Description
A Greater Society - Chapter 18: First Day
by Ratte
Story
Through the blackness I could barely hear a muffled thud and rushing of footsteps throughout the floor. I jumped awake, finding myself in my bed. Somehow I managed to climb my way back upstairs and into my bed after last night, which my shoulders seemed to appreciate.
It took a moment to recall what the noise could be coming from. I remembered finally giving in to Morissey's proposal, so...this must be the staff I heard about. It didn't sound like too many, at least not yet, which was fine. Even just one or two people for the sake of security was plenty. Before long there was a frantic tiny knock on my door before it quickly swung open and closed again.
"Father, there are strangers in the house!" squeaked Riv has he ran over to the edge of the bed.
He must have only just woken up, still wearing his pajamas. His eyes were wide with distress as he turned back toward the door from every small scuff and shuffle. I covered myself up as much as I could under my comforter.
"We're finally getting some proper help around here," I assured, reaching my skinny arm through the end of the comforter and rubbing his hand. "These aren't the people from yesterday."
"Are you sure?" he asked, gripping the comforter in his little hands.
"Yes, yes, I'm sure," I said through a yawn. "The window may also be getting replaced today so don't be alarmed if you see more people in the lobby this afternoon."
"Where did they come from? Did something happen?"
"I signed a contract to join a network of similar housing to reach more people and get more reliable work," I said quietly, gently squeezing his hand. "There will be more people in the house again just like there were when you first came here. It's nothing bad."
"...Okay," he sighed.
I reached and lightly poked his nose.
"...Things may finally start going back to normal."
Admittedly I had grown so used to it just being us that the thought of more people in the house was weird and novel again. Kuri's help was one thing, the other frequent visitors as well, but it had been a few months since I had any actual staff here. I hoped everything would go smoothly as I was sure the staff would be more pure faradens and I knew Riv was quite uneasy around them for the most part.
"Riv, would you be so kind as to head back to your room for a few minutes so I can get dressed?" I asked. "I will come get you when I'm decent."
"Okay," he said, scurrying back to the door and carefully closing it behind him.
Familiarity or not, I don't think I could ever be less than fully clothed around another person. I didn't even like being less than that by my lonesome.
I quickly shook my head to wake myself up. I had been so underslept the past few days it had been really starting to wear on me. Even after what I presume was a normal night's sleep it felt like only about half of that. Well, regardless, it was a new day so I should put myself together.
Looking over at my dresser I must've been too tired to lay out today's clothes. I stood up and rifled through my drawers to piece together my usual wardrobe: a dark dress shirt, a dark pair of slacks, and a white undershirt. I wondered if maybe I would look a little bigger if I wore lighter colors, but I had such a hard time finding clothes...small enough for me, even at my age, that often the dark and mute colors of a single style were all that remained. In any event, I put on my clothes and combed my hair, ensuring I had Ulimi's knife in my back pocket before releasing myself into the rest of the house.
A couple staffmembers moved about on the upper floor, carrying clothing and bedding to and from the rooms on the far end of the hallway. I'd wanted to have at least some basic sets of clothes for incoming residents should it ever be needed and it would be nice to have more than only one or two sets of bedding per bed. As they moved about they spotted me, my simply returning their notice with an awkward wave. They smiled and waved back before continuing about their chores.
That...wasn't so bad.
I turned right to slowly push open Riv's door, taking in the sight of him looking outside to the world beyond our walls. Even now it tugged at my heart that it would be a while before I felt it was safe to take him outside. Not to slight the staff or anything, but because outside was just too unpredictable.
"What are you looking at?" I asked.
"Nothing really," he said. "I just like looking outside at everything. Do you think...I could go outside again?"
"Soon, hopefully, if things start to improve," I sighed. "I just don't want you getting hurt, but if we have some better security we could surely at least let you into the back yard, where you're looking."
His bright eyes sparkled at the idea and I couldn't help but smile. It was funny how, the more I looked at those pale eyes of his, the prettier and more charming they seemed. A feature from which I once felt uneasy quickly grew to be one I adored.
"Well then, you're probably pretty hungry after eating so lightly yesterday," I said, holding out my hand. "Why don't we go downstairs and make some breakfast?"
He skipped over to meet me, taking my hand. We both walked together to the stairwell as the workers down at the other end went about their business. I noticed one of them looking over at us with a confused, nervous expression, but paid it little mind. I figured there would be some hesitation and, while I was not happy with it, I was also understanding. Perhaps they, too, would come around.
We made our way down the stairs and turned left toward the kitchens. Thankfully both of them were empty so there'd be no competition. I opened the icebox in the lounge, looking over what I had and considering my options-- I had eggs, milk, some soft cheese, slices of ham...I could do something with this. There was something I'd wanted to try.
"Riv, have you ever had an omelette before?" I asked, taking the necessary things from the icebox.
He just shook his head with a curious look.
"Well it's made with eggs, but instead of fried or scrambled it's sort of like a sheet," I said, putting away what I wouldn't need. "You can make them in several ways and you usually put things in them. I'd like to give this a try if you're willing."
I turned on the stove and dropped a pat of butter in the middle of my skillet to grease it.
"Sure!" he smiled, tiny fangs protruding from behind his lips.
"Haha, alright," I said. "First, let's crack some eggs into a bowl. Be careful how you break them so you don't get the shells in there, too."
I carefully cracked an egg, breaking it into the bowl. He took one and repeated after me with quite impressive precision for his age. We repeated this until four eggs sat in the bowl.
"Very good!" I said with a big smile. "Now it just needs a bit of milk, just like scrambled eggs. Remember, just a little bit. I'll let you know when to stop."
He took the bottle of milk and slowly poured until I told him there was enough.
"Now we need some salt and pepper," I said, adding as much as I thought would be needed, "and then all that's left is to beat and mix it all together."
I grabbed a fork and gave it to Riv, holding the bowl lower so he didn't have to reach up so high. For an awkward step he did quite well, my taking over the duty at the last minute just to ensure everything was as mixed as it could be.
"I was thinking of ham and cheese for fillings since I have those on hand," I said, motioning toward the other things on the counter. "Are you alright with that?"
"I'd like that," he said with a sure nod.
I chuckled and invited him a bit closer to the stove.
"Alright, now we can pour this into the skillet," I said. "The stove is hot so I'll do this part, but you can come here and watch."
He watched intently as I pushed around the butter before slowly pouring the beaten eggs to the pan. The eggs quickly formed an even layer across the bottom.
"From what I hear, the trick to these is to cook them low and slow, else you'll burn them on the bottom while the top remains slimy," I said, covering the pan with a glass topper. "This will let it do that a little easier while I get the fillings ready."
He watched as I cut some even slices of the soft cheese to go with the slices of ham, cutting a little extra to give to him to snack on while we waited. As I worked I saw the rushing silhouettes of staff in the hallway, with one or two looking curiously but hesitantly toward us. I just looked over to them with a smile and nod before turning my attention back to making breakfast.
I'm sure the scene before them looked unusual: A small, unkempt and underslept pure type man cooking eggs with a growing, pale-eyed new type child. For once I didn't much mind the gawking.
"It looks like everything is about cooked through, so we'll carefully lay the fillings over the top, like this," I said, laying out the sheets of meat and cheese over the layer of egg, "and then return the lid to let the cheese melt and everything heat up."
For such a simple food he was fascinated watching everything come together. It was quite precious. Before long everything was how I needed it to be, so I removed the lid and jiggled the pan to ensure nothing was stuck. Once the egg was free I wiggled the turner under one side and carefully folded the whole sheet from that side to the other. It went smoother than I thought it would. From there I cut it in half and transferred each half to a plate, then placed the plates on the bench.
Riv sat himself at one of the plates, eager to start the morning as I poured two glasses of milk. With the staff about I felt much more at ease than I had these past few weeks and it was so relieving to feel...normal again. I gave him a glass and sat with my own, the two of us taking our first bites at the same time. It must have turned out well enough as he dove right in without any complaint.
"Don't eat too fast now or you'll get sick," I laughed, continuing my chewing.
From behind the happy eater a staffmember's head poked out from around the doorway, looking between both of us.
"Hello there," I said, swallowing my bite. "Is there something you need?"
"Oh, um, not really," she said softly, "but I thought I should tell you that your work is at your desk whenever you're ready."
"Oh, already?" I cocked my head. "I see no time was wasted. Thank you, I will be out there shortly."
With that she scurried away, leaving us to finish our breakfasts. With Riv's help I cleaned up our dishes and put everything back in its place. Once finished I took him by the hand into the lobby to start our work. The window was still broken, but Morissey did say it wouldn't be replaced until the afternoon. I scratched my head, not sure what to do about the table issue.
"Riv, this isn't something I'd normally ask for, but would you be alright with working on the floor today?" I asked, unsure. "I'll give you my chair cushion just like I did a long time ago, but Tamani won't be here to fix the table until later today."
"That's okay, I don't mind," he said.
I removed my seat cushion and stationed it near my desk before going into the stockroom to retrieve a sturdy box.
"I'm sorry this isn't much, and it's certainly not a table," I said, setting it down in front of the cushion, "but this is the best I can do today, okay?"
He said nothing, insisting instead on giving me a big hug. I felt bad about all of this, but was relieved he was so easygoing and willing to work with my limitations. I set down some papers and worksheets for him to spend some time with before retreating to my desk. He scooted over to his workstation on the floor, but stopped just before reaching it, freezing in place with a bristled tail.
"...Is something wrong?" I asked from behind the desk.
"F-Father..." he whimpered.
My guard immediately went up and I left the desk, turning around the corner. A tiny pool of blood had gathered under one of his feet, staining the tan fur a deep red.
"Shh, it's okay," I cooed. "I think you just stepped on a stray piece of glass."
I bent down and put my arm around him, helping him limp over to my chair. Once he sat down I went into the stockroom to get a first aid box, finding one under a messy stack of papers. I left and knelt before him, opening the box and retrieving a pair of gloves.
"Alright, I need you to hold real still, okay?" I requested in a low tone. "Some of this might hurt a bit but it'll be over before too long."
With tears in his eyes he quickly nodded his head.
Pushing his foot back I dribbled a fair amount of alcohol down the underside, then carefully ran my gloved finger over the surface to find the shard. Once I did I gently pushed back the fur and probed the area with a pair of forceps. Unfortunately it was in a little too deep for the ends to grab.
"...Riv, please close your eyes for this, okay?"
He closed his eyes and covered them with his hands as I readied a straight razor against the entry wound. I knew this wasn't going to feel good but he did a great job staying still. After a couple attempts I managed to slide the shard out enough to grab with the forceps, carefully pulling it out as straight as possible to not cause any more damage. I placed the bloody shard into a small, covered container and cleaned off the instruments before putting them back in the box.
"Okay, you can open your eyes again," I said quietly. "You did a very good job staying still."
He uncovered and opened his eyes, giving me an unsure, nervous smile as I dabbed more alcohol on the wound. He uttered a little gasp as it stung, but I rubbed the back of his small foot to reassure him that he'd be alright. Finally I took a sheet of gauze and wrapped it around his foot with a bandage, tying it securely in place. I crept around the desk to wipe up any spills I found, which were fortunately not many.
"I'm so sorry that happened," I said, touching my nose to his head. "I'm going to re-sweep the lobby, so just you wait right here."
I returned to the stockroom to dispose of the gloves and exchange the box for the broom, sweeping the floor a second pass. Sure enough, there were a couple stray shards I missed the first time, but only a couple. He must have gotten unlucky and stepped on one that got stuck behind something. I disposed of the shards and looked the floor over carefully for anything else I might have missed.
"I think that's good," I said, putting the broom back away.
He got up and carefully stepped over to where he needed to be, breathing a little sigh of relief as he reached his destination without another episode. I did the same before returning to my desk, ready to start the workday. From the looks of it there was quite a bit to do and I hoped Morissey would find us a couple more residents to make this place feel like normal again. Maybe having some children Riv's age would give him something more to do, a way to release his restlessness. I adored his company, but I was sure he'd benefit from having a few peers.
I looked through a stack of papers, flipping through them once or twice before looking back down to the small boy filling out his own assignments.
Hm.
After that little scene it might be wise to hire a nurse.
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Tarov
MemberReverend is a very good father figure to Riv, it's quite sweet. Also finally Daniel is entering the story!
Also, despite not including too much gruesome detail, I still cringed at the thought of Reverend having to carve the glass out of Riv's foot. Something about the way it's written was just vivid enough, nice.
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