Stood up (open)

[Deleted]

Charlie wasn’t happy at this particular point. Cupid must have been indirectly out of his mind to pair her up with Edmund. Charlie would rather have swallowed her sword then go on a date with him. But she did promise her divine half-brother that she would at least give it a try, even if it was Edmund. Charlie actually spent time doing her make-up, wiping it off and starting again to make sure she looked half decent. Her blond hair had been curled and she took a bit of extra time to pick out her clothes too. It was a light purple dress, some shiny sequins at the top, and flowers on the single strap. She didn’t quite feel comfortable in the dress, but she figured that she at least looked nice, no matter the fact that she was going on a supposed date with the one man zoo. Charlie pulled on a pair of black strappy heels and teetered for a moment, but she quickly regained her balance. There was some giggling and someone snapped a picture and Charlie snarled at whoever tried to get a picture. This day was just getting a bit worse and worse. But for now she would at least grin and bear it for the night. She promised herself she would try to have fun tonight and not kill him. Of course she had a knife on her, but that was more out a force of habit then it was for protection. Maybe she could use it for a bit of intimidation if anyone tried to get too frisky towards her.

She arrived at the appointed dinner date time and place. Okay, maybe she was a little bit early, but that was beside the point. She was shown to her table. All around her there were other couples hanging out, some of them looked like they had been paired up by cupid, and others looked like they were the regular couples that Charlie always looked at with either longing or disdain whenever she saw them in the forum. It seemed like all of the tables were full and there were even some people up and dancing. Charlie suddenly became self-aware as she was sitting alone, by herself in the middle of the crowded dining room. It was a bit embarrassing. Charlie felt the heat rise on her skin as she looked around at the other couples. Charlie looked up at the time on the wall. Well she had only been her for like thirty minutes waiting. Maybe Edmund had gotten caught up on some sort of project. Charlie didn’t know what to really think. She took a sip of some cherry 7up. It looked like champagne but it wasn’t. It was one of the only sodas that Charlie would drink since it had the antioxidants in it.

Charlie absentmindedly ran her finger around the champagne glass rim. An hour had passed and Charlie was still waiting for Edmund to show up. A few other couples had stood up and started to dance slowly. The music was irritating her and she tried her hardest to not bust the glass in her hands and stab the nearest person with it. Another hour passed by and Charlie was starting to feel like she was worthless. “Ugh this is so stupid. Why did I even think remotely that little probie would show up?” Charlie growled as she tearfully put her head in her hands. Why she was even worried about being stood up by a little snot like Ed anyways? No it wasn’t that at all, she was worried about how much of an idiot she looked like, dressed up all nice and pretty because she promised that harebrained brother of hers that she would give this day a chance. Now all he did was turn around to spit in her face. Oh yes she was embarrassed. Charlie took a deep breath and dabbed at her eyes with a napkin before trying to recompose herself. Charlie stood up and walked outside to get some fresh air.

She plopped down on a bench before slipping off those gods forsaken shoes. Charlie made a mental note to ask Felicity if she knew the first man to invent high heels so she could drag them up from the depths of the underworld so Charlie could really give them a tongue lashing. Then Charlie would suggest that whichever idiot invented high heels would be made to wear his own invention for all eternity. That would be such a wonderful and fitting punishment. The breeze was cooler at night then it was when the sun was out. She drew her jacket up tightly around her neck. But now her legs were cold. Damn that wearing a dress thing. “I swear to the gods I’m gonna kill Cupid.” Charlie grumbled.

dress

[Deleted]

What the freaking hell was Cupid freaking thinking? Edmund fumed. Two gods on his baddie list. No, three. Four... actually. Yep, he was going to die young. Whatever. No biggie. It was bad enough that Cupid paired him with his cohort leader. Bad enough that he was debating to go in the first place. What made it worse was that he opened something from Mars that turned him into a platypus. This was exactly why Edmund was suspicious of gifts. He always acted like anything anyone gave him was either an explosive meant to kill him or was going to poison him. This card sent curse pretty much put a nail in the coffin that he had a right to be suspicious of things people gave him. He gave no one reason to trust him or like him or support the notion that he should live. On the outside, the card had been fine, inside well. However Mars got that curse in there Ed didn't want to know. He had gotten other cards too, which had slightly freaked him out. Why the hell would people send him these? No one made sense here.

So, while couples were gathering near the tents and waiting for their dates, Edmund was in the forest, waiting out the animal effects, and wondering if he should even go, even when he turned back into a human. There was no way in Hades that he was going in with everyone else, much less as a platypus. Time slipped by with no signs that he was going to be human anytime soon. Charlie was going to kill him. Scowling, Edmund ended up drifting to sleep on his grave rock. When he woke up, the ridges of the rock hurt so much more than it had when he fell asleep. He went to hop down, only to realize that the ground was so much closer than he remembered. He blinked slightly and looked down at his arm. Yes. Arm. HA! Back to a human. Now the real dilemma. Go to this dancing dinner thing or not. He spent a good fifteen just sitting on the ground and playing the: go or not go game. Physically and mentally. The physical game was just to uphold his mental decision. At any rate, the internal debate took so much longer than the physical one. Since he didn't have a flower to pick the petals off of like they did in those movies where they were trying to decide (and anyway, who really imagined Ed doing that? No one!), he used pebbles.

In the end, he got that pebble that said he'd go. Yippie me. It was almost kind of a relief. This was the one day where him seeming semi-nice wouldn't seem bizarrely weird. Besides, he may have been a jerk, but he wasn't that low as to outright just... not show up and leave someone by themselves. Okay, another guy, he may have done it. A girl, no. Not really. He knew how being the odd one out felt. Just sitting there by yourself while everyone else has friends (or in this case a date) surrounding them. Humiliating. So, that being settled and straightened out in his mind, Edmund got up and slunk into the barracks. Thank the gods above it was empty. Everyone was probably down there already. Yeah, he was late. His mother had once told him never to keep a girl waiting, but this time, he wasn't exactly his fault. He wondered if Mars would have sent that curse if he had known that Edmund had been paired up with his daughter. Ugh. Gods.

Edmund took out his suit that he had slunk away into New Rome to buy a few days before (yes, he knew how to make himself look semi presentable) and put it on. Gods. He hadn't been in a monkey suit since only gods knew when. Certainly not the funerals or wake since he refused to go... Probably Christmas before the fire. Ode to joy. He still couldn't believe that he was going to do this to himself. Ed half gritted his teeth, sighed, sucked it up, grabbed the basket that was lurking under his bed, and then went out. Half the plan was that he'd some how convince her to not stay actually in the tent. Edmund trudged back the way he came, back over towards the tent. No turning back now. Great. As he got closer, he saw that someone was already sitting outside the tent. Well, if that was Charlie, things just got kind of simpler. He wouldn't have to convince her to come out (which probably wouldn't have worked anyway). A half smirk flashed across his face as he decided to take the back route towards the bench. When her high heels came off, Edmund eyed them half warily. Those things could be considered weapons, sheesh!

Just as he got within a foot of the bench, he heard her mumble something. A moment later he ended up behind her. "If the word "kill" was in there, I'm wagering a bet that it was either me or Cupid," he said with a semi smirk.

OOC: Oooh pretty ^^
Suit (ironically it's the one Will's wearing, not Skandar xD)
IC: 877

[Deleted]

Charlie was totally cursing her brother up one side and down another mentally. Cupid was totally going to never hear the end of this. If there was a way to kill a god, ooooh was Charlie going to find out how to do it and apply it liberally to Cupid’s backside. A knife to the kidneys, did gods even have kidneys, that was a good idea. Maybe Charlie could put in a prayer to her dad to punish that flippant brother of hers. She didn’t care if he was immortal. Charlie was going to make sure that Cupid paid dearly for his fun. She was totally in the worst mood and mindset right about now and she was about to use her stiletto heels as a throwing knife against the next idiot that even looked wrong in her direction. She was feeling a bit depressed and almost down right murderous. Even the couples who passed by gave her a sideways glance, but Charlie could guarantee that she looked like she was about to spontaneously combust into fire. It was a rather distinct possibility at this time.

There was a voice and Charlie scowled as she looked at the male who had spoken. Well look who decided to show up. The one man zoo miscreant. “I see you decided to show.” Charlie acidly replied. Okay maybe that was too harsh. However she totally had been waiting for nearly two hours and embarrassed out of her mind for being the only one at the table amongst the hundred other couples that had showed up. Maybe something had happened; maybe someone had turned him into another animal. That was probably the latter. “Sorry Edmund. I really didn’t think you were going to show up. I was worried. What kept you?” Charlie asked, her tone softening and her brow unfurrowing. She let out a slow breath before collecting her thoughts and returning her attention back to the young male in front of her. She then produced his present, an ornate box with a pink bow on it. Well it was a massive box, but it was easy for her to tote around. In all honesty it looked like it was about fifty pounds, it probably weighed about that. But it was akin to toting around just your armor on any given day. “This is your present, I hope you like it, you should get some use out of it.” She said as she pushed the massive box in his direction.

“So what do you want to do? Eat first? There’s lots of things to do tonight.” Charlie asked with a shrug of her shoulders as she then slipped her black stiletto heels back on. Okay so maybe she wouldn’t murder him out right. She could just make the best of it for the time being.

edmund’s present

[Deleted]

Ed was probably going to get hell from Charlie for showing up late. There was even a slight chance that she would be the one to not show up. Seriously... who would think that Edmund and Charlie would be paired up? No one really. Ed wasn't exactly relationship type material at any rate. Besides, Charlie probably hated him if not even more so now. Ah well, that didn't exactly matter to him. Being liked was at the bottom of his list. In fact, it would be better if it was non existent. His life would be infinitely better. But no. He had to decide to open his mouth and hang around the commons near the barracks instead of hiding out in the forge. So much for never wanting to get noticed at Camp. Him coming late to the thing pretty much put a bright, red blinker on him. Stupid Cupid. Stupid Mars. Couldn't the gods just leave them alone? Didn't an eternity of manipulating mortals and demigods alike ever get boring to them?! They'd blow the world up one day. Cause mass destruction through other people and probably glorify in it. Sick, childish imps that they were. It wasn't like they did anything fantastic to warrant worship anyway. If anything, Ed wanted them to get stuck on a planet as it supernova-ed so they could be destroyed and then sucked into the black hole.

Yup, he was in trouble. From the moment she turned around to find the voice, her face was in a "don't-screw-with-me-any-more-than-you-have-Simons" look. Edmund's own look stayed it's usual blankness. "And I see you've decided to move outside the tent." Seriously, if she thought glares and snapping were going to get her anywhere, she was wrong. He had lived through it and had kind of been desensitized. Of course, she had a right to be angry with him. He was the one who showed around two hours late. Then her tone changed. This made the second girl to be bipolar on him. One moment she was chewing him out, the second it almost seemed like she was concerned. "Uh-huh," he grumbled skeptically. "Waiting to be turned back into a human," he said, his voice back to it's usual flatness. Edmund's dark brown eyes turned over to the box, eying it like he would an explosive. The last present (Mars' Valentine's day card) he had opened had contained a curse. He wondered why he even bothered opening the card. Why didn't he just burn it? With Charlie being Mars' daughter, he couldn't help but be slightly more suspicious than usual. He had just been proven that he was right to be wary of gifts. He gave a slight nod. "Okay..." he murmured. Ed pulled it towards him, still eyeing it with caution. First thing noticeable: it weighed as much as his armor. "Thanks...?" He really needed to get better at accepting things from other people.

"And this is yours," he said, handing over the basket with a few books inside of it. Over the past few weeks, he had seen that Charlie was interested in different culture's weaponry. That, and she seemed to like reading. So, while he was in New Rome for the suit, he decided to pick up a books that gave information on traditional, cultural weapons, shields, armor, and battle tactics. One book even had letters from various soldiers of different armies. "Eating sounds fine with me," he said in a slight nod. He had honestly not eaten since getting turned into a platypus. Of all the creatures inside the book Felicity had given him, the platypus hadn't been listed. Or at least, he hadn't seen it. He had no idea what he could, or couldn't eat, so he just refrained from it. Then the shoes went back on. Looked like they were going back into the tent. Oh well. He didn't fight her on it though. Edmund had been the one to show up late, so he'd let her have her way.

IC: 700

[Deleted]

Charlie still wasn’t exactly sure on how to approach the situation. Cupid had to put her up with some kid who absolutely no emotion what so ever. Ed as a human was about as much fun as playing with a rock. At least she could use the rock to kill or maim something for fun. She felt her irritation with the legionnaire rise and rather quickly at that. She took a deep and calming breath before trying to smile. Of course her face probably looked like she was having a seizure or something. Emotions other than rage and blood lust were not exactly her strong points. She even forced herself to attend her anger management classes but then Charlie realized that she didn’t much have a problem with managing her anger, it was her lack of control over stupid people. She really really hated stupid people and the things they said and did. Maybe that was why she and Maddi got along fairly well. That was assuredly a trait of Mars, the inability to put up with stupid. Charlie for the most part really disagreed with some of the childish stuff her dad did, but she could understand how hard it was to put up with some of the crappy stunts the legionnaires liked to pull from time to time.

Charlie knew that Edmund didn’t like sweets, but it was a fair no brainer that she could probably get him some tools as a gift. She was really bad at that whole gift giving thing. But her train of thought was interrupted when Edmund said he had been waiting to turn back to a human. “Oh great, what did my dad turn you into this time? I swear he acts worse than some of the prepubescent kids that run around here.” She rolled her eyes at the thought of her dad doing something moronic….again. “You do look handsome though Edmund.” But Edmund seemed a bit wary of the present she had presented him with. To be honest she didn’t blame him about being a bit cautious. Charlie and Edmund weren’t exactly on the best of terms with each other. He probably thought that she was going to either turn him into some sort of lizard or blow him up. If it was Charlie’s opinion, she would probably blow someone up, but she wouldn’t do something that low. If Charlie was going to kill someone, she would do it to their face…..while she separated their heads from the body. Edmund’s present to her was books. Books on the weaponary of all these different cultures. “Oh Edmund!! Thank you so much for the books! I’d totally give you a hug if you were into that thing.” Charlie loved books and especially books on warfare and weapons. “I really can’t wait to read them.” This was real happy for Charlie, or at least as happy as she could get.

“Alright, food then. Let’s go.” Charlie stood up and walked into the Mess Hall where things had really been changed around “Come on Edmund! Take a look at what they did.” The candles were lit over low two seater tables. Some of the tables even had flowers. It was a bit later in the so called valentines day date, so lucky for her, a majority of the tables were empty. “So you get to pick. There’s plenty of places to pick from.” Charlie would rather be off to the side where no one was really watching or paying attention. Charlie really detested being the center of attention. She only cared about attention on the battlefield. Not now when she was in this stupid little dress. Charlie stumbled. “I swear to the gods, who ever invented heels will die if I can get a hold of them….” Charlie totally didn’t understand the fashion of women these days.

[Deleted]

Edmund was pretty sure that being with him was near the equivalent of being with a wall that gave sparse, near one word answer responses. Other than he practically was a wall. Unchanging, blank tone of voice and emotionless face. It annoyed a lot of people. Sometimes it was amusing to watch just the way he talked tick people off. And it seemed like he had managed to annoy her rather fast. Her face semi twisted into a scowl, but then forced into something that was probably supposed to resemble a smile. Edmund half rolled his eyes before his face retuned to serious and straight. He never understood fake smiles. "Drop it," he said in his normal, emotionless voice. "You look constipated at best." Seriously. If someone wasn't happy, why did they smile like an idiot? To pretend and convince not only others, but themselves that they were okay? Sure, Edmund lied to convince himself all the time, but at least he didn't have a facial facade as well.

He remembered that he used to bake when he had been younger, but even at that, he usually just made the baked goods for other people. Usually for the holidays or birthday parties. He scowled slightly as his mind was brought back to his unpleasant reality. "Platypus. He didn't even do it to my face this time," he half fumed. He would so burn that card when he got the chance. At least Mars could have been a bit less of a coward and turned Ed into an animal to his face. He gave a slight shrug, rolling his eyes. "Sometimes," he muttered in agreement, his voice going back to flat. Then again, nearly all the gods could be at any given day. After finally half convincing himself that Charlie didn't know how to put a curse in a box, and wouldn't give him a ticking time bomb with herself so close to him, Edmund cautiously opened the box. Tools, lot of them, were staring back at him. "Thanks, Charlie..." he said, his voice semi loosing it's emotionless edge for half a second. "I really like them," he said, nodding sincerely. The one thing about Edmund, if he was showing any emotion other than nothing, it was (usually) completely sincere. True, he had been wary at first, but he really appreciated it (not that he'd ever admit that to her). And yes, he still possessed manners and could be half decent when and if he wanted to be.

Ed hadn't really gotten any gifts for anyone in... well, ages. The figurines given to Alistair and Felicity didn't really count. It was semi a relief when Charlie said that she liked the books. "You're welcome." He gave a slight nod. Well at least she respected his "anti physical affection" thing. "I'll definitely take a pass," he said, back to flat. As Charlie got up, Edmund straightened slightly, just eyeing her as she started to walk in those large heels. How did girls walk in those without falling and breaking their necks? He'd hate to see someone get on Charlie's bad side to night... all she'd have to do is take off her shoe and throw it. He soon caught up. The Mess Hall had been utterly transformed. It was seating for twos all over the place with low lit candles and flowers. It was almost kind of calming. Since he was two hours late, a lot of the tables were empty. "Okay..." he muttered, looking around for a non in the center, more to the side and away from everyone else table. In the end, that's the table he chose. One that was more along the outskirts, no where near the middle. He could pretty much be in agreement with Charlie on the "no attention" thing. When she stumbled, Edmund automatically went to grab her arm to try and steady her. A semi smirk flashed across his face. "Via Felicity I'm guessing. You're going to have to go back to like... Ancient Egypt."

OOC: *digs Ed a grave* >.>
Besides the first comment I thought you were doing okay-ish
IC: 688

[Deleted]

“Constipated? Yeah maybe emotionally so, or at least I’ve been told that by many other people.” Charlie said with a nod in agreement with what Ed said. Mars kids weren’t exactly in touch with the sensitive side. She didn’t much know how to act on this sort of thing. “I have got to get better at this sort of thing.” She gave a small sigh, wishing for once that her godly parent was just different from Mars. Anyone else but him. Okay except for maybe cupid. She loved her divine brother dearly but sometimes, like tonight, she wanted from the depths of her soul to murder him. Well it might have been quite the pain in the ass to have a divine parent. But someone as blockheaded as mars? That was really quite problematic since he was a bully and only seemed to care about his kids that did really well or if they were divine. All irritations aside at present moment, Charlie would really give anything to be like Cupid. He was a bit more self-confidant then she was and he had a good grip on emotions. It also helped that most people seemed to generally like him.

“I really didn’t know what to get you. I heard from Felicity that you didn’t like sweets…. So it was kindda hard since the only thing people have for sale are flowers, chocolates and jewelry.” Charlie shook her head and gently bit her lip. She wouldn’t admit it, but Charlie was glad that he liked the tools. Or at least he said so. She wanted badly for Edmund to not hate her. It probably didn’t help that the mix of her lack of emotions and her dad seemed to piss off people. Maybe more in perspective, it seemed to piss off Edmund. They had a rough start a few times and well sometimes it didn’t seem like it would get any better. At least she wasn’t on killing terms with him anymore. She didn’t like being a big bad centurion from time to time. Charlie didn’t know how to be otherwise. Maybe she could ask Cupid for some advice the next time or two around. “I really do like the books. I can’t wait to get into reading them. After I finish the Hobbit of course.” Charlie grinned genuinely at Edmund.

Charlie had tripped and she cursed at the shoes and whoever had invented them. Edmund had grabbed her arm and kept her from falling flat on her face. “Thanks… I don’t see the point in these shoes other than for use as thrown weapon.” She steadied herself before sitting down at Edmunds choice for a table. It was nice since it was out of the way. Her glass was filled by one of the wind spirits. She grinned as she took a sip of some green peach tea. Okay it was an off day for her. She would have to work her ass off to get rid of the calories. “That really hits the spot. What do you normally eat at the mess hall?” Charlie asked, trying for an attempt to make some small talk, once again proving her lack of people skills.

[Deleted]

A very slight flicker of a smirk flashed across the sixteen year old's face. Emotionally constipated, huh? That was certainly one way to put it. Quite a few of the people around the legion were probably that way. Heck, Edmund knew he was. No showing of any emotion other than anger. Any other emotion would be against his religion. Against his religion... his mind bounced on a tangent. Did this whole "the gods exist" thing make him polytheistic...? Not exactly if he hated the gods and was a rebel in that aspect. Even if they were shoving it in his face that they practically ruled the world. Sure, right along with Hitler.... only a lot less known. More known on the demigod level, unfortunately. And now they even had to make it a habit of visiting. Why? None of them seemed to care before. Why start now? Just when it was convenient to toy around with them when they got bored? Ugh, stupid gods, why'd they have to be immortal? He was glad that he wasn't, that was for sure. Ed probably couldn't live with himself for eons upon eons. Which brought him back to his previous sting of thought: he wasn't in touch with loving, happy, kind side. Not at all. He gave a slight shrug. "If you want," he said in his normal, flat tone. Edmund wasn't changing to appease anyone, he knew that much.

He honestly had no idea how this thing was going to work out tonight. Ed showed and that was probably mind blowing enough for some people. None of their business though; if Charlie didn't like his company, she could always get up and leave, he wouldn't do anything to stop her. "Oh," he said, looking at her, his head tilted in the slightest. She even knew he avoided the sweets? Gods word got around fast around here... "Well, these are fine," he nodded slightly, lifting the case. "More than fine really," he added. Edmund would probably get good use out of these. It was always the practical things he tended to hang on to. At her mention of what was selling, he gave her his usual blank look. Wow. Chocolate, flowers, and jewelry. That was the best they could do? They were three things that he'd probably do his best to stay clear of (unless, of course, he had been asked to make the jewelry). When Felicity gave him the egg candy, he melted, remolded, and gave it back to her. She'd probably like eating the chocolate better, especially since it was apparently prohibited in the states (Why? He had no clue. The government probably thought children to be stupid enough to swallow a toy and parents not intelligent enough to know when the right time was to give this sort of candy to the child). "Alright," he nodded. After The Hobbit, after the Legion's library. Whenever was fine with him. He was just semi glad that he wasn't an absolute fail at gift giving.

Edmund nodded slightly as she thanked him and then allowed another smirk to flash across his face. It would make for an interesting throwing knife for sure... The heal looked slim enough to be aerodynamic. Seriously, if put in the right hands (like Charlie's) and given enough force, he could see them puncturing like a blade. It could be handy too. Hide a weapon inside your shoe. Or just have the shoe be the weapon. Then again, those things must have been awfully uncomfortable and hard to walk in. "How you guys go around in those things for fashion is beyond me," Edmund muttered, shaking his head slightly. He watched their glasses get filled and for a moment, just watched the liquid settle in his glass and ripple slightly with the table vibrations. And then came the dreaded small talk. Crap. Did he mention how bad he was at it? Antisocial, loner jerk Edmund Simons, good at small talk? Yeah, after the apocalypse. People skills level? -100... negative infinity if there was such. "When I'm human, usually whatever they're making," he said with a slight shrug. Gods. He was horrible. "You?"

OOC: OMGODS. This is so late >.< I AM SO SORRY
IC: 708

[Deleted]

"Actually I had some help with your present. I asked Felicity what you didn't like so I knew for a fact that it was taboo for you." Charlie admitted. It was rare for her to actually admit to something. But at least the tools would get some use out of them. At least in her mind things that were practical were more appreciated. Give her a sword and a shield or some books other then some useless trinket or piece of jewelry any day. She had maybe one or two trinkets that she had, Charlie cared about them, they were things her family had given to her. But outside of that she didn't have people she cared about here, well there was Remus, Felicity and August. They were people she really cared about. She even liked Ed in one of those annoying little brother sorts of ways. Charlie only had really ever gone out of her way to talk to those that were older then her, or at least the same age. And then there was Lance, that kid was just strait up adorable in a weird squirrel sort of way. But Edmund ....... Charlie wasn't sure what to do with him really. Most of the others were more on her level then they were on Edmunds. They were easier to talk to and didn't mind the training that Charlie pushed people with.


"I've never been one for fashion, obviously.... but this was the most ridiculous invention ever." Charlie grumbled as she eyed the stiletto heels with a glare before taking another sip of her drink. Small talk had never been one of Charlie's good things. Beating someone's face in with a tree branch, not a problem, or even talking about a book she had recently read, that wasn't a problem either, but coming up with bull shit to talk about? That was completely out of her comfort zone. Well maybe people weren't exactly her strong suit either, unless she was ordering them around on the battlefield, not too many people agreed with the things she did. Charlie tried to do things for the good of the battle and for the good of the camp when she went into battle. That was where she really shined. This dating thing? Not only did she feel like she was being picked on by her brother Cupid, but it had to be with Edmund. He wasn't exactly what Charlie had been expecting. Charlie had hoped for something well... more then him. Cupid was a sadistic bastard. Charlie knew now with out a shadow of a doubt in her mind that they were related. That sadistic bastard had their dad's sadistic sense of humor. Now there was absolutely no doubt about it.


"Hmm... what to order for food..." The Aurai were pretty good about bringing out stuff that everyone liked. Charlie even hated breakfast food so even the wind spirits were ready and willing to bring out a bunch of fruits and some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for her to eat as opposed to the regular breakfast food that the other campers devoured. Her eating habits were strange, she was a health nut, but not overtly so. She was careful about what she wanted to eat, but it had to taste good. She wasn't about to eat health food that looked like it came out of a lawnmower bag, or that looked like it should be some rabbit food. But in the end, she ended up ordering a bowl of Cajun shrimp and chicken fettuccini with cheese. It was always just the way she liked it. Sure the white alfredo sauce was a tiny bit fattening, but Charlie would end up working it off tomorrow with out a problem.

[Deleted]

"That's fine," Edmund nodded slightly as Charlie admitted to asking Felicity about what to get them. It didn't exactly change anything, Charlie had still taken the time out and everything to get the information and then to actually get it. Besides, it probably was hard to try to get something that Edmund liked; he probably didn't make gift giving/getting easy; didn't exactly tell people what he liked and didn't like object/gift wise. That in mind, it was even better that Charlie gave him a tool kit. Something he could actually use on a daily basis for things he actually did day in and day out. He'd go for something that he could get practical use out of any day instead of trinkets. That was also the way he preferred to forge: practical things that had actual functions. Swords. Armor. Shields. A metal bird that sang (although that function would be more entertainment than Legion orientated). An archery set. His wood shopping was more... therapeutic? He wasn't exactly sure how it worked, but it kinda soothed him to a degree. Maybe it was just because crafting soothed him period. Then again... he was carving out "special" items.

A half smirk flashed across the sixteen year old's face. "Obviously," he echoed, raising his eyebrows slightly. Out of all the years that the dark haired boy had known Jolly, she hadn't been the "prim and pretty, dress up with high heels" type. Nearly none of them at the Legion were. They couldn't exactly afford to be all pretty and handsome all the time, just because of all the training they went through. Edmund took another glance at the heels and semi shrugged. "Not if you can get a weapon out of it," he noted, thinking. Maybe that could be one of his next projects. Get shoes to become weapons. That'd be interesting. And then the silence fell between them. Gods he hated small talk... Edmund just wasn't a people person. Not even close. He probably had been... at one point, but that point in time was long gone. Then again, he sorta should be at least distantly polite to Charlie. He had made her wait, after all. Edmund wracked his brains for something, but it was easy to say that he wasn't the easiest person to talk to, forget attitude: just the flat voice and the blank face expression was enough to annoy people. He wondered if Charlie had been hoping for someone else. He knew for heck sure he had been. He had been hoping for no one. If it hadn't been for stupid Cupid, he would have been spending this night as he spent every: either in the forge or solo training.

Edmund drummed his fingers on his leg. Anything to get them moving, or just remind himself that they weren't pinned down. Besides, he wasn't good with sitting down long term unless he was in the forge and making something. Infinite patience with inanimate objects. Absolutely none with humans. Exactly why he came at weird meal times: trying to avoid everyone else. The big meal rushes. He hated being around mass amounts of people. It was almost claustrophobic. More than one person to him was people claustrophobic when outside of fighting. Yeah, it was pretty bad. He thought about what to get to eat and in the end, got chicken parmesan. Edmund could still remember what his mother's chicken tasted like. What the auri served tasted different, not as good, but at least it was something semi familiar. Besides, if what they got added a few calories? They'd just burn it all off tomorrow. Quite easily too. Just like they always did.

OOC: Sorry for the wait D:
Ugh. Ed and his untalkativeness >.>
IC: 632

[Deleted]

"Edmund, have you been doing solo training? Your form has improved considerably." Charlie wasn't sure what else you talked about on something like Valentines day with an antisocial kid who practically lived in the Forge. Not like she was good at this social thing either. Maybe she would ask Cupid for some pointers the next time that she spoke to him. If she ever saw his flirty rear again. If the god of affection was smart, he wouldn't come around for the next four months while Charlie cooled her heels. Though in all things considered, Her heels were hurting so bad right now it wasn't even funny. That last trip and fall she had twister her ankle and it was throbbing with every conscious thought she had. She'd look it over after Edmund had gone to the forge. If she could move it and feel it, there was no need to worry if it was broken. It was tender. "Whatever your doing training wise, keep it up." Charlie was trying to be encouraging for Edmund. It was hard, she had spent most of the time they had together giving him a really hard time. Not that it was any different from the other legionnaires that were under her command.


Chicken Parmesan? Charlie wondered curiously why Edmund had chosen to order that. Maybe it was a comfort food for him like the Chicken Penne was for her. She took a bite of it and smiled. It was just like the way her grandmother made it before she got that ulcerative colitis that kept her from eating dairy and beef products. This was really good, Charlie thought as she put a fork full into her mouth. She smiled and closed her eyes, thinking back to her mom's kitchen when her grandmother was making food. Charlie could hear in the back of her mind her grandmother calling her name and asking for her to wash her hands and help cook food. It took love to cook, that was what her grandmother always said, if you don't use love with cooking then what's the point of cooking? Food was a way to show your love to someone. "My grandmother used to make something like this when I was little. I don't know how this is different from hers. Maybe its a spice or something but it's hard to tell. I don't know the recipe." Charlie said in an offhanded voice, once again trying to keep the small talk going. She didn't want to deal with that awkward silence.


Charlie took another bite before watching Edmund for another moment or two. She took a sip of her drink and wondered what training regimen she would employ tomorrow. Maybe she would take them to word in the Archery Field. It wouldn't be too hard on anyone but still, it might be a bit fun. Charlie wasn't as good as an Apollo kid in Archery, but she was a bit better then your average redneck. Charlie remembered going hunting with a few rednecks back when she was little. She remembered how stupid they looked when a six year old brought down a twelve point buck with a single arrow and they couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. The thought made her chuckle inwardly. Charlie brought herself back from dream land ADD and regarded the younger male in front of her. She wasn't really sure what to say to him at this moment.

[Deleted]

All the gods were on Edmund's hate list for all eternity. Mars for turning him into animals, Diana for turning him into animals, Mercury just for being Mercury, and last (and least), Cupid, who had set him up on this stupid Valentine's Day outing. Why the hell? And with Charlie, his centurion, of all people. Edmund had enough reason to hate people and now Cupid had to add to it by pairing him up with someone on a practically mandatory "date". The next time the sixteen year old saw the male god of love would be too soon. His dark brown eyes settled on his commanding officer. "From time to time," he said with a slight shrug. Gods, he was such a fail at all this civil, small talk, social cues, human interaction stuff. At least she was trying. "Okay." His dark eyes narrowed slightly, but his voice betrayed nothing as he responded to her praise. Peer praise. He wasn't used to it and didn't exactly know how to react to or accept it either. Edmund would almost rather her physically beating him up in a practice session; her sounding encouraging was way too weird for his taste. (Yes! He still could pick out people's tone of voice even if he used none himself.)

There were few things that Edmund could remember from his pre-fire life. As time had gone on, things faded away: delicate memories snatched away by the slightest breeze. First to go was the smell of his house; then the smell of his parents and sister that he would inhale when hugging them. Then slowly, their every day voices and speech patterns disappeared. That was what he had to miss the most: their voices. He could remember certain phrases, but couldn't imagine them saying anything else. From his mother, he remembered singing him "his song". The song she had sung him after he had been born. On the occasional "good day", he could hear Meghan giggling and begging for him to make her a plane; mostly though, every day and night, he heard her last words of "Ed, I'm scared". From his dad, he heard the far away places that he was going, that he'd be home soon, and that he loved them. The only other things he could remember from his day to day life with his family were his mother's pancakes and chicken parmesan. Ironically, the last meals she cooked for them before their house went up in smoke.

He began eating. It wasn't his mom's, but it was darn close. Edmund gave a slight nod as Charlie told him that her grandmother used to make this for her. He had lived his life around peers in mostly silence. Heck, he had been a selective mute for a year. Edmund didn't mind silence; he didn't even find it awkward. He was actually quite comfortable with it; more so than talking, that was for sure. However, Charlie seemed more comfortable with having at least something to fill the air. On any other day, Edmund would ignore it, but heck. Stupid holiday. Stupid Mars for transforming him and making him ridiculously late. "What else'd she make?" he asked, his voice no different from before. He couldn't remember what his mother had done to make his favorite foods; all he could remember was them tasting good. Edmund, himself, had even enjoyed cooking and baking before the house went down. After that though, he had stayed far away from ovens.

OOC: Ed's Lullaby ((just incase you're interested xD))
I'm so sorry for this wait. I suck >.<
IC: 597

[Deleted]

Awkward, this little date was really awkward. Once again Charlie made a mental note to find some way to give Cupid the finger, a javelin in his stomach and a punch to the face while killing him slowly by dropping him in boiling oil. Oh would that be such a wonderful way to kick the god of love’s ass from here to Pompeii. Charlie hadn’t much met a god or goddess that she didn’t like, but Cupid was slowly inching his way onto that list. Who was she kidding? Cupid was her favorite divine brother. Not that she really had any others, but Cupid was much easier to talk to then her brother Remus. Though she would never announce it out loud or especially to Remus himself, but Charlie was really rooting for Remus and Felicity to get together. Felicity was her best friend and Remus was her favorite brother, so naturally she wanted them to be happy. If they were happy together then that by all means was fine with her. Charlie took another sip of her drink before taking another bite of food.

Her mind strayed to the younger male in front of her. At least Edmund gave some sort of response to the comment about how he was really improving on his training. Charlie was trying to be encouraging and hopefully not sound like some kind of overzealous war monkey. It was hard to do considering she was hardwired for battle. Charlie wondered what she could do herself to improve the training and make herself a stronger and better soldier. Well it seemed that in her dad’s opinion the only way to do that was to be a man. Charlie always hated getting compared to men when it came to war. War was her strength and to a degree it was her weakness. That meant all she knew were negative emotions, this whole good emotions thing was something completely foreign to her.

“You know, I remember a good bit of her dishes, she loved to cook and I loved to eat.” Charlie said when Edmund asked her in his usually flat tone of voice. “But it’s hard to remember sometimes, I wonder why it’s hard to remember things that are the most important when you loose the people close to you.” Charlie’s voice dropped an octave. There were plenty of things that she could remember about her mom and her grandfather, but it was starting to get fuzzy. “You know, my mom died in the war in the middle east, I used to remember all the time things about her. Like the time she decided that I needed to prepare for horrible food, so she fed me MRE’s for a whole week.” Charlie shook her head and made a face. The thought of the plastic tasting foods and the massive amount of hot sauce she had to drench them in to make them edible, it was almost terrifying. “One of my favorite things was when my grandmother made Lemon Blossoms. They were like little coin sized sponge cakes drenched in an icing that was made with Mountain Dew and a pound of powdered sugar.” Charlie remembered the first time her grandmother had made them, it had been almost a week before she had come down off the sugar buzz. Fun but at the same time, it was nice to have her hands stop shaking.

[Deleted]

No wonder Edmund still hadn't gotten a girlfriend. Besides him having no desire to have one in any shape, way, or form, he would be horrible company. Of course, he knew he was already. He'd rather keep to himself: silent, all day if he could. Stupid Legion wrecked his chances of just becoming a mute. He could have kicked himself for agreeing to come here with Charlie. It wasn't the silence that was awkward to him, oh no, he could care less about the silence: it was more the idea that they were on a "date". The idea that they were sitting at a table, eating, and try to be civil with eachother was nauseating to him. If he ever saw that love god's face again, he was getting burned in the forge fire. Why the hell did he actually have to go through with pairing people up? If the entire camp was being realistic, Edmund would never end up with anyone. Truth be told, Ed didn't want anyone either; he liked being alone. Give him metal or wood and a carving tool, and he'd be content. At any rate, Charlie probably had someone else in this camp that would have appreciated her company more than he did. Perhaps even she had her eye on someone else. Whoever it was (if there was indeed someone), he was 10000% sure that it wasn't him. He didn't want it to be him, anyway. Just doing this whole dinner thing was tortuous enough.

Edmund easily preferred Charlie yelling at him in the barracks or training field. All this toned down stuff was making him feel slightly nauseous. Talk about out of his comfort zone; then again, it was all what one got used to over the years at the Legion. For years, all he knew Charlie to do was to yell at him, smack him around, etc. Nowadays, he was rather used to it. She was a daughter of Mars and his centurion, after all: it was her job to whip him up to Roman shape. That meant all emotions besides rage, indifference, and anger were out of the question. No problem: he had gotten rid of those emotions before setting foot into camp. In that way, he had been slightly ahead. From that day forward, the Roman mindset had been drilled into him, even though he probably already had a quarter of it in him already. This "civil talk/hang with your centurion" was no were near the Roman mindset that he had built up and acquired over the years. Social skills. Edmund Simons: level negative five hundred, complete with recluse, jerk-like, and antisocial tendencies.

He nodded slightly as Charlie said that she remembered some of the food. A ghost of a smirk flickered across his usually stone like face; Charlie had liked to eat... who blamed her? As a child, he had enjoyed his mother's meals too. His mom probably didn't enjoy it as much as Charlie's had, but her food had been good to his remembrance... or what was left of it. At her rhetorical question (or at least, he decided to take it rhetorically), Edmund shrugged slightly. Of course, he had his own ideas why, but decided to keep that to himself. Everything was getting muddled and hazy these days, even the voices. It had been almost eight years... and he was slowly forgetting everything, especially if it was a bad day: their voices, their faces, their smell, what they liked and disliked. He looked at Charlie with an even expression as she said that her mother had died in the middle east. "I see. Sorry to hear about that," he murmured in his usual, flat voice, although his face lost its harder edge. Ed fully knew what it felt like to loose a parent. Or rather, both parents and a sister. More of a dad and sister than whatever actual blood from his immortal half could be. He raised his eyebrows slightly. That sounded pretty bad, guessing from the face she was making. Another slight smirk flashed across his face at the mention of Lemon Blossoms. "Sounds like an ADHD kid's dream desert."

IC: 708