InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "shake that laffy taffy"

Johanna McLaggen (only_apapermoon) wrote in summerview,
@ 2019-02-23 17:32:00

Entry tags:

circe marinos, gabrielle renault

February 23

Gabrielle Renault • Circe Marinos,
4:00 PM • Downtown Summer View
RATING - TBD
STATUS: WIP

So far it seemed like another Saturday for Ellie, which was alright with her. While she enjoyed moments of impulse and random adventure now and again, for the most part, she enjoyed having a plan, a routine. There was always a sense of safety within having a routine that she always seem to enjoy and find comfort in. Not that she wanted to do all of the same things all of the time, her life would have been very boring if that had been the case. It was more that in the two-hundred and fifty plus years of her life so far, she'd learned to enjoy the quiet times. The times where she wasn't constantly planning and plotting, worrying over what might happen next, or even just worried about her loved ones. Right now, things were calmer than they had been in a long time, and the last few years had been a blessing. This might have actually been the longest she had been in one place for a long while. It felt nice. It was even starting to feel a bit like home. Which was something she hadn't really felt since the turn of the century, if she was honest. Not that she would ever admit that out loud, but for her, it seemed that for most of her life that feeling of 'home' had been with people rather than an actual place. She loved the plantation that her and her brother had, there had always been something so comforting there, even when the world was in chaos. But since then...this was starting to feel like a place she could make her own and put down roots.

And really, she was in a sense since starting up her business and garden. She hadn't even been thinking of something that larger scale but then Gene just kept buying her plants and next thing she knew, she was doing everything for more than just herself and a few friends. It felt nice. She liked to keep busy, she always had. Being idol had never been her strong suit, and that tended to show in the winter months. There was only so much she could do as far as making things in the winter time, mostly relying on what she had dried and stored throughout the rest of the year. But, thankfully, necessity was indeed the mother of invention and Gabrielle had found ways to keep herself occupied. Today, she had packed up her little area at the market early and had ever intention of running all of her errands today so she didn't have to leave tomorrow, with plans of a new book and several mugs of tea in her plans. She planned on having Gene over for dinner this week so she figured she should probably go and pick up a few things. Nothing much, but she wanted to try and make a Doberge cake as a surprise.

So, she bundled back up and started to walk towards the central part of town. As she did so Ellie started to people watch a bit as she walked, nothing serious, just something she did because she was not the kind of person to walk with her head down. At least not any more. Maybe when she first arrived, but honestly, she felt like another person from when she arrived. Thankfully, this time as she walked down the street she noticed something fall out of a pocket or a bag, she couldn't be sure as she had caught it from the corner of her eye, and onto the side walk. Ellie moved her feet a little faster to scoop it up and quickly approached the person. "Excuse me." she said moving to their side with a bright smile on her face. "I think you dropped this?" she offered up the object in hand.

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harpyia
2019-02-24 12:20 pm UTC (link)

Returning to Summerview, where she'd started to think of as home, was actually very complex. Between interviewing at a new location for her job, getting another apartment, her belongings out of storage and separating her things and Gaelan's things, Circe was beginning to wonder how mortals did this on a regular basis.

She'd upended her life to go home, for her mother, because when Pixie's started to fight it could get out of hand fast. And they knew that if Leda and cousin Pol kept escalating the pranks, it would get very out of hand, like the last time the family got into a spat. At this stage in her life, Medea didn't need that. Circe was happy to have gone back, seen her family, let Gaelan figure out what he wanted to do now.

But she'd known, when she put her belongings in storage, took her leave from work and headed back to the family, that she wanted to come back, to this life she was building up for herself. Her new apartment wasn't too far from where the last one had been, still owned by the same people who remembered her well enough to rent to her again. She was in the process of moving some of her stuff, arms full, so it didn't surprise her that she ended up dropping something. "Oh, thanks," she had three bags full of stuff, an armful of cushions and a bag over her shoulder with kitchen knick-knacks. Luckily it wasn't keys or anything, just a pair of hand towels. "Need to wash those again I guess."

And then Circe actually looked up, as she juggled things to take the towels back, "Oh, hey," the appreciate smile turned into a genuine warm smile, recognising Ellie -which of course, "how've you been?"

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only_apapermoon
2019-02-26 04:21 am UTC (link)

"I suppose that it's better than having to buy new ones?" Ellie replied with a little bit of a light laugh in her voice. At least she seemed to think so. She had met a few people over the years that had thought otherwise, but even still, sometimes her thriftiness did not go away. Granted, she had gotten much better about not reusing tinfoil, or washing the plastic silverware for reuse. But, when you live through the Great Depression as they were calling it, some habits were harder to break than others.

Upon finally looking at the face of the person Gabrielle was handing the towels to she let out an excited little 'Oh!' of surprise. Now this was a face she was not expecting to see. Gabrielle hadn't even known that she was back! "Oh this is a wonderful surprise!" she exclaimed her face lighting up with a huge smile with the recognition. "Oh well enough." she said. "You know how slow things can get this time of year, after all." Ellie did not sound bothered at all by how slow things tended to get in the winter months for her. Not in the slightest. Yes, she had to find other things to occupy her time, but it was also a time of rest because of how hard she worked during the spring, summer and even into autumn sometimes. "I got a new kitten! I found him just after you left." now that she did sound rather excited about, poor little Pip was found in the rain on her back porch and needed a home.

"How long have you been back?" she wondered and then shook her head. "Here, let me help you with that." she outstretched her arms to help carry some of her friends load to try and make it easier on her.

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harpyia
2019-02-27 07:06 pm UTC (link)

It was true, buying new towels would've been a bummer for sure, and Circe didn't like wasting decent anything. Losing some towels in the move wouldn't be a huge deal, but it would peeve. So thankfully, Ellie was there to save the day as it were.

Surprises seemed to be the treat of the day, but Circe didn't mind that at all, "That's good, I mean, sometimes you need a little slow to ease along, right?" She never saw the appeal in all things being go go go all the time, she loved a little down time where things went a touch smoother. But there were people who needed all the excitement all the time, and Circe did not envy them at all. She figured of all people, while it might not always be prefered, Gabrielle would likely enjoy a few periods of calm to just be. "Aw, a little rescue?" That sparked a slight cute tone in her voice, even as she acquiesced to Ellie's attempt to help.

Letting Ellie take one of the bags, slightly heavy but not overbearingly so, least of all for a fae. "Oh, thanks, um, as you can see, I'm sort of still in the middle of getting back. It's a process." She'd gotten her job sorted first, worked out where and how and when, it also gave her this week before she launched back into work and could get herself settled into her new apartment. "My old place was gone, but there's one just up the road that I'm renting for now, it's pretty much the same."

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only_apapermoon
2019-02-28 04:02 pm UTC (link)

Ellie's smile continued as she bobbed her head in agreement. "Oui, absolutely. Everyone needs some down time to recharge. And if I'm honest, it gives Gene a chance to pick at me more." she playfully rolled her eyes at the mention of her brother. Who she loved so dearly, and often enough they came as a package deal even if they were on opposite corners of the world. But as much as he teased her about certain things, she wouldn't change their relationship for the world. She was very proud of him, and he was working so hard for the mayor, it was clear the level of pride she held for her younger brother. "But, it also has been giving me a chance to refocus and organize things for this spring." There was a little bounce in her step when Ellie heard the tone shift in Circe's voice when she mentioned her little kitty. "Oh yes, I think he found me though. Or at least I like to think of it that way. You should come over and meet him sometime."

Ellie wouldn't have minded so much if she had been given a heavier bag, she was stronger than she looked, and besides, she was helping a friend. "I can only imagine trying to get everything back into sorts." she had a very sympathetic look on her face, she was used to picking up and moving ever few decades. Though, thankfully, her friend was just moving back to the same town and not across the country, or even to another one. "Oh, that is a shame. But, I'm sure this new one will be equally nice?" she offered in her cheery sort of way. "You must let me know when you need to move more things, if there are any, so that I can help you. We'll get the work done twice as fast." she offered, besides, what else was she going to do besides curl up on the couch with a book? No, this sounded much better to her. "Everything go okay at home?" she asked gently, in a way that gave Circe an out in case she didn't want to speak of it.

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harpyia
2019-03-03 08:12 pm UTC (link)

There were certain races that Circe sometimes envied; ones that didn't come with the family drama that hers tended to come with for one thing. She knew that it was however it was, and that on the whole, her family wasn't that bad, they had a big blow up maybe once a century and that wasn't a terrible thing in the scheme of it all. But Ellie's relationship with Gene sometimes made Circe she had a closer one with her siblings -even if Leda and Gaelen were close to her, they weren't exactly close.

"It's good that you get that time then, and I'm sure Gene appreciates having some time to have you sort of to himself." Although with the way they worked, that was probably limited too. "I've heard that's how cats work, that they pick you not the other way around, I suppose it's something of an honour?" Circe had never thought about animals, she was too emotional, too likely to get overly attached and she knew she'd outlive almost all mortal animals anyway. Maybe she could get a giant turtle?

"It's pretty much the same, so I just need to find a spot for everything all over again, luckily I like reorganising, so it should go quickly." If nothing else, maybe she could pack up what she didn't need to keep and give it away somewhere. "How are you about building furniture?" For the most part Circe had what she needed, but there were the few bits and pieces that needed rebuilding -wardrobes, tables, a cabinet or two, things that she could do on her own, but would likely take a few days and she'd live among a mess while getting that organised. An extra set of hands that wouldn't get frustrated and kill the furniture would get things moving a shade faster.

"As well as ever, just a little spat with my older sister and a cousin. You know us pixies, we like to blow everything out of proportion." Not always true, but definitely in the realm of pranks. "I think my mother is getting too old to deal with them now." And could blame her.

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only_apapermoon
2019-03-04 12:21 am UTC (link)

If Circe only knew how much family drama that Ellie had to deal with over her life. The path that had lead to her and her brother being so close had been a little more than difficult filled with heartache, death, near death experiences, "arranged" marriages, crazy exs, and several rebellions to which they played their own parts in. But the fact that she didn't know about all of that, well, Ellie was glad for it. One less thing to talk about and unearth. She knew that her past had a huge part in shaping who she was today, and over the centuries she had come to terms and was a peace with most of it. However, that also didn't mean that she was ready to talk about it at the drop of a hat either. The only thing she really did was how much she cared about her not-so baby brother.

"Yeah, even though we've been here for a few years it's just nice to know that we can get together easily and not be so far away from each other." which had been the case more than once. All times seemed necessary at the time for one reason or another, but that was the nice thing about their relationship, they could be far from each other, but they were never really, truly, out of contact. Unless there was a reason they had to be, but again, that was sometimes necessary. "I'm not sure how I feel about that still, but, so far it seems to be working out." she shrugged a little.

"And I'm sure it will be cozy once you do." she offered with a positive nod of her head. At the question she titled her head a little bit. "At following directions or building from scratch?" she wondered. She could follow directions pretty well, and in a few languages though she did make a mental note that the next language she should learn would be Swedish. About building it from scratch, no, sadly, she was not that skilled. Wouldn't stop her from trying, but Ellie couldn't guarantee that it wouldn't fall apart either.

"Oh no. Even still, I'm sorry that it happened." she said with a sympathetic grin. "Is your mom doing okay?" she asked wondering about the second comment. "Or is she doing okay and she just doesn't want to deal with the drama?" she asked curiously.

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harpyia
2019-03-07 11:14 am UTC (link)

She wished her parents were more inclined to leave home, if only so that she could show them the mortal realm. "Yeah, I'm sure it's something fun too, just being able to hang out when you choose." Lives would always mean things happened, maybe they didn't see each other daily, but enough that they stayed close. At least Circe hoped that for her.

Things working out was always the goal, and Circe hoped that this time around it all worked out too. "Oh, just directions. It's all store bought, and the instructions are with them, I'm terrible at throwing things away, so all the instructions are with the pieces." It wasn't a lot, and it was just an extra set of hands, if Ellie didn't mind. "I'll even make dinner if you're free?"

Home was never going to be entirely, peaceful, not with their family and all the pranks, it was just how it was. She hoped her siblings at least let their mother rest. "It's just... I think her age is catching up with her." It wasn't like Medea was old, not by fae standards, but she'd had five children, was about to start having grandchildren, and her partner was still a child himself emotionally speaking. "She gets tired of all the nonsense."

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only_apapermoon
2019-03-08 06:58 pm UTC (link)

If Circe could only know how'd they made the effort over their lives to do just that. The running theme of her and her brother's relationship was either 'do not go far from me' or 'do not go where I cannot follow'. Which, was one of the reasons Ellie had never been to the Summerlands, and really, had no intention of going. Europe was one thing, and they could handle and ocean, the Summerlands were another and while they had never said it out loud, it was something that they had agreed on even before she had left Haiti.

"Then I can certainly give it my best go." Ellie replied with a confidant nod of her head. "I'm sure between the two of us we can figure it out." she playfully nudged the other woman with her elbow gently. "Oh please, you know you do not have to bribe me with food. Though, in truth, I will not say no to eating together." for the both knew that she was just as likely to hop in the kitchen and help as she was at building whatever it was that she needed to build.

"Age is a beautiful thing, but at the same time it is a bit of a harsh realization is it not?" she said trying to imagine at least. Her mother had died relatively young for a fae, and the only real person she had to compare it to was Gene's mother. Who was still as feisty today as she was back when the first met. "Now that I can understand. Nonsense does have a bit of a shelf life." she paused for a moment. "At least the unnecessary kind. But in any case it sounds like she could use a holiday."

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harpyia
2019-03-10 11:13 am UTC (link)

"If we can't manage it, we'll be sorely shamed." But Circe had no doubt that they'd be fine, manage just fine, get it sorted out, and she didn't mind cooking up something for them both, she enjoyed cooking for people, it was more enjoyable because it was shared. Even if they both ended up preparing something in the kitchen. "Luckily, the kitchen was the first thing I put together." Because she was such a kitchen body.

The short walk along the street brought them to the apartment complex, not large and sprawling like in the city, but warm and inviting, cosy with people who most likely would all know each other within a year of living there, and Circe really liked that possibility.

"Isn't it, I always saw my mother as ageless, you know? Even with elder siblings, she was just, mother." Even if she was almost a millennia old now. "But I hope she'll cave to my prodding to get her to come and visit me, maybe stay for a while, get some rest from home." Because even the most stalwart of people needed a break here and there.

"Have you got time just now? Or do you have somewhere to be? I can show you my place?"

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only_apapermoon
2019-03-13 12:08 am UTC (link)

"Or we won't speak of it again and have a delightful end of winter bon fire." Ellie suggested with a wiggle of her eyebrows before nodding in agreement. "I did as well, I don't even think I had my bed put together yet, but my kitchen was all done up." she added as she thought about it. It had been a few years since she had arrived at Summerview, and the first few months she had crashed with her brother while she sorted out her affairs and found a home of her own. But, like her friend here, she was too a kitchen body and had been for a...a long time. She remembered being chased out of the kitchens when she was very small, if only because of what her mother would do if she found Ellie there. That and then living in some of the homes she did, it was usually the warmest place in the house. "There's something so welcoming about having the kitchen set up, don't you think?" she asked with a little bit of a sigh.

In all honesty, Ellie did not really know what that was like. Really, she didn't even know how exactly old her mother was when she had died. But, now didn't feel like the time to get into it, or ever really. So, she went along with it anyway. "It's a bit odd thinking that someday we could get there too. I don't envy humans who go through that so much faster than we do." she said looking ahead a bit with sympathy in her voice. She knew that her opinion on humans wasn't the same as a lot of people here. She had spent a lot of her time among them, having to at first because of what she was trying to accomplish. But then once she was out in the world, she saw the beauty in their frailty. How they saw things through different lenses because their time was so much shorter than hers. To Ellie, it could be quite beautiful.

"Of course I do. Honestly, I was just going to run to the store for some things for tomorrow. But I can get them in the morning." she half waved her hand while still balancing the times she was carrying. "Please, lead the way I would love to see your place."

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