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Startled glances and hushed voices were left behind her as she shut the door. A list crumpled up in a fist, she ravaged through the room, a sour taste left in her mouth.
She begged. Begged.
Normally neatly-placed toys lay scattered on the floor after being swiped off of shelves and tables. Lips pulled back against her teeth as she carefully picked up a doll whilst keeping away from a wire, which was connected to the trigger on a nearby pistol. Isami unceremoniously dumped the items in the basket closest to the door, the test finished.
She knelt down and reached under the bed for a small cardboard box. Delicate clay cups and a slightly cracked teapot along with a few other essentials were placed neatly inside. Arranging the tea set on the table next to the two big green armchairs she stopped once she began to boil the water.
He laughed at me and refused.
She sighed into an empty pot, setting the chahai aside. She couldn’t say she wasn’t surprised. A part of her wished otherwise. He knew the dangers and risks. He knew how important it was have numbers in comrades. He knew how important it was to keep everyone alive.
Jack’s little bright idea to shred the entrance door to pieces with the help from a bomb caused more harm than good. More than anyone knew. They think that Feather’s and Jack’s current state alongside the Puppeteer’s series of gruelling punishments was the worst that could come out of it. Ryan made an extra point to say this to her.
“This plays right into his hands, dammit!!” He paced around the attic after the commotion settled downstairs. A shattered wine glass lay next to the mannequin in pieces. “Another one of Jack’s ridiculous anarchist charades? Bastard just made it easier for Matt to get in…”
Isami sat on a closed crate with her hands on her lap. Dark brown eyes watching him as he continued to seethe with rage. “And did you expect him to know the real danger?”
Icy daggers were thrown at her direction. “If they had any idea of what was really happening they’d be scattering around the place like frightened sheep.” Ryan let out a distressed sigh. “We should’ve anticipated this…” His accusing stare switched to the camera overhead. He growled, “YOU should’ve seen this!!”
The speakers let nothing slip and the single glass eye stared back only to mock him. “Dragon…” Isami spoke softly as she walked up to him. She placed a small hand on his shoulder. “There is no use. He will not speak to anyone.” Ryan snorted, his eyes firmly set on the monitors. From the corner of her eye she could see the blue fog seep into the room. He noticed this and shrugged off her hand. “Get him out. I don’t want a ghost prattling away in my ear about his problems…”
Leonard’s presence hadn’t made things easier. Isami was secretly thrilled that he was finally able to see the ghosts. However the fact that her “mysticism” was true only seemed to annoy him further. Ryan never took the knowledge of him being wrong very well.
Suddenly not feeling the need to drink tea she left the nursery and wandered around. People in passing gave her their usual salute, although with a hint of worry that they decided not to voice out. I wonder did they hear our argument? This was beginning to feel like a lot like the previous act…and she was damned if she was going to sit around and do nothing while others lost their lives.
Opening the door slightly, she peered into the room. Feather lay on the bed as still as a corpse. Jenny clutched her hand, bottom lip trembling as she whispered to the younger girl. Isami noticed that the shelf behind her was recently dusted, as too was the desk in the corner. Clothes were neatly folded and placed inside the open chest at the bottom of the bed. “We need you,” Jenny croaked, holding back the tears. “Jim can’t take much more of this…” Watery green eyes lifted up and regarded her for the first time since entering the room. “Oh, I’m sorry Tan. Did you want some alone time with her…?”
Isami smiled and shook her head. I ought to tell them my real name… “No,” she whispered. “I just wanted to check up.”
Jenny looked at Feather then back at her despairingly. “It’s hopeless… I talk and I talk… I’ve even borrowed a few of Jim’s books to see if I could make some sort of smelling salt to try and wake her.”
“She will wake in her own time,” Isami reassured the younger woman. “Be patient, Leonard has assured me that she is progressing well in Sidhe.” Her words appeared to work as Jenny’s expression lightened and her shoulders eased down.
It wasn’t just Ryan who met Leonard, Jenny and Jim were aware of their presence too. It was thanks and physical health. The doctor was on the brink of dying himself, but no one could do anything until Feather woke up.
She gazed at the sleeping girl’s face. She’ll need to take things easy once she wakes up… But there won’t be any time for that.
She came back into the room later on in the middle of the night. Wearing a white nightgown that reached the floor, her long black hair pooled around her as she leaned on the bed. She sat on the chair next to the bed, unable to sleep, and rested her chin on her hand. She spoke with the girl a few times; words of encouragement and urgency. Sometimes she talked about the goings on in the house, attempting to lighten the dense atmosphere. Feather made the perfect conversation partner for her; she didn’t interrupt or go off in a tangent, just let her speak at her own pace. It reminded her of visiting her ailing grandfather in hospital – when he was near the end. Unable to speak or open his eyes, she spoke about her recent achievements knowing that it would make him proud. She wanted to see that glint in his eyes and that broad smile that crossed his usually stony face. Occasionally she would enter the room with one of his books in her hand, reading to him some of his favourite stories, like he did to her.
Eyelids hanging heavy and vision going hazy, Isami slumped further onto the bed until several large papers were thrown in front of her. She blinked and observed the drawings that scattered across Feather’s abdomen and thighs. “What’s this?”
“Blueprints,” Ryan answered dryly. He leaned against the wall next to the bedpost and folded his arms.
Flicking the corner of the one closest to her, she inspected the papers further. Thin eyebrows raising she looked up at him from across the bed. “A difibulator?”
He shrugged. “They’re just prototypes. Still trying to figure out what exactly is needed. I spoke to John about getting a few pieces. It’ll take some time before it’s finished.”
She smiled warmly at the sketches and crude writing scrawled across various places. “Thank you.”
He smirked and strode over, his hands gripping the back of her chair as she continued to scan the sheets. “If Feather gets up, I’ll get her to fetch me the materials while I construct it. She can be useful, for once.”
“She has done more than you think.” She turned around to face him. “We should tell her.”
The smirk vanished and was quickly replaced by a grimace. He wasn’t old, only a year her junior, but when he pulled that face he looked like a fifty year old man rather than someone who was thirty. “No,” he growled, jaw rigid and eyes narrowing.
She grabbed his hand. “She’s trust worthy and I believe she has earned the right to know.”
He shifted awkwardly from underneath her palm. An amused noise escaped from his thin lips. “Have you forgotten that she was part of her idiot friend’s idea to create a bomb and nearly kill themselves in the process? Isn’t it bad enough without her meddling with that Wallis girl?”
Of course he’s going to make this difficult. “One mistake,” Isami admitted. “But has she not proven resourceful? She’s eager to help…”
Clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth his attention briefly switched to Feather. She waited for him to speak, the tapping of his foot breaking the silence. Another click. “We’ll see,” Ryan grumbled. He gazed at her reluctantly. “I’m not convinced.”
She gave him a small smile. “I know.” She turned around to take another look at the drawings, joy budding in her chest. Slim arms wrapped around her tiny waist. Hot breath tickled her skin as he moved aside her ebony hair to nuzzle her neck and jawline. A hand travelled down to meet his. “You’ve had wine?”
A callused thumb gently rubbed her index finger. “Jim had the most of it. The doctor is now currently passed out on a chair next to his brother. He needed it more than I do.” Her smile grew wider as he pressed his lips under her earlobe. “You could join me,” he offered. “For a late night toast.”
Giving his hand a gentle squeeze she whispered, “Perhaps some other time my brother-in-arms.”
He breathed into her hair before slowly releasing his grip on her. “As you wish.”
“You know where to find me if you need something.”
Ryan grinned as he walked off. “Indeed I do.”