Welcome to Gaia! ::

Raife and Mikhael found themselves back at the lab about a month or so from their last visit. The guardian marvelled at her little boy's change in behavior. While still clinging to her shirt like a baby monkey, he wasn't quite as hidden into his cloak. His bright blue eyes peered up at the entrance to the lab as Raife pushed the door open. They stood in the doorway for a brief moment, girl and baby, and assessed the situation.

The lab was empty. This met mixed reviews.

Raife was obviously displeased. She enjoyed socializing and the effect it was having on her youngster. She hadn't walked all the way to the lab with a baby on her back to find it as deserted as a tomb. She shuddered. It was even a bit cold.

Mik, on the other hand, was delighted by this turn of events. While having no people meant none of his friends were around, it also meant there weren't any grabby fingered children or barking dogs, or any of the undesirables they'd encountered at the park on their second visit. He shrugged out of his coat, feeling safe with no one but Raife around, and burbled his pleasure.

Raife chuckled at her baby's coo. "Oh, sure, you're happy. You're missing the point. Don't you want to make new friends? You have so much fun with Levi, and seeing the other babies turned out well..." Mik didn't understand half of what she said, but he caught 'friends' and 'Levi'. Words he was beginning to understand went together. He liked the pirate boy, and if everyone was like him, well, it certainly wouldn't be a problem. It did help though, that he had positive memories of this place. Something about waving and other children that didn't attack him...yes, this place felt okay. Felt right.

They both settled onto the couch, so Raife could catch her breath before she started back to the house, disappointed. "Well, this was a wash, wasn't it?"

Raife looked up at the sound of a new voice -and thusly a new person- entering the lab. Excellent! She was so used to the young children as legends that at first she searched Chandra for some sign of a small child. A bag of toys, or, well, the baby itself. Finding none, she was puzzled a bit, before remembering that Legends came in all shapes and sizes and ages. Perhaps this young lady was a grown legend! Raife peered at Chandra with interest, her own mind musing what it might be like when her own charge was of a similar age.

Then she realized she was staring and hadn't greeted Chandra. Good job, idiot. She snapped out of what must have looked like a dazed stupor, and smiled.

"'Lo there!" She waved enthusiastically over at Chandra from the couch.

Mik, on the other hand, was more apprehensive. He'd spotted Chandra as soon as she entered as well, but had reserved feelings. She wasn't his size. That could be...bad. He didn't deal closely with many big people yet out of the household. Aki for certain...that was about it. Still, he was vaguely curious about who was here, and pushed himself up to standing, leaning on the edge of the couch to support himself, to get a better look.

The air was heavy with mutual apprehension. It laid over Raife thickly as she sat on the couch, and made her a bit uncomfortable as well. Mik, on the other hand, was amused, if not slightly comforted by the feeling he got from Chandra. It was similar to his own. She didn't seem the type of big person to tackle him or hurt him, and that was just fine with him. He relaxed a bit, his eyes searching hers studiously, leaning his head on his arms on the back of the couch. He was already starting to carry the air of a toddler, his not-quite sturdy legs wobbling as he held himself up.

Raife smiled, despite the tension. "Hi, err, I'm Raife...and this is Mikhael..and yes, I do believe he is. Are you?" She reached over and ran a hand over Mik's hair, unsure which of the two of them the reassuring gesture was for.

"Yeah...he...." Should she really be telling things to some girl she didn't know, legend or not? "He's...had a hard time." She'd leave it at that. She watched Chandra's extended gesture, wondering how Mik would react.

Mik eyed the hand for a moment, as if to test its trustworthyness and when it stayed there, he looked up at Chandra, then, delicately grabbing her palm, her fingers went straight into his mouth -where most things went in this stage of his life. He gummed her fingers with a quiet, happy burble, enjoying the soothing coldness of her skin and not thinking anything weird of it, and not thinking that, maybe, she might not like to be gummed. What else would she be holding her hand out for?

Raife chuckled a bit, and gently nudged Mik off Chandra's hand. He continued to hold in his own, and Raife nudged him gently. "Please clean, Mikhael." Extra words were unnecessary. He understood Please, and Clean and Mikhael, and didn't need to be told anything else that he wouldn't understand. The boy wiped Chandra's hand off with the hem of his shirt, a bit meticulously, as he did everything he was told.

"Sorry about that." Raife smiled. "He's at that 'thing-in-mouth' stage, obviously. Teething. Only has a few more to go before he has the full set."

It wasn't until now that Mikhael noticed how truly odd the cool temperature of Chandra's hand was. It just didn't feel...normal. He pressed his hand to her palm, small and warm, and compared the temperatures.

Mikhael pressed his face into her hand softly, reassured by her somehow. Maybe it was the soothing feeling of the cold, or her quiet behavior, but she seemed to register on his okay-to-be-touched-by meter. He nuzzled her hand quietly a little, watching her, still a bit suspicious of the rest of her, even if her hand seemed alright. She hadn't made any quick advances on him, and had mostly been talking with Raife, even if she was kneeling now, and easy to assess.

She was beautiful -Mik appreciated and knew beauty from art- and seemed lovely, and sad, like that painting at the art gallery...he mewled softly, a tiny noise, and closed his eyes.

Raife grinned. "He loves music. Anything creative, really. Music, art, you name it. It's in his blood. And he seems to like you alright too. Normally he takes a bit longer to let himself be touched."

Mik made a small noise, as if reinforcing what Raife said, and burrowed more into Chandra's hand.

Mik's eyes and ears snapped to attention at the sight of the flute, recognizing it as the more refined version of the toy flute that he bathed with. He knew that music could come out of it, and awaited with baited breath, then sighed happily when the notes flowed from it. He watched her fingers move over the keys and his expression became studious, as if he could tell more about Chandra from how she played the flute than from looking at her or talking to her. He strained closer to the flute, the tip of his nose only a foot or two from the end of the flute, his body practically half of the couch.