IC contact (sp) / text

[stoicloyalty]

I will reply to whatever messages I am left.

I will only reply in text form.

Apologies.

Comments

Voice message

[vinovidivici]

Chane?

Alright, it wasn’t even that bad and I'm not livin' in some tragic love story but. Call me when you get this.

You know what, I’m comin’ over, I can at least check your roof.

[ Caring about her is one thing, he's not used to worrying. ]

text;

[stoicloyalty]

[ Currently she is occupied in the boarding-house, but the least she can do is answer the message and write a quick note before closing her NV again. ]

I'm fine, come to the house

Text/Action

[vinovidivici]

I'm glad. I'll be there in ten.

[ Text is unusual for him but it gives him a chance to regroup his thoughts. By the time he arrives he's slightly kicking himself for panicking. He knocks on the front door as he opens it, sticking his head around when there's enough space and calling up. ] I'm here!

action;

[stoicloyalty]

[ At that point she has not the time to check her NV as she rushes to find those in the house she does know, and check for signs of life in those she does not know personally. It is the least she can do in her slightly panicked state when the crashing of furniture in the nearby rooms brings all sorts of terrible scenarios to mind. Her stops along the way to the ground floor are few, and it only takes the clicking of the door swinging open to shock her back into defence mode, holding tightly onto the stairway banister for support should the building start to shake again. Claire's voice quells the momentary panic almost immediately, of course, but it takes more than a few seconds for her pulse and tension to fade, gazing down at him from the middle of the stairway with a faintly terrified expression. ]

[vinovidivici]

[ The flash of her dress through the bannisters catches in the corner of his eye, so he's already turned expectantly when she looks down a second later. Her expression removes any lingering regrets he has about seeming weak in his message, doubtful of the resilience of his world (and surely her unchanged presence in the slight disarray and still-unsettled patterns of dust in the air prove that she is a foundational presence in his world now). Better to accept it and show her the same care she was clearly showing her housemates - she wouldn't make such an expression for her own sake. That realisation, and the time he had walking over here let him word what he was thinking more frankly as he starts up the stairs. ]

I was worried. Not much I can do if you're here and I'm off in some other place. I oughta've known you wouldn't vanish like that. [ But there's clearly other things on her mind right now, and the protection he offers does not extend to them. ] Everyone alright here?

[stoicloyalty]

[ The quake has stopped, she tells herself, though her body is slow and stubborn to respond accordingly and relax. Fear hasn't shot through her veins for such time that even breathing feels forced, and a withheld gasp forces its way out of her with a shudder as Claire approaches the staircase. What he says sounds reassuring of tone yet does not register with her at first, not until she can taste the plaster dust from the walls on her tongue and remember where exactly she is, why he has come

[vinovidivici]

[ He lays a hand on the bannister. It slides ahead of him as he walks, collecting fine grains of white power shaken from the floors above in the creases between his fingers. From the way she moved it was clear she wasn’t hurt, at least, but that shaking breath... As much as he’d rather stay near her he feels an obligation - a desire - to alleviate her fears, and that can best be achieved by quickly confirming that her housemates are unharmed. Reaching her he presses his hand to her arm, leaving the thin outline of his thumb and forefinger in pale powder against her black glove. ]

Which rooms haven’t you checked?

[stoicloyalty]

[ The initial touch makes her freeze up, shoulders tensing sharply at a sensation she was not expecting. Despite the stability his presence gives her and her own attempts at soothing her mind, her body refuses to give her any respite from the waves of nervous energy. It is with forced effort that she pulls in a breath and opens her eyes to gaze at the front of Claire's coat-- surely this, the sight of him and his comfort, can quell the fear-- and it takes some time. Her eyes close once more as she shakes her head slowly in refusal, those rooms are unoccupied. The ones who stayed can take care of themselves. ]