The Misadventures of Riley & Kit: Left Holding the Baby
Forest Lake - Paquin
Down a simple branching dirt path in the thick Paquin woods, wide enough for a hover mule to get through and most defiantly a horse, sits a lake about two kilometers wide with nothing but wooded foot hills surrounding it. It's almost a geometrically round, completely blue and calm, reflecting the sky with absolute perfection. Streams and brooks break the wooded area on their way to the water.
The path ends in a camping area that leads to a dock for non motorized boats. The dock made of logs and split wood reaches out into the water for fishing and boating. The place is tranquil with the sound of streams flowing over rock and gravel to blend with the lake. Birds and wild life frequent the area, the sounds of their coming and going lend a symphony of sound to the quiet.
Walking paths begin here many making their way farther into the woods or around the lake for fishing from the shore.
Gypsies, gypsies everywhere...not that Kit particularly minds them or the fact that a fair few of the men are rather good looking, but she can't quite figure out why they are still on Paquin. However, she isn't drinking beer and playing cards with gypsies, no...she's on kid duty with Riley. That means juice, wholesome-ish foods and little ears which hear everything. "Right, here are the rules...," hands on her hips she stands over the kids, "no running off. No, jumping like mad fu-dgers into the lake, no kicking Riley in the balls no matter how much you might feel like it. No slapping each other or I get to slap you." Her brows lift and she looks over at Riley to see if he wants to add any rules. <English>
"And for God's sake try and be quiet." Riley adds rubbing his temple. He's wearing dark sunglasses today to make up for the fun he had last night. <English>
The kids just look at them blankly. They know who Riley and Kit are, and trust that they're going to keep them safe but even so they are a bit uncertain of the grouchy woman and the hungover man. It is the girl, Sarai, who just blinks at them. Being so small she doesn't quite understand but Stephen does and rolls his eyes. He's at the eye rolling age.
Reaching down Kit picks up Sarai by the back of her dungarees, it's a game to the toddler who squeals with delight, clapping. For Kit however, it's more of a...'how do I hold it?' She looks at Riley, unlike him Kit is not nursing a hangover which might well be a point contributing to her irritation. <English>
Riley watches the children warily. Not exactly how he planned to spend his day. "I don't think thats how you do that." he says as Kit lifts the girl. When he turns back Stephen is gone. "Shhh-oot, where did he go?" <English>
When Sarai is thrust back at her Kit holds the baby's wriggling body against her chest giving the girl a new toy to play with...Kit's long hair. TUG! YANK! "Gor-darn kid," grouses Kit as she tries to tilt her head back away from the very same eight-month-old she is holding. Her blue gaze tries to search for a sign of the girl's eight-year-old brother. "Well he can't have gone far."
In fact Stephen hasn't gone far at all. He comes out from behind a rock, zipping up his fly and looks at the scowling adults, "What?" Wiping his hands on his pants, because hey his mom isn't around, the scared boy with his lame right arm walks back over to them with an obvious reluctance. <English>
Riley sighs glad he didn't lose one of Esthers kids. "How did we get roped into this again?" he asks Kit. Meanwhile Stephen has found a large stick, which has become both a gun and a sword. <English>
"Fu-" Kit looks down at the hair pulling baby again and yanks her own hair free of the girl's hammy fists. "Clearly we drew the short straw." She turns Sarai around so the baby is facing outwards and declares, "Holding her the other way was better." Yes, hoisting the baby up by the back of its clothes was preferable, at least to Kit. She looks over at Stephen and smirks then says to Riley, "So what do we do with 'em? He likes fishing. I guess we could fish? Or go for a walk? We just need to keep him away from the C-A-M-P-F-I-R-E." Kit spells it outloud, thinking Stephen won't understand.
Stephen clearly understands. "I am eight, not four. I can read, Kit." He whacks a stone with the end of his sword-gun-stick and sends it skittering down into the lake. His head turns and he looks at Riley, "Did you get real drunk again?" <English>
Riley chuckles "No, I just have a headache." He says to the kid kind of shortly. He really is bad with kids. "See if you can go shoot something with that gun of yours." He looks back at Kit and shakes his head. <English>
Stephen looks at Riley and then at Kit, "Are you really married?" And so begins the bombardment of questions! "How come you never wear shoes, Riley?" He hardly takes a breath between them. "Why are you so much taller than him, Kit? Doesn't it seem weird? All the other women are lots shorter. Why are you so tall? Is your family tall? My mom says you're from Boros. What's it like there? Are you going to have a kid? Everybody seems to have babies on the ship. My mom. Chloe. Everybody." The barage stops as he whacks another rock and waits expectantly for answers.
Sarai shoves her fist in her mouth and gums it, rubbing it against her sore gums. This causes her drool to run down and over Kit's bare forearm after a much shorter time than one would expect. "Aww man!," Kit grumbles, realising what is on her arm and shoves the baby at Riley so she can wipe herself off. "That's gross." Stephen's questions just get him a funny look, "Riley doesn't think I'm too tall," she says in an annoyed and rather childish tone of voice when the kid hones in on a sore spot. <English>
Riley takes Sarai and sorta holds her at arms length. Not knowing what to do. He looks at her sideways and squints. This thing becomes a regular person? He tries to ignore Stephen's questions, but the barrage is too much. "You know what happens when you ask too many questions right? People get mad, and turn into reavers and eat you." <English>
Sarai reaches out with her wet, saliva sticky hand and grabs onto Riley's arm as she looks at him with her big blue eyes. There is a moment, a teensy hint of her teetering mood. Were Riley clever he'd pull her in closer to make her feel comfortable and prevent any possible wailing and crying.
Stephen smacks another rock with his stick. "No they don't. This is boring. I want to do something fun. You guys are boring old people."
Kit meanwhile has high tailed it to the water's edge to wash off her arm and is making her way back...slowly. <English>
Riley unfortunately isn't that clever and still holds the baby out. "You want some fun? I can show you some fun. You know how to swim?" He's looking at Kit pleading with her mentally to come take this child from him <English>
Little Sarai blinks her wide blue, tear-filled eyes then sniffles and when Riley still hasn't complied begins to cry. Loudly. Her little round face turns red as she gets herself all worked up.
Stephen isn't any more eager to be cried on than Riley and begins to siddle away from the man who clearly knows nothing about babies. "I can kinda swim," he says loudly so he can be heard over his sister. With a lame arm it is, undoubtedly difficult to swim.
"What did you do?" Kit demands of Riley in a clearly accusatory tone. "Aren't you supposed to be good with women?" The second comment is more sarcastic. She crosses her arms over her chest and stands there, watching. <English>
Riley shrugs "I didn't do nothin. Take this thing please." He shouts over the screaming child. <English>
"Why? Because I'm the woman?" Kit isn't really the maternal type. She leaves it a bit longer before coming to Riley's aid, and even then has to say, "I'm only doing this so she shuts up." Sarai is confused briefly as she gets handed over again, but as Kit holds her closer she quiets down.
"I'm not changing her when she poops. Or pees." Stephen just feels like he has to get that stated now, because even he - at eight - can see these two adults are a bit hopeless. <English>
Riley is glad to be free of that screaming bundle of 'joy'. "Don't worry kid I'm right there with ya." <English>
Kit scowls at the pair of them, "Men," she mutters. "Fine then. I'll have the baby," she tells Riley, "but you have to entertain the boy." Smirking smugly, she clearly thinks she got the better end of the deal as the baby quietly gums its own fist again.
Stephen's scowl is pure Esther. "I have a name," he informs Kit matter-of-factly. "Are you sure you're married to her? She's tall and ugly and mean," he tells Riley, giving Kit a bit of a glare. <English>
Riley picks him up and carries him to the waters edge. "No I think your just jealous cause your short, have no taste, and no respect." With that he tosses him in. Deep enough not to hurt him but not so deep he couldn't stand up. He waltzed back with a smirk on his face a mile wide. <English>
Rather than be concerned, which you know a normal person might be, Kit just laughs. "Aww, baby, you picked on a snot-nosed brat for me. It must be love." She shifts the baby on her hip, realising that drool was getting dangerously close to her smartcomm, and swaps sides. Her gaze slides towards Riley as she comes to stand nearby, "So what did you get up to last night?" <English>
Stephen comes up sputtering. He throws his stick towards the shore but it misses and floats on the water. Shaking his head, he sends water flying out from his hair and starts to stomp back towards the others. "That's not fair!" <English>
"You know I honestly can't remember what I did last night. I wanna say there was some drinking" He laughs at the bedraggled little boy as he trudges back onto try land. Which was a mistake. Stephen managed to scoop up a big handful of sludge form the bottom, and he flings it right in Riley's face. The pilot sputters and a spits as the boy runs away. "Alright *ptew* It's on now." He stands and runs after him <English>
As they run off Kit hollers after them, "That'd better be all that went on Riley O'Hare!" Sarai shakes her fist as if in feminine solidarity, but really all it does is mean more slober ends up on Kit's arm. With a sigh Kit looks around and spies the bag of things Esther made them take, then hefting it onto a shoulder she heads off slowly after the pair. <English>
The brat is quick and Riley doesn't feel like running. He wipes the mud off his face as he chases, but he hasn't caught him yet. "Gorrammit kid get your ass over here. You mother will kill me if you get hurt." <English>
Stephen is quick, even with one lame arm. He's learned how to hold it to his side and compensate for its dead weight. Calling back over his shoulder he says, "You didn't even get any in your eyes." Though that's probably down to Riley's sunglasses more than it is Stephen's bad aim. He darts behind another tree and keeps running, because it's more interesting than just standing there. But his wet clothes are heavy and uncomfortable. After a while he stops and sits on a log.
Kit isn't even bothering to be stealthy as she stalks after the two of them. "This is why men are annoying," she tells the baby girl. "You end up with one and then you have to go wandering after him every so often to make sure he doesn't make too much of an ass of himself. Maybe you'll end up a lesbian. I hear it's easier." <English>
Riley is out of breath and annoyed. He stalks over to find a place to sit next to Stephen on the log. "Your pretty quick." He waves when he sees his wife coming up to let her know every things fine. <English>
Stephen looks up at Riley and just nods. "I'm cold. And hungry. Cold and hungry." He rests his lame arm on his lap and looks grumpy in the way only an eight-year-old can.
Kit reaches them a few minutes later, her long stride easily tearing up the distance. "What's say we eat whatever this is your mom packed for lunch and then maybe play some ball. Riley's pretty good at it. He played a lot when we were kids." She shrugs the bag off, letting it fall to the ground then lowers herself onto the log and sets the baby firmly between her feet before leaning over to open the bag and take out the sandwiches, chips and fruit. There is even a couple of packets of baby food complete with spoon. <English>
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