Postby Strafe » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:24 pm
OOC: Yay! here's a super long post for your entertainment.
-Song-
She glared dubiously at the entire table. Everyone there was an idiot in some way. There was a drunken girl, a comically absurd man, also drunk, and a useless broad shuffled in by her Captain. She blinked, snapping out of her daze when Cecilia asked a question.
"Huh?..." She blinked again. "Oh yes of course. Very sad. Must have been terrible for you. My sympathies." She cleared her throat awkwardly, looking at everyone quizzically before looking away. She really needed to whack Jonathan over the head with the hilt of her sword for this.
-Jonathan-
Well, he had to admit, it wasn't the worst situation he had ever been in. Though likewise, he couldn't rightly tell himself that everything was... peachy either. He looked around curiously. Everything seemed to be black. Up was black, down was black. Left, right: black. It was quite amusing just how disoriented he was.
He also felt himself getting carried along by two uncharacteristically large men, who seemed to pose quite the danger to his life.
"Excuse me, but I'll have you know that I don't take too well to being touched by large men for extended periods of time." He spoke, voice muffled by the black cloth bag over his face. One of the men spoke up, his voice a deep slurr.
"I dunn care too much tuh be touchin' lil' runts like yous either. Now shut yerself up or I'll keep yer quiet meself." Jonathan opened his mouth in rebuttal, but decided against it when he felt the iron grip on his legs.
He recalled the exchange that had happened about 32 seconds earlier. He had been walking down the street, addressing every single person he came across with a bow and the words, "Hello, my name is Jonathan Hartford, heir to the Hartford Estate. I'm looking for a woman by the name of Elizabeth Hartford. Do you, or that beautiful lady next to you, by any chance know where this woman might live. Oh yes, and by any chance, does that beautiful lady next to you have any plans tonight?"
It was strange. Every man he had so politely conversed with became furious and walked off without a word. It seemed people in London just weren't very polite these days. Perhaps it was the economy, or a rough day at work. Or perhaps a rather dashing young man was threatening to steal their lovely wives from them. Jonathan shrugged. It surely couldn't have been the last one.
In any case, he had approached the two very large men, who both stood at least 7 feet tall, and had chests and arms broader than trees, with the same question. Minus the part of the beautiful lady of course. For whatever reason, at the mention of the name Hartford, they smiled mischievously at each other, bagged Jonathan's head, and began to carry him off. It was all done so smoothly, that Jonathan couldn't help but admire the ease of the men's actions.
Of course, he soon realized what exactly had just happened. He had been captured, and was now subject to whatever rage that would be afflicted on him. It was a pity. He had always wanted the people that inflicted rage on him to be angry beautiful women.
"Are we quite there yet? I would like to get this robbing, brutalizing, killing, and/or all of the above done by sunset, as I have a previous engagement." Jonathan asked earnestly through his mask. He didn't want to waste too much time getting killed. Song and Claira were waiting.
The men grunted as they opened a door, and slammed Jonathan into a chair, binding his hands and feet. They ripped the bag off of Jonathan's head. Miraculously, his top hat was still on.
Jonathan gasped for air, and looked around, disoriented. It was dark, and he could see nothing. "Hello? Is anyone there? The burly men who were being quite unkind to me, are you there as well? Anyone?"
A torch lamp flickered on with a dull flame. Above it was an aging woman's face, emphasizing the shadows. Several wrinkles lined her thin face, framing her weary blue eyes, and graying hair, hanging loosely in a messy bun. The woman said nothing.
Jonathan opened his eyes wide, gasping. "Dear God! You wretch! You look just like my mother!"
The face blinked wearily, and spoke as a number of other torch lamps lit, illuminating the room, and the rest of her body. "Well, I am your mother." Elizabeth Hartford looked at her Idiot son in distaste.
Jonathan gaped, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. "Oh! It is you Mum! I couldn't tell, since you looked so... young!"
Elizabeth didn't twitch, and continued staring down her son in weary disapproval. "What are you doing here boy?"
"Why, I'm sitting, and talking to you, mum. Quite obviously, I mean look. We're in a nice, cozy... albeit small room and we're conversing like real people and whatnot." Jonathan replied without fazing.
Mrs. Hartford looked to the large man on Jonathan's right. Then to the large man on Jonathan's left. She took a deep breath, and sighed heavily at her idiot son. "If only Cain or your father were here, I wouldn't have to deal with the fact that my only surviving family is... you. But what do you want from your disgraced mother?"
Jonathan looked to the large man on his right, then to the large man on his left. He looked around the room casually, and shrugged. "Money."
"No." Elizabeth looked him straight in the eye without budging.
Jonathan stuttered. "B-but but Mum! I'm absolutely dead broke."
"Well what do you know? Me too. I've been dead broke ever since you took the last of the Hartford estate and bought yourself that little garbage barge to go off and play pirate."
"Well..."
"No."
"But..."
"No."
"Please mother?"
"No."
Jonathan looked around at the tiny room that his mother lived in. There were only aged and weathered books, and several candles. He looked at his mother with his puppy eyes, but Mrs. Hartford remained stone cold. He sighed. "Fine then. I'll go out and keep playing pirate if you wish. Thank you for having me, Mrs. Hartford."
Elizabeth coldly spat back. "My pleasure, Mr. Hartford." She nodded to the large men, who untied Jonathan, and sent him out of the door, sulking.
After he had gone. Elizabeth sighed, and held her head in her hands in weariness. She got up and reached under a table to a chest, took a key, unlocking the chest, and looked to the large men. "Here. Take the contents of this chest and sneak it onto my son's ship." The men nodded solemnly, and left without a word.
"Good luck, Son." Elizabeth muttered under her breath.
---
Jonathan returned to the inn dejectedly, and found Song.
"Well, hello everyone again, I'm back. How has everyone gotten along since I left?" by the looks of things, not at all.
This is an original signature