[OPEN] standing dumb in the light

[glowsferatu]

WHO: Kanaya Maryam and YOU!
WHERE: Dormitory levels
WHAT: Kanaya wakes up, she is not at all fond of her circumstances. And so the Tower receives a glowing alien girl conspicuously and shiveringly sneaking through the hallway.
HOW: Action

[ thirty seconds of sleep paralysis is a hell of an introduction to a new setting. by the time it's worn off, kanaya has found plenty of time to begin panicking. it doesn't look like any memory she's ever had, so the most reasonable explanation is that it must be someone else's. it's a dream bubble, right? it has to be. that doesn't explain the collar. something is wrong here. who put her in this ugly jumpsuit? who would even make such an ugly outfit?

once she's on her feet, she spares a moment to wonder if she should make the bed before deciding that there are bigger problems at hand, and ends up missing her introduction letters in the process. she elects to sneak out into the hallway instead, only to find it's cold. unreasonably cold, especially in this miserable outfit. her best hope is to keep moving, see if the bubble doesn't change if she does, stopping at each corner to peek around it. you never know what you might encounter in these things. ]

Comments

[iron_infidel]

[The cold had started to nip at his nose so to speak. In the moment he was hunched over, trying to keep warm with the cloak he had on hand. Every so often he would lift his head and blow into his hands, creating a wispy cloud around his face. His ears twitch at bit at the sound of one approaching. Slowly the older troll lifts his hand, bringing his hands to curl around his body as he comes to comprehend just who approaches him.

At the sight of her, he can't help but smile. There was no need to process just who she was even if she was in an atrocious garment. Her form matches, horns and even the structure of her face. Younger and elegant, this was the younger version of his lusus. He had to speak to her.]

Hello, young one.

[worldend_dominator]

[Rosa had almost gotten used to this feeling of having someone watch her, but turning around to see no one. However, this time, when she turns around, she can see a strange glowing girl. She almost jumps back in surprise.]

W-who are you?

[glowsferatu]

[ okay what the hell. no, really, just straight up What The Hell. she stops dead in her tracks once she sees him, just trying to imagine what kind of timeline could have produced a guy like him. he wasn't karkat, at least she didn't think so, but the resemblance was pretty plain. ]

Uhhhh.

...Hi.

[glowsferatu]

[ kanaya definitely jumps back. certainly not ready to attack, but on her guard, prepared to defend herself if anything. ]

I could just as easily ask you that very same question!

[worldend_dominator]

I'm one of the Tower residents.

[She couldn't see the girl's face well with this lighting, but she seemed a little familiar.]

[glowsferatu]

Alright, well...what does that even mean? Where is this Tower you refer to?

[ that glow isn't really letting up, either. kanaya's just illuminating up an anxious little storm of her own over here, someone should start handing out shades. ]

[iron_infidel]

[Her hesitation was acceptable and he retreated. He dropped to a more relaxed pose, muttered a cough fro under his breath and slowly came to stand against the wall. He did not approach for fear of spooking her.]

I apologize I am used to the others, knowing of my title and being. I do hope I did not spook you.

[A pause, she looked so much like her. It was hard to look away.]

Perhaps an explanation of the location might be helpful?

[worldend_dominator]

This place. We're inside a Tower. Currently, there's no way out. Nor is there a way of contacting anything outside the Tower.

[hystericull]

[Not amused. This kid was not amused - and definitely not fucking warm, either, despite the brand new winter coat that he was trying so desperately to homogenize with. On the upside, said winter coat had just been freshly washed, to the jubilation of Tower inhabitants and nose-owners everywhere. Despite being a sour-spirited, filthy-mouthed basket case, Gamzee Makara radiated the pleasant scent of Mountain Breeze detergent.]

[Bent awkwardly in some sort of vertical pretzel before one of the Network terminals, the boy's fingers slammed on the keys, sending half-hearted death threats and strings of profanities through cyberspace to randomly-selected recipients. Honestly, the whole procedure was only an attempt to get some circulation going through his fingers. The messages he was sending were probably too jumbled to read anyway, as shivers wracked his hands every time he'd even considered turning a thought into text.]

[An approaching figure soon distracted him from his stewing, and the more he ignored it, the more its tentative movements on the edge of his vision irritated him. Snapping his head around rather quickly, he caught sight of Kanaya.]

[Again.]

[He wouldn't have given her a second thought if she hadn't been in that fucking hideous jumpsuit. Not hideous in the unfashionable sense - because this particular troll was lacking not only all senses, but especially the fashion variety - but hideous in the "extremely hard to piss" sense. That was an endeavor he wasn't too keen on experiencing a second time.]

[He didn't really have the energy to deal with another newcomer Maryam, especially since this place seemed to pluck people out of any old time it fucking felt. Maybe she wouldn't even know who the hell he was? Whatever. It'd been so swift, her disappearance and return, that he was just a little curious, is all.]

[When her wandering put her within a respectable distance for conversation, he placed his bony chin on the palm of his hand, still curling in on himself in that chair to keep warm.]

You fuckin' be forgetting something after you up and bounced, motherfucker? Fastest motherfuckin' turnaround rate a brother all was ever to be fucking seeing, for fuckin' real.

[myblueskies]

[Just to add to the feeling of surrealness have a tiny barefooted human waving at you as he passes.] Hello Kanaya!

[Not even noticing the different clothes, mostly because his head hurts, he sounds funny because his nose is all blocked and he keeps sneezing.] Ken [A pause to rub his nose] Ken is calling a meeting soon, if you've got spare warm things you can share can you bring them? [And another sneeze...]

[septette]

[ Sup. Around this corner is a Remilia, wings flapping in slight irritation, raising an eyebrow at...sudden glowing girl.

Wait. Horns. Yellow eyes. The face seems mildly familiar, too, from the leftovers of Karkat's memories resurfacing in her mind. She's one of the trolls.

Remilia just yawns. ]

Ohé! Which troll are you?

[tentacletrainer]

[[Rose was mostly attracted to the light. Light, at this point, was good. It was good and it was safe and it--

It was radiating from a very familiar person. Color the Hero of Light surprised, but not surprised enough to keep from glancing over her shoulder as she approaches her friend. By her side is a worried purple fox-like creature, but all it seems to be doing is following at this point. She's given up on trying to herd her trainer to her room.]]

Kanaya? I had no idea you were here too.

[[Pause to glance around in an almost nervous manner, scrutinizing their surroundings, checking to make sure no one is behind Kanaya...]]

...are you wandering around alone?

[glowsferatu]

I suppose it...um, could be.

[ she crosses her arms and idly examines the wall next to her, basically anything that would let her not directly look at him. suddenly this ridiculous jumpsuit feels that much more embarrassing. ]

Though I can't really say I'm familiar with whatever title it may be that you carry. ...If I'm expected to, I mean.

[glowsferatu]

And you couldn't just... [ it only now sinks in how dead the other girl's eyes don't look, which takes her by surprise. they had encountered other dreamers before, sure, but they were at least...somewhat identifiable. ] No one has yet attempted simply waking up?

[worldend_dominator]

[A sigh.]

If only it were that easy.

[glowsferatu]

You.

[ well would you look who it is? after a year of fruitless searching, he suddenly reveals himself of his own accord! much as she may respect this sudden desire to eschew cowardice, she's not about to let the opportunity slip past her, either.

she hunches her shoulders immediately, assuming a more battle-ready stance, then reaches out her hand to accept her weapon, only to find nothing happening. okay she knows it should be there, what is the deal? where is her sylladex at all, for that matter?

she would pat her pockets, but she doesn't have any. these aren't her regular clothes, and even if they were those wouldn't have pockets either. really the whole pocket-patting instinct is entirely absurd to begin with, so she just dismisses it instead. she took him barehanded last time, she should be able to do so again. ]

[glowsferatu]

[ there is a small human child who apparently knows her. okay, that happens in dream bubbles, there are a lot of hers floating about, much as she'd really rather not have to think about that. he's making weird noises and she's wondering if she should be concerned, she hasn't encountered that before. this ken fellow will be another mystery.

warm things would be nice to have, he is right about that. ]

What?

[glowsferatu]

Um.

[ okay she legitimately has no idea what she's looking at here right now. she at least thinks it's a girl, but what kind of girl is really anyone's guess. "humanoid" is about as far as she can conclude. ]

Well, that's not exactly privileged information, but generally an introduction is expected to carry some level of exchange to it.

[glowsferatu]

[ oh thank goodness someone she actually knows. she exhales without realizing she'd been holding her breath. rose will probably know what's going on, or at least will be better enough at pretending to get some answers out of this, she hopes. ]

I hadn't really seen anyone to have accompany me. I guess I've just been...catching my bearings, though some may have rolled off into parts unknown.

[ she glances over at the small beast that rose has with her, frowning. ] What do we know about this place, exactly?

[glowsferatu]

[ she shrugs. ] It can be difficult at times, but usually a good jolt will do the trick if any particular bubble isn't as welcoming as you'd hoped.

hi I am not late at all, nope

[geometry]

[Well that sure is a Kanaya head, a glowing Kanaya head, peering around the corner. And there's a glowing Kanaya body attached to it.]

[What.]

[Equius stares at the troll for a second, trying to figure out whether it was a hallucination or not (he'd been getting quite a few of those lately). It certainly seemed like a hallucination, since last time he checked Maryam had not turned into a night light. But just to be sure, he had to grab her attention somehow...]

...Uh.

[As usual, he is a master of grace and eloquence.]

[glowsferatu]

[ her gaze darts to him the moment he opens his mouth. equius, okay, that's...yellow. is this some kind of roleplay he's participating in? is it a...uh...kind of roleplay that she probably doesn't want to know anything about or witness in a million lifetimes?

questions, big questions, important questions. questions she honestly doesn't know if she wants answered. she tries to hold back a cringe but fails spectacularly. she is not moving from the corner, but she can't look away. he has her full and undivided attention and she doesn't like it one bit. ]

[geometry]

[If this is some roleplay, it is seriously an impressive one involving a lot of Spatial distortion, because he has met your Equius, okay. That dude is scary... and also a million times his size in terms of muscle.]

[He finds himself staring back at her, steadily growing more worried. Was there something wrong? Oh god, the last Kanaya had been told about him in advance, hadn't she? Eridan had told her. Oh god. She's thinking that he's the other Equius. Oh god. Oh god.]

Hello. There.

[The voice is quiet, shaky, and higher pitched than what the blueblood Equius should be capable of. Hooray for a lack of troll testosterone.]

[glowsferatu]

[ as she stares at him in subdued horror, she can't help but notice certain details. the tone of voice, the change in physique, the undamaged horn, the distinct lack of ghostly eyes. this may not actually be what she thinks it is. it may be something weirder altogether.

slowly, cautiously, she steps out from behind her corner and stands up straight, hands clasped in front of her. she's considerably taller than redkan, but she wouldn't know that herself yet. the only indication of her caste in this outfit is the jade her lips are painted with while they're pursed tightly, the corners still pulling downwards. she's a little overwhelmed with wondering what the hell is even going on. ]

Um. Hi.

[worldend_dominator]

Bubble?

[She has no idea what this child is talking about.]