The English Speak English (Daniel, Delilah, Tessa) « Thread Started on May 25, 2008, 6:23pm »
Who: Daniel, Delilah, Tessa
What: All three are shopping through the market, when Daniel strikes up a conversation with Delilah. Tessa objects to using English (and talking with Delilah), Delilah is offended by upperclass people being snooty, and Daniel gets put out by both of them.
Gray's Inn Road ================================================================================ Smaller than the main branch of Euston Road, Gray's Inn road weaves at a more loose path to the east side of London. It's closed in by tall buildings, the road often edged with carts and booths of Londoners selling their wares. Many tiny pubs and shops dot the road, though one of the buildings that stands out is that of the road's namesake, Gray's Inn and Pub. Squeezed in between other tall buildings is an apartment complex that looks to be worse for its wear. ================================================================================
A bit of crummy spring weather has people bundled up, their daemons tucked protectively in their pockets or huddled close to them. Daniel's Circe has tucked herself, kangaroo-style, between his overcoat and blazer, fingers grasping the lapels to hold on. He is keeping one hand on his hat, and the other holds a briefcase. From time to time he stops, looks around, and re-orients himself in the manner of the lost.
Crummy weather or not, Tessa needed to get out of the flat, and so she finds her wandering bringing her along this particular stretch of road. Not that she's exactly appreciative of the run-down state of things, wrinkling her nose now and then as she passes by something she deems particularly distasteful. She's wrapped in a fur shawl that's keeping her from feeling too cold, though Phrixus, who keeps trying to take to the air, keeps squawking his complaints about the cutting wind. When she pauses to (somewhat disdainfully) examine a cart of wares, he takes refuge on the awning, using the vantage point to scope the street.
The trundling cloven hooves of a (somewhat dirt-covered)boar follow dutifully behind the click-clack of short heels on his girl's feet; Delilah, wearing a short coat over her blouse and dress, makes her way down the road with a canvas bag in one arm. Errands to do for her aunt never find her with much idle time, and it is now that she is headed back to her home with the spoils of this trip. Her dark red hair is tucked up underneath of a brown tweed cap, but some of it seems to find time to hatch elaborate escape plans around her head. Leonidas lets out some light grunts along the sidewalk, causing a pair of observant feline daemons and their women to inch away a little bit faster. "Not /ev'rybody is starin'at you, Leo. It's your own fault for getting muddy anyhow." Delilah only lets out a momentary rebuke for this, still walking along as she does so.
Circe looks out from Daniel's jacket at the young lady with the boar daemon, all covered in mud. Easily done, since Daniel just did a half turn on his heels to scout his position in the city again. She fairly sniffs. His attention has been captured by a used book seller, and he heads that way, fortuitiously allowing his daemon to consider looking about the street. "Tessa is here," she comments to him, as he scoops up a book and flips through the pages.
Tessa requests to see one of the lapel pins from the cart, though it's more an idle interest than a real one at this point. She holds it up to the light, turning it a few times before offering it back to the seller with a shake of her head. "No, that will not do. Let me see the one in silver," she requests imperiously, in a thick French accent. Phrixus first spots the dirty boar from the movement of the crowd around him, and mutters something disdainful: Tessa glances over her shoulder to see what he's on about, but doesn't find this to be of particular interest and just turns back by the time the vendor has the next pin ready for her. And so when Phrixus then spots Daniel across the way and tries to get her attention again, she just mutters something dismissive at him in French and continues appraising the jewellery.
Delilah shifts her bag from one arm to the other, brown eyes aiming down to meet the boar's. He blinks back up at her and gives another noise, this one more of resigning than it is invasiveness. "I thought it was going to rain." Leonidas replies half-heartedly to Delilah, short tail flicking up behind him. She sighs and makes her way along, coming closer to the same bookseller that has caught Daniel's attention. The teenager seems to be vaguely interested, though she seems to have other things on her mind; there's also a short mental conflict over whether she should stop and look.
Daniel ohs, to his daemon, all casual like as he flips to the frontice to see the price on the book he's holding. "And it's not even a Tuesday, how about that." She sniffs at the book, and says, "The glue's gone bad." So he sets it down, as he does so, looking over to the girl and her daemon that has just arrived. "Hullo. Terrible weather today, hm?" Another book is picked up and examined.
Phrixus flutters down to Tessa's shoulder just as she declines this second piece of jewellery as well, nicking her head slightly with his wing as he does - purely by accident of course, and not because he's annoyed at being dismissed, oh no. But it serves as enough to get Tessa's attention and she cuts short her rebuke to turn and see what it is he's actually talking about. And of course, the first thing she sees is the teenager with her dirty daemon, and Phrixus is just about to get an earful, when she notices that Daniel is there as well. "Ah, je comprend," she speaks lightly to the bird, before beginning casually across the road towards the bookseller.
Leonidas stays at least a step away so that Delilah can poke her nose over to scan the books. He keeps an eye on whoever passes by instead, spade-shaped ears cupped forward while he waits. When she is spoken to, both pairs of brown eyes look towards Daniel. Leo's vision is partially obscured by the corner of the bookseller's tables, but his nose gives a reasonably polite snuffle of the air. Delilah smiles back at Daniel, nodding her head with a tilt and a smile. "Ahyeah. Was lookin'forward to some sun or somethin', but just like London to say 'bloody hell, no, here's some -drizzle-'." The girl even gives 'London' its own mocking, high-pitched voice.
Daniel looks about and pulls out a pair of glasses, to better examine the book he's holding. Circe fluffs herself instead his coat. "It does seem that way, yes." His English has a bit of a continental accent, but is otherwise perfectly understandable. "Have you lived here long?" With his glasses on, he turns his head and smiles over at Tessa's approach. The book he holds upright, closed, against his chest, obscuring his daemon's view of things. She has to crane her head and irritably bats at the offending book with a paw.
"Bonjour," Tessa bids with a smile and polite bob of her head. "Bonne journee... ou non," she allows, as she glances up at the grey sky - not exactly a good day in meteorological terms, anyway. Phrixus gives Circe a quick look before turning to study the dirtier daemon. Tessa's attention is the inverse, in that Delilah gets only a brief nod and a polite, "'ello," before she turns back to Daniel to inquire, "Ca va?"
Delilah shrugs and eyes one of the books below for a bit longer than the rest. "Not /long/. Long /enough/, tho'." And there is another voice, to which Delilah turns her attention. Tessa gets a smile and a polite nod in return, but little else aside from this and a step aside so that there is no chance for bumping into one another. Leonidas shifts from foot to foot and observes the magpie above, toes clicking on the stone walk in mild impatience.
Daniel looks to Tessa and offers her a smile with a quirk of the lips. "Salut, Tessa. Comme ci, comme ca. Aujourd'hui ne mardi." To this he gives her a wink. Then he looks back down to Delilah, and then, unavoidably at this point, switches to English. "I see. From somewhere else in Brytain, then? Or just a different district?" Circe bats at the book again, and he returns it to the pile. The bookseller keeps an eye on all three of them.
Phrixus leaves off staring at Leonidas to regard the bookseller haughtily when he notices them being observed. As if either of them would want anything to do with these smelly old books, hmph. Tessa offers an amused smile in return, inclining her head to that point. As she watches he and the girl converse, Tessa seems to realize that she can't just ignore the teenager and so gives her another look, before asking of Daniel (with perhaps just the slightest inkling of surprise): "Vous etes ensembles?"
Delilah has the corner of her mouth lifted in a visible 'eh?' at the spoken French. Only when Daniel goes back to English does she lose it. "Manchester." The girl replies curtly and in her thick accent, not sure what to think of the pair near her. Leonidas is curious, but only enough to make him keep watching Phrixus and Circe. "Moved'ere with my auntie." Both arms hold onto the bottom end of her bag while Tessa looks at her again and seems to ask something of the tall, slim man. "I dunno if I -like- thinkin'people talk about me in fancy foreign languages." Delilah says this offsides to Leonidas, but loud enough to be noticed. Hint, hint. (re)
"Non," Daniel tells Tessa, with a shake of his head. "Seulement parlant." He places a hand on the pile of books, and then to Delilah, "My apologies. Tessa's still learning your langugage, I believe. Manchester, eh? It's up north somewhere?" At this, even the bookseller snorts incredulously. Ah well. Daniel gives a shrug and Circe chooses to duck her head further into the jacket, suitably annoyed by her human's behaviour.
Tessa gives a nod of understanding to that answer - or at least mostly understanding, before smiling demurely to correct, her English overly formal and her accent heavy: "I am fluent, but ... it is always easier to speak in one's own tongue, non?" Though she doesn't seem so certain that the polyglot will understand that, given the ease he seems to switch between the languages. "I did not have much call to speak it outside of lessons until moving here." Though this is clearly said more for Daniel's benefit than Delilah's, she sticks with English now since it seems to be the requisite language here. As far as Manchester is concerned, she doesn't even try to guess where it is.
Delilah glances toward the bookseller as if Daniel and Tessa had momentarily gone from Strangers to Aliens and back again, and this other man is the only other normal one around. "Northwest. More'en halfway up to Scotland." She does answer him, but just after listening to Tessa and smiling. "Ahhh. I see. Well, if you're gonna be walkin'about like this, you should probably get used to it. The English speak English more often than they do anything else." Obviously this is a good idea for Tessa to remember! Yessir. Leonidas affirms this all with a hollow grunt from beside the table.
Daniel does seem a little beguiled by the concept of having difficulties switching languages, taking the moment of awkward to remove his hand from the books and take his glasses off. They get tucked away safely inside his jacket pocket again. "Oh! Scotland. I've never been." Circe peeks her head out again, apparently having felt the moment pass. "Advice well noted, young lady. I'll try my best from now on." He vows, lifting that free hand to his chest and laying it over his heart. He looks over to Tessa, and lifts an eyebrow.
Tessa returns Daniel's look with a sidelong one of her own, before looking back to Delilah. "Yes, I had noticed that, but thank you," she replies politely, if a little coolly. "And so my desire to speak French when I do find someone who is capable of the language." There's perhaps just the slightest, vaguest insinuation that most English people are merely too dense to speak French. Or something. Phrixus, meanwhile, finally flutters down from her shoulder to land on the edge of the cart, glancing in his curious way at the wares there. Or maybe it's just the gilt embossing that attracts him.
Delilah nods slowly, taking a half step back. "Riiight-o. Well, 'scuse me. I need to get home. Before I get all caught up." Leonidas is way ahead of her this time, and has skirted around everyone only to start walking again when Delilah comes up behind him. "Were nice chattin'. Hope your stay here en't too bad, miss." The redhead bows her head a bit as she moves to depart, right behind her boar.
Daniel watches her go with a little moue on his face, and then takes a step away from the stall. He holds a hand out, to check that it's stopped drizzling -- hard to tell, with the cloudcover. "You've ruined my fun for the day. I was going to pretend to be common." He says, still in English. Seeing that the rain has stopped for now, Circe squirms out of his jacket and clambers up onto his shoulder.
"Yes, very well. Au revoir." For her part, Tessa seems somewhat indifferent and perhaps a bit clueless that it might have been she who's chased Delilah away. At Daniel's words, she gives him a rather perplexed look. "But why?" she asks promptly, without thinking. She's still a little too confused to cover quite as smoothly as she'd like, but she switches back to French to ask at least a little more eloquently: <<That is to say, what would be the fun in that? I don't understand.>>
<< Ah, hm. >> Daniel says, fingers rubbing his chin as he thinks about it. << It's good to learn things? She might have known something about London I didn't, but truthfully I was just bored and wanted to be polite to her. >> By being aware she existed, you see. Circe curls her tail back and forth along his back as he steps out to see what the next booth has to offer -- he's going up the street from where Tessa came, however.
Tessa frowns slightly at this, but manages to curb the impulse to ask why again. <<Then I'm sorry to have spoiled your fun.>> But her tone has gone a little stiff with that, as she calls Phrixus back to her shoulder. <<But really, I had no way of knowing your plans.>> She seems on the verge of saying something more, but seeing as he's already moving off back the way she's come, she clearly alters course to say instead: <<I'll leave you to your game then, so as to not spoil your cover further. Have a good evening.>>
<< You as well, >> Daniel says, frowning and turning to watch her go. Circe nips at his ear. "You're a silly man," she says in English and then he shrugs. "I suppose I am..." as he wanders back up the street.
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