tatougunarchy - Tumblr blog

[tatougunarchy]

JOHN: *Indeed there was someone inside. An Egderp snagging pretty much all of the apples out of the fruit bowl. As if sensing Roxy wanted some. Prank caught mid -set-up or coincidence? Either way, she better act fast if she wants an apple. Before her nemesis takes notice of her presence.*

ROXY: ... *She stops in her tracks, squinting.*

ROXY: john

ROXY: is there any particular reason ur gatherin apples like a crazed chipmunk w extra cheekspace

ROXY: chipmunk man

ROXY: chipmank

JOHN: *He sort of jumps and proceeds to shove at least five whole apples under his shirt, in some shitty effort to hide them, before turning to face Roxy with a sheepish grin.*

JOHN: oh, hi roxy!

JOHN: uh. no.

JOHN: no reason.

ROXY: rly bc

ROXY: aint never seen a guy gather apples with that much gusto without havin some kinda underlyin cause

ROXY: water yew up tooooo *many weird voices being used as she addresses him, hands on hips and falsely squinting still. it's a joke, friend.*

JOHN: *He has his arms wrapped around his now protruding midsection and a very shifty-eyed gaze.*

JOHN: i'm just.

JOHN: hungry for apples!

JOHN: i've been eating too many oranges.

ROXY: that must be one nigh insatiable hunger

ROXY: care to spare at least one of those tho?

ROXY: *dont make her do a pouty lip face thatd require stooping so low*

JOHN: uh... yeah, i think i can actually. i mean, they just respawn anyway.

JOHN: *He attempts to remove one of the apples and they all just. Fall. Thud orchestra starts now. One even lands on his foot and he proceeds to yelp and grab the appendage.*

JOHN: ow!

ROXY: *withholds a snort; she was testing his desparation. no one is dying if hes willing to give one up-- the snort escapes and is very loud indeed* oh my godddd

ROXY: *shuffs over to help collect them* quick before they roll into space

ROXY: (also r u ok omg i never heard someone yell that loud over fruitfall)

JOHN: oh crap you're right! save the apples! *He helps round them up then snorts.*

ROXY: *pushes all the apples she can into a little pile between them on the floor, snickering*

JOHN: (yeah i'm fine. you should see dave spill his aj.)

ROXY: (omg does he have a spiritual connection to apple juice)

JOHN: (yeah it's like a spirit animal except dave's is juice because he's too cool to have a spirit animal. spirit juice. think ectoplasm.)

JOHN: *He grins at his joke and captchalogues all but one apple, holding it out to her.*

ROXY: *sits back on her heels and accepts the apple with a nod of gratitude* now my question is

ROXY: why were u stuffin them in ur shirt the old school way when u coulda captcha'd them before

ROXY: do u need antiquity

JOHN: uh. *He goes a little pink in embarrassment.*

JOHN: i sort of panicked.

JOHN: and just... *Makes shoving under shirt gesture.*

ROXY: did u think someone was gonna bust u omg

ROXY: well ok

ROXY: someone kinda did

ROXY: but

ROXY: someone not as chill as me i mean

JOHN: kind of? i mean...

JOHN: i heard the simile and thought maybe it was dave so i panicked, but then i realized it was a girl voice but by then i had already started shoving apples under my shirt.

JOHN: and i'm not one to leave things half-finished.

ROXY: *ducks her chin down to snort again, shaking her head as she lifts it back up* aye yai yai

ROXY: well sir i commend u

ROXY: *pushes herself up to stand, extending her free hand to help him up*

JOHN: *He takes it gladly but tilts his head in obvious surprise.*

JOHN: commend me?

JOHN: for how many apples i can shove under my shirt in ten seconds?

ROXY: for ur dedication to finishing any job started pfff

ROXY: but that too i guess bc that was a LOT of fuckin apples

JOHN: oh. well thanks! :)

JOHN: but yeah it was and they were all COLD.

ROXY: oh my god *this is just rly amusing* well next time do the captcha thing and save ur belly the icy freeze

JOHN: ugh yeah i'm going to try and remember that. my belly is still cold and i think i have goosebumps.

JOHN: even though there really isn't a temperature out here.

ROXY: yeah >:/ fckin tepid space

JOHN: what?

ROXY: this space

ROXY: it is tepid

ROXY: anywhoosits

ROXY: thank u for the apple *nom* i may live another day yet

JOHN: barely. i can't wait to get some real food already!

JOHN: even if it's like canned stuff, at least something different from fruit.

ROXY: im p sure to get that we have to play for it

ROXY: i looked at the board and uhhh

ROXY: it didnt have ur name next to rose for that game u said u would play

ROXY: everythin ok?

JOHN: ....

JOHN: *He glances away uncomfortably for a second or two before quickly looking back at her with a half-hearted smile and shoulder shrug.*

JOHN: yeah. just had something i needed to do.

ROXY: right

JOHN: i already apologized to rose about it.

ROXY: *nods*

JOHN: since i did kind of ditch her.

ROXY: : (

JOHN: she forgave me, though.

JOHN: and gave me one of her loots.

ROXY: well so long as ur ok *peers at him like hmmm u hidin somethin boy*

ROXY: awww what did she get outta there? i need to ask her about the game altogether ahh

JOHN: yeah. i'm fine. *Boost that smile to erase any doubts oh yeah.*

JOHN: she said she got some books, puzzles and writing supplies.

JOHN: which sounds kind of boring to me.

JOHN: but loot is loot i guess? and i can't really complain since i've been using what she gave me.

ROXY: loot is indeed loot

ROXY: what did she give u?

JOHN: *He uncaptchalogues the rubick's cube and holds it up with a genuine grin this time.*

JOHN: i haven't made a lot of progress but it takes my mind off things. which is kinda nice.

ROXY: *gaaasp* cube! i just love cubes

ROXY: specially of the rubik variety

ROXY: its good u have somethin to keep u busy tho

JOHN: oh yeah! you were trying to make the matriorb but kept making all those cubes, right?

JOHN: you even built a fort if i remember correctly.

ROXY: ye :33

ROXY: good times good times

JOHN: that's technically where we first met haha.

ROXY: oh i rememeber

ROXY: *remember... omg...*

ROXY: *memes....*

JOHN: you mean...

ROXY: *you didnt hear that*

JOHN: you...

JOHN: re-MEME-ber?

ROXY: ouo

JOHN: *SHIT-EATING GRIN.*

ROXY: nehehehehhehehehehehheheh

JOHN: hahahaha.

ROXY: yes i reMEMEber it quite clearly

ROXY: and i kinda wonder if i should still be tryin to make that matriobob or somethin but i dont think we have our old powers and shit which SUCKS

ROXY: we fuckin died for those digs, man

ROXY: *siiighs and meanders to one of the couches to plop down*

JOHN: yeah. :( i miss being able to do the windy thing.

JOHN: *Plops down beside Roxy.* and turn into the breeze.

ROXY: i liked makin waffles pop outta thin air

ROXY: i want waffles ;c

JOHN: you could make waffles?!

ROXY: i could make /anythin/

ROXY: or like

ROXY: summon??? anythin????

ROXY: w.e.

JOHN: wow!

ROXY: ya man

ROXY: hence my fort of cube

JOHN: if you had your powers we could have a ton of food!

ROXY: ikr :' (

ROXY: *flops back and takes a bite of her apple*

JOHN: heck, you could even make a wheelchair for tavros.

JOHN: *He's started fiddling with the cube.*

ROXY: aha!!!!!! fun fact

ROXY: i have already bestowed a wheelchair upon him

ROXY: me and kanaya won it in that fashion game

ROXY: he was so happ;;;;;;;;;

JOHN: really?! that's great! at least he can move around now.

JOHN: even if there really isn't much to move around to.

ROXY: in this case it is definitely the ability to move that matters yep

ROXY: god he was so sad ugh

ROXY: but we showed him around and gave him a couple pineapples and whatnot and hes probably doin wheelies in his room rn

ROXY: gotta get him into divine destination to get his legs back proper

ROXY: he wanted to play for em himself he said

JOHN: i can understand that. though playing a game in a wheelchair is probably gonna be hard.

ROXY: *shakes her head* nah not that one

ROXY: its easy as fuck and a total boon

JOHN: it is?

ROXY: u go in and pick out an outfit and it gets judged

JOHN: oh.

ROXY: then depending on if someone gets a perf score

ROXY: u get to keep them AND go back for like 3 mins to grab whatever u can

ROXY: just do what the mannequins say and duck when they barf at u

ROXY: *says this like its normal for mannies to barf*

JOHN: they barf at you?!

ROXY: BAHAHAHa

ROXY: they barf rings

JOHN: oh.

ROXY: from a long distance

ROXY: total ouch oh my god they rly pelt u good

ROXY: as if i didnt have enough bruises pff

JOHN: do you get to keep the rings though?

ROXY: well yeah theyre ur payment for succeedin

ROXY: and theyre used as currency in the shop inside

ROXY: which is where u buy ur body parts and other miscellaneous items

JOHN: that sounds so wrong. like a black market.

ROXY: the list was like

ROXY: one eye, two eyes, arm, robotic pants

ROXY: i jsut

JOHN: robotic pants.

ROXY: its hilarious in the most horrible way

ROXY: and yes

ROXY: robotic pants

ROXY: i rly rly gotta find out what the deal is with those

JOHN: how does that... nevermind.

JOHN: i don't think i want to know.

ROXY: im p sure it has somethin to do with tav

ROXY: but *shrug*

ROXY: felt intrusive to ask about his metallic trousers

JOHN: yeah.

JOHN: *shakes head* i haven't actually seen much of any of that stuff myself.

ROXY: probably bc its only in that one game and the only other ppl who have played it besides me and kan was scarfy, pirate lass and the other troll leader

JOHN: *he pauses after turning another row of the cube, staring down at it like the thing had wronged him somehow*

JOHN: well, yeah, but i meant in general.

JOHN: i've never been out of the hub.

ROXY: o

ROXY: well yeah there aint much to explore but the games so

ROXY: its ok not everybodys played yet

JOHN: yeah, but...

ROXY: :/ *turns to sit on her leg and face him*

ROXY: what was that thing u had to do that kept u from playin with rose

JOHN: it's...

JOHN: *his brows furrow and he starts messing with the cube again* just a thing.

JOHN: look, it doesn't matter what the thing is.

JOHN: *he sighs* i'm a leader, right?

ROXY: *gives him an unintentional mom face*

ROXY: yeah ur a leader which means

JOHN: *didn't have a mom so doesn't even notice it*

JOHN: i should be playing the games.

ROXY: no not that

ROXY: means u gotta follow leader decorum which is -- as im told by karkat -- rememberin to take care of urself

ROXY: and that means talkin to at least somebody about anythin thats botherin u bc bottling it up is just gonna make it hard to function *sigh*

ROXY: if it aint me thats cool but pls talk to somebody ok?

ROXY: *sees right thru the ruse bc she too has had to recieve this talk*

JOHN: .... *he turns the rows and columns, the squares clicking into place as he seems to focus his gaze on the cube to avoid looking at her*

ROXY: *eyes the cube, but waits*

JOHN: i just... *click* i'm fine. *click* i'm just a little tired. *click* it's nothing to worry about, seriously. *click- oh he got a solid color on a side*

ROXY: *looks back up at him, and decides not to push it, but hopefully now he knows that whatever he's locking up is visible* aight

ROXY: hmm

ROXY: did u know that theres a forcefield around these rooms

ROXY: o:

JOHN: *starts to turn a row, then stops and puts it back because he doesn't want to mess up the color yet, so he just captchalogues it and looks relieved at the topic change*

JOHN: really? like, the one we had to deal with back in that first room?

ROXY: *shakes her head, but shrugs after rethinking* mmmmaybe? they keep u from fallin into space

ROXY: go out about six feet

ROXY: dont ask how i found this out

JOHN: ....

ROXY: :3c

JOHN: you mean, you can walk out over the glitch?

JOHN: like an invisible platform?

ROXY: kinda yea

ROXY: but my fear is

ROXY: that now that we know this its gonna like disappear one day

ROXY: this place is fuckin sketchy

JOHN: it would be just like the game to pull a dick move again.

JOHN: not that we even know what falling into the glitch does.

ROXY: yeahh i dont think i wanna know lol

ROXY: its freaky enough falling onto the field

JOHN: yeah you were probably worried you were about to fall into the glitch, right?

JOHN: i'd have freaked out too.

ROXY: *eyebrow raise and looks away, suppressing a snort* yeah that rofl

JOHN: *raises a brow himself feeling like he missed something*

ROXY: *she has fallen into it twice and wonders if its worth telling him LOL*

ROXY: ANYWAY i think just be careful bc u never know when space will actually become space

ROXY: theres stars sometimes have u seen those?

JOHN: um... yeah actually! i just thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.

ROXY: nop! other ppl have seen em too

ROXY: its weird

ROXY: not too sure they belong there but then again what do i know about void right *snrk*

JOHN: *rolls his eyes* well.

JOHN: we really have no idea where exactly we are. i mean, we could easily be in the void. or somewhere like the last level of the game.

JOHN: even though i haven't felt a breeze.

ROXY: no breeze in the void

ROXY: shruggalug

JOHN: really? i thought the breeze went everywhere.

JOHN: then again, when i was part of it, i hardly knew where i was going.

ROXY: the void is p much totally still

JOHN: you can't control that stuff at all!

ROXY: if theres a breeze there its artificial *shrugs again* nothin there to make it itself ya know?

JOHN: er... yeah? *he scratches at his head* i dunno, void stuff isn't my area of expertise.

ROXY: eheh

JOHN: that's you and um... the horse troll. that sweats a lot.

ROXY: omg

ROXY: ummmmmmm

ROXY: qui

ROXY: that guy

ROXY: punchy guy

JOHN: with the broken horn.

ROXY: ye!

ROXY: i gotta talk to him we gotta be void bros

JOHN: you might wanna take a towel.

ROXY: i do not plan on touching him lol

ROXY: also im told he has his own?

ROXY: i get told so many things idk if i should believe

ROXY: first gamzee eats beds but then he also does not eat beds what does he EAT

JOHN: yeah but, he has so much sweat it might just gravitate to you.

ROXY: omgggg

JOHN: like it's attracted to non-sweaty people.

ROXY: john thats mean

JOHN: so it can contaminate them.

JOHN: what??

JOHN: it could be true!

ROXY: smh

ROXY: that aint how sweat works

JOHN: like you just said, what should we believe?

JOHN: it's TROLL SWEAT.

JOHN: it could work any way!

ROXY: *laughing*

JOHN: *kind of snickering himself*

JOHN: really though, i'm not trying to be mean.

JOHN: we just... don't know a lot about trolls.

JOHN: or how their anatomy works.

ROXY: im p sure the sweat is probably not sentient

JOHN: pretty sure.

JOHN: as in, you don't know FOR SURE.

JOHN: you could always test it out.

JOHN: for science.

ROXY: oh yeah sure

ROXY: hey equi can i bottle some of ur skin tears for science i gotta see if it jumps off of things and onto other beings

JOHN: i think that would make him sweat MORE.

JOHN: ew.

ROXY: do u even know him omg

JOHN: uh no but...

JOHN: karkat's said a lot about him?

JOHN: vriska's mentioned him a few times too.

ROXY: *brow dips* huh

ROXY: *not too sure about this tbh*

JOHN: it was sort of coincidental information giving.

JOHN: like he just happened to come up.

ROXY: *thumbs up* cool cool

ROXY: well

ROXY: i will talk to him myself eventually

ROXY: and prove u wrong with science

JOHN: can't wait to see your face when i'm right.

ROXY: *whispers* sweatdontworkthatway

JOHN: *whispers back* trollsweat

ROXY: i thiiiink this gag has gone on long enough tbh

ROXY: still feels like makin fun and im not rly too cool w that

JOHN: *laughs* okay, okay, fine. i didn't mean to make you uncomfortable.

ROXY: *wrinkles her nose a bit on a tight smile* eh its cool

ROXY: anybutts yep voidstars

ROXY: be wary

JOHN: *kind of feels like he hit a nerve and kicks at the floor awkwardly* haha, yeah, will do. don't want to be like dave and jake and run into forcefields.

ROXY: *snorts* that was fckin hilarious im sorry to say

JOHN: i kind of wonder how jake hasn't, like, damaged his brain to be honest. and i'm not making fun this time! it really kinda awes me.

ROXY: 8I

JOHN: okay maybe i said that wrong.

JOHN: ugh...

JOHN: i mean...

ROXY: how did u kno he has a fallin down problem lmao

JOHN: well jade mentioned it once, i think. and let's just say the forcefield thing wasn't the last time i saw him fall. or run into something.

JOHN: it's not like he's clumsy. more... he's really excited and forgets there's obstacles?

ROXY: probs

ROXY: but maybe lets just not talk about other people tho bc like?

ROXY: not too appreciative of anybody sayin my friend oughta have brain damage whether its just an observation or not

ROXY: bc im still not too sure you know him v well

ROXY: he aint a puppy, john

JOHN: oh...

JOHN: um, okay.

ROXY: thaanks >.<

ROXY: haha

JOHN: *drop gaze to his feet and awkward shuffling inTENSIFIES*

ROXY: *apple nom*

ROXY: have you uhhh

ROXY: messed with ur laptop yet?

JOHN: huh? *look back up at her* um, kind of...

ROXY: did it sing to u

JOHN: what?

ROXY: ok so u DIDNT mess with it too bad

ROXY: if you hit a certain point the computer will spam u with selfies u dont remember taking and play a laughtrack

ROXY: its pissing me off ngl im not used to having trouble crackin shit open

JOHN: oh you've been trying to hack the system?

ROXY: *nods* yeppadoodle

ROXY: me and dirk have both been tryin

ROXY: possibly others but i aint checked

JOHN: well, i'm glad i didn't try hacking it now. that sounds terrible!

JOHN: i did try doing some coding on it once.

ROXY: ????????? orly

ROXY: u code? owo

JOHN: yeah. i'm not really good at it but i enjoy it. it's fun to just make random stuff, even if it doesn't work the way it's supposed to. :)

ROXY: i c i c *applenom* i could teach u to code for real if u want

JOHN: that would be cool! but don't feel like you have to. like i said, it's mostly a hobby.

ROXY: *thumbs up as she takes another bite* im sure i can find the time hahah

ROXY: aint like we got much else to do friendo

JOHN: you have a point there. besides what i'm working on and the cube, i really don't have anything else to do.

ROXY: ok so we should schedule codin lessons or something

ROXY: wish there was a way to keep track of time,,,,,,,,

ROXY: we can do it whenever *waves hand*

JOHN: *laughs* yeah. i guess just come knock on my door if you're ever in a teaching mood. i'm almost always in my room anyway.

JOHN: if i'm not sleeping i'll answer.

ROXY: ok:33

ROXY: hey listen i think ima go fuck around with dell-ilah and then maybe ask some peeps about their ~gamin experiences~

ROXY: good luck with applequest?????

ROXY: *starts to stand, smiling*

JOHN: oh! yeah. thanks. *he gets up as well, returning the smile*

JOHN: good luck with your hacking, i guess?

ROXY: *bows comically* much obliged sir

ROXY: catch ya later! *abscond*

[tatougunarchy]

ROXY: *She had just gotten done speaking with Nepeta online, and the knock at her door has her hopping up to answer it eagerly, though her face falls a bit when she sees that yes, it is Kanaya, but no, she's alone* he aint around???

KANAYA: It Seems Not

KANAYA: I Cant Reach Him

ROXY: hrmmmgh

ROXY: aight i guess we gotta brave this on our lonesome as a twosome

ROXY: *begins to step outside and close the door behind her*

KANAYA: *She steps back, shrugging.*

KANAYA: Oh Well

KANAYA: At Least It Will Be Quick That Way

ROXY: exactly

KANAYA: Perhaps We Can Engage Sollux Another Time

ROXY: oh we are DEF gonna engage him another time

ROXY: he cant remain a slippery dick forever

ROXY: *walking towards the terminal to type in her info*

KANAYA: *Confused about the 'slippery dick' line, but chooses not to ask and follows suit.*

KANAYA: Is Two The Minimum Number Of Players Or Can One Play A Game Alone

ROXY: well people be headin into cornland alone i dont see why nooooooooh my fuckin gawd

ROXY: *looking at the holoboard now*

ROXY: janey no why this

KANAYA: *squints* Is That Your Friend

KANAYA: Why Is She In There

ROXY: i could not begin to tell u

ROXY: god dammit janey *baps her fist on the little shelf in minor frustration* burughrughugh get it together lalooooonde

ROXY: we got a chair to win

ROXY: *info is typed u go for it kanay*

KANAYA: *Raaaaises eyebrows.* Im Sure Your Friend Can Take Care Of Herself

KANAYA: *She enters her own information as quickly as possible.*

ROXY: oh no im totally sure

ROXY: just shes sposed to play another game w/ rose and john and blaaaaaah

ROXY: *starts off towards the escalators*

KANAYA: *She catches up and strides alongside Roxy.* It Seems Like Our Plans Have A Habit Of Falling Through

ROXY: yeahhhh *sighs, here comes the 10 minute escalator ride. lets uh... walk up them like theyre stairs to save time*

ROXY: who designed this crapola

KANAYA: Someone Who Really Doesnt Like Us

KANAYA: Since Theyre Clearly Able To Warp Space In Ways Advanced Beyond Even My Superior Society This Escalator Is Obviously Just For Laughs

ROXY: what else is new

ROXY: *boop boop climbin steps cue 80s power music*

KANAYA: *Roxy and Kanaya in color coordinated headbands and legwarmers.*

ROXY: *that is my dream come true*

KANAYA: You Are Armed Right

ROXY: whut

KANAYA: Do You Have A Weapon With You?

KANAYA: *She cocks an eyebrow at Roxy.*

ROXY: *lifts her hands to make magic fingers*

ROXY: right here maam

ROXY: i had a laser gun but i guess this place only lets u keep ONE of ur prior weapons and maybe fistkind was the best attempt at bare minimum

ROXY: im hopin i can win it back

ROXY: wbu?

KANAYA: *She reapplies her lipstick innocuously.* I Am Well Equipped

ROXY: *curious owo face ooooh*

ROXY: ima take your word for it im gettin a good vibe from the way u just said that all mysterious like

ROXY: *more magic fingers before she hops off the top of the escalator to look for the portal*

KANAYA: *She ducks her head and grins. It's nice to be appreciated.*

ROXY: *sweet kana;;*

[At the top you see another platform much like the one you just left, only this one has five empty portal stations. Only one of them has a keypad and hand-print sensor (for logging in) beside it though.]

ROXY: *gonna walk on over to this 'un*

ROXY: i wonder if u actually have to play to get thru to the counter like

ROXY: since they unlocked it before in general?

ROXY: not that i dont wanna play but hm

ROXY: *signs in*

[The portal is activated all the same with a piercing beep and a vortex of blue light. How cozy.]

KANAYA: *does the same* I Guess We Will See In A Minute

ROXY: would u like to do the honors or shall i *gestures to portal*

KANAYA: *She tilts her head, shrugs at Roxy, and then steps through.*

ROXY: oop

ROXY: *Waits a moment before stepping in after her*

[Once you enter the portal, you will be eveloped with a strange prickling sensation as you fall down, down, down, as though the dark is composed of tiny needles and little more. You don’t quite remember hitting the ground, but once you are all inside, you find yourselves on your feet in a dimly lit space. In front of you, there is a sliver of light, like the crack between two large doors. All at o

open to reveal a powder-pink … boutique? Do you step out to explore?]

KANAYA: *She steps out to explore.*

ROXY: *To explore she steps out.*

ROXY: oh wow so this is a mall

ROXY: or so im assumin

ROXY: a shopping center

ROXY: a center for which u go to do ur shoppin

KANAYA: Hm

KANAYA: Its Very

KANAYA: Pink

ROXY: ;w;

KANAYA: *She looks at Roxy, the pink human, as she says this.*

ROXY: ;//w//;

ROXY: this is gonna be so nice aaaaa

KANAYA: *She rubs her hands together, similarly enthused by the unconventional human clothing surrounding her.*

KANAYA: Where Do We Start

[Before an answer can be uttered, you hear a distant squeaking sound. It’s coming from the wheels of a mobile mannequin, which is currently slowly advancing towards you, its prim and proper pose unmoving and its empty face looking up and away from you. Silence.]

ROXY: ...............................................................................

ROXY: :c

ROXY: sweet baby jesus in a frilly-ass carriage what

ROXY: i knew there were mannies but thats just ridic

KANAYA: Are Those The Ones Which Are Supposed To Be Threatening

KANAYA: *Scoff.*

ROXY: its like a cheap horror flick im

ROXY: *actually starts laughing*

[For a moment, it does nothing. Then, in a swift snap, its head turns towards you and nothing else. Where its eyes and mouth should be light up blue as if there are lightbulbs beneath white plastic, flaring in time with the automated voice that fills the room around you, as though there are speakers all around rather than coming from solely this object.]

ROXY: *stops laughing* O.O

Welcome to Divine Destination, your premier fashion experience! Feel free to browse, but remember not to put together anything /too/ shabby - That simply won’t do, and the judges won’t like it at all. Have fun and happy dressing!

ROXY: .... *starts laughing again*

KANAYA: *She snorts, but the speed with which it had turned on did alarm her.* Thank You For Your Assistance

ROXY: *tries to stifle her laughter as she tosses the mannequin a chicken nod as if it could actually be communicated with.* cmon lets get this show on the road (omg)

KANAYA: *Kan begins to browse with practiced efficiency, whisking through the racks at a brisk speed.*

KANAYA: Hm

KANAYA: Hmmmmmmm

KANAYA: Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

ROXY: hm indeed

ROXY: *she isn't as practiced at this but she does look for a cute top first and foremost*

KANAYA: *She pulls out a fringed turtleneck and holds it up.* Is This Considered ... Fashionable On Earth

ROXY: *glances over and starts to answer, before slowly closing her mouth*

ROXY: if ur askin me personally ima say no to that one

KANAYA: So I Hoped

KANAYA: *She replaces the top in the rack of shame and continues looking.*

ROXY: *manages to find a black tank top and a loose looking pink sweater, knit to be somewhat sheer* ooooh im diggin this

[Once you settle on a singular item, it will disappear from your hands, but you will feel as though it is still with you… Because it’s in this game’s version of a sylladex.]

ROXY: *it went poof! ah!*

ROXY: ok i guess im usin that *mutters to self and turns to survey the skirt section*

KANAYA: *Kanaya notices this, arches an eyebrow, and then picks up a black t-shirt, which reminds her of home but is probably more clean, and a red leather jacket. On Alternia we do not have this, but it feels like it's made from the skin of a fallen animal. How badass, and also cool.*

ROXY: *does keep peering over at Kanaya, and when she sees the jacket she gasps* yooooooo

ROXY: gurl

ROXY: pleeeeease pleasepls

ROXY: (thatd look so gr8 on u)

ROXY: *slightly hides behind a rack* not to like try and influence ur decision or anythin i just think thatd look rly cool oop *skirts now*

KANAYA: Really

KANAYA: Im Happy To Oblige

ROXY: *peeps* your choice *gone again*

KANAYA: *The jacket and the t-shirt disappear from her hands, and become one with her soul.*

ROXY: *a beautiful union*

KANAYA: Do We Know Anything About These Judges Or What Criteria They Use To Judge Us

KANAYA: I Came Here To Win

ROXY: i think the goal is just to look about as hot as the cosmos will allow

KANAYA: I Can Do That

ROXY: ima try to keep up omg

ROXY: *sings* (dis girl is on fiyah)

KANAYA: *She pokes a pair of repurposed jeans flip-flops with the toe of her shoe.*

KANAYA: I Think Some Scrap Material Was Dropped By The Manufacturers

KANAYA: It Smells Strange

ROXY: *leans past a rack to look where she's looking after having grabbed a short white skirt* wth are those

KANAYA: Some Things Are Better Left Unknown

KANAYA: *While looking at some longer skirts and dresses, she finds a very nice jupe which is ankle-length but split up the side to mid-thigh. It's both lovely and more practical for action sequences, but it reminds her a little too much of her dancestor.*

ROXY: *goes to look for a pair of leggings or something -- she never really had the chance to experiment with fashion and is at the moment just sticking to what she knows. She does kind of want to exchange the stuff she has for other things by now and wonders if that's even possible.*

KANAYA: *In a feat of daring, she picks up a knee-length skater skirt and, although she feels a little indecisive about it still, she carries on looking for shoes and ACCESSORIES. After a moment, the skirt vanishes from her hands.*

ROXY: *It's time to bustle on over to the other stuff they have on the wall before accessories; that's a cute polkadot bra and she ain't passing it up, you can't make her. Whoosh, gone. Please have leg warmers, oh accessory section. Please feed my 80s addiction.*

[And if you’ll look to your left — the mannequin is no longer positioned at the doorway you entered through, and is instead much closer to you all than is probably comfortable. It doesn’t say anything yet.]

KANAYA: *Kanaya does not miss the mannequin. She is tracking it in her peripheral vision. She sidles up to Roxy.*

KANAYA: Are There Any Rules To This Game

ROXY: *turns around to look around the room, blinking at the dummy* uhh

ROXY: maybe theres a timeframe

KANAYA: I Get The Sense That If There Are Rules That Robot Will Be The One Enforcing Them

ROXY: probs

ROXY: :I

ROXY: i think we should just try to hurry up anyway maybe

ROXY: *rifling for shoes after having claimed her leg warmers ah yess her fave gray*

KANAYA: Whats The Purpose Of The Woolen Tubes

ROXY: u dont kno legwarmers???

KANAYA: I Know Socks

KANAYA: Are These Socks For People Without Feet

ROXY: no omg *laughs* theyre usually decorative and you can bunch em up on your calves over ur shoes if u have like boots or smth

ROXY: its a weird aesthetic

ROXY: i just like em i dunno *shrug*

KANAYA: *She nods in understanding.* You Have Cold Legs

ROXY: *opens her mouth. closes it. just laughs* at times yes

ROXY: but not with these bad boys *wiggles happily*

ROXY: *oh my gosh these white boots are Superb*

KANAYA: *Approval. Stores this knowledge away for later and considers, in the moment, a pair of boots and a pair of Mary Janes.*

ROXY: pssst

ROXY: if u got the jacket from before u might wanna go full badass biker chick for this part

KANAYA: Whats A Biker Chick

ROXY: *jaw drop*

ROXY: hot babes on motorcycles

ROXY: its just the vibe u give w/ leather jackets usually

ROXY: and they wear boots but i might be biased why am i givin u pssst's omg im sorry

KANAYA: *Shades on. Just kidding, she has no shades. But if she did, she would put them on now.*

KANAYA: You Dont Have To Psst Me

[The mannequin is like breathing down Roxy's neck. Are you cheating.]

KANAYA: Its Only The Two Of Us In Here

[Really.]

KANAYA: ...

KANAYA: And That Thing

ROXY: *ghibli shudder*

ROXY: eeeeugh *scurries away from it*

KANAYA: *She grabs the boots and walks past the mannequin, slowly. She is giving it CHALLENGER EYES.*

[Once Kanaya picks up her final piece, whatever it may be, the mannequin speaks again.] Splendid! Right on schedule! All models, please report back stage to get ready for the show.

ROXY: *squee* sounds like its catwalk time! never been on a real catwalk oh man

ROXY: *looks around* wheres backstage....

KANAYA: Um

KANAYA: Not Behind Us At Least

[And as if they hold the answer, more mannequins show up. They are advancing on you like ice cold zombies. They want to guide you, is all.]

[They're so excited to see your outfits, really.]

ROXY: *bursts out laughing again* holy tits

KANAYA: *Her lip curls at the sight. Kanaya doesn't like robots. She bounces her lipstick in her palm.*

KANAYA: Are So Many Required

ROXY: i guess there IS a timeframe

ROXY: cmon cmon *skdaddling*

KANAYA: *Skedaddles gracefully, casting the mannequins icy looks.*

[It appears they are all coming from different directions except for the one they apparently want you to go in.]

KANAYA: *Goes in that direction, sticking out her elbows and walking quickly to keep them a healthy distance away.*

ROXY: *still snickering as they go along with this*

[They have successfully herded you into a dark space behind a curtain. A moment passes before Kanaya finds herself seated in an empty audience, and Roxy is standing at the mouth of a catwalk, behind another curtain, decked out in her new 80's duds. The curtain is drawn, and spotlights/camera flashes from nowhere assail you. Walk, walk, fashion baby.]

ROXY: *all this abrupt portaly zooping*

ROXY: *she stands there for a second before doing her best attempt at being a burrito of stylish and graceful, sashayin' away. Please give good score.*

KANAYA: *Wow! Kanaya totally approves. She thinks Roxy looks super cute. Such a cute burrito. It evokes a certain aesthetic, to be sure, but one that Roxy pulls off flawlessly. However Kanaya is not a judge so all she can do is beam up at Roxy.*

ROXY: *that's such a nice encouraging smile roxy is just /)o//w//o(\ as she turns around to go back up the catwalk*

[What a trend setter. Next up is Kanaya; it’s less than graceful how Roxy is suddenly tossed into the chair she was sitting in, and she’s tossed on stage and suddenly in her new outfit. Luckily she's more graceful than all of us, ever.]

KANAYA: *Kanaya sucks in a deep breath, pushes her shoulders back, and advances down the catwalk at a stately pace. She only swings her hips a little.*

ROXY: *leans her elbow on the armrest and watches in slight awe like really how does one person manage to be so glam*

KANAYA: *At the end of the catwalk, she pauses, rests one hand on her hip, and then returns backstage, blushing a little. She has just lived a very small dream.*

[And now, both of you are back up on stage. The cameras aren’t flashing as wildly as before, and the spotlight will fall upon you one at a time as your score is announced via the surrounding speakers. Roxy; pass! Kanaya; pass! Congratulations!]

ROXY: *whoa vertigo jfc WE CAN WALK YA KNOW*

ROXY: pass??? what about the numbers

KANAYA: This Is A Copout

ROXY: give us our rings dangit >:T

[Be careful what you wish for. After the scores are announced, suddenly there is a single spotlight on a figure in the fake audience, a far distance away. It is the mannequin, and it’s the only thing you can see in the dark. It turns sharply to face Roxy, and all at once, a slot opens where its mouth should be and it begins shooting rings directly at her. Hope you brought your cup.]

ROXY: *she remembered the warning, and pointed at the thing to yell AHA! before it began shooting the rings, but unfortunately she can't quite catch them all in the cup when they're being flung at that speed.*

ROXY: oh jesus h christ on the croSS OW

KANAYA: Oh Shoot

KANAYA: *She protects her face with one hand and tries to pick up some rings with the other.*

ROXY: nonono i got them brace yourself for yours *rubbing her arm before kneeling to scoop up the rings* this is some shit ommfg

KANAYA: Uh Oh

KANAYA: I Dont Have A Cup

ROXY: just !!!! *points*

[Here come Kanaya's rings.]

KANAYA: *She holds out her hands and tries to catch as many as she can.*

ROXY: phewwwww

ROXY: how many u get??

[You both got 15.]

KANAYA: *She sifts through them, mouthing the numbers.* Fifteen

KANAYA: What About You

ROXY: same same *plinks them into the cup, and holds it out to Kanaya for her to put hers in there, too.* thats a grand total of 66! this is great ahhh

[The lights shift back to the boutique setting and you realize you have been in there all along. That was trippy. If you inspect the place again, you will find that a new space has opened up. A simple counter off to the side.]

KANAYA: How Many Did We Need

ROXY: we only needed like 20 for the chair i think and we had more than that already

ROXY: but its good to have as many as possible

KANAYA: Of Course

KANAYA: *Money money money. It's a rich man's world. She starts towards the counter.* Is This The Place You Were Talking About

ROXY: *looks over and all but jumps to follow her* must be

[Behind this counter, the mannequin stands. But it’s wearing a bright pink wig. Hm.]

ROXY: gurl that do is so last millenium

KANAYA: Its Very Bold

[The computerized voice resounds again] Welcome to the Inventory. This is the station where you may purchase items of interest via the gold rings that you have hopefully been collecting all throughout the games. Do you wish to view the catalog?

ROXY: heck yeah cmon show me whatcha workin with *sings it*

[A large screen lights up behind the mannequin, and its upturned hand appears now as though it had been pointing to this all along. On the screen, items are listed beside a number that represents how many rings it is worth. Wheelchair, 20. Robotic arm, 25, obsolete. Robotic pants, 30. Arm, 35, obsolete. Eye, 40, obsolete. Two eyes, 45. Full restore, 50.]

ROXY: robotic pants

KANAYA: I Wonder If It Refers Solely To The Pants Or To The Legs As Well

ROXY: im hopin its legs too but? jfc

ROXY: can u tell us about the full restore?

If you select Full Restore, it will regenerate proper function to all aspects of the chosen recipient.

ROXY: :///// im tempted to say lets just see if we can get that for tav but he says he wants to be involved so like?

KANAYA: ... Hm

KANAYA: Is It Worth It To Buy The Chair And Then Come Back So Soon For The Restore

ROXY: is it worth it to wait when he might not have to??? i feel like he deserves to idk do somethin for himself like he wants

ROXY: he seems p set on it

KANAYA: All Right

KANAYA: *She shrugs.*

ROXY: *sigh shrug im gonna count out 20 rings now* one wheelchair pls

[The mannequin begins to emit a strange buzzing sound. Its mouth slot opens again. And suddenly it is sucking the rings back into its mouth like a vaccuum of death. Once they are all taken in, the slot closes again, and you hear nothing but clanging inside the mannequin before it stops, and out from its mouth spurts a small slip of paper. It’s a receipt. Take it.]

ROXY: im thoroughly disturbed but only in like a rly weird underlying way

KANAYA: I Have Never Been Inside Such A Self Sustaining Store

KANAYA: *She takes the receipt.*

[And as if by magic, a wheelchair begins to materialize beside you as if pixels swam through the air to conjoin together. Glorious. It is perfectly fitted and even has a cool brown backpack on the backside of it. Not that that's worth anything.]

ROXY: !

ROXY: aaaah finally

KANAYA: Here It Is

KANAYA: *She's come full circle.*

ROXY: *gonna go to captcha this sucker* hes gonna be so happyyyy

ROXY: i hope

ROXY: well

ROXY: its one step

ROXY: towards? bein happy?

ROXY: mobility hurrah

[The mannequin begins buzzing again. Out pops another receipt.]

KANAYA: Well I Would Say The Steps Will Have To Wait Until At Least The Robotic Pants Stage

ROXY: *laughs an abruptly goose-like laugh* omfg

ROXY: hey what *reaches for receipt*

[Once you take that, there will be another]

KANAYA: How Many Receipts Do We Even Need

ROXY: *brow dips as she takes that to read it too*

KANAYA: We Bought One Thing

ROXY: "perfect score: bonus unlocked!"

ROXY: they both say that

ROXY: we dun good aw yes

[The mannequin speaks again.]

You have unlocked a Bonus Achievement! For each perfect score, you have earned three minutes to freely gather additional items from the catalog. Starting countdown.

ROXY: *high pitched happy sound* dude we got SIX MINUTES lets go go go

KANAYA: *Her eyes widen fractionally.* !!!

KANAYA: *She goes, goes, goes.*

ROXY: *off they go go go*

ROXY: *roxy had been eyeing a dark blue ensemble from before, let's see if she can find it again...*

KANAYA: *Kanaya grabs all the clothes she had previously decided against, including the long skirt with the slit up the side and the Mary Jaes.*

ROXY: *Thank God for that*

ROXY: *I mean what*

KANAYA: *Smh*

ROXY: *six minutes is a pretty long time these are gonna be some happy chicas*

ROXY: *despite the cute short dresses she had taken a liking to she figures its probably wise to grab some pants too whoop*

KANAYA: *So true. Kanaya is being much more liberal with her choices than before.*

KANAYA: *After some hesitation, she picks up the jean sandals. For a souvenir.*

ROXY: *Oh, God. Roxy is reasonably certain she just grabbed a giant fucking sun hat.*

ROXY: *Why? We don't know.*

KANAYA: *There's no sun near here, Roxy.*

ROXY: *It's just so pretty :'c *

[The six minutes goes by accordingly. When your time is up, a siren blares throughout the place. If you raise your head to look, the mannequins will have begun to advance again. There are more than before. They are moving slightly faster.]

ROXY: o sugar honey iced tea

KANAYA: Lets Get Out Of Here

ROXY: dont gotta tell me twice *manages to grab a couple loose items before just dashing in the direction they were apparently supposed to go*

KANAYA: *She runs towards the exit, casting frequent glances over her shoulder.*

[You are herded back into the entrance you came from, in through the open doors of the changing room. The mannequin that greeted you is there again, its raised hand now appearing like a wave.]

ROXY: SAYONARA BITCH *skids into the closet*

KANAYA: *Cheeky wave at the mannequin.*

[The doors slam shut, and all at once, there is a sensation akin to falling /up/ along with the usual prickling, and then you will be deposited back in the game hub. An impersonal robot voice boops out an echoing “Game complete.” accompanied by a muted equally robotic trumpet fanfare, and then you find yourselves walking in slow motion out of the portal and back into the game hub. Breeze and everything.]

KANAYA: *This is all a little disorienting, although she's getting used to it.*

ROXY: *She is glad she had gotten used to traveling by fenestrated plane or else she might be hurling right now*

ROXY: wowza

KANAYA: That Was A Lot Of Fun

KANAYA: Despite The Aggressive Sales Clerks

ROXY: yeah oh my god *laughing* the ring barfing was real

ROXY: it was so real

ROXY: jeez

ROXY: did you get to grab anythin really good??? *tilts head*

KANAYA: Yes I Think So

KANAYA: Have You Ever Seen Something So Bad Its Good

ROXY: oh no

ROXY: pls dont tell me

KANAYA: Well If You Really Dont Want To Know

ROXY: nonono i wanna know i wanna know

ROXY: im just sayin i think i have a gues

ROXY: guess*

KANAYA: *She produces the denim sandals and shows them off.* Were These Your Guess

ROXY: *grabs her face*

ROXY: *her own face*

ROXY: ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh nooooooooooooooooooooo

ROXY: you gotta wear them

KANAYA: I Will Not

KANAYA: They Are For Showcasing Only

ROXY: u have to do it kanay

KANAYA: Can You Imagine

ROXY: someday

ROXY: ur gonna wear them

ROXY: and its gonna be amazing

KANAYA: When Oinkbeasts Fly

KANAYA: *She rolls her eyes.* What Did You Get

ROXY: *laughing* uhhh

ROXY: *sifts thru fashion inventory*

ROXY: *pulls out this big sun hat and plops it on her head. its quite floppy*

ROXY: this strikes as highly impractical

ROXY: and yet

ROXY: irresistible

KANAYA: *She flicks the brim gently.*

KANAYA: Its Imposing

ROXY: *strikes a pose*

ROXY: could i kill a man in this hat

KANAYA: Yes

ROXY: life goals

KANAYA: You Could Kill A Man In Anything But Especially In The Hat

ROXY: SB)

ROXY: *takes it off and tucks it away*

ROXY: i think we should give tavros his chair now dont u

ROXY: ;3;

KANAYA: It Seems About Time

[tatougunarchy]

ROXY: *Roxy had been fiddling with the computer again, and amazingly enough had let off a loud 'blaaaarrrghhh!' of frustration when she was spammed with even more selfies and that god DAMN laugh track right about when there was a knock at her door. She freezes, pulling a face in embarrassment and hoping whoever it was hadn't heard that before she gets up to go answer the door, fixing her hair. Ooh! New troll!*

ROXY: hi :O

KANAYA: Hello

KANAYA: You Must Be Roxy

ROXY: thats my name feel free 2 wear it out

ROXY: i feel bad i dont know yours

KANAYA: Its Okay

KANAYA: Im Kanaya Maryam

ROXY: !!!!

ROXY: o YOURE the famous kana! ive heard about u yes

KANAYA: Uh Oh

KANAYA: Only Intimidating Things I Hope

KANAYA: *Cue disarming chuckle.*

ROXY: *omg you are so charming.*

ROXY: its nice to meet u finally:33 *steps aside a bit* come on in if u wanna

KANAYA: *She steps in and looks around.*

KANAYA: Its Nice To Meet You Too

KANAYA: I Have Also Heard Some Things About You

KANAYA: But Im Glad Im Getting The Chance To Make My Own Judgments

KANAYA: *She looks Roxy up and down. She looks a lot like Rose, but doesn't act like her.*

ROXY: rly?? *closes the door and faces her curiously* what kinda things

ROXY: im thinkin they dont rly have as good a chance as bein intimidating things like ur things might be

ROXY: kekekeke

KANAYA: Not Really

KANAYA: Its A Mixed Bag

KANAYA: Oh Also I Brought These

KANAYA: *She pulls out the rings, cupped in two hands.*

ROXY: :O!!! *quickly gets out the cup to reach over so Kanaya can dump the rings into it*

ROXY: dang wowza

ROXY: so yall played pillar? what was it like??

KANAYA: *She dumps the rings into the cup and props a hand on her hip.*

KANAYA: Invigorating

KANAYA: I Highly Recommend It

KANAYA: Do You Enjoy The Usage Of Guns Large Or Small

ROXY: gimmie the biggest gun u got im a happy little pancake

ROXY: its a GUN GAME?

ROXY: sign me UP

KANAYA: Yes It Is A Gun Game And You May Be Signed Up If You So Wish

KANAYA: There Is A Lot Of Shooting And Smashing And At The End They Will Restore Your HP

KANAYA: I Thought It Was Perfectly Lovely

ROXY: that sounds like my kinda game hell yeah

ROXY: what kinda jerks were u shootin at??

ROXY: like what did they look like

KANAYA: Not Humans And Not Trolls

KANAYA: There Appeared To Be Several Different Species

KANAYA: But Their Armor Obscured Their True Forms From Me

ROXY: armor,,, were u guys in armor too then? what was the place like setting wise

ROXY: im like tryna figure out what games to compare it to *snaps fingers a few times*

KANAYA: We Were In Some Very Sleek And Appropriately Colored Armor

KANAYA: I Believe We Were On Some Type Of Spacecraft

ROXY: o u o

ROXY: motha

ROXY: fuckin

ROXY: halo

KANAYA: What Is Halo

ROXY: similar to what yall probably played

KANAYA: But An Earth Game

ROXY: yes

ROXY: i have noooo idea if yall have a troll equivalent

KANAYA: I Didnt Know Earth Children Played Such Violent Games With One Another

KANAYA: It Seems We Have More In Common Than I Previously Thought

KANAYA: Were The Casualties Usually Severe

ROXY: oh god i dont think ppl played it like HOW you guys did

ROXY: 100% virtual back in my day

KANAYA: Oh I See

ROXY: ,,,,,,,,,,, waaait

ROXY: you played shit like that in the FLESH?

ROXY: like before now

KANAYA: We Did Not Have A Troll Equivalent Of This Game

ROXY: but u had violent games in which casualties were like

ROXY: a thing

ROXY: o_O

KANAYA: Of Course

ROXY: "of course" ta loca of course

ROXY: hoh leee crap

KANAYA: We Did Not Usually Murder Our Friends Though

ROXY: i should HOPE not

KANAYA: We Kept It Mostly To Maiming

KANAYA: There Were Also Many Many Cases Of Lusus Killing

ROXY: how considerate

ROXY: oh jeez

ROXY: that doesnt sound very fun imo

KANAYA: The Fun Levels Varied

KANAYA: I Did Like Surviving

ROXY: good on u

KANAYA: That Was The Main Goal Of Most Of The Games I Think

KANAYA: Although Entertainment Played A Large Part

KANAYA: Dont Worry

KANAYA: Im Aware This Is Considered Very Callous By Human Standards

KANAYA: I Have Learned Much About Your Species

ROXY: ay caramba *headshake; oo but then she perks up because she remembers a detailll* i bet SB)

ROXY: i heard from a lil birdy u are p buddy buddy with my mom

ROXY: daughter?

ROXY: momdaughter

KANAYA: *She looks away shiftily.*

ROXY: omo

KANAYA: We Lived Together On The Meteor For Over A Sweep

KANAYA: We Do Know Each Other Very Well

ROXY: *that face wasn't a particularly good sign hrm. she reaches to scratch the back of her head in faint embarrassment*

ROXY: the first time i rly talked to her i dove behind a couch and pretended i dropped a quarter *blurts out an embarrassing rose story? will this curb the conversation into something not awk? maybe*

KANAYA: *She laughs, also embarrassedly.* When I First Spoke To Her We Were Attempting To Harass And Irritate The Humans As A Small Act Of Vengeance For Turning An Unbeatable Monster Loose Upon Our Universe And Destroying All Hopes Of Victory Or Even Survival

KANAYA: Little Did I Know We Would Later Become Close Friends

ROXY: *blinks* wow way to out weird me

ROXY: that there is insanity my friend

KANAYA: *She looks a little puzzled and is worried that has just committed a social faux pas.*

KANAYA: Is It

ROXY: a lil bit *she isn't bothered or anything, they all live in insanity* not so much the vengeance thing as the unbeatable monster thing

ROXY: i dont think theres anything NOT insane about p much every aspect of everyones lives here so hahahaha

KANAYA: Oh That Guy

KANAYA: Well That Wasnt My Fault

KANAYA: But You Are Right

KANAYA: In Fact I Am Wondering If There Is Anything Anyone Could Do To Truly Surprise Me Anymore

KANAYA: *looks up* I Am Not Tempting Fate I Am Only Idly Wondering

ROXY: *also looks up* (id say knock on wood but)

KANAYA: What

ROXY: u kno, knock on wood

ROXY: its this thing u do to revoke the possibility of jinxing urself

ROXY: like u miiiiight have just done

ROXY: if youre superstitious or smth

KANAYA: How Does It Work

ROXY: u find wood

ROXY: and u knock on it

ROXY: *knocks on the door to demonstrate*

KANAYA: Is This Part Of Human Magic

ROXY: im p sure its just a dumb thing

KANAYA: ...

ROXY: dont worry about it forget the wood *smiling there is something very cute about this troll wat the heck*

ROXY: *you silly alien*

ROXY: (am i weirding you out at all bc just tell me to stop running my maw and ill do my best ok)

KANAYA: *The NOT silly alien shakes her head and smiles.*

KANAYA: No I Was Worried I Was Putting You Off In Fact

ROXY: waaat? no way jose

KANAYA: You Do Remind Me Of Someone I Know A Little

ROXY: owo

ROXY: ive heard that a couple times and it still makes me all fuzzy happy aww *even if they're likely not the same comparison its still a nice thing, to remind someone of someone*

KANAYA: Heh Heh Heh

KANAYA: If You Knew Him You Might Not Say That

KANAYA: Actually You Might Know Him

KANAYA: *Whoops.*

ROXY: im gonna gamble here and guess ur talkin about gloomy gertrude aka my dear not-son davidson

KANAYA: I Dont Know Who Gloomy Gertrude Is But Yes Im Referring To Dave

ROXY: (i call him alternating variations of debbie downer because hes a big poop)

ROXY: ok no i need to stop w/ the euphemisms

ROXY: hes negative sometimes

ROXY: so i have seen

ROXY: im not insinuating that i think he is an actual turd

KANAYA: I Didnt Think He Was An Actual Turd But Thank You For The Reassurance

KANAYA: I Did Not Realize He Was A Debbie Downer

KANAYA: When We Lived Together He Was Just Thirsty

ROXY: thirsty oh my god

ROXY: dave,,,, my son,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

KANAYA: What

ROXY: nothin nothin

ROXY: (crey)

ROXY: nah i dont mind bein compared to him i like him a lot

ROXY: i like p much everybody a whole lot save for like one person

ROXY: *no qualms. none.*

KANAYA: Who Is That One Person

ROXY: that dude that eats beds

ROXY: i feel like a shit talker but lbr i dont even care oops

KANAYA: Are You Referring To Gamzee Makara

ROXY: dingalingaling!

ROXY: yea not too fond not too fond

KANAYA: I Dont Think Anyone Is

KANAYA: *Glares at the wall.*

ROXY: *wat wall*

KANAYA: *The space.*

ROXY: *sighs, remembering what Feferi said and how she wasn't supposed to repeat it. Something about Kanaya made it relatively easy to consider asking for an opinion, but she decides against it for now*

ROXY: either way i think we got a pretty good team *shrugs* i think i need to find somebody brand new to play the fashion game w/ me

ROXY: i can go in for tavros' chair now i just want a cool clothes buddy or two o3o

KANAYA: *She looks over at Roxy slowly. A lightbulb has gone on over her head.*

KANAYA: Really

KANAYA: I Have Been Hearing Quite A Lot About That Game

ROXY: O v O

ROXY: yeah man it seems like a hot pot of rice

ROXY: would u,,,, wanna go with me? :33

KANAYA: *Flirtatious eyes. Just kidding. A little.* Of Course

KANAYA: I Love Fashion And I Hear There Is An Element Of Danger

ROXY: *oh miss maryam ooooh*

ROXY: heck yeah SB)

ROXY: do u have anybody u think we could grab as a third? or should this be a super quick dash and grab thing

KANAYA: I See No Reason To Hurry

KANAYA: I Believe Feferi Nepeta And Terezi Were All Interested

KANAYA: But We Could Convince Almost Anyone You Like I Think

KANAYA: *Kanaya is very convincing.*

ROXY: well idk there kinda IS a reason to hurry considering the main reason were goin in BUT we could grab somebody who hasnt been doin much

ROXY: i aint seen mr captor in like 5evur

KANAYA: You Know Sollux

KANAYA: ?

ROXY: a little bit? i met him when we first got here

ROXY: plus tavros should have some friends go in there with him after hes got the chair so maybe team fefeta would like to do that

KANAYA: Yes Perhaps Ill Suggest It To Them

KANAYA: Unless You Would Like To

KANAYA: I Think Sollux Would Make A Very Interesting Companion

ROXY: whichever! we could split up, one of us talk to them one of us bug the beanpole

ROXY: should we rock paper scissors

KANAYA: Whats That

ROXY: gasp

ROXY: ok ok ill show u *gets in a STANCE* make a fist w/ one hand

ROXY: and u bop it on your other hand like one two three *bopbopbop* and on three u make either rock paper or scissors *demonstrates each gesture*

KANAYA: *She makes a fist with her hand and bop bop bops her other hand, then makes all three gestures.* Okay

ROXY: okay so lets do a trial run

KANAYA: *She does it again.*

ROXY: rock paper scissors aaaand shoot *boop; she made paper what did kanak make*

KANAYA: *Kanaya made all three signs.*

ROXY: *thought so*

ROXY: bby no u pick ONE of them

KANAYA: Oh

KANAYA: Why

ROXY: i was gonna wait till u picked one and THEN explain why u won or lost heheh my b

ROXY: people use this game to decide who does something or whatever

ROXY: quick just pick one and do it

KANAYA: Okay

KANAYA: *She does it again and chooses scissors because it evokes images of blades and lesbianism.*

ROXY: *perfect choice*

ROXY: ok so u did scissors which means if i did paper *does paper*

ROXY: youd have beaten me bc scissors cuts paper *bops her paper hand between kan's fingers to demonstrate. not gay.*

ROXY: if i did rock id have won bc rock smashes scissors *fake rock bop*

KANAYA: So Rock Is The Ultimate Weapon

ROXY: so you would THINK

ROXY: if u did rock and i did paper then paper would have won

ROXY: because paper covers rock

KANAYA: What Does That Mean

ROXY: *makes a sign with each hand and covers rock fist with paper hand*

ROXY: all three of them can win in one way and lose in another its just a super fair and simple way to make decisions

KANAYA: Oooookay

KANAYA: *She wonders what the fuck kind of paper humans use that is more powerful than rocks.*

ROXY: its just another silly thing ;P

KANAYA: Lets Do It

ROXY: heck yessss *prepares*

ROXY: ok so whoever wins talks to snorlax

ROXY: not that hes any better than fefeta im just sayin its one or the other

KANAYA: All Right

KANAYA: *She gets into a ready stance and rests her fist in her palm.*

ROXY: rock paper scissors aaand SHOOT *roxy does rock*

KANAYA: *Kanaya does paper, the SNEAKY weapon.*

ROXY: aaaaaah

ROXY: you have learned well young grasshopper

ROXY: u cloaked my boulder in papery shadow

KANAYA: I Have Utilized The Human Paper Magic

ROXY: ur the papermaster

ROXY: it is u

ROXY: :D

ROXY: ok so we should talk to them asap

ROXY: i fear that poor tavros might be risking like

ROXY: bedsores by now

ROXY: and that aint a pretty thought

KANAYA: Thats A Decidedly Ugly Thought

KANAYA: I Will Go Find Sollux Immediately

ROXY: aces *double pistols and a wonk for the lady*

ROXY: thanks again for deliverin the rings

ROXY: u are a treasure

KANAYA: Thank You

KANAYA: You Have A Treasure

KANAYA: In A Cup

ROXY: that i do

KANAYA: Ill Get Back To You Soon

KANAYA: *She waves, flustered, and leaves.*

ROXY: okay! *waves back, probably less flustered but sort of starry eyed because what an interesting person that was*

[tatougunarchy]

TG: hey jade???

GG: oh hi roxy!!

TG: oh yo youre alive!!! hi!

GG: um yes i am indeed alive

TG: i been knockin on your door and shit are you okay

GG: oh yeah!!!

TG: ive been needing to get in touch with you o:

GG: no worries im fine im just a reallllyyy deep sleeper

TG: ooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhh

TG: see now that explains a lot

TG: my b

GG: haha yeah you shouldve seen when dave had to wake me up when i was getting him into the game

GG: also you needed something??

TG: ooo yes i did

TG: but def feel free to tell me that story in a mo

TG: i was hopin u still had those rings from that game you played?

GG: oh yeah!!

GG: i definitely still had them

TG: great!!! i need them actually

TG: im the resident ring holder

TG: i am taking them all to mordor

TG: (new fave gimmick txt it)

GG: omg

GG: did you guys figure out what they were for??

GG: i mean theyre cute for jewelry but

GG: i hope they have more purpose than that

TG: yeah!! they are 100% definitely currency

GG: i knew it!!

GG: then yes definitely you can have mine

TG: turns out theres a dress up game u can buy body parts in

GG: omg

GG: like

GG: what kind of body parts?

TG: and so im kinda collecting all of them rn so we can save up to get tavros a wheelchair;;

TG: umm

TG: well pirate lass got her arm and eye

GG: right right

GG: thats whats important

TG: and we are now bankin on unparalyzing tavros

TG: but we think hes gotta be in the game himself to do it

TG: so we need the chair first

GG: and yes we need to get tavros a wheel chair!!!

TG: hell yeah hell yeah yell heah

GG: gotta make sure everyone back in their best shapes

TG: ok so can i maybe pop by for the rings quick?? and u can tell me that story ehehehe

GG: definitely!! ive only got two but you can have them

GG: we will have to play some more games soon to get more!!!

TG: need all we can get

TG: ill be right thurr

GG: alright!!! see you soon

-- galacticGunslinger [GG] ceased pestering tatouGunarchy [TG] at 00:41 --

ROXY: *zeep zop zoop roxy is fiddling with the portal to change it to jade's symbol and knock in warning before opening the door to dance into the room. jingling her cup full of rings* la cucaracha la cucaracha

ROXY: enchilada blablabla

JADE: *She giggles and waves at Roxy* welcome to my humble abode!!

JADE: *She holds out the two rings and drops them into the cup*

ROXY: *she shakes the cup again and dances in a little circle before bowing* gracias senorita for now we are one step closer to participatin in the running of the bull

ROXY: *giggles and straightens up, tucking the cup into her sylladex*

JADE: *She snorts and shakes her head* ill be sure to get some more then!

ROXY: whats this about bein a rly deep sleeper now?

ROXY: oop

ROXY: yes please

JADE: oh um!

JADE: well when i was little i used to narcoleptic, falling asleep at random times. but i was awake on prospit so i didnt wake up easily!!

JADE: but i made this dreambot to corespond with whatever i did on prospit i did on earth too!!! or at my house to be more accurate

JADE: and when i was talking to dave once when we were working on getting into the game i was asleep on earth and awake on prospit

JADE: so he asked me which side of the bed i was on and then told me to wave my hand in the air and

ROXY: O:

ROXY: he made u bitchslap urself

JADE: he made my dreambot smack sleeping me awake!!! because he didnt feel comfortable having dreambot me getting him into the game

ROXY: that lil shit!

ROXY: omg

JADE: yes!

ROXY: beautiful *laughs* that is terrible and beautiful i love it

JADE: it kinda hurt and it was really surprising

JADE: *She smiles* it was silly. i kinda miss prospit and my dreambot

JADE: but i sleep super deeply!! like its hard to wake me up without like shaking me awake

JADE: so im super sorry for not hearing you knocking

ROXY: nah dont worry about it

ROXY: i mean i probs coulda barged in and checked on you

ROXY: but for some reason at the time that felt p invasive

JADE: haha yeah... i understand!! but if its ever super urgent you can come check on me

JADE: i just dont want anyone barging in and out of my room you know?

ROXY: obviously yeah *snorts* hence me not doin so? lolol

ROXY: saaaaaaaall good mi amiga

ROXY: apparently im EXTRA spanish today

ROXY: ole

JADE: *She smiles* si si!

ROXY: i heard u were gonna play a game with the family?? janey told me

ROXY: we figure the reason u didnt get to is uh

ROXY: jake is sort of in cornland

JADE: what??

JADE: he is?

ROXY: well he was i actually havent looked today to see if hes out yet but yes

JADE: i mean that was the plan but i didnt know he disappeared...

ROXY: he did in fact wander into the maize

JADE: but we are going to do a family game

ROXY: hummmmm

ROXY: thats cute ;3; i played one with my own familia hell yes

ROXY: i hope u guys get to do it and have more fun than we did HAHA

JADE: i heard about that! how did it go?

ROXY: 8))))

ROXY: have u ever ran from a pack of monkeys jade

JADE: um

ROXY: not fun

ROXY: not fun

JADE: ive never even seen a monkey!

JADE: unless you count john

ROXY: pbTBHBTHTHhTHh

ROXY: oh em gee

JADE: *Grins and giggles*

ROXY: ok no he dont count

ROXY: im talkin king kong

ROXY: danky kang even

JADE: oh gosh

ROXY: ooh ooh aah aah banana eatin MONKEYS

JADE: i mean

ROXY: tried to take my leg,,,, *dramatic look to the distance*

JADE: john eats bananas too

JADE: oh my gosh

ROXY: ok no not rly

ROXY: but

ROXY: they WOULD HAVE if they caught us

ROXY: (do he now)

JADE: (well i mean he likes fruit so)

JADE: (i assume?)

JADE: but yeah!!! we were going to try... divine destination or something?

ROXY: (muy interesante)

ROXY: oooo!

ROXY: right yees thats the dressup game where u buy limbs

JADE: oooh

JADE: well have to play a different then

JADE: maybe when jake gets out we can try that pillar of fall one or something... what was the other one? there was urn temple, pillar of fall, divine destination, aaannnddd.

JADE: ummm

JADE: i dont remember the last one... but well do something im sure!!!

JADE: gotta contribute to getting everyone fixed up!!!

JADE: i wonder what well be able to spend money on once everyones in one piece again...

ROXY: aaaaaaah ok lemmie give u a lil rundown here

JADE: that would be nice

ROXY: the leaders all met up and we came up with a plan based on pirate lass' theory

ROXY: urn temple is the monkey run one do not go in there unless u dig cardio

ROXY: divine destination u can go into whenever u want

ROXY: like you can go into all of them whenever i think but

ROXY: we put together teams to play st mystere and pillar of fall already and theyre gonna get it done real fast just to clear them

JADE: oh, alright! thats good

ROXY: so that the trolls can get back their dead friend from kingdom of mushrooms

ROXY: ;3;

JADE: i still feel bad that we couldnt save her when we went in there the first time...

ROXY: i think the point was that they need to go back tbh

JADE: yeah... *Sighs* well then i guess the best choice is to sit tight until we get everything else sorted out?

ROXY: probs

JADE: i still have some people to talk to anyways *Smiles a little and shrugs*

ROXY: john and jane are doin mystere w/ rose

ROXY: and fef nep and kanayayayaya are doin pillar

JADE: ill have to wish them good luck before they leave! all of them

ROXY: im sure theyll go p fast

ROXY: and ye!

JADE: i wonder what those games will be like

ROXY: guess we gonna be finding out soon enough

JADE: (if only there was a trivia game i could rock that!)

JADE: *Giggles*

ROXY: these games are all vaaaastly diff so who knows

ROXY: maybe next level if one of those two aint a trivia game

JADE: maybe we oughta have people keeping an eye on the holoboard when theyre gone? i mean im sure it wasnt a problem before, but we might wanna watch out in case a color goes orange or red... like the faceless man said!

JADE: i just dont want anyone getting hurt or nothing

JADE: although im sure everyone can handle themselves!!

ROXY: oh totes *waves hand* i got no doubts

ROXY: but ye maybe we should have ppl on sentry duty or smth

JADE: yeah, youre right!! but um did you need anything else...?

ROXY: :I no? oop

ROXY: ill get goin then pfff

ROXY: *waves and backsteps*

JADE: yeah, im going to go try to track some people down. ill talk to you later!!! good luck when you enter the game

JADE: and if you ever need anything else feel free to ask! *Big grin and wave*

ROXY: *gurl aint even been listenin aight toodles* okiday goodluck findin peeps too haha *leaves*

[tatougunarchy]

TG: londe 1 to air crocker do u read me

TG: LONDE 1 TO AIR CROCKER DO

TG: YOU

TG: READ

TG: MEEEeeee

TG: (that was me dramatically falling probably)

GG: Londe 1, this is Air Crocker. What's up, impatient lady?

TG: :3c

TG: howdy ho daffodil how u doin

GG: Hey there, hi there, daisy dukes.

GG: Not bad.

GG: Not great, but not bad.

TG: well not bad is good? by m websters definition anyways

TG: think u can handle a visitor?

GG: Visitors are never welcome here. No soliciting. Keep off property. Beware of dog. Intruders will be forked. Survivors will be forked again.

GG: Hoo hoo hoo.

GG: Come on over.

TG: scream

TG: ill be there in a mo!

-- tatouGunarchy [TG] began pestering gourmetGaud [GG] at 23:08 --

TG: londe 1 to air crocker do u read me

TG: LONDE 1 TO AIR CROCKER DO

TG: YOU

TG: READ

TG: MEEEeeee

TG: (that was me dramatically falling probably)

GG: Londe 1, this is Air Crocker. What's up, impatient lady?

TG: :3c

TG: howdy ho daffodil how u doin

GG: Hey there, hi there, daisy dukes.

GG: Not bad.

GG: Not great, but not bad.

TG: well not bad is good? by m websters definition anyways

TG: think u can handle a visitor?

GG: Visitors are never welcome here. No soliciting. Keep off property. Beware of dog. Intruders will be forked. Survivors will be forked again.

GG: Hoo hoo hoo.

GG: Come on over.

TG: scream

TG: ill be there in a mo!

-- tatouGunarchy [TG] ceased pestering gourmetGaud [GG] at 23:18 --

ROXY: *She didn't shut her computer, rather simply stepping away from the cabinet in order to fiddle with the door again, knocking once in warning before opening Jane's door* boogaboogaboo

JANE: *sitting on her bed, she was prepared for something like that, so she only jumped a little bit. and that little bit was a tiny hop to get a good angle to toss a spoon at roxy's chest*

ROXY: *solid toned squeaking noise*

ROXY: im hit

ROXY: im hiiiiiiiit

ROXY: *clutches her chest and spins into the room, dying noises abound as she bumbles over to fake die on the end of her bed*

JANE: Target has been hit! Mission success! *reaches down to mess up roxy's hair*

ROXY: *flappy hands and giggles* hey hey hey ur gonna dent my do

JANE: Oh sorry, little lady. *smooths it out a bit* Wait. No, I'm not. *ruffles it again*

ROXY: noooo *rolls towards her as if that's actually some escape tactic, shielding her head* if u kill me now youll never get your super official mission orders via the leadership council

JANE: *her hands stop moving as she gasps dramatically* Darn it. If I don't get my orders, the council will think that I have betrayed them. I'll never regain their trust. *crosses her arms* Very well, then. Speak, you scoundrel!

ROXY: *pushes herself to sit on her knees, fixing her hair* yeah thats right *chicken nod*

ROXY: ok so

JANE: *uncrosses her arms to pay attention for real tho*

ROXY: friska the pirate lass has a theory about how to get back their dead friend and that involves finishin the other two games asap

ROXY: aaaaaand i sorta volunteered you to play one >3<

ROXY: with john!

ROXY: also rose :'''}

JANE: Oh! Roxy, how do you know I'll even be good at whatever game you've volunteered me for?

ROXY: i have a HUNCH

ROXY: i been gettin them lately

ROXY: theyre usually right

ROXY: but

ROXY: i volunteered you for st mystere

ROXY: it sounds not so bad?

JANE: St Mystere. *her eyes shine a little* No, I was wrong to doubt. That sounds perfect.

ROXY: OuO

ROXY: whatcha thinkin air crocker

JANE: What do you think I'm thinking? Mystere, Roxy. Mystery. A new case.

ROXY: B)

ROXY: thats why i volunteered u bruh

ROXY: you are welcome

JANE: You're so good to me.

ROXY: even tho u throw spoons at me

ROXY: u got my boob 8(

JANE: Aw, you poor thing. In my defense, you tried to half scare me.

ROXY: FINE my boob can take a hit in repentance

ROXY: oh hey check out my cup

ROXY: *takes out the ring cup*

JANE: Your what? *oh that* What in the world is that for?

ROXY: *shakes it* rings!

ROXY: im the ring bearer

ROXY: im going to take them all to mordor

ROXY: and buy legs

ROXY: 8)

JANE: *she opens her mouth and takes a breath as if to speak, more than once. after maybe four tries, she closes her mouth and blinks a lot.* You lost me.

ROXY: 8(

ROXY: ok

ROXY: man shit how long has it been since u talked to anybody about whats goin down

ROXY: frickychicky am i a bad informant

ROXY: okok *wiggleshift*

ROXY: these rings *dumps them out* count as currency

JANE: *gives her a kinda innocent "oops" smile*

JANE: Okay.

ROXY: u win them in games and blahdeeblahdeeblah theyre worth the monies and SO

ROXY: scarfy and pirate lass went into that divine destination game

ROXY: and they found a counter apparently where pirate lass bought her ARM and also half her face back

ROXY: i had given them like 18 rings and then they apparently won enough there themselves to do that

JANE: *fascinated wide eyes*

ROXY: now that they know its in there we wanna get these two games done and get enough rings to buy tavros a wheelchair

ROXY: so he can go in and get da legs B)

JANE: That's a really good idea. Wow. I can't believe there's actual effective teamwork happening right now.

ROXY: ikr?

JANE: But wait, what does that have to do with getting the dead troll back?

ROXY: pirate lass thinks shes actually in the first game

ROXY: the one dirk played

ROXY: and we gotta finish the other two before goin back?

ROXY: multitaskin woop

JANE: Huh. Alright.

ROXY: yeah u would think maybe the dead troll would be in the last game listed but

ROXY: they already went into that

ROXY: and this place obviously aint above bein sneaky

JANE: Which was the last one? Divine something?

ROXY: divine destinaton i think

ROXY: it was a dressup game ovo

JANE: That sounds like somewhere they would-- Oh. Oh my goodness.

JANE: There's a dressup game in here?

ROXY: hell yeah man

ROXY: there is evidence of cool fuckin clothes in there

JANE: Roxy, we need to play that game.

ROXY: we do

ROXY: we dooooooooooooo

ROXY: we can do that after we get the super important stuff done

JANE: Of course.

JANE: When are we starting?

ROXY: for u? whenever john talks to rose i guess

ROXY: idk how much longer these poor people can wait >.<

ROXY: youre cool to play tho? ur PUMPED? :D?

JANE: Wonderful. I can't wait to get started! You know I

JANE: 've never been one for video games, but a mystery game sounds like plenty of fun.

ROXY: yeeee *claps hands* i wish u the best of luck

ROXY: let there be no frothy apes

JANE: *her face falls to apprehension* Frothy apes?

ROXY: *excalibur face*

ROXY: i went to a family reuinion!

ROXY: we took a vacation to the scenic location where temple run is apparently produced

JANE: Uh-huh...

JANE: That sounds kind of... terrible.

ROXY: i ran from rabid monkeys jane

ROXY: rabid monkeys

ROXY: on a gimpy leg

ROXY: which im p sure has an indefinite dent in it?

ROXY: point blank

ROXY: dont be like me janey *hands on arms*

ROXY: dont be like me.......

JANE: *face of horror, and then smacks roxy's arm* Why did you go in there with your injury?

ROXY: :c

ROXY: i didnt know itd be a runnin game

ROXY: i tried convincing dirk not to but he wanted to rush into it and i went to supervise

JANE: Ohhhh, that fuddy duddy. He thinks he's so clever in his plans. And then he goes running into a game he doesn't know anything about.

ROXY: hence my urge to supervise

JANE: *sighs* I can't be too upset with you, then. At least you made it out okay. Does your leg still hurt?

ROXY: nope *wiggles it* i mean if i press on it or whatever its like i bruised the bone but its 10x better

ROXY: nuff about me tho

ROXY: you havent been in here the whole time have you /:

JANE: *smiles and nods upon hearing that she's feeling better, but quickly stops at the quesiton* Of course I haven't! I've been eating and showering appropriately. I am slightly offended.

ROXY: i gotta check!! some people are apparently bein hermits

JANE: Ew. I hope body odor doesn't travel in space.

ROXY: well i also meant have u been chattin anybody up at all?

ROXY: aaaaanyone?

ROXY: sides me?

JANE: Oh. Well. Not really. John, Jade, Jake, and I met up and talked some. We were going to play a game together, but Jake seems to have disappeared since then.

ROXY: he uhh

ROXY: aint disappeared rly

ROXY: have u looked at the board at all either,,,,

ROXY: bc hes in cornland o_O

JANE: N... No. I don't have a whole lot of reason to look at it. *shrugs eheh...*

ROXY: oop

ROXY: yeah i? thought he might have m...eant to do that....probs?

ROXY: hopefully...

JANE: I'd like to give him that much credit. But... you know. Hoo hoo.

ROXY: :T

JANE: *clears her throat* Sorry. You know how he is. I'm just saying.

ROXY: oh no no that was my agreeing face

ROXY: my reluctant sad agreement

JANE: Oh. Yeah. *exasperated sigh*

ROXY: *also sighs*

JANE: I hope he gets out of there soon.

ROXY: yeah me too

ROXY: what game were u guys gonna play?

JANE: Actually, I think we were going to play Divine Destination.

ROXY: oooooo hey u lil shit goin to play the fashion game w/o me

ROXY: well now u know its a fashion game

JANE: Yeah! Gosh. You act like I would have done it on purpose.

JANE: After we do all the serious stuff, though, we can play it together.

ROXY: ye:'>

ROXY: *flops on air crocker*

JANE: *little "oof" sound*

ROXY: *yoooou are the one i can freeely snuggle*

JANE: *i'm used to it. remember the generic girly pillow fight we snuggled through the whole night after that*

ROXY: *fond memories*

JANE: *mostly fond. i never told you about that one thing did i. haha... it's better if you don't know*

ROXY: *WHAT*

JANE: *thank god the telepathic conversations aren't for real. cause you'd probably be super upset about the fact that the nasty green fucker was watching us.*

ROXY: *OH GOD OH GOD? OH GOD*

JANE: *and this is why it's better if i never say anything about it*

ROXY: *its better to flop here in comfy silence and not think about that lil green fuckass*

JANE: *it's true. just the concept of his existence makes everything worse*

ROXY: *zzzzzzzz*

JANE: *i think londe 1 has fallen asleep on me*

ROXY: *sn0re DROooOOOoolll snOOREEEEEEE*

ROXY: *whatever that commentary actually is*

JANE: *you are ruining my best skirt here. le sign.*

ROXY: *and thus this continues till one of them gets pestered*

[tatougunarchy]

Read More

[tatougunarchy]

ROXY: hey hun its me

TAVROS: *it had been what felt like an eternity since his last visit, though he knew he had the option of communicating with the others if he wanted, so at the sound of the knock he jumped slightly in surprise. it was an immediate relief to hear the sound of roxy's friendly voice, so with a sigh and a smile he responded, hoarse from a lack of speaking.* cOME ON IN,

ROXY: *She opened the door when given permission, pushing it the rest of the way open with her shoulder as she maneuvered her hands to keep the fruits from falling to the floor. Smiling at him, she twisted to shut the door, pausing before quite visibly limping over to the side of his bed* iiiii brought u some eeples and beneenees

ROXY: and i think theres a kiwi in here

ROXY: probably a kumquat??? no idea what those actually look like but it aint a clementine

TAVROS: hUH, *bewildered by all her strange human names for fruit, but he recognizes them all easily so he doesn't question it any further* oH, tHANK YOU, tHESE LOOK DELICIOUS, *lifts his head from the collection in her shirt to give her a smile*

ROXY: hehehe *wrinkles her nose as she smiles again, though it twitches into a wince as she lowers herself to sit down, sighing as she leans to let the fruits roll onto the bed near him* wish we had like

ROXY: a basket or something

ROXY: like one we could take outta that room

ROXY: i feel bad just kinda tossin these at u

ROXY: like oh heres ur fruit just let it shower u with its fruitiness

TAVROS: hEH, iT'S ALRIGHT, cONSIDERING IT'S PROBABLY THE LEAST OF MY INCONVENIENCES, aT THE MOMENT, *grabs the tart furry oval and holds it in his massive hand. he notices she doesn't look so hot and isn't sure if he should pry, but can't help feeling concerned.* eR, iS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT? bESIDES, tHE WHOLE, lACK OF A RECEPTICAL FOR THESE FRUITS, tHING,

ROXY: well still i wish u could have at least one convenient thing :/ *sighs, her hand having gone to rest over her stomach before she makes another face at his question, if only for not knowing how to say it.* uh yeah i kinda have to tell u something

ROXY: your friend who was helpin u out the first night

ROXY: the rly bitty guy

TAVROS: *blinks and suddenly feels his stomach flop* gAMZEE? wHAT ABOUT HIM,,, iS HE OKAY?

ROXY: *purses her lips* i dunno i mean probably? okay lemmie start from the beginning

ROXY: i ran into him yesterday and was goin to show him the stat board u kno keep everyone informed

ROXY: and he maaaaaaay have caught a glimpse of some unsavory numbers in his intelligence dept that barred him from playin the other games

ROXY: i told him to calm down and he p much did the opposite?

TAVROS: *stares in bewilderment, looking as though he's hardly comprehending what he's being told* hE DID?

ROXY: uhhh yeah *laughs a little nervously, as though she herself is still wrapping her head around it* he kinda

ROXY: p...unched me off the platform....?

TAVROS: *eyes widen even further, glazing over to the point where it looks like he was staring right through her. not even he was sure what was going through his head at the moment* hE,,, dID?

ROXY: *bites her lip now, eyebrows creasing as she contemplates the worth of making sure he knew, but he seemed to be utterly shocked -- nobody else seemed to be, so what was it? Carefully, she lifted her shirt just enough to show him the fresh bruise blossoming on her abdomen, quickly pulling it back down.* yeah he did

ROXY: im tellin u because i think ppl should know...? also u seem to be his friend so

ROXY: maybe u know why hed flip his fuckin lid

ROXY: but

ROXY: by the look on your face im guessin you dont 

TAVROS: i, *slowly turns his gaze downwards to stare at the massive discoloration on her skin, wincing a bit at the sight* i DIDN'T THINK, hE WAS EVEN CAPABLE OF GETTING REALLY ANGRY, lET ALONE,,, *trails off, unable to even finish the sentence*

ROXY: o *nods, sighing a bit through her nose* well he seemed to get p angry p fast

ROXY: and he sorta chased me up an escalator? theres an escalator btw

ROXY: right now hes in a portal and im p sure hes farming or something

ROXY: least he should be

ROXY: its a farming sim he unlocked when he was kinda smacking at the keyboard outside

TAVROS: i, oH OKAY, *wishes he could go check it out and speak to Gamzee himself, but at the same time feels incredibly reluctant and is both frustrated by and thankful for his lack of mobility. his fists clench, until he realizes he's still holding that kiwi.*

TAVROS: hE WAS JUST, iN HERE, nOT THAT LONG AGO, hANGING OUT WITH ME,

ROXY: *watching his face, she feels increasingly more guilty for some reason* and you guys were okay??? :(

TAVROS: yEAH, eVERYTHING WAS FINE, gAMZEE WAS ACTING LIKE HOW HE ALWAYS HAD, aS i KNEW HIM, aNYWAY, aND i, *he was happy, but he supposed that didn't matter much in the context of things*

ROXY: *frowns, glancing down* im really sorry

TAVROS: *sighs through his nose* yOU DON'T HAVE TO APOLOGIZE, i MEAN, rEALLY THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE APOLOGIZED TO, iS YOU, bECAUSE YOU GOT HURT, sO i SHOULD SAY THAT i'M SORRY ABOUT THAT,

ROXY: i can deal w/ a couple bumps and bruises *snorts* its more

ROXY: the situation

ROXY: i guess

ROXY: its ok

ROXY: your apology anyway i mean *SIGH babbling* dont worry about it ok i just thought you oughta know

TAVROS: yEAH, *looks down at the fruit in his hand* tHANK YOU FOR THAT, aND FOR EVERYTHING ELSE,

TAVROS: yOU'VE BEEN VERY KIND,

ROXY: *waves her hand* its nothin darlin

ROXY: honest

ROXY: is there anythin else you need rn that i might be able to do?

TAVROS: *shakes his head slowly* nO, eR AT LEAST, nOTHING THAT i CAN THINK OF, tHAT YOU'D BE CAPABLE OF DOING RIGHT NOW,

ROXY: *scrunches her nose* yeahhh *sigh* well

ROXY: i think i should maybe go and lie down or somethin for a bit

ROXY: ill come back soon and check on ur fruit supply haha

TAVROS: *nods* yEAH, tHAT'S PROBABLY BEST, *peers up at her* fEEL BETTER, oKAY? oR UH, yOU KNOW, tRY TO FEEL BETTER,

ROXY: *she pushes herself up, testing her leg out before straightening and turning to flash him a more enthusiastic smile.* you too ok? *leans over to pat his hand that's holding that kiwi*

TAVROS: *cracks her a half smile, one as enthusiastic as he could muster at that moment* oF COURSE, i'LL BE FINE,

ROXY: *she knew the back and forth of promises and well wishes would get tiresome if it hadn't already, but to say so would diminish the end result she really did believe in. Waving at him, she shuffled back out of the room, intent on riddling out more of a plan.*

[tatougunarchy]

GAMZEE: *Gamzee rushed out of his room, not only did he want to minimize the time he was out in the open, but he also wanted to get away from Feferi and these confusing emotions. The door shut behind him and he took another quick look around to make sure the coast was cleeeaaar. His eyes fell on a familiar siluette and he froze up completely. SHIT. FUCK! Of all the people that could be out here. He felt himself tense. Was that a cold sweat? Awesome. He looks around quickly once more. It seems they are alone for right now. His throat felt dry, and a nervous clicking noise escaped his lips as he stood there, completely dazed.*

ROXY: *She had been trying to get to Jade, but failed, it would seem, and so she gave Eridan the rings that she had and planned to head back to her room. She did need to take a shower, maybe that would be a nice refresher. She's stopped in her tracks, though, as the door opens again from the other side and she looks upon probably the last person she ever wanted to see. He looked petrified, it was obvious right off the bat, but that didn't stop her from taking an instinctive step away from him.*

GAMZEE: *Well fuck. Looks like his amazing strategy of staying still hadn't worked in his favor, as she quite obviously saw him standing there. He swallowed as she took a step away from him, his mouth twitching upwards in a nervous and stupid looking smile. His one hand raised in a semi wave.* hey there, if it isn't my favorite humanperson! *He visibly cringed at his own comment, his arm dropping. He shifted awkwardly. Maybe this was the best opportunity he would get at apolegizing though. He looks up at her, about to take a step towards her, but stops himself and plants his leg firmly down again.* LOOK, I JUST WANT TO TALK. *He begins.* IF YOU DON'T WANT TO GET INVOLVED WITH THE MOTHERFUCKING WORDS, THEN I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THAT. *Awkward pause, just staring at her.*

ROXY: *His first comment makes her stomach twitch with discomfort, and she tried to keep her brow from crumpling with suspicion and scorn how it did sort of want to. Feferi had said he would be hoping for a chance, that he would apologize -- but she had made the whole deal sound so dismal, made him sound like an animal that did need to be caged, and she would not stop being wary.*

ROXY: u can say whatever u wannna say

ROXY: can you maybe like blink or smth tho

GAMZEE: *Ok, so she hadn't punched him yet. That was a good sign, right? He allowed himself to exhale whilst looking at her. His eyebrows raised in mild surprise and he blinked several times over.* then i am going to say the words that i need to let out this body of mine. *He kept blinking as he spoke. She told him to blink, so he would blink. It was kind of hard to make eye contact this way, but whatever, maybe it was for the best.* OKAY SO. WHAT I DID TO YOU? THAT WAS NOT FUCKING COOL. NOT IN THE TINIEST OF BITS. *His stomach twists. Saying the words felt like he was retching up barbed wire. Not that he didn't mean them, it just felt weird and uncomfortable.* i have been going through some stuff, since we got here, and... *He trails off, then shakes his head.* THE REASON DOESN'T MATTER. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR WHAT I DID. *Still blinking a lot.*

ROXY: whoa whoa whoa i wasnt bein literal with like

ROXY: blinkin a whole lot

ROXY: ur gonna get a lash in ur eyeball or somethin *laughs a little, mostly uneasily but somewhat amused*

ROXY: anythin else tho

ROXY: *She was hearing him, yes, but she was still reserving judgment. He did look sincere, however. She might take that into account*

GAMZEE: oh. *He stops blinking, looking away awkwardly and clears his throat before looking back to her.* THERE IS INDEED A LOT OF ELSE THAT NEEDS TO BE SAID. *He runs a hand through his hair. This was hard.* but i think maybe all of those words can basically be summed up in one. *He looks back at her, nervous. Saying it hadn't worked well before. Even if it was for the wrong thing, and executed poorly. He took a deep breath.* I'M SORRY. *Tenses, prepared for shouts and punches.*

ROXY: *The way he stuttered and paused said a lot, and she sighed through her nose, lacing her fingers together to crack the knuckles, keep them busy.*

ROXY: you dont do this very often

ROXY: do you

GAMZEE: *Still not punched, good going GamzeEEH NO DON'T CRACK YOUR KNUCKLES? He took a careful step back, swallowing the confused anger that welled up in him. He was trying his fucking best, why did no one see that? He gives her a tired lopsided smile.* not nearly enough. *Wait.* THE SORRY THING, I MEAN. I SHOULD BE DOING MORE OF THAT. *He waves his hand a little.* not the punching people because i can't deal with things. *Panicked explaining. He liked his nose all not broken.* IF ANYTHING I SHOULD DO MUCH LESS OF THAT SPESIFIC MOTHERFUCKING ACTIVITY.

ROXY: ye ur on the right track with that *doesn't bother nodding; he surely got the message, and she got the one he was extending. Her hands hang by her sides again, and she stares back at him with a flat expression.* this is a good start

ROXY: acknowledging the problem is the first step 2 fixing it

ROXY: *She still hasn't forgiven him, or implied that she would say 'it's okay.' But she heard him.*

GAMZEE: *He clicks his tounge nervously, nodding at her.* yeah, okay, at least i am on that road. the road of right tracks. *He doesn't expect her to accept his apology after Feferi explained how these things work, but he still can't help but to feel somewhat annoyed. It doesn't show though.* I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO BE ALL FORGIVING AND FORGET EVERYTHING AND INVITE ME TO YOUR WICKED FRIENDSHIP PARTIES. *Another nervous click.* you have every reason to hate me and smash my face in. *He stopped himself from saying "again". He looked off to the side in the direction of the gaming portals.* I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT I AM SORRY. I KNOW IT DOESN'T CHANGE THE FACTOIDS OF WHAT HAPPENED, BUT I WILL DO MY BEST SO THAT THE HAPPENINGS WILL NOT HAPPEN AGAIN. *He shrugs, sighing.* and, yeah, that's it. i'll stay out of your hair, and everyone else's.

ROXY: *She listened to the clicking curiously, furrowing her brow finally when he said she had every reason to smash his face in. That wasn't what she wanted. Maybe she should tell him that. Steeling herself, she straightened her stance.*

ROXY: i aint lookin to hit nobody that doesnt provoke me first

ROXY: and by that i mean with legit reason,

ROXY: all im gonna say rn is i rly hope i dont hear about somethin like this happenin again

GAMZEE: *He turns his head halfway to her, one eyebrow raised in mild confusion. Well then. His face would be safe from her, it seemed.* I SEE. YOU HAVE A VERY HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP WITH THESE HITTING THINGS. I WILL FOLLOW YOUR EXAMPLE TO THE BEST OF MY FREAKING ABILITIES. *He nods lightly, biting his lip. He knew there was a good chance of it happening again, and it freaked him the fuck out, but there wasn't much he could do about it. He nodded again.*yeah, no. it won't happen again. *He tries sounding reassuring and confident in his words, but it really doesn't. He hesitantly takes a step forward.* IT WON'T FUCKING HAPPEN. *He sounds a bit more confident about it this time around, if a little aggressive. Another sigh.* thanks for listening to me. again, i'm sorry for the crazy. *He shrugs. He's tired.* I'M GOING TO GO BACK TO THE PLACE IN WHICH YOU DROPPED ME TO BEGIN WITH. i think it is the best, for everyone, at this time. *He takes another hesitant step, then starts walking in the direction of the portals, however, his eyes are still on her. Just making sure she won't punch him in the back or something.*

ROXY: *His apologies were so messy, and he clearly couldn't decide on a tone, like none of them were the right one to convey the truth he wanted to project. Roxy remained still as a stone, watching him as he retreated warily, as though /she/ was the one who would turn around and strike him without warning. He didn't have to trust her, just like she didn't have to instantly trust him. When he was by the door, she flicked her eyebrows up at himm in a substitute for a nod, stepping back to the door in order to go take that shower she was angling for.*

GAMZEE: *He kept watching her as he went, giving her a light nod at the eyebrow raise, then turned on his heel to go on his marry way back to cornland. This went better than he expected.*

[tatougunarchy]

ERIDAN: *lounging on his bed is something that he should stop doing. he should really stop doing it. he looks up at the knock and gets up to answer the door.* oh hey

ROXY: howdy ho *waves one hand in a spongebob!rainbow gesture, before holding it out to him, clearly beckoning to let her drop something into his hands* heres those rings

ROXY: only semi bad news i got is i couldnt get a hold of jade aaaaand i dont know what feffa did with hers

ROXY: but theres 18 there

ERIDAN: *holds out his hands for the dropping*

ERIDAN: thats great anywway

ERIDAN: thank you

ROXY: no prob:3 u guys figure out how many u need yet???

ERIDAN: uhh not yet no

ERIDAN: but any contribution helps

ROXY: maybe u can find out more by goin into a game? like

ROXY: we figured out urn temple boots u after u get 16

ROXY: and thats w/ four players

ROXY: it could change? but if u go in there just be mindful of the frothy monkeys they might be why we only get fruit 2 eat

ROXY: to make us more tantalizing B[[[[[[[

ERIDAN: yes all that fruit really makes frothy monkeys wwant to consume you and your fruity insides

ROXY: and thus i hope u heed my warning

ROXY: if u play anything let me know how it goes?

ERIDAN: yeah i wwill

ERIDAN: thanks for you knoww

ERIDAN: the rings and the wwarnin

ROXY: cool cool *thumbs up* no prob buddy swhat im here for

ROXY: ill let u do w/e it is u were doin

ERIDAN: good luck doin wwhatevver youre gonna be doin

ROXY: gracias senor

ROXY: later *two finger salute*

ERIDAN: *nods as a goodbye bc he has hands full of rings*

ERIDAN: *but also uses his hands to shut the door*

ERIDAN: *A Mystery*

[tatougunarchy]

DAVE: *when dave comes to the door several beats late, he's disheveled and running one hand through his hair in an attempt to restore it to some semblance of order. his shades are hanging crooked on his face. he hangs off the side of the door and squints down at roxy.*

DAVE: sup

ROXY: .......

ROXY: wild night at the frat house broskittle

DAVE: you know how it is

DAVE: ponging that beer

DAVE: hittin them ladies

ROXY: deeeeyum

ROXY: well if ur not too hungover from the party u didnt actually go to

ROXY: i have a teensy favor to ask

DAVE: well what is it

DAVE: keep in mind that just because earth is dead doesnt mean capitalism is

DAVE: if somethings in demand its gonna cost you

DAVE: a boys gotta make guap

ROXY: i need the rings u got from the game we played

DAVE: seriously

DAVE: what for

ROXY: we think theyre currency of some sort and the trolls rly need any lead they can get on uh

ROXY: reassemblin the cavalry

ROXY: like literally

ROXY: i wanna buy body parts w/ ur jewelry

DAVE: theres a sentence i never thought id hear

ROXY: thought it might surprise u

ROXY: perhaps endear to ur generosity

DAVE: yeah and i love surprises

DAVE: k here you go

ROXY: :D

DAVE: *he produces four rings from his sylladex, makes a show of shining them on the hem of his shirt, and offers them to her.*

ROXY: *She entertains the brief theatrics with a grateful smile, reaching for them and nodding* thank u for ur donation

DAVEE: i consider it an investment

ROXY: i gotta deliver these tout de suite *shakes the hand with all the rings in it* ill get back 2 u on whether it worked or not

DAVE: aye aye capn

ROXY: sorry if i woke u btw *salutes as she steps back to let him probably sleep more*

DAVE: its cool

DAVE: *salutes back and shuts the door quietly.*

[tatougunarchy]

ROSE: *The knocking wakes Rose up from her nap and she sits up, rubbing at her eyes before calling out towards the door* Come in.

ROXY: *That worked; she opened the door and looked ahead to see Rose still lying in bed, which didn't bother her in the slightest. Smiling kindly, she waved.* hey hey

ROXY: sorry if i woke u aaaack

ROSE: *returns the smile and shrugs as she properly sits up* Don't worry about that. I have probably had too much sleep recently anyways.

ROXY: tell me about it *chuckles, stepping over and perching on the far end of the bed, pulling a leg up to sit on it* i kinda needed to ask a quick favor

ROSE: What would that be?

ROXY: you still got those rings we picked up in monkeytown???

ROSE: *nods and pulls the rings out from underneath her pillowcase to hold them in an open palm* Right here.

ROXY: im goin around collectin them so i can give em to the trolls

ROXY: we figure we need to pool them and maybe get more asap

ROXY: they can probs be traded in for the shit they need?

ROSE: *thinks about it for a moment before nodding again* I don't see why not.

ROSE: *hands the rings over to Roxy* What do they need, by the way?

ROXY: *smiles gratefully and reaches to accept them with a shrug* oh the usual

ROXY: i think the top contending necessity is an arm

ROXY: possibly an eye aaaand then somebody elses ability to walk

ROXY: cheerful huh

ROSE: I see. In that case, I hope they are successful in obtaining their necessities.

ROXY: yeah same

ROXY: i gotta get them from dave and jade now fffff

ROSE: Jade shouldn't resist with how kindhearted she is. Dave, on the other hand, may not be quite as easy to convince.

ROXY: well idk i got all of dirks *jingles the rings in her hand with a comically dark chuckle*

ROXY: hes p possessive over his bling

ROSE: The last time I checked, he also had no practical uses for them.

ROXY: which is exactly why they shouldnt feel any attachment to them at all

ROSE: Fair enough.

ROXY: *pauses a bit, about to stand but deciding against it just yet* how u doin since the apes??? just nappin or

ROXY: u talk to anybody cool?

ROSE: Dave and I had a brief conversation after you and Dirk left. And not long ago, I contacted Dirk in an attempt to get to know him better.

ROXY: gasp

ROXY: howd that go?

ROSE: Not as well as I anticipated, but he certainly is interesting.

ROXY: *snorts a little, tilting to lean on her elbow on the mattress casually* he didnt creep you out or anythin did he

ROXY: or try to be all mysterious and all knowing

ROXY: and THEN sound kinda creepy

ROSE: *shakes her head with a slight smirk* He tried.

ROXY: i knew itttt

ROXY: what a dork

ROSE: Unfortunately for him, it is difficult to make me feel uncomfortable enough to openly state it.

ROXY: he just wants people to think hes badass

ROXY: which he totes can be but like i said

ROXY: superdork

ROSE: Like father, like son.

ROXY: *grins* so dave is also uber nerd

ROSE: *grins back* Only the most ridiculous nerd I have ever met.

ROXY: gooooooooooood

ROXY: this is good this is entertaining

ROSE: Who needs the old universe when we have these two to keep us on our toes?

ROXY: right? maybe we could make like

ROXY: strider bingo

ROSE: That sounds like one of the best ideas I've heard of in a long time.

ROXY: whenever i find a way to acquire some paper u best believe thats the first thing ill draw

ROXY: a strider bingo board

ROSE: I am most definitely looking forward to seeing that.

ROXY: *smiles, and pushes herself up with an audible sigh, cracking her back on a stretch* speakin of striders as per usual i should go pop in on davidson

ROSE: *nods and gets up as well to walk over to the door with Roxy* Good luck collecting the rings.

ROXY: thanks:3

ROXY: and thanks for givin me yours

ROSE: You're welcome. It's the least I could do to help with how much time I've already idly wasted.

ROXY: oh pshhh

ROXY: i think everybodys kind of at a standstill tbh

ROXY: we willllll figure it out

ROSE: *shrugs* I'm glad that at least somebody like you is an effective leader.

ROXY: :///o

ROXY: idk how leaderly i really am i mean sometimes i accept it and go along with it but other times im just

ROXY: *shrug*

ROXY: thank u for sayin that

ROSE: *smiles* I wouldn't if it were not true.

ROXY: ;//////w///////;

ROXY: ill see you later ok? we can plan that bingo board hollaaaa

ROSE: Of course. I'll leave you to actually get something productive done, now.

ROXY: *wiggles her fingers in a wave, stepping out the door*

[tatougunarchy]

DIRK: *It takes a minute for the door to be answered, but then there's Dirk and his posture relaxes just a fraction when he sees it's a familiar face this time around. Phew.* Hey Rox.

ROXY: hey hey c: can i ask u a favor????

DIRK: Probably. What's up?

ROXY: so i was talkin to the troll leaders and some others and as u are well aware a couple of them have srsly screwed the pooch on the whole being revived as a whole healthy person deal

DIRK: Yes, I'm very aware. I have all the awareness in this department.

ROXY: and we all think the ringymajigs are currency that can be traded in so we can fix that

ROXY: soooooo i have to ask u to maybe gimmie the rings u collected

ROXY: im gonna get rose and daves too

DIRK: *eyebrow-raise.* So you're going to be pooling ALL of them?

ROXY: what other choice do we have right now???

ROXY: this is the best lead we have

DIRK: Hey, I didn't say it was necessarily a bad idea overall.

DIRK: *Damn, he really didn't plan on giving his up though. There's a slight frown on his lips while he shifts his stance a little.* All of them will be collected for the sake of renewing the less-fortunate, then. By that definition, it's for charity.

DIRK: It'd be pretty shitty for me to not donate to charity.

ROXY: darn right it would be

ROXY: u dont hate those with less appendages than u do u dirk

ROXY: thts right

ROXY: u dont

DIRK: Thank you for setting me right as per the usual, Roxy. I can already feel my moral alignment progressing in a positive direction.

ROXY: *rolls eyes* if u want more rings just for the blingitude im sure u can nick one from another game

ROXY: but thank U for ur donation

ROXY: *holds her hand out*

DIRK: *It takes a second to fish out all of the rings from their various spots--sylladex or pockets--but eventually he's got eight in his hand to give to Roxy's awaiting one. transaction done.* True. Maybe I can earn some and cash them in for a really big teddy bear.

ROXY: thatd be hella sweet

DIRK: Legitimate equipment would be nice too.

ROXY: ur tellin me *sigh* i want a GUN man all i got are my fists rn

DIRK: Wow, that fucking sucks. The game took your kickass rifle away too.

DIRK: Don't fall into temptation and spend those rings on weaponry before necessary limbs, though.

DIRK: That'd be a pretty asshole move.

ROXY: im super offended u would even insinuate that *fake >:O face*

ROXY: i think we gotta get the blue chicks arm and w.e. first bc shes playin for the dead girl

DIRK: *a real half-smile surfaces, even if it's only up for a few seconds. then it's gone again at the mention of "blue chick".* Oh, Vriska.

ROXY: yep her

DIRK: I talked to her yesterday, she seemed to be irritated about the lack of that limb. For good reasons that I sympathize with.

ROXY: *crosses her arms and wrinkles her nose a bit* what did u think of her tho

ROXY: like is she cool or

ROXY: *recalling johns ill mention of her*

DIRK: *light shrugging* I think I'll keep tabs on her. She's headstrong and probably manipulative, but not as bad as the other Serket.

DIRK: She could prove to be useful.

ROXY: hmmmm

ROXY: tabs it is

ROXY: figure we could help her out anyway tho *shrug* good of the team and junk

ROXY: how u been doin since apeworld???

DIRK: I've been alright. No major injuries or even small ones sustained, so I've just been fucking around with the computer for the most part.

DIRK: Which is the single biggest definition of boring because there's almost nothing to be done on it, and there seems to be something blocking me from creating other programs on the device.

ROXY: have u by any chance gotten pop ups of selfies u dont recall ever taking and a laughtrack that vaguely resembles a hit pop sensation

DIRK: *slight nose-scrunch to accompany the squint you can't see.* That is a possibility.

ROXY: damn

ROXY: im more creeped out by the fact that they HAD these selfies like whoa

DIRK: Yeah, it's well beyond the border of fucking creepy.

DIRK: So you tried to hack the computer, then?

ROXY: duh

DIRK: With the same result.

DIRK: Well, I guess that just means they thoroughly enjoy screwing anyone over on attempting to outpace the beat of their little dance.

ROXY: im gonna get further i know it

ROXY: but as of now yeah thats all i got

ROXY: *sigh*

DIRK: I'm glad you won't be giving up at least. We're gonna need to figure out any and all ways on breaking through whatever shackles they've got set up to bind us down, whether they be virtual or otherwise.

DIRK: Oh, that's another thing Vriska was trying to do as well.

DIRK: Or at least she will be trying it once fully capable.

ROXY: *brow furrows* what she gonna pull a hulk smash to combat the one ur hopin on unleashing

DIRK: Actually I was hoping to correlate both of our attempts to really drive the axe in.

DIRK: I already offered her my assistance.

ROXY: ur teamin up with serk du soleil for a DOUBLE hulk smash

ROXY: ok yes that spells gr8 idea

DIRK: See, you're starting to get it.

ROXY: (am sarcasm)

DIRK: *sarcasm is ignored, whoops. what sarcasm?? Dirk didn't see any.* Besides if the game is going to pull us around in the way it has been, it might require something bigger than a single person can pull off.

ROXY: welp

ROXY: all the more reason to get her to lvl up right

ROXY: *waves hand holding all the bling*

ROXY: i should go talk to rose and dave

ROXY: does jade have any??

DIRK: *nods* Yeah, she has two. As does Feferi.

ROXY: rightyright

ROXY: ill pop in on u later then and tell u if it worked

ROXY: thanks again 4 ur generous contribution u3u

DIRK: Yep. And when you see Dave, let him know that I'll probably drop by at some later point. *this is where the mysterious anime-shades-flash happens. Probably.* His analytic Lalonde counterpart suggested that we engage in something a little more than small-talk, so I've got an idea for that.

ROXY: ..............................................................................................................................

DIRK: *I am the mystery. It's me.*

ROXY: no fightin in my lobby *moseby face before she steps back, you arent so mysterious*

DIRK: You know me and rule-breaking. *there's a smirk on his face in return when he retreats to his room, closing the door before a response can be given. very mature.*

ROXY: >:T

ROXY: *goes to turn the dial to Rose's symbol, in that case.*

[tatougunarchy]

ERIDAN: *knock knock, who's there, eridan, eridan who, eridan the dumbhead who rly needs you to answer the door maybe*

ROXY: *After the visit with Feferi and Nepeta, Roxy had taken to fiddling with her computer again to try and crack it, only to run into the same mysterious roadblock that spammed Sollux with selfies and a laughing soundfile. At the knocks, she turns quickly and gets up to answer the door, pushing her hair from her face.*

ROXY: o hey

ERIDAN: hey

ROXY: whaddup??

ERIDAN: ivve got your brush clean as a wwhistle

ROXY: ooo goody

ERIDAN: *pulls it out of his sylladex to give it to her*

ERIDAN: and ivve got a favvor to ask

ERIDAN: if youd be so kind as to do it

ROXY: thank ya very muchly *nods and takes the brush back, tilting her head* well you gotta tell me what it is first

ROXY: thats how favors work

ERIDAN: can wwe talk inside then

ROXY: sure thing *steps aside to let him into the room, eyebrow quirking curiously as she closes the door behind him*

ERIDAN: *stands slightly awkwardly rather than sit on the bed, as that's a little too familiar an action for him to be entirely comfortable with* wwell

ERIDAN: wwe wwould appreciate your help if you convvinced your strider to hand ovver his rings

ERIDAN: wwell

ERIDAN: convvince your fucked up clutch to hand ovver their rings

ERIDAN: but your striders got the most

ERIDAN: so hes top priority

ROXY: oooooo *crosses her arms, nodding* yeah i was talkin to fef about the rings last night i figure theyre worth somethin

ROXY: u think we can get ppls limbs and stuff back with them??

ERIDAN: yeah wwe think theyre some kinda currency

ERIDAN: vvris wwants to play for aradia back so first she needs to be

ERIDAN: you knoww

ERIDAN: wwhole

ROXY: *nods, holding up her hand to waggle her fingers and show off the three she had.* ill keep hold of mine rn while i convince him just cuz i think if he feels like hes givin them to me itll be a lil easier

ROXY: but once i grab em all i can bring them to you guys

ERIDAN: alright thanks

ERIDAN: *that was, well, easier than he thought.*

ROXY: *Roxy is a decently agreeable person bruh*

ROXY: anythin else??

ERIDAN: *tries to think* uh

ERIDAN: do you got any newws of wwhat anybody else is doin

ROXY: *She purses her lips, shrugging her shoulders* no nothing really

ERIDAN: alright

ERIDAN: i think thats about it then

ROXY: ok cool cool

ROXY: ill go pop in on dirk

ERIDAN: okay thanks

ROXY: *steps over to the door to open it and let him outside first*

ERIDAN: *gooooes*

ROXY: *end scene*

[tatougunarchy]

CC: Pssst. Are you t)(ere? *CC also inquires aboat webber or not AC )(as fallen into t)(e terribubble temptation of a cat nap in t)(e time t)(at s)(e's been gone.*

CC: *S)(e )(as no idea w)(ere t)(e kitty troll is )(iding!*

AC: :33 < *ac gasps and furriously types a reply to her aquatic companion to assure her that she is quite awake!*

AC: :33 < im in my block!

AC: :33 < are we ready to s33 roxy?

CC: You bet your cute kitty w)(iskers, we are! 38D

CC: I )(ope I didn't wake you up or anyfin! I was gone for like ----EV-ER. Sorry about t)(at!

AC: :33 < no no its okay

AC: :33 < i wasnt sl33ping!

AC: :33 < i went to s33 jade like you said

CC: You did? And )(ow did t)(at- UG)( N-EV-ERMIND.

CC: Tell me in person!!!

AC: :33 < yes of course! be right outside

CC: Glub glub!

-- arbitraryCataclysm [AC] gave up trolling captivatingClamency [CC] at 02:20 –

  NEPETA: *she closes her computer to set it aside, climbing off of her bed to hop over to the door, and step outside to either meet or wait for Feferi. Hopefully this next visit would be nicer than the last.*

FEFERI: *There was no point in going anywhere after leaving Sollux's. She had whipped out her computer as soon as she could, loitering around in the common room like she promised. It didn't take long for Nepeta to show up, right on time!* )(ey!!! *She greeted, pleased to see her puffy-haired friend like always.*

NEPETA: :33 < hi! *smiles at her, scurrying on over to her* :33 < so you talked to sollux? how is he?

FEFERI: )(e's fine! Grumpy like always, )(e)(e)(e. *laughs at some joke she's picturing. All of the terrible ones, most likely.*

FEFERI: At least )(e ate and- *she cut herself off, her hand flying to her face.*

FEFERI: O)( S)(IPWR---ECK. My goggles! >3:O

NEPETA: :33 < :00

NEPETA: :33 < oh no

NEPETA: :33 < do you want to go back for them?

FEFERI: *she facepalms at herself* Noooo. T)(ere's no point!

NEPETA: :33 < why naut?

FEFERI: Because we're already )(ere! And also )(e must )(ave gone to take a nap by now. It would be glubbing RUD---E of me. *huffs a lot like you didn't just squash a bunch of fruit on his bed FF. You're not the rude one here, obv.*

NEPETA: *she nods a few times* :33 < you can stop by later

NEPETA: :33 < i am sure he would take good care of them for you

FEFERI: )(e better! *puffs her cheeks but then relaxes, definitely not bothered by this as much as she pretends to be*

FEFERI: We s)(ould message Roxy first! Sea if s)(e's awake? *goes over to sit by one of the available couches*

FEFERI: In t)(e meantime, you can tell me aboat Jade! 3:)

NEPETA: :33 < h33h33 *follows Feferi's example and stepping up to climb onto a couch. She isn't AS bouncy.* :33 < oh of course

NEPETA: :33 < she was ummm

NEPETA: :33 < furriendly!

FEFERI: *senses a disturbance in the fur-ce. Or rather, Nepeta's tone of voice.* Somefin wrong?

FEFERI: *glances at her while she pulls out her laptop*

NEPETA: :33 < no no just

NEPETA: :33 < she asked me about a lot of very purrsonal things and *shrugs*

NEPETA: :33 < i hope roxy is awake!

NEPETA: *hugs her knees and cranes her head to look at Feferi's screen*

FEFERI: *squints at Nepoprocks, the effect less impressive without the goggles magnifying her eyes*

FEFERI: *says nothing about it, only leans over to bump horns with her, silently comforts*

NEPETA: *her nose wrinkles and her eyes squint, but she's smiling, having got the message*

FEFERI: *apparently she fills roxy's screen with about twenty typed out glubs to see if she'd answer.* )(e)(e)(e. *totally knows Nepeta's watching her*

NEPETA: :33 < h33h33 *the heehees were in sync oh no*

ROXY: *Roxy was actually asleep, so very cutely passed the fuck out with the towel and bag of now-melted ice still sort of plopped on her stomach. They had long since melted and she didn’t quite need them anymore; it’s just how she’d fallen asleep. At the sound of her computer dinging, she stirs, and eventually reaches for it, groggily typing a reply*

--

TG: gaaaaasssppp

TG: glub glgub to u 2

--

CC: *totally doesn't even notice, just shoots nepeta a grin. But oh! She answered! She gets to typing, nudging Nep with her elbow.*

NEPETA: *clasps her hands excitedly*

--

CC: You're alive!!! )(i Roxy! 3:D

TG: yes i am indeed of the livin variety

TG: how u doin:3

CC: I'm doing GR----EAT! I'm ready to tackle pretty muc)( ANYFIN t)(at comes my way. Watc)( out world!

CC: Would you by any c)(ance be willing to allow some )(UMBUBBL---E vistors your wave?

TG: !!!!!

TG: hell yeah omg pls

TG: ive been all by my lonesome

TG: so boring u have no idea

CC: O)( my glub. T)(is needs to be fixed IMM---EDIAT-ELY. Plus, I also )(ave a surpurrise guest wit)I me.

CC: You'll N-EV--ER guess w)(o.

TG: ummm UMMMM

CC: Never in a krillion sweeps or )(uman years. I'm winking so )(ard over )(ere.

TG: u kno i think i have an idea but ima guess anyways

TG: is it

TG: the third president of the united states perhaps

CC: W)(at's a president?

CC: W)(atever it is, you are SUPURR wrong.

CC: You lose all t)(e prizes!!!

TG: dammit

TG: u better come over here and confish-cate them

TG: (huehuehue)

TG: conch-fish-cate,,,,

TG: skate??? theres a sea critter called a skate i KNOW it

TG: see this im tryna win back the prizes

CC: )(e)(e)(e! Guard your lions, Miss Lalonde. We're going over!!!!

--

FEFERI: *with that she snaps her laptop shut and stuffs it into her sylladex*

NEPETA: *she bounds up from the couch, bouncing backwards towards the door and grinning at Feferi* :33 < lets gooo!

FEFERI: *ushers her forward with hands on her shoulders* Go go go!!!

ROXY: *that woke her up a bit, and she shoves the computer away in order to pull herself up a bit, grabbing the melted ice bags and towels to ... plop them off the bed all together. Gross. She would stand, but she’s half asleep still, and figures they’d probably fly on over anyway.*

NEPETA: *she hops outside and waits for feferi to be standing beside her before fiddling with the dial, knocking a few times in warning*

ROXY: aint locked!!!

NEPETA: *OPENS DOOR*

FEFERI: Woa)(!!! *all but shoves Nepeta inside* 3:D

ROXY: *girlish squeals ensue instantly* aaaaaah!!!

FEFERI: ROXY!!!! *these squeals are going to break glass in pitch for sure. She fully expected the human to leap to her feet but... Was apparently bedridden now. Oh.*

FEFERI: You're bedtrapped! *drops her hands, her eyes widening in concern and mild confusion.*

FEFERI: *This wasn't because of Gamzee was it?*

ROXY: *it's the residuals man, everything always hurts more for a couple days AFTER the fact.* yeeeeeaaaaah about that

ROXY: i mighta ran from some monkeys not 2 long ago????

FEFERI: *Phew, what a relief. She steers Nepufferfish into the room, a smile lighting up her face again* O)( it was from t)(at game, rig)(t? Cod damn!

NEPETA: *she had gone to squeal, too, but her face had fallen immediately upon seeing that Roxy wasn't even on her feet. She does manage to put her smile back on her face, fiddling with her sleeves as she steps over*

ROXY: *makes a face* ehhh

ROXY: who knew insta cardio wasnt the best remedy for already bein SLIGHTLY gimpy

ROXY: srsly it wasnt so bad till the apes

FEFERI: )(e)(e)(e, t)(ey sound like somefin we can turn into mince, right Nep? *flashes her a shark-like grin before coming over to settle by Roxaroo's bed.*

FEFERI: *This is normal.*

NEPETA: *she returns Feferi's toothy smile and giggles, moving over to Roxy's other side.* :33 < oh defurnitely

ROXY: *pats the bed on either side of her* well aint ya gonna hug me???

ROXY: cmon i aint THAT broken

FEFERI: )(opefully, t)(ey're not disease-ridden or anyfin. *kicks her feet out and basically makes herself at home but then perks up at Roxy's prompting.*

FEFERI: Yea)(!!! I'm glad you're ALIV---E! 3:D *glomps her*

NEPETA: :33 < me too *fits in on that hug and squeezes tightly, burying her face*

ROXY: *opens her arms to accept the glomps* awww u guys

ROXY: *muffled by the boobs?*

FEFERI: *So many fishy and kitty kisses ensue, she doesn't differentiate between Nepeta and Roxy. FRIEND KISSES <333*

ROXY: *just super happy to have VISITORS and having those visitors be her BEST GALS i shall take these kisses in kind and squeeze the heckie outta both of you*

ROXY: im so fuckin happy to see u i cant stop sayin it omg

NEPETA: *she hadn't noticed but with the emotional whiplash of all this happy affection to combat the harsher feelings that she'd felt when she saw Roxy at first, her eyes had begun to mist a bit. Happy cries, it's ok. Just gonna sniffle and hug ya both. Good feelings now.*

FEFERI: *A cuddle pile, this is exactly what it turns into. Feferi doesn't bother leaving, especially when she spots Nepeta with misty eyes. She settles on Roxy's other side as fingers run into Neps hair before she could stop herself. An unspoken shoosh.*

NEPETA: *Her eyes pop open as her feelings lodge in her throat uncomfortably, and after a moment she sits up to rub at her face with a huffing exhale, sorry Roxy.*

FEFERI: We can always make time for YOU, Roxy. You're pretty muc)( t)(e best )(uman, ---EV-ER! *acts very much like nothing has just happened and sits up when Nepeta does.*

FEFERI: *or fuck this, she scoots back down. She's going to get the cuddles she came for and that's final.*

ROXY: *she's cool with the cuddles, and doesn't even really notice anything might be wrong until Nepeta sits up, and her smile stutters a bit as she glances at her. Then Feferi speaks and goes for more cuddles, so she laughs and hugs her back* im legit so honored

ROXY: tell u the truth ur my fave trolls so far and itll probs stay that way

ROXY: and by probs i mean def

ROXY: *glances at nepeta again and pauses* how u holdin up over there bby

FEFERI: *plants another kiss on her cheek for being so sweet. Where humans always so warm? Fef doesn't think it's weird at all that she gives of little to no body heat. She just hugs the heck out of Rox as she address Nepeta.*

NEPETA: *she doesn't lean back into the cuddles, but gets comfortable sitting on her knees again, quickly snapping her head up to look at Roxy and smile*

NEPETA: :33 < oh im ok! dont worry about me

NEPETA: :33 < its just b33n a long day i think

FEFERI: Too many emoceans. *makes a fish face at Nepeta, hoping to save her from an interrogation*

NEPETA: :33 < purrecisely

FEFERI: I'm glad we got to save you from boredom t)(oug)(!

FEFERI: We wanted to catc)( you at a good time! )(e)(e)(e. 3:)

ROXY: *purses her lips, and reaches to squeeze Nepeta's hand quickly before giving her the space she looks like she needs*

ROXY: u got me at the BEST time

ROXY: ive been wastin away in here

ROXY: countin stars i aint even sure are rly there???

ROXY: wtf is the space here its like they show up and then theyre gone

FEFERI: Are t)(ere? W)(at? *mystified and stares up, squinting to try and see if she could spot something too*

NEPETA: *furrows her brow and looks around, too* :33 < when i woke up there were some!

ROXY: yeah this space needs to make up its flippin mind

FEFERI: T)(at's so wierd! 3:O *just lies there by roxy, definitely not looping an arm with hers. Warmthhhh.*

ROXY: *she notices the temperature difference isn't regulating via prolonged contact, and whistles* jeez fef ur freezin wth

FEFERI: T)(at's funny, I don't F--E-EL cold? You just feel really warm! *yes, hugs her arm close. There may or may not be an unintentional boob squish here but no homo.* Glub glub glub!

ROXY: no way man ur like ICE rn what is this shit omg *fascinated by it enough to not even notice boob squishes of any sort*

NEPETA: :33 < its beclaws shes a highblood! i almost furgot humans have warmer blood too

FEFERI: In essence, it just means t)(at I'm cooler t)(an you. *if she had her goggles, she's flash them in a way to signify shades. But alas, she's goggle-less.*

FEFERI: *just settles with sticking out her tongue*

NEPETA: *laughs at that*

FEFERI: *ah yes, kitty giggles. Everything is right in the world again. Fef could almost purr if it didn't mean she had to relax first to make it happen. There's too much to be excited for! No purrs ensue here.*

ROXY: u sly dog *pokes Feferi's arm, laughing as well* thats so cool tho

FEFERI: Yes I am. *waggles eyebrows*

ROXY: omg *facepalms, rolling a bit towards her as she laughs and resulting in enhanced cuddles* i thought id be able to talk to u str8 but nope

ROXY: here u are

ROXY: dissin me

FEFERI: Water you goin' to do aboat it, punk? *the femme tension is increasing and reaching critical levels. Feferi hopes Nepeta appreciates all that she does for the sake of shipping and sparing Roxy's attention from her.*

NEPETA: *Oh this is definitely distracting her a bit and she's observing intently. Also because where else is her focus supposed to be.*

ROXY: idunno probs give u a noogie or somethin *laughs, reaching to jokingly nudge at Feferi's hairline with her knuckles*

FEFERI: O)()()(, try it! Sea w)(at )(appens! *she makes a show of gnashing her teeth with a wide grin.*

FEFERI: *Nep take notes*

NEPETA: *if only i had some animal blood*

ROXY: eeeep *yanks her hand away and giggles, glancing over at Nepeta from time to time. This feels strangely flirty. Don't mind so much.*

FEFERI: *Is totally unapologetic about everything. Still chortling, she rolls over a little to give Roxy her space. The task has been completed. She still keeps her arm linked with her's though.* )(e)(e)(e!

ROXY: *flops against her pillow, shaking her head with the ends of her laughter* please tell me yall have been runnin around doing interesting stuff at least

ROXY: fill me in on the hot bizz

FEFERI: I don't t)(ink anyfin's gone on since you guys got back from t)(e game! *once again, spares Nepeta from having to answer*

NEPETA: *you dabes*

ROXY: hummm

FEFERI: I'm pretty s)(ore people are getting ready to go out and play to win Aradia back. 3:o

ROXY: !!! ah awesome

ROXY: whos all goin? i know u volunteered

FEFERI: Yea)(!!! We're all very ---EXCIT--ED about t)(at.

FEFERI: O)(. I'm not going actually.

ROXY: why not??

FEFERI: If t)(e game can only accept four players, I'd rat)(er t)(at Vriska and -Equius go instead. You know t)(em rig)(t?

FEFERI: Sollux and Terezi are going for s)(ore.

ROXY: i know sollux a lil

ROXY: equi is the dude who punched the door right

NEPETA: :33 < he punched a door?

NEPETA: :33 < anybody punching doors thats purrobably him

FEFERI: Yep. T)(at was )(im.

ROXY: gotcha gotcha

ROXY: aaaand v...riska? is the chick who keeps borrowin my brush via her bf

NEPETA: *perks up like what*

FEFERI: )(er bf??? 3:O

FEFERI: *omg gossip time*

ROXY: scarfy dude yeah

FEFERI: O)(.

NEPETA: :33 < hurm

ROXY: eh???

FEFERI: You mean -Eridan! Pffft. Yea)( okay. I could )(ave seen t)(at coming like a MIL---E away.

FEFERI: I didn't know t)(ey were already back toget)(er t)(oug)(!

ROXY: what they got a history or somethin?

ROXY: ho dang

FEFERI: Yea)(... *How does one explain they used to commit mass murder together. Nobody knows.*

FEFERI: T)(ey were a t)(ing for a w)(ile w)(en we lived on Alternia!

FEFERI: It was a reely Big Deal at t)(e time.

ROXY: well dang

NEPETA: :33 < last i remember was them arguing about who was more ofur the other one *snorts into her hands*

NEPETA: :33 < on the meteor

FEFERI: True )(ate, am I rig)(t? *snickers*

NEPETA: *got that face like i gotta write this all DOWN*

ROXY: ok can somebody explain this hate deal bc its still lost on me

ROXY: that karkat dude explained like 2 of ur quaddymajigs to me

ROXY: and i made myself look like a ditz or somethin to scarfidan by assumin that chick was his m...atesprit

ROXY: thats the one

NEPETA: *snorts LOUDLY*

NEPETA: :33 < oh nooo

NEPETA: :33 < they would be so weird as matespurrits XPP

FEFERI: O)( cod, no. T)(ey would probubbly be SO obnoxious toget)(er as matesprits. Don't even go t)(ere. *still grins at the idea though. Oh god, it's so gross make it stop.*

NEPETA: *covering her face and making bleeeegh noises*

FEFERI: T)(ey're kismesis, actually! Bonded toget)(er by )(ate and fueled by rivalry!

ROXY: o___O

NEPETA: :33 < there is a diffurence betw33n romantic hate and platonic hate

FEFERI: It's very romantic and involved, of course. T)(e kind t)(at only s)(ow up in books. *parroting stuff that eridan's told her, the schmuck.*

FEFERI: Yea)(! Your kismesis is your One True Rival.

NEPETA: :33 < its suppawsed to rely suuupurr heavily on respect! and trust!

NEPETA: :33 < ofurwise you n33d an auspice very badly X((

ROXY: a whatty oh my god *feelin SO BEHIND even though theres no reason for her to know these things anyway omg*

FEFERI: Yea)(, tell me about it. *rolls her eyes, just thinking about erisol in the past*

NEPETA: *dont even THINK of them in that context oh baRF*

FEFERI: You know? Someone to make two people quit t)(eir needless s)(it?

FEFERI: *HOW DO U THINK FEF FEELS*

ROXY: huh

FEFERI: Some people are better at it t)(an ot)(ers. *shrugs*

ROXY: yeah for humans thats just considered bein a good friend and or havin a low tolerance for bullshit from ANYONE

NEPETA: :33 < yes there is a quadrant specificatly for mediating betw33n a dysfunctional black relationship *nods*

NEPETA: :33 < its not easy! its hard work

NEPETA: :33 < like moiraillegience is

FEFERI: *rolls over on her belly, kicking her legs up behind her. She is in the perfect position to talk quads*

ROXY: oh oh oh thats the one the lil shouty guy told me i should go huntin for or somethin

ROXY: he explained that one a lil

FEFERI: Sig)(. Moirallegiance. Nepeta and -Equius )(ave t)(e B----EST moirayllegiance.

ROXY: ooo!

NEPETA: *smiles and shrugs her shoulders up to her ears for a moment*

FEFERI: You can tell a good reelations)(ip is one t)(at stands t)(e test of time!!! T)(ey are SO perfect for eac)( ot)(er. *makes a fish face at her*

NEPETA: *makes a fish face right on back*

ROXY: aaaaaaawwwww

ROXY: u been keepin an eye on each other for a long time???

NEPETA: :33 < oh yes

FEFERI: So many gentle s)(oos)(es and paps to be )(ad. *waggles eyebrows at Nepeta. Get it girl. Pap that ass.*

NEPETA: *makes sort of a face at that guuuuurl calm yo butt down*

ROXY: daaaaaawwww

ROXY: *cant tell the difference bruh it all sounds cute*

ROXY: im happy 4 u:3

NEPETA: :33 < thank you roxy X33

FEFERI: *giggles into her hands*

FEFERI: I didn't know t)(at you )(ad spoken wit)( Karkat! *turns her attention to Rox*

FEFERI: Important leader business?

NEPETA: *nestles to listen*

ROXY: o yeah

ROXY: i met him first night

ROXY: we were apparently both waitin on everyone to head to bed before we went ourselves

ROXY: andddd the other day he popped in to make sure i wasnt dead

NEPETA: *just blinks*

ROXY: hes a cool dude

ROXY: little abraisive??? whats that for

NEPETA: :33 < thats just how he is *shrug*

FEFERI: *tilts her head, pondering* )(e)(e)(e, I always t)(oug)(t )(e was trying to compensate and try to prove to --EV--ERYON-E t)(at )(e's toug)(.

FEFERI: But it's just a s)(ow, is all it is. )(e cares a lot!

ROXY: yeah i get that vibe from him

ROXY: tsundere much

FEFERI: Pffft, pretty muc)(! *whatever that was.* )(e cares V---ERY LOUDLY.

NEPETA: :33 < VERY loudly

ROXY: o VERY loudly

ROXY: i c

FEFERI: Yep. T)(at's Karkat for you.

ROXY: *nodnod* hes on my list of 'p cool'

FEFERI: I wouldn't say )(e's COOL. *rolls eyes* )(e's alrig)(t. I guess.

ROXY: o no not like super suave cool guy wearin just the right amount of old spice and probs owns a hot car

ROXY: i mean cool as in yeah i can have a conversation w/ this person in the middle of the night about whether tacos have feelins probs

ROXY: call it a hunch

FEFERI: )(e)(e)(e, oo)( okay. Yea)(, I t)(ink I get it.

NEPETA: *eyebrows twist like ???? ok*

FEFERI: But to be fair, none of t)(e bouys we know are t)(at cool. Some of t)(em mig)(t )(ave was)(ed )(air but even t)(en.

FEFERI: T)(at's )(oping for too muc)(.

ROXY: hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

ROXY: we will see

ROXY: right now the only person ive deemed uncool is the bed eater tbh

FEFERI: Bed eater???

ROXY: the tiny gremmie lookin one

ROXY: eridan said he eats the troll equivalent of beds or smth and i cant let it go

FEFERI: O)(, t)(at guy. *shifty but is careful not to look at Nepeta.*

FEFERI: )(e's somet)(ing of )(is own. T)(at's all. *blunt*

NEPETA: *filters her breath evenly through her nose*

ROXY: yeah i aint gonna waste time gettin to know him lol

FEFERI: You've been glubbing wit)( -Eridan too?

ROXY: only a little bit

ROXY: i met him when i met sollux in person?? ahahha omfg they looked at jake like he had two heads

FEFERI: Water you t)(ink about )(im? )(as )(e been saying tank you for borrowing t)(e brus)(?

ROXY: o yeah every time

FEFERI: )(e)(e)(e, some people didn't )(ave as great a sprite experience as we did.

FEFERI: Good. *nods. Seahorsedad raised him with manners at pretty ladies at least.*

ROXY: at first i thought he was kinda blunt bc of like one thing he said about ur species on a whole but every time since then hes been like

ROXY: a total gentleman

ROXY: also on the p cool list

FEFERI: Cool to )(ear! *Somewhere she feels a twinge of satisfaction that he heeded her warning. Shhh, Fef.*

NEPETA: *does glance at Feferi at the specific mentions of the dreaded dan.*

ROXY: all in all i rly like all ur friends ive met o:

NEPETA: :33 < thats good!

FEFERI: *appears pretty nonchalant, it's impossible to know what's going on in Fef's head at any given time.* )(e)(e)(e, t)(ey're all great!

ROXY: (ur still dabes)

NEPETA: :33 < ;33

FEFERI: *blows a kiss at Rox*

ROXY: *does the theatrical 'reach into the air and catch it, then stuff it in my pocket' gesture*

NEPETA: *oh em gee*

FEFERI: *holds her face like Gasp!*

ROXY: ima save that 4 later watchaaaaaa

FEFERI: Did you know mermaid kisses grant wis)(es? Because t)(ey totally do. *no they don't but at least Fef looks cute as she wiggles her fins*

NEPETA: :33 < h33h33!

ROXY: O:

ROXY: i def gotta cherish that and save it for when i have a super awesome wish in mind

FEFERI: Save it for a rainy day! *winks at her and rests her chin on her palm. It's so good being around other extroverted people.*

ROXY: *it really is, wow. It's good to be around people at all, but especially new people now, too. She's very happy to have made these friends, yes.*

NEPETA: *sits crosslegged and leans her elbows on her knees, holding her face*

NEPETA: :33 < how are the ofur humans?

FEFERI: *Oh yes, tell FF all about Momma Roxy's clutch of bby humans.*

ROXY: iiiiiiiiii think theyre p good? i met rose and dave finally :///}

NEPETA: :33 < rose is so sw33t!!! and dave is funny isnt he?

FEFERI: Is t)(at a good t)(ing? I liked t)(em way back w)(en we first started trolling t)(em!

NEPETA: :33 < he roleplayed with me once!

NEPETA: :33 < i wonder if he still uses his character hmm

ROXY: omfg what

FEFERI: *giggles at these memories. Not hers but still, BURN FUEL.*

NEPETA: :33 < akwete purrmusk!

ROXY: *SNORTS*

FEFERI: T)(at's so cute!!!

ROXY: thats fuckin precious ima ask him about that i got u

FEFERI: Do it, do it. ROXY: but yes its a good thing :''3

ROXY: least i think so

FEFERI: You're all eac)( ot)(er's dancestors rig)(t? At least, t)(at's )(ow I understand it. *tilts her head*

ROXY: we are all ecto related if thats what u mean

ROXY: well me dirk dave and rose are

ROXY: then theres janey jake john and jade all tied up in a weird familial knot

FEFERI: )(umans are so weird. *hums*

ROXY: *shrugs* rose is like

ROXY: my momdaughterperson

ROXY: its all rly crazy but i think theyre great

ROXY: they might think im rly awkward or something???

FEFERI: I never got a c)(ance to glub wit)( )(er! Maybe I s)(ould now. I've got plenty of time!

ROXY: oh u def should

FEFERI: )(ow could t)(ey t)(ink you're pawkward?

NEPETA: *h33h33*

FEFERI: *3;)*

ROXY: i may have arranged a really weird family reunion HA

ROXY: but hey then we played the game together and aside from me faceplanting we had a jolly good time

ROXY: runnin for our lives

ROXY: u kno

ROXY: bonding

FEFERI: I don't sea )(ow it )(appens any ot)(er way!

ROXY: rite????

FEFERI: I met my first matesprit w)(en )(e was lying in a puddle of )(is own blood, )(e)(e)(e!

FEFERI: Some t)(ings just )(appen!

ROXY: WELP

ROXY: oh my god who was that

ROXY: that sounds horrifyin?

ROXY: im

NEPETA: *covers fACE*

FEFERI: )(e died trying to SAV---E me! )(e's pretty brave. *nods. This doesn't bother her at all.*

ROXY: ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

FEFERI: *looks confused* O)( don't be all sad! )(e's alive now. T)(ank cod.

ROXY: oh no im all mushy bc thts somethin straight outta some novel bro *touches face* who was it tho???

FEFERI: Sollux, of course! W)(o else? *playfully wrinkles nose at her*

ROXY: not one of those dudes out there or??? *she doesnt know what its like to have a life outside of ur immediate friend group blesssss*

ROXY: *TIMING*

ROXY: gaaaaaaasp

ROXY: u kno now that u say all this

ROXY: i get that hero vibe from him

ROXY: all aloof and shit

ROXY: nahmean

FEFERI: *keeps her face rested on her palm, listening with a smallish smile on her face. She KNOWS all this stuff Rox, it's all first hand experience.* Yes! T)(at's pretty muc)( sums up t)(e Sollux Captor -Experience.

ROXY: *she KNOWS she must know she's just putting it all together like ah yes this ones a big hero*

ROXY: good to kno good to kno

NEPETA: *another glance at fef, picking at her sleeves again*

ROXY: dayum tho *sighs up at the ceiling, pondering all the people here with stories like that, shaking her head slowly* dyin for the ppl you love

ROXY: thats some p heavy shit

ROXY: yall got some serious heart

NEPETA: *It's too much -- she really can't sit here anymore, dwelling on all these old thoughts that she hadn't been prepared to be swimming in, and she's swinging her legs off the bed before she realizes it*

ROXY: *blinks* nep???

NEPETA: :33 < im

NEPETA: :33 < im sorry i have to go

NEPETA: *skitters away without another word, dashing out the door*

FEFERI: *She's about to say something but is stopped when Nepeta moves to leave. And there's really no question as to why. She gets up more slowly.*

ROXY: *pushes herself up all the way, watching her with a confused frown and a sheet of sudden guilt* wait i--

ROXY: shit

ROXY: *looks at Feferi somewhat desperately* what did i do???

FEFERI: Not)(ing! *shakes her head* It's been a long day for )(er, t)(at's all.

ROXY: D:

FEFERI: *gives her a sympathetic look and pats her arm* It reely isn't your fault, Roxy. I promise.

ROXY: *settles back and folds her arms around her middle* i just hope shes ok ;__;

FEFERI: *sits up in a kneeling position, bringing her hair over her shoulder to stroke it and give her hands something to do* It's roug)( for )(er.

FEFERI: But s)(e'll pull t)(roug)(. *nods* S)(e's a very strong strong person, s)(e just needs a little bit of time.

ROXY: *chews on her lip* next time im fuckin up can u like

ROXY: idk slap me hahah

FEFERI: I won't slap you! Cod! *looks outraged at the very idea*

FEFERI: -Even Nepeta won't slap you!

ROXY: maybe pinch me gently????

ROXY: pls alert me to when im runnin my maw

ROXY: *sighs into her hands*

FEFERI: Okay, I'll t)(ink about it. *Just. Shoosh. She puts a hand over the hands on Roxy's face. Shhhh.*

ROXY: *flops on her. literally just. tips over to flop on her*

FEFERI: *Is pretty okay with this actually. Let's the flip flopping Roxy happen. Just strokes her hair very calmly.*

FEFERI: )(ow are t)(e ouc)(ies )(ealing? *mild subject change*

ROXY: seriously they were p much fine till apes happened

ROXY: im pretty much A+ rn i was just sleepin before yall came in

FEFERI: )(m.

FEFERI: Pretty muc)( fine isn't ---ENTIR-ELY fine.

ROXY: just some hecka bruising >.> goes away

ROXY: honest it was fine till i did a dumb thing

FEFERI: You said somefin about a faceplant?

ROXY: yeahh i tripped over like a root or something

ROXY: when i say runnin for our lives i literally mean it was a runnin game

FEFERI: O)(.

FEFERI: Well.

FEFERI: S)(it.

ROXY: mmmmmmhm

ROXY: damn frothy apes

ROXY: i got some rings

FEFERI: Reely? Cool! We're probubbly going to be able to buy somefin R---E-ELY nice once the opportunaty makes itself known.

ROXY: yeah def

ROXY: i rly hope they can go to the people whos still hurtin /;

ROXY: like i hope thats what they do

ROXY: itd suck major moose balls if they were just useless

FEFERI: *snorts at the crass imagery. You don't hear THAT around high society. She loved her friends so much.* Knowing t)(is game, t)(ey probably aren't!

FEFERI: Speaking of people still )(urtin'. I need to talk to you about somet)(ing.

ROXY: ???

ROXY: yea?

FEFERI: Gamzee talked to me about w)(at )(ad )(appened before. And )(e told me w)(y )(e did it.

FEFERI: T)(e bed-eater? T)(at's )(is name.

ROXY: yeah i know his name

FEFERI: Good! I t)(ink I was t)(e first one )(e messaged once )(e got exiled. 3:/

FEFERI: It's kind of )(ard to explain.

ROXY: *leans back to look at her* im all ears

FEFERI: *dives straight to business* )(e told me t)(at t)(e reason )(e flipped out was because )(is Intellegence numbers were too low for )(im to play t)(e first set of game levels. )(e t)(rew a fit and you )(appened to be t)(e closest one to )(im. T)(at muc)( you know, I t)(ink.

ROXY: *scoffs a laugh* yeah i remember that p clearly

FEFERI: *nods, still serious* )(e told me t)(at )(e was sorry and t)(at )(e was glad t)(at you punc)(ed )(im like you did. It was a better fate t)(an t)(e one eit)(er of you COULD )(ave suffered.

FEFERI: And knowing w)(at I know about )(im, I can't say I'm too surprised.

ROXY: *purses her lips*

ROXY: coulda been that bad huh

FEFERI: Yes. *twitches an earfin, her mind going for a split second to a few of her darker shared memories.*

ROXY: *She's not a total idiot; she remembered when Nepeta had gone quiet and still earlier, and she figures she can at least ask and be corrected if need be*

ROXY: does this have anythin to do with nep

FEFERI: )(e's done some really awful t)(ings in t)(e past. )(e's still capable of doing t)(em now, too. Obviously.

FEFERI: *pauses for a second, not sure what she should disclose.*

FEFERI: Awful t)(ings. T)(at's all you reely need to know.

FEFERI: Sorry. *frowns, not liking that she had to keep things from her friend.*

ROXY: *suddenly she feels rather ill, because her silence had answered the question for her, and oh the guilt is heavy* no i dont need details

ROXY: i just hope u know i aint too keen on like

ROXY: forgettin

ROXY: even if he says hes sorry

FEFERI: Of course not. *she leans forward a bit, placing her weight on her palms as she stared down at the mattress.*

FEFERI: But I also understand t)(at we can't win t)(is game wit)(out ALL of t)(e players. -Even t)(e horrible ones. T)(at's w)(y I )(ad to listen to w)(at )(e )(ad to say.

ROXY: whether he says meant to or not im pretty much 100% certain he wanted me dead back there and thats for a tiny little thing so *shifts, uncomfortable* i feel u on the inclusion thing tho

ROXY: so my question is

ROXY: what do we do about him

FEFERI: )(e's really... lost, I t)(ink. *confesses. She hadn't really voiced it before.* )(e doesn't seem to know w)(at to do wit)( )(imself, or )(is feelings.

FEFERI: T)(ere are too many people )(ere w)(o would rat)(er )(ave )(im dead but.

FEFERI: T)(at's not going to work. *blunt*

ROXY: *frowns, wanting to say that his intent doesn't excuse his actions, but nodding*

ROXY: youre right

ROXY: but hes a serious wildcard

ROXY: whether hes lost or confused or what we need some way of makin sure he doesnt fly off the handle

ROXY: bc like u said

ROXY: we need all the players

ROXY: *and that includes anyone else he might throw a fit on*

FEFERI: *Frowns to herself, knowing there was at least ONE possible solution to this but she feels very reluctant to bring it up. Not with her past experience with the subject.*

ROXY: *watches her face*

FEFERI: If we want to know w)(at )(e's planning on doing next, )(e just needs someone w)(o's going to at least TRY to understand w)(ere )(e's coming from. W)(at )(e's t)(inking. *heaves a great big sigh* T)(at list is an incredibly s)(ort list of people up for t)(at kind of job.

ROXY: sounds kinda like that one quad yall talked about

ROXY: the 'watchin out makin sure u dont do nothin stupid' one

FEFERI: Yea)(. *visibly grimaces*

FEFERI: T)(at's t)(e w)(ole point of t)(e quadrant! You know?

ROXY: *the expression inspires one to match*

ROXY: yeah i figured that much

ROXY: he rly got literally nobody on his level??

ROXY: *his short, short little level*

FEFERI: Maybe... )(e seemed to be pretty frondly wit)( Tavros. *and herself of course but let's not bring that up unless it's an emergency*

ROXY: *nods* well

ROXY: heres hopin i guess

FEFERI: *goes quiet for a little bit, knowing full well the chances of an arrangement like that weren't very likely to succeeding. For a whole number of reasons. If there was anything she learned from sharing souls with Nepeta, it's shipping. Not everyone seemed to be good at this kind of thing, really.*

ROXY: *she knows you really can't force relationships to happen, and that's what these quadrants were, so she ponders the absence of alternative methods with disdain*

ROXY: i guess we will see whats gotta be done whenever he comes outta cornland

FEFERI: I told )(im t)(e only way you would forgive )(im is if )(e started acting like it. *heaves another sigh* You don't owe )(im anyt)(ing so )(e s)(ouldn't act like it.

FEFERI: *the question bubbles up but she forces it down, wondering how long she'd be able to keep it in*

ROXY: *looks at her* idk if im gonna FORGIVE him rly

ROXY: i aint gonna harp on it

ROXY: but u know what i mean

FEFERI: *shakes her head* Forgiveness isn't w)(at )(e can )(ope for. )(e'll just be asking for a c)(ance, I guess.

ROXY: *purses her lips again*

ROXY: we shall see

FEFERI: ...

ROXY: *eyebrow raise*

FEFERI: *Confronting her own worries aren't exactly one of her strengths. When she speaks, it's like pulling teeth.* I've been t)(inking about t)(is ever since I )(eard about you getting )(urt. *manages after great reluctance.*

ROXY: ...

FEFERI: I don't ever want to )(ear somet)(ing like t)(at again. 3:(

ROXY: thinkin about what exactly

ROXY: not-- *brow creases* fef

FEFERI: Look. *she's only partially glad that Rox is catching what she's trying to say without having to ACTUALLY say it. She shifts in her seat to face her, giving her a very serious look.* If t)(ere was anyt)(ing I could )(ave done to prevent it. I would do it.

FEFERI: And w)(en I say anyt)(ing, I mean it.

ROXY: are you serious because *shakes her head a little* look i dont rly understand troll stuff as well as i probs should in order to debate this w/ u but dont u

ROXY: idk

ROXY: have to feel somethin?

FEFERI: I feel somet)(ing. I feel a lot of t)(ings. *And that's how it started before, she tells herself silently.* I'm worried, and I don't know w)(at's going to )(appen at t)(e rate t)(at it's going.

FEFERI: I wis)( I knew t)(at it was enoug)(. But I reely don't.

FEFERI: All it is, is a c)(ance. T)(at's it.

ROXY: *she's just frowning deeply; she doesn't even know the half of it, and she still doesn't like the sound of it.*

ROXY: youre sure about this

FEFERI: It's pretty glubbing clear t)(at I am. *furrows her brow*

ROXY: i just

ROXY: im hearin u but for some reason it aint registerin and *rolls her fingers near her head* just

ROXY: i dunno i dont wanna see YOU get hurt like what are the chances of that

FEFERI: Roxy. *her voice drops lower, her helplessness finally breaking past the barrier of her expressions.*

ROXY: just *cuts herself off, brow creasing upwards as she looks back at her just as lost for articulation*

FEFERI: *ignores her first question and goes for one herself, one that makes her wide-eyed and truly fearful.* W)(at about Nepeta?

FEFERI: )(ow is s)(e going to react? W)(at is s)(e going to t)(ink? S)(e probably... won't ever be able to talk to me again.

FEFERI: *it's breaking her heart just thinking about it*

ROXY: *tucks her lips into her mouth to bite down on them, head shaking a bit.* she would understand wouldnt she like

ROXY: like that it was necessary or

FEFERI: You don't understand w)(at )(e's done. *She really wouldn't unless she actually told her. This was so hard.*

ROXY: i dont even know what happened i just *face in hands* i can assume but

FEFERI: I can't let )(er get )(urt, okay? Not )(er or you or anybody else. *fixes her determined amber eyes* Not if I can )(elp it.

ROXY: *something about all of this is like swallowing ice cubes and she looks back at Feferi with a little bit of dread but a lot more trust.*

ROXY: look if u think this is the way to do things i got ur back 100%

FEFERI: T)(at's all t)(at matters.

ROXY: *it's clear that Roxy is worried above anything else, and she can't even really force a smile for reassurance, so she just goes for another hug*

FEFERI: *This one feels more heartfelt and she presses back, allowing herself to press her face into Roxy's shoulder. She's so sorry already. Sorry for pretty much everything that's happened then, now, and in the future.*

FEFERI: Don't tell Nepeta, okay? *murmurs* Don't tell anybody yet.

FEFERI: We )(ave to play t)(is rig)(t. It's t)(e only way it's going to work.

ROXY: *It's Roxy's turn to stroke her hand along Feferi's hair, instinctively hissing a calming 'shhhh' because that was just what people did, wasn't it? She nods, her nose bumping Feferi's fin.* yeah no i wont tell nobody

ROXY: has he figured out how to get back out here yet??

FEFERI: *only stays in her embrace a little moment longer, indulgently allowing herself to believe the Shoosh was real. She pulls back at her question.* Not yet. T)(e game )(as )(im pretty glubbing tangled up in t)(ere in a major way.

FEFERI: )(e's farming )(is )(eart out t)(oug)(. I told )(im to. *nods*

ROXY: ok good thats keepin him busy then

FEFERI: -Exactly.

ROXY: *heaves a loud sigh* we deal with this whenever he gets out then i guess

ROXY: *looks at her*

ROXY: think hes gonna go for it?

FEFERI: I don't t)(ink )(e )(as muc)( of a c)(oice. *she gives her a sinister kind smile like i know how this works fool*

ROXY: *eyes widen a bit*

FEFERI: *the expression clears and she just looks at her curiously. Hm? 3:?*

ROXY: dang gurl

ROXY: youre fuckin hardcore i bet u hear that all the time but

ROXY: dang

FEFERI: It's true! )(e literally doesn't )(ave any ot)(er options for )(im rig)(t now. *rolls her eyes like duh this is obvious*

ROXY: (dat smile doe)

ROXY: (dangggg)

ROXY: hahaa i know what ur sayin tho yeah

ROXY: uhhhh one warning

FEFERI: *just sticks her tongue out at her*

ROXY: dirk sort of wants to chop him into little tiny pieces

ROXY: o_o

FEFERI: )(e'll )(ave to join t)(e looong line of people waiting to do just t)(at. *isn't very surprised by this knowledge* And t)(en t)(ey all )(ave to go t)(roug)( me.

ROXY: *she filters a breath through her nose, watching her face still and acknowledging the admiration she does feel towards her strength, intentions and ability.*

ROXY: dang right

FEFERI: It'll be okay. *brings her hands up for a very light face squeeze. The third one today.*

ROXY: *overlaps her hands and squintysmiles* dont u worry about reassuring ME bout any of this

FEFERI: *only laughs and makes another kissy-fish face at her, before pulling back. It felt so good having friends that believed in her. It looked like she could really make a difference after all.*

ROXY: *drops her hands again and chuckles in reply, glancing at the door again with a tilted frown*

ROXY: should somebody maybe check on her or

FEFERI: *rubs at her neck a little, following her gaze* S)(e just needs space. W)(en s)(e's ready, s)(e'll s)(ow up again.

ROXY: *sighs* yeah

ROXY: still i better apologize asap

FEFERI: )(e)(e)(e, yes of course.

ROXY: for the record

ROXY: i dont think she would like hate u or anythin

ROXY: u know

ROXY: for this

ROXY: i dont care what he did that just dont seem like her scene ya dig

FEFERI: *fiddles with the edges of her skirt* W)(ale no. But.

FEFERI: )(ow can s)(e trust me after t)(at? Or talk to me? Or just... Ask me )(ow my day was?

FEFERI: S)(e can't. It's not... paw- possible.

ROXY: sure it is :( you guys are friends

ROXY: that dont just go away

FEFERI: No... but. I )(ave to do it anyway. *ducks her head, knowing the words were an echo of something she might have said in the past. It's been so long.*

ROXY: *It sounds so /daunting/ when she says it like that, and the knot is back in her chest. She tries to sigh it away.* like i said we will see

FEFERI: Yep! *nods at her*

FEFERI: I s)(ould probably go t)(oug)(. Make s)(ore I'm around w)(en s)(e decides to come out from )(iding.

FEFERI: *makes her way off the bed*

FEFERI: You need rest too!

ROXY: *nods a couple more times* yeah i gotta wrap up this boo boo bullshit pronto

ROXY: im a strong independent woman who dont need no ice bags B[

ROXY: *snorts, lifting a hand to wave at her* ill check in with u soon ok??

FEFERI: *grins and plucks a kiss with two fingers and pats Roxy's poor sore ankle for good luck. Mermaid kisses fix everything.* )(e)(e)(e, sounds like a plan!

FEFERI: *waves over her shoulder* Bye!!!

[tatougunarchy]

ROXY: *she stays silent mostly out of embarrassment throughout the trip, curled in on herself as if to press away the discomfort in her belly, and she would have opened the door herself if he hadn't reached for it already.*

ROXY: dirk let me teach u a thing

ROXY: of all the things u could say to a lady

ROXY: that is not one of the best things

ROXY: but to answer ur question ive been eatin fuckin eeples and beneenees like the rest of us bc this place has shitty fruit so we smell like monkey food apparently *mutter*

DIRK: It was a joke. I'm trying those out now.

ROXY: ill let it slide since ur only practicin

ROXY: *pillbug*

DIRK: *He moves away to go actually close the door because he forgot to, then returns to the bedside to sit there.* I appreciate the heartwarming gesture as always, Rox.

DIRK: *He goes quiet for a moment, then looks over at her.* Are you alright?

DIRK: *Kind of a stupid question, but he doesn't know how else to ask it really.*

ROXY: *makes an incredulous face* no not rly

DIRK: Okay, at least you're not trying to bullshit it.

ROXY: bullshitting invincibility is exhausting aint nobody got time for that

ROXY: *rolls over a little bit to try straightening out, biting back a wince* what are the chances theres ice anywhere

ROXY: on a scale of zero to zero

DIRK: Hm. *he scoffs lightly and then looks around.* There's a very poor arcitechtural choice made here in that whoever designed this hellhole forgot to include basic first-aid kits, probably.

ROXY: figures

DIRK: Maybe they have something in the bathrooms though.

ROXY: can u go look maybe /;

DIRK: Of course. Try to elevate the injury while I go do that. *And whoosh, Dirk's off to go find. The facilities. WHEREVER THEY MIGHT BE. Roxy's left alone for a little while, hooray.*

ROXY: *cant elevate my STOMACH dirk but she can wrestle to get her pillow under her leg. By time he gets back she'll probably be poking at her belly, craning her neck to inspect the inevitable aging bruise in its disgusting glory*

DIRK: *eventually Dirk returns, kind of late because those fucking facilities are really shitty on first-aid. He did manage to find a few things, meaning ice, a few baggies probably to keep the ice in, and some small towels. He sits down next to her and, if she's still poking at her belly, he swats the hand away to give her one of the ice baggies and a towel.*

DIRK: Okay, you get the stomach and I'll get the leg.

ROXY: *she is, in fact, still poking at it and she pouts at him when her hand is swatted away, sniffing vaguely as she accepts the ice and towel* he got my shin

DIRK: And I'm sure you hit it on the ground too, huh. *Dirk moves a hand down to the injured shin, pressing down lightly near the top and moving down to identify where exactly the bruise is. These leggings make it hard to see, yo.*

DIRK: *Pay no attention to how strange his method is, he didn't want to ask Roxy where EXACTLY it is. Also it shows him where the bruise is at its worst.*

ROXY: *he'll know when she hisses and flinches a little bit, not too far down from her knee.* hold on just *reeeeeaches to pluck at the fabric and roll it up some yay stretchy material*

DIRK: *Oh okay, that totally works too. The bruise is eyed at with a slight frown from the spiky-haired blond, who then puts the towel over it and follows up with the bag o' ice.* You didn't tell me it was this bad.

ROXY: *wibbly frowning as she lies back again, pressing the other towel to her middle* i didnt look before now

DIRK: *glances up at her with that frown still in place, but it dissipates when he sees her expression. Instead, he sighs.* I'm almost surprised by that, I really am.

DIRK: No more playing these minigames until you get healed up though.

DIRK: It wouldn't do any of us very good if you're at less than your full abilities.

ROXY: *had covered her face with her hand, and peeks past her fingers at him* ok and now that u said that to me do u believe it enough to do it urself

ROXY: *no dirk she aint lettin it go*

DIRK: *Ugh, Dirk had almost forgot the sleep thing. He actually gives her a frown for that, but it's a pretty halfhearted one.* Yeah, yeah. I'm aware that the precious object enclosed within my cranium requires at least a few hours of REM sleep.

ROXY: dont u yeah yeah me sonny jim

ROXY: ill get a cane just to whap u with it

ROXY: or

ROXY: somethin

ROXY: idk

DIRK: *Okay, he lets out an amused chuckle at that.*

ROXY: *weary smirk*

DIRK: You need your sleep too, gramma.

ROXY: yeah probs

ROXY: *sniffs again, sighing* u can run away now u already did the valiant prince thing

ROXY: thank you by the way

DIRK: Of course. I mean did you expect me to do anything other than that? And if so, then just who the hell do you think I am? *He smirks, then reaches over to give her shoulder a light squeeze before getting up and stretching.*

DIRK: Sleep tight, Rox. I'll check in on you later.

ROXY: *scoffs, smiling again and wrinkling her nose. She lifts a hand to wave her fingers at him* okay see u

ROXY: aaaaaaaaaaa wait wait

ROXY: can u put dell-ilah a lil closer here so i can reach her

DIRK: *Pauses at that.* "Dell"ilah though.

DIRK: Wow.

ROXY: isnt she lovely

ROXY: isnt she wonderful

DIRK: What a beaut.

ROXY: such a winner

DIRK: *But yeah, he goes to bring the laptop over to Roxy's side.* No using it until you've slept a while, young lady.

ROXY: but daaaaaaaaaaaaad

ROXY: you never let me have any fun

ROXY: im getting a tattoo just to spite u

ROXY: probs some unsightly piercings

ROXY: o wait

ROXY: *ya done did that urself*

DIRK: *grins* You'll never earn my respect until you act your age as my daughter. Also get on my level.

ROXY: our family tree is out of whack

ROXY: also no thank u

DIRK: Hey, don't knock the piercings 'til you've tried 'em. *He straightens up (only his back) and turns for the door, giving Roxy a wave goodbye.* Alright, getting out of your nicely styled hair now.

ROXY: now THAT is somethin u say to a lady

ROXY: ur learning

ROXY: *waves again* nighty night

DIRK: I have a pretty sharp learning curve. *He has to smother the faint grin on his lips when he reaches the door, glancing back to make sure Roxy's okay over there before he actually goes to exit.* Sweet dreams, Lalonde.

DIRK: *And now he's off to ACTUALLY TRY SLEEPING, heck yeah.*

[tatougunarchy]

DIRK: *Dirk's already outside of the door system thing, so he chooses to go for the other Lalonde first. Once he figures out the right dial, he knocks on Rose's door with a few pretty loud knocks, hoping that she is in fact in her room at the moment and not sleeping.*

ROSE: *She had actually just been lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling for hours since she last woke up, and looks up at the sound of knocking. Despite her curiosity, it doesn't take long for her to answer the door.*

DIRK: *I hope you ordered a tall glass of Strider.* Hey, you're not sleeping, good.

DIRK: Come on, we're doing a thing.

ROSE: *raises an eyebrow at him* How do I know you aren't leading me to my untimely demise?

DIRK: Because I always have perfect timing. *He gestures for her to come out, stepping back from the door.* Roxy is talking to Karkat so we can actually try out on playing one of the games.

DIRK: Because apparently we require permission from him first.

ROSE: *She's tempted to say something sarcastic in response, but knows where that landed her the last time and steps out of the room* Fine.

DIRK: *Hey good, someone who actually listens to him. He gives her an appreciative nod and then moves to get the door closed in order to change the dial thing, probably.*

DIRK: *Okay, Dave's room is up next. Dirk knocks maybe twice before just trying to open the door, since that counts as fair warning, right.*

ROSE: *kind of shuffles to stand behind Dirk*

DIRK: Dave, are you naked? If you are, please let us know before our corneas are burned.

DAVE: *he jumps up at the knock and shuts his laptop quickly.*

DAVE: im not naked

DAVE: your corneas are safe

DIRK: Okay good. *The doors opened, success. Dirk doesn't really try getting inside very much.* We're doing one of those family bonding things.

DIRK: Except this time, with games.

DAVE: okay lets roll

DIRK: *Nods and turns, Rose c'mon let's go you're in front of me now*

DAVE: *dave has been prepping himself for this all day. he rubs his hands together and joins dirk at the door.*

ROXY: *and once the door closes, that's about when Roxy emerges from her room*

ROXY: *almost bumps into dave*

ROXY: whoa we havin a conga line

DAVE: looks like

DAVE: you in the mood for a dance

ROSE: *Don't do this to me, Dirk, I don't know where to go*

DIRK: Pass. *Dirk flashsteps out of the way for that. Now he's in front and leading the way, it's okay Rose*

ROXY: was that rly necessary

DIRK: Yes.

DIRK: *Out to... the general waiting room thing I guess??*

ROXY: *we already in it*

ROXY: ok dirk so last time all u did was put in ur info and it gave u a door ???

DIRK: *Oh ok good.* Yeah, there are a few portal-departureways that are given. The one we went towards was the only one with a board and scanner kind of object, if I remember correctly.

ROXY: oh oh oh ok good *wobbly scurrying to the terminal, overlooking the keyboard* who wants to go first

[The terminal screen merely says: "All first stage games - Unlocked. Players 1-4, proceed."]

ROXY: o:

DIRK: *moves over to see the terminal screen for himself, then nods a little and whoop, to the escalator we go because that IS happening I think.* This leads to the whole start-up area.

ROXY: *in a row like ducks, childrens*

[The escalator behaves just the same as before, loading message and all. Here, have another fun stretch of time in which to do some family bonding.]

[You're welcome.]

ROXY: *purses her lips* welp

ROSE: ...

DIRK: *Just kinda silent. Wow, would you look at that beautiful emptiness up there. Huh.*

DAVE: *hums the jeopardy tune.*

ROXY: i was just about to do that *wags finger at dave like you got me bro*

DAVE: *finger guns at roxy*

[When you do finally haul your blonde keisters to the game area you will find it much the same as before, only this time every portal has a keypad and scanner. Pick your poison!]

ROXY: *grins at dave, before looking around at the portals once they reach them* humm

ROXY: which one was mushroom land??

DIRK: *Sweet release of slow escalator time, thank any gods out there. Dirk is quick to stroll over to look around, frowning lightly when he sees all the new keypad-scanner combos.* Uh. The one on the left, maybe.

DIRK: *Don't they have the name above them?*

[They aren't named, but they are numbered. Mushroom Kingdom was 5.]

DIRK: *Too bad Dirk didn't think to take note of the number at the time. Still, he's pretty sure it was the one on the left. He goes to it and taps at the keypad experimentally.*

[The screen for the portal you have chosen reads: "Kingdom of Mushroom: Enter again?"]

DIRK: *Oh shit lucky guess, good. Is there a Y-button on here for yes? Or does he type out "yes"? Either way, let's do that.*

[Well that didn't work. Now it just says "Urn Temple: Enter?" And hey look, a button that reads Enter. You know what to do.]

DIRK: ... *Irritation. He's frowning a little more now, but you know what, he doesn't really care at this point. Enter it is, and so he presses that button.*

ROXY: *just kind of lookin at him like u ok*

["Player number?" Press 4, yo. And then start scanning yourselves in. The portal is already slowly whirring into action before your eyes.]

DIRK: *Yeah, he presses four then does the scan-y thing and steps aside to let the others do the same, while simultaneously getting closer to the doorportal that's starting up.*

ROXY: *just following dirk's lead at this point, glancing at the other two before stepping to mimic him*

ROSE: *steps up behind her to follow suit*

DAVE: *watches the others curiously and then Player 4 scans himself in too.*

[Yes, you are all smart/fast/strong/durable enough for this game... Hopefully. Go on in that there portal. The blue light beckons.]

DIRK: *Ok cool. Dirk is the first to kinda. Hop on through with a wave of his hand for the others to follow.*

ROXY: *just awkwardly and quietly following along sob*

DAVE: *steps through after 'em.*

ROSE: *following again*

[In you go, and then down you fall through the dark and the strange lingering prickling sensation. When you emerge from the portal, you find this time that rather than being tossed into the sunshine you are instead simply heavily deposited into another almost pitch-black place. It is murky and dusty, and smells (for lack of a better description) old. At least you're not falling anymore! And good news: In the gloom you can just about make out the light of an exit ahead. Will you feel your way along the stone wall towards the way out?]

ROXY: *Well THAT was the last thing she expected. She gasped slightly at the sensation of falling and landing somewhere so vastly different from the place she had just been standing. She stumbles a bit and reaches out for (hopefully) Dirk's arm*

DIRK: *Oh yes, that lovely feeling again. Dirk's stomach drops a little less this time, he swears. The landing is a bit rougher for him than before thanks to the darkness, but he still manages to land foot-first.*

DIRK: *Yes hello that's a Dirk arm you're holding onto. He almost sways at the unexpected tug.*

ROXY: (what the fuckerooni is this shit is this normal)

DIRK: No, this is different.

DIRK: Or maybe it's normal for this game.

DAVE: *he lands hard and rocks back on his heels, squinting around in the gloom.*

DAVE: uh this place is gross

DAVE: lets go into the light

DIRK: *Cue Dirk reaching out to feel along for the side of the wall nearest to him.* Sounds good.

ROXY: *spooky voice* dont go into the liiiiiiiiiiight *fake crying* cept yeah lets

DIRK: *He can barely see. The one fatal downfall of wearing shades.*

ROSE: *barely manages to land on her feet and just blinks in confusion*

ROXY: *glances around* rose u with us????

ROSE: Yes.

ROXY: phew

DIRK: *Starts heading for that dim light that's probably there. Yeah, let's go towards the one thing Dirk can see I think.*

[Approaching the exit you begin to notice the way the walls and ceiling are intricately carved in designs you do not understand, and how humid it is out there. When you do finally step into the sunlight the heat descends over you like a fog. The view is spectacular; You appear to be at the entrance to a grand temple built of yellow sandstone high high up on pillars of stone above a tropical rainforest. Far out in front of you there is a pathway that seems to lead from this entrance for miles, zig-zagging to goodness knows where. You can see that occasionally the path is split asunder in jumpable chunks, and sometimes is obstructed by the branches of enormous trees that will need to be ducked under. You can also make out the occasional glint of some sort of treasure upon the path, more rings laid out neatly like a bread-crumb trail to follow. Then of all the things to hear you are gradually aware of the sound of animalistic hooting and shrieking coming from the direction you just left. It sounds like… monkeys? Some kind of ape. And boy do they sound angry. You've got about thirty seconds before they catch up with you and start getting all up in your grill, and something tells you you do not want to try and stick around to fight them. Maybe they'll be smelly monkeys and throw gross things at you if you stay? Whatever the case may be, running to live another non-smelly monkey day seems like the best option.]

ROXY: o__________________o

ROXY: nobody smuggled any bananas in here rite

DAVE: i think this happened in the hunger games

DIRK: Well fuck.

ROXY: *unhappy sound*

DIRK: Time to go the other way then.

ROXY: was there another option even?? *glancing wildly between the impending APES*

DAVE: *dave wastes no time and sprints in the opposite direction of the monkeys.*

DIRK: *scooping up some of those coins would be nice, but then there's those ape noises and NOPE. Dirk is fast in following his brother.*

ROSE: *run run runs as fast as she can*

[Good choice! Soon enough those crazy primates, at least fifteen of them, emerge from the temple behind you and they are simply going ~bananas~. Still screaming fit to burst they start after you, running on all fours at a pretty alarming speed. There's a break up ahead in the path you'll need to jump over - If you can clear it that might give you some time. Make sure you don't fall!]

DIRK: *RINGS. Rings. They're rings.*

ROXY: *the second they move, she turns to run with them, already wincing at her hardly-waning pains. Shit!*

ROXY: ohmygodohmygodohmygod

DIRK: *Well SHIT son, those are some apeshit monkeys. Dirk puts his speed to good use and crosses the gap pretty easily, assuming nothing reaches up to catch him mid-leap.*

DAVE: *adrenaline is lending dave wings. he jumps the gap a second after dirk and slows on the other side, peeking over his shoulder at the lalondes and the monkeys at their heels.*

ROSE: *jumps once she's at the gap and hopes for the best*

ROXY: *There's no time to be a wimp; she steels herself to let her sudden panic fuel her own gait, ignoring every instinct to stop as she attempts to leap across the gap. She's totally behind everyone though.*

[Success! You all just about make it. The simians screech to a halt before the gap, but they're not giving up by any stretch of the imagination. Initially looking as if they intend to form some kind of monkey-ladder before mercifully giving up on that plan, they hastily begin to climb down the pillar towards the ground. You probably have a minute or two to get a head-start while they make their way to the other side.]

DIRK: *skids a little in stopping some to look back, and then Dirk swears when he sees the monkeys doing that weird ladder thing.* Anyone think we can fight them, or should we keep going?

DAVE: not all of them

DAVE: better wait for some of them to trip and break their necks first

ROXY: *skids a bit, too, whipping around to look back* its fuckin temple run incarnate what do u think

DAVE: can you keep up though

ROXY: *she is panting, and looks vaguely distressed, but she waves a hand and nods* ill tell u if i cant

DIRK: *Looks over at Roxy with a frown.* It'd be better to fight them rather than let you get chomped by a fast one. *Nonetheless, he's starting to take a few steps towards the path that they were following.*

[Distant monkey screeching intensifies]

ROXY: somebody make a CALL

DAVE: lets go

ROSE: We need to keep moving.

DIRK: Okay, let's go.

DIRK: *With that, it's back to the running thing. Dirk's not running QUITE as fast though, to keep track of the whole group. He doesn't want anyone falling behind.*

ROXY: *wordlessly starts to jog again for now, until their established pace as a group takes root*

ROSE: *still running, she glances back to check on the monkeys*

[As you run, you notice the line of rings scattered along the ground. You'd have to stop to pick them up, and of course that's inadvisable when being pursued by a horde of angry apes. Decisions, decisions. Don't forget to dodge the occasional root or branch though - And oops yep, there's the monkeys again. They've reached the other side and they are in hot pursuit.]

ROXY: *ARE THE RINGS EVEN WORTH IT AHHH*

DIRK: *Avoiding tripping stuff is pretty easy, and goddamn, Dirk still wants to pick up those rings. He takes a fraction of a second in a flashstep to pick at least ONE up for good measure before he's running again.*

DIRK: *THEY MIGHT BE??*

DAVE: *running, not at full speed but not slowly either. he glances down at the shinies and ignores them. rings have only been bad for them in the past.*

ROXY: *Roxy is having some trouble navigating, expending most of her effort to jump clean over as much as she can. Better to hurt later than BE EATEN BY MONKEYS NOW*

DIRK: *Excuse you, rings are great when they don't transform you into huge monsterdogs.*

DAVE: *i want to pay for my bling in cashmoney not my LIFE*

DIRK: *Bo-ring.*

DIRK: *Dirk's trying to keep an eye on Roxy, in the meantime. He's belatedly remembering that she's not at her best right now, and if she stumbles, he's going to defend her from those apes.*

ROSE: *notices the rings but ignores them as well as she keeps running*

DIRK: *You guys just don't know how to have fun ok.*

[Up ahead there is a tree literally growing up through the path. Someone many years ago carved out a thin gap of a passage through the center, and it looks like it might /just/ be big enough for you all to squeeze through. The apes not so much - Too many bananas. There's still quite a stretch of path to run between there and where you are, however.]

DAVE: oh my god is that the reason theyve only been feeding us fruit

ROXY: *The running is starting to wear on her -- why did it have to be running? -- and she turns her head to look back at their pursuants* probably yeah just so they can aACK-- *there she goes. tripped on a root. what a ballerina.*

DAVE: *skids to a stop, casting a frantic look back at roxy, and then at the apes. he dashes back to her and grabs her arm to pull her up.*

DAVE: we do not have time to nap

DIRK: *Dirk nearly stumbles himself at the loud "ack" and then flashsteps to her other side, sword flashing out into his hand while he tries to help Dave with getting Roxy on her feet.* No, we definitely don't.

DIRK: Rest later, okay Rox?

ROXY: *well, that hurt. While she's down, though, she reaches her hand out to snatch a few rings off the ground, getting a fistful of probably dirt too before she's yanked back to her feet* nobodys sleepin GO

DAVE: *he lets her go and runs off again, motioning at rose to hurry as though she needs any motivation besides the killer apes at her heels.*

DIRK: *Nods at Roxy's words and starts up on the jogging once more, slowed down a little to make sure the slightly injured Lalonde is able to keep up. He looks back at the apes. How close have they gotten by now?*

ROSE: *She had faltered when Roxy fell, but she's running at full speed again at Dave's gesture*

[The monkeys are close enough now that you can smell their charming monkey aroma, but they are not quite in attacking range. The tree is closer now too.]

DIRK: *Fuck, okay. He's just trying to push for getting Roxy to that tree right now.*

ROXY: *thank you, young whippersnapper*

DAVE: *thanks to roxy's accident, he reaches the tree first and bends down to peer inside with trepidation.*

[There's light on the other side, you can tell that much. Get wiggling, Davey.]

ROSE: Either go through that tree or get out of the way.

ROXY: *damn mama*

ROSE: We don't exactly have much time here.

DAVE: *he casts an annoyed glance back at rose and then gets down on his stomach and starts to crawl/wiggle through the tunnel, fighting claustrophobia the whole way until he pops out on the other side.*

DIRK: *Arrives after Rose and Dave, making a noise of mild irritation like "why are we stopped here." He's gonna let Rose go first though, Roxy too.*

ROXY: *Roxy's getting good at army crawling this is gonna be easy peasy*

ROSE: *She would have rolled her eyes if she had time. Instead, she just wiggles her way in and crawls after him*

ROXY: *And she heads in after Rose*

DAVE: *he stands up on the other side and fixes his hair.*

DIRK: *He doesn't wait long once Roxy's in, what with the horde of approaching angry primates. Dirk gets down and crawls through, biting his lip hard and ignoring the limited movement. Fuck claustrophobia, that's dumb.*

[You make it though, the peculiar and singular sound of chimps slamming into wood resounding behind you. One monkey arm reaches through the gap and takes a sad little swing at you all, but other than that the danger is passed. You have ape escaped. On the other side of the tree the path continues on and on without visible end. What you /can/ see is more rings, all laid out on the path.]

ROSE: *Once she's out, she moves away from the tree to give the others room*

DAVE: *dave starts picking up rings.*

ROSE: *also starts collecting rings*

ROXY: *Once she's on the other side, she scrambles to stand, dusting off the rings she'd grabbed before to just put them on before gathering more; she'd grabbed three.*

DAVE: *whispering....* my precious

DIRK: *Ah, sweet unrestricted air. Dirk's pretty quick on getting up, checking to make sure his hair is okay too. Then he dusts off the dirt on his clothes and hey, rings. He walks a bit down the path of rings and starts picking up quite a few.*

ROSE: *looks up* What was that, Dave?

DAVE: hm

DAVE: what

DAVE: nothing

ROSE: *gives him a skeptical look before sighing and returning to the ring collecting*

[As soon as you have sixteen coins total between you the sunlight flares brighter and brighter until even the shaded amongst you are forced to screw your eyes closed. And then as soon as /that'/s done the ground beneath you crumbles away, leaving you once more falling into nothingness.]

ROXY: *there is a small screech*

DIRK: *He's just collecting rings and then DAMN, bright. Oh yeah and then falling again. Isn't that spectacular.*

DAVE: aw not this alice in wonderland bullshit again

DIRK: Roxy are you okay?? *He tries to call out without sounding alarmed.*

ROSE: *holds on to her rings in a clenched fist, mostly at a loss for words*

ROXY: i am fallin into an abyss NOT constructed or conjured by my own reliable science after bein chased by frothy apes

ROXY: im fanTASTIC

[The impersonal robot voice boops out an echoing "Game complete." accompanied by a muted equally robotic trumpet fanfare, and then you find yourselves somehow running again, quite fast, forward and out in single file back through the portal. Whoah there.]

ROXY: gneeeeek

DIRK: *RUNNING okay fuck, let's try to control motor movement. Dirk manages to do the stop-skid thing again and does not collide into anything.*

DAVE: *slams into dirk's back.*

DAVE: whoops

ROXY: *bonk*

ROSE: *unfortunately is unable to do the stop-skid thing and runs into Dave*

DIRK: ...I think I speak for everyone when I say, what the f--*dAMMIT. He stumbles oh god this is the worst traffic jam*

ROXY: *yep she bonks into rose and just. slides like a loony toon*

DIRK: *THEY'RE ALL FALLING ON HIM THERE'S NOTHING HE CAN DO.*

ROXY: *WELL roxy is rolling to the side to clutch at her leg so its ok you have one less person on you dirk*

ROSE: *just kind of flops off of them to the other side*

DIRK: *Dirk probably makes an awkward squawking noise at being so very crushed on the fall. Then he flashsteps out from under Dave to be sitting at the side.*

DIRK: *I hope Dave falls face-first on the floor.*

ROSE: *sits up and looks over at Roxy* How's your leg?

DAVE: *dave would fall face first on the floor, but luckily catches himself on his forearms. he sits up and dusts himself off.*

DIRK: *Damn. Dirk's kinda busy leaning back and trying to catch his breath anyways, so he probably would have missed the moment.*

ROXY: *frowning massively, she sits up enough to rub at her shin, still having neglected to roll up her leggings at any point to check for a bruise beforehand ladies and gentlemen theres an idiot in the house* im fine im fine

ROXY: why did it have to be damn dirty apes

DAVE: do you have something against monkeys in particular

DIRK: *Upon hearing Rose, he looks over at the Lalondes. He mutters under his breath* Dirty stinkin' apes.

DAVE: like would damn dirty rhinos be better

DIRK: No, that's true.

ROXY: ok fine why did it have to be a running game

DAVE: because the universe hates you and life is hell

ROXY: okay

ROXY: *kind of curled up she doesn't feel so hot no mo*

DIRK: Although to be fair, anything that was not in the primate family would not have been able to chase us for so long.

DIRK: *After a bit of shifting, Dirk hauls himself to his feet only to squat down at Roxy's side.* How you holdin' up, Lalonde?

ROXY: *sturgeon fish face*

ROXY: ill be ok just gimmie a hand *juts out her elbow its time for the chicken dance*

ROXY: *cept not rly*

DIRK: *Eyeroll. He's kind of tempted to just pick her up, honestly. For now he takes the offered bony elbow and assists her in getting up, trying to guide her as gently as can be managed.*

ROXY: *my elbows aint BONY you tit*

ROXY: *Yeah, Grandma Rox in the house. The ruse had been going so well.*

DIRK: *Uh huh. Dirk's still watching you carefully.*

ROXY: *smiles tightly* well ok we gonna get a move on or what

ROXY: how are u guys

ROXY: *looks between the betas*

DIRK: *Snorts and looks at the other two.* Anyone break bones or skin?

ROXY: *i did NOT scrape myself dont look at me IM A CAPABLE ADULT I /SWEAR./*

DAVE: i dont think so but wheres the drycleaners because i am covered in mysterious temple grime that will probably end up infecting me with a voodoo curse

ROSE: *She hasn't taken a good look at herself yet, but nothing hurts enough to be bothered* I think I'm alright.

DIRK: I'm sure that a suitable replacement for your clothes can be found, bro. *he gives them both a look-over, then sighs a little.* Well, that game was a bitch but at least we beat it.

DIRK: How many rings did everyone manage to acquire?

ROXY: *looks at her hand* three

ROSE: *looks at her own hand* Also three.

DAVE: *he stiffens a bit and side-eyes dirk, but he supposes it should be natural for them to call each other that. he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a handful of rings.* four

ROSE: *notices the subtle change in Dave's posture and makes a mental note to talk to him later*

DIRK: *His own amount of ring-loot is pulled out, then counted pretty quickly.* I got six.

DIRK: So, sixteen total.

ROXY: ok now what do we do with em

DAVE: trick ourselves out in style

DIRK: Yes.

DIRK: Until we figure out what they do, at least.

ROSE: *fails to hide an amused snicker*

DAVE: so i guess we passed

ROXY: guess so

DIRK: Yeah, as bizarre as that was. *He casts a frown in the direction of the portaldoor they had left.*

DAVE: what was it not like the other one you played

DIRK: Well the one I played was basically like Mario Brothers but on the first level.

DIRK: Calling it easy would be an understatement.

DIRK: It's nice to see that the games will get harder, though.

DAVE: *looks into the camera like he's on the office*

ROXY: *looks to see what hes lookin at*

ROSE: *sighs and shakes her head in disbelief*

DIRK: *Scoffs quietly in dry amusement, then turns towards the exit.* Okay, well it was fun playing family games with y'all, but it's getting late and I should head off.

DIRK: *It's probably getting late. How do you judge time around here.*

DAVE: its getting late

DAVE: what are you talking about

ROSE: How would you know that?

DAVE: that was such a bad excuse

DAVE: just go

ROXY: dirk needs his beauty sleep

DIRK: *Dismissive hand-wave.* Yeah, whatever.

ROXY: *looks at him like im very serious go the fuck to sleep*

DIRK: Excuse you, I'm always the most beautiful.

DIRK: I will win all the beauty pageants. I am the star. It's me.

ROXY: ok sure

DIRK: *Yes he sees the look and chooses to ignore it but HE'S GOING TO SLEEP OK.*

ROXY: *stands there... kind of not willing to take a step... HRM.*

DIRK: *Looks over at Roxy* You comin' with, Lalonde?

ROXY: *gulps here we go* yeeeeeeep

ROXY: iiiiiiimma comin

ROXY: anydaynow

ROXY: *shuffs*

DIRK: ...

DIRK: Okay no.

DIRK: Just.

DAVE: *checks an imaginary watch*

ROXY: *dont make me stumble in front of my KIDS*

DIRK: *Moves pretty quickly to sweep Roxy up off her feet to carry her bridal style, he ain't takin' this shit, Lalonde.*

ROXY: *eep*

ROXY: ow

DIRK: Well at least you don't have to walk now.

ROXY: *mutters something like flibber flapjack frickernutter mumbo jumbo just a bunch of frustrated nonsense*

ROSE: *waves goodbye* Sleep well.

DIRK: *gives the other two blondies a nod and a bit of a wave with the hand that's on Roxy's knees.* See you two later. Don't get into trouble, don't stay up late, drink your juice, etcetera.

ROXY: *waves kind of sheepishly at Rose*

DAVE: i always drink my juice

DAVE: night

DAVE: i think

DAVE: lets say its night

DIRK: Yeah. *And with that, he turns to go for the exit thing and take Roxy with him.*

ROXY: *face in hands*

DIRK: *Such majestic.*

FTT, CTT ceased responding to memo.

ROSE: *decides it's probably time she gets off the floor* Well, that was quite the experience.

DAVE: yeah i guess thats one day to motivate a guy into daily exercise

DAVE: chase him with screaming murder onkeys

DAVE: *monkeys

ROSE: ...*offers a hand to help him up* Are you okay?

DAVE: *takes her hand and gets to his feet.* yeah are you

ROSE: *nods* I was asking more about your wellbeing than your physical condition, though.

DAVE: my sudden wealth has been really emotionally draining for me

DAVE: thanks for asking

DAVE: *he's bouncing his rings from palm to palm.*

ROSE: That's certainly an improvement.

ROSE: ...I'm sorry for bringing up the mayor last time.

ROSE: You've been through a lot recently, and that was an inconsiderate thing to say.

ROSE: *Please say something. I don't like this rambling business that you so often do*

DAVE: *nods slowly* thanks

DAVE: the mayor was a good guy which is probably why they chose not to deposit him here in the second circle of hell with us

DAVE: its fine probably

DAVE: whatever

ROSE: At least he was safe the last time we saw him.

DAVE: yeah but now hes alone and his people are dead and we dont even know if that universe exists anymore or if it just folded up like a fancy napkin and ate itself and disappeared

ROSE: *frowns* Could we at least try to convince ourselves he is okay?

DAVE: *purses his lips* ok sure

DAVE: youre right he has probably rounded up a bunch of johns salamander friends and is building a massive can town the likes of which the universe has never seen

ROSE: *smiles faintly* That's the spirit.

DAVE: so what do you think

ROSE: I think we should go take showers before our stench resembles that of the monkeys.

DAVE: ok good idea

DAVE: but i mean before that

DAVE: what do you think of them

ROSE: Being around Roxy feels like having the supportive sister I've never had. I like her already.

ROSE: I can't draw conclusions about Dirk, yet. He seems alright so far.

ROSE: What do you think?

DAVE: theyre not terrible

DAVE: i mean its weird

DAVE: i dont have beef with them its just weird

ROSE: *nods* I can definitely see what you mean.

DAVE: *he starts to walk towards the door, and then turns back to rose on a second thoughts.*

DAVE: hows kanaya

DAVE: i havent seen her around a lot

DAVE: i mean ive mostly stayed in my room

DAVE: no i dont want to talk about that

DAVE: but i havent seen her

ROSE: *stiffens a little and tries to will herself to relax* I actually haven't talked to her for a while.

DAVE: oh

DAVE: really?

ROSE: Really.

DAVE: okay

DAVE: *squints at her*

ROSE: *can't tell if he's squinting behind the shades*

DAVE: *tilts his head at her*

ROSE: *avoids looking up at him, mumbling more than speaking* I broke up with her.

ROSE: She...She doesn't deserve to put up with me the way she did for so long.

DAVE: wow

ROSE: I would appreciate it if you didn't bring that up often.

DAVE: ok

ROSE: Thanks.

DAVE: well thats enough conversation for the next few days

DAVE: lets go shower

ROSE: Agreed.

[tatougunarchy]

TG: am returned

CG: OH, HEY.

TG: so i talked to distri

TG: aaaaaand it looks like we are playin a game tonite

CG: AND?

CG: FUCKING INCREDIBLE.

TG: i think we can handle it i have a good feelin

CG: WELL.

CG: ALL I CAN SAY, I GUESS, IS GOOD LUCK.

TG: thaaaaanks

TG: i tried

TG: we got this dont worry

TG: just lettin u kno the haps

CG: THANK YOU. I LIKE TO BE INFORMED.

TG: i can c that

TG: aight ima head out now i guess

TG: ttyl

CG: WAIT.

TG: ??

CG: I JUST UM.

CG: SORRY.

CG: ABOUT BEFORE.

TG: o

TG: its ok u didnt do nothin

CG: NO, I FUCKED UP, IT WASN'T OKAY.

TG: i kinda got blah on you without warnin so

TG: hey shh

TG: its all good

CG: ALRIGHT.

CG: SEE YOU LATER.

TG: byebyeee

-- tatouGunarchy [TG] began pestering carnivorousGravitation [CG] at 23:17 --