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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 22, 2008 21:07:17 GMT -5
Darcy had run so hard and so fast and so darn far that she was lost. Her feet hurt like hell, and she was shivering from the cold. Finally she saw the neon lights of New York's Bar area. On accident, she ran into another kid. This kid told her all about earning money, and the five-finger discount. She learned how to "bump" people, and they often double-teamed on the richer drunks. Two days later, the kid was gone and her feet were bleeding. But she couldn't stop. She didn't have enough, not nearly (only twenty now, kid had left with the rest).
Then, she saw him. Her father had come looking, and he was standing outside one of the bars. She backed away, then started to run before he saw her. However, she bumped straight into someone, and on instinct pocketed a fresh twenty from their pocket before even realizing what she'd done.
Looking up, Darcy gulped. This was no drunk. But her father was coming, she could almost SENSE him. She backed up two steps before the man realized what she'd done, and sprinted off, heading toward zigzagging alleys and roads, not realizing that her feet were slowly starting to leave a trail of blood, not noticing that she was slowing down.
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 15:26:37 GMT -5
As the emaciated preteen smacked into him, Egil grunted slightly, but she had turned and bolted before he could ask if she was alright. Seeing she was gone, he sighed slightly and started to continue walking to the bar when he noticed something was off. He checked himself up and down and when he checked his pockets, found the $20 he had for dinner was missing. "Hey," he yelled after the kid and darted off into the alleyways after her. As he got the first break, he cursed under his breath. New York alleys were a confusing labrynth, and there's no chance he'd find her now. He was more concerned about the fact that she was rail thin and barefoot; did he see that right? He frowned and turned to go back to the bar when he noticed a trail of bloody footprints. "Jesus Christ," he muttered to himself. Egil turned and ran after the trail of blood, now thoroughly concerned about the well being of the child.
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 15:56:06 GMT -5
Darcy had collapsed for a moment at a corner, but was soon running. However, she had turned enough corners to end up almost towards the beginning... and there stood her father. His back was to her, but it was enough. She whimpered, turned, and ran the other way. Two corners later, though, and she saw the man she had just run into moments ago. She whimpered again, turning back and forth, before finally just plastering herself against a wall and trying to hide.
It didn't last, though. The man was soon close, and then he had seen her. She stared up at him with wide eyes, her whole body trembling. "I'm sorry, 'm sorry, don't let him get me, please don't let him get me, m'sorry, don't let him get me please please..." an endless mantra, fading into whimpering as she heard some kindly drunk point out her bloody footprints in a loud voice, and a voice answering. Her father was coming. She cried out, curled up, and put her head on her knees, trying to shrink between the two trash cans.
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 17:24:50 GMT -5
As the little girl crumpled in a heap in front of him, whimpering, Egil felt his heartstrings painfully twist. He knelt down in front of her and softly said, "Hey hey, it's gonna be alright. Don't let who getcha, darlin?" He heard the other man follow the footprints after the drunk pointed them out. With great difficulty, Egil suppressed a growl as he thought about what kind of monster would treat a kid like this. He didn't know what the man had done to her, but she was emaciated, her bare-feet bloodied, and had clear signs of abuse. Fighting back the urge to handle the man West Texas-style, he calmed himself and offered the girl his hand. "Come with me darlin," he smiled softly, "Ah'll getcha outta here and getcha somewhere you ain't gonna hafta worry about him anymore."
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 17:32:49 GMT -5
Darcy raised her head to see the man kneeling in front of her, but he hadn't tried to hit her yet. When his hand came out, though, she raised one arm in front of her face and pressed back. He didn't move, though, and he wasn't yelling. Very slowly, she lowered her arm while straightening it out until her hand very, very softly was laying on his. She was still quivering, but she figured that no matter what he did to her, it couldn't be worse than having your own father do it. "D-don't hurt me, p-please," she said softly, just in case, as they stood, her tiny, short body seeming small against his well-built physique. ((LOL Had to put that))
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 17:55:53 GMT -5
Taking the girl by the hand, Egil walked to the corner leading to the end of the maze and listened to which way the other man was going. When the coast was clear, he led the girl out of the alleys, and upon finding the "helpful" drunk from earlier, gave him more to drink on the condition that he didn't see either him or the girl when the man comes back. Egil was absolutely furious that someone would treat a kid like this, but he couldn't let the girl see him angry. After a block, he remembered her feet and took off his guitar, he got the girl sitting riding piggy-back style and carried his guitar as best he could all the way home. At his door, he set her down and unlocked the door and led her inside. "You must be starving, hon. Is there anything you'd like to eat? Anything at all, you name it, and I'll get it for ya," he smiled.
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 18:13:45 GMT -5
Darcy didn't mind walking by this man. The crowds she usually had to weave through seemed to part for him, though she knew it was just because he was an adult. Suddenly, he had taken what looked to be a guitar case off his back and was picking her up! At first she had wanted to struggle, but she knew he wasn't going to hurt her in public. She managed to put her arms around his neck in a fashion and hung on, looking around from the new height with as much interest as a starving, tired, and terrified eleven-year-old could manage.
At the apartment complex, she was even more grateful that he had picked her up, because there were three flights of stairs, and she figured that had she been on foot, they would have gone up them. However, they took the elevator, and he STILL held her, all the way to his door when he had to set her down. There, she stood stock-still, afraid to move lest he think she was trying to run away or something.
Inside, she looked around the apartment. It wasn't too bad off, with just the furnishings it needed and most things in their places. Her stare was soon turned to him, though, as he offered her food, without limits. She couldn't speak at first, but her stomach grumbled anyway. Embarrassed, Darcy looked down and licked her lip. "C-could I... could I have a... maybe a sandwich?" she asked cautiously, her voice a little hoarse. She didn't want to ask for anything more, and she wasn't even sure what she liked anymore. She cooked whatever her dad liked and ate that, so.... could she be sure?
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 18:24:32 GMT -5
Egil nodded, "Okay. A sandwich, Ah can do a sandwich." He moseyed over to the kitchen and got out some bread. He paused for a second as he realized he had no idea what she liked on a sandwich. Peanut butter? Ham? Tomatoes? "Crap," he thought, "What the hell do most kids like?" He wasn't your standard kid when he was younger, he loved food so much, he ate anything put in front of him. He'd make her something simple then, and hope she liked it. If she didn't, he had no qualms with making her something else. He quickly assembled a turkey, ham, lettuce, and cheese sandwich, figuring that those were all safe choices. Egil put the sandwich on a plate and poured a glass of milk and brought it out to her. "Here you go, darlin. Ah'm gonna go put my guitar up and clean up a little bit. If you need anything, anything at all, you let me know." He strode off to his room and closed the door to shower.
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 18:34:37 GMT -5
Darcy stared at the plate, sitting on a table, in front of a chair, with a glass of milk. She hadn't been allowed to eat at a table in... how long? A year? When he left to another room, she very cautiously approached the table, managed to climb into the chair, and sat on her knees. The chair was wood, like the table, but cushioned with navy blue padding. She looked at the door, then reached out and grabbed the sandwich. It was thick, and she again looked to the door, then took a bite. The taste surprised her, as everything was fresh.
It was so good. She ate, but only managed near half of it before her stomach began to rebel. It had shrunk in the past two or three years, and did not accept this much. Finally she set it down, looking at it with regret, before picking up the glass in both hands gently and sipping at the milk. She almost smiled at it, so happy was she, and nearly gulped down a quarter of it in one beat. Again, though, her stomach rebelled, and she had to set it down.
Now she faced a problem. She couldn't throw away the sandwich, but she didn't know where to hide it either. And the milk couldn't be hid, but she didn't want to put it down the drain and waste it. Finally, she slid off the chair, managed to get the place and glass down, and took them over to the counter and set them there. Then, quick as a mouse, she was back in her chair before the door opened and he came back out.
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 19:38:28 GMT -5
Egil walked back in from his room, his hair a bit damp still, and smiled at the girl. Seeing how little she ate, he felt kind of bad, but figured she couldn't handle too much for now. He went to the fridge and started to take out a beer, but given the child, decided against it. Instead, he poured himself a glass of milk, too and got out a tupperware container of his homemade chili. He emptied the container into a small pot and started to heat it up when it occurred to him that he had no idea what this little girl's name is. So he walked over to her and smiled as he asked, "Sweetheart, what's your name? Ah just realized Ah don't know what to call you."
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 20:07:46 GMT -5
Darcy watched him silently the whole time. She saw him reach for the beer and stiffened, hands clenching under the table. However, she relaxed when he put it back and poured some milk instead. Afterwards, he started to prepare some food, something she recognized as chili only by the look. She had never smelled chili that smelled so... delicious, almost. Even though she wasn't hungry, and another bite of food just might make her puke, she couldn't help but look at it. Then he was moving, and her attention was jerked to him.
He walked over to her with a smile, and she tensed a little, looking down and waiting for a touch. Nothing happened though, and he asked a question. She swallowed slightly, deciding not to tell him her last name. After a moment, she got up the courage to look back up at him. "I'm Darcy Joan, sir." She paused, then remembered something important. Quickly, she sat up on her knees and pulled his twenty out of her pocket. She extended it to him cautiously, tense enough that it was quivering in her grip. "Sorry, sir."
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 20:17:25 GMT -5
Egil's eyes widened as she held out the twenty. He'd been so concerned with her state, he'd completely forgotten about the money she'd lifted off of him. He smiled again and said, "Keep it, darlin. Ah figure if you need to lift someone's money to keep alive, you can keep it. Ah'm not hurtin for cash or anything so don't worry bout it, k?" He walked back to his chili and stirred it some. "Well, Darcy, I'd offer you some of this, but Ah just don't think your stomach could handle Texas chili. We kinda like our chili a wee bit on the hot side," he grinned mischievously. With the chili done, he emptied it into a large bowl and tossed some Fritos on top and mixed it all together. He started to eat, but stopped after a bite. "Darlin, but you smell worse than a fresh cow patty on a hot summer day," he chuckled, "How'd you like to shower yourself? Ah could wash those clothes for you while you do it, if you'd like. Towels are in there, and just leave your clothes outside the door. Ah'd offer you some fresh clothes, but Ah can't say Ah've had too many kiddos your age around."
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 20:26:02 GMT -5
Darcy stared at him when he refused to take back the money. Not giving him a chance to renege, she put it back in her pocket and watched as he stirred the chili. When he spoke about offering to her and not thinking she could handle it, she nodded. It was always best to agree with anything people said. What he said about her smell puzzled her at first, but when she worked it out, her lips twitched in an almost smile and she looked down, blushing a little. When he asked her if she wanted to shower, though, her whole body stiffened as it had earlier, when she thought he was going to get drunk.
Darcy pulled in her lip, glad her head was still down so he couldn't see. He wanted her to shower. And showers meant watching... waiting........ touching........... She realized her muscles were quivering and she relaxed a tiny bit, before making her decision. Always best to do what they want, she thought to herself. Rather than trust her voice, though, she just nodded slightly and slid off the chair, walked into the bathroom... and left the door open. She began to strip, her back to the door, allowing him a view of her bruised back and tiny red marks on her lower leg. It took all her courage to just pull off her shirt, let alone the jeans, leaving her in her underpants, which she was about to pull down when he came over, causing her to freeze in mid-move.
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Post by egilvonshrieder on Oct 23, 2008 20:36:04 GMT -5
Egil shut the door and mentally kicked himself for not thinking to tell her it's okay to do so herself. He scooped up her clothes, leaned against the door and said, "Darlin, sorry Ah didn't say so before, you should close the door for some privacy. You just take your time in there, and Ah'll clean up your clothes." After tossing her dirty jeans and shirt into the washer, he sat down at the table and stared at his chili for a bit. Once again, his outrage at the sonuvabitch who did this to her flared up, but he wrestled it down again and finished eating. When the clothes finished in the dryer, he folded them up and set them by the door. With a knock, he told her that the clothes were dry and walked away, shutting the door to his bedroom to give her more privacy.
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A bit later, he was sitting on the couch, watching a football game when he heard his bedroom door open.
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Post by darcyxjoan on Oct 23, 2008 20:43:36 GMT -5
Darcy turned and stared at the closed door for a long time before she went to the shower. It took a moment of consideration to figure out how to work these new controls (they were different then at home). When she did, she glanced at the door again before putting it as hot as her tender skin and throbbing feet would allow. She stood under it for a long time, feeling it wash her clean. It was a while before she finally started to clean up. Her hair took a few washes, but she didn't mind. At least it didn't hurt. Her body took almost five complete washes, especially since her feet hurt so bad. Partway through, he knocked on the door again and told her that her clothes were done. It surprised her - even a load of just her clothes would take almost an hour. Had she really been in the shower that long?
When her body was nicely pink rather than dingy and her hair back to blonde, Darcy stepped out of the shower, turning the controls off, and wrapped herself in a soft towel. Since she was in there, she used the toilet as well, which was a double relief for her, being clean inside and out. Very slowly, she opened the bathroom door, only to see that the bedroom door was closed as well, and more important, he was outside of it.
It only took a moment to dress. The lavender shirt and faded jeans seemed different, now that they were clean. And her underpants were much more comfortable now. She sighed to herself, her lips twitching, before she opened the door. First just a little, just enough to peek, but he wasn't staring at it. He was watching a football game. She opened it the rest of the way, swallowed, and stepped out quietly. "Thank you, sir," she said softly.
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