Mooglenet Archives

[Once the Lunar Whale descends, Rydia leads the way into Treno. Luckily, she has been here before and knows exactly where to go. The thought that they might have to stay the night is lurking in her mind as well, though she doesn't relish it. The city with its perpetual lack of light and high crime rate is hardly one of her favorite places.

Still, this isn't about her. They need to reach Laguna and reunite the Loire family. Upon spotting the inn, she quickens her pace.]

Here we are! Let's ask for him.

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[Raine is following Rydia's lead, but just barely. It's taking everything in her power not to rush ahead, and only her lack of familiarity with the place has stopped her. That and it's not wise with having Brooke nestled in her arms. As it is, she's already craning her head to see if she can spot Laguna somewhere in the building while they're walking through the doors.]

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[Ellone's excitement is palpable in the air as she hurries along, holding Slai's hand and making sure the girl can keep up. Pushing open the doors, she'll move inward, grinning like a child. She hurries to the counter, asking for him, and once she's got a room number, heads for the stairs.]

Come on! Up here!

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[Meanwhile, restless, Laguna carelessly leaves the magazine behind on the bedspread as he heads back out into the hall, planning to do his pacing in the lobby for a spell. As he turns the corner, he sees Elle leading the charge up the stairs and grins broadly at the approaching group, eyes meeting Raine's a moment later.]

Well. Hey there.

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[Rydia smiles and hangs back upon them reaching Laguna, certain that Raine and Ellone will want their time with him.]

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[Raine freezes in place, not sure if she can really believe her eyes or not, and then rushes forward to hug Laguna with one arm. She's careful not to squish the baby, but good luck getting her to turn loose anytime soon.]

Laguna, you're back!

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[Yeah... Ellone gets in a quick one-armed hug herself before letting Raine take him all for herself.]

You're really here... [And then she remembers the little girl currently clinging to her hand.] Oh, right. Uncle Laguna, this is Slai. We've been watching out for her for a while now. Slai- [She kneels down to look at the little girl with a warm smile.] That's my Uncle Laguna. He's really nice and he'll help us take care of you, okay?

[She's still a little too shy, so Ellone just holds her hand as she stands back up.]

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[Laguna gave Ellone a firm squeeze around the middle with his left arm before sliding both around Raine's middle, careful to mind the baby in all this. He stumbled back a half-step on impact, grinning from ear to ear as he kissed Raine on the side of the mouth, winking at Elle over her shoulder.]

No place I'd rather be than with you. [He laughed, stealing another kiss and giving Raine a squeeze in turn.] Nice to meet you, Slai. And this-- [He turned his attention to Brooke, seemingly in awe.]

Hi there, little lady. Guess I'm your dad, huh? [He canted his head as he locked eyes with her.] Sorry I couldn't be here for you sooner.

[He looked up to offer Rydia a nod in lieu of a greeting.] Rydia? Thanks so much.

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[Awww. Rydia watches the reunion with joy and a bit of wistfulness. She doesn't have her own family anymore, but at least she could help another. She nods and grins at Laguna.]

You're welcome. I'm just glad to be able to help my friends. After some rest, I'll take you all wherever you wish to go.

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[Raine laughed softly at Laguna's enthusiastic greeting. So very like him and oh how she's missed it. He gets a kiss in turn and then she softens her voice.]

Would you like to hold her?

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[Ellone just smiles, a little on the smirking side at Laguna's wink, and moves to stand next to Rydia. Slai is rubbing at her eyes and Sis wonders if she's going to have to hold the girl soon.]

[Softly:] Thank you, Rydia. This means so much to all of us.

[Slai looks up to Laguna in time to nod and murmur a polite greeting, but she's still holding tightly to Ellone's hand.]

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[Laguna looked slightly alarmed at the suggestion, but only because of his complete lack of experience with children who were unable to walk. He cleared his throat and laughed nervously, extending a receiving arm.]

Yeah? I'm not too much of a klutz for that? I'd love to.

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[Rydia flashes a smile at Ellone and speaks softly back, not wanting to disrupt Laguna's time with Raine and Brooke.]

You're welcome, Ellone. I was happy to do it.

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Well maybe, but I trust you.

[Raine places the baby oh so carefully into Laguna's arms and then steps back to look at the pair of them. Finally finally she's getting the one thing she's looked forward to more than anything. Seeing Laguna holding their children. She bites her lip and then looks over her shoulder to Rydia and mouths something.]

Thank you.

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[Laguna shifted nervously as he took hold of Brooke, holding her close to his chest. After a few moments, he began to gain some confidence, and another broad smile spread across his face as he very lightly bounced her up and down in the crook of his arm.]

Hey, that's not so bad. And she's not even crying or anything, I think she likes me. That's good, I guess she oughta, right? [He laughs, looking down again to admire her.] Think she kinda looks like me, don't you?

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[Ellone's just going to stand there and watch, though after a while, she'll probably need to take Slai to bed somewhere. She does pick up the little girl after a few minutes, bouncing her on her hip.]

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I think she does. You're better at this than I thought you'd be.

[Because let's face it, Laguna is a klutz. But nonetheless, Raine motions the other girls over to share in the big family moment. No one is getting left out or left behind ever again on her watch.]

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Yeah, I'm better at this than I thought I'd-- hey, what'd you mean by that? [He offers Raine a look of feigned injury before jerking his head to indicate that Ellone should join them.] Well, I've got good supervision, that helps.

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[She bounces Slai a little on her hip, glancing at Rydia before moving closer. A family. They're all family, even Rydia.]

Uncle Laguna just needs a firm guiding hand. [Teasingly.]

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[Raine winks at Ellone and reaches over to pet Slai's head. She's grown just as fond of that child as she did Ellone, and that one was far less feisty.]

Or several.

[She grins at her husband, then leans up to kiss him on the cheek.]

I've missed you so much.

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[Laguna blushed a little in response to the kiss. Good going, he thought. Very manly. He leaned over to plant a kiss against Raine's forehead, then beckons Ellone closer so he can do the same to her cheek.]

So've I. It's been ages for me since we've all been together. I'd say I lost track of how long, but hard to lose track when you're missin' someone that bad. This world is good for something, huh? [While not eloquent enough to express it, he felt this world was a vast improvement over home. Things just didn't go well for their family there. There was no family anymore. Not like here.]

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