Memphis, Mitchell's residence - Sunday
It was beyond Cameron how Portalocity managed to actually time their portal just right so that no one witnessed him and Veronica stepping out of the portal from San Fransisco into his world's Memphis. Either way, their system seemed to work and he breathed a sigh of relief as he shifted the bags he was carrying and turned towards Veronica.
"We're just a block away from my house," he informed her, looking excited to be home. While he'd enjoyed every second of their trip along the ocean side, he'd missed his family immensely.
Veronica nodded and managed a nervous smile. "Are you sure you want me here? Maybe you should spend some time with your parents alone."
Tilting his head, he gave her an amused look. "Do I sense the great Veronica Mars being nervous?" he teased lightly, quite possibly because he was still safe and not meeting her father.
"Maybe a little," she admitted. "What if your parents hate me?"
He wanted to tell her that wasn't going to happen, but his parents hadn't been all that fond of Vala. This seemed different, though, as they'd proven that he could have a girlfriend without losing sight of his future. "Then we keep the visit short," he said simply.
Veronica sighed. "I'll be on my absolute best behavior," she promised.
Dropping one bag to the ground, he reached up and touched her cheek. "I don't think you need to worry."
She inclined her head into his touch and smiled again. "I just want this to go smoothly."
"So do I," he smiled back at her. "They know we've been together for over half a year and that you've been good to me."
"I've tried," Veronica agreed, leaning up for a quick kiss. "Okay, let's get this over with."
Cameron chuckled and gently kissed her back. "It will be fine," he assured her before reaching down to pick up his bag again.
She adjusted her bags and nodded. "It will be totally fine."
"It will be," he agreed, wishing he wasn't carrying any bags so he could take her hand. He settled for just walking as close to her as he could without having the bags constantly bump into her instead. "Now my sister is called Emily and the dog is called Ray. So don't swap those names around."
Veronica laughed. "It will be hard, but I think I'll manage."
Cameron grinned. "See? I picked a smart girl."
"At least you know it," she teased.
"I have excellent survival instincts," he joked and unconsciously picked up the pace as he spotted his house already.
Veronica walked in silence until they reached the door. "Your parents don't know anything about how weird Fandom is, right?" she double-checked. "And I managed to edit the graduation video so it ends right after the diplomas."
"They don't," he replied just as there was excited barking from the other side of the door as Ray had spotted them before they knocked. "And you rock," Cameron added hastily, leaning down to quickly kiss her cheek in thanks.
"Ewwwwwwwww. Gross," Emily complained as she just pulled open the door. "Moooooom, they're not inside yet and Cam's already being disgusting."
It was hard not to laugh at that. "You must be Emily," Veronica said. "I'm Veronica. And your brother is always gross. He can't help it though; all boys are."
"Uh huh, brothers even more so," Emily assured her.
"Hey! That's no way of saying hi," Cameron protested while struggling with Ray as the dog was more than happy to greet him. Somehow Cameron managed to get him down and the instant he did, Emily glomped him. "Better," he decided, happily hugging her back.
"I don't have any brothers or sisters," Veronica told her. "So I wouldn't know."
"Be happy," Emily said, although she didn't look like she minded having a brother at all right now. "Cam's a dork." She cheerfully bounced back and held out her hand. "Hi, you must be Veronica."
"Yep," Veronica nodded, shaking her hand. "And your brother is a dork. But I kinda like him that way," she added in a mock-whisper.
"He's lucky some girls do," Emily smirked.
Cameron rolled his eyes at Emily and was about to retort when his mother pulled the front door further open.
"Emily, please stop mugging people in the doorway and actually let them inside the house," Mary chided her daughter and beamed as she looked at Cameron and Veronica. "Hi Veronica, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. Please, come on."
"Likewise, Mrs. Mitchell," Veronica replied, grinning as she stepped inside.
The minute Cameron stepped in, Mary quickly hugged him, holding him way tighter than was healthy. Not that Cameron complained as he dropped his bags and hugged her back. "You've grown," she informed him, blinking a bit as she pulled away. "And you should have called when you made it to the airport. We would have come to pick you up."
Cameron smiled. "I just wanted to show Veronica the sights a bit," he explained.
"Uh huh," Mary nodded and gave them both a knowing look. "Why don't you two go put everything upstairs? Your father is out in the garden so you can come join us in a bit."
"It wasn't that bad of a trip here from the airport," Veronica assured her. "And thanks, I'd like to freshen up for a moment." Yeah, she'd just stepped through a portal, but it sounded good.
Mary smiled. "I put everything you might need in Cameron's room," she said.
Cameron blinked. "I thought she'd be sleeping in Emily's room?" he asked confused.
"You've just graduated, Cammie," Mary pointed out.
"Yeah, but..."
Mary shook her head and Emily poked him in the side, whispering loudly for him to stop being an idiot and don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
Veronica looked a little surprised, too. "Um... thanks," she said, hoping that her cheeks weren't pink.
"Just don't give us a reason to make us change our mind," Mary said, but it didn't sound like a threat as she was more amused at Cameron gaping at her. "Really, Cameron, you keep forgetting that your father and I grew up in the 60s. Now go fresh up and there will be pie when you come down."
"Please tell me that you drink coffee," Veronica said. "Because I would love a cup."
"I think we can manage that," Mary assured her.
"They're addicts," Cameron supplied. "My life is filled with coffee addicts."
Veronica snickered. "It's not our fault you're a freak."
"He can't help it," Emily supplied cheerfully. "Mom and dad saved the awesome Mitchell genes completely for me."
Cameron rolled his eyes. "Just not the modest ones."
Emily stuck her tongue out at him and Cameron was more than happy to return the gesture.
Mary sighed at them both. "I'm sorry, but you'll probably be dealing with that a lot while you're here," she apologised to Veronica.
Veronica laughed. "That's okay. It kind of reminds me of me and my adopted brother from school. Though our arguments are generally over who's a better lock picker."
Mary stared at her. "Lock picking?"
Oops. "Um... we both grew up with cops for parents," Veronica explained. "It's just one of those things."
"Oh," Mary nodded. "Cam said that your father used to be a Sheriff."
Veronica nodded. "Yeah, he's a private investigator now though."
"Which you want to be?" Mary didn't quite ask as apparently Cameron had told her quite a bit already.
"That sounds cool," Emily piped up.
"I'm studying criminal justice in college," Veronica said. "And I've done a little bit of investigating, yeah."
"Like what?" Emily wanted to know.
Cameron groaned. "Don't answer that or we'll never get washed up."
Veronica scrambled to come up with an example that wouldn't pique Mary's concerns. "Well, one of my friends found out she was adopted and asked me to help her find her birth parents," she finally settled on. It wasn't quite the truth, since Mac had asked her to dig up dirt on her parents and inadvertently found out about the baby swap, but it sounded good.
"That's nice," Mary smiled. "Did you find them?"
"Yep, and my friend got to meet them," Veronica said. Also true, but in a very 'stretching-the-truth' kind of way. But it was far better than telling Cameron's mother tales about how many times she'd almost died.
"Cool," Emily said, then leaned in to whisper to Veronica. "You'll tell me a scandal later, right?"
Veronica raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think I have one to tell?" she whispered back.
Emily shrugged. "Just do."
Mary was frowning. "Emily, stop whispering and come help me out with the pie."
"And I'm going to go change so I can enjoy some pie and coffee," Veronica said, winking at Emily.
"I'm gonna... carry her bags," Cameron said quickly.
"Uh huh," Emily gave them a knowing look, but Mary rolled her eyes and grabbed her daughter by the elbow, tugging her along with her.
Veronica followed Cameron up the stairs. "So, I get to see your childhood bedroom. Do you have posters of half naked girls on the walls?"
Cameron spluttered, halting in his steps. "Dude..."
"What?" she asked innocently, bumping into his back.
"No," he frowned and looked at her over his shoulder. "Don't look under my bed."
Veronica started laughing. "Is that where you stash your girly mags? How predictable."
"Or just my dirty socks from two years ago," he pointed out, continuing up the stairs.
"You've got to have some kind of dirty secret I can discover while I'm here," she argued. "I'll just have to get your sister alone to find out what it is, I guess."
Cameron frowned as he led Veronica into his bedroom. He dropped his bag by the door and turned towards her. "You can't believe her."
"Oh really? And why is that?" Veronica asked, grinning up at him as she leaned against the door.
"She's my little sister?" he pointed out, stepping closer to her.
"Exactly. So she's definitely my go to source for stories," she said, still grinning.
"She exaggerates," Cameron argued, resting a hand right above her shoulder against the door.
Veronica smirked and rested her hand on his hip. "Exactly."
He shook his head, but smiled as he looked down at her. "I can't believe they're letting you sleep in here."
Hooking her fingers through his belt loop, she pulled him against her. "Me either. But I'm really glad. I like waking up with you."
Cameron chuckled, not minding being close at all. His hand moved off the door and he touched the side of her neck. "Lucky. So do I."
She smiled and tipped her head back for a kiss.
Which he was more than happy to supply, his thumb brushing along her jaw. "Still nervous?" he asked softly.
"Not so much," Veronica whispered, leaning into his touch.
"Good," he leaned his forehead against hers. "We really should freshen up a bit."
"Yeah, that long portal trip was so taxing," she joked.
He chuckled. "They don't know that," he pointed out.
"True," she agreed, leaning in for another kiss. "And we should probably get back downstairs before your mother decides that letting me sleep in your room is a bad plan."
Cameron chuckled, but pulled back after stealing one more kiss. "And that would be a shame," he agreed. "The bathroom's the second door to the left."
"Thanks," Veronica said, opening one of her bags and finding a clean shirt and her hairbrush. "See you in a few minutes."
"I'll be here," Cameron nodded and waited for Veronica to leave the room so he could make sure there really wasn't anything under the bed.
A few minutes later she returned in her fresh shirt with her hair very obviously newly brushed. She grinned when she caught him looking under the bed. "Trying to remove the incriminating evidence?"
"There's nothing incriminating here!" Cameron protested. He wasn't blushing, really.
She laughed. "Uh huh. Whatever you say, baby. You are so cute when you blush."
"I'm not blushing," he protested, getting up to grab his clean clothes.
"Liar," she accused lightly.
"Not," he argued, kissing her cheek as he passed her on his way to the door.
She shook her head and put her dirty clothes in the back pocket of her suitcase. Then she 'accidentally' dropped something and she got down on the floor and peeked under the bed.
There was a chocolate bar lying in plane sight with a small note on top 'There's nothing dirty here!'.
Veronica laughed when she spotted the candy. She picked it up and put it in her bag, determined to try harder to find Cameron's dirty secrets. She headed downstairs to join him and his family.
Cameron was talking to his father in the kitchen. He was leaning against the counter and watching as Irwin moved about on the crutches. They both looked up when Veronica joined them
"You must be Veronica," Irwin said right away as Cameron gave her a reassuring smile.
"I am," she confirmed, smiling at both of them. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Mitchell."
"Same," Irwin smiled and moved his weight to one crutch so he could hold out his hand. "We've heard a lot about you."
Veronica shook his hand. "I hope it was all good," she said, casting a glance in Cameron's direction.
"I don't think he's capable of saying a bad thing about you," Irwin chuckled.
Cameron was frowning. "I'm standing right here."
"Oh, honey, there you are," Veronica teased. "And I'm pretty sure you are capable of saying bad things about me."
"Do not," he pouted.
"I didn't say you did," she clarified, grinning at his dad. "I just said you're capable."
"Hmph," Cameron frowned at her.
Irwin chuckled and changed the subject. "Cameron said that you taped the graduation ceremony for us?"
"Yeah, all but the very end," Veronica said. "My battery died right after the diplomas."
"Shame, but at least we have that much," Irwin said, not having a clue why Cameron was staring at his feet.
Veronica grinned. She had no problem with lying. "It was a beautiful ceremony."
"I'm sorry to have missed it," Irwin said with a sigh.
"It wasn't that big a deal," Cameron said quickly.
Irwin raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, it was."
"It was really crowded. And hot," Veronica said. "You'd have probably been very uncomfortable."
Cameron nodded in agreement. "And you get to see it on tape anyway."
"I suppose, but it would have been nice to see you all dressed up," Irwin sighed.
"We can get all dressed up while we're here," Veronica offered.
Irwin considered it. "That could be fun. What do you think Cam?"
Cameron shrugged. "Sure, I guess. Why not?"
Veronica grinned. "Sounds perfect. I even have a new dress."
"Really?" Cameron perked up and ignored his father laughing at him.
"Yes, really," Veronica said, also laughing.
"Cool. Have I seen it?" he asked curiously.
"Don't make us regret putting you two in a room together," Irwin warned.
"No, you haven't," Veronica said. "And we won't, sir," she promised, turning to Irwin. "I'm not that kind of girl."
"I didn't mean to imply that," Irwin assured her, "but I know when my boy is in love."
Veronica smiled softly. "Yeah, well... that feeling is mutual."
Cameron moved behind her and slipped his arms around her waist as he kissed her cheek.
"I'm glad," Irwin said softly, seemingly happy for his son.
"I'm glad I finally got to meet you," Veronica said. "Cam talks about you guys a lot."
"Is that so?" Irwin looked at Cameron. "Funny how that doesn't mean he calls us a lot."
"I'm not that bad," Cameron complained.
"I'll make sure he calls at least once a week until he leaves for the Academy," Veronica promised.
"Hmmm," Irwin grin. "I think I like her."
"Yeah well, she's mine," Cameron said without thinking.
Veronica looked over her shoulder. "Oh, I am?"
He nodded seriously.
Irwin shook his head. "You're on your own now, son."
Veronica flashed a grin at Irwin before turning to face Cameron, hands on her hips. "So you think you own me?" she asked, her eyes narrow.
"Uh huh," Cameron beamed at her and bumped her nose. Yeah, he was so dead.
"I think you're sadly, sadly mistaken," she informed him.
Cameron tilted his head, giving her a cheeky grin. "I don't think I am."
Veronica reached up as if she were going to smack that grin right off of his face.
He quickly darted back, still looking very smug. "Yep, so my girl," he nodded and then ducked out of the kitchen.
Irwin sighed. "Please, don't actually kill him."
"I won't," Veronica promised, taking off after Cameron.
((Preplayed with marsheadtilt. Not open for interaction obviously. OOC comments are love.))
"We're just a block away from my house," he informed her, looking excited to be home. While he'd enjoyed every second of their trip along the ocean side, he'd missed his family immensely.
Veronica nodded and managed a nervous smile. "Are you sure you want me here? Maybe you should spend some time with your parents alone."
Tilting his head, he gave her an amused look. "Do I sense the great Veronica Mars being nervous?" he teased lightly, quite possibly because he was still safe and not meeting her father.
"Maybe a little," she admitted. "What if your parents hate me?"
He wanted to tell her that wasn't going to happen, but his parents hadn't been all that fond of Vala. This seemed different, though, as they'd proven that he could have a girlfriend without losing sight of his future. "Then we keep the visit short," he said simply.
Veronica sighed. "I'll be on my absolute best behavior," she promised.
Dropping one bag to the ground, he reached up and touched her cheek. "I don't think you need to worry."
She inclined her head into his touch and smiled again. "I just want this to go smoothly."
"So do I," he smiled back at her. "They know we've been together for over half a year and that you've been good to me."
"I've tried," Veronica agreed, leaning up for a quick kiss. "Okay, let's get this over with."
Cameron chuckled and gently kissed her back. "It will be fine," he assured her before reaching down to pick up his bag again.
She adjusted her bags and nodded. "It will be totally fine."
"It will be," he agreed, wishing he wasn't carrying any bags so he could take her hand. He settled for just walking as close to her as he could without having the bags constantly bump into her instead. "Now my sister is called Emily and the dog is called Ray. So don't swap those names around."
Veronica laughed. "It will be hard, but I think I'll manage."
Cameron grinned. "See? I picked a smart girl."
"At least you know it," she teased.
"I have excellent survival instincts," he joked and unconsciously picked up the pace as he spotted his house already.
Veronica walked in silence until they reached the door. "Your parents don't know anything about how weird Fandom is, right?" she double-checked. "And I managed to edit the graduation video so it ends right after the diplomas."
"They don't," he replied just as there was excited barking from the other side of the door as Ray had spotted them before they knocked. "And you rock," Cameron added hastily, leaning down to quickly kiss her cheek in thanks.
"Ewwwwwwwww. Gross," Emily complained as she just pulled open the door. "Moooooom, they're not inside yet and Cam's already being disgusting."
It was hard not to laugh at that. "You must be Emily," Veronica said. "I'm Veronica. And your brother is always gross. He can't help it though; all boys are."
"Uh huh, brothers even more so," Emily assured her.
"Hey! That's no way of saying hi," Cameron protested while struggling with Ray as the dog was more than happy to greet him. Somehow Cameron managed to get him down and the instant he did, Emily glomped him. "Better," he decided, happily hugging her back.
"I don't have any brothers or sisters," Veronica told her. "So I wouldn't know."
"Be happy," Emily said, although she didn't look like she minded having a brother at all right now. "Cam's a dork." She cheerfully bounced back and held out her hand. "Hi, you must be Veronica."
"Yep," Veronica nodded, shaking her hand. "And your brother is a dork. But I kinda like him that way," she added in a mock-whisper.
"He's lucky some girls do," Emily smirked.
Cameron rolled his eyes at Emily and was about to retort when his mother pulled the front door further open.
"Emily, please stop mugging people in the doorway and actually let them inside the house," Mary chided her daughter and beamed as she looked at Cameron and Veronica. "Hi Veronica, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. Please, come on."
"Likewise, Mrs. Mitchell," Veronica replied, grinning as she stepped inside.
The minute Cameron stepped in, Mary quickly hugged him, holding him way tighter than was healthy. Not that Cameron complained as he dropped his bags and hugged her back. "You've grown," she informed him, blinking a bit as she pulled away. "And you should have called when you made it to the airport. We would have come to pick you up."
Cameron smiled. "I just wanted to show Veronica the sights a bit," he explained.
"Uh huh," Mary nodded and gave them both a knowing look. "Why don't you two go put everything upstairs? Your father is out in the garden so you can come join us in a bit."
"It wasn't that bad of a trip here from the airport," Veronica assured her. "And thanks, I'd like to freshen up for a moment." Yeah, she'd just stepped through a portal, but it sounded good.
Mary smiled. "I put everything you might need in Cameron's room," she said.
Cameron blinked. "I thought she'd be sleeping in Emily's room?" he asked confused.
"You've just graduated, Cammie," Mary pointed out.
"Yeah, but..."
Mary shook her head and Emily poked him in the side, whispering loudly for him to stop being an idiot and don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
Veronica looked a little surprised, too. "Um... thanks," she said, hoping that her cheeks weren't pink.
"Just don't give us a reason to make us change our mind," Mary said, but it didn't sound like a threat as she was more amused at Cameron gaping at her. "Really, Cameron, you keep forgetting that your father and I grew up in the 60s. Now go fresh up and there will be pie when you come down."
"Please tell me that you drink coffee," Veronica said. "Because I would love a cup."
"I think we can manage that," Mary assured her.
"They're addicts," Cameron supplied. "My life is filled with coffee addicts."
Veronica snickered. "It's not our fault you're a freak."
"He can't help it," Emily supplied cheerfully. "Mom and dad saved the awesome Mitchell genes completely for me."
Cameron rolled his eyes. "Just not the modest ones."
Emily stuck her tongue out at him and Cameron was more than happy to return the gesture.
Mary sighed at them both. "I'm sorry, but you'll probably be dealing with that a lot while you're here," she apologised to Veronica.
Veronica laughed. "That's okay. It kind of reminds me of me and my adopted brother from school. Though our arguments are generally over who's a better lock picker."
Mary stared at her. "Lock picking?"
Oops. "Um... we both grew up with cops for parents," Veronica explained. "It's just one of those things."
"Oh," Mary nodded. "Cam said that your father used to be a Sheriff."
Veronica nodded. "Yeah, he's a private investigator now though."
"Which you want to be?" Mary didn't quite ask as apparently Cameron had told her quite a bit already.
"That sounds cool," Emily piped up.
"I'm studying criminal justice in college," Veronica said. "And I've done a little bit of investigating, yeah."
"Like what?" Emily wanted to know.
Cameron groaned. "Don't answer that or we'll never get washed up."
Veronica scrambled to come up with an example that wouldn't pique Mary's concerns. "Well, one of my friends found out she was adopted and asked me to help her find her birth parents," she finally settled on. It wasn't quite the truth, since Mac had asked her to dig up dirt on her parents and inadvertently found out about the baby swap, but it sounded good.
"That's nice," Mary smiled. "Did you find them?"
"Yep, and my friend got to meet them," Veronica said. Also true, but in a very 'stretching-the-truth' kind of way. But it was far better than telling Cameron's mother tales about how many times she'd almost died.
"Cool," Emily said, then leaned in to whisper to Veronica. "You'll tell me a scandal later, right?"
Veronica raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think I have one to tell?" she whispered back.
Emily shrugged. "Just do."
Mary was frowning. "Emily, stop whispering and come help me out with the pie."
"And I'm going to go change so I can enjoy some pie and coffee," Veronica said, winking at Emily.
"I'm gonna... carry her bags," Cameron said quickly.
"Uh huh," Emily gave them a knowing look, but Mary rolled her eyes and grabbed her daughter by the elbow, tugging her along with her.
Veronica followed Cameron up the stairs. "So, I get to see your childhood bedroom. Do you have posters of half naked girls on the walls?"
Cameron spluttered, halting in his steps. "Dude..."
"What?" she asked innocently, bumping into his back.
"No," he frowned and looked at her over his shoulder. "Don't look under my bed."
Veronica started laughing. "Is that where you stash your girly mags? How predictable."
"Or just my dirty socks from two years ago," he pointed out, continuing up the stairs.
"You've got to have some kind of dirty secret I can discover while I'm here," she argued. "I'll just have to get your sister alone to find out what it is, I guess."
Cameron frowned as he led Veronica into his bedroom. He dropped his bag by the door and turned towards her. "You can't believe her."
"Oh really? And why is that?" Veronica asked, grinning up at him as she leaned against the door.
"She's my little sister?" he pointed out, stepping closer to her.
"Exactly. So she's definitely my go to source for stories," she said, still grinning.
"She exaggerates," Cameron argued, resting a hand right above her shoulder against the door.
Veronica smirked and rested her hand on his hip. "Exactly."
He shook his head, but smiled as he looked down at her. "I can't believe they're letting you sleep in here."
Hooking her fingers through his belt loop, she pulled him against her. "Me either. But I'm really glad. I like waking up with you."
Cameron chuckled, not minding being close at all. His hand moved off the door and he touched the side of her neck. "Lucky. So do I."
She smiled and tipped her head back for a kiss.
Which he was more than happy to supply, his thumb brushing along her jaw. "Still nervous?" he asked softly.
"Not so much," Veronica whispered, leaning into his touch.
"Good," he leaned his forehead against hers. "We really should freshen up a bit."
"Yeah, that long portal trip was so taxing," she joked.
He chuckled. "They don't know that," he pointed out.
"True," she agreed, leaning in for another kiss. "And we should probably get back downstairs before your mother decides that letting me sleep in your room is a bad plan."
Cameron chuckled, but pulled back after stealing one more kiss. "And that would be a shame," he agreed. "The bathroom's the second door to the left."
"Thanks," Veronica said, opening one of her bags and finding a clean shirt and her hairbrush. "See you in a few minutes."
"I'll be here," Cameron nodded and waited for Veronica to leave the room so he could make sure there really wasn't anything under the bed.
A few minutes later she returned in her fresh shirt with her hair very obviously newly brushed. She grinned when she caught him looking under the bed. "Trying to remove the incriminating evidence?"
"There's nothing incriminating here!" Cameron protested. He wasn't blushing, really.
She laughed. "Uh huh. Whatever you say, baby. You are so cute when you blush."
"I'm not blushing," he protested, getting up to grab his clean clothes.
"Liar," she accused lightly.
"Not," he argued, kissing her cheek as he passed her on his way to the door.
She shook her head and put her dirty clothes in the back pocket of her suitcase. Then she 'accidentally' dropped something and she got down on the floor and peeked under the bed.
There was a chocolate bar lying in plane sight with a small note on top 'There's nothing dirty here!'.
Veronica laughed when she spotted the candy. She picked it up and put it in her bag, determined to try harder to find Cameron's dirty secrets. She headed downstairs to join him and his family.
Cameron was talking to his father in the kitchen. He was leaning against the counter and watching as Irwin moved about on the crutches. They both looked up when Veronica joined them
"You must be Veronica," Irwin said right away as Cameron gave her a reassuring smile.
"I am," she confirmed, smiling at both of them. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Mitchell."
"Same," Irwin smiled and moved his weight to one crutch so he could hold out his hand. "We've heard a lot about you."
Veronica shook his hand. "I hope it was all good," she said, casting a glance in Cameron's direction.
"I don't think he's capable of saying a bad thing about you," Irwin chuckled.
Cameron was frowning. "I'm standing right here."
"Oh, honey, there you are," Veronica teased. "And I'm pretty sure you are capable of saying bad things about me."
"Do not," he pouted.
"I didn't say you did," she clarified, grinning at his dad. "I just said you're capable."
"Hmph," Cameron frowned at her.
Irwin chuckled and changed the subject. "Cameron said that you taped the graduation ceremony for us?"
"Yeah, all but the very end," Veronica said. "My battery died right after the diplomas."
"Shame, but at least we have that much," Irwin said, not having a clue why Cameron was staring at his feet.
Veronica grinned. She had no problem with lying. "It was a beautiful ceremony."
"I'm sorry to have missed it," Irwin said with a sigh.
"It wasn't that big a deal," Cameron said quickly.
Irwin raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, it was."
"It was really crowded. And hot," Veronica said. "You'd have probably been very uncomfortable."
Cameron nodded in agreement. "And you get to see it on tape anyway."
"I suppose, but it would have been nice to see you all dressed up," Irwin sighed.
"We can get all dressed up while we're here," Veronica offered.
Irwin considered it. "That could be fun. What do you think Cam?"
Cameron shrugged. "Sure, I guess. Why not?"
Veronica grinned. "Sounds perfect. I even have a new dress."
"Really?" Cameron perked up and ignored his father laughing at him.
"Yes, really," Veronica said, also laughing.
"Cool. Have I seen it?" he asked curiously.
"Don't make us regret putting you two in a room together," Irwin warned.
"No, you haven't," Veronica said. "And we won't, sir," she promised, turning to Irwin. "I'm not that kind of girl."
"I didn't mean to imply that," Irwin assured her, "but I know when my boy is in love."
Veronica smiled softly. "Yeah, well... that feeling is mutual."
Cameron moved behind her and slipped his arms around her waist as he kissed her cheek.
"I'm glad," Irwin said softly, seemingly happy for his son.
"I'm glad I finally got to meet you," Veronica said. "Cam talks about you guys a lot."
"Is that so?" Irwin looked at Cameron. "Funny how that doesn't mean he calls us a lot."
"I'm not that bad," Cameron complained.
"I'll make sure he calls at least once a week until he leaves for the Academy," Veronica promised.
"Hmmm," Irwin grin. "I think I like her."
"Yeah well, she's mine," Cameron said without thinking.
Veronica looked over her shoulder. "Oh, I am?"
He nodded seriously.
Irwin shook his head. "You're on your own now, son."
Veronica flashed a grin at Irwin before turning to face Cameron, hands on her hips. "So you think you own me?" she asked, her eyes narrow.
"Uh huh," Cameron beamed at her and bumped her nose. Yeah, he was so dead.
"I think you're sadly, sadly mistaken," she informed him.
Cameron tilted his head, giving her a cheeky grin. "I don't think I am."
Veronica reached up as if she were going to smack that grin right off of his face.
He quickly darted back, still looking very smug. "Yep, so my girl," he nodded and then ducked out of the kitchen.
Irwin sighed. "Please, don't actually kill him."
"I won't," Veronica promised, taking off after Cameron.
((Preplayed with marsheadtilt. Not open for interaction obviously. OOC comments are love.))