Welcome to Gaia! ::

The night had come and gone, much to Will's disdain. Floating amongst the trees idly, listening to the faraway sound of the beach, he sighed. Lowering himself to the ground, he began talking to himself, a normal occurence for him when alone.
"Why on Gaia did I come? It was so," He paused, looking at his brightening surroundings, "Perfect in Durem right now. All grey and dark and wet, it was heaven. No bright sun, no annoying heat to feel when I go tangible, just nice, happy, cloudy days."
Another sigh as he moved over to an exotic looking flower, "But at least I can see the stars and moon at night here. If only there was a place that could be cloudy during the day and clear during the night. Now that," He said, emphasizing his words, "Would be perfect. Don't you think so, Mika?"
He wheeled around, smiling, expectant, before his face fell into a dark expression. He had forgotten once again that she wasn't around anymore to talk to, even if it did feel like it. He was then reminded why he had come along to begin with; He needed his new friends to keep his mind off of his loss, even though they didn't know about her.
He didn't move for a few moments, still lost in thought, until the smell of pancakes wafted past him. He mused for a second as to how exactly he was able to smell while intangible if he couldn't feel before putting on a smile and turning towards the mansion. Pancakes sounded like a fine idea indeed.

Anybody who was looking at the sky right now would be able to see the rather comical result of the honeybee having changed navigator; it was now flying sideways. The galleon had tipped over a tad amount to one side so it was propelling forwards with that side first, and it had lowered itself a considerable amount, enough so that the trees swayed beneath the breeze it produced as it swooped by and even dirt and sand kicked up in small clouds. It was moving with good speed too, and was already at the edge of the coastline within a few minutes.

"Weeheehee!" Nikolai laughed, crazed. It was, of course, the joyful captain at the helm of his sideways ship and it was, of course, all completely under his control, done on purpose even. Sapphire always did love it when things got a little silly with the ship, and Mana's face was almost always priceless between the times he could see it as she struggled to remain on her awkward feet. They weren't on the deck right now though, so he was just doing it for his own fun, and to irritate the burly Bodo who had messed up on bringing the vessel to 'port' in the first place. It was a delight to see his steaming face as Nikolai embarrased him by flying like an absolute idiot, and doing a better job. Everyone else thought so too as the jokes against him were relentless.

The ship, which could now probably be touched if two people stood atop each other, slowed to a gradual halt at a point where the waves just met the coast. It was impossible to stop the ship completely without letting loose the four mighty anchor bolts that hold the galleon down, but they often fired off in an uncontrollable direction which could be a disastor in their position. So Nikolai veered the ship to the opposite side it had just been moving, and it tilted over towards the coast. Two of the four mentioned bolts shot out from the side facing towards the sea and they flew out a fair distance out into the shallow waters where nobody should be at this moment, and somewhere out of the way for later on as well. The steel bolts tore through the surface of the water with a mighty splash, and then whammed into the ground beneat, securing themselves within the depths of the seabed. The ship would then pull against the chains in an attempt to move inland once again but the bolts would not budge from here, and the gentle pace it was under would ensure they wouldn't any time soon either.

"Perfect parking, don't you think!?" Nikolai said, his dazzling green orbs focused solely on Bodo as he grinned childishly at the heavyset man. He was half expecting a clip round the ear, or worse, but instead Bodo stormed off towards the stairway leading beneath the deck and never said another word. This meant he'd have to watch his back later as the man was an absolute genius for getting revenge on people after they've forgotten about what they'd done.

Just as Bodo thundered down beneath the deck, Sapphire, Mana and Ayreith clambered up, all of them minus the latter dressed ready for the sea. Sapphire had a white one-piece bathing suit on decorated with randomly sized bubbles and multi-coloured fish dotted here and there. Mana wore a white bikini that fit her snugly this time, but Sapphire had also stolen for her one of the crew's thin, white t-shirts which, on her, reached down just above her knees. Neither of them wore anything on their feet.

"Uh oh Nikolai, look! They put a shirt on her!" Little Horn bellowed from all the way down the other end of the deck, laughing, "Now what are you going to stare at!?"
"Don't make me use you as a damn anchor too!" Nikolai shouted back.
"You couldn't even lay a finger on me before! And look at that lump on that lump on yer 'ead!"
"I should have you strung up for mutiny for that you b*****d!"
"Ahoy! Language! I thought you wanted to impress your little princess here!" Horn laughed louder. Nikolai was bright red now, while Mana was completely oblivious.
"That's it! You're the designated driver tonight!"
"What!?"

Left to their own devices, the pair could argue for hours on end. Ayreith hoisted Sapphire up onto his shoulers, which made her squeal in surprise before giggling, and then patted a hand on Mana's shoulder to signal her to follow him. They wandered across to the lower side of the tilted ship and Ayr kicked down a rope ladder that sat nestled on the railings. It unravelled itself all the way down until it cluttered against the beach, falling just short of reaching the dryer portion of the shore. Ayr lifted Sapphire from his shoulders and carefully sat her beneath the railing, on the edge of the deck.
"Climb back onto me when I'm ready, alright?" Ayreith told her, and the little brunette nodded. He looked across to the blonde girl and smiled, "Want to jump with us, or climb down?"
Mana was a bit taken back and creeped closer to look over the side of the ship. It was a looong way down and she still wasn't quite used to climbing down ladders just yet. Last time, she had been terrified out of her mind. So she pointed to Ayreith and gave him a small, shy smile.
"Alright. It'll be a bit awkward getting in position, but climb up on front and wrap your arms tight around my neck." Ayreith command while kneeling to the ground so the girl could get clamber on, "Not too tight though; no strangling."
Mana gained a bit of colour in her cheeks and slowly shifted forwards. Ayr propped one knee out to give her leverage, so she stood on his leg and hoisted herself up against his chest and did exactly as he said. The bald man put one of his own arms around her waist to give her support before climbing over the railing and spinning around to face in towards the deck. Sapphire immediately rolled back and pulled herself up ontop of the railing, then she jumped up and swung herself round onto Ayreith's back. She clamped the side of her legs against his side and hugged his head tight.
"Ready!?"

As Ayreith jumped away from the galleon Mana suddenly realized that maybe, just maybe, she should have stuck to climbing down. The G's had very suddenly hit her and her stomach was clenched uncomfortably tight, but it was the speed they were falling at which caused her to scream like a child. Sapphire was screaming as well, but more out of joy than fear. Mana had thought her crazy before, and this settled it.

Ayreith landed heavily on the beach and even managed a large splash; a wave had rolled in just before they reached the ground. All three of them got slightly wet but only Ayr got the sloppy sand splattering up against his trouser legs. Typical really as he was the only one wearing clothing not fit for this lark, but then that's what happens when you do these things.

"Right. Let's get to the Shinigami before the rest do." Ayreith boomed as Mana dropped back down to her feet, her legs almost buckling beneath her own weight. Poor girl was terrified.
"If the others catch up too quickly.." the bald giant added, "..then they'll probably scare the clan off to the hills."

Raven came to his senses slowly, the soft sound of a shower continually hushed in his ears and as soothing as it was, it wasn’t going to convince him to linger in light slumber any longer. Stretching, he found the place next to where he lay was still somewhat warm, so Jack hadn’t been up long. Lazily his hand flopped and groped about on the bed-side table searching for the t.v. remote which fell off much to Raven’s dismay.
Taking five minutes to figure out if he really wanted to chase after it, he rolled on his side, located the damn thing and put as little effort into reaching and seizing it as possible before flopping on his back, sitting up and turning on the set at long last. ’Too bad they don’t serve breakfast in bed here.’ he thought idly. Already he was in full ‘kick back’ mode and knowing that most of the clan must be awake by now, he didn’t really want to face the bundle of energy of cubs and kids for some while to come. He planned on avoiding them as much as possible and getting the most out of this... vacation.

The allowed the t.v. to roll to a halt on the news waiting to see what the local weather man was predicting for the next few days, of course in the meantime the news crew was busy telling of international events, not so interesting but there wasn’t anything better on at the moment...
Which gave him enough time to ponder on whether or not he should disturb the sweet little red-head in the shower. The more he thought on it, the wider his smirk grew, the more he toyed and enjoyed the idea. Letting the final lingering waking effects ebb away, Raven moved to the edge of the bed, let his feet over the side and stood. Sporting a pair of pitch black silk boxers he wandered over to the window and drew open only the heavy curtains letting some light in, but left the lighter, more transparent ones in place that would obscure anyone’s view should they have been at all able to look in.

Feeling he had wasted enough time and wanting to relieve himself he decided Jack had had enough time in the washroom and knocked before letting himself in. “Mornin’!” he called in a volume just louder than the shower so as to not surprise the emerald eyed man too much. He completed his business before going about washing his hands and brushing his teeth... what was the point of a shower now if they were going out on the beach anyway and just having to shower afterwards?

____

Serene, peaceful... cute. Kaori had rolled over to this side a short while ago, perhaps that was what disturbed her love awake to check her over although still she was perfectly at peace. The tigress even burrowed deeper in the soft blankets and against him as she felt him move, curling up comfortably, even pulling the sheets over her shoulder a little tighter, not quite awake but not quite asleep either.

Finding that she was resting a lot more than she normally would, the lady had long ago chalked it up to being with child, she wondered how Guyy had managed to be so patient and understanding... when she’d bask in the sun it made her drowsy and she’d cat nap, while he, completely the opposite, got energized from it. It led to thoughts that wondered how her son would react to the sun, to cold and heat...

This little vacation on the beach may even prove to show their differences more so, but Kaori had the relief of having the clan with them, they’d be able to distract Guyy and spend his abundant energy much better than she could for the time being. She had trouble enough even just wandering about these days.

Her belly had grown round.. too round and she was spending most of her energy using her healing abilities to ease soreness, tension and other aches along with slightly enhancing the speed in which her babe grew within her, she would come to term in almost half the time of any human thankfully.
He was strong within her, healthy and perfectly safe. It would be soon... so very soon...
A soft smile crept upon the lady’s lips, how spoiled she was... she loved it. Every single moment.
Of course she expected that Guyy, watching her as he was, wouldn't miss the slow tug of her lips and even though she didn't open her eyes, a soft purr would be the only other sign he'd receive to know she was up.

"Oh don't feel guilty Carys. We came here for a vacation so flush out those feelings," Aya responded as she grabbed her own plate of pancakes and put two scoops of ice cream on top. She helped herself to the iced tea that Ilia produced and even made her drink cooler once she settled back into her chair, "besides, I can I handle a bit of sun."

"Lady Aya, I found a really big parasol in the pool house while I was exploring. I put it in the courtyard, I thought you might like to take it if you went to the beach."

"Well thank you very much Ilia. I'll be sure to fetch it later then," Aya said and began her meal.

Upstairs a girl in the body of a twelve year old screamed in a very high pitch that was loud enough to be heard throughout half the mansion. Unfortunately, the kitchen was included in that half and Aya winced at the high frequency sound. Parvati rushed around in her room, stuffing things that were needed and not needed for a trip to the beach. When the girl arrived last night, she was very excited at the prospect of swimming and had almost gone to the beach right then and the only one that stopped her was her mother. Parvati had been forced to take a rest that she didn't think she needed (but did anyway since she slept through the night) so it was only natural for her to be so bubbly first in the morning.

Finished packing and hoping that she hadn't forgotten anything, Parvati ran out of her room with her messenger bag. She didn't have the time to rn down the stairs so instead she jumped down to the first floor. Next she ran straight for the kitchen where she knew her mother was waiting for her.

"Mom!" Parvati called and wasted no time in giving her mother a hug before she spotted Ilia, "Ilia, let's go to the beach!" she said as she started for the android, ready to drag the robot kicking and screaming if necessary. Before she could grab Ilia's wrist, however, Aya had put a firm hand on her head, successfully foiling her plans for the android.

"Not so fast young lady. Have some breakfast first."

"But moooom-"

"You need it."

"That's what you said last night."

"And you did need it. Now have a seat."

Deflated, Parvati sat beside Aya and began to serve herself. This was going to be the fastest breakfast she was going to have.

Ilia's eyes went wide as she saw the older girl barreling towards her. She expected, by the excited scream she had hear and the frantic pace the girl had this morning that she may be dragged physically to the beach whether she liked it or not. She was a little relieved that Lady Aya manipulated the girl into a seat and ensured she ate something. Ilia would have had difficulty making sure she ate correctly once they were at the seaside, she could tell. At least Aya had control over her. To a point. the little android giggled to herself and cleared up the leftovers of preparing the meal.

Jack buried his face against the broad expanse of Raven's back, stifling a small laugh as the massive, unflappable man flinched. He clung tight, practically dragged back to the large, comfortable bed they had recently vacated. The redhead gave a little squeal of amusement as they bounced into the bed, a noise reserved only for a select few close friends - it was rather embarrassing after all, and for a moment he lost his already slippery hold on the large male.

Raven turned on him, launching himself at the small man and apparently trying to pin him down for some form of revenge. Jack wriggled and squirmed out of his way, though he wouldn't play hard to get for too long. No doubt Raven's retaliation would be fun enough to be caught for.

Defensive instinct his a**. Kaori just liked to poke her nose in everywhere and not miss any excitement or gossip. Guyy laughed lightly to himself. She snuggled into his embrace and he gave her a tight but careful squeeze of contentment. The tigress may be nosy, but she wasn't fully awake yet.

"Mhm. Ten minutes. Sure, Milove." he teased, knowing fine well her ten minutes could easily turn out to be another hour. He wasn't about to leave her side though, not when they were entwined as closely and as comfortably as this. He closed his ruby eyes and rested his lips on her hairline, not sleeping but not leaving the bed either.

Jack tumbled off the bed as Raven hurriedly pulled himself into his clothes. He peered over the unmade bed and pouted as the blond offered his challenge and raced out the door.
"Hey! No fair!" he called after him as he struggled into his own jeans, wriggling on the floor to pull them up over his hips. He seemed to have forgotten anything else, socks, underwear or the like. Though as he ran after the other man he grabbed a teeshirt at random. He didn't know or care if it was his, he'd struggle into it on the way to the kitchen.

He raced out of the door on bare feet, t shirt bundled up in his hand as he tried to fasten his jeans on the run. He was completely and utterly startled by the rush of black feathers. With a girlish squeal he fell on his a** and pouted again as Raven flew off.
"That's cheating!"

--

Guyy smiled, bending to nuzzle her before releasing her from his embrace so that she would be able to get dressed and ready. He gave her own black snake a fond little rub on her head as she curled up close to them both. Naturally Myurr stirred a little in response, opening his ruby eyes and flickering his tongue briefly over Guyy's skin in the female's direction. A greeting, perhaps.

Guy pulled up his knees, so he knelt directly behind his lady. A hand reached out and gently untangled a few locks of her pure white hair fondly. He smiled to himself as she wrapped her form up, red eyes dancing over her figure adoringly.

He pulled himself out of the bed with a sigh, almost reluctantly leaving the comfort and the warmth despite his eagerness to get the day underway. It didn't take him too long to locate some of his own appropriate clothing to wear, discarding his usual long trousers for a pair of breezy cargo shorts and combining them with a rather hideous bright red Hawaiian shirt. He glanced in the mirror. If he had been able to grow a mustache he may have even been able to pull off this new Magnum P.I. look. Even Myurr rolled his eyes, silently shaking his head and regretting the fact that he was stuck to this dork.

Guyy blinked and looked down at his shirt. It was louder than Parvarti and Ilia having a squealing match as they played, he had to admit. He tugged at the stitches of the sleeve as well. He could take a hint when it was given as pleasantly as that. He smiled.
"Well, if you think... it would be nice to soak up some sun I suppose." he mused, as if this were a terribly difficult decision for him. He reached out, hands resting on her barely clad hips lightly. "Of course I would be more than happy to return the favour when it comes to sunscreen." he smirked, knowing she would have quite a bit of bother getting to certain areas these days.

He bent down and planted a playful kiss on the tip of her nose before he tugged at the buttons of his shirt and discarded it on the bed. There was no one here to see him other than clan members after all, and it had been ever so long since he had really done any sun worshipping. Looking down to catch her eye and see if she were satisfied now he had gotten rid of the offending article, he grinned and took her arm. They'd swing by the kitchen, grab a snack and then drag everyone down to the beach.

--

Jack did his best to glare at Raven as he approached laughing and teasing him lightly. It didn't work too well as his emerald eyes shone with amusement and affection. He harrumphed quietly as Raven sat beside him, turning his nose up as if snubbing him. But that didn't last long either as he felt himself pulled tightly against Raven's muscular torso in an apologetic hug. He knew better than to expect an actual apology, and this was just as good.

"Hn. Well I still say using your powers like that is cheating." he said softly, smiling a little and closing his eyes as he leaned against him. He buried his face in the other man's shoulder contentedly for a moment. The way he relaxed against him, one hand pressing against Raven's ribs. If Raven could apologise silently, Jack was just as talented at forgiving silently.

His stomach rumbled as if it had heard Raven's suggestion and he blushed a little. With a small grin he pushed himself off the larger male enough to gaze up at him.
"Well... I guess maybe a little breakfast might be good." he nodded, wobbling to his feet and extending a hand down to the blond to help him up, despite the fact he knew he didn't need it.