Karoliena closes her eyes briefly as this conversation was going into her private life,which by and large was just that. But she appreciated Ada's concerns and really felt she was the best to address them. After all,cassie's first daughter was into the double digits,agewise. She wasn't an oblivious young child." Our kids probably won't grow up to be mild mannered accountants. Our pasts will affect them. But it won't be entirely negative. They'll know what a creative life costs and if that's a price they wish to pay. We are forced to be the most honest of parents." She says,trying to explain her thoughts on this. Karoliena enjoyed a fair amount of anonymity as her life was overshadowed by Erich. But her wife,Cassie? She had been sexually active on big brother while underage. When pregnant with Jody,she drank and did even more drugs in a probable attempt to lose the baby. multiple fights..so Karoliena was well aware of not wanting kids to know things. Uncle Erich and aunt Erica were the own subject all together..and now aunt Ada.
"I can only hope Marlena finds someone whom she can leave for years,but pick right back up again. That is real love,Ada. Don't be ashamed of it" Karoliena quips. It was pretty rare and sort of admirable that Ada and Erich could do this. She had assumed it was just some sex thing, but after meeting Ada that wasn't the case. "There are far worse footsteps to follow in than yours." Karoliena says without elaborating. Karoliena's parents definitely made her as most people perceived her. For her,having kids is what broke the cycle. Karoliena smiles warmly when Ada mentions she's drawn to Erich's brand of crazy. At one time,Karoliena thought she was. But she and Erich only could work as friends. She loved him dearly in that regard. "I think he is rather drawn to you,as well." Karoliena replies. While erich and Ada were sometimes like oil and water, they did seem oddly right for each other. " i guess i should prepare Erica for the possibility of seeing her again. Ada...if this happens...." Karoliena sighs,nearly rubbing her face in despair,but stopping short. There was an your and half worth of makeup on her face. " you're going to need to learn how to bake cupcakes. Im going to need them." She sighs. While Erica was a changed woman,few people rubbed her the wrong way as Nicole did. That might be different with the lack of sexual tension now, but Karoliena wasn't looking forward to it.

"it wont be easy. but it's easier than worrying about when little suzy q is going to find out about those times you participated in an orgy at a rundown medieval times restaurant. im not saying tell them,but be prepared for the questions." karoliena grins. she was fairly open with her children. when jody asked about drugs,karoliena and cassie told her the truth. some are good,some are bad,some are very dangerous. they are for adults. "our kids are probably going to hate us for so many reasons.things we did before they were born? i doubt they will even factor into it." karoliena laughs. she wasnt looking forward to it,but there would come a time when those little faces grown in small adults and they will claim to hate their parents. karoliena did enjoy having someone else to discuss parenting theory to. it was a small bit of grounding in the whirlwind that was touring. at this point karoliena politely avoided looking directly at ada. she could tell there was something ada wasnt saying. karoliena thought she may know what it was. she took a sip of her tea for strength and went for it. if she offended her now,well at least it would have been in good faith and not out of cruelty. "ada...i may be going out on a limb here. i know there was.....things? in the past few years. i know they are off limits and i do respect that. erich said you were vague even to him. so that is not what i am talking about. i think if you are worried about the things i do know about, the hospital stays and what not. i really dont think marlena will ever think less of you for that. you seem to be a great mother to her. that is what she will know. as for other stuff? you did what you thought was best. all you can really do is love them. they know if do. they will certainly know if you do not." karoliena says in support of ada. "we'll teach you baking in your own kitchen. i am kind of partial to this bus." karoliena laughs when ada agrees to learn to bake.karoliena was expecting the worst from nicole. the obvious physical similarities of gretchen to natalya would probably be brought up. though karoliena really only saw the blonde hair and boobs as being similar. the two had nothing else in common.

"see? plus these kids cant get away with shit because we've already done it." karoliena replies with a giggle and sounding very mom like. both were rare for her outside her home. all she needed was a minivan and a wine cooler. karoliena was well aware of the drive to not look weak. in a very real sense,it defined karoliena. growing up,karoliena was not allowed to cry ,complain,or have friends. people were there only to be used and then discarded. the only pets she had were racehorses,these were only allowed because they were valuable and later sold. she cannot remember her parents ever telling her she was loved or even shown affection. its commonly thought that karoliena is a dominatrix,this is completely false. she is actually a sub,but only to someone who can best her. cassie summers is that someone. "ada...never be too strong. let things affect you. dont give into them,but let them affect you. marlena will see you as someone who weathered the hard parts of their life and made it through. weathering is what makes things beautiful,no? the duke in all its run down glory is beautiful,right?" karoliena stares into her tea,emotionless with the mask she had perfected long ago. "but to answer your question,no. i dont think marlena will see you as weak." she answers curtly to offset her earlier sentimentality. ada laughs and sets her teacup down. "that is right,you scruffy little street urchin. you're just happy to be here." karoliena laughs and bumps ada's foot with hers. " fine. we wont burn down your bus. we'll buy otis spunkmeyer muffins like a couple of plebeians. shall we get nascar hats and off brand energy drinks too? fuck it,nichole is a whole lot of not my problem. we'll drink till we pass out on the bus. a far better plan."

karoliena understood exactly what ada had said. sometimes allowing oneself to just accept the emotions rather than give in to them took great strength. in a way,far more than just burying it down deep. "in danger of sounding like gretchen's hippie ass,you have to find the middle way." karoliena tells ada with a slight smile.in a very real way,gretchen joining up with the hess clan did bring some humanity and direction to what was a real mess. karoliena would be hard pressed to really say it to all but her closest friends,but she really like gretchen a lot. this is also why she loathed the idea of nichole being around. "besides,you dont have to do it alone anymore." karoliena says optimistically. today had went pretty good,all things considered. karoliena had started off really wanting to lay into ada,but in a way that nobody could really pin on her. instead,she felt they had reached an understanding and perhaps rekindled what they once had.this was for the best. erich made it seem like ada wasnt going anywhere and that was that. karoliena also lay back in the small sofa,feeling the weight of the conversation. she had delved a lot deeper into areas she hadnt wished to go. she didnt say anything of course,but the memories of her past were there. "i'm guessing you dont want to get nutty and break out the earl grey?" karoliena laughs softly and gathers their teacups. she takes them to the sink and washes them. dirty dishes irritated karoliena to no ends. having 4 kids would do that to a person. "well...here on the bus we have rum and absinthe. we're either pirates or artists." karoliena grins,opening up the cabinet. the rum is bacardi,but the absinthe is unlabeled. its dark green though.

erica's whereabouts and condition were a closely guarded secret. while karoliena was right to assume that erica wouldnt mind ada knowing she was a surrogate for dustyn conner's new son,she wasnt goint to spill the beans. that was up to gretchen or erica. erica 9 months pregnant at this point and beyond miserable. "its a far more healthy relationship." karoliean says to ada. she knew that ada was friends with nichole,so she wasnt going to compare the two relationships all that much. "it is really hard not to like gretchen. i have to admit,i really didint think much of her at first. erica met her while she bordering on alcohol poisoning at a yakuza stip club. erica,not gretchen was nearly killing themselves from alcohol. but gretchen has been amazing. she is a great mother to takara. my company would be no where without her. i guess sometimes one needs to look outside the music industry for love." karoliena says happily. for a long time karoliena looked down on erica as silly little girl. but she had really grown into herself in the past few years. "i hope so. never hesitate to call up myself or cassie. i am sure erica and gretchen would help you as well. i just dont want to volunteer them." karoliena says,much relieved that she could stop thinking of her own past. in a way,she was proud of how far she had come. she was a loving wife and mother. she and cassie had probably the most normal relationship of any of the hess clan. that is more than several generations of her family could say. of course,she had been disinherited long ago. she only had the property in belgium through a forgotten relative. nobody was willing to go through a protracted legal battle for a couple of old castles. she wanted ada to come see the property. but she was too proud to ask. that would fall to erica. if ada ever accepted the offer,karoliena would just happen to swing by. " i promise,nothing is going to jump out and get you,ada." karoliena laughs when she sees ada looking around. " the button to release the hounds is at home. far far away." karoliena grins widely, she joked about releasing hounds a lot. even erica wasnt sure if she had a button to do. but she wouldnt put it past karoliena.
she looked through the cabinet and wondering what shall they drink. karoliena settles on the absinthe. its what erich would have wanted. she brings the bottle down along with two glasses and spoons. "this we should take it easy on. its pre mixed with laudanum." karoliena says seriously before pouring the glasses to the dose line. she was not kidding. she and erich have made their own absinthe for years. a head spinning 180proof,colored the proper way: with chlorophyll.with a healthy smidge of laudanum to give it that olde oscar wilde kick. they were artists today. they were too far inland to be pirates at the moment.

"We all kept waiting for an evil streak to appear in Gretchen,but it just isn't there. She really is just as sweet as she seems....but won't back down when she thinks she is right." Karoliena gives Ada a little look. If it weren't for Gretchen,they probably wouldn't be speaking right now. She had been the broker of peace,not Erich. He'd have been content to keep Ada and Karoliena separate if it would keep things calm. " if you can get the story out of Erica,its quite something. She is on business in london for a little while,but should be free soon." Karoliena says after finishing her cup of tea. Personally,she found Erica's plan kind of silly. Someone is going to do the math and realize her sabbatical was exactly 9 months and dustyn will just happen to have a new son. But,she respected Erica's wishes of secrecy. Unbeknownst to Karoliena,Joshua grimmie already figured it out.
Karoliena laughs warmly when Ada asks about Erich. Ada was adorable and it made Karoliena happy. She would never be called cute or adorable. It was a trait she really liked. She sighs dramatically and shakes her head. " i guess there are some things conversation with me just can't do for you." Karoliena chuckles. She considers adding something fairly crude,but she and Ada may not be friendly enough where jokes about strap ons are acceptable. " I guess we'll have to call him or perhaps send up a plume of white smoke like a pope has been chosen or something. He's probably far away . he has it in his head I'm some sort of Disney villain or something. " Karoliena does start humming poor unfortunate souls though. She didn't care too much for the little mermaid,but she loved Ursula.
When the smell of anise and alcohol wafts through the air,Karoliena sets out a third glass. "Well, this might attract a wild Erich." She giggles,pouring a third. " so ,Erich tells me you used work in art before coming back to music?"

karoliena didnt miss a beat in her answer to ada in regards to erica in london. " shes working on a very special project for dustyn of weekend. i am not sure what all is going on,you'd have to get details from her. if she is even at liberty to say." karoliena easily says. technically it was true. she was also a far better liar than erich was. a small part of karoliena did want to tell ada. mainly just to see the look on her face. it was a typical,overly complicated way to go about something fairly simple. "exactly. we could probably take you bra off and hang it on the door handle,but this will do for now. "karoliena says with a little smile and opened the window to the bus. it was cute how ada wanted to see erich, karoliena was much the same way when cassie was around. they had been married for quite some time,but they were always excited to see each other. karoliena was very impressed with the work ada had been doing outside of music. she would have been very disappointed if ada had been doing a dull job . she was very into museums and archeology ."oh how being in a band changes things,huh? i was slated to be some trophy wife. can you fucking imagine?" karoliena says with a hint of venom. she then smirks and giggles. "Well,i still am a trophy and a wife. but on my own terms."

karoliena wasnt kidding about the odor of anise attracting erich. soon,a familiar face was at the window. his face pressed against the screen. " well,i see the absinthe is out. are we celebrating or disposing of a body?" he asks cheerfully,spotting ada.

"erich,i dont know what you told this poor woman. but she was terrified!" karoliena chastises erich through the window screen.


"prepare for the worst,hope for the best." erich replies.

Karoliena puts her hand to her chest,utterly delighted. "Aww,you are so precious." She melts over Ada's reaction. " You better watch being that cute around Erica. She hates competiton. Mariko only pulls it off because she can beat erica up." Karoliena warns Ada with a little smile. She wanted to add that at the moment,erica had the edge since she was as wide as she was tall with the pregnancy and all. But Karoliena took her promise of secrecy seriously. Karoliena smiles seductively at Ada at the mention of what a bra on a door can signal. " Well,the day isn't over yet." Mimicking Ada's action and pretending to lean over and lock the door. Karoliena could see what erich saw in ada. There was something very appealing about her. But,in reality it would be too weird. " I guess it goes to show vara's allure. Mariko isn't a big fan of men. Like,at all. " Karoliena grins. She heard good and bad about vara. So Karoliena was neutral on her. But the woman had style,and Karoliena appreciated that.

"Heyo." Erich greets his official lover through the window. " i should totally crawl through here,like that guy in that movie. You know,he vaguely looked like me. Has some actress that kind a looks like Nina in it. Sangria,not the other one." Erich decides against crawling through the window though. Karoliena would kill him. The bus was designated a no destruction zone by her. Erich assumes that Karoliena knows exactly what is up,so he comes through the door and gives Ada a little greeting kiss.

"The other one is dead. " Karoliena says flatly. Not that she cared. She just thought it was a funny way to deliver the line.

Karoliena smiles at Ada's blushing and giggling. Karoliena hated when she blushed. Being so pale,she nearly glowed red when she did. It would have people asking if she was ok. Then She would get pissed off and become even more red. " so You do. I can honestly say I've never watched your work. It'd be sort of weird. But i would be happy to consult your experience in camera work,angles,lighting. I think you'll bring a professional bit of quality to this." Karoliena says very seriously before the ends of her mouth turn up in a smile. " i do like them small and cute,though. So much easier to bend to my will." She adds with a little wink. She was complimenting Ada,or course. But also referencing Cassie. Who was barely taller than erica.

"Hiding!" Erich jokes back to ada after taking in her smile. She had an infectious smile,so erich was soon looking pleased as punch. " so things are ok in here? " He asks,looking from Ada to Karoliena.

" not a big loss." Karoliena replies callously. If she liked someone,she would at least have a passing interest in their well being. If not? She couldn't care less.

"Just a little."Karoliena also laughs. She had plenty of nude pictures out there. Most were even tasteful. But as sex tape between her and Cassie? Yeah,that would be a little uncomfortable knowing friends had seen it. " your skills sound perfect. We wouldn't be making common smut,ada." Karoliena jokingly scoffs. She did consider asking If Ada would be interested in similar work for summers time black and blues. But asking your bandmate's girlfriend to join your sex toy and fetish wear empire is not a first day of getting to know each other again topic. Inwardly,Karoliena winced at perhaps bringing something unpleasant to Ada,but the outer mask never cracked. Karoliena lightly touches Ada's hands with hers and shakes her head. She really didn't know what to say. Other than Erica and her infamous anger about never winning sexiest female award,to her knowledge she didn't know any one with issues about their physical form. " I'm sorry. I really didn't mean anything by it." In a rare display of being nervous,she watered the absinthes and started drinking hers.

"I think we are fine too." Karoliena agrees,looking over to Ada. " we laughed,we cried,i told st olaf stories,then we had cheesecake." She laughs because even Karoliena liked the golden girls. Still,it was odd she'd choose to be rose in this joke. She was definitely a Sofia.

Erich looks from face to face and around the room."....so...i don't see any more cheesecake and I'm kinda bummed ." he says before sitting in a chair that faces both of the women.