05-15-2019, 09:39 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-16-2019, 01:18 AM by Ivan Sarkozy.)
Being with Danya and Zara felt like being home- even though it was a home he had never lived in. She seemed to appreciate his offered help. It wasn't long before Ivan was the guy picking Zara up to take her to school. The mornings were occasionally hectic. Yeah right. Sometimes they were crazy. Ivan had no idea how much struggle it could be to get a kid ready for school.
At first Ivan held back. To Zara he was just mommy's friend. Ivan had no right to assert any prerogatives as a biological father- not yet anyway. There were times, sitting at the table with Zara- he even was the one making breakfast now, lightening Danya's load there- that the simple domesticity of it all felt so comforting and good- a man who hadn't even realized he was starving suddenly eating an actual meal- that he felt irritation at Danya for having deprived him of this from the start. That he had not had the opportunity to watch Zara grow from a helpless infant to the precocious and fiercely intelligent girl before him.
She didn't have the right to have made that decision, even if he had been dumb and immature. Despite the fading of his bruises, they had indicated he still was. But she grew up, after all, despite her bratty self-centeredness. Quickly, it seemed. Who's to say Ivan wouldn't have done the same. But he kept that to himself. Better late than never.
As the days and weeks went by, tongues flowed more freely and feelings were more expressed without fear. Cautious wariness slowly wilted away, replaced by trust. And it felt good. His relationship with Zara had grown to the point that she hugged him before she walked into school each day. The first time had left his eyes glassy with moisture and an unimaginable ache in his heart. How was it possible for you to love someone so completely after such a short period of time?
The mornings were a joy despite the hard work and occasional struggles. He was sure that would wear off, if Danya's looks in those moments were any indicators. But it was all new to him.
His relationship with Danya progressed, though slowly. They were not the same kids they used to be. Some things had stayed the same. And somethings had changed- a lot! The physical attraction was still there. How could it not? The mature woman she was now had a deeper beauty than the self centered butterfly she had been. Serenity. And while he couldn't say he looked all that different, he had certainly seen things. Wonderful and terrible things. She said there was a quietness to him, as if there were places he didn't want to go, ugliness he did not want to share.
He certainly wasn't ready to tell her about that night in the pit, fueled by rage and anger, when he was ready to plumb the depths. It still was there. Yun Kao still held a leash around his neck. That hadn't disappeared. Good people could do bad things. Pops was an example of that. The world was far more complex than he had imagined. But he had a daughter. And a woman that he was finding he still had powerful feelings for, if not loved. Protecting them- along with his family- was his first job. And if that meant breaking rules, then so be it.
So that was happening.
Nox's lesson had proved useful. Every day in the evening, he practiced with the power, alternating between fine motor control stuff- dexterity, thinness of threads, complicated weaves- and working on his strength in the power.
Advancement wasn't always detectable or noticeable. Not surprising. Working out was the same. For days, he struggled to making thinner weaves of earth. It was so fuzzy, though, a couple of threads so fine that he could barely make them out. He'd strain his eyes, trying to bring them both into focus, to 'feel' them individually. Idly, he wondered if glasses would help. But then, boom! He could see, could feel. And eventually manipulate. The chess pieces got better, too.
One of his friends owned an old salvage shop with lots of junked cars and trucks and other things in the back. He might struggle to lift a refrigerator, fighting every day and barely moving it. And then, suddenly something would happen and he'd get it off the ground. Only a few seconds, at first. Gradually, the time increased. And the height. He supposed it was all analogous to strength training, though what "muscles" were being damaged and repaired, he couldn't begin to imagine.
And there was work. The Cap had let them know that Domovoi would be coming under the authority of the Consulate on Channeling. DuBois. Ivan had some hope, there. DuBois might provide help ridding him of Yun Kao and her rope. What that restructuring would mean, Ivan didn't know. But it might be good. And still, work was work. Despite everything that had happened, crimes went on- their special cases- and they needed investigating.
At least there was movement. In all of it. Routine, true. But good all the same. He was sure the lull would end. If, as the rumors said, Domovoi would be expanded, there would be other cops like him. Would there be combat training? What about the Atharim? They had the knowledge and the experience of what was out there. Where they being leveraged? Probably. He hadn't seen Dorian in a while.
Whatever was going on, things would be changing soon. And so Ivan took advantage of this time. Most of all, took advantage of being with Zara and Danya. Because they were his future. Ivan wouldn't lose that again. Not this time.
At first Ivan held back. To Zara he was just mommy's friend. Ivan had no right to assert any prerogatives as a biological father- not yet anyway. There were times, sitting at the table with Zara- he even was the one making breakfast now, lightening Danya's load there- that the simple domesticity of it all felt so comforting and good- a man who hadn't even realized he was starving suddenly eating an actual meal- that he felt irritation at Danya for having deprived him of this from the start. That he had not had the opportunity to watch Zara grow from a helpless infant to the precocious and fiercely intelligent girl before him.
She didn't have the right to have made that decision, even if he had been dumb and immature. Despite the fading of his bruises, they had indicated he still was. But she grew up, after all, despite her bratty self-centeredness. Quickly, it seemed. Who's to say Ivan wouldn't have done the same. But he kept that to himself. Better late than never.
As the days and weeks went by, tongues flowed more freely and feelings were more expressed without fear. Cautious wariness slowly wilted away, replaced by trust. And it felt good. His relationship with Zara had grown to the point that she hugged him before she walked into school each day. The first time had left his eyes glassy with moisture and an unimaginable ache in his heart. How was it possible for you to love someone so completely after such a short period of time?
The mornings were a joy despite the hard work and occasional struggles. He was sure that would wear off, if Danya's looks in those moments were any indicators. But it was all new to him.
His relationship with Danya progressed, though slowly. They were not the same kids they used to be. Some things had stayed the same. And somethings had changed- a lot! The physical attraction was still there. How could it not? The mature woman she was now had a deeper beauty than the self centered butterfly she had been. Serenity. And while he couldn't say he looked all that different, he had certainly seen things. Wonderful and terrible things. She said there was a quietness to him, as if there were places he didn't want to go, ugliness he did not want to share.
He certainly wasn't ready to tell her about that night in the pit, fueled by rage and anger, when he was ready to plumb the depths. It still was there. Yun Kao still held a leash around his neck. That hadn't disappeared. Good people could do bad things. Pops was an example of that. The world was far more complex than he had imagined. But he had a daughter. And a woman that he was finding he still had powerful feelings for, if not loved. Protecting them- along with his family- was his first job. And if that meant breaking rules, then so be it.
So that was happening.
Nox's lesson had proved useful. Every day in the evening, he practiced with the power, alternating between fine motor control stuff- dexterity, thinness of threads, complicated weaves- and working on his strength in the power.
Advancement wasn't always detectable or noticeable. Not surprising. Working out was the same. For days, he struggled to making thinner weaves of earth. It was so fuzzy, though, a couple of threads so fine that he could barely make them out. He'd strain his eyes, trying to bring them both into focus, to 'feel' them individually. Idly, he wondered if glasses would help. But then, boom! He could see, could feel. And eventually manipulate. The chess pieces got better, too.
One of his friends owned an old salvage shop with lots of junked cars and trucks and other things in the back. He might struggle to lift a refrigerator, fighting every day and barely moving it. And then, suddenly something would happen and he'd get it off the ground. Only a few seconds, at first. Gradually, the time increased. And the height. He supposed it was all analogous to strength training, though what "muscles" were being damaged and repaired, he couldn't begin to imagine.
And there was work. The Cap had let them know that Domovoi would be coming under the authority of the Consulate on Channeling. DuBois. Ivan had some hope, there. DuBois might provide help ridding him of Yun Kao and her rope. What that restructuring would mean, Ivan didn't know. But it might be good. And still, work was work. Despite everything that had happened, crimes went on- their special cases- and they needed investigating.
At least there was movement. In all of it. Routine, true. But good all the same. He was sure the lull would end. If, as the rumors said, Domovoi would be expanded, there would be other cops like him. Would there be combat training? What about the Atharim? They had the knowledge and the experience of what was out there. Where they being leveraged? Probably. He hadn't seen Dorian in a while.
Whatever was going on, things would be changing soon. And so Ivan took advantage of this time. Most of all, took advantage of being with Zara and Danya. Because they were his future. Ivan wouldn't lose that again. Not this time.