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 Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 11:36 pm
"Yes, sir." Back straight, arms to the sides. "It is as I have told you."
Clicking his jaw, a moment's hesitation, and then he waved his hand, as if to dismiss what had just been said. "Alright," came the reply, although the doctor didn't seem as upset as Aimery had thought he would be. "I don't mind. In fact, I'm quite delighted!" With that, his visage lit up. "Amir will have a friend over... yes, this is very good news. I wish for him to have many friends over, all the time. Perhaps it will help him in becoming a confident man."
Although he couldn't quite understand the exact logic, his housekeeper/tea-brewer/chauffeur/babysitter/English tutor knew where his master was coming from, and so only dipped his body at the waist in a polite bow. Of course, it would be very good for Amir to make friends. To gain confidence and to grow adjusted to his new home. Not that any of them knew, for certain, where he even came from to begin with.
Bare-footed, as always, the small Arabian boy hopped excitedly at the edge of the counter, gabbing at Yam-Yam's main chef in a mixture of two languages. Although he understood hardly any of it, he would smile and nod, with the occasional "Oh, really?" whilst chopping vegetables for the day's lunch. Amir loved to watch his hands work with the various knives and utensils, cutting up and separating food with surprising grace despite his size.
"Sergei," he shifted his foot shyly. "Aleister does not like sweets, and he likes mac... maca..."
"Macaroni?" he asked, accent thick.
"Ah... yes! Yes, maca... rooni. You make some of that, too?" Remembering his manners, he blushed sheepishly. "Please."
Setting the vegetable knife down, the rather-tall Russian man laughed heartily, always finding himself to be amused by Amir's antics. He turned the faucet on, rinsing his hands of the vegetable juice and peering over his shoulder as he did so.
"Funny child, of course I will. Whatever you want, I will make." Amir nodded, watching him dry his hands off with a towel. Turning again, Sergei fished through the cupboards, looking for the macaroni noodles. "Are you excited?" he asked, jumping back quickly when a bag of powdered sugar fell out with an 'oomph'.
"Oh, yes," he gushed, bringing his hands up and fanning his fingers to express his excitement. "I am very excited. I do not have friends in my home very much." He brought his elbows to the counter, pulling himself up a bit to better watch Sergei at work. As expected, it did not take long for him to let out a tiny gasp of surprise.
"Sergei! How can you let the peppers and the onions touch --"
Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Amir froze, his head snapping in the direction of the door. His companion only went about his business preparing lunch, much too used to the eerie chime of the doorbell.
It made his skin crawl, Amir concluded, pushing away from the counter and hugging himself. It always made him feel as if the person behind the door were a bad person, or else the doorbell would sound much more cheerful in notifying them of their arrival.
Offering one last bit of 'cooking advice' to the very much professional chef, Amir skirted around the counter, down the hallway, and down the flight of stairs to the main door, grasping its large, heavy handle in both hands. As he tugged it open, he greeted his guest with a wide smile.
"أهلا صديقي! Come in!" Sweeping an arm grandly to the side, he stepped aside to allow them to walk through the door.
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Notes:
أهلا صديقي! "Welcome my friend!"
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Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2009 1:37 am
Felix couldn’t say he was exactly thrilled by the idea when Aleister asked him this morning, and if it had been up to him he would have just made him stay at home. It was his job, as his temporary guardian, to take care of him, and just because he claimed this other boy- Amir, as he was told over and over- to be his friend didn’t mean a thing. He’d only met him once, anyway.
“But he invited me over, it would be mean to not go!”
“I don’t care, Al. No means no, you don’t know what kind of family he has or what kind of boy he is, it’s dangerous to just take up that kind of offer.”
And that was supposed to be that, his word was final. But, apparently, no to Aleister meant run out the door as fast as you can regardless of what anyone said.
By the time he’d caught up the boy was already at the door of his ‘friend’s’ house, standing at the front door with mouth open in awe at the size and appearance of the place. Felix couldn’t help but stop and stare for a minute himself,
“What kind of people is this kid running in to?” he thought.
Aleister whipped his head around and looked his guardian in the eyes in a stare-down, face straight and eyes wide. It was the kind of face that children gave when they were going to deliberately do something they weren’t supposed to; he lifted his hand to the door, index finger out and just continued to stare at him. The sharp feeling of panic filled his body, he knew full well what Aleister was planning to do. The man took one hesitant step towards him,
“Al, I told you,” he started, “You can’t go, turn around and go back home right now.”
In one ear and out the other, clearly, as Aleister inched his finger closer to a button beside the door.
“Don’t. You. Dare.” an attempt to sound threatening and ready to punish him at any wrong move.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!--
The small man leaped at the other and began to wrestle him away from the door, fighting with him and yelling as he tried to worm away and press the doorbell again. Somehow Aleister managed to toss Felix off and to the ground, looming over him in short-lived victory as the door behind them opened and stopped their quarrelling, a small voice welcoming them from inside.
“Amir!” Aleister turned and smiled, rushing back over to the door to see him, “This is your house? It’s so big. Does it have lots of rooms?” the barrage of questions began as he passed Amir into the home, not bothering to look back to Felix or wait.
It was absolutely frustrating; picking himself up and brushing off his pants Felix followed quickly behind him, trying to remain as calm as he could manage. There wasn’t a point in trying to get Aleister to come back home now so he might as well make sure he’s on his best behavior.
“So then you live here, Amir? What should we do first? I bet there’s a lot we could do in a place this big…” the orange-haired artist asked, eyes darting around trying to take in everything they were seeing all at once.
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Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 1:26 am
Obviously very pleased by Aleister's reaction, Amir quicky grabbed both of his hands in his own, tugging him further into the house. Quickly becoming lost in his string of questions, he shook his head and nodded grandly. "Yes, many rooms. I will show you my room soon!" He flashed a glance to Felix, immediately growing shy. Lowering his head, he dropped Aleister's hands and peered up through his bangs at him.
About to greet Felix, whom he admittedly felt very awkward toward, he was cut off when a pleasant voice broke the silence.
"Oh, this must be your friend. Hello, hello," Sergei greeted, arms opening in a welcoming gesture. A small towel was folded neatly on his forearm, which he kept bent outward to prevent it from falling. Offering a warm smile to Aleister, he then attempted to do the same for Felix, but quickly cocked a brow at the other's surly disposition. It wasn't so much that he looked surly, but the mood he emanated spoke of stress and irritation, something a sensitive person would easily pick up on.
Ruffling Amir's hair, he knelt down, his height allowing him to meet eye-to-eye with Aleister. "How do you do?" he asked, tone light.
"Aleister, this is Sergei, the doctor's cook," Amir said cheerily, feeling more at ease with an adult of his own around. Puffing his chest proudly, he added, "He can cook anything." Sergei only laughed, resting his hands on his hips.
"Lunch will be done soon, boys. Why don't you go play for a bit?"
At his command, Amir nodded fervently, once again grabbing Aleister's hands and tugging him up the flight of stairs. "Come, come see my room," he gushed, switching so he only held one of his friend's hands.
Watching them go, Sergei turned his head to inspect Felix, an almost appreciative look crossing his face. He extended a hand to the other, smiling widely.
"Welcome. You are Aleister's parent, I assume? Pardon me for being forward, but how would you like to stay for lunch? It would be good to get to know each other, I think."
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Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2009 11:46 pm
An ecstatic giggle left Aleister as Amir began to drag him up the stairs, “Your room? Is it big? I bet it’s really cool!”
“A-Al! You be responsible!” Felix took a few hesitant steps like he wanted to run and stop him, “Don’t touch anything!”
"Yeah, sure, whatever you say." a very apathetic reply echoed down to him, the usual when Aleister wasn't listening.
This was all such a big headache, the man rubbed his forehead and let go a long sigh to try and calm himself down. Jolting when it finally registered that he wasn’t alone in the room and the other had extended his hand to him, Felix took a step back and tried to compose himself, raising one hand half way and shaking his head, eyes on the ground.
“No, I’m… not his parent, I’m just watching him.” He stammered in reply, “And I planned to stay, t-to keep an eye on Al. Sometimes he likes to, um, make a mess.” A small, nervous laugh tacked itself to the end of his sentence.
God, he wasn’t used to talking to other people. It felt too awkward. After Felix finished his sentence he turned his back to Sergei and looked around the room he was in and silently hoped that he would be left alone, lord knows he wouldn’t know how to hold a conversation if he was expected to. All he wanted to do was go home.
Upstairs Aleister could barely hold in his laughs, this entire house was so much more interesting than the dingy place he had to live in, and the whole way to Amir’s room seemed like an adventure. Quickening his step a bit so he was almost in front of his young friend he smiled down at him, it was almost impossible for him to contain the questions that were bubbling inside.
“Amir, who does this place belong to? You said something about a doctor, right? Is your dad a doctor?”
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 4:03 am
Confidence swelled with his voice. "It is very big!" Then, as if to drive his point home, "I have not seen all of it yet." He didn't look to be at all concerned with the reaction of Felix, nor did he complain when the other chose to take the lead. He had much to show Aleister, and if they played their cards right, all day to do so.
Grin wide in childish delight, Amir began to point out rooms as they passed. "This is the room of a maid, this is the room of the brooms, and this is... ahh, I do not know." He shrugged it away, not bothering to ask Aleister to slow down long enough for him to remember.
Brows raised high enough to become concealed behind his sweeping bangs. Of course, how could he have forgotten to tell his friend about his adoptive father? Demonstrating what he had learned from watching the housekeepers, he grandly smacked a palm against his own forehead, rolling his eyes. "Of course! The doctor is the one who owns this house." His steps faltered a bit, and he slowed down despite the other's tugging. "I do not see him much."
Not wanting to prompt Aleister to ask questions about someone he knew little about, he quickly hurried to his side again, grasping at his hand. "What about you, Aleister? What is your house like? Is Felix nice? Does he like your art as much as I do?" He adjusted his headband, which had threatened to cover his eyes with the rushing about, and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry for questions, I ask many. Feel free to ignore the ones you wish..."
Sergei watched the two advance the stairs like soldiers charging to war, and only chuckled softly, head dipping down to shake. He raised his head and brows at Felix questioningly, but didn't pester him concerning his reaction. It seemed there were many unsuspecting parents turning up as of late, and it was only natural that some of them wouldn't be prepared to call themselves "mom" or "dad". All too natural, circumstances considered.
"I would not worry about the boy making a mess," he half-drawled, voice devoid of concern. "Kids will be kids, and with the size of our mansion, we will not notice it for years to come." He smiled at the back of Felix's head.
Sweeping a glance over his person, he noted the overall tension that had pervaded the room since the childrens' absence. Terribly awkward, to be honest, and he couldn't think of a way to properly break it. Instead, he turned back to the counter, setting the towel against the edge of the sink.
As he set about washing a glass, he hummed lightly. "I did not catch your name, sir? I am Sergei," a short pause, and he laughed lightly, "And I think that is all you need to know. Russian surnames, they are difficult to pronounce, right? So you can just call me 'Sergei'." Satisfied with the glass, he turned a bit, leaning his rump against the counter's edge to watch the apparently quite-uncomfortable man.
"So, I have heard what the kids want for lunch. What about you? Any requests?"
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Posted: Tue Sep 01, 2009 10:08 pm
"Hmm, me? Well..." Aleister glanced up at the ceiling, slowing down to match Amir's pace, "Our house isn't as big as this one is. It's only got one upstairs and a couple of rooms, and Felix is alright. He doesn't like going outside much and he yells at me a lot, but his sister said it's because he worries about me, but I think it's just 'cause he's no fun. He says my art is really amazing though."
There was a small tinge of delight in his voice while talking about his home and Felix, as much as he liked asking the questions he also liked getting them. The boy smiled gently down at his younger friend, "And the questions aren't a big deal, I ask a lot of them too so it's fair. Felix told me that the best way to make friends is to ask lots of questions."
Stopping almost suddenly Aleister turned around and looked back down the hallway to all of the doors they'd passed, blinking, part of him still in awe at how many there were and how many were possibly left. Oh, he'd love to figure that out. They didn't have time for that, though, he shook his head, maybe another time.
"So none of these are your room? Where's yours, we can talk more in there!" the excitement overflowed in him all over again.
It still unsettled Felix to not have a constant eye on the boys, Aleister seemed like the perfect bad influence and even if the mess wouldn't be noticed for 'years', as Sergei put it, it would still happen, and someone would have to take responsibility for it eventually. That person would be him, and god knows what he would have to do. The paranoia started to make him shake, making him begin to fidget with the rim of his shirt.
"Um, Felix. I'm... just Felix. Pleasure to meet you." he turned around enough so he could look at the other, "So long as the food is edible I really don't care what's made, to be honest. I-I can't cook so I don't eat well.."
Oh what did that guy care. Felix sighed, still feeling completely out of place. If he didn't do something he was going to explode, he could feel it. Poor nervous wreck. The man brushed a hand through his hair, lingering on the back of his head while he made a face almost like he was going to be sick, eyes focusing on the floor.
"Do you, um... need any help? I, um, I could try and do something..." anything to keep him busy, possibly from socializing too, he didn't know what else to do.
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Posted: Fri Sep 04, 2009 12:11 am
He nodded slowly, in understanding. Picking up on Aleister's tone he smiled, trying to picture a smaller house, a grumpier guardian, and an older sister. "I do not have a sister or a brother," he chimed in, looking thoughtful. What was it like? He had been told to look at the housekeepers as his 'family', but they were all much older than him, and he had trouble seeing them as anything but nice people who would watch after him.
Perking up, he pointed toward the next flight of stairs. "My room is on the third floor. It is pretty hard to run up and down the stairs every day, but I was told that it will get me in... in shape?" He shrugged, as if it were a foreign concept. "Sorry, it is a big house. Sometimes I feel that it is too big."
He couldn't help but look concerned as he continued to examine Felix. He had seen his share of fidgety, nervous people in his time, and although he was certain this wasn't the case, Felix was acting very much like a paranoid drug addict.
No, that couldn't have been the case. The poor thing was probably just nervous as hell to be out of his home, and didn't know what to do with himself. Feeling a wave of pity wash over himself, he let a hand slowly drift to the other's shoulder, hoping to steady him.
"It is nice to meet you, Felix," he said in a quiet tone, a small smile slipping onto his face. He wasn't certain as to how he was supposed to act around this one; it was like a poor, frightened animal, sadly, so all he could do was tread carefully and hope he didn't scare him away.
A bit of teeth showed in a very subdued grin, and he let his hand slide from his shoulder. "I would love some help. Would you be so kind as to do some measuring for me? I need four cups of water, poured into the pot on the stove." He gestured, glancing over Felix once more. "Please, do not feel stressed," he added, quieting his tone again. "Really, it is making me nervous."
A light laugh followed that, and he turned again to the counter, using the knife to ease the vegetables into a bowl.
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 6:45 pm
“No house is too big, if you ask me.” Al smiled, beginning to make his way towards the next set of stairs “I like big houses, because there’s so much to explore in them…”
There was a short pause between his thought process, “So you don’t have any brothers or sisters?” with a swift turn on his heel, Aleister began to walk backwards so that he could face his friend, “I don’t either. I don’t even know who my parents are,” a tiny laugh left him, one that tried to hide the sadness that idea weighed on his mind, “Isn’t that weird?”
Once the stairs were close enough he took a long step onto the third stair and stood, feeling tall even though he'd barely risen. Aleister turned with his hands on his hips and waited for Amir, giving him that familiar look or curiousity.
“I’m… really sorry.” The hand on the back of his head lingered as he made a discontented face, “I didn’t mean to… i-it’s just, I don’t get out often.”
Of course he knew he seemed like a nervous wreck right now, but not much he could do about it. Walking over to the stove he looked at the pot and began measuring out water, even though the idea of cooking made him more unraveled, out of fear of doing something terribly wrong- setting the house on fire via water? It could happen- it started to calm him down. Having something to focus on just helped.
“So… You’re not the owner of this house, are you? Aleister kept saying something about a doctor…” he trailed off slightly, having calmed down he felt much more comfortable asking.
“Actually, I had no idea that a place like this was, well, here. And it seems so hard to miss…”
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