Do You Remember...?(1x1) [invite-only]

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

Marlee nodded. Skipping rocks was a lot of a challenge than it let's on. Marlee then watched as Erika stripped off her stocking and boots and stammered stupidly at the suggestion for her to sleepover. The last sleepover they had was the week before Erika told Marlee she had to leave. "It should be fun...especially since my parents are positive~ Erika?". Marlee called out, she had not seen the girl enter the water.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

Erika suddenly popped up from the water, a smile on her face. "C'mon in, please?" She pleaded before, fidgeting with the belts on her skirt before putting it on the edge, taking her shirt off as well. "Oh! Y'know what, wait here for a moment, actually." She then went back under. She went all the way down to the bottom, finding a few things she would hide down there.

She was looking about for a long time without surfacing until she found what she was looking for, buried beneath quite a few medium sized rocks. She began to move them, feeling slightly light headed now. She quickly grasped it, beginning to kick upward to give her lungs some air.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

Marlee had her beret, boots, and stockings off at Erika's begging but waited then as her friend went back under. Marlee waited longer than she should've then began to panic, and dove into the pond, not bothering to stress about her clothes. She swam a little ways to Erika who appeared to be struggling. Marlee slipped her arm around the girl, using her strenght to bring them to the surface where she took a large exhale. Paddling with Erika still close, she brought them both to shore. "What were you trying to get?" She asked but the girl might have been unlikely to deliever an answer by how large breathes she was taking in.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

Erika gasped for a long while before answering with the simple gesture of showing her a metallic box, that had begun to rust only a little bit. She put it on the edge of the pond, opening it up. There were a few trinkets that she had stored that meant a lot to her that she either made/found with Marlee, or received from Marlee. "In here are a few things that are dear to me. Like... this clay cup that we made on Valentine's Day." She said, pulling out a small cup. The colours were faded, badly. At the time, she didn't know of natural corrosion.

"Then, this thing... I think we thought it was a tooth of some sort...." She said, pulling out a bone-like item. She held the box closer to Marlee, so she could see its contents. "Here were our wedding bracelets." She chuckled, as they couldn't find any rings, and not lose them. "I remember we crocheted them in yellow string, pretending they were gold we found in this lake." She she spaced out a bit. This whole forest had things hidden all about it that reminded her of something from their past.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

"I was wondering where most of this stuff went. " Marlee mused, her thoughts halfway in the metal memory box she never knew Erika kept. Her hands rested on the woven bracelets, feeling a stab of mental pain at what her mother once said after overhearing the girls talk. "What makes you think you're married? Two girls aren't supposed to be together in that way. " Then Marlee remembered her mother yanking it off and tossing it as she tugged her child away from her childhood friend. Stuff like that only made Marlee count the days when she left that place. Thinking about Erika helped her get through the lectures... Her parents weren't bible totters, they hated homosexuality and scared their daughter straight at twelve that if she wasn't with a boy, she was going to hell.

Biting the inside of her mouth, she picked up one of them whic was too small to fit now. "We didn't understand what marriage meant back then, so naïve of us, huh?" Things like love and a lasting bond were different once meeting a certain age. Marlee learned this on her own.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

Erika smiled. "Hah, yeah..." She said before pulling herself out of the water, frowning a bit. "Mum kind of has an arranged marriage going on for me... Not technically marriage, but she has this one guy... Zalphial, she wants us to date. And, he's a nice guy and all, but... I dunno. We're awkward, and I kind of think of him as a brother, and he thinks of me as a sister, making the whole situation awkward. I mean, he came over and instead of 'dating' we'd just play video games and watch TV." Erika said, she then sighed. "She wants us to get married eventually. I don't know why she's doing all of this.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

"Because your mother doesn't want you to throw your life away with a girl. " Marlee provided her friend with an answer as her dark eyes looked over the bracelets once more. She smiled planning to take one with her as a token from herself. The little fake rings of gold should be kept in the past where a lot of other things should be. She then sneezed and came to realise her clothes were all wet from her saving Erika. "Let's head back, I need a change of clothes." Marlee rose to her feet.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

Erika stared at Marlee at her blunt answer. "Well, I don't know if my mum is homophobic or anything, so it is a possibility, but I..." She spaced out a bit, trailing off into her own thoughts. 'What is my sexuality...? I never... really thought of it. Am I straight, just as most are assumed, or...' She pondered before hearing Marlee sneeze, then her suggestion which she nodded. She slipped her wet clothes back on sloppily before grasping her stockings and boots, deciding to just carry those, along with the box.

"Alright, let's go. If you want, you can use the shower in my room, and I'll use the bath upstairs if you want to warm up." She said as they walked along, back to the house. "Then, you can borrow my clothes as well." She smiled. She still wasn't over the fact that she was here with Marlee after so many years. She held her hand, lacing her fingers between her friend's.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

Even with her own thoughts weighing on her, seeing Erika smile was as contagious as a yawn or more than. Marlee's eyes shifted down at their intertwined hand for a mere second, then around the forest as the departed: the meadow, the heart trees, the pond, and more importantly, the two little girls who claimed the forest, turning into their special world.

I'd have to tell her eventually... Someone has to know what I am but will Erika treat me differently like how they did when I started my phase? Erika might be straight so my chances are slim to none if I ever wanted to be with her that way. Marlee tightened her fingers around Erika's unknowingly while her thoughts continued under a brooding light. "Your dad would be wondering why we're soaking wet like this." Marlee said with her dry hat and shoes dangling from her fingers on her free hand. She waited while Erika opened the door.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

With a laugh, Erika said, "I'm sure he won't be mad though. He knows there's a lake and whatnot." She shrugged, opening the door and setting her boots down, off to the side before yelling to her father that they were back. "C'mon, let's get some clothes for you to wear. I don't want you to get sick, 'cos I'm pretty sure I'm going to be at your side for at least a full week." She said before going up the stairs to her room. It was a lot more plain, since it wasn't yet decorated by her, but that would change within time.

She had yet to unpack her suitcases, but in there were a few outfits her father picked out by her. Guessing by the looks, he had help. He was known for buying her strange clothes. Either that, or she just got stranger over the years as well. Slipping off her arm accessories and garter, she sifted through her clothing and pulled out some panties, and some comfortable clothing. "Feel free to wear what you'd like. You know I don't care." She said to Marlee before disappearing to go and take a hot bath to warm herself up a bit.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

Marlee's eyes followed Erika as she walked out of the room before searching through Erika's clothes for something to wear. Lucky for her, they were pretty much the same size in most areas. Noticing she was creating a bit of a wet spot on the floor, she went into Erika's bathroom with whatever was in her hands at the time. When I'm done I'm going to have to head over to my house to bring my own clothes. She turned on the water to the shower, stripped off her clothes, and stepped in.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

Erika showered down rather quickly, getting dressed in some black sweats and a pink shirt. Quickly running a comb through her hair, she went back downstairs to start on dinner. She was excited still about the whole arriving and having Marlee over. Her heart fluttered. She paused. 'S-strange... why did I get so... excited suddenly?' She asked, shaking her head. She touched her blushing cheek, she was really warm too. She turned her thoughts elsewhere; onto preparing the lasagna for the night.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."

 

[Pichipai-hime]

"We are bound,you and I...

Marlee cut off the water after ten minutes or so, it may have been longer since she tended to forget about time whenever she was in the shower. She dressed in the maroon shirt and some shorts she had blindly reached for and headed downstairs. The smell of Italian sauce led her into the kitchen. "So chef Erika, what are we preparing today?" Smiling, Marlee joked from a barstool at the island.

"...by a crimson string around our fingers. Our scared pinkie promise."

 

[Blood Fxtish]

[E_R_I_K_A___N_A_G_A_M_I_N_E]

"Those times when we were children,"

"I'm making some lasagna~" She said, slipping an apron on. She brought a small spoonful of the sauce, bringing it up to Marlee. "Open up, I want your opinion." She said, hopping up on the counter and leaning forward a bit, so she could let Marlee taste the sauce she had prepared. "It's a little bit spicy, but not too spicy." She said as a bit of a warning.

"They are so dear to me, if only I..."