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 Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2015 8:09 am
Poppy bounced up and down on the balls of her feet, looking around anxiously, standing on the sidewalk -- it was okay, right? She'd been dropped here and told her new family would take her home shortly, but that had been fifteen minutes ago, and people were starting to give her looks and it made her want to shrink into herself endlessly and never stop. (The weight of her hair being gone, too, that was strange -- she'd barely powered down for the past few weeks except for when she left Negaspace, and she'd slowly gotten used to the feel of it, but now it wasn't there and she couldn't hold it for comfort.) But there was a glimpse of seafoam hair coming this way, a girl maybe a few years older than Poppy herself, so she perked up a little -- arms still held close to her body like a lifeline, yes, but less tightly. Maybe that was her. Maybe that was the girl. She'd probably just been held up, right? That was probably just it. Things were probably alright. But she didn't want to look embarrassing if she was wrong, so she didn't gesture, didn't wave...only, of course, she waited. Poppy was starting to figure out she was pretty good at waiting, anyways.
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Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2015 6:10 am
Desdemona was, to put it lightly, thrilled. After all, this fell under the umbrella of a huge responsibility, and more than that, she was literally giving back what she had taken from the Negaverse when she'd come, taking in one of her own and giving them a chance just like Elle had given her a chance.
No, the situation was not the same. She doubted many situations would be; she'd been in a hell of a way when Elle had taken her home that first night. She would never forget the tears she'd shed in the bath that night, how drained and exhausted and weak she'd felt afterwards. Then she'd come out to warm, soft pajamas and the scent of chicken noodle soup, and that'd been the start of the road that led her to today.
Today, she would be the start of Poppy's road. And she couldn't wait to see where it took her.
The first thought she had when she saw her new charge was how much sense it made that they'd been paired off - or the girl she assumed to be, perking up when she saw Desdemona walking towards her, arms tight and protective around herself. They looked like they could be family, and really, maybe they had been. Desdemona wouldn't have remembered one way or the other anyway.
To greet her, Desdemona was all warm smiles. "You must be Poppy?" and it was more of a statement than a question, but really, one could never be totally sure. "Sorry I took like fifteen years, but there's this bakery I've started going to, and they make really good croissants - " and she held out the brown paper bag. " - but there was this really huge line and it's okay if you don't remember if you like these or not, I won't be mad if you don't, but you should definitely try them."
Like an afterthought, she added, "Oh! I'm Desdemona, by the way - just Des is fine!"
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Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2015 10:17 am
Poppy gave the brightest hesitant smile a girl could possibly give when Desdemona started talking, but she didn't open her mouth until the sentence was all done. They really did look like one another, at least color-wise -- maybe they had been related, once upon a time! It wasn't like Poppy would know, either; her memories covered about two weeks total and occasional flashes of deja vu. Such a memory state rendered her more than a tad incapable of figuring out her extended family, in any way, shape, or form.
"Yes, I'm Poppy -" she yawned and then immediately covered her mouth in embarrassment - "I'm sorry, I'm just tired, you're not boring or anything I'm just really tired - and it's okay, really, I don't mind...! I wasn't waiting long." With a tentative hand, Poppy took the bag, using her other now-free hand to reach in, grab a croissant, and take a bite: "...I don't really remember anything, but these are delicious. Thank you so much! I mean, um, I don't want to be a food hog or anything..." She ducked her head close to her chest, trailing off into nervous silence, and didn't quite look Desdemona in the eyes.
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Posted: Mon Aug 24, 2015 5:31 am
What a precious smile this girl had.
Also?
Personal space: Desdemona cared little to none. So when Poppy was standing there apologizing and basically being all around adorable, her de-facto caretaker flashed her another winning smile and reached out, tugging her closer and kissing her sweetly on the top of the head. "No need to be sorry, " she assured her warmly. "This kind of thing can be exhausting. You should've seen me."
Just watching her eat a bite of the croissant and light up like that made it totally worth it. Look at her, already being a great caretaker! Though she had to laugh at the 'food hog' thing. "Please. One bite of the croissants I got for you doesn't make you a hog, " she teased, slinging an arm around the younger girl's shoulders. "Poppy's a very cute name, by the way - you pick that?" she asked more quietly, just in case anyone happened to be listening. Never did know. "I don't know if they told you, but I'm Desdemona - pick any nickname you want, I know it's a mouthful - and I did pick that, " and she sounded pretty proud of herself for it, even if it was really little more than a stage name. With a gentle little tug, she started to lead the girl back with her, towards the apartment that would soon be her home.
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Posted: Tue Aug 25, 2015 6:32 am
The positive attention made Poppy blush, still ducking her head, but smiling all the while. "If you say so, I guess it's ok," came the admission, and she took little nibbling bites of the croissant. And even quieter -- "I did. I'm glad you like it...I did a lot of reading up on my powered name while I was waiting, and it helped a lot with choosing a name that worked." She didn't much mind the personal space invasion that Desdemona personified - if anything, it was nice to have someone be affectionate, because everyone she'd seen and even really remembered in all of living memory had been more...not standoffish, exactly, but. Official! Alternatively, they'd been cats, and although cats were nice their standards on physical contact weren't really the same as human standards.
The point was, cats weren't human-sized beings and did not offer good hugs. But this? This was infinitely better.
"That's a really pretty name, Desdemona," and although Poppy stumbled over the name a bit, she beamed when it came out without any stuttering or mumbling. "It fits you! You're really pretty, too."
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Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2015 11:55 pm
"Did you?" Desdemona flashed her a smile as they went, passing by shops and people alike. She paid them no mind, minus a passing glance at someone whose eyes lingered on her shorts a little too long. Not the time.
It wasn't a far walk to the apartment. She could already see the building up ahead. "Tell me more about it - I'd like to hear the connection, " and she sounded as engaged as she was. Poppy was her charge now, after all; that meant whole, undivided attention.
Still. She glowed with pride at the praise, reaching in and pinching Poppy's cheek affectionately. "Just for that, you can have ice cream for dinner, " she teased, pressing another affectionate little kiss to the side of her charge's head. "We're here. - third floor, " because Poppy was going to have to know things like that, like that the elevator was slow and that sometimes the key would want to catch in the door and she'd need to jiggle it free. Tiny things like that. "I'll give you the spare key later, " speaking of key. As they made their way inside, it was obvious with was not a bad place to live. Upstairs the apartment itself was nice and sizable, still with Elle's flair for style more than Desdemona's, and the rent was still covered.
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Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 12:14 pm
Poppy didn't get the same looks in any capacity -- not that she noticed, cared, or wanted to receive them in the first place. Desdemona's attention was about as much as she could take, and who would look twice at a short, pudgy girl in loose, oversized clothes? Not nearly the amount of people who would look twice at her 'sister'.
"It's not really a connection," and she sounded a little embarrassed, "but Warhol did some flower paintings, and he did this one painting of flowers that people liked to say was of poppies, and I just thought it sounded really nice as a name...and it's not long or hard to pronounce or anything, so I decided it worked. How'd you choose yours?"
Then she went quiet as they entered the apartment building, taking in all that she could, nodding firmly at the mention of 'third floor' - and then, another nod at the mention of a spare key. If she talked, she might forget basic, important things like those, and then what kind of a good charge would she be? The ideal was to be good, to be perfect, to do what she could to the people who helped her -- and she loved Desdemona already.
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Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:31 pm
Regardless of people's attention or lack thereof, Poppy certainly had Desdemona's in undivided spades. "What a creative girl you are, " she crooned sweetly, ruffling her hair again. "It's so cute, too - it definitely suits you. Small and sweet."
As for Desdemona, well - no one had actually asked her before, and she looked a bit tickled when Poppy did. "Desdemona was undyingly loyal to her husband, drowning in her own passion, " she explained, toying with a strand of her new charge's hair. "People doubted her - even her husband - but her loyalty and her love made her strong in ways no one could comprehend. That's why I chose that name; I wasn't strong when I corrupted, " and her voice had dropped again, of course, "But I think - that kind of strength might be what Laurelite saw in me. It was all I had, and I don't want to forget that."
If only she knew how twisted that love and loyalty had become.
"This is your room!" she declared excitedly as she let Poppy in; it had actually been Desdemona's room. She'd shifted into Elle's when she'd been moved, wanting to feel closer to her. Really, she still missed her rather terribly, but she wasn't about to question the "why"s and "how"s of her - wherever they'd sent her. "There's clothes, too - but if they don't fit it's totally cool. We can go shopping later!"
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 7:54 pm
The compliments without end did make Poppy shrink into herself, a little -- it was too much all at once, a little overwhelming, and she stopped really meeting Desdemona's eyes, choosing instead to focus on the floor. (It was, admittedly, a fairly nice floor; but that wasn't the point in discussion here.) "That's really pretty. You have way better reasoning than I do...but you seem really strong. I can't picture you being weak." A deep breath, and even despite the fact she still wouldn't maintain eye contact, Poppy was back to normal volume. "I don't really know anything about why Laurelite chose me -- except that I was wrong, whatever I was doing before. But I can't...remember anything at all." Her face grew frustrated, one hand unconsciously pulling at seafoam hair. "It's all blank. Sometimes I see people, or shops, and it makes me think I might get something back, but...it's nothing more than a little nudge in my head that I used to know that, or I used to feel something about that. The Captain who brought me in...he said I'd known him, but he wasn't familiar at all. Have you gotten anything back?"
Then they hit her room, and Poppy did almost glow a little, shifting up on tiptoes to survey things. "No, I mean -- it's okay, I don't think I care about clothes too much...I was in pajamas the first time I powered down -- but this room looks great, thank you so much -" and she was enfolding Desdemona in a big hug, head buried in the older girl's shirt.frayedflower how tall is desdemona, again? :O poppy is 5'2, so i assumed desdemona's taller than her
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Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 2:44 am
Desdemona felt a little concerned when she saw the girl shrink, wondering if she'd pushed her or something - a tiny hint of anxiety embedded itself in the pit of her stomach, that maybe, just maybe, Poppy wouldn't end up liking her after all.
God she hoped not.
"No, no - I think your reasoning is great, " but as for strength, she had to smile, had to hold her head a little higher in spite of that tiny kernel of doubt. "Good." Once, that had been all she wanted for; enough power where no one could break her. Where she could look herself in the mirror without shame. She'd long since passed that threshold...
... and she found herself wanting more. More and more and more.
Her smile softened as she plopped a hand on top of Poppy's head, gently ruffling her hair. "I'll know what things are, like movies and games - but no details. As for personal stuff, just bits and piece - mostly bad. I have a lot of dreams. I used to have... flashbacks, I guess, " she mused out loud. "Not as much anymore, since I hit super I mean. - I'd honestly have preferred to be blank, " she admitted, flashing her charge a wry smile.
"The Order abandoned me. Left me to die. - do you think they did the same thing to you?" and she asked with a hint of concern in her voice now, because she really didn't want to have touched a nerve. It was still a sore spot for her, even. No amount of power had been enough to counter that bubbling pit of resentment their betrayal had wrought. "Laurelite sees potential in people, even when they can't see it themselves, " and her tone had shifted to adoring, loving even. "That's what makes her an amazing General-Queen. We're so lucky to have her."
Then, all of a sudden, a few words of thanks and Desdemona had a pair of arms wrapped around her - and for a moment the ever-affectionate girl was taken by surprise. But the kernel of doubt that'd lodged itself in her gut was gone, and she laughed softly, flinging her arms tightly around Poppy. "Of course honey. Anything you need. We're family now, you know."
Not that Desdemona would know it - she wouldn't remember - but Natalie, flanked on either side by a younger brother and an elder, had always wanted a sister. Maybe she'd lost everything else. But at least she'd finally gotten this.
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Posted: Tue Sep 01, 2015 2:29 pm
"I don't know," Poppy whimpered, clinging to Desdemona both like a lifeline and like her best friend. "I don't really have any dreams about it; there's a woman with purple hair in my dreams, but pretty much the only things I remember are from being a civilian. But Laurelite is so good, I don't deserve her helping me..."
"Yeah. We're family now. Thank you so much." And even if just for that moment, Poppy never wanted to let go. Ivy had been a child lonely in her own home -- at least she'd have something now, even if any difference wasn't in her head any longer. At least, now, she'd have this.frayedflower this tag is....so tiny....rip wrap on my end i think!!
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Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2015 6:32 pm
"You do, " Desdemona stroked her hair soothingly, remembering the same feelings in being a lesser, of not being valuable enough, important enough, "You do deserve it, and you will prove to yourself and everyone else that you do. - and you don't even have to prove yourself to me, " and she gave her another kiss on the head, "Because you already have."
Her smile broadened, and she held her new sister a little tighter, a little more securely, a little more possessively. "We are. We are a family now." And she was never, ever letting go.
Daekie My tag is tiny too, and I tihnk we're safe to wrap it! biggrin They're so cute <3
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