towerofanimus | Cripplekat: Attempt to clim8 stairs.

Naminé had been meaning to spend a little time in the library for some time now, but with all the mess that had been going on recently, she hadn't had the drive. Now that that was over (at least for now, and hopefully forever) she still found herself with some lingering thoughts that she'd much rather put to rest. So, it seemed as good a time as any to find something with which to distract herself. She might have instead chosen to visit the aquarium room had there not been an incident there a while back that she wasn't eager to repeat.

She also wasn't eager to pass through a few of the specific floors between the dormitories and the library in question and, after all, it was a shorter trip to take the elevator down and then climb up the few floors to the library. That was how she ended up ascending the staircase behind Karkat, and it wasn't until she was fairly close that she looked up from the stairs and saw him. Blinking, she stopped. It was kind of hard to fail to recognize him, even from behind. Hadn't he been in the infirmary? That was a little while back, but... well, maybe he was alright, even if he didn't look quite right from back there. "Karkat...?"

By this point, Karkat has slowed his ascent considerably, leaning against the wall to take a breather when he hears Naminé's voice. Promptly, he straightens enough to preserve his pride and offers her that little sleazy smirk he just can't seem to keep away.

"Sup," Karkat replied smoothly, running his undamaged hand through his hair, casually wiping a bit of sweat off onto his sleeve. "Surprised your out after all the shit that's been going down."

She definitely noticed his pause, but said nothing. Well, he was smirking, and although that wasn't enough to convince her that he was totally okay (especially when she was fairly familiar with the ego-saving techniques of those who had pride to preserve) it at least proved he was healthy enough to fake it. She tilted her head slightly at the greeting, then gave him a faint smile in return. "You are." It was said very benignly but was probably intended as both a joke and an observation.

That comment, though, wiped the smile off of her face fairly efficiently. "I... had it pretty easy." All things considered, anyway. "But I think it's best if I try to-- keep my mind off of some things, and I'm not going to be able to do that in my room." Especially since being trapped in one room was all too reminiscent of certain other hopeless situations. She attempted to smile again along with that to downplay her concerns, then glanced briefly over what remained of his injuries. "...What about you?" She did not add, 'I'm surprised you're out, too,' for the sake of his pride.

"Eh," he started, waving one hand as if it were no big deal. "I won't lie, it's pretty nice to be fucking walking around again and not stuck in that bed." Even though she didn't say it, he could tell she was thinking it -- it wasn't as if he wasn't aware of how potentially stupid this idea of his was. Still, he didn't spare feelings jams for just anyone. Then again, he couldn't exactly continue his hour sessions per day to console people with their problems.

He also kind of liked Naminé, so maybe he could spare a few minutes to try and help her out.

"Yeah? Then what's eating you that you need the wander in the first place?"

"I'm sure. It's never easy being trapped in one place." And she knew that from personal experience, too. Funny enough, it tied in well to what was, in fact, 'eating her'. The thought of being trapped cemented her decision not to suggest that he go back to bed; she knew what it was like, and she wasn't about to try to make him stay somewhere if he didn't want to. He could take care of himself, couldn't he?

The question seemed to make her uncomfortable, and she opened her mouth to respond, then closed it again before glancing at the ground, starting to shrug, then stopping, her shoulder returning to a slightly higher position than they'd previously been. "It's complicated." At least, parts of it were, and really, she never did feel comfortable talking about her problems. And yet... maybe it would help. A moment more's hesitation, and, "I guess you could say I'm still recovering from the experiment. I was in group 'D', if that means anything."

Karkat watched her expression change -- anyone else might've missed those subtle hints of discomfort and other such things, but as Karkat was a man who dealt in matters of the heart, he was very in tune to such things. His shoulders roll a bit, trying to shrug off the stiffness in his limbs.

"I don't much know what group had to do with what, but I guess I get you," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head. Did that mean he had to supply his group as well? "I went through it too. Group B, though."

She tilted her head slightly, considering this. It was certainly useful information, since perhaps by asking him about his situation she would be able to make certain of what she'd already thought about the effects of being in group B. It may have seemed a tiny bit off topic, but it was in fact entirely relevant to her answer to his original question.

"I know some people who were in group B. Did you get really suspicious of everyone?" That had seemed to be the common theme among them, anyway.

"Yeah. Felt like everyone was out to kill me," Karkat muttered, narrowing his eyes. "Pretty stupid. Couldn't fucking stop it. Even people I knew wouldn't dare do shit like that."

He didn't bother mentioning how shitty it felt. That went without saying.

"Yes. That's how it was for them, too. One of them managed to keep herself together, but it seemed like it was hard." She could surmise the unpleasantness of the situation, yes, and her own expression was accordingly sympathetic. "I'm sorry. I know it wasn't much fun." So to speak, anyway. Naminé's assumption had apparently been correct, although it didn't do all that much to make her feel better about the situation that the paranoia inflicted on group B had caused with a certain... almost-friend? Former-almost-friend? ~~She also took note of the mention of the people he knew with an 'even' in front, but said nothing about it.~~

"I was lucky enough to not have to go through that. Instead, my-- I don't know if everyone in my group got the same thing, but for me it was... hopelessness."

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject