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 Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 10:05 pm
It'll be good for the kid; he's gotta be a kid. Boy. Boys are rowdy, Emily. Pent up energy. Whenever I was good and got too rowdy, my ma always took me out there. Great place for kids. Games, prizes. They go nuts. He'll love it.
George's words had echoed like a caution within her mind. Her hands had grasped her purse, holding its handle tightly as she glanced out the window of the small car she rode in. Her small straw hat had been settled upon her gray hair, its warm color a contrast to the smoky winter beneath it. Occasionally she fixed it in a manner, pulling it nearer to her eyes, or nudging it up in idle motions. As she thought of the suggestion made, she could only begin to precariously wonder what hoodlum orientations could possibly await her protegé. It was not her idea of 'fun' or productivity to have a young and impressionable child pumping monetary supplements into machines in order to win items. Gambling under the guise of a child's game, and it seemed immoral in its own ways. Yet, George had insisted. He had pleaded with her that it was just a normal children's activity. He had whistled his charm and laughed a little, citing the change in decades since her youth, and clearing the lack of gambling addictions he himself had. Bastion was an intelligent boy. He was responsible, cautious, and peculiar. George had been clear of that, and, in the end, he had managed to convince her to get in the car. They were off to that land of children's gambling; they were off to a place filled with pizza, and soft drinks, and fun-houses, robotic stage shows, and willy-nilly gadgets.
Hesitantly, Emily had looked over towards the driver of the car - none other than the carrot-topped young man named George. He was laughing lightly, chattering something about fish in shirts. She could hear Bastion's voice in the background too.
"Yeah, so there was this time when I was younger - before I worked the shop. Old man Gilles, he used to work the boat. You never met him, of course, but you would have loved him, kid. Great man. Like a father to everyone. Funny too, and so there was this time when I was out on the ship to help bring in some fish. We got a bunch thanks to Old man Gilles. He moved us off of what we had charted, and one of the guys and I had the idea to ..." George had continued with the antics, snickering wildly with nostalgia. Emily had only listened, uneasily turning her gaze to the back-seat at the mention of 'old man Gilles'. Hearing Richard referred to in such a manner seemed awkward. Even more awkward was the fact that she could not feel anything less than a twinge of ache over the name. She was almost completely grateful to see the bright sign of Kiki's Playhouse as they turned into the parking lot. With the halting of the car, George's story had faded into oblivion and had retreated to the notation of their location. He had regarded Emily, nudging her playfully before climbing out of the car. She had followed along, smiling briefly with a thought. She hadn't had pizza in years. Maybe there was something good in the mess.
"What is in there?" Bastion had inquired. His hard shoes had clacked against the pavement as he scurried along, spinning now and again at abrupt noises such as the honking of a horn, or the hum of an engine. His eyes had frantically flittered. His thumbs had twiddled as if plucking at something in the air. His golden vest had glittered somewhat in the afternoon's sunlight, only dimming when they had been engulfed by the shadows of the inside.
"You'll see, you'll see!" George had exclaimed with only a wild grin.
The tickets had been bought, the hands had been stamped, and without a complication they had passed through another set of doors and into the world of children's entertainment. Towering playhouses, rows of machines and flashing lights, bundles of prizes behind a counter. They all spun together a world of technological joy that had caught Bastion by surprise. He had placed his hands over his ears, wincing at the blending sounds of tantrum throwing children, laughter, clicks and dings. It was a frenzy of noises difficult for him to comprehend, and so he pounded his ears in an attempt to eliminate the wild twangs and frantic beats going off within his mind. Soon he had succeeded in dimming them away. He had tucked his lower lip beneath his upper lip. His shoulders had shaken somewhat as he looked up towards Emily and George, who had been devising something he had not heard at all. Quietly he had drawn nearer, taking in their sounds uneasily. Too loud of a place. Too loud. Too much noise. He liked noise, but it seemed ... So much. So much noise. and what was everyone doing? What were those flashing lights, those sing-song clicks and dings? Where had he been led? Questions ran through his mind, and he felt somewhat peculiar in connection with his grandmother, who did not seem overtly pleased herself.
His mouth had opened as he raised a hand politely, waving it in the air; before he could begin to express his confusion, whatever the two adults had been deciphering had been decided, though. They had found a table and Emily had sat down. George had followed, and had ruffled Bastion's hair gruffly. Bastion had only fixed it in his fickle manner, disliking the lack of tidy familiarity he had upheld since the beginning of his memory. Again he had tried to respond to his own confusion, but he had soon found what he recognized as a ten dollar bill in his hands. His fingers had gripped it tightly as the answers slowly came to him from the mouth of that man known as Uncle George.
Okay, Bas. Take this, see that machine over there? It dispenses tokens. You need those to play. Just put the tokens in the machine. Watch the other kids, talk to them, they'll show you what to do. We're gonna order some food, and we'll call you when it's done - have fun, alright?
Bastion had only stared wide-eyed and disturbed by the careless logic of it all. He felt almost out of place. In many ways, he was not sure he wanted to remain in doors. The car, the outside, had been nicer. ... And he had been enjoying George's funny tales of the grandfather he had never met. Yet, in the end, his curiosity about the unruly place had hooked him. He had consulted Emily, who had patted his cheek and told him it was alright, and to behave and give it a try. That had been enough to reassure his confidence, and with only a small wave he had began to drag his feet away and push himself into the world of carnival noises and chaotic symphony.
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Posted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:03 am
“Cole! For the last time! Get you butt out of this car! Come on! You’ll have fun! Possibly you might even smile! God forbid.” Cassi was getting tired of this game. Eveline had been getting annoying and making her feel like a god awful parent so she needed to get out of the house. The only place she thought of was a place of her childhood, Kiki’s Playhouse. A place of games and prizes, and hopefully, young single dads.
“Mother, I don’t want to go.” Cole huffed in his seat. He was sick and tired of Cassi dragging him all over town. All he wanted was to stay at home in the mansion and practice his violin.
“Cole! For goodness sake! It’s not gonna kill you to be sociable! Now get out now or, or, or I’m taking away your violin for a week!” Cassi stumbled to find an appropriate punishment before finding the horrific one ever in Cole’s mind.
Cole’s eyes grew big and for a moment, it was a scowl that was on his face, but fear. “Fine,” He grumbled, jumping out of the car, his black coat trailing behind him.
“Come on, there are shiny things in here!” Cassi bribed Cole, hoping that his love for collecting anything that shines, particularly her jewelry, would over power his sulking. She held out her hand for Cole to grab, but he simply walked right past her. Cassi groaned and followed her surly son.
As Cole entered the Playhouse, he was immediately greeted with the noise of a thousand noisy machines and the screams and shrieks of the other children within. “Can we go home now, Mother?” Cole said in disgust, looking at his surroundings.
“No we can’t! You and I are going to have pizza and you are going to play games and then when we get home, we can show Eveline what a good time we’ve been having. Got it McScruffy?” Cole glared at his mother for using her newest nickname. Just because his hair stood out in some places and he didn’t like wearing anything but his black coat did not make him ‘scruffy’.
“Look, we’ll just hang out for a little while okay? Eat a pizza, play a few games, it won’t kill you.” Cassi was getting desperate and growing tired of Cole’s attitude towards her.
“Fine.”
“Look, there’s a free table over there, let’s go sit.” Cassi pointed to a table that was next to where Emily and George were sitting. As they maneuvered their way through the crowd and machinery, Cassi was finding her self thanking whatever power that may be for making her decide to wear sensible ballerina flats, longer skirt and a shirt that fully covered her torso today. She quite possibly could have died with her normal attire.
Finally they made it to the table. “Here,” Cassi said, handing Cole a twenty, “Go get some coins and play some games, sound good?”
Cole grabbed the twenty and headed towards the nearest coins making machine. It was there that something shiny caught his eye. Not something that lit up and flashed lights, but rather a simple golden vest.
He turned his head to the side and stared at the boy for a few seconds before walking over to the boy in the shiny vest. “Hi.”
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Tempest Vernum Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 2:20 pm
I don't want to leave!
Those are my tokens, Chris! Mom!
The tantrums were beginning to bounce within his mind as he sorted them out. Bastion's nimble fingers had smoothed out his bill. His lips had pursed somewhat as his tongue pressed against the back of his teeth. Hmmm, hmmm, hmmm. He had hummed to himself, rubbing his thumbs along his ten dollars at the sound of its crinkling and a small shhh. Hmmm, hmm, shhh, hmmm, shhh, shhh, shhh. He had began to smile with the action. His right knee had buckled, driving his foot to tape somewhat until he stopped at yet another loud ringing noise from a machine. Irritably, he had covered one of his ears with a hand, then he had slid the ten dollar bill into the machine to obtain the foretold tokens which George had spoken of. He estimated they were similar to 'change', and is assumption soon became correct as he stepped back in bewilderment at the clanking noise of coins dripping into the gathering slot of the exchange machine. "Ah" He had breathed, wrapping his arms about him and squeezing himself into a hug.
As he had been comforting himself and attempting to adjust in some manner, he had heard something peculiar fall into his mind's reassurances. As he had told himself to try out the contraptions surrounding him, a voice had pierced his focus. Yet, it was slower for him, and less shocking than the carnival noises and boisterous laughter that had devoured his ears from the moment he stepped within. Hi, the voice had said; Bastion had turned his head in the wrong direction, as if he had confused the noise from somewhere else. He had soon caught on and glanced to his other side, finding a young boy certainly no older than himself.
His stormy eyes had paused, flickering up and down as if documenting something in particular, then he had given a sheepish smile as he raked the golden tokens from the machine into his hand. "Hello." He had chimed in his small voice; then he had paused, looking to his slacks as if he were searching for their pockets. Gradually he had began to drop tokens inside, feeling it smarter than carrying them. It made his legs feel heavy.
Something had caused him to look again at the strange child in his black coat and seemingly formal wear. It seemed funny, yet comforting. so many of the children running a muck were donning their colorful t-shirts, they blue jeans, or their shorts, heir baseball caps, their pig tails. There was modernity to the world, which could have been expected. But Bastion was set on his wear. His vest, his slacks, his shoes, all neatly settled and meticulously placed over him, down to the way he tied his shoelaces. He certainly stood out amongst the crowd, and as he stared at the young boy in front of him, he had to agree that he stood out as well.
Bastion had thought momentary with thought before he had finished setting his tokens into his pockets. "I apologize, dear sir. I am finished if you would like to use this ..." His lip had twitched as he eyed the title of the machine. He could not read it, and so he said nothing more in regards to it. "It turns coins out rather fast. I would be careful with it."
George had leaned back in his seat, laughing lightly as he drolled about something. His youthful face was bright and beaming as he tapped his fingers on the table, then began to shake his head.
"Oh, you always leave such things out of your stories; do you think your dear Emily forgets? You were a terrible child. A sweet boy, but such a terrible child!" Emily had laughed herself as she removed her straw hat to set beside her on the booth. Her eyes had twinkled with nostalgia and joy as she watched George hold up his hands in surrender.
"Okay, you got me, Emily." George had grinned his wily grin. "I did do that, and I remember what happened too. You and Rich had me gutting fish for weeks. One little slip up; it was funny, though. You remember what Officer McGurney said? 'This boy is a menace to society, running around bare in the dead of night at a public pool! On top of that, he had the decency to go and nearly drown! Drowning while skinny dipping; he's something else, but possibly the biggest block head of a boy I've ever arrested'." George had set his arms on the table, his shoulders shaking with the memory. "I still don't believe I couldn't swim."
"You were fifteen, lad, and you had never seen water in your life outside of a tub." Emily had dismissed it, glancing off to her side. George had stretched his back.
George's eyes had squinted a moment as he ruffled his messy pumpkin hair and gave a sigh. He had sat up straight, peaking over the row of seats and leaning forward somewhat at what appeared the sight of a girl. Mother, his mind had labeled quickly, then he had looked away and off towards the clacking machines. If he weren't concerned about mingling with children, he was apt to think he would have a few goes on the machines.
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Posted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 5:36 pm
Cole had impatiently waited for the other boy to notice him. Normally he loved it when he wasn’t noticed, normally it was something he strove for, but this boy stood out, making it impossible for Cole and his magpie tendencies to ignore. He started staring at the vest once more as Bastion collected his tokens.
He was so caught up in staring at Bastion’s vest that he didn’t realize that he was talking. “No, it’s okay, I don’t really want to be here. My mother thinks that it will be ‘fun’.” Cole made a face at the mention of his mother. But he went up to the machine and place the bill into the machine like he saw Bastion doing. “Thanks for the warning,” Cole mumbled as the coins tumbled out. He quickly pocketed them into his coat. He then pulled his hands into the sleeve of his coat and stared at the patterns on the carpet before looking back up at Bastion.
“Where did you get that vest?” Cole didn’t want to outright say how much he liked it, or how much he wanted to take it and put it with the rest of his borrowed items in his room. “It’s very shiny.” He looked back down at the floor in an attempt to look disinterested. His foot started tracing a small pattern along the carpet as Cole avoided eye contact.
Meanwhile, Cassi had been people watching at her table. She noticed at the table with an older woman and a much younger man. Her eyes scanned him over from his orange hair to his smile to, um, lower parts of his body. Cassi looked away for a second to see if Cole was okay and not trying to kill anyone. She saw him talking to a rather clean looking boy. Well, maybe some one else can convince him to change out of that scruffy old coat!
Cassi turned her attention back to the young man with orange hair. It was risking flirting with a man when there was an older woman there, but that hadn’t stopped her before. Now all she needed was a way to introduce herself.
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Tempest Vernum Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 6:41 pm
"That is what Uncle George said." Bastion had sighed, lolling his head back as he patted his pockets, listening to the rhythmic jingle of the tokens. "My Grandmother and he said it was a surprise, but it is rather noisy in here." He had grimaced. The noise was the unsavory part. The building was enclosed, large, tall. The various sounds bounced off of the walls and about the room, colliding into one another to formulate atomic bombs of clutter to jam his mind and hurt him. Bastion adored the nature of sound, and alone, the machines may have sounded beautiful in a bizarre fashion. Entrenched in chaos, there was very little appealing to the place, however. Bastion was at a loss, and though his optimism did not allow him to propose he was unhappy, he truly was displeased with the surrounding setting. It simply made him long for the gentle oscillations lapping against the legs of the pier. The caw of the eagles, the hum of a fog horn, or the ringing of a melodious bell. Sounds that functioned. Sounds with order and song. "And bright." Bastion had added onto the tangent, lolling his head back to look at the ceiling.
He had heard the coins clattering against the metal as the machine began to pump them out. When he shut his eyes, he almost thought he heard little rain droplets dinging against the ground in separate pitches. Beautiful. Hmmm. Hmmm.... Hmmm. Hmmm. ... He had hummed quietly before opening his eyes. Where did you get that vest?
Bastion had kept his head angled toward the ceiling, is mouth ajar. He had never thought about it. The vest had always been his. His shoes, his shirt, and his pants had always been his. For as long as he could remember, they had been latched to his body, and he had only ever removed them for bed or bath. Never for anything more. "I don't know." Bastion had explained. His fingers had traced along his vest. "I have always had it. For as long as I can remember. I simply 'woke up', I think, and it was on. I don't remember anything before that, so I am not certain where it came from." He had grinned as he lowered his head. "It is nice, isn't it?"
George and Emily had seemed to converse back and forth for a while, occasionally laughing about something as the orange-headed man checked a watch on his wrist. He grinned crookedly, wildly, and his eyes danced in a tricky manner like that of the Cheshire Cat's. Now and again he would gather a large rise, as if defending something that might have been uttered in a playful jostle of feelings; then the conversation had fallen to fading laughter as they each glanced towards the token machine.
Emily had set her purse on the table's top, sliding it towards the wall of the booth as she happily observed. Bastion appeared to be doing perfectly well, and it even looked as if he were talking to someone easily. A good-natured feeling had settled within her heart as she looked away in contentment and ease. The lack of sudden danger or delinquency had certainly managed to ease her over, no matter her discontent for the idea of children's gambling.
George had leaned over the bar of the booth, resting his chin on top of it as he watched, snickering now and again at the sight. "See, I told you this was a perfect idea." He had gloated, shuffling before sinking back in his seat. His head had turned again to find that young woman, the one he had been quick to label. His brow had quirked a moment at the idea of being watched, be he had inevitably dismissed it. Quietly he had sank into his seat, scratching his throat with a finger. "He's already met someone."
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Posted: Mon Apr 14, 2008 8:05 pm
Amongst the cacophony of the playhouse, Cole watched Bastion fiddle with the tokens in his pocket. Cole had always preferred to silently watch on, detach himself from the world around him. Cassi had been making that especially difficult as of late. She was always taking him out and making him leave his precious violin behind.
“Noisy, yeah,” Cole let his eye wander around the room. He had never understood the need to run around and act completely silly. All the children that were yelling and playing on the loud machines were beginning to get on his nerves. Especially as one small girl let out a particularly piercing shriek as she won more tickets than she could hold.
Watching Bastion proved to be something of an amusement to Cole. He had never met some one who seemed so distracted by the sheer noise of a place. He watched as Bastion shut his eyes and his scowl turned into something of a smirk. He had never met anyone quite like Bastion. His eyes wandered back down to the vest before a machine that lit up with an array of colors as it shouted at him about all the fun prizes he could win grabbed his attention.
“Same here with my coat. I’ve had it has long as I can remember. Mother says that I came from the music room at my house. I’m not allowed to go into it; Mother says that it’s not a place for children. I just think Mother doesn’t want me playing with all the fun instruments. It obvious that she hates music.” He scowled once more as he thought about all the injustices Cassi had done to him. [corlor=darkred]“But it’s very pretty.” He turned back to the earlier machine that seemed to be beckoning him with all its flash. “Do you want to see what that machine does? It’s rather shiny, like your vest.” Without waiting for an answer, Cole headed toward the bright machine with the neon flashing lights racing around in circles. It had four different ‘stations’ with different colored buttons. Cole had no idea how it worked or what to do, but he figured it couldn’t her to try.
Cassi knew her plan was in no way complete, let alone fool-proof, but she had to do something. There was no way she was just going to sit at a table and try and talk to her surly ward. There was just no way. Besides, it looked as if Cole had made friends with some other boy, if Cole ever actually made friends.
She carefully got up from her seat and discreetly hiked up her skirt. She walked calmly over towards the table where the orange-haired man and the old lady were sitting. She silently prayed to whatever power that might be that her cousin Adam’s acting tips had fully sunk into her head.
As she neared, she kept her eyes forward, and made sure to mover her hips in the most natural way she could. Finally when she was only a breath away, she let her foot get stuck on another chair and pitched forward in the direction of the man at the table. “Ah!” She shrieked as she fell, her features formed into a face of complete shock and terror.
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Tempest Vernum Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 9:13 pm
"A music room?" Bastion's attention had been distracted briefly by the mention. He remembered a music room. Vaguely. He could remember standing still in the center of some room with several instruments. Emily had been there - and he hadn't been able to remember anything even when she began to speak with him. Grandchild, grandchild.
His lips had been drawn into a line as he thought. "It's sad if she doesn't like music." He had began to smile, looking almost pleased with the idea of a room flooded with musical creations. He would very much like to see a place like that. To strum the strings of some instrument plaguing his dreams. Yes. A stringed instrument. "It's really rather wonderful. I would love to have a room like that." He had paused somewhat, his fingers fiddling almost in the manner of the Itsy-Bitsy-Spider. "I'm afraid we only have fish. The sea is quite nice, though."
His attention had again been grabbed by the flashing lights of the machine. Before he could gather a thought, Cole had been inviting him along and bursting off. Bastion's face had grown long a moment, but without hesitation he had scurried along at Cole's heels. "It's funny looking." He had furrowed his brows, observing the buttons curiously. What would those do if they pressed them?
"You have a point, George." Emily had breathed, frowning somewhat as Bastion disappeared with the young boy he had been speaking with. He had met someone. That was what was important. The mission had been accomplished - and she did suppose his venturing about an enclosed space was somewhat more acceptable than his venturing about the old and creaking docks. The sea was a fickle thing, and dangerous to a boy of Bastion's stature. That was what she believed. Quite firmly, indeed.
George had idly scratched his throat again. His feet had shuffled against the floor as he pressed himself up, as if contemplating excusing himself a moment to place the order for pizza. Yet, the matter was short lived - and his attention was abruptly returned with the Sailor's focus of wit. The young woman who he had seen just moments before had been walking in their direction. Striding casually, and he had again dismissed her presence as coincidental ... Until she had tripped. Whether it were an accident or on purpse, George was scarcely apt to care. His body had jolted; his eyes had grown wide, and he had quickly floundered to make an attempt to catch the woman and prevent her from falling into the table or hurting herself.
"WHOA!" He had yelped loudly, jerking somewhat as he flung out his arms.
Emily herself had jumped, covering a mouth with her hand from the surprise.
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Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 3:45 pm
The many buttons of the contraption proved to be much too complex for Cole. As he studied it, the colors grew loud and obnoxious, rather than the initial sparkling glory that drew him to it. The neon blue, green, red and yellow started to overwhelm him. He was transfixed to the very spot where he stood. It was like a hypnotist’s watch, any moment now Cole would fall asleep and start to act like a chicken, or at least, that’s what it felt like. He fiddled with the golden tokens within his hands, not knowing what to do with them. Eventually he managed to steal his eyes from the bewitching machine and looked down at his hands. The golden tokens were a far more pleasing sight. Their gentle, classic gleam of gold echoed the gold coins of the past. Of something not yet tangible to Cole. The gold reminded Cole of something more present and tangible. The young boy. A name, Cole franticly searched his head for a name, only to come up with, the boy with a shiny, golden vest. He turned to face the boy that he had been speaking to for the past couple minutes. He had followed him to the machine full of hypnotic spells and loud music assaulting his ears at every possible second. He turned to the boy next to him. “Name’s Cole, what’s yours?” True curiosity struck him. It wasn’t often that Cole held any sort of regard for other people, but this boy with the shiny vest and the odd mannerisms struck Cole. He had never met anyone quite like him before. “I don’t think this machine is very good, it hurts my eyes. And the music’s bad. It’s like the stuff my mother listens too, only worse.” He grimaced. He took another look at the many lights and buttons of the contraption, torn between absolute confusion, disgust and curiosity. “But you have fish? And the sea? I’ve never been to the sea.” Cole’s face went wistful as he thought of the many paintings and pictures he had seen inside the mansion. Some hung on the walls, and the others were in books that lay around the house. His attention quickly focused back onto the obnoxious device in front of him. It must be some kind of magician, or enchanter, Cole couldn’t take his eyes off of it once again. “I’m going to try it.” His face fell into a face of grim determination as he shoved a token into what appeared to be a slot for it, and his hand hovered over the green button, “Try it with me.”
~*~
Cassi landed into the arms of her target, inside she was grinning like the Cheshire cat, but on the outside she was flustered and breathless. “Oh god! I’m so sorry, sir!” She said as she righted herself with both feet on the ground. “Thank-you so much! I think you may have saved my life!” She put a hand on her chest as she ‘caught her breath’. “I don’t think I’ve ever been more frightened in my life! But I’m such a klutz! I should watch where I’m going more. My shoes don't have any traction either and these floors are so slippery!” She said quickly. “I’m so sorry once again! I didn’t hurt you did I? I’m so sorry if I did!” Cassi fawned over George. She looked at the table and noticed Emily with her shocked expression, “I’m sorry ma’am if I’ve interrupted anything important.” Cassi said in a polite voice. Cassi had decided it would be wise to be polite when dealing with an elderly woman; she had never had a good experience with them. The last encounter had ended with many…unfortunate names being yelled. But then again, Cassi maybe should have thought twice before jumping into bed with a high school student who lived with his Mormon grandparents. (She of course was only a college sophomore at the time, and he was a junior, so it wasn’t all that bad…) “I insist that I buy you a pizza or something since you saved my life” Cassi smiled sweetly up at George and she only hope that they couldn’t see her true intentions.
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Tempest Vernum Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 5:49 pm
Bastion was somewhat wary of the machine; its bright colors and twittering music an echo within his ears. It was loud, shrill even - and each of the notes generated a forceful twang within the back of his mind. Occasionally he would wince; his eyes would narrow to gawk at the flashing lights.
Then the gentle clanking of the golden tokens had entered the scene, and once more Bastion's fixation had shifted. Within his own hand there rested tokens, which he only clutched tightly with uncertainty of what was to be done with them. His lips had been drawn into a tight situation as he tilted his head at the machine; his brows had quirked, easing again once he had realized the young stranger had turned to face him. Cole? Oh, their names! Bastion suddenly seemed rather mortified with the ideology of having forgotten to introduce himself, or even request an identity from the other.
Quietly, he had smiled, nodding his head in acknowledgment of the name. Cole. "My name is Bastion." He had answered within his calm voice, glancing briefly to the machine as the other had continued to comment on it. He had to admit, the music was terrible.
"I wonder who played it; it really does sound bad." Bastion had shrank, touching one of his ears. "It's kind of funny too. Nothing like anything I've ever heard before."
Suddenly he had paused, perking at the return to the familiarity of the sea and its fish. "Ohh~" He had jolted, leaning back somewhat on his heels. "It's really nice. We live on the docks - my Grandmother and I. Uncle George owns a boat and a ... Uhm. A fish store. I'm not allowed onto the boat, but I can see the water well enough; it's really nice, especially at night with all of the stars." For a moment, Bastion had seemed lost within the memory of rushing waves and glittering stars - but he was again returned to the obnoxious scenery that had gathered about him.
But curiosity was a contagious thing, and as Cole decidedly said he was to try it, Bastion had agreed to try it with him - and had slid a slot inside of the token taker before situation himself near one of the buttons as best as he could.
Women., George had breathed as he had held Cassi up. He was a rather rigid man, sharp, firm, with the hinting looseness of motion. He seemed rather well adjusted to such circumstances - or at least things falling and growing to the need of being caught.
Nervously, he had smiled at the woman as she began to apologize and thank him. A little over dramatic, but ..., he had been thinking, nearly laughing on the inside at the confession of klutz-hood. "It's alright; I'm just glad you're okay. Would be a shame for a lady to hurt herself here on my watch." Somewhat uneased, he had stood her up before releasing her, glancing back at Emily as if to suggest he knew something that she didn't. Clearly, she had no idea what ran through George's mind - and thus the glance was moot. Nevertheless, George, diligent and peculiar, only shrugged his shoulders as he glanced back towards Cassi and her seemingly dramatic act.
One particular event had solidified his belief in an act. My shoes don't have any traction and these floors are so slippery. That's a new one., George had been thinking, laughing quietly on the inside.
"Oh, no, no. You haven't interrupted anything at all, child." Emily had breathed as she lowered her hands, easing into her seat. She had given a friendly smile as she glanced off towards the token machine in that mother-hen fashion. "George was just going to place an order."
"If anything, you have remarkable timing." George had added, laughing lightly as he shook his head to himself. "You should be careful. That would have been quite a fall here." He had knocked the table with his hand. She would have been fine even if I didn't catch her, his brain had insisted. Yet, at heart, George was a sailor - and as a sailor, he was a sailor-man. Thus he only coyly grinned inside, patting the woman's shoulder.
"Well, if you're buying, I insist you sit with us unless you've due company with you?"
Emily had given George an odd look, rolling her eyes somewhat at the realization of the exchange. Ah, young men.
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Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 10:24 pm
Cole nodded his head slightly has Bastion told him his name. Bastion was a nice name, if fit on his tongue nicely, it was a kind of quiet name. But yet it had a hard sound in the beginning. Cole felt that the unusual name fit the quirky boy in who he had just met.
“My violin sounds like a bagillion zillion times better than this ‘cause I play it everyday and Mother tells me that I seem to have a knack for it. M’ not sure what exactly a knack is, but if it’s about my violin in must be good.” Pride and conceit was laced into every word Cole spoke about his violin. It was the only thing he had a passion for, so much of his day was devoted to playing it, almost as much time as he spent collected trinkets for his nest at home.
“I’ve smelt the sea a couple times, but Mother hasn’t let me go any where near it, she says I’m to young.” A scowl crossed Cole’s features. His green eyes flashed as he thought of yet another of Cassi’s crimes against him. He was amassing quite the list in his head. “But I don’t really like fish, it smells funny and looks weird. But stars sound nice. I can see stars from my window at home.”
He thought of the many night he had stayed up against Cassi’s will and stared out his balcony window. The stars had always lit up the gardens in a pleasant way. It softened the appearance of many of the flowers and trees. Cole preferred the gentle light of night rather than the harsh feel of the sun’s unblinking stare. It was easier to slip through shadows at night and Cole loved shadows.
Finally, the beckoning lights and sounds of the machine snapped Cole out of his small reverie, and he turned his attention back to the task at hand, figuring out what this machine did exactly. “Here we go,” Cole pushed the button and watched as the light raced around the machine, he pressed the button a few more times, just because he was uncertain of what to do.
“Did it work?”
Cassi let out a small flirtatious giggle almost un-seemingly for a woman of 23 at George’s comment. She managed to steady herself as he let her go. “I still feel incredibly embarrassed by this! But I’m glad I didn’t interrupt anything, I would feel a thousand times worse if I did.” This grandmother was certainly taking her presence in a more pleasant way than ones in the past.
Cassi smiled up at George, “Well, I certainly shall try to be more careful, but it’s going to be hard if it means I get to be caught by such good-looking men.” Cassi said in her silkiest of voices. She has leaned into his touch as he patted her on the shoulder.
“But I would love to join you, my son is around here somewhere, I sent him off to play, he doesn’t get out as much as I would like him too.” She sounded slightly dismayed by Cole's antisocial-ness, but there was an air of complete disinterest as she spoke the words, almost like it was a scripted line that she was simply reciting. But nevertheless, Cassi scanned the crowded playroom until she spied his trademark black coat in the sea of color. “Yes, he’s just over there by the flashy worlly device, thing.” She made a loose hand gesture to the area where Cole was playing with Bastion, her silver bracelets jingling softly as she did so. “It seems he’s made a friend!”
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Tempest Vernum Vice Captain
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