Open: Well young lady, have you been good to your mother?

[biteybaby]

Sunny Baudelaire has been having quite an exciting time lately. For once, "exciting" means "filled with fun" and not "filled with terror, pain, panic, and an inordinate amount of running and hiding". Without the threat of Count Olaf and his associates finding her in an attempt to steal the Baudelaire fortune, Sunny has had more time for her studies. "Her studies" is a phrase which here means, "catching up on learning how to do things most people take for granted".

She has finally learned how to walk. She thinks the amount of words she is now able to say has increased. Magnu has even taught her a few things in sign language, which she finds is a little easier than speaking. The biggest news is that she now has five very sharp teeth, as opposed to the four she started with when she arrived.

Shortly before she arrived, Mr Poe had told the Baudelaires about an aphorism: It takes a village to raise a child. She wonders if that is why she has had so much time to grow. Her days are spent rotating around between several different guardians, babysitters, and friends, and it has been lovely. She hopes her siblings are having just as good of a time in the village of V.F.D.

Unfortunately I must report that her siblings are not having just as good of a time in the village of V.F.D., nor are they even still in the village of V.F.D. Sunny does not know this. It would probably be for the best if nobody tells her.

Comments

[lightbearinglord]

"Rice noodles," Lan Wangji corrects her -- politely, so that she'll know what is going into the dish. He gives it all a stir.

[biteybaby]

"Oh. Eyesnudels."

[lightbearinglord]

"Precisely." The noodles will take very little time to cook, as fresh as they are. "Will you help me deliver dinner to Wei Ying?"

[biteybaby]

"Uh huh!"

[lightbearinglord]

Her enthusiasm earns her a small, sincere smile. With a gesture, Lan Wangji snuffs the burner entirely, and then he begins dishing beef, noodles, and broth into the bear-patterned bowl Sunny so thoughtfully provided.

[biteybaby]

Sunny watches closely.

[lightbearinglord]

He finds a serving tray and arrays everything neatly: the bowl with the food, a spoon and a pair of chopsticks, a cup and a jar of Emperor's Smile that he retrieves from the liquor cabinet adjacent to the kitchen. It will all be askew shortly, and Wei Ying won't put half as much care into returning everything to its place; he doesn't care. Once everything is arranged, he scoops up Sunny with one arm and balances the food across his free hand.

[biteybaby]

Sunny is very impressed by his balancing skills, and she wonders if he has ever worked as a server in a restaurant. They all seem to be very skilled at carrying trays with plates and cups and bowls on top, usually without even spilling anything. She doesn't know if that is a prerequisite to the job, or if it is something most people pick up after training. She didn't need to balance trays of plates and cups and bowls when she has had jobs.

[lightbearinglord]

Wei Ying will be just expecting him. He may be growing bored with his work, or freshly inside from the woods and smelling of spring growth, or reclining on their bed with his hair around his shoulders and a lurid novel in his hands, a dozen teasing phrases of half-veiled love ready on his tongue. Lan Wangji knows that he will be delighted to see Sunny alongside his dinner, no matter what is occupying his time this evening. "Thank you for your help," he tells Sunny, and then he makes his way to the stairs, all of these precious things held with care.