Absolutely everybody -- at or near the fireplace

[cook_the_rude]

This evening, there are several people relaxing by or near the fireplace the fireplace, doing slightly unexpected things. Among them are:

• Katrina Crane, seated in a comfortable chair, reading -- a romance novel?
• Pearse Harman, scribbling down bullet points for tomorrow's sermon while at a table with a glass of -- beer?
• Teja, in his usual chair by the trilobite tank, with all four cats and a soundly sleeping Egil, playing his -- guitar?
• Lady Margolotta, at a table drinking cocoa and cuddling a cute, pink-nosed -- rat?
• Dr. Hannibal Lecter, lounging on a sofa with his feet up, reading a book on -- demonology?
• Dorian Gray, sitting cross-legged in from of a coffee table, sensuously enjoying several different -- cupcakes?
• Madame Thénardier, hunched on an ottoman right by the fire, voraciously reading a book by -- Hilary Mantel?

[[OOC: Say in your tag whom you want -- open until it scrolls! Not trying to emulate the sheer numbers on the last one, though...]]

Comments

[lt_blade]

She shut her eyes, forcing back tears as she thought of the men. The men on the island, they were counting on her and even though she tried-it wasn't enough. Sonya took a deep breath and opened her eyes again.

"A second family. One large, dysfunctional, never sure if I want to hug them or punch them, sort of family."

And she was so close to loosing them. It Tsung had his way, she'd disown them as betray her realm.

[cook_the_rude]

"A sense of belonging, you mean?"

[lt_blade]

She nodded. "Go through duty together long enough, you either really start to hate eachother or you bond." What was the saying 'hang together or hang separately.

She wondered what the others were doing. Back home they hit a large drug and weapons bust, but they were after Kano. She did everything by the book-now look at her.

In her head she kept hearing Tsung's voice: how the army was holding her back. She tried to shut it off.

[cook_the_rude]

"But is it worth selling your soul for?" Dr. Lecter asks.

[lt_blade]

The way he asks that, Sonya doesn't see Lecter, but Shang Tsung-asking her if her military career was worth it. Surely a woman of her skills and talents deserves a higher ranking position in life.

Then she remembers that she's talking with Lecter, not the sorcerer and she looks at him in a way that's almost-if not really-defiant. "I told you I wouldn't go back on the military-would that be the case if the people weren't worth it."

They were family after all. One of the few regrets she had in this life was not being able to help her family.

[cook_the_rude]

"And now?" Dr. Lecter asks. "Find a new posting?"

[lt_blade]

"Now I'm bound here until Ms. Bar determines otherwise." She didn't want to think long term. Doing that would just drive her mad and she couldn't afford that: one day at a time, that was all she could do.

"I have a job in the stables." This was said really as an afterthought: she wasn't totally idle.

[cook_the_rude]

"You have time to think, then," Dr. Lecter says.

[lt_blade]

She let out a disgruntled hmph. "Too much time." Thinking led to thoughts, and thoughts led back to her time in Outworld. "And dungeon cells afford a lot of time for that already."

Between the torture sessions and 'dinners' with Tsung and the rest of the court, there wasn't much else to do besides think and try to do small exercises.

[cook_the_rude]

"You still don't know what you plan to do?"

[lt_blade]

"Here or when I leave bar?" She had a schedule in Bar, somewhat, enough to keep her busy. Back in Outworld though, she knew damn well what she was going to do.

[cook_the_rude]

"When you leave, of course."

[lt_blade]

She sucked in a breath, fighting back nausea. She didn't want to go back to that cell, let alone thing back on it. Much as she knew it was inevitable, she couldn't say she was looking forward to it.

"When I leave..." She spoke slowly, forcing the words out. "When I go back, it'll be to the Outworld fortress, where I'll be trying to escape from the guards trying to put me back into a dungeon cell. I need to escape from there and get back to my allies in the guest chambers."

Guest being the operative word.

[cook_the_rude]

"And when you've done that?"

[lt_blade]

"When I escape Outworld." When, not if. She wouldn't think in terms of 'if' she escapes. "I'll get back to the army...I need to tell them what happened, what happened to the men who I lost." She forced her voice to keep steady, but the truth was she didn't know how she could tell them. If she stuck to that they died in duty, it'd cover what really happened, but she knew the families wouldn't believe the truth."

"There's a strong suggestion going around that the Emperor's going to invade Earth. My CO and I need to warn the army of what's gong to happen." She took a breath, rubbing her eyes "And I'm well aware that they'll most likely not believe us."

Nevermind that she wasn't the sort to exaggerate or make stories, if she hadn't seen what she did with her own eyes she would've thought it crazy. Even so, they had to do something. There was going to be an invasion and if they stood any chance, they needed to get everyone ready.

[cook_the_rude]

"Your Earth sounds very ordinary," Dr. Lecter says. "They certainly won't believe you. You're likely to end up in the mental ward of a military hospital."