CLOSED SIGNUPS The Diner - a place of rest, relaxation, and recuperation

JIN CHO

Naturally, Jin was confused.

It didn't take much deducing to figure out why. Even though she had wrapped her head around the diner being in some sort of weird, timeless portal, the things the others mentioned and the way they behaved baffled her. Lin refused her stim, and it gave the mercenary pause. Ok -- more than a pause.

A stim was a doctor in a syringe, and they were just as expensive as the bloated bastards too. Every mission with Delta Corps. meant rationing out a a select few between a crew of ten or more; the rest came out of their paychecks, and a poor sucker would much prefer to bleed out and die than to lose that much coin. Nobody ever turned them when offered, especially for free.

But Lin wasn't Spacer. None of them were. Jin fell into silence, growing more lost as the conversation behind them continued. Werewolves? Dragons?

"Have you heard of Jesus Christ?"

Huh?

Moe answered while she stared, utterly bewildered. Both of them seemed to know this...man, presumably. Were they from the same universe? Same universe, different times, possibly. Maybe.

Law, she needed that coffee.

"I don't who that is. Sorry," Jin finally answered. "Is- oh. Thank you."

Ma'am was giving her some coffee. Jin shot her a grateful smile, setting the hot mug down in front of her. It was a welcome distraction. She needed to wrap her head around the mind-boggling info being shared so casually around her...like the casual mention that the boy behind them was, quite possibly, not a human boy at all.


 
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Dynalight;Mate;
Louelle Huang

“Alike,” the woman answered, pulling up the corners of her eyes over which Louelle would have whacked any of her peers with her books if she was in Paris. But this wasn’t Paris and the stranger was right in a way, there was a surprising amount of Asians within an overall American looking establishment. A place which most would avoid in her place and world because none ever liked the food served.

“I… uuh,” Louelle was as stumped on an answer as Jin was, not because she didn’t know the guy, well she didn’t, not personally, but she had heard of him, like anyone did in their world, along with all of the discussions that came with.

"1892" Moses answered, causing Louelle’s eyes to bulge at the sight of such an ancient (?) person before trying to maths how long ago that was compared to her own year, before she even tried to wonder if it was her birth year or the current year.

And then there was the male who had entered, who apparently was either a really good con-artist, or one didn’t have to be human to enter through the door.

Another gulp followed Louelle who turned back to the first, the question still swirling in her mind.

“2019, no, I mean, plus two, or three, 2022!” Louelle exclaimed, confusing herself more than anyone else as she wondered what year it truly was. She remembered going to the campus today, which was a first after a long while, but then again, the pandemic had felt sort of surreal and Louelle couldn’t even be sure if that was real, or if it had happened at all within this space.

The question of ‘where’ seemed a lot easier to handle. Mars didn’t sound so outrageous after all next to trying to remember how long it has been since Jesus died, or born. Louelle could never quite figure out which one it was. If he died at all that was, accordingly.
 
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Confusion was heavy in the air, and he imagined that at least parts of that was directed at him. Oh well. More important, and the current focus of Pamet’s attention, was Hale’s enthusiasm, which infected Pamet with a heady excitement as he fed off it. He watched in wide-eyed wonder as a sigil formed between him and the elf. Alas, it faded as quickly as it had appeared, which would have been a shame if it wasn’t so interesting. How easily she had done away with the magic. How powerful was the owner of this establishment, really?

Well, there was time to learn more. His expression morphed to a bright smile as he was given a cup which Ma’am quickly filled with hot coffee. Coffee did not have the effect on him that it did others, but he greatly appreciated the gesture nonetheless. And saying that he could get whatever he’d like? Pamet had learned long ago not to indulge in his wants, but if she was offering…

“If possible, perhaps some bottled happiness?” he asked, his eyes shining uncharacteristically with enthusiasm. If there was any place that could produce bottled emotions, surely it would be in this odd establishment. “If not, a slice of apple pie will do fine as well.”

Pamet took a sip of his coffee as he tuned into the conversation occurring around him. “It’s also 2022 where I am,” he volunteered. “But I don’t know who Jesus Christ is.” Well, that was somewhat inaccurate. He thought he might have heard it a few times in his art history class, but he still wasn't too sure of what the man did. Certainly, he seemed to be the muse for many great artists. In any case, perhaps he could get an answer here, where he wasn't overly concerned about fitting in.
 
"Oh."

If Lin had been allowed to light her cigarette, there would have been a pregnant pause where a long finger of ash would have fallen on her lap, or the table, or maybe onto her other hand, which was in her lap. But it just sat unlit in her mouth. A few crumbs of tobacco trickled out, dislodged by her frustrated inhaling.

"You know," she suddenly leaned forward on the table, "I was warned about this in my lessons. My creators said that 'given our technological advancement, as we encroach the absolute boundary of knowledge, it is a possible that we may come into contact with creatures beyond our understanding, or beyond space and time.' There were so many procedures to follow, for first contact, if that happened."

"But that's all gone now, and I never imagined that I'd find people from the same timeline. Most of them, at least. Dunno how you came about."

"Can I have some water, please?"
 
JIN CHO

Creatures beyond her understanding. Surely Jin wasn't included in that categorization...right? She probably meant goop boy behind them.

"I came about the same way as you," Jin half-teased, eyes crinkling up. "The birds and the bees. Don't know what teleported me here there, though I'm not complaining. I'm a merc for Delta Corps., based on Neptune. I was planet-side when I got dropped here."

She figured Lin for a Spacer-type, albeit not from her own stars and planets, mind you. But she had what seemed a good grip on the now; that is, the now of Jin's age, what with the technological progress of its time. Pamet and Louelle, on the other hand, echoed the same centuries old year of 2022. Which, all things considered, wasn't too primitive, especially compared to --

"1892, huh?" Jin said, her curiosity finally becoming untenable. She spun around in her seat, craning her neck to take a gander at Moe. "So long ago. Law, what's it like? On Earth?"

 
Dynalight;Mate;
Louelle Huang

Bottled happiness, creators, the words flew past Louelle who felt herself grow woozy at trying to process the information. The thought that there was another from the same year as she originated from not at all reassuring, head turning towards Pamet with a questioning look.

“Happiness sounds good about now,” she agreed hesitantly, not really sure what she was asking about or talking about even, but in the 21st century nothing seemed to be too outrageous, as long as it profited and if everything within this place was for free Louelle wasn’t about to turn down some free happiness.

“Maybe some health for you?” She continued turning to Lin, pausing just for a moment to realise that ‘bottled health’ were most likely going to be vitamin drinks, or whatever shakes they sold now with added benefits, the corners of her lips falling as Louelle wondered if bottled happiness could be a vitamin D drink instead. It certainly sounded very much like a marketable idea; vitamin D sold as ‘bottled happiness’.
 
"Ah, yes." Lin finally crushed the cigarette and left it on the empty table between them. It slowly unfolded, shedding bits of tobacco through the broken paper. "Words I understand." She squinted at the ("holograms?") scribblings that hovered in mid air, but after various pursings of her lips, swallowed whatever comment she was about to make.

"Say - we aren't dead, are we? This isn't some sort of afterlife?"

She loudly called over to the rest of the occupants in the next booth.

"You all haven't died or anything, right? Didn't appear here, milliseconds after coming face to face with certain death?"
 
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It was really quite interesting, listening in on the conversations occurring around him. Pamet felt like he was learning so much more than he would have if he went to his third period accounting class.

He smiled towards Louelle, his eyes crinkled into a genuine looking expression which he had spent a whole weekend perfecting in front of his bathroom mirror. “It is quite good,” he said, although Pamet was quite certain that whatever Louelle had in mind was drastically different from what he was thinking. “It tastes a bit like apple pie.” He thought so, in any case, though he could barely taste human food (connecting to his body’s taste buds were not his primary concern).

At Lin’s question, Pamet’s expression was wiped into an odd blankness as he considered her words. “Well, I was being chased by someone when I arrived here," he mused, "but I doubt he could have killed me.” That did remind him that he had injured his wrist in the chase. Oh well. It wasn’t as though it was actually causing him any issues at the moment.
 
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the Diner

"If possible, perhaps some bottle happiness? If not, a slice of apple pie will do fine as well."

Ma'am gave Pamet a soft smile.

"Honey," she cooed, "What in heaven's name do you think the first ingredient in apple pie is? Well, proper apple pie, anyway; I've had some like to make your face shrivel. There was no happiness involved in baking that monstrosity, I'll tell you.

"And a water. Certainly."

She gave another smile, this one a fraction less soft, to Lin. The mugs were set deftly onto the tables and filled before she turned on her heel and appeared behind the bar to fulfill the orders.

For his part. Moses chuckled at Jin's question.

"'Like'? I reckon it's like most places and, er, times: full o' it's own troubles and problems, with most folks just tryin' to get by as the nicer ones try a bit of the ol' charity work and the right bast- er, bad types tryin' to work folks over. It's sparse, where I'm at; nothing like Boston or New York. Hear tell, those cities are bustlin'. Two an' a half million makes fer a crowded street, though, must say.

"Eh? Dead?" Moe chuckled, taking another swig of coffee before shaking his head. "Guess you missed that part of the talk. No'm; we're still bustin' with spirit an' life. Seems this place is something of a- I dunno, a moment, maybe. Outside our own lives. A chance to catch a breath, to take time to collect ourselves before gettin' back to the regular. Whatever that might be for you'uns."

Pamet's comment did not go unnoticed by his red haired companion.

"Maybe. I don't know." Hale shrugged, face pensive. "But you will find yourself free of hurt in this place. And, I suspect, when you return as well; it wouldn't be a very good rest if you didn't benefit from it."

The conversation had been undercut from moment to moment by the sounds of activity at the bar. Ma'am had busied herself with the work: gathering drink and dessert for those who requested it. Even as Hale made his assertion, she returned, nodding in agreement.

"Yes, I don't allow hurt in my establishment; it's banished from the moment you enter. What happens when you return, sugar ... well, that's your responsibility." She set the pie before Pamet and the water before Lin. "And to that effect ... we're closing in about half an hour, darlings. No rush, now! Enjoy the conversation and your food! And let me know if there's anything else you might need. Anything at all."

Moe raised his mug to her as she retreated back to the bar, where she began wiping down countertops.
 
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JIN CHO

Boston. New York. Jin had never heard of either city, but that didn't count for much. The little knowledge she'd been taught in school about Earth hadn't delved too much into geography. Or history. Or culture. Or...well. The point stood. Earth was humanity's progenitor - and that was about it.

Ah, but 1892. There was so much Jin wanted to press Moses on. Was Earth really covered with trees like the holograms said they were? Were there really animals freely roaming around beyond artificial zoos? What was air like when left unprocessed? What did the ocean look like? Was it salty like tears, or was that just another Spacer myth?

The mercenary was abuzz in her seat, practically brimming with excitement. It only tapered some when Ma'am spoke, and here Jin frowned - her first of the day.

The diner was closing?

"Huh," Jin hummed, gaze following Ma'am for awhile. "I guess I...didn't - well. I suppose even this place has to close. Guess I got a little too comfortable."

She smiled then, but it quickly faded. If the place was closing, that meant they were liable to be turned loose back where they all came from. Moses to 1892, Hale to wizards and dragons, Louelle and Pamet to 2022, and Lin and Jin -

Damn it. Her eyes flicked to her gun stowed away on the other booth by Louelle and Pamet.

"Shouldn't have eaten all that food," She joked darkly. She gestured lightly in the duo's direction. "Can one of you remind me to collect my gun before I leave? Or pass it along to me - don't worry, the safety's on."


 
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Dynalight;Mate;
Louelle Huang
Apple pie now that Louelle knew and if that was what bottled happiness was, then her confusion was cleared. Of course, the favourite feel good meal, like cheese after dinner paired with a fine wine!

Feeling much more comfortable now in this strange place that existed outside of time, Louelle finally felt herself relax, the stress of her day fading, until…

“Half an hour?” she exclaimed, following Jin’s own disappointment, “what happens if it closes?” The question quickly followed, curiosity overtaking her as confusion returned. After all, how did time work in a place where time seemed to merge into each other? The idea that in half an hour Louelle would be standing in Paris again, on her way home, was what confused her even more, the whole theory even more existential than the philosophical question of ‘why’, or trying to comprehend maths.

“I suppose I should try to catch up on homework…” Louelle follows in dismay, the mention of the gun barely registering as she wonders if any progress on that was to be deleted as well as soon as she walks out of this place.

Maybe this whole thing was a dream after all?
 
Lin set the empty cup down and burped silently into her fist, wiping away a few stray drops of water from her lips.

"You don't have to stay until closing time."

She swept a napkin along her table, gathering up any stray crumbs of tobacco that she arranged into a neat pile at the end near the aisle, where it could be easily picked up, and set about arranging the rest of the cigarettes in her case. Despite the variety of all of their origins, it turned out that inhaling the smoke of a burning plant was still a thing across thousands of years and different realities. Lin supposed that creation was indeed a boring, repetitive thing.

She stood from her booth and made for the revolving door, but paused with her hand on the bars, tucking her shoulder-length hair back and adjusting her loose-fitting sweater.

"What if I want to come back? How can I come back here?"
 
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Pamet nodded along thoughtfully to Hale’s words. That was one problem solved, at least. Injuries were a nuisance, despite the fact that (or perhaps especially because) he couldn’t really feel anything from them. He gave a soft thanks to Ma’am as she set his pie down, tucking into it with what for him amounted to a great deal of enthusiasm.

It was unfortunate that it would be closing so soon, a feeling that seemed to be echoed by some of the other occupants of the diner. It made sense, he supposed; surely Ma’am required some rest after a long work day, although he wasn’t too sure of the logistics of that – did she live somewhere in this strange dimension? Or did Ma’am, like them, get sent back to her home dimension once she stepped through those doors? Perhaps she just lived in the diner; Pamet couldn’t really imagine her being elsewhere.

Pamet fetched Jin’s gun at her request, holding it grip-first towards her. “You'll make it through whatever situation you're in,” he said in what he thought might have been a sympathetic tone but was just as likely to be callous and condescending. “At least you’ll have half an hour to plan before you leave.”

Not everyone seemed to want to use that time, with Lin already up and heading for the door. Pamet, on the other hand, was going to spend every last minute here. Not to plan for an escape. He had a boxcutter in his bag and what he hoped would be the element of surprise, which was probably good enough. More importantly, “I should do some studying as well.” He had a calculus test tomorrow, which he had planned to spend the evening studying for. Unfortunately, he was probably going to spend the evening being lectured and fretted over now.
 
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the Diner​

"Studying? Ah; I have my own studies, as well. Of a sort."

Hale chuckled, his thoughtful tone taking a somber color. As his eyes lowered pensively, Moe's looked between the three students.

"Ya can put it off for a bit more, ya kin? This- moment, it ain't done until Ma'am says it is. S'long as yer here, your old life stops; once you git back, yet back where you was at the start of it. Least ways, that's what's happened to me the handfulah times I've been here.

"And speaking of," he sipped his coffee, frowning at his mustache as he accidentally wet it. "Whether we return ain't nothing of ours to decide; that's on Ma'am, far as I can tell. She decides if'n ya should visit or no."

He fell quiet, back bending in an unseen weight and a heavy sigh filtering through his nose. Hale looked at him, brow furrowed.

"Moses?"

"Mm? Ah, s'nothin." Quickly, the cowboy drained his coffee cup and stood. "Anyways, you'ns enjoy. Was a right privilege to meet y'all, but I gotta be headin' out."

Touching his forehead, Moses sauntered to the kitchen door and leaned against the frame. The conversation was lost to hearing. Hale looked on, confused.

"Such places as this do not happen often, I suspect. Nor for no purpose." Hale looked at the others and smiled. "I bet we'll be back."

"Sooner'n later, Shorty." Moses, his conversation apparently finished, strode to the exit. He smiled, but there was a heaviness to it to spoke of reluctance. "Y'all take care, hear? And soldier- keep that piece handy."

With a Pard'n, miss to Lin, Moses was through the door. A glance through the glass would show nothing except the wavering gray of the rain.
 
JIN CHO

Quick as she was with her gun, Jin was too slow to wave back at Moses before he turned and left through that door. It didn't feel right, how neatly his presence was erased from the diner, but it was/ Her hand came back loosely to her side, her gaze shifting to Lin waiting and raring to go back out that door.

The realization that she was going to miss them weighed on her like a two ton stone.

"You think so?" She asked brightly, turning to look at Hale. "I hope so. It would be really, really nice."

More than nice. Nice wasn't even a good enough word to cut it. But she didn't want to dwell on it too long, because before long...Law, she didn't want to embarrass herself, now.

"It was nice talking with all of you. I mean it."

She had to stand to shrug on her spacesuit all the way. It gave her a more robust, muscular build, and the Delta Corps. insignia was emblazoned on the back in bright orange. It just went to show folks the corporation cared more about brand name advertisement than the fact they were putting a big flaming target on their employees backs.

Last was the helmet. Jin hesitated a while, her eyes darting from the varied faces around her. Something was building in her gaze, though she blinked it away with force. Finally, with a nod, she put the helmet over her head, shrouding her features in a gray film. Beneath the glass, a bright smile could be seen, and she hefted her gun.

"May the Law stay on your side, friends."


 
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Moses left after imparting some wise words to the other customers of the diner, which seemed, from Pamet’s opinion after their short meeting, quite characteristic of him. The door closed behind the man, leaving Pamet feeling off-kilter for reasons that took him a few moments to discern. While Pamet always had a general sense of the presence of others, their emotions serving as a natural beacon, Moses seemed to disappear the moment he left. It was interesting, if somewhat disconcerting, how suddenly Pamet’s sense of the other customers cut off once they stepped through those doors. It was truly the best proof there was that the place where they were was not a part of his world, not that he had truly doubted that in the first place.

Pamet rifled through his bag, pulling out his boxcutter and slipping it into his pants pocket. He briefly wished for a more effective weapon, like that gun Jin so confidently held, but while it seemed to fit her quite well, Pamet imagined he would look quite out of place holding something like that.

Despite what Moses had to say about putting things off, Pamet was raring to go home. Not to study for his test – Pamet would take Moses’ words to heart in that case and review his notes during lunch tomorrow. But he would go home and tell his acquaintances about it all. Their excitement and curiosity about it all would more than make up for the lectures he was bound to get.

“It was nice to meet you all,” he said, shrugging his bag over his shoulders. “I hope we all find this place again some day soon.” Pamet found that he meant it, which was rather a surprise. Time was generally not a primary concern of his, but he imagined he wouldn’t learn much more about this place without coming again.

With that, he headed for the door with an unhurried air, one hand on the boxcutter in his pocket.
 
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Dynalight;Mate;
Louelle Huang

What time was it? How long had she been here? Louelle wondered all this and more as one by one everyone started to leave. Moses, Jin, Pamet as well who had only just arrived. She hoped that they were all safe and sound, that they wouldn’t be stepping back into danger. Somewhere, secretly, Louelle hoped that they would meet again, for she did finally feel comfortable with them now.

“Then, I guess, goodbye?” she waves to the remaining members, wondering how goodbyes were said again and if she was supposed to wave or hug or shake hands, would they allow her to? Was a ‘see you next time’ appropriate? Louelle had no clue as she said nothing more, picking up her bag as she shuffled to the door, hesitant to open the door as she wondered where it would lead her. Did she even want to go home?

It didn’t feel like it was her choice to make. Not really. Pushing the door open Louelle stepped through again, instinctively closing her eyes as she held her breath.
 
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She had watched everyone else leave, running her fingers down an unlit cigarette until they reached the bottom, flipping it over, and dragging them down again. Each one walked through the doors and though she focused every iota of attention onto the spinning glass, she missed the transition every time. There was only the two of them now, Lin and Ma'am. The pressure began to build in the room, and she could only withstand it for a few seconds before rising to her feet, a little faster than necessary, sweeping the tobacco dust into a small pile at the edge of the table and striding to the door. She looked at her faint reflection in the panes of glass and left an oily handprint on it. She searched the rain-slick reflection and briefly found Ma'am, then jammed her hands into her pockets and shouldered the carousel doors forward.
 
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the DinerScreenshot_20211127-220150_DuckDuckGo (1).jpg

"Ten minutes, dear."

Hale blinked, giving his head a shake before looking to Ma'am.

"Thank you," he said, and he drained his glass, his mind on his new friends. Lin was- different. They all were, he supposed, in their own special ways. He found himself smiling. Magic (could this be called magic?) was a funny thing, and without specific knowledge of its intricacies, there was no telling what to expect for the future. But Maker, he did hope to see them again.

In the meantime, his own home awaited. Despite Moses' assurance that no time had passed in his own land, he felt a strong desire to see Kraeg again and assure the dragon that he was alright. Gathering his staff, he cast a Thank you, Ma'am! over his shoulder, pushed open the door, and left.

^ ^ ^​

Time is unyielding, unfeeling. The common metaphor of a river is remarkably apt, for it runs over those trapped inside its stream, dragging them along against their most desperate protestations toward their natural ends. At best, we find our space within it, resting in the current as we give our best efforts to show kindness and love to those we encounter. At worst, we beat in vain against the flow, desperate to delay our end, giving no heed to those we strike in our thrashings, nor those whose own paths we interrupt. Our sphere of influence is, after all, fairly small, but within that sphere, we often carry the power of life and of death to our fellows.

In each world, for each individual, time may perhaps pass at differing rates. No two people experience the exact same life, after all, and the highs and lows of one will never precisely line up with those of another. Adventures and tragedies, celebrations and mourning, life and death. Common events, with uncommon timing. Sometimes, however, experiences do arrange with those of others, though such an event should never be counted on to happen more than once in a lifetime.

Occasionally, this happens to people more than once.

Maybe it was a week later. Perhaps a year or two passed. Quite possibly, even as much as several decades had flown by. Regardless, to these five individuals, the Diner was once again their destination of unintended but perhaps welcome refuge from whatever stress of life they might have.

Or so it was once. Now, for reasons not immediately explained, there was no feeling of relief as each made entrance. The lights shined on as much they had, and the decor and furniture was to all appearances as well tended as it had been before.

Yet the light was thin, the fluorescence having become a degree too bright. The decor rested half an inch or so off level, and the tables and chairs had lost their polish. Indeed, a quiet heaviness rested on the place, a stifling blanket that deadened the life now entering. There was an Emptiness present that the incomers' arrival did nothing to dispel.

^ ^ ^
GM note:​

Uh oh! What could have happened!? Feel free to enter, interact, and explore! I'll drop GMPCs after a bit.
@Kuno @unanun @Nemopedia @Nougat
 

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Dynalight;Mate;
Louelle Huang

“You are an absolute unit,” the words came with David, already injured, dodging the flying object of the books of ethics Louelle had been perusing, her eyes flaring. Four years had passed since she had met the eccentric with his weird claims. Four years in which she had come to settle into her own skin, adapting to the stories told and about who she was.

“Descartes won’t approve,” came David’s retort, a poorly bandaged arm held up to protect his uninjured head that Louelle wanted to bash in.

An action that wouldn’t calm her any, the dark circles under her eyes of days of revision visible before roaring a, “Descartes is dead and so are you,” before the male shut the door to the other room in her face, locking himself out and her in.

“Look, we already come this far, not? You got the ancestor’s power and I, I got nothing,” David explains, an excuse that went nowhere as Louelle stopped in the hallway, her eyes shut close and her hands on her hips while a deep heave escaped her. One, she counted and David carefully called out to her, “Lou?” Two, and the door carefully turned, opening just as Louelle reached three and she charged at the opening, grabbing hold of the man that had come to throw her life upside down four years ago and smacking him clean over the head.

“And what part of finding your ‘claim’ involves stealing from the local museum?”

The answer was silence, though Louelle knew just as well as David that it was much more complicated. Whatever the case, the fact had passed and the result was… whatever this was.

“I’m not treating you,” Louelle’s next words came resolutely, her hand rising at the protest that inevitably rose from David signalling she didn’t want to hear a word of it, “and before you say it is my duty I first of all haven’t graduated yet, thanks to a certain adventure and I only treat humans.” The remark was petty, she knew, but it shut David up as Louelle stomped off to her room to cool off.

At least, she thought she had entered the door leading to her room, eyes blinking at the harsh fluorescent light that were both familiar and strange.

For all of the changes and strange things Louelle had experienced in the past four years since her last visit this place was by far the most outrageous and concerning.

“Hello?” Louelle calls, her voice echoing strangely against the tiles. The once so homely place to which Louelle had dreamt of returning to suddenly seemed like the start of a horror, her heart beating uncomfortably as she stepped further in.