|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Mar 12, 2006 3:06 pm
♥ Roleplay Begins Here ♥
~
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 9:01 pm
[ Message temporarily off-line ]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 9:02 pm
♥ RP Log ♥
~ Valentine unlocked the door and stumbled back into the duplex very shortly after leaving it. A world of care seemed to have seized her in that short time, and her shoulders were bowed and her step was shuffled. Dropping her handbag on the ground next to her bed, she collapsed onto the comfortingly cool sheets, pressing her face into her pillow. She knew her tears were smudging her makeup onto the white cotton, but she felt lethargic enough to not care. I wonder if Jennifer will think of me at all, Valentine thought, heaving a sigh. Rolling back out of her bed, she crawled over to one of her suitcases and rummaged through, coming up with an inhaler and a plain navy blue, extremely oversized shirt. She took a puff from her inhaler and muffled her quiet sobs in the shirt for a minute, then wriggled out of her current babydoll top, intending to change into the prized shirt she was holding.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:45 pm
Zach looked visibly concerned when Valentine went off in hysterics. He followed her into the duplex, intending to find a way to repeat what he'd said less harshly. However, while slipping into the door he had made a sweep of the room with his eyes. When he next focused back on Valentine, she had become topless.
There seemed to be a pattern of that on this island. He blushed furiously and was glad she hadn't turned around. He cleared his throat a little to indicate his presence, though he was ready to run should she start throwing things or screaming. He didn't know what to expect from women.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:40 pm
Valentine heard someone clear their throat and gasped, pulling the new shirt down rapidly. Her face was a dull, solid red when she turned around, though it faded slightly when she saw it was Zach. For a moment, she was afraid it had been someone she didn't know, or someone she didn't want to see...Which sort of included the man standing in the doorway. "Zach. What is it?" Her voice was flat and matter-of-fact, and her expression changed to one of relative disgruntlement.
Valentine's face was tear-streaked, but somehow her plastic beauty managed to turn even that into something useful. She now looked pitiful and depressed, even as she maintained her disgruntled frown.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 5:20 pm
Zach took a step backward. He gave her a look of pity and spoke. "Listen, Valentine... I'm sorry. I thought it would be better than finding out the- the hard way. That's all."
He did not, of course, go into any explicit detail about what sorts of hard ways there were to discover the island's dirty little secret.
Valentine seemed to be taking it hard. Her expression, and the tears... it wasn't something you could easily just come to terms with.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 6:17 pm
"I don't know if I'm inclined to believe you, Zach." Valentine tried to make her voice sound steely and hard, but it caught, and in the end just emphasized her fear. "I mean, for all I know, you may be some nutcase who's delusional and sent to the island for rehab."
Valentine closed her suitcase with a muffled thump, then did a one-eighty and dumped the contents of her handbag onto the floor. Cell phone, Palm Pilot, iPod nano, and other things all fell onto the floor. She put the earbuds for the Nano in her ears, stuck the tiny mp3 player in her pocket, and repacked the rest of the items into her purse. She did another one-eighty to make a full three-sixty and grabbed her inhaler, sticking it into the back pocket of her jeans. Then she stood up.
"Are you sure you shouldn't be in a straightjacket, Zach? I don't mean to pass judgement, but even knowing Moreau, this all seems a little far-fetched. After all, the man's had ten years to reform himself since...since high school." Her tone indicated nothing but kind interest once more. Valentine had almost slipped and said more about her finger than she had intended to, but she caught herself. Nibbling her lip, she kept her face cool and hoped Zach didn't notice and ask questions. She unconsciously ran a thumb over the stump of her finger, another subconscious gesture and indication that whatever she said, the emotional and mental wound was still raw. The bed provided a convenient place to sit down again, and so she chose it, wondering how best to get rid of Zach so she could go down to the bar.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 6:35 pm
Her accusation of insanity was like a slap to the face. Zach seemed to utterly freeze for a moment, his hand now balled into a fist that turned white at the knuckles. While his expression showed nothing but some sort of mild confusion, his mind raced, terribly inclined to believe her for so many reasons. Pretty much everyone he'd met so far, other than this woman, were terrible creatures, and the one man he'd met who wasn't soon followed. Were they all figaments of his imagination? Or worse, people with some other breed of insanity playing along with his hallucinations? Absorbed in self-doubt, he missed the sounds of her wavering belief in his unstable condition.
It was true, he'd done a few things that could warrant insanity... but surely he'd recovered from it all years ago. "I... I don't know..." he said slowly, his face now completely ashen. If he was insane... then why was everyone continuing to play this game with him? Even the doctors.
He didn't know Moreau. He'd never met the man. All he had heard were words about him, unkind, hateful, that Moreau was the source of this island and the reason its inhabitants were not as human as they started out. "To be honest, I've never met Moreau. Just a man named... Sabin Duvert. But he said..."
He could find no truths in Duvert's talk about the island. Whatever the reason he was here, it had been planned, a trick. He came here for a job, not a stay in a nuthouse. Had he? This was all far too much, and his brain finally destroyed the train of thought he was pursuing in favor of another. At a loss for words, his eyes flickered to her finger, which he'd had the tact not to ask about earlier. It somehow seemed linked to the topic of the madman lording over the island. In a voice that shook with anxiety, he posed the question. "D-does Moreau have anything to do with your... missing f-finger?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 7:14 pm
When she realized what a devastating affect her words had wrought on Zach, Valentine instantly wanted to take them back and smother him in a hug. Call it maternal instinct, even if he was her age, but his confusion drilled an aching hole in her chest, right below her breastbone. She brought her hand to that spot, rubbing it absently as if that would make the ache go away.
She had never suspected he would give her comments such thought. A simple Yes or No was all she had expected, and she was even leaning towards the latter. Even Valentine herself was having her doubts. The entire island was cloaked in mystery. She had only met four people: Moreau, Aubrey, Chert, and Zach, but there were rows and rows of duplexes. Just the fact that such an island had been ghostly empty spooked Valentine.
And she rapidly became more spooked when she digested Zach's question. "No!" She blurted, perhaps a bit too hastily, as she made brief eye contact with l'homme de son attention. "No," she continued bitterly, "he has no direct association with...my finger, though he was present when I lost it," she grudgingly allowed. It wasn't like her to gloss over the details, but at the moment she didn't feel like discussing the circumstances under which she had become deformed. In fact, now that she had pocketed her two 'necessaries', she no longer wanted to be inside. She grabbed the key to her room, then gently pushed Zach out the door and closed it behind her. "Goodbye, Zach. It was nice meeting you." Not entirely true, but Valentine didn't feel altogether comfortable with abandoning her manners. She strode off to do a little exploring, her tears now invisible against her face. There was no trace that just a minute ago, she had been crying like a little child.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 7:20 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Apr 02, 2006 5:01 pm
♥ RP - Cassidy & Valentine ♥
~
Valentine Hawthorne New RPAlthough Valentine had been intending to find other people, the sound of running water had called to her, and before too long she had found herself walking along the river. It roared along merrily, filling the woman with both yearning and contentment. Her loose, blue top clung to her with the breeze, and her hair, hanging loose, blew behind her.
It was almost a relief, after her walking, to take off her Birkenstocks and sit down next to the river, dangling her feet in the cool water. It tugged her feet along, and she smiled as her feet bobbed and weaved in the froth. Who knew that such a mysterious island could be so beautiful? It was rare to find a pristine river like this at home, and Valentine was almost tempted to strip down and go for a swim. No one was around to see her, after all.
Cassidy Smith Surely, surely no one would be here. This would be quiet, and Cass could sit and think and be outside and read. Her tongue flickered as she slithered closer. Someone was here, but not anyone she knew, either. Cass almost turned and headed back, but she clutched her book a bit tighter and pressed on. She could just catch a glimpse of the stranger, a little ways off, and easier to pinpoint because of her body heat. "Er, hello there!" she called. Cass wasn't even sure if she could be seen.
Valentine Hawthorne Alone in her thoughts, Valentine was relatively startled to hear someone call out. She twisted her torso around, searching the nearby foliage for a flash of color, but didn't see anything. Intrigued, she pulled her feet out of the water and brought her her knees to her chin, hunched into a ball.
"Hi!" the Barbie doll called back, bemused. "Is anyone there? Come closer!" To be sure, the voice was a bit spooky, as there was no body attached to it. The speaker sounded female, though, and pretty far away. Perhaps they just had good eyesight, and could see her when they were still far away...and the ground was flat, so they were invisible. Right.
Cassidy Smith Cass hovered behind a tree for a moment. Gosh, she was sort of pretty. Was she new? Oh. Oh, did she ever hope someone had gotten around to telling her what was going on. She slithered out into view, coming closer. She wasn't wearing anything but a halter top, but really, there wasn't much to hide. She waved a feathered arm. "Um, hi. I didn't actually know anyone was here."
Valentine Hawthorne Okay...whatever that thing was that had emerged, it was not what she had expected. Valentine gasped, her eyes widening in shock, and leaned back in a futile effort to get away. Then, with a shriek, she fell into the river, her arms windmilling fiercely in an attempt to keep her balance.
The river was an icy shock of cold water to her mind, even if it was comfortable in the heat. It drove all thoughts of disgust and other emotions from her mind. She bubbled and flailed for a few moment, but pulled herself back to shore with steady, if uneven, strokes. Apparently the YMCA was good for something. It didn't even occur to her to see if she could stand up in the river.
She hauled herself back out, shivering, and sat huddled in a pool of cold water. Now, with her makeup smudged, she looked more like a bedraggled rat than a pretty woman. What an embarrassment.
She hadn't been in the water for more than thirty seconds, but it had probably been enough time to make whatever the -thing- was feel miserable. After all, if it could speak (and English, at that) it was probably capable of higher thought. Still, it was no animal she had ever heard of. In fact, the thing looked sort of...human. Dear God, could it be Zach was totally right?! Still, she couldn't picture herself becoming a thing like that.
An apology was in order, in any case. The woman ran her palms over her face, mentally and physically smoothing any trace of betraying emotions such as pity and disgust away. "I'm sorry that I looked so surprised when I saw you. I just...didn't think the rumors were true. I thought the guy who told me was batshit crazy." She couldn't look at Cass, couldn't let her see her shame. "So...yeah. I'm Valentine. Can...can I strip? These clothes are kind of heavy now." Cass was still an animal, albeit an odd one, in Valentine's mind. She felt no compunction about stripping around the snake-girl that she would have felt around any normal human. Besides, who was around to care?
She continued to talk as she stripped, down to her underwear and her bra. All thoughts of bikinis only came to her mind now. Back at her duplex, she hadn't thought she would need one. "Yeah, I wasn't here until a few minutes ago," she explained. "I was looking for someone to talk to, but I love water, and so I stopped to stick my feet in. What're you reading?" The book in Cass's arms had only just caught her eye - before, she had been too distracted by Cass herself.
Cassidy Smith Cass put a hand to her mouth in alarm when Valentine fell in, but speed without legs was not a thing she'd mastered quite yet, and by the time she'd hurried over, her assistance was no longer required. "Oh! You're okay?" Thank goodness she could swim. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to... I know I'm a bit of a fright right now." She tried to look away when Valentine started losing clothes, a little perplexed by anyone so apparently comfortable with their body. "I'm Cassidy. Hi." Books, though. That was a more comfortable subject. "It's some Asimov. The Ugly Little Boy. Just a little light reading." She held it up, peering over the top of it to hide a tongue-flicker.
Valentine Hawthorne "Sorry that I just stripped randomly, but you can get sick from wearing wet clothes, and I don't want to be sick on vacation...even if this vacation is getting a little bizarre." Valentine would have held out her hand to shake, but Cass still frightened her a bit. She wanted to say something appropriate that would smooth over her little fright, but she didn't know what to say about Cass. She was just glad she didn't look like that.
She raised an eyebrow skeptically, giving the book a thorough once-over. "I don't know what planet you're from, but in my opinion anything Asimov isn't light reading at all." It helped to not look at Cass, to pretend that she was talking to a human and the girl's appearance was just a trick of the light. She examined her fingernails instead, picking out the dirt that had wedged itself between flesh and nail. "Speaking of planets...where were you from, before you looked like..." Valentine trailed off, unsure how to continue. For that matter, she wasn't even sure if Cassidy had looked any different at any point in her life. She gave the girl a quizzical glance, as if to say "You were human once, right?"
Cassidy Smith "Aw, but this is one of his shorter books. It's practically a novella. But to each his own, I guess." Cass had to grin. Being asked what planet she was from was just about the best thing anyone had said to her in weeks. It fit in so nicely with her fantasy about being a member of an alien race, rather than just a plain old freak. "I'm from Vanderhoof," she said. "But I'm afraid that's not anywhere interesting. It's in Canada, and it's a pretty small town." She settled herself down at what she hoped was an unthreatening distance, not exactly sitting, but half-coiled in what seemed to be the most natural position for her in an extremely alien body.
Valentine Hawthorne Valentine stretched out, having fully stripped, revealing a pair of red boyshorts and a red strapless bra. The sun was pleasantly warm, enough to make her want to bask in it a while longer.
"Vanderhoof," she murmured, "that's a pleasant enough name. Sounds a bit German, actually. I'm originally from Baltimore, but I commute to and from New York and Boston, for business. I'm in pharmaceuticals." She couldn't resist bragging a little, proud of her big-city company.
She fell silent after that, content to merely enjoy the company (however strange it was) and the sunlight while it lasted.
Cassidy Smith "It could be German," Cassidy admitted, openly puzzled. "I really don't know. It was always just... home." How... weird. She'd lived there most of her life and she had no idea why it was called Vanderhoof at all. "Pharmaceuticals? Oh, that's neat." Cass was quite sincere in this. "You get to do that all that travelling, too. I never travelled much... at least not..." She shook her head. "Er. You said you were on vacation?"
Valentine Hawthorne "I know what's that like," Valentine sympathized. "Up until this point, I never wondered why Baltimore is Baltimore, or Boston is Boston. In fact, I have no idea what they mean! All I know is that York is a part of England, so New York is new York...which is fairly obvious."
"Yeah, it's actually my father's company, but he..." she paused, wondering if she should go on. Then she realized she could just gloss over the details. "He got sick, so now I own the company. Blue Vine Institute." She smiled wistfully as she continued. "And the travel is great. It's all east coast business, usually, so I don't get jet lag, and I get to enjoy everything those big cities have to offer." "
I'm on vacation now, yes." She nibbled absently on her lower lip as she thought about everything she had learned. "At least, I think it's a vacation. I went to school with Moreau ten years ago...suffice to say we aren't exactly friends. He says he's put the past behind him, though, and I guess he invited us - me and another person from our high school, Chert - out here to help start things over. Of course, this one guy, Zach, says that we're all out here because Moreau's going to turn us into animals, but..." She trailed off as a thought occurred to her. "Maybe...no." She shook her head and changed the topic.
"So what is there to do around here?" She had reached a certain point of boredom with her duplex, and she needed to explore a little more, find out from another person's point of view what interesting hot spots there were around.
Cassidy Smith Cassidy was silent for a moment, unsure of how to take this information. "Well. Um." An acquaintance of Moreau's: either dangerous, or to be pitied. "Well. There are people turning into animals here. It's hard to deny that." She spread her hands to gesture to herself. "I don't know about you in particular." Eager to change the subject, however (there was a lot of responsibility in being the first to tell anyone this stuff), she continued, "But as for things to do... there's an entertainment room, full of movies and things, down in the town hall. There's the bar." She stared down at the book in her hands, and laughed. "I don't know. I mostly read, I guess. Go for walks. Er." Maybe that wasn't quite the right word anymore.
Valentine Hawthorne Valentine's face darkened momentarily, as she remembered her first night on the island. "I guess. You're the first...person...I've met, who's changed. I met this other man, Zach, earlier. I thought he was crazy until you came along. He told me...well, at any rate, I don't know how they do it, but they did give me a shot when I first arrived. There's a variety of things that could have been in that syringe, and I'm not sure what any of them are."
An immediate perk in her mood followed the words The Bar. Not normally a drinker, Valentine nevertheless still had her share of booze at soirees and various other business events. There was a certain lift in mood that accompanied the alcohol, which she wasn't particularly adverse to. "A bar? Where's the bar?" She tried to make the question sound casual, but she ended up sounding a little more eager than she had intended. The sooner she could relax, the better. This island had been one surprise after another since she had arrived.
Cassidy Smith Cass tilted her head. "I know Zach," she said. There seemed no point on commenting on the contents of the syringe, so she said nothing about that. "I've startled him on more than one occassion, actually. Hrm." She drummed her fingers on her book, unaware that her tongue was flickering as she thought. "But... the bar. That's out on the main beach. They're usually pretty well-stocked. I've been known to sneak down there for a beer on occassion."
Valentine Hawthorne "He seems to be startled easily, I wouldn't be too surprised to hear that you had done so on several occasions." She sounded bitter, she realized, but there wasn't any reason not to be bitter towards Zach. He had told her the island's secret, and she had called him crazy, only to find out just now that he was right.
The tongue flickering was a bit disgusting, she thought, though it was probably unintentional. If Cassidy had become that much a snake, what was to become of her, Valentine? Moreau was bound to be in charge of the operations which made people into those weird hybrids...had he invited Valentine out to the island to do the same to her? The thought sent chills down her spine, even as she reminded herself that he had reformed. Of course, all she had as proof was Moreau's word...and Moreau could nurse a grudge longer than anyone else she knew, assuming he hadn't changed, as he had claimed, in those ten years. Valentine rubbed her arms, feeling her mental chills raise the hairs on her arms and neck.
"As for the bar...Which main beach? West, east, north, south? It's an island, there's bound to be a beach on each side...and do you know if they have cold drinks, right now? I need something icy." Thoughts of a chilled mojito filled her mind, as well as the relaxation that came with the alcohol. She drummed her fingers against the ground anxiously, casting a glance towards her drying clothes. She'd have to go back to the duplex to put them away before she could go have a drink. She didn't want to carry them, though. With a mental shrug and a sigh, she wrung out all the dampness she was able to, and then wiggled back in to them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Apr 02, 2006 5:09 pm
♥ RP - Big Fecking Group ♥
~
Chana Cohen New RPChana had been hiding out in two places since Awen told her about Jamal being in the cage. The first place was her duplex, but after a few days, she couldn't stand being indoors any longer.
The other place was the river. There was something about the water bubbling and running over rocks and sand that was calming. That and she could identify a few different kinds of edible plants to snack on.
But right now all of the beaver girl's attention was focused on one thing. Fish. She was standing knee-deep in the water with her jeans rolled up past her knees (to keep them "dry") trying to tickle fish into her hands. So far, it wasn't working.
Zachary Bloodstone Zach walked down the side of the river, careful not to get too close to the running water. Other than the sound of the moving water and the occasional splashes from farther downriver, there was silence.
He looked up when he saw a girl wading in the river. He stopped, carefully planting his feet in the soft ground to avoid stumbling, and called out to her. She looked rather normal, if a little hairy...
Cupping his one hand near his mouth, he shouted a short greeting. "Hello!" Pyroth Ignatius As Pyroth left the jungle, his thoughts were racing to an extent, how bad would those predatory instincts get if he let them? It was worrying to say the least. However, his train of thought was derailed by the sight of a few islanders down by the riverside, one of them was unmistakeably Zach, whom he had spoke to before, the other, female, was unknown to him.
Tilting his head slightly in puzzlement, he shrugged and headed down towards them. Lily Delaney Lily had started feeling a little better after her change- mostly because the swelling in her tongue had gone down enough to speak more naturally. After staying as isolated as she could, she's decided to go for a walk outside- heading for the river because to her it seems like more people would go to the beach and she feels like being around some water.
She stays near the edge of the river as she walks, not sure about if she wants to actually get into the water, which is what keeps her walking. It isn't far before she spots some people ahead of her, and though she hesitates she decides not to turn around. Without calling out a distinct greeting, she only gets closer. Jamal_Reedy Jamal had felt a little better after the meeting with Pyroth, but not much. He was still very bitter about a great many things. Typical. Deciding that Pyroth's jaunt towards the river was the best idea, he had followed, only doing so without (or at least trying to do so) without the coyote man knowing. It was when the sound of voices grew to the uncomfortable trill of several persons that he stopped, deciding against openly walking into the group, and instead lingered in the security of the jungle. He recognized a few of them, but didn't want to get involved with whatever was going on. He wasn't a social butterfly to begin with and the tiger only amplified this feeling tenfold. Perhaps they'd all leave and he could have a dip in the river on his own. For now, he stayed a good distance away, but could still hear the conversation and could see bodies moving about near the river bank thanks to his improved vision. The tiger approved. It was like he was stalking his prey. Doctor Moreau Suddenly the peace and quite was interrupted as the sound of a jeep engine approached. Moreau drove the jeep, with another guard in the car with him. Moreau knew that there were others here too, as he looked down at the personal tracker he had. Good, he thought. He wanted to wait till as many people were around as possible.
The Jeep came into view and stoped next to Lily, who was approaching the group of islanders. Moreau smiled at her.
"Ms. Delaney, I had to come personally and inform you of some unfortunete news. Your stub for your back pay for your time as a member of my staff was misdelivered to Duplex 25." Moreau looked a bit sad at this, but it wasn't his clever acting. It was obvious.
"Of course I was generous and decided not to charge you the $2,687,432.89 in serums you broke that day. Your making that cost up to me right now I suppose." Moreau snickered
"How has it been on this side of the fence instead of the other? I hope your first change wasn't too unpleasant, we picked your serum because it was the only one that you suceeded in not breaking that day." Moreau gave a final grin, as the motor was running, he was prepared to leave as soon as the other islanders started approaching.
Moreau of course made sure that this was in earshot of everyone else and spoke loudly. He had to over the jeep after all. Lily Delaney Lily stopped in her approaching the others when the sound a vehicle came to her ears, not thinking right away that the only person it could be would be the person she'd like seeing the least she looks around for the source of the sound. Her eyes widen when she sees who is in the driver seat and her first reaction is to turn and flee.
She only manages to turn around when the jeep pulls up by her, forcing her to stop. She looks up at Moreau, but immediately finds herself unable to look him in the eyes when he suddenly smiles at her.
Why does he have to be here, infront of others?!
Lily does look up at Moreau when he explains of a misdelivery to Duplex 25. She just stares dumbfoundedly when tells her exactly how much money she cost him.
More than two and a half million?!
"I- wha-" She doesn't manage to say anything. What is she supposed to say? Did he even really want an answer from her?
"Interesting," she finally says as a response to all of what he has to say, trying not to sound dumbfounded or frightened. The grin he has is terrible enough without knowing that you're not even trying to mask what would make it wider. While not pleased, it's an honest response- she's found all of the changes interesting, and knowing why she's turning into what she is is also kind of interesting.
She glances at the others around them, feeling sick.
She doesn't get to say anything else before Moreau speeds away, leaving her being approached by the bystanders. Chana Cohen Chana's first reaction when she heard someone calling out was to be friendly. She'd reached up a furred and clawed hand to wave at the man whose voice she didn't recognize.
But by the time she heard the jeep come up, the beaver had caught enough scents that Chana was annoyed that so many people were intruding on her private time.
Then Moreau --that crazy doctor-- started speaking to Lily. Chana had gaped and listened to him talk, dumbfounded. Lily had...had worked for Moreau!? And...it seemed something had gone wrong and that was why Lily was here, changed.
But she liked Lily, as a person. Chana had been prepared to stick up for her friend...until Lily answered Moreau calmly, saying that the changes were "interesting."
"Interesting!" Chana called out to her. "Is that how you feel about all of us and what we've gone through too?" The raw hurt was clearly evident in her voice and her face. All of this information at once...it was almost too much to take in. Jamal_Reedy Jamal had to hold back a growl that wanted to force it's way between his gritted teeth. That woman was a STAFF member? And she was still ALIVE? And that...that was the infamous Dr. Moreau? A lightning bolt of anger passed through his body. He flexed his fingers, digging the tips of his claws into the flesh of his palms as he forced himself to not move. Jamal would have given anything at that moment to wrap his hands around his scrawny neck and show him what happens when you give a man such as Jamal a deadly predator's serum. To twist that neck and hear the vertebrae snap and to tear the veins and arteries... There was no way to allow a staff member to live among them unscathed. It was Jamal's personal mission to poison the entire island population's opinion of the staff one person at a time. Lily spoke of the changes as being 'interesting'...INTERESTING?! He'd show HER interesting! Pyroth Ignatius Pyroth's ears perked instantly at the sound of the approaching jeep, such a civilised noise, a link to the far off world of the city. It grated on his nerves like nails on a chalkboard, all the moreso when he spotted who rode in the jeep itself. He growled very faintly to himself, he had refrained from placing blame on Aubrey but the doctor, he was another matter entirely.
The half coyote moved that tiny bit nearer to where the jeep came to a stop, his mind suspended somewhere between predatory and civil, on edge, his eyes on the armed guard that accompanied Moreau.
However, before Pyroth could formulate any kind of plan, the man spoke loudly to Lily, well within hearing range of those gathered, talking about an accident which had cost a fortune to the labs. It took him a moment to realise that the girl to whom he spoke must have been working up at the labs, helping to orchastrate whatever eventual fates they came to. A predatorily satisfied smirk sneaked across as he noted her greenish skin, oh if anyone deserved it, it was one of the scientists.
He didn't say anything yet however, merely watching the drama, amused by someone else's misfortune for a change. But when she simply stated "Interesting" as a retort to all Moreau had to say, he couldn't supress his hackles rising up along his back. This was far from interesting. Zachary Bloodstone Attempting to shout had caused a bit of pain in the side of his face. The slightly swollen area where Billy had punched him was still sore, but luckily that bizarre hand of his was unable to do as much damage as a normal hand would have. Zach had taken care of it as best he could, but he'd once more lost his ease at the sight of changed islander. Instinctively he rubbed at it, ignoring the twinge of the bruise.
He looked up, snapping out of his thoughts, to see that the woman was hairy for a reason. She had claws. He grimaced, though he immediately winced afterward thanks to the pain in his jaw.
Zach was oblivious to the sounds of the approaching people, but the loud roaring of the jeep engine he couldn't avoid hearing. He turned around, surprised to hear the sound of a car. He listened intently as the driver talked with a slightly strange-looking woman next to his car. Something about money, and serums... she was one of the scientists here?
He turned to the woman in the river, who was shouting angrily, and then back to woman who'd been addressed as Lily. "Hey, you!" he yelled, echoing Chana's sentiments. He fought to ignore the pain he got from yelling. "You've been helping these doctors?"
Valentine Hawthorne Valentine had been talking downriver with Cass when she spotted the commotion. Normally, she'd mind her own business, but on the island everything was different. On the island, it was crutial to know as much as one could.
She came jogging upriver just as the jeep sped away. Staring after it with a mixture of curiosity, longing, and anger, she waited until it sped out of view, and then turned to the nearest person - who happened to be Zach. Crap. Their last meeting hadn't ending so fantastically.
"Hi Zach!" she chirped, attempting to seem casual. "What just happened?" As she waited for crucial information, she did a bit of surveying. Several people here had strange features, such as claw-like fingernails or green skin. A couple of those people were furry...very furry. Revulsion rose in her throat as she realized that those people who were no longer human were in the exact same boat as Cass, the girl she had just met. Moreau had worked his "magic" on all of them.
All the action seemed to be centered around one woman, the one with green skin. She looked uncomfortable, as if she wanted to just run away. Valentine would have bet anything that she had done something she wasn't supposed to, and it had affected the other people on the island. Lily Delaney Lily watches Moreau speed away bitterly, not wanting to be left alone with such a crowd of people around her. It doesn't surprise her that he's done this to her, after wasting that much of his money it doesn't seem beyond him to make her stay here as hellish as possible. She avoids look at the approaching people, instead watching where the Jeep went- until she hears a familiar voice yell to her in an obviously hurt and angry tone. She reluctantly looks toward Chana, where she sees the others are also coming with angry looks on their faces.
"I didn't mea- I-" she stammers, her eyes moving from Chana to the terrifying and angry looking Pyroth. Then to the source of a second yell, from another person she'd never seen before. Part of her felt maybe they, excluding Chana, shouldn't be angry because they'd never met her, but the harsh reality of the situation is that she's helped put them where they are and she knows it. What the hell is she supposed to say to them?!
She takes a defensive couple steps backward and away from them, despite knowing she wouldnt be able to escape, "I-" she hesitates, knowing there's no use denying it after that display. Would they believe Moreau would play such a trick on her? "Y-es." Her eyes fall on Zach, answering his question because it came last. Her voice isn't steady and her tone is obviously a little panicked and afraid. She doesn't do anything when she notices Valentine, she looked a little out of the loop but Lily knows that obviously won't last. Chana Cohen Chana felt a headache coming on. On the one hand, she wanted to protect her friend from all these people. On the other hand...Lily had helped make these goddamned serums!
She trudged over to the riverbank and sat down, not caring now that she was soaking her jeans that she'd worked so hard to keep dry mere minutes ago. The beaver girl simply sat there, staring at Lily with disappointment and shock. In her mind she asked herself why such a nice girl would do such things...and then brought up all the ways Lily could have been hoodwinked and decieved.
Why did the two lists have to even out? "Why?" she asked out loud, looking right at Lily. Jamal_Reedy Jamal listened to Chana's bitter words and Pyroth's growls and was heavily pleased to see than they weren't any happier than he was. Good. Excellent even. This woman had to be taken out and the more people who were mad at her, the better. Even Zach looked riled. He shifted slightly in his hiding place, keeping an eye on the leggy blonde who had just come in for just a moment before turning to look at Lily. Hmm...unchanged. Perhaps not as bitter as the rest of the group... Jamal etched the woman doc's facial features into his mind for later us; The tiger wanted to be sure he knew his prey. Pyroth Ignatius Pyroth watched with a sort of contented smirk, Lily was clearly upset by the angry crowd in the area. Good. He knew he was a spectator on the events, but wanted to make it clear to her, just by being there, what she helped to create. If he didn't know better, already aware of the riskiness of excercising your right to violence on the island, he'd probably have been up for giving a working demonstration of the lovely fangs he'd been given by the labs.
As it was, he refrained, simply hanging back on the outskirts of the group, watching intently. He wasn't about to question Lily yet, in fact, he had every intention of leaving soon. Let her know she had been observed and that her ruse was known. Maybe that would worry her more.
He paced ever so slowly round the outside of those gathered, impatient.
No way would he ever accept an ex-scientist as an equal. She could have walked away from the project when she knew what it was about, but no, she had only made things worse.
"I hope you rrrrot here." he snarled, his tone more growl than speech. He wasn't interested in hearing a defence, all that would be to do would be to save her skin. Zachary Bloodstone Zach glanced at Valentine as she addressed him, losing his annoyance in favor of nervousness. Had she still not seen any changed islanders? She seemed unfazed by the river girl's unusually furry features, and the ex-scientist's green skin. There was always the possibility that neither of them were actually changing into animals at all...
"Valentine! Look!" he exclaimed desperately. He let go of his sore jaw to motion at the two women, though for a moment it seemed he could barely see them himself. "This is what I was talking about! They're... well, you can see them, right? They're turning into animals! And that... that green girl is helping!"
He focused again when Lily stuttered out some answered. So, she didn't deny it. He had nothing further to say to her, and simply turned back to Valentine again, a troubled look on his face. He didn't want to be crazy. Valentine Hawthorne Valentine focused back on Zach, looking slightly melancholy as he pointed out the furriness of the river girl, and the green skin of the other woman. "Yes...I can see them, Zach. I'm sorry, um, about calling you crazy earlier." She licked her lips nervously as she went on. "I, um, just met Cassidy." She said the sentence as if it explained her apology, which in a way it did. The girl was living proof that Zach wasn't crazy, though everyone who was gathered in this location could be explained away as hairy or diseased, if not normal.
Pity crept in with melancholy, as well as doubt. The green girl had helped them all turn into animals? That meant she had worked in the labs, worked on whatever-it-was that turned them into animals. The knowledge of that must torment the people gathered, especially if they had once trusted the girl. Valentine knew that from experience. Could the girl also have worked on something that would turn her into an animal? Valentine shuddered and hoped that she would never have to go to the labs again. God, she hoped she wouldn't be turned into an animal. Zach said that she would, though, that she had been given a shot. She shuddered again.
"Who's that, Zach?" She asked, pointing to the girl in the river. She seemed particularly betrayed by the ex-scientist. Lily Delaney Lily watches Chana, her expression making Lily feel just as upset as the other angry expressions and shouts. She covers her eyes with one green and orange hand, though she keeps the fingers open so she can see through. Caught between a rock and a hard place, all she can do is explain herself. Answer Chana's question.
"It was a high paying job I was qualified to do," she answers, thinking back to the ad she'd seen for the job several months ago, her voice sounds steadier but the tone is a obviously masked panic. In an attempted defence she makes one thing clear, "I don't work there anymore!" While this was already clear from the way Moreau had spoken to her, she feels that it needs to be stated, even if in the end it wasn't her own choice that led to her leaving the job. She looks back at the source of a growling curse, taking another step backward- why couldn't they all have stayed oblivious forever? Surely she'd have improved her acting and story if given the chance! Chana Cohen Chana just stared at Lily with the same tortured expression. "Same with the job I thought I was getting," she replied.
This was simply too much! She knew Lily wasn't a sadistic b*****d like Moreau! And yet...there was simply no way Lily could have worked here and not known what was going on.
But Lily was also a friend, and clearly turning into some animal as well. Didn't that make her an islander, not staff? Chana wrestled with the facts, trying to figure out what she thought of the situation. Pyroth Ignatius Pyroth merely snorted at Lily's defense of herself, ignoring the hypocrisy of doing so. After all, hadn't he compromised a significant number of lifes for his own pretty well paying job? It didn't matter to him at the moment though, his vision was clouded over by his anger.
You don't work there now, but you did. That's all that I'm interested in. he thought to himself.
He didn't say anything else though, he felt that any other comments of his would be ultimately superfluous. With another brandish of his fangs, he turned on his heel and stalked off back to the duplexes. Zachary Bloodstone Zach was so surprised to hear her apologize that he didn't realize it till a good few moments after. "I mean, I don't know what they're becoming, but they - what?"
He recalled Cassidy. Oh, man, that must've been a real shock for Valentine. He looked down at the ground for a moment to collect his thoughts, his waving hand becoming a fist as he drew it back. "She's... well... I'm not sure. The man in the jeep called her Delaney."
He looked over his shoulder at the greenish woman, and shrugged. "How could you not know about all this? Look what you've done to these people... you're not even sorry, are you? They're just 'interesting'."
He took care not to include himself in his pronouns.
Valentine Hawthorne Valentine looked down, sheepishly, and continued. "Yeah, I fell in the river when I first saw her." She wasn't too happy about her horrible behavior, and she twined a piece of drying hair around her finger. Her clothing was still damp, but it was substantially drier, due to the hot tropical sun.
Her gaze followed Zach's back towards Delaney, the ex-scientist, making sure she knew who that was from now on. She was surprised to find herself agreeing with everything Zach said, though personally, she knew what it was to be on the intellectual side of a scientific experiment. She didn't notice his omission of himself. In fact, if it wasn't people they were experimenting with, Valentine probably would have supported the research. If it hadn't been her Delaney might have experimented on...
She surprised herself even more, then, by laying a hand on Zach's shoulder. "This may come off as cold and heartless," she told him, "but it is interesting. It's painful, it's horrible, but it's also interesting. I don't agree with what she's done, and I don't agree with her motivation, but I see where she's coming from." Lily Delaney Lily looks back at Chana, staying silent as everyone else falls silent. No one around her was very happy, Chana looked conflicted and she gets a bad feeling from Pyroth's furious expression and stalking off. She crosses her arms, holding onto them, trying to make herself look and feel less helpless. The next question was a logical choice, and her eyes move from where Pyroth had turned and gone to Zach.
Is honesty the best policy? Is there any way to make it believable that she didn't know what she was doing? Even if she hadn't been told what they were doing, surely she'd have figured something out from doing her job. She can't insult their intelligence by saying she didn't know.
"I- Of course I knew," she admits bitterly, her tone evolving from panic to a more defensive one- no one is going to defend her except herself, she can't just take the angry yet valid questions without trying to defend herself in some way hoping that someone may look past it and not hate her.
"I am sorry!" she says automatically at the next accusation, she doesn't comment on the 'interesting' bit- admitting she did find it interesting probably wouldn't help her right now. How was she supposed to control being interested in a project she'd helped with for so many month? She hadn't been given much information on the subjects, seeing it first hand was interesting and enough to make her realize how naive she'd been. Lily's eyes go back to the blonde woman who'd showed up after Moreau had left, looking shocked to hear someone taking her side even just on this minor detail. Chana Cohen "Sorry." Chana snorted and stood up, pants dripping water and riding low enough to reveal her flat little tail. She was hurt, she was proud, she was utterly confused.
"Sorry," she repeated, "is not going to cut it." She looked at Lily accusingly. "I thought we were friends. Couldn't you have said something? Instead of waiting for him to do it?" she demanded, angry.
She watched the one-armed man and the blonde woman out of the corner of her eye. She hadn't heard of either of them...and they were clearly new, but not brand-new here. The beaver girl toyed with the idea of going up to them and saying "Hi, I'm Chana and I'm turning into a beaver." She could almost imagine the Islanders Anonymous scene, Chana thought cynically. Jamal_Reedy Jamal decided that now would be a good time to come out, seeing that Moreau didn't seem to be coming back. He could let this woman know exactly who she was going to have to deal with. The black man slowly slunk forward through the brush, making surprisingly little noise as he parted the branches and stepped into sight, his mouth curved into a sinister predatory smile when he looked Lily's way. "So -you- be Lily," he drawled with amusement thick on his tongue. "I heard 'bout you from someone, but it's a shame we didn't meet sooner." He was being highly sarcastic, yet he continued to smile at her in an eerie 'I know your secret' sort of way. He didn't say anything to the others gathered around, but gave them each a look of acknowledgement. Zachary Bloodstone Zach studied Valentine's face a moment before gingerly prying her hand off his shoulder and stepping back. He smiled a tight-lipped smile, but his brown eyes didn't reflect amusement in the situation. He looked away toward the trees as he mused aloud. "Huh... Maybe Moreau will give you back that finger."
He frowned at the ex-scientist. She didn't look sorry. He looked over at the girl on the riverbank. A tail. Oh, yeah, definitely not human any longer. That girl seemed to know a great deal more about Delaney, so he merely rubbed at the side of his face again tenderly and listened.
Jamal's entrance was startling. Zach turned sharply to see him enter through the jungle, and nodded at the look the man gave him and everyone else there. "Did you break out?" he asked curiously.
Valentine Hawthorne Valentine had known she was out of line with her comment, but she certainly hadn't expected the response she got from Zach. She recoiled as if she had been hit, clenching her fists. Without thinking, her hand flashed out in a slap, coincidentally aiming for the same jaw of Zach's that had been punched by Billy. "I didn't mean I agreed with what Moreau is doing," she gritted through clenched teeth, "after all, from what I can tell he's going to turn me into an animal too. I wish everyone could go back to being human. But the fact that he's managed to slim genetic science down to such an art is interesting. In the hands of someone else, someone kinder, this could be a breakthrough in metamorphism!"
Valentine heard Delaney's apology, but it sounded defensive and not altogether believable. Instead, she turned her attention to a new arrival. He didn't seem to have any excessive hair, but it still looked as if he had been changed. Zach's comment about escape confirmed it in Valentine's mind. She could only assume that he had done something to one of the scientists. Good for him, she thought. She flashed Jamal an uneasy smile, then shifted her weight on her feet anxiously, as if she was going to run away at any moment. Lily Delaney Lily looks back to Chana when she scoffs at her apology like statement, feeling very small and pained when Chana continues to say that they were friends in a manner suggesting they weren't anymore (not that it surprises her.) She stares at Chana silently for several seconds, trying to decide how to reply.
"It didn't come up," she says decidedly. Chana didn't need to know that she'd lied to the person it had come up with, and probably would have if it had come up between them. Though she knows what she says is entirely true, she knows that it only makes sense that she'd not have told the truth if it had come to it. She doesn't need to think about why she'd waited for Moreau to spill the beans, in her mind she let herself think he wouldn't tell. Her naivety has gotten her into a lot of trouble in the past several months.
Her head turns when she notices something moving, Jamal revealing himself without so much as a warning rustle from the leaves. The sinister smile on his face making her uneasy, she has to try hard to not step backward. Though surprised that he says he's heard of her, she doesn't show it- instead standing still.
Break out?
Her gaze goes from Jamal to Zach and back again, tempted to ask what they're talking about but not daring. Chana Cohen Chana's attention was caught by Jamal as well, and her eyes widened slightly. Had he broken out of the cage? Or...had someone set him free? Either way, the Jamal she faced now sent shivers up and down her spine and made her want to run. Stubbornly, she ignored those feelings, and simply nodded at him.
She knew well that occupation hadn't really come up with Lily...they'd never had too long a conversation. Still...wasn't obstruction of truth something there had been court cases over?
"I'm sure you worked hard to keep it from coming up," she commented coldly. "You could have spent all this time telling us that yes, you might have worked for Moreau, but that you're one of us now. You might even be able to tell us some things to expect from these changes."
Chana's eyes teared up slightly. "All you thought about was yourself and how to protect yourself." Her voice wavered slightly, and a couple tears rolled down to be lost in her fur. Jamal_Reedy "They let me out. Why, I ain't sure, but I ain't gonna argue," he answered Zach, his tone bearing more amusement than showed on his face. "Dat's just damn fine wit' me." He was going to say more but he saw Valentine's hand go out to slap Zach and he automatically snarled at her and gave her a very pointed glare, not thinking anything of it. He was tired of inter-islander violence, mostly because he'd been dealing out most of it at highly inappropriate times. Lily coincidently didn't count as an islander at the moment. "If ya'll wanna fight someone, perhaps ya oughta focus on da staff," he said heatedly as he stalked over to Valentine, the snarl showing his sharpened fangs. He did not look like he was joking at all. "You gonna be jus' like the rest of us, lady, so you best not piss off people 'o' you gonna have a lonely life. Trust me, I ********' know 'bout dat." He said that in a low, seething manner as he got almost up in her face. "There ain't NUTHIN' int'restin' 'bout watchin' yer nails pop off 'n' then havin' bone push through yo skin so ya bleed like you think you ain't neva gonna stop." He took a breath, his voice not breaking it's coolness. "I don't know where you came from, but s**t is diff'rent herr, I promise you dat. You ain't no betta then anyone else." Jamal snorted and pulled away from Valentine, whirling now to face Lily. A leer replacing the snarl as he gave the ex-technician a sickly sweet smile and lifted a hand to indicate those who were assembled in the clearing. "You lab peeps like ta lie to us, dontcha? They -all- like ta lie." He glanced at Chana, giving her what might have almost qualified as a sympathic look had he not seemed to be vibrating with repressed anger. "This b***h ain't no diff'rent then Aubrey or Moreau. They all lie o' gonna lie at some point...this one jus' slipped by until her cover got blown." Zachary Bloodstone Zach's attention had been so preoccupied with Jamal's appearance and answer that he didn't see Valentine's reaction coming. He screeched as she slapped him right across the recently-bruised side of his face, and immediately shielded it with his hand, eyes wide and tearing up with shock. He tried to move his jaw, but it hurt too much at the moment to bother trying to say anything. He left it hanging slightly open, as it had been when he cried out.
He continued to walk away from Valentine like a wounded animal, staring in shock, until his back was up against a tree. He watched Jamal sidle up to Valentine and threaten her, silently cheering the tiger-man on, though his jaw continued to hurt furiously.
The furry girl's words was definitely wearing Delaney down, so he looked to their argument instead, wondering what would happen. He figured Jamal was right about the staff - they were liars.
Valentine Hawthorne As soon as Valentine's hand made contact, it started stinging, and she hissed and rubbed her palm. She hadn't expected his face to be that hard. It truly surprised her when Jamal got up in her face - in fact, it scared her not a little. The slap was a reflex, of a sort. She had been angry, and just...swung. She expected it as much as Zach did.
She backed up as Jamal approached, searching desperately from side to side in order to find a way out of his path. Even without the fact that he was partly changed, large man + black = bad situation for her. "I am focused on the staff," she retorted. "I'm focused on the fact that it's Moreau's fault Zach could make that rude, uncalled for comment about my finger." Her defiance died down a notch as he went into detail about his transformation. She didn't know what to say to that, so she said nothing at all. "And I don't know where you come from," she muttered, "but s**t ain't so different that humans don't have a soul. Leave her alone. She can rot by herself." Her meaning Lily. The woman clenched her hands, and with visible difficulty, got her anger under control. Lily Delaney Chana's questions make her think, the only redeeming thing about being the one to tell them what she was would have been that she said it, owned up to it. It may have made her look more like she was sorry. But part of her still doubted it would have helped much with some of them.
"But I am," Lily exclaims, "I didn't know what to expect, I wouldn't have been able to tell you anything!" Her voice is desperate now, someone needs to believe her, someone needs to understand. Chana may be right to accuse her of being selfish, but she couldn't see any good coming from telling everyone outright about her last job. It didn't matter on the Island- or so she told herself, but she knew hiding it wasn't working in her time as an Islander. It'd been so troublesome to keep it to herself. What would Joli think when she found out? Joli is the only one she'd actually lied to..
Her stomach feels like it's tied in knots when she sees that Chana has started to cry. She listens to Jamal tell off Valentine, and then doesn't verbally respond to Jamal's sinister smile and accusation covering all of the staff from the labs. Lily does take a step back this time, and another at Valentine's terrible comment, thankful and hurt at the same time, wanting to just go away. It's obvious no one is going to listen to any explanation she has. Chana Cohen Chana watched Jamal nervously. There was just too much about him that made her wary now. And Lily looked like she was going to try and run away. Sighing, the beaver girl walked over to her...surreptiously avoiding Jamal.
"But we didn't know that, Lily. There's so much that could've been different if you'd just told us..." Chana bit her lip. She didn't want to repeat herself too many times.
Up close, it was even more shocking and horrifying to see how Lily had changed. It was...disturbing, really, seeing all the little things that weren't quite right.
She smiled, and changed the subject quietly. "How was it really?" she asked, gesturing towards Lily's features. Jamal_Reedy Jamal had no sympathy for Lily. In his books, she was as bad as the other staff members...she, however, was getting what she deserved. He advanced as she stepped back, his expression never wavering from it's icy countenance. Valentine was mostly ignored; he'd deal with her later if he wanted to. "You're jus' sorry ya lost yer cover," he hissed lowly to Lily, whiskers flickering forward as he spoke, eyes glinting menacingly. "How does it feel ta like one of us? Get called a freak yet?" He curled his lip in disgust. "At least ya get ta see up close what you ********' did ta all of us. Nice 'n' close. Aubrey got ta see too, only she got da bruises 'n' cuts ta show it. Did ya get ta mess wit' my serum?...maybe I should thank you fo' dis s**t." He pointed an accusing claw at her, eyes half-lidded in a challenging stare. Zachary Bloodstone Zach's eyes darted toward Valentine. He trired speaking. It still hurt, but he could get some words out, a little distorted. "Wasn' so uncall for, considerin' you ugree wiv him an' his isane sperimentin'..."
He didn't want to get attacked another time - this wasn't his first islander injury, anyhow, between Rex's new claws and Billy's fiery temper. He glanced back the way he came. The village was that way, and no one was blocking his path. He eagerly backed away and left as silently as he could. He needed an icepack, or something. His jaw would probably be killing him a whole extra day now.
The four remaining islanders' bickering continued to echo through the forest as he walked away. He didn't look back - he didn't want to witness the scene if Jamal got riled up enough by the ex-scientist to do with Lily what he'd failed to do with Aubrey.
Valentine Hawthorne Okay, she'd had it. Turning back to Zach, she narrowed her eyes angrily. "I don't agree with his experiments, you ignorant sonofabitch. Didn't you hear me say that?!" She would have charged after him, but she figured her life would be forfeit to Jamal if she did so. Instead, she crossed her arms and spat in the direction he left. She didn't look so classy at that moment, but she was too angry to care.
She knew she needed to calm down and get her anger under control. She didn't exactly feel like being calm, though. She stared at Lily, Chana, and Jamal in turn, then with an angry growl-turned-screech, she stormed off through the jungle to the west in a huff. She was going to find the bar and get good and slammed. Maybe she would wake up and everything would be a dream. Lily Delaney "You didn't know I was a lab technician either," Lily responds to Chana, "You found out I didn't know these things at the same time you found that out, now." It's her only defence for that comment, but she can't do anything except agree with Chana on the second thing. Things would be different if she'd told people, but was it the optimistic different Chana was suggesting or the pessimistic different Lily had imagined? Lying never leads to good... if she had told the truth, even if everyone was this angry with her, she'd have that on her side.
She turns back to Jamal, "No- well-" she almost responds to his accusation. Her first impulse is to deny it, but she obviously didn't want to be found out. Maybe in the end it would be a relief to have her secret out, but for now it's just a terrible thing that all she feel about it sorry it happened. Her eyes widen when he gives a vague explanation of what happened with Aubrey, taking a great step backward- if Aubrey could even get cuts and scratches then she can't hope that he couldn't do anything.
She quivers at Chana and Jamal's questions. She takes a moment to think about how to respond, surprised and unprepared for a question like that. When she finally overcomes this she says the first word that had come to her mind to describe her transformation, finding it kind of ironic that it's suitable to how they probably feel about her now. She watches Valentine storm off before she replies to the two remaining.
"Slimy," she snaps, looking at Chana, and then back at Jamal, "Oh yes-" her tone is an 'I-give-up', sad sarcastic one, with little anger- "Of course, because I worked on all of the serums, and am actually the one responsible for everything happening on this Island." She takes another step back as she speaks, and glances back to Chana briefly before turning around and heading back in the direction of the duplexes. Chana Cohen Chana was embarrassed by how bad Lily clearly felt after all of this. As the red-haired woman left, she raised a hand as if to stop her and call her back, but then dejectedly lowered it. They all needed some space after this, Lily most of all.
She glared at Jamal. "You can't judge her just because of a job she had! Your reaction is exactly why she wouldn't tell us!" Chana gave him another glare before stomping back over to the river.
There was still daylight left...and she still meant to have fish for dinner. Jamal could go hunt somewhere else, she thought savagely as she reached after a salmon. Jamal_Reedy Jamal was so focused on Lily that he didn't pay any attention to Zach or Valentine's leaving, giving the ex-staff woman a threatening growl as she snapped back at him sarcastically. Not only was she an ex-staff person, but she wasn't very smart. His predatory instinct urged him to chase after her like he had done to Em, but he had been paying close mind to the tiger's thought patterns and managed to refrain. He'd settle for giving her the creeps for now. "I'd be careful, Lily," he drawled, his tone as much seething as it was cruel and calculating. "One of these times ya might turn yer back at da wrong time. I know who you be now." Chana's snapped reaction to his treatment of the woman made him snarl at her and whip his head around. "I kin' judge her fo' ruinin' people's lives, Chana. Unless you LIKE bein' how you is right now." He gave the woman a leveled, chilled stare. "She's jus' anotha' puzzle in dis ******** up place. Seems like what -you- said hurt her mo' anyway." But whatever. The tiger's dislike of social situations and Jamal's hatred of the staff had combined to an intolerable high. He needed to get out of here and relax. Maybe snap a few animal necks like Pyroth suggested. Without a word, he slipped away into the underbrush again, melting into the darkness with surprising ease and soon the soft crinkle of leaves could no longer be heard as his footsteps took him away from the river. Chana Cohen Chana cringed slightly at the venom in the tiger-man's tone. And at the fact of what he said. She probably had hurt Lily worst of all today...she'd have to apologize.
She sighed. Why did life have to be so complicated all of the time? And now the sun was setting. She'd have to head back soon.
Chana reached into the water, resolving that this would be her last try. She scooped the fish up into the air and, startled at her success, tried to grab it. The fish twisted and squirmed in her grip and finally wrenched itself free and back into the water. Chana glared after it.
"Why shouldn't I be surprised that I can't even catch a stupid fish," she muttered to herself, and turned to follow the river home again.End RP
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2006 7:34 pm
♥ RP - Valentine & Aubrey ♥
~
Valentine sat slumped on a bar stool, staring dejectedly into an empty shot glass. Her chin was propped up on her palms, and a bottle of tequila sat next to her elbow. With a sigh, she reached out without even looking and grabbed the bottle, pouring herself another shot. She knocked it back with no hesitation, and then poured herself another one. The burning sensation was exquisite, and a nice contrast to the brisk wind whipping her shirt around. The shirt was skimpy and not designed for protection against the wind, and her shorts were cut off high enough to rival Daisy Duke's. Her feet were bare.
The shots of tequila were making the woman drunker by the minute, and her current thoughts were meandering an untraceable, muddled path. They were all centered around the fact that nothing had gone right since she had arrived on the island. She had made nothing but enemies, it seemed, and she had made a fool of herself every time she had met someone new. Or someone that she already knew, for that matter. She really needed to get laid, but as far as she was aware, no one on the island was lesbian or pliable enough for some ********. With a moan, she slumped off her stool and lay on her back, staring at the bright, hot sun above her. The sand was warm, too. Maybe she should take a nap.
Aubrey was heading down to the beach, the first time in weeks she finally had time to relax. She kept her eye out for Jamal, but Moreau insisted to everyone on camera duty to alert her if he came near. Being no such warning was made, Aubrey was looking forward to a swim, a big tall tropical drink, and a bit of sun bathing. She wore a two peice under a blue sarong to cover it until she was certain no one else would be at the beach.
Upon approaching the bar, she saw someone laying on the ground, suspiciously close to the bar. Concerned, she increased her pace. Was she hurt? Buzzed? She jogged up, having to get awefully close before realizing the lady wasn't passed out, just drunk. Then she realized who it was. "Valentine?" She swallowed, suddenly feeling very self-conscious, stepping and step back and pulling her sarong tighter around her, covering as much of herself as she could.
Valentine's head turned slowly, slowly, until she was staring at a pair of pale feet. Her gaze travelled upwards - pale legs, a sarong she could see up. Her gaze rested on the bikini bottom for a moment, a small, crooked smile splayed on her face, then travelled further up. Her smile disappeared. It was Aubrey, peering down at her from over a large rack. The other woman looked uncomfortable, and stepped back, effectively eliminating Valentine's view of her crotch. Bummer. "Hi, Aubrey," she slurred slightly, "watcha doin'?" Carefully, she picked herself up off the ground, stumbling slightly, and leaned against the bar to beat the invisible sand out of her curtain of hair. The task took all her attention, and it was a few long, awkward moments before she remembered Aubrey was standing next to the bar.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Pull up a chair!" She demanded, grabbing another shot glass from over the counter. Her pouring was sloppy and she missed the glass several times before she could align the bottle and glass properly, and once that feat had been overcome, she overfilled the shot glass. "There, done," she pronounced, satisfied. Then she turned back to Aubrey and looked her over from head to toe...well, ogled would be the more appropriate term. The blue sarong she was wearing wasn't doing much to conceal either her figure or her bikini, and it was a shame she was even trying, Valentine thought. Aubrey had been a bit chunky as a freshman, but now that bit of chub looked good as more mature curves. Those breasts in particular...Valentine almost tsked out loud, throwing her companion's rack another glance that could be either appreciation or disdain. "Why don' ya take that off?" She inquired with a gesture that was interpretable as either Aubrey's sarong or her bikini.
Aubrey raised a weary eyebrown at Valentines obvious drunkeness. She made several, akward attemps to steady her or help her, but mostly just looked flustered on. "Hey Valentine," she said cautiously slowly sitting down. "Uhm, not really doing anything, for once. Sometimes I come down here after work to swim..." She looked down at her self, then back of Valentine confused, completely oblivios to Valentines blanant stares. She thought she was simply having a hard time focusing her attention in her state. "Oh, no its okay. I was thought I might do some tanning, but I won't subject you to that," she said with a small, forced laugh.
Valentine wobbled a little, then hastily sat down on the stool again. This time, she held onto the counter with both hands, clinging hard enough that her knuckles began to turn white. "Work?" Came the question, "What sort of work d' you do? Happily screw Moreau whenever he demands it? Because if it's like Lily Delaney's work, ya may as well shoot me right now. Right now, ya hear? I know what you're going to do with me." Valentine giggled a little, wobbling slightly. "I can't really picture myself as anything fat. Maybe somethin' ugly, like a three-toed sloth, or something huge and lumbering, like an elephant? Maybe something pretty and clever, like an ermine? Or maybe you'll be nice and not turn me into anything at all?" The last question wasn't hopeful or pleading, merely a masochistic joke to herself.
"Oh, by all means, subject me to it!" Valentine exclaimed at Aubrey's second comment. A huge, sloppy grin replaced itself on her face. "I'm sure I've seen worse..." she confided, and the comment sounded meaner than she meant it to. Valentine realized that just after the comment slipped out, and she hurried to correct herself. "Not that you're bad, I mean..." Valentine's hands itched to take off the sarong so she could get as good a look at Aubrey's hips as she could at her breasts. "Come on, drink up," she told her, indicating the shot glass.
Aubrey's face flushed in a flustered, embarassed huff. "My work here is not screwing Moreau!!" She took a breath, but remember how she thought Valentine felt about him, slipped in, "Though I must say its a nice fringe benefit."
She tapped her nails on the bar. "Miss Delaney was simply a worker here. Doing the research and the grunt work for Moreau's vision." There, that was kind of answering her without having to. "As for you... it was Moreau's choice as well. If you want to know, but I don't know if you'll wanna."
Aubrey's face flushed darker with aggitation as she near-insulted her. "Sure I'm not," she scoffed, giving an envious, bitter once-over of Valentine's figure. She took the shot glass and took a sip from it hesitantly, but only a sip.
Valentine's expression darkened, and she cast a devious glance at Aubrey's face. "Oh, well, if it's a fringe benefit, does that mean other lab techs get to screw him too?" She asked offhandedly. "He doesn't deserve you, Aubrey. He's bound to be using you in some way or another." Her expression had morphed again, to solemn honesty. Though it was questionable exactly how honest a drunk woman could be.
"No, you're right, I don't want to know," she told Aubrey, casting a cursory glance at her nails. "And surely you had something to do with it? Whispered sweet murmurs in his ear while making passionate love in his bed? What color are his sheets?" Valentine grinned. She loved rooting around for information. She tucked her hair behind her ears, then twisted it up into a makeshift knot.
"No, you aren't, Aubrey," Valentine told her, dead serious again in her drunken emotions. "You're real. You're authentic. People look at me and think, 'How many plastic surgeries has she had? She looks like a catwoman Barbie doll!' I'd love to look real."
"They better not," she growled under her breath at Valentines's inquiry. But before she got into that, she heard Val claim that Aubrey didn't deserve him. "Oh!" she laughed darkly, "But I bet YOU do."
Shw turned her nose up, brows knotting. "No, Moreau wanted this little project all to himself. I had nothing to do with animal selection" She waved her hands in front of her. "Though Cherts is wildly amusing." She chose not to bait her by saying she didnt' really understand why he chose a hyena for Val, except for maybe her temper. She was quite shocked, almost sad, she wasn't turning into a venus fly trap, especially after the information she gathered from Anjali.
Aubrey knocked back her shot this time. "And they're wine," she said offhandening, speaking on the sheets and smoothing down her sarong. "Sometimes forest green. They tend to get washed quite a bit." She couldn't look at Val while being so crude, but she focused her attention to her lap and let a small smirk curl on her lip.
But then Val had the nerve to say that last comment, and Aubrey supressed a laugh. "Oh yeah RIGHT" she spat out. "Poor beautiful Barbie only wishes she could have lovehandles or frizzy hair so she could be laughed and made fun of like everyone else instead of getting to ******** any gorgeous man that looked her way! OH THE TRAJEDY!" Aubrey overdramatically swooned and placed her hand on her forehead in mock dispair.
Valentine raised her eyebrows, a little surprised at Aubrey's tactic. She'd never pegged Aubrey for the jealous type, but she supposed now that she hadn't done much pegging back in her senior year. She couldn't resist boasting, though. "Yes, I do deserve him. He's my age, I knew him all throughout high school, I know his strengths and weaknesses and I know the way he runs a company. That doesn't mean I want him, though. In fact, quite the opposite. Moreau and I have very opposite personalities. We wouldn't work out, assuming I'd ever...go out with him." She hesitated on the last words, deciding to be tactful and not rub in more of her sex appeal than she already had. Even in her drunkenness, she knew an angry woman was a power to be reckoned with.
"Oh," came the little gasp. "That's not very good for me, is it?" Valentine's voice quavered, and her lip trembled. Perhaps if Aubrey had been involved, she could have at least had a guess of what animal she could have been. Moreau was unpredictable, though, and cunning in ways Val didn't like to think about. She quickly moved on past the subject, not wanting to cry. When she was drunk she could cry forever.
Instead, she busied herself with pouring Aubrey another shot, once again slopping the tequila all over the place. She laughed as she put the bottle down. "That's the thing with men," she informed the other woman, "they make a mess of everything. Girls are always much more tidy. If the sheets are satin, I feel sorry for whoever does the cleaning."
Aubrey's last comment truly surprised her, though, and she searched Aubrey's eyes for some sign of a joke, but found none. "Poor beautiful Barbie here wishes she could look more normal, yes. Good looks are like a curse for me, especially with my asian eyes." She reached up and pulled at the corners of her slanted eyes, then heaved a sigh. Her chin started wobbling again as Aubrey yelled at her. "No one likes a Pamela Anderson look-alike. Men may go for that, but most women, as you've just proved, are repulsed and intimidated by it. I can't believe you are jea--Aubrey, you really don't know? Don't freak out, please, because it's not you, but..." Valentine took a deep breath, clenched her fists, and took a long, awkward pause to get her emotions under control. Then she dropped the bomb. "I like women."
Aubrey's fragile ego shook as Valentine had the nerve to say that she deserved Moreau. Like hell she did. Big breasted bimbo probably didn't nearly enough upstairs to garner Moreau's affection. Sure, Aubrey might not be the most beautiful woman in the world, but it wasn't like Moreau did a lot on the public scene. Moreau wan't...well he wanted a partner, damit! Someone who could keep up with his intelligence and conversation---bounce ideas off of. And, well, not that she had too much experience or anything, but Moreau seemed satisfied in the bedroom department. So why wouldn't she deserve her!
Of course she didn't speak any of this mental tongue lashing. She just listened carefully, a bitter expression on her face. However, just as she went to take a sip from her new shot, she heard Val's confession. THis caused Aubrey to swallow akwardly, coughing as the liquor burned her throat. After her spell, she gasped, looking incredulously at the woman. "You mean... like woman like... like THAT?"
"See, that's exactly what I'm talking about," Valentine told the other woman, her voice bitter enough to match Aubrey's expression. "That look you're giving me right now, this is what I get all the time. I was a straight A student, for ******** sake, I graduated an Ivy League college suma c** laude, and all anyone sees when they talk to me is BOOBS! Since when does ******** BOOBS mean no ******** BRAIN?! You, you can get respect! People look at you and see someone who deserves intellectual respect! When they look at me, they automatically assume Californian surfer chick with no brains! Other company executives look at me and assume I'm an easy ******** with no brains who banged her way up the corporate ladder!" Valentine tactfully left out the fact that this was true. "People try to buy out my company, worth billions if not trillions, with cheap offers because they automatically assume that since I look like a ******** Barbie, I must think like one, and so I don't know a bad offer when I see one!" Her rage and indignation pulsed in her, and she slammed her glass against the counter, breaking it. She was sick of this, sick of everything. She wanted her home, she wanted her girlfriend, she wanted her dog. She wanted her life back. "I want to go home," she told Aubrey, then tilted her head back to try and stop the tears that threatened to ruin her makeup.
A look of concern came briefly and went quickly on Valentine's face. Her indignation buoyed her along and left no concern for Aubrey's harsh coughing. "Yes, 'like' like that. If your records, which I'm sure are ever-so-detailed, didn't already show you, I live with my girlfriend back home. Her name is Jennifer. She works for Vogue magazine." Suddenly Valentine was crying, her head buried in her hands, with no regard for her makeup. Crying for the second time since arriving on the island. It really wasn't a happy vacation for her. "We were going to get married when I got back from vacation," she choked out, her voice thick.
Aubrey didn't know what to do but blink blankly at her. ********, this was Ambrose all over again. "I'm sorry," she said pathetically. "We only have official records and stuff... none of that, uhm, obviously says that you're a... a.. you know." Aubrey felt...very silly. She didn't have anything against lesbians, it was just something she was very unprepared for. "Have you always... I mean, uhm," she bit her lip, "I thought you and Moreau, I thoght you..." SHe took a breath and tried again. "I thought you liked him. I thougt thats why you always tried to, you know, stop me from moving in on him?"
Valentine continued to sob, though at this point they were dry sobs. The tears were already drying against her skin, and except for the fact that her eyes were red-rimmed, it was impossible to tell just seconds ago she'd been crying. Through her sobs, she noticed that Aubrey had conveniently not mentioned anything about her going home. Which in turn made her tears start flowing all over again. "You stole my taxes?" she choked out. "How sweet."
Valentine blinked and rubbed her eyes, giving Aubrey an unreadable glance. To tell her or not to tell her? It wouldn't help her case, that's for sure. "Um...no, Aubrey. I've always liked girls..." She paused, unsure of how to go on, and let a few sobs out. "I tried to stop you because he didn't deserve you, not that you didn't deserve him...like I already said. There's a distinction. Um..." she paused again, staring intently at her hands as her thumbs worried the creases of her palms. She bit her lip and creased her eyebrows in a frown, then swallowed and told the woman next to her, "It wasn't Moreau that I liked."
s**t. If that didn't scare Aubrey off, she was denser than she had claimed.
It was almost humourous... the look on Aubrey's face. You could see the gears turning, and the peices falling into place. There was a long, long pause. "Oh." She said, blinking. She swallowed. "You mean.. you mean..." Aubrey lifted a finger and pointed to herself, questioningly.
Valentine couldn't look at her, wouldn't look at her. She didn't want to know what Aubrey was thinking, didn't want to betray her own emotions, and the fact that somewhere, deep in her heart, she still harbored some feelings for her. Her sobs trailed off and stopped, but she re-buried her face in her hands. "Yes," she deadpanned. "Yes, Aubrey." She wouldn't apologize, refused to apologize for something she did or felt ten years ago.
Aubrey blushed and gave out an embarassed chuckle. "I feel silly. I had, uh... no idea."
"Well...yeah." An awkward silence followed, in which Valentine knocked back another shot with a new glass. And began slipping to the side. "Umm...I don't feel so hot," she told Aubrey. Then she leaned over, unfortunately directly in Aubrey's direction, and threw up. Several times.
A few minutes later, she looked up, and wiped her mouth. Her face was bright red, and she wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground and die. "Sorry," she croaked, and before Aubrey could say anything, she rushed down to wash herself off, stripping her clothes off as she went. Underneath her clothing, she wore a G-string bikini in polka-dotted periwinkle blue.
Aubrey reeled away from Valentines, eyes going wide with horror. "Oh my god she groaned, right before her barstood toppled over as Aubrey tried to flair back away from it, sending her a**-first in the sand by the bar.
Aubrey looked in a mix of disgust, concern, and confusion as the drunken lady stripped and headed towards the ocean. Aubrey's faced burned, causing her freckles to stand out brightly on her cheeks. She stood up and with a frustrated growl ripped off her sarong and tossed in the garbage recepticle behind the bar, and also followed Val's suit into the ocean.
"You shoud probably go back and sleep it off," she called to Val over the crash of the waves around her ankles.
Valentine dipped her head in the water, feeling its cool saltiness swirl around her hair and wash the gunk off of her face. A wave hit her neck, and she swung her head back up, her hair flinging drops of water everywhere. With a groan, she scrubbed her face with her hands, then turned around to face Aubrey.
"See? Taking off that sarong isn't so bad!" She attempted to make light of the situation, but she knew that she was probably making it worse. She looked like a child caught with its hand in the cookie jar: sheepish, evasive, and belligerent.
"Yeah, yeah, you're right," she called back, staring at the waves swirling around her legs. "But it's not evening yet. I'll get better in a few hours."
Aubrey sighed, feeling incredibly akward. "I wish I had known," she admitted. "That's why you're here, you know. Because of how you treated Moreau. I thought you were jealous of me." Aubrey was still talking loud because of the waves, so she took a few steps closer. "I thought you were deflecting your feelings, because you didn't want people knowing you liked him. You know.. we you pretty and popular and smart. I knew you were, kind of hiding your affections. But I just always figured for him."
Valentine wiggled her toes, burying them in the sand. The cold water had helped her snap out of her drunken behavior a little, and she realized just what she had done. It probably wasn't a good idea to put on the brakes and start lying at this point, though. Aubrey was being kind, she supposed, by telling her why she was here. There probably weren't very many of the forty-odd islanders that could say that. "I was jealous," she confessed, "just not for the reason you thought. I was hoping that by being mean to Moreau, I could sort of hook some barbs under his skin and...show him to you in a new light. Maybe make you leave him. He never reacted, though. It never mattered to him." She smiled a little wistfully, remembering how simple high school had been, but how complicated it had seemed. It had been nice, to be pretty and popular and smart, as Aubrey had said. She knew they were getting back on tricky ground when it came to Moreau, though, so she didn't mention that she still saw Moreau in that light, and it wasn't a flattering one. "This is that reminder." She held up her hand, which brought back bitter memories of the last few days.
"You know, I actually stood up for Moreau, the other day," she told the scientist. "Or...well, not Moreau exactly, but his work. I told the other people that this was a breakthrough in metamorphism. This weird black tiger-guy threatened me, after that. They all hate me now. But it is interesting, isn't it? In its own sadistic way, what Moreau is doing here is interesting. I'm afraid, though, that if I do turn into something, that it'll be painful. I don't like pain, especially when it's the kind of pain the black guy described, about your fingernails popping off and things like that." Val winced as she remembered exactly what he had said. She had no right to kiss up like she was, she knew, but she was scared of what was to come. "Is there anything you can do about it, Aubrey? Anything?" She clasped her hands before her like a praying schoolgirl, her eyes wide and pleading.
Aubrey chewed on her lip, listening, memories of high school all flooding back. "No one seems to understand it," she said honestly. "Not even myself. But I.. I don't know. I've always loved him. I never grew out of it. It never went away..." Aubrey sighed as she looked at the finger and winced, remember that day. While she always believed Val kind of deserved it, it was still disturbing to watch it.
She winced when she mentioned Jamal. "The tiger man, Mr. Reedy. He's a loose cannon. He hates us all. He means to kill me. He almost succeeded once." Aubrey pulled off her silk scarf, it was already wet anyway, and exposed her neck. It was mostly healed now, the bruise at least, but the sides of her throat were criss crossed with large scabs.
But then she started begging and Aubrey simpered back a step. "Can do...? About the change?" She frowned. "Not really... I can... uh, morphine helps with the pain..."
Valentine smiled wistfully, rubbing her middle finger and thumb around her left ring finger as if there was once a ring there. "Yeah. I know how love like that is. Jennifer was...is...the same for me as Moreau is for you." She lost focus for a moment, memories of her significant other overwhelming her. "It's like...she's the other half of my soul. As cliche as that is..." She trailed off absentmindedly, frowning.
Valentine's scientific interest clicked into place as Aubrey unconsciously answered a few questions she'd had. "Well, didn't you know he was a loose cannon when he was brought into the project? It seems a little ridiculous for Moreau to know NOTHING about the man other than what his records show. Though the hate is understandable." She hissed in sympathy, though, when Aubrey revealed the injuries to her neck. She reached out a hand partway before dropping it again, squinting at the scabs. "That looks bloody painful. Did he use his claws to try and choke you? I'm sorry, Aubrey."
The suggestion wasn't one she felt obliged to agree with, though. She shook her head, fingers resuming their rubbing of her hands. "No," she told Aubrey, "I never want to use morphine again. When I was in the hospital, they had me so drugged up I thought I had lost more than a finger. I was addicted for a while after that, until they weaned me off. I'd like to avoid another situation like that."
Aubrey listened and nodded, though she didn't really know if she felt like Moreau was the other half of her soul. Well, of course not. Aubrey didn't believe in souls anyway. But still.. it made her feel strangely uncomfortable to describe Moreau and herself in such ... flowerly term. She could swallow it up for Colche, but for some reason it made her almost feel sad to hear Val say it.
It wasn't that Aubrey didn't love Moreau with all her heart. And she was convinced Moreau loved her back. But it was different. She knew it wasn't the romance you'd make a movie about. This wasn't a silly romantic comedy, or an epic poem. There love was... a high level of understanding of each other. So he wasn't the most romantic or affectionate of lovers. It was deeper than that.
She had her silly books for the giggly flowers and chocolate bullshit.
She shook her head slightly, why was she even thinking abuot such things right now. She frowned as turned her attention back to Jamal. "He was in a bad situation when he came here," she admitted, "But Moreau wanted him anyway. He was healthy, easy to hide. I was hoping he'd deal with this place better. But the serum is not affecting him well, unfortunately."
To the morphine comment, Aubrey looked at her sympathetically. "Oh, I'm sorry..." She dug her toes in the sand. "I guess all I can suggest is aspirin."
"I know what you're thinking," Valentine commented drily. "You're thinking that I'm speaking bullshit, and that souls don't exist. I guess you're correct. But everything about Jennifer just feels...right, somehow. Like we were meant to be together. Not that destiny exists either, at least not to a scientist, but there's some proof!" The water seemed to have washed off the effects of her tequila to some degree, for Valentine could stand on her own despite the waves pulling at her ankles, and she seemed remarkably clear-headed. Her thoughts were clearer, too.
"You know," she thought out loud, "I once heard that a good marriage consists of a deep, lasting friendship and unshakeable eroticism. I don't know if I've ever heard of anything truer. Do you want to get married, Aubrey?" She gave the scientist a sharp look, as if estimating the effect her words would have. One toe pointed and began tracing a pattern in the sand that was steadily washed away by the waves.
Suddenly cold, the blonde woman rubbed her arms. She wasn't sure if the cold was because of fear, the fact that she was wet, or both. "I could tell it wasn't exactly helping him," she stated. "If it wasn't for the fact that he was really angry when I mentioned the research you must be doing, those scabs on your neck would have convinced me." Her goosebumps didn't seem to want to go away, and she rubbed more vigorously. "I wish there was some immunity I could apply for, so Moreau wouldn't test on me. I know that's unlikely though." There was a brief pause, then she frowned and opened her mouth in a small "O" of thought. "Say," she asked, "what happens if I don't let you inject me with whatever-it-is you're going to do?"
Valentine scowled, at the lack of options. "There's no vicodin? No other painkillers you can get ahold of?" This didn't seem like a believable situation, considering Moreau probably had connections in all countries around the world. Another thought occured to her, and hesitantly, she slipped out the phrase, "If I let you, as in the labtechs, screen them, is there any possibility I could write letters home?"
Aubrey gawked at Val, folding her arms in front of her. "Of course I want to get married," she said, wondering what exactly what the other woman might have been implying. "What makes you think Nick and I don't have that, huh?"
She shook her head. "Immunity?" Aubrey have her an incredious look. "It doesn't work that way here, Val. I'm sorry. Its not a matter of 'willing to.' If you want it to be willing, it can be. But you can't stop what's happening..." Aubrey bit down on her lip again, hating to tell someone this to their face. "Its took late now, anyway."
Aubrey turned and started to head out of the water. "And no letters. I'm sorry. No communication lines off the island. Not some anyone."
Valentine cringed, realizing she might have sounded like she was implying more than she meant. "Nothing," she replied hastily. "Ni--Moreau just doesn't seem like a very...sexually passionate person. I know he's passionate, though," she inserted, hoping Aubrey didn't take offense.
Somehow, Val found herself rather unsurprised at the fact that everything was forced. It seemed like a very Moreau-ish thing to do. The last sentence caught her off guard, though, and she placed too much weight on the toe tracing in the sand, causing her ankle to twist sideways. She hissed in pain and leaned down, clutching her ankle. "Too late," she inquired, her lip trembling, "what do you mean, too late?"
The lack of communication, too, didn't surprise her very much, but it hurt all the same. She dropped her ankle, rolling it around experimentally, and wincing. It was probably twisted. Her hand clenched into a fist which she placed on her chest, rubbing her knuckles fiercely on the area over her heart. "But what if people start asking questions?" she wondered. "I've been gone for longer than I told Jennifer and the people at work that I would be gone. People are bound to assume the worst and contact the MPA. Has anything been sent out, saying that I'm fine and I'll be extending my stay on the island?" Val struggled to hide the hope on her face, for she thought that if she looked hopeful, Aubrey would probably do anything to squelch it. "Speaking of which...it's highly doubtful, I know, but would anyone, assuming they wanted to, be released back into society?"
Slowly, she hobbled after Aubrey, tentatively putting weight on her foot. She'd need to elevate her ankle, probably.
"Moreau can be very passionate in all areas of his life," she countered, not really knowing if it was true or not. She didn't have any complaints about their love life, but she was less than a seasoned lover. "Not that its any of your business."
Back on the beach she pulled a beach towel from a cabinet on the beach bar and tied it around her waist. "And I mean too late for immunity. The serums already taking some internal effects. It could be dangerous to stop treatment now."
She sighed. "As for your stay, there are higher up in Feral Labs that take of that. The fact that you won't be coming back that is. I don't know each indivual cover story, but I'm sure they'll find some boating accident or car crash to peg you as being involved with. That being said.. I'm sorry, but this is your home now. Forever."
"Not that it's any of my business," she echoed as an afterthought. Her head felt fuzzy, and she wanted to lie down, so she dropped the subject.
She followed Aubrey's suit, also pulling out a towel, and proceeding to dry herself off. Then she scowled. "Internal effects as in...diet and stuff? Ew. I hate meat. I hope you gave me a vegetarian," she attempted to joke, but she didn't miss the dangerous comment.
"Oh...forever? Okay...I guess I can deal with that." Valentine looked like she was going to cry, again. "I just wish my family didn't have to grieve for me. You can understand that, right?" Valentine stared desperately at Aubrey. "I don't want anyone to hurt for me. I wish they didn't have to. Maybe...maybe they just told them I eloped with someone. And then disappeared. Maybe..." She clutched her towel vacantly for a moment, then turned inland. "I...I think I'm going to go, Aubrey. I have a lot to think about. Thanks for talking with me," she murmured vacantly, then wrapped the towel around her waist and began her trek back to her duplex.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:13 pm
For the entire day you have been feeling... off. Restless, yet tired. Hungry, yet nothing of your normal fare seeming appetizing. Even little things making you more irritable than usual - and while your anger management classes have helped keep you civil on the outset, inside you've felt like strangling someone or something. And to make matters worse, you've been... itchy. Hours later, the reason becomes clear. Stubble. On your legs, on your arms, all down your back... even on your face! Orange-ish hair, darker than your shining blonde hair. And it's growing. Fast. Faster than hair has a right to grow. Spotty, orange fur. Your ears and nose tingle, and the points of yoru ears begin to grow out, covered in the same orange fur. Your nose feels like a bee stung it as the end swells and then darkens, becoming moist like the nose of a dog! And it doesn't stop there. Your nails darken and grow, becoming tapered cylindrical black claws. And then, the base of your spine aches and then HURTS as your coccyx unfuses and pushes out into a short, tufted tail! Finally, your muscles ache as your shoulders widen, past the width of even your feminine hips, and ruining your tall, leggy feminine build. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sabin Duvert Vice Captain
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
