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 Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 5:55 pm
Ah, it was finally the weekend! The glorious weekend, where he could openly procrastinate and put off his assignments until Sunday night. Well, at least that was the way it USED to be. But now he has a new person to take care of. A little person. A person resembling the Nutcracker Prince. A person who not only lived in his dorm, but stayed inside his vase. His life has been turned upside down since he started to take care of the 'Surprise'. While it was rewarding, it certainly did a lot more stress to his life as well.
Gaunt had recently acquired a long velcro strip. He threaded it through the handles of the vase and around his body, letting it be something of a makeshift carrier so he could bring the vase along with him whenever it was appropriate for him. Naturally, the Prince woudln't be going with him to class, but if he was around and about, he could take the little fellah with him.
This was the test-drive. He adjusted the vase on his back, keeping the velcro tight around him as he walked out of his dorm. Down a few flights of stairs and outside he went. The little Prince, disturbed by the bouncing of his vase, poked himself out and perched himself on the lip of the vase. He looks around and purses his lips slightly. "Where are we?"
"This is the city that I go to school in. Today, I'll be giving you a tour of this place. And if you're good, I'll give you some ice cream." He turned his head, trying to catch the Prince's reaction with a grin on his face.
"Ice cream?" The Prince chirped, his body straightening and paying attention. Apparently, he really liked ice cream, or sweets of any kind. Strange, since Gaunt always associated.. well.. nuts, with the nutcracker prince.
Gaunt smiles softly and he nods slowly. "Yeah, Ice cream. Though remember, you gotta be good." He grins lightly as the Prince promised energetically to behave. He certainly was a character. Gaunt made one more adjustment before he hit the street, the Prince still perched on the lip of the vase, peering over Gaunt's shoulder
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:11 pm
"Mom, where are we going?" Ian asked for the millionth time. It was the tiny boy's first time to the capital city of the world where he had been born, and though he was excited to be there, he was already tired out by the time they arrived. Then again - there was very little that didn't tire out the sleepyhead.
Serenity smiled and ruffled Ian's hair affectionately. "I told you," she replied softly, her gray-green eyes sparkling brightly. "We're going to try find the cafe where Skye went for her date with Syrus. She said they had some really good drinks there."
"And sweet stuff, too?" Ian asked, his tone hopeful.
Serenity laughed and hugged her son tightly. "Of course!" she giggled. "I would never take you anywhere if there weren't going to be sweets."
She had found the boy nearly starved to death almost half a year ago now, and she had never regretted taking him in and adopting him as her own son. He was sweet and helpful, always good for a laugh - and very well behaved.
"I think she said something about there being sundaes on the dessert menu," she added with a wink.
Ian's eyes grew wide, so wide they almost seemed too large for his face. "Reeeeaaaalllyyyy?" he asked slowly, his grin spreading nearly from ear to ear. "Mom ... we're going to go there, right? If we can find it?"
Serenity laughed again. She knew her son's weakness for ice cream, even though the spoons they used to eat with were nearly half his size. "Isn't that what I said?"
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:20 pm
Gaunt heard a little of what was being said nearby, as a woman and a boy that seemed to be around the Prince's size were walking down the street. He glanced behind him toward the Prince, and the Prince blurted out. "They're going for ice cream too~!"
Gaunt laughs softly and he nods slightly. "Yeah, they are. Does that mean you want to go too?"
"YEAH~!" The Prince blurted out loudly again.
"Now, now, Prince. What do you say?" Gaunt grinned, wondering if the Prince's patience would hold.
"PWEEEEEZE?! Please may we go with them to get some ice cream?" The Prince seemed to practically be quivering in anticipation of going with these two people, especially if they were going to get ice cream.
Gaunt chuckles softly and nods. "Alright. Lets find out if they want us to go with them." Gaunt jogged toward the other two, finally catching up and matching their pace at their side. "Excuse me? I heard that you were going for some ice cream. Do you mind if we tag along?"
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:30 pm
Serenity was taken completely by surprise by the man who suddenly appeared next to her, and her face turned a bright shade of red and she lowered her eyes self-consciously. She had always been shy, always found it hard to talk to strangers, even when she knew they were coming, or even their names - but to have someone run up to her like that ...
Ian had no such qualms.
"Sure you can!" he beamed at the man and the surprise that was riding on him. "We're going to get sundaes, and they're really really good and have lots and lots of ice cream on them! We just gotta find the cafe where my auntie had her date and that's where we'll get it because that's where they have the best ones!"
"Ian," Serenity murmured softly, wanting to reprimand her son. He knew he wasn't allowed to talk to strangers - just because she was still with him, did that make a difference?
Or maybe she was just being paranoid. He did seem nice enough ... if only she weren't so shy.
Ian just grinned. "Aw come on, Mom! Look, he even has a Surprise just like me! And you always tell me I should make friends! We can be friends, right?"
He looked over at his fellow Surprise and grinned widely, his nightcap sliding slightly sideways. He grabbed at it and giggled, plunking it right back on top of his midnight blue hair. "I'm Ian," he introduced himself without hesitation. "And this is my Mom, Serenity! Well she wasn't always my mom," he added as an explanation, "but she 'dopted me after I was a little bit old, just like Grandma 'dopted her! 'Cept Grandma 'dopted her before she came out of her vase, but Mom only found me after I was already out of my vase."
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:41 pm
Gaunt tilted his head and he smirked as he watched the woman walking with the surprise blush. It was hard to do otherwise. Afterall, shyness had a certain appeal to it. And in all the anime that he's watched in his dorm room (thank you Netflix!), it was always the shy girls that were cutest and most desirable. He chuckles softly and he nods to the little surprise and he smiles. "Well, what do you know? I was telling Prince here that if he was good, he would get some ice cream. So I guess we're going to the same place."
"And I've been good, havn't it?" The Prince chirped again, hoping Gaunt would say yes so they could go and get some ice cream.
"I dunno~. We only just got started afterall. So far you've been good, but I hope this will continue." He grins teasingly over his shoulder, before he extended his hand toward Serenity for a shake. "My name is Gaunt. I go to school back there at the university." He smiles warmly at her, while behind him the Prince waved at Ian. "And I'm the Nutcracker Prince! Though Gaunt just calls me Prince. It's goodtameetcha! I hope we can be friends~!"
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:59 pm
Serenity cleared her throat in an attempt to rid it of the lump that had appeared. She hated being so shy ... she wished that she could be as easygoing as others could.
"S-Serenity Aldrich," she said quietly, taking the man's hand and shaking it, trying not to quiver where she stood.
She was reassured by the man's friendliness: he seemed to be just as friendly as the Surprise that was riding on his back. They seemed like nice people ...
"We can be really great friends, I bet!" Ian beamed. "Mom doesn't talk much til she gets to know someone but she's got a great big heart, even bigger than I am! We don't live in this world, even though both of us are from here," he added with a grin. "We're from a world called Gaia, because that's where Grandma and Grandpa live and we live on the clan grounds with them. Mom goes to school too and she takes me with her-"
"Ian!" Serenity squeaked, her blush deepening as she clamped one hand over her son's mouth. The next thing, he was going to be telling these strangers her life's story! It was one thing to go for ice cream together but it was another thing entirely to tell them where they lived!
Ian knew exactly what to do. He stuck his tongue out and licked the palm of Serenity's hand, making her wince and yank her hand away, and then he grinned up at Gaunt and the Prince.
"Do you know where the cafe is?" he asked them hopefully. "Because we can't get the ice cream if we can't find it, Mom says she doesn't know any of the places here, we've never been to this city before. Do you know the city? You said you lived here right?"
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:15 pm
He chuckles softly and he nods slowly as he listened to Ian's explanation, despite how... thorough it was. He smiles softly as he looks at Ian and smiles softly at the surprise. "Well, I know of the place called Gaia. I've visited once or twice, but I'm from this area. I don't really have anyone I'm attached to. So aside from school, I don't really have anything or anyone holding me to once place." He grins a little, giving a little too much information to balance out Ian's. Hey, it was fair.
He smiles warmly next, as he looks at Serenity. "Well, is that so, Serenity? You do seem pretty shy, if I may be so blunt. Then I'm looking forward to talking with you some more." He smiles at her again though it was broken at the voice behind him, teasing him. "Ooooh~? Does Gaunt have a crush on Serenity~? ♫♪"
Gaunt gasped softly and he tried to reach behind him to try to swat at the surprise, but just like a nagging itch in the back, he coudln't quite get to him. And the prince just laughed at the futile attempts to get at him, grinning at Ian. "These people are fun to tease, aren't they?"
Gaunt humphed softly as he gave up at trying to get the Prince, nodding and replenishing his smile. "Yeah. I do know this place. So just give me the name of it and I'll see if I know where it is."
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:34 pm
Ian was having the time of his life.
"I've never seen Mom so red before," he confided to the Prince with a mischievous grin. "And trust me, she goes red an awful lot."
But Ian was right - Serenity's face was now redder than ever, and her throat had closed up entirely, so that it was all she could do to breathe. She had never thought to like anyone, or have anyone like her - she had a son and was content for it to be just the two of them.
But now she was so flustered she had completely forgotten the name of the cafe.
"I don't know what it's called," Ian offered, fully realizing how embarrassed his mom was by that time. "But it was little and it had nice booths and it was good for a romantic date. That's what Aunt Skye said. And it had good food and hot chocolate and sundaes, really really big ones, for dessert!"
He hoped his description could help, though he had no idea that his choice of words had only embarrassed his mom further. Romantic date - if one didn't know better, one might think he was doing his best to fluster her.
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:47 pm
Gaunt shakes his head and gives out an amused chuckle as he watched Serenity's reactions. Sure, they were fun, but he figured he should let up in the teasing before her head exploded, or she got so flustered that she freaked out and dragged Ian back to wherever their home was. He rubs his chin slowly as he listens to Ian's description. "Mmm. Hnn. I see. That kind of sounds like the Evermore Cafe. I can't say if that is exactly what you're looking for, but they are small, and they do have a good reputation for their sweets." He offers forward a smile.
The Prince, however, wasn't so willing to release the previous topic. He tugs lightly on the back of Gaunt's hair to get his attention. "Hey~! I wonder what it takes to get you that red?"
Gaunt laughs softly and he shakes his head, shooting a grin over his shoulder. "Hey, Prince. Don't get any ideas. It's going to take more than you can do to get me to blush." He chuckles softly and he shrugs a little bit, smiling warmly at Serenity. "So, what do you say? Should we check out the Evermore, or does that not sound like the place you wanted to go?"
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:53 pm
Serenity cleared her throat and tried to speak, but nothing came out at all. Instead she simply nodded, smiling and holding Ian close.
"Th-that does sound familiar," she managed finally, her voice cracking slightly as she spoke. "But e-even if it's not the right one ... I think it sounds nice."
"So long as they still have sundaes for dessert, they're okay by me," Ian grinned. "How 'bout you, Prince?"
Though he was also looking at Gaunt thoughtfully now, trying to think what might possibly make him blush. His mom was easy - just about everything made her blush, especially if there were strangers around.
"Hey," he called to Gaunt, "are you ticklish? Mom is ..."
Serenity just about choked. "Why don't we check out the cafe?" she suggested in a hurried voice. "Is it near here?"
By which she was also asking, how long before we can fill his mouth too full to talk?
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 8:12 pm
Gaunt nods and he chuckles softly. "Alright, then. Follow me." He grins lightly as he starts off the road, glancing behind him toward Serenity. She was still so incredibly cute, especially with her blushy personality. "Yeah, they still have sundaes. And a few other things, like cakes and pies too. They even have tins of home-made brittle to buy."
"Yeah, yeah. We don't care about that. We just want ice cream!" called out Prince. It earned a glance over Gaunt's shoulder, and the college-age man grinned almost wickedly as he came to a stop. "Oh? What's this? Are you talking back to me, Prince? I dunno. Suddenly I don't think we'll be going to the cafe."
"Oh! Oh! I'm so sorry! So so sorry! Oh please oh please oh please lets go to the cafe for sundaes!" Prince clung to the back of Gaunt's head as best as his small form could. Gaunt just chuckles lowly as he starts to walk again. "Alright, alright. I guess we can still get some sundaes." He slowed in his walking enough to let Serenity to catch up, glancing at her and smiling warmly. "I can't tell you how relieved I am that I found someone else who had a Second. I was kind of afraid that I'd be the only one around here. I know you're not from around this area, but I hope that we'll be friends after today so we can see each other and let Prince and Ian play."
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 8:19 pm
Serenity giggled at the interaction between Gaunt and the Prince. They were so cute together, she couldn't help but think. It reminded her so much of some of her siblings ... and Ian for that matter.
As they began walking, Ian reached over and swatted at the Prince's arm. "Be good!" he ordered in a stern voice. "If you're going to be bad then we won't be able to go get ice cream either and that's not fair!"
The colour was just beginning to leave Serenity's face when Gaunt spoke to her, and at his comment about having a Second of her own, she blushed again - though not nearly as darkly this time.
"Actually," she smiled shyly, "I ... am also a Second."
Would he still want to be friends with her? See her after that day? Or would he be embarrassed and try to politely excuse himself? Sure, she looked somewhere around seventeen or nineteen years old, but in truth she was less than two years old. As a true human, he had to be much older.
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 8:33 pm
He nods slowly as he smiles warmly at Serenity. "Mmm. I see." He didn't seem disconcerted at her response. Sure, she was blushy, but she still looked like a late-teen. Sure, the actual age difference was large, but she didn't SEEM like a two-year-old. So it was hard for him to not feel any different. If anything, it just meant that if he, for some reason, actually fell for her, that she'd likely die much sooner than he would. At least, that's what logic said without any further information. "Well, if you would like, I could give you my number or my email address. That way if you're ever in town again, you can call me and we can meet up somewhere."
The Prince whimpered when Ian reached over to swat him. It was a double punishment, and it made him sad. But his mind was pretty stinkin' quickly sidetracked as he overheard the conversation. And, as impulsive and inappropriate as ever, he started to sing. "Gaunt and Serenity sitting in a tree~ ♫♪ K-I-S-S-I-N-G~ ♫♪"
Gaunt rolls his eyes and he chuckles softly. "Stop that, Prince. It's not like that." Not yet, anyway. "We're just getting to know eachother. Now, be quiet before I make you eat a veggie tray while we're all eating ice cream."
"Noooo! The ultimate punishment! Don't make me eat veggies~~!" the Prince whined, which drew laughter from Gaunt.
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 8:46 pm
Serenity's brow furrowed slightly and she brushed her long brown hair away from her face.
"I ... don't have a phone, or a computer," she admitted softly. "The only time I can use a computer is at school ... and ... we don't even have a phone at home. Pretty much the whole family lives in the clan grounds, and the ones who don't life in the wilderness ... so ... we've really never had a need for one ..."
She had heard rumours that her mother might have recently gotten one, but she wasn't sure about that - and it was supposed to be for emergency only.
"Oh, wait," she blinked. "Mother has a cell phone ... she's never activated it, maybe I can borrow it and see if I can get a service or something ..."
Though there was still nothing she could do about a computer. She was so thoughtful that she didn't pay any attention to what the Prince was singing - and luckily so.
Ian laughed at the Prince's song, and when Gaunt didn't punish him for it he kept right on giggling. "Veggies for the Prince!" he taunted his new friend.
Serenity blinked, her thoughts interrupted, and turned to the others. "What?" she asked blankly. "What did you say?"
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Elnara Aldrich Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 9:08 pm
Gaunt smiled softly and he walked at a leisurely pace next to them. He glanced toward her as he heard her explanation and he nods slowly. He really coudln't argue with it. He pursed his lips a little as he thought. If she couldn't call, couldn't email.. He shrugs a little and he laughs softly. "Well. I mean. If you want to, I could just give you my room address and you can just come visit me." He smiles softly at her and he shrugs. "That is, if your mother doesn't give you her cell phone. That's the only way I can think of how to visit, unless we just send mail to each other." He laughs softly as he gently rubs the back of his neck, leading them up to a small streetside cafe. There were four or five tables inside, and a few tables and booths on the inside. "I don't know how'd I make it without technology. I guess I've gotten too used to it."
Prince sticks his tonge out at Ian when he was teased about the veggie tray. "I'm not gonna have veggies! I'm gonna have ice cream!" He blinks when the attention suddenly turns on him and Ian. He smiles angelically at Serenity and he shakes his head. "I didn't say anything! There's nothing going on!"
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