"BR'ANNA!" shouted as he threw his arms around her neck. Brianna had long enough to be thankful for fast reflexes before she had to wince at the volume screamed directly in her ear. Still, she wrapped him in a tight hug when he squeezed and gave her a sloppy kiss. Then she released him and waited to see what he would do... and more to the point, what his mother's reaction would be.

Adam leaned back slightly... just enough to allow his arms to release their hold so he could cup her face in his hands. He stared at her for long moments, moving close enough to touch their noses together, then tilt his head back with a laugh. Adam repeated this several times, laughing louder when Brianna crossed her eyes to keep him in view without moving her head.

Finally, he hugged her around the neck again, then patted her face with tender hands. "Br'anna good," he proclaimed and snuggled down into her lap. Brianna kissed his forehead and lifted her eyes to take in the rest of the room.

Meanwhile, Charisma started when Adam jerked his hand free of hers, then she watched his interaction with the woman who had once meant more to her than anyone else in the world. Charisma took a deep, shaky breath and wrenched her eyes away from Adam and Brianna when he bumped their noses together and then laughed. That was something that had always been theirs - something they hadn't shared with anyone else... even Kent - and now he was making Brianna part of their ritual.

Charisma turned at the light touch on her back, tilting her head just slightly to look into Saphira's blue eyes. When Saphira opened her arms wide, Charisma gave an almost audible sigh of relief and stepped into the hug she needed. Esmeralda released her hand and Charisma embraced Saphira fully for a long moment. Then she withdrew and turned to Ruby, hand extended.

"Hi. I'm Charisma Tagherty. And the wild man across the table is supposed to be my son Adam, though I don't actually recognize him at the moment. He's usually much more reserved."

Ruby laughed and accepted Charisma's hand. "I'm Ruby. And I wouldn't worry about it - he's just being a kid."

"I guess," Charisma agreed hesitantly. "It's just so different from what I'm used to." She paused, unable to find a good way to phrase her question, but wanting to know. "So how do you know Esmeralda and Saphira?"

Ruby laughed, her good humor coming to the fore. "I've known Es and Saphira forever, it seems like. I came in to help out while Es is recovering."

"Good," Charisma said firmly. "I'm glad."

Ruby patted the hand resting on her arm. "Me too, Charisma."

"You too, what?" Esmeralda asked and Charisma realized the rest of the room had gone silent waiting for Ruby's answer. She felt Brianna's eyes on her and she turned to meet them, wondering at the emotions she could see swirling in their depths. So she nearly jumped when Ruby spoke unexpectedly.

"I'm glad I'm here, Es. Aside from being able to help you and Saphira out, I'm enjoying being here. Meeting your friends is a bonus because they are interesting people."

Charisma smirked at Brianna. "At least we are considered interesting."

Brianna held her gaze steadily. "I was happier to be considered a friend."

Charisma bit her lip and looked away from Brianna. "Maybe this was a bad idea," she mumbled, turning to look at Esmeralda. But before she could say anything else, Esmeralda cut in.

"No, Charisma - it wasn't. C'mon... let's sit down and eat before all the hard work Ruby did with the food Brianna provided goes to waste. Besides," she continued without giving Charisma an opportunity to object, "I want Saphira to meet Adam. I have a feeling they will get on splendidly."

Charisma wanted to balk at Esmeralda's suggestion, but one look at the contentment on her son's face made her acquiesce with grace. She nodded her agreement to Esmeralda and was soon seated between her and Ruby. She met Brianna's eyes, watching her thoughtfully.

"Would you like me to take him?" she offered softly while motioning to Adam. "It can get quite difficult trying to eat and feed him."

Brianna's lips barely quirked, but Charisma recognized the gesture as swiftly hidden mirth. She took a deep breath to release the flash of anger she felt at being laughed at, then cocked her head in question. Brianna read her expression perfectly.

"I'm not laughing at you, Charisma. I've dealt with far worse than Adam in my life." She paused. "Lawyer, remember?" Brianna leaned forward and whispered in Adam's ear. He clambered over Brianna's lap and into the chair next to her, waiting for her to tuck his napkin into his collar before reaching for his plate. Esmeralda stopped him with a hand on his.

"We need to say grace first, Adam." His eyes widened, but he didn't move. Everyone else bowed their heads. "For that which we are about to receive, the Lord has made us most truly thankful. Amen."

"Amen," the rest murmured. Adam looked around and nodded.

"AMEN!" he declared, drawing chuckles from around the table. He smiled, well-pleased with the reaction he had garnered, then turned his attention to Esmeralda. "Eat now?" he asked.

"Eat now," she assured him with a smile. "What would you like?"

Adam climbed up on his knees so he could see the table better. Brianna naturally placed a hand on his back and held on even as she continued to serve herself from the food being passed around the table. Charisma chanced to wonder where she'd learned her behavior, because Charisma distinctly remembered her own steep learning curve.

Once Esmeralda had taken care of filling Adam's plate, she sat down in her seat, only to find that Saphira had taken care of preparing hers. She smiled at her mate. "Thank you, love."

Saphira pointed a finger at her. "Just make sure you eat."

Esmeralda stuck out her tongue, and then found it caught by chubby, mashed potatoed hands. "MINE!" Adam chortled. The laughter that followed that pronouncement was loud and long. It took a few minutes before they were able to settle down without bursting into another wild gale of laughter by simply looking at each other. Esmeralda reclaimed her tongue from Adam's grasp and wiped his hand clean. He grinned.

"Es good," he stated confidently.

"Well," Esmeralda agreed without missing a beat. "Es is something all right."

Unexpectedly, Brianna turned to Charisma. "You mentioned the other day that Adam was in school," waiting for Charisma to nod. "He seems a little young for that," she commented, hoping Charisma wouldn't perceive it to be an accusation but an interested inquiry instead.

"He is, a little - at least for regular school. It is more than daycare and less than school. But the people who oversee the kids are certified teachers, so we call it school. He enjoys it and he's learning a lot - he'll be more than ready for school when it's time for him to go off to kindergarten."

"Is that a good thing?" Ruby asked, eyes widening when Charisma turned burning blue eyes in her direction. "Wait - I don't mean the being ready for kindergarten part. I think all children should know their letters and numbers and colors - you know... the basic stuff. But is it really fair to a child to make them start learning math and science and reading when they're so young? Is it so wrong to let them simply be kids?"

"I don't think it's wrong," Charisma replied softly. "I just think it's impossible."

"I don't understand," Saphira stated. "If it's not wrong for a kid to be a kid, why is it impossible?"

Charisma sighed. Though she'd had no clear course of action in mind when she'd decided to try this today, she certainly had never expected Adam to be the main topic of conversation. On the other hand, his presence had managed to break the ice in more ways than one. And in fairness, she understood that it was curiosity and not condemnation that drove the current line of questioning.

But before she could speak, Brianna presented a response. "From my observations, it's impossible because society had declared it to be. These days, your kid has to be faster, better, brighter and as a parent, you're required to do whatever you have to in order to have your child seen as such. No one wants an average child - everyone wants them to be exceptional."

"Well that seems somewhat unrealistic," Ruby commented with a frown. "If there's no average, how can you tell who's exceptional?"

"It's assumed," Charisma's disdain could be clearly heard in her tone, "that breeding will eventually out and their natural genius will assert itself as the child grows into school. But it's an accepted fact that without an early start, a child will never blossom into brilliance."

Ruby snorted. "That has got to be the stupidest idea I have ever heard."

"It is, really," Charisma agreed. "But it is also the way of things."

"And it didn't occur to you to try and change it?" Brianna asked, a hint of challenge in her tone. Charisma gave her a sharp look, then took a deep breath to keep from replying in the same manner.

"If I had been able to figure out a way without messing up his chances down the road perhaps." She looked around at the table. "It's not as bad as it sounds - the school Adam is in isn't so strictly structured that he isn't allowed to be a child at all during the day. It's one of the reasons Kent and I decided to send him there as opposed to any number of schools for young children that function strictly to teach. And it allows him time to play and be with children his own age."

"He doesn't get that interaction any other way?" Esmeralda asked, even though she knew the answer.

"Not as often as I'd like," Charisma replied while watching Adam eat. "My family... my parents and brothers... all live in the same part of my home state. And since they're there and we're here...."