Jun 22 04:35:47 105 PA

From Chronicles

The current game time is: Mon Jun 22 04:35:47 105 PA.

Rather than leave the warmth and comfort of the condominium, the small Inuit woman has instead chosen to remain. A wise choice, it seemed, considering the teeming rain falling outside. True to her word, she did try to sleep in the bed at first... and she managed to sleep there for a few hours before waking. She had tried to get back to sleep, but found herself feeling strange, and so she had gone out into the living room and curled up with Tornaq, falling asleep in the crook of his front paws. The great white bear stayed awake to watch over his small shaman, having little need for sleep himself. He was awake when Dr. Kelley would have awakened for his meeting the next morning, and any efforts by him towards moving Monique would have been absolutely forbidden, though he would have received a rumbling greeting. It would be a little while after Dr. Kelley left the condominium for his meeting that Monique woke and stretched before taking a look around. Since she was bid to make herself welcome to the food, she sets about finding some for both herself and Tornaq, though she sticks to cold food instead of anything that would need cooking since her variety of cooking requires fire. Sandwiches, then, are what both she and Tornaq eat, much like the ones that Dr. Kelley had made the previous night. After eating, Monique takes the time to peruse the full variety of plants that he has here in the condominium, neatly plucking some of the leaves from the ones that she recognizes as being useful to her own purposes. The leaves are washed, then laid out on the counter so that they can start towards drying, though the sprig of mint that she plucked is something she doesn't add to the rest. She'd like to make herself some peppermint tea, simply because she feels at ease here and she's just in the mood for some, but she's not sure on heating water. So instead, she keeps the sprig and wanders back to Tornaq, settling herself into the crook of one of his front legs, making herself comfortable there. There are so many things that she is capable of, and yet... heating water is something she needs fire for. It's really rather amusing. She should probably make sure her weapons still have a keen edge, but for the time being... she's comfortable and warm, freshly bathed and her hair still quite damp from it.

A beeping sound from the external pad can be heard, barely and the lock slides out of the door. Kelley swishes it open, as quietly as he can, and is pleased to see the visage of bear, Inuit woman.. and... cold tea? He can see that she took up his offer on helping herself to his apartment, and he's glad for it. As he slides in, carefully removing his boots before placing them on the boot rack, he says a quiet "hello" to both Monique and Tornaq. "I see that you found the food! Anything good?" He asks. Then, noticing that all of her food seems to be frozen, he asks, "Would you like me to make something hot for you? At least, heat up your tea?" He reaches out to take the tea from her, though doesn't grab it from her, and just waits to receive it. "How was your night? What'd you think of the bed?" He seems to be a squiggling mass of questions, bubbling over, hoping that his guest was comfortable. "Please let me heat up your tea for you." Finally, "Wow, I didn't realize that my little indoor garden had so many herbs," pointing to the drying leaves on the counter.

The great white bear hears the beeping of the keypad, which is no great surprise, and he lifts his head to turn and look in that direction, watching as the door opens. And as it reveals Dr. Kelley, Tornaq gives a rumble of greeting. Monique gets up from where she'd been resting upon the bear's front legs, to be able to look over the bear's shoulder to see Dr. Kelley, and she smiles warmly at him before getting to her feet. She's bare footed, and her feet make little sound on the floor of the apartment. "We decided to stay... the weather seemed rather against leaving," she says softly, a smile curling at the corners of her lips. "We made chicken sandwiches... like the ones you made last night. I'd have needed a fire for cooking anything," she admits, blushing and ducking her chin a little. As he reaches out to take the tea from her, she willing lets him claim it, looking up at him through her lashes. "Please? If you could?" she asks softly, sounding almost a little sheepish. "It was a pretty good night... I slept for a little while in the bed, and it was comfortable. But I woke up, when it was still dark, and came out to sleep the rest of the night with Tornaq. You have many herbs here... and more than what I picked, too," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature.

Kelley smiles widely. "That's wonderful, Monique," Kelley says with a sincere expression on his face. "I'm glad that you got a good night's sleep here." Come over here, he instructs the small woman into the kitchen, which has only a half-counter out to the living room. Here, you can make fire either here - he ignites the gas stove, or if you're really in a hurry, right up here. He takes the small woman's mug and puts it into the microwave. After a minute has passed and the bell *dings*, he carefully takes it down and hands it gently over to the Inuit girl, handle first. "Now, be careful, it's very hot. But that like... um... a fire box. It's called a microwave. It vibrates water molecules until they heat up the surroundings." Then he realizes that the woman probably doesn't have the concept of molecules, much less the vibrating of them. However, it makes him feel good to impress knowledge on someone else. "How's the tea? I have other flavors, you know."

Monique smiles warmly at him, and she lifts a hand to brush aside a stray lock of her hair, tucking it behind one of her ears where it's not likely to stay for long at all. At his beckon, she comes to meet him in the kitchen, coming to stand next to him. Yet when he lights the stove, she startles, wide-eyed, jumping back a little at the unexpected fire there. It startles her, but, it also makes her a little afraid. Fire is something you have to work for, not something that can be controlled with just the turning of a knob, after all. It doesn't seem right, to her, that fire should be captive that way. Scenting the fear within his small shaman, Tornaq is fairly quick about crossing the room to look into the kitchen, reaching out to lightly touch his nose to Monique's shoulder, his protective nature showing clearly now. She's not entirely at ease even as he uses the microwave, though she does accept the mug when he hands it back to her, cupping her cold fingers around the now rather warm mug. She doesn't take a sip of the tea in the mug, the steam rising from the surface speaking of the heat within the liquid, though she does look up at Dr. Kelley, her eyes showing a fair mix of emotions within them. A little fear, apprehension, wonder... some small disbelief at how water could heat so quickly and thoroughly. "These things seem so strange," she says quietly, still sounding a little afraid of not just the appliances but the technology behind them. After a lingering moment, though, she finally does take a small sip of the tea, then looks to him through he lashes. "It's very good, thank you... I didn't look for other kinds, I just picked the mint from one of your plants," she says quietly, a smile pulling at the corners of her lips.

Kelley reaches out to pat Monique on the head, a friendly gesture, he hopes. "Why did you look - do you look - so startled at the stove? I saw, you were genuinely afraid. I'm sorry, I had no intention of scaring you. I just assume that you had seen a stove before. Obviously, it was my bad assumption, and I apologize," he says, executing a short little bow; more of an incline of his head, really. I have many other kinds of water-drinks. He pulls a box down from an upper shelf - one that she would have needed a step stool to reach. "This box contains twelve different kinds of tea, they all taste different. I don't know if they have any healing qualities to them, but I can read the ingredients to you, and you can tell me if they have anything other than flavor. Also, I have two other drinks. Coffee.. made from the coffee bean.. and my personal favorite, hot chocolate, made from the cocoa bean. Add a little cream to either one, maybe a bit of sugar, and voila, you have a fantastic drink." He smiles at the small woman. "You're welcome to go through my garden and pick what you want, as long as you leave enough to grow back," Kelley grins.

The small Inuit woman finds the pat on the head to be a friendly and a reassuring gesture, and she smiles up at him, her dark eyes holding a shine within them. Her cheeks blush a little, and she takes another sip of the peppermint tea, finding the warmth of it to be very welcome. "Mmm... I have never seen a stove before, if that is the fire-maker there," she says softly, gesturing slightly towards the stove. "I have never used one. All of the things that I cook, I do on an open fire made of wood and other burnables like that," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. It's strange, really, that someone would have such a limited cooking experience, but her background doesn't really give her much of an opportunity for more. "It's all right, really... you had no way to know, so you needn't apologize," she says softly, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She watches, then, as he draws out the box of teas, and one of her eyebrows quirk upwards. "I would like to know of the teas you have... I tend to be curious about them," she admits, which was likely fairly obvious considering her admitted herbalism knowledge. "I have not had coffee before, or hot chocolate... they sound interesting. And for your plants, you need not worry... you would have to look very closely to see where I took their leaves. I have had much practice in such things," she says softly, smiling up at him. Harvesting and leaving enough to grow back is a way of life for her, after all.

"Well, you should stay long enough to try the coffee and hot chocolate, at least, Monique. They're quite the experience - though I suppose you could get them at the Silver Fork just as easily as here." He blushes, and adds, "It's just nice to have you around." He then quirks his head to one side and asks, "Have you ever eaten at Silver Fork? It's a very interesting experience, if you've never tried it. Fine dining in a weapons-free environment. Though I'm not sure what their policy on Tornaq would be. Perhaps we could get a table near the entrance," he says, smiling. "And don't worry, I trust you to pluck my plants as you need them. You're always welcome to pluck them, whatever you need them for. I just enjoy how they look and smell, personally. But if you can actually render them for a useful purpose, well, that would be just fine." He looks around, nods at Tornaq, and says, "You know, it's a Saturday, so I won't -- well, I shouldn't - have to go into work today. Would you care to stay in and play some games, watch the holovids, talk, whatever you feel like? Though, I do not intend to make you feel pressured, you are, of course, free to do whenever you please," he says, as if he has any say over what Tornaq would allow.

here," she says softly, her tone thoughtful. To his question then of the Silver Fork, she lightly shakes her head. "I have never been inside, nor eaten there. I do not tend to go inside many places, with Tornaq. Most tend to not seem very accepting of his presence," she says softly, a smile quirking at the corners of her lips. "There are many useful purposes behind the plants you have. I will tell you, and show you, if you like. I was taught from a young age, by my mother and the other women in our village. Without writing, spoken teachings are very important," she says softly, a little reminiscently. "Thank you, for offering them to me. I will remember the ones you have, so that I will know which ones I can harvest here," she adds, smiling at him again. Tornaq rumbles softly, whuffs a little at his petite shaman's still-damp hair, and then he looks to Dr. Kelley in a considering manner before he backs away a little to lay down and make himself comfortable, apparently not minding if Monique will stay here for a little while. "I do not know what a holovid is," she comments, unfamiliar with the word and having to sound it out much like others that he's taught her. "What games do you have?" she asks, her voice laced with curiosity. She doesn't know what normal games are, here, and it's possible she expects to hear something that would be familiar to her.

"Hmm, games, games. Do you know.. poker, perhaps? Or charades? Oh! Checkers? Chinese or otherwise? Ah, I know. Chess, the ultimate game of strategy." As he says this, he sort of deflates a little, guessing that the small Inuit woman has never heard of any of these games. "Well, how about you tell me what games you know how to play, and then you can teach me?" he asks. Looking at Tornaq's whuff, Kelley says, "It must be very nice to be followed around by someone who loves you unconditionally." He looks fondly at the small woman, but turns his attention back to the plants. "I would be delighted to have you teach me to read the plants - and I'll teach you to read American; a tet-a-tet, as it were. If you empty that tea tonight, I'll fix you a mug of hot chocolate. You've *got* to try it. It's not quite as good as a vanilla sundae, but it ranks right up there." A wide grin, then he wonders aloud, "No offense to Tornaq, but he sort of covers up the holovid screen. And takes away our game area. I'm not sure where I can play, unless perhaps Tornaq would feel free to switch sides of the apartment?"

Monique raises an eyebrow slightly as he mentions a couple of games, which are unfortunately completely unfamiliar to her, and she blinks a little at him with a measure of puzzlement. She lightly shakes her head, to the questions. "Unfortunately, no... I do not know any of the ones that you have mentioned. But, I am willing to learn them, if you do not mind teaching them to me," she says softly, a smile curling at the corners of her lips as she looks up at him, her dark eyes reflecting a sparkle to them. "It is not so much... unconditional love as it is unconditional understanding. He will stay where I am and trust in my judgement, unless he has reason not to," she says softly, her tone thoughtful. "Mmm... I will likely finish the tea. I usually drink quite a bit of tea during the day," she comments, quirking a smile at him. "It would be an honour to teach you what I know of the plants. They have many secrets, some of them," the small woman comments, her dark eyes showing an almost mysterious shimmer in them. "He does sort of take up quite a bit of space... though I do not think that he would mind having to move, so long as he ends up still near to me and able to watch over me," she says softly, smiling warmly at him. "I would like to try the hot chocolate, but I will finish my tea first," she adds.

"Of course, finish your tea, and then I will dazzle you with the flavor of hot chocolate," Kelley laughs, his warm brown eyes meeting hers. "Well, if Tornaq would be so kind as to let us swap positions in the apartment, I could show you what a holovid is." Then, "Have you looked out the bay window yet? It opens onto a flowered courtyard. The flowers are in bloom this time of year and quite beautiful... but Tornaq's going to have to move first, unless you want to scramble over him," he laughs. "One moment," he asks. He disappears into the office area and comes out with two clipboards of paper and two pencils. "Here, in case there's nothing good on the holovids, I can start teaching you how to read and write. As for speaking, try to follow my speech patterns. I will give you more instruction, but there is no better way to learn a new language than total immersion." He taps a pencil against his lips for a moment, thinking. "Yes, if Tornaq would be so kind as to move, we can sit on the floor, or on the couch, if you prefer, and I can began to teach you American. Or... we can just spend the day with entertainment, if you prefer. I have some holovid discs the I enjoy." He smiles at the petit woman and asks, "Okay, your call now, what'll it be?"

The small Inuit woman giggles softly, her dark eyes dancing with amusement as she smiles brightly at him. "Then I will look forward to being dazzled by the hot chocolate," she says warmly, her gaze meeting his for a lingering moment. Tornaq looks to Kelley, rumbles softly in mock-annoyance at having to move, then actually winks at the man before rising to his feet and shaking himself off before crossing to a different part of the apartment where he'll be out of the way but still able to serve his purpose. In truth, he really doesn't mind moving. "I did not look out the window... at least, not yet. It sounds like something I would like, though... hmm... I wonder if there are other plants there which would be useful?" she muses, her tone thoughtful in nature. She blinks a moment then as he vanishes into the office, and she watches him with curiosity as he returns, looking to what he carries with a certain amount of puzzlement. "Ah... what is... immersion?" she asks curiously, her brow furrowing a little bit. Another word she doesn't know. She's been sunk into the language, with only Tornaq to help her, and so she's had little other choice but to learn it so that she can survive. She blushes a little, then gives a nod, her dark eyes shining. "I will try, to follow as you say. I would prefer to sit on the floor, in truth... couches still seem... odd," she admits, blushing a little bit as she looks to him through her lashes. "Perhaps... a little bit of both? Some entertainment, and some learning?" she suggests, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She is quiet for a lingering moment, holding her mug of tea yet cupped in her hands, and she half-hides behind it for a moment, her dark eyes thoughtful, and she takes a few small sips of her tea as she considers a few things. Lowering her mug of tea, she says quite softly as she looks to him with depthless dark eyes, "You know... none have ever spoken of feeling towards me as you did yesterday."

The doctor listens politely as the girl goes on, then takes the questions in stride. "I can take you down to the courtyard later if you want, I'm sure that there are many more herbs that you would likey find. But for now, you should take a look outside, it's quite pretty. The sun has caused the flowers to open; it's a blanket of color. As for immersion.. it means, being put somewhere where everything around you is different. So this means being put somewhere where American is spoken all around you - though admittedly there are other languages spoken here, most of them are American. Immersion." The scientist smiles, then, "Thank you Tornaq, I appreciate it, and I can assure you that I have no hostile intention toward Monique, for what my word is worth to you." Kelley moves to the middle of the living room, sitting in a cross-legged position on the floor, one pad on his lap, and one pad held out to Monique. But he blushes bright red when Monique points out his speaking of feelings the day before. "Yes, yes, " he stammers, "Well, I apologize if I embarrassed you at all. I just feel - close to you, is all. You are a very special woman, very unique. Which means 'one of a kind.' I do have.. friendly feelings.. toward you. Maybe more, I do not know, I am not good with relationships - not that I'm implying that we're in a relationship, certainly not... oh, damn it, I can't even talk about these things without sounding like a fool." The man scowls at himself.

Monique tilts her head slightly to one side as she listens to his explanation of not just the courtyard's flowering bounty, but also of immersion. It makes sense to her, and so she gives a small nod, acknowledging her understanding of it. "I am not used to seeing much in the way of flowers... so having a chance to see them, it would be welcome," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. "From being surrounded with the language, I have learned much of it... but not all. There are words I struggle with, and ones I do not yet understand," she says softly, a smile turning at the corners of her lips as she watches him, her dark eyes shining. Tornaq looks to the scientist, then rumbles thoughtfully, a bear-like grin touching his expression before he rests his head upon his crossed front paws, looking quite comfortable and at home here in the condominium. He trusts the man's word, and trusts the man as well, both of which were earned. "He says that he trusts you, and that your word means much to him. He believes you to be a man of your word," she says softly, studying the scientist for a lingering moment. The small Inuit woman crosses to where he is, and she settles next to him, cross-legged as well, and she keeps hold of her mug of tea in one hand and reaches to claim the pad from him with the other, bringing it to rest in her lap. She blinks a little with perhaps a touch of surprise, perhaps a little bit of puzzlement when he apologizes, and then she lightly shakes her head. "There is nothing to apologize for, in speaking of how you feel. It is important, I think. And I think that you are likely better at relationships," she begins, speaking the last word as though tasting the sound of it, pausing briefly before continuing, "then what I am. You did not embarass me, or at least, I do not think that you did. And you do not sound like a fool, I promise. I could never and would never think you to be one, anyway. You are a good man, and the only one who holds my trust. You say I am special, but... I think that you are at least every bit as special, in your own ways. I feel close to you, also," she says softly, her tone thoughtful. Taking a moment to carefully set aside her mug of tea where it won't risk being spilled, she lifts her left hand (which is closest to him), then lightly touches her fingers to his jawline, tracing a short distance along it. Wondering if, perhaps, his presence here could have been at least a part of what had drawn her to this particular place. Maybe she is where she is supposed to be after all.

Kelley smiles happily. "I am glad that I have earned your and Tornaq's trust," he says. "It takes time to build, but only a moment to lose. I assure you that I will not let you down. Now," he says, "American. Reading, because if you stay around me, your vocabulary - the number of words that you understand - will grow naturally, the same way that a child learns." He then takes his pencil and writes, in big, bold, capital letters across the top of his paper the American alphabet. "These symbols are called letters. Letters make up words, and words, as you know, are ideas, whether spoken or written. I want you to copy down, as best you can, the letters that I have written on my pad." He sits back, hands his papers to the small woman, and waits for her to accomplish the task. He halfway reaches out his hand to ruffle the woman's hair, but quickly returns it to the floor, propping himself up with it, instead. There are times for that, and this is not one of those times. Maybe it never will be one of those times - though silently, in the back of his mind, where even he is unaware of it, he wishes that one of those times would come.

A smile curls at the corners of her lips as she watches him, her dark eyes sparkling, and she gives a small nod. "Though trust takes time to build, it is worth every moment once it has been gained. I do not think that you will ever break our trust, just us we will try to not cause the same," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. Reaching out, she claims her mug of tea, then scoots just a little bit closer to him -- close enough to be able to feel the warmth of his presence at her side, which is a comforting and reassuring thing for the small woman. "I have already learned many words in being around you, and I am sure I will learn many more. You know many words," Monique says, quirking a smile as she looks up at him. She looks then to the letters which he has written on the paper, studying them for a moment, and then she looks to him again before giving a small nod. "The letters... do they have sounds to them? Names?" she suggests, sounding uncertain about what she's said and not quite sure that it conveys what she means. Strung together, she understands letters make words, but the letters need sounds of their own, don't they? Blinking a little, she studies the way that he had been holding the pencil, then tries to replicate the same thing, though it feels alien and uncomfortable. When he reaches out towards her, her attention perks towards him, expecting a touch which never comes, and she ducks her chin a little, forcing her attention back to the still empty page. She starts to recreate the letters, a unsteadily and a little disjointedly, struggling a little with trying to keep hold on the pencil. It feels strange and unnatural, although a part of the problem is that she's trying to do as he had done, which increases the discomfort for her considering that she's left-handed, so her letters are skewed and mis-shapen... childish letters. A learner's letters. Finishing with the letters, she surveys them critically, then wrinkles her nose, finding them to be poor shadows of their originals. Laying the pencil down across the pad, she takes a lingering moment to wriggle her fingers from the unfamiliar position of holding the pencil, and her dark gaze lifts to meet his, depthless pools holding warmth and calm within them. "Tornaq is too far away to bite you, were you to have completed your reach," she says softly, her tone holding gentle amusement to it, for she's meaning to tease him a little. Tornaq gives a rumble which is, for him, a chuckle, opening one of his eyes to peer towards the pair with some amusement.

Kelley blushes at the mention of his halfway-caress, but still, takes it in stride. He watches the difficulty with which she writes, and suggests, try holding the pencil this way. If she allows him, he'll take her left hand and lay the pencil in it, a clear reversal of how she'd been holding it before. "Try writing the letters again. If that doesn't work, I have one more way to test which arm is dominant - more important, stronger." The scientist is proud of his erstwhile student's intelligent questions. "Yes, each symbol, each letter, has a sound, and as soon as you can write them out, we'll begin working on the sounds. But since you'll be doing a lot of reading in order to increase your vocabulary, I think that you need to see *and* sound the letters together. Besides, this will teach you to write, as well." His warm brown eyes seek hers out, asking questions which cannot be easily answered. "Go ahead, try writing with your left hand. I think that it may be more successful for you. Just go slowly, pretend that you're working on a piece of artwork, instead of just letters - because when you read them, that's what they really become - artwork."

Monique tilts her head slightly to one side at noticing his blush, admiring it and rather liking that she's able to bring such a reaction to him. She's never really been around people enough to actually make them blush before, and she understands that it's a facet of their friendship that she can do so to him. As he adjusts the way she had been holding the pencil, switching it to her left hand, she blinks a little with a moment's surprise. "I will try them again," she says softly, a smile touching her lips. She isn't really proud of her first effort at writing, were she to admit the truth. Shifting the pencil a little in her left hand, she listens as he speaks, then gives a nod of understanding. It makes sense that each letter has a sound, after all. "Reading, and listening... and talking, too," she muses, quirking a smile as she looks to him, her dark eyes reflecting a sparkle to them. There are always questions which are difficult to answer, but the only way to seek the answer is to find the words to put the question into. Monique gives a small nod, then brings her attention back to the pad in her lap, and she starts to make the letters again, carefully. This time, they seem to come a little steadier, a little easier... a little more naturally, though the letters do have a certain slant to them, which is something that will likely improve the more she practices. She goes through them slowly, with much concentration, treating them as he had suggested -- as though they were artwork and not just markings on a page which have yet to hold meaning for her.

Kelley, who had been busy with his own pad while Monique wrote her letters, looks to see what the small woman has printed. "Why, that's an excellent start, Monique! I think that you are definitely left handed - with is also relatively unique, truth be known. The majority of people are right handed, which means that you may have to accustom yourself to working right-handed implements, like scissors. But that's a lesson for another time. Tonight, before you go to bed, I want you to copy down those letters until you have filled every line on the page. And remember, treat them as art, and you will naturally improve." He takes a moment to smile at her and once again praise her ability. "Now," he says, "I have written the capital letters *and* the lower-case letters next to each other, one set on each page. I'll try to explain what the difference is later. I'm going to show them to you, and I'll sound it out. Be careful, some of the letters have more than one sound. Once you begin reading, you'll learn which sound to use. For now, just repeat after me." He begins by flipping to the second page of his notebook, upon which is printed a large letter 'A' followed by a smaller scripted 'a'. He tells Monique what the letter is called, and which sounds it is that it makes - a hard "A" and a soft "a," waiting for her to repeat the name an the sounds after him.

The small Inuit woman releases the pencil to lay it across the pad of paper still within her lap, taking a moment to stretch her fingers from the unfamiliar positioning of holding a pencil. It's not really like anything that she's used to, since knives are a different shape and size and are held in a different manner. At his compliment of her letters, she ducks her chin and blushes shyly, looking to him through the veil of her lashes, her dark eyes holding a shine within them. "Thank you," she says quietly, sounding shy in the wake of the compliment given. "I will be sure to copy them, as you have written them," she adds, a warm smile lighting her expression. She gives a small nod, her expression thoughtful, her dark-eyed gaze meeting his. "It is different, to treat them as art then just as markings on the page," she comments, a smile quirking at the corners of her lips. She puzzles for a moment over the difference between capital letters and lower-case letters, then decides that they'll be more important when the reason for the difference is explained. She gives a small nod, accepting that some letters have different sounds, which rather makes sense to her. After all, in her native tongue, there are many words for snow, so why couldn't the same letter have a different sound if it wanted to? After listening to him tell her of what the letter is called, and how it is pronounced, she tarries only a moment before repeating it.

"The scientist runs through the alphabet, with the Inuit woman doing extraordinarly well. However, now wanting to overwhelm the woman on her "first day of school" he simply gives her the homework of copying her letters. Then, suddenly, he thinks at least, that he has a stroke of genius. Then, unfortunately, he remembers that her people have little to no written language, so that project is sort of "in the can" as they say. Well, that won't work. He furrows his brow for a moment, then shrugs and turns back to the woman, enjoying the heat coming off of the closeness of her body. "This is how most people learn American," he explains. "When you're out, if someone uses a word that you don't know, either remember it to ask me what it means, or ask them what it means. I'm sure that they'll recognize that you're not from around here. But if you're shy, just remember it for me, and I will explain it." The man breaks into a wide grin as he looks at Monique, hoping that she'll choose to stay another night. "So where do you expect to be staying tonight," Kelley asks the young woman. "You are, of course, more than welcome to stay here again. In fact, it would be my pleasure for you and Tornaq to stay. He looks at her disappearing tea and stands with the assistance of his hand. "I'm going to make you some hot chocolate, and you can see if you like it or not. He goes into the kitchen nook and begins to prepare the hot chocolate mug, just the way that he would take it.

Willing to learn, and wanting to learn, the small Inuit woman follows him through the alphabet, replicating the sounds fairly well. But then, with her people's history being mostly oral in nature, and the teachings being the same, it's perhaps no great surprise that she can do so. She smiles warmly at him as they finish, her dark eyes sparkling with delight with that she's actually learning the language. "If this is how most learn, then this is how I can learn," she says warmly, smiling brightly at him. "I will be sure to listen to what is said around me, and I will ask you what words I do not understand the meanings of. I think it would be easier for me to ask them of you, rather than of the one who speaks the word," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. Smiling warmly at him, she watches him get to his feet, and after a moment, she rises to her feet as well, doing so fairly gracefully. She trails him, like a small shadow, towards the kitchen nook, to watch him making the hot chocolate, her eyes reflecting curiosity within them. "Well... I think, since I am welcome to stay here, that I will stay here another night," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. "It is very kind of you, to offer me all that you have... I am very grateful for it," she says warmly, her gaze following him. She'll likely have another bath before tucking into bed again tonight, for she seems to be rather fond of such things. There's just something about being surrounding by steaming water.Tags:kelley, monique