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Post by Lili Walser on Nov 14, 2011 12:28:07 GMT -5
It was a lovely day. It really was. The sunshine was out, the air was just warm enough for comfort without a wrap, and she felt completely at ease in the market alone.
She was really here for a gift for Gilbert... no particular reason, other than that she wanted to give him something - and she didn't know what he'd really do with yet another embroidered portrait of his birds. There was only so much wall space in his room... and there were only so many ways one could embroider a chick and have it look different. Or a group of chicks... or... or anything having to do with baby birds. Not that they weren't all darling things... but... well...
So she was in the market with the intention of finding Gilbert a gift.
Why was her cousin impossible to shop for? Goodness. She'd looked at clothing - but none suited him. She'd looked at books... but they had a library at the manor. She'd looked at odd little trinkets, but she didn't care for anything she saw. The only thing she had left, in her mind, were guns. And guns terrified her. But, well... Gilbert liked them. And Gilbert insisted she know how to use one... so the thought of having one in her hand wasn't that frightening.
That was a lie. It really was... but... she didn't know what else to get him. And she wanted to get him something. So... well... She'd just stop by the stand where she picked her embroidering supplies out as a reward.
Moments later, she was in front of the firearm merchant, twisting her fingers together nervously. This was going to be a trick...
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 16, 2011 13:08:15 GMT -5
Almost immediately, a rather big, looking burly man grabbed her arm from behind, a stupid, almost eery grin on his face. He looked at the other.
"Hello little lady, bit lost are you?~ A young woman such as you shouldn't be in such a stall, maybe you need some guidance~" Others were eyeing the exchange a bit oddly, but most people hurried by.
The older man leaned in, that smile still twinkling. "Why don't you come with me, lady? I can show you the way around~"
This didn't last long, as the man jumped back almost as abruptly as he'd grabbed ahold of her.
A more taller man, beneath a plain hood, scowled. "Bloody hell, leave her alone. It's people like you that she's probably getting the gun in the first place. Clear off."
The other eyed the new stranger suspiciously for a moment, before he grunted, sneered, and stalked off into the crowd.
Arthur ran his hand through his hair, pulling off his hood in the process. After a moment, he looks down to the female, if a little awkwardly. "... Are you okay?"
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Post by Lili Walser on Nov 16, 2011 13:38:57 GMT -5
She'd just begun to lean in to peer at one of the guns when she felt a hand grab her arm from behind. Her eyes widened as all the color drained from her face. "I-I... N-n-no... P-please..." She was trembling. Oh, goodness... What was she going to do? "P-Please... let me go... I..." Why would no one stop? Or even ask questions? She couldn't... She couldn't... "L-Let me go..." Her voice was quiet, but no less fearful. This was why she wasn't ever to go to the market alone, wasn't it...? Wasn't it? Gilbert had told her once or twice that she oughtn't, but he hadn't volunteered reasons why, and she hadn't asked.
As he leaned in, she leaned away from him as best she could, shaking her head. "N-no... I-I..." But then he released her arm, almost as suddenly as he'd grabbed it. Shaking, she took a step back from him, watching him fearfully, lest he try to grab her again. It was only when the other figure, the one with the hood, spoke that she noticed him; and then her attention was diverted again, watching the first man stalk away into the crowd.
"...Are you okay?"
Lili looked back up at the taller male, and nodded hesitantly. "Y-yes... thank you... I... I w-was so frightened... I..." Her voice caught on a soft sob. Apparently, she wasn't as okay as she professed. She covered her face with her hands, shoulders shaking, as she tried to compose herself again. It wasn't proper to fall to pieces like this in public... it was barely proper to fall to pieces at all. ... And then that tiny little voice in the back of her head had to go and whisper that it really wasn't proper for her to be in the marketplace alone... and she just felt all the more horrid for the whole thing.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 16, 2011 13:49:51 GMT -5
Arthur could only blink at her distress, and turned around and knelt in front of her to her level, even a little below. He kept his hands to himself.
"Hey, shhh. It's okay, you just had a scare, that's all. Nothing to be ashamed about..." At this point he does gently hold his hand over her arm, but faintly, and takes it away a moment later. "It's probably not a good idea to be out here on your own like this. Though trust me, I know plenty of women who won't take that sort of behaviour from men like that, and I'm sure you can do the same." He smiles, an amused smile, as though he's just thought of a fond memory.
He looks back up to her, before looking over at the stall.
"Now, were you intending to come to this stall, or just passing?"
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Post by Lili Walser on Nov 16, 2011 14:09:01 GMT -5
"You just had a scare, that's all."
That was certainly one way to put it... though his voice did help to soothe her nerves. It helped as well that he wasn't blaming her for being here on her own... she wasn't sure what she would have done if he had. Because... well... it was true. She likely wouldn't have been in this situation if she'd come with someone else; even one of her maids. She'd... she'd ask one of them next time. If there was a next time. She wasn't so sure there would ever be, especially if Gilbert heard about this - and he was likely to. She couldn't keep something like this a secret from him. He just had this way of telling if she'd been distressed at all.
Hesitantly, she lowered her hands, after rubbing away the few tears that had escaped her control. Women that wouldn't stand for that sort of behavior... She wondered whether she could become like that eventually. Part of her doubted it very much.
"O-oh... I was looking for a gift for my cousin... And... and a new gun s-seemed to be the thing to get... but n-now I'm not certain." If she'd ever been certain in the first place. Her eyes flicked to the stall again, and then back to Arthur. He certainly seemed nice. And he'd helped her with that... that man from a few moments ago.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 16, 2011 17:31:52 GMT -5
"Hmm," he thinks, straightening up properly for a moment. "Well, if you want to get a present for him, I guess the best thing to do would be to buy him something he'd use or that he needs. What does he do for a living? You might be able to help him in that respect."
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Post by Lili Walser on Nov 16, 2011 20:11:09 GMT -5
As he straightened, Lili glanced back at the guns. Was it really the best thing? Perhaps she could find him a new jacket... But she'd already looked at all of the jackets. And to have one tailor-made, she'd need him... and besides that, she'd wanted to surprise him when he returned from work. Or even surprise him at work, if he wasn't busy. ... It would be better to wait until he got home. Then she could reasonably have forgotten the appearance of that man, in case he'd want to go and look for him. (Even if she knew she'd never forget.)
"O-oh... He's in the military." A faint smile crossed her lips. "That was why I was thinking about one of these... I... I looked at clothes and books and trinkets, but nothing really suited him." Before she could school her tongue, she added, "He's so difficult to shop for." A bright blush crossed her cheeks as her hand flew to her lips. That hadn't been polite! ... Even if it were true.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 18, 2011 20:48:14 GMT -5
Arthur kept the same expression, a soft smile lighting his features. He nods, and thinks.
"Military, hm? Well, it might be useful getting a gun which is rather light, yet sturdy and will last, so it doesn't fail him when he needs it..." He scans the stall, before lightly picking up a smaller gun on the right, inspecting it and showing it to Lilli. "Like this?"
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Post by Lili Walser on Nov 18, 2011 21:06:21 GMT -5
Lili listened as he spoke. Everything he said made sense, at least as far as she could tell, though she didn't really think that the weight would be a problem for Gilbert. Her cousin was very strong. Why, just this morning, before he'd left to attend his duties, he'd lifted her off the floor in a hug, despite her protests. It happened rather more often than she'd admit.
Noticing the man's attention turn to the stall, Lili's did as well. She knew only what Gilbert had taught her about guns... and that was really only what suited her. She'd not wanted to learn more... she hadn't wanted to learn the first bit.
When he spoke to her, she turned back to him, surprised. The gun he held... Hesitantly, she reached for it, and lifted it from his fingers. It was heavy, to her... She almost felt clumsy with it in her hands. "Yes... I... I should think this would do nicely... Y-you wouldn't find a gift of this sort silly... would you?"
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 18, 2011 21:15:31 GMT -5
"For a Military Man? None at all. They'd need possible as many spare as they could get ahold of, I guess." He rubs the back of his neck, before he stares at the price.
"... That is, if you can afford it."
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