[PRP] Aure and Solomon

[shibrogane]

Aure was, arrogantly enough, pondering the mystery of fate as she loped through the parking lot of a local fast food place in the January sun. The bitterly chill winds stung her pale face, turned it a pale red against the pale shade of the rest of her visible body. Of course, the rest of her was bundled into a white parka and white slacks; what she wore under the parka, no one could tell. She seemed cheerful enough, even whistling tiny fragments of tune that were quickly snatched away by the wind. When she got to the doors, she made a move that would surprise anyone who knew her; she pulled out a compact, opened it and looked at her face for a moment. Even though she blocked the door, she stared for a few minutes anyway. After this seeming ritual- or else she was really just a b***h- she closed the compact and opened the door, walked in, and got in line to place her order.

That would have been the end of that, if a little kid behind her hadn't pulled her hair- painfully. "Madam," she said, half-turning in her spot, "keep your child under control." Then she stopped, and raised her eyebrows. Behind this mother and child were another one, and that one shone with the special light that her new eyes gave to the Illusionary children.  

[Chrystali]

The mother and special toddler in question were, unsurprisingly, avidly engaged in cooing at each other. Being in the middle of a fast food joint didn't stop Alex from gibbering at her toddler and making faces at him, to which the child would laugh and clap his chubby hands, chattering wordlessly at the black-haired woman. Really, the only thing that the duo shared was their sun-kissed skin; her hair was of midnight, and his of golden rays, her eyes of dancing emerald and his of misty greys.

Alex wore a ribbed black sweater that, strangely enough, was shoulderless, over faded blue jeans and boots. She had dressed her boy in brighter attire, a Christmasy jacket of red and white over white overalls. He was nestled safely in the crook of her strong arm, using her free hand to 'grab his nose' and tickle him. The game continued for several minutes, until the girl looked at them.

Solomon, while still a toddler, was aware. He was a normal baby to be sure, but every so often he would stare at something or someone with uncanny intensity. He did so now, turning his blonde and red head towards a young woman a person or two ahead of them. Foggy eyes rested upon her, a childish hand reaching for her with a nondescript coo of communication.

The Italian arched a slender brow at her son's apparent ADD behavior, shifting her attention towards the current object of his desire. Both brows arched at the sight of the girl, who was unbiasedly the most unique individual she'd ever seen. She was a lovely young girl to be sure, but there was something...something in the air that was different. Alex smiled at the youth in both curiosity and apology, stating over the woman between them, "He likes you." Stating the obvious much? Not at all.  

[shibrogane]

She blinked her metal eyes at the woman and her son, even stepping out of the way of the irritating pair to get to the mildly interesting one. "That so," she said, holding out one hand. "He's not one of the more unique Illusionary, is he." It didn't sound like a question, but the phrasing made it one, doubtlessly. "Hm. I've never seen one with such hair, though, and I have seen many many Illusionary in my time." Aure was one of the oldest herself.

With a glance at the woman's face, she stuck out one hand. "I'm Aurelius Venport. You are?"  

[Chrystali]

"Confused," was the woman's good-natured and slightly baffled reply. "But most folk call me Alex. This ray of sunshine is Solomon." Still supporting the boy in the crook of her arm, she extended her hand to take the young woman's. "Nice to meet you, Miss Venport. Say hello, Sol," she cooed at the baby.

Solomon, of course, simple gurgled and clapped his hands, his grey-moted eyes fixated on the young woman. He managed something that sounded like, 'ayo,' but that was the extent of the infant's vocabulary for the moment.

The black-haired Italian gave a rolling shrug, smiling a little. "I'm not exactly sure what it is you've seen many of in your time, but I'd gladly like to hear about them." There was a lilt in her voice, a hopeful note that someone, anyone could explain where the floating baby of joy came from.  

[shibrogane]

"We should place our orders first," Aure said, noting it was her turn in line. She spun to face the cashier and ordered, then stepped to the side for the wait. "It's pleasant to meet you, Alex."  

[Chrystali]

Huh. Guess that was her way of saying yes. Alex shrugged and nodded, following suit by ordering a salad, yogurt and soda for herself and a small fry for the baby to chew on (which was a better alternative than her hair). After that was taken care of, she lifted her chin to indicate a booth that was relatively uncrowded. "If you have the time, I'd love to sit and chat."

Solomon, for the most part, just watched between the two females, although more so Aure than his mother. His small fists were curled in Alex's sweater, being mindful not to squirm too much as the women exchanged pleasantries.  

[shibrogane]

"Of course," Aure said, sitting down in the booth and unwrapping her cheeseburger. She crossed her ankles primly and stared at Alex and Solomon for a few minutes. "Illusionary," she said without preamble, "are a species with infinite variations, as I understand it. Most of us appear human with a few extra features- I expect your son's hair will always be red tipped, for example- but there are some that are a little more extreme. We all lived past lives in a world that, as I understand it, no longer exists, and we are alive now to get a happy ending." Her mouth quirked in a somewhat frigid smile. "Shall I repeat my explaination?"  

[Chrystali]

After taking a seat and giving Solomon a small bit of fry to gnaw, Alex listened to Aure talk with a perfectly blank expression. By the end of her tale, the Italian woman's lips gave only a faint twitch before falling back into neutrality. "So," she drew out the word, as if trying to truly absorb what she had just heard, "you - the 'Illusionary' - are, ah, reincarnated from a dead world. And...you all met some terrible end and this is your chance at something better?"

She blinked down at Solomon as though he had just grown two heads, and for that description, he might as well have. "What..." Alex blinked again, turning her placid face back to Aure. She was only so calm because flipping out in public was a no-no, even to the essentric woman. "He...has a twin." What bearing that had on anything, she had no idea, but it was the only thing her grasping mind could latch onto.

The toddler in question gummed at his fry, content as those grey eyes shifted between the women yet again. He had paid attention as Aure talked, although he couldn't have possibly understood, and was now acting as any child should by drooling and generally making a mess out of his meal.  

[shibrogane]

"A rather poor chance at something better," Aure muttered. She picked at her burger. "That likely means they share a past, else that they were born in similar worlds with similar past lives. That is what I have been told." She smiled at Solomon, but it was a tiny smile that barely quirked the corners of her pretty mouth.  

[Chrystali]

Alex nodded slowly, although it really didn't make a whole lot of sense. Past lives? Similar worlds? This was a getting a wee bit out of hand. "So what...are we supposed to do?" Green eyes shifted over the young girl. "I imagine you're one of them, that's how you know? Or at least, you've had some indepth interactions with them." The woman held Solomon against her chest without really thinking about it; it didn't matter if he was from another world, because he was her baby and that was that.  

[shibrogane]

"Raise them," Aure said flatly, choosing to ignore Alex's other questions. "Love them, raise them. Make sure they are never harmed." Yes, coddle them, make them easy pickings for me and my ambition. A brief, cynical smile flitted across her face. "Then they can face their past and come to terms with it."  

[Chrystali]

"That's a given," was her automatic reply, handing the young boy another soft french fry, most of her own food untouched. "He could have two heads and three times as many eyes and I'd still care for him. He's a child." Alex drew a finger down Solomon's nose, eliciting a small giggle from the babe.

She watched the boy, bright eyes slightly muted in her thoughts. "When they come to terms with it, do they live normally? Are there other manifestations I should be aware of?" Alex arched a dark brow, turning her eyes back to Aure. Quite frankly, she didn't want to wake up one morning to find a mass of gore or something similar due to strange body composition...or worse...  

[shibrogane]

She nodded. "Of course we live normally once we've remembered the past. There is nothing else I know of that may affect us; all of us are created to be able to live on Gaia and our homeworlds, such as they are." Cosmic dust between stars. Once, they were stars. Aurelius smiled.  

[Chrystali]

Alex opened her mouth to reply, and was promptly muffled by Solomon's reaching hands. The boy crowed with laughter at his mother's look of surprise and question, putting his hands over his own mouth, successfully making a mess of his last french fry.

The woman chuckled, picking up a napkin to wipe at her son's gooey maw, earning more squeals of laughter. She was grateful he wasn't a loud child, keeping his tone private, as though his laughter was for her to share with him, and her alone. It was sweet, and she couldn't help but dote on the boy. Having cleared the potato mess, she handed him another fry, making sure to bite it in half this time.

"That's a relief." Alex stroked Solomon's sunny hair, ruffling the tendrils that curled back into place. "I'm not sure...how he and his brother are going to grow, but I hope it's peaceful." Privately, she didn't think anything would be peaceful, what with Blue as Neva's father and she as Sol's. Both the parents and the children were about as opposite as could be.

Well. It'd be interesting to say the least.