#1 Crush

[LYourLocalAutist]

"Oui, maman. Merci, maman. T'aime aussi, maman. À bientôt, maman."

Parked out in the driveway of a high-quality mansion in Las Vegas' own Silver Springs, a new car swung its door wide open to reveal a small woman stepping out. Leaning in, she listens to her mother's last remarks about timing and politeness and et cetera et cetera (lawyers love their details) before kissing her goodbye and fully stepping out of the car to face the mansion as the vehicle drove away. Her heart thumped in her chest, and her smile was wide and bright. Maybe a bit too wide. It was just hanging out, right? She'd be fine. Juuuuuuuuuuust fine.

[Sylvie Rattray-Aubert memory III, start]

Sylvie stood in front of a door much larger than herself and took a moment to think about how she'd gotten into this position. Just earlier this year, she was as nobody as she was last year and the year before that. Then, on Ms- Coach Harper's recommendation, she put herself down for cheerleading... and it was like the world turned on its head in an instant. As it turned out, a cheerleader typically isn't messed with, as a rule. In a school where sportsballers were the ruling class, being a member of their sister species was a title which in and of itself came with a prestige, even when just a freshman. Beyond protection, it meant a return to the social scene, to parties and fashion and friends she'd sorely missed... and new friends alongside. New friends like fellow cheerleaders and, new friends like the jocks they typically stood by. New friends like one Claude O'Neil Porter.

A gentle giant in every sense of the term, you'd have thought his picture would show up if you googled it. They even shared a mother tongue, which they'd cheerfully converse in when alone together. What stuck out to her was the implacable sense of kindness and gentleness he radiated, always kind and cheerful towards her even before she'd reestablished herself, treating her with the utmost respect and gentlemanliness completely despite his imposing stature. And she of all people definitely had the right to call out that stature as imposing. She'd had to crane her neck to look at her friends for a while now, but him...

It was a little bit dreamy, if she was being honest.

bUT she wasn't here to think about any of thaaaat, she was here to hang out like a normal person! Would someone here for non-hanging out reasons wear casual clothes? She had sneakers on, after all, and her skirt and pastel crop top were only pastel white under her slightly-too-large (but comfy) Rattlers varsity jacket. She'd only touched up on makeup a little more than normal, and had only spent a little extra time with her hair and her bow's position in front of the mirror. The shampoo and conditioner and body washed she'd used this morning were only a little higher quality and shinier and nicer smelling than what she usually used. Only a little.

She was fine by the way KNOCK ON THE DOOR

Her courage finally gathered up and her brain moved out of its jumbly whatever red in the face state, she moved up to the Porters' front door, lifted her hand, and knocked on it daintily, now waiting patiently for someone to open. Right, she'd be meeting his family as well... she wondered what they were like beyond stories she'd heard. Smile was back. She really, really couldn't wait.

[Magnum 0pus]

RUFFRUFFRUFFRUFFRUFFRUFFRUFFRUFFRU-

Loud barks from a rather large sounding dog erupted within the mansion, pitter patter of paws thundered up to the other side of the door, "ROCKWELL, CALME-TOI!" ("ROCKWELL, QUIET DOWN!") A voice from an older woman could be heard—a high school graduate, from the pitch of her voice—to calm down the canine who was in an uproar. Whoever it was that spoke didn't greet or call out to Sylvie, who knocked on the door, simply unlocking it and opening the door so they could see who alerted the beast.

"Puis-je t'aider, petite fille?" ("Can I help you, little girl?") A woman who dwarfed Claude stood in front of the miniscule Sylvie. She was damn near pushing 7' feet, being only an inch shorter at 6'11, and she looked to be in much more impressive shape than Claude was; this was apparent since her muscles were subtly visible beneath the light green sweater she wore–that and the fact that her abs were openly visible due to how the shirt she wore under her sweater was a bit tight, but eh, it could've been whatever, in all honesty...

Very loose and older gray sweatpants covered the mountain of a woman's lower body, which was fortunate for Sylvie because who knows what seeing even an inch of her ankles would've done to the evolving mind of the freshman cheerleader...

Right beside the woman was a large dog, a black Cane Corso, that stared intently at the smaller girl, slobber dripping out of his mouth as he whined periodically. If the dog, presumably named Rockwell with how this woman referred to it, had the opportunity, it would pounce on Sylvie and start sniffing her to see if she was a threat. Thankfully, with the woman right next to him, he didn't have the chance to do so. As said woman continued to look at the tinier Sylvie with a raised brow, it was quite obvious that she must've been Claude's older sister due to how much she looked like him, she simply had a rounder face and longer hair with fuller lips and softer arched eyebrows, but she had the same good looks Claude had, "Did you need something?" She suddenly spoke in English as she assumed that Sylvie didn't speak French.

It didn't help Sylvie any further that when Lucie put her hands on her hips, her shirt being tugged down because of it and subtly revealing how curvy she was to Sylvie by showing how slim her waist was...

This surely wouldn't serve to fuel any such desires later on in life. Surely it wouldn't.

[LYourLocalAutist]

Sylvie flinched at the sudden and unnaturaly loud barking that immediately permeated the house and most of the entire planet outside of it. This alongside the pitter patter of approaching paws which was less pitter patter and more THUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMP informed her that there was a rather large dog rapidly approaching. Claude had described his dog as big but Sylvie could practically already hear that he was taller than her on hind legs. She wasn't much one for large dogs. She liked Liz! Liz was the appropriate size for a dog! She could pick Liz up and cuddle her close and not be crushed!

Her self-ruminations were interrupted by the sounding out of her sleeper agent activation phrase (any amount of words in French) in a distinctly unfamiliar voice. Female. In the Porter house. It must be... Lucie! The had-been-mentioned-to-her Sister had calmed the dog down and was approaching! She calmed down and reaffirmed her posture, instinctively pre-craning her neck so she could greet her with a look in the eye, not paying much mind to whatever aches this produced. Had to be polite, as usu

Mère de Dieu

Sylvie had been prepared for Claude's family members to share the Claude height genes. She had not been prepared for this. A short circuit occurred in her brain as she stared up at the titan of a woman looking down at her, her head craning at what felt to be nearly ninety degrees. She heard the woman address her in French but was too dumbstruck in general to respond or otherwise consider that Claude seemingly hadn't informed anyone she'd be coming. It was like staring at the Grand Canyon for the first time. Sheer disbelief that something—in this case, someone—like this could exist.

Trying to wrench herself out of her state of stunlock, she tore her eyes from the woman's to try and regain her bearings— only to immediately lose them even harder as she realized the true nature of the woman who stood before her; some kind of gender-swapped and entirely upgraded higher on the skill tree version of Claude. Lucie's clothes were relatively baggy and "sculpted" as an adjective remained ever-applicable. Up, down, up, down went Sylvie's eyes, like the world's most efficient elevator, only increasing her capacity for stammering and nothing else. Her heart was doing funny little circus flips and she didn't like it and she was making her fool of herself in front of a really cool girl who now didn't even think she knew French and- and- how the HELL was she built like that WHILE having a cinched waist

Was this God????

A firm throat clearing resounded through Sylvie's body, stabilising it and her mind by extension. CLAUDE. She was there for Claude. Not to gawk at some Goddess-type figure- shemeantLucie. She could push all that red in her face and whatever those thoughts about the way Lucie looked into the back of her mind for later rumination (screaming into a plushie on the bed). COMPOSURE was the name of the game. Straighten the back. Keep your face normal. Deep breath in and out. This is a person in front of you, and people aren't things to just stare at like a big idiot. Small smile on, trying to disregard the presence of that absolutely giant animal in the back. Craned neck again. Observation of the eyes in greeting. It's your mother tongue, literally. Now go.

"Bonjour, Madame Lucie."

Formal. All the right vocabulary, like mom and her family taught. Even the accent was there. Off to a great start.

"Je m'appelle Sylvie, je crois que Claude t'a parlé de moi—" TOO cocky, reel it back- "—mais il ne semble pas t'avoir parlé d'aujourd'hui. Il m'a invité."

[Magnum 0pus]

Lucie's brow furrowed upon "Sylvie" mentioning her baby brother's name, not necessarily in an angry way but more so in a way that she was very suspicious of the small teen, "Ah vraiment, il l'a fait?" ("Oh really, did he now?") Overprotectiveness laced her voice as she asked that question, the next course of action Lucie would take was anyone's guess, really. She easily noticed how Sylvie looked her up and down, clearly having never seen a body like hers, and while she took pride in it, now was not the time to openly flaunt it to someone who could be a risk to Claude's wellbeing.

"Eh bien, alors, je suppose que ça ne te dérangerait pas si je fais juste ça..." ("Well then, I guess you wouldn't mind if I just do this...") Sylvie was given no time to react as the massive hand of the goddess of an older sister reached out towards her before it wrapped around the back of her neck. Quite frankly, the size difference between Lucie's hand and everything above Sylvie's collar was terrifying; it was like the behemoth of a woman could hide the cheerleaders head inside one hand alone. But she didn't do that, instead, she gently, and quite effortlessly, picked the little girl up by the scruff of her neck, lifting her in the air until they were both at eye level. "Quelles sont tes intentions envers mon petit frère, Sylvie?" ("What are your intentions with my baby brother, Sylvie?") Lucie said Sylvie's name in a way that made it seem as if she didn't believe that was her real name. This was an investigation the likes of which was seen in movie scenes where FBI agents interrogated someone, but instead of a hard ass FBI agent, it was an overprotective older sister.

Rockwell, the large dog, looked up at Sylvie as if she were a piece of chicken that Lucie was about to give him, the slobber in his mouth dripping out even more intensely as he looked up at the hanging girl. RUFF RUFF The intimidating dog barked before he began to whine as he waited in anticipation to do something to Sylvie; not eat her, per se, but to get a sniff of her to see if she would pose a threat to the O'Neil family.

Let's be honest, what could Sylvie really manage to achieve when she was easily lifted up in the air by the scruff of her neck by Claude's older sister, Lucie, who wasn’t even using much strength to do so? Not much, if we're keeping it real here. Now, of course, Lucie knew this, but that didn't stop her from being overprotective of Claude all the same, "Attends une minute..." ("Wait a minute...") Her nose suddenly caught a whiff of a familiar scent on the girl, there was no mistaking what it was, "Je reconnais l'odeur de ce shampooing, tu essaies d'être belle et de sentir bon pour Claude, n'est-ce pas?" ("I recognize the smell of that shampoo, you're trying to look and smell good for Claude, aren't you?") Just the casual audacity she had asking her that would make even the toughest person in the world go slack jawed–Lucie could practically tell that Sylvie had a crush on Claude, "J'ai utilisé le même shampooing pour essayer d'impressionner mon petit ami avant même que nous sortions ensemble!" ("I used the same shampoo to impress my boyfriend before we were even dating!") It would've been refreshing to know that someone saw and understood how Sylvie felt about Claude, if she weren't currently being held high up in the air by the the woman with the body of a goddess.

[LYourLocalAutist]

Sylvie tried to keep that composed smile firm on her face as she inwardly tried not to resort to panic at the visible signs that no, Claude had not told his family about her and she was looking even more like a weirdo. Even so, she could keep her composure up despite the way she had to crane her neck, nodding along at her remark. If nothing else at this point, she could present herself as even less of a non-threat than she already wasn't to a woman like Lucie. Where was Claude anyway? Or at least his Grandfather? You'd have thought someone else would have come to the door at this poin-

Sylvie's ruminating was interrupted by a very very large hand making its way behind her and clamping around the entirety of her neck before pulling her up like she was one of the plushie prizes in a claw machine. Immediately finding herself two and a half feet off the ground and meeting someone's eyes for the first time since around the third grade, Sylvie looked down, looked up, and began to enter a state of very understandable distress. There was a woman who could choke her with her index and thumb in front of her currently holding her at a place where she could do nothing but look wide-eyed and panicked and do mid-air kicky legs, two and a half feet off the ground.

Oh God she was going to die here.

"Qu- d-dépose-moi!"

She stuttered out in a tone which had very nearly abandoned all politeness for the comforting embrace of fearing for one's life. Now she was talking about some "What are your intentions with my son"??? What the hell could Sylvie do to Claude in this woman's eyes for her to start acting like some papa wolf????? "Je voulais juste passer du teeeeemps! Il- I'l m'a invité! Je le promets!" Her pleading continued. The rapid heartbeat in her chest was now mostly out of some kind of primal terror a bunny would experience in the jaws of a wolf. It was a fear and nervousness which overwhelmed any other possible emotion, forcing them to have to pop out for Sylvie to process a while later.

Still squirming, she could of course do nothing as Lucie... sniffed her? Was she actually a wolf?? What was she sniffing anyway? It was something that seemed to somehow make her even more suspicious than she already was? What could it-

Hey.

Hey, hey.

Hey, hey, hey, hey, HEY, HEY, HEY HEY HEY WAIT WAIT WAIT

A creeping red flare started to make its way right across Sylvie's cheeks, and her entire face eventually, as Lucie proved to be a better cross-examiner than Sylvie could ever aspire to as a potential lawyer. You try to have something nice ONE time by going to visit a boy you like and fate apparently sees it fit to slap you in the face and spit at your feet. It was the way Lucie had said it with a complete sincere lack of hesitation. Beyond that- WHO RECOGNIZES FLORAL SHAMPOO BRANDS FROM SMELL?? WHO WAS THIS WOMAN??? This wasn't refreshing at all, it was like some comical nightmare tailored specifically to her! In some desperate attempt to recover the scenario, she stammered out some more words as she tried to cover her face up with her hands. "M-mais ce n'est pas vrai du tout! Je suis juste ici rendre visite, il m'a invité, j-je te le promets!"

[Magnum 0pus]

As Sylvie pleaded, Lucie gave a light-hearted chuckle before setting the terrified bunny of a girl down, practically freeing her from the wolf's jaws, "Calme-toi, je te crois, mais il n'y a pas besoin d'essayer de nier que tu aimes mon frère, car je peux facilement le deviner chez toi!" ("Calm down, I believe you, but there's no need to try to deny that you love my brother since I could easily tell that about you!") It was so over for Sylvie, Lucie knew her secret, there was no point in hiding it when someone clearly knew the truth. This could spell disaster for her if Claude's older sister went ahead and told him all about her crush on him. Seemed like leaving the country and faking your death to live a new life was the only way this could go well for–

"Ton secret est en sécurité avec moi, Sylvie, donc pas besoin de t'inquiéter." ("Your secret is safe with me, Sylvie, so no need to worry.") Nevermind! Crisis averted, the gods weren't completely intent on playing with Sylvie's life like a cruel game where she had no chance of winning! There was a chance that things could turn out as they were–maybe even better! "Eh Claude, ton amie Sylvie est ici!" ("Hey Claude, your friend Sylvie is here!") Claude was suddenly called over to the front door by Lucie, and there was a brief period in which Sylvie would need to make sure she looked good for Claude, and Lucie planned to make that clear to the short cheerleader, "Y a-t-il autre chose que tu penses avoir oublié, parce que maintenant c'est aussi bon moment que n'importe quel autre pour vérifier une deuxième fois!" ("Is there anything else you think you might have forgotten? Because now is as good a time as any to check again!") She leaned down and whispered to her in hopes that she would do just that to make sure everything was all clear from here on out.

Footsteps came from within the house, seemingly coming down the stairs from the sound of it, and then in came the man of the hour himself: Claude O'Neil Porter. "Salut Sylvie ! Désolé de ne pas avoir pu te saluer moi-même à la porte, mais au moins tu as rencontré Lucie!" ("Hey Sylvie! Sorry I didn't get to greet you at the door myself, but you finally got to meet my sister Lucie, at least!") A wide smile was plastered on Claude's face as he walked towards Sylvie and Lucie. While he didn't seem to notice the effect he had on his "friend", Lucie and Rockwell, who is the family Cane Corso, mind you, could easily notice the state Sylvie went to when she saw Claude; Lucie with a smug grin on her face as she playfully nudged the freshman girl on the shoulder while Rockwell looked at her with an unwavering gaze and expression that made it seem like he spoke to her and said, "I know what you are..." But he didn't, obviously since he was a dog, as he just stared at her with a knowing gaze that both he and Lucie shared.

[LYourLocalAutist]

Sylvie was practically still trembling by the time Lucie released her from uppie bondage. Her head felt light as several reebots were attempted and failed in succession, especially as Lucie launched into explicit, almost cheerful detail about how she knew everything about her feelings. Damn. Was she that unsubtle? A harrowing thought. Surely, Sylvie considered as she began to properly come back to her senses, she would get better at hiding it within, what, a few months or so? Surely.

Lucie's promise felt like a wave of relief had crashed right over her. Relief and sanity and still that now-familiar tinge of embarrassed nervousness. A cocktail of indescribable taste. Auspicious stuff. She put one of her hands up to her hair to fix it post having hung from the jaws of the wolf-god-woman as she called- CLAUDE! Hair fixing began to take even more priority. Getitsmoothgetitniceyou'refineyou'refineyou'refiiiiiine he's not coming down that fast. And. And it's not like you're waiting for a prom date or something (God, if only) you're just hanging out! Calm-

My God he looked good. As always. No matter the amount of effort he put into his appearance.

It was very nice to see him, and his smile. It made Sylvie perk right back up in tandem. He had one of his proprietary calming auras(tm) up around him today, it seemed. There was only a little red on her face and her smile only looked a little stupidly enthusiastic as her head turned and its angle of craning adjusted to the comfortable level of looking that man in the eyes. A very comfortable angle, which she'd already gotten used to putting her neck at via muscle memory.

"Claude! Salut!"

A cheerful and bouncy lilt in her voice as she addressed the freshly arrived boy, partly in admiration and excitement. Hanging out! It would be fun! She would not die because a woman who could step on her threw her at a brick wall for her remains to be nibbled at by a dog who was taller than her! She might've been getting a little too hyper at that point, so she had to remind her to tone it down just a little— as Lucie bumped into her with what was a "playful nudge" by the taller woman's standards (kind of a shove by Sylvie's (come on, look at them)) she was knocked right into some more demure and mindful senses. Right, not five seconds ago she was under threat by this lady. Turning back to Claude, the smile returned, a measure calmer now, though still excited! She was allowed to be happy today!

"Ouais, j'ai rencontré Lucie. La ressemblence est..." Eyes to the left. Eyes to the right. Literally an upgraded and genderswapped version, uncanny valley style. "...visible."

[Magnum 0pus]

Hearing that from Sylvie made Claude and Lucie laugh; making it clear that they heard that many times before. "On entend ça souvent, tu sais!" ("We get that a lot, y'know!") Claude responded to his friend as he reached Sylvie and stood in front of her. Lucie, on the other hand, not wanting to let any mosquitoes inside, quickly got behind Sylvie and closed the door, scooting Rockwell away so she could close it completely. Once it was closed, the two giant siblings inadvertently trapped the tiny bunny of a girl between them, basically turning her into a Sylvie sandwich!

This wouldn't lead to any confusing self discoveries for Sylvie along the road, surely it wouldn't... right?

Maybe that's something for another time as Claude, who currently had on a red plaid button up shirt on top of a tank top, that really didn't do much to hide his abs, and some khaki cargo pants with black slippers, just smiled innocently at his friend, "T'as mangé quelque chose? Parce que Lucie peut te faire un sandwich de ton choix si t'as rien mangé!" ("Have ya had anything to eat? Because Lucie could make you a sandwich of your choice if you haven't eaten anything!") An offer to Sylvie, who was probably going through a crisis of immense proportions while still being sandwiched in between the two giants who remained oblivious to her plight. "Je fais des sandwiches mortels! Si tu veux, je peux te l'apporter quand vous monterez dans la chambre de Claude, ou bien tu peux le manger dans la salle à manger—c'est toi qui choisis, Sylvie!" ("I do make killer sandwiches; if you want, I could bring it to you when you both go up to Claude's room, or you can eat it in the dining room–it's your choice, Sylvie!") Lucie added before she slid out from behind her little brother's friend, sparing her from such a strange fate, as she made her way into the kitchen, ready to make any sandwich Sylvie wanted.

While this all happened, Rockwell had scooted closer to Sylvie and rubbed his nose against her hand, waiting to be pet by her, "Regarde ça ! Rockwell t'aime déjà bien, Sylvie!" ("Look at that! Rockwell's taken a liking to you already, Sylvie!") Claude exclaimed proudly with a smile before he turned around and walked down the hall, "Tu viens?" ("You coming?") He asked her, oblivious of what he and Lucie accidentally put her through a few moments ago.

[LYourLocalAutist]

She chuckled right along with them, a soft and cheerful sound. Worrying opening act involving possible humiliation and/or death aside, it looked like she was making a good first impression. It was always nice to make the in-laws (what?) laugh. She approached Claude in tandem with him approaching her, intending to move herself over to his side eventually. That route of exit, however, along with all others, was promptly and unexpectedly blocked as Sylvie was put in the fucking tall person jail. The new technology, for use against the short criminals, clearly. The issue here was that Sylvie was no short criminal and she just wanted to hang out with her crrrrrrffffffffriend for crying out loud. Confusing self-discovery for Sylvie? Yeah, she's apparently a bit claustrophobic.

To avoid leaning against either bigger body, Sylvie had to stand still, straight and stiff like she was in the capital punishment closet from Matilda. This left her shifting on her feet slightly as the two giants prattled on cheerfully at her front and back. Until they themselves got moving, she would remain trapped between a Claude and a she-Claude. Trying to take her mind off of this not so cruel and more so unusual punishment(?) Sylvie tried to pay especially close attention to their words, barring the occasional glance at the Claude-fit (looked so good (but he always looked good (dreamy sigh but only in le head))). Useless and overall unnoticed worry and squirming at being cramped between the next potential basketball GOATs aside, a sandwich did sound good. She turns her head up and around as best she can, smiling at Lucie.

"Oooh, Ça a l'air génial ! Je parie que tu en as une meilleure… J'apprécierais. Vraiment, merci."

Both for the incoming mystery sandwich and for allowing her a little room to breathe by moving to the kitchen. Barely five minutes in the Claude household, and she was already being overwhelmed physically and emotionally. Whatever awaited her in Claude's room, she hoped it was at least somewhat calming. But before she could get to following him— a somewhat familiar, albeit much larger-scaled feeling of wet nose nudged against her palm. She turned around and was immediately overcome by a sheer heartwarming love at the sight of Rockwell desiring pats. mode engaged. For a moment, all of her attention was turned to lavishing the big and good boy, smiling broadly and brightly at Claude's remark. A revelation refreshing like a spring breeze after the blazing sun of whatever the events of the past five minutes were: Despite his size, puppy was still puppy. Oh so soft oh good boy awawawawa et cetera and forever.

Unfortunately, Sylvie had to pull away from the animal shortly thereafter as all good things must to come to an end. However, that didn't mean the thing that proceeded those good things had to get worse. Cleaning herself rather efficiently from any possible doggy kissy saliva (pocketed wipes solve everything (learned from experience (thanks, Liz))), she picked herself up from the pat session to happily skip after Claude. "J'arrive, j'arrive." She chirped, hands instinctively behind her head to tug at the sharp red little bow which she could be seen wearing so frequently. It was a small habit of nervousness and excitement brought on by the coming event. Claude never really told her about his room before...

[Magnum 0pus]

"Oh ouais, ton sandwich est prêt, Claude!" ("Oh yeah, your sandwich is ready, Claude!") Lucie called out from the kitchen once she got there, prompting Claude to take a detour as he walked towards the kitchen at a brisk pace. The delectable aroma of meats and cheese and sauerkraut emanated within the air from the kitchen as both teens headed towards it. Claude almost immediately saw the reuben sandwich on a brand name paper plate (fancy schmancy) and picked it up, "Salut, Lou!" The tall young man suddenly said before he reached his left hand down and gave a few pets to something on the counter, "Quel type de sandwich veux-tu, Sylvie? Je fais un bon sandwich Reuben, si tu veux la même chose que Claude?" ("What type of sandwich do you want, Sylvie? I make a nice reuben sandwich, if you want what Claude's having?") Lucie asked as Claude got out of his friends way to suddenly reveal a small ball of fluff and floppy ears sitting on the counter. The little French Lop bunny looked up at the new being in the house, it's beady eyes looking up at Sylvie with curiosity as it's nose twitched.

Claude and Lucie noticed the way Lou was staring at Sylvie, and that gave the taller O'Neil an idea as she gently scooped up the bunny in her hands—the critter looked like a children's toy when it was held by Lucie—before approaching her brother's friend, "Je pense que Lou t’aime bien. Pourquoi ne pas essayer de la tenir pour qu’elle s’habitue à ton odeur?" ("I think Lou likes you. Why don't you try to hold her so she can get acquainted with your scent?") The bunny continued to stare into Sylvie's eyes, not a single legible thought behind those black beady eyes as her cute little nose continued to twitch while being held by Lucie. "Vas-y, Sylvie, tu m’as dit que tu aimais les lapins, non ?" ("Go ahead, Sylvie, ya told me you like bunnies, right?") Claude added before he grabbed his sandwich with one hand and brought it up to his mouth before taking a bite.

munch munch

It was just a cute little bunny; quite ironic that the tallest person in the house owned the smallest thing in the house.

[LYourLocalAutist]

Oh, uh, whoop. Not his room, apparently.

She followed closely behind anyway, hands clasped behind her back, tugging at sleeves in some manner of recursive loop. She kept silent in anticipation as she made the turn into the kitchen, a silence broken by a small but resounding "mmmm" coincided with an eye-widening at the smell. What was that? Sour on savoury on toasty. Beyond that, it had that distinct tang, a tang held only by a few foods, that sloppy-ish, comfy-ish, unknown but unmistakable factor of having been made... with love. Otherwise known as "home cooking". Maybe Sylvie was waxing a bit too poetic over the smell of a sandwich, but damn her to hell if it wasn't a really good-smelling sandwich.

She was about to open her mouth and ask what kind of sandwich it was, but was outsped word-wise by Claude and his... addressing of someone else in the room? A certain "Lou"? Oh! Claude had mentioned a Lou once. A pet. A little diversion in attention elaborated a key detail to her reaffirming this notion: probably wasn't a person if it could fit on a counter and be entirely covered by Claude. To be fair, that definition could also apply to Sylvie herself, but she couldn't even begin to try and get a peek at whatever it was, Claude's large and hunched-over frame blocking even her best attempts at tippy-toes peeping. Damnation. Sylvie was about to open her mouth and express a desire for the thing's true nature to be revealed before she was beaten to speech again by another present Porter. Yeesh, two for two in such a short timespan. Inauspicious.

At least it seemed a (pre-emptive?) interruption for a good reason; she was receiving an offer of the same sandwich she'd gushed about the smell of around two paragraphs ago. She licked her lips and beamed as she turned towards Lucie. Scientifically proving the third time to in fact be the charm, she finally got her moment to speak. Coinciding it with two little thumbs-ups, she expressed a bit of gratitude at the offer.

"Ca serait parfait, merci! Ça sent siii bon."

But as if things couldn't get any better, what with the being at Claude's and the free sandwich, she turned her head once more to notice the man had moved out of the way of the mysterious thing, to reveal—

Oh!

Bunny!

"Mon dieeuuu mais il est si petiiit"

Sylvie took in a sharp and soft breath after letting out her little whisper, the kind one makes when seeing something that's just that cute. It looked so perfect and small and fluffy and it really wasn't fair mom and dad wouldn't let her get a third pet and oh my god oh my god bunny. For a moment, she stared at the little fluffy thing right back, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape, right in the eyes. Kindred spirits, though the ears of one were drooped and grey and fluffy and the other's stuck right high up and bright red. She brought her hands to her chest, not really sure what to do with them. Not really much to do admiring one of the cutest things ever. Bunnyyyyyyyy.

Lucie's voice snapped Sylvie out of her semi-conscious state, and her suggestion brought a small, excited smile to her face. "B-bien sûr!" she quickly said, her voice expressing just as much emotion as her face. Claude's confirmation only furthered that sentiment, Sylvie nodding fervently at his mention of her love for the lagomorphs, her neat and pretty blonde hair bobbing up and down just so. So, Sylvie reached out with her arms— and took the bun in her hands. Though it was a lot heftier when carried by Sylvie in comparison to the Porter siblings, it was still small enough to carry and be cute and aaaaaaa. It reminded Sylvie of one of her plushies, she thought, as she felt the softness of the small things fur and continued to look into its eyes.

"Saaaalut."

She whispered sweetly to it. Bunny. .

[Magnum 0pus]

The floppy eared bunny continued to stare at Sylvie head-on, not a thought behind the black orbs that were her eyes. Her nose twitched as she took a small whiff of the new being that was holding her. Claude and Lucie watched the interaction between the bunny and the girl. It looked straight up adorable in their eyes as the two tiny beings were meeting each other for the first time. "N'est-ce pas la scène la plus adorable que j'aie jamais vue?" ("Isn't that just the most adorable sight that I've ever seen?") Lucie whispered to her little brother, trying not to ruin such a heartfelt moment, "Tu peux le dire encore une fois!" ("You can say that again!") Claude responded in a hushed tone as well, also trying not to ruin the moment.

Lou the bunny took one small hop closer to Sylvie's face, but it was a hop so small that neither Claude nor Lucie noticed the pets movement as it got closer to the girls face. It took another sniff of her face, and Lou suddenly 'stood up' on its hind legs as she stared at the short girl for a bit longer before–

Thumpthumpthumpthump–

It was a barrage of tiny and fluffy punches from the bunny that hit Sylvie's face directly. Each little punch had the strength and force behind that one would expect such a small bunny as Lou to have. The adorable onslaught of punches lasted for a second before the tall Lucie quickly snatched her pet bunny and restrained her in a cage of her own two massive hands, "JE SUIS VRAIMENT DÉSOLÉ(E) POUR ÇA!" ("I'M SO SORRY ABOUT THAT!") Lucie frantically and loudly apologized as she continued to hold Lou in a makeshift jail cell, "Lou n'est jamais comme ça, je ne sais pas pourquoi elle a commencé à te frapper—s'il te plaît, pardonne-la pour ça!" ("Lou is never like this, I dunno why she began to hit you–please forgive her for that!") The taller O'Neil sibling apologized once more before she gave the tiny bunny in her hands a quick squeeze that wasn't meant to be painful, but more so meant to reprimand her, "Pourquoi t'as fait ça, Lou ?! Vilain petit lapin, pas de céleri pour toi aujourd'hui!" ("Why'd you do that, Lou?! Bad little bunny, no celery for you today!")

While Lucie did that, Claude walked up to his friend to check up on her, "Tu vas bien, Sylvie?" ("You doing alright, Sylvie?") It was a given that she was more than fine; those were just punches from a tiny bunny, after all. However, it wouldn't be nice of him if he just didn't check up on Sylvie. So after he did just that, he waited for her response.

[LYourLocalAutist]

Awaaa

Awawawaaaa

Save for those whisper-light coos (totally necessary given the situation), Sylvie was dead silent. This was the kind of cute you could only really process by holding the creature and staring it down like you were trying to kill it with laser eyes. Wide laser eyes. Big and beady and cute, like those of the thing she was staring down at. God. The little thing called Lou had her nearly overwhelmed just holding it. Her nose almost twitched in tandem with it, and she had her cheeks pouted out in a shape almost mimicking the small furball's. She barely noticed the larger beings' conversations about them, invested as she was in this... connection. Bunny to bunny communication. Bunny to bunny conversation.

Then, a change! Bunny wriggled a bit closer. "Stood up" a bit straighter. Another sniff. Another sniff back. Babything was performing an "action". What could it possibly be? Sylvie felt herself get a little excited as Lou wriggled cloooser and cloooser. More staring. Was it here for nuzzles? For kissies? Or maybe-

Thumpthumpthumpthump–

Wah!

Bunny beatdown. Bunny fisticuffs. Unconstrained violence. Pow pow pow of wee fluffy paws on her face. Sylvie was briefly reminded of a habit of Clarissa's as her heart melted in the wake of the barrage of a billion bunny blows (city block level destructive capacity) on her face. It was so soft and unreasonably adorable she felt like she was going to cry. She would've protested the removal of the creature from her grasp if she didn't recognise that consumption of any more sweetness saccharine as this would probably give her eleven different heart attacks. Watching the siblings frenzy over the Bunny Crimes(!!!) and proceed to jail it (maximum security solitary confinement) only added onto this sentiment. It was getting to be too much Sylvie let out an exhale-sounding noise of general emotion (150% positive) expression as a car would let out its exhaust as she tried to calm down from the experience.

"Pardonné. Il est parfait." And she meant it entirely. God cute things were cute. Still minding herself, she sat down to further facilitate her coming down from the high of that entire experience. But what a high it was. When she looked up at Claude when he addressed her, she was all smiles and joy, bright like a pretty little sun, like she'd just gotten a little taste of heaven. Bunnies were her favourite for a reason (parents preferred dogs unfortunately).

"Ohh, je vais très bien. Je crois que j'adore tes animaux, ils sont si mignooons."

She was beginning to really, really like the company this house provided besides the that was Claude.

[Magnum 0pus]

With the dust settled after the adorable beatdown Lou gave Sylvie, the bunny was set back down on the counter where she rested motionless. Even so, if the girl who had suffered the cutie patootie wrath of the bunny gave it one second look, she would've noticed that Lou began to give random side eyes at her before her attention was brought to something suddenly placed in front of her.

Thump!

An oh so familiar scent from a just as familiar long green object that appeared in front of her made the French Lop stop giving Sylvie the stink eye before it hopped towards it. Sniffs were taken of the object, and before anyone knew it, Lou began to nibble on the stick of celery very joyfully and without a single care in the world, "Qu’est-ce que je vais faire de toi…" ("What will I do with you...") Lucie asked in a disappointed sigh, similar to how a mother would be after dealing with her child misbehaving but still unable to really be all that mad at them. The bunny had no thought behind her eyes as she continued to casually munch and nibble on the celery stick; her greed was sickening to all who could see past her adorably fluffy facade.

munchmunchmunchmunchmu–

Moving on from the gluttonous Lou, Claude flashed a smile at her earlier response to his question filled with concern, "Laissons un peu d’espace à Lucie pour qu’elle puisse te préparer ton sandwich. En attendant, pourquoi ne pas aller dans ma chambre?" ("Let's give Lucie some space so she can make you your sandwich. For now, why don't we go to my room?") Being the gentleman that he was, Claude made a kind gesture that seemed very one in a million these days, "Les dames d'abord." ("Ladies first.") What a gentleman. Truly his charm was completely intentional he totally wasn't unaware of the effect he had on Sylvie and many other girls in Red Rock–he was unaware of the effect he had on women, he wasn't all that smart when it came to that sort of thing!

His older sister watched the chivalrous scene unfold in front of her, Lucie had already started making another reuben sandwich for his brother's friend, "Je penserai à te l’apporter dans ta chambre une fois que j’ai terminé!" ("I'll be sure to bring it up to your room once I'm done!") Lucie told the pair before she quickly flashed a thumbs up at Sylvie; it seemed as if the cheerleader had her own cheerleader to cheer her on when it came to romance!

[LYourLocalAutist]

Sylvie had turned her head to lean on another nearby counter and observe the bun, her eyes full of nothing but love no matter how suspiciously adverse particles were admitted by the ooby wooby bunny's side eyeing. Intimidation doesn't really work, she remarked, when your eyes are tiny adorable beads of nothing but the simplest thoughts as according to your tiny brain, and only as few as you could possibly process at a time. Point proven when the creature instantly forgot any animosity towards the world it might have possessed upon being presented with a little stick of green stuff it liked. Her wide smile somehow broadened even further at the sight of the situation, cooing a bit. She couldn't decide what was cuter: the sight of the wee fluffy creature happily nib nib nibbling away on a little snack of his or the fact that Lucie had said not five minutes ago that the aforementioned snack was forbidden to him but folded nearly immeadiately at the sight of it just being what it was. Ethos and pathos... of the kawaii subset. Interesting topic to consider at some point or another. Later, though; for now, she had a much larger and more sapient cutie patootie to attend to.

She turned around and seemed to perk up with excitement at Claude's suggestion, the tips of her bow nearly sticking up in tandem with widening eyes and newly showing teeth in her smile. She quickly nodded: "Bien sûr" and bounced off her position of leaning against the kitchen counter, prepped to follow the leader... only to be met with an open pathway and a man stepped to the side with a handsome smile on his face and an honest tone in his voice as he spoke of an action of most simple but genuine politeness. Sylvie giggled delicately as she made her way through the doorway and past the opening that man had left her, a small red in her cheeks. There was something she found special in his polite and chivalrous demeanour, in that it wasn't founded in any manner of irony or active attempt. There wasn't any in-joke or overcommitting playing-up or semi-desperate attempts at seeming cool and desirable to be found in his small everyday actions of this nature: he was just like that. When he offered you a seat or a pen when you lacked one or his jacket when he noticed you were cold, when he held the door open for you, shared his umbrella, or offered you a ride home, there was no ulterior motive. Just a courteous sentiment and a genuine kindness towards others. Sylvie didn't know about others, but it certainly made her feel warm and fuzzy inside. She turned her head once more to nod to him, gentle smile still on her face as she took point.

"Merciii~"

Little extra softness and lilt in it. She felt safe projecting sweetness like that around him. Satisfied, she turned around and readied herself to carry right on to Claude's room until she suddenly stopped in her tracks, realizing something... rather important. She turned around once more, the red in her face having changed purposes to projection of a mild embarrassment.

"Euh... où est ta chambre?"

...Maybe he could take point, this once.