Passing On
Apr. 26th, 2008 11:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kolPassing On
Fandom: Kingdom
Prompts: 31_days: Rest easy, soldier & fanfic100: Passing
The sky was shifting to mid afternoon, clouds hugging the skyline, the winds stirring in the distance. Although her weather sense was far from as acute as Mara’s, Loni hugged her bare arms, knowing the thin silk would offer little defense against the storm approaching.
Loni wasn’t one for musing on the weather, but being around Hunters had taught her to pay attention to what her element was telling her. She might not be the best at manipulating wind, but she could sense it, listen to it, understand it.
And the wind was running away from that storm.
The wind was afraid.
She giggled, shaking her head so that her long hair trembled about her shoulders and hips, teased by the racing winds. Wind can’t be afraid, silly! She was just uneasy, putting emotions to an inanimate element, pushing her own worries onto the air itself.
Yet… she couldn’t help but notice a texture to the air swirling around her, a weight that pressed down on her from all sides. The air was reacting to something, pushing away from a wrongness, rolling past her in pressure whirls.
Perhaps I should have gone with Mara and the others, Loni turned her eyes towards the College District, where the older Hunters were sure to be. But this seal business…
Fact was Loni would rather visit her creepy, senile grandmother than take down that seal— major hotties in the Fortress or not.
The retirement home smelled of tunafish and an unidentifiable musk— and not a pleasant kind you’d find at the mall. She hated this place— the windows were tinted yellow, no good views, everyone shuffled with their eyes to the ground— every inch of the place was a reminder of life having an end. There was no joy to this place— no living.
It was a place to retire from life, the worst kind of nursing home.
When Loni was younger, she remembered visiting her grandmother in a much nicer place. Just across the street, a retirement community that offered excitement and games and friends. In her better moments, Brendalee had been the life of the party, the airy southern bell with the Californian accent, dazzling all the widowers with her still radiant beauty.
And her strawberry pink hair, a bleached shade compared to the raspberry pink Loni now sported.
Brendalee’s hair now was matted white and hung in clumps down her shallow back. Her hands, so long and beautiful only a few years before, were gnarled and wrinkled, listless in her lap as she stared blankly at the white wall.
Loni paused before the door; she knew exactly how her grandmother would be, and it was unsettling to see this woman, who had been such a huge force of nature, diminished to a husk. But she was family, and that meant more to Loni than chasing after a stupid seal she didn’t want to break anyway.
But her hand paused before she knocked, her eyes locked on the faded nameplate on the door. Brendalee MacKay. It read, in stark faded lettering. And entire person’s life, reduced to just their name.
Her hand opened and pushed the door open; it wasn’t as if Brendalee would notice a knock.
Hopefully, this visit would be over quickly.
But her grandmother was not seated before the wall. Instead, she was sitting on the edge of her poorly made bed, her hands holding a small wooden box, and her eyes—-
Her eyes SAW Loni, for the first time since she had moved to the mainland.
“My dear, what have you done with your hair?!” Brendalee laughed, her thin arms fluttering up— Loni stepped into the woman’s skeletal embrace, her eyes squeezed shut against her grandmother’s hair. She took in the woman’s scent— she smelled of the home, yes, but she’d taken care to spray herself with that exotic, old glamor smell she had always linked with Brendalee. Class with a punch.
“Oh, you know us kids,” Loni pulled from her grandmother’s embrace to smile. “How are you-”
Brendalee waved her arm, her air dismissive. “I’m old and feeble, girl, the trails of my life can’t possibly interest you. Now, how long are you visiting?”
Loni closed her eyes. She had visited Brendalee three times a week since arriving in April. “We moved back, Grammy. Mum wanted us to be close to Dad.”
“Oh. Well, you should visit me more often. And bring your father— he neglects me in my old age, but not like my favorite granddaughter,” The woman leaned forwards, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “I knew you were coming today.”
“Oh Grammy, you know I’m your own granddaughter.” Loni seated herself on the bed beside her grandmother, her eyes crinkling from her wide smile. “And how did you know I was coming?”
“Silly girl— haven’t you figured it out?” Brendalee shook her head as she opened the box— but her laughter was greatly reduced, and the light was dimming in her warm brown eyes. “I can feel everyone with the gifts. Known about you for years— so bright…”
“The gifts?”
Brendalee’s hand raised to touch Loni’s hair— her eyes were misting over quickly now, Loni knew there wasn’t much time. “You don’t come by hair that color by bottle with your heritage, my dear. Now Hunting, that puts the oddness in.”
“Hunting?”
“Don’t play me for a fool, dear, I can feel the winds around you; you can’t control them as delicately as I can, but you, you can summon them. I can feel it. Got the gift of the MacKays I see.”
“But I thought-”
“You thought your grandfather had the gift?” Brendalee shook her head, turning the box towards Loni. “I married the only one of the MacKay’s without the gift; you know… our marriage brought the two lines together. Had to pass on… the line. The sacred line.”
Brendalee’s gnarled hand curled around Loni’s arm, tightening with urgency. Her eyes were locked on the white walls.
”You— I can feel it in you. Not in your brother. You carry it. That is why I give you this key, Loni. Go to the house, to the attic. There, a mate to this key, a lock to a hope chest, my hope chest. But no linens you will find— no, this is a Hunter’s gift to her descendents. A secret… You must take this key, unlock the first. And you must protect the seal.”
“The seal?” Loni leaned towards her grandmother, breathless.
Brendalee managed a nod— and then, withdrew back into the silence, her hold on Loni’s arm growing lighter and lighter until the claw fell lax into her lap, and the small wooden box slipped to the floor.
Loni sniffled, but bent to collect the key, composing herself. She had come to terms with her grandmother’s illness a long time ago— or as best you could, with the woman still there on occasion. Sometimes the body gave out— Loni knew her grandmother had lived a good life, and now, knowing she had been a Hunter, well, it made Brendalee even more awesome in Loni’s mind.
She stood, and wrapped her arms around the unresponsive woman. “I love you Grammy,” She whispered into the other woman’s ear, and felt phantom limbs wrapping her arms around Loni. Sometimes, Loni’s imagination was better than reality. “I’ll see you next week.”
She left the room, cutting a path through the air to quicken her space. There wasn’t much time— she had a hope chest to investigate, and then had to track down the Fortress gang, somehow get them to listen to reason.
I have the seal to protect now, Loni thought, pulling her emotions together and smiling. And I can do it. Grammy gave me two presents today, and I'm not going to waste them!
But she'd keep this secret. Neither of her parents would understand; both saw the woman as already gone. They visited Brendalee out of guilt.
But Loni? Loni didn't visit-- she waited, waited for her grandmother to come out again, taking pride in the woman her grandmother had been-- and briefly, could be again.
I'm going to do Brendalee proud, Loni thought with enthusiasm; but on the edges, confusion nibbled. Just as soon as I figure out how to get out of this stupid nursing home.
Not happy with it, but figured I'd post it before I finish today's. Meh. Although, it was good working on this, because I realized that Loni's got way more depth to her than I ever credit her with.
Fandom: Kingdom
Prompts: 31_days: Rest easy, soldier & fanfic100: Passing
The sky was shifting to mid afternoon, clouds hugging the skyline, the winds stirring in the distance. Although her weather sense was far from as acute as Mara’s, Loni hugged her bare arms, knowing the thin silk would offer little defense against the storm approaching.
Loni wasn’t one for musing on the weather, but being around Hunters had taught her to pay attention to what her element was telling her. She might not be the best at manipulating wind, but she could sense it, listen to it, understand it.
And the wind was running away from that storm.
The wind was afraid.
She giggled, shaking her head so that her long hair trembled about her shoulders and hips, teased by the racing winds. Wind can’t be afraid, silly! She was just uneasy, putting emotions to an inanimate element, pushing her own worries onto the air itself.
Yet… she couldn’t help but notice a texture to the air swirling around her, a weight that pressed down on her from all sides. The air was reacting to something, pushing away from a wrongness, rolling past her in pressure whirls.
Perhaps I should have gone with Mara and the others, Loni turned her eyes towards the College District, where the older Hunters were sure to be. But this seal business…
Fact was Loni would rather visit her creepy, senile grandmother than take down that seal— major hotties in the Fortress or not.
The retirement home smelled of tunafish and an unidentifiable musk— and not a pleasant kind you’d find at the mall. She hated this place— the windows were tinted yellow, no good views, everyone shuffled with their eyes to the ground— every inch of the place was a reminder of life having an end. There was no joy to this place— no living.
It was a place to retire from life, the worst kind of nursing home.
When Loni was younger, she remembered visiting her grandmother in a much nicer place. Just across the street, a retirement community that offered excitement and games and friends. In her better moments, Brendalee had been the life of the party, the airy southern bell with the Californian accent, dazzling all the widowers with her still radiant beauty.
And her strawberry pink hair, a bleached shade compared to the raspberry pink Loni now sported.
Brendalee’s hair now was matted white and hung in clumps down her shallow back. Her hands, so long and beautiful only a few years before, were gnarled and wrinkled, listless in her lap as she stared blankly at the white wall.
Loni paused before the door; she knew exactly how her grandmother would be, and it was unsettling to see this woman, who had been such a huge force of nature, diminished to a husk. But she was family, and that meant more to Loni than chasing after a stupid seal she didn’t want to break anyway.
But her hand paused before she knocked, her eyes locked on the faded nameplate on the door. Brendalee MacKay. It read, in stark faded lettering. And entire person’s life, reduced to just their name.
Her hand opened and pushed the door open; it wasn’t as if Brendalee would notice a knock.
Hopefully, this visit would be over quickly.
But her grandmother was not seated before the wall. Instead, she was sitting on the edge of her poorly made bed, her hands holding a small wooden box, and her eyes—-
Her eyes SAW Loni, for the first time since she had moved to the mainland.
“My dear, what have you done with your hair?!” Brendalee laughed, her thin arms fluttering up— Loni stepped into the woman’s skeletal embrace, her eyes squeezed shut against her grandmother’s hair. She took in the woman’s scent— she smelled of the home, yes, but she’d taken care to spray herself with that exotic, old glamor smell she had always linked with Brendalee. Class with a punch.
“Oh, you know us kids,” Loni pulled from her grandmother’s embrace to smile. “How are you-”
Brendalee waved her arm, her air dismissive. “I’m old and feeble, girl, the trails of my life can’t possibly interest you. Now, how long are you visiting?”
Loni closed her eyes. She had visited Brendalee three times a week since arriving in April. “We moved back, Grammy. Mum wanted us to be close to Dad.”
“Oh. Well, you should visit me more often. And bring your father— he neglects me in my old age, but not like my favorite granddaughter,” The woman leaned forwards, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “I knew you were coming today.”
“Oh Grammy, you know I’m your own granddaughter.” Loni seated herself on the bed beside her grandmother, her eyes crinkling from her wide smile. “And how did you know I was coming?”
“Silly girl— haven’t you figured it out?” Brendalee shook her head as she opened the box— but her laughter was greatly reduced, and the light was dimming in her warm brown eyes. “I can feel everyone with the gifts. Known about you for years— so bright…”
“The gifts?”
Brendalee’s hand raised to touch Loni’s hair— her eyes were misting over quickly now, Loni knew there wasn’t much time. “You don’t come by hair that color by bottle with your heritage, my dear. Now Hunting, that puts the oddness in.”
“Hunting?”
“Don’t play me for a fool, dear, I can feel the winds around you; you can’t control them as delicately as I can, but you, you can summon them. I can feel it. Got the gift of the MacKays I see.”
“But I thought-”
“You thought your grandfather had the gift?” Brendalee shook her head, turning the box towards Loni. “I married the only one of the MacKay’s without the gift; you know… our marriage brought the two lines together. Had to pass on… the line. The sacred line.”
Brendalee’s gnarled hand curled around Loni’s arm, tightening with urgency. Her eyes were locked on the white walls.
”You— I can feel it in you. Not in your brother. You carry it. That is why I give you this key, Loni. Go to the house, to the attic. There, a mate to this key, a lock to a hope chest, my hope chest. But no linens you will find— no, this is a Hunter’s gift to her descendents. A secret… You must take this key, unlock the first. And you must protect the seal.”
“The seal?” Loni leaned towards her grandmother, breathless.
Brendalee managed a nod— and then, withdrew back into the silence, her hold on Loni’s arm growing lighter and lighter until the claw fell lax into her lap, and the small wooden box slipped to the floor.
Loni sniffled, but bent to collect the key, composing herself. She had come to terms with her grandmother’s illness a long time ago— or as best you could, with the woman still there on occasion. Sometimes the body gave out— Loni knew her grandmother had lived a good life, and now, knowing she had been a Hunter, well, it made Brendalee even more awesome in Loni’s mind.
She stood, and wrapped her arms around the unresponsive woman. “I love you Grammy,” She whispered into the other woman’s ear, and felt phantom limbs wrapping her arms around Loni. Sometimes, Loni’s imagination was better than reality. “I’ll see you next week.”
She left the room, cutting a path through the air to quicken her space. There wasn’t much time— she had a hope chest to investigate, and then had to track down the Fortress gang, somehow get them to listen to reason.
I have the seal to protect now, Loni thought, pulling her emotions together and smiling. And I can do it. Grammy gave me two presents today, and I'm not going to waste them!
But she'd keep this secret. Neither of her parents would understand; both saw the woman as already gone. They visited Brendalee out of guilt.
But Loni? Loni didn't visit-- she waited, waited for her grandmother to come out again, taking pride in the woman her grandmother had been-- and briefly, could be again.
I'm going to do Brendalee proud, Loni thought with enthusiasm; but on the edges, confusion nibbled. Just as soon as I figure out how to get out of this stupid nursing home.
Not happy with it, but figured I'd post it before I finish today's. Meh. Although, it was good working on this, because I realized that Loni's got way more depth to her than I ever credit her with.
