Counseling for the Trouble Soul

[Zen]

A healthy and tasty breakfast was laid out in a small private dining room in the Hyatt hotel. Set on a large table, it had enough seats for everyone who was participating in the counseling program. A note on the bouquet of flowers read, "Please enjoy - Gloria." For those walking into the hotel, they would be directed to come to this room to have breakfast and once finished they would be directed into another room where they would be introduced to Gloria Owens. ​

 

[October Knight]

View attachment 6825 Early morning sun glistened off the purple bruise on Sean's cheek as he made his way to the doors of the Hyatt. Although he had forgotten the events that led to the bruise, as he had been balls deep in a bottle of vodka the night of the incident, he was sure that it was a direct result of the booze. He could relate much of the hardship in his life to alcohol, but still, if it wasn't for his bitch of a sister he would never even consider counseling. Fuck that shit. Sean was a rebel, independent, he did what he wanted when he wanted to do it. However, Leona, his sister, had called his bluff. The rules were laid down in stone for Sean last night: Either go to counseling or, in his sisters own words.

"Mom and Dad find out that you burnt their vacation home to the ground last year"

There was no question about it. Sean was on the next bus out of town. An Email notification on his phone was received mid-trip.

The slim, shaggy haired young man made his way through the doors. His shirt, reading "Totalselfhatred", a local band he dug hardcore, perfectly mirrored his feelings at the moment. He hated much about himself, mostly for putting himself in this jacked up situation. Sean took a seat at the far end of the table, closest to the door, and waited. On the elaborately decorated table, flush with all sorts of breakfast foods, a sign read "Please enjoy - Gloria".

"Burn in hell, Gloria.." Sean muttered under his breath as he took a slice of grapefruit and bit into in. He hated grapefruit, but he enjoyed punishing himself.

 

[Stacisaur]

Well, wasn't this just adorable.
Silent silver blue eyes twitched over the various items laid out over the delicate, chipper patterned tablecloth, organized in some manner that made them possibly more appetizing to look at. If this was the case, she wasn't buying it. A rather thin arm raised up, pale beyond normalcy, ever so carefully towards the wooden chair awaiting an assertive touch. Fingers curled, chipped nail polish rubbed against the material for a moment. Steadying her hand the best she could, the seat was pulled out from the table, and soon occupied after.
Averting tired pupils from the table to an empty, rather scrawny lap, the lass with a gathering of vibrant strands a top her head fidgeted with her clothing. Pulling at the scratchy, black wristband laid across her left limb, it seemed she couldn't sit still for very long. Rubbing fingertips against the skin rather harshly, relief filling the body as an itch was doused. Crimson circular marks, deeply set within the skin that was once porcelain clear, smooth beyond belief, were covered once again as the band was reset into place. Eyeing the one on her opposite arm, the girl finally sat back against her seat, raising her chin up higher.

Teeth, white enough for her liking, scuffed over a bottom lip, kind of chapped for this time of the season. But, this was normal. Not much was normal in her life but this. Food. There was food in front of her. Lids shut quickly over perfect sight, falling to only black. Neck arching at the back, bone sticking up and out against the skin like an eager child wanting to leave the house at the first spot of snow outside, once more the face was directed towards legs covered in black skinnies. No, she didn't want food. Did she have to have food? Why was there food? Well, scratch that last one.. Tugging at the ends of her tee, which was kinda drowning her frame beyond the fabric, some skin was to be chewed at against that one lip. Actually, she had worn her favorite shirt that morning, in hopes of some luck possibly being set in to each fiber making it a solid. It was a black shirt, with some gray shades mixed throughout, maybe giving it some dimension or something? She wouldn't know, she didn't design the thing. There was a single wolf in the center, sitting elegantly over the edge of a soft white cliff. The head was thrown back, the paws sturdy against the flakes of snow, and the canines were showing to help release a heartbreaking howl, calling to the wind. It was a beautiful sight. Wolves were her favorite..

Bleached out stubble grazed the right side of her head, which might have been a weird choice for a hairstyle to most of the general human public. They didn't know of what she had gone through, so she couldn't give them the time of day to care, or adjust herself. Soft, pale pink layers were choppy, falling along the other side, usually blocking a bit of her forehead. Bold, straight out pink was the color of the ends, pulled at to stay over her shoulder, leaving her neck as bare as she could manage for most of the time. She wore no jewelry, besides her black wristbands. She was told before this 'experiment' she would not be able to bring what she considered jewelry. That was indeed a shame. Play it nice, play it safe, play it happy. By remembering these three guidelines in her head, she knew she would be able to leave this place and never come back eventually. So what if she might lie here and there. These people were not her friends, they were not her blankets of protection, nor her stuffed animals, slightly chewed up by her husky, Marcy. A wince caused her to gently suck in her cheeks, accenting the shadows against her face even more than before. She missed her dog. Ignoring a few drops falling to the fuzzy black fabric near the bottom of her palm, she stared.
They thought this would help her 'get better', her aunt and uncle promised it would work this time.
But, what was 'better'? Were things already 'worse' when she came to be?
Wiping at her eyes, Charlotte Morell took in a deep breath. She knew her limit, what she could handle physically, and emotionally (and mentally, why not). If the cards were played right, she would handle this.

Using two hands, Lette grabbed at a pitcher of water. Trying to show no struggle, though her expressive dark eyebrows showed everything, she brought it over to her side. Filling a small glass to the top, her body was tilted forward to sip from the edge, only spilling a little. Fixing her eyes down on the tablecloth, the cold glass was set before her, sitting still and just as silent as before. If Webster's threw a competition for putting an image behind the word 'reserved', she might as well leave and work on her acceptance speech right then and there.
​

 

[Lovie the OG]

He stared silently at the double doors that stood in front of him, sucking in a breath of smoke. Right. This was his last one for an entire week. So, why not stare at a door that you were going to walk through in just a few minutes and stay at for a week, smoke a cig, and think about how much you already disliked the place? He sighed to himself. What was it that he was here for again? Counseling? What help would this be? He had gone through counseling while in high school, and looked where that got him. No where. He didn't feel different, he didn't act different, he didn't even remember half the shit that went down in that small, closed in space they called a room.
Alur Mckenzie tilted his head back, staring down the parking lot of the hotel. Parked at the end of the driveway was a small red Supra. Inside it beheld a middle aged man that stared intently at Alur. Although he couldn't see the man, Alur could feel the man's gaze tighten, glaring deep inside of the young man himself. He turned his head back to where he had it before, focusing on the doors once again.

Alur flicked his cigarette into the grass, gave one last glance at the man in the red Supra, and then started up the few steps that led to the doors. He opened them quietly and trudged into the lobby as silent as a cat. A sign in the middle of the lobby had a painted arrow in the middle of it, and on the top it read, "Students to the Kitchen." Alur followed the arrow pointed left and went down a short corridor. Smells of food that could have been cooked for royalty filled his nostrils and he took in a deep breath, as if letting the smells fill his body. He smelled apple pie and cakes and breads in the mixing. Chocolate and almonds, hazelnut, vanilla, strawberry... It smelled wonderful.

Alur traced the smells and came into a dining room that connected with the kitchen. His eyes first set on the huge table before him that was piled up with food. His stomach growled intensely, as if it was trying to become its own monster. What Alur wouldn't give to have such a fine meal everyday... Suddenly, the idea of staying at the Hyatt Hotel for a week didn't seem like such a bad idea. Then his eyes ran over the few students that were already there. Of course, there was that factor he didn't like. Other people. Feeling awkward, Alur took a seat at the far end of the table, away from the others. He once again focused on the wonderful food. He went to take some and put it on a plate, but suddenly he decided against it and put his hand away. He would wait until it wasn't so awkward in the room to begin to eat. He didn't like the feeling of being stared at, even if they weren't looking at him.

Alur bit his bottom lip, drawing a bit of blood and then put his head down. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. He still couldn't help but to wonder... What had he exactly gotten himself into? His old pa told him either go to counseling or get kicked out of the house and live on the streets. He decided to go with the old man's wishes and come here. Besides, living on the streets wasn't fun, and Alur knew this from experience...

 

[That guy named Ed]

The light of the sun hit the shades of the windo wich cuased a serise of lines that spread through out the room. The mornigs where ruthless due to the fact that every one was home at the moment. Riseing from the bed with his arms shot a sudden pain in his wirsts. The wrists where a dark colored red wich was a sign that the loss blood didint kill him last night. Looking around the dark room was his baggs of cloths that layed there idlely unaffected by last night. Darran slow stroled over to the bag and inspected for his pack of ciggrates. They were gone wich told him that his family had planed that he wasint going to take any packs. He looked at his door to make sure that his family wasint watching his actions. He moved his hand slowly under the bed and tuged out an old pair of jeans. Digging his hands in the pocket he felt a sharp tip and a box. He pulled both objects out of the jeans and shoved it in the bags. Thinking wisely about his actions he pulled out the sharp object and placed it in a secret hole in his old run down shoe's. His parents called out to him. It was time for darran to try to make it through the dam thing his parents tricked him into.

The only reason he is being forced into the program was his parents bribed him into the program.

Once inside the hottel darran felt uneassy with his entire surroundings. Things felt out of place, things looked as if they were moveing on there own. Peoples faces became a blur, there movments seem to have moved slower wich made his situation worsen. He dug his hands into the bag in search of his box of smokes. In all of the confustion he noticed one thing that did not seem wrong. It was a small sign on the wall that said



This changed his entire surrounding seeing childern around him. He loved pain, but only to him self, not to others. Every thing was back to its normal self and he contuied to walk to the room where food is left out for him. The food looked good but he knew he wouldent eat much of little alone look at it. He sat down and read the sign they left out for him. He grabed some fruit and chewed on it a bit. After eating the food he stayed siting down stareing into his lap thinking to him self and to not cuase any attention to any one of his exsistance.

 

[nomnomchomp]

Standing in front of the doors to the Hyatt, Annie took a few deep, steadying breaths. Her hands were shaking. She stuck her hand in her pocket, grabbing for a pack of cigarettes to ease her anxiety, feeling nothing but air. Damn. They must have been left in the car. She bit her lip, tasting the residual tobacco from earlier. She had already resigned herself to a week without alcohol, but now no cigarettes either? What had she gotten herself into? Taking one more deep breath, she pulled the door open and walked inside.

Walking through the lobby, Annie couldn't help but think about how much Sarah loved hotels. She always got so excited when the family would go off for a weekend, and when they visited the same place on multiple occasions, she always demanded that they stay at a different hotel each time. After they checked in, she would explore every inch of it. Usually she would sweet talk the cleaning staff into letting her see the different rooms. She was always so good with people. Annie never was. It was amazing how different the two could be... Stop it. If she kept thinking about Sarah the pain of her missing cigarettes would only be more apparent.

Annie arrived at the dining room without even realizing it, she had been so lost in thought. When she became conscious of her surroundings again, she couldn't be sure just how long she had been standing in the doorway. Before her was the large table decked with a feast of a breakfast and a small group of people. She took a seat, her eyes downcast and her fingers almost immediately reaching up to play with her hair. She twisted it into small braids, and then pulled them loose again, keeping herself from staring at her tablemates.

 

[Iliana]

The perfect way to start her day off was with a throbbing headache. A sledge hammer, in a literal sense, of course, banged against the far right of her cranium like an ever beating drum. Riley was far used to this torture, so she ignored it and walked up the steps of the Hyatt. She had been here before, but only to witness a friends poorly organized drunken bachelorette party. The hell-spawned headache had been present there, too. The hotel was very large and elegant, just like she last remembered, but she decided to pin-point out the most irrelevant things about the place.

Of course they'd have a winding stair case next to an elevator. As if someone would possibly choose to take the stairs. Riley looked up at the stairs and scoffed out a breath of air. Fuck it, and with that thought, she took them two at a time. That was the way she planned to do this whole week at this counseling thing: rush it. It'll just fly by if she ended every conversation short, avoided volunteering for anything, or keeping to herself for the full seven days. Riley made it to the top of the steps and into the room 30 seconds after she had walked through the door of the hotel itself. The plan was already going according to plan.

It wouldn't last; this plan she had. Riley was just a girl who liked inserting herself into something if she knew it would do them some good. The only reason she was here was because of her denial problems. Her friends fired that bull shit line, "You're too in denial for your own good. You'd deny the sky was blue if it means you were right."

Her response:"The sky isn't blue. It's sky blue, you dumb fucks." And simply walk away from that. Counseling was obviously a priority, but she didn't think so (denying again.) To further quicken her stay at this asylum, she sat at a chair that was pulled up to an elaboratly set table, grabbed a muffin, and bit into it without uttering a word to anybody. So far so good.

​

 

[Kitti]

The table was laid beautifully and it had already been dipped into by the other people present. There was a beautiful card on the table as well, which she glanced at and ran her fingers over the script. The other people present seemed to be milling about in a peaceful enough fashion, though many of them bore expressions on their faces that suggested that they were less than happy to be here. Ariana couldn't understand why they would be so unhappy to be here - she was here of her own accord after all.

Nearby was a girl wearing bright pink lipstick that matched her blond and pink hair. The clothing that she was wearing was considerably less cheerful, but Ariana didn't think much of it. Perhaps this girl was amiable, too. The girl was sipping a cup of water and Ariana looked to her expression, realizing that she also seemed less than friendly. Unsure of what to do, Ariana plucked a peeled banana half from the table and set it down on a little napkin she'd picked up. She also grabbed a bagel half and laid the banana on top of it.

Smiling to herself, Ariana took a bite of the bagel and banana. Looking around the room, Ariana noticed another girl who seemed to be more upset than the others. She hadn't even selected anything for her breakfast. Smiling brightly, Ariana grabbed another banana half and sauntered over to the girl. If she was going to be stuck with all the people here for a whole week, she might as well set about making some friends. The girl was just sitting there, staring morosely at her hands.

"Hi there! You look unhappy! Do you want this banana half? I grabbed more than I could eat!" Ariana caught the scent of cigarette smoke on the girl's clothing, but she didn't want to point it out or be rude about it and instead tried not to inhale the smell deeply.
​

​

 

[Effort]

Here he was at the hotel where the counseling thing would be going down. He stared at the door for a long while from across the street, watching the people who entered and observing details about them. Finally he decided to go in. Some of the people there took his luggage and put it away some where, he didn't look or care. He made his way into the area with the food and the other people. Andy was not bashful, he put what ever he wanted on his plate and sat down as by himself as possible.

Coming here was not his choice, his family forced him to come and Andy complied as little 'good' as he thought it would do him. Although Andy was a little concerned about himself, it was something he thought he shouldn't bother anyone else with. They had their own things to worry about.

 

[TheFoxMaiden]

The sound of a loud thud resonated around the hotel room. Tara laid face down on the floor, a shocked appearance disheveled her face. Pushing herself to her knees, she ran a shaky hand through the thick curls of red hair. It was happening again, those terrible dreams. They never seemed to leave for long before they came rushing back. Haunting her night and day. Green eyes looked around the room, green curtains draped over the light that shined through the window. The white bedsheets hung off the side of the bed, as if she had been fighting some kind of monster. The t.v. was still on, and music played from the VH1 channel. A deep sigh escaped her lips, this was reality and she was happy to see it.

Standing to her feet slowly, she went over to her blue luggage bag. Flinging the lid open, she shifted through the contents. Finally after a few moments of searching, she pulled out a pink tap out shirt and regular blue jeans. Walking into the bathroom, she turned on the shower. Hot water sprayed over her skin. Stripping off her nightwear she slipped inside, water pulled at her curls. Closing her eyes she enjoyed the warm luxury, it washed away all the terrors of the night. Tara stayed as long as she could, but she didn't want to be late. Stepping out of the shower, she toweled off quickly. Throwing on her clothes, she ran out of the bed room to slip on a simple pair of black flats. Before sprinting out of her room, she raced down the hall till she got to the elevator.

The wait and the ride down went by fairly quickly, once the doors opened she could see the group gathering for breakfast. Taking a deep breath, Tara stepped out to stride over to them. Her gaze drifted around the room, as she plastered a fake smile to her face. The smell of delicious food caught her attention, quickly she turned to walk over to the table. The pancakes seemed to be the only thing on her mind, everyone else seemed to fade away.

 

[nomnomchomp]

Annie continued to braid and unbraid her hair, occasionally letting her eyes wander to the drinking glasses on the table. If only they were filled with wine. Normal people drank wine with their breakfasts, right? Really, any alcohol would help ease the unwarranted panic that was trying to spread through her veins. Her mouth had twisted into a pouty scowl by the time she heard someone speak beside her. Her hands froze, her brow furrowed in slight confusion as she looked up at the girl offering her a banana. "Oh! uhm... thank you." She offered a small smile as she reached out and took the banana half.

"I... I'm Annie, by the way." The girl before her threw Annie completely off guard. She hadn't expected to see someone quite so... sunny in this place. She fumbled with the banana, pulling the peel back so she could take a bite. She hadn't realized just how hungry she was. Feeling a surge of appreciation for this stranger, she pushed the empty chair beside her out from the table with her foot, "Why don't you sit here?"

 

[Kitti]

Noticing that she had thrown the other girl completely off guard made Ariana chuckle a little bit. Whether it was the fact that someone had sought her out and spoken to her or the demeanor with which she did it, Ariana did not know. She had noticed that many of the people who had entered the room seemed to be ... grouchy, to put it quite nicely. There was a definite tilt toward a younger crowd here, which gave Ariana a bit of a pause that so many young people needed help but... at least they were getting the help that they needed!

"I'd love to sit there! Sure you don't want anything more to eat? I'm Ariana, by the way. Has anyone seen Gloria, then, or has she yet to show?" Ariana was positively bubbling with energy and enthusiasm. She didn't mean to overwhelm the girl by any means, but she was just so curious and full of questions. The girl seemed to be nervous about something, or shaking perhaps... Ariana thought that she looked like she needed some more to eat. Before the girl could respond though, Ariana had turned to look at the table and her attention flicked to a girl eating a muffin. She hadn't noticed that there were muffins available.

"Hold on, I'll get you a muffin before everyone else eats them all." Honestly, didn't these people know some moderation? They had eaten so much of the good stuff already and not everyone had eaten yet! Ariana scowled a little and grabbed two muffins before heading back to Annie.
​

​

 

[nomnomchomp]

Ariana. That was a pretty name. It certainly seemed to match the girl's personality. Annie couldn't help but wonder what this girl was doing at counseling. Perhaps she was just better at hiding her problems than the rest of them seemed to be. When Ariana mentioned grabbing her a muffin, Annie tried to resist, No, really, that's fine... but her habit of keeping quiet kept her from actually vocalizing it. The muffin was surprisingly good, and Annie picked at it slowly, trying to figure out what sort of fruit bits were in it. Was that raspberry? Interesting.

She remembered that Ariana had asked her about Gloria. "I haven't seen her," her voice was quiet, unsure, "though I guess I wouldn't actually know if I had." She imagined Gloria as a kind looking elderly woman, the kind of woman you imagine when people talk sweetly of their grandmothers. Annie started feeling full after finishing half of her muffin. She sat it on a napkin in front of her and poured herself a glass of water to wash it all down with. She had to focus intently to keep her hands steady as she poured. Her hands had shaken since the accident. It seemed the only time they stopped was when she raised her BAC or got high, but she didn't really like getting high. "Shit." The pitcher had slipped, spilling a nice puddle of water onto the table. She hurriedly grabbed a handful of napkins and pressed them to the puddle.

 

[Zen]

Gloria dressed casually, adding her own personal touch to her clothing. She had comfortable jeans and black sneakers on but she wore a cream colored top and an oval locket on a golden chain. Her hair she left alone; it was naturally wavy. Her heart shaped face she kept bare of make up except for the light brown eyeliner and blush. She contemplated putting on lipstick but decided lip balm would do.

"Luna and Rocky are in the meeting room," she murmured to herself in the mirror, "Everyone else is having breakfast... Some of them have already made themselves at home." She flashed a brief smile at her reflection. Her green eyes checked the clock. "Suppose it's time to head down."

Walking down the lobby, Gloria wondered how this year's event would turn out. It was a larger crowd than normal - it made a hole in her bank account but that could easily be made up after the holidays when she was back to work. No, what was on her mind was how well the sessions would go. She remembered those times when past clients walked away angry, or in tears - it was these reactions that left Gloria with a heavy heart and feeling disappointed. The whole point of this event was to help, not upset, the souls of people who felt hopeless in their lives. She hoped that maybe if her clients didn't have to pay for counseling or therapy, they would be more inclined to get past their problems and become model human beings. So far this technique seemed to be working, but she could only do this event once a year.

The large crowd was also why Gloria decided to hire an extra hand. Dyne Shenzing was his name. At first Gloria was apprehensive about hiring someone who achieved a lot more than she did, but she pushed the thought aside. If he was better in the field then surely he would also do a good job. She resolved herself to this conclusion.

She opened the door into the meeting room, doing a last minute check before rounding up her clients for their first therapy session.




​

 

[Lovie the OG]

Behind his emotionless eyes, Alur watched the party of people as they filled up the table. One by one. He silently plucked at an apple with his teeth, chewing thoroughly before swallowing. If anyone was watching him they would have noticed how elegantly he ate. Slowly he rose the apple to his mouth, bit into it with his front teeth, plucked a small bit, and chewed gracefully, never letting his jaw drop, never opening his mouth and his elbows never once touched the table. He would absentmindedly dab his mouth of any apple juice every few bites, as if he were cleaning a statue that kept getting passed by pigeons who let their droplets fall without dismay.

If anyone at all was watching him, they would have also noticed something strange. Something most uncommon that surely not many people ever see, in fact, it was so unseen, that, if anyone was watching, they may have dropped their jaws in dismay, or they would have watched with interest, wondering ever so much, "why?". The thing was, Alur McKenzie wouldn't notice. He wouldn't even realize it as he chewed the seeds and as the strange texture slithered down his throat. No. Of course not. As he came to the core of the apple, he didn't stop there. He ate the tip of the core, the bottom, and then finally, the middle, with the seeds included. But that wasn't entirely the strange thing. It was strange, true, but here again, if anyone dared to watch, they would have noticed how unmoving his eyes were. How still they were, how they grew darker and darker, to almost an almond black that darted out and captured the light, unlike his face, that was, literally, almost hidden behind these intense, solid eyes.

Anyone staring at them would have felt as if they had been swallowed by some unseen force. They would have felt scared; afraid, captured, and would have begun to fidget. They would have noticed in time though, maybe, how hallow his eyes were how depressing they were, how much sadness they held...

Alur eased into the back of his chair gently as a commotion from near by awakened his thoughts. His eyes darted to a few seats in front of himself. He noticed as two girls spoke. One of them he had seen earlier. He had smelled the cigarette smoke coming from her clothes and he had noticed how tensed she had seem. The other girl was new, one he had not seen yet. She was, to the eye, rather pretty. She had an elegance of sorts that beheld her and her smile showed this. She was bouncy, friendly, happy... Honestly, he couldn't see exactly why she was in a place like this. Surely there wasn't a counseling for people who had too much happiness in their lives. Surely... Alur watched her closely. He watched for any slump to her figure, any misstep, and slur, and twitches... Nothing. He couldn't find anything. He looked at her eyes. Gorgeous eyes. He looked over her again. There was a reason she was here. Unless she was just that friendly and wouldn't to help the lot of them, or there was something wrong with her, Alur figured it wasn't exactly time to figure that stuff out yet. And, while thinking about it, he wondered exactly when counseling would begin.

 

[Effort]

The food didn't last long. Andy ate with uninhibited efficiency, bite off enough to finish the food fast but not too much to hinder chewing. He swallowed the last mouthful of the peach he was eating. Peaches were sweet, juicy, and fuzzy. But messy sometimes. The juice of the peach glistened on his fingers when he turned them a certain way, soon it would become sticky and bothersome. Scooting back from the table in his chair, Andy picked up the paper plate and the scraps of what was left on it at the same time. On his way to the garbage can some one, a female, spilled a pitcher of water. It didn't distract him from his journey.

Upon reaching the garbage he deposited the plate into the can and began looking for a napkin, which he found. Yellow, Blue, Pink, White. Andy took a yellow one. The yellow napkin was used to wipe his hands, and was tossed into the garbage when he was finished using it. He turned his body to return to his seat, but something caught his eye. A round metal pot on a heater. The trip to the pot was only a couple steps within seconds. Inside the pot was soup. Andy had not had a serving of pasta today, or the vitamins that were undoubtedly inside the broth. The ladle was in his hand and was scooping soup into a bowl he had apparently picked up along the way. In another few seconds he was back at his seat again. Before he started consuming the nutrients, doors opened and someone most likely walked in. The soup was salty and had star noodles and bits of chicken.

 

[TheFoxMaiden]

Tara turned looking over at the young man that seemed to be wearing a rock band shirt of some kind. He seemed rather agitated. Quickly eating the last bit of pancake, before walking over to trash her plate. Turning slowly her gaze shifted from each person, two women were speaking. One male was eating, he seemed pretty indulged in his meal. Another male stood looking rather odd, seemed he had his own inner demons to work out. A girl stood pouring water, she spilled a little, Tara couldn't help but to think the girl was cute in a childish way. Tara's gaze quickly shifted to the female with a bad attitude, she couldn't help but wonder who forced her to come here.

A thought crossed her mind, she hoped these people could help her get past her problems. Her very sanity depended on this, threats were already coming at her. "If you don't get straight we will send you to the crazy house." The voices of members of her family rang out side her mind. Tara's brows furrowed and a grim line replaced her smile. "I'm not going to some loony bin." She muttered under her breath, quickly she tried to clear her thoughts. If anyone were staring she didn't want them thinking she was talking to herself.

A deep sigh escaped her lips before she strode to the near by chairs. Her hands lifted to play idly with her curly damn hair. She almost didn't notice the male sitting beside her, he kept his gaze in his lap. It seemed he didn't want to be bothered, Tara sat back watching him for a few more moments. Her voice finally spilled through her lips, "I hope you don't mind me sitting her?" She smiled brightly at him, trying to show she was at least some what friendly.

 

[Duke Ferret]

Jeremy gumbled rather obnoxiously as he walked in the doors of the hotel. His eyes scanned every inch of the lobby before he even made his way to the front desk. Leaning against the desk he looked at the girl who stood behind. "Which way to the stupid meeting?" His breath smelled strongly of alcohol with a tinge of nicotine. The girl ponted off to his left so he shrugged and started walking.

He didn't need to be here. However, you don't argue with the woman who can take your house money and daughter with a simple signing of a paper. So he came anyway. Just to keep her off his back about it all. Reaching into his large jacket pocket he pulled out a metal flask and took a swig of the whiskey inside before capping it and tucking it back in his pocket. "Stupid meeting..." He pushed through the door that had a sign for the meeting and took a place near the door along the wall, his eyes scanning the room and its occupants.

 

[Kino]

Dyne was unfortunately running a bit late. He was driving in the downtown area, which wasn't a part of town that he visited often. Not to mention that it was currently rush hour, and he suspected his GPS of giving him bad directions. Either that, or he kept driving past the place without seeing it.

"God damn it. Hell of a way to make a first impression..." he muttered to himself out of frustration.

It was his first day on the job and he had only met his employer/co-worker, Gloria, once before, and that was at his interview for the job. He had a feeling from the interview that she was unsure of him, and being late on day 1 was definately not going to help reassure her.

 

[Zen]

Just like she had asked, the hotel staffers laid a name tag on the chairs for everyone to sit. Luna, her cat, walked up to greet her and Gloria absent mindedly bent down to pet her. She was a bit bemused of Rocky's absence... And Dyne wasn't there either. Perhaps she had been misinformed about the labrador being there in the first place. Pursing her lips in thought, she walked into the center of the circle of chairs, and made sure the name tags were in the order she wanted.

Gloria Owens. Dyne Shenzing. Sean O'Reily. Alur McKenzie. Charlotte Morrell. Darren. Ariana Raeza. Annie Charles. Riley Marxmen. Andy Kurtz. Tara Carlisle. Jeremy Urander.

"Perfect," she said with a smile.

Luna was still rubbing her face against Gloria's leg, making the woman shake her head fondly. She picked up the cat and set her on the chair. "No, you stay here. People are going to arrive soon so you have to be on your best behavior."

8:30 said the clock, and still no Dyne or Rocky... Gloria fidgeted with her locket.


Sighing, she walked out of the meeting room, mentally imaging her worries falling off her shoulders as she made her way to the dining room. Opening the doors, she saw a bit of confusion. Someone dropped the pitcher it looked like, and they were hurriedly trying to clean up the spill. Gloria smiled softly.

"Don't worry about cleaning it up, the staffers will take care of it," she said in a soothing voice. While her voice was quiet, it was able to ring across the room.

Her smile grew a bit wider as she looked upon everyone.

"If you'll follow me we'll head to the room now."

Once everyone started moving out of their seats, Gloria turned around and walked out, leading them to the meeting room. It wasn't very far, but she talked as they walked.

"I know some of you have made yourself comfortable already, but if you don't know where your room is, just ask one of the receptionists and they'll tell you." She looked over her shoulder, to make sure everyone was following. Holding the door to the room open Gloria continued, "Just find your name tag and have a seat."

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