Thanks for Giving In

"I kinda figured all of that, though it's hard to imagine you making mistakes with these kind of things."

"Like I said, lots of mistakes before, mistakes I wish I could take back even if they helped get me here."

"If you were just trying to put out the happiness that you've put out this year, that's all gathered at the table right now, it was worth it."

"I wish I could believe that, but that just isn't always true, as much as I, we, try to make it so."

"Trust me, love is always worth it," Teri countered, and continued before Camille could reply sternly.

"Do you know what kind of life I would've lead if you never came along? How miserable I might've really been on the inside, how much self-loathing for my own feelings? I think about that a lot lately, how lucky I am. Every time I get to wake up next to my best friend and kiss her because I mean it, everytime I get to dance or just be around you, everytime I get to just be me, even trying to imagine all the failures you might've caused, I can't be sorry for everything that's led to now, even though I don't know everything."

"And I'm willing to admit with no hesitation, I don't know everything. But what I do know, what I truly am thankful for this year, is love. When I read up about you and Celine, your plans with her and Desmond, overhearing from Penny your past, I figured it was worth a shot. Out of my league? probably, but I love love, and once I met him, I could sense the love right away, and acted on it like you would to make that happen. And even if I failed, I'll never be sorry for trying."

"And if you managed to make it worse?"

Teri said nothing for a second and tried to imagine worse, and grimaced a little.

"Not to toot my own horn, but that wasn't going to happen. He really, and I mean really, took to my suggestions. So easy to instruct, partly because Celine was the carrot on the stick, and I got him here because your notes were detailed enough about what you wanted to happen between them and their feelings. He opened up to me like he wanted to, doing things we wanted him to that were his dreams all along. I knew you had Celine down, for a long time I bet. They didn't stand a chance against us," Teri allowed herself an arrogant smile, but turned to meet Camille that didn't have one. The younger dancer cleared her throat and got back to being serious.

"But if I failed...then...I'd throw myself at their mercy, apologize, and tell them what I saw, why I did what I did, and let them decide after. Did you ever do that after your mistakes?"

"...yes. Didn't feel any less shitty getting caught."

"You're not just a seductress Camille. You're a matchmaker, one with the best of intentions. No matchmaker out there has 100% success rate. Given divorce, I'm sorry to say most might not even have a 50% success rate even. There's no road leading to hell in what you do with us; that's why I love what you do with our heads, blurs things bur really helps keep things in perspective too. Reminds us of things we keep forgetting, like breathing, or loving, despite all the bullshit out there that wants other things from us."

Camille just looked at Teri, like a younger version of herself, just as ambitious, but wiser and more introspective than she was at her age, looking for ways to argue against her points, but knowing she agreed, so she said nothing. She knew she'd have attempt to have strict, motherly words for her later, or tips to help her avoid past mistakes of her own. But all that consideration took a back seat to giving her charge a warm hug, one that was enthusiastically given back.

"And you want to be another matchmaker too?"

"Yeah, I do love stuff like that; don't think I've got the moxy for all the holiday dancing stuff, though after everything I've heard and seen and felt you do, maybe some of that is inevitable too."

"Why Teri, are you really trying to be another me?"

"What's that saying? 'Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? Though I can't say I love the holidays nearly as much as you, heh. And I have to wonder by now who's more cunning, as surprised as you looked when Desmond arrived."

"Is that a challenge, dear Teri?"

"A student is practically destined to challenge their teacher, even star pupils."

They smiled at each other like equals for the first time, pangs of pride welling up in Camille.

"Just as you know who's boss by the end, young padawan."

"Whose boss," Keith overheard and interjected.

Camille said nothing but patted his face gently, slid her hand up the side of his face at into his hair, lightly scratching his scalp while she gently started to spin his head around. And around. And around. And around; a spiral motion extending his head-rotating outward. Teri being shorter got an even better glimpse of Keith's pacified, content visage, impressed.

"Ok, I'm definitely teaching Carlie to respond to that."

"To respond to what?" Carlie moved closer, interested in what Camille was doing to Keith. She eventually stopped moving his head and whispered to him to stay upright and keep his head still.

"Oh, just this," Camille responded instead of Teri.

A hand came from nowhere to caress the side of Teri's head, gasping at feeling what she'd just observed, taken aback by how it felt ten times better than it looked, an itch in her scalp she didn't know she needed scratched, the look of the room gently spinning around. And around. And around. And around.

Carlie seemed almost enthralled at the sight of her girlfriend's eyes starting to roll back in her head, and Keith soft, sleepy expression, afraid to look at Camille who was looking at her, just waiting for her to silently do as she asked. Once she did, she found herself stuck smiling at the Cheshire grin as if that's what did their significant other's in.

Those hypnotized came back to find people around them dancing to slow-playing music in the background. Teri and Carlie smiled at each other the smile that only came when one or both of them found themselves floating back from trance, happily arm in arm. Keith shook his head back to full awareness, seeing all the couples come together, even the recently-joined turkey and pilgrim. He found he was standing next to the chair Camille was sitting in. She gently lifted herself out of it and told him to sit. He knew what she wanted, but gave his usual expression of concern, silenced by a hand in his head again. He sat facing the empty dining table, until Camille placed herself on his lap, happy it didn't hurt to sit like that. She wrapped her arms around him and they swayed in the chair as if dancing. He leisurely stared at her top that shined in the light, and her face as she looked at all the other couples dancing.

He loved that smile, the smile that meant she might play with everyone maybe once more before the night was over, and get worked up from that to play with him well into the next morning. Holidays and trancing always seemed to make that happen. The smile deepened a little as she forgot to mention what she was thankful for to the group, though she silently did in her own way.

Thanks for giving in.