Cassie Cage - Halloween

[cassiefuckingcage]

Cassie can't see it happen when she steps into the Bar, but it's pretty hard not to notice. She's not in her uniform.

"This had better be a sweetass costume, or I'm burning you to the ground."

She looks down at herself, smiles, and steps off into the bathroom to have a look in the mirror. About a minute later, she emerges.

"You got lucky."

Comments

*shouldn't be giggling, but I'm am*

[soldier_blade]

Sonya..couldn't exactly say the same thing. She considered herself as modern as the next woman, but between the cleavage and short skirt, she was scared to even move.

Like now, she was seated as carefully as she could be on the sofa, trying to retrain as much dignity as she could muster. A book on military war tactics is in her lap: the only thing she could focus on when she spots Cassie.

Her eyes narrowed when she saw the costume. "...Tank girl?.." Holy crap, when was the last time she read that comic?

[cassiefuckingcage]

Cassie turns her head, striking an unconscious pose.

"Sexy ringmaster?"

[soldier_blade]

From what she recalled, the roll fit her. "One year, she's going to give me a halloween costume that includes a set of pants-or hell, I'll take a pair of short shorts even."

Like Cassie, at this point, she'd take a pair of hot pants.

[cassiefuckingcage]

Cassie gestures hotpantsward. "Well, I got lucky this time.

"It's way better than Cubefall."

[soldier_blade]

"Hey, cubefall was fun. I got to be a hawk." True, she couldn't talk at the time, but..flying, fucking awesome.

"Last year Bar dressed me as a 'spider queen'-extremely frilly, but tame compared to this." She could atleast move in that one and the skirt wasn't that bad.

[cassiefuckingcage]

Cassie frowns. "For you, maybe."

She doesn't elaborate. She doesn't want to rehash that infuriating moment.

"Maybe Bar is balancing things out."

[soldier_blade]

"Or this is a way of saying the group I lead is like a circus." With those they had as allies, certainly felt that way. "Your costume seems to fit too, least as much as I remember from the comics."

She wondered if Cassie was aware she read comics: probably not, that was back when she was an enlisted, she didn't read them now, why would she tell anyone.

She tried to compose herself with some dignity. "You manage to get a hold of the files I asked for?"

[cassiefuckingcage]

Cassie shrugs. "I'm not much of a comic reader. Just saw the movie once. She seems like she'd be cool to hang out with."

Tank Girl was significantly before her time.

"Uh, yeah. Just ask Bar for 'em."

It was a real pain trying to not-quite-explain what they were for. And to get the files without having to talk to her C.O., which...yeah, would have been strange.

[soldier_blade]

"Comics were easier to travel with than books." She managed to say, though her voice sounded strangely numb. She couldn't remember the last time she read a novel or comic just for recration-or maybe it was indeed recent and she couldn't be bothered to recall?

The thought was a scary one.

Hearing that the papers were within Bar, Sonya unwittingly let out a sign of relief. "Thank you. This will help us in the long run." She hoped.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Tablets made a lot of things easier."

Cassie hesitates, then comes closer to rest a hand on her shoulder.

"You alright?"

[soldier_blade]

"Have a feeling you're not talking about paper tablets-mid 90s, remember." They were just getting to affordable laptops.

For a moment, she tensed a little when Cassie set her hand on her shoulder, but to her credit she didn't push her away. "Just thinking, that I can't remember the last time I read something just for recreation..for fun. Anything I used to find enjoyable...now seems a waste of time."

She looked at the book she was trying to read: roman tactics, detailed but not great for story telling. Anyone who tried to read it for entertainment would find it dull as hell.

"Athelstan referred me to someone named Doctor Bloom, with whom he's been getting help from." She took a deep breath, needing to get it out. "PTSD..casebook..she said I should talk with Sam Wilson. He's more qualified for treating vets, but she's been helping me with breathing exercises."

She almost didn't want to say it. Saying it meant it was true, and there was no way out of it: people didn't get 'cured' from PTSD.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Well, it's good that you've found someone here," Cassie says. "Someone who knows you're telling the truth."

[soldier_blade]

She nodded. "You've..okay you probably have an idea. Yes, it's a relief. I've been searching for awhile within this place, but outside of meeting Dr. Bloom, those I spoke with said they weren't qualified to treat vets."

She had help now. That was the main thing. She would've leaned back on the sofa, but for fear of 'popping out' of her costume. "Jesus...how the hell they expect someone to move in this without flashing someone-or is that the point?"

[cassiefuckingcage]

"I hope they can give you what you need."

She means that. Absolutely.

Then, letting a small smile creep across her face:

"I'm pretty sure whoever made that costume knew exactly what they were doing."

[soldier_blade]

The change of topic was a strange one, all things considered, but it was better than talking about her mental issues. "Oh, I'm sure."

She wasn't ashamed of how she looked, least not counting her various scars, but she wasn't used to putting out this kind of attention either. Wearing this sort of costume, she worried that it was a call for attention when she wanted little to do with that as possible.

She fought the urge to tighten the 'jacket' around herself. "Mardi gras is another holiday where where you could expect your clothes to change, though more festive then an actual costume."

[cassiefuckingcage]

"I'll keep my eyes open for that," Cassie says.

Then, she pauses, her smile subsiding. The more time goes by in Milliways, the more she realizes she can't let her mother's problems go. This is important.

"Just make sure you take the time to take care of yourself. You are worth the effort."

She wonders if her older self knew that - if she still needed the same help this Sonya did.

[soldier_blade]

Some day, Sonya was going to work up the nerve to ask on Cassie's relationship with her mother-some day. Atleast, with this place though, there seemed to be the need for some re-connection.

"Olivier said that too, in his own fashion." They were family after all, he was able to see something was wrong even when she brushed it off. "I told him..tried to tell myself..I would feel better after the invasion was beaten-know now it'll still take effort."

Sonya looked at her, her expression looking tired inspite of the bright get-up. "In this place, it's made me slowly realize that there might be something wrong with me. Knowing that there is something, it's both scary and yet a relief at the same time."

There was therapy, a way to manage the voice in her head that nagged her to never let up, never let her guard down or someone will get hurt. That's what always happened: in Hong Kong, in the tournament, Outworld. She started feeling this since the trip to Upsala, since her time in Outworld.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Because you know you're not alone?"

[soldier_blade]

She nodded. Much as Liu and Johnny were her allies and there to talk, she noted they had an easier time adjusting-hell, Johnny was already talking about movie deals. As though living through the tournament once was bad enough.

"That, and it's scary because I can't deny it anyore." There was no covering it up. "This is something I'll have to constantly fight against, that voice in my head that's always nagging at me to not slow down, never relax or let my guard down, or someone will get hurt."

That's what it was: a voice, a constant, nagging voice that urged her onward.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"It's...okay to need people."

[soldier_blade]

Her voice was so quiet, Sonya had to strain to hear it. There's a moment of hesitation before she reached over and places a hand on top of hers. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. With Athelstan it was one thing..he knew what it was like, and Olivier knew her from the beginning. There was a sense of relief to know it was out there, a sort of numb relief that meant there was on person she didn't need to hide from.

"Athelstan..and Olivier..Athelstan especially, I don't know why it is, but I usually feel better around him." She lowered her voice, forcing it to be controlled. "Without then, without this place, I would've probably still made it, just not nearly as well as I have."

The last part was said with a slight, almost embarrassed laugh.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Guess I'll have to ask you when I get home."

Figures this is how Halloween would go once family got involved.

[soldier_blade]

Sonya found herself laughing before she could stop herself. "Be sure to tell me how that goes."

The topic did allow for some leeway atleast. "Is it halloween where you are?"

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Yeah. I'll do that."

Cassie's a bit taken aback by Sonya's reaction.

"It's a few days off."

[soldier_blade]

Sonya wasn't honestly sure how that conversation would go. She must've made it if Cassie was born, but..at what cost.

"I'm guessing you've plans, or you did and army life got in the way?" Fact of life, unfortunately. "We still have..two months to go."

Holy crap, she'd never even given Halloween a second thought back home. So many things taking up time.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"You can't party as often as you used to in the Army," Cassie says.

[soldier_blade]

That earned Cassie a raised eyebrow, and look around. "When you say 'used to'..what exactly have you heard?"

Granted, she never did anything that would've been on her record, but there was a reason why she was labeled 'designated driver' so early in her career. Still, there were stories and then there were exaggerations.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"I was talking about my civilian life," Cassie says.

"What are you talking about?"

[soldier_blade]

Oh lord, of course she wouldn't know this story. "Depends..is your mom still the official designated driver?"

Granted, she drank on occasion, but not nearly as much as some of the guys did. After that birthday, they made sure to appoint her as driver.

[cassiefuckingcage]

"...Most people don't party with their parents."

[soldier_blade]

She couldn't say she was wrong, but then Sonya always tried to avoid her mom when she was drunk. "No, but word around army bases travel like wild fire." And she didn't care who thought otherwise: male soldiers were just as keen, if not keener, on gossip as women-especially if it concerned ranking officers.

"When I turned twenty-one, the date was near enough that some of us had a few days off from base. Went to one of the bars because the guys convinced me to celebrate proper.." The memory made her feel like laughing and crying at the same time. "Spent the next morning with a killer hangover, and Staff Sergeant Wexler telling me of a bar fight, and from then on out it was voted I'm designated driver."

And when a bunch of noncom officers make that decision, it means things got bad. "Can definitely tell you that story went around. How the hell we didn't get serious reprimand from it I still don't know."

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Most officers have done some minor stupid thing or other in their butterbar days," Cassie says. "Or so I've heard."

Some didn't need the excuse of being officers either. Going AWOL to fight in an underground MMA club was something she was lucky to live to regret.

[soldier_blade]

"True, but I was a sergeant at the time. Depending on where it took place and how bad, could've gotten anything from restriction to the Base or reprimand." Not the same as an officer, who seemed to have more leeway. "Actually, I do recall that this all happened off base and we were in civilian clothing, so I don't think anyone recognized us."

Or if they did, hell, they were all a bunch of noncoms enjoying themselves: not enough to attract attention. Least it would've remained that way without the fight. "And my CO at the time was extremely dense, so even if he got word of the barfight, probably went over his head."

[cassiefuckingcage]

"Well, it's been a while," Cassie says. "Probably moved onto talking about other things."

When they're sure the general isn't listening.