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 Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 9:30 am
Who: Anita, Cruz, and Axel
When: April 5th; about 12:30 pm
Where: Little cafe in Durem
Weather: No clouds, sunny with a chilly wind
It had been a while since Axel had done anything raevan related, spring brought on a whole lot of busy work days and with her soul and essence with Zeke it was hard for her to remember she was going to have a raevan popping up sometime soon. When Axel did go over the events of ehr handing over the essence and soul, one thing stuck out from everything that had happened. It was the name of one of the raevan owners that had a crocodile for a soul, Axel was as much interested in meeting the owner as she had previously been previously. What had been her name? Annie? Ann? She couldn’t remember for the life of her, she was going to have to ask her secretary, the woman was like a memory bank even as old as she was.
“Gertrude, can you come in here please.” The woman shuffled into the office, clearing her throat to make her presence known. Axel looked up, mentioning for her to take a seat, but Gertrude shook her head. “Do you remember the name of the woman I told you about, the one that caught a crocodile soul?” The secretary hummed a little, memory working as she tried to remember so far back. “I think you said it was Anita.” Axel smiled, going to one of her drawers, opening it up and digging up the phone list. “Yes, I see it here Anita, thanks Gertrude!” The elderly woman had already left the office, by the time Axel was calling the other owner.
Axel dialed the number, waited for someone to answer, making sure it was Anita before she went on about introducing herself, giving the other woman a brief summary of how she was an owner, and why she was calling her. Axel was intrigued by her soul choice and asked if it was possible to meet both Anita and her raevan for lunch sometime. It would also be a good opportunity for Axel to reflect on her own soul choice. When a time and place were chosen, Axel hung up and sat in her chair with a smile. This was going to be exciting!
Making sure to remind Gertrude not to give her any appointments on Wednesday, Axel didn’t know how long she would be taking to Anita, it would be better to be safe than sorry and have to cancel an appointment. With this in mind, and with the weather being so nice, Axel decided to go for a more casual look. Some dark wash jeans, a simple white slim t-shirt and a pair of running shoes. The cafe that they were meeting at was a small one, on the corner of a street in Durem. They’d decided to meet there since Anita lived in Gambino and Axel was in Barton. The place had a nice rustic charm to it, reminding her a little of England.
There weren’t many patrons when Axel arrived, Axel picked a table with three chairs and waited patiently. She was facing the door so that she’d hopefully be able to recognize Anita and her raevan when they came in, she’d look a little silly waving her arms, but that was okay. When the server came around to offer her the menu, Axel grabbed two and told him she was waiting for someone, but would like a glass of water. She left it untouched when it arrived, and checked the clock.
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Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 11:33 am
When the woman had called, Anita was a bit surprised; it wasn't often she got calls that sounded important from people she wasn't yet acquainted with. As soon as Ms. Halkias mentioned Lab and Raevans, however, Anita immediately lit up and pulled out her own phone listing to update it. This woman must have gotten her essence and soul after Zeke gave her the list, for she was nowhere to be found on it, but now she has neatly in Anita's personal scrawling. The two chatted on for a few minutes and Cruz watched eagerly as his woman paced about the apartment, small contraption placed on her ear. It hadn't been the first time he'd seen her use it but it was rare she was so animated while doing so; the look upon her face was pure excitement and the frei could not help but emulate the expression as well.
Before long the two decided on a meeting place and time, one Anita looked forward to almost as much as the previous weekend's when she reunited with Alex and Zul. Durem was a little out of the way for one from Gambino but the cafe wasn't terribly far into the historical looking city and according to online directions was quite easy to spot. One ferry ride later and the two were nearing their destination, Anita decked out in a graphic band tee, a black hoody tied around her waist in case it got any colder, old looking jeans with a few small rips at the knees and simple tennis shoes. It was lucky for her Axel decided to go casual today or she might have felt puny in comparison to the older woman. Cruz floated eagerly beside her, holding her hand like an obedient child and basking in the warm sunlight uninterrupted by clouds. The weather seemed to be improving each day to the crocodile and the warmer it got the more content he was going outside without anything but his standard outfit.
Holding up a sheet of paper that she had printed out with the directions, Anita paused along the sidewalk and began mumbling the cafe shop's name to herself, eyes scanning both sides of the street. She had to squint but further along the street they were on there was a sign sticking out from the side of one of the street lamps with a coffee cup on it, the steam elegantly spelling out Cafe Noir.
"We're here," she chirped to her charge, who opened his eyes after closing them to enjoy more of the sunlight while they stood still. Anita looked over her shoulder and smiled at Cruz, who returned it boldly, reptilian teeth flashing. That was the one thing Anita still had to get used to, but in the months since he was born the frei had never once used them for force or to injure. As far as she knew, he never really used them aside from when the two of them brushed in the morning and before bed.
Anita's steps toward the cafe were lively, a light jog compared to her somewhat aimless wandering with the directions prior, and Cruz kept himself alert as their speed increased, ponytail blowing in the breeze just like Anita's braids. She slowed as they rounded the corner, skipping a bit and looking into the large pane of glass that took up most of the cafe's front wall. Cruz floated slightly higher, craning his neck to look for anyone familiar before he remembered they were meeting someone new, to which he hovered slightly lower and instead watched Anita. She, too, wasn't quite sure what to look for, but was confident the woman would know how to spot her from Cruz alone if she were truly a part of Lab now. Both sets of green eyes brightened as a tall woman with elegant black curls beckoned them inside with a wave of her arms. That must have been her; the two grinned at each other before walking up the small steps to the door and entering, the sounds of idle banter, glasses clinking and typing all adding to the atmosphere of the shop which seemed simultaneously plain and lavish somehow.
"Miss Axel Halkias?" Anita asked as she and Cruz maneuvered toward her table, waiting for confirmation before holding her hand out to shake and sitting down. "Anita Bishop. Hi, wow, it's great to meet you," she chuckled lightly, watching Cruz perform the same motions to pull his chair out as she had and 'sitting', if it could be called that, with his fingers resting gingerly at the edge of the table. He gazed expectantly at this new woman, quite taken with her eyes in particular -- they were such a deep blue, the color reminded him both of Prajna and Zul and it sent pleasant shivers up his half-spine. "This is Cruz," she indicated with a light hand gesture before resting both upon her knees, one leg tapping in silence eagerly.
Upon hearing his name he was brought out of his slight trance and Cruz glanced down at his hand before extending it toward Axel the same as Anita. "Hello, Mizz Ack-sel Hal-kyas..." he sounded her name out slowly, though the pronunciation was a bit off. It was difficult for him to purr such a long name but despite himself there was a pleasant throaty grumble given after and a humble smile across his face.
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 2:49 pm
It was easy to spot Anita when her form and the floating one from the raevan as they walked by the large glass of the store front; Axel was already smiling and waving to motion them over by the time they were inside. “Yes, that would be me; it’s nice to meet you Anita.” Axel shook Anitas hand once they’d reached her, maybe a little too enthusiastically before setting both her hands on her lap to keep herself still. Her eyes slide to the raevan offering him the same large grin as she had Anita. He was the third raevan she was meeting, the only one she’d met that wasn’t out of the ordinary. “It’s nice to meet you too Cruz.” Axel took his hand in her own and gently shook it, almost a little afraid of breaking him. She wanted to laugh a little at the way he pronounced her name, but decided otherwise. He looked younger than Anya, then again so had Luka, but something about the way he said her name made her think he was also younger than the light raevan.
Cruz toothy smile made Axel’s brows shoot up in a bit of a surprise, Zeke had said a crocodile soul and upon first seeing him the only thing that had reminded her were his colors and the teeth necklace he had. She could definitely see the crocodile soul had extended to his teeth, she was going to have the ask Anita about them later on. In fact, she had a lot to ask Anita, but some explaining came before.
“It’s nice to finally meet both of you,” Axel didn’t remember being this excited in a long time. “I know over the phone I briefly mentioned why I wanted to meet, Zeke had said something about a crocodile soul and I got a little curious.” Bending over slightly, Axel opened her bag she’d left at her feet and took out her notebook turned scrapbook with all the details of her raevan, she laid it with care on the table, both hands on it. So how did she proceed from here? Order food and then talk raevan? Or talk and then order? The server however, cut her train of thought as he moved closer asking them if they wanted anything.
“BLT no tomatoes with white bread.” Axel handed the menu back to the waiter and waited to see if Anita was going to order anything. Once the waiter was gone, Axel tapped the top of her notebook. "I pretty much documented everything, habits die hard and I'd like to have a little something to remember when I get old, or you know to show the raevan." Opening it up, the first page was a picture of the empty soul bottle with the flowers. "Zeke gave me some pretty interesting flowers as an essence," Axel turned the page over, there was a picture of the flowers in the glass and her notes were neatly written. “He called them forget-me-nots, and from what I gathered about its powers, well...” How should she phrase this? “They kinda whispered to each other, like lovers. You also kinda get this smell that wafts from it, perfume and cologne from a woman and a man.” Weird, but that’s how she explained it.
Flipping a few pages, Axel stopped on the one that had an up close picture of her soul bottle, colors swirling and all with the cloth. “This is the soul I caught,” she smiled. “A panther chameleon, here’s what they look like,” turning the page once more revealed a few selected pictures of the chameleon breed. “It wasn’t the soul I wanted, but kinda fell in love with the colors.” Well, that was it. Axel hoped she hadn’t talked to much, she’d presented everything to Anita so she understood and now she didn’t know where to go from there. “And that’s it, everything has been handed over to Zeke.” Axel sat back in her chair and ran a hand through her hair. “What do you think?” She briefly wondered what the raevan would think about all this information, she glanced a little at Cruz, then back at Anita.
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Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 10:51 am
The brunette was quick to discard her light hooded jacket, wrapping it around the back of her chair before taking her seat across from Axel. It was a small cafe table with just enough room for their elbows and plates, four chairs on each side as would be expected. Cruz mimicked his guardian, but without a rump to sit on he was more or less floating above the seat while his ribbon rested against it and he kept himself upright with his arms.
Two sets of bright green eyes gazed at Axel excitedly, entranced by the topic of discussion that would soon be coming. For Cruz it was spurned by confusion; Anita had spared many of the details, so he was not entirely certain as to why this meeting was happening in the first place but he did not resent that and was intrigued despite it. She, on the other hand, knew full well what was to come here, and her smile only grew at the mention of Zeke.
"Of course," she chuckled, tucking her legs around those of her chair and pulling herself closer, "This is good, though. I don't think many people honestly use the call sheets as much as they could, myself included, so this is a good step in the right direction!" It felt a little odd to be speaking this way to a successful career woman, but Anita felt comforted by the excitement Axel showed and it distinctly reminded her of herself when she was first getting situated with Lab. "Just a bit of warning, we might have to fill in some gaps. This isn't something Cruz has been privy to, just because he hasn't asked about it, so just be prepared for some questions."
Whether the topic was something he understood or not, the crocodile Raevan in question didn't seem particularly bothered. He glanced Anita's way when she mentioned his name, just in case he needed to be alert, but his mind was far elsewhere. This woman had a distinct air about her, one that was very different from anyone's he had ever met thus far whether they were human or Raevan, and it was something that was easily drawing him in. Perhaps it was the way she dressed or the way she styled her hair, but there was a comforting scent moreover that wafted from her which was distinct and unique to this woman and he could not place just what it was. Still, he remained polite and smiled faintly while the two women looked over their menus. Human food was something he was curious about, just because of how different it was to his own way of feeding, but thankfully he was quite full for the moment and there would be no fear of Axel nor anyone else in the cafe having to deal with a kissy crocodile.
"I'll have the chili salad, please, the hotter the better. With a root beer and a glass of water, no lemon. Thanks," Anita handed the menu over just the same before settling down and resuming her attention on Axel. The other woman wasted no time in pulling out a notebook and explaining what it was. What a cute idea! Anita's eyes lit up with curiosity and she leaned closer across the table, grin refusing to falter. "Oh wow, these are beautiful," she sighed, resting a hand on her cheek, "Cruz, look!"
His gaze had already been firmly planted on Axel's expertly manicured hands when she pulled the notebook out and his eyes lit with childish delight when it opened and revealed pictures. He understood her words for the most part, while picking out the most important factor and pushing the rest aside; she was going to be raising one of his kind.
It was easy to tell from his birth, whether he seemed to understand it or not, that he came from the Lab, it was his birthplace but his home was with Anita, Tango and Minerva. She took care of he and Tango, Minerva took care of her, that was all that really mattered. Suffice to say, Cruz still didn't understand 'proper' family dynamic, as far as humans were concerned but it wasn't something Anita seemed to place a great deal of importance on anyway. When Axel mentioned 'essence' and 'soul', though, he did c**k his head gently and his fingers carefully snaked closer toward the notebook without touching it. Her mention of a smell perked him up and things seemed to fall into place. Perhaps what he was smelling was not her, but these flowers' lingering scent?
All through Axel's explanation, Anita kept muttering to herself things like "Oh, wow..." or "God, that's pretty!" and it kept Cruz at ease. She was really enjoying this!
When the wedding planner leaned back and prompted Anita, she laughed. "Oh man, this is fantastic...!" She couldn't help but chirp at all of the beautiful pictures and information presented, her mind already running wild with all sorts of assumptions and ideas regarding the raeven-to-be. "I don't know how many soul captures were accidents, but I've gotta say you're not alone on that one. I didn't know what I wanted and then it just sort of... came along. What soul were you hoping for?"
Cruz looked up to his woman with a surprisingly pitiful look of captivation at this topic. Anita didn't look over, but felt his concerned gaze and reached over to pat his hand reassuringly. He would get the explanations he wanted and deserved, but for right now it was important to get Axel squared away.
She had a lot to prepare for.
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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 11:52 am
Axel nodded at the mention of the call sheets and wondered if the older owner received new call sheets from Zeke, in any case she was planning on meeting everyone at least once and learn from their experiences. “I’d like to meet as many owners as I can, one can never have enough friends and once my raevan is born, I’m sure it’ll be good for him or her too.” Axel imagined going out shopping or doing some other activity with another owner while the raevans followed behind. It would certainly be a routine change considering most, if not all of her friends were in the wedding industry. Conversations could get a little redundant at times; this was going to be fresh and new.
“Oh I don’t mind,” Axel turned towards Cruz. “Feel free to ask as any questions as you want. I remember when I was first told about all this stuff, I was asking a lot of questions too.” Granted, Idylla had asked far more than she had, but they were all questions she would have had to ask at some point or another. Plus, questions that came from Cruz were bound to come from a different point of view; he was a raevan after all so it would be nice to know what he was thinking about all this.
It seemed that everyone who set eyes on the colourful soul all had the same train of thought, it was beautiful. It was nice to be getting such positive feedback; it only helped to boast her pride about the soul she’d chosen.
How Anita had caught her soul was intriguing, Axel had a harmless soul while Anita’s had been very dangerous. “You’re going to have to tell me about that capture because it sounds like quite an adventure.” It also made her wonder why she had kept the soul; then again she had no idea what essence it had been paired with. “What essence was it paired with?” Taking a good look at Cruz, she could only guess it was something green? Perhaps a plant, but like Anya she was unable to actually give a good guess since it wasn’t obvious. So maybe raevans were more affected appearance wise by their soul, this would mean a scaly and colourful raevan for Axel. It was an idea she wasn’t opposed to, and in fact the more she thought about the more she would enjoy scales.
Anita’s question made her pause for a brief instant. “Something girly, maybe a butterfly or baby duck, or maybe a penguin. Penguins are really cute.” The soul colors probably would have been black or white, maybe a combination of both swirling in the soul bottle. Axel pictured a monochrome raevan with a necktie, the image was quite entertaining. “I don’t think it matters in the end really, because I feel in love with what was on the inside.” Plus, Axel could just not bring herself to taking the soul from its body only to release it because she wasn’t pleased with how the soul was.
“Though I don’t think I would have been able to take a soul from a baby tiger or penguin to be honest.” Just the thought sent chills up her spine. “Nor where I would exactly find such souls except at the zoo.” Though the keepers would have no reason to allow her inside a penguin enclose, a ‘I need a soul so I was thinking stealing one from these guys’ just wouldn’t really do it for this kind of thing. “This accident was a good thing, I didn’t have to see anything happening in action and feel no remorse for that little bugger.” She said the last part as a joke of course.
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Posted: Tue Jun 12, 2012 12:06 pm
"It's a great idea," Anita smiled encouragingly, nodding pleasantly to the other woman. Cruz mimicked the smile and nod without fully understanding the context, but if Anita approved then surely it was something worthwhile. To Axel's addressing him personally, he became attentive and perked his brow. No questions were coming to mind at the moment, so he just smiled and uttered a simple "Yes", allowing the womenfolk to continue with their discussion uninterrupted.
Axel's interest in the story of Cruz's soul capture was refreshing. Many people were surprised at how she managed to capture a crocodile, of all things, but not many actually asked for the details. Now here she was with someone who wanted the whole story. It was a good thing she didn't block it out as some kind of traumatic event with how ridiculous it was.
But that story was for later. "Mistletoe," she answered simply at first, giving Cruz a side long glance before resting her hands on the table and offering a quiet chuckle, "Forceful mistletoe." Anita allowed that bit of information to sink in, listening intently to Miss Halkias' description of the sorts of souls she was hoping for. How beautiful a butterfly Raevan would have been! Oh, why did she think of insects when pondering souls herself? Another glance at Cruz. She reached out gently and gave his hand a pat.
That was why.
He smiled at her assuring touch, though quickly brought his attention back to Axel. He wasn't sure what all those animals were, or the contraptions showed in the pictures, but he knew that the colors swirling in that orb were phenomenally beautiful and he so wanted to see it in person compared to these strange squares of captured time. Nothing could compare to the real thing.
Anita shook her head quickly, pressing her cheeks with her palms so her face was gently smushed, "Ooooh no. That was my whole thing, too. I felt too bad, I didn't want anything to die..." It was a very conflicting feeling she hadn't been presented with before, taking a life in order to give life to something else. A very strange conundrum in and of itself, but fate intervened and took the choice from her. It was for the best, really. For Axel too. "Ha, that's good. Be pretty traumatic otherwise," she mused, tapping her lower lip with a finger.
The lightly clawed fingers of the crocodilian frei tapped and stroked against the table, his eyes still locked upon the journal pages splayed out before them. They were speaking of Raevans not in the present, but the future. A Raevan to be, and yet there was nothing among these photographs that looked anything like a Raevan to him. Finally, questions seemed to be bubbling, and he soon reached across the table towards the book to gain Axel's attention. "Where?" he grumbled curiously just as the waitress returned with their drinks.
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 9:14 am
Axel could not hide her surprise when Anita revealed the essence behind Cruz, her brows shot up. “Really? A forceful mistletoe? What does it do?” The only thing that could come to mind was forcing someone to kiss, if that was the case and it had been paired with a crocodile soul... “Wow.” It was the only thing that came to mind, wow. That was quite the duo to put together, and from the teeth Axel had see Cruz sporting it probably made for some interesting anecdotes! “Does that mean he kisses people? A lot?” She had to ask, because honestly seeing a crocodile kissing people was quite entertaining.
The death talk as a little somber, but Axel nodded, agreeing with the whole dying idea. “Maybe when you actually meet your raevan, the death deal doesn't seem so bad because you've used the soul to make something new and wonderful.” Axel gave Cruz a smile. “I don’t think I’ll feel better about it until then anyways.” Not until she’d seen it fully recycled and put to good use anyways. “Speaking of which, do you know how long it takes for a raevan to be born? How long did you wait for Cruz? Do you know how long it took for other raevans to be born?” Zeke had said it varied, but maybe she could estimate it depending on how long it had taken others.
Thanking the waitress, Axel turned to Cruz to answer his question. “She’s still in the lab.” She let her preference slip then, maybe if she started actually calling her raevan a she, she would get a girl. “I mean I don’t know if she’s a she, but I’d like her to be.” Axel took a sip of her drink. “Hopefully, she’ll be out of the lab soon and you guys could meet.” She’d promised Luka he would get to meet her first, and there would be Idylla who would want to meet her as well, but there were plenty of other days; Axel hadn't met many other guardians yet.
The food followed the drinks soon after, and Axel took a bite of her sandwich as the plate was brought in front of her. “I noticed you didn’t order anything for Cruz, what exactly do raevans eat?” Now thinking about it, all raevans she’d met didn't have lower bodies so it left her with the question of how exactly they processed food. “I wish there was some sort of handbook you know? I feel so unprepared with everything.” Food was one big thing she hadn’t even thought about asking Zeke, and she wished she had.
Even her apartment was semi ready to welcome another being into the home. The other room she had previously used an office space was full of boxes that she was slowly transferring over to her office, but there was no bed or anything. “Do raevans sleep on beds or do they float on it?” There would be no need for a dresser, but maybe a little table or something to put accessories on? Axel was also going to have to paint it some sort of neutral color, because if she did end up with a boy, she doubted it would enjoy a light pink and white room with lace for curtains. She made a metal note to really get working on the place.
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Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 1:27 pm
Anita chuckled at Axel's reaction, putting up a quick pair of pursed lips to mimic a kiss before returning to her grin. Between them, the crocodile Frei perked up and turned to the dark haired woman, green eyes bright and a toothy smile tugging at his lips. His fingers wriggled eagerly as he held the edge of the table and with a little wiggling in his seat he managed to grumble out a quiet "Kisses?"
"A lot is probably an understatement," Anita scoffed, allowing their companion to let forth a sea of questions. It was rather cute, actually, seeing this beautiful and composed looking woman get worked up into a tizzy of excitement over this. It reminded Anita of herself when she first saw a Raevan and was bugging everyone in the vicinity for information on them -- and look where it got her! Able to care for and bring up one herself. Of course, she didn't get most of her information until she actually had the Essence and Soul Bottle in hand and that was thanks to Zeke. "I took a lot of notes when I first came into the Lab scene," grinning, she rested her elbows on the edge of the table and leaned in a bit closer.
Cruz mimicked the motion, even down to the grin Anita wore.
Pointing a finger towards the scrap book, she continued to speak, "You already seem to be taking care of your information. Maybe you'll be the first to come up with a handbook." She chuckled. "I think the time it takes is different for everyone. If I'm not mistaken, little green Mister here took a lot longer than is average," she reached over and toussled Cruz's hair, causing him to turn his attentions to her instead of Axel and lean against her hand in similar fashion to a cat or dog enjoying being pet. "Um... a good estimate from me, unfortunately -- whoo -- it was almost two years," glancing back to the photos of Axel's Essence and captured soul, Anita couldn't help but feel excited. There was distinctly something active about them even if they were just pictures. "My gut's telling me you probably won't have to wait that long. I hope, anyway. I think with Cruz, it was a combination to do with his make up -- a stubborn old croc not wanting to do what it's told -- and there was also an accident at the Lab that slowed production down in general."
Where his eyes had been closed, just enjoying having his hair played with by Anita's pale fingers, Cruz's eyes opened slightly at the mention of an accident. He stared somewhat blankly, a smile still in place though it seemed a bit weaker than before. When he had first awoken, he remembered a strange sensation. It was hard to place because it felt as if he had just been in a dreamless sleep prior to his birth, but during it in a span of time he couldn't possibly comprehend there had been a stabbing cold -- and a tinge of fear. This was definitely something he would have to ask his woman about when they returned home and he wouldn't be interrupting or ruining the pleasant mood of this meeting. Moreover, he didn't want Anita to stop messing with his hair for a simple question, so once he resigned himself to asking later his expression returned to one of innocent gratification.
"Oh, it'd be so cute if your baby was a girl," Anita blurted without thinking, "Um, I can't speak for anyone else but I know for sure that Cruz does sleep in a bed. I think it depends on the Raevan, though; I remember hearing that one or two didn't sleep at all and there are some that have such outrageous wings it would probably be painful to sleep normally on one -- if only just painful for the bed." Anya was one of those who she couldn't quite picture sleeping normally on a matress.
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:09 am
Another chuckle escaped her lips, Cruz had answered her question then. It made her wonder how many people the croc had kissed, it probably made for interesting adventures for Cruz and Anita. It was also good to hear she wasn’t the only one taking a bunch of notes about raevans. Watching Cruz copy Anita made Axel blink a few times, she had seen him copying his guardian a few times. “How old is Cruz?” Axel only saw children mimicking their parents, which was why she was asking now, paired with the few words he’d managed it made her wonder.
Taking a sip from her drink, Axel offered Anita a nod. “I still have much to gather, but I think I’m off to a good start.” Her eyes went wide her the other guardian revealed how long it had taken for Cruz to be born, “Wow that’s really long!” Anita sure had a lot of patience! Axel didn’t see herself waiting two years else she be nervous and fret all the time about being ready for her raevan. “Thanks, I hope I can see her soon too.” She sure hoped Anita’s gut feeling was right, it would be nice if things happened soon. She definitely needed to remember to call Zeke this week for an update.
An incident? “What kind of incident?” Her brows knotted in slight confusion, should she be worried? Anita had made it sound like past tense, and Zeke would surely have warned her if there was something weird going down at the lab. Though just to be certain Axel needed to ask.
“Thanks, I’m not really sure why I’m hoping for a girl, a boy would be nice too. Just I don’t know, I like the idea of being able to go shopping and do her hair and do that kind of stuff.” Truth be told what she really wanted was a daughter, and since she wasn’t exactly at that point in her life a raevan would be as close as she would get.
Axel nodded quietly as Anita explained about beds and raevans, her hands going to ehr sandwich and finishing her half. “I guess it’s a waiting thing huh.” Lots of uncertainty here, being unorganized was something she dreaded, but it looked like Axel was going to have to deal. “I’ll be doing a lot of finding out when she’s born, painting the extra room and what to put in her room in terms of furniture is going to have to wait.” She took a deep breath, and chuckled lightly. “I don’t like being disorganized,” she admitted quietly. “But it’s part of the raevan journey though.” Axel sent Cruz a smile.
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Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2012 4:07 pm
Axel's question caught Anita off guard and she glanced to Cruz before bringing up her fingers to count. "Let's see, he was born in September..." she mumbled to herself, raising one finger at a time, "That would make him seven months old now. Time's really been flying." There were times when Cruz seemed more self aware than any human toddler and it was fairly obvious most Raevans developed at a far quicker pace than humans could ever hope, but then others -- such as the cues Axel picked up on -- made her unsure how his development was progressing. Vocally, he was a quiet sort while still being very demonstrative in both body language and facial expressions but his pronunciations and vocabulary were fairly small. Maybe it was time to hunker down and do some proper tutoring.
"I think so too!" Anita encouraged, digging into her chili salad that she had nearly forgotten about in all of the Lab excitement. It wasn't surprising she wanted to know more about the incident, and she tried to hurry her chewing along so she could explain. "It was um -- oh god, it was in 2010. It feels like it was a lot sooner than that. Anyway, I don't really have the full story but basically what happened was that the Lab was kind of... well, it was frozen," this would be the first time Cruz would hear of this event as well, and his small pointed ears almost seemed perked as his eyes bore into her own. He wouldn't be missing any details. "If I remember right, it was one of the Raevans that did it -- and older one. No one could get in or out of the building and a few people were stuck inside. I think the entire situation lasted about a week, but that Raevan..." she trailed off, leaning back in her chair, playing with her fingers on her lap, "I think they had to be, um... euthanized." It was weird, saying it like that, but she couldn't think of a more tactful way to put it for both of the listeners.
Cruz's brow crinkled, not understanding the word, but judging by Anita's sudden change in posture and demeanor he could tell it was something bad... or sad. He reached a hand out and gave her arm a reassuring pat as she had done for him earlier and she offered the frei a small smile before returning her attention to Axel. "It won't be a problem for yours, I'm sure. It's all over and done with," she hoped Axel wouldn't worry too much about the situation thanks to her story. She really hadn't brought it up intending to cause her to fret.
At her change of subject, Anita chuckled, "You could do that with a boy too if they wanted," reaching over to gently hold Cruz's ponytail, "He really likes having his hair done. Don't you?"
"Yes," he rumbled heartily, "With ribbons." Smiling, he reached up and gave the white ribbon holding his hair in place a gentle flick, showing it off proudly to the dark haired woman.
"Definitely worth it." Anita remembered the first time she came in contact with a Raevan, nearly five years ago. All of the scrambling, her imagination going haywire to try and figure things out, all of the new and wonderful people she'd met because of a single curiosity -- and now she was here, in a position like Zeke or Alex had been to her, mentoring and assisting someone as if she were an authority. Her chest swelled a little and she beamed at Axel, "Yep. All part of the Journey."
The crocodilian frei couldn't help but smile back, teeth flashing but his eyes remained as gentle as ever. Excitement was bubbling underneath his skin. He wanted to meet this forget-me-not frei, take in its intoxicating scent, taste its nectar coated lips and leave an impression on it like the others he'd met had left on him.
"Speaking of," Anita hummed after another bite of the yummy chili, "How did you come to find out about Lab? I know they've got some advertisements in the paper and such but I found out by happening on one of their fundraisers." Everything was all part of the Raevan Journey, as she said, and one of the most important parts was the beginning.
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2012 11:23 am
“Oh that’s still very young!” Axel herself began counting. “I think I dropped off everything with Zeke in January.” Her voice lowered slightly. “It’s been almost six months since then.” Time did fly quite quickly, she hadn’t even realized that the snow had melted and was long gone since the cold evening of the drop off.
Two years ago was a long time and a week wasn't very long, Axel nodded quietly as she listened to Anita explain the situation. So an older Raevan had gone rambo on the lab, no wonder Cruz had taken a little longer to be born. Though it was reassuring to know that her raevan wouldn’t be affected by what happened, granted you never knew if another older raevan might also go rambo on the lab while her raevan was still being born. Axel shook the thought away, everything was going to be just fine. Plus, it was summer now, no traces of snow or ice unless it was in your ordered drink.
Axel chuckled as she glanced at Cruz hair, if she remembered correctly Luka didn’t have long hair so it really depended on the raevan. Of course she’d be just as happy with a boy, but she felt like it just wouldn’t be the same thing. “That’s true, though I do like the thought of a mother daughter relationship,” Axel paused as she tried to formulate her next question. “Is that how your relationship with Cruz is? I mean is it a mother and son relationship or more of a best friend type of thing?”
Anita’s next question made Axel really think, eyes squinting a little as she recalled the event. “It was my sister really,” Axel doubted Idylla even knew it was because of her. “She had just come out of a relationship that had gone sour, and we were out for a brunch. We were talking about the future and having kids and such, I was reading the paper when I saw the ad.” Her sister had been babbling on about how she thought Axel would be the first to get married and have kids, but here they both were, single and without children. Most guys it seemed, were afraid of dating someone who was in the wedding industry.
“Anyways, I thought I was well off and could manage on my own. I liked the idea of having a child,” Because she had honestly thought that’s what she would be getting. “So I signed up. I know I have plenty of time, and resources aren’t hard to come by, after all people are always getting married.” Plus, Axel was sure she’d be able to be an event planner as well if the industry suddenly crashed and burned. “I guess it’ll be a nice routine from the ordinary come home alone, eat alone, sleep alone, etcetera, I think you get the picture.” Axle waved her hand up in the air dismissively.
“It’ll be nice to have someone to take care of, to teach things and see grow. Idylla, my sister, thought I was a bit crazy but she seems to be very excited at the prospect of being an aunt.” Idylla had been far more then excited, she’d been all over it like a kid on sugar. “The people I’ve met from the lab so far all seem very nice, looks like I’ll be making a few friends in the process as I go along too.”
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Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2012 1:48 pm
Anita chuckled and nodded. Raevans grew and matured far faster than humans, that was for sure, but seven months was most likely still in the "baby" stage for a Raevan. "Oh, you had Zeke too?" she couldn't help but smile at the memory of when she and that colorful raver first met, also when she dropped off the essence and filled soul bottle for Cruz. "He's great, hehe," Anita beamed, though the conversation didn't linger on him for long.
"Yeah, I can see why," she smiled, resting her hands together on the table, taking a break from her meal. Cruz rumbled thoughtfully at Axel's next question and Anita quickly covered her mouth so she didn't sputter from laughing. Just like when the topic was brought up with Vivi and Shepard at Valentine's, it was a thought she wasn't used to nor had she entertained in the slightest. "More of a friend thing, yeah," she said through her laugh, though offered Cruz a wink. "I can't really picture myself as a mother -- at least not yet -- but it's definitely an interesting relationship. Hard to really put a label on, y'know?"
At the mention of a sister, Anita perked up. Being an only child, she was always curious how others interacted with their siblings and how those sorts of relationships functioned. In the same vein, she thought of her dog Tango as more of a brother than a son or dependent, so she liked the idea of comparing those feelings with others who had them for blood relations. "Oh, that's a shame," Anita cooed quietly about her sister's soured relationship but she listened carefully, smile slowly renewing itself. She nodded, returning to her chili salad with a soft 'mmm'.
Beside her, Cruz muttered the name of Axel's sister under his breath, trying to sound it out properly. "Ih-deel-a... Ee-dill-ah..."
Anita snickered at her description of Idylla's reaction. "I'm sure she'll be a great aunt, and you'll definitely make a great mom whatever the Raevan's gender is." Though she wondered what made Axel choose to go for an experiment adoption instead of a formal adoption agency or foster care system, it was all in the past now. That reminded her of what Alex said when they met up after dropping the necessary items off with Zeke. She and Zul had given her a big hug each and Anita remembered precisely what Alex said with stark clarity: "Welcome to the Lab family." If Axel was anything like her, she would be getting misty eyed any second.
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Posted: Mon Jul 30, 2012 2:38 pm
At the mention that Anita had also met Zeke, Axel’s smile grew big. “That I did! Both times too, he dropped off the stuff the first time at my office, and then I met him up to drop everything off.” She recalled the day she’d first met, they’d got along very well even with Idylla’s little prank. “Very nice indeed. We laughed quite a bit, especially since my sister tried passing as me. We’re identical twins; thought the difference between us is only seen in our hair colors.” Axel hummed a bit as she continued to think about the two days she’d met him. “Definitely need to give him a call soon, I’m curious to know how far along she is.” Maybe he’d be able to give her an ETA on the birth, she couldn’t forget with all this wedding stuff.
Axel nodded thoughtfully, well she was still plenty young too for kids. “Yea, I’m pretty young too, sort of,” she giggled. “I’m twenty-five, but sometimes I feel older.” Plus, she’d always thought she’d be settled by now. She didn’t even have a boyfriend, hadn’t dated in years. Not that these things mattered in the least bit, or she hadn’t thought about them since she’d been given the opportunity to be a Raevan. “I always felt like the whole process would be like adopting a child.” Not a baby, because they wouldn’t be aware. A child however, she would have to work the relationship, befriend them, become best friends, and in a way it was like a friendship.
“Thanks, I hope so too.” Axel chuckled, she’d worried about her sister, but right now she needed to make sure she herself was prepared. If they hadn’t been sitting across the table from each other, Axel probably would have hugged Anita for welcoming her and then offered Cruz one too, she’d save the hug for their departure. “Thanks for having me, I’ll try not to cause too much.” Axel stuck her tongue out jokingly, yup she was going to fit right in if everyone at the lab were anything like the few people she’d met so far.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 10:34 am
At the mention and description of Zeke, Cruz could not help but smile. It had been some time since the man's name was upon his tongue and he felt the need to practice it once more under his breath. "Ss-zeeek... Zzeeek..." Moving his hands to rest on the sides of his seat, he grinned eagerly at both ladies. This entire lunch was a roller coaster of exuberance and it seemed such positive emotions were quite contagious to the frei.
"Ooh, yeah, definitely do that," his Anita chirped between bites of her food, "And let me know when you get the news, huh?"
A quick wink was given to Axel just as a familiar but still strange vibrating sound came from his guardian's pants. Leisurely fishing the cell phone from her pocket, Anita leaned back and flipped it open with her thumb, smile on her face faltering as she let out a quick sigh and began pressing buttons. Curious, Cruz floated slightly out of his chair and leaned close. He couldn't read it but from the jumble of letters instead of numbers he could tell it was a text message instead of her calling someone and as soon as the message was sent she sat the phone in her lap.
"That was my work. They want me to take on a shift during my day off," she shrugged, it was a fairly normal occurrence -- it just didn't usually happen while she was having such a great time discussing things with a new addition to the Lab family! "Evening shift, thankfully, so I've got a little more time but it's gonna be a long trip back to Gambino so it probably shouldn't be too much longer. I'm sorry," Anita offered their companion a sympathetic smile, Cruz doing the same towards Anita before resting back in his seat.
Drumming her fingers quickly on the table, Anita didn't let the momentarily somber attitude infect the lunch meeting and she perked back up with a large grin. "Am I gonna have to beg for you to tell me about how you managed to wrangle that rascal chameleon?" They didn't have much time left, so it was best to use it to the best of their ability.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 12:19 pm
“Oh I’ll give you a call once I finish up with him.” In fact, Axel was probably going to give Zeke a call after this meeting if it didn’t end too late. She didn’t really know what his office hours were but he had said she was able to call whenever she wanted if she ever needed anything. It had been a little while now so it would be nice to get a tiny update, plus she wouldn’t feel like she was bothering him 24/7 about it.
While Axel would have liked to keep their conversation going on much longer, she knew that when work called it was serious business. “Don’t worry about it, when work calls you gotta do what you gotta do.” Plus, it wasn’t like she couldn’t just give Anita a call on another day, maybe her Raevan would be born and she could bring her along to meet them both. Of course Axel had already promised someone else the first meeting, and then there was her silly sister, but Anita was probably going to be right up next on the list. If she met any more owners she was going to have to start keeping track of everyone on a notepad or something.
Oh lord, this story wasn’t one she wanted to tell anyone for not only her embarrassment but because if the bride ever found out it was her fault she was probably going to get in trouble. “Well...” Axel sat back in her chair a bit looking a bit sheepish. “After I received the bottle I was working on an overseas wedding in Mexico, really big family and ceremony and all.” She waved her hand in the air. “But I never booked myself a hotel since the bride said she’d take care of me, and it seems taking care of me meant making me stay with a relative in a stuffy hotel room and his darn pet chameleon!” It had not been pleasent. “Anyways, I wanted to get a soul from Mexico, but left the bottle beside the cage and next thing I new... Dead chameleon with a colourful soul!” She was never going to be able to live that one down.
“Needless to say I wasn’t too happy about the whole thing, left Mexico as fast as I could and never heard from them again except for the thank you for the wedding type of thing.” Axel felt like it was better that way anyways, they probably thought she was cursed or something. “I couldn’t give the soul away. Too beautiful.”
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