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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 19, 2009 0:24:23 GMT -5
Ofelia's eyebrow shot up. Remorse now? "You've got quite the mood swings there," she said in a voice as frigid as the surrounding air. "You shouldn't expect a single apology to smooth over everything you said earlier." Perhaps a more forgiving person would have accepted the apology, but Ofelia never presumed to pass herself off as tolerant. Even if the woman genuinely meant it, taking back her words now was useless.
"What was your mother like?" The question came without warning. If it had been possible, Ofelia would have raised her eyebrow even further. 'Was'? This woman needed to be more careful with her phrasing.
"Tough. Witty. Intelligent." She wrapped both hands around her mug, fingers intertwining. "A question for a question. If whoever it was got your parents, how the hell are you still around?"
Ofelia never was one for tact.
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Post by Kali on Aug 19, 2009 4:02:46 GMT -5
Kali looked out over the balcony for a moment, then back at Ofelia. "The nurse was feeding me that night as my parents slept. She ran out of formula, and took me with her to the storage room to get it." she told her. "That's when they came, and killed them. If it hadn't been for that nurse, I'd be dead too." she said.
"You're lucky to have a mother like that." she said. The girl rose the mug to her lips again, taking in the last of the chocolate coffee. She waved to the waitress inside, whom came out shortly with another mug of it. It was warmer than the last one, not having been exposed to the cold air just yet. Kali savored the steam of it. It smelled wonderful.
"A question for a question." she said, just as Ofelia had done, "What is like, to have a mother?"
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 19, 2009 13:31:31 GMT -5
"What, they didn't stick around to finish the job?" Tch. No-one followed through these days, did they? "Why would anyone have wanted your parents dead, anyway?"
The snake prodded her again. She was missing something. Brow wrinkled in concentration, she sifted through the disordered memories for any clue to which her talisman might be referring. There was definitely nothing of note before she started to get tipsy; besides, she only really noticed the bartender after her vision had begun to blur at the edges a bit...
"What is like, to have a mother?"
"Pft, how the hell do you expect me to answer that? Ask someone else. Maybe they'll tell you a few cliches or two. I won't." Hm... and then the woman had gotten angry at her for her observations, and then she'd snarled at--oh. Her lip had curled up to show her teeth: animal instinct. A sign of a shifter. Interesting.
Her tea was only lukewarm now, but Ofelia sipped at it anyway, keeping her eyes on the woman.
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Post by Kali on Aug 19, 2009 13:43:50 GMT -5
"What do you mean, 'finish the job'?" Kali growled a bit. "I was a baby. Why would they want to kill me? I was no threat to any Hunter." she snapped. But then she let herself cool again as she took another swig of her coffee. She really didn't want to argue right now.
"I don't know why anyone would want them dead." she answered. Kali barely knew enough of her parents to answer that, or anything else, for that matter. She couldn't even say what color their eyes were.
"And I expect you to answer that," she said, pulling the sleeves of her coat down a little to better warm her wrists, "Because you actually have a mother." That, and this woman wasn't her friend, so she didn't have to worry about what she thought of her for asking such a silly question. She wouldn't ask Ryan, because his mother had him locked up and abused and chased down. She wouldn't ask him of his mother. Jo was her friend, but they didn't talk about family like this. They usually talked about Hunters and guys and things like that. The question would be too peculiar. And again, she didn't have to worry about what Ofelia thought.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 19, 2009 14:14:04 GMT -5
Ofelia astounded at how easy that had been. The woman might as well have stood on the table and shouted her allegiance for the entirety of the Nine Muses--and that included the screaming banshee-child--to hear. To be sure, it was a bit of a disappointment; Ofelia had expected something more of a challenge.
"It would have been logical. If you, now, ever found out who it was that killed your parents, don't try telling me you wouldn't seek revenge." Perhaps she already had.
"And pay attention. I asked how you expected me to answer, not if."
Knocking back the rest of the tea before it could get any colder, Ofelia leaned back and crossed her arms. Like hell she was going to let a stranger--especially an Innocent who probably thought anyone not on her side was evil incarnate--know anything about her. "It's irrelevant, anyway. You'll have to go to someone else if you want to know that badly. Maybe one of your friends, when they're not too busy trying to pick up guys."
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Post by Kali on Aug 19, 2009 14:22:39 GMT -5
"Or I could just ask you." Kali said, taking the subject off of Jo again. "And just how I expect you to answer that," she said, thinking for a moment. "Is to tell me what it's like to have a mother. What it's like to have someone there who actually cares about you and doesn't call you Black Cat all the time because they think you're bad luck and you're the reason your parents are dead!" She said, her voice raising towards the end. But she covered her mouth. That was another story. Not for Ofelia to hear. Kali coughed, clearing her throat. "I just want to know what it's like to have a mother." she said. "Sorry if that's too much to ask of you." She took a gulp of her coffee, wondering how exactly she was going to hide that little outburst.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 19, 2009 14:46:14 GMT -5
"You're expecting me to do you a favor." It was phrased like a question, but there was a mocking lilt to Ofelia's voice that suggested she wasn't asking. "You must be irrevocably stupid if you think that, after hurling insults like nobody's business--racist ones too, mind you--I would do anything to help you."
Uncrossing her arms, Ofelia locked her fingers behind her head and leaned back further, nearly tilting her chair onto two legs. Surely this woman wasn't serious. How dense could she woman get? Still, it was interesting to note the way she put a hand over her mouth after she spoke; she had obviously brought up a touchy subject without meaning to.
A contemptuous sneer. "Spare me your sob story, girl. At least they were more creative than you are with your taunts. And what makes you assume that your life has been worse than everyone else's?"
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Post by Kali on Aug 19, 2009 15:00:47 GMT -5
"I am not racist." Kali snapped at her. That night, she had used anything she could think of to try and insult Ofelia the way she had insulted Jo. She hadn't meant to really sound racist. She had only meant to be insulting. There wasn't much else to pick on her about at that point. Her looks were all Kali had to use. "Sorry about that." she said. She was apologizing about sounding racist. But she wasn't going to apologize if Ofelia took offense. She had meant to offend her, some way or another.
"And I'm not asking you to do me a favor." she said. "All I'm asking is for you to answer my questions as I answered yours."
Kali looked out, to the forest this time instead of the snowflakes. She wanted to go hunting. Just to be a feline and enjoy the last of the snow. To catch perhaps a rabbit or two. Maybe later.
"It's not a sob story." she growled. "And my name isn't Girl. And what makes you think I think my life is bad? I'm quite happy with my life. Just because I miss someone doesn't mean my life is terrible."
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 19, 2009 15:53:58 GMT -5
"I am not racist," the woman snapped, eyes flashing.
"Right. The same way your friend isn't desperate. And stop bullshitting those apologies, unless you can pretend you're genuinely sincere." No matter--at this point, there was no way Ofelia was going to apologize to her, whether the woman was looking for an apology or not.
"I've been keeping count too, you know. I answered one of your questions; you answered one of mine. We're even. So I am in no way obligated to answer you."
The woman's voice was rising; she was clearly getting worked up again. "I'm sorry. You must have mistaken me for someone who cares. You're sitting here, telling to a stranger about your sad past, and you obviously think I've been more fortunate than you. You're almost asking for pity."
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Post by Kali on Aug 19, 2009 20:30:35 GMT -5
Kali growled. "To call someone desperate is one thing. Racist is another. And I assure you, I am not." she snapped. "And I was serious when I apologized to you. Whether you choose to accept it or not is your choice." She grumbled. "And I'm not asking for pity. You were the one who asked why I was still around. I answered you."
She sipped her coffee, wondering if it would be rude to get up and leave. She didn't want to make an enemy of this girl (though that might have been too late), and surely didn't want to leave the conversation with the under hand.
So Kali was silent, letting Ofelia speak next.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 20, 2009 16:23:59 GMT -5
Ofelia rolled her eyes. "Completely missed my point, yet again. You're so daft that it's almost frustrating to talk to you, you know?" Except it was still kind of amusing, especially given how completely bipolar this woman was.
She also chose not to accept the apology. She generally didn't, unless she had something to gain from doing so. In this case, the chance to garner any advantage from forgiveness was long gone, so Ofelia didn't hold back her natural inclination for vindictiveness.
"True, you did answer me. And then you had to go on about how all the other kids on the playground picked on you. I'm quite sure I never asked about that. Aw, does the poor girl need a hug?"
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Post by Kali on Aug 20, 2009 16:54:22 GMT -5
Kali kept herself from baring her teeth at the woman, as her talisman so wanted to do. You don't hug a cougar. It seemed to say. But that didn't stop her from glaring. "That slipped out." she snapped. She hadn't meant to say it, that much was obvious when she had covered her mouth. She had been frustrated because Ofelia wasn't answering her question, merely asking how to answer it.
She decided not to say anything now. It seemed every time she opened her mouth, the girl had something to twist it around and judge her for it. So she sat still, drinking her coffee. She looked to the door. That child was still screaming, after all this time. Kali felt a little sorry for him, -and his parents. But she couldn't say that the screaming wasn't getting on her nerves.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 20, 2009 17:42:30 GMT -5
"That slipped out," the woman said sharply. She was glaring at her, obviously riled again.
"That it did. Then again, you aren't exactly one who knows how to watch her tongue, are you?" As if that much hadn't been evident when they'd first met at Oceana. "At least I think about my words before flinging them at someone."
The door swung open, and the screams of the kid carried through. "Tiān, is he still going at it?" Ofelia muttered. Could no-one control their children these days? Why hadn't he and his parents been kicked out yet? Surely there must be someone in there who wasn't too craven to just go and tell the kid to shut up.
The waitress took her mug and her money, hustling back inside to find some change.
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Post by Kali on Aug 20, 2009 18:48:45 GMT -5
Kali was thankful as the door closed again, the child's screams silenced with it. "Tiān?" she asked, curious. It wasn't any English word she had ever heard. But she still wanted to know. It was interesting to her. She'd never heard anything like that before.
She drank the last of her coffee and set the mug down again. She would bring it in and pay in a minute. She wasn't quite sure she wanted to open that door again to the loud wails of the boy inside.
Kali looked again to the forest. Then to the snowflakes. Her prey wouldn't hear her. Her fur would keep her warm. She purred softly in her throat. Maybe she could catch a deer, if she could find one.
"Excuse me." she said, standing up and pushing in her chair. With a final, somewhat longing gaze to the snowy trees, she opened the door. "I have to go." And with that, she walked through the building, paid, and left, walking down the street.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Aug 20, 2009 22:42:21 GMT -5
"Oh, stuff it until you learn how to pronounce your Mandarin properly," Ofelia said irritably. The way this woman kept changing the subject--and her mood--was almost infuriating. One moment, she seemed ready to fly at her without further ado; ten seconds later, she was wandering off into flights of fancy.
And then, abruptly, she left. What the hell? Ofelia asked her talisman, who only rearranged its coils and gave her a how would I know? sort of look. Ofelia sighed, leaning forward again an resting her head on her hands. Should she follow? She technically wasn't getting paid for reconnaissance work, but perhaps she could wrangle a bonus for providing information about a near-confirmed Innocent.
Well, all right, she couldn't go wrong with a little extra cash--or a little extra information. As soon as the waitress returned with her change, she tossed the tip on the table and went after the dark-haired woman.
((Please don't have Kali notice. At least not until much, much later, if ever.))
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