Online RP Thread (Lead up to Bloody Valentine)

Archive 33AR
#181

[quote=“BlackDahlia”]“I suppose that is the best we can do for now” she sighed. “I’ve seen this condition change and break men. Sometimes even taking drastic measures to make it stop…” . Trauma is a nasty thing, she thought to herself. Some manage to be okay and carry on… Others, well…
“Everyone has their breaking point”[/quote]
“Agreed then, I’m going to suggest you talk to Ms North about it, she seems somewhat, cross with me at the moment, seems she’s close to Mr Ptrov and doesn’t want him accompanying me on the trip.”

“It’s an understandable view, like your father I’d prefer those I cared about were kept out of harms way.” He sighed. “However if the events of the past weekend have shown nothing else, it’s that there’s no where safe anymore, not even these safe havens for refugees.”

#182

Zek doesn’t know how to respond. Or, rather, he does, but he can’t. He used to be good with words, but needless to say, none of them will work right now. He gets to his feet, and fumbles in his pocket for something, and then he crouches in front of Lewy, feeling the slight twinge of his aching leg, still bandaged up. He waits until Lewy looks at him, that moment when he is staring blankly into space; that kind of psychological emptiness that follows a good emotional outburst.
When Lewy does, Zek looks right back at him, and clasps Lewy’s hand in his. Between their palms, Lewy can feel the claddach ring he gave Zek, cold metal between their hands. We’re here, Lewy, Zek thinks. You still have us.

Zek continues the eye contact until Lewy’s breathing evens out. Zek knows he can’t totally disguise the sadness in his eyes, but he smiles all the same.

#183

Still sitting in his bunk the sergeant slaps the magazine back into place and cranks the bolt he test fires the trigger and hears a satisfying click as the hammer falls on the dummy round.
“hell,” he muses, “this place is worse than the trenches, even if it does have tea service.”

#184

Lewy just sits there for a while, letting Esther hold him, and meeting Zek’s gaze. Despite everything, he manages to return Zek’s smile.

“Thank you,” he rasps. “Both of you.”

He takes another swig. Everything was going to be okay. Eventually. For now… it was enough just knowing he still has friends.

#185

She moved to beside the doctor, trying desperately to ignore the warmth she could feel on her cheeks. “Of course, I’m happy to help in any way I can.” Momentarily she wondered if they would move Cailin to somewhere a bit more private, and then the doctors started talking about that exact idea. She listened carefully with her eyes still on the other woman, the compassion and empathy she felt showing on her face. When she murmured something about “blood” Margaret knelt down and took Cailin’s hand in her own. “Shh, shh. You’re okay. You’re safe, and you’re okay.” She could only half hear the doctors talking now, but she knew what they were saying. She had seen plenty of soldiers in the same condition, the condition which was now written all over the woman in front of her. She found herself wondering what trauma had caused the stress and anxiety.

Letting go of Cailin’s hand, she stood up and coughed politely. “Forgive me for the interruption, doctor, but… I’d like to request to be the one to suggest this to Esther.” There were more words left unsaid, but there was another time for that. I don’t want you going on the trip, doctor. Margaret blushed again, yet attempted to stay her gaze on Dr Ashdown.

#186

Cailin turned at the calm voice. As another memory struggled to gain foothold in the battlefield that was Cailin. Margaret had lain there calmly while Cailin had tested a theory, trusting and willing to do anything to save the brother she loved, Blood… Blood and Trust, Cailin to Margaret… Margaret to Leo… Leo to Moss… Moss to Cailin… Gypsy Blood… all the links in the camp that all came back to Blood and Betrayal… Jasper and Esther, and the others…

Esther, foolish Unthinking Esther. Esther and Jasper… So much blood and betrayal
"No Esther"

#187

Cailin turned at the calm voice. As another memory struggled to gain foothold in the battlefield that was Cailin. Margaret had lain there calmly while Cailin had tested a theory, trusting and willing to do anything to save the brother she loved, Blood… Blood and Trust, Cailin to Margaret… Margaret to Leo… Leo to Moss… Moss to Cailin… Gypsy Blood… all the links in the camp that all came back to Blood and Betrayal… Jasper and Esther, and the others…

Esther, foolish Unthinking Esther. Esther and Jasper… So much blood and betrayal
"No Esther"

#188

Magnus returned to the infirmary holding two bowls of brown. He looked to the assembled and paused. Then smiled before limping further in to take his seat

“Here doctor” he says pushing the bowl into his arms. “Best to keep your strength up”

The other bowl he took and smiled at his daughter. “Dinner time before stories my child. We’ll have you right in no time.”

#189

Finally finished with the ritual of weapons cleaning, he removes the bolt and pockets it. then rummaging around on his bags he finds a pipe and matches. he stuffs them in the other pocket and leaves the bunkroom. He passes along the way hearing snatches of conversation but not really hearing the words until he reaches the taverna and walks through the door and into the outside world. there he lights his pipe and looks over the camp.

#190

Entirely oblivious to the woman’s blushes Daniel smiled, “Of course, that makes a lot of sense you’ve known her longer than Doctor Swanhilde, makes perfect sense. Thank you.”

A few seconds passed as the man watched over Cailin, “Oh of course if that’s alright with you Doctor Swanhilde?”, he corrected himself, “…Dahlia.”

Hearing a few muttered words from the lips of the broken woman, Daniel bent down to speak to her. Nodding his head slowly he began, “Nurse Blake here is going to take care of you tonight, you’re in a fine pair of hands Ms Quigg.” He stood up again tapping Ms Blake encouragingly on the shoulder, a smile to indicate what great work she was doing, before striding over to recover his cup.

“Oh”, he sighed as he brought the cold cup to his lips, “Never mind eh.”

[quote=“Ants”]Magnus returned to the infirmary holding two bowls of brown. He looked to the assembled and paused. Then smiled before limping further in to take his seat

“Here doctor” he says pushing the bowl into his arms. “Best to keep your strength up”[/quote]
“Indeed, and thank you,” he said somewhat unconvincingly, the contents of the small enamel bowl being less appetising than the cold cup of tea. I’ll just go and top myself up," indicating his mug, “Back shortly.”

With that he turned and left the infirmary heading towards the laboratory where he’d left what was likely now a lukewarm copper kettle on the unlit stove.

#191

“Of course, that is perfectly fine with me. I am hardly in any state to get up and help…” she replied.

Dahlia returned the smile. “Stories always did make me feel better. I seem to have forgotten most of the ones from when I was little. Have been very busy since then after all” she sighed, before nodding a goodbye to Daniel as he left to refill his mug. Why does it not surprise me that he is fond of his tea, she chuckled in her mind.

#192

[quote=“DapperAeronaut”]Lewy just sits there for a while, letting Esther hold him, and meeting Zek’s gaze. Despite everything, he manages to return Zek’s smile.

“Thank you,” he rasps. “Both of you.”

He takes another swig. Everything was going to be okay. Eventually. For now… it was enough just knowing he still has friends.[/quote]

The three of them stay that way for a while, linked together in the darkness, not speaking.

When Esther is satisfied that Lewy’s attained as much peace as is possible to for the moment, she elects to leave him with Zek. She trusts Ivy with Harriet (reluctantly, she acknowledges that Ivy’s probably better able to protect her than she herself is- She’ll have to replace the gun she dropped in the river, and maybe, just maybe, talk to Jasper about learning to use a sword properly) but her baby has been out of her sight for too long, now, and after Lewy’s tale she needs to hold her, to assure herself that her daughter is safe.

She kisses Lewy on top of the head and slips out, but not before pulling on her coat, claiming to feel a chill, and slipping his flask into its pocket.

She finds Ivy and Orpha grappling with some sort of machinery and it strikes her that the strangest thing about these two working together, really, is how normal it seems- They’re both so fierce and stubborn and terrifying in their way, when the occasion calls for it. So driven. She doesn’t want to ruin the apparent truce by drawing their attention to all the reasons they could justifiably have to not want to be around one another, though, so instead she just smiles and says:

“Corrupting my little one with your mad science already, Orpha?”

#193

[quote=“siximpossiblethings”]

“Corrupting my little one with your mad science already, Orpha?”[/quote]

Ivy turns and smiles back. “Don’t worry, I’ve been keeping a close eye on the conversation. So far we’ve kept away from the madder aspects.” Unwrapping her makeshift sling she steps towards Esther and gently hands over the wakening bundle.

“I’m glad you’re here, she was starting to fuss and I’m afraid I just don’t have what she needs.” Pausing while Esther gets settled, she then frowns slightly, “Is Lewy alright? He seemed to just collapse.”

#194

[quote=“Dr Ashdown”]Entirely oblivious to the woman’s blushes Daniel smiled, “Of course, that makes a lot of sense you’ve known her longer than Doctor Swanhilde, makes perfect sense. Thank you.”

A few seconds passed as the man watched over Cailin, “Oh of course if that’s alright with you Doctor Swanhilde?”, he corrected himself, “…Dahlia.”

Hearing a few muttered words from the lips of the broken woman, Daniel bent down to speak to her. Nodding his head slowly he began, “Nurse Blake here is going to take care of you tonight, you’re in a fine pair of hands Ms Quigg.” He stood up again tapping Ms Blake encouragingly on the shoulder, a smile to indicate what great work she was doing, before striding over to recover his cup.

…

“I’ll just go and top myself up,” indicating his mug, “Back shortly.”

With that he turned and left the infirmary heading towards the laboratory where he’d left what was likely now a lukewarm copper kettle on the unlit stove.[/quote]

Margaret wished she could somehow control this heat on her cheeks and neck. She could only hope the others were taking no notice of what must be furious blushing. She was surprised there had been no comment made, surely she resembled a tomato at this stage? A little voice in the back of her head reminded her that she probably felt worse than she looked, and her shoulders relaxed slightly.

She’d almost missed Dr Swanhilde being called by her… her first name?! All of that time working with Dr Ashdown back in London and he still insisted on calling her Nurse Blake. And now, with only a short time having worked with Doctor Swanhilde and they were apparently on a first-name basis! Margaret had to turn her face away so no one would see her fume, however it only took a moment for her to regain her composure.

Was that… jealousy? She wasn’t sure. It wouldn’t do at all to have her lose her form, not when her duties were needed as a nurse here. She glanced over to Cailin, and her thought line was disrupted when she heard Dr Ashdown mention her name. Nodding, trying to keep a straight face, she sent a weak smile back at Dr Ashdown. Did that, and the tap on the shoulder mean something? It must mean something. Surely there was something between them, especially after all of that time in the hospital in London. All of their work together… She desperately wanted to believe this wasn’t just a silly school girl crush, although the sensible part of her was telling her that in this case, she was the silly school girl.

She lifted a hand to her neck, and a small wrinkle appeared in her forehead as she realised she was blushing. Still, or again, she couldn’t quite tell. Clearing her throat she nodded again, not at anything in particular. Maybe simply to clear her head and turn her focus back to what she needed to do. Cailin. Yes. Best to concentrate on her duties, now.

#195

Jane looks up as Daniel walks past, heading towards the kitchen. “Hello!” she beams and gets up, trailing after him. “Do you still plan to go to hell?”

#196

Esther just stares at Harriet for a moment.

Oh Lewy. I’m so sorry.

“That was my fault.” She strokes Harriet’s hair, trying to keep her voice calm so as not to upset her. “I didn’t know… Damn.” She shakes her head, and begins again.

"His wife’s dead. And their son. And I asked him to hold Harriet. I couldn’t have known, but…

“Imagine. You had a friend, someone you met briefly but stayed in touch with when you went overseas and wrote to and exchanged theories and shared research with, then lost contact with when you both had to flee your homes, and you heard nothing from one another for a year. And that during that year, you found that your wife was pregnant. And your child was born but you lost it -and its mother- to the demons on the same day. And then just three days later, you ended up on what’s supposedly one of the last safe places left, and you found your old friend there, and you learned that she’d had her own baby -born a few days after yours- and even though she tried not to advertise it too much around so many people who were hurting, she couldn’t help but bubble over with happiness about her child, and then about her engagement to the man she loved.” I won’t cry, I won’t, I won’t. Esther, stop being stupid. “Imagine what a slap in the face from God that would feel like, Saskia.” She looks up, meeting Ivy’s eyes. “When he was holding Harriet…”

Esther holds the baby tightly, kissing the top of her head. She’s crying now, but trying to stop herself so as not to disturb the peace of the infant she holds clasped to her body. “Letting him hold her was the worst thing I could have done to him. I remember how I felt when I thought I might have lost her- I can’t fathom what he must be feeling.Oh, Lewy.”

#197

Zek sits there for a while, as Lewy calms down. They’re still looking at each other, and Zek reaches over and grabs his medic bag from the floor next to him. He pulls out his hip flask and hands it to Lewy. “Here,” he mouths, and waits for Lewy to accept.

Lewy does, and takes a shuddering gulp from the flask. Zek thinks for a moment. The claddagh ring is still dangling from his hand. He wants to return it to Lewy: he feels that he’s not the rightful owner of it. He knows all that bull about it being bad luck to return the ring to the person who gave it to you, but there is someone who needs love and friendship more than Zek does right now. Still, Lewy clearly puts a lot of stock into the superstition of it. Who wouldn’t, given the person who likely gave the ring to Lewy?

Zek fumbles in the pocket of his jacket and pulls out the stack of flashcards. There is something stuck between two of them, and he fishes it out between two of his fingertips. A leaf. Zek starts searching through the cards, but there are too many of them, and the concept he wants to convey is too complex for any of the words he can find. Why would the names of the Forest Folk be on the flashcards? Why would BRAVERY be a concept important enough to put on a piece of paper instead of something like THREE or RESCUE?

He frantically looks around the back room of the taverna while Lewy watches him puzzledly. Suddenly, he lights on the Ouija board that Lily had used last time he was at Hanover. He grabs it and starts tracing his hand across the board: “Forgetful gave this to me. She said it would keep me safe. I think you deserve this far more than I do.”

He presses the bay leaf into Lewy’s palm.

#198

[quote=“siximpossiblethings”]
Esther holds the baby tightly, kissing the top of her head. She’s crying now, but trying to stop herself so as not to disturb the peace of the infant she holds clasped to her body. “Letting him hold her was the worst thing I could have done to him. I remember how I felt when I thought I might have lost her- I can’t fathom what he must be feeling.Oh, Lewy.”[/quote]

Ivy just steps forward and wraps Esther and Harriet up into her arms. She mutters soothing nonsense, just trying to be there. To physically give the support that’s needed.

When Esther seems to be calming she steps away, keeping a single hand on Esther’s shoulder. “Pena. Shhh now. You weren’t to know, none of us did. In these times a child brings so much joy, remember that too. Lewy will not blame you, I’m sure. Let’s go out into the sun. Harriet needs to feed and you need to just be with her.”

Ivy looks over to Orpha, “We’ll leave you to your work Dr.”

Taking Esther by the arm they walk out the door and into the sunlight.

#199

Dray having finally getting use to using one eye started to work out what kind of gear he would need to go off to Theebs
he knew it wasn’t his original task but felt he had too seeming he was there on the battle field and for that one moment he left her
Valencia was taken out. he had to find gadget. whoever she was she could fix Valencia back to her usual self Dray only had to find the cultist
and bring gadget there

with all this on his mind Dray with a small food pack he had made up walks right past everyone into the med lab and starts to rumage around for some spear bandages that he can take with him. he had it set that he would stay for 2 days at most and then would leave for theebs.

#200

The bluntness of the question brought an intrigued smile to Daniels face.

“Yes Ms Flowers, that is the plan, are you still willing to join me? We could certainly do with your experience should we become delayed.”

“Just how long did it feel like you were there?”