ArchivedLogs:Tigers

Tigers

Dramatis Personae

2015-11-02

Part of the Flu Season TP.

Location

The largest room at Xavier's, the Great Hall is designed to hold all of the mansion's residents and then some. Built for the mansion's bigger functions, it serves as the school's dining halls on ordinary days, and ballroom when needed. On school days, long trestle tables stretch across the hall, high-backed chairs with plush cushions offering seating for the students.

She's wearing her surgical masks for certain values of 'wearing'. That is, she has them down around her neck, because she's eating and masks make eating difficult otherwise. Her noses are also all a little pink from frequent rubbing due to itchyness. Right now, all five of her are lingering over a tray of food hot food, if only because she's had a few canceled classes due to students in and out of the infirmary. Apparently some teachers didn't have enough students to make up a full class. Right now, each of her bodies also has a tablet pc set next to them, ready type and help them communicate. Not allowed to talk! She is also looking pretty glum alright! At least the weather is pretty mild outside, though, relatively speaking! While it may look odd that none of the five are talking to each other, for her, it's the equivalent of talking to oneself. Ironically, having five identical bodies helps with being different, and therefore precludes any desire to be much more different.

Rasa comes wandering in from one of the wings, stripping off a pair of cloth gloves as ze walks, slipping them into one of the many pockets on hir cargo pants. Hir torso is wrapped in a wide knit, orange sweater that shows the red and black camisole underneath. Hir feet stomp quickly down the aisle between the tables in thick boots that were meant to look more stylish than combat boots. Hir hair spikes up in five different directions, tufts of red and blue that continue down hir mottled skin. Amber eyes dart here and there as ze examines the food options, selects a plate and starts loading up, casting a glance toward the students when it's time to look for a place to sit.

Paras has a canceled class, too, now -- less so because of many sick students (though there probably was that /too/) and more becuase her /teacher/ is out sick. Either way: free period. The tall purple girl is using it to come down and get some extra food over some reading -- du Maurier's /Rebecca/ -- the novel is resting on her tray alongside a bowl of mac and cheese drizzled heavily with barbecue sauce and hot sauce both, as well as a bowl of tomato soup, and some tea, and some water. She's carting her tray off towards the tables, walking past the table-of-Ellins and then -- pausing. Backtracking. Her maroon eyes widen. "Hello!" She sounds polite, if a little startled. "I don't believe I've met -- all -- of -- you." Though her English is crisp and quite precise, it comes with a very distinct accent, /probably/ generally identifiable enough as From The Indian Subcontinent though it would take muuuch more familiarity to trace her Marathi roots. Her eyes are skipping from Ellin to Ellin to Ellin to Ellin to Ellin, not /entirely/ sure what to make of this.

The five, being a bit sniffly, have surprisingly plenty of room nearby. She's new, with no friends yet who are willing to brave the prospect of catching whatever she has. And they are all sort of staring at each other instead of talking. As usual, her shirts number one through five above whatever graphic they currently happen to bear. Something is tapped out, though, on one of the tablets when one of the five espies the person currently looking for a seat, and said tablet is raised in Rasa's general direction. < Need place 2 sit? Room here. > While Five holds up the tablet, Two points at an empty seat and gives a thumbs-up. Then Paras is addressing her, and she gives a thumbs up, even as Four taps out on another tablet to show to Paras. < 1 of us. We look liek sisterz but we just arnt cislocal is all. > Still, her somewhat dull expression cheers up a little at the forthright friendliness from Paras. < R u britchish? > Yep. Gonna go straight ahead with that mis-identification.

Rasa's brows rise when she is gestured to and she shuffles her way over to Paras' and the Ellins' table. Ze slips into a seat, setting hir tray down. Ze has also managed to secure macaroni and cheese, but ze has put parmesan and mustard on hirs, along with a large slappy joe sandwich. Ze's secured coffee, even though hir clothes seem to eminate the aroma on their own. Ze glances at Paras for a moment and smiles before looking to the two Ellins ze is closest to. "Yo."

"One of you? But I see five?" Paras looks confused by this, setting her tray down on the table at an empty seat but not quite sitting, yet. Her eyes are still skipping between the Ellins, trying to make sense of this statement, as well as: "Cislocal? What does that mean? -- Hello!" She gives Rasa a smile, as well, a small tip of head. The question about being British draws a small laugh. /Now/ she sits, shaking her head quickly. "Ah -- no. Not since nineteen-forty seven, at least."

To Rasa's 'yo', the Ellins all offer an upward nod of acknowledgement. Still, Three points with a spoon first at Paras and then at Rasa, as Four and Two type out a response. < Hey. Im Ellin. Its just my madeup term. U an u are cislocal best I can tell. Im multilocal. U take up 1 space. I take up 5. All 5 still make 1 person. > The Ellins wrinkle their nose, then let there gaze skip over towards Rasa. She's deciding how she feels about that sweater. Finally, she delivers a thought.

"Er, well, wouldn't cis- refer to 'same' where as single or singular provide a better contrast to multi? Or to hack a gamer's term -- uni & multi as in the uni- or multiverse?" Rasa picks up hir fork and digs it into hir mac, stirring it up a little as ze considers. When ze receives the long consideration, hir brows climb high before hir forehead wrinkles and ze half turns away under scrutiny. "Oh. Huh. Okay. I do own orange." Ze gives a little smile then offers, a liiittle bit more to Paras than the quintuplets, "Hi. I'm Rasa. Recent graduate."

Paras lets out a quiet 'hm' of thought, looking between Ellin's spoon and Rasa's sweater. Then down at her own khurta, maroon and turquoise and leaf-patterned at its hem, paired today with jeans and sneakers. SHRUG, is her evident opinion on the exchange about Orange. She stirs up her mac and cheese, the barbecue-and-hot sauces turning it deeper reddish-orange. "Paras. Recent -- transplant? Do you work here, now?" Her smile is slightly uncertain. She munches a small mouthful of mac and cheese, looking curiously at the tablets. "Why the writing, do you not --" She dips her head. "Sorry, that is rude, maybe." She reaches for her tea, blowing lightly on it. "Cislocal. Unilocal. Hmm. I am," she eventually decides, thoughtfully, "quite far from the same place I started out life in."

< Idunno. Not good w/vocab. Not a lot of vocab premade for my sitch. > As Three types that out, one looks it up. < Latin. This side of. > She wrinkles her nose a little bit in thought. < Unilocal works too. So does translocal. > She seems to consider it. A pause. Then she explains via table. The Ellins eat quietly for a time. It is a while before she expounds.

"Well, it's a new term, I suppose you could use whatever you like, once you settle on it, especially as it is somewhat personal. I just... like words. Same goes for colors. Wear what you like when you like it, especially if it looks great on you." Rasa nods to Paras solemnly upon her introduction, but gives only a small pause before ze starts to shake her head. "Alas, no. I come here to see a shrink. It sort of allows me to snatch a free meal from time to time." Ze sort of trails off when Ellin starts to expound on hir reason for text speak, hir coloration turning green and black. "Oh, fuck."

"I suppose in a place like this," Paras's hand tips outward towards the hall around them, "there are a number more people than average with cause to require their own vocabulary?" Her mouth curls up into a small smile. "We could start our own dictionary. The language of mutants." She takes a small sip of her tea, but then lowers it, slowly drawing in a breath as she reads Ellin's tablets. "Not -- to speak English. Oh. Oh, dear. Isn't that -- oh, /dear/."

The girl frowns, looking all upset all over again. All five take a more slumpy posture as One pushes food around her tray, while Three digs in her purse for a little bit of peppermint bark. < A boy alreddy told me I was going 2 die. I freeked out so bad. > Four seems to have taken over typing, now. < Mebbe it shoodnt be mutant-specific? > She makes a pondering face, though. < Is ur shrink good? Im new. Havent seen em yet. > Still, she straightens and smiles. Hairflip. That bit of transparently displayed bravado seems to have upped her mood a little, at least.

"Didn't say you were going to die, per se," Rasa hems hir shoulders growing an uncomfortable knot between them. Ze glances toward the other two and briefly puts on a pleasant face, trying to appear optimistic. "There's a whole cure thing that came out of last time something like this hit. So... just keep not speaking and take care of yourself and try not to be grumpy. Happy is better, and ... well, the school should take care of you." Hir smile falters a little, half of hir lip getting gnawed on. "I.. uh, like the idea of new dictionary."

"I have seen the infirmary," Paras muses uncertainly, "I am not quite sure it is /large/ enough to quarantine as many people as have been ill lately." She blushes a deeper shade of purple, looking down at her tea. "You are probably correct, though. I hear Dr. McCoy is a very good physician. And around this part of the world they have had much experience with -- that. No? Yes. Yes, they have." She nods to herself, as though reassuring. "I am sure," her voice is calm as she looks back from one Ellin to the next, "they will take good care of you here." After this, a smile. Small. "Oh." Small-chuckle, too, at that hairflip. "I wish I did. My auntie says I just always look like a bull trussed up for Sankranti."

< No but the boy from earlier did. He said I was going 2 be a zombie and tehn ran away screaming Idontwannadie. > She struggles to keep her good cheer up at mentioning this. Grumpgrumpgrump. Two gets up to go get a tray of orange juice for the five because she's suddenly feeing quite grumpy. One decides to take her turn at typing. < It would be about time. Theres like a million billion new pronouns and metawhatsits 2 think about. > She is even beginning to cheer more and more, at the professed confidence in Dr. McCoy. Then Paras expresses her aunties opinion, which nets a sharp look and a fiery toss of her hair. < Nounsinse! !!! ! U look teh wy u r sposed 2!! Ur aunt is just jelly cuz u r a hottie w/a bodee! Ur skin will be the same when every1 else is sagging lol 'cuz u exercise. > The typing gets worse near the end.

"People who do not know that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes have very small minds." Rasa takes a moment to really look at Paras when ze speaks and smiles. "There is nothing wrong with the way you look. You ..." ze then steals a glance at the tablet and snickers at the Ellins' encouragement. "Or that. A person could just say that." Ze scrubs at the back of hir neck with one hand, hir body slowly turning purple as well. "Yeah, the biggest thing we have to avoid about the zombie flu is panic and saying the wrong words. I don't suppose either of you knows German or Russian?"

"Oh!" Paras brightens, her smile widening at the encouragement. She smoothes the front of her kurta down over her muscular chest. "That's very kind of you to say." There's a definite /perk/ to her posture as she continues eating, with a good deal more relish. "I -- know Marathi? And Hindi? And Urdu? There was not a whole lot of German spoken back home, I am afraid. What -- /are/ the wrong -- oh. Goodness, I suppose that is a /terrible/ question, I shouldn't ask." Her head shakes furiously. "But there's a cure. For the -- the zombie," this word sounds just a little stilted, "sickness. So surely --" Another, smaller shake of her head. "It'll be fine."

< Peepl cant help wut they find pritty. They dont hafta be a douch about it. I speak uh American? I mean english? Little bits of french. Fingerspelling a little. > A pause. An exasperated look, even as One picks up a glass of orange juice from the returning clone's tray without looking at it. The others all help themselves AFTER the clone has sat down with the tray. Paras gets advice from Two. < Be feerce gurl. Your totes a purple tiger. > Ellin seems more comfortable when she's complimenting other people, anyway. How hard could it be?

"Ahhh, well. Poop. Russian is such a lovely language. I didn't learn it until I came here." Rasa turns back to hir food and eats quietly, listening and reading the different tablets as they are turned back toward hirself and Paras. "Ohh, well. You should know what they are. It is how you catch it. Um, can I borrow one of your tablets?" Ze glances up at two or three of the Ellins, unsure which to focus on. "I'll write them out so you know not to say them."

"Douch --" Paras echoes this word with a small furrowed-brow of uncertainty, slightly puzzled. She tips her head down, smiling faintly. "I tested out of having to fill a language requirement, but there are so many offered here. It may be interesting to study a new one all the same. Hard to /pick/, though." She takes another bite of her food, nodding. "Don't be a zombie, then. We'll just all be -- tigers." This thought seems to please her, eliciting another smile after a moment. Then a small laugh. "{I will teach you Marathi.} If you like."

Russian. < Dedu and babu are from Moskva. I think tahts near Moscow. We dont see tehm anymore. > Well, it IS Moscow, but she doesn't do well with geography either. Ellin, however, has seen that look on peoples faces before. Three holds up a finger and hands her tablet over with the words: < Just pick 1. Unless I tell u 2 directly, it doesn't matter 2 me which bod u talk w/. > One focuses on Paras, then, and nods, even as they all finish off their orange juice. Two takes her turn tapping out on the tablet. < Tahts ur nicky now. Tiger. Lol. Good nicky. Yay! Now I get a awesome tutor for neat lang. U in any clubs? >

"Douche," Rasa corrects quietly, then adds, "French for shower, in the English vernacular, a reference for the internal irrigation of female parts. It's meant to be dirty or gross despite the root." Ze shrugs a little and takes the tablet, typing out a quick list of words. "There may be more. I don't know. I don't think the news was ever really conclusive, but here you go. No matter what, never say these words in English." The list reads simply, 'Weird, Water, Sorry, City, Night.' "If someone starts repeating something a lot, never say it back. -- You know those are... well, you're basically talking in Russian when you say ... oh never mind."

"Never --" Paras presses her fingertips to her lips, as though one of those words might just /slip out/ of its own volition. "Goodness. That's a challenge. I suppose you get used to it?" She shakes her head at the question of clubs. "Are you? I've been so busy just trying to settle in -- class already is work enough. I figured once I was settled, there would be time for clubs? Perhaps? All in good time."

< Douche. Yes. Dedu and babu dont really c I 2 I w/my parents. When I wuz really littl tho they use 2 give me candy. > All five get a dreamy sort of look. She wiggles her fingers at Paras, though, in send-off. Then they're looking at Rasa again. Her clone is happy to have the tablet back though. < Thank u. Ill be sure to be careful when I can talk again. > Elln seems contemplative. < Dad was in Atlanta with the CDC when the first one hit. We thot we wood never see him again. Hes pulling his hair out at me being sick even tho Im just snfifly. >

"{Grandpa, Grandma, Moscow...}" Rasa starts speaking the language with a fairly decent accent, hir gaze lowering, pausing only to wave goodbye to Paras as well. "Russkiy -- Russian. So you know three words. I mean, it's a start, but not necessarily one of the most commonly spoken languages in this country." Ze eyes hir lunch and then eyes the time. "You know, I should probably get my train back... The location word is the worst. I mean, it's build right into the Big Apple's official name. I'll see you around, yeah?"

The girl stands, all five of her, as Rasa works to excuse hirself. < Oh! I thought Moskva was like a tiny country. That explains the funny words and axent. > Five begins stacking the trays. Three angles the tablet for optimal viewing. < Id hug u but I get teh dont-like-to-be-touched vibe off u. Settle for teh sentiment? >

"My mutation doesn't make it... easy for me to hug strangers. Many apologies." Rasa slips hir gloves back on hir hands before one forms a fist and circles hir chest. "You also don't need to walk me out. I know this place like the back of my hand -- well, better as my hand is hard to know." Ze gets to hir feet and smiles at the group before heading for the door. "See you later!"

Between the sign she already knew and what she's been picking up, she even manages to sign 'nice to meet you'. < Its my parents. Tehy taut me 2 to always walk peepl leaving ur house out. Its polite. > Four lets her gaze slip over to Rasa. < Im usually pretty good at readin peepl like that. I'mn sorry u cant get hugs comfy. > A pause. Then two pulls out a small paper bag, three-quarters empty. The rest has peppermint bark. < A present, cuz I liek u and u arnt always here. > Taken or not, the girls head to bus their trays while Rasa makes for the door.

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