***

Viola entered the Oak and Shield, and saw that the pub was already full. She should have reserved a table for herself and Yola, she thought, and then she heard a voice call her from the furthest corner of the pub.

"Viola!" Clementine Popplewell was standing in one of the booths, waving her arm frantically. "Viola!"

John and Mable were sitting at the same table, and Viola headed towards them. John got up when she approached them. They all exchanged greetings.

"We saved you a spot!" Clem announced proudly, and pointed at one of two empty chairs in the booth.

"I was supposed to have dinner with Yola," Viola said. "I haven't realised the karaoke night would be so popular, so we haven't gotten a table, though."

"You should stay," Mable said. "Your friend Yolanda is most welcome to join us, and Rhys can stand."

Viola threw a look at the empty chair and laughed. Somehow she'd missed that the two seats had been prepared for her and Rhys. She might not know whether Rhys would be the winner in this derby, using Fenton's metaphor - but the Holyoakes clearly had made their bets. She sat down and texted Yolanda telling her there was a seat waiting for her. John went to the bar to make orders. This time, Viola decisively asked for red wine with her meal. Yola joined them half an hour later, which obviously was almost on time according to her internal clock. They ate dinner, chatted about Clem's writing, and reminisced about the uni days.

The karaoke was starting - Mrs. Owens sat down at a small table near the stage with the song tickets one could purchase to go on stage - when Nana exclaimed, "What a surprise! Is that Dr. Fenton? I can't believe my eyes."

Viola looked at the entrance to the pub, and saw Fenton walk in, in stylish black trousers and a suit jacket over a black tee.

"Oh wow!" Yola exclaimed. "Is that your Doctor Totty, Vivi? That's wicked! He looks like young Anthony Hopkins!"

"Why 'Doctor Totty'?" Clem asked with curiosity. "I mean, I know he's a totty, but why is he Viola's Doctor Totty? Have we missed something?"

Fenton noticed them and gave Viola a small wave.

"I think we might have," Mable drew out. "Didn't he allow you to call him Alan on day one?"

"Alan?!" John asked, dramatically raising his eyebrows. "Fenton's first name is doctor."

"Oh that's exciting!" Clem said and clapped her hands.

"Oh Rhys is going to love it," John drew out, and the three women glared at him.

"What does Rhys have to do with Viola and... Alan?" Clem said in a strict tone. "I don't see a Holyoake ring on her finger."

"I don't have one," Viola said with a chuckle and wiggled her fingers in the air. "I gave it back to Rhys after the divorce."

"Oh I thought you still had it," Nana exclaimed, and gave Viola a tense look the latter didn't understand.

"No, I returned both your engagement ring and my Holyoake band," Viola said and gave Mable a soft smile. "I'm surprised he didn't give them back to you."

They were interrupted by Mrs. Owens announcing that the tickets could now be purchased. A few people rose from their spots and approached her table. While John was explaining to Yolanda that the proceedings from the karaoke night were donated to the Fleckney Preservation Society after the expenses for the equipment were covered, the door opened and Rhys came - with Sam walking behind him. Yola immediately seemed to have lost her ability to retain any information. The brothers approached the booth, and Viola met Rhys' eyes. The left corner of his lips curled up, and she gave him a small smile. Another round of greetings followed, Yolanda noticeably quieter that Yolanda had ever been in her life. At some point Sam threw her a confused look - it was hard to miss how much she avoided looking at him - but he seemed so drained, both physically and emotionally, that, as Viola assumed, he hardly had energy for anything beyond the most simple actions.

"I offered Sam to join us," Rhys said, pulling up another chair, and shot Viola a cheeky side glance.

She noted his purposeful intonation around the word 'offered.' Sam, engaged in a conversation with Clem, threw Rhys a distracted half-smile. It seemed the brothers were doing better, and Viola made a mental note to ask Rhys about it.

"Fenton's here," John deadpanned and picked up his glass.

Rhys - who was listening to Mable tell Yolanda about the history of the pub - visibly tensed and slowly turned to look at his cousin. John saluted him with his wine and then pointed at Viola with his eyes.

"Honestly, John," Clem commented in an exasperated tone.

Rhys looked at Viola - and then suddenly grinned.

"Don't you wish sometimes that your sex life didn't involve a large nosy family?" he asked her.

She smiled back at him - and he rose sharply.

"I'm getting myself a ticket," he said. "Yolanda?"

He looked at Yola, and she bristled.

"I can buy my own ticket," she threw to him, and he only smiled wider.

"Not if I buy all of them," he announced with a flourish and gave her a wink. "Can't leave anything to chance, you see," he said, raised his eyebrow at John, and sauntered towards Mrs. Owens.

Viola giggled.

"I think Doctor Totty might be in trouble," Clem supplied a line, and they both burst into laughing.

"Will he actually buy all the tickets?" Yolanda asked in disbelief. "That will be a very boring karaoke night."

"I'll go supervise him," John said, got up, and followed Rhys.

Clem emitted a little derisive snort. "He thinks he is the boss here. He forgets he's not in London in his publishing house."

"It is Rhys' village," Nana said without hiding her pride towards her oldest grandson.

Viola watched the two Holyoakes buy tickets - and then step aside to, most likely, bicker and growl at each other. She was on Rhys' side here, John was shamelessly goading him - and sticking his nose into Viola's private life at the same time, which she didn't appreciate. Perhaps, that's why she'd agreed to give Fenton a chance: a relationship with him, indeed, wouldn't concern every member of a 'large nosy family' - nor would it involve random men, who had no interest in her personally, trying to use her to rile up Rhys, as John and James did.

The first person with a ticket stepped onto the stage. It was Mr. Buck, the butcher, and his rather decent rendition of Sinatra's 'Strangers in the Night.' There was a large screen behind the stage, and one on the opposite wall, where the lyrics ran for the participants' convenience. The screen behind the stage had some sort of videos playing, to accompany a song, Viola assumed. The evening was themed, and the choice of songs was limited to the late 1950s and 1960s, mostly by the major 'crooners' and female big band jazz singers. That was ideal for Viola if she decided to participate. She had a low voice, perfect for such songs - but as much as she enjoyed karaoke in a small company, she probably wouldn't dare to get up on stage tonight. Unlike dancing, she required an appreciative, forgiving, and supportive audience when singing.

"Will you be getting a ticket, Sam?" Clem asked.

"I don't sing," Sam answered and took a sip of his Lemonade. He didn't drink, just as Clem. "Not anymore," he added quietly.

Clem threw Viola a look, and Viola shook her head slightly.

"Do you sing, Clem?" Yolanda asked.

"No, I'm a Holyoake wife," Clem answered with a laugh. "We're infamously tone deaf. George and Fiona are the same."

Nana confirmed it with a jolly "So am I."

"As I've heard, it's only Viola who can sing," Clem added.

"So, are Fiona and Will coming then?" Yolanda asked greedily.

Not only she was, in her own words, 'fangirling super hard' over Will's writing - she was now involved in some sort of an art project with Fiona. That was Yolanda in a nutshell, she formed connections and built relationships with the speed of light.

"It's not exactly their thing," Clem said. "John is the show off of the family."

"I beg to differ today," Sam drew out, and they all watched Rhys return to the table, with a thick stack of tickets in his hand.

"Blimey, Rhys, will we have to listen to you all evening?" Yolanda asked and spat out a Spanish swearing.

Sam chuckled, and she immediately shrunk and blushed. Viola had never seen Yola blush!

"You can have as many as you want," Rhys said generously, dropping the tickets on the table. "It's not you I'm keeping away from that microphone."

"Well, thank you, kind sir," Yolanda gritted through her teeth and gave him a narrowed-eyed tight smile. "Why don't you just run around and piss on every post in the pub to stake your claim?"

"Who says I never did?" he quipped. "I've lived here all my life. Plenty of time to mark my territory."

Yolanda scoffed derisively.

At that moment Fenton stepped onto the stage, having passed his ticket to Laura, Mrs. Owens' niece who was in charge of the equipment.

"I really hope he isn't horrible," Clem said with a small anxious cringe. "There's nothing worse than the second hand embarrassment."

The screen behind Fenton lit up with a black and white video of a man and woman walking in the rain under one umbrella, in vintage clothes - and the first notes of Sinatra's 'Witchcraft' rang through the Oak and Shield.

And then the good doctor sang - and if Viola hadn't had worked hard on always keeping her face under control, her jaw would have slacked. Fenton sounded half-Sinatra, half-Tom Jones - and a hundred percent like an auditory orgasm! He had perfect pitch; a low, slightly raspy voice, only improved by his accent; and a confident lazy manner. His eyes calmly travelled around the pub, the women sat up straighter in their seats when his gaze brushed at them - and then he looked at Viola and gave her a little shake of his head, the words 'there's no nicer witch than you' rolling through the pub.

"Oh brother, you are in trouble," Sam murmured, and Clem gave out a nervous giggle.