Normal (is a million miles away)

who: Doc and Jocelyn
Where: Mya's Diner
when: early morning

Jocelyn still wasn't used to a normal sleep schedule, but she'd told Doc to meet her early in the morning so she was here. Tucked into a corner both in the back she was doing her best to prep herself for this meeting. Her palms were pressed flat on the table her coffee untouched in front of her. She really shouldn't be nervous about meeting the man she was sleeping with.

On the surface, Doc was really hoping that this was just for breakfast. He still slept only infrequently at best, and as such he'd had the entire night open to dwell, to wonder what else this meeting might be for. Or, nearly the entire night aside from a jaunt overseas to witness the rising power of a street gang in Paris.

Smiling to himself about the tenacity of youth, Doc breezed into the cafe with a thoughtful gaze around, catching sight of the dark mass of Jocelyn's hair from the doorway. "A coffee back there, please?" he asked a passing server, moving towards the booth and slipping in across from Jocelyn. "So I'm guessing this isn't so you can find out what I like on my waffles?" he greeted dryly, grinning in what he hoped was a reassuring manner.

She smiled back at him, his grin always being one of her weaknesses. "Well that's not the only reason," she teased. Just because they were in a rough patch didn't mean she didn't want those normal moments between them. They were too few and far between to miss. "How was your night?" It was a casual question, but the server had just arrived with his coffee and to top off her barely touched cup and the real matters weren't ones worth discussing with company.

"I was working," he said, refusing to let his smile dim as Doc nodded thanks and took his coffee, sipping it lightly. She was right, they were in a rough patch, but Doc wasn't going to let his own duties make it worse. He'd learned to put a lot out of his mind when he needed to, and now was definitely one of those times. "Yours? Anything exciting down at Babylon?" Doc asked in kind, not exactly eager to dive into the things between them just yet. He was a man who savored the normal moments when they offered themselves.

"Working working? Or around the house working?" Damnit she was so curious about the work that pulled him away at random points. "Babylon is the same," Jocelyn shrugged. "Grayson and I worked together for part of yesterday, but mostly it's just been the regular patrons and a few out of towners passing through. Outside of that I've just been studying." She smiled again, knowing he'd appreciate her hobby.

Doc appreciated the hobby as a whole, but he had to wonder if she was still working on dark arts or not. It worried him, he knew from study that black magic was supposedly addictive, and Doc had seen that it carried high prices for its' use. "Working-working," he confirmed, wrapping both hands around his mug, "Got called out of town for a little bit, nothing major. What have you been studying? Wards? Curses?" He tried not to make the questions pointed, but some flash of concern crept into his voice there, some protective and paternal edge.

She caught the concern in his voice and side-stepped the question in attempts to alleviate it. "New spells, or well new old spells. Attempting to build up a sufficient arsenal. Up until now most of what I'd learn had been a mixture of showing off and basic wards. I need more useful spells."

That got a smile of approval from Doc, a genuine grin he made no effort to mask as he nodded and quickly ordered a bagel to dispel the waitress who'd wandered their way. "Good plan," he complimented, "A varied arsenal is your best friend, I've found. I might have a line on some texts if you're ever curious. I know a dealer out west who owes me a few favors."

"Whatever you can get your hands on I'd love. I might be able to put together some titles, do you think if I got you a list he could work with that?" She knew it would be hard to get black magic texts out of Doc since she knew of his disapproval, but maybe she'd get lucky here and there. There were text that existed with mixed with both disciplines though. She relaxed a little propping her chin up in one hand, the other absently playing with the handle of her cup. "I've missed you darling."

Reaching across the table, Doc interrupted the play of Jocelyn's fingers with his own, lightly toying with them without actually claiming her hand. "I can at least see, but if not? There's the local place too, Nevermore. I hear good things," he offered, thinking he'd at least check the titles with his sources. As much as Doc didn't want to censure her? If he could try to steer Jocelyn back towards safer practices, he would. "I missed you too, Jocelyn. I know there's problems? But hell, we're here. So... talk to me."

Jocelyn nodded. Nevermore had been on her list to try, as it had been recommend by others as well. She enjoyed his touch and it almost distracted her from her real intent of their meeting. her smirk was small when she looked up at him but she nodded nonetheless. "I spoke with Kayos. As I'm sure you can guess it went less than stellar." That was and understatement. "We don't understand each other. I don't think we know what motivates each other and thus it makes it harder to connect. But she's determined to stay out of the way unless we need her, but I'm not sure that's what we need as a team."

"Joce..." he murmured, reaching to slip her hand more solidly into his, "I need you to try and get this. She's not here for us, she's here for me. What we're doing? you, Grayson, me? It might overlap with what Kayos is going to try for, but it's not the same thing. The only one who decides that she's a part of this team is her, the same as when I gave you the choice." Doc took a slow breath, slugging back a mouthful of coffee before he leaned in a little to speak in softer tones. "But whatever she chooses? She's not going to hurt what you and I have. You don't have to understand each other, or even like each other. I care about both of you, and I'll keep hoping that you might get each other's perspective some day? But if it doesn't happen, it's not going to ruin any of this."

It made her uncomfortable, leaving Kayos as a rogue factor in the whole situation. She sighed heavily, letting her eyes drop. "I know it's her choice, but I hate that she doesn't feel comfortable with us, and I know it's my fault." Her hand curled in his, tightening around his fingers. "It's harder now, for Grayson and I, to not have that understanding. He and I...we're close. It doesn't really make sense, but I trust him with my life. And of course we feel the same way about you. Kayos in the mix..." Jocelyn's expression wasn't hurt, but exhausted, drained almost. "I know she won't hurt us Doc. But our team is broke all to hell. It feels like a rift between us. You and her on one side and Grayson and I on another."

Of course he wanted to decry Jocelyn's fears, but Doc couldn't. They were pretty accurate, like it or not. "There is a rift," he confirmed, "But not how you think. It's not between the four of us, not exactly. It's... there's a lot I do that's my province alone, Joce. And if things go the way I'm afraid they will? There'll be things I have to do that I have to do alone." There was the faintest burn of jealousy as she spoke about Grayson, but Doc refused to acknowledge it. Of course it was a good thing; she needed someone who could be there for her, which Doc knew he couldn't always be. It just burned on some private level. "And with Kayos, it's not about fault. It's about intent. If you approach dealing with her on a level of how it relates to me, or us? She won't trust it. She doesn't want you to do anything because of what we have, or how you feel about me. You need to approach it like I'm not a factor, because I shouldn't be."

That hurt, but she did her best to hide as much of the pain from her face as she could muster, though she doubted she succeeded. She hated those walls he put up more than anything, the secrets he'd keep. Jocelyn was also getting the impression that if he had to, Doc would be content to keep Kayos behind one of those walls, as if to shield her from Jocelyn. "I tried to approach it like that when I spoke with her and she just stated that you'd put me up to it and that it didn't matter. Which you didn't." Jocelyn dropped her eyes back down to her cup. "I don't know what to do Eric."

He didn't know the specifics of the last talk the two women had had, all Doc knew was that Jocelyn was trying. "I'm sorry," Doc offered gently, "I know you're trying, and I know this is as confusing as anything can be. But... there might not be anything you can do. Right now, things may just be the way they are." And plainly, by the look on his face, he didn't like saying that. Whatever details he didn't know, he knew Jocelyn was trying, that this was hurting her. "You can't stop hoping, or trying, but there's a very real chance that this is how things are going to be for now, unless and until we have a chance to work together."

Jocelyn nodded, trying to hold back tears she'd been fighting with for days. "I'm sorry I acted so childish, I just...I'm just as bad at relationships as you are. You know that. I've had one real boyfriend and you know how that ended." She bit hard on her lip pausing before moving on. Making a scene in a public place wouldn't really help matters. "Since Jean's death I've let myself stay cut off from people. It's what made working at Babylon so easy for me; you can't get attached to people there, it ruins the business. They don't want you, they want you to play a part and I got good at that. Now though, with Grayson, with you...I'm having to start over."

Part of Doc mused that she felt childish because she was young, another part thinking on the hints he'd seen of Jocelyn's insecurity. It was there, to be sure, and he couldn't blame her for it. Her witchcraft had failed to save the man she'd loved, and she'd relegated herself to a life of playing in other peoples' fantasies. The two together would make most anyone question their individual value. "We start over every day," he murmured eventually, reaching across the table to smooth below Jocelyn's lip where she'd been biting.

"It's not just you, Jocelyn. Grayson's not used to this arrangement either, remember? Hell, I haven't been in the spot I'm at for a long time. Even Kayos is relearning how life goes between fights," Doc observed in a quiet, gentle tone, "And yeah, it's scary. You don't need to tell me that, kiddo, I know. I'm right there with you. But even if it's scary or unfamiliar, we have to keep going. We have to accept, every time, that the choices in our lives are ours to make, no matter what input we have from other people. But it's easier when you know that there are people who won't quit on you no matter what choices there are, and you have that. You have me, and you have Grayson. And maybe it's not much, but it's more than you had before, right? It's more than some people ever get."

Jocelyn leaned a little into his touch, her eyes closing the slightest bit. When she did open them again they had lost some of the fear. It was a relief to hear what Doc was saying, to hear that pledge from him. "I wanna get better, I'm trying to get better. I guess I didn't realize how hard it would be to open up again, how much of myself I had to let out in then open."

He nodded encouragingly, grinning across the table and withdrawing his hand. "It's incredibly hard," Doc confirmed, "I know I frustrate you, but you should've known me back in the day, before I learned to do exactly that. Suffice to say, I pissed off a lot of people." With a quiet chuckle, he reached for his coffee again, draining the contents and sliding the mug to the edge of the table. "You'll get there, though. Patience and faith, that's my combo."

The cold that always remained when he moved away brushed across her skin. "Patience and faith?" Jocelyn asked. It was an interesting combo, but if it worked she'd try anything. "And you know I don't think of you as only frustrating right? You more than make up for it when you aren't being frustrating." Her coy smile returned, although it was still somewhat shadowed.

"Patience and faith," Doc repeated, nodding in confirmation, "Faith that anything can change, and the patience to know that it almost never does when you want it to." Free of his mug, Doc reached both hands to the middle of the table and turned them up, offering them out with a grin. "Of course, both of those do better when you have other foundations to compliment them. So..." he trailed, fixing a curious gaze on Jocelyn, "Ask me a question, any one you want. Hell, ask me three. That way if there's one I still can't answer, you'll have two to work with. And that way, if I'm still frustrating, I can disarm it a touch."

"Three questions huh?" She reached out, lacing her fingers through his, watching the way her small hands fit in his. "Well first, is there something you want for Christmas? Second, how do you feel about staying with me tonight?" The smile that had grown with her first two questions faded, but she looked up from his hands, eyes slightly hidden behind long lashes. "And why can't you tell me where she comes from?"

While there might've been answers in his mind for her first two, the third question Jocelyn asked seized the reins of his tongue. it definitely deserved to be answered entirely independently of the other two. Doc's hands tightened slightly around Jocelyn's as he looked to the table, then back to her. "Because what I am, what she is," Doc began, listening discreetly for a moment, "We... we have other rules, Jocelyn. To us, what you think of as 'real' is an afterthought. Yes, there's a price to it, but we're capable of feats that defy the entire concept of reality. I have seen people defy death itself, move the heavens, bend time to their will..." He kept his voice quiet as he squeezed both of Jocelyn's hands, giving her a light, apologetic smile. "Kayos went distances I couldn't go to be here, and both the 'why' and the 'how' of her actions isn't something I have any right to explain. And I'm sorry for that, but I can't."

His answer didn't satisfy her curiosity, but he'd answered the question she'd asked, and that helped her put things together. Kayos hadn't just traveled across country to find Doc out in the middle of Wyoming. If that was all it was, it would be written off as her ability to teleport, which she'd told Jocelyn about herself. No, she'd crossed more than just miles. She smiled lightly to let him know she was content with the answer. "I know about consequences. Remember, I'm a witch, and the whole magic comes back threefold isn't just stuff of legend." She pulled his hands towards her, laying a gentle kiss on his fingers. "And the other two?"

"Very different consequences," Doc pointed out dryly, grinning wider when Jocelyn kissed his fingers, "But I know you have some idea. Let's hope neither of us gets further education." And as much as he wanted to just say yes to her request? Doc could feel that this was a calm, honest moment between them. If he had his doubts? Now was the time to voice them and hope for the best. "Christmas, I'll have to get back to you on. Tonight? I'm there. But... I need to ask you about something now, Joce."

"Anything," she told him without hesitation, but knowing full well whatever he may ask could be hard to answer. Her heart wasn't hearing it; he'd committed to spending the night with her, something they hadn't done since he'd left for his trek and she was too eager for that moment. Eager enough that it clouded her judgement. She should be wary with a statement like that, a gentle demand for an answer, but instead she smiled through it, resting her cheek against his hand happily.

The fervent look she was aiming at him was worrying on some level, making Doc think of what Eris had said before, that Jocelyn was blinded by him. He wondered, for a private moment, if he'd be a liability to her in the end. But Doc refused to dwell on it, knowing that if he did then he'd only poison himself against the future, whatever it might be.

"The last time we talked, you said something," Doc eventually said, "You said... what good is power if you can't use it to your advantage. I've been thinking about that, but I don't think I can really grasp your meaning. I know those words on their own worry me, so I wanted to know what you meant."

Jocelyn frowned as if the answer were puzzling. In some ways it was, but she wasn't about admit that. "I guess I just think of not using a talent. I was born with an affinity for magic. Not using that is a waste. Why not embrace what makes you better than those around you." She paused, catching an error in her own wording. "Better's not the right word, more advanced? If you have power why not use it to make yourself happy, or comfortable or safe. Obviously you don't want to go nuts, that sort of thing has a way of coming back at you. Look at Eris, she's got tons of something and she's used it to create Babylon, which offers her security and security to those in her fold."

He nodded slightly, not exactly relieved but not wanting to argue the idea either. Not for the first time, Doc had to remind himself that he wasn't Jocelyn's teacher. Again, he was reminded of Eris and her chastisement for assuming too much. Not everyone was going to see things the way he did, because so few people had walked the same road. "I just wanted to understand, so thank you," he murmured, turning the tables as he drew Jocelyn's hand across the table and pressed a kiss to the back of it.

She wasn't sure if the answer was one that Doc wanted to hear, but he seemed to take the answer for what it was worth. "No problems. You know you can ask me anything." A warm, happy flush crept into Jocelyn's cheeks as he kissed her hand.

"I know," Doc agreed, grinning against her hand for a moment before he leaned back a little, "Sometimes I'm just a dumb old man, is all. Takes some reminding for me to keep in mind that not everyone agrees with me. I've been working on some humility." And sometimes he balked at that idea all on its' own; he was War, an accomplished willworker, a learned man in myriad mundane regards. But that was all just more reason to try to be humble, after all. How many powerful beings had Doc seen cause their own downfalls? "So... what now? Feel like having another cup of coffee? Or did you want to get out of here?"

"Give the rest of us time to learn our way," she chided, only half joking. "We'll catch up eventually." Jocelyn settled comfortably into the booth, taking in the simplicity of the moment. "Technically I never drank the first cup of coffee. Did you have somewhere in particular you wanted to go?" She raised her eyebrow, and gave him another coy look.

"The Kiribati islands, out past New Zealand," Doc said casually, a twinkle in his eye as he grinned, "It doesn't get much more secluded while still being breathtaking, but it's a little cold and daylit to head that way. So..." He raised his eyebrows in response, reaching out with a solitary finger to touch her cooled coffee. Doc's will flexed minutely, causing fresh curls of steam to rise a moment later as he winked her way. "Let's warm up while we decide, it'd be a shame to brave the cold without a plan."

She laughed lightly at his response, pleased to see him relaxing some and just having a little fun. "New Zealand huh? I've never been there," she mused as she took her now warm cup in her hands gingerly sipping it as instructed. His own talent never ceased to amaze her, especially the ease at which he used it. As adept as she was at conjuring and performing spells, witchcraft took time, thought, and concentration. Rarely was it something one could just flex as he did.

It was a difference Doc had never been able to adequately explain to anyone who wasn't a willworker. He wanted the coffee hot, so it was. Of course, there was a deeper level to it, an understanding of heat transferrence that he levied, but in the end it was the will that mattered. "I'll have to show you sometime, then," Doc mused as he raised his own coffee to his lips, "I've seen most of the world, and there's few things that compare to sunrise across the Pacific. It's a real treat." Of course, he normally only went there when he couldn't handle the rest of the world, but the offer wasn't a fleeting one. It was a promise, and he always kept those.

"I wish I'd seen more of it before I ended up here," Jocelyn answered honestly. Her time traveling was short lived, but it had been fun while it lasted. "I'd like that though, going away somewhere. Sounds nice." As much as she appreciated the offer, she didn't quite believe him. Not that Doc didn't seem the type to keep promises, but Jocelyn doubted, they'd find the time. Even if they did, well there was always something else to be done wasn't there? "Lately though, just coming here is me getting out. I spend too much time at Babylon."

"You know you don't have to, right?" he asked, a note of concern in Doc's voice at that, "Eris and I have an understanding, Jocelyn. You don't need to be there if you don't want to be." Really, he'd feel better if she wasn't. There'd still be room for her and Grayson to spend time together, and Doc would spend less time wondering if Eris had a hand in his affairs.

"I know it's not really part of my contract...I just feel like I'm wasting space there, not doing something. I worked pretty hard prior to our arrangement. When I'm just there I feel like I'm not earning my keep." Eris hadn't actually said anything about helping around the bar and main room, but Jocelyn still felt like she should. It's not like Eris had told her to stop.

"Well, if you don't want to be there, I'm sure you can find other things," Doc suggested, not wanting to push her out of Babylon if she legitimately liked spending her time there. He figured a big part of it had to be Grayson's presence too, which was a good thing in his eyes. Their unity would only strengthen both of them individually. "You could pick things up from Maddie's shop, maybe. Or do some research down at Nevermore? The more we know about what's coming, the better we can handle it."

"I like it there well enough," she told him, but didn't let him in on the fear she had of leaving. It was home and had been for while, even if she didn't feel like she fit in as much. "Sometimes it's just hard to leave, you get so used to always being there..." Doc was right though, she'd been meaning to check out Nevermore for months and of course it had been a while since she'd seen Maddie. She and Billy should be married by now.

Chuckling quietly, Doc fixed a warm look on Jocelyn as the tattoo on his cheek bunched up under his grin. "See, that's not a feeling I ever knew before I moved here. And even then, I hit the road now and then. I haven't exactly had a grounded life," he explained with light humor, swigging more heavily from his coffee. "Not since I was... sixteen? Seventeen?"

"I was twenty when I moved out, but I think I had one foot out the door at seventeen and it took another three years to push me the rest of the way," Jocelyn offered. "It's not much, but it's some semblance of stability, being at Babylon."

"Mmm," Doc agreed wordlessly, "And I know I haven't really been around enough to be any kind of substitute. But hey, that's what we're working towards, right? Figuring this out?" He chuckled, digging out his wallet to pay the tab and knocking back the rest of the coffee. "And maybe, before we do that, figuring out where we're going?"

"No you haven't, but a few weeks is hard competition with over a year of a roof over my head," Jocelyn reminded him. "And you're the man with the plan, I just wanted to get out of my room for a moment. What were you thinking that didn't involve a different time zone?" She smiled at him over the top of her cup as she took another final gulp.

He had to laugh at the question, shoulders bunching a little. "Surprisingly, I usually fail at planning for mundane life," Doc admitted, dropping some cash on the table, "But we could..." He trailed off, putting his wallet away and claiming Jocelyn's hand, starting a playful uncurling of her fingers as he counted off ideas. "Go for a walk and freeze to death? You could come play in the forge? Help me grocery shop, maybe?" he asked with a wink, "Or... we could rent a movie? Both of the kids are at work, and somehow the first couch I've owned since college is incredibly comfortable."

"Darling, neither of us has a grip on the mundane life," she teased, smiling sweetly. "I'm voting against freezing to death and for comfortable couches." Jocelyn go up from her seat, still holding Doc's hand. "Although, I have no idea what kind of movies you like," she admitted with a laugh. "Are we going to have to watch something in black and white?"

"Age jokes? You wound me," he protested, releasing her hand and slipping from the booth, "But no, we don't have to. There are black and white movies I like, but I'm more inclined towards movies that are just good." It honestly sounded like the way to spend a day to Doc; not worrying about the coming war, not whisking off to foreign lands (hopefully), just hiding from the cold of the season for a few hours and curling up with the woman he cared about. "So... you pick, then we can argue about if it meets my criteria of 'good' or not, stubborn old man that I am."

"So even if I pick something classic and painfully romantic you'll watch it with me?" Jocelyn asked playfully. If it was her pick, she'd find something amusing and with a happy ending. They both could use that. She linked her arm in his, resting her chin on his shoulder looking up at him sweetly.

Doc laughed quietly, looking back down at Jocelyn and leaning in to bump his nose against hers. "I did mention arguing, right?" he warned, "But your odds would be good, yes. I don't know how focused I'd be on the movie." For any and all issues there might be, there were times when everything with them felt natural, and Doc was hoping that whatever chunk of time they could steal together would be one of those.

"Is that so?" she asked with a sweet smile. "That sounds like more fun than the movie." Jocelyn pushed up on her toes a little and kissed him longingly. When was the last time they really enjoyed each other like this? Really slowed down to take it all in? Just being like this didn't fix everything, but it didn't hurt either.

Ever-mindful of his surroundings, Doc still wasn't going to skip the opportunity that presented itself when Jocelyn stepped up and kissed him. He chuckled quietly, holding her there for a moment and wondering just how many stares their age difference might garner. "Well, the movie's a necessary evil. We need some pretext," he teased, honestly not sure if things would go the way his jokes hinted but not minding if they did. "And maybe we'll get a movie so good that it'll be more fun. Maybe we'll be riveted." Withdrawing finally, Doc stepped back towards the door with Jocelyn's hand in his.

Jocelyn smiled brightly, staying close to him even after the kiss ended. Happy was something she hadn't felt in a few days and it was such an improvement over sullen, ashamed and ignored, that she wasn't going to let it slip just because their public displays of affection might rub some the wrong way. "Trust me, with you it's always riveting," she whispered back before he pulled away. She let him lead her, holding on to his hand tightly and enjoying his strength and confidence and the way it enveloped her.

Another warm laugh slipped out as Doc walked with her from the diner, stepping outside and basking in the first chill of cool air against his cheeks. His hand slipped from Jocelyn's, moving up to instead drape around her shoulder as Doc nodded at his car parked down the way, just grinning down at her. Fishing his cigarettes free, he shook one from the pack and tucked it in his lips, murmuring to himself for a private moment before he lit up. It was Persian, it was clumsily spoken, but it was something he'd always liked ever since his youth. "Flatterer," he eventually teased in a language she could understand.

She nuzzled in close to him, breathing in the smell of him that she'd missed for so long. The lingering smell of smoke reminded her a little of Grayson, but there was still something different. "I never flatter, I only speak the truth," she told him sweetly. "Now what are you saying that I can't understand. That's cheating, using different languages. You're just showing off."

"I'm not showing off," he protested lightly, "I learned it in that language, and it just sounds better in its' native tongue. As for what it means?" Doc grinned, leaning in to kiss Jocelyn's temple before he disengaged from her, unlocking her door. "I'll tell you when you're older," he teased, swinging the door open and leaning on the edge.

"You are so showing off," she told him, reaching out for the door as he opened it. "And older? I firmly believe that I am plenty old enough." Jocelyn leaned into him, pushing up enough to reach him and kissed him, harder than before.

Doc's words were stilled when she kissed him, both hands winding down to Jocelyn's waist and pulling her beyond the door. He backed up against the side panel, holding her there for an exultant moment. "'Old enough'..." he murmured, just barely breaking from Jocelyn's lips, "Is when you're so old that they still taught Latin in schools. Which would be me."

"I think they taught Latin at the Catholic schools I didn't go to..." she offered, leaning in to kiss him again. "So that's got to count for something right?" Jocelyn nuzzled her nose against his lightly, leaning back just a little to give him a small smile.

"Yes and no," Doc countered, winking at her as he slipped his hands away, "Latin's a good language, but as Hafiz put it, 'A truce to your volumes, your studies, give o'er: for books cannot teach you love's marvelous lore'. So there's a limit to what I can chide you on..." He chuckled dryly, amused at having given her hints about what he wouldn't directly answer. "Though I'm not surprised to hear you went, or didn't go, to Catholic school."

"The Laurents were appreciated enough in New Orleans, but the church wasn't about to let the blasphemers children in the doors of their precious school, even if they did come to our back door at night for spells and charms. We wound up banished to public school," she explained. "Not that it mattered much really. Most of our education was done at home anyway." He'd pulled away so she took it as her cue to get in the car.

"Mine too," Doc said, moving around to the driver's side, "At least in the early years. Private tutors and all." He dropped into the car, smiling over at Jocelyn as Doc started the engine up and turned the radio down. "I suppose you could call me an early achievement in home schooling. Lucky for you, I'm still a big believer in... private lessons," he said with a chuckle of vague embarassment, pulling away from the curb.

"Private tutors? How fancy," Jocelyn commented, sliding closer to Doc as he settled behind the wheel. "I was thinking more how to mix potions and not blow ourselves up in the back kitchen." She leaned in close, kissing his neck just below his jaw line. "You know, I've always done best with one on one work. Especially with an experienced teacher."

That drew a rich laugh from Doc, cheeks burning just a touch as he shifted gears, making no real move to ward Jocelyn off when she moved in. "Well it just so happens that tutoring is..." he trailed, shaking his head a moment later and maybe taking a chance to lean in towards Jocelyn just a bit, "You know what? Innuendo's something I've never been good at." He chuckled more softly, shifting again and moving a hand to her leg. "Thankfully, I don't think that'll affect our plans too much."