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towerofanimus2013-12-11 09:07 am
provenworth) wrote in towerofanimus2013-12-11 09:07 am
Entry tags:
And then I woke up with a better focus, my goal clear in the midst of the fog
Characters: Elena and you!
Setting: Various! See prompts below.
Format: Either/Or
Summary: After spending a few weeks on her dead planet, Elena has finally returned to Tower. Clearly she needs to find out what has happened during her absence, as well as let those close to her know she’s returned, and start looking into a few things that were mentioned to her before her leave.
Warnings: None to speak of at this point.
[Notes slipped under recipient doors]
R,
Floor 100 at 0700h. Will be here until you arrive.
~E
S,
Just checking in; just got back. Meeting with Reno first, but then I’ll be on the 4th floor. Should be there around 11h. Come by when you’re free after this time – I’d like to get an update on the going on’s. Bring Xion if you can.
~E
X,
Just got back to the Tower after a short absence and would like to check in with you. I’m meeting with Reno first, but then I’ll be on the 4th floor around 11h. Would like a debrief from you and Shion on any recent incidents.
~E
[Prompt A – Floor 100 | Early Morning]
[Returns to the Tower always start the same way – with that uncomfortable paralysis that forced you to stare up at the ceiling above you, leaving you bored if you didn’t panic. Which Elena didn’t do, given the numerous times she’d been through the process. Once able to move, she checks on the time before writing several short notes, slipping them under the door of the recipients, then moving onwards to nearly the topmost part of the Tower.
It doesn’t take Elena long to get to the floor, though the trip was only partially paid attention to, her mind slipping back to the weeks on her dead planet. It’s what drove her to this floor. To remember what Gaia had been like before its destruction. And Elena is not left wanting when she steps onto the floor.
Walls change and shift, molding into the familiar setting of Healin Lodge. The wall of windows that overlooked the drive up to the building, properly shaded to allow just the right amount of sunlight. The couch that stretched beneath the large, framed ShinRa logo. The small coffee table with a pair of half-filled mugs. Despite herself, Elena bends over, reaching out to pick up the cup, only to watch the image flicker with her hand in the middle. Which, in turn, earned a very disappointed, if not heartbroken, expression.]
[Prompt B – Floor 4 | Mid-Morning to Early Afternoon]
[With the temperature in the Tower getting to uncomfortable levels of cold, Elena opts to not engage in too much activity that would cause her to lose body head. And seeing that coffee wasn't an option, she’s at the lounge, curled up under pile of pillows, a physics book she borrowed from the library on her way back down atop the mass in her lap. That’s what would explain the confused and perplexed look on her face as she slowly works her way through the very difficult read.]
[Prompt C – Floor 19 | Mid-Afternoon to Early Evening]
[So that physics book she got was way beyond her understanding on the subject, but Elena is determined to grasp the concept. There had been comments made to her before her little absence that had made her curious and, instead of going to the source first, she wanted to brush up her understandings first.
So she’s in the 19th floor library, a couple of books tucked under her arm: Introduction to Organic Chemistry, Introduction to Biochemistry, and Introduction to Analytical Chemistry. And she’s still searching for even more books.]
[Prompt D - Floor 77 | Late Evening - Closed to Reno]
[She had told Reno to come to the sauna floor later that evening after she took care of several other items that she needed to address. Like starting her collection of educational materials that would help her get a better grasp of the situation in the Tower. Maybe find a way to help put together the bits and pieces of information she had picked up and try to make sense of it all. And given the headache that she felt coming on near the end of the day, it was going to take some time.
Elena doesn't bother with the gender specific rooms, checking the unisex room to see if there was anybody already there before slipping into the unusually large room. Even wrapped in a towel - though really she had to question whether the towel was <i>meant</i> to be barely larger than a washcloth - she felt exposed. Vulnerable. The locker with her name on it was a nice bonus, locking up her clothes and firearm from possible theft. But that meant any potential danger would have to be fought hand-to-hand and she very much did not like the idea of having to do so half naked.
Sitting back on one of the benches along the wall, she poured water over the burning hot rocks, increasing the steam in the room, and waited. When Reno finally does show up, he might hear a soft, almost reverent tune being hummed in the room.]
Setting: Various! See prompts below.
Format: Either/Or
Summary: After spending a few weeks on her dead planet, Elena has finally returned to Tower. Clearly she needs to find out what has happened during her absence, as well as let those close to her know she’s returned, and start looking into a few things that were mentioned to her before her leave.
Warnings: None to speak of at this point.
[Notes slipped under recipient doors]
R,
Floor 100 at 0700h. Will be here until you arrive.
~E
S,
Just checking in; just got back. Meeting with Reno first, but then I’ll be on the 4th floor. Should be there around 11h. Come by when you’re free after this time – I’d like to get an update on the going on’s. Bring Xion if you can.
~E
X,
Just got back to the Tower after a short absence and would like to check in with you. I’m meeting with Reno first, but then I’ll be on the 4th floor around 11h. Would like a debrief from you and Shion on any recent incidents.
~E
[Prompt A – Floor 100 | Early Morning]
[Returns to the Tower always start the same way – with that uncomfortable paralysis that forced you to stare up at the ceiling above you, leaving you bored if you didn’t panic. Which Elena didn’t do, given the numerous times she’d been through the process. Once able to move, she checks on the time before writing several short notes, slipping them under the door of the recipients, then moving onwards to nearly the topmost part of the Tower.
It doesn’t take Elena long to get to the floor, though the trip was only partially paid attention to, her mind slipping back to the weeks on her dead planet. It’s what drove her to this floor. To remember what Gaia had been like before its destruction. And Elena is not left wanting when she steps onto the floor.
Walls change and shift, molding into the familiar setting of Healin Lodge. The wall of windows that overlooked the drive up to the building, properly shaded to allow just the right amount of sunlight. The couch that stretched beneath the large, framed ShinRa logo. The small coffee table with a pair of half-filled mugs. Despite herself, Elena bends over, reaching out to pick up the cup, only to watch the image flicker with her hand in the middle. Which, in turn, earned a very disappointed, if not heartbroken, expression.]
[Prompt B – Floor 4 | Mid-Morning to Early Afternoon]
[With the temperature in the Tower getting to uncomfortable levels of cold, Elena opts to not engage in too much activity that would cause her to lose body head. And seeing that coffee wasn't an option, she’s at the lounge, curled up under pile of pillows, a physics book she borrowed from the library on her way back down atop the mass in her lap. That’s what would explain the confused and perplexed look on her face as she slowly works her way through the very difficult read.]
[Prompt C – Floor 19 | Mid-Afternoon to Early Evening]
[So that physics book she got was way beyond her understanding on the subject, but Elena is determined to grasp the concept. There had been comments made to her before her little absence that had made her curious and, instead of going to the source first, she wanted to brush up her understandings first.
So she’s in the 19th floor library, a couple of books tucked under her arm: Introduction to Organic Chemistry, Introduction to Biochemistry, and Introduction to Analytical Chemistry. And she’s still searching for even more books.]
[Prompt D - Floor 77 | Late Evening - Closed to Reno]
[She had told Reno to come to the sauna floor later that evening after she took care of several other items that she needed to address. Like starting her collection of educational materials that would help her get a better grasp of the situation in the Tower. Maybe find a way to help put together the bits and pieces of information she had picked up and try to make sense of it all. And given the headache that she felt coming on near the end of the day, it was going to take some time.
Elena doesn't bother with the gender specific rooms, checking the unisex room to see if there was anybody already there before slipping into the unusually large room. Even wrapped in a towel - though really she had to question whether the towel was <i>meant</i> to be barely larger than a washcloth - she felt exposed. Vulnerable. The locker with her name on it was a nice bonus, locking up her clothes and firearm from possible theft. But that meant any potential danger would have to be fought hand-to-hand and she very much did not like the idea of having to do so half naked.
Sitting back on one of the benches along the wall, she poured water over the burning hot rocks, increasing the steam in the room, and waited. When Reno finally does show up, he might hear a soft, almost reverent tune being hummed in the room.]
no subject
[He's happy to be her blanket, lowering his head until it rests against hers. Her body felt so frail and little in his arms, something to protect with his life, if she'd let him.]
If this's what ya need, I'm listening. If y'need to cry, I'm here. Anything you want to tell me, I'll accept.
[They were partners, and how many times has she reminded him by now? How could he ask her to support him if he doesn't in this? Gently, he nuzzles into her neck, planting a soft kiss there.]
If you need to tell me everything, I want to hear it.
no subject
[The sound is soft and affirmative. Understanding, though conflicted. Part of her had wanted to tell the tale to get him to understand that she was as broken as he was, in her own way. That she had a better understanding of what he had gone through because she'd had her own trials and tribulations. Ones that nearly killed her.
And maybe some part of her wanted sympathy over what had happened, ignoring the fact that they were Turks. This was their job and the risk involved was accepted and under stood by all. But the sympathy wasn't deserved, not when it had been because of her own failure that the course of events had played out the way they had.]
....Tch...Listen to me. Going on about something that can't be changed. [His face in her neck earns a little affectionate nuzzle in return, a hand lifting from her knees to press slightly against the exposed cheek. This was supposed to be their time before the word of the Tower barged in. Reminded them of where they were.] I've been told you've been rather busy while I was gone....
no subject
[It's mumbled and distracted. The heat and her closeness is too relaxing for a conversation like that, though, and he focuses back on what she said.]
What can't be changed, El? Told ya, if you need to talk, I'm here. You've heard me go on like an idiot long 'nough...
[Giving her one last squeeze, he pulls back a little, concern and interest on his face. And no small amount of curiosity. Anything she had to tell him was important in his book.]
Would it be love if I didn't listen? Honest question.
no subject
[She had been hoping it would be a good distraction. To talk shop and discuss the status of the Tower, the recent events, anything to get off the topic. Which was causing the internal push and pull to tell or not to tell to become rougher. More frustrating and hard to ignore.]
Its not that at all. I know you're listening. Its just... [She's conflicted. But at least she can settle on telling him a part of the story that was easier to share because it is a side effect to the part she didn't feel comfortable sharing.]
Did anybody tell you anything about a sickness called the Geostigma?
no subject
[Now that he's not blocking it, the memories of walking through Midgar the few days after Meteor fell were far too vivid. Rufus going missing... and then they started the search. It'd been far too easy in the days after arriving in the Tower to block those memories, forgetting even things like seeing Veld and their colleagues again.
He's putting it down to trauma, but it's still disorienting at times.]
Rufus had just gotten kidnapped, we were looking for vehicles and a place to set up base for the effort. Hard with just the four of us. I remember Tseng and you watching each other carefully after one of you touched the crap off a body.
Cloud told me it'd been a big problem even later. Why?
no subject
[And it wasn't prejudice on who it affected, who it contaminated. There had been no time to ask why the four of them didn't fall ill and Rufus did. Nor did they bother to wonder how they had managed to take care of him for so long and not get infected themselves.]
...Ahh. I had forgotten about that. Thankfully we were both fine after that point.
[But they'd been terrified because they were so careful when taking care of Rufus. Had always worn gloves whenever he was having an attack.]
Understanding that Geostigma is caused by somebody contracting Jenova's cells, and understanding that the Remnants were segments of Sephiroth broken into three men, I am forced to assume that there is a risk that I may fall to the Geostigma as well.
[She's talking like she was giving a report, disconnecting the emotion from fact. Forcing herself to remain logical.]
How this plays out here, with bodies that aren't even ours, will be left for further investigation.
no subject
...Elena. It's been months. If you were exposed, you'd have been showing by now. And believe me, I haven't seen anything on you.
no subject
[And, to be honest, she was paranoid. Now that she had given the events that had occurred before her arrival, she's terrified of what the Tower could cause. And it was better she at least be preemptive in case it did.
She breaths a little squeaking noise when his arms tighten, fingers massaging muscle to help bring some him some calm.]
.....Can I ask you a question?
no subject
[Forcing himself to relax isn't as easy as he thought it'd be, but he tries for her sake.
If she does have Geostigma... what does that mean for them?]
Ask, babe.