being hung over, shaken by loss of virginity, and nervous at the thought of wrath was not a good combination. Mana bit her lip and sighed.

"Mithos tried to talk me out of it," Mana said shrugging and digging at the floor, " But I guess I got more of my dad in me than I know. This whole pirate business. Mithos told me I was being a stiff in school, I actually agreed with him. So I invited some friends over and one thing led to another. He and Ren had to work crowd control, while Ellie came over to save me from drinking myself to death. I can remember pop's nearly trying it a few times. If they hadn't come along, this place may have been burned to the ground. Naturally, it was late by the time they got everyone out so Ren and El stayed the night. I'm sorry Uncle. I was careless and arrogant and I take full responsiblity for the condition of the house. I guess I'm turning out more like my father than I thought."

That should about cover everything, she thought, Now for the final touches.

Mana looked to the ground a little bit, but still watched Tom from under her large dark eyelashes. Her eyes sparkled a little bit more in fake remorse and her lip pouted only a tinybit. Any man who would have seen her at this point would have melted into a puddle before her. She only used this "Pouty Performance" when she thought it was absolutely necessary. And judging by all that had really happened the night before, it was necessary.

Helga faltered a little, but then crossed her arms over her chest. She said nothing but looked to Tom, hoping he would straighten her out. Just to be safe, Mana made sure the tape she had was still on her, and it was. Other than that, no incriminating evidence as to the real happenings of the night before could be found in the rooms.

[Emma]

Mithos sighed gratefully and quickly excused himself, only just getting to the bathroom before throwing up again (which was quite clearly audible from the kitchen). Tom looked to Mana, then sighed, rolling his eyes skyward. "Alright, alright." He muttered, waving a hand in dismissal. "Sit." He ordered, taking Mithos' empty chair and swinging his boots up onto the table, glaring at Ellie and Ren over them. "First, you're going to tell me exactly how much your idiot of a brother drank last night." He snapped at Mana, snatching up the morning's newspaper and Mithos' mug of coffee. He was less than amused, to say the least.

It was clear to the scotsman that Mana wasn't telling the whole truth - Tom actually had a sneaking suspicion she wasn't telling any truth at all. "Also, pray tell, where did your friends sleep?" He added, just as Mithos reappeared in the doorway. "Well, seeing as it would hardly be appropriate for us to make Ellie and Ren share a room, Ren and I shared, as did Mana and Ellie." The tall boy explained, and Tom nodded doubtfully at him, still half-reading the paper. "Right. And how much did you drink?"
"Far too much."
"I suspected as much." Tom said, shaking his head. "Alright. You," he pointed at Ellie, who nodded, "help Mana clear the house, seeing as you're the two sober ones. And you two," this he directed and Mithos and Ren, "take some pills and go sleep off your hangovers."

"Yessir."

[Loki-chan]

It was the first time Ren had ever really encountered the phenomenon that was a scolding. Most of the time, harsh words never sunk in, and usually when he did something wrong in the eyes of his father... well, scolding just /was not/ the word for it. Ren could actually feel the crushing wave of dissapointment Tom was heaping onto Mana and Mithos. To make someone reform using self-regret... Ren only wished his father could use such benevolent meathods.

Ren pretty much stayed silent the entire time. Anything he said probably would've made it worse. Mana was doing her best to save Mithy's ass, and he was going to respect that by shutting the hell up. With the instructions, he fled the room with Mithos. Since their orders were to sleep it off, they did end up back in his bedroom. It was at that point, that ren took the top cover which had scrutched itself into a heap at the foot of the bed, and pulled at it with one strong tug, bringing it up to settle on the bed as if it'd just been made. Ren just wanted to examine the damage, of which there was quite a bit. Ren was quite positive the white art nouveau pattern that currently decorated the dark cover, had most definitly NOT always been there. though most of it was smudged about, the plentiful streaks that Ren could make out suggested last night had been VERY eventful.

"That's going to need to be washed."

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana knew better to say anything once the Scotsman had spoken. Instead she gave a small nod, grabbed Ellie's hand, and headed out of the room in a bit of a hurry. She now felt extreemly horrible for having let things go this far. She let go of Ellie's hand once they got to the living room. Mana sighed and shook her head.

There were a few cans of beer or bottles of wine still out. There was someones puke in the corner. Then there was Helga, who gave them both glares as she looked around the room too.

"I know I know," Mana said, "We will start right away."

"Indeed," she said watzing away with a dissapointed look on her beautifully aged features.

She walked to the kitchen and took out a glass. Then she proceeded to have some of the left over breakfast as she poured herself a cold tea. She looked at Tom who was still in the chair.

"What do you make of all this," she asked, "They are still behaving strangely. After effects of the alcohol perhaps?"

Meanwhile, Mana went to the closet not far from the living room and took out some cleaning supplies. She grabbed a trashbag and started to pick up some thing, She saw Ellie start to help her.

"You don't have to," she said in a quiet manner that portraid her guilt, "If you'd like, you can go home. I can get this just fine."

[Emma]

Mithos shrugged tiredly, simply picking up the cover and pitching it into the large basket in the corner before pulling a clean one out of the closet and flopping down on the bed with a grumble. Despite his usual cheery demeanor, when Mithos got a hangover, he really got a hangover. And not one to defy Tom, he would do as he was told and quite gladly sleep it off.

Ellie smiled, shaking her head as she set to work picking up trash. "No, it's fine. It wouldn't be fair of me to leave you to do this by yourself." She said, shrugging.

Tom shrugged expansively, draining what was left of his coffee. "There's definately something they're hiding. Mana doesn't get drunk - No matter how much she drinks. Mithos, however, must have drunk enough to kill a man, at least, if he's got a hangover." He said simply, scratching at his cheek. "That Ellie girl will be good for Mana, though."

[Loki-chan]

Ren had just about had it with Mithos and his hangover. Ren, since he'd drank so little, also had a fast-wearing hangover, and it was just about gone. But his longer hangover didn't give Mithos reason to be so goddamn grumpy. Maybe it didn't bother /him/, but Ren was still slightly disturbed by the fact they'd SLEPT together last night. And not just the peaceful kind of sleep, either.

"Oh would you fucking SAY SOMETHING?" Ren had blown an official fuse at Mithy's aloofness. After all, Ren being short tempered, it took little to work him up. And this one he'd been bottling all morning.
"You've done nothing but fucking SULK over your damn headache and goddamn overreactive gag reflex. You drank a whole god forsaken BOTTLE of liquor, and I want to fucking know why the FUCK you did that so you could sleep with me? Maybe it's OKAY in your culture to SLEEP with your DAMN FRIEND, but I assure you, the chinese have NO SUCH CUSTOM. So before you go nodding off like nothing FUCKING happened, I want a few words of explanation!"

Yes, Ren had blown a gasket.

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana knew better to say anything once the Scotsman had spoken. Instead she gave a small nod, grabbed Ellie's hand, and headed out of the room in a bit of a hurry. She now felt extreemly horrible for having let things go this far. She let go of Ellie's hand once they got to the living room. Mana sighed and shook her head.

There were a few cans of beer or bottles of wine still out. There was someones puke in the corner. Then there was Helga, who gave them both glares as she looked around the room too.

"I know I know," Mana said, "We will start right away."

"Indeed," she said watzing away with a dissapointed look on her beautifully aged features.

She walked to the kitchen and took out a glass. Then she proceeded to have some of the left over breakfast as she poured herself a cold tea. She looked at Tom who was still in the chair.

"What do you make of all this," she asked, "They are still behaving strangely. After effects of the alcohol perhaps?"

Meanwhile, Mana went to the closet not far from the living room and took out some cleaning supplies. She grabbed a trashbag and started to pick up some thing, She saw Ellie start to help her.

"You don't have to," she said in a quiet manner that portraid her guilt, "If you'd like, you can go home. I can get this just fine."

[Emma]

Mithos glared at Ren, sitting up and grabbing the smaller boy by his collar. "You will shut the fuck up when there are other people around to hear you." He hissed, quite clearly not amused. "I drank an entire bottle of liquor because you were coming onto me and I was enjoying it and that freaked me out. I decided, hey, I need something to justify this when I wake up tomorrow morning, and so I kept drinking. D'you know, last night half the amount I drank would have killed a man. That is how drunk I got because you know what? I think I have feelings for you, you know? And that scared me, alright? So do you want to stop yelling in my uncle's home and do as you were god damn told."

[Loki-chan]

Ren's seething rage subsided, like when a cannonball hits the open water and lands with a bang, the ripples clear quickly and all that's left is the small bout of rain. Symbolicly, the rain was Ren's confusion. Unlike Mithy who could clearly identify his emotions, Ren was rather stuck for figuring out what attraction was. It had come to him last night in his drunken stupor, but now that he was awake, his mind was, ironically, cloudy again. But really, all he was thinking was... Wait what?

Ren grabbed hold of Mithy's wrists and pried him off his shirt, and dropped irritably to the bed beside Mithy.
"You... You..." Ren couldn't find the words for it. "Dammit..." Ren muttered below his breath. He didn't have a clue what to say. "Fuck it, just go to sleep like you said. Figure it out when you're sober."

It wasn't like it could've been a cheezy admittance of love, because Ren barely knew what love was. He'd just had love confessed to him by his best friend who was angry with a hangover, and Ren was definitly sure things were not supposed to happen as they were happening. But he passed out in confusion in the end, hoping his mind would be sorted when he woke, and maybe Mithy would be a little less angry too. Ren decided, he didn't much like that side of the englishman.

[Emma]

Sat in the kitchen still, Tom raised a dark eyebrow at the conversation he heard from Mithos and his friend. So, that was why Mithos had drank so much. It certainly made sense, the scotsman thought to himself with a small nod as he made himself another mug of coffee, watching the two young girls clean the living room. Things were balancing out quite nicely.

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Helga raised an eyebrow too, overhearing the convo. She kinda sputtered when she did. Ren and Mithos??? They were so opposite. Then there was the girl. Helga would have loved to know what the hell was going on.

"Do you suppose," Helga said slowly, "That both of them...er...I can't believe what I'm hearing."

She sat down in the chair next to Tom with a drink. She was still trying to turn it all over in her head. It was just so....

"Can YOU believe it, sir," Helga asked Tom, looking at him with raised eyebrows.

[Emma]

Tom shrugged yet again from his place in the doorway. "It doesn't surprise me, if that's what you mean." He replied, sipping at his coffee. "I don't particularly see why it surprises you, to be honest."

[Mana Ego-Chan]

In no time at all, the place was spotless. The girls had, of course, heard the commotion upstairs and just looked at each other shaking their head.

"Boys are stupid," Mana said with a small chuckle as she sat on the cough exhausted.

.......


"I guess," Helga said staring at the floor, "If I had really thought of it. *sigh* I guess if it makes them both happy, we have no cause for complaint. Im going to unpack our stuff and take care of a few missed messes."

Helga stretched and got up, going to perform her duties.

[Emma]

Tom nodded simply, wandering into the living room and seating himself in his armchair, watching the two girls. "Nice job." He said simply, looking around once before looking back to his niece. "Now then, Mana. I don't suppose you'd know anything about that little argument, would you?"

Ellie watched the scotsman with a quiet awe and a certain amount of fear - she'd never had such an authority figure in her life, and although he wasn't a parent to either of the two, Tom certainly treated them as if they were his own children. And except the fact that they called him by his name, they treated him like a father.

---

In his sleep, Mithos rolled over, putting an arm across Ren and pulling him close.

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana looked over at Ellie. She looked very intemidated by Tom, just as Mana was at times like this. She then looked back over to Tom with a small sheepish look.

"I...," she began, biting her lip. Mithos would be furious if he knew that she was telling Tom things that she had no right too. She guessed as to what they did last night and (even though it was pretty obvious on the actions of the boys), Mana still had no proof of what actually went on. Plus it really was none of her business. She had other problems of her own to sort out. No, she would not betray her brotehr's trust.

"I'm sorry Uncle," she said looking him square in the eye, "I can't tell you anything. It is not my place to tell you. If you really want to know what it was about, ask Mithos. I will not betray his confidence in me."

[Emma]

Tom rolled his eyes and sighed, shaking his head. "To be expected, I suppose." He replied, shrugging a little as he continued watching the two. "I'll get some answers from your brother when he sobers up. You, though. I'll be interested to hear what you did at your little party."

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana looked over at Tom. She couldn't put anything past him, and lying was out of the question. He would see right through her, so she would have to put it as lightly as possible without giving herself or Ellie away. She looked over at her briefly, then back to Tom.

"Nothing really," she said in an honest voice, "I'm not a big fan of the whole 'Party while the Adults are Gone' thing, as Mithos was. But after some begging from him, I am equally as guilty for this whole thing. And that is the truth of it. I drank only a little, but I wasn't really out to get drunk. Just trying to enjoy myself while the monkies danced sort of thing."

And unless Tom saw the uncompleteness of it all, that was where she intended to leave it.

[Emma]

Tom raised his eyebrows, shook his head a little. "Alright then." He said warily. He knew Mana wasn't telling the entire truth, but he wouldn't push it - for now, at least. With a sigh, the scotsman got to his feet and left the room, heading back into the kitchen.

Ellie looked to Mana with a sigh of relief. "Man, he's scary! How do you manage?"

[Mana Ego-Chan]

Mana watched him leave the room with a placid smile. She loved how he just knew when to drop things with her. Tom truely got her. Just like her father. She gave a long sigh as she looked over to Ellie.

"He's not that bad," Mana said keeping her smile, "Just an old tiger. And all I have left. That is how I am able to stand him, and respect him. I guess it is sappy crap, but you could say he is my guardian angel. Without him....or Mithos....I would be dead. That is how I can stand him. We are family. What about you? Surely you have someone in your family that intemidates you, but you put up with them because you love them?"

[Emma]

Ellie laughed, shaking her head. "I can't say as I do." She admitted, shrugging a little. "Both my parents are pretty laid back, and my brother's not around much."