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Post by Satra on Mar 7, 2009 14:03:53 GMT -5
Hadrian nodded, closing his eyes and enjoying the scratching. It just felt amazing.
"Heh, yeah, but I'm one of two Clubs in my family... the other I'm not sure has interest in the Court," at least he hope she didn't. He didn't want to imagine that girl in a seat of power, "Though Mom's interested in meeting him..." he yawned again. Oh, this was too nice, "as is Dad," he was begining to ramble, what was he talking about again?
And then the pup attacked him.
Radek mistook Mommy's tired, half-hearted growl as something playful. Then the black and purple one growl for real. He looked up at her with curiosity. Then he was suddenly picked up by the scruff of the neck and stared down. The tail stopped wagging immediately and tucked under his belly. He stared back at her with huge, gold eyes. After a few seconds he gave her a small lick under the chin, ear back, and tail giving a weak apologetic wag.
Hadrian just watched. That was basically the way his own mother had treated him... maybe Radek would be smarter and not need a constant reminder? He really wished he had it in him to that with conviction.
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Post by The Jenn on Mar 7, 2009 14:27:27 GMT -5
Anoushka continued to stare the pup down until he gave her a small lick under the chin, very submissive and apologetic. Then her muzzle twitched and she looked at him with a more bemused, curious expression. "Good."
That face was stupidly adorable. She'd seen Hadrian make it once or twice. "I think the only reason that people don't kill their children must be the faces they can make," she grumbled, putting him back down and pushing him to go back out into the field. "Go on. Attack a rock or something."
She watched him for a second more, and then turned back to the man in her lap. "You should invite your parents here. If nothing else, they can vatch him for a few hours vhile you sleep. Also, I don't know if I've met them, von or both. Anything that could raise you, I vould probably enjoy talking to. Maybe you can get a few tips."
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Post by Satra on Mar 10, 2009 15:06:29 GMT -5
The puppy stared at her for a little bit, not really understanding fully what she said. She it became apparent she wasn't going to do anything else, he turned around and looked for something else to bother. He found a twig not too far away and pounced it, giving surprised yelp and stared when it made an alarmingly loud snap and broke into two pieces. As soon as the initial shock was over, he picked up one of the pieces in his mouth and thrashed it from side to side.
"That would be really neat..." he muttered before drifting off to sleep.
----
A few years later, Hadrian had received the news. He read the letter over several times to make sure he hadn't misread any of it. It had to be a joke. It had to be a cruel, unfunny joke Mom was trying to pull over him.
Xiven's father had committed suicide, Lior left, Rhiannon went with him, leaving Pale and Xiven behind. No one knew where the two were.
He needed some time to register everything. Rhi... missing. His hackles raised. Missing because of that pussy emo piece of shit. How could she choose him over Xiven?! Oh, Suits, Xiven! Hadrian couldn't imagine what she was going through right now. She was one of the few people he actually liked there... He couldn't do anything, save for just stare at the bad news brought to him in black and white. He wasn't aware of the puppy demanding attention from him.
Radek was reaching four now and was eager to learn and cause trouble. Mommy was supposed to teach him how to wrestle today. Why was he just sitting there?!
Frustrated, he left the room. Daddy was always able to get Mommy moving!
He raced through the halls to get to Anoushka's office. When he got there, he scratched on the door. "Daddy?"
[If this is too large of a time skip, let me know. I'll be more than happy to save this bit and bringit back when we get to it. :3 ]
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Post by The Jenn on Mar 10, 2009 20:11:34 GMT -5
Anoushka hadn't yet heard that yet more bad news had befallen the Court of Hearts, which was in a state of constant upheaval after the political mess of their power transfer and the unstable madman on the throne. She'd written to Bernard for an explanation on that front and to see if he was still the King of the Court and had only received a very brief, vague response that looked as though it had been written in haste and while tired. She'd read enough of the man's writing over the years to guess at that. It worried her, that and her own Queen's reaction to the news. Oh, to live in interesting times.
Her own body had become more 'interesting' over the past few years, in that she wished to gnaw on it until it obeyed her commands. Her joints were giving her serious problems, especially when the weather changed up as it had been doing recently, and she would swear that her vision was getting a little bit fuzzy in the center. Her teeth were letting her know that most of them were just about done, despite the care she paid to them, and her back... had begun killing her at odd, random times. None of it was enough to curb her energy, but it did serve to limit the activities she could allow herself. It made her want to kick a puppy.
Except... not that one. She'd become fond of the little monster. With a grunt, she pushed herself out of her chair and stretched stiffly, then made her way over to the door. "Vhat is it, Radek?" she asked with a tired sigh that she hadn't meant to release, opening the door.
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Post by Satra on Mar 10, 2009 21:12:30 GMT -5
Radek wagged his tail vigorously when the door was opened and Daddy stepped out. He bounced forward and gave the old King a lick on the toes. The sigh went completely unnoticed.
"Mommy said he'd teach me to wrestle today and then he got a paper in the mail with a heart on it and he won't stop staring at it!" there was a very impatient tone to his voice. He just wanted to sic Daddy on Mommy, quite unaware of Hadrian's troubles.
Back in the room, Hadrian was finally coming to. The information was registering. Rhi and Lior gone. Xiven's father committed suicide, and Xiven herself left behind. He needed... something. He looked around the room. He didn't really want alcohol at the moment... but for some reason that didn't stop him from looking for it. A few minutes into looking for it, he realized that the mini-Anoushka was being... too quiet...
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Post by The Jenn on Mar 11, 2009 14:50:55 GMT -5
Anoushka's toes curled in silent protest of the attention, but it didn't really bother her. The child had to express it somehow, and her feet were much better than having him try to leap for her face as he'd used to. Hadrian had taken pains to teach him and it showed.
Her mouth fell into a worried line as he spoke. If Hadrian specifically were receiving anything with a Heart seal, there was a good bet it was from his family. The 'staring' part set her on edge as well, especially with the upheaval that had been visiting the Court for the past little while. Either someone had died or someone needed his help. Either way, she should check.
"Alright, then. Let's go find Hadrian and see vhy he doesn't vant to wrestle vith you right now." She began walking towards the Jack's room, confident that the pup would be bounding ahead or right on her heels.
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Post by Satra on Mar 11, 2009 15:42:43 GMT -5
YESSSS!!! Radek leaped in place in victory. He was going to get to wrestle and Daddy was going to make sure of it! Anoushka was very right in her assumption. Radek bounced along next to her, and behind and in front and around her. It was a wonder he didn't wear himself down on the way there.
Hadrian searched the room up and down for the pup... then saw the door that had been left wide open.
....dammit all.
I do NOT need this right now, he thought as he started following the boy's scent down the hall. Not too far down, he came across the boy he was looking for and Anoushka who was with him. That was...weird but okaay...
Radek pounced at the stressed-looking man.
"Yay! Now can we go and wrestle?!" yipping the one-track-mind of a puppy. Hadrian couldn't handle this right now. He just stared down the pup and growled, having finally learned to take a leadership role after all these years, though it was a touch harsher than he intended. Radek tucked his tail and looked confused. What had he done wrong?!
Anoushka. He just stared at her, very tempted to ask for the rest of the day off.
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Post by The Jenn on Mar 11, 2009 18:51:00 GMT -5
So much energy! Anoushka wished she could steal a bit of it, like some sort of magical leech. Really, the boy didn't need all of it, did he? Jumping around like an idiot wasn't so much a priority as it was loads of fun. She smirked and imagined grabbing his head to drain some of it away, leaving him tired and ready for a nap. Really, his other parent would probably thank her if she ever found a way to make that fantasy a reality. Maybe it would give Hadrian some more time to sleep.
Speaking of the other canine... she saw him coming down the hallways and didn't like the look on his face. It was stressed and drawn, but not in the same way as usual. No, this looked more serious. She made a grab for the pup before he attacked, but he could pounce far faster than she could bend over nowadays. It made her want to growl.
It seemed that Hadrian would handle that, though, which made her expression go from vaguely irritated to serious. Gold eyes stared into his for a moment before she reached out with one foot and planted it on the pup's back, forcibly dragging him closer to her. "Vhatever happened, do you vant to talk about it or be left alone? If it's that bad, I can vatch the monster." Even a few months ago she wouldn't have made such an offer, but it helped, being able to speak to the child and be understood to a degree. She could probably handle him for a few hours, and then dump him with one of the trusted staff if he truly became unbearable.
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Post by Satra on Mar 22, 2009 11:37:00 GMT -5
Hadrian's tail gave a weak wag. He ignored the squeak that came out of the boy as Anoushka dragged him back.
"That would... I would greatly appreciate that, thank you. It shouldn't be for too long." He certainly didn't want to test her patience, that offer by itself made him beyond happy not only for the situation on hand, but the hopes of a good relationship between Father and Son. "If... you had the time for it later, could we talk though? After I just... get my head on straight?" After he received his answer, his tail gave another small wag as he approached her and gave her hand a small lick as a show of appreciation.
"You be good for Daddy," was all he said to Radek before retreating to his room. The puppy made a face as he watched him leave. Then he whipped his head around to Anoushka, the rest of his body following in a somewhat clumsy manner.
"Why is he mad at me?" he demanded in a hurt voice.
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Post by The Jenn on Mar 23, 2009 10:24:43 GMT -5
"That's fine. I'll keep an eye on him for a little vhile," Anoushka agreed, watching his face and ears and the weak wag of his tail. She flexed her fingers to instinctively scritch at the side of his muzzle as he gave her a small lick. "If nothing else, I can throw him at a babysitter vhen you come find me. Ve vill talk."
The words were demanding, but they were delivered with enough concern that even Hadrian would be able to tell that they weren't meant harshly. She watched him go and grimaced, wondering what in all the hells had just happened, before looking back down at the pup.
"He isn't mad at you. Something happened and he can't play anymore. Ve'll find out vhat it is later. Now come on, let's stuff you full of food and make you fat and tired." With one foot, she nudged the child in the direction she wanted him to go.
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