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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 1, 2009 1:30:25 GMT -5
Nance wandered with Donovan until they came upon the park. She looked around a great deal, but said nothing as they walked, oddly fascinated by the world as it was in this spot. She'd passed by parks, even though them on occasion, but always in a hurry, always needing to be someplace else, someplace filthy and cramped in the dark, foetid heart of the city. Here was all light and air and fresh dampness rising off the dewy grass and leaves.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 1, 2009 16:39:59 GMT -5
*Sketchbook tucked casually under his arm, Donavan smiled happily as they meandered. It was rather nice to have nowhere to be headed, but still have the company while doing it. It was almost lazy, a restful kind of feeling that put him at ease.*
"There's some wildflowers back that way. If you like." *He gestured on down a small path, but seemed non-committal if she wasn't interested.*
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 1, 2009 19:46:47 GMT -5
"Wildflowers? I've heard of those..." she murmured, recalling vaguely some kind of fairy story she'd been told as a child. She hadn't quite believed it, given that the story teller was a half-drunk whore with most of her teeth missing, and she'd fallen asleep before she'd got to the ending.
Lost in her childhood memory, feeling neither pain nor pleasure at the thought, only a blank coldness, Nance bent her steps towards the path, content to follow wherever Donovan might lead her.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 3, 2009 14:38:09 GMT -5
*Donavan chuckled privately, pushing a few overgrown brushes aside with one hand. He held them so she could pass.*
"They're really nice this time of year. Just reaching their bloom an' all."
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 3, 2009 19:44:36 GMT -5
"Mmm..." she murmured agreeably, ducking by the bushes, grateful to Donovan for the small gesture, but uncertain if thanks were in order. She shoved her hands into the pockets of her--well, his--trousers and glanced back at him.
"D-do you miss your home, at all? I mean, back in..." she waved a hand before plunging it back into the pocket. "Your family, and all...your friends."
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 8, 2009 8:53:58 GMT -5
"Every day." *Donavan murmured in answer, sad for a moment before he willed himself not to dwell. He shrugged it off and brightened.*
"Kept to myself, mostly." *He confessed.* "And well, there's not really any family for me to go back to."
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 8, 2009 9:53:09 GMT -5
Nance didn't know where to look, heat flooding her cheeks.
"I've upset you...I--I'm sorry."
Only a few days ago, it seemed, she wouldn't have cared or had any astuteness when it came to the feelings of others. People were led by their appetites, and so she had let herself be. Sleep, food, gin, sex. The five senses were only there to torture you. Nance had gone about sating herself as best she could on the former three, leaving her body to be used by those whose appetites revolved around the latter, for a price.
She had hardened herself against shame, against worry and anger and fear...all for so long. She'd always thought that if she looked on her life with clear eyes, she'd go mad. So she hadn't looked. Her eyes had always been open, but she'd called in a filthy fog to darken and obscure what she didn't want to see.
Then there was Donovan...pouring light and wind into her world, sweeping away the darkness and leaving her face to face with her terror and her shame.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 9, 2009 10:17:08 GMT -5
"Don't be." *Donavan soothed gently. He tried to reassure her with a small smile.*
"I'm not upset. If I wasn't here..." *He shrugged, unable to meet her eyes for a moment.* "I would never have met you." *He whispered before shifting around her.*
"Here we are." *He diverted, gesturing at a patch of clearing that was spotting in bright colors of soft, tiny flowers.*
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 9, 2009 10:44:54 GMT -5
"Much good I've done you," she muttered dryly, with a small, sheepish smile and a shrug.
As they came upon the clearing, Nance let out a small gasp, though it twanged against her ribs and made her wince. Still, the same gasp would have caused a great deal more pain in previous days, which must mean she was getting better. Why the idea's joy was tinged with sorrow, she couldn't tell.
"...it's beautiful!" she said in an awed whisper.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 11, 2009 13:51:07 GMT -5
"I thought you might like it." *Donavan confessed sheepishly.*
"It's just...I like that there's still places like this, even in the city. It's a good place, if you don't want to be around people for a while."
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 11, 2009 17:53:21 GMT -5
"...it's quiet," she remarked, cursing herself for the stupid banality of the remark, though it was all she could think of, in that moment.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 15, 2009 7:24:03 GMT -5
"I like it." *Donavan assured her softly, no hint that he found her comment so.*
"I...hope it's not too quiet." *He added with a gentle smile.* "There are just so many people here. It can be so...overwhelming. It's nice to have a place to get away."
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 15, 2009 10:15:49 GMT -5
She smiled, slowly, awkwardly.
"I've never been away...from people. So many people."
She gingerly lowered herself to sit on the grass, amid a patch of clover and little white flowers she could not name--she'd never really seen flowers up close, before, in her part of the city, unless they were sad little everlastings pinned to some shabby bonnet.
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Donavan
- Ingenious Pilot -
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
Posts: 229
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Post by Donavan on Jun 15, 2009 14:39:16 GMT -5
*Donavan followed, though he kept his distance to give her space. It was a beautiful thing to watch her discover though. She seemed to brighten amongst the green.*
"I can imagine it would be harder here." *He gave a quirky smile before adding.*
"Not that I'm looking to be a hermit or anything. People are all right..." Mostly. "I just think it's good to have some time with nature on occasion."
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Post by Nance Sikes on Jun 16, 2009 0:17:40 GMT -5
"Someone told me once, long ago, 'bout a kind of bird that nests right on the side of a sheer cliff...an' you can only reach it by flyin'. No way anyone can climb up or down t'get there, only the bird who knows where it is and can just swoop an' drop right in easy as you please and sit safe an' sound."
Plucking a bit of grass, Nance twirled it thoughtfully between her fingers.
"...think I wouldn't mind bein' a bird..." she muttered.
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