Logs:She Kind of Scares Me
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| RL Date: 10 May, 2011 |
| Who: Emmeline, Jaques, Riorde |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Jaques returns wayward children. |
| Where: Settlement, Western Island |
| When: Day 17, Month 9, Turn 25 (Interval 10) |
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| Evening brings a chilly breeze off the water even in the summertime, and Jaques, damp from spray, rubs his arms to try to get warm as he heads back into camp, towing one of the more unruly children of the settlement. "Found him," he says to nobody in particular as he gives the sulky boy a little nudge back into camp. The smell of food perks both of them up, though, and both drift toward the dinner cooking. "Where have you been?? Next time you pull this kind of stunt I swear I'll skin you." Awwwe, Emme sounds just like her momma when she yells at all the children like that. "Don't give me that look. Get back to your parents "Get back to your parents. Extra lessons for you tomorrow." Fortunately, her ire doesn't make it as far as Jaques. He gets a smile and nod for having found the wayward. Otherwise, she just stands near enough to the fire to stay warm and wait for dinner to be ready. Speaking of food, Riorde has been drafted into the cooking squad for the evening. What's cooking is no surprise - fish, fish, and more fish. Face more than a little smudged from uncareful hands, Riorde stands guard over fish baking over coals and threatens one of the kids with her skewer when he ventures near to see if he can make off with something to eat before its ready, scorched fingers or no. "Hear that? Emmeline says she skins misbehaving snots like you. Guess where she gets the knives." "Aw, don't be too rough on him," Jaques says, though quietly enough his young charge won't hear. "He didn't get far and anyway, everybody needs to get away sometimes." It's maybe a losing battle, though, what with skinning and skewers and such; but hey, he tried. He watches the boy scamper off with a bemused expression. "Glad you two weren't running the show when I was little." "Hah. You obviously don't see him every day." Emmeline replies, stuffing her hands into her pockets to keep them warm while they all wait in line. "We're not so bad really." Except for threat of knives and skinning, which is where Riorde's comment makes her snort back a laugh. "Empty threats, I promise." "Should have been," Riorde mutters, but it's not a play for power. She brandishes her skewer one more time as the boy retreats. "Then they wouldn't be." She pitches it low enough for the kids not to hear, because as far as she's concerned they should all be scared to go near her. "Yeah, I'll just be--you know. Over here." Though Jaques jerks a thumb over his shoulder at some vague other place, he doesn't follow through with it and instead gives the two girls his lopsided smile. "Do you think Da would let me get away with teaching my kids myself, in that case? Well, when I have some, at least. What do they need to know, really?" It's only proper for Emme to cover her amused smile a bit by ducking her head, so that nobody sees whether she agrees with Riorde or not. She's done stirred up enough trouble for now, thank you. "He might." she ventures, but doesn't elaborate on why. "We go over numbers, writing, reading, mapping... they learn the island layout, the rules, the roles, and most of the history. They learn crafts like basket weaving, sewing..." she trails off, letting him decide for himself if he's up for all that. Riorde smudges charcoal further when she swipes away sweat brought on by hunkering over the coals. "Is your wife pregnant?" she asks Jaques abruptly, bluntly, since he is talking about children. The list of activities to which he'll have to subject himself makes Jaques' eyes pretty much glaze over. His mouth opens to reply, shuts again, and in the end the blunt question puts attention back on Riorde, whom he regards with dark eyes and pursed lips. "Not that I've heard," he admits. "Riorde!" As if Emmeline is really aghast that her friend asked a question so bluntly. "Geez woman, you need to wipe that coal off your face." she adds then, so that it's less an admonishment and more a surprised exclamation. That, ostensibly, is why she ducks behind the cooking line to find a rag of some sort. "Not that you've heard? Isn't that something you might normally be told first hand?" she ventures, unable to help herself. It just blurts out. "What?" Riorde is unabashed. "If she was it's not like she could hide it. We'd all know soon enough anyway. And it only stands to reason, I mean they are married after all..." She licks her finger and swipes it along her cheek. It comes away sooty. The rag will be welcome indeed. "Um." On the spot, Jaques flounders and looks like he might want to edge on over that way after all. A little defensively, he counters, "I don't know; I've never done it before. Though I'll make sure you two know as soon as I do." "Here. One for the hands. One for the face." Is there ever a time when Emme isn't acting like a teacher? She seems to belatedly realize this and appears apologetic. "We should save some of that coal... we could paint faces on people later when they sleep." she whispers, before smiling brightly and looking back up. "Uh... well, ok then! Not that there's anything wrong with that. I mean, well. Right, sorry. Is food ready yet, Riorde?" "You never done /it/ it?" That's how Riorde interprets it anyway, staring at Jaques with her wide-eyed, unsettling stare until Emmeline hands over the rags and she starts wiping off her face. Her grin is answer enough for the other girl's suggestion, and fortunately she's semi-distracted when realising, "Oh, yes, it should be. You get plates, I'll serve up." Which will keep her busy for some time as others flock to food. If Riorde's serving, Jaques doesn't seem quite so eager to go get his helping after all. Glumly, he looks after her for a moment and then notes to Emmeline, "She kind of scares me. That's not just me, is it?" Once she's brougght out the plates and gotten her own serving, Emme turns her attention back to Jaques. "Oh, it's not just you." she assures, a mischeivous grin appearing on the other girl's face. "She's a good friend though. And she's pretty blunt. Once you get past that part..." "Good to hear," though Jaques is looking after Riorde still with an intent little frown. He half-shrugs and glanes back to Emmeline; and for a moment he looks like he's going to say something. Except he doesn't, and he just looks mildly uncomfortable as he kind of stares. Awkward. "Aren't you going to get any food?" Emme wonders, eyebrow raised at Jaques demeanor. "It isn't fillet of toddler. Really." While her tone may be guileless, it's obvious she has a little eensy bit of fun teasing. "What, what is it? Soot on my face? Food in my teeth? What?" Jaques, caught staring, reaches up toward his face like he's going to point out something wrong with it, but his finger hovers uncertainly, too, like he can't decide between mouth or nose or forehead or where. Eventually he just puts his hand down. Guiltily, "Nothing. No. Sorry. --It's going to be the same thing we always have, I know that. Fish and seaweed." Emmeline just manages to look confused, and even glances down at her clothing to check for awkward downed zippers or popped buttons or something. But, finding nothing her brow just furrows and she gives Jaques an befuddled questioning look. "Right. Yeah, fish and seaweed. Maybe tubers if we're lucky." she agrees, and then backs away towards a bench so she can sit. "I'll just... eat my dinner." The not-so-covert checking makes Jaques look just that much more uncomfortable with the whole thing. "Yeah. That... sounds good," he agrees, backing up a step and then another before he turns to leave, foregoing the goodbyes along the way. |
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