[J] Shauna's Journal (Eight is Guardian)

[Eight]

Morning Shau--Holy CRAP!

"Please, Momma? Pleeeeeease! Can I go wake then up nooooow~?" Shauna pleaded, leaning over the island in the kitchen and making the cutest face she could. Eight was busy making her daughter's breakfast right now, still dressed in the oversized, black sweatshirt she'd been wearing last night when she went to Sukku's house. Why bother changing? She could do that later. She was blatantly ignoring the faces Shauna was trying to give her to soften her up and make her cave, although she couldn't help but laugh whenever she looked over her shoulder and caught one. She looked so silly! "Come on! I wanna show them!"

"You can, but let them wake up on their own...most of them are rather cranky if someone wakes them with force...especially Faye and Reynee." Eight flipped some pancakes over, leaning over the other side of the island towards Shauna, taking the girl's hands and waving them around a bit. "They'll be so happy to see you..." She sighed. "They grow up so fast...trying to make me feel old!" Eight playfully bapped at Shauna's head enough that it wouldn't hurt her at all, ducking away from a return swipe and laughing. How was this girl not really her daughter?! She was just like her!

...Except Shauna probably would have said G ends everything on her first try...

"Hm...you want to help me a bit? Maybe we can go shopping later after breakfast! How's that sound?" They'd need stuff to fill up Shauna's new room...the one Shauna had never used or seen since Eight had her sleep with her every night as a toddler. The look on Shauna's face was enough of an answer for Eight, it was the kind of look that a smaller child would get when they spotted something they liked...or something shiny. She really wanted to help her mother, didn't she? Pushing herself back up to stand straight again, Eight gestured for Shauna to follow her around the island to the fridge. "Pick out some fruit you like...and how many slices of bread you want for your toast, and pick a cereal." Eight instructed, grabbing the spatula to put the pancakes on a plate, putting that plate aside on the counter so she could start on the scrambled eggs Shauna had said she wanted.

"I can? Really? Yes!" Shauna opened the fridge and squatted down to the drawer filled with fruit, picking out a granny smith apple, an orange and a banana after much deliberation. It was hard picking out food when she liked all her choices! Now she had to pick a cereal! Although her cereal picking was rather absentminded, her mind was too busy thinking about the shopping trip Eight had just promised; the last time she'd taken her shopping was when they went to get Tabby after she spoke her first words! Would she be getting something even better on this trip? Maybe she'd get to have more things! The fox looked around the kitchen with a curious gaze, much preferring this angle to the way she saw everything before she grew older. Asra was right, her wish did come true...not that she ever doubted him. She'd have to go see Elle and Asra soon to show them her new look, she could plot her tactics over breakfast.

"...Shauna...? Shaaaaaaauna. Shauna." That certainly caught her attention, but she was still a bit sluggish to respond even then. Eight smiled softly, tilting her head a bit. "You okay? You got really quiet..." After a scare like last night, Eight wasn't ready to let Shauna do anything too out of the ordinary just yet. Shauna giggled and nodded, picking up a box of apple jacks and pouring some into a bowl.

"Uh huh! Perfectly fine! I was just thinking is all! Everything looks so much different now!" Shauna replied cheerfully, closing the cereal box and opening the fridge to get the milk out. "When's Daddy coming over again~? And Asra! And Elle!" It'd be the greatest if she could see them all at once again, then she could see their reactions at the same time instead of having to wait between visits. Eight shrugged, chewing on her lip and staring at the plate in front of her in thought.

"Not sure, Alex usually surprises me...and we could visit the Benedict center again sometime to see Asra?" That would give Eight the chance to bug Alania in person, she hadn't spent time with the woman since she met Alex! She missed it. The eggs were finally done, and Eight put them on another plate separate from the pancakes, picking both plates up and carrying them into the dining room. "There, a big breakfast, just like I promised!" Shauna had followed Eight with her fruit and cereal, putting the food down so she could give her mother a big hug. She'd never had a breakfast this big before, usually she only had one thing to eat and a drink...but here! She had so many things! "Just swear you'll work off all that food later while we're shopping." Eight laughed, petting Shauna's hair and pulling a chair out for her.

"Oh! Eight! You're awake~! Mm...something smells good! You made breakfast already? I could have done that for you!" Came Pandora's voice from the kitchen, always being the first one awake so she could start on cooking breakfast for the entire family. It came as a surprise to her that her guardian was already awake and eating. Eight smirked and put a finger to her lips, gesturing for Shauna to go ahead and start eating before she turned and walked innocently back into the kitchen. Pan's eyes widened. "I didn't know you had clothes like that! Did you already go out?"

"Huh?" Eight looked down at herself to see what Pandora was talking about. Oh...that's right. Last night all she'd done was throw on a gigantic, black sweatshirt that was probably three whole sizes too big for her (Might have been Alex's, you never know), a pair of baggy, black jeans and black sneakers. Her hair was a mess from running from home, to the subway, then from the subway to Sukku's house and the same route in reverse, then running from the pier to the coastline where she found Shauna. "Yeah...I went out this morning...on an...errand, I guess." She shrugged. "C'mon, Shauna's in the dining room eating already..."

"...Alone? How is she--good morning Sha--WHOA!" Shauna was sitting at the table cutting up a pancake, pouring some syrup over it before she ate. This was amazing! Why didn't Momma cook more often? At Pan's voice she looked up, grinning brighty and waving to her older sister. Pandora was absolutely shocked by the sight. Little Shauna...she...she'd...grown overnight! She went from a tiny little baby to an already developing young lady! "You look so...mature now!" Shauna snickered.

"Well of course~! I couldn't stay a baby forever! Everyone has to grow up sooner or later." She chirped, taking a bite out of her toast with a grin. Pan smiled, glancing from Shauna to Eight before she retreated into the kitchen.

"This calls for a bigger breakfast! Waffles! Eggs of every variety! And when I say that I mean sunny side up, omlettes, scrambled and poached! More pancakes! Fruit! Toast! Oooh, this is so exciting!" Pan's cheers had reached the ears of the rest of the family, although Liam always woke up since his twin sister was so noisy when she got out of bed; it was times like the morning he regretted saying he wanted to share a room with his twin.

"Will you quiet down? You'll wake the whole house, Pan." Liam grumbled, pulling his hair out of the ponytail he'd put it up in and yawning. Eight was sitting and eating with Shauna at this point, so he had no idea the two were already awake, so for all he knew Pan was just yelling happily for no reason. "What calls for a bigger breakfast?"

"WHOA! LOOKIT SHAUNA!"

The dog's ears perked up at that, blinking and staring at the entrance to the dining room. What about Shauna? Had something happened? Pan's knowing smile certainly was interesting, and it perked his curiosity even more...enough to get him to leave the kitchen and see what was going on. Sure enough, there Shauna was sitting and looking prouder than even Gambino at one of his big parties. Her actual appearance didn't register to him until after Faith spoke up.

"When did this happen? Last night?"

"Holy crap." He murmured under his breath, bicolored eyes widening in shock. Well, there went the dress he was making...but screw the dress, his younger sister went through a major growth spurt! Before he knew it she'd be older than him!

"Is everyone awake now?" Shauna asked, smiling softly and looking up at Eight. The woman blinked and looked around, counting the heads...nine...yeah. "Wow...um...I'm done eating! Can we go shopping soon?"

"You don't wanna stay and play?"

"Oh, but I do! But Momma promised we'd go shopping after breakfast!"

"You guys can play while I change, there's no way I'm going out shopping in this." Eight sighed and stood up, running her hands up through her hair again. "I could use a shower anyway, I'll be back down in a bit." Eight stretched her arms up over her head, waving a few fingers to the family before hurrying upstairs to her room. Ick, she felt so dirty. Shauna was left sitting in her chair staring up at the stairway, eventually shrugging and pushing herself up to her feet.

"Okay then! Let's go play while Pan makes your breakfast, okay?" Shauna chirped, following the horde of giggling girls. They were all so much smaller than her! It was amazing! Perhaps this new growing up thing wouldn't take as much getting used to as she originally thought.

"Are you really Shauna?" Faye asked over her shoulder, skipping in front of her sisters. She'd never seen a child go from tiny to OMYGODHUGE in one night, so of course she'd question it a bit.

"Yes, I'm really Shauna." She answered with a grin, picking Tabby up off the table before she left the dining room. The horde was headed up the stairs and...into Faye's room, it seems!  

[Eight]

The Shopping Trip!

"Okay girls, hate to break up the fun but it's time for me to keep my promise and go on a little shopping trip with Shauna." Eight walked into Faye's room, picked up a random girl, spun in a circle on her heel and put the girl down so she could help Shauna up. The rest of her daughters began complaining the way Eight had been preparing for, holding up a hand to stop them all once the fox girl was standing. "Hey, don't make me the badguy here! That would be the role of the father in most cases," Eight winked. "But that's not the point. You girls all knew I was taking her out later...oh, Juno we're not leaving forever! We'll be back in a few hours! You all know the drill, however, Reynee, Pan, and Liam are all in charge until we get back, and if Alex comes...?"

"Get him to play with us until you get back...?" Juno piped up, smiling. Eight always kept him for herself whenever Alex came over! The halfling rolled her eyes a bit at the answer. Shauna blinked.

"Tell him where we are and that you have a phone so he can call and come to us?" One of Eight's headwings lifted up at Shauna's answer, turning to the girl with the proudest smile as she hugged her tightly. She never remembered telling Shauna that rule! Eight always had a cell phone on her for people to call her on if they wanted to see her! "I heard you refresh their memory that day we went out for ice cream and met Ror and Chuu." Shauna stated simply, as if to explain how she knew of a rule she hadn't been informed of yet. Eight blinked and eyed Shauna curiously, her proud smile softening as she lead the fox around the rest of the girls.

"I wish I had a memory like yours. Later girls! We should be back by dinner...but I'm not making any guarantees."

"Okay, Momma! I'll keep a good eye on them!"

"But we're older than you are...we should be keeping an eye on you."

"Aww! But...but...!"

"Aww! Faaaith! Don't make her cryyyy!"

Eight shook her head and walked out of the door, her and Shauna having been quickly forgotten. "Try not to miss me!" She called over her shoulder, catching a grin from Shauna as the pair headed down the stairs to the foyer. "So what kinds of stores do you want to go to, dear? It's completely up to you today!" She grabbed her cell phone and slipped on her boots, opening the door for Shauna while the girl thought about where she wanted to go. She could always use more plushies to add to her collection...but she needed things for older girls her age too! Like...makeup! And clothes! And um...perhaps she'd try reading some magazines. Stuff for her room, most definitely!

...

Shopping was so much fun! Shauna had never enjoyed the activity this much before! ...The again the last time she went she was a baby. She and Eight had found plenty of things that please her; a theme for her bedroom, things to go with the theme for her bedroom, an assortment of clothes and other things that every girl her age needed!

"Can we do this more often, Momma? It's so much fun!" Shauna giggled, hugging some bags to her chest as the two girls walked around the mall. Eight had opened her mouth to answer, but found herself just giving up and closing it quickly again when something in another store they'd been passing caught her daughter's attention. It seemed she would always have a short attention span. Shauna was a few feet away staring into a window with shelves full of...were those eggs?

"Oh! Momma! Can we go in here?" She pointed at a few of the eggs, obviously showing the five she liked most. Eight smiled and gently grabbed Shauna's arm, leading the girl into the shop with her to get those eggs. "I wonder what comes out of them."

"Fairies. The store is called the fairy workshop after all." Eight replied with a smile, letting Shauna walk off to pick out the eggs she'd liked. The fox came back a few minutes later with five little eggs in her hands. A purple one with a flower and feathery wings sticking out of it, a glittery blue one with a moon on it, a lighter blue one with ice cream on it...how cute! Another egg was red and resembled lava, and the last egg was a yellow-white with a beautiful pink blossom on it. "Well, if those're the ones you want then come on." Shauna was already at the register by the time Eight finished her sentence.

"That all, ladies?"

"Yeah." Eight smiled, handing the man the money she owed him for the eggs. Shauna looked so happy now, she was beaming up at her mother and clutching the bag with her new eggs protectively against her.

"Thanks, Momma!" Shauna chirped as they left the store, throwing her arms around Eight in a bear hug. Eight laughed softly and nuzzled at the top of her daughter's hair, a soft ticking in another store nearby getting to the redhead's nerves. That sound was so annoying, what was it?! Lifting her head and looking around, Eight soon spotted the source of her annoyance: It was a store of dancing dolls. They were cute and all...but they were so annoying!

"What is it, Momma...?" Shauna glanced back at the door Eight was looking at, amber eyes going wide at the sight. They were so cute! She hurried over to the window of the store to see all the dancing dolls, turning around to face her mother when the woman came up behind her, the sight before her was horrible.

Shauna was giving her the most pathetic puppy dog eyes. Oh God, not that face...anything but that face...and on a face of someone who resembled her!

"No, Shauna, absolutely not. That ticking will drive me insane."

"They have an off switch~!" Shauna made her lower lip quiver. This always used to work when she was a baby! It just had to work now! She wanted a little fox doll!

"No. I just see you forgetting to turn it off and purposely bugging me with it...stop giving me that face, Shauna..."

"But Mommaaaaaaa, they're so cuuute!" She pushed on further. Eight's eye twitched a bit, and the girl took that as a sign that she was actually starting to win this battle. "I promise to keep it from tickiiiiiing~!" Eight sighed and glared at the dolls behind her daughter, trying so hard not to look at that pitiful look she was being given, but failing in her attempt when Shauna came closer and followed Eight so her face would always be in view.

"...Fine! Fine! If it'll make you stop giving me that face." How she loathed that face. She was so glad she was shopping alone, Eight had a feeling she'd never hear the end of it if one of her friends was here shopping with her. "You can only have one though, so pick a good one...and I better not hear it tick." Shauna squealed happily, running into the store to grab the fox doll. But wait...the sign above it said you could dress the animal ones up...she turned to Eight as if to see if it was okay, the halfling merely shrugged. "Knock yourself out."

There were several boxes here...ooh, Eight had a scarf like that! Shauna picked up a mini nitemare scarf and put it around th fox's neck, looking around some more and finding some cute DJ Headphones to put on it also. There, it looked adorable now!

"That's all you want on it?" Eight asked, peeking over Shauna's shoulder. Normally this ticking wouldn't be so bothersome...but none of them were doing it at the same time! Shauna nodded to her mother's question, following the halfling's quick pace to the register so she could pay for it and run. "Promise you'll turn it off as soon as we get out of the store?" Shauna nodded again, winning a smile from her mother as she handed the cashier the money and walked out of the store. Just as promised, Shauna turned the fox doll off so it didn't tick anymore. The doll was silent and unmoving now, just as Eight wanted.

"Are you mad?" Shauna asked quietly, stepping in front of her mother and walking backwards so they didn't have to stop in the middle of the mall. Eight glanced down at her daughter and shrugged, smiling softly and petting the girl's ear. The fox smiled. "So you're not mad?"

"How can I stay mad at you over a doll? ...Aw, look at that little creature over there." Eight pointed at a stand with little cuddly creatures on them. Some of them were laying on cups of tea with leaves on their heads. "Want one?" Shauna gasped.

"Yeah! It'll be like having me own little pet like you!" Eight laughed, following the hyper fox to the stand. "I'll call it...Dimples! It's so cute!"

"Hm..I think it's time we call it a day, alright?"

"Do we have to?"

"Wouldn't you like to put all this stuff in your new room?"

"Yeah but...this is fun!" Shauna pouted stubbornly, trudging behind her mother to the mall's exit. "Can we do it again soon?" Eight nodded.

"Of course we can, but I need some rest after shopping with you. You're so energetic and hyper!"

"Just like you?"

"I'm not...that bad, am I?" Eight stared after Shauna, watching the girl run to the car with some of their bags. She wasn't that hyper, was she? No, couldn't possibly be...maybe...? No. The halfling blinked, running a hand up through her hair. Eh, whatever, like mother like daughter.  

[Eight]

Playdate:
Feathers, Dreamcatchers and...demonic...frogs?
Shauna meets Vidya!
(This RP is way too long to post here, so it'll remain as a link. XD;)
Status: In Progress. Read it here!

 

[Eight]

The seeing eye fox?

Shauna

Hm...this was the first time Eight had let her do this alone! Sure, it had taken a lot of convincing to prove she was ready to go shopping by herself...but it was so worth it! Her mother had caused her to grow addicted to shopping all of a sudden! Mainly she bought plushies for her collection, but today she'd added some more things to her little shopping list:

Thread
Leather (Or something related to it)
Black Feathers
Beads (Maybe)
A ring

What could she possibly need these things for? Whatever it was, she was dead set on finding only the best for this little project of hers! A cart of plushies caught her attention, however, and she deviated from her list for juuuuuust a moment. "They're so cute! What kind of creatures are they?"

"They're called Mozou." Said the owner of the cart.

"I see....ooooh! I have to have some of these! They're so cute!" There were three that caught her attention the most because they were so colorful and unique, and so those were the ones she picked up. So cute! Shauna hugged them and handed the man the money she owed him, slipping away with the bag filled with three new plushies swinging on her arm. Watch out, Shauna, you may hit someone.

Lonan

Lonan was walking slowly down the fronts, asking dirrections quietly from time to time as he looked for a place that sold bedding and a few electronics he wanted. Draconayzia, the woman who'd found (?) him had given him some money and walked him to the stores to get what he liked for his room. He insisted he'd be fine.

And he was. Until something collided with the back of his knee and sent him sprawling.

Shauna

"Oh my! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hit you! I'm so, so, sooo sorry? Are you okay?" Shauna gasped, putting down her bag and kneeling down to help the boy she'd knocked over back to his feet. He was bigger than her too! How did she send him to the ground like that?!

...Black feathers...oh man! They were perfect too! If only a few would fall off...it'd be so rude if Shauna just went and plucked this person's feathers! First off, she didn't know the guy, and second...it'd be painful. "I'm really, really sorry! I didn't hurt you or anything, did I?" Oh boy, what a great first impression. She really didn't mean to hurt him! She didn't even see him there! Plushies would be the death of her.

Lonan

"I'm fine." His voice was soft, a rich tenor when heard. Finding his staff he tapped around to find where he'd been facing before and tried to remember the directions he'd been given.

It was a bit hard concidering that he'd been interupted like that.

Shauna

"Okay, if you say so..." The fox frowned softly, still feeling rather guilty. She picked up the bag she'd put down, holding it against her with one arm and holding out her free hand for Lonan to shake. "The name's Shauna. Might as well know the name of your attacker for future lawsuits, right?" Clearly she was joking, but it was still kind of cute...you had to admit, that was a clever one.

"You new around here? I've never seen you here before..." She clutched her bag tightly, being slightly distracted by the scars on his body. What? She couldn't help it! The boy had no shirt!

Lonan

"Hmm? Oh, Lonan." He was not much of one for talking.

Making sure to get his bearings he looked to where he thought she was. It was a bit hard to pinpoint exactly with all the other noises but it still worked. "You could say that. Why do you ask?" Words were spoken softly but seemed to carry to the intended recipient.

Shauna

"Lonan? That's a nice name!" The fox smiled brightly, her tail swishing back and forth behind her. Oh, how she loved meeting new people...but it'd be nice if she could meet more people her age like Vidya. Shauna blinked a bit, noticing that Lonan kept looking around as if he were in search of something...well, she couldn't exactly say she knew Gambino as well as her mother...but she knew it well enough to get around! "Looking for something? ...Why? Oh, just curious!" It wasn't rude of her to have asked, right? It was a simple question!

Lonan

"Just trying to remember how to get to a store where I can get bedding." The store was only a few fronts away but not like that helped Lonan, he couldn't see the sign.

Shauna

Hm...a store that sold bedding...? Oh! Momma had taken her to that store before! "Oh! Well why didn't you say so? I can take you there! I needed some recently too since I grew up awhile ago, I can't share my momma's bed anymore, so I got to have my own now!" Shauna explained as they walked, although Lonan probably didn't care, did he? It was just random information. This girl could be so nosy sometimes, couldn't she? Then again she knew nothing of Lonan and wanted to get to know her new friend!

"So did you just move in with someone? Or just need new stuff? Here we are! It's a good thing we were close, it didn't take too long." She shut up then, an embarrassed blush creeping its way across her face. Oh dear, if she talked too much she'd probably get annoying and chase away this guy. Elle and Asra could take it, sure, but they were her best friends! Lonan didn't even know her.

Lonan

The teen thought carefully, as if judging his words. "I just got here." He didn't offer more information that he needed to. To be open was never good. Friend only brought an ache when they were taken away. Destruction the only constant he could count on.

That didn't mean he'd bruden a child with the truths he knew.

Feeling a counter in the store he ran his hand along the edge, eyes staring straight ahead as he felt the fabric and made a face. Far too stiff. Sighing softly he ran a hand through his hair. "This is going to take a while."

Shauna

"Oh, I see." She looked around at all the bedding, finding it very different than last time. Obviously the place had changed its available things since the last time she was here! ...That wasn't too long ago.

Friends couldn't be that bad! They were there for you when you were upset and happy, and they could make you laugh! She had her own burdens to worry about, such as when to ask Asra where she came from; he just had to know. At least her dream catcher was working its magic properly, Shauna hadn't had a single bad dream yet.

The fox leaned over to peek at the fabric Lonan was looking at, smiling a little and shrugging. "I think a lot of that kind of material is kinda hard and stiff at first, my momma said you have to break it in! Ooh, how about that one over there? It looks like it has feathers on it!" Shauna pointed at a set nearby. It seemed fitting, after all, since Lonan had those large wings.

Lonan

Lonan let himself be dragged over to the new piece of material. Carefully he reached out to test the texture. This one was much softer, more natural feeling. Running his fingers over the surface and picking up the feather patterns that were sewn into the fabric.

"What color is it?" He just wanted to make sure that he didn't end up with colors like yellow or orange. The memories he had were filled with black and red. The only ones that seemed appropriate.

Shauna

Shauna blinked. Was he color blind? "It's black of course! You're silly, Lonan." She chirped, looking back down to the set. It really was very pretty, if she was a fan of black she would have just taken it for her own room! Then again, she doubted her mother would be very happy if she came home with a new bed set.

"Do you like black? If you don't maybe we can find something else..." ...He had to like black, he was only wearing it! And his hair was mostly black...and his wings. Oh yeah, he hated black.

Lonan

"No, I'm blind." Finding the bed set to his liking he carefully felt his way towards the stand that had the sets. Managing to find the appropriate size for the bed he'd been given took some effort.

Once observed properly it was blatantly apparent that he really couldn't see, never looking where he was going and not even bothering to pretend he could see the bed set.

Shauna

Immediately her ears lowered sadly. Oh my...now she felt guilty for thinking he was color blind. She frowned softly and looked up at Lonan, she'd never met a blind person before...so except for people on the tv (who were generally very weird about it), she had no idea how to tell...now she felt stupid and guilty. "Oh, I didn't know...uh...so what do you think? They're black wiiiith white and red feather-like patterns." It's not like being blind changed anything, he just couldn't see! That was the only thing that made him different. Shauna nodded to herself, smiling brightly at Lonan.

"There're sheets...and a comforter...and a pillowcase too!" She explained, looking over the list that came in the package. Shauna looked up at Lonan again after, folding her arms behind her head. "So whaddya think? Sound good to you?"

Lonan

"Not so much about the white, but I don't suppose it'll really matter in the end, will it?" He let the girl guide his hand so he picked up the right items. Last thing he wanted was to pick up something by mistake that was uncomfortable. Or cause more stares. He got enough of those as it was.

"You couldn't tell, could you?" His tones wasn't accusing, just observant. Sharp ears picked up the small stutter and waver in the girl's voice. Nothing to be ashamed of, really.

Shauna

"There's not a lot of it, just a while feather here and there...it's really pretty, actually! Or...maybe you don't want it to look pretty?" Shauna tapped at her chin a bit at that. Boys didn't usually want their beds to look pretty, did they? The fox smiled, helping Lonan carry some of the things...oi, this comforter was kind of heavy! No wonder Eight had said she'd be the one to carry the comforter last time!

Her ear perked up a bit when Lonan pointed out the obvious, smiling sheepishly and shaking her head...but then realizing you couldn't exactly hear a headshake, could you? Not unless there were bells or something on your head. "Er, no...not really, I guess I wasn't paying close enough attention. I don't know any blind people." That hadn't sounded mean, had it?

Lonan

He shrugged. It would work. He traced the edges of the samples, finding them neatly bound. No ruffles. That was good enough.

Pulling the comforter over his shoulder he let Shauna take the lighter basket. "Don't worry about it. People just usually point it out much earlier. Now where's the register?" He wanted to pay for his new things and meet up with Draconayzia. Crowds always bothered him. Maybe he'd convince her to take him back out later. After most of the people were gone.

Shauna

Shauna blinked a bit, suddenly finding herself holding something lighter than she'd planned...huh...how'd he catch her? She shrugged to herself and took Lonan's free arm to lead him to the register, carrying her part of the bundle against her with her bag of plushies. This was fun! "Oh, really? They're not mean about it or anything are they? People can be so cruel sometimes." Shauna sighed, shaking her head as she put her bundle on the counter, carefully taking the comforter from Lonan to put that with the rest of his things. "There! All set!"

Lonan

The dark teen followed Shauna, managing to avoid colliding with anyone through some miracle. "Depends. I just don't pay attention anymore."

Paying for his new bed linens he tried to negotiate his way back out. He'd had more than enough of crowds for one day.

Shauna

"Oh, well that's good! Can't let mean people get to you, right?" Shauna grinned, checking the purse Eight had given her to see how much money she had left to spend...she could do some more shopping! She blinked and looked up from the purse when Lonan started moving again, helping him avoid bumping into a display as they headed out of the store.

"You want any help? Or is someone going to come and get you soon? If not I can stay and keep you company!"

Lonan and Draconayzia

"True enough." Letting the young girl lead him around the displays he recognised the feel of the sidewalk rather than the store's flooring under his feet.

"I'll be fine. My... keeper.... will be here in a bit. I think I hear her now."

He was right, the kitsune looking woman walked up. "Lonan, find what you needed?"

Shauna

"Your keeper? You mean like..your guardian?" Shauna looked up at Lonan, ears twitching curiously when he said he could hear her. He could? How could he hear a specific person when there were so many other people around anyway?

Shauna spun around when the woman in question approached, looking a bit surprised...but surprise sooned turned into a welcomed smile. Shauna lifted a hand to wave a few fingers in greeting, stepping aside for the kitsune to get to Lonan. "Hi~! I'm Shauna!" She chirped brightly, grinning.

Lonan and Draconayzia

"Hello Shauna." Drac smiled, moving so that Lonan could either grab her tail or shoulder. Sometimes in big crowds it was easier for him to catch her tail.

"Thanks Shauna." He offered a gentle pat on her shoulder. As he started to walk away with his guardian his wings folded against his back so they wouldn't be bumped. It was odd, though. Through out the whole time he hadn't smiled once.

Shauna and Eight

Shauna grinned. "You're welcome! Anytime!" She'd noticed the lack of smiling...but surely Lonan had his reasons, right? The fox could smile enough for the both of them! "It was nice meeting you! See you again sometime~?" Shauna called as the pair walked away, squealing loudly in surprise when a cell phone suddenly started ringing in her purse. The fox scrambled for it, answering it to find, unsurprisingly enough, her mother's voice on the other line.

"I'm fine, Momma~! ...You don't need to pick me up yet...I'm fine~! ...How did you know my arms were full of plushies and that I'd probably need a ride soon anyway? You're...what?"

"Gotcha!" Eight growled playfully, glomping her daughter from behind. "Who was that?"

"Mommaaaaaaa! That was Lonan! A new friend~!"

"I see, did you get everything you were looking for?" Shauna shrugged, looking at the list she'd forgotten all about. She hadn't found anything on the list! Oh well, there was always next time.

 

[Eight]

O-Zone - Dragostea Din Tei! And...instant messengers?

So boring...

So quiet...

I should put something on my ceiling... Shauna thought to herself, lying on her bed and just staring up at one spot on her ceiling. Eight had gone grocery shopping with Pan, Liam was probably out somewhere with Samira, Reynee was probably spending time with her fiance...and the rest of her sisters were somewhere in this house. The fox was too lazy to get up and look for them at this point, but she needed something to do! "...I guess I could find a game on the computer..." Reynee had given Shauna her computer since the cat would be moving out eventually anyway, and it also kept her younger sister from constantly having to come into her room just to use the computer; Reynee didn't want Shauna to accidentally come in at the wrong time if she and Dusk were in there alone! With a bored sigh, she rolled off her bed and crawled across the bedroom to the desk by the window, picking a few plushies off the chair and climbing into it.

...

Now what? She was here, the computer was starting up...but what did Shauna want to do? Amber eyes stared blankly at the screen with the list of different icons, a name was next to each one:

Eight

Liam

Pandora

Reynee

Shauna

"...Why did Liam pick the frog..." She asked herself, shrugging and clicking on her icon. The fox typed in her password quickly, smiling a bit when the flapping of wings greeted her and her desktop loaded. There was, of course, a red fox in the background with a cute little yellow butterfly on its tail...she liked that painting.

"Now let's see..." Shauna opened up the internet and chewed on her lip, typing in a random word in the search engine and coming up with some weird link. "...O-Zone...? What's this...?" She clicked the link, staring curiously at an animation with some weird language in the background closing up on a pink silhouette...what the?

Ma ia hii
Ma ia huu
Ma ia ha
Ma ia haha

It did that four times and then suddenly...the music changed...it was something she could dance to! Shauna gasped, clapping her hands together and staring at the most adorable dancing chibi ever. He was so cute! And the song was so cool! Shauna squealed giddily, turning the volume up a bit...she was so glad no one was around! This would be rather embarrassing if someone suddenly walked in on her. Why? Shauna had grabbed Tabby and started dancing with her to the music.

Alo, salut, sunt eu, un haiduc
si te rog, iubirea mea, primeste fericirea. Alo, alo, sunt eu, Picasso
ti-am dat beep si sunt voinic
Dar sa stii, nu-ti cer nimic.

This was fun! The song ended...but it only started up again, and as pleased with this as she was, Shauna wanted to be able to hear the song everywhere she went. Grabbing an MP3 player Reynee bought for her, she hooked it up to the computer and looked around for a place to download the song. "Come on...it's got to be around here somewhere! Ozone layer? No...history of O-zone...nooo...Oh! perfect! Music downloads!" And it was free! Her favorite price, Shauna couldn't get in trouble for a free download, right? It downloaded quickly enough, and so now Shauna could play this song over...and over...and over, and she didn't have to stay in her room. But Shauna didn't want to leave...no, not now...

Problem solved! Shauna opened another window so the song could keep playing continuously in the background, bobbing her head to it. Huh? What was this? A chatroom? ...Damn, she didn't have a username! She'd have to think of one! But...she wanted to be an original...so it had to be something no one else would have... "Hm...let's see...Momma said not to use my name on the internet...oh! I know! Red Tail!" It wasn't her name, but Elle loved to call her by that...and why would anyone else have Red Tail as their screenname unless they also has a red tail? She chewed thoughtfully on her lip for a moment. Should she try it? ...Sure. Clicking 'sign up', Shauna typed in the name and the other things it asked for. This thing was going to take awhile, wasn't it? But it looked cool, and it was free, and she could talk to people about this song even when there was no one around! Maybe she'd even find someone she knew already here!

"Oh! Good! Red Tail wasn't taken! ...That's kind of odd." She shrugged it off, closing the window that read Welcome, Red Tail! across the top so she could just get to chatting. How come Eight had never told her about this?