Rinsing In The Sun

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Feng didn’t really care about their life story. He was just happy that they were considerably normal, at least in a sense. He knew twins were weird, although he had never met them so he couldn’t know exactly just how weird they could be. But he was mostly happy that he had met this particular set of twins. They seemed to like him, and they didn’t get mad at him or anything. Not only that but they were even comfortable with him in many ways so he was happy about that. Not many people would be that comfortable around him.

He made a face of disgust at Jude and made sure to notify the teenager not to say anything if he found any more spiders because honestly, he didn’t want to know that Jude was having appetizers here and there. When the watches were mentioned, he just shrugged his shoulders and said calmly, “I don’t really need them. Oh, hey, Joan, can you remind me to wash my clothes before it gets dark tonight?” That was one of the main reasons he would’ve wanted to return to the creek, to wash his clothes. “Maybe I will wash the uniform, too,” he said calmly as he started to push a small trunk across the floor. He was going to place it by the door, so was headed in that direction.

[Sly Cooper]

“Washing clothes. Now there’s something Jude hasn’t done in a long time.” Joan was mostly teasing her brother, but he didn’t seem to be listening.

Until he made a comment back, “Well, that’s your job sis.” He was being completely and totally serious.

It was true the girls did do a lot of that kind of thing, it wasn’t at all out of the ordinary, but it still offended her a little. After all, why did such a job have to be done by a woman? She gritted her teeth and ignored his statement. “But if you wash your shirt, you won’t be able to get it back on, even with assistance.” She giggled at Feng’s misfortune; the twins would laugh at such things frequently.

“I bet I could find him an old red shirt if that’s what he’s looking for. Hey, I have tons of unused goodies.” Then again some of the goodies he was talking about weren’t really something to be proud of. “Or just wear that uniform—which also used to be mine. How awesome is that?”

“Jude, hand-me-downs aren’t usually something people like to have.”

“Pft. Whatever.” He was in denial or disbelief, it wasn’t entirely clear. “I had all my clothes passed down to me from our cousin.”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Feng just shrugged. He felt that everyone should wash their own clothes, if they could help it, but it was pretty logical for girls having to do the laundry since they would know and understand it better than their counterparts. Feng looked up when Jude mentioned having some hand-me-downs that he could wear, but he quickly shook his head with a friendly smile. His sister did have a point, but he simply sighed at her with yet another shrug. “No, guys, you’ve given me so much already, and besides, I wouldn’t mind being naked most of the time. I’m a nudist, after all.” He tilted his head with a shrug as well, before adjusting the trunk so that it was at least its own width away from the door. “Could build some kind of fort in here, too…” He said as he glanced around, glad to acknowledge that most of the trunks had flat lids.

He nodded as he looked at Jude, “Or I could just wear the uniform. I mean, if you two aren’t comfortable with me being, you know, naked, then I can wear the pants.” He stifled a giggle, “That’s kind of funny…” Then he said in a deep voice, although that didn’t work well, “Hey, you two, I wear the pants in this family!” He giggled as he headed for another trunk of the same size and carried it over to the first trunk. Another spider had crawled out but Feng ignored it. He wanted to try and stack the second trunk atop the first, so he glanced to either twin for help. “Some help, please?” He then remembered, and quickly added, “Oh, and Joan… I think I can try to handle my clothes myself… I mean.. It’s kind of embarrassing for a boy my age to have to have help with his shirt, you know?”

[Sly Cooper]

An appetizer here and appetizer there, Jude was a happy man. What ever got him started on eating spiders, is uncertain, but he enjoyed their flavor and protein nonetheless. “He doesn’t want my stuff.”

“That’s not what he said. He just don’t want to take any more from us.”

“well you know what—when you’re not looking and your shirt isn’t on—I’m going to swap shirts. A red shirt that fits!” Jude had come up with a scheme and he was quite happy with it.

“That’s not very nice,” Joan thought about it. “Or maybe it is, in that he would be wearing a shirt that fits—especially since he doesn’t want me helping him.”

“It’s kind of funny!” Jude echoed the boy in a deep voice. Of course his voice could go much deeper since his voice was naturally deeper; being older does that to a male. Soon enough another spider came crawling out and so he squished it under his foot and then picked it up to eat it, his sister making noises and faces behind him. Jude came over to help the boy after he was done eating the creepy crawly.

“Yeah yeah I know. Boys are so easy to embarrass.”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Feng raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything more until the twins were done talking. “No, no, it’s not that, Jude. You’re giving me keys, a whole bunch of them, you gave me a car model and then you let me have the uniform… And on top of that you let me be your little brother, so… I mean, I just wouldn’t feel right taking stuff from you guys over and over.” He smiled kindly, but then held up a scolding finger at Jude. “Don’t. You would have to move my arms around and I’m really a light sleeper.” He was right, any movement on his part if it wasn’t his own and he would immediately pounce on whatever made him move. Once his sister had told him that he growled at her in his sleep because she had tried to move him.

“Yeah, Jude. Sorry, Joan. Maybe Jude can help me this time if I need help. After all, he’s a guy.” He shrugged. “Guys are supposed to help guys, and girls. Girls are supposed to help… just girls. I think.” He chuckled under his breath as he was helped in lifting the trunk and placing it on top of the other. He positioned it neatly so that it wouldn’t be leaning to any side, by making sure that the trunks were level with each other. He had ignored the fact that his older brother had just eaten a spider. At this point, he was becoming oblivious to the spiders lurking in many corners of this spooky attic.

[Sly Cooper]

Jude gave Feng a look. “You know, family gives family stuff. So it’s not like a big deal to take somore stuff from us. I mean we would be giving it to you.” He crossed his arms stubbornly

.Joan nodded in agreement, “And girls have motherly side to them. All of them even the ones that claim they hate children—which they might—have a motherly part. So we do stuff for people, like giving them things, and helping them out when they need it.” There was a dusty chair that she brushed off and sat in, then watched her brothers closely. She of course couldn’t help but admire Jude’s soft side. He would act like he was tough and mean, but he wasn’t. He could be gorss, but he wasn’t a bad guy.

Still he would help Feng, and act like it was a big deal, like it was a pain, but he would still have a smile on his face, and a pleasant vibe. He was of course stronger than Feng and Joan put together so he would pick up trunks and flat out move them. He would stack them, and lean them, and just move, whatever he thought was appropriate.

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Feng just shrugged. “We’ve just been family for only one day… Give me some time to get used to it, guys!” He had a point. It was still a strange feeling to be basically adopted. He glanced at Joan and shrugged again. “Yeah, I know. I got some girl friends… They try to give me clothes just because I’m in the buff a lot. Some of them run away because I snap at them, some of them run away because I try to pee at them, and the rest just won’t leave me the freak alone. If I want help, I will ask for it.” He did sound a bit upset but that passed soon as he giggled. He started to climb up some chairs with a thick blanket, placing it on the top layer before looking at Jude and starting to speak.

“Well, the trunks are coming along well. But we should start putting up the blankets like they’re wals before we put the last trunks on the top. That way it would get warmer in here. The smallest ones should be on the top, like a pyramid. So that they won’t fall on us while we’re sleeping or just sitting around. He watched the window carefully from time to time, basically every ten minutes although he didn’t know just how many minutes would’ve passed in between, and when it seemed like the light was turning gold, he frowned. “I want to finish up the attic first… Maybe we should just go ahead and get to the creek. I’m sure we will find some candles or something.” He sighed, not sure of what to do. “I mean, I need to get my clothes washed at least, but if you two want to go swimming, we could go now? Looks like we have at least, maybe… two hours before it starts getting dark?”

[Sly Cooper]

Jude stopped stacking boxes, looked at them, looked at Feng, then at his sister. She shrugged her shoulders. “I know how to stack stuff,” he stuck his tongue out and leaned up against one of his stacks. The boy seemed impatient to go to the creek so the twins once again exchanged glances. “Well If you want to go to the creek now lets go.”

“I could stand to streak my legs,” although she was happy to leave the attic and the tiny eight legged appetizers for a bit. “I think this time I will just get my feet wet though. I know Jude will probably go full out because he always does.”

“You betcha I do!” He stopped leaning, shifted, then plunged at his sister.

“What are you doing?” She was startled at first until he sat himself down in her lap like a child sitting on a shopping mall Santa.

“I want to go swimming. Can we can we?”

“Yeah!”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Feng was mostly happy that they would like to go the creek, although he knew he would be a bit disappointed for leaving the attic behind. At least, though, it seemed like they could come back and that gave him the motivation to go ahead and agree with the twins for going to the creek. “Sure. At least I could wash my clothes while I’m there. I’m sure we can find candles on our way back up here.” He smiled softly as he glanced at the twins before heading around a few of the cluttered trunks that they would have to move. He grabbed the shorts that he had been wearing but that he had dropped in this exact spot when he had changed into the long pants.

“All right, let’s go!” He grinned as he watched Jude act so childish before heading down the stairs. He had the black key with him so felt safe and asked Joan to see if she couldn’t lock the door behind her. With a smile he headed down the stairs carefully and turned around to the front door, but he stopped quickly and looked out before actually exiting from the house. He had to make sure the coast was clear, and it was, so he was glad for that. He started for the cornfield headed in the direction of the creek, keeping an eye on the twins as much as he could so that they wouldn’t get separated by accident.

[Sly Cooper]

Jude got up off his sisters lap and started digging through what seemed to be a random box. A pile of random stuff grew behind him, till he stopped. There was a pause and then his head disappeared into the box. “Here it is!” He then pulled out an industrial sized flash light. He stood up and tried to turn it on. “Hmm.” He then turned the crank a few times around till it wouldn’t move any more then turned it on, and flashed it in his sisters eyes by accident.

“Watch it!” She covered her eyes with her arm and turned her head away.

“Sorry.” He turned it off. “This thing is awesome! And huge. Forget candles.” Jude put a fist on his hip and got a smug smile on his face, he was damn proud of himself. “That way if it gets dark, we have no worries.” Although truth be told, he wouldn’t mind a little time in the dark with his sister—not to do that you pervert. He just liked the chance to hold on to her, and she likes the chance to be close to him, but it wasn’t ancient Egypt so it wasn’t good for them to do such things. “So ready to go then?”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

Of course, before he had left, he had been watching Jude dig through the trunk and then watched as the young man pulled out a large flashlight. “Wow,” said the youth as his brother started to wind up the object before the light came on. It nearly blinded him at first and then it had moved towards Joan’s eyes. He stifled a giggle as he noticed her reaction. By now he had started down the stairs, basically ignoring Jude’s comments about the flashlight and not needing candles. If he had been there, though, he would’ve said that the candles would’ve given more light and that having a flashlight could get them in trouble if someone was passing by the house. Candles wouldn’t be obvious, since they would be dim and hidden among the trunks from within. But then again, candles meant fire, and Feng wouldn’t like that.

He was already waiting for the twins by the time he had reached the cornfield. After they could’ve caught up with them he would then head straight for the creek, not planning to stop anywhere else. He had remembered to carry the upper half of the karate uniform as well so he could wear both his regular clothes, which was just the red shirt and tight, torn denim shorts, and the uniform, the gi as he called it. By the time he would’ve reached the creek he was already removing his pants, but once he got to his shirt he was having a very difficult time. He managed to get it halfway off, but gave up on it. “Jude… Some help, please?” He whimpered but tried to smile.

[Sly Cooper]

Down the stairs through part of the field, and to the creek. Jude once again started singing songs from old movies on the way there. Occasionally Joan would join him but for the most part it was just Jude. “Hey Feng. Do they sing in Martial Arts films?” He was curious since he always enjoyed the bouncy songs in movies. “I wonder what new movies have come out. If they have good songs.” He bounced along and then when he got to the creek, instead of getting naked and diving in he pulled off his shoes and rolled up his pant legs. After watching him struggle, the boy asked him for some assistance. He came over and then gave one good tug to get the shirt off. POP. “See I think Joan is jealous because you want me to help you instead.” He bent down to whisper to the lad, “I think she thinks you like me better.” He stood up, stretched out with his arms over his head, then ran his fingers though his platinum hair. This time he spoke up, “I am the cool twin after all!”

“And what makes you think that an immature little prick like you is cooler than me. I have style and grace. You have a stomach and a set of lungs.” She stuck her tongue out at him playfully and, with her feet in the water, she splashed at him.

“Because I am fun to be around that’s why I am so awesome!”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

As for the inquiry about there being music in the martial arts films, he shrugged. “Not much of it, anyway.” He said as he looked back before stepping out of the cornfield and finally arriving at the creek at this point. He didn’t say anything else until after Jude had come up and obliged to help him remove his shirt upon his request for aid. “Thanks.” He giggled when Jude had bent down and started whispering to him. “No, no, no, I don’t think it’s that. Would you rather that she helped you take your clothes off, Jude?” He raised an eyebrow but smirked at the teenager before taking the shirt from him and then dipping it underwater. He would roll it around to get it as soaking wet as possible. When he felt confident that it was wet enough, he pulled it out, wringed it a bit, and then grabbed the bar of soap that he had picked up on the way back. He started rubbing it into the shirt before rinsing the shirt once again.

He giggled as the twins started a little mock fight about who was cooler than the other, and he just shrugged. “Honestly, I think Jude’s cooler. Even if he eats spiders and acts like a brat sometime.” He stuck out his tongue at the twins before reaching for his shorts. He would do the same thing he had done with the shirt with the shorts, and then climbed up on the other side of the creek where there was a small, dying tree but with a strong branch. He hung the shirt and shorts over them, knowing that he would have to pick them up again when it was time for them to head back to the attic. But at least he could start drying them. He was about to reach for the uniform shirt when he realized his bladder needed emptying, bad. “Um… Excuse me,” he said as he quickly reached down and covered his private area before hopping across the creek and finding a secluded spot to relieve himself in. A moment later he would return, blushing but reaching for the uniform shirt once again. He needed to finish washing his clothes before he could even think about having fun, but he would talk with the twins now and then.

[Sly Cooper]

“Of course I would want Joan to take my shirt off.” Jude put his hands on his hips and grinned, Joan of course smacked him on the shoulder and he began laughing as he fell into the water, clothes and all. “See I told you I was the cooler one!” He continued laughing loudly. A laugh that comes from deep within the lungs. Eventually, somehow, it all happened to fast to know for sure, Joan ended up in the water too. They were both dressed—and soaked.

“Oh hush up! You always think you’re so wonderful.” She and her brother wrestled in the water for a while.

“Oh come on you know I am.” Jude being stronger pinned her down. She pouted and so he let her go, but she used the opportunity to pounce on him. They pretended to be fighting, but the truth was they were just having fun. “The kid is smart. He knows I’m cool.”

“Fine, you’re cool.” She looked around and then flip the bird to her twin. He just laughed harder.

“You almost done, kid? You’re missing all the fun.”

[Aquarius Aziel Feng]

He raised an eyebrow, slightly bewildered at Jude’s comment. “Well… Don’t expect me to help you take any of your stuff off, Jude. For one, I’m shorter than you, a lot shorter, and for another, it would just be really weird!” He scoffed softly with a half smile, but giggled when the twins started to wrestle. By this time he had finished washing the karate shirt and were now focused on finishing the karate pants. “Yeah, I’m almost done, teen.” He made a smart comment at Jude. Normally, he didn’t mind being called a kid, but being called a kid frequently like today was enough to get on his nerves. Of course, he wouldn’t admit it, as he wouldn’t want to hurt the twins’ feelings.

He just rolled his eyes at them before getting out of the water and then hanging up the pants now. Now he was returning to the water, but stretched out his arm and legs, and then arched his back so that he could try to prevent cramps. “Well, if you wouldn’t mind me taking a short bath first, I guess we can play then.” He shrugged, looking at them quizzically as he started to rub the soap on his chest, and then his arms, legs, and then around his waist. Now he tried to reach his back but unfortunately his broken wrist was the better hand for reaching his back. “Ugh!” The boy snapped with a little growl as he realized he couldn’t reach his back quite well. “Um… Maybe I don’t really need a serious bath, then, since I kind of already took one this morning,” He said as he gently started to put the soap on a rock nearby.