ArchivedLogs:Splo-Tree

Splo-Tree
Dramatis Personae Hailey, Jim, Lyric
In Absentia	2014-03-22 '
Location <XS> Forest
Quiet and shady, the trees rise all around here high and thick. In stillness, woodland creatures make appearances, though sudden noises scare them back into the cover. Dappled sunlight filters down between the thick foliage, and the ground underfoot is heavily overgrown, though here and there paths have been worn, by deer or years of students wandering familiar trails. For the first days of spring, the weather has gotten into the season mood - the sun melts in and out of cloud cover, the temperatures opening up to the low 50's with a brisk chill breeze sending higher tree branches of the forest swaying as though thick with passing ghosts. There's a new tree in the woods, probably with a faculty 'Do Not Disturb' sign near it - not that it looks particularly inviting to the average school-goer. It's surface is bulbous and wide at the base like a kettle, black as char and stunted-ugly; wire has been bound around it, keeping a wide naked seam splitting down it lengthwise from worsening and its thick snarled up branches have been cut into at places, with small bright-eager sapling branches grafted into careful nocks and bound down like weird mismatched fingers on a horrible black hand. If the tree's appearance weren't unsettling enough, one might notice that the other native plants in its immediate vicinity seem to be... withering. In comparison. Brush and dry winter grass wilts on the direction facing it. There's a small rustling in the dry grass, quiet sneaker-clad feet creeping through the woods. Lyric is dressed cheerfully bright as she ever is, long flowing pants in sky-blue with intricate embroidery along the bottom hem, winking silvery from the inlaid mirrorwork; her top is flowing as well, matching in white-and-sky-blue with silvery embroidery. A thick dark-blue shawl wraps over her head, and a pair of pink Converse are on her feet, a knitted bag hanging over her shoulder. She is teetering by the edge of the Do Not Disturb sign, eeeeying the tree with intense curiosity and creeper-creeping closer as sneak-quiet as possible. It's /like/ Not Disturbing if you're quiet about it, right? She's crouching down onto her knees to tiiip her head over onto the side and PEER into the seam with huge wide eyes. Hailey had spent her first night at Xaviers and it had been okay. Her mother signed papers, she was shown to her temporary room and had slept in for a while. Today she had decided to explore for a while. She was allowed to use her powers here and it was pretty open so she had taken it upon herself to let loose. Teleporting from room to room, from the mansion to the forest, from tree to tree, she was panting and quite worn out but it was fun to be able to use her powers. Though some of the shadows were too weak to use as a place to transport she was still having fun. Seeing the tree she blinks, her head tilting as she steps forward. "Woah....weird..." She had a natural instinct to ignore all signs and warnings from authority figures so any warning signs put forward were automatically ignored. The closer one gets to the tree, the more a faint ominous smell of damp campfire still clings in its immediate vicinity. Campfire and something else acrid and difficult to place from that deep seam - large enough, prior to wiring, to have housed a full grown man long-ways - in its core body mass; burnt hair, perhaps. The earth around it can be felt soft and freshly dug. Lyric perhaps unsurprisingly doesn't turn at the sound of a voice behind her. She just creep-sneaks a little bit closer to the ominous tree, frowning a little bit deeper in vague unsettled worry. Her hand sneaks out slooowly, then pulls back. Then sneaks out, then pulls back. Then sneaks out, then pulls back. Slowly, she rests her palm against a charred black snarl of wood, her frown deepening unhappily and a low sympathetic moan guttering out from her throat. Pat. /Pat/. Her other hand is signing something, finger twisting in towards the tree, hand lifting upwards afterwards, fingers blossoming outwards. The shadow girl grins as she stands nearby. "Oooh freaky! What's going on with this here then?" She asks with a little smirk, bending over to peer at the tree and the site. "Looks like something was in there? There like tree people here or something? We bein' invaded by demons or some shit?" She seems genuinely happy for now, her hands spread out with a little smile, adjusting her body to pull her muscles and bones into proper order. After that slow chameleon-bobbing hand approach, Lyric will find the tree she pats solid in resonance beneath the burnt bark, a vitality free of the hollow-fragile give a dead plant might have. It may, in fact, feel almost like patting a stooped over human figure at the slope of their shoulder. Something almost... human, amongst the thrust of branches and expanding base of root systems beneath the ground. A suggestion of head, a hint of arm, lost beneath the armoring bark and branches like a Vesuvian human remnant. Still unsurprisingly, when Hailey continues to speak to Lyric's back, Lyric continues to pay no attention. This may have something to do with the fact that the other day, Lyric informed Hailey that she was Deaf. Getting Lyric's attention /may/ require other methods than using noise. There's a continuing /worry/ in her expression, her fingers slipping down to poke between the wires, feel the outline of human-shape among the wood with a gasping intake of breath and slow widening of eyes. Her head tips slowly forward against the charred bark, arm curling in around the burned and blackened tree trunk in a slow half-hug. "Oh-h-h." It's a rough unsteady groan of noise, followed by a similar groan-bark of words that sounds something like: "Splo-tree." Hailey looks around at the tree curiously before peering closer at the other girl. She taps her on the shoulder a little bit before grinning softly. "YEah, looks like the tree exploded." The shadow girl doesn't wanna touch the tree, her eyes narrowing as she looks it over slowly. "This thing is kinda odd, is it like a person or something?" She asks after getting Lyrics attention. Lyric startles and looks up at the tap on her shoulder; her worried expression briefly flickers into a bright smile, then just as quickly fades back into a deep frown of worry. She crouch-walks to sit at a bit of an angle so that she can see Hailey better, watching the girl's face and the tree at the same time. There is char and ash smeared soot-dark against her clothes when she drops her arm from the tree. The question about the tree is met with an uncertain shrug of one shoulder. She opens her bag, pulling out a notebook and pencil. 'Don't know. New? Haven't seen before. Maybe from explosion? Lots of people got explodey. Maybe tree-person?' She reaches out a hand to pat-pat the tree again sadly. 'Hurt tree-person.' Hailey nods a little bit as she watches the girl. "Maybe, I went through the explosion but I didn't see any trees, or tree people." She twitches a bit and tugs her hoody tighter over her with a little nod. "So it just kinda showed up? Looks bad whatever it is yea? I mean it's killing grass and junk." 'You were there?' Lyric's eyes widen at this news, and she turns a little bit more to /peer/ over Hailey in sudden concern, looking over the other girl now as if for signs. Maybe considering as though the girl is about to topple over herself? She leans in a little closer, but sits back down when she has satisfied herself that Hailey is not about to collapse. 'Are you okay yes this looks bad maybe it's hurt bad maybe it can't help the grass do you think it's trying to get better?' Hailey blinks a little bit before lifting her hoody open and shirt up, showing some bandages covering her burns. "Yep, I ran through it to help some people out." She chuckles softly and pulls her clothes back to their proper positions. It just may help, but we should get away just in case it's one of those devil things or whatever." 'Woah. So you were being a superhero?' For a moment there's a bright smile on Lyric's face again. 'Saving people? There were a lot of people here stuck in that maybe you've made friends already.' She frowns at the mention of devil things, uncertainly. Her fingertips reach out to brush against the bark of the tree again, tracing lightly against it. 'I don't know about devil,' she writes quickly, 'I think it's hurt I think it needs love if it got burned it might be lonely out here. I think I might come back and play it some music. They say plants like music to help grow.' Hailey shrugs a bit before shaking her head. "No way, I'm not a superhero, just a normal chick." She clicks her tongue before running her hand through her hair slowly. "I don't think I have friends here, i just got here and this doesn't seem like the place where I'd have a crew." She chuckles a little bit before shrugging her shoulders in a slow circle. "It might be hurt , but it looks like the teachers have things handled so it's fine." 'Crew?' Lyric furrows her brow with a little bit of puzzlement as she writes this word, head tilting quizzically to one side. She shrugs, too, looking back to the tree for a long moment. 'I don't know, it doesn't look fine. Maybe it will be fine some day.' She shrugs, too, slipping her bag off her shoulder and setting her notebook and pencil down atop the bag on the ground. She lays down, flat on her belly on the ground, and wriggle-slithers her way on the ground, under the wiring into the seam in the tree. Much smaller than a full-grown man, she fits herself easily into the burned out hollow, though once inside it she shivers, a tiny whimper making its way out of her throat at the smells of burned hair and flesh within. Her large eyes peer out from behind the wiring holding the seam together, staring out from beneath the twisted wood at Hailey, her hand pressing up against it. Hailey blinks a bit as she watches her move under the wire and into the tree. She wrinkles her nose as she smells the crackling tree rubble fall from the walls as she moves into it. She blinks a little bit and looks the tree over slowly. "Hmmm don't get stuck, or eaten or whatever. That thing might be kinda evil or whatever ya know?" She yawns and laces her fingers behind her head. Lyric just shakes her head at the mention of getting stuck or eaten, her eyes opening even wider. She presses her hand up against the insides of the tree walls, feeling the indentations there. Fitting her cheek against it next, her face briefly disappearing from view as she meshes her smaller head where a larger one had been before. When she squirms her way back out beneath the wiring, her neat-flowy clothes are a dirty-sooty mess, stained from ash and damp-mud where she's been worming her way across the ground and in the trees insides. She rests her palm up against the side of the tree again. And then slides her arm around the tree in a small half-hug once more, exhaling a slow heavy breath, shaking her head again. Her other hand lifts in some rapid-quick signing, spelling something out in the air and then falling to her lap as her face contorts into a saddened frown. Hailey blinks a little bit as she tilts her head. "Huh? I uh...don't understand sign language." She shrugs her shoulders a little bit, breathing out with a sigh as she looks at her, offering to help her aid. "You know you just got really filthy sliding into the burnt out muddy nasty tree." She snickers a little bit before stretching her arms out wide. Lyric looks down at her clothing at the mention of filth, and giggles, brushing her hand over the mud and soot and dusting off -- the worst of it, but mosty just smearing brown-grey streaks over the previously pretty fabric. She lifts her fist to her chin, rocking her knuckles against it. She reaches a hand down for her notebook and pencil again, flipping it open. 'There's ASL class here. My mom teaches. It was mandatory last semester but it's not anymore.' She looks a little disappointed at this but adds with a tiny crooked smile: 'You'll be one of the only people who doesn't know any. I forget not everyone can fingerspell because everyone knows now.' Hailey shrugs a bit. "Can't you just do like you are with the notebook?" She asks curiously before looking around, stretching out wide before yawning softly. "I might take it if I have time, depends on what classes there are, I mean I haven't gotten a schedule or anything yet so..." She shrugs a bit before looking at her carefully. "You're gonna have a hard time washing those. Lyric lifts her eyebrows with a quick flash of smile. 'Takes long. Cramps fingers. Is hard. Besides, why should I? EVERYONE else here can understand me now pretty much?' She shrugs at the mention of her clothes, looking down at them without much bother. 'Clothes get dirty. It washes out.' Hailey nods and shrugs a bit before yawning. "I'll think about it if I have the chance. But like I said, if Its gonna cut into other stuff I might not have a reason to really learn a whole new language. At least in a class, I'm sure hangin around you would allow me to notice it." She stretches a little and allows her back to stretch and re-adjust itself. "Hmm fine, you can be dirty then." She chuckles a little bit before rolling her neck slowly. 'Learning a new language is a requirement.' Lyric has a small amused giggle, at this. 'There's a lot of requirements. For graduating. Some math, some history, some English. Some second language. Though if you already know something you can test out maybe? I know four languages.' She picks up her bag, slinging it over her shoulder again. 'I go clean now.' But first she leans in, pressing a kiss to her hand and touching her palm to the tree for a long time. Hailey blinks as she looks at her. "How can you know four languages if you only write?" She asks before shaking her head. "Hmmm never mind I'm sure you just write things down in that language." She looks down at the ground before tilting her head. "Hmmm okay, cya later, hope all that junk comes off." She looks around for a particularly dark shadow before looking back at her. "Hey, want a ride back?" Lyric tips her head towards Hailey, shaking her head at the question with a cheerful smile. 'It's my mutant power,' she writes in answer. She shakes her head at the offer of a ride, lifting her hand to sweep upwards towards the sky. 'Beautiful day. I walk.' She gives Hailey a bright sunny smile, a cheerful bounce in her step as she tucks her notebook back in her bag, waving brightly an starting to flit back towards the school. Hailey nods a little bit with a little shrug not quite understanding it. She looks about and walks towards the heavy shrouded areas moving to a dark shadow to step through carefully, moving herself into the school with her quick focused teleportation. A couple hours later, freshly washed and changed into clean clothing, Lyric returns with a small set of hand drums and a thick blanket. She settles herself quietly beside the tree, onto the folded blanket. Tucking herself cross-legged onto the ground, she settles in with her drums to start up a gentle rhythm, light but cheerful-lively. It's clear enough she's /very/ skilled, and her pleasant beats continue for quite some time, filling the trees around her with the drumbeats until the sun starts to sink below the horizon.