Sisters, sisters...
Mar. 13th, 2005 10:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sunshine_queenFor ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
non_horation's writing meme
"Syd, what can you tell me about Nina Bristow?"
Sydney had looked up at him, giving him a curious look. "She's my sister. You know that."
"But she's adopted."
"Well, yeah. But she's my father's daughter, he just had to go through legal channels to get her."
"How old were you when she came, Syd?"
There was an unsettling tinge to this line of questioning, and Syd had shivered. The warehouse was even cooler than normal due to the storm brewing outside, and thunder would occasionally rumble, as if highlighting their words. "Nine. I was nine. It was funny, 'cause I was nine, and she was Nina." She offers him a little smile. "It was a joke."
Vaughn smiles back. "Pre-teen humor." He has a file, which, in her experience, is never good. "And how old was she?"
"Three, or so. Maybe a bit younger."
"And your father just... came home with her, one day?"
Sydney nodded, her lower lip between her teeth. She resented the comparison of her sister to a puppy. "Look, Vaughn, why is this coming up now? You've known about Nina."
Vaughn sighed and leaned against a box. "Since your mother's... reappearance, and your father's actions coming into question-"
"But neither of those things have anything to do with Nina. I was six when he practiced Project Christmas on me, it was before she came."
She can tell that he doesn't want to be asking these questions, but he continues. "Did you never wonder who Nina's mother was."
She makes her voice a high, polished, brittle arch. "My father was a widower, and he was away after my mother died. It was assumed that my father... he found someone, on a mission."
"After his time in solitary."
"Yes." There's something coming to focus in the back of her mind, but she doesn't want to see it. "What does my mother have to do with any of it?"
Vaughn stands and exhales his reply. "Could be a lot."
"Nina is my father's daughter. I know this."
"Syd, I haven't said anything-"
"You're implying. Who put you up to this, was it Kendall? And what is he trying to find out, that somehow my father and my mother were together- then, somehow?"
His voice is gentle, conciliatory. "Syd, there are just some... some blind spots when it comes your parents, and even your sister. We're trying to cover all the bases. It's nothing, Syd. Don't worry about it."
She tries not to.
At home, Nina is on her couch, watching MTV and eating the last of her ice cream. "You'll spoil your appetite," Sydney says as she passes by, and Nina shrugs.
"Appetite for what?" Nina called, "This is dinner."
Sydney put her briefcase down in her bedroom and came back out, sitting on the couch next to her sister. "What are you doing here?"
"Enjoying your TV. Jess and Tara are going out tonight, but I have exam in the morning. Francie said I could stay here."
"It's my house, you know."
"You weren't here. You were at work."
That said, Nina turns her attention back to The Real World and takes another bite of ice cream. Sydney studies her younger sister, categorizing every feature that they share. "Neen?"
She doesn't tear her eyes away from the screen. "Yeah?"
"What's your first memory?"
Nina turns her head back to face her, spoon in her mouth thoughtfully. "Us in the backyard, you pushing me on the swing. Dad was watching us from the upstairs window."
"How old were you?"
"Four? I don't know, Syd. I was young."
"And nothing before that."
"No, nothing before that. Why?"
"I was thinking about it. Today."
Nina looks back at the TV, her fingers fisting around the spoon as she lays it in her lap. "You know Dad doesn't like you talking to me about that."
"I think you're old enough, Nina."
"I don't like to talk about it, either."
Sydney frowns and takes the spoon away from her. "It doesn't make any difference." What she means to say is that it doesn't make any difference to her, that Nina is her sister, no matter whose daughter she is or where she came from, but Nina doesn't take it that way.
"It does to me. Remember how I said Jess and I wanted to go to Mexico for winter break this year, so I had to get my passport? I had to explain why I have dual citizenship. And in Argentina, of all places. It's stupid, Syd, all of it."
Sydney tugs a lock of Nina's hair- black, shades darker than hers, the color of their father's hair when he was younger, or so they infer. "Hey," Sydney says, and Nina turns. "Dual citizenship is cool." Nina smiles, as she had hoped she would, and they wind up going to dinner with Will and Francie.
Our build, Sydney inventories, our hands, our cheeks, our eyes. Foreheads, ears. We're sisters.
After dinner they go straight home, and Nina crams for a bit- frantically, as she had felt prepared earlier but now isn't so sure- and Sydney waits until Nina is safely in bed before going to sleep herself.
Nina is curled up on the couch, a ratty bear clutched to her chest. She looks younger, as she always had, her mouth parted in sleep and her face clear in the moonlight, looking like she had when she was fifteen, when she was ten, when she was five, when she had first come.
And so, Sydney remembers.
At nine, Sydney had been used to spending time alone. She had her nanny, a cook, and a large house at her disposal while her father went off on business trips around the world. Sometimes he brought her back presents- small trinkets, if she had seemed particularly despondent before he left, and she tried not to show him how much they meant to her.
His lack of ceremony when he brought Nina home for the first time would paint the way Sydney accepted her sister: as it was already done, it was to be accepted without question.
Nina was a beautiful and completely silent child. She had explored her surroundings carefully and without making a sound. Her dark eyes had followed Jack around the room until he had gone off with Sydney's nanny to brief her on her new charge.
Sydney had sized the child up- what her father had called her sister, an alien term. Nina had been small for her age, with tumbles of glossy black hair and nervous hands that clutched at the skirt of her dress.
"I like your dress." Sydney had started, even though she didn't, really. It was a dress for a baby, a little too frilly for her tastes, nothing like anything her mother had dressed her. Nina had said nothing.
She hadn't let the silence dissuade her: the prospect of a sister was too interesting. "Dad says your name is Nina."
They were in the living room, and Sydney couldn't see anything that might interest a young child. What few toys she had left were upstairs in her bedroom.
She'd gotten up to look around- would Nina like to be read to? She always had liked that. Nina had jolted when she had stood, and was watching her with large eyes. "I'm looking for something to read," Sydney had explained. "Books. I like them. Do you like to be read to?"
Nina at least looked like she was paying attention to her now. She had looked back to the bookshelf, her eyes falling on Alice in Wonderland.
The book had been hers and her mother's. She glanced back at Nina, wondering if her mother would've liked her. She was sure Mama wouldn't have minded her reading to Nina- she had been an English teacher, she wanted people to read things.
Plucking the book from the shelf, Sydney had settled in a corner of the couch. "I'm going to read now," she announced to Nina. "I'll read to you, if you like."
Nina was silent.
With a sigh, Sydney had started the book. She pretended not to notice Nina creeping steadily closer. When she climbed up on the couch shyly, Sydney had turned back to the first page. "I'll start here," she said solemnly to the big eyes. Nina sat almost touching her. "By the way, I almost forgot. My name is Sydney."
To be continued, I think.
non_horation's writing meme"Syd, what can you tell me about Nina Bristow?"
Sydney had looked up at him, giving him a curious look. "She's my sister. You know that."
"But she's adopted."
"Well, yeah. But she's my father's daughter, he just had to go through legal channels to get her."
"How old were you when she came, Syd?"
There was an unsettling tinge to this line of questioning, and Syd had shivered. The warehouse was even cooler than normal due to the storm brewing outside, and thunder would occasionally rumble, as if highlighting their words. "Nine. I was nine. It was funny, 'cause I was nine, and she was Nina." She offers him a little smile. "It was a joke."
Vaughn smiles back. "Pre-teen humor." He has a file, which, in her experience, is never good. "And how old was she?"
"Three, or so. Maybe a bit younger."
"And your father just... came home with her, one day?"
Sydney nodded, her lower lip between her teeth. She resented the comparison of her sister to a puppy. "Look, Vaughn, why is this coming up now? You've known about Nina."
Vaughn sighed and leaned against a box. "Since your mother's... reappearance, and your father's actions coming into question-"
"But neither of those things have anything to do with Nina. I was six when he practiced Project Christmas on me, it was before she came."
She can tell that he doesn't want to be asking these questions, but he continues. "Did you never wonder who Nina's mother was."
She makes her voice a high, polished, brittle arch. "My father was a widower, and he was away after my mother died. It was assumed that my father... he found someone, on a mission."
"After his time in solitary."
"Yes." There's something coming to focus in the back of her mind, but she doesn't want to see it. "What does my mother have to do with any of it?"
Vaughn stands and exhales his reply. "Could be a lot."
"Nina is my father's daughter. I know this."
"Syd, I haven't said anything-"
"You're implying. Who put you up to this, was it Kendall? And what is he trying to find out, that somehow my father and my mother were together- then, somehow?"
His voice is gentle, conciliatory. "Syd, there are just some... some blind spots when it comes your parents, and even your sister. We're trying to cover all the bases. It's nothing, Syd. Don't worry about it."
She tries not to.
At home, Nina is on her couch, watching MTV and eating the last of her ice cream. "You'll spoil your appetite," Sydney says as she passes by, and Nina shrugs.
"Appetite for what?" Nina called, "This is dinner."
Sydney put her briefcase down in her bedroom and came back out, sitting on the couch next to her sister. "What are you doing here?"
"Enjoying your TV. Jess and Tara are going out tonight, but I have exam in the morning. Francie said I could stay here."
"It's my house, you know."
"You weren't here. You were at work."
That said, Nina turns her attention back to The Real World and takes another bite of ice cream. Sydney studies her younger sister, categorizing every feature that they share. "Neen?"
She doesn't tear her eyes away from the screen. "Yeah?"
"What's your first memory?"
Nina turns her head back to face her, spoon in her mouth thoughtfully. "Us in the backyard, you pushing me on the swing. Dad was watching us from the upstairs window."
"How old were you?"
"Four? I don't know, Syd. I was young."
"And nothing before that."
"No, nothing before that. Why?"
"I was thinking about it. Today."
Nina looks back at the TV, her fingers fisting around the spoon as she lays it in her lap. "You know Dad doesn't like you talking to me about that."
"I think you're old enough, Nina."
"I don't like to talk about it, either."
Sydney frowns and takes the spoon away from her. "It doesn't make any difference." What she means to say is that it doesn't make any difference to her, that Nina is her sister, no matter whose daughter she is or where she came from, but Nina doesn't take it that way.
"It does to me. Remember how I said Jess and I wanted to go to Mexico for winter break this year, so I had to get my passport? I had to explain why I have dual citizenship. And in Argentina, of all places. It's stupid, Syd, all of it."
Sydney tugs a lock of Nina's hair- black, shades darker than hers, the color of their father's hair when he was younger, or so they infer. "Hey," Sydney says, and Nina turns. "Dual citizenship is cool." Nina smiles, as she had hoped she would, and they wind up going to dinner with Will and Francie.
Our build, Sydney inventories, our hands, our cheeks, our eyes. Foreheads, ears. We're sisters.
After dinner they go straight home, and Nina crams for a bit- frantically, as she had felt prepared earlier but now isn't so sure- and Sydney waits until Nina is safely in bed before going to sleep herself.
Nina is curled up on the couch, a ratty bear clutched to her chest. She looks younger, as she always had, her mouth parted in sleep and her face clear in the moonlight, looking like she had when she was fifteen, when she was ten, when she was five, when she had first come.
And so, Sydney remembers.
At nine, Sydney had been used to spending time alone. She had her nanny, a cook, and a large house at her disposal while her father went off on business trips around the world. Sometimes he brought her back presents- small trinkets, if she had seemed particularly despondent before he left, and she tried not to show him how much they meant to her.
His lack of ceremony when he brought Nina home for the first time would paint the way Sydney accepted her sister: as it was already done, it was to be accepted without question.
Nina was a beautiful and completely silent child. She had explored her surroundings carefully and without making a sound. Her dark eyes had followed Jack around the room until he had gone off with Sydney's nanny to brief her on her new charge.
Sydney had sized the child up- what her father had called her sister, an alien term. Nina had been small for her age, with tumbles of glossy black hair and nervous hands that clutched at the skirt of her dress.
"I like your dress." Sydney had started, even though she didn't, really. It was a dress for a baby, a little too frilly for her tastes, nothing like anything her mother had dressed her. Nina had said nothing.
She hadn't let the silence dissuade her: the prospect of a sister was too interesting. "Dad says your name is Nina."
They were in the living room, and Sydney couldn't see anything that might interest a young child. What few toys she had left were upstairs in her bedroom.
She'd gotten up to look around- would Nina like to be read to? She always had liked that. Nina had jolted when she had stood, and was watching her with large eyes. "I'm looking for something to read," Sydney had explained. "Books. I like them. Do you like to be read to?"
Nina at least looked like she was paying attention to her now. She had looked back to the bookshelf, her eyes falling on Alice in Wonderland.
The book had been hers and her mother's. She glanced back at Nina, wondering if her mother would've liked her. She was sure Mama wouldn't have minded her reading to Nina- she had been an English teacher, she wanted people to read things.
Plucking the book from the shelf, Sydney had settled in a corner of the couch. "I'm going to read now," she announced to Nina. "I'll read to you, if you like."
Nina was silent.
With a sigh, Sydney had started the book. She pretended not to notice Nina creeping steadily closer. When she climbed up on the couch shyly, Sydney had turned back to the first page. "I'll start here," she said solemnly to the big eyes. Nina sat almost touching her. "By the way, I almost forgot. My name is Sydney."
To be continued, I think.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 07:56 pm (UTC)And you know just know that Mia Maestro was the must sickeningly gorgeous child ever. You can just tell.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 08:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 07:59 pm (UTC)I like the AU-ness you've got goin' on here, and you'd better write more because as of now I am pretty much mystified, and shall go mad if there isn't more!
And does anybody really want that?
no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 08:08 pm (UTC)No, Nita, don't go crazy! Although I am tempted to hold another section hostage until you write something for me.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 08:05 pm (UTC)Thank you so much, Sunny! This is really interesting. I like the Syd/Vaughn warehouse stuff, especially Syd's defensiveness over her sister, and her utter conviction that Kendall is behind the questions. Poor Syd always tries to be one step ahead on that stuff.
I also really liked the inclusion of the "My name is Sydney" line. That was cute.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-13 08:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-03-14 04:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-03-14 05:49 pm (UTC)Thanks for the feedback!