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Post by fiona on May 26, 2012 7:42:48 GMT -5
Location: Residential District
(OOC: Takes place March 15, 2521 around 11:47am. Mostly Henry and Fio for now)
Finally.. A day off from working the food truck. It'd been a pretty crazy week, too.. especially after meeting Thor and Model Em earlier on in the week. But now it was the weekend, and Fio had time to just sit back and relax. Model Fi currently rested on the desk, not having to be worried about being shoved into a drawer or anything. Just him and Fio here. No one they didn't already know was going to spot the little Biometal in Fio's small studio apartment.
As for Fio? She was hand-washing a bed sheet at the moment. She'd accidentally spilled some detergent on it when she'd come home earlier from the laundromat, and rather than spend more money and time there.. it'd just be easier to hand-wash.
"...What I wouldn't give to have a washer and dryer.. This would be so much easier. I'm just glad it was the detergent that spilled and not the soda."
And without a dryer, the only thing she could do was air-dry the darn sheet. She opened the door and went outside to her tiny terrace, draping the sheet over the railing after making sure it was clean. Sure.. it was going to take awhile, but at least it was a nice day outside. Going back in for a second to grab Model Fi (shoving him into her pouch) and a book, Fio returned outside and plopped down in a chair.
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on May 26, 2012 20:33:25 GMT -5
Finally, Henry could let his feet beat the street. He'd just gotten out of the hospital the day before, and was looking for the building where his identical twin brother rented an apartment. He carried his duffel bag close to himself, not wanting anyone to root into it. After all, he'd be hard-pressed, even with his linguistic skills, to be able to come up with an explanation for what the hospital's linens, a hospital gown, and the toiletries from his hospital room were doing in that mighty duffel bag.
He had come upon an apartment building, when a faint scent assailed his olfactory senses. No. Not assailed. Titillated seemed like it would be the better word. Maybe even scintillated. He knew that smell. It was the scent of a fresh-washed linen. He had missed that smell so much; it was his favorite thing about the world outside the hospital.
He glanced around, trying to find the source of the scent. Soon, he saw the source: a terrace of an apartment. His first instinct, of course, was to reach from afar and see if he could grab it on his own. Damn, how he wish he hadn't been caught purloining that IV pole! He could have used it to reach the fresh-washed sheet and be running away with it a lot quicker!
He'd have to be more careful about this, however. He would have to get closer-inch closer bit by bit, act casual. Look away from the linen. Didn't want its owner catching on while he hastily reached out to clutch that soft cottony-blend goodness. Once his fingers dug into the folds, he yanked it hastily, trying to make a run for it.
"My darling, I have your cleanness at last!" He blurted, running while clutching tightly to the bed-sheet for dear life. "Let us never be apart my love!"
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Post by fiona on May 27, 2012 17:31:03 GMT -5
Fio lounged in her chair, opening the book to where she had left off. Let's see.. where had she stopped.. Ah yes. Towards the bottom of page 394. Screw electronic books. This was just much more convenient. And you didn't have to worry about the words on the paper accidentally being deleted. It was there for keeps.. until someone scribbled it out or something.
She was so invested in this book that she barely caught the movement of the bed sheet. It was only when it brushed against her arm as it was pulled down that she'd noticed that the sheet had vanished. Slamming her book shut and putting it on the table, Fio got up, looking over the railing to see someone had pilfered her sopping wet bed sheet. "HEY! Give that back!"
Without a second's hesitation, she hopped over her railing and landed on the ground. She was on the very first floor, the ground level, so it wasn't like she had too far to go. Fio darted after the man, finding quite a few familiar aspects about him. Thor?!
"THOR!! GET BACK HERE!"
Model Fi perked up at the mention of Thor. Elec?! But.. he didn't sense Elec anywhere.. "Fio, I don't think that's Thor! Elec ain't with 'im!"
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on May 29, 2012 23:11:30 GMT -5
Henry couldn't help it. He was on a roll. A nice, soft, clean bedsheet didn't come around all that often. So of course he was going to clutch to this one for dear life.
That was, he planned on it, not expecting to get caught by the owner. His feet would start to beat an even hastier retreat than they had before. He glanced back, gritting his teeth. "But can't you see? It was meant to be!" He gave an incredulous look. "You wouldn't separa--"
He had seen her hop over the railing and cursed in his mind, trying to run faster to get away. That was, until he heard what she was bellowing. Thor? He wasn't Thor! He was Henry frickin' Steele! "STOP CALLING ME BY MY TWIN BROTHER'S NAME FOR THE LOVE OF LINENS!" He then skidded on his heels, flinching. He'd heard what he thought was a faint buzzing noise that was really getting at his head. Ugh, what the heck was this noise? "Son of a linen closet, lady! How the heck do you know my twin brother anyway?"
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Post by fiona on May 30, 2012 7:34:59 GMT -5
Just what the heck was with this guy? 'Meant to be'..? What the heck did he have planned to do with a wet bed sheet, marry it? Fio was pretty sure that wasn't going to happen, but she wasn't going to let this guy just make off with her stuff!
"I really don't care! Give it back!"
She chased after him, left a bit surprised when he screamed that he wasn't Thor. Though.. maybe Model Fi was right all along. Along with the fact that Model Em wasn't with him (according to her Biometal), he did look a little different from Thor. His hair was a tad bit longer for starters. But if he wasn't Thor... did that make him the brother he'd mentioned before? The one that had been in the hospital? But what the heck was he doing here?
Coming to a halt when Thor's twin came to a halt, she held out her hand. "I'll tell you how I know Thor, but first.. the bed sheet. I don't know why you'd want my wet bed sheet, but you can't just take stuff that doesn't belong to you."
Model Fi mentally rolled his eyes as his Biomatch spoke. "Fio, ya gotta be more demandin' than that..."
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on May 30, 2012 22:06:23 GMT -5
Henry couldn't help it. That wet bed sheet was going to become his next security blanket. Normal grown men didn't need a security blanket. But Henry Robin Steele was different. He was a grown man who had spent most of his childhood in and out of hospitals, always with security blankets, and had grown so used to blankets that even bedsheets were security blankets to him.
"You'd deprive a sick guy of comfort?!" It had been a harsh statement but Henry's cold way of trying to guilt her into letting him keep it.
Oh, indeed he was quite different from Thor. The elder twin had shorter hair, looked less scrawny, was less pale. But he, Henry, the younger twin, was the pale, thin, long-haired shadow of his identical twin brother. And now he was out of the hospital, originally having set out to look for his twin's apartment.
He looked down to the bedsheet, then up to Fio. Damn it! She drove a hard bargain. What would have been a good security blanket, traded for information. He heaved a dramatic sigh and held out the blanket. "...You wouldn't understand. It sounds so stupid to most people." He grunted, glancing down to the side. "And it hasn't hurt me or most of the people I've taken from yet..."
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Post by fiona on May 31, 2012 21:50:43 GMT -5
Oh, that's how you were going to play it? Deprive the sick guy of his comfort? The heck was he supposed to do with a sopping wet bed sheet anyway?!
"And you'd make a girl sleep in a cold room with no bed sheet to keep her warm? Would that give you the comfort you want?!"
Even though she didn't actually use that bed sheet.. It was mainly there for the sake of actually having a complete bed set. But what if she were to get really cold at night and the comforter just wasn't enough? Then she'd be out a sheet, and would be left to deal with the cold, cold world.
Of course Fio was going to drive a hard bargain. She just wanted her blanket back, and if giving this guy the info he wanted wasn't a fair enough trade to get her bed sheet back, she didn't know what was. But at least he was going to hand over the bed sheet. Though.. she probably shouldn't stay too far from her apartment.. The door from her terrace was unlocked after all.
"Listen. I need to get back to my apartment, but.. you're welcome to come over and we can talk a little bit. I'm in apartment number 127 on the first floor if you want to swing by. I'll leave the bed sheet on the railing but please.. try not to take it this time." She ran back to her apartment, climbing over the railing and went back inside once tossing the sheet back where it had been to dry.
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on May 31, 2012 22:30:52 GMT -5
"Touche...I believe you have me in checkmate." Henry grimaced. "Even though this is certainly the finer stuff. Far and well better than the coarse sheets of the hospital, though I've managed to soften those up in washers and dryers before."
The guy couldn't help it. He liked his bedsheets. He liked all sheets. Twin size, Full size, Queen size, King size, Henry Size, hospital sheets or finer stuff, clean or dirty, wet or dry. He had an addiction to them like Linus van Pelt had to his blue security blanket. No. Not an addiction. All of them were his security blankets. He wanted to CUDDLE ALL THE SHEETS! After all, the sheets had cuddled him.
That hard bargain had been a tough choice for the man who fancied himself to be his own character, Truth Ordaire, the phantom thief. However, information, especially if it led him to his twin brother who he was trying to find the apartment of, was very much desired.
He followed closely behind Fio with a stern look. "Then I guess I should follow you to your apartment. I'm not resting until I have that information. After all, I really need to find his place. You know him, right? So I wouldn't be surprised if you know where he lives and all." He pouted somewhat when told not to steal the sheet. Darn it, that was the best part! What had that psychologist in the hospital said? Resist the kleptomaniac urge. Press it down. Smooth it out like a sheet in his mind. Ah klack! That reminded him of what he wanted to steal! "C-can I be let in? I don't know if I can resist the urrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgessssssssssssssss if I stay out heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere." He whined.
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Post by fiona on May 31, 2012 22:49:05 GMT -5
Bingo. She had him now, even if it wasn't the method she'd preferred. But it was truth. And besides.. he wouldn't really let her sleep in a cold room with no bed sheet, would he? Not that most guys would've cared one way or the other. Just what the heck had happened to chivalry?
"...That bed sheet, so you know.. was the cheapest one I could find when I went out shopping a month ago. I can't afford to splurge, so I have to take what I can get. Though.. I'm not real picky about what my sheets look like. Just as long as I have a sheet, I'm fine."
If she'd known about this man and his obsession with bed sheets, she would've pegged him as the strangest guy she'd ever met. But since she didn't, she only pegged him as a pretty strange guy for wanting to steal a wet bed sheet. Eh.. At least he'd only tried to steal that and not something more valuable, like her food truck. "Let's get inside first and then we can talk, alright?"
It was only after Fio closed the door and took a few steps that she'd realized that Thor's twin wasn't going to take the mainstream way of getting to her apartment. Naw.. he was just going to stand outside her terrace and yell for her to let him in. She facepalmed, turning around and opening the door back up. "...Why didn't you just go through the main entrance and knock on my door?"
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on Jun 4, 2012 21:17:11 GMT -5
Bingo? It was checkmate! And she had just happened to nail one of the more chivalrous guys with his weakness--that chivalrous nature that was reminiscent of his own novel character, that chivalrous phantom thief. Besides, what if she needed a security blanket?
His eyes widened at the revelation that the sheet wasn't all that expensive at all. "You're sure? You're absolutely sure? I could swear that just by feel it had to be a lot more expensive. Even when wet, this material is some of the softest and most resilient materials! Tell me, did you find this on sale? It'd explain a lot, really. How you were able to get such a fine sheet for such a good, low price."
Oh, he was strange, alright. One might even say that Henry Klacking Steele was the most batshit psychotic nutso strange guy in the known universe. The guy that wanted to steal practical items when he could have stolen an expensive van or a shiny vase was right there in front of Fio.
"Alriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight." He gave a faintly whiny tone not unlike Vash the Stampede saying the same thing.
Oh Fio. You should have known that Thor's twin was more hipster than hipster Gaston eccentric. After all, you knew his twin brother already. He gave a sheepish look and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, uh..." How the heck could he explain this? Oh, that's right. The simple, direct, blunt reason. "Well, I get lost in hallways easily. Just ask the nurses at the hospital about it. They were constantly having to guide me back to my room. Hell, I have a feeling when I find my brother's place, he's constantly going to have to guide me back to his apartment."
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Post by fiona on Jun 4, 2012 22:05:23 GMT -5
How the heck was that bed sheet supposed to feel expensive? It wasn't made of silk, and it sure as heck wasn't satin. Not even cashmere! ....Did they even make cashmere bed sheets? Eh. Whatever. "I got all my sheets as individual pieces. Much cheaper that way. ...Ok I might've gotten a few on sale. ...And the comforter on clearance. But I can assure you that they were pretty cheap to begin with. I can't afford stuff like that, nor would I really want it."
Thor himself was pretty eccentric, but this guy.. he was even stranger. Thor didn't run around stealing bed sheets Instead he ran around demanding coffee because he liked it!. Was this guy really the twin he'd told her about when they'd met? He seemed.. very peculiar.
Fio stepped outside, staring at Thor's brother Loki and extended her hand to him so he could hop over a little easier. "Come on.. Let's get inside and talk. Do you want something to drink?"
Though she did kinda feel bad, but at least he'd confirmed one thing. He really was the one that Thor had mentioned before. The one who'd been in the hospital. But if only he knew.. Thor was only one floor away down the opposite side of the building.
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on Jun 10, 2012 16:52:00 GMT -5
Oh, but that sheet was made out of some sort of good poly-synthetic blend of some sort. May have been cheap, but damn, it was still the good stuff as far as Henry was concerned. He quirked a brow. "Oh my. Quite the utilitarian approach. Not that it's a bad thing--it's actually a good thing to maximize your keep while minimizing your spending and all..." He scratched his cheek slightly. He was probably sounding weirder than hell right now.
He was indeed stranger. But that came with being the more eccentric of the Steele twins. Really, it ran in the family, and Sharpei might have actually been the only sane Steele, to be honest. But even her sanity was questionable. Though not as questionable as Henry Motherfrickin' Robin Loki Steele's sanity.
Henry leaped carefully over the terrace with Fio's help and gave a cheerful grin. "Alright. Oh, and tea would be lovely. Though if you have any pink limeade I'm game for it."
Henry rubbed his arm rather awkwardly. He was the kind of guy that got lost easily probably as bad as Magnetman, only Henry had no excuse. That wasn't something that would change for him for a very long time.
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Post by fiona on Jun 13, 2012 22:34:33 GMT -5
Fio blinked as the man spoke in his quite.. intricately worded way. The heck did he even say just now? It made her head spin.. but best not to be rude about it. "You certainly have a way with words, don't you?" She let out a bit of a nervous chuckle, trying hard not to make things more awkward than they already were.
The man hopped over the terrace before long, causing Fio to blush ever so slightly as he held her hand a bit. She let go once he was over, though her face still stayed a tinted red. Tea..? "I hope you like the tea in the little bags. It's.. all I really have. I keep some around whenever I get a headache." Sure, there were other kinds of tea, but they were just far too expensive! This kind.. it was alright, and especially at the low price you got 40 packets or so for, too. Fio filled a mug with water and stuck it in the microwave until it boiled. If he didn't want any, she'd just make some for herself.
"Go ahead. Go have a seat. I know.. there's not many places to choose from, but it's alright." While she waited for the microwave to ding, she approached Thor's twin, extending her hand. "We never really got properly introduced earlier, did we? My name's Fiona, though everyone calls me Fio. What's your name?"
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Henry Steele
Grunt
Bed Linen Afficianado
But officer! These are my linens!
Posts: 29
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Post by Henry Steele on Jun 19, 2012 21:35:35 GMT -5
Oh, indeed Henry had such intricate language. He was an English major, after all, not a history and archaeology major like Thor had been! Words were his life~. "Of course I do. I am a passionate master of the wordcraft. That is to say...I'm a writer. Words are in my very soul." Nope, he hadn't caught onto that nervous chuckle. He was fully in writer mode at the moment with a chipper grin on his face despite the awkwardness that the situation presented. "Apologies if I sound like I'm talking too much. I get carried away when my passion for the linguistic arts is brought up." Yep. This was definitely Thor's twin.
Henry wasn't yet blushing--it wasn't that he was uninterested, just that he hadn't realized the social cue, really. If he had realized it, he'd have been blushing brightly. When the mention of the tea bags came up, he gave a soft smile. "I'm absolutely fine with bagged tea. Fresh-herb teas are absolutely temperamental and hard to work with anyway. Bagged teas are much easier to work with and I find their flavor is less...grating, you know?" Yep, this guy could even describe the bagged teas and make them sound glowing. What a wordsmith this guy was! "I do believe I'll accept that tea. It's the kind I'm familiar with and fond of anyway."
He seated himself carefully, putting down his bag. Hopefully she wouldn't try to inspect the contents; there were so many unscrupulous things in there! When she approached with her hand out, he reached out the shake her hand. "Nice to make your acquaintance, Fio. The name is Henry Steele, but you can call me...anytime." DAMN IT HENRY YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO PULL A TOP MAN.
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Post by fiona on Jun 20, 2012 19:59:26 GMT -5
So wordy.. Not only had it made Fio want to run for the closest dictionary, but it just made her.. interested. Maybe he could get into writing or something. Though it seemed he already had, for he had announced that he had actually been a writer. “Really? What kind of things do you write? Novels, short stories.. poems, maybe?” Hey. Curious girl was curious. She liked reading from time to time, and maybe this guy could give her something new to read.
“Oh don't worry about it. It's alright. I myself do like reading when I get some downtime. Just started reading this one book about this space pirate who's competing with a princess for the affection of one man who's... not exactly interested in a relationship with either one of them the other day. Not really something I'd normally read, but.. I was rather curious to see what it was about.”
At least the man hadn't questioned her blushing. Made her feel slightly better about the situation. But at least he was taking up the offer of bagged tea. “Sure thing~. It'll take several minutes, but hopefully you'll like it. Want anything in yours? I've got milk and plenty of sugar. Some creamer, too.. though I tend to save that for days I actually drink coffee. I'm not much of a coffee person.”
So the name was Henry. At least she could put a name with a face now. Plus being Thor's twin.. she at least had ways of telling them apart already. Their hair and their complexions for starters. But.. that comment he'd made.. just what the heck was that supposed to mean? Fio's face turned bright red. Was he.. hitting on her just now?! “I.. I guess we can talk while we wait for the tea. You.. wanted to know about your brother?”
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