pure fluff
Title: Around the World
Characters: Carlos Munez (hathor_rising), Elena Munez, Gina Case-Munez
Universe(s): Playing on the Line/Falling Starlight
Timeline: Elena is about seven here.
Rating: Adorable and fluffy. And yes, that's a rating.
Written for my openveinwriting friends who all need a bit of fluff today.
She stood in the doorway of her parents' bedroom, holding her big purple unicorn to her chest. Papi had brought it back for her from one of the cities on his tour, said he saw it at a festival booth and it made him think of her. The toy was bigger than she was and she loved it because it was something her papi had found just for her and it meant when he was gone, he didn't forget about her or mami.
There were clothes on the big bed and papi's dog was stretched out on a pile of them. Lamb of God was playing through the speakers on the table and she shook her unicorn a bit, making it headbang.
"Usted puede entrar, Mija." Her father said. He turned and knelt down, opening his arms, and she ran into them and hugged him tightly around his neck. "¿Por qué te escondes?"
"No quiero que te vayas," she murmured into his neck as he stood up. She clung to him.
"Me gustaría poder quedarme," he said. He kissed her head and put her on the bed. Elena crawled to the pillows and put her unicorn on one side and tugged the acoustic guitar that was part of the pile of stuff to her. She opened the case and took it out, balancing the huge instrument awkwardly. "Eso es demasiado grande para ti," her father said.
"Quiero probarlo!" She pouted at him and finally balanced the guitar face up on her lap. She plucked the strings with one hand, feeling the vibrations with her other. It was a nothing song, just notes coming from the strings, but she, as always, was fascinated with how music came from something like this.
"Muy bueno, Elena." Her father was smiling. She giggled.
"Adónde vas?" She asked when her fingers started to hurt from plucking the strings.
"Well," papi responded, "let me show you. Come here." He held out his hand and she took it as she climbed off the bed. For a minute, she stared at his hands, at the thick callouses on his fingers where he plucked the strings of his guitar. She looked at her little hands, her fingers, and wondered if she'd get those same callouses someday. Her mother's hands were so smooth, always so soft. She loved to sit with her and try the different lotions, but Elena didn't think soft, smooth hands would help her play the guitar very well.
Papi was sitting on the chair at the table in the bedroom and she climbed up on the chair next to him. He had the tablet turned on and opened to a page with a lot of pictures. "Here," he said. "This is where we're starting. Where is it?" He pointed to a name and she giggled.
"That's London! We went there last year with Mami."
"Yes," he chuckled. "And now where's this?" He moved the arrow on the map and a different city popped up.
Elena stared at the letters, putting them together. "Bir ..." she sounded it out carefully. "Birm...ing ...ham." Frowning, she looked at her father. "Birmingham?"
"Si," he said. "It's in England too. Actually, it's where bands like Black Sabbath got their start." He touched her shirt and she giggled, looking down at the lettering.
"Ozzy is weird," she said.
"Yes he is." Papi grinned and then moved the map again. "Now, where is this?"
She chewed on her lip as she put the sounds together. "Lis ...Lisbon?"
"Yes. And that's in a country called Portugal."
"That's a weird name."
Papi laughed. "And America isn't?"
"No! And it isn't America it's the United States! Because America is the continent!" She huffed proudly but then looked down at the tablet. "Where else?"
"You know this place," papi pointed to a city.
Elena giggled. "Paris!" She said happily. "Je aime Paris!"
"You are your mother's daughter," her father replied. Elena giggled. "Now, what about here? Can you say this city?"
She stared at the letters, putting them together. "M ...Ma ... Mad ..rid?"
"Madrid," he helped her. "It's in Spain."
"Like Spanish?" She asked.
"Very good. Very good. See," he touched one of the aps on the tablet and another page came up. "Not everyone in Mexico was living there first. Just like there were people who came to the United States and settled here from England, there were people who went to Mexico from Spain. And we have ancestors from both sides."
"So we have ancestors who lived in Mexico first and who came over from Spain?"
"Si."
"Why did they come over? Why didn't they like Spain?"
Her father shrugged. "You know what, they did like Spain. But they'd heard about how rich Mexico was. They'd heard about all of this gold and even this magical fountain that would keep them young forever and ever. So they came over to find it and some of the people stayed."
"Were they nice to each other? Because sometimes when kids from other classes come onto the playground when we're playing, they're mean to us."
"Well, honestly, Mija, it was a lot like that. And the people from Spain weren't always nice to the people who were already living in Mexico."
Elena kicked her feet a bit. "Maybe that's why I get so confused sometimes. My ancestors weren't always nice to each other."
Her father squeezed her tightly. "Maybe it's because you're seven and when we're seven, we get confused."
That made her giggle. "Okay."
Her father pointed back to the tablet. "Now, where is this?"
She frowned at the words. "Ham ... bug?" She shrugged. "Hambug?"
"Hamburg. That's in Germany." He smiled. "They have a really big place that makes bass guitars there."
"Cool! I like the bass guitars! They have a cool sound. It's all deep."
"Yes it is." Papi responded. He pointed her back to the map. They explored China and Japan and Russia. He showed her pictures and told her stories and they read from some of the pages together and it wasn't until they heard mami's car in the driveway that they stopped. Elena wiggled down and ran to the door - she hadn't seen her mother in two days because of the schedule at the studio. She pulled open the big doors and raced outside, followed by the dogs.
"Mami! Papi is going to all these places and he showed me where they make bass guitars in a place called Germany and I want to go too!"
Her mother laughed and picked her up and Elena wrapped her arms around her mother's neck. "Well, Papi can't take you to Germany. I'd miss you too much."
"Why not!"
"Maybe when you're older," her mother said.
"But Mami ...."
"Nope," her mother put her down in the entryway and kicked the doors shut. "I get to keep you when your father goes away. That's the deal we made."
Elena frowned. "The deal?"
"Yup. I'd miss you both way too much to let you both go."
"Awww, Mami! But it's ..."
"You have school little miss."
Elena followed her mother through the house and climbed up on the dining room table. She watched her mother pour two glasses of wine for herself and then made a Shirley Temple. After she dropped the cherry in, her mother handed over the little glass. Papi came into the room and kissed her mother. "School is boring," Elena piped up. She didn't want to watch her parents kiss.
"You like music. And reading," papi said. He took the wine and sat down. Elena stayed where she was on the table.
"Yes but I can do music and reading anywhere!" Her parents were smiling at each other and she frowned a bit. "What?"
"When you get older, you can do what you want," papi said. "Until then, you get to stay here and help your mom."
She groaned. "Why can't Mami come?"
"Because," her mother said, "your father is working and if we were to go, we'd just distract him and then he wouldn't get to keep working. You know how your cousins don't always go with your Tio Luke when he's coaching or on the road with Tia AJ?"
"Si ..."
"So that's why."
She sighed and took a sip of her soda and cherry juice. "Okay."
Her parents started talking about boring adult things and she climbed down off the table and went back into their bedroom. She climbed up on the bed again, pulled her unicorn closer to her, and put the guitar in her lap, plucking the strings. When she got older, she was going to go all over the world too. But first, she had to practice.
Characters: Carlos Munez (hathor_rising), Elena Munez, Gina Case-Munez
Universe(s): Playing on the Line/Falling Starlight
Timeline: Elena is about seven here.
Rating: Adorable and fluffy. And yes, that's a rating.
Written for my openveinwriting friends who all need a bit of fluff today.
She stood in the doorway of her parents' bedroom, holding her big purple unicorn to her chest. Papi had brought it back for her from one of the cities on his tour, said he saw it at a festival booth and it made him think of her. The toy was bigger than she was and she loved it because it was something her papi had found just for her and it meant when he was gone, he didn't forget about her or mami.
There were clothes on the big bed and papi's dog was stretched out on a pile of them. Lamb of God was playing through the speakers on the table and she shook her unicorn a bit, making it headbang.
"Usted puede entrar, Mija." Her father said. He turned and knelt down, opening his arms, and she ran into them and hugged him tightly around his neck. "¿Por qué te escondes?"
"No quiero que te vayas," she murmured into his neck as he stood up. She clung to him.
"Me gustaría poder quedarme," he said. He kissed her head and put her on the bed. Elena crawled to the pillows and put her unicorn on one side and tugged the acoustic guitar that was part of the pile of stuff to her. She opened the case and took it out, balancing the huge instrument awkwardly. "Eso es demasiado grande para ti," her father said.
"Quiero probarlo!" She pouted at him and finally balanced the guitar face up on her lap. She plucked the strings with one hand, feeling the vibrations with her other. It was a nothing song, just notes coming from the strings, but she, as always, was fascinated with how music came from something like this.
"Muy bueno, Elena." Her father was smiling. She giggled.
"Adónde vas?" She asked when her fingers started to hurt from plucking the strings.
"Well," papi responded, "let me show you. Come here." He held out his hand and she took it as she climbed off the bed. For a minute, she stared at his hands, at the thick callouses on his fingers where he plucked the strings of his guitar. She looked at her little hands, her fingers, and wondered if she'd get those same callouses someday. Her mother's hands were so smooth, always so soft. She loved to sit with her and try the different lotions, but Elena didn't think soft, smooth hands would help her play the guitar very well.
Papi was sitting on the chair at the table in the bedroom and she climbed up on the chair next to him. He had the tablet turned on and opened to a page with a lot of pictures. "Here," he said. "This is where we're starting. Where is it?" He pointed to a name and she giggled.
"That's London! We went there last year with Mami."
"Yes," he chuckled. "And now where's this?" He moved the arrow on the map and a different city popped up.
Elena stared at the letters, putting them together. "Bir ..." she sounded it out carefully. "Birm...ing ...ham." Frowning, she looked at her father. "Birmingham?"
"Si," he said. "It's in England too. Actually, it's where bands like Black Sabbath got their start." He touched her shirt and she giggled, looking down at the lettering.
"Ozzy is weird," she said.
"Yes he is." Papi grinned and then moved the map again. "Now, where is this?"
She chewed on her lip as she put the sounds together. "Lis ...Lisbon?"
"Yes. And that's in a country called Portugal."
"That's a weird name."
Papi laughed. "And America isn't?"
"No! And it isn't America it's the United States! Because America is the continent!" She huffed proudly but then looked down at the tablet. "Where else?"
"You know this place," papi pointed to a city.
Elena giggled. "Paris!" She said happily. "Je aime Paris!"
"You are your mother's daughter," her father replied. Elena giggled. "Now, what about here? Can you say this city?"
She stared at the letters, putting them together. "M ...Ma ... Mad ..rid?"
"Madrid," he helped her. "It's in Spain."
"Like Spanish?" She asked.
"Very good. Very good. See," he touched one of the aps on the tablet and another page came up. "Not everyone in Mexico was living there first. Just like there were people who came to the United States and settled here from England, there were people who went to Mexico from Spain. And we have ancestors from both sides."
"So we have ancestors who lived in Mexico first and who came over from Spain?"
"Si."
"Why did they come over? Why didn't they like Spain?"
Her father shrugged. "You know what, they did like Spain. But they'd heard about how rich Mexico was. They'd heard about all of this gold and even this magical fountain that would keep them young forever and ever. So they came over to find it and some of the people stayed."
"Were they nice to each other? Because sometimes when kids from other classes come onto the playground when we're playing, they're mean to us."
"Well, honestly, Mija, it was a lot like that. And the people from Spain weren't always nice to the people who were already living in Mexico."
Elena kicked her feet a bit. "Maybe that's why I get so confused sometimes. My ancestors weren't always nice to each other."
Her father squeezed her tightly. "Maybe it's because you're seven and when we're seven, we get confused."
That made her giggle. "Okay."
Her father pointed back to the tablet. "Now, where is this?"
She frowned at the words. "Ham ... bug?" She shrugged. "Hambug?"
"Hamburg. That's in Germany." He smiled. "They have a really big place that makes bass guitars there."
"Cool! I like the bass guitars! They have a cool sound. It's all deep."
"Yes it is." Papi responded. He pointed her back to the map. They explored China and Japan and Russia. He showed her pictures and told her stories and they read from some of the pages together and it wasn't until they heard mami's car in the driveway that they stopped. Elena wiggled down and ran to the door - she hadn't seen her mother in two days because of the schedule at the studio. She pulled open the big doors and raced outside, followed by the dogs.
"Mami! Papi is going to all these places and he showed me where they make bass guitars in a place called Germany and I want to go too!"
Her mother laughed and picked her up and Elena wrapped her arms around her mother's neck. "Well, Papi can't take you to Germany. I'd miss you too much."
"Why not!"
"Maybe when you're older," her mother said.
"But Mami ...."
"Nope," her mother put her down in the entryway and kicked the doors shut. "I get to keep you when your father goes away. That's the deal we made."
Elena frowned. "The deal?"
"Yup. I'd miss you both way too much to let you both go."
"Awww, Mami! But it's ..."
"You have school little miss."
Elena followed her mother through the house and climbed up on the dining room table. She watched her mother pour two glasses of wine for herself and then made a Shirley Temple. After she dropped the cherry in, her mother handed over the little glass. Papi came into the room and kissed her mother. "School is boring," Elena piped up. She didn't want to watch her parents kiss.
"You like music. And reading," papi said. He took the wine and sat down. Elena stayed where she was on the table.
"Yes but I can do music and reading anywhere!" Her parents were smiling at each other and she frowned a bit. "What?"
"When you get older, you can do what you want," papi said. "Until then, you get to stay here and help your mom."
She groaned. "Why can't Mami come?"
"Because," her mother said, "your father is working and if we were to go, we'd just distract him and then he wouldn't get to keep working. You know how your cousins don't always go with your Tio Luke when he's coaching or on the road with Tia AJ?"
"Si ..."
"So that's why."
She sighed and took a sip of her soda and cherry juice. "Okay."
Her parents started talking about boring adult things and she climbed down off the table and went back into their bedroom. She climbed up on the bed again, pulled her unicorn closer to her, and put the guitar in her lap, plucking the strings. When she got older, she was going to go all over the world too. But first, she had to practice.