InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "UNGH UNGH BARK!"

Jennifer Teresa Donovan (wild_at_heart) wrote in oldwest_rpg,
@ 2008-07-10 20:09:00

Entry tags:

eli donovan, jenny donovan

Some brother and sister bonding
Who: Jenny and Eli
When: Saturday, July 6, 1867
Where: Eli Donovan's home
Status: Incomplete

"Eli!" Jenny called out in a booming voice from where she stood at the open back door of her brother's house. She was of the notion that Eli was out somewhere near the stables, and with dinner(which consisted of chicken, mashed potatoes, corn and biscuits) ready, the younger Donovan knew the only way to draw her brother's attention from where he was was to call out his name quite loudly, and in a most unlady like way. Well, if he wanted to eat while the food was still hot she had to get him to the dinner table within the next sixty seconds.

Ads by Project Wonderful! Your ad here, right now: $0

(Post a new comment)

edonovan
2008-07-11 09:44 am UTC (link)

Eli emerged from the side entrance to the stables, already wiping his hands on a clean cloth. "I'm coming, keep your shirt on, Jenn," he called back good-naturedly. Unladylike or no, Jenny'd always had a knack for getting her voice to carry, and he was quite certain half the town could hear her if she put her mind to it.

He had the foresight to kick the worst of the dirt from his boots before he reached the steps of the rear stoop, at least, and grinned at his sister. "Sorry -- having a bit of a problem with Bandit's weaning," he told her. "He's not taking to the hay as well as the oats just yet, we'll have a bit more work to do with him this week."

(Reply to this) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-12 09:55 am UTC (link)

"I would've brought a plate out to you, but really, a stable's no place for eating a properly cooked meal." Jen told him with a nod of her head once Eli had reached the back steps. "He's probably just a finicky eater like his owner." She said grinning, with more then a bit of playfulness. Her brother was nowhere near a finicky eater. Anything Jennybee chose to serve up he seemed to eat in a way that almost compared to a man who'd been on the brink of starvation.

And really she wasn't all that concerned with the colt's feeding habits. Her brother knew well what he was doing and the slight trouble he was currently having with Bandit wouldn't last all that long.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-12 06:58 pm UTC (link)
	"I like to think I've got better table manners than a colt only a couple of months old," Eli chuckled. He tugged the door open and held it for her to precede him back into the house. "Mum would skin me alive if she thought I was taking meals with the horses, as you well know," he added with a grin. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-12 10:06 pm UTC (link)

"That never stopped you before." Jenny said with a light grin as she stepped across the threshold into the house. "But never fear dear brother, I shall never disclose such to mother."

Jenny settled herself at the table, waiting for Eli to join her so grace could be said before the eating could commence. And the quicker they got to that the sooner she could start making inquiries.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-12 10:40 pm UTC (link)
	As soon as the food was properly blessed, Eli reflexively passed the platters to his sister first before filling his own plate. "How was your day, then, Jenn?" he asked with a grin. "More eventful than a stubborn, finicky colt, I hope?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-12 11:19 pm UTC (link)

"Busy." She responded matter-of-factly. Not that her day could be categorized as eventful. "Tending to the household duties of a certain brother's house barely gives a person time to breath." She said with a smile which reflected the sentiment that she was in no way complaining, just sharing.

Jennifer Donovan actually enjoyed seeing to the everyday duties of keeping her brother's house in order. Though today had been busier then usual as it came on the heels of a holiday, and then there was the fact that Jenny kind of took it easy the previous day. Things kind of got piled up on her.

"Your day was good as well, other then dealing with a finicky colt." She inquired before a bit of her meal was eaten.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

edonovan
2008-07-13 08:13 pm UTC (link)

"If you're ever in need of a day off, I don't need constant tending," Eli reminded her wryly, his grin a bit sheepish. "I've done fairly well for myself the past few years, you know, even if I appreciate not being forced to eat my own cooking now." He broke a biscuit in half with alacrity before continuing. "Nothing new to report in the stables, aside from Bandit's stubbornness. Been a quiet couple of weeks, fortunately," he chuckled.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-13 09:49 pm UTC (link)

"I know you are quite able to fend for yourself, Eli, but you have a stable to run and hands to keep in line. The last thing you need to worry about is the condition of your house." Though if she'd ever get to the point where she needed a break. Well, Jenny would just up and declare that little fact to her brother.

"Did you enjoy the Fourth?" She inquired with a sip of her milk and swift shift of subjects. "The town's celebration of it was spectacular, wasn't it?" She had been there, even did a bit of baking for the celebration, though she couldn't recall seeing her brother at the festivities. There certainly were a mass full of people there, but surely she would have run into Eli there at some point. Curiosity of his whereabouts that day had Jenny edging her way around to just that point.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-13 10:13 pm UTC (link)
	"I did, and it was," Eli admitted. "I made my rounds early in the afternoon -- picked up a few small things, you know, presents for Annie and the girls and the like, and then I got caught up dealing with Chief when he slipped a shoe," he added. "What I saw of it was right festive, though," he chuckled. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-15 09:14 am UTC (link)
	"So no delivering of forgotten parasols or any such thing, then?" She queried. Maybe he had done just as he said, but that didn't mean he hadn't been keeping someones company in the days that had past. And if there were actually a woman in her brother's life she was to know that. It was her right as his sister. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-15 09:04 pm UTC (link)
	Eli's smile slipped just a bit at the tangible reminder of Lizzie MacKenzie. "No parasols, this time," he said wryly. "Although I did make a short detour by the MacKenzie homestead to drop off a package, after the festival and Chief," he admitted. He quirked an eyebrow at his sister wryly. "Something on your mind, Jen?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-19 08:25 am UTC (link)
	"Has Miss Parasol Lady sparked the interest of my brother?" Jenny asked in a non chalant manner, and with a soft smile, between the consumption of her meal. If someone had caught her brother's attention she had a right to know, didn't she. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 03:50 pm UTC (link)
	Eli frowned slightly, his expression troubled. "Perhaps," he prevaricated. "She has a name, though, Jen -- Mary Elizabeth MacKenzie." He shook his head once, attempting to refocus on the meal in front of him. "And I daresay she's too fine for the likes of me," he added, attempting to keep his tone light, although he couldn't quite mask the edge in his voice. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-20 04:17 pm UTC (link)

"Well. If I had had that tidbit of information I would have referred to her by her proper name." Jen replied in return with a slight nod of her head.

"And that is pure nonsense talking, Elijah Donovan. You are as good, if not better then most men in this town. In the whole of California for that matter. And if Miss Mary Elizabeth MacKenzie can't see what is clearly in front of her, then perhaps it is she that is not good enough for the likes of you." She said with a slight raising of her voice. How dare some woman make her brother feel like he was not good enough of a prospect for her. He had his health, and not that he was the richest man around, but Eli wasn't exactly wanting for anything, and he had a good, stable business. And though Jen would never voice as such, he wasn't exactly an unattractive man. So yeah. Her brother had his looks going for him as well.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 04:29 pm UTC (link)
	"Oh, but that's not true, Jennybee," Eli said, taken aback. "It's just that she -- ahh, caught me a little off my guard yesterday evening," he admitted, suddenly self-conscious. "I -- well, it seems Miss Lizzie was of a mind for me to be courting her, and I'm not at all certain what I should be doing about that," he muttered. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-20 05:26 pm UTC (link)
	"Why Eli, isn't it plainly obvious." Jenny said back with a light chuckle. There was only one thing he could do about that little situation he had found himself in the previous evening. It was as obvious as the nose on his face. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 05:50 pm UTC (link)
	"Not as I see it," Eli said dryly. "I've already lost Katherine, Jen, and plenty else besides. I hadn't intended to get involved with another young woman, especially one who could have nigh on any man in town." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-20 06:27 pm UTC (link)

"You can't mourn her forever, Eli." Jen told him. "I'm not saying to rush into anything serious. Just. If this woman has an interest in you, and you seem to have a slight interest in her." Jenny gave a soft sigh before continuing. "All I'm trying to say is you deserve to be happy again, Eli, and if this woman offers the possibility of making that happen. Don't let fear push you into throwing that away."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 06:39 pm UTC (link)
	"You think I should court her," Eli murmured. "Even though you've not actually met her yourself, you'd have me court her, just because I enjoy seeing her smile and hearing her laugh?" He shook his head slightly. "I'm not even sure she'd have me, now -- she's been hurt before, and I'm afraid I've hurt her again in my confusion." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-20 07:14 pm UTC (link)

"It's really not what I think you should do that matters, Eli. It's what you want that counts. But yes, if you enjoy the lady's company go talk to her and try to straighten out this little misunderstanding that seems to have sprung up between you two." Jenny advised her brother.

"Of course I shall be wanting to meet Miss Mary Elizabeth MacKenzie, you know just to verify that she's the right one for you." She nodded with a light, playful grin in an attempt to lighten the serious moment that had settled in between them.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 08:17 pm UTC (link)
	"Perhaps," Eli sighed. "I need to be sure I won't hurt her, not again. I don't ever seem to say the right thing to her," he sighed. "And you should meet her, whether or not I'm to court her -- I think you'd like her, Jennybee," he added, smiling slightly. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-20 08:49 pm UTC (link)

"I shall put that in my book of things to do." She said with a light trace of a smile.

"And Eli, I'm not sure exactly what had, or had not, been said between you two, but most everything can be mended with the appropriate amount of time passing." Jenny said before turning her focus to her food for a couple seconds. Not that she was severing their conversation, far from it. She just wanted to enjoy a bit more of her meal before the food on her plate got too cold.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 09:19 pm UTC (link)
	"Time, eh?" Eli echoed, and caught up his biscuit again. "Mayhaps you're right about that, Jen." He shook his head at her, hiding a smile. "And when did you get to be an expert at such things, hmm? Have I missed that much in the last eight years?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-20 09:35 pm UTC (link)
	"I wouldn't say I was an expert on such things, but maybe I've had a bit of experience. And just how did this conversation circle around to me?" She put to her brother with a slight grin. She wasn't suppose to be the topic of conversation, it was suppose to be her brother and a certain lady with a parasol. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-20 09:57 pm UTC (link)
	"Can't blame a man for trying, can you?" Eli said with a smile. "Although I'd be curious to know just what sort of experience my baby sister has with such things." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-22 09:16 pm UTC (link)

"You make it sound like I'm a child. Something I must remind you I haven't been for many a year now." Jenny said with a smile indicating she was in no way offended by his calling her his baby sister. Jenny knew he meant it endearingly.

"I haven't had the vast experiences as you and Annie have had, but my life has not been void of courtships." Well one courtship as she'd never let herself get involved in anything serious after Cassidy.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-23 12:17 pm UTC (link)
	Eli huffed at that as he refilled his plate. "I'm not needing to go back east and whip some sense into any young men, am I?" he asked her pointedly. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-23 10:41 pm UTC (link)
	"There're no men back east that need a sense making whipping by my older brother." Jenny said with faint traces of a smile. "Besides," her smile growing just a tad, "I thought we were speaking of your possible courtship of Miss MacKenzie, not what may have been in my past." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-23 11:16 pm UTC (link)
	"Were we?" Eli said blandly. "And here I thought we'd moved on to much more interesting topics." He shrugged one shoulder noncommittally. "As you said -- time will tell. It makes no matter at all what I do if I've already botched it." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

wild_at_heart
2008-07-23 11:33 pm UTC (link)

"Well, if you'd rather talk about me and my past, though I can't say I ever thought of it as a "more interesting topic"." She wasn't all that sure just how much their mother had written about Cassidy to her brother, but she had a feeling she just might be about to find out. One thing Jenny wasn't all that great at was keeping up correspondence with her other siblings.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	edonovan 2008-07-25 09:51 am UTC (link)
	"I'll not be pushing my nose into anything you don't wish to talk about, Jenny," Eli told her. "A bit of teasing, that's all -- I missed a great deal in the last eight years, it seems, and your life will probably always be more interesting than my own, as far as I see it," he laughed ruefully. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wild_at_heart 2008-07-26 10:18 am UTC (link)
	"Momma ever mention Cassidy in any of those letters she sent you years back?" Jenny asked of her brother. It was most likely that their mother had mentioned on Cassidy Quinlan, but to what extent Jenny had no way of knowing. Was it just a sentence or two of the man she'd been intended to or had Teresa Donovan rambled on and on in her letters about Jenny's "man". (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

edonovan
2008-07-31 11:24 pm UTC (link)

"The Quinlan boy who was courting you?" Eli clarified, and turned his attention back to his dinner idly. "Now and again. I got the impression she didn't want to go poking either of our noses into your privacy, so I didn't press her for too many details," he assured her with a wink. His smile faded slowly as he mentally reviewed what little their mother had written of Jenny's sweetheart. "She said something happened to him, as I recall, and for that I'm sorry for bringing it up," he added quietly.

(Reply to this) (Parent)