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Post by Ylanne on Oct 16, 2019 12:00:09 GMT -6
The old woman's shoulders lowered, and she drew in closer on herself. She exuded a vulnerability she had rarely shown in her time at the Bureau's helm, the jagged scarring stark and unmistakable along her exposed arms and wrists and hands. "I'm too tired to read anything decent, now, I think," she said, "and I'm afraid I've missed lunchtime already. I'll be fine enough, though, by dinner." She hadn't been able to manage the walk from the cellblock to the mess hall at breakfast time, and since Aerilyn had come midday, she'd missed lunch too. She'd probably have to ask the damn prosecutor to bring something, if they were going to take too long. "I'll speak to my friend in the Justice Ministry," Drulović said, tapping one of her fingers light and slow on the table. "I simply don't expect answers from him. He's likely preoccupied with more important things in his life."
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Post by demikara on Oct 16, 2019 12:03:46 GMT -6
"Maybe he'll help you find a good one." Aerilyn said and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry you missed lunch. I'll bring something to eat next time." If they'd let her. They better let her. She'd bring something soft and easy to eat. The other needed to eat and now Aerilyn felt guilty that she had taken the other's lunch time up with a visit, especially when she ate so little as it was. Her shoulders slumped and she blinked away tears. This was a miserable time for everyone, wasn't it?
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 16, 2019 12:16:28 GMT -6
"Would that be possible?" Drulović's gaze flicked over to where the guard had been standing, watching and listening in silence, addressing him for the first time since he'd escorted her into the cube.
He shrugged. "Not here. If you're convicted and transferred, visitors there will be able to buy snacks from the vending machines to share with inmates, or to bring some prepared foods that must be searched when coming in. You'd have to review the rules and regulations over there, though. Safety and security for staff, inmates, and visitors are our first concerns."
Drulović returned her attention to Aerilyn, the pain in the lines of her face deepening and spreading. "I suppose Ms. Whatcott-Joyner has no tolerance for small kindnesses, then," she said with a sigh. Her jaw ached. "I'm tired of it all." But she knew sleep would remain elusive. "You should return home and rest. I'll be fine." She didn't believe it though.
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Post by demikara on Oct 16, 2019 12:21:35 GMT -6
"Alright." Aerilyn agreed, though not pleased that she wouldn't be able to at least bring something for her friend to eat. "I'll make fresh cookies, for when you're transferred." It wasn't really an if, was it? She hadn't every second of this as she stood, heart breaking. "I'll try and talk to them about your food again." She didn't think she'd be particularly successful, but she would try and that was the best she could do when it came down to it. Aerilyn closed her eyes and held her arm close to her, ignoring the ache in her chest. She would deal with it later.
For now, she wanted to hug her friend goodbye.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 16, 2019 12:35:32 GMT -6
"You're welcome to try what you may," said Drulović, rueful and doubting. "I'm able to eat enough just fine, though, so there's no need to worry so much." It hurt to chew and they didn't always serve a soup, which was easiest for her to manage, but she wasn't starving, not the way she had in previous hells. With visible effort, she pushed hard against the table to come to her feet, eyes narrowed and jaw taut, standing in agonizing pain for a moment without holding on to anything for leverage before she grasped the back of the chair where she'd been sitting before. The old woman couldn't really return the hug, not with her hands shackled and not without risking another fall, but she leaned into the embrace, grateful for her friend's presence. She did not know when they would meet again.
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Post by demikara on Oct 16, 2019 12:45:31 GMT -6
Aerilyn hugged her as best she could and closed her eyes, not wanting to step away before she did just that, knowing it was time. "I hope to see you soon." Aerilyn said. "And I'll be thinking warm thoughts of you. Good bye Arianne." She hesitated a moment, then left, not wanting to, but knowing she couldn't remain much longer regardless. The other needed rest of some sort. Aerilyn had seen how just standing up had taxed her, had hurt her. She had seen the pain in the others eyes the entire time.
And this was with her pain medication.
God, things would never be okay again after this.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 16, 2019 13:03:19 GMT -6
When Aerilyn had gone through the one door, the guard came over to take Drulović by the arm. She leaned on him for balance, holding as tightly as she could, and followed him into another vestibule outside the visiting area, where she joined two women she didn't know and one she did, waiting to be strip searched in turn. The guards would take one woman at a time into what looked like a small stall with a swinging door, like a dressing room but stinking of old sweat and cheap perfumes, two guards joining her inside, removing her restraints, if she wore them, and instructing her to strip down to bare skin. When satisfied she was not smuggling weapons, drugs, secret messages, or other contraband, they would order her to dress again, and send her back to her housing unit. For her part, Elizabeth Cranford seemed to be doing significantly better - at least physically - than Drulović did, but she stared blankly straight ahead, her expression vacant and shellshocked. They'd only been detained for less than two months by this point, not long enough for the daughter of an old money family married into a statesman's line to adjust to the harsh realities of jail, Drulović surmised. In that alone, her own past brushes with detention and tortures had offered a kind of mercy to her. It was no shock to her system. Elizabeth acknowledged Drulović only with a hurried, stolen glance, and then inched away on the bench where they sat as if she were afraid they would,be caught and punished for some illicit behavior. Drulović waited patiently for the other women, Elizabeth included, to finish their strip searches so they could return to their units, and the old woman could have her turn at it. It was not easy for her to undress or to put her uniform back on once cleared. Maneuvering with only one hand that was missing fingers wouldn't exactly make it easy.
Back in the cell, Drulović lay listless on the bunk, knees aching much more than even the stronger medication could dull, and decided she wouldn't be able to manage the walk down the hall to the phones, much less the wait in the line that had formed, and so she wouldn't be able to try to call the prosecutor ahead of time and ask if she might be willing to bring something to eat for her after all. At least she hadn't fallen and fractured something else on the way back this time. Most of the guards didn't really know what to do with her, or the others caught in the sweeps. They had been instructed carefully not to either give them special privileges or to subject any of them to mistreatment that could lead to a nasty lawsuit or negative press, and so they had been trying their hardest to keep at business as usual. They were all inmates, and yet they were all supposed to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. What shit, Drulović thought. The way they talked about the women in this wing of Wrentham made it very clear that most of the guards already assumed they were criminal, irredeemable, and disposable. At least no one had tried to kill her here, yet. She wasn't entirely sure if that was a mercy.
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Post by demikara on Oct 17, 2019 17:46:49 GMT -6
It had been a long day and a very different day than usual. Aerilyn unlocked the door to their apartment and smiled happily. She was home. The first day had gone well enough, and she was home. It had been peaceful, but her trainer had pointed out that was a rare day on their bus route and then asked again if she was sure that she wanted this route. It was apparently not one anyone lasted on.
That was fine. She had lasted through a lot worse than a bus route. The aeromancer looked around and smiled. "Ahmad! Are you here?" He could be working late after all. She removed her shoes and hung her jacket up by the door. It was just the two of them, and she didn't mind if he saw her scars. He had never made a big deal out of them, and they were faded enough now that they rarely bothered her. She still didn't like showing them though.
This new position was something else. It wasn't being a bouncer and was a lot less active, but it wasn't bad. She'd have to get some sort of physical activity in or she'd go nuts, but so far it was working out well. Time alone would see if that remained the case.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 17, 2019 18:09:27 GMT -6
Ahmad and Lisbeth had settled into a functional routine, for now at least. He dressed in slightly unwrinkled polos and arrived promptly by 9:30, but still managed to steal a few minutes every so often to check on different games on his phone throughout the day. That part, at least, was familiar. And he sat in the same office, at the same desk, but at least the one he was used to visiting to see his boss, well, he was thankful Lisbeth hadn't taken up residence there. She was down the hall from him. A good distance. Not so far she was AWOL, but not so close he had to hide his monitors from her watchful eyes. And at least she wasn't that type of supervisor, overbearing, micromanaging, more like a parent or a high school principal than a colleague. He appreciated that aspect of their new relationship too.
And with Lisbeth hewing more to traditional interpretations of work hours, Ahmad at least found himself home by seven more often than not, unlike the days in the not so distant past where sometimes he'd be at work until nine a few days a week. That had been less than ideal, for his games, his relaxation, and also his marriage.
At home now, Ahmad was lying horizontally over the couch in his gaming den, no shoes, and socks long since uncurled and thrown across the room. There were two empty bags of Doritos lying on the floor beside him, a few crumbs spilling out, and four empty soda bottles. Different types, of course. He had two controllers, one for each hand, and was staring at a split screen in front of him - really, playing against himself in a "multiplayer" game. When he heard Aerilyn's voice from downstairs, he paused, nearly falling from the couch, and turned his head toward the den's door. "Yeah, upstairs! I didn't cook anything though. I didn't know when you'd be back. Hey, you're alive though!"
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Post by demikara on Oct 17, 2019 18:14:13 GMT -6
Aerilyn laughed and headed up the stairs to join him. She took in the sight of him at his games and smiled fondly. "I always come back alive." Though she had a near miss at Gambit's, that was for sure. "And this is a much safer job than Gambit's. You won't have to worry." She joined him in the room, having stood in the doorway to take in the scene, and sat next to him, hugging him gently. "The hours are different too. Not so crazy." Not as dangerous, not as crazy. It was insane how much her life had changed.
"I can make something to eat. Probably just sandwiches though." She didn't want to see her attempt at cooking tonight. Her food was edible on a good day and it had been a long day. She didn't want to chance it. Aerilyn grinned at him, thrilled they were both home. His new hours were much more reasonable too. He still had long days, but she saw him earlier and got to spend a bit more time with him.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 17, 2019 18:20:36 GMT -6
"Oh, no, no no no," Ahmad said, groaning as he spoke, as he suddenly switched from slothful lazing on the couch to a swift, smooth motion coming to his feet in the gaming gen, tossing both controllers back onto the couch. "Nope, you stay away from the kitchen, and I will fix up something that will both fill me up and that I won't regret in a few hours, or tomorrow morning." He flashed a grin, patting Aerilyn on the shoulder now that he was standing over her on the couch. "Besides, it's your first day, so you definitely shouldn't be responsible for making dinner, even if you, um, could." He laughed, eyes sparkling for a moment with what seemed like a bit of genuine joy. There was no meanness or mockery in it. "Anyway, you know I'm always worried. That last day at Gambit's... I mean. Yeah I know you're not there anymore. But I like you alive, no matter where you are." He paused in the doorway, tapping the frame. "So. Couscous? Eggplant marinara? Or a halfway decent beef brisket?"
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Post by demikara on Oct 17, 2019 18:32:07 GMT -6
"Couscous sounds wonderful. And one day I'll figure out how to cook." She could mostly follow a recipe, but it never quite turned out. She didn't have nay of the basics down, that was for sure, and not for lack of trying. "And I can make sandwiches. Those are easy." They just wouldn't be enough for them both to be full. She stood, ready to follow him and smiled. "Want any help? I can hand you ingredients." She knew well what she was relegated to. She didn't even get to help prep the ingredients.
Aerilyn took his hand and pulled him close, kissing his cheek. "You are the far superior cook. I could be faking you know. I might secretly be an amazing chef and I just like your food so much I prefer it." She was not. She was not and they both knew it.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 17, 2019 18:46:20 GMT -6
"Yeah, sure, maybe in a fun story somewhere else," Ahmad said, grinning, as he bounded from their room down the stairs, holding Aerilyn's hand all the while. They could have been springing through a field together the way their bodies moved so in sync even after they'd each had a long work day. He loved to imagine what it might look like to someone watching. "You can go grab the butter and cinnamon and salt, and just put them on the counter. That definitely counts as helping." Ahmad squeezed Aerilyn's hand. "And I'm really, really glad you're out of the sling and can walk around and all now. I was starting to worry you'd never be okay! I mean, I knew you would be. You always are. But it's scary." Since she'd been home from the hospital, they'd done their best to have dinner each night, but once a week, when Aerilyn had gone over to the prison to see the old woman. Ahmad longed to join her for those visits. But for now, he'd have to be the one doing all the cooking since the old woman couldn't help him decrease the frequency of that particular household contribution now. "You look good, my badass bus driver."
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Post by demikara on Oct 17, 2019 19:04:45 GMT -6
Aerilyn giggled and let go of his hand to grab the needed ingredients. It didn't take long at all. She put the three things on the counter and hummed, curious now. "I was worried too. Being injured like that was rough." It was incredibly rough for both of them. She was a terrible patient and she knew it. The aeromancer played with a breeze, ruffling it through her husband's hair and wrapping it around both of them.
"It wasn't bad. The route is pretty easy. It's not through the best part of town, but what part of town is the best?" It was how things went. Wing City wasn't a safe place to live. It wasn't a safe place to work either. She was still thrilled her husband worked on a base where he would be well protected. She smiled. It was going to be okay.
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Post by Ylanne on Oct 17, 2019 19:13:41 GMT -6
"Okay, don't go and tell me that, not right after you were just getting through telling me how much safer this new job is," said Ahmad, exaggerating rolling his eyes. His kitchen - and it really was more his - was somewhat messy but very scrupulously clean, the seemingly chaotic and uncontrollable piles of dried goods and cookware actually possessing a very specific ordering. Ahmad knew where the smallest packet of paprika was. He began preparation of the actual couscous grains now, the first soak of several in store. "But seriously though. Did you like it? Do you think you'll stay?" His voice rose with some hope. He knew he'd never be satisfied driving a bus but what he didn't want was Aerilyn back in an ICU, that time not coming home to threaten her cooking at all.
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