Video/Potentional Action. Abandoned amusement parks are dope.

[shoplifter]

[Some of you might get worried calls from Linda, Laura's tormented case worker.

The general questioning is: "HAVE YOU SEEN LAURA I HAVEN'T FOUND HER IN HOURS I'VE LOOKED EVERYWHERE."

But then, a Laura entry pops up sometime later in the day:

Her, looking curious, with the telltale signs of vegetation outside of city limits behind her.

She points the camera at the setting of the abandoned amusement park, some disappointment soon to be prevalent in her tone; she'd sneaked out and headed off to the Abandoned City or whatever people call it, mostly to get away from society and sort of marinate in her own thoughts. It's one of those months. Or many of those months. As much as she's tried adapting and appreciates her freedom, sometimes you just need to step away from it all and have your own time.

... In places Linda tells you not to ever sneak off to, of course.

Sue her, she never listens to her authority figures. She's not scared of monsters, anyway; she's already killed two getting here. It's why she's got some tar-colored blood on her sleeves and knuckles.]

We should repair this. I don't know what it is, but it looks like -- a fun place. Some of these have... strange wheels... and cars on railroads. ¿Para qué sirve? Do people who move trains practice here?

[She wanders around, her footfalls echoing in the isolated place. There's a rotted up old booth where you 'shoot' guns for prizes, but the signs are pretty overgrown with vines. She picks up a fake rifle and aims it at the blank target board beyond her, smacking on some bubblegum thoughtfully.]

Is it a place for soldiers to practice, too? It is very colorful for a soldier, but we had some color, too. They liked to put cartoons on the walls. Maybe there are cartoons on walls here, too... Maybe there are lights that make it bright. Like Vegas.

[..... Aha.

She points the camera up, up, up, toward the highest point of the ferris wheel.]

I think you see everything if you climb to the top.

[... I'mma climb to the top.]

[Feel free to have any ACTION threads as well; she's just wandering around, really, enjoying the quiet.]

Comments

[winscenario]

[ Jim grins and chuckes at that. Funny thing is there probably was a time in his life when she’d have wanted to punch him, and rightfully so. ]

And I’d have deserved it. Mean people are totally asking for it. That and when you’re defending yourself and other people, still doesn’t make you a bad person.

[shoplifter]

[She's appeased by the answer, at least. Even if she's uncertain in her path, in what people make of her or what she is in general, this sort of thing is admittedly something that sets her more at ease. But she should probably clear the air about one thing, in case it happens and he's caught off-guard.]

... I do have claws.

I like to use them on candy machines most of all, not on people.

[winscenario]

[ He purses his lips and cants his head slightly. ]

Well, those candy machines can be really annoying when they don't give you your candy, so I don't blame you.

[ Looking down at her hands curiously, ] I can't see them. Are they— [ Would she even know the word 'retractable'? ] —hidden, is that it?

[shoplifter]

[Ah, well. In that case...

She draws her claws out, and they burst from the skin between her knuckles — two blades on each fisted hand, blinding and sitting a foot or so from where Kirk stand in observance. She doesn't seem to wear the expression of someone who finds the act of it particularly concerning.]

Sì, hidden.

[winscenario]

[ Jim startles slightly, even though that's about what he was expecting. Seeing claws pushing out through a kid's knuckles isn't exactly something he sees every day, though, so she'll have to excuse the initial shock.

He manages not to react too poorly at least, though he can't help himself from muttering under his breath. ]

Jesus Christ, Laura. [ He reaches out unthinkingly, taking hold of her hands with care, making sure not to get in the way of her claws. They do look very sharp. ] Doesn't that hurt?

[shoplifter]

[Her hands twitch away from his and she takes a step back, a trained reaction. But she seems okay with the whole situation; Jim doesn't seem afraid, and he was supportive enough to ease her into honesty. She looks from him to her claws, glinting harshly in the ship lighting.]]

... It does, but I have been trained to keep a high pain tolerance.

So - it is nothing I can't handle.

[winscenario]

[ Jim withdraws his hands instantly. The last thing he wants is to overstep any boundaries, or make her feel uncomfortable. He's not afraid, though, even if he is well aware those claws are extremely sharp, and that a single touch could cut open his skin. ]

Put them away... please. I don't want you to be in pain. [ Even if she can tolerate that pain better than most— that's not the point. ]

[shoplifter]

[It feels a little too late, to ask that sort of thing, or to worry about pain. But she listens, pulling the blades back down into her forearms. They settle, and only smears of blood are left of the motion; the wounds are completely healed in a manner of moments.]

My claws were not always metal; they made them more efficient.

[winscenario]

[ He can't even imagine how anyone would be capable of doing all this to a kid. The thought of it alone makes him feel sick to his stomach. Laura's just a little girl. It's beyond him why anyone would cut her up and experiment on her, make her suffer so much, no matter the purpose.

He realizes it's a little too late to say he doesn't want her suffering. But she's probably suffered more than enough throughout her whole life. Even if he does appreciate her sharing this and showing it to him, he doesn't want her drawing her claws unless she absolutely has to. ]

I'm sorry, Laura. You didn't deserve that.

[shoplifter]

[She thins her lips, looking back toward the window of the ship.

A soft breath.]

That is the first time anyone's ever told me that.

[She's sure that Logan, Charles, Gabriela... that they all thought it. She's sure of it.

But it's... nice to hear.]

[winscenario]

That's too bad. It's important that you hear it.

[ And that she understands it's the truth, so she won't think of herself as a monster. ]

Anyway— want me to fly you back to the Quarantine?