Re: Sharpen the Knife

[SharpestLife19]

He smiles again, unaware of how it's effecting her. “I'd be happy to stay with the lady.” He scoots away from the mattress so he isn't invading her space any longer. “I don't need a blanket or anything, you're fine. I'll just go get the cushion from the godawful chair and I'll be right back here, ok?” He rises and hurries to get the cushion. It will work for something to sleep on. Liam's not very picky about those type of things. He hurries back with the cushion, hoping she doesn't panic too much while she's alone. She seems alright when he returns and he's glad for that. He tosses the cushion down to the floor and makes himself comfortable on it. “Alright, the light is on and you have a guardian now. Do you feel safe?”

[Sandkitten]

When he goes out for the cushion, she scoots back down into the blankets, pulling them up around her again. "Actually... I do feel safer." She hugs the pillow and nuzzles her face down into it. "Thank you." With her face half in the pillow, her sight settles on the picture she'd borrowed. "Liam... I hope you don't mind, I saw this when we came in..." She picks it up and looks at it again, then offers it to him. "I was going to ask you about it tomorrow, but since we're both awake, I was just curious about it. It's your family, isn't it?" She watches him with one eye.

[SharpestLife19]

He leans back on the cushion and smiles over at her. He's glad that she feels safe. He wants that very much for the girl. She is a good girl and deserves some peace of mind. He's surprised to see that she has photograph. He hadn't noticed it was missing. Sneaky girl. Of course she's only curious. She has to wonder how he could go from a complete and loving family to living utterly alone, underground and hiding. That's a very logical question. But he isn't sure now is the time for the answer. He nods. “Yes, that's my family. My parents and my sisters, Sophie and Evie.” He tries to smile, but it quickly turns to a sad little frown. “They're all gone now.”

[Sandkitten]

His frown causes her to frown too, her eyebrows knit together for him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up something sad." She reaches over and gently takes the photograph back, pulling it back to her and studying it again. "Sophie and Evie," she murmurs. "My friends call me Adie. Called." She corrects herself. "After University, I lost contact with most everyone." She looks up at him again, setting the photograph back on the crate. "...you can call me Adie, if you want." Her arm disappeared back into the blankets, and she shuffled slightly so that she could look at him with both eyes.

[SharpestLife19]

Liam shakes his head in return. “It's alright, you didn't know. Anyway, the picture was from better times.” He feels bad that the girl will lose everyone she knew as well, but it seems as if she already lost touch with everyone. Of course she hardly could keep in contact with them if she were unemployed. It wasn't safe for anyone to know that. “Adie is a lovely name. I'm sorry that you had to leave your friends. Even if it has been awhile since you could talk to them. Are you going to be missing anyone? Or will someone miss you? What about your family little lady?”

[Sandkitten]

It's a sad subject, but she can't help but smile. How does he do that? He's such a... a gentleman. He really did want to listen to what she had to say. "As far as friends... no, I'm sure nobody will be missing me. My landlady, maybe. But I was already late on rent - it probably wouldn't be the first time someone skipped out. Probably won't be the last." She sighs. "I feel bad for doing that. I guess I'm not a very good scofflaw." She mulls on that momentarily, then shrugs. "My parents..." She trails off, glancing around the room again. He'd said he didn't want to talk out in the open - surely someplace like this was safe, though. She cleared her throat. "My parents had to go back to work, when they passed the unemployment acts, to keep their house, and for safety. My mom... she wanted to retire. In Canada. Um." Her voice cracks a little, and she clears her throat again. "So they... they took her, and... locked her up. I haven't heard from my dad since before I graduated University." She chews on the pillow for a moment, before thinking that maybe it wasn't the most hygienic thing. "So, um. No, nobody's going to be looking for me."

[SharpestLife19]

“I'm sorry to hear that, Adie. I see that you understand loss as well. I wouldn't have guessed it from such a sweet girl.” He smiles, but his eyes still look sad. “I think we've spoken enough of the past for tonight. Let's try and rest.” He rolls onto his side on the godawful chair cushion to try and get to sleep again. “Goodnight, Adie. Sweet dreams for a sweet girl.” He hopes she won't have any further nightmares, but he's here if she needs him. He stretches and yawns, snuggling up to the ugly cushion to get comfortable.

[Sandkitten]

"Thank you." She feels that her repeated 'thank you's and 'sorry's aren't quite cutting it, and that something else is needed. "Uh, nice dreams, for a... nice man." She makes a face at herself for that one. "Sorry, that was... not as good as yours. When you say things they sound nice." She turns red. This is just getting worse. "I don't understand how one of the last decent men in the world ended up in a hole in the ground. Doesn't seem right." She rolls over to face the wall, but with the light, that's not a very pleasant sight. Turning back over, she cuddles the pillow, pulling the covers up again.

She squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself to sleep again, and have more pleasant dreams. Sweet dreams, for a sweet girl. As she deserved. According to someone.

Her dreams weren't all sweet; the shadows returned, but she only whined in her sleep - there was no screaming this time. Sometime during the night, she managed to scoot herself over to the side of the mattress, and reach out to make contact with the guardian beside the bed. Her hand rested there for the remainder of the night, and her whining ceased.

[SharpestLife19]

Her lame though well-meant sentiment actually draws a chuckle from Liam. He doesn't get to sleep at first, he's still too worried about the girl. Strangely, he feels better in here with her as well. As if his presence in the room could somehow soothe her troubled mind. Well, maybe it will a bit. It seems to have had some effect. He hears her slow breaths of sleep and finally allows himself to rest as well. During the night, he feels a hand reach out and touch him, drawing him from his dreams. His eyes open ever so slightly to find the girl holding his arm. He smiles and drifts back to sleep. She'll be ok.

[Sandkitten]

In the morning - as dictated only by the alarm clock, since there were no windows in the underground bunker - Adelaide stirred from restless dreams, the beeping soaked up first by her subconscious, finally drawing her out of her dark dreamworld. The lantern had gone out again, so when her eyes opened, all see saw was the slowly flashing light of the beeping clock, and she stared at it for a few moments while taking stock of herself. Finally moving about, she realized that her hand was still resting on Liam's arm, and she took it back as gingerly as she could picking up the alarm clock and trying to silence it. After fumbling with it for another few moments, she managed to hit something that quieted the noise and ended the blinking of the lights. So much for being quiet and letting the man sleep. She glanced over in the dark to where he would be, if there were any light to see him by, and pulled the blanket up about her shoulders again. Her stomach growled unhappily, and she put her hand over the thing to silence it - it didn't work. She'd been eating one meal a day for the past month - it was all she could afford. Her body had adjusted remarkably well, insofar as retaining its energy, but it did complain at her now and again.

[SharpestLife19]

The alarm clock gives Liam a start and he snorts awake, sitting up quickly. The night before seems like a bad dream now, but Adie is still here, so he reasons it must have been real. He stretches, back cracking as he does and leaps to his feet to go to the bathroom. On his way, he hears Adie's stomach and chuckles again. “Hungry, huh?” He slips into the bathroom but keeps talking to her, “You are a tiny girl, you probably haven't really been eating, have you?” The toilet flushes and after a cursory washing of hands, he reappears. “Don't worry, I'll take care of that. If you want a shower, you can do that...I'm going to make some breakfast. Are you allergic to anything? I wouldn't want to kill you trying to be nice to you...”

[Sandkitten]

Her eyes darted about in the darkness as she was addressed, trying to pinpoint where Liam was. He clearly knew his way around here, even in the pitch black. When she hears him in the restroom, she averts her eyes, even though there's no possible way for her to see him. She knew her stomach was loud, but it was a little embarassing to have him remark on it. At the thought of a shower, however, she perked up again. Could there really be a shower down here? She'd grown so used to the public-access flush-showers that she couldn't even imagine a real shower in a place like this. But it was old - perhaps this had been where maintenance workers had started and ended their shifts, looking after those monster transport trains.

Sitting up, eyes darting about again to try and locate the man by the sound of his voice, she reached over to where she remembered the lantern being last night. "I've been tested - I don't have any allergies, other than low-to-normal reactions to most exposures." She couldn't find the lantern with her hand groping around, so she sat up again, wrapping her arms around her knees. "Would you give me a light before you go? I'll just be a few minutes, I'll figure out the shower on my own."

[SharpestLife19]

A laugh breaks through the darkness and then the 'fffft' of a match being lit again. “Shit, I'm sorry...I was gonna leave you in the dark.” Liam bends down to light the lantern on the crate. He can't think of the last time he's smiled this much. It's a very nice thing. He could get used to having company here. “There you are, my lady. Allow me to fetch you a towel.” He disappears into the bathroom again,, this time making the sound of a cupboard opening and shutting. He returns bearing a towel. “You can take the lantern into the bathroom if you want, sit it right in the sink, ok?” He smiles and heads for the door they came in from. “I'll go fix some breakfast. I'll be through the door right across from here, got it? So you know where to go when you're all cleaned up.” He moves out through the door and goes to his kitchen area to rustle up some food for Adie.

[Sandkitten]

Her pupils are dialated to the max in the pitch blackness, so when the match strikes, she has to cover her eyes for a moment to give them time to adjust to the seemingly blinding light. After a few seconds she's fine, and the light seems just warm enough for comfort. "Thank you..." She manages to get out from under the covers, dress pulling every which way, but leggings keeping her modesty intact. When he returns with a towel, she takes it and nods at his instructions. "Okay. Thank you." She straightens out the sheets and blankets on the bed, giving herself a flat space upon which to dump the contents of her hastily-packed bag, sorting things out. She folds all of the clothes, stacking them neatly in a single pile and carrying them into the bathroom. She's kept a fresh outfit aside to change into, though it looks very similar to what she's wearing now - most of her clothes do.

Setting the lantern down on the sink as instructed, she stashes her clothes in a cupboard, thinking that the best place for them. Before disrobing, she inspects the shower, quietly thrilled to find that it is indeed a REAL shower - water from a spray head, not steam from the floor. She fiddles with the water, happy to have running water at all, and even more tickled to find that it doesn't run too cold. Stripping down, she quickly washes herself and then soaks her hair, enjoying the luxury of being able to wash it while standing upright, rather than leaning over a sink with the faucet head digging into her skull. She couldn't afford to have someone else wash it and style it all the time, so her hairstyle was always something simple - simple, but clean.

Finishing up her minutes-long vacation in a water wonderland, she turned off the water and dried off quickly, redressing, and then working to dry and tame her hair. There was no point in trying to style it when it was this wet, so she toweled it off as best she could, brushed it, and toweled it again, then simply let it hang down around her shoulders. She usually washed it in the evenings, allowing it to dry overnight, but she didn't foresee that they would be going anywhere first thing this morning, so it would probably have time to dry on its own. It wasn't as though it was unpresentable, which she hesitated to admit that she did take into consideration. She may be holed up in the ground, but she was here with someone else - someone who had saved her, and who genuinely seemed interested in finding out who it was he'd saved.

Ferrying the few leftover nicities from her previous life into the bathroom - a small enhancement pouch, hygene bag, and a small pump lotion - she finds places for everything, then tries her best to mask the dark circles under her eyes from last night with a few dabs of enhancement. That's as presentable as she's going to get, so she picks up the lantern again and makes her way over to the door, opening it and peeking into the hallway. Stepping out and closing the door behind her, she moves quickly to the door across the way, where he said he would be, and opens it. "Hello?"

[SharpestLife19]

The opening door uncorks the aroma of cooking food in what Liam thinks of as his kitchen. There is no way he could get a stove down here, but he does have a hot plate which has functioned quite well for him. He also has a coffeepot bubbling and brewing up on a counter by the hotplate. Liam has a lantern hanging from the ceiling in here as he works. He smiles brightly at the girl as she enters the room. Aside from the counter with the sink and other appliances, there are some cupboards and a card table with a set of mismatched chairs pulled up to it. “Good morning, my lady. Please, make yourself at home.” He gestures toward the seats. “Do you like coffee or should I open a can of milk?”

There's a faint sound off in the background, a strange kind of sound, like something pawing at the front door. Liam instructs Adie to watch the hot plate a moment as he scurries out the door. In a moment, he returns with a cat walking behind him. “Adie, this is my friend Riggs. He takes care of the rats.” The tabby cat regards the newcomer with wide eyes before meowing and rubbing against her leg. Liam smiles. “He likes you. I hope you don't mind him. He lived down here before I did, so it'd be rude of me to throw him out.” He crouches down to pet the cat who lets out another meow.

Liam returns his attention to the hot plate, thinking breakfast is probably done. He gets three plates out from the cupboard and puts some food on two of them, then a little bit on the other plate, which goes on the floor for Riggs. Liam takes the remaining two plates over to the table, giving one to Adie. “Let me get you a fork....” He opens a drawer and rustles around for a couple of them. “It's not the best breakfast...I'm not a very good cook, I'm afraid.” He looks apologetic, but eats it anyway.

[Sandkitten]

Adelaide sets her lantern down by the sink, since she's not sure if it would warp the little table - she wouldn't call this a lot of light, but it's certainly enough. Taking a seat, she watches him work on whatever he's got cooking. It smells great - most of what she'd had to eat lately, she's eaten cold. She'd had a hotplate at some point, but it had died, and she couldn't afford another one. "I'll take coffee, that's fine." There's not a lot she's been able to afford to be picky with since she left University. Before that, even. Coffee was never her favorite thing to drink, but neither was the stale water that was readily availible from the taps - at least the coffee masked the metalic flavor a bit.

Her eyes widen at the sound, but she dutifully nods and watches the hotplate for a few moments until he returns... with a freind. A bright smile of her own lights up her features, and she waits with giddy anticipation until the cat marks her with an approving rub before reaching down and petting the cat. "Hello, Riggs. Wow, he's fatter than I thought he was. No shortage of rats, I guess." She rubs the cats ears, and smiles as he purrs for her, bumping his head against her leg to try and get more attention. When Liam puts a plate on the floor, the cat scurries away from her hand to lap up the offerings. "Or maybe something better than rats."

When her plate lands in front of her, she rustles in her chair to try and get comfortable, thanking him for the fork, and the food. She tries not to wolf it down, but it's hard - this is so much better than anything she's had in a while, even if he doesn't think it's great. "It's great. I'm a little sad, actually - I didn't think living in a hole as a scofflaw would be more comfortable than living up there as a law-abiding citizen." She scrapes her food together into a pile in the middle of the plate with her fork, sighing. "This is going to be easier to get used to than I thought. Warm food, a real matress... company." She glances up at Liam, and then quickly over to Riggs, who is lapping up every last bit of flavor on that plate. "No one's been this nice to me in... a long time. ...thank you."

She finishes up her food, licking her fork clean almost as fervently as the cat had cleaned his plate, and sips her coffee. "...I guess my job-hunt is over, then. That's all I've been doing, for months. I don't know what I'll do with myself now." She looks back at Liam over the edge of her cup. "What do you do? I mean, to stay busy? Are you usually patrolling the streets for ne're-do-goods?" She smiles, the thought momentarily amusing. He could be an outlaw-hero, going around and saving people like her from becoming victims of an ugly and twisted system. Doubtful - that must have been sheer hapenstance... but she's greatful for it nonetheless.

[SharpestLife19]

Liam is pleased to see that Adie likes the cat. She looks prettier when she smiles. He warrants neither of them have had much to smile about until now, so it's good for them both. He watches Riggs scarf down his food with a smile. He's a good cat and he's been good company. It's quite an improvement having someone that can respond when he talks to them. Adie seems to be enjoying the place, which is good for her. Apparently being law-abiding didn't go too well for her. It never went very well for Liam either.

Job hunting no doubt had taken up all her time. He wonders if she has been able to do anything enjoyable since she graduated. He is still working on his breakfast, he wasn't quite as hungry as Adie was, so he finishes chewing before answering her question. He chuckles at the way she put it. “No, no....that wasn't what I normally do. I spend most of my time here, working on a radio show, getting exercise, hanging out with Riggs...I just started going back surface-side. I was an outlaw before I helped you. I've been hiding.” He hopes the news doesn't upset her too much, but she seems like she's adjusting alright to being an outlaw herself, so maybe it wouldn't bother her that he was already on the law's bad side. “I hope it doesn't bother you..”

[Sandkitten]

Adelaide listens quietly, wiggling her fingers down at the side of her chair, and scratching Riggs between the ears again when he comes over to investigate. The smile slowly disappears, replaced by what he would come to recognize as her thinking expression - lips pursed ever so slightly, eyes sharp on the horizon as if studying the stillframe of a memory in excruciating detail, pinkie raised in the air as if to point at something, or perhaps floating away towards whatever she's thinking about. Only this time, she's focused on him. It didn't really surprise her to hear him confirm her suspicions about his status - a law abiding citizen, even one fed up with the government, didn't just decide to camp out in a hole underground for the long-term. Even lawful citizens were just trying to survive, and they had to take what the government would give them - hygene credits and food stamps; a disgruntled citizen wouldn't give up those small blessings just to make a point. Making points got attention from the right people, but most often the bad kind.

She mulls over the implications. She'd been a victim - nearly - but the law was on her attacker's side. It was so backwards. Everything was. Here she was, sitting across the table from a bonefide fugitive of the law... who had saved her, when the law had failed to protect her. She knew she had no rights - not even to her own body, according to the government - but didn't anyone FEEL somehow that it was wrong? Morality was a thing in flux from day to day, but the laws only seemed to make things worse, by providing more benefits and freedoms to those it was already helping, and making things worse for everyone who was already on hard times. Her brow knit slightly, and she took her other hand back, despite Riggs' complaint, holding the cup of now tepid coffee with both hands. Her eyes drifted off to the side. "Whatever you did, it must have been a pretty good thing, to necessitate you living down here." It was a bitter sentiment, the unspoken words just as clear: if he'd done something truely bad, they wouldn't be after him at all.

Living here would make her a fugitive too, just for associating with the man. She hadn't done anything so bad yet that it would cost her more than a fine, and all of her dignity, to set the record straight with just a black mark in her file. The crease between her brows deepened as she considered her options. It only takes moments. She'd rather live here, safe for the time being, fed and perhaps even cared for, than to give up her humanity and become the government's disgusting little puppet, the price of admission for poor benefits and no safety at all. She sips her coffee again, and looks back at Liam. "What can I do to help with your show?"

[SharpestLife19]

She really is adjusting quite well. She doesn't seem bothered or even surprised by what he told her. Of course it could hardly come as a surprise to her. No normal person would have any reason to live down here among the ruins of a dead civilization. For all the rumors he's heard about the old ways, and all the stupidity and everything that was supposedly wrong at the time, it seems like they haven't progressed. Likely even taken a step backward if it was really looked at carefully.

He watches Adie as she studies him, seemingly thinking over her situation and deciding what she makes of it. When she asks how she can help, he wants to hug her. He wasn't expecting such a warm reception at all. He ends up making a face of surprised happiness as he takes the plates and forks over to wash. He's still using his cup, so he leaves that for now. “You really want to help?” He looks thrilled at the idea of having someone to work with. “I'll show you the studio in a moment and we'll talk about it.”

[Sandkitten]

Adelaide nods, sipping her coffee and letting him take away the dishes. Ridiculously charming smiles and enthusiasm aside, he's so... domestic. Having sisters probably helped with that, she thinks. She finds herself wondering briefly what possible downfalls this man could have. Unemployed, fugitive - those seemed more like symptoms of an ill environment than problems with the man himself. He cooks, he cleans up after himself, he keeps his living space organized and free of debris... he's kind, and well spoken, well mannered - she smiled to herself. He was possibly the sweetest fugitive of the law that had ever been.

It was a ridiculous thought. Everything he did, he did out of necessity. They were going to be spending a lot of time together, in close quarters - it wouldn't do to have her head clouded up by some version of hero-worship or undue adoration. Just because he treated her better than anyone she'd ever met, and spoke to her with respect and kindness, and... well. It was more ridiculous the more she thought about it. But the alternative was to think about the life she'd left behind, and to let herself be wrapped up in bitterness. Given that, she could probably allow herself some leniency on these warmer - if more useless - thoughts.

Her coffee is cold, so she leaves it on the table when she stands, pushing her damp hair back behind her shoulders. If she was going to put herself in the position to be judged a criminal if someone found them out, she'd just as soon have some sort of legitimate criminal activity under her belt, aside from just associating with her rescuer. Any kind of broadcast without a government permit to be on the radio waves was an infraction of the law - and depending what you were airing, it ranged from criminal mischief all the way to treason. But it didn't take much to get to treason, she thought bitterly. All you had to do was talk about how nice it would be to retire in Ontario.

[SharpestLife19]

After washing up, Liam picks up his now cold coffee but takes a sip of it anyway. It doesn't seem to bother him that it's not hot. He picks up the lantern Adie brought in and motions for her to follow. “Come along. I'll show you the studio.” He opens the door to the kitchen and Riggs trots along behind him, meowing as he goes, as if to say 'thanks for getting that door, person.' Liam smiles at the cat and turns to the right, the door that was straight ahead of them last night when they entered the plywood hallway.

He opens the door and goes in first only because he has the light source. This lantern hangs from the ceiling as well. This time he lights the other lantern in the room, so there is more light than usual. He's got the walls done up with some kind of soundproofing that looks like weird cushions up on the wall. There are a lot of cords and electronic devices and a microphone sitting on a very old looking desk. Liam suddenly remembers there is only one chair in the room and leaves to go steal one from the kitchen. Adie's rather lucky that he has a second chair at all, considering he's always alone. He carries the chair into the studio and sits it down at the desk as well. “Tell me what you know about radio, Adie.”

[Sandkitten]

Following the cat, careful not to tread on it or walk too closely, Adelaide moves at the tail of the procession into Liam's radio studio. It looks like something mechanical exploded, leaving its entrails strewn across the floor and armor laid up against one wall. "Not very much, I suppose. I know it's old technology - something about using super-low frequencies to carry soundwaves, and electromagnetic recieving. There are two kinds of waves - AM and FM - and they're recieved differently. I know the place of origination can be tracked, but it can also be scattered to make it harder to track. It's another method of mass communication, besides television or celular." She sits at the desk and looks at the dials and buttons all over the place. "I studied social science, so I'm not very familiar with how things work," she smiles. "Just why they do." She scoots her chair over, careful to avoid hitting the wires and cords running all about the floor, and makes room for him at the desk.

[SharpestLife19]

He sits down in the chair beside her. “Right, that sounds like basic knowledge. About what I would expect.” He looks like he's thinking something over. “You know, I don't really know what social science is. Would you fill me in?” As he speaks to her, he begins checking wires and lights on his equipment, which mean something to him but nothing to Adie. Riggs weaves between their legs, requesting attention, which makes Liam smile. The cat usually has that effect. “So, what do you do?”

[Sandkitten]

She settles back in her chair, letting him work on his wires and such. She can tell he's still listening, the movements second nature - he probably adjusts and checks these things every day. "What do I do?" She smiles, sighing. "I think you mean, what would I have done. Who knows? After the first two months I realized it was hopeless to stick inside the normal avenues that my degree would have worked for me in - I would have taken a job as a food delivery person." She gestures with her hands, pushing that thought aside. "Anyway, social science. It's the field of study concerned with society and human behaviors - looking at what people do, and why they do it - what drives them. Understanding the past, that would be anthropology and archaeology. The present: psychology, sociology. The future... political science... and education. Social science is an umbrella term that encompasses all those things. My degree was general - I didn't want to limit myself." That last sentence comes out with a smirk. "So much for what that did. Now I have a piece of paper that says I'm good for calming down a crowd... or riling one up. Or at the very least, telling you why they're all acting a certain way. That's all it's good for, now. I guess my official title would be "people person"." She snaps her fingers to get Riggs' attention, pulling him up onto her lap when he comes over to investigate, and holding him hostage for pettings.

[SharpestLife19]

Liam's attention is on Adie when he isn't fiddling with his electronics. He's very interested in what she's saying, since he had no idea what social science meant. As she explains, a smile grows across his face. This could be very useful. Very useful indeed. “Adie, you want to help. Now, I have the technical end of this completely under control. It's what I learned to do and what I do now. But you know all kinds of things that I don't. Adie, I'm trying to reach people. I'm trying to rile people. But I don't know if I am reaching anyone or if anyone is listening to me at all. You can help me say the right things, can't you?” During the last part of speaking, he stops playing with his electronics and leans his elbows on his legs, looking directly in Adie's eyes.

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