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 Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 4:14 pm
Oh geeze, there was a new and unknown tone of GLEE in her voice, and Asteria could not, for the life of her, figure out why that was. Ah well, perhaps she'd brought some happy little thought to Moacyr's mind (Oh she had no idea). That was all and good.
Instead she was like any good 'helper' and threw herself into (not literally) the investigation of how things were coming along, ever so curious as to see the status of things. Oh yes, if she were to remember how to make this (oh if she said she'd have to try her hand at it again sometime, she might have been smothered), she had to see how things went along.
But she was also oh-so-prepped to go haul the 'Adoptive Father' out of his study, smiling brightly. "Yes, Mom~"
And off she was, probably leaving the 'mom' to have more internal squeefits of some sort while she roamed the hall,looking at all the doors and half-distracting herself with them.
That wasn't cranes, that looked like a plant of some sort, Lily pads maybe?, Umm... not cranes... s**t! What was a crane?!
She hadn't even thought to ask the question (again, the stupid one) before she finally found a door that looked like some kind of a bird, having gotten the others out of the way by a process of elimination, before tapping on it lightly (announcing she was going to poke her head in) before opening it slightly.
"Heeeellllooooooo?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 4:43 pm
... Well, maybe she should have elaborated on just what a 'crane' looked like (as in, no, not a plant, or a flower or a butterfly) to make the door hunting a little easier, but at least she'd managed to find it in relatively good time anyway and, upon pushing the door open...
Good lord that hinge creaked like a beast; had it ever been oiled? And the smell of the air inside was like a mix of... aging paper and paint?
The room inside was only partially lit due to the enormous book shelves cutting off light before it could reach the opposite wall, all stuffed to the brim with volumes that all seemed decades old-- and in the corner, the farthest and most extreme niche of the place, there was... a desk.
A desk with a kerosene lamp and a book on top of it.
And a sand-colored male hovering over said book with half-moon spectacles balanced on the far end of his nose and a very concentrated look on his face.
... Which melted the instant another voice came chiming in.
"Well, salutations there, my dear!" he all but radiated pleasantness as he turned over one shoulder, smiling as brightly as his wife and then some. "What brings you to this destitute corner of the household, hmm?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 5:13 pm
It was like being overwhelmed with knowledge that she didn't have, Aster keeping herself from shrinking up against the door once again due to being overwhelmed by the large bookshelves, half looking at them, and even managing to pull one of the anthems (bad manners go!) off of a shelf to look through it carefully.
Yep, a lot of shapes she didn't know (or rather, for the most part didn't know. She could write and read her name and 'Help Wanted') and no pictures to give her any idea what was going on.
Which prompted her to shut it, crinkling her nose as she got another nice waft of dusty old-book smell and carefully putting it back in it's place.
And then the typical 'What?' face.
...
Then again, this man wasn't privvy to just how stupid little Aster was yet.
"Umm... I don't know what you just called this corner of the house, or that Salu-something word, sorry.... but um... Mom sent me to come get you...?"
With that statement she carefully motioned over her shoulder towards the door, more in the direction of the kitchen, then shrunk a little bit. Yeah, this room made her feel more uncomfortable than the rest of the house in it's own special way.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 7:56 am
Thankfully Langston didn't appear to mind the show of 'bad manners' whatsoever as one of his precious (they were precious, right?) books was yanked off the shelf for investigation, just continuing to smile sugar-sweetly and observe over one shoulder as she made her (FAILED) reading attempt.
Judging by the look on her face, it seemed she was having some trouble of it, too... and the 'illiterate' suspicions were quickly validated once she spoke up again.
Well, that was perfectly alright; he'd happily teach her all she needed later (god only knew he'd been trying with their guest for a good week now)!
"Salutations is simply a greeting, if you're so curious to know," he pointed out, though it was a far more cheerful and pleasant informative 'rant' than his son had ever granted her. "A... friendly hello, if you will-- with a touch of cordiality on the side... but I digress, why, per chance, would my darling be harkening to me now?..."
Perhaps he was just rambling to himself there, because a few sniffs of the air (mmm, that cooking smell had seeped all through the house now) made him give pause.
"Well now, have you two young charmers been up to antics in the kitchen?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 8:30 am
She was surprised she didn't have a neon 'ILLITERATE' sign flashing above her head.
"Ah.... well, smaller words treat me a little better." she replied with a sheepish smile, already wondering where on earth Yossarian's personality had spawned between his two utterly delightful (not to say Yoss wasn't, just not in the same semi-traditional 'pleasant' way) parental units.
She waited for his rambling to end and the proverbial gears of thought to come to a halt before she could answer, before he'd again produced a thought for her to answer.
It was innocent enough.
"Well I've been playing helper for Mom, so... yes? I think it was moreso she was doing the work and I was throwing myself into cupboards."
At least she was semi-honest about it, though? Nothing wrong with throwing oneself into a cupboard now and then!
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 9:21 am
Well even if she did have a giant neon sign about it, dearest Langston wasn't the sort of fellow to make ill comments. No, he was too sweet for that-- and as he'd already reasoned, such a problem could be corrected easily with time!
... Damn, both parents had already made a niche for their new 'daughter' so fast, hadn't they? Poor Aster couldn't have escaped if she tried... and she didn't even realize how deep she was in yet.
"Have you now?" Oh, the affirmation just got him smiling all the more broadly, taking a moment to snuff the lamp, bookmark whatever page he'd been reading, and push his chair in as he stood to address her more properly. "Well, that sounds like more help than I could ever give her!" Then, a woeful pout (if only for a moment). "... Seeing as she won't allow me passage into the kitchen."
But that was all discarded quickly, back to the bright, the bubbly, the pleasantly upbeat (as if he'd ever been down in the first place, ha!), abandoning his workspace to head over towards the door.
"Well then, shall we all go have a nice meal together, hmm? No need to keep my radiant goddess waiting!"
... His radiant what now?
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:11 am
Though why Langston would have considered her a daughter so quickly when she herself had not spoken to him about her knowing Yossarian (and as far as she was concerned, neither had Moacyr), so she wouldn't know how deep she was in the rut until the rut had solidified around her.
"Ah, that's unfortunate. You seem more at home in this place though.." she commented.
And she seemed to be itching to get out of it before one of the anthems sprung to life and attempted to devour her alive. But at least she was attempting to humor the man... at least until she was baffled with his poetically romantic title for his wife.
....
Her brain had tried to connect such a mindset to Yossarian and broken a little bit.
"Um.... yes?"
Yeah, that had felt like a proper response to that, but it also sounded like an opportunity to go and flee from the study. Dear god she must have seemed like a kid and vegetables with how she was feeling in the room.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:59 am
But alas, Langston had no idea that his chipper antics (and the attempted comparison of himself and his son) had broken poor Aster's brain, just skirting on past the girl with a little 'come hither and follow along!' wave, leading the way out of the room and waiting until she'd taken her leave to politely shut the door.
"What delightful aromatics," he mused, perhaps to her, perhaps to himself, already seduced by the smell of his 'goddess's' cooking as he trailed off on the 'hunt' for their meal. "Ah, my stomach is already howling with joy at the prospect of such wondrous fare-- I do so look forward to it!"
Just how the hell had Yossarian come from these people, honestly?...
"And there she is!" Sure enough, Moacyr had wandered out to the dining room, having already set the pots (the meat and vegetables had all been combined, with only the rice remaining on its own) in the center of the little four-seater table, and had just arranged the last bit of silverware... which was good, because her darling husband had just (once AGAIN) blindsided her with a snug embrace around the middle.
"It smells amazing, darling," he cooed at her, which just earned a smile.
"Well thank you, dear. Asteria was a great help... Shall we settle down an enjoy the meal, then?"
"Oh, verily!"
The gushing and affection in this family was just... unbelievable, really.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 1:44 pm
She was tempted to just revisit the 'Small words plz' thought with him as she trailed along behind the older male (who knew the house, unlike herself), the feeling of 'Need to flee, don't belong her' slowly building up.
That might have been why, instead of entering the dining space when Langston all but threw himself at the chef (appreciation for the cook most definately), she just loomed at the doorway, staring at everything. Oh the family structure was killing her a little inside.
And for a few seconds it didn't seem like she knew what to do with herself. Go in, stay here and stare, go in, stay out, go in, stay out??
Oh yes, the 'gushing in this family' had scared her to death, leaving her to just make an odd face and look extremely awkward in the hallway, before she finally creeped into the room (for a bad analogy; like an abused dog into a new home), her entire posture sunken.
...
Okay, maybe she could survive this, but damn if she wasn't trapped here.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 5:50 pm
And of course the man was blissfully oblivious to just how anxious he'd made the new 'daughter' with his antics, cooing at his wife and giving her cheek an innocent kiss before he released her, skirting around to take a seat at the table like some eager sand-colored puppy awaiting its meal.
... Thankfully, however, Moacyr had seemed to catch on to her fellow female's 'distress' instead, smile turning a bit more sympathetic as she made a little 'oh, please do step in and join us at the table' pat on the back of a chair she'd been idling near.
She'd have to educate her husband on the girl's more sensitive aspects privately that evening, hmm.
"Now, come and get yourself a plate, Asteria." She kept a bit of a purr to her voice as she spoke, if only for reassurances sake, before sitting down. "It's quite hot, but I do hope you enjoy it. Thank you so much for helping me earlier."
"Well it smells just divine," Langston chirped-- of whom was already getting a nice heap of rice and dumping a healthy two ladles full of the orange-y, almost stew-like stuff on top. "What a lucky man I am for such excellent culinary tastes in the family."
"... Now, darling, let's not overwhelm our guest with flattery just yet..." Good thing one of them was nice enough to temper that delighted raving. "Keep in mind that you do come on a little strong for some."
"Oh?" And there was just a chuckle. "Do I now?... Well, my apologies then! I mean no harm in my passions, really..."
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 8:37 pm
She seemed to sink a little more when the chair was patted, bidding her to sit, carefully sinking into the chair (surprisingly enough not under the table as well), and staring at the table with a slight frown on her face.
Frankly she should have been excited to some extent about this whole thing, and for a while she had been, but now the familiar feeling of worry and being nervous caused her stomach to twist a little bit. In fact, as was in a familiar previous scenerio, she almost wanted to excuse herself and flee from the table.
Instead she forced herself to not utterly disappear under the table to cower with her chair as well as not vomit from the twisted feeling in her stomach.
Ugh.
And not make some negative comment. That was good too.
"I don't know if my stomach could handle food right now.." she admitted, her head half-sticking up from under the table (yes, she'd sunk that far), sort of leering at everything on the table in an almost adorable manner.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 8:52 pm
Once again, Langston, for all of hsi charm and enthusiasm, seemed to be the one lagging when it came to being 'clued in', just blithely dipping a fork into his freshly heaped plate and grinning from ear to ear at the taste of it (which was apparently as good as the smell) until he looked over, saw that their 'guest' was disappearing under the table... and glanced hopelessly at his wife.
Thankfully, she seemed to know what she was doing-- or so read her smile. Always with the smiles, that one.
She'd already reached over to pick up Aster's plate, kind enough to scoop up a (comparably dainty) little half-portion of the rice and curry before setting it in front of her.
"Now, now, that's only the nerves talking, dear." It seemed she was already very aware of everything, "take a bite and try it before you let the fear get to you, hmm? How's the spice in there, Langston?"
"Oh, just splendid--"
"Well then, you heard him, dear. Wouldn't you at least like to give that splendid spice a try first?..."
Oh, the persuasive powers of a parent. Or parents. But Moacyr was obviously the one wearing the pants in this particular situation anyway.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 9:07 pm
Ugh, spices... spices. SHE WAS BEING TEMPTED ALONG BY HER LOVE FOR THEM.
Damn it all, it was working just as Moacyr had been planning too. Aster didn't exactly throw herself back up into her chair, but was well enough to half-sit herself in it (but on the edge, which would allow her to easily slide back under the table if needed), the same strained frown stretched across her face.
However, Moacyr's oh so subtle and manipulative (though it was all out of parental love, she was sure.. or rather was clueless of at all) ways worked, Aster looking over her shoulder, almost like a paranoid 'ritual', before carefully picking up her fork (nobody to throw it at)...
...
Ugh, it wasn't like anybody was sitting there with baited breath to watch and see if she liked it.
Didn't prevent her from, almost overprotectively (and as if eating in front of people was the oddest thing for her), grabbing the plate and pretty much sinking underneath the table with it.
Oh yes, Aster had LOST TEH EPIC BATTLE.
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Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 8:25 am
... AND VICTORY TO MOACYR OF THE GREAT MOTHERLY PERSUASIVE POWERS.
Not quite the victory she'd been expecting, per se, seeing as dear young Asteria had just vanished under the table like some sort of cowering puppy, but... at least she had dragged her plate along with her, and that was enough to earn a light smile from not one, but both parents, exchanging some vaguely amused look between themselves.
"Well, now that that's settled..." Heaving a light (though not displeased) sigh, Moacyr finally collected a plate for herself and sat down, with particular care not to kick their third guest underneath when she did so, at the table. "Let's all have a nice supper, hmm?..."
Yes, a nice meal with two people topside and one burrowed out of sight like a cowering dog, but... well, baby steps.
"I'd love to hear of your adventures when you're comfortable to speak down there," she added on sweetly, before looking to her husband. "... She's been traveling all over with Yossarian, darling, and two others."
"Oooh, has she now?" Aster probably couldn't see the delighted grin on Langston's face, but his voice was practically bubbling over with excitement anyway. "And two lovely ladies crossed paths by chance? Oh, it must've been fate!"
"Yes, something like that, I'm sure."
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Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:41 am
Not 'cowering' under the table, moreso as sitting somewhere that was 'comfortable' in her own way. She was more used to a table setting where people didn't exactly converse or look at each other or sit in more than groups of two.
Or at a table at times.
In fact, she seemed more than happy to be the ominous voice from under the table after she'd 'tested' the portion of food she'd been given and 'obliged' to under motherly-charms. A process which only took about 10 minutes before she again poked her head out from under the table, though on Langston's side.
Yep, she had to give him the awkward appraising leer, before practically retreating back to her proper seat, plate coming along for the ride.
But she didn't exactly seem to throw herself at an actual helping of the meal, instead simply tapping her fingers on the table awkwardly.
"There.." pause. God, where did she start with these 'adventures'? Was it really her place to document them? It felt so odd to her, really.
"There really aren't 'adventures'. The 'adventures' are more like a series of very horrible events strung along by chance, luck, and a lot of very close calls."
Well that's what they felt like to her.
"First, three months ago, give or take some time, my home, 'The Glass Highway' tavern burnt to the ground, in the process of said incident I got a concussion and split the back of my head open. Yossarian took me to a clinic to get my head fixed, as well as remained with me so I could get some semblance of 'settled' in my life.
We met Shae and Kanda the next day and by a series of .." 'Manipulative mannerisms on my part' "cooincidences the four of us sort of 'stuck' together, despite nobody really wanting to be there. It was about a week or so" really that short of time?, "later that we took a job to pick up a man who had escaped from jail..... His crime was that ten years previously he'd killed his wife and attempted to harm his young child. His name was Keeko Georgelas and while Yossarian did take the man out, he himself was stabbed."
Her face sort of twisted, as if her mind was reliving the horrible memory. So vividly, in fact, it was shortly after that her little bout of tears resumed. Why was she so terrified of that thought then?
Was it because she didn't know where Yossarian was or what condition he was in?
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