(Untitled)

[fburkle]

I sat at the kitchen table with a cup of tea in hand, watching Connor raid the fridge in typical teenage fashion. I had gotten so used to having him around...and so used to not having Angel around. I felt a knot in my stomach when I remembered Angel. I'd forget about our endless search sometimes, and then suddenly remember. It isn't a pleasant

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[prophecy_boy]

"Maybe we can take that wallpaper down and put a coat of paint on one of these days."

"Maybe," Connor said distractedly, taking in another spoonful of yogurt. He made a face before jabbing at the contents of the cup with his spoon. Normally, yogurt wouldn't have been so bad, but he had really been looking forward to that chocolate. It just wasn't the same. "It's dark in here, too. We need more lights." Admittedly, he didn't know much about interior design, but he did know that it was hard to find where Gunn had stashed the cookies with so little light in the kitchen.

"Got any plans for the day?"

He shrugged a little bit, glancing up at Fred before putting his yogurt aside and leaning back with his hands braced against the edge of the counter. "Do I ever?" he asked, giving her a sort of half-smile. "Not like I have anywhere to go. I thought maybe I'd see what you guys were up to. Anything interestin'?"

[fburkle]

"I guess we never really take a day off, so I'm at a loss as to how to spend spare time," I smiled. "Hey, do you want to go to the movies? I haven't been to the movies in a long time, so I don't really know what's playing, or what's good, or where the nearest movie theater is, but...okay, I guess I should get the newspaper." I reached across the table and unfolded the paper, turning pages until I found ads for local theaters. I noticed that Connor had gone back to digging around in his yogurt. "Okay, maybe the movies aren't so great after all," I said, setting down the paper. "Got any ideas?"

[prophecy_boy]

"Okay, maybe the movies aren't so great after all. Got any ideas?"

"Movies is okay... I think," Connor told her, licking off the convex side of his spoon before setting that aside as well. He shrugged again, at something at a loss. "I don't really know. What are they like? Dad said he would take me to one, but..." He looked down at his shoes, something he had gotten into the habit of doing whenever he talked about Angel. It seemed to tug at the heartstrings a little bit. Fred seemed to buy the shy, disheartened little boy act. He was planning to milk it for all it was worth. "... yeah. I've never been," he finished.

"I don't usually have good ideas about stuff to do. All I'm good at is killing things," he went on, frowning. "And Mario. So, like... demons and Gameboy. That's all I've got. I'm not really the go-to guy for entertainment. You have any ideas? You're the smart one," he teased, a small smile beginning to tug at the corners of his lips.

[fburkle]

I picked up the newspaper once again to turn to the movie listings, then noticed Connor staring at his feet, a somber look on his face. I suddenly felt extremely sad inside at the reminder that Angel was missing, and that it was causing Connor so much grief. Poor kid. I couldn't even begin to imagine what he must feel like.

"Mario. You'll have to teach me that sometime," I said. "Me, science is my thing. But video games? It's Greek to me," I grinned. "Let's see...what's good? How about a comedy? Light-hearted fun to...get our minds off things. I'll have to see if Charles wants to go too."

[prophecy_boy]

"Mario. You'll have to teach me that sometime. Me, science is my thing. But video games? It's Greek to me."

Connor finally allowed himself another full-out smile. "I could teach you," he told her with a nod, only somewhat serious. "Might have to charge you for lessons, though. That's some heavy stuff. I mean, they don't teach you that in those college places."

"Let's see...what's good? How about a comedy? Light-hearted fun to...get our minds off things. I'll have to see if Charles wants to go too."

"That sounds good," said Connor, honestly not knowing whether it sounded good or not. It was a chance to get away from the hotel, at least, and to see a little more of the outside world without being out on patrol. There was only so much you could take in when you were hunting demons. He still wasn't very used to his new surroundings.

"Does Gunn like light-hearted fun?" he asked, smirking a little. As far as he knew, Gunn mostly liked bossing him around.

[fburkle]

"Not if I'm paying for your movie ticket, kiddo," I grinned. "Then I get lessons for free."

"Does Gunn like light-hearted fun?"

"Maybe if it involves killing vampires...you know, light-hearted vampire killing fun..." I trailed off. Wow, Charles really did need to get out of the house and do something. I set the newspaper down on the table. "I'll go and ask him."

[prophecy_boy]

"Not if I'm paying for your movie ticket, kiddo. Then I get lessons for free."

He cracked another smile. He was going to suggest that she pay him in pudding cups, but he thought that might have been pushing it a little. "Okay. Free it is. But only if you're buying my movie ticket. Otherwise I'm takin' my pay out in food."

"Maybe if it involves killing vampires...you know, light-hearted vampire killing fun... I'll go and ask him."

Connor nodded and moved to pick up his now-empty yogurt tub, tossing into the nearby garbage can. "Okay. I'll... you know. Stay here. And maybe inspect the fridge. Can we go grocery shopping later? Gunn's eating all the good stuff."

[fburkle]

"I think I'll just pay for the movie ticket," I smiled. "A young boy your age, as soon as we get home from the grocery store half the food is already gone." I paused for a minute. "Well, usually that's partly Charles's fault."

Can we go grocery shopping later?

"Okay, we'll go after the movies. Did you know that you can grocery shopping at like, 11:00 in Los Angeles? That's crazy," I said, beginning to make a grocery list on a scrap of paper. "In my hometown in Texas everything closed by 9:00."

[got_the_mission]

"Okay, we'll go after the movies. Did you know that you can grocery shopping at like, 11:00 in Los Angeles? That's crazy. In my hometown in Texas everything closed by 9:00."

"Well, you're in the big city now, cowgirl," Gunn remarked as he walked through from the lobby, grinning. He winked in Fred's general direction before walking over to the fridge, pulling the door open and frowning when he saw how low on food they were. "Damn. Good thing we're goin' shopping later, apparantly. So we're goin' to the movies?" he went on, looking back over his shoulder. "Sweet. I want Sour Patch Kids."

[fburkle]

"Cowgirl? Oh thanks," I grinned at Charles as he walked into the room and as always, made a beeline towards the fridge.

"Yeah, looks like we're going to the movies." I continued to look through the movie listings. "Let's head on over to the theater up the street and see what looks good. I can't decide now." I put the paper aside.

"Sweet. I want Sour Patch Kids."

"Only if I get popcorn!" I exclaimed, then glanced at Connor, who had a confused expression on his face.

"What are Sour Patch Kids?" he asked.

[prophecy_boy]

((Sorry for lateness! Work and Christmas and illness have made me crazy and pressed for time. I'm back now. ^_^))

"What are Sour Patch Kids?" Connor asked, looking blankly between Fred and Gunn. Gunn laughed as he grabbed a can of Coke from the fridge, popping the top and turning around to face both Fred and Connor, taking a long sip before he bothered to reply.

"Sour Pat Kids are God's gift to man," he said simply, grinning. "I'll introduce you to 'em later. You'll see." He turned his attention back to Fred, smirking. "What, you don't like bein' called Cowgirl? Come on, it's cute. Affectionate and all. We could get you a little hat and you'd be good to go," he continued, edging towards teasing. "Leavin' the house without deciding first? Adventurous."