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 Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 3:13 pm
Retrieving the chinese wand had been surprisingly simple, and for that, Ianna was infinitely thankful. The poor woman had had enough terror going through several layers of hell to get wands.
Some of those were actual layers of hell. Such as with the Mind flayer and the drow. Not LITERAL hell, but hellish enough to be called hell.
At least, to Ianna's somewhat warped mind.
Currently the woman was doing as she always did when she was in the shoppe - keeping careful records of all the new wands. Most of them had not found guardians yet, and she was getting worried.
Perhaps Matilda's magic was fading...
With a deep breath, silver eyes lifted from their work and looked over to the toddler who was currently trying to read one of the books from her many book shelves. A smile crept over her lips.
At least she shared her love of books with her mother.
A day without the children was a rare thing for Shiromaru, but all of them were with Trio at the moment, which -- to be honest -- was a good thing. There had been this strange impulse within the water demon for days now, an urge he couldn't explain. But freed of his responsibilities for the moment, he gave in, and started wandering in the direction he was pulled in.
Really, he shouldn't have been so surprised to find himself inside a shop. "...Odd... Hello...?"
Ianna's attention turned from what white haired sidhe to the man in her door way, a genuine smile coming across her face. The usual pinging inside of her head was telling her that he was a guardian.
But for who? Several wands were scattered on her desk, and none had been claimed. Well, there was only one way to really find out, right?
"Hello!" she called, bending down to bring out the large leather bound book edged in gold, "Welcome to Ghosts of the Past! How may I help you..?"
Oh, she KNEW how she could help him - but she was into playing around a bit today.
She was entitled to SOME fun, right?
"I... ah... this is going to sound a bit odd..." Shiromaru tugged self-conciously at a lock of his long hair, offering Ianna a slightly sheepish smile. "Then again, 'odd' is normal in this world. Okay. Right. See, I was sort of 'told' to come here... No one actually told me I had to come here, but my gut told me and it led me here, and I was wondering if you might be able to tell me why." The demon stopped rambling for a moment, then asked awkwardly, "Does that make any sense at all?"
Ianna giggled gleefully inside and nodded, "Perfectly perfect. You came for answers that you didn't know you needed. They're in this book." She smirked and pushed the large tome in front of her.
"All you need to do is touch it and you will find what your heart and gut are seeking, Mister..." she paused, then grinned, "Shiromaru, is it? Lovely name. Anyway..."
She leaned back and waited for the man to touch the book. Of course, when he did....
The cover would fly open, an invisible wind winding through the pages and blowing them rapidly open until it landed, quite suddenly, on a well-worn page. On the page was a very life-like sketch of one of the wands on her Desk. The light colored wood one with the tea-ball.
Under the picture read:
"China. Wand ID 00023. A Soul has been trapped within the confines of the wand. Congratulations, you have become the next guardian to take on the task of raising it from infancy to greatness. We, Ianna and I, have the upmost faith in you to complete your task dutifully. Best of luck,
Matilda."
Shiromaru stared first at Ianna, then at the book, then trailed a fingertip across the letters in the book before reaching out to pick up the wand on the desk. "...Another child?" asked he, bemusedly, though his eyes were warming. "Trio's going to kill me."
Ianna stifled yet another giggle. Hmm, the guardians finding out had been a lot more calm about it lately - it made her happy. Danny was not an experiance she wanted to repeat.
"Mmhmm, I believe she was a goddess, though I'm not sure..." a small shrug of her shoulders as she leaned against the desk, "She lived before, died horribly...And is now reborn for a second chance."
"Can you tell me anything more about her?" Shiromaru asked, holding the wand carefully. A sylph, a siren, a catgirl and a goddess -- their household was truly one for the record books. "I want to be able to help her."
"I'm afraid that's all I know," Ianna said softly, standing up as she straightened her pants out and went to pick up the sidhe child, "But I'd like to show you the headquarters. There are other guardians, like you, who have wands and children. They're usually there, but today it's kind of empty."
She situated Coailiann on her hip before making her way towards the door which sat on the right hand side of her desk, "You're welcome at any time, really."
As they entered the main lobby Via the portal connecting the shoppe and the headquarters, the first thing noticable was the vast...largeness...of it. The high ceilings, edged with gold, the large chandeliers dripping with crystals, the smooth white tile-floors, colorful rugs, and beautiful paintings.
To the left was a large recreational area complete with a large flat-screen television, several rows of various games, movies, video game systems and books. There was a basket of toys in the corner, full of plushies, dolls, cards and various other objects which would appeal to most ages. Included in the area were several comfy looking couches and plush chairs just made for sitting, lounging or bouncing in. It seemed to be heaven on a fluffy carpet. It even had a foos-ball table and an air-hockey table....and for the slightly more food-minded GoTP, a mini fridge always full.
To the right was a large elaborate counter, which seemed to have a force-field of some sort around it, keeping anyone who was not Ianna or Matilda from going behind it. On the counter lay a roster with the names of all the Ghostly children and their guardians, and an appointment book.
From there, it branched off into halls with rows and rows of rooms. Some were storage, some were guest rooms, some were bathrooms, and one very large and ornate door to the end of the hall led to the gardens. "Welcome to Headquarters."
"One might be more tempted to, perhaps, say 'Welcome to a mini-city,'" Shiro noted dryly, a smile curling his lips. "This place is amazing. I wouldn't have expected it to be so large when I looked at it from outside..."
"Considering we just walked through a portal and into another realm outside of Gaia, I should hope that it didn't look like it," She said matter-of-factly as she set Coailiann down on one of the fluffy couches.
"But I'm glad you like it. There's a rather large library, a training room, and gardens here as well. You're welcome here at any time."
Such a a large place... Shiromaru tilted his head slightly, then peered over at Coailiann, his smile broadening. "Is she from a wand as well? What's her name?"
"Her name is Coailiann, and she's a Sidhe. Yes, she's from a wand."
Coailiann perked at the mention of her, "Hello," she said charmingly, pulling a pillow close to herself to hug onto.
"She's getting used to speaking."
"Still young, huh?" Shiromaru padded over in front of Coailiann, kneeling so they would be more of a height. "How old are you, kiddo? A bit younger than my Etain, ne?"
"She's actually older than she looks," Ianna noted. Coailiann looked like she was still a baby. However, much to her displeasure, she wasn't. She was a toddler. She was older than everyone and SMALLER.
Didn't make her a happy little girl.
Coailiann shrugged, "Uh..." she blinked, "Six...Months?"
Ianna nodded, "Aye, about six months, though she's got the mentality of a five year old and the body of a two year old. We're hoping she'll hit a growth spurt."
Coailiann simply glared.
Carefully holding the wand, Shiro grinned up at Ianna, then Coailiann. "Etain's got that problem," he noted. "She's pretty tiny, but she's getting bigger, finally. It's nice to meet you, Coailiann."
Coailiann beamed, "Nice," she parroted, giving a nod of her head, "To meet you too!"
Ianna smiled at Coailiann's politeness. It seemed that she was losing that brattiness that everyone loved to hate the toddler for.
Shiro rose, then, with one last grin for Coailiann, then made his way back to Ianna. "We have three girls at home already, so whomever joins us is not going to be wanting for company," he offered quietly. "Is there... anything else I should know? Or a phone number I can call for more information? Like how long it's going to take for any sort of reaction, or what to expect?"
"Not really. If you have any questions you just pop up here and I or another guardian will be happy to answer," she smiled warmly, "The times are different for everyone. It should just end up wisping at some point. Usually when it feels a moment of absolute acceptance."
Ianna yawned, "But I should get to a nap, as well as Coailiann."
Coailiann turned her head, "No naaap!"
"Yes, nap."
"I'll be going, then," Shiro said quietly, then smiled over at Coailiann. "I'll see you later, Coailiann," he offered with a wave. "It was nice meeting you, Ianna, and thank you for your help."
"You're quite welcome, Shiro," Ianna said with a slight bow.
Coailiann stopped her arguing just long enough to give a little wave towards the man, her arms then crossing over her chest and a pout coming to her lips, "NO NAP."
Ianna sighed, "And god help you."
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Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 7:59 pm
Leaving the wand shop, Shiromaru had been left in a bit of a daze, the wand in his hands as he made his way down the street. Another child... But it wasn't like he could say no, the word wasn't in his vocabulary when someone told him that he was supposed to take a child -- or a pet -- or a companion -- or any other creature in need -- home with him. He was far too soft-hearted for his own good, really, or at least Abishai and Jouvart had told him on more than one occasion.
Well, now Abishai had a lover, almost-step-children, and a child of his own, so Shiromaru felt justified in his mental pointing-and-laughing.
"Well," he started, glancing down at the wand in his hands. "I... wonder what your mother is going to think. And I wonder what you're going to be like when you're here..." He got the feeling he was going to be talking to the wand quite a bit. Maybe it was like chattering to an infant in the womb.
And then, the cellphone rang.
"Shiromaru here," the demon said when he answered, juggling the wand over to one hand. When Karma explained what was going on, Shiro stopped dead in his tracks, eyes widening. "Uh... Right. Yes. I will... be right there." Two in one day.
When he was done at the centre, over an hour later, he held in his arms an infant rabbit-child and the wand, dazed and smiling like a loon. The infant snuggled into his arms, sleepily playing with the tea ball on the wand. "I don't think you should be doing that," Shiro cautioned, pulling the tea ball out of reach of the little paws. Light blue eyes looked up at the demon, then the boy yawned mightily and nestled in, falling asleep.
Belatedly realizing he was smiling infatuatedly, Shiromaru cleared his throat, then made his way home. It was time to get the baby supplies back out.
And pray Trio wouldn't be upset.
After all, their family had just grown by two. ...One and a half? Soon to be two. It was such a good thing they had extra rooms built at the new house...
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Posted: Sat May 27, 2006 3:02 pm
The setting sun found Shiromaru in the living room of the new house, settled in a rocking chair he'd pulled out of storage. The wand was settled in a sort of sling over one shoulder, close where the demon could keep an eye on it -- Ianna had said it would start Doing Things, after all -- and the rabbit infant was in his arms, sleeping peacefully, its ears hanging out over the blanket.
Now, all Shiro could do was wait for Trio to get home with the girls.
"Shiro," Trio called out, as the door opened. "You home? We brought dinner!"
Instead of calling back, for fear of waking the baby, Shiromaru stood carefully and made his way over to the front door. "Right here," he offered quietly, once he was close to the others.
"Papa!" Etain zoomed up to see him, then stopped in mid-air, wings buzzing. "...Papa has a baby."
"Has a...hmm?" Trio blinked, looking up from where she'd been supervising Annora toeing off her shoes. "...Shiro? Is that...?"
"Karma called me," Shiro confirmed with a megawatt grin. "Told me to come pick him up. I haven't even named him yet, I have some ideas, but I wanted to see what you thought. And he's not the only one -- this wand will be summoning an infant at some point, a goddess, apparently. I got... pulled to the shop today where they were." The baby in his arms blinked awake at the talking, and blinked big blue eyes up at Trio.
Annora padded forward, eyeing the baby and wand with faint wariness. Was she going to have to share her parents with even MORE kids now? One hand slipped into Etain's, squeezing lightly.
Makana, on the other hand, moved forward toward the rabbit and sniffed delicately at him, a paw coming up to adjust her new glasses. "He smells nice," she admitted, peering up at Shiro with a shy smile.
Trio chuckled. "You look happy," she noted, leaning in around the various children to kiss him on the cheek.
Shiro carefully extricated a hand, stroking Makana's hair. "And you look nice," he informed her, grinning. "Those glasses are a good fit." Trio's kiss and comment were met with a kiss in kind. "Of course I'm happy. I'm over the moon, to be honest. You know I've always wanted a big family."
But just how big? Finally planting her feet on the ground, Etain squeezed Annora's hand in return, cuddling close to her sister. Things were getting crowded.
"Can I hold him?" Makana asked immediately, beaming now. Compliments were nice, but the bunny looked nicer...
Trio chuckled, shaking her head. "I'm glad Az offered to move in with us and help watch over things. Too many more, and things will get crazy. Er, not that they aren't already. Well, girls? Say hello to your new brother," Trio added, nudging Annora.
Annora withdrew slightly, tugging Etain with her. "Hi," she murmured, obedient and soft.
Etain willingly moved with Annora, though her 'Hello' was a bit louder than Annora's -- but not by much.
"Things are already crazy," Shiro agreed. "Makana, if you want to get settled on the sofa, I'll let you hold him over there, okay? He's had a long day, so he might sleep a lot for a while."
Makana nodded, her smile staying bright as she moved to curl up on the couch and arrange herself in what she thought would be a comfortable position for the baby. Already, though she didn't realize it, a faint purr was coming from her.
"Can I go play?" Annora asked abruptly, just as Makana opened her mouth to tell Shiro she was ready.
Trio blinked at the near-demand from her siren. "...Annora?" she asked, and Annora looked over at Trio, her eyes big and wary. "Are you okay?"
"I just wanna go play," Annora informed them firmly.
Shiromaru paused when Annora made her request, taken aback at the tone in her voice. Blinking, he looked up at Trio, brows furrowed. This one was Trio's call, he decided, then moved quietly over to the sofa so he could arrange the baby carefully in Makana's arms.
"...I wanna play too," Etain decided after a moment, still holding on to Annora's hand. She wasn't letting go of her big sister for anything!
Trio frowned at the two, looking up to Shiro before sighing. Clearly, he hadn't been any more oblivious than she was... which meant she wasn't just imagining it. "You can play in Etain's room," she informed them both, before looking up at Shiro and raising an eyebrow, her head tilting slightly toward the other side of the room.
Makana frowned faintly at the two, but the expression was gone in moments, as the soft weight of Nico settled into her arms. "Thank you..."
Etain tugged at Annora's hand before letting go and flying off to her room. At least it was mostly set up now!
Shiro nodded softly back at Trio, then arranged the rabbit infant's ears before kissing Makana's forehead. "Just be gentle with him," he murmured. "He likes having the bridge of his nose rubbed." That said, he made his way over to Trio, a worried look stealing over him.
Makana nodded, curling up tightly around the baby and purring softly. He was so tiny, and soft...
Trio waited until Shiro was with her, her eyes on Makana. When she spoke, her voice was pitched very low. "You're worried too?"
"Yes," the demon agreed, very quietly. "I am. She's been acting off for a while, and now this... It's just not like her."
"It's been ever since that day she came into Az and I sobbing, and wouldn't tell us why," Trio said, frowning and sitting down. "And she's still not talking."
Shiro followed after, sitting in the chair next to Trio's. "Should we push, or wait a bit longer to see if she tells us?"
"She still seems very close to Etain. I've... I've been kinda hoping that maybe she's talking to Etain if she's not talking to us," Trio admitted.
"I'll talk to Etain, see if Annora's said anything to her," Shiro decided with a soft sigh. "I miss the old Annora, you know?"
Trio nodded, chewing on her lower lip. "I'd suggest you talk to her, but she hasn't seemed particularly like curling up with you lately any more than she has with me... has she?"
"No," Shiro confirmed, frustratedly. "No, she hasn't. I'll talk to Etain, and if she hasn't said anything to Etain, then... we'll figure something out from there, I think. Okay?"
Trio nodded, reaching out to take Shiro's hand. "It'll work out. She's got two loving parents, plus Etain who practically worships her. She'll be okay, you know."
Shiro laced his fingers through Trio's, smiling a little over at her. "I know... I just worry. Annora's pretty special to me, that's all. But I know she'll be okay."
Trio lifted the hand to her lips, kissing his knuckles before looking over at where Makana was still curled up contentedly. "So... what's the bunny's name?"
"Actually, I had an idea for a name, but I didn't want to settle on one unless we agreed on it," Shiro confessed, his thumb running over the side of Trio's hand. "I was thinking about Nicodemus."
"Why Nicodemus?" Trio asked curiously, squeezing lightly.
Shiro shook his head. "I'm not sure. It's just a name I've always loved. I know it means 'victory of the people,' and it's Greek, but beyond that... I don't know, it just seems to fit."
Trio nodded, saying the name again softly. "Nick, hmm? Or Nicky?"
"Nico," Shiro decided quietly. "I think 'Nico'..."
"Like Necco wafers?" Trio teased softly, grinning at Shiro.
That earned a blank look from Shiromaru. "Necco wafers? What are those?"
"I'll get you some when I go to the store next," Trio promised, snickering softly. "So... tell me about this wand?"
Excitedly, Shiro pulled the wand from the sling he had it in. "Ianna said children come from wands like these. I met one, actually. Apparently, they emerge first as ghosts, then completely solidify, or something like that."
Trio blinked, holding out a hand to see if Shiro would let her hold the wand. "Not the strangest story I've heard," she admitted. "But getting up there, definitely."
Shiro willingly passed the wand over to Trio. "I know, it's pretty strange, but considering some of the things I've heard and seen..."
"Yeah, I know..." Trio admitted easily. "Like stones that summon strange animalistic humanoids and save them from a plague?"
The demon couldn't help but grin. "Speaking of strange animalistic humanoids, Hun Min said that his offer still stood to watch the kids whenever we needed a break."
"No," Trio corrected. "That's a BLESSED animalistic humanoid."
Shiro's grin grew impish. "Considering he talks to his deities and can summon monsters and miracles, I'd say he's pretty blessed, yes."
Trio chuckled, rising and handing back the wand. "C'mon... you'd better see if Makana's ever gonna give him up, and I wanna check on the girls."
Shiro carefully tucked the wand away, making sure the tea ball couldn't swing free, then leaned over and stole a kiss from Trio before rising. "Makana, sweetie, mind if I take Nico back?"
Makana hesitated, eyeing Shiro almost sadly before looking down at the sleeping rabbit. "His name is Nico?"
"Nicodemus Kalyan Maxwell-Chang," Shiro confirmed. "But Nico for short. Don't worry, you'll get to hold him all the time!"
Makana perked up a little at that, leaning in to lick Nico's cheek gently. "Promise?"
Nico opened his eyes, blinked sleepily up at Makana, then reached up to pat at her cheek. She was soft, and that was nice to touch.
Shiromaru grinned down at the pair. "I promise. It'll be really good if he has a big sister to look up to, too -- think you'll be willing to help us take care of him?"
Makana nodded vigorously, beaming down at Nico. "He patted me," she told Shiro softly, as though the demon had somehow missed it.
"I saw," Shiro agreed, and reached out to lift Nico carefully out of Makana's arms. "He likes you."
Makana clung to him for a moment, then sighed, letting him go. "I like him, too," she said quietly, reaching to pet one long ear.
Nico waved one arm at Makana cheerfully, then snuggled into his father's arms. "That's good to hear," Shiro murmured, his grin softening to a smile.
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Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2006 2:49 am
It was about time Shiromaru had some time to sit down, collect his thoughts, and put them on paper in at least some semblance of order. The days lately had been even more hectic than usual -- there were more mouths to feed, unpacking to finish, the last touches to do on the house... just thinking about it made Shiro tired.
Picking up his sorely-neglected journal and his even more sorely neglected bottle of Smirnoff, he settled in to write.
I maintain that you need a name other than 'Diary'. That has to be incredibly boring. I've been too busy to think of one, though, because it's been absolute chaos. Trio and I merged houses -- well, sort of. She brought Annora, Makana, Az and Kiku, and I brought Etain, and we built a new house in the middle of our properties.
And then I brought home Nicodemus and this wand thing on the same day.
Now, Nico's pretty straight-forward. He's an infant. Of course, he's a rabbit-boy infant, but this is Gaia, which I have learned in my century here is even weirder than most other worlds out there. No, the thing that has me confused is the wand.
Ianna -- that's the woman who told me what the hell was going on when I was gut-tugged into this shop the other day -- told me that these wands summon ghosts, and the ghosts become children. Now, that? That's pretty messed up, right there. But, hey, I'm used to weird, and our household is always open to more children.
At this rate, I'm going to need to get a job because my savings account is going to run out, but that's another story. (To think, I used to be rich!)
But... a goddess? Look at us. I'm a water demon, Trio's a(n incredibly special) human, Annora's a siren, Etain's a sylph, Makana's a cat and Nico's a rabbit. We're not a normal family. But none of us are at goddess level. Is it bad of me to hope that she's not an especially powerful goddess, this girl connected to this wand? Because I don't think any of us will be able to handle a strong goddess. This is pretty insane, and honestly I'm nervous.
At the same time, I have to feel honored. Out of all of Gaia, I was one of the ones hauled, gut-first, into this store and handed a wand to watch over. 'Hi, you're going to raise a baby because there is some magical connection between you and it and it needs to be with you more than anyone else in Gaia.' That's a damn high honor, when you think about it, and a major responsibility.
Hopefully I won't fail her. Etain's turning out pretty well, I think (of course I'm biased, shut the hell up), and Annora and Makana are fantastic, so we seem to have a good track record so far.
...I think I'm going to wait until she gets here before I redesign one of the spare bedrooms, though.
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Posted: Sat Jun 03, 2006 12:30 am
Several days in a hotel, alone with Trio, had done wonders to refresh Shiro, and gave him a new rush of energy to deal with the children once they'd gotten home. The kids had been overjoyed to see them again -- in the lives of children, days were the equivalent of a lifetime -- and thus the next several hours once they'd gotten back home had been taken up by reconnecting with Annora, Etain, Makana and Nicodemus.
It was only once Shiromaru had a few moments to himself that he was able to go check on the wand.
Having excused himself and made his way over to the house on Lookout Lane -- the growing number of houses had made it impossible to get by without adding lanes and addresses to the different buildings so that the poor mailmen could actually find the proper houses -- Shiromaru found Anatoli in the yuniko's bedroom. "How was she?"
"I still don't understand how you're so certain that it's a she," Anatoli complained good-naturedly, then rose and made his way over to the desk, picking up the wand that had rested there, next to his laptop, the entire time Shiromaru had been gone.
The water demon grinned, reaching out for the wand and checking it over automatically to make sure it had fared okay without him. "I'm not entirely positive, to be honest, but that woman, Ianna? She mentioned it was a goddess, so going on that assumption..."
"Okay, okay, I get it." Laughing, Anatoli sank back down into his chair again, drawing his long hair over his shoulder. "But you do realize there are some out there that are hermaphrodites that are referred to as 'goddesses', right?"
Chuckling softly, Shiro slid the wand back into its case, letting it hang at his side. "I know. I just... I think Ianna's right, and this one's just a girl. No... additional packaging. I need to get going, so thanks for watching over her while I was gone."
The yuniko shook his head slightly. "Don't worry about it. I don't mind watching over wands, at least. Besides, I'm curious now. Let me know when it does something strange, okay?"
Shiro nodded, waved, then made his way out of the building, called out his wings, and took off into the sky. It was quicker to get home this way, after all -- not that he minded a bit of time to himself to think. Mount Kailas was always busy, buzzing like a beehive, full of the friends and companions he'd picked up along the way. Now that Trio's household had merged with his, it was even busier, with people awake day and night. It was rare to get time to himself.
"One thing's for certain," he mused as he pulled the wand back out of the sling, "you're not going to be lacking for company. Not in this household. You're more likely going to be begging for some time -- and a bathroom -- to yourself."
And then, Shiro saw something that about had him flying facefirst into a pine tree.
"What in the world?" With a bit of backwinging, the water demon perched on a high branch of a nearby oak tree, staring down at the wand in his hands. Something was happening to it, like an odd purple mist that seemed to be flowing out of the leather wound around the end of the wand. "Is this the... the wisping?" Reaching down, he poked experimentally at the edge of the mist, then grinned like an idiot when he saw the mist curl around his finger before letting go again. Twisting about, it seemed to 'look' away, for all the world like a sentient creature taking a good look at its surroundings. "...Maybe I shouldn't fly with you when you're like this, huh?" Carefully, Shiro touched down to the ground again, one hand guarding the mist all the while to make sure it wouldn't... dissipate or something potentially disastrous like that.
It took a while to get home, and the demon stumbled into more than one tree on the way there -- he wasn't paying any particular amount of attention to where exactly he was going, and it was sheer instinct that guided him in the right direction to their newly-finished residence -- but he finally arrived, still eyeing the wand as if he was afraid it was going to explode on him. "Trio? Triiiiooooo! You have to come see this!"
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Posted: Thu Jun 08, 2006 7:04 pm
Trio walked into the house pensively, setting the bag of groceries on the kitchen table. She had to talk to Shiro sometime soon, she decided, since there was really no telling how long this pendant would have to be with her before it had enough of her life force to change, or call out, or whatever it was the crystal was supposed to do. But the thought that she'd been somehow tricked into this couldn't help but weigh heavily on her heart. For all that Shiro wanted a large family, surely six kids was enough already! Would he balk at a seventh, added so soon after their marriage?
"...But we don't know if they would want it on Lookout Lane, or even if they'll want it on the main property at all." There was a pause, then the voice continued. "Shiro, that wand is looking at me. I swear it is."
"I know it is," Shiro confirmed distractedly, then there was the rustling of paper across a table out on the back patio, where he was standing with the yuniko Anatoli. "It tends to do that to people. What about here? It's a bit of a distance from Kailas, plus that area's all flat, it'd be a good place for Kekoa to grow up. Could you do some sniffing around for me, see whether Kalani and Amaroq would like that area?"
"Of course. I'm going to go ahead and get back, now, so I'll see you later." The clomping of hooves sounded across the porch as Anatoli left, then Shiro rolled up the map of his property and entered the house again, heading down the hallway towards the kitchen.
"Something going on?" Trio asked, the necklace not so noticeable now that she'd tucked it under her shirt against bare skin. The warmth and pulse felt oddly good there.
Shiro glanced up, then broke out in a grin when he saw Trio. Making his way over to her, he leaned in and stole a kiss before answering. "We're thinking about surprising Kalani and Amaroq with a place of their own. They have a family now, and the house on Lookout Lane's getting kind of crowded, so it'd be good for them to have their own place to raise Kekoa."
"Not too far away, right?" Trio asked, smiling back at him before moving to sit down at the kitchen table. "I mean, it'll still be a simple thing for them to visit?"
"Right. That's why I'm thinking the main property. It's a hundred acres, but there are paths everywhere, so it wouldn't be hard." Shiro sat down as well, pulling the wand out of its sling; the little wisp curled around his fingers when they came close, giving all the appearance of holding on. "Hey, did you ever get a call from the owner of that necklace?"
Trio watched the wisp for a moment, wincing at the question. "Not... precisely," she said, reaching out one finger to the wisp, just far enough away that she wasn't actively touching it. "But I know what it is now."
The little wisp 'reached' out for Trio, wrapping two limb-like bits around her finger. Shiro peered up at her, his head tilting slightly. "What is it?"
Trio smiled softly at the wisp, her voice soft as she asked, "How would you feel about another baby...?"
Shiro blinked, blinked again, then suddenly grinned. "Is that what it is?"
She blinked as she looked up at him, her finger "tickling" gently at the wisp as she smiled in relief. "You don't mind, then?"
"How could I mind?" Shiro set his chin in his hand, elbow on the table, as the wisp wound around that 'tickling' finger cheerfully. "You know I wanted a big family. As far as I'm concerned, the more, the merrier." A pause. "Plus I get to renovate," he added, then promptly ducked.
"Brat," she murmured, shaking her head at him. "Apparently, I didn't find the necklace. It found me. I suppose I should be used to such things after so long, shouldn't I?" she asked wryly. Her hand turned to cup the wisp, giving it a place to 'stand' as she watched it. "It's... a fallen angel, from what the woman said. It's being given a chance to redeem itself. Himself, if what she said is accurate."
Shiromaru blinked, a bit thrown, his playful gaze softening to something more thoughtful and almost nostalgic. "Fallen angel, huh?" he murmured, a faint smile on his lips. "That would seal the deal, even if I wasn't certain about another child. We'll get another room set up for him."
The little wisp curled up in Trio's hand, settling in contentedly as Shiro watched. "...What a household," he mused. "A demon, a human, a siren, a sylph, a cat, a rabbit, a goddess and an angel..."
Trio's other hand lifted at that, stroking the wisp lightly. "Makes me feel awfully mundane sometimes," she admitted, blushing faintly. "I wasn't sure if you'd be bothered by raising an angel, but... I don't really have much of a choice anymore about it. Apparently, I never did."
"You're hardly mundane," Shiro pointed out, grinning over at Trio. "And it doesn't bother me. It's fine."
As it was stroked, the wisp 'turned' and tried to pin Trio's fingertips between insubstantial arms.
Trio stilled her finger, tilting her head at the wisp. "What's wrong, little air?" she asked softly, before looking up at Shiro. "I'm told we need to find a name for him, though. He didn't have a name before... he was simply referred to as his element."
"I think you're still tickling her," Shiro pointed out, laughing quietly. "She's a playful little thing sometimes, though. ...Does any name just feel right to you?"
Trio shook her head, murmuring an apology to the wisp. "Maybe we could brainstorm together?"
The little wisp let go of Trio's fingers and wriggled into her palm a bit better. Apparently, all was forgiven. "Okay," Shiro agreed, chin in his hands as he considered the wisp, Trio, and the slight bulge of the necklace under her shirt. "Can you sense anything from the necklace?"
"Like what?" she blinked, tilting her head.
"Like... thoughts. Emotions. Anything like that."
She shook her head, looking up at Shiro and blinking at how closely he was watching them. "Want her back?" she asked, wondering if she'd interrupted their time together, but not yet holding out the wisp.
Shiromaru smiled warmly up at Trio and shook his head. "No, it's fine. I'm just amused. She seems to like you."
"I like her, too," Trio nodded, hesitating a moment before drawing the pendant out from beneath her shirt and lifting it toward the spirit. "What do you think of him, little air?"
The wisp waved arms at the pendant, but couldn't get too close -- it wasn't able to get too far away from its wand.
Shiro grinned as he watched, thoroughly amused. "She likes it."
"I don't want her actually touching it yet," Trio murmured, not really thinking about what she was telling him in her amusement. "Not while it's still eating my life force."
"Eating -- whoa wait what?" Shiro stared at Trio, quickly growing concerned.
Trio blinked, looking up before flushing. "Ah... eating my life force. The woman assured me I was in no danger from it, though," she said quickly. "Apparently, if I die, or if I take the necklace off, he dies."
Shiro hesitated, then forcibly calmed himself down. "...It's sort of like bonding with the yuniko, then," he hazarded, cautiously..
"And the Juusanshi, I suppose." She hesitated, then dropped the necklace and reached out a hand. "I... don't much care for the woman. She seemed to have fun creeping me out."
Shiromaru took Trio's hand, and the wisp plopped itself down right on top of their clasped fingers. "Why would she enjoy creeping you out? What did she say?"
Trio laughed at the wisp, watching it. "Who knows? She said that she didn't get the chance he's getting," she murmured, touching her necklace with her now-free hand. "That she remembers what she did wrong. Maybe that has something to do with it."
"...How odd," Shiro mused. "I wonder what this little one did to deserve falling..."
"I don't know, but... surely it must've been something big," Trio murmured. "I hope we can give him the guidance he needs to fix things..."
Shiromaru beamed up at Trio, his gaze gentle. "Look at who his new mother will be. He'll do just fine."
Trio blinked, looking up at him for a moment before shaking her head. "You say that as though I'm the only one involved."
"Oh, you won't be the only one involved. I just know that having you around will be a great influence."
She blushed, rising to lean across the table and kiss him before moving her head down to offer puckered lips to the wisp.
Laughing, Shiro returned the kiss, then watched as the wisp essentially facehuggered Trio, holding on in its own version of a kiss.
Trio waited for it to settle back down, then smirked at Shiro. "Just don't call Ripley, hmm?" she said, before tucking the wisp back into Shiro's hands. "I'm gonna go check on the girls now, okay?"
The wisp snuggled into Shiro's hands as the demon nodded. "Okay. Last I saw, Annora and Etain were in Etain's room, and I think I heard Makana in Nico's room."
Trio laughed at that, nodding. "She's taken a real liking to that little bunny. I hope she's as good a big sister to him as Annora is to Etain."
"She will be, I think. You go check on the girls, I'm going to go take a flyover of Kailas and see if I can find any other areas that might work for Kalani's and Amaroq's place. I'll be back in about an hour." Tucking the wand into its sling again, the wisp floating close to it, Shiro rose and kissed Trio, then started for the door.
Trio nodded, catching his arm and drawing him back for a deeper kiss. "Be careful, okay?"
"Mmm." Shiro grinned into the kiss, then nuzzled at her lightly. "I'm always careful. Don't worry."
"I always worry," she countered, heading for the stairs. "Love you!"
"Love you too!" Shiro called back, then spread his wings, opened the door and flew off, chattering at the wisp the entire time.
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Posted: Fri Jun 09, 2006 4:46 pm
Resrved -- three-way playdate
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Posted: Fri Jun 09, 2006 4:47 pm
It wasn't often that Shiromaru went by Youko's and Envy's place, the demon usually swamped by the chaos in Kailas, but when the running of the household had been given over to Hun Min (one of Shiromaru's oldest and dearest friends, a Juusanshi that had been with Shiro's household for years now) and Shiro and Trio had moved themselves and the children into a house of their own, things had -- perhaps conversely -- settled down a bit. However, with the addition of Nicodemus, the wand, and now Trio's necklace -- soon to be another child -- Shiro could feel that relative calm going straight out the window.
Usually every time Etain zoomed out of it after another butterfly or dragonfly.
At the moment, however, Shiromaru was taking advantage of what time he had to go visit Youko, and potentially get an insight into a bit more of what he should expect from the wands and the children within them. It was a good thing he'd found out at the wedding that Youko had a wand of his own to deal with.
Taking the last few steps up the front porch and to the door, Shiromaru resettled Nicodemus in the front carrier he wore, checked on the wisp curled around the end of the wand he carried in a sling attached to Nico's carrier, then rapped on the door and waited for an answer.
"Yeah?" Kaeru pulled the door open, the frog boy staring at the water demon and the infant in his arms. The wand wasn't even noticed at the moment as the fourth wall teen got a rather exasperated look on his face and called over his shoulder. "DAD! Someone's at the door with another baby. For a gay guy, you sure have a lotta kids." It wasn't that he didn't LIKE kids... it was just that it was kinda hard to get chores done and leave in time to get good surfing in when there were a bunch of rugrats around.
The call from the frog brought Youko peering around from the hallway, into the kitchen and towards the door. "Huh?" It was as 'creative' as he could get when he'd barely slept any.
"Um... Actually, these two are both mine," Shiro announced, trying desperately to keep a straight face. "May I speak with Youko?" And maybe make the poor man some coffee.
"OH! Sure, c'mon in." Kaeru's demeanor immediately changed, and he stepped aside to allow the man in. Things changed drastically once he realised that this particular fuzzball would be going HOME. "Coffeepot's on the counter." He turned then, grabbing hold of a surfboard that was nestled in the closet. "Dad! Chores are done, I'm gone."
"Be home by dark," Youko said, yawning and waving to Shiro as he moved into the kitchen wearing a pair of sleep pants and a rumpled expression. "Mornin' Shiro."
Shiro nodded to Kaeru, then padded along after Youko. "And Trio accuses me of not being a morning person..." The demon grinned impishly, shaking his head. "You look like you haven't slept a wink. Should I come back at a better time?"
"There IS no better time," Youko answered, snickering softly. "This is about as good as it gets in the mornings around here..." He looked at the clock then, frowning faintly. "Noon. Whatever." As he puttered around to make coffee, he managed to catch a glance of Nico and then all preparations STOPPED as he reached for the fuzzlet. "Oh my lord, he's ADORABLE," Youko cooed, the grumpiness vanishing for the time being. "Is he from the Fourth Wall?"
"Meet Nicodemus. Yes, he's from the Fourth Wall. Careful, let me get... Hold on..." Shiro unhooked the wand from the sling and set it down on the table, the little wisp shifting about before settling down again, quite content to stay where it was. With the wand out of the way, Shiromaru was able to get Nico out of his carrier, the infant starting up a cheerful babble of nonsensical sounds as he looked up at Youko and waved both arms cheerfully. "There we go. Want to hold him?"
The question was already answered as Youko scooped up the boy and cradled him close. His hair was still braided from sleep and he let the tail end drape over his shoulder. It had fascinated every other baby he'd ever encountered, after all. The wand hadn't gone unnoticed either, and Youko nodded to it, and the little wisp. "Ah, seems like you managed to find the same shop I did," he said, a rather amused and knowing smile on his face. The reason for it became clear a moment later as Shiro felt a light tap against the back of his head. A tiny wand was hovering there, grasped tightly by what could only be called a purple puff of a ghost. "Meet Shavri."
Nico was no exception, and he immediately reached up, tugging on the braid for a moment before trying to shove the end of it into his mouth. Shiro's attention, however, was on the ghost as he turned around, his eyes widening. "You mean they can start moving around on their own when they get bigger?" he asked, stunned, then broke out in a grin. "Nice to meet you, Shavri. My little one doesn't have a name yet... I was thinking I'd wait a bit longer before deciding on one."
"So far... I'm the only one that can hear her." Youko settled into a chair, watching Shavri interact with Shiro. He hadn't quite determined if Shavri was a he or she yet... or both, even. He still had a nagging suspicion about THAT, but rather than call the ghost an 'it', he'd settled on female for the moment. If that changed, then he'd just adjust accordingly. "She laughs and giggles and sometimes cries. But it's all in my head." The fox let one ear drop as he gave Shiro a wry smirk. "Hence why I'm not sleeping much. It's hard to do when you've got an infant babbling at you."
"...You can hear them when they get bigger?" Oh, this was going to be interesting. "And I thought life on five hours of sleep was bad enough. Oh well, I did want a big family..." Reaching up, Shiro wiggled a finger in the general direction of the ghost's hands, head tilting slightly. "Her wand's quite pretty, though, especially with all those jewels... I have yet to figure out WHY there's a tea ball attached to my little one's wand." A pause. "...About how much longer do you think I have until she starts keeping me awake at night?"
"A couple weeks," Youko said, smiling as Shavri latched onto Shiro's hand and clung like a ghostly burr. "Watch it. She doesn't like to let go." Unlike the strange, almost nonexistant feel of the wisp clinging, Shavri had now gained a bit of substance, and the water demon would feel a definite tug when the ghost tried to pull. "Be prepared for most people around you to think you're insane. As Kaeru's fond of saying, 'The voices are particularly loud in your head today, eh old man?' and next stage, you get diapers."
Shiromaru was fascinated, however, and didn't seem to mind the clinging, willingly tugging and playing a bit with the little ghost. "I don't mind the diapers. I'm used to diapers. It's the voices part that's going to take some getting used to. ...Oh, hey, did Trio tell you? It's not only wands that are doing this -- apparently the necklace that found Trio will end up doing something similar. A fallen angel, apparently, that's getting a chance to be reborn, and the necklace is part of it." In other words, the Maxwell-Chang house was growing at alarming speeds. Much like Youko's place, apparently.
"Good lord, you two are making like rabbits..." Youko said, snickering and reaching down to ruffle Nico's ears. "Figuratively, anyway. So how many does this make for you guys now?"
Then again, it wasn't like he had much room to talk. Raven and Omi were both teengagers now... Raven was getting to the point where she was old enough to get her own place, and had been making noise about it. Omi was starting to spend more and more time away from home... Kaeru would rather be ANYWHERE except the house lately, and Yeande had her own family to worry about. "Honestly though..." he said, turning reflective for a moment. "I'm glad for Shavri. It was starting to get lonely around here."
"Annora, Etain, Kikuei, Makana, Nico, the wisp and Trio's necklace," Shiro dutifully reeled off, then settled down in a chair, quite content to drag Shavri along if the little ghost continued to cling -- he certainly wouldn't mind. "I'll be happy to bring my girl around whenever you and Shavri like. And SPEAKING of making like rabbits, just how many kids are you at, anyway?"
Snorting softly, Youko just smirked. "Raven and Kendall are mine by blood. Omi, Kaeru, and the wisp. Yeande's KINDA, but she was never really a kid, and now she's got a kid of her own."
By blood. Ah, now there was something Shiro longed for... but with Trio unable to bear children, that was a dream better left undreamt. "Trio and I clearly need to come over more often, and bring the brood. The kids need more than each other to play with -- I'm a little worried about Annora -- and it'd be good for them to meet more people and see you and Envy more."
"You guys are welcome over here any time, you know that..." Youko said, toying with Nico's ears. "It's always been that way. If I'm not home, SOMEONE usually is."
Nicodemus burbled up at Youko, trying to grab onto the fox's hand and hold on. His ears were kind of ticklish, in that 'whee! fun game!' sort of way. Shiro watched the pair with blatant affection, the demon himself letting his own little wisp weave in and out through his fingers. "Definitely going to have to come over more often, then. We miss you."
"We miss you too," Youko said fondly, reaching over and brushing his hand against Shiro's arm lightly. He couldn't help it, really. Kitsune liked contact of any kind, and he showed affection that way, no matter who the person was. Most of his friends had gotten used to it by now.
Including Shiro, who was as tactile as Youko. He reached out at that touch, lacing the fingers of his free hand through Youko's, then grinned up at the other man. "We did get a van not too long ago. We'll have to load up and come invade soon. And bring you all over to see the new place! Do you like barbeque?"
"Love it," Youko said, Squeezing Shiro's hand lightly. "And that sounds great! There's fewer of us, it would likely be easiest for us to come over there."
"That's true. And the backyard's huge, we have a big jungle gym and everything for the younger kids, plus the pool," Shiro enthused. It was clear that he loved the new house.
Just then, however, Nicodemus started to fuss a bit. While Youko's hair was quite tasty and would have to be chewed on again at a later date, right now he was hungry. Shiro, well-used to the sounds of hungry baby bunny, started poking through his diaper bag before he found the bottle and the formula he was looking for. "He's about ready for lunch... Mind if I use your microwave?"
The wisp, in the meantime, had finally decided to actually pay attention to the rest of the room, now that is source of entertainment was doing something else, and that was when it spotted Shavri. Curiouser and curiouser...! It didn't do much, save essentially sit back and watch, but its focus was undeniably on the ghost.
"Sure..." Youko pointed over behind him but was in no way letting go of Nico yet. He had no problem feeding the baby.
Shavri seemed entranced as well, the ghost wrapping around the wisp for a moment and inspecting it. Youko winced faintly as he heard a gleeful shriek of baby laughter in his head, his ears flattening against his skull, despite the fact that it would do NO good whatsoever.
Getting the hint, Shiro made and warmed the bottle, then tested it before handing it over with a quirked grin. "There you go."
The wisp reached up towards Shavri, patting at the ghost, seemingly fascinated by how much more solid Shavri was than the wisp.
"Thank you." Youko took the bottle and brought up one leg to fold over the other so that Nico had a place to lay. He was used to this, obviously, and didn't seem to have the 'baby jitters' that mose of the male persuasion had when encountering a newborn.
Shavri wound around the wisp, giggling aloud in Youko's head as she poked back at the wisp.
Shiro watched as Nico settled in comfortably, perfectly at his ease even with this stranger holding him and feeding him. The infant immediately started in on the bottle, proceeding to try and drain it dry.
"...I think these two are going to get along just fine," Shiro added when he glanced at the wisp and Shavri again. "At least, for now. I can't wait to find out more about her. That lady, Ianna? She said that this wand was a goddess from China, but she didn't know anything else, really..."
"Yours too?" Youko smirked, one ear swivelling towards Shiro even though his gaze was on the baby. "Shavri is as well. As far as I can tell, things are going to be very... interesting with her." He looked towards Shiro then, smiling faintly. "I believe that she's the goddess known as Kuan Yin. Kannon, from Japan."
Shiromaru blinked at Shavri, then stared, eyes widening. "Kuan Yin? Really? Yeah, I can expect things will be really interesting, if that's Kuan Yin... How'd you figure it out? Maybe you can help me figure out my little wisp, as well."
Sighing, Youko leaned back in the chair, watching ghost and wisp as he kept Nico from inhaling the entire bottle. "The wand was found in the South China Sea. I was told that she was a Chinese goddess. After that, I met a kitsune boy who's also from a wand like they are... and apparently he can tell whether a wand will be male or female." Looking to Shiro, Youko let one ear fall to the side. "He got so frustrated, he broke out in tears. He kept saying that it wasn't either... that it was both."
But Nico WANTED the entire bottle! That was carrot-flavored formula in there! Hungrily, he kept sucking the formula down, both hands on the bottle. Shiro, meanwhile, watched Shavri and the wisp, chin in one hand, his gaze thoughtful. "Yeah, I can see why that would be the assumption, then... Who was this kitsune boy? I think I'd like to meet him. I've only met Coailiann, and that was at the shop. I feel kind of bad for the boy, though, if it upset him so much..."
"His name is Yashima..." Youko began, watching Nico so that he didn't inhale it all too quickly. "His guardian is Patrick, I met them both in the HQ one day. We've become pretty good friends since then. I was actually trying to get hold of them to have them over for dinner one night. But Shavri frustrates Yashima so much, that I don't want to upset him."
"Understandable." Shiro continued to watch Shavri and the wisp, pensively, then reached out to 'tickle' Shavri's side. "Maybe once she's reached baby form, she won't frustrate him so much? Or one can hope, at least."
Nicodemus was finally done with the bottle, and pushed it away as he smacked his lips contentedly. Full belly, warm arms, and ooh, look at the hair! Reaching up, he tried to stuff the end of Youko's braid in his mouth again, threatening to smear it with orange-tinted formula.
Youko didn't seem to mind at all, he was used to baby spit-up... and worse things in his hair. He did, however, pin his ears back out of reflex as Shavri let out a shriek and tried to wrap herself around Shiro's hand. "I can't wait til everyone else can hear her too... then I won't be the only one with a migraine."
Shiro looked up at Youko, then acked and tried to pull his hand free from Shavri's grip. "Sorry... I think I'm going to go ahead and head out, though, and get back home. I have some work on the house I need to do now that we need to expand -- " Already. " -- the building, and I don't want to be taking more than a few days on it." Thankfully, he had a whole crew worth of household companions willing to help out.
Chuckling, Youko nodded and moved to reluctantly hand the baby back. "You need to come visit more often. I hardly ever see you anymore, other than when I happen to run into you with Trio." He moved to Shavri then, unwinding the ghost from the demon's hand and letting her stick her wand through his hair like she normally did, to 'ride' around.
After wiping Nico's face off with a towel, Shiro settled the infant into his carrier, tucking Nico's ears in so they wouldn't dangle when the demon flew. "I'll definitely be by more often. I guess life just likes to get carried away..." He settled the wisp's wand into place in its sling, then smiled up at Youko. "And don't worry. I'm hauling you, Envy, and the kids all over to a barbeque at our place. We'll have to make it a regular thing or something like that."
"THAT would be great," Youko said, reaching up to his hair to toy with Shavri lightly. "Of course, you'll have to let ME have a turn at the barbeque at some point." Smiling sweetly, the fox tried his best to look innocent. "I promise I won't put you to shame."
"Oh, you're on," Shiro informed him, grinning impishly. "You are so on. You better be able to back those words up."
"I always back up my words," Youko drawled, leaning one elbow on the counter as he grinned to Shiro. "Just ask Envy."
Shiromaru smirked up at Youko, reaching up in an attempt to playfully poke the man on the nose. "You know, having a ghost over your head when you say that kind of ruins the effect."
"I know. Wait til I try it with a baby in my arms, then it's just hilarious." He leaned in then, swatting Shiro's hand aside and kissing him on the cheek. "Tell Trio that I want to see you both over here more often, okay?"
Laughing, Shiro returned the kiss with one on Youko's cheek in turn, then nodded. "Okay. I will, I promise. I'll talk to you later, okay?" That said, he turned and cheerfully started out of the kitchen -- he knew the way out, after all, and could let himself out.
"Take care," Youko replied, grinning as he moved to head back towards the still-waiting coffeepot. It had been a good visit, and he looked forward to more of the same.
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Posted: Mon Jun 12, 2006 1:25 am
I'd say it's quiet here, but that's only because even after all this time, I'm still used to the noise and the chaos that was Kailas. Someone was always awake there, someone always had a radio playing, was walking through the halls, making some sort of noise. Here, compared to there, is so quiet that sometimes I think I should start stomping on the ground just for some sort of break in the silence. The wisp doesn't seem to mind it, though.
At least, it doesn't act like it minds it, Shiromaru wrote, a pensive expression on his face. It was late at night, and Shiro was out of his bed, perched on the broad, open windowseat that looked out over the yard. A willow tree hung close to the window, close enough that he was easily able to reach out and grab a leaf off the fronds.
There was just enough moonlight coming through the window, too, that he was able to write without needing to turn on the light and risk awakening Trio. The wisp, with its wand, was settled against him, and he could 'feel' the little thing weaving around and through the fingers of his left hand. He was half-tempted to try wearing the wand in his hair like Youko -- that seemed to be a rather convenient way of doing it.
It was interesting, meeting Shavri. I wonder if the little wisp and Shavri will ever become friends... They seem to be doing fine so far, already, even just from the one meeting. I feel bad for making Shavri make noise, though. Maybe I should send Youko a big bottle of migraine meds as an apology.
...Either that, or I'm going to keep the bottle for myself, because from what he tells me, I'm going to be going through much the same issue here soon enough, and I'm going to want to be ready. I don't handle migraines very well, I'm just a big baby, I guess you could say, so in the interest of not driving Trio absolutely batty -- we already have seven kids, she doesn't need an eighth -- I'll probably be popping these things like they're candy.
Do as I say, when it comes to medication, not as I do. Not that you're ever going to need any, you're a damn journal. Diary. Whatever. I still need to name you. What about Clementine? That's an interesting name for a diary, don't you think? Though I do wonder what Trio would think if I told her I was writing in 'Clementine' and not in 'the diary'. Actually, I think it would be best that I don't test that question...
So, I've started redecorating the wisp's room. Since the wisp is purple, and since the stone on her tea ball is an amethyst, I went ahead and painted the room purple to start with, and have been decorating with some purple things; I even got a purple set of power beads, because I thought they'd look pretty around the wand, and maybe they'd look good on her, later. They're kind of big for a bracelet, now, anyway -- maybe once she's actually here and bigger than an infant.
Anyway, Nico's awake and crying for me, so I'll cut this short tonight.
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Posted: Wed Jun 14, 2006 8:06 pm
A time had been set, and for once Shiro had left Nicodemus at home, bringing just the wand and its attached wisp. He'd long since decided that Youko's way of tucking the wand into his hair was a good idea, and as a result, his hair was up, the wand tucked into it, the tea infuser swinging freely and the wisp floating above his head. He stood in front of an antiques shop along a little shopping plaza, humming contentedly to himself as the wisp batted the tea ball about.
Youko would have been similarly UNburdened... except for the fact that Shavri had finally decided to arrive. So instead of simply the wand, the fox was pushing a stroller with a waving, burbling baby in it, Shavri's black hair wisping around in the breeze as she tried to catch whatever it was that was ruffling it.
"Shiro!" he called out, waving with a smile as he wheeled his way over to the water demon. "Looks like we've got extra company today, hmm?" he said, pointing down to the infant with a grin.
"Is that... that can't be... Is that Shavri?" Shiro hurried over and knelt in front of the stroller, grinning broadly as he offered a finger to grab onto. "She's beautiful, Youko!" The little wisp peered over the edge of Shiro's bangs and eyed Shavri as well, hanging on to one of Shiro's horns.
Nodding, Youko laughed. "That's her. Scared the hell out of me when she arrived. All of a sudden, there was NO noise in my head and she'd passed out in her crib."
Shavri let out a squeal of happiness, legs and arms flailing as she grabbed hold of Shiro's finger and proceeded to drag it, hand and all, towards her mouth.
"Watch it," Youko warned. "She's teething."
"Yeah, I think I just figured that out." Shiro snickered softly as his finger was gnawed on, not entirely minding. "Okay, you got to hold Nico, I get to hold Shavri today," he declared, shooting a grin up at Youko before trying to extricate his hand from Shavri's grip. "You know, I'm glad you have her -- it means that I get at least some sort of a guide to what to expect for my own little girl." The wisp, it seemed, had already lost interest for the moment, attention focused on a passing ladybug as it buzzed along by them.
"Go ahead," Youko said, moving to unclip the harness that held Shavri and kept her from sliding out the bottome end of the stroller. He didn't bother trying to loosen the baby's grasp... it was futile at best, and he simply lifted Shavri, blanket and all, into Shiro's arms. "Watch your hair, jewellery... and your wand," he said, grinning as he watched the two. "So... where are we headed today?"
Shiromaru happily held Shavri close, bouncing her slightly in his arms as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I was thinking we could do a bit of shopping. I've started decorating her bedroom," he explained as he looked up, "and I was hoping to find something appropriate. Something I'll naturally have to keep safely out of the way until she's old enough, but it'd still be nice to have some pretty things in her room." He winced when the wisp, playing with the tea ball, whapped it against his head, then he reached up and tried to tuck it into one of the loops of the scrunchie keeping his hair in place. "She thinks that's the greatest game, I swear..."
"Of course she does... Shavri liked playing 'Whack-An-Ear' a lot with her wand, too." Youko snickered, reaching to poke at the wisp lightly as they walked. "Alright... there's plenty of stores around here that sell bedroom stuff. I'm sure we'll find something."
The wisp cheerfully poked back, trying in vain to tickle at Youko's fingertip, then looked up as a leaf fluttered by overhead. The little thing seemed highly distractable. "You know," Shiro mused, his gaze on Shavri, "I have to wonder... Do you think Shavri and my wisp knew each other from their past lives? If they're both Chinese gods..."
"Could be... I'm not sure, really. Have you figured out what goddess she is yet?" Youko still had a hard time believing that Shavri was a goddess... but the physical aspects were one indicator... and the mark on her forehead was the other. It was the mark of one that had been touched by divinity. "But this little one is definitely Kuan Yin. I call her 'she' as a technicality... she's technically both genders."
A hermaphrodite, then? It seemed poor Yashima had been correct. Shiro considered Shavri for a moment longer, toying with her hair, then looked up. "...I have my suspicions," he confirmed, then winced as the wisp hauled the tea ball back out and whacked him on the head again with it. "That tea ball's my main clue. Have you heard of Lady Meng-Po?"
"Can't say that I have..." Youko said, pricking up one ear and looking at Shiro curiously as they walked. "Then again, most of my research went into Kuan Yin, Kannon, Kanzeon... whatever you want to call her. I didn't do too much research into other gods and goddesses."
Shiro hesitated in front of a doorway, then freed one arm and pushed the door open, stepping into the little store. "Meng-Po's the goddess of forgetfulness. Before the soul crosses over to be reborn, Meng-Po gives the soul a specific tea made to wipe out the memories of the life that soul had just gone through."
"Sounds reasonable to think it might be her then," Youko answered, moving to hold the door open and push the stroller in as well. He watched the little wisp flit here and there and grinned. "Especially with her attention span, ne?"
Shavri was barely listening to the conversation. Much more interesting was the hand that was playing with her, the buttons on Shiro's clothes, and OOOOOOOOOooo.... what was all this STUFF around them now?? "ABEH!!" she yelled, reaching for the nearest rack of Shiny Things.
"Good gods, she grows up fast," Shiro murmured with no little amazement, deftly keeping Shavri out of reach of those very shiny things. Sometimes -- all of the time, really -- it was good to have practice. "And yes, with her attention span? And it gets worse the longer she's been with us. She wasn't as bad in the beginning. I -- nonono, no playing with the expensive, highly-breakable toys. Uh-uh. Not happening." He tucked the wand a bit further into his hair, which effectively took a few more inches off of the wisp's range of movement. "Okay, these two are a heart attack waiting to happen."
Reaching for his own 'heart attack', Youko scooped up Shavri and snickered. "Oh yeah. And she's curious about EVERYTHING," he said, deftly keeping Shavri's grasping hands away from a rack of baubles that likely cost more than he made in a week. "I hope her attention span evens out a bit as she gets older, or she won't have the concentration to even tie her shoes."
Shiromaru grinned up at Youko, shaking his head in amusement. "She does seem to be growing up quickly, even considering the rate of maturation here. Teething and babbling already... My friend Abishai's kitsune kit, Reverie? He barely makes a sound, and he's been here since the middle of April." He paused, then, as the wisp flitted forward, obviously intent on a teacup on a shelf in front of them. The demon pulled the wand from his hair and held it close to the teacup, and the little purple wisp promptly curled up inside the cup. "...I think she likes it."
Snickering, Youko leaned over to look. "And not that expensive, either. Maybe you could get that for her and it could be a nick-nack when she's older?" He was seeing all KINDS of things for Shavri as well, but had a budget to consider. It was tempting to buy everything in sight for the bubbly infant, but he knew better.
"Not expensive, and very pretty," Shiro mused, picking up the delicate porcelain cup and inspecting the fine brushwork. "I think I'll get this one for her. Could put it up on top of the dresser for now," he mused. "...Under a display case, so it doesn't get knocked off when she grows to that full ghost form."
"Sounds like a plan." Youko smiled, picking through a bin of bracelets and whistling softly as he brought one up. "Oh Shiro...~" he called, grinning as he held up a strand of prayer beads made from amethyst. "Lookit what I found."
Shiro looked up, then blinked. "Ooooh... those are so pretty..." He leaned in, touching the beads gently with one fingertip. The wisp seemed to like it, too, and leaned out of its cup to peer at the beads.
"I think I'm getting a set for Shavri," the fox proclaimed, picking up the beads and handing them to the infant, who seemed perfectly content to stare at them in awe.
Grinning, Shiromaru watched, then rummaged through the bin for a set of his own -- as well as several others of various colors. He seemed intent on picking up the entire set of different types. "I'm going to get some for all the girls and Nico," he decided, contentedly. "I think they'll like them. Even though Nicodemus can't have his until he stops chewing on everything in sight."
"Good luck in that," Youko murmured, picking out a few more as well, even though Shavri only got the amethyst set for the moment. "He seems like he'll be chewing on everything as long as he can... part of the package with rabbits, I guess. How is he doing, anyway?"
"He's doing wonderfully," Shiro chirruped, grinning up at Youko. "Gnawing everything to bits, and obsessed with carrots, but doing wonderfully. Growing like a weed, too. I have to wonder if he's ever going to grow into those ears."
"Does he chew on his crib yet?" Youko grinned at that, imagining either a wooden crib reduced to toothpicks... or a metal crib that sounded like a rabid woodpecker.
Shiromaru made a face and pulled the wand out again, letting the wisp putter about along the shelves as they passed. "Yes. It's a good thing I had an idea this might happen and got an unfinished, unpainted crib. At least he's not getting splinters in his mouth." He paused, then picked up a long hairstick with a cascade of crystals. "Look at this..."
Youko paused, backstepping and looking at the hairstick with wide eyes. "That's gorgeous..." he murmured, reaching out to brush his fingers along the crystals. "And if you're not getting it, I AM."
"Hands off," Shiro teased, grinning impishly, then offered another hairstick. "There's another one, though, if you wanted to get this one?"
"I'll wait," Youko said, grinning as he mentally went over the amount of money he had in his wallet at the moment. "But I'm definitely coming back to this place in the near future."
Laughing, Shiro gathered his purchases into his arms and made his way towards the cash register. "So am I, when I have some more money. This is a great place. ...But I think I'm about at my spending limit for now."
"Same..." Youko took his few items and moved to the register as well, finally giving in and just letting Shavri KEEP the bracelet that she was clinging to. "There's one more," he mentioned absently as the cashier rung up the items and he fished around for money.
Shiro glanced up at Youko as he waited for his turn to be rung up, then leaned in and took Shavri's hand, raspberrying the back of it playfully.
Shavri let out an ear-piercing squeal, laughing as she tried to grab hold of Shiro's nose.
Youko's ears flattened reflexively, but he didn't seem to wince or whimper about the noise anymore. He was getting used to the infant's high-decibel voice now, it seemed.
Nose caught, Shiro giggled quietly, then tried to free his nose from Shavri's grasp so he could get his own things rung up. Soon enough, his own purchases were carefully stowed away in bags, and his wand was tucked away in his hair. "Think I'm about ready to get going," he mused, thoughtfully. "We'll have to do this again soon, though. Maybe get coffee next time?"
"Coffee sounds good... by the time these two are toddling around, we'll likely NEED it." Youko resettled the sling on his shoulder then, eliciting a snort from Shavri as she was rearranged. "We'll have to get together for that barbeque soon, too."
"We're about done with the renovation, so as soon as that's done, we'll drag you lot over," Shiro confirmed cheerfully. "And then? It's a cook-off, and we'll see who's better at the barbeque."
Grinning evilly, Youko let his ears fall back a bit. "You're on," he said, tail twitching behind him for a moment. "For now, however... it's naptime." And in that instant, the 'fierce' fox was gone, replaced by 'daddy' once again. "Take care, Shiro! I'll give you a call later."
Shiro leaned in and pressed a kiss to Youko's cheek, then to Shavri's. "Okay! I'll see you later. C'mon you," he added to the wisp as it clung to his horn, "let's get home." He made his way outside, then spread his wings and took to the air.
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 2:19 am
It was rare for the house to be quiet; it was even more rare for the place to be practically empty, but such was the case. Trio was out, the children were currently being watched over by Hun Min, and Shiromaru was taking advantage of the peace to just wander through the rooms set aside for the children who had yet to fully 'arrive'. This one happened to be the one that the child from the wand would take over as soon as she had arrived, and the cup, the hair stick and the beaded bracelet were settled atop a pretty piece of lace on one of the dressers. There were several, because Shiro knew his propensity for showering the children with all sorts of clothing. He didn't think he'd have to do much of that for Etain much longer, however -- the little sylph (not so little, he reminded himself, for Etain had well and truly grown, and while still his 'little girl,' could no longer be counted as quite so little) had developed a decided fascination with costuming and sewing in addition to the dancing lessons she'd already undertaken.
Still, Ianna had said that the child from this wand would be a Chinese goddess, and so the room was decorated with several things from China. Little outfits were settled in one of the dressers, and even a couple things for her as she got a bit bigger; the rest of that, however would be left to be bought when a definite sense of style had been adopted by the girl. It wouldn't do to force her into something she didn't like, after all. Etain had proven that point for him already, and had taken over dressing herself in all sorts of funky fashions.
The demon was forced to smile. Etain was truly his daughter and had taken after her father in at least that way. It didn't matter that he was, in fact, her second father figure and not even her father in the genetic sense -- her continued exposure to her father's eccentric ways had had its influence upon her. Even if fatherhood had, in a way, settled Shiro down and toned down some of his greater, more flamboyant extravagancies.
A mask, in a way, for the depressed young man he'd been before he'd found Etain, then Trio and Annora; everything had blossomed from there.
Shiro shook his head slightly, getting his thoughts back on track. No, it was best not to force a child into a sense of style that they didn't enjoy -- that was as bad as forcing kids into uniforms at school, something that he was deeply against. It was bad enough that so many schools tried to force children to think alike all the time, molding them into a growing mediocrity that was satisfied with 'good enough'; forcing them to all dress alike as well would be resting on the wrong side of 'criminal'. His children wouldn't be going to any school where a uniform was required. His children would be encouraged to be the very different, very unique young beings that they all were, no matter what that might b-
Blinking, Shiromaru rubbed at the back of his head, trying to figure out what the sense of odd tickling and the almost bell-like laughter were coming from. It wasn't the first time he'd had a sense of someone talking to him in his mind -- the demon himself had a limited form of telepathy and empathy -- but this was much more clear, much more alert.
If 'look at the pretty colors the wind feels so nice when will everyone be home it's nice to be able to move' could be considered 'clear and alert,' especially when coupled with the overwhelming sense of daydreamy delight that overlaid everything.
It was then, of course, that Shiro got a suspicion, and made his way back to the wand's room. He'd settled the little wand on the dresser, because it seemed to be infatuated with curling up inside the teacup, but the surprise he found waiting within about made him drop the books he'd been carrying. There in front of him was a ghost, much like Shavri had been when Shiro had first seen her, but this one was decidedly not Shavri. And as the little ghost giggled happily, waving the wand around, he suddenly realized that Youko had had the right of it -- he was going to need a lot of headache pills.
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