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 Posted: Mon Oct 31, 2005 1:04 pm
She was tired, she was cranky, and she was driving Trio batty. As Trio walked up to Shiro's house, Annora cuddled in her arms and obviously drooping, she sighed. With luck, Shiro would wanna take her for a bit and give the harried blonde a bit of a rest. Trick or treating was insane. As soon as they reached the door, Annora squirmed free, leaping to ring the bell first and call out (at the top of her lungs), "TRICKERTREATS!"
The door opened, and an equally tired Shiromaru peeked out at Annora and Trio. "Hey, there you two are... come on in. I have candy inside." Etain pattered towards the door when she heard Annora's voice, reaching out for the older girl. "All this energy, even though she's been all through the neighborhood... Come on, have a seat."
"She'll stop when she sleeps," Trio murmured, slipping inside and slumping onto the couch. Annora bounced over to Etain, hugging her with a grin before catching her hand and dragging her off to show Etain what she'd gotten.
"C'mon! I gots candy," she informed the younger girl gleefully.
"Candy!" Etain cheered, running off with Annora eagerly. "I got candy too. Lots 'n lots!"
Shiromaru watched them go, then sat down next to Trio, flopping down with a sigh. "My hands are numb from carrying her around. If I didn't, she'd try to fly everywhere."
Trio immediately moved to curl up against him, closing her eyes as she pillowed her head on his chest. "She talked, and she talked, and she TALKED," she whispered.
Annora flopped down in Etain's room, pouring her bag out on the floor to show off the nice haul she'd had. "We drove a LOT," she confided in Etain seriously.
"We flew lots," Etain whispered, her eyes wide. She plunked down across from Annora, unloading her bag as well.
Shiro pulled Trio into his arms, kissing her gently. "Annora tends to do that, I've noticed."
Annora poked through the candy, then tucked it away in the bag again, careful to get every single piece. "Tabris is putting the beads in my hair tomorrow," she told Etain then, crawling over to poke through Etain's candy.
"Mmm," Trio agreed, nestling close and just resting for a long minute before something registered. "Speaking of which... it's TOO quiet. We should check on the girls. With that much candy..."
"We should," Shiro agreed, pulling himself upright slowly. "It could be bad."
Etain looked up curiously, reaching out to pat Annora's hair. "Beads? In your hair?"
Annora nodded, grinning at Etain. "Lots and lotsa beads!"
Trio nodded, shifting to rise as well with a low sigh. "When they're in bed, we're just going to veg, right?" she asked plaintively.
"Veg. And stare blankly at a television. Or maybe even sleep, that's a concept," Shiro decided, grinning.
"Why beads? Will they be pretty?" Etain was clearly fascinated by the idea.
"I got to feed her tonight, but I don't suppose I could scrounge up something?" Trio asked, slipping her hand into Shiro's as they walked down the hall.
Annora's nod this time was intense. "Red beads, an' blue an' pink an' white an' purple an' blue..." she said, counting off all the different beads she'd have in her hair.
Shiro laughed softly, squeezing Trio's hair. "My home is yours. Help yourself to anything you like."
Etain stuck a piece of chocolate in her mouth, her eyes widening again. "I wanna bead my hair, too! With green an' blue!"
Annora frowned at Etain, watching the chocolate disappear before saying, "My mommy said to wait." Very primly, she moved to gather up the rest of Etain's candy and put it back in the bag, figuring that if she didn't get candy, Etain couldn't have any more either, of course.
Trio smiled softly. "Once we check on the girls and get them to bed, I'll make something. Have you eaten yet?"
"But -- " Etain reached for her bag, then frumped a little, chin in her hands. If Annora said no, then she'd be good, but she didn't have to like it!
Shiro shook his head, groaning softly. "Nothing this evening. Haven't had the time! I'm starved!"
"I'll cook for both of us, then," Trio nodded, hesitating a moment before saying, "I've... been kinda assuming that we'll be staying over?"
Annora nodded, crawling across Etain's floor toward her toybox. If she noticed Etain's irritation, she paid it no attention.
"A good assumption," Shiro purred, kissing her gently before opening up the door. He blinked when he saw Etain pouting on the floor, but the sylph quickly was up and running over to him, hugging his leg.
"Annora said I couldn't have any candy until you said it was okay," she explained, sniffling up at him. He leaned down, laughing softly. "Well, she's right," he confirmed gently, petting her hair. "I need to check it over and make sure everything's okay."
Etain nodded, slowly and solemnly. "Okay..."
Trio blinked, nodding. "Good point. Shiro, could you check Annora's too? Don't want them eating anything dangerous," she said with a worried look, even as she reached out to pet Etain's hair.
Annora glanced over, waving at Shiro and Trio before beckoning Etain over and holding up Candy Land. "Play game?" she said brightly.
Trio, who'd been all ready for a fight on the subject of the candy, blinked and looked at Shiro as if to say 'what... just happened?'
Easily swayed, Etain wandered back over to Annora, flopping down. "Okay!"
Shiro just shook his head slightly, then carefully started to pick through the candy. He was not going to look a gift horse in the mouth!
Trio tapped his shoulder before he could get too far into it. "Do it in the living room," she murmured, shaking her head. "Otherwise, they'll realize if you take any candy. And... pull out anything that's too loosely wrapped, okay? Could've been injected with something." She brushed her fingers through his hair, then headed toward the kitchen.
"What color?" Annora asked, holding up the token players toward Etain.
Willingly, Shiro tucked the candy away in the bags again, and retreated to the living room to sort through it all out of sight.
"I wanna be green," Etain decided, reaching out for the little token. "Are you gonna be blue?"
Annora stared at the three for a moment, then cheerfully plopped yellow on the board. "Yellow," she proclaimed, reaching for the rubber band-bound cards and managing to get them free with a minimum of fuss. "It's your turn," she informed Etain.
Trio poked through the food in the house, finally settling on a quickly mixed chicken salad. Before she began, she leaned into the living room. "Chicken salad okay?"
"Just fine, love," Shiro confirmed, smiling up at her. He was most of the way through the bags already, and had only deemed a few pieces suspicious.
Etain cheerfully took her turn, quite content to sit and play for a while.
Trio disappeared back into the kitchen, making quick work of the salad before setting it in the fridge to chill. "Done?" she called to Shiro, as she made her way back to the living room.
"Yep," Shiro agreed, holding up the few pieces he didn't like the looks of.
"Hand those over, and I'll toss them," she said, holding out a hand. She paused then, blinking before grinning at Shiro. "...Okay, I sound WAY too domestic."
Shiromaru snickered softly, grinning right back at Trio. "Is that so bad?"
She chuckled, though she looked vaguely uncomfortable. "Not really," she murmured, shaking her head and taking the pieces from him. "Why don't you start getting the girls ready for bed?"
"Sure thing." Shiromaru stood and made his way into the girls' room. "Etain, Annora, it's time to get to bed." Etain pouted a little, but quickly padded over and reached up for a hug. The demon lifted her into his arms and hugged her tightly, then settled her into her bed.
There was a knock at the door, quiet, but loud enough to be heard.
On the other side of the door stood an angel, dressed like a human as he usually did in a long-sleeved green shirt, blue jeans, a black studded belt and bare feet, and a four-legged colt with striking resemblance to Robin Hood. Keelan grinned up at Blue, straightening his hat with the brown-and-gold feather sweeping back dashingly and his uncle straightened his tunic slightly. It was the only costume he could think of that allowed him to keep his bow and arrows on him, and of course he loved the deep-leaf green color.
In his hand was a bag, nearly empty, of candy.
"Trick or Treat!" he said, in Halloween tradition while Blue just smiled in his ever-present relaxed way and waited for the door to open.
"Trick or treaters this late?" Trio blinked, making her way to the front door since Shiro was putting the girls to bed. She could hardly miss the large bowl of candy near the door, and grabbed it up, carrying it with her in case there were multiple kids.
"Well, now, you're out... late...," she said as she opened the door and came face to face with Blue and Keelan. Immediately, a blush spread over her cheeks, though she smiled, fishing out a large handful of the candy to drop into Keelan's sack. "What are you two doing here?" she asked happily, stepping back to let them in.
"Hey!" Keelan said, watching the candy drop down into his bag he dove his hand in there after it, serching past the foodstuffs Trio had just loosed and pulled out a candy-bar for her. "Treat!" he said with a grin, pressing it into her hand before stepping delicately into the house, looking around.
"Hello," Blue said with a chuckle and stepped in, pressing a friendly kiss to Trio's cheek. "I wanted to take him home, but he said he had a few more candy bars to give out." He dropped his voice to a whisper so Keelan's keen ears might not pick up his next words. "Little boy's set on giving candy and not getting it, but I suppose his heart's in the right place," he chuckled.
Closing the door behind him with a soft click he glanced around, "Did you hide Shiro away?" The grin on his lips was teasing and warm.
If anything, Trio's blush deepened considerably at the kiss and the question, and she stepped back, ducking her head a little. "Shiro!" she called, turning toward the hallway. "Get the girls?"
She looked back, shrugging sheepishly. "He was just putting them to bed, but I think they can wait a little for you, Keelan," she offered. She didn't meet Blue's eyes as she explained, wondering just what the angel might deduce from that, and how he'd feel.
Slumber party tonight... I can send Dal over to help, she decided wryly.
Shiromaru emerged with Annora and Etain in his arms, though the tired demon brightened considerably when he saw Blue and Keelan. "Well, look who the colt dragged in. Hi, you two, come on and stay a while."
Etain, when she saw Blue, beamed and started wriggling, reaching out to the angel. "Boo! Boo!"
Blue flashed Shiro a smile before he reached out to take care of the more pressing issue: the little bundle of energy that was crawling out of his arms. "Well, hello there, my little Firefly!" he said, grinning as he snuggled her in his arms, rubbing his nose against hers as he chuckled. "And I see you're spending the night with my little Diva' Annora, aren't you?" he asked, smiling at the tiny siren.
Keelan brightened considerably when he saw the girls, and of course, Shiro. Digging into his bag he immediately pulled out a candy bar for the demon. "Treat!" he said, waving it in front of Shiro impatiently, excited at giving out the last of his goodies.
He looked down in his bag, wondering where he'd put the threats for the girls and began digging at once.
Annora peered at Blue for a long moment before moving to lean against Keelan's side with a sleepy yawn, half-cuddling him as she grinned. "Keelan," she informed him seriously, saying nothing more.
Trio watched the exchange with a half-smile of approval, proud. She kept quiet as well, content to fade to the background amongst everyone.
Etain gleefully rubbed her nose against Blue's, her wings fluttering madly. "Etain, dearheart, do you want to play with Keelan and Annora?" Shiro asked, and Etain nodded vigorously, wanting to be let down so she could go be with Annora and Keelan.
Keelan, of course, got his own attention, and Shiro grinned at the child. "Why, thank you," he said cheerfully, and took the candy bar.
Keelan smiled down at Annora and pulled out a lollipop that had the top wrapped with silver paper. Upon opening it the siren would find a rose-shaped blue lollipop, ready for eating, and when eaten would probably turn her tongue a violent shade of blue.
Blue laughed and set Etain down after giving her a quick hug, releasing her to terrorize the household. Looking at Shiro he leaned in and gave the demon a quick, yet firm, kiss, happy to see Shiro. "I'm sorry we stopped by so late, but the little stallion was determined," he chuckled.
Keelan, spotting Etain, grinned and pulled out another lollipop, also wrapped in silver paper. Hers was a green one, though still rose shaped, and would probably turn her mouth a matching violent green to Annora's future blue. "Treats!"
Annora stared in wonder at her lollipop, clinging to it before looking to Trio pleadingly. Trio chuckled, nodding her head. "Just this," she admonished. "No more." Annora promptly beamed, snuggling Keelan again as she opened it and stuck the lollipop into her mouth. "What do you say?" Trio demanded, and Annora peered up at Keelan shyly.
"Than foo," she managed around a mouthful of the candy, eyes shining.
One quick kiss was not enough for Shiro, and he chased Blue's lips, stealing another, slightly longer kiss, offering up a sweet little happy sound to it, almost like a chirr. That done, he reached automatically for Trio's hand, as if afraid the woman would leave.
And then he was pinned by those silvery eyes he couldn't say no to. At least very easily. Etain wibbled at him for a moment, and he nodded, relenting. "Only this one tonight."
Etain beamed, whispered a shy 'thank you' to Keelan, and clutched her lollipop close as if afraid to open it. "We have Candy Land," she whispered up to Keelan, clearly including Annora in the 'we'. "Wanna play?"
Blue chuckled at Shiro's eagerness and winked at Trio, smiling as he put his hands in his pockets, clearly happy with the evening now. "I hope I had not interupted anything?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at their clasped hands, grin teasing and lopsided.
Keelan smiled at both girls from his height and said, "You're weclome!" with a happy swish of his tail. He'd dragged WinK all through town looking for the pretty lollipops he knew the girls would like. Looking down at his bag, which should have been empty except for overzealous parents like Trio. Maybe he could divide up the candy between the two.
"Candy Land?" he asked, slightly curious. "That's a game ... right?" His gray orbs were slightly confused. He'd never spent much time on board games, and instead as a younger cold romped around outside chasing bugs and birds.
Annora nodded, eyes sparkling as she reached to catch his arm, tugging him along. "I'm yellow," she proclaimed proudly, nudging Etain to tell him what her color was.
Trio blushed deeply, tugging at her hand in an ineffectual attempt to pull free and let the two men have their time. "We... ah... I mean...," she managed, brain too tired and nervous to come up with anything better.
"I'm green," Etain confessed softly, wide eyes on Annora and Keelan. How did Annora manage to be so brave? She walked along with the other two, opening the door to her room.
Shiro drew Trio close to him, trying to slide his arms around her waist. "Please don't leave?" he whispered, looking into her eyes. "I'd be happier if you stayed here with us..."
Blue grinned at the pair, politely ignoring Trio's sudden hand tug. After her horrid rambling attempt at an excuse, which he found adorable, he chuckled and his stomach growled. "Well now ... trick or treating with Keelan is fun because he's so generous, but it doesn't leave me with much of a snack-time," he grinned. "Mind if I make something to eat, beautiful?"
He was, if anything, oblivious (or acting it) to Trio's slight distress. Without waiting for an answer he ventured happily off to the kitchen, letting them alone for a moment or two.
Keelan let Annora take his arm, and instead of letting her just grip his wrist, took her hand. "Colors? You mean, like, players?" He thought about this for a moment. "What other colors are there?" he asked, looking from Annora to Etain.
"There's blue," Annora piped up, then paused, trying to remember the last color. She looked at Etain, tilting her head. "An'..."
Trio tensed at Shiro's embrace until Blue was out of sight. When they were 'alone', she sagged slowly, shoulders slumping and head falling. "I thought... you'd want some time alone. Just the two of you. I don't have to stay tonight. I can even send over Dal if you need help with the kids," she added hurriedly.
"An'... an' blue, an' red, an' yellow, an' green, an' um..." Etain blinked and shook her head, eyes wide, then pattered into her room and pulled the Candy Land game out.
Shiromaru held Trio close, kissing her forehead gently. "I love you," he whispered. "I love you madly. I want you to stay, please..." He nuzzled at her gently, offering a faint smile. "I really am happiest when I have you both here."
Blue meandered happily into the kitchen, listening to the girls lead away Keelan to play a game. Hopefully they'd tire soon, though, remembering how young children were, once they were awake, they were awake. And the parents were doomed. He laughed and opened the 'fridge, spotting the chicken salad.
Pulling it out he quickly gathered some bread and started to toast it, gathering condiments for a nice little sandwhich.
Keelan thought for a moment before deciding: "I want to be red!"
He looked around Etain's room for the first time. Aside from his siter Aurora, he'd never been in a girl's room before. But Aurora didn't count. She was his sister.
Annora grinned, dropping down to the floor to grab the red piece and put it at start. "Okay! It's your turn," she informed Keelan, despite the fact that the other two pieces were already along the path toward the end.
Trio sighed softly, nestling against Shiro for a long moment before admitting, "I don't want to screw things up..."
"You're not going to screw anything up," Shiromaru said gently, a hand stroking through her hair. "I promise you, you're not screwing anything up."
Hasilty he put together the meal and wolfed it down, licking his fingers as he made sure to put everything back in its proper place and to double-check that he'd left it clean. With a satisfied nod he walked out of the kitchen, listening for the other adults.
Hearing them he walked back into the front hall, wondering if he'd eaten to fast or if they were talking. Happening to hear Shiro's words before he entered the hallway he figured it was the later. His feet kept moving and soon he was standing right next to Trio, as opposed to next to Shiro, which he thought might've made her uncomfortable again.
"Now, I wouldn't think you could screw it up if you tried," he said softly, eyes and smile warm. "And even then, I don't believe Shiro or I would let you do that. We care about each other, yes, but we still care about you. I won't snarl at you just because the three of us are in the same room."
He suddenly grinned, brightening considerably. "Look, now. I'm not snarling. In fact, I'm quite happy. Who made that chicken salad? It was delicious!"
Trio jumped, looking at Blue for a long moment before offering a quiet, "I did." She bit her lower lip, glancing at Shiro briefly before turning back to brush a shy kiss against Blue's cheek. "Let me go finish making some for Shiro and I? And then maybe we can head to the living room and chat?"
"Okay." Leaning in, Shiro touched fingertips to the underside of Trio's chin and kissed her lightly. "Thank you."
"Well, it was absolutely wonderful, I'm sorry I ate without you!" Blue smiled softly at the kiss that Trio had bestowed upon him and relaxed, depositing his hands in his pockets lazily. "A chat sounds wonderful." He grinned at Shiro, happy with how things were going.
Trio smiled shyly at Shiro's kiss, slipping away to head into the kitchen and rustle up the food that Blue had just put away. She lingered there, wanting to give Shiro and Blue at least a little time together.
Shiromaru hesitated, then leaned in against Blue's chest, closing his eyes. "Hey, you," he whispered, smiling softly.
Blue watched as Shiro hesitated, and smiled, knowing the reasons for it. When the demon finally eloped into his arms the angel responded by holding him close, enveloping his arms around the shorter man and squeezing gently. "Hey," was all he said in responce, dropping a kiss on the top of Shiro's head, content to just hold for now.
Trio carried out two plates a moment later, stilling when she saw the two curled against each other. It was odd - there was no jealousy in her. Instead, there was simply the faintest twinge of disappointment, as she tried to reconcile what Shiro had said with her instincts. It took her a moment for her feet to move again, carrying her to the living room, and only once there did she call to them.
The demon looked up at Trio, then smiled warmly. "Set the plates down and come here?" he murmured, holding one hand out towards her.
Blue, still curled around Shiro, rested his chin on the demon's head and smiled softly at Trio, remaining quiet. He hoped she would come over, but it didn't mean she would.
Trio hesitated, peering out of the living room to watch the pair for a long moment before doing as Shiro asked. She stopped just a bit away, a hand hesitantly rising to rest against Shiro's shoulder.
Shiromaru drew Trio in against himself and Blue, hugging her close, his arms around her and Blue both.
There was a small stirring in Keelan's Treat-Bag, left forgotten in the corner of Etain's room while the children played and a small creature rolled out and quietly snuck through the door ...
Blue wrapped a warm arm around Trio, kissing the top of her head gently for a moment, hoping she didn't get too offended. This was such a serious, tense moment that he wanted to crack a joke, ease the tension, but he was afraid to do so. He didn't want to ruin a tender moment just because he lacked fondness for seriousness. Luckily he didn't have to.
There was a sharp yip as the small fuzzy creature, also known as the pixa Schola, Keelan's constant companion, wandered up to the three, tail wagging. Food was his first thought, and he smelled it. Turning his head he saw the plates in the living room, wondering if he should charge for those or simply wait.
"One of your...," Trio started, then grinned as she saw who it was. "I know you... and I know who you came with," she said, hugging the two men briefly before pulling free to kneel down. A practiced hand opened wide enough to hold Schola. "Outside or food or just needing company, dearheart?" she asked, her tension at the hug fading into nothing.
"Trio...?" A tiny voice called from the doorway, then a pixa guardian -- the little green tiger, Xuan -- padded into the room. "Do you want me to take care of him?" He glanced up at Shiromaru, then approached Trio. "He's new... is he one of yours?" He looked up at Blue, then watched as Shiro knelt and offered the guardian a hand to stand on. The tiger pixa guardian stepped onto Shiro's hand, then the demon stood.
"Trio can take care of him, I think," Shiro murmured, smiling. "Thank you, Jade."
Schola panted, tongue lolling happily as he wagged his tail. He opened his mouth to repond to Trio's question (he was a pixa of few English words, he loved to bark though), when he spotted Jade. Closing his mouth he turned his head to the side, questioning, tail still wagging madly.
"Oh, no," Blue said with a grin, shoving his hands in his pockets. "He actually belongs to Keelan. His name is Schola. Handy little pup that one is," he added before looking at Jade. "And ... what might you be?" he asked point-blank, having never seen one of Jade's kind before.
Trio chuckled, watching the others as she carefully used a single finger to pat Schola's head.
Xuan stared up at Blue, then sat down on Shiro's hand -- this was high up! "I'm a pixa guardian. A pixakeeper. I watch over the pixas here at the house."
Grinning down at the pixakeeper Blue nodded. "Well, the only time this little pup leaves Keelan's side is if it's for food, or if he has sniffed something more interesting than what Keelan is currently doing. I think it might be both right now," he laughed.
Schola turned in Trio's hand, staring hard and long at the plates in the living room, his whole body shouting "FOOD!" while staying completely quiet.
Trio blinked at Schola for a long moment, then grinned, nodding. "Shiro, I'm going to get him something to eat. Your dinners are in there," she directed, heading for where she knew Shiro kept his Pixa-food.
"Don't forget to feed yourself," Shiro called after her, then sighed softly and sat down on the sofa, grabbing his plate. Xuan hopped off onto the coffee table, perching there on the edge.
Blue walked into the living room with Shiro, sitting down in a chair, focusing on the little thing. It couldn't be any taller than a doll. It seemed very nice though. "It'd be handy to have one like you at my house," he said after a bit. "With all the pixa we have running wild. The only one that really pays anyone any mind is Keelan's Schola in there. The rest ... " he shrugged and laughed, leaning back.
Schola grinned a doggie-grin up at Trio, tail up and wagging as he yipped quietly, anxiously awaiting food. He knew what kitchens looked, and smelled, like and this was a kitchen for sure. Food was here somewhere and he knew Trio knew where it was.
Pixa-food was really nothing more than normal dry dog-food ground up into much finer bits, and Trio set out a small plate's worth, grinning. "There you go. The kids are in the back room playing a game, when you're done."
She watched him a moment, then made her way back to the living room, belatedly remembering that the second plate had been hers. "Comfortable?"
"We have a lot here, but most of them are well-behaved. Besides, there are a few pixapups who like to herd the others," Xuan offered, even as he rather shyly tried to creep closer to Shiro.
The demon never even paused, eating quickly. He was starving. "It's very good, and yes, we're comfortable. Have a seat, love?"
Trio nodded, moving to sit in a nearby chair rather than cuddled against Shiro as she'd intended to do while they ate. "Thank you both," she murmured, then took a bite.
Schola ate his food and fast, still chomping on a mouth-ful when he scrambled over the floor to follow Trio. Something smelled good.
Blue smiled and leaned back, watching Xuan for a moment longer before relaxing further and hiding a laughing grin behind a hand. Glancing at Shiro, who was eating as fast as Schola tended to, he tried to cover up a quick snerk of laughter, trying his hardest to look casually relaxed and innocent.
Shiro, however, reached out and elbowed Blue. "I saw that," he accused, shooting a Look up at the angel. "You try keeping up with a sylph who isn't too good at flying yet and keeps dropping out of the air!"
Trio giggled, stretching out her legs and tapping her toes on both Blue and Shiro's legs. "Both of you...," she said, though her eyes were smiling. "We should put the kids to bed soon. How... how long were you staying, Blue?"
Schola sniffed up through Shiro's legs as the demon was berating Blue playfully and jumped up quickly, scrambling onto the table to get a hunk of chicken into his mouth, clamping jaws around it as if to say "Mine!"
Grinning back at Shiro he opened his mouth to respond but laughed, spotting the pixa before turning to Trio, trying to regain his composure. "Well ... I'm not sure. It's up to Shiro I suppose. I'd just have to tell WinK if Keelan is staying the night if he does." He tapped his temple to indicate telepathy.
"I..." Abandoning food, Shiro glanced up at Blue and Trio both. "I'd really like it... if you both stayed... but if you'd rather not, I understand..."
Trio stared at Shiro for a moment, eyes wide, then looked down at her plate. On the one hand, it'd be very easy just to pack up and go home, and let them enjoy the night. But... she didn't WANT to do that. It was lonely at home, and she'd promised to give Blue a chance. She just hadn't quite planned on the chance being quite this fast.
Her eyes finally lifted to Blue, peering at him solemnly as she made a decision. "I'll stay if you're okay with it."
Schola, quite happy to have Shiro's entire plate to himself now, started to eat. And eat. And eat. Happily.
Blue thought for a moment, his face a rare thoughtful before he opened his mouth, smiling slowly. "I wouldn't mind you staying at all Trio. I promise not to misbehave," he added to Shiro with a flash of a smile. He closed his eyes for just a moment, then opened them, grinning. "WinK says it's all right as long as we head home at a reasonable hour tomorrow."
"WinK needs to come over sometime," Shiro decided, then stood and stretched languidly. "I'll go get the kids to bed." He paused by Trio, however, and caressed her cheek with his fingers, offering her a grateful, loving smile.
Xuan hopped off the coffee table, pattering away so he could help settle down the pixas as well.
Trio blushed at the caress, though something else had caught her attention. "Blue... you're a telepath?" she asked, a shy half-smile curling her lips up.
Blue smiled, leaning back in his seat, fully relaxed as his legs stretched out in front of him. "Yes, I am. The communication between Angel Masters was something the Lord wanted to make sure could happen, even through distance. Earth and Heaven, as you know, can be quite far."
Blue eyes moved to rest on Schola, who was now laying, tummy buldging happily, in the very center of Shiro's now-completely empty plate.
"Keelan, Annora, Etain, it's time for bed now," Shiromaru informed the children from the doorway, a soft smile on his lips. "Keelan, we have a spare room right next to this one if you want to stay in it. It has a bed of its own."
Trio looked down, a wistful smile on her lips. "I used to know a telepath. I miss him sometimes," she explained after a moment, more to fill the silence than because she felt the need to make Blue understand.
Annora peered up, frowning at Shiro for a moment before getting up and heading toward the bathroom. She left the game-board as is, the thought of picking up never once occurring to her. But she knew the routine by now...
Keelan looked up at Shiro, tail swishing as he got up slowly to make sure his legs were steady before walking to follow Shiro to find out where this room was. Looking around, then at where he'd tossed his Treat bag, he frowned. "Do you know where Schola is, Mr. Shiro?" he asked, looking up at the demon with big gray eyes.
Blue nodded, smiling softly at Trio. "Everyone has people in their lives that they miss. People, and interaction with people, shapes who were are, and how we respond to those around us," he said, stopping himself as he felt a ramble approaching and blushed softly. "Sorry. I rather liked studying human behavior when I came down from Heaven. It's amazing how human we've all become." He was referring to his other siblings, though he felt no need to explain since Trio knew WinK already.
Etain reached up wordlessly for her daddy, and Shiromaru picked her up and set her on his hip. "Schola is in the living room, and I believe he just ate my dinner," he offered to Keelan with a broad grin; then he called, raising his voice to be heard in the bathroom, "Annora? When you're done, come help pick up the game, princess! Keelan, could you help with the game too?" Etain, of course, knew that meant she had to help clean up as well -- she was very studious about keeping things clean -- and she wriggled out of Shiro's arms before flying down to the ground, starting to pick up some of the board game's pieces.
"I'm going POTTY," Annora called back firmly, as though that meant she couldn't possibly help. Nonetheless, when she was finally done, and her hands washed, she made her way back to Etain's room, moving to help with the few remaining pieces.
Trio chuckled at Blue, finally realizing that she was NOT the only nervous one around. "When I came here, this was all so strange to me - I've never even considered speaking to an angel before, or a demon. But now... I can't imagine you lot not being around."
Keelan turned and went back to the game-board, helping Etain, and then Annora when she returned from the bathroom. Once the pieces were all away and everything was clean he looked at Shiro expectantly with a small yawn. It was indeed quite late, but he was used to staying up late every now and then to look at the stars with WinK.
Schola, hearing his name, bounced up slowly from the plate, scrambled across the table (leaving small footprints on the table from the chicken salad) and trotted, belly huge on such a small creature, up to Keelan, darting between the centaur's legs, sniffing at him to make sure he hadn't been harmed with the pixa had 'foraged' for food.
Blue sat forward, eyes trailing to the prints on the table, his mouth twitching up into a smile as he nodded at Trio. "In Heaven they teach you that demons are evil and angels are pure and humans are just plain clueless. It's not always true ... it took me a while to learn that here on Earth. Most of us had to when we came down," he nodded.
"One second, let me get the girls into bed," Shiro murmured to Keelan, then tucked Etain into bed. "Night, sweetling," he whispered to her and kissed her forehead, then tucked in Annora as well. "Good night, princess," he murmured to the siren and kissed her forehead as well, then made his way to the door. "Come on, Keelan, let's get you settled into bed. You look exhausted.'
"HUGS!" Annora demanded, sitting up in bed when Shiro looked like he was leaving. But her eyes were flicking between Shiro and Keelan both, clearly demanding hugs from both of them.
"You mean you know humans that AREN'T clueless?" Trio teased, grinning at him.
Keelan stopped and looked at Annora, glancing up at Shiro before he walked straight over to Annora's bed, sleep driving him to give into her wishes and demands, no matter how silly. He would see her again in the morning, why hug now? But he was tired, and as he wrapped his arms around the siren he thought that giving in now was better than arguing and staying awake longer. Or, so his sleep-deprived brain told him.
He had to do it at that comment, so he laughed, trying not to be too loud since the children would be in bed soon. "Oh, dear, Trio, of course they aren't!" he said, still laughing, even though there was no need to answer the question. The angel did, however, add teasingly with a sparkle in his eye, "Sometimes they're much, much worse than clueless." He hid a snort of laughter behind a hand.
Etain sat up, wibbling just a little, her lower lip stuck out a bit. "I want hugs too," she said quietly, holding her arms up.
Shiro hugged her willingly, then switched over to hug Annora as well. "How could I possibly forget the hugs?" he asked of her, grinning. "Now sleep... and in the morning, I'll make breakfast."
Annora snuggled Keelan warmly, then did the same for Shiro when he came to her. As he straightened, she caught his sleeve, tugging it. "Apple pancakes?" she asked, eyes sparkling.
"HEY!" Trio said, laughing. "I resemble that remark." Sure it was corny, but it perfectly summed up what she thought of that little comment. Sobering a bit, the smile still very definitely on her face, she looked thoughtful. "I dunno. I think humans can be just as good... or evil... as anyone else. Maybe worse."
Keelan gave Etain a hug as well, and while Annora was asking Shiro something about pancakes he tucked the silver-haired girl back in, sleep making his eyes droop. Once she was snug in her covers he waited for Shiro to lead him to bed, and sleep.
A grin was spread from ear to ear as he talked to Trio. His first impression was right: she was a complete joy to be around once she'd gotten past the shyness. Or maybe it was only when the three of them were in one room? He'd have to find out. "There are two theories that I've studied in the past: nature vs. nuture. I believe in the second. You can be born one thing, but raised and conditioned to be another. Some people believe that what you're born as is what you are."
"Apple pancakes," Shiro agreed, shooting her a bright smile before kissing her forehead. "Now sleep, or I'll make plain oatmeal. Love you, girls." He headed for the door again, glancing down at Keelan. "Now, you need to sleep before you fall asleep standing up." He opened the door to the other room and turned down the blankets on the low bed, then fluffed the pillows.
Annora nestled back into the bed, turning on her side to watch Etain for a minute before closing her eyes.
Trio's face lit up at that, and she nodded. "I hope so," she said fervently. "The nurture, I mean. I'd hate for Annora to grow up doomed by what she is genetically... And she likes people so much, I think things are going well."
Keelan grinned sleepily, rubbing his eyes as Schola hopped up onto the bed and snuggled down on one of the freshly-fluffed pillows. "But I can fall alseep standing up. If I had to," he added with a yawn. He leaned forward, putting most of his weight on his arms and slowly tucked his front legs up before pulling his hind legs onto the bed as well, laying down on his side. He struggled with the covers for a moment before giving up, too tired to care. He was asleep in a moment, the little Schola snoring quietly next to his head.
With a nod Blue thought about the Changelings. "I hope that your dreams for her come to realities," he said softly, thinking of the little centaur that had just passed out. "But sometimes I worry about Keelan. He was born a fel, from what he tells us, which means he would have been the leader of his clan, his people. He harbors many tendancies to wanting to be a leader still. I hope he's doing it because he wants to, and not because he feels he has to by birth," he said, frowning slightly.
He started, smiling. "I'm sorry ... I was rambling again," he said a bit shyly.
Leaning down, Shiro very gently tucked the blankets around Keelan, then brushed the colt's hair out of his face before kissing his forehead as well. That done, the demon made his way silently out of the room and rejoined the others in the living room, offering them both a smile.
(continued next post)
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Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:28 am
((CONSOLIDATED RP - CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST))
--------------------------
He walked in on Trio's thoughtful response. "Maybe it's both, but is that such a bad thing? I mean, think about what he's doing. What I've seen, he's concerned not about leading, but about leading WELL. That's something to be commended - too few of us care enough or dare enough to even chance leading, let alone push ourselves to do so with care for those we're leading. People matter to Keelan. He shouldn't be forced into it, but I think having a goal like that for yourself is a good thing."
Blue gave Trio a thankful smile. "I've noticed as much. He's kind, and very fair. But I hope that in the end it's what he wants to do. He's so little ... I suppose when he's older if he wants to change his mind, he will," he said, flashing Shiro a smile as the demon rejoined the adults. "Children in bed, then?"
Shiromaru kissed both of them, then flopped down on the sofa. "Mmmhm. Fast asleep. Keelan's in the room next to the girls, the one on the left." He reached up and pulled the two hairsticks from his hair, setting them aside, then carefully unwound his long hair from the bun it'd been in. "Oh wow, my scalp hurts. Keelan's wonderful."
"Isn't he?" Trio nodded, grinning at Shiro and Blue before hesitantly rising. "Would you like one of us to brush your hair out? Would it help at all?" Now that Shiro was back, there was a different quality in the air, something approaching anticipation that made her nervous.
Not moving save for a shifting of his position in the chair, Blue nodded, silently thanking the pair of them for the compliments on his nephew. He watched Shiro's hair unroll, wondering if the demon used the hair-ornaments he'd created very often. "Do you always pin your hair up like that?" he asked, once Trio had finished speaking.
"Oh, that sounds wonderful," Shiromaru breathed, grabbing a brush up off the side table. "And I do, always, at least now that I have Etain. But I won't dare cut it, I could never never stand that."
Trio started to reach for the brush, then glanced to Blue and smiled softly. "Would you like the honors?" she asked, a touch shyly.
A lopsided smile met Trio's question. "By all means, I'll let you do the honors. I'm content just to be here," he said, smiling softly at the pair. This was so relaxing to him, just being in the same room with not just Shiro, but Trio as well.
Shiro pressed the brush into Trio's hand and settled onto the floor, sitting in front of her. "Mmmm. It feels good to have my hair down..."
Trio couldn't quite hide the fact that she was pleased to be the one with the brush, gathering up some of Shiro's hair and beginning the process of untangling it first, then brushing it with long, slow comforting strokes. She seemed to have quite a lot of experience with long hair, at ease with the whole process and enjoying it for the calm comfort it was.
"I could... brush your hair next?" she offered to Blue, eyes flicking up briefly.
Tilting his head to the side he let white-blonde locks fall in front of his face, as if he were looking at them to see if they needed combing. His hair, modeled like WinK's only longer, was slightly mussed from running around all night with Keelan.
Tossing his head to the side he looked at the pair and smiled at Trio. "If you want to. You seem to be good at it," he added.
The croon that issued forth from Shiro's lips was positively sinful, deep and rumbling. "She's excellent at it," he offered, purring gleefully. "Have her brush yours next, you'll end up boneless..."
Trio blushed deeply, not quite able to conceal the pleased smile as she ducked her head. Have to do this when it's just us sometime, she decided, finishing Shiro's hair and taking a few minutes to just comb her fingers through the silky locks.
With a chuckle Blue moved to sit next to Shiro on the floor, grinning happily as he crossed his legs, thinking. "Boneless, eh? I rather like my bones ... some more than other," he added with a wink and a quiet laugh.
Reaching down, Shiro ran a hand up and down Blue's thigh, grinning impishly. "I rather like your bones, too," he purred, then leaned back to press a kiss to Trio's lips.
Trio squeaked softly, giving into the kiss for a moment before pulling back with a shy blush. "I... should do Blue's," she whispered, wanting to calm her racing heart.
One of the angel's hands snaked forward, lacing fingers into Shiro's hand, drawing it away from a slightly higher destination for Trio's sake, grinning softly. "Hopefully I'll still retain my bones," he said teasingly to the squeaking woman.
Shiromaru drew Blue's hand to his lips, kissing the back of it, then shifted about so Blue could sit in front of Trio. "At least one of them," he crooned, grinning.
Trio hesitated, torn between being too embarrassed to speak and the bravado she'd learned from her fathers. Bravado won out, and she spoke up quietly. "I'll see what I can do about that," she assured him, trying to sound as blase as possible.
Moving his hand from Shiro's grasp gently, he cupped the demon's chin for a moment, fingers playing over the soft skin. Moving as Shiro shifted over, Blue sat in front of Trio, his eyes closing gently, awaiting her ministrations.
Shiromaru leaned in and kissed Blue with a grin, then stole another from Trio before sitting down close at their sides, watching them.
Trio took a moment to gather her composure before gentle fingers began to slip through Blue's hair, seeking out trouble spots so that she could untangle them smoothly. From there, it was smooth strokes until the hair gleamed, as she lost herself in the task once more.
Eyes sliding closed, Blue's neck went loose as his head moved gently with Trio's fingers and tugs and pulls. He mmm'd quietly, content with the relaxing feel of her hands.
Leaning in, Shiromaru shifted about and sat directly in Blue's lap, purring at both Blue and Trio. "I told you she's excellent."
She couldn't look at Shiro as she continued. If she did, it would jar her too much. It wasn't fair to be jealous of them, but as she combed her fingers through the silky end product of Blue's hair, she couldn't quite stop the tiny twinge.
"Mmmm," Blue responded, almost sleepily. "Excellent is not quite a good enough word to describe her at the moment." Eyes still closed a lopsided smile pressed over his lips. "Trio, duckie, you're simply ... amazing."
"I to~ld you," Shiro purred, and reached up to stroke fingers through Trio's hair. "Let me brush yours next. It's only fair, we all three get to enjoy it."
Trio nodded slowly, eyes fluttering shut at the touch. "O-okay," she whispered, handing the brush to Shiro and climbing down to the floor.
Without thought Blue wound his fingers through a set of Trio's and leaned his head on her shoulder gently. It wasn't an overly-flirtacious touch, but more of a child-like innocenct air that made the angel cuddle next to Trio. Being the angel of Earth meant when the sun went down, usually he did too, but there were times when he stayed awake late. It didn't take much to get him relaxed to the point of sleepy behavior, which is he was clearly at now.
Shiro eyed the sleepy angel with a look that was most decidedly a pout, then took the brush from Trio and started to brush her hair out with slow and careful strokes. "Hmph. Sleepy creature. It's not fair," he grumbled, eyeing Blue over Trio's shoulder, then leaned in to kiss Trio's neck lightly.
Trio sucked in a soft breath at the kiss, her fingers tightening around Blue's. It didn't matter that the angel was half-asleep. She was suddenly VERY aware of him there, and she swallowed, leaning her head back. "I think he's turning into a pumpkin," she managed after a moment. "Should we get him to bed?"
THAT sounded wrong, didn't it?
He yawned gently, raising his head when he was done and said quetly into Trio's ear: "Angels don't turn into pumpkins. Carriages do." He smiled sleepily, squeezing her fingers in return. "Did someone say something about bed?"
He pushed white-blonde hair out of his blue eyes and smiled up at Shiro. "I'm sure the bed would be much more comfortable."
Pout. "Yes, bed," Shiro finally agreed, drawing the brush through Trio's hair a few more times until it was silky and smooth to the touch. "Come on, Blue, to bed with all of us. We're all tired."
Tired. Yeah. She was tired. Trio nudged Blue up, soft eyes moving to Shiro. "Um..."
Moving to stand up the angel slipped his arms around the blonde woman and picked her up gently, lifting her body off of the floor as if she weighed nothing. "You're probably tired," he said with a small wink before looking at Shiro.
"Are you going to come, or do I get her all to myself and you can stay out here?"
"I'll come later, once you're in bed," Shiro informed him with a smirk, even as he padded after Blue and Trio to his bedroom. "You're too tired for me to come now."
"Shiro!" Trio said, squeaking slightly at the words. She hid her face against Blue's neck for lack of a better place.
With a chuckle Blue set Trio down on the bed, sitting next to her on the edge with a smile. "Now, you don't think a bed is just going to make it happen do you? I would think not ... expecially after last time," he grinned lazily. "Because kitchen tables are not beds."
"Nor is the floor underneath the kitchen table, but we did well enough there, too," Shiro mused, leaning in to kiss them both, one after the other, slow and languidly. This, now... this was his own heaven.
Fast. That's what this was. Trio drew back from Blue's arms, trying to figure out exactly what to say. Asking what room she was sleeping in was apparently moot - their intentions were pretty much obvious. So she kept quiet, listening to their banter and wondering when she'd started thinking of Blue as desirable, or considering that perhaps, just perhaps, three to a bed might prove comfortable.
While he was sleepy, he wasn't entirely brain-dead. Eyeing Shiro he grinned, shrugging slowly. "Let's just sleep tonight ... please?" he asked, glancing at the door. "I mean, what if the children wake up?" He tried to make a good point without actually saying he didn't feel that sex was something on the menu for the three of them. This was the first night the three of them had spent together after all.
Shiro snorted, then grinned. "I know, I know. Come on, let's get some sleep, then..."
Blink. That was it? She'd thought the demon really serious about the seduction. Not fully understanding the brief stab of disappointment through her, she finally spoke up, voicing the next logical question.
"Who goes where?"
With a sly smile Blue flopped back onto the bed, sprawling out with an impish grin taking over his lips. Arms spread out across the bed (the pair of them would have to move him if they were to be comfortable) he said, "I go here," with a chuckle.
"You...!" Shiro clambered onto the bed and reached for Blue, trying to drag him across the bed to a better position. "Youuuu are going to go on one side of me and Trio on the other. I'll be in the middle. I'm greedy."
"Greedy?" Trio asked, moving toward the bed before something occurred to her. She looked down at her well-worn and ever-present jeans, chewing her lower lip. They were soft, but... sleeping in them?
Blue rolled over obediently, grinning before sitting up and immediately stripping off his long-sleeved shirt, tossing it to the side of the bed before undoing his belt and slipping off his pants. Modesty retaining he kept his boxers on to keep Shiro from getting ideas and to save Trio from turning into a tomato.
"Mmmm ... much better," he said with a grin, closing his eyes and stretching his long frame out over the bed, not even noticing how the other two reacted to his state of undress.
Shiro leaned in and kissed Blue's abdomen playfully, then hopped off the bed and shed everything without a trace of modesty of his own. He pulled on pajama pants after and curled up on the bed. "Trio?" he asked, cheerfully, waiting to see what she would do.
Trio watched him for a long moment, biting her lip before deciding. "Do you have a t-shirt I can borrow, Shiro?" she asked, her eyes dancing briefly over both forms before turning with the excuse of digging in the closet. They looked... GOOD together.
Propping himself up on one elbow, one of Blue's hands reached out, catching Shiro's chin, planting a kiss on the demon's lips for a solid moment before he slid back to laying down, placing his hands behind his head as he waiting for lights out, his eyes following Trio as she moved around.
"I -- " Mmmm. Shiromaru purred at the kiss, completely distracted from his thoughts, then blinked as he tried to remember what Trio asked. "Uh. T-shirts? They're all kind of... um, tight. But I have loose button-downs...?"
"Thanks," she said, poking through his closet and finding a button-down that didn't seem as though it should be saved for VERY nice occasions. She considered heading into the bathroom, then decided that the least she could do was offer them the same trust they'd given her. Turning her back to them, she stripped off her shirt, leaving her bra on as she pulled the button-down around her. Once it was buttoned up the front, she did some sort of contortionistic pull-tug to unhook and remove her bra, which she left on the chair in a small pile. Her pants followed suit, along with socks, and thus clad, she moved to crawl into bed on Shiro's other side.
Turning on his side he kissed Shiro's neck gently. "Good night," he said quietly. He kissed a finger and reached out across the demon in the middle to press the pad of his finger gently against Trio's nose.
Shiromaru crooned contentedly, pressing back againt Blue and reaching for Trio so he could burrow between the two of them. "Good night," he offered sweetly.
Trio nestled close, reaching around Shiro to brush her fingertips against Blue's cheek in answer to the nose-beep before pressing a soft kiss to the corner of Shiro's mouth and closing her eyes. "Goodnight."
Annora yawned, sitting up and looking around. This wasn't her room... It took her a moment to remember, and then her eyes widened. Wondering where the adults were, she slipped out of bed, scrubbing at her eyes and making her way to the door.
Blue slipped an arm over Shiro's waist, letting his hand rest on the demon's bare stomach as his eyes drooped and he passed away into sleep. Much like his nephew in a room across the house he wasn't an easy person to wake up until morning time.
Perfectly content, Shiromaru curled up with Trio and Blue, snuggling in with both of them.
Etain looked up at Annora sleepily, then padded out of her bed before stumbling after the other girl. "Annoooora... where're you goin'?"
Annora looked back at Etain, offering a sleepy smile before reaching to catch her hand. "Wanna know where is," she whispered, lacing her fingers with Etain's before tugging the smaller girl after her as she padded out the door and down the hall curiously. It was dark here, but somehow, it didn't feel scary. There was just this sense of somehow needing to whisper and creep about, as though they ought to hide in these shadows.
"My house," Etain informed Annora blearily, but willingly followed where Annora led her. "It's late... all quiet."
Annora glanced back with a soft frown. Didn't Etain understand she wanted to find Trio and Shiro, and see where they went to? Reaching a door, she cracked it open carefully, taking care not to make a sound.
Etain followed after Annora, sniffed the air, then smiled groggily. "Horsie," she announced, and wandered into Keelan's room.
Keelan stirred in his sleep a little bit, having not moved much since Shiro tucked him in, hands clutching the covers for a moment before relaxing. He didn't so much as flutter an eye when they walked in.
Schola, belly starting to slowly shrink, was laying on his back, feet propped up into the air, snoring long ceased.
Annora beamed, peering at Keelan for a moment. This would do nicely, and looked a lot more comfortable. Tugging Etain toward Keelan's bed, she nestled up against Keelan, draping herself against his back and closing her eyes. Warm...
Etain curled up willingly with Annora and Keelan, tugging the covers up over all three of them. Yes, this would do quite nicely. She was asleep again in moments.
The colt didn't even budge as the girls climbed in with him, proving his hard-sleeper-ness. Schola rolled over, but remained asleep as well, the pair of them continuing on in slumber until the morning.
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Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:28 am
The sun was rising, Blue could feel it in his bones. Slowly but surely the very fibers of his muscles and tissue started to hum silently, urging him to rise and greet the sun and bloom before the golden rays. He sat up, a smooth motion that seemed to ripple through his body as he opened blue orbs, quickly taking in his surroundings and remembering the events of the night before.
Smiling at Shiro and Trio, curled next to each other like kittens, he stood, moving from the bed without so much as a squeak. He found his pants and pulled them on out of modesty, barely tightening the studded belt and leaving his shirt on the floor.
Ushering quietly out of the room, barefooted, he walked down the hallway, the light calling to him as he made his way to the living room and walked over to one of the many large windows, his body singing silently as the golden light of the sun contacted his skin. After a minute or two of feeding off of the sunlight like a good little plant, he decided to check up on his nephew.
"Kee-" he stopped himself, halfway through the doorway. He wasn't alone. Of course, Schola was there (as always), but there were two other forms in the bed, curled up happily as well. With a grin he left as the sun still rose and tip-toed back into Shiro's room, eager to tell the other two parents about the little slumber-bundle that had made itself last night after they had all fallen asleep.
"Shiro, beautiful ... Trio, lovely, wake up," he said quietly, smiling warmly as he sat on the foot of the bed.
Trio yawned, the shifting bed having sent her into a dozy, half-awake stage in the first place. Now, as a soft voice intruded as well, her eyes blinked lazily open, peering at Blue with no real comprehension for a moment before a soft, content smile curled her lips. In bed like this, warm and comfortable and held, she wasn't awake enough to be shy. "Hey there," she murmured, voice thick with sleep.
"Mmng," said the lump that was Shiro, then the demon groggily hauled a pillow onto his head. He was not waking up, dammit. It was far too early. "Not getting up," he mumbled, but it sounded more like 'nageddup.'
With a grin Blue's fingers found the bottom of Shiro's foot and tickled it very gently. "But I have a surprise for you," he said with a grin. "You don't even have to leave the house ... our little children have had a little slumber party all their own. If you're quiet you can probably find them still asleep like I did."
He grinned and stood up, placing his hands on his hips, a mocking light dancing in his eyes. Morning person, ahoy, was Blue, and he would carry Shiro if he had to. First, though, he'd tickle the demon to death if possible. Trio it seemed would get up in a moment once the words sunk in.
"Slumber party?" Trio blinked, tilting her head before burrowing the pillow long enough to kiss Shiro's neck. And then she was up again, paying little mind to her mussed hair and forgetting her half-undressed state until the chill of early morning set in. "Damn it's cold," she muttered, grabbing her pants to step into and wrapping the shirt tighter around her.
Shiromaru instantly kicked his foot at Blue, then sat up, glaring muzzily. "No tickling," he admonished, only half awake, then clambered across the bed before grabbing his yukata. He hauled it on, then blinked at Blue. "Slumber party?"
Blue just grinned at them, chuckling softly before turning on his heel, not concerned with how cold it was (the sun had made him quite warm) and strolled back through the house in just his jeans, leading them to Keelan's 'room' and opening the door slowly, quietly, revlealing the sight inside with a grin.
Trio followed, peeking under Blue's arm. Her apparent shyness from the night before could be countered by curiosity, as she tucked herself half-against him to see what he was talking about. She paused for a moment, eyes shining. "That's so sweet," she whispered.
"Aww..." Shiro smiled softly, chuckling to himself. "Looks like they're happiest in a pile... Why don't we leave them there and let them sleep...?" He set his chin on Blue's shoulder and reached out to slide an arm around Trio's waist, standing behind both of them.
With a grin the angel backed up slowly, as not to step on demonic or human toes, before dropping his arm around Trio and tugging her into his side, his body heat a little warmer than most after his morning soak. Taking a few steps away from the room he kept his voice quiet just in case the little ones woke up. "Breakfast then?" he asked with a grin.
"Breakfast is good," Trio nodded, leaning against Blue comfortably and smiling back at Shiro.
"Shall we get started?" Shiro asked sleepily, smiling at the pair of them. "My stomach is going to start begging soon enough, and they'll wake up when they smell food."
Blue sat down fluidly at the table, letting his arm slip from around Trio, grinning as the sunlight from the windows hit him and his body resonated peacefully. Happily he closed his eyes, speaking a small 'mmm-hmm' to Shiro as he rested his chin in his hands, elbows resting on the table. He was a sucker for sun light early in the morning.
"Did you promise them anything special, Shiro?" Trio asked, already moving to rummage through the fridge.
Shiro nodded, picking out a couple apples. "Apple pancakes... I figured I'd do one of my really big breakfasts and indulge everyone. Pancakes, waffles, french toast, stuff everyone to the gills..."
After a bit Blue just sank down, almost purring as the sun beat on his bare skin, the top half of his body stretching out across the table, arms splayed happily as he was blissfully ignorant of the conversation around him.
Trio stared at Shiro for several long minutes before arching one gold eyebrow. "...You've discovered the limits of what I'm capable. Lemme know if I can pour cereal for anyone?"
"Cut the apples, love," Shiro directed with a grin, and kissed Trio's ear. "Small little cubes. Here's an apple slicer." He handed the gadget over to Trio, along with a knife, then got out the various ingredients. "Blue? Could you do me a favor and start the coffee?"
It was Blue's turn to not be a morning person. But with the combination of the sun and the word 'coffee' he was up on his feet immediately. "Of course," he said smoothly, grinning absently as he moved around the kitchen to start the communal coffee pot.
* * *
Etain was the first to wake up, and there wasn't a long transition between sleep and awake -- unlike her father. She just blinked her eyes a few times, then glanced around the room before carefully and slowly extricating herself from the bed, wings buzzing lightly.
Now, how had she gotten in here? ...Oh, yes, that was right. She peered at Annora and Keelan, then smiled happily. Keelan was warm, and it was better piling in with Keelan and Annora. "It's morning," she announced with that sleepy happiness she always had in the morning hours, and padded over to open the windows and let fresh air into the room.
Annora shifted, curling up on her side and snuggling against the slightly rough feel of horsehair. That wasn't right... her bed was soft. Eyes fluttered open, peering about her as she realized she was draped half-over Keelan's back, almost hugging him. She grinned then, shifting to hug him fully as she looked around for Etain. "Morning!~" she called to the girl, making no effort to soften her voice. Why would Keelan still be asleep, after all? There were going to be PANCAKES this morning!
Noises. Whicker-snort-sigh. He opened a gray eye. Ugh, sunlight. He closed it again. When he felt someone moving he cracked the eye again to see Annora smiling sleepily but happily. His keen ears picked up Etain moving around. When had they come in? He opened his eye with a yawn and stretched a bit. "Whaddyadoinhure?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes.
"Annora an' I wanted to sleep in here," Etain explained, and hopped up onto the windowsill, breathing in the sweet fresh air. When she looked back at the other two, she was visibly much more awake. "Papa's makin' breakfast. I can smell it."
Annora got up after another bit of cuddling, padding toward Etain and sniffing at the air. "Can't smell," she proclaimed with a frown.
At the idea of breakfast Keelan raised his head, nostrils flaring in a very horse-like gesture and grinned, suddenly awake, tail swishing happily. "Apples!" he proclaimed and scrambled to get out of the bed, getting tangled in the sheets for a moment before standing on all fours on the floor, stretching a bit to make sure he was actually on the floor and not the bed.
"Breakfast!" he said, looking at the other two expectantly. "Apples! Come on!"
"Papa's making your apple pancakes," Etain informed Annora cheerfully, then scrambled after Keelan.
Annora grinned, moving to slip one hand into Keelan's and the other into Etain's. "Keelan's pancakes," she informed Etain happily, bouncing just a little.
Keelan, grasping Annora's hand now, tried his hardest not to thunder through the house at a canter to get to the treats. By the time he got to the kitchen with the duet in tow he was leading them, but trying his hardest not to pull them. Big gray eyes darted around, looking for the apples he could smell in the air. "Breakfast? Apples?" he asked, all politeness gone with the scent of his favorite treat lingering in the air.
Shiromaru offered Keelan an apple slice with a grin, gold eyes dancing merrily. "Be patient, and you'll get plenty of apples. Why don't you children wash up and help set the table?" He had plastic, heavy-duty plates just for that purpose.
Etain dutifully ducked into the bathroom nearby, washing her face and her hands, then returned to haul the plates -- one by one -- out of the bottom cupboards, where they were kept so she could easily reach them.
Etain was used to Annora's version of washing up, and managed to drag her big sister out of the bathroom after only a few splashes, rather than letting the young siren play for a quarter hour or more. Once Annora was out of the bathroom, she was more than happy to help set up the table, digging out spoons and forks to carry after Etain.
Pushing the apple slice in his mouth, Keelan munched happily and a bit loudly until Blue mentioned that real centaurian gentleman ate with their mouthes closed. Trying to follow the ideals of a gentlman, Keelan finished eating the apple with his mouth closed, going to wash his hands once Annora was done playing in the sink.
Once he was clean he came back and wrinkled his nose, trying to figure out what he needed to get ... then realized it was glasses for milk and juice.
"Here," Blue said with a grin, handing the centaur down glasses, waiting for Keelan to place them on the table before coming back for more.
Once the table was set and Etain had scrambled into her chair, Shiromaru padded over with lots of trays full of different things -- pancakes, waffles, french toast, eggs... "Okay, everyone, dig in. No need to stand on ceremony around here."
Trio opted for eggs and waffles, reaching for them and planting some eggs on Annora's plate before offering her some of the breads. Annora dove for the pancakes, then paused, seeming to realize something. She eyed the apples for several long seconds before twisting to reach for the syrup.
Blue himself was like his brother WinK and could eat like a cow, and thus he did, taking at least one (if not three or four - Shiro had cooked so much!) of everything. Looking down at Keelan he saw the colt staring point-blank at the apple pancakes, gray eyes unblinking. With a laugh he pulled the plate over and loaded three of them onto the boy's plate.
Thinking for a moment Keelan himself took three sausages and snagged a regular apple, slipping it into his pocket - a tasty treat to hide for later.
Etain ate like a bird, poking at different bits and pieces but never eating much of anything. Shiromaru, on the other hand, could eat rather like WinK, and put away quite a bit. He had reasons for making so much food. "How is everything?"
Annora mumbled something unintelligible, her mouth crammed so full of pancakes that she resembled a squirrel more than a little girl.
Trio grinned. "It's delicious, as always," she assured him, eating comfortably but not needing nearly the amount the angel and demon seemed to.
Blue simply nodded, mouth full before reaching for his milk glass, taking a long swallow before shoveling what appeared to be a whole waffle into his mouth with no trouble what-so-ever.
Keelan on the other hand waited until he was done chewing and resisted the urge for more apple pancakes (he found if you rolled the sausage in the pancake and dipped it in syrup it tasted very good and had started doing it) and said, "Very good! Thank you!" before he shoved another bite into his mouth happily.
"Good to hear," Shiro offered, then went quiet as he worked on finishing up his own breakfast. When he was done, he smiled at the others, raising an eyebrow. "Can I con anyone into helping me with the dishes?"
This was a task Trio was very used to, and she nodded, grinning at him. "You cooked. Least we can do is help clean up, hmm?" she said pointedly, eyeing Annora.
Annora, however, remained oblivious.
Keelan finished his breakfast, chugging down his milk and giving the apple in his pocket one final check to make sure it was safe. "Dishes?" he asked, looking up at Blue and Shiro. He'd broken quite a few at home, not tall enough yet to stand at the counter comfortably.
"It's up to Shiro if you help with the dishes," Blue responded around a piece of bacon before he swallowed it, finally done. He turned to Shiro, waiting for a responce.
Shiromaru grinned, leaning back in his chair. "The dishes are plastic," he noted, pointing to the plate. "I don't think any of them are going to break unless you shoot them, so any of you can help."
"I'll carry things," Etain decided, then carefully pulled herself out of her chair.
"Water?" Annora asked, as she paused to take a long, deep drink of milk.
Trio laughed. "I think that means she and I are washing."
Blue looked down at Keelan and ruffled his hair. "You and I are on dry-duty!" he said, grinning.
With a smile Keelan backed away from the table (he never sat down, as centaurs are not in need of chairs), careful not to bump anything or anyone, and started helping Blue look for towels they could use to dry the dishes.
"Etain and I will clear the table and wash down the counters, then," Shiro decided, and started to help Etain clear off the kitchen table.
"You cooked," Trio said, arching an eyebrow. "Sit." She turned to Etain, kneeling. "Think you can manage to wipe the counters with a little help from me? I bet you're a big enough girl to do that." Rising, she glanced at Annora and ruffled the siren's hair. "Take all the plates to the sink, please, Annora."
"Okay!" Annora said, grabbing her own plate with two hands and running off.
Keelan, seeing Annora gather the plates, started filling water into one of the sinks, stopping up the bottom. He did happily notice he was tall enough just to reach everything thanks to his horsey-legs. He grabbed for some soap and unloaded a bunch into the running water, watching it sud for a moment before putting it back.
With a chuckle Blue found some towels, wetting one gently before offering it to Etain. "Think this'll work, Firefly?" he asked with a charming grin.
Etain smiled brilliantly up at Blue, then took the towel. "Yes, Boo," she agreed, then squealed happily as Shiro lifted her up so she could very industriously start wiping off the table. Over her head, Shiro shot Blue a loving smile and mouthed 'thank you.'
Trio grinned, moving to supervise the two kids at the sink. Annora, when she reached the sink and realized that Keelan was already blocking the way to the water, stopped, her lower lip sticking out.
"Water," she said plaintively, brows drawing together in hurt.
Shooting the demon back a quick smile, Blue blew him a kiss with a chuckle before turning back to help gather plates with Annora.
"Sorry, 'Nora," Keelan said a bit sheepishly. He stepped out of the way, watching to make sure he didn't knock anyone, or anything, over as he did so, and waited patiently for dishes to dry, watching the siren.
Once the table was wiped off, Shiro carried Etain over Trio, offering the sylph up. Etain reached up with a big smile, the wet towel still in her arms. "Up?" Etain asked plaintively. She wanted to wash the counters now!
Annora beamed at Keelan, then scrambled up onto a nearby stool until she could reach the sink. Hands plunged into the water with enough force to send the soapy liquid flying, but she didn't care, grabbing the first plastic plate and scrubbing with gleeful splashes.
Trio watched wryly for a moment, then turned to Shiro. "Where's your mop?"
When she was done scrubbing the plates Keelan rinsed them, careful not to splash as she was doing it well enough for the both of them, then dried them, setting them into a rack that Blue had pulled from somewhere.
Bringing the last of the plates over, Blue set them on the counter before eyeing the left-over food. "Do you want to keep all of this love? Maybe snacks for later?" he asked, tilting his head a bit.
Etain made a bit of a face, then wriggled straight out of Shiro's arms and flew the short distance to Trio, glomping onto the woman. Shiro just blinked at the sylph, then shook his head with a smile and pulled out the mop. "There's tupperware up in the cabinet next to you," he noted Blue-wards. "Put away whatever you think will keep well."
Trio laughed, twisting around until she had the sylph in her arms. "Hey there, beautiful girl," she crooned, giving Etain what she'd termed an 'eskimo kiss' - rubbing the tip of her nose lightly against Etain's. "Ready for the counters?"
Annora began to sing as she worked, the words to 'Down in the Meadow' coming slightly off time and off key... and a little garbled as she splashed and cleaned.
Within moments Blue had the tupperware out and was deciding could keep in the fridge for a few days. Everything else he ate happily, placing the empty plates in a neat pile waiting for Annora's attentions between happy bites.
Keelan wondered if Shiro had an extra shirt he could borrow. With as wet as he was getting he'd need it. Or a rather large towel, since being a male centaur didn't require him wearing clothes at all.
"Yes!" Etain cheerfully waved her towel, then bent down so she could start scrubbing at the counters.
Shiro, amused, set the mop aside, and finally sat down.
Trio held Etain, moving along the counters as the young girl cleaned them and saving the ones nearest the sink for last.
"You know," she said to Shiro, eyeing the splashing siren, "I'd be a lot more worried if you weren't a water demon..."
Keelan wisely moved the dry plates over, noticing the water pooling on the counter was starting to inch closer and closer to his towel-dried dishes. Glancing over out of the corner of his eye he trid to spot how many more were left.
Blue rolled up an apple pancake that wouldn't fit into the tupperware he was holding and bit off half, offering the other half to Shiro with a smile and wink.
"As it is, I can dry that pretty much instantly, but where's the fun in that?" Shiro took the apple pancake half from Blue with a grin, then eyed the splashing toddler again. "She's certainly enjoying herself."
"You water creatures are all alike," Trio accused, eyes light with amusement as she glanced at Etain. "Isn't that right, pretty girl?"
Annora finally finished, hesitating barely a moment before both hands plunged into dish-free water. The resultant splash soaked her head and upper body. She squealed with happiness.
With a grin, silently agreeing with Trio, he started to file the left overs away in the fridge where Etain, and possibly Keelan and Annora, could spot them if they got snackish in the next few days. Or if Shiro just felt like pigging out. Either or.
Keelan finished with the plates, stacking them neatly before pushing them even farther, getting himself half-soaked with Annora's sudden splashing. Looking down he decided it was a half-won situation: he was wet, but at least the plates were still dry.
Etain looked up at Trio and nodded, all serious. "Yes, they are," she agreed.
Grabbing the remote, Shiro turned on the cd player in the living room by pointing the remote towards a cone-shaped object -- obviously a signal bouncer -- and the sound of Ella Fitzgerald's 'If It Ain't Got That Swing' filled the two rooms and the nearby hallway. "We just like water," he informed Trio cheerfully.
"You're all insane," Trio informed them, laughing when a bit of soap caught one cheek.
"I'm not insane," Annora piped up then, sounding indignant. "I'm a silly girl!"
"Very silly," Keelan said with a smile, laying out the now-wet drying towel so it too could dry before walking over to Blue who was waiting with a larger towel to dry his nephew.
"I agree," Blue said, grinning at Annora. "You're a very silly girl." He rubbed at Keelan's hair a little before wrapping the boy in the towel. "I think you'll survive a little water," he said with a grin.
"You're definitely a silly princess," Shiro agreed, grinning broadly over at Annora. "But we're all silly here."
Etain held up her own towel, smiling up at Trio. "All wet," she offered, since the other towels were being laid out to dry. "C'n we dry it?"
"We certainly can," Trio promised, pressing a kiss to Etain's forehead.
Annora basked in the agreement, beaming happily.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2005 9:45 am
All three nereids were chattering away in the pools as Shiromaru watched, a flurry of three pairs of hands quickly signing, and two voices chiming in. Shiromaru sat near the pool, watching them in quiet amusement, his eyes dancing as he carefully braided his damp hair.
She wasn't quiet often, but sometimes, even Annora didn't make noise. She padded up behind Shiromaru, a puzzled frown on her face as she skirted around his chair and started to climb into his lap without even asking.
Shiro blinked as his lap was invaded, then laughed softly and wrapped his arms around Annora. "Hey there, princess. What's wrong?"
Annora peered up at him for a long moment, then curled up against his chest. "Did you an' mama an' Blue all sleep in your bed?" she asked slowly.
"Yes, sweetheart, we did," Shiro confirmed, stroking Annora's hair.
Annora frowned deeply at that, clearly thinking very hard about something.
Shiro tilted his head curiously, peering at her. "What is it?"
Annora turned, peering up at Shiro curiously. "Does that make Blue my daddy too?"
Startled, Shiromaru blinked at the toddler in his lap. "What do you... What's your definition of a daddy, princess?"
"Someone mama loves who takes care of me an' sleeps with mama," Annora said dutifully.
"Ohhh..." Shiromaru considered that, then started to smile, his eyes warming as he felt a part of him melt. "Well, then, I guess that makes me your daddy, but you might want to ask your mommy and Blue about whether he's your daddy too."
Annora looked a little more confused about that. "How come I can't ask you?" she finally asked.
Shiro chuckled softly. "Do you want to ask me?"
Annora nodded. "Do you want him to be my daddy?"
"Well... I love Blue and your mommy both very, very much," Shiro mused. "So if it were up to me, I think he'd make a good daddy, too."
Annora digested that. "But you'll still be my daddy, right?" she asked after a moment, peering up at him with wide eyes.
Shiro hugged her close, melting all the more. "I'll always be your daddy," he murmured. "Always, always. Love you, princess."
"Love you," Annora returned, cuddling against him. "Does that mean you an' Etain are gonna come live with us?"
"It miiiight mean you and your mommy stay here some nights, and Etain and I sleep at your house some nights," Shiro decided.
"Can Etain stay in my room?" Annora asked, closing her eyes.
Shiro couldn't help but laugh at that. "If the two of you decide that's what you want to do when we sleep over at your house, then sure."
"Okay!" Annora beamed up at him, squirming free of his lap.
"Where are you headed?" Shiro asked curiously, rising to follow.
"Wanna tell Etain you're coming over tonight!" Annora crowed, darting off.
Shiromaru blinked, then burst out laughing. Clearly, it was time to find Trio.
* * *
Trio followed the tiny girl around, watching as Etain darted after the beautiful butterflies that always seemed present in Shiro's gardens with a tender smile on her face.
Etain came to a dead stop, however, going perfectly still, as a big blue and black butterfly landed on her forehead. She turned, carefully, and looked up with wide eyes at Trio, pointing silently to the butterfly.
Trio grinned widely, watching the child in wonder. How could such a young girl possibly stay so still? And yet she was, and Trio's heart swelled with pride.
Carefully, oh-so-carefully, Etain reached up and the butterfly switched to her hand. She made her way slowly up to Trio, holding it up to the woman as a smile bloomed on her lips. "Lookit."
Trio stared, shaking her head slightly. "It likes you," she finally offered, her voice hushed.
Etain beamed, then held her hand up as the butterfly flew off. "Glowbugs do too," she confided. "An' dragonflies. An' moths. An' ladybugs."
Trio grinned, reaching out and stroking Etain's hair. "You're a very lucky girl, you know that?"
"Papa says it's 'cos 'like calls to like,' but I don't know exactly what that means," Etain whispered, then climbed shyly up onto Trio's lap, nestling there.
Trio combed her fingers through Etain's hair tenderly. "You know how you need lots of wind and air around, and how uncomfortable you get in really stuffy rooms?"
Etain wrinkled her nose. "Hate stuffy rooms. Hard to breathe. It makes me feel trapped!"
Trio nodded, continuing to pet Etain's hair. "Butterflies and glowbugs and all those other bugs need lots of air, too."
"Ohhh... so they wouldn't like it if they were stuck in a room, either?" Etain asked curiously.
Trio nodded. "You're both creatures of air," she explained, pressing a soft kiss to Etain's forehead.
"What about horses?" Etain asked after a moment. "They run really fast an' it's like flying..."
Trio chuckled. "I don't think it's quite the same thing, sweetheart. They need earth beneath them."
"Oh..." For a moment, the little sylph looked crestfallen. "I really like horses, though. Papa took me to ride them once."
"Yes," Shiro agreed as he joined the pair, "and it took me an hour to convince you to get down off the saddle."
Trio chuckled, lifting Etain's head up. "You know what pretty girl? It takes all sorts of creatures to live in this world. It'd be pretty boring if Annora and Keelan weren't around, wouldn't it?"
Etain nodded solemnly, silver eyes wide as she focused on Trio.
Shiro sat down on the ground next to Trio and Etain both, watching them. "Your mother's right," he murmured, with a decidedly playful glance back at Trio. "It'd be very boring if there was only one type of person around."
Trio's head jerked around fast enough it was a wonder she didn't get whiplash. "...What?" she whispered, staring at Shiro in shock.
"Weeeell," Shiro offered, starting to grin, "since Annora describes a daddy as someone who sleeps with her mommy and takes care of Annora and is a person her mommy loves, she's decided I'm her daddy, so that makes you Etain's mommy."
Etain beamed at that, then hugged Trio tightly. "Mama!" Well, that didn't exactly take long for her...
Trio's arms came up around Etain slowly, as she swallowed. The hug's fierceness was countered only by her knowledge that the girl was young and still somewhat delicate. But by the time the hug ended, she was blinking a little too quickly...
Leaning in, Shiro pressed a light kiss to Trio's cheek, smiling softly. "So what do you say, hmm? Is it okay?"
"You... really...?" Trio whispered, in wonder.
Etain snuggled into Trio, absolutely content.
"Of course," Shiro continued, amused, "Annora's decided that this means that Etain and I need to sleep at your house tonight."
On cue, Annora came running up, the words spilling out of her mouth so fast that only Shiro's prior translation made her clear at all. Trio chuckled as Annora pounced on Shiro's back, draping over it as her weight pushed him forward a bit.
"Not a problem," Trio whispered, arms wrapping tightly around Etain.
Oof went Shiro, as his back was pounced on. He grinned up at the girl, then, and chuckled softly. "Hello, princess."
Etain beamed up at Annora, reaching up to pat her sister's hand. "We're gonna stay at your house tonight," she offered cheerfully.
Annora nodded hard enough to crack her chin on Shiro's head before scrambling off of him to crawl ungracefully up on Trio's lap, hugging Etain tightly. Trio winced, hand reaching out to stroke the spot where Annora had hit Shiro without noticing.
"It's okay," Shiro murmured, even though he leaned into the touch. "I have a hard head, you know."
Contentedly, Etain cuddled with Annora, starting to happily babble to her all about the butterflies the sylph had been chasing, including the one that had landed on her.
"Show, show!" Annora demanded, tugging Etain off Trio's lap and dragging her off. Trio watched them go, then turned to Shiro, a watery smile on her face.
Etain willingly pattered after Annora, pointing out all of the butterflies. Shiromaru, after a moment of quiet laughter, drew Trio close to him, stealing a surreptitious kiss. "Are you okay?"
"Just... floored," Trio admitted, nestling against Shiro. "You keep doing that to me."
"I consider it a talent," Shiro offered, stroking Trio's hair gently.
Trio closed her eyes, relaxing into Shiro. "I didn't expect anything like THIS, though."
Shiromaru pressed a kiss to Trio's hair, holding her close. "Anything like what, love?"
"...'Mama'."
"You've been practically her mother for a while now," Shiro noted, quietly.
"Yeah, but...," Trio tried weakly.
"But...?"
"...I don't want to step on your toes," Trio whispered.
"As far as I'm concerned," Shiro murmured, "you're her mother. With all the rights, responsibilities and headaches that implies."
Trio gave a sudden soft, choked chuckle.
Shiromaru set his chin gently down on top of Trio's head. "You might," he added after a moment, "want to clarify whether Annora's supposed to think of Blue as a daddy."
Trio froze, looking up at Shiro. "W-what?"
"I told her she should ask you and Blue about that one," Shiro added.
"How did THAT come up?" Trio asked. "I mean, you I understand. But Blue...?"
Shiro chuckled. "Because we all slept in the same bed last night."
"...Clearly, we have to refine her criteria," Trio muttered, burying her face against Shiro's neck.
"Is he so bad?" Shiro asked curiously, stroking Trio's hair again.
"No," Trio said, keeping her face tucked away. "But... I don't know him like I know you. I need time to get used to him."
"No hurry, no worry, and no need to push anything," Shiro whispered, smiling gently. "Take the time. He'll take the time to get to know you in return."
Trio nodded. "...So Annora's decided you're Daddy, hmm?"
Shiro grinned, nodding. "Apparently so."
Trio smiled up at him. "Happy?"
"Very much so," Shiro confirmed, beaming at her.
Trio cupped his cheek, then drew him down for a soft kiss. "You're family for us. Always."
Shiromaru returned the kiss contentedly, then suddenly pulled Trio tightly to him, hugging her close as if afraid to let go. "Thank you," he whispered. "That means so much to me..."
Trio squeaked, hugging him back tightly after a moment's startlement. "You okay?" she whispered.
"I'll be okay." Shiro nuzzled at her, beaming against her neck. "I just suddenly have everything I've always wanted."
Trio shifted back, moving to cup his chin and draw his face up. "What do you mean?"
"I have you, I have Blue, I have children, I have a family, I have people who love me and whom I love -- life doesn't really get much better than this, does it?"
Trio chuckled softly, searching his eyes before kissing him softly. "It really doesn't. We're very lucky, aren't we?"
Shiromaru beamed, then pressed a kiss to Trio's lips in return. "We really are."
"You spoil me, you know," Trio noted, eyes closing comfortably.
"Yes," Shiro confirmed cheerfully. "And I love every moment of it."
"I thought I was happy before Gaia, you know? When I was with my fathers and I knew they loved me," Trio said quietly.
Shiro listened quietly, looking up at Trio. Trio didn't often talk about her past after all...
She curled up against his chest. "I'm beginning to realize I didn't even understand how happy I could be. Everyone here completes my life. I need you all, and I couldn't understand that until I got here."
"I love you," Shiromaru murmured, perfectly content right where he was. "I'm so glad you're happy."
"Shiro?" Trio asked softly, chewing her lower lip. She'd had the idea in her head for a while now, but now, as always, she hesitated to offer it up.
Shiro blinked up at Trio curiously, head tilted. "What is it?"
"I've been noticing... I love our homes, but they seem a little crowded to raise a kid in... especially mine. Annora's bringing that home to me."
"Yes... they're very crowded," Shiro agreed, thoughtfully.
"And... I was thinking about what we talked about a while ago... about kids?" she added softly.
Shiromaru nodded, waiting patiently.
"I don't want to lose anyone, but... I was thinking that maybe if we built a house just for ourselves when the girls are older... so that they could understand? And keep it on our lands, close by the other houses, of course."
"Between the main houses?" Shiro asked, unable to hide the thrill that this gave him. Their own house, together?
She nodded, completely missing his reaction. "If that's okay, I mean. I don't want you to give anything up," she hastened to add.
"Oh, right, because I'd be giving up so much to move in with you in a new place," Shiro drawled, grinning impishly. "How could it not be okay?"
"What about everyone else?" Trio asked, startled by the drawl.
"They'll be just fine. Hell, Hun Min likes managing the house as it is, he'll be able to keep things running just fine when I'm not right there in it."
"So... you like the idea?" Trio asked softly, with a shy smile.
Shiro nodded, beaming at Trio. "Of course I do."
She sagged in relief, tucking herself against him. "Do you know how much I love you?"
The demon blushed darkly, ducking his head. "I... well... thank you..."
Trio chuckled, lifting his head back until she could see his eyes. "You're my heart."
Shiromaru held tight to Trio, burrowing his face against her hair.
Trio closed her eyes, just basking in his warmth.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2005 9:46 am
Trio had called Shiro over four hours before, and had run across the street after the call to drop Annora in his lap. She hadn't offered explanation of any type, simply kissing his cheek and kneeling to hug Annora tightly before darting off. Annora might've been put off by this turn of events had it not meant that she was now over at 'daddy's' house - a place that held two things she absolutely LOVED... So she'd grabbed Etain and darted off to the wading pool she'd practically claimed as her own, giggling the whole while.
Shiro blinked at the kiss and the command, a bit dazed by the suddenness of it all, but gave up on trying to puzzle it out and just followed after the girls once Trio was gone. Etain willingly was letting Annora haul her along, though the sylph was being a bit prissy about keeping her wings out of the water.
Annora certainly didn't seem to care what parts of Etain were in the water, as long as she herself was drenched. She wasn't in a particularly splashy mood, instead preferring to suggest they play pretend. Annora wanted to stay in the water, being a Nereid like Quellious.
"Annora..." Etain shifted about, sitting on the edge of the pool so her legs could rest in the water. That was good, she liked that. "What am I s'posed to be? If you're a ne... a ner... a neremaid, then what am I?"
Annora glanced up, peering at Etain thoughtfully before grinning. "You c'n be Envy!" she proclaimed, swimming over to sit beside Etain in the water.
Etain blinked, rather confused at the idea. "But I don't know Envy... Who's Envy?"
"Envy's my uncle," Annora said patiently, holding her hand up to let the drips make rings. "He likes the nereids a whole bunch, so he stays with them all the time."
"But if Envy's your uncle then he's my uncle too," Etain said thoughtfully -- then added, a few moments later, rather confusedly, "Isn't he?"
"I think so," Annora said slowly, her brows drawn together in a deep frown. "Daddy?" she finally called, twisting to look at Shiro.
"Huh?" Shiromaru blinked at the girls, then belatedly clued into the discussion and grined. "Oh, Envy. Envy's a friend of mine and of your mommy's, so it does sort of make him your uncle. I'll have to take you to meet him and Youko soon."
"Let's go now!" Annora said, jumping out of the pool and heading off to get ready to go.
Shiro shook his head, rising to rest a hand on Annora's shoulder. "Not right now, sweetie. We haven't called them, plus your mommy'll be home probably fairly soon. Let's wait for her here."
"Oh," Annora said, drooping. Looking very upset, she curled up on his lap, leaning against his chest. "I haveta wait?"
"Yes, princess," Shiro confirmed, settling back down and holding her close. "I'm sorry. But I promise I'll talk to them soon and see if we can set up a visit."
"Okay," Annora said, snuggling Shiro even as she turned to tell Etain seriously, "Daddy says we haveta wait." She lingered in Shiro's lap a moment longer before darting back to the water, splashing in and forgetting her disappointment.
Etain stood up as Annora darted back into the water, then clambered up into Shiromaru's lap, snuggling there and lightly kicking her feet. As she watched Annora, she tugged on Shiro's sleeve, and the demon leaned in to listen to her whispered comment before grinning. Moments later, he'd gestured towards the wading pool, and a figure, of Annora's height and made out of water, rose up and started waving at her.
That was all it took to completely distract Annora from the idea of visiting Envy and the Nereids, and she played with the figure and splashed it for as long as Shiro was able to keep it around.
By the time Trio made it back, Shiro was still happily distracting Annora, a sleepy Etain dozing on his lap as he watched Annora in the pool.
The first sound he heard as Trio approached was an odd sounding little purr from behind him, with Trio's much-muted voice coming a breath later. "I'm home..."
Shiro blinked and looked up curiously, then his eyes widened as he peered up at Trio. "Love? Who is that...?" Etain lifted her head and blinked sleepily up at her mother, then mumbled something incoherent and went right back to sleep.
Trio swallowed, shifting the tiny bundled form in her arms a bit as she moved closer. Although she seemed nervous, it wasn't difficult to see the happiness in her eyes as well. "This is Makana," she said softly, curling up beside Shiro so that he could properly see the little Abyssinian beauty. "Karma called me earlier today asking if I was still willing to look after one of the children she's been helping."
Leaning in, Shiro peered at the infant, a slow smile spreading across his lips. "Makana," he breathed, then reached up to stroke one smooth, soft cheek. "She's beautiful, Trio."
Makana's ear flicked at the touch, one eye slowly slitting open to peer at Shiro before the infant let out a soft breath and went back to sleep, the purring deepening a bit. Trio smiled, relaxing at the look on Shiro's face. "I fell in love when I saw her," she admitted, not mentioning the second thoughts she'd had on the way home. It hadn't been easy to quiet fears of how a water demon might react to a small cat, but this... this drove away every tiny flutter of those thoughts.
It helped, likely, that Shiromaru absolutely adored cats. "Should we call Annora over?" he asked softly, grinning up at Trio. "Let her meet her new sister?"
The soft smile on Trio's face spread to a full grin, and she nodded, lifting her head to call for Annora before pausing, not having quite spoken yet. "Would you?" she murmured. "I don't want to disturb Makana. It's been a big day for her..."
Shiro carefully pulled himself to his feet, noting with amusement that Etain didn't even stir, and padded over to Annora. "Annora, hon, we have someone we want you to meet. Come join us."
Annora blinked, slightly disappointed that her new water friend faded back into the pool and looking up in surprise at the sylph sleeping against Shiro. "Etain's asleep?" she asked, moving to follow Shiromaru.
"She fell asleep a couple hours ago. She was up a bit later than usual last night and I think it tired her out." Shiro sank back down next to Trio, absently rocking Etain a little. "Trio?" he offered softly, once Annora had joined them.
Annora blinked at the bundle in her mother's arms, frowning a little and pressing close to Shiro, careful not to dislodge Etain. "Who's that?" she asked solemnly.
"This is Makana, sweetie," she said softly, smiling gently at Annora. The tiny abyssinian girl, disturbed by the noise of people talking, slowly opened both eyes, a tiny mewl answering Trio's words. "She's going to be part of our family." And with that said, the blonde held her breath, waiting for Annora's pronouncement.
"Three beautiful little girls," Shiro added, cheerfully. "It'll be lots of fun. You and Etain can teach her all the cool things you know!"
"Cool things?" Annora repeated dutifully, peering thoughtfully on the tiny cat girl. "You like?" she added, turning to look at Shiro.
Shiro nodded, reaching up to stroke Annora's hair gently. "Yes. I like all three of you just the same. I'm really excited to have her here."
Trio shot Shiro a grateful look, lifting one hand to stroke the soft fur of Makana's cheek. "She's going to need a big sister to show her around," she told Annora quietly, when Makana mewled again. "What do you think, Annora? You ready to be a big sister again?"
Annora nodded solemnly, eyes watching Makana warily. "Etain too?"
"Etain too," Shiro agreed, smiling warmly up at Annora. "You'll be big sister to both of them. Etain'll still be your little sister."
At the repeated mention of her name, Etain looked up again blearily, then peered at Makana. "Kitty," she announced, not quite making the mental leap to 'infant' in her grogginess. "Can we keep it?"
Trio couldn't help her laugh, the sudden sound startling Makana. Two deep gold eyes widened, turning to Trio before looking carefully at all the others. A clearly plaintive tone sounded as Makana finally began to fight the swaddling, squirming to get her arms free. When one was free, she tucked a finger in her mouth, staring up at them as she settled back in, eyes drooping once more.
"We can keep her, sweetheart," Trio nodded, shifting Makana against her chest. "She's your new sister, and she's very tired, like you are."
Etain looked hard at Makana again before brightening visibly. "Baby kitty! She's pretty..." She beamed up at Trio before nuzzling in closer against Shiro, her head on his shoulder. Mutely, Shiro held his free arm up to Annora, inviting her to settle on his lap as well.
Annora crawled onto his lap, not quite sure how she felt about this turn of events. It was one thing to share Shiro and Trio with Etain, but with someone completely new? Possessive arms curled around Shiro's chest, and Annora shifted to turn away, pouting slightly. It took a moment before her hand curled around one of Etain's, holding it as she held Shiromaru.
"You will always be my princess," Shiro whispered to Annora, hugging her gently. Etain willingly took Annora's hand, not completely comprehending why her big sister seemed to be upset. They had a kitty-baby now! What was so wrong with that?
Annora nestled closer, relaxing a little at Shiro's words.
"Looks like things are gonna be interesting for you, pretty girl," Trio murmured to Makana, shifting her until she was upright against Trio's shoulder, one hand stroking over the soft fur of her head.
Shiro grinned up at Trio, his eyes sparkling mischievously. "She's a member of our family now, love," he reminded Trio gently. "Life with us is never, ever boring."
Trio grinned back happily. "I wouldn't trade it... or any of you... for ANYTHING," she informed him, rubbing her cheek against the back of one of Makana's ears before getting to her feet. "Shall we head inside? Looks like we've got three little girls who need naps."
"A'ready napped," Etain grumbled, then rubbed her cheek against Shiro's shoulder before going right back to sleep.
Laughing softly, Shiromaru carefully stood up, holding on to both Annora and Etain as he carried the toddlers inside.
Trio followed with Makana, her heart swelling. She knew she'd have to deal with Annora later... but for now, it felt wonderful to have all four of them around.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2005 9:47 am
"Sit there," Trio directed, pointing at the couch nearby. Annora hesitated, then squirmed into the seat, her face almost blank with concentration. She'd chosen a day when she and Annora were staying home, when the others were all busy with various tasks for getting ready for the holidays. As much as her little siren girl might like an audience, this was a first that could be done without one. "Okay, hold out your arms."
Trio sat down beside her, very carefully transferring the bundle she carried to Annora's arms. Annora's eyes widened as Makana kicked a bit, mewling pitifully before settling once more. "She little," she informed her mother softly, squirming a bit without ever taking her eyes off the small cat. As the bundle squirmed in turn, Annora yelped a little and squeezed tight enough to make Makana whine.
"Not so tight," Trio said, sitting down beside Annora and reaching to loosen the girl's arms. "You have to be gentle with your little sister."
"Sister?" Annora asked dubiously, eyeing Makana. This certainly didn't LOOK like Etain!
"That's right," Trio smiled, reaching up to stroke Makana's soft fur while watching the two carefully. "Sister. She's going to be your sister just like I'm your mommy. And right now, she's really small and fragile, so she's going to need all the help she can get."
"Daddy help, too?" Annora asked, eyes narrowing carefully at Trio. Nonetheless, she shifted her arms, blinking and grinning when Makana's body began rumbling with a softly contented purr.
"Daddy's gonna help, too, yes," Trio agreed. "So is Etain. Both of you are big sisters, right?"
It didn't take long for that answer to come. "Right!"
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2005 8:53 am
COMPILED FOURTH WALL SHOP RP
(Participants: Trio Maxwell-Chang, Makana, Annora Lyris, Aki Ana, Saara, Andraste CaerbHall, Jacosa, Youkochylde, Kaeru,
Shiromaru, Etain, Syrcaid, Taylor, lilwerewolfgirl, Aurora, TerryMouse, Melody, Wasabineko, Arun)
((Participant List Key: Black = Gaian, Blue = Fourth Wall kid, Red = Changeling, Green = Other))
Trio cupped one hand under the sling-cradle attached to her front, the other hand holding Annora's as she walked along. After her decision that morning, she'd gotten everyone dealt with for the day, then dressed up Annora in a cute little sweater/coveralls set she loved. Annora picked at it, not liking to wear quite so much non-swimming clothing, but didn't protest too much. Makana was settled into a long-sleeved, footed outfit that had been specially adapted for her tail. Trio swaddled her up as much as possible, knowing already that the pretty little girl hated having her arms wrapped, and tucked her into the sling before heading off. She wanted to stop by Karma's office. With luck, some of the other parents might be around, and she could get to know a few of the other kids to come through the rift Karma had told her about.
She led Annora up to the building, both of them startling a bit as Makana mewled softly. "What is it, sweetie?" Trio asked the cat-girl, knowing she'd get no response. When Makana only reached out, batting playfully at one of Trio's braids, the girl laughed and looked around. "Hello?"
"HELLO!" came a much louder echo, Annora beaming as she imitated her mom.
Hurrying after the figure that disappeared into the doorway, Aki barely caught the door before it drifted shut. Saara balanced easily around her shoulders...draped across her guardian's neck like a sugar glider stole. The girl wore her own little shawl, tickling Aki's tapered ear idly with the end of it as they slipped inside.
Backpedaling as she came face to back with Trio, Aki tried to catch her breath and smiled. "Ooh, hi! I'm glad someone is here...it was so empty when I came by earlier!"
She didn't mean to be a chatterbox, it was simply a nervous reflex. Edging away from the door, trying to untangle Saara from her perch, Aki tried to catch a glimpse of the stranger's face.
"Do you mind if we...ow. Saara, ow? Ow!"
Leaning to the side as Saara tried to remove Aki's long earring from the weave of her shawl, the young sugar glider grinned and paused to pat Aki's cheek gently. She made a tiny reassuring noise, one that totally failed to help lessen Aki's discomfort, and swished her tail idly.
Trio winced at the sight, nodding sympathetically. "Y'know, there's a reason I don't wear those things," she said, glancing down at Makana, who had perked at the sound of new voices. Two gold eyes peered out from the sling as well as Makana could manage, a soft, trilling mew echoing Trio's words. "Can I help somehow?" the blonde asked, moving closer.
Annora ducked behind Trio's leg, peering out at the two newcomers curiously. Her mama had told her that perhaps Shiro would bring Etain over later, but this most definitely wasn't either Shiro or Etain, and Annora's curiosity warred with her sudden inexplicable shy streak. For someone who normally liked to be the center of attention, she was avoiding it awfully well!
Trying her best to smile up at the woman, Aki finally gave up and pulled the earring from her ear entirely. "I'm fine, just a bit tangled. I'd given up on them for a while as well, but it seems I misjudged." She held Saara at arm's length, the extra skin along the glider's sides bunching, and shook her head.
Saara simply grinned, holding her shawl and a new earring proudly. Her hair was up in a pony tail, as usual, and bounced as she squirmed. "Down? Up?" Anywhere but hanging!
Obliging her daughter, Aki tossed her into the air with a slight arc...sighing in relief as the young glider got herself straightened out and sailed for a cushioned seat. Turning back to Trio, rubbing her sore ear, she offered her free hand. "I'm Aki, and that's Saara! You-....ooohh...look at you! Yes, hi! Oooh, you're both so cute!"
Almost instantly, her attention drifted from introductions to the two little ones around Trio. The babe in her arms was lovely, with large delicate ears and wide golden eyes. The girl against her legs was just as striking, though obviously a bit shy.
Dropping a bit lower, keeping her distance respectfully, Aki tilted her head at the younglings. "Ooh, did you come to play? I'm sure Saara could show you where the toys are!"
From her new perch atop the back of the chair, Saara nooded happily...showing bright teeth as she smiled.
Annora brightened immediately, slipping from behind Trio's leg at the praise. "I'm Annora," she said, sounding out each syllable carefully and proudly. A second later, the other words sank in, and indigo eyes brightened further. "Toys?"
Trio chuckled, shifting Makana in her arms and watching the pretty little sugar glider curiously. So they weren't all cats? Karma had mentioned something about that, but seeing it for herself brought everything home. And she was suddenly reminded of Youko's cute little frogboy she'd met on Halloween. "Go play, sweetie," she encouraged, watching as Annora darted off toward Saara eagerly. If there was one thing that could break through the very rare shy streaks, it was being the center of attention.
"I'm Trio," the blonde finally offered, holding out her free hand. "And this is Makana. It's nice to meet you, Aki."
Saara nearly leaped out of her seat with excitement as the azure youngling darted towards her, pointing with one hand to the bin where a few of the toys were kept. Aki's earring hung forgotten from the edge of her tiny shawl, swaying as she bounced. "Toy! Nanara, toy!" Her words tended to run together when she was excited, but hopefully the girl understood!
Aki edged a little closer to shake Trio's hand gently, peeking down at Makana. Lifting her eyes for a moment to catch the other woman's gaze, she nodded with pure adoration. "She's gorgeous." Her voice was soft, meant only for Trio and the babe. Removing her other earring, since its mate was missing anyway. Aki dangled it within reach of the girl's little paws.
"How long...has she been with you?"
Annora giggled, running over to the bin and digging out two toys at random. She brought them back toward Saara, but instead of keeping them for herself, she dumped them on the couch just in front of Saara, then ran off to get more.
Busy with Aki and Makana, Trio didn't notice what her little siren was doing. "Not very long. A little over a week, really. Annora's still getting used to her." Blue eyes glanced over at the sugar glider, and Trio choked as she noticed the 'offerings'. "How about yours?"
Makana didn't bother with whatever the adults were talking about. It made little sense, and besides, there was something SHINY dangling in front of her. Two little paws slipped free of the sling to bat and toy with the earring, until a single claw got hooked on it. She paused then, staring in confusion.
Saara hopped down a level, onto the main cushions of the couch, and watched in wonder as more and more toys piled up before her. This was great...what a nice friend! Flopping down into a crouch, tail waving as she waited for Annora to return, Saara leaped and tackled the next toy to be set down. "Gottit! Nanara, geddit!"
Peering up for a moment as Saara squeaked, Aki suddenly felt a tug on the earring. Lowering it carefully towards Makana so the babe wouldn't strain her claw, Aki kept a good hold on the other end in case the babe decided it was meant to go in her mouth.
"Saara's been with me for months, now...she's growing too quickly! Be sure to take a few pictures of kitten Makana, in case she shares the same trait!" Smiling up at Trio with bright eyes, Aki laughed quietly and set to work untangling Makana from the earring as gently as she could.
"May I ask what brings you by today? Just looking for some playtime, like Saara?"
Annora beamed at Saara, imitating the glider and giggling. This was fun! Etain would love Saara, Annora decided as she pounced random toys, always pausing to look up at Saara curiously.
Trio held Makana still, watching over the two as Aki untangled Makana. When the earring was free, she fished in one of her pockets, coming up with a small stuffed mouse - a cat toy, more likely than not - and handed it to Makana. The small girl's eyes lit up, and a moment later, she was gnawing on the mouse's 'tail'.
"More or less, yeah. I was hoping maybe to meet some of the other parents. I figured it couldn't hurt to have some advice from people who've already been going through all this, right?"
A blank black nose was poking through a small slit between the door and it's frame and sniffed curiously. People in there, definately. One dark eye followed the nose's way and peered through the slid. Yes, yes, people in there.
"Gooooooo !" A squealing voice announced out of sudden as a small otter with brown fur and darker hair hit the door with his body, pushed it open by doing so and toddled into the room. His tail was wiggling slightly as a broad smile was showing on his face. People !
"Jac ! What are you doing ? Come back. Didn't I tell you NOT to...." Andraste was just about to yell hardly at the little boy as she entered the building and was forced to stop as she noticed the other parents and their children. "Err...just don't do it again."
"Well, the first thing I've learned is that sometimes...they do, or EAT....weird things." Wincing as she remembered the ants stuck in the honey, and Saara's absolute delight, Aki shuddered. "It doesn't seem to hurt her, so I let her pick her own meals. Sometimes I'll set out a variety of plates and watch what she naturally seems to go for. It's not a bad method!"
Tucking the earring away into her pocket, Aki giggled as Makana nibbled on the mouse. She was obviously taken with the young kitten, and tried to keep herself from petting. These children, despite their cute appearances, deserved the same respect as any child!
As the door opened with a squeal, both Aki and Saara turned to watch. Saara was trying to wrap herself around Annora's arm playfully, and froze as the newcomer entered the room. Nice fur, gorgeous eyes, and what a cute gait! Saara ducked, finding herself shy for the first time in her young life, and peered over the edge of Annora's arm meekly.
What an adorable baby!
Annora's fins were easily flattened against her arm, and she snuggled Saara happily, liking this new game. It was fast becoming obvious that she was not a stand-offish child. Piling a few stuffed toys around them, she looked up to watch the newcomer, head tilting. Now that she had a friend here, shyness was the last thing on her mind. "Hi!"
Trio nodded, her attention diverted from Aki to Andraste curiously. "Hello?" she called, just in time to have her own greeting drowned out by her daughter's. Makana was oblivious, her wide eyes watching Aki still as she chewed the mouse's tail.
Great Andraste. Well done. Gave a nice first impression again.
The mother sighed and tried to smile slightly, although she couldn't hide her embarrassment. "Greetings." She said as she tucked one of her hands into her trousers' pockets. "I'm Andraste and this is..."
"COSA !" The little otter screamed and quickly moved towards the other children. Oh that was great, he didn't knew them. How would they taste ? Good, bad, fish ? Who knew ?
"Joo haf dat ?" Quickly he pointed at all the toys and grinned. He liked opening toys and then pushing them over the floor looking which one would be the first one to be destroyed completely. It was great, but usually he wasn't allowed to do it anymore, because Andraste had locked all the toys.
So he tried to kill the couch, but actually couch didn't seem to like to be treated like this.
The children looked nice though. One looked even like a fish. She should be tasted first, Jacosa decided in his young excited mind and grinned.
Saara was still peering shyly, finally giving in to her playful urge to flee. Scampering up closer to Annora's face, she planted a slightly wet nosed kiss on the girl's cheek and dove for the other toy box...vanishing inside with a flurry of dolls and plastic trucks.
Smiling, Aki nodded to the newcomers and excused herself from Trio and Makana. "I'm going to make sure she's okay. Catch you in a moment!" Strolling across the room, careful of little ones underfoot, Aki settled down on her knees and began to gently dig. Saara was here somewhere, she couldn't hide forever!
Annora beamed at the kiss, turning to peer at 'Cosa' delightedly. "I'm Annora," she announced, ignoring his question in favor of the answer she knew by rote. Even so, she pushed over some of the toys, humming quietly to herself as she watched to see which the otter would take.
Trio nodded to Aki in sympathy before turning her attention to Andraste. "Hi," she offered, holding out a hand as the other bounced Makana a little. A quietly warning murr stopped that very quickly, though. "I'm Trio, and this is Makana. It's nice to meet you," she introduced, with a warm smile. "And the girl over there is Annora," she added, with the sneaking suspicion she'd be saying that a LOT over the next little while. "How do you do?"
"An ora." The otter misspronounced the name, but still he smiled broadly at the girl. Now she even offered him toys, awesome. Just quickly he glanced at the fluffy one who seemed to have gone into a box far away before turning his attention back to the blue girl. "Tis ball."
Jacosa quickly decided to pick a rainbow coloured ball and put it into his mouth to taste it. Somehow it just tasted like dust, but he had already tasted a lot of dust things and this wasn't the worst.
Gladly Andraste didn't look and concentrated on Trio. "Nice to meet you too. I'm fine...wait...that's a lie. I'm not. Since Jacosa has grown into a toddler I'm not able to cope with him anymore. Alright, I know mothers aren't supposed to say this to new acquaintances, but you don't know what he destroyed within the last 24 hours." The woman blinked as she noticed how fast and how determined she had spoken. "And...how are you and the little, peacefully looking baby one ?"
"Ty, ty !" Jacosa babbled instead and waved with the ball so An ora was able to get it and taste it too. Perhaps she liked dust ?
Trio stared at Jacosa curiously for several seconds, then eyed the ball dubiously. That wasn't food! "It good?" she asked, tilting her head to one side and reaching out to poke the ball.
Trio blinked a couple of times, startled by the sudden rant from Andraste. Casting about for something to say that wasn't trite or vague, she finally offered up, "He sounds rambunctious." Trite. Another try gave her, "What did you do about it?" There, that was better. At least that gave Andraste the option to vent a little.
"Vewy." Jacosa stated and moved up to his new friend offering the ball to her. She should try, really. Perhaps she liked it, if not, he'd try to give her something else. Somehow his tongue felt strange though...dusty...somehow...
He quickly poked it out to stroke it, but it didn't make it better somehow. "Aw aw..."
Andraste sighed. "Well you know, he's curious. He doesn't mean it badly ( at least I hope so ). He has this....exploring thing going on and babbles a LOT." She scratched her head before continuing. "But actually, I like him like that, because I don't want a child that is just boring. So I'm a bit confused, a bit stressed..yeah. That's it. Did I mention that Makana really looks beautiful ?"
She smiled slightly as her ears suddenly heard a very familiar "aw aw" and she definately knew what that meant. "Jac, what happened ?" Andraste quickled knelt down beside the otter who poked out his tongue trying to get rid of the fuzzy stuff.
"I'll be back in a minute, I apologize. Come on Jacosa, we get into the bathroom and clean this up and then you can continue playing." Jacosa felt how he was lifted up and waved at his friends who seemed smaller now. "Tub !" He squealed as they disappeared inside the bathroom.
That reaction sounded all too familiar. Trio shot a look at Annora, who grinned up at her happily, then moved to sit on the couch, carefully lifting Makana out of the sling and settling the feline in her lap. "There," she cooed at the cat. "How's that feel? Better?"
Annora decided quickly that Trio's cooing over Makana was boring compared with the toys she could play with, and she opted to return to the pile, poking the ball Jacosa had been tasting before reaching out to get a set of blocks. Those would do quite nicely.
"Kaeru, come DOWN!" Youko's voice came from outside, where he'd been trying to make it actually INTO the shop, before Kaeru had taken off and gotten himself up a tree. WAY up a tree. The boy looked down at him with a grin, clinging to the branch with all four limbs.
"Fun up here!"
Youko's ears flattened as he glared up the tree. "Better start having fun down HERE, or Santa's gonna hear about this."
That did it. Youko was regretting that this threat didn't work on Raven and Omi anymore. For now, however, Kaeru was in thrall of Christmas presents and wasn't going to jeopardize HIS share for anything.
What Youko hadn't been expecting, however, was the boy launching himself out of the tree. He was sure his scream was heard for miles... before he saw Kaeru bunch up his arms and legs and spread his fingers and toes WIDE.
The webbed skin caught the air, sending the frog boy gliding towards the shop with a whoop of joy.
"I'm going to be completely grey before my time," Youko whimpered, following the 'flying' frog and making it to the shop door just in time to catch him.
"FUN!" Kaeru crowed, clapping his hands and moving to scramble down to the ground. He didn't give it another thought as he pushed the door open and toddled inside.
Now there were familiar faces! Trio grinned widely, waving from where she sat on the couch, but any greeting she might've made would pall compared to the gleeful shout from Annora as the girl scrambled toward them... only to ignore Kaeru completely in favor of bouncing to a stop before Youko. "HI~" she sang out, leaning in to hug him.
Trio laughed, eyes warm as she watched the hug, then waved to Youko. "Hey there!" Ah yes... so that cute little frogboy WAS from here. That would help considerably.
Youko looked a bit bedraggled and smiled down to Annora, scooping her up. "Hey there, beautiful," he said, leaning in and bumping his nose against hers before turning to Trio. "And hello to you too!"
Kaeru was ignoring 'father', girl and woman in favour of the toys that were strewn about, pouncing on the nearest one and starting to 'vroom' it across the floor.
It probably would have been more appropriate if it hadn't been a cow.
Youko moved to the couch, dropping to sit with Trio, Annora held in his lap as he looked to Kaeru. "How are you doing, Trio?" he asked, then caught sight... erm... sound of a kitten in her arms. "What's that?" he asked, peering towards the moving blanket.
Annora squirmed until Youko put her back down, then turned to regard Kaeru warily for a moment before moving settle nearby, returning to her blocks and building up a small tower with them.
"This is Makana," Trio said, ignoring the 'what' in favor of 'who'. "She's still getting used to me." If anyone would understand that comment, it'd be Youko, who was just as notorious for housing 'strays' as she was. "Would you like to hold her?" Just as she spoke, Makana wobbled a bit, putting out a tiny paw and catching her claws on Trio's shirt.
The door opened, the door closed, and suddenly Trio had a sylph attached to her leg and holding on tightly. Papa had said they were going somewhere to see Mama and Annora, but Papa hadn't said other people would be there!
"Trio," Shiro called as he joined the group at a bit of a slower pace, "you seem to have developed a limpet." Once he reached Trio's side, he grinned up at Youko. "I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"
"Daddy!" Annora crowed, abandoning the blocks to dart to Shiromaru, throwing herself bodily against the water demon. "Daddy, look," she added a moment later, tugging on his hand to get his attention away from the boring adults and over to her blocks.
Trio grinned at being accosted, peering around Makana to look at Etain with a grin. "Hey there, sweetie. Wanna come sit with us? Or would you rather go play with Annora and Kaeru?" she added, nodding to the two kids.
Daddy... mama... Youko just grinned, both ears perking STRAIGHT up as he looked between Trio and Shiro. Granted, he'd heard about this before, but it was good to see it in action. "Oh I'm FIIIIIINE, Shiro, and it seems you have been too." No use wasting a chance to needle a friend after all.
Kaeru was crawling past, not bothering to look and see where people's feet were going as he and the standing plastic cow made their way around the carpet and over to one wall. He didn't actually notice the other girl that had arrived until he looked up to see who had put the wall in front of him. She had WINGS!! That was just so COOL! "FAIRY!" he crowed, hands clapping. He'd seen those in picture books!
Youko snickered then, looking back down to Makana and brushing the velvet fur of her nose with his fingertip. "I think she's attached to you at the moment, dear."
Syrcaid had bundled up Taylor as best she could, Taylor hated having on boots on account of hooved feet so she settled for knit leg warmers her Uncle Ki knit for her. Grey and black legwarmers, a mismatched blue Mickey Mouse (yet another old Zizzi remnant) fleeced and hooded coat... and then the mittens.
Ah, yes, the mittens. To recap the mittens the previous night, one would have to understand the mind of a were-wyrm - there is none. S-D picked small, inexplicably trivial things to have an argument over. Syrcaid suspected it was because he couldn't function without his daily argument. He and his lover Mekakushi had been sent on the task to take Taylor shopping for mittens and a scarf. The scarf passed their judgement without a hitch but the mittens were something else entirely.
As Syrcaid and Taylor approached the door to headquarters, Taylor reached to attemp the open the door herself. Syrcaid was reminded of the mittens as she saw Taylor give the door marked "Pull" a heafty push and Syrcaid began laughing. Taylor looked up at her puzzled, but laughing too.
The argument was as such...
"What do you mean it looks 'foofy'!?? She's a baby, you idiot!" Meka threw up his hands. "I'm more amazed that you used the term 'foofy' to describe it!"
"They're girly, c'mon, they've got Barbie all over it. Doesn't that little plastic whore have enough mindless followers making their mothers bleed out cash!??"
By this point, the whole of the infant/toddler department had stopped in mid sale/browse to stare at the two arguing amongst the mitten rack.
"She's a doll, very much like YOU started off as, you mindless little t**t," hissed Meka as he gripped S-D by the lapel of his sweater and forcefully dragged his ear to his lips. "You've got half of Sears looking at us like we're Stan and Laurel and if you don't stop being an absolute GIT about this-"
"I am NOT a git!" S-D jabbed a finger into Meka's shoulder with accusation. "Look, why does it have to be Barbie!??"
GAH! Talking frog! Startled, Etain reached up and pulled at Trio, effectively half-climbing the woman, wings buzzing as she bolted up her mother's side and held on to Trio's shoulder, hovering there. Once she was safely up, she looked down at Kaeru, then tugged on Trio's sleeve and informed her very solemnly, "Mama... the frog is talking to me." Kaeru got another shy glance, then Etain seemed to gather up her courage and told him, "Papa says I'm a sy... a sylph."
Shiro, as he was tugged away by Annora, glanced back at Youko and oh-so-maturely stuck his tongue out at the man. "Hush, you," he called over his shoulder, then kneeled down in front of the blocks with Annora. "Are you having fun with these?" he murmured to the siren, grinning down at her.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2005 8:56 am
((CONSOLIDATED RP - CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST))
--------------------------
Trio blushed vividly, choosing not to deign Youko with a reply for that. Besides, it hadn't been directed at her anyway. Instead, she glanced up at Etain, smiling warmly. "That's Uncle Youko's little boy, sweetie," she murmured. "Ka...oru? Kaero?" Cheeks darkening, she shot a glance at Youko. "What's his name again?"
Annora nodded, leaning against Shiro as she stuck her foot out in a sharp kick, making the small tower tumble down. "I'm making a tumble," she informed him cheerfully, tilting her head up to look at Shiro.
Syrcaid and Taylor were putting their coats on the coat rack by this time, Taylor insisting that the legwarmers stay on. She hadn't taken them off since Ki put them on her. Taylor was content to wear them to threads as she trundled at high speed into the large playroom, Syrcaid casually wandering in after her with Taylor's little tupperware full of fresh fruit and a juice sippy-cup.
"Don't trample anyone, Taylor," Syrcaid laughed. "I think it'd be hard to explain hoofprints to the pediatrician."
"Kaeru," Youko replied, still toying with Makana as he was completely absorbed with the child.
"Huh?" Kaeru replied, hearing his name and looking up in confusion. When Youko didn't reply, he frowned and left the cow behind, moving to his father and tugging on one pantleg. "HEY!"
Ears flattened with the shout, Youko looking down and scooping up Kaeru. "You don't say 'hey' when you want to get someone's attention," he said, bringing up a finger when the boy would have interrupted. "What do you say?"
Sighing, Kaeru wilted a bit. "S'cuse me," he murmured, obviously NOT happy about having to ask for attention when his first shout had gotten that attention for him. "Why'd you call me?"
"I didn't," Youko said, one ear up again.
"But you said my name!"
Oooohhhh that. Youko nodded then, motioning to Trio. "Trio wanted to know your name, she couldn't remember it. So I told her."
"I'm Kaeru!" he said, grinning to Trio and nearly leaning off of Youko's lap to look at her.
"Uncle Youko?" Etain did a quick mental calculation, then peered over Trio's shoulder again, still half floating. "Kaeru's our cousin?" she asked after a moment, then released her mother and drifted back down to the ground, shyly creeping over to Youko and Kaeru. If Kaeru was a cousin, then everything was okay, right?
"Yes, you did," Shiro agreed, grinning at Annora. "I wonder how tall you can make these blocks before they all fall down again, hmm?" He pressed a kiss to Annora's hair, cheerfully.
Trio glanced up at the newcomers, grinning happily to see even more around. "Hi," she called, offering them both a grin. She couldn't help admiring Taylor. It was so odd to see a little horse walking around on two legs, but she was SO beautiful. When Annora saw, she'd...
"HORSIE!" Annora cried, loud enough to make anyone wince. Not even noticing the effect her over-strong voice had on anyone else, she scrambled to her feet, Shiromaru forgotten as she ran over to examine this newcomer. "You like Keelan?" she demanded, eyes huge.
Makana watched Etain leave with wide gold eyes, batting at the departing sylph before her attention turned to Kaeru, watching the frog as he leaned close. "Mrreow."
Youko left off toying with Makana, noting that the little one was far more preoccupied elsewhere. He nodded to Etain, reaching to slide Kaeru down to the floor. "Kinda like a cousin, yeah," he said, smiling. "You should bug your daddy to come bring you over sometime. Raven would LOVE you. She likes Annora too."
Kaeru, for his part, was GONE the moment his feet touched the floor. He darted back off to HIS cow, scooping it up and protecting it from anyone who would try to swipe it from him. It seemed that he still didn't quite grasp the idea of animals and machines yet, because the moment he knew he was 'safe', the cow went back down on the floor. "The cow goes VOOM!"
"Cows don't go 'voom', squirt," Youko said, chuckling softly.
"They do when they have zippers, like your coat."
The fox just stared then, ears drooping to the sides as he sighed. "I've been outsmarted by a toddler..."
"A painted Arabian, actually, though some of that paint will wash off" Syrcaid grinned, picking a spot on the floor to sit on. "Oof!" she pulled a wooden block out from underneath herself. "I almost hatched that."
Taylor's hair was brushed, at least that's how it started off after her bath earlier that day, by now it was long, silky, and slightly tangled. Taylor insisted on never having her mane tied back, it was everything Syrcaid could do to hold her still long enough to brush let alone attempt to braid it or put bows in it. Syrcaid had resigned herself to letting Taylor run wild so long as she was fed and clean, confident that Taylor'd show up again for cuddling, a nap, or her apples.
Shiro blinked as Annora raced off, then shook his head and rose, joining the others. "It happens to the best of us," he informed Youko with mock-solemnity, then called after Annora, "Pick those blocks up before we leave!"
It was like a never-ending circus.
With a smile for Syrcaid, the water demon offered his hand. "My name is Shiromaru, I don't believe we've met."
Etain watched her father for a moment, then looked up at Youko with wide eyes. "Who's Raven?" she asked shyly. But anybody that liked Annora was a good person in her books!
"Hallo, I'm Syrcaid," she replied to Shiromaru with a smirk, obliging with a handshake. "The place is infested with rugrats, you suspect we should call an exterminator?"
Taylor had taken to standing in one place and squealing in a half-whinny, absolutely delighted to have company in the playroom with her.
"Meet Taylor," she grinned. "She's learned she can run and most times without falling tail over teacup."
'Tail over teacup.' Trio marked that phrase away to remember. It was the first time she'd heard it, and she suspected that it'd drive her angel crazy if she used it. "I'm Trio," she volunteered, not getting up from where she sat. Makana, however, had apparently had enough of Trio's lap. She squirmed, mewling pitifully until Trio took pity on her and leaned down to rest lay Makana on her stomach just in front of the blonde's feet. "There you go, sweetheart." Delighted, Makana clapped.
Annora stared at Taylor several seconds, then grinned. "I'm Annora. You like Keelan?" she asked again, reaching out to catch Taylor's hand without thought and tug her toward the blocks. They'd be much more interesting with TWO people building!
"Aaah...?" Taylor inquired, being led toward the blocks with instant curiosity.
"I'm Trio," came another voice.
"Oh, hallo," Syrcaid nodded to Trio, as well. "It's amazing there's so many people here, in all honesty. We've tried coming here before to an empty house. I think this is only the second or third time Taylor and I found anyone here."
Syrcaid looked around, the announcement bulletin board was still half decorated in Thanksgiving paper leaves and schoolborders with handturkeys and be-glittered lettering with little handmade cards. But the Christmas attire was slowly being brought out, Syrcaid could see some boxes in an unlit part of the building marked "XMas" and unopened mail parcels.
"I wonder if Karma's putting up a tree or something festive for the holidays," she mused out loud.
"Who knows? There are so many different holidays to celebrate," Trio returned wryly, shrugging.
"C'mon," Annora said, kneeling and showing Taylor how to place the blocks, not bothering to wait and find out whether Taylor already knew.
Makana, meanwhile, had decided the floor was boring, and was currently in the midst of a great battle to turn herself over, figuring the view of the ceiling would likely be preferable.
Kneeling down, Shiromaru lifted Makana up into his arms, settling her onto her back that way. "Hello, precious," he whispered to her, stroking those soft furry ears. Etain set herself against Shiro's side, and reached out cautiously so she could touch Makana's hand.
"True enough," Syrcaid nodded, watching Taylor get pulled away into a new adventure. "Taylor doesn't really say much, she's too impatient to form words just yet so she just makes a noise and hope it gets out what she means to say."
Makana took one look at Etain and a sudden motor-boat purring sounded from her throat as she reached out to bat one paw against Etain's arm, leaving it there.
Trio nodded. "Annora likes talking too much to ever consider that action. She's pretty good at speech now, though I think Etain's better." She glanced with a smile at the sylph. "Taylor's absolutely beautiful."
"Thank you," she laughed gently at Makana's purring. "If you want to get on her best side, give her an apple, she'll do almost anything for an apple. Did Karma give you a kitten for Christmas?" she winked, watching the infant's paw float about. "She's a content little thing, isn't she?"
Shiromaru laughed helplessly at Makana, then shifted Etain so the sylph was sitting down, and carefully positioned Makana in Etain's arms and on her lap. "There you are," he whispered to the pair of them.
Etain seemed absolutely entranced, her eyes wide as she oh-so-carefully held Makana. She was being a good big sister! "Pretty kitty," she announced quietly.
Wandering into the agency lilwere walked in slowly, leaning forward majorly as she was holding her Fourth wall childs arm as she walked. "Trying to get her used to walking on two legs.." She said out in the open incase anyone was watching them. "She'd rather crawl if she had her way... due to shes become a little crawling speed demon."
The wolf pup wuffed and whined as she was forced to walk on her two hind legs. She didnt like it.. bad bad! She'd rather crawl... explore faster that way. Her yellow/orange eyes grew large as she saw others where around... she wanted to meet others like herself. "Hi!" She blurted out loud around the room... they proberbly heard her somewhat.
"She might be content now, but don't even get me started when she's unhappy," Trio said wryly, remembering the half-croaked yowls she had to put up with any time Makana was hungry. "One of Annora's friends is a very sweet centaur boy named Keelan. I think she thinks Taylor must be like him... or maybe know him."
Makana was content to snuggle up to Etain, paws coming up to play with her hair. Shiny silver locks that moved when she batted at them! What FUN!
Annora's tongue was caught between her teeth as she carefully placed a block on another, occasionally looking up to boss Taylor, though she looked away without ever noticing whether Taylor was actually following her directions. But at the newest child's call, Annora's head shot up. MORE playmates! This place was WONDERFUL. "Hi~!"
"I think Taylor's trying to find Keelan," Syrcaid laughed into her hand.
Lilwere decided walking here was enough, so she left go of Aurora's hand gently and let her walk the way she wanted to. Squatting down lilwere looked around for someone to talk to. Spotting trio she sent her a cheery wave. "Hello their."
Aurora... surprisingly.. walked around 5 feet on her hind legs before she went into a crawl towards the other whom responded. Ears perking up she gave a wide grin as she was a few feet away. "Hullo! Me Aurora. you..?"
Giggling happily, Etain let Makana play with her hair all the little kitten wanted. She certainly wasn't about to complain!
When the newcomers came in, Shiromaru offered a wave to the pair. "Welcome!" he called.
Meanwhile, a deathly silence fell over the small town of Whoville, all the little Whos hiding in their once jubulous Who homes. A dark figure stood over snow-capped hillside, his heart once two sizes too big, once again three sizes too small. Well, something like that, at least. With a stagger away from his sedan, a disgrunted sounding mouse struggled with the little one in his arms while kicking the door shut, trying not to spill himself or the child he carried.
"Melody, I swear to GOD if you don't stop squirming...!"
Of course, despite the warnings, the little raccoon girl bundled in his arms kept wriggling about, wanting to grab everything; his nose, his cigarette (which really isn't good to have around a child in the first place), his hair, his tie, that big bright round thing in the night sky... it was all so fascinating to her.
If only he shared those sentiments, it wouldn't be so bad.
Giving up on the prospect of being able to use his arms again for now, he turned around to back himself against the front doors to The Fourth Wall. With any luck, if Karma was around, he could get a little advice on restocking his baby needs so Melody wouldn't have to live in the third world for a few weeks. Of course, last time he was here, he just caught Karma.
Obviously, he didn't expect the small crowd there as he walked in, pushing past the door and turning around. "Karma, are y- ... good Lord. It's a little toddler demolition derby in here." He stood there at the door, looking for a moment in disbelief. This would be when the little raccoon girl in his arms grabbed the glasses he was wearing and yanked them off.
"...
...
GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF THAT RIGHT NOW."
Trio's head jerked up at the yell, and she stared at the mouse and raccoon girl for a moment before clapping a hand over her mouth, her shoulders shaking silently. It was obvious to ANYONE that she was trying desperately to stifle laughter, and not trusting her voice, she lifted a hand in greeting.
Makana's ears flicked toward the loud yell, and she twisted to look at the man solemnly. But the loud sound didn't disturb her - one of the fringe benefits of living with a siren.
Annora smiled at Aurora, saying carefully, "I'm Annora." A moment later, she grabbed up one of the wood cubes, holding it out to Aurora. "This blocks!" She, too, appeared unphased.
Syrcaid stared at the front door, Taylor stopped too in the middle of test-tasting a building block. Without another word, Taylor dropped the block and ran for the front door.
"N-No, wait!" Syrcaid struggled to stand up quickly. "Wait, Taylor, don't step on the nice man!"
Scary loud man!
It was only the fact that Etain was holding Makana that kept the sylph from bolting somewhere to hide. As it was, the shout had her squirming closer to Shiro, and the water demon slid an arm around his daughter reassuringly. "It's okay," he murmured to Etain. "Don't worry."
Lilwere's head twisted around as the next duo entered. She shivvered slightly from the winds comming in from the door. "I see you have quite the handful their.." She noted at the cute little raccoon baby. "Must be hard, i know when Aurora was that young she loved getting into everything as well, she grew out of it somewhat."
Lilwere stood up from her squatted position and wandered over towards a chair, which she flopped into overlooking all of the occupants of the room.
Aurora turned around and looked at the new duo and gave a small snicker. "Badd!" She whispered under her breath. Her sticker turned into a giggle when she saw the small block. Holding it in her hands she felt the grainy texture, before she starting to hit it against the ground. "Yer name similar to mines!" Wondering if the block can crack open she continues to hit it. "Block block! Does eeet open?"
Annora's eyebrows pulled together as she frowned at Aurora, and she reached out to grab the block, trying to tug it away from the girl before she could beat it on the ground again.
Eyes watering as she managed to get herself under control, Trio moved to sit beside Shiromaru. One more look at the raccoon girl sent her off again, however, and she buried her face in Shiro's shoulder, shaking desperately with silent mirth.
For a man who used to play paintball, participate in faux sword fights, and has driven through heavy downtown traffic for years without a single ticket or even ding on his car, he's certainly not swift when dealing with children. Just retrieving his glasses back from Melody, who was giggling away now, he takes a moment to put them back on and blink owlishly. "There, that's be-*"
Crunch.
Steel toe shoes were always one of Terry's favorite things to wear, because they kept him so protected when he invariably stubbed his foot against his desk or other furniture in his house. Why he didn't wear them tonight going to a place full of children of all species was beyond him, but he certainly wasn't about to make the same mistake twice. This once proved to be enough.
"Nnng... gah... yi..."
Many sounds were coming difficultly from Terry's mouth, though none of them were really words. He staggered a bit, lowering on one leg and trying his best to keep Melody aloft. To her credit, the raccoon girl was all smiles, big, bright emerald eyes beaming as she scanned the room. So many faces! And so different, too! It was like Halloween, with less darkness.
In the meantime, it looked like a tear might be coming to one of Terry's eyes. "Hi... th-there... little girl... Nice... to... sonofa... meet you, too..." He grit his teeth, trying hard not to yell at the little horse. It wasn't really her fault, after all.
Taylor stopped, all of her weight on Terry's foot and stared up at the funny man making burbling noises at her. She looked up and let out a glass shattering shriek of laughter, clapping her hands at him with delight.
Syrcaid stopped dead where she was, clapping her hands over her mouth. "Ho-oh, sh-...!" she said into her hands. "Sorrrryy..." she flinched in sympathy for the pain her little Taylor was inflicting on him. She moved again to pick Taylor up off his foot.
"It's a good thing she doesn't wear training shoes," she offered in sympathy. "Erm... Do you need a doctor?"
Shiromaru wasn't likely to be much help for Trio at the moment, because he, too, was trying desperately to not burst out into laughter himself. One hand pressed to his mouth, his shoulders shaking, he stared up at Taylor, Terry and Syrcaid, torn between overwhelming mirth and wincing compassion.
Lilwere bowed in apologies to the group around her and she scouped up aurora and dashed out of the room, she tossed terry some pain killers as she passed him.
Trio missed the sight of Taylor stepping on Terry's foot. She lifted her head, calm once more, only after Syrcaid had lifted Taylor off Terry, and blinked at the new sight in confusion. ...What had she missed?
Makana mewled softly, beginning to sound upset. And Annora simply stared, eyes huge and half-afraid. That... looked like it had HURT.
It is said that music and mathematics are two universal languages in this grand universe of ours. Whoever said that didn't count on the third:
Sheer, overwhelming pain.
It was in this stunning moment of intense clarity of the nerves that Terry nearly allowed himself to slip. Temperature rising, he almost forgot that he was carefully holding a baby in his arms, something that started to come back to mind when she started burbling in oblivious bliss. This allowed the recovering rodent to stay himself for a moment.
Gritting his teeth in response, he shook his head at Syrcaid. "No, no, I'm fine. Just... give me a month or two to stop bleeding or whatever it is my foot is doing." Frankly, he was afraid to even look, though doubtless the pain far outweighed the damage -- that was usually the case with him.
After recovering a little, he opened one eye to glare down at Taylor and see just who it was that crushed the life out of his doubtlessly evil foot. He looked back at Syrcaid. "I presume this is your bubbly little piece of sh-"
He caught himself. No, Terry, let it go. It's just a kid, and she didn't know what she did.
"-hhurely precious equine?"
"If you come here," Shiro called to Terry, "and take off your shoe, I can get some ice on your foot for you. It'll help to keep the swelling down."
Etain cuddled Makana closer, anxious to keep the little girl from getting too upset. The big loud man...-mousething wasn't yelling at them so it was okay. "Mama?" Etain whispered up to Trio, and glanced back down at Makana.
"I think you meant little s**t," Syrcaid grinned. "That's what S-D calls her, too, but she didn't mean to stamp on your foot. She's not aware that most of us have soft, squishy feet that go crunch if trod on. S-D's taken to wearing thick boots when he babysits."
She looked at his foot and nodded. "It's still attached."
Trio reached out to Etain, gently lifting Makana away and then beckoning the sylph to crawl onto her lap as well. "C'mere, sweetie. It's gonna be okay." As she settled Makana into her arms again, the girl only grew more fussy, squirming and uttering that croak-mewl that sounded horribly pitiful.
Annora sat still, wide eyes following everything as she kept silent.
Terry hesitated to give any sort of a response for a moment, just trying to figure out if he could feel his left foot again. Satisfied after a moment that it was, in fact, still a functional part of his body, he nodded back to Shiro and the offer he made. "Well, I can be pretty cold, myself, but I'm sure some extra ice wouldn't hurt."
As the swirls of misty cold swirled around the end of his tail, it appeared that he wasn't being entirely sarcastic. He staggered somewhat over to where Shiro was sitting, nodding to Syrcaid on the way. "Well, despite everything, I don't want to go calling other people's children 'little shits' without some prior approval." As he walked, he shifted Melody's position so the little raccoon was mostly over his shoulder.
Finding a spot to sit down, he settled in and used his right foot to nudge the shoe off of his left foot, wincing in pain again at the pressure that put on the appendage.
"Don't worry, Taylor likes you so in her eyes you can call her whatever you like and she'd think it was a term of endearment," Syrcaid laughed.
After settling back for a moment, Melody, slung over his shoulder, suddenly dozes off. The mouse turns to eye the raccoon, shaking his head. "Little narcoleptic, I swear to God..."
Shiromaru blinked at the tail, then laughed softly and cupped his hands around Terry's foot, letting ice blanket it carefully. "There we go. Just let that sink in for a little bit," he murmured.
Once that was done, he looked up at Annora, surprised to see the siren so quiet, and opened his arms. "Come here, princess," he called softly.
Etain, for her own part, borrowed onto Trio's lap and cuddled there, careful to keep her wings from getting snagged.
"He hurt?" Annora asked plaintively, staring at Shiromaru for a moment before scrambling up into his lap and nestling close. "He crying?"
"It's okay, sweetie," Trio murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of Etain's head even as she tried to juggle both kids and the baby bag she'd brought in. Makana didn't care about Terry getting hurt, but it was hard to mistake her 'feed me' mewl.
Taylor, riddled with curiosity, went to have a look at why the infant was crying. Without saying a thing, she reached into her own baby bag and fished out her apple. She offered it to the crying infant.
"Aaaahppaa..?" Taylor inquired.
"He's hurt, yes," Shiro said gently, and stroked Annora's hair. "But he'll be just fine, you'll see. Don't you worry." Trio got a warm look over the childrens' heads, golden gaze fondly bemused, then he started to rock Annora a little bit in his lap. Taylor got a blink, then a growing smile. "I don't think Makana can eat apples just yet. But once she's a bit bigger, she might like them."
She finally managed to produce a bottle, nearly dropping it before popping the top off and nuzzling Etain. "You need to move, sweetie. I need to feed Makana now." She didn't bother trying to find a way to warm the bottle - she'd already seen that they were just fine room temperature.
Taylor stared up at Shiro, then back to the baby. Noticing the bottle, she realised she could do with some snacking herself. Taking her apple, since no one wanted to share, she went and took the sippy-cup from Syrcaid's hands and plopped down at Syrcaid's feet to drink her apple juice and eat her apple.
"I think if your wrang her out, you'd get pure apple essence," Syrcaid said, fishing out her brush to brush Taylor's mane. "While she's distracted, I can finally brush her. Too bad I forgot her detangler."
She was worried about him. He had managed to bounce back fairly well from the whole experience, but there was still quite a bit of tension in the household. Aside from the whole trauma of finding a girl covered in blood on the lawn, poor Arun had gone from a care free toddler with the sole attention of a single caregiver to sharing his house and his Wasee with a teenager, a pregnant woman, and two babies. For the most part he endured, but the occasional outbursts and near refusal to leave her side had Wasabineko confused.
In her infinate wisdom, Wasa thought it might be a good idea to take him to familar territory that wasn't being over run with strangers... or at least a place where the strangers were more like himself.
Arun stared wide eyed at the shop as Wasabineko carried him through the door. He remembered it all right...
"Keelan's like that," Shiro offered to Syrcaid, grinning. "Keelan's a friend's son, and a centaur. Etain's and Annora's playmate." He wasn't certain if Trio had explained or not.
Etain slid carefully off of Trio's lap and padded over to Shiro's, slipping into her papa's lap and sharing it with Annora. There was room, after all!
Trio just settled in to bring the bottle to Makana's lips when someone new caught her attention. The little kitten yowling in her arms and grabbing for the bottle, Trio offered a smile. "Hello!"
Annora hesitated a moment, then curled up half-against Etain, looking unhappy.
Saara bolted back into the front room of the Center, clutching a gilded pomegranite in her arms as she dashed. Aki staggered after her, still completely befuddled as to where Saara had found such a strange item, and worn out from chasing her from the toy box to the bathroom, to the downstairs, outside, and back in again.
Sighing, Aki slumped against the doorway...wild hair edging across her face, and tapered ears sticking out from the blonde mess. "Okay...huuu. We're...back. Gah! Can we...rest?" Panting dejectedly, Aki opened her arms to the young glider.
For a moment, Saara considered the elf's offer...clutching the pomegranite close as her ears laid back. It didn't take long. A few moments later, she'd launched herself towards Aki's stomach...connecting with an 'oof.'
"Yup nope! Hi!" With a wide smile, Saara clawed her way up Aki's chest...still somehow clutching the garish plastic fruit.
"Ugh! Hi." Finally, as she bundled her daughter into her arms, Aki was able to glance around and see who was present. She raised one hand weakly, trying to summon a smile. How utterly embarrassing!
Wasabineko watched in amazement and the flurry of activity, most of it centered about Aki Ana's chest. "Hey there!"
Arun twisted, crawing under Wasa's arm and inching his way back up under her hair until at last his nose poked out over his shoulder. "Wasee..."
Wasa gave him a little pat on the head, smiling out at the rest present. "You aren't shy Arun so don't even pretend."
"Trio," Shiro whispered to the woman, "I think I'm going to take Annora and Etain home, okay? Etain's sleepy and Annora's upset." Wasa got a nod and a warm smile, as well as Aki.
When it became apparent that the shop was a bit TOO distracting for Trio to feed Makana, she rose, shifting everything around until she carried the kitten in her sling and the bottle was tucked out of sight. "I'll come with you," she assured him, offering him a smile before turning to the others. "It was really nice to meet you all. I hope I get a chance to come back soon," she said, beckoning to Annora. The siren scrambled off Shiro's lap but moved to take his hand as she realized he was getting up, too.
Shiro nodded, then let Etain hold on to his free hand, keeping hold of both the toddlers this way. With a farewell call back to the others, he made his way out of the building, intent on getting home quickly.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2005 8:58 am
"Chriiiiiiiiistmaaaaas! It's Christmaaaas!" Etain sang gleefully the entire way from Shiromaru's house to Trio's, darting hither and yon through the snowfall that blanketed the normally springlike and warm grounds. How could Shiro deny Etain snow on Christmas day, after all? With packages carefully towed along, Shiromaru walked behind Etain, then found his key and let himself into the house. "You'll need to be very, very quiet now," Shiro whispered to Etain, and the little sylph dutifully hushed, then bolted for the living room. She smelled wrapping paper there!
Annora was already there, poking through the boxes and piling hers in one corner. Every time she started to sing, a very harried-looking Aziraphale would remind her that her mother was still sleeping. When he saw the two newcomers, he paled, peering at Shiromaru in worry. "Is she... excited?" he asked in a stage whisper, as though there were some way a young girl might NOT be excited on a day that promised presents.
Shiromaru smirked sleepily, then rather heavily sank down onto the sofa, the presents set next to him on the floor. "You could say that. She's been up since three. Merry Christmas, Az," he added, chuckling softly. "You can go to bed if you want, I'll keep an eye on the girls for a bit longer."
Aziraphale eyed him, then shook his head. "Why don't you go wake Trio... before these... girls... do it?" he asked.
"Or I could do that. I'll be back in a minute." Hauling himself back up, and finally shedding his coat along the way, he made his way into Trio's bedroom, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Trioooo..." he murmured, just loud enough to be heard, a hand running gently over her hair.
Trio grunted, shifting in the bed until she was buried mostly under covers, with the pillow over her head, hiding nearly all of her hair.
Carefully, Shiro tried to lift the pillow right back up. "Rise and shine, sleeping beauty, or I'm going to tickle you."
Whatever Trio said in answer wasn't fully coherent... though it was likely the words shouldn't be heard by little girls ANYWAY.
Shiromaru grinned impishly and slid his hands under the blankets, running his fingers ever-so-lightly up and down along her sides under the shirt.
It took a moment for her to begin squirming, then whimpering, then finally jerking away to glare at him blearily. "Not fair."
"No, my love, what isn't fair is the fact that I have been awake since yesterday morning and I am now on my second pot of coffee," Shiro cheerfully chirruped, the picture of innocence.
"Whose fault is that?" Trio asked, eyeing him balefully before rubbing at her eyes. "What time is it?"
Shiromaru snickered softly. "Five in the morning, and Annora's about to give Aziraphale a nervous breakdown."
"She was in bed," Trio blinked, shifting slowly up and stretching before moving to check on Makana. The little catgirl was quietly batting at a soft mouse-shaped plushie Trio had given her that chimed when it shook.
Standing, Shiro also stretched, his back popping with a series of cracks before he finally lowered his arms. "She's currently sorting out her presents, and I think Etain's gone and started the same thing. How is Makana?"
"Surprisingly quiet," Trio murmured, shifting the girl to her shoulder. "I'll need to get her fed and we can begin." She punctuated the comment with a yawn, then laughed. "Think we can justify taking a nap while the girls play after?"
"I'm going to demand one, actually. I'm exhausted. I'm going to go attack my coffee again, and wait out in the living room." Leaning in, Shiro kissed Trio gently on the lips, then nuzzled softly at Makana before heading towards the door.
Trio watched him go, then slipped a robe on, leaving it gaping open while she went in search of Makana's cream.
"Daddy, daddy," Annora cried, when Shiro arrived in the living room again. "It's CHRISTMAS! Presents?"
"As soon as your mother finishes feeding Makana, we can open presents." Reaching down, Shiro caught up Annora in his arms, twirling playfully in a circle before planting a kiss on the girl's forehead. "And just how long have you been up, mmm?"
"Since three," Az muttered, from the doorway. "Will you be all right with them?"
Annora grinned, giggling wildly.
"I'm wired on coffee; honestly, I'll be fine. Why not get some rest? You look beat..." Shiromaru sank down onto the sofa, then released his hold on Annora so she could get down if she wished.
Instead, Annora attempted to climb higher, wanting to ride on his shoulders. "Etain, lookit!"
Az chuckled wryly. "At least I don't deal with them both day in and day out..."
Etain looked up, then squealed and flew over to hover near Annora. "Annora's almost flying," she announced, pleased as can be to see Annora up high like Etain preferred to be.
"Just be careful up there," Shiro cautioned, reaching up to leave a guarding hand hovering close by. To Az, he offered simply, "Caffeine. Lots and lots of caffeine."
"Indeed," Aziraphale muttered, eyeing them before turning. "I'll stock up when today TRULY arrives. Good night, ladies, Shiromaru." With that, he made his way upstairs.
Annora grinned, tapping Etain's nose. "You're flying!"
Etain giggled softly, then sat on the back of the sofa, reaching out to spontaneously hug Annora. "I'll take you flying someday," she decided happily. "When I'm big an' strong an' I can carry you!"
Shiromaru shook his head slightly, quietly amused, then sat and sipped at his coffee, watching the tree.
"How come I can't fly NOW?" Annora demanded petulantly, frowning at Etain. A moment later, Trio entered the room. She'd taken long enough to fix her hair and wash her face, and Makana was already happily munching as she balanced the child in one arm.
"Because I can't carry you?" Etain drooped a little, then picked herself up mentally, reaching out to try and lift Annora. It didn't work, but she tried, blast it all!
When Trio came in, Shiro smiled warmly up at her, indicating the spot next to him on the sofa. "You look more awake..."
"Looks can be deceiving," she muttered, nestling down. "who's playing elf this year?"
"I can, I don't mind. Besides, Annora's already got most of her presents sorted out." Shiro paused, then snickered quietly. "And so does Etain."
"Go right ahead, love," Trio murmured, watching Shiro with soft eyes. Makana, rather oblivious to it all, had decided that Trio's hair made the perfect plaything, and was currently batting at a golden lock.
Annora, not inclined to wait for Shiro, was bouncing in place, wanting to run over and grab her presents but knowing that such behavior was off-limits. She'd already gotten in trouble once for what her mom said was "being greedy".
"Annora, Etain, why don't you two sit on the floor?" Shiro suggested as he made his way over to the tree, starting to separate presents out. Etain hopped down off the back of the sofa, landing on the floor in front of it, her wings buzzing with excitement.
Annora scrambled after her, moving far enough away from the sylph to ensure that her hoard had plenty of space and didn't get mixed up with Etain's, while staying close enough to the tree to supposedly get her presents quickly. Trio watched her settle into place, an amused smile on her face as she shifted Makana in her arms. When Annora finally flopped onto the floor, Trio laughed softly.
Shiro separated the presents out, with the quiet admonishment that no one opened their presents until everything was sorted out. His presents and Trio's from each other could wait until after the girls had opened theirs. Once everything was sorted, he sat down next to Trio on the sofa, grinning. "Shall we let them open everything now?" he asked her, very quietly. Etain was holding a present in her hands, trying to look like she wasn't actually fiddling with the paper in anticipation.
Trio nodded, leaning toward Shiro. "One at a time, please, though. I like seeing what you're getting, girls," she added, shifting to nestle against her lover. Makana's eyes were drooping again, the food making her sleepy once more.
"Since 'A' comes before 'E,' Annora can go first this time. Next round, Etain will go first," Shiro decided, grinning as he wound an arm around Trio's shoulders.
Annora beamed, ripping off the paper on her first gift. She was nearly bouncing in her seat, anxious to see what she'd gotten.
It took a while to get through all the presents -- the girls had been spoiled with a bunch of gifts, and even Makana had quite the tidy pile. Shiromaru and Trio each had their own -- though both of them kept one back, hidden away for opening later, in private -- and after the presents were opened, breakfast eaten, and the girls had run off to play, Trio and Shiro took themselves off for a long, well-deserved nap.
Really, the demon reflected as he drifted off to sleep, Trio in his arms, there was something definitely to be said about Christmas with one's family...
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Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:31 pm
Both Annora and Etain have grown wonderfully and flourished under the watchful eyes of their respective parents. However, this relationship seems to be changing... and can sometimes be traumatic for children, even when they know the situation and welcome it. Especially when those children are little more than toddlers themselves.
Annora and Etain have learned what it's like to be friends... now they need to learn what it takes to be family. The learning process will help them greatly and may just advance their life stages. The life of sisters who live with each other is far different than the life of friends who can simply go home when the mood strikes.
Your goal for this quest is to integrate these two lovelies into a house together, taking into account the special needs of each girl. It could possibly be a difficult time, especially with them both having grown up with a single parent focused on them. Or it could go as smoothly as silk, to quote a phrase. Either way... these are your goals:
1. Sit down with the girls and explain the move, in terms they can understand. While they know that the two of you are getting closer, they may not fully understand HOW close.
2. Design the house with both of them in mind. Annora needs water... Etain needs a place to stretch her wings now that she's learning to fly. Safety must be taken into consideration as well. (For this, I don't necessarily need to SEE a map of the house or anything, just RP out the design of it and be descriptive!)
3. Give me at least 5 seperate RP'd scenes of the girls during the moving process, getting settled and immediately after everything's sorted in the house. A total of AT LEAST five. If you feel that you can't get it all in five, feel free to write more!
4. Have each girl do a solo post or RP after everything's done, describing their personal feelings on all that has happened during the course of this. It doesn't have to be a 'dear diary' post unless you want it to be.
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Posted: Thu Mar 16, 2006 6:05 pm
The girls had been sent to Shiro's, cheerfully oblivious to the reason for it. Annora had squirreled away Gavriel's egg, wanting to show Etain and see if the other changeling thought that he was getting bigger. Makana had carried over a book, immediately curling up near a window to page through and look at the pictures. Her tail tapped against the wall, a regular, contented thump as she waited for her mother.
The house was chaos as usual, though a happy sort of chaos. Dakota was curled up near Etain, the sylph latched onto Annora's side immediately as usual. "He looks bigger," she offered, wide-eyed, peering into the egg.
Shiromaru, noticing Makana, made his way over to the little girl. "What are you reading?" he asked softly, grinning down at her.
Annora beamed, examining the egg carefully. "Bigger!" she crowed, anxious to see what might develop next. Maybe he'd stop sleeping so much.
Makana shifted to make room for Shiro, holding up her book for him to see. "He's big an' fat an' naked and everyone's laughing," she explained, pointing to the Emperor who was 'wearing' his new clothes.
Etain leaned against Annora, grinning at the egg and at her sister. "Hope he'll get bigger than th' egg soon," she said wistfully.
Settling down next to Makana, Shiro stroked her hair lightly and grinned at the book. "The Emperor's New Clothes, I see. Want to read it to me?"
Makana shifted nearly into his lap, beginning to purr. "You read it," she instructed, handing the book to him.
Before he could begin, however, there was a quiet knock at the door that had everyone's heads come up.
Looking up, Shiro blinked at the door, then gently extricated himself from his seat to open the door, peering out curiously.
Trio stood on the other side, one hand on Kikuei's shoulder. The little red-haired boy peered up at Shiromaru solemnly, then offered a faint smile.
"Can we get everyone together to talk?" Trio asked.
Shooting Kikuei a warm smile in return, Shiro nodded, then held the door open to let the pair come inside. "Girls, come sit together, your mother needs to talk to you."
Etain got up dutifully, moving over to sit in the middle of the room.
Annora moved with her, leaving Makana to make her way over a little more reluctantly. The cat kept slightly away from the two fey girls, head tilted and large golden eyes watching Kikuei curiously.
Shiromaru sat on the sofa close to the girls, noticing silently how Makana kept herself apart. It wasn't surprising, really, considering how close Etain and Annora were...
Trio settled on the floor, gesturing for Kikuei to sit beside her. The boy was solemn, but no longer quite as sullen as he'd been when he'd first met Etain. "Girls," she said softly. "I'd like you to meet Kikuei. Kikuei, these are the girls: Makana, Annora, and Etain."
"I know Kikuei," Etain announced cheerfully, beaming up at the young boy. "He plays the flute! An' it's really pretty!"
Grinning at that, Shiro shook his head in amusement, then smiled up at Kikuei encouragingly. "Welcome, Kikuei."
"He plays the flute?" Annora asked, perking immediately at the thought. "Play something," she demanded a moment later, leaning forward expectantly.
"Not right now, sweetie," Trio said, as Kikuei drew back slightly, unnerved by the ready cheer. "Kikuei lives on our lands. I'm his guardian. Do you know what that means?" she prompted gently.
Makana, clearly too unsure of herself to simply speak up, watched the meeting, her eyes locking on Kikuei thoughtfully more than once.
Etain shook her head slowly, then looked up to Shiromaru, waiting for an explanation. Of course Papa would know!
"It means that your mother watches over him and keeps him safe," Shiro explained, reaching down to gently pet Makana's hair again.
Makana glanced up at Shiromaru, then relaxed, curling up against his side.
Kikuei cleared his throat, eyeing the three girls warily before speaking. "I'm not going to live with you," he informed them all, shoulders tensed and obviously ready for arguments.
Etain looked disappointed, her long elflike ears drooping a little, then she brightened hopefully. "Will you at least live nearby so we can come visit?"
Slowly, Kikuei nodded, looking at Trio almost helplessly. The blonde smiled at the girls. "I'm going to get some help building somehting like a treehouse for Kikuei nearby. When it's done, he'll live in there, and you can visit him whenever he says it's okay."
Annora considered that for a long minute, then looked at Etain, trying to decide if that was good enough. Before she could speak, however, Makana finally put in her two cents. "He needs high places."
Kikuei blinked, head whipping around to peer at the abyssinian thoughtfully.
Startled, Shiro glanced down at Makana. Etain, however, did point to Kikuei, adding cheerfully, "He is kind of like a bird... Do you use a nest?" she asked after a moment, peering curiously up at Kikuei. "Birds use nests! I've seen'm!"
Disconcerted by the abyssinian's words, Kikuei answered Etain almost absently. "Not nests, exactly. More a nest than you do, though. I'm Ieldi..."
"What's an Ieldi?" Etain asked curiously, brows furrowed. "Not a bird?"
"They're sort of like birds," Trio explained, as Annora crawled closer, more interested in the flute she saw hanging from Kikuei's neck than a discussion of where he'd come from. "In the same way that Makana's sort of like a cat."
"Mew?" came Makana's soft question.
"You're not exactly a cat, and Kikuei's not exactly a bird, but you both have things in common with them. That's all," Trio explained.
Shiromaru nodded, petting Makana's hair again. "Precisely. Like Kikuei's wings, and your ears."
Etain considered all of this for a long moment, then nodded to herself, filing it all away. And then promptly ignored it all in favor of music. "Play something for us?" she asked Kikuei, leaning forward a bit.
Kikuei finally turned hs attention from Makana, almost jumping as he realized that Annora had been just out of peripheral vision, her hand reaching out to touch his flute. "I..."
"Play!" Annora insisted, grinning up at him. Not quite sure how to refuse them without making someone upset, Kikuei awkwardly acquiesced.
"Annora, Etain, how do you ask?" Shiro chided, eyeing the older girls.
Etain ducked her head, then looked up at Kikuei again. "...Please play something for us?"
"May I please have a song?" Annora added, saying the words by rote.
Kikuei eyed them thoughtfully, then smiled faintly, nodding. Slowly, he turned to Makana, who nodded shyly, then looked to Shiro, all the while not looking at Trio.
Smiling warmly, Shiromaru nodded to Kikuei. "If you would be so kind, we would all enjoy a song."
Kikuei's smile faded, but his eyes finally sought Trio's. She smiled warmly, reaching out to rest a hand on his arm. Only then did he reach for the flute, hesitantly leaning toward Trio as he readied himself to begin.
Trio beamed, shifting her arm to wrap around him. Perhaps this would really work out...
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Posted: Fri Apr 07, 2006 12:46 am
Plans to tell the girls about the upcoming changes in their lives had been derailed with the abrupt changes going on. Makana was now a toddler, and Kikuei's return into Trio's life had severely derailed the blonde. So things were set aside for a couple of weeks, and everything slowly settled back into the semblance of normalcy that was their life. And then they finally made plans to tell the kids. Trio's house was scrapped as the setting almost immediately, because it was too loud. Shiro's was a consideration, until Trio brought up that a neutral ground could be better - a restaurant perhaps.
"Why not this one?" Shiro offered, curiously, as he pointed out the advertisement of a family-friendly restaurant not that far away from their joint properties. "I've passed by it, and it's usually not that busy, and there's a lot of space. We could sit in one corner and have some privacy as we tell them."
Trio nodded, glancing at Shiro. "It'll be nice to get out for a little while, too," she offered, toying with the ring she now wore. It still felt odd on her finger.
Shiromaru laughed softly, leaning in to kiss her cheek. "Very nice," he agreed. "All of us out together, as a family."
Trio hesitated, then leaned against him. "I'd like to bring Kikuei...?"
"Kikuei's part of the family," Shiro noted, blinking at Trio, even as he hugged her close.
She relaxed then, curling up against him. "He wasn't exactly someone you knew about when you signed on for this," she pointed out sheepishly.
Leaning down, Shiro pressed a kiss to her hair. "No matter whether I've met them or not, or even heard about or not, your family is my family."
Trio grinned softly, purring a little before pulling away. "Let's gather up the kids?"
"Yes." Shiro stood, stretched, then stole one more kiss from Trio before nodding towards the hallway. "Hopefully it won't be so much like herding cats."
Trio chuckled. "Well, we know that wherever we find Annora, we can find Etain, at least."
"This is true. Annora!" the demon called, raising his voice. "Where'd you get to?"
For a moment, there was silence, and then the girl peeked out of Etain's room. "In here," she said curiously.
Etain popped out as well, a few feet above Annora. "What is it, Papa?"
"Your mother and I want to take everyone out to dinner," Shiro explained. "Are you two hungry?"
Another pair of wary eyes peered out from Etain's room, red hair falling into them. Kikuei was skittish around Annora, but had taken to Etain easily, and preferred to be near the shy sylph.
"Yes," Etain said cheerfully, and flew down so she could put her arms around Kikuei's shoulders from above. Of course, that didn't help the hair problem much, as some of her curls fell in his face.
Shiromaru sat on his heels by the door, putting him more on the kids' level. "Well, once we get Makana, we can all go out. Go on into the living room?"
Annora nodded, grinning and reaching to grab Kikuei's hand and drag him along. He pulled back quickly, but that didn't seem to phase the siren, who simply looked up at Etain for a moment before hurrying off. Kikuei looked up toward Etain, offering her a shy smile as he waited for her to follow.
Trio smiled quietly at the exchange, moving to stand behind Shiro. "He's warming."
Etain nodded back to Annora, determinedly, then smiled sweetly down at Kikuei. "C'mon," she chirruped, and took his hand and led him off after Annora.
"He is," Shiro agreed softly. "And considering the household he lives in, I don't think he has much of a choice but to warm up some."
Trio chuckled, nodding as the three made their way to the living room. As Kikuei and Etain arrived, Annora poked her head out. "Makana's in here! In here, in here!" she said excitedly, proud to be the first to have found the kitten.
Etain followed quickly, beaming at Annora as she finally touched her feet to the floor again. Shiro wasn't too far behind, his long strides catching him up to the group as he hunted for and found the coats hung up in the genkan. "Okay, everyone, on with your coats. It may be warm here but it's cold outside the property, after all."
Annora grabbed her coat, tugging it on while Makana approached, peering at Shiromaru curiously. Trio reached for Makana's coat, setting it around the furred shoulders before turning to where Kikuei had bundled up. "That's good," she nodded, wrapping herself in her own coat.
Shiro helped Etain with her coat, unbuttoning the flap that went between the sylph's wings before sliding it onto her. Once it was on, he buttoned the flap back down against the hem. "There we are... We're going out for dinner, Makana," he explained, smiling warmly at the kitten.
Makana nestled into her coat, watching the others for a long moment before moving toward the door. "Can we have hamburgers?" she asked softly.
"Oooh, and fries!" Annora chimed in, bouncing over to her.
"Of course," Shiro confirmed as Etain attached herself to his shoulder, the sylph shooting him a hopeful look.
"Milkshakes?"
Shiromaru hesitated, then glanced at Trio for her opinion on that matter.
Trio arched an eyebrow at them. "We'll see how you do on dinner first," she said mildly, herding the other three out the door.
"Out, the lot of you, and into the van." Shiro had had to pick up the vehicle after realizing that their brood was only going to grow larger with time, and walking, quite frankly, got really boring.
The ride was short, all the kids anxious to get there. Trio listened to the four, a faint smile on her face. They definitely sounded like a family, at least. Once they'd arrived and all been let out of the van, she moved to walk with Shiro, keeping the kids close in the empty parking lot.
Shiromaru opened the door to let everyone inside, and their host was waiting by the door.
"Six?"
"Yes, please," Shiro agreed, and they were led to a booth near the back on the nonsmoking side, given their menus and water, and left to sit down.
"This family gets any bigger, and we're going to have to rent banquet rooms," Trio muttered, reaching out to catch Shiro's hand.
Shiro grinned, lacing his fingers through Trio's. "Keep that in mind. Knowing us, we might need to rent the entire restaurant."
Trio groaned. "Don't even joke about that. You may be right," she murmured, leaning her forehead against his shoulder.
Etain sipped at her water as she sat rather primly on part of the booth. If she was good, she'd get a milkshake -- right?
The demon just smirked at Trio, kissed her hair, then slid into a seat as well. "Let's figure out what we're going to eat, first."
"I want noodle-soup!" Annora said immediately, looking up from where she'd been blowing bubbles in her own water. She looked expectantly at Trio, who laughed wryly and nodded. "I know, sweetie. Makana? Kiku? What about you two?"
Makana hesitated, wide eyes looking up at the two before shrugging shyly. She didn't actually offer a response, but Trio nodded, knowing what to try for her.
Kikuei peered carefully at the children's menu, then wrinkled his nose. "Can I have corn?" he asked quietly, pointing to a side-dish on the adult menu.
"Of course you can," Shiro murmured to Kiku, smiling warmly.
"Can I have fish and chips?" Etain asked in turn, curiously. "And chicken?" She pointed to the basket that had chicken and fish strips.
Trio nodded, smiling as Makana's ears visibly perked at the mention of fish. "What about you, Shiro? Anything interesting to you?"
Shiromaru glanced down at the menu, then poked at it. "Hm. The chicken kiev," he decided after a moment, then nodded. "Yeah. What about you?"
"Alfredo for me," Trio said decisively, then set her menu down. "Where should we start?"
As the waiter arrived, Shiro gave the man their orders, then leaned back against the back of the chair and glanced at the children before looking over at Trio. "...Where should we start?" he asked quietly, lips quirking.
"Christmas?" she offered softly, blushing faintly.
At the blush, Kikuei's eyes narrowed, and he watched her almost suspiciously. "What happened then?" he asked, before anyone else could really pick up on the nerves.
"I asked Trio to marry me," Shiro offered quietly.
Etain just blinked, glancing from Shiro to Trio and back again.
"What's that mean?" Annora demanded, looking confused. "An' how come mommy's red?"
"...Okay. How to explain this." Shiro sipped at his water for a moment, then glanced at Trio for help before looking back at the children again. "It means that Trio agreed to become my wife."
"Wife?" Etain echoed. "Is Mama going to wear a white dress now?"
Shiro shot a look at Trio again, looking for help.
Trio chuckled, shaking her head. "Probably not, sweetie. I'm probably just going to wear one of my current 'good' dresses, so it'll probably be blue..."
"She's going to be your mate?" Kikuei murmured, watching Shiro thoughtfully.
"Yes. Yes, that's a good term for it," Shiro agreed, nodding to Kikuei. "Mates. Only being married means it's really special and that we're mated for life."
Etain kicked her feet slowly, watching the pair. "Mama... You're never gonna go away?"
At that question, Kikuei suddenly nudged Shiro. "I need to go to the bathroom," he said, before Trio could even attempt to answer.
She watched him with sad eyes as he moved out of the booth a little too quickly.
Confused, and getting the idea it was something she said, Etain watched Kikuei leave, wanting to follow him. Shiro reached out, touching her shoulder gently. "Give him a moment, sweetling," he murmured.
Trio waited until Kikuei was out of earshot, then looked at the girls. "Kikuei had a bad thing happen once, and it's made him scared to believe that I might not leave him. Don't worry, sweetie."
"Leaving is bad," Etain whispered, something dark in her eyes.
Shiromaru glanced at Trio, brows furrowed slightly, then offered a gentle smile to Etain. "It'll be okay."
Trio swallowed, then reached out, taking Etain's hand while Annora and Makana looked on in confusion. Neither of them really remembered having anyone BUT Trio and the family. "Yes, sweetie. Leaving is bad," Trio agreed gently. "But sometimes, it has to happen. I can't promise that I'm never gonna go away, but I can promise that I will be your mommy always. Do you understand?"
Etain clung to Trio's hand. "Okay," she agreed, offering Trio a bright smile. If Mama said so, then it was okay. Because if Mama was always going to be her mother, then that meant Mama would always come back.
Trio swallowed at that smile, squeezing Etain's hand for a moment. "I love you, sweetie. All of you," she added, turning to look at the other girls.
"Love you too, Mama," Etain chirped happily. Gently, Shiromaru rubbed Trio's back, reassuringly.
Kikuei returned a moment later, hesitating at the edge of the booth. "Are you and Etain gonna live with them?" he asked Shiro.
Shiromaru rubbed at the bridge of his nose, a bit awkwardly. "Actually... What we were planning on doing was building a new house for us. We'd live there, and the girls, and you too if you like."
Kikuei started to open his mouth, obviously wary about that thought, but before he could say anything, Trio smiled and reached to touch his hand. "I had an idea about that, sweetie," she said. "I know you don't really like it here on the ground, so I thought maybe you could have your own place, in a treehouse. It'd be kinda like your old shelf."
"My... shelf?" Kikuei whispered, not pulling away.
Etain brightened at that thought. "Treehouse! Cool! Kiku, that'd be neat! Could I come visit if you made a treehouse?"
He nodded slowly, relaxing a little as Trio turned toward Shiro. "I thought it could connect to a balcony via a bridge and gate?"
"We could do that," Shiro agreed thoughtfully, head tilted as he imagined it. "Yes... Yes, that would be easy to do."
Trio grinned at Shiro, then at a wide-eyed Kikuei. "That way, you wouldn't have to live WITH me, but we'd all be very nearby," she explained.
"What about my pool?" Annora asked suddenly, frowning. She LIKED her wading pool!
"Will I have big windows?" Etain chimed in, leaning forward as she half-floated in her seat.
Shiro glanced at her. "Butt on the seat," he chided gently, then grinned at Annora. "We'll have a big pool. And yes, you'll have big windows," he added to Etain.
"What about you, sweetie?" Trio asked, turning to look at Makana. "Surely you want to ask something too..."
Makana hesitated, peering at them both with big eyes before looking down at her hands. "Will..." she started, then stopped with a hushed voice.
Reaching out, Shiro covered Makana's hands with his own. "Will what, sweetheart?"
"Will you read me bedtime stories?" she murmured, ears half-flat as she watched him.
Shiromaru's smile just grew, warmly. "Of course I will. I'd love to do that."
Trio chuckled, watching the kids. At least for the moment, it seemed like everything might just work out.
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Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2006 4:44 pm
Annora sat near the forest, still inside the edge of the fence, and well-protected by the various creatures prowling and lazing around her. She'd discovered the spot nearly a week ago, when a glint of sunlight in the treeline had caught her eye as she was getting ready to swim. She'd wandered over, and had been greeted with the prettiest windchimes she'd ever seen - all blues and whites, and perfectly clear glittering crystal. And when the wind blew, the chimes sounded so sweet. So she'd returned again and again, like some water-Chime Spirit, listening to the chimes and singing softly to herself. She liked it there, and that surprised her - before now, she'd never been comfortable so far from the water. But... music!
As time wore on, she grew bolder, dancing around and singing as she listened to the chimes. If she'd been Etain, she might've flown up to make them sound on their own. But she couldn't - she was a waterbaby, and had no wings. So she tried to match it instead.
She'd gotten better, over the week, at mimicking the tones, and was now beginning to expand slightly into trying to sound properly harmonic with them - all of this completely instinctual. Her only understanding of the songs she was singing was inherent, genetic. And she didn't even understand that. But, as her voice climbed and climbed that morning, she did understand one thing - she understood perfectly the sickening crack she suddenly heard. Horrified eyes looked up, discovering the crystal chimes in pieces, shards laying in glittering accusation over the grass beneath the tree.
I did that... she thought, swallowing once before swivelling to flee toward the house, with wails and tears. And as she clung to Aziraphale and Trio... she didn't explain.
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Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 6:39 am
It had been far too long since Trio had set foot near the small building she'd first met Jaden at. And really, she was feeling rather guilty about it, as she watched the two girls look around. Annora seemed to know where she was, to a point - she went to the door and knocked lightly, big eyes peering up curiously before deciding that clearly, no one was coming to the door and she should just go play in the yard. Makana, whose attention span was slightly longer than Annora's gnat-span, remained before the door for another ten seconds or so before catching sight of a butterfly flitting around some spring flowers nearby. Immediately, her ears perked up, and she crept closer, tail swishing behind her.
And Trio, who had brought them both in the hopes that getting away from some of the packing and insanity might do good, decided to flop down in the grass, a bundle of dark blue fur draping against one leg with chilling comfort.
This was...actually...unfortunetly... the first time Fern had ventured to the place where that card had indicated. Liusaidh was cuddled against her mothers chest comfortably, beaming up at her with a baby smile. Fingers knotted with spiderwebs flexed against Ferns white shirt, red hair peeking over her shoulder at the upcoming building and the....people? outside of it.
The kids didn't look too much like human (or even faerie or dragon) kids.
Fern paused a few yards from the playing kiddlets and the sprawled out woman, chewing at her lower lip worriedly. "....uhm. Excuse me? I'm looking for a place where I got...this one.."
All the time, her mind was racing with thoughts of: ....holy mother, was that little girl a cat?
Kyrianna made her way up to the cottage, her silver hair pulled back in a loose pony tail to keep her two daughters from attempting to make her go bald. Eirwen was currently strapped to the front and Eires was sitting on her shoulder, autumn wings twitching every now and then.
"Home." the little girl demanded, brushing her blonde hair away from her face as she tugged on Kyri's. She didn't WANT to be outside - she wanted to be at home. At least at home she could bother Eirwen without Kyri so much as noticing.
Eirwen, it seemed, was squirming rather uncomfortably in the baby sling. Her blue eyes were clouded with annoyance, and the frost child was definitely in a bad mood if her fists pounding at Kyri's chest showed anything.
"Eires, Eirwen, stop it," the feline's voice rang out as she stopped, seeing the group of people outside. More people this time, thankfully.
And nobody bumped into her! A miracle.
"Hello?" she asked softly, shifting Eirwen in the sling so the cool air could hit her more directly then the heat from her body. It seemed to calm the girl down and her eyes closed.
Coldness was good.
Well, perhaps Etain looked like a fairy... And in all actuality, she was a sylph.
She was also flying full-tilt towards Trio, happy to see her mother, but when she saw Fern, she stopped short before darting back behind her father as Shiromaru walked into the yard. The water demon paused where he was, then broke out into a huge grin, unable to keep from laughing aloud.
Trio blinked, looking up at all the newcomers. Either they had radar, or she'd just come at a good time. She figured on the latter for all but one, smirking as she waved at her fiance. But it was Fern she turned to, eyes sharp as she gentled her smile. Clearly, this one was new to parenting a Changeling...
"Hi. I'm Trio," she offered brightly, getting to her feet and sticking out her hand.
Not far away, Makana's ears swiveled, the sound of a rather feline voice catching HER attention. The sound made her feel odd in the pit of her stomach, and before she could credit it, the normally shy abyssinian was heading over to stand just at Kyrianna's side, peering up at the woman.
Oh s**t. People. Lots of people. The former mercenary jumped just slightly, blinking and tightening her grip on her new - her only - child. "I'm Fern..." Her voice was slightly low, shifting Liusaidh to one hip so she could shake Trios hand firmly.
That's what humans did on Gaia, right? Fern thought so... She hoped so. Otherwise she just seriously ******** up.
"Uhm.. this is Liusaidh."
The little redheaded girl beamed at Trio, fingers flexing in a faint unfurling motion. She knew how to wave! Wave meant hi!
Kyrianna smiled down at the little girl, "Well, hello there!" it wasn't too often the woman saw a full cat anthro - hell, it was rare (strange enough) that she even met another person who had feline features. Then again, she didn't exactly go out much.
She was perfectly content to stay holed up in her house or work. At least with work she got to play with people's minds.
In the most professional sense of the word.
Eires spread her wings and fluttered down, sitting down on her shoulder. She was prettier than her mother was, and besides, she would be further away from her "older" sister. Considering Eires was very tiny (A fairy, after all!) she could do so without hurting Makana any, "Hi!" she giggled, giving a small bounce as she tickled the girl's ear, "Eir..Eir...es!"
She was still getting the hang of talking.
Eirwen, however, was quite amused at the sight of everyone - especially the little red headed girl. So many new people! She wanted OUT of the carrier, darn it! Giving another squirm and a firm squeal, she lashed out at Kyri again.
"Argh, fine you little terror, I'll let you out, okay?" she quickly pulled the girl out of the carrier, unbuckled it, and let it fall to the ground. It was uncomfortable anyway, "Where to, huh?"
Eirwen giggled as the cool air rushed over her almost completely naked body, "Googah!"
"I don't know what Googah means..." she sighed, "Anyone know what Googah means?"
At least she wasn't crying this time.
"Not in my baby dictionary yet, sorry," Shiro offered cheerfully as he joined the group.
Etain, ever shy in front of strangers, stayed behind -- she couldn't get into trouble around here. Unless, of course, there was... "Annora!"
The little siren had been cheerfully playing by herself, utterly oblivious to the others for the moment, but before her name had completely cleared Etain's mouth, she'd jerked around, scrambling to her feet to run at Shiro and Etain.
"Last I checked, it meant ground... sky... food... change... it's a very versatile word," Trio said, seeming to pay little attention to Fern's handshake beyond returning it. "Hey there, cutie," she added, turning back to the child at hand. "Aren't you beautiful?"
Makana held VERY still as the fairy settled down on her shoulder, one hand going to the front of her coveralls to shelter the pocket on her chest even as wide golden eyes watched Eires. "Eir Es?" she tried softly, ears nearly flat against her skull.
As he looked between the others, Sankouri quickly decided the two who would likely need the most herding were the siren and her tag-along sylph. Knowing Trio was busy, he padded over, green eyes as cold as his fur.
Cutie? Oh. She meant Liusaidh. Thank the gods. Fern didn't want to deal with her jealous lover more then one or twice in a lifetime.
She smiled faintly, fingertips tugging at the wavy red hair of the banshees head. Liusaidh knew very little other then when she talked, her mommas got upset... so she didn't gurgle or babble as babies were prone to doing. Instead, she smiled ("It's not just gas, Fern! She's smiling!") at the Trio, fingertips moving to grab at her.
"Are.. uhm... Do you know what she is?"
Eires gave a small nod of her head. She didn't know many words, and her name was the hardest of them all to day. Eye-Reese. Eyyyyeeee - Reeeeese. She could still remember Kyrianna saying it over and over again. Still, she insisted on pronouncing it "Iris"
It was easier, darnit! "You?"
Kyrianna made a face, "Mmph, well, I'll take it as 'ground' right now," she muttered, setting Eirwen on the soft grass - which made the baby giggle as she flopped backwards against the blades which were slightly wet, "Thank you."
Leaving the frost child to do what she would, Kyri stepped over to the cluster of adults, "I'm Kyrianna, the frost imp over there is Eirwen...I swear, my house is an igloo. The fairy currently on the sweet little girl's shoulder is my second daughter, Eires. Autumn." she tilted her head.
"I'm waiting for Spring and Summer to show up on my doorstep, to be honest...And to answer your question, I uh...I think she's a Changeling. If you got a card with directions here, anyway..."
Eires looked over to her sister who was currently rolling around in the grass and sniffed, "Sis. Strange."
Eirwen ignored the Autumn fairy and simply picked a piece of grass, raising it to her mouth to chew.
Kyri glanced over, "Uhm, I'm rather new to this. Grass shouldn't be eaten, right?"
No, Kyri, it shouldn't. Stupid question.
"Depends on whether or not you have a centaur-type child, I suppose. I'm Shiromaru," the demon offered, nodding to Fern and Kyrianna. "It's nice to meet you all."
Etain sank down to the ground, then closed the last few paces between herself and Annora, hugging the other girl gleefully. If Annora was there, then everything was okay!
...Maybe they'd be needing Sankouri's assistance in keeping them out of trouble, after all.
Trio chuckled wryly at the question, shaking her head even as she let Liusaidh's fingers wrap around one of her own. "Not a clue," she informed Fern cheerfully. Jaden would know, but as he didn't seem to be around, she figured it was best not to hazard any guesses. "What does she like?"
Annora wrapped her arms around Etain in a brief, hard hug before pulling away and grabbing Etain's hand, tugging the sylph off without saying hi to the adults. She'd found a nest of ants not far away, and the small hill definitely deserved attention.
Sankouri started to follow them, but at the sound of the word frost, his head came up, and he peered toward the small child on the ground. Hesitating only a moment, he padded over, sniffing at her curiously.
"Not a clue?" Fern almost deflated at that remark, watching as her daughter started to gum at one of Trios fingers with a giggle.
Giggles didn't seem to kill things..but o utright laughter, blathering and the like...that did. The grown woman was terrified it would happen here, hurting one of the kids or something. "She.. well. She likes chewing things like fingers." Fern shrugged, "And wool. She likes being covered by thick stuff."
Kyrianna bowed her head lightly, "A pleasure to meet you, Shiromaru. She wasn't good with meeting new people outside the office, but so far so good. She hadn't made a complete fool of herself.
Though the way she looked, she'd be the last person you'd expect to have children. Peircings, black trench coat, slightly darker expression.
Eirwen looked up to the creature which came up to her and giggled softly as he sniffed. That tickled! The frost fairy reached out, grabbing some of the thing's fur carefully (not enough to hurt! She just wanted to pet!) and smiled gleefully. He was cold! And fluffy! and CUTE!
Where could SHE get one of these?
Comparatively speaking, Shiromaru didn't look like one's usual idea of a father, either -- dyed, long hair; short shorts; boots; earrings... He looked more candypunk than anything else.
At least for today.
A grin was shot at Kyrianna, then Shiro's attention was diverted to Fern and her comments. "Some babies do. And is she teething right now? That might explain her gnawing habits. But I have no idea what she might be, either... though if we can get an answer from inside the house at some point, someone in there might know."
Etain floated over the ant hill a few inches, poking at the ants with a fingertip and giggling when they crawled over her hand. "Big ants," she announced, sagely. "What are we gonna do with'm?"
"Watch 'em," Annora said, pitching her voice to be soft. In deference to the fact that they couldn't actually SEE inside the anthill, she grabbed a stick and poked a hole in it. "See?"
Trio was normal looking enough - a warm blue sweater that bared enough of her midriff to leave people wondering what the point of it might be and grey slacks with black boots were entirely too plain compared to Shiro. She wore some jewelry, including a glowing necklace that seemed designed to capture the attention of anyone with crow-syndrome. "So far, you've described about ninety percent of the kids out there. Anything special, like a super-strong voice or anything?" she asked gently, unconsciously looking over at the quiet siren before returning her attention to the adorable girl.
Sankouri's eyes narrowed as his fur was grabbed, and he blinked when he realized it wasn't being yanked. Curious about this entirely too courteous child, he settled down near her, curling his body still sniffing at her.
Makana had finally moved, edging away from the feline to go press against Shiromaru's side, her arms wrapping around his leg. That voice made her feel almost sad...
"Uhm...she kills things when she talks." Her voice was hesitiant, "I think she does, anyway. When she blabbers or anything...things fall down dead outside or nearby." Fern shrugged quietly, watching the girl and her daughter.
Liusaidh, tired of finger, released Trio and shoved her fist into her wide little mouth. She sucked at her fingers and spiderwebs, giggling once more.
Eirwen gave a happy little squeal as the cold creature curled around her, using her arms to maneuver herself so her head was on his body and her little fingers could pat at his fur. Of course, the movement caused her longish white and blue hair to fall over her eyes, which temporarily blinded her.
With another squeal, this time a little shocked, she shook her head in an attempt to fix the problem. Unfortunately, it made it worse.
"Googah!" she whimpered, shaking her head again. The hair was annoying!
Eires, however, remained on Makana's shoulder and looked up at the man she was currently clinging to with bright green eyes. Oh! He looked interesting! Fluttering her wings she left the feline's shoulder and took residence on Shiromaru's, giggling.
"Hi!" she greeted, cheerfully.
Automatically, Shiro set a comforting hand to Makana's just-vacated shoulder, keeping her close; his attention, however, settled on Eires, golden eyes blinking at green before he broke out in another grin. "Hey there," he offered cheerfully. "How are you, little one?"
Etain leaned in further, then started to pat at the ant hill herself, forgoing a stick in favor of her hands. "How many d'you think are down there?"
Immediately, Trio's cheerful smile faded into a concerned look. "May I hold her?" she asked, reaching toward Liusaidh. "She's not a siren, I know that much. Annora doesn't kill with her voice, though it sometimes hurts... And definitely not a sylph," she murmured, more to herself than Fern.
"Don't touch!" Annora said, forgetting to keep her voice soft as she reached out and grabbed Etain's hands, flicking away a couple of ants and shuddering. "They're mean..." She tugged the sylph back, eyes immediately going back to the ants trying to rebuild their hill.
Makana pressed close to Shiro, eyes once more peering up at Kyrianna shyly, and her ears slowly coming forward. Daddy was safe. He'd make her feel better...
Sankouri, on the other hand, looked bemused, leaning in to lick the hair away from Eirwen's face with a long, wet tongue before nuzzling her neck gently. It was rare he was cuddled with this much! Most people didn't like the cool he exuded.
Fern hesitated before offering the girl towards teh other woman. "It's not like she bites or screams really loudly.. SHe's shut up a lot since we first got her."
Liusaidh continued to suckle at her hands, making a soft little noise and snuggling into the other woman.
"What's a siren? A sylph?"
Eires was acknowledged! That made the little fairy glow with pleasure, "Otay! You? I Iris!" she giggled and bounced on his shoulder slightly, her little arms hugging onto his ear.
Since she was too small too do much else.
Kyrianna laughed at the Autumn fairy, "Her name is Eires, not Iris, and she's very hyperactive."
Eires stuck out her tongue, little wings beating furiously.
"You know I love you." Kyrianna paused a little bit and turned to look at Fern, "Things die when she speaks?" she bit her lip a little bit, "My grandmother used to tell me ghost stories when I was little. They say that the Banshee's voice rang out when people were supposed to die. Is that a possibility, do you think? It's a little different but..."
Eirwen settled down immediately once her hair was removed from her face, clear blue eyes gazing adoringly at the creature. It was her hero! "Fuff!" she giggled and pet at him again, little nails scritching the best they could.
The little frost fae loved the cold. In fact, their entire house was the temperature of an igloo due to the fact if it got any warmer, she'd cry. Not that she couldn't HANDLE the heat. She just didn't like it. It made her uncomfortable. "Fuff!" she repeated.
Apparently, it was her word for "Fluffy."
Laughing softly, Shiro offered his fingertip up to Eires, as if to try and shake Eires' hand with it. "Eires, huh? I'm Shiro." The demon kept one hand still on Makana's shoulder, glad to feel her relaxing a little. "Etain, over there, with the wings? Etain's a sylph, an air elemental, essentially. Etain also apparently needs to learn about the dangers of ants," he added, groaning quietly.
Etain squeaked when her hands were tugged away, her eyes going wide. "Ants are mean?" she echoed, confused and stunned. "They're little... How're they mean? What do they do?"
"I... dunno," Annora said, dropping back into the quiet voice that was so unusual for her. "Kikuei says they're mean." She frowned at that - she'd never known the Ieldi to lie to her, but confronted with the question...
Settling Liusaidh into her arms, Trio frowned quietly, bouncing her a little. "Banshee? I ran into some stories of those when I was looking up sirens... er, my daughter over there, the blue one? She's a siren. We're being careful what she learns," she added wryly, nuzzling Liusaidh's hair. It was hard to believe someone so small and beautiful could be so dangerous...
Makana ducked more behind Shiro as Kyri talked, beginning to frown faintly. Daddy wasn't taking her somewhere to cuddle. That was odd. Daddy liked to cuddle with her, after all...
Sankouri remained silent, letting Eirwen tug and pull and play with his fur with the overly-long patience of one who'd been around TONS of children. She'd settle, once she got used to him...
"...a banshee?" Fern frowned, racking her brain for the few things she knew about legends or fay other then herself - she was from a few worlds to the left and five dimensions over, after all...
"Aren't they supposed to be harbringers of death?" Eyebrows arch quietly, shifting a bit, unconciously, from foot to foot. "So I have a screamer of death on my hands? Siren? Wait, didn't they..." Oh, remembering.
The redhead giggled madly and nuzzled back to Trio, "Gyaba?" Her voice was small, a whisper even - it was a beautiful little tone...until she heard the shift thud of something falling from a tree. It was a small sound - probably just a beetle - but it was large enough make her listen.
That was a familier sound...so her mouth clamped down, pushing her hand into her mouth once more.
Eires shook his hand with both of her tiny ones, "Nice!" she nodded sagely before settling down, her head buried against his ear. He was nice. MUCH nicer than Arta was.
The little frost baby yawned cutely and looked at the creature as she continued to pet it, gently, softly. She was getting sleepy from all the excitement - and sleeping was her favorite past time. Mostly because she got tired so easily.
"Fuff," she murmured tiredly, eyes drooping closed.
Hmmm... Shiro considered Eires, then Makana, then stepped back a couple feet, sat down, and settled Makana in his lap for some snuggletime. Clearly that's what the little girl was wanting, if she was still hiding behind him like that.
"Annora... You're being weird," Etain noted solemnly, looking up at her sister. "Why are you so quiet?"
Annora frowned at Etain, brows drawing together. She was NOT being weird. Just because she didn't want to hurt any more... Before she could finish the thought, she turned, hunching down near the ants and poking at the hill again.
Trio nodded to Fern. "Yeah, Banshees' wails are supposed to foretell death, isn't that right?" she asked Kyrianna, glancing over at her. "And sirens were the ones that lured sailors to their deaths, yes," she added, voice ever so slightly flat. "We're working to make sure Annora understands that's wrong." As she was whispered to, Trio turned back, looking down at Liusaidh sadly. "Looks like things are gonna be frustrating for you for a while, sweetie..."
That was MUCH better. Makana scrambled onto Shiro's lap, hooking a claw into his shirt as she nestled and began purring. Daddy was holding her - she liked it when he did that. He knew where to scritch to calm her nerves. Eyes drifting shut, she tugged on her paw, giving up after a moment as her claw held tightly to Shiro's shirt.
Sankouri came as close to smirking as a Zurui was capable of, setting his three cold tails over Eirwen's body in an odd parody of a blanket. This was a nice change, and the snuggling was beginning to make him dozy too.
"Huh." Fern blinked and turned her head to watch Annora with amusement on her face. "Well... it looks like you're doing a good job. Usually girls like that aren't so cute and well-adjusted.."
Liusaidh blinked back, beaming at the other with a soft giggle. Her smile was filled with toothless gums and one slobbery hand.. that was offered up to Trio as a gift.
Eirwen finally gave in to the pull of sleep, her little head nuzzling the Zurui as she shifted, got comfortable, and was still once again.
"Well, there's a bunch of us around reminding her that she's loved and adorable..." Trio paused, then rolled her eyes and grinned. "And vain. Definitely vain," she added, whith a chuckle. She eyed the drool-covered hand being offered up to her, thought wistfully of baby wipes, and then reached out, taking it. "You're pretty, too, little one..."
"Vain can be good." Fern smiled at the other woman getting along so well with her daughter. "She's going to be raised spoiled.. My lover thinks she's a gift from the Goddess or something. She looks like her mother."
Liusaidh looked delighted, fingers wriggling with a giggle, body shifting to cuddle closer. Gray eyes blinked to her mother, shoulders rolling before she started to doze.
"Oooooh. Good luck with her then," Trio laughed, then glanced at the others around. "Listen, why don't we go get a coffee. Doesn't look like Jaden's gonna answer any time soon." She handed Liusaidh back to Fern, then whistled to the kids and Sankouri, herding them toward the road. "There's a nice little hole-in-the-wall down the road a mile or so. Best coffee around."
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Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 3:34 pm
The kitchen and bathroom would be packed last, the living room furniture left for the remaining members of the household; their bedrooms, however, needed to go. So it was that Shiro, Etain and Annora were in Etain's room, packing everything up for the move to the new house. Several boxes were full already, including one filled with Etain's precious chimes. Currently, Shiromaru was in the closet, folding up Etain's clothing and boxing it all, while Etain was quite carefully rolling up her few breakables, having been shown how to roll them in bubblewrap by her father.
Annora had been given the job of ensuring that all the books and music were carefully packed in a box by themselves, and had been surprisingly silent throughout the task. But her head swiveled around when they heard the front door open and close, and Trio's voice call out, "Anyone home?"
"We're in Etain's room," Shiro called back, a smile in his voice. "We're about done packing up in here already."
"MAMA!" Etain added, zipping over to her doorway so she could peer out into the hall.
Makana was holding Trio's hand, nearly clinging to her and stumbling slightly as the two walked down the hall. "Wonderful. I have news," Trio called back, waving at Etain and grinning.
Shiro blinked, then stepped out of the closet, peering at first Trio, then Makana, rather concerned. "News? Is everything okay?"
Etain had been about to pounce Trio, but when she saw Makana stumble, she flew down to the catgirl's level so she could try and take Makana's other hand.
Makana gripped Etain's hand, sniffing the air before purring deeply at the smell of her favorite sylph. They paused at the door, and Trio grinned at Shiro before looking down to Annora, who'd wrapped her arms around one of Shiro's legs to peer out. "Everything's fine. Makana's just disoriented. I told you we were going to the optometrist today, right?" she asked Shiro.
If Makana was stumbling, then Etain had to help! After all, Annora would have helped Etain in the same position, so that meant it was Etain's duty as the middle sister to help Makana, the littlest. Landing on the floor, she kept hold of Makana's hand, holding it carefully. "Won't let you fall," she informed Makana, quite seriously.
Shiromaru stroked Annora's hair when he felt the girl hug his leg, trying to be reassuring. Annora's behavior lately had left him worried -- what if the move was upsetting her? "I remember," he agreed, nodding to Trio. "How'd it go?"
"She needs glasses," Trio said succinctly, reaching down to pet Makana's hair as she watched Annora seem to relax a little from the same petting from Shiro. "I've got the prescription, and just need to head out tomorrow, once the drops they put in her eyes wear off, to get it filled. I figured in the meantime, maybe one of us could read to her," she added, smiling softly.
Makana peered at Etain, mewling softly at the way the girl's face seemed completely blurry, even up close. Her pupils were huge, the light hurting her eyes. "Go somewhere dark?" she asked, curling around Etain's arm.
"We left Mouse with Az for the moment," Trio added. "I figured it'd be a day or so before she could care for him properly."
Reaching up, Etain tried to cover Makana's eyes with her small hand. "Annora?" she called, looking back for the siren. "Makana needs somewhere dark. Come with us?"
"Good idea," Shiro agreed, then stroked Annora's hair again. "Do you want to go with your sisters?" he asked gently. "Or do you want to stay here?"
Annora hesitated, then nodded, letting go of Shiro to move to Makana's other side, planting herself between Trio and Makana. "Maybe Daddy's room? We can turn out the lights there," she said softly.
Makana nodded, liking the sound of that. "I can't see," she informed them. "Take me there."
Trio smiled, watching the three. They were really quite self-sufficient, weren't they?
Etain beamed up at Annora, pleased that the siren was coming with them, then led the way into Shiromaru's room, where it was nice and dark. The curtains were all drawn, after all, and very little light got in.
Shiromaru watched then walk off, then made his way over to Trio, sliding an arm around her waist. "It's good to see them taking care of each other."
Trio nodded, hugging Shiro warmly before tugging free. "Okay, let's get this room dealt with, hmm? Sooner we're done, the sooner we can relax."
Makana curled up on the bed, purring softly as she nestled into pillows that smelled like Mommy and Daddy. But Annora was frowning slightly. "Can't read to her," she pointed out, climbing onto the bed as well.
"So we make up a story," Etain declared, crawling up onto the bed on the other side of Makana. "We can make one up, then we don't gotta read from a book!"
Annora considered that, eyeing Etain for a moment before nodding. "You make it up," she dictated, keeping her voice soft.
Makana giggled at that, relaxing now that the light wasn't hurting her eyes so much. It was even safe to open them fully, instead of squinting all the time.
Etain blinked, then tilted her head to the side, nibbling at the end of a curl as she thought. "...I don't know where to start," she confessed after a moment. Didn't most stories start with 'once upon a time'? It was the part that came after that had her stumped.
"If it was you, what would you want to hear about?" Annora asked logically, snuggling with Makana. The feline's purrs were almost loud enough to drown her out.
Well, when it was put that way... "Once upon a time there were three princesses," Etain begain, snuggling with Makana as well as she spun out her story to the best of her childish ability.
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