audio & action @L.Mills forward dated to April 8th

[thestoriesarereal]

[The audio turns on to the sound of silence for the first few seconds before Lucy asks her question.]

If you could have one wish, what would you wish for? Not like...money or anything. Not for powers, but what would you really wish for?

[Because it's her birthday, and she wasn't really in the mood to celebrate. Of course, she'll wish for her family to be okay, for them to remember and come here so they could meet Victor. But...would that be a waste of a wish? Sure, wishes were powerful, but she was in another world, and she didn't think they would be strong enough to pull her family from one realm to the next...

Or, maybe she's just over thinking things. Maybe she just wants to talk and not think about her birthday.]


[ooc: Lucy's birthday is on April 8th, so here's her birthday post! She won't say it's her birthday, not yet anyway. Either way, this post can double as action too. So have fun!]

Comments

[thestoriesarereal]

Maybe we should do that instead. We haven't done anything like in a while...or gardening.

[jolting]

Yeah, it's been a little crazy lately between the move and this flood. But we have a nice back yard now for gardening. Let's set aside a day where we plan out where we want the garden to go and start planting some seeds, all right?

[thestoriesarereal]

Mmm..and what about star gazing, or camping? We were suppose to do that too...

Could we still do that? Please?

[jolting]

Sure. Until this flooding's cleared up, we should probably stick to our back yard, though.

[thestoriesarereal]

Yeah, that would be a good idea. Or, after the flooding, maybe not stray too far from home.

[jolting]

Exactly. But we can star gaze as often as you want. I have a telescope we can use, and some paper and pencils for star charts.

[thestoriesarereal]

Maybe we could it once a week? Or every other week? Just the two of us?

[jolting]

Once a week sounds good to me. [he kisses the top of her head]

Before I forget, I have something for you.

[he moves to get her present. Not that it's wrapped like a present at all. Inside is an old-style pocket watch. It's pretty similar to the one passed down to Gerhardt from their mother.

He'll wait to see what she thinks of it before explaining why he gave it to her]

[thestoriesarereal]

[Lucy perks up a little from the kiss, snuggling more with Victor and happy. Happier than she’s been in a few days. ]

Something for me? [ Well, she wasn’t expecting anything. Lucy didn’t say it was her birthday...unless he figured it out. Which he probably did, knowing how smart he is.

Lucy carefully opens the gift, stunned to see a pocket watch. It looks beautiful, something from his time period? Or possibly older. ]

It’s pretty and very cool. I didn’t think girls could have a watch like this. [ Because she’s only seen it in movies where the male lead has a watch like the one in her hands. Like Sherlock Holmes! ]

[jolting]

It’s actually a lot like the one my mother used to have, so girls can definitely have them. And I thought you might want one, too.

[thestoriesarereal]

Really? [ The item became more precious to her, knowing Victor’s mother had something like it. Was this a tradition in his world? Passing a family heirloom down? He really did view her as his daughter.

Still holding the pocket watch in one hand, she gave Victor another hug. ]

I’ll take very good care of it, Papa. Promise. Thank you.

[jolting]

[He knew that it was the sentiment behind the gift that would matter to Lucy, not the thing itself. And she had guessed correctly that Victor's sentiment was to show her he thought of her as his family. He squeezed her gently when she hugs him]

I know. I would trust you with anything. Look, I engraved it with your initials, too.

[He turns it over so she can see "L. M." etched into the back of the watch]

[thestoriesarereal]

[Her smaller fingers run over the initials he had engraved for her. He took great care to pick out this gift. It's something Henry or her mom would've given her. Something precious, something meaningful and it makes her happy and sad at the same time.

Victor was truly an amazing and kind hearted person. She really was lucky to have him as her guardian, as her Papa.]

I love it. [To emphasize her point, she placed a kiss to his cheek and hugged him again.]

...Do you think, we could get your initials engraved too? Next to mine?

[jolting]

[Victor knows he's pretty lucky that Lucy understands his thought process and gestures. His own family didn't always understand his expressions of love, but she gets it right away. And when she gives him her own expressions, it makes him very happy]

Yes, we definitely can.

[thestoriesarereal]

[It makes Lucy very happy to hear she'll have his initials engraved next to hers. They were family, regardless of bloodlines. Lucy continued to hug him, not daring to pull back, not yet.]

We'll get that done soon, so I can carry this with me..

[A slight pause as she starts to pull back to look at him.]

...how did you know what today is?

[Because she knows it's a birthday present, but she's curious to how he found out.]

[jolting]

Well, ah, I went to your school to check in with your teachers. To make sure they had my number for emergencies. The school has your birthday in their records.

I understand why you didn't tell anyone, so you don't have to think of that as a birthday present. Think of it just as a present that a loving father wanted to give to his beloved daughter, no special occasion required.

[thestoriesarereal]

Ahh...that makes sense.

[Doing the responsible thing, making sure in case of emergencies...the school and the adults there had his number.

There's a faint smile on her face, her thumb rubbing over her engraved initials.][Teasing, and trying to deflect a little. She's happy he didn't make a big deal of it..but she is really touched by his gift.]

[jolting]

[He starts flipping through the name book, letting her look through them]

Okay. Now let's find a name for your friend.

[thestoriesarereal]

[ooc:...wtf happened to my coding, urgh.]

[She looks over the book with Victor, flipping through a page or two..]

I don't see anything that looks good...or fits.

[She looks up at him, tilting her head a little.]

Chocolate would've been fine, you know...or candy.

[jolting]

So it's okay if I make you a chocolate birthday cake?

[thestoriesarereal]

You'd do that?

[Surprised because she wasn't expecting it. She wasn't expecting anything.]

[jolting]

We can bake it together. Whatever flavor is your favorite.

[thestoriesarereal]

We can? [Really, Victor is the best. She couldn't have asked for a better friend, or Papa.] Can we make chocolate and strawberry? And, instead of a cake, maybe do cupcakes? Please?

[jolting]

Chocolate and strawberry cupcakes. That sounds delicious. And I have the ingredients.

[thestoriesarereal]

And candles? Or, a candle?

[Maybe, just maybe she has a wish that may come true here.]