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intheheartTitle: Streaks
Rating: PG
Summary: Gina sees Ivy for the first time.
Warnings: None.
Notes: Written kind of fast. Hopefully not terrible.
Gina went looking for her companion one fine spring morning, and found her nowhere in the house. Not that she was displeased, exactly-- she was rarely up at this hour and never in the week or so they'd been together had required Miss Kendall's presence before eleven, but today she was strangely restless, ill at ease and wanting. Miss Kendall had soothed that feeling before; maybe she would again.
So she went outside, and found Miss Kendall nowhere in the gardens, nor in the outbuildings, nor even in the fields. Frowning, she returned to the house, intending to send someone in search of her, and paused when a bright laugh cut across the drive from the stables.
Ivy, she thought, and picked up her skirt, hastening toward the stables.
Miss Kendall had told her that she liked animals, yes, she remembered now. And Gina had promised her a ride or two, and not followed through. So of course she had gone looking for them. Gina would be sure to involve animals more in their daily life. More rides, certainly, and perhaps she could find a kitten or two to live in the house. There were barn cats everywhere, surely one of them would have kittens...
She rounded the corner, and stopped dead.
Miss Kendall was in the stableyard, as she'd thought, but she was... she was kneeling, muddy to the ears, her dress torn, something green streaked across her cheek, and a bright smile warm on her face. A small grey dog had its no doubt equally muddy paws planted on her skirt and was licking her chin enthusiastically. Another big brown one lay nearby, panting, with a cat sprawled over its back. There were more cats, innumerable cats, cats hissing at each other and sleeping sprawled on the ground and climbing up the back of Miss Kendall's dress, and two small baby rabbits cupped in a grinning stableboy's hands.
Even as Gina watched, he pushed the grey dog aside and bent down to hand them to Miss Kendall. "Here you are," he said. "Chief's been keeping them in the big loose box 'til they're big enough to go out on their own. Might keep 'em all the same."
"Oh, they're so sweet," Miss Kendall breathed, and carefully took one from his hands. "How perfect. You found them in the pasture?"
"Yup," he said. "Like 'em better than people, must say. Like the horses better than them though."
"And like the dogs best of all," Miss Kendall said, and he laughed. "Thank you. They're so darling."
The boy grinned at her. "Of course, miss. I--" He turned at an unintelligible shout from inside the stables. "Got to take the baby, miss. Fool horse's got up on his stall door again."
Miss Kendall blinked at that, and rose, still cupping the baby rabbit and absently brushing a hand down her skirt. It did no noticeable good. "Oh, I must see this," she said. "I'll carry the baby, if I may?"
"After you, miss," the boy said, and they both went into the stables.
Gina stood frozen, unnoticed, still in the shadow of the barn, and tried to slow her leaping heart. There was nothing endearing about what she'd just seen. A muddy, hoydenish girl, her hair all mussed and her skirt smeared with the filth of a stableyard, no, it was not to be borne, and she would... she would...
She would do nothing. She knew that already. She would do nothing, and say nothing, and pretend she had seen nothing, because her heart would not slow, and she could not forget Ivy's bright beautiful smile, her joyful eyes, the baby rabbit cupped so gently in her hands.
She turned and went back to the house.
Rating: PG
Summary: Gina sees Ivy for the first time.
Warnings: None.
Notes: Written kind of fast. Hopefully not terrible.
Gina went looking for her companion one fine spring morning, and found her nowhere in the house. Not that she was displeased, exactly-- she was rarely up at this hour and never in the week or so they'd been together had required Miss Kendall's presence before eleven, but today she was strangely restless, ill at ease and wanting. Miss Kendall had soothed that feeling before; maybe she would again.
So she went outside, and found Miss Kendall nowhere in the gardens, nor in the outbuildings, nor even in the fields. Frowning, she returned to the house, intending to send someone in search of her, and paused when a bright laugh cut across the drive from the stables.
Ivy, she thought, and picked up her skirt, hastening toward the stables.
Miss Kendall had told her that she liked animals, yes, she remembered now. And Gina had promised her a ride or two, and not followed through. So of course she had gone looking for them. Gina would be sure to involve animals more in their daily life. More rides, certainly, and perhaps she could find a kitten or two to live in the house. There were barn cats everywhere, surely one of them would have kittens...
She rounded the corner, and stopped dead.
Miss Kendall was in the stableyard, as she'd thought, but she was... she was kneeling, muddy to the ears, her dress torn, something green streaked across her cheek, and a bright smile warm on her face. A small grey dog had its no doubt equally muddy paws planted on her skirt and was licking her chin enthusiastically. Another big brown one lay nearby, panting, with a cat sprawled over its back. There were more cats, innumerable cats, cats hissing at each other and sleeping sprawled on the ground and climbing up the back of Miss Kendall's dress, and two small baby rabbits cupped in a grinning stableboy's hands.
Even as Gina watched, he pushed the grey dog aside and bent down to hand them to Miss Kendall. "Here you are," he said. "Chief's been keeping them in the big loose box 'til they're big enough to go out on their own. Might keep 'em all the same."
"Oh, they're so sweet," Miss Kendall breathed, and carefully took one from his hands. "How perfect. You found them in the pasture?"
"Yup," he said. "Like 'em better than people, must say. Like the horses better than them though."
"And like the dogs best of all," Miss Kendall said, and he laughed. "Thank you. They're so darling."
The boy grinned at her. "Of course, miss. I--" He turned at an unintelligible shout from inside the stables. "Got to take the baby, miss. Fool horse's got up on his stall door again."
Miss Kendall blinked at that, and rose, still cupping the baby rabbit and absently brushing a hand down her skirt. It did no noticeable good. "Oh, I must see this," she said. "I'll carry the baby, if I may?"
"After you, miss," the boy said, and they both went into the stables.
Gina stood frozen, unnoticed, still in the shadow of the barn, and tried to slow her leaping heart. There was nothing endearing about what she'd just seen. A muddy, hoydenish girl, her hair all mussed and her skirt smeared with the filth of a stableyard, no, it was not to be borne, and she would... she would...
She would do nothing. She knew that already. She would do nothing, and say nothing, and pretend she had seen nothing, because her heart would not slow, and she could not forget Ivy's bright beautiful smile, her joyful eyes, the baby rabbit cupped so gently in her hands.
She turned and went back to the house.
