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 Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 8:52 am
Dakin stood on tiptoe, wiggling his fingers into a cage occupied by a large cockatoo. The bird eyed the boy, bobbing its head and trilling when the child didn't appear to be going anywhere.
Madeline stood nearby, sucking on a cranberry juice box and watching her charge cruise toward a potential de-fingering. It had been Franny who had suggested a pet in the first place, something to round out the family. The idea was ludicrous. A pair of twins-who-weren't and a little kid who couldn't speak the truth did not a family make. "Watch your fingers," she said, exhausting her parental inclinations for the day.
The Thuk turned and cast a quizzical look at his guardian. "Why?"
"It's got a beak. Beaks are harder than your little sausage fingers. One minute fingers, the next, no fingers."
Dark grey-green eyes returned to the cage. Dakin knew the bird wouldn't hurt him, but he couldn't actually say that so he just jammed his fingers back through the bars, opening and closing them in an endless hello.
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 9:09 am
Upon the arrival of the child the cyborg Liam had been lucky enough to have the bed room already set up and a few groceries in place. Of course the rather quiet child; whom he later found out didn't eat meat of any sort; was content to follow him around and ask rather humble questions about the world.
He'd stare outside at the birds for hours and that was when he decided it was time to try a zoo or pet store.
"Rei'Lar," Liam started as they made their way down there the boy was content to fold his hands in front of him rather than hold onto Liam.
"Rei," THe child corrected even though...Liam was pretty sure the kid had told him his name was Rei'Lar."
"Sorry, Rei I think you will like the pet store," Liam tried to continue noting how Rei was very careful about where he stood and even went as far as making sure not to step on a passing pill bug, he even stopped and let the bug crawl onto his finger before he placed it in a safer location where less feet were likely to tred.
He didn't respond as they finally arrived to the store and in fact he looked a bit appalled and unsure as they finally entered. The sound of the bell caught Rei's interest more so than the tank that sat on the front desk that held a few brightly colored salt water fish. Liam was out of his own comfort zone in this sort of place, though he could catalog every animal in here he was more concerned about Rei's reaction. Which seemed muted. It took some coaxing to pry Rei away from the bell as it was silent now before moving into the store.
But unlike other children he seemed to grow if possible more quiet and nervous. At first Liam thought he had misjudged, maybe Rei only liked the pigeons because they were outside. The pet shop was a bit crowded and full of noise.
Rei held onto his tail a bit unsure of this new development. Cages...he didn't like them. Something about the metal bars seemed cruel to him. Though he didn't understand why it bothered him, so he continued in deeper into the store with his guardian who was not really alive.
He stopped before a cage containing a cockatoo, watching a small boy pay rather avid attention to it. Liam had walked past, hoping to draw Rei towards the guinea pigs and hamsters. He paused and turned as Rei was staring...at the boy rather than the bird.
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 12:31 pm
Madeline's attention was diverted from the bird as well, but not by her son, by Rei'Lar. The child was very colorful, and to the former criminal's eyes at least, not immediately identifiable as male or female. She had made some effort to wean Dakin off of his linens and near-dresses, but all of that might have been for naught now. The adult that accompanied the other child was very... shiny. Madeline had questions, but they would have to wait until Dakin got his hands away from that stupid bird.
As it turned out, it was the bird who noticed Rei'Lar first. It hopped over as close to the edge of the cage as it could get, using its perches, and turned to the new child. Dakin turned as well then, canting his head at this other small person before breaking into a shallow grin. "Hello. Do you want to look too?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 02, 2009 10:32 pm
Rei was quiet and his gaze flickered between the boy and then the bird that was now paying attention to him. His hands were hidden in his long sleeves but he was still very much clinging to his tail. He wanted to know why the boy was looking at the bird instead of helping it. He looked a bit shy as he was addressed.
Nodding his head slowly though he slipped out a hand and then pointed at the caged one.
"Why?" He inquired though his small one worded question was probably hard to understand. He wanted to let it go..
Liam watched the boy in a calculating manner, his gaze took in the boys features and reactions and body posture. Heart rate was..a bit faster than normal but nothing to be alarmed about. He looked over..noting that the woman that was there seemed to be watching the pair. He walked over to her, maybe he could have a conversation with her?
"Hello, I am Liam." He started smoothly, "Is that your boy?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2009 4:58 pm
Well... Dakin didn't know why the animal was locked up. The bird was just there, and Dakin wanted to look at it. He didn't think he should be letting other people's birds go. "I don't know." It was the only truthful statement he could utter, perhaps because it was ultimately such a useless one. "It pro'bly tore the face off a dog or something." Back to lies. An irritated expression passed over the boy's face before he looked up at Rei again.
Madeline nodded at Liam, her eyes still on the children. Noticing Dakin's discomfort, she ignored the robot for a moment and addressed Rei'Lar, who may or may not have actually have been paying attention to her at the moment. Whatever. For some reason, she felt as though she should at least make an effort to tell the child about Dakin's little problem. The day was going well, and she didn't feel like sparking the Thuk's irritation if there was no need. "Color Kid! He can't tell the truth. Whatever he tells you is a lie." A bit melodramatic, but hopefully it got the point across.
"Madeline," she said, turning her attention back to Liam. She gave the man a once-over then said, "Yeah, he's mine. Where'd you get yours from?" The two didn't really look alike, so she thought it was safe to assume he had obtained the child from one of the many strange places people obtained such things around here. In true Madeline fashion, however, she wasn't particularly polite about the whole thing.
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Posted: Thu Oct 22, 2009 9:35 am
Rei was about to say something else but was startled by the woman who was suddenly addressing him. Shrinking back so that his body touched the cage he looked at her like a deer caught in the headlights. He...gave a slight nod of his head in understanding before he looked over to Dakin again. He blinked, this black hair trialing down the length of his face his horns or antlers you could call them looked heavy but were actually fairly light.
"...Can let bird go?" He inquired softly his heart ached for the animals stuck in the cages.
Liam looked to the girl his head tilting slightly in question at her words.
"Lies? Is it a compulsive thing he does?" he inquired after a moment looking at the small boy.
"Oh...I got him from a photograph, Polaroid to be exact." he answered the question truthfully.
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Posted: Thu Oct 22, 2009 8:38 pm
Madeline shook her head. If only the kid had turned out to be a real compulsive liar. She chuckled. "Nah. It really seems to piss him off, so I doubt he can help it. And it's not like it's even as simple as 'no' means 'yes' all the time or anything, 'cause if he thinks about what he means too much, he can't even do the opposite... thing." She knew she wasn't making much sense, but the whole situation didn't make sense. "Whatever," she finished. "It's not like he's starving." Apparently Madeline's child rearing obligations had their beginning and end in food.
Dakin's eyes widened at Rei's obvious fear. He rocked from his toes back to the balls of his feet once, unsure as to whether or not he should attempt to comfort the other child. "M... maybe you can?" he said. He knew it was a bad idea before the words came out of his mouth, but out they spilled anyway. If Madeline had to pay for some bird they didn't get to take home, she was going to be so mad...
"Hmm, a picture, really?" Madeline had only met Dakin after he had emerged from his photo, so any kinship between the two boys was lost on her for the moment.
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Posted: Thu Oct 22, 2009 8:57 pm
Liam nodded his head and then gestured to Rei who seemed to ...acting a bit strange, of course Rei was strange. Quiet reclusive and often terrified of things....though had a strange passion for plants and animals.
"Yes well, he appeared before me...and then passed out, originally he told me his name was Rei'lar...but when he came to...it was just Rei..." He mused watching the kids from the corner of his cybernetic eyes.
Rei pouted looking at Dakin in a pleading manner before he went to look at the bird again. Despite his earlier reaction to the woman he seemed to have gotten over it for the moment.
"Bird want out yes?" He murmured lifting a finger to put into the cage as if hoping the creature would come to him.
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Posted: Sun Oct 25, 2009 9:15 pm
The bird paused for a moment, eyeing the children. Dakin gave it a shallow nod as if to say it was okay to come closer, but the animal hardly needed permission. It hopped forward, making straight for Rei's hand.
"I t...th..." Dakin shut his treacherous mouth and scowled. Forget it. This kid could open the cage if he wanted. He stood back and smoothed his expression until his face betrayed none of his feelings at all.
"That's weird," Madeline said, her voice lowering slightly when she noticed that the kids were up to something. "Dakin came from a store. A guy named Wylde." Buying kids. To think it was illegal where she had come from.
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Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 8:53 am
Liam gave a smile, it looked a bit fake but he was a robot after all his ...mechanics could only acheive so much at the moment.
"Strange I was to carry a photo around with me and treat it as if it were alive.." He mused he wondered why getting his Rei was so different from the woman's child. "Do you find it, interesting? Having a child to look after now?"
Rei smiled softly as his other hand reached out to touch the door of the cage and then he lifted the latch and opened the door.
"Come come sweet birdy..." he coo'd as he looked to Dakin offering him the same gentle smile. "Want see?" He inquired hoping the bird would hop onto his finger that he offered to it.
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Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 7:20 pm
"Interesting. Sure." Madeline knew she had already told this guy too much about her life as it was to go on blabbing about how having Dakin around had changed her, and how she wasn't quite sure how much she liked those changes. She had only agreed to take the child in in the first place because she was looking for an excuse to leave home. Now that she, Franny and Dakin lived alone, she kind of missed not being responsible for things like laundry and figuring out where to get food.
The bird hopped up onto Rei's finger, flapped its wings, then hopped higher on the child's arm, giving a small chirrup as it did so. Dakin sighed. "Yeah. I want. To see." He hesitated as much as he could when a lie was spilling out of his mouth, then held his own hand out to accept the bird.
"Dakin." The warning in Madeline's voice was clear. She held a hand up to Liam, indicating that she would be back. Or maybe she wouldn't be. It depended on whether or not she had to kill the boy. "Don't touch that bird. I'm not paying for it."
The decision over whether or not to touch the bird suddenly taken out of his hands, Dakin smiled again. He shrugged as if to say he was sorry, which he was, actually. It's not like he wanted to hurt this kid's feelings, he just knew the kinds of rages Madeline flew into when she was in the mood.
"We're leaving. Soon," she said, making her way back over to Liam's side.
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