[network] @HOOK; DAY 010 [open] [character death referenced]

[villainously]

ＤＡＹ; ＶＩＤＥＯ.

( none of the three of them have ever been in a modern school before, but Hook was in a naval academy once. a very long time ago. he can guess what this place is, if for individuals a great deal younger than he had been. there's something horribly wrong about being in the empty, frigid school, yet here they are.

he's not sure if people have named this discovery yet, but just in case, he flashes the cafeteria and the kitchen, where they managed to find quite a large stock of food. a week for each of them, which would be nearly a month for one person. )

I don't know if anyone's been, but about about two day's walk from the north wall, there's a building. we found food here. Not much for shelter, though.

( he pauses, setting the camera down so he can peer into it. it's easier for him to use this way, even if it projects a little funny. )

People have spoken of a group, collecting together. Does anyone know of a place that would be amicable to such a collection? Apparently the northwest is out, we'll need to garner another. If there truly are walls in every direction, picking a corner might be easiest for people to suss out.

( a pause, before: )

Does everyone know how to navigate by the sun? It rises in the east, sets in the west. If you have the sun rising to your back, south would be port, north would be starb— ( wait, whoops. rephrasing. ) South would be left. North would be right.

Mind it's not peerless, but it's better than nothing.

ＮＩＧＨＴ; ＴＥＸＴ.

( Hook has come to the uncomfortable and unhappy conclusion that he is locked out. pushed too hard, tried to go too far and now he's got to lie in the grave he dug for himself. it seems a miserable end, all and all... but he's fairly sure it's not one he can avoid. he's survived so much, only to freeze to death, miserable and alone.

at least Tink and Baelfire are together. that might be the only comfort he has right about now.

he's tucked against the wall of the house he can't get back into, piles of snow erected to protect him from wind, but that's all the protection he's going to get. it's a pathetic attempt with frozen fingers when he finally bothers to reach out on the magic glass that does not seem to mind the temperature. )

is there any way to get inside after the doors lock?

( because, if there is... he would quite like to know. )

ＰＲＩＶＡＴＥ ＴＥＸＴ; ＴＩＮＫＥＲ ＢＥＬＬ.

( it's only after he's exhausted every option that he forces himself to reach out. he tried to break down the door of the house he'd left a little too late... there was no getting in. now that he's made it to their door, he's too tired to try and break it open, and suspects he wouldn't be able to even if he wasn't. he knows what all this means and it seems as if he owes her the truth.

last time he hadn't said goodbye. is this really better?

he keeps to text because he doesn't want her to have to see him as he is now. if his hands are blue he can only imagine what his face might look like. )

i dinbt make it .

( sweet, short, to the point. right? she will know what that means. he can't type terribly well anymore, she'll have to forgive it. )

i' m sorry

( an unfair addition, maybe, but he wants to say it. )

Comments

night; text @baelfire

[jumpship]

I'll find a way. They have to open somehow. The locks can't be that strong. I promise.

[ because even if he's mad at Killian Jones for leaving him, for throwing him away to Pan and the island, he doesn't want him to die. In fact, it's this realization that settles dread cold into his chest -- he could lose him again, just as easily as he did the time before but this time it'd be Bae's fault.

if he can't get the doors open, if he can't get to the pirate before the cold takes him, what good is he? which may well be why Hook will hear the occasional pounding on doors and windows as Baelfire tries to find a way out. ]

[villainously]

( if he knew how to block the inquiry from Bae, he would have. he's abandoned the boy once, and yet somehow this one feels worse. he knows the finality of death better than anyone. the aching knowledge of things that would never be resolved. he didn't want to die and he didn't want to do this to the boy that against all odds is here. )

i was just asking
itd be good to know wouldn't it?

( it's a halfhearted lie, trying to pretend the obvious isn't true. he's not dying, he's inside, he just didn't make it out in time, and now he's trapped alone, just for the night...

would it be better to be honest? he's freezing to death and there's no helping it? he doesn't think so. )

[jumpship]

[ so he's angry at Hook, of course. there is so much they have yet to discuss, but the thought of him being out there in the cold is enough to make even Baelfire worry. perhaps he resents the pirate, but he'd never wish that on him. the brutal cold in the daylight was bad enough. ]

yes it would. i'll find a way. i'll get the doors open. you can't stay out there.

[ even the pirate has taught him once or twice before that the crew is the most important part of a ship, that even if you dislike one member, they were a family of sorts. and here, before he could say sorry, before he could try and maybe talk to him again, there's a locked door between them and the bitter night air. ]

please tell me how to fix it. i don't know how to get them open.

GRRR I CANNOT CODE LATELY OMG

[villainously]

( so much for that attempt to insinuate he was still inside. safe. he used to be a better liar than this, but then again, hasn't the boy known him long enough to know his tendency to hide inconvenient truths? he should have known better. )

there isn't a way, Baelfire. I tried.

( he tried breaking down the door of the previous house, tried lockpicking with frozen fingers and that hadn't worked either. now he's too tired to try either. too tired, and too cold. )

just stay with Tink. stick together.

( he doesn't want either of them to have to experience this slow, draining, frigid whisper into the night. he wishes he didn't have to inflict the knowledge he's slowly fading on them, but he fucked that up, and now he is left to try and reassure the best he can. Baelfire may hate him but he does not suspect the boy wants him dead. they just don't have a way around it. )

@cgriffin, day

[coleader]

[ Clarke knows that face, though it was decidedly more pained when she saw it last. it excites her to see that he's seemingly better and, more so, alive. ]

Hi. I don't know if you remember me, but we met about a week ago. I'm Clarke. [ most likely, everything she did is just a blur to him. that's all right. ] I'm glad to see you're doing better.

I've heard there's a convenience store stocked with food. Setting up near there could work, although I'm not sure if it's near any walls.

[villainously]

( believe it or not, he does remember. well, he remembers the blonde, and the voice. he knows someone was there before the fairy and the boy, but he quickly faded too far into sickness to really know that much about her. when his head was clear, she was gone... but he still hasn't forgotten. )

I remember a little. ( it's a rare thing to see the pirate offer a genuine smile, he usually favors smirks and glowers and other intimidating pirate-like expressions, but the girl who risked her life to safe his for no reason at all, well, it's a nice reminder that there is good out in the world. even if he might not deserve it. )

Killian Jones. I owe you a great deal of thanks... Clarke. ( he's going to have to think of a way to return the favor, somehow. that's just how pirates work.

his expression grows a bit more serious at the convenience store. ) Do you know whereabouts it is? There are at least a few habitable places, we could circle around it. Seems as if it might be wise for us to tighten in and stop moving about aimlessly.

[coleader]

No, [ she replies, shaking her head in disappointment. ] I wish I did. But there is somebody who knows, at least relative to where he's been. Chillinski?

[ Clarke feels silly saying his ID, but there it is. ironic for someone trapped in a snowy town like this. he's certainly chilly now. ]

There could be others, too. If we could all set up near there, we could have a place to leave some supplies and regroup at. People would be free to wander, but at least we'd have a reference point for any directions we gave.

—And you're right, it does feel pretty aimless. To be honest, I'm not sure what I'm looking for.

@SummerVacation

[desenchanter]

I don't know, maybe some kind of magic. I can't use any of mine here though.

[villainously]

i've heard that magic doesnt work
afraid I dont have any regardless.

( it's really not the answer he wanted, even if it's the answer he expected. )

[desenchanter]

Whoever brought us here definitely has some.

night - text - @claytonator

[dr_unconscious]

[Oh.]

[This would be the first inevitable death post Clayton's run into since his own, as he was effectively out of commission for Bard's, and this isn't even someone he knows. But that hardly matters--he doesn't remember sitting alone in the snow at night, but he doesn't need it to realize that there's no solace in dying alone. He can give this man that much.]

Not that I know of. You're better off finding somewhere out of the wind to shelter in.

[Note the delicate refusal to say "you're screwed" while still admitting that he's screwed. Hook probably realizes this and doesn't need to be reminded of it.]

Do you have any blankets or towels on you? Pillows? Anything at all that you could use to keep dry?

[villainously]

( yeah, he's known he's screwed for a pretty long time. if there was a way into that house, he'd have found it. the pirate is pretty determined when he sets his mind to something, and he only recently realized he'd rather live. now he doesn't have a choice.

it would have been nice to have an escape to this. he's not surprised there isn't one, though. )

I was just curious. would be good to know

( right, that's why he will only text, as if refusing to admit he's going to die is going to change it for anybody, certainly not him. he just doesn't want to worry a few people in particular. )

[dr_unconscious]

[No sir, this is not allowed. They can dance around the fact that he's definitely going to die, but Clayton isn't going to let him stew in his own juices about it without at least offering some kind of help. It might be pointless, it might be stupid--he doesn't care, because that's about all he has to offer right now and it's better than nothing.]

There are ways to improvise. What do you have on you right now?

day/video | ID: Bowman

[pointnshoot]

[Not that he can see, himself, but if (as he suspects) this fellow isn't entirely aboveboard, Bard is best practiced at lying face-to-face. He rather hopes he doesn't have to, however--the idea of not being the only person here familiar with life on the water makes him a little homesick.]

From which part of the north wall? I traveled east along it several days before getting caught out, so we might have a point of reference.

[villainously]

Rather hard to say without landmarks, I'd say. Depends on how big this place is, but the only wall I've seen is the north one; might be somewhere in the middle.

( that's about as descriptive as he can get before he feathers out a little more. it's not the most helpful, though. )

It's a massive structure, not hard to spot once you get close, but finding a way in isn't easy. Far as I can tell there's only one place to stay, the building itself isn't covered enough to stay the night.

[pointnshoot]

[Bard frowns a little, thoughtful more than anything. It would be good to know where this place is, but as with everything else here it seems patience is in order.]

If you can keep notes of your travels, draw a rough map or something of that nature, we might add it to the rest of the map Stephanie's been putting together. Ah, one moment...

[That gets sent off while he fiddles with switching to text, since at least that way he knows how to link shit.] The mapping project is kept here.

[Okay, that's quite enough of the text business, he'll be back to video, looking off into the middle distance but otherwise giving a creditable Polite Encouragement face.] It seems we have yet to assemble a complete map, so whatever you can provide will be doubly valuable.

night; @Chillinski

[figureitout]

[It's probably unfortunate Stiles recognizes the handle on the network, as well as what the short-but-to-the-point text means. Jesus Christ could people he knows, just, you know, stop getting locked out for the love of everything holy because he's starting to lose the ability to actually handle this.

He thinks he might as well answer with text, like Killian writes his-- easier to stay unemotional, after all. But this time? He's breaking the "answer the same way the person posting to the network is" code.]

If there was some kind of way, don't you think we would be seeing less obituaries and more, I don't know, actually alive people?

[Forgive the sarcasm, it's how he deals with things-- and anyway, there's an edge to his voice (for it's only voice that answers, without a video), an undercurrent that one might identify as hopelessness, or desperation, or something of the sort. Tiredness, even, to being locked in night after night, unable to do anything more than answer to the messages of those writing on the network, those slowly freezing to death outside.]

I thought pirates were supposed to be smarter than getting locked out after curfew. [Now there's no edge of sarcasm, at least... and yeah, dude, he figured out you're a pirate, there wasn't much trouble in that. Didn't exactly have to spell it out to him.]

[villainously]

( Stiles might be changing the format, voice instead of text, the pirate refuses to. staying in his suspended bit of reality, like if nobody sees his idiotic slow freeze, then it really isn't happening. even dying, he's proud; and hell, he doesn't suspect anybody needs to hear or see someone freeze to death. )

there've been obituaries ?

( honestly, the pirate didn't notice; he's been sick, the magic glass was hardly working, and well when it was working Hook didn't want to be close to it when it was screaming like a banshee. he spends more time forcing himself from place to place than looking at his tablet, but now he regrets it. )

pirates are often out past curfew, what sort of pirate has a mandated bedtime?
we're just used to being able to sneak our way in when we want to

( it's not a good time for jokes. his not so veiled question is not doing him any favors. so much for subtlety. )

youd think there would be a way but i couldnt find it

[figureitout]

[It's not exactly surprising, to see the text coming back in response, and really... if it was him, out there-- Stiles wouldn't probably trust himself to be able to talk properly, either. Not in the end.]

Yeah. Every time someone's... well, you know. A list of names with a message that we all mourn them or something like that.

[The next time, will it read "Killian Jones"? He's probably stupid for even holding out the hope that it won't.]

Right, because you, what, pillage and plunder even in the middle of the night. Forgot about that part. [He may sound dry, but at least it's an attempt to respond to the joke-- to think about something else, even if it's just for a moment.]

Yeah, wow, you'd think? Then you'd also probably think all of the others who have been caught outside and have tried to find a way were somehow less motivated than you, or not as good at searching? [But, no, if he hasn't seen the obituaries... then he wouldn't know just how many people have died that way, caught outside with no way to get into shelter even if they find one.]

... Sorry. [He's worried and desperate and anxious as hell and it means he's on edge, and that means sharp words he doesn't exactly stop to think, and that means being snappy at the guy who's freezing to death and that's not okay in his book.]

Night

[armoured]

No.

[Al's voice is shaking as that single word slips out, sounding more like a cracked sigh than actual language. He can't deal with this any more... he can't listen to or watch another person pretend that their imminent death is something nonchalant.]

NO!

[He's so angry, so... so furious. Not just at this place, and at the faceless captors who have brought them here, but at everyone else who is being so cavalier with their lives. It's unfair, nobody will have chosen to be locked out, but Al is past being fair right now.]

Why didn't you get inside before dark? Why weren't you more careful, Killian?!

Re: Night

[villainously]

( somehow, that someone bothers to be angry with how stupidly this all happened is a bit surprising. he suspects Tink will be angry with him, later. perhaps Baelfire. but he didn't anticipate anyone else really bothering to read between the lines of his question, and instead plenty had.

moreover, he hadn't expected anyone to be bothered by it. perhaps he should have. Al seemed like he had an open heart, in fact he reminded the pirate a little bit of Baelfire; he shouldn't have been surprised. )

i was trying to get back to my group. i thought i had more time.

( if he could do it over he wouldn't have left them in the first place, but it's too late now. he can't tell the boy it's going to be all right because he knows it's not. he's going to freeze and it's because he was foolish. )

youre not alone, are you? dont go off on your own. its never worth it

[armoured]

Don't worry about me right now! Idiot!

[Al isn't usually the type of person to insult someone else, even with someone as mild as 'idiot', but he's sincerely at the end of his rope.]

You can't die out there! Promise me you won't die out there!

day - text; ID: SceptredIsle

[keepscalm]

I know of a place where food can be found. Presumably different from the one you described, as it's not nearly as long of a walk from the north wall. My companion and I are working on mapping its location to scale to the best of our ability. I suspect we'll have that done within the next few days.

Additionally, I don't recommend congregating in the northeast corner of the town. There's a park between that corner and the shop I mentioned. It takes a hell of a long time to cross and there's no safe place to stop until after you get through it. I can't be certain what's to the south from that corner, but unless someone can confirm the existence of a food source in that direction, it's probably best not to set up camp in that area.

[villainously]

good to know. sounds as if the corners of the map aren't providing terribly much, or as far as I've heard, 2/4 aren't
are there walls all the way around? does anyone know how large this place is?
haven't gotten to making a map yet. suppose I might as I'm able. haven't had much opportunity thusfar.

what does this place you mentioned look like? is there anything left or did you take it all?

private:

[trybelieving]

you should be.

[he's always leaving her, one way or the other. he left by choice before. this? well, she can't even work up the nerve to be mad about it. and what she does feel would be heartbreaking, if she wasn't so worried about bae's heart instead of her own.]

i tried to tell you, killian. you should have listened to me. we were supposed to look after him together.

[ what does a fairy know about protecting a child? ]