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 Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 6:33 pm
Title: Blossoming Anew
Starring Characters: Zeke, Phiel, Zurine
Summary: Phiel goes to pick up his new ward, attended by Zeke, and finds Zurine to be a beautiful, if strange and chilly, companion.
Phiel's Opinion: She is perfect. I could not have asked for a prettier, more wonderful charge.
Zurine's Opinion: Yes. Phiel is good. Home, now please?
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 6:47 pm
Title: Lay Your Weary Head to Rest
Starring Characters: Kinsey, Varun, Phiel, Zurine
Summary: Zurine meets Phiel's significant other -- and the first one she has ever met of her kind: Varun.
Phiel's Opinion: What a maddening creature...
Zurine's Opinion: Such pretty colors...
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 6:49 pm
Title: Strong Coffee
Starring Characters: Vivi, Phiel, Zurine
Summary: On an unseasonably hot day, Phiel and Zurine retreat into a bakery for something sweet and cool -- and meet a new friend!
Phiel's Opinion: I approve of Vivi, her coffee, and how she treats Zuri. I am looking forward to meeting her again, and her future charge.
Zurine's Opinion: Good! Very kind, very... warm. Good ice and pretty, pretty, pretty!
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 6:58 pm
Title: Hold Your Breath
Starring Characters: Doucette, Phiel, Zurine
Summary: During a trip to the aquarium to educate Zurine about fish and underwater life, Phiel and Zurine make another new friend, and Zurine decides that she doesn't want to be anyone's princess.
Phiel's Opinion: An interesting encounter... hopefully Zurine doesn't get any odd ideas.
Zurine's Opinion: I am a prince. Good all on my own.
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 7:14 pm
It was more than all right, to Zuri, to be left alone with her thoughts and observations while her guardian, well, guarded someone other than herself. Even possessive as she was, the handwritten promise of a 'snow cone' was quite intriguing... What could be so difficult after all, she mused, letting her black gaze slide away from the wall of bright fish, about watching a house? It could not run away, after all, and it did not menace her, Phiel or the fish. It seemed like an intrinsically silly task, to her, but necessary since it was her territory, and leaving it unguarded was unwise.
With a slow sigh she curled into herself, wrapping slender arms around her abbreviated torso, and settled in to watch from behind the wall of the couch, as often enough she did. She could not hover too close to the tanks themselves; the tropical temperature of the water, radiating from the wall of glass, made her deeply uncomfortable. Already fine beads of perspiration misted across her pale skin to refreeze in a lace of frost. Still, from here her gaze was laser-focused, tracking the path of a small school of tetras. In other situations they would have been food, but instead, they had become an enjoyable way to spend time.
It came as if from the edges of her awareness -- the strange, unfamiliar sound, the faint, low scuffling just above the threshold of her hearing. It asserted itself to her senses even over the quiet hum of the tanks' air compressors, a soft and scuttling sound. The delicate frei's pupils narrowed, black points lost in a sea of darkness. The fine, icy feathers of her wings fluffed, an instinctive motion, to hush the sound of them. Though she did not require them to fly, it was a carryover of instinct, a hush and still of hunting settling across her slender figure.
Prey, something small and quiet and calculating in Zurine's mind recognized, an unfamiliar thrill prickling gooseflesh across her frost-rimed skin. The sound was of something small, furred. It was too large and heavy to be an insect, she judged logically as she held very still, listening. It was in the kitchen, she decided, and oriented herself in that direction.
Her approach was soundless, a trait that had often startled her protector when she peered over his shoulder at something -- and now, Zuri hoped, it would be enough to startle the whatever-it-was -- (her quarry) -- so that she could catch it.
There came the sound of tiny, sharp nails on the fine wood of the counter; the sea breeze breathed salty and cool through the open kitchen window. It was as if time moved slowly -- slowly enough, in fact, for her to turn and look, processing the creature and quieting the eerie insistence of that small part of her that it was simply food.
Fine, velvety brown fur covered the tiny body, and the mouse was poised stone-still and upright, tiny pink paw-hands folded fastidiously; a little nose was up, scenting the air for predators, dainty and curious. Zurine's own ribbon twitched faintly, a mimic of the mouse's tail.
Still, she thought, not even here, as if by thinking the words she might become transparent, just until she could hover just close enough to strike --
It was a flurry of motion, white fingers curled like talons and frosty wings spread wide in a flare -- there was a squeak, and a loud, high, sharp cry like a bark -- this tiny interloper had come into her home, her place, and it too belonged to her!
The knife-block tumbled to the floor with a colossal crash, cracking a tile; the toaster followed after. Victorious, Zurine surfaced with the mouse caught, whining in terrified high squeaks. Bright oildrop eyes bulged in terror, and tiny teeth tried to bury into the frei's finger as she brought it in close, gaze even, steady despite the twinges of pain.
She had it, now; the prey drive faded, and she was left eye-to-eye with her captive, its tiny whiskers quivering, round ears up and heart simply vibrating against her fingers. She simply observed it a moment, pupils dilating, a flush of adrenaline bringing faint color to her skin. So small...
Something inside her melted, fluttering and easing in a way she had thought reserved for her guardian. Her grip gentled slightly, and the mouse stopped protesting so hard, quiescent aside from its quick fearful breaths and the hum of its heartbeat against its breastbone. Hesitantly, pausing, Zurine let her lips curve softly. "Hello," she tried, voice low and quiet and faintly hoarse. "Hello, mouse."
It really was undoubtedly quite cute.
A couple of hours later, when Phiel returned with the snow cone and a rueful, apologetic smile, he was greeted quite unceremoniously as his charge, wearing her usual impassive face, thrust forward a slightly wounded hand containing a mouse.
"This is mine," announced Zurine almost coolly, daring Phiel to disagree. "I am keeping him."
After a moment of flabbergasted silence, mouth agape and working -- a mouse, in his house? -- Phiel simply let out a weary noise, rubbed his face with the hand not covered in melting shaved ice, and nodded. What could he do but acquiesce?
Note: This is an edited version of the entry that won Zurine.
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 7:17 pm
Title: Cold Touch
Starring Characters: Cruz, Zurine, Phiel, Anita
Summary: Zurine wanders away from a sick Phiel and meets a new friend: Cruz! Her first kiss is also freely given!
Phiel's Opinion: Augh, I feel terrible... I've never fallen asleep in public before...
Zurine's Opinion: I like kissing. And I like Cruz. This is all very interesting...
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Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2012 9:59 pm
He didn't like being so sedentary, but he had to admit that he was glad of the break, and the cold rainy weather made him feel strangely relaxed. He loved watching the seafoam crest high on the beach, whipped into froth, and the sounds of rain made him feel pleasantly sedated, sleepy and happy. Inside, he usually kept it pleasantly warm, and in the background one of his favorite movies, tall, rough, dark detectives and pale women with wet eyes swimming with tears on celluloid, blonde pincurls tucked beneath smart hats, was playing, images quiet across the large screen in the corner.
The sniffling, hacking-cough cold that had taken hold of Phiel's chest and head was not helping him to stay aware of things, and it had been long enough since Zurine had come to live with him that he trusted her enough to take cold medicine, and wrap up in blankets to stare muzzily at the screen in an antihistamine-induced haze of dullness. She had been the picture of responsibility recently, and even had gone so far as to fuss over him, tucking more blankets around his shivering body, nesting worriedly about her guardian's weary figure and trying to feed him cold things. The fever was sending shivers down him, and he would resist ingesting anything that wasn't warm. Once or twice a day he would shuffle, zombielike, into the kitchen to heat up canned soup, down it, and then collapse back onto the couch.
"Are you okay, Zuri...?" Phiel's voice was hoarse as he looked up, eyes red-rimmed and lids heavy. He cradled the mug that held his soup as he hunched over it, breathing the steam. She had her back to him, her rune glowing bright and a pale frost crawling across her skin, and she was fussing delicately with a cup of ice-cubes, stroking the edges of them with pale fingers. "I know I've been a bit out of it for the past couple of days..." Her pale, slender shoulders rose in a delicate shrug, and she turned her head, just so -- one dark eye peered at him.
"I am fine," came the quiet, determined murmur, her voice soft and low. "Phiel is not fine..." He couldn't see it, but from the sound of her voice, Phiel could tell that Zurine was frowning. Translucent bluish ice-feathers ruffled. "That is not good. And so warm here. And Phiel is too warm. What can we do?"
A deep sigh escaped Phiel, but it petered into a cough, low and ragged, which went on for a good two minutes, leaving his chest aching. He squeezed his eyes shut, and despite the fever-hotness of his skin, he felt Zurine's cold hands suddenly pressed against his back. "Breathe!" came the fierce command. "Now please Phiel..." When the ache subsided a little, and he could suck in a deep breath without making the choking return, he nodded, finally, looking a bit grim.
"Perhaps I should see a doctor, and get proper medicine," he admitted, voice rough. "I'll see if I can't find someone to look after you for a day or so..." Phiel's grey eyes looked up at her, heavy brows knitted with worry and his lips tight, pinched at the corners. "Doctors take care of you and make you feel better, Zuri. I'll be fine."
Chilly little hands withdrew, and she looked at him carefully. "It is good, then," she murmured softly, nodding. The feathers at her hairline, a little limp with the warmth in the room, bobbed with each delicate motion. One stuck sadly to one temple. "Go tomorrow. Yes." Concern settled on her features, and with it a certain dainty, steel will that he had seen flicker before behind her usually-composed demeanor. Phiel couldn't help but smile. He'd been caring for her, and now to see her care for him, whether he liked it or not, he had to admit that it meant things were working out better than he could have hoped, and that was more than okay.
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Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 8:25 pm
It took two days of looking for someone to watch Zurine while he went to the doctor before Phiel finally gave up on the idea out of sheer frustration. He pushed his little black book off the edge of the desk, where it toppled into the empty metal trashbin with a clatter. He laid his head down on the desk, grateful for the cool grain of the wood drinking away the heat from his fever-dry forehead. Zurine gently patted the broad back, her tiny hand feeling as if it might freeze the lingering fever-sweat on his skin in the shape of a hand-print. "You're going to have to come with me to the doctor's office," he said, once he could rasp in enough air to speak. "Not even Adrian can keep an eye on you tomorrow, so..."
Delicately, she lowered herself to pull the book out of the bin, laying it back down onto the table with a slightly reproachful look up at her guardian. He would have regretted it later, when he couldn't find his dates or phone numbers, and he was often so busy that he wouldn't have recalled throwing it out. Phiel looked sufficiently chastised after a moment, the anger melting out of his hard features as he absently clicked the button at the end of his pen. "I hope that's all right."
Cold as it still was outside, Zurine was more than grateful for the thought of leaving the house, which she had been trying to tolerate at a temperature that was conducive to Phiel's wellness. She had spent a lot of time out on the balcony, watching the sea and thinking -- perhaps even brooding a little. Her guardian was precious to her, and since there was nothing that she could do, it was best, she thought, that she leave him to warmth and rest. But an outing sounded heavenly. It must be like the Lab, she thought, only perhaps it was for humans instead. She was picturing cool white surfaces, astringent scents to sting her nose -- and it sounded almost soothing, in a strange way.
And if it would stop Phiel coughing so much, she was more than willing to do it.
--
As they emerged from the office, Zurine was shivering a little and looking over her shoulder at the door she had thought was welcoming before they entered. Now, the elegant dark wood and the pretty filigree glass of the private-practice doctor's office seemed a bit uncomfortable and foreboding. The antiseptic greens and the warmth and the impersonal attitudes of the doctors had shaken her, but Phiel was looking better already. Some color had returned to his cheeks, and although his clothes were rumpled from the vaporous liniment the doctor had rubbed onto his chest and back, he looked a little more relaxed, breathing a little easier. The medication for his 'cold', which had turned out to be a nasty case of bronchitis, had come in the form of an injection, given after a quick set of X-rays.
The doctor had given Phiel a set of prescriptions, and strict orders to spend the next three days in bed, resting. Zurine was to keep an eye on him, to make sure he took his medications, and she had accepted that responsibility with a solemnness. Something inside her shifted, an acknowledgement that right now, Phiel needed someone to nest and brood over him -- that for awhile, he would be her nestling. The part of her that still had those strong, owlish instincts fluffed up delightedly. This would be fun.
Especially if she never, ever had to go out to the doctor's with Phiel, again.
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Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 11:32 pm
"Lay back down," Zurine said, exasperated. It had only been a week since the debacle at the hospital, and Phiel should, by all rights and also doctor's orders, still be in bed. But her stubborn guardian was having none of it. He'd been up and about since the third day, when the antibiotics and breathing medications had began to ease the aches and the fevers. He was still half-hoarse and miserable, but now he was feeling well enough to have a problem lying about in bed, eating cereal and watching eternal re-runs of The Price Is Right flickering in the cool twilight of their living room because it was easier than hauling the big TV into his bedroom. The lumpy hide-a-bed had been his prison cot, the warm blankets and quilt strewn with used tissues, and Phiel was heartily sick unto death of the ten commercials that seemed to want to play on loop.
Now, the bodyguard stood in the kitchen, trying to stir up a batch of macaroni and cheese. It was the boxed kind, and the water was boiling as he stirred the noodles in. He licked his lips a little. "I want something hot to eat, Zuri," Phiel said, shaking his head to clear a bit of dizziness and resisting the urge to cough. His chest was full of a dull, healing ache, and his legs were as restless as anything, and he thought he'd outright lose it if he had to eat another bowl of Cheerios with soy milk. "It's not that big a dea--" The shake of his head only made the dizziness work, and Phiel wobbled. Zurine squeaked with distress, and shifted to try and catch him, but he was too tall and instead of being able to catch him, Phiel staggered back a little bit, and landed against the side of the fridge, coughing in dull, hacking wheezes. The pot bubbled merrily away on the stove.
When Phiel was finally finished catching his breath, Zurine was panicking a little bit, wings flared wide as she tried to pat his back until he felt better. He struggled his way upright, his face red and his composure shaken. The pale frei was pushing a stool over. "Will you at least sit down? Please?"
This time, Phiel did as he was asked, with a slightly rueful little ragged sigh, aching down into his bones; he felt like a jolting skeleton with burrs rattling around between his ribs, and perhaps -- just maybe -- it would be best to let Zurine guard him for awhile.
Just until he was well.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:48 pm
Though the doctor had only told him to take it easy for two weeks, Phiel had taken closer to three to get himself fully back onto his feet. The house had gone a bit to weed while he was ill, despite Zurine's best attempts to keep up with it. She had, however, taken special care of the fish-tanks, though the discomfort had been strong. Eighty to ninety degrees of warm saltwater were not much to her liking, but through most of January, she diligently followed Phiel's instructions to keep the tanks clean and the fish fed. She gained a certain fondness for them over time, watching the bright finned things swim up to the surface with their mouths pursed in pretty, round Os of hunger. They reminded her of the swarms of fish she had seen at the aquarium, when she and Phiel had visited with Doucette. She still had the stuffed penguin from that trip. It sat, with her other precious and prized possessions, propped against the pillows on her small bed beneath the window-unit that cranked out the air cool enough to keep her comfortable enough to sleep. Phiel's boss Adrian had seen to that last time he'd visited: he'd even bought the window unit. The man was tall and intimidating-looking, towering over Zurine, but when he smiled she automatically relaxed. He was someone to be trusted -- and that impression was cemented the moment she sat down in front of the vent blowing frigid air into her face and hair. It felt so good that the pale frei sighed blissfully, and spent the whole night in front of it, happily painting with her favorite watercolors.
As February crept up on them on slow icy feet, and Phiel began to get back towards his old self, other than a slight tendency toward shortened breaths. Though Zurine didn't mention it outright, she noticed the date scrawled on the calendar that hung on the refrigerator, the day circled in red marker and with the letter Z marked neatly on it. She knew what that day was -- last year, they had celebrated it quietly, just the two of them, with a shaped snow-cupcake, complete with an unlit candle on top. They had watched Zurine's favorite movie, the one with the unicorn that rescued all her brothers and sisters.
Now, she had no idea what the reward would be for growing another year older, but she knew that Phiel was planning something...
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 10:20 pm
Valentine's Day passed without complaint, just another day, and Zuri was only half-aware of it at best. It wasn't much different from any other day, aside from a brief half-frozen rain that pattered on the window; she drew kittens with four stick legs and long wavy tails in the frost. Phiel was busy and gone for half the day, and he brought home a half-melted cup of ice from the convenience store, the ice that Zuri liked best -- it had a light, crispy texture, easily crunch-able and a little sweet.
It was early evening when Phiel came home, and he had been gone since early morning. He was weary, but he still had a smile for her as he gently ruffled her hair with one gloved hand. "Happy Valentine's Day, Zuri." His voice was kind, and Zurine smiled up at him, pecking a sweet chilly kiss on his cheek.
The evening passed quietly; both of them did their own separate thing, peaceful and content to be comfortably indoors while the winter blew itself out, making the house creak softly. There was no mention of what day it was tomorrow, and Zurine found herself wondering whether Phiel had forgotten.
She fell asleep late that night, and she never quite made it to her bedroom. The long, quiet evenings were pleasant, and Phiel didn't mind letting her sleep on the low couch that was her favorite, the one that was farthest away from the tanks. Zurine was sleeping deeply, bathed in the soft blue glow that pervaded the living room. She lay on her chest, her arms folded daintily to pillow her pale head. Her wings lay soft and open across her back as a coverlet, and Phiel couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips as he sat still, watching her. In the chill that pervaded the house after midnight, she was comfortable, and though Phiel was half-frozen himself, that was all that mattered.
"Happy birthday, little bird," Phiel said softly, though Zurine was sleeping. He'd been waiting for midnight to tell her -- and she was asleep. He sighed softly, pushing a hand back through his curls. Two years with her, and he still didn't understand her -- but he loved her, and that made the difference for him.
Gently he lifted her into his arms, a surprisingly light bundle of chilly coolness, as if she was hollow as any bone in a bird. She nestled a little closer to him as he carried her into her bedroom, where he laid her quite tenderly into her bed, tugging the soft coverlet up over her and cracking the window, just the way Zurine liked it.
He laid her present, wrapped in silver holographic foil, on the table beside the bed, smoothed her hair once more, and left the door cracked -- just enough light to see by -- as he went to slip into his own bed, exhausted.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 10:23 pm
Being two years old felt a lot like being one year old, Zuri thought, although being two brought with it more than a few perks. Phiel worried less, which was good, and that meant that she got the chance to spend more time out on her own exploring the world. She had done her best to assure her guardian that she was more than capable of taking care of herself, and Phiel had agreed -finally- that she didn't need to be watched all of the time.
But other than that, it was the same, and there was a certain comfort in that, too. Zurine was happy, and she didn't -think- she was missing anything. She didn't have many people to call friends, but that was okay. Phiel saw to her needs -- and when it wasn't too cold, she could visit Cruz, though so early in the year it was often too cold for that. That was certainly fun when it happened, though -- she liked him very much.
Most often, though, Zuri found herself playing with the gift that Phiel had given her for her birthday. The easel was secondhand, a gift passed down from Adrian's eldest daughter. She had outgrown it, and now it belonged to Zuri, a simple three-legged wooden affair that had clips to attach the watercolor paper to the smooth (if slightly paint-stained) surface. Though he had gotten the easel cheaply, he hadn't skimped on the quality of the paper or paints. A hundred sheets of cold-pressed watercolor paper had been dear, and caked watercolors that touted themselves as 'artist grade' had been close to it. Adding in brushes had only added, but Phiel had told her since he was worried about 'cultivating creativity'.
Zuri was plenty creative, she insisted stubbornly, and she had set out to prove herself correct. Her first few paintings had been something like a disaster, streaky water-soaked messes that frustrated her. But gradually, over the course of a month or two, the messes turned into something more presentable. An apple began to look like an apple; a fish began to look like a fish, as she worked to learn their colors and shapes. Phiel soon covered the refrigerator in apples and fishes and eager (if untutored) renditions of birds and trees and once, a gloriously red-and-gold mess that might have been an attempt at rendering the bakery, perhaps a veiled request to return that missed Phiel entirely.
Floating in the kitchen one evening, Zurine munched an ice cube as she looked with pride on the work she had done. The first painting she had done was different from her most recent -- and that was because she had practiced. And the longer you lived, the more you practiced, she thought to herself.
Maybe 'two' was a little different from 'one', after all.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 10:34 pm
Title: Little Mouse
Starring Characters: Vivi, Cesc, Phiel, Zurine
Summary: In which Zuri cements a friendship and learns more of her own powers.
Phiel's Opinion: Well, that went better than expected...
Zurine's Opinion: I'm so happy! My pet is saved... and Cesc is so kind...
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 10:37 pm
Putting the cage back up on the shelf, Zuri looked in at the little mouse inside, who seemed utterly unconcerned with anything that was going on outside. She had put dried fruits into the cage, and he sat quietly up, holding a cranberry in both front paws, nibbling at it and looking at her with wet, beady little eyes, whiskers twitching delicately. She was glad to be home, and glad for things to go back to something like normal.
Still, it was strange to be alone in her room again. Zuri was typically a relatively solitary individual, but she had gotten used to having a companion with her, a warm and sweet presence close by. Sure, it had only been a night, but peering into the tank, she frowned a little. She missed Cesc, and she missed Grumpaws, and Vivi, too. Why? She had never missed anyone before, that wasn't Phiel...
She sank down onto the edge of her bed, frowning a little. She could visit again, right? Of course no one would chase her away. As hot as it was, Zurine was already anticipating her next visit, and it gave her a warm, soft feeling in her chest. The tip of her ribbon twitched back and forth and she smiled happily as she looked out the window, letting the air conditioner blow her hair back as she thought back. Hunting Ferdinand down had been nearly as fun the second time as it had been the first time, too. Hopefully there wasn't going to be a third time, but if it happened...
... Well, if it happened, Zurine was ready. And maybe, if she needed him, Cesc would be ready to help too? Yes, that was surely true. And she would help him, too, if she could. It was a good thought.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 11:07 pm
Title: Secret Garden Summer Party
Starring Characters: Everyone!
Summary: An open party for all of the Lab! Zurine undertakes a maze with Cordelia and actually succeeds in escaping!
Phiel's Opinion: A relatively interesting party. Good food, and familiar faces.
Zurine's Opinion: But why does it have to be so hot...?
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