He'll keep you safe in neverland

Who: Finn and Laura
Where: Finn's apartment
When: Late Evening

After her run in with the law, Laura was left in a hell of a bad spot. She'd tried to stay away from most of the people who knew her because of the situation. Most of those them were connected to the business some way, and therefore most of them were either possibly in danger, or dangerous. Or both. She didn't really know if she was in danger herself, and might bring it to them. There were people who would have put her up and fed her and all that, but the idea of being endangered by them, or worse, endangering them by her presence had kept her out on the streets.

She was street smart, to an extent, but not used to having to survive with absolutely nothing. She had always had a little money and a place to sleep, at least. Shoplifting, which had been a hobby, had been necessary the past few days, and had gotten her into trouble. Since she'd even managed to lose her coat to that stupid fucking cop, Laura had to take a chance and contact a friend.

So there she was in front of Finn's place, hoping like hell he was home and awake. Several of her friends had been either not home, missing, or nervous and unwilling to do more than give her a little to eat and send her on her way. Chilled to the bone and shivering hard, Laura knocked and waited, wondering what she'd do if he wasn't there.

Finn had gotten home not more than ten minutes prior to Laura's knocking. He was full from dinner at Nighthawk, and getting ready to go to The Drake for the evening. He wasn't terribly excited about working that night. But, he needed the money, and the Drake seemed to be his only step into a real career as pianist. So far the Kitten was getting him nowhere.

The knock came as a surprise to Finn. Was Lily back? He made his way over to the door swiftly, shouting "Who is it?" as he started to open it up.

Through chattering teeth she called out, relieved to hear his voice, "It's Laura!" She was not at all dressed for the weather, in her tattered brown wool pants and plain cotton shirt. She was shivering like crazy and her lips were sort of blue with cold. "I need a favor." She wasn't one to ask for help, normally. Not even when she clearly needed it.

He swung the door open, and surveyed her shivering body with concern. "Come in. Are you alright?" He pulled her inside, and sat her down on a chair in the kitchen, closing the door behind him. Then he went in search of a blanket in his bedroom loft area. The house was a complete mess of books, music, and weird odds and ends. As quickly as he left, he returned with a wool blanket, covered in strangely exotic designs. "Here you go."

Laura accepted the blanket gratefully, clutching it tightly around her. "Thanks, Finn" She curled her legs up and pulled the blanket tighter, but continued to shiver, since there wasn't a whole lot of warmth left in her to warm the blanket. "Don't have anyplace to go and I almost got grabbed by a cop today. Slipped out of my coat to get away." She looked up at him then. "I'm sorry. I just don't have anyplace to go. I can't go home..." Home wasn't much of a home. It was just a broom closet with a cot in it, but it was warm.

"Then stay here. You're always welcome." Finn said, ruffling her hair fondly. It was true. Finn rarely turned a girl away, for a number of reasons. He felt a certain amount of comfort knowing that there was a female under his roof. Also, he had a soft spot for most women, they tended to be his kryptonite.

She breathed a deep sigh of relief. It was unimaginable that Finn would turn her out, but then she'd thought that about the two people that had. Laura stretched out an arm, holding the blanket out in invitation. "Warm me up?" she asked, hesitantly. Not everyone liked cuddling up to ice cold skin.

Finn laughed at her sorry state. "Of course I will." He plunked down next to her, fitting snugly into the blanket. He started rubbing her arms gently, in hopes the friction would warm her up. His body was warm, it always was. It had something to do with how active he was. He was rather muscled, too, something that seemed to surprise most of the people who knew him. He was lean... but he was strong. "That better?

"Mmm" Laura just hummed in response, curling into him, laying her head on his chest with just her nose poking out of the blanket. She was very careful not to put numb icy hands on his bare skin. They were tucked in close to him and beginning to sting from the warmth. For the first time in a long time, she felt safe. She could stay there forever with the weight and the roughness of the wool blanket and Finn's heartbeat... the warmth and the strength and the smell of him.

Finn smiled in a lopsided manner, as he looked at her little nose poking out. He gave her arms a little squeeze. "Are you going to be ok when I go to work tonight? I'm supposed to play at The Drake in a little while." He started to run one of his hands very gently through her hair. He loved women's hair, the feeling, and the length it often was.

Laura pressed into his hand like a cat being petted. She twisted her head a little and one eye looked out at him. "Not going to be gone the whole night, are you?" She would manage, of course. It's not like she'd never spent a night alone before, but she just didn't like it. And after the day she'd had, she didn't want to. "I mean, I'll be fine, but... when will you be back?"

"Well... late." He wasn't totally sure. "Usually when their restaurant slows down. 10 or 11?" Sometimes when the higher ups of the family came in, he had to stay later, simply because they couldn't possibly be expected to eat without music. This didn't occur terribly often, but enough that he could never be totally sure when he'd be off at the Drake. "I'm sure I'll be back by midnight."

She shook the blanket off her head and looked up at him. "Thank you, Finn." She'd been getting really scared by the time she got to his door. She couldn't exactly tell him, or anybody, that, but she was saying what she could.

"You're welcome." He wasn't exactly sure what she was thanking him for, but he felt it was something strong. It always made him feel good to help people. He wasn't one who often felt overwhelmed or afraid, and he always wanted to pull people into his safe world. Finn hoped that he'd done that for Laura tonight, and almost hated having to leave for work. He wanted her to feel safe forever.