(Untitled)

[flyboy_shepp]

John had nothing against kid shows. They were cute, they were educational, and they kept said kids from crawling all over him like a jungle gym. The thing was, he could only take kids shows in small doses

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[doesnt_speak]

With the exception of Mike's daughters, Florence has had little contact with children on the island despite seeing them nearly everywhere. It isn't like Harsh Realm, though, the children don't need her to take care of them when they're so well taken care of already. It's an adjustment to see the children here, happy and healthy and loved when she's so used to seeing them lost and abandoned.

The little girl on the couch is very sweet looking and Florence shifts her gun as she enters the room, making sure the man on the couch understands that her weapon is of no threat.

[flyboy_shepp]

John wasn't ever really surprised when he saw people still carrying their weapons around with them - hell, he always had his sidearm on, he just didn't like wearing it around Calliope.

It still didn't mean he wasn't wary, and he only relaxed when he took her gesture for what it was.

"Ad-gio!" Calliope yelled in greeting.

[doesnt_speak]

Florence smiles in response and raises one hand, giving the little girl a small wave. Over her time on the island, she's developed a method for introducing herself and she pulls the small scrap of paper out of her rucksack and hands it to the man on the couch.

My name is Florence. I can't speak.

As she offers it to him, her gaze strays back to the child, her smile growing as she crouches in front of her.

[flyboy_shepp]

John took the piece of paper with a raised eyebrow. When he read it, both eyebrows went up. "I'm John," he said, handing the paper back to her. "John Sheppard. This is-"

"Cai-ope," Calliope said, cutting in to introduce herself with a smile.

John considered it a small victory that she actually said it in a normal tone and didn't try to deafen a woman who already couldn't talk. "Calliope," he repeated with a nod, and tugged one of her ponytails lightly. "This is Florence."

[atlantismother]

She hadn't had as much success with the rec room as she'd wrested from the clothing box. She held out hope that it would eventually settle, and tune in like some of Atlantis' systems...but the hope was gradually turning to hoping it would grow bored.

When she entered today, the jukebox did not start up with any ironic theme songs. It seemed, at a glance, to be observing the wishes of whomever was entertaining their child with the projector. A second glance told her it was John Sheppard--and called into question whose child it was.

Curious, she gathered her hands together in front of her, and approached the couch with an arched eyebrow. "I never knew you were a children person, John."

[flyboy_shepp]

John started a bit when the sheer similarity of the moment hit him. She'd said almost the same exact thing before, when Hera hadn't been all that big, and Calliope hadn't even been born.

"When the feeling strikes," John said, giving Elizabeth a smile over Calliope's head. His arm shot out across her chest when she jumped up and yelled at the screen.

[atlantismother]

Her smile softened at the girl's antics. She never intended to have any children herself, but she wouldn't deny that in limited doses, they could be entirely charming.

"So who's the lucky girl to benefit from this feeling?"

[flyboy_shepp]

"This is Calliope," John said, and sensing an introduction was taking place, Calliope turned her attention from her precious Little Einsteins and gave Elizabeth a small baby wave. "Calliope, this is my friend Elizabeth. She just moved into New Atlantis, you'll see her a lot now."

[toshiko_san]

"Have you started a babysitting service?" Tosh stood near the door, smiling over at John, recognising the look of someone who was being subjected to the same thing, again and again.

"With Jackson it's still a never-ending game of toss the dummy. We've not gotten interested in the telly yet, have we?" Tosh looked down at her son on her hip with a smile.

[flyboy_shepp]

"Oh, no way," John said, giving Tosh a half amused, half desperate look over Calliope's head. "One at a time is more than enough. And you should be glad he hasn't discovered it yet," he said, just as Calliope stood up again and threw her arms out to the side, making plane noises.

[toshiko_san]

"Too late I think." The noises were already distracting him, babbling away at the screen as she took a seat not far from John, letting him ramble on meaninglessly. "Are you sure? I think you could have a profitable side-business going."

[flyboy_shepp]

"Maybe sometime in the future when I can actually walk again," John said, wrinkling his nose in thought. Jackson didn't seem like he was too much of a handful.

Speaking of handfuls, John had to reach out again when Calliope jumped off the couch with a yell and nearly toppled right over, her little legs not used to it. "M'okay!" she said when he pulled her back upright.

[alas_yorick]

That was one cute kid. Yorick didn't know many kids, he also didn't think of many things as cute, but she was all the same.

"Wow, since when do pigs fly airplanes?" he asked the room in general, widening his eyes at the kid like he was totally surprised by this development.

[flyboy_shepp]

"Cartoon, silly!" Calliope told him with a shake of her head before turning her full attention back to the flying pigs.

John'd taken one look at the guy and was glad Calliope answered first. No matter how many times people came and left and came back again, it was still a jolt every time.

He gave Yorick an amused look. "Kid's got a point."

[alas_yorick]

"She's all logic," Yorick said, and smiled. "Is she yours?"

[flyboy_shepp]

That question never really got old. It earned a grin and a shake of his head every single time. John would probably go crazy if Calliope was his kid - he was mostly glad he got to hand her back off to Kara at the end of the day.

"Nah, she's my goddaughter," he said, and ruffled her hair a little. "This is Calliope Thrace. I'm John Sheppard."

[andsadofeye]

"Wow, Callie. Pigs can fly now, huh?"

John had walked into the rec-room and made a bee-line for the bookshelf, but he'd paused when he saw a familiar child. Admittedly, he saw more of Kara than he ever did of Calliope. He paused and ruffled fair hair, with a nod to the babysitter before moving over to the bookcase.

There had to be something on there worth reading.

[flyboy_shepp]

John knew Kara had other friends, people he hadn't even met, but it still made him twitch a little to see some guy come up and ruffle Calliope's hair. He couldn't help it.

"In planes," she explained (more like yelled), eyes still glued to the screen.

John shook his head and relaxed again, knowing she was going to stay completely enraptured by the screen for the next five minutes. "She's got better manners when flying isn't involved."

[andsadofeye]

"Planes, huh?" said John, reaching up and pulling yet another book on the history of New York City down off the bookshelf. He pulled a face.

"Oh, I know," he said, with a broad grin. "Way better manners than her mother, anyway."

[flyboy_shepp]

At that, John couldn't help but snort. Some things about Kara were true no matter who you were talking to. "So I guess you're lucky enough to know Kara, huh?"