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 Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 11:18 pm
"They do sell buffalo in Destiny City, but I think you're right. I've never seen any raised locally so I imagine it's shipped in and not as fresh as what you can get up here. I'm glad you like it." She was, in fact, glad that he seemed to like it, but she was also happy to be changing the conversation.
Unfortunately it hadn't worked very well."What could possibly have you that busy?" Mato continued, undeterred. "I mean we are talking about you after all. How many times did you have to marry her Tokala?" He mused between bites. Tokala faltered for a moment, glancing at Aurora and the redness spreading across her face, but he answered his older brother nonetheless, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "It had to have been 20 or more times..." "Right. So you're telling me the girl whose favorite game for like a year was planning and pretending to have weddings is too busy to have a real one?" "Well I'm not five anymore." She lamented.
Aurora's normal excellent posture was failing her as she slowly began to sink into her chair. It was true when she was younger she'd went through a phase. And in truth it was one of her favorite memories of her mother. The hours they spent together, the beautiful little dress mother had handmade for her. She surely didn't have the concept of what a wedding really was all about, but she had her romantic childish view of it.
Even long after her days of pretend were over it certainly wasn't a lie that she occassionally pawed through a wedding magazine or two. Of course she'd daydreamed about one here or there, even recently. But... it wasn't like it was their business. And it certainly wasn't something she wanted Azzo knowing.
"I just don't care about it anymore." She stated out of desperation, straightening in her seat with confidence even as she lied through her teeth. "I'm more concerned with becoming a teacher then a wife or mother. Why have 1 child when you can have a whole classroom of them to look over."
The table was practically silent. Even Chayton didn't dare to chime in.
After a moment of awkwardness, she tried to desperately to change the subject. "Have you been able to sign up for your classes yet Chayton?"The chatter and conversation returned to the table slowly but surely. It seemed more careful now though, more polite. They all seemed to know they'd taken it to far by the way Aurora was now picking at her food. Everyone had taken the hint, except Mato, who leaned slightly whisper to Azzo. "I still have no clue how she convinced our Dad to let her move in with you without being married. She always did have him wrapped around her finger though... God rest his soul."
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Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 11:37 pm
It was Azzo was starting to glare at the boys who were still picking on Aurora. He sighed though when she finally cracked about to whisper to her only to be stopped by Mato.
He stopped and looked at the older man, "Maybe because he realized I had some sense enough not to poke her until she cracked." He added in his own whisper though he sounded irritated. "Or maybe because he realized I'd treat her right and not rush things."
He sighed looking at Aurora who was picking at her food. Considering that he had started looking at his own food still fairly hungry; there was the problem that Azzo wasn't sure though if he was interested in eating it at the moment. Instead he sighed as the chatter slowly returned though he couldn't help but feel like he'd disappointed Aurora. Not to mention with the way she'd just cracked he wasn't sure he could actually bring himself to eat at the moment. Instead of playing with his food though he sat there staring beyond most everyone, like he usually did when his father struck that nerve of his.
The train of thought he was on, had him wondering if she'd been better off it he hadn't come to help her back to Destiny. Or if she regretted him coming to see her brothers, since all it seemed to do was cause chaos. Actually, Azzo was fairly sure he'd face a Corrupt Princess or General King or Queen any day in favor of this. What made it worse was he didn't want to be rude and leave the table so he felt fairly trapped since he was indeed a guest in the house. Which usually meant suffering through whatever happened and not moving from the table until everyone was done. . . For poor Azzo this seemed like it might end up being one of the longest suppers ever.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 7:36 am
It was hardly his fault. Siblings were siblings were siblings. For as much as they loved each other they also had the incessant need to pick on and at each other. It was a fine tango. And while perhaps they had more ammunition this evening, the only reason it'd gotten so far was because well.. Azzo's presence had actually lifted her mood, and everyone had gone into the dinner with a far more jovial mood then normal.
Things would smooth over, they always did. Because family was like a rubber band. Even when it got stretched thin and you got stung by it, it always eventually went back to it's normal shape. Back to the shape that could help you hold things together.
As Aurora listened to Chayton label of the handful of general education classes, and nit pick on the one class he really wanted that had filled up right before her could get in it Aurora stirred her ambrosia lightly, finally taking a couple bites again. Was Mato impressed...? Azzo's reaction had at the very least brought silence and surprise to Aurora's eldest brother. The seriousness of the reply wasn't really like something he'd have expected from one of his brothers but you know who was super serious? Aurora. Maybe it was a better match then he thought. And while he still didn't approve of the set up that much, for the time being he offered Azzo a mild nod before returning to tearing through his food. It seemed the only appetite's affected by it all had been Azzo and Auroras. Always the peacemaker Tokala piped up as well after Aurora, following her same train of thought. "Are you going to school for anything Azzo? Or are you already working?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 8:06 am
Azzo's mind was still toiling with all the reasons he probably shouldn't be there, and wondering if Aurora was mad at him since it seemed the ruckus was largely his fault. It also took him a few seconds to snap out of his daze when he realized there was a question directed at him, "Huh? Uh... oh..."
He stopped when he realized his face probably looked much like a deer caught in headlights, "Well I'm not really going to school for anything, though I've been working on teaching myself my grandfather's main trade. While I do puppet making and some theater on the side." He replied in thought. He couldn't really mention anything beyond that since his night job was fairly unfavorable to mention to those not in the know.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 8:42 am
Welcome to Aurora's dilema over the past year. Trying to find things she could talk about that didn't involve what she actually did with most of her time. It pretty much made out to Aurora seeming like the most boring person on the face of the earth. Her eyes turned to Azzo as he stumbled out of his surprise offering him a small sympathetic smile. Her foot slide over as well until it touched his, trying to comfort him with the simple, secret, affection."I never really thought about what goes into trying to make a puppet..." Tokala mused curiously. Other then when they made rudimentary dolls out of husks as children he couldn't saw he knew much at all about toy making. It was certainly a unique job. "Only you would hunt out a real life Geppetto." Chayton smirked playfully. She was such a girl. While others had been talking Bodaway had apparently be mowing through his food, because he clanked his fork against his plate. "So what kind of magical dessert did you whip up today?" He had seen her fairly focused on something last night, so he assumed it had to be good. "Huh...? Oh!" It was Aurora's turn to be surprised, glancing over to Bodaway's empty plate.
"H.. hold on a second. Actually this will take me a couple of minutes." Excusing herself from the table Aurora made her way into the kitchen. The sound of her working was evident but brief. And within 2 or 3 minutes she returned, carrying with her a silver tray.
From the outside it looked simply like a bunch of merangue, but they all probably knew exactly what it really was. "Honeycomb and raspberry baked Alaska. You guys better eat a little faster if you don't want the icecream inside to melt too much."
This was probably a blessing in disguise.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 9:36 am
Azzo smiled a little towards Aurora when he glanced her way. He then glanced back to Tokala, "I can probably show you while we're here. I don't have any of my usual supplies but that doesn't mean I can't improvise on the materials." He gave a small shrug, "At least if you're interested."
Azzo stopped when the other asked about dessert and looked at his own plate. Largely untouched save for a few bites he'd been fairly distracted and while Aurora went to fix desert the fact he was actually hungry hit him again. So he wolfed down a few bites as politely as he could muster with speed and the fact of how actually hungry he was. Managing to clear about a third of his plate by the time Aurora came back.
Swallowing the meat he stopped and looked at the baked Alaska. "Ohh, that looks good Aurora." He said, it sounded fairly good too. At least the boys had behaved long enough he could scarf down food. When she mentioned the ice cream would melt he looked at it and then his plate and continued to wolf it down. How he managed to taste anything was probably anyone's guess and still do so with grace and manners. Lucky him he hadn't picked up the ambrosia yet either, he was planning around the main meal first. He was planning on snagging up some of the Ambrosia as a to go food and scarf it down while helping Aurora with dishes.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 11:09 am
"Sure why not." Tokala commented. Might be interesting to see even if he didn't really ever see himself in need of puppets. "If Aurora doesn't already have every second of the next couple of days planned out for you." He added after a second, grinning. After this fiasco her couldn't say he'd blame his sister if she kept her boyfriend tied tightly to her side for the rest of their visit. When Aurora returned with the dessert, and mentioned eating quickly Bodaway puffed his chest slightly, standing up to take the first slice out of the fancy dessert. "Well I'm already done so the rest of you guys better hurry up before I eat it all." "Oh you're on" Chayton smirked, beginning to shovel food in his mouth. "What are you guys, ******** twelve?" Mato groaned, nonetheless quicken his pace in eating as well. Adverting his eyes from Aurora when she glared at him for his bad language. "D.. Done!" Came a declaration from Lallo, who seemed genuinely annoyed when Bodaway piped back. "Well I guess that makes you the first lose then." "Second place isn't first loser." The youngest brother whined. "I hope you like it Azzo. The ingredients are really different from the last one I made for you so.. hopefully it should taste like a whole new dessert."
Aurora simply sighed as she settled back in her seat. A sigh that almost sounded like relief. She actually looked kind of funny continuing to daintily and prim eat her food while the boys scattered around he table shoveled theirs down.
This was better. This is what family dinners were supposed to be like.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 11:57 am
Azzo nodded, and paused, "Oh I'm sure she doesn't have the whole trip planned for me. Only like a majority of it." He chuckled, he knew how Aurora was, "I'm sure we'll figure it out."
Azzo didn't bother looking at Mato, though as he swallowed another bite of food, "Pretty sure they did just devolve a few years." He looked at Bodaway, "Seriously? There's no losers when it comes to dessert; unless you get told to go to bed without any."
Azzo had almost finished his whole plate stealing a small piece of bread to help finish clear it so there wouldn't be traces left behind to meld with the Baked Alaska and create weird flavors. He did however wait a little bit when his plate was clear to snag any of the dessert.
"You know I don't turn down any food you make." Was his reply with a chuckle.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 2:35 pm
Mato snorted a little at Azzo's comment about devolution, nodding in full agreement and amusement. They were animals sometimes, back in the day he'd recalled that sometime they were rowdier then the actual buffalo. He kind of actually enjoyed working alone on his own farm now. Tokala pointed a fork full of cake at Azzo, more amused by his other comment. "Sage wisdom indeed." Bodaway made good on his threat, going in for another slice of the 'cake', though by now almost everyone had some on their plate. Lila, who had been mostly silent, except for her quiet conversations with Lallo, pushed her chair back lightly, standing up. "Would you like me to get the dishes tonight Aurora so that you can spend some more time helping him settle in?" "Are you sure...? I dirtied a lot of dishes tonight." Aurora replied, biting her lip just a little. She wasn't sure if Lila might have been biting off more than she'd imagined. "I mean I could get a head start on packing.. but I really don't mind doing dishes." "And I don't mind either." Lila replied with a light smile, scooping up her own plate to head towards the kitchen. "You've cooked almost every meal for the last year, I'm pretty sure I can scrub a few dishes." "Just remember Rora. 'Doors have to stay open when you have boys in your room' " Chayton's impression of his sister was actually pretty good, down to the naggy finger wag. But then, he'd only heard Aurora's version of it 50 or more times through their teenage years. Another rousing round of laughter as Aurora groaned and finally cut her own piece of dessert.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 5:18 pm
Azzo smiled at Tokala, before looking when Lila asked if Aurora wanted her to get dishes. He looked back at Aurora and then to Lila as she got up from the table to work on the dishes, "If you need any help, let me know?" He said after her.
Settling in wasn't an issue, it was more he didn't want to leave mess that he helped make. He was taking his time eating the dessert, "How often do you actually follow that rule?" He asked Chayton, though being fairly impressed with how well the boy could mimic his sister, Azzo wasn't even about to give the boy props.
He looked thoughtful, "So, beyond Bison and/or Buffalo? What else do you all do around here?" He asked pausing as he took a bite and then followed up with, "Picking on Aurora is not a valid answer."
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 9:12 pm
His fist raised dramatically into the air, as he bellowed his answer, almost like a mantra. "Rules are meant to be broken." "And sisters can't do anything about it while they're off at their fancy boarding schools." Chayton mused, grinning at his sister who merely rolled her eyes back at him. When Azzo mentioned picking on Aurora Chayton raised his hands up defensively. "Hey hey hey. Don't let her lie to you. We didn't pick on her." "Dad would have killed us, she was always his favorite." Bodaway jumped in. "Yeah." Chayton smirked. "This is just a special occassion. It's not everyday your sister brings her first boyfriend home." "There are like.. two givens that have to happen when a girl brings her first boyfriend home. Embarrass the hell out of her and threaten him with a shotgun." "s**t we forgot the shotgun." "We've got a whole weekend." Mato added without missing a beat. "You guys are terrible." Aurora interrupted. But it was different this time. Maybe she'd finally caught onto their sentiment, or maybe she was just too exhausted to care anymore, but there was the slightest hint of an exasperated smile on her face. "Like I'm literally never ever coming back here.""Buffalo are pretty much it." Tokala answered with a shrug. "We have a few horses to help with the buffalo and a couple chickens for eggs but that's pretty much it. Ranching isn't a very glamourous life. But it's nice to be able to know you can provide for yourself even if you get snowed in for a week." Almost everyone was done eating and Aurora stood, beginning to stack some of the empty plates together in preparation of taking them into the kitchen for Lila.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 9:30 pm
Azzo stopped and looked at the boys he started laughing, "Well I'm glad ya'll don't always give her a hard time. I might have to take up protecting her from you guys if you were serious." He smiled, he knew he didn't look like much compared to Mato or maybe even Tokala but he had stood up to worse for Aurora.
Azzo paused at the shotgun mention, "Okay now ya'll sound like my grandfather." He sighed and shook his head, "If I'd had a sister he wouldn't've forgot the shot gun." Azzo said with a chuckle.
He figured they were kidding but he knew to expect the shotgun at some point. He was sure they'd probably pull one on him if he kept her out too late. "Actually I'm kind of surprised no one pulled one on me when we took too long finding my baggage."
He was scratching the back of his head when he said this though, he turned towards Tokala when he answered, "Ohhh chickens were always great fun when I was a kid. I'd get to go collect the eggs, and bring them to grams so she could fix breakfast." Why that excited him was probably beyond anyone but he knew he could actually help Aurora with breakfast in the morning. "I do wish we didn't live so far into the city. We could might've kept at least a few chickens if nothing else."
He paused, "Yeah. We occasionally get harsh winters for our area of the world but I'm sure it's nothing compared to what you guys go through." He finished off his dessert as Aurora took the empty plates from the table.
"Hey Aurora, do ya'll have any Styrofoam or paper bowls? I'd like to grab some of the Ambrosia and eat it but I don't want to hold up anyone." His choice of fine china since Aurora had been gone was paper and the occasional Styrofoam over the actual china plates. It was less mess for him to deal with and able to move with him instead of sitting at an empty table.
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 9:56 pm
Fresh eggs were nice, but Aurora was not a fan at all of the chickens or of trying to hunt out the eggs. No, she very much preferred her ingredients delivered to her clean and prepped.
"I think I might have some paper ones in the kitchen for when I bring lunch out to the boys.." Aurora was thinking aloud. "I'll go hunt one down for you.""That's what it's all about isn't it. Keeping the women folk safe and happy." Mato mused, only halfway joking. Despite how horrific Aurora and Azzo might have felt the night went in the end Mato was fairly satisfied. Since his father wasn't there anymore it was kind of his job to be the stand in. And so far it seemed like Azzo was alright. When Aurora left the room, Mato leaned towards Azzo, offering one more not so innocent or subtle bit of information. "Did you know in Alaska anyone can marry a couple. All you need is a $25 license and then anyone can perform the ceremony." Just food for thought. He didn't expect or wait for an answer, stretching his arms above him as he stood up. "I better get going, my barn isn't going to fix itself." With Mato getting up the others soon followed ready to start their evenings and enjoy their free time, each excusing themselves. Tokala waited around long enough for Aurora to return however, only standing once she returned. "If you need anything feel free to bug me." He offered to both Azzo and his sister before leaving the two alone in the large dining room. Setting the bowl in front of him, she leaned down to give him a slight hug from behind. "I'm really really sorry about that..."
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 10:10 pm
Of the pair apparently Azzo was the only one interested in chickens. "Awesome, thank you~" He replied when Aurora mentioned she thought she could find one.
He nodded in agreement with Mato, "Though she does well on her own too. You're sister can be a very tough lady and I see where she gets her thick skin." He was looking at all those around the table. Of course he didn't mention why he was saying this.
There was a long silent pause at the brother prodded him again on the Marriage thing. He was looking curiously at Mato, though he didn't get a chance to say anything when the other said he was going to go work on his barn. "If you need help while I'm here, I'd be more than happy to see if I can!" He added as Mato left.
Azzo nodded when Tokala mentioned they could bug him if he needed anything.
Azzo was already scooping out the Ambrosia, as soon as Aurora sat the bowl down pausing long enough for her to hug him. "You're family is so much more interesting than mine." Was his reply and when he was finished with filling the bowl he paused and fingers tapped together for a few moments as he was thinking. "That. . . actually went better than I expected, despite the fantastic duo getting under our skin a bit."
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Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 10:29 pm
"Interesting is a kind word." She mused tiredly. "Chaotic is probably more accurate."
However he seemed happy enough, so she too was happy. Besides, now they could catch up a bit more on their own while she packed.
"We can go pack for a little bit but you should probably try to get to sleep before too long. It's going to be a long day tomorrow." LP Fin, unless you have anything else you want to add?
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