Chapter 9: Children's games.
Dame Skyla stared out of the window in her office to the scene beneath her.
Her five Skydancers were playing in the snow, making use of the last few daylight hours. They could afford the time out from their studies. It was a week away from Christmas break and although they are usually busy this time of year Skyla had allowed the kids who were afraid that they'd be stuck here due to the weather to go home. She had been more than a little pleased and grateful when her five decided to stay here and keep her company. She smiled and patted Whirl and Twirl's heads.
In the game Slam, Jade and Camille where in a team and Breeze and Angelica in another. Both had build themselves fort walls and were now playing another league in their "snowball championships war". From her vantage point the woman could watch them for hours. This simple and child-like game was strangely soothing for the soul, for all of them. Today though, she wasn't watching the group. She was watching the figure sitting close to the wall, wrapped up in a blanket.
Joanie had one of her books spread out in front of her, happily oblivious to the game around her as she drew. She should've been in her room, but confessed to being tired of staying in bed the whole time.
It was Joanie's third day at the academy since the night they had found her. She hadn't made any attempts to leave yet after their encounter the previous morning, but she had also not really spoken to any of them since, keeping to herself in a broody silence. She seemed happily oblivious to the snowballs flying back and forth between the two groups. She also ignored all invitations to join the game.
Skyla doubted whether it was because she was aware of how bad it would be for her health. The woman sighed and drew her attention away from the window. She turned back to her desk and picked up the telephone receiver.
She glanced in her address book and dialed a number.
The person on the other side answered within two rings.
"Dr. Maggie Thompson speaking. Hallo?"
Skyla turned the phone on speaker mode.
"Dr. Thompson hallo." She said and turned her attention back to the window. "I'm not sure whether you remember me, my name is Skyla Dameer."
She paused to see whether it rang a bell.
Obviously it did.
"Ah, Dame Skyla." The woman exclaimed on the other end. "Off course I remember you. How are you?"
They spend a few minutes on polite conversation. Skyla watched as Slam tried again to couch Joanie into the game. The girl glared at him and shrugged deeper into her blanket. The boy frowned and glanced back at his friends who could only shrug.
Skyla decided that it was time to start steering the conversation her way.
"Dr. Thompson tell me," she said when the opportunity arose, "do you still work on the street kids project."
The woman paused. "Project High Five?" She queried. "Yes, I'm currently project leader."
This was what Skyla wanted to hear.
"That's great." She said. "Then, I was wondering whether you could help me. I ran into a girl over the weekend, and would like some information about her if she's one of yours. She left some of her stuff in my car…" Could be the truth.
She gave a brief account of her encounter as well as a description of Joanie.
The woman recognized her immediately. "Ah," she murmured, "that would be Joanie-Ellen. What was she doing in your car?"
Skyla sighed softly. "I gave her a lift." She said vaguely.
There was a pause on the other side of the telephone.
"When was this?" Maggie queried.
Skyla noticed the woman's tone.
"Saturday." She said slowly. "Is something wrong?"
"No." Came the quick reply. "I'm just intrigued, Joanie hasn't been seen since Saturday morning. Where did you drop her?"
Dame Skyla was very careful with her answer. "The bus stop." She said. "She told me she was meeting somebody there."
"Was anything missing?"
"Excuse me?"
A patient sigh.
"Joanie probably wasn't meeting anyone." Maggie said. "She's a bit of a… Lying pickpocket, to put it mildly. I'm just wondering whether you perhaps fell victim to one of her cons."
Skyla frowned, feeling insulted but not sure why.
"I do still know where my purse is Dr. Thompson." She said bluntly. "Joanie could've been telling the truth."
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone.
"I see." The woman said with a smile. "You took her home didn't you?"
Skyla was so surprised with the revelation that she started laughing.
"It wasn't planned, I assure you." She admitted. "She hid in the back of my truck."
There was a soft chuckle on the other end. "Ah, well." Maggie said. "That changes everything."
Skyla sighed and noticed that Slam was trying to couch Joanie into the game again.
"I guess it does." She said slowly. "What do I do from here?"
There was a rustle of papers on the other side.
"We'll come and pick her up." Maggie said. "This is actually a stroke of luck, we've been after her for weeks. She's never in one place long enough to be picked up."
Skyla gave a start. "You can't do that just yet." She said in a controlled tone, not revealing her emotions. "We're snowed in at the moment, we probably will be for the next two weeks with all the snow they're predicting I doubt whether we'll be able to come down for the next two weeks."
Another pause.
"Are you sure?" Maggie asked.
"Yes."
A soft sigh.
"Okay." The woman said. "If you don't mind keeping her till weather's cleared then… She can stay there."
"I don't mind." Skyla said quickly. "She's no trouble."
The chuckled on the other side was not amusing.
"She will be." Maggie said. "I guess I should just warn you about a few things Dame Skyla." She said gently. "I know you mean well, but this kid is not like those you teach. She's… A compulsive liar for one thing, so don't believe anything she tells you of her family. She doesn't know who her parents are. Also, don't grow attached to her. Kids like her… They can hurt you more than others, because you want to pity them, you want to make a home for them and they really don't appreciate it. In her own right, Joanie's a good kid with her own perception of right and wrong. But, she's not… Well, a kid. Just keep that in mind okay?"
Skyla wasn't sure how to react on it. "I won't." She said.
The conversation watered off from there. When Skyla hung up she stood and went to the window. Joanie had obviously grown irritated with Slam's nagging because she had stood up and was heading for the door.
Slam, in a good spirit, formed a snowball and threw it at her.
It struck Joanie behind the head. She dropped her book surprised and turned around.
"Throw me!" Slam called to her and opened himself as a target.
The girl went to the snow, but instead of in a joining the game she gathered up a bunch of snow and hurled it at Slam in a show of temper.
"I told you I don't want to play!" She snapped. "Leave me alone!"
With that she gathered up her books and stormed inside.
Slam and the rest of the kids stood shocked. The red headed boy looked up at Skyla.
"I didn't mean it that way." He mouthed.
Skyla nodded her reassurance. "I know." She mouthed back. "Don't worry about it."
She left the window and went out the room with Whirl and Twirl trailing behind her.
AN: As you can gather, i'm making good use of my holiday and a really cheap internet cafe i found. Ah, a flash disk is such a great confinience... Hi Sil! Good to hear from you again. Don't worry, I figured as much and thanks for the simphafy. (I can never spell that word right!). For interest sake, had this been a play in literature this would've been the end of Act 1. Just figured i'd point that out.
You're going to have to waite for the next chapter, i'm sadly leaving town for the weekend so i doubt whether i'd be able to go on the net. But, look at it this way, i'll have a lot of chapters done for you. :-) Take care as always and thanks for the great reviews. I love reading them, purely because i get a sense of who you are. Do you know that one can reveal so much of one's personality through a mere short sentance. It's great. I love communication. ;-)
Take care now and keep safe as always.
"Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crunchy and tastes good with ketchup."
:-p
Alyssa
Dame Skyla stared out of the window in her office to the scene beneath her.
Her five Skydancers were playing in the snow, making use of the last few daylight hours. They could afford the time out from their studies. It was a week away from Christmas break and although they are usually busy this time of year Skyla had allowed the kids who were afraid that they'd be stuck here due to the weather to go home. She had been more than a little pleased and grateful when her five decided to stay here and keep her company. She smiled and patted Whirl and Twirl's heads.
In the game Slam, Jade and Camille where in a team and Breeze and Angelica in another. Both had build themselves fort walls and were now playing another league in their "snowball championships war". From her vantage point the woman could watch them for hours. This simple and child-like game was strangely soothing for the soul, for all of them. Today though, she wasn't watching the group. She was watching the figure sitting close to the wall, wrapped up in a blanket.
Joanie had one of her books spread out in front of her, happily oblivious to the game around her as she drew. She should've been in her room, but confessed to being tired of staying in bed the whole time.
It was Joanie's third day at the academy since the night they had found her. She hadn't made any attempts to leave yet after their encounter the previous morning, but she had also not really spoken to any of them since, keeping to herself in a broody silence. She seemed happily oblivious to the snowballs flying back and forth between the two groups. She also ignored all invitations to join the game.
Skyla doubted whether it was because she was aware of how bad it would be for her health. The woman sighed and drew her attention away from the window. She turned back to her desk and picked up the telephone receiver.
She glanced in her address book and dialed a number.
The person on the other side answered within two rings.
"Dr. Maggie Thompson speaking. Hallo?"
Skyla turned the phone on speaker mode.
"Dr. Thompson hallo." She said and turned her attention back to the window. "I'm not sure whether you remember me, my name is Skyla Dameer."
She paused to see whether it rang a bell.
Obviously it did.
"Ah, Dame Skyla." The woman exclaimed on the other end. "Off course I remember you. How are you?"
They spend a few minutes on polite conversation. Skyla watched as Slam tried again to couch Joanie into the game. The girl glared at him and shrugged deeper into her blanket. The boy frowned and glanced back at his friends who could only shrug.
Skyla decided that it was time to start steering the conversation her way.
"Dr. Thompson tell me," she said when the opportunity arose, "do you still work on the street kids project."
The woman paused. "Project High Five?" She queried. "Yes, I'm currently project leader."
This was what Skyla wanted to hear.
"That's great." She said. "Then, I was wondering whether you could help me. I ran into a girl over the weekend, and would like some information about her if she's one of yours. She left some of her stuff in my car…" Could be the truth.
She gave a brief account of her encounter as well as a description of Joanie.
The woman recognized her immediately. "Ah," she murmured, "that would be Joanie-Ellen. What was she doing in your car?"
Skyla sighed softly. "I gave her a lift." She said vaguely.
There was a pause on the other side of the telephone.
"When was this?" Maggie queried.
Skyla noticed the woman's tone.
"Saturday." She said slowly. "Is something wrong?"
"No." Came the quick reply. "I'm just intrigued, Joanie hasn't been seen since Saturday morning. Where did you drop her?"
Dame Skyla was very careful with her answer. "The bus stop." She said. "She told me she was meeting somebody there."
"Was anything missing?"
"Excuse me?"
A patient sigh.
"Joanie probably wasn't meeting anyone." Maggie said. "She's a bit of a… Lying pickpocket, to put it mildly. I'm just wondering whether you perhaps fell victim to one of her cons."
Skyla frowned, feeling insulted but not sure why.
"I do still know where my purse is Dr. Thompson." She said bluntly. "Joanie could've been telling the truth."
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone.
"I see." The woman said with a smile. "You took her home didn't you?"
Skyla was so surprised with the revelation that she started laughing.
"It wasn't planned, I assure you." She admitted. "She hid in the back of my truck."
There was a soft chuckle on the other end. "Ah, well." Maggie said. "That changes everything."
Skyla sighed and noticed that Slam was trying to couch Joanie into the game again.
"I guess it does." She said slowly. "What do I do from here?"
There was a rustle of papers on the other side.
"We'll come and pick her up." Maggie said. "This is actually a stroke of luck, we've been after her for weeks. She's never in one place long enough to be picked up."
Skyla gave a start. "You can't do that just yet." She said in a controlled tone, not revealing her emotions. "We're snowed in at the moment, we probably will be for the next two weeks with all the snow they're predicting I doubt whether we'll be able to come down for the next two weeks."
Another pause.
"Are you sure?" Maggie asked.
"Yes."
A soft sigh.
"Okay." The woman said. "If you don't mind keeping her till weather's cleared then… She can stay there."
"I don't mind." Skyla said quickly. "She's no trouble."
The chuckled on the other side was not amusing.
"She will be." Maggie said. "I guess I should just warn you about a few things Dame Skyla." She said gently. "I know you mean well, but this kid is not like those you teach. She's… A compulsive liar for one thing, so don't believe anything she tells you of her family. She doesn't know who her parents are. Also, don't grow attached to her. Kids like her… They can hurt you more than others, because you want to pity them, you want to make a home for them and they really don't appreciate it. In her own right, Joanie's a good kid with her own perception of right and wrong. But, she's not… Well, a kid. Just keep that in mind okay?"
Skyla wasn't sure how to react on it. "I won't." She said.
The conversation watered off from there. When Skyla hung up she stood and went to the window. Joanie had obviously grown irritated with Slam's nagging because she had stood up and was heading for the door.
Slam, in a good spirit, formed a snowball and threw it at her.
It struck Joanie behind the head. She dropped her book surprised and turned around.
"Throw me!" Slam called to her and opened himself as a target.
The girl went to the snow, but instead of in a joining the game she gathered up a bunch of snow and hurled it at Slam in a show of temper.
"I told you I don't want to play!" She snapped. "Leave me alone!"
With that she gathered up her books and stormed inside.
Slam and the rest of the kids stood shocked. The red headed boy looked up at Skyla.
"I didn't mean it that way." He mouthed.
Skyla nodded her reassurance. "I know." She mouthed back. "Don't worry about it."
She left the window and went out the room with Whirl and Twirl trailing behind her.
AN: As you can gather, i'm making good use of my holiday and a really cheap internet cafe i found. Ah, a flash disk is such a great confinience... Hi Sil! Good to hear from you again. Don't worry, I figured as much and thanks for the simphafy. (I can never spell that word right!). For interest sake, had this been a play in literature this would've been the end of Act 1. Just figured i'd point that out.
You're going to have to waite for the next chapter, i'm sadly leaving town for the weekend so i doubt whether i'd be able to go on the net. But, look at it this way, i'll have a lot of chapters done for you. :-) Take care as always and thanks for the great reviews. I love reading them, purely because i get a sense of who you are. Do you know that one can reveal so much of one's personality through a mere short sentance. It's great. I love communication. ;-)
Take care now and keep safe as always.
"Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crunchy and tastes good with ketchup."
:-p
Alyssa