Thread: A Light in the Darkness (Madam Mim & Sync)

Bah! Italy! Abner waved his hand again, this time in annoyance, before reaching for his pipe kept above the mantle and packing it with what poor excuse for tobacco he could get anymore. Fascists, every last one, m'boy. Switzerland is a better option for sure...but whatever route you go it does mean danger. Fortunately for you no one will think twice about questioning a soldier who looks like you. He lit his pipe and tossed the match into the fire, clamping his teeth around the stem thoughtfully and looking at Gunther. He'd noticed the boy noticing Miriam, of course--poor excuse of a watchful father he'd have been if he hadn't--and had noticed his daughter noticing him at varying points over the past few years. With all of this noticing going on he'd been meaning to have a conversation with her about it...but now it seemed a moot point. Poor kids. Gunther described Dachau and what he'd heard about some of the other camps, and Abner listened with his expression set in a grave scowl. He had heard rumors filtered through someone who knew someone who knew someone, but had never been able to wring a first-hand account from anyone. And no wonder, since no one who went there on a train ever came back and he wasn't exactly friendly with the sorts who would have been chosen for guard duty. For the most part he had treated the horror stories as just that stories. Not that he made the mistake of thinking that Dachau was the beautiful summer camp the Nazis claimed it to be, but the sorts of terrors that traveled on the wind of rumors had sounded too twisted to be true. It made him a little ill to hear that there might be something to it. The boy--Abner thought of him as a boy, though he knew he was a man now just as he thought of his grown daughters still as girls--allowed himself a tear. Combined with the haunted look in his eyes Herr Heinz knew all he needed to. He needed to find a way to get his family out. What are they saying? Esther took the kettle off and poured the water through the filter. Miri shook her head. They were whispering, then stopped talking when I came in, she sighed. All I heard was Papa offering him a place to stay, some talk about leaving Munich. From who? Esther's eyes went wide with curiosity and hope. From none of your business, Shoshona put in curtly, pouring some milk into the little ceramic pitcher then spooning sugar from the bag into a small crock. You shouldn't be eavesdropping, Miriam, and you shouldn't be encouraging her! You're the eldest, you're supposed to set a good example. Miri poured coffee into three cups and arranged them on a tray with the milk and sugar. When has she ever set a good example, Mama? she asked with a smile, leaving a vexed Shoshona in her wake as she quickly left the conversation and reentered the living room, setting the tray on the coffee table. It isn't very good coffee, she told him apologetically, but at least it's hot, and we've got milk and sugar to help it along. She added a little of each to her own cup before taking it and resuming her perch on the arm of the sofa. How long will you be staying? Just a few nights, Abner answered for him with a glance at Gunther. Enough to catch his breath. Papa! Miri looked between them, dismayed, then turned back to Gunther. Where would you go after? Someone would notice you living in your parents' home.