She paused and then laughed slightly. "Well, I should probably let my dad know that we're thinking of coming," she said. "He'll probably want to invite the rest of the family."
"That's a good idea. I'm sure they'll be excited to hear that," he said casually, putting his hands in his pockets.
She smirked at him, her posture relaxed. "They'll probably be more happy to hear that you're coming," she said. "They weren't exactly... fond of Evan."
She thought for a minute, biting her lip. "Papa didn't talk about it too much, but I think he thought that Evan was pretty pretentious. Clara and Ed both thought he was too possessive," she said eventually. "George thought he was trying too hard. Em liked him, but only because he complimented her paintings, so..." She trailed off, and then shrugged. "Fairly negative reviews all around."
"Oh, boy. Should I be worried that they won't like me? I totally see where they come from, but what if they think I'm vain, or careless, or a 'player'?"
She smiled over at him affectionately and kissed his cheek quickly. "I know that you're not vain, and I know that you care more than just about anyone I know, and despite what your ex-fiancé wants me to believe, I'm fairly confident that you're not a player." She pressed a button on her watch, and she glanced up at him. "I love you, and I know they'll love you too, okay? Please don't worry about it."
Her words reassured him, and he sighed with relief. "Alright. It will all be okay. Thank you," he said softly, then kissed the top of her head.
"It will all be okay," she repeated, nodding. "I'm going to call him really quickly. You're welcome to stay here and listen, if you'd like."
"Sure, I'll stay. I've got nothing else to do." He crossed his arms. "I'll make sure you're not plotting against me."
She adopted a look of false innocence before dialing. "Me? I would never." Her watch rang three times before someone picked up. "Hello?" The voice was deep and quiet and it sounded slightly dazed as if it had been pulled away from stars. "Hey, Papa." "Poppy! Hello, my darling. How are you?" "I'm doing really, really well, Papa," Poppy said with a sideways glance at Francis. "How are you?" "Oh, I'm alright," he replied. "I'm struggling a little with this convolvulaceae. It's not cooperating. Is everything alright?" "Oh, yeah. I was actually wondering if it would be okay if I came home to see you guys on the 18th?" The other end was quiet for a moment. "Really?" "Yeah. I'd really like to see you guys, and I have someone I'd like you to meet." She raised her eyebrows at Francis cheekily before he responded. "Pops, that'd be wonderful. We'd love to see you. I bet Clara and Ed could get here by then. There's no-" He was cut off on his end by a younger, excited voice cutting through. "Is that Poppy?!" It sounded as if her father had put his hand on the watch to muffle the sound. His quiet words were difficult to make out, but the other voice rang through loud and clear. "Could I talk to her?" There was a noise that could have been an annoyed but good-hearted sigh, and then her father was back on the line. "Pops, Emma wants to talk to you." "Oh, oka-" Poppy began before she was abruptly cut off by the voice. It was slightly higher than Poppy's but clearly very excited. "Poppy, Poppy, Poppy!" Emma sang on the other end. "Hey Em," Poppy said affectionately, rolling her eyes at Francis. "Pops, Papa got these watercolors from the Lab, and he says that tomorrow, we're going to go look for a..." She hesitated and put a hand on the watch to muffle it, although her words were still audible. "What was it again?" Her father's quiet reply came, and Emma returned to the watch. "It's a Sarra-cenia purp-urea," she said carefully, trying to pronounce all the words. "It'll be in that conservatory up the street." "That sounds really cool, Em-" Poppy began before she was interrupted again. She smiled, and shook her head at Francis. "And he's going to teach me how to paint it! With watercolors now!" "Emma, that sounds wonderful," Poppy interjected, her voice calm from years of experience. "I can't wait to see it. I think we're going to come visit you guys in a couple days." "You're coming to visit?!" "That's the plan." "Ohmygodohmygod. Okay. That's going to be so cool!" She was quiet for a moment, and then she sighed. "Papa wants me to give you back now. I love you, Poppy." "Love you too, Em." The audio crackled slightly as the watch was passed back to her father. "Ahem. Anyway. The 18th sounds lovely. I think I can probably get the others there as long as..." He trailed off, and Poppy waited a few moments before nudging him slightly. "Papa?" "Oh! Right. You said you were bringing someone with you, Pops?" "Yes," she said softly, glancing over at Francis with a small grin. "I'm quite fond of him, Papa. I can't wait for you to meet him." "That's wonderful, my darling. I'm glad to hear it. Okay. Well, I'll see you soon, then?" "If all goes well." "Alright. Good. Good. We can't wait. I love you, Pops." "Love you too, Papa." The watch beeped twice, signifying the end of the call.
Francis laughed at the conversation. "Poppy, your family sounds absolutely lovely. I can't wait to meet them," he said, grinning at her.
She smiled back at him, rubbing the back of her neck. "They're eccentric, that's for sure," she said, slightly embarrassed. "But you've heard two out of the six now, so it's a start."
"I'm sure it will be fun," he said, lightly brushing her jaw with his fingers. "They seemed excited to hear that you're coming."
She leaned into his hand instinctually, a small smile crossing her face. "I haven't gone to see them since January. I think they just really want to do a full family get together."
"I'm not part of the family, though," he said, then added a "yet" under his breathe afterwards. "So it's a family reunion plus one."
(AAAAAW) Poppy thought that she heard him mutter something but she didn't bring it up. She only raised an eyebrow. "Well, I know they'll be really happy to meet you," she said softly, resting her hands on his shoulder. "And I love you. So it will have to all work out."
(I physically raised my hands in victory because that was the reaction I was hoping to get) His muscles were relaxed, and leaned forward to kiss her. "And I love you, so I'll make it work out too."
She kissed him back instinctively, the action feeling completely natural now. "Lovely," she said, grinning cheekily at him when they pulled apart. "What a pair we make."
