The Pickers Are Here (Elietta, Any Brave Suitors)

[Disney]

((Awwwwww, my poor, poor little Kovu! <3333 *Snuggles her favorite lion* BWHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!!! These posts are KILLING me! You guys do a hilarious job! Love you guys!))

Esmeralda noticed her husband standing in the center of the kitchen watching her, mouth slightly open. It was nothing like his usual greeting, and she realized something was wrong. She came over to him and pulled him into a hug and a loving kiss when he started jabbering. She listened to his incoherent words, not easy to understand in all the growling, but she could make out certain words, like "Elietta" and "boy".

"Wait," she said, trying to find out if she had misunderstood anything. "Did you just say "Elietta" and "boy" in the same sentence? And it is not the same way as when you tell me when she is beating up Dean for tormenting Haidar...."

She noticed how her husband went over to the living room door and listened. Whatever happened in there, made his eyes widen, and Esmeralda started getting worried. If her husband looked like that about Elietta, he had good reasons to. Kovu was not a lion that would worry for nothing. He asked her to join him, and she did as she was told, starting to get worried herself.

As soon as she came close enough, she heard her daughter's voice and a deeper male voice that seemed somewhat familiar, without her being capable of placing it at the moment. The choice of words made her eyes widen, and she stared at her husband.

"I understand why you look worried," she whispered. "What shall we do? Break down the door?"

On the other side, she could clearly hear Elietta's words to the man.

"I am grateful you will help me with the basics. It is so huge. I can barely grasp it!"

What the parents in the living room didn't see was that Elietta started turning the pages in the book. Doing this, she got a paper cut in her slender index finger and cried out sharply in pain.

"OW! Damn, it hurts!!!"

Elietta saw her finger bleeding from the paper cut, and placed the finger in her mouth to lick away the blood.

"Ouch, I'm bleeding!" she whimpered.

[kovu]

Kovu was listening against the door, frantically trying to hear all that was said. He watched his wife's expression as she joined him, knowing that he wasn't imagining things.

When she asked him what they should do, Kovu pulled away from the door. "I can't listen to this anymore. I know I will do something crazy if I do."

He walked over to the table and picked up the note from the ground. "Elietta came home an hour late today," he informed his wife. "She was winded and her clothes were disheveled. She claims that she was studying at the library with a 'friend'. A little while later, that same 'friend' arrived in our livingroom. That is no boy, Esme! He's . . . huge! Also, I found this in her backpack," he added, passing the scrap of paper to his wife.

"What happened to our little girl, Esme?"

[bigbrother]

Gaston smiled when Elietta thanked him, it always made him feel better to help someone. At least doing things like this would take his mind off of his past mishaps. Seeing the she was having a hard time with the amount of material there was, he gave another warm statement to cheer her up.

"You don't have to worry about the size for now, I can show you much easier ways to take it all in so it doesn't overwhelm you."

Elietta then flipped through the book a little too fast and got a paper cut. Gaston went into the bag he had and got out a small first aid kit. From it he took a band aid and a small bottle of antiseptic. Without saying anything he sprayed her finger and put the band aid on it then spoke again.

"I'm sorry it that hurt, but that shouldn't last long. You are a tough girl, so you will get used to it soon enough. Maybe I should do all handling from now on so that you don't end up hurt. You are just here to learn little one, and I hope to be a really good teacher."

[elietta]

(OMG! You guys are killing me! ;D ;D ;D *Snugglehugs rp'ers while slowly dying from laughter* Love you guys!))

Elietta was busy with her studying, having no idea that her parents were listening by the door. Little did she know what they were thinking right now. If she had seen their faces, she would probably have started laughing, or maybe teased them, but for now, she was happily ignorant about her father's suspicions.

Esmeralda looked over at her husband, deeply shocked after hearing what she did from the kitchen. She saw Kovu pull away, knowing his fatherly instincts would make him do something he might regret later if he continued to listen. As the loving mother she was, she continued listening, ready to report to her husband what she heard.

While she tried to make out the sound on the other side of the door, she listened to her husband as he informed her of Elietta's late arrival after school. Esmeralda furrowed her eyebrows. Even if Elietta was a good student, being late from school was not her style. If anything, she was sent home early, for fighting to protect Haidar. The information about the girl's disheveled clothes brought a worried frown to the gypsy's face.

"Winded? Disheveled? No boy.... like in... a man?"

She could hear herself the panic rising in her voice as she looked over at her husband in despair, as if she hoped he could do something to stop all of this. When he passed her the scrap of paper, she read through it, her face getting pale as she read. The hands holding the note was trembling, and she swooned.

"My god, Kovu," she whispered. "Our little baby.... She is not... little anymore....."

A tear trickled down her face. Seeing her baby girl growing up faster than expected had been painful enough. Hearing her baby girl turn into a woman in the living room behind the bolted door, was unbearable.

It was at this moment she heard a male voice on the other side of the door. She narrowed her eyes. Kovu was right! This was no boy! It was a fully grown man! And he was here, in their living room, trying to trick their sweet, innocent little girl into doing ungodly things. She could hear his voice from the inside.

"I'm sorry it that hurt, but that shouldn't last long. You are a tough girl, so you will get used to it soon enough. Maybe I should do all handling from now on so that you don't end up hurt. You are just here to learn little one, and I hope to be a really good teacher."

Her motherly instincts kicked in, and she threw herself against the door, slamming her fists into the woodwork of the door while yelling as loud as she could.

"ELIETTA! YOU COME OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"

In the living room Elietta jumped ten feet in the air when she heard her mother slamming her fists in the door, yelling at her to come out. She rolled her eyes and muttered to Gaston.

"Geez, and just when things starting to get interesting...."

She closed the history book and brought it over to the bookshelf on the opposite wall from the door. The bookshelf was well stocked, but there was an empty space between two books. Elietta tried to push in her history book, but the book was a little too thick to fit into the empty space. The girl tried pushing the book into the shelf over and over, this causing the shelf to slam against the wall, making some heavy dunking sounds.

"Nggggh!" she moaned. "It's too thick! I can't make it fit in!!!"

[kovu]

Kovu saw his wife's worry and knew that the woman was having as hard a time as she was. He wished he could have shielded her from the difficult truth, but he was too upset to make any rational decisions.

As the woman started to cry, Kovu nuzzled against her leg to comfort her. "We will figure something out," he told her, forcing himself to be calm for his wife's sake. "This isn't the end of the world . . ."

He lept back when Esmeralda rushed to the door and began pounding on it. It was then that he remember how much of a loving mother the gypsy was. Even if Elietta didn't listen to her, Esmeralda was still her mother.

Waiting for their daughter to arrive, and recieving nothing but a still door, Kovu listened again to find out what was going on in the living room. He growled lowly when he heard a loud thump and moved away from the door.

"Elisa Rosetta Pocahontas! Listen to your mother and get in here now!"

[elietta]

Esmeralda looked over at her husband, knowing that he was probably every bit as upset as she was right now. After all, Elietta had always been his little baby girl.

She sat down on the floor wrapping her arms around him, giving him a loving kiss on the mouth, deeply touched that he tried to comfort her even when he was upset himself.

"I know we will, my love," she whispered back, caressing his mane lovingly. "Elietta has always been your baby girl, and no matter what happens in this life, she will always be your little girl, coming to Daddy when life is too rough on her."

After she had rushed back to the door, pounding on it, she listened, shocked to hear more thumping sounds. She stared terrified over at her husband, silently pleading him to do something. The anxiety in her emerald eyes only grew bigger as she continued hearing the sounds from the other side of the door.

"ELIETTA!!!" she called out for the second time, slamming her fists against the door, knowing it would take larger strength than hers to break down the door. She turned her face and looked pleadingly over at her husband, begging for him to help. If anyone was strong enough to handle this, it was him.

&%¤#"@£$*!!!

Elietta stared angrily at the bookshelf. Her hair was messy after her struggle with getting the blasted history book into the book shelf. Now she had tried for several minutes, and the book STILL wouldn't fit into the empty space. Elietta gritted her teeth in anger, her emerald eyes blazing from fire.

So, you are stubborn, are you? Well, so am I....

She grabbed the history book again, starting to try shoving it into the bookshelf once again.... and again.... and again. She shoved the book so hard, that the bookshelf crashed merciless against the wall, making loud thumping sounds.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.Thump. Thump.Thump.Thump.

The girl noticed herself that she was working herself into a frenzy, getting more and more pissed off every minute passing.

"Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngh! It's too.... tight...." she puffed. "I can't.... squeeze it in....."

Her paper cut accidentally rubbed against the book.

"Oh, damn, it hurts!!!" she whimpered, while continuing to push.

Thump. Thump. Thump.Thump.Thump.

At that moment she heard her mother throw herself at the door for the second time. It made Elietta stress even more with getting the book back into the shelf.

"Ngggggggggggggggggggggggh......" she muttered. "It's.... too... hard....."

Then she heard her father's voice too, not quite as mild as it used to be.

"Elisa Rosetta Pocahontas! Listen to your mother and get in here now!"

The only reason parents give their children three names is so they can know they are in trouble when all three are in use at the same time..... Elietta thought to herself, cursing under her breath. She KNEW she was in trouble from being late after school, though she had no idea what her parents were thinking except from that.

She thumped the book furiously against the bookshelf a few more times before replying.

"Uhhhh.... YEAH, I'M COMING!!!!" she shouted out, frustrated that the book wouldn't fit into the bookshelf.

[bigbrother]

((Seriously it hurt how much I was laughing when I first read all of that.))

All of a sudden Gaston heard a familiar female voice from the other room, but he couldn't place i at the moment. It sounded angry as if something had happened today to get Elietta in trouble. She was usually a good girl in school and the only real trouble she got in was protecting her brother. Gaston had considered intimidating the boy that was bullying Haidar himself, but he couldn't risk it yet.

Elietta got up with the large book and attempted to put in on the shelf all by herself. Gaston thought that she would be able to handle it, however, it was obvious she was having trouble. A few minutes of trying to force the book onto the shelf and a lot of thumping later Gaston got up from where he was sitting to help her.

"It looks like you having a hard time getting it all the way in, I told you to let me help you. When it comes to physical things like this I am strong enough to force it in and hope not to break anything."

Gaston moved closer to Eleitta and helped her push the book in the shelf while behind her. Unfortunately, the book was a bit big for the shelf so it took a minute to get in back on the shelf. Instead of a lot of small thumps against the self, a few large thumps could be heard before it stopped all together. Breathing a sigh of relief Gaston just had an idea that probably would have helped sooner, but at least it would help next time he helped her study.

"See, it only took a little extra force to get it all the way in, at least we are finished with that exercise for now. I think next time we should put it somewhere else, at least then it wouldn't be such a tight fit. You should go see what your parents want so we can get finish what we started as soon as possible."

[kovu]

Kovu resumed his earlier pacing pattern, moving around the table this time. He nearly resembled one of those old merry-go-round statues from the fair. He didn't trust himself to listen at the door, wanting to keep in the dark about what his daughter was doing. He would hear the truth soon enough.

He was glad when Elietta finally responded to his calls. That was one thing that never changed about his daughter: she always listened to Daddy. Maybe if Daddy had done a little listening of his own, this never would have happened . . .

Just then Elietta came into the kitchen and Kovu's eyes narrowed dangerously. He wanted to yell, to scream, to do a million different things, but all he could see was his little girl that used to ride around on his back. He could never yell at her.

He looked up at Esmeralda, a silent plead to help him in the one area he was so weak: punishing his daughter.

[Disney]

((You have NO idea how much I am laughing when I'm typing this. I can hardly type for all my giggling. Love you guys *Huggles Gaston and Kovu*))

Elietta was relieved Gaston came to help her with the history book. It didn't take her long to realize she wasn't strong enough to push it into the empty space on her own. Especially not when it felt like the book was three times thicker than the empty space.

"I really appreciate your help. You know I am new at this. I don't have your strength or agility yet. I just don't hope we make a hole in the wall. My parents would start wondering...."

She allowed Gaston to take over the book, and covered her ears when she heard the large thumps. When the noise stopped, she took her hands away from her ears with a sigh of relief. After all the work with the book, her hair was untidy, and her clothes were again disheveled. She sighed and wiped away the tiny beads of sweat from her forehead.

"Oh god, I am soaked. I think I need a shower after all of this..."

She listened to Gaston when he came with his suggestion for the next time he helped her study.

"Yeah, you're probably right. I think next time will be easier. But I think we should wait until Mama and Daddy are not home, so we can be undisturbed...."

She said the last sentence out loud enough for her parents to hear, still a bit annoyed by their interruption in her history studies. She was rewarded by the sound of her mother throwing herself against the kitchen door, hammering on it. Elietta listened to the noise with a raised eyebrow, then rolled her eyes as she spoke to Gaston.

"Geez, and here I was afraid that we might tear down the house.... I better go and see what they want, before she tears the door down...."

She went into the kitchen, shutting the door to the living room after her. She took some time to wipe off her sweat and adjust her hair and clothes. She could see on her parents that something was wrong the moment she stepped into the room. Her father was pacing around the table, looking like an old merry-go-round, and her mother was throwing her hair back, her emerald eyes blazing with fire. When she sent her father a questioning look, his eyes narrowed dangerously, and Elietta's inner alarm clock went off.

Uh-oh.... you're in BIG trouble this time, Elietta! I have no idea how, but they are up to something.... Parents.....

If she had been alone with Daddy, it would have been simple enough. He would have spoken to her, perhaps even in a stern way, but he had never punished her. Now, however, he had to be ticked off, for he left the judgment to a judge that never failed to punish the criminals of the house: Mama.

Esmeralda had clearly heard every word in the living room. She was pacing in circles around her daughter, and Elietta wouldn't be surprised to hear the melody from the movie "Jaws" in the background. Esmeralda spoke in a calm voice, but she was clearly upset.

"Where have you been?" she started. "Daddy tells me that you were one hour late, and you didn't send a message."

Elietta looked at her mother, not understanding what wrong she had done to be questioned like this. Right now she had the face expression of a misunderstood little angel.

"At school," she said innocently. "You know, the big house where we keep most of our daytime, learning to read and write?"

Esmeralda looked over at Kovu, silently asking for his permission to strangle their daughter. Not only had she misbehaved like she did, she was cheeky when Esmeralda questioned her about it!

"Don't be cheeky with me, young lady," Esmeralda snapped. "I know PERFECTLY well what you have been doing! Your father says you were winded when you came home, and your hair and clothes were disheveled!"

"Well, if you already know what I've been doing," Elietta replied, remarkably calm and now slightly amused, "why do you keep asking me about it?"

The thundercloud above Esmeralda's head was now clearly visible to everyone. It was only a matter of time before the lightening would strike, and the target would be the young girl with the cheeky attitude.

"ENOUGH!!!"

Esmeralda exploded like firework on Guy Fawkes's day, and held the note her husband had found in front of Elietta. Elietta cursed silently when she was confronted with the note.

"Oh, crap. Are you reading my letters now?"

Esmeralda sent her daughter a stern look.

"You will NOT use that language in this house, young lady. You are grounded!"

Elietta sent her father a pleading look.

"What?!!! What for?`You - you can't do this to me! It's not fair!"

Esmeralda gave her daughter a discreet push towards the steps leading to the bedrooms on the second floor, where the bedrooms were.

"I said enough! Go to your room. You are grounded until you're 85! Then perhaps you learn to respect your parents!"

Elietta muttered under her breath.

"You'll be dead when I'm 85.... thank God!"

Esmeralda snapped.

"SUFFICE! Now go to your room and stay there! You will not have any dinner today!"

Elietta sighed with relief. She hated vegetable soup, and knew it was on the menu today. Giving her mother a last angry scowl, she went over to her father and gave him a loving hug.

"Good night, Daddy. Since the Wicked Witch of the West grounded me, I will spend the rest of the night in bed with Mark Twain...."

She stomped out of the room and up the stairs, and as soon as she entered her bedroom, she slammed the door as hard as she could. The echo of the slamming was ringing through the house long after young Elietta had turned around the key to her bedroom door.

[kovu]

[[*hums Jaws theme under her breath as she posts* ;D]]

Kovu waited in the background as Esmeralda questioned her daughter. Not only did he not want to get in his wife's way when she was so mad, but this was his downfall as a father. He keep this face turned away, knowing that if he caught one look at that sweet face (well, usually sweet face), he would crumble like feta cheese.

As the two women started to fight, Kovu was regretful that his wife had to take the blame alone. He was the one that had been reading the note after all. Esmeralda was just doing what a mother was suppose to do.

He heard his daughter's muttered comment to Esmeralda and that broke his silence. He turned on Elietta with a warning growl. "You will not speak to your mother like that again!" he hissed.

He froze when Elietta came to hug him, trying with every fiber of his being to retain his stern fatherly presence. He shook his head as she pulled away, his eyes showing his disappointment.

As Elietta pounded up the stairs, Kovu looked at his wife with a tired expression. He just wanted this night to end, to wake up in the morning and have it all be a dream.

"Now to deal with the other problem . . .," he said, moving towards the kitchen door. He stopped before going in and looked back at his wife.

"Are you alright?" he asked her, concerned. "I hated that you had to go through that alone."

[haidar]

The seven-year-old boy trudged up the steps of the house, his back hunched with the weight of his backpack and his stomach full of Mrs. Scofield's fine cooking. Turning the knob of the door, he shrugged the bag off of his shoulders, not taking notice of anything around him. He ran a hand over his stomach, knowing that he ate too much and he would regret it later tonight. He only hoped his mother would never know that he was cheating on her and sampling another chief's cooking . . .

Giving a sleepy yawn, Haidar stopped in his tracks when he saw a man sitting in the livingroom. The boy looked around, trying to find any indication of who the stranger was.

"Uh . . . hi," he said slowly. "Are you here for Elietta?"

He assumed it was his sister, no one else would have brought an older boy into the house.

Just then he heard shouting from the kitchen and raised an eyebrow. It was his mother and sister, both apparently pretty angry.

"What has got them so upset?" he asked the man softly, very weary of the women when they fought as their tempers were legendary to the men in the house.

[ferdinand]

It'd taken little (if no) time for Ferdinand to realize the feelings he had for Elietta. Her beauty, her charm, her grace - she'd possessed him. The past weeks had left him thinking of nothing but her, and the awkwardness between she and him made Ferdinand wonder if Elietta felt the same way about him. She seemed to...or at least, he hoped she did. Either way, the Prince knew he had to tell her. The thought of Elietta falling for another tormented him. Without her, Ferdinand's life would be empty, a lonely and miserable existence.

The sounds of horse's hooves thundering against the ground could be heard as the youth approached the home. Ferdinand was seemingly flustered, in a bit of a hurry even. Today was the day he let Elietta know how he felt about her. A cheerful smile on his face, he quickly dismounted and checked himself, making sure he looked his best. Seeing that everything was in order, Ferdinand walked up to the door. He was confident everything would turn out as he hoped, trusting in what his heart was telling him.

In one hand, the Prince held a bouquet of wildflowers he'd picked while walking in the mountains. In the other, a box of the finest chocolates in Germany. He also had a song prepared he wanted to sing for her, but he'd save that for last. Right as Ferdinand was about to knock on the door, he heard shouting and roaring from inside. "My goodness! What's going on in there?"[/i][/color] he thought to himself. Deciding it was best not to enter into the fray, he walked to the side of the house. Looking up, he saw Elietta pacing around through her bedroom. Getting an idea, Ferdinand shifted the chocolates and flowers into one arm and picked up a handful of small stones. He then started throwing them at the window, trying to get Elietta's attention.

[elietta]

((Awwww, this is the cutest post ever!!! <333 *melts and raises karma points))

Elietta was alone in her room, sitting on her bed and trying to read Mark Twain. However, it was hard for her to focus on the book. She was still very upset, not to say pissed off, for what had happened downstairs. She wanted her mother to travel to a rather hot and damp area with glowing stones and horned inhabitants carrying enormous forks. Still she was uncertain of WHY she had been grounded. The teenage girl had absolutely NO idea that it was possible for parents to ground their children for doing homework. A dark smile crossed her lips.

"At least I got away from that bloody veggie soup. Why the hell does she always HAVE to serve veggies? Daddy manages fine without them. Why can't I?"

She raised her eyebrow in surprise when she heard something clattering against the glass in her window.

"Now what. Anything else she forgot to accuse me of?" she muttered, looking around in her bedroom to see if there was anything there she could pour out of the window to shock her mother. "What a shame we don't have night potties in this century! That would teach her a lesson!"

The clattering sound continued and Elietta let out another curse word and jumped out of the bed.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" she said, feeling like a certain Disney princess with mice as her only friends as she with an impatient movement opened the window, leaning out to see what her mother wanted now. It was a luck for her that she had decided never to speak to her mother again. That way, she didn't say anything inappropriate to the handsome young man standing below her window.

Elietta gasped and retreated for a moment. In panic she pulled a hand through her hair and tried to make her dress sit a bit better on her slender body. With blushing cheeks and hammering heart she peeked out of the window again.

"Ferdinand!" she whispered, looking over her shoulder to see if her parents were spying by the door. "What are you doing here?"

A warm smile lit up her face and she continued.

"I would have offered you one of my braids so you could come up, but I fear they are not long enough. Can you use the ladder by the apple tree instead?"

(Sorry for the Rapunzel pun. I couldn't resist! ;D )

[ferdinand]

The smile on Ferdinand's face grew wider as Elietta came to the window. He thought her beautiful even at the distance she was at. There was a look of surprise on her face as she quickly retreated back, worrying him. Had he frightened her? Confidence began to wane and happiness turned into worry as Ferdinand waited. But Elietta returned, the same look she had when they were together. The smile returned as she greeted him and asked him why he was there.

"Oh Elietta, there's something I must tell you. I'll have no peace until I do."[/color] the Prince began. Before he could continue, Elietta asked him to come in by way of a nearby ladder. Nodding, Ferdinand jogged to the tree and tucked the ladder under his free arm. He then returned and placed the ladder under the window. Climbing up and slipping inside, he removed his hat and offered Elietta the gifts. "I brought these for you."[/color] he said. "I hope you like them. I picked the flowers myself, and the chocolates are the most delicious in all of Germany."[/color]

Ferdinand didn't want to be too hasty in revealing his feelings. The moment had to be just right, one they were both comfortable with. When that moment would be, his heart would let him know.

[elietta]

((Just to keep you all updated on the locations: Esmeralda and Kovu are in the kitchen, on their way to the living room. Gaston and Haidar are in the living room. Elietta and Ferdi are in Elietta's bedroom... alone *Teasing side-glance at Kovu* ;D ))

Elietta smiled when she returned to the window, relieved that Ferdinand was still there. She had to admit she was curious about what he wanted to tell her.

"Really? That sounds exciting and worrisome at the same time..." she said, helping him to support the ladder while he climbed up. "What is it that troubles you so you can not find peace?"

Even if her voice was playful, her eyes showed concern. In spite of her mischief, young Elietta truly cared for her friends. She stepped aside, allowing him to enter her room, and was surprised and touched at the same time that he had brought her presents. She lifted the wildflowers and smelled them before placing them in a vase, filling it with water from the water pitcher.

"Gifts? For me? Oh, thank you! That is so sweet and thoughtful. But... it's not my birthday yet...."

She smiled and gave him a hug, a natural way for her to react when she got a present. She was after all part French, even if she right now refused to be Esmeralda's daughter. She placed the chocolate on her nightstand, before pulling out a comfortable chair, offering it to Ferdinand.

"Thank you for the gifts, Ferdinand. I love them. It really brightened my day. I guess you couldn't avoid hearing the ruckus when my mother punished me for doing homework. I am grounded until I'm 85...." she snorted. "Worst of all is that I have NO idea what I did to BE grounded in the first place!"

She chuckled with laughter and looked over at him.

"But you have not come here to listen to my troubles. I want to hear what you wanted to speak to me about. What is it that steals your peace away?"