I can't see well enough through her visor to tell which one of us she is looking at. For a terrible second I hope the target is JD. Which would be a remarkable coincidence, but is also a horribly unkind thought. JD has never been anything but kind a…
I'm behind the bar with JD. It let's me still be in the room, but with the most obstacles between me and them. When they come in I feel the gooseflesh rise on my arms, but I keep cleaning glasses.
Reese is standing at the entrance to the bar, pisto…
For a split second, I think about giving up. About begging, about letting the Fippers take me home. After all, wouldn't that save the others? Maybe? Maybe not.
It would save me from making a decision. I'd be letting Gloriana control me again, exce…
You know, I'd appreciate some clarity as to what I can and cannot do. but, I have a feeling that Esco is slightly more stressed than he is letting on.
Which I understand, since I woke up in Diamond all I have experienced is death, blood, loss, and…
I am so proud, I give Pixel a knowing smile, and I'm about to say something... I don't know... something silly like 'Frack them,' but I don't get to because that is when Esco walks in and starts running his mouth.
I've never been so unhappy to see…
I don't know why she is treating me like a master. Is it my accent, is it the way I look? Does it trigger her like her mannerisms trigger me?
"Pixel, Pixel, I am not your master - no one here is your master. I know that rocksucker was lying. You a…
I let the man leave and turn to Pixel when he does. When I look close I can see that she is shaking. I put aside my feelings and concentrate on Pixel. Tucking the gun away, I put both my hands on her shoulders.
"Hey, hey - you are alright. Everyon…
Okay, OK. Damn it.
I lower the gun and look at the customer in the eye. "How about this, we call this a disagreement. You can have this service for free, but in the future you pay up front and clear all requests with management. And as for the gun…
Frack. I could kill him, I should kill him, he was probably going to kill me. No. No, I don't kill people, I don't.
A cruel voice in the back of my head laughs, No? You just let other people do it for you then?
I have no idea what Pixel is doing b…
Farthoom, I'm gonna, kill a person myself one of these days if this keeps up.
"So just so we are clear, you did not ask for a disciplinary package? Who took your request, Mr. Balls?"
I don't have anything left in my stomach and thank Hoolies for that. When I see his mouth slack and gun drop, the adrenaline surge I had starts to wane and I start to shake. I continue slipping the jacket off my arm so it hangs on one shoulder, when…
I don't even think. My insides become steel when I see the gun. I drop my left arm shrugging the jacket I took from Esco's room off the one shoulder. As slowly as I can manage, I pull down the sleeve to release my arm, calmly walking towards Balls a…
I can't help but be suspicious, since well, that doesn't sound like Sasha. Since I have known her she has taken every opportunity to be in charge. Still, I suppose she is right.
I look at Marigold and shrug in sympathy. "Maybe later?"
I look at P…
Pixel's accent is the same one that the high class of the Phoenix house have. Gloriana loved visiting their holdings, they had wicked pleasures I'd rather not remember. Pixel, has always set me on edge a bit, not that it's her fault...
"We were jus…
Tears are welling up in my eyes as I finish the story. The Velveteen Rabbit became real, Real, real. Not just real because the boy loved him. Frack, it kills me every time. When Marigold suggests another, I think about going back to my room. My head…
I hold her hands and look her in the eyes, there is no odd longing there, just fondness. "I'm going to miss you too. How about I read you that book now?"
I don't recognize it at first, it takes till the chorus to jolt my memory. It's a love song, or a loved and lost song. I had started to learn to play it once, the sheet music had been included in a bundle that Gloriana had bought for me. Hundreds an…
I let go. I just, let go. I stop being brave. I stop being strong. I stop being a survivor and I just let it all go. I'm not real, I'm a toy, and sometimes toys need to be put away. The cold knife on my back is weirdly reassuring. A metal grounder. …
I stand, not well, but I do manage it. Unsteadily, I make my way to the basin to wash out my mouth and put some cold water on my face. Running my hands through my hair, I push it back into a loose long braid.
Stripping out of the yellow dress I ha…
The gun goes off and it's just instinct. I throw my arms around Marigolds middle, my hands digging into the fabric around her stomach, my head buried against her slim spine.
The soft cotton is hot from my breath. She smells... hard to explain. Lik…