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 Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 1:13 pm
The day had already passed half way, and the girl could find no solace. Restlessly, she explored the home, looking for something to occupy her troubled mind. Even though she worked so hard to guarantee that smiles would be on her guardian’s face, it seemed that once their veil of night had left, he had returned to his strange and mechanical way. She wouldn’t understand the implications of this until much later; for now, his stern face could only be from the aftermath with Quinn.
Which meant that something had to be done-- to guarantee the happiness of that man, she would have to take action. Boys were much too stupid to do these kind of things on their own. She had tried this before, when she apologized for Quinn in the store-- but Varu knew. She couldn’t try anything like that again, no. Lying would not accomplish anything; Varu knew that that boy was not sorry, he knew that boy much better than Tepin did, that was for sure.
So maybe, rather than trying to make Varu feel better wby her own two hands, she should go strait to the source of the problem: Quinn.
He had whined yesterday about how annoying it was to cross the street-- she could at least determine that he lived in one of the houses n the other side of the street. Which one, however, was a mystery. But she was young, she was cute-- she could just try knocking on doors and asking around until she got a Bingo.
Well-- time was a-wasting. Picking herself off of the couch, she slipped on her mary-janes and slipped out the door.
She had to start somewhere. Logically speaking, the door right across the street was the first place worth trying. She’d then try the houses to the left of it followed by the houses to the right. If she made it through the entire street without finding him, she’d simply have to give up and try to make Varu happy on her own.
Resolutely she made her way to the front door-- and with a particular gusto she knocked upon it-- but for all her bravado, nothing would be as disarming as what would happen once she found the boy.
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 2:03 pm
Marilyn didn't get visitors often. This meant that Winnifred didn't, either, since they lived together. Two old, roommate widows whose only hobby was terrorizing the poor rainbow boy next door with their endless supply of unneccessary errands.
So, hearing a knock on the door was very unexpected. She got her walker and made her way slowly to the door. Winnifred was snoring on the couch, and she made a quick snap at her to wake up. The woman mumbled something and opened her eyes.
"Who are you?"
"It's me, Marilyn, you old fool!"
"Why haven't you brought me grandchildren yet?"
"Nevermind. Go back to sleep."
"Am I not worth a call once in a while?"
"Shuddup, you old coot."
Marilyn made her way, ever so slowly, to the door, and cracked it open, the gold latch still on in case it was a hooligan.
Gosh darn hooligans.
But, it wasn't a hooligan, it was a sweet little girl. Marilyn scowled.
"We don't want any of yer gosh darn girl scout cookies, ya bloodsucking thieves!" She lifted her walker a few inches above the ground and waggled in it what she hoped was a menacing way. "So, git! And such like."
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 2:46 pm
Oh-- geez!! Tepin did not like what had greeted her at the door. She recoiled as the old-lady-musk flew towards her through the open door-- recoiling still further when the passionate walker-motions caught her eye.
This lady was crazy!!!
“A-Ahhh!! Ooh! Sorry!!!” She turned, bolting down the steps two at a time and getting well down to the sidewalk before catching a quick breath and looking back at the door from whence she had been chased off. That was scary!!
⁞⁞ Hahaha, you are scared of old women?
His voice sounded truly jovial, as her mind rippled with his laughter,
⁞⁞ You have a lot to learn before you can even hope to fight in this game.
She frowned at the voice, her lower lip jutting out in defiance. S-Shut up, you old man! I wasn’t scared!! I was just being polite!!
Okay, so, the first house wasn’t it! Of course she wouldn’t get it on first try-- that’d just be too lucky. Tepin knew the plan-- the house to the left would be her next target. If she got it wrong again, though, she hoped that these people might be more helpful.
But wait-- She had missed something! He might live with someone; there was a possibility he wouldn’t be the one to open the door. Of course!! Not all kids his age lived alone, like Varu. …….But the thought of going back to that house terrified her. If he lived there-- forget it!! She wasn’t going to go deal with some crazy old woman for something like this!
And so, still jumping two steps at a time, she skipped up the entry to the next building.
Well, here goes nothing.
She gulped down her nervousness.
She knocked.
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:17 pm
Quinn raised an eyebrow as he heard the knock on the door, and shot another bolt of lightning at the dart board in front of him. Bullseye! Again! He wasn't really that excited about it. He sighed. Being away from Vale was depressing. He had been around that boy every day for a while, now, and not being without him was not fun.
Especially considering the dream he had the night before. It still flashed vividly in his mind.
The agent of Tezcatlipoca is dead! Long live Quetzalcoatl! Long live the bright morning star!
He shivered. Seeing Vale dead was awful. Terrifying. It shook him, to the core. Which is what, he assumed, Mr. Q had been trying to do. He pushed himself up from the ground, and made his way to the door, pulling it open gracelessly. His hair wasn't braided, and fell loosely around his shoulders. It kept falling in front of his eyes, and he blew it away.
He looked at the girl in front of him.
He sighed.
"The look on your face tells me you're not here to watch your favorite soap. Come on in." He left the door open, and turned around, heading back into the house, towards his kitchen.
"What's up?" He sighed. "And if it's about Vale, I really don't want to hear about it right now."
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:38 pm
She mumbled her thanks, before following and awkwardly closing the door behind her.
And then, as if somehow able to predict the future once more, he started to cut her off. Of course it would be about Vale! That idiot.
“Too bad.” She frowned at him, arm’s crossed as she glared from his entry way, “You were a jerk! He’s really upset!”
It’s all your fault! You stupid jerk! Stop running away!
She never moved from her spot in his entryway, opting to keep her distance to avoid any hissy fits.
“You have to apologize for what you did.”
It was an order, not a request.
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:51 pm
Quinn sighed. Of course it was about Vale. He looked down at the girl. "Look, I hate to break it to you, but none of this would have happened if you hadn't squashed me in the nuts. If you're looking for someone to blame for Vale being upset, look in the mirror." He shrugged. "And what do you care, anyway? You're just using him for a place to sleep. You're lucky he's a nice guy, most people wouldn't just let you into their house like that." He looked utterly serious. He pulled a banana from above the fridge, and peeled it, taking a big bite.
He never ate food that even resembled something healthy unless he had to, or was seriously worried about something. The banana attested to that.
"Look, I wish I could, but he doesn't want to hear my apologize for anything. He's angry, and me saying 'Sorry' won't help that. That's not how the big-boy world works." He shrugged. "It's sweet of you to try to help him, but also not the brightest." He avoided using the word 'stupid'. That was what had gotten him into trouble in the first place.
The banana didn't seem to satisfy him.
"I'm going to make a grilled cheese sandwich, and if you're going to keep talking, I can make you one too. Want one?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:04 pm
She remained plastered to her spot. “No.”
That statement held such a vast amount of hatred that it could very well have been ‘go to hell, you douche bag.’
“So you got him in trouble and stole from a store because I kicked you in the balls? God, you’re so stupid!!”
Hands had moved akimbo, she was ready to use the big guns.
“Fine! It just matters if he is nice to YOU. If he forgives YOU.” Her foot stomped against his floor with each emphasis, she was ready to snap his stupid neck, “Nevermind how Varu might feel! Because YOU’RE the only on that matters!! Why should you make an effort to make him happy?! FINE! Be that way! Varu can just dump you and get a real girlfriend!!”
The door slammed behind her for the third time- she was so sick of this stupid boy!
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:10 pm
He stood for a second, staring at the bread that was ready, waiting for him to use it. Then he sighed, and threw the banana peel on the counter, stuffing his hands in his pockets and heading towards the door.
He pulled it open and shut it behind him, jogging to catch up with the girl. "Wait!" He called, running up behind her. "Wait." He knelt down, and put his arms around her stomach from behind.
"Thank you. That's the nicest thing you've done for me so far." He turned her around, and held her by the shoulders, looking into her eyes. "If you really think it will help, we can go over there right now and I'll apologize to Valeriu."
He paused.
"You're smarter than you look, Little Girl." He ruffled her hair with one hand. "Let's go." He let go of her, and stood up, slipping his hands back in his pockets. "Is Sydni home today?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:28 pm
She knew he was coming, she could hear him yelling, and his footfalls were loud and clumsy. She knew he was about to reach her--
But never would she have expected the hug that he embraced her in. Awkwardly she squirmed, though she made no real effort to escape. Wheeled around, facing him now, her frown remained.
It wasn’t for him! She did it for Varu! Why was he being so stupid? …But… She could let it slide, this time. He learned his lesson, after all.
He continued on, much more cheerful, and she turned to follow him. Her little feet had to trot a bit in order to keep up with his long legs.
“Sydni is home, but Varu’s out. The babysitter is there, though. “
Why the babysitter had let her out was something beyond her, but she had gotten away with it anyway, and accomplished her goal.
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:33 pm
Quinn stopped. He turned and looked at her. And then he started laughing. It was the best way he could cope with the situation. Right there, in the middle of the street, he plopped down on his behind and started laughing.
"Seriously?" He said, between gasps for air. "I mean, really? You come all this way to tell me that you want me to come apologize to him, and he's not even here?"
To be honest, he was laughing because it hurt more than anything. He had gotten up his resolve! He had decided to go forth and do the mature thing for once. The Right Thing.
But, of course, it wasn't that easy. It was never that easy. This is why he didn't ever try to do The Right Thing. It was too hard. Too many complications.
When he finally finished laughing, he fell backwards onto the street.
"So, then, what do we do now?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:38 pm
She watched him, wondering if maybe they should move to avoid getting hit by a car.
“H-hey!!” He couldn’t tease her! She had done good!
“It was a… Pur… pre.. PREMPTIVE STRIKE!!” The word that had fled her memory suddenly came back in a burst, she had heard it on videogames before.
He plopped down. She watched him with amusement. He was too animated, to many wasted motions. Like a cartoon character trapped in the real world.
… He was just as colorful, too.
“We wait. Duh.”
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 4:45 pm
He chuckled again, but not as crazily as he had before. "Preemptive strike? I guess so." He managed to sit himself back upright, and then he looked warily at the girl, conciously folding his arms in a way that guarded his crotch.
"Well, if we're going to wait, I'd rather not have to worry about a babysitter. You want to go watch T.V. at my house?" he shrugged. "I'll make grilled cheeses. And I promise I'm not as lame as a babysitter. I've even got some ice cream!" He grinned. "I know Vale doesn't have so much unhealthy food, so it's any little kid's dream, right?"
He pushed himself off of the ground. "And I promise," he paused. Promises were binding things, to little kids. If he didn't keep whatever he finished the sentence with, she would probably never forgive him. It was how little kids were.
To apologize to Vale?
To do The Right Thing?
The words choked in his throat. He wasn't sure he could. Not anymore. The power of the moment had gone. He looked down at the ground.
"...To make sure they have lots of cheese."
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 5:20 pm
“I don’t like grilled cheese,” She confessed with a noncommittal shrug, “But ice cream and TV sound good.”
Secretly, there was an evil, evil plan in her head. How to better show what a good and kind girl she was to Varu than by tolerating this nut and then being able to tell Varu she had spent the day with him without problem.
Of course, she’d leave out the part where she yelled at him for being selfish and not considering Vale’s feelings. That part wasn’t any of his business anyway.
So, not even waiting for permission, she started back towards his house (There was ice cream in there!!!).
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