InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "it says "bikini inspector"!"

Piper (madcap) wrote in toujoursliberer,
@ 2008-06-20 15:38:00

Entry tags:

helene byron, mary_roper, piper, plot

Subject: Restless
Where: The Bridge Theatre--just outside
Who: Piper
Warnings: None Right Now
Open to: Helene and Mary

Piper puttered around the kitchen, mostly just moving things around and then back to where he found them. He felt more restless than hungry despite the bit of bread in one hand that he'd been nibbling on for the past ten minutes. It would have tasted better if it was fresh out of the oven and had butter on it, but he only complained in his mind. Outwardly he just finished off the bread and furrowed his brow in thought, trying to figure out what it was he'd come into the kitchen for in the first place. He shook his head a little and headed out of the kitchen and down the corridor. He paused outside his room and then went inside.

Inside he didn't do much. He closed the door, crossed to one side, and then went back to where he started. He frowned, rubbing the back of his neck, and went over to sort through his clothes. There weren't a lot, but they were his, and that's all that mattered to him. He sorted through them and then carefully undressed, putting on something else. He didn't really need to, but he still felt the urge to change his clothes. He carefully put the rest up and then smoothed down his front. He tucked his watch safely into a pocket and headed out of his room, continuing down the hall and out from backstage.

Glancing around the theatre, Piper headed toward the lobby. He felt the need to get a bit of fresh air, and with no one in sight to stop him, he headed through the the theatre and lobby, stepping outside. It didn't really help with the restless feeling running through his entire body, but he did feel a little better being outside. He looked around and picked up part of a newspaper someone had discarded. He leaned against the wall just off to the side of the doors, looking at the paper. While he couldn't read it, he could pretend, and he could look at some of the sketches. Besides, the paper could come in handy later on. You never knew, and he had a few plans about presents for friends, and he'd need something to wrap them up in.

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abandonne
2008-06-20 08:02 pm UTC (link)

Her luck remaining at an even line of constant tedium, rather than becoming ill or good, was an idea she could live with for longer than seconds or minutes. She was thinking, as she stared up at nothing in particular but the taciturn sky, that if God somehow forgot that she existed and allowed her to just be, then she may just be fine. She may just be able to have a large house with vases full of passion flowers, spiraled staircases, and bustles that set off the illusion curves. Helene had watched a few women breeze past in their finest dresses - brocades, broaches, fingerless gloves made of lace (to which she looked down at her own cotton fingerless gloves.), and wondered -- as Charles Baudelaire did wonder about the Angel of Delight -- have they ever felt the way that she has, and does?

She'd hoped they didn't and never would. Their was soft and nice, just like the princesses in all the fairy tales.

In her wandering with no particular destination in mind or in her current circumstance, she found the front of the theatre (or what she thought might be a palace.) on accident through deviated glance - she'd even double-taked. Where did this place come from? She'd never seen it before! Her lips pursed as if to quietly ask the breeze 'who'? Who what? Who built it, who lived there? Even she wasn't sure.

The sound of her shoes clattering across the streets echoed, and once she stepped up onto the street she was staring up with a grin. That's when she noticed a boy, and automatically asked without fully rehearsing how it might sound, she'd asked. "Did you build this palace?"

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prettypoppet
2008-06-21 03:38 pm UTC (link)

Mary had just alighted from one of the hansoms and paid the driver when she heard the girl's question. She turned with a look of confusion. It was just what someone might ask a prince in a fairytale. Mary looked up at the boy by the door- she was pretty sure he was one of Harry's although she hadn't met him just yet.

"Out of air and in a single night," she said as she approached, looking from the girl to Piper with an almost hidden smile. "But who did you build it for?"

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madcap
2008-06-21 04:11 pm UTC (link)

Piper lowered the paper, looking at the girl curiously. "No, I did not," he told her, though any evidence he thought the question to be ridiculous was no where in his voice or mannerisms. "But it is merely a theatre, not a palace, and I simply work there," he informed her before looking over to the other girl to reply to her.

"If I had built it, I would have built it for myself and my love, if I had a love," he said with a grin. That just made him think of Charles. Would he really build a palace for him when he had his own? No. He wouldn't. That would be ridiculous. Besides, he didn't know the first thing about designing buildings much more actually building one. His body was not made for such labors. He was better suited to a household or a bedroom. "It would be far bigger and far more elegant than this. And I should think it would look nicer in the country than the middle of London, or at least this particular area of London." He nodded to them both, folding up the paper and tucking it under his arm.

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abandonne
2008-06-21 07:04 pm UTC (link)

The tip of her tongue at least had the taste of wanting to correct herself, or explain what she'd meant instead of how it'd ended up sounding. There was a worried expression as if a cat was being let out of a bag, but he hadn't looked at her in any irregular way - she was relieved she hadn't sounded entirely dumb. And decided not to amend what she'd said.

Helene watched the other girl that'd come with a smile, especially as the boy answered her. She thought the girl was very pretty, but couldn't understand if either of them were playing a game, or being serious.

"Quite. Though, Orpheus showed the immenseness of his love for Eurydice without having to build a single thing -- even if he did, indeed, crawl into the pits of the ugliest parts of Hades.."

She paused, and added as if an afterthought. "My most important point in that love might be as impalpable as clouds, and more conspicuous than palaces.." her chin lowered to peek at her shoes. My! Weren't they looking scuffed..

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prettypoppet
2008-06-21 11:35 pm UTC (link)

Mary laughed, agreeing entirely with the boy's reasoning. "It's true enough. This part of London isn't very good for love." She was glad to know she'd been right- he was one of the theater boys.

She smiled at the girl. "So perhaps he is Orpheus looking for Eurydice? This place is right at home as part of Hades. Though Harry'd kill me for sayin' it." Although her brother was like to kill her for anything lately. Ugh. She looked up at the theater and sighed. The girl was certainly right about love being impalpable. She looked back at her two new companions.

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madcap
2008-06-22 08:13 pm UTC (link)

At the mention of Orpheus and Eurydice, Piper immediately equated it to Charles and himself. As the other girl had said, this did seem to be a rather hellish place in its own right, and Charles did risk things in coming to the theatre. He made a mental note to find someone and ask them to tell him that story some time soon. If it didn't end happily, he didn't want to equate himself and Charles to such a tale.

"But love can be found anywhere," Piper pointed out. "You could find it here in an awful part of town, in the most fashionable area, or even in the countryside. The only setting it needs is a heart." It was perhaps a bit romantic, but he never claimed not to be. Besides, if they were talking about palaces and impalpable love and Orpheus and Eurydice, it seemed only fitting to toss that in. At least, far more than asking the second girl her relation to Harry. He made a note to figure that out later.

"And I am not Orpheus looking for Eurydice. I am Piper," and I am a fool who falls in love too much for one lifetime, "and the only thing I am currently looking for is a bit of air."

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abandonne
2008-06-23 03:59 am UTC (link)

"You've come to the appropriate place to find air, then, ... Piper! There's plenty to go around for us all outside."

If anyone else had said what she had just said, in any other way, it might've appeared intentionally rude or intentionally sarcastic. But when Helene had said it, she'd meant every syllable in her utterly genuine delight. Although her ways weren't horribly childish, they were just enough unsophisticated to demonstrate to any one who caught on easily to such tiny hints, that, she wasn't all that socialized as far as her current peers were. She'd even grinned as brightly as the moon. Glancing both to the girl, and to Piper. Now, she'd have to learn the girl's name as well. This was the first time she'd really spoken to people who seemed near her age.

"My name is Helene. Would either of you fancy a pastry?" she began to rummage through a large sack which she used as a purse -- it wasn't a pretty thing by any stretch of the imagination, no matter how much her intentions were golden. It was frayed at it's edges and it's embroideries' threads coming out, begging to be patched. "I've gotten them from a very lovely pastry maker, he's brilliant really."

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prettypoppet
2008-06-23 06:55 am UTC (link)

"Air is much easier to come by than hearts and palaces, I think," Mary said with a grin. Piper was, she decided, going to be infinitely interesting. She couldn't wait to tell Evonne about him.

"Pleased to meet you, Piper, Helene. I'm Mary, and pastry sounds wonderful." She paused as she looked at Helene's bag, and back at Piper. Helene didn't act like one of the local girls hereabouts, and she was curious how she'd come to be here, but Piper was a bit of a mystery too.

Mary smoothed her dress and glanced back at the hansom which was still waiting- she'd only meant to run in and ask Harry about dinner tonight, but that could wait really. "But pastries always taste so much better in the park. How about we try them there?" she suggested.

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madcap
2008-06-23 03:27 pm UTC (link)

"So I have," Piper said, feeling slightly ridiculous for his wording of what he was doing. But he couldn't admit that he was just pretending to read the paper and felt incredibly restless. That sounded even more ridiculous to him. Thankfully she didn't sound rude or sarcastic to him, so the slight feeling of ridiculousness passed quickly enough.

"And air is easier to come by than a heart or a palace, though at least between air and a heart, I would think a heart would be the more precious of the two. You can live without it until you find it." My, my he really was getting into it, wasn't he? He blamed those happily ever after stories he'd heard as a child as well as his own ideals. If it weren't for them, he would probably be scoffing at such things as love and palaces in unseemly places. Instead, he was entertaining the ideas, if only for a little while.

"I agree with Mary. Pastries sound wonderful, especially in the park." There would hopefully be better air there, and he could stretch out a bit. And if he still felt restless, he could be a complete fool and run around until he felt properly exhausted. "What do you say, Miss Helene?" he asked, moving and extending his arm toward her. If she didn't take it or didn't want to go, he doubted he'd be offended. After all, he was merely trying to be polite, but in this part of town especially it wasn't easy to trust someone you'd only just met.

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abandonne
2008-06-23 06:12 pm UTC (link)

Mary and Piper. She'd remember those names easily, as well as the unique characteristics of the faces which belonged to the both of them -- no other two people had actually taken the time to engage her in a conversation about anything other than self-plight or the state of a decaying society. A memorable quality. One that made her suddenly very satisfied and content that she'd decided to cross the street to this palace on whimsy rather than reason.

And as she glanced between them for a brief process of studying their postures, she'd had a moment of regretting that her possessions not be in something more elegant or refined.. but that was all right, she'd thought to herself, not one of them made mention of the state of her purse. Why feel inadequate at all? Her gladdened cheeks were rosy with amusement and delight.

"Of course!" Helene carefully put back in the contents she was going to remove from her bag, and stepped forward to coil her arm around Piper's elbow. Her smile had yet to meet it's end. "I do believe that the park will be much more exciting with human company rather than only flowers, ferns, and lonely benches overgrown with ivy and mosses. And to love, palaces, and air -- my heart is ever at either of your services for being the company I'm keeping. The lot of you might find it a fun game.." she bit her lip thoughtfully, "To pretend that the park is indeed a palace, and for good measure, in the air. Why not? What say you?"

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prettypoppet
2008-06-24 01:31 am UTC (link)

Mary laughed and waved to the cabbie to wait for them. "Well, then, our chariot awaits, my friends," she announced, clapping her hands together in delight. She might have been more wary but the game was catching. Already the duller sides of everything could fade away, leaving the lovely Helene and dashing Piper and Mary herself as more than they might seem to anyone outside their group.

"Helene," Mary said as she took the girl's free arm lightly and easily, as if they had already been friends for years, "yours is the truest wisdom I have heard this day. But of course the park is a palace. It always has been, but maybe you haven't seen it rightly. It's a magic that is hard to see without the help of friends. Piper, Prince of Air and Hearts, you agree don't you?" Mary asked in utter sincerity, hoping that Piper would continue on with the play, and let whatever adventure come along with it.

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