Silvio appeared at Rora's house at 4 pm. He was wearing Army issue combat fatigues and a more serious expression than usual as he rapped on the door and dealt with a search from the bodyguards, who removed and confiscated his small, shiny, beautiful Beretta. 

"Tu non capisci! I am Rora Byrne's close, personal friend! Give me back my gun you brute, you are ruining it's shine with your zampa di scimmia grassa!"

Oscar carefully studied Silvio, who crossed his arms in indignation after tucking his army hat down closer to his brow.

"Just tell Aurora Byrne that Silvio Violante, her dear friend and star pupil, has arrived for his training. And that he has brought breakfast for this house."

Charlie squinted at Silvio for a moment before he replied, "Guy... it's 4 in the afternoon."

"Well," shrugged Silvio, "I woke up 45 minutes ago. It is morning to me. Go. Fetch her. Fretta!"

Aurora was aglow with a radiance she had not previously possessed.  The pregnancy was no longer a secret that could be kept beneath clothing and she wore it like a goddess.  Her body was strong and carried the baby well, she seemed to have no discomfort at all, the baby low near her hips her skin bright and clear, her hair glossier than when Silvio last saw her.  Even her Amber eyes appeared brighter somehow.

"Give him the gun Oscar, he's more likely to shoot himself with it than us."  She came to Silvio and kissed his cheeks.  Oscar did as he was told.  

"Did I hear breakfast is here?  Good!  You'll have saved me from cooking dinner for Billy.  He never turns down breakfast and he can eat while you and I spend some time becoming acquainted with your long-neglected beautiful lady there."  She indicated the gun.  "When I'm done with you, Silvio, you'll handle her as well as you handle all the other women in your life and you'll love her twice as much."

She gave Silvio a wink.

"Now, where's this breakfast you speak of?  Oscar, please let Billy know I have a guest and he's brought us a treat - breakfast as dinner."

Silvio grinned triumphantly as he took his gun back and haphazardly rammed it into its holster before Aurora kissed his cheeks.

"May I say, Miss Aurora Byrne- uh, Mrs. Aurora Mastrosimone, that you absolutely radiant today. Like the glass that brims with wine, you seem to glow with an overabundance of humanity within you. It is meraviglioso to see a good friend be so kindly treated by the grande universo."

Silvio placed a large paper sack on the table.

"May I present to you... panini per la colazione. My apologies for the late hour. So many of my favorite activities occur in the midnight hours that I've developed rather nocturnal habits."

Silvio removed his gun again and studied it, spinning it around on his finger before waving it around. Aurora's arms went wide as she stepped forward and plucked the gun from her hand. Obtaining the weapon, her hands narrowed with frustration.

"Silvio," she said, seething, "you are a dear friend to me. But if you ever wave a loaded gun around me, my house, or family like that, I'm going to shove it up your-"

"Leonessa!" interrupted the smirking Silvio, "I would never put you or your house or your large husband or your bel bambino at risk! My gun is never loaded. Although I do keep some bullets in another pocket, just in case. I may forget them sometimes, but that is only because I have never actually fired a gun. Still, now that the fiore di venezia has returned to me, I must be ready to defend her, no?"

He dropped his voice.

"And for Silvio to say that he would handle the gun as well as the other women in my life, that is esagerazione, no? Also, are all guns women? This seems wrong to me."

"No, not all guns, but this one is so pretty I can't help but think of her as female."  She smirked.  "Does she have a name?  Not all weapons do but something this nice seems like it should."  

She pulled out her nickel-plated, pearl-handled m1911s with three small silverfish inlaid upon the pearl ... the Luciano family crest.  "This one, Dragon's Breath..."  she showed one to Silvio, "I think of as being female, but it is probably because of the woman for whom she's named.  These guns were crafted to protect my family and this one had the honor of being with my mother in her final moments and so... she's named for her."

She showed it's mate. 

"This one I think of as being male because it was carried by my father for years.  I call it Lion's Claw.  I suppose that name is self-explanatory." 

She put the guns back in their holsters.

"I've set up a range out back.  Shall we take a walk out there and see how familiar you are with your weapon... or, do you need to eat first?"

Silvio smiled as Aurora explained the story behind her guns.

"Ah, I meant to mention- I met your father the other evening. I was trying to assist a damsel in distress, but lacked the... how do you say... capacity to do so. Your father seemed most eager to help her. Although I noticed he carried a similar gun. Did he get a new one when he gave you his old one?"

He grinned. 

"And I would be happy to follow you to the range, but perhaps we break our fast first? I haven't eaten since yesterday evening."

“It seems to me the man doesn’t know what retired means.”  She smiled.  “It sounds just like him to be out helping damsels in distress. Glad to know he’s getting back on his feet again.   Seems he also knows the lesson of the reeds.  My father carries the same type of gun as I do, though I didn’t know it looks like mine. It wouldn’t surprise me however that he is so fond of them that he got one of his own. I will have to ask him about it.”

“Why don’t you tell me about this damsel in distress and what happened over breakfast.”

Silvio always enjoyed a good story. In between bites of his breakfast sandwich, he regaled Aurora with the tale.

"Well, I do not know if you know Miss Emily Renfroe. A beautiful woman, with chestnut hair and eyes so deep that one can fall in them. And a body like-"

Aurora shot him a look.

"- it is very nice," continued Silvio, "anyway, she was being hunted by your FBI. I had met her previously and holed up with her for a couple days and helped her have some fun, avoid some trouble, the usual. I am excellent at hiding; otherwise, I would have never survived my escape from Venezia. Well, after helping her hide, she vanished to handle her business. I wished the best for her, but moved onto my own affairs. A few days later, I was close to winning a poker tournament until some cursed, mind-reading silver haired villain kept taking my chips. Well, Emily limped into the room in a nun outfit, and I wound up hiding with her in the office- where the silver haired man, who I later learned was your father, was making a phone call."

Silvio paused for a breath and a bite of his sandwich, then quickly continued.

"Well, it turned out that Emily had a connection to Someone Divasio, and Mr. Byrne quickly became interested in helping her. I assisted as well, because you know I cannot resist a woman in distress. Well, I effortlessly subdued a couple guards with fearsome powerful punches..."

Aurora was a good enough poker player to recognize the lie.

"... and your father accompanied Miss Renfroe to, uh, remove a local FBI agent that was making things very difficult for her. After that, I went to seek my destiny and she and your father drove off together. I believe she is opening a bordello outside the city, if she hasn't already."

His story concluded, Silvio finished his sandwich as well.

“Divasio...”  That couldn’t be coincidence. “A bordello?”  Definitely not a coincidence.

Aurora sat quietly contemplating the idea that someone tied to Aunt Stella was here.  Kid? Niece? Why didn’t dad tell her?  Surly it was reason to celebrate.  Always good to see family, so why not bring it up?  Was she hiding?  Maybe dad was trying to keep her away from the Cosa Nostra?  Or ...

Aurora looked at Silvio. For a moment, just a moment, her mind went to a place she was not comfortable with. Images flash through her mind she wished she could take out of it. And she quickly dismissed the thoughts as foolish.  It was foolish because her father would never...  at least she didn’t think, and if he did ... he was well within his rights.

Who is she to judge? Had she done just as much when she lost the love of her life? If her father was visiting a bordello it was likely because he was lonely, not because he was looking to replace her mother. Perhaps the only reason it bothered her for us because Stella’s name was involved. And if there was any person in the whole of the world had ever challenged her mothers supremacy in her father’s heart, it was Stella.

Stella however was a world away in Sicily. And not here in Las Vegas so far she knew. If her father wanted to pursue Stella he would be on the first plane to Sicily. Which meant there was nothing to be worried about. Even if he did want to go to Stella, Aurora would’ve supported it. It would’ve made her cry for a week straight, but she never would’ve denied her father happiness. Even her mother would’ve wanted her father to be happy she supposed… Although, if she were being totally honest, that might not be true. Her mother always seem to be the jealous sort. Aurora had never seen it firsthand, but Dragons did not evoke the image of compassion or tolerance for sharing.

“My father is a very good man. But if you play poker with him you will always lose.  Trust that he never Bluffs when you’re sitting at a table with him. It will save you a little money and perhaps a little bit of your dignity. I hope that you will always feel that you can come to me if you see him out and about. He’s capable of taking care of himself and I have no intention of trying to intervene on his activities but it does my heart good to hear that he is enjoying himself and happy. So you will tell me if you see him out and about again yes? As a friend.”

"Si, the DiVasio named had greatly interested your father. An old friend, it seemed like, who recently died, hearing about which seemed to bother your father. I cannot say I know the details."

He smirked.

"I was mostly looking at Emily, to tell the truth as I always do. And your father is a most excellent poker player- one of the best I have seen. And your advice about bluffing... it is both right and not right. He certainly does not do it often... but does that not make it even more effective when he does? I swear there were a couple times when I folded to him that he seemed particularly pleased."

Silvio shrugged as he stood to follow Rora outside.

"I will do so, if I see him. I did mention that I was a friend of yours, but he seemed too focused on his friend's death and helping Miss Renfroe to be particularly interested in me. He seems a fearsome man for one to have as an enemy; I will make sure to be extra nice to him next time our paths cross at the tables."

Aurora walked out past the guest house towards the small range that she and her father has set up. "So, Silvio... have you ever used your gun at all?  I seem to recall you saying you hadn't.  But, have you used any gun for that matter?  It's not a big deal if you haven't but ... if you haven't then maybe we should talk about some safety protocol first."

Aurora pulled her guns out and put them on the small table they'd set up at the shooter's end of the range and gestured for him to follow suit, remembering the first time he father took her to the range... when she was about ten.  

Well, everyone's gotta start sometime...

"I shot a cave a couple of times," said Silvio directly, "loaded a shotgun with gold dust and blasted it into the stone. Other than that... no. I have never needed to shoot a gun. So please, treat me as a true beginner."

He removed his shiny Beretta again as they reached the range, placing it on the table next to Aurora's larger M1911s. Ah, outside shooting! Perhaps this would be fun.

"You know," Aurora said nearing the end of a very long instructional on gun safety, care, and parts, "I've approached this all wrong.  I started out right, telling you she was a lady... but I didn't keep the metaphor going to keep your attention.  Let me back up a second..."

She picked up his gun, "She'll hurt you if you don't treat her right.  She'll let you down when you need her and serve another man's needs when you most need for her to serve yours.  BUT... if you know her, all of her, how she works and what is required to make her sing... Silvio."  she clicked her tongue.

"Is it far more fun to twitch your finger and let her cry out on your hands?  Sure."  She could see she had his attention now.  "But the truth is, there's a lot of effort that goes into getting her to that point and you got to be willing to put in the work with her.  If you want to be with this lady, if you want the best out of her and you want her to please you, then you need to see to her needs first.  Do you understand?"

"Si."  He smirked.

"Now, we'll get to the fun part... but, tomorrow, I'm going to have you go through her parts with me again and show me how to care for her.  Every day we meet you'll warm her up properly before we shoot.  I'll let you know how you're doing.  If you haven't gotten cleaning her down in a week, we'll redouble our focus on preparation and care of your lady."

Aurora loaded Silvio's gun.  "Now I want you to show me how you THINK you should hold an aim a gun...  DO NOT shoot."

Silvio nearly fell asleep from boredom. Mio dio, how long does it take to say "don't accidentally shoot someone"? Still, he perked up a bit as Aurora spoke about the gun in more physical terms. When she asked him to hold the gun, Silvio pointed his gun at the bottles and twisted it sideways, like a real killer. 

"Okay someone has been going to the motion pictures too much."  She said coming behind him and turning his hand the right way.  "That dime store bullshit is going to throw off your accuracy.  Now lift up your arm."

She shook his arm as if it were a limp noodle.

"Nope.  Stiffen it.  Do you prepare for the final act of romance wit-"

Silvio locked his arm, perhaps out of wounded ego.

"Good."  She smirked.  "Now... look down the barrel, find your target."

She looked around the front of him and saw him squinting one eye.  "You look at the target with both eyes or you lose half the picture - you NEED both eyes."

She let go of his arm and walked around to the front of him.  "Put your gun down and close one eye.  Now.  Hit me.  No peaking.  You don't need to hit me hard... just... make contact.  Trust me, you might find me, but you're going to feel my point.  See that.  It's like you're underwater.  You KNOW you can see better with both eyes.  The further away an object is - the harder it becomes..."

Aurora laughed.  "Dad, I don't see what this has to do with guns, what are we doing here?"

"Science."

"You don't know anything about science."  Aurora chided Gavin as he secured the blindfold over one of her eyes.  A few guys at the bar chuckled, but Gavin ignored them.

"Tara says that science is the study of the world, Smart Ass, and since I've lived in the world longer than you, that makes me a damn scientist compared to you.  So listen up."

Gavin spun her around to face the dart board.  

"It's simple," He said offering her the darts.  "I'm gonna sit over there and drink.  You can throw as many times as you want, so long as you don't touch the blindfold.  If you hit the bullseye before I'm done drinking,"  He pulled out a c-note and put it on the table beside her.  "That's yours."

Aurora, only ten, smiled brightly at the thought of what she'd do with $100.  She'd hit the bullseye a million times before.  She was a crack shot with knives and darts - what the hell was he thinking?  She could make this shot in her sleep!  As Gavin walked over and sat on the barstool beside a few of the Race Street guys, Aurora shook her head and cracked wise, "Don't get too comfortable.  Me and Ben Franklin have a date at the record store!"

Gavin lifted the glass that the bartender had already poured for him in a mock toast.

Aurora turned and threw... and missed.  She missed again.  And again until at last, bruised ego in tow, it was time to go home for dinner.  Ben Franklin and she never made it to the record store.

"... like if I had you throw a dart aiming only with one eye, you'd miss every damn time.  Got it?  So... I want you to bring your arm back up... eyes open.  Put the bead on the target.  Don't hold your breath.  In fact, draw a breath and when you're ready to squeeze, then exhale.  At the final moment of your exhale you'll be perfectly still.  That's your moment.  That's the instant.  That precious second is everything and the mastery of it is what we're going to focus on a lot.  So... breath, in and out, in and out... imagine yourself doing the motion before you do it.  Find the rhythm and then, do it."

Aurora watched him trying to aim and waited to see how he did.

Silvio glared at the glass bottle like it was his mortal enemy. Reflexively, he closed one eye to focus- then forced himself to open them both. Taking a deep breath he shot his Beretta 1934 for the first time.

The physical recoil of the gun wasn't much, but the sound seemed to speak him. He missed by several feet. Taking a deep breath, he tried again- another miss. Another miss. Then another. He missed six shots in a row, although his misses did seem to be getting closer. On his seventh and final shot, he missed again but hit one of the bottles behind the one he was aiming for. 

"Ah ha! I did it. Un po."

Aurora nodded.

"Not bad, for the first time... but definitely a virginal run.  Practice will help you, so long as you remember it isn't practice that makes you perfect... practice makes a thing PERMANENT.  If you're practicing wrong, you're wasting your time.  It's like..."

She paused, considering Silvio for a moment before seeming to decide something and then spoke in a rush,  "Like, maybe if you were a virgin when you met your first lover?  And they were also a virgin?  Neither of you knew what the hell you were doing ... so you just kept doing the same thing over and over again because it seemed like that was working?  Then you never changed from that your whole life even though maybe there's a world of things out there you would want to try if you knew how.... but you don't... so you won't.  And then ... well, you don't.  And even if you've had one interesting, rather emotional moment where something came up... you're just not sure it'll ever be like that way again and so, you're not practicing that and maybe that skill is lost or forgotten or something... I don't know."

She looked around and then lashed a hand out to grab her own gun and fired off a handful of shots knocking down all the standing targets, as if doing so helped her feel a little less ill at ease.

Silvio had known Aurora for some time and, in their times together, he felt like he had got to know her well. As the words spilled out of her, Silvio refrained from making eye contact- he didn't think that would go well. Instead, he checked and reloaded his weapon, then placed another bottle out. As he slowly practiced his aiming, his speech was occasionally interrupted by the quick report of the bullet thudding past the target.

"Ah, I think I understand you, Rora. You are saying that, as a novice, I must first find things that work for me. Then, as I improve, I must guard against... complacency?"

His gun cracked.

"Instead, I must always seek variety, to ensure that my practice does not become a boring chore, but rather maintain the spirit of adventure that I feel now, my gun leaping in my hand for the first time?"

Crack! Another miss.

"It sounds like what you are saying is that I must never totally abandon the basics. That if I were to throw myself entirely into new, complicated things then I could perhaps get frustrated by my lack of success, which I had previously achieved? At the same time, I cannot continue practicing exactly the same. So if I visit the range twice a week, then once I should try something new and once I should stick with the tried and true? I think this is wise."

Crack! Another miss.

"It also seems essential that I communicate openly with my... gun. If I am feeling pressure to perform, I could ruin my shots before I even load my gun. But if I approach these new styles of shooting with an attitude of fun, knowing that any struggles are to be mutually, joyfully laughed at, then I risk very little in experimenting."

Crack! Another miss.

"My guess, is that if I truly want to improve as a marksman, then I should listen to stories from you or someone more experienced that I trust. Perhaps when we are done here, we can visit my club. Our club. I should check in with Sofia, after all."

Crack! Another miss.

"Perhaps you'll tell me some stories of your adventures, how you wield your piece so well? Perhaps I will tell you some stories of my own that may give you some ideas, no?"

Crack! Another miss. 

"Mio dio! This bottle must contain devil piss!"

Crack! The last round missed again. In a torrent of Italian cursing, Silvio threw his gun at the bottle- and it knocked it over. He raised his arm triumphantly toward the sky for a moment before sighing and lowering them.

"That... does not count. I know."

Silvio, despite all his antics, was a caring man.  She stared at him and remembered what she saw in him to begin with... his tongue had more than one gift.  She was glad she could benefit from at least one of its many talents still, even if she'd never enjoyed the other again.

She relaxed as he chose to focus on shooting, didn't call out her desperate attempt to talk to someone about her insecurities of Billy being home less and less (and, in particular, what she might not be doing right) and he instead chose to cling to her established marksmanship metaphors.  

"It sounds like you got a good grasp on things."  She smiled at him, holding his gaze a moment.  "Thanks for reassuring me.  I sometimes worry.  Knowing you get it, and um... well, the way you said all that, I appreciate it.  I appreciate your insights."

She rubbed her neck.

"Never throw your gun again though.  She's a lady, remember?  Now... go pick her up and we'll clean 'em up before we head out for a few drinks.  Next time you visit we'll work more on your aim, that's gonna take a while though so you can't give up that easily.  And when you get that down, we'll move onto more complex concepts."  

With that, she picked up her guns and returned them to their holsters.  She sighed.  Maybe she was just worrying about this too much?  Maybe... maybe she just needed to grab the bull by the horns and go out and find some help?  Stories?  Tips?  Training?  Her mind wandered and as Silvio retrieved his gun, Aurora struck on a brilliant idea.  It was an idea which had the ability to help resolve her issue with Sapphire AND make Billy's birthday the very best one ever...

Aurora smiled at Silvio.

"I'm so glad we met."  She said to him.  "I've never been too good at making and keeping friends, but with you, I don't worry too much about screwing up & chasing you off.  For what it's worth, it's nice to have someone I can be myself around.  So, thanks for that."

"She's a lady, but sometimes even a lady likes it rough, no?"

With a wink, he trudged after his gun. When he returned, he flashed her a reassuring grin.

"It will be fine. Just needs practice. And regarding being yourself, I am also glad you can do this, Rora. That is what friends are for, no? And did you say something about drinks?"