{ooc| Apologies, Alter. I'm really not off to a good start here, eh? xP}
There are few sights more satisfying first thing in the morning than that of sunlight glancing off the freshly fallen snow; the world looks undeniably clean and just bursting with promise. The jagged mountain tops jutted just above the horizon, a majestic grey against the clear blue of the sky. Alvene's dawn landscape was truly breath-taking. Such a shame certain people never got up early enough to witness it...
"Maudie! Get up this instant! There's no time to waste! You can't possibly miss this sight!" The voice of an indignant woman rang out through the inn's top floor. Mrs. Ryder stormed through the corridors, only stopping to throw open a door a stride inside.
Maud Ryder lay in bed, tangled and twisted in her thick winter duvet. She uttered a quiet groan, and buried her head deeper in her pillow. Unflapped, the woman continued to talk. She bustled about the room, righting photographs and picking up clothes, all the while keeping up a running commentary, a low rumble of mindless background chatter that prevented her daughter from staying asleep. Underneath the bed clothes, Maud's face furrowed into a frown. "...and you should TASTE the bovril, I swear, it is so delicious, and I even had some with my breakfast, and my, it was tasty..."
Maud sat up suddenly. Her mother, Mrs. Ryder, was an athletic, bright-faced woman; unlike her daughter, Mrs. Ryder was incredibley beautiful. She had a divine face and bright, sapphire eyes, like jewels in the hollow of a hand.
"Mum, shut up!" She snapped furiously, "It's eight o' clock on a Sunday! I'm on..." She trailed off at the sight of her mother's face; it was a picture of gloom. "Mum, come off it..." From experience, the girl knew exactly what was coming.
"Oh, come on Maud, please show some enthusiasm. Even if it is just for this morning..." Mrs. Ryder trailed off, and looked up at her daughter with pleading eyes. "Your sisters will be so disappointed if they can't wave you off, and after the money this trip cost... you'll spoil it for everyone..."
Maud clenched her teeth. Oh great, she thought, mother's using her favourite strategy; the guilt trip. It was a trick Maud fell for every time, too.
"Oh, very well!" Maud said finally, after a pregnant pause, "I'll get up. Give me a second..."
"Oh, thank you, darling. See you in...ten minutes?" she exclaimed, and with that said, Mrs. Ryder flapped out of the room.
Maud waited until she had shut the door, before letting out a strangled squeak of frustration. Her mother always got her way, and it drove Maud insane.
She got up, and gazed around groggily in the semi darkness. Maud had never really liked going on holiday; waking up and seeing an unfamiliar cielling, listening to strangers talking late at night. It wasn't fun. Not to mention the fact that Maud had been forced to smuggle her pokemon into this paticular inn; they apparently did not approve of having pokemon inside. Right now, her Quilava was dosing underneath the bed. Well, dosing being used in the loosest possible way; Hermione was probably awake now, only pretending to be asleep. Maud dropped down and peered under her bed; sure enough, Hermione was curled in an ermine-like mound, her eyes half closed.
{We leaving yet?} she asked shyly, her ears flicking forward.
"Yeah. Ten minutes more, hun."
The girl staggered to the window and fumbled for the curtain pull. She pulled the heavily patterned fabric aside, and gasped.
The brochures told the truth, she thought whimsically, this place is like a postcard.
Twenty minutes later, Maud was dressed, packed and waiting in the inn's reception room. Hermione had been returned to her ball, and her other pokeball, the one containing her arcanine, had been fetched from reception. Her parents, it seemed, had already left. Hordes of tourists bustled past, taking Maud by suprise; they were rushing outside in surges. The girl was about to follow and investigate when she caught sight of herself in a full-length mirror hung beside her. She grimaced at her reflection, and made a fruitless attempt to fluff up her hair. Alas, it continued to hang as limply as ever. Maud continued to scrutinise herself, but finding nothing had changed paticularily - as Maud always liked to hope - since the previous night, she did up her ski jacket headed for the door.
"Maud! Maudie, darling, wait," her mother called, jogging over to meet her eldest daughter, "your father's gone on ahead, so - oh, darling, your hair is a state. Wear this," she told Maud, and rumaged in her hand bag. She pulled out a lappelled wooly hat, which Maud took with a bemused expression. It had fireballs on. "It was meant for your birthday, but... oh, you might as well have it now."
"Cheers, Mum," Maud mumbled. She did like it, she truly did, but it was just such a... Maud-like present. A hat. It was so dull, so ordinary, so...her. Maud put it on, and glanced back in the mirror. To her suprise, it suited her perfectly.
"Right, let's move out. Got your pokemon? Good, let's go."
Together, mother and daughter stepped out into the snow.
There are few sights more satisfying first thing in the morning than that of sunlight glancing off the freshly fallen snow; the world looks undeniably clean and just bursting with promise. The jagged mountain tops jutted just above the horizon, a majestic grey against the clear blue of the sky. Alvene's dawn landscape was truly breath-taking. Such a shame certain people never got up early enough to witness it...
"Maudie! Get up this instant! There's no time to waste! You can't possibly miss this sight!" The voice of an indignant woman rang out through the inn's top floor. Mrs. Ryder stormed through the corridors, only stopping to throw open a door a stride inside.
Maud Ryder lay in bed, tangled and twisted in her thick winter duvet. She uttered a quiet groan, and buried her head deeper in her pillow. Unflapped, the woman continued to talk. She bustled about the room, righting photographs and picking up clothes, all the while keeping up a running commentary, a low rumble of mindless background chatter that prevented her daughter from staying asleep. Underneath the bed clothes, Maud's face furrowed into a frown. "...and you should TASTE the bovril, I swear, it is so delicious, and I even had some with my breakfast, and my, it was tasty..."
Maud sat up suddenly. Her mother, Mrs. Ryder, was an athletic, bright-faced woman; unlike her daughter, Mrs. Ryder was incredibley beautiful. She had a divine face and bright, sapphire eyes, like jewels in the hollow of a hand.
"Mum, shut up!" She snapped furiously, "It's eight o' clock on a Sunday! I'm on..." She trailed off at the sight of her mother's face; it was a picture of gloom. "Mum, come off it..." From experience, the girl knew exactly what was coming.
"Oh, come on Maud, please show some enthusiasm. Even if it is just for this morning..." Mrs. Ryder trailed off, and looked up at her daughter with pleading eyes. "Your sisters will be so disappointed if they can't wave you off, and after the money this trip cost... you'll spoil it for everyone..."
Maud clenched her teeth. Oh great, she thought, mother's using her favourite strategy; the guilt trip. It was a trick Maud fell for every time, too.
"Oh, very well!" Maud said finally, after a pregnant pause, "I'll get up. Give me a second..."
"Oh, thank you, darling. See you in...ten minutes?" she exclaimed, and with that said, Mrs. Ryder flapped out of the room.
Maud waited until she had shut the door, before letting out a strangled squeak of frustration. Her mother always got her way, and it drove Maud insane.
She got up, and gazed around groggily in the semi darkness. Maud had never really liked going on holiday; waking up and seeing an unfamiliar cielling, listening to strangers talking late at night. It wasn't fun. Not to mention the fact that Maud had been forced to smuggle her pokemon into this paticular inn; they apparently did not approve of having pokemon inside. Right now, her Quilava was dosing underneath the bed. Well, dosing being used in the loosest possible way; Hermione was probably awake now, only pretending to be asleep. Maud dropped down and peered under her bed; sure enough, Hermione was curled in an ermine-like mound, her eyes half closed.
{We leaving yet?} she asked shyly, her ears flicking forward.
"Yeah. Ten minutes more, hun."
The girl staggered to the window and fumbled for the curtain pull. She pulled the heavily patterned fabric aside, and gasped.
The brochures told the truth, she thought whimsically, this place is like a postcard.
Twenty minutes later, Maud was dressed, packed and waiting in the inn's reception room. Hermione had been returned to her ball, and her other pokeball, the one containing her arcanine, had been fetched from reception. Her parents, it seemed, had already left. Hordes of tourists bustled past, taking Maud by suprise; they were rushing outside in surges. The girl was about to follow and investigate when she caught sight of herself in a full-length mirror hung beside her. She grimaced at her reflection, and made a fruitless attempt to fluff up her hair. Alas, it continued to hang as limply as ever. Maud continued to scrutinise herself, but finding nothing had changed paticularily - as Maud always liked to hope - since the previous night, she did up her ski jacket headed for the door.
"Maud! Maudie, darling, wait," her mother called, jogging over to meet her eldest daughter, "your father's gone on ahead, so - oh, darling, your hair is a state. Wear this," she told Maud, and rumaged in her hand bag. She pulled out a lappelled wooly hat, which Maud took with a bemused expression. It had fireballs on. "It was meant for your birthday, but... oh, you might as well have it now."
"Cheers, Mum," Maud mumbled. She did like it, she truly did, but it was just such a... Maud-like present. A hat. It was so dull, so ordinary, so...her. Maud put it on, and glanced back in the mirror. To her suprise, it suited her perfectly.
"Right, let's move out. Got your pokemon? Good, let's go."
Together, mother and daughter stepped out into the snow.
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