Are you? Are you? Coming to the tree? (Open)

The android looked up at the large Oak tree that existed in the middle of Lunapa. He never could get over how this tree of all trees was able to grow so large. He figured it had to do something with genetic mutation or something of that nature, and the android was curious about a sample. But the question is...to what end? There was no point in growing trees of this size, unless one sought to promote the ecology and wildlife around them. Or you just wanted something to really stand out.

Then again, how old was the tree to grow to this height and size? It had to be at least hundreds if not a thousand years old. Nature always seemed to be a step ahead of the human race despite how much humanity tried to control and use it. It was strange how humanity often tried to control things, perhaps the intellect that they had brought more than the ability to make and create, but also the desire to control.

....he was getting ar too philosophical again...oh well...the android liked to think about those things.

Mae was taking a leisurely stroll together with Kayle through the forest of Lunapa that day. One of their many outings over the last couple of weeks, due to winter being almost around the corner, the two took this chance to see the Oak one last time before all it's leaves had fallen to the ground. The little blonde girl paced her way a couple of feet ahead of Mae, humming gleefully to herself as her red boots kicked up leaves and dust in their wake. The pinkette watched the little girl go about her buissness with a peaceful smile on her face. Oh, how she missed the days of her own childhood now. Back then, everything had been so... simple. So easy compared to her life now as an adult. She had to pay Rent, taxes, and food, and to top it all off, she had work, and other responsibilites to uphold.

Once they reached the oak, they found themselves to not be alone there. A lone man stood underneath the tree, inspecting it, seemingly lost in thought. Kayle, ever the curious person, and like the child she was, with no tact whatsoever, snuck up on the man before Mae could stop her, and tugged at his sleeve. "Excuse me, mister... What are you doing here?" The little girl asked with big, sparkling green eyes only a child of her age could possess. Mae hurried over to the two shortly after. "Please, excuse her... She's just curious." The pinkhaired woman said in an apologetic tone. Sometimes, Kayle could be a real handful to deal with. Just like Mae herself was when she was 7 years old... Ah, memories.

The android turned around to see a young girl, tugging on his sleeve. He looked down at her and smiled, "Just enjoying the beauty of nature, and wondering how this tree grew so big." Sentinel said smiling at the girl, before looking at the woman that approached him explaining that she was just curious. "No need for her to be excused, a curious mind is one that seeks to learn. Knowledge is so important in the world we live in, and I have one just a couple of years older than her." He stood up, and whistled a bit.

Maria came from around the tree wearing a circlet of carefully woven flowers around her head. She looked at the younger girl and smiled, "Hi there! My name is Maria! It's nice to meet you! Oh! Do you want to make a crown of flowers?" The older girl asked the younger one, while the android looked toward the pink haired woman.

"Alphonse Sentinel, is my name." He said offering her a handshake, "This is Maria Farren, as you can tell she is quite friendly. I hope you don't mind her playing with the one in your care." The android said looking at the two young girls, Maria waiting anxiously for the other to answer her question.

"That's nature for ya, mister." Kayle smiled back at Sentinel, as Mae approached the two. "Thank you for understanding." The woman gave out a relieved sigh. "Be a little bit more careful next time when approaching a stranger, would you, Kayle?" The girl looked towards the pinkette and nodded. "Will do!"

When Maria introduced herself to Kayle, the latter smiled cheerfully in response. "Hi~! Nice to meet you too, Maria! The Name's Kayle Graves. And sure! That sounds like fun!" The two kids seemed to instantly get along, which warmed the young caretaker's heart.

"Nice to meet you, Alphonse." Mae shook the android's hand, smiling. "My name's Mae Iharu. And don't worry." The pinkette replied with a light chuckle. "I sure don't mind." She would then offer Maria a handshake as well. "Nice to meet you, Maria."

"Yes it is, isn't it?" The android replied smiling at the young girl, and he gave Mae a polite nod of understanding. Maria was much the same, though she was a few years older than Kayle. The young girl smiled and giggled a bit, watching Kayle getting counseled about approaching strangers.

"Well if you two want to go and make flower crowns, then why don't you go to that field of flowers and play there. Make sure to stay close enough so we can see each you both, okay?" Maria would nod and smile at her new friend, but looked up toward Mae, shaking her hand enthustically. Before taking Kayle's hand and dashing off to the nearest field of flowers that was close enough for the two guardians to watch over them.

"Seems as though they will be fast friends." Sentinel commented as he watched Maria being the enthuastic girl she was take her new friend to go and play. "So are you and Kayle related by blood, or are you just taking care of her for a bit?"

"Mhm~!" Kayle replied gleefully before Mae reprimanded the girl somewhat. Still, the girl had an ever-present smile on her face as she went to play with Maria. "Alright, Mister Alphonse!" She replied before skipping away with her newfound friend.

"Heh, yeah. Reminds me of when I was a kid her age." Mae replied with a warm smile, looking at the two kids playing with eachother. It warmed the would-be idol's heart seeing Kayle befriending new people wherever she went. Perhaps it was just her overall cheerful attitude towards things that made people like her? It certainly worked on Mae. "Oh, no. I'm her caretaker. Poor Kayle lost her parents two years ago at the circus... She's been at the orphanage since... I just recently got her assigned to me when her old caretaker retired." Needless to say, that had been rough on the kid, but Mae and Kayle had grown quite close and happy since then, if slowly. The first weeks had been the worst for her... Losing Ariadne was like losing a parent to the poor girl, and Mae was certain it would feel the same way should Mae quit her job... not that she would do that. The kids at the orphanage were too important to her... "Even after two whole years, no one wants to pick her up... Considering both of her parents had died when she miraculously survived makes people think she brings bad luck with her..."

The android smiled, he of course never had much of a childhood considering how he was made and synthetic. Though he could always imagine what it might have been like, but right away he could tell that Maria and Kayle were birds of a feather. They both had an attractive sort of optimism that seemed to draw friends and people towards them. They were often called cute or adorable a lot because of that optimism.

"I see...that's quite sad. They're birds of a feather then, because Maria lost both of her parents as well. I've been taking care of her ever since, I owe her family a lot." The android said truthfully, before listening how after two whole years no one seemed to pick her up. That was truly sad, she seemed like an angel, and a delightful child. "Superstitions should be the last thing that keep a child from having a family. She seems too nice and kind to be without a family, but you're the right kind of person for her." The android said watching the girls play with the flowers and each other out in the fields.

"How did you end up being a caretaker? You're rather young, so what made you want to spend your time taking care of children?" The android inquired more than a bit curious about what brought Mae into such a line of duty.

"Ah, I can get behind that." Mae replied with a light chuckle. "It's almost like raising your own kid, isn't it?" At least, it felt like that for Mae. Kayle had been on her mind for most of the days she spent not at the orphanage, wondering how the kid was doing, and all that. Not necessarily on the level of a real, blood related mother. Moreso akin to that of a much older sister, in a way. She just wanted Kayle to have a good childhood, despite the trauma the past events caused her.

"Yeah, no kidding... I haven't had the courage to tell Kayle yet why no-one's picked her up yet. For a... kid her age, it's alot to swallow, you know?" She was only looking out for the girl... perhaps one day, she'd tell her, but for now, it was better that Kayle lived on, blissfully unaware of why she wasn't adopted.

"Well, for a number of reasons." She started, with a pleased smile on her face. She wasn't really asked this often, as most people either knew already, or didn't care enough to ask. "You see... As I told you before, I'm an orphan as well. Never got to know my parents, and all that fun stuff. And while there, at the orphanage located in Tokyo, I met this caretaker who was not much older than I am now... She was so nice to me, and I looked up to her. So naturally, I wanted to be just like her, job and everything. Both as a way of honoring her, and a way to pay back to society and helping children who're in the very same situation that I was in as a kid." Wow... that turned out more detailed than she first intended, but hey, it works. "Another reason why I picked the job is to help manage all the children who lost their parents two years ago..." She finished with a light shrug. "I guess... I just feel a bit bad for them. You know, losing family to something beyond human control."

"Yes it is very much like raising your own kid, and it's a lot of work. But it's all worth it, isn't it? When you see them smile and laugh like they are now, makes it all worth it though. Doesn't it?" The android replied pointing toward the two girls who were laughing and playing with one another. When Mae began to explain the reasons, the android closed his eyes...nodding his head and listening to her. So she was doing it to honor her own caretaker and pay society back, a noble and proper cause.

"You are incredibly kind for a woman as young as yourself. Your selflessness speaks of wisdom far beyond your years." Alphonse said smiling at her, "You have my respect, and I do think you're doing an excellent job as a role model. Your caretaker would be quiet proud if she saw you right here and now." The android said with a smile, though when she mentioned two years ago, he grew a bit quiet.

"Yes, it's quiet tragic, no one should have to leave behind a child or lose their life in such a way. I just pray that it does not happen again. It was tragic enough the first time, and I don't want to see any more kids lose their folks." He said crossing his arm and shaking his head. He was terribly disappointed to hear that Kayle was...affected by that event two years ago. "As for whether or not you should tell her, it's nothing to do with her. I don't see a point in going out of your way to say it, unless you think she needs to hear it."

"Hehe, It really is." Mae replied, looking at Kayle and Maria playing together in the distance. In the end, wasn't that what a parent wanted for a kid? Happiness? As long as Kayle had fun and was smiling, then Mae had accomplished her job as a caretaker better than she ever could've hoped for. "I can't argue against that." Seeing them get along as well made her proud as a caretaker.

The woman squirmed a little bit where she stood. Even though she had been living on this earth for 21 years now, she still didn't deal with praise all that well. Sure, it was nice and all, but... rarely did she feel like she ever deserved the praise. "Thank you, Alphonse." Mae replied with a sheepish smile as she scratched the back of her head awkwardly. "I'm just doing what I think is right. Nothing too special about that, ehehe..." Mae was never one to gloat, and usually was rather modest in a lot of situations, perhaps a bit too modest for her own good at times.

"Yeah... that's all we really can do." Well, if something did indeed happen again, Mae wouldn't sit still and just let things go to hell. She would use whatever means she had to stop people from dying, kids or not. Because no one should ever have to experience the crushing loneliness after the loss of someone dear. No one. "Yeah, I thought so too... If she asks about it, I'm not gonna lie to her though. I... Just can't bring myself to. Not with her, anyway." The pinkette bit her lower lip lightly. The prospect of Kayle asking why no one wanted her was a scary one indeed... She didn't want to tell her why... but at the same time, she'd rather die than lie to the kid...

"Not many people can argue against that, but at the same time they can be a bit of a handful, can't they?" He said smiling as he sighed a bit recalling various times when Maria was a bit of a handful, it usually had something to do with her homework or when she did something she wasn't supposed to. The android soon realized that perhaps Mae didn't receive all that much praise considering how she was being rather awkward about it. When his new friend spoke about never lying to a child, the android nodded...he wished he had done that from the start.

"You should never have to lie to a child, I recommend you avoid it unless it is absolutely necessary. Even then I cannot recommend it, as when they find out the truth they lose trust in you, and find it harder to love you...let alone be friends with you." Alphonse said looking at Maria...he did regret lying to her for all those years, but they had moved past that problem. Now they were stronger than ever because of it, and she once again trusted in her guardian.

"Hehe, yeah." Mae replied with a chuckle. "That's just part of being a kid, I suppose. Everything has it's highs and lows." She knew this very, very well. The kids at the orphanage could get really rowdy at times, and Kayle being one of them, was no exception. "In the long run, I think the positives vastly outweigh the negatives."

"Mhm... Lying period is almost never a good solution... of course, there are times where lying is perhaps a necessary evil. That doesn't make it any more pleasant." Mae replied with a slight frown. "Sometimes it's... just not clear cut whether the truth or a white lie is the better option." She thought back of that fateful day with Charles two years ago. A moment which would define her situation today. Had she... opted not to tell him, would things be different now? Or not? Did it even matter?

Yes, and childhood had so many highs and lows, each phase was full of them and it could be so terribly overwhelming to them. Which is why they need people like Alphonse and Mae to pull them together and support them each step of the way. "Of course they do, they grow older and wiser with every step they take and lesson they learn. We are just here to make sure they make the right choices and are able to pursue their dreams...whatever those dreams may be." He replied, smiling at her, recalling the various dreams that Maria has had in her relatively short life.

"I agree and in general I believe honesty is the better policy. Though enough about the depressing topics, shall we speak of something a bit more...vibrant?" He inquired as he figured a more positive topic was in order rather than a deary one. "Has Kayle expressed her dreams of what she wants to do when she grows up to you? Maria has expressed several from being a super heroine to a veterinarian, and at one point a model. She's got a very active imagination, and a brief time as a model made her want to pursue that for a short time. She has led a very interesting life thus far....now if only I could get her to pursue math with the same passion."

"Mhm. And it's truly a joy to see them grow..." She'd return the warm smile towards Alphonse. Of course, she would eventually have to say goodbye to Kayle, as she would either get adopted or move out sooner or later... As much as she wanted it to be sooner, it wasn't going to be easy watching the kid go... Perhaps she was getting a little bit too attached to Kayle? Or was it just natural of her to feel this way?

"Agreed." Mae replied with a nod. Alphonse had a fair point. Changing subjects was probably for the better. Besides, it would be a shame to ruin such a great day with depressing topics. "Hrm... Yeah. Several times. She's wanted to be a firefighter, amusingly enough, a musician, and of course that's tied with the pop-idol thing. I think she's wanted to be a doctor too at some point." Mae could clearly remember her childhood dreams... Professional ice-skater was one of those. Good times. "I envy her." Mae replied with a light laugh. "Having a good imagination would help me a bunch with those bed-time stories..." Indeed, it would. Alas, she had to resort to books, comics and the like for good bedtime stories. It was a little sad she couldn't tell her something fresh and unique, but at least the experience was still magical to Kayle, and it got the job done, so she had no real reason to complain. "Hehe, Yeah, no kidding. Math and children, as I have found out the hard way, just doesn't mix. In fact, I don't paticularly fancy the subject either. But when it's simple stuff like that for firstgraders like Kayle, I'll manage... I just hope she won't ask me for help with highschool..." That would be a headache, to say the least. Oh dear, how she really didn't look forward to that...

The android chuckled a bit at her statement of watching them grow, and like her he also put thought into how he would handle the goodbye. He couldn't hover over her forever, and eventually Maria would grow up and not want to be catered to. What on earth would he do then? Would he let her go...or simply watch over her from a distance? The android did not know...after all he had a group of directives he was to follow at all points in time. Sentinel set that aside for further consideration....there was a lot he had to do and think about before then.

Upon hearing what Kayle wanted to be when she grew up, "She sounds like she wants to have quite a few interesting adventures if you ask me. You should encourage her to explore every single one to see which one she truly enjoys. It also makes some sense to be envious of her youth and imagination, we all tend to lose that as we grow older. It's a shame, but we should do all we can to keep their imagination alive." He said, offering her a smile, "You never know when such an imagination can keep you from explaining a difficult high school math problem, when their imagination finds another way to explain it. But even if she can't figure out that sort of math, I'm sure you can handle whatever she asks you about. You know it, you just need to take a moment and remember what it is all about." The android said, attempting to encourage Mae at least a little bit!