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 Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 1:36 pm
"Hello," Delta replied in greeting. She remembered Osu from the Halloween party... he had been a pirate, or so he had told her. He also looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place where she had met him before that. It was probably when she was smaller or something, but everyone looked really different since they were gryphons.
Sy flushed a little as Yasu greeted her and Delta, and gave a small wave... even though she was only a few feet away. It had been a while since she had seen most of the residents, and she had slowly become slightly more shy and withdrawn. It wasn't because she didn't like them- she loved them all! - but because she was slightly afraid that in her absence things had changed or people were mad at her. Where Delta had all the confidence in the world, Sy was certainly lacking.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 1:46 pm
Allowing Osu to do his own thing for the moment, Ieyasu wandered over to one of the comfy-looking chairs before sitting down in it. Casually draping his legs over one arm of the chair, he grinned. If he had noticed her flush, he hadn't reacted to it at all.
"How've you been? I didn't get much of a chance to talk with you at the Hallow'een party, and I've not seen you about much apart from then?"
Osu grinned cheerfully at Delta. He remembered her from Hall'ween! Heading straight over to one of the toy chests, he tugged on it as hard as he could. The chest only moved a little - it was rather large after all - but it was enough to allow Osu access to the contents. He looked up at Delta inquisitively.
"You wann' play?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 1:54 pm
Want to play? She blinked a few times at the other child, as if she wasn't sure how to react for a brief moment. Delta hadn't been around other Areandir much since she had been a child, and so she really didn't know what sort of games he would want to play. As much as she was hesitant about playing and possibly getting incredibly dirty, she remembered that it was always best to be polite... plus she needed friends. Princesses always had lots of friends.
"Okay. What kind of games do you play?"
Sy looked at Delta and Osu a moment before she sat down in a chair near Ieyasu. Even when she sat down she looked a little anxious, folding her hands in her lap and wet her lips before she spoke. He certainly didn't seem upset... only curious... but she was also in the centre. And Aly could emerge anytime now from one of the doors, or for that matter anyone else could come in, and be upset with her.
"I... I really haven't seen anyone lately. I've been working... and teaching Delta. I'm sorry. I should be a more... um... fixated part of the community." Being so isolated and busy certainly hadn't helped anyone... especially her daughter or her love life... or lack thereof, it seemed.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:03 pm
Osu grinned. "Dunno. Toys here though." He began to rifle through the contents, pulling out a plushie animal, a red toy truck and a soft doll. Sitting down on the rug with a soft fwump, he held out the plushie to Delta.
Ieyasu glanced at Syrenrei curiously. She was acting kind of odd.. "I wouldn't worry about that. We all get busy sometimes." Leaning back against the other armrest, he glanced at her questioningly.
"Is something wrong? You seem a little out of it."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:10 pm
Toys? She had a few toys of her own at home... they were small plastic dolls that looked kind of like her mother, but with different hair and eye colors. There were clothes that came with them and sometimes she liked to dress them up. She had also given them all names of princesses she had read about in books. Plushies, however, were not among the toys she played with. She took the soft, squishy toy. It felt like a pillow, but... it looked like an animal. How... odd.
"Do you have toys at home?"
Sy shifted a little in her seat. It was true... she had become more nervous and anxious. She had a tendency to overthink and overworry things, and while she knew that was what she was doing now, she couldn't dispell it's effects on her.
"I'm just worried that people will be mad with me. I was gone for a while... and I should have been here. Taking care of Delta and helping out with events." She carefully skirted around who she was most nervous and anxious about seeing, of course. Not that she was superstitious, but if she talked about him, it would be her bad luck he'd show up in a foul mood just as she spoke.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:23 pm
"Uh huh! I have aminals and crayns an' stuff." He beamed at Delta. "We have a kitty too! He's fun to play with, but he likes sleepin' mostly though. And lickin' himself. Yassu says he's giving himself a baff."
He picked up the truck and began to 'drive' it back and forth over the floor in front of him, his tail thumping the floor behind him happily.
Ieyasu gazed at Sy for a moment. He didn't understand why she was getting herself so worked up about something so small. He was assuming that she had arranged for someone to look after Delta while she was gone, of course. "I don't think you need to worry." He shrugged. "I'm sure you had a good reason, and you're back now."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:32 pm
Delta had a little difficulty understanding Osu with his... less than amazing articulation. She knew she shouldn't hold it against him, but darn it if it wasn't a bit annoying. Shrugging it off, she wondered about this cat creature he talked about. She had read about them, of course, but she didn't have one of her own at home... even if her mom did sometimes look a little like a cat.
"You have a cat? Like a REAL pet cat?" A hint of admiration mixed with jealousy saturated her voice. He was so lucky! Even if he couldn't speak as eloquantly as she did...
As Yasu tried to make her feel better, she could only stare at her hands. Well, she had been absent because of work... but that was no excuse. She should have gotten her priorities straight sooner! Scolding herself silently, she smiled a little at the kitsune. Syrenrei was more mad at herself than anyone else could possibly be.
"T-thank you. I'm going to try my best to be around more now." She smiled faintly with a bit of a blush. "I can see Osu is doing well. You must be a great father."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:45 pm
"Uh huh. He came from a little toy. It was so cool! He like, grew big, an' went furry an' moved, an' then he was a kitty cat." Osu beamed. It was obvious from his expression that he had a lot of attachment to the cat he talked about.
"Yassu calls him 'Lex."
Ieyasu stared at her for a moment. Him, a great father? You had to be joking. He laughed suddenly. "You've got to be kidding. I stumble through as best I can with Osu, but I'm definitely not a great father.
And I'm a hell of a lot better than I used to be. Y'see, I had the problem of being an inherently selfish a*****e. Ask anyone who knew me before I came here, and I'm sure they'd give you a few 'pleasant' descriptions. I've been trying to be good since arriving here, but I'm no saint."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:54 pm
Alyosha sauntered out into the main body of the centre, yawning widely. He had only just gotten up and had felt the need for some tea. Typically there had been none left and he was now headed store-cupboardwise for some teabags and milk.
As he came into the large room he paused. Slipping back against the wall he watched in silence as the the two spoke. His eyes slipped over the two pale-haired forms, head tilting to the side and he listened intently.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 2:54 pm
Toys turned into kitties? Delta was very confused now... in the stories she had read, people made babies. And kitties made kitties. Not that she knew how, mind you, it was just how it was. As a matter of fact... where did that mean she came from? She furrowed her brow in thought, staring at the plushie in confusion. She would have to ask her mother about this later. And coax all her toys into turning into kitties.
As Ieyasu denied being a good father, Sy just smiled demurely. He was a good father as far as she was concerned... she had long ago heard that no parent knew all the answers, or even close, but they did the best they could. And he certainly seemed to be doing that, to have such a lively and sweet child. She felt a flush cross her face as he declared he was no saint.
Well, she hadn't really been a saint either... ever since that drinking... "incident." Shaking her head, she tried to focus on Ieyasu more than the memories of all the affairs of the island, but this didn't do anything except perhaps alert her to how alluring kitsune were. She shifted in her seat uncomfortably and returned to staring at her hands.
"We all do the best we can... that's all anyone can do. And I've heard children can really change a person. I'm sure no one on this island was a saint before they came here. I know even I had blood-stained hands." Damnit, she just went from one bad train of thought to another. "Y-your son is a testament to how well you do."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:10 pm
"Cool, huh?" Osu discarded the toy truck in favour of a Chewbacca action figure. "Hey, you should come play with me an' Lex sometime!" Osu was sure Yassu wouldn't mind. He grinned broadly at Delta as he moved the toy's posable arms and legs. He wasn't quite sure what this toy was, but it was cool all the same.
"I remember" Ieyasu replied at Sy's comment about the blood stained hands. "I had to cart you home and patch you up after you turned up bleeding and refusing to bandage yourself."
Pausing for a moment, the kitsune frowned at Sy referring to Osu as his son. "I don't think the word father should be used for me, or son for Osu. It makes me feel like something I'm not. Don't get me wrong, I care for Osu as if he was of my own blood, but I wouldn't want him to call me father, or dad, or anything else like that."
He paused, before grinning suddenly.
"Not to mention it makes me feel old."
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:20 pm
Not that Delta really liked playing too much (because she was old and mature and a princess), but the idea of seeing a real cat was exciting enough to entice her. Maybe if the kitty was really neat she could even convince her mom to get her one someday. Or tell her how to turn a toy into one.
She nodded with enthusiasm and with a big smile. "That sounds fun! I haven't seen a REAL cat before. Are they really soft?"
Sy flushed again, in embarassment this time, at the thought of her having to be carted away and be taken care of. Sometimes she really did make the stupidest mistakes. This flush only deepened as she realized that she had made the mistake of referring to Yasu as Osu's father when he really didn't appreciate it.
"I'm so sorry to have troubled you then.... a-and now! I'm sorry, I didn't know you didn't like to be called his father..." Of course, this made no sense to her, but everyone had different thoughts and opinions on aging. and children. She loved children, even though she didn't have any, and relished any time someone thought she was older than say, 16.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:33 pm
"Uh huh! You have to be careful though. They don't like being poked an' stuff, an' they have claws and sharp pointy teeth as well as fluff." Osu remembered Yassu telling him all this stuff when Ilex first "grew". "Yassu says to be careful, cos they can get hurt just like we can."
"Hey, stop apologising for things." Ieyasu grinned teasingly. "It's more fun when you stand up and defend yourself rather than apologising every time you think you've offended me." Ieyasu, quite honestly, had about as much tact as a rabid bull in an antique shop at times. He still didn't understand why Sy was being so apologetic about everything
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:41 pm
Now kitties sounded somewhat... dangerous. Oo;; But even cats wouldn't attack her, would they? She was pretty! Cats were smart, and smart people and animals wouldn't attack pretty things, right? >> Hmmm, she wasn't so sure. Maybe if she was nice to the cat it would be nice back. She had to see it for sure now! Just had to make sure she didn't make it angry at her.
"They don't... attack you, do they? They wouldn't hurt me... right?" She bit her lip, although mentally she thought she looked a lot more confident than she did.
Sy was doing it again! She was annoying poor Ieyasu by apologizing too much. Of course, the first thing she did was blurt out an, "I'm sorry!" again. As soon as she said it she drew back, and looked down in her lap in frustration. Ugh. She was trying so hard to be nice and apologetic that all she was doing was screwing it all up. What else was she supposed to do? Why would she defend herself? She hadn't done or said anything right at all since she had sat down.
"Uh... um... I'm going to go get a drink. Would you like something?" Yes, that was better. Try to be useful. She jumped up almost too quickly, eager to retreat before she apologized again. A drink would calm her down. Perhaps some juice.
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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:50 pm
"Nu uh, he doesn't hurt me. But Yassu says I need to be careful not to hurt him too when we play. He likes chasin' wiggly bits of string!" Osu hadn't intended to scare Delta. All he had been doing was repeating the warning that Yasu had given him about being careful with animals.
Ieyasu sighed as Sy apologised. Again. He didn't like her being so deferential. Although he was beginning to realise that nothing he said to her was going to get her out of her current mood.
"Nah, I'm ok right now." If he was in her position, he'd be going for a rather stiff drink at this moment. God knows, she needed to calm her nerves a bit.
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