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Post by Cynthia Darling on Aug 12, 2009 22:12:32 GMT -5
So far, Cynthia's assignment had turned up a big zero. She liked working with Jacob, but it seemed that, for the most part, they were really just walking around on patrols and not doing much of anything else. Nothing was really happening in Diagon Alley, and the one time something had happened, the discovery of a body outside Enchanted, the assignment had gone to Kate, who had only just arrived in town. Not that Cynthia would have wanted the murder case. It felt all too uncomfortably familiar to her. Still, it would have been nice to be asked.
Today she was standing, rather boredly, outside Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlor, weighing the option of trying to continue the dullness of her patrol or going inside the ice cream parlor and ordering herself a hot fudge sundae.
Jacob would be patrolling the other side of the alley, and if she decided to sit down, he would eventually make his way down here and catch her, but she was strangely not in the mood to care.
The other trouble was that lately, she had been feeling that creepy-crawly sensation that she was being watched. She had it right now; it was making the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. But even though she kept looking around, she could never see anyone looking at her. It was weird.
Sighing, Cynthia decided to go inside and get some ice cream. She just wasn't in the mood to make her way down the street for the 15th time that day.
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Aug 13, 2009 11:59:08 GMT -5
The constant patrolling the streets of Diagon Alley was a bore. Nothing special was going on, just people shopping. The only interesting thing that had happened was the murder near the Club. Jacob felt like some kind of creeper just walking up and down the street looking around.
For the umpteenth time, he walked the sidewalks. By now, Jacob could name each store in order going in either direction. Even though this assignment was completely boring, there were two perks to it. One, he had the chance to work with Cynthia and the second was if anything happened, they'd be there. So far, she was a good partner and he enjoyed working with her that was if they were together.
A growl came from his stomach and Jacob sighed. He had been patrolling for awhile now and it was alright if he took a break for a moment. Florean Fortescue's was some what the half way point, and it wasn't that far from where Jacob stopped for a moment. Diagon Alley would be alright if he just took a quick break.
Opening the door caused the little bell above it to ring, signaling his entrance. Jacob caught sight of the unmistakable blonde hair and he smiled. Walking up to decide which ice cream he wanted, Jacob made it a point to stop beside her. "Decided to take a break too huh?"
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Aug 20, 2009 18:36:33 GMT -5
Cynthia turned to Jacob, smiling sheepishly. "Guilty as charged," she replied. "I'm just a little bored, you know? There's just nothing happening out there. There's only so many times I can walk down the street and back before I need a break, you know?"
She was next in line and she ordered a double scoop of chocolate chip mint ice cream in a bowl. Turning to Jacob, she said, "What'll you have? It's on me."
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Aug 20, 2009 21:01:08 GMT -5
"I understand completely." Jacob let out a sigh and his hands in his jacket pockets. Patrolling Diagon Alley could only be interesting for so long. Jacob liked watching the people bustling about. It could be entertaining whenever people thought no one was watching.
Jacob was willing to pay for his own but he knew better to protest against her. He tried to already do something like that but it didn't work. "Thanks," he replied. "I'll just take a double scoop of Rocky Road."
The lady behind the counter made their order and Jacob turned his attention back to Cynthia. "So, anything interesting at all happen on your end?"
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Oct 9, 2009 0:14:21 GMT -5
Cynthia smiled and rolled her eyes. "No, I'm afraid not. It's really been pretty quiet. Almost too quiet, wouldn't you say? I can't help but wonder what they're up to this time."
The person behind the counter placed their order in front of them and Cynthia handed the woman the appropriate number of coins. Handing Jacob his ice cream, she looked around thoughtfully. "How about that spot next to the window? You can see most of the street from there, so we won't be completely goofing off."
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Oct 18, 2009 12:41:39 GMT -5
"I suppose it has been too quiet. Maybe they're just waiting. They know that after a recent attack, the Ministry would be on its toes, so maybe they're just waiting until things sort of quiet down." Jacob shrugged and took his ice cream.
He couldn't help but wonder if the quietness was the calm before the storm. As he took his seat, Jacob didn't want to really think about work, even if he was supposed to be doing just that. Everything was quiet, nothing going on so a short break wasn't going to hurt anything, was it?
"So, everything that has been going on lately aside, how have you liked England so far?"
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Jan 31, 2010 1:24:17 GMT -5
"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Cynthia replied, frowning. "It means that we can't ever let up. We never know when something could happen, and it's almost guaranteed to happen when we're not ready. Really, if you think about it, stopping for a short ice cream break is a bad idea. On the other hand, we can't really live that way, you know? Always on alert.... it's enough to drive a person batty."
She stopped to take a few mouthfuls of ice cream, enjoying the way it began to melt as soon as she put it in her mouth. Ice cream had always been one of her weaknesses, and she could enjoy it even in the coldest weather.
Looking at Jacob as she ate, she tilted her head sideways. It really was a happy coincidence that they happened to be partnered together for this assignment, considering that he had been the very first person she met upon coming to England. He had a warmth and honesty about him that she found very endearing, and it made her want to trust him. But trust was something that had to be earned... and very few people in her life had ever earned it from her.
"Well, I guess you could say it's a bit of a mixed bag. There are good things and bad things about England. The weather's a bit of a shock. Around this time in Australia, it would be summer about now. And why does it rain so much in London? I swear, I'm beginning to forget what the sun looks like." She stopped and laughed a moment, then grew serious again. "But the people have been very nice to me. I feel very much at home here."
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Feb 2, 2010 9:32:47 GMT -5
"It does rain a lot here, but there are the few days that the sun does come out. The dreariness is pretty much an all the time thing but its not that bad once you get used to it. People like to go a little crazy when the sun does decide to show. Suddenly all the parks are filled, people are happy, and everything when the sun comes out. It's like a spark of hope I guess when the sun comes out since it doesn't happen every day." Jacob smiled as Cynthia laughed.
"I'm glad that you're feeling at home here. Sure, it's pretty much a half a world away from Australia and it's different but it's a good thing that you feel welcome." Jacob thought that it was good that Cynthia was feeling good about England. Even though they hadn't known each other long, he liked her. He liked her the night they met. Sometimes it would take Jacob a little while to like someone but there was something about Cynthia that made him like her immediately. She was nice to talk to and so far, she was a pretty good partner.
"Besides, all you would have to do is just slip me a name and those that don't make you feel welcome here, I could have a little chat with them," he said teasingly.
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Feb 14, 2010 1:06:30 GMT -5
There were times, like now, when Cynthia found herself trusting Jacob. She had to trust him to a certain extent, just because it was necessary to trust one's partner in this job. Professionally, she knew she could trust Jacob completely. And then he'd say something like that, and she felt some of her old defenses breaking down. She was finding more and more that she trusted him on a personal level as well. But that feeling scared her, and it usually made her pull away. There had to be walls between them; there were things about her that he couldn't know.
"That's very kind of you," she replied. "I like your theory about the sun. But you know, in the part of Australia I lived in, we got a lot of sun, and I think for the most part, Australians are a pretty easy-going lot."
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Feb 16, 2010 12:02:30 GMT -5
"I wouldn't know how to really act if I lived in a place that recieved a lot of sun," he said jokingly. "Really now? Funny you should say that, I happen to know an Australian that seems pretty easy-going, so far anyway." He gave her a smile. "I happen to like being around her because she helps me not feel so stressed out. Maybe it is because she comes from a place that receives a lot of sun, therefore making her my own small glimpse of sunshine."
Jacob dipped his spoon into his ice cream and took a bite out of it. He was somewhat aware of the small fliration that he inserted into his reply to her but it was harmless. He only did it to see if it would make her smile.
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Feb 16, 2010 16:25:05 GMT -5
Cynthia blushed in spite of herself. “That’s kind of you to say,” she said. “But to tell you the truth, I am not really from Australia. I was actually born in Germany, and have just been living in Australia for much of my life.”
It had sort of just slipped out, and she hadn’t intended to say it. The fact that she was from Germany was something she did not normally tell people… it was too easy for them to trace back to the person she used to be, along with her mother, still in the institution, and her father, dead for 6 years now. She only at the last added the words “much of my life” at the end of her revelation. The truth was, it hadn’t even really been that long. It had only been about 5 years, and she had cultivated the accent deliberately, so people would think she had lived there all her life.
Usually she was so careful. How could she have let it slip to Jacob that she was from Germany?
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Feb 16, 2010 22:36:49 GMT -5
"Really," he asked interested. "Can't say that I've ever been to Germany." Jacob wasn't going to venture in the reasons why she moved to Australia. He could tell that Cynthia wasn't going to spill her life story right in front of him right away. She was more conservative and it was going to take a little bit longer to get her to open up. Trust was key and he hid the smile that wanted to form on his face because telling him that she wasn't really from Australia had to mean that she trusted him some, right?
"Do you remember anything about Germany? Like how it is different from Australia or here?"
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Feb 22, 2010 17:16:55 GMT -5
Cynthia’s eyes took on a faraway look for just a moment, but it quickly cleared. “To tell you the truth, I kind of hated Germany,” she answered honestly. “It was such a loud, boisterous country. I’ve never really liked sausage or sauerkraut, and everyone was always drinking beer… I really don’t care for beer. Actually, I don’t like alcohol at all.”
She sighed softly, and found herself again slipping into the temptation to tell him too much. He was just so easy to trust. “My dad was an alcoholic, you see.”
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Feb 23, 2010 22:33:07 GMT -5
Alcohol wasn't something on the top of Jacob's list either. Every once in awhile he'd get a drink but that was it. He hadn't had a reason to numb any kind of pain or have any other reason to get drunk. Jacob felt that he had too many responsiblities.
A look of sympathy crossed his face. He knew about alcoholics. Some of them could be violent and some could just be there. Jacob hoped that Cynthia's father wasn't the violent kind. "Was it bad? I mean, was there any violence ever envolved?" He realized his questions after they slipped out. "Sorry," he apologized. "You don't have to answer those, I was just curious."
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Post by Cynthia Darling on Feb 28, 2010 1:40:57 GMT -5
Cynthia didn't answer, but the way she lowered her eyes and looked down at the table made the answer pretty clear. Yes, he had been violent, and she had borne most of the brunt of his anger. What he had done when she was off at school, Cynthia didn't want to know. But when she was home, he hit her quite often... until that terrible day...
"I don't really want to talk about it," she said. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. I don't know why I did. But you should tell me about your famuly. I think you said you had a sister, tell me about her.."
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Post by Jacob Tanner on Mar 2, 2010 22:02:25 GMT -5
Seeing the look on Cynthia's face made Jacob feel guilty for asking. He didn't want to bring up anything that caused pain for her. "I'm sorry, it's my fault. I started asking questions about it." Although he knew that if she ever did want to talk about it, he would be there to listen. After all, being partners was about trust and helping the other one out when they needed it right?
"My sister? She's probably my favorite person in the world," he admitted without hesitation. Jacob wasn't sure if he ever brought up the fact he had a brother but he wasn't about to bring that up at the moment. He and his brother didn't really see eye to eye. "Rhianne always knows how to keep me level headed and she's probably one of the best little sisters." Jacob also hated the fact that she was inbetween him and Samuel. He didn't want her to choose one of the other but he had a feeling that Samuel would cause her to.
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Post by Cynthia Darling on May 26, 2010 0:29:50 GMT -5
"It's OK," she said softly. "I did bring it up. I just... I don't really like to talk about it. I worked pretty hard to put that all behind me."
Those words should have pretty much answered his question. It was fairly obvious that her past was a painful one, but she didn't want to dwell on it. She couldn't risk him finding out the truth of what she had done; what she had been running from all this time.
But it made her smile to see the way he seemed to light up when he talked about his sister. She wished she had someone that she could smile about like that.
"That's great. I bet she positively worships you. I'd love to meet her some time."
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