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 Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 4:14 pm
Jordan was more subdued in his mannerisms than he’d been previously. He’d been sleeping only during the designated times Moreau had set for him and Jordan hadn’t strayed far from home in eight days, careful to avoid any run-ins during food runs and laundry days. His fight was dying down since Moreau had punished him. He didn’t want any more trouble and it was dawning on him that he wasn’t going to survive for too long on his own without the doctor’s help. Unaware of the second injection of the loyalty serum into his skull, as well as the mind-warping subliminals (and addition of newer ones synthethized from Jordan’s own voice), Jordan was content to believe that this was for the best. It was his fault that he was on the island and he had to take responsibility for his actions. He wouldn’t have to be punished more, as Doctor Moreau had said, if he didn’t fight against him. Afterall, Moreau cared for Jordan. At least, Jordan was comforted in believing that.
Jordan was sitting on the beach as he reveled in his thoughts. Indeed, how could he take the word of the islanders over Moreau? What justification made that valid? He was oblivious, lost in his own mind, to anything around him, not anticipating an ill-fated encounter with anyone this far out.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 4:41 pm
Freddie should have known the soreness would come back, she just didn't think it would happen that quickly. She felt more bloated than usual, and walking with all the added wait, plus the hooves, was incredibly awkward. This must be what walking in high heels felt like, which just went to show that women were crazy. She might be one now, she might even be wearing a skirt to hide the udder, but that didn't mean she had to like it. The soreness only got worse by the time she set foot on the beach, and walking on sand with her unsteady new feet proved to be even more difficult. She'd be damned if she'd give up and turn back now, when she was so close. She was panting and sweating, a cruel reminder of how easy it was to fall out of shape, but how the hell could anybody be expected to keep up on exercise when they were always changing and getting harrassed for no good reason? Some of the moisture soaking through her flowery shirt wasn't all sweat, but she did her best to put it out of her mind and focus on getting to the bar.
She didn't notice Jordan, not as long as she kept her eyes on where she was putting her feet. She could do this, she wasn't some gimp, she just had to keep putting one foot in front of the other, no matter how much they wobbled.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 4:51 pm
“I just need to watch myself. That’s all.” Jordan was talking to himself. “I have to prove myself doubly hard now, but nothing in life is easy.”
The rewiring of his mind over the past week was starting to show progress as he was less resistant. Hell, he wasn’t even resisting anymore. He was staying in his room almost twenty-four hours a day now and with only five hours to sleep, he was becoming more susceptible to the re-training.
The sound of panting broke his reverie and he looked around to see where it had originated from. When he spots Freddie coming along on the beach, he remains as calm as he can force himself to be. He completely freaked out on Richard and he couldn’t allow another slip like that. He did not want to be punished. Instead, he gave a weak smile. He wasn’t looking for any interaction, instead it had found him, whether either of them were aware of it.
“Hello there.” He called out calmly, softly.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 4:58 pm
Freddie jerked her head up and took a step back, surprised at how close she had passed to someone without even noticing. She was a little too quick about it, and being so top heavy with such comparatively dainty hooves was not a good combination where sudden moves were concerned. What was meant to be a single step back turned out to be several as her arms flew out to try and help her regain her balance. She couldn't, and so she ended up on her butt in the sand.
"Goddamn it!" she howled, pounding one hoof into the sand. "Why dontcha give people a li'l more warnin', huh?!"
Nevermind the fact it was her own fault.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:09 pm
“I’m sorry! I didn’t think anyone would be out here.” his voice was apologetic.
He rose as quickly as one can from sand, slipping as he got to his knees, and rushed over to help her up. Jordan extended a hand and gripped her wrist with the other, wanting to get Freddie to her feet. He tried to be on his best behavior. He needed to be.
“I’m really sorry, miss…” he paused, not knowing a name to go with the face and tried to supply leverage for her to get to her feet. “Are you alright? You’re not hurt are you?” Jordan wanted not to guess what she was becoming and did his best to focus on just helping her up.
He was worried this was his fault and that it would somehow come back to bite him in the rear.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:14 pm
"I'm fine!" Freddie angrily smacked Jordan's hand away, the offer for help, on top of getting called miss, only making her feel worse. Grunting, she swung her legs under her and slowly, awkwardly, and in a manner that made her skirt ride up to reveal the udder, she pushed herself up to her feet. Blushing furiously, she quickly pulled her skirt down.
"Just what the hell're you doin' out here, anyway? Huh?" Anything to try and divert attention away from the udder.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:26 pm
Okay. She didn’t need his help. That was fine. Maybe smacking his hand away was a bit over the top and melodramatic, but she was fine. He turned his head slightly to the side to avoid embarrassment on either party when her skirt revealed the bovine utter. Well… that pretty much answered the ‘What is she?’ question..
He pulled down the brim of his cap just a bit and then there was the subject change! ‘Thank you!’ he said in his mind. Even an angry conversation change was welcomed over an awkward moment.
Jordan had to pause for a moment. At first he wanted to say that he lived on the beach, that his duplex wasn’t too far out of the way from where they were, but he hesitated. He had to be careful what he said and to whom he said it to. Paranoia was nestled in Jordan’s panicked mind. The thought of what could happen to him or anyone he dealt with was enough to make him lie for their –mostly his- protection.
“Oh… uhm… what’m I doing out here..?” he stalled his words till he could think of something believable. With luck, he could play it off in reaction to her hostility. Doubtful, though. “I was… just out to meet somebody, but they never showed. So, I didn’t feel like going home yet.” Yes, that would do. “And I was in my own little world because I was upset they didn’t show up and that’s why I didn’t notice you.” He felt weird making up such a stupid lie, but he couldn’t repeat his mistakes. He was afraid of getting too close to another islander.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:33 pm
Freddie zoned out after the second sentence, but she at least caught the flimsy excuse of being out there to meet someone. She snorted, then quickly wiped her nose, trying to cover for the fact she hadn't meant to make a noise like that.
"Oh yeah?" She put one hand on her hips, a habit she hadn't even noticed. Maybe it just came naturally when they got to be that wide. It gave her an chance to smooth her skirt a little more before she looked back at Jordan and smirked. "Who?"
She didn't really want to know, she didn't even care, and the longer she stood there the longer she'd be kept from grabbing a bottle of something to take home. But then, she'd take any opportunity to needle someone she could get. Despite all the milk laden soreness, it felt good to be back to her old sophomoric tricks.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:45 pm
Oh crap! She wanted to know who?? Crap, crap, crap… Quickly, his mind was reelign to remember the names he’d heard: Awen, Richard, Joliette, Newt, Lily, David… er Chubbs… He certainly didn’t know if she knew anyone he’d met, so he wouldn’t name anyone that could come back to him and bite his head off- literally in the case of the komodo.
Jordan was caught in the corner of a lie and feeling intimidated as he shuffled his feet in the sand. He had to say something! Quickly! Someone he didn’t know! He couldn’t say Chubbs, because he was Joli’s boyfriend… again, head-biteyness! He took a shaky breath as his lips parted, moistening them with his tongue.
“Newt! I was waiting for Newt!” he shouted. Well… that didn’t go well. He hadn’t meant to raise his voice like that and he didn’t like the idea of having to lie his way out of an even more awkward situation, but at the moment, it was the lesser of two evils. He didn’t know Newt. Newt didn’t know him. Good luck if word ever got back to the frogman! He wouldn’t find Jordan. That was his thinking at least…
He placed his fist over his mouth and coughed into it not-so-subtly. “He was supposed to be here half an hour ago and he didn’t leave a note or tell me beforehand if he had anything to do. I’m so mad at him.” Though his subdued demeanor was quite contrary to it.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 5:50 pm
Freddie bristled at the mention of the name, memories of their last disasterous encounter killing the feeble beginnings of a good mood. "That dipshit? So this was what, some kinda romantic ran-dey-voo?" She may have managed to pronounce the word right, having never seen it spelled, but dragging out the syllables only made her accent on it that much.
She glanced over at the waves and snorted with laughter again, not thinking to try and cover it up. "Wow, an' right on the beach, jus' like in the movies. Ain't that sweet..." She reached out and patted one hoof-like hand on his shoulder. "Sorry he stoodja up then. Woulda been magical."
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:05 pm
Oh no… How was it even possible with so many subjects on the island that THIS one knew Newt! Crap! He didn’t even know who the guy was and she knew who he was!
Jordan lurched back and nearly tripped over his own feet. What had he gone and gotten himself into?? “I’m sorry you don’t like him, but that gives you no right to take it out on me. Can’t a guy meet someone on the beach without his sexuality coming into question?” he wasn’t holding this charade together too well. Certainly, it hadn’t been thought through and it wasn’t one of his better ideas. Jordan had to watch himself. He couldn’t screw up again.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to outburst like that.” He brushed the hoofhand from his shoulder. “We got off to the wrong hoof.” His heart sank as it took a few moments to realize what he’d just said. Crap.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:22 pm
Freddie's hand slipped to her side, but it was hard to ball a proper fist with her fingers as deformed as they were. "What did you say?" she hissed, her voice low with the sudden jolt of rage. It was still a sore subject, along with everyone else, and what was worse her antagonistic losing streak was only continuing.
"Oh, I get it, you think yer so much better'n me cause you're still normal, is that it?"
Her nostrils flared, her ears twitched, and yet given the new arrangement of her facial features it only made her look more comical that frightening.
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:34 pm
His heart sank and he bit his lip more.
“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to say tha—what I meant was we got off on the wrong foot. I didn’t mean to say hoof..” There was no mistaking he pressed the wrong button with that slip of the tongue. And then he had to go and say it again! ARGH! How stupid could he be?!
“No.. I don’t think I’m better, but I— please believe me, it was an honest mistake” he took a few steps back, just in case she were to get physically aggressive, which, he might deserve for repeating it a second time. “Let’s just say we let bygones be bygones. You got a ood jab at me, I got an unintentional one in. We’re even.” He tried to force a nervous smile. What was he going on about??
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:38 pm
Freddie frowned at Jordan. The moment for violence had passed, and yet she was still curious. "So... Are ya a f**, or aren't you?
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:43 pm
His shades actually slid down his nose with the look of shock he gave her. Jordan blinked at the very bold nature of the inquery and he could only stare dumbfounded at her.
“I…uh… I…” he stammered on the words caught in his throat. “What business is it of yours? Why do you want to know? Forming a club?”
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