Shirley wasn't sure what she expected when she reached the settlement. Charlie, or Jenn, had told her that they'd get her someplace to stay for the night, that she'd help her find Rick in the morning, but Shirley couldn't quite wait that long.
However, it wasn't like she had many options. Especially when Jenn had been dragged away in a manner that made it clear that she hadn't expected that to happen either.
Even as someone started helping the others who'd accompanied them from where she'd been rescued, Shirley couldn't help but keep to herself. She wasn't sure why but being here drove it home that she was so far out of her element that she might as well be on her own.
While she'd like to know how Rick was doing, she couldn't say that she felt like she should settle down here. She would be fine with just knowing that he was doing well. Though, afterwards, she wasn't sure if even she cared what happened to her. She almost felt like a dying tree about to get swallowed up by a flood that would carry her to her demise and end up who knew where.
She could feel the wind blowing through the stubble of her hair that was starting to grow back. It had been shaved at some point for reasons that Shirley never understood. She wasn't sure if it was because she'd tried taking care of her hair and whoever owned her at that time wanted to take it away out of spite or if it was as a punishment for something that she didn't understand. All she could say about it was that it was a stark reminder how she really shouldn't worry about what would happen to her.
She wasn't sure how long she lingered there, but suddenly there was someone by her, who talked directly to her. Shirley had been able to pick up on the local language a little, but the friendliness from this person washed over her, somehow washing away the negative thoughts she'd been having, even if she it didn't change the conclusion she'd realized some time ago about what would happen to her down the road.
"Um, can I help you?"
Shirley was able to make out what was said, though it was a little difficult with still learning the language, a skill that Shirley had never been good at. Though, when she opened her mouth and was shocked to hear the abrasive tone she used, more than the words that she spoke. "What do you want with me?"
The way she spoke was in such contrast with the way that she felt, she couldn't understand why the two were so different. Even though she doubted it'd matter that much in the end. Especially with what she expected would happen as a result of her tone.
Yet, the other person didn't seem like she was fazed by Shirley's tone. "I was just trying to see if there's anything I could do to help you. If only to help you find a place to sleep. As the nights her do get a little cold," she said, making Shirley wonder if she'd been sent specifically to make sure that she was taken care of. Which somehow made her start to feel warm inside when she'd been feeling rather cold and abandoned up to that point.
Shirley examined the girl before her. She wasn't sure what to make of the uniform she wore, but she didn't think too much about it as she really didn't know that much about this world to make a judgement about that. Even though she had a feeling that this girl really should still be in school rather than out playing soldier.
"Alright. Though, I was expecting to see my brother here. Jenn said that he should be here," she said, happy that her tone wasn't as abrasive as it was before. Though, she did feel her tone was still a little curt, which didn't seem to bother the girl who seemed almost determined to help her.
"Who's your brother?"
"Rick," Shirley answered simply, partly wondering if this girl would even know who that was.
"Oh, I know him, but he's not at the settlement right now. His wife asked him to check on something in the other settlement and he left yesterday to look into it. Though, I have a feeling that he won't be long, since a messenger came this morning and there seemed to be almost a panic and I overheard someone asking where Rick was."
Shirley wasn't sure what to do with all the information she was just given. Though, while she was happy to see that she was talking to someone who at least knew who her brother was, the part of 'his wife' seemed to echo in her mind, even though she couldn't say what she had expected for Rick when she got here.
"He's married?"
The words were out of Shirley's mouth before she could stop them. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, just that she couldn't take them back.
"Uh, yeah?"
Shilrley suddenly realized that she didn't know the name of the person she was talking to and should probably introduce herself before asking that. Just so she wasn't continuing to think of her as 'that girl' rather than whatever her name was.
"My apologies. I should introduce myself. I'm Shirley. Rick's my younger brother and we got separated when we were made into slaves."
Why she added the part about when she had been a slave she couldn't say. Somehow talking to this girl was almost soothing to her and made words come out easier than she'd have thought otherwise.
"I'm Embris. Come with me and I'll show you where I stay with my siblings. It's not far and you look like you could use some rest."
Shirley wanted to accept the offer, but at the same time she was hesitant to find a place to rest when her mind was more interested in learning about what Rick had been up to while he was here and especially with the fact that he'd found someone who was actually willing to marry him.
"First, who is my brother married to? I'd like to meet this woman."
Shirley wasn't sure why, but the look she got from Embris changed. She wasn't sure why that was, just that the way she looked at Shirley made Shirley wonder if maybe she'd asked something she shouldn't have.
They stood there for a minute, making Shirley wonder if maybe they weren't actually going to go anywhere. She was about to suggest that she didn't have to meet her tonight, that she could meet her tomorrow, even though she'd rather see right away what kind of woman Rick would get to marry him. The silence was even starting to make her feel uneasy, but then she felt relieved when Embris spoke again.
"I guess I could show you to her. She should still be working right now, so we should catch her before she goes to bed if we're quick enough."
Shirley nodded, unable to keep a smile that she hadn't realized she had on her face from broadening. Though, she wasn't sure why, but Embris looked even more uneasy at that moment. She didn't say anything, which made Shirley wonder if maybe that was all just in her head.
Shirley followed Embris into the same building where Jenn had been dragged into earlier, making her wonder if she'd see Jenn while she was in there, but wasn't sure if she hoped for that or not. After all, Jenn had looked worn out before she'd been dragged away. She supposed that with how dark it'd gotten while she'd been milling aimlessly outside Jenn had found a place to sleep herself. Something that Shirley couldn't hold against her.
Shirley noticed that they were approaching a door that had a light shining through the boards making up the door as well as around the edges. Shirley felt her heart start to pound for reasons she couldn't say. It almost felt like she was spying on her brother, even though he wasn't anywhere near where she was right then.
However, that sense shattered when she saw the only woman in that room through a crack in the door. She couldn't help but let out a groan as she realized that Rick had married a woman so much older than he was. She couldn't say that she was surprised, nor did she really know what this world found acceptable, but at the same time, she felt like a betrayal to her somehow.
Her thoughts started racing and she found herself muttering to herself with a volume that kept rising quickly. Words that she wasn't sure she could repeat if she tried, simply because she couldn't quite remember what she said. She wasn't sure if the room was starting to spin around her or if she was actually walking, needing to move or get swallowed up by the outrage she felt inside at learning the kind of woman who Rick had found who would actually marry him.
Time seemed to blur for Shirley and she wasn't sure how long she was essentially talking to herself, since no one seemed to be responding and while she heard voices around her, nothing made any sense. Almost as if the world around her had become muted.
Then suddenly a voice pierced the haze that had enveloped her. "What's a 'cougar'?"
Shirley felt as if cold water had been splashed on her. She didn't know what to respond with right away, just that the words had to have been spoken in English for her to understand them as well as she did. Yet, when she looked at the person who'd spoken, she could clearly tell that they weren't from Earth. How she had learned English, Shirley wasn't sure, just that her muscles were well to defined for a woman from Earth.
Though, the question did make Shirley aware of the accusation she'd been in the middle of making against Rick's wife, about how she'd been likely preying on Rick with how much older she was. Which made Shirley almost feel like she needed to unload all the baggage that she'd been carrying around about Rick's interest in older women when she felt that wasn't something he should be interested with.
"You could say that it's my brother's wife, who clearly is older than he is, meaning that she preyed on him because he's impressionable and vulnerable to her wiles. He might be interested in older women but he's still young and doesn't really have as much experience in relationships with someone who's older, making any relationship he has with such a woman unbalanced," Shirley said, though, she was aware that she was speaking faster than she normally did, but at the same time, she needed to find a way to protect her brother from himself given while he was pretty much old enough to take care of himself, she knew that he was still her younger brother. Someone she was supposed to look out for, no matter how old he got. After all, that was merely part of being an older sister, no matter what her opinion on the matter was. As that was how her parents had raised her.
"When I see Rick again, I'll give him a piece of my mind and when I'm done, I'm sure he'll be ready to divorce that woman, " Shirley heard herself continue, though she was quickly losing steam on her railing against Rick's wife. To the point where she was starting to feel rather tired, enough that she was starting to regret making this scene. Especially given how she could now see how many people were surrounding her, looking as if they were afraid she might attack at the slightest provacation.
She wondered if maybe she should have asked to see Rick's wife in the morning. Although she supposed that she'd still have lost it no matter what time she saw her first.
Then the woman who could understand Shirley held up a hand, making her go quiet for reasons she couldn't explain. This woman just seemed to have an authority that made her want to obey her directives right then. Which she supposed was a sign of just how tired she was.
"Alright, I think I get the picture," the woman said gently, even though her voice carried undertones of fatigue, making Shirley wonder if she'd been about to go to sleep when Shirley had her 'fit'.
That was the best word Shirley could think of right then, even though she supposed that it wasn't quite as accurate as she'd have liked. Yet, at the same time, it'd have to do.
"However, Rick isn't here, so I don't think that you'll be able to solve anything about… whatever it was that you had a problem with. So, if you'd calm down, we can work with you on this."
"As long as that woman stays away from Rick, I'll be fine. Though, I suppose with how large she is that she'll soon be a MILF as I'm sure she's carrying Rick's child as well. Unless she has others like Rick she's stringing along," Shirley heard herself say, making her wonder if she was more tired than she originally thought because she could hear the venom in her words, which certainly didn't match what she thought she felt right then.
"And a 'MILF' is?" the woman prompted, reminding Shirley that she wasn't talking to someone from Earth. Though, she also suddenly wondered if maybe this woman was a thought mage.
Having a woman be a thought mage certainly would make it easier to translate what another person said, but having one in a position of authority made her wonder if this woman was peeking into her thoughts and that was how she was able to maintain being someone in charge.
Although, if that was the case, then she suspected that the woman wouldn't have a need to ask what a 'cougar' or a 'MILF' was because she'd have been able to look inside Shirley's mind and see what they were.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Embris leaving, making her wonder if she screwed up her chances at making a friend here, even though she wasn't sure how long she'd be able to stay. Though, at the very least, having a place to sleep for the night was back in the air, where she couldn't say where she'd be able to sleep unless it was outside. Which she supposed was perhaps what she deserved anyway.
"So, you just wanted to see your brother and didn't like who he got married to, is that it?" the woman asked, making Shirley see that she probably wasn't going to get any support with getting Rick to see the light from these people. Making her wonder if she really should even see Rick. Especially given how this woman was talking to her. Making it clear that she fully supported Rick in his… marriage with that woman who was as close to a predator in Shirley's mind as she imagined a woman to get.
Shirley just sighed. "Whatever," she said, turning to leave the building, ready to find a place where she'd be able to sleep that was out of the wind. It wouldn't be the worst place she'd had to sleep since she'd first been made a slave. She wasn't sure what would happen when she got outside, but at the moment she was having a hard time really caring about that.
She started to leave when the woman grabbed Shirley's arm gently. "Hey, are you okay? You look like you're pretty worn out and I was called over here because of the scene you were causing. It was making those still up rather nervous. Is there anything I can do to help?"
Shirley wished someone had asked her that when she'd first been made into a slave, and every night since then. Yet, all she could feel was a terror that was welling up from inside her, making her wonder if she should just end it and let her brother make what mistakes he wanted to make. It wasn't her concern anymore anyway.
Maybe she just wouldn't wake up in the morning and she'd not have to worry about ending things herself. Wouldn't that be helpful to everyone?
Suddenly she felt something pierce her mind. Almost like a dagger tearing into it, nearly causing her to drop to the ground with the pain she felt. Yet, at the same time, she couldn't help but look at the woman, suddenly remembering the magical defenses that she'd erected over her mind so long ago that she hardly remembered about them anymore. Which clearly had been breached now.
"So, you were a slave and you're still struggling with getting back on your feet, huh?" the woman said, with much more warmth in her voice than Shirley had heard from her so far. She wasn't sure what her having been a slave had to do with anything.
Especially since it should make her someone that they didn't care about, as that's the experience she'd had with being a slave so far. Why this place was different, she couldn't say, just that it didn't change the kind of person she was or why she should be left to disappear on the road she was travelling on.
"If you don't have anywhere to sleep tonight, I'll share my tent with you," the woman said, making Shirley wonder if this woman had any designs on her. It wouldn't have been the first time a woman had forced her into their bed while she was a slave. "My, you have a dark mind, but rest assured. My husband wouldn't like it if I tried sharing my bed with anyone else but him."
Shirley opened her mouth to ask how she knew what Shirley was thinking but quickly closed it before she could embarrass herself even more. Of course this woman knew. She'd pierced Shirley's mental defenses, making her as easy to read as a book.
Though, she supposed she might as well accept the offer. She had a feeling it'd only get worse if she tried to turn it down.