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Post by jaydjasmyn on Jul 14, 2009 7:26:16 GMT -5
OOC- Yay! You posted! And yes I was aware of the camera thing. I was thinking a painting. What Caden said melted Jayd's heart. She 'was' beginning to view him as a real son but what kept her from cultivating that relationship was how Caden actually felt about 'her'. The fem grinned widely, the tears slowly drying up and disappearing. There was a new happiness that was filling her heart. At first it was an adjustment, meeting Lad, finding Caden, getting pregnant and then getting married but it was one that she was quickly settling into.
Proudly Jayd held up a two fingers and exclaimed. "I have two painted pictures of me! I can give one to each of you so that you don't forget what I look like." She eyed Lad, teasing him.
The things that Lad said and did also melted her heart. She believed him when he said things like that and she had her full trust in him. She knew that he would be faithful to her. And besides... The stoat-tess would work hard at giving him something wonderful to come home to.
Lad stood over the pair and rubbed his paws together. It made Jayd laugh but she had an idea of what she wanted to do. "I don't mind going along with you and Caden and maybe we can take a walk along the beach and do some other things that are free of cost." Yes indeed they needed to watch their wallets but the best things in life were free and Jayd knew that.
Jayd then squeezed Caden and let out a squeal of excitement, the stood, wrapping her arm around Lad waist as she looked up at him. "I'll be happy with an evening with you Lad but I think that we need to spend the day as a family." With bright eyes she looked toward Caden. "What do you think Caden? Do you want to make a family day of it?"
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 14, 2009 13:27:05 GMT -5
"Yeah!" Caden exclaimed, leaping down from the chair. Why....was he getting excited about this stuff? He never normally got excited because he was off doing his own thing.....always had been, and he assumed he always would be. But now...he had a family. A family....what did it mean? Was it this warm feeling he got, covering him like a blanket, making him feel safe?
Caden had grown up without one...but to feel needed....and to feel safe....were too things he had almost always lacked. Maybe this....maybe this was what a family meant. He charged up the stairs, heading back to his bed to replace the box and to retrieve his wood sword. He also reached for a model of the Boreas, Ladorak`s last ship that he had comanded before he received his shore leave. Every Captain obtained a model of their vessel, and Ladorak had one for all of his numerous commands. He had decided to give the Boreas model to Caden.
The albino held it carefully, as it had been paw crafted and was very delicate. He had found this out the hard way when he had snapped off the mizzen topmast, but Ladorak had crafted him a new one in a week or so and had told Caden to be more careful, which the marten had taken to heart. He liked breaking other beast`s toys.....but not his own.
Meanwhile, Ladorak was already forming an idea in his mind. "How about this? I help you pack a lunch, and then we head down to the Red Lotus for a fun little "training" session I`ll give the both of you? Get you both familiar with a ship and how it`s sailed?" Ladorak asked, his eyes glinting a bit as just the thought of possibly taking the Lotus out excited him. "After that we could walk along the beach, eat the food, whatever you may desire my dear." the stoat said, smiling now in that characteristic warm way of his.
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Post by jaydjasmyn on Jul 15, 2009 12:01:12 GMT -5
Jayd had never actually been able to witness Caden so enthusiastic about anything. He was usually deep in thought or off by himself and maybe doing something in his room. Today was the first time that she's seen him actually open up. This lightened her heart greatly, more than any beast would ever know. Indeed Jayd felt so at home here with them. Her knew family meant the world to her.
The young male charged up the steps and then back down again. He was carrying a model in his paws and was handling it rather carefully. Jayd smiled when she saw it. It was so good to see him happy.
Lad spilled out a plan and it sounded wonderful to Jayd. She nodded and then reluctantly let go of her mate, heading for the kitchen in order to scrounge something up for them all to eat, a picnic lunch if you were.
His idea was perfect and Jayd couldn't wait to get going. But she needed to take it slow now. She was just recently over-heated and sick to her stomach. It wasn't easy for a femme to carry a kit and she was quickly beginning to show and to grow.
And so with bare footpaws she scampered slowly around the kitchen. The first thing that she did was get all of the food out and sit it on the table, along with things to wrap the finished product with. She then pointed to an open cabinet, toward the highest shelf. 'My love? Would you please grab that picnic basket for me?" She smiled and poured some drinks.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 15, 2009 14:22:46 GMT -5
Ladorak pointed at Caden`s model as he came down the stairs with the Boreas. ``Hey there!`` he exclaimed. ``That`s my boat you got there! Last ship I ever commanded to date." the stoat said with a smile.
"Yeah, I know." Caden said, nodding emphatically. "One day...and I hope soon...I wanna serve aboard a ship just like the one you were on." Ladorak paused, looking down at the young albino marten kit. Hearing him say that....even if the marten still didn`t consider Ladorak and Jayd and his parents, it was good to hear the pink eyed mustelid tell Ladorak that he wanted to follow in his pawsteps.
Perhaps for the first time ever....Ladorak actually felt like a parent. A parent was one whom the kits looked up to...and wanted to be like. Had Ladorak really earned such respect from the dibbun?
Feeling strangely light, his chest swelling a bit as his heart began to beat just a bit faster, the stoat nodded and replied. "Well, I`m sure you`ll be able to someday. Besides.....can`t get you on a ship until you turn 13 after all." Ladorak said with a wink. "Wait here OK? I`m going to help Jayd."
Walking into the kitchen now, Ladorak did as Jayd asked. "Ah yes.....the basket." he said, pulling it down from the shelf. "Here you are my sweet, the picnic basket for you." he said, adding a short kiss to her cheek in with the basket. "You know.....Caden just said the strangest thing. He said that he wanted to serve on a ship like I do. It made me feel.....well I don`t know." the stoat said after a brief pause. "Good....really good. Anyways....just let me know when you`re ready and if I can do anything for you." he said chivalrously. "Oh yes...that reminds....the minute I start making a better paycheck....I`m hiring a coach to take you around when you`re pregnant. No walking for you once I start bringing in the money." he winked across at her, and stood by if there was anything else he needed to do, ,and if not, they could be on their way then.
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Post by jaydjasmyn on Jul 16, 2009 13:04:20 GMT -5
She responded to what he said about what Caden said. "Well clearly you are a good influence on him. You know... I think that we just became a family today." Jayd grinned and then continued. "And I don't need a coach. It's good for me to walk. We should save the money and spend it on something more... useful." Really she loved it when Lad spoiled her but she also felt guilty when he did that. And it wasn't because she was ungrateful. Jayd was a well balanced female that wasn't afraid to walk to the market instead of being driven. She was sure that Lad knew what she meant but then again he would probably insist anyway. Inwardly she chuckled.
She smiled over at him and then nodded. "Go be with Caden while I get ready." Jayd went over and kissed Lad on the lips and then whispered something to him. "And next time Lad... Let Calen come in the kitchen with us. He should learn his way around it if you want him to grow up to be a good mate." Again she kissed him and then gave him a wink. She always believed that the male should be able to cook and clean just as well as the female. These attributes would surely win the heart of a fine female for Caden one day. It was good to think about the future.
Jayd hurried about the kitchen. The house was pretty cool and so her sick stomach was starting to recede and her body temperature was going down. For a moment she retreated to the living room and retrieved the drink that Lad had earlier gotten for her, when she was having a physical, but mostly mental, breakdown. Secretly she was hoping that this couldn't happen again anytime soon. Oh sure she knew that being pregnant would give her big mood swings but being aware of it and actually experiencing one was more then half the battle.
The fem sipped of her drink and then finished up. Upon cleaning up she appeared in the entrance to the living room with the heavy picnic basket in paw, smiling at the pair as she waited for them to notice her.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 16, 2009 14:25:51 GMT -5
((It`s Caden not Calen. ) Ladorak took a moment to consider this. Let Caden in the kitchen next time? Ladorak was an excellent cook...but he never really thought of himself as a "cook" before. He was always a beast of the sea first, a mammal who had taken to working aboard a warship. He was a soon-to-be father as well but yes....he had not actually associated himself with the kitchen, despite being very good at it. "I`ll do that." he said, nodding slowly. "I`m not sure we`re fully at the family stage yet....but we`re getting there." he said. By family stage, he meant Caden actually seeing Ladorak and Jayd as than just guardians, but it was only natural for the kit to not see them as parents. Did Ladorak want that extra step to be taken? Well...hard to say. He cared enough about Caden to have rescued him from the situation he`d been in, but did he really want to take the place of Caden`s father? Ladorak didn`t really have time to think about this however as he exited the kitchen and walked over to Caden. "Have you ever been in any big battles before Ladorak?" the marten asked him as his pink eyes wandered over the Boreas model. "Oh yes....I have. Big ship battles....no....not a lot of those...but I want to change that. Land battles...yes....I`ve been up close and personal with beasts before, this close to them....." he trailed off as he leaned over Caden, bringing his snout mere centimeters from the kit`s nose. "Close enough to smell their breath.....I had the Midlight Hammer in my paws...that sword over there...." the stoat pointed over to where the Midlight Hammer rested on the far wall. "So close.....a snap of a jaw and well....we might have bitten each other." Caden looked into Ladorak`s eyes, wondering what battle must be like. He had gotten into fights plenty of times...but never combat. What Ladorak didn`t say was that he was also close enough for the other beast to bleed out onto him after he`d cut them open....but Ladorak of course didn`t enjoy it. He killed in battle yes....but taking a life was a grave matter. In combat, if you didn`t kill them they`d kill you....it was a sad and yet at the same time somewhat exhilirating cycle. Ladorak derived no personal pleasure from killing, only a sort of combat high in battle itself. It was a good thing war was such a terrible thing.....otherwise beasts might grow too fond of it. Caden didn`t answer because he saw Jayd standing in the doorway. Ladorak looked over his shoulder and nodded at his wife. "Very well....let`s be off to the ship then." *********************** The Red Lotus rocked gently at her birth. There was a good wind today....they`d be able to sail just fine. Ladorak paced the deck of his yacht, his paws behind him. "Ah....there`s just something about being at sea...isn`t there?" he asked, inhaling deeply, his nostrils flaring as the mustelid took in a nice breath of air. "Now then! I`m going to instruct you Midshipmammal Caden and you....Jayd" he said, nodding at her with a smile "about life onboard a ship, and for Caden in particular life aboard a ship-of-the-line. First off! I want to see how much you know. Observe!" he lifted a finger in the air, pointing it over to the front mast and the mast in the middle of the ship. "This is a schooner...why? Because it has only two masts and the front mast is lower than the middle mast." he said, not using the correct terms on purpose. "If the rear mast were lower, it would be a ketch, and if the rear mast were lower and all the way in the back it would be a yawl because...the rear mast is yaaaaawl the way in the back." Ladorak said, cracking a grin now at his own joke. "Caden, you won`t know this, but Jayd might. Normally on a ship-of-the-line there are three masts. One in front, one in the middle, and one in back. Do you know the names of these masts Jayd?" Ladorak asked, fixing his gaze upon her now as he stood facing them in profile, his paws clasped behind his back. He almost....looked the part of a Sea Captain. Almost...but he wasn`t in uniform.
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Post by jaydjasmyn on Jul 17, 2009 14:18:31 GMT -5
OOC- Gosh dang it! I don't know why I periodically do that! I edited. Jayd knew that Caden would eventually see them as more then just the creatures that gave him a roof over his head and food in his belly. How could a child not get his heart softened by the amount of love that brimmed over in the house that he lived in?
Soon they were off....
The trio ended up on the 'Red Lotus'. Jayd could tell immediately that her husband felt right at home here, which made her feel just a tad bit guilty for tying him down with a marriage and now a kit on the way. But what was done was done. They were deeply in love and Jayd doubted that he would want to end it just because of his job.
It didn't take long for Lad to begin to teach Caden. Jayd may even glean a bit of information from it herself. One was never to smart. Everyday a creature was given the opportunity to learn something new, not matter how small it was important.
Jayd watched how Lad taught. He was good with Caden and she was sure that he would make a wonderful father for their kit. Do you know the names of these masts Jayd? His inquiry of her caught her by surprise but still she smiled and then shrugged her shoulders, not sure if she would be correct or not. "I'm not sure if I'm right or not but are they Fore Mast, Main Mast and the Mizzen Mast?" One would think that she'd be an expert because she lived on a ship but her father kept his girls as far away from knowing anything that a male should know.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 18, 2009 15:30:45 GMT -5
Ladorak nodded emphatically, the names of the masts being like music to his ears. "Yes! Foremast, Mainmast, and Mizzenmast, exactly....my dear wife!" he said, adding that last bit on as he pointed at her and swung his arm around back towards his body. "Very good! As Jayd just said Caden, they are the Foremast, Mainmast, and Mizzenmast."
He turned to face the front of the boat. "OK Caden, as you`re facing the bow, right is called what, and left is called what?" the giddy stoat asked now.
"Um....starboard is right.....larboard is left?" the marten kit asked.
"Correct!" the mustelid spun around on his heels, pointing down at Caden now. "That`s absolutely, one hundred percent correct my s..........." but Ladorak suddenly stopped speaking. Son? Had he really been about to say son? He stared down at Caden, looking from him to Jayd. Had Jayd caught that? What would she think....and more importantly....could Caden tell what Ladorak had been about to say?
What had come over him? Was he really so excited to just have his paws on the deck of a ship again that he`d almost called Caden his son? Time seemed to stand still as green eyes met pink eyes. Kit was observing adult and vice versa. To Caden....he had felt a brief surge of.....something. What was it? HIs heart had beat just a bit faster, he had felt some sort of exhiliration at Ladorak`s excitement and had been expecting...something...but whatever it was had stopped.
"What?" Caden asked, unsure if he felt disappointed that Ladorak hadn`t finished or relieved that the stoat hadn`t in fact said that last word. It was very hard for Caden to describe. Did he crave family? But he didn`t need family right? He was fine on his own. Shaking his head slightly to clear it, the albino continued to look at Ladorak, tilting his head to one side.
"Uh...you were right Caden. Starboard and larboard." Ladorak said, chuckling in a way that he hoped was jovial to deflect attention from himself, but his nervousness showed through. "Anyways.....Jayd....have you ever steered a ship before?" the stoat asked now, looking up to his wife and try and shift attention onto something else. He`d....discuss this with her at some point today probably.
As for Caden, things had seemingly returned to normal. He couldn`t tell how he felt as it was just a very confusing feeling. But he didn`t mind it. He was hear to learn after all, so he was going to pay attention. He clutched the model of the Borteas just a tad tighter however, unsure why.
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Post by jaydjasmyn on Jul 20, 2009 12:27:07 GMT -5
Jayd could tell that Ladorak was so very excited about being aboard the ship and talking about it, teaching Caden about it but most of all being able to feel the rocking of the waves beneath his footpaws. The moment had taken Lad away. Why wouldn't it? It was his passion... his deep desire.
The femme grinned when he was about to call Caden his son. This was what Jayd wanted, to be a real family, but thus far she hasn't pushed it. What was the sense in living in a house that they could not feel the bond in? Why not include Caden in the family? They were in fact raising him. It all went together like a puzzle. It wasn't so complicated to Jayd but perhaps it was to Lad.
She looked upon Ladorak warmly as he and Caden got through the awkward moments. The male gender was so different then her own but Jayd simply assumed that it would all take time. Lad would more then likely be talking to her about this incident later. "Uh... No Ladorak. I've never steered before. Is it hard to do?" The pregnant female sauntered over to the helm and studied the wheel and then looked to her mate.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 22, 2009 12:07:45 GMT -5
((Sorry for being slow, having pneumonia made things hectic over here, gradually settling back into the routine.))
Ladorak looked at Caden as his wife moved up onto the quarterdeck towards the wheel. The stoat stood warily by in case she slipped on the ladder up, but she seemed OK. "Hey Caden, go put the Boreas in your berth, I`ll be showing Jayd how to steer, alright? Once you`re done come back onto the main deck and head forward, as I`ll be raising the sails with you."
Caden nodded, an excited look coming into his pink eyes now as he carefully began heading down the ladder into the cabin area, being careful not to trip and break the model because of the rocking of the boat.
Watching him go, Ladorak hustled up the ladder to the quarterdeck, which on warship was the Captain`s inviolable position. Only officers could set paw upon it, as it was where all the command decisions were made.
"No it`s not hard at all....but blast I can`t believe I just said that!" Ladorak almost hissed under his breath. "I assume you caught what I had almost said right? OK....stand off center of the wheel and you swing it right to go larboard and left to go starboard....so the directions are reversed. Easy right?" he asked, standing behind his wife to watch how she did it. He also figured they`d discuss what just happened briefly before Caden re-emerged.
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