LOG: Ipin and Lambo
Who: Lambo, Ipin + some of Dino's men
What: Grapes in the kitchen
Where: The kitchen and Galley level of the Sweet Death II
When: Friday Jan. 23 2009
Rating: G
As Lambo attempted to find his way towards the somewhat familiar kitchen, all he could think was how lucky it was for him that I-pin had always been quick to forgive. Well, either that or she was just incredibly good at holding back on her urge to strangle him when he did stupid things. But in his defense, the stupid things usually stemmed out of good intentions. Like the time they were eight and he thought her white tennis shoes would look better with cow spots drawn onto them. And had it really been his fault that the only thing he could find to make it happen was a permanent black marker instead of the usual washable ones that Tsuna insisted he use at all times? Of course not. These days, or would it technically be these days ten years later?, he had moved beyond markers and shoes and onto things seemingly just as silly, like nicknames. Even if she asked he wouldn't be able to explain why he was so dead set on calling her something other than I-pin, mainly because he wasn't quite sure himself although he had something of an idea. An idea that led his cheeks to flush a deep red whenever it came to mind. Like they were as he finally stepped into the kitchen, thankfully she hadn't arrived yet so he had time to try and cool down his face. What was the best way to cool things down? The freezer! Running to the freezer, he pulled it open, promptly sticking his head in, "Yare yare...this is not good..."
Ipin walked through now familiar corridors on the submarine, glancing into a room here and there where doors were open. It had certainly become busier since Mr. Dino and his men had arrived. Where the ship had once been quiet and nearly empty, it now echoed with voices calling to one another or bursts of heavy male laughter. She smiled to herself. Lambo would like that, he was always so nervous before, like a ghost might jump out and slime him at any second.
She clearly had a soft spot for him because she'd put the ridiculous nicknames out of her mind. It might have helped that he called her cute (even if it had been an accident or he hadn't meant it or something). She'd better not let him catch on to that or he'd use it as solve-all.
She turned the last corner and entered the galley, moving past rows of tables toward the kitchen where she could hear movement.
"Lambo?" She asked, finally seeing him from the back, intently looking in that freezer. "Any ice cream?"
If he hadn't been so deep in thought while on the way to the kitchen, he probably would've noticed the wave that Romario had sent his direction, or the fact that his footsteps were no longer loud echos through the hallways. He'd be relived later when he would finally realize that the sub had a lot more occupants than it did during his last visit. It was always a shock to him when one of his ideas actually worked, and worked well, so when he lifted hands to his cheeks to test out how his cooling theory had worked, his eyes widened in surprise. His face was back to normal, only the feeling didn't last because when he heard her voice and he turned his head to look, he had done it a little too fast. Remembering that the door to the freezer had closed somewhat since he wasn't holding it anymore would've been a good idea. When he turned, his face collided with the contents of the freezer door and...that hurt. Thankfully most of his impact was lessened thanks to the bag of frozen peas and not the can of frozen orange juice concentrate sitting right next to it. Once the immediate pain had subsided, he finally turned to face her, a hand on his nose as he tried to hold back the tears that were sure to spill over. He was crybaby Lambo after all. "Ah...i-ice cream...I might have seen some in there. My, oh m-my, who knew that freezers could be so d-dangerous. Haha"
Ipin actually flinched for him as his face connected with the door, moving quickly over to be sure he was ok.
"Oh no! Lambo?" she pulled at his arm to draw him away from the freezer door, and out of harms way, already darting a hand up to turn his face toward her and see if there was actually any damage. "Are you ok? You need to watch where you're going."
It was a wonder that a simple touch from Ipin could calm him down because he had been two seconds away from completely freaking out and running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. "I was watching where I was going...I just forgot the door was right there? I'm fine, I think" He took a few steps back, one hand reaching to scratch the back of his head while the other kept a hold of his nose while he looked around for some paper towels. It seemed to be a minor nosebleed, not nearly as epic as previous ones, then again those had never really been from an impact with an inanimate object. Once he found the paper towels, his eyes soon landed on the bowl of grapes next to them and his nose was quickly forgotten, "Grapes! I found the grapes!"
Her lips quivered threatening to break into a grin at his expense. "Ahh yes, always with a mind to details, aren't you." He pulled back and her finger brushed along the underside of his chin feeling light prickling reminding her that he had grown up in several ways. And then he was out of range and she let her hand fall back to her side. She could see that tiny bit of blood dripping through his fingers and she watched him frantically search for paper towels, blot at his face and pinch to stop the bleeding and then light up at the grapes.
Her smile finally broke through but a little more gently than the humor at his previous actions. "So you did." She moved her gaze from him to the grapes and plucked one from the vine, popping it into her mouth. "Just what the doctor ordered?" Her hand darted out and plucked one more, offering it up to him.
"Hey! I pay attention to details all the time. Okay...most of the time. Well, really, sometimes....when I remember..." He flashed her a grin, chomping happily on his grapes while giving her a nod, "The doctor is very wise. A bowl of grapes a day keeps the hunger at bay!" Looking over to where she was holding the grape, he leaned down without much thought, eating it straight from her fingers.
"You pay attention when it's convenient." She pointed out, watching him eat his grapes like popcorn. She flushed as he leaned over and took the grape with his mouth instead of his hands, turning away mildly flustered and grabbing an orange out of another bowl.
She cleared her throat and broke the skin with a nail. "Oranges are a great source of vitamin C." She said by way of ignoring that that had happened.
"But I still pay attention at some point so it counts for something, right?" Straightening up, he ate the grape with a slightly raised eyebrow, wondering why she was suddenly acting strange. Popping a few grapes into his mouth, he leaned lazily against the counter, "Er...thank you for pointing that out. Does that mean you plan on sharing it then? And why are your cheeks turning red?"
Ipin peeled away at the orange, over the sink. Carefully the skin came off in two large chunks. She began breaking it into section. "I may."
She turned and looked up at him, biting into a wedge, and closing her lips around it so it didn't squirt everywhere. After a moment she swallowed and gave him a bit of a piercing stare. "It's one thing to eat something off my chopsticks but another thing entirely to eat directly from my fingers, Lambo. Is that an Italian custom?"
Just as he had been about to take a step towards her while reaching for a section of orange, her stare stopped him dead in his tracks. It took him a few moments to replay the previous events in his mind, but it was clear he got what her point was because a few seconds later his cheeks were starting to heat up, and his gaze was fixated on the ground, hiding his eyes behind shaggy bangs. "I...uh, I didn't...realize..." With every attempt at an explanation, his feet unconsciously took him a step back, obviously preparing for his usual fight-or-flight (100% flight) run out of the room, while his cheeks took on a deeper shade of red.
Ahh well that explained a lot. "You don't think, a lot of the time." Ipin responded with a sigh and took a few steps forward to pat him on the arm at the look of terror. She always had been a sucker for a flailing Lambo. "Fine fine, I know you're just comfortable around me." She sighed. Childhood friends.
"Here." She held a section of orange out for him as a peace offering.
"I think enough of the time. More than you would think. Is that a pun?" Reaching up he scratched his head as he thought, although it was really more just a show to prove his point that he could think every now and then. As usual, she was able to calm him down. Fight-or-flight (100% flight) had been aborted for now and he once again was standing next to her, eating a few more grapes while mumbling, "I'm not all that comfortable sometimes...." When she held out the orange slice for him, he stood there for a few moments, wondering if he should really do what he was about to do. It's not that he didn't want to, it was just the whole process of having to explain why afterward that held him back. And the 'why' was just something he couldn't bring his nerves to go into this time around. Before his cheeks could yet again turn different shades due to that all familiar blush, he leaned down, taking a hold of the orange slice the same way he done with the grape. Only this time he was completely aware of what he was doing, how his mouth would most likely brush against her palm and the thought alone sent his cheeks into a full out flush before he could even move back with the orange slice secured between his lips.
She rolled her eyes at his response. "It's some sort of play on words." She stared at him as he suddenly got what to her appeard to be a 'deer in the headlights' look on his face. How that could come about from eating an orange. She managed to get out a 'Why did you bother asking if you.." her voice trailed off as Lambo appeared to move in slow motion dropping his head down again instead of his hand and closing his lips around the slice of orange and the palm of her hand but with his head down there she couldn't see the blush he had.
She stepped back in surprise, pulling her hand back to her chest. "Lambo!" Her voice was not normally so high pitched.
Okay. Now it was time to run. "Uh..." He stood back up, quickly finishing off the slice of orange as his feet once again started leading him closer and closer towards the door. "Oh, wow...we're running low on grapes...I'll go get some more!" As soon as he finished talking, he broke out into a full run, sprinting out the door and down the first hallway he could find. Stupid, stupid. Hands were made for a reason. To reach and grab things. That is clearly not what mouths were for. It's too bad the bazooka had been so unreliable lately, he couldn't even predict when he'd be able to hide in Italy and not return her e-mails for a few days, or when his face stopped looking like a tomato, whichever came first.
It took a few moments for her cheeks to match his shade. A few moments of heart pounding silence. And then her brain caught back up and she realized Lambo had disappeared.
Why did he always DO that?! She stomped a foot in frustration and set the rest of the orange on the counter, before steeling herself to go find him.
A few minutes later found her jogging down the hall calling for him. "Lambo? Lambo come back out!"
Running around without knowing where you're going? Bad idea. Who was the king of bad ideas? One Lambo Bovino. Once he finally stopped running he realized that he had no clue where he was, so he did the only thing he could think of, sit down and wait for someone to find him. Leaning his back against the wall, he dramatically slid down until he was slumped over, staring at the floor while begging his still flaming cheeks to cool down. Just as they were starting to, he heard his name being called. Yep, that was definitely Ipin. Starting to panic yet again, he took to crawling down the hallway as quietly as he could, hoping she wouldn't happen to turn the corner and spot him.
Ipin nearly missed him, she was glancing down the hallways looking for the fluff of black hair she would recognize. Seeing just a blur of black and white shuffling away at knee level did not initially register. One of Dino's men stuck his head out the door ahead of her and she skidded to a halt, using his arm for balance. "Sorry sorry!" She bowed but kept moving, spinning around and returning to the hallway. "Lambo!"
She slowed down for a moment, squinting and trying to figure out what he was doing on the ground.
He pretended he didn't hear her, although the fact that he lifted his head and stopped crawling for a moment sent that facade out the window. When he started again, however, he was moving faster than he had been previously. Darting around another corner where he promptly stood up, he broke out into a full run. It was amazing that he wasn't on the track team at his school.
She saw him pause and smiled for a moment but then he doubled his pace. She couldn't decide if she wanted to kill him or not. The option was starting to look kind of shiny and pretty. She bounced once and took off after him, skidding again on the metal floor as she turned the corner and saw him about ten feet away, up again and running.
Their feet sounded like drum beats through the hallway and occasionally someone would glance out a room door to see what the ruckus was. Someone gave her a little cheer and she flushed. Even she wasn't sure if it was embarrassment or irritation.
He was fast. He had longer legs on his side. "LAMBO! STOP. RIGHT. NOW." She grit her teeth as the gap closed just enough that she thought she'd make it.
And she lept for him, reaching her arms out for a waist grab/tackle.
He saw head-shaped blobs poking out of nowhere here and there, then he heard a loud yell that he wasn't quite sure about. What he was sure about was Ipin yelling at him to stop. Dang. She had finally caught up. Sometimes he forgot she was fast, if not faster, than he was. And damn if she didn't sound serious as all hell. He was smart enough to know that if he didn't stop now he'd be a lot worse off once she finally did catch up to him. So he stopped. Only he was running so fast that stopping so abruptly sent his arms flailing to keep him afloat but a few seconds later he fell onto his back, staring at the ceiling when he saw a black blur starting to cloud his vision.
She had done all that work calculating and then he went and stopped on her. She was irritatedly reprimanding him in her head even as her arms closed around nothing and she went crashing down. Her landing really shouldn't have been as soft as it was. Luckily her arms blocked her face from slamming into the ground which it would have definitely done.
Something was poking her in the chest and she winced and shifted, looking up first trying to figure out why Lambo had disappeared. She heard snickering off to her side and sent a confused look to the man.
What the heck was she laying on, it hurt. She sat up , and found herself straddling Lambo. Seated across his chest. "Lambo?" Why was everything taking so long to register today? She hadn't called in stupid this morning, she was pretty sure.
At first he found it hard to breathe. Mostly because the air had gotten knocked out of him when something, or most likely someone, had landed on. And partially due to his face being covered with who knows what. Once he found out, he was pretty sure he wanted to un-find out because the nose bleed he got this time around was wayyyy worse than the first one. I-Pin was on top of him...meaning it had been her chest blocking his face a few seconds ago. This...was not good. The more he registered the situation in his mind, the more his cheeks turned a much deeper shade of red, and the more his nose gushed profusely. What was he supposed to do?! She couldn't just stay there. Okay, she could, and he probably wouldn't have minded but having a face practically on fire from embarrassment was not a pleasant feeling. On the other hand, he couldn't just push her off because that would be rude, not to mention dangerous if she decided to retaliate. My, oh my, indeed.
Ipin, for her part, didn't get much time to register the situation before Lambo's nose started gushing blood. "Lambo!" She promptly pinched his nose and tried to lift his chin a little. "OH NO did I BREAK IT?!" She was more worried about stopping the bleeding before she worried about whether it actually broke but suddenly she felt awfully guilty. "Lambo are you ok?!"
His eyes widened as she started freaking out, which only caused him to freak out because he hadn't really heard what she was freaking out about in the first place. Although a few seconds later once he was able to calm down a little he noticed she was holding his nose. Oh yeah, that thing. The stupid thing that thought on it's own and would embarrass him at any give moment. Doing his best to sit up, which wasn't quite an easy task since she was still perched on his chest, he leaned back against an elbow, giving a small nod as he lifted his chin, "I'm fine...for the most part...er...I..." Shutting up seemed like a good idea because he wasn't sure what he was trying to say anyway but thankfully his nose was mostly done bleeding. All he had to do was think about something else. Like grapes and/or candy and/or that gelato he had clearly missed out on and/or that exam he hopefully passed.
She slid back a little as he propped himself up, settling somewhere around his stomach. She was wiping at his nose with the sleeve of her shirt completely ruining it, and leaning in trying to see if it was broken. "Oh god I'm sorry Lambo, I only meant to catch you. I didn't really expect you to stop." She also hadn't taken into consideration what tackling someone at a high speed in a metal tube would do to their face. She ran her finger down the bridge of his nose trying to feel if anything was out of place.
"Ah...sorry about your shirt...I'll buy you a new one." He let out a small sigh, shaking his head a bit, "I don't know anyone who wouldn't have stopped if you had yelled at them like that. You sounded scary! And, it's not broken...it's fine, you didn't do anything." By now it had stopped, and his eyes instinctively fell shut as her finger slid down his nose. Damn her for being so thorough. And damn his nerves for not asking his permission before moving to close his eyes.
"No you won't, this was all my fault anyway. I don't know why I didn't think that through more. It's just." She paused, finished checking his nose to be sure and wiping at his cheek with her thumb. "Well you always run away!" There's a bit of hurt there mixed in with the frustration.
This was also her fault most likely. She'd probably trained him from age five that when he ticked her off she beat him up. But that realization wouldn't occur to Ipin yet. She still had a while before that light bulb went off.
"Sorry....I don't mean to...sometimes...it's just habit?" He averted his gaze to the floor, not wanting to look at her after hearing the hurt in her voice. "I really am sorry, Ipin. I don't want to run away from you. It just happens." And really, haha, she had trained him to become very afraid should he ever upset her. That didn't take him long to learn at all.
"Ipin sighed and pushed some of his hair back away from his face. "You are going to be the death of me. Forget Millefiore." She gave him a wane little smile
He gave her a small grin, looking up at her from beneath his shaggy bangs, well, what hadn't been pushed away that is, "That just won't do, hm? If anything you'll be the death of me...via gyoza bun attacks and spinning kicks."
The soft sound of her tongue clicking tsks at him echoes off the walls. "Sometimes you very nearly get nearly inspire it." She pauses and seems for the first time to realize that they are not alone in the hallways. Her eyes meet with a man who is standing and grinning in a doorway at them. She looks back at Lambo and realizes she's still sitting low across his abdomen, her fingers pushed familiarly into his hair and her cheeks flame up. "Ah..."
She moves to pull her hand away. "I'm sorry Lambo I didn't realize I was still... and... er.." Time to get up.
FINALLY. She had finally realized that yes, she was still straddling him, and hopefully was planning on moving so he wouldn't have to push her off himself. There was only so much he could take. And he could've sworn he heard a camera flash or two but by the time he looked towards the noise all he could see was the back of someone's shoe disappearing. "It's f-fine...uh...just..." He straightened up a little more, hoping she would get the hint to follow suit a little faster and get off him before he had another wild case of red cheeks and major nose bleeding.
It takes a moment to collect her wits and she gulps and stands quickly, stepping to the side so she's off of him. That nervous laughter bubbles from her mouth and she offers him a hand up. "I was just so worried and ..." She tried to explain herself lamely.
He takes her hand and stands, a few nervous chuckles escaping from his lips as he runs his free hand through his hair then straightens out his shirt. "T-thank you for being worried...it's fine..." Looking down, he noticed their hands still encased in each other and immediately let hers go as his cheeks flushed for what seemed like the millionth time. Sure they had held hands before but it was different when one was actually aware of holding hands. It definitely didn't help that some of Dino's men were still watching and grinning all-knowingly at them from their respective doorways with those 'I knew it' looks. Not that Lambo could figure out just what it was they supposedly knew.
She feels a little bereft without his hand holding hers as she glances shyly at the people in the hallway and scoots a little closer to Lambo. "Er..." She speaks quietly next to him. "You think we could mm... find a less crowded place?" She mostly thinks they're laughing at their tumble from earlier. Leave it to Ipin to misinterpret everything. Her fingers close around the fabric of his sleeve and she covers her face with her other hand, finally stepping away and tugging on his shirt a little.
Every move she makes to get closer to him only results in wider grins and louder chuckles from their audience so going somewhere else probably really is a good idea. He reaches for her hand, but changes his mind and sticks his hand in his pocket instead, giving her a small nod as he starts to head down the hallway. His cheeks might as well be permanently red by now.
Ipin groans next to him and leans in to mumble, "I wish they wouldn't laugh. It's not very nice at all. Next time I see one of them hurt..." She lets the threat die off and frowns at one of the men. Then she tries to get her bearings. "If we go down a level we can at least find one of the empty rooms. Or we could go back tot he kitchen on this level. I can't believe how far away we are from it. You run like a sprinter."
He looked to her with a raised eyebrow, he should've known she wouldn't have picked up on why they were really laughing at the pair. "Uh...that's not...I mean...it's...." Lambo Bovino, a pro at words clearly. Not sure what to say or if he even wanted to explain, he dropped the issue, glancing around at their surroundings. "Ah, we could go back to the kitchen...I just don't know where it is...so you'll have to lead the way, pen...Ipin." After years of running away from people, mostly Reborn, one would at least hope that Lambo would be quick on his feet.
"Nonsense." She responded in irritation, frowning at one of the men. "It's only fair." She glanced back at him, smiling a little. He'd stopped from calling her a penguin. At least that had sunk in. She loosed the fabric on his arm only to sling hers around his in a familiar manner and immediately take the lead. "That is something I can do. You know you'd think you'd have been here enough times to get the general layout, Lambo."
"Ah, I'm usually too busy running...and when you're flying past things it's hard to remember where things are and how to get to places? I just turn corners and hope I end up somewhere I know. Or in front of someone that can tell me where I am." Now that they weren't being watched anymore, he felt much more at ease, and his cheeks were back to normal. Hopefully they'd stay that way more than two minutes this time around.
"I hope you don't do that during missions." She reprimanded. "Just think what could happen if you got lost or cornered. Try to pay attention more, Lambo." She turned them down a corridor and continued walking.
"Ah. They don't really send me out on many missions, and the ones they do aren't very dangerous...so it's okay." He let out a laugh, hoping that his explanation would keep her from continuing her lecture, although he knew that probably wouldn't stop her. She was something of a worry wart when it came to him. Not that he minded.
She heaved a sigh and blew her bangs out of her eyes only to have them fall back again. "That doesn't mean they'll always send you on easy missions. You're a guardian." She frowned up at him.
"I know..." He let out a sigh of his own, his head hanging low as his shoulders slumped. She sounded disappointed, so he could only imagine how she looked, hence he kept his eyes low to avoid her gaze.
She couldn't see his eyes through his bangs, he did that sometimes. She walked quietly with him for a moment, turning another corner. It wasn't disappointment as much as fretting. She was worried about him, and he didn't often show any drive to learn more for fighting, defense, offense. Sometimes someone like Reborn could light a fire in him but ... she shook her head. He'd agreed to learn some judo from her. That was a start. "You don't want to be a guardian?" Finally she asked aloud.
Stopping suddenly when he heard her question, he stood there in deep thought, seriously debating it. Even now no one really took him seriously as a guardian. He was always just kind of pushed off to the side. At first he tried to get stronger but once it just started to feel like a waste he gave up on the idea. This was the first time, however, that anyone had ever asked him how he actually felt about being a guardian. "I don't know...I mean, I do...but what's the point if no one takes me seriously anyway? I want to protect the family, and Tsuna, and you...and even Gokudera but I'm still just a kid as far as they're concerned. I don't know how to get better."
She stopped with him and listened patiently. "Someone thought you had potential even when you were five you know. Someone took you seriously or you wouldn't have gotten that ring." She glanced to the side, down the long corridor. "All of the guardians started out young. They weren't always as strong as they are now... well in our time. Lambo we have resources, people who will help you if you ask. You should talk to your family too, they know your ability best."
She was quiet for a moment. Finally she spoke aloud again. "You should talk to Mr. Reborn if you're serious. Even when we're here, there are strong people who might be willing to help you learn." She smiled at him, in what she hoped was a reassuring way. "I know you could be a force to be reckoned with if you put your mind to it."
Leave it to Ipin to know exactly what to say to him. He was sure to still worry about things but knowing she believed in him was enough to lift the weight off his shoulders, even if only temporarily. He stood for a few minutes, taking in all that she had said before looking up to her with one of his usual cheesy grins. Just like that, he had moved on, and who knows what was going on in his head now. Reaching down for her hand, he laced their fingers before tugging her gently in a bid to get her to follow him. "I know how to get to the kitchen from here, do you think the orange is still there? I hope so. It was good."
Her heart beat a bit quicker for a moment as he smiled his goofy smile at her and then she grinned back cheerily, relieved he seemed recovered. "Mmm I left it on the counter, it should be!" She jogged a moment to catch back up to Lambo, squeezing his hand with hers. "Oranges are just as good as grapes." She agreed.
"I wouldn't say just as good as grapes...but I guess they're high up there. Orange candy is pretty good, not as good as cioccolato allíarancia gelato though. Wonder if there's any of that back home..." Once they were back in the kitchen, he skipped over the orange in favor of his beloved grapes, chomping down on a few before looking over to her. "I, uh...w-well, I mean...I don't say it much, o-or ever but I'm, er, I'm r-really glad that you're around..." By now he was fiddling with his fingers, his gaze fixated on the counter top but at least his cheeks were still a normal color.
Ipin hopped up so she was sitting on the counter, and picked up a section of orange, biting into it. "All'arancia? What do you call that when it's at home?" She asked, really just wanting a translation. She tilted her head as he started stuttering at her.
She smiled a little to herself, reaching a toe out to nudge his hip. "Thank you Lambo." She licked her lips and grinned a little shyly. "I'm glad you're around too." She laughed quietly. "And I wouldn't want to get thrown into the past with anyone else."
"Orange flavored chocolate would be the best way to describe it." Scooting over to where she was, he leaned against her, lazily resting his head on her arm while he continued eating his grapes, "Sometimes it's not so bad that the bazooka is messed up."
"Mmm! That does sound good." She reached down and plucked a grape out of his hand, popping it into her mouth. "Yeah, we'd have to go months apart while you visit Italy otherwise. You know you're going to miss Chinese New Year. And I have firecrackers." She frowned down at the top of his head in what was nearly a pout.
He shot up, looking at her with excited eyes, "Firecrackers??? You have firecrackers?! I'll find a way to be there! Especially since you have firecrackers. Missing last year was no fun. I bet you'll have jau gok too...my, oh my, I really can't miss this" Putting a hand to his chin, he started to think of ways to get to where she was for the Chinese New Year. Not that any would come to him any time soon.
His excitement was contagious. "I've been cleaning the base for days getting ready. It wouldn't be New Year without firecrackers." She swung her legs and looked thoughtful. "I'm making some. Do you want me to do some tim gok zai too? I was only making the haam gok zai but I know how much you like the sweet ones." She wasn't sure he'd actually be able to make it but if he could she would have some on hand. "Will it be ok for you to leave your family?"
Giving a few quick nods, he hopped up next to her on the counter just so he could swing his legs too. Clearly it was another much needed measure to show just how excited he was at the thought of spending the Chinese New Year with her, firecrackers and dumplings. Okay, face it, he got excited at the thought of food period but he was looking forward to spending the New Year with her. "Tim gok zai sounds really good, if you feel like making some. Ah..." He scratched the back of his head, shrugging his shoulders, "I'm not sure. I don't think it would be a problem, it's just for a few days."
She grinned at him. "Unless I kidnap you." She looked at the ceiling. "I think I have everything I need for them. Kyoko and Haru will be happy. They like those too."
"Would you? Can you really call it kidnapping if the captive willingly goes with you?" He looked to her with a raised brow, eating, unbeknown to him, the last few grapes that were sitting in the bowl. "Are they doing well? It's been so long since I've seen them."
"I can if the captive doesn't let on he went willingly." She points out with a wide innocent smile. "Then only the captor gets in trouble." She reaches over his lap to pick up the last section of orange, picking a bit at rind that didn't quite make it off. "They're good, Miss Haru's been pretty busy with school lately so we haven't seen much of her."
"Ah, I see evil Ipin has somehow made an appearance to do all the evil planning a kidnapping involves. But it's good that they're well" He reached into the grape bowl again, only to have his fingers meet empty plastic. "The grapes are gone!"
"Will you complain if she kidnaps you and keeps you?" She tilted her head at him quizzically, then glanced at the bowl. "You ate them." Grins and takes a bite of her last bit of orange. "I'm surprised it took you so long."
"Hm, I think it would depend on whether or not she tries to attack me with gyoza, and not in the fun 'eat these Lambo' way, but the 'die now Lambo!' way." Poking his bottom lip out in a pout, he stared down at the bowl, running his fingers through it as if the action would make more grapes suddenly appear. "I was trying to make them last but now they're all gone..."
"Hmm, I'd have to rescue you." She agreed. "Better put them on their grocery list." She puts the last bite of orange into her mouth. "You know you might eat them slower if you froze them. Like little grape Popsicle bits."
"You always have to rescue me." He laughed, setting the bowl off to the side and absentmindedly swinging his legs, "I'm not sure I want to eat them slower, frozen grapes would probably just give me brain freeze. I'd forget they were frozen."
She smiled to herself. "Maybe I like saving you." She said half to herself.
"Maybe I like being saved" Now would've been a nice, convenient time for more food to stuff his face with.
It took her a moment to realize she'd said it out loud, then she blushed a bit and looked shyly at him. "Just don't make me worry too much."
"I'll try my best but I make no guarantees." He grinned, nudging her a little with his elbow.
"Should I say the same?" She asked, teasing him a little. She glanced out through the kitchen toward the cafeteria part of the galley and breathed in deeply. Mostly she could smell iron and spices and Lambo's cologne. He always wore a little too much. She nudged him back. "So now we're out of grapes, what should we do?"
He put a hand to his chest, "Would that mean you make no guarantees about saving me? I'm not sure I like those odds." Sliding off the counter, he held his hand out to her, glancing towards the door, "Now that we're out of grapes, we walk around and mess with Dino-nii's men for all their laughing earlier."
"It means I'll try but I can't guarantee." She said. "But I'd try very hard."
She hopped off as well, grasping his hand and looking up at him curiously. "Did you have something specific in mind?"
He laughed, leading her towards the door with a grin, "I was kind of hoping you'd come up with something actually..."
Oh it was hard to resist that. She bit her lip though because she really kind of liked Dino's men even if they'd laughed at them. Lambo was the one who liked misbehaving. "I don't know if we should...." She said nervously.
"Come onnnnn, Ipin. Where's your sense of adventure? Let loose a little." This was usually how things went. Her telling him something might not have been the best idea, and him trying to convince her otherwise before he even knew what the actual idea was.
Ipin was quickly trying to come up with something that would distract Lambo from having twenty angry mafia men out for his blood. "Maybe we could... play... scrabble instead?" She suggested lamely.
"Boooooring." Turning a corner, he spotted a few familiar doors and knocked on the first one they came to. When no one answered he took it upon himself to walk in, dragging an opposed Ipin behind before closing the door and starting to look around until he landed on the jackpot, a big pack of colored markers, right next to a nice selection of oil paints. Someone obviously considered themselves something of an artist.
Ipin followed hesitantly. She caught sight of him catching sight of art supplies and sucked in a breath. "Wait wait Lambo, you can't! That's expensive stuff!" She stepped in front of him pressing him back with a palm flat against his chest. "Come on... let's find something else..." Her nose tickled for a moment. She scrunched it and then sneezed and a big cloud of pink engulfed her.
Little Ipin looked around in confusion.
Lambo could not be swayed, this was too much fun to just pass up. So while she stood there trying to keep him back, he took to reaching for a few of the markers, popping the tops off with ease. Just as he was reaching for some more, the usual pink puff consumed him.
Once his younger self's vision was free of the fog, he glanced down at the markers in his hand, his 'bow down to me!' grin appearing on his features, "LAMBO-SAN WILL DRAW! IPIN DRAW TOO!" And with that said, he stuffed a marker in her hand as he bounced over to the walls, starting to draw nonsensical scribbles and shapes. If the owner of the room was lucky, hopefully Lambo wouldn't discover the paint anytime soon.
What: Grapes in the kitchen
Where: The kitchen and Galley level of the Sweet Death II
When: Friday Jan. 23 2009
Rating: G
As Lambo attempted to find his way towards the somewhat familiar kitchen, all he could think was how lucky it was for him that I-pin had always been quick to forgive. Well, either that or she was just incredibly good at holding back on her urge to strangle him when he did stupid things. But in his defense, the stupid things usually stemmed out of good intentions. Like the time they were eight and he thought her white tennis shoes would look better with cow spots drawn onto them. And had it really been his fault that the only thing he could find to make it happen was a permanent black marker instead of the usual washable ones that Tsuna insisted he use at all times? Of course not. These days, or would it technically be these days ten years later?, he had moved beyond markers and shoes and onto things seemingly just as silly, like nicknames. Even if she asked he wouldn't be able to explain why he was so dead set on calling her something other than I-pin, mainly because he wasn't quite sure himself although he had something of an idea. An idea that led his cheeks to flush a deep red whenever it came to mind. Like they were as he finally stepped into the kitchen, thankfully she hadn't arrived yet so he had time to try and cool down his face. What was the best way to cool things down? The freezer! Running to the freezer, he pulled it open, promptly sticking his head in, "Yare yare...this is not good..."
Ipin walked through now familiar corridors on the submarine, glancing into a room here and there where doors were open. It had certainly become busier since Mr. Dino and his men had arrived. Where the ship had once been quiet and nearly empty, it now echoed with voices calling to one another or bursts of heavy male laughter. She smiled to herself. Lambo would like that, he was always so nervous before, like a ghost might jump out and slime him at any second.
She clearly had a soft spot for him because she'd put the ridiculous nicknames out of her mind. It might have helped that he called her cute (even if it had been an accident or he hadn't meant it or something). She'd better not let him catch on to that or he'd use it as solve-all.
She turned the last corner and entered the galley, moving past rows of tables toward the kitchen where she could hear movement.
"Lambo?" She asked, finally seeing him from the back, intently looking in that freezer. "Any ice cream?"
If he hadn't been so deep in thought while on the way to the kitchen, he probably would've noticed the wave that Romario had sent his direction, or the fact that his footsteps were no longer loud echos through the hallways. He'd be relived later when he would finally realize that the sub had a lot more occupants than it did during his last visit. It was always a shock to him when one of his ideas actually worked, and worked well, so when he lifted hands to his cheeks to test out how his cooling theory had worked, his eyes widened in surprise. His face was back to normal, only the feeling didn't last because when he heard her voice and he turned his head to look, he had done it a little too fast. Remembering that the door to the freezer had closed somewhat since he wasn't holding it anymore would've been a good idea. When he turned, his face collided with the contents of the freezer door and...that hurt. Thankfully most of his impact was lessened thanks to the bag of frozen peas and not the can of frozen orange juice concentrate sitting right next to it. Once the immediate pain had subsided, he finally turned to face her, a hand on his nose as he tried to hold back the tears that were sure to spill over. He was crybaby Lambo after all. "Ah...i-ice cream...I might have seen some in there. My, oh m-my, who knew that freezers could be so d-dangerous. Haha"
Ipin actually flinched for him as his face connected with the door, moving quickly over to be sure he was ok.
"Oh no! Lambo?" she pulled at his arm to draw him away from the freezer door, and out of harms way, already darting a hand up to turn his face toward her and see if there was actually any damage. "Are you ok? You need to watch where you're going."
It was a wonder that a simple touch from Ipin could calm him down because he had been two seconds away from completely freaking out and running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. "I was watching where I was going...I just forgot the door was right there? I'm fine, I think" He took a few steps back, one hand reaching to scratch the back of his head while the other kept a hold of his nose while he looked around for some paper towels. It seemed to be a minor nosebleed, not nearly as epic as previous ones, then again those had never really been from an impact with an inanimate object. Once he found the paper towels, his eyes soon landed on the bowl of grapes next to them and his nose was quickly forgotten, "Grapes! I found the grapes!"
Her lips quivered threatening to break into a grin at his expense. "Ahh yes, always with a mind to details, aren't you." He pulled back and her finger brushed along the underside of his chin feeling light prickling reminding her that he had grown up in several ways. And then he was out of range and she let her hand fall back to her side. She could see that tiny bit of blood dripping through his fingers and she watched him frantically search for paper towels, blot at his face and pinch to stop the bleeding and then light up at the grapes.
Her smile finally broke through but a little more gently than the humor at his previous actions. "So you did." She moved her gaze from him to the grapes and plucked one from the vine, popping it into her mouth. "Just what the doctor ordered?" Her hand darted out and plucked one more, offering it up to him.
"Hey! I pay attention to details all the time. Okay...most of the time. Well, really, sometimes....when I remember..." He flashed her a grin, chomping happily on his grapes while giving her a nod, "The doctor is very wise. A bowl of grapes a day keeps the hunger at bay!" Looking over to where she was holding the grape, he leaned down without much thought, eating it straight from her fingers.
"You pay attention when it's convenient." She pointed out, watching him eat his grapes like popcorn. She flushed as he leaned over and took the grape with his mouth instead of his hands, turning away mildly flustered and grabbing an orange out of another bowl.
She cleared her throat and broke the skin with a nail. "Oranges are a great source of vitamin C." She said by way of ignoring that that had happened.
"But I still pay attention at some point so it counts for something, right?" Straightening up, he ate the grape with a slightly raised eyebrow, wondering why she was suddenly acting strange. Popping a few grapes into his mouth, he leaned lazily against the counter, "Er...thank you for pointing that out. Does that mean you plan on sharing it then? And why are your cheeks turning red?"
Ipin peeled away at the orange, over the sink. Carefully the skin came off in two large chunks. She began breaking it into section. "I may."
She turned and looked up at him, biting into a wedge, and closing her lips around it so it didn't squirt everywhere. After a moment she swallowed and gave him a bit of a piercing stare. "It's one thing to eat something off my chopsticks but another thing entirely to eat directly from my fingers, Lambo. Is that an Italian custom?"
Just as he had been about to take a step towards her while reaching for a section of orange, her stare stopped him dead in his tracks. It took him a few moments to replay the previous events in his mind, but it was clear he got what her point was because a few seconds later his cheeks were starting to heat up, and his gaze was fixated on the ground, hiding his eyes behind shaggy bangs. "I...uh, I didn't...realize..." With every attempt at an explanation, his feet unconsciously took him a step back, obviously preparing for his usual fight-or-flight (100% flight) run out of the room, while his cheeks took on a deeper shade of red.
Ahh well that explained a lot. "You don't think, a lot of the time." Ipin responded with a sigh and took a few steps forward to pat him on the arm at the look of terror. She always had been a sucker for a flailing Lambo. "Fine fine, I know you're just comfortable around me." She sighed. Childhood friends.
"Here." She held a section of orange out for him as a peace offering.
"I think enough of the time. More than you would think. Is that a pun?" Reaching up he scratched his head as he thought, although it was really more just a show to prove his point that he could think every now and then. As usual, she was able to calm him down. Fight-or-flight (100% flight) had been aborted for now and he once again was standing next to her, eating a few more grapes while mumbling, "I'm not all that comfortable sometimes...." When she held out the orange slice for him, he stood there for a few moments, wondering if he should really do what he was about to do. It's not that he didn't want to, it was just the whole process of having to explain why afterward that held him back. And the 'why' was just something he couldn't bring his nerves to go into this time around. Before his cheeks could yet again turn different shades due to that all familiar blush, he leaned down, taking a hold of the orange slice the same way he done with the grape. Only this time he was completely aware of what he was doing, how his mouth would most likely brush against her palm and the thought alone sent his cheeks into a full out flush before he could even move back with the orange slice secured between his lips.
She rolled her eyes at his response. "It's some sort of play on words." She stared at him as he suddenly got what to her appeard to be a 'deer in the headlights' look on his face. How that could come about from eating an orange. She managed to get out a 'Why did you bother asking if you.." her voice trailed off as Lambo appeared to move in slow motion dropping his head down again instead of his hand and closing his lips around the slice of orange and the palm of her hand but with his head down there she couldn't see the blush he had.
She stepped back in surprise, pulling her hand back to her chest. "Lambo!" Her voice was not normally so high pitched.
Okay. Now it was time to run. "Uh..." He stood back up, quickly finishing off the slice of orange as his feet once again started leading him closer and closer towards the door. "Oh, wow...we're running low on grapes...I'll go get some more!" As soon as he finished talking, he broke out into a full run, sprinting out the door and down the first hallway he could find. Stupid, stupid. Hands were made for a reason. To reach and grab things. That is clearly not what mouths were for. It's too bad the bazooka had been so unreliable lately, he couldn't even predict when he'd be able to hide in Italy and not return her e-mails for a few days, or when his face stopped looking like a tomato, whichever came first.
It took a few moments for her cheeks to match his shade. A few moments of heart pounding silence. And then her brain caught back up and she realized Lambo had disappeared.
Why did he always DO that?! She stomped a foot in frustration and set the rest of the orange on the counter, before steeling herself to go find him.
A few minutes later found her jogging down the hall calling for him. "Lambo? Lambo come back out!"
Running around without knowing where you're going? Bad idea. Who was the king of bad ideas? One Lambo Bovino. Once he finally stopped running he realized that he had no clue where he was, so he did the only thing he could think of, sit down and wait for someone to find him. Leaning his back against the wall, he dramatically slid down until he was slumped over, staring at the floor while begging his still flaming cheeks to cool down. Just as they were starting to, he heard his name being called. Yep, that was definitely Ipin. Starting to panic yet again, he took to crawling down the hallway as quietly as he could, hoping she wouldn't happen to turn the corner and spot him.
Ipin nearly missed him, she was glancing down the hallways looking for the fluff of black hair she would recognize. Seeing just a blur of black and white shuffling away at knee level did not initially register. One of Dino's men stuck his head out the door ahead of her and she skidded to a halt, using his arm for balance. "Sorry sorry!" She bowed but kept moving, spinning around and returning to the hallway. "Lambo!"
She slowed down for a moment, squinting and trying to figure out what he was doing on the ground.
He pretended he didn't hear her, although the fact that he lifted his head and stopped crawling for a moment sent that facade out the window. When he started again, however, he was moving faster than he had been previously. Darting around another corner where he promptly stood up, he broke out into a full run. It was amazing that he wasn't on the track team at his school.
She saw him pause and smiled for a moment but then he doubled his pace. She couldn't decide if she wanted to kill him or not. The option was starting to look kind of shiny and pretty. She bounced once and took off after him, skidding again on the metal floor as she turned the corner and saw him about ten feet away, up again and running.
Their feet sounded like drum beats through the hallway and occasionally someone would glance out a room door to see what the ruckus was. Someone gave her a little cheer and she flushed. Even she wasn't sure if it was embarrassment or irritation.
He was fast. He had longer legs on his side. "LAMBO! STOP. RIGHT. NOW." She grit her teeth as the gap closed just enough that she thought she'd make it.
And she lept for him, reaching her arms out for a waist grab/tackle.
He saw head-shaped blobs poking out of nowhere here and there, then he heard a loud yell that he wasn't quite sure about. What he was sure about was Ipin yelling at him to stop. Dang. She had finally caught up. Sometimes he forgot she was fast, if not faster, than he was. And damn if she didn't sound serious as all hell. He was smart enough to know that if he didn't stop now he'd be a lot worse off once she finally did catch up to him. So he stopped. Only he was running so fast that stopping so abruptly sent his arms flailing to keep him afloat but a few seconds later he fell onto his back, staring at the ceiling when he saw a black blur starting to cloud his vision.
She had done all that work calculating and then he went and stopped on her. She was irritatedly reprimanding him in her head even as her arms closed around nothing and she went crashing down. Her landing really shouldn't have been as soft as it was. Luckily her arms blocked her face from slamming into the ground which it would have definitely done.
Something was poking her in the chest and she winced and shifted, looking up first trying to figure out why Lambo had disappeared. She heard snickering off to her side and sent a confused look to the man.
What the heck was she laying on, it hurt. She sat up , and found herself straddling Lambo. Seated across his chest. "Lambo?" Why was everything taking so long to register today? She hadn't called in stupid this morning, she was pretty sure.
At first he found it hard to breathe. Mostly because the air had gotten knocked out of him when something, or most likely someone, had landed on. And partially due to his face being covered with who knows what. Once he found out, he was pretty sure he wanted to un-find out because the nose bleed he got this time around was wayyyy worse than the first one. I-Pin was on top of him...meaning it had been her chest blocking his face a few seconds ago. This...was not good. The more he registered the situation in his mind, the more his cheeks turned a much deeper shade of red, and the more his nose gushed profusely. What was he supposed to do?! She couldn't just stay there. Okay, she could, and he probably wouldn't have minded but having a face practically on fire from embarrassment was not a pleasant feeling. On the other hand, he couldn't just push her off because that would be rude, not to mention dangerous if she decided to retaliate. My, oh my, indeed.
Ipin, for her part, didn't get much time to register the situation before Lambo's nose started gushing blood. "Lambo!" She promptly pinched his nose and tried to lift his chin a little. "OH NO did I BREAK IT?!" She was more worried about stopping the bleeding before she worried about whether it actually broke but suddenly she felt awfully guilty. "Lambo are you ok?!"
His eyes widened as she started freaking out, which only caused him to freak out because he hadn't really heard what she was freaking out about in the first place. Although a few seconds later once he was able to calm down a little he noticed she was holding his nose. Oh yeah, that thing. The stupid thing that thought on it's own and would embarrass him at any give moment. Doing his best to sit up, which wasn't quite an easy task since she was still perched on his chest, he leaned back against an elbow, giving a small nod as he lifted his chin, "I'm fine...for the most part...er...I..." Shutting up seemed like a good idea because he wasn't sure what he was trying to say anyway but thankfully his nose was mostly done bleeding. All he had to do was think about something else. Like grapes and/or candy and/or that gelato he had clearly missed out on and/or that exam he hopefully passed.
She slid back a little as he propped himself up, settling somewhere around his stomach. She was wiping at his nose with the sleeve of her shirt completely ruining it, and leaning in trying to see if it was broken. "Oh god I'm sorry Lambo, I only meant to catch you. I didn't really expect you to stop." She also hadn't taken into consideration what tackling someone at a high speed in a metal tube would do to their face. She ran her finger down the bridge of his nose trying to feel if anything was out of place.
"Ah...sorry about your shirt...I'll buy you a new one." He let out a small sigh, shaking his head a bit, "I don't know anyone who wouldn't have stopped if you had yelled at them like that. You sounded scary! And, it's not broken...it's fine, you didn't do anything." By now it had stopped, and his eyes instinctively fell shut as her finger slid down his nose. Damn her for being so thorough. And damn his nerves for not asking his permission before moving to close his eyes.
"No you won't, this was all my fault anyway. I don't know why I didn't think that through more. It's just." She paused, finished checking his nose to be sure and wiping at his cheek with her thumb. "Well you always run away!" There's a bit of hurt there mixed in with the frustration.
This was also her fault most likely. She'd probably trained him from age five that when he ticked her off she beat him up. But that realization wouldn't occur to Ipin yet. She still had a while before that light bulb went off.
"Sorry....I don't mean to...sometimes...it's just habit?" He averted his gaze to the floor, not wanting to look at her after hearing the hurt in her voice. "I really am sorry, Ipin. I don't want to run away from you. It just happens." And really, haha, she had trained him to become very afraid should he ever upset her. That didn't take him long to learn at all.
"Ipin sighed and pushed some of his hair back away from his face. "You are going to be the death of me. Forget Millefiore." She gave him a wane little smile
He gave her a small grin, looking up at her from beneath his shaggy bangs, well, what hadn't been pushed away that is, "That just won't do, hm? If anything you'll be the death of me...via gyoza bun attacks and spinning kicks."
The soft sound of her tongue clicking tsks at him echoes off the walls. "Sometimes you very nearly get nearly inspire it." She pauses and seems for the first time to realize that they are not alone in the hallways. Her eyes meet with a man who is standing and grinning in a doorway at them. She looks back at Lambo and realizes she's still sitting low across his abdomen, her fingers pushed familiarly into his hair and her cheeks flame up. "Ah..."
She moves to pull her hand away. "I'm sorry Lambo I didn't realize I was still... and... er.." Time to get up.
FINALLY. She had finally realized that yes, she was still straddling him, and hopefully was planning on moving so he wouldn't have to push her off himself. There was only so much he could take. And he could've sworn he heard a camera flash or two but by the time he looked towards the noise all he could see was the back of someone's shoe disappearing. "It's f-fine...uh...just..." He straightened up a little more, hoping she would get the hint to follow suit a little faster and get off him before he had another wild case of red cheeks and major nose bleeding.
It takes a moment to collect her wits and she gulps and stands quickly, stepping to the side so she's off of him. That nervous laughter bubbles from her mouth and she offers him a hand up. "I was just so worried and ..." She tried to explain herself lamely.
He takes her hand and stands, a few nervous chuckles escaping from his lips as he runs his free hand through his hair then straightens out his shirt. "T-thank you for being worried...it's fine..." Looking down, he noticed their hands still encased in each other and immediately let hers go as his cheeks flushed for what seemed like the millionth time. Sure they had held hands before but it was different when one was actually aware of holding hands. It definitely didn't help that some of Dino's men were still watching and grinning all-knowingly at them from their respective doorways with those 'I knew it' looks. Not that Lambo could figure out just what it was they supposedly knew.
She feels a little bereft without his hand holding hers as she glances shyly at the people in the hallway and scoots a little closer to Lambo. "Er..." She speaks quietly next to him. "You think we could mm... find a less crowded place?" She mostly thinks they're laughing at their tumble from earlier. Leave it to Ipin to misinterpret everything. Her fingers close around the fabric of his sleeve and she covers her face with her other hand, finally stepping away and tugging on his shirt a little.
Every move she makes to get closer to him only results in wider grins and louder chuckles from their audience so going somewhere else probably really is a good idea. He reaches for her hand, but changes his mind and sticks his hand in his pocket instead, giving her a small nod as he starts to head down the hallway. His cheeks might as well be permanently red by now.
Ipin groans next to him and leans in to mumble, "I wish they wouldn't laugh. It's not very nice at all. Next time I see one of them hurt..." She lets the threat die off and frowns at one of the men. Then she tries to get her bearings. "If we go down a level we can at least find one of the empty rooms. Or we could go back tot he kitchen on this level. I can't believe how far away we are from it. You run like a sprinter."
He looked to her with a raised eyebrow, he should've known she wouldn't have picked up on why they were really laughing at the pair. "Uh...that's not...I mean...it's...." Lambo Bovino, a pro at words clearly. Not sure what to say or if he even wanted to explain, he dropped the issue, glancing around at their surroundings. "Ah, we could go back to the kitchen...I just don't know where it is...so you'll have to lead the way, pen...Ipin." After years of running away from people, mostly Reborn, one would at least hope that Lambo would be quick on his feet.
"Nonsense." She responded in irritation, frowning at one of the men. "It's only fair." She glanced back at him, smiling a little. He'd stopped from calling her a penguin. At least that had sunk in. She loosed the fabric on his arm only to sling hers around his in a familiar manner and immediately take the lead. "That is something I can do. You know you'd think you'd have been here enough times to get the general layout, Lambo."
"Ah, I'm usually too busy running...and when you're flying past things it's hard to remember where things are and how to get to places? I just turn corners and hope I end up somewhere I know. Or in front of someone that can tell me where I am." Now that they weren't being watched anymore, he felt much more at ease, and his cheeks were back to normal. Hopefully they'd stay that way more than two minutes this time around.
"I hope you don't do that during missions." She reprimanded. "Just think what could happen if you got lost or cornered. Try to pay attention more, Lambo." She turned them down a corridor and continued walking.
"Ah. They don't really send me out on many missions, and the ones they do aren't very dangerous...so it's okay." He let out a laugh, hoping that his explanation would keep her from continuing her lecture, although he knew that probably wouldn't stop her. She was something of a worry wart when it came to him. Not that he minded.
She heaved a sigh and blew her bangs out of her eyes only to have them fall back again. "That doesn't mean they'll always send you on easy missions. You're a guardian." She frowned up at him.
"I know..." He let out a sigh of his own, his head hanging low as his shoulders slumped. She sounded disappointed, so he could only imagine how she looked, hence he kept his eyes low to avoid her gaze.
She couldn't see his eyes through his bangs, he did that sometimes. She walked quietly with him for a moment, turning another corner. It wasn't disappointment as much as fretting. She was worried about him, and he didn't often show any drive to learn more for fighting, defense, offense. Sometimes someone like Reborn could light a fire in him but ... she shook her head. He'd agreed to learn some judo from her. That was a start. "You don't want to be a guardian?" Finally she asked aloud.
Stopping suddenly when he heard her question, he stood there in deep thought, seriously debating it. Even now no one really took him seriously as a guardian. He was always just kind of pushed off to the side. At first he tried to get stronger but once it just started to feel like a waste he gave up on the idea. This was the first time, however, that anyone had ever asked him how he actually felt about being a guardian. "I don't know...I mean, I do...but what's the point if no one takes me seriously anyway? I want to protect the family, and Tsuna, and you...and even Gokudera but I'm still just a kid as far as they're concerned. I don't know how to get better."
She stopped with him and listened patiently. "Someone thought you had potential even when you were five you know. Someone took you seriously or you wouldn't have gotten that ring." She glanced to the side, down the long corridor. "All of the guardians started out young. They weren't always as strong as they are now... well in our time. Lambo we have resources, people who will help you if you ask. You should talk to your family too, they know your ability best."
She was quiet for a moment. Finally she spoke aloud again. "You should talk to Mr. Reborn if you're serious. Even when we're here, there are strong people who might be willing to help you learn." She smiled at him, in what she hoped was a reassuring way. "I know you could be a force to be reckoned with if you put your mind to it."
Leave it to Ipin to know exactly what to say to him. He was sure to still worry about things but knowing she believed in him was enough to lift the weight off his shoulders, even if only temporarily. He stood for a few minutes, taking in all that she had said before looking up to her with one of his usual cheesy grins. Just like that, he had moved on, and who knows what was going on in his head now. Reaching down for her hand, he laced their fingers before tugging her gently in a bid to get her to follow him. "I know how to get to the kitchen from here, do you think the orange is still there? I hope so. It was good."
Her heart beat a bit quicker for a moment as he smiled his goofy smile at her and then she grinned back cheerily, relieved he seemed recovered. "Mmm I left it on the counter, it should be!" She jogged a moment to catch back up to Lambo, squeezing his hand with hers. "Oranges are just as good as grapes." She agreed.
"I wouldn't say just as good as grapes...but I guess they're high up there. Orange candy is pretty good, not as good as cioccolato allíarancia gelato though. Wonder if there's any of that back home..." Once they were back in the kitchen, he skipped over the orange in favor of his beloved grapes, chomping down on a few before looking over to her. "I, uh...w-well, I mean...I don't say it much, o-or ever but I'm, er, I'm r-really glad that you're around..." By now he was fiddling with his fingers, his gaze fixated on the counter top but at least his cheeks were still a normal color.
Ipin hopped up so she was sitting on the counter, and picked up a section of orange, biting into it. "All'arancia? What do you call that when it's at home?" She asked, really just wanting a translation. She tilted her head as he started stuttering at her.
She smiled a little to herself, reaching a toe out to nudge his hip. "Thank you Lambo." She licked her lips and grinned a little shyly. "I'm glad you're around too." She laughed quietly. "And I wouldn't want to get thrown into the past with anyone else."
"Orange flavored chocolate would be the best way to describe it." Scooting over to where she was, he leaned against her, lazily resting his head on her arm while he continued eating his grapes, "Sometimes it's not so bad that the bazooka is messed up."
"Mmm! That does sound good." She reached down and plucked a grape out of his hand, popping it into her mouth. "Yeah, we'd have to go months apart while you visit Italy otherwise. You know you're going to miss Chinese New Year. And I have firecrackers." She frowned down at the top of his head in what was nearly a pout.
He shot up, looking at her with excited eyes, "Firecrackers??? You have firecrackers?! I'll find a way to be there! Especially since you have firecrackers. Missing last year was no fun. I bet you'll have jau gok too...my, oh my, I really can't miss this" Putting a hand to his chin, he started to think of ways to get to where she was for the Chinese New Year. Not that any would come to him any time soon.
His excitement was contagious. "I've been cleaning the base for days getting ready. It wouldn't be New Year without firecrackers." She swung her legs and looked thoughtful. "I'm making some. Do you want me to do some tim gok zai too? I was only making the haam gok zai but I know how much you like the sweet ones." She wasn't sure he'd actually be able to make it but if he could she would have some on hand. "Will it be ok for you to leave your family?"
Giving a few quick nods, he hopped up next to her on the counter just so he could swing his legs too. Clearly it was another much needed measure to show just how excited he was at the thought of spending the Chinese New Year with her, firecrackers and dumplings. Okay, face it, he got excited at the thought of food period but he was looking forward to spending the New Year with her. "Tim gok zai sounds really good, if you feel like making some. Ah..." He scratched the back of his head, shrugging his shoulders, "I'm not sure. I don't think it would be a problem, it's just for a few days."
She grinned at him. "Unless I kidnap you." She looked at the ceiling. "I think I have everything I need for them. Kyoko and Haru will be happy. They like those too."
"Would you? Can you really call it kidnapping if the captive willingly goes with you?" He looked to her with a raised brow, eating, unbeknown to him, the last few grapes that were sitting in the bowl. "Are they doing well? It's been so long since I've seen them."
"I can if the captive doesn't let on he went willingly." She points out with a wide innocent smile. "Then only the captor gets in trouble." She reaches over his lap to pick up the last section of orange, picking a bit at rind that didn't quite make it off. "They're good, Miss Haru's been pretty busy with school lately so we haven't seen much of her."
"Ah, I see evil Ipin has somehow made an appearance to do all the evil planning a kidnapping involves. But it's good that they're well" He reached into the grape bowl again, only to have his fingers meet empty plastic. "The grapes are gone!"
"Will you complain if she kidnaps you and keeps you?" She tilted her head at him quizzically, then glanced at the bowl. "You ate them." Grins and takes a bite of her last bit of orange. "I'm surprised it took you so long."
"Hm, I think it would depend on whether or not she tries to attack me with gyoza, and not in the fun 'eat these Lambo' way, but the 'die now Lambo!' way." Poking his bottom lip out in a pout, he stared down at the bowl, running his fingers through it as if the action would make more grapes suddenly appear. "I was trying to make them last but now they're all gone..."
"Hmm, I'd have to rescue you." She agreed. "Better put them on their grocery list." She puts the last bite of orange into her mouth. "You know you might eat them slower if you froze them. Like little grape Popsicle bits."
"You always have to rescue me." He laughed, setting the bowl off to the side and absentmindedly swinging his legs, "I'm not sure I want to eat them slower, frozen grapes would probably just give me brain freeze. I'd forget they were frozen."
She smiled to herself. "Maybe I like saving you." She said half to herself.
"Maybe I like being saved" Now would've been a nice, convenient time for more food to stuff his face with.
It took her a moment to realize she'd said it out loud, then she blushed a bit and looked shyly at him. "Just don't make me worry too much."
"I'll try my best but I make no guarantees." He grinned, nudging her a little with his elbow.
"Should I say the same?" She asked, teasing him a little. She glanced out through the kitchen toward the cafeteria part of the galley and breathed in deeply. Mostly she could smell iron and spices and Lambo's cologne. He always wore a little too much. She nudged him back. "So now we're out of grapes, what should we do?"
He put a hand to his chest, "Would that mean you make no guarantees about saving me? I'm not sure I like those odds." Sliding off the counter, he held his hand out to her, glancing towards the door, "Now that we're out of grapes, we walk around and mess with Dino-nii's men for all their laughing earlier."
"It means I'll try but I can't guarantee." She said. "But I'd try very hard."
She hopped off as well, grasping his hand and looking up at him curiously. "Did you have something specific in mind?"
He laughed, leading her towards the door with a grin, "I was kind of hoping you'd come up with something actually..."
Oh it was hard to resist that. She bit her lip though because she really kind of liked Dino's men even if they'd laughed at them. Lambo was the one who liked misbehaving. "I don't know if we should...." She said nervously.
"Come onnnnn, Ipin. Where's your sense of adventure? Let loose a little." This was usually how things went. Her telling him something might not have been the best idea, and him trying to convince her otherwise before he even knew what the actual idea was.
Ipin was quickly trying to come up with something that would distract Lambo from having twenty angry mafia men out for his blood. "Maybe we could... play... scrabble instead?" She suggested lamely.
"Boooooring." Turning a corner, he spotted a few familiar doors and knocked on the first one they came to. When no one answered he took it upon himself to walk in, dragging an opposed Ipin behind before closing the door and starting to look around until he landed on the jackpot, a big pack of colored markers, right next to a nice selection of oil paints. Someone obviously considered themselves something of an artist.
Ipin followed hesitantly. She caught sight of him catching sight of art supplies and sucked in a breath. "Wait wait Lambo, you can't! That's expensive stuff!" She stepped in front of him pressing him back with a palm flat against his chest. "Come on... let's find something else..." Her nose tickled for a moment. She scrunched it and then sneezed and a big cloud of pink engulfed her.
Little Ipin looked around in confusion.
Lambo could not be swayed, this was too much fun to just pass up. So while she stood there trying to keep him back, he took to reaching for a few of the markers, popping the tops off with ease. Just as he was reaching for some more, the usual pink puff consumed him.
Once his younger self's vision was free of the fog, he glanced down at the markers in his hand, his 'bow down to me!' grin appearing on his features, "LAMBO-SAN WILL DRAW! IPIN DRAW TOO!" And with that said, he stuffed a marker in her hand as he bounced over to the walls, starting to draw nonsensical scribbles and shapes. If the owner of the room was lucky, hopefully Lambo wouldn't discover the paint anytime soon.