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 Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 9:24 pm
"That's... mine?" It was enough to make her cry. Her hands balled up with excitement and she jumped a bit on her heels. Looking up with dancing eyes, she clung to Faolan's arm eagerly -- something she would have died of embarrassment from had she not been so distracted from glee -- and asked, "Are we gonna look inside?"
Faolan managed to address the fears she'd been having earlier about her parents, but hearing him talk about them so reassuringly, added with the prospect of living in her own, rather beautiful vardo and possibly getting her first job, her joy managed to stay afloat. "Thank you, Faolan..." An unusually warm smile spread across her face as she gazed over the black and silver home. Perfect...
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 9:35 pm
"Sure, we can go in. It's your home after all," Faolan laughed, walking up and opening the door for her. "Ain't no locks, but no one here's gonna bother you or your things wi'out you knowin'."
He waited till the girl walked in, then followed her into the vardo. "Bed's over there an' it's got some storage space under it. These here fold down into seats. I took the table wi' me to th' new place, but I can prolly find you a new one. The stove's pretty easy to sort out, but I'll show you how it works for when you wanna cook or th' cold nights."
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:19 pm
No locks? She hadn't thought about it before, but had she really been living in a place where intruders could simply walk in as they pleased? It was a scary thought, but... Well, nothing had happened so far. It had felt like she'd been living at Farstep for a while now, and she'd never once felt unsafe. Perhaps it simply wasn't as dangerous a place as her mother had always wanted her to believe.
Stepping inside, Lee looked like a kid at a candy shop. She let her fingers dust along the edges of the seats and counter, her eyes dancing across every inch of the home. "Faolan, this is really, really amazing." Lee tested the fold out seats, peered at the stove -- which would primarily be used by Lauss, she decided -- climbed into the bed for a moment, and peeked at the storage space. This would do just fine. Better than fine. "I feel like... like I should owe you something for this." Not like the favor she'd owed him before -- Lee almost blushed at the thought -- but something along the lines of payment or labor. Well, preferably payment.
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:25 pm
"Donnae owe me a thing, girl. Just how it is here in the clan. Someone needs a home, we find one for 'em. It just happened that no one was usin' this 'un yet," Faolan said, shrugging. He held a hand out to help Lee up. "Come on, lass. We'll go by the school on the way back so you can talk wi' th' teachers about settin' up a schedule for you. While you do tha', I'll see on gettin' this vardo moved."
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:35 pm
Lee blinked with a blank expression. Is it my birthday or something? First a free vardo, and now looking into going to school? Faolan sure knew how to make Lee's day. "R-really? Have you met them? Are they nice?" She held her tongue before questioning him further -- she knew she did that too much with this subject. But she just got so excited when she thought about going to classes -- meeting people her age. Taking a quick last glance around, she began to head out of the vardo so it could be moved as soon as possible. The faster it was moved, the faster she could settle in.
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:38 pm
"I cannae say I really knows th' teachers too well, lass. I knows some o' the kids they teach an' I think you'll get on wi' them fine," Faolan assured her, following Lee outside. "I'm sure there'll be a few around you can talk wi' while we're there."
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 11:11 pm
Lee's smile faded slightly as she thought for a moment, and soon spoke up. "Do you think you could... well, could you sort of introduce me to them?" She wasn't sure she'd have the confidence to speak up first herself. Especially in a place she wasn't used to. How one greeted someone for the first time was likely a bit different here than it was in the upper districts.
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Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 11:15 pm
"If'n I see a few I knows, sure," Faolan said, nodding. He walked with her to a decently-sized colorful tent just about in the center of the camps. It was easy to tell it wasn't a residence and there were kids of all ages running in and out of it. "I knows it ain't like the fancy school you been to, but the teachers are pretty good."
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Posted: Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:28 pm
Lee's eyes widened as they had only moments before as she walked close behind Faolan in the direction of the tents. Kids. People her age. It hadn't occurred to her until just now that didikai boys had something similar to Faolan -- they had that accent. Going to school may just end up being the best part of her day.
The fancy schools? She'd hated those. They were too demanding, at least when Lee had the intelligence she did, and she may have actually enjoyed school had it been a little less strict and... well, difficult. Nodding to Faolan, she only said, "That'll be okay, I think..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 14, 2009 11:21 pm
"Oi! Rory!" Faolan called out to one of the boys, picking one that was close to Lee's age. "Come here, lad. I want you t'meet a soon-t'-be-new student."
The boy looked over when called, then grinned and walked toward them, brushing black hair from his blue eyes. He wasn't dressed too differently than Faolan in second-hand (possibly third-hand) jeans and an old, well-worn t-shirt. "Howway tha', lass. Ain't seen you 'round th' camps afore."
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:55 pm
Tugging on the ends of her hair, Lee smiled awkwardly to the boy, looking from him to Faolan and back. "I haven't been here for very long..." Lee looked back up to Faolan for reassurance. At least she was a little more composed than she'd been the first time she'd met Faolan... "I'm Lee." A small blush formed on her cheeks; how long had it been since she'd talked to a boy her age?
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:03 pm
Rory gave an easy, almost lazy grin. "Call me Rory." He held out a hand to the girl, definitely turning on some of the Grady clan charm. "Are you stayin' wi' Fao an' his lass? Or be you another outsider lookin' t' live th' good life wi' us didikai?"
Faolan just shook his head. "Behave, boy. She's movin' t' th' carnival, true enough, but she ain't just another outsider. She's special."
"Special, eh?" Rory asked, interest piqued. He stepped closer, looking down at Lee, blue eyes meeting blue eyes. "Is he reet, lass? Be you as special as he says?"
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:39 pm
Lee nodded politely as she took the boy's hand and shook it weakly, half expecting him to kiss her hand afterward. About to answer his question, not realizing it may have been a small jab, she looked up at Faolan as he interjected. Special? Really? Lee? If by special he meant she was living here to get out of an arranged marriage and had actually only moments ago been married to one of the didikai, then yes, she was special. Though it was still enough to make her blush; Faolan thought she was special.
Looking up, she wasn't exactly sure how to answer such a question. Especially when someone so confident was looking down at her. Biting her lip, she peeped, "I don't really... I'm not... Yeah, a little." Sufficiently embarrassed at this point, her cheeks had grown considerably more red. Lee wasn't normally so shy around those her own age; perhaps it was the accent, or the blue eyes... didikai boys in general must have that effect.
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:45 pm
Rory raised a hand, gently brushing fingertips against Lee's cheek. "Perhaps you be special after all, lass." He looked up at Faolan, letting his hand drop to his side. "Why bring her here, eh?"
"She'll be gaen t'school wi' you sorry lot," Faolan teased. "Might help bring th' grade point average up, yeah?"
The boy frowned. "I manage tha' weel 'nuff on me own." He looked at Lee again. "Tha' why he thinks your special? Because you be smart?" He regarded her a moment. "Somethin' else about you, though. Not just th' smarts or bein' pretty. You got a way about you."
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 10:12 pm
It hadn't seemed possible to make Lee's face grow redder, and yet Rory was able to do just that. This boy was dangerous. Lee could only remember feeling this way one other time... but when was that? It was difficult to remember when her head was fogging up like this...
Wait, smart? Lee scratched at her head as the two spoke, almost laughing aloud at the statement. Faolan had no idea, did he? It would be a pretty humiliating scene when she ended up doing poorly in class later, but for now she didn't have it in her to correct them.
Especially with Rory's next words. Did he always flirt like this? Lee fidgeted while trying to think of something to say in response, but couldn't come up with a single word. Covering her face with one hand to hide her blush, she quickly turned to Faolan and blurted out, "I should meet the teachers now, right?" This boy was too embarrassing...
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