fandomtownies | Caritas--OPEN (Monday)

To sing, or not to sing?

Who are we kidding? You're drinking.

On campus, Parker was glaring at the wall of the stairwell, clutching her cell.

ring
ring

"Pick up, damn you."

Jarod balanced the phone against his shoulder as he mixed a drink for a patron. "Caritas, how may I help you?"

"You knew," Parker accused him without saying hi. "You knew Zero found bugs in my room, and you said *nothing*."

For once, Jarod was thankful he couldn't see Parker. She was hell when she was mad. "Good evening, Miss Parker. And yes, I did, but I wanted to double check some things before I came to you with it. I wanted proof."

"And what did you find," she snarled, "In your investigation of my soon-to-be-dead boyfriend, that you didn't feel like sharing sooner?"

"Honestly? Not much. Except that, according to everything I've found, he's dead already." He held the phone slightly away from his ear, just in preparation. "I'll tell you more when I have it."

"He's WHAT?"

Parker was glad she was already sitting down. This was worse than what Janet found; a fake identity wasn't normal CIA or NSA or whatever-the-hell procedure.

She took a deep breath. "Well. Bravo, Boy Wonder. Nice job finding that out." And God, that better not be her ulcer acting up. "You're very. Damn. Smart. As usual."

"Supposedly, he committed suicide while doing time in prison for a bombing. I don't have the details on that, so don't ask."

He sighed. "It's not about who's the smartest, Parker. It never was."

"It always was. Even if *you* didn't see it that way, everyone else did," she said waspishly. "A bombing. Fabulous. Just gets better and better, doesn't it? Wow. Throw in marriage and an Oedipus complex, and I'll have hit the dating jackpot, won't I?"

Jarod decided now wasn't the time for Parker to confront her issues about her father. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry, Parker."

"It'd be worth more if you'd told me on Saturday," she hissed. "We could've-- Saturday nights, sometimes he stays over. Last time Broots found bugs, it was right after... Forget it. I am going to be angry for the forseeable future. I will talk to you after I talk to him."

"I'll talk to you then." He went to hang up, then said, "Parker, be careful. This may be too much for you to handle by yourself."

"Don't tell me what to do," she snapped. "I may not be a genius, but I know how to talk to men. Even men who are out to get me."

She snapped the cellphone shut, and closed her eyes, running a hand through her hair as she tried to think.

Jarod hung up the phone, shaking his head and more worried than ever. Parker was hurt and therefore much more likely to act impulsively. He needed to find more information, before she got herself into serious trouble.

Jack comes in and smiles to see Jarod. "Hey. Vanilla Coke?"

"You bet," Jarod said, pouring the drink. "Enjoying the snow?"

Jack made a face. "Cold, white stuff that gets under your collar and makes you all soggy? I like it from the inside. Too bad the TARDIS doesn't have any windows."

Jarod made a face. "Why would you choose to live in a place without windows?"

Jack smiled. "Because that's where my family lives."

"Your family lives in town? That must be nice, to have them nearby." Jarod tried to fight down the hard knot of envy in his stomach. His family was out there, somewhere, and they had a house. All he had to do was find it.

Jack folded his arms on the bar and rested his chin on them. "Well, it's more like I found them here. I've never had family before... but I kind of got sucked into one. I'm still not really sure how it happened -- but somehow I've got a mom and dad and a sister and a few very interesting uncles." Jack sipped his Coke. "It's like what you said, when we were talking a few weeks ago. I found people who took me in, took me as I am. They're my family now."

"That's great, Jack. Really wonderful."

"Yeah, it is," Jack said, sadly a little too self-centered to realize he was gloating. "Downside is, my new mom will kick my ass if I try to get alcohol here. Can I have another Coke? What about you? Family... not an option right now? A lot of people come here to get away, I think."

Jarod added vanilla to the bottom of the glass, then added the Coke. "Here."

"I have family," he replied quietly, "but I haven't seen them for a very long time."

Evie looks around Caritas as she stomps the snow off her feet. "Gracious," she mutters to herself as she walks to the bar. "It is too cold here. I don't like it." She smiles at Jarod.

Jarod smiled back. "You're from someplace warmer, I take it?"

[ooc: Sorry, I went to bed! Let me know if you're interested in playing this out or not.]

Evie slides onto a barstool. "Oh yes. I've spent most of my life in Egypt. We get storms like these occasionally, but not with snow." She runs her fingers through her hair, trying to brush the snow out. Unfortunetly, she only manages to melt a lot of it, wetting her hair further. "Oh bother."

[[I'd love to play this out. I'll be around for another hour and half or so, but not much after that.]]

"Egypt? Wow, that must be fascinating," Jarod replied. "I've never seen it. What's your favorite part about living there?"

He placed a stack of bar napkins in front of her. "Here. Can I get you something warm to drink?"

"Do you have any cocoa? Or a hot toddy, but I suppose this place won't let me drink either. Silly American laws." Evie sighs.

"Oh, Egypt is lovely. All the history there, you know? It's one thing to read about it in books, but to actually be there? Incredible." She smiles, happy to be talking about something she knows. "They pyramids, the Sphinx... Everything about it. And there's none of this bloody cold."

"One cocoa, coming up. Want some peppermint or another flavor in that?"

"It sounds wonderful," he nodded. "Not just the warmth, but it seems like a place where you'd get an amazing sense of history."

"Oh yes, definitely. You should visit sometime. Or, or you could borrow some of my books!" She smiles. "I have lots. I love to read, you know, all about pharoahs and, and priests and all of that."

"I'd love that," Jarod responded, eagerly, "but you'd have to bring them here, or somewhere else in town. I'm not allowed on the school grounds."

He offered his hand. "I'm Jarod, by the way."

"Well that's a silly rule isn't it? I'll certainly let you borrow them!" Evie smiles. "I'm Evelyn, but most people call me Evie." She offers her hand, but somehow overbalances and slides off the barstool with a panicked "OH!"

She plummets to the floor, landing square on her bum. "Oh, drat." The resigned way in which she says it makes it clear this happens more often than she'd like.

Jarod rushed around the bar and knelt down next to Evie, doing a quick visual examination for injuries. "Are you alright? Here, let me help you up." He moved to take her elbow.

Evie laughs a little as Jarod helps her up. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm terribly clumsy. Always have been." Evie seats herself on the barstool again, this time very carefully. "Once, when I was very young, I managed to knock down a whole bookcase. Luckily it landed on my parents huge, and probably priceless globe, and not on me." She shrugs, smiling. "I guess grace and smarts don't often go together."

His eyes widened. "It sounds like you were very lucky."

"I wouldn't know." Jarod walked back behind the bar once he made sure Evie was settled, and began making the hot chocolate. "But if I had to pick one, I'd definitely pick smarts. Grace only gets you so far in life."

Evie nods, "Oh yes, very. But as clumsy as I am, I'm usually quite lucky."

She looks at Jarod, her head cocked to the side. "I agree. I'd much rather have smarts, thought a little grace wouldn't be to terrible as well. Of course, where I'm from, women aren't expected to be smart." She shrugs and rolls her eyes. "Silly people."

"No, a little grace might not be bad."

"They're not expected to be...what?" Jarod chuckled, thinking immediately of Parker, then Becky and Miho. Somehow he thought they'd have something to say on that subject. Probably not at all polite, either. "Some of the smartest people I know are women."

Finished making the hot chocolate, he placed it in front of Evie, adding a couple of extra napkins, and keeping mentally locating both the ice bin and the bar towel. Just in case.

She reaches for the mug, carefully pulling it toward her. "Oh, yes. I agree. It was quite odd to come here and see all these girls at school. I mean, girls are schooled where I'm from, it's just that often they don't care much about it. And they're not expected to." Evie takes a sip of the cocoa. "I'm quite unique, you know. Well, at least there. Maybe not as much here."

"Everyone's unique," Jarod said, leaning forward on his elbows. "Not everyone has your enthusiasm for Egypt, first of all."

Evie smiles at Jarod, then drops her eyes to her cocoa, blinking rapidly. One might infer from the look that she's developing a crush on Jarod, but, of course, one might not.

"Oh, I would hope not. Then I'd never become a Bembridge Scholar! It's my life's dream, you know. To be able to study Egypt for a living, oh!" She grins widely. "It would be so incredible."

Jarod, being Jarod, was completely oblivious.

"I'm sure you'll accomplish whatever you set your mind to." He grinned back. "You strike me as very...determined."

Evie almost sparkles at the compliment. "Oh yes. The only thing I've ever not gotten that I wanted was coming here." She shakes her head. "My brother sent me here to get me out of my books, and I didn't want to come. But I'm glad I did, now. Especially with Dr. Jackson here. He knows more about Egypt than anyone else I've met." She takes a sip of her cocoa, then continues. "I've learned so much here, and met," her cheeks turn slightly pink, "a lot of very nice people."

Jarod's eyes darkened briefly at the mention of family, but he soon recovered. "You have a brother? Is he older or younger?"

"I've not met Doctor Jackson yet, but I'll keep an eye out for him. I like learning new things. And the people, well," he winked, "they've all seemed very nice so far."

"Oh, Jonathon's older. He's mostly an idiot though. He's been my guardian since our parents died, and I think he got sick of his baby sister underfoot." Evie leans in, "A lot of his business dealings aren't exactly, um, legal, and I wasn't very quiet about my objections to them."

She sits back, mug in hand, blushing furiously at the wink. "Oh, yes, there are a lot of very nice people here. A lot of smart people, too. Smart and nice. Always a good combination."

Talk, schmooze, kibbitz, etc.

Everything else.

Caritas--OPEN (Monday)

The Band

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The Lounge

OOC