Event Log: The Hope of a Child

[hadrielmods]

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the The Hope of a Child event
Where: All over the city!
When: January 23rd-Feb 1st
Warnings: Youths

By now, the gods have probably done enough weird crap to you while you're asleep for you to be a little suspicious- but it's not like you can just not sleep, especially when there are a few supernatural forces making your eyes droopy and your body feel heavy.

And now, when you fall asleep, you'll wake up somewhere else and you'll likely have quite a different temperament- you'll be younger, maybe a little more naive and innocent, and you won't exactly remember all the wild stuff that's happened to your adult self. Maybe now you'll be a little more trusting and emotional, hm? The gods could definitely use a little boost in power, and what better way to do it than to harness the power of overemotional kiddos!

Or maybe you aren't affected at all and find yourself surrounded by youths. What are you going to do when your best friend doesn't know how to cook for themselves? Or your bitter rival is throwing a temper tantrum because they broke their favorite toy? Nobody asked for this kind of responsibility, but think about what would happen if nobody was around to take care of these babies...

► This log covers January 23rd-Feb 1st.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you trip over a kid and die, please let us know here.

Comments

[restinglichface]

[Barry squeezes her hand, gentle and so so soft, and the slightest touch of pink lights up at the girl's cheeks again, her toes curling against the ground at the nice warmth that settles inside of her.

Lup honestly doesn't have a clue what all of this could mean, but boy, she likes it. She doesn't want to let go of Barry for awhile now.]

Oh, you don't? Really? [Oh. There's another thing they have in common. And yeah, sure, Barry at least has his mom around still, but it's kind of nice to know she isn't the only kid without a dad in her life. Just another thing to bind them together as friends, an experience they can share in, even if it isn't necessarily pleasant.]

Wait, you're gonna let me pick first? How come? You're not gonna try t' shove me over or make fun of me for what I pick, are you? Most of th' boys I play with don't like girls pickin' first. [Or when it came to the twins, ever.]

[barold]

No, I don't. He died.

[Barry doesn't want to think about it too much, so he just shrugs it off, like it's no big deal. Of course, it is a big deal. Thinking about death isn't particularly scary, he understands the mechanics of it and what happens to something that dies, but someone he loves being gone forever? That's scary. It makes him sad knowing he won't ever know his dad. It makes him sad knowing that his mom is going to die someday.

But he doesn't want to think about that now. It makes him want to cry, and crying is for lame losers (which Barry is, no denying that, but he can't look like one in front of Lup!). All he wants to think about is the girl holding his hand, making him feel good and soft and warm inside.]

Wh-What? [The boy looks bewildered.] No, I-I'm not gonna shove you! O-Or make fun of you! Why would I..?

[What kind of boy does that to a girl? That's so rude!] Mom always says that a gentleman lets ladies go first. A-And I'm a gentleman! And you're a lady! Or-- O-Or a girl, I mean, y-you're a girl, b-but-- [flkjdsflkjhsdfg]

Um... A-Anyway, you go first.

[restinglichface]

[Was a dead dad any different than a dad who ran away? Lup can't quite say. Either way, the end result is kind of the same for the two of them.

Then, out of nowhere, Barry calls her a lady and there's just no hiding the soft awe in the way Lup's mouth parts, the immediate flush on her freckled cheeks, the way her eyes go impossibly wide. No one's ever called her that. Most of her crappy family barely even called her a girl, but Barry thought she was a lady? Really?

The rush of warmth that floods her entire body is both confusing but wonderful, tingles dancing up her spine, her bare toes curling against the ground. Lup knows her and Taako don't look like much right now, they're too skinny and filthy and dressed in clothes she's already gotten too tall for, but-- But Barry calling her a lady makes none of that matter. It makes the girl feel pretty and special, even if it was just a slip of the tongue. She squirms in place, still holding his hand, just too delighted to keep fully still.]

Let's play tag. [She finally slips her hand out of his, staring down at Barry's face for a moment, before she's leaning in to peck a quick kiss to his small mouth, just the barest touch of her lips to his. Then Lup's slapping a hand down on his arm and running away at top speed.]

You're it!

[barold]

[Barry's too shy and nervous to look up at her after he slipped up and called her a lady - she's a girl, doofus, ladies are old and she's not old and she must think he's so stupid - so he doesn't catch the look on her face at all. He doesn't catch how her cheeks go red, how her mouth falls open, how her body twists and squirms with delight.

Only when her hand leaves his does he look up, his little face scrunched with concern. Her eyes are really pretty. They're so big and bright and nice, and they're looking at him like that, making his insides feel all gooey, and he finds he wants to look at her eyes like that for a really long time. He couldn't care less about playing tag, but if it's with her? And he gets to look at her some more? Then tag doesn't sound so bad.

Then she kisses him, and for once, everything inside his head goes quiet.

Lup slaps his arm and sprints away, and Barry remains standing just a little while longer. It's only a second or two, but it feels like an eternity. That felt super nice. His heart is beating so fast in his chest, and even though he's gone all stiff, he feels so hot and airy he might just float right off the ground and into space. That wasn't like a kiss goodnight, that was a kiss the way grown-ups kiss. Grown-ups who really really like each other.

Lup really really likes him. Barry really really likes her in return.

He watches her run away, and after those brief seconds of near sensory overload, Barry breaks into a heedless sprint after her, laughing brightly as he chases her. He vows that if he's able to catch up with her, he's going to kiss her back. He's going to make her feel as good as she just made him feel.

It's a vow he will unknowingly keep for the rest of his immortal life.]