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Lucina sighed quietly as she realized that she was folding wrong. Lucina picked up a shirt and mirrored Shinorah's movements to fold it. The shirt wasn't perfect but it was far better then any of the past shirts she'd done.
She was starting to feel completely useless, something which always left a rotten feeling in her stomach. She may not have done chores at home but at least she had purpose there. She could only tell what the weather would bring here, she couldn't prevent it or change, and it wasn't a particularly good purpose either. |
Shinorah smiled as she patted Lucina's knee gently, "There ye go. Yer doin' much better. Here, I'll show ye how t' fold one of each item, tha' way ye can do yer best 'n' Lori won' see yer mishaps. 'n' don' worry, we all 'ave been in yer shoes when learnin' t' do laundry," she said with a wink as she began demonstrating the clothing.
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Lucina smiled shyly at the woman's kindness. No one had ever been kind to her, only angry or scared or jealous. Lucina pondered why the woman would be so genuinely kind to her as she watched the hands folding the clothes.
Copying Shinorah's movements, Lucina folded a pair of pants and a few more shirts just as Shinorah had instructed, feeling glad that Lori hadn't seen her mistakes. There was something the Irish human that drove Lucina crazy. The human knew just how to make Lucina turn back into the Lucina she was as a Goddess, angry and cruel. |
Leaning against the door frame, still rather wet, Adrian smiled at the women in the living room, "Workin' hard?"
"More so than you, dear," teased Shinorah, "Lucina was jus' helpin' me with th' laundry. Why don't ye make yerself useful 'n' clean out th' ashes from th' fireplace 'n' then start a fire?" "Sure thing mum," said Adrian with a laugh and got a sheet from beside the woodpile. Placing the sheet beside the fireplace, Adrian went about removing the ashes with a shovel and placing them into the sheet. |
Lucina watched Adrian for a few moments before bringing her attention back to the clothes. He is such a strange boy... She pondered. He could easily have left her in the middle of the dirt road to sink into her misery but some reason he'd brought her home.
Shaking her head, Lucina continued to fold the clothes with the help of Shinorah as she decided that perhaps the boy was the kind of person the Gods wanted her to be like. As if that was ever going to happen. Lucina knew very well that she would never be selfless, it would be impossible for her. |
Lori sighed as she brought in a class of milk with some cream in it and shoved it towards Lucina, "Here."
"Lori, manners," said Adrian simply as he continued to take the ashes out. Mumbling an apology, Lori left to go sweep the kitchen/dining room floor. "Don' worry Miss Lucina, Lori'll get used t' ye soon enough," said Adrian softly over his shoulder. |
Lucina smiled as sweetly as possible with her violent temper raising just below the surface. Taking a sip of the milk, Lucina had to fight back a gasp at how good it tasted. "Its so sweet." Lucina smiled as she took another sip.
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Shinorah smiled, "Tha's because o' th' cream. We take most o' it out, but we leave just enough in it t' give it tha' sweet taste."
Adrian paused in his work to wipe his brow and smile over at Lucina, "I told ye ye'd like it." Tying up the cloth, Adrian went about putting logs into the fireplace along with kindling. Starting the fire in multiple places, Adrian sat back and waited to make sure it got blazing before he took the ashes outside to dump then into the ash pit and cover them with dirt to keep from blowing around. |
"I love it." Lucina smiled as she took a few more sips of her milk. This family was so kind to her. Or rather Shinorah and Adrian were so kind to her. Lucina saw the milk ripple in the glass as another rumble of thunder shook the small house. She took small satisfaction in the storm as he imagined the look on Lori's face as they storm raged on.
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Shinorah jumped lightly at the thunder and muttered to herself as she picked up the towel she dropped and began folding it once more, "My nerves 'ave 'ad about enough o' that there thunder. Are th' crops alright Adrian?" she called as she heard the door open and shut.
"Aye, I covered 'em with tarp 'bout an hour after th' storm hit. They should be fine 'n' not flooded," he called as he took off his shoes and shirt. "Mum, bring me a towel 'n' a set o' clothes, will ye?" Shinorah sighed, "Lucina, I'm buried in all these clothes 'n' can't get out without disturbin' them, can ye take this small pile t' Adrian fer me?" she asked as she held out a towel and a set of clothing for Adrian to change into. |
"Sure." Lucina said happily as she set her glass of milk on an end table and took the clothes and towel from Shinorah.
"You're soaking wet." Lucina smiled at Adrian as she picked up the towel and lifted it to Adrian's neck, patting the base of his neck lightly with the towel. "The storm will subside soon." She smiled sweetly as she brought towel up his neck gently. "I kind of like storms though." She pondered almost dreamily. "They're kind of romantic if you think about it. Being secluded inside and all." She sighed before handing him the towel before making her way back to the living room. |
A blush crept into Adrian's cheeks as he watched Lucina go. 'What a strange woman..' he pondered to himself as he dried his torso, hair, and arms before putting on the shirt. Taking off his pants and socks and leaving them with his shirt by the door, Adrian wrapped the towel around his waist and headed upstairs to fully change.
Lori, who had witnessed Lucina's actions but had left before Adrian started changing, scrubbed the floor with more ferocity as she cursed Lucina with all the Irish curses she knew, even if they didn't make sense. |
Lucina smiled as she returned to the living room where Shinorah sat. "What do you want done with these clothes?" She asked, surprising herself as she offered to help which was something she'd never done before.
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Shinorah smiled as she pointed to the respective piles, "If ye like, ye can take these t' Adrian's room after taken these t' th' linen closet. I'll take care o' Lori's clothes 'n' my clothes. I have t' run int' town this afternoon, would ye like t' come with me 'n' Lori?"
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"No thank you." Lucina said, fighting to keep er nose from wrinkling at the mention of Lori. "I rather like it here." She admitted softly as she took the clothes in her arms.
Placing the linens in the closet as Shinorah had told her, Lucina made her way to Adrian's room with her stomach full of butterflies. It was as if she was magnetically attracted to him. Of course he wasn't nearly as beautiful as the Gods she'd dated before but there was something about him that attracted her to him. Maybe it was because he was so real. He'd worked for hours on the farm for his chiseled body, it hadn't been given to him at birth. Knocking on his door, Lucina stood with the clothes in one arm, as she didn't want to walk in while he wasn't dressed. |
"Come on in," called Adrian, figuring it was Lori or his mother with his clothes. Looking up from his book as he looked towards the door, dressed in a simple button up shirt and a pair of pants, socks covering his feet as he laid in the bed, Adrian awaited whoever it was at the door. If it was his mother, he was going to talk to her about Lori, if it was Lori, however, he was going to talk to her personally about how she treated Lucina.
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Lucina opened the door shyly as she carried in Adrian's clothes. "Where do you want your clothes?" Lucina asked as she ran her eyes over Adrian's resting form quickly before a small blush hit her cheeks. Looking back into Adrian's eyes as she shifted his clothes to her other arm.
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"On th' chest a' th' end o me bed is fine, Miss Lucina. Thank ye fer bringin' them up, I'll put them away though," said Adrian with a smile before picking his book back up, finding his place, and beginning to read once more. After the barn incident, Adrian was somewhat afraid to speak to Lucina for fear of angering her.
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Lucina smiled shyly as she placed the clothing on top of the trunk and backed away carefully, put off at how distant Adrian seemed. Lucina took one last look at him, "You can just call me Lu." She said shyly. "Its what my friends used to call me." Back when I had friends... She added to herself before slipping out the door and into the hallway.
It was really they're fault though... She decided as she fought away the lonely feeling seeping into her. They'd chosen not to be friends with her...Their poor taste didn't concern her... |
"Hey Lu, can ye come 'ere fer a second? I wanted t' ask ye sumthin,'" called Adrian, hoping she hadn't gone too far. Seeing the look on her face as she exited was enough for him to realize that maybe she didn't hate him like he had previously believed. Maybe she was just embarrassed for messing up in the barn and that was why she seemed so cold then. Maybe it was alright to talk to her.
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Lucina smiled larger then she should've when she heard Adrian's voice through the door. Over two hundred years old and I'm acting like a fifty year old... Lucina sighed as she held back her smile before re-entering Adrian's room. "Yes?" She asked just as a strike of lightning lit up the small room though Lucina was more focused on the way that the lightning had lit up Adrian's features. Shaking her head lightly, Lucina focused her attention on whatever Adrian wanted to ask her as she rested against the door.
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"I was jus' wonderin', d' ye like t' read? Bein' so far away from home withou' any o' yer belongin's, I thought ye might be a bit bored 'round th' house. I wanted ye t' know yer welcome t' come in 'n' take books from me shelves if ye like. I don' 'ave much, but there're some pretty decent ones on there," said Adrian as he motioned to the small rickety bookcase beneath his window, a slight blush on his cheeks from the way she was looking at him.
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Lucina smiled shyly as she made her way over to Adrian's bookshelf. "The books are different here." She pondered as he fingers traveled over the spines of the books. "What are the good ones?" She asked Adrian, not bothering to turn to look at him as she inspected the titles.
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"I jus' got a new one in, Rosaline Woodbridge," said Adrian with a smile as he held up the novel, "It's not too bad so far. I reccomend Jane Eyre 'n' anythin' by Jane Austen, they're good as well. Call me daft fer likin' th' 'female novels' as they're called, but' they're rather interestin' t' read. "
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Lucina smiled as she pulled a Jane Austen book from the shelf and turned it over in her hands. "How old are you?" Lucina asked as she read a small description of a the book she held, not raising her head as she asked the question.
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