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 Posted: Sun Mar 12, 2006 7:23 pm
.__________________prologue
"Unhhhh..." exclaimed Seed as she stretched out her arms in the grassy plains. She had just woken up from a very deep sleep. She was working all day, and the day was hot. She got up and went to the nearest pond around her. She put her feet in the cool, clear pond. She looked up the the sky to see the clouds passing her by. The clouds blocked the sun, but she knew it wouldn't last for long. When the cloud passed, she knew she had to get back to work. She wished she could just sit in the shade for all her life, watching life pass her by. She has been depressed ever since her lover died...It wasn't too long ago, and she kept thinking about it. She is very happy and giggly all the time, but today she wasn't. She was hoping a ray of light would shine down on her.
The sun then came back out and she sighed and said, "Back to work again..." She got up and dusted off her clothes. Her feet were still cool, but the feeling didn't last long. She loved what she did, but today just wasn't her day. She got on her knees and looked at her reflection in the pond. Something, though, caught her eye. A Lotus flower was at the bottom of the pond...drowning. Seed was shocked to see it there! She pulled up her sleeves and reached down. The Lotus was soaked, but she got it to safety in time. "Phew! You could have died there!" She said to the Lotus. But there was something strange about the Lotus flower, it seemed to have a certain "glow" to it. The clouds once again covered the sun, and in fact, she was right. The Lotus was glowing, it wasn't very bright, but it sure was. Seed didn't know what it meant, but she knew it was something special.
She examined it closely, and it seemed to gradually be closing up. The flower was now starting to dry up. "You feel..different...you look different too! Your petals are white, you don't look like you are from around here. Wait. I recongnize that color..You are...a lotus from Fen?! How did you get here? There have been no other Lotuses like you here in a while! This must be some sort of...I don't know what I'm saying. You are different though. Were you unwanted?" She picked it up and looked at it closely. She felt that this one Lotus was for her...somehow...She picked it up and thought to herself, I'm done for the day. Seed got up and started off, with this newly attained Lotus in her hands.
Seed started to walk down the rocky path to the bustling country. She was just on the outskirts of Soriyu, near Fen, where the white Lotus was being tended to. Seed loved to visit Fen all the time. She would go there at least once a week, and everyone there treated her like family. Soriyu was very busy as usual. The marketplace was just as crowded as this morning. Maki, the shop owner, looked very tired. "I wonder how she keeps on a smile like that with all these people." Seed glanced over and saw Issac, the guy in charge of the guilds and who helped take care of the Lotuses. He was crowded by beautiful girls, as always. Seed wasn't jealous though, she would never go after any other man because of her lover who died. She made an oath to never have a crush on someone...ever.
Seed stayed at a inn near the market, and walked there when it got dark. She checked into her room and placed the Lotus on her bed for now. She took out a bowl from her cupboard and turned on the sink and pourded warm water in the bowl. She gently picked up the Lotus flower and placed it in the water. She then picked it up and placed it by her window, where the sun was now setting. "You'll be good here. The weather hasn't been very hot lately, so you won't get hurt." Seed was an expert at taking care of Lotuses, she has been taking care of them for as long as she could remember. It was one of her favorite hobbies.
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Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2006 7:01 am
.__________________arrival
Seed woke up with the sun shining in her eyes. She wasn't as depressed as she was the other day, she was more her usual self now. The Lotus seemed to enjoy the sunlight because of it's petals blooming. Will it be growing soon? The lotus flower has already been in a strange state for the past few days...like it's gathering energy or something...I wonder what's going to happen...Well I'd better wash up before I get ready for the day ahead of me... I still wonder why that I found it in Soriyu...a lotus from Fen of all places! I hope it was for me though, it felt like it was the one, but I don't want to be named a thief! But I feel like something very special has happened...Fen is where, of course, I was raised, though I don't know about being born there... With that she rushed down the hall and into the bathroom which was 3 doors away from her own room.
When she got back, she opened the door, and a bright light came through the door, it could light an entire city! "Gah..!!" Seed tried to cover her eyes and tried not to open her eyes. "What's happening here?! Why is it so bright?!" "Myuuuu!" exclaimed a unfamiliar voice. Seed stopped in her place. Her heart skipped a beat. "Who's there?!!?" exclaimed Seed nervously as the light began to dissaperate.
When the massive amount of light began to dissapear, the sunlight then shone like it did earlier on the lotus, but now on a toddler's complexion. The little girl was on her arms and legs, she had her head tilted upwards, with an emotionless look on her face, and she was dripping wet. The once white lotus flower, appeared onto the toddler's head, shining. And her pitch black bangs slid down the side of her face. And her hazlenut eyes also shone.
"AIEEE!! You are TOO cute!" exclaimed Seed, with her hands on her cheeks. "I didn't expect you to come so soon! If I knew, I would have gotten so many things! I will have to buy a lot of things and arrange them all!" The baby just looked up at Seed, very confused. "Hmm...What do I need...? Wait! I shouldn't just leave you on the ground like that!" Seed picked her up, carefully. She got a towel to dry off the child and then rested the baby's head on her shoulder. She felt so light. Seed thought to herself about the girl, and she rocked her back and forth.
Eventually, the child fell asleep. "Ah, there we go." said Seed with a smile. Seed looked at the toddler's face as it was on her shoulder. The lotus on her head was very soft, it felt like a blanket. The baby had her thumb in her mouth, sucking it. She looked completely helpless and innocent, and Seed wanted to keep her that way, though she knew the girl would someday mature into a guardian herself. She was completely happy at the moment, nothing could bring her down.
"You must be really tired. You sure look very tired!!" cooed Seed. The baby just yawned and her eyes looked straight into Seed's. "I'm Seed by the way, I am your guardian. I have to give you a name...don't I?" The girl looked very confused as she tilted her head. She had a lot to learn about Edonisu. Seed couldn't wait to teach her all these things, but she knew it would be quite a lot of work for her, but that is the task of being a guardian. Her own must have had to do the same for her!
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Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2006 10:07 pm
.__________________diary
Dear Diary,
Lien is sooo cute! She is like a little angel sent from heaven. Her head is as soft as an angel's wings so it could be true. Wait...that's right, I haven't told you yet!
It happened a few days ago when a woman approached me. I was tending to a pure white lotus from Fen when she came to me and told me that the guardian for the Lotus flower had to decline. So I was given full responsibility over it. I couldn't say no, and it's not like I didn't want it. I was more than happy when I was given ownership of it. But then just today, a bright light shone in my room and a toddler came out of it! She is adorable, I want to just squish her, though I know I shouldn't. She is sleeping at the moment, this is the only time I could find the time to write in my diary...I still have to go out to get some supplies though...I guess I can do that later, when she's awake.
And yeah, Lien Tao, Lien for short, is her name. Isn't it cute? I know it seems a bit redundant since Lien means "lotus" in the country of Fen, but I guess that's alright...it'll be our little secret. ack nevermind, no one needs to know :D
Well I think that is all for now...
Sincerely,
Seed
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Posted: Thu Mar 16, 2006 9:43 pm
.__________________awakening
It was just around sunset when Seed returned to her room in the in with Lien in her arms. She had just come back from hanging out with a man named Jafar, who she is now really fond of. "That was really fun, wasn't it Lien?" "Kyuu..." she said in agreement. She was half-asleep in Seed's protection. She had been thinking a lot of Vira, but the butterfly she saw earlier kept coming back to mind. She had quite a short attention span for a toddler.
"Aughh...I just remembered...where am I going to put Lien tonight? I guess she can sleep with me...my bed is big enough already. Is that even safe though? Having a toddler on a rail-less bed?" Seed kept rambling on and on about how un-safe it might be, and decided to just surround the bed with pillows. She plopped onto the bed, with Lien in her arms and laid her down softly. She was fast asleep now, and a bit of drool came down her mouth. "She's so cute..." whispered Seed as she gently slid her hand down Lien's head. The lotus flower was just as soft as a cloud, it looked like one too!
Seed got very tired, and spread her arms across the bed. She looked to the ceiling and fell asleep too. The day now turned into dark and all was still...
Now the morning bird chirped a beautiful song as Seed stretched out her arms, basking in the sunlight. Lien was still fast asleep and Seed tried to be as quiet as she could getting up. When Seed was staying at the inn, she wouldn't need a clock to wake her up, but the bustling of the people did. The marketplace would fill everyday at around the same time. The people wanted to get there early because that was when the sales on food and produce items. Seed scratched her head as she sloppily walked on the hardwood floor with her bare feet.
Lien woke up a few minutes after Seed. Her eyes were still very droopy, like she wasn't ready to wake up yet. "Ouuu.." she said with ther eyes half open. She then started to cry. Seed was no longer in the room, but in the bathroom so she couldn't get to Lien in time. She rushed to Lien, with her toothbrush still in her mouth and foam all around it. "I'mb Sowwie!!" she tried to communicate to her as clearly as she could with toothpaste popping out of her mouth at every word. She picked Lien up and started to rock her back and forth. She eventually washed out her mouth, which was very challenging with a child in her arms. She sung a song as clearly as she could. She actually was quite good at it.
After around half and hour, Seed and Lien got ready to go out. Seed was going to take Lien out for some shopping. She knew she would grow out of the things soon, but it was still necessary to buy the things she needed! She walked down the flight of stairs to get to the main lobby of the inn where most of the people were to check in. She walked out the door and into the crowd. There were so many people everywhere! People kept bumping into her on accident and Seed did her best to protect Lien from them. Now where to go... she thought to herself. First she wanted to buy some food. She walked along the side where most of the stands were. She picked up many different types of fruit, and her favorite type, strawberries. She hoped Lien liked them too! She also saw some chocolate, which she loved, and white chocolate infact! She picked up two bars of white chocolate and went to pay.
I guess it's time to go... thought Seed. She could tell from the daylight slowly fading away and the couples all started to dissapear from the market. The market was turning into a whole different place. She looked down at Lien, and she was once again asleep. Seed kissed her on the head and started to walk to where she was staying. Seed whispered into Lien's ear. She said, "Tomorrow will be just as fun." She had in mind to maybe start training Lien, and getting her garden all nice and neat. She was excited!
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Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 6:59 pm
.__________________training
Today was going to be a rough day, and Seed knew it. She didn't know if Lien knew, but she hope she wasn't going to be upset. Seed was planning on taking Lien to the fields to start working, maybe even teaching her how to tend to lotuses at a early age.
Seed woke up early in the morning to get ready. Her clothes were different than her usual. She wore a tank top and a mini skirt. She could tell it was going to be hot. She put on a hat with a sunflower it to keep her cooler than without it. Hmmm...I think I'm ready...What time is it? she said to herself as she glanced over to the clock. The clock read 8 o' clock. Seed didn't know when a good time to wake Lien up was, so she just waited until she did. She got something to eat while waiting. She sat in the corner of the room, reading some books on being a successful guardian. She wanted to be the best she could be!
Soon after she read a chapter, Lien woke up. Her eyes would occasionally close, but she would open them again once in a while. She was very tired and wanted to just sleep some more. Seed lifted herself from the chair and placed the book on it. She crept on the hardwood floor and kneeled down to Lien's height. "Morning." she whispered. Lien sleepily looked into Seed's eyes. She made some noises, but then was wide awake in a few minutes. Seed just waited patiently. "Guess what we're doing today? We're going to go to the fields!! I'm gonna start to show you how to get working. It doesn't seem like fun, but it actually is!!" Lien's eyes were now wide awake and they slowly grew. She looked ver excited, or it could have been a look of fear. Seed couldn't tell.
"Come on Lien!" exclaimed Seed as she gently tugged on her dress. Lien was holding onto the beadspread and obviously didn't want to go. She was only a baby! What does someone expect a baby to do! She could hardly walk! Seed just wanted to get Lien ahead of everyone else, even if it meant Lien would just sit and watch.
Finally, after a few tries, Seed got the little Lotus's grasp on the bed loosened enough to carry her. She lifted her up to her shoulder and said, "The river isn't that far from here." Seed slowly walked down the stairs, stopping to look out the window, where she met Jafar and Vira. I wonder how they're doing... She shook her head to get the thought out and continued on...
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Posted: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:38 pm
.__________________in the sun
Finally in the sun, Seed rested in the cool shade of the tree. She called this tree the World Tree for it was one of the biggest ones she's ever seen. She placed her back on its trunk and looked to it's branches. It looked like some fruit was starting to grow! She reached up to grab one and held it in her hands. The fruit was not rip yet, and was still very small. She handed it over to Lien and Lien started to chew on it, making a weird face because it was so bitter. Seed chuckled and said, "Come on now, lets get serious." I am serious! Thought Lien
Seed placed her bag on the ground near the trunk and slid her bangs behind her ears. She jumped up and said, "Let's Go!" Lien just rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. Seed picked up Lien and walked to the lake. It was actually cooler than the other days. The lake also felt very nice with the cool water rushing. She let Lien put her tiny feet into the lake so she could experience something new. Lien was actually enjoying it!
Hours after hours Seed was tending to the Lotuses, making sure they were the best they could be, showing Lien, who was still playing in the water, how to tend to them. Seed tried to be gentle since they weren't hers. She was hoping she wouldn't get in trouble! "Well this is no fun.." said Seed who laid her back in the grass. "What do you want to do Lien?" Lien looked over to Seed and pointed to her mouth. "What about it? Wait...food?" Lien nodded. "That's a great idea! Let's have a picnic!" Lien's face fell. All she wanted was food, without Seed being the noisy self she usually is. She then sighed and gave a helpless nod. "Great!"
After Seed set up the blanket for the "picnic" they started to eat. The sun started to set and they just finished eating. They left before the sun went down and got home in time for Lien's bedtime. Today really was a day in the sun.
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Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2006 6:10 pm
.__________________the meeting
It took Jafar quite a while to finally solve the problem of transporting the newly-born Lotus -- and while he might have otherwise been content to merely stay at the house until she had learned to walk, he had discovered that he was running low on supplies.
(The right way of thinking, of course, was that the kind of 'social stimulation' a child would get by visiting the marketplace would reinforce positive behavior and interaction, but Jafar was not sure how all these things would be done when Vira was a monstrous girl who ate grass, terrorized bugs, and obviously believed that sleeping was for wusses.)
He thought out of desperation that perhaps he should just carry the child by the nape of her neck with his teeth -- that hardly hurt them, right? -- only he wasn't sure if people from other countries would realize this.
So finally he used one of the softened deer hides and sewed it messily into a makeshift sling, reinforced by tightly woven and thin straw-mats, one that would safely secure the child against his back in such a way that she could slump down and continue sleeping if she wanted, or else could peer over the top at the world beyond.
With this problem solved, Jafar took his cane from its usual resting place against the side of the house and began to make his way to the marketplace of Soriyu, being far more slow and careful than normal for Vira's sake.
The sunlight from the window in Seed's room lit up Lien's face. She didn't look too happy though. Seed thought that she was just really irritated without any sleep. She carefully picked her up, just like any other toddler, one hand around her butt and one hand gently around her neck. Lien leaned on Seed's shoulders and it looked as if she was sucking her thumb. All Seed could think about was how cute she was. It did startle her as to how she suddenly appeared, but Seed got over that part.
Seed was about ready to go out, and just sit in the fields that she loved so much. She opened the door in her room that lead into a very quite hallway, though you could clearly hear the chatting outside in the marketplace. When she walked down the hall, she walked slowly down the stairs, and something strange caught her the corner of her eye. She glanced through the white-pane window, and tried to see through the dirty glass, which looked like it hasn't been cleaned in ages, "Remind me to wipe that later...." she said to herself, being the total neat-freak she was. But through the window, she could see a man, with some sort of sling, carrying a child. She looked much like Lien, since she too had a flower on her head. Seed quickly realized, there had been a new guardian that has come, pretty much just like her.
She rushed down the many stairs and out of the door. She looked around and trying to find the man. She saw him, and he was very far away. "There he is..." She bumped into many people along the way, trying not to lose sight of the man. When she reached the man she exclaimed, "Excu--......EEK!" Seed then tripped on the ground. Lien perked up, though she wasn't hurt, and started to cry. Her cry wasn't as loud as other toddlers Seed had heard, but loud enough to turn some heads. "Ouch...!! Lien, are you okay?" Lien continued to cry. "Oh wait. You are still a baby, I don't think you know how to talk yet...what am I thinking...?"
Jafar might as well have remained oblivious to Seed's attempts to attract his attention -- he didn't realize that anyone of interest was directly behind him, much less one that had addressed him directly.
The familiar sound of a body unpreparedly hitting the ground -- tripping -- reached his ears though, and Vira surprisingly began to shift against him, but it was only when he caught the cries of a young child that he was at last convinced to turn around.
"Is the child alright?" He squinted and addressed the blurry shape of green lying against the ground. There was a blotch of white, and then darker colors streaming below that, mismatching the other figure -- was that separate? Neither of them seemed hurt -- at least, they didn't carry that sharp, acidic scent to them, though he could obviously be mistaken.
Finally Jafar moved forward, carefully feeling the ground with sandaled feet before shifting his weight onto either of them for fear of accidentally trodding on something or other, and finally bent down to offer whoever was lying there a hand.
Vira, meanwhile, was startled to make the discovery that she was not the only one who was able to make the Cry. The young Lotus child fought against the constraints of the sling, attempting to turn herself around so she could peer over her guardian's shoulder at the strange Thing she had caught a glimpse of before he had turned towards them, leaving her to face the other direction. She found herself unable to, though, and was left to making small, discontented noises.
"EEK! Watch out! You almost hit me!" Seed, got up, leaving Lien on the ground for just a second. She rubbed of the dirt on her shoulder and made sure her clothes weren't messed up. Lien was still crying, and lifted her hands up, wanting Seed to pick her up. "Wahhhh!!!" she blurted out. Seed then realized she had left Lien on the ground! "I'm sorry! What kind of a guardian am I?!" She picked Lien up and held her in her arms and cradled her. She rested her head once again against Seed's shoulder and then suddenly went back to sleep.
"But anyways, what is your problem?! You almost stepped on me!!" Seed was just trying to let out her anger from how klutzy she was, she was embarrased and hoped to try to blame it on someone else, she didn't mean to be rude.
"By the way...what is that on your back? She looks new around here...and so do you...But I guess that's just me not getting to know any other guys very well..." she said, trying not to say anything more to bore the man.
Confused at the other female's -- he knew now by her voice -- outburst, Jafar hesitantly withdrew his hand and more fully straightened again. "Aaa," He began to attempt to reply to her when she shifted rapidly into a different subject altogether.
...Well. Now he knew two more things: one, that she was a guardian herself, and the cry he had heard was her child indeed, and two -- she apparently wasn't very good at it. (Her own opinion, of course, he couldn't rightfully judge her...)
In any case, the child stopped crying and Jafar waited patiently for the other woman to finish babbling before he would try to get a word in edgewise. When her silence finally prevailed, he started at last, in a low, almost rumbling voice: "Please forgive me, it wasn't my intention to... strike you, step on you, or otherwise scare you. I heard you fall and thought you might have needed help, that is all."
Remembering that he still held his cane in his left hand, he tied the looped cord at the top around a similar tie at his waist, and bringing his hands to the elaborate knot keeping Vira to his back, he carefully loosened it enough that he could slide her around to the front and lift her out, leaving the sling to fall to the ground.
Though Vira had stopped fidgeting once the crying stopped, promptly forgetting what it was that she had wanted to see anyway, the young Lotus girl perked up at the sudden movement and blinked curiously at the two Things standing in front of her as she was brought into her guardian's arms.
"This is Vira. She was born two days ago. I have been living here for a number of years in preparation for her eventual arrival, so I suppose we just never came across each other. I am Jafar. It is nice to meet you." With politeness out of the way, Jafar was free to fall silent at last and so he did.
Vira, paying absolutely no attention to her guardian or his words, determinedly began to reach and make grabby fingers at the smaller Thing the bigger Thing was holding, the one with the Lotus like hers! She wanted it!
"Oh no...I think I did it again...I'm sorry for my ranting...I do that sometimes, and it annoys me, so I'm betting it annoys other people even more." Seed blushed. She knew that he thought of her as some strange, rude woman, which isn't a very good first impression. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry for assuming something before I knew what you were actually doing..."
"Oh! I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself at first...I'm Seed, and this little girl here is Lien, she just came to me this morning...I got the actual Lotus a few days ago. I have no idea why she arrived so soon though.. Well, Anyways, Vira looks soo adorable!" Seed was being very immature today with her many outburts and moodswings. She looked down at her feet, embarrassed, and noticed something strange -- a cane. "Wait...are you...blind?"
Meanwhile, while Vira, the other Lotus was glancing at Lien. Her head perked up, knowing someone was looking at her. She didn't know who though. She turned around, only to find another Lotus with her hands reaching for her. The other Lotus had a weird look on her face, it looked like she wanted to have her...Lien got scared and exclaimed, "Blooo....!!" which was her way of saying, "Aiee!! Help!"
"It's alright." Jafar frowned at -- Seed? Was that her actual name? -- Seed's reaction; she certainly was an odd one. She sounded young, though, and seems vaguely nervous, which probably accounted for a lot. "I spent many years trying to find the best way of being intimidating on mere sight -- so I suppose it's nice to know that I can finally do it without even thinking."
"It's nice to meet both of you though," He continued in a gentler tone, inwardly wondering what it was that Vira was up to, as determined as the little girl was to squirm out of his arms and very rudely meet the ground. He wasn't sure, either, how to respond to her compliment on Vira's adorableness -- while he had no doubt that the little girl actually was, what would he say when he had no part in it? 'Thank you'? 'Oh, good thing she is, thank you for telling me, now I won't have to throw her in a lake and start over'?
The question of his being blind was something he could handle, having answered it innumerably over the years. "Essentially, yes, I am blind."
Vira was meanwhile both fascinated and extraordinarily amused. It spoke! The Thing said something! She was not quite sure what it meant, but it could make noise just like her! She let out a small, childish shriek of happiness at this discovery, a friendly attempt at letting the other Thing know that she, too, could make a noise.
"Well again, it is a pleasure to meet you. And it is very good to know that you are...you know..." Seed was very uncomfortable talking about it, though Jafar seemed to be okay with it. "And I'm sorry I'm coming on a bit too strong."
Seed then perked up, she looked at Lien, who was on her shoulder, and realized that Lien was a bit frightened at the other girl. "Awww it's okay Lien, she only wants to play...You should be nice, I don't think she means to do you any harm. Want me to put you on the ground so you and Vira can play?" "Mmm....Mwa.." said Lien nervously. She looked to the ground and pointed, "Boo!" She anxiously scrambled around in Seed's arms, trying to get to the ground. "So I guess you do want to play afterall!" She let her down and looked up to Jafar and said, "I think they want to play, is that okay? Maybe we can go somewhere for a cup of tea?"
There was nothing Jafar could say to this that he hadn't said already, so he merely let out a thoughtful 'hnnn'.
What? What was this?! The other Thing dared to go somewhere without her? She was not done looking at her yet! Vira began strongly squirming in Jafar's arms who, sensing that he wasn't going to win this fight, set her down on the ground as well. Picking the sling up while he was there, he finally straightened and hoped Vira would play nicely with the other Lotus girl. Thinking that this constituted a satisfactory answer towards Seed's first question, he nodded to her second and confirmed: "Yes, that sounds fine."
Vira stood unsteadily on two feet in the same position Jafar had placed her in, but soon collapsed back to all fours. Undeterred by her fall, she giggled and crawled over cat-like to the other girl She crouching down low to the ground in front of her with her rump raised, growling a playful challenge and and waiting for her to make the first move.
Lien was a little scared, mostly because of the approaching girl. But she was tough, or at least she looked tough, enough to fight. She crawled up to Vira and poked her in the face. "Heee!" She didn't want to, or in other words, she didn't know how to play rough...yet, so she just played around with her.
"Yay! I know a great place a few blocks away. The walk may be long, but its sooo worth it! Come on, I can help you there." Seed gestured to grab Jafar's hand and said, "I can lead you there."
Vira sputtered indignantly at the other girl's daring, going cross-eyed with the effort. Even she knew in games of Might and Being Better Than You one did not simply go up to anyone and poke them in the face! She backed away, fingernails scratching against the dirt, and she began to sway her upraised backend from side to side to build momentum. Finally she unleashed a battle cry and launched herself as best she could through the air to pounce on the other girl.
Unfortunately for her, Jafar recognized the warning signs of a scuffle since her growl, and easily locating the very noisy girl, managed to scoop her off the ground before she could get very far in her counter-attack. Heaving her over one shoulder and keeping her in place, he turned back to Seed just in time to hear her proposition. "Alright, that sounds fine... Perhaps the pup will feel a little more friendly once we've arrived."
Lien seemed like a sensitive child as it was -- the last thing he wanted to do was to somehow lead to permanently scarring her by allowing Vira to play with her as if she were indestructable.
Not noticing Seed holding her hand out, he nodded and continued: "I will follow you then."
Vira squirmed unhappily on Jafar's shoulder, mentally grumbling at her apparent defeat. What a dirty, dirty trick, getting her guardian to stop her like that! The other Thing was obviously a formidable opponent -- but no matter -- one day...
A butterfly drifted past and all plans of childish revenge quickly vanished from Vira's mind as she followed its winding path with her gaze.
Lien backed away, knowing that Vira wasn't afraid to hurt her. "Mreww...." she quickly crawled behind Seed's legs, wanting Seed to pick her up. "Hehe okay okay." she picked Lien up and held her in her shoulders. "Okay the cafe is very close. I can lead the way there." She started walking down the rocky road, trying not to bump into anyone with Lien.
Lien giggled when the butterfly passed Vira's head. She too was excited. She had to admit, it was cute. Lien made grabby hands for the butterfly as it fluttered past. "Bloo!" If it wasn't for Seed, she would be crawling off, as fast as she could, to run after that butterfly, but before she could do anything, she once again, fell asleep.
When they were walking, Seed had a question she had been meaning to ask since she first saw him, "Can I ask you something? Why do you have so many scars? What happened to you?"
Grateful for Vira's sudden compliance, Jafar began to follow closely behind Seed, using the sound of her footsteps to guide him.
It was only once the butterfly had vanished from Vira's sight completely that she returned her attention to the other girl. ...What was she doing? Vira experimentally called a noise to her, and when she didn't respond, she let out a low whine. Was she plotting something? ...She had to stay on the lookout! Constant vigilance!
Jafar smiled to himself when Vira at last gave a great yawn and went limp against him, taking another one of the catnaps the Lotus children were widely known for. His attention was soon distracted by Seed's question, though, and it was obviously one he hadn't been expecting.
He stared at her questioningly, one eyebrow raised, and it took a moment for him to realize that yes, just because he wasn't aware of them anymore the scars had not vanished. Aaa, how many did he have, anyway? "I am from Milva," He began, obviously expecting this to illuminate many things, "I suppose I collected them over the years. I was a warrior and was expected to hunt... All of the scars you see are proofs of my mistakes over the years."
And then, either to change the subject or else to be polite, he finally voiced his own curiosity, "Where are you from?"
Lien didn't see Vira's look, since she was asleep. What do you expect from a toddler anyways? "I wonder what she's dreaming about..." said Seed with a grin.
"Ohh...I see...Milva, a lovely country. Well I'm sure everyone is proud of you, you are very loyal, or at least you seem like that. That is agreat first impression."
"Me?" Seed stretched out her arms and looked the to sky. "Truthfully? I don't really know. I just found myself here, in Edonisu, for as long as I can remember. I truly love to travel around all of Edonisu. I have visited all of the countries, and hope to visit all the islands too." she smiled. "But I love Fen, I go there all the time, more than all the other countries. I call that my "home," it is the only place that I feel safe. It is also Lien's home. She originated from Fen also."
Fen? --Aa, the scholar capital of Edonisu, that made sense. "...So you do not have any idea as to your true origins? Your guardian did not tell you?" That seemed like a rather odd way of bringing up a child, but perhaps there were circumstances surrounding it that he hadn't considered.
It must also have been nice to be able to travel so freely. "You have been to Milva, then?"
"Yeah. I don't really know if my guardian did or not. I have a pretty good memory, but it seems like all of that stuff wiped away in time. I hope to someday find out though. I was raised in Fen though, not born, but raised. I started to travel when I got older and my guardian died..." she said, trying not to cry. She was thinking about her her guardian treated her and...well she gets emotional when she does, just like when she thinks about her lover..."Ack..sorry.." she wiped her eyes and sniffed.
Before she started again, she tried to get rid of her tears and tried not to get all emotional.
"Ah, yes, I just traveled there recently, actually. It is a very beautiful place. I love their clothing designs, but I was too poor then to buy any. I hope to visit there again to buy some new outfits!" she put on a big smile. "Also the food there was great! You must have had a great childhood!"
Jafar frowned again at the tone of despair he could faintly detect in Seed's voice -- a rather sensitive young lady, wasn't she? He vaguely wondered if this was some sort of side-effect to recieving a Lotus child and whether he was supposed to be going through this himself. "Well, I hope you are successful in finding out one day," He said diplomatically, not wishing to dredge up any more pain for her, "As I'm sure you will be."
Aa -- clothing -- one of the aspects of Milva he didn't personally miss... He'd lost count of the number of people who suddenly began to think it was their god-given right to dress him since he lost the ability to properly color-coordinate his own clothes. "My childhood was pleasant," He conceded at last, "I was not the most well-behaved of children, however, so I cannot say the same for my guardian..."
Hopefully karma would not deem it 'fair' to put him through a similar trial with Vira.
"What is it like in Fen, then? I've only heard stories but who knows how much of them are true."
"Yeah...me too" she sounded very sad. "Mmm...yeah it must be hard...when you're...you know." she said. "But you look just fine to me! I think I've seen worse."
"Fen?" she said questioingly. "Well for me it was a beautiful place. Last time I was there was when I was in my teens, so I know a lot about it. Everyone there is very smart and strict about martial arts. I didn't paritcularly like martial arts, so I usually just sat down and watch. I was more the girly type when I was a kid...but anyways, we are really near to the tea house. Let's hurry up!" she yelled as she ran off, but still trying to make sure she was in Jafar's sight.
'Seen worse'? Well, Jafar supposed that was a compliment... "Thank you," he said carefully. He didn't have the chance to comment on Fen further, either, before the other girl proclaimed the tea house to be in the near vicinity and rushed off.
It took most of his concentration to continue following her, especially with the added difficulty of the distance put between them -- but finally he realized by smell alone that he was standing in front of what must have been the aforementioned 'tea house'. "Is this it, then?" He asked, hoping that she was standing nearby -- else he must have lost her completely.
"Yup!" exclaimed Seed as she was standing right in front of Jafar. "Though a little bit to close..." She had almost no breathing room. She giggled. "Well here we are. I can get the tea we can talk out here if you want. What kind of tea do you like? I'm a fan of green tea myself."
Just then, Lien woke up, probably because of the smell of the tea. She let out a yawn and blinked. Her eyes were still very droopy, but she could manage to stay awak for a while. "Ah! Hi there!" exclaimed Seed as she saw Lien open her eyes. "Mrrr...." she said with sort of an angry tone, I think Seed was a bit too loud.
Taken aback by the extremely close proximity of Seed's voice, Jafar immediately backed away. "Aa, my apologies..."
What was that? Oh, yes, tea. ...But green tea? What did they put in that, grass? "Green tea would be fine..." He said at last, mentally wincing at the image of it he had in his head. He was never going to convince Vira to eat her vegetables, though, if he wouldn't even try a new flavor of tea himself. "Shall I watch over Lien for you while you run inside?"
Crouching down and arranging the sling over the ground, Jafar gently placed Vira down on the make-shift bed. The young Lotus girl was still fast asleep, fingers occasionally twitching as she dreamed things to be forgotten soon upon waking. She let out a deep snore from time to time, a surprisingly loud noise for someone so small.
"Oh, okay! Green tea it is then! And yeah, it would be perfect if you could watch over Lien while I go get our tea....I'm sure she will be fast asleep in an instant though. Seed gently put Lien down on the bed that Jafar made for Vira, suprisingly, they both fit on it fine, with still enough room for a third toddler.
Seed walked into the tea house, ringing the bell on the door. She walked up to the man who was taking the orders and she said, "Two green teas please!" The man nodded and repeated the order to the woman beside her that Seed assumed made the tea. The tea was handmade and they used leaves, not the bag, which made it even more delicious!
Lien, as assumed, again doze off to sleep, her head at Vira's feet and her feet at Vira's head. She was a very quiet sleeper, but would occassionally push or hit Vira in the leg when she snored.
Jafar remained crouched in front of the 'bed' -- he wasn't willing to leave Vira behind even for a moment to see if he could find a chair. She was asleep at the moment but there was no telling the end to the destruction a young Milvan could do left unattended...
Vira was not having a good time of sleeping, either. She normally slept very lightly, dozing in short bursts and only really waking up when there was anything of interest around, but even this was made difficult by Lien's excessive movements. Careful to keep silent this time lest she be foiled yet again by her guardian, Vira rolled over onto her belly and squirmed along the deer-fur, sneaking up to Lien's legs before sinking her teeth into her ankle.
It was a playful bite and she didn't do it very hard -- at least not with the intention of hurting the other girl, just merely teaching the Thing a lesson.
Seed was waiting a while for the tea to come, but it eventually was done. "Thank you, and come again!" said the man who handed Seed the tea. She held one in each hand, trying not to spill any.
Lien's eyes widened and she fidgeted when Vira bit her leg. She started to cry for a little bit, then suddenly went back to sleep. She thought, "Ouch! I'm going to get her back!" she scrathced her head as if she were thinking. She looked at Vira's back, and her eyes ran up her spine as she thought, "Bingo!" She went up to her and tugged hard, or at least it seemed like it was hard to her, on her two pigtails sticking out of her head, waiting to see the other girl's reaction.
Seed say the two toddlers playing around, thinking it was nothing, though to them it was war. She slowly put one of the cups on the table on a plate. She said to Jafar, "I think they will be okay, here is your tea!" when she said that she took a sip of her own and let out a sigh.
Jafar was doubtful of this -- Vira had nailed him pretty good with her fingernails, though he had trimmed them as best he could before inflicting her upon the public. Thinking that she knew what was best for her own child though -- perhaps playfighting was just as important in Fen as it was for Milva? -- Jafar at last left the two children and followed the sound of china clinking against a table. Reaching out and finding the edge of it, and then searching through the air with his other hand for a chair, he at last located one and slipped into it. "Thank you," He said gratefully, finding his cup and raising it to his lips.
Vira yowled at the hair-pulling, turning towards Lien and huffing indignantly towards her. First she kicked her and now this! She was clearly the superior one, especially because her hair was shinier! Such disrespect could not be tolerated! "Gihgrhe," She said, clearly meaning, 'apologize to me right now, peon!'
She otherwise made no move to counterattack though -- perhaps she had something nefarious up her sleeve, or perhaps she was so blinded with her own pride that the concept of 'strategy' was completely lost on her.
"Mmmhmm!! Of course. I am happy that you are able to come here with me. I don't come here very often, and I'm happy that it's with you. You are a great person. Though you may be judged differently because of being blind, but you are a very kind person at heart." Seed said in between sips. She blew the tea first, to show her manners, and then took small sips, trying not to singe her tounge.
Lien was very angry at the child for saying such rude things. She said, "Gerro!" which meant something like, "How rude! I won't apologize now! meanie!"
Just then, Seed's eyes widened as she just realized how late it was getting! "Uh oh! The sun is already setting! We've been here for a really long time now! I'm sorry to cut it short, but I think I have to go!" she felt very rude to just leave right in the middle of her tea. "Here is where I am currently staying at." she said as she wrote it down on a napkin. She neatly folded it and handed it to him. "I'm not sure I will be there in about 2 weeks, but I will try to see you again soon! I will probably stay around the area though." She then picked up Lien, just as she was about to hit Vira, and ran off, "Byee!!"
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Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2006 6:25 pm
.__________________transformation
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Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2006 6:28 pm
.__________________diary
Dear Diary,
More Will Come Soon (after Lien's growth or noticing her growth) (this is pretty much a reminder to do a diary entry XD)
Sincerely,
Seed
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