iselldrugstothecommunity: (Well damn.)
Howard Bassem ([personal profile] iselldrugstothecommunity) wrote in [community profile] trans_92011-10-04 11:05 am

Nobody Fears the Height, You All Just Fear the Fall [Open]

When Howard was younger, before the FAYZ, he and Orc would occasionally hang out at the edge of the cliffs, throwing things off the edge. It was typical teenage destructivity, layered on top of the thrill of doing something their parents had warned them against. "Those cliffs are unstable! The edge could crumble off right under your feet!" And of course, all the teenagers knew that the edge of the cliffs were fine, and that the rumors of rockslides were horror stories based less in fact than in scare tactics.

Howard sits on the edge of one of the cliffs, dangling his feet over the edge, flicking his pocketknife open and closed. It's weird that here on Stacy, the cliffs overlook the City, rather than the ocean. It makes everything look wrong.

He gathered an armful of small stones before taking a seat here. They sit next to him now, and between clicks of the knife, he occasionally tosses one over the edge. It's far enough down that he can see, but not hear, the impact when each rock hits the bottom.

He's not alone from the FAYZ anymore. That should make him glad, that there are other refugees besides him and Albert. And that's what they are, really. Not Stacy's abducted crew, but practically unintentional stowaways, freeloaders running away from the nightmare of their home. But he can't find it in himself to be happy about it. Instead he just feels frustrated and tired, like there's a cloud between his brain and his face, holding him back from really experiencing anything.

He just misses Orc, he tells himself, before flinging another rock in the City's general direction. It falls short, just like all the others.

[identity profile] ronnae.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 06:23 pm (UTC)(link)
"Standing up usually gives you further distance." came the girl's timid voice from behind Howard, a good distance as she stood with her arms crossed over her chest, usual attire of hoodie and baggy pants were worn along her usual long ponytails.

She had never been to this particular side of the City, but she was always exploring on her free time, looking to discover more areas and maybe find something useful.

This time, it wasn't something, but someone she had met on previous occasions, not all of them pleasant but she had gotten used to Howard's unique personality. And truth be told, she didn't mind it at all.

[identity profile] ronnae.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 06:29 pm (UTC)(link)
That one was new. She was beginning to think that the creativity of his nicknames for her would never cease, and she didn't know if that was good or bad.

She made her way and settled on the edge as well, not too close, but enough to keep a conversation. Placing her hands in her hoodie's pockets, she looked out into the City.

"Not much, exploring as per usual when I have my days off. Had never seen this before so decided to check it out. Didn't really expect anyone here..."

[identity profile] ronnae.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 06:39 pm (UTC)(link)
That... was an odd memory to have of the place. But not one she was shocked by.

"That would have been horrid... Not the running into you of course, I mean if the kids followed her."

"I do, I've been making my own map of it, but this place is so huge, even with as long as I've been here, there's always something I haven't seen before. I'm sure crazy stacy is moving things around and adding more and more things."

She sighed, she'd never get that map finished.
ext_988045: (Default)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 06:59 pm (UTC)(link)
"First you tear up the City, then you throw rocks at it? What did it ever do to you?" Zouichi glanced at the pocketknife briefly before looking over the cliff.

"I'm surprised no one ever put a cordon up here."

[identity profile] ronnae.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 07:44 pm (UTC)(link)
She thought it was a fitting nickname for her! Overheard it from him~

A small laugh escaped her lips and she covered her mouth quickly, blushing a bit.

"You'd think that right? I wouldn't be surprised if she did... Would hate if my place would suddenly end up on another location at random... I'm fairly fond of where it's at thank you very much."

She leaned back on her hands and let her feet dangle back and forth.

[identity profile] ronnae.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
"Wouldn't put it past her at this point. I swear sometimes she just does things on purpose so that people question just how insane she really is..."

Like that single day pop... Granted she was very happy to see her cousin but it also made her extremely sad to think that she might not see her again. That this war is not what it's made out to seem.

"Almost felt like she was just waving a carrot in front of us so we could be good little children and behave." she thought out loud, not having intended to.

[identity profile] carrieswar.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 08:50 pm (UTC)(link)
"Close," Jr. said, getting a good enough view of where the rock landed as he made his way closer and along the edge of the cliff. Honestly, he had come up to the cliff because he had been walking down below, and saw a couple of the tossed stones his the ground nearby. Looking up, he made out a figure though he couldn't tell who it was, so decided to head up and get a better look.

"Working on your aim?"
ext_988045: (Zouichi: um.)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-04 08:56 pm (UTC)(link)
Zouichi took the rock, rolling it around in his palm instead of throwing it. "Aha. And now you're free to throw rocks off it as you please. Victory."

He could wait for Howard to get around to what was really bothering him. He had a feeling it was the FAYZ, anyway. "I met quite a few people during the last pod release," he offered.
ext_988045: (Zouichi: ?)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-05 12:32 am (UTC)(link)
"He didn't show the last few times either." It's just as much a question as it is a statement of fact.
ext_988045: (Zouichi: um.)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-05 12:46 am (UTC)(link)
"He is safe in there. There are probably worse things than sleeping the war away." Zouichi wondered who Howard was really concerned for, himself or Orc. Maybe some mix of both.
ext_988045: (Zouichi: grim)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-05 01:08 am (UTC)(link)
Zouichi sighed. "You're right. We don't know. We don't know what will happen in the future, who's in the pods now, who our real enemies are, or when we're going to die."

He thought he'd promised to take care of Orc if Howard wasn't around. Maybe that wasn't what this was about. "But what we can do is try to bring about the best possible scenario, given what we have now and what we want to happen."
ext_988045: (Zouichi: grim)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-05 01:32 am (UTC)(link)
Aha.

"Why? Because he reminds you of the FAYZ?" Because Orc was Howard's only friend? Because Howard has realized Orc's arrival now will disrupt the position he feels he's gained here?
ext_988045: (Zouichi: ?)

[identity profile] zouichi.livejournal.com 2011-10-05 02:05 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes... but Orc reminds you of who you were during the FAYZ. When you only had one friend, one person to worry about. Now you have more people who care about you, but you also have to worry about what might happen to take them away from you. You have more to lose."

He paused. "Or am I wrong? Does this have to do what that girl was talking about on Galilee?"

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