death_glare | TFS psl master post /o/

[ As soon as William picks up, he won't have a chance to so much as breathe into the receiver before Grell's voice is blowing up his phone. ]

William! Oh, thank goodness-- I need your help!!

[ There's the sound of a child's sobs in the background, curiously enough. ]

Immediately.

[ The phone is held a decent distance from himself as Grell shouts through the line. When it seems as though she's finished with whatever she was going on about, he finally brings the phone back to his ear. ]

Must you yell like that? I am not def.

[ There's the familiar sound of him huffing, though, as he hears something else in the brief silence between them. ]

What is that noise?

[ There's a distant attempt to shush the child with gentle tutting - and yet, that only seems to make the crying louder!

Now back to the line, Grell herself whines!! ]

It's a child. They've given me a child, William! And she's been crying like this ever since we'd met.

[ Her voice becomes smaller - pouty, almost. ]

I think she's terrified of me...

Edited 2017-12-20 08:53 (UTC)

[ 'Who, in their right mind, would give you a child?' Is what he should say, but the girl's cries stop him. ]

As a shinki?

[ Despite having reaped countless children's souls over the past century, something about hearing this particular sound over the phone is causing him some distress. ]

What did you do to her?

Yes!

[ The distress is clear in her own voice, which Grell tries so greatly to sigh out of herself! ]

What-- I said hello, that's what I did! What are you implying?!

You probably scared her with those teeth of yours.

[ There's a short pause where he simply listens to the cries, frowning to himself. ]

I will be over in a moment. If she needs to cry, let her. She will calm down on her own.

[ And that pause happens because Grell is too busy frowning! Did she really frighten a child with her teeth? A part of her face??? She's not certain ho to feel about that. ]

I'll be taking her to my temple, you can meet me there. Please hurry.

[ And there's hardly any wait time before William's arrived, knocking rather loudly against the temple door. Perhaps he shouldn't have manners in this moment and should just phase straight into the room, but something in the back of his mind is bothering him, though he can't quite place what it is. ]

Sutcliffe?

[ The hurried clack of her heels approaches the doors, and within a moment, she's swung open the entry to her room. ]

William, oh, am I ever happy to see you!

[ Typically, this is where she'd be throwing herself into his arms - but, rather, she's reaching out to take his arm and pull him inside! ]

She's only just begun to settle down, but-- the poor dear, she's still terrified, it seems...

[ Pointing back to her bed, there's a small and quivering mound beneath the blankets, soft cries and hiccups muffled by the many layers. ]

[ Halted at the sight, William's frown immediately shifts from one of annoyance to one of concern - a look Grell's probably never seen on his face. He's seen this before - a little girl scared and confused over what was happening. It's somehow making the child's cries sound all to familiar. ]

It may just be that she doesn't know where she is, or who you are. She has no memories, after all.

[ Indeed, Grell's eyeing him with intrigue and some disbelief. With him cemented in place, she wraps her arms around one of his, hands grasped at his sleeve imploringly. ]

Would you check on her? I-- I know you had a child of your own... [ She mutters, voice smaller in all her hesitance. It's not a memory she'd care to bring up for him, but it isn't without reason, which is why she clears her throat to speak with more confidence. ] You're better equipped for this, I figured.

[ A hushed, but shuddering breath escapes him. He briefly glances towards Grell before swallowing heavily and pulling his arm out of her grasp. ]

I will try.

[ Approaching the bed, he gently takes a seat at the edge. ]

Do you know her name?

[ Meekly following behind him, she lingers a few feet away from the bed, hands curled into the hem of her blazer. Seeing William like this, she's not entirely sure what her own emotions are doing!! And, of course, having a sobbing child in her custody is enough to make her out of sorts, alone. ]

Abigail.

[ Almost immediately, William's head lifts to look back to Grell. ]

What?

[ Maybe he misheard. His mind just morphing whatever Grell had actually said into what he wanted to hear. Or... or perhaps it was merely a coincidence. But that familiar pitch to the girl's voice is now unmistakable to him. ]

[ Grell perks, with a tilt to her head. She doesn't understand the reaction, not one bit. ]

Her name is Abigail, William.

[ Hearing her name twice now, the girl whimpers, pulling the blankets tighter against herself-- although, she's also curious enough that she'll raise the blankets to take a peek at them both. Abigail thinks she's being stealthy about it, but when she meets Grell's gaze, she realizes that isn't the case! With a gasp, she pulls a pillow over her head to hide herself further!! ]

[ That reaction - it's something she'd do whenever she'd been frightened. Of a stranger, or a bad dream, or a loud clap of thunder. Though sad, it's endearing in an odd way. It has the corner of William's mouth twitching upwards, ever so slightly. ]

Abigail.

[ He finally finds his voice and reaches out to slowly lift up the pillow. ]

You don't need to be afraid. Nothing here is going to hurt you.

[ That fraction of a smile nearly has Grell going white.

Meanwhile, those little eyes, widened and wet, are staring up at William - but, however weary she may be, Abigail seems to have listened. Her whimpers have quieted to sniffles, and she's resolved to wipe away at her tears with balled hands. With a tired frown, she extends her arms to him! ]

[ Finally seeing his little girl's face, and seeing her trust him almost immediately...It's taking every ounce of his willpower not to lose himself to tears the way she'd been moments before. That would hardly be reassuring to her.

Ever so gently, William lifts Abigail up into his lap, where she quickly wraps her tiny arms around his shoulders as far as they will go. As she buries her damp face against his chest, he places a kiss atop her head. ]

I won't allow anything to hurt you. And neither will Grell.

[ With the mention of that name, his daughter hesitantly pulls away just enough to glance the redhead's way. It's wordlessly questioning the validity of that statement, and Grell can somehow sense that.

It may be the only thing that snaps her to, even. Seeing William act this way with a child has left her head spinning! She's somewhere between fantasy and horrific jealousy, completely incapable of comprehension.

With a breath, she-- smiles. Not a grin, but the softest, most normal smile she can manage. It's entirely awkward, but she's trying. ]

That's right, darling. [ She attempts to step closer, but falters when the girl flinches. ] You-- you know, I might seem frightening, but that's... so I scare away monsters and things, so they'll never get you!

[ Still unsure, Abigail wordlessly looks to William. ]

Yes, he is very good at sneaking off and causing distractions.

[ He could have been more colourful with his wording but he won't do so where his daughter can hear. ]

She.

[ Grell has never once corrected William on this particular issue, and never had she thought that she would - but, she's never been responsible for a child before, either. This is a relationship that will require many things of her that she's unaccustomed to; patience, guidance, and establishing respect.

At the very least, she's always wanted to be a mother, so this would be the opportunity to prove to herself that she could! ]

I'm going to take care of you, little one, I promise.

[ With a breath, she stands herself up tall to approach the bedside, and settle herself down beside the two of them. When Abigail doesn't pull away to hide this time, it brightens her smile, the redhead meeting William's eyes with delight! ]

Sorry, I misspoke.

[ Likewise, this is the first time William's willingly given Grell that respect. Or even simply used her first name on its own. But if he's going to trust Grell to care for his daughter, especially when he's not able to be there himself, respect is something that will need to go along side that.

With Abigail now calm and seemingly okay with Grell being beside them, he shifts her on his lap so she's closer to the redhead. ]

I am sure Grell would like to hold you, if you are okay with that.

[ In truth, aside from wanting her to feel comfortable around Grell, William is finding it harder to keep himself calm. If he can just step out into the hallway for a few moments and pull himself together, perhaps they could explain some things about this world to the young girl. Grell would have to name her, after all.

Abigail seems to think about it for a moment before giving a quiet and shy 'okay'. ]

[ The apology comes with a lopsided smile. Grell hadn't taken notice to the use of her name, at first, but once he's said this much, it dawns upon her; a realization that makes her heart flutter, although she tells herself that it's superficial, for the child. Even so--... Oh, again, she's torn!

The child's agreement will do well to pull her away from her thoughts, however; again, she's grinning, albeit unintentionally, as she offers her hands to Abigail. It makes the girl grip onto William's sleeves with a gasp!! ]

Oh-- no, Abigail, it's okay!! [ Grell's expression slacks with fret, her upturned brows pressed together and hands tensing, terrified that the girl might start crying again! But, to her surprise, Abigail manages to overcome her fears and raise her arms to be taken.

With something of a sob of joy, the redhead wastes no time in scooping her up! ]

[ Relieved at Abigail's compliance, William places her into Grell's lap, making sure the redhead is holding her the way she should be, as it's fairly obvious Grell has no experience with this. ]

I'm going to use the restroom. I will be back shortly, so don't worry.

[ As he stands to leave, he gives the girl a reassuring pat on the head. The small, disappointed whimper she responds with breaks that stoic demeanor of his for the slightest moment and he adjusts his glasses to distract himself.

Although Grell's bedroom has that elaborate bathroom attached to it, William instead moves to exit the room entirely, making sure to close the door behind him. And it's only a moment before he has to remove his frames to avoid getting them smudged and wet with the stream of tears that run down his face. ]

[ Although she will allow William to guide her in proper holding, Grell nearly immediately wraps her arms around the girl to settle a cheek atop her head. It leaves Abigail looking up to her father with some amount of dread in her eyes. ]

--Oh? Yes, surely.

[ But when she catches sight of the other going the opposite direction, she'll watch after him as it goes, her elevated mood giving way to concern.

Shoulders slumping with a quiet sigh, her gaze returns to Abigail. Forcing a softer smile, she affectionately brushes her fingertips along the child's fringe to right it. ]

Alright, beautiful, why don't we talk about things that make you happy? If I'm to give you a proper name, it should be something you like, hm?

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action forever

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