Squirreling Around (closed)

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn peered up at the canopy of the giant oak tree in front of her, squinting into its dark, beckoning boughs. It was a warm spring morning, and since it was a Saturday and she was one to procrastinate on the homework assigned to her, she had decided to take a day off at the lake. Well, she hadn't exactly come because of the lake itself... She was terrified of water. No, she had come because of the wide assortment of perfect climbing trees, from small, thin-branched maple trees to the old giants like the one that stood before her. The urge to get as high as she could in the beautiful flora was so strong that it was almost an addiction, which she assumed was part of the side effects of having bird wings as her meta-human ability. She didn't mind, though - it was a challenge to see how high she could climb, and she could almost always save herself if she somehow fell.

Her dark brown hair was tied back in a practical braid, and she was wearing her normal khaki shorts and loose, low-backed t-shirt, which allowed her tawny wings to move about freely. After studying the branches for a few more minutes, she choose her first move and leaped up towards a low-lying branch on the right, pulling her light body up as easily as someone much stronger than she. Being so light and having semi-hollow bones definitely had their advantages, even if they did make her more fragile than most.

She had chosen her path wisely - before too long, she had reached the upper limits of the tree, where she dared go no higher lest the branches break under her weight. She settled into a small hollow against the trunk and grinned, wiping the sweat that had accumulated along her brow. It was nice and cool in the canopy, and she had no intentions of moving anywhere else anytime soon.

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

The boys had had... well, almost the same idea. You see, they'd finished all this weekend's homework.. on Thursday. So Friday, they came home, and today, their parents had shooed them out of the house to go have some fun and maybe finally get a tan.

The boys had run to the lake - sprinting, as fast as their gestalt feet could take them. Once they reached the lake, both boys panting lightly, the stripped off their shirts, leaving them in only khaki shorts as they also shed their socks and shoes.

"Wanna go for a climb?" Gabriel asked, waggling his eyebrows. Uriel groaned. "Ugh. I'll do push-ups, you go ahead and make sure their aren't any.. you know. Birds." He grimaced.

Gabriel couldn't help but laugh at his twin, before glancing around - there. That was it. The perfect tree. He jogged over to it, and then took a running leap to grab ahold of the first branch. He left the momentum carry him, swinging upwards, upwards.. and with an extra little kick, he flipped himself successfully onto the branch.

He climbed - not near as high as Ravyn - but as high as he dared with his weight, when he glanced up through the trees, and caught sight of her. He gave a massive grin. "Oh. Hello there." He said to her, before glancing down, unable to see Uriel for how high they were, but able to holler down. "Well.. there's a bird up here!" He started, Uriel frowning as he stopped down push-ups. "Well, shoo it off."

"It's a really, really big bird.." Gabriel said with a laugh. Uriel furrowed his brow, before the sight and thought reached him. "Well it's Ravyn you dunderhead!" He said with a roll of his eyes. Gestalts. It was fun. "Morning, Ravyn!" He hollered up to her. They didn't know her well - but they were definitely acquainted enough to get along, they knew.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn had her eyes closed and was relaxing against the trunk of the tree when she heard rustling from below. Curious, and a bit wary, she glanced down to see what the commotion was. It took her a moment to realize that Gabriel - the incredibly cute Gabriel! - was climbing the tree she was in! And not only that, but Uriel was nearby as well (of course - those two never went anywhere without each other), and they had both taken off their shirts. And here she was thinking that this disturbance was going to be unpleasant! "Heello Gabreel!" she greeted, hopping down from branch to branch until she perched a few feet above his own. "Vhat a pleasant surprise. And Ureel, too! I hope I didn't frighten you too much - I vasn't expecting anyone to join me in my tree climbing today." She knew of Uriel's fear of birds, and as much as she didn't like to see others in fear or stress, she had to admit that the fact was hilarious.

She quickly glanced Gabriel up and down, allowing a small grin to cross her face. "Been vorking out, have you?" They were definitely eye candy, and she wasn't going to let that much hotness go to waste. "It's definitely varm enough to strip... But I vill spare you the indecency of it myself." She winked, then maneuvered around Gabriel until she was able to hop to the ground. There, she found Uriel doing push-ups, which made her grin widen. "I hope I'm a bit less frightening than a reelly big bird." She allowed her wings to unfurl a few feet, before tucking them back in again. "Vhat are you boys doing out at the lake on such a lovely day?"

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

At the mention of working out, Gabriel could just grin. It was true - Gabriel and Uriel worked out everyday. Well, except Sundays, of course - rest on the seventh day, day to worship God and all that. But, at least on this sunny day, it was paying off. But sincerely, it was just because it was warm out and they were running - certainly not because they expected to run into any ladies.

Ravyn was just a bonus in this situation.

As she landed by Uriel, he glanced up, stopping his push-ups and standing, brushing the grass and rocks off of his hand. "What, you? A big bird? Never! Much less frightening and much prettier too." Uriel commented with a wink, not even seeming to notice as his twin suddenly joined him by his side, having jumped off the branches.

"What, who wouldn't come to the lake on such a beautiful day?" He asked, laughing. "We just went for a run, and ended up here for a swim or a run or.. anything. He said, smirking. It was a beautiful day - a warm weekend day. Uriel nodded in agreement, before raising an eyebrow at Ravyn.

So what brought the prettiest little birdie out here today?" He said, smirking. He knew she wasn't a bird - birds were scary. Ravyn just had wings! And potentially hollow bones, like a bird, but they didn't know that for sure. She could just have really impressively strong wings. Not bird wings. Just regular wings. Uriel couldn't think of other things with wings.. - griffons! She was like a griffon! There. Not a bird. But that didn't mean Uriel wouldn't call her a little birdie just as a new official pet name. Officially.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn felt a blush rise in her cheeks as Uriel spoke. True, she loved to flirt, but it still made her feel all warm inside when she was complimented - especially by one of the two guys she may have had just a teeny tiny crush on. She giggled and flipped her hair self-consciously. "Vell, I'm glad I'm not as frightening as a sparrow. Such vicious, man-eating creetures. You look away for an instant, and bam - your finger ees gone." She chuckled again, not purposefully trying to make fun of Uriel, but... It was just fun. And she was quite sure he would take it good-naturedly. If not, then... She would make up to him for it. However he saw fit.

"Ah, yes, I forgot how you boys are alvays faster and stronger together... It must be interesting, having to rely on each other so much." She wasn't trying to point out a weakness, simply a curious statement. They would have to really get along to be able to work together that much. It was no wonder she couldn't choose which she liked better... She had never gotten the chance to talk to either of them alone! She shuddered, though, at the thought of going into the lake. "If you go for a swim, count me out... Feathers and water don't, ah, mix very vell. I'll just admire your toned swimming bodies from a distance," she laughed.

She shifted her weight at the question. "I guess you could say I have an obsession with climbing trees... Being able to reach high elevations without any effort is no longer a challenge for me, so I found that it's a vay for me to get an adrenaline rush instead." She laughed at the nickname. "Little birdie, eh? I suppose it fits..." And at least it was cute, and not something stupid. She could get used to being called that. Especially if it was by the twins!

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

Uriel gave a serious face, nodding along with what Ravyn was saying. "It's more true than you expect, and no joking matter! Sparrows' favorite meals involve fingertips!" She said, shaking his finger sternly at Ravyn as if to demonstrate.. but after a moment, he couldn't keep the straight face any longer, beginning to laugh.

At the comment of having to rely on each other, they turned, giving each other a high five and a grin, before turning back to her. "It's not even really having to get along, you have to keep in mind, we're technically the same person. Literally. One mind, two bodies." He explained. Uriel shifted away, pretending to go and check on the temperature of the lake water, though beginning to sneak around behind Ravyn as Gabriel kept explaining. They already knew she didn't like water..

"We're not completely the same yet, mind you, but at the 'peak' of our powers, which will then plateau, we will have completed out melding process." He said with a laugh. 'Melding process' wasn't quite the right term - but it was the best way to explain it, really.

As she mentioned not liking water, Gabriel feigned surprise. "Really? Swimming is so nice though... maybe you should try the water?" He winked. At the exact moment, Uriel scooped Ravyn up into his arms - bride and groom style - though making sure to not hurt her wings at all.

Keeping a good grip on her, he laughed, running towards the lake, and slowing into the shallow area, moving to throw Ravyn into the water. He lifted her a little, and then 'dropped' her, but caught her, before dragging her toes through the slightly chilly water, before walking her back out onto the land, laughing, It had all happened in moments, but both boys were laughing. Even if Ravyn had been scared, hindsight and adrenaline would hapefully make her laugh and forgive them. Uriel had no intention of ever actually dropping her into the water, or even really getting her wetter than just her toes.

As was evidenced by him scaring her, catching her, getting her toes wet, and then of course 'saving her' from himself. The boys found it hilarious. Gentlemanly pranksters - they'd play a prank, but never be mean or sincerely scary. Just fun.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"Oh... That's interesting," she replied in response to their being pretty much the same person in two bodies. How the heck did that work? "So technically... One could be dating both of you at the same time, and yet only be in a relationship vith one person?" she added with a wink. What fun that would be... Although she didn't know how they would feel about that. Nevertheless, she had to mention it.

Before she could say anything in response to Gabriel, she felt herself being scooped up suddenly by a pair of strong arms. She yelped in surprise, struggling to be released, but Uriel's grip - for she now realized he hadn't been going to the lake, but rather, preparing to do this - was too solid. "Uriel! Put me down!" she begged, half-laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation until she realized where he was taking her - the lake. Her laughter died and her eyes widened in fear, and she began to cling onto Uriel, afraid that she knew what he was planning. "No, really, I can't - AHHH-!" she shrieked as he made to toss her into the frigid, terrible water. She knew she wouldn't be able to unfold her wings in time to avoid it, so she simply took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and prepared to be submerged. But a split moment later, she felt Uriel's arms again as her toes dipped into the water, and she opened her eyes in confusion. He was holding her again, but the tips of her feet were in the lake. It began to dawn on her that this was just a simple prank of their's, which she should have realized from the beginning.

"You little... Put me down!" she demanded, but a bubble of laughter burst out as she thumped weakly against Uriel's chest. Thankfully, she was soon on land again, her arms wrapped around herself as she glared at the twins. "That was uncalled for," she scolded them half-heartedly. They were both laughing so much, though, that she couldn't stay angry for long, and soon she, too, was laughing. It had been harmless, really... She just hadn't known it at the time. But she should have realized that they would never put her in actual danger - they weren't like that. Which was one of the many things she liked about them.

"I'll get you back at somepoint," she warned them, though how she would do it, she didn't know. Maybe she could get Uriel into a tree and attract a group of songbirds to torment him... Yes, that could work. But for now, she dug her wet toes into the sandy bank and tried to shake off the feeling of fear being so close to the water had made her.

"Come on... Let's go get something to eat," she suggested, motioning away from the lake towards a small snack shack nearby. "You're paying," she added with a quick grin.

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

As she mentioned the dating thing, Gabriel had kind of nodded. They hadn't really ever thought too hdd about dating - they were merging, weren't they? But they were still two people. Of all the things they were sure of, it was that. The could see what the other was seeing, even miles apart. Knew what the other was thinking. But Gabriel liked science, logic - Uriel liked art, jumping in head first. Shoot first, ask questions later if you will.

Gabriel was laughing, the more Ravyn got panicky however, the more concerned he got - what if she actually got mad? But Uriel - leaping first, thinking too late - did it anyways. To both of their relief, after her moment of panic, she started laughing, as relief and adrenaline filled in her features.

They were all three laughing - it became an instant success. Pranks like that were most fun no one actually got hurt. Maybe scared, but as long as it was something you could look back on someday and laugh, then it was labelled as 'completely okay' in their book. At her promise of getting them back one day as their laughter died down, they both snorted their way in chuckles again.

"Oh yes!" Uriel started, wiping a tear from his eye as he tried to stifle his grin. "Because I'm utterly convinced you can lift me up!" He joked, reaching over and ruffling her hair a little, affectionately.

They both nodded in agreement to food, Uriel going over and grabbing his and Gabriel's shirts, pulling on over his head and tossing the other to his twin, who was busy looking mock-offended at Ravyn offering them up to pay. "What! But I, dear lady, did nothing, and yet my stupid brother here makes me have to pay? He joked, pushing Uriel as if he were mad at him. After they had a quick play-tussle (tackling each other to the ground and completely messing up their hair), they finally got up, brushing themselves off, clearing their throats in some attempt to regain dignity they never really had as they grinned like fools.

"So, my lovely little birdie, where would you like to eat?" "..little birdie, where would you like to eat?" They finished the last bit in unison, turning to let Ravyn lead the way as they began walking towards the town proper, away from the lake. At least now they'd had to cool off from their run, so they weren't grossly sweaty. Now they just smelled like outside, sunshine, and grass. Along with their usual 'Raines' smell.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn wiped back tears of mirth as she got over the adrenaline rush. If had been anyone other than the Raines twins, she probably would have been less forgiving. But, since it WAS them, and they had obviously meant no real harm, she soon gave up on trying to be angry with them. She did want to get them back, though. Unfortunately, it was quite hard to pull a prank on the two who practically invented pranks at Hammel.... Oh well, she would figure out something. She laughed and pushed Uriel's hand away, complaining,"Stop it, Uriel, you'll ruin my hair!" Which was rather pointless, as her braid had already come slightly undone after climbing up and then down the tree, and then being scooped up by Uriel... But she didn't really mind. She didn't think they did either. In retaliation, she took both hands and ran them messily over Uriel's head, though it didn't really accomplish much. They were so mature.

Although it was rather silly and pointless, as the twins began to wrestle and messed up their hair even more. She laughed at their ridiculousness, wondering why she had never spent a good amount of time with them before. They were so fun! She pouted, though, as they pulled their shirts back on, as she had been admiring the view. "Well, I assumed you two were gentlemen, and don't gentlemen always pay when they're with a lady?" she grinned a moment later. "I promise I'll pay for the next time we do something together. Because we will do something again. Soon." She winked, then nodded her head towards a small Hawaiian food place as they walked away from the lake. "How does rice and marinated chicken sound?" She tried to hide her blush and smile at the nickname; it wasn't something she would get used to soon, but she had to admit that she liked it.

Within a few moments, they reached the place, and she found an open table with bar stools outside, in the warm sunshine. She sat between the two, determined to keep them from scuffling over the food. If they were like most boys, she knew they wouldn't be the most dainty of eaters, especially if they were as hungry as she. "So... How long have you guys been going to Hammel?" she asked as they waited for their food to arrive. She realized she didn't really know a lot about their background. "Where are you guys from? If you don't mind me asking," she added quickly.

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

As Ravyn went to attempt to mess up Uriel's hair, he even leaned down a little to give her easier access, but the moment she was done, both boys merely ran a hand through their hair, and it was magically fixed on both of them. Men.

At the mention of gentleman always paying ladies, both boys looked mock offended to Ravyn, even as they continued walking. "What! But my dear Birdie, who ever said we were gentleman?" He suggested, giving her a grin and wink. Uriel drapped one arm over Ravyn's shoulders affectionately, whispering quietly to her. "If you're out with us, you'll never have to pay, trust us."

"You know, being gestalts means I'd know what you said even if we didn't have exceptional hearing." Gabriel said, waggling his finger at Uriel. "But yeah, he's right."

As they got to the Hawaiian place, Gabriel pulled her chair out for her, but neither sat until she was seated. Gabriel also ordered for them - just ordering the biggest shareable platter of chicken and rice, exactly what Ravyn had wanted, before getting a coke for he and his twin and letting Ravyn of course order her own drink.

"Ooh, the long version? No, we'll just do short version. We were born in Texas - I'm older-" "He was also wailing like someone had punted him, where as I was a good child, quiet." Uriel interjected, Gabriel continuing as if without interruption. "When we were ten, our parents got really concerned. I got really sick with the flu-" "And we were supposed to go to Grandma's for Christmas, but there was no way he could make the trip, so mom stayed home with him- "Mom stayed home with me," Gabriel said the beginning in unison with Uriel before continuing on his own.

"Dad and Uriel got to Grandma's, and he got ill and I think my heart stopped beating at some point. Mom panicked and made them come home immediately. Uriel was getting sick too, they figured it was flu he'd gotten from me-" "So we get home, and I just climb into bed with Gabriel and we sleep together. Next morning, both of us were perfectly fine, no sign of sick in sight." Uriel concluded, Gabriel nodding.

"Oh, and we're named after archangels. Then when we were eleven, Hammel reps came. Mom and dad wanted to stay with us, so we all moved to Pilot Ridge." Gabriel added as an afterthought, as the food and drinks arrived, Uriel taking a long drink of his soda, then speaking while Gabriel took a long drink from his soda. "So what about your life? Lemme guess: grew wings, panicked?" He teased with a laugh, Gabriel's grin matching his twin's.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"See, I knew you were gentlemen," Ravyn commented as Gabriel pulled out the chair for her. "Such manners!" It was a nice change from all the selfish oafs that a lot of teen guys were these days. She ordered an Italian soda, and eagerly tucked into the food set before them as the boys told their story. She nodded in appropriate moments and laughed in others, finding their way of interrupting each other hilarious, if also a little confusing. By the end of their tale, though, she had gotten a little better used to it. "That is really interesting," she said after they had finished. "So you can't stay apart from each other for too long without getting sick?" No matter how much she liked a person, it was hard for her to imagine being with them constantly, and getting sick otherwise. She thought it was funny that they were named after archangels; just a random fact thrown into an already intriguing life. "Your parents live in Pilot Ridge?" she asked, surprised. She couldn't imagine her mom moving just to follow her around. But, that was her mom, not their parents. "That must be really nice. I don't get to see my mother very often." With that, she leapt into her own tale.

"I grew up in a small town in western Russia, after my mother moved out of my father's house. He was a heavy alcoholic," she admitted. "I don't really remember him at all. I spent most of the time at my grandparents' house, but I enjoyed it there. I had a lot of friends. Anyway, one night when I was twelve, I was out feeding the hens, and my back start to itch. Long story short, these things," she motioned to her wings,"Pretty much exploded out of my back, making me pass out for a while. It was definitely... Traumatic. Especially since I really didn't even know a lot about meta-humans. I thought I had died and gone to Heaven," she laughed softly. "Anyway, mother didn't want me to attend the military meta-school in Russia, so I moved here, where my brother lives. He went to Hammel too." She didn't elaborate. "And... That's pretty much it!" she finished, taking a long sip of soda.

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

The boys were very polite as she spoke, nodding and frowning along with certain bits, laughing a little when it was appropriate. They ate politely too, popping the bite size pieces into their mouths with a fork, but cutting up the larger ones into two or even three pieces as they ate, making sure they left plenty for Ravyn.

"Wow, Russia, that's cool." Uriel commented with she was done before popping another piece of chicken in his mouth, Gabriel speaking then. "And legacy at Hammel? Faancy. A name to live up to, or a name to get rid of. Either way, it sets a standard." Neither of them pushed though, and explained about the distance thing.

"Well, we can't be far apart. Twenty miles is about our maximum, and the longer apart, the sicker we get. It starts as just being tired, then the sniffles, a cough...eventually we're comatose." Uriel explained, Gabriel continuing after a moment. "We figure we'd die eventually, but it's not something we're really keen to test out." He said, laughing with Uriel as the two made eye contact, both nudging Uriel. It was funny, so long as you didn't sit there and think about the fact that they could die simply from being apart.

"Most gestalts aren't like that. Mom says we're special." Uriel said, Gabriel snorting a little. The check came, Gabriel not even giving the other two a glance at it before sliding some cash into the leather bifold, handing it back. Which of course meant Uriel knew as well, leaving Ravyn out of the loop - as ladies should be kept in certain matters. Like dates.

But this wasn't a date. It was... friends. Hanging out.

Or, y'know. A date.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"Russia is very nice," Ravyn nodded. "Cold, but nice. That's why I nearly always wear shorts here - it's so warm!" she laughed. At mention of her brother, though, she sobered. "He's... Troubled. We don't see each other very often. He grew up while dad was still around, so he had it a lot harder than I did. He's a pheromone manipulator. A good one." Which meant that he misused his abilities, but she wasn't going to add that.

She followed the change in topic thankfully. "I understand why you wouldn't like to test that," she chuckled. That must be scary - what if they somehow got separated by accident? She didn't like to think about what might happen. "Well, I think you're special too," she said with a flirtatious wink, taking the last few bites of food before pushing away the tray and sighing. "That was really good. Thank you for the treat, boys," she said, smiling. "This was a lot of fun. I'd love to do it again sometime." Typical thing to say, if you were interested in the guy you were hanging out with. Or rather, guys. And she totally was. They were funny, cute, polite - why would anyone NOT like them?

[Gabriel & Uriel Raines]

Gabriel managed to product a pen from seemingly nowhere (honestly though, probably the busboy who took their dishes), and grabbed Ravyn's hand. He scribbled down two phone numbers onto them, though not listing which was which.

"We'll definitely see you again, Little Birdie." Uriel grinned with a wink, though did manage to at least explain the numbers. "Also, we're telling you who's number is whose. You'll have to figure it out." He said with a laugh, Gabriel nodding. Uriel helped her out of her chair, as Gabriel had put her into it.

They walked with Ravyn to where they went their separate ways, both giving her a good hug before releasing her, and heading their own directions. "Hey, text one of us when you're home safe so we know you are." Gabriel said, walking backwards and smiling at Ravyn. They had to make sure she got home safe - it wouldn't be hard for them. Slightly super speed, slightly super strength.. but they would worry about her until they knew she was home.

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