Daphne Palmer-Slade

31. Police Detective. Pansexual. Mother.

[daphnexpalmer]

Who: @evie-morris​ Where: Daphne’s Place When: Saturday February 13, around 8 pm

Daphne finished pouring wine into Evie’s glass, then proceeded to fill her own. “Thanks for coming over for Galentine’s Day” she said to her friend. Normally Daphne loved Valentine’s Day, but it was a little sad celebrating the holiday without a date. Which is why she’d taken inspiration from Parks and Recreation and decided to ask Evie over for a girls’ night of wine and pizza. Dani was already asleep in her room, and the blonde hoped her daughter would stay that way for the night so that Daphne could have fun with her friend. “The pizza should be here any minute and I’ve got all three episodes of Parks and Rec in my queue for tonight.” It was just a shame there weren’t more Galentine’s Day episodes of the show for them to watch.

[daphnexpalmer]

della-slade​:

“I don’t think she could ever be a brat. Not with you raising her. A new toy once in a while. A happy meal occasionally. Toss in some candy. She’ll feel loved and spoiled from her aunt but it won’t do any damage. Now if you bring her around my crazy aunt? The one with all the cats? Now that might do some damage. She might turn into a crazy cat lady,” She jokingly pointed out. With Daphne as a mother there was no way that she could turn into a bad child. All that kindness would rub off on her of course.

“True but with a bit of training you can get them to stop that. All it takes is hiding their socks. Plus a few months on the island and they naturally stop doing that but it’s still an awful thought,” She made a face just thinking about it. “Marilyn Monroe once wore a potato sack yet you don’t see women running around copying that. Just imagine how attractive she would have been in flannel!” Della laughed, “Lady lumberjack chic? Now that sounds amazing! How about hippie chic? I can wear tie dye, put flowers in my hair and go barefoot.”

❤

Daphne mock shuddered at Della’s words. “Not the crazy aunt” she joked. But the truth was Daphne would have taken Della’s crazy aunt over her own messed up family any day of the week. “I’ve already told her we’re not getting any pets til she’s 40 and can take care of them herself, so that plan in out” she added. But she suspected that once Dani was a few years older that plan would change. After all, Daphne found it difficult to say no to Dani when it came to something the toddler really wanted.

She laughed. “The way you said that makes it sound like all the locals should team up together and break into the rooms at Hotel Atwater this summer. I’m sure collectively we can make off with all the socks the tourists have brought with them.” She shrugged. “You know, that sounds like a challenge on Project Runway. Or if its not, it should be.” Sometimes it amazed Daphne what designers would try to dress women in. You didn’t see men putting up with that. “Yes, but as long as its a tie dye dress” she joked back as they approached one of the stores that sold (in Daphne’s opinion) fairly nice women’s clothes. “Actually, maybe don’t take my word for it. You have to remember I spent most of my 20s in a police uniform.” The upside of which was that she rarely had to think about what to wear to work each day.

[daphnexpalmer]

maliaplayer1​:

❂

“I had fun being with them.” Malia nodded softly. “Seeing the excitement and wonder on their faces made it all worthwhile. Even as I prayed every second that they wouldn’t trip and end up in the ocean somehow.” she chuckled, taking another sip of wine. Licking her lips, the brunette nodded and looked down a little. She had expected to miss her husband. She always did, but there was also another blue-eyed man that she had been missing during the holidays which caught her a bit off guard. “How did you hold up for the holidays?” she asked softly. Daphne had to be missing Devon as well. Malia should’ve reached out instead of being wrapped up in all her own stuff. Everything just happened so fast. This was probably why she didn’t have friends before moving to Catalina. She could never keep up. “Oh, that’s right!” Malia nodded as Daphne shared about how the holidays were different this year. Damn, she hadn’t even checked in on Charlie. She really was a shitty friend. “I’m glad that all worked out for both of you. I expect that could be hard to share your child when you’ve been the only one for so long. But you look like you made it out alright.” she smiled over to her friend. Daphne was a strong woman and she knew that she could handle whatever situation that life threw at her. She already had handled so much.

Malia nodded and smiled. “Next Noon Year’s Eve, we’ll invite you and Dani and Charlie over and we can all celebrate.” She would have to write that down somewhere so she didn’t forget. She knew the twins would enjoy it with more people around. It would feel more like a New Year’s Eve for them and that was the whole point. Malia shook her head as Daphne shook her head and shrugged. “It happens though, right? I guess I should’ve been a bit more prepared for it than I was. He’s known to bounce from woman to woman so…” Another shrug to dismiss her own sadness and keep up her strong front though she was hurting inside. “He being Jack Adler…the singer. The famous singer.” she sighed, taking a long drink from her glass. “I’m saying that because you may hear my name in the media and people may try to get things out of you because they see us together out and about.” she waved her hand softly. “I just wanted you to be aware. I’m sorry if they bother you, D. I…I wish I could control the paps more, but that would just make my life too damn easy.” she sighed. “They’re not as bad here as they are in L.A., but there were a few when I went to the grocery store. Luckily, I didn’t have the twins with me because they…Tahlia was getting very attached to him.” 

❤

Daphne nodded in understanding. “That was the best part for me too” she admitted. “Once I got past the white knuckle fear, anyway.” She was only half-joking about that last part. At Malia’s question, she shrugged. “I mean, its still hard not having Della here. But being surrounded by family had made it easier.” The Slades were more a family to Daphne and Dani than Daphne’s parents had ever been. The Palmers had never even met their granddaughter, and if it was up to Daphne they never would. Their life had proven far too dangerous. Nodding again she said “At first I was terrified he was going to take her away from me.” She thought back to all those many months ago. It was hard to believe how far things had come between them since then. “Once I realized that wasn’t going to happen, it became easier.” It had still been slow going, but the tension between them eased a lot once Daphne wasn’t constantly on her guard.

She smiled at Malia’s offer. “That sounds perfect. Or potentially a nightmare depending on how good the twins and Dani are at wearing us down until we agree to let them stay up later than they should, despite doing the whole thing during the day” she joked. “Hopefully you’re better at saying no than me.” For Daphne, that had been the hardest part of parenting alone. Always having to be the one to say no wasn’t fun. Her frown deepened as Malia mentioned who she’d been dating. Shaking her head, she said “Well, I promise they won’t get anything from me.” Daphne might not look it, but she could be tough when it was necessary. And she suspected having a police badge would make the media think twice about trying to force her to answer any intrusive questions. She would never betray Malia’s trust like that. “I’m sorry” she said again. She couldn’t help but feel a bit angry on behalf of her friend and the twins. What kind of guy got close to someone, met her kids, and then broke up with her right before the holidays? “The press can kindly fuck off” she said, her words revealing a rare moment of anger for the blonde, and she was relieved there were no children around to hear her.

[daphnexpalmer]

luciancarterx​:

Had Lucian seen this reaction before? Yes, a couple of times, but it still made them smile all the same. They walked over to the table a moment later, peering into the box, just curious about what she’d bought  —- even if they wouldn’t go all the way through it right now. “Really,” they carried on then. “You don’t know how appreciated it is. So many people take stuck over to Goodwill and don’t even consider it.” They shrugged very lightly. “There’s a couple of mom’s around here who’ll love those toys when they stop in.” A brief pause followed, and then they glanced back for a moment. “You want to come in and say hi at all? There’s a few people in there having a hot drink right now. Couple of kids.” By kids they meant teenagers, teenagers who had lost their way and didn’t know where else to go, some days they appreciated conversations with people other than the staff and volunteers.

❤

She nodded. That thought hadn’t really occurred to Daphne, but she suspected it was harder for smaller groups like the shelter to receive donations than the larger and better known ones like Goodwill. “Well, I’m glad to hear somebody will have use for them” Daphne said, relieved to know she wasn’t wasting anybody’s time by bringing stuff that the shelter wouldn’t have any use for. She considered the question, then said “I would like that. But are you sure I wouldn’t be intruding?” She knew a lot of the people who were there had probably been through a lot, especially the teenagers. She didn’t want to put any of them on the spot or force them to make conversation if they didn’t feel up to it.

[daphnexpalmer]

della-slade​:

“Is it really possible to spoil someone too much? I don’t think there is such a thing. It’s just my way of showing that I love her.” The psychologist that she saw occasionally since her divorce had told her it was her longing to have a child that made her spoil her niece along with trying to make up for her sister not being there for Dani. Maybe they were right. Or maybe it was just because she loved her niece so much. Or maybe it was a bit of all three. 

“I told her if she set me up with someone my dad works with again I’ll elope with the first tourist I see. Since that’s basically what I did last time she knows I’m serious about it too,” She joked. Well almost what she did last time. They had at least dated for a bit before running off to get married. “Or at least a store that has dresses. I think she’ll be happy if I just show up in something but jeans,” She shrugged. “Hey! Nirvana was the best band ever! Maybe I should wear flannel next time.”

❤

“You say that now, but when she turns out to be a brat you’ll disagree” Daphne joked. But she liked to think that as much as she spoiled her daughter, she was keeping Dani from becoming a brat. Granted, there was only so much that could be done at that point. Dani was still a toddler, and toddlers were often prone to meltdowns. But she hoped she didn’t do anything to encourage that sort of behavior, because she didn’t want her child to grow up and be a menace to society.

Daphne’s eyes widened in mock horror. “Please don’t” she said. “A lot of those tourists wear socks with sandals.” Which wasn’t obviously the worst trait one could find in a partner, but she didn’t think it was something to be desired either. “Flannel on a woman can be so attractive. I don’t understand why some people can’t get on board with that. Maybe because Marilyn Monroe never wore it.” She shrugged. “But yeah, I suspect your mom is looking for something more dressy than lady lumberjack chic.”

[daphnexpalmer]

maliaplayer1​:

◌

“The twins had the time of their lives. They keep asking if we can go again and I’m like the whales need to rest.” she chuckled softly. “Oh I know what you mean. I was the same way. My hand was always on them when they leaned over the edge of the boat. It’s terrifying.” she grinned with a shake of her head. She took a sip of her wine, reminding herself that this was about her and Daphne and not the kids, but the subject always had a way of sneaking in. “I’m glad they were so good, Daph. And yeah, the holidays are always hard without Tommy around. He would be a grinch about putting up decorations, but once the house was decorated, he would sit on the floor like a little kid with wide eyes and look around at everything. Just in complete awe of how beautiful the house was.” Malia smiled softly at the memory. “I framed some Christmas pictures I had of him and put them up so the kids could feel like he was here with him during the holidays. I know it’s not the same, but it’s something.” she said with a soft shrug. “What made this Chrismukkah special?”

Malia took a long sip from her glass before nodding and swallowing. “It was a good holiday. The twins racked up in the present department between Santa, me, and my sisters. We did a noon year’s eve with a count down and sparkling cider and streamers and noisemakers. It was perfect because I knew they wouldn’t stay up for the real thing. Then…” she paused, looking at her glass for awhile before looking back at her friend. “We went to fireworks on the beach at midnight because…that guy I had been seeing invited us, but we’re….we’re not together anymore. We broke up one week before Christmas.” she frowned, before leaning her arm on the back of the couch and propping her head up in her hand. “Break ups suck. Especially your first one.”

❤

“I’m happy they had fun” Daphne said. “I hope you enjoyed it too.” Daphne had been so nervous when she was on Della’s boat she’d forgotten to enjoy herself. She hoped Malia hadn’t been the same way, although from the brunette’s words she might have been just as nervous as Daphne was. Then she nodded in understanding. “Nothing like the holidays to make you miss someone.” Daphne had felt the same not having Devon with her for the holidays, although she at least had Charlie and the Slades to help her through it. “And that’s a really cute idea” she said. “I’m glad you found a way to include him and make the kids feel like he’s with them.” Daphne was sure Dani was reaching the age where she was starting to notice Devon’s absence from their lives during the holidays, and she hoped her daughter wouldn’t feel the same loss Daphne did during the Chrismukkah season. “Well, its was the first one since I learned Charlie was Dani’s father” she explained. “Obviously that doesn’t make up for Devon not being here, but it was nice to have a co-parent to share the holiday with.” Daphne had come to consider Charlie just as much family as she did the Slades, and she was happy they’d reached the place where they were at. Sometimes she found it hard to believe that it was less than a year ago when she’d learned Charlie was Dani’s father and had been terrified he would take the little girl away from her.

She smiled wider as Malia recounted what she had done for Christmas and New Year’s. “That’s so cute” she said. But the smile disappeared from her face as Malia described her breakup. “Oh, I’m so sorry” she said, her eyes wide now. “That’s like the worst time of the year for a breakup.” She wondered what had caused the breakup but wasn’t going to press Malia for details. She figured the brunette would share if she felt like it. Nodding, she said “They really do.” She felt bad she was just finding out about this now. The holiday season had been busy, of course, but she still wished she’d been there for Malia when the breakup had occurred.

[daphnexpalmer]

luciancarterx​:

*

This was a normal weekend for Lucian. Every Saturday they’d be up and would head straight to the shelter, wanting to arrive early and before the rest of the day volunteers arrived. They’d cross paths with those that worked nights, giving them a chance to have a good chat and a catch up, something they really did enjoy to start their weekend off. 

They’d been there for a couple of hours when someone they didn’t recognise wandered in, a box in her arms. As she approached them, they flashed a bright smile. “You can drop it over by the refreshments table,” they answered. “We can take a look through it later.” Seeing as it was heading for lunch time now, a couple of the volunteers were busy cooking, getting ready to dish it out when people started to filter in. “Thanks for thinking of us,” they added, knowing that people didn’t always and would often take things to Goodwill, just because it was easier.

❤

“Okay, thank you” said Daphne, setting the box down on the table the other person had indicated. “I just hope there’s something in there you guys find useful” she added. Daphne always tried to make sure the things she donated weren’t too overused or worn looking. What was the point of donating something if it was so raggedy the volunteers just ended up throwing it out? It simply made more work for them. “And you’re welcome” she said, a slight blush creeping into her cheeks. Daphne knew they were being polite, but she was of the belief that donating something she wasn’t using was the bare minimum she could do to help others.

[daphnexpalmer]

della-slade​:

It was the slow season on the island. Besides the occasionally tourist trying to get away from the mainland she was lucky to get a dozen tours a week. Even though it was a two-boat operation the second boat was docked for the season. It was just her doing the tours for now. At least until business started picking up again. With now tours that day how could she possibly say no to hanging out with her sister-in-law?

Thinking about her question, she laughed, “Well the toy store is always fun. Maybe if my niece is lucky I’ll actually buy her something instead of just something for myself,” She joked. “Actually that mother of mine told me I need something formal to wear for some dinner she’s hosting. I think she’s back to trying to set me up again. Apparently ripped jeans and old t-shirts aren’t proper formal wear.”

❤

Daphne laughed at Della’s words. “You spoil her too much” she said, even though Daphne secretly loved that she had a sister-in-law who was as generous and loving as Della. Besides, Daphne didn’t have much room to talk, given that she spoiled Dani as well. Mostly to make up for Devon not being there, but also out of fear that she wasn’t as good a mom as she wanted to be.

Raising her eyebrows at Della’s comment about a set up, Daphne said “Hopefully this one is better than the last one.” As well intended as she knew her mother-in-law was, Daphne could understand if Della found it frustrating that her mother was trying to fix her up with someone. Then she laughed again. “Okay, then I guess we should start with one of the nicer clothing stores” she said, glancing around to see what was nearby. “Because I can only imagine how your mom would react if you showed up looking like the member of a 90s grunge band.”

[daphnexpalmer]

Who are you closer with your mom or your dad?

“Growing up I was definitely closer to my mom. She was the parent I was more likely to tell my secrets. I used to think I had a lot in common with her. But when I learned the truth about my parents, I realized that was all a lie. These days, I don’t have contact with either of my parents.”

[daphnexpalmer]

[daphnexpalmer]

charlie-ansel​:

A smile tugged at Charlie’s lips despite the growing an anxiety at thee conversation topic. He looked forward to those days, when Dani could more easily communicate with both of them. It was scary, knowing she’d soon be growing into her own person, but it was equally as exciting. Which was why he didn’t want to miss any moment of it, and why he was nervous to broach the subject of them moving in together. Even the slim possibility that Daphne might not be on board was enough to make him feel sick.

The seconds between when he stopped speaking, his hands curling against each other nervously, and when Daphne responded, were nerve-wracking. Good idea. When he read the words on her lips, when he saw her smile, it felt like his entire body relaxed. “I was worried you’d think I was overstepping,” he admitted, hands shaking a little as he signed. His smile widened at her comment, and he shook his head. “Unfortunately, I can promise that I’m a little more of a logistical nightmare to live with than forgetting laundry,” he joked, though there was a edge of unease in his expression. “Visual alert doorbells are something I assume most hearing people don’t even consider when potentially living with a deaf person.” He didn’t want to point out that various landlords had offered units to other applicants over him, and he was certain it was usually for that reason—the cost and hassle of installing that kind of technology wasn’t something most landlords would choose to deal with if they can avoid it. He’d gotten lucky that Devon had introduced him to Della. She hadn’t cared about any kind of changes he needed to make to ensure the attached studio he rented was accessible.

“But I’ll be around more for Dani when you work late—no more needing to text me to ask if I;’m free to watch her, I’ll just. Be around,” he added, as if he still needed to convince her. His eyes dropped back down to Dani. “I’ll be really glad to be around more. To help out with her.”

❤

Daphne shook her head at his words. “Not at all” she said quickly. “Dani is your daughter too.” Daphne thought back to when she’d first learned Charlie was Danielle’s father. She’d been so scared he’d tried to take the little girl away from her. And she knew that if he’d wanted to, he probably would have been able to do so. Which meant she was always willing to make the extra effort to ensure their co-parenting went smoothly. Besides, she liked Charlie as a person and thought this would make raising Dani together easier. Certainly it was more practical.

She nodded now. “I’ll be honest, that’s not something I thought about.” But she gave him another smile. “But I’m doing my best to learn” she added. She was still working on mastering sign language. Apparently learning to speak French as a child didn’t guarantee picking up another language as an adult would be as easy. Curse her fully developed adult brain for not wanting to learn new things. She knew living with Charlie would be an adjustment in a lot of ways, but she was more than willing to attempt it. Maybe it would be nice, having another adult around. She could come home from work and talk to someone about her day who would actually pay attention to what she was saying, instead of ignoring her to play with toys. 

Nodding again, she said “When you put it that way, I think that’s a really good idea.” She looked forward to having more time for herself, and also for Dani to have more time with Charlie. “I promise that as long as you don’t mind a little bit of mess when it comes to the laundry, I will do my best to be a good roommate.” Or whatever it was they would be now. Was there even a word for late-wife’s-baby-daddy-slash-best-friend-turned-cohabitating-coparent? She doubted it.

[daphnexpalmer]

maliaplayer1​:

Who: @daphnexpalmer​ Where: Malia’s House in Ventura

Malia grabbed another bottle of wine from her wine fridge and opened it at the counter before walking back into the living room to Daphne. These were rare moments when they got to have a wine and girls’ night. The babysitter was watching Tahlia and Tahj upstairs who were probably sleeping. At least, she hoped they were. She had been keeping them closer to her since everything happened with Jack. Being a good mom was her focus now. 

She poured some wine into Daphne’s glass before her own. The movie they had decided on watching was playing without much attention being paid to it. “So I took the kids to go whale watching and Tahlia spoke whale the whole time. We saw about four whales and so many dolphins. They had the time of their lives.” she grinned before sitting to the side of her friend and gathering her legs under her, before taking a sip from her glass. “You should take Dani out there. I’m sure she would love it.” she nodded. “But enough about the kids.” Malia said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “How have you been? I feel like we haven’t been able to catch up in awhile. How were the holidays and all that?”

❤

Daphne took a grateful sip from her glass of wine after Malia had finished pouring it. She listened as her friend spoke, a smile forming on her lips by the time the other woman had finished talking about the whale watching experience. “That’s so cute” she said, happy her friend had a special memory of a day with the twins. She knew Malia often worried about being a good mom, the same way Daphne herself did. “When Della took Dani and I out on her boat, I think I spent more time worrying about Danielle falling overboard than I did actually paying attention to the animals we saw.” She chuckled at the memory, glad she could laugh about it now. “But maybe we’ll give it another go soon.” Daphne liked to think she was slowly loosening up. Besides, now that they’d already been out on the boat once, Daphne knew first-hand that Della was more than capable of keeping them all safe.

“It has been a while, hasn’t it?” she said. She felt a bit guilty about that. But with them both being full-time working moms, getting together wasn’t always easy. Getting together without their kids was even more difficult, and Daphne made a mental note to try not making tonight about the kids. Daphne loved Dani, and she thought the twins were adorable, but the whole point of tonight had been to do something without the little ones. “The holidays were actually wonderful” Daphne said. “I mean, its still hard to celebrate without Devon. But there was something special about this Chrismukkah.” It had been the first Chrismukkah Daphne and Charlie had celebrated together as co-parents, and it made Daphne happy that Dani could have her father in her life. “How about you? How were your holidays?” 

[daphnexpalmer]

Who: @della-slade​ Where: Catalina Shopping Center When: Saturday January 23, around 2 pm

Between their respective jobs, it was rare for Daphne and her sister-in-law to both have a Saturday off. But Daphne had managed to get a full weekend off for a change. And while she wasn’t yet an expert on tourism in Catalina, she assumed it was slow this time of year, which meant Della had managed to have the day off as well.

Which is why, earlier that week, the detective had texted her sister-in-law to arrange a day out of shopping together. Now the two were walking through the shopping center, Daphne looking forward to the after-Christmas sales. Nothing had made Daphne come to appreciate sales quite like becoming a mom had. Turning to glance at Della, she said “Which shop should we check out first?”

[daphnexpalmer]

Who: @luciancarterx Where: Homeless Shelter When: Saturday January 23, around 12 pm

After a fun evening with Evie the night before, Daphne figured she ought to be at least a little productive on her weekend off from work. So early that morning, she had started gathering up a box of things to take to the homeless shelter. Most of what went into the box was clothes that Dani no longer fit into, or clothes that Daphne had bought for herself and only worn once or twice before deciding she didn’t like them. She also tossed a few old toys of Dani’s in the box. Daphne wasn’t sure if anybody at the shelter would have children small enough to fit Dani’s old clothes or use the toys the girl no longer found interesting, but she figured it didn’t hurt to offer them to the shelter’s employees anyway.

By the time she managed to get enough together to fill the box, it was almost noon. Daphne put the box in her car and made the short drive over to the shelter. After opening the front door of the shelter, she glanced around for someone who appeared to work there. Approaching them, she said “Excuse me. Do you mind telling me where I can drop this off?” She used both hands to sort of wave the box around, to indicate what she meant by this. “Its just a few toys and some clothes I thought would be put to better use here than at my place.”

[daphnexpalmer]

Who: @evie-morris​ Where: Evie’s Place When: Friday January 22, around 7 pm

It had been a long week at work, and Daphne was looking forward to two days off this weekend. And she figured the perfect way to start those two days was by spending the evening unwinding with a bottle of wine and some good company. Which is why she’d arranged to come over to Evie’s place a few hours after work ended.

After going home to shower and change from her work clothes into something far more comfortable, Daphne found herself outside the door to Evie’s apartment. A bottle of wine clutched in one hand, she used her other to knock on the door. When it swung open, she gave her friend a warm smile. “I hope you’re in the mood for chardonnay, because otherwise I will simply have to drink the whole bottle myself” she joked.

[daphnexpalmer]

nathedelstein​:

☁

“What have I heard?” Nath shuffles on his feet, back and forth, fidgeting. “Lots, actually. Something about a crash, maybe. Or a hijacking? Other people’ve said they ran out of gas, or something, but I don’t know. Aren’t the drivers supposed to be a bit more careful about that sort of stuff?” Putting their arms up, they let out a large breath. “Have you contacted anybody yet? You know, to help send in a search party or something?” He has a million different questions, and he’s not even sure if she can answer them, but he has to try. 

❤

Of course the island rumor mill was working overtime. Daphne knew that much. But until there was concrete evidence that any of those rumors were true, Daphne was inclined to take them with a grain of salt. “Its kind of hard to plan a search party in the middle of the night” she pointed out. “But I’m sure my boss has gotten ahold of the mayor by now.” Surely the police chief would have better access to the mayor than Daphne (as a detective) would. “Until we know for sure that something truly terrible has happened, let’s not panic.” It was far more likely the ferry’s captain had gotten lost or the ship simply ran out of fuel than it was a hijacking or crash had taken place. If there was one thing being a detective had taught Daphne, it was that panicking was entirely unhelpful in an emergency.

[daphnexpalmer]

📱Daphne & Evie

Daphne [200 am]: Have you heard about the ferry?

Daphne [201 am]: All sorts of rumors are flying around the island.