Scratch.
Ian shifted in bed. His face kept itching, and he could not figure out why. He scratched again. He tried to go back to sleep but there it was again. What the hell was causing it? Wait, was that giggling?
Ian cracked open his eyes. Eli was smirking.
"Got ya." She told him as she began to laugh. She had part of her hair in her hand and had been using it to annoy him.
"Do you ever sleep in the mornings?" He asked her as he glanced at the clock. 6:23 AM. She shook her head. Then she yawned. He pushed her over so that she was lying down. "Go back to sleep. You are tired." She nodded and closed her eyes.
-Later-
Ian came back into the mansion. The body was taken care of, along with the window. He went back into his room, expecting to see Eli still asleep. He sighed when it was evident that she had gotten out.
"Eli!" He called out. No answer. "Eli, this is no time for games. Where are you?"
"Meow!" He heard from above him. He turned around just in time for Eli to crash into him. He fell flat on his back onto the ground. She was laughing manically.
Ian winced as he looked at her. She had on all black once again. But she had drawn three lines on both sides of her face. And her hair was put back by a black head band with something that resembled triangle cat ears. She giggled.
"Got ya again! Meow!" She said as she got off him. Ian got up, rubbing his lower back. He looked her once over again.
"What are you?"
"I'm a kitty!" She told him like he was joking. "See, I have ears, and whiskers, and a tail." She pulled up a tail that he had not seen before hand. "And I even have a coll-" Her hand felt around her neck as panic suddenly came apparent on her face. "My necklace!"
Eli suddenly got onto the ground and started searching for something. He looked at her curiously.
"What are you doing?" He asked as she searched under the blanket on his bed. She didn't answer. Finally, she pulled out something on a chain and breathed out in relief.
"I almost lost it." She told him as she pulled it back over her head. Ian came over to look at it. It was a round, silver oval on a matching chain. He picked it up lightly. It has a cursive capital E on it that had a connecting A just below it.
"My mommy's necklace. She gave it to me before she went away. See?" She opened it up. It was a locket. Inside was a picture of her and a picture of her brother Antony. She closed it again and turned it around.
"My only true fortune." Ian read out loud. Eli nodded.
"That's what Mommy always called us." She told him. She took the locket from his hands. "Ian, you have to feed the kitty."
He looked at her confused. "There is no k-." Then he looked at her and nodded. "Oh yes. Come along then." He then led her down stairs to get breakfast.
Ian took her down to the kitchen. She immediately rushed to one of the counters and climbed onto it. She pulled a bowl out one of the shelves and then jumped down. She went to the fridge and grabbed the milk. She poured herself a bowl of milk before returning it.
"Eli, what are you..." He stopped talking out of shock when she got onto the counter and started lapping up the milk with her tongue. "Eli, stop that!"
She looked up at him confused. "But I'm a kitty!"
"No, you are not. You are a girl. Now stop that." He told her. She pouted, but stopped. She looked back up at Ian.
"Meow!" She said angrily. She sat on the counter with her arms crossed. She was mad and was not bothering to cover it up.
'Tantrum.' He thought to himself. Well, he would never hit her. He would never be able to really yell at her. How are you suppose to discipline when you have no heart to do so? He picked up her bowl from the counter and put it in the sink.
"What would you like for breakfast?" She didn't answer. She sat fuming on the counter. She started rocking her legs back and forth. He tried not to get upset. Someone had to be the adult here. He flipped through the book the last cook had left behind. He found a certain page and hid a smirk.
"There is something here called French toast." He said out loud. Eli immediately perked up.
"French toast?" She asked. He nodded.
"But I do not know how to make it." He told her. She jumped off the counter.
"I do I do I do I do!!!" She shouted. Ian was trying very hard not to smile.
"But you are a kitty." He told her. She took off her ears.
"I'm a girl again. Can we make French toast now?" She asked.
"I am not so sure, you seemed so upset earlier...." She looked down.
"I'm sorry." She told him. "I didn't mean to be mad at you. I just wanted breakfast."
"That is alright. Just watch your temper." He told her. "Now, how do you make French toast?"
She smiled and began to explain.
-Later-
After their rather messy breakfast, which included a certain nameless kitty pouring sugar down the back of his shirt and cracking eggs on his shoulder and decorating his hair with cinnamon, He left her to watch television as he showered and changed. He went into the living room to check on Eli.
She had placed on her cat ears again and was lying on top of the couch on her side. She was swinging her tail around with her left hand as she watched cartoons. She turned her head when she felt him staring.
"Meow." She told him before she turned her head back to the TV. He looked at what she was watching and shook his head. Why did children love these grossly humorous shows about hamsters and cheerleading secret agents and children with football shaped heads (not to mention the girl on that show that had made a statue of the football headed kid using his pre-chewed gum.)?
He stretched his arms. His body felt all wiry from not doing anything physically straining, aside from last nights fiasco. He decided to train a bit to get the edge off. "Eli, I am going to go train for a while."
"Train for what?" She asked, only half paying attention.
"Just to simply train. Stay in here and watch your cartoons, all right?"
"Yeah, Ian." She answered quickly, totally absorbed into cartoon land. He smirked and left the room.
An hour later, Eli flipped through the channels. "A hundred channels and nothing is on!" She moaned. She turned the TV off and threw the remote control onto the table. She got up. 'Where's Ian?' She thought to herself. "Ian!" She called out, stretching out the syllables.
When he didn't answer, Eli started looking around for him. She had no clue where he could be. She could get around partly by herself now, but the huge mansion still confused her. She was pretty sure she was lost when she heard the sound of metal being run against metal, followed by yells of attack. She quietly started making her way towards the noise. It led her to a black door that had the words 'WAR' written on it. It was already partly opened, so she peeked in.
She saw Ian with what she thought was a sword. 'Cool, it looks like he is doing some sorta dance thingy.' She watched him, absolutely mesmerized. "Wow." She whispered.
He finally stopped to rest a bit. By then, he realized someone else was watching him. He looked over at the door. Eli walked in then, looking at him with wide eyes. He looked at her amused. "What?"
"That was sooooo cool!" She announced. He shook his head.
"It is just practice." He laughed when she shook her head.
"That was magic." He just shook his head and went over to the wall to place the sword back. "You're strong." She said. He shrugged his shoulders and she went on. "How strong are you?"
"I do not know." He told her.
"Can you do push-ups?" She asked. He nodded. "Lily says she can, but can't. She always falls on her face. If you can, then prove it." She challenged him, smirking.
He looked at her. It was so simple, why not just play along? He smirked back and got down and did a few push-ups. She nodded approvingly.
"How about clappers?" She asked. "It's the one where you clap before you go up again." He hadn't done those since he had been in the army. He did one, but it was a little off. He tried it again and it was perfect.
Eli went onto to further test his strength. She even had him do push-ups while having what weights she could lift. When she was done testing him, she sat against the wall and watched him kill the punching bag.
Ian looked over at Eli over his shoulder. He could tell she was starting to get bored. "Eli, would you like to learn something?" She perked up and nodded. She walked over and he bent down on his knees to be at her level.
"Put your arm out straight." He told her. She did as he told her to. He moved her body a little and he took her hand and closed it, making it a fist. "Whenever you punch, just a simple punch, you should be like this." He moved her arm back and moved it forward again, showing her how she should punch.
He let go of her arm. "You try now." She tried her best to mimic what he just taught her, but she was still a little off. He helped adjust her and she tried again. And again. And again. Till she finally got it.
"Yay!" She announced. He then showed her how to do the same thing with her other arm. It took a while, but she was able to get it.
"Here, now show me what you learned." He held his palms up. She looked at him confused and tilted her head. He laughed at the site she made. He placed on of her palms up and then proceeded to very lightly punch it, but she moved her hand away in fear.
"Eli....."
"No way! That'll hurt." She said.
"I promise it will not." He reassured her. She placed her palm up and he tried again, connecting this time. "See? Now, you try." She punched into his palm.
"Good." He told her. She kept doing it trying to make each one harder and faster than the last one. She was so intent on making it stronger that she missed his palm entirely and almost hit his face if he hadn't dodged. She bit her lip.
"Sorry."
"It is all right. You did not actually connect. Keep going." She began up again, a bit maddened by the way he had said 'did not actually connect', as if she couldn't. She waited a while and then 'accidentally' missed again. He still dodged in time, but now was eyeing her for what she was doing. She went at it again, and by the third time she missed and mumbled out an apology, he stopped her. He looked at her half smirking, half serious.
"Miss Carver, I believe you are doing that on purpose." He told her. She gave him a perfected look of innocence.
"Doing what?" She asked.
"Trying to hit me." She shook her head.
"Of course not, Ian. I was just punching." She answered.
"Eli, you are not a very good liar." He told her. She started to smirk.
"Maybe I was just a lil' bit." She admitted.
"Is that so?" He asked her, amused. Before she could even see him move, he grabbed her ankles and stood up, holding her upside down. She started giggling like mad.
"Ian! Put me down!" She said in between laughter.
"Promise not to try to hit people anymore?"
"I promise, I promise." She told him. He placed her on the ground. She shook her head and got up. She was still laughing. He looked at her amused. She looked back and managed to stop laughing.
"Evil Ian."
Ian shifted in bed. His face kept itching, and he could not figure out why. He scratched again. He tried to go back to sleep but there it was again. What the hell was causing it? Wait, was that giggling?
Ian cracked open his eyes. Eli was smirking.
"Got ya." She told him as she began to laugh. She had part of her hair in her hand and had been using it to annoy him.
"Do you ever sleep in the mornings?" He asked her as he glanced at the clock. 6:23 AM. She shook her head. Then she yawned. He pushed her over so that she was lying down. "Go back to sleep. You are tired." She nodded and closed her eyes.
-Later-
Ian came back into the mansion. The body was taken care of, along with the window. He went back into his room, expecting to see Eli still asleep. He sighed when it was evident that she had gotten out.
"Eli!" He called out. No answer. "Eli, this is no time for games. Where are you?"
"Meow!" He heard from above him. He turned around just in time for Eli to crash into him. He fell flat on his back onto the ground. She was laughing manically.
Ian winced as he looked at her. She had on all black once again. But she had drawn three lines on both sides of her face. And her hair was put back by a black head band with something that resembled triangle cat ears. She giggled.
"Got ya again! Meow!" She said as she got off him. Ian got up, rubbing his lower back. He looked her once over again.
"What are you?"
"I'm a kitty!" She told him like he was joking. "See, I have ears, and whiskers, and a tail." She pulled up a tail that he had not seen before hand. "And I even have a coll-" Her hand felt around her neck as panic suddenly came apparent on her face. "My necklace!"
Eli suddenly got onto the ground and started searching for something. He looked at her curiously.
"What are you doing?" He asked as she searched under the blanket on his bed. She didn't answer. Finally, she pulled out something on a chain and breathed out in relief.
"I almost lost it." She told him as she pulled it back over her head. Ian came over to look at it. It was a round, silver oval on a matching chain. He picked it up lightly. It has a cursive capital E on it that had a connecting A just below it.
"My mommy's necklace. She gave it to me before she went away. See?" She opened it up. It was a locket. Inside was a picture of her and a picture of her brother Antony. She closed it again and turned it around.
"My only true fortune." Ian read out loud. Eli nodded.
"That's what Mommy always called us." She told him. She took the locket from his hands. "Ian, you have to feed the kitty."
He looked at her confused. "There is no k-." Then he looked at her and nodded. "Oh yes. Come along then." He then led her down stairs to get breakfast.
Ian took her down to the kitchen. She immediately rushed to one of the counters and climbed onto it. She pulled a bowl out one of the shelves and then jumped down. She went to the fridge and grabbed the milk. She poured herself a bowl of milk before returning it.
"Eli, what are you..." He stopped talking out of shock when she got onto the counter and started lapping up the milk with her tongue. "Eli, stop that!"
She looked up at him confused. "But I'm a kitty!"
"No, you are not. You are a girl. Now stop that." He told her. She pouted, but stopped. She looked back up at Ian.
"Meow!" She said angrily. She sat on the counter with her arms crossed. She was mad and was not bothering to cover it up.
'Tantrum.' He thought to himself. Well, he would never hit her. He would never be able to really yell at her. How are you suppose to discipline when you have no heart to do so? He picked up her bowl from the counter and put it in the sink.
"What would you like for breakfast?" She didn't answer. She sat fuming on the counter. She started rocking her legs back and forth. He tried not to get upset. Someone had to be the adult here. He flipped through the book the last cook had left behind. He found a certain page and hid a smirk.
"There is something here called French toast." He said out loud. Eli immediately perked up.
"French toast?" She asked. He nodded.
"But I do not know how to make it." He told her. She jumped off the counter.
"I do I do I do I do!!!" She shouted. Ian was trying very hard not to smile.
"But you are a kitty." He told her. She took off her ears.
"I'm a girl again. Can we make French toast now?" She asked.
"I am not so sure, you seemed so upset earlier...." She looked down.
"I'm sorry." She told him. "I didn't mean to be mad at you. I just wanted breakfast."
"That is alright. Just watch your temper." He told her. "Now, how do you make French toast?"
She smiled and began to explain.
-Later-
After their rather messy breakfast, which included a certain nameless kitty pouring sugar down the back of his shirt and cracking eggs on his shoulder and decorating his hair with cinnamon, He left her to watch television as he showered and changed. He went into the living room to check on Eli.
She had placed on her cat ears again and was lying on top of the couch on her side. She was swinging her tail around with her left hand as she watched cartoons. She turned her head when she felt him staring.
"Meow." She told him before she turned her head back to the TV. He looked at what she was watching and shook his head. Why did children love these grossly humorous shows about hamsters and cheerleading secret agents and children with football shaped heads (not to mention the girl on that show that had made a statue of the football headed kid using his pre-chewed gum.)?
He stretched his arms. His body felt all wiry from not doing anything physically straining, aside from last nights fiasco. He decided to train a bit to get the edge off. "Eli, I am going to go train for a while."
"Train for what?" She asked, only half paying attention.
"Just to simply train. Stay in here and watch your cartoons, all right?"
"Yeah, Ian." She answered quickly, totally absorbed into cartoon land. He smirked and left the room.
An hour later, Eli flipped through the channels. "A hundred channels and nothing is on!" She moaned. She turned the TV off and threw the remote control onto the table. She got up. 'Where's Ian?' She thought to herself. "Ian!" She called out, stretching out the syllables.
When he didn't answer, Eli started looking around for him. She had no clue where he could be. She could get around partly by herself now, but the huge mansion still confused her. She was pretty sure she was lost when she heard the sound of metal being run against metal, followed by yells of attack. She quietly started making her way towards the noise. It led her to a black door that had the words 'WAR' written on it. It was already partly opened, so she peeked in.
She saw Ian with what she thought was a sword. 'Cool, it looks like he is doing some sorta dance thingy.' She watched him, absolutely mesmerized. "Wow." She whispered.
He finally stopped to rest a bit. By then, he realized someone else was watching him. He looked over at the door. Eli walked in then, looking at him with wide eyes. He looked at her amused. "What?"
"That was sooooo cool!" She announced. He shook his head.
"It is just practice." He laughed when she shook her head.
"That was magic." He just shook his head and went over to the wall to place the sword back. "You're strong." She said. He shrugged his shoulders and she went on. "How strong are you?"
"I do not know." He told her.
"Can you do push-ups?" She asked. He nodded. "Lily says she can, but can't. She always falls on her face. If you can, then prove it." She challenged him, smirking.
He looked at her. It was so simple, why not just play along? He smirked back and got down and did a few push-ups. She nodded approvingly.
"How about clappers?" She asked. "It's the one where you clap before you go up again." He hadn't done those since he had been in the army. He did one, but it was a little off. He tried it again and it was perfect.
Eli went onto to further test his strength. She even had him do push-ups while having what weights she could lift. When she was done testing him, she sat against the wall and watched him kill the punching bag.
Ian looked over at Eli over his shoulder. He could tell she was starting to get bored. "Eli, would you like to learn something?" She perked up and nodded. She walked over and he bent down on his knees to be at her level.
"Put your arm out straight." He told her. She did as he told her to. He moved her body a little and he took her hand and closed it, making it a fist. "Whenever you punch, just a simple punch, you should be like this." He moved her arm back and moved it forward again, showing her how she should punch.
He let go of her arm. "You try now." She tried her best to mimic what he just taught her, but she was still a little off. He helped adjust her and she tried again. And again. And again. Till she finally got it.
"Yay!" She announced. He then showed her how to do the same thing with her other arm. It took a while, but she was able to get it.
"Here, now show me what you learned." He held his palms up. She looked at him confused and tilted her head. He laughed at the site she made. He placed on of her palms up and then proceeded to very lightly punch it, but she moved her hand away in fear.
"Eli....."
"No way! That'll hurt." She said.
"I promise it will not." He reassured her. She placed her palm up and he tried again, connecting this time. "See? Now, you try." She punched into his palm.
"Good." He told her. She kept doing it trying to make each one harder and faster than the last one. She was so intent on making it stronger that she missed his palm entirely and almost hit his face if he hadn't dodged. She bit her lip.
"Sorry."
"It is all right. You did not actually connect. Keep going." She began up again, a bit maddened by the way he had said 'did not actually connect', as if she couldn't. She waited a while and then 'accidentally' missed again. He still dodged in time, but now was eyeing her for what she was doing. She went at it again, and by the third time she missed and mumbled out an apology, he stopped her. He looked at her half smirking, half serious.
"Miss Carver, I believe you are doing that on purpose." He told her. She gave him a perfected look of innocence.
"Doing what?" She asked.
"Trying to hit me." She shook her head.
"Of course not, Ian. I was just punching." She answered.
"Eli, you are not a very good liar." He told her. She started to smirk.
"Maybe I was just a lil' bit." She admitted.
"Is that so?" He asked her, amused. Before she could even see him move, he grabbed her ankles and stood up, holding her upside down. She started giggling like mad.
"Ian! Put me down!" She said in between laughter.
"Promise not to try to hit people anymore?"
"I promise, I promise." She told him. He placed her on the ground. She shook her head and got up. She was still laughing. He looked at her amused. She looked back and managed to stop laughing.
"Evil Ian."