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Post by Basil on Aug 7, 2010 19:03:42 GMT 7
Eva wrapped her arm around her brother's shoulder. Her hand rested on his arm. Her other hand held his hand. She knew he was probably as worried as she was, if not more. She knew that he was seldom worried without a reason, but it was kind of annoying sometimes. She thought about it. It wasn't Gus' fault. He was more grownup that way. They should have listened to him.
"I trust Papa and Uncle Dante. Atty will be alright. Maybe just a cold?" She thought.
She tried to think of all the reassuring thoughts she could muster at the moment. Yet somehow, a sliver of doubt remained. She can't imagine anything bad happening to them. She knew the woods were dangerous but they were always safe. It was so strange! Atty can't be dying, can he? She quickly push that thought aside. She didn't want Gus to know she was thinking of that. It would make him feel worse.
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Post by Rae on Aug 7, 2010 19:13:23 GMT 7
I hope, Gus thought, feeling guilty. He shouldn't have suggested the lake. He should've known...
"D@mmit, he's not breathing," Dante muttered under his breath after the vital star disappeared.
Vergil willed his twin to shut up and pressed something shiny and blue to Atty's chest. There was a bright flash of light and Attticus started to cough up water.
Gus let out a sigh of relief and squeezed Eva's hand tigher.
Atty rolled over, coughing until the water was gone. He looked apoligetically up at his father and wrapped his arms around him...and cried. It had been the scariest thing that had ever happened to him. Atty didn't care about punishments or anything like that, just that his dad was here and was gonna keep them all safe.
Vergil watched his son for a while, putting his arm around him. He looked at his twin. "Take them back."
Dante frowned. He knew that look. Why did he have the feeling that every nymph in the lake was about to die?
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Post by Basil on Aug 7, 2010 19:25:39 GMT 7
Eva was glad that Atty was okay. She got up and pulled Gus up as well. She walked after Uncle Dante. She wished she could communicate with Atty the way he and Gus did. She wanted to comfort him. Did things like a metal hug exist? Metal? She remembered that it was words associated with the term psy-kick. She realized Papa wasn't following them. She stopped and looked back.
"What is Papa doing?" She thought.
She didn't know if she should continue following Uncle Dante. She didn't want Papa to leave. Mommy was probably waiting for them. Aunt Erin too if she was there. She reluctantly turned around and continued following. Papa asked Uncle Dante to take them back just now. She guessed that was the best option now.
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Post by Rae on Aug 7, 2010 20:47:10 GMT 7
"C'mon, kid," Dante muttered, trying to make the triplets keep walking. Atty was being cradled in his arms.
Probably putting up wards, Gus thought back, holding on to Eva. He could remember the last time father went around putting wards up. We're probably going to get punshied badly, huh?
---
Vergil watched the spell fizzle out. At least now the nymphs would no longer threaten them...but he was slightly worried about what Selena would say when she found out how badly he'd cursed them.
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Post by Basil on Aug 7, 2010 21:08:36 GMT 7
Eva nodded silently. She trudge back with Dante. She didn't care that she lost her left shoe. She was dreading the lecture they'll be getting once they get back. At least, Atty wasn't crying so much. Had he stopped? They were almost home. She quailed slightly when she saw her Mommy's face. She gulped.
"Now this is bad." She told Gus.
It really was! Aunt Erin wasn't smiling and she was always the cheerful one. Mommy, on the other hand, was always losing her temper. She shuffled like Tomtom. She didn't want to go back. They're so grounded! She wondered when they'll be allowed to play without supervision again. If Mommy ever lets them...
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Post by Rae on Aug 7, 2010 21:33:48 GMT 7
Augustus sucked in a deep breath, watching his mother. Oh dear.
"M-mother," Gus started soothingly, not sure what he was going to say.
Atty wiped at his tears as Dante set him down. The younger son of Sparda decided not to leave his nefew and neices this time.
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Post by Basil on Aug 7, 2010 21:46:25 GMT 7
Selena was glaring at them. Her arms were crossed as she tapped her foot impatiently. She was beyond angry. She would have killed them, but she loved them too much. She was still debating whether she should extend her initial punishment to three weeks. Erin smiled weakly as she lay a hand on Selena's shoulder.
"Selena, I know all of us are upset. But... erm... I think we should get the kids dried up first."
She walked over and scooped Atty up. "Don't you think so? Come on, they're cold and wet. You don't want them to get sick do you?"
She watched her friend out of the corner of her eye. She would definitely try her best to diffuse the situation. Selena always tends to overreact. She reached into her pocket. She wouldn't mind knocking her friend out for a couple of hours.
"We can decide on the punishment later..."
She blinked. Her friend had vanished. Knowing Selena, her friend probably teleported somewhere where she can vent her anger on "things". She pitied the trees and the shrubs.
She breathed a sigh of relief. At least, she didn't have to try and hurt her friend again. That will buy the kids some time. She smiled at Gus and Eva. "Shall we get all of you cleaned up? I have a hot bath prepared for you."
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Post by Rae on Aug 7, 2010 22:10:31 GMT 7
Gus almost refused Erin's offer, but he started shivering and decided against it. He nodded.
Atty wiggled to to get free of her grip...he didn't like being help by most people and his energy had returned enough for him to be irritated.
Dante chuckled and went inside. Kids...
---
Vergil was walking. He needed to think and calm down before he saw his family again. He couldn't admit, even to himself, that he had been afraid. If Gus or Eva or Atty had died...he didn't know what he'd do.
The half demon froze, watching someone appear.
"Selena?"
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Post by Basil on Aug 7, 2010 22:23:12 GMT 7
Erin led the triplets to the bathroom. She placed Atty down on the floor. Honestly, she had been afraid that she would have dropped him on the way there. She held onto Eva's shoulder. She beamed. "I hope you two don't mind sharing the hot water. I'm sorry I didn't have time to prepare more water. I'll be right over with your clothes. Eva, you come with me."
Eva grimaced as she was lead out of the bathroom. She knew where Erin was going to take her. She didn't want to go back to Mommy's other home. It was dismal there. She hated how everything was dark and quiet. "Must I? Can't I wait?"
"Fraid not. I don't want you to get sick." Erin said as she lead Eva to the portal.
"Don't worry, Tomtom is coming along."
She bent down and grabbed the curious tonberry by its collar. The poor thing struggled. It hated bath time even more than tea parties. It didn't want to bathe!
~+~+~+~+~
Selena landed in a clearing. She knew it wasn't not too far from the lake. At least, it was far enough for it to be safe if she happened to start a forest fire. She created a ball of flames in the palm of her hand and was about to throw it at the nearest pine tree when she heard someone calling her name. She lowered her hand.
"Vergil? What are you doing here?"
She didn't mean to sound so accusatory. She was still seething about the whole thing. She blushed slightly. Vergil didn't know about it either. She guessed she was partly to blame. She was supposed to be keeping an eye on the kids, but she was too distracted.
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Post by Rae on Aug 8, 2010 12:42:46 GMT 7
Atty and Gus exchanged looks.
You first, Atty thought.
You're the one who nearly drowned, Gus thought back, settling the matter.
Atty frowned, got undressed, and hopped in the tub. "This sucks," he muttered. "We'll be in trouble and we don't even know where Ma or Eva are."
"Or father," Augustus interjected, sitting on top of the counter.
"We're doomed," Atty whined, sulking as he washed his hair.
---
"Walking," Vergil informed her a bit curtly. He was seemingly impervious to the fact that he was still soaked and dripping water everywhere. "Dante brought them home, I take it."
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Post by Basil on Aug 8, 2010 16:13:55 GMT 7
"Yes. Erin decided that she wants to take charge again." Selena said waspishly. She was still annoyed with her friend. She wanted to deal with the kids the moment they got back, but Erin insisted that they should deal with the niceties first.
She sighed. Erin was right. She should think of their welfare first. It was best if she talked it over with Vergil first. There were a million things she'd like to do to the triplets, but each sounded harsher than the one before. She turned to him and noticed that his clothes were still dripping wet. She extinguished the fire ball in her palm. Then, with a flick of her wrist, she warmed up the air around Vergil and dried his clothes.
"That's better. Do you need more time to think or would you prefer to talk it out?"
She sat down on one of the boulders in the clearing. She crossed her arms. Both of them were equally worked up about the whole thing. Perhaps Vergil took it more to heart than she did. She wasn't there to see how bad it was. She wasn't sure if she wished she had.
~+~+~+~+~
Erin returned after she made sure that Eva was settled in the bathroom. She walked down the hallway and went into the boys' rooms and took out a fresh set of clothes. She put them onto the cupboard beside the toilet door. She knocked softly.
"Your clothes are outside. I'll be in the kitchen. Come over when you are done. I'll have some hot cocoa ready."
She walked down the opposite end of the hall and entered the kitchen. She lit the stove and began boiling a kettle of water. She looked out the window and sighed. She hoped Selena calms down soon. It would be a big headache if her friend decides to disappear again. The last time Selena did that, she was gone for an entire week.
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Post by Rae on Aug 8, 2010 16:52:06 GMT 7
Vergil sent a look of gratitude towards Selena and sat next to her. He watched the girl for a moment. Perhaps he'd been correct in his original assumption that neither of them could be successful parents.
"We need to talk," he murmured thoughtfully.
---
After a while, Gus and Atty finished their baths, dressed, and took to wandering the house looking for their sister.
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Post by Basil on Aug 8, 2010 17:20:40 GMT 7
Selena smiled and moved over a little so that Vergil can have more room. She was tempted to wrap her arm around his waist like she always did, but she guessed this wasn't the time. She looked up briefly as she considered what to say next. She wasn't sure how to start appropriately. She didn't want to land up quarreling with him.
"I wonder if we had the same things on our mind..." She murmurs softly.
She placed her hand gently around Vergil's and squeezed it. "Why don't you start first?"
For the first time in her life, she was reluctant to make the first move. She never felt so uncertain before. It made her rather nervous. She always had a plan. She hoped that Vergil won't agree with Dion. She didn't want to give up the triplets no matter what.
~+~+~+~+~
Tomtom was lying flat out on the bed. It was trying to cool down. The water was too hot! Now it can't stop perspiring. It was fanning itself with one of Eva's comic books. Eva looked away and glared at her reflection in the mirror. Even with short hair, Aunt Erin was still able to dress her up like a little doll. Why didn't she think of hair clips? Ribbons were bad enough, but this was far too cute.
She tugged at her strawberry hair clip and winced. She had to ask someone to remove it for her. She flopped down on her bed and sighed. Her lacy white skirt flared out around her. She ignored it. She was too busy worrying about what will happen when Mommy and Papa gets back.
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Post by Rae on Aug 8, 2010 17:46:32 GMT 7
"I have been trying to assess what the best way to punish the children is," Vergil told her. "Everything I've been taught is either too soft or too hard on them."
He frowned to himself, still thinking. He wondered how he was going to tell Selena about the nymphs.
---
Atticus snuck uo behind Eva and playfully, but subduely, tackled her. "Hey."
Augustus sat down on the bed as Atty pulled the clips out of his sister's hair. "Did Aunt Erin talk to you about what happened?"
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Post by Basil on Aug 8, 2010 18:14:33 GMT 7
Selena nodded. "That's what I was thinking as well..."
She could sense that he was worrying about something. She wondered if it had to do with what had happened. She moved closer to Vergil. "Maybe you should tell me what happened? Don't worry, I'll try to keep my temper in check."
She gave him a light kiss and whispered. "I think you are better at parenting than I am."
She believed he was. He might be strict at times, but it was for the best. His punishments were reasonable as well. Erin had suggested that she ought to listen to him more. She guessed Erin was right about this one. She wasn't really that motherly to begin with.
~+~+~+~+~
Eva looked up. "Hey!"
She hugged Atty tightly. She was glad that he was okay. She was scared that something might happen to him again while she was at Mommy's place. She ruffled his hair affectionately.
"No... she almost killed Tomtom though." She commented calmly as she pointed to her poor tonberry.
"Did she say anything to you two?"
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