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 Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 5:19 am
Angharad had said 'Thankyou' automatically before realising the hypocrisy of her statement. Why should she be thanking her? Even lab rats were given food.
She didn't slam off the communicator, but severed the connection quietly. Taking a few steps away, she looked lost for a moment, before sitting on the floor suddenly.
A plan of attack, that was what she needed. Food, clean clothes... a hairbrush. And to tell Fiona as gently as possible, and contain the anger. Part of Angharad still fought, but she was not impractical. Staggering back to her feet, she peered around the room, locating the door for the washroom. Perhaps a shower would clear her head and leave what she had to do clear.
Because at the moment her mind was too tangled.
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Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 3:58 pm
Truth is Out______________________________________________________//
Fiona/Angharad
Angharad walked slowly down the steps of her top duplex, intending to visit that main central building. The woman Lockheart had said she could get hot food there, and new clothes perhaps...
As she passed the door to the apartment under hers, she paused. Brushing her still damp hair over one shoulder, she was bitten with sudden curiousity as she noticed that it was jammed ajar.
Looking around, she sidestepped and tried to peer surreptitiously inside.
And spied the back of a very familiar head.
"Fee? You were here all the time?"
The door was banged open as Angharad stood there, surprise written all over her face.
The girl turned her head over from where she'd been lying on her bed, hands knit behind her head and eyes fixated on the ceiling. Her face split into a wide grin and she rolled herself into a sitting position. "Annie! What do you mean? Of course I'm here. Where else would I be?" She stretched her legs, cracked her neck loudly, and hopped to her feet. "Boy am I glad you're here. I've been brainstorming all morning and I have some ideas I wanna bounce off of you. Like that-!" she pointed to the rock, taken from the outskirts of the jungle, that held her door open. "Have you ever heard adults complain about how expensive it is to pay for air conditioning in the summer and keep the door shut? Imagine how much it costs on a tropical island." Her eyes glittered with passion, and she seemed to have bounced right back from her somewhat depressing conversation with the blue-girl. "You think if we convinced everyone on the island to leave their doors wide open, we'd have something to bargain with?" Fiona snickered.
Angharad laughed nervously, and came further in, sitting down with a flop on the single chair.
"I didn't realise you were downstairs from me," she confessed, and then smiled. "I bet. It must cost a bomb... talk about the small things, huh?"
She rested her hands on the back of the chair, and her chin on her hands. The dampness of her hair was cooling, but she could feel it drying fast. She'd do anything for a hairtie.
"I.. I'm sorry for running off like that yesterday," she confessed suddenly. "Yesterday was too weird. A... lot to take in. I only met four other people but they were all... changed..." She looked to the side and laughed shortly. "And... I spoke to one of the people in charge this morning." She stared off into space for a while.
"Hey, don't worry about it. This is all insanely freaky like some kind of horror movie. I don't blame you for wanting some quiet time." She stopped and pulled a face when her friend mentioned having spoken to a staff member. "Oh yeah? What'd he have to say? I'm guessing you didn't get the main man- I doubt he'd dare show his face or even talk to his precious lab rats." She sneered. "What'd you find out? Anything useful?"
Angharad twined her fingers absently around a lock of hair.
"It was a woman - a Dr Lockheart. And it is Moreau, the Feral Labs owner, in charge here. She said... she said we deserved it. For breaking and entering. And, oh Fee, they put out a cover story for why we've gone too..." The tears were over now, so she wasn't crying, but there was still a defeated tone in her voice.
"They said that you shot someone in the struggle, and so we've gone on the run. So no-one will ever find us. And that we were sentimental bleeding hearts for caring for animal wellbeing, and that our lives were only ever going to be here."
The lock of hair became a small plait.
"I didn't even leave that note on the table for my mother...."
She listened to her attentively, quietly, and when she was done put an arm around her shoulders. Fiona was silent for a time while she tried to think of what to say. "The sun'll come ooout..." she smiled a little, nudging her friend in the side playfully. "-tomorrow. Betcher bottom dollar thaaat tomorrow, there'll be sun."
Her tone lightened and she tipped her head to look at the ceiling. "So I figure we change our priorities a little. Maybe getting off the island isn't the real goal. Maybe... well, think like this: what if some big-shot company is doing animal testing, right? And we say, 'hey you assholes, let all the animals free!' That's not gonna happen, right? What if we say, 'hey you assholes, stop buying and breeding new animals for testing, and treat the one's you already got with respect and decency'? You follow?"
At the familiar song Angharad's face lightened slightly, and she leant into her friend's hold with relief, staying quiet for a moment, taking comfort in the hug. She smiled, somewhat shakily.
"I'm afraid I don't really follow," she confessed, "but Fee, I have complete faith that what you say makes sense." She laughed slightly. "But I did find out some useful things. Like.. we can get new clothes soon, and food and wash stuff and so on from the big building in the middle of the village. That's where I was headed when I came down the stairs..."
At the familiar song Angharad's face lightened slightly, and she leant into her friend's hold with relief, staying quiet for a moment, taking comfort in the hug. She smiled, somewhat shakily.
"I'm afraid I don't really follow," she confessed, "but Fee, I have complete faith that what you say makes sense." She laughed slightly. "But I did find out some useful things. Like.. we can get new clothes soon, and food and wash stuff and so on from the big building in the middle of the village. That's where I was headed when I came down the stairs..."
"Foooooood." She enthused. "That'll get my brain going. Ugh, I'm seriously craving some salad right now. Maybe one of those spinnach ones with strawberries and tangerine slices that mum makes all the..." she trailed off, not having realised where the innocent thought led her. "They think I'm a murderer on the run." Fiona mused softly, rolling the idea around in her brain and deciding she didn't like it at all. "I'm sorry Annie... this is all my fault." She looked away guiltily and quickly changed the subject.
"What I mean is... we can't escape, I figure. That blue-haired chick was pretty insistant that there was no escaping. And you know, maybe she's right. Maybe there's no way off. But we shouldn't just accept this place as is, take it to be 'our new lives'. I think..." she paused, pursing her lips. "I think what we need to do is get the support from a bunch of other people and hold a meeting. I have some ideas, but like a bunch of people already pointed out, there are cameras everywhere and I don't wanna give the docs too much of a heads up. But we need some paper and pens. That much is for sure."
"We're still fighting Annie, we're still fighting." She mumbled. "But I've got a plan, that's for sure. First, we need some supporters. Speaking of which-" Fiona winced a little, "I think we shouldn't tell Awen about our plans and junk. She's really pessimistic, and if there's anything we really need right now it's hope. Although the hedgehog girl I met on the beach seems really nice. She's living out in the wild as a sort of protest, too. I'll bet she would have some ideas of all the places that aren't likely to have cameras." Her stomach gave a loud, tortured gurgle. "But... I think right now food sounds pretty good. You said there was a cafeteria?"
"A hedgehog girl?" The animals got stranger, that was for sure. Angharad got to her feet and stretched slightly. "A hedgehog, a bear,a man with tentacles... Gah, I don't even want to think what we've got." The shot mark on her arm was less itchy than yesterday, but was still making it's presence known. She held her upper arm briefly before forcing her mind onto more mundane matters.
"I vote we go to find some food. You think they'll have fried tofu?" Her voice was somewhat wistful as she headed for the door.
"After you, she said politely.
"I doubt it," she said with a scowl, stepping out the door and making sure her rock was firmly in place to keep her door open. "Though most places have some kind of salad bar. And it'd make sense to have a veg' menu if they're turning people into like... horses, or giraffes or something. Ungulates." She said, forming the word with a distinct pleasure. "I hope they turn me into something nasty that'll give'em nightmares." Fiona said to herself, chuckling as she walked a bit down the path.
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Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 4:51 pm
Of Wolf and Man?______________________________________________________//
Fiona/Ambrose/Angharad
Ambrose walked carefully out of his duplex and towards the cafeteria. Even having gorged himself on a huge breakfast after the change, it had been well over a day since then, and his body was still clamboring for much-needed protein after his change.
He felt vulnerable walking out alone and just having shifted. He knew that chances were likely with the number of people on the island that he'd run into someone - especially going to the cafeteria... but he couldn't not eat, and he had dealt with changes before. At least he had had time to face them himself....
He just wished he hadn't found out the information that he did from Aubrey.
Shaking his head and forcing himself to think positively, about the meal he was about to heat, he poked his head into the large building and was met with a surprisingly empty mess hall.
With a wag of his tail, he clicked his way across the linoleum and filled a tray with tasty meats, got a set of silverware, and sat himself down at one of the long tables, begining to quickly wolf down his steak a big forkful at a time. His mouth still felt strange to him, his teeth still a bit sore, but when it came to getting food into his hungry belly it wasn't that difficult to figure things out.
"I think this is it..."
Angharad peered in the doorway, her hair almost dry. The room with its several tables and serving area was almost empty; her stomach turned a little at the smell of meat.
And further down, a wolf was eating hungrily.
The girl clapped one hand to her mouth silently. Granted, the head bent over the plate belonged to a body wearing neat trousers and a pale polo shirt, but still.. it was greyfurred, and had ears.
A wolf man.
She forced herself to take another step in. Surely it - no, he, was just like the bear man, and a perfectly normal.. person underneath. She waved faintly to Fiona behind her, and called out in a slightly wobbly voice.
"Er, hello?"
Fiona wandered right past her friend, tugging on her sleeve as she passed and ignoring the smell of cooking meat with a trained tolerance. "Oooohh, look Annie. They have steamed broccoli." She scrunched her nose disdainfully, but began to seek a plate. "It's overcooked, but right now my tum' is empty and doesn't really give a damn. Bring's back memories, eh?" As the girl yammered, she was completely oblivious to her surroundings, and it was only once she'd retrieved a tray and turned to nag Angharad that she saw the other occupant of the room.
A compulsive shiver ran down her spine, and she forced herself to smile. "Oh wait, lemme correct myself. Now we're in an oldschool horror movie." Putting on her business face, Fiona told herself she would need all the support she could from the other prisoners- the word echoed through her mind rather gloomily- if she was going to get her plans into action. Quickly snatching a decent supply of fruits and vegetables and cradling a bottle of water between her hip and elbow, she walked across the cafeteria purposefully and plopped right down in front of Ambrose. "Hi!" Right to the point, wasn't she?
Ambrose looked up from his meal quickly as he heard the door open and the figures of two unfamiliar girls walked in. He swallowed quickly and selfconsciously, bringing a furred hand to his mouth as he did so, trying to clear his teeth of remnant chewed food before opening his mouth to speak.
His ears flicked back cautiously as he did so. He smelled their trepidation, but they didn't look at him and run away... that was a plus. They were definately new - their unchanged forms and anxiety assured him of that.... but at least given their reactions he probably wasn't the first other changed islander they had enountered.
"Hi." He replied with a closed-mouth smile to the first girl, the shorter brunette who looked at him with hesitant eyes. He knew how he looked.
Of course, Ambose damned his sensitive hearing as he heard the second girl's low-talk to her friend. It wasn't the first time he had heard somethign akin to that either. The Rayanya girl, the one he hadnt' seen since his first encounter had called him a werewolf. And he was even more lupine now.
As she approached confidently and set her tray down in front of him, he mustered a wry smile. "I think that the movie might be different than my appearance suggests, however." an ear flicked back. "Perhaps something more akin to Frankenstein or something else with mad scientists. But hello yourself....miss?" He spoke with a practiced refinement in his voice, and upon closer inspection his hair was well cared for, combed and perhaps even gelled. His polo shirt and khaki pants bore the label of Abercrombie.
"You look new." He stated, extending a paw-like hand to whichever of them took him up on the offer. "My name is Ambrose."
Angharad followed faintly afterwrds, the steamed broccoli now not really appealing. She picked up a couple of bananas and an apple, and followed over. A werewolf? He certainly looked the part, though the neat clothes, neat accent and neat hairstyle were throwing her off balance slightly. She slid along the bench to sit beside Fiona, keeping her eyes off of the plate in front of Ambrose easily now she knew what to expect. She picked cautiously at the banana; it seemed edible enough. Even lab rats had to eat.
"Um, I'm Angharad," she volunteered, mumbling slightly round her mouthful. She left it to Fiona to take the offered paw; it gave a whole new meaning to the command 'shake!' in her head.
"Frankenstein, Werewolf movies, it's like a combination of every bad science fiction movie that ever existed." She shook the extended hand (or was it a paw?) with a wink, seamlessly hiding her surprise at him having heard. "Fiona Brooks. Yeah, we're new." She was tempted to say 'fresh meat', but decided it was too soon to start making jokes. "How long you been here?" She said idly, munching on some celery distractedly. "A few months, I'm guessing, from what the lady I met on the beach said. M'I right?"
Ambrose gave a small ironic smile with a nod at her commentary. "I wish it were just a movie." He replied, giving her hand a practiced squeeze before picking his fork and knife back up.
"But it's nice to meet you, Fiona and... Angharad." He paused, cutting a few more pieces of the second steak. "Although... I wish I could say it were under better circumstances, all things considered."
He took another bite, chewing thoughtfully with a nod and swallowing before responding. "Nearly eight, actually. From the sounds of it you two have at least been given the 'introduction'. Not to sound callous, but I'm glad I wasn't the first... changed islander that you encountered. It's never easy on anyone to tell or be told."
Angharad looked to the side for a second. The first changed islander she'd met... she'd promptly laughed hysterically and then fainted. Guilt lay looped over that memory; now she knew a bit more of this bizarre island, she would really have to go and thank that bear man.
"I must admit, yesterday was a bit... disturbing," Angharad admitted, still picking at the banana. "Just dumped in a room and left there with no explanations and a shot mark in your shoulder..." She shuddered a little. "But eight months is a long time. Was there anyone to tell you what was going to happen?" She couldn't help a little bit of compassion slipping into her voice. Everything in her head was scoffing and only believing that what she saw was real because she'd seen too many movies. It was just like a special effect, but for your brain, making everything real.
"Yeah... I didn't want to believe it at first. I honestly thought it was just someone in a costume that Feral Labs had hired to give us a bit of a scare so that we wouldn't try messing with them again. Honestly, it wouldn't have been the first time it'd happened to me." She chewed on mouthfuls of veggies between sentences, stabbing a carrot stick in the air for emphasis. "This isn't right and it isn't legal. I'm not going to just sit down and take this."
Ambrose winced. "Yesterday? You mean you only got here yesterday? Ouch.... " he shook his head. "I know how scary this must be for both of you. Unfortunately I didn't have the luxury of being explained what was going on when I got here. I had signed up for a 'two week' medical study. I thought I was going to make five thousand dollars that I was goign to put towards my next semester at university..." He snorted. "Lucky me. I didn't find out the truth of the matter until after the follow up injection. I was the first one here who changed and I had no idea what I was in store for. Even though the second shot only gave me a bit of fur, teeth and claws, and a nub of a tail.... by comparison not much... but I still went, pardon my french, apeshit."
He sighed, eating another few bites quickly. "I demanded answers, and only then did they tell me the truth." His ears lay back. "I didn't 'sit down' and take it either. I railed against the staff. I argued, I appealed to the only individual who seemed to have any sort of conscience - a Dr. Lockheart..... and nothing. Hell, they say if we leave after starting the injections before the process is complete it can give us cancer. I don't agree with what they're doing. I lost... a lot. I was going to go to the Olympics some day... I never patched things with my parents... but fighting them only seems to make it worse." He sighed.
"Sorry about the rant." He said belatedly.
"It's no rant, don't worry..." The words of the ever present peacemaker. "But... Dr Lockheart?" Angharad was surprised; if that cold-hearted woman was the only one with a conscience, what the hell would the rest of the staff be like? She hunched up a little over her apple. And listening to this man's life dreams... he was just a normal person like them. Even the Olympics, that ws incredible... and wanting to speak with his parents... the torment of not leaving that note still hung over the girl, and her green eyes flashed for a moment with unexpected anger. But she kept it to herself for now.
"From what I've heard about the staff," Fiona mused, sporting the carrot between her teeth like a bright orange cigar, "I think a direct approach towards changing things won't work at all. What I want to do-" and at this the girl looked around paranoidly, even though she doubted the cameras would be visible, "-is do some... peaceful protesting, so to speak. Get a bunch of people together, have a party, play some normal party games, get to know everyone... and then discuss and brainstorm a way to change things. Get a list of demands written down. I've only been here a day and even though it's not exactly a jail cell, there's one big problem that I see." She removed the root from her mouth and frowned darkly. "There are new people. Me'n Annie are probably the newest people to get here, but I know a thing or two about just how many rats they use for one big experiment, and as much as I hate making the connection... I'm willing to bet anything they plan to take more people in. What if we could stop them? Save dozens of other people from having their lives ruined?" She sent a quick look at Angharad- she hadn't voiced this idea to the girl, and so was checking for responses from the both of the listeners.
"Yes... Dr. Lockheart.... why?" Ambrose asked, lifthing his brow curiously to the brunette. From the skepticism in her voice it sounded like she hadn't exactly gotten on the woman's good side. Not a good way to start ones' stay on the island.
He turned his attention to Fiona, chewing thoughtfully as he listened.
Finally, he rolled his furry shoulders in a shrug. "Well... Honestly, not to rain on your parade, but I've tried to convince them and appeal to Dr. Lockheart's sympathies about bringing willing subjects if they MUST bring more subjects into this ... 'experiment'." His ear flicked back. "I had freshman Bio.... I know that in order to set up an experiment you need a looot of test subjects. I think I was one of the first and I've born witness to person after person after person arrive. See them lose their humanity just like me. Only a few have embraced what has happened with open arms. And I'm happy for those people. I wish everyone they brought was like that instead of plucking people from happy lives or cutting off their futures. But the argument they gave me - and I'm not saying it's right, is that I'm sure you're aware that what is going on isn't exactly legal, and they can't exactly advertise what they're doing."
He tapped a clawed finger on the table. "And as far as demands.... you're right about this not being a jail cell. But you know what... for their purposes it probably wouldn't make much of a difference to them if it was. In fact it would probably be cheaper for them and safer." Ambrose declined to mention the lockout that had really made him appreaciate what they had. Maybe that was the ultimate goal of that... 'ordeal'. "The fact we have a cafeteria.. that we have private duplexes, bathrooms, hell, an entertainment room and caribbean beaches.... If I wasn't trapped here and turning into an animal... I would hazard a guess that many people would opt for such a life - not having to worry about money or jobs... And they've been known to supply people with requested goods if they 'play nice'."
He opened up his other hand . "Of course... we are trapped. And we are at their mercy. They've got cameras all over the island and can knock us out with a word." He sighed. "Even though I'd be considered a freak if I ever went home... I'd be the first on to hop on a boat if it could take me back to America.... except for the potential medical complications if I don't get my final injection."
He placed both palms back on the table. "Fact of the matter. We're trapped, and if we leave we're as good as dead because I don't think anyone else can reproduce this sort of gene therapy. I'm trying to make the best of it. I miss my parents... I have barely even touched my epee since a month or so after I arrived here. And I feel guilty about that, even though I know that I'll never have another competition... never see the Olympics. I went through my denial... my anger.... and both of them were equally futile." He stabbed another larger piece of steak and tore it off the fork with his teeth. Not even thinking, he only gave it a few cursory bites before swallowing it down.
He'd been through it all, he said. The denial Angharad herself was feeling; the anger that she was sure was running through Fiona's veins.
None of it.. none of it made any sense.
Angharad huddled to herself slightly more on her seat, eyes staring at the table as she twirled the apple stalk round and round.
She knew she could never truly accept what had happened to them. The shock was still too new, too fresh. For now... she would live for a week or so, and ignore what happened, not thinking about the future. Perhaps... perhaps it was a holiday. Where people looked like animals. Her mind seized eagerly on this possibility, this way of thinking, in the hope that for now.. it would stop the mind from falling apart.
Her face brightened, and the stalk came away from the apple. "Well, I've never been to a tropical island before," she commented cheerfully. "It feels like a commune of something here. All eating in the same place.. I hope I get to meet everyone." Shining, fragile happiness shone from every syllable.
Fiona's eyes flickered dangerously as Angharad moved away from the topic of rebelling, but didn't comment. She ignored the remainder of food on her plate and set her elbows on the table, weaving her fingers together and setting her chin atop them. The girl was silent for a while. Eventually she sighed. "I'm surprised you all take such offence..." she began, her voice tempered with forced civility, "...at being accused of not trying. Of sitting around, feeling helpless. You're the second one to say, 'I've tried, it failed, so it's gotta be impossible.' If everyone on this damn island-" and here frustration infiltrated her schooled tone- "is going to be like this, then I guess I'm on my own. I'm not stupid. I know there are people watching and electric thingies and whatever. I know attacking them will only hurt all the people stuck here. I'm not stupid." She reiterated for emphasis.
"But whatever. Maybe I'll just steal that other woman's idea and live in the jungle like some kind of messed up Robinson Crusoe." Fiona said it, but deep down knew she wouldn't dare, if only for Annie's sake. Either the poor girl would get dragged along with her and be miserable, or she would stay in the village and feel guilty and worry. Fee was sure that Annie would need her to get through this... this... whatever you could call it. And she wasn't going to turn her back on her friend. Still, she allowed the idea to float around the table, if only to gauge her reaction.
Worry and skepticism etched the wolfman's face at Angharad's turn of paper-thin optimism. He supposed it was better than sinking into a deep depression, but probably was just a delay of the inevitable. The cheer was far from genuine, that was certain. "Well.... I Hope you are able to as well." He stated carefully.
He listened to Fiona as he finished up the large slab of meat on his plate, his swiveling ears betraying his emotions of doubt if Fiona was familiar with canines.
"Well... I suppose the offense in myself or others might stem from the fact that it does seem like you did and are accusing us of taking this lying down. That implies that we're weak and .... well... complacent. And... well... damn, maybe in a way we are. But I'd like to see you still 'fighting the good fight' after eight months when you're so far gone that you could never lead a normal life again, would likely die trying, and your girlfriend is in with you too - needing their medicines and you're just trying to carve out a piece of something familiar."
"I think.. I think I'll have to look at the situation a bit longer before I can decide my path." Angharad took a deep breath. "I think... that if I decided to do anything right now other than just take in what is happening for a while...
I'll go even more insane." She laughed slightly, her words more directed at Fiona than the wolfman opposite.
"I just can't seem to think right, and I think it would be foolish to make any rash decisions."
She pulled her sleeves over the palms of her hands nervously, as if she had said something out of place, before continuing softly.
"I can't condemn anyone for thinking what they think. Except for the Lockheart woman," she added absently. "For now.. I'll have to get used to living on a tropical island," And she nodded to Ambrose, smile still weak.
Fiona gave a soft, almost pained sigh. "Alright, Annie. I'm not going to drag you into this, for once. It's my fault you're even on this ******** island. So... I'll just leave you out of my stupid, worthless, pointless plans." The venom that rankled her expressive voice was one of built up and bottled in stress. She pulled her hands free of one another to rub presumably soothing circles against her temples. "This is just so complicated." The girl furrowed her brows, and appeared ready to spring up and storm away at any second.
Ambrose solved Fiona's problem. Having finished the meal on his tray, he stood, given the ready-made excuse to take his leave. The women were still dealing with having just come to the island, and obviously knew eachother from long before their recent arrival. She would bear the same guilt he felt in bringing Angelina.
"Best of luck to the both of you, and I do mean that." He spoke evenly, his ears pinning back at Fiona's spiteful words, not entirely sure if they were partially directed at his own complacence. "And yes, it's complicated. No denying that. I hope you're able to find your peace." He gave them a small nod as he bussed his tray and padded out the door.
"Fiona, I don't mean that.. your plans aren't worthless..." Angharad was suddenly tearingly guilty, that she seemed to have let her friend down. She barely acknowledged Ambrose's departure, a nod of a bowed head and a 'thankyou.'. But her eyes sought Fiona's. "It's complicated. Too complicated for me at the moment," and her voice was very small. "It doesn't mean I don't think you have the strength to sort it out..."
"Sort it out." She repeated slowly, thoughtfully, as if not entirely aware of the meaning of the phrase. Fiona had glanced up at Ambrose as he left, opened her mouth to respond, and shut it again. With her plate of food as good as invisible, she attempted to brighten her features for her friend's sake. That guilty voice of hers always tugged painfully at the red-head's heartstrings. "Hey, don't worry about it too much. Things'll get better. The sun'll come out-" she winked, but spared the cafeteria staff the misery that often followed exposure to her singing voice. Besides, she'd already used that joke once already, hadn't she? Damn.
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Posted: Fri Apr 07, 2006 4:56 pm
The Doctor's.. Daughter? ______________________________________________//
Nita/Lauren/Angharad
Despite the air-conditioning, the girl was sweaty. She suddenly realized how gross she felt from the travelling, from the drive through the jungle, that weird doctor and his injection... Without further ado, she stripped off her tanktop, jeans, and underpants, dropped them in the hamper, and stepped into the shower.
The spray was just the right strength, and the water had just approached the right temperature when--
Twenty-twenty-twenty four hours to go I wanna be sedated
Nothin' to do and no where to go-o-oh, I wanna be sedated
Just get me to the airport, put me on a plane
Hurry hurry hurry before I go insane
I can't control my fingers I can't control my brain
Oh no no no no noooo
The lyrics were muffled, but the bass came through loud and clear, along with the crashing and banging of someone-- Alec!-- on a drumset. A large drumset, and one that had obviously not been in the punk boy's battered duffel. This was... not a good sign. Nita sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She showered quickly to remove the sweat and grime of the day, vainly hoping that the boy would drum himself out by the time she exited the bathroom.
No luck. Wrapped in a large clean towel, Nita glared at the floor. She jumped up and down a few times-- maybe Alec would hear and get the message. Unfortunately, any noise she made was only swallowed up by the ruckus below, and ended up in time with that blasted drumming. This was ridiculous. She needed to get out of the room. She pulled on fresh clothing and expertly put her long hair back into its customary braids.
Locating her flip-flops and smearing a bit of sunscreen across her nose and on the tips of her ears, Nita grabbed her key and exited the duplex. She whacked on the door of #41 a couple of times, to no avail. Frustrated, she strode out across the open space, in search of.. something. She didn't know what. But whatever it was, it wouldn't have drums.
Lauren was walking back to her duplex from the labs. She had her mp3 player on her ears blasted loud as well, holding a arm load of books and wearing a lab coat with her hair back into a pony tail. She had just finished one of her lessons for the day and was quite chipper than she had been learning some about the genetics of making a serum. Nothing much, just some of the basics.
Comming out of her day dreamy state, Lauren had noticed someone ahead. A red head, and she looked really familiar. She had to do a double take, pulling off her head phones and running towards the woman, nearly dropping her books.
"Fi... er..." Lauren yelled happily as she ran after the woman, her tail wagging.
Angharad was sitting on the top step of the stairs outside her duplex. She'd been surprised to hear signs of life from the places she'd thought were empty on her first day; so she was surprised when she suddenly observed a girl stomp out of the duplex next to hers.
She started to her feet, hand slightly outstretched. This girl.. looked normal, just like her and Fee! Was she not changed? Or a captive like them? She pattered down the steps, but stopped short as another young woman ran past. In a lab coat.
A technician??
She stood, looking dumb for a moment, staring at her new nextdoor neighbour.
Several strides out away from the duplex, Nita glanced around for further signs of life. A normal-looking girl, perhaps a few years younger than her, was sitting on the porch of the duplex next door. The slender redhead would have turned to greet her, when someone yelled, "FIRE!"
Her first instinct was to look for smoke, but her search was abruptly halted as a tall, lanky girl ran up to her. A tall, lanky girl.. with fur. And pointed ears. And a labcoat. "What the hell??" escaped her lips before she could stop herself. Nita backed up a bit, tossing an annoyed glance at #41, where Alec was still banging away.
Lauren stopped in her tracks as she noticed the red head wasn't the red head Lauren thought she was. "Damn... sorry I thought you were someone else." Then the what the hell escaped her lips. Lauren looked at her puzzled.
She only noticed the other girl as the red head had turned to greet her. Lauren waiting, looking from one to the other. They were both unchanged, great... she hoped she didn't have to be the one to tell them. She hated that.
The technician was changed. Changed, just like all the rest. But the redhead was still normal...
Angharad stepped forward, twisting her sleeves anxiously. Perhaps the furred girl could tell her more, if she was wearing a coat like that. A brief thought appeared in her head that she didn't know any creatures with horna and fur like that, but she swallowed and continued, her eyes and mind slowly accustomed over the past few days.
"E..excuse me? Do you work for the laboratory?"
She glanced sideways at the braided girl, and smiled tentatively.
Oh yes. And the tall girl had horns.
Nita blinked. "Um. No, I, ah, I'm pretty sure we haven't met before..." She sounded almost apologetic, not wanting to offend the.. person.. in front of her.
As surreptitiously as possible, she inched towards the dark-haired girl, who, although a stranger, wasn't nearly as strange.
Lauren watched as the two girls looked at her as if she was a freak, or a monster. An overwhelming since of power filled her head, and was even more fueled by the burnette asking if she worked for the library.
She smiled wryly. Oh yes, it was a bad thing to do wasn't it?
"Yes, why yes I do." She said smiling. "Was there something I could assist you with?" It was a lie, but not a total lie. She WAS just learning and all but the attention felt so good.
"No, I'm sorry miss, we havn't met have we." Lauren was fairly good at pulling off someone older than her, her voice being fairly deep for a girl but not too unfeminine. She tried to avoid laughing.
"I didn't know they even experimented on the technicians," Angharad said, with a slight note of horror and/or distaste, before stopping short and looking sideways. The other girl must know. She must. So she continued, once again her voice hesitant.
"Isn't that... bizarre? Why on earth do you work for the place that's changing you?"
She also stepped a bit closer to the normal girl. This blonde was a bit.. disconcerting, and the changes didn't help either.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but what exactly is going on here?" Nita's voice rose a little as she suppressed panic. This-- what had the brunette said? This technician had fur and horns, for chrissake. "I only got here a couple of hours ago, and I'm supposed to be able to study in peace, and there's this guy drumming away downstairs, and you have horns!
Nita's face flushed pink and her knees were a bit wobbly. "I'm sorry," she muttered again. "I think I need to sit down..."
"Why I work here isn't really your concern is it?" Lauren tried her best to sound like Moreau, "But if you MUST know, I came here and chose to change myself, injecting myself with the mongoose DNA." She stopped herself before she went on with a story that was too far fetched.
Lauren pulled out her book, "Ah yes, our new subjects." Part of her heart was telling her to stop, she was being all too cruel but the old Lauren was shining through. The girl looked so much like Fire, it was pulled out some old emotions she hadn't felt in a long time.
But it wasn't Fire, it was some spoiled girl who probably had it perfectly easy before comming onto the island. "Is that so? That is horrible, someone is drumming downstairs? I'll make a note of that and maybe we can change him into something horrific for you." She smiled at Nita. "Always happy to be of service." Lauren jotted down some scribbles in her notebook. "And how observant, I do have horns. I added them myself, but the pain was excrutiating."
She had been wrong. This poor girl didn't know a thing, same as she had been. And this lab tech was scary Injecting herself? On purpose? And offering to do a favour by changing the unknown 'drummer' into something horrible was truly twisted.
Angharad knelt by the redhead. She didn't even know her name, but the feeling that was surely springing up in her right now was identical to her own a few days earlier.
"They didn't explain to you, either. This is a bit of a shock, but I only got here a few days ago too... and we're stuck here. And..." Angharad winced a little, and gripped the girl's shoulder, "... these people are going to turn us into animals. Like her," and she jabbed a thumb at the smiling mongoose woman. "We... we're in some kind of experiment...."
Nita sat on the ground, chin resting on her knees, which poked through the holes in her jeans. "Oh," she said quietly. "I see."
What? I don't see! This is ridiculous, this is impossible! It's a nightmare, or a horrible joke, or... potentially kind of cool. She quashed that errant thought as quickly as she could.
Her eyes welled up and she dug the heels of her hands against them. She wouldn't cry, not out here in the open. She hated crying in public; she tended to hyperventilate, and her eyes would be red and puffy for hours.
"An experiment..." she echoed. Looking up, she attempted a smile at Angharad and stared Lauren right in her orange eyes. "My name is Nita MacNeal." Whatever happened to her, she'd still be herself.
Right?
Lauren crossed her arms and huffed at Angharad, "I am NOT an animal.. I'm only part animal. None of us are turning COMPLETELY into animals." She sighed, "We are combining animal and human dna and it isn't just for an experiment. Would you think someone would put this much money into research if it was just for kicks?" Inside, Lauren was cracking up laughing, "No, we're working on alternative methods for curing deadly diseases like... cancer." She had heard this line used before by Moreau long ago.
Lauren reached her clawed hand out towards Nita, "Mine is Lauren..." She stopped for a second as a flash of inspiration hit her, "Lauren Moreau. I'm the doctors daughter." Her face was full of pride.
And she was kind of, she would much rather be a Moreau than a Granger right now. To hell with her biological sperm donor.
"And you are?" She asked towards Angharad, raising her eyebrow.
This was all to great, but something was pulling at Lauren to stop the act. Ah well, too late to tell the truth right now. Besides, the truth wasn't any better.
And it all wasn't a whole lie... just a partial one. Or at least that was how she justified things to herself.
"Curing.. disease? That's not what Dr. Lockheart said," and a flash of suspicion appeared in Angharad's mind for a moment. Unfortunately, she was not a suspicious person.
"I'm... Angharad Anderson, Miss Moreau. And tell your father that perhaps he should get more willing subjects like yourself rather than just stealing people way or under false pretences." She fell silent suddenly, looking at the ground. Tears stung the back of her eyes suddenly; she had done something illegal, for once in her life, and they used that to justify her imprisonment.
She turned her attention to the redhead, own shoulders slumped.
"Nita.. I'm sorry that I had to tell you."
Moreau. Lockheart. The doctors Nita had met just that afternoon. She rubbed at the injection mark on her arm. Under normal circumstances, Nita would have immediately asked what Lockheart had told Angharad, but she was hardly in a critical frame of mind.
"It's not your fault," she told Angharad. "I guess it's better... It's better to know." She rubbed at the injection spot again and twisted the end of one long braid with her other hand. It was a nervous gesture, done almost unconsciously.
She caught herself and gave Lauren a weird look. "I met him. Moreau, I mean. He--" He creeped me out, she almost said. "He gave me this," Nita finished lamely, indicating the spot on her arm, barely visible through the freckles. A sudden though occurred to her. "Do you know what I'm becoming?" Nita blurted out before she could stop herself.
Lauren just nodded at Angharad, "It's hard to accept I know." This was getting rather uncomfortable. She wondered how Aubrey and Moreau could deal with this constantly here on the island. Everyone seemed to hate them.
Of course that wasn't too much different from how they usually felt about her.
She shook her head at Nita, "I don't know, sorry. I don't have those records on hand." She lied. Moreau hadn't been telling her what people were becomming at all anymore like he used to. She didn't have access to such information before anyone else. "I'm sure you can ask a..." She stopped herself, "nother staff member. A head staff person would be sure to know."
The redhaired girl seemed to be taking it all too calmly. That frightened Angharad a little bit, and she swung her head to look at her, giving her arm a little comforting squeeze. She'd pushed the fact that she would become a creature away, but never really considered which it would be. What happens if...? She stopped that thought with a brief, barely audible yelp and turned back to Lauren, feeling suddenly defenseless as the two girls were looking up at the standing technician. The daughter of the reclusive yet fear-inspiring doctor. But... she didn't know? Angharad didn't want to ask an intercom.
"How long has this project been running?" She suddenly said.
Nita didn't hate anybody. That took too much effort. So did asking more questions. This Lauren girl didn't know, and she had no idea how to go about asking a staffmember. Maybe she didn't want to know either, really.
She continued to sit, arms around her legs, chin on her knees, content to let Angharad ask the questions. She could sift through any information offered later. Maybe a snack would help. Nita pondered that for a moment, trying to remember when she'd last had anything to eat.
One girl seemed to be full of questions while the other, seemed in a bit of a daze. Lauren was worrying more at the later, because she seemed to be accepting things more. "About eight months, but I've not been here that long." She replied. "And Moreau had been building his serum much longer than that." She had no clue how long it took him to develop the serum that was injected into their dna. Possibly most of his life.
She called her dad by his last name? So strange... eight months again. So many had been there that long. Perhaps it had started then.. last summer. When she was merrily looking forward to her last year of high school. And here she was, comforting a dazed girl when she felt like she was the one about to break.
"I.. I just need to get a drink for a second," and Angharad scrambled awkwardly to her feet. Suddenly she didn't want to be here, with this disturbing blonde girl, and even though guilt riddled her at leaving Nita, she just wanted to be away.
"Nita, I live up here, on the top floor. Next to you," and she ran up a few of the steps, clinging to the handrail. "If... if you want to talk to someone, I'm right here." And she was gone, the door banging on her duplex slightly louder than it should.
Nita jerked up a bit when Angharad stood. A drink sounded like a good idea. Hopefully there was something in that minifridge.. water, or an overpriced Snickers bar, or, anything, really.
"Okay," she whispered. "It was nice meeting you," she said automatically, not realizing how inane it sounded. Nita pulled herself up, dusted off her pants, gave Angharad and Lauren both a little wave, and retreated back into her room.
So much for studying abroad.
"Right back atcha." Lauren replied in a more of a Lauren tone and manner.
Lauren went back on her way to her duplex. She was both entertained at her masquerade and apalled at the same time. She shrugged off the later. The mongoose wanted to lecture the girl, she was suppose to make friends not enemies and lying wasn't a way to do that. Lauren had been bored though and they were practically asking for it.
And it wasn't too large of a lie.
They were both kind of cute too. Lauren smiled at that thought although she knew that none of them would ever like her.
Some self depricating loneliness overcame her happy mood as Lauren trotted back to her duplex. She wondered how Awen was doing, she hadn't seen her friend in forever. She hoped things were alright.
Sighing, Lauren went back to her room, dropping her books on the floor and plopped on her bed for a short nap.
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Posted: Sun Apr 09, 2006 4:57 pm
Neighbours____________________________________________________//
Alec/Angharad
Fiona wasn't there at that moment, and Angharad had paced her floor aimlessly for long enough. With no belongings, there was nothing she could do to pass the time; perhaps she could request some paper, or some music, or something. But she was still reluctant to do so; by her reckoning, this was the seventh day after she'd woken up on this godforsaken island. She should really get a calendar, if only to mark the passage of time.
Muffled music had drifted up through her open window; loud pounding, from the duplex next door. She wasn't that fussed by the loud music; she'd heard louder at protest rallies. At least it meant that someone was in, and that meant at least someone to talk to.
She'd tidied up the dusty looking clothes she had been given, and pulled the comb through her hair a couple of times; at least the clothes were clean, as she'd spent yesterday afternoon wearing only the embarrasing scrubs while she had washed her clothes in the sink. No possessions really sucked sometimes.
So now she found herself at the door of the place from which the music issued, and knocked cautiously. Then a little louder, as she realised it might not be heard.
"Uh.. hello?"
It took awhile for a response to ensue, the noise clearly buffering the sound of the knocking and drowning it out completely. Finally the door swung open and a torrent of music was unleashed outside, a bewildered Alec with a toothbrush sticking out of his mouth poking his head out with it. "Muh?" In a second the doorway slammed shut, the music's volume fading fast to a level that was acceptable by others' terms. The door re-opened, the punk teen reappearing. "Uh.... aye?" He mumbled shyly, leaning against the doorframe in an unsure manner. He didn't recignize the girl standing there but she didn't exactly look hostile.
Angharad's smile was hesitant, but then grew bolder. For a second she felt like she was knocking on doors again and handing out leaflets, and quickly dismissed the attitude that went with that. If she was going to live here any amount of time (and the thought was already creeping treacherously in) she would want to speak to people truthfully, not that fake cheeriness that came with making people accept your leaflets.
"Hi. Uh.. this is going to sound really strange, but.." she looked aside for a moment and laughed slightly, "I live in the duplex next door.. and was.. wondering who my neighbours were. I know that sounds really lame," she added hastily, suddenly worried, "and I don't want to to disturb you.." The smile returned hesitantly.
"I'm Angharad."
Alec stared at her a moment, unaffected by her apparent uneasiness. He sized her up before continuing, not so much admiring her form as curiously analyzing it. "Eh, I ge' it. Is okeh." He smiled, straightening up in the doorway. "Alec, s'pleaseh. Wanna come in?"
He motioned his head inside, shifting his weight off of the door to open it further in invitation. "Ya next door? New 'ere too? Watch ye step." He wandered inside, kicking piles of clothes and items to make a path for walking.
"Uh... sure." She tried to make sure she wasn't treading on anything important as she came in, green eyes round at the amount of things and of course the drums that dominated the room. She finally placed his accent, as possibly Irish; his appearance was startling at first, but she'd grown used to it before. In a way she admired the fact that he could do that; she'd never got the courage to do something radical with her appearance, and remained plain and boring.
"Yeah, I'm next door, me and my friend Fiona... been here nearly a whole week now." She snorted before realising that it was a little unladylike, and caught herself with a hopefully unnoticable embarrassment. "A surprise for us. I'm guessing that you were one of the tricked ones, huh," and she gestured around at the stuff as she stood uncertainyl before opting to lean against the side of the desk.
Alec nodded, flopping down onto the stool he used while drumming, kicking off a bunch of wrinkled clothes first of course. "Ye ye." He couldn't help but laugh. It seemed everybody knew he was new and had been "tricked" onto the island. He wouldn't blame them, it was obvious though made him feel almost embarassed for falling for it. "Me n' the gal upstairs." He finally realized he hadn't seen that red-haired girl for quite sometime, a part of his mind wondering how she was coping for only a moment.
"Se how did ye take i'?" He grinned, feeling a little more lighthearted about the subject now that he was talking to a fellow "victim" of the cruel joke. He didn't seem to notice any of the aspects that were possibly making her feel self-conscious about herself; used to being the center of scrutiny himself.
Angharad crossed one ankle over the other and stared at the floor for a moment. "Ha.. not very well. One minute me and my friend are making a protest - "she stopped short of saying anything more for a moment. She was still guilty that she had been doing something illegal, even though it was right what she did, she knew it; she just wasn't sure how others would take it.
".. and the next minute, I wake up on this island with nothing but these clothes they gave me." She plucked morosely at the front of the dusty green top. "And to top it all off, I meet a bear man on the beach who tells me... we're all going turn into animals." She shrugged before laughing a little deprecatingly. "Um.. after the hysterics calmed I just had to convince myself this isn't a really, really bad dream." She tilted her head at the other teen. "What about you?"
Alec flinched as he listened to her story, --passing right over the details of her protest, possibly because he didn't know what a "protest" was-- and spun around, looking excited. "Ye met a bear man? Thas fookin amazin!" He slurred, grinning dumbly over a somewhat serious story. "A' never metta bear guy yet, did 'e try n' eat ye?" Alec contemplated the possibility of falling victim to some person's midnight rampage on the island, grimacing at the thought.
"I d'neh. I'm still tryin' t'deal with i', yanno?" He mumbled, looking confusedly at the messy floor of his duplex. "Isso weird, yanno. One sec I'm ontoppa th'world, thinkin imma be a rock stah. Now I'm worried what kinda freak Imma be." He clenched his jaw shut, regretting what he'd just said. "Well... yanno, not a freak but... yanno what a' mean." He hoped he hadn't insulted her. He'd upset Amaya enough as it was.
"I know what you mean." For a second a miserable expression flitted across her face, but it cleared at the mention of Chubbs. "And the bear man... well, lookig back on it, he didn't try and eat me, but I had to resist my urge to run away because he told me if I did the creature in him would have the instinct to chase me." She shuddered minutely. "And a man who's almost completely a wolf.. it's like it's out of one big movie somehow."
She fiddling with a bit of hair almost nervously, but her cautious smile did not show it. At least this guy seemed to have a better grip on things, unless it was the crazy cheerful mood she'd been in a few days ago, her mind overwhelmed by events and cheerfully accepting anything. A woman turning into a pig? A man with tentacles? Sure, why the hell not! Add another bizarrity to the pile.
She blinked as she picked up the second half of what he was saying. "A rock star? Really? Is that why the drums?" She gestured with interest at the set; she couldn't imagine how he'd brought them with him, but all was the better. And she didn't care about the music; at least for the moment, it reminded her that there were normal things still around.
Alec smirked, following her gaze to his pride and joy. "Ye, I like drummin'." He mumbled, nodding in emphasis of his response. "Th' doc musta had i' shipped in."
As he listened to the many adventures Angharad had gotten herself in to, he began realizing how little he'd seen of this place so far. From the oddities described, he figured he'd only gotten a glimpse, a tip of the iceburg. "Thas wild." He commented, recollecting his experiences. "Aye, you should go visit Rex or Amaya. Their nice." He surprised himself with the positive connotations towards the two he'd only just met, but thought it was best if Annie had some new acquaintances that were guaranteed to be comforting. "Angharad." He echoed the name, furrowing his brow. "Where ye from? Heh, can a' call ye Anne?"
The girl was a little taken back suddenly, for no reason. Only Fee had ever called her a short name, throughout all of her school life.. but only through habit, she suspected. She shrugged, and smiled. "Sure, if you'd like. It's easier on the tongue than the Welsh my mother bequeathed me," and she laughed slightly. "But I'm from Canada, the same as my friend Fiona. We're from Peace River. Are you... really Irish?" She coloured slightly, realising it might sound a bit insulting, and moved swiftly on. She logged the fact that apparently the staff had given him the drums away in the back of her mind; a curious point, one at odds with what she knew of them so far. Unless it had been a twisted way of keeping the deception going.
"I don't think I've met Rex or Amaya," she admitted, the lock of hair still twirling round and round. A bad habit. But if he had been here a shorter time than she had, and had made friends already.. she had Fiona, and Bobby had been nothing but kind, and the redhead upstairs seemed kind... but for some reason she hadn't been able to class any of the islanders as 'friends' properly yet. Shows how trusting she was. Angharad frowned slightly as this self analysis, and looked up, curious as to what the other had to say about himself.
"Peace Riveh?" Alec tried to recollect, but his expression admitted that he'd never even heard of the place. "Ye, I'm from ireland." He gave Anne a weird look, as if coming from ireland was no more out-of-the-ordinairy than any other place in the world. "A' kinda miss i'." He added tentatively, quietly. He seemed to drift off into thought.
"According to the other islanders I've spoken to, we're going to be missing our homes for a long time." The girl's voice was low, and she stared out of the window for a moment. She shook her head lightly, causing the annoyingly loose hair to fall across her face for a moment until she flipped it away irritably. "But just because they haven't worked out a way of escape just yet, doesn't mean there isn't one." She offered a bright smile, knowing that she only parroted what Fiona was saying. And if she could bring herself to believe it by comforting other people, perhaps it was for the best.
Alec nodded at her resolution, smirking wryly at the thought of some dramatic death-defying escape coming to pass. "Ye, I 'ave a couple o' plan meself." He grinned, feeling particularly sinister for making such devious plottings while in his spare time. Reality was his plans sucked, but hey, he thought they were plausible and it made him feel good to think there was hope.
He noticed her forlorn look and vowed to cheer her up a little, at least before she left. He couldn't help what happened afterwards. "We should just hunkeh down f'now, relax... tha' sorta thing!" He smiled, reaching over to pat her shoulder suddenly. "Free vacation, eh? Eh?"
Angharad blinked, at both the comment and the pat, and then laughed slightly. "Well, it's true that I've never been to a tropical island. I've never been outside Canada, to be honest," she admitted. "Even the cleanups and rallies I went to were in Canada. I'm a member of PETA," she added, a little hesitant for a second, but then her voice becoming steadier. It was nothing to be embarrassed about, but with so few people here on the island, that she had the prospect of living with for a while, she didn't want to offend.
But to be honest, those that were offended by that wouldn't be the kind of people she would want to associate with anyway. And this Alec boy seemed nice enough. Friendly at least, and not in a nasty way. Her smile widened into a more true one.
Alec stared blankly, though he nodded like he understood exactly what she was talking about. "S'tha right?" He asked, expression never changing. "Was tha'?" Maybe she was part of a nudist group of something. Religious cult? She didn't seem like the nudist type, anyhow. "S'like some sorta church?" He gave a wild guess in an attempt to retain his dignity.
"Huh? Oh! Oh no," and Angharad laughed again, not at him but rather at her own assumptions of knowledge. "PETA is People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Feral Labs, the place that runs this island... back in Canda and America, they have a lot of animal testing labs that treat the poor animals very cruelly." She rolled her eyes with a hint of sarcasm.
"Guess they really have a sense of humour, taking me and my friend to turn us. And I made the mistake of thinking that the bear man, David... was a bear they were turning into a man, not the other way round. Perceptive of me... not."
The irony of the situation bounced off her gently, and she huffed a laugh and shook her head with a smile.
"It's mindboggling, but with all these pressing ethical problems.. all I can think of is how hungry and bored I was."
Alec laughed with her, both at the mix-up of information and the fact that he only partially understood what she was still yapping about. "Ah, a' ge' i'." He nodded, the continuation of her explanation making a little more sense now. "Ye not like those crazeh tree 'uggehs, righ'? Ye just stand up f'them fuzzehs." He showed a mild appreciation for what she had the courage to do, admiring those who stood up for what they believed in no matter what the consequences.
He rolled his eyes as she retold her story, adding in a sharp. "Ye, the Doc seems to 'ave a sense o' humeh." He snorted, rummaging for a cigarette in his shorts pocket. He paid little attention to the possible ethical problems she was hinting at, contenting himself with dealing with the here and now, the smaller picture. "We'll manage." He faked a smile, placing the newfound cig between his lips.
"Stand up for the fuzzies. You can put it like that, yeah," and Angharad laughed, tickled at the appraisal of what she did. "And we will manage. I guess.. I'll just have to try and enjoy the fact we get beaches. I haven't seen the sea much, and here we are surrounded by it," and she waved vaguely at the window, where the land sloped away down the village and across the scrubby jungle that led to the beach and the blue surroundings. "But I do need some stuff. I have this," and she scrunched up the sleeve, "and nothing else... did you know we can requistion things? Well, I heard it, but I haven't had the courage to go and ask yet," she admitted, uncrossing her ankles and hositing herself up to perch on the edge of the desk, feet dangling a little way from the ground.
"Like ask f'stoof?" He raised a studded eyebrow, wondering what she meant. "Ah, ye. A' was told a' could ask f'stoof. From what a' 'eard, ye can get good stoof." He chuckled a little, pointing to his drumset. "Amaya n' Rex said the' try t'make ye comfortable n' happeh. So... ye." He shrugged, not knowing if what he was saying had any significance to her situation before remembering something else he was told.
"Eh, y'can ask what ye turnin' in'teh. Didja know tha'?" Alec looked at her to see if he could read her answer, mumbling something to add. "A' d'n wanna know... d'ye know?
The girl shifted uncomfortably. "I really.. don't want to know. I might ask what my friend is becoming, so I'll be prepared to support her... but for me.. I'd rather not. I mean, I can't even think about it properly." She rubbed absently at the shot mark, which at a week old was now merely faintly irritating. Most of her bruises had faded now, which was a relief, and but for a faint ache in the back of her neck, she was almost back to normal.
Except for the extra DNA supposedly floating around inside her.
"There was one girl who was becoming a sea creature," she said absently. "Can you imagine, having to breathe water, not being able to walk around so much because of it? Or becoming a hooved creature, so your hands are completely unsuable, not able to write or eat or anything..."
Alec visibly grimaced, nervously puffing on his cig as he cut Anne off. "Sea creacheh? Like, stuck in a fookin tank all day? " He was clearly disturbed by this thought, shaking his head like he refused to believe it. "Amaya is a lizehd o' somesort yanno? Poor thin' looks so odd." He was beginning to hate everything about this place, the settled feeling he had had this morning was beginning to fade quick as Angharad stirred up the emotions once again. Shaking his head again, he reitterated what he had just said before, mumbling almost bitterly. "D'n wanna know."
Angharad shifted slightly, feeling more upset at the turn the conversation had taken. She'd obviously made him uncofrtable, and he'd been heere for an even shorter time than she had.. she'd put her foot in it again. She stared at the floor and kicked her feet idly for a second, before jumping the few inches down decisively. Straightening up, she grinned awkwardly, smile not hard to tell as slightly forced.
"It'll come when it does, and I'm going to try not to think about it," she said resolutely, face becoming a little set. "In the meantime.. I probably should go and investigate this supply place, in the hope that I can get some stuff before tomorrow." She tilted her head, and offered a more hesitant smile. "If you wanna come with, you're more than welcome, but nevertheless.. thanks for being some company." She rested a hand on the doorframe for a moment, hanging in the doorway before slowly stepping out, head down and figure curled in on herself.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 3:07 am
Castles in the Sand______________________________________________________//
Colche/Angharad
She had found a stick, and with it she was out to defeat the mighty hordes of the white witch. The great sword was weilded with skill as she took down the minataurs (cow people!) and the scary goblins and bad dwarves. Til she came face to face with the white witch herself.
Colche's imagination could be an amazing thing. Three saplings and a flowery bush had come under the feirce thrashing attacks of her stick as she defeated the mighty hordes. Turning her back quickly, she looked at the palm tree steping backwards. the white witch was ready for a fight. Falling backwards on to the sand with a sploosh, she giggled, her big blue eyes looking at the soft blue sky of the carebean sea. That was enough of being Peter for one day. Smiling happily she lay for another moment before rolling over and padding off towards the waters edge. Her stride was long and graceful, her tail tip twitching sparodically. Every so often a bounce came to the step of the cheetah girl though, the graceful saunter of the cheetah was never quite as melencholy as a normal cheetahs. Infact, she bounced along, the slender figure still in a way, graceful, but always it held this happy bound to it. Holding on to her stick she came to the waters edge and grinned "ho noas ice melt!" she giggles, she had no idea what ice was, but watching it melt and imagining it here in the carribean, didn't make it any less fun in her mind.
Angharad tipped the sunglasses further onto her face, smiling for once. She'd finally got the courage to ask for some possessions at the supply place by the cafeteria; the extra clothes would take a while, but they'd been able to give her sunglasses, a hat and a hairtie. She'd immediately braided it into two plaits, revelling in the breeze that now could reach the back of her neck. And so she was heading to the beach, to take her friend's advice.. and attempt to try and enjoy the fact that she was on a tropical island.
She took her sandals off as she got to the beach, the worn straps looped round her fingers as she wandered further down the beach, almost dashing from shadow to shadow where the sand was cooler. It almost turned into a game for the teen; she laughed to herself, managing to forget her situation for a moment.
Until she saw the big cat, and froze.
It wasn't really such a big one; it was lithe and small, with a long ..black mane? It was then she realised with a sinking feeling that this was just another islander. But so far along... she watched as it danced gracefully along the water's edge. At least it didn't seem down from being transformed.
She cautiously made her way down towards it, feet stinging slightly at the hot sands, but suddenly burningly curious. She took her sunglasses off, and blinked at the brightness, despite the hat's shade.
"Um.. hello?"
The small fuzzy rounded ears perked as she was addressed. She half expected to see one of her more furry friends but it was somone, unchanged, no fur or scales or anything. Usually these people were quite sad and she usually put it to herself to cheer them up, if she could, this one looked happy enough though so she grinned and let her stick fall to the sand "Hai" she puurrs softly her big blue eyes resting upon the other female.
As was the norm with the cheetah spotted girl she walked around naked. it befuddled her to no end that you should wear clothes, especially when it was so humid on the island and you had all that fur. "I'm Colche" she said suddenly, as if she suddenly tremembered she was supposed to do that at the beggining of a meeting. The word I'm had finally become a part of her vocabulary though she still found it difficult to strike up a real adult conversation she could usually greet people and at least have a little fun.
Waiting quietly for an introduction from the other woman she contemplated if she would like to play with her? The woman looked like a lucy or a susan to her. Peter, in her, narrow vieew of things, was the best chracter cause he had a big sword, but the girls were fun to, maybe tomorrow she would be susan with her bow and arrows.
Angharad flinched, bringing her arm up in front of herself for a moment as the creature turned around. What she didn't expect was the innocent blue eyes, and the remaining humanity left in the girl that was a cheetah. Her cheeks coloured slightly at the fact that the cheetah was not wearing any clothes; perhaps she had progressed so far that the thought of clothes was bizarre to the animal she had become? Blinking, Angharad remembered to put down her arm, and smiled slightly.
"Good morning Colche," she said, fiddling with a plait end before throwing it over her shoulder. "I'm Angharad... I'm new here," and she laughed slightly. "But I suppose you could guess that, huh?"
The girl was one of these people that said alot. Colche mulledover the words for a moment a puurr echoing from her chest again before she replied. "An..gur..rad" she looked thoughtful, okay, that sounded about right. "Nu, not furry" she supposed she could add, or scaley, or what ever Awen was, but that seemed a little much. Those gentle blue eyes watched the woman for a short time, curious as to why she would put her hand up. Strill as it dropped she smiled in that ever so sweet and exhuberant manner. Her tail tip twitched and she jumped when a wave touched her toes not expecting it, though she giggled playfully. The ice had obviously melted. Perhaps it was time for a swim.
The tip of her tongue stuck out between ehr teeth as she contemplated what to say next. Would the woman want to play her games? "Swim? Water nice" she grinned, her simple phrases couldn't really be misconstrued, her vocabulary had definately expanded past ehr one word replies and questions.
"It's An- ha- rad," she corrected absently. The girl spoke like a child; it was difficult to work out what age she was, as the cheetah was so prominent. But those blue eyes were adorable, and she did like cats.
"The water may be nice, but I don't have the clothes for it," and she plucked at the green shirt, even though the sleeves were rolled up. But she couldn't help smiling.
"How about I watch you swim?"
A brief thought occured to her, as to why a cat would like water; but she had no idea as to how the 'DNA mingled' with theirs. Perhaps this Colche girl knew...
Colche Looked at Angharad and giggled a little. It did always confuse her why people were so frightened to be out of their clothes. but okay. She would be happy to be watched.
Without another seconds warning she ran in to the waves and with a very splashy sort of dive jump she was in the water and swimming her long hair trailing behind her like a wedding train. She wasn't in the water for very long though before she came rolling, quite virtually on to the shore. She lay on her back with the water lickign at her fur , her big blue eyes fixed upon the other female. She stood in a swift motion and shook, doggy style, her fur all standing on end as she did so making he rlook extremely fluffy for a few moments before her fur settled back to it's regular look.
Angharad grinned. She couldn't help it; if her mind accepted the bizarreness of a girl being a cheetah, it was just another person having fun in the water.
"You're right, it does look fun," The girl commented as she sat down on the pale sand and smiled. "But I'm not really for the water."
A thought struck her, and a childish sly smile appeared on her face.
"I'll make sandcastles though. And you can help if you want?"
She wasn't sure how paw-hands could mould sand, but she still had real hands, at least.
Colche's furry ears perked at the words, 'sand castles' She grins broadly. Though it fades and she sort of sighs heavily "No bucket" she pouted a bit. She had forgotten her bucket and spade they were sitting beside her chest of drawers in her duplex. Wrinkling her nose some she watched Angharad with a sort of curious air about her. Maybe there were other ways to make sand castles? Tilting her head in a curious catty manner she waited for instructions. new people were always full of information.
"Hey, we don't need a bucket!" Angharad had in truth rarely ever been to the beach; but she'd made snow sculptures and stuff, so it would be the same with sand... right?
For a moment a heavy feeling settled in her stomach as she contemplated the fact that she might not see snow again. But no, there would be something. Fee was bound to think of a plan...
"Here, like this," and Angharad knelt forward, drawing a big circle in the sand with one finger. She couldn't grow her nails elegantly, so not much sand caught under her fingers; when the circle was complete, she started scooping the dryish sand in the middle. It fell through her fingers too much; she frowned before remembering.
"Wait a minute." She scrambled to her feet and pattered further down towards where Colche stood at the edge of the sea, waves gently wshing up and down.
"We can use this sand," and indeed the damp sand was a lot firmer, and Angharad had soon become absorbed in the simple premise of digging a hole.
---TBC---
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 1:53 pm
Nita hadn't slept well that night, having kept bursting into tears and rocking back and forth on the bed, clutching her bear. By mid-morning she had calmed down, although she still felt a bit overwhelmed. After showering and eating a quick lunch, Nita was mostly back to normal, although her nose and eyes were still a bit puffy.
She took a few deep breaths and climbed the steps of the duplex next door. She knocked and hoped that Angharad was in, and wouldn't mind her stopping by...
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:03 pm
Angharad was lying face down on her bed, papers crumpled under her fist. There were a couple of opened boxes strewn on the floor, hospital-clean clothes,a few books, a ream of paper and a box of pencils had been included in her request for supplies. She hadn't bothered with unpacking the clothes yet; at least it meant she could wear some clean tomorrow. It was the paper she had craved, and the ones on her bed were covered in scrawled thoughts and words.
The knock startled her out of her semisomlent state, and she blinked. Fee normally banged on the ceiling (Angharad's floor) before she came up. So.. someone else?
She hopped up, almost tripping over the boxes that still didn't in anyway fill the spartan room. Opening the door cautiously, she blinked. The redhead from next door? She scrambled for a name.
"Hey, .. Nita," She smiled happily and surprised, before sobering a little. "What's up? You want to come in?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:15 pm
"Hey... Do you mind?" Nita tugged at a braid nervously. She wouldn't normally have gone out of her way to seek someone out, but she really needed some company. Some normal company. She peeked past Angharad, hoping she wasn't interrupting anything crucial.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:20 pm
"Not at all. In fact I'll be glad of the company," and Angharad smiled a small smile, opening the door further and gesturing politely in. "Sorry for the mess... I really needed some things of my own, so I ordered them.. but I haven't been bothered to take them out yet." She laughed slightly, closing the door and kicking stuff aside.
She tilted her head as she sat down on the bed, leaving enough space to be sat beside.
"So... how are you holding up?"
Angharad still felt guilty for inadvertantly springng the fact that not all was as it seemed on the girl, and she hugged her knees as she waited for an answer.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:28 pm
Nita glanced around the room and sank gratefully onto the bed. "I.. I was okay, getting along pretty well, trying not to think about stuff." She twirled the end of one braid as she spoke. "I talked to some pretty neat people and learned a bit more about this place..."
She shrugged and figured she'd pass along the warning. "This girl Emelyn said there were a few people to watch out for. She was right." Her voice trailed off and she stared at the floor for a moment.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:39 pm
"You.. met someone like that?" Angharad asked, a note of sympathy creeping in. "The worst I've met was that Lauren girl, but..."
She paused, before continuing.
"Are.. you okay? No-one tried to hurt you or something?" She remembered the David bear looking helpless as he said that the instincts would have forced him to chase her that day.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:48 pm
Oh yeah. Lauren. Nita pushed her to back of her mind to think about later.
"Not.. really. But he screamed and said some pretty horrible things. I'd been at the beach," she started to explain, "And I ran into your friend, Fiona, right? This Zach guy was there, and then another guy, Rex, stopped by. We were just talking about the party Fiona's planning, and then she had to go." Nita took a deep breath, remembering.
"Rex was being really nice, concerned, you know, because I'm new. And then Zach completely freaked the hell out and yelled at us, saying he'd lost control around people and seriously tried to kill them!" She bit her lip, her eyes tearing up again at the memory.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 3:00 pm
Angharad caught her breath, partly from imagining the situation, and partly from concern.After a moment she reached out hesitantly to put her hand on Nita's shoulder. "I'm sure he couldn't, wouldn't be allowed to kill anyone," she said stoutly. The unspoken thought remained in her head; that on an island coverd in cameras, she could not imagine they were not under constant surveillance. She'd seen enough reports on lab animal testing to know that there was no point in wasting valuable test subjects.
But for now, she just kept her hand there still, hoping to be comforting, a least a little.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 3:09 pm
Nita smiled a little and patted Angharad's hand. "Oh I'm sure they have ways of stopping people from gettin seriously injured... That's not what bothered me so much, even though I absolutely hate getting yelled at." She thought for a moment. How to put her fear into words?
"What freaked me out, I think," she began slowly, "Was that he had absolutely lost control. Rex did, too, a bit. They were yelling and pacing and- and growling like animals!" The last part came out in a rush and Nita brushed away a few errant tears. It took all of her self-control not to fall over in a little heap-- she'd done that too much the night before.
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