Fantasy So Night Follows Day by TMaskedWriter

[Ramesh_Rocky]

Helen had gone back outside to smoke while she called Generalissimo Ramirez. Troy went with her, leaving Mander alone again with Julie and Susan. Julie had gotten everyone a beer from the fridge, and Helen approved Mander for one.

"Is there an issue here?" Susan asked him.

"Nah, 'at ain't it." Mander replied. "Jes' 'at 'Er Countessness' is givin' me enough to be able to say when I can and can't 'ave one."

"So, Mrs. Equals." Mander started to say before Julie raised her hand.

"I'm guessing that we're going to be seeing a lot of each other this week, Mr. Mander. I'm Julie, that's Susan, and the guy out there with Helena is Troy."

"Thank you, Julie, Susan. Nigel, I prefer Mander. So, I get that yer mates from way back, excep' you bein' recent, Susan. But you an' Mr. Equals've been wit' 'er from the start, but 'e and Susan call 'er Helen, an' you call 'er Helena."

Julie made sure they were both out of earshot before leaning in to say quietly.

"I call her Helena because that's what she prefers. Also because Propappou gave her the name, and I still fucking hate Wade and hope he's screaming in torment somewhere. But Helena Medina was going to be Troy's grandmother when Propappou adopted her, and it never happened, so she says it hurts if he calls her Helena much. None of us are blood relatives, Mander. That said, I'll be the first to admit that we have a... unique family dynamic."

"I'd agree there."

Susan spoke up.

"We're past it now, but we had problems at first, and I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. We talked, and I'm starting to get why they blow so much stuff off as 'That's Our Helen,' so, she's just Helen to me."

Mander thought for a second.

"Medina? Oh, yeah. She'd said you two picked the name Equals together. Bein' equals an' all, I suppose."

"I love this one, Julie. Can I get it?" Julie took her hand and nodded. "That's part of it, yes. 'Partners-in-Everything' is a phrase you might hear around here a bit. The other part is because as far as Troy is concerned, 'Julie equals Best Friend, equals True Love, equals Absolute Trust.'"

"And Troy equals all those things for me." Julie replied before turning to kiss Susan. "And so does this one."

"If there was a House Equals coat-of-arms," Susan told him. "The Latin at the bottom would say: Best Friends, True Loves, Partners-In-Everything."

"I kind of like your old idea for the motto, too." Julie told her with another smooch.

"'At's beautiful, 'at is. So, the Master/Mistress deal, that's like a..." He made a gesture of cracking a whip. "'At kind of thing?"

Julie gave a look to Susan that said, "I'm tired of this one, you wanna take it, too?" Susan kissed her back and turned to Mander again.

"Strangely enough," Susan said. "Say, ninety-five times out of a hundred, it has nothing to do with that..."

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