Kellie's notes: I'd not ever given much thought to Allie or where she'd come from when I began Hols and wrote her character. To be honest, I'd never imagined people wanting to read the story. It appears as though I was mistaken. Anyhow, thanks to stepmnstr, we now have a better insight on Allie. I think she's done a wonderful job with the character and picked up on very subtle things in the story to create this piece. I'd just like to say thank you to her.
Stray Cat Strut An Echo Cookie By stepmnstr
The restaurants weren't hiring and neither was the Quik Trip out on the edge of town that left the bars. Oh well, any employment was better than none. And she knew bars. MaMarie help her but did she know bars. Stopping to survey the outside of the building she began to understand why this particular bar came so highly recommended. It was definitely a step above most places she'd worked: no peeling paint, no broken bulbs in the lights around the lot, no broken beer bottles on the ground. She doubted whether a place like this would hire her as a dishwasher much less a server.
"Ah hell," she thought." It's worth a try anyway." Brushing the dust from her clothes and taking the time to make sure her glamour was still in place, nothing too exotic just enough to hide the healing cuts and fading bruises, she made her way to the door. This was a hell of a place for a Mississippi gal to find herself on summer break. "For this I put myself through grad school? C'mon gal, you know you can do this. I wonder who Cutty is?"
The brightly lit interior of the bar matched the outside... clean, no broken furniture, no cage for the band, hell, even the juke box looked like it was in working order. Yup, dishwasher was probably the best she was going to get in place like this. Hmmm good point to that she'd be out of sight until her face healed and a pay check was a pay check and job was a job for now anyway. There'd be plenty of time to get her professional life back together later. Now where was the guy they'd told her at White Castle to ask for... Dewayne,David,Derrik,Daniel,Dennys... No, Damon that was it. Like that crazy kid from those cheesy horror flicks.
"Uhm?... Hello?... Is anyone here?” Her voice shook slightly as it echoed through the empty bar but not enough, she hoped for anyone else to notice, “I heard in town that you might be hiring?"
A voice came from behind or was it under the bar, "Y'know we are closed and I don't usually hire...."
The owner of the voice appeared as if levitated, she found herself moving backwards quickly. This was not a look she was expecting for a bar owner in rural West Virginia. He looked more like what she had left Mississippi to escape.
"... kids." Was the last word she heard as she lost her footing and bounced off of a nearby table landing on the floor with a graceless thud.
* * *
There was a rumbling noise in the back of her head. Very carefully she listened for the sounds to change, to become the words that would tell her how she had failed, how much trouble she was in this time. She couldn't recall exactly what she had forgotten but MaMarie wasn't that the way it always was. Slowly she looked back trying to remember where she was and why she wasn't in any more pain. Nope, her mind wasn't going to co-operate.
Fine, then, gal, might as well relax on this soft whatever the hell she was lying on and enjoy while it lasts. Nothing this comfy ever lasted long... at least not since she had been one of many piled on Memaw's porch watching the summer storms roll in from the Gulf with milk and corn bread. That was a good time ... breezes pushing the skeeters against the screens... the sticky sweet feel of summer sweat rinsed away in the creek... murmuring voices as Memaw met with her ladies... heat from the stove as the garden goods were put up for winter... homemade ice cream on the porch as the fire flies sparked... let's stay here for awhile... ignore that rumbling thunder... it'll tell what they want you to know soon enough. Hell, maybe it'll just go 'way.
Damn that rumbling, it just had to go and start sounding like words rather than distant thunder. Words meant pay attention rather than just drift here under the ... bright lights? She thought she remembered a bar... that would account for the throbbing in her head and feeling that she'd just screwed up big time. But this didn't feel like any bar she was familiar with and it certainly wasn't home. Fragments of sentences drifted into her mind... they didn't make much sense but she knew they had meaning. Meaning that should be particularly important to her.
"Damn it, Damon, it's my day off from the office. You know Sev and I were planning on taking the bikes out for one last run before he goes back to Scotland. And aren't you the one always telling Sev to get out more." The voice faded in and out as medical feeling things were applied to her; bandages and spells in almost equal numbers. Spells? Who did she know that used healing spells on her for anything not life-threatening? Was she back at Memaw's? Nope, there was that deep thundering rumble again. Not Memaw's. "Where in Merlin's name did you find this stray, anyway?"
The answering rumble was different, stronger and unyielding with that oh-so-familiar and unwanted command bite to it. A voice she was very very glad wasn't talking at her. And even gladder that so far her glamour seemed to be holding. No matter who those voices belonged to explaining herself was close to the last thing that she wanted to do. Not to those voices ... nope. Especially not to that second one. MaMarie, there went the remains of her glamour. It almost felt as if someone had stripped it from her rather just failing from lack of concentration or energy. If she'd been more aware of her surroundings she'd be more upset but right now she couldn't remember what she was hiding or why it was so important. But shit for the spells to fail in front of men she didn't know ... fuck, this really wasn't good.
"She came into the bar and collapsed. I think she was looking for work."
"Damn it, Damon, do you have to have everyone falling at your feet? Isn't Grant enough of a handful for you to keep track of?" There was a thread of laughter in that last bit of thunder. "She needs a hospital. Or at least someone to watch her for awhile. The facial bruising is rather extensive and I'm willing to bet your bike that there is more damage under her clothes. Not mention she's dehydrated and I really want to know when the last time she ate was."
There was one of the words she needed to answer to ... hospital. No hospital, no explanation, no cops. Without thought she revealed that she was awake, " I'm ok. " Struggling a bit to sit up, she got her first clear look at the source of the voices that had been imitating thunder in her head. DAYUM!!! That man was huge. "I'm sorry for causin' y'all any trouble. I'll just be on my way cause I guess y'all ain't hiring after all." So much for the effort her college speech professor had put into taking the drawl out of her voice. One little bit of stress and there it came front and center... one little girl far from home and looking 'bout as bright as a June bug. Carefully holding herself steady she stood up ... briefly.
"Fuck. Help me here, Damon. Don't just stand there laughing your ass off." Together the two men managed to get her more or less evenly back onto the couch.
"Max, we can take her back to the house. I'm not sure that taking her to the hospital would be good. Besides Sev's there with his bag of potions. He's got all the standard healing potions and a few of his own creations."
"Old man, think a minute. She fainted when she saw you! You want to expose her to Sev, for Merlin’s sake?" A heavy hand landed at the back of his head. "You didn't need to hit me!"
"As a matter of fact, I did. Old man, my ass." The rebuke was clear in the tone of voice, the humour would only be recognized by someone who knew Damon well. "I was thinking more along the line of just getting her out of the bar before people start showing up. Actually, I forgot that Sev was at the house. Suggestions?"
"YOU forgot that tall, dark and snarky was at the house? Oh man, I can't wait to tell him that! No, just help me get to the office. Maybe Jenny won't seem quite as intimidating as we do."
With a wave of his wand the various potions and lotions began to shrink themselves and head for their designated places in the pockets of his jacket. Gathering up Damon's stray, he paused before Flooing back to his office, " By the way, you can explain to Sev why I'm not there." Gesturing at Damon to toss the powder into the fire he carefully stepped through with his patient. Once on the other side he bellowed for his nurse and hoped she was actually in the office not out on the list of errands he had left for her that morning.
Ok. She'd been moved by magic. Good sign? Bad sign? She really wasn't sure but she was remembering more of where she was now... Echo, West Virginia, the nearest mixed community to a place big enough to need second grade teachers. A place where no one knew her, her past or forget-his-name; where starting over would, hopefully, be easier. She already knew it wouldn't be easy.