#xander capp

The latter fact was twofold because of the former: Imogen's cousin Camembert was now her step-brother thanks to her mum Desdemona marrying her former uncle Xander, and she'd kicked off her university years by joining the Annya Var Fruhm sorority. None of the other girls batted an eye at the interconnected web spun by the Capp family, as most of them were either in that web already or had some idea about it. Besides, Imogen turning up to campus with her toga styled into a rave outfit had been a far more interesting topic.

Back at home, Desdemona was giving her sister Ariel some grace for taking her meals anywhere but the dining room where the family usually gathered, for the time being. She'd been so lovely about it all, including a generous donation to the reception catering fund that she insisted on when Des protested, but it had to be hard watching your former love find happiness with your sister, amicable divorce or not.

Fashionable friends, like Xander Capp (née Roth, taking their wife's last name and therefore strutting beyond the patriarchy in platform boots, which was very cool). Dogs of different shapes and sizes who photographed well for social media, all posted with the hashtag 'adopt, don't shop'. Max himself being the politician who listened to his barely-out-of-teens intern when they suggested he do a Twitch livestream on Fortnite to engage the youth crowd, to great memetic success. Mitch getting kudos for stepping back from politics to take care of his health, but dubbing himself Max's first man. Yeah, they were cool.

Roommate Rainelle's romance with the repairman was a worry.

The dishwasher needed a once-over, and that should've been it. Rainelle woke up late and stumbled out in her stained pyjama top just as Dongsool was dusting off his hands on his near-threadbare jeans in the kitchen. She handed him the cash and his smile, to hear Rainelle tell it, was like a thousand stars.

A double date at Greaves Greener Gardens about a fortnight later would only confirm Max and Mitch's concerns of unfashionability: the guy turned up in his toolbelt, for goodness sake! Probably fresh from someone's clogged toilet - and Rainelle couldn't keep her hands off him.

She knew the concern of her very dear friends. She even had a moment of what the heck is going on here herself. But by then, she was down to her black bra and panties with Dongsool, and wanted to keep going.

"You alright, Roz?" Goneril croaked the words out, having not sipped from their glass on the bedside table yet.

Rosalind sniffed and smiled as she whispered an explanation of her current emotional state: "Ginger told me we're best friends."

As it transpired, their youngest daughter had been treasuring car rides home from school with Roz, reaching a new peak with a request for friendship bracelets. Goneril approved of this development: it was exactly the outcome they'd hoped for when Ginger was brought into their family (other than raising Cordelia's hackles, of course). The newfound BFFs would need to be sent on a mother-daughter trip to shop for matching gold bracelets and seal the deal.

Several kilometres away, tucked into the hills, Ginger's name was also being spoken by a proud big brother, now in his freshman year at Mission University.

"She's so cute," said Hal, as he endeavoured to gain the favour of his girlfriend's mother. "You simply must meet her, Stella. You could just eat her up! Uh - on account of how cute she is."

Stella furrowed her perfectly plucked brows. Sandra put a hand on her mother's shoulder and suggested coming inside for tea and biscuits. The clout of a Capp didn't impress Stella as much as it did Morty, and she wasn't afraid to wear that on her countenance. Still, the families were on the verge of blending: Ariel and Xander were officially in a relationship, and Sandra rather liked the idea of settling down with Hal.

They were newlywed to Desdemona so of course the lawyer had to factor that in. However, a very important piece had to stay on the board - Xander's first wife, and mother of their son, Ariel, who was also Des' younger sister. The lawyer displayed no surprise at the web being spun across documents, as she was both a professional and no stranger to how the Capp family operated, but Xander themself raised an eyebrow. What kind of hierarchy had they created by Capp-hopping? Would a mess be left behind if they were taken off the board before their loved ones, old and new?

The only reason the matter of the will had come up was because Gordana the poodle passed away. She was an old girl but the loss was no less devastating; the family cooed over her flawless cloud puffs after going to the groomers and lavished her with luxury treats every second day in between short sniff-walks around Owlberry Lake to keep her enriched. Nothing could last forever; that was the lesson.

Xander envied their nephew Marley for being a graduate with a whole life ahead of him. He appeared to be falling in love, or at least, having the same person at home overnight lately.

Ariel's eyes travelled the snow-top peaks of her brother's hair and the valleys of his moustache. She was grinning and couldn't help it. His wild, mud-coated inner child was likely on his tippy-toes to get a look-in within the tailored bright red coat of his contemporary self. When did he - when did all of her siblings get so old? Where did the time go?

Well, it went towards the next generation, and how. Hal's three children were either in tumultuous teenage time or close to it, with the twins teetering on being too cool for their matching nightgowns and already wanting to try palettes of Sandra's makeup for the first time. Then there was Ariel's own kid, wee Camembert, all serious as Xander plonked him on the potty to learn all things toiletry. That's where the time went - towards the new kids on the village block.

The Roth family home was now bursting, like a gift under the tree wrapped with paper cut just a tad too short, allowing for a simple peek to give the game away (it's clearly a dollhouse, with eight dolls and a dog, thanks Santa!). Ariel and Xander were poring over the Capp family property portfolio and pondering a possible move, so Camembert wasn't lost in the shuffle of his cousins' teen angst.

There was a milestone birthday and a long-awaited wedding. Stella doubled the bubbly order; why not! Her darling daughter was now finely aged like herself and her youngest child was officially connected to the Capp family. She spared a thought for Morty, who would've near about burst into song about the latter development, but she valued the celebratory circumstances far more. Ariel was a brilliant young lady with a fine mind and manner, but the Capps weren't wanting for any more sycophants - cheers to that!

Sparing another thought, this time for the grandchildren, Stella put in an additional request to the refreshment vendor for a bottle of peach iced tea, as a treat. Only the best for Roths, who just happened to also be Capps.