Fitz had kept his eyes mostly averted through the window as Cedar did what she had to, only glancing back every now and again to make sure she was the only silhouette out there.
"Yeah, they would have. Can you make it up the mountain? It's probably a climb, and depending on the hour... if it's dark, we might just waltz off the side."
At that last question, Fitz tilted his head and looked down at the rifle sitting in his lap, one hand running idly over the wooden part of it.
"Well... it's a long range rifle. I imagine that'll make the psychological aspect easier. ...If I can aim right. If we're going there anyway, the mountain might be a good place to practice."
Fitz's gaze flickered over to Cedar, though they were both only as visible as whatever moonlight allowed.
"I think that you and Tenshi should learn, too."
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ViolentMedic
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"It'd definitely be an exercise of the sort I'm not used to. I honestly can't imagine either of you pulling it off safely, let alone me. But like, if we go really slow." If she squinted at it hard enough the conversation evolved under the quicksilver moonlight to almost sound like the sort of BS-off the two of them would have back in their JEM days. "I wasn't a pleb who had to do much PE, unlike you guys so... I mean, does moving slower conserve energy? I feel that doesn't pan out when it's this cold."
She watched his rifle the exact same time he did. Entendre aside.
Their eyes caught, and she didn't look away even though she loathed what he'd just said.
"You're right and I hate to admit it." An aw shucks sort of smile and lazy shrug followed. "You need me on board to convince Tenshi, chances are."
Why exactly did Tenshi hate men so much? She usually seemed to be okay with guys, if not especially boy crazy. Talking about cute guys hadn't featured much in their friendship... Unlike most unsolved mysteries that'd stay that way for the remainder of Cedar's life she had at least a chance to sniff at the answer.
"What happens if I say no?"
It was a question asked in good faith, of course.
She watched his rifle the exact same time he did. Entendre aside.
Their eyes caught, and she didn't look away even though she loathed what he'd just said.
"You're right and I hate to admit it." An aw shucks sort of smile and lazy shrug followed. "You need me on board to convince Tenshi, chances are."
Why exactly did Tenshi hate men so much? She usually seemed to be okay with guys, if not especially boy crazy. Talking about cute guys hadn't featured much in their friendship... Unlike most unsolved mysteries that'd stay that way for the remainder of Cedar's life she had at least a chance to sniff at the answer.
"What happens if I say no?"
It was a question asked in good faith, of course.
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ViolentMedic
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“Dunno. Pleb or not, I don’t have much of a royal education on what I’m meant to do in the snow. Don’t even like going out in summer without multiple layers...”
As if to demonostrate, he retreated a little further into his jacket. The cabin was too old to be particularly warm.
“Yeah, Tenshi’s not exactly fond of me… Could barely get her listen long enough to settle on ‘friendly,’ ‘corpse’ and ‘player.’” He made the requisite gestures with his hands as he spoke.
There was a long moment of silence in response to Cedar’s question. His eyes focused on hers for a long, tense moment, and very slightly narrowed. Then Fitz looked out the window again.
“Maybe it won’t end up mattering,” he said. “Maybe there’s just an old hag sitting on my chest, cramming nightmares into my head while I sleep. I’ll wake up and it’ll be the morning of the ski trip.”
He let out a short, quiet laugh. Seeing the brief shininess in his eyes would be near-impossible in the darkness, unless the moonlight caught it just right.
“Wouldn’t that be nice?”
As if to demonostrate, he retreated a little further into his jacket. The cabin was too old to be particularly warm.
“Yeah, Tenshi’s not exactly fond of me… Could barely get her listen long enough to settle on ‘friendly,’ ‘corpse’ and ‘player.’” He made the requisite gestures with his hands as he spoke.
There was a long moment of silence in response to Cedar’s question. His eyes focused on hers for a long, tense moment, and very slightly narrowed. Then Fitz looked out the window again.
“Maybe it won’t end up mattering,” he said. “Maybe there’s just an old hag sitting on my chest, cramming nightmares into my head while I sleep. I’ll wake up and it’ll be the morning of the ski trip.”
He let out a short, quiet laugh. Seeing the brief shininess in his eyes would be near-impossible in the darkness, unless the moonlight caught it just right.
“Wouldn’t that be nice?”
"Your fits were always fun, yeah."
Rote comment. Cedar could've done better but better was a luxury. Lost to distant history, like running water, or Western medicine, or legal rights to privacy. Their eyes met like duelists at dawn. She could see the unfamiliarity hidden under the surface. Something something people change.
She didn't want to, and she kept her expression affectionate as was possible when she glistened under the moonlight due to general malaise and specific illnesses in the dozens.
"I'd feel bad if that happened, honestly. Even in your dreams I'd rather you not have to go through something so traumatic. Even if I would have guiltily enjoyed you ranting about it to me."
She laughed too. They deserved the moment. It ended quicker that she'd like.
"Well."
She briefly reached over to hold the gun in one hand. Her fingers, trained only on the finest seven-times folded steel of tablet pens, felt in a touch the weight, the texture of the killing machine.
"I'd struggle to even hold it up, honestly."
Rote comment. Cedar could've done better but better was a luxury. Lost to distant history, like running water, or Western medicine, or legal rights to privacy. Their eyes met like duelists at dawn. She could see the unfamiliarity hidden under the surface. Something something people change.
She didn't want to, and she kept her expression affectionate as was possible when she glistened under the moonlight due to general malaise and specific illnesses in the dozens.
"I'd feel bad if that happened, honestly. Even in your dreams I'd rather you not have to go through something so traumatic. Even if I would have guiltily enjoyed you ranting about it to me."
She laughed too. They deserved the moment. It ended quicker that she'd like.
"Well."
She briefly reached over to hold the gun in one hand. Her fingers, trained only on the finest seven-times folded steel of tablet pens, felt in a touch the weight, the texture of the killing machine.
"I'd struggle to even hold it up, honestly."
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ViolentMedic
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“I’m sure I’ve had worse dreams… dreams are always bad when you’re having them. Then I’ll wake up and remember something like Mr. Perez--” Fitz’s tone stuttered just a tiny bit at the teacher’s name. “--actually being, like, one of those Sing-A-Long Elmo dolls in the dream and be like ‘wait a second.’”
At Cedar’s dismissal of her ability to use the gun, Fitz frowned a little.
“It’s not actually really a lifting gun, more of a...” Fitz shrugged. “Nevermind. You know what, I can tell you some worse dreams I’ve had, while I wait for this one to finish up.”
He ended up falling asleep after all, midway through recounting a dream he’d had about his mother being the secret ruler of the Denver Airport.
---
When he woke up, it was to the sky being dark, but the crackling of radios signalling 9am across the island as Tracen bid them good morning. Fitz jolted up, rifle still in his hands. He looked down at it, mouth twisting, before he put it down quickly and, giving Cedar a quick shake on the way – he hadn’t even registered if she was awake or not yet – he catapulted himself to where he’d left the charcoal and the manual.
Before he flipped over to the last page, his eyes lingered on the charcoal messages between himself and Tenshi the prior day. They stopped on the last one -
I don't think playing survival mode's going to work for her. You know how Cedar is.
- barely legible in the dark, before Fitz rubbed the palm of his hand over it, smudging it into illegibility and leaving only a black smear in its place. Then he flipped over to the final page, clear of any communications.
As the announcement progressed, he lifted his head almost immediately.
“Ah, jeez, Kitty,” he muttered, as he looked back down and wrote her name down.
Kitty – knife
He didn’t fill out the details of the victim. He didn’t say anything when the next few names were mentioned, either. But at Tana’s name, his eyebrows creased together and his piece of charcoal paused for the briefest moment.
Janice – knife
From that point on, any reactions were locked down except for when Kitty was name dropped a second time, which just got another “Jeeeeez.”
By the end of it, he had a tidy list on the paper. As tidy as charcoal could be, and under a heading.
Players
Kitty – knife – II
Janice – knife – II
Prz - ledge
B. Quinn – blunt - BKA
Jacob L – knife
Jess R – gun
Aracelis – bat
Jezz S – knife
Shu – barb wire
He put the list on the table, then waved at Tenshi and pointed at it. Then – on the half-moss table instead of the paper – he started writing the victims, lining them up with the killers on the paper. The writing was much more scrawled for the list of victims, only an afterthought for the deaf member of the party.
At Cedar’s dismissal of her ability to use the gun, Fitz frowned a little.
“It’s not actually really a lifting gun, more of a...” Fitz shrugged. “Nevermind. You know what, I can tell you some worse dreams I’ve had, while I wait for this one to finish up.”
He ended up falling asleep after all, midway through recounting a dream he’d had about his mother being the secret ruler of the Denver Airport.
---
When he woke up, it was to the sky being dark, but the crackling of radios signalling 9am across the island as Tracen bid them good morning. Fitz jolted up, rifle still in his hands. He looked down at it, mouth twisting, before he put it down quickly and, giving Cedar a quick shake on the way – he hadn’t even registered if she was awake or not yet – he catapulted himself to where he’d left the charcoal and the manual.
Before he flipped over to the last page, his eyes lingered on the charcoal messages between himself and Tenshi the prior day. They stopped on the last one -
I don't think playing survival mode's going to work for her. You know how Cedar is.
- barely legible in the dark, before Fitz rubbed the palm of his hand over it, smudging it into illegibility and leaving only a black smear in its place. Then he flipped over to the final page, clear of any communications.
As the announcement progressed, he lifted his head almost immediately.
“Ah, jeez, Kitty,” he muttered, as he looked back down and wrote her name down.
Kitty – knife
He didn’t fill out the details of the victim. He didn’t say anything when the next few names were mentioned, either. But at Tana’s name, his eyebrows creased together and his piece of charcoal paused for the briefest moment.
Janice – knife
From that point on, any reactions were locked down except for when Kitty was name dropped a second time, which just got another “Jeeeeez.”
By the end of it, he had a tidy list on the paper. As tidy as charcoal could be, and under a heading.
Players
Kitty – knife – II
Janice – knife – II
Prz - ledge
B. Quinn – blunt - BKA
Jacob L – knife
Jess R – gun
Aracelis – bat
Jezz S – knife
Shu – barb wire
He put the list on the table, then waved at Tenshi and pointed at it. Then – on the half-moss table instead of the paper – he started writing the victims, lining them up with the killers on the paper. The writing was much more scrawled for the list of victims, only an afterthought for the deaf member of the party.
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BlizzardeyeWonder
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Tenshi's sleep had been, quite frankly, awful. The floor was just hard and bad for her back, and she woke up with a crick in her neck which meant looking up was torture. That wasn't even getting into all the little luxuries Tenshi would have really rather had here, like running water, or continental breakfast, or a soft mattress to sleep on, or her phone alarm, or indoor heating, or...
She used to be heavy-ish sleeper, but now she woke up while it was still dark. Nobody else was awake then, she checked, so she just lay back down on that spine-ruining hard floor and stared up at the ceiling, sometimes closing her eyes, sometimes not having the patience to try to imagine the hotel bed underneath her. If she had her phone, she'd text Cedar. She'd text Cedar even if they got assigned the same room, if she was sleeping. The magic of the medium was that she'd see it when she woke up, and even knowing that would make Tenshi feel less alone.
There were two people here with her, but Tenshi felt far away from everyone and everything.
When the announcements came on, she felt it more than she heard it, as she stubbornly stayed lying on the floor. She understood it even less than she heard it. It felt like she was a kid in one of those old Peanuts specials, like the one she watched when she was little on her first Christmas in Salem, and the adults were saying something in low, rumbling notes. Unlike a kid in a Peanuts special, Tenshi couldn't understand them. The sound still filled her with dread.
It took a while for Tenshi to register that the announcements had passed. Only then did she lift herself off the floor, and look to the gestures meant for her.
On the paper, was a list of players - that meant killers, enemies. On the table, was another list. Tenshi stared at the list of names on the table for a while, blinking at it, wondering what they had to do with anything. Only after an embarrassingly long time did it occur to Tenshi that they corresponded to killers - they were the victims, the dead.
She read over the list with a fresh set of eyes, taking it name by name.
"...bet Robin had it coming," she muttered, hopefully under her breath, before moving to the next. Even knowing that, a pit began to form in her stomach.
She used to be heavy-ish sleeper, but now she woke up while it was still dark. Nobody else was awake then, she checked, so she just lay back down on that spine-ruining hard floor and stared up at the ceiling, sometimes closing her eyes, sometimes not having the patience to try to imagine the hotel bed underneath her. If she had her phone, she'd text Cedar. She'd text Cedar even if they got assigned the same room, if she was sleeping. The magic of the medium was that she'd see it when she woke up, and even knowing that would make Tenshi feel less alone.
There were two people here with her, but Tenshi felt far away from everyone and everything.
When the announcements came on, she felt it more than she heard it, as she stubbornly stayed lying on the floor. She understood it even less than she heard it. It felt like she was a kid in one of those old Peanuts specials, like the one she watched when she was little on her first Christmas in Salem, and the adults were saying something in low, rumbling notes. Unlike a kid in a Peanuts special, Tenshi couldn't understand them. The sound still filled her with dread.
It took a while for Tenshi to register that the announcements had passed. Only then did she lift herself off the floor, and look to the gestures meant for her.
On the paper, was a list of players - that meant killers, enemies. On the table, was another list. Tenshi stared at the list of names on the table for a while, blinking at it, wondering what they had to do with anything. Only after an embarrassingly long time did it occur to Tenshi that they corresponded to killers - they were the victims, the dead.
She read over the list with a fresh set of eyes, taking it name by name.
"...bet Robin had it coming," she muttered, hopefully under her breath, before moving to the next. Even knowing that, a pit began to form in her stomach.
Cedar hadn't intended to be the last to wake, or the hardest to wake up. Her old ways of bear den-ing her way through brutal winters wouldn't work out here, she knew, but like any other healthy person her age she found it difficult to rise with the sun. Her excuse, in this case, was low energy. Sad.
The world was blurs, colors and noises that drooped off her crusty eyelashes like teardrops. Instinct shot one hand out to where a bedside table would have been a lifetime ago. She always had messages pending even if she'd stayed up to the absolute latest answering them- Fitz or Ren sometimes, more typical culprits being Tenshi or Jayson. Her preferred start to her day.
Less so the garbled news from their captor. Credit where it was barely due, he was significantly straighter to the point than Mrs. Ruby had been.
Cedar made herself presentable as a target practice dummy reasonably would be expected- barely moving, hair already splitting into more loose ends than a fanfic last updated six months prior. Getting to her feet was an arduous process. Small solace but meaningful one: her guts complained little. A whisper, ominous like a prophecy or a threat, of what she could expect if she didn't starve herself of the calories she needed to haul herself another kilometer in agonizing slow motion. Eye of the storm was still, at least, a peaceful place to be no matter how temporary. She'd take what she could get.
Wait, what about Robin? Cedar took her place at Tenshi's side, quiet as she was very unsure how to broach the gravity of the moment in one language, let alone two.
"Oh." Soft. Whelmed, really. Fitz hadn't woken up ready to go on a ski trip Cedar had convinced him to go on. Normally wasn't a bad thing when the two of them woke up in the same room, but very unfortunate in this particular case.
Cedar hadn't been expecting much, but she had nursed the copium hope to herself that they'd have been the first class to say no and all die when the clock struck midnight. It was the only way she'd keep the faces of the departed strictly hypothetical, but now the funeral song echo was audible in the crackle hiss of loudspeakers fresh used.
"... I'm guessing killing two people in a row is harder to write off as an accident."
She let the names percolate for a moment. The real gut punch was how little weight the abstract syllables held for her, even the definitively familiar ones.
"Damn it." Almost felt performative. Cedar stared blankly at the completed list. The only conversation she was capable of having at the moment, Cedar temporarily alone in a cabin in the woods with the weight of the world on her shoulders alone.
But the living were never far off her mind. A moment later and she took each of them in one arm- her hand settled over Fitz's own in the briefest moment of solidarity (as if Cedar could offer anything else), she touched Tenshi's shoulder with the weight of reassurance. Whatever else, Cedar was not yet on that list.
If she lived long enough she could bear the grief instead of the people she loved??? Copium of the weapons grade variety.
The world was blurs, colors and noises that drooped off her crusty eyelashes like teardrops. Instinct shot one hand out to where a bedside table would have been a lifetime ago. She always had messages pending even if she'd stayed up to the absolute latest answering them- Fitz or Ren sometimes, more typical culprits being Tenshi or Jayson. Her preferred start to her day.
Less so the garbled news from their captor. Credit where it was barely due, he was significantly straighter to the point than Mrs. Ruby had been.
Cedar made herself presentable as a target practice dummy reasonably would be expected- barely moving, hair already splitting into more loose ends than a fanfic last updated six months prior. Getting to her feet was an arduous process. Small solace but meaningful one: her guts complained little. A whisper, ominous like a prophecy or a threat, of what she could expect if she didn't starve herself of the calories she needed to haul herself another kilometer in agonizing slow motion. Eye of the storm was still, at least, a peaceful place to be no matter how temporary. She'd take what she could get.
Wait, what about Robin? Cedar took her place at Tenshi's side, quiet as she was very unsure how to broach the gravity of the moment in one language, let alone two.
"Oh." Soft. Whelmed, really. Fitz hadn't woken up ready to go on a ski trip Cedar had convinced him to go on. Normally wasn't a bad thing when the two of them woke up in the same room, but very unfortunate in this particular case.
Cedar hadn't been expecting much, but she had nursed the copium hope to herself that they'd have been the first class to say no and all die when the clock struck midnight. It was the only way she'd keep the faces of the departed strictly hypothetical, but now the funeral song echo was audible in the crackle hiss of loudspeakers fresh used.
"... I'm guessing killing two people in a row is harder to write off as an accident."
She let the names percolate for a moment. The real gut punch was how little weight the abstract syllables held for her, even the definitively familiar ones.
"Damn it." Almost felt performative. Cedar stared blankly at the completed list. The only conversation she was capable of having at the moment, Cedar temporarily alone in a cabin in the woods with the weight of the world on her shoulders alone.
But the living were never far off her mind. A moment later and she took each of them in one arm- her hand settled over Fitz's own in the briefest moment of solidarity (as if Cedar could offer anything else), she touched Tenshi's shoulder with the weight of reassurance. Whatever else, Cedar was not yet on that list.
If she lived long enough she could bear the grief instead of the people she loved??? Copium of the weapons grade variety.
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ViolentMedic
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Fitz grimaced at Tenshi's not-so-quiet comment.
"Who knows. Kitty was freaking out on Discord recently because she heard Robin was bragging about them, uh, you know--" He made a jerking off motion with his hand. "Bad blood, I guess."
He glanced at the hand resting over his own - the one not making obscene motions - for a moment, then lowered his head. His eyebrows scrunched together and his mouth tightened.
"Anyone on this list... we keep away from. No hearing their excuses. No asking if it was an accident or self-defence. They come within ten feet..." Fitz motioned at his head with a finger gun, then picked up the charcoal with that hand and wrote next to the word players at the top of his list--
Shoot or Run
--so Tenshi would know.
He stared at Cedar as he said his next line, shifting his hand so that it was clasping hers tightly.
"You better say now if you have a problem with that. Because we probably won't have time to debate it if we see anyone on this list."
"Who knows. Kitty was freaking out on Discord recently because she heard Robin was bragging about them, uh, you know--" He made a jerking off motion with his hand. "Bad blood, I guess."
He glanced at the hand resting over his own - the one not making obscene motions - for a moment, then lowered his head. His eyebrows scrunched together and his mouth tightened.
"Anyone on this list... we keep away from. No hearing their excuses. No asking if it was an accident or self-defence. They come within ten feet..." Fitz motioned at his head with a finger gun, then picked up the charcoal with that hand and wrote next to the word players at the top of his list--
Shoot or Run
--so Tenshi would know.
He stared at Cedar as he said his next line, shifting his hand so that it was clasping hers tightly.
"You better say now if you have a problem with that. Because we probably won't have time to debate it if we see anyone on this list."
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BlizzardeyeWonder
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By the time Tenshi finished reading the list of names, she was hoping to excuse herself for a moment. She might not have been especially close to any of the dead or their killers, but names paired with faces and honestly it felt pretty surreal to think that she'd never see them even pass by in the halls ever again. However, she didn't get a moment, as Fitz wrote something else.
She stared at the words for a moment. She rested her hand on the paper and tapped each one with an index finger. She tapped Run again, before she gave a solemn nod.
Now that she thought of it, maybe it was for the better that the terrorists didn't give her a weapon. Even if Tenshi did have a gun, what would she do with it, exactly? That she wouldn't regret, that is. Like, she and Cedar saw the crap Fitz pulled, right?
...no, she'd see at least some of her classmates walking through the hallway again. Actually, not the school's halls, but maybe down the street or... something. This had gone on eight times now, and there had been rescues before, so surely one wasn't out of the question, right? Tenshi would be able to sing for an audience that wasn't the terrorists, and she'd be able to do it without raising a hand against anyone, she had to believe that with all her heart. She didn't want to believe anything else.
But what about them?
She stared at the words for a moment. She rested her hand on the paper and tapped each one with an index finger. She tapped Run again, before she gave a solemn nod.
Now that she thought of it, maybe it was for the better that the terrorists didn't give her a weapon. Even if Tenshi did have a gun, what would she do with it, exactly? That she wouldn't regret, that is. Like, she and Cedar saw the crap Fitz pulled, right?
...no, she'd see at least some of her classmates walking through the hallway again. Actually, not the school's halls, but maybe down the street or... something. This had gone on eight times now, and there had been rescues before, so surely one wasn't out of the question, right? Tenshi would be able to sing for an audience that wasn't the terrorists, and she'd be able to do it without raising a hand against anyone, she had to believe that with all her heart. She didn't want to believe anything else.
But what about them?
"You heard about that?" Cedar had figured Fitz of all people would have been comf and out of the loop, as Cedar wished she could be, the halcyon days. "I-" Opinion probably irrelevant. Wasted oxygen that might be needed for fight or flight later. "Forget it." She let the softer things in her fallow. Crops untended by her well-used hands.
Cedar also didn't hesitate to touch Run. Her hands, powerless as they were, could at least alter that part of her destiny. Up until Fitz's trigger discipline, bless his cute heart, failed them again. She wove her fingers through his. Loosely, in case he needed the hand for some unseen future threat. Two hands and it still probably wasn't enough to handle the gun.
"I'll recognize most of them quick enough I think." Her free hand traced <KNOW> and pointed at all the names in a single downward sweep. Bouncing right over whoever 'Jezz' was.
"Except whoever that is. I don't recognize that nickname."
She didn't say that she had a problem with it. She did, in theory, but in actuality it was the lowest in a list of nintey-nine.
Cedar also didn't hesitate to touch Run. Her hands, powerless as they were, could at least alter that part of her destiny. Up until Fitz's trigger discipline, bless his cute heart, failed them again. She wove her fingers through his. Loosely, in case he needed the hand for some unseen future threat. Two hands and it still probably wasn't enough to handle the gun.
"I'll recognize most of them quick enough I think." Her free hand traced <KNOW> and pointed at all the names in a single downward sweep. Bouncing right over whoever 'Jezz' was.
"Except whoever that is. I don't recognize that nickname."
She didn't say that she had a problem with it. She did, in theory, but in actuality it was the lowest in a list of nintey-nine.
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ViolentMedic
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“Yeah, she, uh… like, she’s in the Discord group, the, um… the ‘let’s never go on a school trip so we don’t get kidnapped’ one.” Fitz let out a short, forced laugh and said, “Whoops.”
Once the other two had tapped ‘Run,’ Fitz nodded slightly and tapped his knuckle against ‘Run’ as well.
“Yeah, can… probably pick up most of them. And, uh… Jezz? I think that’s just her name? Like… one of at least three Jessis… Jesses… Jess-plural. But with… Zs.” Fitz considered this for a moment, then said, “She’ll probably be covered in blood if she stabbed someone forty times.”
While he next spoke, he reached around and checked his supplies. The strips of tent were still in here. Fitz started rolling them up and sticking them into his bag.
“Alright. One more question.” Fitz pointed down at their floor. “We staying? Or…?” He pointed outwards. “We going? ...We can’t run here, for starters.”
His eyes shifted to Cedar, and it looked like he was going to say something else. But he didn’t.
Once the other two had tapped ‘Run,’ Fitz nodded slightly and tapped his knuckle against ‘Run’ as well.
“Yeah, can… probably pick up most of them. And, uh… Jezz? I think that’s just her name? Like… one of at least three Jessis… Jesses… Jess-plural. But with… Zs.” Fitz considered this for a moment, then said, “She’ll probably be covered in blood if she stabbed someone forty times.”
While he next spoke, he reached around and checked his supplies. The strips of tent were still in here. Fitz started rolling them up and sticking them into his bag.
“Alright. One more question.” Fitz pointed down at their floor. “We staying? Or…?” He pointed outwards. “We going? ...We can’t run here, for starters.”
His eyes shifted to Cedar, and it looked like he was going to say something else. But he didn’t.
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BlizzardeyeWonder
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- Location: the shadow realm
Luckily, one of the signs for HERE was reasonably close to the gestures Fitz made. Tenshi would understand his point anyway, but that was a neat little thing.
She had also already registered Cedar's hand on her shoulder, but she let it sink into her sore muscles more now. As she turned her head to look at Cedar, she wondered if her neck was making a creaking sound, like a creaky wooden floor, because it certainly fucking felt like it. Damn hard surfaces... Tenshi had looked at the map, and knew there was a town somewhere, and maybe that would have some proper mattresses? She hoped so, because she doubted she could take even one more night of this, let alone potentially a week.
Tenshi raised her hand and rubbed the sore part of her neck. "Maybe we should find somewhere with proper beds," she half-said half-groaned.
She had also already registered Cedar's hand on her shoulder, but she let it sink into her sore muscles more now. As she turned her head to look at Cedar, she wondered if her neck was making a creaking sound, like a creaky wooden floor, because it certainly fucking felt like it. Damn hard surfaces... Tenshi had looked at the map, and knew there was a town somewhere, and maybe that would have some proper mattresses? She hoped so, because she doubted she could take even one more night of this, let alone potentially a week.
Tenshi raised her hand and rubbed the sore part of her neck. "Maybe we should find somewhere with proper beds," she half-said half-groaned.
"... Anti-SOTF club, right? I mean. You guys got the last laugh then."
She tried to smile off the part where it was her fault said club would be, forevermore, down one Fitz barring a particularly successful recruitment drive in the hypothetical future. Her lips moved the same way boulders did- they did not, because they were not rocks.
She caught Tenshi's eye. There at least, was a face that did not spark guilt. Usually it sparked joy, but such an emotion seemed deathly considering present circumstances. Next, Fitz's eye. There again, guilt and shame as quiet and understated as the distant howl of wolves that might have actually existed.
"Clothes can be changed. Depends on how many jackets people packed, nobody will be going long without one of those so if they packed only one and got blood on it..."
The first thought was Cedar's now eerily prophetic, once mundane knowledge about how to scrub out blood stains from upholstery. It'd once been the case that she'd had a younger brother prone to soccer-related injury. The other thought was wondering how peaceful a death hypothermia truly would be outside of the realm of the hypothetical.
She grasped at a translation in sign for a long moment, how to speak with two streams of thought at once, and almost settled on neither.
"Go. I'm feeling better, we can relocate at a decent pace probably." Famous last words.
< BED -- HARD > Famous-er last words because she had no idea how to make that thought any more accurate to the idea of 'it would be prohibitively difficult to find a place with beds and the effort expended would probably take more energy than she'd recover'. Also, some small part of Cedar did want for a proper mattress. She wasn't yet desensitized enough to pain that the smaller discomforts didn't register. Precisely additive agony thus far, not yet approximate.
She tried to smile off the part where it was her fault said club would be, forevermore, down one Fitz barring a particularly successful recruitment drive in the hypothetical future. Her lips moved the same way boulders did- they did not, because they were not rocks.
She caught Tenshi's eye. There at least, was a face that did not spark guilt. Usually it sparked joy, but such an emotion seemed deathly considering present circumstances. Next, Fitz's eye. There again, guilt and shame as quiet and understated as the distant howl of wolves that might have actually existed.
"Clothes can be changed. Depends on how many jackets people packed, nobody will be going long without one of those so if they packed only one and got blood on it..."
The first thought was Cedar's now eerily prophetic, once mundane knowledge about how to scrub out blood stains from upholstery. It'd once been the case that she'd had a younger brother prone to soccer-related injury. The other thought was wondering how peaceful a death hypothermia truly would be outside of the realm of the hypothetical.
She grasped at a translation in sign for a long moment, how to speak with two streams of thought at once, and almost settled on neither.
"Go. I'm feeling better, we can relocate at a decent pace probably." Famous last words.
< BED -- HARD > Famous-er last words because she had no idea how to make that thought any more accurate to the idea of 'it would be prohibitively difficult to find a place with beds and the effort expended would probably take more energy than she'd recover'. Also, some small part of Cedar did want for a proper mattress. She wasn't yet desensitized enough to pain that the smaller discomforts didn't register. Precisely additive agony thus far, not yet approximate.
V8 Vibes:
V7 Vibes:
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ViolentMedic
- Posts: 1412
- Joined: Fri Aug 17, 2018 7:53 am
“Yeah. I’m feeling the joy,” Fitz said.
Fitz turned back to the first page of the manual. Underneath the black smudge that had made the last line unreadable, he wrote without bothering to say it outloud.
Research station or the town.
But others will want those beds.
With that, he left the others to consider this, got to his feet and checked on all his belongings, packing everything away.
He saved the rifle for last. He held it in his hands, considered it for a long moment, then double-checked to make sure it was unloaded. He glanced at the other two, then waved the clip slightly so they’d know, hearing or not, that the gun was empty before he put the clip in his pocket.
The other thing left was the empty skull bag. The spare duffle, he’d stuck in his bag alongside scraps from the tent, though a good amount of the tent he’d taken had been discarded next to the table.
He pointed at it. “Anyone want that? Might be good for carrying a lighter load.”
Fitz turned back to the first page of the manual. Underneath the black smudge that had made the last line unreadable, he wrote without bothering to say it outloud.
Research station or the town.
But others will want those beds.
With that, he left the others to consider this, got to his feet and checked on all his belongings, packing everything away.
He saved the rifle for last. He held it in his hands, considered it for a long moment, then double-checked to make sure it was unloaded. He glanced at the other two, then waved the clip slightly so they’d know, hearing or not, that the gun was empty before he put the clip in his pocket.
The other thing left was the empty skull bag. The spare duffle, he’d stuck in his bag alongside scraps from the tent, though a good amount of the tent he’d taken had been discarded next to the table.
He pointed at it. “Anyone want that? Might be good for carrying a lighter load.”
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BlizzardeyeWonder
- Posts: 1086
- Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 3:41 pm
- Location: the shadow realm
For once, something Fitz said (wrote?) clarified things. Still, Tenshi frowned at the words. Her poor, aching muscles didn't care that other people who probably also had guns and knives and shit wanted those beds that were prohibitively far away for Cedar's poor, aching muscles! ...Tenshi cared, though. So, she wouldn't press the issue.
She would, however, complain about it.
With a dramatic crick of her neck, Tenshi pointed to a sore spot and signed <<FLOOR--HARD>>, the HARD having an extra tap of clawed fingers against each other for emphasis. She aired her next complaints out loud, squeaking like a wheel in desperate need of grease, an art Tenshi had perfected from a young age. "At this rate I'll be as stiff as a wood plank by tomorrow morning..."
Still, Tenshi didn't object to packing up and going somewhere that probably didn't have a bed. It wasn't like she had much packing to do, anyway. Once, packing up was something Tenshi loved doing. She loved picking out all her cutest seasonal vacation outfits, hiding manga in the folded clothes of her suitcase and in the nooks of her carry-ons, and thinking about all the gently scheduled fun she'd be having as she flipped through pamphlets and flyers, sitting on her bed, with all the things she needed to pack laid out around her. The breakfast, lunch, or brunch right before she had to head out went down quickly, and usually without much commitment to memory, but Tenshi remembered at least one part of her last proper meal before heading forth on this trip - crepes with strawberries, cream, and chocolate sauce, which mom tried to style like the crepes from her and dad's favourite cafe in Tokyo.
Maybe if she closed her eyes and imagined really hard, the plain bread would taste kind of like those crepes.
In the end, Tenshi decided to take the skull bag, to spare Cedar from carrying more. She stuffed it in her own duffel bag - death game or no, she wasn't going to be caught with another stain on her meticulously crafted outfit like that.
She would, however, complain about it.
With a dramatic crick of her neck, Tenshi pointed to a sore spot and signed <<FLOOR--HARD>>, the HARD having an extra tap of clawed fingers against each other for emphasis. She aired her next complaints out loud, squeaking like a wheel in desperate need of grease, an art Tenshi had perfected from a young age. "At this rate I'll be as stiff as a wood plank by tomorrow morning..."
Still, Tenshi didn't object to packing up and going somewhere that probably didn't have a bed. It wasn't like she had much packing to do, anyway. Once, packing up was something Tenshi loved doing. She loved picking out all her cutest seasonal vacation outfits, hiding manga in the folded clothes of her suitcase and in the nooks of her carry-ons, and thinking about all the gently scheduled fun she'd be having as she flipped through pamphlets and flyers, sitting on her bed, with all the things she needed to pack laid out around her. The breakfast, lunch, or brunch right before she had to head out went down quickly, and usually without much commitment to memory, but Tenshi remembered at least one part of her last proper meal before heading forth on this trip - crepes with strawberries, cream, and chocolate sauce, which mom tried to style like the crepes from her and dad's favourite cafe in Tokyo.
Maybe if she closed her eyes and imagined really hard, the plain bread would taste kind of like those crepes.
In the end, Tenshi decided to take the skull bag, to spare Cedar from carrying more. She stuffed it in her own duffel bag - death game or no, she wasn't going to be caught with another stain on her meticulously crafted outfit like that.