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Richard nodded.
"Yeah, they are."
Reflection in the Dark (closed)
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"But they should still be in Italy…" He mused aloud. "Not that it matters, but do you know where they are?"
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Richard shook his head.
"We don't really talk about it; this world doesn't have the same geography as yours, and my parents live right next door to me."
"Strange… well, I hope I never see them again." Scipio laughed weakly. "Would've killed them first if I could get to Italy."
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Richard blanched slightly.
"That sounds about right." Finally, Merlin stepped back to the two men.
"Well, boys, seems Scipio here will be stuck here for a while. I have a spell, but it takes a while to prepare. Richard, think you could keep an eye on Scipio and make sure he doesn't kill any people?"
Scipio huffed and turned his head away, crossing his arms. "How long will it take?"
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"A week, at least." Merlin seemed very displeased with this.
"Well, Richard?" Richard hastily nodded.
"I won't let him get into trouble, sir."
"Good. Now, I need to work." With that and a wave of his hand, they were dismissed.
"Where are we now?" Scipio asked in a pissy tone, looking around at their new surroundings with a glare.
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"My house," Richard said, making his way up the walk. The neighborhood itself looked like a standard American urban setting; houses, which rarely varied in design, lined the street with well taken care of lawns laying in front of them.
"Come on inside."
Scipio reluctantly followed Richard to his house, stepping inside. He looked around, still pissed, but noticeably curious.
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The house, while sparing with furniture, was obviously well kept and gave off a homey atmosphere. A stairway led to the upstairs, while the doorway to the right opened to the kitchen and the left to the living room.
"Welcome to my humble abode. I don't spend much time here, but it's a place to rest."
"Can dogs live a week without food or water?" Scipio asked, not paying much mind to the tour.
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"I think you're good on the food, but I don't know about water…" Seeing that Scipio didn't really care, he simply walked into the living room and sat down.
Scipio draped himself across a chair, groaning. "If Ragno is dead when I get back I'm gonna be pissed."
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"Yeah. More likely than not Rafael would die too." At the mention of his name, Rafael came scampering into the room, only to freeze at the sight of the two boys.
Scipio flipped right side up and surveyed the dog silently, deciding to let him approach if he wanted to. He was far better with animals than people.
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Finally, the dog made his way towards Scipio and sniffed at him. Seemingly satisfied, Rafael jumped up onto Scipio, tail wagging.
"Ugh, betrayed by my own dog," Richard chuckled.
Scipio pet Rafael quietly, a slight smirk tugging at his lips. He scratched behind the dog's ears, which had always been a sweet spot for his own dog.
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Rafael seemed to act exactly like Scipio's dog. Richard smiled at the two.
"Good to see you're getting along."
"Dogs are better than people." Scipio said simply, stroking Rafael's head.
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Richard nodded.
"Even I have to agree with that."
"They don't care what you've done as long as you give them food and pets."" Scipio hummed as his watched Rafael's little nub tail wag. "You said my parents were next door?"
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"My parents are. Yours are still in the human world. And I swear to god you'd better not pull anything." Richard remembered what Scipio had said in Merlin's workshop, and he didn't much like that at all.
Scipio shrugged. "It might be better if I met an actually decent version of my parents."
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"Yes, well, just don't forget who they really are." Richard didn't really like the idea of having Scipio meet his parents, but it wouldn't hurt too much, right?
"Obviously, I expect you to supervise. You know me better than anyone, and you don't trust me, which is fair. I'm not stupid." Scipio continued petting Rafael.
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Richard nodded.
"So, well will you want to meet them? They might not be around, mind you, but I can always call right before we go over."
"I guess so… like I said, it could help some of the enmity I hold for my own parents."
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Richard nodded.
"I could always call them and see if we can come over now. If you don't want to wait, that is."
"Sure." Scipio flipped so he was laying across the chair with Rafael laying on his stomach.