unknownseas | And we're all adrift together through the cold mist, 'til we're lifeless together

[The preparations hit differently this time.

Last weekend was at least an attempt at being festive, even with the light supplies they have; at being joyous, at giving people at least one nice thing to look back upon before things inevitably took a turn for the worse. And now two people are dead, and instead of trying to figure out structure placement and how best to keep everyone entertained and occupied and well-fed, the preparations now are given to much more practical purposes.

Large amounts of bottled water from the machine. Bagels and bread and muffins, light starchy things to avoid forcing anyone to keep meat or seafood down after seeing a corpse. Fruit for the sake of providing energy. Avoiding including bananas for any reason. Quietly pulling aside one of the first people she sees with any experience in the matter and asking them to help her make tea.

Once she's got one of the tables at the party zone set up and the tea is on its way to being prepared, she'll set around letting people know; the invitations are simple, written in Freyja's broad, elegant handwriting:

I think another gathering tonight would be beneficial. Not to celebrate, but to remember; perhaps more importantly, to ensure that no one is alone if they don't want to be.

Tonight is hard. There is nothing further to do but get through it.]

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[Sara's still got Emily with her. She looks up at Flayn and shakily takes the cup.]

Thank you. Sorry. For everything.

You do not need to apologize. [A beat.] Would Emily like a cup of tea as well? Even if just to hold it?

[Emily means a lot to Sara so of course Flayn asks if the doll wants tea.]

You don't need to. But... thank you.

[She looks over to the doll anyway, though.]

When he said "active," that meant "alive" to him, didn't it?

Nonsense, it will only take a moment.

[She's likely got a couple cups ready, so it's like, half a minute before one is placed in front of Emily. And look at that, Flayn has her own cup. It has a startlingly reasonable amount of cream and sugar.]

...I suppose it did, though I cannot be sure. I would not use that term myself.

[How does it even work. Is Emily not simply Emily?]

[Sara smiles a little.]

I know it's strange, me treating her like a person. But to me, it feels like she is a person. For a while, she was the only thing I had.

[Flayn knows this feel.]

It is not strange. If that is how you feel, then there is nothing wrong with that.

You know, at the academy, the teachers used to tell us that "your Mimic is like your twin." So maybe it isn't that strange. ...Even if it's a little nonstandard here.

Then that would make her like a sister to you, would it not?

[Now you are the older sibling, Sara.]

If you put it that way... maybe.

[She looks lost in thought for a while. Emily slumps in her chair, and Sara sets her back up again.]

Sorry. It's just been a lot.

That's alright.

[She's going to treat Emily with the same courtesy as everyone else now, are you proud of her]

Anyway, I am very glad you were able to reunite. Wherever did you find her?

Chloe found her. In the prize machine. I'm not sure how she fit, but I don't think much about that machine makes sense.

In - in the machine that needs money to work?

[Oh.

Oh Flayn doesn't like that.]

Why - why would she be there?

[Sara seems like the last person who would put her own precious doll in a dark machine like that, for just anyone to get!]

I don't know! I'm just glad she's out of there now. As soon as I heard our things were coming out of it, I kept checking back to see if I could find her.

I didn't know our own things could...

[Ooooh noooo]

H-How dare that Captain! On top of everything else, he stole our belongings and locked them away from us to treat them as prizes!

He's taunting us. Probably just because he can to pass the time.

[Crosses her arms!]

If he truly has so much time on his hands, perhaps he could take up a hobby that does not involve criminal activities!

I don't understand him. All this cruelty, going out of his way to kill people, and just because he says he has a reason, but he won't explain it!

Frankly, I hope his flame-throwers never ever work for him. Ever.

[That'll show him!]

I just hope we all get out of here and find a way to stop him from ever doing this again.

[She suddenly stops.]

Again... Flayn, did you hear what he said to Jasper at the end?

What he said...?

[She thinks back for a moment. There was kind of a lot going on at the time, but...]

Something about "tradition", was it not? Implying that there was a precedent.

This is no backup, and the flamethrowers were always a joke. He's done this before. He must have.

[

dislike]

On...this very ship? Or somewhere else?

I don't know. But I'm going to find out.

But how? We only have so much we can access...

So far, but we know there are locks and keys. There's got to be a way to get further down and at least find out if the Captain's on board the ship.

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cethflayn - 2021-02-10 15:04 (UTC) - Expand

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