Stories To Be

Bits and Pieces of my stories. Some posts here will be continuances of a story. Some will be details or ideas for a scene or other part of a story that isn't next but I don't want to forget. Each post will be titled with the name of the story it belongs to, to keep things from being confusing.

Stories In Progress

  • Bane of Death
  • Tabled Unfinished Stories

  • Troia
  • The Lost Song
  • New Mutants: Angel
  • The Unending Story
  • Finished Stories

  • End, The - Feint of Heart Warning
  • Faith Winterfields
  • Flight
  • Chronicles of Gaia
  • Project, The
  • What's At S.T.E.A.K.
  • Poems

  • Sense of Wonder
  • Happiness In Health
  • Thoughts
  • Anticipation (of News)

  • Please let me know what you think!  Comment or e-mail me.  Both positive and negitive critiques expected!

    Wednesday, November 09, 2005

    NaNoWriMo Day 9
    - Chapter 3 Continued 

    1,904 words.

    When Alicia turned back to face D only, she noticed D didn't seem quite as menacing. The way D stood, the shade of her clothing, even the features of her face seemed a little less intimidating and mean. "Did you change?" Alicia asked.

    D tilted her head slightly. "I don't know. Did you change me?"

    Alicia shook off the eeriness by shaking her head. "Never mind," she mumbled.

    Martin looked at Alicia out of the corners of his eyes. D hadn't appeared to change to him. "You okay?" he asked Alicia.

    "Yeah," she answered quickly, looking to D and not him.

    "Do you have any questions?" D asked, almost a bit too innocently for Alicia's liking.

    "Plenty!" She announced. "Starting with... why are you being so helpful?"

    D nodded in understanding. "Because, ideally, the more you know, the less conflict we will have to go through."

    "Okay then," Alicia said as she thought about that, and what she wanted to ask next.

    "I have a question," Martin piped up with.

    D slowly turned to look at Martin. He said nothing, but his face gave off the impression he was going to say something, so Martin waited. Finally D did speak. "I have all the time in the world. You don't. So perhaps you should ask your question now."

    "Oh, sorry," Martin automatically replied with out of common courtesy. Then mentally scowled at himself for apologizing for nothing. "What I'd like to know," he immediately moved on to, "is does Alicia's gift have a purpose? Besides the obvious. As in, was she given it for a specific reason?"

    "As far as I know," D started to answer, then slowly walked around Martin while watching him the entire way, causing a creepy feeling that made the hairs on Martin's neck and arms to stand on end. D's head then turned to look at Alicia. "Only to be the bane of my existence."

    Alicia looked D straight in the eye. "Do you know how far my powers go?" she asked.

    D smiled. "Yes."

    Alicia frowned at the smile, it was not one of joy but one of 'I know something you don't know!'

    "Will you tell me?" Alicia asked.

    "No," D replied simply.

    Alicia scowled at D, then looked questioningly to Martin. He shrugged.

    Alicia turned back to D. "Okay... how about this. Do you remember the first time we met?"

    D nodded. "Yes. But I doubt you do."

    "Oh?" Alicia replied. "I remember the fire when I was three, but we didn't actually meet then. We didn't meet until the amusement park."

    "We met before then," D corrected her. She gestured towards Alicia with her hand. "But ask your question."

    Alicia pondered for a moment. "I wanted to ask, when I called to you to help the man I was with, I understand now why you didn't do anything. But why did you say to me that you couldn't help him?"

    D held out her arms. "Because I couldn't. You were right next to him."

    "You mean you couldn't help him die," Alicia stated.

    "Death is not always a bad thing," D informed her. "Sometimes it is a help."

    Alicia's brows furrowed. "I couldn't conceive of how!"

    Even Martin was frowning. "Death may be a natural thing, when not helped along. But I have to agree with Alicia."

    "No one asked you," D told Martin with an edged tone.

    "You don't like me, do you?" Martin asked.

    "It is not a matter of like or dislike," D replied.

    "Then what is your problem with me?"

    "You should not be able to see me," D informed him, but not as the answer to his question. "We should not be able to have this conversation."

    "That's the problem?" Martin asked, his voice full of doubt.

    To Alicia, D fell silent and just stared at Martin for several moments as if trying to stare him down.

    To Martin, D was suddenly looming over him. In the blink of an eye the up until this point maintenance worker image had been replaced with the image of the first mad father he had ever dealt with as a teenage boy taking a girl out on a date, except it was D's face and not that father's. "My problem with you," D said in a deep growl that sent chills up Martin's spine, "is that I do not know what you are going to fill her head with."

    "I- I- I'm not-" Martin stammered.

    "I expect you are the reason she became aware of what she does to me," D continued in a lowered volume, forcing Martin to strain to hear what was being said. "And it is clear she has become attached to you for it."

    Martin shook his head rapidly. "No sir," he contradicted, part of his mind thinking he was back talking to that girl's father, all of him feeling like it as he started to sweat. "I mean, yes sir!" he quickly corrected himself. "But, we won't be doing anything because of that."

    "You had better not," D warned. "For your own sake."

    The moment D turned back toward Alicia, the scene around Martin returned to normal. Except that D retained the clothing that father had worn. Martin took his hand off Alicia's shoulder and shrunk a couple steps away from her.

    Alicia saw Martin the whole time he and D stared intently at each other. She saw his fear and that he appeared to be talking to D. But she hadn't heard a word Martin nor D had said. When D turned back to her and Martin backed off, it was clear who had one the contest of wills.

    "What was that?" Alicia demanded to know.

    "That was me getting him to stop interfering," D informed her. "Now we can continue our conversation."

    Alicia watched Martin for a moment. He had his hands in his pockets, and was looking down as he shuffled his feet. "Martin?"

    "Yeah, what?" he asked, looking around quickly to make sure no one else was there but him and her.

    "Arrrrrre you alright?" Alicia asked.

    "Oh yeah, fine!" he said in that way men do when they want to make it seem like nothing is wrong.

    She nodded slowly, not believing him, but not pushing the issue. "Okay." She returned her attention to D. "So you say we met before then. When did we first meet?"

    "At your birth," D told her.

    "My... birth?" Alicia echoed, not at all expecting that to have been the answer.

    "Yes," D confirmed. "Your birth. Have you been told anything about it?"

    "Sure," Alicia replied with a wave of her hand. "Long labor, big head. All the typical stuff mothers say to guilt their children."

    D's head shook slowly. "It was a long and hard labor for her. I was there at your birth, because she was supposed to have died then."

    Alicia was beyond stunned. She stood wide eyed, mouth open, attempting to form words but failing.

    "I see we're not going to be able to talk any more right now," D commented aloud. She put a hand on Alicia's shoulder. "Go home. Hug your mother. I'll be here when you're ready with more questions." And with that, D walked off down the hall.

    Alicia turned to Martin. "Uh...."

    Martin nodded. "Yeah."

    "I'd like to go home now," Alicia finally managed to say.

    "Oh, okay," Martin replied. "You ah," he pointed over his shoulder with a thumb, "you don't want to go visit Doug first?"

    Alicia looked off and blinked once before her memory kicked back in. "Oh right. Yeah," she looked directly at Martin. "Yes. Let's go see Doug. Then I'll go visit Mom."

    Martin raised an eyebrow. "Your mom?"

    Alicia smiled. "Apparently, she was the first person I ever saved."

    "Ah," he replied. "Nice."

    "Come on," Alicia said as she started towards the elevators.

    In Doug's room Alicia and Martin found the whole family gathered around Doug. Natalie was humming and packing up Doug's things. The older child ran up to Alicia with a huge grin. "Daddy is coming home tonight!"

    "So I heard," Alicia replied with a smile. She looked over to Doug. "I came to wish you well."

    Natalie walked over to her husband and put her arm around his shoulders. "Thank you," she said to Alicia. "You've been so nice to us." She looked down at her husband. "It's been such a help to Doug to have a friend here for him."

    "You don't know the half of it," Martin mumbled under his breath. Alicia jabbed her elbow into his ribs to quiet him.

    "It's been my pleasure," Alicia told them. "I'm just glad to see you get better and be heading home," she said to Doug.

    "Thank you," Doug replied. "I'm glad to be going home!" He took his wife's hand. "You know, at first, I didn't think I was going to pull through."

    "Hush!" Natalie admonished him. "I won't hear such things. You did, and that's what matters."

    Alicia smirked at the couple. "We'll be going now."

    "Thank you again," Doug said, "for everything."

    "You're welcome," Alicia replied.

    As she and Martin headed towards the door, another voice called to her. "Alicia?"

    The voice belonged to Doug's roommate Maria. She was a sweet but lonely elderly woman. She was a widow, and the rest of her family was spread out across the country, none of them living nearby. Her eldest daughter had flown in when Maria first entered the hospital, but the daughter had to leave a few days later to get back to her job so she wouldn't loose it. Alicia didn't know why Maria was in the hospital, but she had been there starting the same day as Doug. Every time Alicia visited Doug, Maria would call to her as she left.

    Alicia walked over to Maria's bed. "Hello Maria,"she said with patience.

    "Alicia," Maria repeated, this time with concern. She reached out for Alicia. "You're still going to come visit me, right? After Doug leaves?"

    Alicia exhaled softly. "I'll come see you after each of my shifts," she promised.

    "Does that mean everyday?" Maria asked.

    "Twice a week," Alicia told her.

    "No. No. Every day," Maria pleaded. "You have to come every day."

    Alicia gently pulled Maria's hand off her. "I'm not sure I can."

    "But you have to!" Maria insisted with fear in her voice.

    Alicia turned a concerned expression to Martin. "Why?" she asked Maria.

    "Because every day they say to each other that I'm not going to make it. I can hear it in the doctors' voices. But every day you come visit, and make me feel safe enough to fall sleep. And every morning I wake up." She grabbed Alicia's arm again. "Please."

    Alicia looked down on Maria, then back up to Martin with a question on her face. He nodded to indicate he would keep driving her.

    "Okay," she finally said. She took Maria's hand off her again, placing it gently on Maria's stomach. "I'll visit everyday."

    Maria sighed in relief. "Thank you. My daughter, she said she can come back this weekend," Maria started saying as she relaxed in her bed. "And she'll be bringing my grandchildren." Maria's voice trailed off as she rambled herself to sleep.

    Alicia stood by Maria's bed, looking down on her.

    Soon Martin came over and took her by the shoulders. "Come on," he said quietly.

    Labels: , ,

    posted by Jennifer Michelle  @11:47 PM


    Comments


    Sara said:
    Breaking my rule a little, I think you should work in the line "Death just told me to go and hug my mom." It just sturck me as funny. I'm also kind of curious about how sincere Death was when saying that. Does she really care or is she just trying to get rid of Alicia for a while?

    Keep it up!
     
    Post a Comment

    Links

    View Archive List  

    Webrings

    Go to previous site Visit random site Join our ring Visit our home page List of sites Visit next site Click Here To Join
    Prev | List | Random | Next
    This site is owned by
    Jennifer Michelle
    .
    Writer's Webring Gif
    Join Now

    Ring Hub

    Random

    Previous

    Next

    Next 5