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 Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 6:23 am
Goretti was not necessarily an impatient boy, but he was certainly easily excitable. Such a fact was something he had difficulties hiding, as evidenced by following his track of footsteps in the snow. He had asked Lenka if she could have Julienne meet him outside one of these nights, as he had very important business to discuss with her. 'One of these nights', when it wasn't snowing or freezing, as Goretti had noticed his window had a habit of becoming stuck when the weather was too cold.
It had been a great effort to get it open tonight and sneak out, and Goretti was pacing around the area he'd promised to be in tonight, taking great effort to step on every patch of crunchy, fresh fallen snow.
He had thrown on a jacket, because even if tonight wasn't as cold as other nights, he was still chilly. His nose and cheeks were red, and he could have sworn ice crystals were forming on his eyelashes. He'd brought with him a small, cow print backpack and every few minutes would rush over to it and pull out a similarly printed thermos, spoiling himself with the hot chocolate he had so carefully prepared for tonight.
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 6:59 am
The cold wasn’t that big of an issue for Julienne, not with her fluffy built in fur coat, but she had to admit, she would have rather been inside somewhere rather than out tonight. It was just…too cold. Yes. And she was sleepy and hungry, and the thought of being curled up under a blanket was much more appealing than having her paws frozen in the snow that covered the ground.
But of course, when a senshi needed her, she was going to be there. That was her duty…and Goretti was a special senshi to her. She thought he was very cute, and he was one of Lenka’s best friends, so there was that as well.
She made her way up to the boy and meowed loudly to at least let him know she was there, and after a check around, she moved closer. “So, Goretti…what is the problem you seem to be having? Lenka said that you said it was an emergency? What’s wrong?”
He didn’t look as though he was in trouble, so she was feeling just a bit less guilty about taking her time to get there…though he did look rather cold. But hey. That wasn’t her fault by any means.
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 7:09 am
"An emergency?" he blinked, looking a bit guilty. "Well it's not like, a life or death emergency, it's just the…well…I've been a senshi for a while now, right? Oh, I brought you something," the boy said, retreating to his bag. He gestured for Julienne to follow him, and he pulled out a few cookies and a small, still slightly warm slice of lasagna.
"Dad made lasagna so I thought I should bring you some. He's not a fancy chef like you, but he melts cheese on top in the shape of a smiley face. You can't really see it, because, you know, this is just a slice, but you can pretty much taste the love in it. Just in case Lenka wasn't feeding you enough. And then I have hot chocolate and cookies because, you know. Those are important."
He didn't really ask if she wanted some; he couldn't imagine anyone saying no, so he twisted off the cup-shaped lid of his thermos and poured some in for her, before continuing, "So anyway, I mean, I've been a senshi for a while, and I'm trying really hard. It's kinda hard to sneak out, and I know I'm not as big as some of the other senshi, but my birthday's coming up—you and Lenka are invited, by the way—and I was just wondering…you know, what do I have to do because one of my friends, Tortali? She's a super senshi now, and I'm not. So I was wondering if I could be, and what I would have to do for that, because," he looked at Julienne with pleading eyes. "I'm trying really hard! But nobody takes me seriously, and everyone tells me to be extra safe like I don't know it's not dangerous. And I was just hoping that if I was stronger, maybe people would trust me a little more, too, so I was wondering…"
He shrugged and pursed his lips. "If you had any advice…If you could help me. Please."
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 7:27 am
Oh. Food. Well. That settled it. Julienne was now about one hundred and fifty percent not upset about coming here now. She loved food. And that lasagna smelled wonderful. The cat made her way over and sat down, digging into it before the boy had even finished talking about it. Clearly food was the quickest way to her heart, and clearly Goretti realized it. Especially when he asked what it was that he wanted.
Julienne was about halfway through the cheesy, saucy goodness when she looked up, tilting her head to the side. “So…you thought that bribing me would help you get to become a super senshi quicker, hm? I have to say, it was a good bribe, food is the quickest way to my heart…but to grow to a super senshi…it’s not a matter of the cat being willing to unlock that power within you…but you have to have unlocked it yourself first.”
She went back to eating, hoping that the boy would think on this for at least a little while. In truth…he was ready. She had noticed that when she first walked up…but she couldn’t let him think that it was always going to be so easy to just feed her and get a power boost. No sir. She was going to make him work for this, yes she was. At least until she was finished with her meal.
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 7:43 am
Goretti tilted his head. "Bribe?" he asked, and then hastily shook his head and then laughed. "Why, would that work? I just thought, you know, you're my friend. And it's cold! And I wanted to thank you for meeting me out here. It's cold!" he blurted, shivering and running his hands up his arms quickly. He didn't seem like he was upset by the chill, but he couldn't wait for winter to be over.
"So—since you awakened me, does that mean you might be willing to unlock that power for me? I mean, assuming I unlock it within myself," he asked, repeating her phrase. He didn't know what unlocking something was supposed to feel like, but he was already worried that he wasn't there yet. He didn't feel any great, phenomenal change inside—no energy, waiting to burst out. He was momentarily worried that such a thing was supposed to hurt, but getting stronger wasn't supposed to be a pain!
…He hoped.
He prodded at his chest, as if expecting some lock and key to pop out. "I mean," he continued, "I've been trying really hard. I go out, I do patrols, I get rid of youma, and I train with lots of people. Senshi, knights. I've met a few bad guys. I even got in a fight with one! Well, but. She actually wasn't trying to attack me, she just scared me. But if they're up to no good, I definitely try to stop them! Just…also try to make sure I don't get hurt, like everyone tells me to do."
He pursed his lips and puffed his cheeks before sighing and taking a large swig of his hot chocolate. It was refreshing and as soon as he swallowed he opened his mouth and blew into the air, seeming pleased when he could see his breath. "I just mean, I feel like I hit a plateau, you know? I wanna get stronger so people will take me seriously, so I can protect people. So people stop worrying about me. You think I should take up Karate or something?"
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:10 am
She watched him and chuckled to herself, listening as he listed all of his accomplishments. And she was quite proud. He had been doing quite well, and he was a good kid…maybe still a little too naive to be in this war, but hey. Everyone had to start somewhere…she was sure if she had gotten to Lenka earlier, that she would have been as optimistic as Goretti was, but…being a soldier changed people, sometimes for the better, but that normally wasn’t the case.
Finally the guardian sighed. “To be honest, yes. I do think you should take up some sort of self defense course. Lenka still does her fencing sometimes, or so I’ve heard that she’s gotten back into it. It can be very helpful for you to have a new way to physically train your body so you don’t get hurt out here. Also, if I could please borrow your henshin pen, Goretti. I have something for you.”
He had been through enough, and she didn’t want him to leave disappointed. He was ready, and she figured that if his starseed thought he was ready…that was good enough for her!
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:17 am
"Oh, sure," he said, hastily pulling out his pen. "Is it stickers?" he asked, handing it over. "I like stickers. You know, I play soccer, so I'm good at kicking. I'll have to Google and see if they have some way to fight that kicks a lot. Or I could just judo chop everyone."
He was partially talking to himself, trying to figure out what type of fighting would be best for him. He didn’t like the idea of hurting people, but if they were starting fights, someone had to finish them. He could kick a bad guy and not feel bad about it. Maybe. He'd keep playing soccer, but Julienne was right—if he had a new way to physically train his body, he was certain he'd be safer. And, better safe than sorry! And then he could show off his cool judo skills to Lenka, and…
The sudden rush of blood to his face brought an almost refreshing warmth, but the pins and needles that followed had him rubbing his face on his sleeve shortly afterwards.
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:22 am
The guardian took the pen in her paws and concentrated on it for a long moment, pouring in her own power to unlock the power both within Goretti’s starseed and in the pen, and after a long moment, the pen began to glow and change shape, becoming a better vessel for the new powers that it held within it.
She seemed quite pleased with herself and picked the new pen up in her mouth, holding it out for the chibi. “Take this. Take it and say, ‘Goretti Asteroid Power, Make Up!’, and I think you’ll be quite pleased at the result.”
She seemed kind of confused as to why his face was so red, but figured he was just starting to get really cold, so decided it was almost time to end this little meeting before either of them got frostbite. Because…that would be bad.
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:34 am
Goretti watched as his pen changed, eyes wide as it took on a new shape. That was so much better than stickers! He reached for the pen and looked it over before he repeated the phrase.
He wasn't sure what he expected, but he was certainly hoping for one thing in particular—and after he'd spoken, a warmth tingling through his body only served to further build up his excitement. He seemed delighted when his clothes changed, and suddenly everything seemed so much clearer.
Super Chibi Goretti might not have looked all that different now, but he sure felt different!
"Julienne!" he gasped, looking down at the resulting change. "Really? Really, you did it? Does this mean—?"
He reached down to pat at his shorts and jumped in the snow; it was obvious how elated he was, and he moved to Julienne, scooping her up quickly and giving her a squeeze. "You're the best guardian cat ever, Julienne! Thank you so much! I'm not gonna let you down, I'm gonna make you proud, just you watch!"
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Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2014 8:08 am
Julienne nodded, looking very pleased. “Really, Goretti. You’ve worked very hard for this, and you’ve earned it. There’s no doubt about that. Congratulations!” She moved in close, nuzzling his leg and finally looking back up at him. “We’ll have to get together with Lenka and celebrate sometime soon, but for now, how about we just go and get you home, okay? It’s getting very late.”
She felt a very real sense of pride at what the boy had accomplished, and even more than that, she was excited to see what else he’d be able to do with his life from here on out. It was a big world, and the dangers that filled it were only getting more powerful and more dangerous.
But of course, she would always be there watching over him, it was her task. She was a guardian cat for a reason.
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Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2014 12:31 pm
Goretti nodded enthusiastically. Celebrating sounded good to him, but he was happy just to have an opportunity to spend more time with Lenka and Julienne.
"All right," he agreed; he scooped Julienne up quickly and planted a kiss atop her head before setting her back down on the ground. "Thanks, a lot. I mean it. I'll call Lenka and we can meet up soon! I'll bring you something really delicious when we meet up again! But you have to promise that you're gonna go home and be safe, too!"
Goretti was still beaming; he waved to Julienne once more before he ran off, grin still on his face. Julienne had faith in him—she was proud of him.
But he wasn't going to stop here; he wasn't as strong as Lenka, and if a youma attacked, he wanted to make sure that he could protect everyone he cared about.
Julienne had unlocked this power for him—and he wasn't going to let her down.
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