[log] TAG TEAM [closed]

[armoured]

Characters: Alphonse Elric, Tadashi Hamada, Stephanie Brown, and Mami Tomoe
Location On the border of L10 and L11
Date: Day 10, Late Morning
Summary: Two sets of wanderers spot each other going in opposite directions and team up.
Warnings: None

[Despite it being comforting to have spent the night in a large group, this place was still too unexplored and the supplies were too lean to support them all continuing on together. So Al and Tadashi had splintered from the rest of the group and struck out eastwards.

Being in the company of a friend has done wonders for Al's mood, and his optimism has returned threefold. He doesn't realise that the afternoon and evening will bring tough conversations about death over the network, so for now he's still happy as he can be in this snowy wasteland.

He was amusing himself by trying to sneakily feed Mochi from the tube of toothpaste, when he spots two other figures coming out from the gloom in the opposite direction and slightly to the north.]

HELLO? HELLO OVER THERE!

[The young voice may be familiar, but the seven foot tall armour probably isn't.]

[OoC: This is a free for all for the four characters, it doesn't have to be kept to one thread.]

Comments

[spoileralert]

[ The voice and the armor alike are both familiar, though she didn't realize it was so big. Steph stops Mami to wave a hand high over her head. ]

HEY! ALPHONSE, THAT YOU?

[armoured]

STEPH! STEPHANIE!

[Al is so excited that he drops Mochi (poor cat) and leaves Tadashi a few feet behind as he scrambles forwards into a dead run. He nearly bowls her over, as it's hard to stop when metal on ice doesn't give much traction.]

It is you!

[spoileralert]

[ He does end up bowling her over, because she tries to take a step back to avoid collision and slips on the ice herself. Luckily she's got enough layers on that the bit of fluff isn't a big problem. She pulls the mask down from her face to grin up at him. ]

Boys. Honestly.

[armoured]

[He reaches down to offer her his hand, so he can help her back to her feet.]

Oops, sorry. I guess I was just excited to see you, I've been worried about you.

[spoileralert]

[ She takes the hand and uses it to pull herself to her feet. It feels like his hand fills the gigantic glove entirely. There's no way he's a fifteen year old boy this size. Either he comes from a world of giants and just sort of forgot to mention it, or something very strange is going on here.

She doesn't let the frown last more than a second. ]

About me? Don't be silly. I can handle a little snow, even if ice gives me trouble.

[armoured]

[He chuckles, though he does look her over at the same time to make sure she's telling the truth and actually is okay.

Perhaps it's a little paranoid, but so many people have been turning up dead or injured, and Steph is one of the people he feels the closest to here. She was one of the first he talked to, and one of the ones he speaks with the more frequently.]

R-Right, how could I forget? Well, how about you let me handle the ice, huh?

[fataliteas]

[She stops walking alongside Stephanie to peer at the steel-forged figure with slightly narrowed eyes that betray her calm smile. Suspicion is her first instinct, one worn more openly now with her defenses eroded by terrible sleep, the cold, the bare minimum of rations, the tightrope she walks to keep hold of her sanity. But, that voice (and those two faces) are familiar, so she relaxes after a guarded few minutes.

A polite curtsy is given by way of greeting once the distance between the two groups unravels.]

Our paths ended up crossing, huh? That's pretty lucky! I'm glad we were able to connect in person, this time.

[armoured]

[It takes him a moment to place the voice, as they haven't spoken in quite a few days, but when he does it just increases his happiness. She had seemed nice when they spoke before, and sensible, so it's good that they've managed to meet up.

The curtsy, however, takes him by surprise. It's not a greeting he's come across before, but he doesn't want to be rude, so he gives her a very awkward bow in return.]

Right! I've started running into a lot of people over the last couple of days, I guess my messages have finally been getting through.

[fataliteas]

And that people have been deciding to follow them.

[She watches him return the gesture, smiling, taking in his appearance more closely now that she has the chance but giving away nothing but a slight raising of both eyebrows. As if he was a normal human with a strange accent instead of a walking, talking suit of armor.

She's seen weirder, bigger, far more sinister. It's not so hard to accept this current reality, with those memories under her belt. Her voice lowers a touch, as if confessing a secret.]

I'm sure your company will be good for Stephanie, whether or not we decide to stick together.

[armoured]

[He has no idea that she thinks there's anything out of the ordinary with him. He might be exceptionally tall and draw the eye, but at least most people would just assume he was a person wearing armour which, while odd, isn't supernatural in any way.]

Really? Why would you say that?

[He's a little concerned there's something wrong with Steph now.]

[fataliteas]

[After spending almost two years fighting living curses that varied in form as well as ability, her first inclination is to think from a perspective of magical involvement when confronted with something outside the ordinary. Strange behavior from the populace? Possibly a Witch's influence. Unusual changes in the environment? Potentially a Witch's barrier.

Alphonse is a welcome presence simply by virtue of not being a mindless force of ill intent.]

You two seem to get along! Anyone would be happy to have a friend around.

[It's not her place to mention Stephanie's emotional troubles. They cannot be cured, Mami believes, except by escaping this place.]

[armoured]

[Al is far too trusting and he takes her at her word, thinking that she's so nice to have that concern for Steph.]

Right!

[He seems to give off the impression of smiling, even while not actually being capable of it.]

I bet she's been really glad of your company, though, I know I would have been.

I've never done free for alls I HOPE THIS IS OKAY???

[tadashiwashere]

[Tadashi's mood is markedly better as well now that he's traveling with a friend. Just having someone to chat with while slogging through the snow is something he can't stop feeling grateful for. Mochi might have been a really great cat, but he wasn't able to stave on the loneliness when Tadashi needed someone not on a computer screen to talk to.

So this was great. He was carefully pretending to not notice Al's attempts to feed the fat cat more food, breathing in the chilly air, and feeling content despite circumstances.

When Al spots the two figures in the distance and shouts out to them, Tadashi lifts his hat from his head, waving it to help flag down the two.]

HEY! LOOK THIS WAY!

<3

[armoured]

[Al slaps Tadashi on the shoulder happily, not really regulating how hard his metal hand is slapping in his excitement at seeing other people.]

I think that's Stephanie! And... Mami?

[He's only met the younger girl once, but he remembers her being kind.]

[tadashiwashere]

[Tadashi stumbles forward at the slap, surprised into almost falling face first into the snow, but he laughs as he catches himself. He jams his hat back onto his head as he squints off into the distance.]

Huh. Guess so? I didn't know there were traveling together.

[He really needs to catch up with things on the network. That will be his task for when they stop for the night.]

[armoured]

[Al will be spending that night alternately yelling at people who have died and returned, and being generally freaked out over revival being a thing here.]

Me either, I thought Steph was on her own... I'm really glad she wasn't.

[Not that Al is a mother or anything.]

[tadashiwashere]

[It's cool Al. Here's Tadashi folding his arms over his chest and echoing that sentiment.]

Same here. Hopefully everyone will pair up soon. Once we find enough supplies, we can group up more, but for now... no one needs to be alone out here.

I'M SORRY I FORGOT PEOPLE EXIST you can ignore if u want

[spoileralert]

[ Having joined to form a motley crew of young people, Steph smiles at Tadashi. She recognizes him from the network, and is in a much better mood since she's found more people and been forced to take extra rations from Al. ]

So, how's the cat?

IT'S COOL

[tadashiwashere]

[Being in a group again is nice. Though Tadashi hasn't said a lot since they grouped up a bit ago, he's not being shy -- he's just enjoying the moment. He smiles back at Steph's question and shifts his shoulder bag around to show the fat cat in question. Mochi yawns as they peer at him and offers a short meow before seeming to decide they aren't planning to feed him and curling up again.]

Heavy. Really... really heavy. [He pulls a face.] I'm starting to wonder why I haven't tried to find stuff to make a harness. I could see if he'd walk on his own a little more.

SO NOT COOL

[spoileralert]

[ She snickers at the sight of the fuzzy lump. ]

I found a dog leash you can use. It's good of you not to abandon him but this does look a little ridiculous.

YES IT IS. LOOK AROUND YOU. LOOK AT THAT SNOW.

[tadashiwashere]

It feels a little ridiculous. But... he's my aunt's. I think she might disown me if I lost him.

[As for the leash, he's willing to give it a try -- training a cat to walk on a leash can't possibly be as bad as letting said cat drag your shoulder out of socket while you ferry him around in a bag.]

You sure you don't mind me borrowing the leash?

IM FOOLISH TRASH YOU CAN IGNORE THIS IF YE WOULD LIKE

[fataliteas]

[She swallows back her suspicion, represses her distrust, hides how tired she is behind a pleasant smile as the distance between them lessens.]

Hello again. [A curtsy, neatly executed.] We meet face-to-face at last, it seems.

YOU ARE NEVER TRASH

[tadashiwashere]

[Tadashi smiles a little, offering a slight bow in return. For his part, he's happy to see more faces -- to know for sure that another person out there is close enough that he can make certain they stay safe.]

Hey, we talked on the network, right?

[It all blurs together a little now, but Tadashi is fairly certain she was one of the first people to talk to him.]

It's good to see you.

sits in garbage can like oscar the grouch

[fataliteas]

We did, Tadashi-san, although admittedly it was some time ago.

[She's been withdrawn from the network lately, listening and watching instead of reaching out to connect with others like she had in the beginning. The bleak atmosphere of Norfinbury is a constant leech on her spirit, and her personal issues make it a trial to draw true strength or courage from people. Better to keep to herself, better to limit the risk of others seeing her falter and fail. It was difficult enough that Stephanie ended up privy to such moments.]

It's good to see you as well. [A meaningful glance to the cat.] And them.

[tadashiwashere]

Mochi is happy to see new people, too.

[Tadashi reaches down to ruffled the fur around the fat cat's ears affectionately.]

He's going to see it as even more chances to get food when he's not supposed to. Al sneaks him treats, I'm fairly sure.

[He takes a breath, glancing back at Mami again. The usual question is on his lips -- How're you holding up? -- but before he can ever get it out, he has enough of an idea. In a place like this, that sort of question can erode at already weakening willpower. Something about this place makes it seem like it goes on forever. That there's no end to the monotony of waking up, walking through the snow, hopefully finding some food, and sheltering from the cold in order to repeat it all again the next day.

He shakes his head slightly, saying instead:]

There's something about being together in person that you can't beat out here. Are you guys passing through, or will you come with us?