Paint and Ink (IC)

[Breella]

Gwen thought about what Renee had said, "The Fates" he had called them. She pondered this idea for a moment. Fate. Maybe it was fate that had brought her here, away from home. Home, she felt a pang of guilt about that. Home was never a place but rather where her parents had been and they weren't here now. She was so far from home. Why sad? You not alone! Have us! Yeah! Have us! they chimed in Gwens' head.

"Fate..." Gwen muttered out loud and her hand fell slightly from its position.

[Supercape]

"Mademoiselle! Your arm, merci!"

Nothing must mar my masterpiece! he told himself.

"Thats right, back to where it was, if you would be so good!" he said, a smile on his friend, encouraging her with his hands and brush in vigorous animation. "You captured the natural light so wonderfully!"

"And...may I ask how your...friends would like to be captured on canvas? do I take it you and they are, as they say, un symbiote?"

[Breella]

Gwen caught herself "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to move." she mumbled, still lost in the conversations between the vines and the plants around her. Gwen was so enthralled by them, the differences. The vines were trying to explain the hard clay deserts of Australia to a plant that had lived in a deciduous forest its whole life. It was like describing art to the blind. Art-- the thought brought her back and while the word 'capture' was herd by Gwen she didn't think much of it. "I do not know what you mean." She looked up at Renee who was deep in thought with his work. She thought about it for a moment. "Yes, we are 'together' in a sense. I do not think they could exist outside of me, not right now." and I don't think I could live again without them. Gwen thought to herself.

[Supercape]

Rene continued dabbing away.

"Zut Alors!" he cursed "I will run out of greens at this rate! Perhaps we should have used a desert background after all..."

He put his hand to his forehead and looked at the setting sun... still plenty of hours sunlight left, but it was in decline. "At least I have enough for the sky and sunlight!" he said, looking on the bright side.

He stopped for a moment, opening his Satchel and bringing out a Carafe of wine, pouring himself a glass.

"West bank claret. Not my finest, would go better with some food...here..." he brought half a stick of French Bread, and some Pate.

"You do eat, I hope? Or is it just drinking sunshine for you?"

[Breella]

Gwen laughed about the green paint. "There is surly an abundance of that here." Gwen glanced down at herself and the background would surely be a sea of shades of green also. She watched Renee pull out his carafe and his platter. "I do eat, but I do not drink wine." Gwen made a face at the memory but fast went back to how Renee had asked her to sit. "Wine does not agree well with me." she noted. The vines however get their nutrition from me. "I think that the sun is just habit for them, they like to bask in it but not for nutrition."

[Supercape]

"Wine does not agree well with me."

"My condolences" said Rene, who looked horrified at the sentence that Flora had been placed under "to be deprived of ze glory of ze fermented grape. Ahhh...how Dionysus would weep!" he looked deeply sad.

"But come!" he said, cheering up. "Ze first draft is nearly completed! Oui, you can drop your hand now, you will be delighted to learn. Let me show you. It is, I emphasise, only ze first draft. Much work needs to be done. A couple of days, maybe more. But you can, if you fill it in with your imagination, see the essence of it..."

With a wave of his hand, he beckoned Flora over to see the drafted painting, showing Flora in all her glory in the sunshine of Wharton Forest.

[Breella]

Gwen waited for the vines to come back into her. When they had retracted and were settled she got up from her spot and came around to see Renee's painting. She was floored. It was amazing. "Renee, this is wonderful! I love it!. Gwen clapped her hands to show her appreciation and the vines curled around from her shoulders and flowered bright pink. "They like it too!" Gwen said, pointing to the beautiful flowers. Gwen looked back at Renee. Her smile went from ear to ear. "I would love to see the finished painting." Gwen thought hard for a moment and the vines had an idea. Here. Yeah! Leave note here with big tree! Gwen looked over to the tree they referred to. It was a great old blackberry tree. "You could leave a note for me in the crevice in that tree there, and I will be sure to get it."

[Supercape]

"You could leave a note for me in the crevice in that tree there, and I will be sure to get it."

"You will?" replied Rene, arching an eyebrow. "I mean...I am sure you will..." he said lowering it and nodding wisely. "Floral post. You seem quite at one with nature, my dear lady. Full of surprises, full of vitality. Attuned with ze world..."

He drifted off slightly, before bringing himself back to the here and now. Such was the dreamer in him.

"In any case, I shall finish this back in my flat...here, take my address, should you need it. Rene deSaens, at your service!" he finished, with a bow.

"And now, if you would be so good as to help me take this easel and canvas back to the road. After all, I am an old man, and my back hurts.." he said, hopefully...

[Breella]

It suddenly hit Gwen like a ton of bricks. Renee... DeSaens... Gwen tried her best to hide expression. That name was very familiar. She felt like it should have more of a stunning impact on her. She shrugged it off and grabbed what Renee had asked her to carry to help him back to the road. She checked to make sure her mask was still in place and she smiled. Gwen looked at the painting again. "Yes, I will get the message if left here." She took the address from Renee and one of the vines began to hold it for her. "Your work is amazing, how long have you been painting for?" it seemed like an innocent question but Gwen felt compelled to ask.

[Supercape]

"Your work is amazing, how long have you been painting for?"

"Oui, my work is amazing, as you say!" agreed Rene, without any doubt in his mind or voice.

He was somewhat more vague about the length of time he had been painting, however.

"I have been painting for many years, madamoiselle" he waffled "many many years, I trained in Paris, but one is, of course, always learning..."

He coughed slightly, and then thrust the easel into Flora's hands.

"You look like a strong, vital, young lady, I am sure you can help a feeble old man like me with the painting and canvas as we walk back, hmmm?" he said, pouring himself the remainder of the wine...

[Breella]

Gwen took the items from Rene and looked at him. "Je peux ... le porter... pas un problème!" Gwen struggled with her french a little but she believed she had the jist of it. Something kept nagging in the back of Gwen's mind. The vines scurried around her, lost in final thoughts with the plants in the clearing. Gwen hefted the easel up and grabbed various other things with both her free hand and the vines. How does one man heft all of this out to the clearing in the first place?! Gwen mulled the thought over in her mind but the chatter between the vines and the plants in the clearing distracted her but she followed him to the road. "Do you have a car? How will you get home?"

[Supercape]

"Do you have a car? How will you get home?"

Rene smiled to himself, but made sure he put on a good show, wincing with false pain, and rubbing his back theatrically as he hobbled back to the road.

"" he replied "<"And you should have said you can speak in the language of the romance!"> he replied in fluent French, as the walked back. Of course, he could have whipped out a small picture of his home, and simply painted them back to Freedom City (or any other location he had a picture of), but he had found, as a rule, that underplaying his power, and using it sparingly, was how practitioners of the mystic arts lived to his ripe old age.

Sorcerers and magicians who puffed up their chests, casting lightning bolts and boasting of their incredible power and wond'rous artifacts usually ended up attracting to much attention. Both in this realm and in the other ones.

"Aliments Avenir I am sure Monsieur Verdoux will love to see a pretty young lady who can speak French dine at his restaurant, even if she does not drink wine!>"

[Breella]

"I have spent time in the Central African Republic, Haiti, Madagascar, and a few other places where French was a very common language. After a while its hard not to pick up on a few words and phrases." Gwen thought about a few of the other things Rene had said. As nice as he was some of the things he said were rather-- interesting. Gwen turned her head just before they got to the road. She faced the forest. I'll be there in a moment. Gwen smiled at Renee. "I am afraid I must go. Other duties call me away." Gwen put down the easel and supplies. She hugged the man. "Thank you for today. It was nice to feel so helpful and special. Don't forget, leave me a message in almost any tree. Be sure to tell the tree its for Flora and I'll get it." Gwen began to sprint back towards the forest.

[Supercape]

"Thank you for today. It was nice to feel so helpful and special. Don't forget, leave me a message in almost any tree. Be sure to tell the tree its for Flora and I'll get it." Gwen began to sprint back towards the forest.

"Merci, Mademoiselle!" called Rene after the sprinting figure of Flora "I will only eat ze meat today!" he said, thinking on what she said. Of course, he did not need much inclination to tuck into a finely cooked steak, but something about Flora made him think twice about vegetables.

He finished off the rest of the walk himself. He was well past his prime physically, of course, but for a man of his age he was in pretty good shape. It was curious, to the observer, how Rene suddenly straightened and walked faster once Flora had left.

"Taxi!" he called, as one pulled up on the outskirts of the forest.

"To RIverside, Monsieur" he requested "I have un masterpiece to complete!"