Birdy spends three days puttering around town. She attaches herself to Lara, who takes her in as a sort-of apprentice. Shows her how to run the griddle, where to find the alcohol, teaches her how many caps things are worth. Lets her carry her baby around while she wipes tables and rearranges chairs and dusts the sad neon signs.
On the third night, she knows the patrols. Wrote them down, even, so she wouldn’t forget. Knows where the camp is. Knows her baby will be quiet, as she slips out of town through a crack in the defenses, runs toward the camp, just a little ways over the hills. Not far. Farther than the town would look, though. Two hours out, to where she can see Watch up on the hill, just a bump where she squats in the tall grass, blending easy with the rocks.
“I brought the patrol list. You should be able to take the town without much trouble. There are only four guns in the whole settlement.”
“How many people?” Watch asks.
“Two dozen. Eight women, eleven men, and five children.”
“An even two dozen,” and Watch snorts. “Unexpected.” She takes the paper from Birdy, tucks it into her pocket. “I’ll report back to the boss. You best get back before they miss you.”
“Ave,” Birdy murmurs.
“Salve,” Watch replies. She snorts, taps her fingers against her knee. “Is that the only language we have in common?”
“Well, we both speak English too.” Birdy shrugs, adjusts her baby sling.
“English doesn’t have any good sending-off words.” Watch shakes her head. “Watch yourself out there, Birdy.”
“You too, Watch,” and they both grin at each other, just barely visible in the blue light of the moon.
***
She spends day four in the doctor’s office, trying to look like she wants to learn. She’s as much helping as looking for books or tools for Siri. The Doc already likes her, sure, the Doc likes most everyone except Dredge, who she also likes, probably, even though she complains about her every time they’re out of earshot of both Dredge and the Boss, but that doesn’t mean she can’t curry favor.
The doctor here shows her how injections work, offers to share a few recipes for remedies she’s picked up in her time. She offers the recipe for Bitter Drink like it’s some well-kept secret, and not something everyone in the Legion knows by heart. Birdy pretends she doesn’t know it, asks questions about how much of this and how much of that is needed.
Follows the doctor over to the saloon for supper, join the rest of the town in laughing at jokes.
Sleeps on Jess’s sofa, again, though tonight she doesn’t sleep. Jess is out on the road tonight, the way she is every second night. Tonight, Birdy stays up. Rocks her baby. Waits for the gunshots, the yells, the sound of fighting.
Waits for the boss to step through Jess’s door and tell her “Well done.”
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
Say They Fear Her (f!courier/siri) (dubcon, referenced noncon) (20/?)
Date: 2016-03-18 02:21 pm (UTC)Birdy spends three days puttering around town. She attaches herself to Lara, who takes her in as a sort-of apprentice. Shows her how to run the griddle, where to find the alcohol, teaches her how many caps things are worth. Lets her carry her baby around while she wipes tables and rearranges chairs and dusts the sad neon signs.
On the third night, she knows the patrols. Wrote them down, even, so she wouldn’t forget. Knows where the camp is. Knows her baby will be quiet, as she slips out of town through a crack in the defenses, runs toward the camp, just a little ways over the hills. Not far. Farther than the town would look, though. Two hours out, to where she can see Watch up on the hill, just a bump where she squats in the tall grass, blending easy with the rocks.
“I brought the patrol list. You should be able to take the town without much trouble. There are only four guns in the whole settlement.”
“How many people?” Watch asks.
“Two dozen. Eight women, eleven men, and five children.”
“An even two dozen,” and Watch snorts. “Unexpected.” She takes the paper from Birdy, tucks it into her pocket. “I’ll report back to the boss. You best get back before they miss you.”
“Ave,” Birdy murmurs.
“Salve,” Watch replies. She snorts, taps her fingers against her knee. “Is that the only language we have in common?”
“Well, we both speak English too.” Birdy shrugs, adjusts her baby sling.
“English doesn’t have any good sending-off words.” Watch shakes her head. “Watch yourself out there, Birdy.”
“You too, Watch,” and they both grin at each other, just barely visible in the blue light of the moon.
She spends day four in the doctor’s office, trying to look like she wants to learn. She’s as much helping as looking for books or tools for Siri. The Doc already likes her, sure, the Doc likes most everyone except Dredge, who she also likes, probably, even though she complains about her every time they’re out of earshot of both Dredge and the Boss, but that doesn’t mean she can’t curry favor.
The doctor here shows her how injections work, offers to share a few recipes for remedies she’s picked up in her time. She offers the recipe for Bitter Drink like it’s some well-kept secret, and not something everyone in the Legion knows by heart. Birdy pretends she doesn’t know it, asks questions about how much of this and how much of that is needed.
Follows the doctor over to the saloon for supper, join the rest of the town in laughing at jokes.
Sleeps on Jess’s sofa, again, though tonight she doesn’t sleep. Jess is out on the road tonight, the way she is every second night. Tonight, Birdy stays up. Rocks her baby. Waits for the gunshots, the yells, the sound of fighting.
Waits for the boss to step through Jess’s door and tell her “Well done.”