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 Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 4:44 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 4:50 pm
Liam peered a bit warily about the room. Eight people who often experienced assorted sleep issues, one room, three beds and a couch. Well...the couch was big enough to not seem like an utter pervert, wasn't it? They weren't exactly the largest people on the face of the planet...
"Auntie Crow!"
"Hey, Crow...watcha doin' here?" Rabid arched an eyebrow, holding onto her youngest daughter's hand.
"The gang's all here..."
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 4:55 pm
Crow waved, momentarily distracted.
"Heya, guys!" she said, before clearing her throat and waving her hands around aimlessly. "Oh, y'know. Hanging out and seein' if you were around. Julian says hi, by the way - he'll drop by tonight or tomorrow. His boss is a slavedriver, makes him practically live at the hospital."
Realizing there was little space between her and Liam, she carefully edged away from him so not to arouse suspicion.
"So! How've you guys been?" she asked, determined to steer away from the topic of why she was there.
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 4:59 pm
Rabid snerked. If she knew anywaone, she knew Liam. He never got into that close of a proximity with a female unless...
"Alright," she nodded, choosing to not mention anything not pertaining to her and Crow's conversation.
"Are you staying the night?" Ike asked, "Can Len come? And Ethan, if he's home?"
"Yeah! It'd be like a sleepover!" Clemmie clapped her hands together excitedly.
Liam slapped his palm to his face. Such a small room...
"The couch folds out," Rabid shrugged, "We can make room."
"...it does?"
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 5:08 pm
Crow grinned, all embarrassment forgotten.
"Yup, we are, iffen it's okay with your mum," she said, mostly directed at Dezzy, Ike and Clemmie. "Ethan and Len'd love it. They miss you guys."
She glanced over at Liam, laughing slightly.
"I could kip on the floor. I don't mind."
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 5:17 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
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Posted: Tue May 02, 2006 8:20 pm
Crow, evidently unaware of the strange new additions to her vocabulary, snorted at Liam's comment.
"Gods, Liam. Don't corrupt the youth."
Turning to Rabid, she grinned again.
"Thanks for letting us come over. It'd be fun to visit for a night-"
BOOM.
"Oh my god! Ethan, I said only one!"
"What are you talking about? You said three! Three sounds much different than one!"
"Fire extingusher! Get the bloody fire extinguisher!"
"Where is it? Get it, get it, get it!"
There was a high pitched screech, a loud whistling shriek, and then an eerie silence, broken only by a steady dripping noise.
"-or two."
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Posted: Mon May 08, 2006 12:55 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
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Posted: Tue May 09, 2006 5:18 pm
Part 21
"Julian, for God's sake, wake up!"
"Get-off-me-!"
"Jesus Christ, Julian, stop it! It's me, wake up!"
Something was restraining his hands, forcing him to stillness. It made him feel trapped, vulnerable, exposed - he had to get away, fight them off-
"Alright, that's it. This is for your own good."
"Ouch! s**t, what the...what the hell..."
Julian's face stung not only from the overly-familiar cuts and scratches, but from the ringing slap the one restraining him had delivered. Breathing deep, trying to calm himself, the assailant's face finally came into focus.
"Oh..."
Shrugging off Jacob's loosened grip, Julian looked around the break room in a state of disoriented confusion. It was empty but for Jacob, thankfully. Taking a few more breaths, feeling his heart pounding far too fast, he glanced once at Jacob's shocked expression and then looked away again.
"Thanks." He said flatly, getting up quickly and abandoning the break room, burning with humiliation.
---
"God dammit."
Taking a long sip from his water bottle, Julian sat huddled on a bench outside the hospital's foyer. Contenting himself to watch the anonymous mass of people that moved in and out of the building in a stream, he let himself brood for a bit. The cuts had healed over, though a thin streak of blood remained, leaving a trail down to the hollow of his throat.
"What the hell. If I have to start popping pills to get a moment's peace..." he muttered, ignoring the curious glances of some of the passerby. He hadn't gotten a single decent night's rest in he didn't even know how long - he was starting to hope something would jump out, attack and beat his head in, just to see if he could get a bit of sleep.
Not for the first time, he forced his resentful thoughts towards Liam. He hated to admit it to himself, but he wanted to blame Liam for what was wrong with him. The incident with Rabid that day on the grounds had been bad enough - the changes to his personality he bore with a slight bitterness, but he still accepted them. He just wanted someone to blame for the terror he felt every time he tried to rest. He knew perfectly well something was wrong with him. He didn't know what, and he didn't know why.
Who better to use as a scapegoat than the one that had brought him back.
Abandoning the bench and wandering aimlessly down the parking lot, Julian walked off the hospital's grounds and set off on the sidewalk. He was sick of working. Let them yell at him when he got back - he couldn't honestly say he cared at the moment.
---
He'd wandered for nearly an hour, still brooding. He'd been trying to piece together the nightmare for what felt like the thousandth time. No matter how he tried, he couldn't remember anything but a few foggy details. A mirror... only that god damned mirror. Every time, it was all he could recall. He barely noticed the people skirting around him, most wary of his stormy expression.
It was when he reached the pay phone that a random surge of what felt like homesickness jabbed at him. He'd barely seen his own family in days. And Rabid.... not since that day on the grounds.
That did it. He was sick of being antisocial.
Feeding coins into the slot, he dialled her number quickly, cursing when all that picked up was the machine.
"Hey, Rabid, it's... it's me. It's Julian..."
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 2:17 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:00 pm
"Hey Mu, you've still got brown stuff on on your cheek."
"Dirrrry~Aeon~!"
"Oh, gwah, real- don't rub at it Chesh, you'll make it worse and get it on you- really Reid?"
"Yeah, left side."
Chao gently manuvered a fidgeting Cheshire into one arm and pulled out a frilled, already stained hankercheif from her equally stained shorts and wiped away the stray substance, giving it an odd look before shoving the hankercheif back into her over painting/current work shorts. As she paused Reid flew ahead towards Ike's door, forcing his mother to jog to catch up with him.
"Seven~!" Cheshire grinned, waving his hands to distract Reid from knocking and leant forward, rapping against the door sharply with one small hand.
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:14 pm
Ike's ears perked immediately at the noise and leaped off of the beg, startling Shivali who gave a strangled yip.
"Sorry, Shiva," the boy apologized quickly before going to the door and opening it, "Hey Reid and...you! Little brother...you..." Ike searched his memory for a name, momentarily forgetting to hug Reid.
"Hey...Chao, right?"
"Allo, Little Guv! Chao!"
"Hello, Reid."
"Hiya, Auntie Chao. Hiya, Reid," Clemmie waved the spit-covered bauble she'd removed from her baby sister's mouth in greeting.
"GLOWY BOY! HAIR LADY!"
"Ah! There you are!" Rabid rushed over and hugged Chao gently, mindful of the child in her arms, "How've you been?!"
"AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWK!" Poe bolted for Reid.
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:24 pm
"IKE!" Reid immediately went to divebombed his friend gleefully. Waving down to Poe, Skelly and everyone else with one hand once he'd attached himself to Ike.
"Malachi!"
Reid looked back to stare at his little brother, "no... Cheshire, this is Ike."
Cheshire gave Reid a look, "nu, Mal-a-chi. Malachi. Yes?" he looked to the tall white one for confirmation of what was already obvious and why was Reid doubting him anyway?!
With a pout the little boy stuck his tounge out at his brother for good measure.
"Hey everyone," Chao grinned, leaning into Rabid's embrace. Cheshire patted the new woman on the cheek then resumed his prompting look at Ike. "I've been good enough. How're you all?"
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:31 pm
Ike laughed happily and hugged the lightning bug boy gently before waving to...Cheshire.
"Naw, Reid...he's right," he peered down at his best friend with a confused smile, "Malachi. Malachi Phineas Devreaux." He gave an exaggerated, swooping bow.
Had he seriously never mentioned that to Reid? He'd been called "Ike" for as long as he could remember...but had he neglected to tell those he met of his real name? Huh...
Rabid gave a toothy grin and stepped back.
"We've been good," she answered for her entire family, "A few problems here and there, but altogether good."
Liam snerked.
"Uh...Rabid? What time's your audition, again?"
Rabid peered up at the clock on the wall.
"At 7. That's in, like, s--aw, Gods...I forgot," she drooped a bit, "Time change. We should get going."
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:41 pm
Cheshire smiled smuggly and latched back onto his mother's arm, staring at all the tall people and feeling lethargic due to his victory and not in the mood to shout out their names anyway.
Reid tilted his head, steadfastly ignoring his brother, "Malachi... Phineas... Devreaux..." he repeated slowly, comitting the words to memory then grinned, glowing warmly, "Ike's less of a mouthful, but m'glad I know the whole thing now."
Chao pouted lightly but nodded, "we need to properly catch up sometime," she poked Rabid gently in the shoulder.
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