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Post by Bee on Jun 18, 2010 18:48:00 GMT -5
Most of the time it was very difficult to settle everyone down at one time, what with Medea going to learn doubtless horrible things from Mom and Nephy sneaking off to the library and Sophy existing somewhere, she wasn't quite sure what was going on there--but the point was, getting everyone in a chair when they were supposed to be there was sometimes a daunting task. But Thalia felt very accomplished now. All it had taken was some cunning tentacle arrangement and a strategically placed Tosiek and bam! everyone was sitting down with their perfectly healthy snacks and lots of sugary juice and cookies in front of them. "All right, everyone," she said, dreamily, "the carrot sticks taste super good if you dip them in tartar sauce and then swirl them around in your juice a little bit." Nephy stared at his mother blankly and thought that maybe one day he was going to write a book about her. He stuck a carrot stick in his mouth and plotted the best escape route for making it back to the library.
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Post by seraaches on Jun 18, 2010 19:50:04 GMT -5
The man felt it was probably safe now to move in from the doorway, and he did so after another thoughtful pause. His family. It was amazing. It was frightening. And yet, he was still filled with a possessive love for them all. Despite the fact that it was incredibly difficult to keep them all in the same place. Shouldn't that come later? Like, when they were teenagers? Tosiek smiled at Thalia's suggestion for the carrot sticks, not concerned with the fact that she had almost certainly tried this combination. "The carrots also taste very good on their own," he countered easily. Medea crunched down hard on the carrot stick in protest. She was here under duress. And she really shouldn't be. But she didn't know how to tell her father to go away, especially since the last time she'd tried, she'd been bodily picked up and packed away into one of these wretched chairs that impeded her movement.
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Post by Kitty on Jun 18, 2010 22:44:20 GMT -5
People watching, that's what she liked to do. And she was already mastering the art of stealth ... which obviously hadn't helped her in this situation at all. She knew she should have hid in the rafters today instead of in that window sill. Her family most certainly wasn't as fun to watch as the others ... her favorites had to be the guests here that got lost. Of course it didn't help at all that she pointed them in the wrong direction on purpose ... it was fun. Far more fun then being subjected to a couch with her sibling. Nephy wasn't so bad, but her sister kind of ... irked her. It wasn't by any sort of personality dysfunction it was just the attention she got from grandma. It wasn't fair, not at all. She unsheathed one of her little claws and tapped at a carrot stick as if it were going to bite her. Bleh, carrots ... and tartar sauce? Even worse. Obviously her parents needed better taste in snacks, they should get some pointers from the kitchen ladies, they gave out the best little tidbits. The gossip was a nice little bonus of course.
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Post by Bee on Jun 19, 2010 0:22:08 GMT -5
"Sophy," said Thalia, as the girl poked at her snack as though it were an odious beast, "eat your carrot. None of you are leaving this table until you have eaten your snack." She'd read a lot of stuff about how when children didn't eat regularly, especially their breakfast, they got fat and got blood diseases and died. Also they didn't get the girl and turned into fish people. Or maybe that was another book. She paused, thoughtfully. "Also, speak of things."
She wanted her children to be good friends with each other, since she had missed the boat on having siblings anywhere near her age group. Everyone was an adult and out of the house before she was conscious of their presence. And everyone had angst or weird. Her children were going to play with each other.
Nephy said, "Okay. I read this book this morning about how we're all in a cave and we think we're seeing things but all we're seeing are shadows on the cave walls. So basically we're not at a table right now, because there is no table...or was it that the idea of the table exists separately from the table...? There are two different tables. We're at a table. Um. In a cave." He looked at Medea and said, worriedly, "Watch out for bears."
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Post by seraaches on Jun 19, 2010 0:38:04 GMT -5
Tosiek remained silent on Thalia's stance on both eating the snacks provided-- which he agreed was important-- and the children talking to each other. For how very different Thalia and he were, their children each seemed to be exponentially different from each other. He saw some of himself in Nephy, at least, but it was harder to pinpoint Thalia's influence on the girls. Medea seemed determined to become Mnem reincarnate-- a goal Tosiek was equally determined to keep from happening-- and he supposed that sort of single-mindedness might be an indication of Thalia. Sophy. . . well, Sophy he was most concerned about since she really wasn't anything like any of her family. He hoped she wasn't somehow ill.
The hybrid forced his attention to catch the tail end of Nephy's explanation of. . . caves? "I think it's always wise to watch out for bears," he said.
"That," she announced to Nephy. "Is stupid. GrandMnem says we should ex. . .expaind our minds in the channels that will benefit us the most and caves and tables that may or may not be there doesn't benefit anyone. You should spend more time on geography." And certainly not because that was one of her weaker subjects. She also hoped she'd quoted all of GrandMnem's words correctly; she wasn't entirely certain if she used them correctly.
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Post by Kitty on Jun 19, 2010 4:38:40 GMT -5
She poked at her carrot a bit more, ears back, before stabbing it with the unsheathed claw and nibbling on it. Well, if she had to eat the orange thing she was going to make up her mind completely whether she liked it or not ... and that meant eating it slowly.
First they forced snacks on her and now conversation? Wonderful. Really she was more of the listening/observing type, which probably helped her a ton in pursuing her hobby, but again it wouldn't help here.
Well, I heard some people talking in the dining hall about how thinking outside the box is a good thing. Maybe we're just supposed to think outside of a cave instead of some box?
She flicked her tail and continued to nibble on her carrot, which was proving to be a much more acceptable edible then it had previously been presumed to be. Alright, fine ... she liked them .... and she'd eat them a bit faster now.
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Post by Bee on Jun 20, 2010 0:05:58 GMT -5
Nephy pondered another carrot thoughtfully. He dipped it in tartar sauce and juice and ate it. He gagged and spat it back out on his plate. Mom was a lying liar who lied, that tasted like butt. He turned and looked at his sister, working out what he was going to say and how he was going to say it, because he felt that he had hit upon something interesting but he couldn't quite put it to words. He needed more words. What was his vocabulary word for today? Alacrity. Well, that one was useless.
He said, carefully, "I don't think any of us are thinking outside of any boxes if we're repeating what other people said." But that raised a troubling question. What about his authors and the smart things they said? They needed to be repeated. Yet, he also needed to be original.
More books. He needed them. Urgently. He stood up in a rush.
"Mommy," he said. "Brain needs food more than body! Lemme go!"
He bolted for the door but a tentacle grabbed him. Curse their reach! Curse it!
"Nephy, carrot. Carrot, Nephy."
Thalia was actually quite torn. She needed to enforce rules but...brain food...She understood the craving. She bit her lip.
"Daaaaaad," Nephy cried. "Tell her! Tell Mom I can go."
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Post by seraaches on Jun 29, 2011 23:51:31 GMT -5
Tosiek watched with amusement when the skunk made a bolt for it and was entirely unsurprised when Thalia caught him with ease. He sent his son an easy look and smiled cheerfully. "Carrots are good for your eyes, Nephy. We both need all of the help we can get. Finish your snack first then you can try asking to go again."
As far as he was concerned, all of his children, except, perhaps for Medea, were making fairly good points, even if they were generally parroting others' opinions for now. Children had to start somewhere, after all.
As such he eyed Medea first and replied dryly, "There's nothing wrong with expanded your mind in all channels, not just the ones that 'benefit' us. It's wise to be well-rounded. I think Sophy and Nephy both have good ideas."
"Of course you would," Medea stated loftily.
When the Diamond fixed her with a surprisingly steely gaze, however, she shrunk back slightly before she realized what she was doing. She made herself sit up and sent her father a blank, dark look-- well, the best one she could muster up, anyway-- but turned her attention to her plate as though it was her own idea. She daintily nibbled on a carrot, wondering when she could blow this Loser Stand and get back to GrandMnem.
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Post by Bee on Jun 30, 2011 0:46:09 GMT -5
Nephy stuffed so much carrot in his mouth that he nearly choked to death on carrot. This food had abruptly become his nemesis and he needed to conquer it, quickly and without mercy. After he finished his coughing fit, he tried again, with more success.
He sent Medea a little glance. So haughty! Mad Madame Mnem was a bad influence on her. She would never be a bad influence on Nephy because she hated Nephy, and that was just fine with him. He didn't need her and her creepy surgeries, all he needed were his books. His mind would glow with knowledge while Medea's soul blackened with wickedness.
He swallowed his last bite of carrot and took a long gulp of water, and ended the experience with the hiccups. Blast. Was there no end to his suffering?
"Mom!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "I have ingested the fearsome vegetable, may I please leave now?"
"Of course," Thalia said happily. "Go feed your brain now, it hungers for delicious words."
"Okayloveyouby--" But he was being stopped again.
"Of course," his mother began again, this time more thoughtfully, "of course I think all of you should get some brain-food, why don't you take your sisters."
Nephy made a face. "But I like being alone."
"The best part about being a parent," she said, even more thoughtfully, and Nephy thought he could almost see her crawling inside her own brain--and then she reached the epiphany: "is that sometimes, I do not have to care about what you like!"
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Post by Kitty on Aug 11, 2011 12:55:30 GMT -5
She ate what she thought was her fair share of the carrots on the plate, spearing one more on her claw to nibble on for good measure as she listened to the banter of her siblings and parents alike. Her ears pricked straight up when she heard her sister talk and she thought for a moment about cuffing the other girls ears but decided against it. No, she'd just get in trouble too and it was much more fun to watch, and listen, to her siblings get in trouble without being involved.
She finished her carrot after Nephy tried to make his grand escape, but was, of course, thwarted by their mother's will. A little grin crept onto her muzzle as she hopped off the couch and trotted up to her brother with her tail up and curled in a cheerful manner. She wanted to go with him anyhow, but now he couldn't be pissy and tell her to go away. Well, he could still be pissy, but he'd have to endure her presence or else mama would get him. So, really, it'd be fun for her either way.
Find me something fun, okay? Otherwise I'll just watch you the whole time.
A little purr rumbled up from her throat as she moved in to brush her fur against his and pat him with one of her little sparrow wings.
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