Technically, "cold" does not exist. What we call "cold" is really just "not hot." Heat is energy, measurable, but there's no such thing as a unit of cold. An object colder than its surroundings is that way because the warmth around it has yet to affect it, and if something's getting colder it's just losing heat somewhere. You can't "add cold" to something.
This made Joni a bit of an enigma for a while, but it was finally discovered that she wasn't the source of some mysterious cold molecule after all. What she was was well insulated. Heat didn't penetrate her body easily, and it didn't increase her blood temperature efficiently either. Even her own regulatory system, which would keep other warm-blooded creatures at a healthy temperature, didn't seem to have much of an effect. Any of those alone wouldn't have been a big deal, but all together... Well, picture a thermos full of water. Freeze the contents solid. Now, try to melt it again by applying heat to the outside.
That describes the slow but steady freezing of Jonina Jacobs for the first twelve years of her life, expending her energy through normal activity without any known way to replace it afterward. As it turned out, there was a solution but she had no conscious awareness of it until she was nearly thirteen, and no real control until she started attending Saint Joseph's. By then, it had started triggering instinctively: her ability to force heat into herself and bypass the insulation, extracting it from warmer places -- when she wasn't focusing it, largely from her immediate surroundings. No less than three times had she frozen the water vapor in the air around her into solid ice overnight before anyone had a clue what was going on.
Now, she finds herself in a shaky equilibrium, able to keep from freezing over completely but unable to overcome the deficit and return to safer temperatures. GIFT believes that she can reach 98.6 again eventually, but it's a constant two-steps-forward, one-step-back, and she has years of missing warmth to make up for.
The Absence of Warmth
Moderator: Student Council
The Absence of Warmth
Last edited by Cryogene on Sun Jan 04, 2009 5:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
Saturday the 3rd
"Joni, es you okay?"
Joni stretched the stiff feeling out of her limbs and reoriented herself. The hospital, probably Peregrine Island's. She found her comm. "Yeah, Diego, I'm fine, my badge triggered." She kept herself from apologizing for "leaving" the rest of the team. "Is everyone else alright?"
"Mal, Jessiy, and Alex es all fine. I es... I am needing a moment but Alex's bubbles help, no hospital needed."
Joni tried not to giggle at Diego's self-corrections. "Okay, I'll rejoin you in a minute."
Alex's voice butted into the channel. "We're just about done actually, so take your time and we'll regroup in the courtyard. We want you to make it to eighteen, okay?"
She heard the others laugh, and Jessiy added something about keeping the presents. She kept her mood up. They're just laughing because they're relieved you're okay. They're not mocking you. Stop being silly over nothing.
As she was making her way to the exit, she was nearly run over by a mass of doctors and a gurney. Someone without a medcom badge must have been injured somewhere...
A second gurney followed just as quickly. This one she got a good look at.
"Joni? Joni? It's been ten minutes, where are you? Joni?"
She was crumpled against the wall, unable to do anything but hug her knees and stare wide-eyed at the spot where the gurney had passed her. Where...
* * *
"Okay, what the hell happened in there?"
"One of the science teams decided to resist."
"Resist the Devoured? Every research company in the city knows you don't resist, you--"
"Wait for someone like us to show up and save them. I know that, you know that, but this team was brought in from LA or somewhere like that just this month and no one told them. Winnie was in base security, hacking the cameras for where the hostages were. She got to see one of the cornered scientists, Lonan I think, grab a chair and try to bash a Boulder over the head."
"Oh God."
"Winnie used different wording, but yeah. I'm pretty sure the Boulders had orders to keep everyone alive but they don't have the brainpower to know what appropriate force is. And then the rest of the scientists all panic and try to run..."
"Oh God."
"We got in as fast as possible and gave Mark cover while he ported them out. Tell me someone made it."
"Good news or bad news first?"
"Fine. Bad."
"We lost Doctor Lonan. Too much internal bleeding. Good news is he's the only loss, so far anyway. His assistant Doctor Ziryab is fine, as is Doctor Amsel, just some bruising and a couple cracked ribs between them. Doctor Amsel's assistant is still very touch and go right now."
"Which one is that?"
"The African American woman. Doctor Jacobs."
"Damn. Be a shame to lose her. She looked like the youngest one there, mid-40s tops. Has her whole life ahead of her."
"Damn shame indeed."
"Joni, es you okay?"
Joni stretched the stiff feeling out of her limbs and reoriented herself. The hospital, probably Peregrine Island's. She found her comm. "Yeah, Diego, I'm fine, my badge triggered." She kept herself from apologizing for "leaving" the rest of the team. "Is everyone else alright?"
"Mal, Jessiy, and Alex es all fine. I es... I am needing a moment but Alex's bubbles help, no hospital needed."
Joni tried not to giggle at Diego's self-corrections. "Okay, I'll rejoin you in a minute."
Alex's voice butted into the channel. "We're just about done actually, so take your time and we'll regroup in the courtyard. We want you to make it to eighteen, okay?"
She heard the others laugh, and Jessiy added something about keeping the presents. She kept her mood up. They're just laughing because they're relieved you're okay. They're not mocking you. Stop being silly over nothing.
As she was making her way to the exit, she was nearly run over by a mass of doctors and a gurney. Someone without a medcom badge must have been injured somewhere...
A second gurney followed just as quickly. This one she got a good look at.
"Joni? Joni? It's been ten minutes, where are you? Joni?"
She was crumpled against the wall, unable to do anything but hug her knees and stare wide-eyed at the spot where the gurney had passed her. Where...
* * *
"Okay, what the hell happened in there?"
"One of the science teams decided to resist."
"Resist the Devoured? Every research company in the city knows you don't resist, you--"
"Wait for someone like us to show up and save them. I know that, you know that, but this team was brought in from LA or somewhere like that just this month and no one told them. Winnie was in base security, hacking the cameras for where the hostages were. She got to see one of the cornered scientists, Lonan I think, grab a chair and try to bash a Boulder over the head."
"Oh God."
"Winnie used different wording, but yeah. I'm pretty sure the Boulders had orders to keep everyone alive but they don't have the brainpower to know what appropriate force is. And then the rest of the scientists all panic and try to run..."
"Oh God."
"We got in as fast as possible and gave Mark cover while he ported them out. Tell me someone made it."
"Good news or bad news first?"
"Fine. Bad."
"We lost Doctor Lonan. Too much internal bleeding. Good news is he's the only loss, so far anyway. His assistant Doctor Ziryab is fine, as is Doctor Amsel, just some bruising and a couple cracked ribs between them. Doctor Amsel's assistant is still very touch and go right now."
"Which one is that?"
"The African American woman. Doctor Jacobs."
"Damn. Be a shame to lose her. She looked like the youngest one there, mid-40s tops. Has her whole life ahead of her."
"Damn shame indeed."
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
"Is that really her?"
Joni nodded silently. She had barely said a word since the others arrived.
It hadn't been difficult for five costumed, card-carrying heroes to get access to the hospital room, teenaged or no, especially when one was a relative. Patient "Jacobs, Michelle" was out of her first surgery, and not so important that hospital security was worried about impostors. The five had been told she wasn't going to wake up that evening -- without voicing an opinion on when or if she would -- but the doctors allowed them in anyway.
Alex stared at the woman on the respirator. Black hair, black skin, normal ears. And lots of bandages and bruising. But take that away, invert the colors, and she really did bear a shocking resemblance to her daughter. "How's she doing?"
Joni didn't answer that one at all. After a long silence, Malcolm cleared his throat awkwardly. "I, uh, asked around. They say she's... stable, almost certain to recover." Malcolm was a lousy liar and it showed.
Diego's arm remained firmly wrapped around Joni. He hadn't said anything since they'd arrived either.
The awkward silence was broken by two other patients entering the room. One burst past the teens without even a glance. "Michelle... oh God, please, stay with us..."
His partner, an elderly woman with an IV bag, remained unemotional near the door. "She'll be fine. I don't care what the doctors said, she's a fighter. She'll pull through."
Only then did she bother to address the students, sticking out a hand to the nearest, Jessiy, who was too stunned to do anything but shake it. "Hello. Dr. Liesa Amsel. That's Dr. Ziryab, and the one resting is Dr. Jacobs. You must be the team that saved us. Excellent work; my thanks."
Someone might have been thinking about correcting her, but Diego spoke up first. "You say she es going to be fine?"
"Jacobs? Of course. The doctors here are too underconfident, and she's just too stubborn to die while there's still research to be done. Best assistant I've ever had. Hell, if you had any idea what she's already given up to get where--"
Joni tore herself away from Diego and ran out of the room crying. Both Alex and Diego followed instantly.
Dr. Amsel watched them go, confused. "I said she'd recover. Probably. Hell, even if she doesn't, it's not like you didn't do plenty to help. The pale girl shouldn't be blaming herself."
Jessiy sighed as she and Mal started for the door. "We know."
Joni nodded silently. She had barely said a word since the others arrived.
It hadn't been difficult for five costumed, card-carrying heroes to get access to the hospital room, teenaged or no, especially when one was a relative. Patient "Jacobs, Michelle" was out of her first surgery, and not so important that hospital security was worried about impostors. The five had been told she wasn't going to wake up that evening -- without voicing an opinion on when or if she would -- but the doctors allowed them in anyway.
Alex stared at the woman on the respirator. Black hair, black skin, normal ears. And lots of bandages and bruising. But take that away, invert the colors, and she really did bear a shocking resemblance to her daughter. "How's she doing?"
Joni didn't answer that one at all. After a long silence, Malcolm cleared his throat awkwardly. "I, uh, asked around. They say she's... stable, almost certain to recover." Malcolm was a lousy liar and it showed.
Diego's arm remained firmly wrapped around Joni. He hadn't said anything since they'd arrived either.
The awkward silence was broken by two other patients entering the room. One burst past the teens without even a glance. "Michelle... oh God, please, stay with us..."
His partner, an elderly woman with an IV bag, remained unemotional near the door. "She'll be fine. I don't care what the doctors said, she's a fighter. She'll pull through."
Only then did she bother to address the students, sticking out a hand to the nearest, Jessiy, who was too stunned to do anything but shake it. "Hello. Dr. Liesa Amsel. That's Dr. Ziryab, and the one resting is Dr. Jacobs. You must be the team that saved us. Excellent work; my thanks."
Someone might have been thinking about correcting her, but Diego spoke up first. "You say she es going to be fine?"
"Jacobs? Of course. The doctors here are too underconfident, and she's just too stubborn to die while there's still research to be done. Best assistant I've ever had. Hell, if you had any idea what she's already given up to get where--"
Joni tore herself away from Diego and ran out of the room crying. Both Alex and Diego followed instantly.
Dr. Amsel watched them go, confused. "I said she'd recover. Probably. Hell, even if she doesn't, it's not like you didn't do plenty to help. The pale girl shouldn't be blaming herself."
Jessiy sighed as she and Mal started for the door. "We know."
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
It'd been February, 2006. Hurricane Katrina was long gone, and hadn't gotten anywhere near Savannah anyway, but they'd still felt it that winter. Damages to pipelines throughout the South had sent natural gas prices through the roof.
With zero control over her ability while asleep, the 15-year-old Joni had spent her nights in a sauna room; it kept the heat high enough that she didn't freeze her surroundings solid by morning. Just finding a house that had one had been a monstrous effort, and the bill to keep it running all night, every night, was pricey at the best of times.
It also wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep, and that night Joni had wandered out into the hall for some less stuffy air. That's how she discovered Momma ranting at Daddy over the latest heating bill.
And then Momma had continued ranting about all the other myriad ways Joni had been holding her back: the constant care she needed, the regular medical bills, the need for home schooling because the public school had turned her away as a hazard. For 16 years Michelle Jacobs had been wanting to make something of herself, to finish her Ph.D instead of being a secretary for the rest of her life, and for 16 years that millstone had been dragging her...
Only then had Momma noticed the "millstone" was listening.
There had been a very long silence. And then Joni, unwilling to hear what would come next, had run out into the night.
She'd wondered whether they would come after her. Maybe, she'd feared, Daddy would have agreed with Momma if the conversation had gone a bit longer. Maybe they yelled about her all the time and this was just the first time she'd heard it. All her life, people had been leaving her one way or another -- scared, suspicious, weary, or just overly chilled -- but her parents had always promised never to do that. But maybe they wouldn't follow. Maybe it was for the best.
Daddy had come, and found her a block away with frost starting to form over her, and rushed her home to defrost her. Momma... was gone. And all those promises were suddenly meaningless.
The next time Joni had seen her had been two hours ago when the gurney passed her.
* * *
"Did I get that about right?"
Joni paused in her crying long enough to nod, glad Alex was there to explain. She'd only worked up the strength to tell that story twice before, and those times she hadn't been in the middle of trying to deal with it directly.
"...but she's here now, right? You can talk to her now. ...I mean, when she wakes up."
She didn't look up at Jessiy. "She won't want to see me."
All four of her companions tried to object at once, but Diego was fastest again. "She es your mother. Mothers... they... I would love another chance to speak to mi madre." He looked for a moment like he might start crying himself.
The sobs got bitter. "She... she left! She doesn't want me! Daddy didn't move or change phone numbers; all she had to do to talk to me was ask him where I was. She was even in Paragon! She could have asked and been knocking on my door the same day, but she didn't. She doesn't care where I am, she left, just like..."
It took a look around the waiting room to cut herself off before everyone else does. It wasn't everyone. It'd taken two years for her to re-discover that someone could love her and keep loving her. But now that voice in her head, silent for so long, was mocking her again. if even Momma grew tired of you enough to walk away, who could possibly do better?
Diego kissed one of her tears off her cheek. On the other side of her, Alex held her shoulder tightly. Mal silently carried a supportive if worried expression, Jessiy the same but more resolute.
Who could? Joni shut up the little voice. Maybe, just maybe, these four.
With zero control over her ability while asleep, the 15-year-old Joni had spent her nights in a sauna room; it kept the heat high enough that she didn't freeze her surroundings solid by morning. Just finding a house that had one had been a monstrous effort, and the bill to keep it running all night, every night, was pricey at the best of times.
It also wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep, and that night Joni had wandered out into the hall for some less stuffy air. That's how she discovered Momma ranting at Daddy over the latest heating bill.
And then Momma had continued ranting about all the other myriad ways Joni had been holding her back: the constant care she needed, the regular medical bills, the need for home schooling because the public school had turned her away as a hazard. For 16 years Michelle Jacobs had been wanting to make something of herself, to finish her Ph.D instead of being a secretary for the rest of her life, and for 16 years that millstone had been dragging her...
Only then had Momma noticed the "millstone" was listening.
There had been a very long silence. And then Joni, unwilling to hear what would come next, had run out into the night.
She'd wondered whether they would come after her. Maybe, she'd feared, Daddy would have agreed with Momma if the conversation had gone a bit longer. Maybe they yelled about her all the time and this was just the first time she'd heard it. All her life, people had been leaving her one way or another -- scared, suspicious, weary, or just overly chilled -- but her parents had always promised never to do that. But maybe they wouldn't follow. Maybe it was for the best.
Daddy had come, and found her a block away with frost starting to form over her, and rushed her home to defrost her. Momma... was gone. And all those promises were suddenly meaningless.
The next time Joni had seen her had been two hours ago when the gurney passed her.
* * *
"Did I get that about right?"
Joni paused in her crying long enough to nod, glad Alex was there to explain. She'd only worked up the strength to tell that story twice before, and those times she hadn't been in the middle of trying to deal with it directly.
"...but she's here now, right? You can talk to her now. ...I mean, when she wakes up."
She didn't look up at Jessiy. "She won't want to see me."
All four of her companions tried to object at once, but Diego was fastest again. "She es your mother. Mothers... they... I would love another chance to speak to mi madre." He looked for a moment like he might start crying himself.
The sobs got bitter. "She... she left! She doesn't want me! Daddy didn't move or change phone numbers; all she had to do to talk to me was ask him where I was. She was even in Paragon! She could have asked and been knocking on my door the same day, but she didn't. She doesn't care where I am, she left, just like..."
It took a look around the waiting room to cut herself off before everyone else does. It wasn't everyone. It'd taken two years for her to re-discover that someone could love her and keep loving her. But now that voice in her head, silent for so long, was mocking her again. if even Momma grew tired of you enough to walk away, who could possibly do better?
Diego kissed one of her tears off her cheek. On the other side of her, Alex held her shoulder tightly. Mal silently carried a supportive if worried expression, Jessiy the same but more resolute.
Who could? Joni shut up the little voice. Maybe, just maybe, these four.
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
Joni had gotten a change of clothes on campus, while the others had all argued with Ms. Sinclair that she would need company, but with no success. She was welcome to stay at the hospital as late as she wanted, since it was her mother there, but the others needed to obey curfew. That left just her and Malcolm, whose parents were more lenient than the school staff.
And now just her. She'd been standing outside the door of the hospital room for ten minutes, trying to work up the courage to open the door, when Malcolm had started feeling awkward after his third attempt to start conversation and mumbled something about being in the waiting area if she needed anything.
She leaned against the door helplessly. Why had she come back at all?
Her ear twitched. She finally reached for the handle and pushed.
"'...while making an excursion beyond the frontiers of Italy, they passed a week on the shores of the Lake of Como. Their benevolent disposition often made them enter the cottages...' Oh, hello." The man with the Middle Eastern name she couldn't pronounce put down his book and looked up.
The attention cornered Joni. "I'm, um, I'm sorry... I heard someone talking inside and thought... well, it doesn't matter, I'm sorry for bothering you..."
"No, no, it's fine. I was reading to her, that's all. The doctors say it helps to hear people talking. She hears it on some level." Joni's ears drooped and she thought about leaving, wondering if hearing her voice would make things even worse, but the man had already stood to offer a hand. "You're one of the heroes from earlier, aren't you? I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier; I was in a bit of a state, hard enough losing Dr. Lonan. Rude of me anyway. I'm Jamal Ziryab. Might I... is something wrong?"
She must have looked surprised. "I'm... I'm sorry.. your name is Jamal?"
"Yes... let me guess. You've never heard that name attached to someone with skin so light. Most Americans forget the name was borrowed from Arabic."
She began to worry she had insulted him. That must have shown too, because he smiled warmly. "It's alright. Actually, Michelle had a similar reaction when we first met. She had a little brother with the same name. Died in a car accident, sadly."
Four years ago, Joni added silently. She hadn't been able to go to Uncle Jamal's funeral; there was no way at the time that she could safely travel all the way to LA. Momma had gone alone to pay her respects to the last of her family, and had come back without the smile.
The other Jamal sighed. "The poor woman's been through so much tragedy, and now this. Dr. Amsel and I are about all she has left."
He was looking at the elder Jacobs as he talked and missed the younger one trembling. All she has left. Nothing about a husband or daughter that would gladly have her back if only she'd wanted them.
She finally dared to interrupt, if only with "I... I really should be going."
"What? Oh, I'm sorry, I guess I've rambled a little. I get like that when I'm worried. But you're right, it's late. Just past midnight, no less. I'm surprised the hospital hasn't... what now?"
Her ears were far too expressive sometimes. "You said past midnight?"
Jamal checked his watch again. "For two minutes now. Why?"
She checked her own to be sure. Hers said four past. She'd completely lost track of time. "...I, um... I just turned eighteen."
"Goodness. They send heroes out young. Well, happy birthday." He suddenly had an obvious flash of inspiration. "I'll see if the cafeteria has anything resembling cake."
"What? Oh, that's really not--"
"I insist. For the young lady who saved us, it's the least I could do. Just please watch her for ten minutes?"
Now she really wanted to protest, but Jamal was already out the door.
She stared after him. She could easily just walk out, get Mal, go back to the school.
Her attention fell on the bed again. "I... I don't understand it. I mean, I never understood it, I just thought I did. I... maybe... I don't know what I could have done better, Momma. I was a handful, I know, I was a hassle, but you promised, you promised you wouldn't leave, that you'd keep on loving me, and that's... that's what mommas are supposed to do... and I just need to know why, Momma. Why?"
In a perfect world, Michelle Jacobs would have woken up right then. Her eyes would have fallen on her daughter, and the first words out of her mouth would have been an apology for ever leaving her.
But things like that don't happen.
Jamal Ziryab returned to a still-unconscious patient. And no sign of the pale hero.
And now just her. She'd been standing outside the door of the hospital room for ten minutes, trying to work up the courage to open the door, when Malcolm had started feeling awkward after his third attempt to start conversation and mumbled something about being in the waiting area if she needed anything.
She leaned against the door helplessly. Why had she come back at all?
Her ear twitched. She finally reached for the handle and pushed.
"'...while making an excursion beyond the frontiers of Italy, they passed a week on the shores of the Lake of Como. Their benevolent disposition often made them enter the cottages...' Oh, hello." The man with the Middle Eastern name she couldn't pronounce put down his book and looked up.
The attention cornered Joni. "I'm, um, I'm sorry... I heard someone talking inside and thought... well, it doesn't matter, I'm sorry for bothering you..."
"No, no, it's fine. I was reading to her, that's all. The doctors say it helps to hear people talking. She hears it on some level." Joni's ears drooped and she thought about leaving, wondering if hearing her voice would make things even worse, but the man had already stood to offer a hand. "You're one of the heroes from earlier, aren't you? I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier; I was in a bit of a state, hard enough losing Dr. Lonan. Rude of me anyway. I'm Jamal Ziryab. Might I... is something wrong?"
She must have looked surprised. "I'm... I'm sorry.. your name is Jamal?"
"Yes... let me guess. You've never heard that name attached to someone with skin so light. Most Americans forget the name was borrowed from Arabic."
She began to worry she had insulted him. That must have shown too, because he smiled warmly. "It's alright. Actually, Michelle had a similar reaction when we first met. She had a little brother with the same name. Died in a car accident, sadly."
Four years ago, Joni added silently. She hadn't been able to go to Uncle Jamal's funeral; there was no way at the time that she could safely travel all the way to LA. Momma had gone alone to pay her respects to the last of her family, and had come back without the smile.
The other Jamal sighed. "The poor woman's been through so much tragedy, and now this. Dr. Amsel and I are about all she has left."
He was looking at the elder Jacobs as he talked and missed the younger one trembling. All she has left. Nothing about a husband or daughter that would gladly have her back if only she'd wanted them.
She finally dared to interrupt, if only with "I... I really should be going."
"What? Oh, I'm sorry, I guess I've rambled a little. I get like that when I'm worried. But you're right, it's late. Just past midnight, no less. I'm surprised the hospital hasn't... what now?"
Her ears were far too expressive sometimes. "You said past midnight?"
Jamal checked his watch again. "For two minutes now. Why?"
She checked her own to be sure. Hers said four past. She'd completely lost track of time. "...I, um... I just turned eighteen."
"Goodness. They send heroes out young. Well, happy birthday." He suddenly had an obvious flash of inspiration. "I'll see if the cafeteria has anything resembling cake."
"What? Oh, that's really not--"
"I insist. For the young lady who saved us, it's the least I could do. Just please watch her for ten minutes?"
Now she really wanted to protest, but Jamal was already out the door.
She stared after him. She could easily just walk out, get Mal, go back to the school.
Her attention fell on the bed again. "I... I don't understand it. I mean, I never understood it, I just thought I did. I... maybe... I don't know what I could have done better, Momma. I was a handful, I know, I was a hassle, but you promised, you promised you wouldn't leave, that you'd keep on loving me, and that's... that's what mommas are supposed to do... and I just need to know why, Momma. Why?"
In a perfect world, Michelle Jacobs would have woken up right then. Her eyes would have fallen on her daughter, and the first words out of her mouth would have been an apology for ever leaving her.
But things like that don't happen.
Jamal Ziryab returned to a still-unconscious patient. And no sign of the pale hero.
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
She thought she'd left the chapel unnoticed, but Diego had noticed somehow and caught up with her in the park. "...Afternoon." She immediately felt bad for the curt greeting.
"Good afternoon. Es good to see you in service, but you leave so quickly."
A few people had been staring her direction at church, and not in the "that girl has funny skin and ears" way. News must have spread, and she hadn't been in the mood for encouragements, sincere or obligatory. Honestly, she wasn't sure she even wanted to talk to Diego right now, but she couldn't just tell him to leave.
Diego judged her expression astutely and, rather than ask any questions, dug into his pack. "I know es maybe not the best time, but I no am sure when next good time will be..." Finding what he was looking for, he drew out a thin package. "So... Feliz cumpleaños."
"...huh?"
"It mean 'Happy birthday.'"
She looked at the present, wondering if she was in any state to enjoy the contents. But given the alternative of handing it back to him, she opened it, albeit with no enthusiasm. "Um..." A picture frame? She flipped it over.
The edges of her mouth rose a little.
Carved snowflakes decorated the silver frame, which was a nice touch, but it was the image inside that truly caught her eye. She was expecting a picture of the two of them, although she couldn't remember when they'd taken one... and in a way, it was. The picture artistically displayed a young woman, hand stroking the mane of a gentle lion. "Strength," the tarot card said.
"You like it?"
"I like it. Thank you." Her smile wasn't strong, but it was there.
Diego's own gentle expression matched the lion's. "I can walk you back to the hos--"
"No." She said it before she could stop herself. It figured that she'd learn to interrupt over this. "I mean... I called this morning... she'll be in her second surgery by now. It'll last for hours; she can't be visited."
"You can wait for her. I can come for company, we can get Alex too, maybe Jess or Malcolm."
She really didn't want to. Her ears said that for her.
Diego was delicate in his words. "Joni... when she wake up, you will want to talk. If only to tell her how much you have grown in esspite of her."
"...I can't..."
He tapped the picture as an answer. "You is brave before. Be brave again."
"...what if she doesn't wake up?"
Diego had to take a moment for that one. "...I think... I think strength is run in family. Sometimes being esscared does too. But the doctora knows her, and said she will wake. I think she will."
She fell back to her last line of defense. "...maybe tomorrow. Okay? Tomorrow... it's my birthday. I don't want to spend it in a hospital waiting."
With some visible reluctance, Diego admitted defeat. "Okay. Tomorrow."
"Good afternoon. Es good to see you in service, but you leave so quickly."
A few people had been staring her direction at church, and not in the "that girl has funny skin and ears" way. News must have spread, and she hadn't been in the mood for encouragements, sincere or obligatory. Honestly, she wasn't sure she even wanted to talk to Diego right now, but she couldn't just tell him to leave.
Diego judged her expression astutely and, rather than ask any questions, dug into his pack. "I know es maybe not the best time, but I no am sure when next good time will be..." Finding what he was looking for, he drew out a thin package. "So... Feliz cumpleaños."
"...huh?"
"It mean 'Happy birthday.'"
She looked at the present, wondering if she was in any state to enjoy the contents. But given the alternative of handing it back to him, she opened it, albeit with no enthusiasm. "Um..." A picture frame? She flipped it over.
The edges of her mouth rose a little.
Carved snowflakes decorated the silver frame, which was a nice touch, but it was the image inside that truly caught her eye. She was expecting a picture of the two of them, although she couldn't remember when they'd taken one... and in a way, it was. The picture artistically displayed a young woman, hand stroking the mane of a gentle lion. "Strength," the tarot card said.
"You like it?"
"I like it. Thank you." Her smile wasn't strong, but it was there.
Diego's own gentle expression matched the lion's. "I can walk you back to the hos--"
"No." She said it before she could stop herself. It figured that she'd learn to interrupt over this. "I mean... I called this morning... she'll be in her second surgery by now. It'll last for hours; she can't be visited."
"You can wait for her. I can come for company, we can get Alex too, maybe Jess or Malcolm."
She really didn't want to. Her ears said that for her.
Diego was delicate in his words. "Joni... when she wake up, you will want to talk. If only to tell her how much you have grown in esspite of her."
"...I can't..."
He tapped the picture as an answer. "You is brave before. Be brave again."
"...what if she doesn't wake up?"
Diego had to take a moment for that one. "...I think... I think strength is run in family. Sometimes being esscared does too. But the doctora knows her, and said she will wake. I think she will."
She fell back to her last line of defense. "...maybe tomorrow. Okay? Tomorrow... it's my birthday. I don't want to spend it in a hospital waiting."
With some visible reluctance, Diego admitted defeat. "Okay. Tomorrow."
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
"Who's there?"
"Hey, baby girl, it's me."
Joni nearly fell out of her chair getting to the door, throwing herself at the person on the other side with a sob. "Daddy!"
* * *
They sat together on the spare bed, Mr. Jacobs holding his daughter gently as she cried. It took her a few minutes before she managed to speak. "When, um, when did you arrive?"
"The flight landed a couple hours ago. I went to the hospital to check on her, and then I came straight from there. I'm sorry... I would have called to say I was coming to Paragon, but I was waiting until I knew how she was doing. I didn't know what to tell you yet. Then they said at the hospital that you had been there yesterday, so I guess you already knew more than I did."
"...sorry. I should have called too. I just didn't... I just couldn't get myself to talk about it."
Her father merely nodded, faint smile showing he understood.
"How..." She sniffled and gulped back a sob. "How did you find out?"
"The doctors called yesterday. I was still listed as her next of kin." He put on a wry smile. "Amazing, after everything..." There was a long awkward pause, then he spoke up again. "For what it's worth, I'm glad for the chance to see you again. Even if it's just been a couple of weeks." He squeezed her shoulder, and she almost smiled. Almost.
The room went silent again. Joni, surprisingly, was the one to break the quiet this time. "If she wakes... um, what do we do next?" Her eyes were downcast; the "will she even want to see us?" remained unspoken.
Mr. Jacobs hesitated, considering carefully. "...I think... that should be up to you. Whether you think you can face her again, and how much. It's your decision; you're the one she hurt."
"...no... it's okay. She hurt both of us. We should both decide."
"She didn't do anything to me. You don't have to--"
"You, you don't have to be noble, Daddy." Joni rubbed a tear out of her eye, trying to be strong. "She walked out on both of us..." She looked away. "That, that must have been devastating to you too."
"...'walked out'..."
"So, so we'll both decide... I can... what is it?"
Martin Jacobs's face was going slack in slow realization. His huge frame actually seemed to shrink a little. "Joni... what... oh God, Joni, I didn't know." He suddenly had her in a smothering embrace. "I didn't know. I thought it was her words that had hurt you. How much of it was her leaving?"
Confused, Joni found herself crying again. "...her yelling, that hurt, but... Daddy, she hasn't wanted to see me... either of us in three years!"
He squeezed her tighter. His voice was barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry... Joni... she wanted to. She probably wanted to every day. But... I saw the look on your face as you ran out, and I thought about all the other people who'd turned on you like that..." Martin looked in Joni's eyes, his own pained with regret. "So I told her to get out and never come back."
"Hey, baby girl, it's me."
Joni nearly fell out of her chair getting to the door, throwing herself at the person on the other side with a sob. "Daddy!"
* * *
They sat together on the spare bed, Mr. Jacobs holding his daughter gently as she cried. It took her a few minutes before she managed to speak. "When, um, when did you arrive?"
"The flight landed a couple hours ago. I went to the hospital to check on her, and then I came straight from there. I'm sorry... I would have called to say I was coming to Paragon, but I was waiting until I knew how she was doing. I didn't know what to tell you yet. Then they said at the hospital that you had been there yesterday, so I guess you already knew more than I did."
"...sorry. I should have called too. I just didn't... I just couldn't get myself to talk about it."
Her father merely nodded, faint smile showing he understood.
"How..." She sniffled and gulped back a sob. "How did you find out?"
"The doctors called yesterday. I was still listed as her next of kin." He put on a wry smile. "Amazing, after everything..." There was a long awkward pause, then he spoke up again. "For what it's worth, I'm glad for the chance to see you again. Even if it's just been a couple of weeks." He squeezed her shoulder, and she almost smiled. Almost.
The room went silent again. Joni, surprisingly, was the one to break the quiet this time. "If she wakes... um, what do we do next?" Her eyes were downcast; the "will she even want to see us?" remained unspoken.
Mr. Jacobs hesitated, considering carefully. "...I think... that should be up to you. Whether you think you can face her again, and how much. It's your decision; you're the one she hurt."
"...no... it's okay. She hurt both of us. We should both decide."
"She didn't do anything to me. You don't have to--"
"You, you don't have to be noble, Daddy." Joni rubbed a tear out of her eye, trying to be strong. "She walked out on both of us..." She looked away. "That, that must have been devastating to you too."
"...'walked out'..."
"So, so we'll both decide... I can... what is it?"
Martin Jacobs's face was going slack in slow realization. His huge frame actually seemed to shrink a little. "Joni... what... oh God, Joni, I didn't know." He suddenly had her in a smothering embrace. "I didn't know. I thought it was her words that had hurt you. How much of it was her leaving?"
Confused, Joni found herself crying again. "...her yelling, that hurt, but... Daddy, she hasn't wanted to see me... either of us in three years!"
He squeezed her tighter. His voice was barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry... Joni... she wanted to. She probably wanted to every day. But... I saw the look on your face as you ran out, and I thought about all the other people who'd turned on you like that..." Martin looked in Joni's eyes, his own pained with regret. "So I told her to get out and never come back."
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon
Re: The Absence of Warmth
There was something about Joni that caused some people to give up on her in frustration. There was also something about her that caused other people to want to protect her from those that did. Martin Jacobs fell squarely into the second category; it made him a good father, but sometimes he overstepped, or lost his temper, or both. And then, for three years, he hadn't worked up the nerve to talk about it. Somehow along the way, he'd come to assume that Joni had figured out what happened that night on her own.
Joni and her father spent hours talking, and crying, and apologizing. Joni even raised her voice a few times, which Martin took without complaint. Then they contacted the school administration and Mr. Jacobs had excused Joni from curfew and classes until further notice; family emergency.
An hour after that they were both in Peregrine Hospital, resolved that at least one of them would be waiting for her when she woke up.
* * *
Tuesday the 6th
"She's awake."
Joni paused outside the door of the hospital room. Again. The nurse who had given them the news looked puzzled at Joni's hesitation, but Mr. Jacobs patiently gave her a moment.
The door stared back at her, as a familiar mocking voice started up.
she still said those things about you, even yelled them, daddy can't be sure she wasn't on the verge of leaving anyway, she's probably been blaming you that she got kicked out of the house. she--
Joni all but shoved the door open.
There were flowers on the bedstand, somehow still unwilted; they'd left them there Sunday. In the bed, a still-bandaged figure stirred. "Hello...?"
The voice was faint, but it brought tears to Joni's eyes instantly. She'd gone three years without hearing it. "Momma?"
Momma turned her head and squinted. Her contact lenses must have been out, but even then there was only one person who had ever called her that. "...Joni?" Surprise came to her face. "Is that really you, Joni?"
Joni nodded, daring to approach the bed for the first time. "It's me. I... I've missed you."
"Oh God, thank you..." Momma weakly raised her hands to touch Joni's face. "I've missed you too, I've missed you so much."
For the first time in three years, she wrapped her arms around her daughter. She was warm.
Joni and her father spent hours talking, and crying, and apologizing. Joni even raised her voice a few times, which Martin took without complaint. Then they contacted the school administration and Mr. Jacobs had excused Joni from curfew and classes until further notice; family emergency.
An hour after that they were both in Peregrine Hospital, resolved that at least one of them would be waiting for her when she woke up.
* * *
Tuesday the 6th
"She's awake."
Joni paused outside the door of the hospital room. Again. The nurse who had given them the news looked puzzled at Joni's hesitation, but Mr. Jacobs patiently gave her a moment.
The door stared back at her, as a familiar mocking voice started up.
she still said those things about you, even yelled them, daddy can't be sure she wasn't on the verge of leaving anyway, she's probably been blaming you that she got kicked out of the house. she--
Joni all but shoved the door open.
There were flowers on the bedstand, somehow still unwilted; they'd left them there Sunday. In the bed, a still-bandaged figure stirred. "Hello...?"
The voice was faint, but it brought tears to Joni's eyes instantly. She'd gone three years without hearing it. "Momma?"
Momma turned her head and squinted. Her contact lenses must have been out, but even then there was only one person who had ever called her that. "...Joni?" Surprise came to her face. "Is that really you, Joni?"
Joni nodded, daring to approach the bed for the first time. "It's me. I... I've missed you."
"Oh God, thank you..." Momma weakly raised her hands to touch Joni's face. "I've missed you too, I've missed you so much."
For the first time in three years, she wrapped her arms around her daughter. She was warm.
"When you can hear 'em talk, cling to them with all force, because those are the ones with staying power." - Ursula Vernon