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 Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:08 pm
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:09 pm
. Ethiriel, Aina, and Duncan have an interim music session with the piano before tending to the gardens.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Duncan was quick to learn that summer was not, in fact, an ideal season for the pomegranate Frei. It was strange, watching as Aina fell back into old habits, more content with sleeping than she was exploring-- winter and spring had gone by so quickly, after all, with the entire household being swept into the newborn’s many adventures. When half the year was already dedicated to so much restlessness, it was difficult slowing down. Worse yet, it felt simply impossible to have absolutely nothing to do at all.
Ethiriel visiting was a blessing to Duncan and Aina both-- it had only been two Saturdays ago when they’d seen her last, but the lull cast over their home made time crawl at a particularly slow pace. When Duncan heard the knock at the door, he glanced up from finishing his chore of no challenging (or useful) endeavor-- cleaning the grand piano that sat at the corner of their entertainment room. It was scarcely used in recent years, with the last time being Thanksgiving, and the time before that being many seasons before Aina had even existed in Dr. Kyou’s collection as an essence.
When he opened the door for his guests, Duncan bowed his head just slightly and offered the two a genial smile-- accented, no less, by a slight hint of relief. ”Hello! Please,” he stepped aside, ”Come in. Aina’s with the television-- she's taking a small nap.”
With some microscopic urge for disagreement, Aina managed a small whine in reply, a noise that surprisingly traveled through their quiet home down the hall. While closing the door behind their company, Duncan laughed. ”Oh, I suppose her naptime is over. The summer weather has been quite hard on her.”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:09 pm
. Aina is left alone at Lab's summer tea party function for a little bit while Duncan tends to the last of his errands.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
It seemed like most everyone that was planning to arrive to the tea party had settled by the time Aina left the Lab faculty. Duncan was still sorting through some of the evening's chores before he could join the rest of the party, and with how restless the Frei was getting, he thought it cruel to keep her indoors any longer. One glance outside told him that they were surrounded in people he could trust, and the idea of letting Aina loose for a while didn't seem like a risky idea. With his permission, Aina floated outside to the remainder of the tea party, adjusted a sun hat to her head, and watched quietly as people wandered about.
She had never really been left alone to her own devices, and the idea of greeting anyone felt like a daunting affair-- especially when so many of them were strangers, and the others she knew were already occupied, speaking to those unfamiliar faces. One more glance, though, and she noticed one unaccompanied Cruz at the teapot crafts table. The pomegranate wandered toward him, wrangling her hands together.
Of all the faces here, Cruz's was among the most familiar, but the crowd around her brought Aina to an absolute loss at words. Floating lower than normal-- perhaps to the true height of what she might be like, if she had legs-- she floated quietly behind Cruz and tugged at his blouse.
"Cruz," she piped out, clearly weary-- she glanced over at the rest of the party, "Is Nita an' Mo here?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:09 pm
. Cruz and Aina meet at the end of Lab's summer party, but Aina feels a little nervous.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Aina was having a much easier time as the tea party went along-- she was all laughter and smiles in the company of Miss Claire, Miss Ivy, Eth, and Cesc, but as the event drew to a close, the pomegranate grew tired and chose to retire to an even quieter corner of the garden premises. The rain Frei chose to whittle away her time with a collection of stray daisies and daffodils she'd collected in front of the Lab building, weaving its stems into small bracelets.
Humming to herself, Aina was waiting for Duncan to return from inside of the Lab-- he had just a few more errands left to complete and leftovers to organize before they could leave for home. When Aina heard Cruz just in front of her, she clutched a newly-finished flower bracelet to her chest and offered him a tiny wave, bashful and like she was newly born. It was strange behavior around Cruz, especially with how comfortable she was around the crocodile-- after hesitating, she smiled a little wider and spoke up, worry making her a little quieter.
“Hi Cruz,” Aina glanced back down at the flowers and fiddled with a few of their petals, “Um-- did you have a good party?”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:13 pm
. Anita, Cruz, and Mordekai have a stilted lunch with Anita's estranged father.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
The ruddy Oldsmobile pulled into the parking lot of the Sand Dollar and rolled slowly until Anita found a space that faced the building. Even after they were situated, Anita made no moves to turn the car off; she stared ahead like a hawk, both hands on the wheel.
”We are way too early,” she said flatly. According to the clock, they were actually right on time. ”He's gonna take forever.”
Cruz leaned toward her. ”Should we go back?”
Anita allowed her grip on the wheel to slack as she leaned back in her seat, finally letting her hands drop into her lap. Without taking her eyes off the front doors, she shook her head.
”Scopin' the place out for pops?” Mordekai asked with a small pout, hands in his pockets and plastic bag of market fare on the floor by his feet.
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:13 pm
. Cruz calls Aina before bedtime with a question to ask.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
In all of the commotion of the past several days, the croc had been so swept up in new events and new information that he had forgotten to do something very important. He hadn't told Aina any of these developments. As one of his very best friends, she ought to know what was going on and why he had been so busy as of late -- but more importantly still, she knew of Anita's father in a context none of his other friends did.
Or, at the very least, had heard of him.
As the day settled down after his conversation with Minerva, Cruz decided to call the rainy frei before she had to bed down. She went to sleep quite early, after all, and her day was nearly over.
Cruz: -waits while the phone rings, lightly biting his lower lip-
Mordekai: -picks up after a few moments- “‘Ey, Cruz! Everythin’ alright?”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:14 pm
. Cruz is missing, and Anita calls Duncan and Mordekai late at night.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Anita looked up from her DS screen. It was quiet in the apartment without even Tango traipsing around. Even Minerva was out tonight, seeing some friends in Durem. All of her family was a long ways away now and it was an odd feeling, having the apartment entirely to herself – not unwelcome but strange.
The beach skyline was already painted with orange and pink. Anita looked to the cable box across the room and frowned; a quarter past eight. She lost track of time with her game and no one around to break her concentration.
Setting it aside, Anita pulled her legs off the couch and planted her feet on the floor. Her phone said no missed calls, which only made her frown more. She scrolled to Cruz's name and set the phone to her ear as it rang.
Voicemail.
She tried again. Voicemail.
”Come on, butthead.” A third time yielded the same, so she scrolled a little further down her contacts and tried a different tack.
Duncan answered, sounding vaguely surprised. ”Ah-- hello, Anita?”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:14 pm
. It was a long week. It was the worst Mordekai had ever seen Cruz and Anita - Cruz wracked with guilt over what he had done, and Anita worn to her bones and so weary of everyone. Cruz and Anita had hardly spoken to each other throughout the week Mordekai was there, and the few times they did Mordekai wondered if the calm resentment Anita felt toward Cruz would ever completely go away. It wasn’t something he pressed Anita on, and it was certainly not something he told Cruz of - it wouldn’t help either of them. But the familiar feeling of guilt and a lost relationship stirred in Mordekai’s gut during his long commute home, and he wondered where Anita and Cruz would be in five, ten, twenty years: if they would still want to talk to each other and not simply have to for family’s sake. If they could still relax in the same room together or share a good conversation alone.
“I’m home,” Mordekai announced, kicking the dirt off of his boots and closing the door softly behind him. With a tired breath, he bent forward to unlace his boots, setting his backpack against one of the foyer walls. The smell of curry and baking garlic wafted from the kitchen just ahead, and Mordekai heard the sound of a chopping knife against a cutting board seize, followed by footsteps. Duncan veered out from the corner of the kitchen, wiping his hands on his apron.
“You’re home early.” Duncan lingered at the hall then walked toward the foyer as the blond knelt down to untie his boots. He picked up the backpack from the floor to set on the coat hanger. “Wasn’t I set to pick you up tomorrow?”
“Figured I’d save you the trouble. An’ Stephen’s gunna be short on people in the mornin’.” Once his boots were off, Mordekai wiggled his sore toes some before standing - his smile grew when his eyes met Duncan’s. “I like your apron. Cookin’ curry?”
Duncan smiled in turn, returning to the kitchen with Mordekai at his side. At the kitchen island were various vegetables prepared for the cachumber. “Chicken tikka masala with some salad and store-bought naan.” Mordekai rounded the island to grab himself a mug from the cupboard, filling it with water from the sink while Duncan returned to his chopping. “Tulip and her husband will be joining us tonight.”
“‘Course they are, it’s curry.” Mordekai took a brief sip of water from his mug and checked the boiling pot of curry at the stove top. “D’you need any help?”
“Oh, no, supper is almost ready. Just some spices to roast for the salad,” Duncan hummed, sliding the last of the onions into a bowl laden with tomatoes and cucumbers.
With as tall as he was, it was easy for Mordekai to peek past Duncan’s shoulders. “This some pico de gallo? Wait, it’s got cucumbers--”
“No, and you have a daughter to greet,” Duncan insisted, glancing back at Mordekai with an indignant smile.
“--Right.” With a laugh, Mordekai raised his hands up in the air, quietly excusing himself out past the kitchen counter, setting his now-empty mug at the table. Peering over the mess of blankets atop the couches at the living room, Mordekai found the Frei just where he expected her - nestled in the cushions surrounded by pillows, staring sleepily up at the television while a rerun of an old Saturday cartoon played on the screen. Mordekai crept as quietly as he could toward the couches, mischievous smile and arms out at the ready for a hug, but Aina preempted him with a small wave.
“Hi, papa,” she chimed, craning her neck past the blankets to look at Mordekai. “I missed you.”
“You saw me!” With a small laugh, Mordekai knelt forward to give Aina a big hug nonetheless, climbing over the side of the couch to sit with her. He nuzzled the Frei’s cheek with his beard, and Aina wiggled with a fit of giggles. “Hi, baby girl. I missed you too.”
“I heard you talkin’ to Grandpa,” Aina retorted, shoving Mordekai’s cheek playfully away from her face - she wrapped a few blankets up around the blond’s head. “Did you give Cruz an’ Nita their cards?”
“I did,” Mordekai grinned, pulling the blankets off of his face and wrapping them back around the Frei’s shoulders. He kissed her on the forehead, wrapping his arms around Aina to hug her close. “They liked ‘em a lot, thank you.”
“An’ are they doin’ okay now?” Aina asked, securing the blankets around her shoulders.
“Yeah, they’re doin’ better.”
“Nita’s okay now?”
“Nita’s okay now,” Mordekai replied, smile wavering, though Aina didn’t seem to notice.
“An’ Cruz is okay?” Aina smiled.
“Cruz is okay. An’ Tango an’ Miss Minerva’re doin’ okay. Everyone says hi.”
“Well, we’re glad to hear it,” Duncan added, walking to the dining table with a platter of silverware - Aina hummed and burrowed back into her pillows, relief washing over her. “With everything that’s happened, I’m sure it wasn’t too much of a concern, but you’ll have to tell us how Cruz is settling in with his new stomach.”
“Oh-- yeah,” quietly, Mordekai rose to his feet, meeting Duncan at the dining table and gathering a few spoons from the platter. “We got ‘im tryin’ some food an’ stuff. Din’t forget about it, jus’... y’know. Bad timin’. Maybe he can give curry a shot sometime, eh?”
“Oh, certainly. If everyone is feeling better, we’re in sore need of a dinner together.” While the two set the table together, Aina turned around and floated closer to the top of the couch, arms hugging the cushioning as she watched her guardians. A pang of hunger came over her when the smells of vegetables and curry caught her attention, wings twitching curiously.
“I wanna try curry, too,” Aina replied, hiding her mouth against her sleeves. Duncan glanced back at her after setting down the last of their spoons, chuckling, and Mordekai began placing the cups.
“We’ll have to wait until you’re a Sigel, Aina. You’ll need a stomach for it,” Duncan replied, much to Aina’s indigence. With her hands as support, the small Frei bounced up to the top of the couch, rune pulsing with a familiar hunger that Duncan and Mordekai both trained themselves to recognize.
“Then I’ll be a Sigel!” she replied, and Mordekai set the silverware down to head routinely toward the fridge, eyes gleaning through their array of drinks until he found their container of pomegranate juice.
“Don’t think growin’ up’s gonna come that easy. Cruz has got a whole three years on ya, Aina. Want some juice?” he held the pomegranate juice out for Aina to see, though it caused the Frei to frown immediately. With a soft laugh, Mordekai closed the fridge door. “No?”
“I don’t want juice,” Aina quietly announced, glancing demurely down at her fingernails. Despite her refusal, Mordekai poured a hearty serving of juice into a cup near Aina’s respective seat at the table, and Duncan smiled with amusement at the Frei.
“Well, here’s some if you’re hungry,” Mordekai replied, setting the pitcher down at the center of the table. He sat at a chair while Duncan returned to the kitchen. Resting his chin against his palms, he stared over at Aina while the smells of chaat masala and black pepper plumed out from a simmering pan from the stove top. “Or d’you jus’ want curry?”
Aina offered a small nod in reply, and Mordekai smiled in concern. “Duncan, Aina ain’t even one year old an’ she’s gunna starve to death. What’re we gunna do?” He glanced back at Aina’s grandfather with a playful chuckle, and Duncan returned the sentiment with a dry smile.
“I’m sorry, Aina, but we’re going to have to be patient.” Spices now roasted, Duncan turned back to the kitchen island to pour the contents of his pan into the salad bowl. “I’m not too certain how Freis grow, but it certainly won’t be happening to you overnight.”
“But I’m eleven! S’not overnight... I could be a Sigel right now.” Aina asked, floating off of the couch, her ribbon landing quietly and softly on the wooden floor. The Frei began making her way to the kitchen counter.
“Eleven months old, Aina, and you shouldn’t be dreaming of growing old so soon,” Duncan laughed, stirring the contents of the cachumber with a wooden spoon while Aina clambered onto one of the bar stools, head poking out from the opposite side of the counter. “It’ll take more than just a little wish to make it happen. We’re just not sure what that will be.”
“Yeah? So it ain’t about age?” Mordekai asked, glancing up from the dining table toward the kitchen. Aina pouted quietly while sitting at her stool while Duncan took the salad bowl to the table.
“I could guess, but there’s nothing I can say for sure. There are so few Sigels in existence to gather evidence from. Even fewer that we know of personally-- there’s Rhedefre, and there’s Cruz.” Duncan set the salad bowl on the table, giving it one more cursory stir. The naan was already warm and the curry needed only to be served, and beverages poured by preference when their guests arrived; with his work done, Duncan took a seat opposite of Mordekai’s in relief. He untied his apron and set it atop his chair.
“Huh. Well, what’re your guesses?” With Duncan seated, Mordekai glanced toward Aina and waved her forward, hand patting the top of the chair next to him. Aina swerved in her seat and shook her head, frowning, and Mordekai’s shoulders relaxed as he lost some gusto.
“Magical entities can grow through a lot of means. Be it physical, magical, emotional-- there’s too much variance, it’s hard to say with how little I know. That’s why our reports and check-ups with Lab are so important.” Despite Duncan's recognition of Aina's stubbornness as she remained placidly at the counter, he left her be and straightened some of the silverware at the table. “Dr. Kyou and Zeke will likely meet with Cruz as soon as he’s able, and they’ll study how he’s changed over the years and see why he might have grown,” he glanced back at Aina, smiling calmly, “We just have to be patient.”
But Aina was never so good at being patient, and with a humph and embarrassed flush of her cheeks, she stared down at the floor.
“Wow. At least y’can tell when a human’s goin’ through puberty wid’out a doctor,” Mordekai huffed, scrunching up the corner of his mouth. He stared at the tablecloth decorated with asters and Easter daisies, fingers brushing against the contours of the patterning as he thought. “Has Cruz really changed that much? I mean, I guess Cruz been actin’ out, but...”
“Mood changes are as common a symptom of puberty as any,” Duncan mused, grimly. “And we’ve never seen him use his magic before.”
“Guess not like that, yeah.” Mordekai recalled back to the evening after Cruz first met Aina - to Mordekai's surprise, the crocodile seemed to recognize when Anita and he had kissed. It was embarrassing, but it was vastly more innocent than the magic he could use now. “What, d'you thnik he went through Raevan puberty?” he asked, glancing up at Duncan.
“In its own way, it might be Raevan puberty.” The two men shared a brief bout of quiet laughter, and Aina shifted uncomfortably at her seat, feeling so distant from her spot at the counter though her guardians were so close to her while sitting at the tables. It didn’t help at all that what they were talking about sounded like nonsense to her.
“What’s puberty?” Aina asked, careful not to shout but speaking in a volume a little louder than was polite. Her guardians' laughter had died just moments before Aina piped up, but Mordekai glanced back at the Frei with a tired, bemused smile.
“Means there’s no rush growin’ up, Aina girl. It’s tough stuff goin’ through what Cruz did.” Mordekai held out his hand towards Aina, urging her away from her stubborn little seat at the counter. “C’mon, baby girl. We’ll have all the curry in the world when y'get there, but not today.”
With a pout, Aina swiveled one last time in her seat before hopping off. She floated closer to Mordekai, hopping up to give him a small hug; with a relieved sigh, Mordekai picked her gently up into his arms, kissing her on the temple. “For gran’pa an’ your old man’s sake, don’t grow up too quick, okay?”
“Is growin’ up that bad?” Aina asked, rubbing one of her eyes, rune pulsing with a faint pink light. Duncan’s smile waned.
“Only when you grow up too young. Now-- let's have some juice,” Duncan smiled, pushing Aina's cup closer to her.
With a small smile, Aina reached forward for her cup of pomegranate juice and took a small sip from it. The pink hue emanating from her rune returned to a calm blue, and Duncan and Mordekai relaxed in their seats.
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:15 pm
. Claire, Aaron, and Ivy visit the Clarke-Kantor household for a spot of dinner, and are pulled into an unexpected search instead.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
The response to a knock at the door was almost immediate-- not a second had passed when Mordekai swung the door open for Claire and company, and he offered a hectic "Hey!" while pulling off his shoes, which were worn to the bone and coated in a thick layer of mud and straw.
"Got here jus' before y'all! Sorry if y'smell animal poo, s'me," Mordekai offered, laughing-- he'd certainly brought the spirit of the farm with him on his person, to say the least, and he wiped the sweat off his brow with dirt-chalked hands while walking backwards further into the foyer to give the three more space to enter.
"Duncan's busy cookin' in the kitchen, I'll show you where that's at. We been lookin' forward to seein' you guys all this month!" eager to move on, Mordekai kept pacing along further into the house-- but, midway to the kitchen, he paused to glance up at the stairway hall and laughed.
"Aina!" the pomegranate Frei had her head poked out from the corner of the wall upstairs, watching shyly; he waved toward her, "Baby girl, you wanna say hi?"
When her response was to retreat from sight, Mordekai gasped and looked back toward their household guests-- "Oh no, she's gone. You guys got any magic tricks up your sleeve to get 'er back?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:15 pm
. Lab Report 1: September 2014 - October 2014
“It is not entirely accurate to say that Aina was born on September 18th, 2014. I will never forget the silhouette that I saw of the smallest Frei I’d seen still developing in one of the many tanks at Lab 305, not yet conscious, but living still. It was through both Dr. Kyou and Zeke’s tireless work and care that Aina is with us today. For that, thank you. Though Aina has only been with my family and I for two months, I can no longer imagine a life without her presence in it.
“Now. To be more precise: Aina Sabine Clarke-Kantor emerged as a fully developed Frei on September 18th, 2014. Her magical and intellectual potentials were made immediately obvious when Zeke drove Aina and I home from the facility: while asleep, Aina was able to suspend a car in mid-air to acquiesce her hunger. I’ve learned overtime that the extent-- or, perhaps, volume-- of Aina’s hunger can be unpredictable, but is also preceded by a distinct physical change: her rune begins to pulse in hues of pink and red. When fed, the rune returns to a light blue color. Fortunately, Aina’s large appetite was followed by a magnetism toward her energy sources; of course, because it was the only source available on the return home, Aina ‘fed’ off of the density of Zeke’s car.
“On October 2014, the extent of her abilities reached a new height. Quite literally, in fact. As a result of her hunger, an incident at Durem Historical Museum resulted in an immense display over her ability to manipulate density, resulting in dozens of artifacts being upended from their displays in order to sate her hunger. It appears that density in light doses can only provide her with minimal energy. Now, fortunately, the density of any object Aina feeds off does return, after a time. Unfortunately, if objects are not given the proper time to return to their original densities, they are incredibly brittle and break apart at the lightest touch. The time objects need to regain their densities can vary from a few seconds to several minutes, though how this is determined I cannot yet say.
"As I did mention earlier, luckily, Aina does have multiple food sources. After she was properly settled at home, Aina immediately sensed the location of our pomegranate tree, and asked (in so many words) to feed from it. With density and pomegranate as her sources of energy, Aina managed to stay properly sated for two to three hours at a time. Now, that still meant up to a dozen feedings everyday. Fortunately, before the end of September, there was a light rain. Aina went to it immediately. It is the third energy source we've found for her thus far, and it by far seems to be the most satisfying to her. One hour of exposure to the rain was able to keep Aina full for three days.
“As you can see, my main worry with Aina's Raevan biology is how catastrophic of a magical reaction her hungers can lead to. It’s clear that Aina has no control over these reactions, but when rains are infrequent and density and pomegranates can only satisfy her appetite for so long, her magic can be dangerous if she's left without an energy source. Thankfully, there is someone to watch after her at all hours of the day, and when Aina sleeps, her appetite does wind down for a time.
“Psychologically, Aina is an incredibly eager learner, and highly curious. She is childlike in appearance, and acts just the part. Aina’s language acquisition and retention abilities are also surprisingly complex. She was immediately able to mimic new English words and phrases upon first hearing them, though comprehending meanings are not quite as intuitive to her. She is currently being read books at a K-1 level. Family members of mine have also been introducing her to French and Cajun French conversationally, though her retention of these languages have been much slower.
“I wish I had more of substance to say regarding Aina's mental capacities, but she learns so quickly and I’ve yet to understand the full scope of her personality. It is incredible just how much she seems to learn and remember in a single day, even when her hours awake are much fewer than her hours asleep. Aina, if given the chance, can sleep up to 20 hours a day - 2 or 3 hours more than the average human infant.
“I will record another log by the end of winter; let us hope for February. Thank you again, Dr. Kyou.”
Lab Report 2: (November 2014 - February 2015)
“What a season it has been! I hope it was a happy holiday season for everyone at Lab 305, both this year and last. Aina loved every part of it. Let’s see… we’ve fallen into quite a routine, it’s difficult to explain it all.
“Aina’s need for sleep and energy sources have lessened considerably since November. Most days, Aina requires about fifteen to hours of sleep to function, and six feeding sessions scattered throughout the day; we’ve managed to regulate it to feeding times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and smaller ‘snacks’ in between mealtimes. The regular mealtimes have helped stay Aina’s appetite, and we’ve managed to prevent any catastrophic occurrences from happening, ah, outside of the home. Inside the home, I admit we are still having some difficulty managing Aina’s hunger when she’s asleep, especially when she sleeps so often throughout the day. Her sleep times are from 7PM to 7AM, with one nap at 11AM and another at 3PM. Hmm...
“Ah, yes. Aina’s magical and intellectual growth are staying the course. Aina’s English speaking ability and grammatical knowledge are developing quickly, it’s astounding; Aina is already at a K-5 reading and comprehension level! There was only one major incident this past season regarding her magic. Back in December, a particularly hyperactive month, Aina had some difficulty maintaining her ground, floating to a height upwards of eight feet. If I were to guess the reason for the magic hiccup, so to speak, I would attribute it to the change in season. Pomegranates tend to flourish in the winters, after all.
“Just as she’s grown comfortable with one language, Aina is now hoping to learn French, though it’s certainly proving more difficult for her than English. Admittedly, Aina has been growing quite frustrated with learning French as of late, but she seems determined, and she is making leaps and bounds since her lessons have begun with her aunt in December. I’m very proud of her. Again, her degree of comprehension is still remarkable. A part of it may be lent to her more childlike attributes; it seems her mentality and appearance place Aina somewhere in grade school, and human children have an improved language retention before the age of 12; of course, this comparison may be very redundant. Her chronological growth compared to human children is so exponential that any studies between them are very moot.
“I believe that’s all there is to stay for now. I apologize for the brief log! Another one will arrive in June.”
Lab Report 3: March 2015 - June 2015
“Cool! So, uh, hi, Dr. Kyou. Uh, ‘m Mordekai Kantor, Duncan’s son-in-law thing. Duncan invited me on to talk t’you ‘bout some cool botany stuff kinda! ‘M a farmhand at a li’l place called Hartline Farms, so lemme get my farm hat on. Soooo… uh. Hint ‘bout what I should be talkin’ ‘bout?”
“How about we begin with the cultivars?”
“Right, so, uh, some real obvious stuff: Aina was born from an angel red pomegranate. S’a real common type of pomegranate cultivar y’probably see ‘round everywhere, an’ we got one planted in our garden, that’s the one Aina comes from. Aina was born with these cool branches on ‘er head, foot of ‘em begin with some angel red flowers, an’ she came home with a few angel reds blossomin’ on ‘em. So: weird news, branches been startin’ to grow new cultivars. By plant standards, das impossible. Aina’s alien cultivars start comin’ in ‘round March this year. Aina’s branches been healthy before then but Duncan an’ I’ve never seen somethin’ like this on her before. S’cool, but it kinda weirded us out.
“An’ then it occurred to us that her branches are changin’. We kinda knew before ‘cause yeah, we have eyes, we can see ‘em changin’. Lemme explain fruit seasons: they vary from place to place, depends on where you are, based on the North an’ South Hemispheres an’ all that... In Gaia, fruit seasons for poms are between October an’ January. Aina’s branches were bearin’ fruit this whole time from October to Jan, she got whole poms on her ‘ead and everythin’, so if her branches were growin’ stuff, that meant we let her poms go overripe for… two months, startin’ March?
“Yeah, that means bad things for plants mos’ of the time. Attracts bugs ‘n other pests when fruit rots. Imagine a racoon attackin’ Aina’s head our somethin’. Can lead to mold an’ other bad times. Usually you got some wiggle room for harvest but Aina’s poms started gettin’ all that bad stuff by March, right ‘round when we started gettin’ more sun. Mid-month, her leaves and poms and flowers are gettin’ pretty nasty. We tried treatin’ her branches with pesticides before it was too late, but by then she got real sick.
“Like I said, Duncan an’ I noticed her branches changin’, an’ they were bearin’ poms an’ all that. We thought about pluckin’ ‘em before but we didn’t wanna risk hurtin’ our girl. S’been clear that her branches’re pretty sensitive already, she gets teary-eyed when she bumps ‘em on accident into doors an’ stuff. We didn’t even wanna imagine what it’d be like if we took a clipper to any part of ‘em. But the fruit an’ leaves were rottin’ right off her and makin’ her really sick, so we really had no choice. We went to this awesome, ah - I dunno, a fairy surgeon? Not a fairy that’s a surgeon, but a surgeon that can work wid fairies, an’ she helped us get some anesthetic that was okay for Aina so she could get the branches trimmed. Dr. Rokos managed to trim the rottin’ leaves and fruit an’ most of the branches off without a hitch, so they look like li’l nubs right now but Aina’s doin’ fine. Dr. Rokos is awesome.
“S’all part of bein’ a Raevan but it was kinna weird seein’ a bowl of your baby girl’s body clipped off like it was nothin’. I guess s’like a haircut, but a haircut y’need to get so y’don’t get a really bad fever?
“Anyway, after all that fruit rot got off her Aina started gettin’ a little better. We were really worried… April an’ May her branches still naked but Dr. Rokos got everythin’ off clean, makes sense. With proper trimmin’ an’ care pomegranates live a real long time, but they take all year to flower. June, I kinna expected to see some signs of growth on Aina’s branches, but there’s still nothin’. In fact, she’s gettin’ kinda sick again.
“But she’s also been complainin’ about how hot it’s been lately an’ she’s been really clumsy an’ sleepy. Sleepy we saw when she was sick, plenty of it, but not clumsy. Duncan told me Raevans act a lot like their souls an’ essences once were? Pomegranates need hot summers to live, but they’re fall fruit. They sleep when it’s hot, get happy when it’s cold. I think this is just her bad season, this is when poms gotta lounge in the sun an’ basically eat a lot, ‘cause otherwise she’s not actin’ sick like she was. I mean, not yet, but here’s hopin’ to never! No crazy coughin’ and fevers from Aina anymore! An’ scary nights when we think she’s gunna throw up!
If she starts gettin’ real sick again you’ll know, we’ll give you a call. I think Duncan coulda told you everythin’ I did but he wanted to gimme a chance givin’ you guys some news, so ‘ey! Here’s to you for listenin’. You got anythin’ more to add, Duncan?”
“Thank you, Mordekai, that was very helpful. There isn’t much else I can add - as we’ve mentioned, it’s been a very sick season for poor Aina, but it’s coming to an end. The one thing I must add about her magical development: back in April, a few weeks after her surgery and into her recovery, Aina began anticipating rains with a great deal of success. She’s been predicting rains and weather successfully since, but we haven’t seen this ability come to light as often as we did back in April and May. The rain, of course, has become less frequent since, so that may be why.”
Lab Report 4: July 2015 - September 2015
“Some very good news: Aina’s sick spells are no more. Chaos has its reigns over this household once again with the fall, and there’s no other way we would have it. We’re elated to see Aina back on her feet, so to speak.
“As Mordekai predicted, Aina’s drowsiness back in June seemed to be nothing more than a bad summer spell, and Aina’s poor reaction to the summer weather persisted into July then ceased completely. For a time, we returned to the notorious 20 hour sleep days, and her feeding routine began to slip in effectiveness at an exponential rate by the end of the month. Before August began, we had various incidents throughout the week where her hunger affected various household items during her sleep, causing both furniture and utensils to have lost their density for up to thirty minutes after she wakes. We did have this happen back in winter.
“A detail I’ve failed to mention in the past: Aina, when asleep for her regular 12 hour cycles, also floats in a stationary position in mid-air, but usually for no more than two to three feet. Around this time, she began floating in her sleep at a range of eight to nine feet. It was a resurgence of everything we’d seen back during her first few months of consciousness in September and October 2014. Snow doesn’t seem to help stave her hunger in the least, but a return to 12 feeding times throughout the day have helped curbed these occurrences from happening. It does not, however, stop them completely.
“Of course, as I have mentioned, we prefer it vastly to seeing Aina as sick as she was in March-- Aina has been as active as she had been last winter since August. Her branches also began to show signs of flowering since her emergency trimming in March; we returned to Dr. Rokos for a minor pruning. Her branches did bear some fruit, and we’ve collected it and kept it with us indoors. We’ve yet to inspect the pomegranates in full.
“Everyday this year has been such a tremendous learning experience, and I expect we’ll continue to learn even more with the upcoming decades we hope to have with our dear Aina-- she’s even begun to know and call Mordekai and I her father and grandfather by her own choice, when before she’s preferred our given names. Aina has a great love of family and makes friends easily. She’s highly curious and incredibly intelligent. She is kind and giving.
“As of today, she has also been with us for one year. We love her dearly.
“From the bottom of my heart, Dr. Kyou, thank you for all of your efforts. Our family is proud to be a part of yours. We hope these logs, in any small way, will help your research.”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:17 pm
. Aina and Mordekai bring Seabiscuit to a small New Years Eve celebration with Lab out in a fancy cabin.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Powdery white snow and a warm cabin in the distance. Mordekai let out a soft laugh as his feet crunched into a deep layer of snow around Duncan's rickety old car and stepped around toward the back seats, peaking through the window to glance at Aina and Seabiscuit. The pomegranate Frei had her head rested against the great dane's back, wrapped up in a thick blanket; she made a soft noise in acknowledgement to the gust of cold wind that blew into the car when Mordekai opened the back seat door.
"Short trip, huh?" he picked the Frei up into his arms, and Seabiscuit lifted his head from the seats and peaked out past Mordekai, sniffing the air. "S'like a fairytale out here," the blond stepped aside to let Seabiscuit out, "Up and at 'em, Seab."
Aina rubbed her eyes and smiled blearily out toward the distance of the cabin - once Mordekai and Seabiscuit walked toward the warm building, she brightened at a familiar sight just ahead. "Cesc?" she asked, pointing toward the stag.
"Oh! 'Ey, Miss LaCelle!" Mordekai waved toward Cesc and his camaderie; when Seabiscuit let out a soft huff and hesitated to come forward, the blond gently placed his palm on the back of the great dane's neck in reassurance. "Happy new year!"
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:17 pm
. It was early morning when Mordekai and Aina had returned home from Leigh’s flat - they’d dropped off Seabiscuit at the farm after the sun had just risen over the Barton hills, and their house was only a fifteen minute drive away - something Mordekai often forgot, with his frequent commutes to work by bike. With all the excitement that followed New Years Eve, Aina was fast asleep in the bundle of blankets she cozily occupied over the past couple of days, lost to the world even as Mordekai invited the winter chill into the car when they’d arrived at their driveway.
“Here’s home,” Aina heard Mordekai say - and they were, with her snugly in her bed and winter clothes. The corners of the Frei’s sleepy eyes creased as she giggled, hands reaching out for Mordekai’s cheeks. With a smile, he leaned over to kiss her forehead.
“Hi, home,” Aina replied, sitting up to lean against the blond. The blankets around her slumped down onto the bed, and she yawned - with a soft laugh, Mordekai adjusted the blankets and wrapped them around her shoulders.
“Home’s glad to see you,” Mordekai nudged Aina’s shoulder a little. “I’m gonna have to go out for a lil bit, oke, baby girl? You gonna be okay ‘til Duncan an’ Miss Becca get home?”
“Oh - okay… mhm,” diligently, Aina nodded up at him. The pomegranate leaned a bit to glance at the calendar just ahead of her, curious; “Are you gonna go see mama?” she asked, staring down at her hands. The question caused Mordekai’s eyes to widen, and his eyes followed where Aina’s went - the calendar was already on January.
“Ah-- yeah...” managing a laugh, Mordekai hopped off of the bed to go look at the calendar - a sloppy circle was written around the first of the month. “You remembered, baby girl?”
“Mhm..! You visit mama every first day of the month.” Pausing, Aina folded her hands over her lap, expression falling - “Is it bad if I know?”
“N-no,” Mordekai took one last look at the calendar before stepping back, turning around to face Aina again. With a shake of his head, he knelt to be eye level with her; smiling, he reached up to ruffle her hair. “No... s’not bad. You’re jus’ so smart, pickin’ that up!”
With a hum, Aina arched her head down as Mordekai ruffled her hair. When the blond caught his expression falling, he tilted his head, forcing his smile to return - when Aina looked back at him, the smile grew more genuine.
“Hey,” he drew his hand back, folding his hands together as Aina did, “How ‘bout we go visit mama together?”
Immediately, Aina brightened, wide blue eyes staring at his. “Um-- is--” she glanced down at her sleeves, “Is that okay...?”
Wanly, Mordekai breathed in deep, then reached over to pick Aina back up from the bed.“‘Course it is,” he nodded, hugging her tight, “S’bout time you see your mama, huh?”
***
Sometimes, on those rare occasions Duncan and Mordekai had to leave Aina at home alone for a couple of hours, they returned to see the Frei admire the photographs framed along the downstairs walls, staring at images of Annie with curious eyes. But it was always a glint of a moment until she noticed that they were back home so she could greet them, clinging to their coats and telling them all about her day in full. And when she told them about her day, Aina never told them about her staring up at those photographs - she didn’t even ask about them, or her, even after they’d made sure to put a name to the face.
Mordekai hadn’t expected it, for Aina to bring her mama up so quickly as he was preparing to go visit her. He helped bundle her up in thicker winter wear and they prepared a bouquet for her in a blink of an eye, and he hadn’t quite processed what was happening until they were at Graceland’s gate. With a small intake of breath, and a curious look from Aina, he pushed past the iron gate with bicycle in tow.
“Here we are,” Mordekai kicked on the bike’s brakes and held Aina up and out of the bicycle basket, where she was nestled comfortably in a small pile of jackets. The pomegranate held onto their bouquet of flowers tightly as they walked down a row of gravestones. When they stopped at one, Aina stared at it, quiet.
“Here’s your flowers, Annie. Sorry we’re a little late - there’s a guest for you,” Mordekai glanced down at the frosted grass - with a small shrug, he took a seat over the snow, hugging Aina in his lap; when Aina remained idle, he glanced down at her, nose poking the top of her head. “Baby girl, can you give mama her flowers?”
“You’re gonna get a soggy butt,” Aina noted quietly; then, hugging her flowers tighter, she arched her neck up to look at Mordekai. “An’ mama’s just a big stone now...”
Mordekai’s somber smile broke into an amused grin, and he chuckled; “Aw, this big ol’ stone ain’t her. She’s down there,” he pointed toward the snowy grass just in front, “She’s restin’ up in a little box in the ground, helps her get warm in winter. She been wantin’ to meet you a long time.”
“Oh... “ Aina stared at the grass and gravestone before them, then held out the bouquet - she placed it carefully against the gravestone. “Sorry, mama. We got you flowers.”
Mordekai reached over to hold the flowers up as they threatened to plop onto the snow - when it stilled, he went back to hugging Aina again, and he hummed. “There we go…” He slouched, resting his chin on top of Aina’s head - with a small sigh, he closed his eyes. “Wish you coulda met her before she had to go,” his eyes fluttered tiredly open, and he kissed Aina’s cheek. “But it’s okay. We’re here now, right?”
“Mhm…” Aina wiggled - the Frei and her father stared a while at the gravestone before them, and the silence of the morning filled the air - no birds were chirping overhead, and the iron gate whined open as another visitor entered Graceland. Like Mordekai had before, Aina sighed, too, the curiosity from her eyes falling as they continued watching…
Well, nothing. This wasn’t the mama she knew - not the one she’d seen in the photographs, at least. When she glanced back up at Mordekai, she made a sound in worry when she noticed him frowning, appearing empty. She tugged on his sleeve to catch his attention, and with a weary blink of the eyes, Mordekai glanced back down.
“Hm?” he feigned a smile, which caused Aina to pout; “S’it too cold out here?”
“Mm-mm.” she leaned against Mordekai, staring up at him - she reached up to poke his nose. “How did you an’ mama meet? Was it when she wasn’t livin’ in a box?”
Mordekai blinked at the poke on the nose; amused, his smile widened. “Yea, it was when she wasn’t livin’ in a box.” When Aina reached over to poke his nose again, he kissed the tip of her finger; chuckling, he hung his head. “Ah-- s’not that excitin’... we met at a school - Uncle Johan’s… when he was little. Kinna like Cruz.”
Aina fluffed her hair. “Uncle Johan had green hair an’ pointy teeth?”
“No!” Mordekai slipped into a peal of laughter, and he leaned forward to hug Aina tightly, nuzzling against her cheek; “An’ no ribbon, either! He was in… 11th grade. I was waitin’ for him outside the school, an’ one time-- your mama was waitin’ for gran’pa Duncan too. Right next to me.”
“You’re tickly!” Aina shoved Mordekai’s face, giggling; she clung to Mordekai’s arm, and when their laughter died down, she smiled up at him. “Duncan was goin’ to school, too?”
“Well - yeah, he was teachin’ - like he’s doin’ right now. So she was waitin’ for him to get outta class - figures he was the one teachin’ Uncle Johan, an’ they walked out together… guess what she asks me, first thing when she sees ‘em?”
“Hm?”
“‘You’re related to this troublemaker?’” Mordekai laughed again, and Aina giggled; at a realization, he brightened. “Hey, wanna see a picture from back then, Aina?”
“Yeah!” Aina nodded - Mordekai leaned to the side and reached into his parka, where he kept his wallet. When he found it, he hugged Aina again to look through it with her.
It was the first time Aina had seen the wallet’s contents - inside were a few crumpled receipts, loose change, and some pictures. Some were ones that Aina immediately recognized - she reached out to see the ones of Anita and Cruz closer, and the one that had been taken of her aunt and uncle with Duncan at Aina’s first Thanksgiving. As she stared at the two, Mordekai found his oldest picture yet - it was yellowed and crumpled.
“Here they are,” Mordekai held the photo closer for Aina. Even though he was younger, Aina recognized grandpa Duncan instantly - he was smiling and standing next to three other figures, a frowning teenaged Uncle Johan and a blond and scrappy and small man - Aina pointed toward him.
“Who’s that?”
“Das me,” Mordekai laughed.
“And…” Aina pointed at the woman next to him - a woman with short hair in a white dress with dimples in her cheeks as she smiled. Aina smiled in return, hands reaching forward to grab the photograph.
“She has a really big smile,” Aina whispered.
“She does,” Mordekai whispered back, admiring the picture with her - after a pause, he glanced back at the gravestone. “How about we give this back to her, baby girl?”
Aina froze, clutching onto the photograph. She took another cursory glance at it, then leaned forward to place the photo on her gravestone. “Here you go, mama.”
When a breeze passed by and lifted the paper from off of the gravestone, Mordekai hastily reached forward and nestled it between their bouquet of flowers. He laughed, relieved; with Aina in his arms, he rose to his feet. “So it doesn’t go flyin’ away.” He leaned over to kiss the top of the gravestone, then glanced down at the Frei; “Alright, mamzelle, les’go back home.”
Aina nodded, and Mordekai walked back down next to the row of gravestones to their bicycle. The pomegranate glanced back at Annie’s gravestone, at the bouquet of flowers, and at the small photo they’d left behind.
“Stay warm, okay?”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:18 pm
. Ethiriel and Aina have a girl's day out at a shopping outlet.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
It was only a couple of weeks since the New Years party that Lab had held, but Ethiriel had definitely been looking forward to this time with Aina. They had planned it then, eagerly looking time together since their usual babysitting routine had been interrupted by surgery. The silver Frei had felt terrible for so long about having not reached out for the younger Raevan since her initial surgery -- though it wasn't exactly either of their faults given scheduling.
Henry had offered to give them a ride to the small outlet mall not far from either of their homes. He had also suggested that it just be between the two of them -- Ethiriel could see now and was responsible enough to take care of Aina on her own, much like she had at the Clarke or Knight households.
Plus, in the nurse's eyes, they needed a little bit of girl time.
With Aina’s hand tight in her own, Ethiriel floated mindlessly forward, glancing at all the signs. Letting out a light scoff, the older Frei leaned down toward her companion. “Can you read, my little one?” she asked. She certainly couldn’t, especially in the small amount of time she had, had vision – there were no chances to learn.
Aina nodded happily up at Ethiriel with a large smile, “Mhm! Um…” she said, looking around. Finding the directory for the outlet, she pointed toward it and hovered closer. “There’s lotsa shops here…”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:18 pm
. Aina and Miss Claire take Ethiriel out to a day at a pottery shop in Gambino.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Glancing out toward the house too, Aina pouted curiously, but smiled over at Claire. “Mhm! Um…” the young Frei started, glancing down at her lap, thinking, then nods. Finagling with the door to get it open, she hopped out of her seat and looked to Claire again for confirmation. “Miss Claire; do I have to ring the doorbell and knock too? I forget…”
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Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 1:18 pm
. Despite his past weariness of the necromantic arts, Duncan schedules an appointment with Lorenzo Fisch regarding the revival of a horse. Aina tags along in an effort to revive a butterfly long gone.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Duncan was, to be blunt, never very fond of necromancy. When he was younger, to put it even more bluntly, he admonished the craft entirely - he was a more conservative scholar amongst his more magically inclined peers. Many of them explained it away with his hoity-toity English upbringing, or perhaps his severe American heritage, and Duncan never fought the matter; after all, it was easy enough to avoid the craft entirely, if one were not in need of its services directly.
But now that he did, he found himself walking along a sidewalk in downtown Durem with a perpetual look of uncertainty. Not only was he making his way to the private office of a licensed necromancer, but he was also visiting with Aina - his little one, who had pestered him about the meeting enough to convince him that, yes, bringing her along was a good idea. Lorenzo Fisch, after all, was a Raevan guardian to be - he knew that much from a cursory visit to Lab 305 and an update to his contacts list.
“Duncan?” Aina piped up - Duncan recoiled from his thoughts to smile down at Aina. The pomegranate smiled back, and Duncan tried to see past the small bell jar Aina was holding between her gloved hands. In it was a dead butterfly, floating unceremoniously as a result of her magic.
Aina pointed up at the store sign - Lorenzo Fisch, M.N.A. Necromantic Services and Post-Life Care. “Is this where Mr. Fisch is?”
“Ah - yes, I believe so… Thank you, Aina.” With a broad smile, Duncan pushed open the door and took off his cap as they entered through the threshold of one Mr. Fisch. Aina floated curiously ahead of him, clutching onto her bell jar, and sat next to the only other client in the waiting room - someone particularly Undead. With an uneasy smile, Duncan offered them a small nod and took his seat.
”Can Mr. Fisch really bring Mr. E back?” she asked, glancing up at Duncan. Duncan rested his briefcase and hat on his lap, giving pause.
”Let’s hope for Maree that he can,” he replied.
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