Post by LΞCAVALIΞR on Jan 1, 2018 17:59:31 GMT
Places like this aren’t supposed to exist in modern Chicago, and yet they do. Towards the ‘back’ of Edison Park, a largely Irish influenced neighborhood in the ‘downtown’ area stood a beautiful old building that was once part of a row of apartment towers, but the ones around it had been torn down and the area reclaimed as a park. The sea of trees were only a few decades old but nice nonetheless, but the building itself stood out as being taller than most of the rest in the entire area. There were thirteen floors and a greenhouse with sparkling glass windows made a home on the roof. Outside the bricks had been reclad in lime and repaired of all the damage that time had brought them. Many little touches that spoke of Italy were in the area leading up to the door, statuary that had been brought over from a castle that the man who owned this building had bought for his young bride shortly before they were married. The door was heavy, replaced from the multipurpose one that had been there when the building housed apartments, but there was still a callbox on the outside with a button to press that would summon the doorman, a tall thin man who looked remarkably like Vincent Price and whose gold embossed name tag read “Phibes”.
Once inside, well, that’s where things began to be really different. The entirety of the first few floors had been removed and the space reinforced, creating a huge atrium area. At the center of the marble tiled floor stood a raised indoor fountain much like Buckingham Fountain but to a smaller scale, the sound of the water splashing and bubbling lent a happy note to the otherwise near silence. Near, because the closer one got to the fountain the more the ambient background noise could be heard, a trick of the acoustics of the room. There was soft music, if you listened closely enough it sounded remarkably like the soundtrack from the original Beauty and the Beast. A cat or two could be seen moving around quietly, and there was an astonishing assortment of indoor plants and things, giving the place an almost sanctuary feel. Moving past the fountain if you looked up there were several species of butterfly flitting around their favorite flowers and plants of choice despite the cool weather outside. There were benches to sit on, and towards the wall plush chairs that were more comfortable, along with a likely very expensive Persian style rug. In one of the chairs was a spry little old lady reading a book, a cup of steaming tea near her on a little side table that seemed entirely too delicate to be carrying the weight of the cup let along the pile of books and package of cookies next to that. Her voice was stronger than her tiny body might suggest.
“If you’re looking for the Master and Mistress they’re upstairs somewhere, just follow through the hallway there until you reach the elevator. Don’t worry dear, just don’t eat any of the berries from the plants in here and you’ll be just fine.”
“Thank you very much ma’am,” Nina LeCavalier says to the woman as she also gives a small nod.
Upon lifting her head, she begins to admire the true beauty of the atrium. It’s a regal site, almost as if it were transported here from another age. Her eyes are quickly drawn towards the fountain. A couple of tiny cardinals splash about in it’s crisp and crystal clear water. Nina observes them for a moment or two; it brings a smile to her face.
The space’s music finally catches her ear. It’s soothing, a stark contrast to all the Megadeth songs her Uber driver had subjected her to on the ride over. She feels at peace as she stands in the midst of it all, if only for a moment.
Nina gently places her hands in the pockets of her black pea-coat as she strolls down the hallway to the rhythm of the music, as instructed by the older woman. One of those roaming cats crosses her path as she treks along. The Tabby pushes it’s chunky black and gray swirled body against her right calf; it’s loud meow a demand of affection and attention.
“Ha, aren’t you precious?” Nina asks as she bends down and lets her fingers caress its lushcious coat. The well fed Tabby lets out a mighty pur—it was most pleased. “Feeling good?” As if to answer, the Tabby lets out another pur. The cat waddles away content as Nina rises to her feet. She continues down the hall until she reaches the elevator.
Aurora—she’d known of the woman long before they tangoed at Boats ‘N Throws. Nina had been a fan of Phoenix Wrestling long ago. She’d seen the promos, the classic bouts, knew of the mystic. It was that very familiarity that allowed her battle with Aurora in the midst of that battle royal, if only for a period of time.
Outside of the ring, Aurora seemed pleasant. “Everything should be fine,” Nina says to herself. Plus, her cousin Sophie always spoke highly of her. Sophie didn’t throw out praise lightly. There was a skittering sound then, tiny little claws on tiles and the long low form of a ferret came racing through in the strange, fluid, almost serpentine way of the species, running right across her foot on its path. In the shadows near the arches that hold the clear floor space in front of the elevator she’d see a little girl in a very, very old fashioned dress who looked to be about eight or nine years old, her hair done up in fat curls with a little mob cap pinned at the top, her light colored skirts are blotched with something darker but she gives no notice of it as she watches Nina intently. She points towards the elevator before she turns and goes into a little alcove that leads to the stairs, a sign hanging there on the wall showing the arrow and the classic ‘please use stairs in case of fire’ graphic.
Once at the elevator there would be the expected up or down arrow buttons but someone has whimsically replaced the usual arrows with an angel and a devil. In that little foyer area is another little plush chair, and in this one is a basket filled with flowers and fruit. A crude drawing is tied to the top of the handle, the words For Nina in bright crayon were under the somewhat stick figure version of her on the paper.
“Aww,” Nina says as she approaches the chair and basket. “How sweet?” She places her hands underneath the basket it order to lift it. Surprisingly, it was more hefty than she thought it would be. Nina’s eyes quickly scans its contents. She spots varies colors and creeds of apples. “Nice, nice.” A bouquet of of white and purple Lenten roses catches her attention. The flowers give off a mild smell—freshly picked. “I’ll be sure to thank her before I leave.”
For a moment, she ponders if she should simply wait there in the chair. However, that idea quickly flees her mind. There woman older told her that she’d need to ascend to the top, and the young girl had pointed to the elevator itself. Nina tucks the basket underneath her right arm and then steps inside.
Nina gingerly taps the angel button, which causes the elevator to go upwards. The ascent is slower than normal, but it isn’t a problem. The doors make a tiny creaking sound as the elevator comes to a stop. A moment later the doors opened up and Nina steps out.
“Well here she is. Welcome to my parlour, Nina.”
Aurora’s voice was low, a pleasant contralto when spoken at a normal level. For many years most had only heard it at a breathy whisper, but after her adventures in Ireland filming as Anne Boleyn, she had finally dropped the affectation. She had a baby on her hip as Nina would be able to see as she came in to greet her, the area right off of the elevator could have been called cozy if it wasn’t so large, though everything there including the supremely oversized recliner said ‘comfort’. Aurora handed the blond child who was just over two years old off to another dark haired woman, if Nina knew her wrestling she might recognize her as Aubrey J Parker-Wilkinson. Aubrey nods to Nina as she takes Nicoleta, and looks Nina over before she leaves the room.
“They’ll be back after a bit, it’s time that Nicoleta and Rhiannon have their naps.”
Aurora herself is dressed simply, a summerweight baby-doll dress of sheer crepe over a cotton chemise, with dark leggings in deference to the outside season. She smiles at Nina with a quirk of her plush lips, and gestures towards a low table that’s set with a tea service and several small plates filled with tiny sandwiches, cookies, and bites of fruit.
“I see you found the present from the girls. They were ever so excited that we were having new company. They enjoy it so much.”
“Yup yup,” Nina replies as she takes a seat. “I’ll admit, the gifts caught me off guard just a bit. I wasn’t expecting them.” She sits the basket down on the floor, being mindful not to tip its contents onto the ground. “I do appreciate them greatly though.”
Nina happens to take note of Aurora’s style of dress. A younger version of herself might have felt embarrassed or out of place; but she’s quite comfortable, despite her own clothing being much different than everyone else’s she’s seen in the building. Her black pea-coat hides a black sleeved dress; the sleeves themselves a black, purple, and gray checkered pattern. A pair of black Aquatalia Odilia riding boots covers most of her lower body.
She crosses her right leg over her left. “Thanks for inviting me over.” Nina reaches over and takes ahold of a cup of tea. “And I’m sorry that Ryan couldn’t make it. She had some business sh—” She stosps herself. It wasn’t polite to curse, especially if you were an invited guest. Plus, there were young ones in the vicinity. “Sorry. She had some business stuff pop off as soon as we touched down here in Chicago.” Nina places a bit of sugar in her tea and stirs it. “It shouldn’t take her all day though, so she should be able to meet us later.”
“Lovely. If not, we can surely arrange another time.”
Aurora reaches for her own cup and adds a bit of milk before she perches on the arm of one of the chairs, as if chaining her energy to one spot. Her eyes are amazingly green as she peers at Nina, as if weighing her by some strange magic before she smiles.
“There’s never enough time to relax, doing what we do. So you have to learn to make that time. It’s important, just as important as what challenges are next.”
There was a chorus of barking then as a pair of fluffy small dogs came through and Aurora shakes her head.
“Well I suppose I should count myself lucky everyone is behaving today.”
“Yeah, you’re right about making time.” Another smile came to her face as she observes the dogs for a little while. “Well those are some cuties, huh?”
Nina takes a small sip of her tea. It is still hot to the taste, a little too hot. She sits it on the table and lets it rest for a moment.
“Everyone hmm. I assume you mean the animals and the people?”
Her hand hovers over the sandwich tray. Nina ultimately choses a tiny sandwich loaded with cheese and turkey.
“Your place is pretty fancy,” Nina says before she takes a small bite.
“Mostly.”
Her voice seems dreamy, a little unfocused but her eyes are sharp as they roam over Nina and then the room.
“It was… well, Legacy used to live in the top floor. Like a penthouse apartment but the entire floor. Plus the roof? I’m not sure. But after we married he bought the entire building and remade it the way he felt I would enjoy it best. I miss the castle, but so much of our life is focused back in the states right now that it’s not practical to be in Italy.”
A sudden laugh colors her words as she shakes her head.
“That sounds so weird, even to me. When I started wrestling? Being able to afford a bus ticket rather than car pooling with whomever I could was a luxury.”
“Yeah, I imagine things are a lot different now, huh?”
Nina takes another bite of her sandwich. Once more and it disappeared completely.
“I remember watching ya’, back when I was finishing college and all of that. You were good back then, really good.” Nina cracks a smile. “Seems like you’ve gotten even better with time. Like fine wine and such.” She pauses. “I suppose that’s the nature of the business though, yeah?”
She decides to test out that tea once more. Nina lifts it to her lips and takes a sip. It is just right.
“Sometimes.”
Bemused tone as she sips her own tea, those amazing green eyes blink a few times and for a moment seem a darker shade before she shakes her head.
“Some people fold under the pressure, or the pain… injuries rack up, and some never take the time to heal themselves properly. Did you know, I almost died because of a match?”
There is a hint of mirth to her then, a soft laugh as she shakes her head.
“Only incidentally because of the match. I had one of those implants, for birth control like they used to put in your arm. Smashed it during that ladder match with Ashlyn De Luca and turns out I was allergic to it. The small dose would just make me vaguely tired they said but that large release? Very bad. But in a way, it turned out for the best.”
Aurora almost snickered, but smoothed it out.
“A little too much information, I guess.”
Nina wavsd her hand in reply to Aurora’s last statement.
“Naw, not at all. I used to be squeamish a bit when I first started wrestling, but those times have long since passed.” She tilts her head back as her brain begins to churn a bit. “But I guess all the deathmatch stuff I did early on kinda’ did away with that all, you know?”
She pauses as she takes another sip of tea.
“I don’t have as many war stories as you, but I’ve gone through the mire a bit during my time in the sport.” Nina taps on her chin as she tries to recall. “Let’s see. Laurel Anne Hardy nearly killed me when we fought in our deathmatch.” She traces along her forehead with her right index finger. “She carved me up pretty good with a piece of glass.” The memories cause her to let out a laugh. “We bleed like crazy; I’m pretty sure we still got each others blood running through our veins.”
Nina carefully rolls up her left sleeve. A long, albeit faded scar ran the length of her forearm. Her own eyes gravitate towards it. “That little beauty came from Cordy Stevenson when we met at PWP’s Queen of Death tournament.” She shakes her head. “I got my butt rocked in that match. I learned a lot though.”
Her brown eyes lock with Aurora’s as her sleeve returns to normal.
“That’s half the point, I think. I fought Laurel this year, did you see it? We had a Lightsaber Duel in a Jolly Rancher ballpit. People thought we were nuts but that was such a fun time. I’ve been… doing things like that. Matches that I want, where I want, with whom I want. We all have such a finite amount of time and it slips away faster than you can imagine it would. I remember like it was yesterday my very first match, meeting my own expectations… but when I think about it, that yesterday was ten years ago now. How amusing is that?”
Aurora reaches up and moves aside part of her hair near her right ear, showing her a large spot that was nearly entirely white instead of the golden blonde. She made sure Nina notes it before she releases it and chuckles again.
“It’s the unexpected things that keep us on our toes. That spot was where some of my hair ripped out at the roots during a Pentagram match, when Drake Mosa hung Georgie from the top of the cage by my braid. Part of me misses those times, as frankly odd as that sounds. Mostly? Because our motives seemed so much more pure back then. I’m possibly idealizing that past, you know how that is.”
“I do,” Nina replies as she leans back in her seat a bit. She hadn’t really anticipated that type of answer from Aurora. A bunch of questions jumped to the forefront of her mind. She decides to grab the most obvious of them.
“Everyone in wrestling has the power to determine their own destiny. But someone of your talent and tenure? Well, you destiny is whatever you’d like it to be.
“Soooo, who is on your short-list of people to face?” She hoped it didn’t sound to blunt or forceful. “I mean, I am sure you’ve got people lining up far and wide to come face you. Who stands out?”
She chuckles softly, giving Nina a glance with those green eyes of hers. She reaches for her phone and fiddles with it a moment, but not to be rude - she wants to show her a few things and it’s just easier. After a moment she turns it so that Nina can see the screen.
“Well you should know you’re on it, just from what I’ve said to you.”
A bemused tone, and a sly but nearly adorable smile came before she scrolls just a little with the tip of her finger and does so again with each person named.
“This is Melissa Reeves. She intrigues me. This? Is Jackie Fowler. What a mouth on him but he fights like his life depends on every match. Tommy Evans, see? Gwen Justice. Every time we’ve tried something has happened.”
Her tone darkens considerably at the next one.
“Bobby B. Barabbas.”
It takes a moment for that frown to vanish, the line between her brows to ease.
“There are others. Many, many others. Some of them even now are flocking to Spirit and Pride, and I don’t worry about those matches. They’ll happen. These? Perhaps more elusive. And one day, I know my sweet Sophie will come knocking again and it will be her time. Not yet, though she’s tried and come close.”
“That’s a pretty impressive shortlist,” Nina says before she takes another sip of her tea. “Mel is a friend of mine; I met her last year. I wrestled Jackie once. In fact, I’m familiar with all of them, expect Gwen Justice unfortunately.” Nina nods as she swirls the tea around in her cup. “And Sophie? Well she’s family and all that. We’ve had a couple matches; they were a blast.”
Nina nods her head. “It’s a bunch of talent on that list.” She pauses to ponder. “But based on all that, I’m curious how I end up on your list?”
She hoped her question didn’t sound coy; she had not meant it to be. Numerous people had expressed interested in fighting Nina over the course of her career; and each one always surprised her.
“Me? I’m good—damn good even.” She immediately regretted letting that curse word slip out, but she pressed on. “But you? Well, not to blow smoke up your bum, but you are a legend in this sport. I’m surprised I’d even be on your radar, especially since I’ve been outta’ action the past few months…
“Unless it had something to do with our exchange in the battle royal.”
Just mentioning Boats ‘N Throws brings a joyous smile to Nina’s face. She had fond memories of that night. Returning to the ring after a long period of is often quite the nerve-racking experience. But when Dir En Grey first played through the venue and she made her way down the steps to address the crowd, well, she felt at home. And the match itself? She had the time of her life. Being a outsider only to come in and nearly win it all, it was an awesome feeling.
It was also a bit bitter-sweet. Nina had started to become bridesmaid, in terms of battles royals and such. However she pushes that thought to the back of her brain as she shakes her head and looks back at Aurora.
“That was one of the best night’s of my life.” She snaps her finger. “Well, minus drying and cleaning out that Spider-Gwen suit. That was a bit of a pain,” she says with a laugh.
“That smile, is why.”
Aurora’s voice, soft and thoughtful as her plush lips quirked as if she couldn’t help but return that smile.
“You shone in the fight, you were enjoying yourself out there and you didn’t back down an inch even though you were in an environment no one can truthfully say is familiar. No matter how many battle royals we are in they are all different but you embraced that chaos with a joy that I find rare in this business. So of course I was instantly curious with the idea of competing with you, without all the outside fuss. Just you and I.”
“I see, I see.” Her praise and kind words made Nina smile once more. “To be honest, I was kinda’ surprised no one else in the ring wanted to set up to you. And when no one else did, I figured ‘why not,’ you know? Those type of opportunities don’t appear very often.”
She clasps her hands together in her lap as she continues on.
“It might make you happy to know that said match could happen sooner rather than later.” She grinned.
One of those blonde brows raises and Aurora smiles warmly.
“It would make me very happy, honestly. Did you have something in mind? I’m excited to hear about anything that interests me like this, taking even a step closer. I’m not nearly as patient as I seem, when it comes to good things.”
“Yeah, I can tell you are woman that gets what she wants.” Nina gives Aurora a playful smile and she leans back in her seat.
“Even though I was a super outsider, Phoenix treated me as if I were at home. And since I’m healed, rested, and I have to ability to roam as I please now, I figured why not make Phoenix my home.” Nina nods her head. “It will be a different change of pace, that’s for sure. But I think it’s a good move.There are a bunch of people there that I’d love to mix it up with.
“Said move would also make a match between the two of us extremely viable. Sounds like a good plan to me.”
“More like an excellent one.”
Aurora’s smile was definitely warm as she reaches for her tea and takes a nice long sip, a tiny sigh following it up before she sets the cup to saucer and looks Nina over. Her eyes roam from head to toe and then she nods.
“I can see you’re excited, it gives you such vibrancy. I wish it wasn’t so rare, but then… I suppose that’s why rare things are so precious. To those that can See, that is.”
“Yeah, I’m super excited; can’t lie about that.” Nina pauses for a moment. “Sometimes I’ve got to keep that excitement tucked away and hidden though, you know?
“Professional wrestling is, well, it can be wild sometimes. People will go out of their way to disparage you, even though you’ve been busting your ass and working as hard as you can. People will ignore what you’ve done in the sport, your personal struggles and victories. And people find joy in snuffing out others excitement…”
There’s a particular look in Nina’s eyes; she’d been speaking from personal experience. Most would have classified and identified it as melancholy. A part of her brain told her that she was a fool, that she should have kept her guard up. And yet, she found herself trusting Aurora, even though they’d just truly met. Besides, Nina knew trying to cover something up would be futile. Aurora had seen everything else, after all.
“That always amuses me, to a degree - how blind some people will deliberately make themselves. The first Iron King Tournament I was involved in, I was… the prize at the end, so to speak. Those that fought were trying to get to me, to face me for my World title, and there were some who had signed up that had no idea who the champion they were fighting to face even was, and it made me laugh when they fell and fell hard before they even got close.”
Aurora reaches over and gently touched a strand of Nina’s hair, smoothing it.
“It’s especially gratifying to me, to show those who are especially dense about it, the true depth of the mistake that they just made. There are some that might say I’m harsh about it, but really… am I harsh enough? As they say, sometimes… you’ve got to be cruel to be kind.”
A soft, nearly gentle laugh.
“Would you like to hear an amusing story, Nina?”
“Yes of course,” Nina replies.
“When I was first hired with Phoenix, I tried to do things the way I’d always wanted to. I wanted to walk that straight and narrow path. To be for lack of a better word, one of the good guys… do you know, what they did? Not the fans, even the ones that knew what my prior experiences had been. They? Were cautiously optimistic. But people like Rowyn Starr, JaGi… they singled me out. Shut me out. Put me in a space away from them, because of a variety of reasons, but mostly because of Legacy.”
She laughs softly, shaking her head.
“It was as if they put me on a platter and handed me to him, and frankly I wouldn’t have had it the other way. I would rather be myself, no matter what that is, then be something I am not, to be accepted by those backstabbing ‘good guys’. It’s refreshing, Nina. Just be. Just be who you are and let what happens happen.”
Just be who you are and let what happens happen—those words stuck with Nina. She always tried to be as one hundred and transparent as she could. But like anyone other person, there were things she held back. There were times when she wanted to do something, say something, but held herself back for whatever reason. As much as she hated to admit it, people’s perception of her was something that she always harked back to.
“Just be myself huh?” Nina asks. “But what if the world can’t handle my full true self, whether good or bad?”
“That sounds like a them problem, doesn’t it?”
Aurora winks at her, then she takes one fingertip and draws it around the top edge of her empty teacup.
“We are finite, while we are alive. Think about this, Nina. What you see, what we are now, isn’t all that there is. But it is all that we know. Why do we allow others to define what we are, when we are fully capable of doing our own defining? It’s a mystery. It took me a good long while to come to that conclusion, and I’ve never been so free, after I did.”
“I thought I’d come to that conclusion as well.” Her right hand migrates towards her hair; she fluffs it a bit as she speaks. “When I was rocking and rolling on that year-long championship reign in Hard Knox Wrestling, I told myself that I wasn’t going to be concerned about no one’s opinions except my own. And for the most part, I did just that.
“But once in a blue moon, every so often, someone would say something and I’d find myself caring. Caring and stressing over something I’ve got no control over.”
Nina shakes her head. She knew how foolish she probably sounded.
“Crazy, yeah?”
“It’s not crazy, Nina. Just human. Words have impact that stays with you even… sometimes especially when you know they’re not true. Yet you still wonder what made that other person say what they said. It’s the usual thing in this business to fling whatever one can at someone to try and ‘get under their skin’... I find that lazy and boring. If I come at someone with my words I don’t want an accidental impact. I want to drop a nuke from orbit, if I’m taking the time to do it. I suppose that’s why some people never get over hating me after I beat them? It’s really hard to say. But… it’s also really hard for someone to make me take something personal. Though there are some who persist.”
Aurora has a musing look on her face as she pours herself more tea and then offers to refill Nina’s if she’d like, which she accepts.
“They like their excuses and their twisted narratives quite fine, but they could truly grow from the experiences they go through and just refuse to do it. I’ve never understood that.”
Nina nodded her head. “I know I’ve done a lot in my three years; some people would rest on those laurels. But, I try to do my best to find some type of take away from each experience. If I take an L, I sit down and analyze the problem so that I can mitigate it in the future. And if I win? I still study the tape. I try to find when and where I could have done something better, or made a better decision.”
A half laugh escapes from her lips as she rubs her eyes with right hand.
“My wife says I can be a bit obsessed when I’m training or preparing. It’s like all my brain can do is think about the match, or wrestling as whole. Even jacks up my sleep…” Nina pauses in her tracks. “Look a me. I’m rambling.” She shakes her head as she lets out another short laugh. “Regardless, your words are very wise. They are also appreciated. I’ll remember them as I go forward.
“I will tell you that a match with you won’t make me hate ya’. Naw, win or lose, it will motivate me—no doubt.”
“These are all good things. But I wasn’t worried that you’d hate me - you don’t have that sort of glow to you. As far as rambling? Why not? Sometimes a stream of consciousness will take us further than the most rationally planned out things. Life is funny that way. Or annoying? I get that confused.”
A tiny laugh put the joke into the statement, but her green eyes stay watching Nina.
“The sleep thing though. I think all of us are guilty of it. It’s not just our notes, or our “tape” or those last minute plotting out what moves will be best. I just think we’re all geared that way. So much to do, never knowing when it’s all done forever, so we are all the sort to try and pack in as much as possible.”
“Yeah, I suppose you are right. For me, it results in insomnia.” She responds. “You’ve probably seen me tweet about my video game stuff. When I wrestled, I always did them late at night because I couldn’t sleep anyway. I get up around four in the morning often times; and in order to not waste time, I usually train.”
She pauses her talking for a brief moment.
“It’s going to be weird getting back into the swing of things. Ha, I guess it’s a good thing I signed up to do that that KAMIKAZE Pro Tag Team League. Should help me ease back into motion and all that fun stuff.”
Nina adds a bit of sugar to her newly filled cup of tea.
“You know, I almost didn’t ‘come back’. When Phoenix reopened, I was quite content training the students at RISE. Working with Arkia is always a joy for me, and Andreas… well, he and I have a sort of connection. Hard to express. But we work very well together, the results speak for themselves. But there were those… little things, I wanted to do and hadn’t. So I can honestly say while I didn’t miss some aspects, once I was back in that ring the switch flipped immediately and I knew I had done what I needed to do.”
She laughs softly and shakes her head, one hand up to move her hair off her shoulder.
“I can’t say I regret it - the things I’ve gotten to do since then, and am in the process of now? Have definitely made it worth it. The kids being old enough to come with doesn’t hurt either.”
Aurora relaxes back a bit in her chair, swirling her tea in her cup for a few moments.
“If you could ask me one question, anything at all, what would it be?”
It doesn’t take Nina long to think of a question to ask.
“Here is one. You’re good at reading people; I can tell that from our few minutes together. How did you develop that skill?”
Nina stirs her tea once more and took a sip.
“And if there is anything you’d like to ask me, please feel free.”
Aurora laughs softly, tipping her head a bit before she answers, her hair moving to frame her face softly.
“I am Rom, Americanized by our Matrilineal bloodline moving to the States but our family came from Romania. Deep, old blood. They say that we See things others don’t, I’m sure you’ve likely heard a rumor or two about that in your travels? So it’s partially this, but mostly I learned from my Puri dai, my Grandmother how to read people. All the little things from the tone of voice and pitch, to those little body language quirks. How to put it all together and understand it, mostly. Anyone can do that part, if they simply learn to see what it is they’re looking at.”
She looks at Nina again and a hint of a smile creeps back on her plush lips.
“How old were you, when you knew you’d never want to be just… ordinary.”
A peculiar question, Nina thought to herself. Even still, she believed that she had the correct answer.
“That’s a mighty question,” Nina said with a small laugh. “Well, I suppose I can say I was a youngster. Maybe four or five. That’s when I decided that I was going to live the life I lead now. But at that age, people think your just pulling their leg, or that you’ll grow out of things.”
Unfortunately, her smile fades almost as quickly as it appeared. A couple of thoughts run through her head.
“I guess that exact time I knew I I’d never be normal was the end of high school.”
She was hesitant for a moment.
“Would you like to hear?”
Her answer was simple, almost gentle, though something moves in her eyes, some emotion as she takes in Nina’s responses.
“Yes, I think I would. And I believe I’m going to understand you, a whole lot more than you’d ever imagine.”
“Well, I guess…” Her voice quivers for a moment. She lets out a sigh, willing the hesitation away. “I had a boyfriend back when I was in high school. I was super innocent back then; probably naive as well. Things were good between us, at least at first. You know, that honeymoon phase. But, things changed after a couple of weeks of being together. He became abrasive and aggressive when he spoke to me. Then started asking about my whereabouts, constantly asking me what I was doing when we weren’t together.
“Things got violent a little later on.” She shakes her head a bit. “There was one huge breaking point. I remember coming home from the library one day. There was a huge that I was working on; it was worthy a big percentage of my grade. Afterwards, I went to my boyfriends house. He started to get loud and demanded to know where I’d been. I told him the truth, but he just assumed I’d been stepping out on him for someone reason.
“He punched me. He kneed me. He slammed my head against the wall. And then he left me nearly knocked out on the floor. Who knows what would have happened if my friends hadn’t showed up.
“That day let me know that I’d never be normal.” She nods her head. “Not because it happened to me—but because I was later able to hold my head up high. Going through all of that and still being able to stand? It meant that I was strong, stronger than most...”
Her words trail off and she goes silent for while.
“I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to give you a sob story. But, I was able to stand in the end. I learned I was strong. And that strength helps me stand even now.
“I get frustrated with things in life, things in my career. But I do my best not to quit, because I know I’m strong and can handle things in the end.”
“Despite what is thrown your way, you persist. That’s a wonderful quality to have, Nina. Don’t shortchange yourself, or undersell your experiences as a mere sob story - they’re events, they happened, and you became who you are because of them. That was a hard lesson I learned as well. The only person that can truly limit you, is you.”
Aurora sets her teacup on the saucer and stretches, before relaxing down with a sigh.
“It’s nice though, that you have someone to support you, to hold you up. It took me a long time to find mine, but the wait was worth it. The mistakes I made on the way just informed my decision better, I like to think.”
A smile plays on her lips again, and she waves her hand to indicate everything around them.
“When you’ve finished your tea, we’ll head on to the nursery and you can meet the children properly, it’s about time for them to be up from their nap.”
Any sadness that is in Nina’s brown eyes fades immediately away as the prospect of meeting the children is announced.
“Yes!”
Fin.
