Welcome to Gaia! ::

Natalie poked her head up from under the mass of boxes she was under, fighting her way from beneath piles of clothing, knicknacks, and other things that had no business being on top of her. It had all happened so fast - one moment, she'd been practicing Painting Her Portrait, and the next - avalanche! Grumbling, she pulled herself up, carefully stepping over the mess the whole thing had made.

Straightening her uniform skirt (honestly, what 19-year-old wore a school uniform?), Natalie padded over to the door in her oh-so-comfy knee-high socks, and opened the door.

"Oh, hi!" She smiled awkwardly. "Sorry about the noise - are you, er, one of my neighbors? I didn't see anybody else here, but... er... sorry if I... er... woke up you. From a nap or something. Didn't mean to. Really!"

"Oh. I guess that's okay, then... er... yeah." She laughed sheepishly and took his hand, shaking it. "Natalie Jessani. And, er, no. I haven't seen my parents in over a year..." Her voice took on a slightly darker tone for a moment...

"Well, since I went to college, anyway." But she finished on an upbeat note, laughing a little. "Is it the uniform? Er. Yeah. Private college - all the teachers are pervs, make us wear uniforms. Still, it could be worse... at least we get blazers and stuff. Not those weird... sailor outfits some schools make their students wear."

Natalie shuddered.

"So. Uh. The next building over? So you must've been asked to come here, too! About the... the..." She squinted, trying to remember the word. "What did they call 'em...?"

"Ames! That's it! Thanks - really should reread that letter... don't want to look like a complete scatterbrain to everybody I meet.

"And yeah... just moved in this morning. I've been unpacking since. Er..."

She stepped back, motioning the man in. "Come in? There's not much room to maneuver, I know, but there's a couch in there. Somewhere. Yeah - I'm fairly certain I've fallen on it a few times, and I think I saw it when I first brought stuff in... no clue where it is now, though."

"Oh. Er." She left the door open, taking a few steps in. "I mean, you're a guest - I couldn't - but if you insist..." She bit her lip, looking around. "Find my couch?" Natalie finally asked, looking at him sheepishly. She really was mastering that particular look that evening. "I mean, I'm sure there's a bed somewhere in the apartment, but I haven't looked yet, and couches make great beds in emergencies."

Humming to herself, she moved a few of the lighter boxes of masks and things. "And I'll see if I can find where I put my food, make us a snack. Even neighbourly grown men need food!"

"AHAH!" She stood up, ramen pack firmly in hand. Then she eyed it, reconsidered, and dug in the box a little more.

"Well... I should probably unpack first, I think. And... decide if I need to move any furniture over from my old apartment. After that, though, I'll be sure to give you a call. Are you good at interior decorating?"

At the mention of "late Mrs. Johnston," Natalie's head shot back up from her box. "Um. Oh, sorry - did I bring up bad memories...? I mean... your wife...?" She bit her lip, poised nervously with a bag of ramen in one hand and a jar of some sort of home-made sauce in the other.

"And... er.... yeah. Summer break. Working at a theatre." But her mind would be elsewhere until he assured her that she hadn't brought up bad things at a bad time. He didn't seem to be upset, but you never knew with those neighbourly grown men types. Emotionally sneaky bastards.

Remi found herself wandering aimlessly around the compound. She's finally gotten Gavin to get to sleep during the daytime, which was enough to celebrate with a nice, calm walk around the area. Sighing heavily, she made her way slowly to the back, where she'd never been before. Exploring was always fun.

She heard loud noises from somewhere nearby. Voices? As she walked further, she saw a building much like the one she lived in. That was strange, she didn't remember Dacian mentioning another building. Maybe he just forgot.

The building seemed to be empty except for the noises coming from somewhere upstairs. As she began to climb, she realized that it was coming from the third floor. Other than Ari, she had yet to meet any other guardians. This was her chance. Strangely enough, the front door to the third floor was open.

"Umm, excuse me?" she called in sheepishly. How the heck was this supposed to work? Hi, I'm randomly going to come into your flat now. Nice to meet you!. She decided to through in a non-threatening greeting in as well.

"Er...hello?"

Eve Gordon wasn't normally the type of person who packed up her belongings to move halfway across the country because a note told her to do so. Admittedly it was a very official note and Eve wasn't the sort to doubt things that looked official, but something about it just screamed scam in red, twelve-foot letters. So while she had promptly responded to the - the facility, she supposed? - with a resounding yes, she had taken her dear, sweet time in actually arranging for the move.

But a change could do her good. She'd lived in that old house for too long, she nearly felt like she was part of the furniture. The wall paper. The plaster on the ceiling. Perhaps, she had thought, it was time to detach and make a new start. So began her journey to claim the child that had been offered to her, a woman who had been childless and alone for so long, and it had culminated in this.

Wandering around a compound with not even a map, not a clue as to where she was going. "Apartment B, Building 2" she had been told, and had set off on her merry way with bags in tow. Ten minutes later she was still wandering and her shoulders were starting to get horribly sore, and she hadn't seen a soul to set her shivering mind at ease.

At last she encountered a building that looked as if it could house apartments - whether it was Building 2 or not she hardly cared, she just needed a place to put her heavy luggage down. Stepping into the building, she managed a timid, breathless "Hello?" to no answer. Her face crumbled inwards and sighing, she turned round to continue her trek round the compound when her ears detected muffled noises a few stories up.

Heart leaping into her throat and lodging itself tightly within, Eve dumped her luggage by the door and practically zoomed up the stairs until she saw a door flung open on the third floor, which meant -

"He - hello," she panted, wobbling over to the group, "I'm looking for Building Two. Would this be it?"