(Untitled)

[saikamai]

Cuthbert stepped out of the standing-bath, his hair sticking to the sides of his face in wet strands. He was in a particularly fine mood, having had the singular experience of a hot, ever-running shower for the first time one week ago, and just now enjoying his sixth no less. He'd bathed, before, of course, no matter what Cort might say, but either

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[1000_cranes]

Charlie was, not to put too fine a point on it, up to her elbows in dirty underwear, a mix of hers and Donald's, and she barely looked up whens someone walked into the laundry behind her.

"Oh, hey," she said, finally, huffing red bangs out of her eyes and smiling, flushed in the face, her freckles standing out. "You look puzzled as anythin', sugar."

She gave him a smile designed to be reassuring.

[saikamai]

"Hello," he said brightly, peering from around the hill of laundry in his arms. "Could you show me a washtub?" Cuthbert gave her a Aren't-I-Silly sort of look, rolling his eyes.

[1000_cranes]

"A washtub?" Charlie looked puzzled for a second, trying to figure out what he meant. He kind of reminded her of Hiro, the way he pulled his face and smiled at her. It dawned on her.

"Oh. Oh. You wanna wash your clothes, huh? Well, we ain't got any washtubs, but these machines'll do it for you."

[saikamai]

Bert followed her gaze to the line of white machines standing against the wall. "Ah," he said, squinting and thinking of the music-box in the recreational room. Bert walked over to one of them, resting his clothes in a large pile on top of one, and examined another, gingerly lifting the lid. He looked back over his shoulder to check with her. "It washes the clothes for you?

[and_the_dragon]

There wasn't a particular reason, other than boredom, why George was hanging out in the Compound on a perfectly good day. Other than the fact that he'd been out in the sun too much already this week nothing specifically barred him from going outdoors, though he didn't much care for the unpleasant sensation too much sun caused on his pale, be-freckled arms and legs. On a normal day it was just too bloody nice to wear full length trousers, and he didn't appreciate the fact that in order to be at a comfortable temperature he risked sun poisoning. True, there was sun lotion, but George had not quite mastered the art of applying it.

He did not know in particular why he had remained in the Compound until he saw Cuthbert, arms laden with (he guessed) dirty clothing and smiled deviously. He followed a few steps behind Cuthbert silently and snickered to himself as the boy entered the laundry room. He leaned against the door jamb silently.

[saikamai]

Cuthbert looked high and low for a washtub, or scrub-bucket, or anything that looked like he could put water and soap and a shirt in and have it come out clean. Mayhap I'm in the wrong room, he considered. It was possible. The Compound was large, with many rooms. He took one last look before turning around, and his eyes lit on the white, boxy machines lining the wall. He thought of the jook-box. These might be machines for washing clothes. Bert dropped the pile on top of one of them and began to examine the one beside it.

[and_the_dragon]

In his long history of pranking, George had learned well the Cardinal Rules of Surprise, the guidelines that governed the ways in which wags such as himself snuck up on their unsuspecting victims. The Cardinal Rules read in this order:

1. Follow target for several minutes or until alone.

2. Make sure target is unsuspecting.

3. Strike without mercy.

Bert certainly was unsuspecting, and George had followed him for several moments. He had watched deviously from the doorway while Bert puzzled over the laundry room. Now came striking without mercy. He crept, silent as demiguise, up behind Bert, where he halted for a moment.

"The clothes go inside," he said, in a normal tone of voice, directly into Bert's ear.

[saikamai]

Bert started violently, hands clamping onto the edge of the washer. He paused, eyes clenched shut and a reluctant smile tugging at his mouth. "Thankee-sai," he said through his teeth. "The question is, will you fit?" Bert turned around and lifted a hand to George's neck, mock-wringing it dramatically.

[sickof_swimming]

"Cuthbert?" Ariel said from behind the boy. She could tell the differences between him and Neil much easier, now that Curthbert was dry and out of danger. "Do you need help?"

[saikamai]

Bert wheeled around. It was Ariel, the red-haired girl who'd all but saved his life upon arrival. He'd wondered when he'd be seeing her again.

"Ah, Ariel! Yes, I need to do some wash," he said. "But I think I'm in the wrong room. How are you?"

[sickof_swimming]

Ariel's eyebrows rose, because the machines for washing were right there in front of him. "You've found it, take a look," she said, gesturing through the door.

"I've been good, how are you? Aside from washing problems."

[saikamai]

"Ah," he said distractedly, looking back over his shoulder again. "Very well, thankee-sai, ah..." Cuthbert turned back to her. "Where's the wash-tub?"

[poison_lipstick]

Saffron was mighty good at quick thinking, so normally, when something shocked her she was able to be quick on her feet and handle the situation well. She'd just been fixing to head through the laundry room and into the storage room, to see if the clothes box was in a mood to give her something decent, when she got a shock she couldn't shake off.

It wasn't Neil; that much she knew. She could tell by the expression on his face, by the way he stood. And as far as she'd known, Neil was the only one on the island who looked like him. The one she'd cared about far more than she'd ever be like to admit. Apparently that wasn't the case, not anymore, and the shock of a second person who looked so much like Chris hit her unexpectedly, a mix of surprise and pain evident on her face for a moment before she was able to school her expression.

[saikamai]

Cuthbert saw someone enter out of the corner of his eye, and turned to look, arms full. There was a woman standing there, giving Bert a very disconcerting look.

"Sai," he said, and then felt a bit sheepish; he obviously spoke the same language as most of these people, but his speech made him just different enough that people seemed to have difficulty understanding him. "Miss," he tried again, "is everything all right?"

[poison_lipstick]

Saffron shook herself mentally - no weakness, gorramit, no more time for ruttin' weakness - and smiled at the boy, an easy, charming smile. "I'm all right, sugar," she replied. "You just look a lot like someone who used to be here, someone I knew." Now that the shock had passed and she was looking at him with her usual practiced eye, she could see that he was several years younger than Chris had been.

[saikamai]

"Huh," Bert said, musing. "Well, I hope he was a sight better at figuring this place out than his twin," he said with a wry smile. He set his pile of laundry down on one of the trembling white machines and crouched to look down low for a washtub, hands on his knees. Bert looked at her sideways, brows raised. "I'd give my kingdom for directions to the laundry room- or if thee could tell me where the washtubs are kept, that'd be a help as well."