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xp_logsTabitha and Jean-Paul finally meet outside of the journals; they discuss history and sun-worship.
She had definite expectations as she strode into the sun room. Boiler beach was all fine and dandy (except for the company, she thought darkly), but she needed LIGHT.
Her sigh of happiness turned into a gasp of surprise as she discovered someone already in her intended haven. "Uh, hi!" she said brightly.
The dark-haired man's absent-minded greeting was obscured by the paintbrush between his teeth. He was sitting on the floor in a square of sunlight with a sheet of paper in front of him, a similar stack beside him, and some wadded balls of paper in the nearby vicinity.
Finally, he looked up and removed the brush from between his teeth.
"Oh. Bonjour. Did you need this place?"
Tabitha hovered in the doorway uncertainly. "I was just going to sit in the sun a while." She shrugged and examined the room. "If you wouldn't be too put out, we could share." She held up a rather large hard backed book. "I'll be quiet, I promise."
"That is fine." He put the brush down and rose to his feet with a soft grunt; he'd been in place for a while. "I do not think we have met yet. Jean-Paul Beaubier."
Tabitha hoisted the book over to her left arm so she could hold out her hand. "Tabitha Smith, we spoke briefly on the journals. Nice to meet you in person." She tried to catch a glimpse of his project. "What brings you to this end of the mausoleum?"
Jean-Paul shook her hand briefly, then glanced back at the project on the floor. Without his body to block the view, is was easy to see the rearing unicorn on the paper. The outline was crisp, but the details painted within considerably less so. "Being reassured that I did not miss my calling as an artist."
She couldn't help a small grin and dry chuckle. "I'll stick to no comment. They may say a picture is worth a thousand words, but I darned well prefer the words." She flopped into a chair and stretched out. "Oh, I miss the sun."
"I may go back to sunbathing once we get enough clear days to make it worth the effort. Assuming I can find the time." Jean-Paul settled back down with his project. "What are you reading?"
Tabitha clutched the book closer to her chest. "A history book of sorts," she edged. "About the Rom. Found it in a corner of the library where nobody's been since Cain Marko was in diapers. It called to me, so far it's rather fascinating."
"History usually is," Jean-Paul agreed. "I've found that immersing myself in a decent history text is deeply rewarding, if a bit like finding myself stranded on an oddly familiar alien planet."
"You sound like a good teacher," Tabitha noted. "Did you get roped into it? That happens to most of the people who come through here. I only escaped by virtue of a degree in library science." She grinned.
"I volunteered." A new wad of crumpled unicorn joined the others on the floor and Jean-Paul flopped onto his back to take full advantaged of the sunshine. "I try to look at it as a step forward. The last time I was here, I was trying to get away from the habit of punching people in a good cause, and wound up doing that plus the teaching. Now that I am back, it is only the teaching. I suspect that I may actually work on improving myself after the next personal crisis."
That drew Tabitha's attention. "Improving yourself? In what way? Personal crisis? Okay, I've been gone a while and tend to be a hermit, I am TOTALLY lost. Is there a Reader's Digest version?"
"Mmm." Jean-Paul closed his eyes against the sun. "In too good a mood to go into the details. The short version being that I was an idiot in a former life and I'm trying not to make the same mistakes this time. There are so many new and fascinating mistakes I have yet to experience, after all." He turned his head, shading his eyes so that he was actually looking at the person he was having a conversation with. "Why did you come back?"
She shrugged, stretching in the soothing heat. "Masochism, I think sometimes." Her brow wrinkled in agitation. "Definitely didn't miss some of the people here. Then again, looks like some pretty neat people have joined the household." She winked at Jean-Paul.
He chuckled and relaxed, his expression of content in his sunbeam enough to rival Catseye. "A history buff and she strokes my ego. Perhaps I will get over my lack of artistic talent at that."
She had definite expectations as she strode into the sun room. Boiler beach was all fine and dandy (except for the company, she thought darkly), but she needed LIGHT.
Her sigh of happiness turned into a gasp of surprise as she discovered someone already in her intended haven. "Uh, hi!" she said brightly.
The dark-haired man's absent-minded greeting was obscured by the paintbrush between his teeth. He was sitting on the floor in a square of sunlight with a sheet of paper in front of him, a similar stack beside him, and some wadded balls of paper in the nearby vicinity.
Finally, he looked up and removed the brush from between his teeth.
"Oh. Bonjour. Did you need this place?"
Tabitha hovered in the doorway uncertainly. "I was just going to sit in the sun a while." She shrugged and examined the room. "If you wouldn't be too put out, we could share." She held up a rather large hard backed book. "I'll be quiet, I promise."
"That is fine." He put the brush down and rose to his feet with a soft grunt; he'd been in place for a while. "I do not think we have met yet. Jean-Paul Beaubier."
Tabitha hoisted the book over to her left arm so she could hold out her hand. "Tabitha Smith, we spoke briefly on the journals. Nice to meet you in person." She tried to catch a glimpse of his project. "What brings you to this end of the mausoleum?"
Jean-Paul shook her hand briefly, then glanced back at the project on the floor. Without his body to block the view, is was easy to see the rearing unicorn on the paper. The outline was crisp, but the details painted within considerably less so. "Being reassured that I did not miss my calling as an artist."
She couldn't help a small grin and dry chuckle. "I'll stick to no comment. They may say a picture is worth a thousand words, but I darned well prefer the words." She flopped into a chair and stretched out. "Oh, I miss the sun."
"I may go back to sunbathing once we get enough clear days to make it worth the effort. Assuming I can find the time." Jean-Paul settled back down with his project. "What are you reading?"
Tabitha clutched the book closer to her chest. "A history book of sorts," she edged. "About the Rom. Found it in a corner of the library where nobody's been since Cain Marko was in diapers. It called to me, so far it's rather fascinating."
"History usually is," Jean-Paul agreed. "I've found that immersing myself in a decent history text is deeply rewarding, if a bit like finding myself stranded on an oddly familiar alien planet."
"You sound like a good teacher," Tabitha noted. "Did you get roped into it? That happens to most of the people who come through here. I only escaped by virtue of a degree in library science." She grinned.
"I volunteered." A new wad of crumpled unicorn joined the others on the floor and Jean-Paul flopped onto his back to take full advantaged of the sunshine. "I try to look at it as a step forward. The last time I was here, I was trying to get away from the habit of punching people in a good cause, and wound up doing that plus the teaching. Now that I am back, it is only the teaching. I suspect that I may actually work on improving myself after the next personal crisis."
That drew Tabitha's attention. "Improving yourself? In what way? Personal crisis? Okay, I've been gone a while and tend to be a hermit, I am TOTALLY lost. Is there a Reader's Digest version?"
"Mmm." Jean-Paul closed his eyes against the sun. "In too good a mood to go into the details. The short version being that I was an idiot in a former life and I'm trying not to make the same mistakes this time. There are so many new and fascinating mistakes I have yet to experience, after all." He turned his head, shading his eyes so that he was actually looking at the person he was having a conversation with. "Why did you come back?"
She shrugged, stretching in the soothing heat. "Masochism, I think sometimes." Her brow wrinkled in agitation. "Definitely didn't miss some of the people here. Then again, looks like some pretty neat people have joined the household." She winked at Jean-Paul.
He chuckled and relaxed, his expression of content in his sunbeam enough to rival Catseye. "A history buff and she strokes my ego. Perhaps I will get over my lack of artistic talent at that."
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