No party like an pope party??

[archboxer]

[That... that was a thing for everyone. There should be no celebration for Lif but, well, even if Rhea has a very cynical view of such things it's probably for the best that everyone stays together. Her first stop is the cafeteria, after all nothing better to keep people in one spot than free food. There she bumps into Mira, leaving the snacks to her Rhea ends up writing notes to everyone to come to the cafeteria in a few hours.

Some she hands personally and if she can't find someone she slid it under their door. Rin's she slides into her room regardless.

Fortunately, you won't hear a sermon.]

Comments

[philoxenia]

[ Mira's usually quiet, but it seems a little different today. Understandable, honestly, so at least that won't be strange. She makes sure to request a variety of food and drinks, and sets them out along one of the tables.

After that, well-- She won't approach anyone, but she won't turn anyone away other. She's just sort of in the corner with a cup of tea and plate of food, but it's untouched. ]

[emberserker]

[Anna sits down with a shake of her head and a full bowl of stew, looking over the room.]

We've got more data now, I'll say that much.

[drladysounds]

...what a trial that was.

[And one that ended in someone Shelley liked being executed. Shelley is trying to stay positive, but it's hard]

[precognit]

[Later in the evening, Alice wanders over toward Mira's corner, a half-empty glass of wine in her hand. So as it turns out, vampires can get drunk if they're already full of blood. It makes her wonder why she never tried this before! Still, she's not exactly in a jovial mood...but she does want to check in on her friends. So she sits down next to Mira and gives her a tiny smile.]

Hey.

[nothingcanstop]

[ Yeah, Mira's definitely someone Della wants to check in on. She finds her a little after the start of the gathering. ]

Mira... You want some company?

[snackooed]

[ Despite everything, Ema was somewhat of a late arrival, and it isn't until later still that she decides to poke her head in on Mira. ]

I wish I could make it up to you with more than just this, but for now, it'll have to do. I'm sorry.

[ Ema is sporting all black at this affair in her suit; a far cry from the white labcoat that she normally wouldn't be caught dead without. After all, the occasion is somewhat of a somber affair, and it didn't feel right to sport her usual attire here.

In one hand, she's clutching the curved handle of a piping hot mug of coffee like a lifeline. In the other...well, after something as harrowing as today's event, a decadent dessert is warranted more than ever, even if it might be hard to swallow. But there's no denying that the slice of chocolate pudding pie she lays out on the table, topped with whipped cream and nestled neatly in a graham cracker crust, has a certain visual appeal to it. ]

If you don't have the stomach for it, you can always cash in another time.

[baitless]

[...well, Seteth does make his way over to Mira eventually, because, well. Rough stuff, man...]

...I won't pressure you, but if you wish to talk, I am here.

[emberserker]

[Anna stops by Líf's room first, so it takes her a bit to arrive, but arrive she does, and she looks over the food with a sigh.]

I suppose there's no reason not to gather.

[drladysounds]

If anything we can all mope together. Misery loves company.

[And Shelley looks like she's trying to keep her chin up, but she's not having that much success]

[archboxer]

There is safety in numbers.

[thieviusraccoonus]

If nothing else, it's a reminder that we all have to stay fed.

[fivestagegod]

[Well, today was long, and Birkin is...a little late arriving to the gathering, honestly; god knows what he was doing, but he spent a fair amount of time in his room even after receiving the note that anything is going on at all.

He'll be at one of the tables in the corner, though, working on the ever-present stack of notes and generally keeping an eye on people; he's never really been one for crowds - he's another one that avoided movie night and all - but at least he's here, and that probably counts for something.]

[nothingcanstop]

[ Not showing up immediately? Can't relate.

As she said she would, Della trudges over and sits at the same table Birkin's at. She's got that gross as sin alcohol and a photo that she's fiddling with, but beyond that her hands are empty. ]

Wasn't sure you were going to show up.

[ladygeryon]

[Well, that was horrible to go through. Nira disappears into her room for a bit, but finally comes out, still looking somewhat tired and leaning on Aria. She makes it to the cafeteria before flopping down in one of the chairs with a groan, allowing Aria to lay her head on her lap.]

Should've just checked everyone's shoes from the start.

[mouflon]

It wouldn't have cut things short if we started there. All that did was confirm the theories we'd already come to.

[drladysounds]

[Hi, Nira]

We couldn't have known that was the right move. We're not expert investigators.

[...maybe all trials should start with a shoe check, she thinks]

[reallyhatesharks]

Yeah, well. Write it down for next time.

[Nova's eating funeral potatoes, instead of anything that was set out. It seemed appropriate and also she wants to eat her fucking feelings right now, thanks. Carbs are the only solution.]

[obstagoodboy]

You sure you shouldn't rest more?

[He is Concern]

[mouflon]

[ It takes some time before Rin appears. She's spent the past two weeks keeping a wall between herself and her fellow prisoners, even as she counted them as tentative allies — and after the events of today, that seems like a wiser idea than ever. One of their number killed, and now that the Pandora's box has been opened, she doubts any of them will manage to close the lid again.

But, even so, she does show up. Eventually. Whatever emotions she had been feeling at the end of the trial have been neatly boxed up and tucked away where only she can see them, a cool smile on her face. ]

Wow. Looks like the rabble's all here, hm?

[ The remark just slips out of her. You know, much like Rhea's during the trial. ]

[archboxer]

[Her. Rhea would have liked to have not given her an invitation, to have begun the process of shutting her out completely but that wasn't wise not after that display during the trial.]

Being hospitable is a virtue.

[She shouldn't be petty towards this girl but... there's something there. She knows the type and hates that she didn't realize it before. Not just a thief or a mercenary. No... someone who purposefully sought out disorder.

Someone who would always be a threat to someone with absolute authority.]

[archboxer]

[Rhea will be around for a bit. She doesn't particularly want to stay but, like a good host, she knows she probably should. She's flustered but does at least say hello to most people who arrive. Most, being the key word.

She'll leave after most people are gone. However, you probably can hear a song coming from the gallery...]

gallery

[philoxenia]

[ It's much later when she leaves, too, and... well, it's hard to miss that song. It's probably a bad idea to be out so late. But Therion had called her out on it, and old habits die hard, so...

She goes to the gallery. ]

... Rhea? [ she asks softly, when there's a lull in the song. ]

[hardnosed]

[ Jasper actually does show up to the cafeteria — but it's after a frankly astounding amount of pacing around to check up on all the areas involved in the case, and then, also, just to pace. (She stares into the offending toilet stall for almost a full minute.) They've been cleaned up; she's not sure what else she expected.

Once she arrives, she... okay, she really just stands around, and that's it. She doesn't eat anything, because literally why would she, and she approaches nobody. She'll speak if addressed, and cast an occasional glance over everyone else, but her real focus is on the door. Every time it opens her gaze snaps back sharply, only to wander again once she registers the new arrival. Given her behavior at the trial, it probably doesn't take a genius to figure out who she's looming around in hopes of seeing. ]

library

[reallyhatesharks]

[Looks like Jasper isn't the only one looking at the important places. Nova's sitting just next to where the body was, staring down at the spot like it's got answers. It doesn't.

She didn't have anything to say during the trial, because player had a massive migraine it's weird. Normally, she would have jumped into Doing Something™ but for her Doing Something™ usually meant grabbing a weapon and not having to think. To process what's going on. Condemning someone to die is in a very different category from making sure people are safe and fighting a known enemy.]

It's like it never happened, huh?

[bogwife]

[Zerinda arrives at the party fairly soon after the designated time on the Rhea's note. She'd opted to change her clothes, going from her usual corset and layers of skirts to the shirt and trousers of the perfectly tailored suit that's been sitting in her closet untouched for nearly 2 weeks now. She doesn't seem particularly comfortable in it, pausing frequently to adjust the rolled up sleeves and fixing popped top buttons, but she's opting to grim and bear it for now.

Once she's in the cafeteria she is not sitting down. She moves from table to table, person to person, with the homemade wine tucked under her arm.]

I have some wine left from the other night. Would you like some? Or maybe more snacks? I can get more snacks. Or different snacks.

[When she eventually does sit down ("sit down", more like finally collapsing in a chair after an entire day of stress, death and not eating), she half-sprawls across the tabletop and halfheartedly nibbles on whatever food she picked up before this.]

[reallyhatesharks]

[For someone who used to bartend, Nova doesn't drink much. Fin had pretty strict rules about alcohol consumption for servers and it's never been her preferred method for working through trauma. Still.]

Fuck it, sure. Let's get drunk.

[nothingcanstop]

[ You know how some people need time alone to think, after horrible traumatic events?

That is not Della Duck.

So, before the gathering even starts, she's out in the lounge, waiting to...well, to see if anyone else is in a similar boat. It's at least somewhere she knows people will need to pass. Anyone who...needs to talk, she can flag down, right?

And the moment the event starts, she's there. There's the big question of what to say, what to do, but... Well, she didn't get anything to eat before, so that's welcome. Besides that, Della has some of that foul-smelling alcohol, a picture that she's fiddling with, and a strong desire to eliminate the silence. ]

Hey. How're you... How're you doing after all that?

[reallyhatesharks]

I'll be fine.

[Not "I'm fine," but "I will be fine." Trauma isn't anything new to her. She'll get over herself in a few days.

For right now, she's eating a garbage amount of funeral potatoes and that's the best she can do.]

[lovelikeyou]

[This all seems like a natural enough development to Rose. It's not a celebration, exactly; it's just about being together. The Crystal Gems were always together after battles. Some of them wouldn't want to be among the entire group, sure, but nobody was ever really alone.

Rose...well, it looks like Jasper might want to fight, but ASSUMING NOTHING GOES HIDEOUSLY WRONG THERE, she'll be around before and afterwards. She's got a mug of something warm in her hands. It's a very human thing, and it is rather comforting. Though she seems thoughtful and morose on her own, she smiles gently if anyone approaches.]

Hi. How are you doing?

[emberserker]

As well as can be expected with this nonsense. It's new material, at the least.

[obstagoodboy]

[Piers is... here. He probably SHOULD eat since he hasn't really done so in... yeah, 24 hours now. But he isn't even picking at the food. Just sitting with his hands folded over his knees, foot-tapping with nervous energy and a dark look on his face.

All that? Hit a bit too close to home, huh?]

[emberserker]

[Anna's not apologizing, what do you take her for, but...]

You aren't doing well, are you?