Chapter 65: Divorced From The Truth
Buffy's shock at being invited out for dinner with my 'family' was quickly swapped out for annoyance when I told her to extend it to Joyce as well. But she did so with only a little bit of grumbling and promised the duo would meet us at the International House of Pancakes.
Our phantom is quite excited to be going out to do something normal and is practically bouncing with each step. Of course Angel is busy explaining some of the societal changes since the seventies while we wait to be seated when Dennis makes a few out of date comments.
"Racist robot..." Fred's pinched expression meets my tired eyes as Tara starts to back up her 'aunt's' words. "Was really not expecting that."
"Good thing he's not staying at the hotel."
He'd probably get turned into scrap for treating one of the crew like the help.
Mary's groan is followed by her stepping in to settle things with Dennis. Of course since the phantom is supposed to be our father, Mary's public tongue lashing is more than a little amusing.
It does the job though and soon the android is promising not to repeat his more colourful phrases.
He never apologized for any of them though, makes me leery about what he might try teaching the girls.
With Darla spending the evening with Giles, it at least means the evening should be free of any unnecessary tension.
Not sure why she volunteered to spend an evening with the Watcher. But I'm not going to turn up my nose if my newest responsibility wants to be helpful.
We barely get our pitcher of water before the Summers ladies arrive in clothes that put Dennis and myself to shame.
Really need to ask Lorne if he still wants to throw out my wardrobe. If I'm going to be taking Fred out more often, I need something better than work clothes.
"This was unexpected but certainly a welcome invitation," Joyce greets us with a smile that nearly conceals a tenseness to her posture. "And it seems this isn't the only thing I need to thank you for. Buffy's grades have only been improving since she befriended your sister."
"Mom!" An incredibly embarrassed Buffy flushes pink.
Rolling her eyes, Joyce's amusement seems to wipe away the stress.
At least for one meal. "I'm just happy I don't have to worry about you repeating senior year now."
"Wasn't that bad..." Staring hard at her menu, Buffy tries to stop the teasing from working. The way her ears go red just proves the attempt failed though and I make sure not to smirk.
"You're the one running around with a gang. Don't blame me for being worried about you." Joyce's hard stare bores into her daughter's head and I realize this is Joyce still in the dark about everything.
Holding in a wince at my failure to remember the entire timeline perfectly, I try to do some damage control. "Are you talking about Charles and Alonna Gunn?"
Nodding stiffly at the names, Joyce reveals she has been doing her own motherly investigation of Buffy's social life. "The ones who 'pranked' the dance."
"I think Buffy left some important details out..." Trying to make Buffy stay silent with a discreet wink from behind my own menu, I spin things as best I can. "Because I've been to the Hyperion and it's a medical clinic for the underprivileged."
Shock fills Joyce's face as she turns to her child. "... You aren't in a gang?"
"No." Crossed arms and a hurt voice is Buffy's response.
"Buffy's been helping me volunteer for weeks now," Tara is quick to support her best friend with our fibbing.
Catching on quicker than I would have expected, Buffy spins the yarn even further. "I thought they could help Billy."
"Oh." The name of the werewolf Buffy has known most of her life is enough for Joyce to start 'understanding' the secrecy. "And you didn't tell me because?"
"I didn't know if he was going to make it." The grim words slip right out of the Slayer's mouth before she has a chance to censor herself. "I just didn't want to talk about it once I got home."
"Is that why you're buried in your diary whenever you are actually home?" Joyce starts making connections to the change in her daughter's behaviour.
Shrugging off the concern, Buffy tries to deflect by throwing me under the bus. "Mister Doyle suggested it and it's really been helping me cope with..." Her face contorts for a brief moment in wry amusement. "Stuff."
"How's it been coming?" Unable to resist the temptation, I take the bait Buffy dangled for me. "Did you come up with an outline for the story yet?"
"Actually?" Scared about being judged for academic interest, Buffy only continues when she realizes no one at the table will laugh. "I think I'm almost done with my first draft. Could you take a look at it over the holidays?"
Shock swiftly changes into excitement at the idea of Buffy having actual interests outside of violence. "Of course I can. I'll send it back with Tara after she spends Christmas in Sunnydale."
"You live in Sunnydale?" Curiosity surges from Joyce. "What's it like?"
With that unintentional opening, I do my best to steer the Summers women away from the deathtrap. It doesn't work of course and when I find out she's already purchased a house, I switch to giving her the upsides.
"You'll be lucky to see a live show unless you like local talent. And the Mayor has some pretty heavy restrictions put in place on anything broadcast in town."
Really just adds more to the explanation for why the teens have so many references from some weird mixture of the good old days. "But as long as your tastes aren't too modern, the art scene is pretty decent."
"That's a relief. I was worried I was going to be bankrupt by the end of the year." Joyce explains how she's leased the art gallery in town and was worried Sunnydale wouldn't have enough interest with a population under fifty thousand.
Thinking back on my memories of the show, I know she does better than ninety percent of new businesses just by virtue of not closing down the same year she opens. "Expect to be expanding before too long. And if you really want to do well, just tell Buffy to make friends with Cordelia."
Conversation starts to bounce between topics when our food is brought out, with Dennis being the one who surprisingly takes charge of the majority. He does splendid at sticking to the cover story and none of his embellishments turn out to be retcons I need to correct.
"I've been married three times and I can admit the loneliness can get bad some nights." The phantom has seemingly mastered his facial expressions when gives Joyce a sympathetic smile. "But I at least got four wonderful children out of it. Just worried I might have passed that trait on to my kids since the oldest two both got separated this year."
Mary doesn't react with anything beyond some words of encouragement towards Joyce. But I get tense as I notice how many curious eyes are on me right now.
"You're divorced?" Confused at my young age, Joyce's eyes narrow as she tries to do mental math.
"Not yet, Harry hasn't sent the paperwork yet."
She told me not to contact her in the message, so I kind of have to wait until she does.
"What happened?" Buffy is desperate for answers she can apply to her own situation and it's obvious at by the way her eyes keep darting to her mother. "Who's fault was it?"
Stiffly shrugging at the question, I try to give an answer that isn't going to make me look terrible. "Mostly mine."
"What did you do?" Fred is shocked into breaking her silence, her brown crinkling into one of the deepest frowns I've ever seen her have.
"Felt sorry for myself for too long and she got tired of watching me self destruct."
No point sugar coating the mistakes made before I became Doyle, I have no emotional attachment to them. "A marriage is a partnership and I was just letting Harry row us around in circles."
That's what happens when only one person is rowing.
Mary proves to have some actual emotional intelligence though and takes over the conversation with a warm tone directed at a concerned Buffy. "Children aren't the ones to blame for a divorce. If it truly was your fault, they'd have just put you up for adoption instead."
"OF course it's not your fault!" Gasping at the words, Joyce pulls her daughter into a tight hug. "Hank and I have been fighting for years." Despite her cries of protest, Buffy doesn't actually resist the kisses being peppered onto her head right now.
