Just Another Day at the Clinic (IC, out-of-continuity)
It was just another day at the Clinic. The receptionist's desk was home to a dour young lady named Melissa, who looked upon the rest of the waiting room with carefully-veiled disdain-both the room itself, and its occupants.
There was nothing in particular about the waiting room to give it a dislikable character. In fact, there was very little about the waiting room to give it any sort of character at all-it was as carefully neutral as it was possible to be. The walls were beige, the seating comfortable but not too comfortable, the out-of-date magazines carefully arranged on the end tables. To Melissa's mind, a dislikable character would be a vast improvement; any more neutral and she would feel like she was working in a sensory deprivation tank.
The people, though-those were the ones she hated passionately. Oh, not all of them-not the ones who were here for check-ups or ob/gyn examinations; there were three or four of those in the room now. It was all the other ones she disliked so much-the ones sitting to themselves nervously, pretending to read a magazine or being consoled by their boyfriends. She despised them, and not just because the reason that they were here meant she was in small but quantifiable danger of becoming a mail-bomb casualty. She hated them because they had what she and Kevin had been trying so long to have for themselves, but they were here to throw it away. Melissa could never forgive that.
Sometimes at the end of the day, she felt like handing in her resignation, finding a receptionist job somewhere that she didn't have to hate nearly everyone who came through the door. But in the end, there were no other jobs to be found; she was lucky even to have this one, especially with Kevin still looking...
The door swung open, the bell making a cheerful little tinkle. Melissa didn't start to look up until she was halfway through the standard pro-forma greeting. "Welcome to the clinic of Doctor Fur-" Then she did look up, and her words caught in her throat. The woman who had just come through the door didn't belong here. For one crazy moment, Melissa wasn't sure that she belonged anywhere. She was tall and slim, pale of skin, with a curtain of golden hair that seemed to flow around her as she moved. Her eyes were a bright, deep blue, and seemed to glow with their own internal radiance. She wore a simple white dress, and her feet were bare. She seemed familiar, yet Melissa knew she had never seen the woman before in her life. There was something about that woman...it was as if looking at her washed what little color there was out of the vague beige room, made it a thing of shadows and mist placed next to something real.
Melissa rubbed her eyes as the woman stepped across the threshold and into the waiting room. There was grace in her movements...but also barely-contained anger. Those deep blue eyes roved like searchlights across the room's inhabitants, sparing no one; when they alighted on her, Melissa felt two feet tall. At last, the woman walked out into the center of the floor, then spoke in a voice that, though barely above a whisper, nonetheless seemed to shake the building to its foundations. "You..."
Almost everyone in the waiting room jumped as if they had been struck by lightning. "You would take My precious gift and squander it," the woman said coldly to the women. Then she glanced at the men accompanying them. "Or else you would be an accomplice to the crime."
Melissa blinked. The women who were here for examinations and checkups were continuing to read or talk quietly-hadn't they heard what the golden-haired woman had just said? They acted as though the she wasn't even there.
"Hush," the woman said, as one or two of those she was addressing got up the nerve to try to reply. They fell silent as though gagged. "For this crime, your selves are now forfeit." She glanced at a couple of the women who were there alone. "As are certain others. You are now Mine. Come." She turned, opened the door of the ladies' room, and stepped inside. To Melissa's complete astonishment, all of the women who could see this newcomer got slowly to their feet, and walked toward the ladies' room door-followed by the men who were with them. Most simply looked dazed, as if in a trance; some of them seemed to be trying to resist, but their feet were moving against their will. One by one, they all filed into the restroom, leaving behind those people who were here for examinations-who still hadn't noticed anything strange.
Melissa blinked again. She knew good and well that the clinic restroom was barely large enough for one toilet and sink. There was no way that even six people could fit in there comfortably-let alone nearly two dozen.
Then the restroom door opened again, and the golden-haired woman stepped out. She was alone.
As she walked past Melissa again, to the door, Melissa uttered an inarticulate cry. She wasn't sure why, and it seemed to surprise the strange woman, too. She turned to Melissa, blinked, then smiled. She said in a kindly voice, "Why...you're one of Mine, too, aren't you?" She leaned forward, and her lips brushed Melissa's forehead as gently as a butterfly's wings.
Somewhere inside of her, Melissa felt something change-she didn't know what, but she knew that something was different now. "Who are-what did you-?"
The woman touched a finger to Melissa's lips. "Shhhh." She took Melissa's hand, and put something in it. "You don't belong in this place. Go to this address and show them this card; they'll have a job you'll like much more." And then she swept out the door and was gone, leaving behind a waiting room that was much emptier than when she'd come in.
Melissa looked down at her hand. It held a business card for a fertility clinic across town. On the back, in neat handwriting, was the name "Leah".
There was nothing in particular about the waiting room to give it a dislikable character. In fact, there was very little about the waiting room to give it any sort of character at all-it was as carefully neutral as it was possible to be. The walls were beige, the seating comfortable but not too comfortable, the out-of-date magazines carefully arranged on the end tables. To Melissa's mind, a dislikable character would be a vast improvement; any more neutral and she would feel like she was working in a sensory deprivation tank.
The people, though-those were the ones she hated passionately. Oh, not all of them-not the ones who were here for check-ups or ob/gyn examinations; there were three or four of those in the room now. It was all the other ones she disliked so much-the ones sitting to themselves nervously, pretending to read a magazine or being consoled by their boyfriends. She despised them, and not just because the reason that they were here meant she was in small but quantifiable danger of becoming a mail-bomb casualty. She hated them because they had what she and Kevin had been trying so long to have for themselves, but they were here to throw it away. Melissa could never forgive that.
Sometimes at the end of the day, she felt like handing in her resignation, finding a receptionist job somewhere that she didn't have to hate nearly everyone who came through the door. But in the end, there were no other jobs to be found; she was lucky even to have this one, especially with Kevin still looking...
The door swung open, the bell making a cheerful little tinkle. Melissa didn't start to look up until she was halfway through the standard pro-forma greeting. "Welcome to the clinic of Doctor Fur-" Then she did look up, and her words caught in her throat. The woman who had just come through the door didn't belong here. For one crazy moment, Melissa wasn't sure that she belonged anywhere. She was tall and slim, pale of skin, with a curtain of golden hair that seemed to flow around her as she moved. Her eyes were a bright, deep blue, and seemed to glow with their own internal radiance. She wore a simple white dress, and her feet were bare. She seemed familiar, yet Melissa knew she had never seen the woman before in her life. There was something about that woman...it was as if looking at her washed what little color there was out of the vague beige room, made it a thing of shadows and mist placed next to something real.
Melissa rubbed her eyes as the woman stepped across the threshold and into the waiting room. There was grace in her movements...but also barely-contained anger. Those deep blue eyes roved like searchlights across the room's inhabitants, sparing no one; when they alighted on her, Melissa felt two feet tall. At last, the woman walked out into the center of the floor, then spoke in a voice that, though barely above a whisper, nonetheless seemed to shake the building to its foundations. "You..."
Almost everyone in the waiting room jumped as if they had been struck by lightning. "You would take My precious gift and squander it," the woman said coldly to the women. Then she glanced at the men accompanying them. "Or else you would be an accomplice to the crime."
Melissa blinked. The women who were here for examinations and checkups were continuing to read or talk quietly-hadn't they heard what the golden-haired woman had just said? They acted as though the she wasn't even there.
"Hush," the woman said, as one or two of those she was addressing got up the nerve to try to reply. They fell silent as though gagged. "For this crime, your selves are now forfeit." She glanced at a couple of the women who were there alone. "As are certain others. You are now Mine. Come." She turned, opened the door of the ladies' room, and stepped inside. To Melissa's complete astonishment, all of the women who could see this newcomer got slowly to their feet, and walked toward the ladies' room door-followed by the men who were with them. Most simply looked dazed, as if in a trance; some of them seemed to be trying to resist, but their feet were moving against their will. One by one, they all filed into the restroom, leaving behind those people who were here for examinations-who still hadn't noticed anything strange.
Melissa blinked again. She knew good and well that the clinic restroom was barely large enough for one toilet and sink. There was no way that even six people could fit in there comfortably-let alone nearly two dozen.
Then the restroom door opened again, and the golden-haired woman stepped out. She was alone.
As she walked past Melissa again, to the door, Melissa uttered an inarticulate cry. She wasn't sure why, and it seemed to surprise the strange woman, too. She turned to Melissa, blinked, then smiled. She said in a kindly voice, "Why...you're one of Mine, too, aren't you?" She leaned forward, and her lips brushed Melissa's forehead as gently as a butterfly's wings.
Somewhere inside of her, Melissa felt something change-she didn't know what, but she knew that something was different now. "Who are-what did you-?"
The woman touched a finger to Melissa's lips. "Shhhh." She took Melissa's hand, and put something in it. "You don't belong in this place. Go to this address and show them this card; they'll have a job you'll like much more." And then she swept out the door and was gone, leaving behind a waiting room that was much emptier than when she'd come in.
Melissa looked down at her hand. It held a business card for a fertility clinic across town. On the back, in neat handwriting, was the name "Leah".