Boardinghouse[First Gen FREE-FOR-ALL]

(The Bonfire Garden is on top of a building in which there are rooms where the various pairs of the Pit have been invited to stay, provided they help with the fortifications. It's a new safe-haven from the dangerous outside... and a new community for those who were previously separate and without contact....)

They'd been approached by Alvarez and Chauvin a day earlier -- or rather, Corosa had been approached by them. Satero had been asleep at the time. And it had taken a hell of a lot of persuasion to convince Satero that this was a good idea. The man's still grumbling even as they near, though they both come to the silent and unanimous agreement to remain at a distance until they can ascertain their own safety.

"So who are these people anyway?" Satero asks, staring at the building. Corosa follows his gaze and frowns. He thinks he can sense movement on the rooftop, or hear noise.

"Who do you think?" Corosa asks. "They're just another pair, as far as I can tell. You've seen them around too."

Satero makes an unimpressed noise. Corosa ignores it. The man's just being difficult; they'd been awoken at the crack of dawn by the sounds of growling, and had to start their day a little earlier than planned.

Luke was busy. It may not have looked like it to everyone else around, but he was clearly on a very important mission and that was to tune the guitar he had just salvaged from one of the closets in the building that now served as home. It wasn't going to well, but up here in the canopy things were drier, so the guitar had survived rather well, even if the strings were entirely loose.

"I think I almost got it, I swear!" Was the last thing he said before one string snapped and whacked him across the fingers.

A loud curse and it's back to square one.

Jynx didn't mind getting dirty, he really didn't. He just minded the metal, the sharp pointy debris and the ever-present threat of lockjaw that this wreckage seemed to pose. He ran a hand through his short hair, glancing briefly up at the sky before looking around for Aaya as he breathed out slowly. He was constantly listening for the sound of growling and claws against pavement, but luckily there seemed to be none at the moment. He was keeping watch, crouched behind what used to be a cement wall in an attempt at staying out of sight.

"Hey, Aaya, you there?" He asked in an almost whisper, head resting against the rough surface as his eyes darted around once more. Jynx really hated hunting, he didn't like the idea of being hunted himself. "Do you... See anything?"

There were other traps set up, he was sure, but this seemed to be the best place to find something at least somewhat healthy. Jynx shifted, glancing around once more before starting to tug himself up onto the top of that wall, glancing over it as he balanced precariously. He looked around before lowering himself slowly, landing on the gravel with a soft crunch.

"I kind of wished there were still supermarkets..."

"Wishful thinking, Jynx!" A voice called out in a sing-song fashion to the boy as he emerged from his hiding spot. In the distance was a second boy, his sandy-golden hair set in a high ponytail just visible over top of the large chunk of cement rubble he was crouched behind. "Now stop walking over here, I think I see somethin' and if it sees you we won't be getting it."

Aaya Ashoka's blue-green eyes narrow in concentration as he watches a plain brown rabbit with silent, intense interest. Awful scrawny, he thinks, frowning slightly at the animal's less than impressive physique. Honestly though, no matter how sad it seemed, a skinny common rabbit sounded like a wonderful delicacy in comparison to what he and Jynx had been eating lately---rats, small birds, the occasional squirrel if they could manage catch one of the speedy bastards. Aaya had even eaten a suspiciously large beetle once, [more out of curiosity than out of actual hunger] but after a good bout of retching later, it was decided that bugs were better written off as a last resort. No, in comparison, this rabbit was going to be damn well near a gourmet meal to the two boys---and honestly, the two of them agreed; anything would be better than taking their chances with those meals that turned up at the food drops, as tempting as they looked. Nope. Wild, half-starved rabbit was looking awesome.

The Pit sort of... lowered one's standards like that.

"YyyyaaaAARGH!!!" Aaya yelled enthusiatically, springing forth from his hiding place all a-grin like a wildcat, hands outstretched toward the unsuspecting rodent. Its small head whipped around, large watery black eyes wide with terror as it viewed its assailant, as if silently knowing it was this ruined city's newest victim. "GOT YOU!!" Aaya tumbled to the ground managing to grab ahold of the rabbit, capturing it in his over-sized coat. The creature wriggled madly in his grasp, and Aaya almost lost his grip as he fell into the dirt, writhing like an animal himself.

"JYNX!! Don't---quit movin' around, bunny, don't look, 'kay?!!!", he shouted out over the scuffle, kindly attempting to shield the other more sensitive boy from what was always the most unfortunate part of their hunting endeavors. After a few more seconds of struggle between the two desperate animals, it was Aaya who emerged victorious. He stood up, shaking the dust from his golden mane, and strode over to where Jynx had been waiting. Aaya gently cradled the dead rabbit, its neck now limp, in his arms as if it were a child. He looked up at his partner, his grin sheepish, almost embarrassed. Food or not, Aaya couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt every time they "hunted"; because weren't they all just a bunch of scared rabbits trying not to die in this dangerous world?

What are you, some kind of bleeding-heart little philosopher? The air around Aaya chilled slightly, as his brother's ghost made himself known to his still living counterpart. Salim sneered, his blank, dead eyes seeming to judge his younger sibling. You have to eat to live. It's that simple. Stop trying negate that fact with your stupid bullshit empathy, baby brother.

Aaya smiled softly to himself and shook his head, pushing the familiar guilt away. As harsh as his brother was, Salim was right in his own way... They had to survive, right? And besides, Aaya had an obligation; he had to watch out for Jynx. Protect him. Ever since they became partners, it was just something he'd promised to do. A promise he intended to keep.

"Brave hunter Aaya Ashoka returns with today's impressive menu---Pit bunny, anyone?", he says teasingly to Jynx.

Jynx reached out to touch the rabbit's ear before looking around once more, nervously. Aaya made a lot of noise when he hunted, it was a wonder they hadn't attracted something a little more dangerous.

"Let's get out of here so we can skin it." To tell the truth, the darker boy had sort of gotten used to the whole "hunting for food" a long time ago. It made him feel better that Aaya was looking out for him, but Jynx wished he would stop treating him like he was... Delicate. Or maybe Aaya saw something that Jynx didn't...? It didn't seem to matter either way, so long as they were able to both survive together. "I mean, it looks scraggly but maybe we can use it for something?"

"Or maybe we can find some greens to go with it..." He looked briefly hopeful, glancing around a bit before looking right back at Aaya. Tough luck finding anything vegetable-like in this part of town, it looked like they weren't the only ones looking for food. Jynx slumped a little, that hopeful look fading before he straightened up and offered a little smile once more. "Let's just go, I get nervous when we're out like this. There are too many things down here, I guess."

Jynx was like the rabbit. Nervous, a little jumpy, like he didn't want to be out in the open. No, like he didn't want to be seen. The teen wondered if he was getting paranoid, feeling like he was being watched all the time regardless of where he was. His sister was dead, he knew that much (he'd seen the body, he'd seen the bone and the blood and the glazed eyes lacking any soul behind them), but he still felt her lingering presence in spite of such final and violent closure. Maybe it wasn't his sister, maybe it was just him being unable to let go after all of those years of being under her thumb.

Jynx looked away again, pausing in an almost awkward silence as if waiting for affirmation. He finally shook his head, shrugging at nothing before turning to move over some rubble.

"I'm glad you're doing the hunting, but... Do you think I could cook it this time?"

"Would you? Yeah, be my guest then, feel free." Aaya took another quick look at the rabbit before wrapping it up in some ratty looking old cloth he had pulled from the confines of his rather large coat; really, only heaven knew what the boy had stored in the depths of that thing. Even though it was too big for him, it'd been the first thing Aaya had found when he had arrived in the Pit, his first possession, the first new memory he created of having something to call his own. And as far as Aaya was concerned, he pretty much stored his whole life in that coat considering how he and Jynx always had to keep moving. Life in the Pit was all about practicality, right? No matter how ridiculous and bulky they made him look, those pockets were darn useful.

Aaya snorted. "Y'know, probably better you wanna cook anyway, me n' you both know I can't make a meal to save a life." The teen hoisted himself onto the crumbling concrete foundation of a fallen building, grinning with his usual upbeat and athletic enthusiasm. "Remember that squirrel I tried my hand at last t---actually pffft, forget it, try not to remember that. I think my stomach just lurched at the thought."

The boy stretched skyward, waiting for his spine to crack, then reached back and tightened his ponytail with a quick and forceful tug. He sniffs loudly in an attempt to clear his sinuses, aqua eyes gazing out across the rugged, ruined, urban landscape that he and Jynx had called home for almost two years now. Kinda pretty actually, Aaya muses. Try ugly. Boring's good too, adds a certain cynical ghost. Aaya rolls his eyes at Salim, and, deciding to ignore his brother, he turns his attention to his partner. However, Aaya frowns suddenly, noticing the distant look on Jynx's face.

"Hey...are you alright?" he asks, tilting his head in a questioning manner, his expression truly one of genuine concern. "Lookin' kinda pale, buddy...if there's something on your mind you know you can always feel free to tell m---OH MAN. The rabbit. It's not the rabbit, is it?"

Salim sneered at Aaya, rolling his blackened ghostly eyes. Bro, you are one sappy, stupid little shithead.

Aaya rolled his eyes right back at Salim. "...caring doesn't make me stupid... Jynx is my friend," he quietly retorts back to the ghost, accidentally muttering that aloud as a mildly exasperated look crosses his face. How odd it must look; him seemingly arguing with the air like that. Aaya could only hope that after all this time Jynx was used to him commenting on the "input" of his dead brother.

Again, the Pit. Making all this crazy sound good and normal. Half of the time Aaya wasn't sure if he should be laughing or crying at the whole situation. But that was the thing; there was always too much to cry about in the Pit. So for good measure he himself almost always went with the laughing option.

"Eh. Sorry. Salim's being a butt." Aaya added with a chuckle and a shake of his head.


[[EDIT: Holy crap, sorry for all the typos and whatnot in this, that's what I get for writing it after being awake for 28 hours. -w-;;;; Fixed as best I could.]]

He hasn't given up on the guitar yet, but Luke decided that he's going to have to take it with him to get anything else done. Guitar in one hand, checking the sturdiness of the wall with the other (out of pure habit... being up high doesn't bother him as much now that he knows the building is much sturdier than it appears), humming to himself and stepping heavy, the cowboy makes his way downward to see if he can't find anyone to go on a breakfast run with him.

He makes a whistle, just to see if his partner will answer. If not, he decides he'll just make his way to check on the new pair that had decided to show up. They were interesting for sure, and Luke had to admit having other people close was nice for a change.

Spoiler:

Jean Chauvin's been sprawled out on the floor of an empty room for the better part of an hour, ears straining for the sound of sweet musical success from the rooftop. So far, all he has heard is sad, sad failure, enough to make a man weep. A lesser man than Chauvin, anyway, because all Chauvin's doing right now is grinning like a madman. He'd told Luke, hadn't he? He told Luke that damn thing was too far gone and they'd be better off using it as a club.

He hears the whistle but only settles back more comfortably, folding his arms behind his head and closing his eyes. Not much in the mood for moving, right now. If Luke wants him he'll damn well have to come find him.

-

Corosa hears someone on the rooftop say something, but he can't quite make out the words. Sounds like Alvarez, though. It's got that distinctive drawl.

So Corosa gives his partner a shove. "It's not dangerous."

"Yeah, but it sure as hell ain't safe," Satero says, shooting Corosa a dirty look. But he takes a step forwards and that's enough to set them going.

They both cross the street very quickly -- never good to be out in the open -- and reach the building, then start to ascend the stairs. Corosa lags behind to check the place out. It looks in slightly better condition than some of the buildings he's seen, but even 'slightly better' isn't much. Still, he'd have to stay longer to ascertain its actual merits.

Jynx looked at Aaya somewhat oddly, tilting his head a little before offering a small smile as he moved to join his partner. He stood up slowly, wiping his hands off on his pants before looking back up at the sky.

"No, it wasn't the rabbit, Aaya. I've never really been bothered by that." He responded with a little bit wider smile, shrugging his shoulders before continuing. "Just thinking, you know. We should get moving, though..."

He gave a bit of a laugh, a clearly fake one that sounded just a little too forced after that last statement. The blue-haired boy walked past Aaya, kicking aside a small chunk of cement with a soft clatter as he stepped gingerly over some more rubble. Jynx almost started to fall into thought once more, but decided against it as he turned around to look back at Aaya once more.

"Oh... Oh! The squirrel. After we went through all that trouble to catch it, too. I think we would have been better off eating one of those packaged meals than that thing." A little shudder was given at the thought, he didn't think that "food" could be that... You know, maybe he would just do the cooking from now on. Always.

"I am your friend, and you can tell Salim that I will like you no matter what you do," Jynx responded with a genuine smile, tilting his head a little before giving Aaya a friendly, if awkward, punch on the shoulder. The teen didn't know if his friend was really talking to his dead brother or not, and there were times... It didn't matter, as he had said before, he would like Aaya no matter what he did. "Besides, he's an older brother, he doesn't pick your friends."

Paige sang and swung his hips lightly as he bent over to inspect the tomatoes "Go on now, go, walk out that door! Just turn around now‚ cause you're not welcome any more. Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye? Did I crumble, did I lay down and die? Oh no, not I! I will- oh hey they're actually nice and ripe you're right!" Paige ceased abruptly as he stood up, a round, red tomato in his hand. He tossed it lightly to Brunhilda, trusting her with these things better than himself. He move idly over to where the potatoes were buried, sticking his finger into the dirt near one of the sprouts and wiggling it around, waiting for further instructions. Brunhilda was really the one in charge of the little rooftop garden than he was; he was just extra manual labor, but he liked eating something fresh every once in a while.

With a small burst of fidgety-ness Paige stood up and hopped the short distance to Brunhilda, barely avoiding crushing several plants under his heavy, booted feet. He through one arm around Brunhilda, pulling her closer to him. "Say Brunny," he said, "You sure you want us to bring all these things over to that little place we were invited to? I mean, we're not even completely sure anything will come of it, and if we pick 'em now we'll have to eat them rather quickly now won't we?" His tone indicated that he was more interested in assuring Brunhilda's resolve rather than his own. He had that stupid smile plastered on his face, and he continued, "Besides, think of me! Maybe I'll get worried about my precious little partner being around all those strange men!" Paige said over dramatically, giving Brunhilda's shoulder a squeeze before finally letting go, "I might just get jealous!" With that, Paige gave a quick flick of his hand and landed a nice smack on Brunhilda's butt. He immediately danced away to dodge any retaliation the stern woman may have had for him. He once again nimbly dodged crushing any little sprouting greens and turned around once again, his larger, more wolfish grin replacing the light smile he had on before.

"I suppose I'll go get the baskets then hmm? And not the ones I weaved those ones I swear are about to fall apart any second!" Paige walked calmly over to the door that led back down to the interior of the building, humming again.

Brunhilda didn't seem to mind Paige's singing, only half-listening to it as she gently unearthed onions not too far from the cheerful man. She didn't even look up as he plucked a ripe tomato, reaching up to catch it before shooting him a somewhat dour look. The fruit was set in the earth before she quickly signed something that was obviously in a scolding tone.

You'll bruise it if you throw it like that.
[bruise thrown]

It was strange, only one or two words came from her mind, brushing softly against Paige's own in a fuzzy, comforting presence. Images matched, and her hands filled in the gaps creating an almost surreal vision to anyone she "spoke" to. Her lips pursed briefly before she stood up, grabbing the small onions as well as the tomato and sliding them into the front of her makeshift "apron", an old jacket with extra large pockets sewn into the front.

When he almost stepped on the plants her gaze went icy, eyes hardening briefly as she shot images of the various ways Paige was going to die, brief flickers of pain and blood before she softened once more. The plain woman watched him, a brow arching as he continued to talk, as if he were trying to make up for her own silence. She watched almost blank-faced as he grabbed her shoulder, eyes going wide briefly as he swatted her bottom, an almost playful look given to him before she gave a "scolding" finger shake at him.

We can go. We need to go. The beans will be ready soon, tomorrow or the day after. We must come back then... They can help harvest.
[Yes. Go... Harvest help]

She watched him dance around the smaller buds, lips pursing once more briefly before returning to normal as she tilted her head. A slow nod answered Paige's comment before a somewhat amused look crossed her features. Obviously Brunhilda agreed with his statement, a hand brushed off on her pants before starting to sign once more.

You can't weave, it's a waste of materials for you to even try.
[bad weaver]

Her eyes narrowed briefly before she gave him an obscure smile, but no thought or sign came with it. Obviously the woman was thinking of something that she didn't want Paige to "hear". She turned away from him, that smile fading as she moved to the potatoes her partner had already molested.

Aaya snickered. "Like heck I'd let him even if he tried. I mean, I love my bro, but man, Salim's idea of a good friend is somebody who'd get arrested with you for assaulting a police officer on a drunken dare or somethin' stupid like that."

GODDAMMIT that only happened once!!! Salim narrowed his void-like eyes, silently seething as a ghostly white mist wafted up from between his clenched teeth. And the only reason Charlie and I were as piss-drunk as we were was because Deshawn's bitch-ass girlfriend suddenly decided it would be fuckin' cute to---
SALIM, BUSY, IAMIGNORINGYOUNOW, Aaya willed loudly to his brother, giving him a gentle but firm mental shove. The ghost scoffed a bit at being slighted, but reluctantly seemed to obey. Fine, whatever. I got... stuff to do too. I guess. Cool dead people shit. Totally, he grumbled, his tone echoing with sarcasm. Begrudgingly, Salim seemed to seep into the shadows, becoming near invisible even to Aaya's eyes; just before completely disappearing though, he quickly swept his ghostly form past his still living younger brother and friend, making sure to send a bone-chilling shudder up both Aaya and Jynx's spines. Heh. Later bitches.

"....bbbrrrrrRRR... B-Bro. Such a jerk," Aaya muttered with a little grin, pulling his coat around himself a little tighter, before continuing to traverse the ruined terrain. He glanced back at his partner, trying to read the other boy. Ever since they had first met, Jynx had always been the "quiet one," occasionally lapsing into those melancholic, ponderous silences of his. Aaya didn't mind. He didn't take his companion's silences personally, not in the least; after all, Jynx was just one of those kinds of people who seemed to think about things and analyze them more deeply then most.

Aaya offered Jynx a warm smile. "Ya comin'? We're almost home." Yes. Aaya cared for his friend, Jynx probably being the only friend he had left in his remaining memory. Wondering what the other boy was thinking was more of a concerned curiosity than anything else.

"Can't wait to get this rabbit going---I think I'm damn near starved!" Aaya said enthusiastically, rubbing his hands together maniacally and licking his lips, acting more like a brightly garbed pony-hawked gremlin than a teen boy.

Paige was used to Brunhilda's odd communications at this point, and he didn't even blinked as the foreign words and thoughts brushed against his own. He smirked as she sent him her equivalent of a very strong death glare. Of course he wouldn't trample any of the garden, after all he had put nearly as much work into this garden as she had, and he had been the one nearly mauled by toothdogs three times hauling the damn dirt from the overgrown park nearby onto the roof. He hopped over to the door on the roof with a grin and a wink at Brun and then descended the stairs.

Eventually, Paige was shrugging on the rough straps of the basket and securing it on his back, waiting for it to be filled with fresh picked goodness. Paige seemed to either not mind or not realize that Brunhilda was essentially using him as her mule for the time being. He bounced gently on the balls of his feet waiting patiently for Brun to finish filling the basket, being sure not to jiggle it too much lest he get more mental images of death and bruised tomatoes. Once finished he turned around facing Brunhilda with excitement.

"You ready to go? I'm ready to go! I wanna see what happens with this meeting thing it's sure to be interesting!" Paige said. He could deal with solitude just fine but that didn't mean he wasn't excited to go actually interact with some people for once. Brunhilda was a great partner (a greeeat partner,) he would be perfectly happy staying alone with her, but his curiosity wouldn't let him. Paige wanted this and really was going to do it whether Brunhilda approved or not, lucky him she did. His eyes glittered beneath his squinty eyelids and he turned towards the plank connecting their little garden with the highway of other rooftops, walking with purpose.

((Put both posts here to keep from double posting. I changed the font color for Brunhilda, just to prevent confusion.))

Jynx visibly shivered as Salim passed through him. He couldn't feel the ghost, but he sure felt him as he rubbed his arms and looked around anxiously. The boy bit his bottom lip, looking frightened for a moment before Aaya's voice snapped his attention back to the present.

"What? Oh. Coming..." He trailed off, looking behind him once more before starting to hop over rubble toward his buddy. A hand ran through his hair brushing away dirt as he glanced at the sky before looking back at Aaya. "I bet that rabbit will be good. I can almost taste it now, I don't care if it's old and tough... It's too bad we don't have some potatoes or something to go with it. Ugh, and some cheesecake. It feels like ages since I've had some."

He scrambled up a rock, almost falling on his face as gravel shifted under his sneaker. There was the dull scraping of nail against cement before he pulled himself upright, coughing a little to hide his embarassment. Sure, there was only Aaya there to see, but that was more than enough to make the shy boy blush.

"And a big salad, with radish and avacado on it... Cucumbers, carrots, onions..." Jynx was making himself hungry just thinking about it, reminding himself that there was nothing more than a sorry rabbit that was already rapidly cooling in Aaya's questionable jacket. "Hey, Aaya? Do you think we'll ever get out of this dump?"

The question came out before he realized it. The blue-haired teen stopped, looking away briefly before starting to walk a little faster.

"Nevermind, forget I asked. I mean, what would we do when we got out of here, anyway. There's no way we could assimilate back into society... It would be like going from the Island of Dr. Moreau to 18th century London... You ever read that book?"

Jynx feel in step beside Aaya, tilting his head to look at him before sliding his hands out of his pockets. He fell quiet for a moment, listening for dogs before shrugging his shoulders.

"Sometimes it feels like that, you know... None of us really remember what happened right before all of... This... Maybe we were vivisected, made into something else. You know, like how the animals were forced to be "human"... But what are we supposed to be?"

Still waters run deep, it seems. He looked away, almost sad as he bit his lip once more. It would likely bleed before he went to bed tonight, his teeth snagging that already tortured skin with each dark thought and look. Maybe it would be better if he just let sleeping dogs lie, and focused instead on how he was going to prepare that rabbit.


-----


Brunhilda didn't mind doing work, but if Paige was there she was more than willing to let him work things out for her. She didn't like being "lazy", but if something bad did happen she was better "equipped" to fight off threats than Paige himself. Sure, he could fight, but being able to push away an attacker from a distance seemed to save them trouble and blood.

She loaded the basket with their meager harvest. The beans would be good, they could grow almost anywhere and were plentiful, but the potatoes were small and almost malformed because of their lack of growing space. She finished off the basket with a couple tomatoes, packing them in gently before tying on the top to the basket with old shoelaces she managed to snag. The woman patted affectionately, before pulling away and starting to follow closely behind Paige in case something happened to the basket. Although she joked about Paige's "weaving" skills, she really wasn't much better... They served their purpose at best, but too much jostling tended to make them fall apart.

[Puppy]

An image of Paige with puppy ears and a rapidly wagging tail flashed abruptly before blinking out. She almost smiled, balancing on that wooden plank with practiced ease. After moving away from that small garden it was more a matter of finding the place than anything else. Brunhilda just hoped that Paige knew where they were going as they started to move over the rooftops.

"Aw man, Jynx---cheesecake? Here we are in the middle of---" Aaya gingerly steps through the doorway of an abandoned building, carefully trying to avoid the shards of shattered glass spread along the ground. "Well. I don't know where 'here' is exactly, but CHEESECAKE? Aw man what I would give for a sl....oh, careful there, Jynx," the boy adds as Jynx slips, then just as quickly scrambles back to his feet. Aaya grins, as Jynx blushes, embarrassed. "Don't worry--I promise I won't tell anyone, " Aaya says playfully, shoving his hands in his pockets as he turns around to continue further into the building. "Heh. Naw, but in all seriousness, I'd be more worried 'bout you falling on the glass and hurting yourself or somethin'... m'not too good at doctoring I'm afraid."

They reach the far corner of the abandoned room, where an old metal carpenter's ladder ascended skyward towards a hole in the ceiling. Aaya looks up toward the top of the ladder, and is about to take the first rung when Jynx's voice cuts through Aaya's thoughts. The subject has changed suddenly from the other boy's imagined dinner to something far more serious.

"Hey, Aaya? Do you think we'll ever get out of this dump?"

Aaya is silent as his partner clams up. The pony-hawked kid turns around to face the other boy, as Jynx suddenly continues on. He listens quietly. Much of what Jynx was saying rang true though; how would, how could they assimilate back into normal society, if, say, that chance were ever given? Aaya could barely even associate any solid image with that phrase, "normal society"; Salim would occasionally speak of their parents, a memory, a musing, a fun time or another, whereas Aaya couldn't even recall their faces. He just couldn't remember; Aaya had a disappointed, melancholic feeling he couldn't remember a lot of things.

But at other times, although he knew not the extent of it...he had another sinking feeling that Jynx remembered too much. Too many memories, and a lot of them, not so good.

"Hey." Aaya reaches out, gently putting his hands on Jynx's shoulders. He tilts his head slightly, offering a small smile to his companion. "...it's gonna be okay, man. I mean...even if we were something else before all of...whatever this is, we're here now right? I'm me and you're you, and we know each other as we are now. And...I know being who we think we are sure ain't a bad thing." Aaya beams. "Don't get me wrong, I'd love to figure out all the things my brain seems to be missing. Heck, the thought that there IS stuff missing scares the crap outta me sometimes, but..." He grins broadly. "We can always...remake who we are. Remake us. Make some new memories..." He pauses slightly, that day almost two years ago crossing his mind briefly. "'Kay?" He gives Jynx a reassuring pat on the shoulder before turning back to the ladder and starting climb up it. "We're supposed to be who we want...so just...y'know, be who you want, Jynx."

Aaya poked his golden haired head through the second floor, hoisting himself off the ladder and onto his feet. On the second floor of this building was what could be called the boys' "base of operations;" in the center of the room was a couple of old stained couch cushions with the fluff oozing out of them, surrounding a large dented basin with some charred wood in it. A brightly colored child's radio [no batteries, the antenna missing] sat uselessly on the floor ["Hey its broken, but it makes a cool, home-like decoration!" Aaya had insisted.] Some chipped plates, a teacup, three forks [one missing a prong], a dire looking butcher's knife, and a thermos sat up next to the firewood basin, undoubtedly making up the entirety of the boys' eating utensils. On one of the cushions sat an old paperback copy of Macbeth, its pages loose and yellowing. One wall had huge windows that reached the ceiling, the glass in some cloudy, the glass in others clear, the glass in others still, well, completely missing. Near the wall opposite of the windows was Jynx's bed, a dilapitated mattress with a few scattered blankets on it, with whatever he had as possessions kept in a wooden crate next to it. On the other side of the mattress was a large pile of what appeared to be rags, old clothes, and sheets; Aaya's sleeping "nest" as well as main storage area for anything he happened to hoard that he couldn't keep in his coat.

Aaya strode over to the center of the room and flopped down on one of the cushions, more cotton puffing out as he did so. He reaches into his coat and pulls out the rabbit, setting it down on one of the plates before reclining. "Bahhhh...home sweet home," he says contentedly, happy to be sitting down after a morning of hunting.

Luke was still peering in every door and giving the occasional holler or whistle for Chauvin. He guessed the man was probably hiding around some corner, just waiting to jump out. this was the case more often than it should have been, and there was the possibility he was wrong. Even so, better safe than sorry.

This lead to a problem. When Luke heard footsteps coming up the stairwell, he automatically assumed it would be Chauvin, and tucked himself behind a door just in case. No, no, it doesn't sound quite right. Two sets...? A bit heavier than Chauvin's footfalls at any rate.

He still hid behind the door, just in case, but he had a hunch of who he might be running into.

Corosa blinks a bit when he hears a faint whistle echoing down from one of the higher floors. Yes, that's... well, he's fairly certain it's Alvarez or his partner. At least, he's certain until the silence settles in. Satero mumbles something under his breath but shuts up when he notices the quiet, too. They both pause on the stairway to listen.

They exchange looks. Standard procedure, here. Satero clicks his tongue in annoyance and continues on ahead, a little more slowly and carefully than before. Corosa slings the crossbow off his back, cocks and loads it and backs off. His job here is to keep his distance (in theory to cover for his partner; in reality, he suspects Satero is trying for chivalry).

Usually, Corosa doesn't have to do much in terms of attack. Satero's very good at knifing things.

Luke comes to a brilliant conclusion: That's most definitely and decidedly not Chauvin, but it's hard for him to tell for sure now that they've stopped too. In hindsight he realizes that's not much of a decision so much as a bit of circular logic, but he wasn't one to focus on nitpicking. He listened for a second more before sending off another whistle into the hallway.

"Heeey, who's out there...? I swear if I'm wrong and y'are Chauvin...."

...Be who you want, Jynx.

Jynx waited until Aaya started to climb before looking away, eyes flitting to the floor as he chewed on his lip in silence. He stood still, like a statue, barely even breathing as whatever thoughts drifting behind his eyes went unsaid. The boy slowly moved, blinking as he looked back up at Aaya's ascending form before following after him with a faint twitch of his lips. He pulled himself onto the floor of their "home sweet home", not even bothering to look around as he shuffled to his feet before moving past Aaya's sprawled, leggy form. He was tempted to flop next to the other boy, tilting his head as if thinking about it before moving toward his own "treasure crate" by the wall.

"You know what I miss more than cheesecake and grocery stores? I miss running water. For once I'd like to relieve myself without worrying about my ass being chewed on."

He rummaged through the crate, tugging out an assortment of random crap (a shirt that was three sizes too large, a box of rusty nails, a photo of some random family) before pulling out a box cutter that had been tucked in the corner somewhere. He snagged some dirty fishing line that stuck out of Aaya's pile'o crap before moving toward the stiffening bunny near Aaya.

"And a shower. Sure, it rains... But that's nothing compared to hot water." He spoke as he wrapped the line around the rabbit's feet, tying it awkwardly before moving to the window with a slow roll of his shoulders. There was a nail haphazardly sticking out of the wall, which he tied the line to (again, awkwardly, he never really learned any proper knots) before letting the carcass dangle. He looked at Aaya, before glancing out the window, looking down onto the street as he lazily clicked the blade of the boxcutter in and out of place. Jynx thought about what he had just said, mentally wincing before shaking his head. Cheesecake. What was he, stupid? It's like he'd turned into a girl or something.

Jynx moved, moving half-charred wood out of the basin before kicking it lazily over to the rabbit, starting to dress the corpse with a faint twitch of his mouth. He hated the smell, the feel, blood and bone and meat (like a body on the cement, luring in the dogs)... The guts were picked through, masses of intestines tossed out the window in a bloody mass as he ground his teeth.

"Drawing and quartering." The boy hadn't meant to say that out loud, but it came out anyway. He fell silent as he finished dressing the carcass with an eerily blank face.

Spoiler:

Corosa relaxes. Satero doesn't, and instead stops walking, obviously trying to figure out which room it is that the voice is coming from. He doesn't answer, either, which means it's up to Corosa to reply.

"It's Corosa," he says. His voice comes out a lot more tired-sounding than it should. "And Satero. We met yesterday?"

Corosa puts the crossbow away and raises an eyebrow at Satero when the man whirls on him. He ignores the much-exaggerated sigh that Satero makes, but does walk up the stairs to rejoin his partner.

"We haven't seen Chauvin, he's not out here," Corosa says.

"Who the hell's Chauvin?" Satero asks. The question sounds belligerent, but Corosa's fairly certain he's asking out of genuine confusion. It's painfully obvious to Corosa that Satero's still on edge, and when he's on edge Satero's first instinct is to be hostile towards everything.

"OH, s' y'all, knew I heard a few more steps'n usual!" He opens the half-rusted door and ducks out from behind it, waving a gloved hand at the pair. "Down here!"

He looks around again, as if his Partner might come out at any second, though it's mostly show. "Chauvin's my partner. He's somewhere 'round here, I was gonna' look for 'im n' try to get out to hunt for somethin' edible." If he's registered any kind of edginess, he certainly didn't show it, still bold and grinning and positively cheerful to see Satero and Corosa had arrived at the place he fully intended to call home.

"Say... If I can't find him, would y'all mind helpin' me out...? Promise I c'n cook it well enough!" Good job Luke, putting them to work right as they arrive...

"Oh shit, where the hell did you come from?" Satero says, going to the railing of the staircase to stare at Luke.

Satero had jumped a little when he realized that Luke wasn't actually ahead of them. Corosa's busy looking at the building again, a little amused by how the acoustics of this place had screwed their senses up. A little worried too. What if the next time that happens it's not a friendly entity they're dealing with...?

A jab in the shoulder brings Corosa's attention back to the real world.

"So?" Satero asks. "You wanna go huntin'?"

Satero's relaxed somewhat, now that it's certain that Luke is Luke and not someone out to kill them. There's still a bit of brittle nervousness in the line of his mouth, though, and in the way his gaze can't seem to focus on any one thing, flickering back and forth, always looking for something to be suspicious of. Corosa joins him at the railing and leans on it to look at Luke.

Corosa shrugs. "Sure."

He gets shoved by his partner as Satero passes him, tramping down the stairs towards Luke. Corosa follows, frowning as he thinks. There's something that's bothering him here. Granted, there's always something, but-- Oh, yes.

When Corosa and Satero reach Luke, Corosa taps his own tick and asks, "If we're leaving, don't you have to find Chauvin?"

Luke puts the guitar down against a wall and leaves it behind as he leads Satero and Corosa through the door and down the hall.

At Corosa's question, he grins wide. "Nope, all I have t' get's some powder. Someone's gotta' stay behind and hold down the fort, so to say, right? Heheh." He pushed open a door and peeked around. "Nope, not here either. Bet the one room I never checked he's in, damn that craft rat-bastard."

Another two doors down and Luke finds where they've been keeping the gunpowder and the few weapons they've managed to acquire. He selects a few small bags and weighs them in his hand, checks the labels on the sides of the bags, single letters in red paint. He appears fairly pleased with them and drops them in a messenger bag that he slings across his back alongside a hunting rifle.

"S' all I need... You two ready...?"

Corosa and Satero exchange equally confused glances at Luke's answer, but neither of them say anything. Corosa supposes they'll see for themselves exactly how Luke's going to leave with his partner still behind. Maybe the man's just mad...? Corosa wouldn't be surprised, the city's certainly the sort of place to drive men insane, and Luke Alvarez seems a little too cheerful for this place.

"Yeah, we're good," Satero says, still looking perplexed but following after Luke willingly enough. "Are you sure you can leave, uh, Chauvin behind? Don't the stupid ticks make you, you know...?" Satero makes some dumb and unhelpful hand gestures.

But Corosa can also see him eyeing the rifle and the bag with curiosity. They're both heard gunshots around the city but haven't come across any firearms themselves.

Corosa lags behind again, this time just to look inside one of the rooms. He's curious. They're thinking about staying in this place and he wants to know how safe it is. How safe will it be to be in a group at all? Groups draw attention, but on the other hand they also bring safety. He'll just have to watch and see how the pros and cons of this balance out. And see what Satero thinks about it.