this is madness {open}

[Jefferson]

holding conflicting realities in

Grace was spending the night at her friend's  residence and as hard as it was to let her out of his sight . . . he knew he had to. He couldn't be one of those over protective fathers  who hovered over her every move. Even though he did watched her for the past 28 years. But he had promised her that he wouldn't focus any telescopes her way. That she could enjoy her time with her friends. Which brought him to his current location: Granny's Diner. Now, Jefferson was not one who overly socialized with the town folk. He found most of them to be distrusting, and tended to keep to himself. However, having Grace back in his life, she was drawing him out more to interact with others and if it made her happy, he would do it. That however was not what currently burdened his mid. He was sitting at one of the booths, papers of costume sketches scattered over the table  and bags of fabric positioned next to him. His eyes focused on one particular costume: the queen of hearts. Grace was playing the lead in the theater club she was part of, which just happened to be Alice in Wonderland. He had not been too pleased or amused, for the land entailed horrid memories for him. Ones that had nearly driven him to madness. Ones that were not racing through his mind. The half drank cup of coffee was not helping calm his mind. He had agreed to create the costumes for the play, as he was a tailor after all his experience making hats and toys for Grace . . . but he couldn't stop the memories. He repeatedly tapped his finger on the table, simultaneously tapping his foot as well. His eyes fixated on the picture, though he wasn't really looking. Off with his head! Please, I have a daughter! You will stay here until you have made another hat! She needs me! Make me a portal!Must make it work! Hat upon hat upon at upon hat . . . . Jefferson felt like his mind was about to explode as all the voices and visions bombarded him, causing him to abruptly rise to his feet and back away from all the images, which in turn caused him to back into the waitress who was carrying a coffee pot, that ended up spilling on another customer's shirt. He spun around, eying the two that had been affected by the collision, taking a few moments to gather himself and snap back into reality.

your head will drive you mad

made by remi of isc & rilla go!

[marymargaret]

Belle brushed back a stray strand of hair that had escape the bun at the nape of her neck, tucking it behind her ear.  The book open upon the table was a recent acquisition; she'd been working on building up the variety in the town library.  Her tea was placed to the side of the table, far enough away that she didn't have to worry about the pages becoming damp had the cup been knocked over.

She didn't account for the chance of herself rather than her book getting wet.  She jumped with a gasp as the waitress accidentally spilled coffee upon her.  It wasn't as hot as it could have been, thankfully sparing her any burns.  Had she not been wearing a blazer over her silk blouse she would have definitely felt the warm liquid against her skin.  

The waitresses apologized profusely, most likely fearing that her job was on the line.  Belle brushed off her apologies, assuring her that it was an honest mistake.  She slipped the stained blazer from her body.  The waitress took it from her, assuring her that she'd spray it with stain remover from the laundry room at Granny's inn.  The red faced young woman hurried off with the clothing, leaving Belle to look for the cause of the waitress' blunder.  

She spotted the man that seemed to have run into the other woman.  "Are you alright?" she inquired, wondering what had happened that caused him to run into the woman.

[Jefferson]

holding conflicting realities in

As Jefferson finally regained his wits about him, he turned to see the woman who had fallen victim to the accident. It was none other than Belle. The first time he had seen her in Storybrooke was when he had released her from imprisonment -- thanks to Regina. He had been so angry at the evil queen for betraying him not only once, but twice. And both times had massively hindered him from being with his daughter. Seeing Belle now and that she seemed to be doing fine was fairly good. Though once again, Regina had not been brought to justice. She asked if he was alright and Jefferson gave a small nod. "I'm fine," he answered, not about to go into detail about what had caused him to suddenly leap from his chair. All the memories, all the voices that constantly haunted him. Only when he was with grace did he feel any semblance of peace. Without her, and now with this fear, he feared the toll it would take on his already fragile mind. "I should be asking you if you're alright," he told her, as she had been the one who the coffee had fallen on. "If she can't get the stain out, I owe you a jacket," he told her, meaning his words. As a tailor, he would be able to make her one and after this, he very much so owed her a new blazer.

your head will drive you mad

made by remi of isc & rilla go!

[marymargaret]

Belle recognized him as the man who'd freed her from the hospital.  She suppressed a shudder at the thought of the dark cell she'd been locked in for years.  If it hadn't been for him Rumpel would never have known that she was still alive, hidden in Storybrooke. "Jefferson, right?" she asked, trying to recall the name that Rumpel had told her.  "I never did get a chance to thank you for what you did for me."  She smiled warmly, glad to finally see the man who'd given her her freedom.

She waved away his concern with a turn of her hand.  "I'm fine," she insisted.  "The jacket caught the brunt of it; I'm unharmed."  She knew that, had she not been wearing the blazer, the heat of the coffee would have burned her skin.  She shook her head at his offer to procure her a new jacket. "I'm sure it will come out; it's being tended to right away."  Were the stain to sit for too long she knew that the jacket would not be able to be salvaged.  

"Have you been well, since I last saw you?"

[Jefferson]

holding conflicting realities in

He looked at her as she confirmed his name. Thank God she referred to him as Jefferson rather than the unfavorable nickname that others tended to refer to him as. He hated the Mad Hatter. His name was Jefferson, so he was relieved that she at least referred to him as such. "In the flesh," he stated, as she went on to thank him. Ah yes. He knew exactly who she was. Jefferson tended not to advertise all that he knew about others. He had kept much to himself, especially for those 28 years where all time stood still. But her captivity had been a secret he needn't keep any longer. "You don't have to thank me for that," he assured her. Even if Regina hadn't gotten what she deserved from it, at least Belle was free. He supposed that was the main thing after all. Her warm smile elicited one of his own, though not filled with as much warmth. Jefferson wasn't exactly a social butterfly and whatever interactions he had with others, was often for the sake of or due to his daughter. "No one deserves to fall victim to Regina's wrath," he added on. It was something that he had fallen under, time and time again. She seemed unconcerned with her clothing, and perhaps that made him feel a little more bad for having played a part in ruining it. At least she was not harmed in the process. "If it doesn't, then my offer still stands," he assured her, knowing he would not wait for her approval to make her a new blazer. He owed her at least that. She then surprisingly asked if he was well. Perhaps it was surprising because... well, he wasn't quite used to that question. Usually his conversations ended in the other person threatening to lock him in a room until he made a portal from a hat. This seemed refreshingly genuine. "Relatively," he answered, supposing it was a bit of an understatement considering he was now reunited with his daughter. "I've been quite good, actually," he answered more truthfully. Her question seemed sincere enough, and he had only heard kind things about Belle. "What about you?" He returned the question. "You appear to look much better than the last time we met, even with a coffee stained blazer." He was only somewhat joking, considering their last encounter was when she had been freed from imprisonment.

your head will drive you mad

made by remi of isc & rilla go!

[marymargaret]

Belle tutted as he insisted that she needn't thank him for freeing her from the asylum.  She knew that it was only right to, as she didn't doubt that she'd still be trapped down there.  Perhaps her father would've gone looking for her, yet she knew that Rumpel hadn't been aware that she was alive.  It would've been a long time before anyone found her.  "It was very brave, what you did. Not many would've dared to defy Regina then."  Now the former tyrant was generally accepted by the people of Storybrooke, though that hadn't been true directly after the breaking of the first curse. 

The brunette appeared happy to know that he was doing well.  She knew of his other name, the one given to him by those that had witnessed his madness.  He looked perfectly intact and coherent to her. She laughed as he mentioned that she looked well, despite her stained blazer.  "Thank you," she smiled.  "I believe being out in the sun after being locked away for twenty-eight years did the trick."