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 Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 2:19 pm
Chris Gallo was still trying to wrap his mind around no longer being in school, being a professional baseball player, being married, and having not one, but two babies on the way. Often he would seek solitude in powering up and going on patrol, but that was more often than not only at night, and only when he could sneak away from Paris, because it was obvious that he worried her.
She was patient enough with him, took care of him better than he thought possible what with his unfortunate loss of memory and his… apparently well known general helplessness. Even though he could remember his life as Valhalla, he’d been more concerned about youma and the Negaverse rather than what he was going to have for dinner, or if his laundry needed to be done.
Chris knew he was lucky, there was no denying that.
But there were times when he just got too restless to wait for nightfall. He knew there was a lot of his life they were keeping from him, trying to help him adjust to missing four years of memories, so they’d been staying with his parents rather than the house they apparently had together.
“Do you want to go running with me?” he asked her one morning after his parents had left to do whatever it was they did, and he was left to stare at his cup of coffee while Paris looked at baby things on her tablet. Or at least that was what he assumed.
He was still wearing just lounge pants and a tee, his hair uncharacteristically unkempt, and he’d obviously not bothered to shave yet that week. He was miserable and needed to get his mind off all the things he couldn’t remember.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:46 pm
Paris looked up from her tablet and her perusal of baby strollers to stare at Chris with an odd expression on her face—a mixture of confusion and guilt that she couldn’t quite suppress.
“Um… sure,” she said, not too sure where the request had come from all of a sudden but seeing no reason to deny it.
“Why?” she asked anyway, concerned by the miserable air Chris was giving off.
She knew the fact that he was missing four years worth of memories bothered him. He could only remember half of their relationship—those parts of it that had occurred as Valhalla and Ganymede. As far as Chris remembered he was still eighteen years old and they’d only just started dating; now he woke up and they were married and expecting twins. It was a lot for anyone to take in.
Paris felt guilty for it, afraid that she’d done something wrong when she’d saved him from Chaos. Though, mostly she blamed Laurelite; her hatred of the General-Queen grew with each new obstacle they were presented with.
“Are you okay?” she asked, setting her tablet down and sliding off of her seat at the counter bar to take Chris by the hand and encourage him to follow her back up the stairs to his old bedroom so that they could change into something more appropriate for running.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:47 pm
Was he okay? Probably not, but he tried to put a smile on for Paris's sake. "Yeah, just restless," he said, giving her hand a squeeze as she led the way to his room. The room itself had not changed at least, or at least not the furniture or wall color or fixtures. There were new photographs and awards that he was sure his mother updated annually, but other than that it was as he remembered it. That, at least, was a comfort. He could tell that he'd grown at least a few inches, as Paris was so short compared to him.
He wasn't sure how to decipher her expression when he's asked about running. He couldn't quite place the emotions, but with everything that happened he figured it maybe had to do with him.
"Two months left, right?" Chris asked as he pulled off his tee shirt and dug around in a drawer for his running clothes. "Is there anything I need to do to help out? I feel guilty that you're doing everything yourself." After all, he liked children and liked the idea of having children, so finding that out wasn't so horrible. If anything he was glad he still had a normal life outside of being Valhalla.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:47 pm
Paris stopped digging through her own clothes for something appropriate to wear to release a sigh as Chris removed his shirt. She spent a few minutes unashamedly ogling him before his questions actually processed through a mind that had momentarily gone elsewhere.
“I always do everything myself,” she said, her tone more teasing than it was anything else. It wasn’t as if she minded. She liked being able to plan and prepare. It was a nice distraction from everything else going on.
“Don’t worry your pretty head over it,” Paris continued. She started stripping off her own clothes when she found some yoga shorts and a sports bra mixed in with all the other clothes she’d brought with her. “The nursery’s done, the carseats are installed, we have more cloth diapers than you’d think we’d ever need, but from the way I hear it you can never have too many. Practically all that’s left is waiting for Olivia to go into labor.”
Which Paris was certain could happen at any moment, given how big Olivia had gotten, but she was assured it shouldn’t happen for another few weeks at the very least.
“What’s got you feeling so restless anyway?” she asked, even though she was certain she already knew the answer. Losing half of one’s memories was bound to make one behave restlessly.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:48 pm
He frowned slightly when Paris told him not to worry about getting things ready for the babies, but he hid the reaction from her by pulling on a new tee shirt and running shorts. He realized she liked being involved with getting things ready for the babies, but he sometimes wished he had something to distract himself, too.
"I don't know," he responded lamely, not sure what else to say as he moved over to the closet to pull out some sneakers to put on. "I just feel like I need to be doing something. I don't have school or baseball to worry about... I guess I just want to get my mind off things." He felt silly saying it because he didn't have the memories to worry about, but it was very off putting not knowing.
"We don't have to keep living here, you know," he added as he sat at his desk, pulling at the laces on his shoes. "We have our own place, right? I'll be okay if we go there." Chris couldn't help but feel like everyone was babysitting him while at his parents house.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:48 pm
“If that’s what you want,” Paris said.
She finished shimmying into her yoga shorts and fastened her sports bra, but upon digging around in Chris’s closet she found she’d not brought any shoes that were appropriate for running. She solved this issue by quickly ducking out of Chris’s old room to snag some sneakers from Momma Gallo’s closet.
Paris sat along the edge of Chris’s bed as she fastened her borrowed shoes, glancing over at her husband in between tying her laces and frowning at him in her concern.
“I just thought it would be easier for you if we were here,” she explained, “since this is the last place you remember. Or one of the last. We haven’t been to your old apartment in years.”
Finished with her shoes, Paris stood to her feet and approached Chris, carding the fingers of one hand through his hair.
“But if you want to go home, we can,” she said. “Right now, even. You’ll have to see it sooner or later, and there are nice jogging paths in the back…”
She trailed off. It’d been awhile since she’d jogged, longer since the last time she’d given in to her obsessive impulses and run. She’d been doing well in recent years, hadn’t felt that burning need to get out and push herself beyond her limits.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:49 pm
The idea of going back to their home right then had him hesitating. Sure it was his own idea to go, but he honestly wasn't expecting her to agree so easily. "Okay," he found himself saying and he couldn't decide if it sounded forced or not. Hopefully not, because he didn't want her worrying needlessly. He just lost his memories... It wasn't like he was an invalid.
Chris didn't say or do anything for a minute or so, closing his eyes and taking in the warmth and comfort Paris offered with her presence. He knew he loved Ganymede and that Paris -was- Ganymede, so why did he feel more distant from this woman than he knew he should? It was completely irrational. It had to do with the memory loss. He still cared for her and would never do anything to hurt her but... The bond he had with Ganymede was missing. Or maybe he just forgot...
"I'm sorry," he heard himself saying, opening his eyes to look up at Paris, and lifted his hands to rest on her hips to keep her close. "I know you're just trying to help me. I know everyone's just trying to help me. I'm sorry if I'm making things more difficult."
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:49 pm
“You’re not making things difficult,” Paris said.
It wasn’t Chris’s fault in the least, yet it seemed he was intent on blaming himself for it. Of course it hurt that they didn’t feel as close to one another as they once were, and naturally it upset her that he looked at her sometimes as if she were still a stranger to him, but none of that was due to anything that Chris had done. If anything it was Paris’s fault for not being able to save him sooner. If she’d only been quicker to drive Laurelite away, perhaps Chris’s lack of memories wouldn’t be so extensive.
“Come on,” she said, taking his hands again to encourage him to his feet. “I’ll drive.”
She didn’t bother to point out that she had to, given that Chris didn’t know the way.
Paris led the way to the car, not the Lexus she’d bought for when the twins arrived, but the pink VW bug Chris had bought for her when she’d finally got her license. She hopped into the driver’s seat and waited for Chris to fold himself into the passenger side, pulling out of the driveway only once Chris had made himself as comfortable as anyone as tall as he was could be in such a compact car.
She drove to their house, which wasn’t far from Chris’s parents’, though it was further out from the city and in an older residential area where the homes were more widely spaced. Indeed, they couldn’t even see their house upon passing through the gate and starting down the long drive. Mature trees bordered the driveway on both sides, finally thinning out after a few minutes to reveal the front of an impressive looking house.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:50 pm
Apparently he'd bought the car for her, which he supposed was something that he would do, but he couldn't imagine he'd ever had the intention of riding in it with her. It wasn't a bad car just... small.
He tried not to fidget as much as he wanted, his hair brushing the roof as they drove towards what he could only assume was their home. He recognized it, of course, having been there once or twice with his mother and grandmother when he was younger, but to be going back now when the property has obviously been cleaned up was like stepping into another world. "Wow, it looks good..." he breathed in awe, ducking down to peer out the windshield. "I'm ... assuming this is our house, right?" he asked with a small grimace knowing he'd feel stupid if this wasn't their home.
Once they'd stopped, he quickly got out of the tiny car so he could stretch and look around. It was nice. Secluded. Away from the city. It was a good location. "Isn't it kind of big for two people? Er... four?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:50 pm
“No, silly, this is just the guest house.”
She was joking and she made sure he knew it, tossing a smile his way as she pulled up to the front of the house and parked the car there. There wasn’t any point in pulling into the garage if there was a chance that they were going to be going back to Chris’s parents’ after.
Paris followed suit and climbed out of the car, coming around to stand by Chris as he gazed up at the massive house.
“Don’t ask me, ask your grandparents. They’re the ones who gave it to us as a wedding present,” she explained. “You had to convince me to actually want to live here, but it’s nice and secluded and away from the city, and that’s really all it took.”
She brought a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun as she too looked upon the facade. Nowadays she was more than happy with where they lived. It was peaceful. Paris thought it would be the perfect place to raise children.
“Come around back,” she said, motioning Chris to follow her as she led the way. At the back of the house were the lush gardens and the small apple orchard. She led Chris beyond both, toward the very back of the property where the tree line thickened again. Paved pathways wound through the trees, perfect for walking, jogging, or biking.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:51 pm
"Ha ha..." Chris shook his head in slight exasperation as Paris joked about the house only being the guest house. Still, he found himself smiling just slight as she said how she ended up liking the house. He followed her around back when she promoted, taking the time to glance around at the orchard and lawn and architecture of the home and the short shorts Paris was wearing. She was obviously a dancer with those legs. And the rest of her wasn't bad either.
A scar across her back caught his attention and he reached out to brush his fingers along it as they made their way to the path. He knew she was Ganymede, of course, but the scar at least made it even more real.
"How did you save me?" he asked softly as they reached the paths, but didn't start to jog just yet. It was secluded enough for him to feel comfortable asking her. Still, he knew she might not be as comfortable talking about it in the open and he shook his head at himself. "Sorry, we don't have to talk about it..."
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:52 pm
Paris didn’t even think about the scar along her back until Chris’s fingers brushed against it. She didn’t think of it often, probably because she didn’t ever really have to see it, but she remembered receiving it all too well. After the last battle, it wasn’t the only scar she had from Laurelite’s scythe. She had one on her upper arm to join it.
“You don’t remember?” she asked.
She should have expected as much. His memory of the event in question was fuzzy at best. At worst, it was non-existent. Paris had been hoping it would come back to him in time so that she wouldn’t have to explain. She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to say. The truth, obviously, but how was she supposed to explain what had happened to her when she wasn’t even sure of it herself?
Paris shook her head. When that didn’t help matters at all, she lifted her shoulders in a shrug.
“I guess I just… did what I had to do,” she said. It was a lame response and she knew it, but she didn’t know how else to talk about it. “Sometimes… when things seem the most hopeless… you discover a power you never realized you had before. That’s happened to me twice now. Once when I got this scar,” she said, showing Chris her back again. “And again when Laurelite tried to corrupt you.”
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:52 pm
"She should probably just stop trying to bother you," he said, hoping it came out in the joking way he meant it to, but something about his voice seemed fake. He didn't like the idea of Ganymede being hurt, much less when it was against someone like Laurelite.
He didn't want to push her for an answer, but he was still confused. Some kind of power in herself? At least someone was able to retrieve that power. He, on the other hand, always felt like he was falling behind. First when he couldn't manage to grow from a Page, and then to a Knight. Now he had to rely on Ganymede to keep him from getting killed.
"I'm glad you stopped her... I would never want to be corrupted..." he told her, standing there for a few more moments before leading the way down the path in a light jog. That's what they were there for, anyway. It helped to keep him from focusing on feeling helpless and inadequate.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:53 pm
Paris tried for a smile and a laugh, but she couldn’t really find anything to laugh about when it came to Laurelite. Even though she’d foiled the General-Queen’s plans twice now, the situation was too serious for Paris to be amused by it. Twice she’d gotten lucky. She didn’t know how well she’d fair a third time.
“I won’t ever let you be corrupted,” she said, and it sounded like a promise.
She followed Chris’s lead and fell into a light jog. The weather wasn’t entirely suitable for a run. It was hot and muggy, almost uncomfortably so, but it didn’t bother Paris as much in her shorts and sports bra.
She made an effort to keep pace with Chris, but it didn’t feel natural to her to jog. She supposed she’d spent so much time running in the past, she wasn’t used to a slower pace. It felt strange to her to do this now with Chris, given her history.
Eventually Paris fell behind and then stopped jogging all together. She lifted her hand to brush a light sheen of sweat from her brow. She looked uncomfortable and wasn’t sure how best to conceal it.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:53 pm
He appreciated her promise to keep him from corrupting, but he knew it wouldn't be something she could always be there to stop. But it was okay. He already had a backup plan for if something were to happen to him. He refused to live in the darkness and an ally had already promised to end his life should he be taken.
When Paris stopped jogging Chris stopped as well and he turned to look back at her. "You okay?" He frowned in concern, wondering if maybe he'd said something to upset her, or maybe it was something else entirely. "What is it, baby?"
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