You must be, if the tale of 52 is to be right.

[tehoniongirl]

[Coming home from town, Jilly doesn't stop to look at the nameplate before opening the door to her room. Why would she? The artist's name had never been on the nameplate for 1105. It was Sakaki's room and it always had been, for longer than Jilly had been in the castle

Comments

[advisortype]

[No words are coming from over here, but there will be a few loud thumps that may coincide with the fact that someone just hurled their journal against a wall.]

[tehoniongirl]

[she's tempted to do the same, Yosuke.]

[advisortype]

[Okay, deep breaths. And he knows Mat liked her, so he better go tell his buddy in person that she's gone now!

Nothing bad can happen!]

[tehoniongirl]

[............/heart breaks]

[ontheclockpro]

[Reno was wandering the halls because really, what else does he have to do with his time? He's been looking at name plates, trying to see how many he can memorize just for kicks when he passes by an...actually open door. So like any human ever, he glances in and...]

[Oh boy, is he looking at an angst scene or something? Now what?]

[tehoniongirl]

[she's set the journal open on the bed in case anyone responds, and is in the process of picking up Fluffy from where it's perched, possibly precariously, on the stack of her art supplies when Reno sticks his head in. Her eyes are starting to look a bit watery, but she manages a thin smile all the same]

Hello?

[ontheclockpro]

Hi...

[oh god watery eyes, this is not good]

I was just...seeing what's on this floor...

[tehoniongirl]

[lucky for him, Jilly's pretty good at masks. She clears her throat a little and sets Fluffy safely down next to the journal, using the motion to pull herself together. When she looks back up, she's still not exactly happy...but she hasn't burst into tears yet, either.]

If you're looking for items of interest...the Doctors keep their TARDII just down the hall. And there's the Insolitus, too. It's a pretty interesting floor.

[one that it looks like she'll be moving off of]

[hard_talker]

[quietly - he recognizes her voice from when he went to the talent show, and --]

The girl from the animal shelter? ... Shit. I ... I know I don't really know you, but.

I'm sorry.

[this is just not Paradisa's day for friendships]

[tehoniongirl]

Me too.

[a pause] Thanks, though.

I think she'll be happier at home. She...wasn't really meant to be put through all the things the castle did, you know?

[hard_talker]

[quietly] .... Is anybody meant to be? I mean ... yeah, I know, life can suck, but this ...?

This place goes beyond.

[tehoniongirl]

[at a time like this, it'd be so easy to agree. But even through the shock, she can hear the pain in his voice as well... so she gathers herself, takes a seat on the bed that no longer belongs to her, and tries to sort out her thoughts.]

I think it's more that this place has everything on the surface. The World As We Know it can be a pretty horrible place too, and just as unexpected. Except, back there, we expect things to be normal. The terrible things that happen to us... they're "like dreams" or "a nightmare"... or maybe we just pretend it all away so we don't have to deal with it.

Here, everything is unexpected. And, I think, that makes it more real. We can't say "How could this happen" or "This can't be real" here, because nothing is real. And everything is. There's no way to pretend it away.

[a pause] I guess... what I'm trying to say is that the bad doesn't negate the good, because the good is just as unexpected and unbelievable and extreme. ...But it can be harder to cope with, because our usual escapes don't work.

[payback]

[A pause; just in her room right now, flipping through the journals, and how convenient she should pick this up.]

Want to come on over, Jilly?

[tehoniongirl]

[there's a pause while she makes sure her voice is steady before she answers] If you're up for the company.

[payback]

Door's open. Come down.

[tehoniongirl]

[she leaves the rest of her things. She can move them later. Instead, she just gathers up Fluffy and Chirp's cage and walks next door. Her eyes are already red when she steps inside, clearing her throat a little]

What a welcome home for you, huh? Sorry about this.

Jilly ]

[huntersdaughter]

[...]

I can make pancakes... or waffles... or s'mores.

[Jo]

[tehoniongirl]

I-

[can't quite feel up to food, right now. Even the treats she'd brought home no longer appealed... comfort food that wasn't very comforting at the moment. But the thought helps]

Tomorrow. I'll take you up on that tomorrow.

Jilly ]

[huntersdaughter]

Of course.

You know, if you need just some company, I'm always willing.

Jo

[tehoniongirl]

Yeah. I mean, I think I'll need that. Tonight it's more just...sorting this out.

[Getting angry at castle-effect Doctors and finding a place to stay for the night]