The Song of the Siren (Accepting :: OPEN)

[Lucky_Tiger]

Aria glanced at Mac in amusement. "I've made it before. There's a whole number of dishes to be made from seaweed. And living right next to the sea, I've learned a few of them." She lead the way into the house, kicking off her sandals at the door. "Anything in particular you feel like?" She asked, moving towards the kitchen.

 

[SilentShadowDreamer]

Tianara wove through side streets and alleys that she couldn't have known were there. Every so often, she'd put her hands out blindly just before running into a building, walk around it and then seem to pick up the trail again. "Here." Her voice was sleepy and certain. "She's in here."

She'd stopped in front of an apartment building. Walking in with no apparent forethought, she went to the buzzer numbers and trailed her finger just in front of them, apparently lost in consideration. "Third floor," she murmured. "Third floor...Apartment 13-A. I think. I think it's A. Maybe it's K. But it sounds like A."

Her distant, unfocused eyes turned to Joshua and Allen. She seemed to stare through them even as she asked, "Now what?"  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Joshua found it actually kind of creepy. Tianara was moving along streets that even he hadn't know were there. And all the while, she had this dreamy, lost look in her eyes. He watched her choose an apartment from the buzzer list inside the doors. "Now we page her." Reaching out, he depressed the button for third floor, 13-A. As he heard the buzzer ring, he wondered what he was going to tell the woman.

 

[EG Water]

((omg on the news just now somewhere in the world people have sighted mermaids and now there's a reward for someone who finds it first T-T they better be nice to them))

Mac smiled, "I could go for some simple noodles if you want, I don't want to bother you with something complicated" he told Aria kindly. He slipped his shoes off as well. He reached into his pocket and grabbed a shell, and thought it would make a neat little gift. "here, its just a gift for being nice to me" he said.  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Aria shook her head, smiling. "It doesn't bother me. I like cooking. I do all the cooking around here. But if that's what you want." She looked surprised for a moment, then smiled gently. "I wasn't doing it because I wanted something. It's just how I am." She told him, making no move to take the shell. It was a rather nice little shell but she didn't want Mac to think he had to give it to her. She slipped an apron over her head and tied it about her waist. It was a habit she'd picked up from her grandfather - Though she had better tastes about it. Her apron was sea-green with faint blue lines tracing an abstract pattern across it.

 

[SilentShadowDreamer]

((OOC: LAWLS. Is it like that chick who dressed up as one? She had people going for a while. XD))

The buzzer rang for a few seconds. Then a soft voice answered. "Hello? Who is it?" As soon as she answered, they would know Tianara had guided them right - the voice on the pager had the same musical accent that Tianara did; the one that came from a life with the merfolk.

Before Joshua or Allen could answer the woman's question, Tianara did. Her eyes still faraway, still not looking entirely herself, she said, "It's me. We've come to tell you it's time. Can we come up?"

There was a moment of silence. And then, very quietly, the voice on the other end said, "I'll buzz you in. Come up." And the doors to the inside of the apartment building swung smoothly open.

Tianara glanced at the other two, smiled sleepily, and walked into the building proper.  

[EG Water]

Mac left the shell on the table, "Well, I choose to give it to you, even if I never get anything in return. I just like to give" he said smiling. He wondered about when he should go home to get something from his house later.  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Joshua instantly noticed the woman had the same accent that Tianara had. He was still trying to think of an answer that the woman would accept when Tianara spoke up. He glanced her in surprise. Still, it got the door opened so he went inside. He went right away to the elevator and pushed the up button. A few seconds later the doors dinged open.

Allen followed along behind the others, simply observing. It was fascinating to watch Tianara lead them through the town. He was rather surprised that her simple message got them through the door. He walked onto the elevator, the door closing behind them. Being closest to the panel, he punched the number three. Before long, the doors opened again, letting them off on the third floor.

Joshua got off the elevator, glancing at the door numbers. He trotted down the hallways, counting off the numbers. Finally, he stopped in front of apartment 13-A. "This is it." He murmured and knocked on the door. He wasn't quite sure what kind of person to expect.

Aria glanced over her shoulder at Mac and smiled. "Alright then. I thank you for it then." She began moving around the kitchen, prepping things. She set a pot of noodles on the stove to cook. "Do you mind carrots?" The girl asked without looking at him. "And how about ham?" In Aria's mind, why bother making plain noodles? She was figuring on making it a proper meal.

 

[EG Water]

"I'll take carrots, but not ham. I don't eat pork" he said with slight embarrassment, "I much prefer chicken with oriental flavors, along with whole peas" he said politely.  

[SilentShadowDreamer]

Tianara glanced back at Joshua with a look of perfect, even slightly amused acceptance. She seemed quite calm about the whole thing, considering how worked up she'd been about it all earlier. Without the slightest change of expression on her face, she followed Joshua onto the elevator. She didn't seem to entirely shake off the effects of whatever it was she had done until they stood on the third floor. Then she took a long, ragged breath, and her eyes brightened again.

"All right," she said softly, as she stared at the door to the apartment. "Here we go." And the door opened inwards to reveal a woman. She was quite young and pretty, with soft brown eyes and a tentative smile. True to Tianara's earlier predictions, she had a baby on her hip, its tiny hand fisted in her smooth blonde ponytail - and the crashing and yelling from inside the apartment suggested it wasn't the only child around.

"Just a moment," she said to them. She looked away from them towards the source of the noise. And although that sweetly accented voice remained perfectly calm and pleasant, it carried clearly. "Mitchell Robert Lythgoe, Rebecca Marie Lythgoe, Alexis Leslie Hall. Settle down right now or I'm taking that game and putting it in the trash." The noise level went down almost instantly, and she turned back to smile at them. "Sorry. I babysit the neighbour's daughter, since they all go to preschool together. Please, come in." She held the door open for them with one hand. "First door on the left is the living room."  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Joshua was glad to see Tianara shake off her her....trance or whatever it had been. He was unsurprised by the children in the household. After what Tianara had said earlier, he would have been surprised if there hadn't been any. He smiled nervously at the woman and entered the apartment. Glancing at the woman, almost as if to confirm, he opened the door on the left and went in.

Allen grinned bright at the woman, amused by the entire situation right now. He followed along behind Joshua, entering the living room.

Aria glanced at Mac in amusement. "No problem." She opened the fridge and began gathering up from peas, still in their shells. Grabbing a bowl, she moved to the table and began shelling the peas. "My grandfather keeps a garden out back. Rather big one actually. So we get fresh vegetables most of the summer. Peas, carrots, tomatoes, the whole works." She spoke while working, sea colored gaze focused on her hands. "Do oyu mind if I ask why you don't eat pork? Any particular reason or do you just not like the taste?"

 

[SilentShadowDreamer]

Tianara walked alongside Joshua. Although the trancelike state was gone, she still seemed fairly calm. And why not? The ocean children might as well have been kin. Tianara clearly felt safe in the home of someone like her.

Upon entering the living room, it was evident that this woman kept close ties to her roots. The colour scheme was blues and greens, painted and arranged to resemble the waters where she would have lived out much of her life. Photographs and keepsakes all seemed to be from various trips to the beach. The photos tended to feature a dark-haired man and two young children - presumably her husband and kids. They both took after their mother, as far as it was possible to see from eight-by-six photographs.

The noise level from the other room was rising again, and after a moment it was evident that another of Tianara's predictions had come true.

"No, you have to do this!" cried one of the kids - probably about the game in question. "'Cause we're the mermaids and you're the evil sea invaders!"
"But I wanna be the mermaids this time!" insisted another small voice.

Tianara, glancing up, began to giggle. "How appropriate," she murmured. "Considering what we're here for."

The woman entered then. She smiled a little when she saw them all still standing. "Please, sit," she said. "The longer you stand, the longer good manners say I have to, and I don't mind admitting that dealing with those three wears me out." She shifted the baby to her other hip in a practiced motion and said, "I'm Rhiannon." Looking over the three of them, although her gaze hesitated slightly over Tianara - obviously she, too, recognized kinfolk - she asked, "And you are?"  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Joshua smiled, listening to the children playing. He chuckled at Tianara's words, taking a seat. "I'm Joshua. I live at one of the nearby coves." He glanced at Tianara, wondering if she should be the one to tell Rhiannon. He'd seen the woman's gaze rest on Tianara for just an extra brief second. It was understandable that they would feel kinship.

Allen grinned brightly. "I am Allen Listar and it's a pleasure to meet you!" He knew that most of the town thought he was crazy for living out on the waters edge. And especially for his treasure trove of mermaid stuff. But that didn't bother him. He never really paid attention to it.

 

[SilentShadowDreamer]

Rhiannon sat down with a weary sigh. "Ah, yes. Joshua and Allen. I've heard of both of you." She smiled ruefully, stroking the now-sleeping infant's fine dark curls. "I suppose it makes sense that you would be the ones to escort her," she murmured. Her eyes rose with a question in them to Tianara, who smiled faintly.

"Tianara," she said softly. "We're looking for all of them. All of us." Sitting as Rhiannon had, she got right to the point. "War is coming. They need all the help they can get, but they don't know who they can trust. Except for us. We're as much their children as the ones born to them. They need us now, Rhiannon." She didn't seem uncomfortable to be using the woman's first name, nor did Rhiannon seem overly surprised to hear her use it. "Will you help us?"

Rhiannon seemed to gaze into the distance for a few minutes, still stroking the baby's hair. "Yes, of course," she said quietly. "You know I will. I think the kids might benefit from a few weeks with their grandmother, however...they're too young to be caught up in all this." She smiled sadly down at the baby. When her eyes rose again, they were clearer, and full of a quiet strength. "What must I do?"  

[Lucky_Tiger]

Joshua flushed and looked down, embarrassed that Rhiannon knew of him. Normally it didn't bother him but then again, he wasn't normally in town talking to people. He was quiet as Tianara explained the situation. The teen felt his gaze drawn to the small child, asleep in it's mother's arms. "No, we don't want them caught up in this mess." He murmured, shaking his head slightly. Straightening his shoulders, he looked serious as he spoke. "Right now, we're gathering allies. What we need most, are allies on land - To help at least try and reduce who'll be fighting. Even if we can only get people to be neutral it means that they won't fight." He paused for a moment, seeming to collect his thoughts. "We figured that the ocean children would be the best way to find out who would stand with us. Or at the very least, not stand against us."

Allen chuckled, amused that Rhiannon would think that. He leaned back in his seat, relaxing as Tianara spoke. "Yes, yes. Keep the little ones safe." He nodded in agreement. "Do you know of where any of the other ocean children are? Or anyone else really, that would help us?" He asked. Though he seemed confidant and relaxed, his eyes had a serious look to them.