Random Ideas

Ann cracked a small smile and nudged him lightly. "What would I do without you?" she asked, laughing softly as she quickly gave her brother a hug. She walked with him down to the ballroom and tried to calm down. She was thankful for the gloves, because she was sure her hands were clammy. She managed a smile as she and Dimitri walked in and scanned the people there. Maybe most people did not notice, but she did. She knew who Aspen was. "I am going to go mingle," she told Dimitri before she scurried off to towards Aspen.

Lindi sighed and brushed her hair back, out of her face. "Why am I not surprised," she murmured more to herself. Ann was a bit of a wildcard. She only then noticed the rain had let up. She glanced down at her soaked clothes and laughed. "We should probably go dry off." Chance, as if he understood what she was said, shook himself off, which sprayed water droplets all over Dimitri and Lindi.

A smile seemed to be permanently etched on Lindi's face as she took Dimitri's hand in hers. "Well, so are you, Dimitri," she whispered, resting her head against his shoulder. Livia was not sure if there was an answer to his question. She wished there was another way. "Stay safe," she whispered as she returned the kiss and watched him walk out the door. She dropped her gaze to the ground guiltily. She somewhat wished that she had stopped him.

Dimitri was about to say something, but she had scurried off to who knows where. He sighed to himself and looked around. Lindi Crawford was there as well. Their parents were friends, and she was friends with Ann. He liked her, but he would never tell anyone that ever. Aspen looked for Ann, and when he saw her, and he smiled brightly. "How's the birthday girl?" he asked with a chuckle as he took a sip of his champagne. "How do I look?"

Dimitri looked at Lindi, and he laughed as Chance shook himself dry. "I am going to smell like wet dog by the end of the night," he said, and he started to leaving him back to his truck. "Want me to drive you home? I'll even give Chance a little bath and dry him off so he doesn't stink," he said.

Dimitri smiled a bit, and he put his arm around her before going to her mother. "Is there anything I can help out with? I know how to cook so I can work on dinner," he offered. Brandon came to the rebel base, and he walked into one of the officer's tents. He sat down in the old, broken chair and looked up at him. "I have something that I think can help us get rid of the castes once and for all, but I have conditions."

Lindi glanced around the room and caught sight of Dimitri. Considering she lost Ann in the crowds of people, she decided to go greet Dimitri instead. "Happy birthday," she commented as she made her way over to Dimitri. "How does it feel? To share a birthday with someone?" she asked curiously. Ann grinned up at him as she leaned slightly against the table. "Good as I will ever be," she stated. At his question, she grinned slightly. "Handsome. The tux look looks good on you."

"Don't worry," Lindi commented with a short laugh. "So am I," she stated before she grinned up at him. At his question, she nodded and said, "Yeah. That would be nice. I am not sure Chance will like the bath part though," she stated, and Chance perked his ears at the word.

Livia opened her mouth and then closed it again, looking between Dimitri and Lindi. "You don't have to. You are our guest," she stated as she stood and quickly put her old apron on. She couldn't meet either of their eyes. The officer had a hard look on his face as Dimitri spoke. He furrowed his brows as he thought over his words. "Conditions. What are these conditions," he muttered finally, eyeing his suspiciously.

Dimitri's eyes widened when Lindi came over. He didn't really think that she would try to talk to him! "Thanks," he said nervously. Most people sort of forget that it was his birthday as well. Heck, he woke up and forgot it was his. "It's not all that bad, really. I mean, I'm not much of a party person so I let Ann do the themes and everything else," he said with a shrug. Aspen smirked when she said that he looked good, and he glanced at his glass. "Free food makes the food taste even better," he said with a small smile, and he took a snack off of a plate a butler was carrying.

Dimitri laughed as his ears perked up. "I'm going to make you smell like roses," he joked, and he opened the car door before getting in himself. "Then after that I am going to have to make my truck smell like roses," he said with a laugh before he started the car back up.

Dimitri shook his head when she spoke. "It's the least I can do, really," he said, and he looked down at Lindi. He wanted to see what they thought of the monarchy first, but maybe that could wait until after dinner. Brandon watched the man for a moment or two. "I have the heir at my house. I will let you have him, but I need money. I am about to lose my family farm, and if I lose that, I can't feed my family. I don't want him hurt though, and I want to be sure that my daughter doesn't have I had anything to do with this. You can hold him for random."

Lindi cracked a smile up at him as she took a snack from the tray. "Why don't you like parties?" she inquired, arching a brow. She then dropped her gaze down to the floor and shrugged. "Ann sure does seem to like them," she commented as she glanced around once more and caught sight of Ann talking to someone. She was unsure of who. Ann laughed and rolled her eyes at him. "I guess you are right. Put the word 'free' in front of just about anything, and it makes it ten times better," she agreed with a smirk.

Hopping in, Lindi let out a grunt as Chance plopped onto her lap. "You aren't as small as you used to be, bud," she muttered as she nudged him into the middle with some effort. "I don't think Chance will be the only one in need of a bath," she commented, sighing.

Livia paused as she gave it some thought, but Lindi spoke up. "I will cook with him, mom. You and dad can just sit back and relax for the night," she assured her before she took Dimitri's hand and lead him into the kitchen. The officer rubbed just above his brow as he let all of this sink in. "How much money are we talking?" he inquired as he leaned forward and looked him straight in the eye. "And what is the likelihood that he will listen?"

Dimitri shrugged a bit at her question, and he face her a nervous smile. "I'm just not in to large crowds and everything," he said, and he followed her gaze to Ann and the other man. "Who the heck is he?" he muttered, an he watched him closely. What was Ann doing with a guy that was old enough to drink? "If he can drink, don't you think he is a but old for her?" he asked curiously.

Dimitri laughed a bit at her words, and he started driving. "Are you saying that I stink?" He said, feigning hurt. He smiled before he came to her house and parked. "We are home, boy," he said, and he pat him on the head.

Dimitri followed her in to the kitchen, and he looked around. It sure was nothing like the kitchen at the castle, but he sure was curious to use it. "Let's start on it," he said, and he kissed her cheek. Brandon looked at the man, and he thought for a moment. "Just enough so I can pay a few things and feed my family. Five hundred is the top most I am asking for. As for Drake, I know I told you not to hurt him, but you can threaten to do things. If Drake believes you, he might give in."

Lindi glanced back over at Ann and the man and frowned to herself. "Are you sure you aren't just worrying too much?" she asked as she watched the two of them closely. "Besides, they are just talking, Dimitri," she added, but she had her worries of her own. She watched the two of them and frowned slightly. Who was that guy?

Laughing softly, Lindi shook her head. "No, I was talking about myself, but now that you mention it...," Lindi teased. She then opened the door and got out, and Chance excitedly followed - glad to be free of the car. "Thanks, Dimitri. For everything," she murmured.

Lindi nodded in agreement and grabbed a pot and pan. "I am thinking stew, what are you thinking?" she asked with a small smirk. The officer considered this before he crossed his arms over his chest. "All right," he began as he let it all sink in. "It is a deal then," he agreed finally as he held out his hand to shake on it.

Dimitri looked over at Lindi, and he shook his head. "No, I really do think that there is something up with guy, and I know I'm not just being protective. There is no way my parents know this guy," he said, and he sighed to himself. Aspen looked down at her, and he smiled. "You are going to love my gift, I promise. Now, I didn't make all of it, but I did make a lot of it. I sort of had to have some help," he said.

Dimitri looked down when she spoke, and he blushed a bit. "No problem. Now, you go wash up while I was this boy," he said, and he walked inside, starting to go to the bathroom. Brandon caught eye of him and paused for a moment. "Drake?" he muttered to himself.

Dimitri nodded when she suggested stew, and he grabbed a pot. "Let's get it going," he said, and he looked over at Livia. He was starting to wonder where Brandon was. Brandon nodded, and he shook his hand. "Thank you sir. I believe they ae going to the market tomorrow at noon. Then would be a perfect time. Just don't lay a hand on my daughter," he said.

Lindi furrowed his brows as he watched the two of them. "Maybe Ann invited him," she replied after a moment. She had no clue why but it seemed like the only explanation. She was talking to him after all. Maybe she knew him. Ann rose her brows as Aspen's comment and grinned slightly at this. "And now I am interested," she said thoughtfully as she thought about what the gift could be.

Laughing, Lindi rolled her eyes and followed after him. "Don't have to tell me twice," she agreed as she glanced at her now unruly hair. She glanced walked in and said a quick hey to her father before she headed up to her bathroom. She definitely felt like a complete mess.

Pulling her hair back into a ponytail, Lindi began to grab ingredients for a stew. "Good, then I think this sounds like a plan," she agreed as she grinned up at him. She noticed the look on her face and furrowed her brows in slight confusion. She decided to just let it go, however, and went to work on cooking. The man muttered, "Yeah, all right." He stood then and crossed his arms over his chest. "If it doesn't work out, there will be prices to pay, though."

Dimitri watched Ann, and he bit his lip nervously. "The only boy I have seen Ann instead in is Aspen, the stable boy, and from what I can tell, he is a bit of her jerk. Then again, those were my father's words," he said, and he took a look at Lindi. Ugh, why did she have to be so beautiful!

Dimitri walked into the bathroom, and he started to run some bath water. "Don't worry boy, it isn't hot," he said, and when it was finished, he walked to Chance and helped him, more so forced, him into the bathtub. When he got in, he started to wash him with shampoo.

Dimitri watched Lindi as she started to work, and Dimitri cut up some carrots. He was about to put them in the stew, but he got an idea. He smirked and put then in, but instead of going back to cooking, he wrapped his arms around Lindi and picked her up. "Surprise!" he said. Brandon watched the man closely, ad he narrowed his eyes. "I don't care if you and I have the same end goals. If you lay a finger on my family, you will regret every minute of it." He then stormed off.

Lindi gave this some thought and watched the two of them closely. "If he is a jerk, why would she be talking to him?" she inquired as she turned back to Dimitri. She then shook her head. "Because she is Ann," she added on, answering her own question. She wasn't too surprised by this.

After a quick shower, Lindi changed and headed to the downstairs bathroom. She watched for a moment in the doorway and cracked a small smile. "Having any luck?" she asked, laughing softly as she went over and sat down beside him to try to help him out a bit.

Lindi was in the middle of peeling an onion when Dimitri lifted her up off of her feet. She let out a scream of surprise and nearly dropped the onion she was holding. She then began to laugh and rolled her eyes. "You scared me," she muttered, craning her neck to glance back at him. She kissed his jaw and muttered, "You better be glad I wasn't holding a knife."

Dimitri continued to watch the couple for a moment or two. It was still beyond him how she could like him. "Wait, there is no way that he could even be here. He is way too poor to buy himself a suit, which is a real shame. My father would also fire him if he saw him. There is no way he would risk his job for my sister," he said.

Dimitri looked up when he heard Lindi, and he laughed a bit. "Well, I'm even more soaked now thanks to this big bear trying to get out. I managed to shampoo him really well, and now it is time for conditioner," he said.

Dimitri laughed as he held her close, and he kissed her cheek. "I checked to make sure you didn't have anything sharp and capable of killing me," he said jokingly. He kissed her softly, and soon enough, Brandon came back inside. He narrowed his eyes a bit at Dimitri. "No PDA please," he muttered before he sat down beside Livia.

Lindi furrowed her brows as she thought that over. "Are you sure?" she asked him finally after a moment. There were somethings that some people were willing to risk, and what if he really was here? "Who else would she be talking to then?" she asked, pondering this thought for a moment. There certainly wasn't anyone else who came to mind.

Laughing, Lindi rolled her eyes and tied her hair up into a bun to keep it out of her face. "I told you...he doesn't like baths," she stated as she grabbed the dog conditioner and handed it off to Dimitri. "At least your dog is a puppy right now, so he doesn't make as much of a mess."

Smirking, Lindi grinned up at him and stated, "Kill you? I might stab you, maybe not kill you." She sent him a teasing smile. When her father came in, she smiled sheepishly and gave Dimitri a quick hug before she said, "We should finished up dinner." She glanced down at her half peeled onion and began to get back to work.

Dimitri tried every corner of his brain to think of who Ann could be talking to, but no one came to mind but Aspen. "Maybe we should go over there and introduce ourselves," he said, still watching his sister converse with the man. Aspen smirked to himself as he looked down at her. "You will just have to figure it out," he said.

Dimitri laughed he listened top her, and he nodded. "I know that very well now," he said, and he started to rise him off once more. "That is a good thing," he sad, and he looked down at Chance. "It is going to be hard getting Major to take a bath."

Dimitri nodded when Brandon came in, and he started to work on cutting the vegetables again, but not without stealing a kiss form Lindi first. He soon had everything chopped up, and he looked down at Lindi. "Anything I can help out with?" he asked her. He didn't want her to do all the work.

Lindi considered it as she watched the two of them talk. She grabbed a bottle of water and said, "I guess we should." She lead the way over to them and managed a smile. "Hey, Ann," she said before she glanced to Aspen. "And who are you?" she inquired with a half smile. The masks definitely weren't helping things.

Lindi laughed at his commented and grabbed a towel for the bathroom cabinet. She handed it off to him before she sat down beside him once more. "I have yet to know a dog who likes baths. Who knows, maybe he will," she said with a shrug of her shoulders.

Lindi was in the middle of putting the stew together to actually cook it. She glanced up when Dimitri asked the question and thought about it for a minute. "All that there is left to do with the stew is actually cook it. So, if you want to help by setting the table, that would be great," she said with a half smile.

Dimitri walked along with Lindi, hoping that maybe they would be able to get to know the guy. When Dimitri came over, Aspen's eyes widened. He stuck his hand out to shake and made up a name as quickly as he could. "Gerard Way," he said, and he looked at him for a moment. "Dimitri Sherwood I presume," he daid, trying to sound as proper as possible. Dimitri rose his brow. He had neve heard of him before.

Dimitri laughed, and he shrugged. "Maybe Major will like them. I hope he does. I don't like getting soaked," he said jokingly as he soon finished washing off the conditioner.

Dimitri smiled, and he kissed her cheek once more. "I bet this will be wonderful," he whispered to her. He gave her a small smile before searching the cabinets and finding all the plates and glasses. He finally had everything set up, an he wrapped his arms around her. "You look ravishing tonight," he said, trying his hand at flattery.

Lindi arched a brow at "Gerard" when he spoke. What an odd name, and she was certain she would remember something with a name like that. Ann managed a smile and crossed her arms over her chest. At least she earned an A+ when it came to being a liar. "Yeah, Gerard," she agreed, and if they weren't being watched, she would have elbowed him for coming up with such an odd name.

Lindi smirked as she said, "Yeah, I can agree with you there," she stated before she grabbed the towel she had taken and began to dry Chance off. At least he smelt ten times better than he had been smelling before.

As Lindi finished up the food, she glanced back at Dimitri and cracked a small smile. "Hardly, but you are sweet," she said as she leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek briefly. "You know," she began thoughtfully, "I didn't realize how much I missed cooking. I guess I didn't realize how much I missed all of this, really," she said with a long sigh as she turned off the stove.

Aspen looked down at her, and he smirked a bit. How could she blame him? He really couldn't come up with anything better on the spot. "Gerard? That's an odd name. What is the origin?" he asked. Aspen quickly answered. "Latin," he said, and he looked at Dimitri, really wishing he would atop asking questions.

Dimitri looked at her with a small smile, and he shrugged a bit. "Well at least this boy is clean. Now all that's left is me," he said jokingly. He would have gotten a shower at her place, but her father really didn't seem to like him.

Dimitri smiled when he heard her, and he kissed her softly. "Maybe we can take cooking lessons together sometime. You could learn how to make fancy dinners and desserts. You are going to need skills like that when you are queen," he said, but then he realized what he said. Did he just imply that she was going to win? Sure, he wanted to be with her, but did he just let out his deepest secret?

Ann glanced between Aspen and Dimitri and gritted her teeth. She really didn't need Dimitri interrogating Aspen right now, especially since he seemed to know what was going on. She quickly grabbed Aspen's hand when another song came on and said, "Oh, I love this song. Let's go dance."

Lindi grinned as she finished up drying Chance on. He went skittering out of the room before she had time to finish drying him off. "Well, he is glad to be out of there," she said with a small laugh before she stood and threw the towel in the hamper.

Dipping her head, Lindi stared down sheepishly at the tiled floor. At his comment, she glanced up at him in slight surprise but tried not to think much of it. Maybe he actually meant "if" not "when." She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and murmured, "Yeah, I would love to learn," she murmured, glancing over at him. "I've always liked cooking."

Dimitri would have said more, but "Gerard" was surrying off with his sister before he could get another word in. "This guy isn't who he says he is, and I can see that Ann doesn't want us to know," he said, and he sighed to himself. Aspen followed her out, and he let out a laugh. "That was a close one."

Dimitri nodded when Lindi spoke. "He's not the only one glad it's over," he joked, and he looked down at her with a smile before kissing her cheek. "I should be getting home soon. I left my phone in the car, but I'm pretty sure I should have been home an hour ago."

Dimitri's face was red, but he tried his best not to look too embarrassed. "How do you feel about baking?" he asked curiously, trying to chance the subject. Maybe she didn't catch on to his little mistake. Oh who was he kidding. It was huge!

"Of course Ann doesn't want us to know," Lindi muttered, letting out a long sigh as she watched the two of them closely. "Gerard," she muttered, shaking her head as she said the name. Who would even be named Gerard anyway? Ann glanced back at her brother and Lindi. "Agreed," she muttered, sighing with relief.

Pulling him in for a quick hug, Lindi nodded in agreement. "Okay. It nice being able to spend time with you, and thank you again for helping me find Chance," she said before she reached up on the tips of her toes and planted a kiss on his lips. "I'll see you later."

Lindi smiled lightly and took the pot of stew so she could take it to the table. At his question, a half smile slid onto her face. "I love it. Sometimes....on rare occasions when we had enough money, we would buy ingredients to bake a pie. I would help my mom," she whispered, shrugging sheepishly. It was the few bonding moments they ever seemed to have.

Dimitri sighed, and eh bit his lip nervously. "I am going to find out who this guy is," he said. He glanced up as his mother stood with a microphone. "It's time for the beautiful birthday boy and birthday girl open their presents. Come on you two!" she said, and Dimitri rolled his eyes. "I'm not three, Mom," he muttered. Aspen smiled, and he looked down at Annalise. "Go get that present," he said.

Dimitri smiled, and he gave her a quick kiss before heading out. He got to his truck, and he started to drive home. After a little bit of driving in the rain, he soon came home. He opened the doors and sighed to himself.

Dimitri smiled brightly when she said that she loved baking. "That's great! You know, baking is one of my favorite pass times. I do it when I can, and I used to want to be a baker when I was a little kid. I guess you can see how that turned out," he said with a chuckle.

Ann mentally groaned when her mother went up to the microphone and basically singled her and her brother out. She sometimes just didn't understand her. She was standing beside this smoking guy, and her mother decided it was a good idea to embarrass her. Go figure! She smiled at Aspen's comment and said, "All right." She was curious about his gift. She quickly headed over.

{should we timeskip or....?

Lindi listened to him and smiled lightly as she thought it over. "You can still bake, you know. Maybe not as a job, but as a hobby," she replied with a small smile. She went over to the table and placed the pot of stew on it. "I hope everyone is hungry," she said with a half smile on her face.

Dimitri sighed, and he came up, picking out his first gift. He opened it and smiled a bit. "Watch and cufflinks. Exactly what I wanted!" he said, but he hated it. Being rich and proper wasn't for him. He wanted a chemistry set for his birthday, but he doubted that he would get it. He looked over at Ann and waited for her to pick out her gift to open.

{sure. When to? Ann and Aspen training or a new au?

Dimitri smiled down at her, and he kissed her cheek. "I am sure that it tastes wonderful," he said, and he watched as Brandon gave him an evil look as he walked by. He obviously didn't want him speaking with his daughter. Dimitri fixed his own bowl and made Lindi one.

Ann half smiled as she glanced at Dimitri, but she could tell that he didn't like the gift. She knew her brother too well; maybe it was just simply a twin thing. She glanced over the gifts, and her eyes lingered on Aspen's gift. She hesitated a moment before she took the gift and began to carefully open it up.

{ hmmm....what would you like to do? it doesn't really matter to me. c:

Lindi cracked a smile and flinched slightly at the look her father gave him. She understood why he was protective, but why couldn't he be happy for her? She carefully took her bowl and blew on it to be sure that it was cool enough before she took a careful bite of it. It was pretty good, especially with what resources they had. "We make a good cooking team," she stated.