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Tweak says, "Later..."

little_scary (little_scary) wrote in vie_en_guerre,
@ 2008-01-30 21:56:00

Who: Reverend Mother Michael Therese, expecting Eric Of-No-Particular-Importance.
When: Evening, December 1940.
Where: The School grounds.
Rating: PG
Status: Open. It is Morning, and deliveries, work, etc, are expected.
Summary: It is Morning at the school. For previous entry, see THIS

Sister Michael Therese had been up since before dawn. She'd been to chapel. She'd given direction to half a dozen nuns on half a dozen subjects. She'd scheduled in time later to teach some advanced Latin grammar. She'd also handled a couple of deliveries of supplies. Currently, she'd seated herself in the small office just outside the entry hall, so that she'd most easily be able to greet those let into the main gate by Sister Mary Francis...

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boulanger
2008-01-31 02:17 am UTC (link)

Marie often brought yesterday's bread to the sisters to be distributed to the poor as part of their feeding the hungry. Dipped in a bit of stew or soup, the bread was as good as new.

Lately, she hadn't had much to donate - and she'd felt bad about it. The amount of loaves she was able to bring to the sisters was less and less each week. Today she showed up at the gates with three sad little loaves - one of which she'd taken fresh, because she felt bad showing up with just the two.

"Good morning, sisters," she said. "I'm sorry I haven't more bread for you..."

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	little_scary 2008-01-31 02:19 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, that is quite alright." Said Sister Mary Francis. "We understand, and we appreciate anything that can be given. Perhaps you'd like to speak with the Reverend Mother?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 02:26 am UTC (link)
	"Yes, thank you," Marie said, handing over the bread to Sister Mary Francis. "Please tell her I'm here..." She smiled at the sister, and settled to wait. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 02:28 am UTC (link)
	The sister, having waved her in, told her that the Reverend Mother would be in the office just to the right of entering the main building, just a few yards from the gate. It was not long before the Reverend Mother stepped out, seeing someone waiting. "Ah, Marie!" She exclaimed, seeming quite pleased. "How are you this morning?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 02:42 am UTC (link)
	"I'm doing well enough, Reverend Mother - though I'm sorry there isn't much bread to give. And how are you?" She smiled, feeling at ease here with the nun she'd known for many years now. "I trust that all is well here..." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 02:44 am UTC (link)
	"Yes, quite well. Please, come in, sit down. We appreciate whatever you can give. There are shortages all over. Fortunately, we are still doing well enough here that we can provide bread and soup for the poor." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 02:51 am UTC (link)
	Marie sat down, and folded her hands in her lap. "Is there anything else I can do to help?" she asked. "I know there are so many poor people these days..." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 02:54 am UTC (link)
	"I do not know. I know that supplies are short for us all...hmm. Perhaps you might come to show our girls from time to time how better to bake bread? Yours is so wonderful, and that is a skill, at least, that they can share when we supply it to the poor. And one that they can take with them into their lives." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 03:07 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, that I can do - certainly," Marie said. She would just let her granddaughter tend to the shop by herself one day a week - Jacinthe was certainly capable. "I would love to." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 03:12 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, very good! Be sure that it does not take away from your business, and just let me know when you will be able to come. I will be sure that the girls are made available." Michael Therese considered for a moment. "How has business been, with all that's been going on? How is your family? How are...other things?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 03:15 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, things are as can be expected," Marie said, not wanting to trouble the sister with any of their problems. "Henry's giving his sister a bit of trouble, the scamp - I need to find him something to do that isn't getting in trouble. He's got no interest in baking, though." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 03:33 am UTC (link)
	"Hmm. What might he be interested in, then? Perhaps I know someone looking for an apprentice? He is still going to school?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 03:48 am UTC (link)
	"Yes, but he is old enough for an apprenticeship," Marie said. She sighed. "Truthfully, I'm not sure what his interests are- he's such a difficult child. I will have to ask his sister." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 03:51 am UTC (link)
	"Yes, this can work, perhaps. He may be willing to speak more openly with his sister. If not, you may just have to nail his feet down long enough, though, to get it out of him yourself. Boys can be so difficult at that age." She let out a rueful chuckle. "I recall my own brothers. It is probably for the best that we only teach girls here..." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 03:53 am UTC (link)
	"Praise God," Marie said, agreeing with her, "I never had anywhere near as much trouble with my girls as I did my boys. They are quite the handful. How is the school doing these days?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 03:57 am UTC (link)
	"God has been good. So far, it has been a refuge for our students against the troubles beyond. Still, I worry that it remain such. The restrictions, what goes on outside our very gates..." She trailed off. "These things concern me greatly, Marie. I pray to God for his protection for my girls, many times a day." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-01-31 04:01 am UTC (link)
	"Things are getting bad all over," Marie agreed. "But what can we do? I know, God will protect us to a certain extent.. but I do wish there was something we could do to help ourselves..." Those were dangerous words, but she felt safe speaking them to the sister who was also her friend. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

little_scary
2008-01-31 04:09 am UTC (link)

"Yes, God does best help those who help themselves."

Reverend Mother Michael Therese would not say this to many of those within the walls quite so directly upon this subject, let alone those from without, but she'd known Marie a very long time, and knew her heart was pure.

"Do be careful, my friend. And...if the time comes that you know of something I might be able to do...Ask."

There, she'd said it. If the time comes, ask. She somehow doubted that it would be terribly long before it did, before things became so bad that she would have to do things, possibly dangerous things, to help those for whom she felt responsible. Like her students, her nuns, and her friends, her community. Walls aside, she certainly cared for them.

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	boulanger 2008-02-01 12:09 am UTC (link)
	Marie thought she understood the Reverend Mother's meaning, and nodded to show that she did, without wanting to say anything further aloud. "Thank you, my friend. I will certainly bear that in mind." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-02-03 05:42 am UTC (link)
	"Please do." Marie Therese nodded emphatically. "Now, if you can stay a bit more, I do need to step out for a moment to handle a bit of business. We've hired a workman, and he needs to get started, so a few words from me." She smiled. "If not, I would love to see you very soon. Perhaps we can have tea, and speak more on some of these matters." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	boulanger 2008-02-03 07:29 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, I don't want to keep you- I'll be back for tea on a less busy day," Marie said. She smiled to her friend. "And thank you again for everything." She got up to leave, not waiting to keep the Reverend Mother from her duties any longer. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-02-05 04:24 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, do not be silly! There is no such thing here as an unbusy day. But I do understand that you have a business to run as well. Perhaps one evening soon? I shall set aside a block of time." (Reply to this) (Parent)

the_businessman
2008-01-31 03:35 am UTC (link)

Almost as if on cue, Eric was trotting on up to the gate at precisely that moment. While timeliness wasn't necessarily next to godliness, it certainly couldn't hurt matters in affirming his local reputation - and Eric was making a point to allow himself to be visible as a creature of routine and order. One never knew when having such a reputation would come in exceedingly handy in such a volatile political climate, after all.

Plus, he was planning on spending the entire day around women who spent their days on their knees for the Lord, and not in an ironic fashion -- so it was probably best to remain in their good graces.

"Good morning, Sister," he said cheerfully to the lady at the gate. "Eric of No Office of Importance, here for work detail."

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	little_scary 2008-01-31 03:48 am UTC (link)
	"Ah, yes." Said Sister Mary Francis. "Good morning. Reverend Mother is expecting you. Just go right up the path here, through the doors of the main building just there..." She pointed. "There are chairs just within. Sit down, and she will see you through the glass, and be with you very quickly, I'm sure." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	the_businessman 2008-01-31 04:00 am UTC (link)
	Eric nodded. "Thank you, sister." As requested, he trotted on up to the main building, taking a moment to glance around as he did so. Once past the doors, he settled into a chair like a schoolboy awaiting guidance. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

little_scary
2008-01-31 04:05 am UTC (link)

Various habited figures scurried about in the halls beyond. Further down, some uniformed girls chattered in their plaid skirts and white blouses, a few clutching books.

Through the window of the little office, the Reverend Mother could be glimpsed, speaking with a middle-aged lady.

A nun approached. "I am Sister Joan Jude. You would be Eric-of-No-Office-of-Particular-Import?" She quirked a small smile as she made her way through the 'title.'

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	the_businessman 2008-01-31 04:40 am UTC (link)
	Eric nodded. "That would be my full current title, yes, ma'am." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

little_scary
2008-01-31 09:28 pm UTC (link)

"Well, Eric, at least when you are with us, the Reverend Mother has told me, you are to be 'Eric-the-Fixer-of-Things-That-Badly-Need-Fixing.' There are apparently a great many of such, and as soon as You've spoken to Reverend Mother, and Sister Katerina Josef arrives, we shall escort you to those things."

She was a middle-aged lady, a touch plump, but apparently quite hale, with a very pleasant face, and had made herself just a bit breathless spitting all of that out.

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	the_businessman 2008-02-01 01:27 am UTC (link)
	Eric grinned. "Very well, then." It was, truthfully, an appropriate title for most of Eric's career, although the details of such were the sort that generally wasn't described in any section of a church short of a confessional. "The Reverend Mother seems occupied at the moment, so we might have a wait in store for us." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

little_scary
2008-02-03 05:46 am UTC (link)

Sister Katerina Joseph, also middle-aged, but rather thin, and a bit sour-looking, arrived just then, turning a corner with a brusque sort of speed.

"Good Morning." She said to both of them. "You are the gentleman who does repairs, then? It is nice to see that you are a bit early." She actually did smile, and the sour look was relieved. Apparently, it may have been more of a facet of her facial structure than her attitude. "I am sister Katerina Joseph. I will also be staying with you and showing you where the work is to be done. And, of course, we will give assistance where we may."

"Indeed." Said the other sister. "We are no strangers to hard work, or heights. It is the finer points of carpentry mostly that yet elude us. Or at least me."

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	the_businessman 2008-02-03 05:51 am UTC (link)
	Eric nodded. "Well, I don't promise to be a professional, but then I don't charge a professional's wage, either," he said with a grin and a nod. "A pleasure to meet you, Sister Katerina, and good to hear that neither of you are afraid of heights." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

little_scary
2008-02-05 04:26 am UTC (link)

The chunky nun laughed. "OH no. I used to climb trees as a girl, and who do you think USUALLY does the more minor repairs? We may have to clear a bit of ice, but at least any snow that's come down so far is off. It will be cold. We'll have a nice warm fire and hot tea rather regularly. We'd wait for spring, but unfortunately, the leak doesn't wish to go along with this."

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the_businessman
2008-02-06 05:50 pm UTC (link)

Eric nodded understandingly. "Very well then." Privately, he couldn't help but wonder what they defined as a 'leak' under these circumstances, since they certainly didn't consider it a minor problem -- perhaps they just weren't comfortable wandering around on an icy roof in the middle of winter. Or perhaps they just wanted to make sure he could actually fix things before showing him the real problems. Or perhaps the roof was actually about to cave in in one section. Or perhaps something else.

At any rate, it was work, and it would give him an excellent view of the surrounding area besides. "Do you usually get a lot of ice on these roofs?" he inquired conversationally.

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little_scary
2008-02-11 10:02 pm UTC (link)

Sister Mary Francis nodded vehemently. "Oh yes. Sometimes, we have to go up, and knock it off of the eves. It comes down in great sheets, and sometimes, the icicles can be six or more feet long, like great gleaming swords. It's the sun that does that, believe me. The attic is not so warm."

"Freezing." Agreed the other nun.

"Yes. We need to better insulate it, but fixing the roof is probably the first part. We don't really heat that part of the building, anyway."

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the_businessman
2008-02-14 03:06 am UTC (link)

"Easier to get the ice out when it's not halfway in the building," Eric agreed readily. "And easier to keep a building warm when there's a solid roof atop it, I'm sure." After a moment of thought, he added, "How limited are our supplies?" He wasn't exactly certain how badly rationed repair supplies were, but he could certainly imagine the Germans being obnoxious about that.

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