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 Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 1:19 pm
There had been letters and letters and letters. She hadn't been able to read a one of them. After snatching up a very unfortunate child on the way to Sunday school, Ms. Withrow finally knew. Well, it had taken long enough for one of those shady adoption agencies to contact her. She was actually rather annoyed that her wisdom hadn't been sought earlier. Yes, wisdom. Stop laughing. Stop laughing or Jesus doesn't love you.
The old hag's sight was terrible, but her memory was amazingly sharp. Unfortunately, it was rarely used for anything that could actually help anyone. That day it was committed to one thing- the address the poor little scamp had annunciated quite a few times before he was freed of her vice-like fingers. Not much else mattered, aside from the fact whoever these people were offering her a new place to live, as well as a child. Once the former was mentioned, the latter became a little less important.
She was rather sure that some of the younger whippersnappers had jumped at the idea and come right away. But not her. No, she had thought it over, consequences upon her money, church, and time. Not that she was very busy lately, but of course that had nothing to do with deciding whether or not she'd raise a child. Even though she had already told herself she would, should someone advertise or contact her about it. In the end, one could say she ultimately waited so long to try the patience of whatever good people were trying to find a lost soul a new home. It was a talent of hers.
The taxi driver was glad to be rid of her. After a while she had to actually go up and look into it, didn't she? And the poor young Indian who sat behind the driver's seat almost ran her over as soon as she shut the door. He'd never try to start conversation with the elderly again.
You wouldn't know Ms. Withrow was a demon by looking at her. She was a relatively small woman to begin with, and now that she was older she had grown even more stunted. Her back was only a preview of the great hump that would come in the near future, the spine arched like a bathroom faucet and covered with a quaint little blue shawl that she herself likely knitted, judging by the vivid depiction of sweet little cherubs hovering with gleeful faces hanging in the blue air just above an inferno of moaning souls. Probably one of her earlier works. Her shirt was a plain gray, her skirt long and black. Around her neck was a very simple string of pearls. With her cane and her small gray purse, she looked very, very small and innocent standing before the compound.
Her movements were slow, if only because her small black cane fished in front of her every now and then and she had no desire to trip over it. She was looking for the front door of the place; she probably wouldn't find it unaided for another good ten minutes.
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 5:31 pm
It was Ms Withrow's lucky day: Dacian spotted her before she'd wasted too much time looking for the entrance. And for once, he wasn't covered in dirt - not that she was likely to notice that.
Stepping out and towards the old lady, he offered a smile towards her.
"Hello...Ms. Withrow?"
That was the most likely possibility - of recent guardians, only one was female. He thought.
You could never be sure with some Gaians.
"I'm Dacian, the one who sent the letter."
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:53 pm
She may not have been able to see him, but she certainly could have smelled him if he was filthy. She even heard him before he said anything, half turning towards him. Of course she didn't see the smile, though. Not that it would have mattered.
"That's right, young man," She confirmed, voice like sandpaper, though there was a definite strength in it. It almost seemed like there was a threat in there somewhere. With knobby fingers she reached for his voice, trying to get a general feel of where she was relative to him.
"I have a phone, you know," Withrow pointed out, turning her head up in hopes he would see her eyes. Whatever color they had been was covered over by a milky white substance; cataracts. If he was indeed the one who sent the letter, she expected him to feel bad. "At first, why, I thought it was your idea of a joke. Do you find it funny to pick on the blind, Dacian? Nevermind that. Where is the little angel? I may have to use your arm, if you don't mind."
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 7:21 pm
Dacian stumbled over himself as he caught sight of her eyes, embaressment rising. He had sent a letter...to a blind woman. Ok. Maybe he needed to start sending out two copies fo everything - one written, one braille? That way, this wouldn't happen again.
Hopefully.
"Oh! Uh...I'm sorry, ma'am, I didn't realize.."
He offered out his arm (and made sure to put it where her hand would find it as she reached out for him). After this was taken care of, he moved to lead her towards the labs.
"Well, the child hasn't actually been born yet - it's still in an energy state. We invite the potential guardians here beforehand, to see if they're interested, and answer what questions they have.."
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 7:53 pm
"You should do a little more research before you go contacting people out of the blue." She reprimanded him, curling her fingers around his arm when she found it. Dacian would feel those boney fingers running up to one of his biceps, squeezing unkindly. Perhaps she was getting a feel for how much meat he had on his bones. Perhaps she was copping a feel. Whichever it was, it couldn't be very comfortable.
Compliantly, she shuffled after him, her other hand using the cane to sometimes pan the area to make sure she wasn't being lead into a trap. She hadn't lived this long trusting others, after all. She wouldn't start now just because she was being offered something.
"Energy? Poppycock. How can a force be a life? If it becomes anything aside from a bauble it is because it was granted life by our God, understand? Now. About these so-called apartments you have... What is the catch? Do you allow animals?" This was probably the most important thing at the moment. If she couldn't have her cats here, then this project would likely never see one of their subjects again.
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 8:02 pm
Dacian frowned at the old woman, fighting off the urge to shudder as she gripped his arm. Why had he picked her, again? He'd been lucky so far, but this time, he had a bad feeling.
And then, the comment about life - Dacian opened his mouth, and then shut it again with a click. Common sense kicked in before he could start arguing with her, thankfully. He was a scientist/mage - not to mention that his world'd had it's own distinct religions.
So, he merely answered the bit about apartment instead.
"Yes, we allow animals...I promise you, there's no catch: utilities are paid for, it's free to move in, and basic furniture is provided. I'll have to check which apartments are available, but I'm sure we have some ground-level apartments open..."
So that she wouldn't have to climb the stairs, in her condition.
Instead of leading her down into the labs to see the child (he had a feeling she wouldn't particularly care about that), he instead lead her to his office - not that he ever used it much. He directed her to a chair, before turning to the one on the other side of the desk.
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 11:51 am
Smart. Withrow wasn't much for 'theories' (as she would term it) and, like almost everything else excluding her personal life, she had quite a lot to say on it. People usually tried to avoid getting an earful from her. Magic was a trap. Science was a minefield.
"Goooood good," She crooned at the response, rapping the chair with her cane before she actually stepped up to it. Her fingers rubbed the seat of it, checking for softness and potential sharp edges. Then, slowly, she eased herself down, drawing her cane across her lap but keeping a hand on it at all times. At the mention of a ground-level apartment, she waved her hand dismissively.
"Now, the most important question. What sort of church do you have in this compound? I'm Catholic, you see. I want to make sure my child knows about dedication and faith. Is there a Sunday school? A minister?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 1:50 pm
Church? On the compound?
"We don't actually have a church on the grounds..."
Dacian wished Hadrian was here - then he could dump this lady on him. Not that Hadrian would handle her any better then he would...in fact, if she made him angry enough, he'd probably wind up chasing her off himself. And Ahneta...
Now that would be a really bad idea.
"But - there is a church just down the street!"
What was it's name, though? He remembered seeing a church, but Dacian couldn't even remember the name of it - much less, the denomination. He'd have to look into that, if only to keep this old biddy from driving him mad.
Not that it didn't look like that'd be happening anyway.
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 3:07 pm
The effect was almost immediate. Silver eyebrows lifted, then furrowed themselves, her wrinkled lower lip pulling itself between her teeth. She closely resembled a bull-dog now, teeth poking just barely from beneath her upper lip and cheeks sagging further with her scowl. No church? No church?! ...She had suspected as much.
"Poor, wretched souls..." She murmured to herself, seeming to ignore Dacian completely as she opened her purse in her lap and began to rummage through it. What looked like a small beaded necklace came out, twirled in spiraling patterns around her hand and fingers. Bowing her head, she said a small prayer for moment, yet it did not seem pleasant. When she was finished, she crossed herself, the tiny gold crucifix glinting in the light. She knew finally what she had been truly sent to do.
"Alright, young man, I'll accept your offer and stay here. Will you send someone down to get my things? This old back- I'm afraid I can't move the most of it myself..." Or maybe she could. She just didn't want to do it. Too much of a hassle, and maybe this boy would get someone to do it for her for free. The other current residents were all doomed.
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 3:24 pm
Dacian was having a very bad feeling about this. This woman was the first person since his academy days with the ability to make him feel as if he was a naughty six-year old, in trouble for dropping a frog down the back of his sisters dress.
He remained silent as she prayed, wondering if he could get away with sticking her in one of the apartments back in the woods.
"Uh, well then..." he had pulled up the housing assignments on the computer, "...there's an apartment in our fourth building open. Would you like that?"
He was not putting her in his building, so it was either that one, or one a bit back in the trees, or even further back. Hadrian wouldn't be happy with him, but he could live with that.
((I just noticed your request in the apartment thread, so I changed his suggestion to that sweatdrop sorry! ))
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 4:07 pm
"It doesn't matter, so long as someone is moving my things from my other home." She replied tersely, "And holds all my little babies. I'll need a cat door installed, if you aren't lying about the utilities."
She gave a soft sniff, allowing her rosary to spill back into her purse before snapping it shut. Speaking of babies...
"When do I get to visit my angel? How fast can I move?" There was a brief rapping of her cane on his desk, as if urging him to get a move on. "Are they coming home with me?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 6:24 pm
"Well, uh - like I said, the child hasn't actually been born yet..."
Cats? Cat doors? Oh great. They were going to have a thousand cats attacking and eating his plants! He'd have to install some kind of cat-defence system in the gardens...
Maybe just put catnip on the outside edges; surely that would keep them distracted enough they wouldn't rip up the more delicate plants.
With the rapping on the desk, Dacian gave a startled twitch. Alright, it was official: Hadrian had to deal with this old bat from now on. She scared him too much.
"Uh - you can move right now, if you'd like. I'll show you to your apartment, and then get some people to move your things for you..."
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 7:33 pm
"Well I'll know as soon as it is, correct? Will you bring them over or do I need to trek my way back here from the boondocks?"
As he answered her final question, Withrow began to ease herself out of her chair, likely assuming that their meeting was finished and they were moving on. "Very well. And they'll bring my cats too? I suggest you hire someone fast. They usually come 'round for supper the same time, but some of them can get very testy around strangers. And don't think I won't know they're missing..."
Her hand reached out again, groping the air for whichever unfortunate arm that would be presented to it, impatient.
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Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2007 7:04 pm
Dacian hopped to his feet hurriedly, and stuck out his arm for her. He didn't want to do anything to make her angry - or angrier - at him then she already was.
"Of course, of course! We'll take care of it all..."
Cats...great. Chances are, they'd miss one or two cats, and she would accuse them of killing them.
"Ah, we'll do our best with the cats, of course..."
Now, who could he sucker into doing this?
((xDD we could actually end around here, since the rest of this will just be the gathering of people to go get her stuff and such, or we could continue it on to at least show her to the apartment heart ))
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