._alpha lyrae's Raevan

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Mid-October 2016

Vesna stays the night with Claire and Lorin and the two Freis get their game on.

RP Name

RP quote here.

 

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Halloween
October 31, 2016
Google Docs PRP with Arana Kamina & Subobo

Lorin, Amity, and Dair (with their guardians along for the ride) head off for a night of fun, costumes, and trick or treating!

 

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Don't Feed The Plants
October 31, 2016

Halloween Prompt

Lorin is by far a greater pumpkin than the oh so Great one from a certain holiday half-hour special. Halloween outside the house was the definition of a success but now it's time to start to settle down for the night and what better way than with a few choice Halloween movies! Lorin's favorites are a must-have as are a few he might not have seen (Scary Godmother, anyone?). However, as parents start to doze off and commercials interrupt, a certain someone might decide to see what else is on the other channels....What happens then?

Lorin awoke feeling sweaty and very, very tired.

Trick or treating had been a great adventure, but it had been an exhausting one. As he and his parents (and Misha, who was dropped off at Grandma Ivy's house on the way) piled into their car at the end of the night, they looked forward to nothing more but pajamas and warm drinks. Costumes were taken off and stowed away, Lorin's candy bucket placed atop his bookcase for them to sort in the morning before they donated it (and after Aaron picked out his favorites), and the Holmes family migrated to the couch for a final night of Halloween movies. The month had been rife with movie marathon after movie marathon, and Lorin had become familiar quite quickly with a few that were fast favorites - It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, Frankenweenie, Hotel Transylvania, Halloweentown. The Holmes clan decided to wrap up the night with a favorite of Lorin's parents, Hocus Pocus, and the three of them settled on the couch with tea and a big blanket.

That was how Lorin had awoken, a few hours later. The movie was over; he had missed most of it by falling asleep shortly after the movie transitioned to modern times. The throw blanket had slipped to their laps, cups of tea in varying states of fullness left cold and forgotten on the coffee table. The television hummed at a low volume as a late-night talk show host laughed with a guest. Lorin reached for the remote in his half-sleepy stupor and clicked through the channels - maybe the movie was playing on another channel. But he was met with nothing but commercials, talk shows, news reports, the weather. He landed on something that had a spooky shot of darkened woods and he paused, wondering if he had succeeded, but a narrator cut over the shot and spoke about a soldier's encampment, and Lorin continued on, his clicking impatient.

Until he heard a snag of song and backtracked a few channels.

The movie he landed on was in medeo, and Lorin sat back between his parents, holding the remote with both hands. A skinny, bespectacled man worked as a florist, and there was music, with three girls singing backup to the music on screen. He swayed slightly in his half-dozy state, blinking in and out between scenes. The man tended a giant plant that crooned to him, asking for food, wanting its needs met, and he was dazily reminded of his succulents and their care regimen, how happily he went about doing it.

Lorin jerked awake in surprise - the plant had just spoken. The plant had spoken real words and he had understood them. He leaned forward, hands gripping the remote now trembling a bit. Had he really heard what he thought he did? Were his powers growing stronger than he had originally thought? Tempted as he was to float to his room and shake his succulents awake, he was glued to the screen, keen on what the plant would say next.

And then the plant ate a person, and Lorin gave a quiet yelp, shrinking back against his parents.

All of the plants that he knew of only ate nutrients and water and sunlight, how did this one eat people? Why did it want to? Horrified as he was, he was also very confused. This was not something he had encountered before, or been told about in his many gardening-related questions to his mama and grandma. And this plant was nice and cozy in someone's store, did that mean they were everywhere? Lorin trembled - was it possible he could talk to it? Convince it not to eat people because that was bad?

There was not much time to muse on that as the plant moved from crooning to rapping, and it dropped something that Lorin knew right away was very bad. His hand reached over to insistantly nudge at his papa; this was a very mean, very bad plant for the things it was doing!

"Whut's wron'?" Aaron stirred awake, blinking at his son and trying to focus. The movement from the two boys woke Claire, who shook her head to rouse herself.

"They said a swear," Lorin whispered as he pointed at the screen with the remote, looking scandalized. Claire's sleepy gaze fell on the TV and she gasped softly as Audrey II loomed large, and decisively turned off the set. "The plant said a swear." He recognized them, words that his mama would chide his papa for saying around him, after Lorin himself had repeated it laughingly after hearing it from Aaron. The man himself stared at the dimmed screen.

"I think.. you're a little young for this one, bud," Aaron said with a dozy laugh. Lorin frowned.

"The plant did bad things," he insisted.

"It's not a real plant, honey," Claire said soothingly, but Lorin's frown only deepened. He had thought, for a moment, that he had had a breakthrough in his powers - to be able to hear the thoughts of a plant as real, cohesive words. And from a television broadcast, no less! But as his mama had phrased it, no, there was no way it could be a real plant, now that he thought about it; it moved funny, it sang in harmony with the other characters.. no, he must have just been too tired to notice, and he felt a little bummed at the realization, antennae drooping. His parents exchanged a tired smile and Claire scooped the boy into her arms as they stood up. It was long past all of their bedtimes.

"I thought it was real," Lorin said at some length, his response muffled by Claire's shirt. Aaron paused behind them to turn off the living room lights. "But I guess it's good that it's not."

"Why's that?" his papa asked curiously.

"Eatin' people and swearin' is not nice," Lorin replied decisively, and Claire fought to hold back an amused snort. He blinked up at his mother blearily and she moved her hand from his back to his head, stroking his hair.

"That's right," she assured, "Eating people and swearing is definitely not nice."  

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Familiar Faces
Mid-November 2016
Google Docs PRP with Atmadja

Claire and Lorin go hiking with Cesc in the National Forest Preserve and learn something very interesting from the trees.

 

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Winter Blooms
Early December 2016

Lorin and Claire make the trip to Barton to spend some time at Thistle Do Nicely with Ian and Eden.

Winter Blooms

Claire had not consulted the owner's directory much, and she was somewhat disappointed that she hadn't once she stumbled upon what she found. She did her best to keep the house in order, and while Lorin was playing in the living room, she took to dusting his room. All of the music boxes would be scrubbed up in the kitchen, so as she laid those aside, she pulled the small collection of books off the shelf to dust underneath. The manila envelope containing all of the important Lab documents poked out of the Winnie the Pooh baby book, which she had accommodated for Lorin. She sat on the edge of the bed and opened it up, smiling at the first couple of pages, filled out in her neat handwriting - the date Lorin came home, a copy of the first photo Zeke had snapped of the three when they had picked him up, a few details she had noticed about him in his first few months home. She opened the envelope, leafing through the papers inside, when she spotted the highlight on Zeke's name and phone numbers - the contact sheet. Lorin had been doing so well meeting friends, but she wondered how many, as of March, he had yet to meet?

The minutes whittled away as she went through the list, smiling at familiar names, but one gave her pause as her eyes landed on Ian Flynn. He had a Raevan with a nymph soul - something strikingly similar to Lorin. She also took note of his occupation: florist. Claire hummed thoughtfully; she had promised to show Lorin a florist sometime, but had yet to fulfill that promise. And with winter coming on and his energy significantly diminished compared to the spring and summer months, perhaps it was time.

Maybe he and Eden would feel that connection, as fellow nature spirits.

The phone call went as well as she could have hoped for, and between the two of them, a meeting was arranged following the busy season at the end of November. Claire buckled Lorin into the car on the day of the appointed meeting, which was a task in and of itself because Lorin was wiggling with excitement. Another nature soul like him? He could not wait to meet her! He had told his succulents very enthusiastically about his plan, and on the way out the door, he had stopped in shock. They needed a gift for his new friend! He had been remiss with Aina, but he would not be caught unaware again. He paced his room, trying to think of what he could give a new friend, and his succulents sent out their curiosity about his new friend.

That was when Lorin had gotten his grand idea.

It took some bargaining on his part, as the plants were reluctant to be separated from each other (and him, by extension), but he promised that their new friend would help take care of them. Her papa works as a florist, after all! They would have many new friends.

Lorin settled into the car for the couple hours it took to get to Barton, glancing out the window as they moved away from the shore and headed inland, and he gasped as he saw a swirl of snowflakes falling from the grey skies. He had only ever seen them on TV - he wondered if they were as cold as TV said they were.

The two of them parked in a side lot adjacent to Thistle Do Nicely (which Claire had to circle the block to make sure she had the right spot), and headed for the front door. Lorin paused, gloved fingers flexing on the small desert rose in his hands, as he fought with his nerves.

"I hope she likes it," he whispered, as much to himself as to the succulent he held. Claire placed a warm hand on his back, between his wings, and rubbed.

"I'm sure she will," she said, and she opened the front door with a jolly jingle to usher him inside. The fresh scent of flowers and soil hit them instantly, and the temperature hiked significantly from outside.

 

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In The Heart Comes Springtime
December 4, 2016

It had been a while since Lorin had been able to spend a whole weekend with Cadi. Summer had been decidedly busy for her with her job at Gambino Mall, but there were the some-odd days off that lined up and his mama's phone would jingle happily with an invite. Much of their time together since then had been scattered days, dinner or sometimes lunch on the weekends. She had started classes at Gambino University in September, and Lorin thrummed in excitement at the talk of school between his parents and Cadi. When he had met Aina, there was talk of school as well, but a different school than what his sissy attended. He had asked his mother about it off and on, hoping for more information - imagine that, a place dedicated to learning and creating all day long! However his mother was dodgy in response, saying they still had a ways to go before they could consider school, and he pouted a little to himself (and sometimes his succulent garden) about wanting to go to school. He nursed a small seed of envy for Aina and Cadi, but one that would shrink when Claire would bring him a new book to read.

In the meantime, they focused on strengthening his reading. His mama and grandma had so many books between them that had fast become their usual bedtime fare - a number of Dr. Seuss stories, The Giving Tree, and most recently the Moomin books, which were his favorites as of yet. The covers were careworn and smelled of age and dust, but the fondness in his mother's eyes and the reverence in which she turned the pages told him she was sharing something very special with him. He took it upon himself to follow along dutifully, and read back the words as her finger traced their undersides, sounding them out, asking what they meant, and learning in his own way. The words came more easily now than they did during the summer and he brimmed with a certain kind of pride whenever he would edge ahead of Claire in their nightly readings, soaking in her surprise and praise like a sun-starved flower. Many of the books had been read and re-read over, and he craved for something more, and when he asked his parents if there was anything else he could read, they had said, "we'll work on that," with an affectionate smile. That had been earlier this week and not a word was breathed of it since, even though Lorin thought about it when Claire packed Comet in Moominland and Tales from Moominvalley for his weekend stay. It was also a concern he had voiced to Cadi as she poured over her schoolbooks Friday evening after he arrived, trying to finish up her homework so they would be free for the weekend.

"Can I read?" he had asked her, sitting next to her on the couch. She looked dubiously at the thick text in her hand (much larger than his storybooks, he noted), before she slid it over on her lap for him to take a look.

"Sure, but you're probably not gonna find it very interesting," she warned gently with a laugh, and Lorin frowned defiantly, plunging into the book itself and using his finger as a guide. He paused at the first word, a stranger to his vocabulary, tapping it impatiently.

"'Ain.. ain-thr..'" He narrowed his eyes to scrutinize the letters.

"Anthropology," Cadi offered helpfully, leaning closer to his side with a half smile. Her finger eclipsed his and pointed out different parts of the term as she read. "An - throw - pol - oh - gee." Lorin nodded, slowly, his confusion great.

"What's that?" he asked.

"What I'm going to school for." Cadi laughed nervously, her hand tugging at her sweater sleeve. "Cultural anthropology. It's the study of people and where they come from, and how people are different depending on where they live in the world." He responded with another slow nod, duly impressed.

"Does this book tell you all about that?" he asked, eyes downcast to the page, filled with many more words than his storybooks.

"Not all about it, but it's a start," Cadi replied with a shrug. "I'll take more classes to learn more." Doggedly, Lorin returned to his reading pursuits.

"'An.. Anthrewpology'.." he began with a cursory glance at Cadi, who nodded despite the small error, smiling encouragingly. "'Pruh.. provides a, um.. unick?'"

"'Unique.'"

".. 'Youneek set of tools, including strat.. egies?'" She nodded again. "'Strategies and perspec.. perspectives for understanding our rapi.. rapidly changing..'" He stopped at the next word.

"'Globalizing,'" Cadi assisted again.

"'Glow, um.. globalizing world." He let loose a slow sigh and he looked to Cadi with upturned brows as he pushed the book gently back into her waiting arms. "What's it mean? I don't get it."

"Might be a little out of your ken right now," his sissy said in a sympathetic tone, as she lay her pencil in the book and closed it. "This stuff'll get easier once you have some schooling behind you."

"Yeah but I wanna do school now," Lorin groaned and he keeled dramatically sideways onto the couch cushions, coaxing a laugh from the older girl beside him.

"All things in time, my young Padawan," she replied with a light laugh. The reminder of his new favorite movie series left the desire for school aside, and the two spent the first night together watching a handful of episodes of The Clone Wars on Netflix. But as he went to sleep that night, snuggled into her big, comfy bed, he stared at the ceiling, thinking about her textbook and its big difficult words, as well as about his sissy herself. There was an easiness she carried herself with around him, taking time to talk to him directly and help him to understand all that he did not; it was one of many things he loved about her. Mama and Papa (and sometimes Grandma) treated him kindly but they had a knowing air about certain things, as though they were holding back from telling him what he wanted to know. His sissy had none of that, always following up similar comments he would hear from Mama or Papa with an explanation for his benefit. It felt nice to be considered so seriously.

Her tension around others did not pass him by, either; as jokey as she could be with his family, he felt that same restraint that his family showed him when he asked certain questions. Her movements and chatter were quick-witted and amusing and he thrilled to what she was going to say next, but it remained at the same level - there was almost never a cooldown until the party dispersed and they were left one on one, her energy exhausted and her eyes tired before the smile was donned once more when Claire or Aaron would pop back into the room. Lorin did not understand, but he did not know how to ask about it.

That had been months ago, though, during the summertime, when she had been working all the time. While he noticed her tense gait and automatic smile when she would come over at times after classes, she felt lighter somehow. Her laugh carried more joy in it, her quick comments less acerbic. Cadi was still tired, often more tired than he had seen her during the summer, and as slight a change as it was, it still felt like a different sort of exhaustion. It reminded him of spending all day helping Mama and Papa in the garden, surveying their work one last time before slumping inside to shower and change into clean, dry clothes. The tension was not gone completely but it had lessened enough for him to notice, and notice he did. Their weekend had been laid back, with its share of bedtime stories, movie watching, playing Animal Crossing together, eating together, and a quick trip in the rain to the convenience store for essentials. All throughout, they had laughed and played and joked around, she had answered his questions about her schooling seriously, and not once did she retreat from him, as had happened before when she was among his parents. There was the question of the occasional text message she would receive, her eyebrows lifting and a smile crossing her lips as she answered back with a chuckle.

Cadi felt happier than he had ever seen her, and while Lorin did not know why, his heart was full with his gladness for her. While they sat in wait for Claire to pick him up, his happiness for her did not mean that he was not eager to find out why.

"What d'you think of this one? Yay or nay?"

"Mmm.." Lorin's eyes scrunched in thoughtful deliberation as he leaned over Cadi's arm to peer at her 3DS screen. "I like the other one better."

"Yeah, me too." Cadi nodded sagely and pressed the B button to sweep away the path she had just laid down. "Yoink." Lorin giggled, snuggled up at her side underneath a blanket, before he turned his head expectantly to the door. Winters in Gambino had their cold snaps and today had been no different, and chilled rain poured down in sheets outside of his sissy's apartment window. He hoped his mama remembered her umbrella and dressed warmly enough, just as she had made sure he had plenty of warm clothing before his weekend sleepover. Her phone buzzed on the table and both of them looked over at the same time. With a light dawning in her eyes, she passed the 3DS over to Lorin. "Here, lay down that path for me, will ya? Just gotta hit A there." He merely glanced at the screen once where her villager paused in thought, waiting for her pattern to drop, and instead tracked Cadi's progress as she leaned over and picked up the phone. Another smile. Thumbs still trained on the A button, Lorin smiled himself.

"Is it a friend?" he asked as she texted. Her own thumbs paused over the screen, and she laughed, embarrassed, before she resumed her text.

"Yeah." It was only one word, but she spoke warmly, with a smile to match. Lorin turned towards her in interest, his ribbon uncoiling from the couch and tumbling over the edge.

"Is it a school friend? Is it Ammy?" But then he recalled, during the summer, another friend, one she had spoken of from time to time - one who texted her. "Are they your friend from summer?" She took a moment to answer and lowered the phone to her lap with her message sent, until she laughed again and ran a hand through her bangs. It slid to her cheek and she rested her chin in it. His smile brightened at the mention and he watched in anticipation - bullseye.

"Yeah, it's my friend from summer," she answered, grinning at Lorin as she nudged him. "Surprised you remembered about that." He pulled the 3DS to his chest and giggled, wiggling away from her in amusement.

"'Course I do!" He beamed proudly, shutting the 3DS lid and setting it on the table, out of harm's way. "D'you hang out a lot?"

"Often enough, yeah." Both hands dropped into her lap and encircled the phone, and she smirked at the darkened screen. "We watch movies together."

"That sounds fun." Lorin's heart swelled for his sissy. He had met so many nice, wonderful Raevans since he came into the world, and many wonderful people, too - all of which he counted as friends. To spend time with them, share what they loved with each other, was one of the greatest joys in the world for him. And Cadi - his solitary sissy - was getting to feel that same joy. He settled back into the couch, smiling at the window as he heard tires on asphalt outside. "Having friends is nice." Cadi likewise leaned into the couch cushions, with only a passing glance to the phone between her fingers, and a hint of a small, timid smile. Lorin could feel the happiness bloom in her like the gentle coming of spring.

"Yeah, guess it is."  

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Into The Woods
Mid-December 2016
Google Docs PRP with Atmadja

Lorin goes hiking with Cesc in a different part of the Preserve and things take a dangerous turn.

 

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A Snap Decision
Mid-December 2016

The ride home had felt oppressively heavy to Lorin. He settled into the seat and buckled himself in, answering his mama's questions about how the hike was, if he had a good time, at some length. She looked at him in the rearview mirror as he sat with his eyes closed, feeling exhaustion and aches in every part of his small body. His rune was dimmed, in need of nourishment. His antennae drooped over messy hair, windswept and tangled, and that was when Claire noticed something essential missing.

"Lorin, what happened to your hat?" she asked. Lorin's eyes snapped open.

His hat.

The hat that remained in the woods somewhere, with his camera, and one of the hand warmers. Lost in their frantic escape.

He and Cesc had agreed to talk to Claire about everything tomorrow morning, but here she was, asking questions already. His heart clenched painfully as a seed of panic took root. This was too soon, he did not know what to say, how to make sure his mama would not be mad at them. Eyes dropping to the gap between his seat and the front, he spotted his backpack tucked beneath him, his ribbon trailing over it lazily. The boy hunched forward and unzipped it, to buy himself some time. He wanted to tell his mama what happened, desperate for her reassurance that they would be safe. But what would happen? What if she got mad at Cesc? At him? What if she never let him spend time with Cesc alone again? There had not been enough time, he did not know what to say. The Sigel was likewise not here to help him explain, to minimize the damage. His heart beat desperately in his ears as he pawed through the contents of his backpack.

He made a decision through a tight throat.

"It's not here," he said. It was not a lie, and that alone seemed to strengthen him enough to push on to what was so difficult, what he had to do. The true lie. "I think I left it and my camera back at Cesc's house." He kept his face facing downward, shame creeping into his thoughts.

He had lied. Lied to his mama for the first time in his life. He had not intended to and desperately wanted to take it back, but the consequences felt larger than what he was ready for. He had to wait. He and Cesc would think of the perfect way to tell his mama about today, and they would do it tomorrow. Even if it was a lie, it was one with good intentions: he wanted to make sure his mama would not be upset. He and Cesc could do that together, but he needed time to think of something.

A temporary lie was better than a real lie, done out of meanness. He had seen it so often in the movies and cartoons he watched. He was not like that, was he? But it was hard to convince his body, which fought against the very thing he had just done. Claire hummed from the front seat, watching his ducked head as he had gone through his pack, before she returned her eyes to the road.

"That's alright, we'll get them soon." Lorin had to hold back his relieved sigh. "I'll talk to them tomorrow."

Tomorrow was perfect, tomorrow was good. He would know what to say then.

They arrived to an empty house; Lorin's papa was usually not home by this time, still locked in his commute from Durem, and for that he was thankful. He could not bear lying to both of his parents. His mama shuffled him off towards his room so he could undress for his evening bath, while she departed for the bathroom to run the water. He took solace in the few moments alone, dropping his backpack in the corner. He and Cesc had done a fairly good job cleaning up what they could, but they could not clean everything; his backpack still had a sheen of dust on it, as did his windbreaker. He swatted both of them, coughing against the rising cloud. The particles settled to the ground, lost against the carpet, and he unzipped his jacket, draping it over the sack. He floated towards the center of his room, looking towards the succulents on the shelf - it seemed his mama had moved them out of the sun at the proper time, and their joy at his return lapped at his consciousness. Lorin smiled weakly at them but could not answer. Their joy turned to concern at his silence, and he shrugged it off for the time being as he looked down at his shirt.

Despite attempts to get the stains out, dark patches stood out against the blue fabric of his sweater, along with the remaining bits of.. whatever had come out of him. He remembered the substance on his gloves, sticky and thick, and saw that it had dried into a pale yellow on his sweater; it reminded him of tree sap. His heart gave a dull, sad thump in his chest as he touched it. This was what made Cesc so sick during their escape.

A new power.

Lorin should have been happy about it but all he could remember was tumbling from the stag's arms because he had grown so dizzy during their escape, and how he had heaved into the garbage bin once they were safe. Cesc had praised him for his new power, calling it something that could help him, a "really good trick," but the Frei was unable to be excited about it, knowing what it had done to his friend. Soft footsteps announced his mother's arrival, and she entered the room with a satisfied sigh.

"Got your bath running," she said. He heard her cross over to his bureau, open a drawer, and the rustle of fabric told him she had pulled out a clean sleeping shirt. "Hurry and change so we can get your clothes in the wash, too." He turned around to look at her, owlishly, and his hands clutched the end of his shirt fretfully. Claire smiled sympathetically at the boy. "Go on, now," she urged gently, and he nodded slowly. She bent at the knees to pick up his windbreaker and hang it up, and noticed a flash of white in the pocket. Reaching in, she felt the familiar knit of his gloves, the ones that matched his hat.

"Oh Lorin, what happened to your gloves?" Claire flipped them over to examine the dark mud stains on the palms. Lorin's heart dropped into his rune, and he turned around as he peeled off his sweater. He could not look his mother in the face, for fear she would see what he was hiding. His heart fluttered anxiously in his chest and he pushed back against it. 'Don't tell,' he urged it. As he drew the sweater over his head, masking his face and keeping him safe from her scrutiny, he decided he would have lie one more time.

"I fell." This one was not technically a lie, moreso a half-truth. "We were hiking and I fell 'cause I was going too fast." He had fallen in the woods during their quick escape, but it had been more of a drop, in actuality. But that was another thing his mother did not need to know, and he swallowed against the truth that desperately wanted to come out. He had to protect Cesc and his mama both. All this would do is cause more upset, and he did not want that. It would give him time to think tonight of what to say, when he and Cesc would finally reveal the truth to her tomorrow. At least then, they could do it together. Maybe Mama would not be so mad about it then, if he could figure out the right words.

Claire's brow formed a thin line of concern at his words and once he dropped the sweater to the floor and leaned over to pick it up, she preempted him by doing it herself. The other hand spun him gently around as she examined his arms.

"Are you okay, honey?" The sympathy in her voice only tightened his throat and he managed to get out a short nod. He cringed in pain as her fingers held his arms, and as she turned the underside of one to face up, he saw a line of small dark marks on his skin. "Oh geez, already bruising. But a few bruises aren't the end of the world." Lorin was silent when Claire turned him to examine his back, and, finally satisfied, she gave it a soft pat. "Won't fix your bruises but maybe a bath will help you sleep. Ready for the tub?"

All he could do was nod, distractedly, and stare at what had magically appeared on his arm. As he drifted off to the bathroom in his thorough exhaustion, poking the largest bruise on his arm, Claire watched him go with a thoughtful, worried frown.

Something felt off.  

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A Search For Answers
Mid-December 2016
Google Docs PRP with Atmadja

Lorin finally confesses what happened after Claire calls Vermillion Bakery, and she and Vivi head to the ranger station at the Preserve to get some answers.

 

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All We Can Do
Mid-December 2016

"What am I going to tell Lorin?"

Claire's hands were poised on the steering wheel when she drove but her mind was far away, flung off over the rooftops and across the bay. Her voice asked the question most on her mind to the empty car, but only the hum of her tires on the road answered her. She had just dropped Vivi off back at the bakery and every part of her felt drained now that the adrenaline of their mission had dissipated. The park rangers had not responded as helpfully as they would have liked, but Claire had half-expected that - they were quite appalled that someone who had visited the park had not come out, but that alarm turned to outrage when it became clear that they came after hours. The conversation escalated, a back and forth pitting their word against the rangers, and Claire's cries of an illegal poacher in the woods shooting at visitors - "at visitors, god dammit" - fell on unwilling ears. They zeroed in on Vivi for bringing Rhedefre outside of visitor's hours in the first place and the two of them were cruelly dismissed with, "the police will handle it."

Anger had throbbed through her temples and it took a considerable effort to force herself and Vivi back to the car between shouting matches with the rangers, but she had scrawled out (in an irritable, messy hand but readable) the description Lorin had given of the poacher onto one of their emblem-bearing notepads. With an arm around Vivi's shoulders, she shot back that they'd better hope that Rhedefre came home safe, otherwise she knew a few lawyers who would have fun taking their negligence to court and their unwillingness to act would be a black spot on their name if she had any say about it.

It was not the high road but it felt good, nonetheless.

The ride from the Preserve had been quiet between both women until they got closer to Vermillion, where Vivi's visage of anger collapsed into rageful tears. Claire pulled the car over in front of the bakery to give her the time she needed; honestly, she felt like doing the same. With one hand poised the woman's arm as her tears subsided into silence, Claire reached into her bag and pulled out a few business cards. Seeing her name on the corner underneath her old bosses gave her a strange feeling of nostalgia, oddly-placed in this situation, but she held it out to Vivi. "If you have any more trouble with the park or the police, Royce & Harris will help you out. Tell them I sent you." She tried to smile as warmly as she felt able. "And if you need absolutely anything else, please let us know."

Only when Vivi was inside and Claire was back on the road did she finally let a few tears of frustration fall. 'Rhedefre, why did you go back?' she thought angrily. 'Why did your cousins betray you?'

Cousins. That was what Lorin had called the stags. What would he feel once she told him the stags betrayed Cesc?

Could she tell him?

Claire exhaled slowly and dropped her head into her waiting hand, rubbing circles in her temples while her free hand went for her phone. She thumbed through her text messages and the several familiar names; she saw Cesc's there from back a few days ago, when they were arranging details for the hike. Below him was Anais, from a week before, asking when they wanted to come for Christmas and how long everyone wanted to stay. She tapped the name and her tired eyes took in the invitation she knew word for word by now, but they landed on the word of the evening, 'cousins.'

She tapped out of it and found her mother's name, sending a hasty message that she was on her way back, and put the car back in drive. Her mind, however, did not stray far from Anais's invitation and the final phrase: 'Lorin can get to know his cousins at last!' Her fingers tightened on the steering wheel as she squinted ahead.

If she told Lorin that Cesc's cousins had betrayed him, what would he think of his own he had yet to meet? Only a few days prior, she and Aaron were talking it over and both of them were in agreement. They could pack up Ivy and Cadi as well, Misha in the back, and trek to Durem for a holiday stay - Lorin would finally get to meet the rest of his family and have a (thankfully) good experience.

But now she felt hesitant. Was it right to think of Christmas celebrations when their friend was missing? The whole enterprise was tinted with worry and she wondered if even Lorin would be receptive to a trip out of town when times were so dire.

What was she to tell him? She did not know. Her head throbbed from the runaround of words in her addled brain.

Claire pulled into her mother's driveway in what felt like no time at all, and she idled after she turned off the ignition. She still did not have an answer to her own question; her heart felt like a heavy stone settled snugly between her ribs. But there likewise was no use in putting it off - all that would accomplish was making the lot of them more anxious. With a sigh, she heaved herself out of her seat and locked the door behind her, even though she did not feel they would linger long; she left her purse on the front seat, where she had thrown it haphazardly after Vivi had gotten out. The walk up to the front door felt longer to her than the drive from the bakery, and the entire way her thoughts berated her: what was she to say to Lorin?

She fiddled with her key ring and listened to the clink of key against key as she found the spare to her mother's front door. It slid into the lock with little difficulty, as though bidding her to get the upcoming conversation over with. She was so exhausted and wished for nothing more but to retreat to her own bed, even though it was barely past midday. The Christmas invitation hovered at the edges of her thoughts, kept at bay by more pressing matters as she stepped over the threshhold and shut the door behind her. Could they really go away now, even though there was little they could do otherwise? She did not bother getting out of her coat and it was good that she didn't; Ivy and Lorin came forward to meet her from the living room, as though they had been waiting on tenterhooks for her arrival. Lorin tarried behind his grandma, his knit brow indicative of his own worry. Ivy's crossed arms fell to a more neutral position, with her fingers tracing the undersides. "How'd it go?"

"About as well as you'd expect." Her gray-blue eyes crinkled slightly as she huffed out a tired, empty laugh. Lorin's head peeked out from around Ivy's waist and his fingers locked around the edges of his coat, which he, too, still wore. Claire wondered if he had ever taken it off in the few hours she had been gone.

"Where's Cesc?" His tremulous voice bid any rehearsed words of comfort to desert her, and with considerable effort she drew her face into a fragile smile. "Did you find him?" Her son did not deserve a lie, or empty promises that everything would be fine. But it was early, too early to tell what would happen right now. Her hand settled on the cowled neck of her sweater, peeking out from her coat, before it trailed to her chest and rested over her heart.

What could she tell him?

Instead, she lowered to her knees and strengthened her smile, but she knew it did not reach her eyes, much as she tried.

"He's lost right now, honey." To her credit, she was able to maintain an even tone, but it did little to assuage Lorin as he floated clumsily towards her with anxiety written in every corner of his face.

"Did you look for him?" The small voice pitched upward while she knelt in the entryway, arms open to receive him as he clutched her sleeves insistently. "Did you look in the Preserve?" He chewed his lip, as though in doubt of the information he had given her. "Was the hunter there?" For every new question that arose, more words fettered away from Claire, mockingly out of reach. There were no words of comfort she was able to give him that would not be a falsehood - the only thing she could do was reassure him that efforts were being made. His grip tightened on her arms as he gave a fretful, low hum in the back of his throat, and his head swiveled to look between his mother and grandmother. Finally, he faced forward and his head dipped, eyes focused solely on the edge of his ribbon pooled on the floor and he quietly muttered his last fear. "What if he's hurt?"

Claire wanted so desperately to pull him to her and smooth his hair, to tell him that everything would be fine, that Cesc was fine, that he would come home soon. But none of this was true. He deserved better than well-intended lies, even if he was not ready for the full gravity of the situation. Exchanging a worried glance over his head with her mother, she drew him closer and placed her hands on his biceps. Once again, she donned the armor of her smile.

"The police are going to look really hard for him." She spoke slowly while he stared at the floor. "Okay, sweetie? They'll let us know as soon as they find him."

"W-what about the hunter?" His golden gaze met her own, and a sheen of tears made them shine glossy bright.

"They're looking for him, too." She did what she could to imbue warmth into her words, and Lorin nodded, drawing the heel of his hand over an eye to keep his tears from escaping. "I gave the park a description of what he looked like, so they will try to find him. You were very helpful." His hand trailed to the other eye, pressing into it, and he sniffed quietly.

"Mm." His head ducked in acknowledgement, antennae drooping with it. Lorin's hand pulled from his face, the rims of his eyes red from the rubbing, and he turned in Claire's arms to find some reassurance from his grandmother. Claire let him go as he moved, clutching his hands together. "I hope Cesc's okay." Ivy, older and better practiced at reassurances, extended an arm to welcome him towards her, which he took gratefully.

"Just keep the hope alive, kiddo." Ivy's hand fell on his shoulder and he turned into her and buried his face in her torso as Claire got to her feet.

"I hope his cousins are looking, too." Muffled as his words were against Ivy's stomach, Claire felt them like a thorn in her chest. "Bein' lost is scary." His grandmother nodded and her hand slid up to course through his hair, and as mother and daughter looked at one another with worry in their eyes, Claire made the decision to text Anais back and let her know to expect them for Christmas.  

[alpha lyrae]

Trepidation
December 22, 2016

Lorin did not know what to feel when his mama and papa told him they would be off to visit his cousins for the holiday season. Hints had peppered many a conversation with Cadi, Claire, or Ivy about these mysterious family members that only served to stir his curiosity, and a photo that his sissy had on her phone gave a face to the names. They looked like a blend of Cadi and Claire, as his eyes took in the taller parents behind the two. One was his mama's brother, his uncle, and the other was his sissy's sister, his aunt-in-law - all terms that felt clunky and strange on his tongue. But he would not have such a fascination with cousins if it had not been for Cesc reconnecting with his own.

Cesc..

The disappearance of his closest friend troubled the young Frei deeply, and while he and Claire packed his bag for the week-long visit, he could not give himself over to the anticipation of his meeting. Not entirely, at least. His mama did well to raise his spirits as they packed, humming songs from some of their favorite Disney films to bring a smile to the boy's face, picking out his favorite books, and reassuring him that his succulents would be fine for a week without him. His mama knew best, after all, and he nodded in agreement while he put one of his stuffies into his backpack.

He did not tell her about the bad dreams visiting him since the run-in with the hunter - the dreams that woke him in the dead of night with a cold sweat. But she did not need to know about that, much as he had wanted to say something. She was fretting enough about Cesc being lost as it was; he noticed it in the distant pensive quality of her gaze when they would be sitting down to breakfast, how tightly she would grip the spoon before she smoothed her features over and returned to her food. She would wring her hands when a quiet moment would find her, which was something he had never seen her do before. But like a cloud passing in the sky, the moment would pass and she would be all smiles again.

Lorin wondered, when he climbed into bed that night, if he should leave while Cesc was still missing. He craned his neck back at the moonlight slanting in through the curtains, casting his room in a cold glow. What if he came home while they were away? What if there was news? But even then, what could he do about it? His fingers gripped the thick comforter and he wiggled down more firmly into the mattress - grappling with his own helplessness in the days that followed his friend's disappearance was hard enough. He had fielded the very concern to his parents, who were likewise at a loss for what to do.

His mama had told him that the police were looking for him, and that they had to trust in them for the time being, but Lorin did not feel satisfied. He wanted to tug at his mother's hand and take her back to the woods, show her just where they had been attacked. His mama was smart, and she could probably discern some sort of clue buried on the forest floor, perhaps find his camera and hat. Something that would tell them where Cesc was wandering.

The red and black mask of the hunter flashed into his mind, and the boy's heartbeat sounded loudly in his ears like an arrow sinking into bark. He pulled the covers over his face as he trembled. The woods scared him, as did the hunter, and his nightmares, and the thought that Cesc might be so far lost that he would never see him again. He wanted to help but he was too frightened of the woods, and far more frightened of sending his mother into the trees to search, afraid she might lose her way as well. He thought of her wringing hands and her tired smiles, her attempts at levity for his sake while they readied for their trip, and made another decision: his mama needed this trip. Lorin felt his own helplessness in his size and relatively unimpressive powers, whereas his parents and grandmother were fully grown adults. They worked, they drove cars, cooked, took care of him, and had a wealth of knowledge about the world that he did not yet possess. Even with all of that, he could not imagine how his mother must have felt knowing all she could do is wait.

With that, his reluctance at leaving was set to the side, and early the next morning he climbed into the back seat of his papa's Explorer, buckled in tight with his backpack at the foot of his ribbon should he get bored. He watched their house with an anxious heart until it vanished from view as they turned the corner at the next side street, and then soon the activity in the car outweighed the drowsiness of the morning when they stopped in front of his grandma's house. The trunk popped open and Misha leapt inside; his long nose sought Lorin's ear over the back seat like a homing beacon and licked, bringing out his first giggle of the day. His grandma slid in next with a one-armed hug and a laugh. "Pardon the intrusion," she whispered when they bumped shoulders.

Soon enough, they were in front of Cadi's apartment and she joined Lorin and Ivy in the back seat, looking much more tired than the two of them. "Mornin'," was all she mumbled as she added her rolling suitcase to the stack next to Misha and climbed into the car, and Lorin smiled timidly. He, too, was exhausted from a restless night, fraught with bad dreams and nerves at the meeting that was still to come once they reached Durem. By the time they boarded the ferry, he was practically asleep on his ribbon, holding onto his mother's coat blearily as they moved to passenger seating. Just as quickly, however, he would remember what had kept him up and his eyes would flash open, looking to the gray, rollicking seas for guidance. His mama dozed lightly on his papa's shoulder while he read a newspaper he had picked up at the small shop just below deck. His grandma nursed a coffee and watched the ocean, one hand looped around Misha's lead as he lay at her feet whining (the dog was not very fond of the ferry, and had made that known by throwing up twice). His sissy was at his side with her earbuds in, scrolling through her phone - he could hear the vague beat of whatever she was listening to underneath her hood. Lorin's hands fidgeted with the backpack that once again lay slumped at the foot of his chair, left alone with his own thoughts again.

He could not forget the last time he had met new family, much as he tried, and much as his parents had insisted that anything that transpired had not been his fault. There was nothing else he could do except turn over that disastrous dinner with his grandparents over and over in his mind, replaying it and trying to figure out where he erred. The faces in the photograph that he was about to meet filled him with joy and dread simultaneously.

What if they looked at him the way that his grandparents did? What if they, too, thought he was bad?

"Wanna see something funny?" He was so lost in thought that Cadi's voice had not cut through the haze the first time, and he glanced up, staring at his sissy blankly. She pulled an ear bud free and offered it to him. "Got a video for you." He accepted it and scooted over to look down at her phone to see a round, brown bird with a long bill bobbing up and down in time to a song. He had not quite known what Cadi was going to show him and the surprise caught him off guard with a small laugh.

"What's that?" he giggled.

"A bird," Cadi remarked nonchalantly.

"Why's it dancing?" he volleyed back, brow quirked. She rose her brow right back at him.

"Just 'cause. Don't you feel like dancing sometimes?" she chuckled and Lorin nodded in consideration - fair point. She readjusted next to him to sit more comfortably and propped her elbows up to better show him the screen. "Hang on, check this one out.."

And so, the rest of the ferry ride progressed in a similar fashion, with only a brief pause when they docked to climb back into the car below deck and depart. What had promised to be a long journey when he woke up that morning passed in the blink of an eye as Lorin leaned into Cadi to get a better look at her phone, watching the silly videos she thumbed through one at a time. Their giggles were muffled out of respect for the other occupants of the car but some of them were harder to stifle. The videos moved from the recognizable to the absurd, all of which warranting amusement as he masked his laughter at Yoda singing to Luke or watching a man he did not know dance to a silly song as he traversed the ocean floor and then ascended to space. The car rolled on, away from the coast and further inland; while Gambino had had an unseasonably cold and snowy winter, the snow was thicker the closer to Durem they got, but Lorin noted the difference distantly between new videos. Rather than continue on into the city proper as they had the last time they had travelled there, they left the highway to pull into the suburbs. They passed shopping centers and strip malls, hotels and restaurants before arriving on streets lined with houses.

"Almost there," Aaron said from the front seat as he signalled his turn, and Cadi tucked her warm phone away into her pocket while Lorin's insides squirmed in nerves and anticipation. The large sandstone pillars and a sign welcoming them to Dogwood Court stood out against the grey and white of the snow-covered road. An intimidating wrought-iron fence and a call box with a keypad blocked their path and Aaron pulled to a stop next to it.

"Do you have the code?" Lorin heard his mama ask.

"Doesn't matter, we've got to ring ourselves in," his papa answered as he rolled down the window, craning his head out to ring them in. The intercom buzzed in response. "Hi Anais, it's us. We're here." Lorin tugged his backpack onto the seat and wrapped his arms around it when Aaron rolled the window back up, and he jerked in surprise as the gates groaned and clanked as they opened before them, allowing them inside.

"They live here?" he asked breathlessly.

"Sure do," Cadi responded, chin tucked into her palm as she stared out the window as she chuckled and added in an undertone, "rich bastards."

"Cadi," Claire gasped, but Ivy and Aaron rumbled in laughter.

"She's my sister, I can say it," Cadi rebutted, not unkindly, with an air of amusement. "It's true, anyway." Claire, meanwhile, gave a non-committal hum under her breath - true as it may be, it was still not the choicest phrasing. They passed well-manicured hedges dusted with snow framed the large houses that lined the road, several of which had strings of Christmas lights glittering from their eaves. Large, naked trees stood sentinel in yards with their branches splayed to the cloudy skies, providing little shelter for the clumsy snowmen built beneath them. Between the houses, Lorin caught a glimpse of an iced-over river that dimly reflected the silver sky above it. The Explorer pulled onto a cul-de-sac and pulled into the sloping gravel driveway of one of the biggest houses Lorin had ever been to. The roof was sloped towards the sky as though to pierce it, with several windows on its two stories that looked like eyes upon their car. They were parked in front a two-bay garage, where a curving cement path led to a grand front door made of polished wood and set with stained glass. The house matched its neighbors in dusty tones of beige and peach, but for all his apprehension Lorin felt the warmth of the home in the twinkling strands of lights in each window and the chimney puffing away above the slanted roof.

Lorin's heart took up residence in his throat as Aaron popped the back hatch and the car was filled with the rustle of movement, unbuckling seatbelts, and opening doors. He remembered his grandparents and their abject confusion and disgust, and his insides clenched painfully. When Cadi climbed out of the car, he shimmied out after her and shouldered his backpack as he followed her around the back end of the car to where his mama and grandma stood.

He heard their voices before the door opened in earnest, and Lorin's heartbeat quickened. He leaned into Cadi's legs, as she was closest, while he tried to muster an approachable smile. He had learned from the last time he met family that a good first impression was important, and he did not intend to repeat the mistakes he made before. A couple emerged from within the house, a woman leading the way down the path as she walked straight into Claire's waiting arms, rocking on the spot as they embraced. "Good to see you! Did you have a safe drive?" Activity erupted around him as his papa started to unload the car and Ivy embraced the other figure who had followed the woman down the walk - he bent over her to embrace her properly. Lorin's fingers gripped the hem of Cadi's jacket while he waited, eyes flitting to and fro with every new movement but unsure where he should focus first; she patted his shoulder lightly in assurance. Claire backtracked with one arm still around Anais in order to give her a better view of the boy.

"Anais, Matt, this is Lorin," she introduced with a flourish of her free hand and a look of anticipation in her eyes. The Frei dragged his eyes from the ground despite his fears and unclenched his fingers from around Cadi's jacket. She had a winning smile that came quickly and easily and a spray of freckles on her cheeks. Her blouse was clean and pressed, with a delicate gold necklace at her collarbone that glinted in the emerging sun, and to his great relief as his gaze travelled upward, her eyes beheld him with wonder rather than the poorly-disguised horror he had been afraid of.

"There he is. My god, Claire, he looks so much like you!" Her rich laugh rumbled through him pleasantly as she held onto him at arm's length. "If you had legs, nobody could tell otherwise."

"Well, he will," Aaron chuckled. He pushed the back hatch of the Explorer shut. "Eventually, anyway."

"Don't that beat all," she sighed, appraising him with an approving nod before she pulled him into a firm hug. As his arms wrapped around her in return, he could smell her perfume - sharp and earthy but not unpleasant. "Welcome to the family, Lorin. I know your cousins are beating down the door to meet you but they've got to finish cleaning up the family room first." Her smile softened and lifted on one side, which reminded him strongly of Cadi. "You can call me Auntie Anais." Another laugh interrupted her thought, and she craned her neck back towards Claire and Cadi. "Although if Cadi is Sissy, would that be confusing?"

"He'll be alright," Cadi said with a shrug as she dug her phone out of her pocket and leaned against the side door of the Explorer. "Family's family."

"Nice to meet you, Auntie Anais," Lorin answered at last, which earned him another warm hug from her.

"Let me take a look at him before you toss him to the wolves," Lorin heard her companion say, and Anais climbed to her feet to greet her sister, leaving Lorin face to face with Matt as Ivy rounded the two of them to grab her suitcase. So this was his mama's big brother. Lorin glanced back at Cadi and Anais briefly as they embraced before fixing his gaze on his uncle anew. Just as he could see the resemblance between the two sisters, he could likewise find it in Matt and Claire, evident most around the set of their eyes, their hair color, and the long nose. They were also both tall, but whereas his mama felt all warmth, Matt seemed more carefully measured in his affection. He took a knee despite the slushy driveway to reach Lorin's height and smiled tiredly, holding a steady hand out for the boy to take. He breached his space respectfully, giving the honey Frei the go ahead to take or leave his handshake, which was new to him. "Nice to meet you, kiddo. Glad you could make it." As much as Lorin reveled in being touched and hugged and kissed, this was the first time he had been offered a handshake like the ones he had seen given to his parents. The gesture brought a different sort of warmth to him and his uneasy smile flickered to life more fully as he gripped Matt's larger fingers in his own and shook gently.

"Thank you," he replied with determination, trying to match Matt's serious tone and expression, but it dissolved into laughter from both of them after just a moment. He heard Anais sigh behind them, turning just in time to catch her looking down on him kindly with her arms crossed over her chest.

"He's quite the little gentleman," she commented. "Congratulations, you two."

"Thank you," Claire replied warmly, and Lorin saw the first genuine smile to cross her features in days.

"Hector and Joanne aren't back yet?" Ivy asked as she pulled the handle on her rolling luggage up. Aaron nudged her as he and Matt moved by towards the house laden with luggage, and he reached forward to take her own. "Oh, thanks."

"Nah, they're landing tonight. They'll be over for breakfast tomorrow, ready to regale us about their Caribbean cruise, I'm sure." Anais' trilling laugh was loud but Lorin felt revitalized by the sound. He did not know how starved for the sound of laughter he was until they made the trip today. "You still have your key, right?" Cadi held up her keyring and jingled them as she looked up from her phone with a deadpan stare. "I'll drop you over there later when they get in." The leshy Raevan met Cadi's gaze in a panic - she wasn't staying at the house with them?

Lorin was poised to reply, lips parted, when he heard the sound of pounding feet and a cry from his papa of "woah there!" All at once, Lorin was surrounded, and his chest squeezed anxiously as his cousins barreled out the door past Aaron and Matt (and their stacks of luggage) in a blur of movement - the long-awaited moment had arrived. As they stilled, he swept his gaze over them, noting that they looked older than the photo he had been shown (and less formally dressed in t-shirts, jeans, and corduroy jumper), but it was clearly them. He saw it in the waves of their hair and their wide, awe-struck eyes. A knot seemed to form in the pit of his rune as they watched him, both sets of eyes taking in his antennae, the wings that trembled behind him, down to the softly-glowing rune and the end of his ribbon that traced the snow when he hovered closer to the ground nervously.

And yet the scrutiny was different from that of his grandparents. Where there had been ill-disguised shock and horror, his cousins looked upon him with curiosity and delight, and a bit of nervousness themselves. It was the nervousness that pulled him further upright, and he floated an inch higher to keep his ribbon out of the sleet - at least it was this the three of them had in common. Dinah picked nervously at the bow in her hair as she stepped forward, snow crunching under her oversized galoshes.

"Hi Lorin," she murmured, all shyness for her initial excitement. "Nice to meet you." Brendan hovered at her shoulder with no pretense of the same shyness and strode past her to circle him.

"Are those real?" Lorin heard him ask as he stood at his back. The question brought him back to his first outing, when the boy in the grocery store had asked him the same thing. Eager to make a good impression despite a nervous tremor setting in, he stretched his wings out and flapped them gently. The boy behind him gasped and Dinah's eyes lit up as though she had seen a miracle performed. "Cool! Dinah, didja see?"

"Yeah!" Her small hands reached out for Lorin as she took another step forward, but then she pulled them to her chest nervously. "Your thingies, um.." One hand reluctantly came forward with fingers extended, and Lorin's own followed the path up to his head, where his antennae trembled. "Your an'lers are shaky."

"They're not antlers, Dinah." Brendan finished his circuit around Lorin and returned to the girl's side. "They're antenna, like a bug." Dinah pouted at the correction, and the Frei flustered as he dropped his hands to toy with the edge of his sweater.

"Bugs are neat," he admitted with an anxious smile. "Our garden has lotsa neat bugs." Lorin's hands slid up to his backpack straps where he clutched them like a lifeline. The two children before him mirrored his expression with equal nervousness but eyes filled with the same desire - the want to connect.

"Bugs're icky," Dinah admitted with a shy smile, "But butterflies are pretty." Lorin's cheeks were beginning to hurt as he held his expression, and he thought his heart was going to race straight out of his chest as they stood clustered together while their parents talked, eyes looking everywhere but at each other. Scared as he was of a misstep, he was unsure of how to proceed, and it seemed the other two were as well. Behind him, Cadi cleared her throat, startling him out of the awkward semi-quiet.

"Well, I want to go inside," she intoned. "Too dang cold out here." She adjusted her grip on her own luggage and flicked her free hand forward in an indication for the party to move ahead, and a half-smirk settled on her face. "C'mon, you can kick my butt at Smash Brothers, Brendan." The boy's face lit up in a way Lorin had not expected, and he focused that excitement on the Frei in a keen stare.

"D'you play Smash Brothers, Lorin?" he asked, all boisterousness again; Lorin squinted in gentle confusion and shook his head, and his cousin's face broke into a wider grin. He eagerly sought Cadi's face above Lorin's before he returned his smile to the Frei. "Cadi showed me lotsa stuff on Smash Brothers. We can play, I'll show you!"

"No fair, I wanna play too!" Dinah's fists clenched and thumped at her sides as she stomped her foot, sending a spray of cold snow everywhere. "I'm not good at that game.."

"You can watch, Dinah," Brendan scoffed, to which Dinah responded with a low whine. Lorin's heart fluttered nervously as he looked between them, hands tightening around his backpack straps as he pondered what to do. Disharmony already, and he had just gotten here; the apparent unhappiness on Dinah's face and the defiance on Brendan's set his heart to racing. Had he done something wrong? Above him, Cadi rumbled with a scoff of her own and took a step past the leshy, leaning over with her hands on her knees as she did not trust herself to crouch in the snow.

"So then we compromise." Her brows lifted as she scanned the faces of the three children and she clapped her hands together once. "Mario Kart?" Dinah picked at her fingers as she peeked through neatly-brushed bangs, and a mischievous smile grew on her features.

"I get Yoshi!" She shrieked with a loud giggle and grabbed Lorin's hand. "C'mon Lorin, sit with me!"

"I get first play with Lorin!" Brendan shot back as he tore ahead for the front door, and Cadi nudged the leshy Raevan forward. The apprehension in Lorin's heart parted just enough for him to smile. Cadi's hand rested on his hair between his antennae, and he felt comforted knowing he was not going completely alone. Dinah tugged their joined hands with Brendan leading the charge with an eager smile, and overwhelmed as he still felt, the honey Frei's trepidation quieted with a chorus of children's laughter.  

[alpha lyrae]

Common Ground
December 23, 2016

All of Lorin's worries about Cadi being away from the house were forgotten when he came down to breakfast in the morning to see her sandwiched between two adults. His mama introduced them as Cadi and Anais' parents, Joanne and Hector, and he blearily greeted them with a touch of shyness. They watched him with curiosity before they closed the distance, much as their eldest child and grandchildren had done, but he was soon enveloped in a hug from each. Joanne's sharp eyes creased kindly at the corners as his sissy's did. "A little bird told me you like to read, is that true?"

"Mmhm!" he answered with a flutter in his chest. She leaned forward, and her nose crinkled as she smiled.

"Me too," she confided with a whisper. "You should tell me all about your favorite books."

"You're in for it now, young man," Hector said from her side with a low chuckle. His easy smile reminded him of both sisters. "You'll never get her to stop once you start talking about books." Joanne flashed him a mocking glare and swatted him on the arm, which earned her another chuckle.

"Oh stop, you," she scolded playfully, and Lorin giggled warmly. She turned back to the leshy Frei and hummed, regarding him seriously. "I used to be a teacher, you know. Reading is very important, and I'm so glad to hear you like it." The boy soaked up her praise with only the slightest hesitance. He loved to read, and to be read to, but Joanne's tone and his conversation the day before made him wonder if that was an anomaly.

They had spent most of yesterday tucked into the den downstairs, which Matt had refurbished to mirror a miniature theater, playing video games until they were called upstairs for dinner. Lorin had never seen something so impressive: surround sound speakers were tucked into the corners while a large flat screen TV took up one side of the room. Bean bags resided closer to the screen and its entertainment center, where Lorin noticed a number of game systems flanking their Blu-Ray player, whereas large, cushy armchairs were placed in a semi-circle near the stairs. Shelves of movies lined the walls, organized meticulously by placement in the alphabet and season collections of television shows. Video games seemed to be the link that Cadi had with the two siblings, and she guided them well while they introduced him to Mario Kart, which he was shaky with at best but he had fun regardless of how tired he was. Video games were a curiosity to him but one he did not pursue very often as of yet; he thought fondly of Vesna and the little-used 3DS in his backpack upstairs. Animal Crossing was the only game he had so far, and Vesna and Cadi were the only visitors to his town. To know that there were so many other games available enticed him to get the 3DS out more often.

When Anais took Cadi home, the children were shuffled off to bed. Dinah bid the boys a sleepy but pouty goodnight, remarking in an undertone to her father, "Why does Brendan get Lorin? I wanna share with Lorin, Brendan gets everything," before she was nudged down the hall. The Frei was heartened by her fondness but waved an uneasy goodnight - he hoped she was not truly upset.

Brendan's room was in sharp contrast to Lorin's own in bold blues and reds, with superhero posters decorating the walls. The room gave the impression of being overly stuffed, with a toy chest that did not close all the way and dresser drawers that had fabric peeking out from the top - evidence of a hasty clean up job before company arrived. "D'you want top bunk or bottom?" Brendan yawned and waved a hand to the wooden bunk bed before them; the sheets smelled of laundry detergent and lay flat and pressed. "I got a bunk bed for when friends come over. I like the top bunk but you can have it if you want." His eye drew up to the ladder and then back to Lorin expectantly, and the Frei tensed under his scrutiny. Rather than take something from the boy that he clearly wanted, he floated over to the bed.

"This one's okay," he conceded, giving the lower bunk an affectionate pat, and Brendan smiled in evident relief.

"Oh good," came the reply, and he walked with a lighter step towards his dresser to fetch his pajamas. He kept up a constant stream of quiet chatter while they changed, shut the light off, and climbed into bed, and Lorin relived brief memories for his cousin at his request. Oftentimes, the conversation veered away from those to subjects Brendan was more familiar with at the smallest similarity - school, television, soccer, video games. As they talked in the semi-darkness, the Frei's eyes strayed towards the door expectantly, waiting for Anais or Matt to stroll in. His own mama was diligent about a bedtime routine at home, with a bedtime story as she tucked him in and wound up one of the music boxes to lull him to sleep. Yet as time ticked on, there was no sign of either parent. Lorin's arms patted the comforter as conversation dwindled.

"Does your mama read you bedtime stories?" he asked at last. A moment passed, and he wondered if Brendan had fallen asleep.

"No, that's weird," came the tired answer, until a yawn interrupted him. "She doesn't do that." Lorin heard the rustle of covers and a low sigh, and he knew the conversation was at an end. He stared hard at the bottom of the top bunk and followed the pattern of the knots in the wood as though trying to decipher an answer. Were bedtime stories so weird for families outside of his own? He did not understand.

The next morning, following meeting Cadi's parents, he trailed behind Brendan and Dinah as they toured him through the house properly before breakfast. The sliding glass door showed them the back patio and a wide expanse of lawn, all covered in a fresh sheet of snow. A wooden framework for an awning had let the weather through and the snow lay in criss-crossed patterns on the pavement. A large oak, bereft of leaves, sat at the furthest edge of the lawn, and Lorin's heart gave a small leap of excitement at the shelter built into its branches. A walkway wound steeply from the patio down to the ice-covered waterfront he had seen between the houses when they arrived yesterday. Neighboring houses had similar riverfront access, including one towards the head of river with a small boat ramp. However, Lorin's eyes travelled back to the oak tree and into its branches.

"Is that a treehouse?" he asked Dinah, pointing towards the corner of the property. The girl nodded.

"Yeah, Daddy made it." Lorin pressed his fingertips gently to the glass.

"Can we go see it?"

"It's too cold now," she answered, her brow scrunched.

"We gotta wait 'til spring," amended Brendan. "Mom'll get mad if we go out when it's too cold." Snow in Gambino had kept him inside more than he would like, and sun was a rarity in the unusual cold there, but his mama and grandma had made a concentrated effort to get him outside regardless. They built tiny snowmen to stand guard at their house, he tossed snowballs for Misha to catch mid-air, and as long as he was properly bundled up, he did not seem to mind. It made coming home into a warm house all the more inviting and his days did not linger into long, tired hours.

Rather than mix together, children and adults were separate in their own worlds once the meal was finished. It was interesting to Lorin, watching how differently this family interacted in contrast with his own. Brendan and Dinah led him off to play on the other side of the wide living room while the adults lingered at the table over coffee and more mature conversation. While Brendan fetched his 3DS from his room and Dinah set herself up with stuffed animals, Lorin's eyes strayed back to the rest of the family. Anais was a whirlwind of movement who did not sit for more than a few minutes at a time; at once she was on her feet again while she conversed, hovering over Matt to take dishes to the kitchen, coming back out with more coffee, and he found himself duly impressed. Whether it was from recent events and his restless nights, Lorin's energy had taken a dip and he felt exhaustion permeating his days. Sitting in the den the night before had almost lulled him to sleep had the children's cries of victory from winning laps not woken him.

Cadi sat next to her brother-in-law, scrolling through her phone, while her mother walked around her with a fresh cup of coffee. Joanne paused in her pursuit to gently tug the girl's shirt down to cover a sliver of skin showing on her back, and Lorin noticed Cadi's hands tense around her phone while her smile held. She took a seat next to Hector and Aaron while they had an animated conversation, punctuated by rapidly flying hands and alternating smiles and grimaces. Ivy and Claire chatted politely with Matt, nodding along to his evenly-toned talk. There were so many snatches of conversation that Lorin was having a hard time keeping up and deciphering it all, but being unused to a separate existence from the world of the adults, he tried nonetheless.

"- I caught up with Minerva the other day at the grocery store, and you wouldn't believe my surprise -" he heard Ivy say.

"- Really? What a small world!" his mother answered. "It's been such a long time since we've seen Anita and Cruz, I hope he liked his present -"

"- Haven't heard from them lately, are they really being that goddamn stubborn?" Hector's undertone did not go undetected by Lorin, as he and Joanne sat hunched forward to talk to Aaron. His papa wore a wry smile.

"I'm sure I'll hear more about it at the company party tonight," he admitted with a sigh. Conversation around the table quieted enough for the line to carry and Claire's shoulders slumped.

"Oh, Aaron," she sighed, frowning. He had the decency to look apologetic.

"I know, I don't want to, either, but I have to. We have clients coming. Trust me, I'd rather stay for dinner here but I won't hear the end of it if I don't go." He let loose a sigh himself, swirling his coffee around in his mug. "I already know I'll need a drink after."

"I'll join you for that," Cadi replied dryly, and her eyebrows rose as she stared at her phone, thumbing a text.

"Cadi, put your phone away while you're visiting," Joanne whispered, and with a sidelong glance and a sigh, the offending object was tucked into her pocket.

"Hey Lorin, wanna play doctor?" Dinah's voice pulled him away from the conversation, and she held out a stuffed blue bear to him. "This is Ollie, he needs a check up. You can be my nurse." Lorin smiled, obligingly, and took the bear as she hummed in concentration and checked his joints. She assumed a very business-like demeanor, issuing orders for Nurse Lorin at rapid pace to which he followed, but her own procedure was charming in its own way. Guided by the girl in her pretend play while her brother ran between his bedroom and the downstairs theater in search of his game system, the Frei admired her creativity and felt that he, too, were in a doctor's office, much like he had seen in movies (and very briefly at the start of his life).

Brendan's return ushered in what confused Lorin the most about the siblings. While most of the time they were curious and playful with Lorin, there was an underlying atmosphere of competition between the two of them that sometimes erupted in a loud whine from the younger when Brendan goaded her too hard. He hustled over to the two and slid to Lorin's free side, holding up his 3DS.

"Hey Lorin, lemme show you Smash Brothers," he said excitedly. "I'm real good with Chrom." The glowing screen drew his eye as Brendan started the game; the bear lowered to his ribbon, coiled beneath him on the ground. Dinah frowned in the midst of giving Ollie an invisible booster shot.

"We're playing doctor," she grumbled with lowered eyebrows. Brendan regarded her over the top of his 3DS airily.

"Pretending's for babies," he sniffed, settling closer to Lorin's side. He watched with a jolt as she ran to her mother with fat tears rolling down her face and bury herself into her arms, while Anais barked a reprimand at her son. Lorin's heart jumped with each spike of volume and as he looked around at the rest of the family, still conversing between themselves, nobody looked particularly ruffled. His hands had a hard time steadying around the stuffed bear; the last time he had heard such a tone was when his grandparents had come for dinner.

"Brendan, learn to play nice, otherwise I'm taking your 3DS away," Matt warned tiredly as he set his coffee cup against the table with a sharp clack. The boy deflated under his father's stare and redirected his upset towards his sister, who looked pleased as punch despite her tears. Lorin shrank between them and fumbled with his fingers; his hands felt clammy, his heartbeat uneven as it tried to escape his chest.

How was upsetting someone so normal that nobody at the table batted an eye? How was shouting normal?

"Tattler," Brendan grumbled with a pointed glare, and Dinah sniffed dramatically, a whine forthcoming as tears welled anew.

"W-we can do something else!" Lorin's hands flew up in a flurry to hold it back and both children stared at him in varying states of surprise: Dinah's eyes were glassy with one small fist raised to rub her tears away, while Brendan was red-faced from his scolding.

"Dontcha like Smash Brothers?" Brendan asked, looking crestfallen. His eyes fell to the 3DS in his lap, poised as though to ask his game what it had done wrong. The leshy's heart sank anxiously and he nodded fiercely enough to give him a headache.

"I do," he interjected quickly. His heart took up residence in his throat and his ears felt as though they were burning, and he knew an incriminating blush was crossing his cheeks. Thoughts flew away from him rapidly, suggestions gone before he could voice them, and his eyes landed on the messy coffee table, the legs of the adults busy with their own conversations, searching for anything. "B-but we played lots of video games yesterday. D'you wanna, um -" His red backpack sat innocently in the corner of the living room where he had left it the night before, mentally running through its contents for ideas. "D'you guys wanna color?" He nervously swiveled his gaze to the two next to him, reading their expressions for acceptance of his compromise.

"I do!" Dinah's response was immediate, much to the relief of Lorin's palpitating heart, and her eyes lit up in clear enthusiasm. For his part, Brendan did not look entirely put off, but he closed the 3DS reluctantly and set it on the table.

"I got an Avengers coloring book," he suggested, climbing to his feet. Dinah smiled brightly and hopped up, her tulle skirt fluffing around her now that it was not flattened to the ground.

"I got Frozen," she bragged, her head held high. "And sparkly crayons!" She bounced in her enthusiasm from foot to foot and led the way down the hall to their respective bedrooms, Brendan hustling after her to beat her to the coloring supplies. Lorin watched as they departed and let out a slow sigh, relieved but thoroughly exhausted.  

[alpha lyrae]

Take A Break
December 23, 2016
Google Docs PRP with Screaming_0ctopus

Aaron seeks a cooldown after a short Christmas party with his parents, and he and Cadi wander upon the Sugar Skull bar, and its interesting owner.