Topic: Parker & Aja

LadyAjaBird

Date: 2010-07-06 13:48 EST
~~A small peek at Parker, the medic/mage at the Shipyard~~

When Parker Madson was a younger man, all those centuries ago, he had envisioned a lot of things for his life, planned for them even.  He thought by now, that he would be in the forest somewhere, in a small cottage with his research but an  unexpected event had become the most rewarding to him. The introduction of a tiny girl into his life had changed everything.  For a man that never wanted to sire any children of his own, this one girl had become his progeny, his chance at a legacy. 

In teaching her, he too was schooled. The way she never gave up, taught him to believe in the impossible. The way she incorporated strangers into her version of family showed him the endless, forgiving nature of love and compassion. In times of great upheaval, she showed him great strength and determination, and that by having faith in others, they too would be able to tap into that strength. There were moments he was moved to tears over the simplest acts of charity  and kindness she showed to the people she met and moments he was moved to great anger when he saw the injustice of her life. Anger that had been tempered with watching her make it ill-relevant by not giving it any power over her or what she chose to do.

There were also times he felt like the wisest man in her presence. He felt like nothing in the world could undo him as long as she looked to him for guidance and comfort.  Which she would on occasion, usually late at night when the rest of the world had given in to pleasant dreams and she wandered the night looking for answers in the stars.

Today’s work had nothing to do with grand thoughts or designs. He came out of his office with the latest results to the tests he had been running on the crew, making sure they were all in good health. He was a little concerned about one of the crew members and needed to speak with Aja to arrange the man’s availability for another round of tests, either with him or sending the man to Riverview where they could do some tests Parker could not, but admired the benefits of.

He started towards the main office, a little lost in thought about the man, before his senses picked up the fact that she was not in there but behind him by several yards. He turned to look around the docks, those gray eyes settling on her form standing at the end of the dock leaning against a pylon staring out across the water into the distance. The sense of her deep in thought made him smile softly.

He thought back to the times when he would see her like this. They were rare moments of stillness. He had seen her take on the most impossible of burdens and never falter in the breakneck pace she liked to keep. As if the Hades himself would catch up with her if she stopped for more than a moment.

Parker started towards her, his pace that of a much younger man. Not that Parker looked a bit of his many years. His age known by only a few, was not important to him. He was, as he always would be, a guardian for the young woman he thought of as a daughter. Like him, her countenance held no clues to her age, nor would her speech give it away. She was careful to keep herself in check, revealing nothing that would indicate how long she had been in the world, or how much longer she would stay.

Parker noticed that she hadn’t moved. Which meant she was very deep in thought. Normally, sneaking up on Aja simply wasn’t done, unless she was well and truly distracted. There were moments he could approach her unnoticed, but those moments were few and far between.

"Miss Aja?"  he called out gently, watching her jump a little before turning to look at who had called her name.
"Parker." She smiled and he saw her visibly relax. "What can I do for you?"
"I have the results back.  I will need one of the crew to spend some time with me to ascertain his condition."
"Then you shall have it." She gave Parker a disarming smile. One that he knew from years of watching her, it was given when she felt embarrassed for being caught unaware. "That all?"
"You can tell me what is on your mind, my dear." He stepped closer to Aja and held her hand out to her. "I am always here for you."  His hand lay gently on her shoulder,  feeling the heavy sigh she gave.
"That I know, Parker." She gave him a smile, hoping to calm his worries. "It's nothing."
"Nothing?"  he repeated softly moving closer. "I know that smile, it's the one you give people to throw them off from asking questions."  She didn't attempt to lie to Parker again. She simply nodded and went back to staring back at the horizon.
"Contemplating time." Her voice took on a soft tone, her eyes not leaving the horizon. "How it seems to move so fluidly, forever moving forward but with moments that seem so still you could touch them."
"Serious thoughts." Parker said just as quietly. "Reasons for this contemplation?"
"Many things, old friend."
"Anything to do with the return of Tristan?"
"A lot to do with him actually." She answered, still not moving, but her brows were bunching together in troubled thought. "Twenty years have passed." There was a small pause before she continued. "More than twenty." She scoffed a little. "Days that seemed like years in those twenty some odd years. Felt like they would drag by forever at times...then.."    She brushed her hair back and sighed. "None of them are gone. Those days. Not erased but merely upset by his presence  here in this time and place."
"Truly an odd event." He took a place next to her, his gaze following hers out at the sea. "You know, used to be, back many years ago, if you felt a need to think, you'd been on the Breeze far off into the distance by now."
"Time for me to find a new way of adjusting, don't you think?"  she responded with no hint of annoyance. "Can't always go sailing off into the sunset...disrupting people's lives. Uprooting the children. Not when Hochi is doing so well, Mara’s got friends and Trevor is becoming quite the businessman." She sighed a little. "No. It's not an example the children should see. I need to learn to be still."
"I don't know about that. I think your way of handling things has always been wise."
"Now yer humoring me, Parker." She gave him a grin. "Tell me that having an office where you don't need to secure everything, doesn't please you?”
"I do enjoy that. But I would consider it a minor convenience to give up for you if you needed to go."
"don't need to, Parker. Might want to...but want and need are often not of the same importance. Or that's what Ajay says." Aja smiled a little and looked back to the sea. "No. This will be handled here. Learn something new or die. Right?"
"Could spend lifetimes learning and still not have the answers, Aja.”
"Depends on whose lifetime yer talkin about, Parker." She grinned a little not looking at him. "We both know there are others like us that do not adhere to a span that could be defined as normal."
"I know that to be true." Parker said solemnly. "I do wish you would not be so hard on yourself for the sake of others.”
"You know I can't help it." She gave him  that smile again.
"That's what you say. But we know you push yourself for a lot of reasons to do things for people." Parker reminded her and she nodded looking at him for a moment before looking back at the ocean.  "It's admirable. But worrisome." He added watching her stare out there to the horizon. There was silence for minutes that ticked by, he could feel the inner battles she waged with herself. Could see the tension boiling under the surface. There was a time, he would've moved heaven and hell to bring Tristan back to her. Now that he was back, he wondered just what sort of effect it would have. She had come to her own since that loss, did may great things without him. She was her own force of will. Gods forbid any stood in her way.
"So, about the guy"”
”Ah. Yes. I require one of the crew for more testing.” Parker gently repeated what they had already covered with a smile.
”You know you don't have to ask. And you know the boys are all instructed to do what you tell them to do.”  Aja reminded him.
”Aja, I do not have to tell you that I have a lot of respect for you and the way you manage your crew. I do not like to supersede your wishes.”
”Parker.”  She started and he held up a hand. ”Alright. Ok. Not arguing.” She chuckled when he nodded once.  ”Thank you for that.”
"Of course.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.