Palindromes and Ice Cream Cones (Open)

[Matt]

Raxar Renner

I lick my delicious treat, a state of tranquility as I am the only one here. This parlor may not be the biggest, but it sure is the best. This has been mine and Eve's favorite hangout since we were little kids, and meet here every Saturday. It's Saturday, 7:00, the time we normally meet, and in my head I am as nervous as ever, wondering if something had happened to my baby sister. A strange thought comes to mind; Eve might be to busy for this. It is utterly devastating to think, as she has never missed an ice cream Saturday. But that was before. She had just recently turned a teenager, and is no longer the little baby I had always cared for. She was probably hanging out with her friends right now, gossiping with who has the best abs or the most kissable lips. But here I am, her 17 year old bigger brother, who had blown off his own friends to be with her. A big party was to be held tonight, and everyone had invited me to come. All I had told them was that I had something to do. Now I wish I had made a different choice, because I am sitting here, alone. I think of my name, Raxar Renner. Raxar spelled backwards, and Renner spelled backwards is still Renner. Palindromes. I know everything there is to know about palindromes, as my parents gave us a lecture about the various kind of palindromes. There are word palindromes, letter palindromes, number palindromes...Most of the time Eve and I had just sat through it, nodding our heads as we stare out the window. Eve. I order a Banana Jamma shake, her favorite, and find an empty table. I sit there, watching the ice cream melt. Drip. Drip. Drip. I am in another world, deep i thought, as I don't even notice the person standing right behind me.

[-xXInverted FlyingJennyXx-]

Amethyst

It's been a long week and I'm so tired, but there's one task left to do before I can relax. My 'boss' at the hospital, Ms. Barton, said the regular caretaker was out sick and told me to take a few of the younger orphans out for a treat today.

This morning, I got up early as usual, spent the morning at the TC, showered, and left for the orphanage/hospital (I never remember its name) pick up the lucky little ones after dinner. There were originally five that wanted to come along, but one decided he'd rather read his book and another had a tummy-ache, so I now here I am, bringing three of the orphans to the nearest ice cream parlor for this week's 'fun trip'.

I've actually never been to this one before, but it seems pretty decent. It's a little on the small side, but the kids don't mind. I bring the children up to the counter and tell them to pick whatever they want. Ms. Barton gave me enough money for pretty much anything here. The kids choose their flavors and cones, chattering excitedly. How little it takes to amuse them. That's always been one of the reasons why I like working with children so much, especially orphans. They don't take things for granted and don't expect so much of a person. It's beautiful, really.

Almost as beautiful as the rainbow swirls in the ice cream each child chooses. When they're finished, they glance at me expectantly. I take out the money and start counting it out when a little girl speaks up. "Aren't you going to get any ice cream?"

I don't know what to do. I considered this outing as a task, not as an actual fun thing to do, but these kids--this is one of those things they look forward to all week. I smile and say, "Thanks for reminding me--I can't believe I forgot!" I smile, hiding the fact that I didn't plan to get any in the first place. I glance at the list and order a simple single-scoop chocolate ice cream cone. Then, I pay for the ice cream, paying for my own ice cream separately, with my own money.

We get the ice cream and take a seat. The kids talk among themselves, and I take a glance around the place. It's quiet, and there are only a few other people in here. The closest to us is a young man who looks a few years my elder. His ice cream is dripping, and he looks out of it. I grab some napkins from our stack and hand them over, saying, "hey, your ice cream is melting."

[Prince Inigo]

Belameane "Bean" Jives

Belameane had decided that today was going to be one of those rare nights where she wanted to be somewhere else than home. Her abode was always to her comfort level, yet there was a stirring in her heart that also seemed empty, devoid, lonely, desolate. A sweet prickling was itching her tongue, so the sick girl decided to try ice cream - ah, the smooth cream and ice that she hadn't tasted in eons.

Tonight was lonely, too. Ralve couldn't be there with her. She begged and pleaded - almost whined - with the most normal voice she could aim to produce, but he couldn't; he was too busy tonight, and he only gave her an emotion-rid smile.

Ralve, will you leave me for good one of these days? Belameane blew bubbles in her strawberry-banana shake, which was thick and delicious.

Cerulean eyes looked amongst what people were present in the ice cream parlor. There seemed to be Amethyst with some children again, almost the same type of setting as that encounter from the other night, then there was a older boy whose dessert was melting and eyes probably cast off into a faraway galaxy strung with stars.

Belameane opened her mouth to say something about the ice cream, but ceased and pressed her lips tightly as Amethyst beat her to it.

Sigh. It would have been nice to introduce himself to the gentleman - at least she hoped he was a gentleman.

But she could have settled to say something to Amethyst, at the very least. "With children again, Amethyst?" she said weakly. "Are you a caretaker of some sort?" The sick girl smiled with some effort. She could only smile her best with Ralve.

[-xXInverted FlyingJennyXx-]

Amethyst

"With children again, Amethyst? Are you a caretaker of some sort?" I spin around and see that Bean is here, too.

With a wave and smile, I say, "You could call it that. Where's Ralve? Y'all are always together--well, almost." It's almost strange to see that she's alone. I feel sorry for her--I'm surrounded by children, but they're lovely kids and quite a comfort sometimes. "Come sit with us," I invite.

[Prince Inigo]

Belameane flexed her hand in a waving manner, almost like she was ushering Amethyst is come closer. "He couldn't be here; said he was too busy to come 'play' with me." She sighed in near exasperation, then she coughed a weak cough. The girl regained her composure and smiled.

To Amethyst's request, Belameane widened her eyes. "Really? Ah... I guess I can join your group." Hesitation was very clear in her tone, despite her effort to sallow it down back to her heart. The rare invitation completely threw her off-guard.

[-xXInverted FlyingJennyXx-]

Amethyst

"He couldn't be here; said he was too busy to come 'play' with me." She acts all nonchalant, but I see a little desperation in her eyes. I'm glad when she agrees to join us, though. The poor girl always seems like a pariah or something. I've never really talked to her before, but right now, I need a real, my-age friend.

"Yeah, sure, come on." She comes over. I decide to start drawing her out of her shell by first talking about the adorable little kids.

"Hey Bean, you know that one over there? That girl's name is Nour. She's a little shy, but she's pretty awesome once you get to know her. She's really creative--has all these cool ideas floating around in that head of hers."

I point to another, a little boy. "That kid over there, he was orphaned recently. He's the youngest in this group, though. He loves anything that can fly or sparkle. His name's Tommy."

Then, I point to the last child with us today. He's sitting right across from us. "That's Andrew. He's already eight years old, and he likes to help the nurses in the hospital that's next to the orphanage. I think he's a natural doctor--just perfect for this district."

Then, I address all three of the kids. "Hey guys. This is my friend, Bean, from school. Be nice to her, okay? Say hi to Bean!" Friend. I called her a friend. Is she one to me? Can she be one to me?

[Prince Inigo]

Belameane nodded to each of the children as Amethyst introduced them to her. She tried to memorize the information: shy Nour was creative, young Tommy had interest in things that sparkled or flew, and Andrew seemed to be a mature child with a knack for the medical world. The girl thought about the status of being an orphan, the toughness of being an orphan, then the notion that she would never be able to feel for these youngsters struck her. She had a family that cared about her well-being, cared enough for her to watch her straining activities, but the kids would not be able to gain that love, probably.

Belameane gave herself a mental frown.

"It is very nice to meet you three," she said, fully attentive. She was then thinking of what Amethyst called her: friend. Belameane turned to Amethyst, eyes wide and blinking yet instilled with a drop of happiness.

It's this easy to obtain friends?

[Matt]

Raxar Renner

Hey, you're ice cream is melting. The voice cut me out of my trance. Did it come from within my mind, a warning? I looked up to see a girl about Eve's age, with a bunch of kids with her. I nodded my head in a hello, doing my very best to be cool. I've spent all of my life pretending to be something I'm not, and now it just comes naturally. It just goes to show you can be anything if you set your mind to it.

Another girl around her age comes alone. They speak of a boy name Ralve, then the new one asks about the kids. I listen to the girl named Amethyst's stories of each and every one of them. One of the boys, named Andrew, reminds me a lot of me. I always enjoyed volunteering at a hospital, as practicing medicine is the thing that comes easiest to me. Amethyst invites the other girl to sit with us, and I also nod my head to her. I soon realize that my ice cream is actually melting, and scoot it over to the other girl. "All yours." I say, a smile on my face. "My name's Raxar, by the way"

[Prince Inigo]

Belameane averted her eyes to the man she tried to speak to earlier. Cerulean orbs looked at the treat he pushed towards her; her mind took several seconds to process the visual information and crank out a response.

"Thank you very kindly," the girl replied, smiling, and wrapped her hands around the cold - yet melting - dessert. She licked the edge of the glass and shivered what little sweetness was stuck on the walls. "I'm Belameane, but you can call me 'Bean'." She stared at the cup. "Um... was something the matter, Raxar? We noticed you seemed staring into space earlier."

[-xXInverted FlyingJennyXx-]

Amethyst

"Um.. was something the matter, Raxar? We noticed you seemed to be staring into space earlier," Bean says, accepting the cup of ice cream.

I introduce myself. "Hello, Raxar. I'm Amy." Then, I listen for his story, averting my attention from the kids to the conversation for the briefest moment.

OCC: *Ominous music* What do kids do if you don't pay them attention? o.o