sydney_ashcroft (sydney_ashcroft) wrote in marvel_nextgen,
@ 2010-02-02 09:26:00

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Entry tags:	npc - avery crittenden, sydney ashcroft, team - defenders, zoey ashcroft

Out of The Past
Sydney sat across from Zoey and waited for Zoey to finish her slice of pizza. Syd had picked Zoey up and had taken her to the mall. Some quality mother and daughter time was needed and the mall was the perfect place. Of course they hit the food court first. The first words out of Zoey's mouth every day when Syd picked her up from school wasn't "Hi Mom" it was "I'm hungry!".

The Defenders, Scion and school kept Syd plenty busy and the two of them needed some time together just the two of them every week. Syd made a promise to herself that no matter what happened, they would get that day. Getting Zoey away from the Defenders for a little bit was always a good thing. Thees and thous were starting to slip into Zoey's speech on regular basis.

She went over the todo list in her head. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.

She looked over at Zoey and smiled when her daughter looked at her. "Love you, monkey."

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nextgen_citizen
2010-02-02 02:48 pm UTC (link)

Avery Crittenden sits across the food court and watches as the woman and her child ate together. The little girl, named Zoey according to the file, enjoys her pizza while her mother watched.

Zoey looked to be either five or six years old. If she's five, then this whole trip is a waste of time and he's simply indulging in a bit of nostalgia for old times. He'll go home to Rielle, back to his marriage (if one can call it that), and this whole thing will be nothing more than a trip down memory lane involving a woman he almost...

He watches as Zoey looks up at her mother, her head tilted to the side in a way that reminds him of himself. Avery already knows that there are no other Defenders in the area; he looked for them several times between the time he left the hotel and now. He knows that Sydney won't see him until he approaches the two, and that he will surprise her quite a bit.

The only reaction he cannot plan for is the little girl, because he cannot see her at all. He takes a deep breath and stands, smoothing out his black Ralph Lauren suit, and makes his way over to the table.

"Sydney?" he says, feigning surprise at seeing her again after all these years. "Sydney Ashcroft? Is that you?"

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sydney_ashcroft
2010-02-02 07:58 pm UTC (link)

Syd came out of her reverie of going over her todo list and looked around at the sound of her name being called. She blinked a few times and her mind placed the voice and the face.

"Avery," she said with a small smile. She never did get his last name. Then again they had only been together for three days. And what a three days they were, but it had been nothing but a fling. "You look great."

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nextgen_citizen
2010-02-02 10:56 pm UTC (link)

He only knew her last name from the papers and articles. They met in a coffee shop six years ago, just two people who needed to be someone else.He was running from an arranged marriage and planned out life.He didn't know about her;there wasn't time.

"You look great, too." he smiled as his eyes settled on Zoey. "Oh, I apologize. I didn't mean to interrupt your plans with your..." Avery trailed off, letting Sydney fill in the blank about Zoey.

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	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-02 11:06 pm UTC (link)
	"You're not interrupting," she said. "This is Zoey, my daughter. Zoey, this is Avery." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	team_mascot 2010-02-02 11:07 pm UTC (link)
	"Hi!" Zoey smiled up at him. "I'm Zoey!" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-03 01:29 am UTC (link)

Avery found himself smiling even wider at the sight of Zoey's smile. The girl favored her mother, but Avery saw a glint of mischief in the child's eyes he recognized.

"Hello, Zoey. My name is Avery Crittenden." he said, extending a hand for her to shake. He looked at her plate.

"Is the pizza good here? I can't have because I'm lactose intolerant, but that's okay. As long I get my french fries, life is good." he said. He could eat french fries all day, every day. His parents thought it was some kind of disorder, but it turned out to just be the cravings of a child.

"Well, I don't mean to take up your time with your daughter. I'm in town for a business meeting, but I was hoping we could catch up. Are you free this week?" he asked.

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	team_mascot 2010-02-03 04:10 am UTC (link)
	"It ist nice to meet thee," Zoey grinned cheekily. "It is! It's my second favorite place for pizza." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-03 04:12 am UTC (link)
	"You're welcome to join us if you like," Syd said before she realized what she was saying. She felt like kicking herself at the moment. "I am," she said. "During the day when Zoey's at school and with enough warning I can get a babysitter for an evening." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-03 07:12 am UTC (link)

"Then I'll join you for a moment now, and then I would like to catch up with you this week. How is Friday night?" he asks with a smile.

"Thine speech ist progressing well, milady!" he replied to Zoey. "But this is only your second favorite place? What the BEST place for pizza you know of? I'll tell all my friends to go there because Zoey recommended it."

"I'm glad I ran into you, Sydney. I'm glad to see life is treating you and Zoey so well." he said, genuinely.

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	team_mascot 2010-02-03 07:14 am UTC (link)
	Zoey giggled when he talked like some of the Defenders. "The place Mom gets pizza delivered from." She thought about it for a moment. "I don't remember the name." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-03 07:20 am UTC (link)
	"Friday will work," she answered hesitantly. "We get pizza from Mama's Pizzeria. They deliver and they do have the best pizza." They were also very understanding with the very large orders they always put in. "Life has been a little rough since I last saw you, but the past year has been very good to us. Are you still living in San Fancisco or did you move?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-03 07:58 am UTC (link)

"Mama's Pizzeria? Hm. I'll have to see how their wings and fries are, but it sounds like a good place if it's got the Zoey stamp-of-approval." he smiles, and winks at her.

"I'm still in San Francisco. I'm a lawyer for ThinkEquity, and have been for a few years now. Work keeps me busy and the last year has been good to me as well. I'm headed to New York at the end of next week to finalize a deal, but then it's back home." he said, his face momentarily suggesting that he disliked the idea. The expression was there, then it was gone.

"I've been working on some other projects lately, and one of our accounts brought me here. I figure it would be best to end the trip on a high note with an old friend." he told her.

Was he imagining that Sydney seemed a little uncomfortable? Maybe he really was chasing a shadow on this one, but as soon as he could be certain, he could leave this be.

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	team_mascot 2010-02-03 08:27 am UTC (link)
	"Zoey the Awesome recommends it," she beamed. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-03 09:25 am UTC (link)
	Syd had to chuckle at her daughter. "Zoey the Awesome, huh? I think Zoey the Awesome needs to finish her pizza." Syd shook her head. "Kids. I'm glad to hear things are going well for you, Avery. It's nice to see people getting ahead in the world." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-04 02:09 am UTC (link)

"I apologize. I'll let all my friends know that Zoey the Awesome recommends it. That way, there's no confusion between you and another possible Zoey in the world. Zoey the Awesome, the smartest five-year old on the planet." he chuckles, smiling at her.

"I feel very fortunate for everything I've achieved, Sydney, but some things elude me still. I suppose that's membership dues for being a member of the Trust-Fund Brigade." he says with a mock-sigh.

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	team_mascot 2010-02-04 03:35 am UTC (link)
	"Six! I'm six and a half! Only six more months until my birthday!" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-04 03:53 am UTC (link)
	Syd nodded. "I know what it's like to be fortunate for all that you have." She looked over at Zoey and smiled. "Why don't you give me your number and I'll call you about Friday?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-04 04:42 am UTC (link)

Avery smiles at Zoey, his mind sticking on the fact that she's six years old.

"That sounds good." he says, pulling out his business card. The white card lists his name, cell phone and office numbers, as well as fax number in perfect black lettering.

"I'm really glad we ran into each other today, Sydney. I'm also very glad I met Zoey the Awesome! Keep thy speech and nose clean, and thou wilt go far." he said, nodding at her as he rose from his seat, looking at his watch.

"Oh great, I nearly lost track of time. I need to get back to the hotel for a conference call. Ladies, please have a good night, and Sydney, I hope I'll see you soon." he smiled.

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	sydney_ashcroft 2010-02-04 04:45 am UTC (link)
	"Thanks," she said as she took the card. "It was good seeing you again, Avery." Syd waited for that bolt of lightning from the blue to strike her down. "Take care and see you on Friday." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	team_mascot 2010-02-04 04:45 am UTC (link)
	"Aye! Verily! Fare thee well," Zoey giggled. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_citizen
2010-02-04 04:54 am UTC (link)

Avery smiled at both ladies and waved, then headed outside and out of view. He pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed a number. He was speaking before the other side could say hello.

"I need a birth certificate on Zoey Ashcroft ASAP. Make it happen and keep it as quiet as possible. Get me medical records, too, if you can find them. If she's been in the hospital for runny nose, I want to know about it." he said, before hanging up.

He remembered the brief vision he'd seen of Sydney in labor, but he never considered that the child might be his.

He headed back to his car, and to the hotel. He had nothing but time between now and Friday. Hopefully, that was enough time to figure out Sydney's reasoning for keeping something like this from him.

He really hoped it was good.

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