Mari blinked a little at the question before shrugging briefly. “I’m only in high school. There's not really much to choose from… But I want to study archeology, so I have been focusing on world history mostly.” she admitted with a shy smile.
“Yeah, I guess they are a little strange. Though the strangest dog I’ve ever seen is probably… Oh, I forget what they're called but they're small, like a Chihuahua, and are mostly hairless. Except for some long fur around the face, ears, and, I think, the tail.” she said, trying to describe the unusual dog. “Dachshunds can bite but are usually friendly… once they get used to you. I think they're usually a single-person dog. The dogs you saw… Well, they sound like a lot of dogs people still have. Though I wouldn't be surprised if the kind you're talking about were some kind of hunting dog.”
High school? It was probably some form of higher education, if he were to use his memories, though the name sounded quite strange and he didnt know where to place it exactly on the education ladder - he only knew of the basic school kids went to and academy, used several times by characters in the novels he read.
"What does archeology do?" he inquired, curious about the new domain name. It had something to do with history, he assumed, based on her reply.
"I… i dont know what a chihuahua is… Though by description that dog sounds weird too. Do you have any pictures?"
At this point, pictures helped clear out a lot of his questions, for it spared him from having to imagine said thing - his mind only came up with some really weird things, very far from the truth, so he didnt rely on it that much.
"Hunting dogs… Would make a lot of sense honestly, since they were scary…" he trailed off, slightly frowning
“Archeology is basically the study of ancient history and ancient civilizations.” she explained with a wide eager smile. “You actually get to travel all over the world and literally dig up the past or even pieces of the past where time buried it. There's lost languages you can translate, ways of preserving all kinds of things, and… It’s like a big puzzle trying to figure out what was important to the people who lived there.”
Mari chuckled a little and raised a brow slightly. “Pictures of a Chihuahua or the other dog?” she asked, teasing gently before just searching for pictures of all kinds of different breeds of dogs for Damien to look at and pointed out the pictures of the Chihuahua and the other dog, which was called a Chinese Crested, according to the internet search.
She looked over at him, a little concerned by his tone, and strongly hoped that he hadn't been hurt because of those dogs back then.
Just listening, Damien could almost feel the girl's excitement radiating off her body like a fireplace stuffed with wood. She must've been really passionate about the subject.
"So like, trying to figure out what people way before you were like? That actually sounds pretty cool, i wont lie." he said, increasingly more interested. "What got you into it in the first place?"
"Uh, both would be best i think?" the boy responded, not knowing where to start. Being shown the pictures, he thought the chinese crested was a little odd, like a shaved dog with a wig on, looking less like a dog and more like some sort of strange creature, while the chihuahuas actually looked pretty cute to him, mainly because it looked like what he imagined a dog to be, only much tinier. The snarling pictures however didnt entirely change his perspective on dogs.
"Do you own one?" he asked, gesturing at the animal pictures.
As he was now, it was very hard to determine what Damien's encounter with dogs had been like, but one could only hope it wasnt as bad as it could have been.
"And what else do you have there?" the boy gestured at the bag again, curious to see if there was anything else in there.
“Pretty much.” she nodded with a chuckle. “It… I just love thinking about how life might have been different or even how similar it might have been. Though I have to admit I started liking archeology because of a movie.” she told him a little embarrassed. “I know it was probably exaggerated but it was still very interesting.”
Mari shook her head when he asked if she had a dog. “Unfortunately not. I do like dogs but… It would probably be too hard to pick one. Though my brothers both have a couple of hamsters. George and Merlin. I think they were planning on sneaking them into my bed to scare me… That prank backfired when I picked them up and started playing with the little critters.” she chuckled at the memory.
“Oh, not much.” she told him. “I did bring a stopwatch for when we go outside and practice, as well as a small notepad for the same thing.” she hummed briefly before she perked up a little. “I almost forgot. I also brought a coloring book and some colored pencils for you.”
Now that he thought about it, Damien could understand part of her attitude towards him - he was from a time long before hers, so if she was passionatw about the past, she'd show a degree of it in their interactions. Honestly, it was kind of lovely to know that.
"Well, i do guess one would be curious about life before them, especually so long ago. What movie did you see though?"
"i assume George and Merlin are the hamsters, not your brothers, right?" he momentarily intervened, with a half awkward smile. "Aww, that must have been such a cute scene but uh, hamsters are…?
The boy seemed to perk up in curiosity at the last item, stretching out a little bit to see the said objects.
"What are the book and pencils for?" he asked, tilting his head as he looked at the bag.
She nodded a little. It was true that her interest had played a small part in them meeting but it was more in the style and apparently abandoned state of the house as well as the intrigue when she found the hidden passageways. “The movie was called Indiana Jones. It's an older movie but it's still a classic.” she told him with that small slightly awkward smile she got when talking about stuff like this.
“Yeah, those are the hamsters. My brothers are Cory and Jake.” Mari answered the unasked question she suspected would come up. “Hamsters are cute little animals… about the size of a mouse, actually a little bigger, and they have shorter tails, smaller ears, and slightly longer fur.” she explained, hoping that helped his question.
“Just for fun.” she said as she took out the book and pencils to hand to Damien. “The first half has blank pictures you can fill in, anyway you want to, and the second half is completely blank so you can sketch or draw whatever you want.” she smiled at him.
"Indiana Jones..? thats a nice name, who is he?" he asked, intrigued by the mistery person. Also what exactly qualified as a classic movie?
Her brothers sounded pretty cute, based on their names alone, but he couldnt be sure just yet.
"So… Hamsters are rodent, like mice and rats. What do you do with them?"
Surely, Damien knew what pets were and why people kept them, but hamsters just felt so far away from his concept of a pet.
"Thank you" the boy said slightly hesitantly, accepting the book and pencils. Drawing had been something he didnt try too hard, honestly. He did some doodles every now and then, but never in color.
Damien flipped the book open, inspecting some of the drawings - first, they were so much different than the ones he'd seen before, heavily deformed but in a cute kind of way. He liked it
“He’s a fictional character who is a professor of archeology and quite the adventurer. He finds very rare and valuable artifacts and saves them so they don't fall into the wrong hands. Though that usually involves a fight to keep it that way.” she explained carefully, unsure how much Damien knew about World War Two. That was, honestly, a history lesson she wasn't looking forward to teaching him.
Mari raised a brow at the question and shrugged a little. “You take care of them.” she answered simply. “You have to feed them, clean their cage, and play with them once in a while but they're very cute and fun to watch. Have you ever had a pet before?” she asked, even though she had a hunch of what his answer would be.
“You’re welcome.” she smiled warmly, watching him browse through the pages. She had been a little nervous about what he might think of the cartoony art style or even if he was into drawing but… Well, at least he seemed to like it.
"He sounds so cool… Does he go to many places to find said artifacts? And what does he do with them after?"
The premise sounded like an interesting one, even with the fights and possible dangers - to him, anyone brave enough to take on perils in order to do good was worthy of admiration.
"That's it? Just that? Unusual…" he muttered a little, feeling a little confused as to why would anyone want to do that with so little reward. "I didnt have one, most animals didnt hang around me that much… Especially dogs or cats, they were just scared i think…"
"I'll try them out later, but first, i think we had some testing to do outside first?" he chirped, putting the book aside with a smile.
“He’s very cool.” she nodded, smiling. “Oh, he travels all over the place. Let's see… That I know of, he's been to Egypt, Peru, Nepal, the Amazon, India and Germany. I’m sure he's been to more places though. He already had a very impressive reputation in the movies before the actual adventure started.” she explained.
“Well, for the most part, yeah.” Mari shrugged. “And of course you get attached to them, so it's like having another member of the family. After a while, they start acting affectionate back to you. It's very sweet.” she smiled a little at the memory of the cute little ways pets showed their love for their owners. “Oh… I guess that makes sense.” she commented softly at the realization. She hadn't considered how animals would react to Damien being a half vampire.
She returned his smile a little more eagerly and nodded. “Alright. If you're ready.” she said, grabbing her stopwatch and little notebook.
"So he is like, an important character with lots of knowledge, right? No wonder he inspired you, he sounds like a role model to be fair" he brightened up, wondering if he could ever see this Indiana Jones guy.
"I didnt know rodents could be affectionate towards someone, they usually just run away. But if they do, then it really must be cute. I wish i could see them"
Hamsters werent on his known animal list, but if she told him they were really sweet, he was now very curious to know more.
The boy hopped off the couch before Mari and made a b line towards the door, just beaming with eagerness to go outside. The sky was partially clouded, making it a perfect day for Damien to go outside and enjoy it.
“Yeah, he is. And a lot of what he finds, he usually gives to the museum where a friend of his works. I think the school he teaches at is… affiliated with that museum too.” she said with a small smile, blushing faintly as she remembered and answered his other question. “But yeah, he's a pretty great role model… A bit of a philanderer but other than that, he’s a good guy.” she admitted.
She shrugged a little but nodded. “Well, maybe if you want to… you can come over to my house sometime and see them.” she offered. There was a good chance that mice and small animals hadn't been domesticated before Damien came to this house. “I’m sure my brothers won't mind and I know my parents would like to meet you.” she told him gently, not wanting to scare him or anything.
Mari returned his eager smile as she quickly caught up with him. She was glad that he didn't seem too nervous about testing any abilities he might have. It was understandable if he was a little but it could be distracting if that feeling couldn't be ignored.
"Pardon me, but a museum is…?" he politely interrupted. Unlike the other things before, Damien had a vague idea of what a museum was, but he wanted to be certain, for good measure.
"Well, then i guess you're on a good path if he's your role model. You'll get to see places and learn so much stuff!"
The boy stopped for a few seconds, seemingly analizying his options.
"You… You think it'd be a good idea?"
He honestly would have loved to go to her place, but the thought of a new home, most likely in a populated spot, made him a little unsure. As for meeting her family, he wasnt exactly confident to be around adults, especially more than one - not that he thought they were bad people, he was just scared of the idea.
Together, they made their way to the main hallway entrance of the mansion, where they exited through the main door, exiting in what was once the front garden. Why exit through here? It was a little easier to get there, without having to circle the mansion.
"Sooo…. What do we do now?" he questioned, unsure of what the plan was now.
“Oh, a museum is a big building where a bunch of antiques and treasures are stored and shown off so everyone can see them.” she explained. “There’s all kinds of stuff. Most museums hold historical pieces and others have works of art.”
Mari shrugged a little, seeing that the idea made him uncomfortable. “I don't think it would be a bad idea but it's up to you if you want to go or not.” she assured him. It was likely that her family would have questions for them about their friendship… That would be awkward but maybe it would help Damien’s social skills a little. All the same, she would leave the decision to him.
She looked around the old garden smiling a little at the sight. Even though it probably hadn't been really cared for, it still looked nice. “Well, I guess it depends on what ability you want to test. Though I recommend we start with a simple one.” she suggested.
"But… If you bring old items which you say other people want, and put them in a building, wouldnt that make it easier for the bad guys to steal it….?" he commented, finding a modern building less secretive than perhaps an ancient unknown place somewhere hidden in the world out there.
The boy seemed to squirm in his seat a little, unsure of the idea.
"To be very honest, i'd love to, im just not too sure of it."
He didnt want to admit it, but he was scared, despite knowing that Mari's family was probably just as nice as her, he just felt like a cold shiver crept down his spine every time he thought of meeting someone knew through his own accord. Meeting someone through an accident was albeit an unhappy experience for him, mainly because of the huge scare he got, but ultimately he preferred that over actively having to go meet the person, the anxiety was just too much for him.
Damien was left to ponder over the sentence for a few moments, trying his best to find something while seemingly inspecting a bush nearby.
"I dont know what i could start with," he confessed, looking at her as if he were looming for answers. "What should i even do?"
“That… Actually makes sense. You have a good point.” she nodded thoughtfully. “Though I think that museums have very good security and are able to protect their exhibits. And at least two of the more valuable items that Indy finds; one of them gets locked up in a very secret, high-security building that only certain people know where it is and another… well the item actually gets lost after he finds it so that adventure is more about the experience and mending bridges with his dad.” she explained.
“Hey, it's ok. No rush, no pressure.” Mari assured him gently, seeing how uncomfortable he was. “It was just a suggestion. You don't have to if you don't want to.” she said sincerely. Maybe a pet store would be a better way for him to see the different animals. “I promise, I’m not going to make you do something you aren't ready for or just don't want to do.”
She almost shrugged at the question but rubbed the back of her neck thoughtfully instead. “Ok… Well, off-hand, I can think of two things we can test and compare.” she admitted. “If you're up for it, we can test your speed and/or your strength. See if you're stronger or faster than an average human.” she suggested.
The boy made a gesture with his hand, as if saying "see?" when she did admit he had a point. Putting something out there for all to see only made it more easily known to potential thieves, it was just pure logic to him.
"Whoa, are those items that important? I mean, for them to be locked up so well? And if so, why would anyone lock them up in a secret place when they already were a secret?" The matters were getting a little too confusing for him at this point, with all the finding and hiding of stuff that was already hidden once before. But his tone slightly shifted at the end, falling silent for a little.
"Was he.. mad with his dad or something?" Damien asked cautiously, daring to look up at her.
Reassured, the boy nodded with a sigh, pressured by the conflicting decisions. He wanted to go, but first he needed to calm down the tumultuous emotions going around in him. And also the other technical problems.
"I do want to go, honestly, just on another day maybe, when i feel ready. Thank you for understanding tough" he eventually cracked a shy smile, while his hands nervously played with the fabric of his shirt. "But, won't i look somewhat out of place there? I mean, i take it no one dresses like this anymore" Damien pointed at his slightly oversized shirt and dark pants - while it was true they looked well maintained and just as usable like a modern shirt, they were a pretty far cry from Mari's outfits. And even Damien himself wasn't exactly in a stellar state; with his somewhat small and thin frame, this kid didnt look like someone who ate regularly, despite the boy's clearly decent meals.
"Oh, those sound doable, i think… So, are we going to race or something for the speed test?" he asked, his face lighting up at recognizing the tasks he could do to prove if he had any ability at all. As for the strength test, maybe they could try lift something?
Thinking about the context of the actual movies; she knew that the “bad guys” did raid more than a few museums but those were over in Europe, and as far as she was aware they had never made it to the States to try anything like that. “Some of them were. Uh, the leader of those bad guys was… Well, he was a nut, to put it mildly, and was obsessed with finding artifacts like that because he thought they would make him more powerful. So, that first one had to be hidden, plus as important as it was I don't know how too many people would have reacted to seeing it.” she admitted. She shook her head slightly before answering his next question. “No, I don't think he was mad, exactly. But they did have a rough relationship. See his dad was… He dedicated most of his life looking for another important artifact that very few people can say if it even exists or not and that put a lot of strain between him and Indy. Then when Indy's mom passed away… they just sort of stopped seeing or talking to each other.” she explained.
“Of course, take your time.” she nodded, smiling softly back. Mari glanced at his clothes and shrugged a little. “Maybe a little out of place… the pants aren't too strange but if you wore an oversized hoodie over your shirt… You’d be able to get away with it.” she said thoughtfully, though there wasn't much she would be able to do about his build. Hopefully, the hoodie would be able to hide how skinny he looked.
“Basically.” she smiled back. “So, we're going to take turns running from this bush to… that tree over there and back.” she said, pointing at a strong-looking tree a few yards away from them. “I’ll time you with this to see how long it takes you but I’ll need you to time me. Think you can handle that?” she asked as she showed him the stopwatch.
"So, basically the item was hidden again so bad people wont get to it in the first location, right? Since that one is no longer secret. Is that how it works?" he probed, trying to make it make sense for himself. The trope of the big bad guy wanting item x for one of his nefarious plans was pretty familiar to him, from some of the books. It was essentially just a tale of a glorified thief in the end, but with impact on a larger scale
"Oh, i see. I know what thats like. Poor Indy…" he perked up, slightly on a flat tone while he looked elsewhere. It was an unexpected find, but one that he understood to some degree, given his own situation. Except, unlike him, Indiana had the chance to reconcile with his parent, which made the whole thing a lot happier.
"You…. you think i could?" he asked somewhat hopeful at the prospect. "But… where am i going to get a hoodie…?"
While he didnt want to say it out loud, Damien was very intrigued by Mari's outfits, and as much as he would have liked to have the chance of testing them out, he was too shy to admit it. He didnt pick up on her possible concern over his poor build, mainly because he never suspected it was an issue.
The boy looked over at the tree than back at her, nodding enthusiastically.
"Ok, i can do that, but uh, how do i time you?" he said, looking at the object she was holding for he did not know how to operate it.
“More or less.” she admitted. “And the second location is much more defensible so even if someone tried to steal it, they’d have a lot more trouble.” she said with a little smirk. Though she had to hide a small wince when Damien compared the similarities between Indy and his father's relationship and his own being M.I.A. But Mari hadn't given up on helping him find his dad.
“I think so.” she nodded. “Most people wear hoodies often enough. If… Or when you think you'll be ready, I can get one for you.” she told him. Though she was almost wondering if he was just so thin because of his reluctance to eat or drink blood. She really wasn't going to push the idea on him, but considering he seemed to have a higher metabolism for regular food… It was just a possible theory.
She smiled a little and held the watch out so she could show him. “It’s easy. You just click this button to start or stop the timer.” she explained, clicking the button as part of a demonstration before stopping it a few seconds later. “Do you want to run first?” she asked as she cleared the read out.
Damien gave an understanding nod, hand on his chin like he was in deep thought and had just made an important break through. A lot of his conversation was just nods and body languange, making it apparent he had most likely lost some of his socializing skills in the time he spent alone - though thankfully the loneliness hadnt affected his sanity by the looks of it.
"Well, then i guess its good if they're hiding it again. Though im curious about why would anyone want old items? Gold and valuables i can understand, but what about the rest?" he inquired, tilting his head, hand still on his chin and blinking at her innocently with his visible eye.
Honestly Damien was now curious to see this Indiana Jones guy, mainly to see what adventures he went through, but also because he sympathised with his situation a little - the simple fact someone else went through the same as he made him think he would be understood.
"So its like, the current fashion, i take it?"
If multiple people wore them, then they were what people today wanted to wear, despite the fact they looked intriguing and somewhat strange to him, lacking the grace of the cloth he'd seen in his day.
"I trully appreciate all you do for me, but i dont want you to spend too much on me…" he politely protested, rubbing the back of his neck. She'd brought him books, items and now was thinking of clothing, which looked pretty expensive in his eyes - in no way she was obligated to spend on him and he definitely didnt want to make her to.
Seeing it in action, Damien somewhat understood the way to operate the strange little device.
"Uh, okay, i can do it" he nodded, making his way to the bush that was the starting line. He had run before, but never knew just how fast he did - the last time he had ran, his mind had been too much of a blur to actually process anything. But alas, now was the moment of truth.
After his little moment of thought, he took off, sprinting towards the tree with all his might, skidding a little on the ground upon reaching it, trying to halt
“Old items can be very valuable. Especially to the right person.” she pointed out. “Sometimes the older the better. Some collectors can be pretty particular from what I've heard. And certain museums only take things with a specific type of history.” she added with a slightly excited smile. Mari’s mannerisms were certainly different from Damien’s as she didn't seem to rely on body language but could still understand his. Mostly she tended to speak more with her hands when she was excited about something or trying to help explain things to him.
Mari blushed a little and shrugged as she rubbed the back of her neck. “I… I guess you could say that. Honestly, I am not an expert on fashion… At all really. Though most people my age usually seem to wear pretty much whatever they want.” she admitted. “Oh, don't worry about me spending money. I think I have a spare large hoodie you can borrow when you're ready to go out.” she offered.
“Remember. To the tree and back.” she said as she walked with him over to the bush, stopwatch at the ready, though she stayed out of his way so he could run when he was ready. She had half been expecting to give him a countdown to start but Mari was quick enough on the watch when Damien took off running.
"Collectors…? People collect stuff like that? But why…"
From the looks of it, Damien didnt seem like the type to have ever collected anything, so he most likely wasnt familiar with this particular hobby. Especially when it implied the collection of ancient things that werent the conventional valuables.
"People wear what they want…? What kind of fashion is that?" he asked again, genuinely intrigued by how the old customs had been replaced with new ones, that were actually completely in opposition to the old ones. From what his mother had told him, a lot of people dressed according to the fashion and anyone failing to do so was usually lower class or poor, none of which were looked upon favourably, at least not where his mother had come from.
"Oh, you have a spare one? I guess it'd be okay then…" he reluctantly accepted, secretly happy money didnt come into discussion anymore.
The boy managed to turn in the moment he had halted, bolting back towards the starting point, running as fast he could. It had been some time since he'd ran like thia and he was panting a little, even after he'd stopped and was now heading back towards the girl.
"How did i do…?" he sighed, struggling for breath
She shrugged a little. “I think it's because of the history attached to it. No one can own the past or see it themselves so they try to own something from that time.” she tried to explain though she knew how history was written.
“I… I don't know what kind you’d call it but you have to remember that things are different now.” she reminded him gently. “For the longest time women were only allowed to wear skirts or dresses, now we don't have to if we don't want to. … Maybe I should just show you some pictures. It might be easier than trying to explain.” she suggested, pulling out her phone. Mari smiled a little at him and nodded. “I think I have one. You’re a bit smaller than me so my school hoodie from last year should fit you well enough.”
She watched quietly and stopped the timer as soon as he reached her. “Well, without looking at the watch yet, I’d say you did pretty good.” she smiled at him before holding the clock out so they could both look at his time.
"Huh… Pretty weird, wont lie… I guess then thats the reason theres a box of stones somewhere in the library…. Didnt realize it was a collection…" he concluded, remembering the strange object in the room he'd always pondered over.
"Thats an interesting passion to have, to want to own something from the distant past." he melancholied a litle bit, like he was contemplating some distant thought about days long passed - to think of it, Damien didnt really have anything left from his own past, making him feel disconnected. Perhaps thats why he found it all so strange?
The boy nodded insistently when she reminded him - he did remember the world was different now, but it was still pretty hard to comprehend. He scooted over once she pulled out her phone, very curious to see what she'd show him - most likely clothes, but very different than what he knew.
"You outgrew a hoodie in just a year? Wow… Thats kinda cool, but also a bit fascinating"
Still panting, Damien made his way towards her, inspecting the numbers displayed - it didnt mean much to him, but if she thought it was a good number, then he assumed it was.
"So i will be timing you now?" he asled after Mari finished noting down the number.
“I guess it is kind of strange.” she nodded. “But it's probably because people try to own as much of everything as possible and time is one thing they can’t own.” she shrugged though she perked up slightly at the mention of the possible rock collection. “I didn't notice them the last time we were there… Can I see them sometime?”
Mari chuckled a little and shook her head. “I didn't really outgrow it… I can still wear it, I just got a new one when I joined the track team.” she explained as she pulled up pictures of her family and friends so Damien could see the clothes they wore. She might show him other pictures from the Internet but she wasn't sure how safe they would be.
She wasn't entirely sure what to think of his time. It was a good time but… still seemed to be within human limits. Plus, the way he was breathing… She would admit that everything she knew about Vampires was speculated and twisted in fiction so it was possible that the two just busted the myth that Vampires, or just dhampirs, could run faster than a human could see. “Yeah, if you think you can manage the watch.” she nodded, closing her notebook and clearing the time on it.
The boy shuffled a little bit in his seat, taking time to process the information given to him. People hoarded stuff just to own them? Despite the fact the belongings would probably go somewhere else after the person passed.
"You know, i find it pretty interesting that people want to own many things despite not having time. Wont that make it esentially useless in the end?"
He snapped out of his thinking state, a little surprised she would ask for that box of rocks.
"Uh, sure, why not, any time you want to see it. Its in one of the corners of the library, on the first level - i guess i missed them the first time. And theres more of them, not just stones."
Damien backed down a little bit, looking slightly embarrassed to have assumed something as that.
"Oh, i see, sorry" he appologized right away, before leaning in to look at the pictures. Besides the fact they looked so much livelier, the boy couldnt help but marvel at all the various outfits and people appearing in the pictures.
"Are they your family?" he asked, pointing at one of the pics.
Honestly, Damien did not expect to get some insanely good time, he just gave his all, and was perhaps a little proud of it.
"I think i can… I just need to press this button to make it start, no? And the same to turn it off?"
“I… I guess so. I never really thought about it that way.” she told him. “Though I think as long as something has value, or still has a good use, people will still try to own things. And if they’re rare, then they have more value. People think that owning stuff like that makes them seem… richer than they are or are just flaunting their wealth.” she explained before nodding when he told her where the collection was. “Maybe you can show me when I bring back the books you lent me and your writing.” she suggested with a kind smile.
Mari raised a brow at his apology, not having expected it. “It’s fine. You don't have to apologize for anything. Some people can grow that fast at times. I just wasn't one of them last year.” she assured him. “Yeah, that's my family. Cory is the twin missing a tooth in this picture.” she smiled happily. Just from the picture, it was apparent that she had the same eyes as her father and her mother's hair was a little lighter in color than her own.
She smiled proudly at him and nodded as she handed the stopwatch to him. “That’s right.” she confirmed before getting into position. “Ready?”
He nodded approvingly next to her while she spoke, as if reafirming her statement as it left her lips.
"Ah, well, when were rich people different? I never quite understood why one would want to be rich and flaunt it - i mean, i get it, being rich would be kind of cool, since you can have anything you want but showing off isnt just a way to attract thieves?" he questioned, remembering the old days when his mother was still around. They'd never been rich, in fact they lived off their own work, but even then, his mother would tell him about certain wealthy people who had the resources to help, yet never did, just for the sake of being rich. How could one own so much and still be unwilling to share was baffling his mind.
"Of course! We can see them then if you want. And speaking of writing… Did you um, get to my manuscript?"
While he was nervous that someone was reading his works, he was curious about what she thought.
Looking over the picture, Damien noticed how happy they all looked in it, as a family. He could say he was almost envious of Mari and her picture perfect life (somewhat). The parents looked so loving, like they were such people, despite the fact he'd never met them, and the twins were kind of cute in a way. What was it like to have siblings, he wondered.
"They all look so nice and happpy… Did Corey lose the tooth by accident?"
"Mn, ready." he confirmed, holding the stop watch carefully, as if wanting to make sure he didnt drop it. As Mari took off, Damien did his best to time her, paying very much attention to both the girl and the stop watch, wanting to be as precise as possible with the timing.
