Post by Aquisha on Nov 4, 2006 15:48:58 GMT -5
Hi guys! Well, if any of you frequent Annie's Daring to Dream website, this story might be familiar. I wrote it about two years ago, and since then, I've wanted to go over some things and make some changes, so here's my second attempt at it. As always, I'm open and excited for comments, particularly if you've read the original. Hope you guys enjoy.
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Back story: It's three years after Ariel and Eric met, and two years into their marriage. Eric is turning twenty and his mother, Vivian has come from a neighboring kingdom to orchestrate what is turning out to be a big affair. At first, Ariel tries to keep Eric calm about the "lengths" to which his mother has gone in preparing for this party. But as the big event nears, it seems that it might be Ariel who cracks under the pressure.
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Birthdays were never really a favorite for Eric. His mother, as calm as she could be the other 364 days a year, seemed to save up all her crazy for that one day; the anniversary of his birth. Now, usually it would be the normal myriad of guests and awkward silences with obscure relatives he hardly remembered, but this…. This was his twentieth birthday; the one that would christen him into adulthood…whether he liked it or not.
For the last few years, it hadn’t been that bad. Seeing as how he was married and lived in another kingdom, it was hard for his mother to be as hands-on as she pleased. But this birthday was too important to be planned through correspondence alone. No, this one had to be done in person. The result of this extended maternal visit had been two weeks of grueling schedules and nearly impossible demands for everyone in the castle, but especially for Eric and Ariel.
Now Eric really didn’t want to get up out of bed, especially because when he woke up that morning, Ariel was nowhere to be found. But even with absolutely no motivation to face the day of planning and fretting that he knew it was going to be, Eric still managed to get himself up, down the stairs, and into the kitchen. True, he was still in his pajamas, but under the circumstances, his being upright was an achievement.
When he walked in, he was first hit with the unmistakable smell of blueberry pancakes and coffee. Second, there was the beautiful sound of Ariel humming a little melody she had probably just made up.
She truly was beautiful, even in the morning. Her hair was in a very loose braid that had obviously been slept on. It being the summer and too hot for her to wear her regular nightgown, Ariel had gotten into the habit of wearing one of Eric’s old shirts for pajamas with a pair of his navy pants that she cut just below the knee. Whenever Eric saw her in this “ensemble”, he would always think that she made it look better than he ever could, and this morning was no exception.
She had her back to him, pouring some pancake batter into a frying pan. Eric took this as a perfect opportunity to have a little fun and slowly crept up behind her.
“Mmmorning,” he said, grabbing her around her waist.
She jumped at her capture, but quickly started laughing and turned around to face him.
“Good morning,” she said with a smile and giving him a kiss. “You’re obviously in a better mood.”
Eric grimaced at the thought of what had turned into an invitation-selection-summit the day before.
“Not really,” he said letting go of her and leaning on the table in the middle of the room.
“Eric…,” said Ariel, knowingly. “I know she can get a little…excited. And trust me, I didn’t enjoy going through the fifteen minute discussion of whether it should be ‘You are “cordially”’ or ‘“graciously” invited’. But still, she’s your mother, and like it or not, you’re her only son, and when you turn twenty, that means that no matter what happens, you’re no longer hers to protect, and shelter, and…”
“Smother?” added Eric with obvious irritation.
Ariel just smiled.
“You know I love her,” said Eric sincerely. “She’s my mom. But this is ridiculous! I never wanted a ball, or five hundred guests, or a ten course dinner; she knows that! You know that!”
“I know, I know,” said Ariel.
“All I needed for my birthday was you and a guaranteed five miles separating us from another living soul,” he said, looking down and taking her hands in his.
There was a slight pause as Ariel looked at Eric. It was his birthday. It was something he should look forward to, not dread with each passing day.
“Hey, I have an idea,” she said with that classic look of excitement in her eyes. “If you do your best to go along with this and try to enjoy your birthday, I promise that you can pick anyplace in the world, and we’ll go, just you and me, and we’ll have a little holiday. How about that?”
As she said this, she wrapped her arms around his neck and moved closer to him.
“A holiday? Finally?” he asked. A vacation was something they’d always talked about but, by now, it had seemed like it would never happen.
“Yeah,” she answered smiling.
“Why now?”
“Eric, do I need to have a reason to be whisked off to some exotic destination with my husband?”
“Well, when we’ve discussed it for three years and then you bring it up out of the blue, then yes.”
Over the years, Eric had gotten to be suspicious whenever Ariel came up with something spontaneously. He had learned that some of her seemingly impulsive ideas were actually very well thought out plans, and that she had been waiting for the right moment to tell him.
“Eric…,” Ariel began, exaggerating the fact that her husband was trying her patience. “I just think it would be nice to have a little alone time, that’s all. And plus…if you’re going to worry me to death about it, we can just stay here and discuss some more.”
Eric quickly picked up on the singularity of the offer, but still, he wanted to make sure there were no strings attached.
“Anywhere I want to go?” he asked, lifting an eyebrow.
“Anywhere.”
“Alright, deal.”
“Good.”
At just that moment, the doors of the kitchen flew open. Ariel and Eric both turned toward the door and froze at the sight of Vivian, Eric’s mother, in all her glory. She was in her late forties with black hair that was streaked with grey. There was an obvious resemblance between her and Eric. She was lean and elegant, completely dressed and ready for the day in a dark green dress with a very conservative neckline.
“There you two are.” Her voice was not stern, but it was forceful. Clearly, when Vivian spoke, there were no questions after.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Eric, you have to be measured for your new suit and Ariel, I need you to start cleaning around the castle. Who knows the last time the ballroom got a good scrub? Alright? Good. Oh, Ariel, dear, I think something’s burning on the stove. Oh, yes, and…good morning, dears,” she said, with a smile of true affection. Then, she turned, and left, leaving only the sound of her shoes on the marble floor echoing down the hallway.
After a second, they snapped out of their shock and Eric threw the smoking pan and is burnt pancakes into the sink. When that crisis was averted, he and Ariel were left in the quiet kitchen, just looking at each other, completely overwhelmed.
******************************************************
Back story: It's three years after Ariel and Eric met, and two years into their marriage. Eric is turning twenty and his mother, Vivian has come from a neighboring kingdom to orchestrate what is turning out to be a big affair. At first, Ariel tries to keep Eric calm about the "lengths" to which his mother has gone in preparing for this party. But as the big event nears, it seems that it might be Ariel who cracks under the pressure.
******************************************************
Birthdays were never really a favorite for Eric. His mother, as calm as she could be the other 364 days a year, seemed to save up all her crazy for that one day; the anniversary of his birth. Now, usually it would be the normal myriad of guests and awkward silences with obscure relatives he hardly remembered, but this…. This was his twentieth birthday; the one that would christen him into adulthood…whether he liked it or not.
For the last few years, it hadn’t been that bad. Seeing as how he was married and lived in another kingdom, it was hard for his mother to be as hands-on as she pleased. But this birthday was too important to be planned through correspondence alone. No, this one had to be done in person. The result of this extended maternal visit had been two weeks of grueling schedules and nearly impossible demands for everyone in the castle, but especially for Eric and Ariel.
Now Eric really didn’t want to get up out of bed, especially because when he woke up that morning, Ariel was nowhere to be found. But even with absolutely no motivation to face the day of planning and fretting that he knew it was going to be, Eric still managed to get himself up, down the stairs, and into the kitchen. True, he was still in his pajamas, but under the circumstances, his being upright was an achievement.
When he walked in, he was first hit with the unmistakable smell of blueberry pancakes and coffee. Second, there was the beautiful sound of Ariel humming a little melody she had probably just made up.
She truly was beautiful, even in the morning. Her hair was in a very loose braid that had obviously been slept on. It being the summer and too hot for her to wear her regular nightgown, Ariel had gotten into the habit of wearing one of Eric’s old shirts for pajamas with a pair of his navy pants that she cut just below the knee. Whenever Eric saw her in this “ensemble”, he would always think that she made it look better than he ever could, and this morning was no exception.
She had her back to him, pouring some pancake batter into a frying pan. Eric took this as a perfect opportunity to have a little fun and slowly crept up behind her.
“Mmmorning,” he said, grabbing her around her waist.
She jumped at her capture, but quickly started laughing and turned around to face him.
“Good morning,” she said with a smile and giving him a kiss. “You’re obviously in a better mood.”
Eric grimaced at the thought of what had turned into an invitation-selection-summit the day before.
“Not really,” he said letting go of her and leaning on the table in the middle of the room.
“Eric…,” said Ariel, knowingly. “I know she can get a little…excited. And trust me, I didn’t enjoy going through the fifteen minute discussion of whether it should be ‘You are “cordially”’ or ‘“graciously” invited’. But still, she’s your mother, and like it or not, you’re her only son, and when you turn twenty, that means that no matter what happens, you’re no longer hers to protect, and shelter, and…”
“Smother?” added Eric with obvious irritation.
Ariel just smiled.
“You know I love her,” said Eric sincerely. “She’s my mom. But this is ridiculous! I never wanted a ball, or five hundred guests, or a ten course dinner; she knows that! You know that!”
“I know, I know,” said Ariel.
“All I needed for my birthday was you and a guaranteed five miles separating us from another living soul,” he said, looking down and taking her hands in his.
There was a slight pause as Ariel looked at Eric. It was his birthday. It was something he should look forward to, not dread with each passing day.
“Hey, I have an idea,” she said with that classic look of excitement in her eyes. “If you do your best to go along with this and try to enjoy your birthday, I promise that you can pick anyplace in the world, and we’ll go, just you and me, and we’ll have a little holiday. How about that?”
As she said this, she wrapped her arms around his neck and moved closer to him.
“A holiday? Finally?” he asked. A vacation was something they’d always talked about but, by now, it had seemed like it would never happen.
“Yeah,” she answered smiling.
“Why now?”
“Eric, do I need to have a reason to be whisked off to some exotic destination with my husband?”
“Well, when we’ve discussed it for three years and then you bring it up out of the blue, then yes.”
Over the years, Eric had gotten to be suspicious whenever Ariel came up with something spontaneously. He had learned that some of her seemingly impulsive ideas were actually very well thought out plans, and that she had been waiting for the right moment to tell him.
“Eric…,” Ariel began, exaggerating the fact that her husband was trying her patience. “I just think it would be nice to have a little alone time, that’s all. And plus…if you’re going to worry me to death about it, we can just stay here and discuss some more.”
Eric quickly picked up on the singularity of the offer, but still, he wanted to make sure there were no strings attached.
“Anywhere I want to go?” he asked, lifting an eyebrow.
“Anywhere.”
“Alright, deal.”
“Good.”
At just that moment, the doors of the kitchen flew open. Ariel and Eric both turned toward the door and froze at the sight of Vivian, Eric’s mother, in all her glory. She was in her late forties with black hair that was streaked with grey. There was an obvious resemblance between her and Eric. She was lean and elegant, completely dressed and ready for the day in a dark green dress with a very conservative neckline.
“There you two are.” Her voice was not stern, but it was forceful. Clearly, when Vivian spoke, there were no questions after.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Eric, you have to be measured for your new suit and Ariel, I need you to start cleaning around the castle. Who knows the last time the ballroom got a good scrub? Alright? Good. Oh, Ariel, dear, I think something’s burning on the stove. Oh, yes, and…good morning, dears,” she said, with a smile of true affection. Then, she turned, and left, leaving only the sound of her shoes on the marble floor echoing down the hallway.
After a second, they snapped out of their shock and Eric threw the smoking pan and is burnt pancakes into the sink. When that crisis was averted, he and Ariel were left in the quiet kitchen, just looking at each other, completely overwhelmed.
