Participants:
| Scene Title | Finding Friends In Unexpected Places |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | The strangers find friends to commiserate in, one in teh kind of person she would have least expected. |
| Date | October 18, 2010 |
It isn’t every day that Barbara makes an effort to get out of her apartment and back out into the world. Particularly after her little… escapade with Niki the other day – her sister was proving to be a bad influence indeed, and she hadn’t even met Jessica or Gina yet. But today, she had decided to head out on what might pass for a spot of actual work, or something resembling it.
It had been over a month since she had last traversed over to Gun Hill to speak with Lynette about the various puzzle pieces that had supposedly been discovered both at the complex and in the Ferry, a month since she’d seen her vision of a man hard at work on putting the strange thing together. It was more than due time for a check in, to see if anything else on the matter had somehow been uncovered.
It seemed, however, that this afternoon Barbara would not be so lucky, the knocking on Lynette’s door going unanswered. With a heavy sigh and the adjusting of bag over her shoulder, she turns and marches her way up, up, up to the rooftop – but to no avail there either. It’s only when she comes back down that she finally lays eyes on an actually person, a blonde woman, attempting to flag her down as she walks down steps.
“Hey!” she calls out, footsteps plodding a bit as she slows her step. “You haven’t happened to have seen Lynette about, have you?”
The blonde in question is Liza. She'd headed out, returning with some groceries in one hand and a canvas bag full of discounted used books in the other. She blinks as she's addressed, offering a warm smile. "Lynette? Not today. She might be out if she's not at her apartment… want to leave a message or something for her? I can make sure she gets it."
“Ah, I was afraid of that,” Barbara laments, one hand reaching back and scratching there back of her neck as she approaches Liza. “I probably should have called before coming over. A message would be fantastic, though.” Offering out a hand as she approaches, she smiles at Liza. “Barbara Simms. I can take one of those bags, you know.”
Liza offers forward the canvas bag. "That would be great, thank you!" The blonde glances at Barbara with a smile. "Liza Messer. Are you, uh, a frequent visitor here?" She questions, curiously.
“Not really,” Barbara confesses as she takes the bag and follows after Liza, looking back over her shoulder in hopes of spying Lynette at the last possible moment. “I don’t… really know anyone in the building besides Lynette, I’ve only been back in town a couple of months.” Turning her attention back to Liza, Barbara gives a bit of a nonchalant shrug. “I had come here to ask Lynette about the puzzle pieces, that appeared last month. She had been investigating them, and I had been helping a bit. I was hoping to see if there was more I could do.”
"I can't say I know much about the puzzle pieces… I've had a lot of different things on my mind. I hadn't even thought to ask her if she needed help." Liza confesses, leading the way towards her own apartment. "Well, now you know me, so you've got an extra excuse to be here if you wish. How do you know Lynette, if you don't mind me asking? Just the puzzle pieces?"
“More or less.” Which isn’t entirely the truth, but Barbara still doesn’t have permission to talk about The Spektor Collection with the rest of the Ferry yet. Hopefully, that would come soon enough. “Besides other… Ferry activities.” Because obviously, if Liza’s here, she must be affiliated in some way, at least after the bulletin she was Lynette put out late last month. “I don’t know how much help she needs, if any at this point.”
Well, Liza's not exactly part of Ferry, but… she's at least determined that Barbara's in on things. She gives a small nod. "Maybe I'll check with her… it'd be nice to feel useful for something. I'm starting to get a little restless. Walls of the apartment are starting to close in on me, I guess!" Even in spite of what she's saying, the blonde seems cheerful enough, unlocking the door to her apartment.
Barbara quirks an eyebrow at Liza, looking rather curiously at the younger woman. “You don’t help out with the safehouse here? I figured that’s what…” And then she stops, as the realisation dawns on her that if Liza isn’t helping out, she must be… “Oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude,” she replies a bit sheepishly. “If you don’t mind me asking, how did you come to be here?”
Sensitive topic, it seems. Liza's mouth twists into a slightly anxious look for the briefest of moments. "I've been here about a month or so now…" Liza admits. "Sort of lost a whole lot of who I was in one night, my job included." She's not trying to be vague, but just mentioning The Company to some people seems to bring them on edge. She offers a smile, though not quite as sunny, opening the door and stepping inside. Hopefully Barbara will be able to make the connections to what happened a little over a month ago and put things together, but if not… Liza's banking on the fact that it'll be a healthy thing to talk about it.
“Well, I was asking because I used to… run a safe house, so I get curious…” Indeed, Barbara pays attention to the news, both amongst the world, and within the Ferry, and when Liza alludes to the fall of the Company just almost not so long ago, it causes her to falter a bit. “O-Oh. You’re one of the… Company refugees, then,” she replies sheepishly, looking off to the side. The Company is only naturally a bit of a sensitive topic for Barbara as well, but a glance at Liza has a half smile returning to her face. “You look awfully young to have been caught up in their work, I must say.”
"Well, I wasn't a full agent… my father worked for the Company before he died, and my mother died when I was young so… they took me in. I trained under my father's partner. I didn't really get much field experience before everything came down, but…" Liza steps out of the way to let Barbara into the apartment. "I lost everything I had left that day." Indeed, looks like she doesn't have a lot of stuff in the apartment either—basic furniture, no real decorations. It's sparse, to say the least.
If nothing else, it eases Barbara’s mind to know that this couldn’t possibly have been one of the agents who hunted her at any point in time, so any of the already small amount of ill will she might hold fades quickly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t meant to bring up bad memories,” she remarks quietly as she steps in, looking for a palce tos et the canvas bag. “I know it’s hard to think about, so soon afterwards. I’ve been there myself.”
"That's alright. I'm trying to move on." Liza notes, glancing at Barbara and nodding towards the coffee table. "It's just fine right there." She moves to set the groceries on the counter before returning. "I just try not to think too hard about what I've lost, at least, not right now. It's… a lot of things are just catching up to me."
That prompts a smile from Barbara, the woman setting the bag down on a chair. “That’s the smart thing to do, rather than dwelling on it like I did. I was unwilling to move on for/// several years.” In some ways, she still hasn’t. She pauses a bit, turning back to Liza. “Just don’t forget to honour what those you’ve left behind.” It’s said with a bit of reverence – Barbara still remembers, until recently. Losing her family, particularly her mother.
Liza gets a bit choked up at that. "N-No… I'm not going to forget anyone." She clears her throat, looking away. "Sorry about that, I just… it hasn't been very long." She offers a smile. "Do you want some lemonade or something? I feel like a bad hostess."
Barbara frowns a bit – she figured that might be the reaction she gets, but she still feels bad about it. “No, I’m fine, thank you. I… didn’t mean to upset you, it’s…” The postcongitive looks off to the side, sighing. “I lost my family, many years ago, to some… unfortunate occurrences. Separated from my father and brother, my mother killed. So, if you ever need something to talk to about it, I know how it goes, I’m afraid.”
There's a genuine smile from Liza at the offer. "Thank you… I'd really like that." She lets out a deep breath. "You're welcome to come by any time you want, I mean it. I haven't been doing a whole lot for a while… I could use the company now and then."
Giving a bit of a nod, Barbara lets her hands fall down to her sides. “And I could stand to get out of my apartment more myself, so it seems like we’re both in need of more friends.” Barbara gives a nod, before looking back at the door nervously. “I do want to ask you, though, if… any other of the Company refugees live in the building.” Scratching her cheek, Barbara shrugs. “Not… because it makes me uncomfortable, or a bear any ill will. But, I… was on the run from The Company for several years. Being around folks who worked with them again… it still makes me a little nervous.” Well, the older members. She watches Liza for a second, looking for a reaction to her honesty. Not something she often shares, after all.
"There's only a few of us left, really. Those that are… we're here. Do you know any of the names of the ones who were after you? I could tell you if they're… dead or not." Well, to the best of her knowledge, at least. Liza gives a little bit of a nod. "Seems like a lot of people don't like us."
Barbara rolls her shoulders in a shrug, looking down at the ground. “I don’t. And it’s not like it would matter if I did.” She lets out a sigh, looking back up to Liza, moving to place a hand on the younger woman’s shoulder. “I know most of those people were just… doing their job. I only hold ill will with… certain people.” Shaking her head, Barbara moves to set down her bag, looking back up at Liza. “So, don’t let my hesitations get you down.” She doesn’t address people disliking the Company – can you blame them, really?
"They were all my family. We were like a family." Liza states, defensively. "I'm sorry if there were people after you. The people I knew… they were good people. They were good people. Try to remember that."
Barbara looks back at Liza, giving a frown. “I know they were. I grew up with The Company,” she finally states, having beat around saying it before now. “My father worked for them, for several years, with my mother.” Babrara reaches back, running a hand through her long hair. “But… that’s a long story. One I haven’t even told the Ferry.”
Liza blinks a little as she looks towards Barbara. "They worked for the Company?" She smiles, faintly. "If you don't want to tell the Ferry… you don't have to. I can understand why you might not want to. Things can get complicated, when it comes to the Company. I'm just glad you understand too."
Barbara gives a bit of a nod, leaning against the chair she put the canvas bag into. “He wasn’t an agent,” she notes, drumming fingers against the edge of the chair. “I… don’t even know why I’m telling you this, to be honest.” Barbara admits, eyeing Liza. “I haven’t told anyone. They’ve all found out on their own.”
"Well, you don't have anything to lose, telling me." Liza points out, offering another smile, this one a little brighter. Maybe eventually her mood won't be so overcast. "My dad was all I had after my mom died. He was an agent… he died in an operation back in 2007. After that… his partner became my mentor. He was a good man and he made sure that I didn't have to be alone in everything." She looks back to Barbara. "What did your dad and mom do, if they weren't agents?"
“My father was a scientist,” Barbara says, looking back down at the ground. “My mother… helped with one of his experiments. “I suppose with the fall of the Company, I don’t. Which… is an odd thing to think about. Though I do wonder just how many of the Company’s activities are still be handled by The Institute…” Barbara grumbles something under her breath before looking back up at Liza.
There's a falter in the smile for a second. "Well, they won't get away with that for long. I don't think any of us that are left are going to let what happened just fade away. Whatever they're doing… we'll stop them somehow." Liza insists, then looks intently at Barbara. "Everything will be okay eventually. It just may take some time…"
That’s what Barbara’s been telling herself for years. Still, she gives a smile to Liza, slipping hands into jean pockets. “I told you I used to run a safe house. The Institute put an end to that. So yes, whatever they’re doing, you can damn well bet we’ll stop them.” Despite the confidence in that statement, Barbara isn’t sure she’ll have a role in that, but she knows it’ll happen. Liza’s intent look is returned for a moment, and then softens gradually. “Some time. But yes.”
That's all it takes for Liza. She smiles more broadly, offering Barbara a nod. "Right! We'll stop things and we'll make things right again." She glances at the canvas bag for a long moment. "Well, in any case, it'll still take a lot of work… and sometimes you just have to wait for more of an opportunity."
“Nothing happens overnight, no,” Barbara replies with a shake of her head. “And until then, we’ll have to do what we can to get by, right?” Barbara smirks, pushing up from the table. “I mean, that’s all you can do when something like this happens. Try and live life as best as possible, even if it’s hard.”
"Right!" Liza agrees, smiling again. "So… we've all got to keep our chins up. Even you, Barbara Simms. Keep your chin up."
Barbara gives a bit of a laugh, nodding at Liza. “I have this long. I don’t plan on stopping just yet. It’s hard sometimes, but I’ve learned how to get buy through the worst of times. You will too, don’t worry.”
"I think I've done good so far," Liza states. "I just have to figure out how to do things all over again. And once I do… nothing will stop me!"
Again, Barbara can’t help but laugh at Liza’s enthusiasm, giving a nod to match the mood as she pulls up her bag. “Maybe that lemonade will be good after all. I’d love to chat for a bit longer before I go looking got Lynette, if you’re up for it.”
"Great! I'll go get us lemonade and I might have some cookies left… they're those ones with the jam in the middle…" Liza is already off towards the kitchen. "I'm glad I ran into you, Barbara."
“And I, you,” Barbara responds with a smile. “Finding someone to commiserate hardship and find a way to kick it to the curb with is always welcome, Liza.” A quiet chuckle escapes her lips, watching as the other woman heads off to the kitchen. “I never imagined it would be with someone who worked for the company… but stranger things bring people together.”