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Hera ([info]oxeyed) wrote in [info]paxletalelogs,
@ 2011-08-10 22:10:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:eris, hera

Saint Anthony, who received from God the special power to restore lost things...
Who: Tanya and Charlie
What: LOST: One photo of Tanya's father. Reward if you pretend you haven't seen it.
Where: Lobby
When: Nautical Dawn. Oh yeah. We went there.
Warnings: TBA
Notes: Lotto post!



It had been a long night at work. Lots of customers, many of them rude, and very poor tips. Definitely not one of her best nights. She had been looking forward to coming home and forgetting about all the bad stuff at work and recharging for another day. Too bad the day wasn't done with her yet.

After sitting down to organize her wallet and purse (she finds this to be relaxing, you see.) Tanya discovered something horrible. The picture that she carried in her wallet was missing. Her heart began to pound and her stomach dropped to the floor. All thoughts of organization were thrown out the window. Similarly, all the items in her purse and wallet were thrown haphazardly on the floor. Still no picture. She raked a hand through her hair and scanned the floor for anything that resembled an old Polaroid. No luck. Time to turn her attention to the apartment.

For hours she searched high and low. This photo was a well loved object, and one that she looked at often. It was her grown up security blanket and if she couldn't find it, she'd probably crumble. Now that hours had passed and the apartment was in shambles, it was time to venture out to see if it was anywhere within the building. Thankfully, at this hour very few people would be awake to see her making a spectacle of herself. Her appearance was a nightmare and her poise was all but gone. All the walls were down in her panic, and she would not be able to keep her head about her were she to be confronted.

Floor by floor she searched, her panic growing with every level she descended. Finally, she reached the lobby. There was nowhere else to go. It had to be here. Her panic did not allow her to be very polite, and her searching wasn't exactly quiet. She was too worried about finding her photo to consider being polite. This was an urgent situation that needed to be rectified immediately.


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[info]eristic
2011-08-11 06:00 pm UTC (link)
Coming in from an afternoon shift, Charlie was most certainly looking forward to kicking back and just relaxing in her apartment. From one hand dangled her dinner in a plastic bag, some chinese food that she'd picked up from the most current location of her security patrols. Dressed in her mall cop outfit (which was essentially black on black with more black for added flair) and hair tied back in a bun, she stopped long enough in the lobby to check her mailbox and sort through what was garbage and what was actually important. She was glad that she lived on the first floor, where it would be a quick, short walk to her front door and then nothing but beer and chinese food afterward.

Taking a step away from the mailboxes, she realized something was stuck to her foot. It made a scraping sound on the tiled floor, and Charlie retrieved the object by lifting her shoe up enough to peel the thing off. An old Polaroid photograph - looked like an older man with a girl, and from a simple glance one could see that they were probably related. The photo itself was old, and worn, potentially from being handled often. Then again, it couldn't be that important if whoever it belonged to had left it on the floor in the lobby.

For a moment Charlie was torn between tossing the picture into a nearby garbage can - Rylee would certainly say to do so, that anything else would be littering - or to just leave it where she found it on the floor. Her decision was postponed by the appearance of someone coming down through the elevator.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-12 02:57 am UTC (link)
That stomach that had earlier dropped to floor had now completely fled the building when she entered the lobby and saw Charlie standing there. Shit. This was not how this was suppose to go. It was an odd hour and everyone was suppose to be asleep. Deep breath, Tanya, deep breath

She attempted to follow her own advice, but her breath hitched when she saw what Charlie was holding. An old, worn, extremely familiar photograph. Oh no.

"Can I see that?" She tried to keep her voice calm and casual, but the tense undertones were hard to hide and she doubted she could hide the panic in her eyes. Of all the people she could run into, why did it have to be this one?

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 05:20 am UTC (link)
Her arm bent away from the newcomer - Tanya, if memory served right, the woman who'd thrown the interestingly boring party near the Fourth - and kept the photo well out of reach. She didn't take a moment to study it to see if Tanya was the girl in the photo (such realizations usually struck Charlie far too late in the game) and instead her brow climbed her forehead in annoyed curiosity as to why the other woman would want the old thing.

"Don' worry about it, it's just garbage. Unless yer startin' a new job as a collector," she drawled, grinning, and then paced toward the garbage can on the other side of the room. Her steps were slow but deliberate, giving more than ample time for Tanya to stop her if the need arose.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 06:15 am UTC (link)
"If you are only going to throw it away, give it to me, please," she cried, resisting the urge to run over there and yank it from her hand. If it ripped, she'd be devastated. Her father had never been a big fan of having his picture taken, and as a result there were very few photos of him, even fewer of him and her together. She could not lose this picture.

"Please. Can I just see it?" She raked her hand through her hair, biting her lip and silently praying that Charlie would be cooperative. From what little she knew about her, she doubted she would be, which made this situation entirely unbearable. Her heart thudded loudly in her chest, she was sure it was loud enough for both of them to hear in the stillness of the lobby. Her heart and Charlie's steps seemed to thud in time. Every 3 beats of her racing heart coincided with one of the other woman's deliberate steps. Please don't let it end up in the trash.

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 07:01 am UTC (link)
She stopped, turning her head to regard Tanya with a new consideration. Charlie had never quite understood sentiment, nor why people would hang on to particular objects - photos were nothing more than reminder of a past time that you couldn't return to, people you wouldn't see again, and she personally preferred to not be reminded of such things. Apparently Tanya was different, and Charlie frowned at the thought.

Holding the photograph out, pinched between her fore finger and thumb, she felt she was giving Tanya a rather good view of the thing she seemed so desperate to get back.

"There, see? Jus' a photo. Why, is it yours?" The last word was said snobbishly, as though they were kids on a playground and Charlie was accusing Tanya of owning the pacifier she'd found under the slide, and that admission of ownership would mean losing status points amongst the cool kids.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 06:15 pm UTC (link)
The view she was offered showed her everything she'd been afraid to see, but had known she would. Her father stared out at her, sitting in his favorite chair. There was a hint of a smile on his face, one that he reserved for his daughter alone. He was stingy with his smiles, and they were never broad or overt gestures. The fact that this one was caught on camera was a big deal. He had his arm around a little girl, holding her close to him in a protective manner. The small, towheaded girl beamed brightly at the camera, her little arms wrapped tightly around the mans neck. That little girl adored her papa with every fiber of her being, and she wasn't afraid to show it. The photo was worn and faded, but every detail remained engrained in her mind with overly sharp clarity.

Tanya held fast to the inside of her lip to keep her emotions, and hopefully her voice, in check. "Yes," she said quietly, swallowing a large lump that was lodged firmly in her throat. "It's mine. May I please have it back?"

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 07:09 pm UTC (link)
She'd half expected Tanya to step forward and wrench the photograph from her grasp - after all, if she'd wanted it that badly, she could have just taken it from Charlie. Of course, the idea that Tanya might not have wanted to damage the photo further never really revealed itself entirely to Charlie, and thus she turned the photo back around, the hand holding the bag of Chinese food that was probably quickly cooling adjusting in midair.

"S'yer dad? Must be." She studied the photo for a moment, her own mind thinking backward to her own father and the lack of a relationship there. Having that as a standard to judge all other things by, it was difficult to fathom that someone else might actually like and maybe even love their father. Such a thought was foreign, and the photo suddenly became somewhat loathsome in Charlie's eyes.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 08:16 pm UTC (link)
She frowned and crossed her arms. This shouldn't be turning into a conversation. This should have been a quick exchange, where Tanya asked for her property and that property was returned. This was going on far too long, and Tanya was starting to get angry. It was late, she was tired, and was irritated and she was terrified that her picture was going to be destroyed in this pathetic game of cat and mouse. It disgusted her that Charlie had the upper hand right now. She was angry at Charlie and angry at herself for allowing this to happen. She should have been more cautious. She knew keeping something so valuable on her at all times was a poor decision, but she couldn't bear to lock it away.

"It doesn't matter who it is. All that matters is that it is mine and I would like it back, please."

Her mother should be proud. She was still using her manners, when all she really wanted to do was punch Charlie in the face.

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 09:33 pm UTC (link)
Charlie had to admit that she was impressed with Tanya's ability to continue with words and not fists. She knew that if someone had something dearly important to her, she would probably have the sucker on the ground by now, flat out demolishing their face with fingers clenched tightly in a white knuckled fist. Part of her wanted to egg Tanya on further in keeping the photo away from her, maybe even just flick it into the garbage can and let the prissy blond dig out her prized possession, but at the moment all of that seemed like too much effort.

"There's the magic word," she responded, as though she'd been waiting the word to surface a certain number of times with a certain amount of emphasis before she'd relinquish the object of Tanya's desire. Between thumb and forefinger, Charlie flicked the photograph at Tanya, sending it spinning through the air to hit the other woman squarely in the chest.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 10:01 pm UTC (link)
Tanya caught the picture and clutched it tightly to her chest, a sense of overwhelming relief washing over her. She pulled herself out of her relief long enough to give the other woman an icy glare. She gave herself a few moments to regain her composure, before she spoke. No longer did her voice lack it's controlled, careful cadence.

"Was that truly necessary?"

This was not something she would forget. While yes, it had angered her greatly, it also illustrated that the woman had little in the way of compassion for others. That had the potential to be a useful trait. Perhaps her earlier hunch about Charlie was right. But now was not the time to think on that. She was too tired, her opinion too tainted to be assessed and more fully formed. That would have to wait till the prickles of panic had calmed down completely.

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 10:27 pm UTC (link)
A shrug was her first reply, followed by an irritated tone.

"You got your fuckin' picture back - what, did you expect me to wrap it up with a little fuckin' bow for your enjoyment?" She moved the bag of Chinese food from one hand to the next, adjusting her posture as though she were waiting for some sign of gratitude from the other woman, though she'd deem such a thing unnecessary anyway.

"Maybe you oughta find a better place for it, somewhere better than on the floor of yer apartment buildin's lobby," she continued, just because she could and need no further reason.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 10:34 pm UTC (link)
She arched a brow. "That would be just as unnecessary as this pathetic little game of yours." She tilted her head and gave her a quizzical look. "Perhaps it was necessary on your end, hm? What a pity," she shook her head. "I hope you got what you needed out of that exchange then." She glanced down at the picture that was still clutched against her chest. She pulled it away just far enough to be able to see the face of her father. "I guess we're both satisfied then."

She ignored her remark about storing her treasure more properly. It wasn't any of her business. It wasn't worth a response.

"Thank you for returning it."

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 10:50 pm UTC (link)
Her face creased in a deep sneer, disliking the terms Tanya was using. There was no need for a game, although it was likewise perfectly true that she could have simply handed the photograph over with no complaints. But surely not everyone could expect people to just bend to their whims whenever they liked. Charlie turned more fully in Tanya's direction, feeling insulted when she knew the other woman should be damned well happy that Charlie had merely flicked the photo at her instead of making her wade through garbage for it.

"Maybe yah ought'a put a little more sincerity behind yer words then, princess," she retorted angrily. "Didn't realize it was proper to be so fuckin' rude to someone who gives yah back something that was so goddamn important."

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 10:55 pm UTC (link)
She smirked humorlessly. "Why? You wouldn't appreciate it if I did, now would you? You don't want my gratitude anymore than I wanted to be a part of this exchange. The exchange was apparently unavoidable, but the gratitude is not. And what would you know about propriety in the first place? What little you do know should have told you that threatening to dispose of something when someone asks to see it is hardly proper."

She was taking this father than she needed to, but she was angry. Everything she had bottled up in hopes of sparing her beloved picture was coming out now that it was safely in her possession.

"If you'd like genuine gratitude, perhaps next time you should act in a manner befitting such a thing."

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 11:10 pm UTC (link)
Her shoulders rolled in irritation, and she knew it would simply be easier to walk away. Her Chinese food was probably tepidly warm at this point, bordering on cool, but Charlie had never been one to walk away from a fight. Ever. Even if she was quite clearly on the losing side.

"I think it's great that yer basically callin' me a liar, since I said it was garbage. All you had tah say was it's my picture, I want it back," she retorted in the best bit of sense she could manage. One hand was slowly curling into a fist, the fingers pulsing in and out of her palm.

"I really don't give a fuck if yer thankful or not, just sayin' that if yer gonna say it, yah should probably mean it. Otherwise people might start not believing yah after awhile."

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 11:14 pm UTC (link)
"I did say that. Yet you took your sweet time giving it back. I don't believe I have to call you a liar when you'll take care of that yourself. And that's sweet that you're concerned for whether or not people believe what I say, really. It's cute. But I don't need your worry."

She raked a hand through her hair one more time and shrugged slightly. "So if we're done here, I'll be on my way."

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[info]eristic
2011-08-13 11:19 pm UTC (link)
Charlie rolled her eyes, unimpressed by the apathetic display.

"Does it look like I'm tryin' to keep yah here? I'm the one with dinner that's gonna be frozen solid by the time I finally get back to my apartment," she drawled, finding every possible excuse to be annoyed by Tanya's mere presence. For another moment she lingered, partially wanting to draw the fight out more, but her stomach was growling and she really, really disliked having to reheat Chinese food. It never tasted the same.

With some lingering unwillingness, she bounced from foot to food and finally turned on her heel, striding away from the blond and her stupid photograph, intent on reaching her apartment.

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[info]oxeyed
2011-08-13 11:30 pm UTC (link)
"Bye," she called after her, watching her leave. She would not set foot out of this lobby until she was sure she was back inside of her apartment. She really should have walked away a while ago, but that just wasn't to be. It all balanced out though, since she had been rather polite during their original conversation, right?

You did not get to mess with Tanya's personal things and then get a thank you from her. It didn't work that way. She pulled the photo away from her chest and brushed a bit of dirt from the image with a single finger. Her daddy deserved better than all of this.

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