#Leah'sHouse – September 13, 2020

Nathan drops down onto the sofa, burying his face behind one hand for the moment to allow the crimson in his cheeks to fade. If Francois is anything like his dad, he'll probably get reminded of this for a very very long time. "Well, I can see where you get your charm from," he says with a hint of mirth hidden behind his hand. He spreads his fingers to peer between them at Leah, eyebrow perking faintly. "I might have to

Sofia eventually gives up on the incredibly alien word, pouting to herself at her failed attempt. She sighs and dries off her hands before opening the door. The pout vanished and instead was repalced with her usual, charming smile that she keeps plastered on her face whenever possible. "All clean," she says, presenting her hands to Tara with palms turned upward. "No more ginger. Hopefully Zoe's nose isn't too sensitive to

Tara mirrors Sofia's smile, her own a faint, subdued echo. "That one is okay." she assures with a small nod - she would certainly have noticed if it wasn't by now, but she's seemingly not prepared to declare Zoe fine with all soaps, recalling Halisi's visit. Her gaze darts down the corridor and then back to Sofia before she starts to lead the way back towards the living room.

Leah isn't far behind Nathan, plopping right down onto the couch beside him with a healthy dose of red in her own cheeks as she brings her legs up onto the couch to sit cross-legged. Nathan comparing her to her father garners a rather unamused look through uncooperative bangs. But it slowly slips away into an exasperated smile as he continues to speak that she attempts to undercut unsuccessfully with a roll of her eyes. "He's an

Nathan breathes a laugh and, finally, lowers his hand down to rest on the couch between them. "Oh how your charming words set my soul a-flutter," he proclaims with a dramatic flourish of his other hand, voice oozing with sarcasm. He lowers it with a thump against his leg and his head lazily lulls to the side to meet her gaze, grin etched onto his features. "'spose that says a lot about you if you just seem to be this

Sofia nods firmly, tucking her hands behind her back as she follows after Tara. "Good." She trots along for a few steps before asking, "So what made you get Zoe, then? Was she an early Christmas gift?" She falls into step besides Tara, her mismatched eyes glancing curiously at the young woman besides her.

Tara nods faintly in response to Sofia's guess as they walk. Her eyebrows furrow a little as she hesitates on whether to speak. "It... wasn't nice. The place she was in." she says, voice little more than a quiet mumble as they return to the main room, easily lost under the Christmas music that's playing in the background. She stops near the dining room opening, looking around for Zoe.

Francois is fussing away over the food when Sofia and Tara stroll back through the kitchen. The clanking of silverware mingles with the holiday music as he gets to work on setting the table.

Leah furrows her brow in amusement through Nathan's shenanigans. She shifts in place a bit to better face Nathan, one leg slipping off the couch as she leans a little heavier against the backrest of the couch. Nose scrunching up, she makes a playful show of really having to consider the question. Drawing in a breath, her green eyes fall back onto Nathan, smile softening. "You have your moments..." she concedes before adding with a

Nathan does a small fist pump in victory. "Knew it," he says softly, giving an overexagerated wink at her. He does, however, quieten down a little as he sinks a little more into the couch, a content sigh escaping his lips. "I'm not going to lie here, was a little worried about meeting your dad again after... y'know, last time. Was half expecting one of those old, corny movie moments where he'd be sat in a rocking chair

Sofia pauses besides Tara, smile fading to instead give way to a small look of surprise. "You... rescued her, then?" She asks softly, leaning to be caught in Tara's sight. It's almost as if she's studying Tara for a moment, a curious glint in her eyes before it gives way to a different smile. Smaller, softer. "That's kind of you. To give her a better home. Not many people would do that for other people, let alone an

Leah snorts loudly. "Don't worry. I made sure to hide the shotgun before you got here." she assures through her grin, head lulling against the couch's backrest. The couch has that well-worn, cozy sag in the cushions that only comes from years of use. The kind that sort of envelopes you. Perfect for a lazy day. She fusses with her bangs for a moment, tucking them back behind her ear as she studies Nathan.

Tara doesn't seem quite sure how to respond, shrinking a little under Sofia's scrutiny. There's embarrassment there, and a deeper discomfort. Her gaze falls and she remains silently in place for a moment before stepping further into the room, eyebrows furrowed as she continues to search for Zoe. Upon spotting the fluffy blue tail sticking out amid the packages under the tree she sits down on the floor not far from it, studying the curled

Nathan snorts and gives her a thumbs up, an appreciative one. "Knew you had my back," he muses before he leans into the cushions. Indeed, there is that comfortable sag and for a moment, Nate swears he's about to be swallowed up like a forgotten credit chit. He shuffles in the spot for a moment, adjusting himself with a grunt before he catches Leah's look. He smirks and looks away for a moment. "You're staring." He looks

Sofia drops the smile as Tara walks away without a word, chewing on her inner-cheek in frustration. Not at Tara, mind, but moreso herself. For somehow always seeming to uspet Tara in one way or another, even when she thinks shes made some headway. She curbs her thought process and merely watches as Tara drops onto the ground and watches Zoe. The young woman clucks her tongue against the roof of her mouth and gazes around

Tara is too preoccupied with waiting for Zoe to emerge from her hideout to notice that Sofia stopped accompanying her at first. She offers a few quiet, gentle encouragements to the hiding creature before just settling back to wait patiently for the gzzk to come to her on its own terms. Upon realizing that Sofia is gone she looks around from her spot on the floor until noticing her in the kitchen, a small, inscrutable frown settling in as

Leah's green eyes briefly tilt downward to the space between them as she's called out and she sucks her lips in to reign in her smile. "I just-... umm-..." she trails off, giving a small shrug of her shoulders, "...I had a really nice time the other night." she says, fighting off the awkwardness that threatens to rear it's ugly head up. There's a heavy honesty in her admission that reflects just how much the past year has weighed

Francois is in the process of laying out dinner plates. Sofia's question causes him to shoot a glance her way before quickly shaking his head. "No, no, you're a guest!" he reminds through that smile that seems to mirror Leah's so perfectly. "Thank you for offering, but you just let me take care of this."

Nathan takes a few seconds to process her words before his mind catches up. He instinctively glances past her towards the rest of the room before he looks back and smiles. He's not hiding it. "So did I," he says, reaching forward to place a hand atop hers. His smile turns into a somewhat awkwardly endearing one and he mumbles, "I, uh... meant everything, y'know. Even if it came out as a jumbled mess of... crap." He

Sofia just smiles brightly, internally remarking at how similar that smile is to Leah's. She had liked Francois the few times she interacted with him during her stay. He was kind, funny. Always so friendly. "Okay," she says with a nod. She idly glances back over her shoulder to where Tara is, a sad frown etching on her face. She slowly turns back to Francois and, in a voice that hopefully only he can hear, she speaks.

Tara 's frown lifts a little when Zoe pokes its head out of the hiding place and then slowly starts to approach her. A faint hint of a smile tugs at the corner of her mouth as she reaches out to stroke the gzzk's back, the smile manifesting fully and very quiet giggle accompanying it as the small animal rubs its head against her leg.

Leah's green eyes tilt down to the hand upon hers. Nathan's words garner a small, slightly embarrassed snicker- little more than a puff of air through her nose- in response, a semblance of that pink hue creeping back into her cheeks. She shifts her hand, turning her palm upwards against his, thumb idly brushing along the edge of his hand. "Sorry that I didn't stay after-..." she begins quietly, keeping her voice down. And that's

Francois furrows his brow, gaze shooting past Sofia and to the young woman in the living room. He sets the plate in his hand aside, instinctively lowering his voice to match Sofia's. "Of course not." he assures her, "What is it?"

Nathan listens quietly, a bemused smile on his face at her apology and explantation. He meets her gaze as she begins to stop-start her way through the sentence, nodding where needed and shaking his head elsewhere. And during this entire time, he keeps subtly checking to make sure no one else sneaks in behind them to eavesdrop on the conversation. Because he'll be damned at how often people seem to just sneak up on them.

Sofia wrings her hands together for a moment, a little twinge of embarrasment creeping into her features as she suddenly finds herself stuck on what to say. She collects herself, sighs and says, "How... how do I talk to her? Sometimes I feel like I say something to offend her or hurt her feelings or... or something. I know this is a stupid thing to ask, but...". She trails off and furrows her brow. Eventually, though, she

Tara lifts Zoe into her lap, holding the blue furball gently in her arms. and scratching its head. She lets out a slightly exasperated breath as the gzzk starts to gnaw on the pom attached to her Christmas hat. "That's-... Zoe, that's not for chewing..." she explains, looking a little unsure how to handle the situation. She lowers the gzzk away from her hat but it doesn't let go, leaving her head tilted to the side and a consternated

Leah draws in a deep breath, Nathan's understanding seeming to help ease whatever tension had worked its way into her shoulders. But when he continues her green eyes widen and she's quick to shoot a brief glance back over her shoulder. But confirming that nobody is listening in isn't enough to deter the crimson in her cheeks from deepening. Extending her leg, she gives Nathan's leg a sharp, disapproving poke with her foot.

Francois stands up a bit straighter rather than leaning over the dining room table as he was. That gentle smile remains as Sofia explains her worries. The question once again causes his gaze to turn to Tara, smile growing as he watches her struggle with Zoe. "Oh, I don't think you have anything to worry about, Sofia." he offers, hand coming to rest on the edge of the table as he turns his attention back to the woman at his side.

Nathan gives a very dramatic mock-up of him clutching at his poked leg and writhing in agony, as if she has just broken his leg into itty-bitty pieces. However, he quickly drops the act and leans towards her with a shit-eating grin, sneaking a glance over her shoulder and prodding her in return, this time with his finger against her shoulder. "And there's that smile. You're loving this," he teases, unable to help himself

Sofia seems to relax a modicum at his words, her own gaze falling to Tara as well. She can't help but giggle at the poor girls predicament. She turns back to Francois as he continues on, her mismatched gaze raptly on him. As he finishes, she hums softly and her eyes flick down to the table in silent thought and contemplation. "I... see." She chews once more on her inner cheek. She needs to keep that in mind. But Francois'

Tara soon loses her hat as she sets Zoe down on the floor. There's a bemused look on her face as the gzzk meets her gaze with an innocent look in its four eyes, one ear twitching and the hat dangling by the pom from its mouth.

Leah scoffs. "Wha-...! I don't know what you're talking about!" she offers in a stilted denial overtop the tail end of his initial accusation, but the persisting smile that she seems unable to get a handle on betrays her words. His continued teasing prompts her to suck in her lips to try and hide away her smile but the big dimples in her cheeks still give it away. "Hmmm?" she hums, giving her best unamused face. "Is that so?"

Francois offers a soft snicker of his own as Zoe seems to win the battle. "But to answer your question?" he offers before Sofia has a chance to set off. "You should talk to her no differently than you're talking to me. Just... be patient with her. She might not always know how to respond..." he continues, well aware of the young girl's struggles with breaking old habits that have been engrained in her by a lifetime of hardships,

Nathan at her as he watches her try to fight her futile battle against smiling. He knows he has that victory, he just knows it. And the fact she's gone straight to the acts of violence all but confirms it for him. He shuffles towards her, almost practically bouncing on the couch with how soft it is, and leans in close, shit eating grin carved onto his face. "You promise so much, yet we both know you'll just tuuuuurn to putty.

Sofia turns her attention back to Francois when he speaks, her smile growing smaller, just still maintaining the sincerity of before. Francois isn't too far off reminding her of her own father. Although Francois has a much better way with words. Her father is much more blunt about things. Side effect of being a military man she supposes. His finalising words and the pat on her shoulder causes her to smile to widen once

Tara looks up upon hearing Sofia's voice, although her words cause her attention to return to Zoe, eyebrows furrowing slightly. "It's... too big." she states matter-of-factly after considering the prospect for a moment. She reaches out again to try and grab the hat. "Zoe... you-" The gzzk escapes her, rolling across the floor as it wrestles with the hat, pawing and biting. Tara's extended hand lowers, and she's left to look on with a

Leah gives a playful roll of her eyes at Nathan's confidence and she leans back a bit when he leans in, just out of reach for no other reason than to be difficult. Gotta count your little victories. "Uh huh. Cuz you're just sooo~ irresistable." she taunts sarcastically through a grin of her own before bringing a hand up and pressing her palm against his face to give him a push.