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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:03:54 GMT
Drake opened his mouth and then shut it again, unsure of exactly how to respond to her bluntness. Why was it when he tried to be straightforward, she became equivocal, and then when he tried to accommodate that, she became direct again? How was he supposed to respond to this?
“I suppose yes, that’s what I’m saying...” he trailed off. Why did he care? Wasn’t enough that he was offering her this? Obviously, she was a member of the household now, and that meant that she needed to know how to read. Did he have to spell that out to her too? No, no she wouldn’t like that. Her tone seemed so...caustic. Okay, maybe he’d instigated her mistrust, he had tried to kill her at one point...well… multiple times, actually, but it wasn’t really his fault, was it. The first time it hadn’t been anything personal, and the second time, she’d started it all anyway by setting things on fire. She should have seen it coming, anyhow.
He could always lie and say that James asked him to do it. She trusted James and his motives, didn’t she? James was a good way to pad his interactions with her anyway. Common interests and all that. One thing he did appreciate about her: she fulfilled James’s need to protect someone. Maybe now he wouldn’t run around getting all attached to every damn human they met. And it wouldn’t be like it was a bad lie or anything, even if she found out, what could she be angry about? ‘Oh no, Drake is actually interested in my education, how infuriating.’ Not likely. And even if she was mad, what could she do? Stop reading? Maybe for a few years, but she’d come back eventually. He had time.
“Well, I mean, you know,” he started, trying to figure out exactly how to frame it, “Okay, I’ll be frank. James put me up to it. He thought it would be a good distraction for you. He wants me to be nicer to you anyway, and I can’t exactly say no to him, so you’re in luck.” He paused for a moment, wishing to redirect the line of conversation, push it back to her. “But if you aren’t interested, that’s perfectly fine with me.” He shrugged. “I tried my best.”
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:04:07 GMT
Drake seemed rather dumbfounded by her directness, and Linnet was grimly pleased. Perhaps now she would be able to get to the bottom of why he wanted to teach her how to read so suddenly. She did not trust him, and for good reason, so it seemed doubtful that this would be as simple as Drake was acting like it was. She watched him closely, not wanting to be tricked.
He paused for a thoughtful moment before continuing, saying James had put him up to it. Her expression softened once again, her skepticism fading a small amount. If James had truly been behind it, she could trust that. It didn’t mean that she would not still be watching Drake closely. That would be foolish, especially since he seemed to always enjoy putting her in rather horrible situations, but it made her just comfortable enough to go along with it for now.
Even more, she could not deny that the thought of learning how to read was a highly attractive possibility, and one that had never solidly come up before. Education had hardly been accessible when she was considered young enough for it. Even though the current timing was rather strange, it also would provide a very much needed distraction. Perhaps she would be able to hold out longer if she had something to concentrate on other than the ever increasing hunger. She would do just about anything for more time at this point. She considered for a moment, her face more serious than skeptical. It was clear that she was coming around to the idea.
“Suppose I could take a look,” she said. Her gaze flitted to his face, then back to the floor. She was wary of committing, but she did not want to lose the chance either.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:04:30 GMT
Drake nodded and abruptly turned around, partially because he was excited to show her what he’d already set up, and partially to hide the fact that he was very pleased in himself for successfully enticing her to learn how to read without coercing her. “Well, come along then,” he said, waving his fingers at her as he started off down the hall.
He’d acquired several primers, but he still didn’t entirely trust her to be in the library for any length of time, considering the still rather fresh events from the last time she set foot in the place, so he’d cleared out the small study near the front of the house for her instead. Not like he used it much anyway, and maybe giving her a room in which to work would encourage her? It was worth a shot.
“I wasn’t sure what you might like, so I just got what I could, I trust it will be sufficient,” he said as he walked, despite his best attempts to keep himself from chattering. She didn’t need to know how pleased he was that she’d agreed to this. “Don’t expect any calligraphy lessons, though, I can show you how to letter, but I don’t know from where James learned his hand,” he said dryly as they approached the front of the house.
He entered the room before holding the door open for her, pointing at the desk with his other hand. “Peruse at your leisure, Miss Mallory. Most of them are reading ones, but there are a few for writing in there as well.”
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:04:39 GMT
Apparently, her response was sufficient. Without any further hassle, Drake pivoted and headed off toward the front of the house. Linnet followed, pacing behind him, alert for anything that seemed suspicious. She was not a fan of how odd the situation seemed, but there was not much she could do about it. There was a certain liveliness to Drake’s step that made her leery, not to mention that she had to rush to keep up with his long-legged pace, but she could not help the eager anticipation that built at the thought of perhaps learning to read. Wasn’t something everyone could claim to be able to do, after all.
Drake made a few comments, expressing uncertainty about what she would be interested in and an assertion that she could only learn letters, not calligraphy, from him, whatever that meant. He did not seem to expect a response so she stayed quiet. They approached the front entry, but stopped off at a nearby door. Drake pulled it open, revealing a small study. Several books were set on the desk. Linnet proceeded inside with a definite measure of caution, eyeing Drake as she passed him. She walked over to the desk, circling around so she could face him, but remained standing.
She picked up a book at random, staring at the cover a moment and turning it this way and that. She examined it more like one would a piece of jewelry than a simple book. She flipped through it quickly, the pages slipping through her fingers rather faster than she was trying for, and it closed with a firm snap. She managed to flip it open again, landing on a page with a picture on one side, and well spaced lines of text on the other. It was clear from her manner that she was rather unfamiliar with handling a book.
Her eyes flicked up to Drake, doubt written on her features. She hefted the book slightly, and gave a questioning, “Suppose this’d be one of the, readin’ ones?”
She looked back at the book and eased it onto the pile, leaving it open, as if afraid she would break it.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:04:47 GMT
Drake watched Linnet gingerly handle the book with no small amount of amusement. She looked incredibly uncertain. So she really didn’t know how to read, did she? “It is,” he agreed with her question, folding his arms behind him as he observed her. They lapsed into a silence as she set the book back down. He watched her for a moment, expectant, but she didn’t initiate. So he’d have to. Okay. He could do this… delicately. Without scaring her off. He was capable of that, right? Yeah, yeah. He could do it.
“Looked your fill?” He asked as he took a few steps closer, now standing directly across the desk from the girl. “I suppose, then, you should show me what you already know so we know where to start, yes?” He picked up a small, saddle-stitched book full of nothing but widely spaced lines meant for children to practice their letters in and turned it around, open to the first page, to place in front of her. Then he picked up a charcoal wax pastel from the cup of writing supplies he’d accumulated--there was no way he was going to let her play with ink until he knew she was comfortable with her hands, and though the crayon would make her fingers grubby, at least she couldn’t spill a crayon everywhere. He offered her the item by its unpointed end.
“Well then, go on,” he said, his eyes fixed on her hands.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:04:58 GMT
Linnet had no idea how to proceed. She did not necessarily want to ask for help, especially from Drake, but she was not sure what to do with the small stack of books. Perhaps, given time, she could figure out something, but it seemed a daunting task. Honestly, deep down, she was still sure something would go horribly wrong.
Drake broke the silence after a few long moments, and Linnet automatically tensed in response to his movement. She watched without lifting her head, not wanting her wariness to be obvious. Once again, he made no threatening move, but Linnet could not help her caution.
Drake wanted to see what she knew? She supposed that was a reasonable starting place. After all, she did know how to make her mark, but past that she had little but faint recollections of short lessons from years past. He opened a small book that was empty except for horizontal lines, handing her a wax crayon. She grabbed it gingerly, examined it a moment, then finally sat on the edge of the chair. She took the writing utensil in her fist, pointed end peeking out by her pinkie, and carefully made an uneven ‘X’ at the top of the page, managing to stay mostly in the lines. She thought for a moment, but nothing else came to mind. Her hand dropped to her lap, making it clear she was done.
Looking up for a moment, she said, “Thnk I’d know a couple other letters if I seen ‘em.” She finished with a defensive, “Haven't had much time for learnin’.” She was a bit nervous that he would be annoyed at her lack of knowledge, but there was not much she could do about it.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:05 GMT
She took the utmost care with the crayon, drawing her X, appraising it, and then apparently deeming it worthy. She looked up at him, a few defensive words on her lips. He’d expected the X, it was, of course, the universal written sign of consent, and it had been for quite some time, but he appreciated how seriously she was taking this. She was obviously interested, and that pleased him. Maybe she’d be a quick student. She was smart, obviously, she’d almost been smart enough to outmaneuver him, so he had to give her that, though he suspected outside help. Nonetheless, she seemed to be a dogged sort, and her work ethic would hopefully help her along, learning these skills so much later in her life.
“It’s a start,” he said, leaning against the desk and inclining his head towards the little booklet. “Let’s see if this will work,” his voice was low, half a murmur to himself, as he pulled out another charcoal crayon and pulled the book over to his side of the surface. Very quickly he wrote out the alphabet in capital letters, leaving enough space between each one that she’d have room to write it a few times, and turned it back to her. “There’s your X,” he said a bit wryly, pointing out his somewhat smaller X near the bottom of the second page.
“We’ll do this, first, I’ll tell you the letter, and some words that start with it, and you write the letter down a few times in this blank space, okay? Don’t worry about being neat, you’ll get there eventually,” He said, tapping on the empty line next to the letter A with a finger before leaning back.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:13 GMT
Linnet watched with rapt curiosity as Drake drew out the letters with a steady hand. Still, she stayed perched on the edge of the chair, not wanting to settle completely. She was suspicious, but she tried to push it to the back of her mind for now. As he turned the book back to her, she scanned the page with interest. Her eyes landed briefly on the couple letters that did seem vaguely familiar, mostly on the first lines, but there were so many others to remember too. She felt a bit of apprehension about that. After all, so many in her past had thought her too simple to learn her letters, telling her she would be better off just keeping her mind on her work. It had mostly served to spark her interest, and stubbornness, but she had her doubts.
Drake explained what they would be doing, and she gave a slight bob of her head, a measure of uncertainty apparent. He started off, and she tried hard at first to memorize the words he was saying along with the letters. It was quickly getting confusing, and she started focusing purely on scrawling the letters on the page. Though she tried to do it well, several letters were almost unrecognizable, in part due to the tense way she gripped the crayon in her fist.
She gradually relaxed into the task, her brows furrowed in concentration as she shaped letters. She had hoped it would be a good distraction from the hunger, and it was. Too good in fact. The more she concentrated, the more she lost hold on the soul sense. She hardly realized that she stopped listening to the lesson as her gaze pulled up from the page, centering to where she sensed James, her eyes unfocused. The wind, previously unnoticed, soon came to the forefront of her vague thoughts, she turned part way toward the window, her grip on the crayon tightening.
All at once, the crayon snapped, and her wide-eyed gaze centered back on Drake’s face, her heart pounding.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:23 GMT
Though she seemed rather tense still, judging by the way the crayon was wedged in her small but still somehow ungainly fist, she wasn’t doing poorly. She was focusing. That was a good thing. He’d expected her attention to wander off quickly, as it did before when she was feral, but her face was twisted up as she focused on the letters. He was having a good time leading her through the makeshift little lesson, she was a very good student, despite the fact that she did look somewhat like she was either about to run away or turn the utensil in her hand into paste.
She was doing her best though, and he appreciated that.
He’d just introduced I, and was trying to think if he should explain to her that it wasn’t like ‘eye’ but rather the word used to refer to oneself, or if homophones were still a bit too complicated for her, when she looked up, past him, her eyes a bit glazed. Was she done for the day? Her knuckles whitened as she twisted around on the edge of the seat, and Drake leaned forward a bit, trying to see her face.
“Linnet?” he asked, confusion colouring his tone. “Are you alright? Do you need a break?”
Her head whipped around again, huge eyes focused on him as the crayon in her hand made a soft snapping sound. “Whoops, you broke it,” he said, his attention immediately moving to the crayon, which would be an easier fix than the distressed look on her face. “Do you need to stretch your legs? You can go outside if you need to.” Maybe that’s what had distracted her? “Of course, I’d have to go too, so the dogs don’t come over to investigate, but I don’t mind,” He trailed off, catching himself mid-ramble.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:35 GMT
As soon as she jerked back around, she found herself looking directly into Drake’s red-eyed gaze. Startled, she dropped her eyes, pushing her fists against her legs as she tried to bring herself back under control. She was inches away from dashing out of there to pursue the soul scents, but she repressed the urge, her breath heaving to keep up with her racing heart. After a tense moment, she felt some calmness return to her system. Drake offered to take her outside, but she shook her head. She would almost rather just leave, the room suddenly felt far too small and crowded, but she had to get herself to calm down.
She tried to bring her mind back to the letters, but she could not help but wonder what had gone wrong. It had seemed different this time. The hunger had not been overwhelming, or so she thought. It only made her more anxious. She shook her head again, this time trying to clear it. Her eyes darted up for a moment, and she gave a shaky, “No, no… I’m fine.”
She took a deep breath and scooted forward toward the desk. She brought her hand back up, only to realize that the waxy utensil had broken. She looked at the broken thing sitting on her open palm blankly, her mind still confused.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:41 GMT
She said she was fine, but she was still a little trembly. Drake frowned a bit, trying to figure out what the matter with her was. She seemed to settle down a little bit, moving closer to the table again, but then she looked down at the broken crayon and didn’t move, just staring at it. Was that what she was upset about?
“Here,” he said, trying to sound sympathetic, “you’ll get the hang of it eventually. You just need a softer grip. Look.” He grabbed the crayon he’d been using to write the letters with and reached out for her hand. He cupped the bottom of her hand in his and twisted his wrist so both of their hands would flip over, dumping the broken oil and wax onto the table, where the pieces clattered softly and rolled away. Then he tightened his grip a little, pushing her fingers together into a beak like shape. With his other hand, he moved to put the crayon between her fingers, so it’d be poised delicately in three fingers instead of her whole, now rather smudged, fist, where she could control it instead of watching it smear across the page helplessly.
Sometimes it was difficult to remember that she wasn’t a human anymore, she certainly still acted like one most of the time, since waking up, but right now he’d forgotten that she wasn’t James. James who liked to be guided, who didn’t mind being touched, who would have smiled up at him. Whoops.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:05:51 GMT
Drake’s sympathy fell on deaf ears. Linnet’s mind was far too occupied trying to regain some sort of balance, to catch up and calm down. As soon as Drake’s hand made contact with hers, she tensed. Her head jerked up, fixing him with a frightened, unseeing look. An inopportune memory surfaced at the contact. In her mind’s eye, she saw Drake juddering toward her, fire reflecting in his hellish eyes, rage clear on his features.
She jerked her hand away, jumping to her feet and scrambling back. The chair tipped, hitting the ground and startling her out of the blind fear. The crayon dropped from her grip, rolling slowly to a stop when it reached the edge of the rug. She braced herself with one hand on the wall behind her, refusing to look back up at Drake. Her tension was evident as she tried to slow her panicked breaths. She was still trembling, but she managed to bring her mind back to the present.
“I… I think I’m ...done,” she said between pants. Her face started to crumple and she hastened around the desk, pressing a hand to her mouth. She stayed as far from Drake as the small room would allow and darted out of the door. Though Linnet tried to keep herself at a walk, she was soon running down the hall, tears streaking her face.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:06:26 GMT
Drake didn’t move for a moment when she pulled her hand away, he didn’t register what had happened until she was across the room, back to the wall. He could understand not wanting to be touched, but that reaction seemed a little extreme. She hadn’t minded being carried around so much when she was feral. Well, she had, she’d struggled a bit, but nothing like this. Why was there fear on her face now? He hadn’t threatened her in any way, had he? Well, he certainly hadn’t meant to, if something about grabbing her hands set her off, couldn’t she see he meant no harm by it? If he wanted to hurt her, he would have long before that, anyhow.
She left, her voice weak and breathy, and he stared after her. Well, they’d gotten a few letters down, at least. Maybe she’d come back? Maybe he’d ask her if she was interested after she calmed down for a few days. Maybe a week. Maybe two weeks. They had time. It’d be fine. Yeah.
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:06:35 GMT
Perhaps Linnet’s obstinance could be considered annoyance, and at first it had been, but by this point, Drake was more interested in what entertainment it could serve. How far could he push her before she gave in? Honestly, it was surprising that she’d managed to last this long as it was, but the clock was ticking, and with less than a week left before her expiration date, something was bound to snap. And he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to enjoy every moment of it.
Naturally, embroiling her in a scheme to expedite the process was the logical next step. After some deliberate thinking (he had plenty of time to think without being distracted, since James seemed more wont to either follow Linnet around or sulk these days, much to Drake’s chagrin) he had laid out a most entertaining plan to watch the little bird struggle through. He couldn’t make it too easy though, that wouldn’t be fun. He wanted to watch her squirm a bit, remind her that she really wasn’t human anymore, and no amount of morals would save her from the hunger.
The humans had already been obtained, though they were still out in the carriage house, since he didn’t want to alert Linnet yet. He’d coerced James into watching them--or rather, one of them--while he secured the girl. Afterall, she’d surely just run away if he didn’t trap her somewhere, and that would be a pain.
He just needed to either catch her or herd her into a closed space where he could, well, close her in until everything else was set up. So here he was, prowling around the manor, hands casually in his pockets and a rather malicious grin curled across his face, looking for her. It would be easier to just sniff her out, but there was no fun in that, was there? Definitely not. He called her name occasionally, poking his head into different rooms to see if she was in there. That would make things easier, just trap her in the room she was already in, but knowing her, things would certainly not go so easily. “Linnet,” he singsonged, “Come out, I have some words for you, my dear.”
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Post by Pieluver on Nov 2, 2022 2:06:46 GMT
Linnet had been biding her time. She was nearing her limit and she knew it, but there was no way she would be willing to admit that to Drake. She doubted he would care either way. All she could do was keep her calm and focus on distracting herself from the gnawing hunger. As time passed, she started avoiding James more and more. It was getting too difficult to focus, and doing this on her own would be safer for him. Even so, she knew she was not really doing anything useful in the end. Everything she tried fell flat; she simply did not want to admit defeat.
So there she sat alone, hiding in a corner behind a dresser with her legs pulled up against her chest. Though her face was blank, it concealed the relentless, fretful activity of her mind and the desperation of every thought that kept her awake and worrying. She picked at a loose thread on her dress without paying attention, staring at the floor in front of her.
Her head shot up as she heard Drake’s voice, distant at first but rapidly growing closer. He was calling for her. Dread washed through her. Linnet definitely did not want to be around him, not while she felt so tense. She pulled her legs in tighter, sweeping the fabric of her skirt back to make sure no part of her was sticking out from behind the set of drawers. What could he want from her?
Finally, she heard the door open. She held her breath, anticipation making her heart race. It was only a heartstopping moment as he called, shuffling a couple steps into the room, before he left again. Linnet let out a slow breath, trying unsuccessfully to get her pounding heart to slow. She could still hear him as his voice carried down the hall. From what he was saying, he just wanted to speak with her. She hardly trusted that, but still, the thought gave her pause.
When his voice started to grow distant, she found herself standing and scooting out from her hiding place. Perhaps… she could see what he wanted? She tentatively stepped to the still open door, daring a quick peek down the hall. Drake was still looking around, calling. He turned out of sight. After a long moment and she followed silently, peeping after him as she reached the corner.
She had no real desire to approach, simply following to satisfy a nervous sense of curiosity. She told herself she would only follow for a bit, try to figure out what the demon wanted, then hide again. Still, the game of mouse chasing cat lasted longer than Linnet had planned as they wound through hall after hall. Finally, Drake went into a room and stayed for a while. Linnet kept her eyes on the door from the corner of an adjoining hall, refusing to go closer. She glanced around the corner sporadically, but tried to keep herself hidden.
She took one final peek, telling herself she should just drop it and find somewhere to sit this out. She jumped when she saw Drake looking her way. Linnie pulled back quickly, but knew it was no use. She had been spotted. She cringed at her own foolishness, trepidation making her hands shake. Still, Linnet figured that there was no use trying to flee yet. Perhaps if she was lucky, Drake meant her no harm and truly did just want to talk. Linnie braced herself, stepping out away from the corner only moments after Drake had spotted her.
She could not meet his eye, but she let out a stony, “What do ya want with me?” A small scowl rested on her face, but she clasped her hands behind her to conceal their trembling. She felt rather foolish, pretending to be brave, but what else could she do?
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