Best Laid Plans (comments okay, as it's finally done)

For artistic creations in text format.

Moderators: KingOfDoma, NebulaQueen

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Best Laid Plans (comments okay, as it's finally done)

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:54 pm

Charles and I started working on this fic, and Lex is going to help out, so I'm moving it to the board where we can all get to it. Makes more sense than emailing. Anyway. Story GO.




Crime Scene Report: Numius, Tunara 31st, 1316.

Cardinal, Senior Officer.

I was called in on a murder case in the Allianis district of the city, which most people call the slums, sadly. Upon arriving on the scene, I found an only slightly dingy apartment area , which was surprising given the level of cleanliness which was the mean in Allianis. The officers on the scene were processing the area, as were diviners, as magical energies were detected. The deceased, one Darrik Gilleyin, was in the bedroom area, with visible magical burns and stab wounds.

A murder in the slums is usually not an important matter, but, according to the diviner on scene Willin Venn, a magic based on stellar energy (my own school) was used on the body. At the estimated time of death, I was in a meeting with the King himself, so I have been eliminated as a suspect.

Who could have possibly used my own school of magic is beyond me, but I will find the answer...


Cardinal finished writing, and cast the report in his outbox. His pen tapped on his desk. He sniffed.

And then he left his desk to find his sister.

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 9/10/06 23:28

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:55 pm

Cardinal headed for the stables, and acquired a chocobo. In a hurry, he galloped through the streets of Doma City, weaving through pedestrians and carts. Arriving at the outskirts of the slums, he dismounted and tied up his bird, and headed for the "house of ill repute" where his sister lived.

What had happened? he wondered. What possible explanation could there be for his sister casting magic at the scene of a murder? Could it be one-

"Highguard Cardinal!"

Cardinal spun. It was one of the officers from the scene, apparently still on duty.

"Oh... oh yes, hello... soldier. What... what was your name again? Sorry, so many to remember..."

"Darryl, sir. Guardsman Ozymandias Darryl."

"Yes, yes, um... is there... something you needed?"

"Oh. Well, I was just wondering why you were heading back to the scene."

"The scene?" He WAS heading in that general direction. "Oh, the SCENE? No no no, I... have some other business in the area."

"Oh." Card felt an inquiring gaze. "What sort of business?"

"... personal business."

"Who do you know in the slums, sir? You live in Nigella, don't you?"

There wasn't time for this.

Cardinal clapped his hand on Darryl's shoulder and looked into his eyes. "Listen. Why don't you go back to the station, and forget all about this?"

Darryl blinked a bit, then gazed back, his eyes glassy. "I'll go back to the station and forget all about this."

Cardinal patted him happily. "Good. We shall talk later!"

"We shall talk later." With that, Darryl turned and walked away.

------

There was a knock on Shakti's door, which then was opened without a response.

"So, who's framing you?"


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:56 pm

The mage stood alone in the foyer.

I could search her room. She's left me alone here.

...


Breakfast, huh? He headed downstairs, and searched for where the girls were eating. When he found them, he sat down with them. "So, what are we having?"

Shakti stared at him, mystified. "Well, what the hell is this? Breaking bread with ladies of ill repute? What's next, Sal? Tax collectors? Lepers?" She smirked at him before her expression turned abruptly serious. "But honestly. Why are you still pestering me? This is actually getting kind of aggravating."

"Who said I was pestering YOU?" he said with a bit of a smirk. "It's high time I asked these ladies if they know anything about that murder a little ways away.

"Well, girls?" he said as he began to munch on some buttered toast. "Any of you know Darrik Gilleyin?"

The ladies looked from one to the other before glancing briefly at Shakti. "Oh, that is IT, Sal." She stood up and glared at him for a moment. "You come into the place where I live and harass me, harass my friends, and for what? Because you want me to help you do your job. No. I don't come barging into your house and asking your wife questions that are none of my business." She looked like she tried to speak again three or four times, before resorting to lifting her middle finger at him. "Just.... Go home, Sal. Get out."

Cardinal looked around. The girls seemed to be showing solidarity. He sighed, grabbed one more piece of toast, and tossed his car on the table before heading out.

As he walked back to his home, his mind raced. She's in this deep. But how? She... gah. She has to know PLENTY to not toss info at me cavalierly. I've got to find out what the connection is, and get her out of trouble.

After Cardinal left the women looked at each other for a few moments, no one daring to speak. Shakti sat down and laid her head on her arms on the table, exhausted.

"Shakti, is this about what happened with her?" Jeri asked. Shakti looked up and nodded. "When will the guard be here?"

"If Sal knows, they know." She sighed and grabbed a bagel from the table. "Soon."



User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:57 pm

Cardinal returned to his mount, beginning to untie it, when he saw three soldiers heading back into the slums.

No one ever did that.

The untying ceased. "Hey... hey! At..." how did that go... "Atten-hut!"

The soldiers turned, recognized the Highguard, and stood at attention. "Sir, yes sir!" the lead answered.

"Um... what are... you up to? What are your orders?"

"We are en route to the Villa Pascha to acquire the main suspect in the Gilleyin case. A... a woman only known as Shakti."

Cardinal's eyes went wide. "Oh, uh... really... well, I... have... already done that. But, on interview, her alibi seemed solid, so I just sequestered her someplace safe."

The three soldiers looked at him in disbelief. "You did, sir?"

"Oh, don't worry. She went quietly. Just wanted to prove her innocence."

"Really. Well, we'll... inform the captain. Thank you, sir."

"No, thank YOU guys for all the consideration."

The soldiers saluted, and promptly headed back to base.

Once they were out of sight, Cardinal rushed back to the house, and went back to the eating area.

"You're officially arrested, Es. Time to go."



User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:58 pm

Shakti looked up from a mug of coffee. "Not right now, Sal. I'm eating breakfast. I packed last night, so get my bag will you? It's in my room. Has my fieldnotes and a change of clothes." She dipped a pastry into her coffee and looked at him again. She raised an eyebrow. "Well? Go. You can arrest me when my stuff is together. I'll be waiting here." She shook her head. "No one follows orders anymore. On Ibidan my bag would be here already with a bouquet of flowers and a necklace of my enemies' ears to placate me for taking more than a minute and a half."

Cardinal grumbled. "I will be RIGHT back. I just lied for you, so it better appear like you're not here. And you'd better hope the General doesn't get chatty about us, because MOST of the castle doesn't realize I have a sister... yet."

He headed to the stairs. "Two minutes!"

Shakti watched him leave to go get her belongings. "He what? I'll be damned. Maybe our little Salvador's becoming a man after all," she muttered when he disappeared.

When Cardinal arrived in her room, he found that Shakti hadn't lied. Everything she owned was packed and stored out of the way in closets. Her bed was made and on top of it was a backpack and one of her trademark saris. The backpack was latched shut and apparently ready to go. She really was ready to go.

He thought out loud. "Huh. It's like she WA-... wants this."

A sigh slipped from him as he grabbed her things. At least I'll have time to talk to her when she's home.

He descended the stairs. "Time's up. Let's go. Preferably through the back."

She rolled her eyes and set her mug down. "Great coffee as always." She stood. "So I'll be seeing you guys around. It's been really great working with you, and I'll make sure you get a copy of my dissertation for the house."

A couple of the women at the table nodded and Shakti grabbed another pastry, shoving her other hand purposefully in one pocket. "Well. I guess it's time to go." She looked down at herself. "I must look positively fearsome. No time to change, though. I guess I'll have to settle for being a dangerous suspect in her pajamas."

She turned and walked through a door at the back of the parlor without another word, assuming her brother would follow her. She walked quickly, passing through the kitchen, the pantry, and then the laundry room where one of the girls was already working on some bedclothes. Shakti nodded her greeting, and her friend nodded in return. Shakti led them out the back and walked out the door ahead of her brother, leaving Cardinal to catch it before it slammed in his face. She was waiting for him behind the house when he emerged. "Well? This is the back. Where to, Officer?"

"Uh?" WHACK! The door hit him in the face. "Gah... that's assault, missy..." He rubbed his nose.

"My house. You're officially on house arrest, alright? The only thing I could think of. The guard was on their way."

Her jaw dropped open. How often does Cardinal get to see his sister speechless?

"You're shitting me. Your house? I thought Farida was afraid I'd put the eye on your baby. I'm surprised you're letting me NEAR the place, let alone keeping me there like a damned housecat."

"It's the only place I have to stash you. Trust me, even WITH Farida, the place is far more pleasant than a cell in the dungeon, trust me. It is NOT a place you are going to as long as there's breath in my body, alright?"

Shakti hit herself in the face in frustration. ".....You clearly misunderstand what you've done. You're going to lock me in a house with Farida. I'd rather be in the dungeon! At least then I know where I stand and what's expected and whose ass to kick on a given day. This? No way. If I have to turn myself in to keep away from your wife, I will. I do not like her and she damn well knows it. You're putting me on--on her territory, and I won't have it." Shakti waved her hands in an emphatic negating gesture and turned around to walk past Cardinal and back through the brothel. Evidently she was determined to face the dungeon rather than an indefinite stay in her brother's house.


Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:14

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 08, 2006 7:59 pm

"I... oh, Sal, this isn't about that. Please don't make it about that because it isn't going to help anyone."

She sighed heavily. "This is exactly why you shouldn't be involved in this. You can't be compromising... making exceptions. This is my game, and I'm going to play it my way. I know what I've done and I know what I'm doing now. Can you please just respect that I have my reasons? I'm a grown woman now and I can take care of myself. The DPG doesn't need to bail me out and neither do you."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Wed May 24, 2006 1:01 am

Farida waddled around the house, black eyes darting over every piece of furniture and floorboard. It STILL wasn't clean enough.

Granted owning a goat as a housepet tends to destroy the hopes of cleanliness.

But for the moment, her now cumbersome body didn't have enough energy to begin frantically scrubbing again. Nothing felt clean enough for the baby.

Everything was uncomfortable, aside from her swollen body, even the air seemed electric and tense the past week, as she waited for the baby to come. Her nerves were extra sensitive and Cardinal had suffered the brunt of it.

For such a tiny woman, she contained great amounts of cuss.

The cuss of course is multiplied by the fact that Shakti is around. Sufficed to say, the two in laws had never gotten along for more than a sentence before annoyance or temper flaired.

Farida felt a tugging on the hem of her skirt. A pair of brown eyes stare up at her from a wooly face. TUG TUG. Rip. The little goat let's out a bleat of joy as it celebrates the victory over the garment. Farida with a good deal of effort, hoists herself onto her feet... and waddles rapidly after the goat, swearing, and trying to grab at the scrap of cloth.

"I just made this you-- I will give you to my mother to make stew!"

Just as the gypsy manages to grab ahold of the playful animal....an unfamiliar feeling grips her middle.....and she is suddenly quite aware of a terrible dampness.

The baby was coming, the water had broke.

"CARDIIIIINAAAAAAAAAL!"

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:26

User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Fri May 26, 2006 11:51 pm

Cardinal's eyes lit up. And not in a good way.

"Ohhhh dear..."

He grabbed Shakti's hand, and tugged at it, pulling her into a run. "We have to hurry! Farida's gone into labour!"

"... and the house isn't clean."

Even he was confused at that one...

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:27

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sat May 27, 2006 12:08 am

Shakti's eyes widened. "What? Shi--" she began, but her profanity was sadly cut off by a sudden tug on her arm. She took a few stumbling steps before getting her bearings and jogging next to her brother.

"Sal, you can't be dealing with..." she paused in her sentence as the effort of running and speaking became too much. "With all of.... this at once. You..." She kept running, but stopped speaking altogether. Shakti winced as her feet hit the paved road again and again, but tried as hard as she could to keep pace with Cardinal.

She gritted her teeth and ran through it, but there was simply no way she could keep up with him. First of all, Shakti wasn't as motivated toward speed as the father-to-be racing at her side. Secondly, in many ways her body had never recovered from the punishment it had taken years ago at the hands of Cardinal's colleagues. Sprinting wasn't her specialty, and likely never would be again.

She yanked her hand loose from his, and without her brother's urgent momentum added to hers, she fell even further behind.

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:10

User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Sat May 27, 2006 12:22 am

Cardinal stopped surprised for a moment, and turned back to his sister.

For a second, he saw the girl with bruised legs, tattered clothes, filthy hair, and a look like a rescued, rabid dog...

"Oh... oh God... Esperanza... I'm sorry." He then looked hurriedly ahead, at a wife far away that must be in great pain.

"Listen. If you think you can handle yourself, I will go on ahead, and... handle things. Take her to a mage, a healer, whatever she needs. You just arrive when you can. And try to avoid the authorities, alright?"

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:33

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sat May 27, 2006 12:52 am

Shakti stopped running and leaned back against the nearest wall. She'd come a long way since Cardinal had rescued her. She'd come a long way in many respects, though not all. At least this time she was plainly aware he was trying to help her. Last time she just couldn't bring herself to understand that in anything but the vaguest, most distant of terms. His actions had bled through to her mind slowly, past a seething mass of pain, fear, and bitter rage.

Last time... She didn't agree to being rescued. That would have required a degree of rational thought she simply had not been capable of, so the choice had been made more or less without her knowledge. She'd submitted to it as ...just one more thing to be accepted because in all likelihood there was no stopping it anyway.

This time, she was rational. She was lucid, and despite her criminal status was still plainly in charge of herself. She didn't have to keep information from the authorities. She certainly could have fled before the Guards began to suspect her. No one was really forcing her to go home with her brother. She lifted her chin proudly and, for just a moment, this rail-thin woman standing in an alley in her pajamas seemed to assess her position with a secure and unbending authority.

Whatever she did here, it was her choice.

"Sal. Go to your wife. Take her to a cleric who'll take care of her. By the time you get home... I'll probably be there waiting for you."

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/27/06 0:53

User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Sat May 27, 2006 12:55 am

A kiss on the forehead? Definitely not.

A hug? ... no.

Cardinal laid his hand on her shoulder, and sighed, a bit longingly.

"I will see you soon." With that he ran off for home.

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/28/06 23:08

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sat May 27, 2006 1:35 am

Shakti watched her brother run to be with his wife as she prepared to deliver his child. She tilted her head to one side as she waited for him to leave her sight.

When he had, she pushed off of her wall and started after him. Her pace was slow after an unexpected exertion, but she made her way steadily enough. The bones in her feet and ankles ached as she walked, so she grabbed a half-rusted length of thin pipe from the ground to use as a walking stick while she was still in alleyways.

Once Shakti got out onto more open pathways, she dropped her walking aid and simply tried to walk as purposefully as she could to her brother's house. There was an old saying she'd heard from her gypsy gentleman friend back in Spain. "Don't change color to match the walls. Look like you belong and the walls will change color to match you."

So, that's what Shakti did. As far as anyone could tell she was simply too busy and important to be bothered by those who would question her presence. She walked down an open street with a backpack and a change of clothes, avoiding difficult questions by simply striding confidently by in a pair of red pajamas covered in little yellow printed duckies.

When she got to Cardinal's house, the door was unlocked. He had probably left it that way so that she could enter, but when she tried the knob and it turned freely with an accomodating click, her expression was one of disappointment. There went her last excuse to stay out of there.

With a sigh she opened the door. Unfamiliar as she was with the interior of the house, she could feel that her brother and his wife lived there. Their presence hung in the air, as did the stress and tension of a rapidly-approaching birth. She growled briefly in irritation before shutting the door and locking it behind her.

Shakti sat down in the kitchen, and wondered where the only member of this family she got along with could possibly have gone. Seconds later she got her answer.

There was a crash from the next room, and as Shakti turned to glance through the kitchen doorway, she saw Apuro with a length of tablecloth in her mouth. The noise had come from a vase of flowers falling to the ground as the goat yanked the cloth down. Apuro dropped the cloth and delicately pulled a flower from the broken glass with her teeth. Apparently satisfied that her prize wouldn't injure her, she promptly closed her jaws on it and began to chew the bloom contentedly.

Shakti grinned. Here was someone who understood.

She bent and began to pick up the glass, every now and again handing a flower over to the goat. Apuro would probably appreciate them more than Farida had anyway. When the mess was cleaned up, Shakti left the goat to her meal and sat back down in the kitchen, resigning herself to tense boredom until her brother returned.

So, she sat. Shakti sat at her brother's table in her brother's kitchen in the house her brother shared with his wife. Soon there would be a child, too. She walked around the kitchen, almost touching a copper pot here, a carving knife there, but always stopping short. She looked like a woman wandering around a museum waiting to be led back to her tour group. She checked the front door. Locked, just as she'd left it. She locked the windows. Found the back door. It was already latched as well. She checked the windows again. They had remained locked in the three minutes since she'd last checked them.

She went back to her station in the kitchen and sat back down with a sigh. She pulled her chair back under the table and sat some more. She drummed her fingers on the table. She watched the sun move across the back wall. She folded her arms on the table, and glanced over to confirm that she'd locked the door. Of course she'd locked it. The doors, the windows, she'd checked everything.

She rested her chin on her arms and watched the light on the wall to mark the passage of time. Before long she'd simply laid her head down on her forearms and fallen asleep. There was nothing to do but wait.

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/28/06 23:03

User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Sun May 28, 2006 11:04 pm

A gentle tap came on Shakti's shoulder.

"Esperanza... Esperanza, wake up."

He held his son in his arms. "I have someone for you to meet."

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/28/06 23:06

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sun May 28, 2006 11:22 pm

Shakti jumped about three full inches when her brother woke her up. She looked around and a sharp remark died in her mouth as she caught sight of her brother and his son.

She stared for a few long moments at her new nephew. "Oh, Sal," she whispered. "Oh my god." He hadn't heard her mention God by name since she'd renounced Salvador for joining the Inquisition years ago. She stared at the baby and tilted her head like she'd never seen one before. "Sal... this is your son." She looked up and met his gaze. She opened her mouth and shook her head, apparently unable to say anything. Unprecedented. Speechless twice in one day.

She looked at her nephew for a few more seconds and sighed deeply, never taking her eyes off him. "What's his name?"

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kai@rpgww60462>Kai</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/28/06 23:22

User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Sun May 28, 2006 11:27 pm

Salvador smiled wide. "Juan."

Then quietly added, "Goffredo Ovidio Domingo..."

Then declared, "Messiah."

He looked down at his son. "I... I could not..."

A tear rolled down his cheek. "I could not be happier."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sun May 28, 2006 11:35 pm

Shakti bit her bottom lip hard, and took a sharp inhale. After a long, shuddering breath, she bit down on her lip again hard enough to make it bleed. Still wasn't good enough. She sniffed back tears and looked up at her brother with a weak smile. "Yeah. He--" She laughed and pulled her palm across her cheek to catch a tear. "Juan Messiah." She nodded. "He'd have liked that."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Sun May 28, 2006 11:45 pm

Cardinal nodded too. "I'm... we bought a crib for him. In our room. I'll go set him down, and then I'll get you some blankets and a pillow, alright? The couch is really all we have for guests right now..."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Sun May 28, 2006 11:49 pm

Shakti blinked a few times before apparently coming back to reality. "Yeah, go ahead and... yeah. Do the thing. Then you should come back so we can talk about the other thing. With the people and the stuff." An obvious question interrupted her vaguery. "Where's Farida? She okay?" Was that a note of concern? Couldn't possibly be. Cardinal's lost his mind, that's all. That must be it.


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 12:01 am

"She's doing just fine. Delivery went smoothly. Uh..."

Cardinal dug in his pocket, deep, and produced a silk handkerchief, in a deep purplish blue.

"Here. Someone got water all over your face."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 12:04 am

She shook her head. "S'okay. I got it." She ran one of her silly red sleeves under her eyes and pulled a strand of hair behind her ear casually. However, Shakti had never been a good liar. She was anything but relaxed for several reasons, some wonderfully good, and some that were somewhat less so.

"Well? Shoo. Go put your son in his crib before he gets cranky. Take your time. I'll still be here when you come back."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 12:20 am

Cardinal nodded, and headed to his room.

His wonderful, exhausted wife had already fallen asleep in her bed, somehow. He placed Juan in his crib, and sang an old lullaby to him till he slept.

... and then he just stared.

He's so beautiful...

He snapped out of it.

"Here we are, sis," he said after retrieving the bedding. He began to make a bed for her. "What do you want to do in the morning?"

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kingofdoma>KingOfDoma</A]&nbsp; Image at: 5/29/06 0:21

User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 12:24 am

"Whoa. You--stop that. No. Stop it." She pulled the blanket out of his hands. "You can't be doing this." Her voice lowered to a harsh whisper. "You can't be keeping fucking criminals in the house with your wife and your newborn son. The only reason I haven't run off by now is that you put your name on the line and if I leave this house I'm going to make things worse for you than they're already going to be."

"Stop making that bed like I'm living here. This isn't a damn game."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 12:28 am

The pillow was thrown into place.

"You are NOT a criminal. You are yet to break a law not written by a madman. What you are is my sister, my family, and I will NOT abandon you. Understood?"


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 12:35 am

Shakti ground her teeth in frustration and growled to herself. "Sal, I swear if you make this about that... You aren't thinking. You've got some...guilt...thing and this and then the baby thing and you're taking on too much. I'm a grown fucking woman, and I can live my life without you clinging to my back like you're scared I'm going to leave you behind."

She picked up the pillow and shoved it back at him. "Stop making this harder for me. I've made my own damn choices, and it's my right to do so. You have. Other. People. To take care of. People like Farida and the baby who need you more than I do."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 12:41 am

"So, what then? I'm supposed to just ABANDON you? You KNOW I cannot do that! I'd rather DIE!

"My 'name' is already on the line," he said, perturbedly sitting in an easy chair, arms crossed. "We may as well see this through to the end, and then we shall go from there. Is that alright?"


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 12:45 am

She sat across from him and looked at him with an expression of profound frustration. "See this through to the end? How do you think we're going to 'go from there,' as you put it? Do you know what the end is? The end is the Guard finding their murderer and putting her in jail. I don't know how you expect to be involved at all. What do I have to do? You want me to confess? What do I have to tell you to get you to leave me alone?"


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 12:48 am

"... not be a bipedal organism."

He rose. "And as for the guard 'finding their murderer', I will see that that guard is me, and that murderer is NOT you. I don't believe you did this for a second."

And, preemptively, added, "which makes an 'and what if I did' argument moot."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 12:50 am

She leaned back in her chair and scoffed at him. "What? You don't think I'm capable of it? Sweet little Esperanza always has her hands clean. Always needs her big brother to protect her from the wide and dangerous world." She shook her head and her lip curled in a sneer. "You're so full of shit sometimes."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 1:11 am

"It's not that. I know you to be fully capable."

He smirked. "I just don't think you're stupid enough to leave such an obvious trail of evidence."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 1:18 am

She gave a brief, self-satisfied smile. "I do a lot of stupid things, but it's nice of you to say that. But here's the thing. I may have left that trail. In fact, I feel comfortable enough telling you I did leave that trail. Whether I wanted to be caught is irrelevant. I will be. You can't stop the wheels of beaurocracy from turning when they realize I can describe the scene. When I tell them I know exactly how he died." She sighed. "Why are you being such a pain in the ass? Is it so inconceivable to you that maybe I'm perfectly in control of what's going on here?"


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 1:28 am

"... because..." His eyes opened wide.

"I don't like your style of protection. Mine's much better."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 1:35 am

She rolled her eyes. "Who said anything about my style of protection? I'm just doing my civic duty and allowing the Guard to investigate a murder." She looked down at her fingernails. "You're the only one here protecting anyone."

Shakti has always been a terrible liar. She will probably always be a terrible liar. She may be genuinely annoyed with Cardinal's smothering overprotective instincts, but she didn't sound entirely sincere about that last part. Sure, she was trying to keep her brother out of this, but there was obviously more going on.

"So, look. It's been great. But you either need to take me to the Guards' station, or you need to call them to come get me. I have better things to do than sit here and argue with you about who's protecting whom, got it?"


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 1:42 am

"... at least sleep for the night. It's late. We can argue some more in the morning."

His shoulders slumped. "Besides, I'm too tired to drag you to a guardhouse. You can imagine it being a draining day..."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 1:46 am

She tilted her head and looked at him from the corner of her eye. "You go ahead and go to bed, Sal. I'm already in my pajamas, so I'll sleep here for a little while. I'm warning you, though. I won't stay here. You can't keep me here forever."


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 1:51 am

"I know. Just don't do anything foolish, alright? I beg of you."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 1:58 am

"Sal. I'm going to ask you a question, and I want you to think about it before you answer me. I don't care if you have to think all night, but it's important so don't just spit out an answer."

She took a deep breath. "Do you trust me?"


User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 2:00 am

He blinked at this. "Yes... say with my child's life, or my own...

"It's YOUR life I'm not sure I trust you with."


User avatar
Kai
Fighting the Iron Law of Oligarchy Since 2006
 
Posts: 2408
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby Kai » Mon May 29, 2006 2:06 am

Shakti blinked, and then couldn't suppress a smile. She chuckled once or twice, but restrained herself. Then, Shakti's usual reaction to anything stressful, confusing, or in this case, absolutely asinine, broke forth unchecked.

She laughed. She laughed into her hand before doubling forward into her own lap from the force of her own apparent amusement. At least she still had the presence of mind to keep quiet while Farida and the new baby slept.




User avatar
KingOfDoma
Guess Who It Is?
 
Posts: 2656
Joined: Tue May 07, 2002 7:21 pm
Location: Calgary

Re: Some fic that will get a title when we finish...

Unread postby KingOfDoma » Mon May 29, 2006 2:11 am

Salvador just smirked a sad smirk at his sister. "I am going to bed, Esperanza. I will talk to you then, alright?"


Next

Return to Fanfiction and Other Writings

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest

cron

Yalogank