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 Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 10:38 pm
The bluenette glowed, like she always did when Giselle told her she was right. It meant a lot to be right, as it should because it was good to be right, it meant no one could argue with you! And that meant everyone could be happy, which was good too. "Don't remember how she died," said Elke meditatively. She'd have to look that up--
"Don't talk like that," she whined, bringing her plate over and then gripping it tightly so Giselle couldn't take it and wash it for her. "Nobody's dying. Nobody." She remembered, though, the memorial services - and the student made of blood - and the meningitis - and Elke turned slightly green, which really meant she looked rather queasy. "Maryelizabethedward," she said all in one breath. Sure, she wasn't going to hurl over just thinking about blood, but why take risks?
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 11:41 pm
Giselle turned to look at her, then moved over so Elke could have a clear path to the sink. She was looking pretty green and vomiting was simply untidy.
Not that Giselle could blame her, all things considered. Her glance softened slightly and she said "Correct, although you left out illegitimates, stilborns, and early deaths. Now, in what order did they reign?"
Had she been brought up to be more sensitive, she could have done something more. Comforted Elke more successfully, maybe. As it was, focusing on history was all she could do. She was more emotionally isolated than Imperial China was physically when it closed its metaphorical gates. But people were dying, which was certainly unusual. And she had heard stories about the states of the bodies.
Bullying gone too far, perhaps, but she couldn't forget the girl at her window. Something was wrong here, and she didn't know what, because nothing was making sense. Coupled with the dream that both she and Elke had apparently both had at once, it made for intense, seething frustration on her part. She was supposed to be in control. That was how it had always worked, if she just sat down and thought, she could figure out any situation.
No matter whether things made sense or not, she couldn't let Elke think she was worried. She was in charge of Elke. She had to at least appear to know exactly what to do. And as soon as she woke up, she would. Two deaths in a school year was unusual, yes, but hardly unheard of. As for the blood girl, there had to be some way that someone could make a prank like that, could...
Could fool a blood test.
Her neighbour was Frankie, she reminded herself. Frankie had lots of blood, and not just in her body.
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 11:48 pm
"Wouldn't they have reigned in that order," asked Elke, who didn't remember this part. She was washing her plate now, looked a little better than before now that her hands and her head were doing something. "'Cause of that whole born first thing?"
Probably that wasn't how it worked. It never really was.
She finished washing the plate and put it in the dish strainer. Wiped her hands on a towel - it was nice not to have to share a kitchen with Fallon, who was probably insane but that was okay because she was a good cook, but she was absolutely nuts - and then, without warning (except the warning of hello I am Elke) she hugged Giselle and clung there like a little kid around her big sister.
"We're all gonna be okay, right? Nothing bad's gonna happen any more, right?" There was a running undertone of of course we are please say of course we are.
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Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 11:16 am
"No." said Giselle, and offered no more than that. Giselle did not give hints. hints were for people who had not done the reading.
But whereas Elke had perhaps not read her textbook carefully enough, Giselle had not read Elke carefully enough, because the hug made her go rigid with surprise. Touching her, people touching her, she didn't like people touching her. Giselle maintained her boundaries with walls of books, icy stares, and strictly regulated buns, and people usually left her alone. She hardly even hugged her mother.
Trying to pry Elke gently off, she bit her lip. "Don't be ridiculous. Of course not, nothing bad has happened. Just unfortunate things." History had no good and bad. History was not supposed to make a distinction, and so Giselle tried not to. "Now," she added, trying desperately to think of what her mother might do in this situation (which was difficult, because Giselle would never act like Elke), "The dishes are all washed up. We should get ready for the day. The sooner you get going, the sooner you'll get over it."
Whatever it was. Giselle wasn't even sure she knew what she was trying to get over, not exactly. She got up to leave the kitchen, but since she was Giselle, she paused. "But first," she said, "Tell me what order they reigned in."
It was going to be a long day.
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Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 7:51 pm
"Uh," said Elke. There was a long, long pause before she finally continued, "Maybe Edward and then the whole age thing? So Edward Mary Elizabeth?" Which really made no sense but it sounded right...
She let go of Giselle after a minute, dropped her hands to her sides and smiled. "You're silly, Giselle," she said. "I'll see you later, okay?"
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Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:50 pm
Giselle gave Elke a slight nod. "Correct."
Which was nearly 'I'm proud of you.' Which was a start.
"Hardly." she replied to Elke's 'silly' comment, but at least there was no more hugging. And though it seemed hardly likely, she added, "Have a nice day." They could live in hope, she supposed.
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