[OOC] Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

[xivyxx]

Aurel nodded slightly, trying to maintain the rod at the place Faolan had tilted it to. His expression was focused, as if he was giving all of his attention to his instruction.

"Oh I see." The boy responded, his forked tongue making itself known through his slightly parted lips. This tended to happen when the boy was really trying to concentrate.

"This way is weird." He commented, referring to the method of fishing. Back in the day, when he'd catch fish, he'd simply snatch them out of the water with his hands. "I just grab them." He told Faolan. Wasn't that technically more impressive? Not everyone could move fast enough to grab a fish out of water. Maybe he could show him how he did it sometime?

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan watched Aurel out of the corner of his eye and his mouth twitched into a brief smile as he noticed how hard the boy was concentrating. He was a quick and rabid learner, observant and witty, but quiet and reserved. Honestly, he reminded Faolan of a mixture of the two of them...but he had not voiced this out loud.

He had come to see more and more about Aurel's condition and how he had lived his life prior to the abuse he suffered during his time at that terrible place they'd found him in. He had not been as feral as the Irishman had first thought and seemed to have a perfect mixture of outdoor and indoor manners. Though he was young, he was mature for his age, and the language barrier had not proved as big an obstacle to their conversation as he'd first thought either. He'd found time alone with the boy to be almost entirely pleasant, though Faolan did miss the freedom of being alone when he could be. It was a sacrifice he was willing to make for the sake of the child, he could not bear the thought of leaving him to his own devices in a weakened state.

He raised his eyebrows at Aurel's comment, speaking quietly so as not to frighten the fish away. "Weird, but effective. And less cold..." he joked, nudging the boy with his elbow gently. "But you should teach me that some time, I bet I'm quick enough." Faolan had never actually caught an animal of any kind with his bare hands. Even in his most feral moments, he'd always used tools or weapons. It would be interesting to watch this boy's method.

[xivyxx]

"Ef..fec..tiv?" Aurel repeated, trying to comprehend the word. "Like... work better?" He asked, to be sure he was understanding that correctly.

He couldn't argue with the coldness. It was certainly less cold than having to swim in the water at night hoping to catch fish. This way he didn't have to get wet, but there was a part of him that enjoyed the old way too, it was sometimes a bit more fun, though had been a little frustrating at first. He couldn't quite hide himself as well as the snakes could, so he always had to be more careful not to scare the fish away.

The boy let out a chuckle at what Faolan said next, though his eyes sparkled with renewed excitement at potentially having something else he could teach the man.

"Next time we swim!" He said in an excited whisper. A small tug on the line snapped the boy's attention back to the water.

"Ah! Um, what next?" He asked, unsure of what to do.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan nodded to Aurel's clarification, "Very good." Aurel was getting better and better at English every day. Faolan and Lucien spoke it around him as much as possible, and Faolan only attempted German when he knew that there was no other way to get his point across. Usually, it made Aurel giggle more than anything.

Faolan almost flinched when he heard Aurel's exclamation, but held back from scolding the boy. He had been very careful about not scaring the child unnecessarily. Besides, he knew that the child was excited to do this for Lucien, so he didn't want to detract from anything that put a smile on either of the faces.

His attention was immediately cut as he saw the buzz of Aurel's line. He knew that he had a bite before Aurel told him. He looked over at the boy and held up a finger to his lips to remind him to be a little quieter, then answered softly, "Now, you lean back a little bit, very slowly. See if you can get it to latch on."

[xivyxx]

Aurel's smile widened as Faolan said that he was right. He had been trying to pay as much attention as he could to Faolan and Lucien's English, wanting to learn as much of it as he could so he could properly communicate with Faolan. He had come to understand a variety of different words back at the circus, because of how many people usually crowded around him, but they didn't speak as nicely as Lucien did, so he had been able to learn new words that he had never heard before. He couldn't deny he kind of enjoyed hearing Faolan attempt to speak German. It sounded really funny in his accent, but it was nice to see that he was also trying to communicate with him.

The boy's focus returned to the task at hand as Faolan began to instruct him. He remembered he was supposed to be more quiet as Faolan placed his finger against his lips and he made sure to lower his tone.

"Okay. He said quietly, before doing as Faolan had instructed and leaning back. It was a little after he had done so that the boy felt the pull get a little stronger, and he glanced from the line back up to Faolan.

"Do I pull? Or wait?" He asked, maintaining a lowered tone as he glanced back into the water, looking eager.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan looked down into the water to see the shadow of the fish, pleased that it was not anything larger than the boy's hand. It was small, but he was not quite strong enough to handle anything larger. He saw the line tense a bit and held up a hand to let Aurel know to wait.

"Hold..." he said, very quietly, watching the fish. He let his hand hover near the fishing rod to be sure that he was there to help in the event that the fish was too strong. They waited a couple of seconds before Faolan sensed the fish attempting to pull on the bait. He said "Now!" quietly, just as the fish's tail began to swish under the water.

[xivyxx]

Aurel's eyes kept going from Faolan to the water, his hands waiting in anticipation as he waited for Faolan's instruction. His arms were tense, but the moment Faolan had spoken the boy yanked on the line, for a moment almost losing his balance but he was able to maintain it. The small fish was pulled from the water, and the boy begin to reel just as Faolan had earlier instructed, excited to be able to have the fish in his possession.

He had to admit that reeling in this quickly was a little tiring for his arm, but he pushed through it, not wanting to risk losing it somehow. Soon he had the fish thrashing about at the end of his line. He looked up at Faolan with a wide smile.

"Ich habs geschafft!" He exclaimed, but then realized his tone and quickly quieted. "I did it!" He repeated, but a lot more quietly this time.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan watched the boy struggle with reeling, holding himself back from helping. He wanted to teach Aurel how rewarding this could be, not only because he'd done something, accomplished a goal, but because he was doing for someone else. Faolan always felt best when he was providing for Lucien and thought this would be good to pass on to Aurel while he was in their care.

He actually broke a smile as he saw the child pull the fish all the way up and noted the ecstatic expression on his face as he shouted his accomplishment. He didn't bother asking the boy to quiet down now, not when he was so excited.

"Excellent, and you got one before me," he said at a normal volume. "Now, we don't want it to suffer." He said, looking from the child to the fish, still bouncing on the line. "Do you want me to do it?" he asked, reaching for the animal slowly. He didn't want to bring the boy's mood down, of course, but he also hated to watch things suffer. Growing up on a farm, his father had taught him to kill and slaughter efficiently, making sure the animal felt as little pain as possible. He had never been resistant to this, and although he never liked watching anything die, he understood that some things had to for the sake of other life. He respected wild animals, even more than humanity on occasion, and he always made sure to honor them when he could. If killing had to be done, Faolan wanted it to serve a purpose.

[xivyxx]

Aurel took Faolan's change of tone as an okay for him to talk normally again as well. At his next comment, he glanced at the fish. Now that he looked at it, it was thrashing about an awful lot. It was different than from when he'd just snatch them out of the water.

"Kill it?" He asked. Did he think he couldn't do it himself? Aurel was quite used to it, considering his time in the wild, but in this situation he wasn't sure how to go about it, since it was a different catching method.

"If you're feeding it to the other human, it'ss best you don't bite it." He heard the striped snake say from beside the rock where he had been resting, causing him to glance in his direction for a moment. This was the snake that had taught him to hunt, and had also taught him about venom. Usually when he bit things, it weakened the animal and it made it easier for him to kill them, sometimes it would kill the animal soon after if it was something small like fish or rats. Though.. if Lucien was going to eat this.. that probably wasn't the best way to go about it. He didn't want to hurt Lucien, or make the fish taste weird.

"Yeah.. that's true." He said, reaching out to grab the fish with his hand before giving it to Faolan. "Best I don’t. Biting it would be bad." He said.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan nodded at Aurel's understanding, then watched as he turned to the snake by his side and began to converse with it. He had seen the boy do this several times, and though the only sound that issued from either of them was a quiet hiss, Faolan had decided they must be communicating in some way. He had never witnessed anyone speak to an animal this way. In his village as a boy, there was an old medicine woman that his mother called a "witch" who claimed to be able to speak with animals. He had seen her do this several times, but it always just consisted of the woman placing her forehead against the animals and closing her eyes. To this day, he didn't know if it was true or not, but he was inclined to believe in her abilities. She was the one who had helped him after he'd been attacked by the creature that had passed its virus to him, and he had seen her do things that he had not thought possible before then.

Once the boy was finished, he extended the fish to Faolan. The Irishman nodded again, then took it and released it from the line. He raised his eyebrows slightly at Aurel's last comment, "Let's wait for any biting until it's cooked, hm?" Once he had the wriggling creature grasped in his large hand, he held the rod between his knees, and withdrew a knife from his pocket. He laid the fish on the rock between himself and the boy, and placed the knife right at the base of the creature's skull. He looked at Aurel to make sure that he was watching, "You want to do this quickly, it takes a little bit of strength," he said, before quickly pushing the knife down, severing the animal's spine. It stopped moving immediately, and Faolan finished the blow by removing the head entirely. After this, he tossed the fish down into a bucket that he had placed in the cold mud on the shore to keep it cool while they were still outside.

"Well done. Now I've got to get one or I'll look bad." Faolan said, noticing that the child was not bothered at all by what he had seen. It was clear that he was a hunter, comfortably with killing when it was done for food. It reminded him of Lucien's first reaction to watching Faolan do this. Though, it had been a rabbit, which Faolan knew was a little harder to bare. Lucien had "watched" it done through his fingers, and the Irishman was not certain he had really seen anything at all. At first, he'd thought it was juvenile and even a little irritating, but after he had gotten to know Lucien he was happy to do it out of his sight.

[xivyxx]

Aurel let out a small chuckle at his comment. "Not bite to eat, bite to kill." He said, before opening his mouth a little and pointing to one of his fangs.

"Venom, like snakes." He explained. "Didn't want Lucien to get hurt if I bit it." He wanted to make sure Faolan had understood what he meant. The boy watched Faolan kill the animal, tilting his head a little. It seemed like a lot more work, but he'd keep it in mind since his usual method wouldn't work if he wasn't the one eating it.

He reached up and pat Faolan on the shoulder, something he had seen Lucien do on occasion. "You can do it." He encouraged with a smile, before turning to look back at the water, eyes scanning the surface of it. He squinted a little, narrowing his eyes as he tried to find an outline that was a higher temperature than the cold water, but it was hard to differ it because they were cold blooded creatures, however he caught a sight of movement.

"Fish there." He said, pointing to a specific area in the water.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan watched Aurel's presentation of his canine and nodded slowly as understanding came to him. The tooth itself was long and thin, very much like a snake's, and Faolan guessed that it would be hollow as well. He would make sure to remember this and report it to Lucien, it would be good to know for the future as they prepared Aurel for going off on his own. If that venom could kill animals, he wondered what it could do to a full-sized man. No way to know, and he hope that there would not come a day for him to find out.

He had just settled in to fishing once more as he felt the boy touch his shoulder gently. He looked over at him slowly, a little confused, but brushed it off with a smile and looked back at the water. The boy was definitely observant, Lucien did that to him all the time.

"Hm..." he hummed at Aurel's next comment and searched the water, squinting as he did so. He followed the line of Aurel's finger and saw the smallest ripple in the surface of the lake. He raised his eyebrows as he pulled the line in to recast it, "You do have good eyes...seems we make a better team than I thought," he said, smiling down at the boy. He was glad that the two of them had got along so well, and he knew that Lucien was proud of him too, which only made it feel more like a success.

[xivyxx]

Aurel smiled as Faolan pulled the line in to recast it. He was happy that he had been of help. He made sure to lower his tone before he spoke up again, remembering he should be quiet in this process.

"I do! I can see good in the dark too. I see warm things better, hard for animals to hide from me." He said proudly. The boy looked forward to showing Faolan what he could do when he gained enough strength to be able to run around the forest like he used to. He wanted to help in any way he could.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan nodded again, focusing as he pulled the line toward the fish he was aiming for. So, it seemed the boy's vision was like a snake's as well, based on heat. He had read that in a nature book once, and now Aurel was proving this to be true. It seemed the child was quite the little hunter, Faolan looked forward to seeing what he was capable of once his strength returned.

The two passed the rest of the afternoon like this, sitting on rocks, enjoying the sound of the wind as it swayed through the trees. Aurel ended up catching another fish, slightly larger than the first and Faolan had to help him keep hold of it as it was liable to pull the rod right out of his hands. Faolan caught three in total, all rather large for a lake of this size.

Once they were done, they packed up and walked the few hundred feet back to camp. Aurel had built up enough strength to walk short distances, and Faolan wanted to get him walking as much as possible as soon as possible. The child still needed some help, so he sometimes gripped Faolan's pants or sleeve as they walked about for balance and support. The Irishman prepared the fish for cooking and eating, showing Aurel how to clean and de-bone it. He learned that the child mostly had eaten his food raw, but had never seen the act of actual cooking before, so he showed him that too.

About halfway through, Lucien returned from work just as Faolan was finishing dinner. He looked up as he heard a rustling in the trees, but smelled the sweet scent of Lucien's skin and immediately relaxed. He smiled over at the Frenchman as he approached, as always, happy to see him home. "Punctual, as always," he said, turning his attention back to the task at hand. He wanted to get up and hug his lover, but held back for the sake of Aurel's presence.

[xivyxx]

Aurel had been quite satisfied with himself, having been able to catch two fish. He hoped Lucien would be proud of him too. As they had made their way back to camp, the boy had watched Faolan curiously work. Back in the days he hunted for his food, he had always eaten it raw, and back at the circus his food had been cooked, but he had never actually seen it prepared for himself, so it was a new experience for him. The taste of raw food didn't bother him but, adding seasoning and such to a dish really made it a lot better.

--

Of the options Faolan had taken down, Lucien had decided to take the dictation job, even if it was short term, it paid the most. When he had done everything he had to for it, he could easily take on a different job, so he wasn't too concerned with it. The job wasn't all too difficult, as Lucien was a very good listener and a fast writer, but he had to admit it was a bit boring. Sometimes he preferred things like the bartending jobs over something like this just because he got to interact with more people, but in this case he wanted to prioritize what he'd be making, considering he and Faolan had a child to take care of.

The Frenchman allowed himself a bit of a walk through town, since he had finished a bit early, to see a bit more of what they had to offer. He was looking for something for Aurel. They had all of his basic necessities covered but.. he didn't actually have any possessions of his own. He at least wanted to give the child something to do when he wasn't doing his training or when Lucien wasn't tutoring him in English. He headed into one of the art supply stores, and had settled for a box of crayons and a sketchbook. Lucien of all people found artistic expression important, and even if the kid didn't have a knack for art, he thought maybe he could still use it for a bit of entertainment. With that in hand, he headed back to the campsite, and had arrived right on time it seems, as the smell of cooked fish filled the air.

"Of course." He said with a smile.

"Welcome back, Lucien!" Aurel exclaimed. "Me and Faolan caught lots of fish! Look! I caught two!" The boy said, pointing to the meal Faolan was cooking.

Lucien's smile widened at how excited Aurel was to have done so. It seemed that the two of them were getting along really well, even in his absence, which he was really glad for. It was clear Faolan was at least a little bit more relaxed around the boy.

"Good job, Aurel. I can't wait to try it." He said as he approached the two, giving the boy's hair a bit of a ruffle. "I brought you something, I hope you can make use of it." He added, before taking the sketchbook and box of crayons from the bag and placing them on the boy's lap.

"You can color in this book, whatever you want." He told him.

Aurel looked down at the sketchbook, eyes lingering on the crayons. "Buntstifte.." He muttered. This was something the boy had grown up consider a luxury. He had never had access to them, and the only time he had seen them was back at the orphanage.. but the other kids would never let him use them, and the staff there had never done anything about it. He had resigned himself to never being able to try it.

"Thank you!" He said to Lucien, hugging both the sketchbook and crayons close to him.

Lucien wasn't expecting the boy to like them as much as he seemed to. It clearly meant a lot to him. He was glad he had decided to go through with it. "You're very welcome. Feel free to color as much as you want." He told the boy, who seemed quite eager to.

It was then that Lucien looked to Faolan as the boy begin to look through the empty pages.

"Did you enjoy fishing with him?" He asked him, taking a seat next to him.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan watched the exchange between Lucien and Aurel with a light smile. It made his heart happy to see the boy smile with such genuine surprise and contentment, and especially as he watched him pull the book and utensils close into a hug. Leave it to Lucien to brighten the boy's day so considerably.

The Irishman finished with the fish and began to dishing them onto plates, passing one to Lucien. He nodded in answer, "He took to it quickly, I'd say we both had fun. Eh, Aurel?" he asked, smiling over at the boy as he extended a plate toward him as well. In truth, the day had passed by rather quickly. This was unusual, as days when Faolan was alone seemed to drag on, as he was always waiting until he would lay eyes on his lover once more. But today he did not feel Lucien's absence as harshly, perhaps he had been too distracted by his anxiety over being alone with Aurel...either way, he'd found the child to be a welcome presence.

[xivyxx]

Aurel nodded at Faolan's question. "Yes! Lots of fun!" He exclaimed as he received the plate from Faolan. It smelled really good, and definitely different than when he ate it raw. "Next time we will fish my way! I'm teaching him!" He added, clearly excited and looking forward to it.

Lucien thanked Faolan for the plate before he looked back at Aurel. "Oh? And what way is that?" He asked.

"I catch!" The boy explained, extending his hand and opening and closing his hand.

The nephilim smiled a little amusingly. "So you're going to teach Faolan to snatch fish up with his hands?" He asked.

"Yes!"

"It's unfortunate that I have to work tomorrow, I would have loved to see that." He said, turning to Faolan with amusement shining in his eyes. It would have certainly been a sight to see.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan served himself, letting the grin stay on his features through it all. Each of them had ended up with three filets, and Faolan had added a piece of grilled bread of each of them, along with a small pile of fresh vegetables. He had been focused on making sure all of them were eating balanced meals. Though he had Lucien, given their respective "conditions" could eat just about anything they wanted without it effecting their bodies too drastically, he wanted to be sure that they both set a good example for Aurel, who by all accounts had a very slow metabolism.

The Irishman chuckled as he took his first bite of fish, pleased with the flavor he had produced by using only a few simple seasonings. "I'm sure you would," he said in answer, "but I suppose you'll just have to wait to hear Aurel's report." He winked at the boy as he tore a piece of bread from the loaf and ate it.

[xivyxx]

Lucien's smile widened at Faolan's response. Who knew that the two would be able to get along so well so quickly? He was honestly glad for it, and it made leaving the two alone together a lot easier. It certainly gave Lucien a peace of mind.

"Yes, I suppose I will. Make sure to catch every single detail for me okay?" He asked the boy, who was blowing on the fish to let it cool a little.

"Yes! I will!" He said happily. Having seen Faolan break a piece of the bread to eat it, Aurel did the same, figuring he could do that while he waited for his fish to cool. He didn't deny that he was avoiding the vegetables on purpose, but he looked forward to eating the bread and the fish a lot more. It hadn't been that long but.. somehow being here with Lucien and Faolan felt.. so natural to him now. He wanted nothing more than to put his terrible experiences at the Circus behind him. Part of him wondered what his life might had been like had he met Lucien and Faolan earlier but.. there was no point in thinking about that now. He was just.. happy to be here.

[FreckersFrog]

Faolan chuckled lightly at this exchange as he continued eating. "Maybe if you're lucky," he said, "Aurel will draw it for you."

-----------------------------------

The next five weeks passed and the trio remained intact. Lucien finished the dictation job he had taken in town, and after a couple days to be sure of Aurel's strength, the three of them set off once more. No one ever came looking for Aurel, and after this time had passed Lucien and Faolan considered their heist of him successful. Though, the ever vigilant Irishman took the same precautions everywhere they went, regardless, it was in his nature.

They moved on to the next town, and over time Aurel slowly began to regain strength in his body and his legs. After about a week and a half had passed since they'd found the boy, the symptoms of his withdrawal had slowed and finally ceased completely. By the time a month had passed, he was almost entirely independent and even enjoyed spending some time on his own coloring and drawing, working on his reading and writing, and even taking short walks within line of sight of his protectors. They were all happy together, for the most part, and all fear of being alone with the child had left the Irishman as well. Overall, they made all the trappings of a happy family.

Faolan made off on his monthly "errand" and allowed Lucien to explain. The Nephilim told Aurel that Faolan had something that he had to take care of and that it was very dangerous, which was why he went away to do it. He promised the boy, who was worried about the Irishman, that everything would be explained when he was a little older. Aurel accepted this for now, and felt that much better when Faolan returned unharmed.

They were all sitting together inside the trailer one evening parked in a lot behind the house in which both Lucien and Faolan had taken jobs. The former had been hired as a tutor for the family's young son, and had convinced them that Aurel was his nephew so that he could bring the boy for lessons. Faolan had been taken on as a handyman who was in the process of doing several small but essential repairs around the property. The house itself was a little ways out of town, but they had taken Aurel in for a couple days once they arrived to show him around. Faolan had finished his work for the evening and was sitting in the bed with Lucien. Both were reading, the Irishman with a newspaper and the Frenchman with a book. Absently, Lucien had let himself lean against the warm and sturdy shoulder of his lover as they read. The three had grown quite comfortable together, and while the two men were still careful not to reveal the full extent of their relationship in front of their charge, small looks and light touches had been too easy for them to let slip, especially in the comfort of their own bed. Faolan was still sleeping in the passenger seat, and it had been hard for both of them to be so close and not be able to show their affection. Still, the Irishman was worried about the child's reaction and what he could say to other adults, so he cautioned Lucien against explaining it to him just yet. In this moment, however, Faolan had almost forgotten that Aurel, who was quiet and courteous, was even present.