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 Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2011 8:20 pm
Taking it slow was always a good start. At least, at this point, Xiu's head wasn't spinning with confusion yet. That was a good sign!
As she knew very little about dragons in general, never mind those of the celestial variety, Xiu was surprised at the answer. They were...connected to the stars? "How do you mean?" She piped up, looking genuinely curious. That also meant that he had been brought up learning about the galaxies all of his life, hadn't he?
She took the remote with an excited smile, eying all the buttons carefully. Hmmm, okay, this didn't look too hard! Raising her brows, she turned her gaze back to Sheridan. "Um, what coordinates should I put in?" She could technically just put in random coordinates, but she didn't want to mess the telescope up somehow...or have it swerve in their direction or something.
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Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:59 pm
"We are taught that for every star, there is a dragon, when a dragon falls a star goes out."
It may have been a somber statement, but it was far from sorrowful. Perhaps he was because he had come to understand that an end was not really the end, but rather another beginning. Stars that faded did not disappear, they were reborn, they brought about new life.
He smiled as he looked at Xiu.
"Home is out there."
Leaning toward the table, Sheridan picked up the manual he had referred to earlier. A quick flip through the pages (the manual though well taken care of, had clearly see a lot of use) until he found the index in the back.
"What would you like to see?"
There were coordinates for planets, craters, moons, stars, asteroids, and galaxies. The list spanned several pages, hopefully enough to keep a beginner occupied until she was ready to move to the next step.
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Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 12:44 am
She listened with fascination, one of her ears giving a little flick. "So that means one of the stars in the sky is yours, Sheridan?" Moving around the telescope, Xiu leaned out of the open window and peered up into the sky. If she leaned out any more, she would probably find herself toppling out. "Do you know which one it is?" There were so many stars out in the sky. Was there really a dragon for each one? That must have meant that there were millions of celestial dragons out there.
It was an interesting thought, to live out where the stars were. Xiu herself could only say that she had lived here all her life--specifically Halloween Town. The only other "worlds" that she had been to, so to speak, were those of people's dreams. She couldn't imagine what anywhere else would be like.
Turning her attention back to the boil when he brought out the manual, the Baku grinned and bounded back to his side, leaning over so that she could skim the index. "Hmm, there's a lot of stuff! What about...a moon? Or maybe a star?"
If only she could see all of them!
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Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 12:50 pm
"I don't know, I haven't found it yet."
But his star was there, somewhere, waiting for him to find it, for the day that he was old enough to fly that far.
Millions of dragons? Probably not, a dragon for -every- star was most likely an exaggeration, or at least a single dragon for every star was. A single dragon was connected to many stars, the most ancient of elders perhaps being connected to an entire galaxy.
Looking to Xiu, the dragon chuckled. He supposed it might have been a bit overwhelming. The universe was vast, seemingly infinite, one could spend every moment of their lives looking to the stars and still only see a fraction of all that was out there.
"How about this one?"
He pointed to a listing in the index, Calypso, one of the moons of Saturn. A moon was as good a place to start as any.
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Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 3:33 pm
"How would you know? Which star is yours, I mean?" It seemed like it would be a difficult task to find the star--or stars--that belonged to him among the millions. Maybe he could feel a kind of tie to them? It was a feeling that Xiu knew she would never feel, and she couldn't help but be a little envious of her friend. What a lovely thought it was, to be connected to the stars!
"I hope you find it one day." She told him, wagging her tail, "I'll let you know if I ever see a star that yells 'Sheridan' at me while looking through the telescope." This was said with a little laugh, as she was simply teasing. Honestly, even if she was staring right at the star in question, she doubted that she would be able to differentiate it from any of the other stars. Unfortunately, she just didn't have that ability.
Leaning over again, she blinked at the name that the boil was pointing to. "Ca...Calypso?" Ooh, that sounded vaguely familiar! Nodding eagerly, she looked at the remote and stuck her tongue out from the corner of her mouth, staring at it in concentration. "Okay, so...I put the coordinates in here?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 7:17 pm
"That is a secret that even I do not know yet."
There was a hint of playful slyness in that smile, a mystery. Finding one's star was an ancient tradition, it was part of the transition to adulthood. But the details of that tradition were never spoken of, remaining a mystery until a dragon was prepared to face it. Or so he had been told. Maybe the truth was that no one really knew, perhaps everyone was different, or maybe it was the star that found the dragon. Or maybe...
"I'm sure I will."
Sheridan laughed, the twitch of his tail showing that he didn't mind the teasing.
"I'll be waiting for you to find it then."
Nothing wrong with a little teasing back. It seemed the dragon had become quite comfortable around his new friend, there was nothing like a good lunch and a little star gazing to start a great friendship.
"It's one of the moons of Saturn. You just type in the numbers and press enter, the telescope will do the rest."
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Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 10:50 pm
"I'll do my best!" She laughed, giving a mock salute. In all seriousness though, she genuinely hoped that he would be able to find his star one day. It seemed like it was a task that he would have to mostly do himself--some kind of dragon tradition, almost? Or at least, it seemed like it. Xiu couldn't claim to know very much about other cultures.
She made a mental note to check out more books the next time she went to the library.
Peering at the coordinates listed in the book, she looked between this and the remote, being extremely careful as she typed in each number. After quickly double checking that she had put in the right coordinates, the Baku stood back, grinning. "Okay, so...Calypso!"
She pressed down on the final button, jumping when the telescope suddenly began to pan and adjust itself to match the new code that had been put in. Staring at it eagerly, the ghoul watched as it suddenly came to a stop. After waiting for a few seconds, she looked at Sheridan.
"And now? Did I do it right?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 4:43 am
Sheridan did his best to not laugh at Xiu's reaction to the moving telescope, an attempt that was not entirely successful. Don't worry, Xiu, it doesn't bite, just don't put any thing breakable in its path!
"Take a look and see."
He smiled, a hand raised in a gesture toward the scope's eyepiece. Calypso was an odd shaped moon, not spherical as may have been expected. The moon had an irregular shape, appearing more like a fish or a giant floating nose than a moon.
Oh, his drink. Reaching for the glass, he picked it up from the chair it had been resting on. Didn't want that in the path of a moving telescope, or any sudden jumps from an excited Baku and her tail.
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Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 2:51 pm
Xiu took his advice and leaned towards the telescope so that she could peer though. At first, she was silent, and then she pulled back and stared at Sheridan wide-eyed. "A-are you sure I put in the right coordinates?" Was that Calypso? How odd it looked! Indeed, the Baku had been expecting something round, like the moon that they could see from Halloween Town.
Jumping up suddenly, she darted off to get something, digging through her desk drawer with furrowed brows. Finally, she pulled out a book--a sketchbook?--and a pencil, and hurried back. Turning to Sheridan, she smiled sheepishly.
"I like to draw," She explained, flipping through pages of plants and landscapes before coming to a clean white sheet, "Maybe I could keep some kind of...telescope diary of some kind, to record what kinds of things I've seen." Xiu was clearly enthusiastic about her new hobby. Now she would have lots of things to keep her busy and entertained!
She was, however, not so blinded by excitement to remember how to be polite though. She motioned towards his glass. "Would you like me to fill that up some more?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 8:29 pm
At her question, Sheridan leaned over the telescope, taking a look into the eyepiece himself to make certain he had calibrated it correctly. Yes, that was Calypso, there was no mistaking that odd shaped moon.
"Yes, that is Calypso. See, you've already got it figured out."
He gave her an encouraging smile. Hmm? What was she up to? Curious, he watched as she scrambled around the room. He had been about to ask if she needed help, but then she had returned carrying (presumably) what she had been looking for. Ah, a sketchbook!
"That sounds like a great idea."
His own tail twitched excitedly, he could have continued geeking out over the stars all night!
"Hmm? I haven't finished what you gave me yet, but thank you."
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Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 4:09 pm
"Let me know if you'd like some more once you're done." Xiu paused and went back for another chair, dragging it over and putting it down in front of the eyepiece, Deciding it would be easier to do her sketching and notes if she were sitting, she flopped down, looking from the eyepiece of the telescope, to her sketchbook, and back.
Soon enough, she had a rough sketch of Calypso on her page, complete with little notes such as the date, time, and...other things that weren't very important, but made her feel professional. "There!" She declared, holding her sketchbook at arms distance and beaming at it proudly. Looking up at Sheridan, she wagged her tail (man, lots of tail wagging going on today with this ghoul).
"What do you think?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 11:16 am
He nodded, setting the glass back on the table, making sure it was well out of whatever path the telescope might take. For the moment at least, he was aware enough to know he didn't want a mess of spilled drink to interrupt the geeking over the stars (not that the wagging and twitching tails weren't already threatening that fate on their own!).
His head turned, watching over her shoulder as she sketched. Ah, she had drawn Calypso, a pretty good sketch at that.
"Very nice, I'm sure you'll have that sketch book filled in no time."
Knowing Xiu, he was coming to the conclusion that she might just have that sketchbook filled by the time he left for the night!
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 12:39 pm
"I can see why you like astronomy," She said suddenly, setting the sketchbook down on her lap, "Everything out there seems to be like quite mysterious. If only it were possible to go and explore someday." Xiu sighed wistfully at this. To her knowledge, while those with wings could fly very high, it was about impossible to actually reach any of the stars or objects that she saw through the telescope.
Picking up the book, she leafed through the index, idly searching for anything that caught her interest. "I think...you said you had other hobbies and interests too, right Sheridan?" Pausing, she looked up at her friend, "I know you like astronomy now, but what else?"
It seemed like a good idea to get to know him better. That's what new friends did, right? They learned a bit about each others' hobbies, likes, dislikes, and...well, family was optional. She knew that some people weren't very keen on sharing their family, and Xiu had to admit that--with the exception of her uncle, who was almost like a big brother--she didn't talk much about her own parents.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 12:32 pm
"Perhaps it is more possible than you think."
He gave her a knowing smile, however did not elaborate further on what he meant by the statement. If one were determined enough, there were ways to reach into space, even though the stars themselves remained firmly out of reach for most creatures.
"It not a welcoming environment to most creatures, however the time may come when there is a way."
Hobbies? He'd never really thought about it.
"I study science, physics in particular. And I like to read, seems I spend a lot of time in the library,"
Or on the roof, he spent a lot of time there as well.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 6:04 pm
Hmm, really? The Baku seemed to consider this carefully before looking at Sheridan with curiosity. "...And you? Have you ever been up there?" She gestured towards the sky, eyes wide with wonder. If she couldn't go up there herself...perhaps it would be possible for her to visit through someone's dream, if they had memories of what space and the stars were like.
She smiled at his hobbies, nodding after he listed off each one. "You're rather studious, aren't you?" It seemed like it, anyways! As much as Xiu enjoyed reading a good story or learning new, interesting facts, she couldn't imagine herself spending too much time at the library beyond checking out novels or reference books.
"I like cooking and baking," Xiu spoke up, deciding it was only fair for her to share too, "And...plants! I like growing plants, and learning what types of herbs have what properties." That explained why her shelves were full of different types of teas and dried herbs. If anyone were to look in them, they would find a variety of jars labeled with plant names and properties. She was often experimenting to find which herbs went well together in a tea, and was effective for curing some kind of problem, like insomnia.
...And she was usually testing these brews by drinking them herself. Clearly not the safest thing to do.
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