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Post by Sean Leviner on Feb 18, 2011 23:28:17 GMT -5
Sean just gave his brother a light smile, shrugging. "You're older. You can handle it."
Had he known that Dan was already plotting to get him to sleep, he'd already be fighting it. Just until these two cases were solved... he just had to help get Kryshna, and find Danica, and he'd sleep for a week straight. He didn't mind asking for a couple days off, even. But this was important.
"It must kill Mum not to ask questions."
He bit the inside of his lip, which was as good as chewed raw by now, and sighed. "Dan..."
It had come to his realization that if he kept this up, he was never going to sleep again. When these two cases were solved, there would only be more. And he needed to find some way to work without killing himself. He just couldn't bring himself to admit it or ask for help. Not yet. He could handle this on his own. He waved away his own word. "Nevermind."
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Post by Ellen Leviner on Feb 18, 2011 23:32:12 GMT -5
Ellen gave her husband another look, one that suggested she had half a mind to tell her boys they weren't allowed to have a dangerous job anymore. But she knew she couldn't do that. They were both grown, and good boys, and they were living their lives. She just wished she was better able to keep them safe.
"Eric... I know our boys. There's something wrong with Sean. I mean... really wrong. I know you see it too. And Daniel's hiding something from us."
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Post by Eric Leviner on Feb 21, 2011 1:46:02 GMT -5
Eric sighed and nodded. Yes, he had seen it. Both boys looked exhausted, but Sean had a hollow look about him, as though he were sinking into himself. It scared him, but he wasn't sure what to do about it. He could try to talk to him... but he and Sean had never really communicated well. He loved both of his boys equally, but Sean always seemed harder to reach somehow... and now it seemed worse than ever.
"I know, honey. I'll try to talk to him... Maybe he just has a really hard case he's working on. Maybe I can help him with it."
But deep down, Eric felt certain that whatever was troubling Sean had nothing to do with any case. Maybe it was connected, but this went deeper than that... Something was haunting him.
"I suppose it's useless to tell you not to worry, isn't it?" he added, looking up at her with a slight smile.
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Post by Daniel Leviner on Feb 21, 2011 8:41:52 GMT -5
Daniel knew that dinner was going to be a little stressful. He saw the look on his mother's face and knew that she wanted to ask questions. The same with his father. He knew that after dinner, his father was going to want to talk with them. There wasn't really any way that he could lie to them. Sure, Daniel could be a great liar, but not with his parents, especially his father. The truth was going to have to come out sooner or later.
The whole thing with Sean, Daniel didn't know exactly how that was going to go. It wasn't every day your child was gifted with being a seer. Daniel worried more about Sean than anyone else. He was very tempted to just give Sean a sleeping potion. He had already gotten the potion and hid it in one of his drawers, all he had to do was slip it into Sean's drink and let his brother sleep. Once the case was over, that was exactly what he planned to do.
When Sean said his name, Daniel looked over at him. "Hm?" he asked. He tried reading his face. He knew something was there, but Sean wasn't saying it. "What is it? It's not a nevermind." He raised an eyebrow. Part of him just wanted to have a sit down with Sean and they could just talk it out themselves, but that happened very rarely.
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Post by Sean Leviner on Feb 21, 2011 21:32:27 GMT -5
Of course Daniel would press, and Seann sighed, knowing he shouldn't have said anything at all. He tried to wave it off, saying he was just tired and not thinking, but that wouldn't work either. He rubbed his eyes, deciding to just make up something else on the spot. If he even hinted to Dan that he couldn't do this anymore, his brother would make him tell someone, and he couldn't do that.
"I just have a bad feeling it might happen in front of Mom and Dad. That's all. I don't want them to find out... especially not like that."
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Post by Daniel Leviner on Feb 23, 2011 14:26:01 GMT -5
The one thing about the Leviner brothers was that they could read each other better than anyone. Daniel knew that there was something else there, but he knew not to press too hard. "Well, I have a feeling that Dad will want to talk to us after dinner. Maybe we'll figure something out. If we have to, we can out right tell him. They know something is going on and we both know that just telling them that it's the case we're working on is not going to satisfy them."
He sighed and slouched in his chair. "For now, I think the answer might settle the dust, but we'll have to figure out something to say something to Dad."
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Post by Ellen Leviner on Feb 23, 2011 15:51:41 GMT -5
Deep down, Ellen knew it wasn't a case, either. But if it wasn't a case that was bothering their youngest, what kind of trouble did that mean he was in? She didn't want to even think about it.... but she couldn't help it.
"No, it won't do any good. I wish I was a wizard. Witch, whatever. Just so that you wouldn't have to worry so much... and that I could understand things that were going on. I know there's a lot you don't tell me.... and I'm sorry." She sighed and nodded. "Come on, the boys are probably starving." Ellen grabbed a dish and headed back into the dining room, eyebrows raised as she realized she clearly interupted a conversation between them.
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Post by Sean Leviner on Feb 23, 2011 15:53:51 GMT -5
Sean nodded, rubbing his hand over his eyes again. "Yeah, we'll figure it out. You can't tell Dad though. We can't. You know that."
But maybe they should. This was a secret that Sean couldn't burden between him and Daniel anymore.
He opened his mouth to say more, but closed it quickly when their mother appeared in the dining room again. "Hey Mum... smells fantastic."
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Post by Daniel Leviner on Feb 23, 2011 16:29:09 GMT -5
Before Daniel could respond, his mother's entrance stopped all thought about what they were going to mention to their father. He knew that their mother probably knew a lot more than they thought, but for right now they could continue to do what they always did, pretend that things were a little better than they really were.
Daniel smiled at their mother as she entered the dining room and sat up straight in his seat quickly. He remember the scolding she had given him when he was little about slouching at the table. "It does smell fantastic, much better than anything of ours we've attempted to make."
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Post by Eric Leviner on Mar 1, 2011 1:17:49 GMT -5
Sometimes Eric wondered whether he had done the right thing in marrying Ellen. He loved her deeply, and would never change a moment of their lives together, but sometimes he thought maybe it would have been better for her if he had let her go, instead of dragging her into this life. Even before Lord Voldemort and his death eaters had started their war on muggles and muggleborns, there had been a fair amount of bias and negativity towards non-purebloods. Marrying Ellen had been a risky move even then. He just loved her too much to let her go... but maybe he had been selfish. Maybe it would have been safer for her if she had married a nice dentist or an accountant.
He sighed to himself as Ellen carried a dish into the kitchen. He wanted to reassure her, to remind her that he would take care of her, no matter what happened, but he knew she already knew that.
Picking up another dish, he followed behind his wife. As he entered, he heard the boys' conversation come to an abrupt halt, and he shot a look at Daniel that very plainly said, we need to talk. It could wait until after dinner, but he was going to talk to one or both of the boys, no matter what happened.
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Post by Ellen Leviner on Mar 1, 2011 11:47:23 GMT -5
Ellen just sighed, fully aware that all three of the men in her life were keeping something from her in order to protect her, or whatever other noble thought they had in mind. And she was glad- this was how she raised her boys, and one of the reasons she loved Eric- but she hated when it was used on her.
But she would trust Eric to get it out of them later, and she could get it out of him later than that.
"I probably should have taught you two to cook before I let you move out, hm? Go ahead and help yourselves, before it gets cold. Does anyone need anything?" Sean shook his head, and the other two looked fine, so she nodded and put on her best smile for them.
"Well, your father and I are very happy that you made it tonight. How is everything? Work, love lives?"
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Post by Daniel Leviner on Mar 1, 2011 12:17:08 GMT -5
Daniel shot Sean a look saying the he better eat something. As of late, Sean hadn't been really hungry, but tonight he had to put on a show for their parents. After all, it was apparent that they were already worried about them. Knowing their mother, things could get worse if they didn't eat.
He had also caught the look from his father. Daniel wasn't exactly sure what he was going to say to him, because there was no way that he could tell Sean's secret. How was their father going to react if he knew the ability Sean had? Their mother didn't let him wonder on how he was going to answer any questions his father threw at him for too long before she started to speak.
"We're glad you cooked tonight," Daniel spoke up and made sure to smile as he started to put food on his plate. "I'm getting tired of making those frozen food things. I think Sean actually burned one the other day." He tried to insert a little bit of lightness into the conversation to help ease the tension. "As for work, it's busy as always. There's always something new going on. The love life, well, for me is still pretty much non-existent. Haven't met a girl that I think I should bring home yet."
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Post by Sean Leviner on Mar 1, 2011 17:19:02 GMT -5
Sean caught the look from his father to Dan, and then the one Dan shot at him. Had the situation not been so serious, and had he not been so tired, he would have laughed at the absurdity of it all.
To keep from getting kicked under the table by his brother, he started loading up his plate, even managing a laugh when Dan accused him of burning a frozen dinner. Hey, he couldn't deny that it had happened, even if he remembered it being Daniel who burned it.
As his mother smiled and nodded at Daniel, and her eyes turned to him, Sean just shrugged. "I don't know. Work's fine, just busy. The cases seem to be piling up by the day. And there's this girl I've taken to lunch a couple of times, but it's not anything."
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Post by Eric Leviner on Mar 2, 2011 1:22:36 GMT -5
Eric raised an eyebrow at Sean. He was rather surprised to hear that Sean had expressed an interest in a girl.... not that he didn't think Sean liked girls, but he knew that of the two of them, Sean was the workaholic and Dan was the ladies' man. But it was a good thing. A girl could help Sean feel motivated to take a break once in a while, she could support him and cheer him up. That might be just what Sean needed.
"That's good," he said to Sean, trying not to sound too enthusiastic. "You need to get out more, you know. You're still young, but you're looking older than your old man."
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Post by Sean Leviner on Mar 2, 2011 1:56:01 GMT -5
Sean, although thankful that his father cut in before Ellen could ask a thousand questions, creased his brow.
He didn't know what to say. Yeah, he looked about twice his age sometimes. And he couldn't even blame the stress of the job. It was other things, things he was trying to handle by himself.
"Yeah, welll... she's just a friend. I'm too busy for a relationship really." And this girl.... and her sweet smile... would be better off without him, he was sure.
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Post by Ellen Leviner on Mar 2, 2011 2:27:01 GMT -5
Ellen somehow knew not to push the topic of Sean and girls. Sean already said more than she knew he normally would, and he seemed to squash the topic pretty quickly after Eric commented. But secretely, she hoped that whoever this girl was, pushed. Sean needed someone who would push him sometimes, but not too much.
And she knew Daniel must have had a myriad of girlfriends... and was just choosing not to tell her about any of them. She was okay with that, too.
"Well, it looks like I'm finally just going to have to subscribe to that wizard newspaper of yours just to keep up with the three of you." Oh, she was sure the reaction to that would be bad, but she said it anyway, taking Eric's hand under the table and giving it a squeeze.
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Post by Daniel Leviner on Mar 3, 2011 12:24:15 GMT -5
Daniel thought about tossing out a joke about Sean and the girl, but he kept it to himself. He actually thought that Lydia was good for his brother. If he was going to attempt to push her away because of his ability, well Daniel had no problem stepping in and pushing Sean toward her. After all, he wanted to see his little brother happy. He had seen Sean after one of his lunch dates with her and the way his brother looked, made Daniel want him to keep seeing her. Daniel wasn't one to show a lot of sentimental expressions, but this time was different.
As for Daniel himself, he actually didn't have a string of girlfriends at the moment. He had been too busy for that. Of course, Daniel kept all of this quiet.
He let out a laugh, trying to keep the mood light as his mother said he should subscribe to the paper to keep up with them. "I highly doubt that mum," Daniel said. "Our events don't exactly make us front page news, or even in those little columns at the back of the paper."
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Post by Eric Leviner on Mar 4, 2011 0:54:25 GMT -5
Eric was silent for a little while, listening to everyone else talk. He looked at each one of them in turn, but his eyes kept coming back to Sean. The boy confused him, he always had. There was something about him... something that he kept hidden, and it bothered Eric. How was he supposed to do his job as a father if his sons kept secrets from him? And yet, wasn't that exactly what they were doing with Ellen? There was so much she didn't know, didn't understand, and they kept her in the dark for her own protection. Maybe it was the wrong decision.
"You know what?" he said, squeezing his wife's hand back. "Maybe you should. Or maybe we should just stop keeping things from you. All these secrets... they're not healthy. Don't you agree, Sean?" He turned and looked at Sean pointedly.
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Post by Sean Leviner on Mar 4, 2011 16:43:35 GMT -5
At first, Sean wasn't really payint attention. He was focusing on just forcing himself to eat.
But he still heard the comment, heard his father target him point blank, and he glanced up, first at Eric, then at his mother, who looked just as surprised, and lastly, at Daniel.
His father knew that there was something going on. Sean couldn't. Except otherwise... but he couldn't tell them, either. He and Daniel decided a long time ago that this was a secret that needed to be kept. It was a mistake to have told Rutger anyway.
"I don't know. Don't they always say ignorance is bliss?"
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Post by Ellen Leviner on Mar 5, 2011 13:17:21 GMT -5
Ellen wasn't quite sure what to make of her husband's words. Something along the lines of Daniel's response had been what she was expecting. She knew so little about their world, but she had played along for a long time, so long as they promised that they were okay.
They were now clearly not okay. Sean looked the worst off, but she could see exhaustion and stress in Daniel's features as well. And now, Eric was openly admitting that they kept secrets from her. Suggesting they stopped.
And then he turned his attention on their youngest, and she squeezed his hand again, this time in warning. As badly as she wanted to know what was going on with her children, she knew Sean and Eric were never that great at communicating. Sean clearly though he was being attacked. Still, she remained quiet and let it unfold.
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