“Are arranged marriages common?”

“Are arranged marriages common in these parts?” you ask. Lily starts laughing, covering her mouth and turning away. Emilia, for her part, stands as stiff as a plank of wood.

“I’m not from around here,” Emilia says, “I know that in Minneapolis at least, they're banned,” and then she looks at Lily.

“What?” Lily snorts, “I’m from Kentucky, not these parts either.”

“Are arranged marriages common in Kentucky, then?” You ask.

“Legally, no,” Lily says, “but you know how these things are, right?” She adds, raising an eyebrow.

“No,” you reply, “I really don’t.”

“Well, you see if you’re rich enough, you’ll put down a groom price on some boy years in advance of their majority,” she hiccups, “now technically that’s an arranged marriage, right?”

“Sure,” you reply, and Lily grins.

“But since you put down the groom price as a deposit,” Lily slurs, “it’s technically legal. As if anybody’s gonna stop even if it wasn’t anyways, but, that’s how you get away with it.”

“Do they still do groom raids out in Appalachia?” Emilia butts in.

“God, I wish,” Lily sighs, “I’m sure that I’d have myself a cute redneck husband years ago if I thought I could get away with it.”

“What’s a groom raid?” You ask.

“Do you want a demonstration?” Lily states, staring you down.

“So,” Emilia butts in, “it’s when womenfolk used to go out and kidnap a man for themselves as a husband, simple as that, used to be really common with the Indians.”

“What do you mean?” You ask.

“Well,” Emilia said, looking down into her drink, “I know that way back in Minnesota, folks might see a cute indian boy wandering ‘round unprotected and snatch him up and make him their husband on the spot.”

“Like, commonly?” You ask. Emilia shrugged.

“I mean, there were only so many Indians then and there aren’t many left now,” she sighed, “so yeah, I suppose so.”

“Question for you then, hun,” Lily says, hiccupping once, “how many sisters you got?”

“One, I mean,” you say, flipping back through the journal, “three.”

“Only three‽” Lily blurts, “For you I’d take those odds any day, goddamn. Are they halfs or fulls?”

“What?” you ask, blinking.

“Me and my sisters would fight them all the same to get a piece, but I’m curious,” she adds.

“They’re my sisters,” you state, not sure if you understand the question.

“No,” Emilia says, “she’s trying to ask if your sisters,” she takes another sip of her triple-shot, “are they full sisters of yours or half-sisters.”

“Uhh,” you say, “I think they’re all full sisters?”

Both Emilia and Lily physically recoil as if hit. Lily starts to giggle, not a friendly giggle, but a dark and painful giggle from her gut.

“Are you trying to tell me,” Lily laughs, pointing with her drink hand at you, “that your mom has your dad all to herself?”

“Yes?” you ask.

“Oh wow,” Emilia says, coughing and then taking another sip.

“Oh wow is right,” Lily scoffs, “how the fuck does a woman cover a groom price all by herself? Is your mom loaded or something?”

“I don’t think so?” you ask.

“Maybe we just need to move to Kansas,” Emilia says, looking down in her glass, “what a lucky woman, having a husband all to herself, a son, and a few daughters” she frowns “that’s the dream ain’t it?”

“Speak for yourself,” scoffs Lily, “I’m in no hurry to have kids, but I do love the idea of having a man all to myself that I don’t have to pay to fuck me all day and can cook me dinner too!”

Emilia shrugs and looks at you.

“Yeah,” Lily chuckles, “she’s thinking about it.”

“Oh, like you aren’t,” Emilia scoffs, “so do you have any more questions for us?”

OOC: If any of you have any questions that you want answered in-character, drop them in a comment