Pre-wedding

[fiery_ring]

The arrangement was that Will would spend the night in Fred's caravan. What with the whole bad luck to see your bride before the wedding thing. The reality was that when he stumbled in at four in the morning, he fell over Wolf, Fred's guard dog, and nearly ended up with a broken arm.

Carlotta, unaware of this particular development, is getting ready in her caravan. Will is still in his boxers, in Fred's caravan, nursing a hangover.

Comments

[ikissdhimbck]

She watches Tommy with a slight, sympathetic twist of the lips.

He really is a good man.


She'll stay out here while Will is in a state of undress, and let the men talk.

[fiery_ring]

"Oh, er, hey Tommy." Will looks kind of embarrassed, especially as the dog is licking his nipples.

"I got a bit of wedding nerves."

[gavin62truck]

...Yeeeeah, Kate doesn't need to see this.

...And honestly, he doesn't need to see this either.

"Uh huh. I figured."

He holds out a hand to help him up.

"Had anything to drink last night?"

[fiery_ring]

"Just a couple." Will says.

Damnit, did he lose the hip flask last night? He was counting on that to get through talking to Carlotta's grandma.

He accepts the hand. Tommy might notice when he reaches out, he's got a slight tremor. Once he's up, he looks embarrassed again and shoves his hand in his pocket.

[gavin62truck]

Looks like more than just a couple. But Tommy's the last person who's going to judge him.

"As long as you can walk in a straight line down the aisle and stay upright at the altar, that's what matters at this point. Think you can you at least do that?"

[fiery_ring]

"Yeah, I can." Will says.

He hesitates, then adds.

"Look, I'm not that hung over, I just had a shake in that hand since the war. It only goes away if I had a drink. I kind of hoped it would be sorted for the wedding."

[gavin62truck]

He pauses, eying him with a more concerned frown.

"Oh. Jeezus. Sorry to hear that."

Glancing around the room, he says, "Guess there ain't nothin' here that you can take a sip of? ...Okay, bad idea, yeah, I know. Hell, if I still drank, I'd slip you a shot, but the last thing your wife probably wants is to smell booze on your breath."

[fiery_ring]

Will hesitates. Is this a trap to find out if he has a hair of the dog?

"Don't worry about it, she's seen it, I'll just keep my back to the crowd when I put the ring on."

Beat.

"Er, you can't see a jacket in here anywhere, can you?"

[gavin62truck]

Tommy honestly isn't looking for any hair of the dog...

But it seems that Will's jacket is now covered in it, as the puppy has decided to use it as a bed.

"Uh, is that it?" he asks, pointing.

[fiery_ring]

"...Uh oh. Yeah."

Beat.

"You know, it's a hot day, maybe I can manage without."

[gavin62truck]

"Nah, I'm sure we can salvage it. Awesome dog, by the way. What's his name?"

Tommy has a soft spot for dogs (especially the huge breeds) and so he crouches down and holds a hand out for him to sniff. "Hey, boy, c'mere. Let Will have his jacket back and you can have a big ol' chunk of wedding cake."

[fiery_ring]

"Wolf. He's Fred's, he's our bouncer so we got him the dog to help him guard the camp. About as fierce as a bunny." Will says.

Wolf licks and slobbers over Tommy's hand and sleeve, but doesn't budge.

[gavin62truck]

"Heh, yeah, these guys are usually just big sweethearts." Tommy grimaces at the slobber on his sleeve, but he's undaunted as he gives the dog hearty scratches behind the ears and belly rubs. "I've dealt with more crazy lapdogs who'd eat your face off if you get within five feet."

He then abruptly stops paying the dog attention and takes a few steps back. "C'mon, Wolf, c'mere, boy. C'mere, already."

[fiery_ring]

"Well, Fred reckons he'll grow to the size of a pony." Will says. "Which given we have a very small pony in our entourage, is looking likely."

He yoinks his jacket as Wolf gets up... and stares in dismay at the stain in the middle.

"Oh no, he's not housebroken."

[gavin62truck]

He looks at the jacket. "Ahh, crap. Looks like you're gonna end up with a small pony that enjoys slobbering on people and peeing all over the place."

He bends down and holds Wolf's head in his hands. "No wedding cake for you," he says, solemnly and sternly, but the dog probably doesn't care.

Giving Will's predicament some thought, he then suggests, "D'you maybe have a-- a vest? A waistcoat, or something? Just so's you can still look a little formal."

[fiery_ring]

"Um... performance jacket!" Will says. "It's a little bit sparkly but it won't be lit up so it probably won't be obviously."

[gavin62truck]

It's...very sparkly.


"...That could work," he says, not entirely convincingly, but hey, it's all they've got. "What exactly do you do in the circus anyways?"

[fiery_ring]

"I used to do a horse acrobatics act with Carlotta, before the war. But she had to change her act after she got shot, and she only has a small part where she isn't Ringmaster. I don't perform anything well enough to be a solo performer this season, especially out of practice, so I just do odd jobs now."

[gavin62truck]

"Holy shit, she got shot? Jeezus Christ. Well. Guess this's as good an occasion as any to put that jacket to good use again."

[fiery_ring]

"She served action in Europe." Will says, with a hint of pride visible. "Saved a lot of people. Unfortunately, I ended up stationed nearby and... kind of blew her cover by mistake. She said I redeemed myself by carrying her to safety after though."

He puts on the sparkly jacket, and tries to find his shoes.

"They sent her back home after. She founded the circus as Ringmaster because she was bored rigid hobbling around with a cane."

[gavin62truck]

"Goddamn. Sounds like the kinda story you'll be tellin' your grandkids."

Wolf is about to settle down and gnaw on something. Tommy snatches that something away just in time. "This one of your shoes?"

[fiery_ring]

"Well, I don't think we'll tell Molly just yet, she's too little and would be scared." Will says. "But I've seen Carlotta use the cane now and again, especially if it's a cold night, so I expect she'll ask about that."

He nods. "Yeah, that's one."

He finds the other one, covered in dog slobber. He sighs and rubs it in with his handkerchief.

[gavin62truck]

"Yeah, understandable. Sounds like you both went through hell and back to get to this point, so, y'know, it's great that you still wanna do this, to renew your vows. Not everybody's that lucky to even get a second chance. At least, not without blowing it."

Will's got his shirt and jacket and shoes... "I think you're all set, right? Kate might wanna say a proper hello before the ceremony, by the way. She just prefers to meet people for the first time when they have their pants on," he adds with a smirk.

[fiery_ring]

"Yeah, not everyone survived..." Will says quietly.

He nods. "Thanks. I'll head out there."

Just as he's stepping out, a teenage circus boy bangs on the side of the caravan from the opposite side Kate is standing at.

"Got your drunken arse out of bed yet?" he shouts cheekily, before running off. Will just about manages not to shout 'Everybody down!' at the bang.

Oh God, light...

[ikissdhimbck]

"Smart-mouthed li'l bastard."

Kate's looking around the side of the caravan for the teenager. That mutter wasn't meant for anyone's ears, but she isn't particularly upset Will might have heard her.

She straightens instantly.

"Good day, Mr. Francis. You look quite dapper."

It's a bit of an embellishment, but from the look on her face you'd never be able to tell.