Lechance

The warmer weather didn't seem to mean that the evenings didn't draw in any later. Effie was sitting in the parlour in the late afternoon, her lamp lit to cast light over her pillow and her feet securely on a footstool when she paused, looked up at the calendar on the wall, and frowned slightly. One hand strayed down to press her skirts to her stomach, then back to the buttons over the lacing of her corset, before returning to her pillow.

When Jonathan came home, she was still sitting there, her hands idle, the room dark except for the lacemaker's lamp on the desk next to her pillow, her eyes closed, head still upright as was her posture in the upright chair she used for work.

(Followed on from this thread, Tuesday Evening.)

James shivered nervously despite the fire to the side of him, and flicked a glance up to the mantel clock. Five minutes until Paul was due to finish. Please God, don't let him be delayed.

He'd banked up the fire well in the library as requested, and it was giving off enough heat to last for some time. Harry and Elspeth were long gone home, and James felt quite safe, despite his exposure, naked and kneeling in front of the fire. The rug was warm too, but he soon felt the weave starting to dig into his knees, the more time passed by. He'd got up and paced awhile, before he panicked slightly, and knelt back down again quickly.

Two minutes, and James heard Paul's footsteps coming down the hallway. He was here. He tried to steady his breathing, taking large deep breaths to calm himself, before he bowed his head, eyes closed. He held his hands behind him, one hand encircling his other wrist.

Jonas was rattled, and incredibly uneasy.

Sadie was sitting outside her shop becase the light was better. There were two baskets of cloth at her feet and a worried expression on her face. She sighed, snipped the edge of a brilliant blue silk and then tore it down to the other side with a loud sound. The bulk of the material was refolded and placed in the second basket then she cut off a portion of the smaller piece.

"I don't know if you're going to be usable at all," she said, not realizing that the person coming down the walk could probably hear her.

Julian woke Theo with soft, light touches to his husband's arm and chest, murmuring his name. "Theodore. Theo."

Santiago stepped out of the smithy and wiped his brow. It was really, really warm in there. Warm enough that even he was getting a bit wiped out by it. He couldn't understand why. He'd been around forges all his life.

Of course, that wasn't the only thing that was bothering him. There were those odd skittering sounds he'd been hearing recently. Sounds he couldn't place and that he couldn't figure out what was making them.

He hid all that concern when someone approached. A smile and a nod.

"Good day."

Ben came home from his walk on the beach soaked to the skin, having decided to throw himself in the ocean to rinse the worse of the alcohol off and to sober himself up a little. He was still wet when he walked in, and still smelled a little like rum and molasses.

He called out as he came in, uncharacteristically tentative, "Jon?"

Amy was hoping the new year would bring more luck to her than the last but, despite the lingering thought that it was another year gone, another year without getting matched, she was hopeful. She was out enjoying the weather, walking along the street and looking at the displays still lingering in the window when she almost bumped into someone and had to step aside quickly to avoid them - and step again to avoid walking into her escort.

"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry," she said, blushing bright.

Effie rarely slept heavily. A warm December still felt wrong to her, after Boston and Glasgow, but even without the warmth, and the restlessness left from leaving the chamomile teas the apothecary had recommended, she still slept lightly.

When the scratching started, it slipped into her dreams. As it continued, it turned them to nightmares, translating to moving furniture and nails scraping against bolted wooden doors. When it still didn't stop, she woke, suddenly, still and stiff, her eyes wide in the darkness and a chill left from the nightmares that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room.

Oh, stars, she was going mad. She had to be. First the whistle that no one had heard, and now...the scratching. On and on, on the edge of hearing, on the edge of waking, keeping her so still beyond the occasional tremble she could not stop, silent to try not to disturb Jonathan from sleep beside her.

James shifted nervously from foot to foot. He felt like this was a first courting date, instead of a stolen luncheon. He was trusting that Paul had seen his note, and was anxiously awaiting his arrival by the bridge at the end of Ilen Street.

He'd packed them both a decent picnic lunch into a covered basket. Bits and pieces left over in the pantry from the festive season, potted meats, spreads, cheese, a couple of slabs of cake, a couple of bottles of Ginger Beer, and some fresh bread that he'd picked up this morning. He was actually quite proud of himself for having put it all together, despite the fact that no cooking hadn't actually been required.

As Paul had mentioned, the weather *was* warmer than he'd expected, and with the clear morning they'd had, he'd thought a picnic might be a fun break from the day's work, if a little unseasonal. He jigged up onto his toes, squinting into the middle distance to try to look for Paul.

It had been a lovely seasonal celebration over the past week. Lots of fun, food, and good spirits had been enjoyed with her new friends in LeChance, and she was looking forwards to the turn of the year, and all the new things it promised.

She was out walking, taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather. She was in a bouyant mood, as she was out buying food for the New Year celebrations, and she called out in friendly greeting to most faces she recognised.

"Good day to you, lovely out isn't it?"

He went down to the riverfront early, wanting to surprise Obediah by being there already, welcoming him with open arms and maybe half ready for swimming.

He stretched out on the blanket, eyes up to the sky, and between the warmth and the fascinating little patterns in the clouds and considering what he should do this week to keep himself busy and his to-do list for building a practice, not to mention a letter to his mother he was writing...

... well, he got lost in his thoughts and ended up daydreaming, hands behind his head, little grin on his face

It started past midnight. The moon was dark tonight a bare sliver of light, and the dark side showing. It kept the streets dark while the town slept.

The animals noticed first. The stockyard was full of lowing cows, mournful and stampeded to one side of the pen. More than 10 chickens were found dead in pools of blood, beaks ripped open and tiny punctures on their necks bleeding them out.

The dogs started baying around 2am until their masters cuffed them into silence. The cats hissed and birds stayed in the air, unwilling to land.

Each house had a skitter, a scratch, across their floorboards in the dead of night. A scrape over the glass pane of a window. It quieted really, about 4 am. It would need a fine and careful eye to see the two inch spiders slowly spreading over the town.

Ben was having a hard time staying still.

A really, really hard time staying still.

He was sitting in the sand by the sea, shoes off, pants rolled indecently high, near to his knees. He was restless, leg moving in uncertain time, making the sand shift, stick to him. The crabs scuttled far from him, disturbed by his motions.

He started singing, low, accent thick, blurring the words enough that it wasn't clear what he was singing- it was Cajun, too thick too even be clearly a French dialect. His eyes were glassy, absent and he was very much other where. He smelled like oranges. Molasses, cooked slow and sweet. Rum. Definitely rum.

Sunday at last. The week had lasted forever, days stretching out, Paul's only full time that which he spent with his patients or his papers. Elspeth and Harry had moved out, and his house sat waiting, as he was waiting, for James to come and fill it with his energy, his music, and his warmth.

The contract had been finalized, signed, and witnessed, and Paul wasn't even trying to hide the pride in his expression as he fastened the slim band around James' wrist, lifting his hand to kiss the place the band rested before offering his own for James to seal the union.

( Letter sent to Charles )

The main gathering hall had been decorated with swags of greens and candles, lending a soft, romantic glow to the space. Tables were scattered throughout the hall and along one side there was an elborate buffett spread. Musicians had set up unobstrusively next to the large space left open for dancing.

In one corner there was a large evergreen tree decorated with more candles, preserved flowers and fruits, strings of cranberries, small paper doilies, and ribbons and tied to tree branches. But the center of attraction was the yule log burning in the huge fireplace at the end of the hall.

Before the festivities began, Leroy made a short speech thanking the residents of LeChance for the hard work over many months, congratulating the newly married and affianced, wishing everyone happy holidays and set the party in motion.

Sadie and her assistant had taken to walking along main streets at lunchtime. It gave them a bit of a break, got them fresh air and exercise and Sadie used it to look for fresh ideas for her dresses.

The shop had been very quiet today so they'd decided to extend their walk to the shore. They didn't expect to see anyone but Sadie recognized the figure approaching them and dropped a small curtsy.

"Hello, Miss Lenoy. How are you this day?"

Sent to Paul:
A small boxed package and a note, inscribed on the envelope: ' For Doctor Roberts, Please read first, yours always,  J'

The note reads:
( Read more )

( NSFW )