Post by DR HELEN MAGNUS on Nov 2, 2011 20:11:48 GMT 9.5
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3:24am. Tuesday.
Dr. Helen Magnus was still awake. Granted, it was like any other night. Always the first person up and the last one down. Never wasting a single moment of her time, yet always focuses solely on her work. It was much too important to dismiss. She’ll rest when she feels she needs it. Will had always wondered if she got any sleep at all, because she was so good at masking her exhaustion. He had to admire her dedication. After a few hours of sleep, she will go back to work and start the tedious day ahead. The way Helen would see it, is that there were not enough hours in a day.
You see. That’s the irony of it. You’d think a person who has lived for over a hundred and fifty years, would consider that maybe time did move too slowly. But no-one else understood that but her. Helen Magnus. The saviour of Abnormals, and the path to their salvation. The ultimate path to their true existence. She understood that, and lived by it with every fibre of her being. The Sanctuary was her life’s work. A network of them, initiated by her father Gregory Magnus, designed to keep those Abnormals safe from the trials of the human race. Because they did not understand, and yet they refused to accept such forms of evolution.
Helen was half-way through her report. On one screen, there was a report roughly four pages long containing information of one of her most recent patients. An Abnormal who could generate both hot and cold energy from a single touch. That of which resulted in a lovely handprint burn on Bigfoot’s arm, during the capture. Will did try to reason with it, but the middle-aged female refused. On another screen, was an exceptionally large email which was to be sent to Sanctuary in Egypt, where the woman was found. Helen insisted they take her back to Old City for further examination. Another computer screen contained medical files and internal x-rays of the woman’s unique blood cells which could enable the energy without damage. With a single click of the mouse, she sent the email.
She frowned, and lightly pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a headache coming on. She had planned to get this report finished that night, so she couldn’t afford to be overcome with sleep deprivation. But at her rate, she could barely read anymore words on that report. Her headache seemed to blur her vision slightly causing those words to jump out at her. She leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes for several minutes trying to relax her mind for a bit. It was the usual events for the night. Will had always told her to get more sleep, but as selfless as she was dismissed that idea. But for years now, she was so used to receiving a few hours of sleep, that when she did finally get to bed, she would automatically awake. So much for a good night's rest.
Last time she had completely sleepless nights, was when Ashley was still a baby.
Suddenly, the youthful young blonde sprang into her mind. Her daughter was taken from her and suffered dearly. Her life ended, leaving Helen alone again. Helen opened her eyes, and let them wander to the picture of the little girl on her desk beside her. Ashley was seven years old at the time, and by the looks of the photo, she had a large grin on her face, who was enveloped into a large hug by her mother, Helen. A rare moment in both their lives, when she finally did take the time to spend the day with her daughter. If Helen was not trying to track down Abnormals, it was spending the day out with her little angel.
Overcome with memories, Helen managed to muster up a small, yet sad smile in memory of her daughter. It seemed like yesterday when Ashley walked through the door of her office, asking for permission to go on a wild goose chase with Henry. Or the time when Ashley skipped a staff meeting to attend a Fight Club. Or the time she gave Helen a box of chocolates, a bunch of flowers, and a gold pendant for Mother’s day a few years ago. Helen’s fingers made their way to the pendant around her neck, almost concealed in the black blouse she wore. Since the day they lost Ashley, she never dared to remove it.
“Oh, Ashley...” Helen broke the cold, heart-wrenching silence that seemed to overcome her office, with a soft voice that seemed to cry for her daughter’s warm presence. She missed her daughter’s witty replies, and even missed her apologetic words when Helen caught her sneaking out in the wee hours of the night on occasion. But she would give anything to have her back. She would gladly give her life for her.
Helen released a breath of air, she only begun to realise she had held. Slowly, she picked up the picture of her and little Ashley, and held it close to her chest, hoping that maybe this was all a cruel dream. That maybe Ashley really was alive and well, and would walk through that door any moment insisting she’d get some rest. Suddenly finding that report off-putting, she stood up from her chair, and took comfort in the relief considering she had been staring at her computer screens for a good nine hours. The tea on her desk was icy cold, along with the half-eaten grilled chicken salad that Bigfoot cooked up for her during dinner. She didn’t even find the time to finish her meal. She began to pace around the living area of her office near the fireplace which was still crackling with comforting warmth. Yet the picture remained close to her heart, not daring to tear it away. She rarely allowed herself to become like this. Helen was so used to keeping her true emotions intact, that she barely had time to release them. She made her way to the couch and sat down close to the fireplace. Her eyes welled with tears slightly, wishing that her daughter was here with her. One of the only people in the world that ever truly understood her.
Finally admitting defeat, she lay back among the pillows of the lounge, as she let slip a single tear that trailed down her pale cheek. The photo was still close to her chest, when finally, sleep overtook her.
Maybe tonight, she would get some true rest.
