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 Posted: Mon Jun 06, 2011 12:31 pm
The day was beautiful: Clear, sunny, two little puffy clouds drifting far overhead in the nice, pleasant wind. A perfect day for being outside, especially when someone has a small child who happens to look a lot like a snake. So, that is precisely where Mason brought Troy: Out to the playground of a nearby park. He was of the opinion that he needed to find somewhere better to go, but Troy seemed to like the place. Especially the trees...which was admittedly slightly unnerving, since the little one could go up them easily, but could very easily break branches if he went to far. None of his myriad thoughts on this particular day (there were also a multitude of financial things to consider, as well as some projects he had going on) even slightly registered to Troy.
Today...Today Troy was a sky pirate! There was a tree in the area that had an impressive size to it, as well as a big, relatively flat, split about five feet up where even a completely normal kid could sit, stand, and even move around a bit with ease. This tree became in his mind (quite readily) the mighty flying ship Greentop. A fine ship, made of the best oak (it was an oak tree, after all), with great sails dyed green like the leaves of a tree (giving it its name). Lined in the best cannons, capable of firing at a really big distance, like maybe 50 feet!
Captain Troy ascended up his forward mast as far as his wise advisor ("dad") would allow, and peered into the distance, searching for targets...or maybe even some extra crew! He wasn't so sure about recruiting more people for his trusty crew: He already had Boat's Sun Smiley--a fuzzy, fluffy blue lizard, that to a casual observer would seem to be a stuffed toy sitting in a tree, but to those who knew: A fearsome pirate (today), not to be truffled with, looking fearsomely out over the skies! But his wise advisor had encouraged him to accept more crew aboard if he could. His advisor was no pirate, after all, and couldn't help him man the ship!
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Posted: Mon Jun 06, 2011 3:20 pm
It was important to keep taking Luka places, Stephen decided. Even if there were incidents like at the clothing stores where the kitten elected to run off and hide. He was becoming too comfortable playing alone at home or plunking in front of the game system and TV. Now that he was out in the real world instead of behind the wall's of the corporation, he should start acclimating to a life as normal as possible.
After everything, he could more deeply understand how the parents that shuffled through his office felt. How strong that want was to just let their child have a normal life, a good life, despite any differences they might. Oh, he empathized before but he hadn't really realized how it felt. On the bright side, this would only make him a better counselor. He was helping Luka, and Luka was helping him.
He turned the small boy loose once they'd gotten into the park, though Luka had insisted in hiding under the bench again instead of playing. It was only when Steve took his small hand and walked him to the middle of the park and then let go that they boy decided to waddle forth in search of play. Steve returned to his bench and took up a book, waiting while the kit played.
Luka wandered slowly across the green, looking skyward. Soft, white clouds drifted lazily across a blue sky, mingling in the sunlit sky. The boy held up an arm, trying in vain to block the bright rays before blinking rapidly and looking down again. He dropped to hands and knees and crawled through the grass towards the trees. Though perfectly capable of walking, he had a tendency to trip and topple over, scraping knees and palms. It was easier this way- and quicker. Less falling meant less stopping, after all. He liked the feel of the cool grass pressed against his padded paws too.
He paused at the base of a large tree, looking up it. Despite feline origins, he wasn't the most graceful child on land...but climbing seemed to stand an an exception. Given most any vertical surface, Luka could scramble straight up effortlessly (much to the dismay of his guardian). The tree looked as good as anything to climb, the boy decided, pupils dilating with excitement. He scrabbled at the trunk as he tried to get up, whining a bit in frustration.
It was all his shoes' fault! They pinched his toes, made his feet hot and made it too hard to climb! He disliked shoes as much as any clothes and before too long was plunked down on the ground, tugging them off- along with his socks. Stupid hot, itchy clothes...he didn't see why he had to wear them- any of them. Mr. Steve said it was because being dressed was 'polite' and 'proper', words that had little meaning to a toddler. But...the duct tape that was adhered over the buttons on his overalls gave him little ability to remedy this fact.
At least his shoes were almost off. That was better than nothing. He wiggled the toes of his free foot, moving to the next shoe as he readied himself for the climb.
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Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2011 11:48 am
It wasn't all that long that Captain Troy spent surveying the skies around him before he spotted something interesting. There was a big cat...no, wait, it was a little kid (he had clothes on!) creeping through the grass far below. Troy watched him sneak his way through the grass, and was surprised to discover the kid look up at his tree ship, then decide to climb it.
He was pretty sure that the one on the ground hadn't seen him before making this decision...but maybe this was an attempt to take the ship! Troy weighed his options. His wise adviser was nearby and watching, so he wasn't exactly worried, he just didn't know how to approach this person.
So, ultimately, Captain Troy decided that Boat's Sun Smiley would meet the boarder at the side (it just so happened that the stuffed toy crewman was positioned in a spot that the cat would almost certainly end up face to face with him), and The Captain would assess the situation from there.
Until then...he waited quietly amid the gently rustling 'sails,' watching the strange climbing progress, laying almost upside-down on one of the main branches of the tree, his tail wrapped around above him a little ways, and his arms holding on at head-level as he peered downward.
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Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2011 7:11 pm
De-shoed and comfy again, Luka made another attempt to scale the tree, having a degree more success this time. He still didn't like how the overalls restricted his movement but...he couldn't do much about it now. Or he didn't think he could. Duct tape was tough and sticky and might as well have been magic or a force field, for all he could do about it.
He moved up the tree easily, possessing none of the clumsy tumbles he had when he waddled along on two feet. He hadn't noticed the snake-boy yet, nor was her aware of his game. To him, the tree was just a tree. But that hardly meant he lacked imagination. He just preferred different games! Luka had a tendency to emulate the big cats he saw in TV when he played, stalking, pouncing and climbing, pretending he was king of the beasts (but he was always a good king! He wasn't going to be mean...that wouldn't be nice). Or, more recently, he emulated the video games he started playing. He hopped from couches to coffee tables, punching boxes in hopes they would yield coins or magic food.
He hadn't decided which to play today, so he settled for climbing, jovially enjoying the action that called to his instincts. He paused as he came to a stuff toy in the tree, though.
He tipped his head side to side and sniffed at it, batting at it lightly with a free hand. He liked the fuzzy feeling and the color. Blue. Blue was a color Luka could easily recall. It was the color of his eyes and the color of the sky. It made him feel happy. He giggled a bit and batted the toy even more, not once questioning why it was up here...
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Posted: Wed Jun 08, 2011 10:14 am
Troy watched the progress curiously. The kid didn't climb like him...he just went straight up! Probably had something to do with claws, but Troy wasn't certain. He kept watching silently, motionless, until this boarder met up with Smiley and started poking at him.
From this close, Troy had a proper view of the kid now, and realized that his sudden visitor wasn't quite so much like a cat as he first thought...he wasn't fuzzy! But it looked like he had those...wickers? Troy couldn't remember the word.
"Watch out," Captain Troy declared suddenly...although it wasn't a particularly imposing sounding call, more of a timid suggestion. "Smiley's dangerous..." The assertion was very much at odds with what one could see there. Smiley had a sewn-on smile, and was fluffy & huggable. Not that that mattered, really.
"And," Troy went on, still sounding rather quiet, but given that his head was really only a couple feet away from Smiley anyway, it didn't matter, "He doesn't like un-spected people on our skyship!"
Troy, unlike the other boy, was not wearing much in the ways of clothing. He had a green armband on his right upper arm that appeared to serve simply as a place to stick things that he came across. There was a large, perfectly formed leaf sticking out of it, as well as some sort of paper. Apart from that, he had only his shiny scales to cover him.
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Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2011 1:14 pm
Though his hands and feet were largely human in build, both had small claws in place of the nails which most certainly aided Luka in his vertical pursuits. Even without them, though, the boy was nimble and managed to scale most objects with a feline grace. If only such ease of motion translated to ground travel!
He continued to examine the toy until the other boy's sudden speech spooked him a bit. He recoiled from the toy as if he'd been burned, clinging to another branch and hissing a bit at the sudden noise. He turned his face up towards the other boy, watching with wide, blue eyes. He looked back to the plush toy. Dangerous? But...it didn't look dangerous. To Luka, the jovial stuffed toy looked entirely harmless. Maybe the other didn't want him touching his toy? But...the other boy he'd encountered some time ago hadn't minded! R..Ro...Romeo! Romeo hadn't minded at all. Luka didn't mind sharing either. Mr. Steve said that sharing was a Very Good Thing, after all!
Luka flattened his ears and studied the other boy shyly. He looked...well, funny. He was the same color as the leaves and...where were his legs? He looked like his lower half was all tail! It was sooo strange! Finally, after quite a bit of silence, he shifted a bit, curiosity slowly overtaking his shyness.
"Wha' happen to you wegs?" he asked quietly in his babyish way of talking. Speech...was something Luka was still working on. Speech and tact. "Why dontcha got none?"
The lack of clothes seemed to not phase the kitten and pretend-play matter of the ship went unnoticed in lieu of his curiosity regarding the snakelet's build.
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2011 1:44 pm
Troy was surprisingly good at speaking clearly, considering his age. "My legs?" he echoed, briefly puzzled. He slipped down the tree limb a bit to get closer to the other boy. "I'unno. Never had'm," he replied after a moment. "They look hard to use," he added.
Cautiously, he descended further down the limb, and pulled upright next to the other. It was a good tree--they could both fit in the little flat space there, although Troy had to keep most of his trail either up a limb or down the trunk...but that was okay. He scooped up Smiley and gave the little toy a small hug. It wasn't a particularly possessive act, he simply held it close to him without guarding it or anything. He didn't actually need to share much, but declaring 'mine!' also was not something that occurred to him.
Briefly, he forgot about being Captain Troy, and stared at Luka's whiskers. He held out a hand toward his face hesitantly. "Ohh...can I poke those?" he asked, pointing at the other boy's face. He'd seen a cat before, but the cat was little. This was another boy with whiskers! He just had to know what they were like.
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Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:37 pm
Poor speech development and difficulties expressing oneself through words was a hallmark difficulty of Klinefelter's in kids. Luka didn't understand that information...but he did understand the frustration that came when he didn't know how to let people know what he wanted or how he felt properly. He could achieve the basics but communicating more difficult concepts and long conversations were simply too daunting and too difficult. The frustration wasn't worth it and had lead the boy to be largely very quiet.
...being inherently shy hadn't helped his quietness either.
At this stage, he wasn't too jealous of other children's prowess at talking, at least. He was fascinated, rather- he liked listening to people talk, much like he enjoyed having stories read to him, even if he wasn't so good at doing those things himself. What had Mr. Steve said? Oh, that he was a 'good listener'! It made Luka proud...the tone Mr. Steve said it in was a cheerful one, a Good Voice. Luka was a good listener. His big ears picked up sounds real good too! If he couldn't be the best talker, he was gonna be the best listener!
He tilted his head from side to side, listening to the other as he talked. Hard to use? Legs? Well...sometimes, maybe. Luka tripped a lot and found that crawling along was much easier than trying to walk or run. But...he couldn't imagine using a tail to try and get around. He looked back at his stub tail and flicked it a bit. No way...he could never use that for any kind of moving!
He shrugged a little at the remark, despite all the thought process behind the gesture. "...I guess. I fall a wot."
He drew back a bit as the other approached, ears back and grip on the branch tense. He...didn't like other people being so close at first.He tried to jerk back further when the other reached for his face. His foot slipped and his feet scrabbled at the branch he was standing on a moment, but he regained footing easily.
His...whiskers? It felt funny when things touched his whiskers. It made his face tingle and tickle and itch! He held a hand up to his own face, looking deliberative a moment. Slowly, he lowered his hand from his face, nodding a little bit. Maybe...a little touch would be okay. Sonja had let him play with her tail in exchange for touching him and that hadn't been so bad...
"...kay. But don' pull!" he said firmly. It hurt when his whiskers got pulled!
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