[PRP] Can you play along? (Ruth and Brenley)

[Huni Pi]

So far, Ruth had been lucky with the creeple she'd run into since returning from her annual performance appraisal. They either hardly knew her during her snot days or had never really met her in the first place. But alas, her luck wasn't going to last because she ran into a certain boil while she lurked in the library.

He was sure to notice her change, if not in her demeanor then in her clothes at the very least. Ruth had never been so glad for her usual silence, maybe the blond boil wouldn't even notice her walk past him...

Smerdle

Iffin' you want them to be somewhere not the Library, just holler~

 

[Smerdle]

Brenley had been aware of his unavoidable compulsion to do well in school ever since he had left home to live at one, but he'd never had reason to despise that feeling until now. He was still quite jumpy and shaky, and he truly wanted nothing to do with the world outside of his rooms, which was why it was so frustrating that a twenty page essay and the fleeting promise of an internship had been all it had taken to coax him out of them.

With his attention as scattered as it was, he spotted the other reaper easily, slamming the heavy tome in front of him shut and gesturing to Ruth as she passed. He hadn't looked at the book at all, but it would remain here indefinitely and the ghoul most likely would not. Bren was relieved by her presence, by the fact that things had still been okay the last time he had seen her and he had never once thought of murdering her to benefit himself. That was a good thing, right?

He awkwardly shot to his feet, somehow remembering to speak softly even as he blurted out, "Ruth. Hello! You look... different." Of course she looked different. The last time he'd seen her, she had been dressed as the Mad Hatter.

Huni Pi

nope, this is perfecto

 

[Huni Pi]

Ruth had to consult the persona she'd adopted for her second year in school. Brenley was someone she knew in her first year, someone she'd spent time with, and gone on an expedition with (unsuccessful as it was). She'd even married the boil, of course that was in Wonderland and she married more than one person for a game ability so that obviously didn't count.

But she'd seen a memory of his and she was sure he'd seen a memory of hers. It didn't, wouldn't seem right or logical if she was going to act frightened and shrink away from him. Not at this point. Maybe she could ease between the two personas somewhat?

She gave him a small, if not shy, smile, and bobbed in a proper curtsy to greet him. Then she pointed to the chair in front of him, before drawing a question mark in the air.

Smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

He watched her very carefully, well aware that he was going to have to quiet his racing thoughts in order to adequately interpret what she was trying to say to him. This first was easy. She wanted him to sit down again. Right?

"Sit?" he asked, doing so anyway after a couple of seconds. He gestured to the chair next to him. "You too?" He didn't really understand why she was being so timid, but Ruth's unpredictability was one of the things he found fascinating about her. If she had a reason to curtsy or smile shyly rather than flash him or give him phony kisses, then he was content to roll with it in theory. In reality, it made him a little nervous, but no more nervous than spending time with Piper or Hel.

He cleared his throat, running his fingers over the book he had closed. "So. How have you been?"

Huni Pi

 

[Huni Pi]

Ruth's persona visibly tensed at the proximity of the chairs. Beside each other? Oh no! Too close! She can't possibly be allowed to sit beside a boil, even if the boil in question knew more about her home life (little as it was) than the rest of the student body combined. She debated with herself for a split-second but in the end, Ruth won out.

She lowered the sketchpad she'd taken to carrying around with her since returning to school. The first few pages were absolutely covered in scribbles and doodles, all random and seemingly poor attempts at drawing but there was a method to it. What that was exactly was unknown to anyone other than Ruth.

Turning to a fresh page, Ruth conceded to what the persona wanted of her, and wrote down her answer. It was neat and solid, almost a typeface, and in stark contrast to the swirls and curves and sketchy scribbles on the earlier pages.

Confused and worried. Quickly, she amended it to read: Over irrelevant matters. Thank you for inquiring. How go the things in your life?

Smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

He couldn't help glancing at her sketchpad as she took a seat, even though what he saw there was meaningless to him. It vaguely reminded him of his own notebook, though his work was certainly a great deal more clear and precise, if he did say so himself. As soon as she turned the page and began to write, however, he was forced to admit that this particular page might give his notes a run for their money.

Brenley spent more time than was probably necessary reading her reply, as it was the closest he had ever come to hearing her speak. There had been that odd yell back in Wonderland, but that place had been so full of warped memories and made up nonsense that he was wary of everything he'd seen and heard there even now.

Admiring her neat hand once more, Bren said, "I'm all right," in a low voice. "Or at the very least, functional." It was true. He seemed to be handling the walking, talking, and eating aspects of day to day life just fine. Everything else was debatable. "What's worrying you?"

Huni Pi

sorry about the wait /foams

 

[Huni Pi]

Ruth paused at that word, functional. It touched something in her, struck her even. The Violet persona demanded she hold on to it, fixate on it as a tragic, awkward ghoul of their sort ought to.

Confusion flickered across her face, briefly debating on what to do next, how to react next. But as Ruth was a ghoul not prone to introspection far longer than pretending to be this new persona, she dealt with it the way she normally did.

By pretending it didn't happen.

Perhaps irreverent is more apt than irrelevant. She schooled her features to a more pensive state, idly chewing on the end of her pen. It is about ALICE.

Smerdle

no worries bby~

 

[Smerdle]

For a moment, he had no idea who or what she was talking about. Maybe his mind was too cluttered to correctly process her words or maybe he had never thought of that... thing by the name it had given itself. Either way, his brow furrowed as he combed his brain, looking for an answer to what she was asking, even though she had yet to ask anything at all.

"Yes," he said shortly after. "I remember her. What would you like to know?" He was no expert on that world or ALICE, but he could definitely tell one story in particular about dissipating by her hand. Or tentacle, as it turned out.

Huni Pi

 

[Huni Pi]

Ruth felt her heart race in excitement. She'd wanted to learn more about ALICE specifically and hoped the boil had some information she could use. Which brought her to his question, what did she want to know? The tip of her pen was back on the paper, writing out something she hoped he shared. The Violet wouldn't be able to argue about her actions, she was simply exchanging information with someone she was on better acquaintances with than most creeple.

When she put her pen down, she had written Do you experience the sensation of having dreamed of her?

Smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

Brenley's head bobbed in the tiniest of nods when her writing ceased. It had all been a dream. He'd realized as much when he'd woken from it. At the same time, however, it had been an actual event that he could recall large portions of. An actual experience that had hurt sometimes. He had met Ignatius there, a boil he knew existed outside of that place. He'd seen Ruth too.

He nodded again, this time with more conviction. When he spoke, his voice was a whisper. "I do. I did dream of her, but it was more real than a normal dream. I dreamed of you too, I think." You kissed me. Sort of. To his surprise, he didn't feel the heat running up his neck that usually accompanied such embarrassing thoughts. "But you didn't turn into a very unpleasant creature and slice me in half. That ghoul did, with no provocation."

Huni Pixxx

 

[Huni Pi]

One of Ruth's brows rose at the answer, bringing one finger to lips pursed in thought while the hand that held her pen started to write again. Rest assured my propensity for random attacks have been curtailed since my last performance appraisal. There was no smile pulling at the corners of her mouth to suggest she was joking.

A pause. And the pen neatly spelled out Have you dreamt of ALICE again? Recently. She'd lowered her hands on the table, the angle of her face suggesting she was staring straight at Brenley. The Violet was whining about how assertive she was being, but Ruth ignored the persona's demands.

Smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

She might not have been smiling, but he suddenly felt the urge to, if only because of the bubbling laughter that was threatening to derail their serious conversation at any moment. Random attacks? Yes, he recalled her rump-bearing tendencies all too clearly. But... performance appraisal? What did she mean by that? Bren pushed his mirth away before it could impact their discussion, until it was little more than a clearing of his throat. He would store his questions away, like he did with so many things.

When she began to write again, he watched her fingers form those precise letters, looking up at her face for a moment when she had finished until he decided it was rather futile to stare at her bangs. Bren shook his head. "No, I haven't. Just that one time." Had she? He didn't ask that either, trusting that she wouldn't answer even if he had. His most recent dreams had been filled with towers, mazes, mysterious pools, and legacies, not murderous little ghouls.

Huni Pi

 

[Huni Pi]

Here, Ruth dipped her head and allowed a silent sigh to slip past her lips. Dare she share with him what she'd been dreaming of? Would he think her odd for it? That is if he didn't already think her odd since her snot days. Truth was not something that came naturally to a paranoia agent, not unless it could be presented in a confusing, obfuscating manner.

She stopped hesitating and gave him a small, polite smile, which the Violet persona wholly approved of. I see. That is good, then. There are no lingering sensations of being watched while you sleep? Or having some entity lurking within your dreams?

Smerdle