curiously_cora | (no subject)

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Coraline was loving being a grown up. Not only could she drink and kiss boys and stay up as late as she wanted but she'd made a whole load of new friends and she was going into dino territory again unaccompanied. Well, accompanied by Aidan but that didn't count. Aidan was cool, Aidan was friends with ghosts and werewolves which was an idea that Coraline could defintely get behind. And besides it wasn't like she was going to get into trouble. Well, it wasn't like she was purposefully going to try to get into trouble.

"You're late," Coraline said as she heard someone approach her from behind. Bent over Coraline was trying to tie the laces on her boots and was scowling something fierce at them. Coraline had forgotten how irritating laces were, wearing wellies was far easier but that would led to some uncomfortable questions from certain people. Besides she didn't want people interrogating or stopping her when she was off to explore. "You know you're not supposed to keep a lady waiting."

Coraline stood up, pulling her t-shirt down from where it had ridden up and turned to face Aidan.

"I'm kidding, I haven't been waiting at all. I just wanted to make you fear my terrible wrath. Are you excited?" Coraline asked Aidan curiously with a bright, easy smile.

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"Sure, sure." Coraline said chuckling as Aidan jogged to keep up with her. Coraline slowed down a little, waiting for him to catch up before she nudged him with her hip. "Well, don't worry about going slow with me. I can keep up and I don't wear out easy. My dad used to joke I was like that duracell bunny advert. I keep going on and on and on."

Coraline laughed, smiling at the memory. Her father would occasionally, when he remembered, take her out on long trips of exploration in the vain hopes of tiring her out. It very rarely worked.

"She sounds nice, I mean most ghosts are nice. And even if they're angry, they usually have a really good reason why." Coraline said, thinking about it. "What about you? What are you like?"

Being able to go on and on definitely sounded good to Aidan, and he wondered if she was hinting that she'd be up for something after the hike. She certainly flirted like this was more than just a good excuse to see the dinosaurs.

"Alright, no holding back then," Aidan said, setting a bit faster pace than they had been going before. "And most ghosts that are angry are only angry about one or two things. Unfortunately that... prevents them from resolving things and moving on most of the time. And me? Quiet, I guess. Not much interesting about me."

Which was a lie, but Aidan wasn't really big into opening up to people right away.

"Not interesting? Says the man who was a vampire carrying a gun as he goes to see dinosaurs with me. No, I think you're right. I think you must be pretty dull," Coraline said grinning at Aidan as she bit her lip and nudged him cheekily. Coraline picked up the pace to keep up with Aidan. Despite what she thought about trainers and boots Coraline had to admit it was rather freeing to be rid of her wellies. "Where did you get the gun from anyway? Not that many people have them round here, I just have my knife and sometimes I borrow a sword from one of my friends."

"You don't survive over two hundred years without learning to be prepared," Aidan said, smiling with her as he nudged her back. She was definitely looking for excuses to touch him, which he was taking as a good sign.

"I brought it up from Rapture," he explained. "They had some sort of rocket launcher down there too, but I don't think the police on the island here would have let me keep that. Although it would definitely be more effective than this pistol against any out of control dinosaurs."

"Cheeky," Coraline said scrunching up her face and smiling at him when he nudged her back. Coraline hit his arm lightly with her free hand, fingers curling around his muscled arm and squeezing gently before she let go. Coraline shook her head at him and sighed. "See, that's not uninteresting a gun and a rocket launcher. I'm so jealous, I wasn't allowed near Rapture. Trouble has a habit of following me around like a lost puppy."

Coraline smiled at Aidan, biting her lip as she glanced at the weapon and then up at him. "Could you show me how to use it? I've never shot a gun before, I've always wanted to though." Coraline asked.

"Good thing you seem like you'd be worth a lot of trouble, otherwise I'd be worried about heading off with you to see a bunch of dinosaurs," Aidan joked.

Aidan considered if he should show her to use the gun for about half a second before the biting lip and big curious eyes got to him. He could have resisted, you build up an immunity to that sort of thing over time, but in this case it seemed more fun to indulge.

"Sure," he said with a nod. He pulled the gun out of the makeshift holster and put an arm around her waist, gently pushing her so that he was behind her, handing her the gun.

"This way if I get eaten, you can try to avenge me."

"People only end up in hospital some of the time. Besides I've always loved playing Doctor," Coraline said honestly. A warm flush spread across her face as Aidan placed his hand on her waist, smiling curiously she turned her head to look at him before she took the gun. Brushing her hair back she stepped back against Aidan's warm body and let out a soft pleased gasp as she gripped the gun in her hand. Aidan was so cool. "Don't worry if you get eaten I'll make sure you're very avenged. Okay, so show me what to do so I can avenge you properly."

"I'm actually a nurse, but if I need medical attention, maybe next time I'll seek you out," he said, settling in behind her as he wrapped both arms around her to help her hold the gun. As fun as this was going to be and as much as he liked pressing up against her, learning to shoot was a serious thing. He wasn't going to half ass this.

"First rule of shooting is always treat every gun as if it's loaded. Always. Second is never point it at anything you're not intending or willing to shoot. Next is never put your finger on the trigger until you're ready to shoot. Finally, always be sure of your target and what's behind it. Now repeat the rules back to me."

"A nurse? Really?" Coraline asked surprised and pleased by that. Coraline laughed, though she didn't nudge him this time all too aware of the gun in her hand. "Maybe you should get proper medical attention and then I'll come and make you feel better afterwards."

Coraline took a breath, stepping into Aidan's arms as he wrapped them around her. Looking at the gun and focusing on her hands she took a breath before repeating the rules back to him.

"Rule number one always treat the gun as if it's loaded. Number two, no pointing it anyone or anything unless I'm shooting. Number three, no trigger happy fingers. Keep them off the trigger until ready. And four, always be sure of your target and what's behind it. Did I get them right?" Coraline asked, glancing at him with a pleased smile on her face.

"Yeah, really," he said with a nod. For some reason being a male nurse always got more of a reaction here than being a vampire did. "And I'm sure you could make me feel a lot better."

The offer was good enough that Aidan would almost be willing to get hurt on purpose.

"And that's perfect," he said with a nod, shifting positions slightly again. And if that happened to bring his mouth a bit closer to her ear, that was just a bonus. "Now, you grip the gun with your dominant hand high on the back, this helps you with the recoil when you fire. You'll want to put the other hand underneath, cupping the gun to help you support it up."

"That's cool. Being a nurse I mean and I bet you I could make you feel better." Coraline said genuinely, smiling as Aidan shifted behind her. Coraline licked her lips, shivering when his breath brushed across her ear and neck as he leaned in close. Glancing at him from the corner of her eye, Coraline stared at him curiously before following his lead and gripping the gun as told. "I've been warned about recoil before, are you going to catch me if I fall on my b- arse?

Coraline followed his instructions carefully, tilting her head to look at him.

"It's just a handgun, I promise you won't fall on your ass," he reassures her. He could see and feel that she was fairly strong and doubted the kick would be too much for her.

"You do want to open up your stance just a bit though, one foot a bit in front of the other."

"Would a rocket launcher make me fall on my arse? Just so I know in advance, I mean if I'm really going to avenge your untimely demise I should probably go all out." Coraline asked curiously, a hint of mischief on her face at the thought. Coraline stepped forward a little, shifting until she was comfortable and a little more secure on her feet. The fact that she was closer to Aidan didn't cross her mind for a second. "That better?"

"Shift just a bit," Aidan said, placing his hands on her hips to turn then just slightly.

"Now, you focus through your dominant eye. The target you're shooting as should be blurry, your front sight the most clear, and your back sight a little blurry. What are you going to use as a target?"

"Mmmm, that tree." Coraline said, shifting as Aidan placed his hands on her hips and moved her ever so slightly. Biting her lip Coraline glanced down at his hands and wondered if Danny would count this as below the waist. Then again what Danny didn't know wouldn't give him a heart attack or get her grounded. She doubted he'd be pleased that she was shooting a gun with Aidan anyway let alone if his hands were technically lower than her waist. "It's... big and thick and the bullets should lodge in there, right?"

"And there are plenty of other trees behind it. Try for that tree at eye level," he said. It was slightly ambiguous, but that way she could focus on centering it on the tree, making aiming slightly less difficult.

"You want to relax, and squeeze the trigger on your exhale. Squeeze is the key word, you're not actually pulling it. It should be a smooth and you should surprise yourself when it goes off, don't try to anticipate when it does," he told her, taking his hands off her hips and stepping back. "Try it when you're ready."

Coraline nodded, wetting her lips with her tongue before biting her bottom one as she concentrated and focused on aiming the gun at the tree he indicated. Coraline took a sharp breath in as his hands left her hips and glanced at Aidan before turning her attention to the gun and the tree.

Coraline took a deep breath before she gently squeezed the trigger only letting out a small eep at the loud noise and the recoil. It hit the tree, the bullet lodged in the trunk. Coraline exhaled, turning her head to smile brightly at Aidan. Coraline was definitely a fan of Aidan's, right now he was more awesome than Robin.

"That was so... brilliant. I could kiss you! That was just incredible, it's so strong." Coraline said excitedly as she waited for Aidan to come take the gun back.

Aidan almost took her up on the offer of the kiss, but he could tell it was more just an expression instead of an actual offer. Still, he could tell that he was definitely popular with her right now.

"Well done. Why don't you take a few more shots? Don't shoot rapid fire, but try and take one after the other in steady succession."

"Just two more, I mean we don't want to go into dino territory with no bullets at all because someone let me get carried away shooting." Coraline said, smiling brightly at Aidan. Coraline steadied herself, shifting in the spot before she aimed again at the tree. Taking a breath she squeezed the trigger once- twice before she stopped. "That... is so cool."

Coraline's shots weren't neat or centered around a point but she had at least hit the tree which was a plus in Cora's book. "Come on then Indiana, let's put the gun away and get going." Coraline grinned. As soon as he took the gun off her and put it away he was going to get a hug. This was the best day Ever.

Aidan was impressed that she had done as well as she had with the gun. She had a steady hand and a good sense of squeezing the trigger. Plus, she looked very good doing it. Taking the gun, Aidan emptied the chamber of the used shells and reloaded it with some ammunition from his backpack. Once that was done, he holstered it again and smiled at her.

"Alright, but if you want to practice again some other time, let me know."

Coraline bounded over, throwing her arms around Aidan and her body into him in a rather enthusiastic hug. Coraline squeezed him tight, as she buried her face against his neck and pressed her body tight against his. Coraline let go pulling back a little so she could look at him.

"Thank you! You're the best, seriously. Definitely not uninteresting," Coraline said smiling brightly at him.

Aidan was surprised by the hug, but it certainly wasn't unwelcome. She felt exceptionally good pressed against him like that, he definitely enjoyed her appreciation. His arms easily wrapped around her waist she pressed up against him and he loosely held her close.

"You've uncovered my secret," he said, giving her a small smile. "I'm actually pretty interesting."

"I knew it," Coraline said as if it was a great conspiracy. Coraline ran her hands over his shoulders before she dropped her hands away and let go of him. Coraline nudged him, grinning before she pulled away. "Come on we've got a whole load of dinosaurs to see and possibly rescue you from Nurse Aidan."

Coraline turned her head as she ran off, hair whipping around as she laughed.

"I prefer Aidan the Nurse, actually," he said, quickly catching up to her as they moved through the forest. The trees and vegetation meant they could go at a full out sprint, but they were able to make a decent enough pace.

"How will we know when we're in dinosaur territory? Is there some sort of fence or mark in the terrain?"

"Aidan the Nurse, Co-Caroline the explorer." Coraline said only slightly slipping up on her name. Coraline coughed to mask the slip up, pretending to be thirsty and taking her bottle of water out her bag. "An invisible fence actually. Well, not invisible but it's there pylons or something. The fence and the collars keep them locked in."

Coraline slowed down as they neared the boundary and smiled at Aidan. "So, are you ready or do you just want to... hang here and see if any come close to us."

Aidan didn't think anything of Caroline's 'slip', he had no reason to suspect that she was anyone other than who she said she was.

"An invisible fence, that's going to make it hard to tell when we get to it, isn't it?" he asked. Aidan had no problem courting danger, but he wasn't under any belief that he could outrun a dinosaur.

"And I guess if nothing is around, we should probably head on in."

"Pretty much so it's a good thing that you're with someone who knows the island like the back of her hand." Coraline said, taking Aidan's arm and leaning into his side. Coraline leaned up to mock whisper in his ear. "And with someone who has a map."

Coraline laughed, tugging on Aidan's arm as they got closer. Coraline couldn't see anything but you never knew. It always paid to be prepared and vigilant.

The way her lips felt against his ear gave him goosebumps, she really was a terrible flirt. Not that Aidan really minded that much, he was definitely enjoying his time wih Caroline.

"So how close are we?" he asked, more than happy to let himself be pulled along after her.

"Um, very. We kind of entered about two steps ago." Coraline said, nodding to the trees behind them. Coraline squeezed Aidan's arm before dropping her arm away as she walked towards a tall tree. Coraline knew sometimes the best way to see the dinosaurs without getting into trouble and giving Bill a migraine was to see them from up high. Coraline reached for Aidan and smiled at him. "Give me a bunk up, will you? We can see them better up here."

Edited 2011-08-13 18:49 (UTC)

"Sure," Aidan said, cupping his fingers and placing them on his leg so that she could boost up. He figured that if any dinosaurs were nearby, they'd hear them if they started to move, at least any of the larger ones.

"Any idea what types of dinosaurs are here or from what period?"

"Wow, you're really fit." Coraline said, as she placed her hands on his shoulders. Coraline lifted her leg up, putting her foot into his hand and waiting for him to boost her up. "We had wooly mammoths ones, that was at Christmas and I've seen a couple of others but I'm not sure what ones they were."

"I try to keep in shape," Aidan said, chuckling a bit. She made it sound like it had just occurred to her despite having seen him with his shirt off the day before.

"I wouldn't think the population of the island would be able to feed a large group of dinosaurs. Too many plant eaters and their vegetation would be gone, too many carnivores and they'd eat their food supply too fast."

"I think they replenish themselves like the people on the island? You know some disappear and then new people turn up. I think it's like that but with dinosaurs." Coraline said, reaching for a branch and pulling herself up into the tree. Coraline clamboured up into the tree easily like she did it a lot which was true because she did. "I don't know about the plants though, plants are usually robust enough and adapt to their environment just like everything else. My mum was a gardener, she taught me everything she knew."

"Makes sense," Aidan said with a nod. Trying to rationalize the island and think about it logically just left him frustrated. Whenever he ran up to something that didn't make sense, it ended up just being how the island worked.

"Can't say I've ever done much gardening."

"No? What did you do much of? Apart from nursing." Coraline asked curiously, as she climbed to a sturdy thick branch and sat down. Long legs dangling over the edge, Coraline leaned over and looked down at Aidan before patting the branch beside her. "Coming? Up, I mean."

"Mostly spent time with my roommates," he said. It didn't sound very exciting, but werewolf and ghost roommates came with a lot of their own excitement. Also, he wasn't quite ready to admit what some of his other activities were.

In answer to her question, Aidan took a jump and scrambled up the tree. He was still getting used to not having his vampire abilities, but fortunately climbing up the tree was still within the realm of what he could do.

"Really? What does a werewolf, a vampire and a ghost get up to? Wait, that sounds like the start of a really, really bad joke." Coraline said, waiting as he scrambled up the tree. Coraline brushed her fingers against Aidan's as she leaned against his side and waited to see if they could see anything. Coraline could definitely hear something further away, something large and lurching.

"Lots of Scrabble, big Scrabble fans in our house," he said, leaning slightly back against her. What they all did was generally try to manage the weirdness of their lives.

"I hate scrabble, I've never really been good at spelling." Coraline said scrunching her face up at the idea of playing Scrabble. "I prefer twister. That's much more fun. I'm very good at that."

Coraline grinned at Aidan before pointing excitedly. Coraline loved the brachiosaurus even if they were giant and therefore a little scary. "See over there, that dark shape. That's its neck and you should be able to see its head in a minute."

There weren't a lot of things that surprised Aidan anymore. Even before coming to the island, he'd seen a lot in his two hundred years and had spent much of that time perfecting a stoic exterior. At the sight of the dinosaur though, his eyes went wide with surprise.

"That... is a brachiosaurus."

"That's a brachiosaurus, I think they're the best and from here we get to see them without worrying about you know those ones in Jurassic Park. The ones who figured out the doors," Coraline said smiling at Aidan, her hand covering his as she leaned against him. Coraline swung her legs back and forth, dropping her head down against his shoulder as she watched the dinosaur happily.

Dinosaurs were definitely on the list of things that Aidan never thought he would see in person. No matter how long you lived, things didn't get less extinct, despite what science fiction insisted was going to happen.

"I'm glad you suggested this," he said, leaning his head on hers as he watched the dinosaur lumber into view.

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