[Liberation] [Mission] [Closed]

Tabitha turned towards Kaya when she realized that the girl was addressing her about something, who was only a few inches shy of her own height. Possibly under five feet or so, possibly. That innocent look within and the way she was constantly curious about everything reminded Tabitha of a child. She wasn't that much younger, but those goddamn twin braids and how the sweater seemed to be slightly oversized was a bit of an overkill to complete the kid appearance. Children were annoying and a complete nuisance; worse off was that they were completely clingy and had that way of looking at people to make them surrender to whatever the hell they wanted. They wouldn't ever leave her alone, would they? This entire country was a hindrance that wouldn't leave her alone. "Tch, just don't get in my way" Tabitha rolled her eyes, mumbling a few phrases under her breath. "I don't know whatever imitation you're playing, but you're not some dumb kid." Acting or not, it was annoying and she wanted nothing more than for the girl to get off her case.

Even back at "home," kids just wouldn't leave her alone. There wasn't anything that was actually eyecandy about her that a kid would want. It wasn't like she held a sweet, motherly atmosphere to her or played the big sister part but here she was, grabbing those wannabe child's attention. Where the hell did she even come from? She was fascinated with the city as though it was her first time being in one. The flooding crowds, the neverending sea of screaming and shouting, the eternal hollow gazes of the homeless. The city was a complete nightmare.

The translator blinked a few times, glancing at their ragtag group of gifted with her head slightly tilted to the side, her face betraying an expression somewhere along the lines of perplexed to disappointed. Twirling the keys with her fingers, they smoothly slid off with the right momentum towards the respective pairs without getting their confirmation on whether these would be the final match-ups or not. A hearty laugh welled up, a thousand-watt smile etching her features before she waved it off with one hand. "You're all sharing one room. The extra keys are just in case everyone goes in and out at different times." That one response alone caused Tabitha's fingers to curl into a fist and she found herself suppressing a biting urge to snap at one of them. They were all sharing one fucking room. There wouldn't be any privacy in a place like this. Dark gray eyes came up and caught the Vietnamese girl's gaze, almost as though a spark was emitting from it. She would be dead where she stood if looks could kill.

They were all going to be thrown into a cramped space consisting of one room. That was the ultimate signal for no privacy, no being left alone, no nothing. There was no way anyone could get a bit of their own personal bubble around here. An annoyed hiss weaved past her clenched teeth as she shot one last glare towards their translator before grabbing the suitcase handle and beckoning for the girl to lead the way. That stupid, goddamn grin was getting on her nerves. Once Tabitha was sure that the pink-haired girl translator wasn't able to see her completely, she tugged slightly on one of her sleeves to conceal the fact that she was flipping her off. Fuck your arrangements. No way in hell she was going to spend her time in their room anymore. Hitting the casinos and experiencing Vietnamese night life sounded like a much better option than hanging out with these people who were supposed to be her teammates.

Multiple elevators lined up, thousands of people following with the city pace and shoving their way into the golden doors to their heavenly experience at the rundown country and here they were. Some velvet red hallways later and they stood in front of the room all of them would be staying at. Tabitha didn't bother with whatever small-talk the others had going on - she didn't feel like conversing with idiots - and the only real action she wound up doing was using the keys their translator threw at her before to unlock the gateway to hell. Or what she had presumed would've been hell, sans the fact that the room was actually... well, it was actually better than she had been expecting, compared to everything that was outside the hotel building.

The room was the 44th luxury suite, complete with a kitchen, fancy dinner tables, a few couches here and there, and two pure white queen sized beds. A stairway spiraled upward in a diagonal direction from the curtained-up windows and an eerie orange light dangled from the ceiling. Glancing over to one side, she saw the closet. Maybe she was too quick to judge their translator's choices - this wasn't all that bad after all. It was commodious enough, albeit slightly cramped together, but there was at least a bit of leeway in everything. Tabitha waltzed into the room without a second thought and halted her suitcase in its path besides the closest bed possible.

"I call this one." If she had to take the bed with a fight, so be it. Holding her arms out, she unceremoniously plopped onto the mattress, her head sinking slightly from the softness and overall comfort it provided. Yeah, maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. It shouldn't be at all. Just had to make sure she could get away from the others whenever she could. Blank ceiling with nothing on it. Kind of boring. Too bad there wasn't too much of a wall between everyone to have a tiny bit more privacy. The multiple rooms from before still sounded rather nice, but this would have to do. Beggars can't be choosers after all.

From the entrance where she stood, the translator's hands were folded behind her back as she held another pleasant smile on her face. "There are three more beds upstairs. You guys should take the time to rest for the day." Slowly, she began to back away, turning in a direction where it was almost as transparent as ice for one to see that she was going to take her steps and widen the distance between her and the group. "Your investigation can start tomorrow. Any objections?"

The sound of that plan was music to her ears. "I'm fine with it. The others can do whatever the hell they want."

Giving a sigh, she followed the others, feeling a bit alone. She had offered to share a room, but apparently no one wanted to. At least now she'd get some peace and quiet. Pepper followed everyone, staying to the back as the translator led the way. A master suite? Standing at the door, she watched Tabitha plop down on the big mattress. Although she wasn't going to ask, she couldn't help wonder why Tabitha was always in a shitty mood. They were on a mission, wasn't it supposed to be fun? Or at least enjoyable? Well, in the end it didn't really matter as long as it didn't effect Pepper's mood.

Turning to the translator, she listened. Upstairs? Glancing around, she noticed a small spiral staircase. "Guess I'm gonna put my things in a room." Pepper said in a flat tone, heading up the stairs. She didn't really care about making friends or being nice anymore. They were on a mission and that's all that was important.

There was a short hallway and Pepper chose the room farthest away. Flipping he light switch on, it revealed a cute little room, smaller than the one downstairs, but it was quaint. There was a queen bed, dresser, closet, and a small bathroom. "I call this one." Setting her suitcase by the bed, Pepper opened the blinds, letting in a dull ray of light. Raindrops clung to the window, and there was the faint sound of the bustling city. Gloomy clouds covered the sky, and it made Pepper somewhat tired. Guess we can rest for a bit before going. Sitting down on the comfy bed, she sat against the back board and grabbed her book. 'The Great Gatsby." It was pretty interesting book about a guy from the Midwest, moving to New York in 1922 in search of the American dream. The fact that it was in her favorite time period made the book all the more interesting. Turning on the bedside lamp, Pepper started reading, dreading the moment that someone would interrupt her.

Mikaela decided that walking up the stairs was too much of an effort, so she took the bed next to Tabitha's. She tossed her stuff onto the bed and collapsed onto the comfortable queen-sized bed. "This one's mine." she said, her voice muffled by the blanket. She didn't seem bothered by the fact that Pepper seemed a little huffy that no one wanted to share a room with her, even though they weren't sharing rooms in the first place, but she did feel kind of bad that nobody else wanted to share a room with her.

And the bed next to Mikaela was claimed gingerly by Kaya, who was still going over Tabitha's comments in her head. Dumb kid? Who said she was a dumb kid? She wasn't so much hurt as she was struggling to figure out what she did wrong, and her interest in the girl never waned. She had adopted a challenge for herself, to get on her good side, or at least to stay away from he bad. She wanted to claim the bed next to Tabitha, but she was too busy restraining herself from making a puzzle out of the tiled floor to jump at the opportunity. The bed next to Mikaela would due. She seemed nice, but a little too that. Standard.

Kaya plopped onto her bed ceremoniously, bouncing up and down for a moment as the springs took the impact. Her face kept the same expression, however, the kind of scanning look she always gave, wide eyes over a thinly closed mouth. Her lower lip was susceptible to the occasional downward drift, and she sometimes found herself biting it. From the floor upward her eyes went, up to the decor and the splendor of the room, and then did her mouth freely go ajar. Her fingers curled around the sleeves of her still-wet sweater. What a fantastic room. Though her awe was there, her scanning of her surroundings was short, and she retired to her bag, where she weeded through bundles of socks and shirts and skirts to procure the silvery, thin form of her laptop. She flipped it open, and her face became lit in the bask of a soft blue. She had to call Loic; she promised to do so when she landed, and it'd been a few hours since. The Vietnamese sun wasn't too high, though she suspected it wasn't even up where he was.

Still, she was sure he'd answer if need be. If only her computer would boot faster.

Destiny felt a little disappointed when they were all going to be sharing a room. What she had in her head were these smaller hotel rooms, with two queen sizes beds each but, when they got to the room it wasn't what she was expecting at all. It was rather big, granted they didn't have separate rooms for the beds. She wasn't going to complain. She decided to wait around for a bit to see what the translator had to say before she went off to claim the last remaining bed.

"I'm fine with waiting until tomorrow." She said in a neutral tone. She didn't like some of these younger kids attitudes but she was just going to have to deal with it. They were here to get a job done, and that is all that mattered. Destiny waited a little longer, but then decided to head up stairs. She quickly claimed the last remain bed, letting her stuff fall next to it. She may have been raised to be a business woman, and may have lived a bit richly, but she didn't act like a rich snob, and certainly didn't pack like one. She just sat down on her bed, looking down at her stuff lost in through.

It would be a lie to say that Tabitha wasn't slightly relieved that everyone had agreed to that plan. Nobody would be living the room tonight and she could sneak out later to do a few things without anyone catching her moving in and out of the vicinity. Just had to time it properly and make sure not a single person in the room was awake when she decided to leave. All she had to do was keep herself busy until then and not fall asleep. Sounded simple enough, didn't it? Gray eyes peered off to the side, watching the translator girl leave with the kind of wave and smile anyone would expect from such preppy girls. What was she, a cheerleader? The impression she gave certainly was of one. Too energetic and happy-go-lucky for her own good that it was beyond annoying and more like a fly that wouldn't stop buzzing in one's ear and refused to leave. At least the translator actually left... did they ever catch her name? Maybe she mentioned at one point or another and she forgot in the sea of foreign gibberish being spoken. Oh well, it didn't really matter.

Staring up at the ceiling was rather boring with the lack of intricate detail all around or anything. Initially walking into the room, it certainly was something to be in awe about, but with the initial shock and wonder gone, there was nothing too marvelous about it. Just the everyday sort of rich people's thing that she should expect. All of these sort of materialistic fancy sort of rooms and designs without so much as worrying about how much money they would spend when all they would have is checks and gambling to fall back on to get everything back. None of them had to live frugally or balance their money out - it was a life piled with cash upon cash upon cash. They probably bathed in their dollar bills or something, as disgusting as it seemed. Liquid gold water, overly-furnished tubs, all of those things... How annoying.

Having all of this free time to think was making her more bitter than she wanted. Maybe she'll be leaving early after all. Tabitha got back up onto her feet, scouring through her luggage to grab a change of clothes. Black shorts, a grey sweater with a lavender tint and the placebo symbol in front. Red sneakers, umbrella, white socks. Her wallet was with her as well, the bits of allowance that her home still sent her. Tucking the keys into her pockets, she waltzed out of the room without a word to say where she was going and when she'd be back. No need to tell them, after all. It wasn't like she was on friendly terms with any of the lot. They were just supposed to be a "team" for the time-being. Later on, she didn't have to talk to any of them ever again. Temporary acquaintances that she could sweep from her memory after all of this was over. Having to deal with Juliette and Jane was enough as is. At least D'Angelo respected her privacy until he didn't.

The main lobby was still crowded with tourists and Vietnamese people filing through and finding the bakery was more of a pain than she thought it'd be. Something to keep her mind off of all of the stupid luxuries found in this stupid place - it was a lifestyle that she would prefer not to become accustomed to. Where Beata got all of the money to provide for these missions, from paying for their plane tickets to the accommodations they get in staying at their destination for however long it takes to get this mission done and then actually paying them once they finish the assigned tasks. Was the school that rich? The Victorian-style and old school technology certainly said otherwise.

Her gaze scanned the vicinity around and it would be a lie to say that it didn't look like she was sneaking around like a thief or criminal. It really wasn't inside, was it? Hotels weren't likely to have a bakery on them, but it didn't hurt to try at first. There should be a lot outside, though. If memory serves, Vietnamese people really liked their bakery after the French came over to colonize them and pastries and baguettes became quite the delicacy with the mix of cultures or something like that. History was never interesting, but it served its purposes here and there. Maybe she got it wrong. Hell if she really knew. There was only one thing on her mind right now and she was going to get it done, without a doubt. With how occupied the others seemed to be with their own tasks, she wouldn't have to worry about any of them following her out... probably.

Tabitha walked out of the hotel, opening her umbrella, with bags of pastries and baguettes in hand, the pastries being tucked neatly in a pink box. A deep breath billowed out, rain trickling down the edges and she looked around for a few moments. This should be easy enough. Pulling out her phone, Tabitha marked the hotel's address down, tapping it rapidly onto a Sticky Note, before beginning to walk away.

"This stupid weather..." If it were that easy to make it light up again. Too much rain brought an annoyingly somber mood. She hated the rain, more than most things. And that was saying quite a bit.

Reading her book for who knows how long, Pepper decided to stop at the next chapter. This part of the novel was particularly boring and she lost interest within minutes. Maybe it'll get better later. She hoped it would. Closing the book and placing it on the small bedside table, she hopped off the bed and made her way down the stairs. A snack sounded nice right now. Being in a new place with unknown people and tension running high, Pepper didn't notice herself change and waltz downstairs as a small, Labrador sized dragon.

Reaching the kitchen, her little claws made clicking noises on the tile and her tail lashed back an forth, smacking into a cupboard door. Almost jumping out of her own skin at the sound, Pepper immediately turned human again, her face turning red from embarrassment. She felt so stupid for not even realizing she transformed and was surprised that she didn't notice. Praying that nobody noticed, she stepped quietly to the fridge and opened it up, looking for a soda or something refreshing.

The Summer girl was just drifting off to sleep when she heard a loud crash and she jerked awake. "What the hell?" she said, rubbing her eye. She looked around, and noticed that someone was in the kitchen, Pepper, and that there was now a smashed cupboard. "What happened? Did somebody get attacked?" she asked her, getting up and heading over to the kitchen.

Kaya noticed Tabitha had walked out. There was a mute curiosity she had about where she was going, what she was doing, this curiosity blossoming and shaping from the one she'd held all afternoon. It stayed silent, however, and after a moment of waiting, her attention left the recently-closed door. Her computer had made a sound announcing its awakening, a four-toned chime, and her face lit blue with both the screenlight and a bright, open-eyed stare. She navigated to Skype, and was relieved to see him on. It was early over there, but he was still on. He had to have been waiting for her!

It took a few low tones for Loic's face to appear on her screen, a few cycles of white dots spinning airily like suspended, happy snowflakes. She was smiling even before he appeared, smiling at the dainty loading screen and what it reminded her of, brief flashes of home that fleeted through her mind like a morning sparrow. When he did appear, the room he was in was dark, unilluminated by a sun that had not yet risen. He was unshaven, a shadow across his face darker than the shadow beyond his computer's glow. The sleepy grin on his face was accompanied by a tired, glossy gaze, but a grin was a grin and he seemed happy to see her. "Ai," he said in a calm voice, eyes sparkling in multiple ways.

"Ai," was her reply. This was the only Inuktitut they spoke during the conversation, a single-worded greeting. Their conversation transformed into French, Loic's native Quebecan tongue. Kaya spoke lightly and quickly, whispering as if she was scared to wake someone on Loic's side or too timid to draw attention on her own. There were still students, after all, teeming around the large hotel room and doing whatever they needed to do. Her suspicions of the former were not entirely unfounded. Ten minuted into the conversation, when Kaya was the brightest, a weary call came from the other side of Loic's room.

"Who are you talking to, babe?" It was in clear English, to which Loic replied, "It's Kaya. I told you about her, right?"

"Ooh, the eskimo girl. What's she doing calling you this early? Do they rise this early?"

"She's in Vietnam."

"What's she doing there?"

"Some class trip, it's complicated."

"Well, tell her I said hi!"

And silence from the other party. During this exchange, Kaya's smile melted from her face, cascaded down saddened muscles like a waterfall, like tears as her mouth neutralized. A catalyst had entered the equation, and she tried hard to not react poorly.

"Sorry about that," said Loic. He seemed more awake after the exchange, the sleep dabbed from his eyes with a rub of his eyebrow. He'd switched back to French; she knew his comfort had to have come from his native tongue's reintroduction, but there was more. He was happy after that brief conversation. "Where were we?"

"I, um, actually have to go." Kaya smiled a glass smile. "We need to eat dinner. It's free, so we're expected to eat it and on time."

"That sounds delicious." He seemed oblivious to the cloud that had passed over Kaya. "I'll see you later, kid. Ilaanilu."

"Yeah."

She closed the laptop. They weren't scheduled a dinner, and she knew.

Destiny stayed up on her bed not bothering with the others, not wanting to get in their business. If they wanted to talk to her they could come up and talk to her. She wouldn't mind, but she wasn't going to be the one that initiated social interaction. She heard someone leave the room, which she questioned lightly. Who left? And where were they going? Those questions filled her mind for a moment till a bang coming from the kitchen caught her thoughts. Were they destroying the place already? She let out a small huff and flopped back onto her bed. She wished Jaun was here. The skeleton would always managed to keep her in good spirits (hah) even if he couldn't talk. It was also pretty entertaining to see him get sassy with other students.

This was like going on an espionage mission, if anything. That's what it felt like. Walking around and buying things that she wasn't told to buy, not telling any of her "teammates" where she was going, the pitter-patter! of the rain only adding to the mood. The rain concealed other sounds, drowning everything out with the splashes the drops made and all of the water slushing around with people running and walking in the puddles that splattered the city in its dreary gray world painted across with blues and yellows and reds. Vietnam was a living contradiction of everything that it was supposed to be. Weren't they still all burn for the fatherland or something? Everything about honor and patriarchy? Or was that twenty-years too many into the past? Actually, Tabitha didn't care about that. The past was the past, the future was a distant dream that was only going to leave her more jaded with this awful, goddamn society. There was only the present. Had to live where she was now and not think about anything else.

She didn't know if this counted. She didn't know what the hell was compelling her to do all of this, navigating around a city that was more like a maze with all of its unfamiliar settings. Words flew by, darting around like silver fish in the stream, unheard, unseen, unrecognizable. It was complete gibberish, akin to the screeching of bats. Being out here, where all of the lavish and fancy items made her sick to the stomach. A part of her enjoyed the luxuries, all of the wonderful treatment they got for free as the academy paid for every single little thing for them, but another part of her was disgusted by all of it. Utterly disgusted. People always kept reaching out for more and more until they got what they asked for. Greed and corruption reigned. All people cared about was being stupidly materialistic. Fuck society. Fuck it all.

Her teeth sunk into her lips, the sharp point drawing blood. Wet and sticky, all of this was, it was a good idea not to take a shower quite yet. Pulling the hood of her jacket over, Tabitha half-wished she had taken one of the motorbikes from earlier or had a better sense of direction. Where was it...? Where was the bus stop that they first started off at? If she could find that, it'd be so much easier to navigate around this hell hole. Left, left, straight for a few meters, right, left, right. A little further and---

"Hello~" To say she froze a bit was a little too sudden, but that annoying voice following her got on her nerves. She resisted the urge to just turn around and punch the translator in the face, though she did turn her head. The translator wasn't behind her. Tabitha's eyes glanced up, seeing a bright red umbrella at the top of a lamppost, a girl balancing on the top with the tips of her toes with another thousand-watt smile. Once the Vietnamese girl leaped down to the floor, landing with grace and ease in front of her, she gave a wave. Dark gray eyes narrowed into a glare.

Tabitha circled around the girl, refusing conversation. "Ah, you're no fun." She was still tailing her like a shadow or an innocent, obedient dog who refused to leave its master's side. Annoying, annoying, annoying. Couldn't this girl shut up already? All she asked was dumb questions that served no relevance. Were all Vietnamese people this eager to stick their nose in other people's business? "Where are you going with all of that bread?" or "Do you need any help carrying those?" or any other stupid thing. She couldn't take it anymore. What felt like a millennium was nothing short of a few minutes before she spun on her heel to get her unnecessary company to leave.

"Can you just fucking shut up already?"

The translator stopped in her tracks for a few moments, her grin never ceasing or threatening to waver. All she gave was an innocent, curious look, tilting her head to the side as though she had done absolutely nothing wrong. After a few moments, the tip of her index finger was poking at her cheek as she casually responded without so much as a care in the world. "Hahaha. Only a genius could come up with a legendary phrase like that." She was spinning around, circling Tabitha before widening the distance between them. A sly spark carried in the auburn red eyes. "Are you looking for those orphans from before?"

. . .

"Shocked, I'm sure. They're a little down to the left in the slums." A jab of the finger in the necessary direction. Tabitha could feel herself fuming. There was no way she was that obvious. It was only occasional glances and even then, the translator hadn't gotten there while she was even shooting a few looks here and there. Her grip around the baguette bags tightened before she took the advice and just went with it. No point in questioning it now. She'll wipe that smug grin off her face later. There was other things to do, but apparently, that wasn't even an option at this point in time. The translator quickly paced forward, almost breaking into a sprint to stop her in her tracks. "Ah ah ah~ You forgot a small tidbit." What tidbit...? There was nothing else that she had to do.

"They can't speak English, so I'll come with you!" Her smile widened. "I really love children you know, hehe."

Forget socking her later. Tabitha freed one hand, curled it into a fist, and threw it straight at the translator's cheek, only for it to be caught. The Vietnamese girl had a very disappointed expression stretched across her features, an exasperated sigh passing her lips. Tabitha shook her hand free before continuing on her way with one last warning glare. All she heard left was a laugh ringing in the air as the translator walked away in the opposite direction. She wasn't expecting any of the other Beata students to be outside. They agreed to rest, after all. Perhaps Kaya had been tailing Tabitha... She'll take a path so that she wouldn't encounter the student on the way.

Well, she was finally there. Tabitha couldn't help but feel more than relieved to be free from that pesky translator's acts of dancing around like it was a fun little game and that she managed to keep going with what she wanted to do without having to back out because she lacked a sense of direction. All huddled up in a corner was a group of children with rags as a cover-up, their bruises and cuts evident all across their bodies. Bones stuck out on their gaunt features, utterly malnourished and lacking the care that they needed. She bit her lip again. Goddamn adults. They were all pathetic. Abandoning children or manipulating them. No wonder so many people had anxiety disorders or depression nowadays. She reached her hand out, but they backed away, like cornered mice trying to flee from the cat's vice-gripping claws. A frown.

Slowly, she held the bags out and one by one, they approached, tempted in by the idea of fresh food to eat. This was what they considered a luxury, huh...? They were famished. Although the sweet aroma no longer hung in the air, broken away by the moisture brought by rain, it still looked well enough to eat. Watching them brought a smile to her features. Tabitha extended her hand again, stroking the head of the little boy in front of her, and he didn't try to flinch away this time.

"Everyone at the Weiss orphanage is family, no matter what! We'll always look out for each other, right?" An echoing chorus of agreement followed from the boy who made himself out to be the leader of the small group. Only one girl didn't bother to respond, her silence drawing in the boy at the head. "You too, Tabitha."

"Tch, no way. I don't need a family."

Now that that was done, Tabitha stepped away. The children gave her smiles that rivaled sunshine in regard and acknowledgement, saying something in Vietnamese, perhaps a thank you or something as she waved them good-bye. Her bangs fall over her eyes, shadowing them. This was a bad idea. Too many bad memories. Fuck all of this. There was no need to bring all of that back. She just needed a bit more strength... just a little bit more.

Shuffling through the fridge, Pepper finally found a can of Mountain Dew. Shutting the heavy door, she turned around, surprised to see someone standing behind her. Attacked? She wondered, looking at the cupboard. Oh... Wincing at the thought of her getting in trouble for damaging the property, she gave a shy smile to Mikaela. "N-No one got attacked..." She started awkwardly, popping open the drink.

The hotel room was pretty quiet, except for a small murmur upstairs and the girl wondered what everyone was doing. Pepper could've sworn she saw someone leave, and was curious as to why they would leave when the mission could start any moment. "Do you know why that girl left?" She asked the person standing in front of her, and then taking a sip of the fizzy drink.

The Summer girl shook her head. "Not a clue in the world. Hey, while you're standing right there, can you get me one of those?" she said, pointing to the can. Mikaela wondered what had happened to the cabinet, but didn't really care enough to press the issue. She also wondered why Tabitha had just up and left. Did she really not like any of the rest of her group that much? Or was there something else behind it? It was hard to tell what people do and why they do it, so Mikaela had stopped trying to years ago.

Kaya sat there for a moment, drinking in what had fleeted past her like a nightmare, keeping the laptop on her legs and sitting close to the side of the bed. That was pretty awful. She'd wished she hadn't called. Papa had a phrase he'd always use when he'd find out the seal had all moved south for the season, or when he realized a shipment of shrimp was not coming to town for a whole month. It was akin to 'Ignorance is bliss,' and his eyes would squint and narrow and he'd frown, frown like a billion anchors were holding his mouth down. Kaya frowned. She wished she hadn't called up the fisherman to see that her prized catch had been caught long ago.

"Have you ever been in love?" Kaya collpased on the bed, but her eyes seemed to stare directly into her own forehead, or furthermore beyond her where the other two girls sat. She couldn't see them, and maybe she preferred it that way; she did not want to move from that bed, not then and not ever, for it was comforting and unlike the cold rain outside or the bitter naivety that had been wrought away by the computer screen. She looked up in mock eye contact, and hoped they knew she was talking to them. Or maybe they didn't. Maybe she was talking to herself.

Destiny stayed where she was not bothering to get up and talk with the others. She could always connect with the team when they were actually doing stuff, actually look for whoever they were suppose to look for, or help whoever they were supposed to help. She couldn't remember at the moment. She turned over on her bed, and her eyes searched for souls. She could see everyone in the hotel, and then the others that weren't attached to bodies. She reached forward with her gift, and pulled a soul over, it was a small dog. It looked at her for a moment before joining her on the bed. "You'll keep me company for now won't you?" She asked the dog. It just wagged it's tail, and looked at her from it's laying position on the bed. "Good, cause I might need it."